Hello, everyone!
Real life has gotten so hectic that I almost forgot that today was Monday. Well, here's Part 5, as promised. I know I said that I would probably start slowing down in posting now, but I can't leave you all waiting for a week (you'll see why when you get to the end of this part).
I want to thank everyone who is following this story, especially those who have left fdk!
From Part 4:
He’d been a fool to believe that Lois only saw her partner in a platonic light. Lois was in love with Clark Kent. The conversation he’d overheard thanks to the bug he’d hidden in her purse had confirmed his suspicions. He’d underestimated Kent, and in doing so, his plan had backfired horribly. By exposing Clark Kent as Superman, he’d hoped to ruin Lois’s ridiculous infatuation with the super hero. He had assumed that Lois had seen Kent as he’d seen him—someone insignificant and unimportant. Apparently, he’d been wrong. Lois had been in love with Kent all along—in both his guises.
Suddenly, Kent’s words repeated themselves in his mind. <Using the people I love is a far more powerful weapon.>
Lex paused in his musings as an idea occurred to him. He’d bet that the same would be true for Lois as well. Maybe all wasn’t lost, after all. Maybe he could use her love for Clark Kent to his advantage. Lex smiled, his eyes bright with evil brilliance. Going back into his office, he quickly placed a call to his personal assistant.
“Mrs. Cox, contact Lois Lane and tell her that I’d like to have a word with her about Superman.”
“I’ll get on it right away, Lex. Is there anything else?” Mrs. Cox asked.
“Yes. Tell her that I have information about kryptonite.”
********************************
Part 5:
Lois opened the doors to the lobby of Lex Towers, her stomach churning. She headed straight to the reception counter in the large lobby. “Lois Lane. Lex Luthor is expecting me,” she told the young blond woman behind the counter. The woman nodded, indicating that Lois could pass.
As she headed toward the bank of elevators, her mind wandered back to the phone call that had brought her here in the first place. Lex’s personal assistant, Mrs. Cox, had called to tell her that Lex would like to request a meeting in person. He wanted to talk to her about Superman. If that wasn’t enough to get her moving out the door, the mention of kryptonite was.
Lois puzzled over it as she stepped into the elevator. She had believed kryptonite nothing more than a myth—something that had lived only in the imagination of an insane rogue agent from a now-defunct branch of the government.
Lois was about to push the button that would take her to the penthouse when she stopped dead in her tracks. She’d first heard of the mystical rock that could hurt Superman while she and Clark were in Smallville some months ago on assignment. Only then she hadn’t known what she knew now—that Clark was Superman. And Clark had come down sick with a bad case of allergies.
Or was it a bad case of kryptonite?
Lois pushed the button quickly, suddenly in a hurry to get up to Lex’s penthouse. Mrs. Cox had told her that Lex had information about kryptonite. Dread settled in Lois’s stomach at the thought. Lex was a maniac, just as Jason Trask had been. What if he had somehow obtained kryptonite? And could it really hurt Clark?
Suddenly, Clark’s words from earlier that day came back to her…
<I used to think that kryptonite was the only thing on earth that could hurt me, but now I know better. Using the people I love is a far more powerful weapon.>
Lois gasped out loud at the memory. At the time, the mention of kryptonite hadn’t registered. She’d been too surprised to see Clark barge in through her living room window. But now the implications of what he’d said hit her with full force.
“Oh god,” she moaned, her voice sounding abnormally loud in the empty elevator. Kryptonite was real, and it could hurt Clark. In fact, it could possibly kill him.
Lois forced her mind back to that brief few days in Smallville when Jason Trask had tried to kill Clark and his parents. She remembered a time during their visit when he’d gotten a paper cut, and would never forget the look of shock that had crossed his face at the sight of his own blood. At the time she’d brushed his weird behavior away, knowing that Clark had always had a weird streak in him. Now it all made sense. He had been exposed to kryptonite, and it had made him vulnerable. And if Clark were to become vulnerable, then he could be killed, just like any other person. The thought shook Lois to the core.
The ding of the elevator startled her, making her jump. She exited the elevator as soon as the doors slid open. She was surprised to see Mrs. Cox waiting in the hall for her. “Mr. Luthor is waiting in his study. Right this way, please,” Mrs. Cox directed before walking away, not bothering to make sure that Lois was following her.
