Clark heard someone calling his name, like an echo drumming inside of his exhausted mind. At first, he really didn't want to open his eyes, content with his current state of unconsciousness at the moment. When unconscious, the pain of kryptonite seemed to ease a bit, making it almost bearable. Throughout the many instances he's been in the presence of his poison, only one other time did the pain feel this intense, and this powerful.

Oddly, though he remembered the pain, the moment itself slipped from him. When was it? I can't … I can't remember … so long ago.

A chill ran up his spine from the cold of the concrete below his cheek, under his side. He tried to think of anything but right now. Anything to take his mind away from what might be waiting for him. Death … or something worse. And with a silent smile, Clark could almost see the future. The future that waited for him. The future … with Chloe. Standing next to him, holding his hand. Between them, their child stood, pulling at the hem of his shirt, silently begging for his father to pick him up, to hold him. And when he does, he feels Chloe circle her arms around his waist, and kiss him on the cheek.

"Mr. Kent?" came the voice once more, this time much more insistent.

With a groan, Clark forced his eyes to open, the curiosity a little too difficult to fight now. Chloe … I think you're rubbing off on me a little.

However, all he saw in front of him was a blur of gray, and that only confused him more. He remembered, vaguely, coming into this room to search for Lois. How long has it been? How long was he out? Clark moaned a bit at the thought, hoping Lois was okay. Hoping Chloe was okay. Though he would love for them to find him, it was better they stay away.

They needed to save themselves.

"Mr. Kent?" This time, it was said with a slight drawl, a stretch of his last name for emphasis. "Wake up, Mr. Kent. We have lots to discuss."

Discuss?

Clark groaned again and flipped to his back. This time, he didn't just see gray. He saw a face bent over him, as well. But it wasn't Chloe's, and it certainly wasn't Lois' face, either. But it did seem familiar; enough to make him squint his eyes to see it slightly better behind the frustrating, blurry goggles of sickness. He cursed himself for his inability to put two and two together.

"Come on, Mr. Kent. I don't think it's too difficult to recognize me. I'm the one you and you're lady friend have been investigating since you've been here."

To realize the obvious.

"Peterson?" Clark asked weakly. But it couldn't be … could it? He only saw his face numerous times on the Internet while he and Chloe investigated throughout the past few days. But he did see it enough to know the man standing above him wasn't lying. And, really, it did make sense. This building, the Lyman Company in particular, was supposed to be owned by Peterson. So finding him down here shouldn't be a shock. Furthermore, underneath the current dose of gut wrenching pain, Clark suspected everything Lois investigated and claimed Peterson might have done over the past three months was probably true.

Seeing Peterson, however, certainly caused Clark's anxiety to rise a bit. This is his building, his company, and his kryptonite.

His kryptonite …

He obviously must know something about me.

Peterson smiled widely. "Very good. I would hope you would know what I looked like if you've been investigating me."

Clark sighed and closed his eyes, desperate to fight a wave of pain that coursed through his veins. He could barely think at the moment, think anywhere past the intense anguish of the possible outcome of this situation. And trying to play mind chess with someone like Peterson right now seemed much more difficult than usual. Though he wished the opposite just minutes before, Clark could not help but think of Chloe. Wish that she were here.

But it was a selfish thought. And he knew it.

He then noticed Peterson was studying him rather intently, and no matter how hard he tried, Clark could not suppress the agony that he knew must be clearly drawn along his own features. His captor then stood up from his bent down position, a move that finally revealed the pistol he held firmly in his right hand. And with a knowing smile, Peterson broke the momentary silence with a keen observation. "I see the meteor rocks do have a negative affect on you. I was told you might react to them this way."

Though Clark wanted to address such a comment sometime in the future, at the moment, much more was at stake. His health, as far as he was concerned, was not one of them. ""Where's Lois Lane?"

Peterson laughed and shook his head. "I can already tell you have no idea what is really going on here."

Clark huffed underneath his rasps for breath, and commented dryly, "Why don't you fill me in?"

"Okay, Mr. Kent," Peterson acknowledged with a grin, "I'll tell you what you really want to know. Because it's not like it's going to matter much anyway, especially considering all of this will be up in smoke in less than twenty minutes."

