Title: Somebody Save Me (original I know)
Author: SaraC
Rating: PG-13 (language for now but WILL go up)
Spoilers: EXODUS! If you didn't see the season 2 finale you will be spoiled and you won't understand things!
Setting: Up through Season 2, but for the purpose of this story, I'm making everyone a senior when the events of the season happen. It fits my plot line better!
Summary: It's Chloe to Lex's rescue!
Archive: Anywhere, just let me know
Disclaimer: Not mine. Never will be.
Author Notes: God bless David for the quick beta and for recognizing Jarod! (More on him in ending AN) This comes from frustration over the season finale. Because it will never happen this way, I wrote it my way, which means its got lots of Chlexy goodness, as it should be!!
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Chapter 1
Chloe held her breath as she pressed her body against the wall, desperately trying to hear what was going on in the room next to her. 'Brilliant, Sullivan. Accept the devil's offer then follow him back to his heavily armed lair to find out what this 'other appointment' is and if it has to do with his sudden interest in Clark.'
Her seesawing emotions after her blow up with Clark had made the idea seem like a good one at the time. Especially since she was even more determined now to see why Lionel was so interested in Clark- even if it meant making a deal with the devil himself.
Inching towards the open door, she could hear Lionel's deep voice and a softer female one. Her curiosity grew several notches when she finally placed the second voice. Why the hell was the very new Mrs. Lex Luthor talking to her husband's bastard of a father who hadn't even been invited to the wedding? Feeling a sense of doom, she pressed her ear to the door, praying no staff members would come along. Her fears were confirmed as she finally picked up the conversation.
"You know, Helen, you have a devious mind, very much like my own. Joining forces is definitely in both our best interests."
Chloe frowned. She was no fan of the brunette doctor, having placed her as a fake from the start, but she had really believed the woman at least felt more for Lex than his other girlfriends. Obviously, she'd been wrong.
"Not so loud, Lionel, anyone could hear. Besides, I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing this for me and the very nice payoff you're giving me for my 'efforts.'"
That bitch! Chloe drew in her breath sharply as she realized that once again, Lex Luthor was about to be taken in by a devious brunette. While she did not know Lex that well, she knew enough about him to respect what he'd done for Smallville and the type of person he was trying to become. He did not deserve whatever these two had planned.
"Remember, Helen, you won't see a penny of that money until I get a confirmed report that my son is either dead or missing. Which of those options it is, I leave up to you."
Chloe's heart sank, realizing how much trouble she had just uncovered. Helen and Lionel were obviously planning for something to happen to Lex and from the sound of things, relatively soon.
"Trust me, Lionel, everything will go according to plan. That report will be on your desk tomorrow morning, and I'll be happily living off your money somewhere in the Mediterranean."
Tomorrow? Chloe bit her lower lip as she realized how little time she had to figure this out.
"Assuming you survive the jump, my dear. It's a rather daring plan."
The sound of two bodies moving towards the door had her pulling back quickly, puzzling over Lionel's last remark. Figuring she could deal with that later, she concentrated on more important things. She had to warn Lex and she had to warn him now.
'Right, you're just going to crash the reception and tell the groom his bride is going to try and kill him on their wedding night. That will go over real well.'
Slipping away from the door, Chloe fled down the hall and into the small alcove that led to the kitchen. The reception was on the lawn in back of the mansion and Lex was out there somewhere, she just had to find him.
Moving quickly through the crowd, she scanned the lawn for the familiar gleaming bald head. Breathing a sigh of relief, she spotted him next to a carefully pruned hedge across from her, involved in a seemingly deep conversation with a Chinese businessman. Murmuring 'excuse me' and 'pardon me' to those in her path, she made a beeline for Lex all while trying to figure out how to tell him that his new bride was going to take "till death do us part" literally.
"Chloe dear, I didn't see your father at the wedding. Is everything all right?"
She jumped at the voice and the hand that suddenly latched onto her arm. Turning, she found herself face to face with one of Smallville's most chatty residents. Faith Parker ran one of the antiques stores in downtown Smallville and was known to be a notorious gossip.
"Everything's fine, Mrs. Parker. Dad's away on plant business so I am here to deliver our regards and best wishes to the bride and groom." She hoped her voice did not sound as desperate as it seemed but she was losing precious time standing here.
"Well, give your father my best wishes and tell Lex it really was an amusing wedding, although I wonder what kept the best man. You don't know where Clark was, do you, dear?"
