Previously...
Lois wordlessly snapped up the phone.
“What?” she demanded.
As she listened to her source speak, the energy she felt drained from her.
“Okay,” she replied softly. “Thanks.”
She hung up.
“What is it?” Kal asked.
“That was a contact of mine at the police station,” she told Kal. “Miranda’s dead.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Bill Henderson blindly reached for the cup of coffee at his side and took a gulp while still reading through the reports in front of him. It had gone cold, but he didn’t really taste it anyway.
He glanced over at the junior officer who was paired with him, and nudged the man to jolt him awake.
“More coffee, Detective O’Hara?” he offered dryly.
“Any chance I can skip that and just get a straight shot of caffeine?” O’Hara asked. “I think I’m past the point of coffee by now.”
“Get used to it,’ Bill replied. “Have you finished going through the interviews of everyone who was working at the station that night?”
“Yeah. No one’s saying anything,” O’Hara reported. “Either they’re all sticking together or someone’s really covered their tracks.”
“Keep looking,” Bill instructed. “Keep an eye out for any inconsistencies. We’re still waiting to hear back from the morgue to see what exactly killed her and we’ll know a lot more once we do.”
Bill’s phone chirped, and he snatched it up. “Is this Palmer?”
“No, sir, it’s Jenkins from the front desk.”
“What is it?” Bill demanded.
“Lois Lane is here to see you.”
He sighed. “Of course she is. Send her in.” He replaced the phone in its cradle. “You’re in for a treat, O’Hara,” he told the detective. “It’s not every day you get to see a hurricane blow through this office.”
O’Hara looked at his mentor in confusion, which was soon cleared up when Lois burst through the door.
“Who killed Miranda, Henderson?” she demanded. “You’ve been on the case for over twenty-four hours now, so you must have *some* leads. I want to know what they are.”
“Slow down, Lane. You can’t expect us to just give over all our information.” Bill moved his head to catch a glimpse of the man standing behind Lois. “Who’s your friend?”
Lois moved to the side to let her quiet partner further into Bill’s small office.
Bill noticed how Brian tensed as the man came into view.
“C-Clark?” he stammered.
“Hello, Brian,” the man smiled.
“This is Clark Kent,” Lois introduced. “We’re… working together on this.”
“You’re actually working with a partner on this?” Bill asked. “I didn’t think you had it in you.”
“Well, people can change,” she replied unconvincingly.
“It is nice to meet you,” Kent spoke, stepping forward.
Bill shook his hand cautiously. “You know him, O’Hara?”
“Yeah, he’s a… uh, family friend.”
Lane shot a curious glance between the two younger men.
“I’m Detective O’Hara,” O’Hara told her. “I’m working with Inspector Henderson on this case. Kind of a way to get rid of my training wheels.”
She gave him a passing nod before refocusing her attention to Bill.
“You have to have something,” she demanded.
“Lois, even if we did have something, we wouldn’t be able to give it to the public. Miranda was in police custody when she died, which means we’re investigating our own people. Do you have any idea how sensitive that kind of investigation is?”
“So you don’t have anything to give me,” she moped, sitting down in the only remaining chair.
“Did you listen to anything I said, Lane? I *can’t* give you anything.”
“Off the record?” she wheedled.
Bill sighed. She always managed to wear him down. “She was going to plea bargain,” He told her. “That’s all I can say.”
“So you think that whoever killed her was trying to keep her from talking?”
“Lois, that’s all I can say,” he said. “You won’t pull anything else out of me.”
Lois stood, drawn upright with determination.
“Fine. If you can’t help us then we’ll just have to see what we can dig up ourselves. C’mon, Clark. Let’s go.”
She strode out of the office.
“It was nice meeting you,” Kent nodded politely before following her.
Bill turned to his junior partner. “So how did you and that Kent guy meet in the first place?”
“He was uh… at the scene of an accident I responded to,” O’Hara replied. “We got to talking and kind of hit it off from there.”
“Uh huh.”
Somehow, Bill didn’t believe that was the whole story. But unlike a certain reporter, he knew when something wasn’t his business.
* * *
“So that was your police officer friend,” Lois commented as they pulled away from the police station in her Jeep. “He seems nice.”
“He barely got in two words between you and Inspector Henderson,” Kal replied.
“Which shows that he’s probably a nice guy. Based on what little I saw of him, I like him.” Lois paused, considering the man she had met briefly. “He *looks* nice,” she decided.
“He’s married,” Kal blurted out.
“Uh, okay,” Lois replied, shooting a confused glance over at him. “That wasn’t really what I meant.”
“Oh.”
Lois was tempted to push the subject and ask why he had felt it necessary to say that to her, but she decided against it. Their argument had been cut short due to the phone call announcing Miranda’s death, and since then, they had both chosen to pretend like it never happened. Lois knew that she wasn’t going to be able to say anything that would convince Kal he could have a life here on Earth without betraying his parents, and the last thing she wanted to do was lose his friendship. Perhaps he just needed more time before he would be able to heal.
Anyway, it was probably best to tread lightly around any subject that could lead back to their fight.
