Here you go folks, Chapter 2. Thanks to everyone for the support and the happy reception. Hope it's worth it.
/
Yanking the door to the station open, Clark "helped" Kara through the doorway. "My office, now."
"Jeez, you don't have to be so pushy. I didn't do anything wrong."
"You don't think 20 mph over the speed limit is doing something wrong?"
Kara stopped and turned to face her cousin, crossing her arms. "Well you never gave me a ticket, so how do I know that's really why you pulled me over? Sloppy Clark. Just sloppy."
Clark's left eye twitched slightly as he stared down at his little cousin. "My… office… now!"
Rolling her eyes, Kara shrugged her shoulders. "I was going there when you stopped me. Make up your mind."
Clark's hand tightened on the cell phone he had to take away from Kara when she kept answering text messages when he was trying to talk to her, only letting go when he heard something crack. Taking a few deep breaths he started walking towards his office when he noticed everyone in the room was paying attention to them… well, mostly to Kara. "HEY! Back to work!"
The officers snapped back to their paperwork and phone calls quickly, realizing it was a bad time to push the Sheriff's buttons.
Walking into the office, Clark kicked the door shut and glanced up to see Kara in his chair typing away at the computer. "What are you doing?"
"Messaging Chelsea. Someone took my cell phone and I couldn't answer her. That's rude you know."
Clark's vision blurred for a moment. "What are you doing here Kara? Why are you in Smallville? I told you the last time..."
She didn't look up at him. "I was coming to visit Aunt Martha."
"Bull. She never said anything to me about it." Clark walked around the desk, arms crossed.
Kara stood up, mirroring his stance and mocking his tone. "Well I wonder why, obviously you're really open to the idea of a visit from me."
"First off, I do not sound like that. And second…"
The door opened just then. "Hey Bossman, got the report off that 481 out on County Road, you need to sign…" Looking up at the desk, Whitney burst into a wide grin. "Kare Bear!"
Pushing past Clark, Kara ran over and hugged Whitney. "Oh my god, it's so good to see you! How are Lana and Kyle?"
Clark fell into his desk chair. Rubbing his palms into his eyelids, he focused harder on not snapping at them. But his control was waning… quickly. "Whitney, we're busy. I'll sign it in a minute, go."
"One sec Bossman. What are you doing out here, are you done with school now?"
"Yea, the semester ended a couple weeks ago, and Aunt Martha said…"
Clark's hand slapped down on the top of his desk. "Whitney." Staring up at his second in command, Clark didn't say another word. His expression spoke volumes.
Whitney looked from Clark to Kara, then back. Slowly backing away, he held his hands up in surrender and glanced to Kara. "You did something baaaaaaaaad." Pulling the door closed, Whitney left the cousins in the office.
Kara huffed again. "Why do you have to always act like you're in charge?"
"Because I am. Sheriff. This is the Sheriff's office. So this is my kingdom. My realm. I'm the king, the ruler, the boss, the man in charge. And I don't like people coming in and trying to make me look bad in front of the men I have to trust my town with. Got it?" His voice never rose, which amazed even him.
Kara opened her mouth to retort, but said nothing. She simply sat down across the desk , arms still crossed. "Fine."
Clark finally breathed a little easier when she didn't start arguing again. "Now… what are you doing here Kara?"
"I told you, I'm visiting Aunt Martha." Kara slumped in the chair a little more. "Things are kind of… tense back home."
Sitting back, Clark rubbed his hand over his face. "What happened?"
"Like you even care. You're just gonna agree with them, why are you asking my side of it?"
Clark took a deep breath. "Don't try and act like I don't have reasons to be skeptical. But I am asking for your side. What happened?"
Kara's hands fiddled with a rubber band she had taken off the desk. "Apparently if you decide to change majors after 3 years, you've done nothing but waste a lot of my parent's time and money."
Clark chuckled. "Changing your major? Let me guess, you met some guy that made you see a whole new side of the world?"
Setting her jaw, Kara shook her head. "I knew you wouldn't even listen." Standing up quickly, Kara grabbed her cell phone from the desk and headed for the door. "I'll be at Aunt Martha's. Do you want to put a tracker on my car?" Glaring over her shoulder, Kara swung the door open and walked out quickly.
Grunting, Clark stood to follow. Muttering to himself he left the office in time to see Kara rush through the door to the parking lot. So many questions rushed through his mind at the sudden appearance of his cousin that he felt his temples start to throb. Turning back to his office he heard a low snickering and a few less than honorable words. Turning back he saw a couple of the younger deputies looking toward the door, smirking and gesturing. It didn't take a genius to see what they were talking about. "Hey!"
Both snapped their heads over to him, eyes wide. "Yes sir?"
"Get to work, stop gawking at my cousin."
