Secrets Unveiled

Dr. Draco Malfoy, Jr. had left the Ministry building after telling his father the important piece of information that could help save his sister’s life. Clark Kent, Inspectors Draco Malfoy, Sr. and Dean Thomas sat upstairs in Mr. Malfoy’s office as they poured over the dossiers of Cecil Profesi, the patriarch of the Profesi clan now two years deceased, Mason Miller a.k.a. Marcus Meyers a shipping business partner and Carter Lexington a.k.a. Lex Carter, former fiancé of one Lois Granger.

Clark squeezed the base of his neck. “I can’t believe she was going to marry this guy.”

“Clark,” Mr. Malfoy said. “Lois broke it off about three weeks ago.”

Clark looked at him. He gulped. “She never said anything.”

Mr. Malfoy shrugged his shoulders. “I guess she fell out of love.”

“You said she could see the future,” Clark looked at his best friend’s father questioningly. “Why couldn’t she see how Carter was going to turn on her?”

“Do you remember Junior mentioning how Carter was deft at Occlumency?”

“Yeah,” Clark nodded. “What the hell is that?”

“It’s the wizarding ability to block out someone who uses Legelimency to read one’s mind. Lois’s gift of seeing the future is an advanced skill of Legelimency. I think he’s been using it against her.”

“How could he do this to her?”

“Revenge, like love, is often blind, Clark.”

Clark closed his eyes again. This was just some major nightmare that he was going to wake up from.

His eyes flashed open as the younger Inspector Malfoy barged into the room. “Mr. Creevey’s got a tag. An abandoned warehouse located on 3113 Coswell Street. The landowner, a Cecil Profesi.”

“We’ve got him!” Inspector Dean Thomas roared as everyone got to his feet.

“Clark,” Mr. Malfoy said as he looked around. He looked at the others in the room. “Where’d he go?”

“He probably went to use the bathroom or something,” Nick said as he led the other inspectors out into the foyer.

“Steven,” Mr. Malfoy said to the administrative assistant. “When Mr. Kent returns, tell him to sit tight. We went to rescue Lois.

“Also, send a message to Hunter and Mrs. Thomas that they might be expecting company at Hogwarts,” he said gravely.

“I’ll also send word to Ms. Hermione,” the assistant nodded at his boss. Mr. Malfoy nodded, thanking his long time assistant for remembering.

The assistant nodded back. The inspectors headed down the lift.

* * *

Courtney watched her writhe in pain. He released the curse after a few moments. She breathed deeply, tears streaming down her face.

“Did you?” he asked again, touching the tip of his wand to her breast. “Answer me.”

She looked up at him. She took in another breath. “Early on, I thought I did,” she said as she turned away from him. “That was before I found out what an evil asshole you are.”

He backhanded her across the face. Her eyes fluttered as she felt the blood from the side of her face run down her check and under her ear. He yanked on her hair, forcing her to look at his face.

“So any last words before I take what I deserve?” he asked angrily, as he ran the tip of his wand down the center of her chest.

She took in a strained breath. She looked up at her ex-fiancé. “My parents didn’t kill your parents,” she said as she shut her eyes.

He narrowed his eyes at her. His ears started to burn. He pushed the tip of his wand against the soft part under her chin, forcing her to cant her head upwards. “What are you talking about?” he asked menacingly.

“My father led the Ministry in the rescue of my mother after your parents and their deatheater companions abducted her. Corey Reimers used the killing curse,” she paused for a moment to take in a breath.

He let up on his pressure on her chin. “It was an accident. He was aiming for my mother.

“There were duels going on all over the place. My father dueled with your father while Mom was grappling with Celeste Profesi. She was weak; your parents used multiple torture curses on her before the aurors were able to find her.

“Somehow your father was able to stun my father. Your father stalked toward my mom and your mom. My mom had her back to your father. Mom was able to turn your mother around,” she looked up at him. “Your mother died in my mother’s arms.”

“You’re lying,” he said as he grew angrier.

“Your father came at my mother. He hit her with another Cruciatus. Your father . . . your father knelt by your mother’s side. That’s when my mother tackled him. They grappled, too. In the scuffle, your father’s wand broke,” she gulped. “Your father pulled out a modified muggle nine millimeter. He was able to shoot off two rounds. Mom was hit once in the shoulder. The second bullet ricocheted off the Patronus my father cast over my mother. It hit Corey straight in the chest.”

Courtney put his hand around her neck, squeezing. “You’re fucking lying.”

“I have no reason to lie to you,” she said strained.

