Hey, guys!
Omg, we're so close. I think it's only one or two chapters left. (I have to look at the outline.) I'm so excited to start part three! Y'all have been so nice and encouraging, so thank you.
I hope you enjoy chapter 17!
Chapter Seventeen.
For the first time since Lex had left Clark with the Kents, he almost felt like he could celebrate.
It was almost over. He had gotten the list of employees that had worked at the lab on Project 33.1. He knew who wasn't a threat and who was. He had finally gotten somewhere. It wouldn't be long before he could be with his son again.
It hadn't been as bad as he thought it would be. There had been more people who had been no risk to him or Clark than people who would be. Most of the people who had worked there had been people who kept the building in order, and none of those people would have known about Clark.
As soon as he had gotten the list, Lex had separated the employees into three different groups. It had taken him a few hours, but it had been easier that he had thought it would be.
People who were low-risk. Those were the people who would have been janitors or electricians or truck drivers, no one who knew what Project 33.1 really was. They would also be the people who wouldn't want to come after Lex and Clark when they lost their job, they would be going to Alistair or just moving on entirely. They posed no threat to Clark's safety.
People who were medium-risk. These were the people who might have known what they were doing. Lab technicians, people who were in charge of the security cameras, and people who weren't directly under Alistair, but would have been involved in the project to some extent. They could come after Lex and Clark, so Lex didn't rule them out.
People who were high-risk. These were the people who worked directly under Alistair. The people who had not only tested on Clark, but abused him as a pastime. These were the people who knew what they had been doing. These were the people who Lex hated more than anything in the world. There were only three of them, but they were a list all of their own. Lex never wanted them near his son again.
Alistair didn't get put into a group. He was in a group all of his own. He was the mastermind behind this whole project. He was the one who Lex was really after. Though, he still had no idea how he was going to deal with him. Blackmail wouldn't work against the man who had known Lex since he was in diapers, he had all the money in the world, and Lex couldn't take this problem to the police.
Lex shook his head. He didn't need to focus on Alistair first. He needed to focus on the smaller-risk groups of people first. He had the feeling that bribery and threats would work for almost everyone.
So he got to work. He called every person in the medium-risk group. There had been dozens, and they had either been threatened into moving away from Kansas or had been bribed into spending the rest of their lives on tropical islands or any continent far away from America. It didn't matter to Lex as long as they stayed far away.
Lex had also managed to bribe and threaten a couple of the high-risk members. It had helped that one of them had a family that would hate to know what their father had done. The other one had been bribed for millions. Lex hated the fact that he would be paying someone who had hurt Clark, but he also knew that this would keep Clark safe. That was worth more than any of the money. Clark's safety was more important to him than any amount of money in the world.
Lex stood. He would try to deal with the others in a bit, but he needed some fresh air. After everything, all of the calls and threats had given him a headache.
He walked outside, then smiled when he saw the moon. He wouldn't be able to see the stars, not in a place with as much light pollution as Metropolis, but he knew that if Clark was looking out the window right now, they would be seeing the same thing.
He was so close. It wouldn't be much longer before he could see his son again. He needed to figure out what he was going to do about Alistair, but almost everything else was dealt with. Maybe he could be with Clark again by Christmas.
He wondered what he would get Clark for Christmas if he could be there. His first Christmas would be his most important one. They would get a tree, decorate the mansion, make cookies, and sing carols if Lex was able to make it.
Maybe he would get Clark another bunny. He loved the velveteen rabbit doll that Lex had gotten him. Maybe he would have Martha make Clark a blanket…
Lex shook his head. He was getting too far ahead of himself. He needed to focus on what had to happen before then. He had to finish getting rid of Project 33.1. He had to make sure Clark was safe.
He shivered, then sighed. Kansas was finally getting cold. He wouldn't be surprised if it started snowing any day now… He probably needed to go inside before he got any colder. He wouldn't be able to see Clark anytime soon if he was too sick to finish dealing with Alistair.
He turned towards the door, and walked two steps before falling to the ground as a sharp pain hit his neck.
"We got him, Boss."
Lex frowned at the words, but before he could do anything else, his vision swam and everything went dark.
Pain. That's what Lex realized first when he woke up.
It was everywhere.
He could hardly breathe. The way his shoulders burned and his hands were cold and numb. His chest ached with every breath. He couldn't get the air he needed without making his shoulders worse.
He was hanging off the ground by his wrists. His arms were pulled away from his body and burned from the weight it was supporting.
"Ah, you're awake."
Lex looked up, then winced as the movement throbbed in his skull.
"Alistair," he said. His voice came out more like a wheeze than an actual word.
"Alexander," Alistair replied.
"Let me go," Lex said.
Alistair laughed as he walked around the room. Lex wanted to follow him with his eyes, but he couldn't. "Surely you don't think I'm that stupid," he said. "Did you really think that I wouldn't notice the missing files?"
It took all of Lex's strength to lift his body up for the next breath. He didn't wanna be hanging anymore. Everything burned. He didn't waste his breath with a reply. He didn't want to play these stupid games.
"You kidnapped me," Lex finally gasped out.
Alistair hummed. "You started all of this when you kidnapped 33.1 from me," he told him.
"I saved him from you."
"Either way, he's mine now," Alistair said. "Or, at least, he will be once I'm done with you."
"You'll never find him," Lex said, then winced as a wave of dizziness struck him. He really should stop talking. He needed to focus on breathing.
"Oh, I know I won't," Alistair said. "Which is why you're going to tell me."
Before Lex could think of a response, the breath was pulled out of him as a sharp and stinging pain dug its way into his side. Within seconds he could feel the warmth of blood trickling down his stomach.
"This will last as long as you make it, Alexander," he said. "So be a good boy and tell me where my alien is."
Lex could hardly think. He could hardly breathe. There was only one thought in his brain besides the thought of survival. He had to protect Clark.
"No."
Alistair nodded. "I had hoped you wouldn't say that," he sighed.
Lex expected more pain instantly, but when it didn't come, he looked up.
"Alexander, meet Jack," Alistair said. "You two should get to know each other before he makes your life a living hell."
Lex watched as Jack walked over to a desk, then picked up something. Instantly Lex felt his body tense up as he breathing quickened. He didn't wanna be burned…
"Well, I need to get back to work. Don't stop until he tells you where the alien is," he told Jack, then cleared his throat and looked at Lex. "Have fun."
So! Alistair kidnapped Lex! I wonder what will happen next! (Well, I actually know, YOU wonder what will happen next. xD) Please follow, fave, and review! I would love to know what you thought!
Thanks for reading! Love y'all!