Chapter 2 [Five Minutes Earlier]
Martha took a pointed draught from her coffee. She leaned against the counter. Bacon's sizzle in the skillet held her attention. She slid her spatula under the other pan's bubbling scrambled eggs. Priorities aligned tasks in her mind. An overnight trip turned into three days. Meet and greet with Swann turned into a hair-raising gauntlet. Another Kryptonian knew of Clark and Lana. A quiet dinner and museum visit turned into a disastrous standoff. FBI agents knew Miranda. Secrets were exposed. Sabotage crashed their plane. Spider-Man and the mysterious Snapdragon saved them…
…Spider-Man…who they learned was their new friend, Peter Parker….
…the same Peter Parker who was now homeless along with his girlfriend and her father….
This is so much bigger than Jonathan and I thought! What will we do? I know Pete and Lana can keep the secret. Chloe though? She was working with Lionel. How much can we trust her? What's going to happen to Gabe? She sucked in a deep breath. They'd get through breakfast. Then, Clark and she would drive over to the mansion to check on Peter and the Stacys. She wanted to talk with Miranda and Lana at the Talon. I can't believe that Peter is actually Spider-Man! That tidbit elicited an even bigger gulp from her mug.
"Mom?" Clark hustled through the door. He glanced back at Jonathan. He set the milk pail down on the floor and took off his boots. His eyes skittered all around the area. Empathy picked up on nothing in the area (at least for that moment).
Now what? "Clark? What is it?" Alarm bells rang in Martha's mind. "Jonathan?" Her hand shut off the stove's dials. She knew Jonathan's look. "Jonathan?"
Jonathan glanced out the door. Then he shut it behind himself. "Martha, we have a big problem." He shot Clark a look. Then he took his own boots off and headed for the sink.
"Mr. Arighatto's still around…wherever he is." Clark frowned. He pointed at his head. "Dad was asking me how things were going. Then he had to let us both know that he can listen in on what he's saying. He warned me again not to come between Miranda and him."
"Clark, he is her stepfather…." Jonathan started.
"Dad, he kidnapped Miranda when she was little! He killed her family! Ask Lex! If Mr. Luthor was around, we could ask him!" Clark threw his hands up. "He…or whatever he turns into…just tried to kill our friends twice. He knows about the kryptonite too." He winced.
"He knows about the kryptonite?" Jonathan glared at Martha.
"He had it with him at the museum, Jonathan. I don't know! None of us told him. Pete wouldn't have. Who else knows?" Martha exhaled a sharp breath. "There's a lot more to that man than we knew. Clark and Lana didn't go looking for trouble up there. Everything was normal. We…."
The phone rang.
"Who could that be?" Jonathan checked his watch. "6:30 in the morning?" He walked over to the phone. "Hello?"
"Good morning. Is this the Kent Farm? Mr. Jonathan Kent?"
"That's right." Jonathan listened intently. "And who am I speaking with?"
"It's been a few years, Mr. Kent. My name's Steve Petersen. My partner, Garth Singleton, and I met Mrs. Kent and you when we were in high school. We haven't been in Smallville since right after the meteor shower. I'm with the FBI now. I was calling to make sure that everyone made it back to Smallville all right."
"FBI?" Jonathan nearly dropped the phone. He narrowed his eyes at Clark. Then he pointed at the phone. His lips mouthed, 'Do you know about this?'
Clark shook his head. "They know Miranda, Dad, and her uncle." He turned to her for support.
She signaled for the phone. "Thank you, Jonathan. Which one?"
"Agent Petersen. I didn't go to school with anyone like that here." Jonathan handed the phone off to her. Questions peppered his mind. Dark shadows flitted through his mind. Worry and Suspicion gave way to Distrust.
"We didn't. He went to school in Amherst with Miranda's uncle. He and Agent Singleton recognized her and me at the Met." She took the phone. "Good morning, Agent Petersen. How are Dr. Tuishiama and your partner?"
