~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chapter 6
Saturday's Child
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
December 10, 1998, 12:00 am
348 Hyperion Avenue, Metropolis
Thunder boomed and lightening flashed across the sky as large hailstones rained down upon Metropolis, hitting the fair city and leaving destruction in their wake. Upstairs at 348 Hyperion Avenue, a little girl cowered under the blankets, frightened by crashing thunder.
She heard the thunder crack with a loud rumble, just before a fleeting light streaked outside her window. Rachel squeaked, tumbled out of bed, and ran down the hallway to her foster parents' bedroom. By now, it seemed to be the natural thing to do--their bedroom was safe because the bad men and the scary noises couldn't get her there. The safest place in her world was lying in between her new parents.
It was warm there, safe from the monsters that haunted her dreams. Snuggled between them, she could sleep soundly, knowing that they would protect her from the clutching hands that reached out from under her bed to grab at her ankles and drag her into the dark abyss. After almost a month of living with them, she was convinced that Lois and Clark were invincible. Even Papa Gary's trial hadn't been as scary as it could have been because they had been with her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rachel walked into the courtroom, her small hands wrapped tightly around two of Clark Kent's fingers while Lois's hand rested protectively on her shoulder. Since she had identified Papa Gary as her abuser, he had been arrested on felony assault and child abuse charges, and her half-brother had been taken away from him. She had been asked by the nice man in the long robe who sat at the front of the room to identify Papa Gary, and it was scary.
Lois knelt down hugged her tightly, and whispered that everything would be okay. Clark simply squeezed her hand gently and told her that they would be waiting for her when she came back. It was different now, holding her foster father's hand felt almost natural. "Thank you," she whispered and walked through the door that led to the front of the courtroom.
Rachel laboriously climbed the stairs; at five, they were a bit too steep for her to walk up comfortably. She clambered up onto the phonebooks that were stacked on the witness chair, folded her hands in her lap, and crossed her ankles.
The judge looked down at her from his bench and smiled. "Rachel, do you understand the difference between the truth and a lie?"
Rachel nodded. "Yessir. The truth is when something really happened, and a lie is made up, like story books."
The judge nodded at the Assistant DA, who was in charge of prosecuting the case. "You may proceed."
The prosecutor walked up to the witness stand and placed her hands on the rail. "Rachel, when you were put in the state's custody, you were found with cuts and bruises all over you. Can you tell us how they got there?"
"Yes, ma'am," Rachel replied. "Papa Gary did it. He said that I was bad, so he hurted me again."
"Do you see your "'Papa Gary'" in here today, Rachel?"
"Yes, ma'am--he's sitting over there," she pointed toward the defense's table.
"Rachel, do you think that what he did to you was wrong?"
The defense attorney stood up. "Objection, calls for a conclusion on the part of the witness."
"Objection sustained," the judge said.
"How often did this happen, Rachel? Every day? Once a week? A month? A year?"
"I dunno," she said, looking frightened. "When he got mad 'bout something, Papa Gary hitted me."
"Do you remember the first time he hurt you, Rachel?"
Rachel nodded hesitantly. "After Mommy died. We was coming back from the funeral and he said it was my fault that Mommy got dead, so he hitted me."
"Did your stepfather punish you in other ways?" the prosecutor asked.
"Yes ma'am. If he sees me hugging my dollies, he likes to tear 'em up and set 'em on fire," she answered quietly. "He said he wanted to do that to me, once." Rachel shrunk back into her chair, scared of the man sitting a few feet away from her.
"Thank you, Rachel," she turned to face the defense lawyer. "Your witness."
The defense lawyer stood up and walked to the witness stand. "Rachel, is it possible that you did something wrong before your stepfather, Mr. Russell, hit you? Is it possible that he was just punishing you for wrong doing?"
Rachel crossed her arms over her chest. "He was mad," she said flatly. "I never did nothing bad enough for him to beat me up. He said that Mommy was bad and he had to make sure that I didn't turn out like her. Mr. Kent says that grown-ups shouldn't hit little girls and that hurting somethin' littler than you makes you a bully and a coward."
The defense attourney shifted uncomfortably as he noticed the glares coming from the jury box. He wasn't doing his client any good with the child; they must have thought he was picking on a little girl. "Thank you, Rachel. Next witness." The defense lawyer returned to his chair.
Rachel climbed down from the witness box and ran across the floor into Ms. Lane's waiting arms.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rachel shivered in the darkness, pushed open the door, and rushed over to Ms. Lane's side of the bed; she needed their comfort now just as she had at the trial. "Ms. Lane, I'm scared."
Ms. Lane sat up in bed and snapped on the light. "Did the thunder scare you, peanut?" she asked.
Mr. Kent sat up as well and patted the bed next to him. "You can sleep here if you're still scared," he offered.
"Uh huh," Rachel said as she scrambled up on the bed.. She climbed under the blankets between them and snuggled in. "Thank you, Daddy," she said, already starting to get sleepy again. "I knew you'd keep me safe."
He froze when he heard that name. "Daddy?" he asked, wonder in his voice.
Rachel looked at him, worried. "Is that okay?" she asked anxiously. Mr. Kent had never been anything but nice to her; even when he scolded her for something she did. He wasn't mean like the bad men she'd come in contact with before. Rachel had come to trust him over the past month. Slowly but surely, he had earned her trust. She wanted a real daddy, and he seemed to want to fill that space.
