Chlex Fanfic: Orchestrato, Chapter 16
Title: Orchestrato
Author: BabyDee1
Pairing: Chlex
Rating: PG13 for now, NC-17 later
Warnings: Some chronology-shifting with the events of Episode 4.1 (Gone)
Timeline: Safehouse Summer of Love, End of Season 3/Beginning of 4
Disclaimer: All characters belong to the CW & DC comics.
Summary: Lex inexplicably bonds with Chloe whilst keeping her survival a secret from the world
Feedback: …makes me squee. :)
Awesome banner by Chleansmile
Read previous chapter here.
Read story from the beginning here.
Chapter 16
Oh, God.
There was nothing Lex could do to stop the blood draining from his face. His father noticed his dismay and smirked; an evil, lopsided grin that matched the calculating triumph in his steely eyes.
“Did you honestly think I would just sit back and let you outsmart me, Lex?” he whispered harshly.
There wasn’t a moment to lose. Lex spun on his heel and ran towards the door at top speed.
“I would wish you luck, but I honestly would rather you didn’t have any, son!” was Lionel’s parting shot. “She’s long gone by now. And so is your case.”
Lex’s fists tightened at his father’s words, and he shoved the door open and tore off down the hall. Terror gripped his heart like a cold vice. If anything happened to her…
He pushed all negative thoughts out of his mind as ran out into the car park, got behind the wheel and fired up the Ferrari’s engine. There still a chance that Chloe had managed to evade his father’s hitman’s clutches.
A slim chance.
Very slim.
His foot hit the gas pedal hard, and he zoomed off in the direction of the mansion.
***
“Chloe!” Lex yelled frantically as he burst into the room. “Chloe?”
No answer. He shouted her name as he went from room to room until he had covered most of the property, his voice hoarse from screaming. But Chloe was nowhere to be found.
Lex stood on the first floor balcony and swore in frustration, feeling utterly helpless. Ordinarily he would have headed straight to his security cameras- but he had disabled all of them when Chloe had come to live with him at the mansion, so now he had no record of who had come or gone in the days since.
He walked into his room and sank heavily onto the bed, and buried his head in his hands as he confronted the truth. Chloe had been kidnapped. He had no idea of where she might be, or who might have taken her.
Unless…
He narrowed his eyes at the solid brass bedframe and looked over it with a critical eye until he found what he was looking for; the tiniest imperfection in a sea of smooth. He leaned closer, and his suspicions were confirmed.
A miniscule camera lens, almost imperceptibly concealed. That was how Lionel had seen them.
Lex closed his eyes and cursed his own stupidity at not having detected it sooner. Having disabled the mansion’s entire camera network, he had neglected to do a thorough signal check in his bedroom, convinced that it was clean. But the house had belonged to his father, and Lionel had always been twisted enough to tape his own sexual encounters, so that he could watch them back at his leisure once his paramours were gone. No doubt he also considered it entertainment to watch his son’s intimate dalliances as well.
With a growl, Lex rummaged through his desk until he got hold of a small roll of masking tape. He tore off a strip and covered the camera lens with it, effectively cutting off his father’s private little peep show.
Then he thought hard. The signal from the feed would have streamed directly to a mobile device that Lionel must have on his person, somehow. Knowing his father, there would also be a hard copy on-site somewhere…
He stared at the bedframe for several seconds, examining it from top to bottom. Then he crouched and rapped very lightly on the hardwood floor with his knuckles.
Tap-tap-tap…
Tap-tap-tap…
Tap-tap-thunk.
Bingo. There was hollow patch in a small section of the floorboards, right next to where the leg of the bed of was positioned.
Lex lay down on the ground and followed the thin groove of the floorboard until he got to the corner. He dug his nails in and lifted it up with a grunt, satisfied when it finally yielded. He prised it open, and his eyes fell upon a hard-drive, which was wired stealthily across the floor and up through the brass bedframe.
With a growl he wrenched the live feed cable out of the hard-drive and lifted the unit out of the floor. He hurried over to his desk and connected it to his computer, then watched as the screen flickered to life, revealing his bedroom in incredible clarity.
Lex grabbed hold of the mouse and dragged the scroll back, stopping when he saw movement on the screen. He and Chloe were sleeping in each other’s arms, unaware of his father’s intrusion. Just the thought of Lionel watching them as they made love made his stomach turn. Fortunately there was no audio on the feed; that would have been too much to bear.
He scrolled forward again until he saw himself bringing Chloe her breakfast; then he kissed her goodbye and left, and she sat down and finished her meal. When she was done, she picked up the tray and left the room, and there was nothing on the screen for several seconds.
Lex sighed in despair and fast-forwarded the feed again, keeping an eye on the timestamp in the corner of the screen. If Chloe didn’t show up on the video after this, then he had nothing to go on, and no way of finding her. He kept scrolling, willing her to appear on the screen again.
