Author's Notes: It took me a long time to write this one so it is a lot longer. I wanted to make it even longer but decided to stop here and focus on another chapter. I really wonder why I still write this but I guess I've grown fond of this world and I'd like to see it finished someday.

How soon is now: March 2007.

Future Chapters: A man with a bomb and a gun. Clark learns just how "special" he really is.

Beta: None.

Feedback: I really appreciate all the reviews I get. It really makes me want to continue writing.

Disclaimer: I don't own the rights to Smallville or most of these characters. They belong to The WB, DC, and MillarGough. I'm just playin'.

V8

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V8

When the school bell rang for the last time, Lana slowly put her books in her backpack, watching Clark as he made his way out of the classroom. Then she got up and followed a few paces behind.

As Lana walked down the hall, she noticed students watching her. A few groups stopped talking as she passed to glance her way with a look of pity. She caught Whitney's eye by mistake and he looked away quickly. She thought she caught a flicker of guilt in his expression but he had moved away so fast she couldn't be sure.

After talking with Liz, Lana confronted Whitney about Clark. His immediate confession set Lana aback. She wasn't sure why his honesty scared her more than if he had lied and said it hadn't happened at all. She supposed that sometimes she felt it was easier to believe a lie than commit to the truth.

Their quiet argument ended with Lana giving him her necklace saying he should hold onto it as a souvenir of their relationship.

Thirteen months was a long time to be with someone, especially someone you didn't really love. Lana thought it was too bad that it took an act of jealous rage for her to realize that. She really needed a few minutes to wrap her head around that thought, but first she wanted to try repairing the damage her ex had caused.

Outside on the school grounds, Clark was sitting down on a concrete bench, reading a book. He was dressed in his usual flannel and jeans combo. His hair fluttered in the wind, a stray curl kept sneaking its way in front of his eyes causing him to puff air from his mouth to move it without much luck.

Lana smiled affectionately and made her way over to Clark. She took a deep breath and spoke softly, "Clark, may I have a word?"

Clark slowly lifted his face knitting his eyebrows in obvious confusion. "Sure." He shifted over to give Lana some room.

"Thanks." Lana took the seat and set her book bag down on the plush lawn. An awkward silence followed. She suddenly found herself speechless. The words she had formed in her mind caught in her throat.

They hadn't spoken more than three words to each other since that day in the cafeteria. Clark seemed to be avoiding her, but she hadn't made any effort to communicate either.

"Lana?"

Lana blinked a couple of times and realized she had been staring mutely at Clark for well over a minute. She laughed and shook her head. "I'm sorry. I'm not completely here at the moment."

Clark smiled back and Lana thought he looked amazing when he did. "That's ok. Neither am I most days."

Lana nodded and took another deep breath. "I wanted to apologize for what Whitney did to you the other night. It was uncalled for."

A tense expression came over Clark's face. "Are you actually apologizing for your boyfriend?"

Lana swallowed. "Ex boyfriend. And, not really. That's his responsibility, not mine. But I wanted you to know that I felt awful…"

Clark sighed, effectively cutting her off. "How did you find out? Was he gloating about it?"

Lana shook her head. "No! He wasn't going to tell me at all, but when Liz confronted him…"

"Liz Luthor?"

Lana frowned at the look of astonishment on Clark's face. "Yes. She threatened to tell the principal, and probably much more, but he said it wouldn't happen again."

Clark's anxiety seemed to dissolve. "I never told her that he was the one who did it."

"Well, someone did." Lana shook her head, lost in thought. She muttered more to herself than Clark in frustration, "Whitney was only apologetic when he was caught. And, he wasn't happy about it."

Clark nodded. "Well, thanks. I mean, you don't have to apologize, but thanks."

Lana thought she saw Clark blush slightly. She smiled. "Don't mention it." Lana reached for her backpack but stopped, remembering something else. "Um, I was wondering. Would you give me a lift to the retirement home tomorrow after school? Nell is using the truck for a delivery."

Clark's eyes widened for a moment. "Uh, sure. No problem."

Lana got up and touched Clark's shoulder briefly. "Thanks. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah."

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Clark watched Lana walk away in a daze. He wasn't sure which part of the conversation confused him more; the fact that Lana and Whitney broke up because of him or that Liz threatened Whitney. But, his thoughts dissipated when Chloe snapped her fingers in front of his face and Pete whooped in his ear.