“This is some rubbish your mudblood mother or your traitorous father made up,” he spat out as he let go of her neck.

Her eyes fluttered. She looked up at him. “Your parents’ plan was to abduct my mother.”

“I already know that,” he said as he pointed his wand at her.

“Your father was supposed to have kidnapped me, too,” she said breathing sharply. “He grabbed me. I fought back. I bit his arm. He let me go. Mom apparated me to Malfoy Manor.

“My brother told you what I could do,” she said as he saw his eyes grow large. “I know what happened because I saw it in a vision.”

He squeezed her chin roughly. “Then I guess you know what’s about to happen next,” he said as he ran his hand down her center.

She took in a breath as she saw a frightening vision flash before her eyes. “No,” she said softly as her eyes started to well up.

He nuzzled her neck, kissing her cheek hard. She blinked back tears as she took a strained breath. She was sure that her latest vision would never come to fruition. Clark, not even as Superman would have been able to crossover into the Wizarding world unless someone showed him how to enter. He was safe.

Courtney’s hand roamed her abdomen. He squeezed her right breast. The pressure in her chest was almost unbearable. She knew some of her ribs were broken after the Cruciatus curses he had used on her. She arched her back as spasms ran through her lower back.

Courtney smirked at her as he bracketed her shoulders. He was annoyed that she couldn’t keep her eyes open. He grunted. “Don’t make me do all the work, Lois,” he sneered, his face only about five centimeters from hers.

She opened her eyes. She saw him move slightly backwards, leaving enough room for her to do what she did next. With whatever force she could muster, she head butted him. He reared backward off of her. He felt the blood pour down his cheek and over his lips.

“Bitch!” he screamed as he pointed the wand at her. She gulped as he uttered the first part of the killing curse. She took in a strained breath as she watched in surprise as he was lifted off of his feet and thrown backward into one of the titanium sheathed crates that held the muggle weapons. His wand had shattered in two pieces.

* * *

She couldn’t believe what was happening. Maybe she had blacked out and she was dreaming. The tall dark haired reporter stalked towards the fallen wizard. Clark yanked on her former fiancé’s shirtfront. Clark cocked his arm again as he watched Carter’s head loll. He turned as he heard a faint whimper. He took a breath, his cocked arm noticeably shaking. He let go of the semiconscious man’s shirt. He grabbed for his glasses that had been knocked off when he tackled the wizard.

He rushed over to where Lois was. Her arms were bound above her at the wrists. He knelt at her side as their eyes locked.

“Everything is going to be all right, Lois,” he said as he watched a tear roll down her cheek. He watched as she took in a deep breath that seemed to pain her. He scanned her chest.

She suffered several fractured ribs. Her right lung collapsed. Her breath hitched as their eyes locked again.

“What did he do to you?” Clark asked as he pulled the sides of her torn shirt together to cover her chest. She took a deep breath.

Clark tried to pry the binds from her wrists. Try as he may, all he could do was to stretch the material slightly.

“It’s no use, Clark,” Lois said, softly shutting her eyes. Clark looked at the pipe around which her wrists were anchored. He quickly punched through the metal severing the pipe near its base. He protected her from any wayward debris. He gently pulled her arms through the crack in the metal.

He touched her wrists gently. She winced in pain. She had obviously struggled against the binds, breaking the skin around her wrists.

“How did you find me, Clark?” she asked as he brought her up to a sitting position.

She looked into his eyes. She saw him hesitate as he helped her to stand. Her legs were wobbly; she clutched his t-shirt front to steady herself.

“We’re in the Wizarding World, Clark,” Lois said wide-eyed.

Clark took a deep breath. “Your father tracked Carter’s wand,” he said. Lois’s breath hitched in her chest understanding what Clark discovered.

“You have to get out of here, Clark,” she said slowly. “My father and his team will be here soon. He’ll wonder how you got here before they did.”

“I don’t care,” he said in a low whisper as he squeezed her upper arms.

She whimpered. “There’s a cache of weapons,” she began.

“I know,” Clark interrupted. “Stolen muggle weapons; your father called them.”

She leaned into his chest. Clark took a deep breath as he felt her against him. It took her a moment before she realized what she was doing. She took an unsteady step backwards.

“The ammunition is modified, Clark. Victims bleed to death; regular medical treatment doesn’t help them. Lex … Courtney and his gang of Deatheaters are going to use them on the muggle and muggleborn population,” she said taking in a labored breath. “He’s trying to finish what his parents began decades ago.”

