Chapter Eight
Victor had arrived early to Granny's to talk to Ruby but had only succeeded in a short awkward conversation with Belle. He wasn't sure if she was just not interested in talking to him, because they were not really friends the few times they had met back at Rumple's, or if she was upset about something.
He had spent the rest of the time in the back of the diner with a cup of tea trying to get the courage to talk to Ruby. He watched her as she took orders and looked extremely hot in her red button up blouse. Ruby had a much longer conversation than he had been able to have with Belle, which had ended with Belle leaving looking much more hopeful than she had been.
After about a half of hour and an empty cup of tea, he stood up and walked up to the counter.
"Doctor Whale, did you need something else?"
"A refill please." He slid the cup across the counter to her.
"Tea not coffee correct?"
"Yes, that is correct." He stood there searching his mind for something to say. God, damn it brain think! You could figure out how to bring the dead back to life but you can't start a simple conversation with a beautiful woman?
She brought the refill over. "Anything else?"
"I just wanted to stress anything during the curse that I said to offend you, or upset you in any way."
"No worries Doctor Whale like I told you the other day, we were cursed, and I don't blame you."
"The night at the bus stop I wasn't trying…" Victor stumbled trying to find words and at the same time screaming internally for him to just shut up already and go sit back in the corner. "I think Emma and Mary-Margaret did not think my intentions were for your best well-being."
"Honestly the past is in the past, don't worry about it anymore. We need to move on in our lives."
"Yes, I agree. We need to find ways to move forward, and remember I told you, my name is Victor, you don't have to call me Doctor Whale."
"Victor." She smiled back at him. "That is going to take some getting use too."
"I was rather hoping…"
The bell on the front door of Granny's made both Victor and Ruby look over. Jefferson marched straight over not caring that Victor was clearly in a conversation with Ruby. "Sorry I am late Doc, but we need to do this if we are going to do this before someone kills me." He stood there nervously shifting his feet as he looked around the diner.
"Um.. excuse me a moment." Victor took his tea putting his free arm around Jefferson leading him back to the booth he had been sitting at in the back of the diner. "Are you having fits again?" he whispered letting go of him to slid into one side of the booth.
"God damn you Victor for making me leave the house." He grumbled sliding into the booth across from his friend.
"What the hell happened to you?"
"I just ran into Rumple and George on the way here."
"King George?"
"Do we know another George?" Jefferson huffed.
"What are those two doing together?"
"No, it wasn't together. It was two different run-ins. I am lucky that one of them didn't kill me! I mean I literary ran into Rumple-Fucking-Stiltskin" he hissed.
"You did not."
"I did, and I thought he was going to kill me, but then he offered me my old job back."
"He did not!" Victor exclaimed as the bell on the front door rang out again.
Jefferson only answer was to take a deep breath and look around the dinner to see who had come in. But it was only the mechanic Gus.
It was Victor's turn to give a little huff as he watched Gus take his spot at the counter talking to Ruby. "Calm down Jeff, there is no one in here who would want to hurt you." Victor reached out placing his hand on his friends.
Jefferson sharply pulled his hand away, "Have you seen Belle?"
"She was in here when I first came in but she left some time ago. Why?"
"That was the first job Rumple wanted me to do for him. They had a fight and Rumple couldn't locate her."
"That would explain her tone, I was wondering what had her upset. Wait, so you are working for him again?"
"No, I told him I don't do that anymore. Which is ridiculous because in like five minutes when you are done with your tea we are going to go break into Regina's vault. So I obviously still do it. And Regina is the only one on my top three people I never want to see again list that I haven't run into today, so I guess we are due to get caught."
"Don't talk like that, but I am done with my tea. I only got a second cup to have an excuse to talk to Ruby."
Jefferson grimaced, suddenly realizing who his friend had been talking to when he had come in. "Sorry Vic, I didn't mess anything up for you did I?"
