A/N: For those readers out there that have been waiting... Sorry it's been awhile! Real life has hit me at full force, not to mention I'm CRAZY swamped with studying for AP exams... so all in all, don't expect me to be udating anything too quickly right now. If I do, please politely tell me to GET OFF THE COMPUTER AND GET TO WORK! (politely, i said. . . .) ANyways, this is **really** short. Just wanted something to get me going back on this story, slowly wean myself back into this. I don't want to abandon you completely!

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything. I'm starting to think Warner Bros. and DC are just trashing my letters entirely. :)

*****Chapter 14: Plans*****

Lois awoke in an unfamiliar setting, blinking the sleep out of her eyes. Where am I? She sat up, surveying her surroundings with curiosity when she felt the barrel of a gun shove into her back. Suddenly it all rushed back to her- kidnapped, taken away, Clark dead, Superman not coming. . .

Wait.

"Luthor, where are we? What happened to that dingy little makeshift prison cell you had me in that was oh-so-accommodating?"

"Quiet," he hissed sharply, prodding her in the back once more. She did as requested. "We, Miss Lane, are trying something new."

Lois's heartbeat increased as she took in her surroundings. Her hair was windswept, and one of the goons was staying a safe distance away from the edge. . . "Are we on the top of a building?"

"Precisely, Miss Lane. Goodness, what a clever girl you are!" He overemphasized and rolled his eyes sarcastically.

Lois struggled against the bonds that held her tied to firmly to the chair, but her efforts were beyond futile. "What exactly is it that you are planning on doing with me? And on the roof of a building? Where is that going to get you? You know Superman could fly-"

"Right again, Lois! I'll give you one more guess, and then I'll give you the big monologue about what it is I'm planning on doing. Sound like a deal?"

Lois shot him an icy glare, taking in her surroundings briefly. She noticed several people- Lex's goons, she assumed- attaching wires and modifying equipment all the way around the rooftop. "Well, I think I can safely assume that you haven't taken up a second job at the cable company. So I'm going to guess that this has something to do with trapping Superman and/or throwing me off of the roof."

"Three for three! You're on a roll. Should I just let you explain to me my entire spiel as well, or can I talk now?" She stared back at him in stony silence. "Alright then. Yes, this is a ploy for Superman, and yes, it may involve you falling from a seventy story high-rise. But let me explain the details for you, cause that's where the true genius of this plan lies." He took her by the chin and forcefully directed her head to the work going on around her. "You see what they're all doing? Running wires all around the place and whatnot- they're really going to tap into all of the feeds to the major networks and broadcast everything that happens, live, via television- thanks to several discreetly placed cameras throughout the surrounding area, and no small amount of ingenuity from myself. Then, no matter what the outcome, I'll at least be able to have some control over the situation. Sound like fun?" He dropped her head with more than the needed amount of strength as he stalked off smugly, glancing back with a wicked smile.

Lois's glare did not lighten up. "And I suppose you think that really matters? Because you know he's going to defeat you anyways, and then all your hard work will have been for nothing. What do you have to say about that?"

Lex turned around, and merely grinned sickeningly. "I say that when you play poker, sometimes it's best to actually have all the cards. You see, Clark, Superman, whatever you want to call him, lost his high ground. He had a secret identity to hide behind. He had his family safely and securely tucked away. He had your love, and he had control over his son. All he actually has left is his superpowers- and even that's shaky when there's my favorite green rock around."

"How much more of that damn kryptonite can you have?" Lois mumbled.

"Well, ever since the whole incident with- what was it you named it? Ah, that's right. "New Krypton". A bit euphemistic, don't you think? Maybe it's just ironic- but anyways. Ever since then, kryptonite has been rather easy to come by. In fact, I'm thinking of introducing a new jewelry line with it: a multi-faceted emerald with a super-death cut. You like the sound of it?"

Her scowl spoke otherwise. Luthor shrugged. "It's a work in progress. Tell me if you come up with something better."

Lois finally spoke again- carefully, slowly. "And what makes you think he'll come? What if," she swallowed, trying to convince herself it wasn't true. "What if he really is dead? What if he physically can't make it?"

Luthor pursed his lips as he thought of it briefly. She voiced his worst fears and greatest hopes at once- that Clark Kent really was dead. He didn't allow himself to believe that option. "Then, I guess I'll just end up killing you either way. So it doesn't really matter, now, does it?"

Lois shut her mouth then. She didn't know which was worse: that Clark might really be dead, and she might be heading to her own doom, or the fact that if he wasn't he would be walking into a trap that would get himself killed anyways. She was crossed every which way she turned.

Crap.

*****Act Drop*****

A/N: There you go folks! Tell me what you think- and by the way, I'm open to other ideas! Anything to get the creative juices flowing, so REVIEW! :D