My Own Worst Enemy
Folc4evernaday
Chapter 7
***
Present Day…Bill Church did his best to control his emotions as Corbin’s grasp on him tightened. He stared at the unconscious body of Rollie Vale a few feet away. Corbin was strong. This was good.
“Who are you?!” Corbin held Bill Church against the wall, hoisting him in the air.
“I’m a…a…friend, John. I want what you want. Re-Revenge.” He managed to squeak out.
“By controlling me?” He held up the remote Vale had used on him earlier.
“No, no, I would never…”
“Liar!!” Corbin fumed angrily.
“If I wanted to I could have left you how Vale did. Powered down with no hope of returning to life, but I didn’t.” Church spat back at him. “I’m your friend, John. All I want to do is help you.”
“Why?” Corbin stared at him icily.
“You want revenge on the guys that did this to you, right?” Church asked.
“Yeah?” Corbin conceded suspiciously.
“I want revenge on the doctor that did this to you.” Church spat back. “Together we can get what we want, and there’s not a thing anyone can do about it.”
Corbin set him down carefully, keeping his eyes trained on him. He took the remote and crushed it. “Let’s talk.”
***
He listened in as he heard the familiar footsteps from the other side of the door. It was almost time. Another needle. Another battle with those white-coated demons. Images continued to plague his mind as he wrestled with the chains. They’d be back soon.
Another needle.
Another dose of that poisonous liquid.
He shuddered at the memory, staring at his arm where the bruising that had been left from the previous punctures. Bruising. He wasn’t supposed to bruise. He wasn’t supposed to bleed.
“How soon before the programming will be complete?” He grimaced, tightening his grasp on the chains and began to pull. All he needed was just a little of his superhuman strength. Just enough to break these chains.
“He seems to have all the powers of Superman, but there is something very different about him. Something darker.”He had to escape. He had to get to her. He had to…
“A darker Superman under our control? Yes, I like that. Have you tested him to be sure he won’t try anything? We can’t afford another screw-up.”He jerked on the chain and smiled to himself when he felt the metal begin to giveaway. He stared at the clock on the wall with a smile. One minute. He was one minute late.
“Mr. Church, I don’t have time for this. I’m late.”The metal chains began to give away. He smiled to himself, “You bet you are.”
***
Alarms blared uncontrollably. The dark corridors filled with red and yellow lights as guards raced toward the steel door that had been ripped from its hinges. “The prisoner’s escaped!”
“All units respond!”
Unnoticed by anyone was a man crouching down behind one of the open doors. He waited, counting one by one as the guards made their way toward the wing where he’d escaped. Three long months and he’d finally escaped.
‘Lois…’***
Seven Months Ago…“As the corruption scandal inside Metropolis’s Police Department grows demands for the resignation of the Police Chief and Commissioner have been made. Allegations were made after one of the biggest screw-ups in history made the news. A whistle blower came forward and revealed how our city’s finest were actively working with the criminals to let them back on the street. We can’t feel safe if there isn’t a change.” Bill Church Jr. said smugly into the camera. “Which is why I’m throwing my hat into the ring and running for governor.”
“That is a scary thought,” Lois said, staring at the television while she and Clark waited to be seen by Dr. Klein.
“So that’s Bill Church’s son, huh?” Clark asked, looking up at the screen where the dark-haired man stood in his Armani suit and slicked back hair. “He certainly has the political talk down.”
“Clark, what if we’re wrong?” she asked, tightening her hand on his arm.
“What do you mean?” He asked.
“All of this. Intergang. The organization. What if we’re wrong? What if they’re not connected? What if there are two organizations out there trying to destroy Metropolis and targeting you and-and…”
“Honey, honey, calm down,” He soothed, running his hands up and down her arms. “You’re starting to do that manic thing –”
“Sorry.” She relented, trying to reel her emotions in. “It’s just how I deal with stress.”
“I know,” He sighed, wrapping an arm around her, “but it’s just making it worse for both of us. Just calm down. Breathe.”
“Breathe.” She repeated, taking a deep breath. “I can do that.”
“Now, once we get everything back on Intergang we’ll compare it with the information your dad gave us and then we’ll know for sure.” He soothed. “It’s going to be okay.”
“Ms. Lane? Mr. Kent? You can go on back now.” The security guard said, motioning toward the double paneled doors that were now open.
***
“Project K.” Sam Lane opened up the folder and began to read. Everything he had found on the surveillance of his daughter and son-in-law he’d destroyed. Everything that is but the information found in this folder. He’d gone back and forth on whether to destroy it but found himself unable to go through with it after seeing just how demented his superiors were.
Test after test had been performed.
Each test referred to Clark as
‘it’ or
‘the subject’ as if he was some lab rat they were performing tests on. He hated to dig into this information, but with what the organization was looking to do with Clark’s ship he needed to know what lengths they were capable of. He needed to have all the information.