"They're fine, Mrs. Kent. Thank you for asking. Sorry about the early call." Petersen regarded Tuishiama across their dining room table. "Nyoki and I have to go in for our jobs in a few minutes. By the way, I also wanted to give you a heads up. Garth and I are being transferred out to your local office in Metropolis. I can't talk about bureau business specifically. We just didn't want to show up either officially or not without advance notice."
"I appreciate that, Agent Petersen. While I think I know, I won't ask or talk about it over the phone. The kids and I appreciate your concern about Miranda and us. Sorry about the katana. That was such a beautiful piece." She rubbed her forehead.
"Actually, we just received a call from the Japanese consulate. Somehow, it appeared yesterday in Tokyo. It's back in its original case." Petersen cleared his throat. "I'm grateful that it's accounted for. So everyone's all right?"
"We are. Agent Petersen, you might want to keep your eyes open. Hansei Arighatto's still out there. He was harassing my husband and Clark just now." She shrugged at Jonathan. "You might call Lex Luthor. The others are staying with him."
"And Miranda? I hope she didn't go back to Arighatto's house." Petersen sucked in a deep breath. "Please, Mrs. Kent. He will try to take her and vanish again. Somebody needs to be with her." He sucked in a deep breath.
"I know. David was our friend too. She went to Lex's mansion, I think. She and Lana will be at the Talon later. It's a café now." Martha allowed herself a wistful smile. "I wish I could tell you more. I just know Mr. Arighatto's still a threat to us. Agent Singleton and you might concentrate on that? I'm sorry. I wish I could tell you more."
"No, Mrs. Kent. You've been great. We remember how kind you were to Dave. Mr. Kent, Laura, Mrs. Luthor and you were wonderful in those days. That's why I care. I owe it to him not to let her vanish again." Petersen bowed his head. "Thank you for speaking with me in New York. I hope Mr. Kent, Clark and the kids are all right. I hope we can have dinner some night. Nyoki's applying for a position in Metropolis. I liked Smallville."
"Thanks, Agent Petersen. We'll talk about that when you're all settled. It was good to see you again. We'll check in on Miranda this morning. I'm glad that you both are all right. We'll talk at some point. Let us know when you're settled. Take care." Martha hung up the phone.
"Martha? You were just talking to the FBI! You just…!" Jonathan stiffened. "What if they find something?"
"Dad, they could've had us dragged down to the FBI office. They didn't do anything. The police left us alone other than Captain Stacy and that Detective de Wolff. You should have seen them all with Miranda! It was really great." Clark put his hands up. "I know we have to be careful. Nobody's saying we have to tell him everything. But if we push him away, he'll have questions."
"He's right, Jonathan. Besides, Clark and the others didn't say anything. Mr. Arighatto exposed Clark and Lana to Lex and Chloe. He blew up those buildings yesterday to send messages. He and his ninjas attacked the Coffee Bean out of spite. Peter Parker nearly died yesterday morning. Gwen's father would have died if not for Lex and Chloe. Chloe wants to talk with Lana, Lex and us. Maybe Pete can come too? I want everyone here or at Lex's mansion."
"Martha, what about Lionel Luthor? We can't…." Jonathan started.
"Dad, Mr. Arighatto said he didn't crash our plane. If not him then who? Lex's plane went down and then ours? Who else would have access and could poison a pilot? I think it was Mr. Luthor somehow." Clark rubbed the back of his neck. "Lana and Chloe are talking with Mr. Sullivan about something this morning. Hope it's not too bad."
"Clark, that's another reason we're all going to have to talk. I'll tell you about that later. Right now, I just want to eat." Jonathan went to wash his hands.
Martha exchanged looks with Clark. Then she turned back toward the still-warm bacon and eggs. What else could be happening this morning?
Clark took his turn at the sink to wash his hands. Then he set the table. Hunger nagged at his stomach. Right after that, the situation needed his attention.
The dominoes, it seemed, never stopped knocking each other over….
