Chapter Five
To her surprise, there were no new murders in Storybrooke for the next several days, and Emma wasn't sure whether she should be relieved or concerned. David already seemed to believe the killing spree had come to an end, but Emma couldn't shake the feeling that it was about to get a hell of a lot worse.
Either way, someone still needed to be brought to justice for the two murders that had already occured, and she wasn't any closer to finding the killer than she had been the first day.
That was, until she got a visit from a frantic Zelena, who barged into her office at the station, Robyn in her carseat in one arm, and the other arm waving wildly as she set off on a jumbled tirade that Emma couldn't even begin to follow.
"Zelena! Zelena, slow down! I have no idea what you're saying. And maybe put the baby down," Emma suggested.
"What?!" Zelena paused for a moment, and glanced at the baby in her arms, as though she just now remembered she was even there. "Oh."
Zelena nodded and set the carseat down on Emma's desk, and to Emma's amazement, the baby was still sleeping soundly. She guessed Robyn was probably used to the noise and chaos that her mother seemed to produce everywhere she went by now.
Zelena took a moment to smooth out her knee-length green suede skirt over her thighs, and took a few breaths before starting over. "My sister tried to murder me," she said finally, her eyes filled with a sharp intensity as they met Emma's again.
"Murder you?" Emma repeated, thinking back to the fight she'd walked into in Regina's living room just a few days ago. "Like… murder murder? Or-"
"Yes, murder murder," Zelena cut her off, her eyes wild as Emma had ever seen them. "Do you think I would be here if this was just another trivial spat? She was going to end my life."
"Okay, okay, alright," Emma said, nodding as she grabbed her notebook to start jotting things down. "Just tell me exactly what happened. From the beginning."
Zelena let out an annoyed sigh. "I was putting Robyn down for her nap when Regina barged in the room and threw me up against the wall. I thought she was angry about dishes or laundry or some other housekeeping item she keeps nagging me about, but this was different."
"Different how?" Emma asked, noting the change in Zelena's voice just now. She almost sounded like she was in disbelief herself.
"She wasn't herself," Zelena explained. "It was her… but it wasn't. There was something different about her. Something different in her voice, in her eyes. It was like she was possessed."
"But it was her?" Emma asked, confirming. "Not the Evil Queen? Regina?"
Zelena narrowed her eyes on Emma for a moment. "You think the Evil Queen is still here? You think there's two of them?"
Emma gave a half-hearted shrug. "I don't know. It's a… theory. We don't have any evidence, but… we can't rule it out."
Zelena shook her head. "It wasn't the Evil Queen, but it wasn't Regina either. It was something else entirely. There was something deranged about her… something so cold, so… she didn't feel human."
"How did you stop her?"
"I didn't," Zelena said, suddenly looking over to where Robyn still slept in her carseat. "Robyn woke up and started crying, and Regina just… stopped. She left the room like nothing had happened."
"Where did she go?"
"I didn't wait around to find out. I grabbed Robyn and got Regina's car keys and drove straight here. But I'll be damned if I'm going back there now."
Emma nodded, "yeah, you probably shouldn't right now. Let me go over there and talk to Regina and see if I can figure this out."
Emma took a steadying breath as she stood on Regina's porch, mentally preparing herself to knock. She didn't know what to expect; she wasn't quite sure if she believed Zelena's story, and she hoped that she was just going to be getting herself involved in another feud between sisters and nothing more, but deep down, she feared for the worst.
She lifted her hand to knock, but before her knuckles could make contact with the wood, the door flung open, and Regina was standing there, looking positively enraged.
"Sheriff Swan, how nice of you to stop by. I need to report a crime," Regina said, barely stepping out of the way to let Emma in the door.
"And what crime would that be?" Emma asked, taking in the sight of the woman before her. Regina looked paler than usual, with dark circles under her eyes, as though she hadn't slept in days.
"Grand theft auto. My sister stole my car."
"It's at the station," Emma replied. "I have your keys."
Emma had insisted on dropping Zelena and Robyn off at Granny's on her way to Regina's, so that she could book a room there until Emma figured out what was going on, and she'd managed to convince Zelena to give her Regina's keys in the process.
"A lot of my keys do me when my car isn't in my driveway."
"Well, I couldn't exactly drive two cars here, could I?"
Regina blinked, seeming to process what Emma just said. "I suppose not," Regina said, finally. "So you came here to take me to the station to get it then?"
"Not exactly."
Regina shook her head in confusion. "Then why are you here?"
Emma sighed. She had to say it. "I'm here because… Zelena said you attacked her."