‘Identified offspring of subject. Surveillance installed to monitor.’“Jamie.” He breathed, looking at the date of the report. They knew about Jamie.
Unable to read any further he slammed the folder closed. He felt his throat tightening as tears began to fall. The reminder of what was lost weighed heavily on his mind.
***
“You think someone here did this?” Dr. Klein admonished, looking at Lois and Clark in surprise.
“Well, Dr. Klein you’ve got to admit it is possible.” Lois reasoned, crossing her arms over her chest.
“You said yourself the project was under lock and key. You can’t find any probes outside of STAR Labs’ project because it was someone working on the project that did this.” Clark added.
“So you’re suggesting that STAR Labs has a mole?” Dr. Klein hissed, his brow furrowed as he spoke.
“Dr. Klein a lot of people are in danger. Superman can’t help people that desperately need our help. Now, I know you’ve worked with these people day in and day out. You trust them, and you think you know them. What’s being done here is wrong.” Clark pleaded. “Just let us look into them. “If we’re wrong, we’ll apologize, but if we’re not, we could save a life.”
Dr. Klein seemed to be toying with the idea in his head for a moment before finally agreeing. “I’ll get you the files on everyone that knew or was involved with the project. I can’t do anything more than that though.”
“Thank you, Dr. Klein,” Lois said with a sigh of relief.
***
Present Day…“Good morning Metropolis.” Lex Luthor addressed the cameras with a smug smile. “I’m sure you’re all wondering why every channel on your television is showing this footage but rather than bore you with the details how about I just cut to the chase, hmmm?”
The screen changed, showing the image of a small island being struck by a beam of light and the foliage disappearing into ashes before everyone’s eyes.
“Clark…” Lois gasped, covering her mouth with both hands.
He placed an arm around her shoulders and squeezed her right shoulder, “Breathe.” He whispered in her ear.
“In an instant all life as you know it is gone. Amazing what modern technology can do, hmmm? I’m sure you’re all panicking…wondering what this former billionaire…this man that built Metropolis into what it is today is doing with this very powerful and very deadly satellite capable of destroying everything you hold dear.” Lex Luthor’s eyes darkened as he spoke.
“Murderous sociopathic …” Lois began to mutter.
“Calm down,” Clark urged.
“I will start taking out city by city, block by block until I get what I want. And what I want is Superman.” Lex finished with a sinister smile. “Seven p.m. LexCorp towers. Oh, and if any of you brave souls at the Metropolis P.D. get any ideas about staking out LexCorp think again. I see anyone, but Superman near those towers and Hobb’s Bay and the people that call it home will become a distant memory. Am I clear?”
The image on the television went black.
“Clark,” Lois breathed, letting out a long breath as she felt her panic levels begin to rise.
“It’s okay. It’s going to be okay.” He whispered in her ear.
“All right, people! I want everyone that’s not already assigned to start working on this. Lois, Clark, my office now!” Perry bellowed across the newsroom.
***
The black glowing meteorite reflected off his face as Lex picked up the mysterious stone. “Beautiful, isn’t it?”
Gretchen Kelly stared at the stone in awe. “I thought you said this meteorite was green.”
“Yes, that’s what Jason Trask thought too, but more and more different variations were discovered over the years.” Lex mused.
“What do you think it does?” Gretchen asked.
Lex held up a folder with the letter ‘K’ printed on the cover. “According to this, it makes our flying friend vulnerable to suggestions.”
“You really think you can get Superman to install the Annihilator for you?” Gretchen asked.
“Well, as you can see, I’m giving it my best shot.” He smiled, setting the meteorite back inside the lead box.
***
Seven Months Ago...“Five scientists. Three researchers. Two interns.” Lois sifted through the files, laying them out on the conference room table.
“Gretchen Kelly.” Clark pointed to the first file. “Used to work for LexLabs before they went under. Specialized in Biochemistry and created the formula used to track the victims.”
“Rollie Vale. Expert in robotics only second to my dad.” Lois sighed, “Developed the robotic probe used to inject victims and program—”
“Okay, guys, you want dirt. I’ve got dirt.” Jimmy opened the conference room door waving a large stack of files in his hand.
Lois sighed, looking to the files she already had laid out. As much as she wanted to know what he’d found out, she hated to interrupt when she and Clark were just now digging into the scientists at STAR Labs.
“What’d you find out?” Clark asked, leaning back in his chair.
“So, Martin Snell goes way-way back with Bill Church. He was one of Church’s first partners when he started the first Cost Mart in Denver back in 1975.” Jimmy explained, setting down what he’d found except one lone folder he kept in his hands.
“Were you able to find anything on Church?” Lois asked, curious.
“It’s what I didn’t find that was interesting. Criminal record is clean. Not even a parking ticket.” Jimmy said, pushing one of the files to her. “Now, I don’t know how often you’ve been to Detroit, but it is impossible to go without a parking ticket up there.”
“You think his record’s been wiped?” Clark asked.
