Chapter 01

"Many Happy Returns"

Lois stared at the pile of notes on her desk. There were photos, scraps of other newspapers, archive scans and her own scribbled annotations everywhere. Three people had been found dead over the last two weeks. Three murders. There was something odd about all of them, but Lois could not quite put her finger on it. There was a connection she didn't see yet. She was close, though.

If only she could concentrate. The familiar buzz of the newsroom around her, typical for a Monday morning, upset her more than usual. She leaned back, let out the breath she'd been holding and closed her eyes.

Before her mind's eye, she witnessed once more the events from almost two months ago, single images flashing like headlines. Superman Lives. Luthor Missing. Jason Lane pushing a piano across the room.

Superman was making himself rare, only providing the Planet with a brief comment on his well-being. Yes, he was still looking for Lex Luthor. No, he could not tell them exactly what had transpired on the kryptonite island that was now orbiting the Moon. Indeed, there was nothing print-worthy to be had from the Man of Steel lately.

But all the questions Lois would as him were too personal to print anyway. How is it possible that we have a son? Why don't I remember? What was so terrible that I needed to forget?

As Lois opened her eyes, she saw Clark standing by her desk. Pushing his glasses up on his nose, he looked as nervous as ever. "Are you all right, Lois?"

She sat up properly. "Sure. Peachy."

"You don't look peachy." He paused. "I-I mean, of course you do, but I mean… you look tired." He smiled weakly.

Lois sighed. "I'm tired. Mostly of this case, though. Perry wants me to let it go – but I know I'm right about this."

She stood up to get some coffee. Clark trailed after her to the small excuse for a break room.

"You know, er.. Lois, I think you're onto something!" He squeezed through the door after her, nearly toppling a tower of cardboard boxes that blocked his way. He closed the door to shut out some of the noise.

"Thanks, Clark, but unfortunately you're not my editor."

Lois sipped on her coffee. Richard. If he were here, he might have put in a good word for her with Perry. She immediately scolded herself – she shouldn't always think of him as an instrument rather than a boyfriend. Fiancé, she corrected herself. The ring on her finger rested heavily against the warm cup.

Clark poured himself a cup and followed her gaze to the empty editor's office. "Is Richard not around today?"

"He's covering that conference in Florida." Volunteered, even. Lois recalled how eager he was to get away for a few days. She hadn't told him the truth about Jason yet, but she reckoned it was only a matter of time before he found out.

Clark was watching her intently. "If you need help, with your investigation, I mean, I could always…", he offered.

Lois smiled a little. "Sure, that would be great", she managed. She stopped to actually look at her former partner for a moment. "Yeah, why not. We used to get some decent work done, right?"

Clark beamed. "Sure we did! I mean… It's good to be back."

Perry's voice boomed through the office. "LANE! KENT! In here, now!"

They quickly manoeuvred through the desks and quickly shut the glass door to Perry's office behind them when he got off the phone.

"Don't sit down. Leave your coffee, you're going to the harbour. There's another body."

They took a taxi through downtown Metropolis. After a few minutes of silence, Lois glanced at Clark. He had a strange look on his face, not unlike someone listening to something very intently. He was also staring out of the window like a boy on his first school trip. It kind of reminded her of Jason.

"So. Our first assignment together after all this time. A bit different than where you've been, I wager?"

Clark seemed to wake up out of his daydreaming. "Huh? Oh, well, yeah. It's still weird to be back."

"You gotta tell me about it, sometime, right?" For all Lois knew, Clark had been on soul-searching wanderings in some exotic country – but that was just the hearsay around the office. She hadn't actually asked him about it until now.

Clark looked at her a bit strangely for a moment before answering. "Yes, I… I think I will."

She didn't like beating around the bush. "Look, I know I haven't been the most enthusiastic person in the last few weeks, but… it's actually good that you're back."

"It is?" He seemed surprised.

"Yes, well, working with you again reminds me of the good old days, you know?"

"Oh."

"A lot changed in the past five years, Clark, you better try to keep up with me!" She managed a laugh. Clark smiled sadly.

Truth was, she didn't feel like keeping up with herself much these days. Her life had changed, and just when she'd gotten used to it, they suddenly changed again. Lois still felt the whiplash. She still had nightmares about drowning.

Their conversation died again. When they reached the harbour, they saw police tape spread all over the place. There were several ambulances and a few police cars, but Lois noted that not much press had arrived before them. Perry certainly knew the right people.

Lois was back in full reporter mode. "All right, Clark, let's see what we've got."

"I'll look around," he said and disappeared. At least he hadn't changed too much in his routine.

She tried her luck with a few police officers, but got nothing out of them. Finally, she spotted someone who looked to be in charge. She climbed over the tape and grabbed her recorder. "Lois Lane, Daily Planet. Care to comment on what happened here?"

The moustached man in the coat didn't look amused. "I know who you are, Miss Lane, and don't you presume for a minute it'll get you anywhere." He started to walk away. "The police will issue an official statement, and you'll get it when everyone else gets it."

She hurried after him. "Now if I left it at that, that would make me a rather useless reporter, don't you think? Who's the victim?"

He stopped abruptly, so she nearly ran into him. "It's just some woman, Miss Lane, let it go."

Lois noticed he'd taken her back to where she'd come from and was holding the tape for her to duck through. She wasn't getting anywhere this way.

"Thank you for your cooperation," she mumbled and shut off her recorder. Behind a large container, she spotted Clark, and joined him. He pointed to the ambulance about fifty meters from them. She could just make out a dark-haired woman on a stretcher. She was looking boated and disfigured from the water, but Lois thought she recognized her.

"I saw who it was", Clark said. He looked extremely worried. "It's Kitty."

Lois' head snapped up. "What?" She looked again and saw that he was right. The body was being zipped into a plastic bag and rolled into the ambulance.

"Kitty Kowalski. I recognized her. She was the one with Luthor, remember? The one who distracted S-Superman? You wrote the article, right?"

Lois nodded, her mind racing. She had been on the boat with them. Suddenly everything clicked into place. The man who had been poisoned. The two guys in the parking lot. And Kitty.

"I remember. Clark, you know what this means, right?"

"Yes." Her partner stared at the ambulance as it drove off. "You were right about the connection. This is Luthor's work."

A shiver ran down Lois' spine. So he was back, then.