Chapter 12.
Chloe opened her eyes and adjusted to the light. Looking straight up, she could see two lights shining from something pointed at her face. One light was white and the other was green, and the object resembled a projector. She then realised her arms and legs were strapped down, and she couldn't turn her head because that had been strapped down too. She could only move her eyes and even then, it was difficult to see where she was. She was strapped to the same contraption that had been used on Kevin, and it sent a chill down her spine. She knew she was lying down on a metal table of some description because she could feel the cold metal which only added to the chill.
Swivelling her eyes to her left just beyond the projector, she could just about make out a figure sitting behind a bank of computers. It was Kevin's father. Behind him was a wall of columns seemingly running the full height of the room, ringed by flashing green lights. Swivelling the other way, Chloe could see more of the same columns running from floor to ceiling, at least twenty feet in height if she had to guess. On either side of the table stood a much larger and wider column.
"Just try to relax," said Dr Grady as he pressed some keys on his computer.
Chloe blanched as panic set in. She was trapped and at his mercy. What was he going to do?
"Mr Grady, what are you doing?"
"You've learned too much. I'll have to go back further than the last three days as I can't take that chance that you'll remember something. Think of it as a gift. Many experiences in life would be much less painful if we didn't have memories to haunt us or hold us back."
Chloe pleaded with him. "Please, don't do this!"
"This is a simple procedure to eradicate these memories. I assure you it is completely painless. We should be done in minutes," said Dr Grady without looking up from his monitors.
One of them was connected to the camera on the projector directly above Chloe's face - showing her increasing panic - and the other was connected to the group of sensors attached to the harness on her face, which recorded her brainwaves and brain activity, displaying them in a similar way to a CAT scan.
He pressed another button and the room began to echo to the sound of the machinery whirring into action. It was loud enough that one would have to speak at the top of their voice in order to be heard clearly, but not deafening. The rings of green on the large columns lit up even brighter.
Just then, Kevin stepped into the room. Seeing his father at the computers, he charged over and grabbed him by the lapels of his lab coat before Dr Grady had had a chance to react.
"Dad! You were going to let me think I killed Dylan! Were you just going to lie to me my whole life huh?"
Dr Grady looked fearfully at his son. Somehow, he'd rejected the treatment and had pieced together the whole story. But how?
"Kevin, just calm down. Your body is rejecting the treatment and you're having psychological issues. No-one regrets your brother's death more than I do."
Kevin was furious. As he made to grab his father's lapel more tightly and push him back, his father stepped to one side and in the process, Kevin's leg caught the side of the swivel chair behind him. Fighting to maintain his balance, he'd let go of his father's lab coat. The jolt was sufficient enough to cause him to fall over, knocking over a tray of vials and some paperwork that were sitting on the corner of the table.
Dr Grady seized the opportunity to fully activate the memory treatment, and Chloe flinched at the bright green light now being emitted by the projector above her. All she could do was close her eyes as it began sending a continuous beam of green energy down towards her forehead.
Clark burst into the room at super-speed through the same door used by Kevin moments earlier - the force of the air in his wake lifting Dr Grady off his feet and into the wall behind him, knocking him out. He collapsed onto the floor on his back. Clark leaned over Chloe as the green beam burst forth. It hit the back of his head before being sprayed out in different directions. Chloe looked up to see Clark's face inches from hers. His eyes were glazed and he seemed to be looking through her, not at her.
Clark got a visual of chasing after Kevin behind the Talon following the robbery, and saw Kevin raise his hands to send bolts of green energy right at him. He now knew what had happened to him yesterday but before he could think about the fact, he had to deal with the two large columns either side of the table Chloe was strapped to. They'd taken the brunt of the redirection of the green energy and had become dangerously unstable as a series of mini explosions ripped through them. The bases of the columns collapsed, sending them hurtling inwards towards the prone Chloe. He had less than a second to react and did the only thing he could, going by instinct. He raised his arms and caught the heavy columns in each hand, holding them above his head easily as he finally looked into Chloe's eyes. She looked appropriately stunned by this super-human feat of strength.
Unfortunately for Clark, he had a bigger audience as not only had Kevin turned around in time to see this happen, but Lois and the Sheriff had stepped into the room too. They were astonished at what they'd just witnessed and were stood staring in disbelief.
"Holy crap!", "God in heaven!" uttered Lois and the Sheriff in unison.
Clark turned to face them, smiling sheepishly as he addressed them. He'd been caught using his abilities. With a gentle push, he sent the two collapsed columns slamming into the walls on the side of the room. Misjudging the one nearest to Lois and the Sheriff, he then had to dash to nudge the Sheriff further aside and away from the falling column before scooping Lois up and away as the column crashed to the floor.
Lois blinked and looked up to see Clark holding her in his arms. It had happened before she even knew anything had happened, and it had confused the hell out of her. He was looking at her with concern similar to when she'd woken up in the alley. She could feel his strong arms supporting her with ease and thought it looked like the cover of a romance novel. It turned her on immensely.
"Wow! A girl could get used to this!" she breathed, biting her lower lip.
Clark's expression changed from concern to relief. "Lois, are you alright?"
"I'm more than alright Clark," she purred. "I can't think of anywhere I'd rather be than right here in your arms."
Clark's mouth opened in surprise. Lois was looking at him with that hungry expression he'd seen several times when she wasn't her normal self. He'd hardly had time to formulate a response when Lois leaned up and moved to kiss him.
Kevin had been watching all of this unfold and knew he had to do something to avoid facing awkward questions afterwards. He could eradicate the last couple of minutes of memories for everybody in the room, and that would give him a chance to escape. With that, he raised his hands and sent a small burst of energy at the Sheriff and another at his father who was beginning to stir. Looking up at Lois and Clark with their faces inches from one another, he sent a blast of energy in Lois' direction. Feeling that he owed Clark for understanding and then helping him, he chose not to blast Clark with a burst of energy. Kevin then made to leave the room via another side door, stopping to look back while out of view of everybody in the room.
As the beam of green energy hit Lois, it triggered the return of all those lost memories from the past 9 months - good, bad and annoying. Every single memory was restored. Of course, that meant…
"Smallville, what the hell are you doing? Put me down, now!" barked Lois. The change was like night and day. The old Lois was back and ready to tear strips off Clark judging by her facial expression.
Clark broke out of his stupor and set Lois down immediately. Chloe was still strapped to the table and her eyes looked this way and that as she tried to make sense of what had just happened. The Sheriff stood back up and took a confused look around the vast room herself. Amongst a phalanx of equipment that she wasn't at all familiar with, she could see Lois and Clark standing side by side, Chloe still strapped to the table, and Dr Grady lying on the floor to the side, groaning.
"What in the hell?" said the Sheriff to herself.
Lois was probably the most lucid at this moment. "Look alive Smallville, and help me untie Chloe!" she ordered, stepping over to do just that, unbuckling the straps on Chloe's legs as Clark angled the table back to a horizontal position.
Clark looked over to the far corner and could see Kevin watching. He was out of view of everybody else and only Clark knew Kevin had been on that side of the room. Kevin merely smiled and with a hint of a nod, walked through the door behind him and out of the treatment room. He would never set foot in there again.