Author's Note...

After this chapter, I finally feel like I made some progress! I'm hitting a few plot points today, hopefully one or two big ones next chapter, and then I'll be almost finished.
Kaitlex is the only wild card in the picture. It will determine if this fic has only three more chapters or five.
Ready, set, read!

Elise doubted that this Brooke actually wanted to killKaitlyn. She imagined they were both simply over-dramatic teenage girls who could wound with words, too weak to do any physical harm. Enough of that; she needed to call the Grants and ask a few questions on Kaitlyn's background. She would have to hurry, though, because it was already almost three-thirty. After looking up the home phone in the patient's file, she dialed and was answered by a woman's voice. "Hello. Kelly Grant, I presume?"

"Yes. Who am I speaking with?"

"This is Elise Carter, Kaitlyn's therapist at Belle Reve. Is it alright if I ask you a few questions?"

"Is something wrong?" Kelly asked, worry laced through her tone.

"Not at all, I just need to find out a bit about Kaitlyn so I can understand her more thoroughly."

"Well, by all means, go ahead."

"Kaitlyn is in tenth grade at Smallville High, correct? How does she like school?"

"Oh, my Katie never really liked the whole learning concept, but she's been a natural social butterfly ever since kindergarten."

Kaitlyn hadn't come off as one who liked talking to other people, but Elise took the mother's word for it. "So I take it she has a lot of friends. How big of an influence are they on her life?"

"I would say pretty big. For her, losing a friend is like losing an arm. Unfortunately, she liked to be around the party people, so she would stay out much too late."

"Who are her friends?"

"Well, there's Tatiana Stanley. She's a sweet girl, good heart, but not very honest. She's been a kind friend, though. And there's Brooke Bell, but I haven't seen her around lately. She…"

Elise was too distracted to hear the rest as she began scribbling on her notepad. Puzzle pieces were falling together now. Brooke Bell. The headlines, "Michael Bell Filing for Divorce" and "Lionel Luthor, Rebecca Bell caught in Affair" flew through her mind. Were these the same Bells? It seemed to fit, but what did Kaitlyn have to do with any of it? She'd have to ask tomorrow. Kelly had just gone silent on the other end of the phone, so Elise said, "Mhm. Did you have any indication of Kaitlyn's mental instability before her…incident?" Incident, of course, was a kind word used to refer to her attempt of harming herself with a kitchen knife.

The tightness in Kelly's voice told Elise that this was still a touchy subject for her. "At the time, no. But I suppose, looking back, she became more quiet a few months ago. You know, not her normal, talkative self."

"A few months ago?" She wanted to pinpoint when this change of behavior had occurred, when loud Kaitlyn became quiet.

Kelly paused on the other end, probably counting back the months, trying to remember. "October, I believe. I also think that's when she became pregnant."

Elise noted this and continued, "Do you believe that the two are connected?"

"I don't know," Kelly admitted. Her voice was softer, showing a bit of her fear. Fear that she had no idea what was going on, what was happening to her daughter, and that she couldn't fix it.

Elise thought of her daughter, only thirteen, being in the same place as Kaitlyn, and she knew that she would react in the same way. She continued to ask questions about family, their background, Kaitlyn's childhood, and so forth. Throughout the conversation, her mind remained on Brooke's relation to the patient and possible relation to Lionel. Was that why Kaitlyn had called Lionel rude? Her statements were starting to make sense now. "Thank you for your time, Mrs. Grant. I've got to run, but I'm sure you'll hear from me again." Now that the conversation was over, Elise had to do a bit of last-minute research before emailing Lex.

The camera watched silently from the corner.

--

The email arrived at 4:07, but Lex ignored it's tardiness because it was helpful--veryhelpful. He was pleased to see that Mrs. Carter had transcribed most, if not all, of the day's session, even adding body language when necessary. Apparently, the patient had only one other visitor, a friend named Tatiana. Lex was still on Kaitlyn's most-hated list, but that did not come as a surprise. "Rude," she had called him, along with his father, who she had indeed met. "Call it fate and a load of bad luck." I take it that wasn't a good experience.

When asked if anyone else would want to kill her, Kaitlyn had responded, "Brooke," and upon further prodding had added, "Her parents got a divorce." The note continued with Mrs. Carter's summary of her conversation with Mrs. Grant.

It turns out this friend is Brooke Bell. That name should sound familiar; your father had an affair with her mother in October, leading to the divorce of Michael and Rebecca Bell. Attached to this email is the article from the Inquisitor, the first tabloid to break the news. Kaitlyn's mother mentioned that she began acting differently around this time. Now, putting this together with everything else Kaitlyn said leads me to believe that she had something to do with the divorce, ending with Brooke's hatred and Kaitlyn's distaste of all things Luthor. At the bottom of the email, she noted that Kaitlyn had been glancing worriedly at the camera throughout most of their conversation. Maybe some of the subjects were bordering on "dangerous" for her?

