"How are you feeling, Chloe?"

Chloe grinned upon seeing Smallville's favorite billionaire walk into the room. "Better, thanks," she replied with a slight laugh. "Leave it to me to always get in sticky situations."

Lex looked at her seriously. "It's not funny, Chloe. You know you could have been killed."

Her smile fell. "Yeah, Lex, I know. But sometimes it's better to be an optimist instead of a pessimist."

Lex nodded while chewing slightly on his lip in a look of pure thought. "Just make sure that you don't turn that optimism into willing ignorance to the problem."

Her face fell a little more. "Thanks, I'll be sure not to."

Sighing, Lex said, "Look, I didn't come here to fight."

She nodded. "Yeah, I know. I'm out tomorrow if it makes you feel any better."

"It does," he said sincerely. "You've identified to the police that it was Jason Teague who shot you."

"Yes," she answered. "He's officially on the wanted list, but there are still no leads as to where he is. All the roads out of Smallville are blockaded, but so far there's been nothing."

Lex continued to chew on his lip. "Naturally, that's true. Chloe, he doesn't want to get out of Smallville. No, he wants to get into my mansion."

"He's still after Clark then?" she inquired calmly, but Lex could see the underlying fear.

"There's no doubt. He was crazy-with or without the drugs-and he thinks Clark holds the key to the stones." Lex simply looked at Chloe for a minute before finally asking, "Does he?"

"Does he what?"

"Hold the key to the stones. I think he knows where one of them is."

"I think you need to talk to him about that," she replied, her tone a bit icy.

"I think you're right." Lex turned to leave, but stopped at the door to say, "By the way, come to the mansion once you get out of the hospital. I know Clark will want to see you."

Chloe nodded slightly as Lex left the room. As she watched the door swing closed she couldn't help but think that Lex sometimes just didn't know when to stop pushing.

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Clark had fallen asleep with his head on his mother's lap. The Kents had been at Lex's mansion with their son until five o'clock in the morning. At that point Lex returned.

"He's finally sleeping soundly," he commented upon walking in and seeing his friend in a peaceful slumber.

Martha nodded and kept stroking his hair. "I hate to be the barer of bad news, but it's best if you leave now."

"What?" Jonathan exclaimed. "Luthor, if you think I'm leaving my son like this, you've got another thing-"

"You need to put his safety before your desire to be near him." Seeing the lack of understanding on the Kent's part, he added, "If you aren't at home in the morning it will be obvious that you were somewhere else. People will get thinking. When people think, they gossip. I'm sure in some way or another that gossip will get back to Jason. When it does he'll realize that you know where Clark is, and that would be an infinitely dangerous thing."

Though both looked upset to be leaving their son at such a vulnerable time, both got up, Martha untangling her hands from her son's hair and laying his head upon a pillow, and Jonathan simply standing up and giving his son one last affectionate rub of the shoulder.

As they were moving to leave, Jonathan Kent stopped and held out his hand to Lex. At first Lex only looked at the hand until it dawned on him that he should shake it. Trying not to act too surprised he put his hand in Jonathan's. "Lex, I want to sincerely thank you for what you've done for Clark. You're a better friend than I ever gave you credit for."

Lex could only stare numbly at the elder farmer. Finally he managed to say, "Thank you, that means a lot, Mr. Kent."

Jonathan only gave him a slight nod before following his wife from the room. Lex wandered back over to his chair by Clark's bed. He went back to his role of stroking Clark's back gently and thinking about the significance of what had just been said.

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Jason watched the Kent's truck pull into their driveway and to the barn. He listened quietly to the hidden microphone on their porch. He hadn't been able to get one in their house, because they were the type of people who always kept their door and windows locked. While that annoyed him he'd still gotten some good information out of bugging their door.

The Kents ascended the steps and their conversation came into ear shot or the microphone. "Martha, I don't know."

"You saw him!"

"I don't think we can do anything right now."

"Jonathan, he's-he's in terrible emotional pain! I can't just leave him like that. Besides, he hasn't healed yet anyway! There's still Kryptonite in his system from the injections Lex said Jason gave him."

Jonathan sighed as he fumbled with his keys. "As much as I hate to say it, I think that right now the best place for him is with Lex at the mansion. That hidden room Lex has him in is about as safe as he can get. Jason will never find it."

He finally found the right key and put it in the slot. The door unlocked with a sharp 'click'.

"But he was-you saw him! That's our son!"

Jason heard no more, because at that moment they went inside. He smiled slightly. It didn't matter; he'd heard enough anyway.

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Clark awoke with a start. "Mom?" he gasped out, aware of how wet his cheeks were.

"No, Clark, it's me." Lex was sitting beside his bed, curled up in a red armchair, a blanket over him.

Clark breathed a little easier. "'m sorry, Lex. I-just a dream."

"What was it about?"

Clark shrugged. "Just nightmares about the lab."

Lex nodded understandingly. "You went through a lot," he said simply. "More than you ever should have had to."

Clark scooted up in bed. "You can go get some sleep, you know. I'll be ok."

Lex shook his head. "I don't want you alone. I know what it's like to have memories manifest themselves in dreams."

Clark only nodded. "And before you left me with Chloe. She's coming back tomorrow, right?"

Lex smiled softly. "Yes. She'll be here tomorrow." Abruptly he yawned and then gave Clark another good-natured smile while kiddingly saying, "And I'll be able to get some sleep then."

Grinning back, Clark slipped back under the covers. "It was good to see my parents."

"I imagine it was."

"Lex?"

"Yes?"

"What was your mother like? I mean I know you've said she was loving and kind but-"

"She was wonderful, Clark. She reminded me of what your mother would be like if she was married to Lionel Luthor. Maybe your mother is a little bit stronger than mine was, because she cracked in the end, but she was a wonderful lady. She loved me more than anything-Julian too."

Clark smiled softly, his eyes beginning to droop. "She sounds wonderful. Why'd she marry your dad though?"

"Arranged marriage. Well, not officially, but her family basically forced them together and put pressure on them to marry. That's why I say she wasn't as strong as your mother was: Because she caved and married him. Her parents were killed shortly after that and Lionel inherited all their estate because it was left to 'Lillian and her husband."

"So your dad took control of everything?"

"Yes."

"Huh."

Lex smiled and leaned back in his chair. "Get some sleep, Clark."

Clark nodded and snuggled back down into the pillow. "Okay." A few minutes later he was out. Lex watched him for a little longer to insure that he was alright and then fell asleep as well, curled in the arm chair.