Chapter 09 - Miss Independent

"Lana told me that you applied for a job at the Talon," Zoey says, walking over to where Clark and Pete were playing basketball. Her gaze flicks to the dark-haired man who had been playing basketball with Clark and Pete. She had spent the day meeting with Austin to go over the case for her emancipation, then meeting with Dr. Specter, and partaking in her first AA meeting. She had stopped at the Talon to take a look at the job applications for the part-time position.

Clark sighs. "Look, Zoey—"

"I told Lana the decision was hers on who to hire," Zoey interrupts. "I did tell her that it wouldn't hurt to give you a chance."

Clark smiles. "Thanks." He waves over the new guy. "This is Lucas, Lex's brother."

Zoey raises an eyebrow. "I didn't know Lex had a brother."

"That's okay," Lucas replies, smirking. "I didn't know I had a brother until a couple of days ago."

A silence settles over them. Clark exchanges a look with Pete. He may have trusted Lex, but he didn't trust Lucas. "Hey, Lucas—" Clark begins.

"I have to head back into town to grab something I forgot," Zoey interrupts, staring at Lucas. "Do you need a ride back to the mansion?"

Lucas nods. "Yeah. Yeah, I could use a ride."

Clark watches Lucas walks with Zoey to her car. He frowns. "I don't trust that guy."

Pete snorts. "With Zoey? Clark, I don't think she would like it if you interfered in her life."

Lex shifts on the couch. He couldn't sleep. It wasn't because the couch was uncomfortable. It was because his father had taken everything and kicked him out of the mansion. Finding Lucas was supposed to help, but so far it had backfired on him. He needed to find a way to get everything back. The front door opens and softly closes. He sits up, wondering who had the nerve to break into the Kents' home.

Then he spots the flash of blonde hair. "Zoey," Lex whispers. There's a soft thud followed by giggles. He stands and walks over to find Zoey laying on the ground. She wore a maroon buttoned-up shirt that he easily recognized as one of his and a pair of black thigh boots. "Where did you get that shirt?"

Zoey giggles. "I stole it from you. I think Lucas dared me…or I dared him. I don't remember."

Lex kneels down to help her up. He catches a whiff of alcohol on her breath. "I hope you didn't drive home."

Zoey wraps her arms around his neck. She presses against him. "I have a secret to tell you, Lex."

Lex sighs. He wasn't going to think about her body pressed against him. "Let's get you up to bed."

Zoey shakes her head. "Your dad is not blind." He stares down at her. "He said 'Make sure Miss Carmichael makes it home in one piece.' And he had that look that on his face. The one that creepy old guys get."

Lex wraps an arm around her waist and guides her towards the stairs. "You'll have to be more specific."

"You know the one," Zoey whispers, waving a hand. "It's the one they get when they're picturing you naked."

Lex chuckles as he leads her into her bedroom. She flops onto the bed. "I'm happy that's a look that I've never gotten from creepy old men."

Zoey yawns. "You're lucky."

Lex tries to ignore how smooth her skin feels as he pulls off her boots. He lays the shoes next to her bed and glances at her face to find that she's already asleep. He pulls a blanket over then makes his way back down to the couch. Once he's settled on the couch, he runs a hand over his face. "Fuck."

Zoey glances around, making sure that Martha, Jonathan, or Clark were not around. The last thing she wanted was to explain to them why she had been drunk when she had come home the night before. She had barely managed to come up with a reasonable lie as to where her car was. She was just happy that they didn't question why she had come home so late. Through, she had never expected Lex to be sleeping on the couch. She figured that he would have gotten a hotel room or something. She finds Lex in the barn, cleaning out one of the stalls. "I put your shirt with your stuff," she says, walking up to him.

"I thought that was your car parked in the driveway last night," Lex replies, throwing a shovel full of manure and hay into the wheelbarrow. "You should be careful around Lucas, Zoey."

Zoey waves a dismissive hand. "I like to have fun. He's fun."

