TITLE: Double, Double, Love & Trouble? – Chapter 8
WRITTEN BY: Heather Ferguson (fergus80)
RATING: PG-13 (NC-17 where applicable will be separate)
SUMMARY: Rewrite from the end of the episode 'Unsafe.'
SPOILERS: Everything!
DISCLAIMER: All Smallville character belong to their respective whatever, the WB, etc. etc.
FEEDBACK: Always makes me smile:)
DEDICATION: To all the fellow Nuns, writers, reviewers, and readers at NWP, and of course Jensen!
RANT: Okay, I was going to try and integrate the scenes almost exactly as they had on the show into the story, to try and explain things. I will do so for quite a few more. But for those of you that watch, it is basically going to be impossible since the show went in a direction that is NOT possible with everything else that has happened. For all you writers out there, the whole idea of continuity and foreshadowing is completely lost on Smallville writers. I could explain it, I could come up with a way to do it. But the way I would have to do it, I don't want the story to take that turn. So this story is going to MAJORLY break from the show at a certain point.

She was a seething on a mission. It showed in her determined stride as she walked down the hallway in the mansion, and came to a head when she saw him. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

He just kept walking in a slow, leasurly stride. "Something bothering you, Lana?"

"You want to know something about me, Lex, ask. Don't go recruiting my boyfriend to conduct some covert investigation."

They walked into his office with her on his heals as he set his briefcase down on the desk. "Contrary to what you may think, I'm on your side."

She almost laughed, "And how would I know that? You know, with you, everything seems like it's a secret." She sighed to herself, it seemed all the men in her life had secrets and she was getting really sick and tired of it.

"What you may perceive as secrecy, I see as precautions."

Rolling her eyes, "I'm a big girl, Lex. I don't need precautions. I need the truth."

He shook his head, "Sometimes we think we want the truth until we actually get it. Lana, if you want me to be honest with you, I will. But you're not gonna like it."

"If you're gonna feed me some story about Jason, I'm not interested.

"Look, I understand he means a lot to you. But when you're ready to talk, let me know. You can let yourself out." He turned and walked out of the room leaving her there to think about his words.

It only made her more mad. She stormed out of the office and out of the mansion. She needed to think. To put things together. She thought about what he said on the whole drive home back to the Talon. It irritated her. It really, really irritated her, and she knew. She just knew that she wouldn't be able to move on unless she knew what he was trying to tell her. She paced back and forth and then finally picked up the phone and dialed, "Fine. What do you know?"

It didn't take more than an hour and Lex was in her apartment, setting down his briefcase on the counter. He snapped open the locks and fished out a photograph. He then handed her a picture, "This photograph of Jason and his mother was taken in Paris a day before he met you."

She looked at the picture of Jason sitting on a brick wall next to his mother, the Effile Tower in the background. "No, that can't be. His mom was in the Hamptons."

"Look, Lana, I'm not gonna be so presumptuous as to judge Jason's integrity, but I'll lay out a few facts. Genevieve Teague has been researching the countess since before Jason was born. He grew up in a house full of ancient artifacts and reams of research material about Marguerite Isobel Theroux."

She swallowed, "He never told me that."

Lex gave a slight smile, "Contrary to what you may think, Jason has been aware of the countess since he was a child."

Her eyes could not hide the hurt as she shook her head in disblief, "No. No, I don't believe that."

"You have to ask yourself, Lana. How well do you really know Jason Teague?"

She looked at the photo again and then back to Lex. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Thank you for the information Lex. Now, I need time to think about it. Would you please?" she asked and motioned to the door. Lex nodded, shut his briefcase and left. She shut the door behind him and leaned against it. She took another look at the photograph and sighed, "Jason, what all aren't you telling me?"

He had no idea why he had agreed to see her. It was never a good thing, but unfortunitly she was his mother. He tried not to sigh as he sat down at the table in the coffee shop across from her. "What did you want mother?"

She looked serious, "I want you to leave here with me tonight."

Jason gave her a hard look, "Why? Because of Countess Marguerite Isobel Theroux?" She looked away from him. "You know that name, don't you?" he asked forcefully.

