Thank you to everyone who has been reading A New Hero.
<Around words denote telepathic thought.>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From Part 21:
Clark was watching 'Metropolis Now' on television.
Mayson Drake-Smith was being interviewed and was speaking about the Mutilator case. She was saying that she obviously couldn't say much about it, but that she wanted to make sure that everyone was aware of the situation so they could be more vigilant. She mentioned that she spoke to Superman earlier that day.
The host asked, "So, how is Superman doing. No one has seen him."
"Well, he's pretty pale and thin, but considering what happened to him and considering that he almost died, I'd say he's doing fairly well."
'Metropolis Now' was actually more of a gossip show, but when Clark was flipping through the stations and saw Mayson on, he decided to watch.
Rose Marcus leaned towards Mayson rather conspiratorially. "Well, I'm certainly glad to hear that. Mayson, I can call you that can't I?" Mayson nodded. "Well, Mayson, I hear you and your husband have been having marital trouble and that you are getting divorced. Is that true?"
"Well, I... Well, okay, yes. But, I must say, I don't feel any great sense of loss. I'm already in another relationship."
"Really?! I knew there were rumors that you're husband was cheating on you, but I didn't know you were having an affair, too."
"Well, I wouldn't call it an affair. I'm not sleeping him yet."
"Well, Mayson, do tell us who the lucky fellow is."
"Oh, no, I couldn't."
"How about a little hint? Is he married? What does he do?"
"No, he's not married. He's... a jour... Oh, my I can't say that."
"Jour.. like journalist. Why Mayson, you wouldn't be dating one of the most eligible bachelors in town would you? I mean, didn't you use to have the hots for Clark Kent. Is that who you are dating?"
Total shock and confirmation settled on Mayson's face. "Rose, I can't tell you that." With that the show faded to a commercial.
Clark looked at Caitlyn with wide eyes, "I can't believe... Oh, my god!" Caitlyn was giving him a wry look. "Don't say it. Don't say it! I think I get it! Oh, crap!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A New Hero Part 22
Caitlyn didn't say a thing in reply. She just stared at Clark somewhat petulantly with her arms crossed.
Clark grinned. "Why, Dr. Kira, you wouldn't be jealous, would you?" He leaned over and kissed her sweetly and gently on the lips. Just then the commercials ended and 'Metropolis Now' came back on.
Mayson said, "Ms. Marcus, I just want to say that I think you are despicable. I came on this show to talk about the danger that the Metropolis Mutilator poses. I am not here to talk about my personal life or anyone else's. I don't know where you got the idea that I had the 'hots' for Clark Kent, but yes, Clark Kent is a very attractive man, and once upon a time we dated. That was before I almost died in the Resurrection incident. Any present or future relationship between us beyond friendship is really none of anyone's business. You are the one that inferred that there was a relationship between us. I didn't say that. Now, I really must go. I have a lot of work to do."
"But Mrs. Drake-Smith," Rose Marcus cooed, "the shocked look on your face would seem to have answered the question in the positive."
"The shock on my face was just that: shock at what you said."
"But what did you mean by 'jour...'?"
"That could have meant anything, couldn't it, Ms. Marcus? And if it did mean journalist, then Mr. Kent is certainly not the the only journalist in town. Some people might even call *you* a journalist." With that she arose from her chair and walked off the stage.
Caitlyn said, "Well, at least she cleared up the situation. Don't you think?" Clark didn't answer. He had a bit of a faraway look on his face. "Clark! Clark, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I was just concentrating on what she was actually feeling."
"Doing something else you shouldn't be doing again. Clark!"
"No, this was different. I wasn't doing anything like what I did earlier. This is something that is very easy for me. I just had to concentrate a little to actually be able to zoom in on Mayson. All I was doing was seeing if she believed what she was saying - empathy, if you will. She doesn't believe it. She was just trying to cover. And I've met Rose Marcus. I doubt she believes it, either, but at least maybe Mayson made a lot of people doubt it."
"So what are you going to do?"
"I don't know. I'll need to talk to her, I'm sure. I know one thing that I.. or we can do. We need to make sure she knows how we feel about each other. She will need to see how much I care for you - how much I love you." He laid his head on her shoulder. "How does the party seem to be going?"