Lois followed Lex’s personal assistant down the hall and through a door, frowning at her back in distaste. She didn’t like the woman. A moment later, she came face to face with Lex Luthor.
“Hello, my dear. I’m so glad that you could make it. Please, have a seat,” he offered with a charming smile, indicating that she should make herself comfortable on his loveseat. “That will be all, Mrs. Cox,” he said, dismissing his personal assistant.
Lois sat down, eyeing him warily. “Well, now that I’m here, I must admit that I’m curious as to why you wanted to talk to me,” Lois told him.
“Yes, I imagine you are. The mention of kryptonite no doubt sparked that notoriously insatiable curiosity of yours.” Lois watched as Lex went to his desk and picked up a small metal box. He walked back to where she sat and joined her on the loveseat.
“Curious as to why you’d bring it up, yes. But kryptonite is nothing more than the figment of a maniac’s overactive imagination. I should know—I wrote the story,” Lois told him, hoping beyond hope that he wouldn’t open that box to reveal a strange-looking rock. She had no idea what kryptonite looked like, she only knew that it was a meteorite from Clark’s home planet.
“So you never actually saw this mystical rock you call kryptonite?” Lex asked her.
“No. Like I told you—the rock doesn’t actually exist. It was something that existed in Jason Trask’s mind alone,” Lois told him. She wasn’t about to let him know that she now knew that kryptonite was, in fact, real.
“You are mistaken, my dear. Kryptonite is quite real. Why don’t you see for yourself,” Lex challenged as he opened the metal box. Lois’s eyes widened, apprehension settling in the pit of her stomach at the sight of the green, glowing rock that rested inside the box.
“I found the article you wrote very fascinating. The possibility that something existed that could harm Superman, now that was worth looking into. And I was not disappointed, my dear.” Lex grinned at her in malevolent satisfaction.
Lois stared at him, too stunned to say a word. Why was Lex being so open with her about his intent to harm Superman? Up until today, he had always been careful to play the charming and sophisticated philanthropist. What had changed?
“I see you’re speechless, my dear. Not an everyday occurrence, I’m sure,” Lex told her with a crooked smile, and Lois could clearly see the amusement that rested in his dark eyes.
“You’re probably wondering whether or not this rock can actually hurt your beloved hero. I had that same question. So I arranged a little test today. The man is so predictable: arrange a little false alarm at a bank and he flies in to save the day.”
Lois’s mind immediately went back to earlier that day when Clark had left right in the middle of their conversation. He’d said something about a bank alarm. Had he been hurt? Was he lying somewhere in pain, needing help? No, Lex had said that he’d arranged a test. He’d only wanted to make sure the rock worked. Lois felt utterly sick at the thought.
“I’ll have you know that Superman reacted rather nicely to the rock. And it was a relatively small piece, too,” he told her, breaking her out of her thoughts.
“Why are you doing this, Lex?”
“Why? Oh, that’s a loaded question, Lois. I’m not sure you really want to hear the answer.”
“Try me. You obviously lured me here for some reason. What do you want from me?”
“You know what I want from you, my dear.”
Lois stared at him, incredulous. “You actually think I’d marry you, knowing that you plan to hurt Superman?”
“I know you will marry me, Lois,” he said, his voice low and full of confidence.
“You’re insane! Why would I possibly marry you?”
“You’ll marry me because I know that you’ll do anything to keep your hero alive.”
Lois swallowed nervously, scared for Clark, and for herself. “I won’t let you hurt him,” she said with conviction.
“I know you won’t. That’s why you’re going to marry me.” Lex shut the lid on the box. Lois watched him as he got up from the loveseat and walked across the room before locking the box inside a large safe. “I know you’re in love with him,” he said, his tone conversational as he turned to look at her from across the room.
“That’s no secret, Lex. Everyone knows how I feel about Superman.”
“I wasn’t talking about Superman. I was talking about his alter-ego, Clark Kent.”
“That video is a fake. Clark is not Superman,” Lois lied, not willing to give him the truth in case he wasn’t the one behind the video.
“It’s very true, I assure you. I hired the best to shoot that video, so I should know.”
“So you’re the one they call ‘The Boss’ then? Why did you do it? Why did you destroy the Planet?”
“I was blinded by love—love for you, my dear.”
