Ends and Means - R *Now Complete* w/ PDF Posted

[newbatgirl]

Title: Ends and Means
Author: newbatgirl
Rating: R to be safe
Pairing: Chlex
Disclaimer: Time Warner/DC can have them back when I’m done.

Summary: Set ten years into the future, Chloe is an insurance investigator with uncanny instincts and a near perfect record of ferreting out the truth. She is sent to find out if a costly explosion at a client’s manufacturing plant was not an accident. The “client” turns out to be a joint venture between Wayne Enterprises and Luthor Corp, whose respective CEOs are less than thrilled to see her. Largely AU since I stopped watching SV regularly early in season 4. Assume the events up to the S3 finale occurred but that Lionel died in prison. The rest of the history will be explained in the story.

A/N: The inspiration for this came from a number of sources, which I must acknowledge here. The joint venture in robotics between Wayne Enterprises and Luthor Corp. is actually “borrowed” from episodes of Superman: The Animated Series. The rest of the story was loosely inspired by the movie The Thomas Crown Affair. Alfred Pennyworth, Lucius Fox and Jim Gordon are “borrowed” from the comics. The other unfamiliar characters are my own creations. Also, the characterizations were not influenced by the recent Batman Begins movie (but you should see the movie anyway because it's good!)

Thanks to Zannie and Kit Merlot for their unwavering support with this fic so far. You gals are the wind beneath my bat-wings! Hugs also to June, Lark and all the other Bruce-aholics out there who've responded to the teasers for this fic. I will try not to let you down.

MOD NOTE: Here's a new live LINK (http://www.mediafire.com/file/h6zvgjbx1hfcqv6/newbatgirl%20Ends%20and%20Means.docx) to download this fic in PDF format. Please, make sure you leave the author feedback on this thread once you're done reading the story.


Prologue

Wayne Enterprises Manufacturing Complex, West Gotham City…Building C

Bruce Wayne adjusted the collar of his custom tailored shirt. A shirt that, given its cost, had no business being uncomfortable at this given moment but still, there it was. True to his reputation, Bruce was normally cool and unflappable in almost any situation. He rarely sweated, seldom paced, and almost never fidgeted.

“You’re fidgeting,” came a deep voice from his left.

“I am not.”

“Yes, you are.”

“I don’t fidget, Lex,” replied Bruce icily, his tone a cue to Lex to drop it.

“Fine, have it your way,” replied Lex.

Lex studied the expression on his friend’s face for some clue as to what was going on his head. After a few seconds, he conceded to himself that it was useless exercise. Bruce was a master at concealing his thoughts and emotions. While Lex himself was schooled in doing so as well, Bruce’s demeanor was unique in how much it differed from his public persona. When out socially or among people he didn’t know very well, Bruce was rarely seen without a smile or amused expression on his handsome face. He laughed, joked, and flirted with relaxed ease. Privately, or at least with small groups of people who knew him well, that jovial nature fell away leaving…almost nothing behind.

The private Bruce was quiet, almost solemn. His face was typically devoid of emotion. To an outsider, it would have seemed creepy but of course, outsiders didn’t see it. Lex was used to it, so he brushed it off as another of Bruce’s quirks. Lord knew that he had enough of those on his own; he didn’t need to obsess about Bruce’s.

The two men were standing in an alcove off one of the main production floors of a large Wayne Enterprises plant. Just next door, a small army of journalists were awaiting the press conference formally announcing a joint venture of the two corporate giants. Rumors of an alliance between Luthor Corp and Wayne Enterprises had been circulating in the business community for months.

If this press conference went well, the stock prices of both companies would soar by the time the closing bell sounded that very day. Wall Street analysts would be scrambling to figure out the implications of what they learned. Competitors would be scrambling even more to figure out if they stood a chance.

And Lex and Bruce would be holding all the cards. Or so they planned. The problem was, things rarely worked out exactly as people planned them.

The two men had known each other nearly half their lives; they had alternately fought tooth and nail and saved each other’s skins from boarding school up through their impressive business careers. They knew each other better than virtually anyone else in the world. However, with these two particular men, that really didn’t mean much. There was a lot that each didn’t know about the other and that was the way they wanted it. It was probably why the friendship had lasted so long.

Right now they could have even passed for two very expensive bookends, save the absence of hair on one of the men.

Truth be told, there were some other minor differences. They were about the same height, though Lex was of a slightly leaner build. Bruce’s bulkier frame was well-concealed in his own custom tailored suit, which was only a shade or two darker in color than Lex’s. Both men had pale blue eyes. Lex was completely bald whereas Bruce sported head of wavy dark brown hair that was just tad longer than one might have expected of a CEO.

Through the door, Lex could hear Bruce’s second-in-command, Lucius Fox, welcoming the media and getting ready to introduce them. He turned to Bruce.

“Ready for this?”

“Of course. We can the handle the press, Lex. That’s not what I’m worried about.”

“We’ve been working on this for a year, Bruce. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“There’s always something to worry about,” countered Bruce, setting his jaw.

“Well aren’t you the eternal optimist? Where is this coming from?”

Bruce glared at Lex for a beat before responding. “Doesn’t matter where, it’s still true.”

Lex placed one hand on the door handle and one on Bruce’s shoulder to get him moving. “Whatever it is, we’ll fix it. Later. Right now, we’ve got a job to do.”

Through the door, Lex heard Lucius say their names. His first. He looked at Bruce. “Follow my lead,” he said.

There was scattered applause and camera flashes as the two men reached the raised platform facing the crowd. Behind them hung a huge white curtain emblazoned with the Luthor Corp. and Wayne Enterprises logos.

Lex stepped to the podium without hesitation, his earlier discomfort now invisible.

“Good afternoon, Ladies and gentlemen. On behalf of the talented teams from Luthor Corp. and Wayne Enterprises who have worked many long hours to bring us to this point, I thank you for attending. We are proud of what we have to show you and at the risk of sounding immodest, something I am rarely accused of being…”

Lex paused to let the audience snicker at their cue and for more cameras to flash.

“…we have a great deal to be proud of. What this joint venture between Luthor Corp. and Wayne Enterprises is going to do is nothing less than revolutionize the field of robotic engineering.”

The curtain raised behind him revealing dozens of gleaming robots in various sizes. They were not robots in the humanoid/popular sci-fi sense of the word, but rather manufacturing machines designed to perform specific tasks.

“Utilizing the latest materials, power sources, and artificial intelligence, our two companies have developed the prototypes you see here. These prototypes are capable of performing hundreds if not thousands of tasks in many different atmospheres and environments, from the extreme pressure in the deep ocean to the unforgiving atmosphere on the surface of Mars…”

Lex paused as the cameras flashed and the crowd strained to get better look at the robots. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Bruce smiling for the cameras, his earlier stony expression gone.

“…And,” continued Lex, “our accomplishments are made all the more satisfying because we can say that they were driven by engineers working at two American corporations, right here on American soil. Make no mistake, the next revolution in robotics beings today, on this side of the Pacific…”

The audience reaction was immediate, the applause nearly deafening as they surged forward even more at Lex words, snapping pictures and shouting questions nonstop.

Satisfied at the response, Lex stole a look at his own friend and wasn’t surprised at what he saw. Bruce was still smiling, or course, but his eyes were an icy shade of blue staring straight at him. Lex had deviated from the script, even if it was only slightly. Bruce didn’t like it and they both knew why.

*****

Meanwhile…a busy downtown café…across town…

Chloe Sullivan took a bite of her sandwich as she scanned through the thick file in front of her. She tuned out the noise around her in the busy café. She sat alone at a table near the window of the café. Around her, the sounds of the midday rush of business people grabbing their lunches before heading back to the office. The café catered to the busy downtown area. In addition to quick, tasty meals, the owners of the cafe had installed several big screen televisions and tuned them to news and finance stations so their customers could stay in touch with the latest stock prices and headlines even while they ate their noontime meal.

Chloe, however, was more interested in the stack of files she had brought with her than the screens. If she had been interested, she would have noticed the fact that the Luthor Corp/Wayne Enterprises press coverage was currently the lead story on CNBC on the screen just above her head. Above the headline which read: “Luthor and Wayne Put Japan on Notice?” There was footage of Lex and Bruce shaking hands and posing for the cameras in front of their machines.

There was a time when Chloe Sullivan might have wanted to be one of the reporters clamoring for quotes from the two business titans but that time was long gone. She had other pursuits these days. Headlines were only of passing interest to her now.

Sitting alone at her table, she looked like any other well-to-do career woman. She was dressed in a charcoal gray pant suit and white blouse. Her blond hair now hung well past her shoulders and framed her face with slightly side swept bangs. On the seat next to her were a simple black briefcase and purse. People who knew Chloe Sullivan at 16 would have never believed that she would dress so simply. For the person she was now and the work that she did, there wasn’t room for funky clothes and flashy jewelry. She accepted that.

Not tearing her eyes from the documents in front of her, she took a long sip from her drink only to choke a bit as she felt a hand on her back and a voice in her ear.

“Hey, CJ, why’d you start without me?” said the voice.

Sputtering slightly, Chloe glared at the man who slid into the empty seat at her table.

“Gee, Danny, maybe because you’re a grown man who hasn’t mastered the art of telling time yet.”

Danny, aka Daniel Pena, one of Chloe’s coworkers, gave her a carefree grin as he reached over to swipe some of her French fries.

“I’m not that late, calm down. I’m here now, aren’t I?”

“You’re…” Chloe consulted the thin gold watch in her wrist, “twenty-three minutes late and you’re eating my fries. Give me a reason not to kill you.”

“You need me?” said Danny loftily, waiving to a waiter. “You can’t figure out the financials in whatever case you’re working on without my extensive knowledge.”

“Oh, get over yourself, you’re a CPA, not an astrophysicist. There are plenty more where you came from.”

“But I’m your favorite.”

“Correction, you’re available and easy to boss around, that’s why I asked for you,” retorted Chloe, pulling her plate of his reach.

“Ah, that’s not what my boss told me, he said you requested me because you said that I was your ‘favorite assistant investigator’ from the department.”

Chloe wrinkled her brow making a mental note to go over the definition of “confidential” with the head of Forensic Accounting.

“Fine, so you’re my favorite. Don’t let it go to your head. Being the least annoying of a group of people who keep copies of the tax code under their beds for light reading is really not that hard. Watch your step, Daniel. Piss me off and I might not request you anymore,” she warned with a glint in her eye.

That quieted him. Danny was a little on the cocky side but he knew he was lucky to be working with Chloe Sullivan on any of her cases and aside from some flirting and teasing, he wouldn’t want to do anything that might piss her off.

Chloe was a senior investigator at one of the country’s top insurance companies, Allied Insurance. Her job was to investigate the loss claims of their clients for signs of fraud or other criminal behavior, or to look for ways to reduce the amount of the loss. Sometimes that meant investigating the client and other times it meant going undercover to recover a lost or stolen item from the black market.

In spite of her relatively short career and young age, Chloe Sullivan was very good at what she did. No one was quite sure just how much money she had saved Allied Insurance since she had started as a junior investigator right out of college but the figure was rumored to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars.

As a result, she had her pick of cases and rarely worked on anything with a potential claim value of less than a million dollars. Chloe generally worked alone, as was her preference, but on cases that required specific expertise, she was given her pick of lower ranked investigators to assist her. And, since Chloe’s cases never failed to attract the attention of senior management and the industry at large, there was always competition to work with her.

Danny didn’t kiss her ass, though, that’s probably why Chloe liked to work with him. He knew how to push her buttons but he didn’t push too far.

“So what do you need?” Danny asked, after the waiter took his order.

Chloe tapped the folder she had been looking at before Danny arrived, “Remember that building collapse near the river a few months back?”

“Yeah, I think so. Happened during construction. It was supposed to be a garage or something but the builder rushed the job and by the time they got to the fifth floor, the lower floors weren’t stable enough to hold the weight. Whole thing came crashing down. Don’t tell me we insured that job?”

“No, thank God. We did, however, insure the building next door. Apartments. At least a dozen tenants are claiming damages amounting to just under $10 million. That’s not counting the millions that we’ve already paid to the agency that owns the building.”

“Well, look at the neighborhood, those apartments have to be pretty upscale,” Danny pointed out as he finished Chloe’s fries. She had long since ceased to care and he had pulled the plate back.

“Some of them, I guess, but most of the tenants have been there for years so they’re not paying full market. The agent on the claims didn’t feel right about it. She and I worked together before so she sent it to me to see if I could find something and I did.”

“What?”

“I read the descriptions of the damages and they’re all the same.”

Danny did not look convinced. “CJ, I trust your judgment, but claims usually sound the same: water damage, broken furniture, yadda yadda. There are only so many ways things can break. How is that a red flag?”

“I mean, they’re really all the same, down to the same language on the claim forms, they used the same adjectives to describe how their belongings were damaged. I have twelve forms here and it seems everyone’s floors and walls cracked in exactly the same way, causing specific damage to their belongings. Also, seven of the twelve forms claim damages to ‘load bearing walls.’ Most people who live in apartments wouldn’t know what a load-bearing wall is, let alone know how to identify one. It’s not right, Danny. Someone either coached these people or prepared the forms for them. I’m guessing the latter.”

“OK, but getting help with the forms isn’t really a crime, is it?”

“Not if the damages are real but I don’t think these are. There’s something else going on here. You don’t see this kind of uniformity unless there’s a larger scheme in play. Believe me.”

Danny chewed thoughtfully for a minute. “So what you need me to do?” he asked finally.

“We start with the company that manages the building. Always start with the common denominator, right? And if that doesn’t pan out, we look for another one. I have their financials for the last three years, including the most recent quarter. I need you to comb over these and tell me if you find anything weird. I’ve going over with our architect to look around and to interview some of the claimants.”

Chloe pushed the pile of folders towards Danny and began placing the rest back in her briefcase. In the middle of the process she felt Danny’s eyes on her. She looked up, blowing her blond bangs out of her eyes.

“What?”

“I’ve worked with you on at least a dozen cases over the last year and half and I realize that all I know about you is that you have got really good instincts. Scratch that, really scary instincts. What’s your story?”

Chloe averted her eyes from Danny’s gaze. “There’s not much to know. I got hired, moved up the ranks. As for the instincts, I guess you just get a feel for these things.”

“No, that can’t be it. You’re at least ten years younger than the other investigators at your level, CJ. And, you clear more cases than any two of them put together. How do you do it? How did you even get here?”

How did she get here? How did Smallville’s legendary ‘girl reporter’ end up working for an insurance company of all things? That was a million dollar question.

She looked a Danny for beat, wondering what he would think if she ever told him how much Chloe Jeanine Sullivan, CJ to her current coworkers and friends, had lived before moving to Gotham. How close she had come to dying. And the promises she had made to herself.

They probably wouldn’t believe it.

“Does it matter how I got here?” she asked. “I’m here now.”

*****
Three weeks later…Wayne Enterprises Manufacturing Complex…Security checkpoint

“Time?” asked the young security guard, as he cricked his neck to relieve the weariness.

“Eleven fifty-one. Few more minutes. We have to wait for Abbot and Costello to arrive. Hope they’re on time. They were late last night,” replied another guard at his side who was slightly older and heavier set. “I don’t like getting off shift late just ‘cause they drag their feet. Ain’t fair.”

“You got that right,” agreed the first guard.

The two men were standing out side the box-like security booth at the gates of the Wayne Enterprises Manufacturing Complex. The complex was guarded twenty four hours per day with one guard here at the gate and another guard circulating the complex in a small vehicle. There were a total of five buildings in the complex, identified by letters A through E. The two guards on duty on any given time usually took turns circling the complex, if nothing else to stave off boredom.

The two men on duty now, Sanders, the younger and Welman, the older, were both anxious to be relieved of their duties that night. It was a Friday and the weekend beckoned.

The both breathed signs of relief when the second security vehicle pulled up to the booth, with the two guards for the next shift, Peterson and Markofsky, inside.

“Nice of you guys to join us, tonight,” called out Sanders.

“Aww, just can it, kid. We’re on time tonight. You’ll get home in plenty of time to slap the salami and whatever it is guys like you do on a Friday night.”

“Kiss my ass, Peterson.”

Welmen ignored the exchange as he punched codes on the computer inside the booth to clock him and Sanders out.

“Anything going on?” asked Markofsky as the two new guards stepped out of their vehicle.

“Is there ever?” replied the old guard. He tapped another screen in the booth that showed the views from various security cameras around the property. “Quiet as usual, this time of night. Buildings A and E are the only ones working this shift. Others are locked up tight. If you get a chance, there’s a birthday thing in A for the shift foreman. Oughta be some cake left.”

Peterson elbowed the portly Markofsky, “You think this guy needs more cake? Any more and he’s not fittin’ in the booth anymore.”

“What kind of cake?” asked Markofsy.

“Chocolate chip pound, I think.”

Markofsky opened his car door again. “I think I’ll take the first round about, Petey.”

“Now there’s a shock,” grumbled Peterson.

Shaking their heads, Sanders and Welmen stepped towards their own vehicle.

“Have a good night, guys. Try to stay awake,” called Welmen.

As he turned away, there was a horrible rumbling from the other end of the complex, followed by a huge thunderous explosion. All four men turned in time to see huge plumes of smoke rise up towards the sky, with raw red and orange flames obscuring the deep blue of the night.

“What the ---?”

“That sounds like it’s coming from C!”

All four men were frozen in place for several seconds as the smoke clouds billowed in the distance and the fire reached higher and higher in the sky

Finally someone, probably Sanders, broke the silence.

“Which…uh…which one of us is calling that in?”


End Prologue.

[Krysia]

Intriguing begining. Plus the story has both Lex and Bruce, so I'm hooked allready ;) Please write more.

[Kit Merlot]

NBG, Awesome beginning :grin3:

But I of course need more!

[hfce]

Oh interesting more please.... :beg:


Hope ;)

[Christy January]

More, More, More. Did I mention that I wanted more?

[Louie]

hmmm interesting, that would be a hard job in Gotham, things are always getting blown up or banged into. more soon please

[leik2]

Interesting, can't wait for the answer to 'the million dollar question.'

[fussy_wuzzy]

Well, I'm hooked. Great start!

[lexchloe]

Ok you got me interested, now I need more, more more to feed my new addiction!!! Really great start, can't wait for the next one.

[welshy]

Interesting beginning, I hope there's going to be more

[kimmie]

This story sounds really interesting, excellent beginning! Can't wait for your next update...

Kimmie

[emnorth2002]

Oooh, lovely, a new NBG fic! It's got me hooked so far, especially since I've seen Thomas Crown Affair a dozen times and have a sneaking suspicion what to expect next. *wink* Can't wait to see more!
:-)
Em

[Pufkinz]

Interesting, on many fronts. Looking forward to the rest of the story!

:)

[SinnerSaint]

Wow !!! Great start , now give us more because we are all greeady little Chlexers who like stories like this , you know , with a plot and some action and then some ACTION. ;)

[chril1]

very interesting, i'm liking it

lea
xxx

[June]

Why, oh why do I have to find this when I have no time to read it? I will be back first thing tomorrow morning with feedback for what I know is an excellent story....

[star del mar]

You have a new story! I'm very excited since this was a particularly interesting beginning. Chloe may be more low key in her own mind but I can only imagine the trouble that she can get into working as an investigator especially once she sees Lex again. I can't wait for their first encounter, update again soon!

Steph*

[vardaquareien]

*jumps up and down like overgrown chipmunk*
New fic with Brucey! New fic with Brucey!!! Wheeeeee!

Just wondering what your secret is. One prologue and you already have me hooked! Amazing really.

Fantastic beginning. This looks like it's gonna be a very interesting ficcy and I can't wait for more!

[June]

*jumps up and down excitedly*

It's here! It's here! It's here!

*sits back down from exhaustion*

Awe, NBG, I am rarely, if ever hooked after the first chapter and this has done it. It has all the things i've always wanted in a story-- Lucius, paranoid Bruce, sexy Lex, and investigative reporter Chloe. This is truly fantastic and I can't wait until the next update. But first of all-- I have to comment on a few things that just immediately grabbed my attention.


“You’re fidgeting,” came a deep voice from his left.

“I am not.”

“Yes, you are.”

“I don’t fidget, Lex,” replied Bruce icily, his tone a cue to Lex to drop it.

“Fine, have it your way,” replied Lex.


The banter you have between the two if spot on and exactly how I would always imagine it in a situation like this. I've always seen Lex as the more sure, more confident one of the two (having been around business his who life, and just having that overconfident attitude) Whereas with Bruce it's a facade (a very well placed and played one at that). Anyway, I loved that opening scene.



“Hey, CJ, why’d you start without me?” said the voice.

Sputtering slightly, Chloe glared at the man who slid into the empty seat at her table.

“Gee, Danny, maybe because you’re a grown man who hasn’t mastered the art of telling time yet.”


Alright I just had to comment on this because this sounds so alike to another CJ/Danny pair that I know and love, and I was wondering if that was on purpose or coincidence, but whatever it was it was done wonderfully and I love that two. Just another quirky thing about this story that I'm so excited to see developed.


Finally someone, probably Sanders, broke the silence.

“Which…uh…which one of us is calling that in?”


I was giggling throughout the entire last scene and I just had to comment on the last line of the chapter-- it was exactly what I would picture being said in a movie. The fast paced humor you lace throughout the story makes the read even better.

Love it, Love it, Love it, Love it times a billion trillion.

Please update soon!

[Zannie]

You know how much I love this story, and I'm ecstatic that you've started posting it--since that means more for me to read soon. Your prologue sets up the plot thoroughly and with tantalizing details. It's an incredibly well-developed plot, and I can't wait to see how it all unfolds.

[LarkLuthor]

*jumps up and down like overgrown chipmunk*
New fic with Brucey! New fic with Brucey!!! Wheeeeee!!Now that's a definate cause for rejoicing! :D

I liked it. Not a big hook for me besides the excitement I already had at the prospect of three very cool Gotham dudes showing up. Hmmm...I wonder if my anticipation had something to do with the reaction not being extreme as I expected.

A lot of backround info and set up conversation but still a little hint of the future enjoyment... and the guards were great!

Lark

[AlabamaWorley]

To an outsider, it would have seemed creepy but of course, outsiders didn’t see it.
I really liked this line.


“You’re…” Chloe consulted the thin gold watch in her wrist, “twenty-three minutes late and you’re eating my fries. Give me a reason not to kill you.”

Seriously. I don't think I'd let David Boreanaz have some of my fries, much less some little accountant guy.


She looked a Danny for beat, wondering what he would think if she ever told him how much Chloe Jeanine Sullivan, CJ to her current coworkers and friends, had lived before moving to Gotham. How close she had come to dying. And the promises she had made to herself.
I hope one of those promises wasn't to move to a safer town, 'cause, uh... Gotham was not the right choice!

Good start! I love your dialogue, it's very natural and informative without sounding canned. I'm looking forward to seeing where you go with this!

[LarkLuthor]

I hope one of those promises wasn't to move to a safer town, 'cause, uh... Gotham was not the right choice!WORD! It's way more dangerous than Smallville, Suicide Slum, or just about anywhere in the DC universe!

Lark

[bluebrise]

Great premise, I can't wait to see how Chloe tangoes with Lex and Bruce when the investigation starts.

[dreamerjules]

Interesting start. I'm looking forward to finding out how Chloe came to be an insurance investigator in Gotham. That's just too intriguing.

Bama,


Seriously. I don't think I'd let David Boreanaz have some of my fries, much less some little accountant guy.

What about Michael Rosenbaum? Cuz, I'd share a lot with him.

Julie

[newbatgirl]

A/N: Here’s the next installment. Thanks a billion to all of you who left FB. I had forgotten what a great FB high felt like so it was great to feel one again…and this one was spread out over several days. Please see the end of this post for answers to some of the questions raised in FB.

Chapter One

Three weeks later …Allied Insurance Company…Gotham Headquarters…

“...really unbelievable, CJ. How did you figure this out?” asked Ted Dandridge, Chloe’s boss and VP of Investigations at Allied.

Ted was in his early fifties, tall and lanky, with dark hair that was shot with a great deal of gray and silver, and kind, dark brown eyes. He was a veteran investigator who had actually been a cop for ten years before joining the insurance company. He called it his “previous life.” They were in his office and Chloe was briefing him on the resolution of her latest case.

“Well, the uniformity on the claim applications was my first clue. Then when I visited the site, I heard rumblings about the management company making upgrades to take the building co-op in a few months.”

“Hmm, that’s good luck for the tenants, particularly in that neighborhood. A real windfall. If they could afford to buy their apartments outright, that is.”

“Exactly, I had Pena from FA look over the financials and as of the last quarter, the management company was covering its expenses pretty well. Nothing fishy but it didn’t have nearly the assets it needed to take the building co-op…” continued Chloe as she paced the floor in front of Dandridge’s desk. It was always difficult for her to sit still when talking about a case, particularly one she had just cracked.

“…of course, when the building next door collapsed, it really was a windfall to them. The management decided to put the funds we paid them to good use making the necessary upgrades. I checked out the management company’s claims and they’re all legit. They really did just get lucky on this one. The tenants, on other the hand, are a different story. Turns out, the superintendent got wind of the co-op plan and he convinced some of the tenants that the easiest way for them raise the cash they needed to buy their apartments was to file exaggerated damage claims. He was experienced, so the claims got by the first inspector we sent out. It took a second look with an architect to find the exaggerations.”

“These people make good money; you’re telling me that their super convinced them to commit large scale insurance fraud?”

“Well, apparently this guy was more than just a super to these people. He was like family. He has worked there for 25 years and most of the tenants have lived there at least ten. He knew everything about them. They told him when they were going on vacation or away on business. He handled everything from deliveries to leaky faucets. They trusted him. It’s funny, Ted, I interviewed the guy after we figured it out and, he still doesn’t see this as a crime. He’s a single guy in his late fifties and this building is actually all he has. The way he sees it, this was just a way for him to keep his family together. The reason the claim applications all sounded alike was because he prepared them. When I talked to the tenants, they said they he made it sound like it was the only way they could afford to stay in their apartments once the building changed over.”

“With $10 million of our money?” said Ted, incredulously.

“With $10 million of our money.” Chloe sank into a chair opposite Ted. “This job never ceases to amaze me, Ted. Before I started here, I would have said that the reason that people commit insurance fraud is simple: greed.”

“And now? What would you say, CJ?”

“Greed’s a big one for sure. But take this superintendent. He wasn’t going to see a dime of that $10 million yet he orchestrated the whole thing. That’s not greed. He did it because he didn’t want to be lonely.”

“And what does that tell you?” probed Ted, sounding more like a psychologist than a boss.

Chloe grinned. “Well, for one thing it tells me that you can never presume too much in this job. There’s always a story, and often there’s more than one; if you dig deep enough, you’ll find it.”

“You’re sounding a little like the reporter I used to know,” joked Ted.

“What can I say, the skills overlap,” Chloe quipped back.

Her boss was one of the few people at Allied who knew what Chloe’s first dream had been having done a deep background check on her as soon as she began working for him. He understood why she was there. After what she had experienced in Smallville, Chloe couldn’t see herself living the life of a full-time reporter but investigating was in her blood. In doing this job, she could use her extensive skills, but stay out of the spotlight.

So what if her case summaries sometimes read like news stories? That was just who she was.

“Speaking of which…” began Ted as he reached for a pile of folders on his desk, “I have the files for your next case right here, if you want to go over them.”

“Jeez, slave driver, much? I just cleared this one.”

“And I know these ten minutes of downtime have been killing you!”

Chloe couldn’t argue with that. Inactivity did not suit her. Stakeouts were murder on her.

“OK, lay it on me.”

“Before I give this to you, let me say that I am aware how this may look to outsiders, but I trust your judgment. Regardless of what other people might say, you’re the one I want on this case, Chloe.”

It was the “Chloe” that caught her attention, people at Allied rarely called her that. She was ‘CJ’ there. ‘Chloe’ and especially ‘Chlo’ were from another life.

“OK, now I’m concerned. What exactly is going on here?”

“It’s just…a case of this magnitude, I can’t afford to have another investigator botch it up. The paper pushers upstairs are still dragging their feet on this one but we can’t afford that kind of delay. There’s too much money involved here. This is my division and it’s my call, I’ll square it with them later… In the meantime…” Ted seemed to realize that he was rambling and he shrugged. “Here, see for yourself.”

Chloe took the pile warily and flipped open the top folder.

She scanned the page and her eyes went wide. “You’re kidding, right?”

Ted shook his head. “I know there’s history there, but I trust you to stay focused; you can probably make it work for you if you put your mind to it. It’s your case.”

“You want me to investigate Lex Luthor and Bruce Wayne?”

“I want you to investigate the explosion. If that leads you to Wayne and Luthor, then so be it.”

“I can’t take this case, Ted. You know I can’t take this case,” insisted Chloe, placing the folder back on the desk between them.

“It’s my call, CJ, and I say it’s your case.”

“Ted! You know the history; you read my background check. My father worked for Lex Luthor. I testified against his father in federal court, for God’s sake. There’s no way that anyone will believe that I’m impartial.”

“Listen to me, I am aware of how this might look to other people but the bottom line is, if I have to choose between with the possible questions that might arise from you being on this case and it not being solved at all, I’m going to go with the former, every time. The fact is I don’t like the stench of this case. Call it a gut feeling, paranoia, whatever but something’s happening here, something big. There’s no one else that I can count on to go in there and figure out what that is. No one but you.”

“Just what do you think is happening here?” asked Chloe, her curiosity getting the better of her.

“That’s for you to find out,” replied Ted shoving the folder towards her again.

“I don’t have a good feeling about this; it could really blow up in our faces.”

“No pun intended,” smirked the older man.

Chloe shook her head. “Be serious for a minute, please.”

“OK, seriously? Seriously, you said that people commit these time of crimes for a lot of different reasons. Well, there are also a lot of reasons that people succeed as investigators. Luck, tenacity, low expectations of human behavior, abundance of cynicism, whatever. You and I succeed for the same reason. We cannot rest until we find out the truth, no matter where it takes us. That’s the reason I need you on this case. If I send anyone else in there, they might be intimidated by the power, star-struck, blinded by glare. You, on the other hand, have experience dealing these kind of people. You won’t let those things happen. I can feel it.”

Chloe bit her lower lip for a second, and then reached for the folder without a word.

“I’m authorizing use of several assistants on this, due to scope, and to mitigate any concerns anyone might have about your influence, however, as I said, it’s your case. Bring it home for me.”

“It’s my case.” Chloe repeated, still not sure who she was trying to convince.

*****
Smallville…10 years earlier…

Chloe heaved the last bag into the trunk of her car and slammed it shut. It made a very satisfying sound in the quiet spring air. It was early, far too early than Chloe normally woke up but the fact was she really hadn’t gone to sleep the night before. Between packing and the series of futile arguments with he father, she had been too wound up to sleep.

He said it was too soon, that she should stay and finish her senior year with her friends. Enjoy her youth now and not rush things.

She said she was ready to leave now. There was no reason academically to stay longer, she had more than enough credits. She had always been far beyond what the provincial town’s school system could provide anyway. There was no use in waiting until June. Her so-called friends would understand. She could get to college a semester early. Get started sooner.

Why Gotham, he asked. Her acceptance at Met U was secure. Why move halfway across the country? Away from everyone and everything she knew?

There’s your answer, she had said.

Gabe had been hurt at that and it had taken some backtracking for her to explain that she hadn’t meant him. Everything but him.

Now he was looking down at her from the bedroom window as she packed her car. They had their tearful goodbye indoors so there was nothing left for Chloe to do except wave and mimic holding her phone with her hand.

The motion caused to her to freeze for a moment as she remembered something. She waited until the bedroom curtain fell closed and her father’s eyes were no longer on her before digging into her purse for a small cell phone. It wasn’t her regular device, but rather a sleek black model programmed to reach only one other number.

Lex had given it to her on her second day of hiding that past summer. It had been her only link to him and the outside world for long, agonizing months.

He told her to use it anytime, day or night, and eventually she had. Anytime she felt lonely or scared. He answered attentively each time. They talked about stupid things: B-movie plots, their favorite foods, and music until they felt strong enough to talk about scary things like love, friendship, and death. Neither presumed to know more than the other about such things, they simply traded experiences. They made cynical observations, pointed out the colossal ironies in their respective lives, and joked about chucking it all and becoming idealists.

Contrary to what some of Smallville’s old matrons thought, Chloe and Lex did not have a passionate sexual relationship that summer. Lex had never even hugged her for more than a few seconds and even then, only if Chloe initiated it.

What they had was a passionate friendship…which is why it hurt so much when it ended. And the fact that it didn’t so much end, as just fade away made it so much harder to take.

Upon her return from the dead, Chloe had held onto the phone, calling Lex occasionally to talk about her adjustment, about his father’s illness, and the fact that Smallville never seemed to really change. At first, he answered regularly, and their long conversations continued. Soon though, when Chloe called, the rings went unanswered. He didn’t call back. In their fleeting in-person meetings, he gave no explanation, he would briefly acknowledge her presence and move on.

For another couple of months, her rings continued to go unanswered and the blue blandness reflected in his eyes when she passed him in the Talon told Chloe all she needed to know.

Their friendship, as it was, had run its course. She stopped calling.

Now she held the phone in her hand and wondered briefly if she should keep it as some kind of morbid souvenir.

The fact that it was trash day on the Sullivans’ street decided the matter for her. Twirling it once in her hand, Chloe stepped quickly to the can on the curb and dropped the phone in, slamming the lid down with her other hand. It made a satisfying sound.

Slipping on her sunglasses, Chloe got into her car, threw it into gear and proceeded to drive herself out of Smallville.

Five months early, alone, and heading in the opposite direction of Metropolis.

*****

Wayne Enterprises Headquarters…two days later…

Chloe scowled at her reflection in the polished panels of the elevator doors as it carried her to the top from of the Wayne Enterprises Building. She was alone in the elevator so she used the time to double check her appearance. She was irked with herself for having taken so much extra care with choosing her suit. Outraged that she had tried on three blouses before settling on the emerald green silk shell. Downright furious with herself that she had allowed the thought of how the color might bring out her eyes to even cross her mind.

Chloe’s hands literally itched to fuss with her hair just once more be she stubbornly resisted the urge. She wasn’t there to ogle the two men or be ogled; she was there to do her job. That job was to find out if someone had deliberately blown up the Wayne Manufacturing Plant three weeks before. She was not there to see how Lex Luthor would react to seeing her again after 10 years. And she certainly wasn’t there to see if his presence in a room still raised the temperature by at least 20 degrees. Nope, not at all.

The elevator chimed and Chloe’s breath caught in her throat. She had worked with Interpol for God’s sake. She had put international criminals in prison. She could do this.

Chloe stepped off the elevator and as her heels clicked loudly on the marble floor, she silently wished that she had worn flatter shoes.

She stepped up to the receptionist and handed the young women the security pass she had been given in the building’s lobby.

“CJ Sullivan from Allied Insurance. The guard downstairs should have called to say I was on my way up.”

“Yes, Miss Sullivan, you’re here to see Mr. Fox?”

“To start with.”

The receptionist looked blankly at her for beat before picking up the telephone. She spoke quietly into the phone for reasons Chloe could not fathom given that she was standing right there and could hear everything the woman said anyway.

Bored, Chloe used the time to take a look around the reception area. It was the executive area of a Fortune 500 company, alright. Marble floors. Fresh cut flowers on the expensive mahogany tables. Beautiful framed artwork on the walls, huge plate glass windows to show off the fact that they were 40+ stories above the streets of Gotham. Speaking of which, even Gotham looked good from this height. Go figure.

Behind the receptionist, the words “WAYNE ENTERPRISES” beamed from the wall in polished gold letters.

The typeface and words were certainly familiar. Having lived in Gotham for the better part of ten years now, Chloe was used to seeing Bruce Wayne’s name, or rather, the company name, on office buildings, manufacturing plants, and signs all over town. Not unlike how one got used to seeing the Luthor name all over Metropolis.

“Mr. Fox’s assistant says you don’t have an appointment,” said the receptionist loftily, interrupting Chloe’s thoughts.

‘No shit, you think I would have warned them that I was coming?’

“Mr. Fox doesn’t see anyone without an appointment. He’s a very busy man.”

“I am very happy for him. You can tell ‘Mr. Fox’s’ assistant to tell ‘Mr. Fox’ that I’m here about their recent claim to Allied Insurance. The claim involving that big building of yours that blew sky-high a few weeks ago? The claim that won’t be paid until I talk to him, ‘Mr. Wayne’ and ‘Mr. Luthor.’”

The young receptionist blinked at her.

“I can write that down for you if you want,” added Chloe.

The receptionist scowled at her almost imperceptibly and went back to whispering into the telephone.

She raised her head again, “Mr. Fox will be out in a moment.”

Chloe rolled her eyes. “Super.” God, she hated receptionists who thought they were the Gestapo.

Within minutes, one of the mahogany doors burst open and a slim, dark-skinned man in his late forties can rushing out, still straightening his tie.

“Miss…Sullivan was it? Lucius Fox, Senior Vice President of Wayne Enterprises. Sorry about the confusion.” He extended his hand and Chloe shook it firmly. “Had we known you were coming...”

“Kind of the defeats the purpose of the ‘surprise visit.’ C.J. Sullivan, Senior Investigator for Allied.”

Lucius laughed nervously at the quip. “Of course, why don’t we talk in my office?”

She followed him through several sets of doors to his office and accepted his silent invitation to sit down across from his large desk.

“What can I do for you today, Miss Sullivan? I hope there wasn’t anything wrong with the claim forms. I worked on those personally, with assistance from our in-house counsel. We made sure to cross the t’s and dot the i’s.”

“The forms were fine, Mr. Fox, but surely you realize that someone from Allied would be here even if your claim had been engraved on stone tablets. We’re not in the habit of handing over $200 million payouts without doing a little investigating first.”

Lucius looked perplexed for a moment before answering. “Of course, um, what can I help you with?”

“Everything.”

“Pardon?”

“Pursuant to the terms of the agreement you signed when you bought the policy, if you want to collect your claim, you have to give us, more precisely, me, access to the records of all of your operations so we can be sure that there were no illegal activities that directly or indirectly led to the loss.”

“And by ‘access to our records’ you mean…?”

“Paper files, computer files, whatever was salvaged from the accident site…. sorry ‘alleged’ accident site. Access to computer networks including archived files, emails, any financial records relating to the joint venture plus financial records for the two companies for the past three years…” Chloe realized that Lucius was just staring at her. “Do you need to write any of this down?”

“I think I need to get our attorneys up here.”

“That works too,” Chloe answered cheerily. She loved this part.

*****

Wayne Enterprises Headquarters…Bruce Wayne’s office…

“Bruce, for the last time, you cannot blow off this meeting!” spat Lex, the muscles in his jaw twitching madly.

“Watch me.” Bruce replied, slipping back into his suit coat. The phone on his desk began to buzz but he ignored it.

“Goddammit, Bruce. This is damage control and we have to do it! This PR consultant has a plan that both of our companies need to put in play if we’re going to survive this.”

“You can go play spin doctor with your consultant all you want. I have a company to run.”

Lex tossed the copies of the PR plan that he had been holding onto Bruce’s expansive desk.

“Really? It seems to me that if you and your people had been doing that properly in the first place, we wouldn’t be here...”

A knock on the door interrupted their ‘discussion’ which by now had gotten quite loud.

“Not now!” shouted Bruce. He turned his attention back to Lex. “No way, you aren’t going to try to blame this mess on me again. We both know how we got here. If you had stayed focused on getting this done instead of acting like you were trying to get elected…”

“Stop being ridiculous.”

“Ridiculous? I was there, Lex! The only things missing were the American flags and a campaign bus. You want to run for office, you do it on your own dime, not on mine. Between that and your secret deals…”

“You are the last person on earth allowed to talk to me about secrets, Bruce…”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

The knocking at the door grew more insistent and Bruce placed his palm against his forehead as he yelled at the door again. “Still not now!”

“Mr. Wayne, Mr. Fox is here to see you and he says it’s urgent!” came the frazzled voice of Bruce’s executive assistant.

Bruce exhaled. “Fine, send him in.”

Lucius opened the door, looking somewhat guilty for interrupting. Lex eyed the man and decided that he had probably heard every word of their ‘discussion.’

“What is it, Lucius?”

“Sorry to interrupt but something’s come up. There’s an investigator from Allied Insurance here about…the claim. They say they have a right to see all records of our operations before they’ll approve payment. And they do mean everything, Bruce.”

“That’s ridiculous. There must be some mistake. Did you run it by…”

“I ran it by legal, sir. It’s in the policy we signed. They have a right to see it all, including all Luthor Corp. records relating to the joint venture,” replied Lucius, shooting a look at Lex.

“You’re joking, right?”

“Look for yourself,” Lucius handed Lex a thick document, “circled area, page five.”

Lex’s eyes flew over the page. “What the hell…?” His face went pale and his eyes flew to Bruce’s. “This can’t be right. This has to be a mistake.”

