The Kent house was unusually quiet as Martha and Jonathan sat at the kitchen table, staring at the polished wood; two mugs of tea sat near their arms, untouched. The two had been there ever since Clark had come to them and let them know what had happened with Linda and Jimmy; the reassurance that both teenagers were safe did little to allay Jonathan's and Martha's concerns, but they had trusted their son to take care of everything until he returned.
Jonathan glanced over and saw his wife looking numb, her eyes bright with tears; he could tell she was replaying everything Clark had told them, silently worrying. The farmer reached over and took her hand, holding it gently. "Martha, Clark said they're fine," he said softly, "and he's bringing them home right now."
"I know," Martha replied, her voice wavering slightly.
"Then what's wrong, honey?"
"I'm worried for Jimmy," Martha said. "He had to take the bullet out all by himself." She shook her head, biting her lip to keep from crying. "He must have been so scared…."
"I know," Jonathan replied somberly. A familiar whooshing sound caught their attention, and the two looked over at the door as they stood up, but they stayed near the table, anxiously waiting; a few seconds passed before the door opened and Clark walked in, followed by Jimmy and Linda. As soon as Martha and Jonathan saw the teenagers, they crossed the kitchen; Martha reached her daughter first and enveloped the young girl with her arms, hugging her tightly.
"I'm sorry, Mom," Linda said, hugging Martha, trying not to cry.
"I know," Martha replied, holding back her own tears as she pulled back, cupping Linda's face in her hands and visually checked her daughter. "Are you okay?" Linda nodded but kept quiet as a few tears fell down her cheeks. Martha stared at Linda for a few moments before hugging her again. When they finally parted, Linda glanced up at Jonathan and saw his concerned expression; wordlessly, she hugged his waist, burying her head in his chest as he wrapped his arms securely around her. Jonathan felt a lump forming in his throat as he rested his chin on his daughter's head; he closed his eyes and sighed with relief.
Jimmy stayed off to one side, watching the trio with the reporter, wondering why he'd let Clark talk him into coming back to the farm; the photographer knew he didn't really belong there, no matter what Clark—or Linda, for that matter—had reassured him. The teenager stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets, hanging his head and debating between bolting for the door and figuring out how to dissolve into the cabinetry and disappear.
"Jimmy?"
Jimmy looked up and saw Martha standing in front of him. Before he could react, Martha hugged him gently; the teenager stiffened and kept his arms at his side, not sure how to react.
"Thank you," Martha said, not letting go.
Jimmy never had any doubts about his own mother caring about him, but in that moment he found himself actually angry that she wasn't there—not that he could actually talk to her about what had happened; it was stupid, but Jimmy couldn't help it. He felt his strength dissolving as he slowly put his arms around Martha, clinging to her as he quietly sobbed into her shoulder; Martha stayed silent, gently rubbing the teenager's back.
Some time passed before Martha heard Jimmy quieting, and she gently pulled back; the teenager appeared exhausted, his eyes red and puffy, but Martha could tell a tremendous weight had been lifted from his shoulders; she gently cupped his face in her hands, using her thumbs to blot his tears before kissing his forehead.
"Feel better?" Martha asked softly. Jimmy knew the others were still there and had seen him crying; he felt a little embarrassed at being the center of attention like that, but strangely calm as well.
"Why don't we go sit down?" Jonathan suggested.
"I'll get make some tea," Clark offered and went to the cabinets while the others walked to the table. He grabbed three mugs and filled them up with water from the tap before retrieving three teabags from a nearby canister. He zapped the water with his heat vision before adding the teabags and let them seep as he took them over to the table, handing one to each of the teenagers before sitting at the end of the table. For a long time, everyone sat in silence, Jimmy and Linda cradled their mugs in their hands, letting the warmth seep into their bodies.
"So, who wants to start?" Jonathan asked softly, deciding it was time to break the silence.
"Look, it was my fault," Jimmy replied as he put his mug down. "I was the one who thought up the whole thing—I convinced Linda to come to Metropolis."
"Maybe," Jonathan said gently, "but Linda didn't have to go along with it," he glanced at the teenagers knowingly, "especially when you two lied to us about why you wanted to go in the first place."
"So, how grounded am I?" Linda asked cautiously.
Jonathan glanced at Martha, who nodded slightly; the farmer took a deep breath and let it out. "Well," he said slowly, "your mother and I feel that—"
"Mr. Kent," Jimmy interrupted, "I don't think Linda should be grounded." Jonathan raised an eyebrow, and Jimmy swallowed nervously but continued. "Uh, I mean…given everything that's happened, don't you think we've—I mean, she's—been through enough?"