“You don’t know the meaning of the word,” Lois spat, unable to control her anger any longer. Who did this sick and twisted animal think he was? Who was he to cause so much chaos in all of their lives? “And you can forget it, Lex! I will *never* marry you!”
Lex raised an eyebrow. “Is that so? Have I not been persuasive enough? Well, let me make myself perfectly clear,” he said, suddenly moving across the room to stand in front of her. Looming over her, he placed his hands on the back of the loveseat on either side of her head, effectively trapping her between his body and the loveseat. Lois’s heart sped up in fear.
“Marry me, and Kent will live. If you don’t marry me, Kent will come to know the true meaning of the words ‘pain and suffering.’ I can make him suffer in so many different ways that he’ll beg me to kill him.” Lex leaned even closer to her, his face distorted with a malicious grin. She willed herself not to shrink away from the crazy look in his eyes. “By the time I get through with him, he’ll be screaming for me to end his torture. But no end shall come. Do you have any idea what I could do to him?” he asked, his voice low and full of evil intent. Lois didn’t doubt for a second that he would do as he threatened.
Lois tried to stifle a sob, but was unsuccessful. His hand moved into her hair, his touch making her want to jump out of her skin. “Don’t cry, my darling. Marry me and I won’t kill him.” Bile rose in her throat as his mouth descended upon hers, hard and demanding. Turning her head, she broke the kiss. He grabbed a hold of her chin, his eyes boring into hers. She couldn’t stop the tears from falling. He had her trapped, in every sense of the word. She couldn’t let Clark die. There was no way she’d let this monster lay a finger on him.
But what if she warned Clark? Maybe he could fly away someplace safe? Who was she kidding? Clark wouldn’t run away from Lex Luthor anymore than she would. He would insist on staying and finding a way to bring him down.
Lois took a shaky breath, wondering if she could really bring herself to marry Lex Luthor. She took one look into his eyes and knew the answer. Lex was completely mad. If she told him no, he’d probably kill the both of them.
“If I marry you…you won’t hurt Clark?”
“Marry me, and I’ll let him live.”
Lois took a deep breath before nodding.
“Good. I knew you’d come to your senses,” Lex said, letting go of her chin. He stepped away long enough to withdraw a little velvet box from his pocket. “Here, allow me,” Lex said as he presented the engagement ring. He slipped it on her finger, and Lois felt like someone had just closed the door to her prison.
“Now there’s just one last matter for you to take care of,” Lex informed her.
She looked at him fearfully. What would he want from her this time?
“Go to Kent and tell him that you don’t love him. Tell him that we are getting married next Saturday.”
Lois’s heart plummeted at his words. The last thing she wanted was to hurt Clark again. But she didn’t have a choice, she loved him too much to let him die. Oh, how she hated Lex Luthor! She’d never despised someone as much as she despised him at that moment.
“And don’t even think about trying anything, or trying to get off a warning to Kent. There’s a bug in your purse. I expect it to stay there and I expect your purse to stay with you at all times. Is that understood?”
He had bugged her? When? Lois’s eyes flashed angrily at the thought, but she reined in her anger with an iron grip. She couldn’t afford to lose her temper with Lex. There was no telling what he would do—to her or to Clark.
She nodded again, feeling completely defeated.
“Good, now go to Kent and get it over with. I’ll be listening,” he warned.
*****
Someone had gone to a lot of trouble to frame him, Jack knew. And if the conversation he’d overheard not more than fifteen minutes ago was any indication, he would soon be a dead man if he didn’t get out of there.
Escaping Juvie wasn’t what worried him the most. Having lived on the streets with no one to rely on but himself and his younger brother, Denny, had taught Jack to be resourceful. No, what worried him the most was the telling conversation he’d overheard…
“We were paid really good to track down this kid. You know how the Boss works! He expects results—and he expects this kid to disappear pronto. I was just informed that he’s marrying that reporter, Lois Lane, next Saturday, so I don’t have much time left. The Boss wants this job done now. This kid needs to disappear before someone figures out that he was set up for the job at the Daily Planet.”
“Look, Black…”
“Shhh! Call me Pete! I don’t want anyone to know my last name.”
“Okay, Pete, but it’s gonna cost you and your brother.”