"It seemed to be fine. I love you, Clark."
Clark stood up. "I think I'll lie down now. I'm tired, but at least the headache is a little better now."
Clark quickly prepared for bed and then lay down. Meowoof jumped up on the bed and snuggled up against him.
Caitlyn smiled, "I think she now considers you her other 'human', Clark."
Clark scratched her head and ran his hand down her silky, sleek body. "Yes, I think she does. Don't you girl? Hmmm?" Meowoof purred happily.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The party was in full swing and all was going well. Chloe and Claire floated overhead watching the events.
Claire said, "I'm so bored. I'd much rather be down there. I'm hungry."
Chloe said, "Yeah, me too. Why don't you go grab a bite, then come back and I'll go get something."
Claire headed for the house. Clark, Claire, and Chloe had agreed that they would come in and out of his bedroom window. That part of the balcony was blocked off from the rest of the balcony so it would be safe to enter there. Clark heard the whoosh and raised his head. Claire said, "Hi, daddy, Caitlyn."
"Is everything okay, honey?"
"Yeah. I just came down for a bite to eat." She ran to the kitchen, fixed herself a plate of food, then returned to the master suite. "Chloe will be down in a minute to get something to eat." She took off.
Almost as soon as she left, Chloe walked in through the window. She nodded but didn't say anything. She, too, quickly left.
When they were both settled with their plates balanced on their laps, Chloe said, "Claire, did you know Jon was going to join Zared in the superhero business?"
"Yeah. I can't believe dad is going to allow it. Did you see the suit Gramma whipped up this afternoon? I don't know how she sews so fast."
"I guess she has had lots of experience. I've made a couple of outfits for dad, but I sure can't do it as fast as Gramma. Yeah, I saw it. I like it. I'm not sure Jon will though. He's never liked the New Krypton suit."
Claire said, "I think that's because it was so tight... you know... in the wrong places. Gramma added the blue briefs so that should help some with that problem. She got rid of those hideous cuffs. I love the blue cape. I think a black House of El symbol on the cape would be great. I'll have to mention it."
"Me too. I liked just the touch of background red for the symbol on the front. I think the whole thing works well. I like it. I don't know about blue boots, though. I think I like the black ones better. I like the red belt, too, but I don't think Jon will go for it."
"No, me either. I like the blue boots better. Maybe we should have him put one blue boot on and one black boot on." They both giggled.
Chloe said, "We can call him 'Boots'. I think Gramma can get the same effect with the spandex without having to dye a boot."
"Yeah, you are right," Claire said. "Chloe, have you thought about it? I have. I know dad would have a cow, but I think we could be of help. I mean there are a few other teen heroes. All the Robins have been teenagers or at least started out that way."
"Yeah, and we are certainly stronger and have more abilities than any of the other teen heroes. Think we could talk dad into it?" Chloe asked.
"I don't know, Chloe. Dad can be pretty stubborn. Have you ever thought about an outfit? I kind of like the UltraWoman suit, but Jama has said from the time she first saw pictures of UltraWoman that she *was* UltraWoman. I know at first she didn't understand that was mom, and at first it was all play to her, but now she's serious. She's gonna be UltraWoman eventually."
"Oh, I don't mind, Claire. I don't think with our red hair either of us would look good in such a bright pink. I don't much like pink anyway."
Claire said, "No, I don't mind either. I was just thinking about it. I wish I knew where the red hair came from. There aren't any redheads in the family."
"Claire! Didn't you know? Our grandmother - daddy's birth mother - had red hair. I thought you knew. I'm sure dad thought so, too."
"Maybe I forgot or something. No. I don't think so. I don't think I ever knew. Hmmph."
Chloe said, "You know when we get outfits, we are either going to have to dress alike so everyone thinks there is only one of us, or we are going to have to be very creative."
Claire said, "Eventually, people would realize there was two of us. That wouldn't be good. It would be too easy to surmise that we are Kents. Hey, what's that?"
