Preamble: I started this story in July 2002 and got bogged down by real life and other "stuff". I did have three coaches who cheered me on and kept me wanting to finish this story. Thank you ML, Jude and Carol Malo for all your help and prodding. I wouldn't have gotten here if it wasn't for the three of you.

Part of this story ended up in a vignette called "It's All About Raisins". I left only a taste of that story here. And speaking of food, I'd like everyone to know that no weight was gained during the writing of this story.

For those who don't like rereading big chunks of the series, I'd like to apologize, but that was the only way I could get this story out. The good news is that those chunks are only in the first two parts and then I take off in my own direction.

The usual disclaimer goes here.

And now...

Blind Spots
Part 1
by Gerry Anklewicz

Clark felt uncomfortable knowing that Mayson was looking him up and down, staring at his bare chest. When he heard the knocking, he had been so intent on looking at the police uniform and hoping to try it on, that he’d rushed to the door, barely remembering to put on his glasses. He hadn’t expected Mayson; actually, he hadn’t expected anyone.

He really couldn’t figure Mayson out. She was a good-looking woman, a very good-looking woman, and he knew from their first meeting in the police station a few days before that she was interested in him. Looking at her, he’d probably be interested in her too except for two very important facts. First, he was in love with Lois Lane, and second, Mayson really didn’t like Superman. Now if he told Mayson that he was Superman, she’d probably slap him and never speak to him again. If he told Lois he was Superman, she’d probably gush and fall all over him, and then slap him and never speak to him again.

He wondered why Mayson hated Superman so much. He remembered talking to her as Superman just that morning in front of the courthouse.

"Thanks for the statement," she had said in a brusque, but business-like manner. "We'll be in touch if we need you."

Clark hadn’t seen her like this before. Her flirtatious approach with the reporter made her icy attitude toward Superman so puzzling. Trying to be helpful he said, "I just want you to know, Ms. Drake, whatever I can do to help the DA's office..."

But she brushed him off, something that Superman wasn’t really used to. "Like I said, we'll be in touch."

But he understood his responsibilities. "I'd be more than willing to testify against Baby Rage."

"I don't think so."

Puzzled, he had decided to ask Mayson directly. "Ms. Drake, have I done something to offend you?"

"No, but I have to admit, I've never much liked the idea of you."

Clark could honestly say that he was taken aback. "I don't follow..."

"Do you have a license to chase criminals?" But before he could answer, she plowed on. "Do you ever read them their rights? Are you insured if you hurt someone? You know how much paperwork you make for my office? And where am I supposed to get a hold of you to come in for depositions? Where do you live? Do you work? Who are you?"

Clark, who had kept opening his mouth trying to answer the flood of questions, finally gave up and simply said, "I can't tell you that..."

"Exactly. You see, I hate secrets. And mystery men scare me almost as much as they bore me."

Mystery man, he thought. She should only know.

Even when Mayson was confronted with Lois’s obvious idolization of Superman, Mayson carried on. He had overheard her comment about his height. She had thought he would’ve been taller. When he had approached Mayson and Lois as Clark, Mayson stared at him longingly with her big blue eyes making him feel as if she could have drained the essence out of him. Then, as they talked about their suspicions of Intergang, Mayson had made sure that she was beside Clark and Lois was not.

And now, Mayson was at his apartment staring at him sensually. He could feel the heat emanating from her eyes, and he realized that he wasn’t totally immune to it.

"Hi, I...was in the neighborhood and... thought we might go over some facts," she said as she crossed over the threshold into his apartment.

"Sure, come on in." Clark led her into the living room. He felt her look around the room taking it in. He moved, he hoped not too quickly or too obviously to the box on his coffee table and put the cover back on.

