Hate Myself For Loving You
Folc4evernaday
Chapter 13
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Dan Scardino tapped his hand on the table in front of him as his contact, Dr. Silas Stone at S.T.A.R. Labs examined the explosive device that had been fished out of the McCarthy residence by Superman. He could immediately recognize the difference in the craftsmanship the minute Superman had shown him the device. McCarthy had always prided himself on the creative ways he found to turn everyday objects into a deadly surprise. This one however seemed too simple for McCarthy’s taste.
“So, what do you think, Dr. Stone?” Dan asked, taking a gulp from the soda he’d been nursing for the last half hour.
“I think for someone that hasn’t darkened my door once since last year’s fiasco with the suits upstate and that failed drug bust that landed us all in hot water you have a funny way of showing gratitude for someone that’s doing you a favor.” Dr. Stone replied, not looking up from the microscope he was examining the explosive device under.
“That was not my fault, Dr. Stone,” Dan had the decency to blush at the reminder of the events that had taken place last year with the bad lead the DEA had been fed which had nearly cost his and his superiors their pensions. “We trusted the wrong source.”
“I moved to Metropolis to get away from Washington’s rat race,” Dr. Stone said, pulling out a pair of tweezers to extract a small disc from the device. “I don’t want this to become a habit, Agent Scardino.”
“Noted,” Dan said with a heavy sigh, recalling all the troubles that had transpired over the last year. Dr. Stone was one of the leading scientists in robotic technologies and had assisted in quite a few cases in Washington to help nab some of the most notorious drug runners that often led him to the likes of Intergang and the phony government research center, Cadmus. “Look, Dr. Stone, you’re one of the few people I can trust. I know we ended things on a sour note last year but I swear the fiasco with the Suicide Squad and Amanda Waller had nothing to do with me. I need someone I can trust.”
Dr. Silas Stone met Dan’s gaze with a wary expression then waved a finger in his face, “You cross me and you’ll live to regret it, Agent Scardino.”
“I won’t let you down, Dr. Stone.”
Dr. Stone eyed Dan with a critical gaze, raising an eyebrow at him for a long moment and then let out a gruff snort in agreement. He then cleared his throat and pointed to the disc he had extracted, “Robotics.”
“Sorry?” Dan asked.
“Your bomber is a lot more technical than he appears. Micro circuitry down to the near molecular level.” He pointed to the disc under the microscope. “I’d say some advanced knowledge in micro-coding.”
“Have you seen anything like this before?” Scardino asked, curious where an expert like this could have gotten mixed up with McCarthy.
“I’ll run a search through the S.T.A.R. Labs database and see what I can come up with.”
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Clark flew through the sky holding Lois with one arm wrapped around her as she held onto his neck while he used his other arm to hold up her Jeep as they flew through the sky. She let out a long breath against his chest as the wind blew across her face, “You know, I could have driven.”
“I know,” he said, allowing a smile to spread across his face. “I just didn’t want to take any chances after what happened at the McCarthy’s.”
“You think the target was the letters or Colleen McCarthy?” Lois wondered aloud as they reached the center block of Metropolis where the Daily Planet’s parking garage was located.
“I don’t know, but I really didn’t want to take any chances given the last few days,” Clark explained, circling over the rooftop of the parking garage where there were several free parking spaces.
“So, what’s the plan now? Park on the roof?” Lois asked, tightening her arms around his neck.
“No,” he answered with a smile as he x-rayed the levels below them and soared through the path leading further down to the fifth level where a parking space was located just off the corner of the elevator. He smiled to himself as he set the Jeep down in the middle of the parking space lines then set Lois down so her feet were touching the concrete floor beneath them.
He felt his breath catch in his throat for a moment, staring into Lois’ eyes as his hands shifted from the middle of her back to her hips. She wasn’t letting go. Not that he wanted her to. He’d flown them out of Bakerline and as far away from Colleen McCarthy and her sociopathic son as he could.