The two nodded and turned back to their desks. Clark made it just inside the door when he heard another snicker. Without a word he walked over to stand in front of them and rested his hand on his sidearm, unclasping the holster strap. Staring them both down in turn, he waited for a reaction.
Neither man said another word for the rest of the shift.
/
Clark walked up the porch steps to his mom's house. He gave it a couple of hours before he went over. "Mom? Kara?" Shutting the door he looked around downstairs.
"She's out in the barn."
Glancing to the stairs he saw his mom walking down from the landing. "What's she doing out there?"
"Probably the same thing you used to do. Worry, fuss, and fret over whatever is bothering her endlessly." Martha Kent smiled softy as she leaned up to give her son a kiss on the cheek. "And apparently her big cousin pulling her over earlier didn't help whatever is worrying her."
Clark shook his head. "I didn't know it was her. And she was breaking the law, it's not like I was just messing with her. Besides, did she tell you what's bothering her?"
Martha nodded. "Yes she did. I would have thought you'd be a little more understanding though."
Clark just shook his head. "It's not going to help things if you coddle her mom." Clark went to the fridge and leaned inside. "I talked to Lois today, she's looking forward to coming over."
"Well I'm glad. She needs to slow down a little, the poor thing. Did she tell you I visited her when I went to Metropolis a week or so ago?"
Clark stood back up holding the carton of orange juice. "No ma'am, I didn't know about that."
Martha nodded. "She's so busy at the paper, she hardly stopped working the five minutes I stopped by. She needs to take some time and relax now and then. And I know she's not getting any good home cooked meals. She has takeout menus at her desk even."
Clark just chuckled as he twisted the cap off and took a drink of orange juice.
"Clark Joseph Kent, how many times do I have to tell you to use a glass? I swear people are going to think you were raised in a barn." Martha muttered to herself as she crossed the kitchen and reached for a glass out of the cabinet.
Clark raised an eyebrow at her statement and leaned forward to look out the kitchen window at the barn, then back to his mother.
Martha caught his gaze and huffed. "You were raised on a farm, big difference. Don't get smart with me young man."
Stifling his laugh, Clark accepted the glass. "Yes ma'am."
Sitting at the counter, Martha looked back to the barn. "You need to talk to her."
"I already tried that mom, she just stormed out of my office."
"Oh that's a shock. You pushed her into your office, made her feel like a five year old in front of your people, and wouldn't even listen. You jumped on her and didn't listen, and don't tell me otherwise because I know you both better than you know yourselves Clark."
Leaned against the counter, Clark didn't say a word. Rubbing the back of his neck he drained the last of the orange juice and put the glass in the sink. "Alright, I'll go out there."
"Good. And listen to her this time Clark. Don't jump to conclusions."
Shaking his head Clark walked down the porch steps, grunting. Heading into the barn he looked around and didn't see Kara on the lower level. Looking to the loft steps he headed up and saw her sitting in the window sill, staring at something in her hand. "Hey."
She didn't look up at him, instead mumbling a reply. Clark walked closer to her and finally saw what she had in her hand, and it made sense.
Kara traced a fingertip over Jonathan Kent's face. "I miss him."
Clark nodded and sat down at the other end of the window sill. "So do I."
Kara wiped a tear from her cheek. "You know, the two times I've really, really shouted at my dad was because of your dad."
Clark's brow rose. "What do you mean?"
"Well, I guess the first time was because of all of you guys. When daddy said that we were moving to Minnesota because of his job, I was so mad. I didn't want to leave Metropolis, but I really didn't want to move so far from you guys. So, when daddy said that we were moving so he could make a bunch more money and we could have a bigger house, I didn't want to go. I didn't care about a bigger house, I just wanted to stay around all our family. So, at the precious age of ten, I told my parents I wanted to move in with you guys and they could move to Minnesota. It didn't go over all that well."
Clark fumbled with a loose nail in one of the boards. "You would have rather stayed here than with your parents?"
Kara nodded. "Daddy was always busy, he wasn't ever really home. And mom was busy building a social circle the more money we got. Uncle Jonathan and Aunt Martha were the ones who would actually show up to things. Like my first softball game. My parents didn't even come, but yours did. And so did you."
Clark just nodded. "What about the second time?"
Kara took a deep breath and looked at the picture again. "A little bit after we moved… and I got home from school and daddy called me to his office and told me about… Uncle Jonathan's heart…"
Clark felt a tightness in his chest from the mention of his dad's heart attack. "Yea…"
Wiping her face, Kara sniffled. "He told me what happened, and I tried to be strong and not cry. I asked when we were coming down here, but he said things were really hectic and he couldn't get away… for his own cousin's funeral. I told him we had to come, but he said work was busy and we'd come down sometime later. I stormed out, packed a bag, and tried hitchhiking back to Kansas. The police brought me home and daddy was so mad. He never outright said it, but I think he figured I liked your dad better than him."
