A Death In The Family

by Phaze

A death has occurred in Smallville, but as Clark soon discovers, not all is, as it seems when you are dealing with the Luthors. *COMPLETED*

22. Epilogue

A Death In The Family:  Epiloguetc "A Death In The Family\:  Epilogue"

   The rain from the last three days had saturated the entire area around Wayne Manor as the large black limo drove through the electronically controlled gates onto the stately grounds of the estate.  The sun was once again shining over Gotham city on this bright and cool morning in mid-August.  Cool days were not usual in this part of the country at this time of year, so the occupant of the rented car's backseat took advantage of the breeze. He opened the window to enjoy the smell of the roses from the large garden a few yards away and the scent of freshly mowed grass.

   Clark Kent leaned his dark and handsome face out the window and took in the splendor of the sprawling mansion before him.  He wondered if it's owner, Bruce Wayne, had ever taken the time to enjoy the simple beauty of the landscape, but some how Clark was almost sure that the solemn and stoic man had not.

   The car pulled up in front of the main entrance where Alfred Pennyworth was waiting nearby wearing his usual smart black suit and cleaned pressed white shirt under the matching vest.  His shoes were black and shining as always, and he wore a slight smile under his thin mustache.  The middle-aged Englishman admired the spark of youth in Clark and delighted in his simple pleasures, such as the lowered window to smell the air.

   Alfred approached the back door of the vehicle when it came to a complete stop and opened it.  He grinned again as he watched Clark stepping out and glancing at the large building.

   "I never get over this place," Clark remarked wearing a handsome gray sport coat over an open collar, light blue button down shirt with white tee shirt beneath.  He also wore a pair of gray Docker pleated pants and brown loafers with white crew socks.  He had his backpack flung over his shoulder and his hand shook Alfred's briskly.

   "I trust your flight was comfortable," Alfred raised an eyebrow.

   "Yeah," Clark pretended to stretch and brush himself off.  "I think I can get use to having a private jet.  Even with the fact that I hate to fly, I could really get use to this type of living."

   "Indeed," Alfred grinned.  "I do, however, hope that you did not again replace all of Master Bruce's high scores on his video games.  The Master does so dislike being in second place."

   "No, Alfred," Clark leaned in.  "I used his name every time I got the high score.  So as long as he doesn't remember his last rating, he should be fine."

   The two men began their walk up the front steps in through the front door.  "I do apologize for not picking you up myself," Alfred spoke as they climbed the stairs.  "I thought it best to remain here and aid Mister Lex with his final packing."

   "I understand," Clark nodded.  "I can't believe it has been almost two weeks since I last visited you guys.  I hope he hasn't been too much of a problem."

   "On the contrary," Alfred replied.  "I was prepared for a much more difficult time after all the rumors I had heard about our friend over the years, but I found him to be quite a different man then his reputation states."

   "Yeah, Lex doesn't always act like your typical rich kid," Clark joked.  "Sometimes he's just a snotty brat all on his own."

   Alfred turned towards Clark as they stopped before the door to one of the rooms.  "Well, I shall miss having the company now that he is leaving and you will not be visiting any longer."

   "Oh, come on, Alfred," Clark sighed.  "You know I'm a simple guy at heart.  All you have to do the next time you're lonely is send the private jet to fetch me, and I'll be happy to endure the torture of staying here again for a few days.

   "Indeed," Alfred raised his eyebrow again with a quirky grin.

   "But seriously," Clark put a hand on Alfred's shoulder.  "If I haven't made it clear before," he spoke in a highly respecting tone.  "I want to thank you so much for all you and Bruce have done for me and my friends.  Especially by taking Lex in and giving him a place to hide and recover while the whole mess with his father was being sorted out."

   "It was my pleasure," Alfred nodded politely.  "And it is I who has had the honor to serve such a noble and kind person as yourself, Master Clark."

   Clark pulled him in for a short hug.  "You're one of the real good guys, Alfred."

   "I do try," Alfred said backing away.  "Now once you and Master Lex are ready, I shall be waiting at the car to escort you back to the airport."

   "Sure, " Clark reached for the door knob.  "We should be right down."

   He gave the door a soft knock, and then Clark peeked his head into the room.  "Hey, Lex," he called out.  "Are you decent?"

   "Come in, Clark," Lex stood at the foot of the bed folding the last of his clothes into his suitcase.

   Clark slipped his slender form into the room, closing the door.  "Oh, good," he smirked.  "I wasn't sure if I was going to have to explain what the word 'decent' meant."

   Lex tuned and gave his friend a wry look.  "Bite me, Kent."

   "Okay," Clark sighed, slipping his hands into his pants pocket and dropping the backpack on the floor.  "You are getting back to your old chipper self."

   Lex stopped what he was doing and turned around to face his friend.  The trials of his last few months were no longer highly visible on his even thinner body with the exception of slight dark rings under his eyes and persistent limp in his walk.  Lex also found himself favoring his good arm and would often have to fight off headaches from the serious concussions after effect.  The scars under his clothes, as well as the headaches, seemed to be becoming less noticeable and troublesome as he learned to live with them.  His strength had also finally started returning as he spent several hours each day in the mansion's private gym.  For his entire ordeal, Lex was again returning to his old self.

    Clark watched attentively as Lex placed his pajamas into the shoulder bag.  "Alfred packed the rest of my stuff while I was eating breakfast before my shower this morning," he explained as he zippered up the bag.  "I tried to hire him on at my place, but he's committed to Bruce."

   "They've been together for a long time, Lex," Clark pointed out.

   "I guess," Lex shrugged.  "I never had a servant so dedicated and close to me like Alfred is to Bruce.  Not to mention he has this place locked down like a fortress while his master is away."

   "Bruce has allot of idiosyncrasies," Clark smiled.  "Sorta like another rich guy I know,"

   Lex glared over his shoulder.  "Gee, thanks, Kent."

   Clark could not remove the smile from his face as he watched Lex gather up the last of his things and place them into the bag's side pockets.  He marveled how well his friend seemed to be adjusting to life again.

   After a few minutes, Lex noticed that Clark was staring.  "What is it, Clark?" He questioned.  "Are my clothes not right?" Lex examined his dark blue blazer over his purple silk dress shirt with navy blue tie to match the blazer and smart dark blue dress pants over his black polished shoes.

   "No, Lex," Clark shook his head with the same grin.  "You look fine.  In fact, you look great for a guy just back from the dead."

   Lex looked up into his friend's eyes.  "Clark," he started.

   "Hey," Clark's face became serious as the memories over took him.  "I didn't mean that in a bad way."

   "I know," Lex stopped what he was doing and approached his friend.  "I know I said it before, but since you haven't been able to visit in the last few weeks,"

   "Farm work," Clark shrugged nervously.  "You know how it is."

   "Yes, I do," Lex grabbed Clark's shaking arm.  "But will you let me finish?  I want to thank you, Clark," he rushed out before he could be stopped again.  "I want to thank you for saving my life again.  I had no idea that you thought I was dead when I called you, so I can only imagine what was going through your mind and how that must have messed you up. But still you went with your heart, and you believed I was alive when everyone else thought I was dead."

   "I couldn't ignore the call," Clark fidgeted.  "I knew it was your voice."

   "I also know that a whole lot of people told you it was a sick joke or something in your head, but still you fought for me, Clark," Lex said with a serious tone.  "No one has ever had that type of faith in me.  There are not a whole lot of people who would have defied his folks and the law to follow what could have been a prank call."

   Clark lowered his head as he spoke.  "I think I always knew in my heart that you were not dead, Lex.  Of course I didn't want you dead, but I also felt that there was something wrong the whole time.  It was like maybe we are connected Lex, and if you were dead, I would have known it deep inside, and I didn't.  In some strange way, I could feel that there was a life force still alive, and when I got your call, I knew I had to try and find out why you were still alive in me."

   "Wow," Lex sat on the edge of the bed.  "I don't think I ever had that type of a bond with someone before, Clark.  I know I was close with my Mom, and she and I had a special connection, but I thought it was all in my mind after she died.  I figured I had dreamed the whole thing up just so I could say I felt close to her."

   "Well," Clark returned with a sigh.  "Maybe now you can know that you are close with someone again."

   "You, Clark," Lex looked up.  "You and I have shared a special connection ever since that day on the bridge.  I just wish I could feel it like you do."

   "Don't get me wrong, Lex," Clark added with a bit of haste.  "When you died in my arms, I was ready to buy the whole bit.  I mean it was very convincing.  Your pulse stopped and your breathing just went, well, dead.  I saw the color drain from you, and your body went limp."

   "I know," Lex stared down at the rug.  "I think they used some type of drug developed in my father's lab, and for a few seconds or minutes, I think I really was clinically dead.  They thought they were helping, but in the long run, I think those drugs were what made my whole recovery even worse.  They kept drugging me and trying to keep me while the medication was still reeking havoc on my body."

   Clark walked slowly around him and sat on the bed next to his friend.  "What happened, Lex?" he asked softly.  "Do you remember what happened to you when you seemed to loose your mind?"

   Lex looked across the room and thought for a good long minute.  "I don't remember it all, but when my Dad told me that I had killed you, I lost it, Clark.  I had been trying to get out of that room for days, and in the back of my head, I knew you would be the one who found me.  That was why I fought so hard against the drugs and I was able to get up enough energy to get to the phone and make that call." Lex thought back.  "I guess they increased the drugs after that, and between them and my lost hope of ever escaping my father's prison for me, I just snapped and retreated to the far corners of my mind."

    Clark sat silent as they both stared at their feet.

   "I think you were there, Clark," Lex finally spoke again.  "When I was hiding in my thoughts, I think you were there."

   "Do you remember it?"  Clark asked.

   "Mostly, no," Lex gushed.  "But I can see glimpses of it in my mind's eye if I really concentrate.  "You were there with me and my mother, and I think Lana and Chloe were there, too," a smile came to his face.  "Your folks were there, too, Clark.  I think I remember seeing your mom and dad."

   "Don't tell my dad that," Clark nudged him.  "It would be a real kick in the head."

   "Alfred told me that he helped," Lex turned to Clark.

   "Yeah, he helped me get you to the jet to meet with Alfred after I found you," Clark explained.  "Your father put my folks through a lot while you were gone.  But now that you are alive, you can help drop any wrongful death charges that they have against them."

   "I will, Clark," Lex nodded.  "I'm just sorry that so many people had to suffer for my father trying to protect me.  I mean, when I think of how all of this started and his poisoning the drinking supply here in Gotham, I just can't believe he would be so cruel.  It's like I don't even know the guy."

   "Hey," Clark tried to put on a cheery face.  "What matters is that we are all safe now, and your father will have to deal with his own legal problems this afternoon by himself.  What matters to me right now is that you have had more than three weeks here in Wayne Manor to recover, and you are doing a whole lot better."

   "Thanks to you, Clark," Lex gave a short smile.  "I really mean it when I say that I would not be alive today if it were not for you.  The whole time I was in and out of consciousness, I knew I had to survive because I knew you wanted me to live.  You were the only person who I thought would even care, and I was right."

   "No, Lex," Clark shook his head.  "There were a whole lot of people who cared.  Every one of them helped out in some small way, and I hope someday you can learn to believe that.  We care about you."

   Lex glanced up at Clark.  "When I look at your face Clark, I almost do."

   Clark leaned over and hugged his friend.  "Welcome back, Lex."

   "Thanks, Clark," Lex returned the hug.

   Clark pulled back and stared at him for a moment.

   "What is it?" Lex asked.

   "I just realized I never hugged a real, live, dead person before," Clark cracked a grin.

   Lex rolled his eyes.  "Clark, you have a really sick sense of humor."

   "So," Clark stood up.  "What was it like?  Being dead, I mean."

   "I don't know," Lex shrugged.  "It has it up sides.  I didn't have to pay my taxes for two months."

   "You pay taxes?" Clark glanced back.  "Do rich people do that?'

   "Well, not as much as poor people now that the republicans are in control again, but yeah," Lex joked.  "You should really give being dead a try."

   "I don't know," Clark faked a grimace.  "I would be too afraid to find out that no one came to my funeral."

   "Oh, come on, Clark," Lex smiled.  "I'm sure there will be all types of really super people at your funeral."

   Clark picked up his backpack.  "Would you be there, Lex?"

   "With my dancing shoes," Lex returned, zipping the last pouch on his bag.

   "Ouch," Clark retorted.

   Lex gave a long sigh.  "I guess this is it," he glanced around the room as he stood over his bag.  "I think I have everything."

   "Not yet," Clark walked over with his backpack and placed it next to Lex's suitcase on the bed.  "There's one more thing," he reached into his pack and pulled out a fairly large object wrapped in white tissue paper.

   Taking the gift from Clark's hand, Lex gave him a suspicious eye.

   "It's safe, Lex," Clark smirked.  "The practical jokes will come when I know you're strong enough to handle them."

   Lex raised an eyebrow.  "Thanks, I think."  He slowly ripped away at the wrapping and his pulse began to quicken as he saw what was in the package.  He looked up at his friend with big, emotion-filled eyes.

   "You left it behind at the Luthor Corps building," Clark explained.  "I thought since you thought enough to keep with you the whole time, then you might like to have it back."

   "I don't know how to thank you, Clark," Lex almost stuttered as he pulled out his wooden horse that he treasured so much. The horse that Clark had given him the Christmas before.  He admired the solid wooden object again.

