THIS IS YOUR DUPLICITY
Lex Luthor was in a mood. He sat in his office glaring at the wrapped package on his desk, debating whether or not to just take it and see for himself what happened on that disastrous day. Even now he could not remember all the details. All he knew was that he had been head over heels for Desiree Atkins. From those two days, all he could seem to remember was her face, her scent, her wet kisses. No matter how much he wanted to purge his mind of the feel of the woman, he could not do it.
He had made love to Desiree Atkins for two weeks, and that was what darkened his mood so much. He had promised to himself since he had accepted that he was in love, that he would not touch anyone else. He wanted to give her a measure of respect, and himself a portion of dignity, with that vow. And the last two weeks had ruined his effort to become that much more deserving of Chloe's affection. He was surprised that she was not cursing him from here to eternity. He did not have proof of course. Chloe had made herself scarce since the wedding. Apparently, from what he had gleaned from his conversation with Clark, the last time that Chloe had seen him was when he stormed into the Talon while she was speaking with Lana. The fact that he did not even remember seeing her there testified to how much Desiree influenced his actions.
Lex sat back and analyzed his situation. His time with Desiree had messed with his plans for the future, not to mention his blossoming relationship with the only person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. He could not imagine the hurt Chloe must have experienced when he recited that promise to another woman. He looked at the package again and tried to summon the courage to reach out and see for himself.
The door of his office opened to reveal an anxious Dr. Hamilton. The older man walked in, looking around nervously at first to determine whether or not they had privacy. This Lex could deal with. He reached for the small brown package and shoved it into the drawer behind his desk. While he was undecided about the things closest to his heart, business and research he could handle. This was what he was. He focused on the man's trembling hand. It reminded him of Earl Jenkins and the horror that he had gone through knowing that Chloe's life depended on his ability to think on his feet. Thankfully, while he was almost helpless in that instance, here he held all the aces.
"Lex, I-uh-I thought we had an arrangement," the man said. "Why this sudden urge for a face to face?"
To show his command of the situation, Lex reached for Dr. Hamilton's hand. He was still amazed at how Chloe had invested her time and effort finding out about this researcher. While people laughed off the stupidity that was Dr. Hamilton, she had been the one to believe that there was still credibility underneath the seeming insanity. Her own assessment of the man led Lex to take him under his wing. Now he needed to cut this short. Dr. Hamilton's obsession was fast catapulting out of his control. "You don't look well."
"Why did you pull me away from my research?" the doctor demanded. Yet another reason to do what he had planned. Lex would not entertain that much disrespect from anyone except Chloe. And that was only because Chloe had other things to offer, things that Lex was not interested in if it came from Dr. Hamilton. He smirked wryly. Even in hot water he was still thinking of the same things. "You know I hate progress reports."
It was time to cut the man loose. "I hear you're having some personnel problems at Cadmus Labs. They all quit when you turned violent and started throwing lab equipment." He was always disappointed whenever people who showed such promise was ruined because they allowed their emotions to get the better of them. Lex ascended to where he was now because he knew never to allow the baser instincts to overcome his logic. His father taught him never to allow emotions to rule. Because Lex knew that he was prone to feeling, he exerted more effort to keep them in check. He only failed a few times-with his mother, with Pamela, with Chloe. And with the help of a mutation, with Desiree Atkins.
"They were incompetent. Look, I thought our relationship was clear. You write the checks; I have free reign to do my work."
He made it sound so sordid. Lex shook his head. He had to finish this now because he had so much more important work to do. He had things to settle, but first he had to put everything in perspective. He told the doctor that he was effectively cutting off his funding of the project. As an afterthought, because he was trying to be a better human being, he offered to pay for the doctor's medical bills. The doctor took offense and slammed out of the room.
When he was alone in the stillness of his office, he opened his laptop and reached for the package inside his drawer. On the brown wrapping paper, it read: 'Mr. And Mrs. Alexander Luthor. Congratulations!' The return address was to the photo and video coverage agency he had apparently hired from Metropolis. Lex tore the wrap and revealed a video tape and an accompanying compact disc. In silver lettering, it said 'The Wedding.' He stood up and poured himself a glass of brandy before inserting the cd into the drive.
