Lex hangs upside down in the darkness and asks his captor to let him go. The captor, Jude, comes in and says that he wants the truth.
Metropolis – Three Years Ago
Lex and his date enters Club Zero and the bouncer is ordered to let him through. The woman, Amanda Rothman, takes a seat, and Lex offers a toast to her engagement. Amanda sees her fiancé Jude with two women and goes over to confront him. She says that he said he had to go for business, throws his engagement ring at him, and walks away. Jude accuses Lex of bringing Amanda there on purpose, and Lex says that Amanda deserves better. He goes after Amanda, and Jude attacks him. The two men fight on the nightclub and Jude stabs Lex in the shoulder with a knife. The manager, Max Kasich, draws his gun and shoots Jude in the chest as everyone stares in shock.
Now
Jude insists that it didn’t happen that way. He figures that Lex covered it up and promises that he’ll pay, and fires a gun at Lex.
One Week Earlier
At the school, Clark, Chloe, and Pete head for lunch and discuss their new assignment to do biographical inquiries of one of their fellow classmates. Chloe admits that Clark is her interview subject, and figures that he has nothing to hide. Clark reveals that he got Lana as his subject, and explains that he’s helping Lana get the Talon set up for the grand opening. He tells Chloe that he’ll be around to do the interview and quickly leaves.
At the Talon, the contractor warns that the old structure will need more work. Lana worries that she’ll miss the deadline, and turns to find Jude behind her. He asks for an application for the assistant manager position, and she gets him one. Jude introduces himself and says that he knew Lex in Metropolis years ago. He advises Lana to stay around from Lex, warning that things turn out badly when Lex gets involved.
Lex pulls up to the talon and Max approaches him. He says that he saw Jude even though the man is dead, and insists that Jude is stalking him. Jude says that he wanted the truth. Clark walks down the street and Lex gives Max the key to an apartment in Metropolis and tells him to wait for his call. Once Max leaves, Lex joins Clark and dismisses Max as nobody. They go inside and Lana says that Lex’s friend came by and told her to stay away from Lex. She gives him Jude’s name and confirms that he left just before Lex came in.
Lex goes outside and looks around, but there’s no sign of Jude. Clark joins him and Lex insists that Lana couldn’t have met Jude. He tells Clark not to worry about it because he’s not, and turns on his car. A hidden CD booms out, playing screams, and Clark spots it with his x-ray vision. He directs Lex to it, and Lex pulls it out. When Clark asks what’s going on, Lex says that it doesn’t concern him and drives off.
At the Kent farm, Clark finds Chloe talking to Jonathan and Martha. She asks what was involved in adopting Clark, and asks them to take her through the process. Her tape runs out and she goes to get some extras. Once they’re alone, Jonathan warns that if Chloe starts asking questions about the adoption then there could be problems. Chloe returns and Clark excuses himself to meet with Lana for his paper. His fri3end asks if he’s avoiding him, and Clark promises to get with her tomorrow. Once he leaves, Chloe asks the Kents if Clark has always been that strange.
That night, Clark walks Lana to her car and she says that it’s nice to feel she has responsibility. Lex pulls up and says the contractor called to meet him at the Talon. They go inside and find the contractor on the floor. He explains that some guy jumped him and forced him to let him in. There’s a present on the counter, and Lana goes to call the police. There’s a letter for Lex on it, and inside is a card for Club Zero and its slogan, ‘Zero Consequences.” Inside is a severed hand with Max’s signet ring on it.
The police arrive and Clark checks on Lana. They figure that Lex has never been so freaked out before, and Lana wonders what they know about Lex’s past. Lex comes over and apologizes, and assures Lana that it won’t affect the grand opening. Lana walks away and Lex says that he knew Max in Metropolis a long time ago. Clark asks about Jude, and Lex says that he’s been dead for three years.
The next day at school, Chloe goes to Pete for information on Clark. He’s more concerned about Lex and what happened at the Talon, and he describes how Clark defended him from a bully in first grade and pushed him through a door. They enter the newspaper office and find Clark there, and he dismisses the incident, while Pete goes for his interview. Chloe says that she tracked down Clark’s adoption records and discovered that the company, Metropolis United Charities, only handled one adoption. Clark takes offense, complaining that she’s probing into his private life, and walks out.
Lex is training at a gym and meets with his head of security, Mr. Raines. Raines reports that Max never made it to the Metropolis apartment. Jude was an only child and when his parents died, he inherited everything. Amanda moved and there’s no forwarding address, and Lex hasn’t seen her in three years. Lex refuses to answer any questions and tells Raines to find Amanda because she may be in danger.