   "I took it home and tried to fix it up a little after all the beatings it took while you were locked up," Clark explained as his own breathing became labored.  "It was a big clue in my knowing you were alive, and how to find you."

   Lex's hands were shaking as he stared at the toy.

   "I tried to get back to it's original shape, but there were a lot of gashes and dents I couldn't carve out, without reshaping it so it would no longer look like a horse," Clark told him.  "I hope you still like it."

   Lex turned to look at his best friend.  "Not liking this horse would be like my not wanting to care about you anymore, Clark.  This little piece of shapeless wood means the world to me.  It was the one thing I demanded that my father bring me from my house when I was in that room," his eyes began to tear up.  "This was the one thing that gave me hope, Clark.  This told me that our friendship was stronger than anything the world would have to throw at me.  I knew that I would survive every time I looked at this horse, because I knew that someone would care if I didn't."

   "I do care, Lex," Clark returned with his own eyes glazed over.  "I always will."

   "Thanks, Clark," Lex wrapped his arms around Clark's neck.  It was the first time that Clark could ever remember Lex being the one who hugged him first, but it was still welcomed, and he wrapped his arms around Lex.

   "Don't you ever die on me again, Lex," Clark moaned with his eyes held tightly shut.

   The long silent hug was interrupted by a gentle knock on the door.

   "Come in Alfred," they both said at the same time which gave way to a few giggles.

   Alfred walked in and saw them both standing separately drying their eyes on their sleeves.

   "I don't mean to disturb you," Alfred said with a puzzled look.  "But I do believe that if you do not get on your way at once, then you shall miss the court date for the hearing this afternoon."

   "Sure," Clark returned.  "We're ready."

   "Yeah," Lex reached for his bag.

   "I got it," Clark gently slapped his hand away slinging his own backpack over his shoulder.

   Lex shrugged and carried the horse in his hand instead.  When he reached the door, Alfred eyed the toy.

   "It's a gift," Lex said with a grin.  "Actually it's more like a life line from a real good friend."

   "Indeed," Alfred smiled back.  "The best of friends I would say."

   "Awe shucks, guys," Clark pretended to blush.  "You're gonna make me feel bad."

   "Shut up, Kent," Lex gave him a dumb look.  "Just carry the bag."

   When they were all in the hall, Clark nudged Alfred.  "Hey, look," he pointed to Lex who was a few feet ahead.  "Dead man walking."

   "Good grief, Kent," Lex sighed with a small grin.

   "Oh, now he's Charlie Brown," Clark continued to joke.  "Does that make me Linus?  You know you're going to need to grow one curly hair on the top of your head to pull this off, Chuck."

   Lex pretended to be frustrated with his friend, but in truth, he would not have given Clark up at that moment for the world.

   The Metropolis courthouse was already swarming with reporters and onlookers by the time Jonathan and Martha Kent arrived shortly before one in the afternoon.  They parked the truck and walked to the front door hand in hand.  They tried to shield themselves from the flashes and crushing swarm of reporters, but still, two police officers needed to clear a path so they could get through the front door.

   Even inside the corridors of the building, there seemed to be hoards of reporters everywhere.  Martha held tightly to Jonathan's arms as a court appointed officer lead them in the right direction.

   "I can't believe this feeding frenzy," Martha said quietly into her husband's ear.  "These people are like piranhas."

   "They're doing their job, Martha," he reminded her eyeing the people cautiously as they passed by.  "The cable news channels have been running the Luthor story twenty-four seven since it broke, so this should be no big surprise."

   "I never thought I would see the day when a simple farm family like ours would be dragged into a story of international interest like this," she returned.  "I just hope we can get this whole thing cleared up and over with soon."

   "When Clark shows up with Lex, I'm sure our part in this whole mess will be cleared up," He assured her as they turned a corner.  "We had very little involvement with the Edge and Luthor connection.  It's Chloe with all that proof and information."

   "I just shutter when I think how Clark almost drowned in that water filled with Meteor residue," Martha sighed.  "Lionel has no idea how close he came to killing our son." 

   "I don't think we will have to worry about him much longer," A smile almost came to his face as they walked through a doorway.  "Lionel will get what's coming to him."

   "Still," Martha frowned.  "I can't help but feel a little sorry for him."

   Jonathan looked down at his wife.  "Are you serious, Martha?"

   "Yes," she replied a little hesitantly.  "I mean he has to answer for everything he has done, but he was also trying to protect his son in all of this."

   Jonathan took a deep breath as another door was opened and they stepped into a fairly large waiting room.  They saw that the room was lined with wooden chairs and two large tables were pushed together in the center of it.

   "This is where you will need to wait," the handsome young guard informed them.  The grand jury will be meeting in the next room with the judge as they decide on whether or not to try Mr. Luthor.  You and the other witnesses will be called in on your turn, and give your testimonies."

   "What then?"  Martha asked.

   "You will be asked to wait here until the jury convenes," he continued.  "We need you all in the building in case they have any more questions."

   "Thank you," Jonathan nodded his head.

   The guard nodded back, and left the room.

   Martha walked over to the bookcase in the far corner and began flipping through the old magazines.  "I wonder if they remove anything that might have to do with the cases from these magazines."

   "Judging from the looks of them," Jonathan peeked over her shoulder.  "I don't think anything we learn from the news when Carter was still in office will influence our testimonies."

   Martha giggled as she too noticed how old the books were.  "Well I'm sure they are not as careful in here as they would be in the jury room."

   "Maybe not," he grasped her shoulder and spun her around slowly.  "But I have more pressing matters to talk about."  He pierced her eyes with his own.  "Now what were you trying to tell me when you said that you feel sorry for Lionel?"

   "Jonathan," she frowned.  "I was just stating that Lionel was trying to protect Lex, and I feel sorry that he has to go through all of this right now."

   "Lionel brought this on himself," Jonathan reminded.  "If he hadn't of tried to play God with the Gotham drinking water, then none of this would have happened."

   "I know," she moved away and leaned on one of the tables.  "I just can't help but think what we would have done if it were Clark who needed the protection."

   "We wouldn't have broken the law or tried to make someone else the scapegoat," he said firmly turning to her.  "Lionel has hurt a lot of people trying to hide his son, much less we forget what he did to Gotham City.  He deserves to stand trial, and that is what we are here to see to."

   "I'm glad to here you say that," a third voiced said from the door as Bill Ross walked into the room.  "And I think you have a case for a major law suit against Lionel Luthor."

   They both turned and saw their lawyer with a big smile closing the door as he entered.

   "We've been over this, Bill," Jonathan sighed.  "Martha and I are not interested in restitution from Lionel.  We just want this whole case to be dropped against us, and leave well enough alone."  He sat in a chair at the table.  "Besides, Lionel never filed the charges against us.  I'm sure that he paid someone off in the police force to do that, and that person will not be so forthcoming."

   "Then I don't understand," Martha sat next to him.  "You don't want to take out a suit against him, which I agree with, but you also want to make sure he is punished?"

   "By the letter of the law, Martha," Jonathan said with burning eyes.  "Lionel will have to answer for what he has done, and I will do what ever is required of me to see that it happens, but I will not lower myself to his level and try and get something out of this."  He turned to his wife and took her hands in his.  "Just because I can forgive Lionel for what he did to us, does not mean I will forget it.  I will tell my story and then let the law do what ever they want with him."

   Martha gave her husband a big hug as Bill Ross shook his head.  "Okay, Jonathan," he agreed reluctantly.  "But I still have to insist that until the charges are dropped against you, that I be with you in that hearing room."

   "Fine," Jonathan agreed.  "If it will make you happy, then I will request your being there, but there won't be much of a law suit once Lex shows his face, again."

   "If he shows up," Bill cautioned.

   "He will, Bill," Martha assured him.  "He's on his way back from Gotham with Clark right now."

   They all sat silently for a few minutes until the door opened again, and Nell Potter came in with her niece Lana Lang at her side.

   "Nell," Martha got up and hugged her.  "I'm so happy to see you up and around again."

   "Thank you, Martha," she returned the hug.  "I guess I can have a life again now that my niece has decided to let me out of the house."

   "I was just looking out for your health," Lana took her turn and hugged Martha.  "I didn't want you going out side and getting hurt.  Beside you sat on the porch everyday with a nice cold drink and a good book."

   "Yes, dear," Nell grinned.  "But even prisoners get to go out in the yard once in a while."

   Jonathan cleared his throat.

  "Oh," Nell gushed.  "I'm sorry.  I wasn't thinking."

   "Don't listen to him," Martha returned her seat with a playfully angry look.  "He's just missing that old wool blanket from his cell."

   "Well, it was warm," Jonathan grinned.

   Martha slapped his arm lightly.

   They all took their seats around the tables and Perry White was the next to enter the room.  He shook hands with everyone and sat next to Bill Ross at Jonathan's left hand.

   "How's your arm doing?" Martha asked.

   "The cast comes off next week," he held it up for all to see.  "I guess this will be my last battle scar from this whole ordeal."

   "Do you have to testify?" Lana asked.

   "That's why I'm here," he smiled across at her.  "I can't prove that Lionel hired that big goon to strong arm me, but I can at least tell them about it and what the guy who saved me said.  He knew Lionel had paid for the beating, but right now all I have is what he told me since no one has idea who he was or where he went."  He took a deep breath.  "Then I have what I know about Dr. Burns and his dealings with Nell's coma.  I can tell how I had a heart to heart with him over the questionable drugs he was using on her and that I think it was that talk that allowed him to let her wake up the next day, but other than the records of the drugs used, I can't really prove that either."

   "What about the paper work?" Jonathan asked.

   "You mean all the forms linking Lionel to the water in Gotham," Perry pointed out.  "Yeah, again I can testify that I received them and what they were, but I am just the messenger in this case.  The documents are the real witnesses here."

   "I sure what ever any of us has to say will help the grand jury make a case against Lionel," Jonathan added.  "But let me take a minute to thank you, Mr. White, for watching over our kids while we were all being run through the paces by Lionel."

   "I didn't do much, Mr. Kent," Perry grinned.  "All I did was provide them with transportation and the incentive.  These kids ripped this case wide open on their own."

   Pete Ross was let into the room next.  He took a seat next to Nell and greeted the others with handshakes and a smile.

   "Pete," Lana leaned in.  "Are you a witness?"

   "Well, I can't tell them what I learned when I broke into Luthor Corps without getting myself into trouble, but they asked me to be here anyway," he told them.

   "Pete is acting as a character witness for all the distress each of you went through," Bill Ross helped to explain for his son.  "He also can testify what condition Lex was in when he and Jonathan picked Lex and Clark up from the hospital."

   "Too bad we can't tell them how you were attacked in Luthor Corps," Jonathan said with a frown.

   "As much as I would like to see Lionel pay," Pete shrugged.  "I'm not about to admit to a crime just to report one."

   The entrance of Chloe Sullivan and her father Gabe interrupted the conversation and the room went silent. 

    Chloe eyed the room suspiciously and gave a wry smile.  "Nothing warms a heart like the entire room going church mouse on you," she commented.

   "Sorry," Martha spoke up first with a big smile.  "We are just all on pins and needles here with this whole grand jury investigation," she got up and gave her a hug.  "We are just not sure who will walk in next."

   "Well it's just us," Chloe returned the hug.  "We would have been here sooner, but I had to double check some facts on my computer before I was ready to testify."

   "I'm not sure they want us to be keeping notes, Chloe," Jonathan remarked.

   "Maybe not, Mr. Kent," she took a seat next to Pete.  "But I don't have to face a firing squad every day like the judge in there, and I want to make sure that all my 'Ts' are crossed and my 'Is' are dotted.  There is no way I want Lionel Luthor getting off because I left out some important four-one-one."

   "Don't worry, Chloe," Perry smiled from his seat next to Jonathan.  "The case is iron clad against Luthor.  With all the information you provided already and the documents from Edge himself, there is no way out of this noose."

   "This in Lionel Luthor we are talking about," Chloe leaned across the table.  "He has found his way out of more tight spots then a Kennedy at sobriety check point.  If he can prove that he was not aware that they were dumping in the water and not the landfill, then he might have a loop hole if those forms were legal."

   "That was my concern too," Perry agreed with a nod.  "But your friend Clark was able to obtain some very valuable documentation from Lionel's safe on the night he found Lex.  There were stacks of forms and requisitions that clearly make it known that Lionel not only knew of the problematic dumping, but had suggested the process from the very beginning."

   Her face lit up with a bright smile.  "Clark did that?"

   "Clark always seems to be able to pull a rabbit out of mid air," Lana commented.  "He has a special gift for the unexplained."

   Martha shot Jonathan a worried eyed, but made sure no one was looking her way.

   "So," Jonathan broke the silence again.  "Gabe, were you ordered to be here like the rest of us?"

   "As much as I wish I were not," Gabe said with a worried brow.  "Bill and I are here on the charge of tampering with a criminal investigation.  Since Luthor Corps had the cure for the virus that attacked the court's computers, the question of Lionel's tampering with the court files has been brought up."

   "That man has had his hands into a lot of dirty dealings these past few months," Bill added.  "It will be nice to see him finally pay for his crimes after all these years."

   Gab's eyes drifted to the empty table between them as Jonathan took notice.  "You don't seem so eager for justice here, Gabe."