"Let me just get a shirt on..." he said, not feeling comfortable standing there in his shorts. The morning Lois had come to get him in his hotel room, when he was wearing just a towel came back to him. The present feeling of discomfort, being half-dressed in front of Mayson, hadn’t been there with Lois. He had enjoyed her off-handed slip--"I thought you’d be naked." Then, even though he had felt her eyes following him into the other room, he’d also felt that she was nonplused by the whole thing. He didn’t feel that she was eating him up alive with her eyes. He told himself that he was being silly about Mayson’s gaze. He was a lot more exposed as Superman.

Mayson said, "No. I mean, not if it'd make you uncomfortable...it is sort of warm in here." To confirm her statement she took off her jacket, leaving her in a black silk camisole. "Isn’t it? Yeah...mmm...hmm...definitely...this is much better."

Clark looked at her, not sure what to think. He led her over to the couch where she took out her note pad, ready to work. Still feeling underdressed, Clark went into his bedroom and put on a t-shirt. Then he was ready to sit down with Mayson.

When she finished taking his deposition a half an hour later, they were comfortably sitting in his living room, drinking tea and talking. Mayson looked over her notes and said, "You're going to make a great witness and I appreciate it. In my line of work, you don't see much bravery."

Clark was surprised. "I'm just telling the truth," he said, thinking that would be what his parents would expect of him, what he would expect of himself. "Nothing too brave about that..."

"Well, true, you're not flying around with a big 'S' on your chest, bragging about what a hero you are..."

Mayson’s statement disappointed Clark. He didn’t think that he was bragging about his exploits. He didn’t think that he stuck around long enough to brag. When he did talk to the press, he just gave the facts as he saw them, trying to give credit to those around him.

"You heard Superman brag?" he asked.

"Not in so many words..." She began to put the papers back into her briefcase. "Look, I know he's a friend of yours," she said more apologetically, "but you're ten times the man he is. An ordinary guy, about to stand up to what might be the biggest criminal organization in the world. That takes guts. I'd like to see Superman try that without his cape."

"Well, maybe you will," Clark said wondering about the many ironies of his life. He watched as Mayson put on her jacket. Lois, not too long ago, had told Superman that she would marry him even if he were an ordinary man, but she had turned down Clark’s overtures. Mayson seemed to be interested in Clark simply because he was an ordinary guy. Ironies!

What didn’t make sense to him was why Mayson felt so strongly against Superman. What had he done to make her feel that way? It wasn’t just that he was a mystery. He’d proven over the year that Superman had been in Metropolis that, even though he didn’t have a job, he was dependable and honest. Why would she be so antagonistic towards him? Here was his chance to find out, and he decided that he would.

"Mayson, I don’t get it. What do you have against Superman?"

"Let’s see? Where should I begin?" she started sarcastically and she began to rhyme off the litany of errors which he’d heard earlier that day.

"That’s a lot Mayson, but I wonder if that’s really why you’re so hostile toward him? All of those concerns can be addressed, even the amount of paperwork he creates. No other assistant DA, or even the DA himself, has ever complained about what you’ve mentioned. So why the aversion?"

Mayson got up from the couch and walked toward the bookcase, examining Clark’s books.

"People begin to depend on him. He gives them false hope," she said quietly, "but he can’t do everything he says he can. He’s not always there when you need him."

"He’s only one man," Clark said echoing his parents’ words, Lois’s words, even his own thoughts. He had enough trouble believing them himself. He resented Mayson a bit for reminding him of his limitations. Walking toward her, he stayed only an arm’s distance away.

Mayson lingered over the books. She pulled out a volume of Emily Dickinson. "This was my mother’s favourite. She used to read it whenever she felt frustrated or stressed. She said the words, although discouraging, really were uplifting. The poetry and imagery were so rich."

Suddenly, she faced him. "He just wasn’t there when he was really needed. He wasn’t there when I really needed him." Turning away from Clark, she placed the book back on the shelf. "He showed up for a number of weeks, he saved the space shuttle, he stopped car accidents, stopped robberies. He stopped people jumping off tall buildings. The man even saved stupid kittens who managed to climb up trees. And then," she sniffed, "And then when I needed him the most, he just disappeared. Three days without Superman. Three days." She cleared her throat and looked back at Clark. "What good is he, if he’s not around at the most important time?"