"Did I just see what I think I saw?"

Clark half smiled at Pete's enthusiasm. "Depends on what you saw."

Chloe raised her eyebrows. "I just saw Lana Lang making time for our clumsy farm boy."

Pete's eyebrows wriggled. "It looked like you got asked out on a date."

Clark's eyes widened in shock. "Were you two spying on me? And, no. I'm just giving her a ride to the assisted living building tomorrow after school."

Chloe cocked her head to the side. "What? Whitney's truck out of order?"

Clark frowned. "I don't think they're seeing each other anymore."

Pete smiled wide. "You dog."

"Pete, it's a nursing home. I'm giving her a lift. That's it. Congratulate me for something more worthwhile next time, ok?"

Pete shrugged dramatically, his wide goofy grin still in place. "Whatever, man."

Chloe rolled her eyes and grabbed Pete's shirt. "Come on, Pete. I need help with that article on Mrs. Neighbors, the new physics teacher. Besides, Clark's got a lot of work to do if he wants to get ready for that big date in 24 hours."

Clark glared at Chloe and mock laughed, "Ha, ha. Funny, Chloe."

Chloe winked at Clark before dragging Pete back inside the school, leaving him to sit alone again with his thoughts.

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The next 24 hours flew by. Clark's science teacher stalled him after class making him take some advanced homework for extra credit. He also lectured him on having not gotten the correct answer earlier in class when he called on him.

Mr. Sanders could be quite intense at times. He had expectations for his students that Clark wasn't sure he could live up to, but he smiled and took the extra homework without any comment. Apologizing again for the wrong answer, he slipped out the door with a sigh of relief.

Lana was waiting outside on the same bench they had been sitting on together yesterday. Clark thought she looked amazing. She was wearing a rose pink turtleneck and light blue corduroy pants. Her hair was shining in the sunlight. He had to pause for a moment before walking over towards her, feeling a sense of apprehension. He sighed in relief when he saw she wasn't wearing her necklace.

"Lana, are you ready?"

She smiled. "Yep. Let's go."

The ride was spent in comfortable silence until Lana turned on the radio. Coldplay's hauntingly melodic single, 'Shiver' cut through the tension and they started to talk about school and their teachers' individual quirks. Lana agreed with Clark's opinion of Mr. Sanders.

They arrived ten minutes later at the building. Lana reached for her bag and smiled. "Thanks for the lift, Clark. Nell will pick me up in a couple of hours."

Clark nodded and got out of the car. Lana made her way to the door then turned around. She smiled up at Clark. "You don't have to follow me in."

Clark shrugged. "It's the best way inside."

A look of surprise adorned Lana's face. "You're volunteering here?"

Clark nodded. "I signed up last week."

Lana laughed. "And here I thought you were being nice giving me a lift."

Clark smiled. "Well, you never asked."

Lana shook her head and walked inside. Clark followed.

"So, who are you keeping company?"

"Cassandra. I'm going to read to her."

Lana smiled. "She's very interesting. They say she can see into the future."

Clark nodded. "That's what I heard. I thought that maybe she could help me figure out what Mrs. Thompson's next quiz will be. That way I could start studying early."

Lana laughed. "Good luck."

Clark smiled. "Thanks."

Clark watched Lana leave then walked through Cassandra's open doorway.

"Well, what on earth are you smiling for young man?"

Clark's eyes widened. He was under the impression that Cassandra was blind. "Uh…"

Cassandra laughed. "Don't look so surprised, Clark. I may be blind but I'm not deaf. I heard you talking with Miss Lang outside the hall."

Relieved, Clark smiled. "Oh, I see. Um, do you want to read something in particular today?"

Cassandra smiled. "Well, aren't you quite the gentleman. I've never been asked that before. Usually I have to endure the same horrid romance novel or latest teen magazine.

"Not that I don't like to keep up with pop culture, but interviews with Justin Timberlake and Kelly Clarkson don't help expand my mind so much as create a black hole."

Clark raised his eyebrows and smiled. Reading to Cassandra was going to be quite entertaining. "Let me give you a few choices. We have; Mark Twain, Shakespeare, A collection of Victorian ghost stories, or Webster's Dictionary."

"Goodness! Are you planning on me falling asleep? I'll take the ghost stories please."

Clark laughed. "Good choice."