“Kal, you know you really don’t have to stick around with me,” she said instead. “I know what I’m doing.”
“Miranda should not have died,” Kal replied, staring straight ahead at the road. “I thought she would be safe at the police station, but instead I sent her to her death.”
“You had no way of knowing.”
“Still, I feel responsible.”
Right. Of course he did.
“So do you have any idea who might have killed her?” Kal asked.
Lois paused, preparing herself to share this with Kal.
“This whole situation reminds me of someone,” she finally spoke.
“Who?”
“Have you ever heard of Lex Luthor?”
“That business man you exposed last year?” Kal asked. “Everyone thought he was a wealthy philanthropist, but you found out what he was really doing.”
His knowledge surprised her. “How did you know about that?”
“I read your articles,” Kal told her.
“You did?” she asked, feeling pleased. “Every one?”
“Yes. I wanted to get a better sense of what a reporter did, and I though that reading your articles would give me the best example. It must be a fascinating job to have.”
“Well, I like it,” Lois smiled. But she frowned as she remembered Lex. “Well it’s great until something like the Luthor story happens.”
“What exactly happened with him?”
“I was always a bit suspicious of him, so I investigated,” she told Kal. “I put together a case based on the information I had, and I wrote the story for the Daily Planet. Luthor was arrested, and the case was brought to trial.”
“…and?”
“And he squirmed out,” she spoke with frustration. “Sure, he got nailed for a few things, but those were all white collar crimes, and with a guy as rich and well-connected as Luthor, the penalties were pretty minor. My sources went mysteriously missing, or were discredited, none of the evidence that was collected held up in court…” She punched the steering wheel of her Jeep in frustration. “Basically, all Luthor lost was a ton of money and his tarnish-free reputation. He should be locked up for the rest of his life.”
She parked in the Planet parking garage, and they both got out of the vehicle and walked towards the elevator.
“I’m sorry, Lois,” Kal spoke as she pushed the button.
“Yeah, well, that’s all in the past now,” she told him, entering the elevator. “My point was that this whole thing feels like the kind of stuff that Lex used to be behind. Miranda would’ve taken the blame for the whole pheromone affair if she didn’t come forward to talk. And when she did, she was immediately killed.”
“So does that mean you think it was Luthor?”
“I don’t know,” she chewed her bottom lip thoughtfully. “I’m not sure if Luthor would have the assets any more to hire someone like Miranda.” She debated about whether or not to tell Kal her other suspicions, but then finally decided to go for it. “I have a couple other suspects,” she announced.
“Really?”
“Well, the Luthor trial left room for a new crime boss to come into Metropolis, and my gut tells me that this is a similar situation to what happened with Luthor. Everything can be connected back to one person. And that includes what happened with the shuttle launch.”
“You think the same person is responsible for both?”
“I know it sounds crazy,” she admitted. “But I really think so. I haven’t made any more progress in my investigation of Space Station Prometheus, but I do have two other suspects besides Luthor for sabotaging the station. Arthur Chow and Arianna Carlin.”
“The second richest man in Metropolis? And who is the woman?”
“Carlin. She’s a psychologist,” Lois replied. “But with a *lot* of money. She probably inherited it or something. Anyway, she’s got companies and investments across the board.”
The elevator opened, and Lois led Kal into the newsroom.
“You’ve been here before,” she acknowledged. “So you already know where my desk is. I just need to go-”
“Lois!”
“Hi, Jimmy,” she acknowledged. “Did you get that background on Carlin done for me?”
“Sure. But I don’t know why you’re researching a woman who writes self-help books.”
“Call it a hunch,” she shrugged. “Oh, this is Clark Kent. He was here the day before yesterday, but I’m not sure if you remember him.”
“No, I don’t,” Jimmy winced. “I’m still a little fuzzy on the details. Nice to meet you, CK. Now, I have to go bring the Chief his donuts or else.” He walked away from the pair. “Oh, by the way, Lois, Mayson’s waiting at your desk.”
“CK?” Kal whispered into Lois’ ear as they descended into the pit.
“That’s Jimmy for you,” Lois shrugged.
“And who is Mayson?” Kal asked.
“Assistant DA,” Lois replied. “She helped me out a lot with the Luthor trial. Although I can’t say we’re necessarily friends, we work well together professionally.”
“Lois. Hi,” Mayson greeted her.
“Hi, Mayson. This is Clark,” she introduced. “He’s helping me out with my latest investigation.”
“Nice to meet you, Clark,” Mayson nodded. “I’m assuming that when you’re talking about your latest investigation, you’re referring to Miranda’s death?”
“You read me *way* too easily,” Lois grumbled. Then, she brightened. “Do you have something for me?”
“Not much,” Mayson shook her head. “I went to see Miranda after she was taken into custody. We talking briefly, I… gently informed her of the consequences of her actions. She completely broke down, begging me to make a deal. She said she could lead us to the person funding her research. This same person is apparently responsible for the majority of criminal activity in Metropolis.”
“So you accepted?” Kal guessed.
