CHAPTER TEN: QUID PRO QUO

Clark wasn't sure what to make of Bruce Wayne.

The papers had labelled Mr. Wayne, a wastrel playboy who did nothing with his time but squander his sizeable fortune dating supermodels. At least, that's what Clark remembered from the few times his eyes had strayed away from the endless articles about Lana and Lex's engagement in the gossip pages. Aside from that, he knew nothing else about Bruce and that perception was eroding away with every second he spent in the man's company.

They had driven through the streets of Tierra Colorada with Clark cringing in the passenger seat in embarrassment at riding shotgun in a black masserati when all around him, Clark could see nothing but the rural poverty of the city. As much as he disliked being so noticeable, he had to confess that Bruce's logic was impeccable. If the same kidnappers who snatched Lois, Lana and now Chloe were homing in on rich foreigners, then this was the best way to draw them out. However, instead of staying still in one place and waiting for the kidnappers to come to them, Bruce Wayne was determined to continue their search for Eduardo Santiago.

The address provided to them by the hotel concierge led them to an apartment block in the heart of the city that did not at all resemble the residence of a kidnapper specializing in rich tourists. Aside from being one notch above condemned, the structure was old with cracks running across the walls and faded pain. The best thing that Clark could say about it was the lack of urine stains despite the acrid stench that greeted them upon stepping inside the halls inside the building.

"Always knew hanging around millionaires would take me to the lap of luxury," Clark couldn't help remark with a smirk as they follow the number on the doors to Santiago's apartment.

"This is nothing," Bruce retorted with a faded smile, one Chloe Sullivan would have called his 'real' smile if she were present, "next time it will be Calcutta in summer." Even though his eyes were fixed in one direction, in truth, he was observing everything, taking note the opening and closing of doors from other residents, curious to know which one of their neighbours had the visitor with the expensive car. If any of them felt inclined to let Eduardo know he was having visitors, all the better.

"So this investigating thing, you been doing it for long?" Clark asked. "You look pretty good at it."

Bruce glanced briefly over his shoulder before remarking, "Rich people have so many hobbies. I get bored easily."

Another elusive answer, Clark thought. If he wasn't a master of it himself, he would be rather annoyed by this.

"Okay don't tell me," Clark snorted.

Pausing in the middle of the corridor, Bruce turned around slowly and gave Clark a pointed stare before asking, "I'll answer if you tell me how you got to Acapulco."

The question took Clark off guard but he recovered quickly to stutter a response. "I took a plane when Chloe rang me and told me that Lois and Lana were missing."

"Really?" Bruce looked at him sceptically, seeing the lie even if he wasn't sure why. "Lex Luthor has a private jet and he's not here yet. Last time I looked, Smallville wasn't known for being a major stop for most commercial airlines. In fact, if I'm not mistaken, the nearest place for a Smallville resident like yourself to take a commercial flight to Acapulco would be from Metropolis. So unless you can fly, how did you manage it?"

Damn. This guy really didn't miss much.

Neurons firing at almost super-speed, Clark thought quickly, hoping to produce an answer that would satisfy an intellect he suspected was operating on an entirely different level from anyone he had ever met. Clark would apologise to Oliver later for the name-dropping at the archer's expense.

"I didn't take a commercial carrier," Clark responded hiding all trace of deception, "I took a private jet. Oliver Queen and I are friends. I called him, told him what was happening and he arranged to give me a lift on one of his planes. He and Lois used to date so he was pretty concerned.

Clark was rather proud of himself for that excuse and offered Bruce a smile that almost bordered on smug.

"Sounds reasonable enough," Bruce nodded with an accepting nod. However his eyes had missed nothing in Clark Kent's body language and while his explanation was a good one, the fact of the matter it, the laws of physics made it impossible for Clark to still beat Lex Luthor here. Lex would have had a jet in the air within the hour. Oliver Queen was based in Star City and while he might keep a plane available at Metropolis, Bruce seriously doubted that there would be one simply be waiting for Clark Kent at Smallville.