"Nothing I wasn't already messing up without you." Victor drummed his hands on the table a second. "Let's go see what Madam Mayor is hiding from everyone." He thought for a second Jefferson was going to tell him no.
"Yes, let's do it because I haven't had my life threatened enough today."
Victor didn't answer, he just stood up and walked over to the front door. He looked back and Jefferson was sulking a moment before he stood following him out and into the street
The two of them had barely talked as they made their way over to the cemetery. Jefferson had been a nervous mess looking around like he was just waiting for someone to come over and try to kill him. He had loosened up a bit after they had entered the graveyard, with no one else around. Now Victor was now watching as he examined the Mills Family vault.
"I can't believe it." Jefferson took a step back looking up but at the family seal carved into the stone.
"What?" Victor asked.
"She doesn't even have magical protection on her vault." He marched up to the door. "I know there wasn't magic in this world during the curse, but after it was broke you would have thought she would have put something up to protect herself. But this is just a normal lock." He bounced turning back to Victor a huge grin on his face, much more like his old self than Victor had seen the last twenty-eight years. "I will have this picked in no time."
Victor watched as Jefferson pulled out a familiar looking lock picking set from his coat pocket. Victor's mind drifted back to the first time he had followed Jefferson through his hat.
"Are you sure what Rumple wants is in his bedroom?"
"According to the maid, it is."
"You know the King's Maid?" Victor asked looking back over his shoulder making sure no one was following them.
"We had a nice evening at the tavern last weekend. It is amazing what a good dinner, a few choice words, and tavern room for the night can get you."
"You mean to tell me your plan is based on what some maid told you in bed?"
"You are not having second doubts now are you, Vic?"
"Jefferson this is outrageously dangerous." Victor hissed as he watched Jefferson pick the lock on the door of King Midas's Bedroom.
"Yes I know isn't it exciting? Makes it all the more fun." Jefferson pause to look up at Victor flashing a huge smile.
"Exciting and fun are not the words I would use for this feeling I currently am having." He commented as he looked over his shoulder down the long and so far empty hallway. "In fact, I am positive you and I have completely different ideas about what makes something fun."
"Oh lighten up Vic I am going to be good for you. The rush you get traveling with me will more than make up for a few minutes of stress. And just so you know some of the most interesting things can be discovered through foreplay."
Jefferson swung open the vault door turning to face Victor quite proud of still being able to pick a lock quickly. Seeing the look on his friends face he asked. "You are not having second doubts now, are you Vic?"
"I have been having second thoughts since you stumbled on me in the graveyard that first night." Victor joked.
Jefferson laughed. "Good thing you have never let the smart part of your brain stop you before. So I take it we are good." He held the door open and Victor gave another laugh before walking past him and entering the vault. He paused for a moment taking in the one room. There was a stone coffin in the center and empty shelves all around.
"No!" Victor hissed. "No!" he muttered again rushing around the coffin. "There has to be something here." He grabbed the vase trying to open it when Jefferson grabbed him.
"Victor stop."
"You said there were items here when she brought you."
"There are!" Jefferson grabbed the vase from his friend. "Calm down, you are acting crazier than me right now. You are supposed to be the sane one, remember?"
Victor took a step back letting Jefferson put the vase back.
"There are a few items, but like I told you the other night, there isn't much left. Are you going to be alright if we don't find anything useful?" Jefferson asked suddenly more worried about his friend's sanity than his own.
"I am fine." Victor straightened his jacket as he watched Jefferson walk back around the coffin placing his hands on the side of the stone coffin's covering and pushed. As the coffin moved Victor came around to see the stairs leading down into Regina's real vault. He looked over at Jefferson and he knew his mischievous smile had to match the one he saw on his friend's face.
Victor went down the stairs first. He saw a room to the left and to the right but it was the golden rows of drawers in front of him that drew his attention. He could hear the heartbeats as he walked closer. "My God, It's not as loud as her mother's vault but how many hearts does she have here?"
