Lois put down her phone, just as her new boss, Elise, dropped a file down on her desk. Lois looked at it, then at Elise.
"What is this?"
"Your new assignment. If you can make something out of this, then it might make up for your faux pas this morning."
Lois sighed and glanced over at the window into Phoebe Halliwell's office. Lois then looked back at Elise.
"I thought that was my new office."
"I never said you were getting one. You have a nice desk, out here with the other minions. When you prove yourself worthy, then maybe you can have an office."
"Really?" Lois asked, leaning back in her chair. "I don't see a lot of empty offices just waiting to be occupied."
"Phoebe's is not for the taking."
Lois shrugged.
"Fine. I just don't see what makes her so important. I mean I could do what she does. Give out advice. I'm very good at that."
"So I gathered." Elise answered wryly.
"My point is this: I'm here to do real, gritty reporting. I think I'm more deserving of an office than some advice columnist."
Elise motioned to Lois to lean forward. Lois did so.
"Phoebe knows that you briefly dated the owner of this paper, Jason Dean, her ex-boyfriend as well. There is also the very strong impression around here, that he is how you got this job. Now, if you want to disprove that, then bring me a real story. One that makes Phoebe's 'Ask Phoebe' column, obsolete."
Elise then walked off. Lois eyed the folder again, then picked it up and opened it. It was filled with information about some missing scientist named, Dr. Swann.
Lois tossed the folder down and picked up her phone. She dialed long distance, then waited....and waited. Finally, she got the Luthor residence. Lois then asked to speak to Lana Lang, telling the servant who she was. It seemed like an eternity until Lana finally came to the phone.
"Hello?"
"Lana? It's Lois.....Lois Lane."
"Yes." came her stilted reply. "I remember you. How are you?"
"I'm fine, thought not as well as you're doing. You know I once had a small crush on Lex myself."
"Is that why you're calling? To tell me you plan to stop our wedding?"
Lois emitted a fake laugh, one that she noticed Lana didn't join in on. Was Lana serious? Did the woman actually think she had designs on Lex?
"Uh no. That was small talk, so I could build up to want I wanted to talk about."
"Which is?"
"Lana, not to be rude, but I'm sensing a whiff of attitude from you."
"Can you blame me?"
"Uh, yes! Especially when I've never done anything to you."
"Oh, so you still think that, huh?"
Lois looked around the room, as if she were afraid everyone could hear Lana on her end.
"Look, I won't keep you, since hearing from me is obviously an unpleasant experience, for whatever reason. But Clark is here."
"Oh? Where is here?"
"San Francisco. He's staying with Chloe. So am I actually."
"My, how cozy."
"Lana, I'm just going to come out with it here: Clark told me he has a son. He also thinks that maybe the mother of this child has no memory of giving birth to him. I want to help Clark and I thought you might want to too."
There was a very long silence. Lois thought Lana may have hung up.
"Lana? Lana, are you still there?"
"Why are you calling me, Lois?"
"I told you. I thought you might want to help."
"No you didn't. You're snooping for something. Somekind of information that Clark won't give you. Like who the mother of this child is. You think it's me, don't you?"
Lois cleared her throat.
"I take it from your hostile tone, that you are not the mother of this child. That's good for your future marriage to Lex....I guess. I don't suppose you have a clue as to who the mother is, do you?"
"You know, I really don't want to get dragged into this."
Lois sat up in her chair.
"You do know who she is, don't you Lana?"
"Oh, you bet I do!"
Lois said nothing. Lana sounded so hurt and bitter. Lana was NOT this kid's mother. Clark probably had to confess and Lana was still hurt. It was then that Lois began to wonder if Lana really was over Clark? The woman was getting ready to marry Lex Luthor....was this a rebound marriage?
Lois cleared her throat.
"I don't suppose you'd be willing to share the identity of this woman, would you?"
"I think you should talk to Clark, Lois, before I say something I may regret."
"Lana, I care for Clark, really I do. I just want to help him. I won't even tell him where I found out about it...."
"How about I give you a hint, Lois? What if I told you that this woman is someone you have to look at everyday?"
"Are you being funny?"
"There was nothing funny about finding out that Clark cheated on me! There was nothing funny about finding out that Clark decided that his first time should be with someone else!"
"Clark was a virgin?"
"Like you didn't know!"
"How the hell would I know?! I'm just asking a question!"
"Look, I'm sick to death of talking to you. If Clark had just been upfront with you, I wouldn't have to put up with the indignity of talking to you!"
"Indignity? Lana, I think you'd just better tell me what the hell your problem is? Now, before I...."
