Title: Chasing The Lead.
Author: Superkgirl.
Disclaimer: I do not own Smallville or any of its characters.
Summary: Chloe finds danger while chasing a lead.
Pairings: Chlex (Chloe/Lex)
I hope you like it
Chapter 1: Trapped
Chloe woke up on something cold and hard with pain in her head like she’d been hit with a hammer she cautiously reached up and touched her head, “Ow!”
She said sucking in her breath sharply at the pain of the big gash on her head. She noticed a sticky substance on her fingers blood, great I’m bleeding she searched herself carefully for anymore injuries they were only minor cuts and bruises.
She knew she had to find something to wrap her head with, her search revealed that she had the same clothes on that she had dressed in this morning or whenever it had happened, a sweater and jeans along with some tennis shoes and also a sweatshirt and coat and that all her pockets had been emptied of their contents including her gloves she decided that her sweatshirt would have to work so she took off her coat and sweatshirt and wrapped the sweatshirt around her head like a turban then quickly put her coat back on.
She didn’t like the feeling that someone was behind her and wondered if there was a wall nearby that she could sit with her back against she cautiously started searching with her hands and found that just a couple feet away there was a wall which she sat huddled against trying to keep warm, Well good thing its winter otherwise I wouldn’t have a coat or anything I’d probably be dead by now She sighed, if only Clark......”
Chloe didn’t finish the thought, for once Clark wouldn’t be able to save her he and Lana were on vacation well at least that’s what they called it but Chloe knew better their relationship was crumbling the past had finally caught up to them all the lies deceit all of it and now they were doing all they could to save it.
She thought of Jimmy, he couldn’t save her either, he and Kara were gone too she didn’t know where or for how long but they were gone and Lois had been sent overseas for a story and wouldn’t be back for months so that left just her all alone with no one to save her.....not this time, this time it was only her.
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Lex was sitting in his office at the Daily Planet when someone knocked, can’t these people leave me alone for five minutes? Lex sighed, “Come in!” The door opened and a man walked in, “What is it?!” Lex asked.
The man cleared his throat, “Um well Mr. Uh....Luthor....sir I thought you might want to know that Chloe Sullivan has not showed up for work for the past two days, sir” He said nervously.
Lex frowned that certainly didn’t sound like Chloe, “Have you tried calling her?” He asked. The man nodded, “Yes sir she’s not answering her home phone and her cell phone is shut off.”
Lex’s frown deepened, “Has anyone checked on her?” Lex asked. “No, sir” The man answered. “And her cousin Ms. Lane is gone on assignment, should we contact her?” He asked. “No not until we know for sure something’s wrong, what about Jimmy Olsen” Lex asked. “No he went on vacation with his new girlfriend” The man answered.
Lex sighed that meant that Kara was gone too. “Get a hold of Clark Kent and Lana Lang they might know what’s wrong with Ms. Sullivan.” The man nodded and left. Clark and Lana will take care of it, He thought and went on with his work.
Hours later there was another knock at the door, the same man came back in looking even more nervous than last time. “Did you talk to them?”
Lex asked. “Um no sir you see apparently Mr. Kent and Ms. Lang are on a trip...s-sir” The man answered. “Is there anyone else who knows her or is friends with her?” Lex asked. “No sir, I’m afraid not” Lex sighed. “Well it looks like I’m going to have to check on Ms. Sullivan myself.”
Lex pulled his car up to the Talon later that night and grabbed the keys to the Talon which was now closed for the day and unlocked the door he climbed the stairs to the apartment and knocked on the door, “Chloe?” He said as he knocked, “Are you in there?” No answer.
He tried the door handle which to his surprise opened.
Inside, the apartment was trashed, glass covered the floor, tables and chairs had been broken and Chloe’s laptop had been smashed on the ground Lex cautiously searched the apartment but found nothing, he went back to where her laptop was and knelt down and carefully picked it up it was unsalvageable but maybe his computer experts could get something off it, he happened to glance down where the laptop had been and what he saw made him feel sick there on the floor was.....blood.
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Chapter 2: Dreams
(Italic from episode Forsaken, Smallville season 3)
Chloe stood in the Luthor mansion with Lex.
“So you have information that could put my father in prison?” Lex said as he turned to face her.
“So did you before you obliterated those seven weeks of your memory in Belle Reve.” Chloe answered.
“Do you know what he was trying to hide?” Lex asked.
Chloe hesitated, “Lex....your father murdered his parents in a tenement fire. He hired a crime lord named Morgan Edge to do the dirty work you got Edge’s confession on videotape, but daddy dearest destroyed it.