After a few chapters, Clark became curious about the rumors. "How long have you been blind? If you don't mind me asking."

Cassandra took a sip of water and shifted her legs slightly. "The same day the meteors decided to fall. One hit a field behind my house. The flash burnt my optic nerves."

Clark frowned. "I'm sorry."

Cassandra smiled. "Thank you. But I'm not."

Clark tilted his head, quizzically. "Why is that?"

"Well, when I finally accepted my fate I realized I now had something better than ordinary sight. Instead, a vision much greater than before."

"You can see into the future?"

Cassandra laughed. "Something like that. But it's not always what I or others want to see." Cassandra reached for her glass of water again, but her hand slipped on the wet surface and the glass fell from her grip.

Clark immediately without thinking reached for the glass and grabbed it just in time. He glanced up in shock at what he'd just done. Cassandra's face remained expressionless. She smiled gently and cleared her throat. "Nice catch."

Clark swallowed. "Uh, yeah. I was lucky."

Cassandra smiled. "You could say that." Cassandra started to cough. "Would you hand me the water please?"

When Clark did their hands touched and then there was a flash of light.

Seconds, an eternity, classmates, Lana, Whitney, huddled on the floor. Luthorcorp. A man with a bullet wound lying in a pool of blood. Another man with a bomb taped to his chest and a gun in his hand. Detonation. Loud boom then silence. Smoke.

When Clark let go of Cassandra's hand, the vision dissipated like a fog and he stared into the sightless eyes of the woman. She didn't seem to be moving. Clark touched her shoulder and shook her slightly. "Ms. Carver?"

Cassandra started then frowned. "You saw that too, didn't you?"

Clark nodded. "Wh-what does it mean?"

She tilted her head to the side as if studying Clark. "Most of the time my visions are symbolic. Like dreams. But, this one seemed literal. There's a reason you saw this Clark. You need to take it seriously. Don't ignore it. You need to save those people."

Clark nodded, eyes wide. The vision was so real, as if it was happening right then. He set down the book and walked out of the room without another word to Ms. Carver.

As he walked out of the room, he bumped into Lana. She frowned up at him. "Are you leaving?"

Clark tried to swallow but his mouth had gone dry. "Yeah, I'll see you at school tomorrow."

Lana nodded. "See you tomorrow, Clark."

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When Clark got home, he saw his dad loading the truck for a produce delivery. He knew he could really use some time alone and thought a road trip sounded pretty good. Even if it wasn't very long. Grabbing a crate of tomatoes, Clark asked, "Where does this go, dad?"

Jonathan smirked. "Luthor castle."

Clark smiled. "Perfect. I'm going."

Jonathan raised his eyebrows. "Really? I thought you signed up for helping people at the nursing home to get out of produce deliveries."

Clark mock gasped. "I would never get out of my farmer duties."

Jonathan snorted. "Yeah, whatever. Just don't speed." Jonathan winked and threw the keys.

Clark laughed, "Wouldn't dream of it," and caught the keys.

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The small, private road leading to the Luthor castle was picturesque as Clark drove his truck just under 40mph.

Security asked to see some id when he arrived promptly five minutes early. He showed them his license before they opened the gate letting him drive his truck to the back entrance of the kitchen.

When he walked into the brightly lit room, he was surprised to see Liz there drinking a blue bottle of water lost in thought. Her eyes were closed as she pressed the bottle against her forehead. He thought she looked nervous and uncomfortable. She obviously didn't know he was there.

Clark cleared his throat softly, trying to gain Liz's attention. If she was surprised, she did a good job of not showing it. She straightened her back and set the bottle down slowly. Turning her head to look at Clark, she smiled warmly. Her attitude changed dramatically now that she knew she had an audience. It made Clark feel a twinge of guilt at having interrupted her. "Well, you made it."

Clark smiled back and placed the box of vegetables he was carrying down on the wooden worktable in the middle of the kitchen.

Grabbing a fresh tomato, Liz pretended to inspect the quality with a smirk. "How was the trip? Was it long?"

Clark laughed. "It took forever."

Liz nodded, still smiling, and set the ripe fruit down. "I'm so sorry to hear that. Please don't let me distract you from your work. I've no doubt kept you from your other customers."

Clark shook his head. "Actually, you're my last stop."

"Then let me write you a check and you can get back and relax after your long journey."

Liz took the invoice from Clark.