Bruce grabbed the documents from Lex and scanned them himself. “It doesn’t look like it.”

“This doesn’t make any sense…this investigator, where did you say he was?” demanded Lex.

“She. She’s in my office. What should I do?”

Bruce looked stone-faced for a moment and Lex ran his hand over his head.

“Sir?” pressed Lucius. “She’s been in my office for over thirty minutes now…”

“I don’t know. Just get back there and…”

“Get back there and what?” asked a clear female voice from the doorway. “Stall her? I think the ship has sailed on that option, gentlemen.”

All three men turned to see Chloe standing in the doorway, one hand on the door frame.

Lex froze and time seemed to stand still for him. “Chloe?” The word came out like a whisper but not so low that Bruce didn’t catch it.

She had a sort of half-smile on her face. She was dressed in a very elegant-looking suit, and a green blouse, not at all the way he remembered her. In his memories she was always wearing jeans and some kind of funky patterned shirt. Her hair was longer than he remembered. Her eyes looked very wide and green as they swept over him to Bruce and back to him again.

Then it seemed like everything happened at once.

“Miss Sullivan! I thought…I thought you were waiting in my office!” said Lucius, crossing the room in three long strides to stand between Chloe and the two other men.

At the same time, Lucius’ assistant, a gray-haired women who looked like the very definition of a school marm, came running up behind Chloe.

“Oh, there you are, Miss! Mr. Fox, I am so very sorry, she said she was looking for the ladies room. Then she got away from me.” She shot Chloe a reproving glance.

Chloe shrugged at Lucius. “Must have took a wrong turn.”

Lucius looked back at his boss and realized that there was no way around introductions at this point, at least not with looking like they were trying to hide something. Or even more like they were trying to hide something. “It’s OK, Nora. I’ll handle it.” The woman hurried away.

“Bruce Wayne, Lex Luthor, this is the investigator from Allied Insurance that I mentioned. Miss Sullivan. As I said, Miss Sullivan is here to investigate the explosion at the plant so that Allied can authorize payment,” said Lucius. “A formality, I’m sure,” he added optimistically, as if saying the words made it so.

“I do this for living, Mr. Fox, and I’m very good at it. I’d prefer you not characterize it as ‘a formality,’” Chloe responded, as she stepped forward and extended her hand to Bruce first. “Nice to meet with you, Mr. Wayne.” Bruce only nodded as he shook her hand; he was still irked that this woman had all but barged into his office and overheard what he had said about ‘stalling her.’ Plus, he was more than a little curious as to why Lex had acted like he had seen a ghost for a few seconds there.

He watched intently as Chloe relinquished his hand and extended her hand to Lex. Lex visibly hesitated for a second before taking it.

“Mr. Luthor.”

“Miss Sullivan.”

Bruce observed that they both held the contact a bit longer than necessary, almost as if they were daring the other to let go first. Lucius’ voice interrupting them made it a draw, however.

“Well, Miss Sullivan, why don’t we go back to my office…”

“No, not quite yet. I need to say something first,” Chloe said looking each man in the eye. “And, what I have to say is for all of you to hear. I realize that the thought of my company going through your operations records is a bit…distasteful right now but it’s going to happen. Allied Insurance needs to know what happened to your plant. If it truly was an accident, then you have absolutely nothing to worry about. ” She placed her hands on her hips. “However, if it wasn’t an accident, we will find the parties responsible. And just so there’s no confusion, our definition of ‘the parties responsible’ generally includes those whose names are on the dotted line at the bottom of the policy. In this case, that would be…” She reached for the policy in Bruce’s hand and read the last page “… Bruce T. Wayne and Alexander J. Luthor. Imagine that.”

Chloe looked up, smiling brightly. “So it looks like you guys are stuck with me for the foreseeable future. Cooperate and this will be pretty painless. I will warn you, though, ‘stalling’ me just makes me irritable and then nobody has any fun.”

“What if we just decide to withdraw the claim?” asked Bruce. At Chloe’s raised eyebrows, he continued, “You’re asking for access to the operations records of two very large corporations, Miss Sullivan. There might be sensitive…competitive data that we may not want to share. All legal, of course, just proprietary. Surely you understand.”

“Mr. Wayne, I’m here to find out if someone’s trying to cheat my company out of $200 million. I don’t give a rat’s ass who you buy your widgets from and what you resell them for…unless it has something to do with why that building blew up.”

“Of course,” she continued, “if you want to withdraw your claim, that’s your choice but then two things will happen. One, you’ll both have the eat the costs for the manufacturing plant, which you insured for $200 million but we all know was much more valuable in terms of research and development, future values, etc. And two, in doing so, your actions will be considered, according to the terms of our policy, a Questionable Circumstances Violation of said policy and you will owe us a Questionable Circumstances Termination Fee equal to no less than 10% of the claim amount.”

“What?” exclaimed Bruce.

“That’s $20 million!” said Lex.

“You did that all in your head? I’m impressed,” Chloe replied dryly and smiled faintly when Lex glared at her.

Lucius shook his head. “That’s impossible, you cannot make us pay you $20 million just to get out of an insurance policy.”

“Your lawyers didn’t circle that entire paragraph, did they? That QCT fee is our way of making sure people understand that once they’re in on something illegal, they’re in all the way. When it comes to insurance fraud, we don’t think there’s such a thing as ‘just a little bit guilty.’ If you don’t like the fee, I suggest you take it up with your senator. QCT fees were made legal by the legislature eight years ago. Oh, and one more thing, all QCTs become matters of public record. Your business partners, clients, customers, and the press will all find out about it. And draw their own conclusions as to why you would pay it.”

Bruce, Lex and Lucius exchanged looks. “I can’t believe this,” muttered Bruce.

“And I can’t believe how many people still don’t read the fine print,” said Chloe, leaning against Bruce’s desk. All three men frowned at her. “The devil is in the details, after all. So…” she looked around the enormous office. “Mr. Wayne? Care to show me where I’ll be working for the next few weeks?”

End chapter.

A/N: Some (but not all) answers to your questions and comments…

Emnorth20002: The story won’t be exactly the same because I’ve got two billionaires and not just one but I hope you catch the parallels.

June: The CJ/Danny thing is part accident, part design. I wanted Chloe to have a slightly different name to go with her new life, so to speak and the initials worked, especially since they are gender neutral and I see her as someone who would be conscious of the role gender plays in her line of work. I had given the Danny character another name at first but my muses kept saying that he should be named Danny for complicated denotation reasons that I won’t go into right now (have I mentioned that my muses are insane?). Anyway, after I switched it, I realized the TWW reference and then I totally had to keep it that way. No Joshes or Donnas will show up, though. Sorry.

‘Bama and Lark: Gotham may not be safe but there’s always something going on and you know our Chloe always needs to be near the action. :grin3:

Dreamerjules: Hope this chapter answered some questions, I'll get to a more detailed explanation soon, please be patient.

Everyone else: If I missed a specific question, please remind me and I’ll try to catch you in the next round, as long as it doesn’t give the whole thing away.

[Krysia]

Great chapter I loved how snarky Chloe was with bot Lex and Bruce. I hope they won't make her work to difficult and that she can spent a LOT of time with both of them :)
more?

[Louie]

Ok, I did love this but, I really can't ever see Bruce saying fuck. Maybe that's just me but it seems so out of character, even if he is pissed of.

And I really loved the election joke.

Question, is this all going to be buisness or perhaps will other characters make an apperience? Maybe even just a random 'this cop Grayson stoped me' coming from Chloe, hmm hmm. ok enough badgering

[star del mar]

I just Chloe's spririt, she's there to do her job and if they don't like it that's their problem. Lex and Bruce seem a little too worried for my taste, I'm thinking that not everything's as cut and dried as it should be. I can't wait to see what Chloe finds out and how her and Lex's working "relationship" progresses :)! Great update!!

Steph*

[Pufkinz]

:clapclap::clapclap::clapclap:

:worship:

Loving Chloe... you go girl!!!!! :grin:

Amazing chapter... really love it!!! I'm so intrigued...

Whats the Brue and Luther hidding? Can't wait for more clues as to whats going on... oh joy this is gonna be fun :grin: :D

:clapclap:

[bluebrise]

Great chapter, I especially loved the fast flowing dialogue and how Chloe's making herself at home now. Oh and that little tension between Chloe and Lex - wonderful!

[fussy_wuzzy]

Excellent! My favorite parts were Chloe being mad because she wants to look good for her meeting and the men's reaction to learning about the terms of the insurance policy.

[Tehzo]

This is very interesting so far.

I really like the way you're handling the relationship between Lex and Bruce. In other fics I've read, Bruce is usually the more confident and loose one. I never really pictured Bruce as being that way. But here, their characters and the interaction between them seem very right and well written.


Chloe looked up, smiling brightly. “So it looks like you guys are stuck with me for the foreseeable future. Cooperate and this will be pretty painless. I will warn you, though, ‘stalling’ me just makes me irritable and then nobody has any fun.” I liked how you had Chloe feeling slightly nervous in the elevator. The moment she entered Bruce's office, she was straight-forward and confident. But her feelings right before showed that she wasn't overly arrogant. And then in the office, the confidence she displayed spoke of her experience and how much she had grown.

Great chapter. Can't wait for more.

[kimmie]

Loved how stunned Lex was at seeing Chloe and i'm really looking forward to them working together!!!

Can't wait for another brilliant update!

Kimmie

[June]

I know I said I was hooked after the last chapter, but I am officially done in for now.

Chloe's insurance jargon was amusing and itriguing at most. I really, really like what you've done with her character in terms of maturation and the way she fits into her job and the people she works with. I've never doubted that Chloe was a smart girl, but everyone you write her with in her work place (Ted, Danny) seems to relate and react to her so well it is almost as if she has them wrapped around her finger. The Chloe you write gives off an aurua of power and I love it.



Slipping on her sunglasses, Chloe got into her car, threw it into gear and proceeded to drive herself out of Smallville.


Five months early, alone, and heading in the opposite direction of Metropolis.


Something about these last two lines of the flashback stuck with me. I love your take on what happened, and the way you explained it. It's what I see having happend almost to a T.




“Mr. Fox doesn’t see anyone without an appointment. He’s a very busy man.”

“I am very happy for him. You can tell ‘Mr. Fox’s’ assistant to tell ‘Mr. Fox’ that I’m here about their recent claim to Allied Insurance. The claim involving that big building of yours that blew sky-high a few weeks ago? The claim that won’t be paid until I talk to him, ‘Mr. Wayne’ and ‘Mr. Luthor.’”

The young receptionist blinked at her.

“I can write that down for you if you want,” added Chloe.

The receptionist scowled at her almost imperceptibly and went back to whispering into the telephone.

She raised her head again, “Mr. Fox will be out in a moment.”

Chloe rolled her eyes. “Super.” God, she hated receptionists who thought they were the Gestapo.

So do I, Babe. So do I. I had to quote this entire thing because I loved every word of it-- especially the take charge Chloe who put the damn receptionist in her place.



A knock on the door interrupted their ‘discussion’ which by now had gotten quite loud.

“Not now!” shouted Bruce. He turned his attention back to Lex. “No way, you aren’t going to try to blame this mess on me again. We both know how we got here. If you had stayed focused on getting this done instead of acting like you were trying to get elected…”

“Stop being ridiculous.”

“Ridiculous? I was there, Lex! The only things missing were the American flags and a campaign bus. You want to run for office, you do it on your own dime, not on mine. Between that and your secret deals…”

“You are the last person on earth allowed to talk to me about secrets, Bruce…”


Another long quote, but I had to cause I loved it so much. Bruce and Lex's little tat was hilarious in a way that reminded me of two brothers arguring over something pointless only this wasn't really a pointless issue, yet it was still amusing. In the last comment I can just hear Lex's scoff... I really like them-- alone and together-- especially in this story.


“Get back there and what?” asked a clear female voice from the doorway. “Stall her? I think the ship has sailed on that option, gentlemen.”

Oh, how I love Chloe Sullivan. Loved her entrance there-- definitely made a lasting impact.


“And I can’t believe how many people still don’t read the fine print,” said Chloe, leaning against Bruce’s desk. All three men frowned at her. “The devil is in the details, after all. So…” she looked around the enormous office. “Mr. Wayne? Care to show me where I’ll be working for the next few weeks?”

Love it, Love it, love it. I love how you write the three of them in a room together. Where Chloe should most definitely be the odd one out and less powerful one in the situation, you write her as the leader and I love it.



(have I mentioned that my muses are insane?). Anyway, after I switched it, I realized the TWW reference and then I totally had to keep it that way. No Joshes or Donnas will show up, though. Sorry.


I know all about insane muses, trust me. Although I can't say i'm not the tinisest bit disappoited that J/D and their refreshing loving banter won't be showing up any time soon.. I can live with the gentle reminder of the once favorite show with the CJ/Danny reference. I swear it just makes me love this story even more.

BTW, how do you see your Fox? Cause after seeing the movie, all I can see is Morgan Freeman...

[hfce]

Great update.

[lexchloe]

Excellent update. I am so loving badass Chloe. Love how she held her own against Bruce and Lex and wouldn't let them intimidate her.


“Mr. Fox’s assistant says you don’t have an appointment,” said the receptionist loftily, interrupting Chloe’s thoughts.

‘No shit, you think I would have warned them that I was coming?’

“Mr. Fox doesn’t see anyone without an appointment. He’s a very busy man.”

“I am very happy for him. You can tell ‘Mr. Fox’s’ assistant to tell ‘Mr. Fox’ that I’m here about their recent claim to Allied Insurance. The claim involving that big building of yours that blew sky-high a few weeks ago? The claim that won’t be paid until I talk to him, ‘Mr. Wayne’ and ‘Mr. Luthor.’”

The young receptionist blinked at her.

“I can write that down for you if you want,” added Chloe


“What?” exclaimed Bruce.

“That’s $20 million!” said Lex.

“You did that all in your head? I’m impressed,” Chloe replied dryly and smiled faintly when Lex glared at her

hee hee. I especially liked these parts. Gotta love snarky Chloe. It will be interesting to see Lex's explanation to Bruce about Chloe. Also can't wait for a one on one reunion between Chloe and Lex given how long its been since they've seen eachother and the abrupt ending of their friendship. Can't wait for the next one.

[Kit Merlot]

This was excellent!

Chloe was beautifully snarky, and I loved that Lex was stunned to see who the investigator was :D

But I hate the way their friendship ended in Smallville, but I'm glad that Chloe is as successful as she is.

Can't wait for more!

[welshy]

That was a lovely update :)

[dreamerjules]

Will happily wait patiently for this story and Chloe's backstory. Especially if the updates continue on a regular basis.

Loved the glimpse of it. I can see her getting so fed up with everything in Smallville, the bald dumb billionaire being top of the list. It also explains some of the animosity Chloe showed toward Lex this past season. I like that.

Julie

[emnorth2002]

Emnorth20002: The story won’t be exactly the same because I’ve got two billionaires and not just one but I hope you catch the parallels.

Two billionaires for the price of one? Even better! *wink* Believe me, I have *no* complaints with that scenario, especially after such a terrific chapter laying it all out! Loved the contrast between Chloe's nervousness at the prospect of facing Lex again and her absolutely brilliant aplomb when the moment actually came. That's our girl! Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. I'm eagerly awaiting more!
:-)
Em

[Susan S]

I love this story. The interaction between Bruce and Lex was great. They were bickering! I loved that they weren't having a big knock down drag out type fight, but bickering. Chloe is wonderfully done. I love the mix of toughness and slight insecurity when it came to her looks. I can't wait to see what happens next.

Who wants to bet that some lawyers get fired for not reading all the "fine print"?

Susan S

[leik2]

Loved this chapter. Chloe rules! Can't wait to see why Lex just left her hanging.

[vardaquareien]

Great update! Absolutely adored 'take no prisoners Chloe'. I particularly loved the way she just completely bowled them over, forcing her way into Bruce's office and laying down the law while they basically stand there slack-jawed. Priceless! I think what made this even more fun though was the fact that we got to see Chloe all nervous beforehand and pissed off that she was so worried about what she wore. I love that you show us what she's feeling inside and then the complete authority and confidence she has externally.

I can just see Bruce fully jumping on Lex as soon as Chloe leaves to find out everything he can about how Lex knows her and everything that was between them in the past! I can't wait to see what's gonna happen!

[arkakitty]

DUN DUN DUN Chloe enters. Brilliant. Please update soon :)

[meg20]

I like this story and espescially strong, independent and snarky Chloe. Very much looking forward to see what you have in store for us next!!!!

[sylvia]

Wow, "smartmouth goddess" is right-- I love your slightly-embittered-but-still-snarky, more confident and mature version of Chloe. And your narrative style is wonderful, as always, with the way you're building up the mystery and giving us these tantalising little hints and details. And of course it couldn't have happened to a better pair of billionnaires. *grin*

Do update soon!

[pipersmum]

Really loving this so far it's got Lex and Bruce in it a good combo of course :yeahbaby: and loving the way Chloe is handling them go girl :worship: please update soon

[newbatgirl]

Chapter 2

It had been Lana who told Lex that Chloe had left town to start college early. And she had done it days after she left. Lex was momentarily angry to be so far disconnected from Chloe that it would take so long for him to find out but he realized quickly that it could not be helped. Gabe rarely discussed her with him even though he was back working at the plant. His relationship with Clark was non-existent. That left only Lana to tell him, who mentioned it in passing as she talked about something else. When he stopped her, Lana seemed startled, as if she was surprised that Lex would be concerned with what Chloe was doing while she was in the middle of a story.

Unfortunately Lana did not know much, all she seemed to know was that Chloe had requested her diploma from Smallville High and that she had left town to start college early. Lana presumed that she was staying in Metropolis, either at the University or with her aunt and cousins.

Two days later, Lex climbed the stone steps of Metropolis U’s main administration building with an inexplicable sense of giddiness. He didn’t try to plan what he would say to Chloe when he found her, he knew he just wanted to explain his behavior, to make sure that she had come to the right conclusion about his aloofness. He had faith in her intelligence but he also knew that sometimes her self-esteem issues got the better of her. Away from Smallville, away from the prying eyes, he could smooth things over, if need be, Lex was sure of it.

It took several minutes for Lex to convince the registrar to give him information about Chloe. Some nonsense about privacy laws. When the man finally acquiesced, Lex wasn’t prepared for the answer. He expected to find Chloe halfway across campus, already plotting her way onto the executive staff of the school paper. He didn’t expect that she wouldn’t be there at all. Not on campus, not in Metropolis at all.

It didn’t take long to find out where she was, but the message was clear, Chloe had moved on and she wanted to be left alone.

*****

Wayne Enterprises Headquarters…executive conference room…later that day

“…and I’ll need copies of all financial transactions made by the in the name of LW Technologies, your joint venture, as well as transactions made by each of your corporations into the venture and from any the each corporation' SPE’s,” said Chloe, checking off another item on the list in her hand.

She was pacing the length of the table, she always thought better on her feet, while Lex, Bruce, Lucius, Bruce’s assistant and one of Wayne Enterprises’ attorneys were seated at the table.

Bruce narrowed his eyes at Chloe from his seat at the conference table.

“You seem to know a quite a bit about corporate accounting. However, our financial statements are quite complex. Are you sure that you won’t need one of our accountants to walk you through those documents, Miss Sullivan?”

Chloe knew thinly veiled condescension when she heard it but she kept her cool. She turned and smiled at Bruce.

“I do know quite a bit, Mr. Wayne. And anything I don’t know, I’ll be going over with my own forensic accountant, if it’s all the same to you. In these matters I find it’s always better to BYO.”

Bruce’s face returned to the stony visage he had been showing ever since Chloe appeared in his office and if he wasn’t upset in his own right, Lex would have found it pretty funny. The idea of Chloe Sullivan walking all over Bruce Wayne would have typically been priceless to Lex had she not been walking all over him for the last hour as well.

True, she had not spoken directly to him since she shook his hand, but her general comments, demeanor, and even the way she kept raising her eyebrows whenever he or Bruce made a objection seemed explicitly designed to tell them, specifically him, that she was in charge.

Or maybe he was just projecting.

As she spoke, Lex tried to recall how their relationship, such that it was, had left off ten years earlier. They hadn’t fought or had a falling out after she left his protective custody. The deep friendship they had developed over that infamous summer just seemed to dissolve, wither away from inattention. Though Lex knew the reasons why he had let it happen, he could never be sure that Chloe did. Lex had briefly considered contacting her in Gotham but had been filled with the unfamiliar feeling of foolish uncertainty at the thought. What would he say to her after not speaking to her for six months in Smallville. ‘How’ve you been?’ ‘Sorry about the cold shoulder routine, is that a new haircut?’ Yeah, right.

The months turned into years and urge to hire someone to find her faded as well, though, truth be told, he had often wondered where she was. Every once in a while when he opened a newspaper, Lex half expected to see her name in a byline. He never did, and now he knew why. Chloe Sullivan, investigative journalist, had found a different calling.

She was talking to him now.

“Mr. Luthor? Did you hear what I said?”

“No, can you repeat that?” he said, feeling somewhat embarrassed at being caught unaware.

“I said, you should call your Gotham office of Luthor Corp. and tell them to expect one of our accountants first thing tomorrow morning. And one of our computer specialists, as well.

Chloe checked another item off her list and Lex was alternately aggravated at the way she spoke to him and somewhat hurt by her distant behavior. And the fact that it hurt him was aggravating him all the more.

“Will that be all, Miss Sullivan?” asked Lucius, when neither Lex nor Bruce made any attempt to speak.

“I think so, no wait…there is one thing I have to say. Kind of a standard caveat. As I said my computer specialists and assistants are on their way but it will certainly take us the rest of the day to get ourselves up and running. In the meantime, and through the course of the investigation, I’ll warn you not to destroy any paper or digital documents, transfer files, or otherwise attempt to remove materials from the various premises that might be probative.” One corner of her mouth curled up. “We can always tell when you do that, and aside from being a felony, it really pisses us off.”

Bruce’s assistant snickered into her hand and tried to cover it up with cough.

Bruce looked like he was at the end of his rope, at least to Lex, who was the only one in the room who knew the signs.

“Miss Sullivan, I assure you, we intend to cooperate fully with this investigation. No one here intends to destroy evidence,” Bruce said icily.

Chloe’s eyes went wide. “Oh, of course you wouldn’t, but I have to say it. Kind of like when they ask you if you want fries with that. Part of the routine, you know? That’s all I have. For now. I’m sure we’ll all be talking again very soon.”

Lucius rubbed at his temples, apparently weary of trying to keep up with Chloe Sullivan’s turns of phrase.

“Miss Sullivan, if you’ll excuse us, I’ll go make sure that the temporary offices you requested are ready,” he said, rising from the table. Lucius, the assistant and the lawyer soon exited.

Bruce rose from the table as well and waited as Lex did the same. “Miss Sullivan, my apologies for the earlier comment about ‘stalling you.’ I had clearly underestimated you. I trust you won’t hold a thoughtless comment like that against the company during your investigation.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Lex and I have some things to discuss, if you’ll excuse us. I’m sure Lucius will be back soon to show you to your office so you should probably stay here until then.” Bruce’s less-than-subtle emphasis on the word ‘here’ was almost enough to make Lex laugh. The man didn’t really think he could stop Chloe Sullivan from snooping around if she really wanted to, did he? Of course, Bruce really didn’t know who he was dealing with.

“Perhaps you’d like something while you wait?” interjected Lex. “Coffee, maybe?”

When Chloe shifted her vaguely amused gaze from Bruce to him, Lex felt uncharacteristically foolish, as if she were laughing at him for some reason.

“Coffee? Now there’s an idea. Never could turn down a good cup of coffee. Thank you. I’ll just be checking in with my office in the meantime; there’s no need to babysit me.”

They watched as she sank into one of the chairs and pulled her cell phone out of bag.

Both men got the distinct feeling that they had been dismissed and they eventually backed out of the room into the hallway.

For the second time in as many hours, Bruce exhaled heavily. “Well, that was…I don’t know what that was, actually.”

“I hear you. That was certainly unexpected,” replied Lex, still looking at Chloe through the open door as she punched numbers on her telephone.

Lex felt Bruce’s eyes on him and he knew that Bruce wanted to ask him something, probably something about his reaction to Chloe’s appearance. He was going to have to explain that sooner or later.

“Well, what do you suggest we do?” Bruce asked finally.

“To start? Get her a cup of coffee. I’m not sure we want to see what happens if we don’t.”

*****
A short while later…

Chloe looked out the window of the conference room with her back to the door as she waited for her call to connect.

“Ted? It’s CJ. Got your message. Everything’s going as expected. Some of the usual bull to start but I think they know the deal now….uh-huh…yeah, it was…. Anyway, I just left a message for IT to send me two bodies, one for here and one for the Luthor Corp. building. I’m also going to need FA to send me some number crunchers. Again, one for here to work with me and one for Luthor Corp…. Yeah, they know they’re coming….For me? Send me Peña, only don’t tell him I asked for him. You got that?” she laughed into the phone. “I’m serious, I’ll never hear the end of it…OK, thanks…you too. Bye.” Chloe snapped her phone shut and turned from the window only to come face to face, or rather, face to chest with Lex.

“Christ!” she exclaimed, taking a step back and grabbing the window frame to steady herself. “Don’t do that! You nearly gave me a heart attack.”

A grin spread slowly across Lex’s face. He had finally caught her off guard.

“Did I frighten you?” he asked silkily.

“No…more like surprised. I wasn’t expecting to see you there,” countered Chloe.

“Well then we’re even. This is the last place I expected to see you.”

“Really? Where was the first place?” she asked, dropping her hand from the window frame and stepping a little closer.

It was the closest she had been to him all day and he realized she was wearing some kind of scent; not perfume. Body wash? Lotion maybe? The scent hit him and he was confused again.

“What?”

“You said that this was the last place you expected to see me. What was the first place? After ten years, Lex, where would you expect to see me?”

“In my morning paper actually,” Lex answered honestly.

Chloe gave a little eye roll and stepped around him. “I left that dream behind a long time ago.”

“Why?”

“I had my reasons.”

It was clear that he wasn’t going to get anything else out of her on that score so Lex tried another tack.

“CJ?” he asked.

Chloe rolled her eyes as she tossed her phone in her bag. “Listening in on my call? Why I am not surprised? It’s a nickname, for friends and colleagues, at least.”

“Interesting. What should I call you?”

“Miss Sullivan still works. That was always a favorite of yours.”

Lex grinned faintly, despite the dig. “Your sense of humor hasn’t changed. You look great, by the way; those ten years have been very kind to you.”

“I could say the same to you, except now that you’ve said it, it would seem insincere, don’t you think?”

“No one could ever accuse you of being insincere, Chloe. You always say exactly what’s on your mind.”

“I can’t argue with you on that. In fact, I’ll tell you what’s on my mind right now. If you’re trying to figure out if I have some angle, some sort of ulterior motive in being here, you’re wrong. This case came up and my boss gave it to me. End of story.”

Lex pressed his lips together. She was keeping her distance, emotionally at least. Her tone was like ice.

“What makes you think I was thinking that?”

“Why else would you be in here? What else do we have to say to each other?”

Before Lex could answer, Lucius retuned to the room.

“Miss Sullivan, we have an office ready for…Oh, Lex, I didn’t realize you were in here. I’m not interrupting?”

“No, you’re not,” Chloe replied quickly, picking up her purse and briefcase. “I’d like to see that office, please.”

Lucius’ eyes flicked from Chloe to Lex for a beat before he gestured for Chloe to follow him.

“Of course, right this way.” Lucius led Chloe out the room and down the hallway to the left.

Lex let out a frustrated breath and turned to face the window. He didn’t notice Bruce enter the doorway from the right. He watched Lex at the window for a minute before continuing down the hall.

*****
Text of email…

We have a problem. Allied Insurance investigating the explosion. The investigation cannot be allowed to proceed.

Advise ASAP.

End Chapter.


A/N: Some more answers to direct FB inquiries…

Louie: This fic will be a mixture of business and pleasure. Some more familiar Batman players will show up (see first author’s note). However, in all likelihood, Dick Grayson will not make an appearance. I see this fic occurring during one of Batman’s solo periods. Adding Dick (or any of the other costumed allies) would make things a little too complicated for me. If you absolutely need to know where Dick is during this, we can just assume that he’s away on a Titans mission. :grin3:

Pufkinz: Are you sure that it’s only Lex and Bruce that are hiding something?

June: The insurance jargon is a mix of reality and dramatic license. I have read some books on insurance fraud and culled some facts from them but some of the other stuff is just twisted to fit my insane plot. As for Lucius, I see Lucius as a tad younger than Freeman actually (although Freeman kicked ass!!!), I’ve had this fic in my head for some months before I saw the movie. When I picture my Lucius in my head, he’s a cross between actors Isaiah Washington and the late Richard Biggs. You can probably google them both.

Everyone: the POV alternates a bit in each scene, as I am trying to get into the mind of each of the characters. Sorry for any confusion that may have caused.

[starbright25]

I'm loving this fic, especially Chloe's interaction with Lex. Can't wait to see what she does next, and how he's going to react. Update again soon please!

[lexchloe]

Wonderful update. Loved the flashback of Lex finding out that Chloe left and then going to Metropolis to find her. Wonder what his reasons for letting the friendship phase out were. I'm still loving 'take no prisoners' Chloe. Also loving that she's managed not only to ruffle Bruce's feathers but she's getting to Lex too on a personal as well as professional level. Liked the Chlex scene although Chloe was being a tad frosty, definately some lingering feelings there that she's trying to supress with the attitude.


Text of email…

We have a problem. Allied Insurance investigating the explosion. The investigation cannot be allowed to proceed.

Advise ASAP.

And the plot thickens. Who is sending the mystery e-mails and how much danger will this mean for Chloe? Can't wait for more.

[kimmie]

That was an excellent chapter, I loved the banter between Lex and Chloe. Already looking forward to the next chapter!!!

Kimmie

[welshy]

That was a great chapter, I hope there's going to be more soon

[fussy_wuzzy]

Great update! I'm dying to know who sent the email.

[Kit Merlot]

This was a fabulous update!

I love how thrown off Lex is by Chloe's cool professionalism. And Bruce's reaction is just as priceless. He doesn't seem to know how to treat Chloe-- should he also be coldly professional or try being charming?

And I have a special place in my heart for Lucius Fox :D

Great job on this story.

[hfce]

I love this update. I can't wait to see how they dance around eachother in the next update. :D

Hope ;)

[campbti]

Very captivating. I like the investigation angle and always love Bruce. As long as we are mixing in the pleasure with the business I am on board. Love your characterizations so far. I always wonder how the writers on the show think that Chloe could have gone through what she did in seasons 1 to 3 and act the way she did in most of 4. I love your more jaded, strong, in charge Chloe. can't wait for an update.

[June]

You have no idea how much I needed this today, NBG. It's been an awful day and coming here and seeing an update.... whew, it was a welcomed surprise.



It didn’t take long to find out where she was, but the message was clear, Chloe had moved on and she wanted to be left alone.


I like how with each chapter so far you've added in a little bit of the past in flashbacks and such. It's a nice touch and adds to the layer of the story and also has me a lot of time debating whether or not I know what Lex was going to the Univerisity to tell her. I know what I hope it is, but I am probably WAY off.



Bruce’s face returned to the stony visage he had been showing ever since Chloe appeared in his office and if he wasn’t upset in his own right, Lex would have found it pretty funny. The idea of Chloe Sullivan walking all over Bruce Wayne would have typically been priceless to Lex had she not been walking all over him for the last hour as well.

True, she had not spoken directly to him since she shook his hand, but her general comments, demeanor, and even the way she kept raising her eyebrows whenever he or Bruce made a objection seemed explicitly designed to tell them, specifically him, that she was in charge.

Or maybe he was just projecting.



*cracks up at the idea of Lex Luthor projecting* I liked this entire chapter, but this part especially. It is nice to see Lex attempt to worry about a. what people (mainly chloe) think of him-- sensed by his mentioning of her demeanor towards him-- him, cool and collected Lex, effected by her seemingly disregard for him.



“I think so, no wait…there is one thing I have to say. Kind of a standard caveat. As I said my computer specialists and assistants are on their way but it will certainly take us the rest of the day to get ourselves up and running. In the meantime, and through the course of the investigation, I’ll warn you not to destroy any paper or digital documents, transfer files, or otherwise attempt to remove materials from the various premises that might be probative.” One corner of her mouth curled up. “We can always tell when you do that, and aside from being a felony, it really pisses us off.”

Bruce’s assistant snickered into her hand and tried to cover it up with cough.


I, like Bruce's assistant, was snickering at this.

The scene at the end between Chloe and Lex, again had a million thoughts going through my head at once, and has me on the edge of my seat to see how their relationship evolves.

You have action, mystery, possible romance... everything I love in a good book. Are you sure you aren't a professional writer or something? This story is fantastic and I can not wait until the next update.


When I picture my Lucius in my head, he’s a cross between actors Isaiah Washington and the late Richard Biggs. You can probably google

Yes, I do agree Freeman kicked some major ass in Batman Begins, but I do happen to know these two actors and I must admit... intriguing choice and i can completely see a nice mixture of the both of them in this story.

Again, great update, and I hope you update again. Soon.

[arkakitty]

“Oh, of course you wouldn’t, but I have to say it. Kind of like when they ask you if you want fries with that. Part of the routine, you know? That’s all I have. For now. I’m sure we’ll all be talking again very soon.”



Oh I loved this part :) Especially the Chloe/Lex interaction. Please more soon!!

[Zannie]

Their friendship, as it was, had run its course. She stopped calling.

Now she held the phone in her hand and wondered briefly if she should keep it as some kind of morbid souvenir.

The fact that it was trash day on the Sullivans’ street decided the matter for her. Twirling it once in her hand, Chloe stepped quickly to the can on the curb and dropped the phone in, slamming the lid down with her other hand. It made a satisfying sound.

Slipping on her sunglasses, Chloe got into her car, threw it into gear and proceeded to drive herself out of Smallville.

Five months early, alone, and heading in the opposite direction of Metropolis.

This is my favorite part of the first few chapters. It's so well done. You've made it dramatic without being melodramatic, and I feel so much for Chloe at this moment that it makes my chest hurt. Absolutely lovely.

I love this story. And I promise I'm getting to those latest two chapters today, so you'll be hearing from me by this evening.

[Louie]

hmmm, I think it was the secritary. Just kidding, maybe ;) . It's sad that Chloe still carries the hurt Lex caused her after 10 years. I'm ok with there not really being anyone else I just wanted to know really cause it tells you what time period the story is in.

[BabDreamer]

Just started reading this and already I can't wait for more.
I'd like to know what were Lex's reasons to let the friendship fade away, and how Bruce is gonna react when he learns of Chloe and Lex knowing each other previously.
Oh, and I was wondering if maybe you worked for an insurance company at first since you seemed to know your subject so well, but then I saw your note. Always good to know an author has done its job and researched its subject! Makes the fic even better.
So Chloe is gonne have an office to work at Wayne Industries? Cool. More chance for her and Lex to run into each other. Oh, and am definitely intrigue about that explosion thing.
Can't wait for more!

[deia]

I'm absolutely loving this! You made me want to fish my black trenchcoat from the back of the closet and go around all Dick Tracy-ish sniffing for clues. Corporate espionage and Chlex plus Bruce and Gotham? It doesn't get much better than this...well actually I'm guessing it does when you post your next instalment! Have got me hooked and lined here. Please update as soon as possible your writting is too good!

[pipersmum]

Thanx for the update, really want to know what his reasons were for ignoring Chloe for 6 months :wth: Will Bruce be showing a interest in Chloe or is he just going to want to find out what happened between Lex and Chloe? Who sent the E-mail i wonder please update soon :grin3:

[sylvia]

I love the corporate espionage-y atmosphere. Pitting Chloe and Lex's wits against each other always sets sparks flying, so we should have some even more exciting chapters coming up. And I can't wait for you to unravel the shared history they have (bring on the angst)! Update soon!

[newbatgirl]

Sorry, not an update just some news and comments. I'll answer any questions you have in the next update just as I did with this last one so if you have any questions that haven't been posted yet, post soon so I can add them to my answers.

Also, I am going out of town this week so the update will actually be a couple of days early. Hope you don't mind! :blinkkiss

Thanks for the FB.

[malugargula]

This fic is amazing
Please update soon
:D

[FroggyJump]

I felt a little disturbed at how much I enjoyed the contractual banter that happened, but not being around the the jargon this year has been disappointing at times. I was in love with the way Chloe burst back into Lex's life and the reaction that Bruce had to her was great. Rapid interaction that happened in the office was good to read and hope to see more like it. I'll definitely be keeping tabs on this story, can't wait for more.

[newbatgirl]

A/N: Alfred Pennyworth is owned by DC, as well, which is a shame, really because who couldn’t use their own Alfred?

Chapter 3

Later that night…much later…

Gloved fingers flew over the keys of the large control panel, typing out a search:

SULLIVAN, CHLOE J
FEMALE

He added some more details, including Chloe’s approximate age and other vitals and let the computer’s intricate databases do the rest. The results of the search appeared in one flat screen monitor and as the user entered another search.

LUTHOR, ALEXANDER J
MALE

When the results appeared seconds later, the user entered another command: FIND MATCHES.

Before the user could view the results on the third screen, the rapid movements of a feather duster across the console obscured his view.

“Alfred!” he growled in his trademark gravely voice. “Do you mind?”

“Not at all, sir, but thank you for your concern.” Came the clipped reply from the wielder of the feather duster, an elegant man with silver hair and British accent.

“I meant, I can’t see the screens when you do…that. I’m working now. Can’t you do that some other time?”

“If you can name a time when you won’t be working, sir, I’d be happy to come back then. But since Nostradamus himself couldn’t possibly predict such an occurrence, I have to choose my opportunities when I can.”

The Batman, as he was popularly known, frowned and grumbled low in this throat.

“Just…clean something else until I finish this search,” he said, turning back to his massive console.

“I wish I could, sir, but I’m all caught up down here,” replied Alfred, gesturing around the Batcave. “I’ve even catalogued your supplies for you: things you swing from, things that explode, and things that incapacitate evildoers. Those last two took quite awhile, though. You wouldn’t believe how often things overlap in those areas.”

“Alfred…”

The manservant ignored the warning tone in his employer’s voice, a tone that had caused many a criminal to lose control over their excretory functions. Instead he peered over Batman’s shoulder at the image on the first monitor.

“What a lovely woman. Please tell me she is not our city’s newest megalomaniacal evil villain. Sorry, villianess.

“Her name is Chloe Sullivan. She’s an investigator from Allied Insurance looking into the explosion at the LW Technologies plant.”

“I see, and why are you investigating her?”

Batman glared at him through the lenses of his cowl. “I like to know whom I’m dealing with,” he answered pushing back his cowl to reveal the handsome, yet expressionless features of Bruce Wayne.

“And her connection to Mr. Luthor?”

“That’s what I’m trying to figure out. Lex knew who she was when she walked into the room today and she knew him. I could tell from how they interacted. There’s clearly some kind of history there.”

“There’s always the direct approach, you could just ask him.”

“Oh, I plan to, Alfred, but I don’t like asking questions I don’t already know the answer to.”

Bruce pulled the winged gloves off his large hands and punched some more keys on his console.

“This is interesting…Chloe J. Sullivan, listed as a dependent of one of Luthor Corp.’s employees, Gabriel Sullivan…until about eleven years ago. He was apparently the plant manager at a facility in…Smallville?”

“Interesting name for a town. And they say we Brits are eccentric,” murmured Alfred.

“Gabriel Sullivan was terminated then, no explanation given…The next time there’s any connection between the two of them is when Lionel Luthor was tried in federal court ten years ago. Apparently, Ms. Sullivan was a star witness.”

“That’s quite a connection, indeed. What happened?”

Bruce tapped more keys. “Shortly before her testimony, Miss Sullivan and her father were killed in an explosion while being transferred to an FBI safe house. According to the same news article, Lex was hospitalized for an attempted poisoning around the same time. “

“Killed? Didn’t you just say you met her today?”

“Yes, and as the saying goes, she looked pretty good for a dead woman. Here it is…She and her father resurfaced three months later, alive and well, again in this Smallville place.”

“No explanation given? They’re just dead one day, alive the next?”

“The implication is that they were hiding out from Lionel Luthor, but no one seems to know where or how.”

Bruce tapped some more keys. “Damn, that’s the last connection. It seems Chloe Sullivan left Smallville and moved here right after high school. She’s been here in Gotham or overseas working for Allied ever since graduating from Gotham U. No further connections to the Luthors, at least not that I can find here.”

“So what does that tell you, sir?”

“Not enough,” replied Bruce. “But it’s a start.” He leaned forward again and entered another command:

SHOW ALL IMAGES

A single image popped up on the search window. It was a picture taken by one of the press at the Metropolis Courthouse during Lionel’s trial. It showed a younger Chloe Sullivan and Lex Luthor standing very close to one another. Lex’s hand was at her back and the two appeared to be in deep discussion. The Chloe in the picture looked young and anxious, very unlike the woman Bruce had met that day. She was beautiful, though, even back then.