“Clean as a baby’s bottom.” Jimmy grinned. “I called my dad at the NIA and had him run the prints. We got a few hits. Mostly small stuff but the really weird thing is it was all connected to something the police started calling ‘The organization.’”
“Any idea who this organization is?” Lois asked, trying not to react too openly to the information Jimmy had just given them.
“There are rumors back and forth but from what I’ve been able to gather this organization moves into a city and takes over. The government. The crime. Everything. They drain it dry until they can’t get anything more. Then they destroy it.” Jimmy said solemnly.
“Kinda like how Intergang is right now?” Lois asked.
“The difference there is Intergang has a face. It has a name. This organization doesn’t have any name or face. It’s just something people fear. The people that work for it don’t even know who they’re working for.” Jimmy continued.
“So we’ve got two mysteries to solve.” Lois sighed, tapping her fingers on her desk. “Okay so let’s assume Bill Church is running Intergang under the guise of his Cost Mart stores. How do we prove it?”
“If he is running Intergang he’s gone out of his way to prove otherwise. He’s the nicest billionaire in the world according to the press. He’s the most generous man you’ll ever meet according to the charities around the world.” Jimmy pointed out.
“That may be true, but even Lex Luthor had a clean background before he was caught.” Clark pointed out. “So, Snell worked for Church from the beginning. Maybe let’s track who all worked for Snell and see if we can identify anyone that might have fallen in with him.”
“Already done.” Jimmy handed over a photograph.
Lois peered at the photograph with Clark.
“Mayson Drake?!”“She worked under Snell until about three years ago when she left his practice to begin her career with the District Attorney’s office. She’s been climbing the ladder ever since.” Jimmy said proudly.
“So, she could have been placed there to make sure the right people went to jail, and the right ones stayed off the streets.” Lois reasoned aloud.
“I don’t know.” Clark shook his head. “She doesn’t seem the type to do something like that.”
“Type?” Lois asked, turning to look at him with a critical eye.
“I just mean she seems trustworthy, honest,” Clark interjected.
“Uh-huh,” Lois nodded, not willing to give Mayson the same benefit of the doubt Clark seemed to be entertaining. “Well, either way, it wouldn’t hurt for us to look into her background. Maybe we can ask her after court this afternoon?”
“Maybe,” Clark smiled at her.
“I’m gonna leave and let you two fight this one out.”
Jimmy said, waving his hand in the air. Lois frowned when she saw the band-aid on his index finger. “Jimmy, what happened to your hand?”
Jimmy stopped and looked at it. “Oh, it’s nothing. I pricked myself on the cabinet in the break room.”
“When was this?” Clark asked, standing to his feet.
“An hour ago. Guys, it’s no big deal. Same thing happened a few weeks ago. Got almost everyone in the newsroom.” Jimmy shrugged.
Lois and Clark exchanged a look, and he headed for the break room.
***
“As the corruption scandal inside Metropolis’s Police Department grows demands for the resignation of the Police Chief and Commissioner have been made. Allegations were made after one of the biggest screw-ups in history made the news. A whistle blower came forward and revealed how our city’s finest were actively working with the criminals to let them back on the street. We can’t feel safe if there isn’t a change.” Bill Church Jr. said smugly into the camera. “Which is why I’m throwing my hat into the ring and running for governor.”
Pete Ross let out a low whistle, “Billionaire’s son getting in the trenches. You don’t see that every day.”
“Stranger things have happened.” Rachel reminded him, primping her hair for the umpteenth time in the mirror. “My hair is flat. Maybe we can do this introduction on the radio? You know where I don’t have to stand in front of a bunch of cameras?”
Pete snickered, walking over to her. “Rach, this is a huge opportunity for you.”
“I still don’t understand it.” She said with a sigh. “I’ve never been in politics. I don’t know the first thing about being a captain.”
“You’ve been a pretty darn good sheriff the last few years.” He reminded her with a nudge.
“In Smallville where the biggest crime is who tipped the Irig’s cow.” She glared at Pete.
“Hey, I was not the only one in that field. You and Clark were right there with me.” He grinned good-naturedly at her.
“Yes, but Clark and I stopped doing that at twelve.” She reminded him.
“I was a bored teenager.” He shrugged. “Can’t fault a guy for needing a creative outlet.”
“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” she asked, “Moving to Metropolis?”
“I’m sure.” He gave her a hug from behind. “It’ll be good to settle down somewhere with indoor plumbing for a change.”
“If this works out it could be longer that six months.” She reminded him.
“I know.” He leaned in to give her a peck. “I hear they have these things called magazines and newspapers that are always looking for an award-winning freelance photographer.”
“Nah, really?” she laughed at his teasing.
“I even happen to know two or three people in the business that could give me a recommendation.” He added with a teasing smile. “Come on Rach, relax. Everything’s going to be fine.”
“I’ve never lived in a big city before.” She said taking a deep breath.
“They sought you out because you’re honest and good at your job.” Pete reminded her. “You’ll do great.”