Clark watched as she started to write out the light blue check. "Uh, I heard about what you said to Whitney. I don't know how you found out, but you didn't have to do that."

Liz looked up. "No, I didn't. But, someone needed to. Bullies won't learn their lesson unless they receive a dose of their own medicine. I know from experience."

Clark cocked his head to the side. "Really? You don't seem like the type to allow someone to back you into a corner."

Liz smirked. "I'll take that as a compliment. But, I was bullied. Not so long ago, actually. However, that's in the past. And I got my revenge."

Clark smiled. He would like to hear that story sometime. "Well, thanks."

"You're welcome." Liz signed her signature and handed the check to Clark.

Clark glanced at the check nonchalantly as he was prone to do after having made hundreds of deliveries. Sometimes people shorted you when you least suspected it. Not that he thought Liz would. He did a double take when he saw the number she wrote down and swallowed before saying nervously, "I-I think you made a mistake."

Liz took the check and glanced at it before handing it back to Clark. "No. I didn't."

"Uh, it's much more than the invoice states. I think you misplaced a decimal."

A serious expression came over Liz's face. "The amount is correct, Clark."

"But…"

"Your prices are remarkably low considering the quality. And, my castle is out of your way. I simply wanted to compensate for any extra trouble I might be causing."

Clark frowned down at the check. "I don't know what to say."

Liz smiled. "That's the beauty of it. You don't have to say a word." She paused. "If it makes you feel any better, I was paying nearly that much for vegetables that weren't even half the quality to be shipped from Metropolis. I think it's only fair."

Clark smiled back. "Thanks."

"You don't need to thank me, Clark. I hope you consider me a friend."

Clark nodded. "Of course."

Liz picked up her bottle of water and took a sip before asking. "You seemed a little tense when you came in. Does that have anything to do with your mother not wanting to sell to me?"

Clark furrowed his brow. "What are you talking about?"

"Well when I first met her she didn't seem to like me very much. And she told me that it wouldn't be possible to deliver out this far."

Clark sighed. "She doesn't like your father. But I don't see why she should hold that against you."

"Well, I was surprised but pleased when your father called asking for my first order. I just hope this hasn't caused any problems."

Clark smiled. "Not yet."

Liz smiled back. "Good. Well, don't lose that check on your way back."

Clark laughed. "Definitely not."

"So, what's your trouble?"

Clark sighed. "There's this elderly lady at the nursing home that can see into people's futures. She told me about something and it's weighing heavily on my mind."

"What did she say?"

Clark paused for a minute. He didn't know if he should share the vision with Liz and risk her judgment. "She told me that your plant would be hijacked by a man with a bomb and a gun."

Liz's eyebrows rose. "Why would she tell you about something related to me?"

Clark shrugged. "We have a field trip at your plant next week. I think she wanted to warn me not to go." Clark shook his head. "Do you believe it?"

Liz looked down at her drink. "It's not completely out of the question."

Clark cocked his head. "How?"

Liz shook her head. "I might have a disgruntled employee seeking vengeance. What's her name?"

"Cassandra Carver."

Liz nodded. "Interesting. Smallville has a psychic. I may have to meet her."

Clark half smiled.

Liz shrugged. "With your interest in her, I might as well try her out. But, I am quite a skeptic when it comes to things like these. My ex-boyfriend was very open-minded but I never was. Maybe I should be though. Given this town. I imagine there are all sorts of possibilities."

Clark shrugged. "I guess so."

Liz waved and left the kitchen.

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When Clark got back to his house, he was beaming. His mother kissed him on the cheek and set a plate of fresh baked chocolate chip cookies down for him to consume. He took one and started wolfing it down. He set the check down on the table to reach for a glass of milk. A gasp came from his mother and he almost choked. "What's wrong?"

Martha took the check on the table and shook it. "What is this?"

"It's Liz's check for the delivery I just sent."

Martha shook her head. "She made a mistake."

Clark smiled. "I thought so too. But she said she wanted to pay extra because of the trouble and the quality is better."

Exasperated, Martha spoke in a hushed tone, "It's too much."

"It's her money, mom, and her decision. It's not like she can't afford it."

Martha frowned and her eyes started to water. She turned when she heard the kitchen door open. Jonathan walked into the room and started washing his hands. "Jonathan, look at this check."