But instead of wondering what they had been discussing, Bruce was looking at the expression on his old friend’s face.

“This, on the other hand,” said Bruce, tapping the screen, “tells me quite a lot, Alfred.”

*****

The next day…Wayne Enterprises Building…

It was already mid morning when Lex Luthor crossed the lobby of the Wayne Enterprises building, heading towards the elevator. He already had a fierce headache and wanted nothing more than to be left alone as long as possible.

“Lex, hold the elevator!”

So much for that.

Bruce was the last person he wanted to deal with right now. Well, maybe not the last but near the bottom of the list to be sure. Still, Lex leaned on the ‘door open’ button to wait for his friend.

Walking leisurely and looking ridiculously rested, Bruce ambled over to the elevator, briefcase in hand. Lex wasn’t surprised by this. Bruce rarely made it to the office before ten. To those who hadn’t worked closely with him, he gave off the air of a ‘hands off’ CEO, content to be the public face of the company but let others make the decisions.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Lex knew that behind Bruce’s public face as a carefree playboy who just happened to share the name with a Fortune 500 company, was a shrewd, calculating mind.

Lex didn’t question the dichotomy in his friend; he surmised that Bruce’s reasons for it were partly business and party personal. Lex himself knew the value of not keeping part of yourself hidden from the world so he played along and didn’t question it. Bruce had certainly extended him the same courtesy when necessary.

Lex rolled his eyes, though, as Bruce stepped up beside him in the elevator. He let the doors close before addressing him.

“Just getting in?” he asked with a slight air of condescension.

Bruce shrugged. “Had a late date last night; kind of spilled over into the morning.”

Lex resisted the urge to roll his eyes again. He had no desire to hear about Bruce’s sexual conquests.

“I’ve already been to my Gotham offices. The accountant from Allied was there when I got there, tearing the place apart. You can’t even imagine.” He almost shuddered at the memory. The accountant Chloe had sent to Luthor Corp was a humorless woman in her fifties with a tobacco-hardened voice and a quick temper. He had never seen his staff move so quickly before, not even when he lost his temper with them.

“I guess we’ll see more of the same when we get upstairs,” said Bruce evenly.

“You don’t seem all that concerned about this. Aren’t you worried about this at all?”

“Of course I am but I’m not about to get caught off guard again like we did yesterday.”

The elevator stopped at one of the lower floors and an attractive brunette stepped on, flashing smiles at both Lex and Bruce. Lex barely acknowledged her but he had to endure a few minutes of watching Bruce flirt shamelessly with the woman before she stepped off again on the 28th floor.

“You were saying?” Lex said pointedly.

“Hmmmm? Oh, yeah...we can’t allow her to catch us off guard again. She may have won the first round, but this isn’t over.”

There was need to ask who the ‘she’ was that Bruce was referring to.

The elevator chimed as it reached the top floor of the building and Lex immediately stepped off and headed towards the office that he had been using for the past year as he and Bruce put together their venture.

Much to his annoyance, instead of heading to his own office, Bruce followed him past the reception area and down the quiet hallway.

“By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask you…”

‘And here it comes…’

Lex stopped but didn’t turn.

“…our new friend the insurance investigator, where did you two meet?” Bruce inquired.

It was on the tip of Lex’s tongue to deny knowing her but he sensed that would be futile and then Bruce made that much obvious.

“I couldn’t help but notice that you knew her name was ‘Chloe’ when both she and Lucius had only revealed her last name. So I surmised that you must have known her from somewhere else.”

Lex turned. “Nothing gets past you Bruce,” he said sarcastically. “Miss Sullivan’s father once worked for Luthor Corp, ran one of our plants, in fact. He worked at the plant in Smallville, outside Metropolis, when I lived there a few years back. That’s how I know her.”

“Do you know all of your employees’ children, Lex? Or just the ones who are built like her?”

“No, I don’t, but you seemed to have missed the name of the town. Smallville. As in everybody knows each other. She might have been a friend of people I knew in the town, that kind of thing. And to answer the next obvious question, no we didn’t. It wasn’t that kind of relationship.”

“What kind of relationship was it?” Bruce pressed.

Lex was trying hard not to show his annoyance with the conversation. He knew he had to appear disinterested or Bruce would never let up. “One that’s completely irrelevant to the matters at hand. Now if you don’t mind, I have a conference call with our suppliers. They’d like me to explain when they’re going to receive payment for components that no longer exist.”

“That’s precisely why you should answer my questions. You know what’s at stake here, Lex. Now, during the course of this ‘irrelevant’ acquaintance with Miss Sullivan, do you recall anything about her that might give us some insight as to what we’re up against here?”

Lex’s memory flashed to an intense conversation he had with a teenage Chloe Sullivan, over a dead body no less. It was his first glimpse of her tenacity, but not his last. The room had nearly crackled with the heat of her determination, and perhaps something else…

“Lex?”

Lex snapped back to the present and paused before answering. “I know this: Chloe Sullivan has a knack for finding information that no one wants found.”

Bruce didn’t seem to be too happy with that response.

*****
Wayne Enterprises Manufacturing Complex, area formerly known as Building C, later that day

Notebook in hand, Chloe made her way around the throng of workers and demotion vehicles gathered outside what had been Building C of the Wayne Manufacturing Complex. After only a few minutes there she was glad she had anticipated the condition of the scene and dressed accordingly: khakis, work boots, and a windbreaker with the Allied Insurance logo on the left front side. She had pulled her hair back into a ponytail. Shortly after she arrived, someone handed her a hard hat. Chloe was glad she wouldn’t have to navigate the wet, uneven floor of the building’s ruins in three-inch heels and a tight skirt.

After roaming the perimeter for a few minutes, dodging workers hauling debris she finally spotted the man had come to talk to.

“Mr. Thomas Liu? CJ Sullivan from Allied Insurance. My office called and said I was coming.” She said, hurrying over the man. He was older, in his fifties, with silver lined black hair and glasses. She extended her hand and the man took it, firmly. Chloe’s father had always told her that you could tell a lot about a man from his handshake. At the time, Chloe had brushed it off as one of Gabe’s quaint ideas about the world but her years of meeting people and needing to assess them quickly had taught her otherwise. Gabe knew an awful lot when it came right down to it.

“Afternoon, Ms. Sullivan. I did get that message. I was kind of surprised to get it though.”

Peering at the man, Chloe decided that Mr. Lui reminded her a lot of her father. The parallels were there. Chloe had, of course, researched the man beforehand and found that he was an eighteen-year employee of Wayne Enterprises. He had been hand-picked by Lucius Fox, Bruce’s second in command, to head up the LW Tech plant. He had an impressive education, complete with advanced engineering degrees and certifications. By all accounts, he was loyal, hardworking, and honest. A lifer at Wayne Tech, a company man, just like Gabe.


Filing away that knowledge, Chloe focused on the questions she needed to ask.

“Why did it surprise you, Mr. Lui?”

“Well, it seemed pretty cut and dry. The explosion was an accident. The GCFD signed off on it, I’m not sure what else I can say that can help your investigation.”

“You’d be surprised, sir. Sometimes even a minor detail can help in case like this.”

Mr. Lui shrugged, “I guess, well, I’ll tell you what I know. It’s already in the arson report anyway.”

“I read that report, thanks. I’m interested in a few items that are outside the scope of that report.”

Mr. Lui looked around, apparently looking for someplace where they could talk, away from the hustle of the clean-up crews.

“I wish I could show you to my office but, as you can see, there isn’t too much left. Why don’t you follow me, we could at least find something for you to lean on, miss.”

Chloe resisted the urge to roll her eyes. In anyone else she might look at this as a stalling tactic, but Mr. Lui’s demeanor suggested that he was simply trying to be polite and his old-fashioned manners would not allow a female to be uncomfortable in his presence for very long.

She followed him to an area where makeshift benches comprised of partially damaged sheet rock had been set up as a break area for the crew. Mr. Lui motioned for her to sit down and then sat across from her.

“What did you want to ask?”

“Well, to start, I’d like your assessment of the cause of the explosion. The GCFD attributed it to a malfunction in the systems that regulated the climate-controlled zones in the plant. Do you agree with that?”

“There was a complex system in place for climate control, yes. We’re not just talking about your basic HVAC. In order to test the durability and performance of our robots in extreme environments, we had to try to simulate those environments here in the plant. For example, Zone 4 was designed to mimic the temperatures in the Arctic. Zone 5 simulated the extreme pressure under the deep Pacific.”

“It must have taken a lot of power to provide that degree of simulation,” mused Chloe.

“It sure did. The entire subbasement level of the plant housed the computers and generators used in the climate simulations.”

“So somewhere among those systems, something went wrong with the climate simulators, leading to the explosion.”

“The GCFD says that’s the most likely cause.”

“And what do you think, Mr. Lui?”

The man looked startled for a minute. “What does it matter what I think? The report…”

“The report was written by people who don’t understand your systems, who came in here for about a week and poked around unfamiliar equipment, most of it damaged beyond recognition anyway. As much as I respect the arson squad, it’s been my experience that when they use language like the kind used in this report, it means that they aren’t 100% sure of anything. You ran this plant, Mr. Lui. Tell me what your gut says.”

“I really don’t think it’s my place to question…”

“No, actually it’s my place to question it and I’m asking you,” Chloe snapped back. Then she relaxed, remembering that Mr. Lui would probably not respond well to that. “Sir, you’re not doing Wayne Enterprises any good by staying silent. It’s in the best interest of the company to cooperate with these questions. The sooner this is over, the better it will be for everyone, especially you and your staff. You’ll most likely be able to resume your regular operations, and your regular work schedules,”

That tactic seemed to work, Chloe recognized the change in the plant manager’s stance, indicating he was ready to be more open with her.

“It’s just that…well, we tested those climate systems for months before they went online. There were redundancies, monitors and fail-safes at every possible weak point. If those systems failed to the degree necessary to cause that explosion, we would have been getting faulty temperature readings days ahead of it.”

“And you received none of those warnings?”

“No, miss. So, it’s like I said, it’s possible that the climate controls malfunctioned, but I’m not sure how likely it is.”

“Have you shared these thoughts with anyone else? Your supervisors, perhaps?” asked Chloe.

Mr. Lui shook his head. “No, they seemed pretty content with the arson report. I don’t know Mr. Luthor all that well but Mr. Fox and Mr. Wayne have been good to me and this team. They’ve never given me reason not to trust their judgment. Besides, if it wasn’t the climate controls, what else could it be? Even the bots themselves don’t house enough power to do all this.” He gestured around them at the charred remains of the plant.

Chloe nodded and decided to try anther route. “Did anything unusual happen at the plant in the weeks before the explosion?”

“Unusual how?”

“Employees leaving on bad terms, being passed over for promotions, fighting, that kind of thing. Anything that might suggest sabotage?”

“Sabotage?” croaked Mr. Lui. “No, not this crew. I’ve known most of them for years since we were all together on the Wayne Tech side. They’re real team players. It’s not possible.”

“Anything’s possible, sir. I learned that a long time ago,” replied Chloe vaguely. She capped the pen that she had been writing with, sensing that she had gotten all she needed from the plant manager.

“I guess, but this crew was still thrilled over the elimination of the third shift. They didn’t have anything to be disgruntled about.”

Chloe blinked. “Third shift? I thought this plant didn’t have a third shift. That’s why it was empty when the explosion happened.”

“It didn’t, not anymore anyway. We added a third shift right before we went public with the bots, anticipating demand and all that. Cut it back about a week before the explosion. Good thing, too. If we hadn’t, there would have been at least a hundred people in this place when it went up.”

Chloe felt the familiar tightening in her belly, the one she felt each time she found the right direction in a case. There it was, whether she wanted it to be or not.

“Whose decision was it to cut the third shift?” she asked.

Mr. Lui adjusted his hard hat and squinted as he tried to recall. “Ahhh…I think it was…yeah, that’s right…It was Mr. Wayne. Sent the email himself as a matter a fact. Even made it effective immediately. I had to call the crew that was scheduled to come in that night and tell them to go back to bed.” He laughed at the memory.

‘Did he give a reason for the decision?”

“No, not that I recall. But he’s the boss, after all, one of them anyway, he doesn’t really need a reason, I guess.”

End chapter

And here we are again...

Lexchloe: Who’s sending the emails? I can’t answer that just yet! :blinkkiss

Kit Merlot (from email questions): Bruce’s corporation is Wayne Enterprises, Lex's is Luthor Corp. LW Tech is the joint venture.

June: No, not a pro by any stretch of the imagination, unless you want to call me a Professional Fangirl. Thanks for the compliment, though. Lucius is really an underused character, isn’t he?

Louie: There might be at least two more familiar faces popping up. I won’t say who though! Hope you enjoyed seeing Alfred.

BabDreamer: Yes, Chloe will have her only little space in Wayne Tower to play in, but do remember whose owns the place. (Nice screen name, by the way.)

Pipersmum: Will Bruce be showing an interest in Chloe? Um…he’ll be interested in her, all right. But you have to define “interest” for me….

[kimmie]

Great update, I'm really really intrigued.

Is it too soon to start begging for another update?

Kimmie

[campbti]

Love this. Especially the details your using to tell the story. Now I'm almost as interested in what happened as the Chlex and that never happens to me. Can't wait for more Chlex interation and more insight into Chloe's character now as well as Lex's. Always like Bruce and I hope he and Lex aren't guilty, I just love them as friends (or almost friends). MORE soon. :blinkkiss

[BabDreamer]

Oh, Chloe's got something alright! Bruce and Lex better worry...

Loved Alfred annoying Bruce lol, so funny...

Alright, this is great, and I want more soon! I definitely wouldn't mind another battle of the wits between Bruce Chloe and Lex, or just verbal Judo with Lex and Chloe. (hint hint ;) )

[lexchloe]

Another great update. Typical of Bruce to research Chloe and Lex's connection before talking to Lex.


But instead of wondering what they had been discussing, Bruce was looking at the expression on his old friend’s face.

“This, on the other hand,” said Bruce, tapping the screen, “tells me quite a lot, Alfred.”

Interesting. I guess Lex isn't as good as hiding his emotions as he thinks he is. Liked seeing Chloe in investigation mode, very professional. Bruce is starting to look a little suspicious though. More soon please.

[vardaquareien]

Another fantastic update! Thi story's really got me hooked. There are just so many wonderful elements working together.


Before the user could view the results on the third screen, the rapid movements of a feather duster across the console obscured his view.
This totally cracked me up! (and for some strange reason gave me flashes of Alfred wearing a french maid outfit... is that wrong?)
Your portrayal of Alfred is hilarious and brilliant! I really look forward to more Alfred, he's just so ...Alfred! *snuggles Alfie*

I really enjoy Bruce's curiosity about Lex and Chloe's former relationship. It's interesting to see their relationship from a new perspective so I can't wait for Bruce to do more digging and contemplating.
But instead of wondering what they had been discussing, Bruce was looking at the expression on his old friend’s face.

“This, on the other hand,” said Bruce, tapping the screen, “tells me quite a lot, Alfred.” Oooh I really want to know Bruce's thoughts here and how he interprets Lex's expression!

The amount of technical detail you have in this fic astounds me. It's so realistic sounding. There's so much technicality and yet it doesn't interrupt the flow at all, instead it just gives an extra element of believability.

I can't wait to see what's going to happen in this ficcy! Update soon!

[Kendrix03]

After reading the first chapter, I could tell that I was going to enjoy this fic. Every chapter draws me in and leaves me wanting more. I love your characterization of Lex and Chloe. I'm glad to see that Lex hasn't become cold and shut-off and that Chloe decided not to hang on to the past. I can't wait for the next chapter.

PS How many chapters do you think this fic will be?

[Kit Merlot]

Excellent, NBG!

I like the Bruce/Lex interaction--almost as much as I love the Chlexy moments :grin3:

But I need more of course.

[pipersmum]

Thanx for updating really enjoying this story and everytime i picture Alfred now, it is Michael Caine how great is that :grin3: The Interest i was hoping for was a romantic one? So is Bruce going to be paying any romantic attention in Chloe? Not that i don't love Chlex i do, but i also like Chruce as well :yeahbaby: Please update soon.

[hfce]

Oh this is getting so good. :D I am intrigued by what Chloe found out from the plant manager. More please.. :clapclap:


Hope :D

[Louie]

Yes, I loved the Alfred and Bruce part it was so just the way they would act. I'm I right in guessing that your Bruce Doesn't know Clark (this judgement coming form the way he said 'Smallville place'). This is a good mystery, truely worth of the Batman :grin3: I don't think we've even meet who did it yet.

[fussy_wuzzy]

Great update! You've got me going back and forth on whether or not Lex and Bruce are involved with the explosion. Loved the Alfred and Bruce scene! Very funny!!!

[emnorth2002]

“Just…clean something else until I finish this search,” he said, turning back to his massive console.

“I wish I could, sir, but I’m all caught up down here,” replied Alfred, gesturing around the Batcave. “I’ve even catalogued your supplies for you: things you swing from, things that explode, and things that incapacitate evildoers. Those last two took quite awhile, though. You wouldn’t believe how often things overlap in those areas.”
LOL!!! Oh how I *love* your Alfred! He certainly has a way of putting Bruce in his place, doesn't he? And speaking of which . . . I can't wait to see how long it takes Chloe to see through Bruce's playboy facade. My guess is that the new info about him cancelling the third shift will be reason enough for her to dig a bit deeper. Thanks for the wonderful update!
:-)
Em

[Gemkat5]

Ok, I'm hooked. I love your characterization, I have no problem following your POV's, and the focus is brilliant! The way you have it all flowing is captivating, keeping the prime objective of the investigation in the front while subtly adding personal interactions. Very well written.

The only thing I have to complain about (and its really not a complaint) is the all the legal jargon, I feel like I'm going over business contracts! LOL! But you write it all out wonderfully, whether its actual or fanciful, it all works very adeptly.

I look forward to more updates!!!!!

[star del mar]

This is story is very intriguing so far, I was just catching up after being away. Ok so I know that Lex is an idiot most of the time but he was trying to find Chloe, why he didn’t go to Gotham or at least trying calling her is beyond me. But they’re back together…well in the same ballpark anyway, lol. No all you have to do is make sure that Lex is in no way involved with the false insurance claims and that he and Chloe will fall madly in love (within the next week or so) and we’ll be good as gold. I know wishful thinking but a girl can hope. Update again soon!!

Steph*

[newbatgirl]

Chapter 4

A/N: Here’s some more for you. It's a bit shorter than usual but I had to break it where I did. I'll try to make it up to you by posting the next part early.

Wayne Enterprises Office building…Bruce Wayne’s office…the following day…

“Mr. Wayne, Mr. Luthor is on his way in.”

Before Bruce had a chance to respond to his assistant’s voice over his intercom, the door to his office burst open and Lex appeared in the doorway. From the speed of his step and his assault on the door, Bruce could tell his friend was annoyed.

“What is so goddamn important that you felt the need to have your assistant page me four times?”

“Our friend the insurance investigator, or should I say your friend?” replied Bruce.

“I can claim no ownership of that woman and I ask again, four times?”

“Next time answer one of the first three. Close the door.”

Lex sighed heavily and pushed the door shut and walked over to stand in front of Bruce’s desk.

“I’d like to remind you that I don’t work for you, Bruce. I don’t appreciate being summoned…”

“Save it,” interjected Bruce, “We’ve got bigger problems. This Sullivan woman has decided that investigating the LW Tech explosion isn’t enough. She’s poking around in my personal finances. My accountant called to inform me of several dozen inquires on my personal holdings, all coming from Allied Insurance.”

Bruce’s annoyance with the situation only increased when he saw one side of Lex’s mouth curl up in amusement. It was about as close to a smile as Lex’s face could get, unintentionally, anyway.

“You find this funny? Don’t you think she’s poking around in your finances, as well?”

Lex slid his hands into his pockets. “I have absolutely no doubt that she’s doing that.”

“And this doesn’t bother you?”

“I didn’t say that, I just said I wasn’t surprised. One thing you need to know about Chloe Sullivan: she’s very…thorough.”

Bruce narrowed his eyes and tried to decide how to interpret those words. Lex had insisted that he and Chloe hadn’t had a sexual relationship, but Bruce still wasn’t sure that Lex didn’t feel something for the woman. Not after seeing Lex’s reaction when she appeared in his office, and certainly not after Bruce had done a little research of his own into their history.

Without responding to Lex, Bruce reached into his desk drawer and extracted a small remote. He pressed a button and a flat-panel screen rose from a nearby table. The screen flickered on and the image of the woman they had been discussing appeared. She was seated at a desk with a dark-haired young man, discussing something. There were piles of files and papers in front of them, as well as two laptop computers.

Lex squinted a bit as he tried to figure out where the image was coming from. It looked like the office Chloe and her team had been assigned to in the Wayne Building. The young man with Chloe seemed to be discussing financial statements, or rather; he was answering Chloe’s questions about them. Lex concluded that the man had to be the equivalent of the scary woman who had been sent to his Luthor Corp office to ransack his financials.

He turned his attention back to Bruce. “Spying on them, are you?”

“You of all people shouldn’t lecture me, Lex.”

Lex smirked as he stepped closer to the screen “Wouldn’t dream of it…it’s always a good idea to stay one step head of an adversary…and two steps in front of an ally. Have they said anything that might indicate how far along…?”

He stopped short as he got a better look of the screen. “This a live feed?”

“Of course it is, I have closed circuit cameras throughout this building. As you say, it’s always a good idea…” his voice trailed off as he realized that Lex was no longer listening. He was peering at the screen more closely. “What’s the matter?”

Lex ignored his question and took a step towards the screen, leaning over to bring his eyes closer. He then stepped back and strode quickly to stand behind Bruce at his desk. “How long have you been watching them?”

“Just under an hour, actually. She only just got back…what the hell are you doing, Luthor?”

Bruce craned his neck to look back at Lex, who by now had his hands shoved in his pockets and was bent slightly at the waist as he squinted at the screen from this new vantage point

“And you’ve been watching from over here this whole time? From this seat?”

“Well…yes…what does that have to do with anything?”

Lex smirked again. “Has either of them said anything that might indicate how their investigation is progressing?”

“Not really, they’ve been discussing the financials most of the time, but as I said, she’s only just gotten here…”

“They won’t say anything. I guarantee it. She won’t give anything away, Bruce. She knows you’re watching her.”

“That’s impossible, the camera is hidden…”

“Doesn’t matter, she still knows. Go see for yourself.”

Bruce glared at him as he got up from his chair and walked closer to the screen. Sure enough, on the monitor of the laptop closest to Chloe were a few lines of text, typed in a large font to be clearly visible…at least to anyone close enough to the screen. Unfortunately, Bruce had not been close enough until now.

The message was…colorfully worded, to say the least.

Bruce turned to Lex. “I believe she meant that message for both of us; she did use the plural ‘yourselves’, after all.”

“That she did. And I’m sure she meant that other part figuratively.”

Bruce ignored Lex’s quip. “How could she possibly know that we’d be watching her?”

“She couldn’t know for sure but she probably guessed that it was likely. I told you, she’s thorough.” Lex glanced at the screen again before slipping his hands back into his pockets. “If that’s all you needed, I have actual work I could be doing…”

“Wait a minute, Luthor. You’re not just going to walk in here, deliver some selective pearls of wisdom about this woman and walk out – not with what we’re up against here. You know so much about her, then it’s about time you did something about it.”

“I do not claim to be an expert on Chloe Sullivan, Bruce. I haven’t seen the woman in ten years!”

Behind them, they could both hear Chloe laugh at something her companion had said, but she could just as easily be laughing at them.

“Expert or not, you have a connection to her. It’s time you used it.”

*****

Later that evening…Chloe’s apartment…

“Cee-Jay…What are you doing?” Danny said with exaggerated exasperation.

“What does it look like I’m doing?”

“Powering up your laptop.”

“Well then, even an accountant such as yourself should be able to deduce that I am, in fact, powering up my laptop.”

“Why are you powering up your laptop?”

“I find it’s much more useful as an electronic device that way. Turned off, it’s more or less a coaster, don’t you think?”

“CJ, be serious.” Danny said, his voice becoming dangerously close to a whine. “When you asked me back your place for dinner, I assumed we might actually eat dinner, or at least relax a little and forget about the case for a bit.”

“You assume too much,” murmured Chloe, trying to concentrate on establishing her wireless connection, rather than on Danny’s constant questions. “It’s a bad habit.”

Once it was established she placed the machine back on the coffee table and hunched over it slightly, her feet partially tucked under her. She entered a series of IP directions and after a moment, a login screen appeared. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Danny’s mouth fall open as he recognized the domain.

“CJ!? What are you doing?”

She ignored him, and produced a CD from a compartment in her laptop case. She inserted the CD. The program it contained immediately started itself up and began entering a series of login combinations into the screen, flashing by at an immeasurable speed.

Chloe tilted her head towards Danny with a wry grin on her face. “Pesky passwords. I find it’s best to skip them altogether whenever possible.”

Danny looked at her with a mixture of confusion and awe. “Why do I get the feeling that you have done this before?”

The laptop beeped, indicating the algorithm had met with success.

Chloe smiled. “I’ve been doing this for a long time, Danny. Longer than you can imagine. Of course, I don’t really *advertise* that I can do this. Only a handful of people know and I prefer to keep it that way.”

Danny nodded, seeming to get the message. “But why do you need to do it in the first place? We’ve already been granted access to their files. They allowed our IT specialists to comb through their servers, email, the whole nine yards.”

“What did I just say? Never assume, that a client actually gives you what you’re entitled to, especially if they have something to hide.”

“You think these guys have something to hide?” he asked, nodding towards the logo on the screen.

“I think everyone has something to hide.”

“That’s quite the attitude to take in life, CJ.”

Chloe shrugged in reply, as she clicked past the next set of screens. “It’s rarely steered me wrong, particularly in this line of work.”

“So what are you looking for here?”

“What they don’t want us to see.”

“Good, as long as you’re specific.” Danny replied dryly, and with a more than a touch of frustration. Chloe felt a little guilty for that but it couldn’t be helped. It was hard for her to put into words just what she thought she would find in this particular investigation. She would know when she found it…

Chloe sighed, her impatience clear, although some of it was with Danny’s questions and some of it was the result to the complicated file structure on the Wayne Enterprises network she had just hacked into. But since Danny insisted on hovering, just as he had insisted they have dinner tonight, rather than waste energy arguing, she’d put up with his questions and channel her energy into the task at hand. It wasn’t so bad to have someone to talk to as she worked. Investigating could be lonely at times. She decided to ease his frustration a bit by giving him some background on her present task.

“OK, here’s the thing. A few years back, when the FBI, the SEC and every other federal agency started requiring that corporations archive their email and other computer files in case of litigation, some of these companies found ways to comply with the letter of the law but not so much the spirit of it. They hid their most sensitive documents behind mazes of server partitions, firewalls and what have you. They could say that the data was there, just a bit hard to find. There are a number of data archive companies that specialize in mapping out corporate servers so even a government techie working under a federal subpoena would have a bitch of a time finding sensitive information. If you can’t find it, it can’t be used in court but if someone finds it later, the company can always claim that it was there all along and the federal geeks just didn’t look hard enough.”

“So what kind of information usually gets hidden like this?”

“Strategic plans, I guess. Executive emails, anything questionable that you don’t want too many people to see but, due to the nature of technology, copies get kept somewhere.”

“And you know all this, how?’

Chloe smiled. “What can I say, some kids went to pep rallies in high school, I hacked into the networks of Fortune 500 companies.” At Danny’s incredulous look, she only shrugged.

There were a few moments of silence as Chloe clicked through the maze of files and Danny leaned back on the sofa to absorb the information.

“Hmmmm.”

“Hmmmm, what?”

“There’s a discrepancy here between the amount of space that the servers say is being used by data and the amount of space taken up by the files I can see.”

“And that means…”

“There’s a hidden partition in here somewhere. I just have to find it.” Chloe heard a faint gurgle and too late realized that it was Danny’s stomach. She continued to click as he shifted in his seat. She held out faint hope that he would be able to delay the needs of his stomach for a bit longer.

No such luck.

“I don’t mean to be a nudge here, CJ, but your invitation to dinner at your place tonight is noticeably lacking in the dinner part.”

The right path was there somewhere, she just had to find it…

“CJ?”

“Hmmmm?”

“Food?”

“Food?”

“Yes, food. Some of us need more than a hot case for sustenance, you know.”

Right, food. Well, if it would get him out of her hair long enough to concentrate on finding the right path…Chloe leaned over and gave Danny a quick peck on his cheek. “Sorry, about that. I’m a little wrapped up in this. Be a dear and order us some takeout. There are menus in the top drawer in the kitchen, right hand side.”

Again, out of the corner of her eye, Chloe saw Danny hesitate for a moment, as if stunned, before he rose from her sofa and made his way back to her kitchen. Now alone, she focused on finding different combinations of paths until she found the one to the hidden partition.

After a bit, she became aware of Danny shouting out food options to her. Something about Thai, pizza, or deli.

“Just surprise me,” she called out, as her fingers flew over the keys. He shouted something back to her but she barely heard it. One of the file folders that appeared to be empty had finally given way to another area – the hidden area.

“That’s right, you stupid server. I’ve got you now!”

Chloe immediately identified the various types of files located in the hidden area and mentally arranged them in order of importance. The emails, she decided, would probably hold give her the most direction as to where to go next. She quickly typed in the commands needed to copy the contents of the hidden area to her computer’s drive. It shouldn’t take long, and then she could…

Once again, Danny’s voice interrupted her thoughts.

“Ummm…CJ?”

Chloe sighed heavily but did not turn around. “For the love of… Danny, I don’t care where you order from. I said, just surprise me.”

“Actually, I think that’s my job.”

She froze. That was not Danny’s voice. Unfortunately, the voice was very familiar.

Very slowly, as if trying to prolong the inevitable, she turned and came eye to eye with Lex Luthor. In her apartment. How he had found it was anyone’s guess. The fact was, he was there now.

He was standing in her living room, cool as can be and with the long perfected smirk well in place as he spoke again. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

End chapter.

Babdreamer: More Chlex interaction is on the way, as you can see. I guess I stopped in a real mean spot, didn’t I?

lexchloe: This story will have a lot of “investigation mode” as a matter of fact.. I am dealing with two detectives, after all.

vardaquareien: If Alfred as a French maid is wrong, I don’t wanna be right!

Kendrix03: Twelve, maybe fifteen chapters? A lot depends on how much these damn characters in my head decide to drone on and on. Umm…that thing about Chloe not hanging on to the past…ooops.

pipersmum: Bruce is a big ol’ flirt (at least publicly) so you really never know what he’ll decide to do. At least I never know…

Louie: This is relatively early in Batman’s career so he and Clark have not met yet. (Good God, if I tried to fit Clark/Superman in this, my head a splode.)

emnorth2002: Good guessing.

GemKat: *blush* Sorry about the jargon but I really have an insane need to show Chloe actually solving the mystery in this one, piecing things together and such. There’s gonna be a bit more jargon ahead but I’ll try to keep it brief.

star del mar: It never hurts to ask. Besides, I think I’ve made it clear elsewhere on this site that, deep down, I’m a big fat sap. Right?

[Kit Merlot]

Thank you NBG, for posting early :D

Love that Bruce is quizzing Lex on Chloe--Bruce is a very smart man, and sees through all of Lex's dodges :grin3:

Now, I can't wait for Lex to explain what he's doing at Chloe's apartment!

[BabDreamer]

Yes, it was mean, and the ending of this chapter was mean, too! But I still love it :D
Oooh, so gonna love the chlex interaction... Can't wait for more!
Love how Lex is so blasé about what Chloe's doing, like he knows her so well he's not surprised at anything she's trying... well after the first shock of seeing her of course ;)
Come back soon with more please!

[kimmie]

Why oh why did you have to leave it their, we were just getting to the Chlex... oh well please say that you're gonna be updating this again real soon. Its a great fic, really interesting!

Kimmie

[hfce]

I can't wait to see how Chloe gets out of this one. :D Good update but mean place to stop. :mad:


Hope ;)

[Louie]

No head exploding, cause then there wouldn't need anymore parts. Plus who really needs Superman when you have Batman.

Ok, Chloe is so Busted. It's funny to think that Lex has less to hide in this little investigation then Bruce does. Oh, I hope Chloe figures Bruce out, both of there reactions would be very interesting to see.

[arkakitty]

Ohh this is sooo great. I loved how she made them realize she knows she's being watched :) It's just so awesome to see, how Lex still knows her, even in her style of achieving her aim. I love it. It was a great chapter, even if it was kinda short, but great nontheless. Please more soon!

[bluebrise]

Great update! I loved Bruce's bit about having closed circuit tvs everywhere - isn't it suppose to be a standard practice to have them in every room of your buildings? I love seeing Chloe so determined to find the files - let's see if Lex screws up her concentration!

[Krysia]

I love how Chloe always suprises Lex [ and now also Bruce] even with their philosophy of always being at least a step ahead. I wonder what she will find out. And I hope Lex will think there is something between Chloe and the guy that's helping her. Just because I like to see Lex jealous :)

[bluengreenswmer]

Hurry hurry with that new chappie! I can't wait to see why Lex is in her apartment.

[meg20]

Loved the last two chaps and I van hardly wait to see what happens now that Lex went to visit Chloe!!!

[pipersmum]

Thanx for the update but what a place to end it :devil:
So as in answer to my question i am still none the wiser but it wasn't a no ;)
What would be good would be Lex and Bruce fighting for Chloe's attention but will we get that?
Love the way Chloe is always a step in front of them, although i think she is surprised that Lex is at her apartment :shocked:
I wonder what Lex has up his sleeve :P
please update soon as that was a really horrible place to end it :evil:

[Gemkat5]

I think there's something wrong with my puter... it trunicated half of your post! I was just getting to the really good part where Chloe was hacking in the hidden files, then turned around to find Lex standing in her apartment with a smirk on his face! And then nothing!!!!! Can you help me out and send me the rest of this chapter???? Please!

::notices other replies about wrongful ending::

Oh. Damn, that was just mean. Well, you'll have to update REAL SOON then! :D

[star del mar]

You have got to love Chloe's tact, lol. She made her point and did it without even having to say a word, just awesome. And I love Lex, still knowing the way she works...he is SOOOOO secretly in love with her :D Now I see there was something about Lex being in her apartment...ah yes, there. Now where's the rest?! Gah, update again soon!

Steph*

[Sunny]

Wonderful! Fantastic! God, I really love this story! More soon, please!

[Zannie]

I adore your Chloe in this story. She's so recognizably Chloe, but she's both mature and slightly cynical from the experiences in her life. It's fabulous characterization, and I LOVE her response to being spied on.

Great cliffhanger--perfect lead into the next scene.

[lexchloe]

Great update. Loved that Chloe knew she was being watched and that Lex knew that she knew :P The Bruce/Lex interaction is great especially with Bruce pushing Lex about the Chloe issue. Mmmh Lex in Chloe's apartment, hope Danny makes himself scarce so that we can have a quality Chlex scene.

Lots of investigation mode cos there are two detectives? Is this a clue maybe? Is someone else investigating Lex and Bruce's dealing besides Chloe/ is someone investigating Chloe?/ is it about Bruce investigating the Chloe/Lex thing? Ok confused now!!!! :P Can't wait for more. :D

[newbatgirl]

Lots of investigation mode cos there are two detectives? Is this a clue maybe? Is someone else investigating Lex and Bruce's dealing besides Chloe/ is someone investigating Chloe?/ is it about Bruce investigating the Chloe/Lex thing? Ok confused now!!!! :P Can't wait for more. :D

Sorry, not an update. I'm breaking form for once to answer lexchloe's question directly.

Sorry about being cryptic about the two detectives thing. When you've been obsessed with Batman for as long as I have, you tend to take too many things for granted.

The two detectives I was referring to are Chloe and Bruce/Batman. In the comics, Batman is often referred to as the Dark Knight Detective and/or the World's Greatest Detective. Part of the impetus for structuring this story as I have was to show how Bruce would feel going up against someone as obsessed with investigating as he is.

Hope that clears up any confusion.

I'm working on getting the next chapter up soon. Thanks to all of you for sticking with this crazy story. You should also thank Kit Merlot for convincing me to ease up on the evil cliffhangers in future chapters. She made a specific complaint about it, on behalf of all of you, and lo and behold, I took the advice to heart. I am easing up on them...just a bit.

[newbatgirl]

A/N: Here’s the next part. Oh, that thing about the cliffhangers...this chapter was already written when I said that... :grin3:

Chapter 5

It hadn’t been easy to find Chloe J. Sullivan’s current home address. Lex’s investigator had run into obstacle after obstacle.

Her bank and credit card statements were delivered to Allied Insurance headquarters. She drove a company car. Even her driver’s license listed her work address. There were no traces of her voting records for at least the past six years and no indication of a home being owned or leased in her name in at least five. Her father was the only traceable living family member, but he lived across the country in California.

It was all a bit disturbing to Lex that Chloe would go to these lengths to hide herself. And from whom? His investigator had joked about it, “What the hell, does this chick live in a broom closet at the Allied Insurance building?” Then the man had wisely shut up off Lex’s annoyed look and had gone back to the business of finding her. Which, he eventually had, but only after Lex provided some key insight into her character in order to make a connection.

As it turned out, her home wasn’t a broom closet at all. It was stylish loft apartment in one of Gotham’s artier districts. Lex’s knowledge of real estate told him exactly how many zeros had been on the check to purchase the place and he was duly impressed. Allied had purchased it for Chloe, through a variety of holding companies, and then further buried the transaction through some other resales. The mess took several hours to unravel. Someone had gone though a lot of trouble to make sure that no one knew where Chloe lived.

He couldn’t blame her for being surprised to see him there.

And she had looked surprised, even shocked, but only for a moment. Then she just looked angry. But it was not the kind of explosive Chloe Sullivan anger Lex remembered, having witnessed it on several occasions. It was a calmer, more smoldering anger that seemed to settle just behind her eyes as she watched him.

The accountant guy, the ridiculously handsome accountant who had been fawning over Chloe all day, spoke first, albeit haltingly.

“CJ? I guess you didn’t hear the doorbell. He…uh…said you were expecting him.”

“He lied,” replied Chloe, her eyes still on Lex. “And he’s not staying either.”

“Actually,” Lex sidestepped his way around Danny, ‘I thought I might stay for a bit. Nice place, by the way, a bit hard to find but that has nothing to do with the architecture.”

“Obviously not hard enough. Mr. Luthor, if you would please leave. If you feel a need to talk to me about the investigation, we can do that tomorrow at the office.”

Mr. Luthor? Her formal use of his name made him suspect that she hadn’t exactly been forthcoming with the rest of her team about their previous relationship.

Lex rounded the plush sofa in the living room and settled very close to where Chloe still stood, crossing his ankle over his knee.

“Mr. Luthor’s a bit formal for us, don’t you think, Chloe? You and I go back a long time; too long for us not to be on a first name basis, no matter what the circumstances.”

Chloe flinched, almost imperceptibly, but Lex could tell that he had annoyed her by saying what he did in front of her colleague.

Danny’s interest was now piqued. “CJ? You know Lex Luthor?”

“Correction, I knew Lex Luthor, a long time ago. And not very well.” Chloe replied.

Lex couldn’t tell whether Chloe was trying to rouse him with her words or simply convince Danny.

“Chloe, you wound me!” he exclaimed, placing his hand over his chest theatrically. He turned slightly to face Danny. “Chloe and I have known each other a long time. How many years is it now? Ten? Twelve? Perhaps even longer. After all, when we met you were only…”

“Just get to the point, Lex. I don’t have time for this. What do you want?”

“Don’t have time?” Lex directed his gaze at the laptop Chloe had been hovering over when he came in. “Ah, I see. I was interrupting your…work. My apologies.” He made no attempt to hide his interest in the contents of the screen and was rewarded with a strong reaction from Chloe. Quickly, she closed the gap between them and snapped the screen of the computer down. With her face now only a few inches from him she whispered harshly at him.
“What. Do. You. Want?”

“To talk you. Alone. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t important.” Lex whispered back so only she could hear him. Danny was still on the other side of the couch, watching the exchange warily.

Chloe looked uncertain. “Why couldn’t you talk to me at the office?”

“You know exactly why. The walls there have ears. Now unless you’d like me to start reminiscing about old times in front of your colleague there, you’ll get rid of him so we can talk.”

Chloe shook her head. “No. You’re not staying here. This is my home and I didn’t invite you.”

“Chloe…”

“CJ, is everything OK?”

“Everything’s fine, Danny.” Chloe rose from the crouched stance she had assumed to talk to Lex.

“Mr. Luthor and I are heading downstairs to the café on the corner. We’ll talk there.”