Martha and Clark glanced at Jonathan, looking slightly amused—even if the farmer didn't. He just stared at Jimmy for a few moments before sighing. "I was going to say," he said, "Mrs. Kent and I feel that, in light of everything that's happened, we're not going to ground Linda—this time—but it doesn't mean she's off the hook," he gave Jimmy a look, "and neither are you."
"I'm not?" Linda asked, surprised.
"I'm not?" Jimmy asked, confused. "Does that mean you're gonna tell Mom what happened?"
"No, it simply means you two are going to be staying here for the rest of the weekend," Martha answered. "That means getting some rest, doing chores, and you can't leave the property unsupervised before Sunday evening when Jimmy goes back to Metropolis—with Clark." Jimmy and Linda glanced at each other, surprised and a little relieved, but they decided not to comment; they knew they were getting off really easy.
"Now, that being said," Jonathan continued, "we would like to talk to you two about what happened at the cave the other day: you told us you just explored…is that really true, or was that another lie?" Jimmy opened his mouth, but Linda held up her hand.
"I think I should explain this," the young girl said, "all of it." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before she told her parents everything: the visions she'd been having, the Flamebird dream and waking up in the cave, and finding the hidden room with Jimmy. When she finished, she glanced at her parents, who just stared at her in disbelief and worry.
"Linda, why didn't you say anything earlier?" Martha asked, trying not to sound upset.
"I didn't want to worry you," Linda answered honestly. "I thought Jimmy and I could figure it out on our own." She shook her head, blinking back tears as she took a deep breath; one tear managed to escape and fall down her cheek, but she quickly wiped it away. "I'm sorry."
"Hello?"
Everyone looked over and saw Oliver standing in the doorway, with Bruce behind him; both men were dressed in crisp business suits, and Oliver carried a leather briefcase. They tried to appear professional, but they both knew that they were interrupting something—they just weren't sure what.
"Bruce," Jonathan said as he and the other adults got to their feet, "Oliver, what brings you two here?"
"Clark contacted us a couple hours ago," Bruce replied as he followed Oliver into the kitchen, "told us to come out here."
"But if this is a bad time," Oliver countered slowly as he glanced between the adults and teenagers, "we can come back later." He could feel the tension in the atmosphere and was insanely curious about what had happened, but he knew best not to pry..
"No, it's fine," Clark reassured. "Come on in, guys."
"Clark, what's going on?" Martha asked.
"It was my idea," Linda replied as she stood up, "I asked Clark to call them while we were at Jimmy's."
"What for?" Jonathan asked.
"Did you guys bring them?" Linda asked the two businessmen as they came over.
"Right here," Oliver replied as he walked over to the table and set his briefcase on it; he opened it up and removed a stack of papers, "drawn up and ready to go as soon as you," he glanced at Jonathan and Martha, "and your parents sign."
"Sign what?" Jonathan asked suspiciously.
"I've decided to accept Bruce and Oliver's offer of employment," Linda answered before looking back at Oliver and Bruce. "And you both accept my terms?"
"Bruce thought you were pushing it," Oliver replied, "but they were pretty reasonable; we've agreed to honor them."
"Wait a minute," Jonathan said, holding up his hand. "Would someone please tell me what's going on?"
"Linda, we were under the impression you wanted nothing to do with this," Martha added, a little confused.
"I didn't," Linda replied honestly.
"Then what changed?" Jonathan asked.
"Getting shot," Linda answered simply. "When I was laying on the ground with a kryptonite bullet in my shoulder, I kept thinking about how I'd screwed up—really screwed up—and how much trouble it was going to cause for everyone else; that's why I wiped Schott's mind—and, yes, I know I wouldn't have had to if I hadn't been there in the first place—but what really freaked me out was know that he'd been working for Lex this whole time, and none of us knew," Bruce opened his mouth, but Linda stopped him, "even if Bruce had his suspicions." The young girl would have smiled at the slightly sour expression on Bruce's face, but she decided not to.
"I still don't see why the sudden change of heart," Martha said.
"Because Lex is still out there trying to find out who the Girl of Metropolis is," Linda answered, "and, according to Clark, so are the S.C.U. I thought Bruce and Oliver were making the offer to keep an eye on me," she glanced at them briefly, "and it still is—to an extent—but they know what Lex is capable of," she shrugged, "and they honestly want to protect me from that."
"Linda," Jonathan said, sounding slightly defensive, "this family had been doing a pretty good job of keeping you safe without the assistance of two corporate CEOs," he looked at Bruce and Oliver, "regardless of their capabilities."
