Thanks for being patient, folks!
It didn't take me long to hop back into my Bug and head home to use my laptop. Lois and I tiptoed back into the house in the early hours, and thankfully, Dad had never noticed our absence. He'd always been a heavy sleeper, and luckily that had worked to our advantage.
"Should I make us a coffee while you boot up?" Lois asked, heading for the kitchen before I even answered.
I nodded, tossing my purse down and tugging out my laptop from its case. "Make it strong. I don't think we'll be getting to sleep anytime soon."
My cousin shot me smirk that said she had expected as much, and nodded her approval as I quickly got online. Searching for Platoro wasn't going to be difficult, but finding the reasons why we were being directed there might prove more of a daunting task.
I clicked away endlessly on the keys, forcing every detail I could from some of the best search engines on the web. Platoro was pretty much a typical tourist spot in Colorado. It had old world ghost towns, country lodges, not to mention an abundance of untamed wilderness to discover. People from all over the world visited to go horseback riding and try out panning for gold just like the early pioneers had.
"Find anything?" Lois queried as she settled a mug of black coffee down next to me.
"Nothing that isn't right out of a tourist brochure," I pursed my lips and mouthed, "why are you sending us here, Clark?"
Lois raised a brow. "Are you still sure you even got a message from beyond the grave? I mean it could just have been a gust of wind in the barn."
I shook my head. "Lois, don't ask me how, but I know there is something in Platoro. Maybe something to do with Clark's death." I clicked away again at the keys, this time hunting for anything related to Luthorcorp or research. There was nothing. In the end, I shut down my laptop's screen in defeat. "The internet isn't going to help. I think I need to go to Platoro."
Lois had obviously been expecting my statement. "We better leave before Gabe wakes. If he's anything like the General you won't get out of the house without a twenty-four hour interrogation otherwise."
I wasn't about to argue. We both jogged upstairs and quickly packed a few clothes. Then, I grabbed all the cash I had at hand and my ATM card. There was no time to visit Platoro by car, so we'd need to take a short flight.
"You better write your Dad a note," Lois suggested. "Although, what you can tell him I don't know…"
I didn't either. Somehow, the truth just didn't seem fitting. I scribbled a few words anyway, hoping that when I returned I would at least have answers.
The flight into Colorado didn't really take long, and thankfully Lois and I managed to put together enough cash to hire a car. The rental company was a local one, so the price was at least bearable compared to the big city boys. The car itself was older than most rental models, but it was a 4x4 that may well be needed in the region we were investigating.
Lois eyed the Blazer warily as we approached it in the lot. "This thing is not my idea of a regular rental," she complained.
"It's good enough, the way you drive," I quipped back. "Let's face it, you've had more accidents than I've had wall of weird cases!"
My cousin didn't seem amused by my wit, but she climbed in anyway and I headed towards our hotel. In truth, I still had no idea what I expected to find without any clues, Maybe Clark will point me in the right direction? I didn't voice my thought. I didn't think Lois would appreciate it.
The place we were staying was small, but practical, and as I pulled into the lodge's lot I noted just how close to the wilderness we really were. In my mind, I began to really wonder if Lois wasn't right about me imagining things. What could really be out here that was connected to Clark's death?
I pushed the idea to the back of my subconscious and climbed out after killing the engine. Lois followed and we headed for the check in desk.
Inside, the lodge was just as I had expected. There was a strange, wooden smell about the place as if the timbers had only recently been cut, and yet it had been built over eighty years ago. At the counter, an aged man with greying hair awaited us. He didn't smile as we approached, and somehow I suspected he didn't have a smile in him. From Lois' expression I could tell she was having the same thought.
"Hi," I offered as we reached the oak desk. "We have a room booked for the night."
He checked the reservations list as if the lodge was bristling with visitors. In fact, I had yet to see another human in the building. "Lane?" He eventually asked.
Lois nodded and offered up her credit card to pay. The man, who seemed to get grumpier by the minute, shook his head.
"Cash only," he griped. "We're getting far too many strange folks check in around these parts just recently. Folks that stay a night and vanish without paying their bills…"
At his statement, my reporter's nose engaged like a hound that had picked up the scent of its quarry. After all, you never say the word strange to me without repercussions. I slid enough cash for our room, plus an extra twenty onto the counter. "What kind of strange people?" I gave the old man my best persuasive voice.
