AN: Thanks for the incredible response to this Snowing story! See previous chapter for important authors notes on characters and story notes.
Just a couple of notes for the last chapter and the next few. The Characters of Aaron Glover, the podcaster and Paul and Helen Santino are from Manifest and not Once characters. Another note: In this universe, Killian and Liam are not related, nor do they know one another.
This one will update bi-weekly on Monday nights. Please consider leaving a review, it is much appreciated. Here are individual responses to reviews:
Ghostwriter: Thanks! Glad you're enjoying it!
Jennifer Baratta: Thanks!
Number Ten: Yep, new mystery for Emma and Killian. Aurora doesn't want to work for them, but will struggle since she also wants her son back. No, Glinda is not the Major. Yeah, I think of King Arthur with the Holy Grail, though the Grail is not literal here. Glad you're enjoying! :)
Grace5231973: Yep, Killian is married. I disliked that part of season one in Manifest too. Yep, Aurora may be having a change of heart, but it's unclear if it will last. The believers are very creepy. Glad you're enjoying it! :)
SpartanAmyMiracleGirl10: Thanks, glad you like the story, however, Henry is actually David and Margaret's in this story. Emma is his Aunt. Glad you're enjoying the story though.
210: Thanks, glad you like the blend of Manifest and Once. Sidney is definitely up to no good. Glad you're enjoying!
Sexystarwarslover: Yeah, he's having a hard time. Yep, David includes Margaret in everything and they do almost everything together. Aurora is in a very tough spot. She doesn't want to betray them, but they have her son. Yeah, Leroy is always fun wherever he pops up and Liam is the pilot here, not related to Killian in this story. The believers are very creepy and Baron Samdi is taking Adrian's place here. Yeah, Leroy better be careful or David is going to punch him. Yep, Killian and Emma make a good team. Yep, David is pretty sure Henry is the Holy Grail that the Major is looking for so that's not good. Yep, Cora is likely up to no good and has threatened Johanna. Sidney is also up to no good and probably will make trouble. Yep, Killian and Emma have a mystery to solve. Glad you're enjoying it!
AnonSnowing: Yes, Aurora is in the place of Autumn. Yep, it's not odd for them. David and MM do everything together. Yep, Liam is the pilot here and Leroy was on the plane. I actually had to fix the Fiona thing. Fiona in Manifest is Glinda. Fiona the Black Fairy may indeed pop up though later in the story. Ha, yeah, Leroy is a grumpy guy always. Yeah, Margaret isn't going anywhere. No, they would rather the reporters just leave them alone. I know, I love protective David and definitely protective Margaret. Yeah, the Paul and Helen plot is pretty minor. Yeah, I'm glad Henry is feeling well enough to play too. Yep, Holy Grail is probably Henry. Yeah, not sure Aaron can be trusted yet. We shall see. Glad you're enjoying!
Lightning in a Bottle
Chapter 31: Crosswinds, Pt 3
Emma arrived at the beach house and was let in by a staff person hired by Glinda. She made her way to Paul and Regina observed off to the side.
"Paul...I brought you a few things that might jog your memory," Emma said, as she set the box down in front of him. Paul sifted through the photos, but then gave her a blank stare.
"I...I don't remember any of this," he said regrettably.
"What happened to me? I just want my life back," he insisted.
"Yeah…I get it. A lot of us are feeling that," Emma agreed, as her phone chimed. She checked it and found that it was Killian with a message that he had found something. She pocketed her phone and gave him an encouraging nod.
"We're going to find your wife and help you get your memory back," Emma promised. Regina sided up to her as she walked toward the door.
"Don't make promises you can't keep. Amnesia, especially in a situation like this, is unpredictable," she warned. Emma sighed.
"I know...I guess I get it though," the blonde said.
"Because his wife didn't show up at the hanger and neither did your fiancé," Regina surmised.
"He wasn't really...I hadn't said yes yet," Emma corrected. Regina rolled her eyes.
"Margaret has told me that you were going to though," she said.
"MM loves to try to fix things for me...unfortunately, she can't fix this one," Emma replied, as she saw her brother arrive, fresh off his meeting with the 828 podcaster.
She started toward him and was taken in by another calling. It was the same one again. The blizzard and a man's voice asking her to find her. The voice is louder this time too and she saw a man's hand in the snow again.
"Hey...you had it again," David said, as he pulled her out onto the balcony.
"Yeah…I still need to find Paul's wife," she said.
"Maybe it's referring to another her," David suggested.
"Who?" she asked.
"The Major…" he replied, as he looked around.
