Lacey never considered herself to be a morning person but she was always up by either seven or eight. Partially to do with her curtains never being thick enough to draw out the sunlight as today was no exception with the curtains causing her room to have random portions of light streaming down.

After some fighting against the pull from the sun's rays shining on her face, Lacey fluttered her eyes open leading her to view her surroundings in a blur causing her to repeat the pattern of opening and closing for several minutes leading her to one conclusion:

Lacey was alive and heavily hungover.

Massaging her forehead, Lacey looked around sighing in relief to be in her own bedroom. As she tried to piece the events of the previous night, her headache continued to get worse followed by becoming frantic as she noticed the only difference in her clothes had been she was draped over by a man's grey suit jacket. Towards her left, Lacey noticed on the nightstand two pills and a glass containing a strange white substance, appearing too thin to be milk with a note hanging towards the rim

DRINK ME :)

She did as the note commanded although the substance had not been easy to swallow as the aftertaste made the mint flavor turn bitter. The faint scent of sandalwood from the jacket caused Lacey to remember the alcohol was consumed and flirting with an older attractive Scotsman. Lacey headed to the bathroom taking off the remainder of her clothes and gave herself a quick inspection.

Other than a few bruises from her wrist, which Lacey concluded from the struggle; there were no other marks on her. Wanting to forget, Lacey splashed some water on her face then proceeded to finding a fresh blue tank top and black boxer shorts. She then tied her dark chestnuts curls up in a bun rather than bothering to brush which was going to leave knots but Lacey was passed caring.

Lacey couldn't believe her eyes when she opened the door. She believed it to be a dream finding her apartment hallway recently vacuumed with the windows opened leading the place to be engulfed by a fresh lavender scent. On the mahogany coffee table that had seen better days, all the magazines were gone replaced by an elaborate vase filled yellow tulips that was on top of her grandmother's laced doilies which were normally locked up in her room.

What is going on?

A sudden smell of bacon coming from the kitchen caused Lacey to leave her thoughts as she walked in to find Mr. Gold in his suit from the previous night but looking less disheveled with the sleeves rolled up and hair in place using her apron and stove to cook bacon and eggs. Lacey wanted to scream at this man to get out while shoving the pan of eggs into his head, but it was hard being upset at anyone who was wearing a three piece suit dressed in small mid-thigh light blue apron with a ruffled white laced rim resembling a 1950s dress.

"Good morning dearie" he stated, not paying attention to her. "Breakfast will be finished shortly, help yourself to a cuppa."

She walked to the table finding a fruit bowl assortment, a plate of croissants, butter and a kettle next to two cups with tea bags. Lacey then headed towards her refrigerator finding it fully stocked with a week's supply of meats, vegetables, fruits and dairy products to last for a week.

"I don't understand" she said closing the doors finding Gold still silent. He placed the two plates of Denver omelets onto the table, then poured tea pointing her to sit down. She hesitated noticing how Gold would nonchalantly place pepper on his eggs as though this was a normal breakfast date.

Gold noticed Lacey's skepticism at looking towards the food. "I can assure you dearie, nothing is poisoned."

She drank the tea still giving her uninvited guest a death glare. "Why do you care how I feel? You lied to me."

"I had tried to get you out of a difficult situation and if memory serves me correctly, you spent more time hanging out at the bar rather than wanting to do whatever your purpose had been at being at the party."

Now Lacey became insulted. "It doesn't matter…You lied to me last night and the best you can do is clean my apartment, buy me groceries" Lacey takes a bit of the bacon hating to admit it's delicious "and cook me breakfast? Look mister-"

"Gold"

"You've got the wrong girl. Thank you for helping me and cleaning up but I am quite capable of taking care of myself."

He scoffed as he stared at Lacey noticing the butter knife was nearby, carefully getting it before she had a chance to stab him. "Yes naturally, you showed that quite well last night. I want to help you Miss French, my department authorized to contact you about a job in California."

"I'm not interested in this!" She slams the table leaving into the back door to get some air when Gold comes up to her showing her a newspaper. She takes it from seeing the headline leaving Lacey to be shocked.

Vice Busts Illegal Brothel in a Midtown Manhattan Townhouse.

She turns back to him finding Gold calmly sitting on the couch. "When did this happen?"

"Shortly after we left, it seems your bubblehead friend with the pigtails believed her sister's money would buy NYPD's protection."