“Chloe…”

“Is someone going to tell me what’s going on?” Danny wanted to know.

“NO!” Lex and Chloe told him at once and he unconsciously took a step back.

Chloe grabbed her jacket from where it lay on the arm of the sofa and slipped it on as she walked towards the door. Lex rose to follow her. He reached to help her on with her jacket, then thought better of it.

“We’ll take a raincheck on dinner, Dan.”

“I should come with you…I mean, if it’s about the case, I should be there too…” Danny stammered with slightly downcast eyes. Lex suppressed an eye roll. All this accountant guy needed was an overgrown hairstyle and a red T-shirt.

“No, I can handle this myself.”

“CJ, don’t I have a right to know what’s happening here, too?”

“No, you have a right to listen to me when I say I’ll handle it.” Chloe scooped up Danny’s jacket from a nearby chair and dropped it in his hands. “Go home, Danny. We’ll talk later.”

Looking slightly bewildered and a little hurt. Danny acquiesced. “OK, I’ll call you later, then.” Danny shot a final suspicious look at Lex, who couldn’t resist one last dig at Chloe’s handsome colleague.

He tapped his own cheek with his index finger. “Hey, you got a little something…right here. Lipstick really isn’t my thing but I understand some guys like to experiment. Who am I to judge?”

Scowling and rubbing his cheek, Danny stalked out without another word to Lex.

Lex indulged in a satisfying smirk before he realized that Chloe was glaring up at him.

“Was that really necessary?” she asked.

“Probably not, but it was still fun.”

Chloe shook her head and gave him a slight shove out her front door that Lex couldn’t help but categorize as just a bit playful. At least he hoped it was.

The journey downstairs, however, did little to raise his hopes about her attitude towards him. Chloe stared straight ahead during the elevator ride down, walked briskly to the small café on the corner, paying no attention to whether Lex was in step with her. She gestured wordlessly to a vacant and secluded table in the corner indicating that he should sit while she got some coffee for them both.

When she finally joined him, her eyes were dull as she plunked down two oversized mugs and slid into the seat. As the table was in the corner, she sat not across from him but at 90-degree angle, giving Lex a view of her profile as she prepared her coffee to her liking.

He must have taken too long in studying her because she looked sharply at him, mid-stir.
“What?”

“What do you mean, what?”

“What are you looking at?”

“You.”

“Why?”

“I didn’t realize that one of the requirements of this conversation was that we not look at one another.”

Chloe shook her head slightly. “It’s not, but you were staring. It’s distracting.”

“Your hair’s longer. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it this long before. You…always seemed to keep it short in Smallville.”

“Smallville was four years of my life. It’s been ten since we’ve seen each other. Don’t be surprised if things changed.”

She wasn’t talking about her hair. Time to change the focus, Lex decided.

“They don’t know, do they?”

“Now what are you talking about?”

“Your colleagues at Allied, they don’t know that you and I knew each other from before. That much was clear from your accountant friend upstairs. By the way, don’t think I didn’t notice that the accountant you sent to Luthor Corp. looked like Attila the Hun but the one you kept to work with you looks like he doubles as a Calvin Klein underwear model.”

“Would you like me to set you and Danny up?” she mocked.

“No, it’s quite alright, he’s not my type, but he seems to be yours. Besides, you didn’t answer my question.”

“My type? What the hell do you know about my type?”

Lex’s confidence increased. He had successfully distracted and agitated her.

“I know a little about your type. Tall, dark, handsome, heroic, and just a bit light on intelligence. Sound familiar?”

Chloe opened her mouth, then closed it again and took a long sip from her coffee. When she swallowed, she said, “You’re trying to bait me, which probably isn’t the wisest thing to do given that you want something from me.”

Lex looked down at his coffee. She was right, he did want something, but given her demeanor towards him, it was anyone’s guess whether he’d get it.

“Answer my question, then. Do the people you work for know about us?”

“There’s an us? That’s news to me.”

“Chloe, don’t…”

“Don’t what?”

Lord, she was determined to be difficult, wasn’t she?

“Do they know that we’re not exactly strangers? Should you even be involved in this investigation, let alone heading it?”

“My boss is aware of my familiarity with the Luthor family. It came up in my background check. It’s not something I can really hide. And as for whether I should be on this case, that was his decision. I’m the best he has so the need to resolve this case trumped a ten-year old acquaintance.”

‘A ten-year old acquaintance?’ That’s what she was calling it?

“And your colleagues?”

“Don’t know. I don’t go out of my way to investigate their pasts so I doubt that they investigate mine. Besides, I’m not really close to anyone else at Allied besides…”

“Your friend Danny?” Lex finished for her, running his index finger around the rim of his cup

She frowned. “I answered your question, Lex. Now tell me why you went through all the trouble of finding me.”

“Why was it so hard to find you, Chloe? Are you hiding from someone?”

“Hiding is impossible. Your father taught me that.”

Lex frowned at her flat tone but nodded to her to continue.

“I do, however, try to make it difficult for people to find me. I investigate people who have done desperate things, and often they’re willing to do them again. Most of the time, I’m the only thing standing between them and a great deal of money. You’re smart, you do the math. If one of those people wants to find me, I’d prefer that it be a little harder to do than looking in the phone book.”

She took a sip of her coffee. “So congratulations, you found me. Now tell me why. I’ll worry about the how later.”

“I …I need to know that you aren’t letting our ‘ten-year old acquaintance’ influence your investigation.”

“You’re joking, right?”

“Chloe, whether you advertise it our not, you and I went through a lot together back in Smallville. We were even what you might call close for a time there. Since you walked into Wayne Enterprises the other day, you’ve certainly been less than friendly towards me. I need to know that this isn’t personal. That you aren’t going to let something that happened a decade ago affect… Well, let’s just say that LW Tech is going to be very important to a lot of people.”

“Something that happened ten years ago? You really do think the world revolves around you, don’t you, Lex? For your information, I haven’t treated you or your buddy Wayne any differently than I treat any other client under investigation. I’ve learned that I need to go in and get the upper hand and keep it if I’m going to get the truth out of people like you. If you categorize that as ‘less than friendly’ then that’s your problem. I’m here to do a job.”

“Chloe...”

“I’m not finished. As for what happened back in Smallville, I’ve left that relationship, such that it was, back in that freaky town. And you’ve got some nerve barging into my home dangling some dead memories in my face to try to save your company.” As she spoke, Chloe pulled some bills out of her wallet and dropped them on the table. Before Lex realized what had happened she was on her way out of the cafe.

“Shit!” Lex muttered, dropping bills of his own on the table and following her. He caught up with her just outside the café, grabbing her hand to stop her.

“Chloe, hear me out! We were friends for God’s sake…I can’t say that about I lot of people but…”

Chloe tried to jerk her wrist away but he held fast. “Maybe you don’t have many friends because you toss them away like trash when they cease to be of use to you,” she spat out.

Lex felt his throat closing up. This was his worst fear, but what he had suspected all along. Chloe hadn’t understood why he had to take a step back from their relationship. She had jumped to the worst possible conclusion.

“That’s not what happened, Chloe, I swear it. I went to Metropolis to find you after you left, to explain why I needed to stop contacting you. You were already gone. You have to believe that I wasn’t using you, I really wanted you…as my friend.”

Her back was to the outer wall of the café and he was standing inches in front of her. For a moment, it seemed to Lex that Chloe believed him, her eyes were scanning his face for something, a sign perhaps. He raised his free hand to her face and cupped it against her cheek. Chloe immediately reached up and covered his hand with her own.

His eyes locked with hers and for a minute she looked very much like the brave young girl in the courthouse hallway. Wide-eyed, questioning, yet determined…

Chloe’s nails bit into his hand and she pushed him roughly away from her. “Even if I believe that, the reason you’re here now if that I’m all that’s standing between you and a $200 million dollar embarrassment for your company. I’m not stupid, Lex.”

Rubbing his wounded hands, Lex shook his head, “Believe what you want to believe then, but understand that there are larger issues at stake here than you and I. You have to respect that.”

“I respect the truth, that hasn’t changed.”

“And I respect you, Chloe. I always have,” Lex answered.

Chloe didn’t respond; she merely turned on her heel and walked back towards her apartment, and away from him.

*****

Later that night…the balcony outside Chloe’s apartment…

Batman landed on the balcony almost soundlessly, as he had trained himself to do. Finding Chloe Sullivan had not been a problem for him. When, upon his first inquiries into her identity several nights earlier, he found no home address, he decided that he would need to take a more direct approach in locating her home.

Today, after being frustrated and somewhat embarrassed that the woman had outwitted him at his attempted surveillance as Bruce Wayne, he had regrouped. He had slipped into her office at Wayne Corp. and hidden a bat-tracer deep in the lining of her laptop case.

After dark, Batman had followed the beacon to Chloe’s loft and maintained a safe surveillance distance perched in the shadows on the roof of the building across the street. He had observed with interest what appeared to be some sort of confrontation between Chloe and Lex Luthor. Batman’s eyes had narrowed under his cowl as he watched the two figures drift closer together, then jump apart violently. There was too much ambient noise for any of his long range listening devices to work properly. As a result, the specifics of their discussion were a mystery but their body language told him a different story.

Chloe Sullivan and Lex Luthor had a history, perhaps even two: one they acknowledged and one that they did not, at least consciously. Getting more information about that from them would be a job for Bruce Wayne…eventually.

Batman had watched as Chloe abruptly ended the mysterious conversation and re-entered her apartment building. He swung down a level on his building to get a clearer view through the glass balcony doors leading to her living room.

She occupied a spacious loft, thankfully on an upper floor. The first level consisted of a kitchen, dining room, and living room and what appeared to be closets. There was a large, open staircase leading up to the loft area, which he could see housed her bedroom and master bath.

Her apartment entrances were wired with alarms, he discovered, watching her enter a code into the keypad by the door as she walked in. It seemed to be one of those systems that allowed the owner a five-to-ten second window to begin entering the code before it sounded. He didn’t bother to memorize the code; he had a way around such devices anyway. He was more interested in the fact that she made a beeline for her laptop, even before shrugging out of her coat.

One thing he had learned about Chloe in the past few days was that she was seldom, if ever, far away from her laptop. Batman had concluded that the key to deciding what to do about Chloe Sullivan was finding out how much she knew; and what she knew was in that laptop.

Patience was a one of the most important traits that any detective needed to have and that night, Chloe unwittingly tried the Batman’s. She’d worked for two more hours before finally getting ready for bed. Batman, agitated that he had been forced to sit out two robberies and a police chase in order to maintain surveillance on her, felt immense relief when the apartment went dark at last.

He had let some more time go by to allow her to slip into what he hoped was a deep sleep before shooting a line to the ledge just above her balcony and swinging over.

Treading lightly on the stone balcony, he pulled two thin pieces of metal and a small black box out of his utility belt. The two pieces of metal made quick work of the locks and, upon sliding the glass panels to the side, Batman quickly attached the box to the electronic alarm access panel. The de-scrambler disabled the alarm in less than four seconds.

The light through the balcony windows was just enough to guide his path around the living room to his target, right where she had left it on the coffee table.

Batman carried his weight so that his feet made barely any noise at all on the loft’s hardwood floors. They barely made any more noise than the rustling of his cape swirling around him as he crouched in front of the computer and found an access port with practiced, gloved fingers. He extracted another device from his belt and plugged it into the port. The green light that flashed indicated that the devise was doing its job, specifically, copying the contents of the machine’s drives onto itself without leaving any indication that the computer had ever been turned on.

The process would take less than a couple of minutes to complete but he was even uncomfortable with that length of time. He had no idea how deep of a sleeper Chloe Sullivan was and he wanted to accomplish this cleanly.

As the device worked, Batman looked around the darkened apartment to find some clues about its owner. She apparently lived alone. There was no trace of a lover, spouse, or even a roommate. He has suspected as much since no such person came up in the background detail but the singular taste of the belongings confirmed that.

It was expensively furnished, indicating that she was doing well financially, but Batman already knew that much as well from viewing her tax return for the previous year. Allied paid her handsomely.

If he had more time, he would have searched her apartment thoroughly to get a better view of her character but now was not the time. The device’s light flashed red and Batman disconnected it and slipped it back into his belt. He heard the rustling of sheets coming from the loft above and he rose quickly and went to the wall. He re-armed the alarm using his de-scrambler and disconnected it. He exited through the balcony doors, shutting them behind them without a sound. He had been in Chloe Sullivan’s apartment fewer than five or six minutes. There was virtually no chance that he had been detected. Still…he could never be sure.

*****
Next morning…Allied Insurance HQ...

Chloe pushed open the door to her boss’s office without bothering to knock. Ted was in the middle of a sip of his morning coffee and was startled to the point of dribbling some of the hot liquid down his chin.

Dabbing at his face with a tissue, he frowned at Chloe. “Top investigator or not, CJ, knocking is still a good idea, especially at this time of the morning.”

“You know Jim Gordon, right?” she asked, ignoring his advice.

“Captain Jim Gordon? Yeah, we were in the one-eight together before I left the force. We deliver the occasional fraud case to his division, nice and tight just like the PD likes them. I haven’t talked to old Jim in…”

“Get him up here. I need to talk to him right away,” interrupted Chloe, crossing her arms in from of her.

Ted raised his eyebrows at her. “You going to tell me what this is about?”

“His buddy the Batman broke into my apartment last night and I want to know why.”

End chapter.

Krysia: JealousLex is fun, I agree. Let’s see how much of him we have room for.

pipersmum: You’re just determined to get me to spill something, aren’t you? It’s looking like a no-go on a full blown love triangle, sorry. My muses just aren't cooperating on that particular story angle. Hopefully there will be enough other kinds of action to keep your attention. :grin3:

Zannie: I am not worthy…I am not worthy… (I just read the latest Seven update.)

[Kit Merlot]

NBG, this was a great chapter!

I liked the Chlex conversation, and Bruce/Batman watching it play out--very cool.

And I adore Jim Gordon, and not just because of Gary Oldman :D

Excellent job.

[hfce]

Interesting how did she know Batman was there? ;)


Hope :)

[star del mar]

My Lord, these chapters just keep on getting better and better! I love the amount of work that Lex had to put into finding Chloe, at least we know he's committed :) and for God sake's Lex, you should have just pushed her up against the wall and kissed her senseless, but I get the feeling that the new and improved Chloe wouldn't have gone for that, lol. I can't wait to see how Capt. Gordon or Batman talk there way out of that one. Update again soon!

Steph*

[kimmie]

Oh wow, how did she know... this is just too good, I'm addicted please come back and update again really really soon or I'm gonna explode!!!!!!!

Kimmie

[fussy_wuzzy]

Great chapter! Can't wait to find out how she new Batman was in her loft.

[Louie]

I loved the joke and Lex's reaction, I could just see it.

Is Bruce going to be a match maker of sorts?

And I love that Chloe has cameras in her home that's just so over the top.

[meg20]

Chlex had a interesting conversation, and really liked that Batman actually got gaught!

[dreamerjules]

Wonderful update. Can't wait for the reveal on how Chloe knew Bats was in her loft. Adored the conversation between Chloe and Lex. I know they'll work things out. Looking forward to the ride.

Julie

[emnorth2002]

“His buddy the Batman broke into my apartment last night and I want to know why.”LOL!! Ah, I knew our girl wouldn't be so easily deceived as Batman seems to want to believe. I can't wait to see Bruce's face (or rather, read your description of Bruce's face) when he realizes that she knows what he did! I also admit to being a bit curious about those "key insights into her character" that Lex provided to track down her home. His memory of her seems to be surprisingly sharp and clear after all those years . . . especially regarding her former preferences for tall, dark, and easily befuddled. (His jealousy of Danny is hilarious!) Am I foolishly optimistic to hope that now that he knows he hurt her by abandoning her, he can actually start working to make it up to her? As always, I'm eagerly awaiting more!!
:-)
Em

[pipersmum]

Great update as usual and nevermind about there being no chruce i still really like the story :grin3:
I am looking forward to finding out how Chloe knew Batman was in her apartment :eek:
Hopefully Lex and Chloe will get it together soon :yeahbaby: They are going to aren't they???? I mean we won't have to wait until the last chapter will we???
Please update really soon as i can't wait.

[Zannie]

Chloe’s nails bit into his hand and she pushed him roughly away from her. “Even if I believe that, the reason you’re here now if that I’m all that’s standing between you and a $200 million dollar embarrassment for your company. I’m not stupid, Lex.”

Oh, how I love Chloe. And this is just one reason why. Go, Chloe! Don't back down or cave before Lex and his ambiguous motives.

Your supporting characters in this fic are excellent, like Danny. Even with their fairly brief appearances, they all really take on distinct personalities of their own.


“His buddy the Batman broke into my apartment last night and I want to know why.”

The first time I read this chapter, I felt like cheering at this point. I was so glad that Chloe had caught him. And when I read it again just now, I felt exactly the same way. Wonderful.

ETA:


Zannie: I am not worthy…I am not worthy… (I just read the latest Seven update.)

Utter nonsense. This fic beats "Seven" hands down.

[arkakitty]

This is so great. I loved the chapter and can hardly wait till the next :)

[lexchloe]

Thanks Newbatgirl for clearing up the 2 detectives thing for me!!:D Excellent update with some great Chlex interaction. Loved Lex reaction and attitude to Danny who does have a touch of the BDA about him. The Chlex confrontation was great although I do wish Chloe had given him a chance to explain why he had broken ties with her.

Yay for Batman entering the picture (he was very observant on the Chlex situation). It's kinda amusing to find that he's not as stealthy as he thinks he is. Love how not even Batman can get past Chloe. Can't wait to see Bruce's reaction to that. More please.

[Sunny]

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful!!!!! Thank you so much!!!!!

[newbatgirl]

A/N: Sorry for the late update. This week has been justification for my obsession with “banking” chapters ahead of time. In the past seven to ten days, virtually everything in my real life has gone crazy. Work has been nuts, Little NBG broke out in hives for reasons I still cannot figure out, and at least two of my household appliances seem to have made a suicide pact. Argghhhhh!

Anyway, enough griping, here’s the next chapter. It features another one of my dear loves, Jim Gordon. I made him a Captain to drive home the point that this is earlier in Batman’s career. Enjoy. Oh, and this is still Chlex, in case anyone wondered.

Chapter 6

Allied insurance HQ…Ted Dandridge’s office…some time later…

“Let me get this straight, you woke up in your apartment last night, realized that Batman was there, and did…nothing?” Ted asked.

“Ted, the next time you wake up and realize that there’s a six-foot bat in your house, you can judge me. In the meantime, just listen. I don’t know him from Dracula. The papers say he’s a vigilante but for all I know, the guy’s psycho-ceramic!”

“Psycho-ceramic?” interjected Captain Jim Gordon, a tall, broad man, with salty dark hair and thick mustache.

“A crack pot,” clarified Ted, sparing a glance at the Captain.

“Oh.”

Chloe turned to Gordon. “Look, I didn’t do anything because it became clear that he wasn’t there to scare me or get anything from me. He wanted something from my apartment. I figured if I stayed quiet long enough, I could find out what that was.”

“And did you?”

“No, whatever he was looking for, he must have found it before I woke up. By the time I could get in position to see what he was doing, he was already letting himself out through the balcony doors.”

“And you’re certain it was Batman?”

Chloe rolled her eyes. “Is there more than one guy with pointy ears and a black cape who creeps around rooftops at night?”

“You never know in this town,” muttered Ted.

“Captain,” Chloe continued, “You know Batman better than anyone. Do you have any idea what he would want with me?”

Gordon sighed and put the pad he had been writing on back into the pocket of his trench coat. “I have been dealing with Batman for a while now but that doesn’t mean I have any more insight into what he does on a given night than anyone else. I want to help you out, I really do, but I’m not sure what I can tell you, Miss Sullivan.”

“Jim, don’t forget that Allied has helped your department out on a number of occasions. CJ’s working a very important case right now and I’ve got a feeling that the Bat’s sudden interest in her has something to do with it. Now you’d tell us if she was in any danger from this guy, right?” Ted asked.

“The Batman’s not out to hurt people…well, not law-abiding people anyway. He’s a good guy. I’ve put my badge on the line for him many times.” Gordon said firmly.

“Well, that’s very reassuring but it doesn’t explain why he broke into my apartment.” Chloe said sarcastically. She was then struck with a thought. “You know how to contact him, right?”

“Yes, but…”

“Well then, there you go, just ask him!”

“Excuse me?”

“It’s called the direct approach, Captain. Perhaps you’ve heard of it. Just ask him what he was doing in my apartment. He’ll answer you; you’re his legitimacy in this town. Just turn on your little signal-thingy and have a chat, man-to-man. Or rather, man-to-Bat.”

“I’m not so sure that he will…”

“Jim, come on. The Gotham PD owes us this much at least. If not for CJ’s peace of mind, then do it for the case. Our investigation into that explosion might very well hinge on this.”

Gordon let out a deep breath. “I’m aware of that.”

*****
Wayne Enterprises Building…later that day…

It was almost eleven by the time Chloe arrived at the offices she was using in the Wayne Corp. building. Not surprisingly, Danny was already pacing the office waiting for her.

“Where have you been?” he demanded as soon as she entered. “I’ve been worried sick about you!”

“Is it Cliché Day and no one told me? C’mon, Danny, you can do better than that.”

Danny frowned at her.

“I left you a message this morning telling you that I was going to Allied first thing. There was no reason to get all excited.” Chloe set her laptop case on the table and slipped out of her suit jacket, revealing a red-button down shirt with French cuffs.

“New shirt?” asked Danny.

Chloe looked down and shrugged. “Yeah, why?”

“You don’t wear red a whole lot. You should, it looks good on you,” he replied. “Anyway, sorry if my way of expressing my concern wasn’t exactly original but you can’t blame me for being worried. Lex Luthor, the subject of our investigation, shows up your apartment unannounced and acting like you guys are old friends. You kick me out without so much as an explanation, you never call me to say you’re OK and then you leave me some cryptic message at six a.m. saying you’ll be at Allied all morning. What am I supposed to think?”

Chloe flicked some hair from her face and looked Danny in the eyes. “You’re supposed to trust me.”

“Am I really?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means that you’ve been keeping things from me and probably the rest of the team. You never told us you knew Luthor before this case. That’s a big detail to leave out, CJ!”

“Dandridge knew and he’s the one who assigned me this case.” She paused, “Alright, just sit down.”

Danny lowered himself into a nearby chair and Chloe slid up onto the desk.

“Here’s the Cliffs Notes version: I know I told you that I’m from Metropolis, and that’s true but I went to high school in a town in Kansas called Smallville. I only lived there for about four years.”

“Smallville, KS? Isn’t that where all those meteors hit about twenty years ago? I think I read about it in my geology class in college.”

“Yeah, the meteors,” muttered Chloe. “Smallville’s claim to fame. Anyway, Luthor Corp. operated a plant there back then. My dad was the plant foreman and Lex ran it.”

“So that’s where you know him from? He was your dad’s boss?”

Chloe titled her head and bit her bottom lip. “Yeah, sort of. We had some mutual friends; it was a really small town…”

“Hence the name?”

“Uh…right. For a small town, there was a lot going on, though. Without going into too much detail, some of the stuff that went on wasn’t exactly legal. Or explainable. I managed to witness some of it and it turned out that Lex’s father was behind some of the really bad stuff. Long story short, Lionel Luthor tried to kill my father and me but Lex managed to hide us for a while. When we came out of hiding, I testified at Lionel Luthor’s trial, and, as a result, he got sent to prison. You know the rest.”

“You sent Lionel Luthor to prison? THE Lionel Luthor?” Danny choked out.

“I told you, it’s the Cliffs Notes version. There was a lot going on that I really can’t go into right now…”

“CJ, why are you even on this case? That’s a pretty big connection to have with someone like Lex Luthor…” Danny stopped short and looked up at Chloe. “That is your only connection, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“I may be paranoid, but Lex seemed pretty…possessive of you last night, almost like you and he had something going on.”

Chloe looked away and Danny leaned forward to try to reestablish eye contact.

“Did you?”

“You are being paranoid but that’s what they pay us the big bucks for, right?” she said, fighting to keep her voice light. “Hey, it’s the obvious question right? Most of the time it is the right answer but not in this case. Lex Luthor and I were never involved that way, I assure you. And I haven’t seen him in ten years. Not even once.”

Danny shook his head. “That doesn’t mean he wasn’t interested. Or that he’s not still interested now. You need to be careful with him. The guy creeps me out, CJ. In fact, I’m sorry I left you alone with him last night.”

Chloe slid off the desk. “Danny, you’re acting like a jealous boyfriend.”

“And what if I am? And what’s wrong with that?”

“Because…you don’t have a right to be either.”

They were both silent as Chloe’s words sunk in. Danny looked expectantly at her, as if he was waiting for her to take them back. When she didn’t, he nodded to himself and shoved his hands in his pockets. “I’m going to head over to the HR office,” he said tightly. “They called earlier and said they had those employee records you asked for. I’ll go pick them up.”

“Danny…”

“Thanks for telling me…that stuff. I’ll see you later.”

Chloe pressed her palm to her forehead. ‘Why did men have to make things so complicated?’ She had thought that Danny’s flirting was harmless but lately it appeared that he had stepped up the intensity of his attentions. She probably would have had to shoot him down sooner or lately. She just questioned the wisdom of having it happen in the middle of such a big case.

*****
Wayne Corp. building…Later that evening…

Lex stood in the doorway of Chloe’s office silently observing her for a moment before he knocked. To his immense relief, her accountant friend was nowhere to be seen. She was immersed in something on her laptop; reading, not typing, it appeared. Her face was expressionless, giving nothing away about what she might be looking at.

He rapped on the door with his knuckles, then flattened out his hands in the air so she could see him.

“Are you going to injure the other hand if I come in?” he quipped, indicated the hand she had scratched the night before.

“Are you sure you want to risk it?” she quipped back.

“Well, I think you’re worth it,” he drawled stepped further inside and pushing the door closed behind him.

“I wasn’t aware that we had anything else to talk about. At least not anything that we couldn’t say with the door open.” Chloe said, closing the lid on her laptop.

Lex noted the deliberate movement. “You can’t be too careful. Especially not in this building. You know that.”

“I’ll have you know I had the cameras in this room pulled this morning. Lucius Fox assured me that it was an oversight that they were left in here at all.”

“Of course it was.” Lex agreed, tongue firmly in cheek.

“Actually, I meant to ask you a question.”

“Ask away.”

“How did you find me last night, anyway? I know that it’s not impossible to do but I’d like to know all the same.”

“You were well hidden. All the major items – driver’s license, bills, etc. - were well covered but your… charitable nature gave you away.”

Chloe furrowed her brow. “My charitable nature?”

“Two years ago, a C.J. Sullivan gave $5,000 to the Freedom Forum Journalists Memorial at the Newseum in Washington D.C. Now, how many C.J. Sullivans would donate that amount to an international charity that pays tribute to journalists who’ve died while trying to report the news?”

Chloe only frowned at him.

“Your address was in their database. Rest assured, though; I doubt that anyone who didn’t know you would have made that connection.”

“You should leave now.” Chloe replied.

“No. I answered your question; you can answer mine, can’t you? Are you feeling a bit more open today?”

“More open to what? To allowing you to try and sway this investigation one way or another? I wouldn’t count on it.”

“I’m not trying to sway you; I’m just trying to get you to look at this logically. Why would anyone here want that plant destroyed? Our companies stand to make a great deal of money off this venture. Far more than $200 million dollars.”

Chloe rested her chin in her hand. “Maybe it’s not about the money. Maybe it’s about something more important than money.”

Lex swallowed. “Like what?”

“I don’t know, you tell me. You’re the expert.”

Lex planted his hands on the desk and leaned forward on them. “You need to be more specific, I’m an expert on quite a few things.”

Chloe looked up at him and then rolled her eyes. “I know you are, and that is why I’m here. You’re a brilliant businessman, Lex. You surround yourself with brilliant people. Maybe the bunch of you just decided that you could outsmart everyone.”

“We probably could, but is it logical that we would destroy our own property to do it? Come on. Chloe, you don’t believe that.”

“You’d be surprised what I believe. For example, I believe that logic is misleading,” replied Chloe, rising from her desk. “Most of the things I saw before the age of eighteen defied logic.”

“Fair point but this isn’t Smallville.”

“Exactly, and I’m not a naïve eighteen year old.”

“You were never naïve, Chloe.”

“Wasn’t I? I trusted Clark. I trusted Lionel, and I trusted you.”

“Lumping me in with them again? I told you last night, I never intended to lose your friendship. It meant…it means a great deal to me.”

“You used the wrong tense there, Lex. In case you missed the memo, you and I can’t be friends anymore, even if I wanted to. I’m here to do a job. I’ve already spent too much time talking with you about this,” Chloe said, shaking herself slightly and returning to her seat.

Lex followed her. It hadn’t escaped his observation how she had unconsciously drifted closer to him as they spoke. He needed to re-establish the connection. When she turned again in front of her chair, he was right behind her. She blinked and sat down to put some distance between them.

“We communicated pretty well, didn’t we? I seem to remember that we could talk for hours.” He crouched down in front of her to look her in the eye.

“Perhaps, but not about the things that mattered.”

Lex nodded and placed a hand on her knee. Her body felt warm, even through the cloth of her pants. To his surprise, she didn’t jerk or shake off his hand.

“That’s my fault. I shouldn’t have expected you to simply know why I needed to put some space between us. It was that town, Chloe. Even though were we careful when you came back, the rumors were everywhere. I know you heard them too. I thought it would be better if we just took a step back until you left for school. I was planning on leaving then Smallville anyway. I just assumed you would understand. You always seemed to understand everything else about me.”

“Lex, don’t…”

“Don’t what? Don’t tell you that I missed you?” Lex placed his other hand under her chin, with his thumb stroking her jawline. “Ten years is too long to go without a best friend, Chloe.”

When she didn’t answer, he pressed on. “You want to believe me, I know you do.”

Chloe shook her head, but still didn’t pull away. “I can’t.”

“What can I say to make you believe me?”

Chloe opened her mouth to speak but it was a male voice that ultimately broke the silence.

“CJ? You still here? I got those…” started Danny as he opened the door and stopped in his tracks when he noticed that Chloe was not alone.

“I guess I should have knocked,” the younger man said softly.

Lex dropped his hands and rose to his feet. “You’ll know for next time,” he told Danny.

Before either man could say another word, Chloe rose to her feet and began packing her laptop away.

“Actually, I have to leave anyway. I…lost track of time here. There’s some place I need to be.”
She pulled on her jacket and slung her purse over her shoulder.

Lex placed his hand on her arm as she moved past him.

“Can we finish this conversation later?”

“I…I don’t know where I’ll be later,” was all she replied. Lex noticed that she didn’t look at Danny as she left.

Danny, for his part, seemed capable of little more than throwing a stony glare at Lex. Lex had no time for posturing, which he made clear by saying to Danny, “Stay out of this. This isn’t about you.”

“That doesn’t matter. If it’s about her, then I can’t stay out of it.”

“Fine, have it your way but don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

*****

Gotham City Police HQ…later that night…

All investigators have their own tools of the trade, gizmos, gadgets and other paraphernalia that help them perform the job of gathering information that they aren’t supposed to find. Certain things were almost universal: mini recorders and listening devices, cameras, lock-picks, hand-held scanners, etc. And of course, there are the disguises. Once again, every investigator has their favorites. Chloe’s was the classic janitor, she owned three janitor disguises and kept one in the trunk of her car at all times. To her, it had proved to be the next best thing to truly being invisible. She always marveled at the tendency that most people had of looking right through those who had the unenviable task of cleaning up after them.

Chloe drove straight from Wayne Corp. to Gotham Police headquarters. She changed in her car, slipping out of her work clothes and into the baggy janitor’s jumper and a pair of ancient tennis shoes. She covered her blond hair with a bandanna and added a pair of thick glasses.

She entered the station without incident, simply slipping in behind a group of officers who were going in as well. As expected, they barely noticed her.

A quick stop at the janitor’s closet and she had her props: a grimy bucket and equally grimy mop. The first thing Chloe did after securing the elements of her disguise was to find the route up to the roof, where the bat-signal originated.

Upon finding the door, she tried the keycard she had found in the janitor’s locker. It worked. She would need it to go up to the roof as well as to re-enter the building after she was finished.

‘Next step: find Gordon,’ thought Chloe. She had no idea when Gordon would turn the signal on so she had to stay close to him in order to know when she could make her move up to the roof. It had to be soon, since it was already dark out and Gordon’s shift was technically already over. The man needed to sleep sometime.

She couldn’t say exactly why she felt the need to be here when Gordon talked to the Batman about the previous night. All she knew was that something about Gordon’s reaction that morning made her curious as to how he would ask the masked vigilante about the break-in.

She knew that Gordon was an honest cop. That much was practically written in stone on the steps of police headquarters. What she didn’t know was how loyal he was to the Batman.

Shortly after leaving the roof entrance, she found Gordon’s office. Through the glass door etched with his name, she could see weary officer reading through some reports as he sipped his coffee.

For appearance’s sake, Chloe swished the mop around on the floor a few steps from his office.

Watching Gordon’s body movements as he worked, she noticed how much he reminded her of Ted. He was and old-school cop, measuring time in coffee cups rather than hours or minutes.

Struck at the thought, she squinted to see how much of the liquid he had left in his cup. It looked like less than half a cup. If Gordon was anything like Ted Dandridge, he’d drain the cup, clear up his desk a bit, get up and get a refill before heading up to the roof. That way, he’d have a full cup to nurse while he waited for Batman to respond to the signal. She’d seen Ted Dandridge and other cops play out similar scenes countless times before.

Chloe casually pushed the mop and bucket towards the roof entrance before abandoning it altogether. After a quick glance around to ensure that no one was watching, she slid the key card though the slot and slipped up onto the roof.

Gotham City Police Headquarters was not a tall building but its roof was high enough to be chilly and windy after dark. Chloe scoped out the area behind the massive spotlight that projected the bat-signal before settling on an empty area nearby. It was behind the HVAC unit, close enough so she’d be able to hear Gordon and Batman’s conversation but far enough to stay hidden.

Sure enough, just a few minutes after Chloe crouched down, she heard the roof door open again. Gordon, once again clad in his trench coat and holding a now full cup of coffee, appeared. With his free hand he slipped a key into a locked box near the signal. When the box opened, he reached inside and threw the switch. The bat-signal appeared on the clouds over the nearby Gotham River.

Chloe couldn’t help but smile a bit as Gordon sipped his coffee as he paced back and forth in front of the spotlight.

After only about seven or eight minutes, Chloe saw a dark figure approach in the west sky. She blinked a bit because it truly looked like the figure was flying. Only when he landed did she realize that he had been swinging like some sort of urban Tarzan on black cables.

This was Chloe’s first real view of the Batman. She has half-expected him to look ridiculous with his pointy ears and theatrical cape – but he did not. It was eerie; he looked like a part of the night come to life. His cape and suit were so dark, your eyes almost slid right off of it. The cowl covered most of his face, but not all. Only by squinting could Chloe tell that the man in the bat suit appeared to be light-skinned. Perhaps Caucasian, but she could not be sure. The rest of his features were obscured, even the color of his eyes was concealed behind lenses in the cowl.

He was tall and broad. The silk cape outlined a muscular back. The cape fell almost to the floor and he had it pulled around him, further adding to the darkness of his figure. Newspaper reports hinted that he wore some kind of Kevlar uniform with a tool or utility belt which helped him in his work but Chloe could not see them underneath his cape.

Batman didn’t greet Gordon verbally, he only gave a nod. Gordon remarked on the speed of his arrival. “You got here quick. Slow night?”

Batman did not answer.

“Word is you were busy last night. You paid a visit to the home of an insurance investigator named Chloe Sullivan.”

Chloe held her breath in anticipation of Batman’s answer. Would he deny it? Get angry? Hurt Gordon? I was almost a full minute before he responded and when he did, his voice was low and gravely.

“What does she know?”

‘Huh?’

“She woke up in time to see you leaving her apartment. She doesn’t seem to know why you were there though she suspects it has something to do with the explosion.”

“How did you get involved?”

“Her boss is an ex-cop. He asked me to find out why you were there.”

“Don’t tell them anything.” Batman almost growled, causing Chloe to jump.

Gordon did not seem intimidated. “I know that, give me some credit. I’m just not sure how long I’ll be able to hold them off. How much more time do you need?”

“Not much more. Our mutual friend seems to think we can finish this soon, as long as we take care of this problem with the insurance investigation.” Batman leapt up on the wall of the roof, apparently readying himself to take flight again.

“What will you do?”

“Whatever’s necessary.”

Chloe tried to suppress a gasp, but failed. Unfortunately, it seemed that she failed pretty badly, as both Gordon and Batman looked in the direction of the HVAC unit.

“Are you certain we’re alone?” Batman growled again.

“Of course we are. Only PD personnel have access to this roof and they know better than to come up here at this time of night.”

“I heard something,” insisted Batman, stepping down off the roof wall towards the area when Chloe crouched. She not tried to think about what would happen if he found her there.

“It was probably that old HVAC unit, thing’s been on the job longer than I have. City won’t spend the money to replace it though.”

The sound of sirens blaring up from the street below stopped the Batman from investigating any further. Instead he rushed to the other side of the roof to see where the squad cars were heading.

“At least four units, heading south towards the Kirby Bridge!” he shouted to Gordon over the noise. “They might need help.”

Before Gordon could respond Batman shot out a line and took a running leap off the south side of the roof.

“Hey, hang back a bit unless it’s real bad. Let my guys do their jobs!” Gordon shouted at the retreating figure.

Batman waved an arm in response.

Chloe watched as Gordon finished his coffee and switched off the bat-signal before heading back downstairs. She let out a sigh of relief when the she heard the door shut behind him.

Her relief was short-lived, though, as the impact of the conversation she’d overhead really hit her.

“What the hell is going on here?”

End chapter.

[hfce]

EEK!!!! :eek: Chloe and Lex were hot even without doing anything. The chemistry just leaps off the page. I love them. Poor Dan you have no chance buddy. :rofl: I want more Chlex please.... :beg: but I am with Chloe what is going on with Batman he was scary. Inquiring minds want to know. :D



Hope :)

[star del mar]

Really, what the hell is going on? The whole shadiness going on with Bruce/Batman is driving me crazy! He seems to be going to a lot of trouble over an insurance investigation, granted it’s a pain in the ass but it seems to me like he’s hiding something big.

As for Lex and Chloe, their relationship is always so complicated which is frustrating and wonderful at the same time. I love that Lex is reaching out to her and trying to make her understand why he lost touch, I just hope that he’s not doing all this with some underhanded intention. That would kill me. Great update though and definitely worth the wait :)

Steph*

[arkakitty]

“Is there more than one guy with pointy ears and a black cape who creeps around rooftops at night?”

“You never know in this town,” muttered Ted.

I loved this one the most. Please don't let me wait long for the next chapter, this one was so great!

[Kit Merlot]

Excellent update!!

I do feel sorry for Danny because having a crush on someone who doesn't like you back is rough. But at least Chloe set him straight, unlike Clark, who led her on for years.

And I love Lex's being his suave self to Chloe in her office :grin3:

And who doesn't love Jim Gordon?! I do enjoy the fact that Chloe was able to spy on Batman without his knowledge, and that she even knew that he had been in her home--EXCELLENT!!

[lexchloe]

Wonderful update. She can deny it all she wants but the Chlex is definately starting to warm up and you know she's starting to thaw!!! glad she set danny straight though and I loved that Lex told him to butt out as well. Danny really does seem to have a case of the BDA doesn't he?

Again loved Chloe in investigation/spy mode. The Bruce/Batman and Tim Gordon thing has me stumped. It's all shady and suspicious but there's got to more going on there because they're the good guys right???? Great stuff and can't wait for more.

[kimmie]

Really good, update really soon!!!!!!!!!

Kimmie

[Gemkat5]

Thank the gods for city crime to distract the Bat from finding Chloe in her hiding spot! Heeheehee!

I like how Lex is trying to push the "there's something between us" issue, and that Chloe is fighting with herself to 'not' get distracted.

But... now I might have missed something in a previous chapter, but, why is Lex and Bruce worried about this investigation in the first place if everything is legal and legit? If they don't know what happened to cause the explosion, then wouldn't they be grateful for Chloe digging around to find the truth? It's not like Lex to just disregard something like that and collect the insurance, he would want to know what happened too. And obviously, the Bat is already on it to get to the bottom of it...

*shrugs* anyway, I DO LOVE this story, and you MUST update soon cause now everything is getting really REALLY interesting!!!!!!!!!

Oh, and I feel for Danny too. But its good that Chloe set him straight for where his attentions "should" lie!

[pipersmum]

I thought Batman was going to find Chloe then for a moment :eek: Would she have recognised Batman if she had got to talk to him???
The relationship between Lex and Chloe is hotting up but you got to feel a little sorry for Danny :(
Please update soon as i love this story :grin3:

[darkangel]

This is good. I like the Chlex interaction.