Clark felt his stomach do somersaults with his last few words; his worry heightened ten fold for his friends. "Up in smoke?"

Peterson nodded. "Yeah, you know, a huge explosion. To ensure everything down here is covered up as efficiently as possible. I wouldn't want anyone to suspect."

"Everything?" Clark asked through tight lips, his fight with the kryptonite draining more and more of his strength. He knew the length of exposure would have a direct correlation with the length of his possible recovery. Assuming he survived this at all, of course. But either way, he knew he would be of no help to himself until he gained at least a little of his strength back.

Even worse, if anyone else tried to rescue him, it would be unlikely he would be able to pitch in. Only if the kryptonite was removed … only then could I be of any assistance.

"Look around you, Mr. Kent - we are standing in the middle of the Jewel Incorporated offices," Peterson informed in a light tone, using his pistol to gesture around the room as he began to pace. "It's the very company I am sure you and Ms. Sullivan have come across a few times in your research."

Clark felt his chest tighten with Peterson's admission, his thoughts suddenly drawn completely into the conversation. When he searched the floor, he did run into quite a few offices and conference rooms, which seemed to support Peterson's words. So maybe he was telling the truth. Furthermore, it explained why he and Chloe found nothing of use on the company – no location, nothing to help them in their search for Lois. The company did not just hide from the business world, or just from the media, but it hid from all of civilization as a whole.

It did so to give itself an extra security blanket, and actually, it worked. Save for a curious Lois Lane who dared to look under the façade, beneath the distraction of car and subway accidents, everyone involved in the accidents were efficiently fooled.

And suddenly, Clark had to know. He had to know the truth.

"Did you do it?" he asked, though he struggled with his words, as the kryptonite took more from him. For anyone else, a much deeper explanation might be needed. But Clark knew Peterson would have no trouble catching the true meaning of his question.

And he didn't hesitate with his answer in the least.

"If you mean the car accident, the subway accident, the fire," Peterson began coolly, "then yes, I staged all of them. Merely to gain the votes I needed within the Board of Directors of certain companies. They weren't very cooperative. They didn't see the benefits of allowing Jewel Incorporated to take over."

Clark grimaced in pain as he spoke. "So you rushed to show them what would happen if they didn't comply? Is that it?"

"Something like that," Peterson commented with a small grin. "But I can't believe you still have not caught on."

Clark sighed and let his head fall back to the concrete, already fed up with the mind games. He wanted nothing else but to be in his room, or perhaps his loft, working diligently on the news article that would slam-dunk this guy. Better yet, he wished he were in Chloe's apartment in Metropolis, sipping sweet, red wine by the fire, and holding her protectively in his strong, loving embrace.

It's been two years since I've thought of Chloe that way … knowing it might come true if I can get out of here …

Regardless of his fantasies, they still did not take him completely away from the here and now. And, honestly, he did want to know what has truly dragged both he and Chloe to Las Vegas, if not for Lois Lane, or freak accidents, or Peterson himself. If they did miss something somewhere, he was more than happy to hear what it might be from the true source.

"Caught onto what?" he asked, closing his eyes again, and rolling his head a bit to the right.

Peterson folded his arms. "That all of this, the car accident, the fire, the subway crash, all of it was a setup - was merely the means to an end."

Clark nodded. "Yeah, I know … to buy the companies. You've said that already."

Peterson shook his head. "No, no, Mr. Kent. Buying the companies was not the goal."

"Then what was?" Clark could not help but sound aggravated. If he doesn't say something meaningful soon …

"To make sure you die."

The blood from Clark's face drained even further, and his complexion quickly turned into a ghostly white as the pang of the truth stung him deep in his soul. Suddenly, the effects of the kryptonite felt like an insurmountable weight on his entire body, its intensity driven to an unbearable extreme of the spectrum. Though his heart urged him to fight, he remained still, desperately trying to find something, anything to give him hope. He didn't want to give up, knowing he's never done so before.

He wanted to ask why – why would someone like Peterson want him dead? But, as drained as he was, he let the moment to ask slip away. Because did it really matter? Especially when Peterson might accomplish his goal? Perhaps Clark did something to him in the past? Maybe he got too close to the case? Maybe … so many possibilities. Too much to think about.