“I hope so.” She whispered. “Have you heard anything back from Lois or Clark?”
Pete shook his head, “Nah, just got their voicemails. I’ll try them again later.”
“I was really hoping to talk to them before this press conference.” Rachel frowned.
“They’re probably busy with work or
busy…” He wiggled his eyebrows at her to illustrate his point.
“You are terrible.” She admonished, smacking him playfully on the chest.
“I’m just saying…” Pete shrugged. “They
are newlyweds.”
***
“What is it?” Lois asked, watching as Clark removed a small device that looked to be no bigger than a needle from the cupboard.
“It’s the homing device Dr. Klein was looking for,” Clark said with a grim face. “I’m going to see if he can track it. Find out where these are coming from.” He leaned in to kiss her. “If I don’t make it back to court in time cover for me.”
“Be careful.” She nodded, watching him leave.
***
Bill Church Jr. took a seat at his desk and began pulling up file after file on the officers that had been bought and paid for by Intergang. Intergang's plan had been perfect. Get one of the most notorious criminals out on the streets and blame the governor then the public would grow to hate him making room for him –Bill Church Jr.—to step in. He’d clean up the streets and take over then infiltrate himself into every part of Metropolis’ government, ensuring nothing would happen without him knowing about it. It had been a perfect plan, but some goody-two-shoes whistleblower had ruined that plan. He was going to find out who was behind it and when he did that person would regret the day they ever crossed Intergang.
***
“Well, Superman, this is definitely one of ours.” Dr. Klein frowned, looking at the probe under the microscope.
“Can you tell where the probe is programmed to return to?” Clark asked.
“Let’s see here.” Dr. Klein pulled out a micro USB the size of a pin needle and plugged the device into his computer with the cord. “Just give me a minute. All of the probes were programmed to return here at STAR Labs…” He stopped when he saw the map load onto the screen. “That’s odd.”
“What is it?” Clark asked.
“It’s programmed to return to the Metropolis Park.” Dr. Klein said, pointing to his screen. “Superman?” He looked around and saw the Man of Steel had already left.
***
Mayson Drake leaned back in her chair, staring at the Middle Eastern man sitting in front of her. “Martin Snell?” She repeated the name aloud, waiting for the pieces to fit. “You’re telling me Martin Snell is a lieutenant for Intergang?”
“Very connected, my dear,” the man said, handing her a large folder. “I represent a partner with a vested interest in stopping this criminal mastermind from destroying this city.”
“What is this?” she asked.
“Bank records of all the public officials Mr. Snell currently owns and has doing Intergang’s dirty work. I’ve taken the liberty of highlighting the more prominent members for you.” He said with a smile.
“And how do I know these records are genuine?” she asked, tapping her fingers against the file he’d just pushed to her.
“I assure you those records are accurate. You’re more than welcome to call the Swiss Bank yourself and check.” He said with a sly smile. “Which I have no doubt you’ll do upon my departure.”
He stood up to leave, and Mayson stared at the file in front of her.
***
Inside the secluded underground operation room, two techs sat at their computers, “I’ve lost contact with the probe.” One of the techs said.
“Try resetting it?” the other asked.
The tech frowned, “That’s weird. It says the probe is heading back here…”
The room filled with dust and concrete as the wall behind them shattered to pieces. The two techs looked to one another before ducking behind their desks. Superman approached them, holding a familiar looking red and yellow blinking probe with a long needle. He held the probe between his fingers, snuffing the light out before advancing toward them.
“So, that’s how your bullets find their targets, right? Injection of radioisotope giving the bullets a genetic tag for their victims?”
Unable to speak, the two techs nodded as one of them reached for the panic button beneath the table.
“I don’t think so!” Superman hoisted him up, grabbing him by the collar and lifting him a few feet off the ground. “Who are you working for?”
“The or-organi-zation.” He stammered out.
“What organization?” Superman asked, narrowing his eyes at him.
“I-Intergang.” He stammered out.
***
Bill Church walked with Martin Snell into the conference room. “Are you sure we have everything we need to get this case tossed?”
“Everything’s in place, Mr. Church,” Snell said uneasily, not meeting Bill Church’s eyes. He still didn’t know what to think of the attack yesterday. Lex Luthor said his boss had tried to have him killed. What if that was true?
“Good.” Church sighed, “I still don’t understand what they were doing setting fires in the middle of the day! With witnesses around?”
“I'll be honest… the Skins are a little hard to control.” Snell admitted sheepishly.
“From all the humanity on the planet, you picked them. Make it work or cut them loose but don't walk in here with any more excuses.” Church pinched the bridge of his nose.
“Yes, sir.” Snell nodded.
“I don't have to tell you we're at a crucial point in the Metropolis franchise. We can't afford to be out in the open until Superman is taken care of.” Church’s eyes narrowed, “Tell the Skins they try anything like this again they’ll be enjoying an early retirement from Intergang and playing with the Angels.”