"Is this what Lex has you doing? Researching 17th century witches?"

He shook his head, "You're incapable of giving a straight answer, you know that? So apparently when Isobel was condemned to die, she vowed to rise again through one of her descendents. You knew that that was Lana, didn't you?" His anger was coming through in his tone as he leaned on the table looking back at her. "That's why you had me bring her to Isobel's tomb in Paris because you knew that if she received the mark then she was the one. Which means it's… it's my fault that everything's happening to her." His stomach felt sick when it seemed to all come together.

She put her hand on his, "You can't blame yourself.

He eyed her hand and then stood up quickly. "How could you use me like that?"

He turned away from her in disgust and she got up and walked towards him. "Look, it's not safe for you to stay here."

Jason turned back towards her, "Well, I'm not leaving Lana."

She sighed back at him, "Well, perhaps you'll change your mind when you hear the rest of the story. Isobel was condemned by a woman named Gertrude. Isobel vowed that when she rose from the dead, that she would wipe out all of Gertrude's heirs. We're Gertrude's ancestors, Jason."

"So you think that Lana is going to kill you?

"No. But Isobel will, and who knows when she'll return?"

"Mother, I walked out on Lana once before. I'm not gonna do it again."

"Than you're in love with a girl that may kill our entire family."

He lowered his head in frustration, not seeing Lana standing at the top of the stairs looking at them. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but he didn't look too happy about it. She quicky retreated inside and leaned against the counter. She jumped slightly when a few moments later a knock came from her door. She slowly went over and opened it. "Jason." She watched his face try to take on a carefree look, and she realized he had no intention on telling her that he had just met with his mother. She also quickly came to the conclusion that she wasn't going to tip her hand just yet either. He would have to say something first, or she would need more information to confront him with.

Jason did his best to mask his inner turmoil about what he had been learning lately. "Sorry I'm a little late. Ran into someone unexpectedly and couldn't get away. Can I take you out to dinner to make up for it?"

She plastered on a smiliar smile and turned grabbing her purse, "Sure. Sounds great." She could play right along. They went out to dinner, afterwards he dropped her off at her door, and headed back to his apartment. Lana walked into her own place, and before she even sat down her belongings she reached for the phone and dialed. "Hi. I know it's late, but I have a huge favor to ask. And please… no questions."

Lana opened the door and the blonde entered. She then shut the door and walked into the kitchen. "Coffee?"

Chloe nodded and yawned. Lana poured two cups of coffee and then handed one to Chole. She took a drink and then looked over at the brunette, "So do you mind telling my why I was up until two in the morning researching Jason's family tree? I mean, not that it wasn't, you know, halfway interesting, it's just you definitely got your place in the Guinness Book of Strangest Last-Minute Requests."

The girls took their cups to the living room. Lana stammered, "I, uh, saw him downstairs talking to his mom. It was obviously a heated discussion, but uh... when he came up to the apartment, he didn't even mention it to me."

"Well, did you hear what they were talking about?"

She shook her head, "No. But it clearly rattled him. Chloe, he's keeping something from me. You know, I don't even know who I can trust anymore." They sat down on the couch. "Did you find anything?" she asked, hoping that there was actually nothing to find.

"Not much," she replied as she opened a folder. "I mean, I can only go back as far as his mom's grandmother. After that, it's like someone just chopped off a part of his family tree. There's nothing there. I can tell you that she comes from a town called Castelnois de Montmiral." She took a piece of paper from inside and handed it to her friend. "That's all I know. Well, except that..." She stopped at the look of shock on the other's face. "Lana, are you okay?"

Fear was actually rising in her. "Chloe, this is the town that my ancestors come from. And Isobel Theroux."

"Well, on a scale of weird to ten... Genevieve's grandmother is the one who moved Isobel's tomb into that church in Paris."

"Why would anyone move a witch's tomb into a church?"

"I think that's something you need to ask Jason," Chloe told her.

"I guess I'll have to do just that."

Okay, the next chapter... is going to be ALL mine. :) And a LOT longer.

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