Table of Contents
From Part 4:“Come on.” He squeezed her fingers again. “Let’s get inside and get started.”
She nodded, then took a big, gulping breath. “I
have to pull myself together! I...” She bit her lip. “I wasn’t thinking about what to do. I was... I was wallowing.”
Compassion and anguish warred inside him. On impulse, he leaned towards her. “C’mere.” It only took a light tug for her to be pressed against him, despite the gap between their seats. Even though he was careful to keep the hug brief, she was pulling away from him even before he released her.
“Thanks. I needed that.” Without looking at him, she opened her door and climbed out. The message was clear. No more shows of vulnerability.
That, of course, he could well understand. They had a job to do. She needed to focus, and to do that her emotions had to be frozen out. Time was slipping away, far too quickly for his comfort.
*********
Now read on...She resisted the urge to cling to Clark as the elevator ascended. He’d been wonderful so far, but she had to pull herself together now. And, even though she had no idea what anyone in the newsroom had been told, she had no intention of letting
anyone else see how this was affecting her.
It wasn’t just that she didn’t want to be fussed over. Didn’t want lots of pointless sympathy.
It was also that, if this was to be the last day of her life, so be it. But no-one was going to be able to say that Lois Lane went out cowering and whimpering like a coward.
Ding. The doors opened. And she took a deep breath, pulling her shoulders back and standing up straight and proud before stepping out into the busy, bustling newsroom. Nobody noticed her. People rushed past carrying papers or notepads; others sat at their desks busily typing or talking into telephones. Everything looked completely normal.
She tugged at Clark’s arm, dragging him in the direction of Perry’s office. The door was, unusually, fully closed and the blinds were drawn. Just as she raised her hand to knock, something changed in the newsroom atmosphere.
She paused, all senses on alert. And then the change became apparent. It had gone quiet.
People were looking at her. And, she’d swear, whispering among themselves.
“Ignore them, Lois.” Clark was at her shoulder, murmuring quietly. He reached past her and rapped on Perry’s door, then opened it immediately in response to the reply.
Perry was there, looking greyer than she could ever remember seeing him. He got to his feet and came over to her. “Lois... aw, darlin’, I just can’t believe this is happening!”
Oh, no...A lump had appeared out of nowhere and settled itself in her throat. Again. And her eyes were stinging. Again.
She
wasn’t going to cry!
If she spoke, she wouldn’t be able to control her voice. Instead, she tried a smile, knowing that it was coming out shaky. The concern on Perry’s face grew.
Then there was a hand on her arm, and Clark was gently pushing her into a chair. “Hi, Chief. We just came in for an update. And I guess you know we won’t be working on any of our assigned stories today. Also, I think it’d be best if we worked in one of the conference rooms.” Speaking in normal tones, as if this was just any other day when there was a big story to write, Clark somehow managed to bring down the emotional level in the room from its heightened state.
Grateful, she smiled at him.
“Whatever you kids want, you can have,” Perry was saying. “I’ve already set half a dozen people looking up the information you asked for. And every reporter in the newsroom is chasing down their snitches.”
“We probably won’t get anywhere with that.” Her voice sounded completely normal, much to her relief. “I called Bobby Bigmouth - he hasn’t heard a thing. Not even a whisper of a rumour that anyone wanted me - or any reporter - dead. And that’s really unusual.”
“It’s still worth a try,” Clark said.
A sharp tap sounded at the door. Perry was just opening his mouth to speak when it opened to reveal Inspector Henderson. “Thought I’d find you two here,” he said, his gaze flicking between her and Clark.
For probably the first time since she’d met him, no flippant remark came to Lois’s lips.
There was something about the dour, play-it-by-the-book cop which normally seemed to bring out the worst in her. It wasn’t that Bill Henderson was a bad cop. He wasn’t lazy or stupid. He was probably the least corrupt cop she knew, too. His clear-up rate was higher than average, though not as high as some of his flashier, attention-grabbing colleagues who were rarely off the evening news bulletins. His problem was that he hated reporters crawling all over his cases, and made it very clear that he begrudged sharing information.
Right now, though, there wasn’t another cop in the city she’d prefer to have on her side.
“I hope you don’t object to the intrusion, Perry, but I knew better than to expect Lois to do the sensible thing and come down to the precinct.” Henderson’s normal dry tone offered no concession to the circumstances, and Lois was grateful.
“In case you hadn’t noticed, I don’t have a lot of spare time today,” she said, a sardonic tone creeping into her voice.
A hand touched her shoulder, squeezing gently. She didn’t need to glance back to know that it was Clark.
“I’m aware of that, Lois.” Henderson’s tone was gentler. “And I don’t intend to waste any of it.”
She shouldn’t be taking out her frustration on him. He was here to help. “Okay. Where do we start?”
He inclined his head slightly in acknowledgement. “I need to know exactly what happened this morning - both from you and Clark. If there’s somewhere we can talk, in a minute or two?” He looked enquiringly at Perry.
Perry waved a hand. “Use one of the conference rooms.”