"Aurora said it's a woman and the podcaster talked about a Major that arrived in Red Hook an hour before we rescued the passengers. She was there," he said, giving Emma something to think about for a moment.
"I guess it could...but I promised Paul that I would find Helen, so I need to follow through on that," she said. He nodded.
"Then I'll continue looking for the Major...hopefully we'll find both," he replied.
"Just be careful...this Major is probably way more dangerous than the woman I'm looking for," she warned, as Regina joined them on the balcony.
"Did you get anything else out of that podcaster?" Emma asked. He sighed.
"Yeah...but it's going to sound crazy," he replied. Emma scoffed.
"I think we're already operating well above crazy," she commented.
"Well, then this is going to take it up to an eleven," he replied, as he looked around.
"The Major is looking for something they're calling the Holy Grail," he revealed.
"Well…I'm guessing that's not literal and based on the experiments they were doing, I'd guess that it has to do with the Callings," she deduced.
"That would make sense…" he said, as Regina left to check on the patients.
"You think Henry is the Holy Grail...don't you?" Emma whispered. He sighed.
"He interprets the Callings differently...he gets them in a different form than we do sometimes. He always knows…" he whispered back, as he got a text and checked his phone.
"It's Aaron," he said.
"What's he saying?" Emma asked.
"He found an informal setting where I can possibly talk to Agent King," David replied.
"Okay…I'll keep following up on Helen, but be careful with this Agent King and that podcaster," she warned. He nodded.
"I will...but I have to know, Em. I have to know if the Major knows about Henry and if she doesn't, I have to keep it that way," he replied.
"And if she does?" she asked.
"Then we have to do whatever we need to in order to keep my son safe," he replied, as he took off. Emma sighed and returned to her car as well to meet up with Killian, since it sounded like he had a lead.
Olive finished her climb and she exited the building with Lance.
"Thanks...I'll see you later," Olive said, as she waved to him. There was no hug this time, as there had been in the past, and Lance knew it was something he had to accept. As a big brother, he was never supposed to get too emotionally involved with the kids he sponsored, but that was an unrealistic thing to ask of a person. It was impossible not to get attached to these kids and usually, they grew up and needed their big brother less and less. That part he could accept, as that was the natural order. But it was different with Olive. She was still very much in need of that type of figure in her life and rarely did the biological parent re-enter the picture, especially like David did. Lance felt that he wasn't needed anymore and almost felt like Olive was still seeing him, because she felt guilty. He was soon going to have to end this relationship since he knew it was now bordering on inappropriate. He had the suspicion that David and Margaret were letting it continue only for Olive's sake and to make sure she was adjusted to all the changes.
"Excuse me...Mr. Knight? Lance Knight?" Sidney asked.
"Yes...and you are?" Lance asked.
"Sidney Glass...New York Times," Sidney answered, as Lance turned away to get into his truck.
"I have just a few questions for you for my piece," he said.
"Not interested," Lance replied.
"But you're certainly interested in Olive Nolan...or maybe her mother?" Sidney asked.
"Mr. Glass...I'm Olive's big brother, through the Big Brothers and Big Sisters program. That's all," Lance replied.
"Yes...you became her Big Brother about a year after the plane disappeared with her father and twin brother on it, correct?" he asked.
"Sounds like you know the story...you don't need me," Lance replied.
"You were a frequent guest at the Nolan house while the plane was gone, weren't you?" Sidney asked.
"It wasn't like that at all," Lance replied.
"But you would have certainly liked for it to be," Sidney surmised. Lance ignored him and got into the truck.
"The plane returning must have certainly been a blow. If Margaret Nolan wasn't interested in you before, then any hope you had that she might be one day was certainly quashed," Sidney added. Lance started the engine and drove away, but Sidney had what he wanted for his hit piece.
Margaret sifted through various old articles on an archived website. Olive was really good at finding information and had found plenty to search through. She couldn't believe how public her parent's lives were. She had never really noticed as a little girl. She remembered their fancy parties, but most of the time she had been in bed by the time they were entertaining. And in later years, Eva had always allowed her to spend the night with Emma. Of course, David was always there and the three of them would have slumber parties, campfires in the backyard, and more fun than Margaret ever had at home. She loved her parents, but her childhood home was never very kid friendly. She always felt like she was in a museum or castle. There were places she had not been allowed to go and things she had not been allowed to touch.
Emma and David's house had always been different. When Ruth was alive and Robert had still been sober, it was a wonderfully warm place where it was okay to have the clutter of toys or crafts. There were always homemade snacks and plenty of playtime. There had been time for silliness and less order. It was one of the many reasons her mother had first taken her to that very park where she met Emma and David. Eva didn't want her raised in that ordered, materialistic world. Her father would have never approved of the activities at the Nolan house, if he could have been bothered to be involved.