Suddenly he saw some movement and slowed the feed, then rewound it slightly. He saw Chloe burst into his room, fully dressed in jeans and a t-shirt-which was a huge relief. Before she could lock the door behind her, it was flung open and she stumbled backward, lost her footing and fell on his bed.
Then someone entered the room after her.
***
Lex’s heart pumped faster as he watched the screen, powerless to prevent the scene that was unfolding before him. A young man in his twenties with long, sandy-blonde hair walked slowly towards her, his teeth bared in a maniacal snarl as he advanced. He wore a trenchcoat over a black t-shirt and jeans, and looked scary as fuck, even to Lex.
Chloe inched backwards on the bed until her back hit the bedpost, her chest heaving as the intruder approached her. Just as he lunged for her, she ducked and jumped off the bed on the other side and made a mad dash for the bedroom door.
She made it, he thought jubilantly. Thank God, she made it.
But his relief was short-lived. The man on his bed extended his arm, and all of a sudden there was a flash of silver. A long metal blade embedded itself in the door just above the handle that Chloe was reaching for, effectively trapping her in the room.
Lex stared in disbelief. Was that his…arm?
Chloe yanked her hand back before the blade made contact, and Lex watched as the man got off his bed and slowly walked towards her, his silvery arm taking on a liquid appearance as it morphed and shortened. When he got to Chloe, grabbed a fistful of her hair and tugged on it hard, forcing her head back. He pulled his blade-arm out of the door and held it to her throat, leaning down as he no doubt whispered dark threats to secure her cooperation. He kicked the door open with his foot, and, still with his hand on her hair and the blade at her throat, walked her out of the room.
Lex was surprised to find that he was shaking. He re-wound the feed and watched it over and over again, both as some sort of sordid self-flagellation for putting her in such a dangerous situation, and also in a hope of getting some clue as to who Edward Scissorhands was and where he might have taken Chloe. Fortunately he had a pretty clear picture of Chloe’s assailant and now knew exactly when she was taken. It wasn’t much, but it was a healthy start.
Lex grabbed an empty disk and stuck it into the computer’s disk drive. He selected the precise section of video feed where Chloe ran into the room before being abducted, and copied it onto the disk. When it was finished, he put it in his coat pocket and headed out of the house, then jumped straight into his car and drove off.
His father’s trial was exactly twenty-four hours away. He had to find Chloe within twelve hours or less, or he would never see her again.
***
Chapter 17…
Author: BabyDee1
Pairing: Chlex
Rating: PG13 for now, NC-17 later
Warnings: Some chronology-shifting with the events of Episode 4.1 (Gone)
Timeline: Safehouse Summer of Love, End of Season 3/Beginning of 4
Disclaimer: All characters belong to the CW & DC comics.
Summary: Lex inexplicably bonds with Chloe whilst keeping her survival a secret from the world
Feedback: …makes me squee. :)
Awesome banner by Chleansmile
Read previous chapter here.
Read story from the beginning here.
Chapter 16
Oh, God.
There was nothing Lex could do to stop the blood draining from his face. His father noticed his dismay and smirked; an evil, lopsided grin that matched the calculating triumph in his steely eyes.
“Did you honestly think I would just sit back and let you outsmart me, Lex?” he whispered harshly.
There wasn’t a moment to lose. Lex spun on his heel and ran towards the door at top speed.
“I would wish you luck, but I honestly would rather you didn’t have any, son!” was Lionel’s parting shot. “She’s long gone by now. And so is your case.”
Lex’s fists tightened at his father’s words, and he shoved the door open and tore off down the hall. Terror gripped his heart like a cold vice. If anything happened to her…
He pushed all negative thoughts out of his mind as ran out into the car park, got behind the wheel and fired up the Ferrari’s engine. There still a chance that Chloe had managed to evade his father’s hitman’s clutches.
A slim chance.
Very slim.
His foot hit the gas pedal hard, and he zoomed off in the direction of the mansion.
***
“Chloe!” Lex yelled frantically as he burst into the room. “Chloe?”
No answer. He shouted her name as he went from room to room until he had covered most of the property, his voice hoarse from screaming. But Chloe was nowhere to be found.
Lex stood on the first floor balcony and swore in frustration, feeling utterly helpless. Ordinarily he would have headed straight to his security cameras- but he had disabled all of them when Chloe had come to live with him at the mansion, so now he had no record of who had come or gone in the days since.
He walked into his room and sank heavily onto the bed, and buried his head in his hands as he confronted the truth. Chloe had been kidnapped. He had no idea of where she might be, or who might have taken her.
Unless…
He narrowed his eyes at the solid brass bedframe and looked over it with a critical eye until he found what he was looking for; the tiniest imperfection in a sea of smooth. He leaned closer, and his suspicions were confirmed.
