Part 12
With all her heart and soul, she knew that she adored the man she promised her forever to. Sudden flashes of memory told her that, although she couldn't remember their entire life together, this man she held in her arms loved her beyond the heights and depths that they originally thought one could love another person.
And so when he touched her cheek, she immediately knew that he needed this connection with her-to assure himself that she was alive, and that everything was going to be all right.
Chloe knew that their world was far from fine. He had committed sins against others, and perhaps started on the road to a destiny that a few years ago they both feared for and fought against. And while she had effectively been gone, unable to just hold him the way she did before, he perpetrated all the crimes that he had always feared he was capable of.
But what does it say about him or herself when his capacity for evil was only explored because of his desperate need to be with her? It wasn't heaven, nor was it even healthy or safe to consider, but she accepted it all the same. They had thought that the destiny of evil would be ended before it began because of her role in his life. And now she discovered that she was actually the beginning of the dreaded Lex Luthor that everyone believed he would be.
She was, for all intents and purposes, the downfall of the man she loved.
And she cringed at the thought of her Lex having done all of that. But she also felt the burden of being the reason why.
So because of that guilt and the overwhelming love she knew she still felt for this man who had turned out so differently from the one she was familiar with, she leaned closer to his skin and allowed him to press his lips on hers. First lightly, like the brush of a butterfly's wings. And then deeply, firmly, with all the pent-up hunger that he had never been able to fully appease with anyone else.
His passion stunned her, and she had to remind herself over and over that Lex had not really been with her physically for so long, when she still remembered how they explored each other's bodies in the field not a few days ago. None of that was real, even if they were the fondest memories she had ever had in her life. Lex's body moved over and into hers with a driving force that left her breathless and clutching at the silk sheets under her fingers, and certain that even without Alec in her arms right now, the baby was on his way back.
She settled back on the pillows and cradled in her arms, against her heaving breast, his head. Even after, in the glow that came over them, he continued to drop swift hungry kisses on her damp skin. Chloe's hand absently smoothed over the back of his head and the hollow of his spine. Her leg, thrown over his thigh, absently rubbed against him as she relived scenes in her mind that have never really happened.
Softly, she said, "I don't know what's real anymore, Lex."
A strong hand closed over hers. He raised her palm and pressed a kiss inside. Unconsciously, she closed her fist over the kiss and brought it to her own lips. "You and me, Chloe," was his answer. "That's what you can count on."
"But everything was made up, Lex. All that I can remember-the love, the birthdays, the afternoons we spent just reading together, and all the nights like this-were fake."
He raised his head finally. "What we did and what we felt couldn't have ever been made up, not even by my best trained men. All they did was create an environment where it would be possible for us to interact."
She drew him up carefully so their bodies were plush together. Chloe pulled him down for a lingering kiss. Even after the moment was over, he did not raise his head. Nor did she pull away. They remained that way, with their lips barely touching and staring into each other's eyes. "I've always loved you," she whispered, sending thrills into his body at the way her mouth moved under his.
"I'll always love you," he promised needlessly. All he had done the past years proved that statement to extremes every hour. And then he settled his head back on her chest and just remained still, listening to her heart beat and relishing the feel of her warm skin. "Always, Chloe."
Chloe closed her eyes and tried to memorize how every line of his body felt against hers. She inhaled deeply and tried to embed the scent of him in her brain. Every word assailed her senses, because she knew how true his words were. She wanted to curse herself for how much he loved her, because he would not have buried himself so deeply if he loved her less. For the first time in her life she wished she wasn't foremost in a man's life.
There were things to do, people to meet, places to be. She had an identity to reclaim, a life to live. Silently, she prayed that he would not hate her for what she was about to do. And then again that evil voice in her brain reminded her of Lex's words. She amended her appeal to whatever power existed up there, and asked that the man love her less.
Tomorrow morning was another battle to be fought. She wasn't so sure that they would win. Her mind was in turmoil about what was happening around her. It was true what they said, after all. When everything looks bright and promising, count on it never to last. How many times since her engagement had she thought that her life as Mrs. Luthor was too good to be true? Well what do you know. It actually was.
She fell asleep still cradling him, with the upper half of his body on top of her. She did not mind the weight of him pressing her down on the bed. The burden of guilt he must be bearing far outweighed what she was feeling now. As she drifted off to sleep, thoughts of how far she had driven the promising man would not leave her head, and would haunt him in her nightmares still.