"It's more than okay, sweetie" Mr. Kent affirmed softly. "We love you." He pulled her into a gentle hug.
Rachel threw her arms around Ms. Lane's neck and planted a wet kiss on her cheek. "I love you, Momma." She released her Momma to throw her arms around her Daddy's neck.
"Thank you, sweetheart," Momma said as she kissed Rachel on the cheek.
Rachel hugged Clark tightly and laid her head on his shoulder, then yawned and snuggled closer. It was safe in Daddy's arms--she knew that now. Her eyes began to drift shut, and the sound of their voices whispering their love soon lulled her to sleep
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
December 17, 1998, 10:30 am
Daily Planet, Metropolis
Lois picked up a picture of Rachel and smiled before reaching for the phone. The last month had been rough on all of them, but incredibly rewarding. Only a week ago, Rachel had asked to call them "Momma" and "Daddy". To her, it was nothing short of a miracle that Rachel had so quickly accepted Clark in that role.
Every single time she heard those words from Rachel's mouth, it made her smile--her little girl had come a long way in the past month from the withdrawn child who refused to speak to anyone. Rachel's stepfather was now in jail, serving 8-10 years for his crimes while Timmy, her half-brother, was being placed for adoption. Unfortunately, nothing had been done about the men who had hurt her in the orphanage; Rachel still refused to identify them.
Lois looked at the clock and smiled. It was past time for her to call Samantha to try to make an appointment so they could discuss permanent adoption. She wanted it to be legal. The thought of losing Rachel was unthinkable; she was now an integral part of their lives and they wanted her to officially become "Rachel Kent". Lois picked up the phone, dialed the now familiar number, and grimaced when she got the answering machine. "Samantha? This is Lois Lane. Clark and I need to make an appointment to see you about Rachel and we wanted to know if this afternoon or tomorrow morning would be okay? Call me back."
After hanging up the phone, she looked through the growing file on the SIDS case. It was going nowhere. Five more children had since died in the last month, bringing the death toll up to thirty with crib death listed as the official cause. There had to be a substantial link between the cases. While there were tenuous circumstantial connections, she and Clark had yet to stumble upon a substantial link that would break the whole case wide open.
Lois looked through the file one more time, scanning for missing pieces. Nothing. There were no suspicious chemicals in the children's blood, no signs of struggle, and the only needle marks had been from legitimate vaccinations. She sighed as she set the file aside for Clark to look through after he got back from his alter ego's latest call for help and pulled out a file on Senator Javenson.
One case might be stymied, but this one certainly wasn't. The senator was almost as dirty as Lex Luthor. He not only had ties to Intergang, but he ran a few of the local gangs. They were just lucky that they had caught it first--another lead story for Lane and Kent.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
December 17, 1998, 10:45 am
Erickson Elementary, Mr. Lancaster's kindergarten class
Rachel ran happily across the floor and climbed the ladder leading to the top of the loft. She was going to play house with her new friends soon. This school was much better than her old one--the kids here were nicer to her, and she had even made some friends. Her thick, short, dark blonde ponytails bobbed as she threw her leg over the top rail and scooted over to the pile of dolls.
Rachel selected one out of the pile and cradled her gently as she waited for her friends to join her. The doll wasn't Aimee, but she was all right for playing with during school hours. Aimee and CJ were safely secreted in her backpack--she didn't want to share those treasured toys. She scooted closer to the corner when Bobby's head appeared over the barrier.
"What are you doing here?" he demanded.
"I'm waiting for Susie and Jenna," she said softly. "We're gonna play house."
"No, you're not." Bobby said. "This is my fort and me and *my* friends are gonna play war. 'Sides, you don't know how to play house, anyway, 'cause you don't got no parents. My mommy said so." He climbed over the rail and glared at her, his hands planted on his hips.
"I do, too," Rachel retorted. "My momma and daddy love me! An' I heard 'em saying that they wanna 'dopt me and keep me *forever*," she announced triumphantly. "An' that means that I'm specialer than you, 'cause they *picked* me."
"You are not!" he exclaimed.
"Are too. Your mommy just got stuck with you. My momma *wanted* me. An' the loft is mine to play house in." Rachel clutched the doll and stood her ground.
"Is not! And your *real* mommy and daddy didn't want you at all, 'cause they gave you away," Bobby shot back.
"Not so! I'm staying. And there's nuthin' you can do 'bout it." Rachel began to rock the doll in her arms.
Bobby gave her a hard shove, almost pushing her off the loft. Rachel got to her knees, shoved back and the doll fell forgotten to the floor of the loft. He stumbled backwards, landing nearer to the edge than she had.
"Bobby and Rachel, down here *now*," Mr. Lancaster's voice called.
The children climbed down from the loft and stood apart, glaring at each other.
"Bobby Greene and Rachel Pierce, what's gotten into you today?" he demanded.
"Bobby said I don't got no parents," Rachel replied, still scowling. "He started it! My momma and daddy love me and they're gonna adopt me; I heard 'em talking 'bout it. And my name isn't Rachel Pierce no more. It's Rachel Elizabeth Kent. And he pushed me *first*." She stomped her foot on the linoleum-tiled floor.