“It’s over, Lois,” Clark said, looking into her eyes. “Your father will make this right. Everything is going to be okay.”

Lois looked into his eyes. She took a gulp. “Please, Clark. You have to leave,” she said pleadingly.

He looked at her questioningly. They heard a rustle. They turned.

“Bravo,” the wizard said as he looked over at his broken wand. He looked up at the couple as he pulled out the nine millimeter semi-automatic hand gun. Lois looked at it.

“I don’t know how you survived that blast,” the scorned wizard said as he pointed the weapon at the both of them. He looked at his former fiancée. He sneered, “Fitting that the cavalry included him, huh, Lois.”

“Leave him out of this,” she said unsteadily as she maneuvered herself in front of Clark. “He’s not of this world. He doesn’t know what you’re capable of.”

“You see,” Courtney said as he cocked the hammer of the weapon, “the question of whether Clark is a part of this or not wouldn’t even exist if Myers did his fucking job. As it stands now I have to kill the both of you.”

Everything seemed to occur in slow motion. Lois took in a breath. Clark made a move to step in front of her as Carter pulled the trigger firing off three shots. Clark did not know how he ended up on the ground watching Lois spin as the second shot hit her in the left shoulder. He watched her crumple next to him. A split second later he locked eyes with the shooter. A look of shock crossed the assailant’s face as Clark noticed the blood that flowed down the center of the man’s chest.

Clark took a breath as he saw the room fill with robed figures, two noticeably with platinum blonde hair, wielding sticks. Surrounding Lois and himself was something that looked like a hooded serpent. Clark quickly got to his knees at Lois’s side.

He quickly turned her over. They locked eyes as he watched her take breaths that were short and quick. Clark placed both his palms on her wounds trying to stay the flow of blood.

“Lois,” he said as his eyes grew. He placed a palm on her rib cage right below her right breast and the other on her left shoulder wound. He knew the pressure he applied should have stopped the bleeding by now. Still the blood flowed heavily. “Everything is going to be okay.”

She couldn’t stop a sob from escaping her lips. She closed her eyes. Clark shook her a little.

“Lois, don’t close your eyes, please,” he pleaded.

Mr. Malfoy ran to the two. He waved his wand over her wrists to free her from the magical bonds. He knelt down opposite of Clark. He looked at the young man before addressing his daughter.

“Lois,” Draco Malfoy said calmly, “We’re going to get you out of here, okay.”

“Everbleeders, Dad,” she said, taking a gulp.

“Keep pressure on the wounds, Clark,” Draco said as he stood up quickly.

“The ammo’s been modified, Dad,” Lois said. Draco turned to face his daughter.

“I know, Kiddo,” he said looking toward the young man that up to a month ago was going to be his new son-in-law.

He looked at Clark. “I have to find the weapon,” the blonde father said as he quickly searched around the dead young man.

Clark applied more pressure. Lois locked eyes again with her old classmate. “It’s no use, Clark.”

“Don’t talk like that,” he said as he glanced over at Mr. Malfoy. He turned back to Lois and whispered, “Why did you do that? You know those bullets would have just bounced off of me.”

She searched his face for a moment as he pulled her into his arms so that her upper body lay against his chest. She gulped as her breathing started to slow down.

“I told you I’d keep your secret Clark,” she said as he felt her small hands brush against his t-shirt front. “Now you have to promise to keep mine.”

Clark looked at her astonished. “That was really stupid, Lois,” he said harshly.

She just laughed. “I need to tell you something, Clark,” she said turning serious. Her lower lip trembled for a moment. “You were right.”

“I’m always right, Lois,” he said, trying to keep things light as he watched the blood ooze between his fingers. “Hey, what was I right about this time?”

She tried to laugh. She looked up into his face. “Your personal life is none of my business,” she gulped. “I’m sorry for what I said about you and Koko.

“You deserve her,” she gulped again. “She suits you fine. You should get back with her. I just … want you to be happy, Clark.”

“Let’s not talk about that now, okay,” he said as he looked into her face. He watched as her eyes fluttered.

“I need to tell you something else,” she said taking a big breath.

“You can tell me later,” he said and then took in a breath as he felt her fingers on his cheek.

“There won’t . . . be a later for me, Clark,” she said softly, looking into his eyes.

“No,” he said applying more pressure on the wounds. He watched her wince.

“I’ve . . .” she took another breath, “I’ve loved you since the first day you walked into English, freshman year.

“You’ve been such a pain in the ass since then, too,” she laughed a little. Clark laughed with her as a tear fell from his cheek onto her face.

