"Do we tell them?" Snow asked him quietly.
He sighed deeply, the card in his hand ticking repeatedly as he flicked it continuously over his thumb.
"Do we have any choice?" he asked her tiredly. They huddled together on the bed hunched over contemplating the card in David's hand.
She had poofed into the crypt after she had finished watching Emma telling Henry that she murdered the cri-Archie. That she had murdered Archie. Her heart broke when Henry once more became convinced that she was evil. And Emma, Emma who she thought she could count on. There was no one there to support her. What was the point in trying to be good when no one believed in you?
Emma was miserable. Archie was alive. And Regina was gone. She had made a colossal mistake. She hadn't trusted herself and her gut feeling and she had been wrong. So so horrifically wrong.
What she had said to Regina haunted her. What kind of person was she to say things like that to someone? She had callously torn into Regina, feeling hurt and betrayed by someone she thought she could trust.
This woman had raised her son for 10 years. She had tried to be a better person for her son and she had just torn that all down and away in just a few words. She had seen how devastated Regina looked before she disappeared and now that look haunted her day in and day out.
She wanted to apologize, do something to make it better but Regina had disappeared after their fight. Emma couldn't stand to be herself in that moment because she had been just as cruel as Cora. She had torn Regina's heart out and this time crushed it in front of her.
She wasn't sure what she was looking for. She needed something to make it all go away. Going over the border would do nothing for her since she had been the caster of the curse and had retained all her memories in Storybrooke. Her search on the internet had turned up all sorts of things from pills to "accidents" that could "make" her forget things. But she wanted it to be permanent and perhaps not so life-threatening. She clicked a link that looked interesting. Lacuna Inc, well didn't that just sound enticing.
He cried to himself hugging the pillow tightly to his body. It smelt faintly of her and it was the only thing keeping him from caving completely.
She had been innocent and trying, for him. And he didn't believe in her. He had completely accepted what Emma had told him and it cost him dearly.
He couldn't believe he had been willing to kill her to protect himself. He knew she would have never hurt him regardless of whatever else might be taking place. But when Emma told him she murdered Archie he just accepted it and made plans to protect himself and his new family.
She was the Evil Queen. Wasn't murder something she just did? But she hadn't murdered anyone. Archie was still alive and it had been her mother trying to frame her. But how could he tell her that he was wrong when she couldn't even be found?
Henry hugged the pillow closer to him and breathed in her scent. He was in his mother's room on her bed trying to get closer to her anyway he could. Would she forgive him for his doubt? Would he ever get his mother back?
Lacuna Inc. They apparently specialized in erasing unwanted memories. Maybe this was her answer. She was just so tired of it. Tired of being blamed for every bad thing happening. Tired of the abuse and manipulation by everyone around her. Tired of having to react to protect herself from hurt. She was just tired. When would she be able to live her life for herself? Maybe these people were exactly what she needed. The company was located in New York City. It was pretty pricey but she could afford it and more. Looking out her window she wondered if this was really the right answer. Right now it just felt like her only answer.
They had struggled with the decision to tell their daughter and grandson what Regina had done. They could see the guilt consuming the both of them. They had felt guilty too. David felt it more so than Snow.
They had both jumped to the conclusion it was her without any real evidence. Because isn't this the type of thing she had always done? But he had been here while Snow was in the Enchanted Forest and he had seen her try for Henry. And he had seen what killing Daniel again had done to her. And yet he and Snow had been so ready to believe that was guilty. But the choices had been made the dies had been cast what would happen now?
She had bought a house in Terrytown, NY and packed her bags in her car. All the papers had been put in order and she could leave this cursed town. This could be wrong, this could be right but all least all the pain would finally be gone. She would be alone of course but when had she never been alone? Except for Daniel no one had ever been there for her. They had all taken and never gave in return. She thought she had found love when she first received Henry but like all things she loved he too left her. She had thought she had found a companion in Em- no Ms. Swan but that too was naught but a hopeless dream like everything else in her life. She would drive down to New York and erase her memories and just start over. Maybe it was for the best. Maybe this was her way of getting her happy ending.
It wasn't supposed to be like this. She was going to do better, become better for him. He knew it because she made a promise to him. She had even let him go with David.
She didn't try to force him to stay with her. She promised. But he never made any promise to her. He never told her he loved her.
She had left convinced that he didn't love her anymore. He drove her to do this to herself. If he had just been a better son, if he had just believed a little more, if only he had… but he hadn't and she left. She chose to erase him from her head. He was a bad son.
Regina drove into Manhattan with its tall buildings and large crowds. The streets and avenues were like concrete canyons in a glass and steel jungle filled to the brim with all sorts of souls who were all searching for something or someone. She was just like everyone else in this large town. She was just another anonymous face in the crowd, maybe one that was more attractive but still just a faceless automaton in this crowded town. As she drove closer to Grand Street the signs all around her changed from English to Chinese. She drove into the heart of Chinatown she pulled up in front of a small white building with large green signage in the front. It claimed to be a bakery. She went to the door at the side of the shop and rung the bell for apartment 219. There was a buzzing sound as the door was opened from above. She walked in.
She was gone. Emma would never have a chance to make things right. And it was all her fault. She had pushed her to do this.
She had made her so desperate that she chose to erase them from her memory. She saw that Regina had wanted her to believe in her but she chose to believe something she had garnered from the memory of a dog. A dog!
She hadn't tried hard enough she had just condemned her because she felt betrayed. She was the betrayer not Regina. She was the one who had been wrong. How could she ever make it right?
Regina walked out of the bakery with rice cake and a couple of cookies. She had a large order of hot and cold soy custard as well. She was on her way home to Terrytown from vacation and she had stopped in the city on her way upstate. She was peckish so she had picked up some snacks from her favorite places in the city. Now she could go home. As she drove up the FDR drive she thought about what she would do once she got home. Maybe she could take a bath. She was starting to feel grimy and the long drive home wasn't helping. She couldn't wait to dig into her custard.
They drove all night until they reached Hartford, CT.
Emma rented a room for the night because Henry was tired and she was starting to feel drowsy. As much as she wanted to reach Regina because it had taken three months for her to get the news and a few weeks to find her new address she needed to sleep and not kill herself driving.
They woke up the next day and got back on the New England Thruway. It took a few hours to reach Terrytown and they pulled up in front of a house that was a white mansion similar to Regina's old house in Storybrooke. She took a deep breath and looked over to Henry in the passenger seat. "Are you ready?" she asked him. He nodded. They took off their seat belts and exited the car.
Regina was curled up in a comfy armchair near her window. A glass of red wine was next to her on the small table as she held a large book in her hands engrossed by the story. This one was a lost love and huge loss and redemption. Something about it resonated with her as she turned the pages. She lifted the glass and slowly sipped her wine never taking her eyes of the page. The heroine was faced with a hard decision and she didn't know what to do. Just as she was reading the part where the heroine was making her choice the doorbell rang. Regina tilted her head as she looked towards the door. She wasn't expecting anyone today so who was at her door? She heaved a large sigh as she placed the book on the table along with her wine and unfolded her legs to stand up. Regina quickly crossed her foyer and opened the door. Before her stood a blond woman in a red leather jacket and a young boy with brown hair on her porch. They looked grieved and yet hopeful at the same time. She wasn't sure what they wanted but she wasn't one to be rude. Something about the two touched something deep in her psyche analyzed their faces. Taking a deep breath and releasing it she put on a smile for these strangers at her door. "How may I help you?" she asked.