Chapter Three

"Lana…Laaana…"

The brunette groaned and stuffed her head further under her pillow. Chloe chuckled and plucked at the edge of the pillow clutched between her best friend's fingers.

"Go away!" whined a muffled voice.

"Aw, come on, Lana." The blonde grinned mischievously before she sing-songed, "I got a surprise for you…"

Slowly, one half-lidded eye made its appearance, eyeing Chloe skeptically. "This better be good." Lana lazily sat up in her bed and crossed her legs, waiting for the reporter to continue.

"Well," Chloe began, "I know we've all been having a rough time lately. Some of us more than others." She gave her friend a pointed look. "So I thought we could take that little weekend vacation." Chloe noticed Lana about to cut in so she beat her to it.

"Don't worry, I got the weekend off from work, and you only work weekdays. As for where? Wherever you want as long as it's outside the city. We could just hop in my bug and go on a road trip if you really wanted to."

Lana listened to her best friend ramble on with a smile on her face, grateful that she had such caring friends in her life.

The blonde snapped the psychiatrist out of her daze. "Lana? You really need this break -"

"Chloe."

"- You've been working yourself too hard -"

"Chloe…"

"- Pretty soon you'll be the one needing a psychi -"

"Chloe!" The reporter closed her mouth and gave Lana her full attention. "What time do you want to leave?"

Chloe blinked for a second, narrowing her eyes at the brunette sitting next to her. "You'll go? Seriously?"

Lana smiled and nodded her head reassuringly. "I'll go."

Chloe's face suddenly broke into a gleaming grin. "Yesss!" She enveloped her friend in a big hug. "Well, first you have to pack, and then I thought we - '

"Oh, no!" Lana slapped her forehead. "I can't. I'm sorry, Chloe, but I can't go with you this weekend."

The reporter's mouth dropped. "What? Why!? You just said - "

"I know, I know. I forgot that I had an appointment today." The psychiatrist dragged herself out of bed before glancing at the clock. 'Eleven-fifteen… Shit.' Lana kicked into high gear and started darting all over the room, gathering random pieces of clothing. She couldn't be late.

"Lana? Her friend huffed, "It's Saturday! And last time I checked, you don't work Saturdays."

The young psychiatrist dressed as quickly as possible before dashing into the kitchen and by Chloe who was fuming at the doorway. 'Thank goodness I took my shower last night or I really would have been late.' Lana started the coffee pot before taking a travel mug out of the cabinet. 'I'm already cutting it close as it is...'

Chloe stood at the sink, tapping her toe and watching her best friend run frantically around her apartment. If it had been any other situation, Chloe might have laughed at the scene before her. But this was serious.

"Lana, I'm waiting for an explanation. A good one." The blonde crossed her arms, a determined look settling across her face.

Lana sighed and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, waiting for her morning dose of caffeine to be ready. "This case is special."

The reporter shook her head sadly. "Lana, you promised Lois and me that you would start cutting back on work, and here I find you scheduling more!"

The brunette finished filling her blue mug before turning to face her best friend. "I swear that when I get back to work on Monday, I'll start cutting back on the hours, but today is an exception. I ihave/i to do this."

Chloe saw how important this appointment was to her so she let it slide and calmed down. "What's so special about this one, Lana?" It must be something big.

Lana scooped up her keys, hot coffee in hand. "Later. I promise we'll talk later." And then she was gone.

The blonde let out a long breath before grabbing a mug for herself. "I'll hold you to that…"

Lana looked down at the card in her hand. Then back up to the building before her. It was more of a warehouse really; there were no windows, no color besides the rusty gray of the walls, and no sign of life. 'How creepy…'

The young psychiatrist rechecked her card once again and then blinked. 'Is this the right place?' The metal numbers above the entrance door confirmed that.

The street was deserted so she decided to go inside and ask if someone could point her in the right direction. Lana shrugged and adjusted the strap of her bag over her shoulder before stepping through the front doors.

The brunette's eyes widened. This couldn't be the same building. Everything looked brand new!

The room Lana entered was stylishly furnished, giving off the feeling of a waiting area one would find at a large office building. It was welcoming yet at the same time, cold and impersonal. It was a feeling Lana couldn't shake or explain.

The only relief she got from the white, immaculate surroundings came in the form of the Swann Communications logo that stood proudly above the front desk. 'At least I'm in the right place.'

Lana took a deep breath and stepped toward the empty desk. She craned her head to get a peak behind the counter and into the back room. No one was there. "Hello?" she called out softly.

The young psychiatrist heard a distinct click to her right. There stood a large steel door with a security device stationed to its side, a small green light blinking upon the box.