“I’ll be sure to reel them in, Mr. Church,” Snell promised.
“Now any word on this Southside cop who came out of nowhere and stopped the Skins? You said you were going to look into it if I recall correctly.” Church asked.
Snell began to respond but stopped when he saw the blinking lights on the monitor. “What is that?”
Church turned toward the screen, pulling a remote out to open the monitors. The monitors showed Superman putting his fist through one of the computers. Church turned back to Snell, “Hmm, looks like your plan’s not going too well, Martin.”
“Where is it?” Superman’s voice echoed from the monitor.
Snell pulled out his phone and began to dial, “He wants to butt heads here comes the headache.” He waited for the long beep. “Fire.”
***
Clark heard it. The sound of the rifle being fired. After ensuring the technicians were secured. He moved at super-speed, finding the rifles that had just fired and melted them with his heat vision. He felt the wind against his face as he raced toward the Planet. He had to get there in time…
Perry White stepped out onto the crosswalk in front of the Daily Planet, clutching his newspaper. Clark grabbed him at super-speed flying up into the air. “Superman…What?” The missile was close to follow. He wrapped his cape around his editor, protecting him from the impact. The missile exploded against him. He looked cautiously at Perry who seemed unharmed. “Uh, Superman, did you just save me from something?”
“Uh-huh,” Clark nodded, floating him back down to the cross walk.
“Do I wanna know what it was?” Perry asked.
“Nah,” Clark shook his head.
***
Lois waited outside the courtroom pacing back and forth, “Come on, Clark, where are you?”
“Lois?” Mayson walked up to her, looking around, “Where’s Clark?”
“He, um…” Lois wracked her brain, trying to find an acceptable answer but nothing came to her. “He’ll be here in a few.”
Mayson looked at her watch, “He better get here soon. He’s my first witness.”
“I’m sure he’ll be just a minute,” Lois said, looking around the empty waiting area. Seeing that they were alone, she decided to go ahead and dive in on the questions she had about Mayson’s relationship with Bill Church. “You used to work for Bill Church and Martin Snell, correct?”
Mayson turned to look at her in surprise, “How'd you know that?”
“Is it a secret?” Lois asked, narrowing her eyes at her.
“No, I just don’t recall mentioning it,” Mayson said, tilting her head as she readjusted her coat.
“Clark and I have been following a series of leads... from Baby Rage and the Skins to Martin Snell to Bill Church...and from Bill Church to Intergang.” Lois narrowed her eyes as she spoke.
“Bill...?” Mayson scoffed in light chuckle then looked at Lois suspiciously, “Where did you hear about Intergang?”
“We have our sources,” Lois said then tilted on her heels and turned back toward Mayson. “Organized crime ring swoops into city after city taking it over. No one knows who runs it. No one knows who they’re working for.”
“And you think Bill might be connected to this how exactly?” Mayson asked defensively, taking a step toward her.
“I’m a reporter. I’m just following the facts.” Lois said.
“Are you sure that’s all this is?” Mayson asked.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Lois scoffed.
“Don’t insult me. You and I both know you are looking for a way to make me the bad guy here.” Mayson said narrowing her eyes at her. “You’ve had a chip on your shoulder from the first time we met.”
“Chip?” Lois sneered, “I am not losing any sleep over you.”
“Just because you can’t control your insecurities doesn’t give you the right to sling mud at me and my professional acquaintances,” Mayson growled angrily.
“I notice you’re deflecting,” Lois said, not giving Mayson’s comment about her insecurities a second thought. “What are you trying to hide?”
“Bill Church is my
friend. Martin Snell is a professional acquaintance.” Mayson snapped angrily.
“Friend?” Lois echoed, “Friend as in you have lunch every Tuesday or friend as in you’d do him a favor if he called and asked you?”
“What exactly are you implying?” Mayson asked, narrowing her eyes at Lois.
“I have really good instincts when it comes to people.” Lois said, “And right now my instincts tell me you’re hiding something. I don’t trust you.”
“Careful those pesky insecurities of yours are showing again.” Mayson snipped airily.
Lois did her best not to react. She’d made her point. Mayson’s annoying tendency to call her insecure and throw her off her line of questioning only solidified the point she was trying to make. Mayson was hiding something.
Clark walked up to them, readjusting his tie. “Hi, sorry that took so long.” He gave Lois an apologetic smile before turning back to Mayson, “Did I miss anything?”
“Nope,” Mayson said a bit too quickly, pasting on a smile.
“We should find our seats,” Lois said. “Uncle Mike’s waiting.”
***
Clark sat on the stand, finishing his testimony going over everything he’d seen at Mike’s restaurant when Baby Rage had tried to burn the place down.
<<“I have really good instincts when it comes to people. And right now, my instincts tell me you’re hiding something. I don’t trust you.”