Lex printed the email along with the article from the Inquisitor. He had all the information he needed. Maybe it wasn't as much as he would have liked, but it was enough to challenge his father. According to Kaitlyn, only one other person than the man behind the camera wanted to see Kaitlyn dead, but Brooke didn't have the means to act on it. However, Lex's father did. Camera Man finally had a name, and Lex would confront him at the first chance given to him.

A meeting with Lionel was in order.

--
Kaitlyn was disappointed to wake up with the same sick stomach. After yesterday, she had hoped that the morning sickness was gone for good, but she was wrong. Life in Belle Reve still sucked--that is, until her parents decided to take off work and visit her after breakfast. When she saw her mom, Kaitlyn squealed and ran to hug her. "Mommy! You're here!" She didn't care if anyone else heard her say "mommy." They were all psycho, so most had said equally strange-sounding things. Who were they to judge her?

Kelly stroked her daughter's hair. "Yes, yes, I'm here. Oh, I've missed you!"

"I missed you too, Mom. Life's so dull here." Then she spotted Brian, and more hugs and squeals ensued. "What took you so long to visit?" she demanded.

"We were waiting for the go-ahead from the doctors," her mother explained.

"I hate doctors," she muttered. "Did T tell you about this place?"

"Of course," Brian said. "She said it was white and smelled bad."

Kaitlyn made a face. "She's pretty much right. The all-white color scheme is what drives me crazy the most. And the people are weird. My only 'friend' is a chick with two personalities. The food is awful; even the baby hates it." She would rather gag than say the word baby, but she would rather avoid a lecture from her mom than gag.

Kelly's eyes immediately softened, and Kaitlyn knew she had hit a soft spot with her mom. "Is it hard on you?" And her face had an expression that told her daughter she expected a yes.

It was true; everything happening around her was difficult, painful. Kaitlyn nodded. "I…I can't handle this, Mom. Shelly's nice and all, but I need someone to help me out—and not just an orderly. It's just so awful, needing a hug, a shoulder to cry on, and the Big Mac I've been craving since you guys walked in. But I can't get any of that in here." The tears filling her eyes were no act, but Kaitlyn felt a tiny bit of hope that they might be her ticket out of the sanitarium.

Her mother nodded, looking very much like her heart was melting, which it probably was. That meant her resolve was melting, too. With any luck, Kaitlyn would be home by nightfall. "Honey, I'm here," she said, wrapping her arms around her daughter. To Brian, she whispered, "Run to McDonald's, will you?"

Kaitlyn saw this as a chance to play up the drama. "No, Dad, don't bother. I'll be fine, really." The grimace on her face betrayed her words; she looked far from fine. Just playing up the emotion.

"I'll go," he said.

"No. Don't leave me again, please! Please, Daddy. I need you, not a Big Mac," Kaitlyn pleaded. Her stomach gurgled in protest. She sat down at one of the tables, fighting back tears. "I can't take this anymore."

Kelly elbowed Brian. "Go."

"Mom, they can't give me all the attention I need here. When cravings come, I won't always be able to get the food I want. Belle Reve seems to only serve canned things, and I'm not taking any pills, not even vitamins. I need you by my side, not some nurse dressed in white. Please, Mom, you have to understand; you have to let me out. We can get a therapist somewhere else, and I promise I won't try to hurt myself again." Now she was crying hard; all the stress that had built up inside was being released. Kaitlyn looked into her mother's eyes and saw the pain in them. "Please," she repeated in a whisper. Please let this work.

Kelly stroked her daughter's hair. "I need to go talk to your nurse. Can you handle a few minutes without me?"

Kaitlyn looked down at the floor, making sure her mother saw the pained look on her face first. "Yeah, I'll survive."

"That's my girl."

--

It had worked. Kaitlyn sat in the back of the family SUV, munching contentedly on her burger, wearing her normal clothes, not the white "unitard" from Belle Reve, as Rachelle had called it. "It makes everyone who wears it look retarded," she explained over breakfast one day.

Her mother had gone to talk to the orderly about the medications Kaitlyn was on. "None," Shelly had answered.

"None?"

"The doctor didn't want to take chances with the baby."

"But she is getting prenatal vitamins?" Kelly had asked.

The nurse paused for a moment and shook her head. "No."

"Why not?" she asked slowly, as if she were talking to someone with a mental disability."