A miniscule camera lens, almost imperceptibly concealed. That was how Lionel had seen them.
Lex closed his eyes and cursed his own stupidity at not having detected it sooner. Having disabled the mansion’s entire camera network, he had neglected to do a thorough signal check in his bedroom, convinced that it was clean. But the house had belonged to his father, and Lionel had always been twisted enough to tape his own sexual encounters, so that he could watch them back at his leisure once his paramours were gone. No doubt he also considered it entertainment to watch his son’s intimate dalliances as well.
With a growl, Lex rummaged through his desk until he got hold of a small roll of masking tape. He tore off a strip and covered the camera lens with it, effectively cutting off his father’s private little peep show.
Then he thought hard. The signal from the feed would have streamed directly to a mobile device that Lionel must have on his person, somehow. Knowing his father, there would also be a hard copy on-site somewhere…
He stared at the bedframe for several seconds, examining it from top to bottom. Then he crouched and rapped very lightly on the hardwood floor with his knuckles.
Tap-tap-tap…
Tap-tap-tap…
Tap-tap-thunk.
Bingo. There was hollow patch in a small section of the floorboards, right next to where the leg of the bed of was positioned.
Lex lay down on the ground and followed the thin groove of the floorboard until he got to the corner. He dug his nails in and lifted it up with a grunt, satisfied when it finally yielded. He prised it open, and his eyes fell upon a hard-drive, which was wired stealthily across the floor and up through the brass bedframe.
With a growl he wrenched the live feed cable out of the hard-drive and lifted the unit out of the floor. He hurried over to his desk and connected it to his computer, then watched as the screen flickered to life, revealing his bedroom in incredible clarity.
Lex grabbed hold of the mouse and dragged the scroll back, stopping when he saw movement on the screen. He and Chloe were sleeping in each other’s arms, unaware of his father’s intrusion. Just the thought of Lionel watching them as they made love made his stomach turn. Fortunately there was no audio on the feed; that would have been too much to bear.
He scrolled forward again until he saw himself bringing Chloe her breakfast; then he kissed her goodbye and left, and she sat down and finished her meal. When she was done, she picked up the tray and left the room, and there was nothing on the screen for several seconds.
Lex sighed in despair and fast-forwarded the feed again, keeping an eye on the timestamp in the corner of the screen. If Chloe didn’t show up on the video after this, then he had nothing to go on, and no way of finding her. He kept scrolling, willing her to appear on the screen again.
Suddenly he saw some movement and slowed the feed, then rewound it slightly. He saw Chloe burst into his room, fully dressed in jeans and a t-shirt-which was a huge relief. Before she could lock the door behind her, it was flung open and she stumbled backward, lost her footing and fell on his bed.
Then someone entered the room after her.
***
Lex’s heart pumped faster as he watched the screen, powerless to prevent the scene that was unfolding before him. A young man in his twenties with long, sandy-blonde hair walked slowly towards her, his teeth bared in a maniacal snarl as he advanced. He wore a trenchcoat over a black t-shirt and jeans, and looked scary as fuck, even to Lex.
Chloe inched backwards on the bed until her back hit the bedpost, her chest heaving as the intruder approached her. Just as he lunged for her, she ducked and jumped off the bed on the other side and made a mad dash for the bedroom door.
She made it, he thought jubilantly. Thank God, she made it.
But his relief was short-lived. The man on his bed extended his arm, and all of a sudden there was a flash of silver. A long metal blade embedded itself in the door just above the handle that Chloe was reaching for, effectively trapping her in the room.
Lex stared in disbelief. Was that his…arm?
Chloe yanked her hand back before the blade made contact, and Lex watched as the man got off his bed and slowly walked towards her, his silvery arm taking on a liquid appearance as it morphed and shortened. When he got to Chloe, grabbed a fistful of her hair and tugged on it hard, forcing her head back. He pulled his blade-arm out of the door and held it to her throat, leaning down as he no doubt whispered dark threats to secure her cooperation. He kicked the door open with his foot, and, still with his hand on her hair and the blade at her throat, walked her out of the room.
Lex was surprised to find that he was shaking. He re-wound the feed and watched it over and over again, both as some sort of sordid self-flagellation for putting her in such a dangerous situation, and also in a hope of getting some clue as to who Edward Scissorhands was and where he might have taken Chloe. Fortunately he had a pretty clear picture of Chloe’s assailant and now knew exactly when she was taken. It wasn’t much, but it was a healthy start.
Lex grabbed an empty disk and stuck it into the computer’s disk drive. He selected the precise section of video feed where Chloe ran into the room before being abducted, and copied it onto the disk. When it was finished, he put it in his coat pocket and headed out of the house, then jumped straight into his car and drove off.
His father’s trial was exactly twenty-four hours away. He had to find Chloe within twelve hours or less, or he would never see her again.
***
Chapter 17…