   "I'm sorry, John," he pulled at his tight collar.  "It's not everyday I have to testify against my boss in a federal investigation.  I almost lost my job once this summer, and I would hate to loose it again."

   "I told you Dad," Chloe chimed in.  "You don't work for Lionel anymore, and once Lex returns to the land of the living and reclaims his private holdings, if not Lionel's as well with all his crimes, then he will keep you from taking the flack for this."

   "Don't be so sure, Chloe," Pete said with a scowl.  "If there is any Luthor Corps left after this investigation, it will still be in Lex's hand, and he may not turn out any better than his old man in this mess."

   "Pete," Martha frowned.  "You don't mean that."

   "I'm sorry, Mrs. Kent," he let his gaze drift a little.  "I'm glad that Lex is alive and all for Clark's sake, but he's not the most forthright and honest man we know."

   "I'm with my son here, Martha," Bill agreed.  "These Luthors all appear to be harmless and even helpful at first, but eventually they all turn."

   "They have a point, Mrs. Kent," Perry White put in next.  "I've been Luthor watching for a number of years here in Metropolis, and have done some research into the family history, and the whole wolves in sheep clothing act seems to be their MO."

   Martha's eyes were wide with surprise.  "I don't believe this.  Do you all feel this way?"

   "Martha," Jonathan cautioned. 

   "No, Jonathan," she stopped her husband.  "I mean, after all Lex has been through for whatever reason Lionel might have had for doing it, do you all think the same way about Lex?  Do you think he should pay for the sins of his father?"

   "It's not a mater of paying for a crime," Perry spoke up first.  "It's more like we don't believe that the apple has fallen so far from the tree."

   She shook her head in disbelief and turned to Nell.  "What about you, Nell?" She asked.  "Do you have an opinion on this?"

   "Martha," she responded sheepishly.  "Lex is a good kid, but he does have his little quirks."

   The disappointment was very strong on her face as she looked around the table at some of her families closes friends and co-witnesses in the case, and she could not believe how many of them were still against the man who was the largest victim in the crimes.

   "I like Lex," Chloe spoke up in his defense.  "He may not be the most open person, but he has been nice to us."

   "Chloe is right," Lana put in next.  "We've been down this road before, Pete," she turned to him.  "I thought Clark was very convincing in his argument back at the camp ground."

   "Clark means well, Lana," Pete scoffed.  "But he can have some real blinders on when it comes to his friends."

   Martha was about to continue the fight when Jonathan touched her arm lightly.  She knew him well enough after all these years to know that he was telling her to just let it drop for now.  She had wanted to speak up again, but they were all stopped in their tracks when the door opened again, and the same guard who had shown each of them in, was now entering with a sharply dressed Lionel Luthor at his side.

   The looks on the face of the people around the table ran the gambit from total hatred to a soft look of empathy that seemed to almost emanate from Martha's stare.

   "Well," he took a long glanced around the room.  "If it is not my accusers all ready for the kill."

   Jonathan stood up.  "We don't need any moral lectures from you, Luthor," he said with a hiss.  "None of us would be here if you hadn't of tried to impose your own curse on a bunch of innocent people."

   "No one is truly innocent, Jonathan," Lionel smirked as they led him to the next room.  "We all have a few secrets of our own to hide, don't we?"

   Martha reached for Jonathan's hand as he made a fist.

   Once Lionel had slipped into the next room, the guard turned back to them.  "The proceedings will begin once the judge had been seated and the grand jury is in place," he told them with no great concern.  "They will ask to see each of you in turn, at which time you will be sworn in and the questioning will begin before the committee.  We ask that you not share specific information on the line of questioning until after the all the witnesses have been heard."

   They all nodded agreeably as he lifted his clipboard.  "Good," he sighed.  "They will be starting with you, Miss Lang," he looked at Lana.  "Please be prepared to join the judge and the committee within the next five minutes."

   Lana gave a slight tilt of her head as she gave her agreement.  The room was deafeningly silent as they all began to stare at the other person's face.  The time had come, and the hour of truth was at hand.  Each of them gave a silent prayer to their God as they waited for their turn that would surely come all too soon.

   The windows were completely tinted on the limousine as it pulled up in front of the courthouse, and no one gathered around the grounds could peer in to see it's occupants. Inside, Alexander Luthor stared out at the same eyes that were trying to stare in.  He sat without making a sound as Clark sat across from him.

   After a few silent moments, Clark's voice pierced the quiet.  "Lex," he spoke softly.  "We're at the court house."

   "I know," Lex, replied as his eyes danced among the hoards of people outside his window.  His chin was leaning gently on his right hand, and he was shaking with a slight shiver.

   Clark pulled forward to the edge of his seat and leaned across the aisle between them.  "We can take our time with this," he spoke softly to his friend.  "I told the driver not to open the door until we gave him the word."

   Lex's eyes continued to the dance with curious onlookers.  He had wanted to move, to be brave and face the world for the first time in nearly two months, but instead, he sat frozen and unable to move from his seat.

   "Do they know?" He finally blinked as if trying to find his way back to the real world, again.  "Do they know that I am still alive?"

   "They suspect," Clark glanced out at the group.  "We all made a pact not to say anything until we were sure you were ready to come back," he explained with a kind voice.  We didn't want them to start a manhunt for you and risk your health, but some have speculated.  Even Perry White has agreed to keep your return under wraps until you were ready.  But still, some reporters have been speculating and they got wind of a surprise witness being at the hearing, but so far no one has been able to say for sure that it was you."

   "Look at them, Clark," his voice almost cracked.  "They are like a bunch of vultures circling a soon to be a dead carcass.  Only the flesh they want to feast on is my father."

   "Lex," Clark leaned in closer.  "Your father brought this on himself."

   "But I don't have to be the one to deliver the kill, Clark," Lex said with a bit of harshness in his tone.  "My father may have done some horrible things, but he's still my father."

   "You can't stop this, Lex," Clark told him.  "This has to happen now that your father's crimes have been revealed.  There is nothing we can do to stop this trial from happening."

   "You don't understand," Lex looked at him for the first time.  "It's not about what is right and wrong, or what he has done or hasn't done.  It's about my father, Clark."

   "I know," Clark shook his head.  "It's hard for anyone to see a family member go through something like this, but it has to be done."

   "They're going to convict him, Clark," Lex began to shake even more.  "They are going to send him to jail for the heinous crimes he committed against Gotham, but he won't survive in there.  He'll never be able to live in that environment for very long."

   "Come on, Lex," Clark tried to dissuade him.  "Your Dad is a very strong man.  He'll be able to deal with it."

   "No, he won't," Lex snapped.  "It will kill him.  My father is as good as dead if he goes to jail."

   Clark looked deep into Lex's eyes.  There was so much more behind those blue orbs then he would ever understand, but at that moment, he knew that there was something far deeper behind the fear for his father's health.

   "What are you telling me, Lex?" Clark finally asked.

   "He'll die, Clark," Lex's eyes were glazed over with a mist.  "Then he will be gone, and I will be the only one left," his gaze drifted to the floor.  "I don't think I can be that completely alone, Clark."

   Clark reached across and touched his hand that sat on his lap.

   Lana came out of the interrogation room holding a tissue to her eyes as she resumed her seat between Nell and Martha.  She kept her head low and eye contact was minimal to none.  She sat silently as Martha placed her hand over Lana's.

   "Nell Potter," the bailiff called out from his stance at the door.

   Taking a deep breath, Nell rose slowly and patted Lana on the shoulder.  The two women did not say a word, but they shared a bond at that moment that was beyond words, and Nell knew that she was about to enter the lion's den.

   When Nell and the Bailiff had disappeared, Chloe leaned across the table and was unable to contain her peaked interest any longer. She had to know, "What happened in there?"

   Lana glanced up with red eyes.  She gave a hazardous stare at the others in the room.

   "Come on," Chloe coached.  "We will all be dragged in there sooner or later, it will help prepare us if we know what we are in for."

   "Lana is sworn not to discuss the case with anyone," Bill Ross spoke up.  "She would be in contempt if she told anyone what the questions were about."

   "I don't want details," Chloe shot him a frown.  "I just want a 'heads up.'"

   Again Lana wiped away a tear as she sniffed.  "It was horrible, Chloe," she finally spoke up.  "They claim that everything I know about this case and Lex's accident is pure hear-say, and even the car with the cut break lines was something I saw after the fact, and they said I had no way of proving what I saw."

   "They have us there," Perry added in.  "I looked into it while you kids were gone, and Lionel had the car destroyed, as we suspected he would. Only the police report on the accident remains, and it says nothing about the brakes."

   "I don't understand," Jonathan asked.  "The brakes will prove that Morgan Edge tried to kill Lex.  Why would Lionel have his lawyers put that in question?"

   "Two reasons," Bill told him with a worried look.  "The first is he's trying to cover as much about Lex's accident as he can so he can make up matters as they go along, and as long as no one can say what really happened, the chances of proving a conspiracy on Lionel's part is less possible."

   "And the second reason?" Martha asked.

   "If he can hide Morgan's desire for restitution," Bill continued.  "Then his crime against Gotham City will seem less severe, and he could also try to find a way to turn that whole story around."

   "But they have tons of proof that he turned GC into a regular Rocky Picture Horror Show," Pete spoke up with disgust.  "How can he get away from something like that?"

   "People have been blaming Lionel for a lot of the strange happenings in Smallville for years," Chloe reminded them.  "And he has been able to keep himself out of the fodder fire all this time."

   "Yeah, but this is the perfect case scenario," Pete said with a strong sense of frustration.  "People have debating the 'Wall Of Weird' as being either caused by Luthor or the Meteor fragments, and now we have the mix of both.  There's no way he can pass this off on someone else."

   "I've dealt with people like the Luthors and Lionel himself for years, son," Bill said calmly.  "His type has a knack for getting out of tight situations like this."

   A look of rage came across Pete's face.  "What are you saying?" he spat.  "You think Lionel will be able to walk away from this?"

   "Not if we have anything to say about it, Pete," Jonathan leaned forward.  "That's why we are all here: to make as strong a case against Lionel as we can possibly make it. We can't allow our emotions to flare up right now and risk messing up this whole trial."

   Martha could not help but flinch at his strong resolve.  He was so determined to make Lionel pay for his crimes even while faking forgiveness, but she knew this man well enough to know that the fuse within his soul had been lit, and nothing short of full destruction was going ease the breaking point.

   Across the table, Gabe Sullivan sat silently next to his daughter, wringing his hands with worry.

   Pete rubbed his face with anger.  "Okay," he grunted.  "What about the attack on Mr. White and the drugs he was giving Nell?"

   All eyes turned to Perry who sat with a less than confident demeanor.  "I," he started slowly.  "I am not sure I can prove the attack was from Lionel," he told them with a defeated sigh.  "The only proof I have that my attacker was hired by Luthor were his less than incriminating hints of his employer, and the word of a hired hit man who saved my life because I assumed he was working for Edge, and then he disappeared never to be seen again."

   "But the drugs," Pete seemed to be almost pleading the case.

   "All given by Phil Burns," Perry explained.  "We know he was hired by Lionel to look after Nell, but they have a long history, and there were no clear indications on any of his records or in any known recorded or documented proof that Lionel was telling him how to handle the case.  Even with my speculations and confrontations with Burns, he never confirmed that he was acting on Lionel's orders.  All I can tell the jury is that I confronted him, and the next day Nell woke up.  The drugs were questionable and some were from Luthor Labs, but unless we have prove that Lionel gave him those drugs with the desire to use on Nell, we don't have much more than speculation."

   "The only person who could prove anything from that end took his own life," Bill added.  "When Doctor Burns killed himself, all proof of his true involvement with Lionel was null and void."

   "If he really did kill himself," Pete said under his breath.

   They all gave him a careful glance as the door opened again.  "Mr. Pete Ross," the bailiff read from his clipboard.  "You are next."

   All eyes turned to the door when they heard Nell's crying voice screaming from across the larger room.  "I told you I don't remember!" She screeched.  "All I can tell you is that Lionel did something to me, but I can't remember what."

   The bailiff closed the door quickly as he ushered Pete into the meeting hall with him. 

   Lana fell into Martha's waiting arms and sobbed as she thought about what they must have been putting her aunt through to shake her up so badly.

   Clark waited for a long time before he spoke up again from his seated place in the back of the rented limousine that Alfred had called ahead to reserve for them.

   "Lex," he said softly.  "We've been sitting here for a while, and they are going ask the driver to move the car any minute now.  We can't put this off any longer.  We need to get in the building before any more reporters suspect you are here and they block our path."

   "I can't do this, Clark," Lex shook his head vigorously.  "I'm not strong enough to face those reporters and all the questions from them and the court."

   "Are you crazy?" Clark slipped onto the seat next to him. "Lex," he pulled his shoulders so they were face to face.  "You are the strongest person I know.  I have never known anyone who has been able to stand up to all the trials and troubles you have been through in your life with or without the advantage of wealth. You are a giant of self-assuredness, Lex."

   "I'm not," Lex, continued to shake his head not wanting to meet Clark's gaze. 

   "Lex," Clark clasped his hands around Lex's head to keep it from turning away and he stared fiercely into his friend's eyes.  "Lex, you have just returned from the point of total breakdown that few have ever been able to find their way back from, and you have made yourself whole again. You can face anything."

