AN: I'm back! Sorry for the long wait! I recommend that if you have time re-read the entire story as I have changed some small things (they don't drastically change the story but hopefully everything flows better).
Chapter 28
Muffled voices pushed through the darkness that had swallowed her. The repetitive sounds reaching out to her, calling her back.
"Em-ma."
Her head was pounding and her eyes felt heavy but she pushed through the pain to flutter her lids open.
Emma struggled to focus on anything. Her vision blurred and she felt dizzy but her head was resting comfortably against something.
She blinked several times and slowly her vision focused and she could make out a figure above her.
His eyes looked pained and frown lines marred his handsome face but Killian's lips quirked up into a small relieved smile.
His hand reached up and began stroking her forehead. It did nothing to reduce her pain but it was calming and felt good.
"What happened?" The gaps in her memory flashed incoherently making it hard to piece everything together. Emma remembered moving through the executive offices but everything after that was patchy.
"One of the janitors found you and alerted us in the boardroom."
Emma shot up into a sitting position, a move that she instantly regretted. Her head swam and she lurched back but strong, firm hands held her steady.
"Take it easy." The low timbre of his voice was soothing but did nothing to alleviate the fear that was twisting her stomach.
"They know." She turned to look at him and could instantly see her feelings mirrored in his eyes.
"It's the only..." Emma's voice trailed off as she remembered what she had been doing before she'd been attacked. Her hands quickly reached for her pockets, patting both but she found nothing.
"Did they take it?" She asked him softly as he helped her off the ground and into a chair.
"You had nothing on you." Killian's brows furrowed as he processed the consequences of the flash drive being in the wrong hands.
A small rap on the door indicated that the Doctor had arrived. Killian was thankful that he kept a medical professional on staff in order to provide his employee's with the best health services available.
Emma's small grunt of pain drew his focus and he watched silently as the Doctor checked her head. When security had alerted them that a blonde woman had been attacked in the executive offices he had frozen. The horror had quickly been replaced by a gut wrenching fear. There was only one blonde woman poking her nose around the executive offices. She had been attacked right under his nose and it disturbed him. He'd thought she was safe.
"It's okay." Emma's hand reached out to comfort him.
"Nothing about this is okay!" Killian growled heatedly. His frustration with the whole situation was boiling over.
"They won't know what they have. It's protected." Emma told him with a slight smirk. It was a small relief to know that their plans hadn't been completely busted but Killian knew Emma was missing his point.
"I think you are missing my meaning love."
A slight flush heated Emma's cheeks, "Where is Graham? Robin?"
"I need to meet them at Security." Killian answered her question though he knew she was trying to change the subject.
"Why are you still here?" Emma winced slightly as the Doctor continued to poke and prod her.
Killian avoided answering as he would probably blurt his feelings out and she didn't need him to dump that on her. She didn't want hear that he needed to be near her...needed it nearly as much as he needed air to breathe.
"I will find out who did this." Killian declared before he left her in capable hands.
She didn't doubt him.
The security office at Corsair's was state of the art featuring a bank of flat screen televisions that streamed live coverage from every single camera in the building. Killian had even had a programmer design a feature that would scan the incoming data and flag any suspicious activity. There was obviously a flaw in the system as security had not picked up that Emma had been attacked.
Killian swiped his key card and entered a 6 digit pin. It was important to him that the security services had extra protection. All of the footage was instantly transferred to top of the line mainframes so it could be reviewed and accessed when necessary.
The door sealed instantly behind him and his eyes roved the dimly lit surroundings. Robin and Graham were the sole occupants of the room which didn't surprise Killian. They needed to keep everything 'need to know' and within their small trusted group.
"Anything?" Killian moved to stand behind the two men as the searched through the footage.
They were currently cued to the beginning of the board meeting.
"We're trying to put together a time line." Graham told Killian as he clicked the 2x speed.
They watched in silence until Emma left the room.
"She comes in and out several times." Killian pointed at the screen as he informed the two men of what happened before the attack.
Graham slowed the recording down to regular speed as Robin brought up more footage on the adjacent screen. The recordings showed Emma in the hallway heading towards Starkey's office. Killian had to give Robin extra credit as he managed to switch between camera's, even splitting the screen into several parts.
There were a few blind spots in the camera network but it was easy to pick up where Emma was. Killian's eyes flashed between the screens and he watched as everything progressed normally. Emma hadn't returned after delivering the refreshments and Killian had Graham cue the footage to the right time. Killian had given everyone a break during this time and the board members had been in and out of the room.
Had it been one of them?
Had they caught Emma in the act?
Would they be so stupid?
"I think we have something!" Graham exclaimed and pointed at the figure on the paused screen.
"Son of a bitch."
The doctor had been quite thorough even if he was slightly rough. He'd told Emma that she had to take it easy for the next couple of days. He'd given her a list of symptoms to watch out for and told her to dial 911 immediately if needed.
Emma pulled out her phone and gave Killian a quick call. It rang out and went directly to his voice mail. She tried a few more times before leaving a short message.
"It's Emma. The doctor has given me the all clear."
She tried Graham next but had the same results. Emma left him a similar message but added that she would wait down in the car for him. She really just wanted to get back to the apartment and have a nice long shower and relax. The outcome today could have been better but she had accomplished the main mission. The spyware had been planted.
"Hold the doors!" An arm came through into the elevator and pushed the doors wide open.
A small smile lit up Emma's face when the flustered man finally entered the elevator.
"You made it."
Neal chuckled before his face took on a serious look.
"How are you? I heard what happened."
Emma shrugged, "Tough day."
"We all have those." Neal agreed as the elevator reached the parking garage. They began walking across the concrete until Emma felt something shift in the air. Neal was no longer walking beside her, having stopped several steps behind her.
"I really hoped it was someone else." Neal's voice had taken on a dark and bitter tone that had alarm bells ringing in her head.
"It's you!" Emma whispered spinning around to face him.
"Nobody likes to leave loose ends."
It was neither a confirmation or a denial but the menacing stance Neal was taking made it obvious.
He was the mole.
Emma knew that she could hold her own but her head injury through a spanner in the works. She was slightly confused as to why he would confront her. It didn't seem to be the smartest option.
Neal was larger than her but she hoped her speed and skills would give her the upper hand. Emma didn't have long to size him up before he rushed at her.
She dodged his first punch and gave him a swift kick to the shins. The rapid movement cause her head to swirl.
The second punch connected with her ribs and she expelled a grunt of pain as the wind was knocked from her and she fell to her knees.
Neal pulled Emma to her feet, almost tearing the collar… She heard the slight rustle of material ripping. Emma flung her elbow back and stomped down hard on his foot. He quickly released her and she gave him a quick right hook to the face and a blow to his guts.
He did not hesitate at dishing it straight back to her. Pain exploded through her head. She was in trouble!
Emma quickly kicked out at him and knocked him off his feet. She scrambled towards the elevators and pulled the fire alarm.
The sirens began wailing instantly and she hoped it would be enough of a deterrent. Neal rolled onto his side and then onto his feet. He threw a small intimidating glance at Emma before hightailing it towards his car.
Emma felt her slither down the garage wall as she watched him tear out of his parking space.
"Son of a bitch."
TBC