He looked at it and his eyes widened. "You're going to have to take that back, son."

Clark shook his head. "We deserve this. Maybe we'll eventually be able to afford a new tractor."

Jonathan shook his head. "No, son. We aren't charity. We're doing just fine."

"Liz said she liked helping her friends out. It's just her way of being friendly."

"She doesn't have to buy friendship, Clark. You should know better. Either you take the check back or I will."

"Well, I guess you will be. Because I'm not."

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Liz opened up the files of expenses her father had accumulated over the years. Plant expenses, salary, charities… she stopped when she looked at the charity funds. Apparently, her father was sending out $20,000 a month to the Smallville Nursing Home. In addition, the recipient of the checks was none other that Cassandra Carver. Liz did a double take. Her father never donated to a charity without people knowing about it. Liz knew this was an excessive amount to spend even out of the goodness of his heart. He was either bribing someone or… Then Liz remembered what Clark said. Cassandra was a psychic. Lionel was even more of a skeptic than she was but apparently, if it had Clark riled up maybe she was worth a closer look. But first, she would call Dominic.

He picked up on the third ring. "What is it Liz?"

Liz had to chuckle at the obvious displeasure in his tone. "Why is my father giving twenty grand to some elderly woman in a nursing home?"

Dominic was quiet for a few seconds then Liz heard papers rustling. "Cassandra Carver?"

"Yes."

"Well, maybe you should ask your father about that. I'm not sure."

Liz knew Dominic was lying through his teeth. He had information but didn't want to divulge. "No, I think I'll pay her a visit instead."

Dominic cleared his throat. "Maybe…"

Liz hung up on him before he could try to dissuade her.

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When Liz arrived at the nursing home, Miss Carver had been expecting her. She claimed it was her intuition but Liz thought maybe it was Dominic calling to warn her as a way of having some sort of upper hand on this situation which no doubt would put him in a good position with her father. It was all like a really long tedious game of chess.

They were outside in a garden with various plants and flowers, in every shade of the rainbow. Liz wondered if the donations her father was giving had something to do with the rarity of some of them. Cassandra was seated at a small table and asked Liz to join her. She remained standing.

"I'd like to cut to the chase if you don't mind. I know my father has been donating $20,000 to this nursing home, specifically you. If you don't mind me asking… why would he be so munificent?"

Cassandra laughed softly and stood up a little straighter in her chair. "Why are you surprised?"

Liz smiled. "Because my father has an ulterior motive for everything he does. Whether it is in business or charitable contributions. It's all the same to him."

Cassandra nodded. "So, how do you feel about this? Why do you think he is doing it?"

Liz cocked her head to the side for a minute studying Cassandra's frail yet peaceful disposition. Smiling, she sat down at the table. "I don't know."

"Your father has his reasons for donating here. I'm not exactly sure it is completely for charities sake. He may have a fascination with people exposed to meteors. I'm one of them. He visits me frequently. But, I've never questioned his kindness, and neither should you."

Liz watched her face as she talked. Noticing the slight shaking of her head as she talked. She felt sorry for her but knew the old woman was lying. Lionel was paying her well to keep quiet. "Maybe you're right. But, why did you tell Clark that my plant was in danger?"

Cassandra tilted her head in confusion. "I'm sorry… I have many visions. Could you be more specific?"

Liz licked her lips and shifted forward in her seat. She was growing impatient with this woman. "Something about a man with a bomb."

Cassandra's eyebrows rose slightly. "Oh, yes. I think you should definitely double up on security, Miss Luthor."

Liz smirked at the obvious dismissal. She wasn't even going to divulge information on this subject. Liz felt a twinge of anger coil in her gut. She swallowed back her emotions and whispered, "Thank you. I'll keep that in mind." She rose and smoothed out her lavender slacks with her one good hand. "Well, I think I'll leave you now. Have a wonderful afternoon."

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Dr. Tyner's business card was currently Liz's main form of distraction. It was placed next to Liz's coffee mug and held his personal cell number. He had given it to her before she left the hospital and said to use it in case of an emergency.

The pain in Liz's arm was not going away and she had been trying to deal with it as best she could, but something seemed to be wrong. She was sweating profusely and yet she felt as cold as ice. That couldn't be normal.

Two days ago, the prescription pain medication had run out, and Liz thought she would be able to dull it with some generic pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory drug, but that didn't work.

