A/N: So a LOT happens in this chapter, and things are really starting to take a dark turn here. You'll see Regina and Emma both do their own separate investigating, and you'll see this is a big chapter for Regina emotionally. I actually included a headcanon of mine for "The Miller's Daughter" at the end when Emma has a flashback. Review? Please, and thank you!
Regina cautiously made her way towards Mr. Spencer's private residence. She knew that it would be better if she confronted the older man than if Emma did. The sheriff was off to speak to Brom Bones, and the brunette found herself here. Her heels clicked as she quickly approached the front door and knocked. There was only silence as Regina waited. After a couple minutes passed she knocked once more and called out, "Mr. Spencer?"
When more silence passed, Regina extracted her ring of keys. Something she had almost completely forgotten about after the curse broke. She pulled out the one she knew would open the door and slipped it into the keyhole. Turning the knob, Regina slipped inside and shut the door silently behind her. The front hall was dark and eerily quiet. She was beginning to regret wearing heels as she moved across the marble floor to peer into an adjoining room.
"You know, I can have you reported for trespassing," said the low growl of King George from behind Regina.
She turned around slowly and put on her best evil smirk. "I wouldn't if I were you."
"And why not? Is the big bad Evil Queen going to make me?" King George sneered.
"That's exactly what I'm going to do," she retorted, raising a hand. George was taken by surprise as he flew back, hitting the wall with a loud impact. He struggled against an invisible force as Regina stalked close.
"I though you gave up magic," he growled at the brunette.
"I had until you and your elusive ally started causing trouble. It seems I'm left with no other option," she said, before adding, "Now, how about we make things nice and easy. Who is working with you?"
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Don't make this hard on yourself," Regina warned.
"I'm not afraid of you. You aren't the Evil Queen you used to be."
Regina let out a bored sigh before plunging her hand into King George's chest. "Didn't the curse teach you anything?" She paused as his eyes widened. "We are both."
"I won't tell you anything."
"I would think carefully about reconsidering. Seeing that you nearly killed my son with that fire, I would feel absolutely no guilt whatsoever from ripping your heart from your chest and crushing it to ashes."
"I didn't have anything to do with that fire!" King George cried, face contorted in pain
"I don't believe you," Regina hissed, her fist tightening in his chest. "Tell me who is working with you."
"Why don't you ask your mother?"
Regina's vicious cold manner dissipated in seconds, face crumbling into a blank stare. "What did you say?"
King George grinned, knowing he had the queen right where he wanted her. "Cora."
Regina retracted her hand from the man's chest taking stumbling steps back. "She's locked up, s-she doesn't have any magic."
King George chuckled, "And yet…"
Regina's eyes flared and she turned on him, not even bothering to use magic, she firmly grabbed his throat and growled, and "I'm going to go now, but hear this, and understand it well, if I find out that you had anything to do with the fire, I will come back for you." She released his neck, smoothed out her dress, and turned to march out.
Emma tapped her knuckles on the door to a small, worn house. As she waited for someone to answer, she stepped back glancing around at the surrounding forest area. The Bones residence bordered the edges of the immediate town of Storybrooke. It had taken Emma a good hour to find the tiny broken-down thing. There was a small shed a few yards away from the house, and Emma made a mental note to check it later.
The door opened and a pretty woman that Emma recognized from the wedding announcement as Katrina Bones greeted the blonde.
"Can I help you?" she asked.
"Yes, I'm Sheriff Swan. I was wondering if your husband, Brom Bones is here?" Emma replied, remaining professional.
"I'm sorry," Katrina replied, opening the door a little wider. "He isn't home."
"Oh, I'm sorry to intrude then," Emma replied quickly. "Do you know when he'll be back?"
"No, I don't," she replied. "Why do you need to see him?"
"I just have a few questions for him, that's all."
Katrina looked worried and nervous. "Maybe I can answer them for you?"
Emma considered her, then figuring it was better than nothing, agreed. Katrina stepped aside, allowing the sheriff into her home.
"So do you know where your husband has gone?" Emma inquired as Katrina led her to the kitchen table.
"No he didn't tell me. He just disappeared this morning," Katrina replied as they sat down.
"Does he do that a lot?" Emma suggested and she noticed how uncomfortable she'd made the woman. "Sorry."
"It's alright, now what questions did you have?"
"Does your husband work at the stables?" Emma inquired matter-of-factly.
Katrina nodded.
"Can you tell me if he was working yesterday during the fire?"
