Chapter 29


Neal Cassidy.

The man on the screen did not even try to hide his face or his intentions. There was a cruel look that twisted his usually pleasant features.

Killian felt his hands curl into a tight fist as the anger flowed through him.

He had trusted him! He was the General Manager of his company for gods sake!

"Why?" Robin's voice sounded just as shocked as Killian felt.

"Money? Power?" Graham listed a few of the most obvious reasons for this level of betrayal.

The footage followed Neal as he entered the same office as Emma. Killian found himself turning around, unable to watch Emma being attacked. His heart was pounding and the adrenaline pumping through his veins just fueled his anger.

"Find him!" The growl exploded with more force than he had intended.

Killian heard furious tapping on the keyboards as his two trusted security experts got to work tracking Neal.

Before turning around Killian drew in several much needed deep and calming breathes.

Graham had powered up all of the security monitors so they could pin point where Neal was located. Robin had his phone to his ear and was ordering security to be beefed up at the exits and for them to be on the look out for Neal.

Killian's eyes darted rapidly between all of the screens hoping he would luck out immediately.

"Bring up all of the corridors and elevators."

If they were going to find him they needed to watch all of the escape avenues. Graham tapped a few keys and brought the requested live feed to the fore front.

"There." Robin jabbed his finger. The screen showed Neal running towards closing elevator doors.

Killian froze as he located the appropriate elevator feed.

"Emma."


He burst into the parking garage screaming her name out desperately.

"Emma!"

"Killian." Her voice was timid and tired.

Killian rushed towards Emma and fell to his knees in front of her. His eyes soaked in every inch of her, widening when they noticed the shape she was in. Emma's hair was disheveled and blood was seeping out from a small cut on her lower lip. Killian had never seen her so vulnerable and it made him feel so powerless.

His felt the muscles in his back tense and his jaw clench as the anger built inside of him. His rage must have been obvious as Emma reached out to tug on his sleeve. Her small fingers clutched tightly at the material as she pulled him towards her. Emma rose up slightly and Killian put his arm around her lower back. He pulled her to him, tightly against his chest and Emma's arms circled around his waist.

Killian closed his eyes as he nuzzled his head into the crook of her neck. The relief he felt at holding her overwhelmed him and he felt the wetness of tears roll down his face.

"Take me home." Emma whispered into his ear.

Killian didn't need to be asked twice.


Killian rested his shoulder against the door frame as he gazed into the moonlit room. He found himself watching Emma as she slept peacefully in the bed. The doctor had left over an hour ago and he had yet to budge from this spot.

Graham and Robin had found them in the parking garage. Both were shocked at the state Emma was in and had jumped immediately into protective mode. Robin liaised with the police and Corsair's security whilst Graham escorted Emma and Killian back to the apartment.

Emma had insisted she was fine and that she'd had worse. Killian had simply narrowed his eyes at her as he called his own trusted personal physician.

"Do it for me. Please." He'd urged her.

It was a slight guilt trip but he really needed to make sure that she was okay. Two traumatic experiences in one day was not good for a person...even someone as tough as Emma Swan.

Rest

Rest was the official treatment for Emma's injuries and there was no argument from her. A nice hot shower and a hot meal and she was out like a light.

"Killian." Robin's soft voice came from behind him and pulled his attention away.

"I hope you've found something." Killian threatened his head of security.

Robin shook his head. They hadn't found Neal or even anything that would tell them where he was. Graham was sifting through the security footage but once Neal left the Corsair's parking garage it was extremely hard to track him.

"I don't care what you have to do but find him!"


Graham was frustrated. He had been working flat out trying to find Neal but after two straight days it was starting to get to him. He knew that Emma had resources that when combined with Killian's would make the search progress much faster. Emma had been recuperating from her injuries without any kind of resistance. She had been asleep for the majority of the time. It gave them all a chuckle as she obviously felt terrible or else she would be making all kinds of fuss. Killian had given strict orders for her to not be disturbed. It made it all that much harder as his boss rarely left her side and Graham knew he needed to find a way to sneak in.

Graham had been in touch with David, giving him all of the details so that he could request access to their systems. It would take time to patch through Emma's access to the agency's databases. Graham had formed his own contacts over the years that could help him into many systems but that too would take time. Time was one thing that wasn't on their side and could not be wasted.

He really needed her help.


Everything had finally taken it's toll on her.

The long hours...the emotional turmoil...the physical attacks.

Everything!

Emma had needed the time out so she had taken it. No arguments.

Killian had barely left her side. Most of the time he'd sit in an armchair just brooding and once he had even sat on the bed against the head board. He'd run his fingers through her hair and then whispered them across her forehead. It had felt good.

She had woken up at one stage into the 2nd day and found her laptop perched on the end of her bed.

Graham

Killian had been holding back all visitors and he refused to talk business. He was dead serious about her resting and so she had followed his lead...resisting the urge to use her phone. Graham had to have found a small window of opportunity to place the laptop in her room. It was a clear indicator to her that she was needed...that they needed the resources the Agency could provide.

Emma scribbled her pass code down on a post it note and attached it to the inside of the laptop lid. She grabbed her mobile phone from the side table and fired off a quick text to Graham.

Come and get it. Access financial details and security camera footage.

It would not look good for her to 'discover' the leads. Killian and Robin would both become suspicious on how she could gain access to such information. It was getting nearly impossible to keep the truth from them both. Emma was scared that when the truth eventually did come out that she wouldn't be able to live with the consequences...that she would loose people that were important to her.


Killian felt like a caged Tiger. He had so much energy and anger that just wanted to be released but he needed to wait...bide his time.

"I've found something!" Graham's voice called out from his makeshift office. The living room looked like a bomb had gone off. There were cords running patterns all over the ground, laptops upon laptops being used for different searches, dirty coffee cups and takeout rubbish piling up. It was chaos but it was organised chaos.

"I pulled his financials and have a live tap on all of his cards. If he uses it we will know."

Killian didn't care in the least that gaining this information was probably illegal. He just wanted justice.

"and..." Robin piped up from his position on the couch.

"He frequents a lot of the same restaurants, coffee shops etc but he also spends a lot of time at the Gilded Bird."

Graham gave a small fist pump to show how proud he was of himself. Killian and Robin looked at each other a little stumped. Both were aware of the Gilded Bird. It was a seedy strip club on the east side of the city. It was known not only for it's girls but its influential clientele and funny enough its underhanded ways.

"I fail to..." Robin was cut off by Killian.

"Come on Locksley. Gilded Bird." He emphasised the first word of the club.

"Gold."

The club was one of Gold's front companies and once again the man's ego had led them straight to him. Neal may have got caught up in Gold's nefarious ways after over spending at the club or any number of things Killian could instantly think up. It didn't matter to him how Neal was involved with Gold. They had flushed him out of the company and now they needed to make sure that he paid. Neal was on the payroll and it had to be siphoned through the Guilded Bird.

"I can check footage to see if that's where he headed." Graham suggested but Killian had a better idea.

"Confirm it. We will stake it out. Wait for him to leave and..." His voice trailed off but his meaning was obvious. They would take care of it.

"You can't." Emma's voice rang from the edge of the room.

"He is our only lead. He will take you to Gold." Each word brought her closer to Killian. His anger was evident and his need for revenge was quickly becoming a hunger he couldn't deny. Emma knew she needed to make him see the bigger picture.

"We need Gold. Neal will get what's coming to him but not at your hands." Emma reached out to Killian and grasped his hand.

Killian squeezed his eyes shut and sighed. "We'll do it your way..for now."

"Let's get the bastards."

TBC