Partly for Lois’ safety and partly to provide a change of pace and if he was honest with himself to show off just a little bit. Things felt so unsettled between him and Lois ever since his revelation. Where they stood in their relationship – if it could even still be called that. Everything felt like a thick blinding fog, preventing him from seeing where to turn next. He wanted more than anything to pick up where they had left off, but he knew it was wishful thinking to presume anything right now.
He felt the corners of his mouth twitch as he gestured to the elevator next to them, “Door to door service, Ms. Lane.”
Her arms slipped from around his neck and she took a step back, escaping from his embrace before she began to get back to business. Her attention focused on retrieving the letters from the Jeep and rambling off how to bring Perry into everything. He sighed internally, nodding his agreement as he ducked behind the dark corner where he’d parked to change back into his suit.
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Diego Martinez tossed a bag of leather gloves and a dark duffle bag on the table in front of Albie Swanson. He frowned as he looked back at Albie Swanson, “I thought you said this guy’s work was top notch, Albie.”
“It is,” Albie said, raising his eyebrows in surprise as she stared at the duffle bag suspiciously.
“Well, if you consider top notch work to be an earthquake inside the McCarthy home and no boom then I guess you’re right.” Diego shrugged, slamming his hands on the table.
“What?” Albie hissed in anger, standing to his feet.
“What the heck is going on?” Diego asked.
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Lois hunched over the large stack of letters she and Clark had obtained from Colleen McCarthy just after the near-miss of being caught in an explosion Lois was sure connected to the cagey notes sent to Sean McCarthy’s mother. After the flight back to the Planet, they had updated Perry on everything they had discovered and then begun going through the letters in hopes they could uncover whatever clue someone had been trying to hide with the bombing of the McCarthy home.
A chill ran down her spine as she recognized the handwriting as the same as the threatening notes that had been sent to her over the last few days. Still, she pressed on. Refusing to give McCarthy the satisfaction of scaring her off.
“Are you sure you’re all right going through these?” Clark asked, setting another stack of letters down. “I can go through these at super-speed and just…”
“And then you might miss something or I might miss something.” Lois cut him off as she set the letter in her hand down. A smile crossed her face as she watched him flip through the letters in his hand at super-speed. “You’re supposed to be reading those.”
“I am,” he answered with a grin.
“Really?” she cocked an eyebrow at him. “You read every single word on all twenty of those letters in five minutes?”
He probably had. If she had learned anything over the past year it was to expect the unexplainable from Su…Clark. Her mind quickly corrected almost on auto-pilot now. It seemed to get easier the more she did it. Correcting herself to think of Superman as Clark and Clark as Superman. They were of course one and the same. Something she was becoming more and more comfortable with reconciling the more she watched him show the side to him that she had never been privy to before.
A small smiled peaked across her lips as she looked back at him, wondering just what was going through his mind. She had asked for time to process his revelation and with it the shift in their relationship. Where their relationship stood after learning of his alter ego was anyone’s guess at this point. She had been the one to pull away but so had he. There were the occasional moments where it felt just as easy as it had been just a few short days ago when she had been oblivious to his need to moonlight in tights and leap tall buildings in a single bound.
Clark interrupted her thoughts transcribing what he’d read from memory with a yawn, “Blah, blah, blah, thanks for the cookies. My pals really enjoyed them. Blah, blah, blah, thanks for sending me money for cigarettes. I’m going to get out of here one day, you’ll see…”
“Show off,” Lois said, reaching for another letter. She frowned when she spotted the date on the letter in her hand. “Hey, this one was sent a few days before McCarthy supposedly died in prison.” She pulled the letter out of its envelope and began skimming it for clues. “Listen to this. ‘This is probably the last letter I will be writing you from prison. If you don't hear from me for a while or ever again —don't worry. Just know that I am in a far better place...’”
“If we didn’t know he was walking around free as a bird I’d say that sounds like a man who knew he was going to die.” Clark responded with a frown.
“Yeah,” Lois frowned as she continued to skim the letter. “He mentions someone named ‘Albie’ for her to send this month’s check to.”