Lex watched as the screen revealed him standing at the end of a red carpeted aisle, smiling widely at a point in the distance. The camera cut to Desiree in her white wedding gown, the skirt full and extravagant. Her lips were curved in self-satisfaction as she marched down, waving and blowing kisses to the crowd to whom she was almost a stranger. He narrowed his eyes at the image of his ex-wife. He waited for feelings of regret and betrayal to stir inside him. Finding none, he looked at the woman he had married and found that despite being one of the most gorgeous people he had ever laid eyes on, Desiree Atkins was nothing.
The vanity march was rather long. His fingers traveled to the touch pad and fast-forwarded to go to the reception. Just a few seconds and he glimpsed an image he never thought he would cause. He stopped and played the march at the point where Desiree was halfway down the aisle. The bride passed through the middle pews, but his gaze did not focus on her. He watched inside the beautiful girl in white and lavender and yellow look tearfully at the front, where Lex knew he had stood. The scene shifted to show the event from the back, where he had a perfect view of the bride, the groom and the audience. Desiree reached the makeshift lattice of flowers, arched like a rainbow. He had reached for her hand and brushed a kiss on her knuckles. Lex gripped the arms of his chair when he saw Chloe turn her head from the kiss and hastily dotted at her eyes with her handkerchief.
The sight of Desiree wrapping her arms around his neck at the end of the ceremony, throwing her head back and laughing while he ravaged the long, smooth neck, contrasted with Chloe slipping away to the back, enraged him at both himself and the woman he had sent to prison. He knew that he was mad at Desiree because she used abilities that she gained from the meteor shower to influence the men around her. He was the victim now. Clark assured him of that. Why was he so mad at himself then?
Even as he posed the question, the answer dawned on him. He cut Dr. Hamilton loose because he could not control him. Lex prided himself with being able to conquer his emotions. He was mad at himself because he could not control the situation. He was mad because his fear of losing control left him open to Desiree's manipulations. Deep down, whether he admitted it out loud or not, Lex was mad because the way he loved Chloe Sullivan was beyond his control. He wanted to be with Chloe and he hated having caused her so much pain. But knowing that he will be surrendering his hold on his feelings if this continued, was he really ready?
It was a decision he had to make himself. Yet he found that he needed to see Chloe, to assure himself that he had not lost her for good, before finally deciding. He did not know the consequences to his own sense of himself should he decide that she was worth the loss of control, which she well was, and finding out that she was no longer interested.
Since it was a weekend, he called the Sullivan house. There was no answer. He dialed the number to the Talon and was expecting Lana to answer. It was easy to fish for answers with Lana, because she never suspected anything about his asking. Lex predicted that even if he asked her directly whether or not Chloe was in the Talon, she would still not suspect that anything was going on that she did not know about. Instead, the voice on the other end of the line was unfamiliar.
"This is Lex Luthor. Who is this?"
"Mr. Luthor," the breathless voice exclaimed. "I'm Stacy, the new waitress. Do you need to speak with Lana?"
"Yes, Stacy, I would. Could you call her please?"
There was only a brief pause before Stacy's voice broke in again, "Lana's with her aunt and her aunt's new boyfriend right now. Do you still want me to get her, Mr. Luthor?"
Lex sighed and replied, "No. Wait, Stacy."
"Yes, sir?"
Just ask and Stacy would not even know that it's not normal for you to want to know that. "Is the editor of the Torch there?"
"Oh Chloe Sullivan?" the girl said out loud, and Lex almost groaned. He hoped that no one was sitting close to the phone. "Lana's just going to her. They're talking. Do you want me to get Lana now?"
"No. Thank you, Stacy."
Lex hung up the phone intending to go to the Talon. He did not care anymore whether or not people would see him approaching the Sullivan girl. He had to speak with Chloe now. He needed to settle this in his brain and in his heart before he could focus on anything else. Before he could go there, he poured himself a drink. He cursed when he heard the tapping of a cane and some insults.
He turned around and saw his father walk in with a servant. Lionel Luthor sent the servant away. "Lex. Lex, are you in here?"
Lex sighed and accepted the fact that right now he would not be able to see Chloe. "Yeah Dad. I'm right here. I'm sorry. I wasn't expecting you. Is everything all right?" He walked over and helped his father into a chair. "Your doctors tell me your recovery is going well."
And then Lionel revealed plans that Lex could not oppose. It seemed that he would be having a guest. "How long are you planning to stay?"
"A few days, maybe a week."
Lex made a mental note that the moment Chloe forgave him enough to allow him to speak to her, he would tell her not to go to the mansion. He would not risk Lionel even suspecting that Chloe held a place in his son's heart, much less finding out that Chloe held the entire thing.