Mr. Lancaster sighed heavily. "Why me?" he muttered. "Bobby, you need to say that you're sorry to Rachel--that was an ugly thing to say to her and you shouldn't have pushed her in the first place. And Rachel, you need to say the same thing to Bobby," he crossed his arms over his chest and looked at them sternly. "You two know better than to start pushing people--especially not on the loft, one of you could have fallen off and gotten seriously hurt."
"Yessir," Rachel said. "I'm sorry I pushed you, Bobby," she said obediently.
Bobby glared at Rachel and his teacher defiantly. "Well, I ain't sorry. She's a stupid girl who don't got no parents and she deserved it."
Mr. Lancaster shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Bobby, you're going to have to apologize, and both of you know better than to fight." He motioned to the teacher's aide. "Miss Hill, please take Bobby and Rachel to the office for fighting." He walked over to his desk, scribbled a note on a piece of paper and handed it to Miss Hill. "Give this to the principal for me?" he asked.
Miss Hill nodded and stuck the note in the pocket of her skirt before offering her hands to both children. Rachel obediently took her hand, her short blonde ponytails brushing against her ears. She was scared. She'd seen the principal in the hallway, but she'd never been sent to her office. Dr. K. was nice, but she'd heard from some of the big kids that she was mean to kids who'd been sent there.
Bobby crossed his arms over his chest and glared defiantly at the teacher's aide. Miss Hill sighed and put her hand on the child's shoulder to steer him in the right direction. "Bobby," she scolded, "this is the third time this week you've been sent to Dr. Karonovich's office for fighting. It means suspension! Your Mommy isn't going to be happy that she has to come and get you again."
"Don't care," he responded sullenly.
They arrived at the principal's office in silence and Miss Hill sat them down on the chairs outside. She handed the note to one of the secretaries before leaving the room.
Rachel squirmed uncomfortably in the hard chair and wished that her Momma was there. She knew that she probably shouldn't have pushed Bobby, but he had just made her so mad! Her Momma and Daddy *were* her parents and she loved them.
A few minutes later, her name was called, so she slid slowly out of the chair and walked even more slowly across the room to the principal's office. She entered the office quietly and stood in front of the desk, scuffing the toe of her sneaker against the floor. "Yes, Dr. K?" she whispered.
"Rachel, honey look at me," Dr. K said, running her hand through her short, dark curls.
Rachel looked up, her big eyes brimming with frightened tears. Dr. K moved around the desk and laid her hand on Rachel's shoulder. "I just need to talk to you and then we'll call your mommy to come and get you."
"Am I in trouble?" Rachel asked with trepidation, suddenly scared that this new person might hit her. Sure, Dr. K was a woman, but you just could never tell with strange people. Papa Gary had been nice to her once, too.
"A little," the principal admitted. Dr. K walked over to her couch and sat down before motioning to Rachel to join her. She walked over and carefully sat next to the principal.
"Rachel," Dr. K. began. "Do you know why Mr. Lancaster sent you here?"
"Because I pushed Bobby Greene back after he pushed me?" Rachel answered timidly. Her small face took on a determined look. "I let Papa Gary hit me and I'm not gonna let anyone else do it."
Dr. K. sighed and reached out to hug the little girl. She knew Rachel's history--with all of the publicity, who didn't? But there had never been any indication of behavioral problems at school. "Rachel, that wasn't your fault--isn't that what your foster parents and your therapist have been telling you?"
"Yes'm," Rachel replied softly.
"Rachel Pierce,"
"Kent" Rachel corrected her.
"Kent," Dr. K. said agreeably, she knew better than to argue with the child--this name-situation had come up before, and it was ultimately what the child answered to that mattered. "No more fighting in school, okay? I'm going to call your foster mother to come and take you home for the rest of the day, but I *never* want to see you in here again for fighting."
"Dr. K-karonovich?" Rachel began quietly, "could you call my Daddy instead? I want my Daddy."
The principal's eyebrows raised at this surprising development. For a child who had been so traumatized by men to ask for her foster father was surprising to say the least. "All right, sweetie, I'll call him--but remember what I said about fighting."
"Yes ma'am," Rachel agreed. Dr. K. walked the little girl to the door before returning to her desk, making a phone call to Mr. Kent, and then calling Bobby Greene inside her office.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
December 17, 1998, 11:00 am
Daily Planet, Metropolis
Clark studied the SIDS file again, hoping that they had overlooked something. Another victim had been reported a few hours ago--Rachel's half-brother, Timmy. There *had* to be a connection that would lead to a reason why and how these innocent babies were dying. He read over Timmy's autopsy report, then the boy's medical report before something caught his eye. "Lois," he called before getting up and walking over to her desk, still clutching the ever-growing file in his hand.
"Did you find something, sweetheart?" she asked absently as she typed the rest of a sentence into her story.
"I'm not sure," he admitted. "But I noticed something that we didn't see before. . Monique mentioned before that Family and Children Services used a local clinic where one of the physicians had agreed to accept what Medicaid would pay him and waive the rest of his fee. *All* of these children were vaccinated by the *same* doctor, Lois. And what's more, all of these children were vaccinated within 48 hours of their deaths…."
Lois looked at Clark in shock. "What if an undetectable drug was placed in the vials of vaccine? We *could* have a serial baby-killer on our hands," she said quietly.