Lana hung up. Lois peered around her. Elise was watching her. Lois painted on a smile.
"That was a hot lead on....on...." Lois began, looking at the folder again. "Dr. Swann's disappearance. A lead that's going to have to take me out of the office."
Elise walked over.
"Really? It sounded kind of personal to me."
"Well it wasn't. I....I....found out that Dr. Swann may have had a lovechild before he disappeared."
Elise's eyes lit up, at the potential of a trashy story.
"Really?"
"Yes, I just have to go and confirm some things."
"Alright, Lois. I'll trust your instincts."
Lois nodded, picked up her purse and hightailed it out of the newsroom. She was going back home to confront Clark! The mother of his child was someone she knew. That was what Lana had been trying to tell her. But why cop an attitude with her? Or was Lana just angry with the whole world?
No, Lana was angry with her. Specifically with her. Something else was going on here and Lois intended to find out what that was.
Chloe and Clark kept careful eyes on Cordy and Kyle, as they ran around. Clark reached for a sandwich and decided to broach another topic.
"So, I haven't seen Lois in awhile. She seems the same." Clark said diplomatically.
Chloe shrugged.
"Yeah, I guess."
"You guess?"
"Yeah. I mean we sort of lost touch after Faith's wedding."
"Lois was at Faith's wedding?"
"Yes."
"So you knew Faith's late husband?"
"Yes, Dan."
"Well, that had to be kind of uncomfortable....you know, Lois and Faith in the same room?"
"Uh...well Faith and Lois got along just fine until the wedding reception. That and I think the whole thing was more uncomfortable for our neighbor and her husband, down the street."
"Why?" Clark asked, chomping on a sandwich.
"Because she used to go out with Dan. But they managed to stay friends."
"Oh. Well what happened with Lois?"
"Clark, I'm not sure I should say anything...."
"Chloe, I'm just curious, that's all. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."
Chloe kept an eye on Cordy and Kyle, before speaking.
"Okay, okay. I know you won't go spreading this around. Lois got strangely drunk at the reception and kissed Dan."
"I don't understand. I mean maybe she was congratulating him...."
"Uh no, Clark. I saw the kiss. Lois was all over Dan. She claimed she trying to 'wipe cake from his face'. And what bothered me, was that Faith kept yelling about Lois being 'on something'. Lois can handle her liquor, this much I know. I always wondered if she didn't mix the liquor with something else and...."
But Clark had tuned Chloe out. Lois could have accidentally mixed her depression medication with the liquor. He just couldn't see Lois jumping the groom like that.
"I don't know. Maybe she was just drunk. I shouldn't have said anything. I mean I know nothing for sure. And I've asked Lois and she just always is tight-lipped. It worries me."
"Why?"
Chloe shrugged.
"She never used to be that way. Things just really changed...for all of us."
Clark was quiet for a moment, before he brought up another subject.
"Tell me about Faith."
"What about her?"
"Well....like how is that she works in construction? Her being...well, you know...."
"A woman? I don't know. I do know she's someone from Angel's past. Connor knows her too. But when I've tried to ask those same questions, I get the runaround."
"And that doesn't bother you?"
"Sometimes. But I trust Connor. And I just think he's respecting Faith's privacy is all."
That answer did not satisfy Clark. He wanted to know what kind of woman was taking care of his son. He would have to find out on his own, he guessed.
Clark looked over at Cordy and Kyle. Cordy had thrown a ball at Kyle and he missed it. It ran into the street and Kyle followed after it, just as a car was coming.
"Kyle!" Clark yelled, jumping up at super speed to save his son. But it was too late....or so he thought.
The car hit Kyle, and the front bumper fell off, while the rest of the front of the car, smashed in. Kyle began to cry, as Clark picked him up and held him. The owner of the car got out and began to scream about his car!
Chloe picked up Cordy, who was crying as well. What the hell had they just witnessed? She walked over to Clark, who was coming back with Kyle. The owner of the car was still yelling.
"Clark! What the hell is going on? What did you do? What....what happened to that guy's car?"
"Let's go, Chloe! Let's go now!"
"No! Now you scared my daughter and you've scared me! How did you get to him so fast? What are you keeping from me?"
"Leave it alone, Chloe! I can't explain it to you, anymore than I can explain it to that guy, so let's go!"
"I want you to put Kyle down, now! Put him down, then go back to the house and pack your things!"
"Chloe!"
"I mean it! I don't know what's going on, but my responsibility is to Faith and Kyle! I don't know you anymore, Clark. You've always been secretive but..."
