Trade (Volume 2 Start)

[Ace O' Clubs]

[Time Since Joker's Death: 3 Months]

"Good evening, Miss Lena."

The greeting was directed at none other than one of the richest women of Metropolis.

Lena Luthor.

Dressed in one of the most expensive looking gowns, the woman didn't bother with a response. She walked past the guard as two concierges followed alongside her, making way for her and assuring that she wasn't disturbed by the crowd.

After all, she was a VVIP of the club. 

Lena was responsible for turning the small time bar into a reputed establishment, earning it one of the highest ratings in Metropolis.

"Get rid of those old lights." She said as she walked through the wooden interior of the place.

Despite renovating the entire place, she kept the rustic look of the place and didn't change most of the antiques around it.

That didn't mean she would keep the ugly or nonfunctional things lying around.

"Those have to go," She explained, "The lighting doesn't suit the place. Replace them with something warm."

"Of course, ma'am." 

The concierges had no power to do that, but they could definitely relay her order to their superiors.

And they knew that the superiors would rush to fulfill her wish.

"Is there anything you would like us to do, ma'am?" One of the two men said, "We have recently gotten an exquisite 1913 wine."

"It went for over seven million but we managed to out bid others by a whole five hundred thousand," They sounded proud, "It was procured from a sunken ship of the Gulf Coast Pirates."

Walking gracefully through the African blackwood floor, Lena wasn't interested in the wine.

At least not today.

"You can deliver it to my apartment later," She said, "You may leave for now."

The two men were a little taken aback by her lack of interest for the million dollar wine, but they didn't know that the thing that she came for was far more important than any wine.

She barely gave them the side eye, "I said 'leave.'"

"C-Certainly ma'am."

The two men were taken back by her authoritative voice, and while they were told about her personality by the superiors, they were new at work and weren't exactly used to the way she talked.

Still somehow getting their footing, they managed to give her a respectful bow before moving away from her way.

The woman moved past the dancing crowd and walked towards the VVIP lounge, built two levels higher than the dance floor.

The VVIP lounge wasn't available even for the most influential businessmen.

It was a place where only a few handpicked members were given entry. And the one to pick those people were often Lena.

Including the person she came to meet.

"You are rather late."

She heard his voice, it was deep but not hoarse –almost melodic.

"I apologize, it just took a little while to find the perfect specimen that you needed." She said with a professional business smile plastered across her beautiful face.

But even the cold blonde beauty couldn't deny that the man sitting with a glass of red wine was nothing less than gorgeous.

He was tall, at least six foot two and definitely well built. And the rolled up sleeve that he wore gave a clear view of his forearm, which was proof of hard work and good genetics. 

His semi-long red hair was well maintained with a nice and tidy slick back look that he was wearing. There was a bit of black in his hairstyle, but she was certain that his hair was reddish and the black was just an added undertone.

But above all else, she loved his dressing sense. It was perfect for the environment he was in. 

Simple yet classy.

White shirt with a fancy designed gray waistcoat and a black striped suit, similar pants and a perfectly polished pair of shoes.

Men usually looked great in formal wear and despite that, Lena could not see many men pull off the look as good as the man in front of her.

"I didn't doubt for a second that you would disappoint me, Miss Lena." He smiled, enhancing his charm even further. 

"Not many people are able to draw my brother's interest like you did, Mr. Hughes."

Hughes.

Jasper Hughes.

That name had spread like a wildfire after his clash with the Justice League and the killing of Joker.

The heroes tried to prevent the spreading of the news to their best, with Bruce dumping millions just for the reporters to not spread any more than they already did.

However, it was far too difficult to suppress the entire event and that led to Jasper Hughes' name to be around most news articles.

"I did hear that," He said, "It's not everyday that one is able to draw the attention of The Lex Luthor."

Jasper's view was mixed for people, while many thought of him as another villain and many considered him a vigilante –a lot also viewed him as an idol.

Taking revenge for the fallen and getting rid of the heinous criminals.

However, Luthor was a different case.

"My brother would like to make an appointment with you, if that is fine with you." 

Alexander Luthor did not see Jasper as a hero or a villain, but as a businessman.

He knew that Jasper killed Joker and almost destroyed half of the Justice League because the small empire that he was building was burnt down by Joker.

As a fellow businessman, Lex shared his sentiments –however, Lex also saw an opportunity with him.

"Most would try to get an appointment with him instead," Jasper said, taking a small sip from the glass, "But I don't see a reason not to accept."

This made Lena glad as Lex specifically told her to get Jasper to agree to a meeting at all cost.

"He does not agree to requests… and from the get go yours wasn't a request," She showed a rare and genuine smile, "It was a give and take. You gave us a valuable piece of information and thus as requested, I am here with a valuable piece of metal."

Jasper turned the bar stool towards her, "So, I assume you have it with you?"

"Of course," Lena slowly opened her purse, revealing a very small case. "Since you said even a tiny piece works, my brother managed to get a shard."

Saying that, she passed the case over to Jasper.

"But if you need the item to be a bit bigger than that, he might be able to do something." She said

But the size did not exactly matter.

With a grin on his face, Jasper opened the case which was made entirely of lead. 

"Finally," He exhaled, "Just the perfect little thing I needed."

After all, size didn't matter.

Be it a foot, an inch or a centimeter.

All that mattered was –that it was Kryptonite.

The bane of Superman.

…

…

Staring down at the booming and hustling city of Metropolis, the richest man of the city stood at the highest floor of his building.

"Red Sun Radiation."

The man was Alexander Luthor, known popularly as Lex Luthor by the world. 

"And he still asked for a piece of kryptonite."

Lex had seen Jasper beating down Superman and knocking him unconscious in a single punch.

He had seen what the man was capable of and he had no doubt that it was indeed 'Red Sun Radiation' that Jasper used to defeat the Man of Steel.

"Why?"

Lex had contacted Jasper about the type of radiation he used, as back then he wasn't sure about the radiation's identity.

He didn't know it was the red sun.

All he could see through the countless tiny drones he had around the place was Jasper releasing a form of wave that made Superman lose all his strength.

So, when he contacted Jasper –the man made a very peculiar request.

A request for a piece of kryptonite, even if it had the thickness of a hair strand.

And given the information he was receiving, it was not impossible for Lex to give the man his kryptonite.

"He doesn't need that kryptonite," Lex still wasn't able to understand Jasper, "So, what are you going to use it for, Hughes?"

He was going to ask the man. 

Even if Jasper didn't answer, he knew it was worth asking once.

"And what did you do within the time you 

vanished?"

He was beyond curious as the man vanished for over two months after his fight with Joker. And it was only recently that they had been able to make contact with the man.

"Let's see…" He mused, "If you can be someone of use, Hughes."

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[[A/N: Read 25+ chapters ahead on:

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P.S. In the comics, the club is owned by Bibbo Bibbowski and not the Luthors.

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