He rubbed his stubbled chin and eyed me suspiciously. Then, he grabbed the cash almost as fast as Clark used to run and looked around as if the room was bugged. Eventually, he leaned forward and whispered. "Young fella came around a few weeks back. Said he was a reporter from some big city paper and asked a lotta questions…"
"And?" Lois pushed.
"And it costs to get dangerous information." The old man winked, and I was tempted to tell him no more cash. The problem was he had already suckered me in.
"Dangerous?" Lois and I asked simultaneously.
He tapped his weathered fingers on the table until I offered up more notes. Then, with another quick look around he continued. "The fella wanted to know if there were ever any research facilities or industrial units in these parts. He seemed mighty particular about what he wanted to know." The old man shrugged. "I thought he was crazy at the time. I mean, who builds anything like that this close to the wilderness?"
"I'm sensing a 'but' here?" Lois was almost as intrigued as me by now.
"You're right," our narrator wagged his finger. "The young fella asked around a few more lodges and started tongues wagging. The next day he never checked out, and he never came back to pay his bill."
I sighed. "What makes you think he wasn't just a bad payer?"
A sly grin appeared on the old man's face. "Sheriff found his car all the way at the bottom of Pine Gorge a week later. Young fella was inside. The cops put it down to bad driving, but some of us locals know better. There's things happening in Platoro this last year that God and Mother Nature would never approve of…"
"And I suppose it costs more to know what?" I was running out of cash, but there was no way I could stop now. If there was a facility up here, then I needed to know. I planted more cash on the desk, but kept my hand over it until I was sure I was going to hear something worth my dollars.
"Animals," the old guy snorted. "Locals have been finding dead animals as if there were some kind of plague."
"Maybe there is some kind of infection?" Lois guessed, and was quickly shot down.
"Nope," his eyes narrowed. "Fact is, some of these critters are deformed, like something out of a darn space mutant movie!"
My heart began to pound. Was Clark trying to tell me Lex was continuing his meteor rock experiments in another state after the explosion? It made sense when I thought about it. What better way to hide your transgressions after an explosion than to move to a totally different state and use a hidden facility. Clark doesn't want more innocent people to die like he did!
"So, you're suggesting there is some kind of lab around here?" I probed.
The old man shook his head. "I ain't suggesting anything, little missy. I'm just warning you gals not to go asking too many questions around these parts if you want to keep away from the bottom of Pine Gorge…" Without saying more he tossed a set of keys on the counter. "I'd keep your door locked too, if I was you…" He ambled off, leaving Lois and I gaping at one another.
"Weird old creep!" Lois scowled, and then picked up the bag she had brought in with her. "I think he needs a one way ticket to Belle Reve."
I warily looked back to the lodge entrance. "Lois, I believe him. I think we've involved ourselves in something way bigger than we imagined. The question is, what now?"
Lois pointed towards the stairs. "We unpack, then we can worry about the mysteries of Platoro."
I nodded. First, I'd take a shower. Then, I had every intention of discovering if Lex had yet another dark secret that had already cost Clark, and the unknown reporter their lives.
An hour after our meeting with the gossiping lodge owner, Lois and I were back in the Chevy and heading back to the nearest signs of life. The local roads were pretty much just tracks in places except for the main section straight into Platoro itself, and I was trying to drive carefully after hearing the last reporter in town's fate. Lois was less than impressed with my speed.
"Sheesh, Chloe! If you drive any slower we'll stop." She threw me a glance and then powered down her window to take a look at the rocky terrain below us. Pine trees jutted out from craggy outcrops and a small stream eddied straight down onto slate grey boulders below.
If I had been here for the view, I would certainly have been impressed. As it was, all I kept imagining was how squished I'd be if our Blazer tumbled down the picturesque incline. I tried to think of our case instead of our current, lonely position on the road.
"Do you think Lex is behind the deformed wildlife here?" I took my eyes from the road and looked at my cousin with a serious expression. "What if he's got some weird continuation of level three going on?"
Lois bit her lip. "If Clark really did try and contact you, and the lodge owner isn't stir crazy from being alone up there, then maybe…" She glanced back over her shoulder, but didn't elaborate why. Then, she continued, "I haven't known Lex as long as you guys, but I don't trust the guy. Hell, I don't trust anyone with that much money."