"I think the better question is the same one I asked all those years ago. "Who's hearts are these?" He waved a worried hand over the drawers afraid to actually touch them. "Though we both know the Huntsman's isn't in here anymore."
Victor froze it had been during the curse but he still remembered how upset Emma had been the night Sheriff Graham had died. He turned away from the hearts.
"No, don't go Victor. Not all the drawers have hearts."
"Are you sure?"
"I saw Cora's vault more than once and Regina learned from her. I am more than willing to bet there is something of importance in one of these drawers, or there was at some point over the last twenty-eight years."
"Well let's look."
"Oh hell no." Jefferson threw his hands back as he stepped back. "Hearts are not my thing. You can search this area. I will look over here." Jefferson quickly walked into one of the other rooms. It was the same room Regina had taken him to, to use his hat to get the poison apple. He eyes followed the crazy patterns on the floor a moment before he walked over to the shelves starting to look through the items. He wasn't lying when he told Victor that there wasn't much left.
A few minutes passed and Victor appeared with a handful of items. "Are any of these important?" He asked completely clueless.
Jefferson picked through. "There maybe a few things I would take." He pocketed two little bottles of something into his coat pocket. "Was this all there was?"
"There were quite a few hearts, and a few empty boxes. Did you find anything of use in here?" He asked looking around at the mostly empty shelves.
"There nothing in here but junk jewelry." Jefferson pointed to the box he had been looking at.
"Oh my god." Victor's eyes grew big as saw what was in the box. He thrust the rest of the items he had found into Jefferson's hands before he pushed him to the side to see them better. "I never thought I would see these again."
"See them again what are you talking about?" Jefferson asked as he pocketed the rest of the items Victor had given him.
"I created them for Regina before … well before you know." He paused taking them out studying them in one of the rays of light which were scattered throughout the room.
"Just how many items did you make for Regina?"
Victor grimaced hearing the anger in his friend's voice. "Just these and that other one you knew about." Victor trailed off.
"That other one…" Jefferson hissed clearly pissed off. "You mean the other one which got Aurora killed?"
"Jefferson..." Victor started but Jefferson cut him off.
"Nice to see how much that other one isn't at all important to you."
"I made these first." Victor tried to defend his actions as he also walked out of the room hoping to avoid a fight about both of their stupid past decisions. "They block anyone from knowing the wearer has magical abilities. So the wearer could move around undetected."
"Dear God what did Regina do with those?" Jefferson grabbed Victor by the arm taking the jewelry looking them over.
"I have no idea, but we can't let her have them now."
"Magic works differently here. They may not even work anymore."
"They were made with Science, not Magic. So are you willing to chance that? If she wore these no one not even Rumple would be able to use magic to track her let alone sense her magic coming." He took them back and pocketed them as he started through the doorway on the other side of the hallway. He came to a dead stop and Jefferson ran into him.
"Dear God! Did Regina bring her dead boyfriend over in the curse?" Victor asked amazed as he moved closer to look over the dead body he had failed to bring back to life all those years ago.
"Yes, that is Daniel."
"I could bring him back." Victor whispered.
"What?" Jefferson exclaimed.
"I could bring him back." Victor repeated louder this time. "The science, the technology here in this world is better. I know I could bring him back to life."
"Slow down Doc you are talking craziness. Where would you get a magical heart?"
"We are in Regina's vault; magical hearts are a dime a dozen here." He pointed towards the door back where they had come from. "You literary had me count them a few minutes ago."
Jefferson shook his head in disagreement with the whole idea. "No, it is a crazy idea. Science like Magic doesn't have all the answers. And one day you will realize it. I just hope it doesn't cost you, Ruby, the way it did Elizabeth."