Lex looked disappointed, “Then there’s no proof”
Chloe smiled, “Only the voice mail confession of Lionel Luthor himself he tried to scrub it, but erased voice mails like deleted computer files someone with enough pull and the right password can resurrect them from the cyber graveyard”
Lex was confused, “Why didn’t you come to me sooner?”
Chloe stepped closer, “Your psychiatrist didn’t accidently wrap her car around a tree. You showed me the investigators body on a slab in the morgue. Luthor family politics can get a little grim.”
Lex put his hands on her shoulders, “Chloe it means a lot to me that you’re willing to do this for me but if you come forward, you’re putting yourself between my father and the FBI, that’s not a very safe place to be.”
Chloe breathed in a shaky breath and nodded, “I know but I can’t get out from under your fathers grip by myself, besides I know you won’t let anything happen to me.” She said, smiling bravely.
Chloe woke up confused and her head pounding, it didn’t take her long to remember where she was.
She wondered why she had dreamed of Lex it was like he was a different person now, he’d been so different then, he had cared about other people not just himself or what it could gain him.
Sometimes she wondered what would have happened if Clark had told him his secret before everything had gone wrong between them, wrong with Lex.
Someone must have noticed by now that she was gone even though she didn’t really know how long it had been but it felt like an eternity, but her not being at work must have been a clue to someone one thing she did know was that she wasn’t going to last very much longer with how much blood she’d lost, she had searched the room staying near the wall and had discovered that it was small and strangely didn’t have a door which made her think that there was a trap door somewhere she searched the middle of the room and found to her great relief a water bottle, she was so thirsty she drank slowly and tried to keep from drinking the whole thing, she didn’t know if she would get anymore since she hadn’t heard a sound since she’d been down here this might be the only water she’d get she had better save it.
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(Italic from episode Covenant, Smallville season 3)
Lex was sitting at his desk looking at some folders talking to Chloe, “John Hopkins , The Mayo Clinic. My fathers knocked on the door of every major medical institution in the western world and was sent home each time without a cure. He said as he stood up and handed the folder to Chloe.
Chloe looked at the folder, “I’m sensing you’re having second thoughts. Lex I understand if you want to back out. He needs to be punished for what he did, but he’s still your father and he’s dying.”Chloe said in understanding.
“Yeah and he’s gonna draw his last breath in prison not at the VIP suite at Metropolis General. But only if you’re still willing to go through with this” His voice held warning.
“I don’t think I like the sound of this” Her fear obvious.
“Chloe a dying man has little to lose . My father used a bizarre blood platelet cocktail to raise the dead then pinned the murders of the research team on his son. Who knows what tactics he’ll use to avoid going to prison.” He said as he walked to the other side of the room.
“Yeah, but the FBI guaranteed our safety they’re putting me and my father in protective custody until after the trial.” Chloe said as she followed him.
“Then what?” He asked.
“Lex, are you trying to scare me? Chloe asked him, confused.
“I’m worried about you Chloe, I want you to have all the facts before you walk into that courtroom.” He said.
Chloe sighed, “Your fathers intimidated me long enough I’m not backing down.”
Lex woke up to find himself sitting at his desk, I must have fallen asleep, he thought
He thought of the dream and Chloe’s words,
“....I’m not backing down”
Was it a story that had gotten her abducted? A lead? Had her refusal to back down gotten her in trouble....again, like it had when she’d gotten mixed up with his father and hadn’t backed down even though he’d try to kill her.
He looked at all the evidence from Chloe’s apartment with new eyes, could it be that she’d been taken because of a story? He started going back through her stuff with new inspiration.
Hours later a man walked in, “Mr. Luthor, we’ve finished with the computer” Lex leaned forward, “Did you find something?” The man handed Lex a file, “Yes sir.” Lex took the file and looked it over, “One story stands out, it was the most recent story she had been working on before she was taken unfortunately we weren’t able to get all of it off her laptop. ” He said. “I want you to follow this, if this is the reason she was taken we have know everything that she did.” Lex ordered. The man hurried from the room.
This could be the key to finding Chloe, she had been missing for three days and he was afraid that time was running out.....if it wasn’t to late already.
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Chapter 3:New Clues
Lex was walking into the mansion when his phone rang, "This better be good." He threatened as he answered.
Silence.
"Hello?" Someone laughed on the other end, "Uh, Lex?"
He frowned, "Lois?" Another laugh,
"Yeah Lex its me I just got your message, is something wrong?" Her voice mocking.