"Just two of them sneaking off for a romp. Oh, my," Chloe exclaimed. "We better let dad know. He doesn't want any hanky-panky going on." <Dad?>
<Yes, Chloe.>
<You better send someone to the pool house. A couple of kids are getting... umm.. a little frisky.>
Clark giggled. <Will do.>
Claire and Chloe both watched as their dad picked up a radio and spoke to the security guard in charge and listened as he suggested, "Carlos, you all are remembering to check the pool house aren't you?"
Claire said, "Dad's really gone all out with the security angle what with all the guards having radios and such."
"Yeah, but it's better to be safe. Boy, he's smooth isn't he. I'd of probably said, 'Hey, Carlos, there's a couple of kids going at it in the pool house.'"
"Oh, you would not have. How would you have explained how you knew?"
Chloe said, "Oh, yeah."
Claire said, "So, I think we are going to have be very creative and different with our outfits - like purple hair or something."
Chloe giggled. "With sparkles."
"Hey, I'm serious! I'll take purple hair and you can have blue. Or how about I have purple hair with pink streaks and you have blue hair with green streaks."
"Okay, Claire. Then we can be the Purple Fairy and Blue Fairy. Should we wear gossamer wings, too? It does sound like an interesting concept. I don't think anyone would recognize me with blue hair. But I don't want green streaks. I want my streaks to be a lighter blue."
"Purple Fairy and Blue Fairy indeed! Hey, it might work though. Who'd ever think a fairy could toss a car around like a football."
Clark thought, <Are you girls paying attention or are you being silly?>
Chloe thought, <Are you listening to us.>
<All I heard was what you just said about a fairy tossing a car. Did the guard run the kids out of the pool house?>
Claire answered, <Yes, daddy.>
<Okay. Does everything else look okay? You are watching the perimeter aren't you?>
Chloe answered, <Yes, daddy. Everything is fine.>
<Okay, girls. Thanks for doing this.>
<You're welcome,> they both answered.
Chloe said, "Claire, isn't Anamarie helping at the party?"
"Yeah, there she is."
"Well, who is that in her apartment?"
"I don't know. She doesn't seem to be sneaking around per se, but she does seem to be trying to be very quiet. Maybe she *is* sneaking around. We should tell daddy."
"Wait, let's tell Zared or Jon. Then one of them can go check."
Claire said, "You're right. We don't want daddy to go do it." <Zared.>
He didn't answer so Chloe tried, <Zared. Zared, are you listening to me?>
<Yeah, sorry. What?>
<There is someone in Anamarie's apartment. I'd think if someone was supposed to be there then daddy would have told us.>
<Okay, I'll go check.>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Zared walked up the stairs and then to Anamarie's apartment. He watched the woman as she paced. She didn't act like she was trying to steal anything, but she was also trying to be very quiet. There was no television or music on and she was practically tiptoe-ing around the small efficiency apartment. The lights were turned down low. Zared sensed that she didn't belong there. He decided that he would make an unexpected visit to Anamarie's apartment.
He turned around and walked to his dad's room and knocked on the door.
"Come in," called Caitlyn.
He walked in. Zared said, "Hey, Caitlyn, Dad. Dad, there's somebody in Anamarie's apartment. Give me her key."
Clark said, "Really? Anamarie would have told me about a visitor. There is a key in the bottom drawer of the bureau."
Zared retrieved the key and again walked down the hall towards Anamarie's apartment.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Caitlyn looked at Clark with wide eyes. "Clark, you don't think she would have brought her sister here, do you?"
"Surely she wouldn't be that stupid! If I was the Mutilator, I'd sure the heck be starting to try to find out where my living victims were. That includes Jenni and his wife. Or maybe she's his ex-wife, now. Oh, you know what I mean. Hmmm... I guess I could ask Anamarie."
"Don't forget that you are one of his victims, too."
"Oh, I'm definitely aware of that. I just think it unlikely he would know where to find me."
~~~~~~~~~~~
Zared quietly opened the door to Anamarie's apartment. He walked toward the woman who had her back turned to him. He softly said, "Who are you and why are you here?"
He didn't expect her reaction. She screamed like she had been attacked and indeed tried to attack him with the closest thing available - a butcher knife.
He jumped out of her way. If she had struck him, the knife could have shattered, and he certainly didn't want that to happen. "Whoa! I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to know why you are here. No one is supposed to be here and security is tight."
