Headlines screamed out about Lex Luthor's murder all over the globe, and the Daily Planet wasn't different in that respect.
The police had questioned Jimmy Olsen and Lois Lane, but Clark was in poor shape. The authorities had tried to get him to a hospital, but he had weakly insisted on not going, and Lois had supported him. She had not known why, but she had felt that there was something she didn't know about, and she wanted to find out what it was.
Clark was lying in Lois's bed, pale and shaking. He was not only battered physically but also emotionally.
When he was in better condition, he was supposed to be questioned, but the police had decided to let him be for a little while.
Lois Lane had an alibi: several people had seen her at the Daily Planet.
Clark had not even been in the room at the time one of the world's richest men had been murdered, and when he was found, he was unconscious. Jimmy was not quite so lucky.
Public fingers had been quick to point to the simple copyboy for the death of one of their most beloved figures, but Perry White had a few cards up his sleeve.
The Chief Editor had worked in overdrive, pulling in favors from sources to get any kind of dirt on Luthor, and when the Daily Planet released its edition that announced Lex Luthor's death, it was accompanied by a list of some of the atrocities the rich man had committed, though even that list barely scratched the surface.
The police were not quite sure of exactly where they stood, but Jimmy Olsen was pledged under the care of Perry White until the court date.
The corsage was taken as evidence, but the only fingerprints found on the flower were Jimmy's.
Shaking and twisting, Clark fell into an unsettled sleep. Lois watched him worriedly from a chair by his side. Unknowingly, her hand had found his and was soothingly rubbing it.
She knew she should be trying to prove Jimmy Olsen's innocence, but she couldn't leave Clark's side. Trying to reassure herself that it was okay to simply stay with Clark, she reminded herself that Perry was helping Jimmy.
She gazed at Clark's face. There was so much pain written into it...He had been forced to live such a hard life...
He began mumbling in his sleep, and she frowned as she listened.
"Kansas...little...tiny...small...town..."
She leaned in closer, listening even more intently.
"Mom...dad...love you...sorry...left..."
She waited for a minute, but he didn't say any more.
His face crinkled in what appeared to be emotional pain. Feeling herself somehow drawn to him, Lois leaned down and kissed his forehead. His facial expression became more relaxed, and a small smile even graced his mouth.
Glad that his sleep was finally becoming more peaceful, Lois stood up and walked over to her laptop. She began a search for Kansas cities, and soon a list stretched in front of her. She quickly narrowed the search down to places with smaller populations.
She scanned it briefly then paused as a name near the bottom caught her eye. Smallville.
The reporter chewed on her lip pensively and checked the headlines from ten to twelve years before.
It seemed that not much happened in that small Kansas town. Most of the "newsbreaking stories" consisted of someone's cow being eaten by some vicious predator. But she finally found what she was looking for:
Teenager Ripped from Home. Kidnapper Unknown.
The first two words in the article caused her heart to jump in her throat. Clark Kent...Could it be him? Had Luthor chosen not to change his first name? Did Clark really remember something about his past?
Hissing through her teeth, Lois read the article thoroughly before returning to Clark's side. Get better soon...Please, get better soon...
"It wasn't me, Chief!" Jimmy was in a frenzy. He had never been accused of anything as big as murder before.
"I know, son. Calm down!" Perry set a firm arm on Jimmy's shoulder, forcing him into a seat. "It wasn't you. We're gonna find out who did this. They are checking that flower out as we speak."
"But what if someone contaminates the evidence? What if—"
"Jimmy," Perry stated impatiently. "You can't contaminate a flower."
"What if someone's dog eats it, or—"
"Jimmy!"
"...Sorry, Chief."
The phone called for the Daily Planet's editor's attention, and he picked it up. "Perry White." Silence. "Yes...Are you sure? ...All right." He hung it up.
"What was it?" Jimmy asked eagerly.
"We have the flower's name. Are you up for a little investigative reporting?"
"If it means clearing my name, then I'm up for taking on Godzilla one-handed!"
Perry grinned. "'That's my boy!"
"Lois?" a groggy whisper from the bed caused the reporter to jump awake.
"Clark!" she exclaimed. "Are you all right?" Weak eyes on her face were her only answer. "Is there anything I can do?"
Clark seemed to think about it for a moment, but when he spoke it was with a strange reluctance. "I feel like...sunbathing."
"Sunbathing?" Lois raised an eyebrow.
The excuse came quickly. "I want more natural warmth than blankets."
