Author's Note: Happy 2020! Sorry for the long wait. Here's the next chapter!

13 | Consequences

"Hearts?"

Mary Margaret had her chin resting on the back of her folded hands as her eyes followed her bodyguard pacing restlessly in front of her. The two of them were occupying the bullpen while Emma and Graham talked inside the sheriff's office. David had stormed off somewhere after being told that the heart belonged to his father. Mary Margaret was supposed to follow him but was held back by the others and had to be told repeatedly to leave him be before she finally acquiesced.

All they were doing was waiting. Waiting was not going to solve anything.

"Like – like human hearts?" Killian repeated, stopping to look at her for confirmation. When she nodded, he went back to pacing, which was starting to get on her nerves. "Bloody hell."

"Regina is insane. I'm surprised you haven't picked that up yet," she murmured, her thoughts occupied as she glanced at the phone, thinking of dialing Ruth's home phone to check if David was there. When she checked what the time was, she thought otherwise.

Killian thankfully stopped pacing and sat partially on the desk she was occupying. "MM."

"What?" she asked, turning her attention back to him.

"If you're not coming home with me right now, you're the one who's insane."

Her eyes narrowed. "And go back into the loving arms of my stepmother? I'd rather not."

Killian let out an exasperated sigh. "You have the whole security detail at your beck and call. You'll be safe. Now that we know what she's capable of, we're not going back there blindly. We have proof, enough for her to land in jail for the rest of her life. You can make a case against her with all this new information. You just have to make a few calls."

"Hmm," she agreed nonchalantly, leaning back on her chair with her arms crossed in front of her.

She felt his eyes studying her. "I mean, isn't that what you came here for?"

Her thoughts went back to David and the weight on her chest grew heavier. "I don't know."

Catching her drift, Killian took a deep breath before telling her, "Mary Margaret…"

"If you're going to lecture me, save it," she interrupted him with a sharp look. "I know what I've gotten myself into, and you're right. I might be going insane. I might be forgetting what I came here to do. But now it just seems… everything is just too much, and I don't know what to think."

Tears stung her eyes and made her look away from him. Her bodyguard was quiet for a few seconds before he continued to say, "Mary Margaret, my job is to protect you. All of you, and that includes your heart. I'm sorry if I made you think that I'm forcing you to make decisions now. I'm just worried. Worried about all this. Worried about you."

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly to keep her tears at bay, trying not to let him see her cry. "So, what do you suggest I do then?" she challenged him.

Before he can answer, both of them were startled by the loud commotion coming from the entrance of the station.

Doctor Whale was sporting a black eye and a split lip when David all but shoved him onto the chair on the other side of Emma's desk. It was less than an hour since the moment the sheriff dropped the news about the heart, and the deputy took it as an order to haul the doctor all the way from the hospital to the station, not very gently but no one can blame him.

"Doctor Whale," Emma greeted, hating the goosebumps that ran down her spine at the sight of the man.

"Sheriff Swan," the doctor had the gall to respond cheekily, making David look murderous in anger.

The sheriff sighed, feeling unbelievably tired. "You confessed having done the heart procedures on the victims of Regina Mills, is this correct?"

"Will you let me go if I say otherwise?" Whale asked which earned him a whack on the head from the deputy standing behind him. He seemed to have needed a moment to clear his vision at the force of David's hand.

"No," Emma answered his question before holding up the notebook with the contract inside. "But we do have this. So, I suggest you stop stalling and answer my questions properly because none of us wants to be here all night."

The doctor suddenly looked very sober at the sight of the notebook, a silent invitation for Emma to proceed.

"Did you agree to the terms written on this contract?" she questioned, holding up the notebook.

"Yes."

"Did you operate on the victims and take their hearts?"

"Yes."

"Under the orders of Regina Mills?"

"Yes."

"Did you kill Henry Mills?"

"Not intentionally, but yes."

"Were you under the influence of drugs or alcohol at that time?"

"Alcohol."

"Where's the vehicle?"

"Regina took care of it. I don't know where it is now."

"Then she made you sign the contract that states you will be performing the organ harvests?"

"Yes."

Emma felt triumphant at the ease of questioning. She tapped her pencil on her desk twice before continuing to say, "Notice how I've been using plurals all this time and you seem to be answering them without question. I wonder why."

Whale stilled for a moment before sharply meeting her eyes. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Is there more than one victim?" the sheriff interpreted, trying to ignore the racing of her heart in fear of his answer.