Whatever the explanation for Clark's timely arrival in Mexico, it was certainly not the way he claimed, which meant that this Kansas farm boy's secret might be almost as big as his.

How intriguing.

They continued walking down the hall and Clark had the distinct feeling that Bruce didn't exactly buy his story. The last thing he needed was another billionaire becoming interested in him but for now, he brushed aside his concern because if Bruce Wayne was as good as he appeared to be then Clark needed him to find Lois and the girls. Even now, he was having trouble focussing. His fears for her was eclipsing his ability to think clearly.

Reaching the door leading to Eduardo Santiago's apartment, Bruce told Clark to quiet and pressed his ear against the wood listening. As he did so, Clark scanned the interior of the room and saw through the darkness that it was empty. If Eduardo was here, he wasn't now. Unfortunately, this was not information he could pass on to Bruce although the billionaire didn't seem to need it.

"No one's home," Bruce stated, straightening up. "I guess we don't have to knock."

Reaching into his jacket, Bruce produced a leather wallet that splayed open to reveal a set of fine, metal tools.

"You carry that with you all the time?" Clark asked, wondering what the hell Bruce was in to.

"You have no idea how many times I've locked myself out of my penthouse," Bruce threw him a smug glance and went to work on the lock.

"I'm sure you do," Clark said not believing him for a second. He wondered which of them was lying more. Right now, Clark was certain he and Bruce were in a dead heat.

Once again, Bruce Wayne showed yet another interesting talent as the door was opened in less than fifteen seconds with an audible click. He stepped inside and motioned Clark to follow.

"Shut the door behind you," he instructed as he began examining the room closely.

Clark obeyed without question, hoping to avoid getting arrested in a foreign land if all possible. "What do you think we'll find?" He asked.

"I'm not sure," Bruce explained as he studied Eduardo Santiago's modest home. The apartment was small with a kitchenette attached to the lounge room and a corridor running to what he assumed to be the bathroom and the master bedroom. "The more and more I learn about these abductions, the less this looks like its about money. Unfortunately, I can't seem to grasp why these specific victims were taken. Other than the fact that they were tourists and rich, there's no other connection."

"I know what you mean," Clark agreed, examining the place with his enhanced vision, hoping to find something of use. "I can understand them taking Lana. Lex would pay them anything to get them back but Chloe and Lois, they don't have that kind of money."

"Well Lana and Lois were taken together," Bruce remarked, rifling through the drawers of the bureau in the living room. "That could have been opportunity. Take both of them because they were together."

"And Chloe would have been grabbed if she was asking the same questions we were at the hotel."

"Right," the older man agreed before heading off towards the bedroom. Conducting the same search through the drawers and taking note that Eduardo's bed was made, it appeared the man hadn't been home for at least a day. Although there were all the expected personal items one would find in someone's apartment, Bruce found little that was of any help until he pulled open the last drawer. In it was a small desk calendar with the days of the current month circled.

Eighteen days circled in red.

Today's date was day fourteen.

Eighteen. It swirled around in his head and Bruce made swift leaps with that scant information. The first abduction took place shortly before the first date circled. After that, there was a steady abduction almost every two days. Tanya would have been number fourteen, Lana and Lois; fifteen and sixteen, with Chloe making seventeen. There was still one more left…wait, Bruce realised with a start. Lana was pregnant. That was eighteen and these days….oh hell.

"Clark," Bruce hurried out of the room, looking grim. "We've got to find them, tonight."

"What? Why?" Clark looked up from the desk drawer he was searching.

"I'm not exactly sure on the details," Bruce spoke quickly, forcing himself to remain calm because suddenly the urgency of their situation had escalated through the roof. "However, the Aztecs held a special significance for the number eighteen."

"Eighteen?" Clark stared. "But there's only been…."

"Lana's pregnant," Bruce pointed out. "That makes eighteen."