Lex sighs. He looks at her. "I don't want you to get caught up in the Luthor family battles."

"Lex, I promise the last thing I want is to be part of Luthor family drama. I get enough of the Carmichael family drama."

"I thought you and Max got along. No battling for control CRC."

"It's not business stuff. It's more that Uncle Max is overprotective at times. And it's annoying. It…it feels like no one wants to let me be a teenager. My whole life has been decided since I was born."

Lex understood where she was coming from. Being born into a family like the Luthors or Carmichaels was a life that many people envied. Until they learned about all the strings attached. The expectation is that you would be the one to take over the family business. If there was another career you wanted to explore, it was tolerated for a short amount of time. Then you were supposed to put it aside and focus on the family business. "Just be careful around Lucas," Lex repeats, knowing that she wouldn't listen to him.

Zoey raises an eyebrow when Lucas walks into the Talon, demanding to know where Clark was. She was sitting in the corner near the counter, working on some paperwork. Clark, who was starting his first shift at the Talon, enters and immediately makes his way to where Lana was making a tray of drinks. "Lana, sorry I'm late," Clark says.

"Yeah, don't worry about it. You can make it up by taking these lattes to table three," Lana replies, pushing the tray towards him.

"I want you to fire him," Lucas orders.

Zoey stands up and walks to them. "Lucas, we're not firing Clark."

"He was a half-hour late to work.," Lucas argues. He glares at Clark. "What were you doing, helping Lex dig up more dirt about me?"

"Lucas, I am not going to fire Clark," Lana tells him.

"Okay. Then I'll fire you too."

"You are not firing anyone," Zoey snaps.

Lucas moves close to her. "I'm a Luthor, I can do anything I want."

Zoey crosses her arms over her chest. "And I'm a Carmichael," she coldly says. "That shit doesn't work on me. In fact, I think you should leave."

Lucas glares at her then walks out. Zoey could everyone looking at her. She never publicly acknowledge her family history. She knew there were questions about where her car had come from. But she avoided answering them. Her heart was racing. She felt like the world was closing in around her. She grabs her bag and quickly makes her way out of the Talon.

Max shoots the manager on duty a thankful look as he hands over the key. The frantic call he had gotten from Martha two days earlier, asking if he had seen or heard from Zoey, had replayed in his mind. It hadn't taken long to track down where Zoey had gone. A quick look at her credit card had shown a plane ticket purchase to Athens. A phone call to the local Rosewood had confirmed that Zoey had checked into one of the rooms. Max unlocks the door and steps into the room. He's not sure what he's expecting to find. There are no bottles of liquor spread around the room. A few shopping bags are scattered. He can hear the shower running.

Max knocks on the bathroom door. "Zoey, we need to talk."

The shower stops and Zoey walk out of the bathroom, wearing one of the hotel's fluffy bathrobes. She stares at Max, then sits down on the bed. She looks out the window to see the Acropolis in the distance. "I had a panic attack," she softly explains.

Max sits down next to her. "Why'd you pick Athens?"

Zoey shrugs. "I don't know. It was the first thing that popped into my mind."

"Have you been drinking?"

"No."

"Have you done any drugs?"

"No."

"Will you need to be tested for anything in the future?"

"No."

Austin takes a deep breath before he knocks on the front door of the Kent home. Zoey's disappearing act had disrupted all the plans he had made in order to get her emancipation. The door opens to reveal a worried Martha and Jonathan. "Zoey's fine," Austin answers the unspoken question.

"Where is she," Jonathan asks.

"Greece." Austin walks into the house with two men carrying boxes following him. "Upstairs, first door on the right. Clothes and personal items. Bring her computer and jewelry to me, along with any substances."

"What is going on? Who are those men?"

Austin pulls out an envelope and hands it to Jonathan. "That is an emergency court order granting full custody to Max," he explains.

Martha frowns. "Are you saying that Zoey isn't coming back home?"