Shelly hesitated. "I don't know."

"How much am I paying to have my daughter stay here? Is it really too much to ask that she take a couple pills?"

"No, of course not."

"Then why isn't it happening?"

Shelly had no response.

"I think I can take better care of my child than you can right now. Thank you for your services, but I'm taking Katie home with me."

Kaitlyn had hardly believed her ears, but she was extremely relieved. Now that her plan had worked, she stared out the car window as the cold landscape flew past in a blur of sparkling snow and silhouettes of leafless trees. I'll have to tell T about this. The moment she finished the last sip of her Coke, Kaitlyn knew that she shouldn't have drunk it. "You guys, I really have to go to the bathroom," she announced.

Brian sighed. "There's a gas station in a mile. We'll stop there."

Ew, a gas station? Those places were so gross. Well, not as gross as peeing her pants. "Okay."

--

Jason sighed and rested his arms on the counter top, still not completely awake even though his shift had started two hours ago. There had been nothing interesting whatsoever; he hadn't even heard one amusing thought. Mondays suck. At least I don't have any classes until the afternoon.

He moved to look out the window as an SUV pulled in. The passengers' thoughts were quiet from the distance, but he heard three distinct voices.

Maybe I should buy gas here. Is a half-tank enough to get home on?

I'm so glad to have Katie back!

I have to pee so bad that it isn't even funny.

The chick who owned the last voice entered the store. Jason ignored her thoughts as she walked past the chips, the rotating stand with jerky, and the cold drinks into the hallway labeled "RESTROOMS." He glanced back outside, hearing the man think, I should probably just buy a few gallons of gas. Smallville is still an hour away.

Smallville. Jason had been there once, back in October for a frat party. Some chick had bought him a drink, said the green glow made it look cool and gave it an extra kick. The moment he chugged it, the room got twice as loud, if that were possible. Jason thought he heard the chick say that he was looking kind of sick, but her lips hadn't moved. That was the first time he heard someone's thoughts.

A second vehicle pulled into the lot, a sleek black car. The tall man that stepped out had more muscle than Jason could ever wish for. His thoughts sounded like a hoarse whisper, as if he had been a long-time smoker. It can't get any easier than this. The girl's inside, her parents outside. All I have to do is run in, finish the job done, and get out.

Jason squinted at him. He had no idea what that was about, but he didn't like the sound of it, either.

Boss said she's got an ability that might make things difficult. What's so hard about putting a bullet in her skull? The man wondered as he walked through the door and looked around.

Jason stiffened and tried to remember where Mr. Garrison hid the gun for emergencies.

She's not in here…must be in the bathroom. The man stood nonchalantly by the stand of beef jerky, pretending to be interested in it.

Jason tried to act as normal as possible and not freak out like he wanted to. I didn't sign up for this when I applied to work here. He reached for the handgun under the counter and waited, hoping that the man would chicken out and go away, even though he didn't seem like the kind to chicken out.

The women's door opened as the chick exited. Before Jason could do so much as open his mouth, the man grabbed her and ran down the narrow hall towards the back door. Jason hit the security button underneath the register and vaulted over the counter. Why me, why me? he asked himself, holding the pistol in front of him. I have awful aim. The back door was already closing when he reached the hallway.

He could hear the chick's panicky thoughts, He's gonna kill me. I'm so doomed. I don't wanna die, not really. Please, someone help me! But she wasn't struggling, not even screaming. What is wrong with me!? Why am I always the deer frozen in the headlights?

The gun was to her head, and Jason wouldn't have enough time to get outside before she was a dead chick. He aimed at the guy as well as he could through the closing door, the loud gunshot scaring Jason even though he was ready for it. To his dismay, the bullet missed its intended target by a long shot.

Everything was eerily quiet for a second; he couldn't even hear a thought. Then:

Nice, the kid did the job for me. Gotta run.

Two voices at once: What was that? Is Katie alright?!

He…he shot me…

Jason gasped and let the gun clatter to the tiled floor before sprinting outside. A small circle of blood had appeared and was staining the side of her shirt. "Ohmigosh! Oh, I just shot someone. Oh crap, crap! Where did I hit you? Please tell me it isn't bad!" Full-out panic mode was definitely in order.

Her face was a frozen mask of horror, eyes wide and mouth hanging open. "Ow," she whispered before dropping to the pavement.

He felt blood rush to his face . "I'm so sorry!" As if that would do any good.

"It…hurts…" she choked out, sounding a bit surprised. It's not supposed to hurt. I'm supposed to heal. She reached to pull up her shirt enough to see the wound. While there was no opening where a bullet should have pierced her, a large bruise was swelling under her skin.