"So everyone's been kidnapped because of some ritual?" It was so far fetched it was hard to believe but somehow, Clark could see Bruce believed it and Bruce was not someone who believed things on a whim. This much Clark had learned about the man.

"I think so and if I know Aztec rituals, they almost always involve human sacrifice."

"You're shitting me right?" Clark exclaimed, starting to share Bruce's sense of panic. "What do we do? How do we get to them?"

Suddenly, the door knob twisted and Bruce was next to the light switch so quickly and quietly that Clark could have been forgiven for believing he possessed some form of super speed. Clark played along when Bruce gestured for him to be quiet, mostly because the Kryptonian was curious as to what the billionaire could do. As it was, Clark used his enhanced vision to spy through the door and could see three men gathering outside. All three were locals and did not appear at all friendly. Furthermore, Clark saw they were carrying guns but had no way to warn Bruce without giving away his secret. He wondered if one of them was Eduardo Santiago.

The door creaked open and Bruce made no move until all three entered to find Clark standing before them. The man had barely time to react to this when suddenly the room was bathed in darkness when Bruce killed the lights abruptly. Holding back long enough to see what Bruce had intended, Clark found himself gaping in astonishment as Bruce Wayne went into action. Through the dark, Clark had a perfect view of everything Bruce was doing, unlike the three men who had entered the room.

Feeling as if he was watching highlights from the Matrix, Clark was rather amazed to see the billionaire attack and disarm each man with a series of well practised move that allowed not one of them to get out a shot before they were lying on the ground, near unconscious. Bruce's strikes were precise and entirely disabling. He didn't go for the kill which would have been easy to do considering how fast he moved but instead rendered his opponents helpless and very much alive.

When Bruce switched on the lights again, all three were on the floor, dazed and bleeding. Clark who had seen Oliver in action wasn't certain that the Green Arrow could match Bruce Wayne for sheer speed. Was Bruce a meteor freak or was he really that good?

"Help me with their guns," Bruce ordered promptly reaching down to pick up the hardware, his face showing his dislike at having to handle steel.

Clark notice the grimace on the man's face but had more pertinent questions for the moment other than Bruce's reaction to their weapons. "How did you do that?" Clark asked.

Even though he had seen everything, it was necessary to play the charade to maintain his secret. However, in truth, he was curious to know what else Bruce was capable of.

"What?" Bruce said innocently, discarding the guns on the grubby sofa.

"Take out all these guys in the dark," Clark retorted with a hint of exasperation.

"All those night clubs, I've learned to see through strobe lights and mirror balls." Bruce threw Clark a smirk.

"You're not going to tell me are you?" Clark gave him a look.

"Quid pro quo Mr Kent," Bruce retorted, doing his best Hannibal Lector impression. "We need to tie them up," he remarked glancing at his watch. "We'll leave them here for Lex."

"Lex?" The Kansas farm boy's eyes widened.

"Yeah," Bruce nodded going to the kitchen and rifling through the cupboards before returning with thick packing tape. "Luther Corp has more influence with the Acapulco government that Wayne Enterprises. If Lex Luthor tells the authorities to lock these guys up, they'll stay locked up and who knows Lex might get them to talk."

"Where are we going?" Clark asked, reluctant to leave anyone in Lex's hands. He knew first hand how ruthless Lex could be.

"I need to get to my computer," Bruce answered, "do some research."

Was there anything this guy didn't do? Clark was starting to feel ineffectual and he was the one who could bend steel bars and fly. "You got an idea of what we're looking for?" Clark asked as he helped Bruce restrain the men.

As soon as the number eighteen began to have significance, dark possibilities began to form in his head but he wanted to be certain before he expended too much time focusing on it.

"Just a theory," the Gothamite replied when suddenly the door flew open and a fourth man was at the door.