"No one's arguing that point, Mr. Kent," Bruce spoke up, "but Lex has been doing some digging around into Linda's past. Now, Miss Sullivan has done an impressive job of covering all aspects of Linda's backstory, and Oliver and I have been monitoring it to keep track of who looks into it; Lex has done more than a fair share of 'research.'"
"Do you think he suspects anything?" Martha asked.
"Doubtful," Bruce answered. "Everything he's looked into has panned out, but what else we've found has been concerning."
"What did you find?" Jonathan asked.
"Lex has suddenly shown an interest in the fine arts," Oliver replied. "We've intercepted several correspondence between him and different levels of his corporation."
"About what?" Martha asked.
"Linda," Bruce answered. "Ever since he's become aware of our proposal, he's been working on a counter offer—and he's willing to pay her double what we offered."
"Twenty million dollars just for a teenage girl to make art for him?" Jonathan asked, incredulously.
"We all figure Linda would be safer under our employment," Oliver replied. "Lex won't be able to touch her," he held up the papers, "but we have to do this legally, and that requires your signatures."
"Linda, is this something you really want?" Martha asked.
Linda nodded. "I know this won't keep me completely off Lex's radar," she said, "but I do trust Oliver and Bruce," she shrugged, "and they agreed to my terms, so that's a plus."
"What terms?" Jonathan asked, folding his arms.
"Linda will be required to create a piece for each of us once a month," Oliver said, "as well as make a social appearance promoting her work at our discretion—no more than five a year—and we'll schedule them at a time when she's not in school; if more are required, we'll give you a heads up. In return, Linda will be given an expense account to buy her supplies, as well as a local studio to sell her own work."
"And I get to buy my own dresses," Linda added, "plus make a little money on the side doing something I enjoy."
"Like a ten million dollar bank account isn't enough," Clark muttered with an amused smile. Linda shot him a look, but she was smiling.
"Linda won't be able to withdraw any of the money without an adult present," Oliver added. "That means you, Clark, or one of your parents."
"Won't this interfere with your chores," Martha asked cautiously, "and your homework?" She trusted Bruce and Oliver, but she was still a little hesitant to agree to something so monumental.
"I can complete everything in less than a minute on a heavy homework night," Linda said. She glanced between her parents, seeing their uncertain expressions, and she sighed. "Look, I know you have every reason to say no—given I haven't exactly been honest lately…or made some of the best decisions—but I really think this is best, given the situation."
Martha and Jonathan glanced between each other; Linda was tempted to scan their minds, but decided that would be another bad decision in a long list of bad decisions. She watched them share their private look for what seemed like an eternity until Martha finally shrugged, as if to say to her husband 'I'll support your decision.' Jonathan nodded and turned to his daughter.
"We have a few terms of our own," he said
"What?" Linda asked.
"First, I don't want this to go to your head," Jonathan replied. "This is a business deal for your protection, not an inheritance for you to spend at your own whim."
"I understand," Linda said.
"Second, you will be expected to keep up your schoolwork and chores," Jonathan continued. "If you can't, we'll rework the terms of the proposal to something more manageable."
"Okay," Linda nodded.
"That being said," Jonathan finished as he looked up at the businessmen, "where do we sign?" Linda smiled as she hurried over and hugged her father tightly around his waist; Jonathan smiled as he hugged her in return. After pulling away, Oliver handed Jonathan the papers and a pen; Jonathan and Martha sat down to quietly read every the entire contract, allowing Clark and the others to venture into the living room.
"So, now what?" Linda asked.
"Well, you have your first assignment," Oliver replied. "I purchased the old flower shop next to the Talon. It isn't being used anymore, and I figured it'd make a good gallery to showcase your works; lots of natural lighting." Linda looked confused, and Oliver simply smiled. "You're going to be in charge of designing how you want it to look; we'll get you blueprints, anything you need. Deal?"
"Okay, no problem," Linda replied as the gears in her head already started turning with potential ideas.
"Oh, Clark, before I forget," Oliver said, turning to the reporter, "Barry called me today; he wanted me to pass on a message to you."
"Oh?" Clark asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah," Oliver said 'Cisco says he knows the person who tried to hack the Central City STAR Labs system earlier today came from the Daily Planet, and if he finds out who it is, they're going to feel his wrath.'" He glanced at the young photographer, who appeared to be trying to blend into the wall. "Although, I'm guessing that message was probably aimed at you…."
(End of Chapter 18)