For a moment, Chloe considered telling the woman exactly where Clark was and who he most likely would be with. She stopped the petty thoughts and pushed down her anger as she focused instead on the task at hand.
"No I don't, Mrs. P, but I promise I'll let you know if I find out anything. Now I really have to find Lex." Pulling out of the woman's grasp, she turned to look at where Lex had been standing only to find no sign of him. Frantically moving through the crowd, she desperately looked around but did not see him.
Her heart sank as the crowd suddenly broke into cheers and applause. Whipping towards the driveway, she saw a long black limo pulling away from the party. The "Just Married" sign on the back gave away the passengers.
'Damn!'
Pushing through the crowd, she bolted for the driveway, some ridiculous idea of throwing herself in front of the limo at the top of her mind. However, the sluggish crowd hindered her progress and by the time she reached the gravel drive, the limo was already halfway down the road.
'Shit! What the f*** do I do now?'
Running her hands through her hair, she made her way towards the mansion's gates and her car, which she'd parked outside of them. She was at a complete loss as to what to do. Lex most likely would not see what was coming and more than likely would be dead by morning. That was a scenario she was not going to accept.
Even if it meant facing the one man she'd just sworn she would never need. Jumping into the car, she sped off toward the Kent farm, bile rising in her throat as she realized she'd have to swallow her pride and talk to Clark. But really, what was more important- her pride or Lex's life? And seeing as Clark was probably the only person who knew where the Luthors' were heading and how to contact them, he was her only option.
Ten minutes later she found herself screeching to a halt in front of what had once been the Kent storm cellar. Mouth opening in surprise, she jumped from the car and walked over to the huge crater.
"What the hell happened here?" She wasn't aware she'd asked the question out loud until it was answered.
"Who knows, it's Smallville I guess."
She whipped around at Pete's resigned voice and suddenly noted a tearful Lana standing next to him. How the hell had she missed them both standing there?
"Pete, what the hell happened? And where's Clark?" She was proud her voice was only somewhat incredulous.
"Clark's gone. I don't know where or when he'll be back." Her friend's hard reply had her staring at Pete in shock.
"What do you mean gone? Clark doesn't just 'go' anywhere. Especially leaving a crater in his yard- or his new girlfriend." She knew that her bitterness hung in those last words, but she couldn't help it.
"He left me. Just like my parents. Just like Whitney. I lose everyone I love."
Chloe wanted to hit Lana as she heard the familiar whiny tone. Of course, it was just like the slug to make it all about her. Her "leaving" complex was coming out in force, as Chloe knew it always did when she was unhappy with something in her perfect life.
"I seriously doubt he wanted to leave you, not when he'd finally gotten what he's wanted for years, Lana." The harsh look she gave the brunette obviously did the trick as Lana remained silent, a guilty look in her now huge eyes.
"Chloe, I don't think it's the time-"
"I don't care about Lana and Clark. I know they're together, Pete, and I can't think about it now. I need Clark because Lex is in danger and he is probably the only one who can save him."
The words came out jumbled and in one breath, but she knew Pete understood by the look of shock on his face.
"The bastard of Smallville, newly married might I add, is in trouble? Why the hell should we care?"
Pete's hard voice had her struggling not to deck him as well. "I don't have time for your stupid vendettas, Pete. I need to find out where Lex and Helen are going, and I need to find out now. Before Lex meets a very untimely end."
She threw up her hands at the shocked looks her friends were giving her. Obviously, they were going to be of no help and either was the very absent Clark. Trust him to disappear the moment anyone other than Lana needed him.
"I think you're being overly dramatic, Chloe-"
"Just stuff it. If Clark isn't here, I'll find a way to save Lex myself." With that, she took off running for her car, ignoring their calls from behind. Turning the key in the ignition, she gunned the engine and raced down the Kents' driveway, the errant thought crossing her mind that Lex would be proud of her reckless driving.
But he might never get to be proud of it if she couldn't find a way to save him. Wracking her brain for anyone or anything that might help, she suddenly remembered there was one other person who might fit the bill.
Screeching to a halt in her driveway, she ran for the house and up to her room where she began frantically rummaging through her desk for the scrap of paper she knew she'd written his name and number down on. A few moments later she let out a cry of triumph as she pulled the paper from the drawer and reached for the phone.