It was such a sharp contrast to the soft and cool brush on her cheek that woke her up. When her eyes fluttered open, she saw the amazing eyes shining brightly on her. If happiness could be bottled and sold, Lex Luthor would be a billionaire many times over again for what radiated from him. Chloe almost felt guilty for wishing that she had died long ago. She was not in any way a vain woman, but she was certain that no other person on earth could make Lex as happy as he was right now with her, simply lying together in bed.
"Morning, Chloe." He raised her hand to his lips and brushed a kiss across her knuckles. Her skin tingled at the feeling, and she smiled. "How should we spend the day?"
Her gaze was attracted to the simply gray and blue calendar on the bedside table. The briefest grin touched her mouth. "I know I've not been in touch with current events or dates," she said half-teasingly. "But I think you're supposed to be working on weekdays."
He thought at first that it was a joke, and he released a short snort of laughter. And then he realized that she was serious. "I just got you back," was his matter-of-fact statement. "I was thinking of whisking you away to Europe or to the Caribbean, like we were talking about."
The memory of Bliss hurt. He saw the pain that flickered in her eyes and cursed himself for reminding her. But then he saw her face light up dimly and she closed her hand over his tightly. "Let's keep it real, okay? No trips around the world or huge expensive gifts. I need to establish a foothold on reality first."
He nodded, perhaps not eagerly, but in understanding. "All right. You want me to go to the office," he pronounced slowly.
"I'm not driving you away. I missed you too, you know," she told him. Lex found this unlikely. She hadn't really been without him. And so that morning, he went to the office with a lighter, more hopeful heart.
It wasn't a few hours later, while he was meeting with LuthorCorp's top associates, that the ease and lightness that accompanied his every movement came crashing down.
He had been feeling ill at ease for a few minutes before he decided to just end the session right then. A couple of the men protested, having flown in all the way from LA and Gotham. But when Lex Luthor wanted something, no one was allowed to say otherwise. He left the conference hall and returned to his private room.
"Any messages for me, Ms King?" he inquired of his secretary.
The woman smiled up at him and handed him several sheets of paper. "Just reminders for the rest of the day, Mr. Luthor. Other than that, nothing I couldn't handle on my own."
He frowned quizzically at the woman before closing the door behind him. He settled back on his chair and scanned through the notes. He pushed the button on his desk phone and read through the numbers of the incoming calls. And then he saw his home number among the recent calls.
He switched on the intercom. "Ms King, were there personal calls for me?"
"None sir. There were a couple of prank calls. A woman kept calling for you who won't even give her name."
Lex grabbed the receiver and dialed the number to the penthouse. He fidgeted with small items on his desk, waiting for the call to be picked up. Finally, on the twelfth ring, she answered. "Chloe," he said in a rush. "Is anything wrong?"
He could hear the sobs on the other end of the line. She'd never really cried subtly, in that manner that Lana did that always made you ache for her. But Chloe's crying was so much like her, and for Lex, that more readily broke his heart to know that something could be so painful as to induce a person as happy as she was to cry.
"Chloe," he repeated, more firmly than before.
"I was using your computer," she admitted.
He stilled. That didn't mean anything. "It's fine, Chloe." He made a mental note to clean up the hard drive as soon as he got home. "Everything in the house is yours too."
There was a pregnant pause that exploded into a rush of words. "I saw everything. You wrote down everything you did, Lex," she sobbed into the phone. His body tensed at the records he so painstakingly typed in, like a maniac bent on destroying the world, which he probably was at that time. "Were you really going to kill Clark, Lex?"
So she had seen even more than the records. He could think of no way to explain to her what he felt at the time.
"Why?"
"He let you get hurt."
That pause again. Maybe he could tell his scientists to figure out a formula that would eradicate all uncomfortable, perhaps destructible, pauses. "Did you think he wanted that?"
"Chloe." How could he tell her that it was just passive planning that he really would never have followed up on, when he had every intention of crushing Superman under his heel? He never lied well to her. "It doesn't matter now, Chloe. You're back with me."
"Doesn't it? What if I die right now, Lex? Would you still go after Clark just because he wasn't here to bring me back to life?" He suppressed the urge to yell in panic at the easy way the thought of death passed through her lips.
"You're not going to die, Chloe."
