Chapter 4

Lex's father had a limousine already outside ready for them. This was not the normal kind though. The windows were rigged so that no one could see in or out and there were monitors and files organised in an area in front of the seats. Seating himself round them, Lex became even more confused and curious. It looked like some sort of covert operation.

"Okay Dad, what's going on?" he demanded.

"I know of your anxiety towards your friends secrets. You have done your own research on him to no avail and ." he started.

"Wait, how do you know?" said Lex.

It must have been Nixon. He must have sold him the information for money. But then what did he expect from a tabloid sleazebag like him.

"That is of no importance Lex," said his father dismissively, "As I was saying, I believe that you need my help, and I want yours. If you help me, I will help you. Do you understand me?" he asked firmly.

Lex did not trust his father's words. Yet something in the way he spoke with such a sense of assuredness made Lex wonder what he knew.

"What do you want me to do?"

"All in good time," he said.

Then he picked up a remote control, pressed a button and the screens flickered to life. They showed a number of rooms with no windows and no furniture. They looked more like hospital rooms, as there was some sort of equipment in the corners. In each was one single person most of them pacing, some banging on doors and a couple asleep.

"What is this," said Lex, more confused than ever.

"It is the work I have been doing secretly for the past few years. There is something special about Smallville and I believe I know what it is," Lionel told Lex, "Let me show you something."

He pulled out a rather fat file from the mini cabinet. He flipped through the pages pointing out what he wanted Lex to see.

"There have been a lot of unexplained events in the town. Most people have blamed the plant, which was the reason I investigated it in the first place. I couldn't have things like this planted on my name. However none of these cases began until the meteor shower. The fragments of these rocks have been left all over the town and, I believe, are responsible for these strange occurrences."

Lex had already half believed this theory from his listening to Chloe and Dr Hamilton, but he didn't tell his father this.

Instead he said, "What had all this got to do with Clark Kent?"

"My, My Lex, your not the most observant of people are you? Here, take this," he said as he handed Lex the file. "Clark's name appears on everyone of these files. He is always, somehow involved, and in some cases, there are unexplained occurrences around him. Here on page 6 one man says he swore he had hit him with his truck."

This brought memories back for Lex. The day of the crash he had swerved off onto the bridge railing. He had seen the boy's face, filled with terror as he'd hit him and had remembered feeling the guilt that he'd taken an innocent bystander with him. Then afterwards, when Clark had supposedly dove in and saved him, he had said it must have been his imagination. Yet somehow he could never believe that.

"What I want you to do is to plant these bugs around the Kent house. You are his friend so it won't look suspicious you going there. Can you do that? If you can, I'll tell you the rest of what I know." Said his father in a business like fashion.

Lex nodded slowly and took the bugs. His conscience screamed at him to tell his father were to shove them but curiosity got the better of him. Clark's refusal to tell him the truth had proven that he didn't trust him. Maybe the meteors had affected him somehow or had some sort of psychic powers. It wouldn't be the first time they'd both come across such a thing. Lex just couldn't understand what the big deal was. "Well if he won't be straight with me I'll just have to find other ways," he thought. Lionel, looking triumphant (which secretly annoyed Lex), signalled for the driver to turn back and gave him the directions to the Kent's house.

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