With a shrug, Lois agreed, "Okay. If that's what you want." She let sunlight stream in through the window. "I'm afraid you only have a few hours of sun left."
"Any would be nice," he said, sinking deeper into the bed.
"Are you hungry?"
He shook his head.
Lois contemplated asking him about Kansas, but she refrained. That would come in good time.
Jimmy winced. "I hope this one has it. If I go to any more flower stores, I think my nose is going to go on strike."
Perry laughed, although the joyful noise didn't meet his eyes. He knew the seriousness of what they were trying to accomplish.
As they were reaching their next destination, Jimmy stopped and pointed. "That's it! That's the flower!"
The flowers were being tended by a tall man whom Perry went right up to. In a no-nonsense tone, the Chief Editor spoke, "D'you sell a lot of those flowers?"
Turning, the man turned, about to give them a lot of lip, but any unkind words died at the source at the sight of Perry's face. "These babies? They're rare and expensive. Aren't too many people who can afford these beauties."
"Care to give us a little more information?"
After a few phone calls and calling in of favors, Perry was triumphant. "Nigel St. John. Lex Luthor's right-hand man. I should have known. The big dogs often choose to stab each other in the back. That reminds me of the time that the King—"
"Chief," Jimmy interrupted. "Don't you think we should go to the police?"
"Impatient, huh?" Perry grinned. "All right, son. Calm down. Your name will be cleared before you can say 'Elvis Presley.'"
Nicely done, the white-haired man congratulated himself. He was on his way out of state, having dodged the authorities once again.
He leaned back in his chair. Matters were going well.
The authorities finally questioned Clark, who had answered their questions a little vaguely. However, they appeared to be satisfied with what he told them, and Perry White's evidence helped void Jimmy as being a suspect, as well as helped convince the police that the culprit was Nigel St. John.
Unfortunately, Lex Luthor's assistant could not be found, and although authorities around the country were alerted, it wasn't likely that he would be found.
Clark recovered suspiciously fast in Lois's eyes, but she was delighted to finally be able to have a real conversation with him.
She wished to choose what she said carefully, though, and so she first inquired offhandedly, "What's your connection to Kansas?"
The dark-haired man's head came quickly up. "What?"
Lois Lane berated herself for her failure at being subtle. "I just heard you mention it in your sleep..."
Clark's heart had begun thumping frantically when Lois mentioned Kansas, as the name was associated in his mind with Luthor, but she had a plausible explanation. He needed to trust her. He was not used to trusting people, but it was time to start getting into the habit. "Lex told me that was where my parents were from."
"Did he say something about Smallville?"
Frowning, Clark asked, "Is there really a place called 'Smallville'?"
Lois nodded, then, looking guilty, she admitted, "I heard you say something about a little town, and I took the liberty of looking it up."
"Did you find anything else?"
"Around eleven years ago, a family had their eighteen-year old son taken away from them. It was in the summer, and he hadn't gone off to college yet. Jonathan and Martha Kent were devastated by the kidnapping, but they released no information to the authorities other than the fact that he had been taken from his home." Lois appeared to be studying his face. "Do those names ring a bell?"
Clark gasped as he was hit with a scene from his past.
Briiiing. Briiiing!
The doorchime kept ringing out like an angry bell announcing its presence to the world.
"Mommy, mommy!" a young Clark rushed to his mother. "Someone's at the door!" he sing-songed.
"All right, Clark, calm down," the faceless woman walked leisurely over to the door and opened it.
A man in a business suit stood there. "Hello. I'm from—"
"I know where you're from!" Clark's mother suddenly had a bite in her voice. "Don't pester me any more about that meteorite you found, or I'll send the sheriff after you!" With that, she slammed the door in his face, not allowing him to put in a last word.
Clark frowned contemplatively. "Why's that man keep comin'?"
"Don't mind him, Clark."
A strange feeling caused the boy to look over to the window, where the man's face was staring in with dark, angry eyes, but before Clark could say anything, the head disappeared.
Sniffling in sudden fear, Clark shot his arms out for comfort and spoke urgently. "Hold me."
His mother quickly gathered him in her arms and gently tried to soothe him.
The back door slammed, and a male voice drifted towards them, "Who was that—"
Clark was jolted out of the flashback before he could hear the woman's name. Looking up at the concerned Lois, he whispered, "I don't know."
Squatting beside him, Lois touched his arm gently. "It can't hurt to check it out."