“Careful those pesky insecurities of yours are showing again.”>>Lois had questioned Mayson without him. When he’d arrived, both women were seething. He’d heard the tail end of the conversation. Lois’ comment about not trusting Mayson and Mayson’s comment about Lois’ insecurities.
Why Lois hadn’t waited until he got back to question Mayson, he wasn’t sure. Ever since he arrived, Mayson was treating him like the enemy which was making him more and more uncomfortable.
“And after you saw the defendant start the fire... ?” Mayson prompted, pacing in front of him.
Clark took a deep breath, relaying what had happened as if he had been watching the scene unfold. He couldn’t lie under oath. “Superman flew down, apprehended him and put it out.”
“Thank you, Mr. Kent.” Mayson finished coolly, moving to the prosecution table and nodding to Martin Snell. “Your witness.”
Snell wore a smug smile and waved, “No questions at this time.”
“You're excused, Mr. Kent.” The judge nodded.
Clark stood up and walked back toward the gallery where Lois was sitting with Mike. He took his seat next to Lois, smiling as she took his hand in hers, leaning her head against his shoulder.
“You did good, Clark,” Mike whispered to him, giving him a thumbs up.
“Thanks,” He smiled back, noticing a man in a grey suit approaching the defense table and whispering to Snell. “What is he up to?”
“Look!” Lois pointed to where Snell and Mayson had moved to the judge’s bench and were in a heated discussion.
The two attorneys turned around, and Mayson had a defeated look on her face. “I’ve got a bad feeling,” Clark muttered.
“New evidence seems to indicate that the officers who arrested the defendant did not properly apprise him of his Miranda rights. And the warrant issued to search his house had the incorrect address on it.” The judge began carefully.
Lois exchanged a look with Clark, “Of course it was.”
“Ms. Drake, your office personally issued the warrant.” The judge scolded.
“There must be some mistake...” Mayson began to plead.
“I'll grant you twenty-four hours to investigate this matter internally and refute the charges. Otherwise, I'll have no choice but to declare the arrest invalid and set the defendant free.” The judge banged his gavel.
Clark narrowed his eyes as Baby Rage turned around to give him and Mike a look and mouthed
‘Tick Tock’ to them.
“Sorry, Mayson. Better luck next time.” Snell said smugly.
Lois glared at Mayson as she spat out venomously, “It was her. She set it all up. She’s dirty, Clark.”
Clark still wasn’t sure. Lois had her gut instincts about people but so did he. He felt there was something they were missing. Mayson seemed trustworthy. She seemed like a decent person. Could she really have tanked the case on purpose?
***
“I can’t believe you started questioning her without me.” Clark gave Lois an irritated look as he followed Lois to the café they were meeting Sam Lane at.
“I was trying to get some information. Since when do you get so bent out of shape about me doing my job?” she asked, throwing him an annoyed look.
“That didn’t sound like a conversation between a reporter and a potential source. It sounded like you were both…”
“She was making digs to throw me off my game because she didn’t like the questions I was asking her. End of story.” She said, cutting him off as they turned the corner.
“Are you sure that’s all it was?” he asked gently.
“What else could it be?” she asked, giving him a pointed look.
“I just mean, you’ve been a bit…defensive when anyone brings her name up.” Clark edged cautiously. “That and your already heightened hormones…”
“What a load of…” she growled angrily, turning to face him. She was furious.
He’d noticed her tendency to let her emotions get the better of her whenever Mayson’s name came up. He’d tried to ignore it and just reassure her whenever he could because he knew a lot of it was coming from her hormones, but it just seemed to be getting worse. After the tail end of the conversation he’d overheard this afternoon, he thought it was time he addressed it. Obviously, talking about it wasn’t going so well.
“Don’t you dare! Okay, yes, I might be a little more…sensitive to certain things but I am still a professional. And I kept my cool the entire time. I could have told her exactly what I thought about her, but I didn’t.” She hissed angrily.
“Lois, you were both being ridiculous.” He corrected. “Come on, you never lose your cool no matter how hard a witness or source pushes you. You can’t go around telling people you don’t trust them if you want them to work with you.”
“She’s hiding something!” Lois shot back irritably.
“Maybe, but you don’t go around telling her. Now, whatever she may or may not be hiding is going to be even harder to get out of her.” He pointed out gently. “Honey, come on, what’s going on? Talk to me.”
“I really don’t want to talk about it.” She said quietly. “Here we are.” She pointed to the window in front of them.
He let out a long breath, “Lois. You can’t…”
“I said I don’t want to talk about it.” She cut him off, opening the door to the café. Inside at a table for four against the back wall away from the other guests, Sam Lane stood waving to them.
Clark sighed, realizing she wasn’t going to talk about what was bothering her. Refusing to back off would just make her even angrier. The conversation wasn’t over by a long shot, but for the moment he would table it so they could address a more pressing issue. “Fine. Maybe your dad will be more forthcoming.”