Mayson shook her head. “I had to clear it with my boss first. I knew the case would be high profile, so that meant I had to proceed carefully. I drove back to the Hall of Justice to talk it over, but by the time we had reached an agreement, Miranda was already dead.”
The mood between the trio was somber. Although Miranda had clearly been a criminal, did she deserve to be killed for what she did?
“I am sorry that happened,” Kal spoke softly. “It is not your fault, Mayson.”
She nodded. “Thanks. Anyway, that’s the exact same thing I told the police. Nothing new there. But what did get me thinking was Miranda’s claim that the name she would give me was also the person responsible for a lot of other things in Metropolis. It made me think of-”
“Luthor,” Lois completed.
“Yeah,” Mayson nodded. “Lois, is there any chance that he’s back in business?”
“I don’t think he would have the financial resources to be doing this type of thing,” Lois shrugged. “At least not yet. But you know his financial losses better than I do.”
“It’s very unlikely,” Mayson admitted. “The one thing he did lose was a lot of money.”
Lois debated on whether or not to share her other suspicions with Mayson. But the lawyer had proven herself to be trustworthy in the past. Plus, it would be good to have some legally acquired information on these people rather than just the stuff Jimmy was able to sniff out.
“I do have a few suspects,” she told Mayson. “Ever since Prometheus. If you’ll come in the conference room with me, I’ll tell you all about it. You too, Clark.”
It was exactly what Lois needed. Being able to talk through her ideas with other people gave her the fresh perspective the case needed. Of course, they didn’t get much further than Lois had gotten on her own. The people they suspected were going to be careful, and wouldn’t leave any easy trails for them to follow. But at least Lois had two more people on her side.
“I have to get back to work,” Mayson announced, after a length of time had passed. It was early evening already, and the newsroom had started to empty of the daytime staff. “But I will look into that stuff on Chow and Carlin you wanted, Lois.”
“Thanks.”
“Clark?” Mayson asked, her voice sounding slightly anxious. “Can I talk to you for a second?”
“Of course,” Clark nodded. He stood, and they walked over to the door of the conference room. They stepped outside, but didn’t close the door fully so Lois was still able to hear their conversation.
Not that she was eavesdropping, of course.
“Look, I don’t normally do this,” Mayson was saying. “But I’ve kind of been left out to dry here. I have… two tickets to see a production of ‘Oleanna’ tonight. It’s the first time it’s been performed in Metropolis and… Well, I was going to go with my sister but… she had to cancel.”
Lois had to keep herself from gasping. Mayson had always been brazen, but this seemed pretty bold. Well, at least Lois knew that Mayson’s efforts wouldn’t pay off. Kal had been more than clear about his romantic plans yesterday.
She waited to hear the inevitable rejection.
“Thank you, Mayson,” Kal spoke.
He must be letting her down gently.
“I would love to go to the play with you.”
What?
* * *
Lois was mad at him for some reason.
He sensed it as soon as he stepped back into the conference room after Mayson had left.
Although she didn’t speak, living with her had made Kal exceptionally good at reading her, and he could tell that she was upset about something. She held her back inhumanly straight, and there was an extra snap as she flipped through the pages of her folders. When she refused to look at him and instead gave him a cold reminder to check the city, he knew that he had something to do with the thing that was upsetting her.
He wondered about it all while he was doing his patrol, and still hadn’t come up with any reason when he returned to the Daily Planet.
Kal and Lois drove back home together, and the stifling atmosphere in the car caused Kal to wonder even more. Lois clenched the steering wheel tightly in her hands and had her eyes glued on the road ahead for the whole trip.
“Thank you for taking me with you today,” Kal spoke.
“You’re welcome,” Lois replied stonily.
“It was interesting to see you work.”
“That’s nice.”
They made it back to her apartment before Kal got the courage to speak again.
“Lois, are you mad at me for some reason?”
“No,” she said. “You better hurry if you want to meet Mayson. You’re meeting at her place, right?”
“How did you know about Mayson?” Kal asked.
“I heard you two talking,” Lois replied shortly. “The door to the conference room didn’t close completely and I guess you guys were louder than you thought.” She disappeared to her room.
“Well, maybe you can help me,” Kal suggested. “I am not sure what to wear to something like this. I have never been to a play before.”
“Whatever you have is probably fine,” Lois replied behind the closed door.
Kal frowned in confusion, but went into his room to change. He had wanted her advice on this, but it looked like Lois wasn’t about to give him any. He would just wear a suit that was a little nicer than the one he had on, and would make sure that his tie was knotted neatly rather than in the disarray it usually was.
He took his time changing, and by the time he came out, satisfied with the way he looked, Lois had come out of her room and was sitting in front of the TV. She had a carton of ice cream sitting on her lap and she dug into it viciously with a spoon.
“Well… I’m leaving now,” Kal spoke into the silence.
“Fine,” Lois replied.
“I’m not sure when I will be back,” he spoke again.
“I won’t wait up.”
Kal waited, not really sure what he was waiting for. Finally, he turned away to exit the apartment. His hand had just touched the doorknob when Lois spoke.
“Have fun on your date.”
Kal’s hand froze on the handle.
“My what?”