   Lex stared into Clark's deep green eyes.  They were filled with so much hope and promise for him.  They held dreams and desires that Lex had given up on years ago, and yet they still burned a hole in his gut.  This was what called him back from the brink of oblivion a few weeks ago, and those same strong green eyes that forced him to face this day, had also given him the strength to face the world he had thought taken from him after all those days at his father's mercy.

   Lex backed away from Clark's grasp and closed his eyes tightly.  Clark had thought to say something, but he kept his words silent as it occurred to him that Lex was not shying away, but instead was calling on all his reserves within his soul to bring out that man he was and the person he was meant to be.  He took several deep breaths and opened his eyes again with a new determined stance.  It was a show for the public and the court, but Clark knew that this was enough for now.  He would gather up the Luthor he could present on the surface and get through this day, and eventually he would return to the Lex Luthor he was.  For now, the show was enough.

   Clark tapped on the divider panel between the rear compartment and the driver's seat to indicate that they were ready to get out and he should open the door.

   Clark slipped past Lex and squatted before the door as he waited for it to be opened.

   Lex reached up and grasped his upper arm firmly as his hands shook.  Clark turned with a soft look in his eyes to see his silent friend staring strongly at him.  He placed his own hand over Lex's and gave a gentle smile.  "Don't worry, Lex," he whispered as the door began to open.  "I'm not going to leave your side."

   The afternoon sun over Metropolis shone brightly in the sky and Clark squinted his eyes as he stepped out of the dark car.  He buttoned his jacket as people began to see and recognize who he was, and the crowd around the limousine grew with each reporter and spectator wanting to get a view of the latest witness in the Luthor trial.  Each voice was trying to be heard over the next, and commotion was become almost deafening when Clark turned back to the car and leaned in.

   The frightened look of 'small boy' eyes from Alexander Luthor looked up at him, and Clark gave him one last secret smile to help with that last boost of confidence.  Clark reached around and grasped his forearm and helped him slowly to his feet as Lex hung one foot out of the back seat.

   Time seemed to stand still as Clark and Lex made a point to focus on each other, and not the hundreds of prying eyes that stood around them with flashing cameras and bright video taping lights.

   The second foot was dangled out of the car as Lex slid to the edge of the seat while Clark stood before the dark door blocking the view of everyone who was in the area.  He reached his other hand in and grasped Lex's free arm pulling him gently to his feet as his healing injuries still made it hard for Lex to move freely.

   Then a torso and a bent head exited the vehicle and ever so slowly, Clark lifted his friend to his full six foot one height into the sunlight.  Clark still blocked most of the view, but those who stood to the sides with a view of the man who had just climbed out began to gasp and cover their mouths with shock and surprise.  Clark pulled Lex close to make sure that he was strong enough to stand on his own.

   Glancing down, Clark took a last look at Lex, who's eyes were entranced in Clark's chin as not to see the hoards of people who now surrounded them.  Taking a deep breath, Clark released Lex's arms and slid his right arm around his shoulder and stepped to the side turning to the people who were all becoming eerily silent.

   Time seemed to kick back into gear as Lex lifted his sight to take in the faces of the onlookers and all of their shocked and surprised expressions.  His heart was beating a mile a minute, and his knees were becoming weak, but he could feel Clark's strong arm around his shoulder, and he knew that his true and faithful friend would not let him down now, just as he knew he never would.  Lex was pretending to be strong and brave and even at his weakest hour he knew that he would never be able to tell this stone pillar of teenager who stood at his side that the strength he projected was not his own, but the life force he felt from this young man of determined resolve.

   After a few seconds, the shock seemed to subside, and the noise level returned at an even higher decibel as what now seemed to be thousands of people gathered around them.  Each one had their own line of questions and desire to get a piece of the two young men.  Clark was about to push Lex back into the car when he saw a group of uniformed officers approaching them, and they began to clear a path for them until a three-foot wide path was made through the crowd.

   Taking another deep breath, Lex tucked his shaking hands into his pockets and summoned up all his inner strength and gently pulled himself away from Clark's grasp.  He stood before the festering group, and raised his chin high.  With a determination that Clark had not seen in his best friend in weeks, Lex took his first step forward and pierced the opening through the crowd and walked towards the courthouse with a smiling Clark trailing behind.

   The entire trail through the crowd and into the court building had been the same as Clark and Lex endured the loud murmurs and questionable stares from the people who lined their path.  After a few minutes, they were led to the same room where the others sat around the table waiting.

   Lex eyed the room of his self-professed friends and supporters, but chose not to say a word.  He nodded his head once with a slight smile and then took a seat close to the entrance door on one of the wooden chairs against the wall.

   Jonathan and Martha met Clark at mid point of their walk towards each other, and Martha hugged her son.  "I was beginning to worry," she said softly.  "Is everything all right?"

   "Sure," Clark pulled away from his returned hug.  "We're just dealing with some issues of going into public again."

   "Clark," Jonathan touched his son's arm.  "Please remember what we told you, son.  Don't let Lex pull you any deeper into this Luthor turmoil than you already are.  Once we testify, what ever happens to Lex is the Luthor's problem."

    Clark peeked back over his shoulder where Chloe and Lana had taken the seats flanking Lex.  He turned back to his father giving him a cautious but determined stare.  "I know you don't like it, Dad, but I will be there for as long as Lex needs me.  Even if this is over for the rest of us today, Lex still has a lot of healing to do, and I won't abandon him just to save myself."

   "We know that," Martha returned quickly trying to keep the peace.  "All your father and I are saying is to be careful."

   "I will," he agreed.

   Chloe was the first to smile brightly at Lex as she sat to his right.  "Welcome back to the real world, Mister Luthor," she grinned.  "I want you to know that you were sorely missed."

   He gave her a polite smile in return.

   "That's right, Lex," Lana added taking his left hand.  "We were all upset when we thought you were gone.  Even after we knew you were back, we just missed you."

   "Thanks," Lex nodded his head.

   "So," Chloe leaned forward trying to ignore the deliberate distance in his demeanor.  "When do I get my exclusive interview with the infamous Alexander Luthor, now that he's back among the living?"

   "I'm sorry, Chloe," He fumbled over his words as he shifted uneasily in his chair.  "I'm just not ready to talk about it just yet."

   "Oh, okay," she pretended not to care, but was deeply put off by his in affection.  "I guess when you are feeling up to it, then maybe you can give me a few sound bytes."

   "Sure," His eyes darted around the room as he tried not to make eye contact with anyone.  "Just give me a few days."

   Clark made his way back over to Lex with a small Dixie cup of water he got from the cooler in the far corner of the room.  "Here," he handed his friend the cup.  "I thought you might be needing this."

   Lex reached for the cup with both hands, making sure he wrapped Clark's hand within his own.  He looked into his eyes with tired and blood shot eyes of his own.  Clark had never seen Lex so venerable and needy as he was at that moment, and he made no secret of the fact that he was relying on Clark's strength to get him through this ordeal.

   Chloe and Lana cold tell that these two were clearly in a place all their own at the moment, and neither of them would be able to enter for a very long time to come.  So with out saying a word, they both got up and walked back to their seats, and Clark slipped silently into Chloe's abandoned chair and watched Lex sip on the water.

   Martha could feel her husband tense up as she held tightly to his arm.  She leaned closely to his ear as she steered him back to their seats.  "Let this one go, Jonathan."

   "He's going to destroy Clark with him," Jonathan grumbled under his breath.

   "If we fight this," she warned.  "It will only make Clark cling even tighter to him than he already is.  Clark is strong, and he will know when to pull back and let Lex walk on his own again."

   Once the Kents were seated again, the door opened and out stepped a clearly shaken Pete Ross.  They could all tell that his line of questioning did not go well.  He slipped aside and stood next to the door with his nostrils blaring.

   "Perry White," the bailiff called from the next room as Perry stood to his feet.  He climbed back into his sport jacket and walked towards the door.  Once the room had been sealed off again, Chloe jumped up and stood by Pete's side.

   "What happened, Pete?" She questioned his angry look.

   "This is not a hearing or a trial of any kind," he said with burning eyes.  "It's a lynch mob in there, and we are the ones they are trying to hang out to dry."

   "Calm down, son," Bill Ross stood up and walked over to his son.  "I am sure that I have told you enough about my work over the years to know that these things don't always go the way you want them to."

   "Losing a case is one thing, Dad," Pete returned.  "But that district attorney must be in Lionel's back pocket in there.  He's a complete idiot and it's the defense team that is running the show."

   "I am sure that the judge wouldn't let the trial get too one-sided," Bill insisted.

   "That guy made the OJ judge look like Matlock," Pete sighed with a huff.  "He is letting Lionel's people call all the shots."

   "I wouldn't worry, Pete," Jonathan spoke up.  "This case is national headline news.  I'm sure that the people in Gotham are not going to let Lionel live this down so easy.  There is no getting out of something this big, even for Lionel."

   Pete tried to calm himself when he peeked up and saw Lex sitting silently in the corner.  His eyes began to burn red again and his nostril flared.  Chloe placed a gentle hand on his chest.  "Don't," she said softly as if she could read his thoughts.

   Taking her hand into his, he gently pulled her hand away and dropped it at her side as he stepped forward.  He made a direct line across the room to where Lex and Clark sat silently listening.

   Instinctively Clark rose to his feet and stepped between the two men and created a barrier so Pete could not get closer than the three feet he would allow.  "I won't hurt him, Clark," Pete yelled up at his friends face.  "I just have a few questions for our friend."

   "Don't, Pete," Clark held him back trying not to show too much strength on his part.

   "I need to know, Clark," Pete looked around his friend and glared at Lex.  "Is this how Luthor's do things Lex?" he grunted.  "Do you always commit acts boarder lining on genocide and then buy off the legal system?"

   Lex glanced up at him with tired eyes.

   "Say something," Pete called out even louder.  "Do you Luthors think that you are gods?  Do you think you can do what ever you want no matter how many people get hurt because you know you can always write yourself a check to get out of trouble?"

   "Stop it, Pete," Clark warned still holding him back as Chloe and Bill Ross came to his aid and tried to pull Pete back.

   "You walk all over people and never give it another thought," Pete screamed.  "You poison millions of innocent people and steal, God only knows how many more, lively hood, and you don't even lose a moment's sleep over it.  Do you?'

   Pete," Clark had had enough and wrapped his arms around him forcefully into a bear hug while he picked him up and carried him back, deeper into the room.  "That's enough, Pete."

   Pete was surprised that Clark could possess that much strength and marveled at how easily he was man handled.  When Clark dropped him in the far corner near the cooler, Pete was speechless as he watched Clark's eyes shy away from his showing emotion.

   "Pete," Clark placed a tender hand on his shoulder while still not making eye contact.  "Lex is not the enemy here.  He's as much a victim, if not more so than anyone else in this room."

   Finally Pete relaxed his stance and allowed his gaze to drift to the floor.  "I'm sorry, man.  I just let myself get worked up in there."

   "I know," Clark gave him a gentle smile.  "We're all running a little stoked right now."

   Pete gave his friend a less than happy smile.

   Chloe turned her attention back to Lex who had remained silent through the ordeal.  He sat with his stare towards the opposite wall as a slight, but cold, sweat ran down his face.  She wanted to say something, but instead chose to return to her seat as Bill Ross did the same.

   Gab Sullivan placed his arm around his daughter as she sat silently.

   The room had remained silent for the next half hour as everyone returned to their seats and Clark claimed his guard post next to Lex.  The sound of the door to the hearing room seemed to echo when it was opened again, and Perry White, who seemed haggard and tired, reappeared.

   "Bill Ross and Gab Sullivan," the bailiff called.  "The judge would like to hear you testify together on the obstructions charges, so if you will follow me."

   Chloe patted Gab's hand and gave him a reassuring smile as he got up out of his seat and followed. 

   Bill patted Pete's shoulder as he walked past his son.

   All eyes turned to Perry White as he returned to his seat, and the others disappeared behind the door.

   "What happened in there?" Jonathan spoke first.

   "Well, they asked me a whole bucket full of questions about how I got hold of all the documentation, and then they tried to sway my belief of their authenticity and relevance to making a case against Lionel."

   "And," Martha coaxed.

   "I think I made a believable argument for the proof on this end, but it is up to Chloe to bring it home and tell how they came about and why Morgan Edge collected them in the first place."

   Chloe sighed deeply.  "I just hope I don't let everyone down," she commented.  "I just wish the police had been able to locate Salina to back up my story."

   "She told you that she didn't want to be found," Lana reminded.  "I guess she had enough resources to help that happen after all."

   "What about the hired thug Lionel sent after you?"  Martha asked next.  "Can they prove that against Lionel?"

   "I'm afraid not, Mrs. Kent," Perry returned with sorry face.  "Without my witness and any real proof since the guy never named Lionel himself, I have nothing but speculation to go on."

   "Chock another vote up for Lionel," Pete grunted from where he was leaning crossed armed over the table. 

   They all gave him a once over, but no one really wanted to say anything to him.

   "Lionel is just batting all these charges out of the ball park," Chloe commented when they had all settled in again.  "One by one he is beating the rap against him."

   "And with no direct involvement on our false arrest charges along with his public statement of not wanted to pursue us personally, I'm sure our charges will be dismissed as well," Jonathan grunted.