'Please answer, Jarod, please.' The plea repeated itself in her head like a mantra as she heard the phone ring and ring and ring. Almost ready to hang up, she breathed a huge sigh of relief as she finally heard it picked up.
"Jarod?" Pausing for a moment, she closed her eyes in relief as he replied.
"Chloe Sullivan, what can I do for you?"
"I'm so glad you remembered. It's been so long and I didn't know if you would-" His soft voice cut off what was beginning to sound suspiciously like one of her endless ramblings.
"You think I can forget the young woman who saved my life and helped me find my family?"
She smiled quickly as she remembered the happiness she'd seen on his face when she'd reunited him with his mother a year ago. But she put that out of her mind, concentrating now on the matter at hand.
"I don't know if you can help but a friend of mine just got married and is headed off on his honeymoon. What he doesn't know is that his new bride is planning to kill him before they have a wedding night, much less a wedding morning. I don't know where they're going or what's going to happen, I just know it is and that I need to figure it out without arousing any suspicions. Can you help?"
There was silence on the other end and she bit her lip, catching her breath after delivering her statement in one breath.
"I don't know what kind of friends you have Chloe, or how you got that all out in one breath but I'll see what I can do. What is your friend's name?"
"Lex Luthor." She stopped at his quick laugh. "What?"
"Lex Luthor, the billionaire playboy who just married again? It shouldn't surprise me that he's your friend, being you're both in Smallville, but I never-"
"Jarod, I know connecting the dots is a fun game, but I need to know if you can find them. Can you and can you do it without alerting the authorities or anyone at LuthorCorp?" She didn't mean to pressure him but she couldn't help it. Lex was in danger and she was the only one around who seemed to care enough to help.
"I have a few connections, let me do some checking and I'll call you back as soon as I know anything. Hopefully, that will be within the hour."
Thanking him, she hung up and began pacing her room, wracking her brain for something to do that could save Lex. But absolutely nothing came to mind. Screaming to release her tension, she flopped down on her bed and tried not to think of how much of a mess her life had become in the last 12 hours.
She'd finally told Clark off and it had felt good. Then she had accepted Lionel's deal to research Clark in part because of her hurt and anger but in larger part because she wanted to know what the devil himself was up to. Finally, she had overheard Lex's bride and his father planning to murder him. Was her life never going to be normal?
The ringing phone brought her back to the present where she noted about a half an hour had passed. "Hello?" The adrenaline coursed through her body as she heard Jarod's steady voice.
"Okay. They're on the LuthorCorp jet headed to the Mediterranean. They've only been in the air for about 10 minutes and so far nothing seems wrong."
Chloe suddenly had a very bad feeling as something she'd heard earlier finally registered. "Oh God, Jarod, she's going to jump."
"Jump? What do you mean Chloe?"
The desperation was now clawing at her as everything fell into place. "Earlier today I heard Helen and Lex's father planning for Lex to go missing or end up dead. Lionel said something about it all working out if Helen 'survived the jump.' She's going to do something to Lex and then jump from the plane, most likely with the pilots."
It sounded fantastical even to her own ears, like something out of a season finale cliffhanger on one of her TV shows. But she knew with utter certainty that she was right.
"If you're right, we need to get to them before Helen sabotages the plane. Let me make a few calls and I'll figure out a plan."
She was eternally grateful for the reassuring tone of Jarod's voice. She hadn't realized how much she needed to hear it right now. "Thanks, Jarod." It was all she could offer at the moment and she knew it was a sign of how worried she was that she did not question how Jarod had gotten all his information. That was just Jarod.
"Try and hang tight, Chloe, I'll call you soon and we'll figure out how to save your friend."
Hanging up again, she fell back onto the bed, her mind awash with horrifying images of Lex crashing to his death. For some reason, the thought of the bald billionaire dying a fiery death sent a painful jolt through her heart. Which really did not surprise her when she thought about it. Lex was her friend, even if they did not talk that often. She had gotten to know him a little better in the past year and while she'd been obsessed with Clark it did not mean she couldn't appreciate what a fine looking man Smallville's resident playboy billionaire was.
He deserved a lot better than Helen.
Feeling agitated again, she rose from the bed and began pacing, praying that Jarod and his connections could figure out a way to prevent this tragedy from happening. Her mind was on mental overload and she knew she would not rest until things were resolved. At least it took her mind off her disastrous argument with Clark and the feeling of betrayal that still permeated her body at realizing she could not trust her supposed best friend.
