"So, Doctor Dussel," asked Clark, "What's the story? You say Tempus has escaped?"
"I'm sorry to say that he has, Mr. Kent. Last night, all the surveillance equipment in this facility suddenly went dead, for no apparent reason. That's what security tells me. The head of security started getting calls from the various guards who were on duty, and he was about to call the police, when suddenly he fell asleep. Everyone in the building did. Apparently, some undetectable form of knockout gas was pumped throughout the building, and the effect was instantaneous. When the guards woke up, they immediately began checking into things. They found nothing amiss, with one exception."
"Tempus was gone," said Lois.
"Exactly."
"And there's no indication of how he escaped from his cell?" asked Clark.
"We can only assume he had help from an accomplice on the outside. The cell and the lock are still intact, so most likely, he used a key."
"With the guards all asleep," said Lois, "it would've been easy for his accomplice to take a key from one of them and then replace it, without anyone noticing. I suppose you've dusted for prints?"
"Of course, security did that right away. Nothing. Hardly surprising."
"Is there anything else you can tell us, Doctor?" asked Clark. "How has Tempus been doing in therapy?"
"The same, always the same. Well, sometimes he pretends to be cured, to believe what we tell him. But it's always obvious he's just amusing himself, not even really trying to trick us. Otherwise, I can't think of anything to say. He's never had any visitors. He's never had any correspondence with anyone. I didn't know he even had any friends."
"Neither did we," said Lois. "Well, thank you, Doctor."
"Thank you," said Clark.
"Of course," said the doctor.