   "They have already said that since we don't know whom the gunman in Gotham was working for when he attacked us," Lana added in.  "We don't have a case against Lionel on that front either."

   "I hate to put any pressure on you," Jonathan leaned back in his chair.  "But it looks like it's up to you, Chloe, to bring in a conviction against Lionel."  He paused for a moment and then looked over at Lex.  "You and Lex are the only two still standing to prove that Lionel did any wrong doing."

   Lex looked up for the first time in several minutes as he heard Jonathan's words, and they sent a cold shiver down his spine.

   When Bill Ross and Gabe Sullivan returned from the questioning room, their faces didn't look any brighter than the ones before them.  As Martha and Jonathan was called in to take their turn on the witness stand, the two men returned to their seats and remained silent.

   "That bad, huh?" Pete questioned his father.

   "The tech crew was unable to trace the source of the virus," he told them with a defeated voice.  "So there is no way to prove that the virus came from Luthor Corps or it's people."

   "Without the source," Gab spoke up.  "The court computer files and Luthor Corps plant number three are just two random hits with a virus."

   Pete pounded the table with his fist much to all of their surprise.  "He's going to get away with everything," he grunted through gritted teeth.  "Lionel is going to get away with this."

   "No, he's not," a voice that had been silent until then spoke up.  They all turned and saw that Lex Luthor had decided to join the conversation from his seated position in the corner.

   "Lex?" Clark questioned.

   "You all have to tell your stories and at least place doubt in the mind of those jurist in there," he said with an anguish expression on his face.  "He may not stand trial for those crimes, but it may make the jury think twice before they let him get off for what he did to Gotham City."

   They all sat quiet for a moment until Chloe spoke up.  "Lex is right," she grinned through her fear.  "So what if he has been able to shake off all these charges.  The most important and potentially damaging one is still standing."

   "And it's up to you, Chloe," Lex looked up at her.  "You have to bat a home run for our team and get my father convicted for his crimes."

   Chloe had to turn away as the enormity of the whole trial began to weigh heavy on her shoulder.

   Lex rose slowly with a little help from Clark and walked over to her side.  Perry White got up and allowed him to sit in his seat as Lex grasped Chloe's hand into his own.  "You can do it, Chloe," he spoke softly into her ear.

   "I'm glad one of us thinks so," she joked off.  "I mean I never had to be the smoking gun in a trial before.  It's a lot of pressure."

   "And you can handle it," Lex said reaching for her chin and raising her eyes to meet his.  "Clark told me what happened to Morgan Edge's son, and I am sure it had to send him to the breaking point for him to go after my father like he did.  I know that I was nothing but a pawn in this story, but I would like to think that the Edge baby could be a little more.  He is the one who can finally put an end to my father's reign of terror."

   A tear rolled down Chloe's face as she looked into his weary eyes.  They use to be so filled with life and it's endless possibilities, but now all she saw was the remaining signs of the torture he must have had to endure at his own father's hand.  The rings were black beneath his baby blues, and there was a tired stance beyond any she had ever seen in anyone else's before.  The whites of his eyes were almost hidden behind the blood shoot veins that surrounded this slightly unequal pupils and in the corner of his left one, was a small bed of red that looked like a vessel had burst and his heavy eyeball was swimming in the blood.

   "I'll do it," she said as she sat up straight.  "I'll go in there in and tell my story, and I'll make them believe the truth."

   Lex gave her one of his rear gentle smiles and he kissed her forehead.

   The room was again silent when Martha and Jonathan walked back into the room about two minutes later.  They all looked up and were surprised by their early return.

   "What happen?" Clark walked across the room from his seat next to Lex.  "Did they hear your whole story already?"

   "Most of it," Jonathan said with a confused look in his eye.

   "What do you mean, 'most of it'?" Clark asked.

   "The District Attorney had just finished piecing our story together and the defense attorneys were getting ready to cross examine us," Jonathan continued.  "I could tell from the look on his face that he was about to tell us what we already knew about not having a real legal leg to stand on when someone was let into the room from the other door."

   "Someone?" Clark repeated with a worried look.

   "He was an official looking man with a uniform," Martha explained.  "Air force, your father thinks."

   "He had a large yellow envelope," Jonathan said now making a point to speak to the whole room.  "It was marked confidential and he said it was for the DA and the judge to read at once."

   "This doesn't sound good," Bill Ross sighed.  "I knew I should have been in there."

   "The DA read it and then the judge," Martha continued for them.  "He then called a side bar with the defense attorneys as well."

   Jonathan shifted his weight nervously as he placed his hands in his pockets.  "It only took a minute for the judge to order the jury out of the room, and he told us he needed five minutes to review the new facts in the trial and to confirm their authenticity."

   "What new facts can there be?" Perry questioned out loud.  "They have all the proof they need to convict Lionel with all the documents that were provided from Edge and Lionel's own safe."

   "I hate to say it," Bill was the next to speak as they all returned to their seats.  "It sounds like Lionel may have found his ace in the hole on this matter."

   "That can't be," Martha said with disbelief.  "No one could possibly help Lionel out of this."

   Bill looked across the table at her.  "If it was delivered by the Air Force, Martha, then who ever sent that package has a lot of pull with the government."

   She knew that he was right, and it had confirmed her fears.

   "He's going to get away with it," Pete grunted once again under his breath.  "He's going to walk away from this."

   "Not necessarily," Chloe said with a defiant ring to her voice.  They all looked up at her and followed her stare across the room to where Lex was seated with his head down.  He was breathing heavily and trying to catch his breath.

   The bailiff entered the room about seventeen minutes later.  "The judge would like everyone to come into the hearing room to hear the latest developments on this case," he announced.

   They had all already known what was about to happen as they were all led into the room and seated in the rows of seats behind the lawyer's tables just as they entered the room.  Martha and Jonathan sat at the far end of the first row and Clark eased in next to them while keeping Lex close to his side.  Chloe and then Gab rounded out that row while Perry, Lana, Nell, Bill, and Pete Ross took the second set of seats.

   They all rose as the elder judge entered the chambers and then they were all told to be seated.  The lawyers began to sort through some papers as Lionel took a moment to glance back from his table surrounded by a set of six defenders, and took a long look at his son.

   Lex was able to put on his brave face and stared straight at the judge, never once allowing his eyes to stray, or his sight to drift over towards his father.

   A small smile came across Lionel's face as he watched Lex who seemed to be recovering nicely.  After a few seconds, his attention was called back to the judge when he slammed his gavel down on the desk.

   Looking over at the empty jury box, it had escaped no one attention that they had not been asked to return, and the trial was about to resume with out them.

    The judge removed his reading glasses and glanced over at Lionel's table.  "Will the defendant please rise for the following reading?"

   Lionel and his six lawyers all rose to their feet at the same time.

   The judge took a deep breath reading over the pages before him one finally time and then spoke again.  "Mr. Luthor, I have before me a executive order from the United States Capital Building on behalf of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in conjunction with the Congress and the White House ordering that this trial Cease and Desist at once."   The room began to murmur slightly as gasp and sighs could be heard over the judge's voice.  Clark turned his head to look at Lex who seemed to be trying to holding it all in, but his eyes were twitching as he fought to hold down his emotions.

   The judge looked up as if to warn them to remain silent, and then he continued.  "These orders have come from very high up, did they not Mr. Luthor?'

   "Yes, your honor," Lionel agreed with a tilt of his head.

   "So high in fact that the form is stamped with the Presidential Seal," the judge stated with a scowl.  "What I would like to know sir, is how on Earth were you able to get a government sanctioned pardon while we have been preparing your trial?  What are your true connections and how is the Joint Chief of Staff connected?"

   Again the court began to buss slightly.

   "What were you doing in Gotham, Mr. Luthor?" The judge asked.

   "I am sorry your honor," Lionel smirked.  "I could tell you, but as you can see from those highly placed order, then I would have to kill you," he said with a small chuckle.

   The judge gave him a nasty look.  "According to this document, I am unable to ask you any further details on this matter, but I must warn you Mr. Luthor.  Should the word get out that you are playing with an entire cities drinking water supply, then you are opening yourself up to an enormously large civil suit from the city of Gotham and it would also entail a suit against the government of this country since you seem to have drawn them into the fray."

   "I am well aware of that sir," Lionel smirked.  "But as you have already determined, I was acting in agreement with my country, and I am afraid that no more can be said."

   Jonathan had wanted to jump up and attack the smug man, who stood before him, but Martha held both of his hands tightly, and it was her sheer willpower that kept him from leaping at Lionel's throat.

   The judge took another deep breath and sighed heavily.  "I am afraid that I have no other choice in this matter but to call this trial adjourned and to close this case."

   Gab wrapped his arms around his daughter as the judge slammed down his gavel.  The pressure was no longer weighing heavily on her, but it also was not relieved having never reached its closure.  She leaned into her father's shoulder and cried.  "It was all for nothing.  All the poor people who have suffered for this, and it's all for nothing."

   Gab tried to comfort his daughter as he held her head while she cried.

   The judge slammed his gavel down as they all were talking among themselves.  "There is still one order of business to attend to," he announced as a hushed gathered over them.  "There is the matter of the kidnapping charges and faking of Mr. Luthor's son's death."

   "Your honor," one of Lionel's defense attorneys spoke up.  "With all do respect, you have been ordered not to try any cases in connection with this matter any further."

   "The injunction states that the state can not pursue these matters of poisoning the drinking water, young man," he said back.  "However the matter now lies with any insurance companies that may have been defrauded and with young Mister Luthor himself."

   "You honor?" Lionel gave a puzzled look.

   "It is my indication by reading all the transcripts and depositions that Alexander Luthor was being held against his will, and therefore he is entitled to file kidnapping charges against his father should he see fit."

   Again all eyes were on the silent Lex as the defense layer turned back.  "First off your honor," he started with a rushed demeanor.  "If you will review the transcripts, you will find that no insurance claims were filed nor was their even a legal death certificate issued; only a notification of death given by the late Doctor Burns who never followed through on the issue.  As for the personal property, Mr. Lionel Luthor never acquired Mr. Alexander Luthor's assets due to the fact that he would have needed a death certificate to do so.  He only took temporary control acting as executive of Alexander's estate."  He took a deep breath.  "So as you can see, sir, no laws were broken in this matter."

   The judge seemed to be angered by his statement.  "I see," he grumped.  "You have covered all the bases on this one, haven't you?"

   "Your honor," the lawyer gave a slight grin.  "No laws were broken.  There is no trial for you to preside over."

   "Let's not jump to conclusions," the judge grinned back.  "As I said, there is still one accuser left to speak."

   The room became silent again, and they all watched as Lex leaned forward over his own knees struggling to regain his composure through short and shallow breaths.  Clark hovered over him and wrapped his left arm over his friend.

   "Lex, it's okay," he whispered into his ear.  "You can do this, I'm here for you buddy."

   "I can't do this, Clark," Lex whispered back.  "I can't do this and he knows it."

    "That's okay," Clark tried to assure him.  "You don't have to do anything you are not ready for.  Tell the judge you need a few days to think about it."

   "You don't understand," Lex grabbed Clark's other wrist from inside of their small huddle.  "I'm weak and he knows it.  I've always been weak, and he has always played on that fact.  Every time I retaliate, it blows up in my face."

   "Not this time, Lex," Clark assured him.  "This time you are in the right, and the law is on your side.  And you don't have to be afraid of Lionel," Clark showed a small smile.  "I'll protect you."

   Lex stopped from his shaking for a moment and looked directly at Clark's eyes.  "And you would, wouldn't you.  Even if it meant giving up your life for mine."

   "That's what friends do, Lex," Clark said softly. 

   "Mr. Alexander Luthor," the judge called.  "Will you please rise and approach the bench."

   Lex looked up from his seated position as he sat up straight again.  Clark removed his arm and allowed Lex to rise to his feet unaided.  He knew that he would not want Lionel see that he needed anyone's help, so Clark allowed him to act on his own.  Chloe and Gabe moved their legs aside as Lex slipped by them into the aisle.  His movement was slow and deliberate, but Lex was determined not to let his father see how difficult this was for him both in body and in mind.

   He walked past his father and never glanced in his direction, but he could feel his father's constant stare on him.  Lex moved with a slight limp that was becoming progressively worse as the day, and his stress level, went on but still he slowly made his way to the judge's desk at a total of about fifteen feet and he stood looking up as if he were a small child waiting for punishment from his parent.

   "Mr. Luthor," the judge showed a warm sympathetic look for the first time since they had all been called into the room.  It was meant to be gentle and inviting, but Lex resented it because he knew that the judge now thought he was weak and needed the coddling of the court.  "Mr. Luthor, at this time, I must informed you of your legal rights in filing a formal complaint against your father for the unlawful and unwarranted abduction of yourself from Metropolis General Hospital when you were suffering the effects of your accident."

   "I am aware of my rights, your honor," Lex said with words that sounded more like an insistence than the 'thank you' he had wanted it to sound like.

   "Well then," the judge was taken back a little bit.  "Is it true as stated in these other reports that you were taken from the hospital and held against your will by your father with the use of various unknown drugs while he continued to allow the world to believe that you were dead?"

   Behind him, a room full of people who knew what he had gone through waited with bated breath for Lex's reply.  Each allowed their minds to drift a slight bit as Lex lowered his head in thought.

