The trip was silent. Clark was thinking about what Lex could possibly gain from taking Lana. He knew Clark's weakness, all he would have to do was shoot him enough and he would die, which is ultimately what Lex wanted, wasn't it?
When they reached the mansion, Lex pulled into one of the doors in his garage and turned off the engine.
"Follow me please." Lex said, acting like a host.
"Sure." Clark mumbled.
They walked through the house; Clark's heart was beating in his ears in rhythm with the clank of Lex's expensive shoes on the hard wood floors.
Lex led Clark into a room where Lana and Mollie were tied in chairs near a large window.
"Alright Superman." Lex started, immediately changing his personality from almost charming to evil.
"I'm sure you are thinking about why I didn't just kill you when I had the chance right?" He said, waiting for Clark to answer. When he saw a small glint of curiosity in Clark's eyes, he continued.
"If you were dead, I would accomplish my life's mission, but then I got to thinking. You would be a much more valuable asset to me alive. Think of the havoc I could reek if I had someone as powerful as you to do my dirty work." Lex said, rubbing his palms together ominously.
"If that's what you want from me, you can forget it." Clark stated simply, completely refusing.
"You say that now, but what if I do this?" Lex snapped his fingers and a man came from behind Clark and pulled a gun from under his jacket and stood behind Lana with it placed firmly against her temple. Clark hesitated before speaking, Lex clearly seeing the reaction he had hoped to invoke.
"What did they ever do to you? If you have something to take up with me, leave them out of this." Clark said, trying to sound confident but sounding clearly shaken that Lana was being held at gunpoint.
"You brought them into this, not me. Now I think we should propose a bargain here." Lex said, snapping his fingers again as another man came into the room with a third chair.
"Please, take a seat." When Lex saw Clark's stern look, he sighed.
"If I tell my friend here to put his gun away, will you loosen up a bit and sit down?" Clark nodded his head and felt immediate relief as the largely set man put his gun away and took a step back from Lana. Clark took a seat and looked over at Lana apprehensively. She looked a little shaken, but otherwise fine.
"Now, if you can direct your attention over here, we can begin." Lex said with a smirk. Clark looked at Lex and pretended to listen.
"Okay, here is the plan. You do something for me, and I do something for you. This is a win-win situation, why can't you see that?" Lex said persuasively. Clark just shook his head.
"Hmm... what to do." Lex pondered while putting his hand up to his chin and pretending to think.
"I know. Why don't we give you a little incentive."
"Like what?" Clark asked, making it clearly evident that he was getting annoyed with Lex's games. Lex just continued to smile and snapped his fingers. The man that had been ready to shoot Lana stepped back up. Instead of taking his gun out, he stooped down and hit her square in the ribs. All in the room heard the sickening crack of bones as his fist descended again on the opposite side, breaking at least one more rib in the process. Lana cried out in pain and tears streamed down her cheeks. Clark swiftly stood up and grabbed the man around his pudgy neck and lifted him into the air, his breaths coming out raged from his intense fury.
"You touch her again, and you will know a whole new level of pain." Clark stated slowly, his voice seething with anger. The man looked slightly nervous at that statement and just nodded. Clark tossed him into a wall on the opposite side of the room and left a noticeable hole.
"Why did you have to go and ruin one of my favorite rooms? I thought you were more considerate than that." Lex said sarcastically. Clark was getting tired of Lex's cool façade.
"Sit down, or your little girlfriend here will know what real pain is." Lex warned. Clark sat quickly, hazarding a glance over to the girls. Both looked scared.
"Alright, what do you want me to do?" Clark asked. He heard Lana try to say something, but she had a rag stuffed into her throat and duck tape securing it tightly. Clark ignored her and looked at Lex.
"Much better. As we speak, I am planning to have some of my highly trained operatives infiltrate a high security prison and release one of my friends. He had a pretty bad record that even my money couldn't get him out of, so when they call for Superman, you will go. When you get there, instead of killing or disabling my men, you will subdue some of the guards and help them get my man out. Is that clear?" Clark looked over at Lana as she shook her head but he looked back at Lex and nodded.
"Good. Now you better get ready, they should be landing at the prison in about 10 minutes." Lex said, snapping his fingers as the girls were 'escorted' from the room and out of sight.
"Where are you taking them?" Clark demanded.
"Relax Clark, it's just for assurance. They will not be harmed if you do your job." Clark walked out of the room and followed the men who held Mollie and Lana.
He followed them into a room beneath the mansion and began to feel weak.
"Do you like my little prison facility down here? Anyone I want to keep locked up will stay locked up." Lex said from behind as he watched Clark shrivel. The green bars of the cells glowed as he clutched his stomach in pain.
"Kal!" He heard Lana shout as she was forced into a cell.
Lex looked down at Clark curiously and then smiled knowingly.
"So you didn't tell them your real identity? I'm surprised." Lex said while chuckling. Lana looked confused.
"What do you mean?" She asked Lex.
"Oh, Miss Lang, I think that is for him to tell you himself, once he has finished his task." Lex said while patting Clark's shoulder. He struggled to maintain his balance, but slid down the wall, doubling over in pain.
"I'll get you guys out of here, I promise." He said with all the strength he had before he shambled out of the room.
Lana and Mollie looked at each other nervously and then over at the two glaring guards, watching their every move. Lex vacated the room and shut the door behind him, leaving the girls in the hands of their guards.
Pete ran up the steps of the Luthor mansion, completely out of breath. He bent down to regain his normal breathing and then looked around warily. He carefully opened the large door and entered the house.
Being as discrete as possible he walked down the halls and followed the sound of voices echoing through the halls. He heard footsteps approach and squatted into an unlocked room. He saw Lana and Mollie being taken roughly down the hall followed by Clark and Lex behind him.
Pete waited until they were much further down the hall before giving up his hiding spot and making his way down the hall. He made his way all the way to the back of the mansion and found the door they had disappeared into. He waited at the top and heard Clark groan in pain as Lex chuckled. Pete could tell they were near the door, so he backed up and hid behind a pillar.
He heard bits and pieces of the conversation, but nothing to let him know what was going on. He heard Clark and Lex walk out while talking and then the door from which they had come from shut and all was quiet.
'I think it's safe now.' Pete thought to himself as he crept to the door. He creaked it open slightly and saw two large men playing cards in a corner while Lana and Mollie sat in two green cells.
Pete saw a chair near the door and quickly grabbed it, heading for the two men. He got behind the first one and hit him square in the head, knocking him into the table. The second man turned to see Pete and immediately grabbed for his gun, but was hit with a bone-crushing smack from the chair.
After noting that there were no other people in the room, Pete ran to where Lana and Mollie were watching him.
"Pete! We have to get out of here and find Kal." Lana yelled as Pete looked around for a key.
"Where are the keys?" Pete asked hastily, running and searching the men frantically.
"Over by the door." Mollie said while pointing to the key chain hanging on a hook near the door. Pete grabbed them and let both girls out of their cells.
"I don't know where they went. I waited in the hall until they left and then came in here." Pete explained while they exited the room. Lana went left, Mollie went right, and Pete spun around a few times before following Mollie.
"Hey, what happened?" Pete asked Mollie as they walked warily down the hall.
"Lana almost got shot, then she got a few broken ribs, and then Clark agreed to help Lex jailbreak some guy." Mollie summed up while looking around a corner.
"Really? And we just let the injured one go off by herself?" Pete asked. Mollie looked at him for a second before running back down the hall in search of Lana with Pete hot on her heels.