***
Cat Grant stood in front of City Hall watching as Governor Barnes addressed the press. Every news station had a cameraman and at least three reporters to cover the press conference. The Daily Planet had sent her and George. She cringed looking over at the balding man with bottle cap glasses.
“This morning I requested the resignation of three lieutenants, five captains, and our police chief and commissioner. I have entrusted my office with the task of finding replacements for all nine of these roles. All positions have been filled with people outside of New Troy to ensure their loyalties are not compromised. A thorough investigation within the department will be led by our new Commissioner, Frank Martin. I entrust the safety of this city in his capable hands.”
The governor stepped back, and a tall black man with balding hair and navy-blue suit stepped forward. “Good afternoon. Thank you, Governor Barnes, for those kind words. I hope to live up to the standards you have set forth for me, and I serve at your pleasure.” He turned to the crowd. “I’m sure you’re all just dying to know who all is going to fill the shoes of all these men and women that Governor Barnes has forced to step down?”
There was a murmur of agreement among the press, and the commissioner smiled, “Well, it just so happens we’ve got them all here today.” He pointed to the row of officers behind him. “Coming from New Mexico, we have Police Chief Maria Gomez.” There was a light applause as she stood to her feet. “Captains Carlos Friez and Julia Summers.” He motioned to the two captains as they stood. “From California, we have Captain Daniel Raymond and Lieutenant Paul Raegan.” The two stood as a scatter of applause echoed through the crowd.
“From Kansas, we have Lieutenant Rachel Harris and Captain Michael Herman.” He continued. “From Maine, we have Captain Kelly Wilder and Lieutenant Charlie Jones.” The last officer stood for applause, and the commissioner motioned to the long line of officers. “Each one of these fine men and women has proven their ability to protect and serve with integrity. Together we will rid Metropolis from corruption and restore it to the great city it was once again.”
***
“So, what do you think?” Lois asked as she and Clark stepped into the newsroom.
“I think it’s risky, but your dad’s right. The quicker it’s removed from their possession, the better.” He reasoned aloud, walking toward their desks.
“What if you get caught?” she asked, looking at him in concern.
“What if who gets caught?” Jimmy asked, walking up to them.
“Uh, nothing,” Clark said hurriedly. “What are those?” He pointed to the large stack of files in Jimmy’s arms.
“Everything I could find that linked to the organization like you asked,” Jimmy said proudly.
“All of that’s the organization research?” Lois asked skeptically. “It’s not as big as I thought it would be.”
“What were you expecting?” Jimmy asked with a perplexed expression.
“Oh, um,” she looked back at Clark who shrugged.
“All right everyone gather around!” Perry bellowed, waving a slip of paper in his hand as he corralled the staff around him. “As you know it’s that time of year again. The nominations for the Kerth Investigative Journalism have been announced and I’m proud to announce two of our very own have received a nod.”
“Two?” Lois squeaked out, looking around the room uncomfortably. She wondered for a moment who her competition would be.
“That’s right,” Perry said. “I want everyone to give a big round of applause for …”
“Fifty bucks it’s for the Southside scandal,” Cat said to Jimmy.
“No, no, the Nightfall series. We are not alone.” Jimmy argued.
“Can I help you two?” Perry interrupted, throwing them an irritated expression.
“No, no, you were saying,” Cat said, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Thank you,” Perry looked around the room. “Any other comments before I finish my speech?”
“No, sir,” the crowd grumbled amongst themselves.
“As I was saying, please put your hands together for our reporting team of Lane and Kent nominated for their series on political corruption in the White House,” Perry said gesturing to Lois and Clark.
“Both of us?” Lois asked, hearing Clark echo the same thing in unison with her. Lois looked back at Clark then to Perry in surprise. They hadn’t even known any of the articles she and Clark had written together were even eligible.
“Made it just under the wire to qualify this year. Congratulations. Hell of a way to make your return back to journalism.” Perry congratulated, offering her very stunned husband a hand to shake.
“Uh, thanks, Perry,” Clark said shaking his hand.
“Man, CK, you’re the man!” Jimmy slapped him on the back. Lois threw Jimmy a look, and he corrected himself. “And you are the Wo-man.”
“Congratulations, Lois. I’m sure you two will bring another one home.” Perry congratulated her.
“Thanks, Perry,” Lois said with a smile, watching as the staff began to disperse and head back to their desks.
“Jimmy!” Perry called, “Where are those photos of the new commissioner?”
“Coming right up, Chief!” Jimmy called, heading for his desk to grab the prints.
“I guess that’s our cue to get back to work,” Lois said, following Clark back to their desks.
***
Later that evening Lois and Clark sat at their desks going through everything they had on Martin Snell and Intergang. Lois sat on the phone arguing with her source from the Metropolis P.D. “Look, you’re the best police source I have. I need names, or the whole case is going to get tossed and my uncle—No, don’t hang up, just listen to…” She let out a growl of frustration. “He hung up.”
“Face it, Lois. We're at a dead end.” Clark said, rolling his chair up to her desk.