“An Albert Swanson was mentioned in a letter,” Clark said, fishing it out of the stack he’d read through already. “Here it is!” he proudly handed over the letter for her to read. “Second paragraph.”
Lois pulled up the letter and read the paragraph aloud, “I’m making more friends in here every day. I’ve come across a man that Buster Williams introduced me to. Albert Swanson. A name you could easily forget but will help with overturning this prison sentence.” Lois frowned as she contemplated the words she read aloud. “He doesn’t come out and say it but it sounds like this Albert or Albie Swanson could be the one that helped him escape.”
“Or at least connected him with the person behind this resurrection pill.” Clark reasoned, shaking his head. “Where’s the notes on that interview with the medical examiner that did McCarthy’s exam?”
“The Medical Examiner?” Lois frowned, crinkling her nose as she looked around the table for the information Clark was asking about.
“I had Jimmy run a background check on the ME staff. I want to compare and see if…” Clark found the file he was looking for and quickly flipped to the page he was looking for. “There was a large donation made to the Assistant M.E. … A Melissa Scott. A grant of some sort from….Ah, ha!” he pointed to the name on the page.
Lois leaned over his shoulder and read the name aloud. “Gables Estate? What do they have to do with this Albie Swanson?”
“I don’t know,” Clark frowned, pointing at the page. “But something tells me he’s connected.”
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Dr. Stone tapped at his keyboard at a speed that made Dan Scardino think for sure the good doctor was part robot. He wouldn’t have been surprised to see smoke rising from the keys but was thankful the computer he worked at seemed to be able to keep up with Dr. Stone. He watched the screen change again and again as the data Dr. Stone had found was matched up with every known expert in robotics until it finally landed on one image.
Dr. Rollie Vale.
A large red box with the word ‘Deceased’ was splashed across the doctor’s image and Dan frowned at the screen. “Is this some sort of joke?”
“No joke,” Dr. Stone shook his head, “It appears the individual that built this bomb has done so from beyond the grave.”
“Great,” Dan fumed angrily, feeling the frustration rise within him. He pointed to the file. “When did Dr. Vale supposedly die then?”
“It looks like it was just about a month ago,” Dr. Stone pointed to the report on the screen.
Dan frowned when he recognized the name at the bottom of the report as one of the Assistant Medical Examiner’s that he’d spoken with a few days ago. The same examiner that had signed off on McCarthy’s exam, declaring him dead.
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Albie craned his neck, looking over his shoulder as he made his way to the study of the Gables estate. McCarthy was gone. Where was anyone’s guess. Gables was still too consumed with his plan for destruction. A destruction by the means of a lethal virus that would cripple everyone within the city’s limits with an agonizing and painful death. A death he would not be around to witness. He wasn’t sure if it was the medication or the disease eating away at Gables’ braincells but the man was becoming more and more unhinged by the second. Despite the obvious issues that kept arising – Mayson Drake surviving the assassination attempts, the letters not being destroyed—he wasn’t going to stay around to watch the fallout.
He reached his hand over to where the safe was – hidden behind the portrait Stanley Gables kept of his golden retriever that had passed a few years ago. He expertly spun the combination lock, hearing each click until the release of the safe’s inner locks gave away. He reached over to pull the handle, opening the safe and reaching in to grab as much mad cash as he could along with the phony identification, he had obtained under the Gables Estate. A smile spread across his face as his hand tightened around the briefcase in his hand. He couldn’t linger too much longer or risk drawing attention to himself. He patted his pockets, feeling his wallet and keys snug in his pocket and then turned toward the exit, ignoring the shouting match that was taking place upstairs.
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Jimmy Olsen pointed to the screen on his computer, showing the information he’d been able to pull up on Gables Estate. “This place is anything you want it to be. A cancer treatment center looking for funds to help the poor sick kids fighting a disease we know will never be cured, a foundation looking to fund assistance for third world countries, and never making its way to the promised recipients.” Jimmy pressed his index finger against the screen and added. “It’s an elaborate Ponzi scheme.”