"Yes I’m afraid so, He hesitated, "Chloe has gone missing."
He heard a gasp, "What? Is this some kind of sick joke Lex?"
"About three weeks after you left, Chloe didn’t come to work, it wasn’t brought to my attention until two days later. No one had heard from her and apparently she doesn’t have any friends besides you, Clark, Lana, Jimmy and Kara all of which are gone, leaving no one to ask about her whereabouts, so when we found out about everyone being gone I decided I would check on her personally, I went to her apartment and being the owner I have a key but I didn’t have to use it, the door was already unlocked and her apartment had been trashed and her laptop smashed, fortunately we were able to get some information off of it, and hopefully a lead on to who might have taken her, apparently she was working on a story on a doctor whom she calls Doctor X. Lois, we also found blood at her apartment, it was Chloe’s. I called you not only because you need to know but also I was wondering if you could offer any insight on this Doctor X."
She cleared her throat, "Um well, uh lets see she did say that she was working on a huge story that would definitely get front page, when I asked her about it she said that I could see it when it was finished and she’d been gone a lot when I would call her or ask her where she’d been she would make up some lousy excuse, Lex she had been working on this story for months do you think that this Doctor X waited until everyone who really knew her was gone before he took her?"
Her voice was getting panicky, "I shouldn’t have left her alone or at least I should have called her or something, that’s it I’m leaving now."
"Lois, your jumping to conclusions we don’t know if that is the person who took her and you know that Chloe wouldn’t want you to give up on an opportunity like this, the story your working on is a once in a lifetime kind of story and there is no way that you’ll get another chance like this." He said.
"I don’t care Lex you don't understand she’s not just my cousin she’s....she’s like a sister to me," her voice broke, "There is no way that I’m going to stay here while some maniac has my cousin."
Lois Lane.....crying, so she really is human after all. He thought.
"Lois I am on it okay I will find Chloe, you can trust me."
"Trust YOU Lex, you? For all I know you could have something to do with this!" She was practically yelling now.
"Calm down Lois, this is exactly why I don’t want you here, you would only complicate things and already your not thinking clearly, what reason would I have to take Chloe? None. Just the opposite actually I’m looking for Chloe and if not for me no one would because all her friends deserted her." He said heatedly. Where did that come from? He wondered.
There was a long pause.
Lois breathed in a calming breath, "As much as I hate admit it your right Lex I can’t think at all right now and I’m not even there, I’ll stay here but only for now and you have to send me all the information you have and keep me posted."
Wait, what, she actually agreed?. He thought.
"The information will be sent to you immediately and any new information I receive will also be sent as soon as I get it."
"Okay Lex but if you don’t find her in the next 24 hours I’m going to be on the first flight home or if I find anything in the stuff you send me that makes me have suspicions about you then I will leave immediately." Lois said with warning.
"Well Lois I’m overcome with the confidence you place in me." Lex said wryly.
"Your lucky I put this much in you, I must be crazy to think I can trust you."
"Lois, I will find Chloe and the person who took her and that person will pay for it, dearly." He swore.
"Yeah I know Lex and for once I won’t argue with you because anyone who hurts Chloe should pay for it, big time."
"I’ll be in touch Lois."
"Okay Lex please find her soon."
"I will Lois, I promise. Bye."
"Thanks Lex, bye."
D*** He thought. I should have had her call Lana and
Clark, oh well I guess I’ll have to deliver the bad news myself..........or maybe not. After all it wasn’t like Clark would be any help, most likely he would just get in the way or start accusing him of doing something to Chloe, Lana might know something with all the spying that she’s been doing but its not like she would tell him anything , and she probably had files on Chloe actually she probably had files on everyone she knew, he’d just get the files themselves and that way he wouldn’t have to worry about her lying to him.
That evening Lex waited impatiently in his car in a alley, S*** where is he? Lex wondered.
Just then a knock sounded on the window, he rolled it down,
"Finally." He said to the man standing outside his car.
"You won’t be disappointed Mr. Luthor." The guy said.
"Well I better not because I don’t pay people for wasting my time." Lex took the folder
from the man’s outstretched arm,
"Now where’s the money?"
"You’ll get your money, if this isn’t a waste of my time."
Lex looked at the folder,
"Well?" The guy asked.
Lex looked up at the man,
"You get your money."
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Chapter 4:The Darkness
Lex sat down at his desk and checked his email, why hadn’t Lois emailed him yet?
He had asked her to contact Clark and Lana, and also Jimmy and Kara but so far she hadn’t emailed him back, he’d even tried calling but it said the phone was disconnected, as long as she doesn’t show up here I don’t care where she is. He thought.