The ringing phone was almost a relief. "Jarod?" She did not even pause, knowing he would be the only one calling right now.
"Listen, Chloe, is there a large enough area around you to land a helicopter? Some place that no one would be very suspicious of, especially Lionel Luthor?"
Frowning at his words she nodded, before realizing he could not see her. "Yes. There's a lot of open farmland on the Kent property. It's far enough away from the Luthor mansion and from town that it shouldn't raise any suspicions."
"Good, get there immediately. I'm already in the air, I'll be there in 20 minutes, can you be ready to jump on board?"
Feeling a sense of excitement mix with the worry she nodded again. "I'll be ready, what's the plan?"
"I'll fill you in when I get there, just be ready. Although Chloe, I'll understand if you don't want to be a part of this-"
"Jarod, even with what little you know of me, you know I won't be left out. Lex is my friend and if we're going to save him, I sure as hell am going to be a part of it!"
His small laugh made her feel a little better. "That's what I figured you'd say. You sound a lot like someone else I know."
Muttering a good-bye, she was already dashing down the stairs and out the front door. Within ten minutes she was once again at the Kent farm, thankfully, with no Martha, Jonathan, Pete or Lana in sight. Parking her car, she looked anxiously into the sky.
Ten minutes later she heard the whir of propellers and saw a small black speck in the sky slowly becoming larger. Watching with her hand over her eyes, she saw the chopper descend and when it had reached the ground she was already running towards it. Ducking to avoid the blades, she reached the door and reached up to take the offered hand.
"Nicely done and right on time. I'm impressed."
She smiled as she turned to face the handsome man sitting next to her as he nodded for the pilot to lift off.
"You should be, I'm hardly ever on time." It was lighter than she felt but it perfectly broke the nervous tension she'd been feeling for the past few hours.
"Well, you'll be happy to know I'm monitoring the LuthorCorp jet right now and so far, nothing unusual has occurred."
Looking curiously at the computer equipment sitting across from him her eyes widened. "Wow, you certainly got this together quickly. I'm not even going to ask at this moment how you did it but I'll just say thank you, again."
"Secrets of the trade. Besides, I owed you this." His small smile earned him one in return.
"So here's the plan. If nothing happens to the jet, we'll simply follow it until it lands, then we'll land and find your billionaire."
"And if it doesn't make it that far?" She knew the fear was in her voice but his reassuring clasp of her hand stilled her nerves.
"If he doesn't, we'll know where the plane went down and this chopper is fully equipped to rescue him. Sam and I can handle the situation and no one will be the wiser until you want it to be."
She looked at him in grateful awe. "I don't know how you did it, but I will forever owe you for this, Jarod." Impulsively she reached over to hug him, smiling as he hugged back.
"Chloe, you repaid me in full by helping me find my family. I can't thank you enough for that, even if they have to live in secrecy for the moment."
She sighed, knowing not to ask any more questions. She'd helped him find his family but she knew he was still on the run from the people trying to capture him. Which made helping her all the more dangerous.
"Chloe, it's okay. They aren't going to find me. Trust me." His reassuring words could not help but ease her turning stomach as she offered a small smile.
"I do trust you, Jarod. You're the only person I can at the moment." With that, she lapsed back into silence as she watched the green blob slowly moving across the screen in front of her, saying a quick prayer that Lex would be okay.
She must have fallen asleep because the next thing she became aware of was Jarod's curse as his body shook where her head rested against his shoulder.
"Damn it!"
"What? What happened?" Her eyes flew open and she jerked herself into an upright position, her gaze going directly to the screen where Jarod was staring at the quick descending green blob.
"The jet is quickly losing altitude over the water. It's going down and it's going down fast."
Chloe felt the panic begin to rise in her chest but forced it down. "How far away from them are we?" She watched as he hit a few buttons and a series of numbers popped up.
"Near as I can tell, we're still about 20 minutes away. But Chloe," he paused and turned to squeeze her hand, "we know where the jet will crash, we will find him and we will save him. Never doubt that."
She was amazed to find his words made her feel better. "Thanks, Jarod. Your confidence is overwhelming but needed."
His stiff smile was the only reply she got as she bit her lip and watched the green blob getting lower and lower on the computer screen until it suddenly became a steady smear. "It's in the water, Chloe." His soft words sent a bolt of fear through her system that she quickly tried to mask.