“Yeah, I’ll bet,” Clark muttered shaking his head as he flipped through the printout of the Medical Examiner’s deposits from the supposed charity. "Nearly three hundred thousand dollars paid to our questionable Medical Examiner."
He looked to Jimmy and asked, "Any chance of getting into this Ponzi scheme's bank records?"
Jimmy let out a long breath, stretching his arms out over the keyboard with a confident grin. "I'll see what I can do."
“So, this Gables Estate charity was paying off the Medical Examiner,” Lois deducted aloud, looking at Clark, “You think they are paying off the prison too?”
“I don’t know,” Clark’s brow furrowed as he read over Jimmy’s shoulder as he worked on trying to hack into the dummy charity’s online bank information. “But it can’t be a coincidence.”
“Medical Examiner. Prison. Possibly our missing prisoners… What does it all mean?” Lois wondered aloud, folding her arms across her chest. Clark’s brow furrowed as Jimmy pulled up another screen, revealing a familiar looking man with dark curly hair. “Is that…?”
“Albert Swanson.” Clark read the name below the image.
“He was at the prison and sends a huge amount of money to the Medical Examiner.” Lois crinkled her nose as she stared at the image. “Why? What is he up to?”
“Let’s find out.” Clark pointed to the file in his hand. “We know at least one person involved in his scheme.”
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Lois reached the elevator leading to the morgue then stole a glance at Clark before reaching over to press the call button. Clark placed a hand on her shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze. She smiled back at him, "So, what are the chances she’s still around? Nearly three hundred thousand dollars in the last month. That’s enough to start a cozy life somewhere if you don’t want to get caught doing something dubious.”
"If she has made a run for it, I’m sure we’ll find out." Clark responded as the elevator pinged and they stepped inside. "There’s still the question of the other three deposits made to Dr. Scott. How many others has she pulled this scheme for?"
"McCarthy isn’t the first, but hopefully he’ll be the last,” Lois said, reaching her arm over to press the button for the lower level where the morgue was located.
“I still don’t understand what all this has to do with Mayson’s car bombing.” Clark mused aloud, “I mean, Mayson knew about the resurrection pill but still had no idea about this Gables Estate scheme or what we think the M.E. was doing…”
“Maybe they decided not to take any chances when they realized she’d uncovered the pill?” Lois wondered aloud. “Though we still don’t know where this pill came from or how much Mayson really knew.”
“You think she was holding back on what she knew?” Clark asked as the elevator pinged, announcing their arrival to the morgue.
“Well, you have to admit she isn’t exactly forthcoming with information lately and she’s obviously hiding something.” Lois hooked her arm through Clark’s as they stepped off the elevator.
“Bizarre behavior, yes.” Clark acknowledged as he walked through the darkened hallways. “I’m not sure I’d go so far as to say she’s lying to us though. She’s always been truthful.”
Lois cocked an eyebrow at him and sighed, “You really don’t give up on that whole finding the good in everyone bit, do you?”
“There is good in everyone, Lois, even if you do have to look carefully for it in certain people,” Clark smiled back at her as they reached the Medical Examiner’s office. Lois threw him a half-smile but didn’t respond. Clark looked around the office and sighed, “Looks like the doctor isn’t in.”
“So, where do you think she’s gone to?” Lois wondered aloud as she began to look around the office.
Clark scanned the desk in the corner and spotted a day planner next to the name plate that read, ‘Dr. Melissa Scott,’ and then reached down to sift through it. “Looks like she’s scheduled to do an autopsy at the hospital right now….”
“So, that gives us some time to look around,” Lois purred happily as she began to sift through the contents on the medical examiner’s desk. “Nothing here, but pictures of her cat,” she squinted at the frame the photograph was in and read it aloud, “Whiskers.”
Clark flipped through the file box on the desk, looking for anything that would provide some insight into what the medical examiner was up to. “Nothing here but copies of autopsy reports.”
Lois leaned down, looking under the desk when she spotted a small black safe beneath the desk, “What’s that?”
“What’s what?” Clark asked, kneeling down next to her.