He didn’t honestly care if any of the others knew but Lois ha been begging to ‘help’ so he had her try to contact them only because he wanted her to stop bothering, he had better things to do, like find Chloe.
He had to.
He’d sworn Lois he would.
Though it wouldn’t have mattered if he had sworn it to Lois or not, he would have been just as determined if he hadn’t because he had to know why.............why she had saved his life when he had gotten shot in the head while trying to save Kara, he had found out only recently that she had used her powers on him when he was in a coma and he wanted, no needed to know why, why would she save him when she opposed everything he did because it went against her beliefs, or maybe she’d just done it out of loyalty to Clark he wasn’t really sure after all the things he’d found out about her since this had all started he really didn’t know what to think about Chloe Sullivan anymore he used to think that he had her all figured out, but just when he started thinking that she would surprise him with something that would make him stop and think about who Chloe Sullivan really was, he was usually a pretty good judge of character but not when it came to Chloe, he just couldn’t figure her out, the way she risked everything for those that she cared about even when they didn’t give her anything in return, he had always wanted to ask her, why?
They were more alike than anyone thought, they had both been abandoned by the people they had loved, she had loved Clark and Clark had loved Lana, he had loved Lana and Lana had loved Clark and now they were together and where did that leave Chloe and him? Chloe had been with Jimmy for a while but then when Jimmy took interest in Kara he and Chloe broke up leaving her alone again, and ever since Lana he hadn’t really seen anyone let alone fall in love with someone, he wasn’t going to make that mistake again, ever.
A knock pulled him out of his reverie, "Uh, Come in."
A man entered, "Sir we’ve located Doctor X’s location using the file you gave us."
Lex stood up so quickly he almost knocked down his chair, "You did?"
"Yes sir"
"Let’s move."
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Chloe lay weakly on the ground her breathing shallow, hearing the voices that had been haunting her for almost as long as she’d been in here,
A loud , mocking voice spoke, "Your gonna die,"
"No! Someone will come," argued a quiet, hopeful voice, weakly.
"Hah yeah right no one even knows your gone, not Lana, not Lois, not Jimmy, not Kara and not Clark and who else will come to your rescue? Face it, no one cares about you not even any of your friends care about you, you are ALONE everyone is leaving you behind, forever.
All you are is a roadblock for them getting on with their lives, maybe it would be best for you to be gone to let them move forward with their futures cause face it you aren’t going anywhere fast, just give up, just let go."
Tears rolled slowly down Chloe’s cheeks, maybe, maybe I should, what if I really am just holding all of them back?
Suddenly light flooded into the dark room, blinding her, she squinted trying to make out who it was,
suddenly she heard a voice,
"Chloe?! Are you okay?"
She moaned softly.
Suddenly someone was kneeled beside her,
"Shh it’s okay don’t try to speak your gonna be okay." The voice said, comfortingly.
Somehow she knew that it was.
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Chapter 5: The Light
Lex walked into the hospital and quietly closed the door behind him, he walked over to
the bed and gently set the flowers on the table beside it, where she would easily notice them, he sat down in the chair and looked at her, the bandage wrapped around her head, the bruises, her small emaciated form, she weighed hardly anything, the doctor said it was a miracle that she was still alive after being down there for so long, he said that if she hadn’t rationed her water she would have died, and thankfully her doctor had worked with meteor freaks before and wouldn’t say anything about her abilities and Lex had assured him that if he said anything he would regret it.
Lex reached up and gently brushed his knuckles against her cheek, she sighed softly, he smiled and then gently picked up her hand and held it, "Don’t worry Chloe I’m right here." He whispered gently.
Chloe felt warmth and comfort and thought that she was dreaming but when the cold didn’t come nor did she feel any pain in her head she slowly opened her eyes to find herself in a hospital bed covered in warm blankets and her head wrapped with bandages the pain only slight, she looked over to see Lex sleeping in the chair beside her bed his hand gently grasping hers, instead of feeling like she wanted to pull her hand away she felt comforted by his hand holding hers, of all the people in the world he was the last person she would have expected to be sitting in a hospital in the middle of the night holding her hand and yet he was, maybe I’m dead, she thought. But she quickly ruled that out thinking it would be weird for a dead person to be in a hospital. Why had he saved her? She was pretty sure that it had been his voice that she had heard when she had been rescued his voice had been so reassuring and kind not at all like the Lex Luthor she knew or........thought she knew, maybe he wasn’t who she had thought him to be all these years the, cunning and evil his only object to rule the world, after all everyone who ever said they loved him had left him, abandoned him......just like her sure they said they loved and cared about her and she knew that they did but she still felt alone because compared to them she had nothing, Clark had Lana had each ther and so did Kara and Jimmy and Lois was practically married to her career so that left her, her and.....Lex.