[meg20]

Damn danny for interrupting Chlex. Batman gets creepy, he's like a bad guy already. Give us some more Chlex plese and soon!!!

[newbatgirl]

But... now I might have missed something in a previous chapter, but, why is Lex and Bruce worried about this investigation in the first place if everything is legal and legit? If they don't know what happened to cause the explosion, then wouldn't they be grateful for Chloe digging around to find the truth?

One would think they would be grateful... *Evil NBG snickers*

[Louie]

Batman is investigating yep, I wonder who the mutual friend is cause it's far to early fro Oracle, Hmm maybe he was being sarcastic.....

Sorry just my silly rambalings, Danny is so just like Clark, Loved the Chloe Lex part.

[Gemkat5]

OOoooohhhhhh-- I see.... more mystery than meets the eye! Cool! Now update soon! :D

[newbatgirl]

Chapter 7

A/N: Did someone order a chapter with extra exposition? Coming right up. Don’t worry, I held the anchovies.

Sorry that I haven't been answering your questions and comments in the last couple chapters. I will do so in another post, I only have time to cut and paste this one tonight. Real life continues to be wacky. Thanks for sticking with me.

Batcave…Later that night…

Batman slammed the door to the Batmobile with far more force than was actually necessary and stomped down the ramp from its parking platform to the cave interior.

His body was tense with un-spent energy. It had been a far from satisfying patrol. First, he there had been the unsettling conversation with Gordon and the revelation that the Sullivan woman had known about his visit to her apartment. Then there had been the brief, yet chaotic gang fight near the Kirby Bridge in which the Gotham Police had managed themselves surprisingly well. They hadn’t needed much assistance from him save his picking up a few strays that tried to get away. Even they had given up without much of a fight, leaving Batman with frustratingly low-punch count for the evening.

The Kirby Bridge fight and the subsequent police presence had also seemed to spook the rest of Gotham’s criminal element into staying in for the night so the Dark Knight had no other choice but to come home early and stew about the Chloe Sullivan situation.

Clenching his fists once before yanking off his gloves and unbuckling his gauntlets, he shook his head, letting the reality of the worsening situation sink in. As missions went, this present one should have been no more complicated, and only marginally more dangerous than average. Of course he had made that assessment before he knew who all the players were.

“Interfering….insufferable…”

“Rough night, sir?” came Alfred’s calm voice out of the lit corner of the cave where he waited every evening for his master’s return.

“Not rough enough,” growled Batman, tossing his gloves and gauntlets onto a nearby rack.

“Oh, I see. I did think you were back rather early, sir. Perhaps you should simply be grateful that the criminals decided to stay in and enjoy Letterman tonight and – dare I say – do the same yourself? Bruce Wayne does have an important day tomorrow.”

Batman pushed back his cowl revealing a frowning Bruce Wayne. “If anything I should use the extra time to figure out what I’m going to do about this…situation,” he replied.

“Situation, sir?”

“The situation with this Sullivan woman. She went to Gordon this morning demanding to know why I was in her apartment last night.”

“She did? Well, that would mean…”

“Exactly,” grumbled Bruce, stomping towards the vault room that held his Batsuits. “That means she not only knew that I was there, she may know what I was there to get… I still can’t figure out how she knew I was there…” His voice became muffled as he changed out of his suit.

Cheekily Alfred replied, “If you were stomping about in her flat the way you are now, it’s wonder you didn’t wake the whole building.”

“Alfred, I’m in no mood for jokes!”

“I figured as much, Master Bruce but I continue to try. The law of large numbers says I’m bound to find you in an agreeable mood eventually.”

Alfred turned to face Bruce as he stepped from the vault now dressed in a gray T-shirt and black sweatpants. Alfred raised a tray a bit higher in his hand and offered it to the young billionaire.

“Grilled cheese, sir?”

Still grumbling somewhat Bruce swiped a half of the sandwich of the tray along with a mug of black coffee that was offered on it as well and stepped over to his computer console.

He disposed of the sandwich in a couple of large bites and used his now free hand to lift up the modified flash drive he had used to copy Chloe’s computer drive the previous night. He had already viewed the contents, though he was still a bit incredulous that the woman had the audacity to hack the Wayne Enterprises network in the first place. One of his first activities earlier that day as Bruce Wayne had been to instruct the IT department to install tighter controls.

It was closing the barn door, to be sure, and it wouldn’t change the fact that Chloe had the information that she had but he had to do something.The woman was making a fool of him on several fronts...and she didn't even realize it.

“The fact is,” he said to Alfred, twirled the device in his hands; “she has access to information she shouldn’t have. Now I have to make sure that things move faster than they have been moving. We’re running out of time here.”

“Running out of time, sir?”

“If we wait to move much longer, Chloe Sullivan is going to figure out exactly who blew up that plant.”

*****

Meanwhile…Chloe’s apartment…

When Chloe’s last serious boyfriend, an attorney who worked seventy to eighty hour weeks and had a speaker phone next to his bed, called her “obsessive” about her job, she wasn’t offended. After all, she knew who she was and she wasn’t ashamed of it. Working long hours was just part of who she was.

‘Besides,’ she had told him, ‘the truth waits for no one.’

‘That’s all well and good,’ he’d replied. ‘But does the search for it have to occur in the form of three inch stacks of paper all over the living room floor?’

‘Yes,’ Chloe had replied simply and returned to work.

They’d parted friends, still saw each other occasionally, and helped each other out professionally whenever they could.

And since Chloe had opted to give up the man and not the work style, if this particular man could see her in her present position, he would not be surprised. She was sitting cross-legged on her living room floor, surrounded by stacks of print-outs and handwritten notes.

Upon leaving GCPD headquarters, Chloe had gone straight home and dove right into examining the data she had copied from the Wayne Enterprises network as well as her other collected information. Now several hours and several cups of coffee later, she had succeeded in sorting the information into a time frame and was now trying to look at everything, especially the emails, chronologically.

LW Tech, it seemed, was born out of a realization by Bruce Wayne and Lex Luthor that it would be better for their rival organizations to stop fighting over the same talent pool and simply pool their resources by forming a jointly owned sub-corporation.

Both companies had already spent years researching new advances in robotic engineering but had suffered major setbacks along the way as key engineers from each company jumped ship to work for the other.

In an email dated more than a year earlier, Lex had written:

“We can continue spending hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to lure our talent back to our respective labs, or we can simply put that money where it belongs – into the research. Properly funded and executed, together we may be able to accomplish in three years what would have taken Luthor Corp and Wayne Enterprises each five to seven.”

Bruce and Lucius had agreed and LW Tech was born.

In the beginning, it seemed to Chloe that the marriage was a happy one. Lex and Bruce had decided that due to lower labor costs and the existence of a more suitable plant space in Gotham, that the corporation would be based there. They went on a hiring spree, moving highly-trained engineers from both companies into the new corporation and hiring dozens more in a period of only a few months.

Chloe found flight itineraries from Lex’s plane that showed he had spent much of the last year shuttling back and forth from Metropolis to Gotham to run Luthor Corp and keep his eyes on the new project. She knew from her other research that Lex kept an apartment in Metropolis.

The new venture flourished as the engineers made progress even faster than Lex had predicated.

In memos dated less than two months into the project, Mr. Lui reported that the teams had made great advancements in improving the maneuverability of the robots in tight areas and over rough terrain. Soon after, memos came through that reported breakthroughs in attaching protective housing to the machines that would allow them to function in extreme temperatures.

It was then, Chloe found, that some conflict began brewing between Lex and Bruce over how the robots would be marketed. Three months into the project, Bruce made his preferences clear to Lex and the rest of the management team in an email:

”Wayne Enterprises believes we should concentrate on developing processes which focus on the bots’ functionality in the following areas: unmanned space travel, oceanic exploration, and specialized manufacturing. We do not feel it is necessary to pursue other applications at this time.”

Lex fired back a response that very day:

To limit development to those three areas is short-sighted to say the least. The recent advances made by the LW Tech team show great potential in the areas of unmanned military vehicle design. At a time when existing U.S. military bots are nearing the ends of their useful lives, it would be irresponsible for this partnership to ignore the immense possibilities that our work has created.

Bruce’s response was succinct.

“Wayne Enterprises has no ambitions to become a weapons manufacturer. We stand by the aforementioned applications and those alone.”

Chloe laid down her printouts and rubbed at her temples. There were no more mentions of the matter in emails to the staff at large, but in the private emails between Lex and Bruce, the argument raged on. Lex argued that the machines could potentially save lives by keeping soldiers out of heavy combat. He cited dozens of studies showing the limitations of exiting military “Packbots” and “iRobots” in terms of size, weight and maneuverability. He presented cost and profit valuations. Bruce would not budge.

Chloe rose to her feet and began to pace in what little walkable space remained in her living room. She didn’t know Bruce Wayne very well but by all accounts he was a reasonably competent man. Prior to this case, she had heard that he was more than the typical rich boy, despite having a reputation as a bit of a playboy. He was the public face of his family’s company and ran it well. Word was that he knew his limitations and deferred to his top advisors for the truly crucial matters. The documents Chloe had examined indicated that he was more “hands on” than the business community really knew. He was quite intelligent, in fact, and knew more about what was going on at Wayne Enterprises than almost anyone.

Why then, was he stonewalling what seemed like a logical business decision, one that even his top engineers had admitted was a lucrative option?

Was it because Lex had backed it so forcibly? Did he not want to be upstaged by the other CEO?

No, Chloe decided, that didn’t seem to be the issue; Bruce had shown a willingness to share credit with Lex at several points.

For almost an hour, she racked her brain for facts about Bruce Wayne. Billionaire. Businessman. Noted Philanthropist. Wayne, the only son of…

Chloe smacked her head. ‘Of course!’ Bruce Wayne, the little boy who had been orphaned when he watched his parents gunned down in an alley in a robbery gone bad over twenty years ago. All of Gotham knew the story as it was still mentioned in the occasional news story about anything connected with Wayne.

She hurried over to her laptop and brought up the information she had gathered on Wayne Enterprises’ many dealings. After a few minute, she could see the patterns. Wayne Enterprises not only did not make or sell anything connected with weapons or military artillery; it had few dealings with companies who did. Its contracts with the government were strictly limited to electronic navigation systems and software. Unlike its competitors, it had pointedly refused to bid on lucrative government contracts to supply components that would later be used in military weapons systems.

The reason for the stalemate between Lex and Bruce about applications for their robots was clear. Bruce Wayne didn’t like guns. Of any sort. He would never allow Wayne Enterprises to have a hand in making them.

One important question remained then: would Lex take no for an answer?

*****
Early the next morning…Chloe’s loft…

Chloe opened the door to her apartment and smiled faintly at her visitor. “I didn’t think you’d come,” she said.

Danny shrugged. “You said it was important, plus if you call me at seven in the morning, I generally assume you have a good reason.”

It was Saturday, so he was dressed casually in jeans, a t-shirt and lightweight jacket. As he slipped his coat off his shoulders he studied Chloe, she was still wearing her blouse and pants from the previous day, though she was considerably more rumpled than she had been the last time he saw her.

“No offense, CJ, but you look like hell. Have you slept at all?”

She shook her head as she closed the door behind him. “No time to sleep. There’s too much going on.”

Danny followed her back to the living room and looked around the space. It was still littered with printouts and Chloe’s notes.

“You’ve been working all night?”

“Yeah, well, I got on a roll and before I knew it, the sun as coming up. It’s no big deal…”

“No big deal?” Danny paused and scanned her face. “CJ, why aren’t you blinking?”

“Coffee high, it’ll pass,” she said dismissively. “Just sit down; we have a lot to go over.”

“Don’t you think you should sit down, or better yet, lay down?”

“There’s no time, just sit down!”

Danny reluctantly obeyed. “I can’t believe you called me over here at seven am on a Saturday to talk about this case and you haven’t slept!”

“Of course it’s about the case, why else would I call you at this hour?”

“I don’t know, maybe to explain what I walked in on yesterday?” he said giving her a knowing look.

Chloe frowned and tried to keep the heat out of her face. “There’s nothing to explain. Lex and I were just having a discussion.”

“It looked like a pretty intimate one.”

“Whatever, it’s nothing for you to worry about. I can handle it,” she said pointedly. “Besides, there are plenty of other things about this case to concern ourselves with. Namely, why Batman broke into my apartment and what it has to do with the case.”

Danny sat up. “Batman broke into your apartment? The Batman? When?”

“Two nights ago.”

“And you’re just telling me now? Wait, how did you even know he was in here? Did he hurt you?”

“Will you calm down? I woke up while he was here but I pretended to be asleep to see what I could find out. He never even knew I was awake. I told Dandridge the next morning and then we called Captain Gordon at the GCPD and here’s where it gets interesting. I told Gordon to ask the Batman why he broke in here but when Gordon actually met with him, he didn’t ask him, he just told him that I knew!”

“What?” Danny shook his head. “Wait, how do you know what Gordon said to Batman?”

Chloe was growing impatient with the questions. “I followed Gordon, of course. I hid out and listened to their conversation. Anyway, that’s not important. The important thing is that Batman is somehow involved in all of this! For some reason, he doesn’t want us to know who blew up the plant either. My guess is he was trying to either find out what I knew, or destroy some evidence I already have.”

“This is bizarre, what could Batman have to do with any of this?”

“I still can’t figure that part out but I found out plenty from the stuff I took from the Wayne network.”

“Like what?”

“The main thing is that this partnership between Wayne Enterprises and Luthor Corp is shaky at best. They’ve been fighting for months over how their robots are going to be used. Luthor Corp. wants to make military robots to sell to the Pentagon and Wayne won’t allow it. And, since they own this venture 50/50, neither of them can override the other.”

“That sucks for them but I don’t see what that has to do with the explosion.”

“I think it has everything to do with the explosion, especially since it seems like Luthor Corp has already given schematics of the bots that LW Tech can deliver to someone at the Defense Department.”

“What?”

Chloe dropped a thick pile of email printouts onto Danny’s lap. “See for yourself. Someone emailed a whole bunch of proposed military robot designs to an email address with a defense.gov address. I’m guessing it was Lex. And I’m also guessing he didn’t tell Bruce about it first.”

“But why would Luthor do that?” Danny asked, flipped through the pages.

“From the looks of it, Lex really wants to get these bots put into production. He’s almost obsessed with it. Maybe he figured that if the Defense Department OK’d the designs and threw out a big enough dollar figure, Bruce would cave.”

Chloe began pacing again. “I think that Bruce found out about it. A few weeks after those messages were sent to the Defense Department, Bruce personally halted the third shift at the plant - on a day that Lex was out of town, no less - ensuring that the plant would be empty at night A couple of days later, the plant goes up. Coincidence? I don’t think so. What’s more, all four security guards on duty escaped the blast because they were at the checkpoint when it happened since it was shift change. I don’t think that was a coincidence either, I think the blast was timed that way to avoid loss of human life. And who else would know when it was shift change other than an insider?”

“CJ, listen to what you’re saying. You saying that Bruce Wayne blew up his own plant to prevent it from manufacturing something he didn’t want to make? It doesn’t make any sense.”

“Danny, none of this makes sense! Can you explain any of these things any other way?”

Danny shrugged. “No, but these are Fortune 500 companies here. Surely Wayne could have come up with a way to get of out this partnership that didn’t involve blowing the damn plant up. Plus, isn’t just as likely that Luthor would have had the plant blown up if he was so obsessed about getting out of this deal so he could get his bots made?”

“Maybe, but it doesn’t explain why Wayne cut the third shift, though.” Chloe sank onto the couch next to Danny. “There’s so much about this that doesn’t make sense. Like Batman being involved. And Gordon. And then there are the employee records I found.”

“Employee records?”

“Remember those LW Tech employee records you got from HR? I found copies of them in the hidden area of the network. But not all of them, just two; for a couple of engineers who were hired about ten months ago. I can’t figure out why they would keep all the employee records in one place and then these two in this secret area.”

“CJ, this case just gets weirder and weirder.”

Chloe nodded. “I agree. And I think it’s time I started asking Bruce Wayne and Lex Luthor some tough questions.”

“Well, you’ll have to wait till Monday to do that.” Danny replied, leaning back against the back of the couch.

Chloe tossed a folded newspaper at him. “No I won’t.”

“Hey! What---?”

Chloe pulled out her phone and dialed her ex-boyfriend’s number. Placing the phone to her ear, she ignored the confused look Danny was giving her.

When the deep voice answered on the other end, she smiled and said. “Harvey, it’s CJ. I need a favor.”

End Chapter.

[star del mar]

Talk about exposition! This just keeps on getting better and better. I love Bruce but could Chloe be right? I mean I can kind of understand where's he's coming from but if Chloe is right I'm sure there's another route that he could have gone. Chloe is on the hunt! I'm sure she'll find out soon enough what going on. Great update!

Steph*

[darkangel]

Going good......................update soon please.

[arkakitty]

OO I want moooore. Please.

[lexchloe]

This just keeps getting better and better. Chloe's theory sounds plausible but I just can't imagine Bruce going that far, it just doesn't seem like his style. I'm hoping that there's some other reason he doesn't want Chloe to find out about who caused the explosion. Really great update and can't wait for more.

[Gemkat5]

Now 'THAT' was an awesome chapter!!!! :clapclap: :clapclap:

I love Alfred and Bruce's relationship- you got that pinned perfectly! The sneakiness of Lex and Bruce to do things their own way is sooo right on. Danny's 'mothering' is starting to be annoying though, so what that she was up all night, people do it all the time to get to the bottom of something. and it ain't like its out of character for Chloe to be like this! but for now he's still CHloe's side-kick so I'll tolerate him! :grin3:

This investigation is getting deeper and deeper... I can't wait for CHloe to stumble on the email that stated, "We have a problem" or something like that when CHloe had shown up. I wanna know who sent it and to whom!!!!!

Interesting to think that Bruce would willing blow up his plant - no matter how carefully- just to stop something that Lex started. But it is a fine line for that one.

I really can't wait for your next update. I wanna know how Chloe's attorney friend can help with this and how. I wanna know what the Bat is up to, and I wanna know how you're gonna get some Chlex into this mess!!!!!! :yeahbaby:

(and i'm glad you held back on the anchovies- can't stand anchovies!) :rofl:

[kimmie]

Oooh, getting really good now! Did Bruce really blow up the factory? Oh yeah and bring on the Chlex Smoochies... PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Kimmie

[hfce]

Interesting :D it seems that Bruce got back at Lex by blowing up the plant. I am glad that Lex had nothing to do with this. Or did he? Hmmmmm ;)


Hope :)

[georgee5]

Anyone that can give me Harvey Dent before Two-Face is AWESOME! I can also understand Bruce not manufacturing weapons, joining up with Lex in this venture might not have been the smartest. Looking forward to more.

[newbatgirl]

Anyone that can give me Harvey Dent before Two-Face is AWESOME! I can also understand Bruce not manufacturing weapons, joining up with Lex in this venture might not have been the smartest. Looking forward to more.

You go! MAJOR kudos for figuring out that I was going to be my typical comic geek self and use another character, this time Harvey Dent, pre-Two-Face! :grin3:

It's not like I was trying to hide it, but I was curious to see who would be the first to jump on the name in the last line.

[pipersmum]

“I figured as much, Master Bruce but I continue to try. The law of large numbers says I’m bound to find you in an agreeable mood eventually.” Loving how you write Alfred this part made me laugh :rofl:
Would Batman really blow up his own building???? And if he did does Lex know about it???
I can't wait for all the answers, but will we be getting any romance between Lex and Chloe or are we just going to have to guess :P

[Zannie]

And so the plot thickens. You're doing a remarkable job handling the pacing and exposition of plot details. I'm very impressed (and a little envious) because I suck at doing that well.

I adore your Alfred. The voice is absolutely perfect.

Wonderful, wonderful.

[Louie]

leaving Batman with frustratingly low-punch count for the evening.

The law of large numbers says I’m bound to find you in an agreeable mood eventually
So Funny, I'm such a dork as soon as it said Lawyer I was like Harvey and it is Harvey, but you never know if Gordons in on somthing Harvey probably is too.

Cant wait to see what happens next

[emnorth2002]

Thanks for sticking with me. *snort* Yeah, because you should be thanking *us*. You put in the time and the effort to develop this fabulous story and share it with the rest of us, and give us new parts as quickly as you can and we . . . sit here waiting impatiently for the next part, and *we* are the ones who deserve thanks. Go right ahead and tell yourself that, honey. And while you're telling yourself that . . . nothing says thank you like more new parts. <wink>

Loved, loved, loved this chapter. Alfred had me laughing out loud. (I can just picture the pout on Bruce's face as he muches away at his grilled cheese sandwich.) The description of Chloe in an investigative career as the type of workaholic who frightens other workaholics struck me as startlingly plausible, and her conversation with Danny along those lines had me giggling all the way through. The militaristic bone of contention between Lex and Bruce has me mightily intrigued. As part of the story behind the explosion, it unquestionably makes sense, but I can't help but think we don't have the full picture yet. If Lex thought that Bruce went behind his back and sabotaged the project that Lex, apparently, sees as his ticket to political office, then you'd think Lex would be doing everything in his power, including hiring investigators of his own, to look into it. It makes you wonder what Lex is so interested in hiding. Hmm, curioser and curioser.

Ah well, I'll just have to wait patiently and see where the story goes from here. And if you should feel like thanking me (and all your other faithful readers) with another update soon, just know that you'd be more than welcome! <wink>
:-)
Em

[newbatgirl]

OK, not an update, sorry if you thought it was one (although I did get a great deal of writing done today). I’m just here to answer questions, comment on feedback, etc.

star del mar, arkakitty, darkangel, lexchloe, GemKat, hfce, et. al: All I can say is stay tuned, sorry! I really hope my resolution of this mystery does not suck!

Kimmie and pipersmum: Yes, this is a Chlex romance. Smoochies and other activities are coming, I promise. (Gee, was that a pun?)

Zannie, emnorth, et. al: If I could write an Alfred-centered fic that people would read, I would. He’s so much fun to write. He keeps popping up in here because I need a break from the intensity of the rest of the plot. Plus, I love testing his dialogue out loud because I get to use my phony British accent. (Nothing is worse than an ex-New Yorker faking a British accent, I assure you.)

Georgee5 and Louie: Comic geeks unite! I like Two-Face as a character. The parallels between him and Batman/BW are fun to explore, although I will not have time to do that in this story, since this is pre-Two-face. Maybe someday…

emnorth: *blush blush blush blush* Stop! You're killing me! :blinkkiss

GemKat: Word on the anchovies. It boggles my mind that someone, somewhere, a long time ago, picked up an anchovy and said “Umm, hairy fish. I should eat that." And then thousands of people agreed!

[Pufkinz]

Another great chapter :clapclap:

"The law of large numbers says I’m bound to find you in an agreeable mood eventually "

:rofl: love me Alfred, just got to love him... great protrial

looking forward for more info to crack this case.

:)

[purpleant]

I am really enjoying your awesome story! I love Bruce Wayne, and am so happy that he is in this. I can't wait to find out what happens next.
Thank you ;)

[arkakitty]

So I will stay tuned :)

[newbatgirl]

A/N: Comic fans, this one’s for you. Of course, this story is set when Chloe’s ex had only one face… He’s cast in here more because of his profession than anything else. I wanted to make Chloe’s ex as much of a workaholic as she is… once I decided that, picking this character was just too easy.

Chapter 8

Wayne Manor…Bruce Wayne’s study…that evening…

Lex paced the length of the study for the third time in five minutes. It was not in his nature to be restless but then, these days, he found himself doing quite a few things that he once thought were not in his nature.

He was dressed in a tuxedo, and despite the fact that he was very used to formal wear, it was very much against his will that he found himself so attired that evening. Bruce had planned a charity event at his mansion for that evening and had convinced him that it was in their best interest for Lex to make an appearance. He had even asked that Lex arrive early so they could discuss “business matters” before the other guests arrived. Now Lex stood in Bruce’s study waiting for the other man to appear, annoyed that Bruce seemed to think that the rule of arriving “fashionably late” extended even to his own meetings.

Lex didn’t even recall which charity the event was benefiting and frankly, he had ceased to care. He just wanted to get through the evening and head back to his apartment as soon as possible.

In the past few weeks, he felt less in control of his life than at virtually any other time in is thirty-odd years. There were notable exceptions, of course. His “pharmaceutical phase” was one. The year leading up to his father’s incarceration was another.

And now, as if the plant explosion and…related events were not enough, he had to deal with seeing Chloe Sullivan again, and the feelings she stirred in him.

Lex braced one arm against the ornate mantle of the fireplace.

There, he had admitted it. Sort of. The woman stirred feelings in him. Feelings of what, though, he didn’t really feel like defining. He could try, but he was feeling out of control as it was, the last thing he needed was more distraction…

*****
Summer, ten years earlier…very late at night…

The telephone rang. If it were any other call at this time of night, Lex would have ignored it. He was sitting up in bed trying to review some important papers and he really didn’t need to be distracted. Except it wasn’t just any phone call. He reached for the small cell phone on his nightstand and flipped it open.

“Hey, what’s the matter?”

“Nothing…just couldn’t sleep,” replied Chloe. “I didn’t want to wake my dad again so I figured you might still be up…”

“I told you that you could call anytime, day or night, didn’t I?”

“Yeah, well most people say things like that and they don’t really mean them, particularly when the phone actually does ring at two in the morning.”

“I’m not most people.”

Chloe gave a mock sigh. “Ah, arrogant but so true. So it sounds like I didn’t wake you. Why aren’t you asleep?”

“I was reading a copy of the motion the prosecutors filed today. They’re trying to get the pre-trial hearing moved up.”

“Do you think they have a shot?” Lex could tell that Chloe was trying to keep her voice even but that the idea of being able to come out of hiding sooner excited her.

“Hard to say. My own attorneys helped them with the motion and it’s pretty solid. The problem is that Lionel’s attorneys are claiming that he’s not healthy enough to go to trial yet.”

“He’s stalling.”

“Exactly.”

Chloe exhaled. “I see… and how good of these lawyers of his?”

“They’re pretty expensive, but then so are mine.”

“Then why am I not reassured?”

Lex laid down the reports and cradled the phone closer to his ear. “Because it’s two in the morning and you’re thinking too hard about it. Chloe, you need to calm down. At least try to relax.”

“Easy for you to say, you get to sleep in your own bed every night. You get to get up in the morning and do normal things! You don’t close your eyes at night and see nothing but that house…” her voice was steadily growing louder. “Lionel’s the one who murdered people and I’m the one in prison! How does that make sense?”

“Chloe it’s not a prison, at least it isn’t supposed to feel like one.” Lex sighed and ran his free hand over his head. “What can I do? Do you want to stay somewhere else? Do you want me to see if I can find a bigger place, something that isn’t so cramped? How about some more books, DVDs?”

“No, the house is fine, the movies are fine, the books are fine…never mind. I’m sorry I yelled. You’re doing your best. You’ve already spent a fortune on us…”

“Forget about the money, the point of this is make sure you’re OK…”

“…so I can testify. I know, I know.”

“No, not just so you can testify…so you can come out of this knowing you did the right thing. Chloe, I know this feels like you’re being punished for what he did. Believe me, I know what that feels like. But you need to stay focused. In the end, it will all be worth it, I promise.”

“Lex…I appreciate the pep talk, I really do, but you shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep.”

“I’m not in the habit of doing that. I intend to keep this promise.”

Chloe paused. “Why are you doing this, Lex?”

“Doing what?”

“You could have handed my Dad and I back to the FBI, at least to some more competent agents, anyway. You could not answer the phone at night when I call. You could not send me boxes of books and DVDs to keep me occupied. Why are you going through so much trouble? I understand the need to keep us safe but this…feels different.”

“Well, number one, the books and DVDs are not to keep you safe; they’re for the safety of the guards watching you. I’ve heard that a bored Chloe Sullivan is a matter of national security.”

“Jackass, you’ll pay for that!” she exclaimed but Lex could tell she was laughing. Mission accomplished.

She waited until she caught her breath before speaking again. “I’m serious this time. We weren’t exactly friends before all this happened. I’m the stupid little teenage girl who made a colossal screw up because of a crush. Why should you care how I feel when this is over? All you really need to care about is if Lionel goes to jail; I’m just the means to the end.”

‘She doesn’t really think that, does she?’ thought Lex. But then he remembered all the times she had been treated like that, as the ‘go to girl’ for information and not much else. Always in the background. Always being asked to prove her worth even though she had done so dozens of times before.

“First of all, you’re not stupid, and you’re not a little girl. You’re a smart person who got manipulated into making a bad choice. It’s that simple. And why do I care? Because I’ve seen people who are older than you, smarter than you, richer than you, and with far more power and influence who would never even consider turning against Lionel Luthor. You’re doing it just because it’s right. You’re one of the bravest people I know, Chloe. You’d be surprised how rare it is that I meet someone like you.”

Chloe was silent for a long moment and Lex was fearful that he might have said too much and scared her away.

Finally she spoke, and to Lex’s immense relief, the humor was back in her voice “I think you need to hang out with a better class of people, Lex.”

With mock exasperation Lex retorted. “I’m working on it, I’m working on it…”

*****
“Mr. Luthor? Mr. Luthor, sir?”

Alfred’s smooth voice shook Lex from his reverie and he instinctively turned to face him. “Yes, Alfred, what is it?”

“Sorry to startle you, sir, but Master Bruce asked me to inform you that the guests are beginning to arrive so he will need delay your meeting until a bit later this evening.”

“Tell him he should have spent less time getting ready. What the hell took him so long?”

Alfred looked back at him with his typically bland expression. “Perhaps something came up to delay him.”

“Yes, and her name was Bambi or Candi or Randi…something she can sign with a heart, I’m sure.”

“Sir?”

“Never mind, Alfred.” Lex turned back to the mantle and his gaze shifted upward to the large portrait of the late Thomas and Martha Wayne hanging above it.

“You knew the Waynes pretty well, didn’t you, Alfred?” “

“I was in their service for many years, sir.”

“Then tell me, which one of them does Bruce have to thank for this stubborn streak of his?”

At Alfred’s perplexed look Lex added, “Indulge me a bit, Alfred. I have no desire to rush in there and mingle with Gotham’s so-called elite. Besides, I have a genuine curiosity about them. As you well know, Bruce doesn’t say much.”

Alfred seemed to accept this explanation. “I’d have to say that Master Bruce inherited his strong will from both of his parents. They were quite well-suited to one another as I recall. As a result, he received what one might call a double dose.”

Lex sighed, looking back up at the picture. “That explains a great deal. When he makes a decision, no matter how illogical, he sticks to it. Quite frankly, it’s starting to get old.”

Alfred cocked an eyebrow, and clasped his hands behind his back. “It’s illogical depending on the way you look at it, sir. I’m sure from Master Bruce’s perspective, his decisions make a great deal of sense… Of course, I don’t know what you’re referring to, specifically.”

Lex smirked. “Of course you don’t.”

“One thing you might consider, sir, is that it isn’t simply will that drives Master Bruce’s decision-making. He feels a strong sense of duty to the name he has inherited. Not unlike yourself. And, as you know, the weight of such a name can be difficult to carry at times.”

Lex frowned. “I hardly think it’s the same thing, Alfred. The name Bruce inherited was in much better condition than the one I got.”

“That hardly makes the burden any lighter to bear…sir. If I may be so bold, perhaps that is something you might keep in mind the next time you encounter the worst of Master Bruce’s will.”

Lex’s eyes shifted from the painting to the genteel butler’s face. He shook his head slightly, a faint smile on his face. “Perhaps. You are a wise man, Alfred. I wish you worked for me, though it’s not from lack of trying on my part that you don’t. You’ve turned me down more times than I can count.”

“Your offers have been generous, Mr. Luthor, but as I’ve said, I’m too far along in this life to make any changes now.”

“And far too loyal to phrase it any other way.” Lex turned from the mantle and straightened his tie. Alfred nodded wordlessly to indicate that it was indeed perfect. “I’ve put this off long enough, I suppose. Into the lion’s den for more idle chatter and nonsense we go,” declared Lex.

“Right, sir. One of the servers will be over momentarily with a glass of scotch.”

“You’re one in a million, Alfred.”

*****
Wayne Manor ballroom…a few minutes later…

Bruce smiled his best playboy smile at a young socialite across the room. The woman winked back in return and adjusted her snug-fitting velvet dress to display her cleavage to best advantage. She didn’t seem to realize that Bruce has played this silent game with most of the young, unattached women in the room. And if she did, she didn’t seem to care.

Bruce Wayne had mastered the art of flirting. There were few women he had encountered who didn’t respond to his attentions. Bruce had become so good at it his playboy persona that he barely had to think about switching it on and off, and at an event such as the charity fund-raiser he hosted at his Manor with Gotham’s elite, it most definitely needed to be on. Because, despite how well in place his public persona as a competent but easily distracted billionaire businessman was, it needed constant reinforcement. The Gotham media and others were always on the hunt for clues about Batman’s real identity. As long as Bruce Wayne appeared to be nothing more than rich, handsome and a little dim, they would be none wiser.

Bruce looked over at the doorway to the ballroom where Alfred stood and nodded slightly to acknowledge a silent hint from his butler. Alfred was signaling him that the more influential guests had begun to arrive and that Bruce should come over and great them personally.

Quickly Bruce navigated the room and positioned himself beside the arched doorway. Subtly smoothing down his shirt, he listened as Alfred greeted the guests as he opened the front door, a few feet away. It was Alfred’s way of insuring that Bruce didn’t accidentally call one of his guests by the wrong name or otherwise embarrass himself. Bruce didn’t actually need the reminders but he appreciated the effort all the same. It was nice not to have to rely solely on his own memory.

“Councilwoman Jimenez, Dr. Jimenez, good evening,” said Aflred. “You are both looking well. Right this way.”

Bruce formed his face into a smile and greeted the couple seconds later as they passed through the door. “Evening, Councilwoman, Doctor. Thank you for coming and showing your support.”

“Senator and Mrs. Waid. Good to see you again. You certainly know your way to the ballroom,” said Alfred.

Seconds later, Bruce greeted the pair. “Senator Waid, thank you for coming. Mrs. Waid, you’re looking lovely….”

This went on for several more minutes as more and more guests arrived. Out of the corner of his eye, Bruce began to scan the crowd in the ballroom for Lex. Bruce assumed Lex would be angry with him for postponing their meeting but he had had other things to attend to. Surely Lex wouldn’t have left altogether? He knew how important it was that their partnership appear intact…

He was so distracted by his search for Lex that he almost missed Alfred greeting his old college friend, now one of the rising stars in Gotham DA’s office.

“Mr. Dent, thank you for coming…and you brought a guest! It’s a…pleasant surprise.”

Bruce continued scanning the room for Lex as his friend Harvey Dent’s voice wafted in from the vestibule.

“Hey there, Alfred. I know I RSVP’d that I be coming stag but I managed to find a date after all. I didn’t think Bruce would begrudge an old friend one more guest. Particularly not one as lovely as this…”

“It’s quite alright, Mr. Dent. Pleased to meet you, miss,” said Alfred. “Right this way.”

Finally Bruce spotted Lex halfway across the room, lifting a glass of what appeared to be scotch from a server’s proffered tray. Lex looked over in his direction and frowned slightly as he swirled the liquid in the glass.

Bruce exhaled in relief in seeing Lex. At least he hadn’t stormed out. He had at least realized how important…

Suddenly Lex froze as he lifted the glass to his lips. He seemed to be looking at something over Bruce’s shoulder.

Instinctively, Bruce followed his friend’s gaze back towards the doorway.

“Bruce! There you are!” boomed Harvey, in his distinctive deep voice. ”It’s been too long, buddy! Good to see you.”

He shook Bruce’s hand enthusiastically, and pulled his companion closer to him with his other arm. “And this lovely lady agreed to be my date to this thing for some reason. Bruce Wayne, meet Chloe Sullivan.”

Bruce blinked.

Chloe. Sullivan.

Again.

Now in his house.

This damn woman was everywhere.

If she showed up one more time, Bruce thought he just might strangle her…

Or see about getting her fitted for kevlar…

As the thought of Chloe in kevlar flitted by, the heterosexual male part of Bruce’s brain took over and his eyes skimmed down the figure of the woman in front of him.

She was dressed in a form-fitting wine colored matte jersey gown. The gown had long sleeves but both the sleeves and the bodice of the dress ended just below her shoulders leaving them bare. Bruce had a pretty good understanding of the laws of psychics, but from where he stood, Chloe’s dress was held up by nothing but her cleavage and a few prayers.

Her loosely arranged up-do and simple teardrop gold earrings seemed specifically selected to emphasize the bare state of her neck and shoulders.

He reached her eyes and found them boring directly into his, challenging him, almost daring him, to do or say something.

“We’ve met,” he replied to Harvey, tearing his eyes from Chloe’s.

“Really? Where?”

Chloe slid her arm more snugly through Harvey’s. “Oh…we’ve bumped into each other once or twice around town. Gotham’s not as big as many think, Harvey,” she said, smiling at Bruce.

“And getting smaller every day. Glad you could both make it.” Bruce read her response immediately. She had been deliberately vague. However she had managed to convince Harvey to bringing her here, he must not know the specifics.

“Wouldn’t miss it,” agreed Harvey. “It’s a worthy cause. We’ll see you in a bit, Bruce.”

The couple began to step away. “Will you save me a dance, Miss Sullivan?” Bruce called over his shoulder.

“If you ask nicely. Mr. Wayne,” she replied, just loudly enough for most of the people nearby to overhear.

Bruce finished greeting his guests and quickly left the ballroom via a side door to collect himself. Lex appeared behind him a few seconds later.

“What is she doing here?” his friend wanted to know.

“I was going to ask you the same question. Weren’t you supposed to talk to her?”

“I did talk to her, and like I told you, we haven’t seen each other in ten years. She’s not likely to listen to me.”

“You still have a connection to her!”

“That I can use for what? Jedi mind tricks? In case you haven’t noticed, Bruce, she’s not easily intimidated.”

Bruce clenched his hands into fists.

“Neither am I.”

It was only when the words left his mouth that Bruce realized that he had said them in the tone that was more natural to him…the one that was several octaves lower.

End Chapter.

[Krysia]

“You still have a connection to her!”

“That I can use for what? Jedi mind tricks? In case you haven’t noticed, Bruce, she’s not easily intimidated.”

Bruce clenched his hands into fists.

“Neither am I.”

It was only when the words left his mouth that Bruce realized that he had said them in the tone that was more natural to him…the one that was several octaves lower.

End Chapter.

This was my favourite part of the story for two reasons. First it cracked me up :) , and second I loved the fact that Chloe can get through Bruces defences so easily he doedn't even realize it. More, please :)

[Natasha]

I think Bruce is going to be some major problems. Great Update.

[kimmie]

I loved Lex thinking back to when Chloe was in hiding and him admitting that he had feelings for her this can only lead to good things!!! Are we gonna see a jealous Lex when he talks to Chloe with this other guy? Or maybe he'll get jealous of her interaction with Bruce, I just love a jealous Lex!!!

Another fantastic update and I can't wait to see what happens next!!!

[lexchloe]

Wonderful update. Nice developments as to the state of Lex's feelings and the past he and Chloe shared. Loved the little scene between him and Alfred. Chloe turning up at the fundraiser is excellent (as is the addition of Harvey Dent) , especially since it seems to have knocked both our billionaires off a little. Can't wait to see what happens next.

[pipersmum]

:wub: Loved the conversation between Lex and Alfred :wub:
Chloe is certainly getting to Bruce without him even realising it :D
If Bruce does get to dance with Chloe will Lex get jealous and cut in??????
Please update soon :grin3:

[hfce]

Hmmm that was a great update but what is Chloe doing there? Does she think Bruce is dumb enough to let her snoop around his place. LOL! Good luck with that Chloe. LOL!

Hope :)

[darkangel]

THis chapter is just funny...............especially the end. When will Bruce realise that Chloe is not like all of the empty-headed bimbos that he is used to dealing with.

[star del mar]

“That I can use for what? Jedi mind tricks?

I love a sarcastic Lex, it makes me all warm :) I love how Chloe is just absolutely immersing herself in their world and just making them squirm...especially Bruce. Don't get me wrong I love the guy but he's being a little too shady for his own good. I'm looking forward to more of Chloe's digging.

Steph*

[arkakitty]

Oh my using his batman voice in front of Lex and technically also Chloe xD
I love this so much you can't imagine. Please update soon again :)

[campbti]

Wonderful. I loved the flashback, showing a little of Lex and why she felt so hurt being ignored after feeling so close. Late night conversations make the deepest impressions. Loved the last part. Can't wait to read more.

[meg20]

It gets more interesting every time and also funnier!

[Louie]

Or see about getting her fitted for kevlar…

And you really have to impress Bruce to get him to let you be on his team.So go Chloe.

And the low octive 'Neither am I' I could so like see his head going down an him making his scowl. tisk tisk tisk Bruce keep yourself under control you don't want anyone to know your other identity. Espically Lex.