Lois pointed at the safe then looked over her shoulder to where Clark was hunched down next to her. “Think you can see what’s inside it or should I put my safe cracking skills to the test?”
“It was never safe-cracking skills that got you in,” Clark smirked and before she could respond she saw a smoke begin to rise from the lock. She glanced back at him in surprise and he pointed ahead, “Go ahead and open it.”
Inside she found a small file jacket and a clear jar of 4 capsules that looked to be halfway dissolved – more than likely extracted at the time of the autopsy exam. Lois stared at the half-eroded pills in the jar, holding it in her hand as Clark sifted through the file jacket. “Think this is enough to prove our case to Henderson?”
“If not, I’ve got something.” Clark handed her the file jacket. “Look at the first name on the file.”
“Rollie Vale?” Lois nearly choked out when she read the name. “How long has she been doing
Clark pointed at the notes in the report, “Looks like Rollie Vale was their first experiment.”
“Successful anyway,” Clark muttered, skimming through the file in his hand. “This is sick.”
“Why? Why would someone do something like this?” Lois wondered aloud, trying to comprehend the horrendous notes that depicted how Rollie Vale’s death had been orchestrated by a name that appeared to be redacted from the file and then his body experimented on with what was being referred to as ‘resurrection.’ The experiment status was marked as ‘successful.’ No other notes were listed on the doctor’s report.
Clark’s brow furrowed as he looked through the other files in his hand, “Looks like there were more than a few misfires,” he handed her a handful of files labeled with a red stamp indicating ‘Rejected.’
“Now why am I not surprised to find you two here?” a voice came from behind them and they both jumped.
Lois turned around and spotted Dan Scardino standing behind them with a file jacket of his own in his hands. “Agent Scardino, what brings you here? Following us?”
“No, I wanted to ask our ever so popular Medical Examiner a few questions about an autopsy she did on an inmate a few months back.” Dan Scardino explained, looking around the empty office. “I’m guessing I just missed her.”
“I’m guessing the guy looking at that bomb was a dead end?” Lois prodded, trying to change the subject.
“On the contrary, it was quite enlightening.” Dan said with a shrug. “Apparently the bomb that was planted was a very sophisticated bomb. Something that had to be created by someone that understood robotic engineering down to the microscopic level.” Dan held his hands up as if to signal his uncertainty before grunting a quick, “Whatever that means.”
“Robotics?” Clark echoed as Lois stared at the name on the file in her hand.
“Apparently only one person could build such a thing with the code that was used. The man that built it.” Dan continued.
“Rollie Vale,” Lois guessed, staring at the report in her hand that described how Rollie Vale was the first patient to receive the resurrection pill and not die from complications.
“How did you…?” Dan began to ask.
“Apparently Rollie Vale was the first successful experiment of this Resurrection drug,” Clark explained, standing up and helping Lois to her feet. “Our Medical Examiner was complicit in the coverup and receiving regular payments from a dummy charity ….”
“I’m guessing each deposit is going to match up with one of these,” Lois said pointing to the three files in her hand. “Sean McCarthy. Diego Martinez. Rollie Vale.” She set each file down on the desk.
“Sounds like we’ve got a lot of catching up to do,” Dan said, leaning over to read through the files in front of him.
Lois held up the jar of half eroded pills, “I believe we have more than enough for Henderson to get an arrest warrant.”
“He may need to move sooner than we think,” Clark said, pulling out a single form from the back of the file jacket. He looked at Scardino and handed the form to him. “Does the name Buster Williams ring a bell?”
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Detective Ryder tapped on the steel metal table in front of him as he stared back at the dark-haired Mary Williams dressed in an orange jumpsuit after being booked in the system. He felt the corners of his mouth twitch as he tightened his jaw and waited for Mary to look away from him. His mouth curled into a smirk when he saw her look down at her hands that were planted in front of her.
Ryder reached over and flipped through the file on the table next to him, letting out a low whistle before looking back up at Mary. “Mary, Mary, Mary, you seem like such a smart girl.” He folded his hands on the table and leaned forward, resting his chin on top of his knuckles. “Explain it to me how you go from the doting assistant of the DA to orchestrating a conspiracy to have the ADA killed?”