   Pete was still angry with Lionel's apparent ease at getting out of the noose they had tried so hard to tie tightly, while his father Bill Ross could not help but wonder what type of connection Lionel must have had with the United States Government to get away with what his son had declared to be genocide.

   Perry White wished he had been allowed to bring in his notebook to record the events as they unfolded.  He tried desperately to make mental notes of all he heard, and he wondered what he would truly be allowed to write about the government involvement once they had been released from this room.

   Lex took a deep cleansing breath as he tried to collect his thoughts and just say the simple words, 'yes your honor.'

   Nell Potter sat silently watching as she remembered how she once thought of Lionel as a good friend, but she knew now that all of that was gone, while Lana Lang tried to send as much positive energy she could to Lex as he stood shaking before the judge.  She also tried to fathom how she could be so worried about how this was affecting Clark at the same time.  "Bruce," she thought.  "If Bruce were here, he would know what to do."

   Chloe Sullivan's hands were shaking almost as much as Lex's as she thought how deeply these events must have been ripping away at his already questionable inner soul.  She wanted to jump up and wrap her arms around this seeming gentle man/child as he struggled with his very self.  Then there was Clark.  She glanced side way down two seats and could see that he was very upset and worried for Lex, and he was practically holding himself to the seat to keep from jumping up to his defense.  She felt a welt of pain in the pit of her stomach for him as he was forced to watch helplessly.  She reached across the seat and placed her hand over his gently.

   Gabe Sullivan watched as his boss stood there like a small child before the room of people who should know him, but had little to no idea about who this man really was.

   Clark Kent felt little comfort in Chloe's hand, but he took it willingly into his and held firmly to his friend's strength while he in turn hoped that Lex would hold firm onto his.  Martha Kent took Clark's other hand into hers and she held it with both fist on her lap.  She could feel her little boy shaking, and she could see his lips were moving in a silent prayer for his friend.  She joined in with his conversation to God as a tear rolled down her face.

   Jonathan glanced over at his wife and son, and he wished to God that he could feel the compassion for Lex that they both felt, but in his not-so-deep insides he hoped that the two Luthors would just destroy each other and leave his family alone.

   "Mr. Luthor," the judge spoke up again.  "Are these things I have stated true?  Were you kidnapped by your father and held against your will?"

   Lex Luthor raised his head slowly, and he seemed to be standing a slight bit taller as he looked up at the judge and declared, "Yes, your honor.  I was held prisoner by my father and drugged to keep me under his control."

   His confession broke the cloud of silence in the room and Lionel's defense team began to speak quietly among themselves.  Even the bailiffs and stenographer seemed shocked by his admission, but still they continued to do their jobs and watch on.

   A slight smile came to Judge Stone's lips as he realized that he might have a case against the elder Luthor after all.  He cleared his throat and wrote a few notes on the pad before him.  "I see," he returned with a serious tone.  "Then, by the earlier admission of Miss Potter and if Mister Clark Kent holds to his deposition, we should have enough proof to make a case against your father."

   Lex let his gaze drift away from the judge and he stared down at his hands.

   "There is only one official matter to deal with before we can send this matter through the legal process to set a court hearing," Stone spoke as he wrote more notes.  "At this time I must ask you if you wish to file official charges against your father, and we can begin the documentation at once."

   Lex froze midpoint of opening his mouth, and he looked up at the large court bench that stood before him.  He wanted to talk and say that they needed to throw everything they had at Lionel to make him pay for his evil acts, but he found himself without a voice and a clear thought.  Had he not been cleared from the drugs weeks ago, he would have sworn that he were still under their control, but Lex knew enough that his reaction was from no drug in his blood stream, but from a sudden urge of dread that seemed to take him over from head to foot.

   Clark jumped to his feet ready to do something to help, but when Martha pulled at his arm, he too realized that there was nothing he could do for Lex now.  This was a matter that he had to deal with on his own.  Lex needed to be able to handle his father in his own way and in his own time if he were ever going to be able to be his own man again.

   "Come on, Lex," Pete said low and under his breathed.  "Don't blow your chance to nail the old guy."

   Even Bill Ross with his own hatred for the Luthor name was surprised at his son's reaction with the case.  He had learn to let go of his rage over what the Luthors had essentially robbed from the Ross' a long time ago, but he had never thought of what all those years of built up hate and rage was doing to his son.  He knew when they got home the two Ross men would have to have a long serious talk.

   Still, Lex stood, trying to swallow the large lump in his throat that kept him from being able to speak.  He licked at his dry lips and then wiped them with a shaking hand as the judge and the rest of the courtroom looked on.

   "Mr. Luthor," Judge Stone spoke up again.  "We need a decision if we are to continue."

   Lex's fingers began to wrap tightly around each other and then released, only to make the same motion again a split second later.  It was a nervous reaction that Lex had inherited from his mother and had taken from childhood into his adult years.  His arms shook with each passing of the finger over each other, and Lex kept squinted his eyes as if trying to force out some type of decision through his tear ducts.

   These movements did not go unnoticed by most of the on lookers, and Lionel was the first to see the similarities between his son and his late wife.  He watched as Lex struggled with his inner man to decide if and how Lionel should be punished for his sins against his son, and a small part of him broke.

   "Your honor," Lionel stood to address the judge much to the surprise of everyone including his legal team.  He tugged his tie to a straighten position as he looked across the room at the state man on the bench.  "My son has every right to hate me, your honor," he spoke slow and carefully.  His eyes drifted over to Lex who stood frozen staring at the judge.  "He has every right to hate me, because everything he has said is true."

   A few gasps were heard among the group.

   "Mr. Luthor?" The judge questioned.

   "It's true, judge," Lionel's stare drifted down to the table as his lawyers tried to call away his attention.  "After my son almost died, I did fake his death and hold him against his will."

   "Your honor," the head lawyer stood up again.  "I must ask that my client's words be stricken from the record.  He has been under a great strain and is speaking under direst."

   "Sit down, Smithers," Lionel pushed him back into his seat.  "I know what I am doing, and it's time I lived up to own mistakes."

   Lex finally found enough energy and turned his whole body to face his father.

   "That's right, son," Lionel spoke directly to him.  "I admit it.  I made a mistake and I thought I could protect you by holding you close to me, but I was desperate and I acted on the advice of my security chief who I now know was wrong, but I take full responsibility for my own actions."

   "Your security chief told you to kidnap your son, Mr. Luthor?" Judge Stone asked.

   Lionel nodded his head slightly.  "Yes, your honor, but it was I who agreed to act on his advice."

   "Who is this security person?" Stone flipped through the files.  "Why have I not heard anything about him before now?"

   "Mr. Randolph is no longer with us sir," a bailiff spoke up handing him a few pages.  "Mr. Randolph was scheduled to be here with the others today, but he had previously been held for psychiatric evaluation in the same hospital he had tried to hide Alexander Luthor when we received word that he tried to make an escape by climbing down on some tethered bed sheets from his second story bed room, but the sheets slipped and he fell to the ground landing on his head breaking his neck.  He died instantly."

   Clark could not help but fall back into his seat.  He knew that Randolph was being held because he had told what he saw Clark do to save Lex, and a great surge of guilt over took him as he covered his face with his hands.  Martha had seen this look enough to know what must have happen, and she wrapped her arms around her son.

   "And how lucky for you, Mr. Luthor," Judge Stone remarked as he was reading the report.

   "As I said. Judge," Lionel spoke up again.  "I hold only myself responsible for my act against my son."

   Lionel moved around the table and approached Lex.  "But I assure you son, that I did what I did for you."  His hand touched Lex's cheek.  "I wanted to protect you.  Morgan Edge had gotten to you once already, and I could not take the risk that he would return should he find out that he did not finish the job."

   "So you kept me locked up against my will," Lex found his voice again, but his words were filled with vile distaste for the man before him.

   "No, Lex," Lionel's voiced cracked.  "I kept you safe."

   Lex grabbed his father's hand that was resting on his face and twisted it away with a sudden surge of energy that made Lionel wince in pain as he held the hand out to his side.

   One of the bailiffs began to move forward, but the judge motioned for him to stand down, and they all watched attentively as Lex held his father at his mercy.

   "Alexander," Lionel's voice returned with force as he tried to pull his arm away from his son.  "You are hurting me son," he said sternly.  "I must demand you let go."

   "No," Lex leaned into his face.  "How does it feel to be at my mercy, father?  How does it feel to have someone else controlling your pain?"

   "Lex," Lionel pulled away violently hurting both of them in the process.

   Lex wrapped his good hand around his hurt one as he gritted his teeth.  "I hate you for what you have done to me and everyone in this room."

   "I said it was a mistake," Lionel nursed his sore arm under his good one.  "I made a mistake and I am greatly regretful for my actions, but I can not go back in time and change what has happened, Alexander.  All I can ask is that you accept my sincere regrets and we move on from this."

   It took everything Lex had to fight down his emotions as he stared into his father's eyes with all the hate and disdain he had built up over the years.  His short breaths were again labored and the quick rising and falling of his chest only helped to remind him of the recently healed ribs he had been so careful to keep coddled up until now.

   Lionel had started to stretch his arms out to his son, but the look in Lex eyes gave him a quick pause and he pulled them back.  He instead slipped his hands into his pocket and lowered his line of sight.  "I am sorry you feel this way, Alexander, and I hope some day you will be able to get past this."  His head rose suddenly.  "But know this, Lex.  What I did to protect you, I would surely do again if I thought there were no other way."

   Lex watched as his father turned and walked back to his seat.

   Clark tried to get a handle of what must have been going through his mind, but Lex was able to place his poker face over his pain again and he slowly turned back to the bench.

   "Well," Judge Stone commented.  "It appears we have a confession Mr. Luthor, but we have yet to charge the assailant."  He paused for effect and then asked, "Do you wish to file charges of kidnapping and imprisonment against your father, Mr. Luthor?"

   The room again fell deaf to him as he stared down studying his own hands again.  His mind was racing and his heart beating louder than he ever thought he had heard it before in his life, and still Lex struggled to feel some emotion other than the grief that was welting up inside of him that he hope would tell him what to do.

   "Mr. Luthor," Stone called out.  "I am afraid that if you do not wish to file charges against your father, that I must ask you to stop wasting any more of this court's time.  This case has been a disaster up until now, and I would like to make one legal precedence before we leave here today."

   Still Lex stood dumb founded as they all stared and he knew that each of them was going over all the details in their mind, and most had made his decision already, but this was Lex's choice to make, and he had to be truly sure before he spoke his next words.

   The clock on the wall ticked away until finally Lex squared his shoulders and looked up at the judge.  His face was strong and sure as he parted his lips and spoke the words.  "No, your honor," he said firmly.  "I do not wish to file any charges at this time."

   Judge Stone's face became stone cold as he looked down in disbelief.  His own shock was matched by several gasps and groans from others in the courtroom.  It took a long moment for him to regain his composure.  "Are you sure?"

   "Yes, your honor," Lex nodded not giving any indication to the sick sour churning that was going on in the pit of his stomach.  "He may be a sick old man," he continued.  "But in memory of my mother, I am choosing to remember that he is still my father, and for her I must allow him to remain free and live with his own guilt over what he has put us all through on his own terms."

   "Very well," Judge Stone nodded and turned to Lionel.  "I have no choice but to release you Mr. Luthor, but be assured that this court will be watching you very closely for the foreseeable future, and be advised that should any of the facts change in any of these cases and I find just cause, I will have you back in here in a real court trial so fast that it will make your overblown head spin.  Have I made myself clear?"

   "Yes, your honor," Lionel could barely contain his smile.

   "Good," he turned back to Lex one last time.  "And I advise you to look into that stature of limitation on filing charges against your father, and should you choose to go forward with this matter then I will gladly try this case."

   "Thank you, sir," Lex tried grinning slightly.  "But there won't be any charges or trial."

   Judge Stone slammed his gavel down one last time and called an end to the proceedings.  It was not long before he and the other court officers were gone.  Lex stood in the same spot as the others began to file out of the room.  Lana was the first to approach him.

   "I'm sorry things didn't work out the way we all thought," she smiled.  "But at least we can all put this behind us finally."

   "Thank you for your concern," Lex said even though his true emotions had become paralyzed.  He forced himself to leaned in when she hugged him.

   "Let me know if there is anything I can do for you."

   "I will," he lied with a soft smile.

   Lana stepped away and Chloe took her place.

   "Chloe," he again forced a smile.

   "Welcome back to the world of the living, Lex," she gave him a big hug.  "I just hope Lionel has learned his lesson once and for all."

   "He hasn't, I'm sure," Lex grinned past his tired eyes.  "But thank you for saying so and for all the help you were in investigating this mess.  I'm sure if it had gone to trial, you would have helped put my father away for life."

   "Gee, thanks," she said with a quirky grin.  "I think."  A serious look came over her face as she thought back.  "It was a real experience, but I at least made one good friend out of this.  I just hope we meet again one day."

   "I'm sure who ever it is," Lex took her hands and spoke from the heart.  "They will never be able to forget you."

   "Thanks, Lex," Chloe wiped away a tear from her bright smile.  "That really means a lot."

   Lana was on her way out when Clark stopped her at the door.  "Lana," he touched her arm lightly.  "I have something for you."

   She watched as he pulled a picture from his pocket and handed it to her.  It was a portrait of the four of them at dinner in Gotham City that Bruce had taken for a remembrance of the night.