Then Clark quickly realized how easily it would be for him to accept his dismal fate. He was sure no one was coming for him. And he knew, further, that he might not survive the explosion. With the kryptonite so near, soon his invulnerability would be completely gone. And his hope for a bright future with the one he loved began to fade away into the space of the forgotten.

He heard Peterson say something else to him as he slipped his eyelids closed. Something about using Lois Lane to draw him to this trap. Something about using Chloe to urge him to investigate, to push him to his limits. With his last conscious thoughts occupied entirely by Chloe's love, by the feel of her arms around him, by the fire, and the wine, his last shed of strength finally left him completely.

Though the world went black around him, Chloe's love kept his heart beating.

And promised him a miracle.

Bomb?

Chloe barely heard the words before her heart doubled in speed. It was the last thing she expected to find down here, and she cursed herself for not assuming the worse. Clearly, she and Clark should have stayed together, even if that meant Clark physically carrying her as they sped at top speed through the numerous hallways. And she knew, even worse, how difficult it would be to climb out of the black hole that they've gotten themselves in. I barely made it through … I doubt I can find my way out when I'm timed.

"A bomb?" she finally asked, her eyes looking into Lois' for confirmation. Not that she didn't believe her, but Chloe was desperate for anything to break them out of this hell, both actually and figuratively.

Lois nodded urgently. "Yeah. When you opened the door, the timer began. He set it just before he left the room."

Chloe looked to the doorway and saw the timer on the wall, it's red light blinking for each second as it passed. Though she did not see the explosives themselves, she did see the wiring that led into the wall to something they could not see. It was anybody's guess as to where the wiring ended up, which meant finding the bomb in this maze, was probably unlikely.

With no way to really disarm it, the next solution was simple - run. And since it didn't go off immediately, they must have, at least, a little time to escape.

"Who set it?" Chloe asked, as she rushed over to the timer, anxious to see how long they would have.

Lois shook her head and commented dryly, "I don't know. Just some burly guy who kept coming in here to ensure I didn't escape or try to kill myself. We had lovely conversations."

"Well, we have nineteen minutes to escape Alcatraz," Chloe declared, and just as she turned from the timer towards the door, her eyes suddenly looked into a face she didn't expect to see.

Someone she never wanted to see again.

To match her grimace, Lex Luthor just smiled, his eyes never leaving her face.

"Nineteen minutes until what?" he asked, still slightly out of breath as he stepped into the room.

Lana, only seconds behind him, suddenly appeared. She saw Lois immediately, and rushed up to her quickly to give her a warm hug. Like weight lifted, Lana could not describe her relief of seeing her friend still alive. It had been such a long journey, one that tested Lana's sanity often enough. Not to mention her morals, as she clearly broke another friend's trust by involving Lex Luthor. Yet, in the end, the price was worth it. Lois was safe. And that was most important.

"Lois, thank goodness," she whispered, hugging her just a little tighter.

Lois smiled and hugged her in return. "Glad to see you, too, but … " she began, and then drifted from Lana, her tone turning serious quickly, "There's a bomb. I won't celebrate until we get out of here."

Chloe, however, was still trying to catch up. Before her, she saw her best friend with her worst enemy. And Lex still had not taken his eyes off of her. How this happened, Chloe wasn't even sure she wanted to know. Yet her curiosity, once again, pulled at her heartstrings. She remembered, very clearly, her dismissal of Lana when she offered to help with the case. And she did so with good reason, something her best friend had to know was for the best.

In fact, without Lana involved at all – at least as far as Chloe was concerned – she and Clark found Lois. Which only meant that Chloe knew what she was talking about in concern with her partnership with Clark, despite hurt feelings, and Lana never had to be here.

Yet Chloe understood why Lana wanted to help. And seeing her here was not what bothered Chloe the most. How she got here, apparently through Lex Luthor, was the real reason for Chloe's sudden feeling of resentment. Further, she felt betrayed. It had never been a secret for the two of them. Chloe was the most open with Lana when it came to Lex Luthor and Clark Kent. She knew how much pain Lex caused, the lives he ruined, and the destruction he often left in his wake.

But questioning Lana's bad use of resources was not at the forefront of her mind, either.

Standing in front of Lex, her emotions boiling over, despite her desperate resolution to stay calm, Chloe could not help it. Something had to be said.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Chloe asked harshly, stepping back from him slightly.