Victor dropped Daniel's hand and glared over at Jefferson. Taking a deep breath, he let the comment about Elizabeth go, again not in a mood for a fight with his only friend in not just the town but this whole world. "Ruby isn't anywhere near being mine. I was about to attempt to ask her out but someone interrupted. But my lack of relationship isn't what we should be talking about its Regina's."
"I had a relationship with Regina. She deserves to be alone." Jefferson yelled.
"No don't you see, it is perfect!" He leaned over examining the body. "He looks just like he did that night decades ago."
"The preservation spell." Jefferson reminded him.
"Yes, I remember she did the same thing to my brother, after Van Helsing and I took care Dracula, which is the main reason I am not hundred percent freaking out about not being back home right now."
"She what?" Jefferson asked clearly thinking he could not have heard him correctly.
Oh shit! Victor thought realizing what he had said, he had not wanted to let Jefferson know the details of what had happened with the whole Dracula mess. "I made a deal with her."
"Exactly how many deals did you make with that lying murdering bitch?"
"Jeff please calm down, and don't look at me like that. We both have made too many deals with the Devil to blame each other for them now."
"Calm down?" Jefferson's voice showed no sign of calming down. "Before we came down here. I thought she forced you into making that magic binding cuff, that got Aurora killed. Now I know you were making deals with Regina behind my back!"
"She did force me. I didn't lie about that." Victor once again tried to defend himself and his actions.
"But you made a deal with her for that other jewelry and now this whole thing with your brother."
"Don't look at me like I have betrayed you." Victor ordered. "How many deals did you make with her back in the day?"
Victor could see the anger flicker across Jefferson's face. He watched as his friend opened his mouth a few times but instead of answering he turned around leaving the room and his screams echoed in the hallway.
"Jefferson!" Victor called moving over to the doorway. "You are missing the point. I can bring him back to life and blackmail Regina."
"Blackmail her for what?" Jefferson shook his head as he waved his hands around not understand Victor's sudden wish to help Regina.
"If I bring her love back to life, she will have to give me what I want. A way back home." He turned back his friend. "And not just for me but you and Grace as well. Bringing him back would help us all."
"Did you not just listen to me a few moments ago? Magic is different here. I don't think she could send us back even if she wanted too. It was Emma who got my hat to work and she is gone. And I sure as hell don't want to see Regina of all people get her happy ending. Now let's forget about this madness and leave. It was a horrible idea to come here. You clearly are not the friend I thought you were." He turned and led the way back up the stairs towards the exit.
Victor walked to the doorway, pausing a moment to turn and look back at Daniel one last time before following Jefferson back up into the light.
Jefferson pushed the stone coffin back into place his whole body shaking with anger. Fuck Victor and his lies I don't need him, Rumple said he would take me back. The protection and power it would give me in this town. I am insane if I turn that offer down. These items I stole, I should take them to him, to show him where my loyaties lay. As soon as the coffin was back in its place he rushed off without waiting for Victor.
"Jeff!"Victor called after this friend. "Jefferson wait, let me explain." He rushed to keep pace with him as his mind raced with what to say to calm him down and keep his friendship. He grabbed Jefferson's arm stopping him. "I am sorry, I know I messed up. But I never made a deal with the intent of hurting you. You are my best friend."
"I am your only friend here." Jefferson hissed pulling his arm free. "And intent has nothing to do with what actually happened." He shook his head in disbelieve at this whole mess. "I can't talk to you right now. I don't know if I ever can again." He turned and stalked off across the cemetery.
"Jeff!" Victor called after him. "Jeff don't go."
"My name is Jefferson!" He called back not bothering to turn around as he walked away.
"You have just had a bad day."
Jefferson stopped breaking into a fit of crazy laughter. "A bad day?" He turned back to Victor. "Try a bad thirty years or so!" And without another word he turned and left Victor standing there.
Victor stood there wondering what to do next. He put his hand in his pocket and feeling the jewelry he pulled a piece out to look at it. "I know Science can best Magic. There has to be a way I can fix this mess magic got us all into."