To the woman on the line, the words that he didn't say spoke volumes. Instead, she asked, "Who am I supposed to be now, Lex? I don't have an identity anymore." Even with an intellectual quotient that far exceeded that of more than ninety nine percent of the population, there were just things that were beyond his ability to answer. "I couldn't even give your secretary a name, Lex. I'm no one. I need to be somebody again."
And that he could understand. Even as a young woman in Smallville High, Chloe Sullivan had needed the byline, those black letters that confirmed an achievement or a work. Like him, Chloe needed to be. She lived and breathed in infamy despite the relative anonymity that she enjoyed in that small school. "You will always be someone, Chloe," he stressed. "Always with me."
Her temper flared at that. He'd never been gladder bearing the brunt of it. "What is wrong with you?" she demanded. "Can't you even understand what I need?" He could almost see her biting her lip as she simmered down, the moment she realized that she had been unfair. "I can't even depend on you, Lex. You changed. You're not the man I left."
Did she really expect him to be the same when he had had to live two entire years with her virtually dead? "People change," he said quietly.
Her answer was soft. "I didn't want you to be like this."
Neither did he. Now was not the time to be easily offended or act like a mule. Lex clutched the phone to his ear. He knew that Chloe was so confused that everything he said or did could have consequences that he might not be able to deal with in the future. "Listen, Chloe. I need you to stay there. I'm coming home right now."
When he arrived and saw her sitting on the bed, calmly sifting through the worn pages of her favorite book, Lex breathed a sigh of relief. He drew closer to her and sat down beside her. Before he could even utter a word in greeting, lucid green eyes met his and she stated clearly, "I love you so much, and I'm terrified." He picked up her hand and inspected her fingers, waiting for her to continue. There was so much that she needed to say. He could almost see the words tumbling in her head. "Even after seeing all that. knowing you did those things," she told him tonelessly, "I still love you, Lex."
"There's nothing wrong with that," he murmured, still not meeting her eyes.
"I'm so scared, Lex. If I'm capable of causing all that, then sooner or later I'll be the reason that you do something so evil." Her voice started to crack now, and he saw the tenuous hold she had on her emotions. "And I won't even be able to hate you for that."
He closed his eyes, hearing those words. He tugged on the hand in his and she fell against him. Lex pulled her on top of him as he laid back on the bed. His mouth ravaged hers, and she didn't complain. In fact, Chloe's opened her mouth to receive his tongue and parried with her own. "Lex," she breathed into his mouth. Her hands were pulling at his shirt. It hadn't really occurred to her until that morning how much she needed him. It took seeing the hard evidence that he was prepared to bleed the entire population in order to be with her that she found this erotic thrill. If it made her evil, then she welcomed it. What use would the blessing of heaven be if Lex wasn't there anyway?
His body pumped into hers in a way that couldn't compare to her fondest memories. His forceful thrusts drove her to the edge of oblivion, to a blackness that exploded with colors and then nothingness.
"I'll do anything for you, Chloe," he whispered against her sweat-soaked hair. But she was too exhausted to say that that was exactly what she was afraid of.
Later that night, while Lex slept beside her on the bed, Chloe carefully and silently rose and pushed at the button on the closet. A painful lump in her throat rose to choke her when she saw the state that her side of the cabinet was in. She pushed all sentiment aside and picked up the bag at the bottom. She worked to stuff in as many clothes and shoes as she could.
And then she snagged a pair of jeans and a simple white shirt from the hangers and hurriedly dressed. She padded out of the bedroom, careful not to wake Lex. She closed the door behind her and never stopped until she was inside the elevator. Finally, when the metal doors closed behind her, she let herself fall back and closed her eyes tightly.
She picked up her things and hailed a cab. Only then did she rummage in the handbag that she picked up and found everything in her wallet the same as they were that fateful night. Chloe flipped through the photo jacket, an accessory that Lex never allowed her to add in his own wallet. Even with that stubbornness of his, he still had a picture of her hidden in one of the card slits, she knew. Chloe shook her head free of thoughts of him. She was midway through the smiling photos of the two of them together when she suddenly shivered. The dark red stain was the only evidence that something had happened. The cleaners probably never saw since the spot of blood was so far in the middle. But she stared at it hard and long. Their faces were blurred by the spot, and the blood covered their faces so that you couldn't even see them grinning like idiots, and that they were actually happy.