She took in breath. She searched his face. She felt tired all of a sudden.

“I found the gun,” Mr. Malfoy said as he held up the 9 mm handgun.

“Dad,” Lois said, she coughed. “The crates have modified weapons.”

“I know, hon,” Draco said.

“The new potion kills in a little over half the time,” she said as she looked up at her father.

Draco’s eyes grew. He placed the gun on the floor. He looked at the couple. “Lay her on the ground, Clark. We need to get the bullets out.”

“Dad, no,” Lois said. “It’s too late.”

“Lois, I didn’t lose your mother like this. We are not losing you, do you understand,” Mr. Malfoy said vehemently. “Clark, move your hands.”

“But, Sir,” Clark started to protest. Mr. Malfoy gave him a look. Clark hesitated for another split second before he did as he was told.

Draco waved his wand over her chest. He took a breath. “Shit,” he muttered. Clark looked at the older man.

“The bullets are right near the surface,” he said. He patted Lois’s face to keep her conscious. He looked at Clark, “All we need is a sharp cutting tool.”

“I’ve got it,” Clark said slowly.

Lois turned her head to face Clark and then immediately knew what he was about to do. She coughed before turning to her father.

“Keep him away from me, Dad,” she said crying.

“Lois, Clark can help,” her father said trying to keep her calm.

Lois tried to move out of their grasps without avail. “Please,” she said looking directly into Clark’s face.

“Mr. Malfoy, whatever happens, I need you to keep her still,” the dark haired young man said.

“Okay,” Mr. Malfoy said as he held his daughter’s uninjured shoulder down. She struggled for a moment before tiring.

Clark gave Mr. Malfoy one final look before he concentrated on the wound right below her breast. Mr. Malfoy’s eyes grew as he saw the laser like beam flow from the young man’s eyes. A small incision opened. Clark extracted the bullet from the wound and placed it on her chest.

“You’re him,” Mr. Malfoy said in shock as he locked eyes with Clark.

Clark took in a breath. He felt slightly weakened. He went for the other wound. He took a deep breath. Lois’s eyes flowed with tears.

Mr. Malfoy quickly placed his palm over the wound from which Clark had extracted the first bullet. Clark concentrated again. His beam cut her shoulder. Lois shuddered violently. The bullet that Clark left on her chest rolled onto the ground. Clark held her shoulder down as he extracted the second bullet.

He looked at Lois and then at the bullet. He fell on his side, his own eyes fluttering as he lay on the ground.

“What the hell is going on,” Mr. Malfoy said as he watched the young man of steel lay next to his daughter.

“Dad,” the young woman said weakly. “You need to get the bullet from his hand. He’s allergic to the meteor rock. It’ll kill him.”

Mr. Malfoy reacted quickly to the last statement. He went to the fallen boy’s side. He pried Clark’s right fist open. He pulled the bullet from his palm.

Mr. Malfoy looked back and forth between his daughter and the young superhero. He shook Clark’s chin to keep him conscious. Clark blinked.

Clark remembered where he was when he caught sight of Lois taking in short shallow breaths. He felt weak as he tried to get up.

“You have to encase the ammo in lead, Dad,” she said softly.

Mr. Malfoy acted quickly. He found the first extracted bullet on the floor next to her. He waved his wand over the handgun and the two spent bullets. A blob of lead materialized around the weapon and ammo and quickly hardened.

Mr. Malfoy touched his daughter’s face. Lois’s eyes fluttered. Mr. Malfoy looked up as Clark shook himself out of his haze. Clark headed over to his fallen friend.

“We have to get her to a hospital,” Clark said as he made a move to pull her into his arms.

“No,” Mr. Malfoy said. Clark looked at the wizard. The older man continued. “We need to get her to Hogwarts, her brothers’ school. Their medical staff is the only one equipped to deal with these wounds.”

Clark faltered for a moment as he pulled her tighter into his arms. He looked up at the wizard as the platinum blonde aimed his wand at the younger man’s chest.

“I’m sending you to the castle at Hogwarts. You’ll be in the main foyer,” he spoke quickly, handing the glob of lead to the young man. “You’ll have to run up eleven floors to get to the Hospital wing. You’re going to need to seek Hunter, he’s the new Potions Master, to reverse the effects of the potion. Clark, are you with me?”

“Yes, Sir,” Clark said, his mind still muddled. “Hunter, new Potions Master, eleven floors up.”

“Don’t let her go, Clark,” the wizard said as he aimed the wand at him. Clark braced himself.