Clark had been so busy with their captives and listening to Bruce that he had barely a second to register someone was there before the door had fully opened. The man standing at the doorway did not give any quarter before pulling the trigger to let loose a murderous hail of bullets at both of them. Without thinking on the consequences, Clark threw himself over Bruce and took the brunt of the deadly barrage.

While continuing to shield Bruce, Clark looked over his shoulder and focussed his heat vision on the now astonished and terrified man who was continuing to fire out of sheer disbelief at what he was seeing. The gun in his hands turned red hot and he let out a scream of pain as the weapon clattered to the floor. Giving him no time to get away, Clark expelled a powerful gust of breath from his lungs and sent their would-be assassin slamming into the wall. The impact rendered him unconscious and the man slumped to the floor in a heap.

Clark straightened up and saw Bruce staring at him. For the first time, that smug, unflappable expression was absent. If nothing else, Clark could take comfort in that at least. Uncertain of what to say since there really was no hiding what he had just done, Clark's thought were scrambling inside his head in a frenzy as he decided to do.

Bruce saw the bullet holes in Clark's jackets and knew he had seen no hallucination. The kid had taken at least a dozen rounds and did not appear to have a scratch, to say nothing of the fact that he had shot frigging laser beams out of his eyes and had one help of a breath.

"Must be pretty handy having bullets bounce off you like that," Bruce said in something a hushed tone. He was trying to regain his composure, retain that mask of cool he had worn for most of their acquaintance. It wasn't easy though after what he had seen.

"Doesn't suck," Clark shrugged, having no other response.

Bruce didn't speak for a moment and Clark feared the worst. He had met two kinds of billionaires. There were the kind like Lex who wanted him dissected and the ones like Oliver, who wanted him to use his powers to save the world. Which was Bruce Wayne?

"I studied for two years with a Tibetan martial arts master who taught me how to use the dark when fighting my opponents." Bruce said after a moment, meeting Clark's eyes.

"Excuse me…?" Clark stared back blankly, not understanding the relevance.

"Quid pro quo, remember?" Bruce reminded.

Clark began to understand. Maybe Bruce Wayne wasn't going to be like Oliver or Lex. Maybe he was going to be something else all together.

And Clark kind of liked that.

*******

Chloe Sullivan had come to the conclusion that she hated caves.

Really.

Walking for the last hour in near pitch black darkness, her only guidance being her own hands guiding her along dirt and slime covered walls, Chloe wondered if journeying deeper into these stygian catacombs was a better alternative than facing those crazy bastards hunting them. It was only a stroke of luck, following her abduction that Chloe had regained consciousness during her abduction and allowed her to be reunited with Lois and Lana. Thanks to being able to catch her abductor by surprise, Chloe had given Lois the opening she needed to escape so that she could free the others.

Following their escape, they had opted to head away from the main vein of tunnels, since their abductors undoubtedly had the run of that part of the cave system. Heading into the bowels of the earth, they had reached a fork and taken the less hospital of the two tunnels, the one with all the cobwebs and insects skittering across the uneven walls. As repulsed as they were by their situation, they were able to take comfort in the fact that the voices of the kidnappers were distant and vague. However, they had no illusions that they were safe.

At the moment, they were simply free.

"Is it smart to keep going down this tunnel?" Lana Lang asked, her voice strained as she tried to maintain her poise. Despite her best efforts not to let her pregnancy hold up her friends, she couldn't help but worry about the baby inside her. "We have no idea if this is a way out."

"We can't go back the other way," Tanya retorted. "Staying one step of those men is the only chance we have." The lady reminded.

"I know," Lana conceded the point there but this situation was not proving to be any safer, "but we have no idea if we're not going deeper into the ground. We may find we might have to turn back around."

"Look," Lois took a deep breath, trying to think of something to say when the thought struck her and though it was a slim point in their favour, it was better than nothing. Like Chloe, Lana and Mrs. Fox, the dank air and the foul stench were fraying at the edges of her composure as well and she knew how crippling demoralization could be. Living with the General thought her that, if nothing else. "The air might smell like crap but it's not getting any thinner," she reminded. "This means that there's a fresh supply coming from somewhere. I'm sure if we keep walking, we'll find a way out. We just have to keep going."