A look of realization filled the woman's face as she asked, "So this is about the fire?"
Emma nodded.
"Well I can reassure he didn't do anything. I mean he was working, but he wouldn't have set fire to the stables."
"Look, Ms. Bones, I can tell you that I interviewed all the witnesses, and your husband was not among them, now—"
"But he wouldn't do anything. He loves the horses—more than anything," Katrina interrupted hurriedly. "I'm sure there's a perfectly reasonable explanation for why he wasn't there."
Emma sighed, and asked, "Did he say anything to you when he got home, anything about the fire?"
"No, I mean, he mentioned it, but nothing more."
This only confirmed Emma's suspicions that Henry had been onto something with the Headless Horseman theory. She began to dig in her pocket, ready for her next assault. She extracted a photo from the school paper and held it up. "Is this your son?"
Katrina nodded, "What does William have to do with any of this?"
Emma sighed, "Do you recognize the name, Henry Mills?"
The woman took a moment of contemplation before shaking her head, "I can't say that I have."
"That's interesting because according to Henry, your husband told him that William talks about him non-stop."
Katrina looked taken-aback. "I can't say that I've ever heard William ever mention a Henry before. I'm sorry, I don't understand what this has to do with the fire."
"It doesn't really," Emma replied. "Henry, is actually my son, and I only found out recently that your son, William, is one of the boys responsible for bullying him." The sheriff sized up the reaction of the woman across the table from her. "You don't seem very surprised..."
"You mustn't think I don't feel horrible or responsible. I just know that William has had troubles in the past…he actually isn't my son."
"He isn't?"
"No, only Brom's, and he's always been rather…well, Brom's always been rather hard on him."
Emma realized she might actually have more than just the worries of the investigation on her hands as she posed a follow-up. "Has he ever abused William?"
"No-no of course not! He's just very tough on him," Katrina replied hurriedly as Emma scrutinized her. A long silence followed where the sheriff tried to decide what to do next.
"Well, look I should be going," she said, getting to her feet. Reaching over she shook Katrina's hand. "Thank you for your cooperation."
Katrina forced a hard polite smile, "I'll make sure Brom knows you were looking for him."
"No!" Emma said quickly, shocking the woman. "I mean…I'd rather speak to him myself."
"But—"
"Look, Ms. Bones," Emma interrupted. "I don't know your husband that well, but he doesn't strike me as the kindest sort of person, so maybe just keep this visit to yourself. I'd much rather you and your son stay out of harm's way. Just let me deal with him, alright?"
Katrina shook her head stubbornly, "But this is just silly. Brom would never hurt me, or his son."
"And I'd just rather you not take the risk," Emma replied as she trekked to the front door, and waved goodbye. "Thank you again."
Regina's hands shook at her side as she made her way to the back of the hospital. She paused beside the door marked 'exit' and she steadily punched in the number code on the keypad. The door buzzed, and the green light blinked back at her. She quickly slid through before anyone in the lobby had even noticed.
The air around her became colder and muskier as she made her way down the concrete steps. The familiar nurse sat at the same desk like she had for the past 28 years. "Ms. Mills," the woman said springing to her feet. "It's been awhile since you—"
"Has anyone been here?" Regina interrupted, her voice uneven.
"Not besides the sheriff or deputy who check-up once a week," the woman replied.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes ma'am," the nurse said.
"May I have the keys?" Regina requested holding out a hand.
"I—yes of course."
Regina didn't say another word as she turned and made her way down the hall, never wavering. She stopped in front of her destination and took a deep breath. Regina unlocked the door and turned the knob. As the dim lighting from the hallway filled the dark barren room, Regina felt herself become immobile. The woman on the hard mattress slowly turned to face her, hollow eyes glinting darkly.
"Well, dear, it's kind of you to pay your mother a visit," Cora croaked, causing Regina to inhale sharply. She slowly stepped into the room and closed the door behind her. Her shoulders shuddered, chest rising and falling shakily as she faced the door, fingers locked around the knob. "Why don't you turn around and face me, dear?"
Regina did as she was told, turning agonizingly slow, eyes trained on her mother who was on her feet now.
"What? No hug?"
"Have you seen anyone?" Regina inquired, ignoring Cora's comments completely.
"You must be joking!" the woman laughed. "I don't see anyone besides your precious little savior or the two idiots who stick their faces in the slot every week and disappear again."
"I'm not joking, mother."
"And I'm not lying," Cora retorted moving closer.
"You always lie," Regina said coldly and distantly.