"I had nothing to do with this; Anna would just call a bunch of us and ask if we wanted to make some extra money. It seems you already got her so I'm going to be a waste of tax payer expenses in being arrested since all I am guilty for is having creeps for friends"

Gold smirked at her as he drank his tea as he checked the time. "That is where you are wrong dearie, my contact in Vice has been obsessed with this case for the past few months to the point where it could advance her career. That means everyone will be held accounted between the powerful clients and any prostitute who wasn't underage or coerced which I might add, you fit into neither category. I also have it under a good authority Miss Arendelle kept records of everyone who was on the payroll."

Gold started to highlight some of the passages from the article causing Lacey to nearly lose her temper. She wanted nothing better than to go over to the prison and strangle Anna with her pigtails not caring if it meant she would get a bigger sentence than whatever Anna was going to receive. "You probably don't believe me but I mean what I said that I have nothing to do with this." Lacey placed her hands over Gold's smiling back at him but he placed them back towards her lap.

"Your innocence and Miss Swan's investigation are not my concern. My business with you is something else entirely different in which Miss Swan's investigation just happened to come under the crossroads since I wasn't expecting for you to be at Arendelle's brownstone last night."

"Then what exactly do you need me for?"

"Are you familiar with Neverland Industries?"

Now Lacey began to feel the contents of what she rising up. "By the sudden loss of pink from your face it seems you have."

"Now I know you have the wrong girl for this." She wanted desperately to faint but a couch was close to her at the same time, Lacey refused to give Gold the satisfaction of her having another emotional outburst.

"Do I?" Before Lacey realized it, Gold heads over to a drawer handing her a file containing photos and records she longed to forget. "Lacey Isabel French, born in Melbourne, Australia to Maurice and Colette French but immigrated to the states at the age four as your father was sponsored to work for Neverland Industries due to his specialty in the botanical sciences. Colette died when you were 12 after a two year battle with cancer but at age 15, your father was investigated for tax invasion; where in order to avoid a RICO charge, he agreed to name his associates but was suddenly found dead in his cell from a poison capsule which the coroner determined was self-induced. Anything I may have left?"

Lacey now added Mr. Gold to the list of people who she desperately wanted to murder as she looked into the file finding photos of her parents during happier moments including a photograph from the beach when she was younger smiling into the camera proudly showing a gap between her teeth. Followed by her own record sheet consisting of some drunk and disorderly arrests and a few parking tickets where the only reason it was not as large was due to Lacey's paranoia in being aware of her surroundings until today.

"You got me." She said dejectedly "Now what?"

"The FBI has been trying to gather information on them for the several years, tying from homicide to drug trafficking. Their headquarters are currently in California in which your acting abilities can provide a cover story in smoking them. My chief seems to be under the impression that the daughter of a, uh…."

"Of a traitor?"

"Well, she thinks you might be valuable in the work. They might sort of trust you and it would make up for the sins of your father's failings."

Lacey looked at Gold straight into his eyes revealing her eyes turning red due to her crying. "Why should I?"

He hands her a handkerchief which she politely takes, "A piece of mind. Also it will exempt you from Miss Swan's investigation as any involvement you have will somehow disappear since Miss Arendelle is more interested in naming clients to save herself than throwing her subordinates under the bus. So what do you say?"

Finally hearing enough, Lacey threw the photos towards Gold who was unfazed by her response as he stood there with a lack of consideration. "Ah go away and leave me alone. I have my own life to lead. Good times. That's what I want. And laughs with people I like, and no underhanded cops who want to put me up in a shooting gallery…." The phone rang as Lacey excused herself towards her bedroom to check her messages finding it to be one of the girls from the troupe Ashley Boyd spreading the morning gossip this time pertaining about Anna's arrest and asking if Lacey was alright. A question she had been wondering herself since waking up this morning, she had no loyalty to Anna but she did not want to be subjected to anyone over circumstances beyond her control. Taking a deep breath, Lacey headed back into the living room finding Gold sitting on her couch having another cup of tea.

"What are my options?"

Raising his eyebrows, Gold now internally began to smile at Lacey cooperating "You work as my informant in the investigation and afterwards we can arrange a clean record where not even the most brilliant tabloid reporter will be able to uncover the dirt or you can expect a summons from the DA and take your chances there." Before either one of them could say anything, Gold immediately got a text from his phone mentally hitting himself for not turning it off sooner but he gets up gathering his case files. "As it happens, I have to be somewhere right now but I expect an answer from you by tonight. I took the liberty of placing my number into your mobile should you need to get ahold of me."

The nerve of him! "I'll think about it…." Lacey stated sarcastically. Gold chose to ignore her and headed off closing the door. Lacey looks through the curtain watching him go, she heads to her room still processing the events when suddenly Lacey discovers Gold's jacket folded neatly at the foot of her bed.

Next chapter will mostly be about Gold, a lot of wine and Swanfire.