“Thanks. Okay - ” Henderson began ticking points off on his fingers. “I’ve got a couple of officers at the hospital talking to Dr Sutton. Half a dozen more are searching computer files at the precinct for possible suspects. Two more are interviewing people in your apartment block and on your street, Lois, and there’s a forensic team going over your apartment right now. If we’re lucky, the bastard might have let some of the poison leak onto the floor. Or we might get really lucky - he might have dumped the hypodermic somewhere we can find it.”
Her eyes widened. When Henderson got serious, he really pulled out all the stops! But why hadn’t it occurred to her that some of the poison could have spilled? Though, knowing her luck, the chances that they’d be that fortunate were probably pretty slim. Still, it was worth a try.
“You’ve got your own people checking here too, I guess.” Henderson looked at Perry.
“Yeah, Jimmy Olsen and a bunch of researchers have been going through all Lois’s old stories and looking up correspondence in the files.”
Henderson nodded. “I’ll get a couple of officers over here - they’ll need access to all of that material.”
“Now hold on a minute here!” Perry frowned. “These are confidential Planet files...”
Henderson rolled his eyes. “Let me put it this way. Either we work together or we just waste time getting in each other’s way. This isn’t a competition. We all want the same thing here.” He leaned against the wall in a deceptively lazy pose. “The police databases are better than anything your people have access to - legitimately or otherwise - and it’s going to be quicker for my people to check if any possibles are in jail or on the streets or in another state.”
“I wouldn’t rule out anyone in jail.” Clark spoke for the first time since Henderson had arrived. “After all, the guy who broke into Lois’s apartment could just be the messenger.”
“Except no-one’s going to have access to a chemistry set in prison,” Lois pointed out dryly.
“No, but they could have given someone the formula.”
That was true, and Lois sighed. “Great. Make it even more of a needle in a haystack.”
“Welcome to police work, Lois.” Henderson’s tone was back to being dry. Then he straightened and moved away from the wall, turning his attention to Perry again. “I want to put a tap on Lois’s phone.”
Lois was on her feet immediately. “No
way!”
Perry was frowning. “Now, you know I can’t agree to that, Inspector.”
Henderson sighed. “I know, I know. First amendment. Freedom of the press. I’ve heard it all before - more times than I care to remember. But this is different.”
“You can’t tap my phone.”
Henderson ignored her. “Perry, you have to see that this is important. I’m trying to prevent a murder here. This isn’t just about protecting some low-life snitch or two.”
“He’s got a point, Chief.” That was Clark, leaning against the wall on the other side of the room with his arms folded, his brow furrowed. He couldn’t possibly be considering...
“Clark!”
“I know he has.” Perry again. “And, believe me, I’d like nothing more than to say yes. But how can I run a newspaper specialising in
investigative journalism if it ever gets out that I allowed the MPD to tap our phone-lines? This isn’t just some whim. We’re not being stubborn. Journalists go to prison to protect their sources. Hell, reporters have
died rather than give up a source.”
“Lois could die if you don’t help me out here.” The words, the tone were deliberately brutal, she was sure. Designed to scare them into agreeing.
But she couldn’t. Of course she didn’t want to die. But there were still some lines she refused to cross.
“No, Perry.” Ignoring Henderson, ignoring Clark, she focused on the person whose decision it would be.
“Look, I know the kind of guy we’re dealing with here.” Henderson raked a hand through his hair, his expression irritated. As if she was wasting his time. Didn’t he understand that she was the one whose time was limited?
“This guy could have killed you outright, Lois. He got into your apartment. Got you helpless. It would’ve taken him seconds to break your neck, shoot you, stab you... but instead he injected you with this stuff. He wants you to
know that you’re dying - to go through this entire day with a death sentence hanging over your head. He wants you to suffer.”
Right. How about telling her something she didn’t already know?
“So a guy like that isn’t content to believe that you’re suffering. He wants to
know it. That means he’s probably watching you.”
True. That much she’d already figured out. She nodded. In her peripheral vision, she noticed Perry and Clark nodding slowly.
“And he’ll want you to know that he knows. So at some point today he’s going to call you. That’s the way a guy like this works. And I want to tap your phone so that when he does call we’ll have at least a chance of tracing the call and
finding the bastard.” With exaggerated patience, Henderson made his key point.
“Chief, I know all the reasons why we shouldn’t, but I think Henderson’s right.” Clark again. “We have to get this guy. It could be Lois’s only hope.”
Now Perry looked torn. And Lois wasn’t sure of her own feelings.
“I can’t do anything that would jeopardise the safety of reporters or their sources. Or the Planet’s reputation. I’m sorry, Inspector - ”
“We can isolate Lois’s phone. Have it set up on a totally separate line not part of the Planet’s network. The phone company can do it in seconds. Any calls for her - either on her direct number or through the switchboard - will be redirected to this line. It’ll be totally undetectable to callers. That way the Planet’s network isn’t compromised.”
It was splitting hairs. Lois knew it, and she could see that Perry did too. A reporter’s phone would still be tapped. Regardless of whether it was still on the Planet’s phone network or not, the police would be able to listen in on any of her calls. And potentially trace and identify anyone who called her.