"But that still doesn't explain how they all ended up seeing the same doctor," he pointed out. "Some of these children lived in different counties."
Lois took the file from Clark and flipped though it. "They all were sent to the same Medical Examiner, too." She looked up at him, her brow furrowed in thought. "Clark, aren't bodies usually just sent to the County Coroner? I mean, with the children living in different counties, shouldn't their bodies have been sent to *different* MEs?"
"What if," Clark began slowly, "the children weren't really dead?"
Lois snapped her fingers. "Resurrection, maybe?"
"It can't be Resurrection," Clark said. "They developed a test for that, and it's not showing up in the children's blood--but it could be a drug with similar, slower-acting effects."
"Why would anyone want to bury children alive? What could they possibly hope to gain?" Lois asked, horrified.
Before either of them could say anything more, Clark's phone rang. "Clark Kent," he said, answering the phone.
"Mr. Kent, this is Dr. Karonovich, your foster daughter's principal."
"Is Rachel okay?" the words automatically rushed out of his mouth.
"She's fine, Mr. Kent--we've just had a bit of an altercation here, and I need you to come and pick her up for the rest of the day."
"Rachel's been in a fight? What happened?" Clark asked anxiously.
"Yes, she has, but it's nothing too serious. Nobody got hurt, and your foster daughter is sitting outside my office right now. Mr. Kent, I know that Rachel has been through a lot, but I need you to reinforce at home that fighting is unacceptable."
"I promise that we'll talk to her about it." Clark said, fighting the urge to fly over at superspeed just to make sure his little girl was really all right.
"There's something else you should know," Dr. K. added. "Rachel is insisting that her last name is Kent."
Clark grinned, happy at the sign that Rachel really did want to be his and Lois's little girl. "Well, since Lois and I want to adopt her, I guess that's a good thing," he said with a soft chuckle. "I'll be there to pick her up as fast as I can. Thank you, Dr. Karonovich."
"You're welcome, Mr. Kent. And--good luck on adopting Rachel."
Clark laid the phone back in its cradle and strode over to his wife's desk. "Lois, tell Perry I'll be back?" he asked. "That was Dr. Karonovich--I have to go get Rachel from school." Clark leaned over and kissed her quickly, "she's been in a fight, but they say she's not hurt," he added as he pulled on his overcoat and hurried over to the elevator.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
December 11, 1998, 11:35 am
Erickson Elementary, Main Office
Clark walked quickly into the main office and looked around for Rachel. "Daddy!" he heard her voice call to him. He barely had time to turn around when Rachel wrapped her arms around his legs. He leaned down, swung her up, and settled her comfortably on his hip. Rachel buried her face in his shoulder.
"I did something bad today, Daddy," she said, with a catch in her voice.
"What did you do that was bad, peanut?" he asked softly. He'd gotten the bare bones of the story earlier from Dr. K, but he wanted Rachel to tell him what had happened from her own perspective.
"I got into a fight," she admitted quietly. "Bobby said that I didn't have no parents and that you didn't never love me, and then he pushed me, so I pushed him back. I'm sorry."
"Sweetheart, you know better," Clark admonished her gently. "I know that sometimes people say things that hurt, but it doesn't give you an excuse to hurt them back, ok? Next time, go tell a teacher."
"I promise, Daddy," Rachel laid her head on his shoulder and sighed in contentedly, knowing now that his gentle admonishment would be the last of her punishment.
"C'mon, sprite, let's go get your stuff and sign you out." Clark walked over to where her filled backpack lay on the floor.
"But Rachel don't got no parents," a little boy sitting nearby insisted.
"You must be Bobby," Clark said as he turned to face the child, unexpectedly wishing he could smack the little boy for teasing Rachel.
"Uh huh," the boy eyed him suspiciously. "Who're you? You aren't Rachel's daddy, 'cause Rachel don't got one."
"I do, too," Rachel said softly. "This is my Daddy--his name's Clark Kent, and he works for the Daily Planet."
"Then how come your name's Pierce, not Kent?" Bobby asked, a trifle curiously.
"That's because my wife and I haven't quite made it legal yet," Clark explained. "But Rachel's my little girl. Isn't that right, sprite?"
Rachel nodded vigorously. "Uh huh. I gots a Daddy and a Momma, and they love me. Told ya!"
Clark leaned over, picked up Rachel's backpack, then smiled at Bobby before heading up to the desk. He signed her out and, with a wave in Bobby's direction, headed out the door towards the Jeep. They had come a long way in the past month--they were a family now--and in his mind nothing would ever change that.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
December 11, 1998 11:40 am
Daily Planet, Metropolis
"Lois Lane, Daily Planet," Lois grabbed a pad and a pencil in preparation to take notes and settled back in her chair.
"Lois? This is Samantha Parker--I'm just returning your call."
"Hi, Sam," Lois began. "Clark and I want to start the adoption proceedings." Lois blurted, not wanting to waste time on preliminaries.
Sam laughed softly. "I should have guessed--this is your one-month anniversary of getting Rachel, isn't it? Lois, I'd love to start the paperwork right away, but, despite the fact that his last known residence is here in Metropolis, we haven't been able to find her biological father, yet. Until he signs away his rights to her, I'm afraid we can't really go forward."
"But, Sam," Lois protested, "he deserted her mother soon after they found out that she was pregnant with Rachel! Doesn't the fact that he *abandoned* her before she was born count for anything?"