"Lex is resourceful, he'll find a way to survive. He has to." The words sounded desperate to her ears and she wrung her hands in unease. Lex was a survivor and she knew nothing would keep him down. Assuming he survived 'going down' over a huge body of water or that Helen hadn't done anything to incapacitate him. Still, she wouldn't put anything past the evil bitch.
"Five minutes until we're in range, Jarod." The pilot's voice broke into her thoughts as she saw Jarod slip on an orange life preserver.
"Jarod, what are you going to do?" She watched as he hooked the clip of a sturdy rope to a loop on the lifejacket and donned a pair of gloves.
"I'm going to lower myself down to grab him and then we pull him up. It's a simple process, I've done it before-"
"Yeah, but don't we have to have a victim in the water who can see us to make this work?" It was probably a stupid question but she needed to ask it.
"Lex will be in the water. He's a survivor. You said it yourself. We just have to look carefully to find him."
Biting her lip again she turned her gaze to the water below, the setting sun casting a fiery glow over the blue water. Scanning the waves for any sign of life, she caught her breath when a trail of debris became obvious.
"There's the wreckage, now let's find Lex." Jarod's voice was almost hypnotic as his eyes scanned the area. Chloe squinted her eyes, desperately searching for any sign of life in the rolling waves. She had a sudden thought to look for dye or some kind of coloring that might mark a survivor in the water- only to realize she'd only seen that done in military movies and TV shows- not on private billion dollar corporation jets. Despite her preoccupation, she suddenly caught a movement out of the corner of her eye.
"Look!" At first she thought it was her eyes playing tricks on her but a few seconds later, she knew it wasn't. There was a figure in the water, waving its arms frantically in their direction.
"Good eyes, Chloe. We found him." With that, Jarod instructed the pilot to fly over the area as he positioned himself at the chopper's door. "Just hold on, we'll have him up here in no time." Before she could do more than nod, he had jumped out of the chopper and was lowering himself towards the water.
She bit her lip as she watched Jarod struggle to stay balanced as he came closer and closer to the water. Skillful maneuvering from the pilot had him relatively steady but it was obviously harder than it looked for Jarod to grab Lex's hands. Her breath let out in a **whoosh** as she saw Jarod finally get a firm grasp on Lex and begin to pull him up. Unable to stop herself, she leaned out of the chopper and anxiously watched them ascend. It seemed like hours but was probably only minutes until the two bodies finally reached her. Reaching around Jarod she immediately latched onto Lex, pulling him into the chopper with Jarod pushing him up from below.
"Ch-Ch-loe?"
His teeth chattered as he struggled to pronounce her name and she instinctively reached for the blankets on the seat next to her. "None other. You're okay, you just need to get warm." With that, she wrapped a blanket tightly around him and began to rub the circulation back into his arms. She smiled quickly at Jarod who by now had pulled himself inside the chopper as well.
"Helen-pilots-gone-"
Her heart went out to him as she saw the look of desperation in his eyes although it was quickly masked. Something else in those dark depths, however, told her he might have already discovered, or at least suspected, the truth.
"I know, Lex. It was all part of a plot to kill you. But I'll tell you about it later." Using a soothing motion she was not even aware of, she ran her hands along his scalp and neck, massaging lightly as she went.
"What-happened-plot-"
Chloe was beginning to get frustrated as she rubbed harder. "Questions later, warmth now." She was relieved to see his eyes flutter closed as his body relaxed back against hers. He was obviously going to relax, which was a good thing as Jarod did a quick check to make sure he was all right.
"He's fine, Chloe. Probably in the early stages of hypothermia but easily enough cured if we can get and keep him warm."
She smiled in relief at Jarod as she instinctively wrapped her arms around Lex's chest, pulling him tighter against her, hoping some of her body heat would help bring warmth back into his extremely pale body. He must have sensed her warmth because she could have sworn he burrowed closer to her.
Closing her eyes, she thanked whomever had been watching over Lex and prayed for the strength to explain this whole mess to him when he was feeling better. She was not looking forward to it. With a small sigh, she leaned back against the wall of the chopper and drifted into a light sleep; oblivious to the contemplative look Jarod was giving them both as he watched in silence.
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AN 2: Yes, Jarod is the "Pretender" for those who recognize him!
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: Good job! Please update soon!!!!
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