"What happened?" he asked, disturbed, though relieved that he didn't have to watch blood spurt everywhere.

She whimpered but gave no other response. It's in there, but the wound closed up. How am I gonna get it out?

"Where's the bullet?" Jason asked, fully aware of where it was but also knowing that now was not the time to reveal his power.

"In…there..." she groaned. "We have…to…cut it…out." It hurts!

"You mean, like, with a knife?" Oh no, this was not going to turn out well—not if his reaction to the frog dissection in middle school was any indicator. "I don't have one."

Her dad was pelting around the corner, thoughts loud and run-together in an incoherent fashion. "What happened?" he demanded, looking like he was ready to strangle Jason.

"Uh…uh," he stammered. "She got shot." He conveniently left out the part that he was the shooter, not wanting to face the dad's anger. "The bullet? It's like, under her skin. I don't know how to get it out!"

The man dropped next to his daughter. "Katie? Katie, where does it hurt?"

Kaitlyn just whimpered, tears springing to her eyes. My side, it hurts so bad. I should have known this would happen.

Jason pointed to the bruise, which was spreading rapidly. "You should take her to the hospital."

Katie coughed, and blood spattered on her lips. "There...isn't time."

"She's right," the father agreed. But he was at loss of what to do.

"Got a pocket knife?" Jason asked hesitantly, not liking the sound of the idea.

By the tone of the dad's thoughts, he didn't like it too much, either. However, he couldn't think of better method. Pulling out the knife, his lips formed a tight, thin line. I can't cut my daughter.

Better you than me, man. Can't even dissect a frog, and they don't have blood pumping through their veins. "Hurrying would be a good idea, dude." The bruise was still growing, swelling red.

The dad set his jaw and whispered, "Sorry, Kate." She whimpered, and Jason turned away to avoid seeing blood, but his stomach still churned at the squish that came as the bullet was removed. He struggled not to throw up; Katie's thoughts told him that she was doing the same. After a few seconds, she was standing up, still shaken but not in pain.

A few bloody coughs later, she was able to say, "Thanks, Daddy. And, in a way, thanks to you, uh…?"

"Jason."

"Right. That was crazy, what you did." That man would have shot me in the head. I don't know if I'd be able to bounce back from that one.

He hung his head. "Don't mention it. I called the cops, so you guys will probably need to stick around. Give them your statements, you know."

The man nodded and stuck out his hand. "Brian Grant. If my daughter's thanking you, I guess I should, too."

"Jason Harter. Seriously, don't mention it."

Brian left to inform his wife about what had happened, and Katie walked back into the convenience store with Jason. "You've really been through it, haven't you?" he asked her. "Sorry I didn't do much to make it better."

"Yeah, it's been a rough two weeks." She laughed humorlessly. "But I don't think I would be alive if you hadn't, you know…"

Yes, he knew, and he wasn't too proud of it. "Had bad aim? Yeah, about that; how are you walking around right now? Shouldn't still you be on the pavement, half-dead?"

She glanced around, as if looking for someone who might listen, even though the store was empty. "I guess it doesn't matter what I say; you've already seen it happen. I live in a weird little town where a bunch of us have these mutations that aren't, well, normal. Mine is super-healing."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"Isn't it? Did you see what just happened out there? I nearly died."

"Yeah, and if it hadn't been for your awesome power, you would be dead."

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever. It still gives me more problems than I want." Like landing me in Belle Reve.

"It's can't be all bad. Hey, a side note: watch what you think."

"What?"

"You told me your freak-power, so I guess it's only fair if I tell you mine. Keep it on the DL, but I read minds." Her eyes widened, and a thought flashed through her mind so quickly that he barely caught one word: rape.

And he immediately knew it was her darkest secret. "Like I said, watch what you think."

She frowned. "Don't listen."

He shrugged. "I'm sorry, but your thoughts are loud. It's hard to ignore someone screaming in your ear, ya know? Distance makes a difference, though."

"Then I'll be outside. When will the police get here?"

"Any minute."

"I won't tell them that you shot me," she promised.

"Thanks. That wouldn't look too good on my record, even though I was only trying to help."

"Yeah, I'd feel bad getting you into this mess." This huge mess that—wait, no; he's listening.

"Yeah. Better get out of here."

"Thanks again, Jason." Katie smiled, and it lit up her whole face.

He returned it with a half-smile of his own. "Have a nice day."

Lex, she thought unhappily as she left. That's his smile, too. Jason didn't ask what that was about. As far as she knew, he wasn't reading her mind anymore.

We may or may not see more of Jason. Reviews, please!