"I'm afraid not, Lois," Samantha said. "Unless every effort is made to contact him, any adoption wouldn't be legal. Lois, we have to leave the advertisement seeking his whereabouts in place for six weeks. If he doesn't reply to the ad, then we can terminate his parental rights and you can start proceedings to adopt Rachel."
Lois sighed and tossed her notepad and pencil on the desk. "Let's say he doesn't answer--how long will it take for Rachel to become officially ours?"
"Six months to a year," Samantha answered matter-of-factly.
"That long?" Lois asked, deflated.
"I'm afraid so," Samantha affirmed gently.
"Thank you, Sam," Lois said quietly. "I'll get everything started today."
"Lois--" Samantha said quickly before Lois hung up. "even if her biological father *does* show up, you can still petition the court for custody. I don't want to give you any false hopes; the chances of getting custody of her are slim in that case, but you *can* always try."
"Thanks, Sam," Lois said, then hung up the phone. She stood up and went to Perry's office. "Perry?" she called.
Perry looked up from the pile of papers in front of him on his desk. "Yes, darlin'?" he asked.
"Perry, I just talked to Rachel's social worker, and she said that we have to advertise for Rachel's biological father." Lois drew in a deep breath before continuing. "I was wondering if we could put one in the Planet?"
"I'll tell you what, darlin', we can do better than that. Your little Rachel is cute as a button, and I wanna help y'all keep her. We'll run an ad in the legal section along with another series on adoption. I'll put Meyerson on it, and I want an article from you and Clark." Perry smiled and reached across his desk for a pen to make some notations.
"The Planet runs ads like the one you need for Rachel all the time, so there's no problem there, and I can get one of the Planet lawyers to start drawing up the adoption papers," he said.
"Thanks, Perry," she said. "I've almost got our next story ready and I'll LAN it to you in a few minutes." Lois turned to leave, intent on finishing their latest story.
"Lois?" Perry said, "How's the SIDS story coming?"
"We're getting closer to breaking it, Perry," she said.
"Just don't let another paper beat us to the punch," he warned, his eyes twinkling.
"I won't, Perry, I won't," Lois laughed as she left to go finish her story.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
December 18, 1998, 3:30 pm
348 Hyperion Avenue, Metropolis
Lois picked up a hairbrush and followed the sound of giggles into Rachel's bedroom. "Daddy, *higher*," Rachel laughed as Clark swung her into the air.
Clark laughed, swung her back down, and hugged her tightly. "Rachel, if I swing you any higher, you'll be flying like Superman," he said.
"Superman?" Rachel glanced around suspiciously. "I don't wanna see *him*."
"You don't have to, sprite," Clark said, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
Rachel threw her arms around his neck and bussed him on the cheek. "I love you, Daddy,"
Clark tugged gently on a lock of Rachel's hair. "I love you too, Rachel."
Lois leaned against the doorjamb, almost unwilling to break up the father-daughter moment. "All right, you two, we need to get ready to go to the airport so we can pick up Grandma and Grandpa Kent," she said.
Rachel became very quiet and buried her face in Clark's shoulder. "Do you think Grandpa and Gramma Kent will like me?" she asked, her voice muffled.
Lois walked over and rubbed Rachel's back gently. "They'll love you, peanut," she said softly.
"An' what about Gramma and Grandpa Lane?" she asked fearfully. Grandparents were something outside her experience and therefore something to be feared.
Clark kissed the crown of her head. "They couldn't help but love you, sprite," he said reassuringly.
"Really?" she whispered.
"Really." Clark said firmly.
Rachel began to wriggle to be put down. If her Momma and Daddy said it was so, than it must be. Even if her new grandparents were mean, Momma and Daddy would protect her.
Clark set her down on the ground and watched as she ran over to the closet to look for clothes. Rachel had changed in the past month. Gone was the thin, unhappy waif with ragged, unkept hair. Instead, they had a slender little girl with roses in her cheeks and a sparkle in her dark blue eyes. Her shiny, dark-blonde hair curled slightly at the ends, and had grown out considerably from the hacked, chopped, messy cut it had been when she was found two months ago. She was still shy around strangers, had occasional nightmares, and new situations scared her, but he wasn't sure if any of that would ever go away.
He had smiled inwardly when just last week when her therapist had labeled her a 'super-child', one who had made an almost complete recovery from the abuse that she had suffered. They had been able to keep his Superman disappearances under wraps, so that Rachel was still unaware of his second job. That was probably for the best, since she still viewed Superman with a large measure of distrust.
"Momma," her small voice called, interrupting his thoughts. "Can you help me get dressed to meet the Grammas and Grandpas?"
"I sure will, sweetie," Lois said moving forward to help the little girl pull a dress, tights, and her mary janes from the closet. Clark smiled fondly at his two girls before leaving to get dressed himself. His parents would be landing at the airport in a little over an hour, and he and Lois needed to pick them up. Lois's parents were coming over afterwards to meet Rachel at the same time. Directly afterwards, there was a family dinner so that Rachel could meet most of her family at once--Lucy couldn't make it.