   A smile came across Lana's face as she saw the faces grinning back at her, and the sight of Bruce's warm smile.  Then her heart melted as she remembered how much she had come to care about this distant and cold man.

   "Alfred gave it to me before I got on the plane, and he said that Bruce wanted you to have it."

   Lana took the small pictured and admired it one last time.  Her eyes became distant as she handed it back to him.  "You keep it, Clark," she sighed.  "I have enough ambiguous relationships in my life, I don't need anymore."

   Clark took the picture back and shoved it his pocket.  Lana patted his arm as she passed by for the final time.

   Martha stood in the aisle next to Nell who was gathering up her stuff.  "It's over," she said with a slight grin.  "Are you okay with that, Nell?"

   Nell turned to face her with a disappointed glance.  "I think I am, Martha," she said with a soft sigh.  "I may never know what Lionel did to me back in his office and what effects all those drugs may have on my body for years to come, but I take comfort in knowing that I will never have to look at that man face ever again, and for that I am grateful."

   Martha hugged one final time.  "Well, you go home and let Lana drive the car to Smallville so you can rest," Martha said with her mother mode in gear.  "Jonathan and I will have you and Lana out to the farm for dinner one night."

   "That would be nice," Nell returned and walked away.  "See you, Jonathan," she waved.

   "Bye Nell," Jonathan said standing at his seat behind Lionel and his defense team.  He turned back and reached over the wooden fence and held Lionel by the forearm.

   "Jonathan," Lionel gave him a big toothy grin as he took notice.  "Can I help you with something?"

   Not sparing any of strength, Jonathan pulled the elder man to within six inches of his face and spoke with clenched teeth.  "You got away with everything this time, Luthor," he grunted.  "But so help me God, if you ever try and pull something like this on my family again, then I just might forget that I am a Christian."

   "What are you saying, Jonathan?" Lionel made deliberate eye contact.  It was a business tactic that he had used over the years to win the game of intimidation, but Jonathan was not backing down.

   "I'll make it easy for you to understand, Luthor," Jonathan's nostrils flared.  "You harm my family ever again, and I will be standing trial for your murder."

   Lionel tried desperately to maintain his smile, but it was clear to him that Jonathan had won this game of fear, and he pulled his arm away with a creased brow.

   "Jonathan," Martha touched her husband's shoulder.  "We should leave now."

   Pulling his attention away from Lionel, Jonathan nodded in agreement at his wife, and he allowed her to lead him back into the aisle.

   "I'll get the paperwork started on getting the charges dismissed against you in Smallville, Jonathan," Bill Ross stopped at the end of the row of seats.  "Once I have Lex swing by the court house and sign the papers, I am sure the charges will be dropped instantly."

   Martha made her way over to Clark who stood by the door watching Lex in his silent vigil in the same spot he had been in for the last ten minutes.  "I know a lot of people may not agree," she opened touching his arm.  "But I think Lex did the right thing."

   "I know, Mom," Clark agreed.  "The guilt of sending Lionel to jail would have eaten away at him for years to come if he had gone through with the charges, so it is much better for him even if its not what Lionel deserved."

   Martha hugged her son.

   "I just hope Lex can get past this," Clark added.

   "He will, Clark," Martha smiled up at him.  "All he needs is a little help from his friends."

   Clark grinned back at her.  She understood his concern for Lex like too few people ever could, and for that he was grateful.

   "Are you driving with us, son?" Jonathan walked up to them.

   "No," Clark replied with a short pause.  "Alfred arranged for us to get a rental until Lex could get his assets back, so I thought I would drive it to Smallville for him."

   "Oh, okay," Jonathan reluctantly agreed.  "Well, don't be home too late, son."

   "Actually," Martha kept looking between the two of them.  "Perhaps it would be better for Clark to stay at the mansion for a few days until Lex gets use to being home and alone again," she suggested knowing that it was what her son wanted.  "I mean, Lionel still thinks that Morgan Edge might be out to get Lex again, so having Clark around for a little while might help to calm everyone's nerves."

   Jonathan looked up at his son and thought for a minute.  "Okay, Clark," he shrugged.  "Just make sure you are home for a few hours everyday to help with your chores.  We are coming up on harvest time, and we can't be neglecting the farm any more than we already have."

   "Sure, Dad," Clark hugged his father.  "Everything will be back to normal in a few days, I promise."

   "Mr. Luthor," Perry White approached Lex.  "I just wanted to say that I hope you are feeling better really soon, and when you are ready someday, I would love to get an interview with you for the Planet.  It's a darn shame that government secrets are going to keep me from penning a by-line on this story, but an exclusive with Alexander Luthor would sure go a long way in making up for the lost."

   Lex looked down at his hand when he shook it.  "I think we can arrange that," he smiled up at Chloe who was still standing with him.  "So long as we can include the Daily Planet's newest and brightest cub reporter," he shot her a small smile and a wink.

   "Oh, Lex," she blushed.  "I was just an intern and my summer job is over."

   "But you were a darn find one," Perry draped his arm around her shoulders.  "I just hope you will apply for an internship again next year, because I can assure you that you have my vote for approval."

   "Thank you, Mr. White," Chloe grinned.  "I will definitely be back."

   "We need to get back on the road, honey," Gabe Sullivan walked up to his daughter.

   "Sure, Dad," she said hugging both Lex and Perry one last time before walking away.

   Once they were alone, Gabe shook Lex's hand.  "I just wanted to say welcome back, Mr. Luthor."

   "Thank you, Gabe," Lex returned.  "Oh, and I understand there may have been some mix up about your having a job with Luthor Corps after testifying against my father, and I just want you to know that you can put that fear to rest."

   "Thank you, Mr. Luthor," Gab beamed a large smile.

   Lex patted his shoulder.  "I'll be back in a few days once things are settled with my legal assets, so we can talk more then."

   "Sure," Gab shook his head and walked away.

   Chloe hugged Clark at the door.  "I'm glad this has all worked out for the most part," she told him.  "I'm just sorry so many people got hurt in this mess."

   "Me too," Clark gave her a gentle smile.  "I also want you to know that I spoke with Alfred, and he promised that if he heard anything about or from Salina Kyle, that he would email the Torch with his findings as soon as possible."

   "Thanks Clark," she grinned with a sweet smile.  "You're a true friend."

   "I hope so," Clark's sight drifted to Lex who was standing alone again.

   Chloe patted his arm one last time before her father took her hand and lead her from the room.  "Take care of Lex for me, and I'll see you back in Smallville."

   When Chloe had left and the room seemed sadly quiet, Pete Ross finally got up from his seat and walked over to Clark.  "Hey," he grunted with a disappointed tone.

  "Hey," Clark returned softly.  "I'm sorry things didn't turn out like you had hoped."

   Pete shuffled his feet and shifted his hands in his pockets.  "I know," he sighed.  "Lex really blew it this time."

   His statement disappointed Clark, but he wasn't about to give in to Pete's resentment of the Luthors.  He knew his friend was a good and kind person, and if Lex had not been born with the same last name as Lionel, then he might have even given the young man a chance, but those were things better left for a perfect world, and Clark knew he and his closest friends did not live in that perfect place.

   "Some people might say that Lex actually saved the day, Pete."

   Pete shrugged his shoulder.  "And some people might still be wrong, Clark," Pete said as he took a step past him.  "I still say Lex blew it big time."

   Clark waved to Pete's back as he walked out of the room.  "See you back in Smallville, Pete.  I'll call you after my chores, and we can go get some cold drinks down at the Talon tomorrow."

   Pete, with his shoulders hung low and one hand still in his pocket, waved back his approval, and then he too was gone.

   The courtroom suddenly felt large and empty as Clark looked back at Lex from his stance at the door.  The only other people in the room were Lionel and his two remaining lawyers, who were going over some last minute paperwork in the corner.

   Lex stood silent and still as he watched the judge bench for no other apparent reason but to have somewhere to focus his sight.  Clark made his way down the aisle and stood silently next to his friend.

   After a few minutes, Clark allowed his stare at the bench to waver, and he turned his head to the left to look at Lex's face.  "So," he spoke softly with a slight hint of amusement.  "Not exactly a 'Law and Order' moment, was it?"

   "Pete was right," Lex said slightly above a whisper.  "I blew it, didn't I?"

   Clark looked away again.  "I don't know, Lex," he sighed rocking on his heals slightly.  "I would like to think things might have worked out for the better."

   "Everyone wanted me to put Lionel in jail," Lex grunted.  "I was the last chance of hope for anyone getting restitution from him."

   "Revenge is not restitution," Clark reminded while still rocking.  "I'd like to think that this whole mess is over, and now no one has to feel bad for anything they might have done to punish someone else."

   "I feel bad, Clark," Lex squinted his eyes.  "I feel bad because I let my father get away with all his horrible acts, and he will never feel sorry for what he did."

   "That's where you are wrong, son," Lionel's voice came up behind him.

   Clark turned quickly and saw that they were the last remaining three people in the dimly lit room as the bailiff has just lowered the lights.  "Mr. Luthor?"

   "Clark," Lionel showed his soft side for a moment.  "Could I have a moment alone with my son?"

   Clark looked at a reaction from Lex's face.  "I'm not sure that's a wise idea," he began to make excuses as Lex reached out, still not losing his sight of the bench, and placed his hand on Clark's shoulder.

   "It's okay, Clark," he spoke softly again.  "My father just wants a minute to turn the final screw.  It's the Luthor way."

   Clark wanted to fight Lex on this, as he knew in the pit of his stomach that it was wrong to leave Lex with Lionel for even a moment, but he respected his friend enough to agree.

   "Okay," Clark placed his hand over Lex's on his shoulder.  "I'm going to go wait by the door, but I'm not leaving this room."

   Lex pulled his hand away and gave Clark one last glance.  "Thank you, Clark."  He then returned his sight to the bench.

   Once Clark was in place at the door, Lionel walked around to the front of his son until they were face to face.  He wore a great wide grin as he inspected Lex from head to foot.  "Son," he gushed.  "I can not tell you how it warms my heart to see you doing so well."

   "No thanks to you, of course," Lex spat softly.

   "No," Lionel nodded.  "No, I have to agree with that.  I had no real idea how much we were harming you when you were back at Luthor Corps."

   Lex remained silent even after Lionel paused to see if there would be a reaction.

   "I," Lionel began again with what appeared to be grief in his eyes.  "I can not tell you how bad I feel for what you have gone through, but I want to assure you that I thought I was doing my best to protect you son.  We needed to hide you so Morgan Edge would not be able to get to you again."

   "And you framed the Kents so he wouldn't know he had gotten to me in the first place." Lex spoke with anger.

   "Yes," Lionel looked away.  "I was scared and felt cornered, so I reacted instinctively and I tried to throw the trail off so Morgan would not know he had bested me."

   Lex's jaw began to tense up and his fist were clench by his side.

   "Lex," Lionel took his face between his hands.  "It was wrong and I know that now, but I have to tell you that at the time it was the only option I had, and given a chance to do it all over again, I am not sure I would have changed anything."

   "Is," Lex stumbled on his words through his anger and rage.  "Is this your idea of an apology?"

   Lionel pulled his hands away quickly.  "I am not sure if I truly have anything to apologize for, Lex," Lionel truly believed what he was saying.  "Yes, I am sorry that you felt hurt and grieved through all of this, but I would think you would also want to thank me for saving your life and getting you out of harms way."

   The shaking began to overtake Lex's body as he tried to keep from losing his self-control.

   "Lex," Lionel almost screamed with joy.  "We are alive and free, again.  It may have cost nearly a third of my empire to obtain a government pardon, but we have done it and worked together to save each other."

   Lex looked at his father's face for the first time that day.  His brow was creased and his eyes seemed to be dark with anger.  "Saved each other?" Lex's repeated.

   "Yes, son," Lionel patted his arms.  "I am thanking you for not letting them put me on trial for saving your life."

   "You almost killed me, father," Lex spat.  "Those drugs and subtle forms of torture drove me out of my mind, and your lies almost made me snap for good.  How could you say that you saved me?  You almost killed me in a worse way than Morgan Edge could have ever dreamed up."

   Lionel stepped back with surprise.  "How," he stuttered.  "How could you possibly say that?  You're my son and I love you Lex.  I would do anything to protect you."

   "No, father," Lex screamed at the top of his lungs.  "You were saving the Luthor name and valor.  You couldn't care less if I were dead or alive, but you would not let the Luthor name be attacked by some mad man mobster who had his sights on you all along."

   "Lex," Lionel swallowed hard.  "You are not clear on what you are saying.  I care about you, son."

   Lex pulled his father's collar and grunted into his face.  "You never really cared about me, Father.  I was always a simple waste of your time whom mother made you drag along like a rag doll because she thought we would grow closer."

   Lex's chin was quivering and his jaw was still clenching as he spoke.  "Then when I lost my hair in the meteor storm, you no longer thought I was some little pansy waste who had no real back bone for your idea of business, but you now thought of me as some freak.  You could barely stand to have me in your house, much less love me like the son I was."

   "That's not true, Alexander," Lionel seemed to be pleading.

   "What little love you may have had was lost forever on the day mother died," Lex continued with total disregard for his father's emotions. "After she was gone, no boarding school was far enough away, and on those rare vacations when I was allowed to come home, you would find a hundred reasons not to be there."