Three Years Ago
The EMTs tend to Jude and police detective Sam Phelan comes in. Phelan demands answers so that he can protect Lex, and Lex claims that after Jude stabbed him, he and Max struggled for Max’s gun and it went off by accident. Phelan assures Lex that Lionel is paying him to make sure Lex’s name doesn’t get mixed in with what happened. He tells Lex to never contact Amanda again and gives him the name of a doctor who will take care of the stab wound. Lex looks at Amanda and then leaves. Meanwhile, Phelan tells Max that he’s going to come into some serious money.
Now
Jude comes up behind Lex and puts a gun to his head. He demands to know how the cover-up worked, and knows that Phelan is dead and Lex was involved. Lex arrives outside the gym and hears Jude demand to know what really happened. He comes in and Jude slips away. Lex says that he’s there by himself, and Clark says that he knows what happened at Club Zero. He wonders how Lex fits into it, and Lex asks him as a friend to stay out of it.
Clark returns to the farm and Jonathan warns him against Lex. His son says that he isn’t going to let the past interfere with the present, and asks about Metropolis United Charities. Jonathan admits that they didn’t go through normal channels but everything is legal. He realizes that the herd isn’t making any noise, and they go to investigate. All of the cows are dead. The police arrive and find drums of LexCorp toxic waste in the field. Chloe arrives to take photos, and Lex arrives. She excuses herself and Lex tells the Kents that he’ll pay for their loss. Jonathan isn’t impressed and walks away with Martha, and Clark asks if it had to do with Club Zero. Lex admits that it probably does and Clark tells him to tell the authorities everything he knows.
Ethan tells Lex that the CEP guy is there. Lex goes over to talk to the agency man and discovers that it’s Jude. Jude tasers him into the van and drives away.
Later, Clark tries to call Lex but can’t get through to him. Jonathan is moving the cows, and Clark tells Martha that someone is trying to set Lex up. She advises him to avoid Lex for the time being so he isn’t drawn into his friend’s problems. Clark goes out to the barn and Chloe apologizes for probing into his adoption. She says that she’s dropping the whole thing, and Clark thanks her. Chloe asks if he wonders about his biological parents, and Clark admits that he does. She notices the clippings Clark has gathered about the Club Zero incident and gives him the photos she took from the field. Clark sees Jude in one of them and realizes that he’s the same guy in the clippings.
Lex wakes up and finds himself in a straitjacket, hanging upside down. He calls for help but no one answers.
At the school newspaper office, Chloe pulls Jude’s license and finds his address in Metropolis. Clark tells her to call the Metropolis PD and leaves.
Jude comes in and says that he wants the truth about Club Zero.
Clark superspeeds to Metropolis and arrives at the address. The EMT are taking out the dead man’s body, and Clark scans it with x-ray vision. An officer says that there was no one else in the building, Clark asks about Club Zero and the officer tells him that it closed down six months ago.
Jude insists that it didn’t happen the way the police report said. He figures that Lex covered it up and promises that he’ll pay, and fires a gun at Lex... and falls down dead from a gunshot. The contractor comes in, turns on the lights to reveal that they’re in the shutdown Club Zero, and tells Lex that it’s time for the truth. The man shoots Lex down and kicks him, and explains that he’s Amanda’s imprisoned brother Roy. Roy says that he wants revenge for Amanda, who committed suicide a year ago. Jude’s death devastated her and she had nothing to live for. “Jude” is the real Jude’s unrelated double, and Roy stumbled across him. Stalling for time, Lex offers Roy the truth.
Three Years Ago
After Jude stabs Lex, Max tries to shoot Jude and falls. Jude advances on Lex... and Amanda grabs Max’s gun and shoots her fiancé dead.
Now
Roy doesn’t believe it, and Lex insists that he was protecting her. He tells Roy that killing him won’t bring Amanda dead, but Roy doesn’t care. He shoots and Lex twists away, only to fall over the balcony. Clark arrives and shoves a couch beneath Lex, breaking his fall. He then superspeeds up, knocks out Roy, and speeds back to the door. Clark runs in and asks Lex what happened, and says that he found him with a little help from his friends.
Later Clark arrives at the grand opening and finds everything going well. Lana comes over and Clark gives her a present: a photo from the Talon’s first opening. As she goes back to work, Lana admits that she’s terrified and Clark promises not to tell anyone. Lex joins Clark and wonders if his dark past is going to rub off on him. He insists that he was trying to protect Amanda so took the fall so Lionel would pay off the police. Clark wonders if it’s the truth, and Lex says that he’d do anything to protect his friends.
At the office, Chloe brings up her research on Metropolis United Charities. She hesitates and then saves the file for the future.
Written by Gadfly on Nov 15, 2015