Lois leaned over to kiss the top of Rachel's cheek before pulling the dress on over the child's head. She was thankful that Mr. Taylor hadn't yet come forward to claim Rachel. "Mine," her heart sang as she helped buckle the little shoes. "My daughter." No matter what the courts said, Rachel would always be her little girl.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
December 18, 1998, 4:45 pm
836 Centennial Drive Apt 3B, Metropolis
Sam nervously adjusted his tie and smoothed his hair once more. Although it was just a family dinner, he couldn't help but worry about meeting his new granddaughter for the first time--at least for the first time when she was conscious. Ellen hadn't taken the news of Lois and Clark's intent to adopt her very well, and he was worried how his wife would react to the child.
"Ellen," he called. "Are you ready to go to the kids' place?"
Ellen walked out of the bathroom, fussing with her hair. "I don't see why *my* daughter is insisting upon adopting this waif," she fussed fretfully. "I *want* a grandchild, but I want a baby to spoil *before* I get a five-year-old!" She stopped in front of the mirror to reapply her lipstick.
"Who knows what kind of background this child has come from. I've heard stories, Sam--she could murder them in their beds as they sleep."
Sam chuckled softly. "No, she couldn't," he said. "She's just a little slip of a thing." His face grew serious as he slipped his arm around Ellen's waist. "But if her biological father shows up, she could break their hearts," he took a deep breath before continuing. "I saw the look on Lois's face while I was checking over Rachel. Ellen, she looked just like you did the first time you held *our* little girls. Please--don't give the child a hard time? The potential for heartbreak is already there, and we don't need to add to it."
Ellen sighed. "Okay, Sam. I'm still not sure about this child, but I suppose if she hasn't killed them yet, she's not going to." She glanced at the wall clock. "We'd better get going, or we'll be late." Ellen turned and hurried out of the room. A few seconds later, Sam followed. This should prove to be an interesting evening--and he was beginning to look forward to meeting the child that his little girl loved so much.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
December 18, 1998 5:00 pm
Metropolis International Airport
Rachel stood in between Lois and Clark as they waited for the elder Kents to come up the escalator that led from the gates. She was a little scared to meet them, but her parents had reassured her that it would be fine. She had spoken to them once on the telephone, but it hadn't been for long. Gramma Kent had sounded nice, but Grandpa Kent's deep voice was more than a little scary.
"Mom, Dad," Clark called as they came in sight. Rachel slipped behind Clark, trusting in her daddy to keep her safe. She had briefly considered using her Momma as a shield, but her Daddy was bigger and easier to hide behind. Rachel peeked out from behind him to look at these strange people that were her Daddy's parents.
"Lois, Clark," Martha called happily. She gave both of them hugs before crouching down to see behind her son. "You must be Rachel," she said softly.
Jonathan followed closely behind his wife, lugging both of their carry-ons. He set them down and gave Lois a hug before he clapped his son on the shoulder. "It's good to see you, son," he said.
Rachel slid out from behind Clark uncertainly. "Well look at you," Jonathan said. "You must be my new granddaughter, Rachel." Jonathan cleared his throat before he reached into his pocket, pulled out a small package, and handed it to her. "Your great-grandma gave me this to give to my little girl someday, so I think this belongs to you."
"Are you sure, Grandpa Kent?" she asked shyly, looking at the present and then up at him through her eyelashes.
"You belong with us, Rachel--you're a Kent, little one."
Rachel nodded and untied the ribbon of the small box and opened it up to find a small, child-sized silver locket. "Thank you, Grandpa Kent," she said, a smile dawning on her face.
Jonathan pulled it out of the box and fastened it around her neck. "There you go, Rachel."
"Dad," Clark began, "I've never seen that before…"
"That's because I had it put away for your first daughter, son," Jonathan said. "Your grandmother got it for her sixth birthday, so I thought it fitting to give it to Rachel now. Think of it as an--early Christmas present."
Clark shook his head and sighed. "You're going to spoil her rotten, aren't you?"
Martha laughed. "Clark, honey, we would *never* do that, now would we, Jonathan?"
"Of course not, Martha. Just because Rachel's our *first* grandchild…"
Martha leaned down and motioned to Rachel. "I've got something for you too, but it's in my bag with the…" her voice got lower. "Christmas presents."
"Christmas presents?" Rachel's eyes grew wide at the mention of more presents.
"Uh huh. And I thought that you and I could bake cookies, and maybe a pie," Martha smiled as Rachel started to regain more animation with each word.
Rachel looked at these new people in amazement. Maybe grandparents weren't such an awful thing after all. She brought her hand up to finger the new locket that Grandpa Kent had given her. This set, at least, seemed like a lot of fun.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
December 18, 1998, 5:30 pm
348 Hyperion Avenue
Clark leaned over and stole a quick kiss from Lois as they watched Rachel get acquainted with both sets of grandparents. "They're spoiling her rotten," Clark observed as Lois leaned back against him.
"I know," she agreed, "I'm a bit surprised--my mother hasn't been all that supportive about this, but she's right in there with a Madam Alexander doll for Rachel."
"Maybe your father convinced her that this was a good idea?" he suggested.
"Or maybe she saw Rachel and fell in love just like we did," Lois said with a slight smile.
Ellen dropped a kiss on Rachel's head before coming over to where they were standing. "Lois," she began softly. "I know I don't say this often, but I owe you an apology. That granddaughter of mine is *adorable*, and I'm sorry I doubted you."
"Thank you, Mother," Lois said, her eyes resting on Rachel.