“That’s not a problem. The Boss paid me and John good, there’s plenty to go around. So you’ll take care of this kid for me?”
“Yeah, I’ll do it. I know how you hate to do your own dirty work, especially when it’s messy.”
It wasn’t the fact that someone was out to kill him that bothered Jack the most. He could take care of himself. What worried Jack was the mention of a wedding taking place next Saturday. The guy named Pete had said The Boss was marrying Lois Lane. Jack realized they had to have been talking about Lex Luthor.
He’d talked to Clark Kent and Lois Lane just yesterday. She’d had no intention of accepting Lex Luthor’s marriage proposal; in fact, she had believed the billionaire to be a criminal.
Something was very wrong. Jack could feel it in his gut. He glanced at the clock, noting with satisfaction that it was late in the day. As soon as the sun set he’d blow this joint.
*****
“It had to be kryptonite. The symptoms were all there—pain, nausea, weakness, dizziness—there isn’t any other explanation,” Clark told his parents. After he’d left Lois, he’d gone to check out the bank alarm and had been surprised to find that it was a false alarm. Shortly after landing outside the bank he’d felt the effects of kryptonite.
“But I thought the kryptonite was destroyed when Trask was killed?” Martha asked.
“I thought it was too. But then I remembered the piece that Wayne sent off to the lab for testing—the one that disappeared,” Clark told his parents. His heart sank upon seeing the worry in his parents’ eyes. He hadn’t wanted them to worry, but his mother had noticed the moment he walked through the front door that something wasn’t right. He was still so incredibly weak from the short amount of time he’d been exposed to kryptonite.
“How are you feeling now, Son?” his father asked.
“I still have my powers, but I doubt I could lift anything heavier than a couch into orbit.”
“So someone deliberately set that false alarm at the bank,” Jonathan concluded.
“That’s what I think, too. I hadn’t been there for more than a minute when I felt the kryptonite. I felt it for maybe thirty seconds, and then it just went away. It was weird, to say the least.”
“Who would know about kryptonite?” Martha asked.
“I don’t know. But with everything that’s been going on…I can’t deny that I’m worried,” Clark confessed.
Martha took Clark’s hand in her own, giving it a comforting squeeze. “Please be careful, Clark. Your father and I don’t know what we’d do if something happened to you.”
“I know, Mom. I feel the same way about you guys. I’ll be careful, I promise.”
They all turned to look at his front door as someone knocked. Clark was filled with dread at the thought that another reporter was knocking on his door. He lowered his glasses and x-rayed through the door. His spirits lifted as he saw Lois standing there.
“It’s Lois,” he told his parents as he went to let her in.
“Hi, Clark. I-I need to talk to you…alone,” she said once the door had been closed behind her.
“Come on, Jonathan. I think Clark is out of your favorite tea. Why don’t we take a trip to the market?” Martha suggested.
Jonathan nodded before following his wife to the door. “We’ll be back in a little while, Son.”
Clark told his parents goodbye before turning to Lois. The moment he looked into her eyes he could see that something was wrong.
“Lois? Is everything okay?” Clark asked in concern.
**
How could she do this to him? She’d rather crawl into a hole and die than cause him anymore pain.
“Everything is fine; I just need to talk to you,” she said nervously.
Clark ushered her into his apartment. “Would you like some coffee, or some tea?”
“Tea sounds great,” Lois said, grateful for the distraction and hoping that the tea would calm her frazzled nerves.
“Then tea it is,” Clark said as he headed toward his kitchen. “Are you sure you’re okay? You look like something is bothering you.”
“I’m fine,” Lois lied. She would never be fine again—not as long as Lex Luthor had anything to say about it. How could she have ever believed that marrying Lex would have been safe? She’d thought that because she didn’t love him he wouldn’t have the power to hurt her. She couldn’t have been more wrong.
Lois watched as Clark took two mugs out of his cupboard, admiring the way he moved. She would never tire of watching him; the mere sight of him invoked thoughts involving the two of them alone and in bed together. Her cheeks growing warm at the thought, Lois forced her gaze away. She couldn’t allow her mind to go in that direction. It was too painful, knowing that he would never be hers. She loved him so much it hurt. She sat down on his couch, dreading what she was about to do—what she was forced to do.