Lana checked to make sure there was no one else in the room before she approached the door cautiously. Feeling the handle give way, she pushed down and forward, opening the heavy door to reveal none other than Dr. Virgil Swann himself.

"Dr. Lang…" He barely nodded his head.

"Dr. Swann." The scientist had a stern look plastered across his features, a look that worried Lana greatly.

Then his face suddenly broke out into a kind grin that lightened the room. He playfully teased the tense woman, "You're late."

Lana sighed with relief and finally relaxed for the first time that morning. The billionaire's wheelchair spun on its axis a full three-sixty and started down the hall, the brunette scurrying behind him. "I'm sorry, Sir. It will never happen again."

Swann never answered. Lana wouldn't have noticed anyway if he had for she was far too engrossed in her present thoughts.

The hallway too was a bright white and spotless. The doors that the brunette did encounter were few and far between. Not to mention each required a clearance code to gain access. It seemed just as strange as the outside.

At the end of the seemingly endless hall, Lana noted an unusual door with top notch security. The young psychiatrist's attention was drawn almost automatically to that one door, but Swann and herself turned into a room before she got a better look.

The newest room was another office much like the one she had visited at Swann Communications days before. In her professional opinion, however, this office didn't have a very good atmosphere for her session with this new patient or any patient in fact.

She couldn't quite put her finger on it. It seemed like every room and aspect of this building had, for lack of a better word…an alien sense to it. It lacked that personal touch.

The brunette scanned the room while following the scientist to a seating area in the center of the room. Taking a seat on one of the couches, the young psychiatrist placed her should bag on the table before her and pulled from it a notepad and some paperwork. "Now, Dr. Swann, if you could just fill out - "

"Done."

Lana blinked. "Pardon?"

"You patient paperwork is done. It's in the file." The billionaire smirked as if daring her to ask 'how?' She thought better of it. Lana didn't even need the answer. There was no doubt in her mind on how powerful the man sitting in front of her was; it was common knowledge.

"Now, Dr. Lang," Swann smiled in victory and turned his wheelchair toward the door, "if you have no further questions, then I would like to get this session started."

Lana nodded to no one in particular, responding simply with, "Send him in." The brunette heard the door close behind the leaving scientist.

With a deep sigh, she picked up a folder off the table and flipped through the information papers. The young psychiatrist's brow knitted together as she realized that several questions were left unanswered and many blanks untouched.

'Just the basics…nothing what-so-ever about his past.' Lana's eyes focused on her patient's name. 'Kal…Kal Swann.'

A sudden click of the door startled the brunette, and she jumped to her feet. But after spinning around to greet her new patient, she found… nothing.

Lana didn't see anyone else in the room. She moved past the couch to investigate further. 'I could have sworn that I heard the door shut.' She shrugged and passed it off as a hallucination, turning to take a seat once more.

That's when she walked face first into a brick wall. Or at least, that's what she thought it was. Lana lifted her head to the living Greek statue before her. The man was… breathtaking.

The brunette couldn't really describe how she felt in his presence. The tall figure was muscular yet lean with long dark locks that barely grazed his deep hazel eyes. The only assurance that this man was indeed a living being instead of a statue was the steady up and down rhythm of his chest. 'He breathes…'

The young psychiatrist thought he was in all sense of the word… perfect. After what seemed like hours to Lana which was in actuality only seconds, she gulped and stuck out her small hand professionally.

"Hi," she squeaked. "I'm Dr. Lana Lang." She gave him a dazzling smile, but after a moment of nothing, she continued, "…the psychiatrist."

The handsome man gave no reaction. Not even a blink. The brunette started to bite her lip, just like she did every other time to she felt uncomfortable. "And you would be…?"

Still nothing but vacant staring. The smile slowly slipped off Lana's face. Suddenly, her petite frame froze as if struck by something. Instead, something had occurred to her. She opened the paperwork file once more, skipping to the section she needed. And meeting those void orbs confirmed her suspicions. 'Age…twenty-seven. He's as old as me.'

Lana took a deep breath and plopped down on the sofa. This man was not what she had expected. She imagined spending the day trying to get a little kid to open up. Not a full grown man!

The whole situation was weird. Of course, mutism in adults was not unheard of, but to this degree, very rare. Being adopted at twenty-seven was another anomaly. Then again, the rich were never really considered normal in the first place. Being different kind of came with the territory.

Lana looked up from her notes to find the once statuesque man now sitting on the chair adjacent to her, his eyes still ever fixed on the being before him. "Kal, right?"

He blinked. 'Hm, a sign of life. I'll consider that an improvement.'

The brunette took out her notebook once more and sighed for good measure. Then started preparing herself for what was turning out to be a very long day.