Fly Me Courageous

By Annabell

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Smallville or its characters. This is done purely for fun.

Warnings: This fic will contain swearing, much violence and angst. Yet I can't resist some humor either.

This is un-beta-ed. So any errors are mine own.

Note: This takes place as though Tempest never happened. Lex is 22 and Clark is 16.

Archive: Hell yeah!

The sun was nearly down by now.  The Earth's nearest star was barely visible over the flat Kansas landscape. Having left the interstate several miles back, the more rural two-lane was just as deserted. The Porsche purred smoothly, it's engine noise barely discernable above the hum of the air conditioner.  Driving directly into the setting sun, he almost missed the warning signal directly ahead.

Lex downshifted abruptly, frowning at the wooden barricade coming into site. The orange flashing lights blinked on and off at regular intervals, announcing something had gone wrong up ahead. The Porsche crept within a few yards of the roadblock, as if it were trying to get it out of the way through sheer force of it's driver's will. But the barrier remained stubbornly immovable.

A road worker, dressed in jeans and tank top, wearing a blaze orange vest stumped over to the driver's side and Lex hit the power button, the window sliding soundlessly down to allow the sultry evening air into the air conditioned car. "What's going on?" Lex asked casually. The man put a grimy hand on the top of the door and leaned down to talk to the billionaire's son. Lex could smell the man's sweat and dirt as it wafted through the open window.

"Sorry, Mr. Luthor. The road up ahead has buckled due to the heat. You are going to have to find a different route." The man's brown eyes stared steadily at him.

Repressing an exhale of annoyance, Lex gave a thin-lipped smile to the helpful crewmember and thanked him for the information. He was just starting to roll up the window again when the man dropped his hand onto the window frame, giving Lex the choice of either crushing his fingers in the closing window, or leaving the window open. Lex opted to give the man a chance to keep his fingers. He didn't need a lawsuit right now. Not when he was so close to getting everything.  "Was there something else?" Lex's tone was enough to drop the air temperature a few degrees, but the man was oblivious.

"Yes, sir. There is," and with a nod of his head he looked to the passenger side of the Porsche. Lex followed his gaze and went completely still. He was looking down the sleek barrel of a gun, a Glock to be accurate, pointed directly at his heart through the car window. He forced himself to inhale slowly and keep his features neutral. He had grown up with the threat of being kidnapped and ransomed for money all his life.  The man holding the gun must have been hiding in the ditch alongside the road, waiting for him. He was wearing a ski mask, and in the back of his mind, Lex wondered if it was as hot as it looked.

It was a trap, and he had walked right into it. Or driven, if you wanted to keep things accurate.

'Not now! Dammit!' Feeling more annoyed then afraid, Lex looked back at the sweaty guy still hovering over his side of the car. Not letting his irritation show, he smirked just a little. One thing he had learned over the years of dealing with his father was to not let his true feelings show, at all. If he were concerned that he was a hairsbreadth away from death, you wouldn't be able to tell by looking at him. "You know, this really isn't a good time for me. Maybe you could come back next week and kidnap me then. Or better yet, how about next month. I'll clear a space on my calendar just for you," he offered, without much hope that they'd take him up on it.

Orange Vest wasn't biting. "Get out of the car, Mr. Luthor."

"So I take it the road is fine up ahead?" Lex asked trying to stall for time as he slowly undid his seatbelt. He thought about just flooring it and going for it. Then he saw an old rusty pickup truck pull into view ahead of the barricade and another pull up behind the Porsche, effectively boxing him in. The drivers were wearing bandanas over the lower parts of their faces, like bandits from a cheesy western.  Lex knew instantly that they wouldn't kill him. If that were the case, they wouldn't be concerned about him seeing their faces. He figured that Orange Vest was going on a long vacation in the near future.

"Got out of the car, Mr. Luthor. I don't want to tell you again." Orange Vest said, his voice bland. "And don't even try to pick up the cell phone." To add to the effect, the drivers of both vehicles produced shotguns and pointed them at him as well.

Not seeing any alternative at this time, Lex turned off the engine and opened the door. As soon as his foot hit the asphalt, Orange Vest grabbed him by the collar of his silk shirt and hauling him to his feet and spinning him around until his chest was pressed tight against the side of the car and his arms were brutally pulled behind his back.

Lex protested as he felt his wrists tied tightly together with thin nylon rope. "Hey, if you tie me that tight, I'll be in serious danger of loosing my hands," he said in he hoped what was a reasonable tone.

"It doesn't matter, it's what is in your head that's important," was the monotone reply. Lex was jerked back by the scruff of the collar of the dark blue silk shirt he was wearing and turned around to face his captors. But Lex was determined not to show the discomfort. The only sign was the slightest clenching of his jaw muscles as he was relieved of his wallet, cell phone, watch and other personal accessories.

The Glock man handed the gun to Orange Vest and walked around behind Lex. Lex didn't drop his razor sharp gaze from Orange Vest's. Lex told him with his eyes exactly what was going to happen to the kidnapper when Lex got the upper hand. Lex imagined every horrible thing that could be done to a human being and promised that that was only the beginning. Orange Vest would beg for death by the time Lex was through with him.

Orange Vest stared back uncomprehending at the dangerous stare. Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Lex gave up. There was no use wasting effort on that divot. How could you intimidate someone who was dense at lead? From behind him, Glock man produced a cloth handkerchief and looped it around Lex's head, pulling it tight between his teeth and knotting it at the base of his skull. Lex nearly gagged as the horrible flavors of sweat and dirt filled his mouth. What the hell had Glock man been using that thing for? He deliberately blanked his mind.

Nodding to Glock man behind him, Orange Vest pulled Lex to the pickup parked behind the Porsche. Lex heard the Porsche's engine come to life and turned just in time to see Glock man do a neat u-turn and take off down the road the way Lex had just come. My car! Lex thought, the slow burn of anger beginning to seethe in the back of his mind. Then Orange Vest opened the passenger side door of the pickup truck.

Lex was shoved rudely into the small space behind the pickup's front seats. His tied hands were unable to prevent his shoulder from landing hard on a tire iron. He twisted around on his back to glare up at Orange Vest. Orange Vest merely smirked and dropped a filthy canvas over Lex, hiding him from any casual observers. The gag forced him to breath through his nose and the smell was appalling. Closing his eyes, Lex concentrated. 'I will not vomit. I will not vomit.' The thought of yakking while wearing a gag was almost enough to send him into a panic. Only years of ruthless self-control prevented that unholy mess from happening.

The door slammed shut and with a roar, the pickup pulled away, leaving no sign that Lex Luthor had ever been there. All in all, the whole thing took les than five minutes. The driver pulled his bandana down and flipped on the radio. Garth Brooks was yammering something about friends in low places. Behind them, Lex was sure he had descended into the very pits of Hell.

They knew better than to speak. If he heard a voice Lex might someday be able to identify the driver in a court of law. Careful to drive the speed limit, they made their way through Smallville. They had just passed by the local coffee shop when the driver had to slam on the brakes, narrowly missing a couple of kids, who, not watching had walked out right in front of them.  Laying on the horn, the two kids stepped out of the way, glaring sheepishly.

"Stupid kids," Orange Vest muttered as the pickup picked up speed once more and headed out of Smallville.

"Hey, earth to Clark! You just gonna stand there all day?" Pete asked, seeing Clark still standing, gazing after the pickup truck that nearly hit them.

Clark shook his head to snap himself back to the here and now. "No, I'm coming," he replied and followed after his friend. Thoughts of meeting with Chloe to discuss their English paper took the place of the near miss, and by the time they entered the Talon, the pickup was forgotten entirely.

TBC