A drop of sweat threatened to spill from the tip of her nose as she tried to concentrate on the computer screen. She swiped at it before it could fall on top of her keyboard then leaned back against her chair, shaking as another chill wracked her body.

She looked up at the ceiling and counted to ten before picking up the phone.

Dr. Tyner picked up on the second ring. "Hello?"

Liz smiled slightly at the casualness in the doctor's voice but the smile quickly turned into a grimace as a sharp stabbing pain shot up from her elbow almost causing her to drop the phone. But, she managed to remain calm and answered in a matter-of-fact tone, "Dr. Tyner? This is Liz Luthor. I'm sorry if I'm catching you at a bad time…"

Papers were rustling in the background, and Liz thought she heard soft music playing. "No! Not at all. In fact, I was just sitting down to lunch. Is everything all right?"

Liz debating telling him that everything was fine and hanging up, but a sharp twinge coming from her arm made her change her mind. "Not exactly. My arm isn't quite as comfortable as I would like. It's giving me fits currently…" Understatement of the century, she thought. "…and I've run out of pain medication."

"You weren't supposed to run out for another month."

Liz swallowed nervously at the accusatory tone. Surely he didn't think she had been abusing them. However, if he knew that she had been popping Valium before the accident, he would have every right to assume that she had been. She took a deep breath before continuing. "The recommended dosage wasn't working. It took a few more than the bottle said."

The doctor's worry easily carried through the phone line. "That's not normal… Can you drive to the hospital? If not I can send someone or I…"

Liz mentally kicked herself for not thinking of going there in the first place instead of bothering him on his lunch break. "I have a driver. I should have done that first…"

"No, I'm glad you called. I'll meet you in the ER in a few minutes. I might have to take some x-rays, but I can give you something to ease the pain while you wait."

Relief coursed through Liz's body. "Thank you, Dr. Tyner."

"Please call me William, and you're welcome."

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"It looks like your arm is healing at a much faster rate than normal."

"And that's a bad thing?"

"Yes and no. The pins in your arm are being pushed out and that's what's causing the pain. We need to take them out and reset your arm or else you will continue to suffer and possibly do irreparable damage to your arm."

Liz nodded. It sounded a lot worse than she thought it should be. "Well, how soon do you need to do this?"

"As soon as possible. Now preferably."

Liz breathed out a humorless laugh. "I don't have any choice?"

William smiled sympathetically. "There's something else."

"What else could there possibly be?"

"I need to run some more tests but… it seems as though you have an elevated white blood cell count. That's not abnormal for this town. However, you've just recently moved here. Your arm… no one has ever recovered this quickly. I would like to have access to your medical history. If you didn't mind."

"I would need to get in touch with my father. He has all the paperwork."

"That's fine. I think you should get someone to take over for you at work for a few weeks. Even with your advanced healing, you may need some advanced rehabilitation before you can regain full use of your arm."

Liz felt as if she was backed into a wall. Between being labeled a medical phenomenon and having a plant on the verge of collapsing, she needed help. She couldn't call Dominic and her father was out of the question. She needed to come up with a new plan in a matter of minutes. She took a deep breath and rubbed her eyes with the back of her left hand.

William seemed to notice her distress and whispered with sincerity, "I'm sorry. It's a lot to take in. Are you going to be ok?"

Liz looked up and gave the doctor a small smile. "I'm fine, or I will be. I just need to make a few phone calls."

"Take your time." William walked out of the room.

Liz waited until the door was closed before calling the plant office on her cell phone. She hoped she hadn't misjudged Gabe. He seemed trustworthy enough but she had been wrong before. He picked up on the third ring.

"Luthorcorp."

Liz gripped the cell phone a little tighter. "Mr. Sullivan, it's Miss Luthor. I have an emergency I need to take care of. Can you man the plant while I'm gone?"

Liz counted the tiles on the ceiling while she waited for a response. She could tell Gabe was nervous. Probably more than she was.

"Of course, Miss Luthor. May I ask how long you'll be away?"

Liz bit her lower lip. "I really don't know. Probably a week… three at the most. I'll call you as soon as I can with more information. But, I have one more request."

"Yes?"

"My father and Mr. Senatori are to believe I'm still there."

"All right. If they call I'll tell them you're not to be disturbed."

Liz smiled. "Thank you."

"No problem. Good luck."

Liz sighed and hung up.