With all her heart and soul, she knew that she adored the man she promised her forever to. Sudden flashes of memory told her that, although she couldn't remember their entire life together, this man she held in her arms loved her beyond the heights and depths that they originally thought one could love another person.
And so when he touched her cheek, she immediately knew that he needed this connection with her-to assure himself that she was alive, and that everything was going to be all right.
Chloe knew that their world was far from fine. He had committed sins against others, and perhaps started on the road to a destiny that a few years ago they both feared for and fought against. And while she had effectively been gone, unable to just hold him the way she did before, he perpetrated all the crimes that he had always feared he was capable of.
But what does it say about him or herself when his capacity for evil was only explored because of his desperate need to be with her? It wasn't heaven, nor was it even healthy or safe to consider, but she accepted it all the same. They had thought that the destiny of evil would be ended before it began because of her role in his life. And now she discovered that she was actually the beginning of the dreaded Lex Luthor that everyone believed he would be.
She was, for all intents and purposes, the downfall of the man she loved.
And she cringed at the thought of her Lex having done all of that. But she also felt the burden of being the reason why.
So because of that guilt and the overwhelming love she knew she still felt for this man who had turned out so differently from the one she was familiar with, she leaned closer to his skin and allowed him to press his lips on hers. First lightly, like the brush of a butterfly's wings. And then deeply, firmly, with all the pent-up hunger that he had never been able to fully appease with anyone else.
His passion stunned her, and she had to remind herself over and over that Lex had not really been with her physically for so long, when she still remembered how they explored each other's bodies in the field not a few days ago. None of that was real, even if they were the fondest memories she had ever had in her life. Lex's body moved over and into hers with a driving force that left her breathless and clutching at the silk sheets under her fingers, and certain that even without Alec in her arms right now, the baby was on his way back.
She settled back on the pillows and cradled in her arms, against her heaving breast, his head. Even after, in the glow that came over them, he continued to drop swift hungry kisses on her damp skin. Chloe's hand absently smoothed over the back of his head and the hollow of his spine. Her leg, thrown over his thigh, absently rubbed against him as she relived scenes in her mind that have never really happened.
Softly, she said, "I don't know what's real anymore, Lex."
A strong hand closed over hers. He raised her palm and pressed a kiss inside. Unconsciously, she closed her fist over the kiss and brought it to her own lips. "You and me, Chloe," was his answer. "That's what you can count on."
"But everything was made up, Lex. All that I can remember-the love, the birthdays, the afternoons we spent just reading together, and all the nights like this-were fake."
He raised his head finally. "What we did and what we felt couldn't have ever been made up, not even by my best trained men. All they did was create an environment where it would be possible for us to interact."
She drew him up carefully so their bodies were plush together. Chloe pulled him down for a lingering kiss. Even after the moment was over, he did not raise his head. Nor did she pull away. They remained that way, with their lips barely touching and staring into each other's eyes. "I've always loved you," she whispered, sending thrills into his body at the way her mouth moved under his.
"I'll always love you," he promised needlessly. All he had done the past years proved that statement to extremes every hour. And then he settled his head back on her chest and just remained still, listening to her heart beat and relishing the feel of her warm skin. "Always, Chloe."
Chloe closed her eyes and tried to memorize how every line of his body felt against hers. She inhaled deeply and tried to embed the scent of him in her brain. Every word assailed her senses, because she knew how true his words were. She wanted to curse herself for how much he loved her, because he would not have buried himself so deeply if he loved her less. For the first time in her life she wished she wasn't foremost in a man's life.
There were things to do, people to meet, places to be. She had an identity to reclaim, a life to live. Silently, she prayed that he would not hate her for what she was about to do. And then again that evil voice in her brain reminded her of Lex's words. She amended her appeal to whatever power existed up there, and asked that the man love her less.
Tomorrow morning was another battle to be fought. She wasn't so sure that they would win. Her mind was in turmoil about what was happening around her. It was true what they said, after all. When everything looks bright and promising, count on it never to last. How many times since her engagement had she thought that her life as Mrs. Luthor was too good to be true? Well what do you know. It actually was.
She fell asleep still cradling him, with the upper half of his body on top of her. She did not mind the weight of him pressing her down on the bed. The burden of guilt he must be bearing far outweighed what she was feeling now. As she drifted off to sleep, thoughts of how far she had driven the promising man would not leave her head, and would haunt him in her nightmares still.
