Chapter 3- Death in the Family
Lara sat in her history class as the teacher talked about what they would be learning. Mrs. Couch had just gotten to history following the Civil War. It would be from the Reconstruction to 9/11 and history from other parts of the world. Lara looked forward to studying the Roaring 20's and World War II. Grandpa Lane had told her stories that his father had told him about Pearl Harbor and the secret missions he had gone on in Africa after they had watched "Casablanca" one night. Lara loved old movies from before she was born and Grandpa could usually rope her into watching them with him as Jordan and Jonathan weren't interested. They had planned to watch "Gone with the Wind" at an old movie theater. The theater did a different movie every week. Last week was "Marie Antoinette" with Norma Shearer and Tyrone Power.
Lara looked up to the door at the sight of her grandfather in his army fatigues. "Is there a problem, Miss Kent?" Mrs. Couch asked crisply. Mrs. Couch called everyone by their last names. Jordan and Jonathan had told her that when they had her.
"My grandfather is at the door, Ma'am," Lara said.
"I see," Mrs. Couch went to the door and opened it and Sam Lane, Jonathan, and Jordan came into the room.
"Grandpa, what is it?" Lara asked, standing up.
"Lara, your mother and father asked me to get you and the boys. Something has happened to your Grandma Kent," Sam said. Lara felt the blood drain out of her face.
"Oh, no. Is Grandma-?" Lara started to ask before her voice went out. Lara had talked to her grandmother the other day and Martha had complained about her chest hurting. Her heart had been bothering her greatly, even though she tried to hide it and had asked Lara not to tell her father as she didn't want him to spend all his time worrying about her.
"Yes," Sam said as she went to him and he hugged her tightly.
"Dad and Mom?" Lara asked.
"They are already in Smallville. I'm to take you and the boys there. You might want to get your things. Ma'am," Sam acknowledged Mrs. Couch with a nod.
"Of course. Miss Kent, you have my condolences," Mrs. Couch said, her voice getting soft.
"Thank you, Mrs. Couch," Lara said as she picked up her backpack and schoolbooks on her desk.
Tal-Rho watched as Lara left the building with an older man and the two boys that were her adopted brothers. "Grandpa, when is the funeral going to be?" Lara asked, her voice shaking slightly with tears.
"In two or three days. Your father is making the preparations and we need to go by the brownstone to pick up you and your brothers' best clothes," the man said.
"I should have said something. I had talked to her the other day and Grandma told me her chest was hurting. She told me not to tell Dad," Lara said, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"There was nothing you could have done, Lara. Your father couldn't have stopped a heart attack," the man said.
"I still should have said something. Dad might have been able to get her to a hospital. Or asked Superman to take her to the hospital," Lara said as she got into the car.
"Probably right, Lara, but I don't think your father will blame you for not saying when she asked you not to say anything," the man said as he got into the car.
Tal looked at the car. His girl's human grandmother had died and she had felt bad about it. The girl dearly loved her. He couldn't see her loving Zeta, his father, when he brought her to see him. And if Lara Lor-Van had ever loved him and had seen her namesake, she might have loved her. He had seen her with Kal after he was born, shortly before Krypton was destroyed. His mother had loved Kal. It was clearly obvious. He then was jolted by what Lara had just said. She could have asked Kal to help her human grandmother but hadn't either asked him or the human who was masquerading as her father. He wondered if she even knew that she had been adopted and that Kal was her uncle. But then again, Kal hadn't acted like he was even aware that he had a half-brother.
Lara stood by the grave as the minister read the words over Martha Kent. Lara and her mother had gone shopping for black dresses as neither one owned any. Lara hated wearing just plain black. She usually put it with other colors, but the other colors with it didn't feel appropriate. Lara knew that as soon as the service was over, she was going to put this dress in the attic. The material was fake velvet, but it made the circles under her eyes more pronounced, her eyes looked dull blue, and her skin looked a sickly shade of yellow. Unrelieved mourning black wasn't her color.