I nodded. If Lois knew what Lex had done the day of the second meteor shower, then she'd really be accusing him. I thought about the way he had dragged me in the caves and how he had spoken of Clark. My mind began to scream again, you killed Clark. You killed him, Lex!
Lois poked me, waking me from my mental scathing of Luthor. "Chloe, hit the gas!"
I balked, about to tell her no way, but then I checked my rear view mirror. A brand new, unmarked van was following us. It was painted raven black, making me feel like I was being tailed by some secret government organization.
"I thought I saw something awhile back," Lois admitted. "But they didn't show themselves until we hit that last turn. Now hit the gas, dammit, Chloe! I knew I should have driven."
I obeyed my cousin, even though I doubted our Blazer could outrun the newer vehicle. The engine roared as I poured on the revs, but still the black van continued to gain on us. "This crate won't go any faster!" I groaned as we hit a sharp curve and our tires skidded way too close to the edge of the road on the loose gravel. If I made one mistake now we'd plummet to the sharp rocks below.
Lois turned in her seat and then ducked instinctively. I wondered for a split second what she thought she was dodging, but the next second the side window shattered in a myriad of pieces and imploded into the Chevy's cab. Amazingly, neither of us screamed. Maybe I just didn't have one in me.
Another slug headed our way, and this time I heard the crack from the rifle as our pursuers pulled the trigger. I jerked the wheel, making the 4x4 sway across the road in an attempt to avoid the bullets.
The move didn't work and the second projectile slammed into the tailgate window. I looked to Lois, wondering where it had lodged. "Lois?"
Thankfully, my cousin was unharmed. She jerked her thumb to my laptop and I realized that it was, in fact, the latest casualty. Great, Dad will kill me…if I live!
"I guess Clark really did try and tell you something." Lois seemed amazed at the revelation. "The thing is, what happens if we end up dead too?" her face was white, and to be honest it scared me. It was a very rare occasion indeed that Lois was afraid of anything.
More bullets impacted with the Chevy, this time in a burst of rapid fire that almost made my ears pop. I wanted to close my eyes from what was happening, but it was impossible. Ahead, another sharp turn loomed, and I knew I would have to slow down or lose control. The move would almost certainly put us way too close to our hunters' weapons.
"We're going to die!" I screamed out loud, but in my head I thought of Clark, and how he had always been there. Not this time, Chloe. Clark can't save you this time…
Somehow, don't ask me how, the Blazer rounded the curve and remained on the road- even if we almost did it on two wheels. I saw Lois hanging onto her seat and gritting her teeth. Then, I dared to take a look behind us.
It was an almost surreal scene. One of the younger pine trees on the roadside had tumbled down on the van for no apparent reason, and had crushed the front hood and windscreen. I gawked and hit the brakes as one thought almost exploded in my mind. It's just as if Clark pushed it over! I'd seen him perform similar feats in the past, but now, from the netherworld? I began to shake as Lois looked from the window, realizing what had occurred. Of course, she didn't connect the occurrence to Clark, but she was still freaked. The shock didn't last for long, though. Lois is an army brat that I hate to say it, has even more nerve than I do.
Lois jumped from the Chevy first, grabbing a tire iron from the trunk on her way back to the mystery van. I followed with a can of Mace from my purse and my cell phone to call for emergency assistance should we need it.
Steam hissed from the engine of the van as we approached, and a thin trickle of oil poured from somewhere beneath the front end. As we got closer, I noted the windscreen was totally obliterated. If the occupants had been crushed in a similar manner it wouldn't be a pretty sight. Would Clark do that? For the first time a hint of doubt passed through my mind.
Lois poised herself with the iron and pulled open the driver's door first. There were two men inside. The passenger had obviously been the shooter, and he now hung limp in his safety belt with the automatic rifle he'd used at his feet. Blood smeared his forehead, but I could see he was breathing.
The driver had been more fortunate, and although his legs appeared to be pinned by the crumpled and torn dash, he was conscious.
"Bitch," he slurred as Lois wavered over him with her impromptu weapon. "They won't let you live. It doesn't matter whether I live or die. They can't afford to be compromised."
"They?" I asked. "Who are they? Why would anyone want to kill us?" I don't know why I bothered. I knew someone so highly trained and capable of murder wouldn't open up.
I was right. He laughed right back in my face and turned his head away from both us girls. I glanced at Lois as if to say 'now what?' and saw the wicked look that meant she was prepared to punish the guy- especially as he'd tried to kill us. I shook my head.