“We’re not interested in any calls other than from this guy. I don’t want to waste police man-hours listening to lunatics calling Lane up with crack-induced tips. I can give Lois a beeper. If the guy calls, she hits the beeper and we’ll have an officer on the line immediately.” Henderson turned back to the editor. “Perry, you have my personal guarantee that any tapes will be destroyed once all this is over. And the fact that the tap happened won’t get out - I trust my officers. They don’t talk.”
Perry hesitated. Then he nodded. “Okay. Do it.”
She still didn’t like it. But, contrarily, relief washed over her.
“Right. If you two are ready, I’d like to talk to you now.” Henderson got to his feet and headed for the door. “Lois, the forensic team should be ready to leave your apartment any minute. If they find anything, I’ll let you know. I’ve also had officers interviewing your neighbours to find out if they saw or heard anything. I’m putting as much resources into this as I can.”
Yes, she’d already noticed that. She met his gaze, the usual hardened, cynical expression softened into something almost close to sympathy. “Thanks, Bill. I appreciate it.”
“There’s just one thing I’m curious about.” Now there was a half-smile on his lips.
“What’s that?”
“Why did you call Kent? Why not yell for Superman?”
“Oh!” Lois frowned. Why hadn’t she? “I don’t know,” she said slowly. “I guess... Well, I was barely conscious. I think I just acted on instinct.”
And that said a lot. That she would think of Clark first, not Superman, when she was operating on auto-pilot?
*********
By the time Henderson left, Clark could see that Lois was getting antsy. It wasn’t surprising; after all, the minutes and hours were ticking away. It was now almost ten. Nearly seven hours of the twenty-four gone already, and they were no further forward. No nearer to finding the antidote.
Listening to her explain what had happened to Henderson had been harrowing. He hadn’t actually heard the full story from her until that moment, and guilt and anger had torn at him. Why hadn’t he been there for her? Why hadn’t he known that something was wrong? Why had she had to
call him to help her? He loved her so much... surely he should have
known that she needed him?
Henderson’s earlier question puzzled him, too. Why had she picked up the phone to call Clark? Why hadn’t she yelled for Superman? She’d been dopey and confused, drugged by the ether. Surely it would have been far easier to yell?
Did it, just possibly, say something about how she felt about him? About
Clark?
But that wasn’t important now. Saving Lois’s life was what mattered.
One good thing had come out of the interview. Lois had remembered something new. She was sure now, she said, that her attacker was left-handed. It was something to do with the way he’d held her down, or the way he’d used the syringe, she thought. Henderson had been sceptical, but had agreed to take it into account.
But they were still no further forward.
“What next, Lois?” She wanted to call the shots. It made her feel that she was at least in control of
something. For now, anyway, he was going along with it - it wasn’t as if he had any better ideas, anyway. Short of flying around the city searching for some guy in a Donald Duck outfit carrying an empty syringe, he was out of ideas.
She inhaled sharply. “We need to start going through the possibles Jimmy and the others are coming up with. But first I need to call the hospital. Find out what they’re doing with the lab tests.”
He nodded. “I’ll go and get the files they’re finished with.” He wanted to stay and hear what was happening with the lab results, but they didn’t have time for him to stand around doing nothing.
And anyway, a few minutes’ breathing space, where he didn’t have to pretend an optimism that he didn’t feel, would help.
Jimmy looked up, an anxious expression on his face, as Clark approached. “How’s Lois?”
“She’s - ” Fine, he was about to say. That was what she’d have said, to anyone but himself. But how could he utter the lie? Sighing, he amended his words. “She’s not so good. Which is why we need this information.”
“Yeah.” Jimmy’s expression was bleak, and he rubbed his forehead. “We’re getting through the files as fast as we can - and now Henderson’s guys are here too it’ll be quicker. Problem is, with so little to go on it’s tough to narrow it down.”
“I know.” Clark nodded, stuffing his hands deep in his pockets. “And I don’t even think you can confine it to anyone who’s not in jail - the way I see it, this could be co-ordinated from prison by anyone with the right contacts.”
“Yeah, I wondered about that.” Jimmy nodded towards one towering stack of manila files. “Here’s everything we’ve pulled out so far. Kostas over there - ” He waved his hand in the direction of a stranger, a wiry, thirtysomething guy wearing a crumpled suit. One of Henderson’s men, Clark presumed. “ - is running the names through the MPD database.”
“Okay, thanks.” Clark picked up the files, remembering just in time to act as if the oversized bundle was heavy. “I’ll take these into the conference room.”
“CK.” The tension in Jimmy’s voice made him pause, and he glanced back at the younger man.
“Yeah?”
“Take care of Lois, okay? She... We might not always show it, but she means a lot to us here.”
“I know.” And he had to struggle to keep his voice even.
As he turned to go back to the conference room, one of Henderson’s men beckoned him over. He changed course, feeling guilty relief that he didn’t have to rejoin Lois just yet.
**********
...tbc
