Chapter 2-Smallville

"Lana, there you are," Chloe said, smiling brightly as she walked up to Lana's locker.

Lana jumped at the noise.

"Hey, are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost," Chloe said in concern.

Lana tried her best to smile. "I'm not sure what I saw, but maybe you can help me."

"Of course," Chloe said, following Lana to the Torch office.

In the next few minutes Lana explained to Chloe what had happened the night before. She told her everything, from the blood on the man's face and in the jar, to the exquisite beauty of the man in what she referred to as 'human-form.'

"You think he was drinking blood?" Chloe asked in confusion, sitting back on the red couch.

Lana shook her head, her chestnut hair swishing around her face. "I don't know what I saw. There was blood on his mouth, but I don't know if it was his own."

"That's odd, to say the least," Chloe replied thoughtfully. "Who do you think he could be?"

"I don't know. I've never seen him before," Lana told her.

"He morphed?" Chloe asked again, as if it was incredibly hard to grasp the idea.

"I don't know how else to describe it. His face was all…menacing, then it returned to normal," Lana said, searching for the right words. "He told me that graveyards are dangerous at night."

"Can you show me where he was? Maybe I can analyze whatever was in that jar if it's still there," Chloe said, standing and grabbing her purse.

"Sure," Lana agreed, following Chloe to the door. "It's by my parent's graves."

"Hey, girls. Where are you going?" Clark asked, almost running into Chloe as she left the office.

Chloe looked at Lana for approval. Lana nodded.

"Actually, we could use your protection if this mystery man is still there," Chloe said, motioning for Clark to follow her.

"What man? Why do you need protection? Where are we going?" Clark asked quickly, following Chloe and Lana down the deserted school hallway.

On the way to the cemetery Lana explained everything once again.

"I don't want you going there alone again," Clark said firmly as they pulled into the dirt road that led to the graves.

Chloe rolled her eyes. "Really, Clark, the 'mama bear' act you have going on is cute, but the man said he wasn't going to hurt her."

"Can you believe him?" Clark asked, climbing from the car.

"From the look in his eyes I could tell he meant it," Lana told him, leading the way. "He had no intention of hurting me."

"Besides, what kind of homicidal maniac calls a girl a nymph?" Chloe asked.

"The kind who was drinking blood in a cemetery at night?" Clark supplied.

"Ok," Chloe relented. "I see your point."

"Here it is. He was right over there," Lana pointed to a clump of trees.

"What did you say that he said before he saw you?" Chloe asked, walking over to the spot.

"He was rambling about not being able to escape something," Lana told her. "He had a heavy English accent."

"So, we have an English, morphing, blood drinking man. Why does this not surprise me?" Chloe asked, squatting to brush leaves and dirt off of something.

"Because this is Smallville?" Clark asked, kneeling beside her. "What is it?"

"A jar of blood," Chloe pulled on a pair of latex gloves and held it up. She dropped it into a bag she pulled out of her jacket pocket.

"Wow, you come prepared," Lana said, turning her eyes from the red, liquid in the jar.

"I've learned from experience," Chloe replied with a grin, standing and brushing the dirt from her pants. "Alright, I'll have my contact analyze this and then I'll report back."

"Sounds good," Lana said, keeping her eyes away from the bag.

"Lana, promise me you won't come here by yourself?" Clark asked, almost begging her.

Lana was prepared to give Clark an 'I'm not a little girl' speech, but she saw the fear and concern in his eyes. "Okay, Clark. I promise."

The man watched from the deep shadows of the old crypt as the three friends climbed back into the car. The brunette girl had startled him the night before, causing him to drop the jar holding the last of his precious blood. Before he could get it back, the sodding kids had taken it. Now he'd have to go get more. He was beginning to think that this town was more trouble than it was worth.