Clark shook his head and scoffed. "That's crazy. He's your dad, you love him."
Kara chuckled. "Well cousin Clark, you above all people should know that even if you love your family, you don't have to like them… right?" She looked up at him, her jaw set tight.
Clark shook his head. "Just… don't… we're different, I never said I didn't like you."
"You don't have to Clark. It's pretty obvious."
He stood up and paced across the floor. "Well if it was true, and I'm not saying it is, could you really blame me? You know that what happened…"
"Oh yea, because that statement doesn't mean that it's true at all! Just admit it Clark!"
"Kara, I swear, you are driving me…" A loud ringing cut him off mid rant and Clark fumbled for his cell phone. Checking the caller display his face twisted, confused. "Just… give me a minute." Turning his back to Kara, Clark flipped the phone open. "Captain Sawyer? What's wrong?"
"Well hello to you too Kent. Yes, I'm doing fine today, thanks for asking."
Clark let out a relieved breath. She called him Kent, that meant everything was alright. Only in serious situations did she use his title or call him by Clark. "Sorry Maggie. What's up?"
"Well Kent, we have a bit of a situation here… and I'm betting you can guess what the situation is."
Clark rubbed his face and sighed. "What'd she do now?"
"Just… just meet me at the rec Center outside of Granville. Trust me when I say words can't do justice."
"Alright, I'll be there as soon as I can. Thanks for the call." Shutting the phone, Clark sighed. Turning back to his cousin he shook his head. "I have to run to Granville, tell mom I'll be back soon." With that, he turned and left the loft, leaving Kara alone, stewing in the tension.
/
Pulling up to the recreation center just south of Granville, Clark was shocked to see all the police cruisers surrounding the place. "What the…?" Climbing out of his car, he walked over to find Captain Sawyer talking to Turpin. "Great… just my freakin' day."
Captain Sawyer looked back when she heard a murmur. "Sheriff Kent, good to see you again."
"You too Captain." He held his hand out to shake hers, then turned to her subordinate. "Hey Dan, how's life treating you?"
The man didn't accept the offered handshake. "That's Detective Turpin. And it's going pretty good. We just busted a prostitution ring here in the back woods. Not too far from your town are we Kent?"
Brushing off the attempted dig, Clark turned back to Sawyer. "So, what did she do now?"
Maggie just chuckled to herself. "She's not in trouble, it's pretty apparent that she's not involved… but she doesn't have a ride, and… let's just say that everything she wasn't in personal proximity of is being held as evidence."
Clark looked around for Lois. "Ok, not sure what you mean by that, but I'll go with it." A sudden voice behind him startled him.
"What she means is that if I wasn't wearing it, it's being held as evidence."
Clark turned around to face his girlfriend and his eyes went wide. Dressed in a tiny… dress wasn't really the word but he guessed it technically fit… Lois shivered in the chilly night air. Black stockings and a pair of painful looking heels finished her outfit. If it wasn't such a crazy situation, Clark would have found his thoughts going in a different situation.
Lois saw his eyes traveling downward and snapped her fingers. "Can we get going here? I don't want to be late for dinner with your mom, and I need something to wear."
Shaking his head, Clark unbuttoned his work shirt and handed it to Lois to wrap around herself. "We'll stop by my place real quick. This will hold you over."
Grabbing it, Lois wrapped the shirt around her body and cut her gaze to Turpin. "Those aren't my eyes Dick Tracy, watch yourself."
Clark turned back to see Turpin looking around like a kid who got caught trying to sneak a cookie. Shaking his head he turned back to Sawyer. "Thanks for the heads up. Good luck finishing up here." Walking Lois to the car, Clark opened her door and walked around to the driver's side.
They made it back out to the highway before Lois said anything. "Stupid cops… I told them about the rumors that someone was running a brothel out of the back of that old rec center, but I was told to stop trying to make a story where there wasn't one."
Clark held back a laugh. "Did you tell Maggie?"
"No, they wouldn't patch me through. I was told that Detective Turpin said it didn't sound credible. Slimy little troll. He would lie about it and then go in on a raid on the exact day I go in to find evidence, just my luck."
Clark couldn't hold back a laugh this time. After a few hard punches from the passenger seat, he finally calmed down. "Alright, fine. Sorry. It's not funny."
Lois slumped against him and sighed. "I just want to get some normal clothes on and have a good meal with just you and your mom. That sounds great right now."
Clark didn't say anything, but she felt him tense up. "What's wrong? Is your mom ok? Oh no, did the oven break? That's it isn't it, there's no pie tonight!"
Clark smiled barely at her worries. "Mom's fine, the oven is fine. And yes there's a pie."
Lois smiled, relieved. "So what's the problem?"
Clark's hand tightened on the steering wheel as he thought about what was waiting back at the farm. "About it just being the three of us…"