Lex Luthor was in a mood. He sat in his office glaring at the wrapped package on his desk, debating whether or not to just take it and see for himself what happened on that disastrous day. Even now he could not remember all the details. All he knew was that he had been head over heels for Desiree Atkins. From those two days, all he could seem to remember was her face, her scent, her wet kisses. No matter how much he wanted to purge his mind of the feel of the woman, he could not do it.
He had made love to Desiree Atkins for two weeks, and that was what darkened his mood so much. He had promised to himself since he had accepted that he was in love, that he would not touch anyone else. He wanted to give her a measure of respect, and himself a portion of dignity, with that vow. And the last two weeks had ruined his effort to become that much more deserving of Chloe's affection. He was surprised that she was not cursing him from here to eternity. He did not have proof of course. Chloe had made herself scarce since the wedding. Apparently, from what he had gleaned from his conversation with Clark, the last time that Chloe had seen him was when he stormed into the Talon while she was speaking with Lana. The fact that he did not even remember seeing her there testified to how much Desiree influenced his actions.
Lex sat back and analyzed his situation. His time with Desiree had messed with his plans for the future, not to mention his blossoming relationship with the only person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. He could not imagine the hurt Chloe must have experienced when he recited that promise to another woman. He looked at the package again and tried to summon the courage to reach out and see for himself.
The door of his office opened to reveal an anxious Dr. Hamilton. The older man walked in, looking around nervously at first to determine whether or not they had privacy. This Lex could deal with. He reached for the small brown package and shoved it into the drawer behind his desk. While he was undecided about the things closest to his heart, business and research he could handle. This was what he was. He focused on the man's trembling hand. It reminded him of Earl Jenkins and the horror that he had gone through knowing that Chloe's life depended on his ability to think on his feet. Thankfully, while he was almost helpless in that instance, here he held all the aces.
"Lex, I-uh-I thought we had an arrangement," the man said. "Why this sudden urge for a face to face?"
To show his command of the situation, Lex reached for Dr. Hamilton's hand. He was still amazed at how Chloe had invested her time and effort finding out about this researcher. While people laughed off the stupidity that was Dr. Hamilton, she had been the one to believe that there was still credibility underneath the seeming insanity. Her own assessment of the man led Lex to take him under his wing. Now he needed to cut this short. Dr. Hamilton's obsession was fast catapulting out of his control. "You don't look well."
"Why did you pull me away from my research?" the doctor demanded. Yet another reason to do what he had planned. Lex would not entertain that much disrespect from anyone except Chloe. And that was only because Chloe had other things to offer, things that Lex was not interested in if it came from Dr. Hamilton. He smirked wryly. Even in hot water he was still thinking of the same things. "You know I hate progress reports."
It was time to cut the man loose. "I hear you're having some personnel problems at Cadmus Labs. They all quit when you turned violent and started throwing lab equipment." He was always disappointed whenever people who showed such promise was ruined because they allowed their emotions to get the better of them. Lex ascended to where he was now because he knew never to allow the baser instincts to overcome his logic. His father taught him never to allow emotions to rule. Because Lex knew that he was prone to feeling, he exerted more effort to keep them in check. He only failed a few times-with his mother, with Pamela, with Chloe. And with the help of a mutation, with Desiree Atkins.
"They were incompetent. Look, I thought our relationship was clear. You write the checks; I have free reign to do my work."
He made it sound so sordid. Lex shook his head. He had to finish this now because he had so much more important work to do. He had things to settle, but first he had to put everything in perspective. He told the doctor that he was effectively cutting off his funding of the project. As an afterthought, because he was trying to be a better human being, he offered to pay for the doctor's medical bills. The doctor took offense and slammed out of the room.
When he was alone in the stillness of his office, he opened his laptop and reached for the package inside his drawer. On the brown wrapping paper, it read: 'Mr. And Mrs. Alexander Luthor. Congratulations!' The return address was to the photo and video coverage agency he had apparently hired from Metropolis. Lex tore the wrap and revealed a video tape and an accompanying compact disc. In silver lettering, it said 'The Wedding.' He stood up and poured himself a glass of brandy before inserting the cd into the drive.