"I'll call the cops," I finally said, pulling my cell out. "Then we search the van before they get here for clues. These guys came from somewhere close. There might even be something to lead us back to the facility." I had no real clue if there even was a facility, but I figured if it sounded like we knew more then the driver might make a comment.
He did. "They'll shoot you before you get within a mile of the place, sweetheart."
I knew he was mocking me, but I didn't care as long as he spilled the beans. "Oh we have enough information to gain access without being detected. If you've done your homework on your targets you know Lois here has military connections…"
I waited for a response, hoping my bluff would work. I could tell from his gaze he was weighing me up, but it was Lois' performance that won us the game. She leaned close and grabbed the guy's hair like a real pro.
"What Chloe is saying, rather too politely is that we don't need you, or any information you might have. You do realize what that means?" She leered like a hit-woman and for a moment my own cousin scared me. "It means Luthor will think you can get your butt kicked by two girls. We won't need to hurt you. He'll make you vanish off the face of the earth for your negligence…"
The trapped man grimaced. He didn't speak, but he didn't have too. His expression confirmed the fact that there indeed was a secret facility, and that a Luthor he feared was behind it. Now, we needed to find the place and discover what was being worked on there. I might not have been able to save Clark, but I could put a stop to more senseless deaths.
"Lois, do you want to search our unconscious passenger while I call the local sheriff?"
My cousin jogged around to the other side of the van, ignoring more foul language and remarks from the driver, while I put a call into the police. It was pretty hard to explain to the dispatch officer what had been going on, and in the end I simplified the incident down to an apparent accident. They could figure out the rest when they arrived on the scene.
By the time I hung up, Lois had rifled through the shooter's pockets and come up with a 45, some spare clips, and something that looked like a security swipe card. It bore no markings or insignia, but I guessed that if we could find a lock at our mystery lab, then the card would open it.
"Bingo!" I exclaimed as Lois wafted the card in the air. "Now we just need directions, and I don't suppose we're likely to find a map in the glove box."
"What about in the back?" Lois jerked a thumb to the rear of the van and I nodded.
It was probably empty, but heck, we'd come this far, and sometimes clues showed up in the most unlikely of places.
"It's locked," Lois informed me as she tugged at the reinforced lock that had been placed on the rear doors. "I guess I can fix that, though." She pulled out the automatic she'd stuffed in her belt and let off a round at the catch.
The lock gave way with one kick from her boot and we were inside. The interior was totally separate from the driver's cab, and had obviously been specially prepared for something. The walls were padded with some kind of white material and there were runners inset in the floor that would have looked more at home in an ambulance.
"Looks like the fitting a gurney is meant to slide into," I commented as I scoured the back for more details.
Lois nodded. "Do you think Luthor could have moved up to human subjects?"
I suspected he'd done that way in the past, after all Earl Jenkins had vanished after the incident at the plant. "It's possible," I answered non-commitaly. "But without knowing where it's going to be hard to prove."
More verbal abuse came from the front cab as we chatted, and I wondered if the driver was getting edgy. If he was, that meant there might be something back in the van he thought was dangerous to see. I let my eyes play across the adapted van's features one more time, trying to think like Clark might with his 'super' vision.
The only thing I eventually spotted was some kind of plate on the left interior panel. I tapped at it, and was surprised to find it slid open to reveal some kind of medical supply cabinet. So this was built to be some kind of lab-rat transporter!
Lois joined me inside and whistled at the array of unknown drugs in the hidden panel. She picked up a small ampoule and rolled it over in her hand. "There's the name of the pharmaceutical company on here, along with where this stuff was delivered to!"
I quickly looked over her shoulder to see the address on the label. "White Summit Health Spa," I read out aloud. "I guess that's our next stop, then."
Lois agreed. "We better move it right now. I can hear the cops sirens…"
I listened. My cousin was right. "Lois, you can back out now if you want to. I can't ask you to go to this place knowing what we do."
"Are you kidding?" Lois checked the 45's clip and flicked the safety on to tuck it back into her belt. "No way am I chickening out now the party is just getting going. C'mon, let's move it. Our friendly driver back there might get a call out to his boss once he gets to the hospital. We don't have much time…"
I shuddered but hastily joined Lois back at the Chevy. This time, I really did let my cousin drive.
Tbc...