“I didn’t!” Mary argued.
“Ah, ah, ah, ah,” Ryder chastised, wagging a finger at her. “You know we have you dead to rights. Don’t patronize me by lying to me.” His gaze darkened as he stared her down. “I know you put the bomb in ADA Drake’s car.” He tossed a printout on the table for her to read. “I know you’ve been receiving regular payments from an organization called the Gables Estate for a sizable amount in the last six months.” He pointed his finger at the line on the printout he was referring to. “Who are you working with?”
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Sweat poured down the back of Christopher Gomez’s neck as he struggled within the binds that kept him tied securely to the chair whose back was kept in place behind the door with a rope tied securely to the door knob. He could feel the skin burning beneath his plastic binds as he attempted to loosen his wrists. He could feel the plastic cutting through the skin as the ground below him vibrated with a rumble as his hand clasped around the door knob behind him.
Voices below him could be heard through the muffled floorboards as he tightened his grip on the doorknob behind him. He opened his jaw from behind the tight bind wrapped around his head and silencing his shouts for help. He fumbled with the doorknob with his hands and then toppled to the ground as the lock on the door broke and his face hit the wooden floor.
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Bill Henderson reached his hand up to grasp the coffee mug on his desk. His tired eyes swept across his desk to where the tall stack of interrogation reports were awaiting his review. At the top of it was the write-up Ryder had done on his interview with Mary Williams. A groan escaped his throat as he set his mug of coffee down.
He skimmed through the report, uncertain what to make of the fallout that had been uncovered. Mary Williams had given up Stanley Gables and Albie Swanson as the key conspirators behind the grand scheme to commit assassination of mass proportions with biohazard weapons that had been developed by Stanley Gables himself. The plan was ingenious and diabolical.
There was still the unanswered questions regarding how Sean McCarthy and Diego Martinez had shown back up, but he was sure Diego would give up what he knew. The history of Diego’s criminal past and how he had ended up in Metropolis Penitentiary to begin with. The deal he had copped to testify against his former partner in crime.
A loud thump shook his desk and he jumped, startled by the noise. He looked up and saw an irritated Detective Riley in front of him, pointing to the front door. “You expecting a visit from the press, Henderson?”
Henderson let out a deep sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose before glancing back at Riley, “Just one or both of them?”
“Lane and Kent are holed up in the front, demanding answers about Gomez and the sting you ran on Gables.” Riley pointed behind him with his thumb. “You want to handle it?”
Henderson shook his head with a grimace, recalling the hysterics his captain had been in just a few short hours ago when they had not only found Christopher Gomez – the security guard that had supposedly died of unknown causes in the hospital just days before- along with the supposed mastermind behind the bioterrorist attack. He couldn’t really blame Lane and Kent. They had helped provide him the information that had led to the arrest of a rogue Medical Examiner who had been in on probably much more than a conspiracy to sneak criminals out of prison by faking their deaths. This was a big story. A big story that he was sure every reporter was scrambling to get the scoop on.
“Tell them I’ll be out to talk with them in a few minutes.” Henderson said, as he stood up, taking the report with him as he navigated his way through the maze of cubicles in the precinct. He could wait of course and see if his fellow detectives could break Diego, but since the ADA’s assistant had been so open to conversation with Ryder it was reasonable to think she might be forthcoming with more information on Gables and Swanson’s operation.
He reached the interrogation room where Mary had been left after the last round of interrogation and tried to turn the knob only for his hand to be met with resistance. He frowned, trying once more with a grunt. He looked around, seeing nothing out of place with the fellow officers as they continued about their day to day duties. He attempted to turn the knob once more and then took a step back, lifting his foot to kick the door open. The door was quick to give away with the weak hinges that hadn’t been maintained properly over the years.
“Oh, no,” Henderson let out a gasp in horror when he spotted the body of Mary Williams lying in a pool of blood in the middle of the interrogation room floor.
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TBC....
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