Lex watched as the screen revealed him standing at the end of a red carpeted aisle, smiling widely at a point in the distance. The camera cut to Desiree in her white wedding gown, the skirt full and extravagant. Her lips were curved in self-satisfaction as she marched down, waving and blowing kisses to the crowd to whom she was almost a stranger. He narrowed his eyes at the image of his ex-wife. He waited for feelings of regret and betrayal to stir inside him. Finding none, he looked at the woman he had married and found that despite being one of the most gorgeous people he had ever laid eyes on, Desiree Atkins was nothing.
The vanity march was rather long. His fingers traveled to the touch pad and fast-forwarded to go to the reception. Just a few seconds and he glimpsed an image he never thought he would cause. He stopped and played the march at the point where Desiree was halfway down the aisle. The bride passed through the middle pews, but his gaze did not focus on her. He watched inside the beautiful girl in white and lavender and yellow look tearfully at the front, where Lex knew he had stood. The scene shifted to show the event from the back, where he had a perfect view of the bride, the groom and the audience. Desiree reached the makeshift lattice of flowers, arched like a rainbow. He had reached for her hand and brushed a kiss on her knuckles. Lex gripped the arms of his chair when he saw Chloe turn her head from the kiss and hastily dotted at her eyes with her handkerchief.
The sight of Desiree wrapping her arms around his neck at the end of the ceremony, throwing her head back and laughing while he ravaged the long, smooth neck, contrasted with Chloe slipping away to the back, enraged him at both himself and the woman he had sent to prison. He knew that he was mad at Desiree because she used abilities that she gained from the meteor shower to influence the men around her. He was the victim now. Clark assured him of that. Why was he so mad at himself then?
Even as he posed the question, the answer dawned on him. He cut Dr. Hamilton loose because he could not control him. Lex prided himself with being able to conquer his emotions. He was mad at himself because he could not control the situation. He was mad because his fear of losing control left him open to Desiree's manipulations. Deep down, whether he admitted it out loud or not, Lex was mad because the way he loved Chloe Sullivan was beyond his control. He wanted to be with Chloe and he hated having caused her so much pain. But knowing that he will be surrendering his hold on his feelings if this continued, was he really ready?
It was a decision he had to make himself. Yet he found that he needed to see Chloe, to assure himself that he had not lost her for good, before finally deciding. He did not know the consequences to his own sense of himself should he decide that she was worth the loss of control, which she well was, and finding out that she was no longer interested.
Since it was a weekend, he called the Sullivan house. There was no answer. He dialed the number to the Talon and was expecting Lana to answer. It was easy to fish for answers with Lana, because she never suspected anything about his asking. Lex predicted that even if he asked her directly whether or not Chloe was in the Talon, she would still not suspect that anything was going on that she did not know about. Instead, the voice on the other end of the line was unfamiliar.
"This is Lex Luthor. Who is this?"
"Mr. Luthor," the breathless voice exclaimed. "I'm Stacy, the new waitress. Do you need to speak with Lana?"
"Yes, Stacy, I would. Could you call her please?"
There was only a brief pause before Stacy's voice broke in again, "Lana's with her aunt and her aunt's new boyfriend right now. Do you still want me to get her, Mr. Luthor?"
Lex sighed and replied, "No. Wait, Stacy."
"Yes, sir?"
Just ask and Stacy would not even know that it's not normal for you to want to know that. "Is the editor of the Torch there?"
"Oh Chloe Sullivan?" the girl said out loud, and Lex almost groaned. He hoped that no one was sitting close to the phone. "Lana's just going to her. They're talking. Do you want me to get Lana now?"
"No. Thank you, Stacy."
Lex hung up the phone intending to go to the Talon. He did not care anymore whether or not people would see him approaching the Sullivan girl. He had to speak with Chloe now. He needed to settle this in his brain and in his heart before he could focus on anything else. Before he could go there, he poured himself a drink. He cursed when he heard the tapping of a cane and some insults.
He turned around and saw his father walk in with a servant. Lionel Luthor sent the servant away. "Lex. Lex, are you in here?"
Lex sighed and accepted the fact that right now he would not be able to see Chloe. "Yeah Dad. I'm right here. I'm sorry. I wasn't expecting you. Is everything all right?" He walked over and helped his father into a chair. "Your doctors tell me your recovery is going well."
And then Lionel revealed plans that Lex could not oppose. It seemed that he would be having a guest. "How long are you planning to stay?"
"A few days, maybe a week."
Lex made a mental note that the moment Chloe forgave him enough to allow him to speak to her, he would tell her not to go to the mansion. He would not risk Lionel even suspecting that Chloe held a place in his son's heart, much less finding out that Chloe held the entire thing.