Lex sighed and placed his hands in his pockets. "I know we don't have the best history, Chloe, but, under the current circumstances, I would hope we could get past it, if only for the next twenty minutes."

Chloe said bitterly, "There would be nothing to get past if you had kept your hands to yourself."

"Chloe, I made a mistake, I admit that," Lex insisted, now stepping closer to her to suggest validity in his words.

However, it would take much more than words to suppress Chloe's anger. Especially when, at the moment, she had to fight the urge to step up and punch him across the room. Actually, she almost laughed at the absurdity of the idea. Not that she couldn't defend herself, but for some reason, Chloe sensed if Clark were here, he would take care of it. And really, Chloe preferred Clark unleash himself on Lex rather than herself. Then maybe he would realize the hurt he caused the two of them.

Instead of violence, Chloe stuck with her biting sarcasm, her one true weapon. "I didn't think millionaires actually apologized. Isn't their policy more like – give someone a million to shut up?"

"Chloe," Lana warned lightly, finally stepping away from Lois to enter the conversation. "I don't think this is the place to argue."

"What did you expect would happen when you brought him along?" Chloe asked, now directing her out of control flair towards her best friend. "A parade dedicated to his return into our lives?"

Lex then spoke up in his defense, his voice soft. "Actually, Chloe," he began, matching her gaze again, "I hoped for a second chance."

"Do you know how much he has done to help find Lois?" Lana pointed out quickly, finding it extremely strange that she was actually speaking up for him. Certainly, he still has explaining to do. But now was not the time. And Lana hoped that Chloe would see Lex as an ally rather than an enemy. Perhaps even allow this moment to be the beginning of something new – a new friendship with both Chloe and Clark.

But Chloe didn't seem to see it that way.

"Well, then, maybe you should get an award for arriving here late," Chloe snapped. "Apparently, Clark and I didn't need your help to get here ourselves."

"Chloe, that's not fair," Lana said, the edge in her voice slight but strong.

Chloe turned to her. "What's not fair? That Lex took two years of my life with Clark away? That he let us hurt over something that he caused? Tell me, Lana, where exactly is the real injustice here?"

"Hey, guys!" Lois interrupted, aware the bickering was getting much worse. Not to mention the tick tock of the bomb that sat just a few feet away from them. All three were quickly wrapped up in the soap opera of two years ago. An episode of betrayal and jealousy Lois chose to opt out of – other than talking with her cousin, of course. Regardless of the old feelings finally coming to life after so long, and the likely importance of such a conversation, this, as Lana suggested, was not the time.

Yet they continued to argue in the background of Lois' thoughts.

As my father always taught me … be tough when commanding a unit.

"Hey!" she shouted again, and this time, all three stopped their now barely understandable arguing to gaze over to their friend. The reason why they came here in the first place. "I know you all want to fight about this further. But you can't argue if you're dead. So let's get going."

Chloe sighed and knew she began this argument – this painful use of precious time they could not spare. Probably, if she had let it go for the moment, they would already be down the hall, and maybe even upstairs, with safety only feet away. But her heart would not let this moment go without the much-deserved release. Hopefully, her life and the lives of her friends did not just become the ransom for such a raw, destructive need. "Right, come on. We only have about sixteen minutes now. We're going to need every second we can get."

"I think I remember our way out of here," Lex offered with a hint of urgency, and he stepped out into the hallway just behind him.

Lana nodded and looked to Chloe, her best friend of nine long years. She didn't want to argue with her, especially now. Of course Lana knew why Chloe felt the way she did towards Lex. And, of course, it made sense. Furthermore, under the current stresses of a bomb ticking away their last moments of life, Chloe probably had no room in her heart to forgive the unforgivable.

And Lana knew she was pushing it. She could forgive Lex so much easier because she was not the center of the problem. Chloe and Clark, however, were, and they suffered greatly for it.

So arguing about this, truly, led them nowhere.

As an act of truce, Lana smiled and suggested, "We need to finish what we came here to do."

Chloe nodded, and then commented sarcastically, "Yeah, I think it would look pretty bad if we all tripped up at the goal line."

Lois sighed and moved past them towards Lex, who was now completely out of the doorway and half way down the first hallway. "Well, if no one else will move, I will."