But now Snow saw why her mother was always eager to send her to Ruth's when her father was having a party or gathering. He would have eventually expected Margaret to begin attending them and molding her into a future executive...or worse, a future executive's wife. Eva was stuck playing the doting wife on his arm, while her husband made a fortune on the backs of hard working people and probably ruined many on his way to the top. Leopold would have used her hand to barter the best deal, but Eva clearly had wanted her no where near any of it.
One thing was certain though. Most of the articles about the Blanchard family included the Mills family as well. It was clear that her mother and Eva were more than acquaintances. They knew each other and were involved in the same social circle.
"Hey Mom…" Olive said, as she came in and put her stuff down.
"Hey honey," Margaret greeted, as she sat down beside her.
"Find anything?" she asked.
"Lots actually...apparently my parents were Wall Street royalty, which I knew, but I didn't know how public that life really was," Margaret replied, as she flipped through some of the articles.
"Wow...Cora is in a lot of these photos with them," Olive said. Margaret hummed.
"Which means they weren't just aware of each other...they knew each other and quite well it seems," Margaret replied.
"Oh Mom…" Olive said, as she leaned her head against her mother's shoulder.
"Are you going to ask Aunt Regina for her medical records?" Olive asked.
"I don't know...she's going to think it's weird and when I tell her why, I'm afraid she's going to think I'm accusing her mother of murder," Margaret replied.
"Aren't you?" Olive asked, with a wince. She sighed.
"I am...I just don't know any other way," Margaret replied.
"What about you? How was your climb?" she asked.
"Okay," Olive replied.
"Just okay?" Margaret questioned.
"I don't know...guess I'm just not that into it anymore. I think after the big climb...that will be it," Olive said.
"Really?" Margaret asked.
"Lance is great...but it just doesn't feel right anymore. I mean...I have my Dad back. I should be doing stuff with him. I want to do stuff with him," Olive replied. Margaret beamed a bright smile.
"I am so happy to hear you say that and he will be too," Margaret replied, as they continued to look through the articles.
Emma met him at the location he had sent her and found that it was a rundown motel.
"Hey...you said you found something?" she asked, as she found him standing outside his car.
"I pulled her credit card records and the last charge was an Uber ride to this motel," Killian said.
"Nice work," she said. He smirked.
"The driver had loose lips too. He said she's staying in room twenty-eight," he said, as they approached the correct room and knocked. There was no answer at the first knock, so Emma announced them.
"Helen Santino...NYPD. We were sent by your husband, Paul," Emma announced. They heard movement inside and the door swung open, as a woman pointed a gun at them.
"Gun!" Killian called, as he drew his service weapon. Emma quickly disarmed her and they moved into the apartment.
"Please don't kill me," Helen begged.
"Why do you think we're here to kill you?" Emma asked.
"I didn't believe you were cops when you said Paul sent you," she cried, as they exchanged a glance.
"Why would he send people to kill you?" Killian asked. Emma caught on right away though.
"Because he used to abuse you...that's why you didn't come to the hangar when the plane came back," she deduced, as the other woman looked at her.
"I was on the plane too," she said. She nodded.
"The day the plane disappeared was the happiest day of my life," she confessed.
"It's taken years of therapy, but I was finally free and happy," she said.
"Then the plane came back," Emma said.
"That's why you left your apartment in a hurry," Killian guessed. She nodded.
"It was like a wrecking ball coming back into my life and destroying all I built. So I ran and I've been hiding ever since, hoping he won't find me," she cried.
"And he won't," Emma revealed.
"What do you mean?" Helen asked.
"Paul has amnesia...he has no idea who you are," she revealed, as a look of relief and hope washed over the woman's face.
"Seriously?" she asked. Emma nodded.
"You're in the clear...he'll never be able to hurt you again," she added, as they left at that point.
"Do you think Paul will get his memory back?" Killian asked. She shrugged.
"Regina says the amount of trauma they experienced is pretty extensive, so I doubt it. And if he does...I'll make sure I warn him not to go near her," she replied darkly.
"Well...that's one mystery solved and to think, we didn't almost die doing it," he said. She smiled and looked at him.
"As usual...you're hilarious," she replied sarcastically.
David approached Arthur at the table. He had found him at a local restaurant and bar, enjoying a drink and knew that it didn't get more informal than that.
"Agent King…" he said, as he approached. Arthur scowled and started to get up to leave.