The doctor didn't say anything for a while, letting his eyes wander among the three people in the room with him before looking down at his hands knotting on his lap. "I signed the contract," he answered quietly. "I had no choice. She was going to kill me."

"Answer the question, Whale," David pressed on.

Whale snapped. "Why? Finding out that heart in the basement belongs to your father not enough for you, Nolan?"

"You son of a –."

"David!" the sheriff shouted, jumping up from her chair.

Graham forcefully restrained him from tackling the doctor right there and then. "Graham," Emma said. "Take him and get out of my office. Both of you."

"What?" the two deputies said in surprise. "Why?"

"You two are way too involved in this to be impartial," she explained. Whale looked almost triumphant on his seat, and his smugness made her want to punch it right off his face. "I'll take care of the questioning. You'll be able to see me from outside."

There was a bit of an argument before the two men finally acquiesced to her request. She sat down once the door was shut and realized how quiet it was with just the two of them inside. Staring back at Whale's eyes made her want to bolt out the door herself. She was silently thankful for the windows in her office and the four pairs of eyes watching them from the outside.

"One last question," her voice wavered and made her clear her throat. Whale smirked slightly.

"Go ahead, sheriff."

"Are you the hitman that Regina has hired to kill Mary Margaret?"

There was no denying the surprise on his expression. "Well, no," he answered before letting out a chuckle.

"What's with the laugh?" Emma asked. "You think this is funny?"

"Quite so," the doctor reciprocated her cold tone. "Do you really think that Regina can be that predictable? That she has only hired one person to do all her dirty work? You're dealing with a psychopath, Sheriff Swan. And I suggest you thread very carefully."

Afterwards, Doctor Whale was escorted back to the hospital by Emma and Graham after the sheriff suggested – more like commanded – all of them to go home and get some rest. Mary Margaret then was left with Killian and David inside the empty station with no one knowing what exactly to do or say to one another. Then they were saved when Killian's phone suddenly rang. He walked out into the hallway to answer it.

She and David were avoiding each other's eyes when he suddenly asked, "Are you going back with him?"

Shyly, she looked up to see his red rimmed eyes watching her warily. The loving blue replaced with a stormy gray. Fresh tears stung her eyes as she shrugged her shoulders and answered with, "I don't know."

He took a moment before he gave her a pained smile. "He likes you. That bodyguard of yours."

She rolled her eyes, sending a few tears to roll down her cheeks. She hastily wiped them away. "No, he does not. He's protective. It's his job."

"Trust me," David said quietly, pushing his hands down into his pockets and looking down on his shoes. "I see the way he looks at you."

"David," she murmured, her heart fluttering at the thought of him being jealous at the worst possible moment. "Now's not the time to be jealous."

Mary Margaret stepped forward to place a hand on his chest. Before she can reach him, he suddenly recoiled away from her touch, stunning the both of them.

"David?" she asked, hurt coloring her tone.

His features turned troubled as he avoided her eyes. "I – I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me…"

Mary Margaret brought her hand down and wrapped her arms around herself in comfort. "Right," she nodded jerkily. "I understand."

There was silence between them for a couple of seconds, and Mary Margaret hated every moment of it. "I'm sorry," she told him. "Everything… Everything was fine before I got here. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for taking your father away. I'm sorry for this mess. I'm sorry for all this."

David continued to look down on his shoes, not saying anything at all, and she suddenly found it harder to breathe. Killian then walked back into the room, took one look on her face, and immediately started to retreat. She stopped him, "No, wait. We should go."

"Go where?"

Killian's question was hopeful, and it made David stiffen slightly.

"To the inn," she clarified for the both of them. Her bodyguard looked disappointed while the deputy seemed to be relieved at her answer. "Emma was right. We've all had a long day. We should get some rest."

Killian nodded. "All right, I'll wait outside."

Once Killian was out of earshot, Mary Margaret took a tentative step towards David and held up her hand. She contemplated for a moment before bringing it back down. "I don't know what else to say," her voice wavered with emotion. "Other than I'm sorry. I'm sorry, David. This is not how I wanted it to be. You do know that, right?"

David then looked up. Her heart dropped at the sight of tears rolling down his cheeks. "I know. I just don't know what to do. I'm trying, but I just can't think…"

Mary Margaret raised her arms and wrapped him in an embrace. Slowly, she felt him respond in a tight hold and his face pressed on her neck. He was shaking and all she could do was stroke the back of his head in comfort. "My dad's dead, Mary Margaret."

She squeezed him tighter, closing her watery eyes shut.

"How am I supposed to tell my mother?"