She crouched with the knife in her hand. "Who are you?" She said fearfully.
"I'm Zared Kent. I live here. And you appear to have broken in."
~~~~~~~~~~~
Anamarie wondered what Mr. Kent could possibly need. She had her hands full helping with this party. She didn't have time for this. She walked in his open bedroom door. She smiled, "Yes, Mr. Kent, did you need something?"
"Hmm... There was noise heard from your apartment. Zared is checking it out. Oh, Anamarie, please tell me you didn't bring your sister here."
"I'm sorry. I can't do that. I don't know how she talked me into it. I'm sorry. She was just so scared. She thought she would be safe here." She drew in a sharp breath. "She is really scared. If Zared just walked in on her, he could be in danger." With that she took off running toward her apartment.
~~~~~~~~~~~
"No, I didn't break in. How do I know you are Zared Kent? Get away from me."
Anamarie came running in. "Drop the knife. He's not going to hurt you." She turned to Zared, "I'm sorry, Zared. I should never have brought her here. This is my sister, Margeaux."
Zared looked perplexed. "Hello, Margeaux. Please do put the knife down. I'm not going to hurt you." Margeaux made no move to put the knife down. "If you don't, then I may have to take it away from you." He turned to Anamarie, "What's wrong with your sister visiting other than the fact that she's seems a little crazy?"
Anamarie said, "Oh, you don't know... Mr. Kent didn't tell you? Margeaux!"
Margeaux finally put the knife down but remained in fighting stance.
Zared said, "What are you talking about?"
"Well, you know the Mutilator escaped, don't you?"
"Yeah. Was she one of his victims or something?"
Margeaux answered, "Yes, you could say that. I'm the original victim. I'm his ex-wife."
"Oh, my god! Anamarie! What have you done? Jenni!" He took off running to find Jenni.
Margeaux said, "What was that all about?"
Anamarie said, "I told you this was a mistake, Margeaux. Jenni Green is his fiancee' and was a victim of that madman. She was the one the new hero rescued. Being rescued by him was the only reason she lived. And Jenni Green lives here."
"Why didn't you tell me this?"
"You and mom were so insistent and so sure this would work that I couldn't manage to explain anything to either of you."
~~~~~~~~~~~
Anamarie's apartment door was still open and Clark walked in. "Anamarie, I cannot believe you have done this. Now that she's here, though, it's going to be hard to move her. Why didn't you ask for my help? Or why didn't you ask the police?"
Margeaux answered, "You don't understand, Mr. Kent. He always finds me. It doesn't matter if the police help or not."
"Then why are you here? *Why* did you do that interview?"
"I just thought with him in jail that I'd be safe to tell my story. I should have known better. I'm so sorry."
Clark just took a deep breath and sighed. "Anamarie, you stay here with your sister. Don't open either of your doors for anyone unless you absolutely know who it is."
~~~~~~~~~~~
He was determined to find that bitch, Margeaux. He thought he'd found her so many times before, but he'd always been wrong. Even when he realized it wasn't her, he still killed to ease the pain. He killed for the sexual delight and pleasure it brought. This was her fault. She had made him find other ways of fulfilling his needs. He wasn't sure how she'd done it, but she had. She had tricked him so many times. Too many times. Those times were over for now his quest to find *her* was nearly fulfilled. She had ruined his life. This time instead of just killing to ease the pain or killing for the sexual delight and pleasure it brought, he would kill *her*. She would suffer.
He stood in the middle of his former mother-in-law's home. Why hadn't he ever thought to search for Margeaux here? He just assumed she wouldn't dare come to her mother's home. Her mother wasn't home, but it wouldn't have mattered if she was. He had no interest in her. Her hair was short. But then so was Margeaux's now. How dare she cut her hair? He knew that there had to be a clue here. He found Linda's address book. Ah-ha! Little sweet Anamarie was listed - complete with her phone number and her address. He would find her and he would find her now! If Margeaux wasn't there, then he would make Anamarie tell him where she was. Ah... wonder if Anamarie's hair could possibly be long? Wouldn't it be sweet pleasure to kill Anamarie while Margeaux watched?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