Clark took Mayson’s hand and led her back to the couch. He sat her down and poured her another cup of tea. "Tell me what happened, Mayson," he prodded gently.

"It was my parents’ thirtieth-fifth anniversary...my brother’s birthday, too. We celebrated Tom’s birthday and my parents’ anniversary at the same time. We went to L’Auberge Gavrouche for dinner and then, Janice, my sister-in-law, and I planned to go back to the house for cake. But I didn’t...and then...and Superman wasn’t there..." Mayson gasped for air trying to stop the tears.

Clark put his arm around Mayson. "Slowly, Mayson, you don’t have to get it all out at once."

"We’d begun the evening," Mayson continued once she caught her breath, "over at my parents’ house in Castlewood Park. My parents had put their wedding movies on video and thought that before we went for dinner we would all watch them. They were a hoot! We rolled on the floor laughing about the bridesmaids’ dresses, the haircuts on the men and the women’s hairdos."

Clark looked at her questioningly.

She shrugged. "It was the sixties! The evening was shaping up to be a fun one. Whenever all of us got together, we had a good time.

"After dinner, we headed back to the house. Just before I got there, my pager went off. The office. Bill Church, my boss then, wanted me to come over and help him appease some client in Australia who was giving him a hard time. I explained that I was in the middle of this family celebration, but he just pleaded that this guy wouldn’t listen to him, he had to listen to a lawyer, and since he’d dealt with me before, Bill felt that I was the person to speak to him. I promised my parents that I’d be back as soon as I could. I got into my car and headed for Bill’s condo.

"I managed to calm the client down. He just needed to hear about the legal details of the particular acquisition from a lawyer. Unfortunately, it took quite a while. By the time we were finished it was one in the morning. Bill was in the living room flipping channels, when he found a late breaking news bulletin. A house fire. In Castlewood Park. I was gathering my purse and coat to go when I heard the street name. The street where my parents lived. I wondered which neighbour the house belonged to. I walked over to the TV and stood in front of it. The images that I saw slapped me in the face. It was my parents’ home. I think I just stood there with my mouth open, trying to understand what I was seeing. Finally, I must’ve said, ‘That’s my parents’ house’ or something like that.

"Bill asked me if I was sure, if I hadn’t made a mistake or anything, as a way to calm me. I was beginning to hyperventilate at that point, so he took charge. He helped me on with my coat and led me downstairs to his car. His driver was off for the night, so he drove me to the house.

"Once we were about three miles from the house, I could see flames and the smoke rising. I just hoped that my family had escaped. The street was blocked by fire trucks, ambulances and police cars. Blue and red lights were flashing. People mingled around the barricades watching as the pieces of roof began to cave in. Bill led me to the police officer who was in charge, a Sergeant Zymack. When he learned that it was my parents’ house, he began to ask me questions. I didn’t hear what he asked. I just wanted to know where Mom and Dad, Tom and Janice were. He didn’t have any answers. A neighbour had called 9-1-1. No one had seen people coming out of the house. Bill kept calling Tom’s place, but there was no answer.

"The fire raged on for another hour before the firefighters had it under control. It wasn’t until much later in the morning that I found out...The firefighters found four badly charred bodies in the house. My parents...Tom and Janice."

Mayson stopped talking. She had been talking as if she was on autopilot, but that hadn’t stopped the tears from flowing. She used the tissues that Clark had handed to her to wipe the tears running down her cheeks while he left her side to bring her a glass of water.

When he placed the glass in her hand, he said, "You don’t have to go on if you don’t want to."

"No, I’ve started. I might as well get the rest out." She took a few sips of water, using those moments to calm herself down. "The next day, Superman was flying around Metropolis again. Why wasn’t he there when I needed him?"

"What did the police find out?" asked Clark, not ready to hear more about Superman’s failings. He knew what had happened to Superman and he didn’t want to accept that he might have been able to change the outcome to Mayson’s story.

