Chloe missed all the action, but apparently Lois had been able to locate Clark and Jimmy. She used a police whistle to scare the men away, but she was sure Clark had things under control beforehand. She was just glad Jimmy was okay.
When Jimmy came through the door, Chloe jumped up and hugged him in relief. Jimmy was surprised at first and then asked her out to have coffee. Chloe was tempted to accept, but it wasn't her Jimmy. She still had hopes of getting back to her life, although that hope was growing dimmer all the time, but she still did her research at the library. Jimmy looked disappointed. Clark and Lois smiled and urged Jimmy forward to Perry's office. Chloe listened in as usual.
"I did learn one thing," Clark offered. "I gathered from what one of the men said that Dr. Hackett's working on a plan to steal the reducer ray."
"That's a big order since the government is guarding it," Perry said.
"And so is Superman," Lois added.
"That wouldn't stop the Spider Lady," said Clark. "She's a dangerous opponent now that she holds the kryptonite."
Chloe had to agree as she went back to her desk. Somebody had to get that kryptonite away from Spider Lady.
The next day Clark as Superman was called to Washington to help move the reducer ray to Metropolis University for experiments. They published it in the paper. They used it to try and draw out Spider Lady. It brought out 2 men who were captured by Superman. They thought it was in a car, but it was just a decoy. It was really on a train. Spider Lady learned that, and 2 more of her men tried to blow the train off the tracks, so they could get it. Clark/Superman literally stopped the train by putting his hands out before it got to the spot. The train men got away but not the car men. Chloe wasn't there to see any of this. It was all in the paper afterwards. She wished she could have been a part of the action and from the sound of it Lois did too.
"I'd like to know how you got that story about Superman stopping a train. There's something very fishy about you being at the exact spot," Lois said.
Chloe smiled. Lois was sharp. Sometimes she wondered if Lois suspected that Clark was Superman. She wondered if modern Lois suspected Clark had a secret.
"I guess I'm just lucky."
"You're more than lucky. Sometimes I-I'd like to-"
"I'm sorry, but I can't help it if these breaks come my way."
"I'd like to give you a break. Preferably a leg or an arm."
Chloe doubted that was proper talk for a lady of the 1940s. She doubted her swearing like a sailor was proper either, as she sometimes did, but she bet it was also the reason Perry had felt confident enough hiring her in a dangerous profession and why Clark aka Superman had taken a shine to her.
"Oh, quit it, Lois," Perry said. "Now here's a break for you."
"What is it?" Lois asked.
"Dr. Graham is coming here to experiment with his reducer ray. I want you to meet him, escort him to the university, and get an exclusive."
"Well, that helps some," Lois said.
Chloe shook her head in amusement as she went back to her desk. Lois could try the patience of saints. Clark was either a saint or in love, as he came out with a smile on his face after that conversation and even looking at Lois with admiration, when she wasn't looking.
Chloe thought it would be fun to tag along after Lois and see if Met U looked any different, and Lois always got in a ton of trouble even it was supposed to be an easy, risk-free story. It never hurt to have backup.
Out on the road, Chloe noticed she wasn't the only one following Lois. The woman looked familiar, but she couldn't place her. She almost looked like Lois. She had to let her go first. She ended up following the Lois look-alike as she couldn't even see Lois' car.
Chloe slowed a little when she saw Lois' car on the side of the road. She'd been in an accident. Someone had rear ended her. She looked fine. She was outside her car with folded arms talking to the men who'd hit her car. The woman who'd been following Lois was gone. Chloe figured it wise to continue to the airport where Lois was supposed to meet the doctor.
The lady was outside and introduced herself as 'Lois Lane of the Daily Planet.' She recognized the voice. It was Spider Lady.
"I've been looking for you," Dr. Graham said.
"I'm to drive you to the university and get an interview on the way. Shall we go?"
"By all means."
Chloe had to call and alert the police, but by the time she did, they would get away. She decided to follow them instead, but it was just her luck that her car wouldn't start. "Clark! Superman!" She didn't think it would work, but she figured she might as well give it a shot, as it always seemed to work for Lois.
Chloe was about to get out of her car and call a tow company when the real Lois showed up looking for Dr. Graham. 2 men talked to her. Chloe couldn't hear what they were saying from inside her car, but she was learning that when 2 men were there it never seemed to be a good thing. Lois took them to her car. One of the men looked like Dr. Graham, but he couldn't be. Maybe they'd seen what happened or Lois was giving them a ride.
A sudden flash caught her attention. Jimmy was hiding between the cars and took a picture with his big bulky camera. It made a loud noise and a big flash, but the others didn't notice. She got Jimmy's attention. He didn't ask what she was doing here but proceeded to take a look at her car when she told him it wouldn't start. He was able to fix it. She thanked him and then hurried to Met U.
You couldn't drive to that part of the university unless you had a pass, so Chloe snuck in on foot. The place didn't look much different, maybe a little newer. She could see a building that must have gotten torn down and a couple places where the buildings hadn't been built yet. She wondered if this was where Lois had gone and successfully completed a degree in this time period. She was just in time to see them go into the science building.
When Chloe snuck in, she heard Lois asking. "Didn't you invent the reducer ray?"
"Well, certainly. Why do you ask?"
"Then why are you photographing it?"
"I'm very much interested in the technique used to install it here."
That was a load of crap. They were Spider Lady's men.
"I see a new wire plane is being used," he said, trying to sound technical.
Lois seemed to fall for it, or at least there was a lengthy pause.
"Well, Dr. Graham, I have all I need to know," Lois said. "I better hurry back to the office and write my story."
"Thank you. Good bye, Miss Lane."
Chloe had to hide outside in the bushes because of Lois, but she didn't come out. She must have suspected that something was wrong and took Chloe's hiding spot. There had been a phone in that area. She hoped Lois wasn't going to use it to alert the police or the imposters might hear. It was a rotary phone and had an annoying clacking noise every time you moved it.
The men came out, but Lois didn't. That confirmed it. She'd been caught and was probably tied up in there. Just as she was about to go in and free her, Clark as Superman rushed in there and beat her to it.