Cora examined her daughter before saying, "Did you just come here to ask me if anyone had been to see me or have you come for something else?"
"Someone's been here, and I know it," Regina replied. "Now, tell me what you've been up to."
"When you took away my magic and locked me up in this asylum, I thought you made it very difficult for me to do anything," Cora shrugged, hands folded in front of her.
"Mother…" Regina warned, but Cora closed the distance between them and reached out for her face.
The brunette recoiled as her mother stroked her face, "Regina, my dear. What have you become? You could be so…so much more."
Regina had to pull away, the manipulative fingers causing her skin to crawl. "I'm just fine the way I am."
Cora laughed again, withdrawing her hand. "Oh, darling. If you could only see yourself…maybe if you showed any potential I would let you in on a secret."
"What secret?" Regina growled, as if knowing her mother was playing her.
Cora smirked, "That while you're busy playing house with the savior and her son, greater forces are at work—creating the chance we've all been waiting for, a chance that you are going to miss out on. And in the end…well in the end you'll be left with nothing."
"What do you mean 'we've been waiting for'?" Regina asked suspiciously. "Whose 'we?'"
Cora's eyes grew crazed with excitement as the distance between her and her daughter closed again. "Regina…if you only embraced the darkness within yourself. If you could only see what you could have, what you could be."
"No," Regina croaked, stumbling back, her hands fumbling for the door handle. "I will never—I can't go back to that."
"You will have to choose, Regina, and when that day comes…" Cora's eyes were alight as her grin grew wider, and Regina could feel the bile rise in her throat as her shaking hands yanked down on the doorknob. She practically threw herself through the door, and once she had it firmly shut behind her, the brunette collapsed against it as she attempted to regain her breath, and control the sobs beginning to tear through her chest.
When Emma and Henry arrived at Regina's house that night, the blonde could instantly tell something was wrong. Henry bounded through the door, boxes in hand, chatting away while Regina, stepped aside, a controlled smile on her face that fell away as soon as Henry had passed her.
"We brought some stuff over, to make the move-in later easier," Emma said, boxes in her hands as well. When the brunette didn't react as she closed the door behind them, Emma questioned, "Regina, what's wrong?"
Regina looked up at her, into the blonde's concerned green eyes, and she felt something within her snap. She opened her mouth to speak, but only a strangled sob came out. Emma dropped her boxes, and was at her sides in seconds, arms wrapped securely around the brunette who allowed her whole body to collapse against the blonde, and Emma gently guided them to the ground.
"Hey Mom, I—" Henry started, but the words caught in his throat at the sight of his two mothers on the floor. As Regina's tears began to soak into Emma's shirt, the blonde recalled the last time she had been in this position.
Regina took in slow, steady breaths as she took in the man that had just declared himself Henry's father. "Neal get out of here," Emma hissed, stepping into Regina's line of sight. She gently raised her hands, as if in surrender, saying, "Regina, don't worry. He isn't—he won't take Henry from you."
The brunette's eyes flared, and she spat, "You've already taken Henry from me! How much more did you need to remind me that he isn't mine! By bringing back this—this—"
"Regina, please listen to me," Emma pleaded. "I'm sorry about what happened with Archie. I should have believed you, and I never should have said what I said, but I promise you that—"
Regina held up a hand and miscellaneous objects in Gold's shop flew across the room towards the blonde who threw a furious look at Neal who obediently backed away and fled. "Your promises mean nothing to me," Regina snapped, and she caused more things to fly at the blonde who raised her hands and to her surprise, magic came to her aid and defended her against them.
"Please, Regina, just calm down," Emma said, as she watched tears fill the brunette's fiery eyes.
"Don't call me that!" Regina choked, taking shaky steps towards the savior. "I'm the Evil Queen! Do you understand?"
"No," Emma replied as the glass in Gold's cases exploded and she shielded her face. "You're Regina."
Suddenly the two were mere feet apart and Regina raised her fist and crashed it into Emma's jaw. "No, you said it yourself, I am and always will be the Evil Queen," Regina cried, tears cascading down her face as Emma faced her, lip bleeding, but hands reaching for the brunette.
"Regina…"
"I'm evil, get it? I'm evil!" Regina sobbed, fists pummeling the blonde weakly who was drawing her close now. Her cries came in shuddering gasps as the two women fell roughly to the floor. "I'm evil, I'm bad…" Regina whimpered.
"Shh, Regina, it's okay," Emma murmured into the brunette's hair as she held the broken woman.