"Wait...just hear me out," David pleaded.
"Just give me one minute to plead my case...you're going to want to hear this," he insisted.
"Fine...you have one minute, Mr. Nolan," Arthur replied.
"I know you think I'm responsible for Vance's death...but I have it on good authority that there is something else at play here," David said.
"One hour before we rescued the passengers, a black hawk helicopter touched down in Red Hook. On board, there was someone called the Major...definitely military," he continued.
"Thirty seconds," Arthur warned, as he paid his check and started to get up.
"She was calling the shots...she's looking for something she's calling the Holy Grail. It has something to do with the passengers and dark funds earmarked for something else by Congress, but it's definitely for 828," David said, as Arthur headed for the exit.
"If that's true, Mr. Nolan, then you should walk away from this investigation, just as I intend to," Agent King said.
"Vance didn't...he knew someone was working against him and intended to follow it to the top. I didn't get him killed...but this Major did," David insisted, as the two men shared a long glance.
"Have a nice evening, Mr. Nolan," Arthur said, as he walked away. David sighed and then headed back to his car to go home himself, thinking that his pleas to Agent King had fallen on deaf ears.
Emma was deep in thought, as he drove them back to that station, thinking about what Helen had said. Paul coming back on the plane was like a huge wrecking ball to her life and she realized that this was exactly what she was to Killian. He had moved on and married Milah and then she came back and slammed back into his life, threatening to wreck his marriage. And she realized that she couldn't do that. She couldn't be the other woman that ruined a marriage.
"We still make a pretty good team," Killian mentioned. She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes.
"Yeah...but I think that has to be the last of our partnership," she replied.
"What?" he asked, his brows furrowed in confusion
"Look…I can't be the wrecking ball in your life. You're married and us being partners threatens to ruin the happiness you've found with Milah," she said.
"Emma…" he protested. But she didn't let him finish.
"I'm going to ask Graham to assign me a new partner," she decided, before walking away, leaving him speechless and sad. Not being her partner and not being around her anymore was the last thing he wanted.
Baron Samdi arrived back in the city after the visit upstate, thinking about his next move. His real estate business was dead and though he could have easily renewed his license, no agency was calling him with any job offers, despite him applying. No one wanted to hire an 828 returnee and even if he did dive back into any entrepreneurial venture, it would be a failure on its start. No one wanted to buy, sell, or trade with him. The passengers seemed to be on a permanent black list, except with the believers. But they were just weird and creepy. However, as he encountered some on the street corner near his apartment building, he found them fawning all over him. And he found himself not running from it this time.
"He has returned…" one woman said, with reverence.
"Can...can I touch you?" she asked. He nodded, as she touched his arm and seemed to light up at that.
"You're a miracle!" a man said and that was when the idea struck Baron Samdi. Perhaps an entrepreneurial opportunity was not out of reach, after all.
Emma arrived back at the beach house and stormed inside, making a beeline for Paul.
"Hey...did you find her?" he asked.
"You're a monster," Emma spat and he frowned.
"What?" he asked.
"Your wife didn't show up, because she was scared and went into hiding!" Emma exclaimed.
"I...I don't understand!" Paul pleaded.
"She told me everything. You used to beat her! The day the plane disappeared was the happiest day of her life," Emma said.
"That can't be! I would never do that! I don't remember that!" Paul replied, now beside himself.
"Well...you better hope you don't, because if you do and you decide to go after her, then there will be hell to pay for you!" she warned, as Regina tugged her aside.
"You don't deserve happiness!" she yelled at him.
"That's enough!" Regina chided.
"He's a monster," Emma growled.
"Maybe he was...but he's not now and yelling at an amnesia patient is pointless and doesn't make sense," Regina said sternly.
"What if he remembers?" Emma asked.
"His neural pathways are scorched, Emma. It's a miracle he's walking and talking again. His memories are gone. He's a blank slate," Regina replied.
"You're sure? People that have amnesia remember all the time," Emma said.
"Normally yes...but with the kind of trauma here, it's just not likely. The electrolysis that was administered to them burned them on a neuro level and that can only repair itself so much," Regina explained. Emma sighed.
"Fine...sorry I lost it," she said. Regina nodded.
"I get it...but something tells me that this isn't just about Paul," she said. Emma scoffed.
"What, is MM rubbing off on you?" she joked. Regina smiled.
"Maybe a bit...want to talk?" Regina asked.
"You got drinks?" Emma replied. She smirked.
"Hard apple cider. Come on," Regina said, motioning her to the kitchen.
"Fine...maybe just one drink and then I gotta get back," Emma replied, as they went to share a drink.