Chapter Seven: The Infamous Return of Clark Kent

Jonathan had parked at a state park to get some sleep. When he awoke, he called his home to see if Martha knew anything. But when he called, there was no answer.

"Martha!" he said to himself. "You were supposed to stay home and wait for them, or me, to call!"

He was also kind of worried, too, about what really had become of his wife. So he called the only place he could think of. The Talon.

Unfortunately for him, when he called, the waitress said she wasn't there.

So he called the next person he could think of. Lex Luthor. That thought didn't last long, however, because he remembered he had Lex's cell phone.

Wait, what am I doing? Jonathan finally wondered. Why don't I just call Martha's cell? Right then, Jonathan was feeling pretty darn stupid.

He dialed the number, and after a few rings, Martha answered.

"Martha!" he said. "I've been trying to reach you all morning! Where are you?"

"I'm on my way to La Junta, Colorado. They arrested Pete for grand theft auto," said Martha. "He's in jail there. Abby Ross is with me. Where are you?"

"I'm somewhere near Wichita, I think." Jonathan wasn't real sure of anything right that moment, especially his whereabouts.

Then Abby's cell rang. "I gotta go Jonathan. Abby has a phone call. It might give us a clue as to where Clark is." She hung up without saying goodbye.

Judge Abby Ross was sitting in the passenger seat on her way to the police station in La Junta, Colorado the next morning. It was well over a six-hour drive, and since she hadn't gotten any sleep the night before, so she was splitting the drive with her friend Martha.

Abby's cell phone rang. Martha had been talking on her phone, and she hung up.

"Hello?" Abby said.

"Is this Abby Ross?" said an unfamiliar voice.

"Yes, who is this?" she asked.

"I am officer Blake Kramer, and I wanted to speak to you about your son."

"Hold on one second," said Abby noting the anxious look on Martha's face. She took the phone off her ear and said: "It's some police officer calling about Pete."

Martha looked just as confused as Abby.

"Yes?" she said into the receiver.

Lana, Chloe and Lex decided to let Pete's mom handle everything, and they went back to Smallville. Lex had offered to give Mrs. Ross some bail money for Pete, but she, like her son, and everyone else in her family, would not accept money from a Luthor.

So, at the Talon, they decided to regroup and figure out a new plan, seeing as how Clark was still missing.

"So, Mrs. Kent said Pete was in La Junta, Colorado," said Chloe. "So unless Clark is Speedy Gonzalez or something, he's probably somewhere near there."

Lana wasn't paying attention. She was thinking about they way Clark had been all those months ago when she was with him in Metropolis. Had Clark been drugged the same way he is now? Is that why he was like a totally different person? Maybe I made a mistake in not trusting him. But then he's still so secretive? The first time I accused him of being secretive was when . . . wait a minute, he was acting different then, too. Has this drug been around longer than we thought? But then, who would keep drugging Clark? You would think they would give up by now; he's not dead. Maybe it's some drug that Clark likes? Maybe he takes it the same way people do other illegal drugs. If that's it, does anyone know? Does Pete know? How come it hasn't killed him yet? Here we go again, with that man of steel complexion.

No, Clark would never do drugs. Besides, he's only different some of the time. If he were on drugs, he would be different all the time.

Lex saw the dazed look on Lana's face and knew she was in deep thought. "Lana?" he said, interrupting Chloe.

Lana snapped out of her dazed expression. "What?"

"Are you okay?" asked Lex. "You were spacing off."

"Sorry," said Lana. "What were you saying, Chloe?"

"Never mind. It will take too long to explain all over again. Just follow our lead," said Chloe, getting a little impatient.

Clark felt rested after sleeping. He was glad he had kicked Pete out of the room; he couldn't take anymore of the whining. He went outside, intending to take the black Ferrari for a spin. But when he went outside, the car was no longer there. He looked at his watch. It read 1:00 pm. "Wow," he said out loud to himself. "So that idiot does know how to steal from me. Not for long." He super sped away.
Abby Ross was sitting in a hospital waiting room in La Junta. Her arrested son was in critical condition. She was anxious. But then, what mother wouldn't be in her situation?

Martha knew what was wrong with Pete. She didn't need anyone to tell her. But for now, she just wanted to know where the heck Clark was. She left that one up to Jonathan, because he was armed with kryptonite to stop him with.

Jonathan knew as soon as he saw a black blur that he had just seen Clark. He was heading in the direction of Kansas. He had just crossed the border into Colorado, and now he was going to have to go back into Kansas again.

Then, he saw his old leather jacket outside a convenience store. He turned off the car and went inside. He saw a mop of dark hair poking above a shelf a few aisles away.

He took the lead box out of his pocket. "Clark," he said. Clark turned around.

"Jonathan Kent. How's it goin'?" said Clark. He had a sly smirk on his face.

Jonathan showed Clark the box. "Don't make me use this," he said, entering the same aisle as Clark and was now facing him. Cue western gunfighter music, Jonathan thought. He opened the box and watched Clark slide to the floor.

Lana wished she had paying attention earlier at the Talon. Now, as she, Lex, and Chloe were in a new Luthorcorp helicopter, Lana had no idea what was going on. She knew Lex had gotten a phone call earlier, and they were going to a hospital in Colorado somewhere.

Lex knew Mrs. Kent and Mrs. Ross were already there, but he figured somewhere in that town, they would find Clark. What Lex didn't understand is, why the effects of the drug hadn't made Clark sick yet.

Chloe was worried that maybe the drug had made Clark sick, and he was lying out in the middle of nowhere where no one would find him until he was dead.

After about forty minutes, Clark and Jonathan arrived at La Junta Memorial Hospital. They were heading back into Kansas when Martha had called to tell them that Pete was in the hospital.

Clark, no longer on red kryptonite, was wrapped in his mother's embrace so hard; any normal kid would not have been able to breathe.

"Clark-" Martha started.

"How's Pete?" Clark interrupted.

"He's gonna be okay, but it's gonna take time. They're gonna ship him back to Smallville in three days."

"Mom I'm really sorry," Clark said sheepishly.

"Clark, you couldn't control that," Martha said reassuringly. Clark still looked skeptical. But to Martha, it didn't matter about Clark and red kryptonite. She had him back and that's all she cared about.

To Be Continued . . .

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