“We’ve got sixteen hours before the judge tosses this case.” Lois shook her head in exhaustion. “Where are those files Jimmy gave you on Intergang?”
“Right here.” He said, picking up the files and sifting through them at super-speed. “Nothing on Snell that links back to the organization or to Intergang.”
She pulled out the flash drive Sam had given her. “Well, let’s settle this once and for all.” She plugged the flash drive into her computer.
Clark looked around the newsroom, checking to make sure no one was paying attention to what she had on her computer screen.
“Okay, let’s see what we’ve got here. Something called ‘Project Metallo’ is in the files. Can you look and see if there’s anything on Intergang with a cyborg or ‘Metallo’ in the files?”
He flipped through the files at super-speed and looked up shaking his head. “There’s something about a guy named Darryl that is suspected to have a connection with Intergang, but nothing about Metallo. Any other project names?” He asked.
“Project K which was…” her voice dropped a few octaves as she whispered. “The testing on Superman.” He reached out to squeeze her hand, and she continued. “Then there’s a project here about genetic tagging.”
“Genetic tagging.” Clark snapped his fingers, “Like what they took from STAR Labs?”
Lois pulled up the file with the report, and he began to read over her shoulder. “Who is this Darryl character?” He pointed at the name on the report.
“Marcus Darryl.” Lois read off, “He’s the Head of the Science Division according to this.”
Clark pulled up the list of suspected lieutenants in Intergang. “Darryl, Preston Carpenter, and Nigel St. John.”
“Lex Luthor’s Nigel St. John?” Lois asked, grabbing the file from him.
“One and the same.” Clark sighed.
“I thought they caught him. This says he’s still missing.” Lois said with a concerned look.
“According to this, he escaped during his transfer from state to Federal prison. No leads on his whereabouts.” Clark said with a concerned look.
“So this Darryl character. Do we have a photo of him?” Lois asked. “Maybe we can have Jimmy run him through the system and see if we can…Oh, God…” She stopped when he pulled out the 8x10 glossy photo of the man.
“According to this, he was killed a few weeks ago. Gunshot wound in the back of the head.” Clark said solemnly.
“That man.” Lois shook her head, and a frantic look crossed her face. “He was at our wedding.”
“What?!” Clark did a double take.
“I saw him and daddy talking just before he told me about…you know.” She whimpered, burying her face in her hands. “Oh, God it’s them. It’s really them.”
“Honey, calm down,” He soothed, running his hand up and down her back.
“How am I supposed to calm down? They’ve obviously bought and paid for this trial. You’ve got a crooked defense attorney, crooked cops and probably a crooked DA and…”
“Nice to know you think so much of me.” Mayson’s voice echoed behind them.
They both turned to see Mayson Drake standing behind Lois’ desk with a box in her hands. Lois minimized her files on her computer, pursing her lips as she turned to face Mayson. “Just calling things how I see them.”
“I am not your enemy,” Mayson said with an annoyed look.
“Your office issued the warrant. The judge made that very clear.” Lois narrowed her eyes at Mayson. “What exactly am I supposed to think?”
“I’d like for you to trust me,” Mayson said meeting her gaze sincerely.
“It’s hard to trust someone we don’t know that much about,” Clark interjected. “It’s even harder when that same person tries to deflect questioning by making personal digs.” He narrowed his eyes at Mayson as he placed a hand on Lois’ shoulders. Even though he didn’t like how Lois handled the situation he wasn’t about to make Mayson think he approved of how she’d been talking to his wife.
“Fair enough.” Mayson acknowledged, “So all cards on the table?” He looked to Lois, and she nodded. “If this case gets thrown out and my office is implicated I can kiss my career goodbye. I want to get to the bottom of this as much as you do, but I don’t know who I can trust anymore.”
“Seems to be going around,” Lois said, sharing a look with him.
“I guess if you want trust, you have to start by giving it,” Mayson said, opening up the file box and handing over a large stack of files. “This is everything my office has on Intergang…and my personal files on Martin Snell.”
“Your professional acquaintance?” Lois asked, recalling Mayson’s choice of words.
“I’d never do anything to jeopardize a case.” Mayson said, “I've known Martin a long time, he's always danced close to the line.”
“Seems to me he stepped over it a long time ago,” Lois commented. “If you were so suspicious of him then why were you defending him?”
“I wasn’t defending him,” Mayson argued half-heartedly. “I was…” she stopped herself mid-sentence. “Look, that’s not the point. I think if we work together we might be able to prove a connection to Intergang.”
“Why us?” Clark asked suspiciously.
“The Metropolis P.D. doesn’t necessarily bode a lot of confidence from me these days.” She said carefully. “And considering you were the ones to break the corruption story I figure it couldn’t hurt to put our heads together. You want Intergang gone as much as I do.”
Lois exchanged a look with Clark, and he nodded. “What have you got?”
“What do you?” Mayson asked.
***
TBC...
Comments Go Here