"Here? No, Zoey doesn't want to come back here. As far as coming back to Smallville, I couldn't tell you. I know Zoey wants to finish her high school career here."

Jonathan shakes his head. "We are Zoey's par—"

"Were Zoey's guardians," Austin interrupts. "Even if she wanted to come back here, a judge is not going to grant custody back to you. Zoey's therapist would not sign off on it. The only reason the judge signed off on Max is that Dr. Specter said Max would be best suited as Zoey's guardian."

Martha stares at him. "I don't understand. Zoey's been fine. Dr. Specter hasn't mentioned any concerns."

Austin sighs. "I could be disbarred for this, but Zoey feels nothing but guilt when she is here. She's dealt with it since Shannon and Matt died. She blames herself. She feels guilty knowing that she doesn't have to worry about money problems. When she hears you talk about them, she feels horrible. And for the past couple of years, Zoey's been using alcohol to cope with it."

"Mr. Wells?" They turn to see one of the movers holding a cardboard box. The mover hands it to Austin. "This was under the bed."

Austin sets the box on the table. He pulls out a half-empty bottle of Scotch. "A teenage alcoholic with expensive taste," he mutters. He looks through the empty bottles, then spots the small bag with a white powder in it. "Fuck."

Jonathan shakes his head. This was not the Zoey that they had raised since she was seven. "This is not—"

"Zoey was drunk at her birthday party," Austin tells them. "She paid the bartender at her party ten grand in cash to make sure that every Coke she asked for had Jim Beam in them. The only reason we found out how bad Zoey's problem is because Oliver found her in the hallway. And she kissed him. If it had been anyone else…Look, addicts learn how to hide things really well. You can't blame yourselves."

Max runs a hand over his face. Zoey was sitting in the restaurant of the Rosewood, happily eating a plate of dolmas and drinking sparkling water. "How did they take it," he asks. Austin had called once he had left the Kent house.

"They don't believe Zoey would stash a box of Scotch and a bag of cocaine under her bed, let alone use it," Austin tells him. "They think it would be best if Zoey was at home with them. They feel that now that they know, they can actually combat the problem."

Max scoffs. "It happened right under their nose."

"I told them that. And that no judge would sign off on Zoey being in the care after spending five minutes talking with Caroline. How's Zoey doing?"

"Surprisingly good. And sober. Luckily, George knew someone who could conduct a drug test. Preliminary results show nothing currently in her system."

"Did she say why she did it? Or more importantly, why did she pick Athens?"

"She had a panic attack at the Talon after she had an argument with Lex Luthor's long-lost brother. Apparently, he used the 'I'm a Luthor' card and she threw the 'I'm a Carmichael' card down. People in Smallville don't know that she's a Carmichael. As for why she picked Athens, she said it was the first thing that popped into her mind when the travel agent asked where she wanted to go. She wants to at least finish the school year out in Smallville."

"I had all her stuff, except for the computer and jewelry, taken to your house in Smallville. Caroline has already written a note excusing her absence from school. And she says to let her know when Zoey's back in town so they can have an emergency session."

Max glances in the restaurant and alarm fill him when he doesn't find Zoey at the table. "Uncle Max." He turns to see Zoey stand in front of him with a guidebook in her hand. She points to a historical site on the page. "Stavros was telling me that this is a cool place to visit," Zoey tells him.

"I'll give Caroline a call once I know when we might be back," Max tells Austin. "Apparently, Zoey wants to visit the Temple of Poseidon."

Zoey smiles. "Stavros said the sunset there is something that you can't miss."

Austin laughs. "At least she sounds happy, Max. That's all that matters."

Max smiles as he pulls Zoey into a hug. "Yeah, you're right. As always."

Miss Independent

Miss Self-Sufficient

Miss Keep-Your-Distance

Miss Unafraid

Miss Out-of-My-Way

Miss Don't-Let-a-Man-Interfere, no

Miss On-Her-Own

Miss Almost-Grown

Miss Never-Let-a-Man-Help-Her-Off-Her-Throne