It was such a sharp contrast to the soft and cool brush on her cheek that woke her up. When her eyes fluttered open, she saw the amazing eyes shining brightly on her. If happiness could be bottled and sold, Lex Luthor would be a billionaire many times over again for what radiated from him. Chloe almost felt guilty for wishing that she had died long ago. She was not in any way a vain woman, but she was certain that no other person on earth could make Lex as happy as he was right now with her, simply lying together in bed.
"Morning, Chloe." He raised her hand to his lips and brushed a kiss across her knuckles. Her skin tingled at the feeling, and she smiled. "How should we spend the day?"
Her gaze was attracted to the simply gray and blue calendar on the bedside table. The briefest grin touched her mouth. "I know I've not been in touch with current events or dates," she said half-teasingly. "But I think you're supposed to be working on weekdays."
He thought at first that it was a joke, and he released a short snort of laughter. And then he realized that she was serious. "I just got you back," was his matter-of-fact statement. "I was thinking of whisking you away to Europe or to the Caribbean, like we were talking about."
The memory of Bliss hurt. He saw the pain that flickered in her eyes and cursed himself for reminding her. But then he saw her face light up dimly and she closed her hand over his tightly. "Let's keep it real, okay? No trips around the world or huge expensive gifts. I need to establish a foothold on reality first."
He nodded, perhaps not eagerly, but in understanding. "All right. You want me to go to the office," he pronounced slowly.
"I'm not driving you away. I missed you too, you know," she told him. Lex found this unlikely. She hadn't really been without him. And so that morning, he went to the office with a lighter, more hopeful heart.
It wasn't a few hours later, while he was meeting with LuthorCorp's top associates, that the ease and lightness that accompanied his every movement came crashing down.
He had been feeling ill at ease for a few minutes before he decided to just end the session right then. A couple of the men protested, having flown in all the way from LA and Gotham. But when Lex Luthor wanted something, no one was allowed to say otherwise. He left the conference hall and returned to his private room.
"Any messages for me, Ms King?" he inquired of his secretary.
The woman smiled up at him and handed him several sheets of paper. "Just reminders for the rest of the day, Mr. Luthor. Other than that, nothing I couldn't handle on my own."
He frowned quizzically at the woman before closing the door behind him. He settled back on his chair and scanned through the notes. He pushed the button on his desk phone and read through the numbers of the incoming calls. And then he saw his home number among the recent calls.
He switched on the intercom. "Ms King, were there personal calls for me?"
"None sir. There were a couple of prank calls. A woman kept calling for you who won't even give her name."
Lex grabbed the receiver and dialed the number to the penthouse. He fidgeted with small items on his desk, waiting for the call to be picked up. Finally, on the twelfth ring, she answered. "Chloe," he said in a rush. "Is anything wrong?"
He could hear the sobs on the other end of the line. She'd never really cried subtly, in that manner that Lana did that always made you ache for her. But Chloe's crying was so much like her, and for Lex, that more readily broke his heart to know that something could be so painful as to induce a person as happy as she was to cry.
"Chloe," he repeated, more firmly than before.
"I was using your computer," she admitted.
He stilled. That didn't mean anything. "It's fine, Chloe." He made a mental note to clean up the hard drive as soon as he got home. "Everything in the house is yours too."
There was a pregnant pause that exploded into a rush of words. "I saw everything. You wrote down everything you did, Lex," she sobbed into the phone. His body tensed at the records he so painstakingly typed in, like a maniac bent on destroying the world, which he probably was at that time. "Were you really going to kill Clark, Lex?"
So she had seen even more than the records. He could think of no way to explain to her what he felt at the time.
"Why?"
"He let you get hurt."
That pause again. Maybe he could tell his scientists to figure out a formula that would eradicate all uncomfortable, perhaps destructible, pauses. "Did you think he wanted that?"
"Chloe." How could he tell her that it was just passive planning that he really would never have followed up on, when he had every intention of crushing Superman under his heel? He never lied well to her. "It doesn't matter now, Chloe. You're back with me."
"Doesn't it? What if I die right now, Lex? Would you still go after Clark just because he wasn't here to bring me back to life?" He suppressed the urge to yell in panic at the easy way the thought of death passed through her lips.
"You're not going to die, Chloe."