"We think she's pretty cute," Clark said with a grin. He kissed Lois again before releasing her and going over to swing Rachel up in the air.
Lois smiled at Rachel's squeal of glee as she watched the two of them play. "He's just a big kid," she grumbled half-heartedly.
Martha caught the remark from her place on the couch and came over to stand with the other two women. "They always are, Lois," she said with a smile. "Jonathan was that way with Clark, sometimes--I think that's where he gets his love of… heights from."
Ellen laughed slightly. "Your father played with you and Lucy that way when you were Rachel's age. It was before everything fell apart," she paused for a moment before continuing. "Cherish these days, Lois; they don't last long."
Before Lois could answer, the doorbell rang, so she walked over to answer it. She opened the door to reveal a tall man with dark blue eyes behind wire-rimmed glasses. "Lois Lane-Kent?" he asked.
"Yes?" she said.
"My name is Christopher Taylor, and I've come for my daughter, Rachel."
Lois slumped against the doorway. This was her worst nightmare come true--how could he expect her to hand over her baby girl? "Mr. Taylor," she began. "How do we know that you're Rachel's father? You could be anybody and you can't expect us to just hand her over to you--the state still has custody of her and until they say differently, Rachel will stay with us," she said firmly. Lois was determined not to let this man take her little girl without a fight.
"I thought you'd see it that way," he said, reaching into the inside pocket of his overcoat and pulling out a sheaf of papers. "Here's the results of the paternity test that prove she's mine, and my lawyer wants to meet with you tomorrow to discuss custody arrangements." He handed her the papers and cast a wistful glance toward Rachel and Clark, who were still playing. "I'm going to take my little girl home with me, Mrs. Kent--home where she belongs." With that, he handed Lois the papers and left.
"Clark?" Lois called softly.
Clark set Rachel down on the ground. "Why don't you go play with your Grandpas, sprite? They're looking a bit neglected over there at your tea party." Privately, Clark thought that the sight of his and Lois's fathers sitting on small chairs drinking pretend tea with stuffed animals was probably one of the funniest sights he'd seen in a long time, but they didn't seem to mind.
"Okay, Daddy," Rachel said and trotted over to pour out more 'tea'.
Clark hurried over to Lois. "What's the matter, honey? And who was that at the door?"
"Rachel's biological father," Lois answered softly. "He gave me these," she held out the papers. Clark took them and scanned through the packet quickly.
"According to this," Clark said quietly. "He *is* her biological father. There's also a note here that says that he wants a meeting tomorrow at ten."
"Sam warned us that this could happen," Lois said with a sigh. "She told me yesterday that the court had assigned a guardian ad litem to Rachel in case of this, so we'll have to call her lawyer as well as ours." She walked over to the desk and grabbed her briefcase from the chair. Lois rummaged around in it for a few minutes before she found her notepad.
Clark came over and stopped her with a touch. "Honey, we can call the lawyers tomorrow--let's just have some fun with our family tonight, okay?"
"But, Clark," Lois said, her eyes beginning to gather moisture. "We could lose her…"
Clark pulled her, unresisting, into his arms. "We're not going to," he said firmly. "Rachel is our little girl in every way that matters--we'll fight this, I promise."
"But Samantha said that if this happened, there wasn't much chance of us getting to keep her," Lois said softly.
"But there *is* a chance," he insisted. "We still have hope, and we still have each other--it's enough." Clark leaned down and kissed her gently, then insistently, hoping to calm her down. His tongue swept past her lips and she sighed into his mouth. Before it could go any further, Clark felt a little hand tugging at his pant leg. "Daddy, I'm hungry," Rachel said.
"Rachel Interruptus," Lois muttered, hiding a smile.
Clark reached down and swung Rachel up into his arms. "Well, let's see what we can do about that," he said with a smile. Lois watched the two of them go into the kitchen to check on dinner and the worries caused by Mr. Taylor's visit crashed down on her. It seemed as if her worst nightmare was coming true.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
December 23, 1998, 9:45 am
Metropolis County Courthouse (aka Hall of Justice)
Lois and Clark sat quietly behind the table on one side of the courtroom as Mr. Taylor's lawyer made his case. The meeting last week hadn't gone very well, and Mr. Taylor had used some influence to push the case through an already cluttered court docket. "Your honor, my client is fiscally and emotionally able to provide for his daughter. He has a stable job at Norton Engineering--he's one of their top Electrical Engineers--and he can provide a loving home for Rachel. All he's asking is to be able to take his daughter home."
Judge Stephenson regarded the file in front of her for a moment. "Mr. Taylor, I see from this that what you say is true, but I *would* like to hear from both the other side, and from Rachel herself--after all, my five year old niece has her own opinion and I'm sure that Rachel does, too. Mr. and Mrs. Kent, I'd like to hear what you have to say."
Clark reached for Lois's hand and clasped it firmly. "Your honor, we've talked to our lawyer, and we'd like to speak. We are well able to provide for Rachel--and she's happy where she is, with us." Clark said.
"We know that she was placed in our home as a foster child," Lois added, "But we'd like to adopt her." She flashed a look at Mr. Taylor before continuing. "Frankly, I'd like to know where he was when Rachel's stepfather was abusing her--why did he choose to acknowledge her now, after so much time?"