Clark put Kyle down. Chloe put Cordy down as well. Chloe looked at the kids.
"Go and wait by the picnic basket, okay?" Cordy and Kyle nodded, then hurried over there. Clark realized that by the time Connor returned from Wolfram & Hart, he could very well know that he and Lois were Kyle's real parents.
But his loyalty would probably be to Faith. And Clark couldn't take the chance that the woman might run or something.
"Kyle is my son, Chloe. Mine and Lois's." he said.
Chloe stared at him for a long moment, before cracking a half smile.
"Okay, I really want you to pack your stuff and leave. I am not even going to dignify that ridiculous....whatever you want to call it, with an answer."
"I can't go into the details now..."
"You can't because there are none to go into! Lois has never been pregnant, ever!"
"Not that you can remember, or Lois, for that matter. A spell erased that. One either done by Wolfram & Hart, or your husband."
"Connor would never..."
"Connor's 'spells' have probably damaged half the braincells in Smallville, Chloe! When your husband is too scared to just tell the truth, he comes up with spells!"
"You can come by when Connor is home to get your stuff, Clark! Right now, I'm taking the kids home."
"Kyle is coming with me." Clark said firmly.
"No! No, now you have really lost your mind!"
"No, I haven't. Kyle was stolen from Lois and I. Lois was put under spell so she wouldn't remember giving birth, much less getting pregnant."
Chloe stepped in front of him.
"You don't even LIKE Lois. Now you're telling me that you cheated on Lana with my cousin? Does she know?"
"Lana will confirm everything I've told you."
Chloe was more than a little surprised to hear that.
Gunn showed Angel, Wesley, Connor and Spike the folder he had gotten from Lilah, minus the information he had on Connor. He stared out of the window as the four discussed what they had found out.
"Okay, so we need to find Faith." Angel said, looking at everyone. "She needs to know this so she can fight for Kyle."
"Look, I'm on Faith's side, of course," Wesley began, "but if this Clark Kent has similar powers, maybe he should be involved in Kyle's life, to help guide him."
Spike shook his head.
"We all know the man is not going to go for that. I wouldn't. He's going to want his son. Lois is probably going to want her son."
Connor shook his head.
"I still can't believe that part. I mean I didn't think Clark even liked Lois."
"It doesn't matter." Angel said tersely. "The point is that Clark Kent, probably better than anyone, can keep his son out of Wolfram & Hart's clutches. I guess that was the point of that second spell. So they could get to the boy without his real parents knowing."
"And it failed to work on Kent because he's not really human." Wesley surmised.
Connor headed for the door.
"I'm going back home. Kent has to be confronted. He's here for Kyle. Faith isn't going to let him go without a fight."
"I'll come with you." Angel said. "Let me just go over some things with Wesley, Spike and Gunn here...."
"Actually," Gunn said, walking towards Connor. "Why don't you go over whatever with Wes and Spike and I'll catch up. I'll walk Connor out."
Connor gave him a strange look, but nodded. The two men left the office and headed for the elevators.
"Okay, Gunn, what's this really all about?" Connor asked, pressing the 1 button on the elevator.
"There was more in that file, than just stuff about Clark Kent and his kid. And you know that. Or did you hope that Lilah had just hid the part about you, someplace else?"
Connor looked around. The doors to the elevator opened. Connor did not step in, and let the doors close again.
"I was dreading the day anyone would find out."
Gunn suddenly grabbed Connor's arm hard! Connor knocked Gunn back onto the floor! Gunn got up quickly, but a few people stared.
"You'd better be glad that Angel didn't see that." Gunn said snidely. "Or I might've had to tell him why we're fighting."
"We're not fighting. I just knocked you down."
"Oh, cute! I think I'll just go to Angel now...."
"Gunn, wait! Please! This will hurt him!"
"You don't think I know that?! Look, Connor, I'll give you 24 hours. You can tell him. But I won't live with this. It's not right." Gunn said, dusting himself off and walking back to Angel's office. Connor turned and pressed the 1 button again. The doors opened quickly and he stepped inside.
Alone, Connor wondered just how he was going to tell Angel, that he was not his son. How he was going to tell Angel that the baby that Holtz had stolen from Angel, had indeed come back into this world, out of the hell dimension....through a portal in Smallville. How Holtz made a deal with him to get him out of the hell dimension by asking him to pose as Angel's son....and to kill him.....
And of course there was the very worst thing of all. General Lane, now had Angel's real son as a prisoner, and was training him to be in his new Initiative......