[greeneyednblond]

This is such a good story. I remember the Supermen episodes where Luthor and Wayne teamed up.

Chloe as a member of the team? Wouldn't happen, she'd never have the patience to put up with being Bruce's sidekick. Partner? Maybe, but Bats doesn't do that very well.

I love Chloe's snark and way of keeping the boys in there places. Everytime they start to get mouthy out comes the snark stick and down they go again.

[pipersmum]

Still no update i'm dying here!

[newbatgirl]

A/N: Apologies for the delay. Thanks for sticking with me on this. On with the show… Oh, did someone ask for JealousLex?

Chapter 9

Wayne Manor ballroom…a little later that evening…

“So are you going to give me a hint?” Harvey whispered the words into Chloe’s ear as they danced.

She pulled back a bit to face him. “A hint about what?”

“Don’t be coy, CJ. It doesn’t suit you. A hint about what, or rather, who you are here to investigate.”

“Harvey, we agreed, no questions asked. You’re the one who said you owed me from the Edwards arson case, and you wanted a way to repay me.”

Harvey skillfully turned her on the dance floor. “At the time I had been thinking more in terms of treating you to lunch, not necessarily crashing a black-tie charity event.”

“We’re not crashing,” argued Chloe. “You had an invitation. Besides, when was the last time you even took lunch, a real lunch that you didn’t work through?”

That part was true; Harvey Dent was a hard-working prosecutor in the Gotham DA’s office. The two had met in the course of their work, because frankly, with their self-imposed work schedules, they rarely met anyone of the opposite sex any other way.

Harvey was certainly handsome enough. He was tall, and broad, with thick brown hair and dark eyes. With his deep, rich voice and movie-star good looks, his colleagues in the DA’s office joked that despite the fact that Harvey’s courtroom arguments were brilliant, no woman who had ever been in court with him had likely ever heard them. They were too entranced by him.

And, like Chloe, he hand a singular focus in life most of the time: his work. As a result he was considered to be on the fast track to the top seat in the DA’s office, and possibly even higher.

Harvey and Chloe actually had a few things in common besides their work ethics. They were both bright, attractive, and committed to justice. Unfortunately, neither of these similarities were really enough to build a long-term relationship on. A friendship, perhaps, but not a great romance. And that was OK. For both of them.

“I could ask the same question of you.”

Chloe rolled her eyes. “Whatever, I’m still not going to answer you. You’ll just have to settle for my undying gratitude for helping me out in this.”

“I suppose I can live with that.”

The turned again and Chloe noticed Harvey looking over her shoulder. He smiled a bit and turned back to her.

“If you won’t tell me about your case, then perhaps you can tell me why Lex Luthor can’t seem to take his eyes off of you. Other than the obvious reason, of course.”

Chloe looked over her shoulder and immediately locked eyes with Lex. He was standing slightly off to the side of the dance floor, his hands slipped in his pockets and staring quite openly at Chloe and her dance partner.

Naturally he looked downright delicious in his tuxedo. Even surrounded by a roomful of men who were almost identically attired, he stood out and not simply because of his bald head. He had a simmering intensity in his movements, his stance and especially in the way he watched Chloe. Even when she wasn’t sneaking glances at him out of the corner of her eye, she could feel his eyes on her. She could feel the flush of heat rising from her back to the nape of her neck and across her shoulders when her back was to him, and she knew her cheeks were likely thoroughly pink when Harvey turned them and she could see Lex’s face over his shoulder.

She almost shuddered at the force of his gaze but she stopped herself just in time. For one, Lex might see what he was doing to her and secondly, Harvey would certainly feel her reaction and she was in no mood to explain it to him.

Before she could form an answer to satisfy Harvey, however, Chloe felt a gentle tap on her other shoulder. She turned and found herself face to face with Bruce once again.

“About that dance, Miss Sullivan?”

“What about it?”

Harvey broke in with a smile, “I think you can do better than that, Bruce. Actually, I suggest you do better than that.”

Bruce cleared his throat. “May I have the next dance, Miss Sullivan?”

“Yes, you may.”

“Harvey you don’t mind, do you?” Bruce asked Harvey, and Chloe noticed Bruce sending the other man a Y-chromosome generated look that indicated that he really shouldn’t mind.

“Not at all, knock yourself out. Or, piss her off and she’ll do it for you.” Harvey leaned down and placed a brotherly peck on Chloe’s check. “Behave yourself, he’s the host, not to mention an old friend of mine,” he whispered to her. Chloe flashed him her best innocent smile, in spite of his earlier warning about coyness and waved him away.

She turned back to Bruce, who by now had his arms open in a dance stance to receive hers.

She stepped into place and allowed him to begin leading them around the other couples.

After a long moment, Bruce said, “Congratulations, you’ve surprised me yet again. I certainly wasn’t expecting to see you here. I must remember to thank Harvey…”

“Don’t blame Harvey. He owed me a favor.”

“I see. And what exactly did you tell him about your sudden need to attend this fundraiser?”

“All he knows is that I’m here about a case. I didn’t tell him anything else. Of course, he’s going to find out eventually…”

Bruce pulled back to look at her face. “Oh really, why is that?”

“I don’t see how you’re going to be able to keep it from him when his office is prosecuting you for insurance fraud,” Chloe replied, keeping her smile in place.

“You have quite the sense of humor, Miss Sullivan,” Bruce turned her easily, as if they were discussing the weather. “And might I add you look amazing in that dress.”

“You can drop the dim playboy act, Mr. Wayne. I’ve read virtually all of your emails and memos for the past year. I know that you’re not as clueless as you lead people to believe.”

“Are you sure about that? I’ve been told that I’m pretty clueless at times.”

Chloe reached up with her hand and wrapped it around the back of Bruce’s neck to bring his face down closer to hers. She then leaned in to speak directly in his ear.

“Suit yourself, but you and I need to have a talk. We can do it right here where anyone could hear or we can go someplace more private.”

When she pulled back, Bruce had the same insipid grin on his face. The contrast between this Bruce and the one she had seen at Wayne Enterprises was incredible.

He raised her hands to his lips and said, in a voice that was just a bit louder than necessary, “That’s sounds like a terrific idea. Why don’t we go see the view from the east balcony?” He kissed her hand, still maintaining his heated eye contact. “I’ll get us some drinks and meet you there.”

His disappeared in the direction of the bar and Chloe let out a breath. This was more tiring than she thought it would be. But, she would play along with whatever game Bruce wanted to play as long as he needed to, just as long as she could ask the questions that she needed to.

*****

Lex watched as Chloe danced with the attorney from the DA’s office that she had arrived with. Or, rather, “arrived draped over” he corrected bitterly. Milliseconds later, he berated himself for being bitter.

Up until a few days ago, he hadn’t seen Chloe Sullivan in years, and now he was having murderous thoughts about a man he hardly knew just because he was touching her.

Yes, Lex had felt the urge to punch the handsome accountant/lackey in her apartment the other day but he had rationalized that away once he noticed the young man’s resemble to a certain farm boy.

This attorney was an entirely different story. For one thing, he was her date. Plus, they seemed to know each other pretty well. And did he mention the touching thing? And he was one of those ridiculously handsome men who seemed to pull off the handsome bit with no effort at all.

Lex took a deep breath. He should be focusing on more important things, like why Chloe was here in the first place. Was she just trying to unnerve them? Did she actually know something and want to confront them about it directly?

He watched as Dent murmured something into Chloe’s ear. Her cheeks were pleasantly pink and Lex frowned at the thought that it was from something Dent had said.

Did he have to lean so close? What could he possibly have to say to her that needed to be whispered right into her ear? So close to the expanse of skin left bare by the dress…

Suddenly something else seemed to be happening. Bruce was cutting in and Dent was letting him. Bruce had the lecherous playboy look on his face. Surely he didn’t think that would work on Chloe?

Lex followed them around the floor with his eyes and caught sight of Chloe smiling up at Bruce.

Was it working on Chloe?

Lex blinked and collected his thoughts. No, she was just playing with him the same way he was trying to play with her. She was too smart to fall for that.

Chloe reached up and pulled Bruce’s head down towards hers to whisper into his ear.

Please, it wasn’t that loud in the ballroom.

Bruce then kissed her hand and released his hold on her, heading off in the opposite direction.

Chloe watched him leave then made her way towards the French doors leading to one of the balconies.

Lex hesitated for ten seconds before following her. He didn’t know what he was going to say to her when he caught up but he simply couldn’t stop himself from following her.

Chloe was already at the stone railing when he stepped outside. She had her arms crossed over her chest and was looking out at the immaculate, if somewhat gothic, gardens of Wayne Manor. Lex thought about approaching her but he still couldn’t decide what he would say. Their previous conversations in the last few days had not exactly gone well. She might have been close to believing his version of their separation but they had been interrupted. Now Lex felt he was back at square one.

Square one of what, though, was the question. He had first approached her in hopes of using their previous relationship to encourage Chloe to reconsider her take-no-prisoners approach to the investigation.

Then, when he realized how angry she still was at him, swaying her on the investigation took second place to getting her to believe that he hadn’t, as she put it,’ thrown her away like trash.’

Truth be told, it wasn’t the first time someone had leveled that particular accusation at him, but it hurt like hell coming from Chloe.

Lex realized that he had hesitated too long, Bruce was approaching Chloe from another entrance to the balcony. He decided to wait a few minutes before letting them know of his presence.

“Miss Sullivan,” said Bruce. “Sorry about the delay, I had to take an important phone call.”

“From your lawyer?” she asked, turning to face him and titling her face up. Lex could see the sly grin she had on her face.

“No, actually. Are you saying that I should call him? Do you plan on making any accusations he should be present for?”

Chloe shrugged. “It’s up to you. I’m not a cop, Mr. Wayne. I find some of their rules…confining. I’m going to say what I feel I need to say whether or not you have a suit you pay $800 an hour standing next to you; it makes no difference to me.”

Bruce smiled, “It’s abundantly clear that you still don’t know who you’re dealing with.”
There was no threat in his voice, only a bit of mirth. Lex clenched his jaw at the words though because they were directed at Chloe. She, however, did not seem fazed.

“I assume that you are referring to the fact that you are considered very powerful to some people and you have a great deal of money. Well, you should know whom you’re dealing with, as well. Two years ago, a U.S. Congressman decided to fake a paralyzing injury to his youngest child in order to garner some sympathetic votes and collect half a million dollars in disability insurance. I figured it out and had his ass arrested on the floor of the House of Representatives.

“Three years ago, the curator at a major art museum decided to fence a Monet to fund her prescription drug habit. She reported it stolen in order to collect several million dollars of its insured value and hide her crime. You can imagine her surprise when I walked into her office three weeks later with the painting, the fence she used, and her dealer.

“Six months ago, a British Lord, and second cousin to the Royal family, set his country estate on fire with his wife inside. Scotland Yard said it was an electrical fire and advised that Allied pay both the death and property claims. They called me in and within two weeks, the Lord, his lover, and the electrician they hired to set the fire were behind bars. Are you seeing a pattern here?”

One corner of Bruce’s mouth curled up. “You have an exceptional memory?”

Chloe took a step closer. “People with money and power don’t intimidate me. Not in the least.”

“One might even say that you target them, perhaps because you enjoy the challenge. Or maybe you simply have a bone to pick with the wealthy and powerful? Which is it?”

Chloe frowned briefly, then smirked. “I aim for where the evidence leads me, Mr. Wayne. I don’t target people because of who they are, I target them for what they’ve done. And I very good at hitting my targets.”

“I see. So what exactly is it that I have done? Other than cooperate fully with your investigation, that is.”

“You personally cut the third shift of the plant just a week before the explosion, ensuring that the plant would be empty. All your sales data showed that you should have been increasing production, not cutting back. There’s no reason why you should have taken time out from running a multi-billion dollar corporation to make a plant-level decision.”

Lex grudgingly admitted that to his credit, Bruce’s face revealed nothing. “It was my decision to make, and it doesn’t mean that I’ve done anything wrong. The decision could have been purely strategic.”

“I’ve read four dozen emails between you and Lex Luthor that lead me to think otherwise.”

Lex blinked. How much did she know?

“You and Lex don’t exactly agree on what to do with your new robots, do you?” Chloe continued. “You’ve been arguing for months. Broken promises, secret emails. Your deadlines are creeping closer and you can’t agree. Now all of sudden, boom! No more bots. Your partnership could end right now and with the insurance money, you’d recoup most, if not all, of your initial investment.”

Lex held his breath as Bruce stared intently at Chloe as she finished speaking. He had known Bruce for years but he had never seen anyone confront him like that. Lex honestly had no idea how to react. He was seconds from stepping in between them when Bruce finally spoke.

“Is that the extent of your evidence? Some emails and the fact that I cut production on the plant before the explosion? I’m sorry, Miss Sullivan, I think you’ll need to do better than that.”

“That doesn’t sound like a denial to me.”

“What’s there to deny? Sending emails? I can hardly do that. You’ve caught me and my computer red-handed! As for anything else, well, let’s just say it’s not really a bull’s eye just yet.”

“Who says I’m finished with you? Maybe this conversation was just to put you on notice.”

“Next time you can save yourself the trouble and stay home because I’m telling you now, I don’t like threats. You might be getting some sick thrill from badgering me, but I really am a very busy man. Once again, I must stress that you have no idea who you’re dealing with. I’m not going to tell you that again.” The mirth was gone from his voice and in its place was only steel.

Lex stepped out of the doorway, not waiting for Chloe’s reaction. “Bruce, I think that’s quite enough.”

Chloe spun around at Lex’s voice, clearly surprised to see him there. “Lex!”

Bruce did not seem as surprised. “Lex, no need to get all heroic. Miss Sullivan and I were just finishing up a discussion.”

“It sounded like you were threatening her. Of course, I’m sure that you weren’t because we both know that you have no need to do that.” Lex walked closer to the pair as he spoke pointedly.

Chloe interjected with a dramatic eye roll. “And besides, I hate to break this to you but my dry cleaner is more threatening than you are, Mr. Wayne.” She gave a mock shudder. “Extra starch….ughhhhh…it gives me the shakes just thinking about it.”

Lex felt a smile spreading over his face as Chloe easily brushed off Bruce’s threats. She really was something. Immediately though, he had to stamp down the grin when the felt Bruce’s eyes on him.

“I suppose I’ll need to work on that, won’t I?” Bruce answered. He turned to Lex “So how much of that did you hear?”

“Enough.” replied Lex.

“So you noticed, then, that Miss Sullivan’s theories paint you as an innocent bystander in all of this.”

“I never said that.” Chloe interjected.

“Well, his name was noticeably absent from your assessment of what I supposedly did. Why do you suppose that is, Lex?”

“Bruce…” Lex warned, but his friend would not let it go.

“Miss Sullivan, you wouldn’t be harboring any biases in this investigation, would you? I am aware that you and Lex weren’t exactly strangers when this investigation started. I certainly hope I’m not being unfairly targeted simply because I didn’t have the favor of a previous relationship with you.”

Chloe’s smile was tight. “I’m not sure what I can say to convince you but I’m as unbiased as I need to be. Mr. Luthor and I have not seen each other in ten years. The fact that I knew him before now is…it’s…”

“Irrelevant?” Bruce offered smugly. “You see that’s the word that Lex used when I asked him about your prior relationship. He said it was irrelevant.”

Lex stopped himself from visibly wincing. He had no idea what kind of game Bruce was playing here but he was obviously choosing his words in order to get some kind of reaction from Chloe. The word he had chosen so casually in that conversation with Bruce now cut through his heart as he watched the muscles in Chloe’s jaw tighten in response. He watched the movement in her throat as she swallowed before finding her voice to speak. It had not been but mere seconds between Bruce’s statement and her own but Lex had seen the brief flashes of sadness, anger, and betrayal that flickered in her eyes. The damage was done.

“He’s right,” she said softly.

“Excuse me?’ said Bruce.

“I said, he’s right. Our relationship was and is irrelevant to this case. And, as I said, this investigation isn’t over. You’ll both being seeing more of me. Anyway, gentlemen, I think I’ve neglected Harvey too long. I better get back to the party. Enjoy the rest of your night.”

She spun on her heel and walked back inside, the fabric of her gown swirling around her as she moved. Lex noted that she had carefully avoided making eye contact with him as she turned away.

Lex waited until the balcony doors clicked shut before turning to Bruce.

“What the hell was that about? When I said our relationship was irrelevant, I meant…I…”

“You meant what? Do you even know anymore when she’s involved?” Bruce demanded.

Lex had no answer…and it pissed him off royally.

“That’s exactly my point. I know what you said about your relationship but I also know what I’ve seen with my own eyes ever since she walked into my office. She distracts you and we can’t afford another distraction. I don’t know what exactly went on between you two and right now, I don’t care. All I care about is that she stays the hell away from you and you keep your head in the game where it belongs.”

“I didn’t ask for a keeper, Bruce. Stay the hell out of my business.”

Bruce shook his head and gave a wry grin. “It’s my business, too, Lex. What she does, what you do, it’s all my business now.”

End chapter.

[Krysia]

Bruce cleared his throat. “May I have the next dance, Miss Sullivan?”

“Yes, you may.”

“Harvey you don’t mind, do you?” Bruce asked Harvey, and Chloe noticed Bruce sending the other man a Y-chromosome generated look that indicated that he really shouldn’t mind.

“Not at all, knock yourself out. Or, piss her off and she’ll do it for you.” Harvey leaned down and placed a brotherly peck on Chloe’s check. “Behave yourself, he’s the host, not to mention an old friend of mine,” he whispered to her. Chloe flashed him her best innocent smile, in spite of his earlier warning about coyness and waved him away.

End chapter.

I love all the banter in this fic and this was one of my favourites. I can't wait to see what happens next. And I would just die to see some Chloe/Batman interaction. I'm wondering how she will react to him. I also like the way you have written jealous Lex, and since there can never be too much of him feel free to put him in the next update as well :)

[georgee5]

Insomnia totally sucks... until you realize that your favorite Batman crossover has been updated. I have to admit, this is the first time I have ever really disliked Bruce in a Smallville story. And it takes a lot for me to dislike Bruce (That is meant to be a compliment). I can't wait for your next chapter.

[darkangel]

Great update.

[pipersmum]

yeah you updated and i got jealous Lex :grin3: Shame he didn't get to dance with Chloe as well :P
For being a super hero Bruce is not coming across as a very nice bloke but i am still enjoying it :eek:
You know what would be really good is if during an argument, Lex would stop and pull Chloe to him and snog her :P Look i can wish can't i??

[Louie]

he hand a singular focus in life most of the time: his work. As a result he was considered to be on the fast track to the top seat in the DA’s office, and possibly even higher.

Aww that part made me sad poor Harvey.

Now everyone is saying they dislike Bruce, but you know guys he has a lot to hide and if the wrong people found out his secrets it would be big trouble. So I think he's allowed to be a little mean (though it may make Chloe look into him even more).

and I'd just like to say ya like you make good relationship choices all the time Bruce (can anyone say Catwoman) lay of Lex.

[kimmie]

I'm not liking Bruce at all, he's starting to mess with the Chlex and that is totally unacceptable, i might have to open a can of whoopass!!!

I LOVE Jealous Lex, he was so cute, watching Chloe as she danced with Harvey and Bruce and i loved how he stepped in to Chloe and Bruce's argument when Bruce started to threaten Chloe, protective Lex is very HOT!!!

Loved it and I want More...SOON, please!!!

Kimmie

[hfce]

Oh my goodness I am so liking this. I want more please. :beg:


Hope ;)

[Gemkat5]

that was a very interesting place to leave this... not quite your infamous cliff hanger, but pretty damn close to it! Lex is beside himself for more than 1 reason, Bruce is in 'defensive' mode, and Chloe is hurt and more determined than ever to get to the bottom of this case and be rid of both of them! (least thats how I see it)

I seriously hope the holiday (if you acknowledge it) doesn't interfer with a speedy update! In fact, you could post again on Monday if you really love us!! :D :D :D

[star del mar]

Grrr...Bruce is bothering me, big time. I know that he has to think logically and keep it strictly business but he's messing things up with Lex and Chloe! He's the anti-cupid for God's sake! Everything that he seems to be doing or saying is pushing Chloe and Lex further apart. What a freaking mess...great update though :D

Steph*

[Kit Merlot]

WHOAH, NBG, I just realized that I failed to leave you feedback for your last couple of updates--damn, I must be losing my mind!

Don't say it, I know you're thinking, 'Kit, WHAT mind?!' ;)

I like how your showing the Lex/Bruce friendship/rivalry. They aren't best friends or mortal enemies, but they have each others respect, and I like that.

And, I will always adore a jealous Lex, but I want to kick the crap out of Bruce for deliberately hurting Chloe's feelings.

Your story is truly excellent, and I can't wait for more :D

[newbatgirl]

A/N: I know, I know…ten chapters…whatever…we’re here now aren’t we? This isn’t NC-17 or MA or whatever rating we can use without being sued. It’s supposed to be R (or the equivalent). If it’s not, someone let me know so I can ask that it be moved to the appropriate forum. I did try to write it so it could stay in here, though.

Chapter 10 – Part A

Outside Chloe’s loft… later that evening…

Lex cut the engine of his car. It was not his typical style but a nondescript luxury sedan, a company vehicle that he used while he was in Metropolis. It was certainly not something anyone would expect to find Lex Luthor driving. Thus he felt well concealed as he watched from across the street as Harvey Dent helped Chloe out of his car and walked behind her up the front door of her apartment building.

He had left the party early and driven straight to her loft hoping to get to speak to her. Too late he remembered that she had been on a date and that she might not come home at all, and if she did, she might not be alone. Still, he held out hope that there was nothing serious between Chloe and the handsome attorney, just as there seemed to be nothing between her and her lovestruck accountant colleague. So Lex waited and he didn’t need to wait long. Harvey Dent had pulled up in front of the building only minutes behind him.

Lex watched as they turned to face each other at the top of the stairs. Dent rested his hand on one of Chloe’s shoulders and she shook her head slightly. She said something that made him laugh and then leaned up to give him a kiss on the cheek. Dent released her shoulder, much to Lex’s relief, and jogged back down the stairs to his car as Chloe disappeared into the building.

He waited a good five minutes in the darkened car after Dent drove away. He found himself in the unfamiliar situation of not having a clue of what to say to this woman… He, who had shared meals and conference tables with more world and military leaders than he could count, was now tongue-tied about a woman.

He had come to try to undo the damage that Bruce had caused and…after that… After that, it was all up to her.

Lex opened the car door.

Meanwhile…Upstairs in Chloe’s loft…

Chloe slammed the door behind her, tossed her evening bag and keys on the low side table and immediately reached for her shoes. Damn torture devices anyway. Surely all the advances in modern technology could have come up with a sexy and comfortable pair of evening shoes by now. With the straps of her shoes still dangling from one hand, she reached up with her other hand and pulled the pins from her hair. Those were yet another source of pain. If it were up to her, she would have left her hair down, painlessly down. But the drama of the dress required an updo. One that had been pulling at her temples all damn night. Damn fashion to hell anyway. Was it any wonder that she stuck with plain pantsuits most of the time? She simply could not be bothered with heels and stockings, not in a job as unpredictable as hers.

She padded to the living room and dropped the shoes next to the couch and the pins on the end table before settling down with a loud sigh, her hands buried in her hair.

All that torture, and for what? A virtually fruitless conversation with Bruce Wayne and yet another painful encounter with Lex Luthor? Fun.

No, perhaps the evening wasn’t a total wash, she thought, sitting up. It was psychologically important to stay visible, to make sure they knew she was still watching them. And waiting. But she tired of the mind games, the posturing. And of seeing Lex and feeling like they were each going to explode if they got too near one another.

There was a knock at her door and she groaned. Harvey, perhaps? No, she had told him she was feeling tired and needed to go right to bed.

With a muted curse she rose from the couch and dragged herself back to the door. She looked through the peephole and blinked.

Good God. How was she supposed to handle this now?

She pulled back from the peephole and ran a hand through her hair. He didn’t actually know that she was home, did he?

“Chloe, I know you’re in there. Open the door.”

So much for that.

Lex knocked again, more forcefully this time.

“Go away. You’re not any more welcome than you were the last time.”

“Chloe, come on. I need to talk to you. Open the door.”

“Send me a memo.”

“Chloe…This is important. I’ll stand out here all night if I have to…”

“Suit yourself. I have earplugs.”

“Do your neighbors?”

“They’re all musicians, they’re up anyway. Go knock on their doors. Maybe they take requests.”

“Come on, Chloe… just hear me out. This isn’t about the explosion, the money or Bruce, this is about us…Chloe, are you listening to me?”

Chloe leaned her head against the door. “I told you, there is no ‘us’” she was startled when the door shook as Lex slammed his hand against it from the other side in what sounded like frustration.

“Dammit, Chloe! There’s an ‘us’ and you know it! There always has been! You can feel it and so can I! All I want to do is explain things to you. Just give me five minutes!” He punctuated the end of his sentence with two more resigned thumps against the door. “Please…”

Chloe pressed her palm against the door where she felt his would be for a long moment, then she skimmed it down towards the doorknob, twisted and pulled.

Lex was standing with his hands braced on either side of the doorframe when she opened the door. His face was a mixture of surprise and relief. Like her, he was still dressed for the party, though he had undone his tie and the first few buttons of his shirt.

“Thank you,” he said.

“Five minutes,” she replied coolly, shutting the door behind him and gesturing towards the living room.

Once in the living room they turned to face each other. She felt his eyes skimming over her body again. It was brief but it left her feeling very exposed and vulnerable. Unconsciously, she crossed her arms over her chest.

“What did you want to say?”

Lex took a deep breath and rubbed at his brow before speaking. “Chloe…What Bruce said tonight…what I said…he took it completely out of context. I only said it so he would stop asking questions about our relationship and just move on. He said…what he said, to get a reaction out of you, that’s all.”

“Why do you even think I care? So you said our relationship was irrelevant. It is, I’ve said so myself. End of story.”

“Chloe, you’re not fooling me. I saw the look on your face when he said that. You think I don’t know when you’re hurt?”

“No, I just think you don’t always care...” Chloe replied, without thinking.

“I do care. I’m here now, aren’t I?”

“You’re late! You’re ten years too late!”

“What?”

“Shit…never mind…just forget it…”

The air in her apartment suddenly seemed stifling and Chloe brushed past him towards the balcony doors. She slid the door open and stepped outside letting the cool air hit her flushed skin.

Chloe felt like a conflicted mess. She crossed her arms over her chest again in an effort to warm herself and stop shivering yet her face was burning up.

“Chloe?” came Lex’s voice from the doorway. “What do mean by ten years too late? Wait a minute…this is about when you left, isn’t it?”

“Lex, just leave. Let’s just forget this whole thing.”

“No, I can’t do that. Not now. Chloe, tell me the truth, when you left Smallville ten years ago, did you want me to follow you?”

Chloe exhaled. “What does it matter?”

“It clearly matters to you. Now be honest, did you want me to follow you?”

“Yes, I mean, no…No!”

“Which is it?”

“I…guess part of me did. I knew that I needed to leave Smallville, because of everything that happened, not just because of you. I knew that I wanted a fresh start somewhere else. But I was also really confused. I didn’t know if you still cared about me at all, I guess part of me thought that leaving was the only way of finding out for sure how you felt. I couldn’t talk to you, see you, I didn’t know what else to do. Then when you didn’t come after me…God, it was such a dumb teenaged thing to do, I can’t even believe I’m saying any of this…”

Lex stepped up behind her where she stood at the railing with the backdrop of the Gotham City lights and the city’s eerie reddish sky behind her.

“God, Chloe, no wonder you hate me.”

“I don’t hate you, I’m tired and angry and I feel really…stupid.”

Lex tentatively placed his hands on her upper arms and slid them up her shoulders. Chloe started a bit but did not shrink away. “Why would you feel stupid?”

“That summer, it was just too intense. I relied on you so much, too much. I relied on you to protect me and my dad, then I relied on you to keep me from going stir crazy in that house, and then it seemed like we were friends, for a while anyway.” She shook herself a little and stepped away from him abruptly. “I guess I got caught up in the intensity of it and started thinking that I was really important to you. I couldn’t handle the reality that I wasn’t. I left because I didn’t want to be that person again. Once is enough… Like I said, it was just stupid teenage…angst…and pride…silly stuff that was probably all in my head…nothing we need to rehash now.”

“Chloe, it’s not stupid and you were important to me. Very important. And I did follow you, at least to Metropolis, why do you think I did that?”

Chloe sniffed and shrugged, with her back still to him.

Lex reached out for her again, this time touching her back at about waist level and she suppressed a sigh at the intimacy of the gesture.

“Chloe, I went after you because I thought I still had a chance at salvaging our…friendship. I was hoping that you had understood why I had to do what I did and that away from Smallville, we could start over. I assumed that you would know why I did what I did. I shouldn’t have assumed that, it wasn’t fair to you.”

Chloe didn’t respond. Her mind was spinning too fast.

“Chloe? You believe me, don’t you?”

Suddenly she spun around to face him. “If that’s true, why didn’t you follow me here? Why did you give up so easily? It couldn’t have been too hard to find out that I had transferred to Gotham University. If our friendship was really that important, you could have come here.”

Lex opened his mouth but he seemed at a loss for something to say.

“Lex?”

“You left! You moved half way across the country! How was I supposed to know that you even wanted anything more to do with that life, let alone me? And what if I had come here and…” he stopped talking abruptly and squeezed his eyes shut.

“And what?” Chloe demanded. She reached up and pulled his chin in her direction again. “What if you had come and what, Lex?”

“What if I had come and you didn’t feel the same way?” he whispered, with a wide-eyed expression she had never seen before, one that made him look very young and unsure.

Chloe blinked, stunned for a moment before leaning forward into his chest in a fit of giggles and hiccoughs. “Stupid…stupid…morons…”

“Chloe?”

“We’re a couple of idiots, you know? Proud, insecure, butt-reaming idiots…” She looked up and smiled a watery smile at him. Then she reached up and grabbed the lapels of his tuxedo jacket and felt his hands land on her waist. “It wasn’t all in my head, was it?” she said, rather than asked.

Lex shook his head. “No, it was never just all in your head.” He moved to lean his head down towards hers, then stopped. “Am I still too late?”

Still in her stocking feet, Chloe had to stand on her tip toes to get closer. She shook her head in reply. “I think you can just get it in under the wire.”

“I’m sorry.” He whispered, as he leaned closer.

“I’m sorry, too.”

The end of her sentence was almost cut off by him covering her mouth with his own, though she more than met him halfway. The kiss was very gentle at first as neither seemed very anxious to pull back or deepen it right away.

There was a small part of her brain telling her that she wasn’t supposed to be doing this, that Lex was technically still a client and still under investigation, her investigation. But kissing him felt so right, so absolutely natural, that she simply could not make herself stop. She told herself that it would be okay, it had to be okay. It just had to be.

Chloe let go of Lex’s lapels and slid her hands up, placing one on his shoulder and one on the base of his neck; she let her index finder lightly trail across the smooth skin she found there. Immediately, his hold on her tightened and he began nipping at her lower lip, silently demanding more access to her mouth. Chloe titled her head and obliged, letting him slip inside to explore and taste.

He felt so warm and strong around her, she didn’t think she’d ever want to let go. The fact that she had that thought scared her somewhat but she pushed down the fear and focused on simply feeling and tasting every bit of him that she could. He tasted vaguely of scotch, which seemed right, but he was clearly not drunk. In fact, he suddenly seemed more lucid than he had been in any of their previous encounters. She, on the other hand, was rapidly losing her connection with reality mostly due to the way he was stroking his tongue against the roof of her mouth. The chill in the night air became a distant memory; the heat they were generating between them was more than making up for it. They were both going to need oxygen soon but losing contact with his mouth seemed like a really bad idea to Chloe right now.

Some seconds later, though, she was feeling decidedly lightheaded and she had to pull back slightly. She was still gulping air when she felt Lex move his lips across her chin and down her jaw line. Then he reached up and buried both of his hands in her hair lifting it out of the way so he could trail his kisses down across her neck.

“Oh God.”

She wasn’t sure how much longer she could trust her knees if he was going to keep doing that.

She pulled his face back to hers and kissed him, long and deep. When they broke apart, she grinned.

“Should we take this inside?”

End Part

This chapter ended up being really long so I had to break it up somewhere. I know, I know, it was really bad where I broke it. Trust me, my ears are bleeding already.

[georgee5]

Yeah! Update! Yeah!

So I like smut, but I think Chloe might be going too fast with moving it inside. I think that Lex will end up saying something exceedingly stupid and Chloe is going to think that he was just trying to get her off her game.

Please, give me more Bruce. Christian Bale is nice and all, not to mention the countless others. But for some reason, it was always the cartoon Bruce that got me going. Waiting anxiously...

[star del mar]

I know that you know but really?! I need more! I'm so glad that Lex and Chloe finally opened up to each other and cleared up at least some of the crap that was holding them back. Misunderstandings and assumptions as usual creating a whole mess. I can't wait for you to come back! I need some smut :)

Steph*

[lexchloe]

KISSAGE!!!!! Yay!!! Loved that Lex went to her home to apologise for Bruce (who is being a bit of an ass) and wouldn't leave until she heard him out. So glad that they talked to each other about why she left and why he didn't follow her to Gotham. All very excellent especially the kissage :D . Wonder what Bruce will make of this (cos you know he's going to find out) and what effect if any this shift in their relationship will have on her investigation. More please.

[kimmie]

We got some smoochies... I'm so HAPPY!!! But why oh why did you have to bloody end it there?!!! Are you trying to drive me crazy?

Get back here...SOON!!!

Kimmie

[meg20]

Bruce is getting on my nerves every time a little more than before and really liked how you gave us some Chlex sweetness, but I'm afraid that if they go to bed now it will ruin everything for a while again. But hey give us more please!!!

[newbatgirl]

A/N: I know that it's probably not a good idea for our heroes to do this right now but that's the point. How many times have you done something that you really shouldn't have done?

Oh, there’s a brief homage to The Thomas Crown Affair (the Pierce Brosnan-Renee Russo one) in here. First one to catch it and identify it gets virtual chocolate.

Chapter 10 – Part B

“Should we take this inside?”

Lex was struggling to catch his breath after that amazing kiss and Chloe had just asked him…something. Individually, he knew what the words meant but his brain was taking its sweet time in deciphering what they meant strung together.

Something about inside… going inside?

He nodded and kissed her again, steering them back trough the doorway as he did so. Blindly, he reached out and grabbed the handle of the balcony door and slid it closed. Once it was secured, he backed her against it and pressed himself fully against her, letting her feel how aroused he was after only a few minutes of kissing.

She gasped into his mouth but didn’t seem scared away. Quite the contrary, she pushed back against him, rocking her hips a little, teasing him, urging him to find a rhythm. Which he tried to do…only to discover that there were still too many layers of clothing between them. He pulled back from her only far enough to shrug out of his tuxedo jacket and toss it on a nearby chair. Chloe leaned forward and with a look that would have melted the polar ice caps, pulled his tie out of his collar and tossed it over his shoulder. She then went to work on the buttons on his shirt. Instead of simply ripping it open, she went with an option he found much more pleasurable: she placed hot, open-mouthed kisses on every inch of flesh she uncovered.

He didn’t let her get too far down, though, before pulling her back up and claiming her mouth once again. He was so caught up in the taste of her and the feel of her body through the thin fabric of her dress that he didn’t realize she was moving them until the back of his legs hit something. He broke the kiss and spared a look behind him. It was the large chair that he had just tossed his jacket on. Before he could even turn around again, Chloe shoved him down. He landed on the seat with a muffled “uumph” and she climbed right onto his lap, gathering her long gown up a bit so she could straddle his legs.

If Lex had a free hand, he would have pinched himself. There was no way that he was lucky enough to have Chloe in his arms like this. Hair mussed from his fingers, swollen lips, and practically spilling out of her dress. This had to be a dream.

And that dress, the dress that had tortured him all night. Did she have any idea how she looked in it?

He pressed his lips against her neck again. “I’ve wanted to kiss you here all night, ever since you walked into that party wearing this. Right here.” He sucked lightly on her pulse point. “And here.”

Chloe hummed something incoherent in response, then gasped louder when he bit down lightly, and then soothed the area with another trail of kisses. Too late he realized that he probably should be being more careful so as not to leave marks but she slipped her hands inside his shirt and began running the pads of her fingers over his torso and he figured to hell with it. He could buy her some high-collared shirts.

Their position on the chair allowed for more intimate contact and Chloe began to take full advantage of that fact. She curled as close to him as she could and rocked her hips against his once again. The friction was good, so very good…too good. There was no way he could keep that up for very long without…

“Chloe…” he placed one of his hands on her hip to still her. “Slow…slow down…too fast…”
Ah well, he used to be capable of complete sentences.

She nodded, getting the point. “Sorry, I got a little anxious.” She then locked her eyes with his and reached for his wrist. Taking it in both of her hands, she carefully undid the cuff of his shirt, then the other. She then reached up and slid the item off of his shoulder, all the while maintaining eye contact and letting her body brush against his as much as possible. As she tossed the shirt to the side, Chloe pressed kisses on his bare shoulders and he was sure he could feel her smiling against his skin.

Once his shirt was gone, Lex crushed their upper bodies together once more, wrapping one hand around the back of her head so he could control their kiss. His other hand was trapped in the scant space between them, caressing her breast through the fabric of her dress. Yet another thing he had been dying to do all night.

After a few more minutes of kissing and stroking, Lex realized that the chair, however comfortable, had its drawbacks. If they were going to do this – he sucked in a breath as Chloe’s fingernails skimmed over his abdominal muscles –- they were going to need more room.

“Chloe.”

“Hmmmm?” her face was buried in the crook of his neck.

“Chloe…we should move to wherever your bedroom is…to have more room.”

She froze against him for and instant and Lex feared that she had changed her mind.

Instead, though she eased off of his lap, being careful not to hurt him, extended her hand and said, “Upstairs.”

“Are you sure?” He had better ask this now, while there was still a small chance of him being able to stop.

She nodded. “Upstairs.”

He grasped her hand and let her pull him from the chair and towards the large staircase leading to the loft.

She climbed steps ahead of him and halfway up Lex could not resist taking advantage of the fact that her position on the stairs brought her closer to his height. He turned her around and kissed her once again, teasing her tongue with his. As they kissed, he began gathering up her long skirt with his fingers. He had only intended to kiss her but instinct was taking over. He just wanted to please her, right then and there. He broke their kiss and gently pushed her down until she was seated on one of the stairs, looking thoroughly bewildered.

“Lex? I thought…”

“Shhhh. Just relax.”

Kneeling down in front of her, he slid his hands further under her skirt until her reached the tops of her stocking. Being sure to caress as much of her skin as possible, he slowly slid the stocking down her leg and off. He repeated the action with her other leg and smiled to himself when he saw that Chloe looked about ready to melt. He wasn’t done yet. He slid up to the stair just below hers, settled close to her and reached under her skirt again, until his hand reached the waistband of her panties. Chloe immediately whimpered and arched into his touch.

Lex pulled her closer with his free arm and pressed his mouth against her neck while plunging his fingers further into her panties.

She jerked against him and muttered something incoherent though Lex was fairly certain that one of the words she was trying to say was his name.

She was warm, wet and…incredibly response. Just seconds after his fingers began to probe and rub at her center, she began making the most amazing sounds. Little moans, sighs, and whimpers that were seriously testing the boundaries of his control.

In an attempt to distract himself from his own urgent need, he leaned over and kissed her again, thoroughly sweeping through her mouth until they both had to part for air. All the while he had kept up the movements of his hand. When they parted, he noticed her squirming a bit against his hand and clutching at the stair so hard her knuckles were white.

“Are you almost there?”

She nodded frantically and moved her hips faster against his hand. “Just...a little…faster?”


“What the lady wants…” Lex replied.

He pulled her even closer, until he was cradling her with his free arm and stroking her faster than before. She was tensing…she was so close…almost there…

Chloe tensed in his arms, arched back, and moaned loudly, clutching his arms as she came…

“God….Leeeex….”

Her body went limp and she wriggled contentedly against his hand, claiming the last ripples of pleasure from him…

The sated look on her face was almost enough to make Lex forget that he was still in desperate need of a release. Almost. Still, she looked damn sexy all limp and cat-like. He gave in to the sudden overpowering urge to kiss her eyelids, forehead, and cheeks and as his did so he pulled his hand from her panties and rested it on her hip.

After a minute or two, his body was reminded him that they really needed to move things along.

“Can you walk?” he whispered.

She grinned. “Someone has a pretty high opinion of their handiwork.”

“That’s a really bad pun.”

Chloe wrinkled her nose in realization. “Oh, yeah…sorry.”

“So can you make it to the bed?” he asked again, this time he was unable to keep of the strain out of his voice.

“I can. Can you?” There was no obviously hiding his situation from her at this point.