To the woman on the line, the words that he didn't say spoke volumes. Instead, she asked, "Who am I supposed to be now, Lex? I don't have an identity anymore." Even with an intellectual quotient that far exceeded that of more than ninety nine percent of the population, there were just things that were beyond his ability to answer. "I couldn't even give your secretary a name, Lex. I'm no one. I need to be somebody again."
And that he could understand. Even as a young woman in Smallville High, Chloe Sullivan had needed the byline, those black letters that confirmed an achievement or a work. Like him, Chloe needed to be. She lived and breathed in infamy despite the relative anonymity that she enjoyed in that small school. "You will always be someone, Chloe," he stressed. "Always with me."
Her temper flared at that. He'd never been gladder bearing the brunt of it. "What is wrong with you?" she demanded. "Can't you even understand what I need?" He could almost see her biting her lip as she simmered down, the moment she realized that she had been unfair. "I can't even depend on you, Lex. You changed. You're not the man I left."
Did she really expect him to be the same when he had had to live two entire years with her virtually dead? "People change," he said quietly.
Her answer was soft. "I didn't want you to be like this."
Neither did he. Now was not the time to be easily offended or act like a mule. Lex clutched the phone to his ear. He knew that Chloe was so confused that everything he said or did could have consequences that he might not be able to deal with in the future. "Listen, Chloe. I need you to stay there. I'm coming home right now."
When he arrived and saw her sitting on the bed, calmly sifting through the worn pages of her favorite book, Lex breathed a sigh of relief. He drew closer to her and sat down beside her. Before he could even utter a word in greeting, lucid green eyes met his and she stated clearly, "I love you so much, and I'm terrified." He picked up her hand and inspected her fingers, waiting for her to continue. There was so much that she needed to say. He could almost see the words tumbling in her head. "Even after seeing all that. knowing you did those things," she told him tonelessly, "I still love you, Lex."
"There's nothing wrong with that," he murmured, still not meeting her eyes.
"I'm so scared, Lex. If I'm capable of causing all that, then sooner or later I'll be the reason that you do something so evil." Her voice started to crack now, and he saw the tenuous hold she had on her emotions. "And I won't even be able to hate you for that."
He closed his eyes, hearing those words. He tugged on the hand in his and she fell against him. Lex pulled her on top of him as he laid back on the bed. His mouth ravaged hers, and she didn't complain. In fact, Chloe's opened her mouth to receive his tongue and parried with her own. "Lex," she breathed into his mouth. Her hands were pulling at his shirt. It hadn't really occurred to her until that morning how much she needed him. It took seeing the hard evidence that he was prepared to bleed the entire population in order to be with her that she found this erotic thrill. If it made her evil, then she welcomed it. What use would the blessing of heaven be if Lex wasn't there anyway?
His body pumped into hers in a way that couldn't compare to her fondest memories. His forceful thrusts drove her to the edge of oblivion, to a blackness that exploded with colors and then nothingness.
"I'll do anything for you, Chloe," he whispered against her sweat-soaked hair. But she was too exhausted to say that that was exactly what she was afraid of.
Later that night, while Lex slept beside her on the bed, Chloe carefully and silently rose and pushed at the button on the closet. A painful lump in her throat rose to choke her when she saw the state that her side of the cabinet was in. She pushed all sentiment aside and picked up the bag at the bottom. She worked to stuff in as many clothes and shoes as she could.
And then she snagged a pair of jeans and a simple white shirt from the hangers and hurriedly dressed. She padded out of the bedroom, careful not to wake Lex. She closed the door behind her and never stopped until she was inside the elevator. Finally, when the metal doors closed behind her, she let herself fall back and closed her eyes tightly.
She picked up her things and hailed a cab. Only then did she rummage in the handbag that she picked up and found everything in her wallet the same as they were that fateful night. Chloe flipped through the photo jacket, an accessory that Lex never allowed her to add in his own wallet. Even with that stubbornness of his, he still had a picture of her hidden in one of the card slits, she knew. Chloe shook her head free of thoughts of him. She was midway through the smiling photos of the two of them together when she suddenly shivered. The dark red stain was the only evidence that something had happened. The cleaners probably never saw since the spot of blood was so far in the middle. But she stared at it hard and long. Their faces were blurred by the spot, and the blood covered their faces so that you couldn't even see them grinning like idiots, and that they were actually happy.