"I'd also like to know that," the judge admitted. "Mr. Taylor, why did it take so long for you to decide to take care of Rachel? Her story was in the papers due to the way she was taken into the state's custody."
"Your honor, I was out of town when Rachel was found," he said. " My break-up with Micheala, Rachel's mother, wasn't pretty and we just kind of agreed to leave each other alone afterwards; she wouldn't even take child support. Leaving Rachel's mother was the stupidest mistake I've ever made--I just want to make up for that now by taking care of my little girl. "
"Wanting to make amends is admirable, Mr. Taylor, but I need to talk to Rachel before I make any decisions here. Ms. Hunter, as little Rachel's advocate, I need to know if she has anything she'd like to say before I render a verdict?"
Rachel, who had been trying to be quiet as the grown-ups spoke, tugged on Constance Hunter's sleeve to get her attention. Constance leaned down and Rachel whispered something in her ear. "Rachel says that she'd like to talk to everybody at once, your honor," Ms. Hunter replied, but there are some things that I need to say on her behalf. The Kents can provide Rachel with a stable, two-parent home, and they have extended family that are willing to support them."
"Thank you, Ms. Hunter, I'll take that into consideration. Rachel--can you come and sit up here next to me?" Judge Stephenson motioned to the chair next to her.
Rachel walked to the chair and climbed up into it. This was easy after telling that other judge what Papa Gary did. "Hello, your honor," she said.
"Rachel, do you know why you're here?" the judge asked.
"Uh huh," she began. "That man," she pointed at Mr. Taylor, "wants to take me with him, and the Kents want me to stay home."
"And where is home, Rachel?"
"348 Hy-hy-hyperion Avenue," Rachel replied. "I know my phone number, too," she said proudly.
Judge Stephenson smiled. "Rachel, where do you want to live?" she asked.
"At home," Rachel replied promptly, "with Momma and Daddy."
"Rachel, why do you want to stay there?" the judge asked.
"Because," Rachel answered softly, "Momma and Daddy love me."
"Rachel, and what about Mr. Taylor? He's your real father, biologically speaking."
"He's a stranger," Rachel said stubbornly, "and Momma told me that I shouldn't talk to no strange people."
Judge Stephenson laughed. "Mr. and Mrs. Kent, you are to be commended. When Rachel's case first came before me, the state had a very frightened and traumatized little girl on our hands. You have given her the love and support to turn her into a happy, well-adjusted child." She paused to flip through a sheaf of papers.
"According to these notes, Rachel has flourished under your care--most of these recommend that she be left with you. It has always been the policy of the family court to keep biological families together when possible. It is often also the judge's prerogative to look past this when necessary. In this case, there are no reports of abuse on her biological father's part, and Mr. Taylor is both willing and able to care for Rachel. There is absolutely no reason to keep father and daughter apart. Rachel, you want to stay with the Kents but sometimes what you desire is not what is best for you--you may want ice cream, but a steady diet of it would soon make you sick.
"So, I must find that the best interest of the child is to place Rachel in her biological father's care. He is hereby granted full custody. Mr. and Mrs. Kent, you are to be commended for being excellent foster parents for Rachel, and this court hopes that you will be willing to open your home to another foster child in the future. However, any contact you have with Rachel will be up to her biological father. Next case, please."
At the judge's last words, Rachel flew across the courtroom and threw herself at Lois and Clark, sobbing. "I don't want to go away," she cried, tears running down her face. "I want to stay with you!"
Lois dropped to her knees, took Rachel in her arms, and stood up, holding her tightly. "We want you to stay, too, sweetheart," she said, fighting back tears. Rachel locked her arms around Lois's neck and held on for dear life.
Clark came over and put his arms around both of them. "We love you, sprite," he said, his voice husky with pent-up emotion. "We want you to stay with us forever," he said softly. "But we can't disobey the judge."
Rachel loosened her tight grasp on Lois and reached for Clark grabbing hold of the lapels of his suit. Clark reached for her before she fell and hugged her tightly. "Don't make me go, Daddy. Please don't make me go!" she begged.
"Sprite, I wish there was something I could do," he smoothed her hair away from her face and kissed her on the forehead.
Samantha Parker came over with Mr. Taylor, Rachel's small suitcase in hand. "It's time to go, Rachel," she said softly.
Rachel's grip tightened around Clark's neck. "Nooooo," she cried. "NOOOOOO! Daddy, no!" She hid her face in his neck and sobbed.
Samantha gently detached Rachel's arms from around Clark and Mr. Taylor stepped forward to take her. He held her firmly against him, trying to keep his hold as she reached out for Lois and Clark. "Thank you for taking care of my little girl," he said quietly before he turned to leave. Samantha shot them an apologetic look before turning to follow him.
"They took my baby," Lois said with a soft sob before she turned around to bury her face in Clark's chest.
As Mr. Taylor walked away, Rachel stretched out her arms toward them. "Daddy, don't let them take me," she cried. "Daddy, DADDY!" she screamed as Mr. Taylor's steps took her further from the parents she loved.
"DADDY, MOMMA! NOOOOOOOOO! DAAAAAAAADDDDDDDDYYYYY!"
"I love you, Rachel," Clark whispered as a single tear that he had been unable to repress rolled down his cheek. It was a long time before he could no longer hear his daughter screaming for him to come.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~