“I’ll be fine, just don’t touch me…too much until we’re there.”

They untangled their bodies from one another’s and crept up the remaining stairs. Lex had to smile when he saw that Chloe was indeed a bit wobbly on her legs.

They reached her bedroom and Chloe switched on a single bedside lamp. Then she reached behind her to unfasten her dress.

There was no way Lex was going to be left out of that.

“Here, let me.”

*****

“Here, let me.”

Then his hands were on her again, turning her around so her back was to him. His fingers fumbled about trying to find the hidden zipper. Then it seemed like he was fumbling about just for the hell of it.

Finally he pulled down the zipper and reached around to “help” ease the fabric off of her breasts. It didn’t really need much help.

“How was this even staying up---?” he asked, dropping the dress and cupping her breasts with both hands.

Chloe arched back slightly as the silky material pooled around her feet. She then stepped out and turned back to face him, wrapping her arms around his neck. She was just wearing her panties at this point and didn’t feel at all self conscious about it.

“C’mon, women have to have some secrets, don’t they?”

She leaned up to kiss him briefly and then reached for his belt.

He immediately pulled back. “Wait…don’t, remember?”

“Sorry.”

“It’s OK.”

She waited patiently while he discarded his shoes and socks, then undid his belt and carefully released himself from his pants and boxers. He then pushed her down to sit on the bed and kneeled in front of her, hooking his fingers in the thin band of her panties. Lex leaned forward and placed a kiss on each hipbone before sliding the fabric down and off.

“Lie down.” He instructed, rising up only far enough to hoist himself onto the bed. Chloe immediately leaned back, unable to take her eyes off of his smooth, muscular form. She was anxious to run her fingers over every smooth inch of his flesh but from the looks of things, they really didn’t have time on this go around. Definitely something to put on the “to do” list, though.

He settled over her, his lower body held carefully away, he suddenly stopped short. “Dammit!”

“What?” God, he wasn’t going to stop now, was he? She’d have to kill him.

“Condoms?”

OK, that she could fix. Chloe rolled over to the other nightstand and reached into the drawer. She pulled out the package and with slightly shaking fingers, opened it and shook out the foil packets onto the top of the nightstand. She tossed the box down, scooped up one packet and rolled back over in one fluid movement.

“Condoms.”

Lex was smirking at her. “New box?”

“Oh, bite me.”

He responded by taking the packet from her as he buried his mouth in her neck once again, nipping lightly at the skin there. “Well, since you asked…”

“Lex…ahhhh, that’s good…it’s not like it’s my first box or anything… I just like to keep fresh ones around, you know these things do have a shelf life…”

Lex rolled them over so he was on top and braced himself on his forearms as she babbled.

He ripped open the package and slipped on the condom.

“Besides, it’s not like you were much help…How could you not have…”

“Chloe?”

“Hmmm?”

“You can keep talking now or we can do the other thing.”

“Smartass.”

He lowered himself down, positioned himself at her entrance, gripping one of her thighs as he teased her a bit.
Where he was getting the strength to tease at this point was beyond her.

She nodded and spread her legs wider to give him room. That seemed to be all the signal he needed. He pushed deep inside in one hard movement. Chloe gasped at the force of it.

“Sorry, was that too…?” He stopped and began to pull back.

“No, you just caught me off guard…. Don’t stop.” She reached around his waist and settled her palms flat against his shoulder blades.

He began moving in her, reaching deep inside her with each movement…but very slowly. It felt wonderful to Chloe but given the state of her arousal at this point, the pace was maddening.

“Lex? I appreciate the fact that you’re trying to be gentle but I have done this before. I won’t break.”

He brushed his lips against her cheekbone. “I know…it’s just…”

“What?” Chloe pushed her head deeper into the pillows so she could look at him. “What is it?”

Lex looked almost shy for a moment and when he spoke, his voice as tense. “I never thought I would ever do this with you…I don’t know …I mean, I don’t want to hurt you and ruin it.”

Chloe felt something tighten in her chest. She understood what he was saying, and what he was not saying. Lex had forgotten, if he had ever known at all, how to make love to someone he actually cared about. The realization made her world spin.

She leaned up and kissed him, small, light kisses all over the smooth planes of his face. ‘It’s OK. Just show me how you feel, it’ll be fine. Besides, it’s not like this is our only shot at this.”

Lex responded by increasing his pace, moving faster and harder while still keeping his eyes locked with hers, silently requesting confirmation. She nodded in return, unable to speak as the exquisite tension began to form in her lower body.

His head fell to her upper chest and he kissed whatever skin he could reach. Meanwhile, Chloe let her hands skim down Lex’s lower back, anchoring them there for leverage as she pushed back against his movements.

They were both panting and beginning to sweat a bit from their exertions. Chloe knew she was being far from quiet but she didn’t care. Lex was, of course, quieter, he was that way by nature. He was so focused and he expressed himself by the way he moved, the way he kissed her, and stroked what parts of her skin he could reach.

“Better?” he asked, his mouth against her shoulder.

“Uh-huh…” was all she could manage as she wrapped her legs around his hips, letting him reach even deeper inside her.

He rolled his hips and moaned, right into her ear. “You feel good, Chloe….so good.”

She didn’t respond, she was focused on the friction he was creating with his new angle. God, it almost perfect…she was already so close. Then he was talking again.

“Chloe, I want to look at you. I want to watch you…” He braced his hands on her hips and raised up off of her to show her what he meant. She understood and held onto his waist. “OK.”

He rolled them over, keeping their bodies connected, until she was straddling him and he half-sat, half lay, against the large pillows at the head of her bed. Chloe had to reach out and grasp the headboard with her hands to gain her balance. The action brought her breasts almost directly at Lex’s eye level.

He smirked mischievously. “See? Better already.”

Chloe looked down and laughed. “Now boarding on track one…Lex’s brain. God, you’re easily distracted.”

Lex pushed himself upwards, resuming their movements. She gasped in return and started moving again herself, rising up and down in time with him. He reached up and cupped her breasts in his hands. “You can’t really blame me. You have to know how beautiful they are…” He ran his tongue over one nipple, then the other. “Just perfect.”

The feel of Lex’s mouth on her breasts coupled with the sensations between her legs were more than Chloe could handle. Her grip on the headboard tightened and she began slamming her body down onto his with reckless and erratic force. Lex responded in kind, gripping her hips and thrusting upwards, all the while lavishing attention on her breasts.

The pressure built, higher and higher, tighter and tighter, up from her center, to her breasts and back, until it was almost unbearable. The peak seemed just out of her reach, just beyond her touch…until it broke…sending waves of intense pleasure through her. She was still in the midst of her release when she became vaguely aware of Lex tensing beneath her, groaning out her name through his teeth. She felt him let go, through the thin material of the condom and in the way he clung to her. As their sensations subsided, they both collapsed Lex against the pillow and Chloe on top of him.

She felt him stroking her back with his fingertips as they caught their breath. After a long moment, when she felt like she could move her legs, she climbed off of him, wincing slightly as her inner leg muscles protested, Lex used the opportunity to rise up and dispose of the condom in a nearby wastebasket.

He was next to her on the bed once again within seconds. She was lying on her back, her head propped up by the pillows, one arm bent above her head. She knew she was sweaty and that her hair was probably a wild mess. Lex didn’t seem to mind. He was sweaty too. He lay on his side facing her, propping his head up with one hand and he wrapped his other hand around hers and brought it to his lips. Neither of them said anything. Not for a long while. They just lay there, resting, breathing, and watching.

Finally Lex leaned over to press a gentle kiss on her mouth. When he pulled back, she traced the outline of his lips with her thumb and said, “I think things just got a lot more complicated.”

“You’re right.”

End chapter.

[lexchloe]

Finally Lex leaned over to press a gentle kiss on her mouth. When he pulled back, she traced the outline of his lips with her thumb and said, “I think things just got a lot more complicated.”

“You’re right.”

Oh definately complicated but in such a good way!!! :D Excellent update, very very hot smut. Loved how they managed to keep the banter up even during the heat. What does this mean for their relationship and for Chloe's investigation? Great job and can't wait for more.

[star del mar]

Mmmm, that was some yummy smut. I love that Lex was trying to be so gentle with Chloe, he tries to be so badass but he is so just so sweet sometimes. Yea, things have gotten more complicated now but what's a story without some few twists and turns besides Lex and Chloe are strong enough to get through them. Great update!

Steph*

[hfce]

Oh I love how they finally talked things out and the smut was :drool: but now how is she going to be fair in this investigation. I think she needs to resign and let someone else do this. Bruce will so know what they did. LOL!


Hope ;)

[kimmie]

Ok so things are complicated but when have things ever been easy for Chloe and Lex? Complications = Frustration = Fights = Hot Make up Sex, See its all good!!!

That was bloody hot Smut, by the way, now come back with an update again really, really SOON, cos this fic is addictive!!!

Kimmie

[Gemkat5]

Loved how they worked all that out! No messing around for the chlex! They just get right to it!!! That was some really damn good sex......I gotta get me some of 'THAT"!!

Great chapter! Update again soon! I gotta know how bad Bruce will flip when he figures out what they did.

[arkakitty]

Great chapters :)

[Kendrix03]

That was a great chapter and I'm happy to see that Chlex is finally getting it together.
Unfortunately, I felt like this was an omen.


‘It’s OK. Just show me how you feel, it’ll be fine. Besides, it’s not like this is our only shot at this.”

[littlepearl]

Oh waw. I adore this fic. I love how you mixed Bruce, Lex and Chloe. And the sex :devil: Oh My !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[pipersmum]

wow that was a great chapter i loved the smut, Lex so wanted to please Chloe :grin3:
But i just know this is going to end in tears it all went to well and Chloe has still got to do the investigation :wth:
Things always look different in the morning and if Bruce finds out will he try to use it to his advantage to get Chloe of the case???????
Please update soon i can't wait to find out

[kcsgirl82]

Great update!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please update again as soon as possible!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!

[Zannie]

More complicated things definitely are now . . . but what a yummy kind of complication. That was some very fine smut. Very, very fine. I loved the humor you mingled in with the hotness and sweetness of it, and I particularly adored how Chloe was not to touch Lex too much before they got upstairs.


Chloe felt something tighten in her chest. She understood what he was saying, and what he was not saying. Lex had forgotten, if he had ever known at all, how to make love to someone he actually cared about. The realization made her world spin.

This was just the sweetest thing. I seriously melted.

Now I'm a little bit worried about where they're going to go from here, since things aren't ideally suited for a smooth ride. I can foresee all kinds of angsty things happening between them because of the plot situation, so my satisfaction is tainted with a little thread of foreboding.

I can't wait to see what happens next.

[campbti]

What us, do something that we shouldn't at absolutely the worst possible time, surely you jest??? Ok, yeah, so it should be REALLY fun to see how they work through this. and why is it that i see Batman out on the ledge knowing what is going on and saying in that new batman voice, "Yes, very complicated". I'm telling you that man is a voyeur of the first order. Can't wait for more of this relationship and more hints on the complexity of the investigation too...

[dreamerjules]

Wow. Just absolutely wow. There's massive badness ahead, isn't there?

Julie

[darkangel]

wow. Great smut.

[meg20]

Great smut, but now I'm waiting to see how they manage to interact in the office!!!

[newbatgirl]

Don’t kill me but I need to split up the chapter again. I’m going to post this part now and the rest later this weekend, Monday at the latest. And don’t think I’m not disappointed that no one took me up on my virtual chocolate offer. :)

Chapter 11 – Part 1

Chloe’s loft…the next morning…

Chloe stepped out her steamy bathroom, her robe tied at her waist and pulling a comb through her wet hair. She stepped closer to her bed and the sleeping figure it contained.

Lex was still asleep, a fact which surprised her. Of course she could have no way of knowing whether he typically slept this heavily or this late. You didn’t learn someone’s sleeping patterns after only one night together. Still she recalled that when she was in hiding, no matter what time of night she called him, he seemed to be awake. Wide awake. Never groggy, never cranky, always ready to bolster her confidence or soothe her nerves.

She watched as Lex shifted in the bed, rolling onto his back and throwing an arm over his eyes. He tugged the sheets up to about chest level, covering his naked form. Once again comfortable, he settled back into his deep sleep. The skin on his face, head and arms was almost as pale and smooth as her sheets in the early morning sunlight.

He could just be tired. They were very…active last night, after all. Or he could have just become a heavier sleeper since the last time they saw each other. It had been ten years.

It was one of many things, she realized, that she didn’t know about him. Ten years was a long time. Yes, he had admitted that he had feelings for her but Lex Luthor was a complex man and a private man. How much would he share with her? How much would he keep from her?

Chloe set her comb down and took one last look at Lex before heading downstairs. She needed to clear her head, to think about what happened next, and busy herself with some mundane tasks.

She looked down at the clothing scattered on the stairs and in her living room. That was a start. She scooped up her discarded stockings, Lex’s shirt and jacket and her shoes, remembering the passionate path they had made. The balcony, the chair, the stairs…

Should we take this inside?

I’ve been wanting to kiss you here all night..

God, Chloe, you feel good…so good…

Chloe’s eyes snapped open. She didn’t even remember closing them. Placing the clothing pile on a chair, she decided that she needed coffee. And her paper. Routine items. Some things to distract her from the fact that she had slept with Lex Luthor. A man who had been in and out of her dreams for close to ten years. A client under active investigation.

She had bent Allied rules in the past, pushed the envelope to get the job done. This wasn’t bending the rules, though; this was a clean break.

And, in all honesty, if given the choice, she’d probably do it again.

Oh, God.

Padding her way to the kitchen she flicked on the coffee maker. As it stated to purr, she reached into the cabinet and pulled out one mug, then after a moment’s pause, a second one.

Mugs still dangling from her fingers through their handles, she opened the front door to retrieve her Gotham Gazette…and jumped when she saw a figure in the doorway.

“Hey, CJ! Wow, didn’t even have to knock. You are scary! I sure hope you’re making coffee because I only brought the bagels,” said Danny, walking right past her into the apartment. “This place I go to, Al’s, makes the most awesome sesame bagels but they have lousy coffee. Then I figured hey, you of all people would have coffee…”

Danny set the paper sack he was carrying down on the kitchen counter.

Chloe simply blinked at him for a moment. ‘What the hell—?’

“…I got you a sesame with cream cheese, I hope that’s OK.” He pulled a folded newspaper from under his arm thrust it towards her. “Here’s your paper by the way.”

“What- what are you doing here, Danny?”

He shrugged, “I know it’s early but I figured you’d want to get started working on whatever it is you discovered last night. I’m here to help. So, how’d it go? I’ll bet Bruce Wayne and Lex Luthor were really surprised to see you there. I think you’re really getting to them.”

Chloe let go of the door and let it slam behind her, rubbing her temple with her free hand.

“Danny, I just got out of the shower--- I’m not even dressed.”

She set the mugs down on the counter and tugged the robe tighter around her.

Danny was taking off his jacket, oblivious to her discomfort.

“It’s OK. I’ll get us set up while you throw some clothes on. Where are your laptop and your files?” He turned and walked out to the living room, looking around.

‘Fuck.’ Chloe thought, as she tried to keep up with him, still cognizant of the fact that all she was wearing was a bathrobe, which ended just above her knees.

She caught up with him just in time to see him stoop down to pick up something from the floor.

He turned. “Hey, CJ, this was on the floor…” His eyes widened when he realized it was a black silk bow tie, the kind that *men* wore with tuxedos.

Chloe could see the blush rising in his cheeks as Danny looked from the bow tie to her, as if seeing her for the first time since he walked in. His eyes skimmed down her figure, pausing briefly at the bit of skin at her neck left uncovered by the ‘V’ of her robe. Chloe blushed herself when she realized he must be seeing the marks Lex had left on her the night before. She immediately reached up and tightened her hold on her robe.

“I…uh…I guess I should have...ah…I had forgotten that you and Harvey used to…you know. I should go…yeah…”

Chloe swallowed. If Danny thought that it was Harvey’s tie and that it was Harvey that she had…well, who was she to correct him?

Danny was still fumbling around find his jacket again. “I’m really sorry I didn’t call before I came over …I didn’t think…you can keep just the bagels…maybe Harvey likes…never mind…”

“Don’t worry about it, Danny. Just…you know…go?”

“Yeah…sorry…”

“Chloe? Are you alright?” A sleepy male voice coming from the loft caused them both to freeze.

Chloe winced, willing Lex to stay upstairs until she could get rid of Danny.

“Chloe, is someone here? I heard voices.” Lex asked.

Chloe swallowed. “It’s OK. It’s…nothing. I’ll be up in a second,” she called up, praying that he would take that as a hint.

She turned back to Danny, who no longer looked flustered. In fact his face had hardened into a stony scowl.

“That’s not Harvey is it?” he whispered.

“Danny…”

“I know Harvey’s voice, that wasn’t it. And he just called you ‘Chloe’; everyone else calls you ‘CJ’. Everyone except him.”

“You need to go, Danny.”

“What are you doing? He’s a client for God’s sake!”

“I know that! Look, it’s….complicated. Just let me handle it, okay?”

Danny frowned again. “You’re making a mess, CJ. A real mess. And who’s going to clean it up?” Realizing that he still had the bow tie in his hands, he threw it down on the floor and stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

Chloe covered her face with her hands and let out a breath. Yes, messy was a good word for it. Now on top of everything else, her working relationship and likely her friendship with Danny were now wrecked. Things had been tense before but now…

Chloe dropped her hands and looked up the staircase.

Lex was standing near the top of the stairs, dressed in only his pants from the night before.

His eyes locked with hers as he began to descend the stairs. “Your paper boy’s loud,” He said dryly.

“It was Danny.”

“I figured. Early visit, especially for a Sunday.”

“Well I sure didn’t invite him. He just stopped by…hoping we’d work or something. Then he realized that I wasn’t alone. At first he thought you were Harvey…”

“And now he doesn’t?”

“Now he doesn’t, he figured it out.”

“I see. That explains the yelling and the slamming door. He doesn’t like me much, does he?”

“You could say that.”

“And it’s not just a jealousy thing, either. He really doesn’t like me.” Lex observed.

“He doesn’t trust you.”

“Yes, I get that a lot.”

Chloe fiddled with the sash of her robe. “Lex, last night was…good, great… nice…you know what I mean.”

“I do know. And I agree. Last night was wonderful.”

“So now what?”

“That depends.”

“On what?”

“On whether you want to leave this here. Whether you think it would be easier for you to pretend last night didn’t happen.”

“Easier for which me? For the me that’s an insurance investigator and has a job to do or for the me that’s just plain old Chloe Sullivan who just spent the night with you and is going to have trouble thinking about anything else every time we’re in a room together?”

As if that wasn’t already a problem before last night.

Lex stepped closer and placed his palm against her cheek. “I know that your job is important to you. I’ll understand if you decide that this is not worth the risk.”

“You will?” she asked, the disbelief evident in her voice.

“Well, obviously I won’t like it, but I will respect your decision.”

“What if I don’t know what that decision is? Hell, I don’t even know what my choices are. We can forget that last night ever happened or what? We have an affair? We date? What? What do you want, Lex?”

Lex brought up his other hand to cup the other side of her face. Before she could say anything else, he brought his mouth down over hers and kissed her, slow and deep.

Caught somewhat off guard, Chloe placed her hands at his waist to steady herself, then slid her hands around to knead the tight flesh of his lower back. She moaned as he titled his head to deepen the kiss even more, allowing it to become more of a passionate assault than a caress.

He pulled back, still holding her face between his hands, “I want you, Chloe. It’s as simple as that. I want you in my life, anyway I can have you.”

She swallowed. “After one night with me you’re so sure about this?”

“It’s not the one night; it was the ten years without you that made me sure.”

End Part.

[fussy_wuzzy]

Loved it!!! Can't wait to see how they handle this new development during the investigation.

[lexchloe]

He pulled back, still holding her face between his hands, “I want you, Chloe. It’s as simple as that. I want you in my life, anyway I can have you.”

She swallowed. “After one night with me you’re so sure about this?”

“It’s not the one night; it was the ten years without you that made me sure.”


Puddle of goo!!!! :wub: :wub: Wonderful update. Hope Danny doesn't do something to mess things up for them. Why do I get the feeling that Bruce already knows what happened between them?? Can't wait for the next part.

[kimmie]

That last line gave me butterflies!!! How can Chloe resist him now, I mean I understand that her job is really important to her and she shouldn't have to give it up for Lex and really it wouldn't be a problem if she wasn't investigating Lex and Bruce, maybe they can keep their relationship secret until the investigation is closed!!! I just really hope they stick together!!!

Brilliant update and can't wait for the next part...

Kimmie

Oh and did someone mention virtual chocolates???

[meg20]

The last line made Lex so sweet, but getting gaught by Danny is no good. Looking forward to the next part!!!!

[Sunny]

He pulled back, still holding her face between his hands, “I want you, Chloe. It’s as simple as that. I want you in my life, anyway I can have you.”

She swallowed. “After one night with me you’re so sure about this?”

“It’s not the one night; it was the ten years without you that made me sure.”



God.... That's so good!!!! PLease, keep writing...

[Louie]

awww, that was so sweet. but now the shite will hit the fan (I'm so optamistic)

[pipersmum]

Even though you said that was half a chapter i still think it was great :grin2:
I hope that Danny dosen't go and do something he will regret later????? :eek:
This bit made my heart melt :wub:
“It’s not the one night; it was the ten years without you that made me sure.”
I can't wait for the next part roll on monday :ecstatic:

[star del mar]

He pulled back, still holding her face between his hands, “I want you, Chloe. It’s as simple as that. I want you in my life, anyway I can have you.”
...


“It’s not the one night; it was the ten years without you that made me sure.”

Gah! I can just hear Lex saying those words and yes I would have been a little puddle on the floor. And while I know that Chloe's job is really important I think Danny has to dial it back a bit, Chloe's a big girl and I'm pretty sure she can make her own decisions. What a mess, I'm rooting for them anyway, they've just been waiting for each other for so long. Update again soon!

Steph*

[arkakitty]

Ohhhh that made me just go 'Awwww' you know? I loved how he confessed that he wanted her for 10 years :)

Poor Danny.....

[darkangel]

:wub: so sweet.

[hfce]

Oh my goodness that last line got me. I am in a puddle now. :wub: I so hope this works out and Danny get a life. :P

Hope :yeahbaby:

[Zannie]

He pulled back, still holding her face between his hands, “I want you, Chloe. It’s as simple as that. I want you in my life, anyway I can have you.”

She swallowed. “After one night with me you’re so sure about this?”

“It’s not the one night; it was the ten years without you that made me sure.”

Jumping on what is already a very large bandwagon to admit that I passed goo point when I reached the end here. Lex has been a bit of an enigma throughout this story, so I love that we've finally now got to some confessions (assuming, as I'm doing, that they are sincere and not part of some underhanded scheme--ugh! I just terrified myself). Anyway, I'm loving this story and can't wait for more.

[dreamerjules]

That last line - just gah!! And someone could remind them that the decision doesn't have to be permanent. They could put the relationship on hold until after the investigation. Because no relationship is not an option.

Julie

[newbatgirl]

OK, here's the next part, it's a little lighter...and then it's not. It's balanced, I hope. I guess there are some confessions of a sort in here, Zannie, but not necessarily the ones you guys might be hoping for.

Oh and for you all comics fans, I woke up this morning with Harvey Dent in my head again so you may be seeing another appearance by him soon. Damn muses, screwing with my outline!

Chapter 11 – Part 2

Lex’s Metropolis Apartment…later that day…

Lex buttoned his shirt as he walked down the hallway leading from his bedroom to the living room. He didn’t bother buttoning it up all the way nor did he tuck it into his pants. His feet were also still bare. He had dressed quickly, anxious to get back to Chloe, who was waiting for him in his living room.

After his admittedly bold statement to her earlier, they had both agreed to table the conversation until they had both gotten themselves together, physically and mentally. Chloe showered and changed and rode back to Lex’s apartment with him so he could do the same. They decided that they would simply let the rest of the day unfold from there. There was still something hanging in the air between them, something unsaid. It seemed that they both knew that the best way to bring it out would be to simply spend this lazy Sunday together.

Chloe was over by the bookcase, with her back to him. She was running her finger across the spins of the books, pausing every now and then when a title intrigued her.

She had dressed simply, in jeans and a white shirt and with her hair pulled back in a ponytail, she looked younger to Lex than she had looked in the preceding days.

Silently, he crossed the room to stand at her side and simply watched her as she pulled a book down from the shelf, fingered it gingerly and replaced it.

“Something wrong with the collection?” he asked, noting her slight frown.

“No, not really. It just…a bit heavier on the mystery than I would expect. You’ve got everything from Arthur Conan Doyle to the latest political thrillers. It’s not what I would expect from your library.”

“Ah, well, keep in mind that this isn’t my full-time home. These are only part of my collection. The bulk of my library is in Metropolis and some of it is in storage. One thing I do miss about that monstrosity in Smallville, it had ample space for books.”

One corner of Chloe’s lips curled up at the word he used to describe his Smallville residence. “Monstrosity? Tell me how you really feel. Did you really have it torn down after you left? I had heard something to that effect.”

“You heard correctly. I did. Brick by brick. I wish it were just as easy to get rid of the bad memories associated with that place.”

“The town or the building?”

“Ah, fair point. But they wouldn’t let me tear down the whole town.”

“Now that’s a real shame. Do you ever see anybody?”

“I hear about Clark and Lois from time to time, as would be expected since we live in the same city. No one else. You?”

Chloe simply shook her head.

Before Lex could ask Chloe to elaborate, he was interrupted by an embarrassingly loud gurgling sound – and it wasn’t coming from him.

Chloe colored at once.

“Hungry?” he teased.

“Maybe a little. I suppose you have a staff of people hiding around here somewhere to feed us?”

“You suppose incorrectly, Miss Sullivan. I employ one person, part-time, for this apartment. When I am here, her duties consist of cleaning and making sure that the kitchen is well stocked; I cook for myself.”

Chloe cocked her head to one side. “Prove it.”

*****

Lex’s kitchen… some time later…

“…We decided the only way to prove that it was an inside was to catch the guy red-handed. We set up surveillance by tapping into the existing closed circuit camera feed and watched the house from truck parked in the lot across the street.”

“And what happened?” Lex asked, transfixed. They were sitting at the counter in Lex’s kitchen, having just eaten the brunch of omelets, fruit and toast that Lex prepared. At Lex’s urging, Chloe had begun telling stories of her more colorful field investigations as they ate.

“Two nights go by and nothing. It’s making me crazy. Finally around midnight on the third night, we see someone creeping about the place, opening and closing the holding bins and whatnot. He’s all over the place, in all the sections. I figure our best shot is to cover the exits and prevent him from leaving. I send my partner to the north exit and I cover the south until we see on our remote camera that he’s coming to the south so I radio my partner to head south to back me up and to hit the lights on the way. The thief’s right in front of me when the place lights up and it’s me with my weapon pointed at his chest and him…with twelve live turtles in his pants.”

Lex burst out laughing, so hard that tears formed at the edges of his eyes. In between his fits of laughter his able to ask, “So who was it? Who was stealing the reptiles?”

“It was the zoo’s financial director. He knew that the place was going to come up short with its budget at the end of the year and it would be his head on the block so he devised a plan to sell some animals on the black market, collect the cash, then report them as stolen or escaped and collect the insurance. By collecting both ways, he could make up for the shortfall caused by his own mismanagement.” Chloe paused to drink the last of her orange juice. “Gotta give the guy credit, though, he was determined to make the plan work even if it meant some…very personal risk.”

“Determined? I have a different name for a man who smuggles reptiles out of a zoo in his pants. Try deranged.”

Chloe smirked and shrugged. “He did have some sense…he bypassed the snapping turtles.”

Lex doubled over with laughter and Chloe joined in. It had been a long time since she laughed this hard or had this much fun telling war stories. She had forgotten how similar Lex’s sense of humor was to hers. To the outside world Lex seemed very serious and focused but she knew firsthand that it did not take much to bring his sarcastic and wry wit to the surface.

When they recovered, she patted her full stomach. “Brunch was delicious, Lex. I’ll never doubt your culinary talents again.”

He responded by leaning in close and patting her thigh. “I don’t want you to doubt any of my talents. In fact, why don’t you stay and we can send the day working up an appetite for dinner?”

Chloe felt her mouth go dry briefly when Lex leaned close. Her eyes flicked to his perfect mouth for a second, nearly ready to give in to his suggestion, but she caught herself.

“No one could ever accuse you of being subtle, Lex. Not that I’m not tempted by your offer but…”

Lex nodded and leaned back on his stool. “But, I’m guessing you’d like to talk first?”

“I think we’d better, Lex.”

“OK, why don’t you go make yourself comfortable in the living room? I’ll bring us some more coffee and then we can talk.”

Chloe slid down off the stool and headed for the living room, sparing one last glance at Lex as he began preparing coffee for the two of them. The sleeves of his shirt were rolled up for cooking and he had still not buttoned it up all the way or tucked it in. It really was not fair of him to walk around looking that delicious. How the hell was she supposed to concentrate on anything else?

She walked down the hall towards the sunken living room, past the simple and carefully selected paintings and art pieces. Lex’s apartment was meticulously decorated and lacked the cool barely lived-in feel she had been expecting from Lex’s part-time home. The furniture was well-chosen, she thought, sinking into the impossibly soft sofa. The sofas, chairs, and rugs were all made of plush fabrics that one would not mind losing themselves in for a day or so. Giving in to the urge, Chloe pulled of her shoes and socks and buried her feet in the plush carpeting. She knew she shouldn’t make herself too comfortable but it was hard not to relax in such an environment.

“Comfortable?” said Lex, appearing out of nowhere with a tray holding two steaming cups. He set the tray on the low side table and sat down next to her.

Chloe looked up quickly, slightly embarrassed to be caught so unawares. “It’s hard not to be. Your apartment isn’t what I expected.”

“You expected dark wood and stone walls, maybe?”

“No, just not type of furniture you’d be able to curl up on for hours.”

Lex shrugged and sipped his coffee. “You wanted to talk?”

“I…wanted to ask you some questions.”

Lex looked intently at her. “Questions about us or questions about the investigation?”

Chloe didn’t answer and she knew that her silence would answer for her.

Lex seemed o get the message. He set down his cup. “I see. Well, you interrogated Bruce; it’s only fair that I get a turn too. Go ahead, ask away.”

“Lex…”

“Chloe, let’s just get this over with.” His voice was terse but not cold.

Chloe frowned at his words. Part of her hoped that Lex would say that he had nothing to hide. He hadn’t. Of course, it was possible that it was not something that Lex would say under any circumstances.

“OK, did you send plans for prototype military bots to the Pentagon?”

“Yes I did.”

“Even though you knew Bruce disagreed with you on that? Why?”

“Bruce may have his reasons for not wanting to build military robots but they’re not my reasons. This company is half mine. I felt that we had an obligation to show the military what we were capable of doing.”

“Why?”

“Because the technology could save lives.”

“To Bruce they’re weapons.”

“Weapons in a sense but they would allow for reconnaissance, mine clearing and host of other functions without putting soldiers’ lives at risk. Bruce is being short sighted.”

“Do you know his reasons?”

Lex ran a hand over his head. “He’s never voiced them to me specifically but it’s not that hard to figure out. Eventually, though, I believe he will change his mind.”

Chloe’s eyes widened. “Hope? You still plan to go forward with your plans?”

“Chloe, this project has come too far for me…for us to abandon it at this point, even after all that’s happened. When you complete your investigation and Allied pays the claim, I intend for us start production again as soon as the plant can be rebuilt.”

“And what about Bruce and his opposition to the military robots.”

“I’ve known him for a long time and I know he’s stubborn but so am I. I really think the facts are on my side on this one. I have my contacts at the Pentagon putting together some estimates the reduction in combat mortality - that sort of thing. That kind of evidence is hard to ignore.”

Chloe studied Lex’s face for a minute. “He’s not far off the mark, is he?”

“Who?”

“Bruce. When he accused you of using the joint venture to lay the groundwork for a political career. He’s not far off the mark.”

“You really read all of our emails, didn’t you?” Lex answered, making no effort to hide his smirk.

Chloe had no patience for his reaction. “You expected less of me? Now answer the question.”

Lex rose from the sofa. “I have an interest in public office, I admit that. I think there is a great deal I can offer a city, a state or even the U.S. Senate. However, my interest in public office is not the only reason I’m pursuing this. Bruce may believe that but that’s his problem.”

“Lex, Luthor Corp is a billion-dollar corporation, what can you possibly do in public office that you can’t already do now?”

“Plenty.” he answered cryptically, his voice barely audible.

“Such as?”

Lex slid his hands into his pockets and shook his head. “I’m not sure I can explain it, Chloe. You wouldn’t understand.”

“Try me.”

He didn’t answer.

“Lex?”

Suddenly he reached deeper into his pocket, pulled out a wad of bills and dropped them on the table in front of her. They hit the surface with a loud smack.

“Look at that. What is it?”

“It’s money. What are you doing?”

“You’re right, it’s money. Now pick it up.”

“Lex…”

“Pick it up!” Chloe started at his suddenly elevated voice and slowly picked up the pile of cash. It was stack of smooth bills, mostly hundreds, about a half an inch thick.

“Does it look any different than any other money you’ve seen in your life?” he asked.

Chloe ran her fingers over the currency paper. “No, it’s just regular money.”

“No, you see that’s where you’re wrong! It is different. You see that money is absolutely worthless to some people because it came from me!” He began pacing, never losing eye contact with her and keeping his voice low and tight. “It’s been ten years, Chloe. Ten years since that son of a bitch died and people still act like it’s wrong, immoral even, to accept Luthor money. I’ve had checks sent back to me from children’s homes, hospitals, medical research programs, even colleges, so many I’ve lost count. You want to talk about irony? I’m trying to give money away and these people won’t take it! It’s almost laughable except I stopped laughing after the first year.”

“Lex…” Chloe laid the money on the table again and stood. “Not everyone, right? It can’t be everyone?”

“You’re right, it’s not everyone, but it’s enough…it’s enough to make me want to do something, anything to…change it…to fix it…”

“…to prove that you’re not him?”

He held up one finger. “No, not that! I already know that!”

Chloe stepped closer to him and placed her hands on his shoulder. “I know it and you know it but I think you believe that no one else does.”

“Can you blame me? After all I have done to clean out Luthor Corp. of the corruption, the questionable dealings, and the outright scum, after ten years, almost every single media article about me or the company ends with a reference to how my father died, coughing up blood on the floor of prison hospital room. It’s almost as if they like bringing up the image, as if bringing it up makes it happen over and over again, and makes him relive it again and again.”

Chloe frowned as she rubbed his shoulders through the fabric of his shirt. She knew the media’s methods well enough to know that describing Lionel Luthor’s gruesome end made for good headlines, even now. No one had probably ever given a second thought as to what it did to Lex Luthor.

“I’m sorry, Lex.”

“Don’t be. What’s there to be sorry about? I’m not stupid. I know he deserves everything they print about him, every piece of mud and filth they sling and more. There are times I’m angry that the cancer got him in the end; angry that I couldn’t have figured out something that was even more painful. He deserved every bit of pain he endured.”

Then she felt him shake himself a bit, as if he was pulling himself together both physically and mentally.

“But do you? Why do you have to relive it too?” she asked.

Lex turned in her arms and placed his hands on either side of her face. “Chloe, understand this, I’m not trying to redeem Lionel Luthor in this. He can burn in hell for all I care. And I know deep down that don’t have to pay for what he’s done but the reality is that we share the same name. I can either give into everyone’s perception of that name or change it altogether. I’m not giving in.”

“Don’t take this the wrong way but why do you care? If you know who you are, should it matter what the papers say about you? You know that they’re wrong.”

“Haven’t you ever heard of a legacy? Something that stays behind after you’re gone? As it stands now, I’ve let my father determine mine when it should be the other way around. I want to change that, I need to change it. There’s so much I can do, so many things I can fix, Chloe. If people would just open their eyes.”

“Call me crazy but I think a legacy, if that’s what you’re really looking for, has more to do with the people who know you, like I do, than with titles and money.”

“Perhaps, but as I’ve said before, you’d be surprised how rare it is that I meet someone like you, Chloe. Not everyone knows me like you do.”

*****
Gotham’s Robinson Park…later that afternoon…

“So do you believe me now?” Chloe asked, squeezing Lex’s forearm as they walked alongside the bike path of Gotham’s Robinson City Park.

“Yes, the park is very beautiful, Chloe. I stand corrected. Gotham City is not just dank streets and gothic buildings with crumbling gargoyles. It’s just mostly dank streets and gothic buildings with crumbling gargoyles,” he teased back, then side stepped her hands as she attempted to poke him in the ribs. After a brief, light-hearted scuffle, he slipped his arm around her waist again and they continued walking.

“This was a good idea, though. I’ve been coming to Gotham several times a year for over fifteen years now and I don’t think I’ve ever walked in the park.”

“Well I guess there’s a first time for everything, isn’t there? While I wouldn’t necessarily come here after dark, this park is really something, though. I come here a lot to think, run, read, whatever. Gotham doesn’t have a lot of green spaces, I’ll grant you that but we do make the most of what we have.”

“We? You consider Gotham home now?”

Chloe seemed to mull it over before shrugging her shoulders. “I guess. I work here, my friends are here, I’ve been off and on for ten years. I don’t have a reason not to.”

“And your father? Where is he living now?”

“California. Fresno, actually. Every year he says he’s going to retire ‘next year’ and next year comes and he’s still working. He’s fine though. He golfs, he has a girlfriend, a widow who has grandkids that he can spoil a bit. That takes some of the pressure off me.” She gave a wry half-smile. “I see him three or four times a year when I fly out there.”

“Does he ever come visit you?”

“God, no. He thinks Gotham is too dangerous. He hates that I live here. He emails me articles about Batman from the newspaper as not-so-subtle hints that I should move elsewhere.”

“If he thinks this city is too dangerous, what does he think about your job?”

Chloe bit her bottom lip.

“Chloe….? He doesn’t know, does he?”

“He knows that I’m an insurance investigator and he knows I work for Allied. He just doesn’t know the specifics.”

“Like the fact that you’re licensed to carry a gun and all the other things you do…”

“I may have left those parts out,” she whispered.

Lex closed his eyes and rubbed his temple with his free hand. “Don’t you think he has a right to know?”

“So he can worry himself sick conjuring up scary scenarios? No thanks. It’s better this way.”

Lex was about to protest when he realized that one week back in Chloe’s life and one night in her bed did not give him the right to second-guess her relationship with her father. Arguing the point further would only make her angry. He really didn’t want to do that, not after the idyllic afternoon they had spent together. After their conversation at the apartment, they had talked some more, about trivial things, news, entertainment, anything but the large pink elephant in the room, of course.

Then he had made the comment about there not being very much scenery to enjoy Gotham and she had taken it as a challenge. She grabbed their jackets and informed them that they were going to the park. They had been there for two hours now.

“You’re right, it probably is better this way,” he agreed.

Chloe narrowed her eyes and turned to face him, leaning up a bit on her toes. “You agreed to that fairly easily. I expected more of an argument.”

Lex put his hands at her waist and pulled her closer. “Maybe I was distracted by that ice cream stand behind you.” Then he laughed when Chloe’s head instantly turned at the words ‘ice cream.’

She turned back, considerably redder.

“Some things never change.” he said. “I could always get your attention by mentioning ice cream.”

“OK, genius, what flavor?”

Lex cocked his head to one side. “Hmmmm, if memory serves, chocolate was ‘too obvious’, vanilla was ‘too boring’, strawberry was ‘too pink’ so that leaves…. chocolate chip?”

“Got it in one. And if my memory serves, you’re a chocolate man, always have been. Right?”

“Got it in one.” He began to reach into his pocket for cash but she stopped him. “Nope, this is my treat. And before you get bent out of shape about me refusing your money, remember, you supplied me with ice cream for three months in the dead of summer. I think I owe you, plus interest.”

Before he could protest, Lex’s cell phone rang and Chloe used the interruption to back way towards the stand. “One chocolate cone, coming up!” Her enthusiasm made him smile.

Still grinning, Lex flipped open his phone. “Luthor.”

“Lex, it’s Bruce. Where are you?”

Lex’s eyes shifted to where Chloe stood at the ice cream stand ordering their cones. She had a big smile on her face, the biggest he had seen all week.

“I’m a little busy right now, Bruce. Can this wait?”

“This won’t take long. I just wanted to tell you that we may have solved our problem with your insurance investigator friend.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Allied’s investigation into the plant explosion is as good as dead.”

“Hold it, what do you mean ‘dead’?”

Chloe handed the ice cream man her money and took two cones from him. She was now heading back towards him, one treat in each hand and a smile gracing her pretty face.

Bruce voice was unreadable when he replied. “You’ll see tomorrow, Lex. Have a good night.”

The connection was broken just as Chloe arrived in front of him to hand him his cone.

“Here you go.”

“Thanks.”

“Is everything OK?”