Chloe huffed and, quickly, both she and Lana caught up with the quickly moving Lois and Lex. "I guess we're all allowed to be sarcastic today."

"Yeah," Lois began, as they all picked up their pace of swiftly walking to a light run. "When bombs are about to kill me, I'm funny like that."

It took them only a minute to reach the crossroads that connected this small hallway to the main one. The same spot where Lex and Lana, originally, took a wrong turn. With that at the forefront of his mind, Lex turned left, back the way they had come. He certainly had no wish to get all of them lost down here.

Just as they all began a full run, however, Chloe suddenly halted in the middle of the hallway. Like a lightning bolt directly to her heart, she finally remembered that Clark was still down here someplace – probably still searching for Lois. He would never leave this level without her beside him. Not that she should worry for him, though, because he was indestructible. And leaving him would be okay considering the difficulty she would have trying to find him.

Lana finally stopped about twenty feet ahead of her friend, realizing Chloe was not beside her. She turned to see her friend standing motionless, her face drawn with a hint of fear. "Chloe, what is it?"

Chloe sighed and started to move in the opposite direction. Because she knew what she had to do. "You guys go ahead."

Lois and Lex finally stopped and turned, they a mere twenty feet ahead of Lana. "Chloe?" Lois asked, a bit concerned.

Lex stepped up slightly. "Chloe, what are you doing?"

Chloe shook her head. "Clark's still down here. I have to find him."

"I'll go with you," Lana suggested strongly, and started to walk towards her. Chloe was right – if Clark was down here somewhere, they needed to find him before they left. They would just have to pray there would be enough time to escape.

But Chloe couldn't have that happen. She knew Clark was still down here somewhere. Something inside of her told her it was so, reassured her doubts. Despite his ability to take care of himself, she couldn't fight the urge – or, rather – the need to see him. To make sure he was okay. With time ticking away, the moment Chloe found him, Clark would be forced to do something super to get them out of here alive. Well, to get her out of here alive, anyway. And having someone else with them, especially someone who doesn't know his secret, would only make that more difficult.

"No, no, you keep going," Chloe urged, her distance from her friends growing.

Lois shook her head adamantly, and stepped up beside Lana. "We are not leaving you down here alone, Chloe. If Clark's still down here, at least one of us should go with you. I didn't deal with your death well the first time, and I have no wish to relive it."

Chloe could not help but smile with the comment, but continued to walk away. "It'll be okay, I promise."

Just as she turned away, however, Lex shouted back. "Are you insane?"

Chloe stopped abruptly and turned to them. Was she insane? What was really driving her to do this, especially when she knew Clark would probably be just fine? Why was she letting her worry influence her?

It was simple, really. And Chloe didn't hesitate to admit it.

"No, Lex. I'm in love."

Words that surprised her friends. Words they didn't expect to hear. Because so much had changed in the past two days. She looked at her problems with Clark differently. She looked at her love for him differently. And she looked at him differently. A change of heart.

Finally, with a smile, she turned and ran the other way.

Lex, Lana, and Lois stared at their friend's shrinking form down the hall, and then gazed at each other gravely. None of them liked the idea of leaving Chloe – and Clark, for that matter – down here alone. There was no way to tell how this would end. With Clark and Chloe in the midst of it, there was an excellent chance that they would not survive.

Which seemed to anger Lois more than any of them.

"What, we're just going to let her go?" she asked bitterly.

Lana shook her head, and looked towards the path that would lead them to safety. Of course she wanted to go after Chloe, and of course she wanted to find Clark. No matter their differences, she's always loved those two. Chloe has been her best friend for years, as has Clark. Clark – the love of her life. Her heart ached for him right now, aware that he might be in trouble. Aware he might not survive this.

Because Chloe was right … he must still be down here somewhere. Otherwise, he would have found them.

But that worry was hers no longer. Chloe would find Clark. Lana was sure of it. And the best thing she can do right now is respect her best friend's wishes. Apparently, Chloe knew something that the rest of them did not. Keeping that in mind, Lana felt confident, despite everything, that she would see her two best friends on the other side.

She just knew it.

"Yeah, that's what she wants," Lana whispered.

Lex then urged quietly, "Let's go."