   When his words had stopped, Lionel reached up slowly and pulled himself free from his son's grasp.  He straightens his collar and then turned away.  All he could hear was the heaving huffs of Lex's breathing behind him as he allowed his thoughts to drift to the past.

   "What happened, father?" Lex spoke up again after a few silent seconds.  "Did I bring the truth too close to the surface for you to handle?"

   Lionel raised his face to the heavens and took a deep breath.  "You are wrong about so many things, Lex.  My years of trying to mold you into a man to be reckoned with has also made you hard to the truth of my true feelings for you."

   Lex backed up to one of the tables and leaned rested his back against it.  "Then why don't you fill me in, father?  Why don't you tell me how you really feel about your son who has been such a disappointment to you his whole life?"

   "And again you have gotten it wrong," Lionel said with a sigh.  "You are not my enemy, son, nor do I hate you.  I love you, Lex."

   Lex let out a grunt of disbelief.  "You love me so much that you could never spend two minutes in the same room with me until I was your prisoner.  Tell me how that kind of love works, father."

   Lionel lowered his head and closed his eyes.  "Do you remember your mother's face, Lex?  Do you remember her long red hair and her full cheeks?"  Lionel's voice drifted off slightly.  "Do you remember her eyes?"

   Lex had to struggle to get a mental picture of his mother in his mind again.  It had been so long and his young mind has glazed over the mind's eye of the only woman he had ever truly loved.  "Yes," he finally said.  "I remember."

   "Her eyes," Lionel said as if he were taking in the scent of a sweet rose.  "They were so bright and blue, Lex.  When I looked into them, I could see the world as it should be and how it could have become had she lived to fulfill her dreams.  Each time I looked into them, I lost myself in her love for me.  She was the one person who truly understood me with all my faults and shortcomings.  Her eyes were a world safe from reality where we could live and not give a care for the problems around us."

   "This is all really romantic, father, but where does that give you permission to ruin my life?" Lex cut him off callously.

   Lionel turned to look at his son again.  "You have her eyes, Lex," he said softly.  "Your eyes have always been so deep and blue just like your mother's, and I have always been able to see the promise of my lineage in them.  When you were young, I feared your eyes and all the promise and hope that they held that I was expected to deliver to you."

   Lex turned his head slightly away as Lionel continued.  "When you lost your hair, your eyes lost a little of their spark and promise, but they were still bright and hopeful, but I felt in my heart that your loss would weigh heavily on you and I was sure you would never be able to over come your handicap, but you proved me wrong, son.  In fact, your mother was the only one who predicted that you would be the strong and self assured man you have become."

   Closing his eyes, Lex tried not to let his father's words dig any deeper into his heart than he was able to bear, but he knew that the elder Luthor was treading on his soul.

   "Then she died, Lex," Lionel's voice almost broke again.  "The love of my life and only woman who would ever truly understand me was gone, and I was heart broken beyond words, but there you were with her eyes.  She was gone and would never return, but still her eyes were watching my every move through you."  He again lowered his head and slightly tilted it to one side.  "So I knew I would loose my mind if I had to look at those eyes every day, and it only became easier to just avoid them and to keep sending them away, and that is what I did Lex.  I never rejected you son, but I had to find a way to get away from her eyes."

   "And then you took me prisoner," Lex snapped at him.  "Very good story, father, but the pieces don't actually fit together perfectly. Where does the friendly hostage thing enter into the equation?"

   Lionel raised his head and met Lex's angry gaze and he took a few steps forward.  "On that night, Lex," his voice was actually a slight bit horse with grief as he spoke.  "The night I got the call and we rushed you to the hospital, I looked down into your face and I called for you, but your eyes never opened.  Your mother's eyes never looked back at me like they have all these years.  It was then that I panicked after a few hours we had put all the pieces together that someone was gunning for you, and I knew I could not let you die or stay in harms way.  I needed to save Lillian's eyes."

   Lex studied his father closely as he too studied his son.

   "I could not let the last part of your mother leave me, so I did what I had to do to make sure that you were safe," Lionel told his son.  "I never meant for you to be so tortured and unhappy.  All I could do was keep you under control until I could find a way to make you understand.  To make you want to help me help you, and then one day, you were supposed to understand, Lex. You were suppose to thank me, son."

   Lex's eyes grew dark again.  "Thank you?"  You almost killed me."

   "I told you that I did not mean for those things to happen," Lionel insisted.  "I love you Lex, and now here we are and you are healing nicely, Morgan is gone, hopefully forever, and you are alive because of my quick action in working on your behalf."

   Lex had to look away from his father.

   "Please, Lex," Lionel pleaded.  "You have to understand why I did the things that I did.  You have to understand it was for your own good."

   "No, Father," Lex, snapped again.  "It was because of your perverse need to keep the memory of your dead wife alive in your sick little mind any way you had to do it, and I never even figured into that equation.  I was just the body that held the eyes that looked like hers."

   "That's not true, Lex," Lionel shook his head.

   "Please leave," Lex grunted as he stared down.  "I can't stand the sight of you right now."

   "Lex," Lionel reached out his hand.

   "Get out!" Lex slapped it away.  "You are not my father and I am not your son any longer.  Get out of my life."

   Lionel shied away from him with a less than hurt look on his face.  Even in dealing with his only son, Lionel did not allow his true emotions to be reflected in his face, but still the small jittering of his left eye gave notice of the man who was grieving inside.

   Walking slowly to the defense table, Lionel picked up his briefcase and note pad off the table and tucked it under his arm.  He turned back and stopped one finally time before his son who sat on the plaintiff's table.

   "I understand that you are very upset with me right now, Alexander," Lionel said in a calm level voice.  "But some day you will want to talk and we will sit down and discuss this like reasonable and intelligent men, and when we do, I will help you truly understand why I did what I did, and then," he shook his finger with a smile.  "You will thank me, Alexander, and I will accept it open heartedly, and we will again be father and son."

  Lex did not say a word.  He allowed his father to have his last breeze of hope, and then Lionel turned his back to him.  The grief and full range of emotion was churning inside of Lex as he watch his father walk away towards the door leading to the judges chambers where he still had paperwork to finish.

   "Father," Lex looked up and called out.

   Lionel turned with a wide grin.  "Yes, my son."

   Lex slid off the desk and took a few steps towards his father.  When the were nearly two feet apart, Lionel could see Lex's nostril's flaring and his jaw clenching.  Lex stared deep into his father's eyes as he spoke with a raspy husk of a voice.  "Mr. Kent is always quick to remind me that even when we think we have gotten away with something, there is always a higher power watching and keeping track of all the horrible deeds."

   "Your point, Lex," Lionel grunted.

   "I hope Mr. Kent is right," Lex replied leaning in close to his face.  "Because right now I pray you burn in hell for what you have done to me and all these people.  I hope your flesh leaves a stench in the bowls of hell for all eternity, because it is no less what you deserve."

   Lionel stepped back from his son's wicked gaze.  He opened his mouth as if to say something, but instead chose to remain silent.  He turned slowly and continued his journey out of the room as Lex return to the table and leaned his backside against it again.

   Clark waited a few minutes and then walked up to Lex and rested on the same table about a foot to his right.  Lex kept his gaze plastered to the floor and never looked up again.  Not sure what to do next, Clark remained silent for a long while until he heard Lex part his lips.

   "Clark," he said softly. 

   "Would you like to be alone?" Clark finish after a few moments of silence.

   "Yeah," Lex returned in a short breath.

   Slowly Clark stood up and began to turn away.

   "Clark," Lex said again.

   "Yeah, Lex," he returned over his shoulder.

   "Don't leave the room," Lex gasped. "Please."

   Clark walked with careful steps to the other side of the table and sat in one of the wooden chairs and watch his friend's shoulders begin to shake.  Lex was slowly becoming drawn in by his emotions, but he still fought to keep control, but it was a battle he was sorely losing.

   Leaning forward on the table, Clark held out one hand in the air towards Lex.  As if sensing his friend's comfort, Lex reached his right hand back without even looking, and clasped tightly onto Clark's raised hand.  Clark in turn placed his free hand over Lex's and held the warm shaking hand as Lex sobbed quietly on the edge of the table.

   If life were a movie, then here is where the instrumental music would begin to play, and the camera angle would raise to the ceiling while still keeping the two young men in focus at the center of the large darken room.  The reel of credits would begin to roll up onto the screen as the lights continued to dim and the music began to grow louder and envelope all the other sounds.  The light of the room would grow darker and eventually the two friends would no longer be seen and the words would roll across a black screen, and we would know that the story was complete and finished, for now.

 The End

Hey guys, it's Christin. I'm the editor of this amazing piece you just all cried over. I'd like to (one) thank you so much for reading, and (two) thank you for putting up with me. I know that I missed some details, and even a chapter or two, but you stuck though it. It was all worth it just to read what Rick thinks. Please, everyone thank him for writing this beautiful piece. I hope to see you again when he starts his next epic! ^_^

(Christin asked if I could allow her to say a few things, and after all the work she has done, how could I say no.  Besides, she knows a good thing when she reads it.  = o ) )

*** Notes ***

Okay, so here it is.  The fat lady has sung and she exits stage left.

I hope you have all enjoyed this story as much as I have enjoyed writing it.  My heart is sad as I write these final words.  I have gotten so many wonderful responses from so many of you, that it has been heart warming and a pleasure to know that someone else enjoys my vision of the Smallville gang and how I was able to describe their adventures.  I have truly been humbled by your responses.

This is the last time I will be able to respond in this manner on this story, so let me get to it.

To: Angledust: Thank you so much for reading and letting me know that I have achieved the goal I wanted to by weaving all the subplots together where they all made sense.

To MitchPell:  Thank you again for your constant support.  I'm glad you liked the Pete and Clark part.  I had almost forgotten that I put that line in there about Pete doing what he did for Clark and not the other reasons.  I often get surprised when someone review and sees something I either forgot about or had not even truly realized I had put into the story.  Your keen eye and excellent advice has been a real saving grace through this whole story.  Thank you so much.  I only hope you liked the way this has all ended, and I don't get a ton of hate mail for letting Lionel off the hook so easily.

To Lauren: Thank you for the sobs.  I've got misty eyed a few times writing and rereading this story along the way.  It's nice to know it had the desired effect.  I just hope it wasn't too sappy.

To Merrie:  MY HERO.  Looking over the previous reviews, I noticed that you were always there with a great response and a helpful word with every chapter.  Thank you so much for reading and for letting me and everyone else know how much you liked the story.  I cannot clearly state how much it has truly meant to me.  I liked writing the Lex scenes allot, and I realized that I may have risked the chance of sounding slashy, but I felt this story warranted it.  I am also becoming more as ease with people calling my story Clex stories so long as they remember that these two guys love each other as friends but not as lovers.  It's just a very close and caring friendship; which I doubt they could ever truly have and become the people they become

To Robyn:  My last shout out to you.  Thank you so much for your support along the way.  It has meant allot.  I like to think the tears are over now, and Lex will heal.

To DarkAngel:  Thank you for your support and reading.  I liked the scene with Lionel too, and I tried hard to keep him from being the two dimensional character he may have appeared as in my earlier chapters.  He's still a cruel and mean man, but deep down he does care for Lex, for whatever reasons they may be.  The part with Alfred was sparked by a sermon a while back in my church.  The point is that sometimes we spend so much time plotting and praying for a miracle, that we sometimes forget to expect, recognize or accept it when God delivers it.  Sometimes we need to just get out of God's way or at least move onto the next step.

Well that covers it.  I hope you have all enjoyed the story and are not too mad that I let Lionel off the hook.  I try to keep my stories as close to being able to be part of the show as possible, so I don't try and change anything that would destroy the plot line of the series.  I realized that there were a few less than perfect parallels.  Lionel was not blind in this story, but he was also not blind when I started writing this.  However being blind would not have worked here, so I let that go.  Whitney didn't hang around an extra week after the storm, but I felt I needed him in this story at the beginning.  I will also not ever forget what his character meant to the show.  I think he was thrown away much too soon, and could have been worked in to do some really major good stuff.  I'm hoping he'll be found alive somewhere and show up from time to time again.  I still have some major ideas for him in any future stories I may write, so Whitney lives on.

To Marrie, MitchPell, Robyn, Suz, Teri, Angledust, Dark Angle, Ingrid Mathews, Timber Lover 360, Bennan, Lacasta, JellyBeany, Devte De Troy, Aino, and Lauran along with the rest of you who took the time to write and review at least once along the way, thank you sooooooooo much.

A special thanks to Christin for not only helping me, but for inspiring me and for keeping everything within working order on this story along the way.  I could not have done this with out her.

I plan to take a little while off from Smallville writing and work on some other projects, (Some may even find their way to the FF.net sight.) but I have at least one more Smallville epic in the dark recesses of my mind somewhere, so I hope to be back with it some time this summer or early fall, and I promise I'll try and have it all done before I post so you won't want to kill me for taking so long.  Until then, I will be reading and enjoying.  Please feel free to write if you have any questions or would like to just talk about fan fiction in general.  I know I will miss hearing from you guys on a weekly basses. The address is phaze238@worldnet.att.net .Please place something in the note section that will clue me in to why you are writing or where you got my address so I don't get scared and delete you before I read it.

Thanks again, with my best wishes and God's Blessings on all of you.

Phaze