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Chapter 6: Ice cream and laughs
Chloe woke up to sounds of a busy hospital, it comforted her, being able to hear people, activity, life, in that room that she’d been locked in she hadn’t been able to hear a thing, it had given her a new appreciation for noise in general.
She looked over at the chair that had been where she’d woke up to find Lex, holding her hand but it was empty, I must have been dreaming, she thought, to her surprise though she didn’t find that thought comforting.
Feeling very thirsty all of the sudden, she looked around for something to drink, seeing the cup on top of the table beside her bed she tried sitting up but found that she was to weak, she rolled herself over carefully trying to reach for it, but found herself slipping off the bed instead, desperately she clutched the sheets to pull herself up but even her small body was to much for her strength and so she found herself bracing her body for
the impact when suddenly strong arms gripped her and laid her gently back on the bed.
It was Lex.
"Are you okay, what were you doing?"
"I’m fine, I was just trying to get a drink of water."
He retrieved the cup from the table and handed it to her.
"You could have called a nurse."
"Oh...uh....yeah." She said slowly.
He chuckled slightly, which made her mad.
She frowned.
"It wouldn’t have hurt that bad."
His eyes narrowed.
"Right." He said with a smirk.
She tried to frown at him but found herself laughing at how ridiculous she sounded, Lex laughed with her, he has a nice laugh, she thought. She mentally shook herself, I shouldn’t be thinking like that.
She suddenly thought of her friends,
"Where are Lois and all the others, are they still gone?"
The smile disappeared from his face.
"Yes they’re all still gone but they’ve um been contacted."
She looked disappointed.
"Oh."
Lex came closer to the bed and sat down on the chair beside her bed, they sat there talking for a couple of minutes before they brought their dinner to them which, thanks to Lex, was not the gross hospital food but was prepared for them by Lex’s own personal chef,
"How was the food?" Lex asked after they were finished.
"Delicious as always." Chloe said with a smile.
"Good I’m glad you liked it."
The caterers soon came back in to get the dishes.
"Ice cream?" Lex asked.
"Your spoiling me Lex." She said with a laugh.
"You deserve it Chloe." He said, smiling at her.
She looked away from his eyes, feeling the heat rush into her cheeks.
The caterers rushed in, giving Chloe time to slow her racing heart,
Easy Chloe you know Lex would never think of you romantically, nor you him for that matter.
Then why do I feel this way? She wondered.
Soon they were both eating their ice cream, the warm hospital was making the ice
cream melt very quickly, they were both trying to lick the ice cream that was running down the sides of their cones and neither were quite succeeding Chloe looked up to see how Lex was doing just as he was licking some ice cream that had gotten on his chin and she couldn’t look away she was still staring at him when all the sudden he spoke,
startling her,
"You have ice cream running down your hand."
Chloe looked down to see her hand covered in ice cream she started licking it and was soon a sticky mess, Lex got up to wash his hands and face and get her a washcloth and came back to the bed and when he saw her he started laughing as he handed her the washcloth, she laughed as she took it from him,
"Thanks."
He grinned, "Your welcome."
She wiped off her hands and face and gave the washcloth back to him,
"Here you missed a spot." He said as he gently reached down and wiped her chin, their eyes met and Chloe felt her heart jump as she looked deep into his green eyes, she looked deeper and deeper into them until felt lost in the green abyss, his face was so close his hand still gently on her cheek, his lowered his lips so that they were almost touching hers when suddenly the door swung open and her nurse burst in, breaking the spell,
"Hello Miss Chloe!" She said brightly, "Mr. Luthor." Not noticing the way Chloe and Lex
had instantly separated when she walked in, "How are you doing tonight?"
Chloe cleared her throat, "Good Darcy, how about you?" She replied trying to avoid Lex’s eyes.
"Good as always missy." She said as she started to change the dressing on Chloe’s head.
"I’ll get out of your way." Lex said to the nurse.
Then he looked at Chloe, "I’ll be back in a little while."
Chloe nodded, "Bye." She said quietly.
Lex walked out of the room and Chloe breathed a sigh of relief, why do I feel like that whenever he’s near me? She wondered,
She sighed again,
Oh s*** I like Lex Luthor.
TBC
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Re: Chasing the Lead (PG-13) (16th May 2008)
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