“I’m glad you came by, Lois. I need to talk to you, too. I know we didn’t get a chance to finish our conversation from earlier,” Clark said a few minutes later as he sat down next to her on the couch, two steaming cups of tea in his hands. He handed her a mug. “Careful, it’s hot.”
“Thanks, Clark.” Lois stared at the mug in her hand for a few moments, not sure how she should start what she knew was going to be a very difficult conversation. Lois glanced up and her eyes met Clark’s. The intensity in his gaze took her breath away. She felt her pulse speed up as his eyes lowered to her mouth. The raw desire in his eyes was unmistakable.
“Lois…” he murmured, his hand reaching to cup her cheek.
Lois stood up quickly, moving away before he could touch her. If he touched her she would never be able to convince him. And she had to convince him; his life depended on it.
“Clark, I came over here tonight to tell you...” she took a deep breath, willing the lump in her throat to subside, “to tell you that I’ve changed my mind about Lex.” She watched out of the corner of her eye as he stood. She fought back the tears that threatened to come. She couldn’t afford to cry, not yet, and certainly not in front of him. He would never believe what she needed to say if she did.
“What do you mean, Lois?” Clark asked, his gaze seeking hers. Lois could see the apprehension in his expression—hear it in his voice.
She turned her back to him, unable to say the words while facing him. “I’ve realized that I never gave Lex a fair chance. Lex and I had a long talk, and I realized that I do have feelings for him. I’ve agreed to marry him, Clark.”
**
Clark stared at her, dumbfounded. There was no way he’d heard her right. She knew that Lex was a criminal, and it was just a matter of time before they found the evidence they needed. There was no way she would agree to marry that monster. He had to have heard her wrong. All the chaos in his life was messing with his head—and apparently his hearing.
“I’m sorry, what did you say, Lois? There was no way I heard that right.”
“I said that I’ve agreed to marry Lex,” she repeated, her voice flat and emotionless. She spoke like she was reading from a script.
There was that word again—agree. Something wasn’t right about her choice of words. She hadn’t said she was going to marry him, or even that she wanted to marry him. She had said that she’d *agreed* to marry him, almost like she’d been coerced. “Lois, look at me,” Clark persuaded, his voice gentle.
She turned to face him, and there was no mistaking her guarded expression. “Lois, what did he do to you? Did he threaten you? This doesn’t make any sense! Why would you agree to marry Luthor? You know that he belongs behind bars!”
“He didn’t do anything to me, Clark. I believe that Lex is innocent. He was set up,” she said before dropping her gaze to the floor. Her next words were so quietly spoken that Clark had to strain to hear them. “I love him, Clark. We’re getting married next Saturday.”
Clark closed his eyes as her words washed over him. That was only a week away! This wasn’t happening—this *couldn’t be* happening. Not when he was just starting to realize that Lois returned his feelings. And he knew that she did love him. He could see it every time her eyes met his, and he could feel it every time they touched. He hadn’t wanted to let himself hope that she could love him, but by sticking with him over the last couple of days, by forgiving him for his deception so freely, she’d proven that Clark was more important to her than he’d ever imagined. He was starting to believe that maybe she’d seen Clark in Superman all along. He had been so sure they were on the verge of becoming something more than friends, and didn’t believe for a moment that she loved Luthor.
“I don’t believe you,” he challenged her.
“It’s true. The wedding preparations have already begun,” she told him.
“I wasn’t talking about the wedding and you know it. I was talking about you claiming to love Luthor.” When Lois didn’t say anything, Clark stepped closer. “Lois, earlier today I told you that I wasn’t ready to hear you say that you loved me. I hadn’t wanted to get my hopes up again just to have you change your mind. I knew that there had been a lot of changes in your life, and I was worried that you didn’t really know what you wanted,” Clark said before reaching his hand out to her cheek, caressing it lovingly.
“But after thinking about it, I realized that there’s no going back. I didn’t need to worry about hoping again—I’d never stopped, Lois. Just as I know that I won’t ever stop loving you. And I know that you love me, too. I believe you. Look me in the eyes and tell me that you don’t,” he commanded.
Her eyes met his and for a moment he saw so much in them. Sadness, love, fear—he could see it all so clearly. He stepped even closer, so close that he could feel her breath on his face. “Tell me you don’t feel anything when I do this,” he whispered before covering her mouth with his own.
TBC...