“Yes, it’s fine.”

Chloe caught an errant chocolate chip with her tongue. “Who was on the phone?”

Lex’s head was spinning. What the hell was Bruce talking about? What did he mean by ‘dead’?

“Lex?”

He snapped back to reality. Back to the woman in front of him. Chloe.

“It was a wrong number.”

End chapter.

[star del mar]

Uh oh, white lies are never a good sign especially when Chloe and Lex were starting to get all cozy, though they are both pretty good at stepping around the issues. I want to know what's going on with them even more so after Bruce's cryptic phone call...I don't think it bodes well. Update again soon!

Steph*

[hfce]

Lex no you can't lie to her. She will so kill you when she finds out. :nono:


Hope :(

[bluengreenswmer]

He thinks he can lie to an insurance investigator? Someone who makes a living finding out people's indiscretions? Boy does our little Lexypoo have another thing coming...

Not to mention how angry Chloe's going to be when she finds out Lex lied to her....especially something about the case...and something that could be a matter of life and death....

I would hate to be on the recieving end of that rant. :)

[kimmie]

Bruce had better not do anything to hurt Chloe...what did he mean by the investigation was as good as dead!!!

Come back and tell us don't keep us in suspense...PLEASE!!!

Kimmie

[Susan S]

Lex just screwed up big time! That was just a very stupid thing to do, but very in character. I have a feeling Danny went and blabbed to the company higher ups, who then called Bruce to see if he/they thought she was being unfair and he jumped on the chance to get her removed from the investigation. Can't wait to see what happens next.


Susan S

[Louie]

What is the bat up to .... and I can't wait for more Harvey, weeeeeee (sorry kinda giddy tonight)

[JosiCuervo]

I just started this story and ended up reading the entire thing as I totally heart it. I even got all gooey at the end of Chapter 11 - Part 1.... *sigh* ... :blinkkiss

I'll try harder on proper feedback starting with Chapter 12. *taps foot impatiently*
;)
~Erica

[pipersmum]

Oh no you can't end it there :eek: What has Bruce gone and done now??? Lex why are you lying to Chloe you know she will find out tut tut!
Just when they were getting on so well :nono: I bet that ice-cream will taste sour now to Lex!!!
Please hurry back with an update i am dying to find out what has happened :D

[meg20]

Ok what is Bruce up to now, i so hope that it doesn't involve hurting Chloe. I hope Bruce didn't follow them and now tries to blackmail Chloe or worse ruining her liability in Allied!

[Thessaly]

It's now 1.15am, I have to get up in less than five hours to go see my sister and my eyes feel like toasted marbles. But it was completely worth it because I have just read this all the way through.

You so rock, NBG. I love the quasi-brother thing that Lex and Bruce have going on, I love Alfred and his idea of a late night supper (black coffee and grilled cheese? No wonder Batman never bloody sleeps.) and I think it goes without saying that I heart the smut and the lovely "She's his lobster" relationship that Chloe and Lex are developing. I squee'd when Chloe rang a lawyer called Harvey. After a long week of overwork and filling in job applications, you have completely cheered me up.

Thank yoooooooou.

Thessaly

[Yarvarni]

I just found this story and I LOVE it! It is absolutely engrossing! Great job!

[arkakitty]

Oh my...what is going to happen now? I really want to know~ Please more soon :)

[newbatgirl]

A/N: Thanks to all of you who are sticking with me on this story even if you think I am whacked out of my head sometimes. I can only post part of the chapter because I drove 250 miles this weekend and I’m pooped. Sorry. :sleep:

Chapter 12 - Part 1

Lex’s Gotham apartment…early the next morning

For the second time in as many days, Lex Luthor rolled over in bed searching for the warm body of his lover only to find empty space instead. This morning, however, he knew instinctively that she simply wasn’t in another room somewhere, she was really gone. He knew even before he saw the note propped on his nightstand.

Lex blinked to adjust to the early morning light streaming into his bedroom. Gotham sunshine might be depressingly grayish in tone but it could still be bright first thing in the morning. Sitting up in bed, he reached for the folded note and opened it:

Lex –

OK, you win. There is an ‘us’ after all. However, there is also still a ‘me’ and I need some time to myself today to think some things through.

We’ll talk later tonight.

Chloe

He read the note three times, hoping to get something more from it than just the few words she had written but there seemed to be no message there other than ‘wait and see.’

Lex fell back onto the pillows and closed his eyes. Wait and see. What other choice did he have?

*****
Allied Insurance Bldg…Chloe Sullivan’s office…

The cleaning crew was still finishing up their nightly rounds when she arrived that morning. Most of the lights on her floor were still out. But, having left Lex alone in his bed, and having no desire to be alone in her own, Chloe saw no alternative but to arrive at work absurdly early and prepare for her next move.

She carefully piled all her files on the LW Technologies case into a box, set it on her desk, and waited. As soon as Ted Dandridge came in, she would hand over the files and request to be removed from the case. There might be some disciplinary consequences as well, though to be honest, she had no idea. As far as she knew there was no specific ‘Do not sleep with clients under active instigation’ rule in the employee handbook but she might have skipped over it.

She was staring out her office window watching the city come alive when she heard a noise behind her. She turned. It was Danny, holding a box of his own.

“I didn’t expect to see you here,” he said.

“It’s my office, isn’t it?” She matched his flat tone without intending to.

“I figured you’d be at the Wayne office or…somewhere else.” Danny stepped closer to the desk and set down his own box. “Here’s everything I have on LW Tech. I wasn’t sure what to do with it. I was going to leave it in here…”

“Don’t bother. I’m asking Ted to take me off that case as soon as he gets in. You might as hang on to that stuff and mine. He’ll probably hand the case over to you anyway.”

“I don’t want it.”

“Don’t tell me that. Tell Dandridge, I doubt it’ll be my call.” She looked up from her desk, which she had been tracing idle shapes on with her index finger, to see Danny’s stern face. It was a mixture of anger and something else…pity? God, she hoped it wasn’t that. But, no, it was more like another look she was very familiar with.

“Don’t look at me like that, Danny.”

“Don’t look at you like what?”

“Like THAT… Like I disgust you, like you’re sooooo disappointed in me, like you don’t know what to make of me. I’ve had more than enough of that look to last a lifetime.”

“I didn’t realize that I was…”

“Well you were!”

Danny took an involuntary step back. “What do you expect? Do you expect me to say that I approve of what you did? You lied right to my face about you and Lex Luthor.”

“That’s where you’re wrong! I told you the truth; Lex and I were not involved this way years ago. We were friends. We had feelings for each other obviously but we never acted on them until the other night.”

She paused to catch her breath. “Look, I know that I screwed up. I thought I could handle this without things getting complicated but I couldn’t and here we are. And you’re right, I made a mess. I’m trying to clean it up. You can hang around and look disappointed in me for hours on end or you can acknowledge that I’m a human being and that I will occasionally make mistakes. So which is it?”

Danny stared at her for a long moment before answering and it wasn’t even remotely the answer she was expecting.

“Why him?”

“Excuse me?”

“Why Lex Luthor of all people? Is he really the kind of man you want, CJ? All that power and money…?”

Chloe shook her head slowly. “You really don’t know me, do you? If you think that what’s happening with Lex and I is about money and power, you really don’t know me at all.”

“Then tell me, why Lex?!!!” he demanded.

“Is that really the question you’re asking? Why Lex? Or is it why not you?”

His silence answered the question.

“Danny, I know what it’s like to have feelings for someone and not have them returned the way you’d like them to. Believe me, I know. That’s why I’ve tried to be clear with you from the start, we’re friends, and we’re colleagues but not…not anything else. I’m sorry.”

“It doesn’t bother you that he could still be the one behind all of this?”

“Are you even listening to me? Did you hear what I just said?”

“What did he say when you asked him? Did he even deny it?”

Chloe froze. Her mind was racing to recall what Lex had said.

Had she even asked him?

Oh God.

No, not in so many words.

Why hadn’t she asked him?

She sank into her chair.

Did she not ask him because she was so distracted by her feelings for him? Or because she just didn’t want to know the answer? Which was worse?

“CJ? What did he say?”

Her cell phone rang and she grabbed for it.

“Hello?”

“Sullivan, where are you? Have you been to the Wayne Building this morning?” It was Ted Dandridge and he did not sound happy.

“I’m in my office…I came here to talk to you about…”

“Whatever it is, it can wait. You and Pena get in my office now.”

The phone went dead. She tuned back to Danny, still confused.

“That was Ted, he wants us in his office ASAP. He sounded pretty upset.” She looked suspiciously at Danny.

“Don’t look at me; I didn’t say anything to him.”

“Then what’s this about?”

*****

Ted Dandridge’s office….a few minutes later

Ted was pacing the length of his office when Chloe and Danny entered a few minutes later.

“There you two are! Let me tell you this is not the way I wanted to start my Monday.”

Chloe and Danny exchanged a startled look.

“What do you mean?” asked Chloe.

Ted thrust a printout into her hands. “This is what I mean. It was sitting on my desk when I got in this morning. Someone was busy this weekend.”

Chloe could not stop the blush that spread over her face at Ted’s words but she soon realized that he wasn’t referring to her.

“What is it?” Danny asked.

“It’s a notice of payment from Allied Insurance to LW Technologies in the amount of $200 million. Dated today.”

“WHAT?!!!”

“Ted, who in the world authorized this? This isn’t supposed to get paid until Investigations signs off on it. That means you or me…”

“I know that and you know that but try telling that to our Board. They’re the ones who paid it.”

“But why? The investigation isn’t nearly over…”

“Didn’t I tell you this from the start, CJ? Something stinks here and this proves it. Somebody on our Board is probably cozy with someone at LW and pushed this through behind our backs. This must be why they were dragging their feet at the start. Allied never intended to investigate this in the first place and they sure as hell weren’t going to send you.”

“Wait, then who gave the OK to send us in?” Danny wanted to know.

“I did. I assumed that I had authority over my own people. Apparently I was wrong. I just got off the phone with the Allied’s chief counsel, the little weasel. He chewed on my ass for doing my job! He said the claim has been paid and the investigation is to be considered complete.”

Chloe shook her head. “I can’t believe this, I can’t believe Allied would just hand over $200 million just like that. It doesn’t make any sense.”

Ted crossed his arms. “I’ll say. $200 million is a lot of money, even for a company of our size. We wouldn’t risk that kind of cash unless we were sure whatever we were getting in return was worth it.”

“So what do you think we’re getting?” asked Danny.

“Damned if I know. CJ?”

“I have no idea, sir.”

Danny looked from Chloe to Ted “So what now? Is there anything we can do?”

Ted sighed heavily after a long moment. “Not unless one of you wants to march up to the boardroom and ask the Directors what the hell they’re smoking.” He spared a look at Chloe. “That was a joke, CJ. Unless you want to get fired, I wouldn’t advise it.”

Chloe frowned but didn’t deny that the thought had been appealing, momentarily at least.

“Danny, go call the rest off the team and tell them to shut down. We’re going to have to call this one off, as much as I hate to say it. Unless we all want to get fired, we’re going to have to go along with this.”

Danny nodded. “Yes, sir.” He looked briefly at Chloe before leaving the office.

When Danny was gone, Ted gave Chloe a resigned smile. “Win some, lose some, eh?”

“Win some, lose some? That doesn’t sound like the Ted Dandridge I know.”

“Maybe, but one of the first things I learned as a cop is that you can’t catch every one, you can’t put ‘em all away, no matter how much you might want to or how much they deserve it. It’s just the nature of the game. Some of these guys are going to slip through the cracks. You have to learn to choose your battles, and learn to live with the choices you make.”

Ted rounded his desk and sat down. “Who knows, we might not have seen the last of LW Tech after all. Between you and me, I’d advise you lock up anything you got from the company up somewhere safe just in case. Anything that comes across my desk with these guys’ name on it, it’s yours.”

Chloe shifted on her feet. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Actually, that’s what I was going to talk to you about this morning. You would have had to remove me from this case anyway.”

“Why? What’s the matter?”

“Ted, there’s something you should know…”

End Part

[hfce]

WHAT?????????????? You so did not end there. I wanted to see his reaction. I am glad it was not because of Lex and her. But Lex and her have some long talking to do. I don't want this to end. I want them to work. :D


Hope :)

[Yarvarni]

hmmmmmm interesting development!

[star del mar]

Bruce definitely has to be in bed with someone, figuratively I mean because that is a lot of money to be paying out especially if it's under shady circumstances, very interesting to say the least though, I can't wait to see what's going on there. And Chloe's coming clean about Lex, it's better I think that her boss knows but I think it also establishes their relationship a bit more. Great update!

Steph*

[Louie]

stupid computer ate my first reply. It was all cool with every word in the sentence starting with the same letter. I can't do it again, so all I'll say is bad batman and I can't wait to see what this shut down brings out in Chloe.

P.S. sleeping is very important hope you had a good one.

[lexchloe]

Just read the last two updates which were both excellent. Loved Chloe and Lex spending the day together in chapter 11. Also loved this last update and the fact that Chloe was going to pull herself off the investigation. Allied dropping the investigation has something to do with bruce's mysterious phone call to Lex in the last chapter. How did he manage to pull that one off? Can't wait to see how this new development impacts on Chloe and Lex's relationship and whether she she'll start asking more questions. Wonderful updates and can't wait for more.

[kimmie]

Quick come back and show us Ted's reaction!!!

Kimmie

[meg20]

Hell of a cliffhanger you left us, but I'm glad that Chloe can't blame Lex in this development, I hope!!!

[campbti]

Oh my God, how is it possible that I might just be as intrigued about the mysterious fire as the Chlex. damn you must be good. Can't wait for more. PLEASE!!!

[pipersmum]

What has Bruce done ??? How did he manage to get them to pay out so easily???
Chloe is going to have to ask Lex about what really went on now, but will he be honest or does he just not know??? The suspense is killing me!!!!!!
Please update really soon :D

[newbatgirl]

This chapter's for crankychick, who was missed terribly while she was away... :blinkkiss

Chapter 12 - Part 2

Chloe’s apartment…later that evening…

Four weeks unpaid leave. That was her punishment. More or less.

Ted hadn’t yelled or screamed. He had looked surprised and somewhat disappointed in her. He had consulted with HR briefly and with little mention of the specifics to come up with a course of action. As it turned out, there was no ‘don’t sleep with a client under active investigation’ rule in the employee handbook. There was plenty about Allied employees not sleeping with each other (which Chloe almost laughed out loud at given the issues with Danny but she caught herself) but nothing about clients.

“We’ll have to catch that in the next revision,” Ted had quipped. Almost apologetically, he had settled on the four weeks leave option, effective immediately. It only made sense since she was between cases and, as he supervisor, he had to do something. It would be stated on her employee record as simply a violation of company policy even though technically, it wasn’t.

Chloe didn’t argue, though. What was the point? She had screwed up, regardless of what some stupid employee manual said.

Chloe had left Allied without a word to anyone else, even when she passed Danny and several of her coworkers in the hall.

Now, curled up on her sofa in what her father used to euphemistically call her ‘grumpy day’ sweats, she thought about what was really bothering her. Four weeks unpaid lave she could handle; ditto on the “official reprimand” in her file. She could even get over the disappointed looks from Ted and Danny. What she couldn’t handle was knowing that she had let this—whatever it was—with Lex affect her judgment so much. How could she not ask him outright if he was involved in the explosion? Even before Saturday, they had had numerous encounters. True, the evidence had pointed to Bruce and confronting him first had seemed to make more sense. Still, if it had been anyone else, any other man, would she have overlooked something so basic?

It’s called the direct approach, Captain, perhaps you’ve heard of it.

Her own words haunted her. So much for being in control. Letting her feelings affect her judgment and decision making; that was something the naïve teenage Chloe Sullivan did. Not this Chloe. This Chloe was supposed to be smarter, tougher than that.

There was a knock at the door and Chloe felt grateful for the distraction from her wallowing, until she considered that it might be Lex at the door. She had promised to phone him today.

She rose from the couch and slunk over to the door. If it was Lex, maybe he’d be scared doff by the frightful mess she was in her sweats. They were certainly a far cry from the dress she wore on Saturday. Looking through the peephole, she breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn’t Lex, it was Ted.

Chloe flung back the door. “Ted, what are you doing here?”

“In the neighborhood?” he ventured.

“Try again.” She replied, gesturing from him to come in.

“Good girl, I wouldn’t have bought that one either. I wanted to see how you were.”

“Now that I believe…even though it’s only been four hours, you big worrywart. Go have a seat, the living room is that way. You’ve been here before, right?”

“Once or twice. I think the last time was when you broke your wrist, what two years ago?”

“Year and a half,” Chloe corrected, from the kitchen. “You want something to drink?”

“Water’s fine.”

“One water coming up.” Minutes later she joined him I the living room, holding two glasses.

“You fell off a building, as I recall, although I can’t remember what the devil you were doing at the time.”

“Tracking down a check forging ring. I was taking photos of the shop where they printed their bogus checks when I tripped. I hurt my wrist trying to hang on to the gutters.” She flexed her wrist for him. “Oh well, at least now I know when it’s going to rain, right?”

“Yeah, that’s true.” Ted smiled momentarily as he swirled the water in his glass. “CJ, I can’t help but feel somewhat responsible for this.”

“Responsible how?”

“I insisted that you take this case, even knowing your background with Luthor. You hesitated and I pressed the issue. That wasn’t the best idea I’ve ever had. I’m sorry.”

“No, you shouldn’t take the blame on this. You’re my boss, you sent me to do my job. You couldn’t have known what would happen from there. Hell, I didn’t know. I made my own decisions and I now I’ll take the consequences. It’s as simple as that.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m not sure about much these days, Ted, but I’ve got four weeks of nothing to do but think about it. I’m sure I’ll come up with something.”

Chloe sat down in the arm chair and immediately regretted it because images of herself and Lex on the very same chair two nights ago began running through her mind. She had to shake her head to gain control.

Ted appeared not to notice. Instead he reached into the pocket of his suit jacket and pulled out a folder packet of pages. “Well, if you’re already bored out of your skull, maybe you can give me your opinion on something.”

“Ted, I’m on leave…”

“Which is why it won’t hurt anything for you to just take a look at this. I got to thinking; $200 million is an awful lot of cash for Allied to come up with that quickly. Even when Investigations signs off on a claim of that size, it still typically takes a few days to get the money into liquid form and into the General Claims Fund for payout. As you know, the Feds only require us to keep a percentage of our payable claims in the GCF at any given time. Anything above that we can invest elsewhere until we need it.”

“I know, I know. Where are you going with this?”

“The thing that’s been bothering me all day is where this money came from so fast. So I did some digging. This is a list of recent deposits and withdrawals into and out of Allied’s GCF Account…” He leaned forward and spread the pages on the coffee table. “There, see that item I’ve circled? That’s the $200 million being wired in just after the European banks opened this morning, several hours before any of our banks opened. And there? That’s the $200 million being wired out to LW just minutes after the American banks opened.”

Chloe squinted at the printout and frowned. “Somebody was anxious. But you’re right. That money wasn’t in the fund before this morning. So where did it come from? One of Allied’s overseas accounts?”

“CJ, I know our overseas account numbers. That origination code doesn’t match any of them.” He tapped the code on the circled item.

Chloe looked at the code again. “I’ve never seen that code either. Did you run it by finance?”

“I did, but I didn’t tell them what it was about, and I’m glad I didn’t.”

“Why? Who owns the account? Whose money is that?”

“That account is an overseas transactional fund for the U.S. Treasury. Uncle Sam owns that account.”

“Are you kidding me?”

“I’m not kidding you. Allied paid that claim with $200 million in U.S Government money.”

“OK, this is so not over.”

End chapter.

[bluengreenswmer]

Holy shit....someone's in trouble. (Gotta love an uncovered cover up!)

Update soon...please?

[pipersmum]

You can't leave it there it was just getting interesting please come back and let me know what happens next!!!!

[hfce]

Man I want more. Things are heating up. But just one thing Chlex next time please... :beg:


Hope :)

[darkangel]

Hmm. whatever will chloe do?

[star del mar]

This story just keeps on getting better and better, the mystery is so intriguing. Chloe's going to get to the bottom of this, she's just ridiculously smart and now she's got something to prove. Great update!

Steph*

[Pufkinz]

I was thinking, um, maybe, you'd um, like, come back real soon and give me/us the rest of the chapter? Cause I know you didn't end it there, that would be cruel and I know you're not cruel so i'm just gonna sit here and wait for you to edit the chapter.... OK?!

On a serious not though, loved it... more intrigue, great!!!!

Wayne must have something big over Uncle Sam and Uncle Sam, must have done something real naughty or they know something or they simply want the technology of LW... either way I look forward to finding out.

:)
G

[kimmie]

Come back and update I want more Chlexy goodness...PLEASE!!!

Kimmie

[arkakitty]

Ohhh now this is a nice twist.....please more soon, I can hardly wiat for the next chapter :)

[Louie]

sometimes your so mean, leaving it like that. did Brucey go and make a deal with the feds just cause he didn't want little ol'Chloe looking into him anymore. Should have talked to Lex about it first he would have told you not to do it, and now you diserve whatever you get.

Ummm, more soon please ya big meany(and I mean that in the nicest way possible).

[lexchloe]

And the plot thickens. How did Bruce manage to swing that one? Or did someone else intervene? With the government being involved in the cover up does this mean that Lex is maybe involved as well? So many questions. Excellent chapter please update again soon.

[meg20]

Chloe is back in the game - yay!

[newbatgirl]

A/N: And here we are again…more fun (I hope) for you, my faithful readers. I am but your humble servant…deranged but humble. Since I am technically late with this, you guys get the whole chapter at once.

Chapter 13

Wayne Enterprises Executive offices…later that afternoon

“C’mon, Chloe. Pick up,” muttered Lex as he paced the floor of the empty conference room, listening to the ringing tone on his cell phone as he tried for the third time to reach Chloe on hers. One call to a person was usually his limit but this was different. This was an emergency. This was Chloe.

He would stop at three calls.

Maybe.

“Hi, this is CJ. I can’t answer your call right now…” Lex groaned as he heard her voice mail click in again and quickly decided that this time he would leave a message as opposed to continuing to redial like some sort of crazed stalker. Or worse, a lovesick teenager.

“Chloe, it’s Lex. Look, I know you said this morning before you left that we would talk later but that was before …before I knew about the payment. We really need to talk. Give me call.”

He snapped his phone shut and slipped it into his pocket. Then he took a deep breath and ran his hands over his head.

Waking up in bed without Chloe was bad enough but the day had only gone downhill from there.

It had taken all the strength in the world not to punch the smug look of off Bruce’s face when he strolled into Lex’s office with the notice of payment that morning. It wasn’t that Lex wasn’t happy about the payment; that $200 million had come just in time. It was exactly what they needed to get the venture back up and running.

Of course, it might have been nice if Bruce had told that the check was coming. Lex would have been able to prepare himself; to brace himself for what was sure to be the wrath of Chloe Sullivan.

What if she thought that sleeping with her that weekend was just a stalling tactic, a way to distract her until the money came through? He prayed to several long-forgotten deities that she wouldn’t but people had certainly thought less of him in the past.

“For a man that’s just been handed $200 million, you look pretty glum, Lex,” said a voice behind him.

Bruce. Not the last person in the world that he wanted to see but certainly in the top five.

Lex turned. “I would have thought that Alfred taught you not to sneak up on people, Bruce. It’s rather rude.”

“So it is, he also taught me not to eavesdrop and that lesson didn’t stick either. I think the old man is ready to wash his hands of me.”

“You were eavesdropping?” Lex asked, immediately realizing the implications of Bruce hearing what he had just said. So much for secrets.

“Have you noticed whose name is on the building? You really don’t have an expectation of privacy in here but…that’s besides the point.” Bruce crossed his arms in front of his broad chest. “You just couldn’t stay away from her, could you? And from the sound of it you did more than just not stay away from her. Am I right?”

“Stay out of this, Bruce.”

“Tell me, Lex, in this ‘Becoming a Politician for Dummies’ book you are obviously reading, is the lesson on forgetting how to keep it in your pants in chapter two or chapter three?”

Lex was barely holding himself together. “Can you just let it go? It’s over! We got the money! We’re going to finish rebuilding the plant and get back on schedule. End of story. My relationship with Chloe Sullivan is no longer any of your business.” He stepped closer to Bruce and looked him straight in the eye. “Can you understand that?”

“Can you understand that getting the plant up and running again is still only part of the issue here? I’ve seen what this woman is capable of; having her around you is a risk we cannot afford to take.”

“Why don’t you let me decide that?”

“Because, as we’ve also seen, your judgment is a bit clouded at the moment. Has it even occurred to you that she’s only gotten close to you to get access to what you might know? She’s not doing this for her company or for the money. This is a game to her, Lex. She simply wants to win.”

Chloe? Using him like that? It wasn’t possible. Not Chloe.

He shook his head. “No, you don’t know Chloe Sullivan. It’s not possible. She wouldn’t do that.”

“Really?” Bruce asked, rolling his eyes. “And you certainly have an excellent track record for knowing when a woman is being honest with you, don’t you? You said yourself many times that you hadn’t seen her in ten years. How can you be so sure of anything?”

“I know her, Bruce. She wouldn’t do that, not now.”

Bruce straightened his tie and glowered at his friend. “This is all very heart-warming and romantic but I for one can’t afford to wait for you to duck this time. Until this is done…”

Bruce’s rant was cut off by a knock at the conference room door. Both men turned. It was Lucius.

“Sorry to interrupt, gentleman, but you have a visitor. It’s Miss Sullivan.” He said, looking from Bruce to Lex.

“That woman has the most maddening ability to appear when she is least wanted.” Bruce griped, squeezing his eyes shut in frustration.

“Careful, Mr. Wayne. Keep saying things like that and you’re going to give me a complex,’ said a female voice.

Bruce’s eyes sprang open and he saw Chloe appear in the doorway next to Lucius.

“Did I mention that she was behind me?” Lucius asked.

“No, you did not, ” Bruce grumbled

Chloe waved.

Lex observed that one corner of Lucius’ mouth was curled up in a faint smile.

“And I think I hear my phone ringing. Gentlemen. Miss Sullivan, it’s always a pleasure.” Lucius nodded at Chloe before disappearing down the hall again.

Chloe tilted her head in the Lucius’ direction. “I like him; he’s one of the few people around here who knows how to treat a guest.”

Bruce ignored her remark. “Miss Sullivan, you have no reason to be here. As of 9:04 this morning, your interest in our companies officially ended.”

“See, that’s what I mean,” she replied. “How about a ‘Hi, how are you, Miss Sullivan?’ “Have a seat’ ‘Nice jacket.’ Would that kill you?” she said to Bruce. “Hi, Lex,” she added, almost as an afterthought.

“Chloe.” Lex answered simply.

“Why are you here?” Bruce asked. “Surely you’re not here to admit that you were wrong?”

Chloe snickered. “Yes, keep holding your breath for that one. Actually, I’m here to say goodbye to you, Mr. Wayne. I know you don’t like me very much and the feeling is mutual but regardless of whether I like you, you are one of the most interesting people I’ve ever met. I think we’ll run into each other again sometime soon. Like I said, this town really isn’t that big. We should at least be civil to one another, don’t you think?” She extended her hand to Bruce who made no attempt to take it until Lex cleared his throat and shot him a glare. Then Bruce reluctantly clasped her hand.

“I can be civil. And you’re right about one thing, I don’t like you very much at all. However your tenacity is admirable. If I could stand the very sight of you, Miss Sullivan, I’d ask you to train my sales force or even my security team. But, since I cannot, I think I’ll allocate those resources into figuring out how to make this town…bigger. I think it will be money well spent. Goodbye.” Bruce let go of her hand and with a curt nod at Lex, moved swiftly towards the door, but Chloe called after him, not bothering to even turn around.

“Speaking of money well spent, if you need advice on how to best allocate expenditures, Mr. Wayne, shouldn’t you ask your friends at the U.S. Treasury?”

Lex’s stomach lurched. Shit. That was fast, even for Chloe.

Bruce stopped in the doorway, his back still towards Chloe and Lex. He did not turn around. He was simply silent for a full minute.

“Excuse me, Miss Sullivan, but I’m sure I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Riiiiight. Of course, you don’t. See you around, Mr. Wayne.”

Bruce squared his shoulders and left the room without another word.

As the sounds of retreating footsteps echoed in the room, Chloe rolled her eyes at Lex.
“It’s absolutely mind-boggling that no lucky woman has snatched him up,” she said dryly.

“Chloe, baiting Bruce Wayne is pointless now. Like it or not, your investigation is over.”

“Who said I was baiting him?”

“The Treasury remark wasn’t baiting?”

“You tell me, Lex. It’s only baiting if he knew what I was referring to.” She stepped closer to him. “Does he? Better yet, do you know what I was referring to?”

Lex closed his eyes. “Chloe, don’t do this. Let it go.”

“Oh, I’m not letting it go.”

“It’s over. Please…”

“It’s not over, not for me.”

“This isn’t a game, Chloe. You can’t win this way.”

“I know this isn’t a game; do you think I’m an idiot? Allied put me on unpaid leave because I slept with you and you think I’m playing games?”

“I’m sorry….” Lex began.

“Don’t apologize, just be straight with me. I haven’t asked you this before and I think it’s because of my feelings for you but I’m asking now: Do you know who blew up that plant?”

“Your company paid the claim, Chloe. Allied declared it was an accident.”

“Fuck Allied! It was no accident and they didn’t pay the claim. You know it, Bruce knows it and I know it. You’ve never patronized me before, don’t start now!”

Lex clenched his fists. “I don’t want to lie to you…”

“So don’t. Tell me blew up the goddamn plant!!!!”

“I can’t tell you!” Lex said, his jaw tightening after each word.

“Why not?”

“It isn’t that easy, Chloe. It’s not about the money; it’s not about me and you or even Bruce, not directly. It’s just…complicated.”

Chloe rubbed at her temples “Let me get this straight. Someone blew up a building full of advanced robotic equipment, endangering any number of human lives…”

“No one was hurt…no one was in the building…”

“But they could have been! Anyone could have been in that building! And now, against all evidence to the contrary, my company declares that the whole thing was an accident, hands you and Bruce $200 million in cash, and all you can tell me is that ‘it’s complicated’?”

“I’m not going to lie to you; I just can’t tell you anything else…” Lex shook his head. The way she was looking at him, it was almost too much to bear.

“You know who did it, don’t you?”

Lex nodded.

“Was it you?”

“No, it wasn’t me.” That much was true. It wasn’t him personally. And may he go straight to hell for splitting hairs this way, especially with her.

“But you know who did it. And you know why.”

He nodded again.

“You’ve known all this time and you’ve watched me run around this town digging for scraps of information like a fool.”

“Chloe, you have to understand…”

“I have to understand what, Lex? What? How am I supposed to understand anything? Look at it from my point of view. I see a reckless disregard for the law, the safety of dozens, if not hundreds of workers, people lying to me at every turn, and huge amounts of money flying in and out of overseas accounts. And you are at the center of it all, trying to tell me how much you want me in your life. How absurd is any of this?”

“I do want you in my life. My feelings for you are completely separate from any of this. And this is not about the money. That’s all I can tell you; it’s like you said from the very beginning. There are some things that are more important than money.”

Chloe sighed. “I’ve had enough of this.” She tucked her purse under her arm and left the room. Lex followed her after a beat, down the hall and across the reception area. The receptionist looked up with interest as they reached the elevator bank.

“Wait, what do mean you’ve had enough? Where are you going?”

Chloe stabbed at the down button on the panel.

“I’ve had enough of your cryptic answers. I’m tired of talking in circles. I’m tired of all of it. I’m going home. Alone.”

Lex looked over his shoulder warily at the handful of Wayne Enterprises employees who had gathered nearby. To Chloe he whispered, “Please, let’s go back to my office. We can discuss this. Privately.”

“There’s nothing to discuss…”

The elevator arrived and she moved to step on but Lex grabbed her arm.

“So that’s it? You’re leaving? Just like that?”

“Let go of me.” When he didn’t, she added “If you don’t want to make even more of scene here, you’ll let go of my arm, Lex. Right now.”

Her voice cut right into him like a knife. He let go of her arm and watched as she backed into the elevator. “Chloe, don’t do this…”

Her face was almost entirely devoid of emotion as she pushed a button on the elevator panel. “It looks like I came to say goodbye to you too, Lex.”

The elevator doors slid closed and before he could stop himself Lex slammed his hand against the cool metal in disgust. Then he leaned his weight against it.

She left him. Again. Only this time was a hundred times worse. This time, he knew…

He should go after her…but would it do any good?

Vaguely, he heard someone calling his name.

“Mr. Luthor?” It was the receptionist.

He straightened up and turned to face the woman.

OK, he could really do without the look of pity that the woman had on her face as she held her phone. Thankfully, the other onlookers had gone on about their business.

“Mr. Luthor?”

“Yes?”

“It’s Mr. Wayne. He’d like you to come to his office as soon as possible.”

Talk to Wayne? Now? Not bloody likely.

Lex stalked passed the receptionist without a word.

“Mr. Luthor!?” she called. “What should I tell him?”

“Tell him to go to Hell.”

*****

Court Street Bar…the following evening…

Chloe sipped her beer and tried to avoid making eye contact with the leering man at the end of the bar.

Ugh, greasy man in a bar. As if.

She had dressed conservatively with the problem of being hit on in mind. A long skirt and boots, and simple wrap sweater. The fact of the matter was though, no matter how she was dressed, she was still a young woman alone in a central Gotham Bar. She might as well have worn a sign that read ‘use your lame lines on me, I have not heard them.’

She was immensely relieved when Harvey slid onto the stool next to her and signaled to the bartender that he would have what she was drinking.

“Hey, waiting long?” he asked.

Chloe shook her head and leaned up to kiss his cheek. Close to his ear, she whispered. “Casanova at 10 o’clock,” she said to explain the sudden show of affection. Nodding, Harvey kissed her cheek in return and the man at the end of the bar began looking around for other options.

“Thanks.”

“Anytime.” Harvey waited as the bartender set down his beer before speaking again. “So, two times in less than a week. I don’t think we saw this much of each other while we were dating.”

“I sure hope you aren’t blaming me for that, and before you answer, let me point out that you’re late. Twenty-one minutes late, actually.”

“Of course I’m not blaming you. I know I can be an ass when it comes to stuff like that. And sorry, by the way, I got caught up in court.” He replied, loosening his tie.

“I figured.” Chloe propped her chin on her hand.

“So…what did you need to talk about?”

“I need some legal advice…of a sort.”

“CJ, I’m a prosecutor, not a private attorney.”

“That’s exactly the kind of advice I need. That’s why I came to you.”

Harvey took a swig of his beer. “This is a bit unusual don’t you think, you coming right to me? Doesn’t Allied usually route all of its cases through the police?”

“This one’s off the record. In fact, anything I ask you tonight, just assume it’s…hypothetical.”

“Hypothetical?”

“Yeah, are we clear or would you prefer not to talk about this?” Chloe wanted to offer him an out even though her gut told her he would not take it.

Harvey studied her for a minute. “Off the record is fine,” he said finally. “Does this have anything to do with that case you were working on last week?”

“It might, and just like last week, I can’t give you any names.”

“Gotcha. So what do you need to know?”

“How does your boss feel about going after high profile cases?” Harvey’s boss, the Gotham City District Attorney was reputed to be a hard nose prosecutor who never shirked form a fight but Chloe needed to hear that from him.

“My boss is an idealist like me. If the evidence is there, she’ll prosecute, no matter who it is.”

“Even big money players?

“Especially big money players. She thinks the legal system kowtows to big money too often as it is.”

“What about big money players in bed with the government?”

Harvey looked at her sharply over the rim of his glass. “You have proof?”

Chloe frowned at him and he added hastily. “Hypothetically, would you have proof?”

“Maybe. It’s not all lined up yet but I need to know if it’s even worth pursuing. I’m not going to risk my neck if your boss isn’t going to run with the ball when I hand it to her.”

“Like I said, if the evidence is there, and it has to really be there, she’ll run with it. Just what kind of charges are we talking about?”

Chloe shrugged. “Not sure yet. Definitely fraud. Perhaps some bribery. But it’s big. I don’t know all the players yet but the ones I do know of have really deep pockets.”

“Deep pockets don’t scare us,” Harvey replied, proudly. Chloe had to smile. Harvey was a rare breed alright. He really believed he could make a difference. She hoped the DA’s office knew how lucky they were to have him on their side.

“You didn’t answer my question though, why come to me? If this is an insurance fraud thing, shouldn’t you be handling this through Allied?”

Chloe leaned closer. “It’s not that simple. For one thing, Allied might be involved in this one. On the wrong side.”

“You’re kidding!”

“I wish I was. They shut down the case. Officially I can’t do any more on it.”

“And your boss?”

“Let’s just say that they told him, hypothetically of course, that he might not have a job if he pushed much farther on this. He’s got a wife and kid in college, plus a pension there. He had to draw the line somewhere. I, on the other hand, don’t have as much to lose…”

“So how do you plan to follow this without them knowing?”

“I got placed on unpaid leave yesterday…”

Harvey’s eyebrows shot up and Chloe shook her head. “Don’t ask, it’s a long story. The bottom line is that I’ve got some free time on my hands and couple of leads I can still pursue. If I find something and they try to retaliate, I’ll take the worst of it, not Ted. If I don’t, oh well, at least I’ll know I tried, right?”

“I guess. But, if this goes high up, it could be very risky for you and, even if you find something and if it’s enough for us to prosecute, there’s still no guarantee of success.”

Chloe’s memory flashed to Lionel standing in the courtroom, smirking at her while the prosecuting attorney spoke in her ear.

There’s still a chance he can walk, you know. You have to realize that…and prepare yourself.

She blinked and brought herself back to the present.

“I’ve heard that before, Harvey. It’s just the risk you take.”

He reached over and squeezed her hand. “Just be careful, OK?”

Chloe smiled, attempting to show some bravado she really did not feel. “Aren’t I always?”

*****
Chloe’s apartment…a couple of hours later…

Chloe closed the door of her apartment and dropped her purse and keys on the low side table near the door. She then walked to kitchen and tapped on the ‘speaker’ button for her telephone and dialed the number for her voice mail. She reached for a glass from her cabinet; while the mechanical-sounding female voice of the message system filled the kitchen

“You have five messages….first message…left three oh four p.m…”

“Chloe, it’s Lex… call me….I don’t want to leave things this way…”

“Second message…left three forty-four p.m….”

“Chloe, sweetie, it’s Dad. I haven’t heard from you in a while…I’m not trying to nag or anything but just drop me an email or something to let me know you’re OK….love you….”

“Third message…left four thirty-eight p.m….”

“CJ, it’s Danny…I just heard about your leave…I’m really sorry…about everything… Give me a call, OK?”

“Fourth message…left five twenty-one p.m…”

“CJ, it’s Ted…Look, I know you’re upset about what the suits here said about me but don’t sweat it…It would take a lot for them to fire me. Just watch yourself, though, you’re young, you’ve got your career ahead of you…don’t do anything stupid…”

“Fifth message…left seven oh three p.m…”

“Chloe, it’s Lex again…I need to go back to Metropolis for a couple of days but I’d like to talk to you before then so we can try work this out. I meant what I said the other day… I’ve never wanted to lie to you…call me, please.”

Chloe took a long swallow from the glass of water she had just poured.

“…end of messages…”

“Maybe it’s time to look into getting some female friends,” she muttered aloud.

Chloe hung up the phone and walked to the living room, picking up a stack of printouts along the way. She flopped onto the couch and kicked off her boots as she flipped through the pages. They contained the contents of the employee files she had taken from the Wayne Enterprises network. Specifically, the two employee files that had been incongruously saved in the hidden area.

Her gut was telling her that these two men, Paul Mills and Owen Kline, were somehow involved in this mess. But how? They weren’t as highly paid as some of the engineers on staff and they had not worked for Wayne Enterprises before being transferred; they had been hired specifically to work on this project. Their employee files indicated that they were simply machine operators, hired to monitor some of the controls in various sections of the plant.

What these two men could possibly have to do with a mess that somehow connected Wayne Enterprises, Luthor Corp, Batman, the Pentagon, and now the U.S. Treasury, Chloe could not begin to fathom, but she had to find out.

If it meant tailing these two men until she got an answer, so be it.

“It’s not as if I have anything else to go on.”

End Chapter.

[hfce]

Great update but I am sad no more Chlex . :( I wish she would give him a chance to explain.


Hope ;)

[gecko]

great story, im loving it, hope there is more chlex to come, keep up the good work

[Louie]

greasy bar man was funny, all the different Gotham characters my mind decided that it could be. Idealistic Harvey was sad, poor Harvey. I wonder what the big bad terrible secret is.

[kimmie]

Great update. I think Chloe is right to be angry with Lex for not telling her everything. He is gonna have to do some grovelling to get back in her good books!!!

Gimme more Soon...PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Kimmie