"The police put together a possible scenario to explain what happened. When my parents came home, they interrupted a burglary. The two burglars must have been spooked so much that they emptied their automatic guns into my parents, Tom and Janice. Then they set fire to the curtains on the main floor. The flames spread quickly. By the time the neighbour, who called 9-1-1 saw it, the flames had reached to the upper level and black smoke was billowing out the windows. The fire department didn’t get into the house until much later in the morning." Mayson closed her eyes as if she was trying to shut out the image. "They found the four bodies fairly close to the front foyer. I had to identify them, but there wasn’t much to identify. They had to rely on dental records."

"Did the police find the culprits?"

"The burglars took off in a 1972 Ford Pinto. It was found about fifteen miles from the house. It had spun out, hit something from the back, and the gas tank exploded. Two men died in the car. The fire department found two automatic rifles whose bullets matched the bullet casings in the house, some explosives and pieces of jewellery that belonged to my mother in the debris. There was no doubt that these men killed my family." She reached over to take some tissue from the box. She dabbed her eyes, then blew her nose.

"Oh, Mayson, I’m so sorry," Clark said, "I can’t imagine how awful it must be to lose everyone in one moment like that."

"Pretty horrific, huh?" she lamented and then sat in silence.

Clark didn’t know what to say, so he took her hand and held it. She entwined her fingers and squeezed his hand.

After a few moments, she added, "So, I’m infuriated. Where was Superman when I needed him? Why does he let us build hope, and he’s not there when he’s really needed?"

"But..."

"It may seem irrational to you Clark, but I think that I’d rather deal with a real person than someone who just shows up without taking any responsibility."

"But..."

"I’m not going to argue this with you or discuss it. I told you it’s not rational. In the end, I’d rather deal with someone like you in court than Superman. You can be depended on, he can’t."

"But..."

"Clark, it’s getting late." Mayson dried her eyes and then collected her purse, jacket and briefcase. "Walk me to the door, please."

"Mayson, are you all right? Do you want me to take you home?"

"No. I’ll be fine."

At the door, Mayson turned to face Clark. "I haven’t been very fair to you, ranting about my dislike of Superman. I know you and he are friends. I’m sorry."

"Nothing to be sorry about," Clark said.

Mayson stared at Clark. She opened her mouth as if to say something and then closed it. Looking at the door, she took a deep breath and turned to Clark."Would you like to have lunch?" she asked.

"To talk about the case?"

"No."

"Oh," he said as he realized what she wanted.

"Try and cap that wild enthusiasm," she said, making light of her offer.

"No, it's not that, you just caught me a little off guard but... yeah, lunch sounds good."

"I'll call you."

As Clark reached to open the door, he felt Mayson lean toward him. He looked at her as she quickly kissed him. Before Clark could respond, Mayson ended the kiss and walked out the door leaving him a bit bewildered. Mayson’s reactions to him made him feel strange. She was interested in him, but knowing how she felt about Superman, a very important part of Clark, made a relationship between them impossible. Not only that, even if he found Mayson attractive, he wasn’t interested in her romantically. She wasn’t Lois.

Clark’s thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Lois..." he said as he let her in.

Not waiting for any formal invitation, Lois opened her satchel and pulled out a picture. "I dug a little deeper and found out something else about Church."

"Come on in," Clark said when she was halfway into the living room.

"I can't stay, just look."

Lois handed him a picture of Bill Church, Martin Snell and Mayson Drake, arm in arm at a formal banquet.

"Mayson Drake worked under Snell in Church's acquisitions division," she continued.

"Yeah, I know."

"You know?" she asked. "How?"

"Mayson just told me. Well, she told me that Church had been her boss. She didn’t mention Snell or what she did for Church."

"Well, what does that tell you?"

Just then, Lois’s beeper went off. "It’s Uncle Mike. He’s in trouble. I’ve got to go."

As soon as Lois left, Clark spun into his suit and flew over to the south side.

tbc....