"Lois is right," Chloe added, wiping an arm over her sweat stained brow. "We've got to go. From what you've told me, these guys play for keeps. Personally I rather be wandering around down here lost then being served up for whatever psycho plans they have in mind."

Lois couldn't see Chloe in the dark but she threw her cousin's voice a smile of appreciation. "Besides, it won't take them long to figure out we didn't go the other way and then they're going to be coming this way with torches and guns. I rather we be out of here before that happens."

"Good point," Lana agreed. "I'm sorry Lois," she apologized, feeling a little guilty for bringing their already tenuous morale into further depths. "It's just getting to me."

"It's alright dear," Tanya replied kindly. "I think the last few days has been enough to try anyone's nerves but we can be confident that the people we care about are searching for us. If we can stay ahead of those men, they might yet find us."

"Absolutely," Chloe said enthusiastically. "Look Clark's on the case, he'll be here."

"Yeah," Lois added, thinking of Smallville and how much she missed him. Even though it had been fun to get away, she had missed him more than she thought possible and right now, Lois would do just about anything to see Clark Kent again. "Smallville always comes through."

"And if Bruce is already in Acapulco, he'll find us." Tanya spoke confidently.

"I hope so," Chloe replied, wanting very much to see him again as well. Had it only been this morning, they had made love? After everything that had happened today, it felt like a lifetime ago.

"So," Lois opted for a change of subject to take their mind of their situation, "I take it the rest of dinner went well, after we left last night?"

"Lois!" Chloe exclaimed. "Is this really the time for this conversation?"

"Would you rather talk about the crazies that are trying to kill us?" Lois retorted bluntly.

"Nicely put," Lana frowned. "Fess up Chloe, I want to think of something else for awhile."

"Okay, okay," Chloe frowned, recognising that her personal life was going to be sacrificed for the sake of morale. "I get your point… yes, it went well."

"You and Bruce, Chloe?" Tanya remarked, well aware of Bruce's reputation where young women were concerned and wondered if she should warn the girl or not.

"We had dinner last night," Chloe volunteered. "It was nice."

She thanked God it was too dark for any of them to see the blush across her cheeks.

"Nice?" Lois knew her cousin all too well to not notice the nuance in her voice that indicated that Chloe was holding something back. Years of all night chat sessions and deep confessions had taught Lois how to tell when Chloe wasn't being completely honest. "Come on, there's more to it than that, right? Wait a minute," a light bulb went off in her head. "Didn't you say you started searching for us this morning?"

Chloe groaned inwardly.

"Chloe, you hussy, " Lana teased, ignoring the absurdity of the situation that allowed them to joke while they were in such desperate circumstances. "Were you out all night?"

"Hey do I point out your indiscretions when you two do them?" Chloe grumbled, feeling some what persecuted. It was a terrible thing when she was wishing for them to be found by the bad guys rather than have this conversation.

"As a matter of fact, yes," Lois retorted smugly. "So suffer."

"Okay, okay," the blonde confessed. "I spent the night with him, with Bruce Wayne. What can I say? The guy's pretty charming."

"That is definitely true," Tanya remarked, trying not to laugh. "Bruce is that and more."

"So…" Lana nudged. "How was it?"

"How was what?" Chloe asked suspiciously.

"You know…?"

"Oh we are not having this conversation…" Chloe started to protest when suddenly Lois spoke up over Lana and Tanya's laughter.

"Quiet!" Lois barked. "Listen."

All four fell silent immediately and it was perhaps a second or two later that the sound of trickling water could be heard.

"I hear that!" Lana said excitedly. "Is that up ahead?"

"Yeah," Lois nodded, feeling her way ahead. "I think so."

Perhaps there was a way out of this hell after all.