Regina widened her eyes and scoffed in disbelief. "Don't tell me you actually believe her?"
"I… I told her I would come and talk to you."
"So you do believe her."
"I didn't say that."
"You didn't have to. You wouldn't be here otherwise."
"That's not how it works, Regina," Emma said, trying to keep her voice even, as she could sense that Regina was on the verge of snapping. "Something obviously happened, because Zelena took your car and showed up at the station. I want to hear your side of the story. Just tell me what happened."
Regina threw her hands up. "There's nothing to tell. She took my car and left without so much as a word to me, and now you're here."
"You didn't talk to her at all today?"
Regina shook her head. "Not really. I saw her at breakfast and we talked about getting paint for Robyn's nursery, and I spent the rest of the day catching up on housework."
"The nursery," Emma repeated. "That's where she said it happened."
Regina rolled her eyes. "If I were going to attack my sister, I doubt I would do it in my infant niece's nursery."
"Mind if I go check it out anyway?"
Regina waved her hand in apparent surrender. "Do what you want."
Emma turned and headed up the stairs, Regina close behind her. She wasn't sure if letting an accused attacker check out the supposed crime scene with her was the best thing to do, but she didn't have a warrant and it wasn't like she was arresting Regina for anything. She wasn't even sure anything had happened, much less that Regina had anything to do with it, so she guessed it would be okay.
"That room," Regina said, pointing out an open door down the hall.
Emma nodded and took a deep breath before heading into the nursery, bracing herself for anything she might find.
Nothing in the room appeared to be out of order, as far as Emma could tell.
"No sign of a struggle," Emma assessed, out loud, as she surveyed the room.
Behind her, Regina let out a sharp laugh. "Did you think there would be, dear?"
Emma turned to look at her. "Zelena said you threw her against the wall."
"She's lying."
"Maybe," Emma said, with a slight nod. "But why?"
Regina seemed to think on that for a second. "Maybe she's the one behind the recent murders," Regina suggested. "She seems awfully interested in that case, doesn't she? Maybe she wants to throw you off the track."
Emma shook her head, "no, I don't think that's it."
"What makes you so sure?" Regina asked, raising an eyebrow. "You used your superpower on her?"
"You live with her. Has she given you an indication that it might be her?"
Regina shook her head. "She never leaves my house. Until today, that is."
"Right. So it couldn't be her."
Regina's mouth opened slowly, as she looked at Emma with disbelief. "You believe her."
"I didn't-"
"You do. You believe her. You think I did this. You think I attacked my sister in front of her child?"
"Regina, I didn't-"
"You think I'm capable of that?" Regina continued, not letting Emma get a word in. "You do, don't you?"
"I think you need to get some sleep," Emma said. "You're not thinking straight."
"I'm fine. What I need is for you to leave my house."
"Regina-"
"Now."
Emma couldn't ignore the overwhelming feeling of apprehension setting in as she made her way down the hallway at Granny's, to the room Zelena had booked. She wasn't sure what she was going to say - she wasn't even sure what to think at this point - but she'd promised Zelena she'd check in after talking to Regina, and since Regina had made it clear she didn't want her around, there she was, back at the inn.
"Please tell me you arrested her," Zelena said, swinging the door open the moment Emma knocked.
"I can't arrest her with no evidence," Emma replied. "There's nothing concrete to back up your accusations, so all I have right now is your word against hers."
"Oh, and of course, you're siding with her," Zelena retorted.
"Believe it or not, Regina thinks I'm siding with you. Either way, I don't think you should go back there right now."
"I wasn't planning on it," Zelena scoffed. "But how am I supposed to protect my daughter? I can't use blood magic against Regina."
Emma nodded. "I know. I'm going to put a protection spell over your room, to cloak it. If anyone comes inside, they won't be able to see you or Robyn or any of your things," Emma explained.
"Regina doesn't know where you are, but I'm sure it won't take long for her to figure it out," Emma continued, knowing full well that no one would be eager to take in the Wicked Witch as a roommate, and knowing that Regina would know that too. "I'm not convinced she's planning to kill you, but this will keep you safe either way. The only people who know where you are are me, Ruby and Granny."
Zelena pursed her lips, but didn't protest as Emma began casting the spell, and Emma was grateful for that. On a good day, dealing with her was like dealing with a petulant child, but right now, Emma was her only chance at safety. Emma wasn't convinced that Regina had actually done anything, but she could tell that Zelena was, and since she had no other leads at the moment, she had to take that seriously.
"There," Emma said, moments later when the spell was complete. "That will keep you and Robyn safe, as long as you stay inside. I already talked to Ruby, and you can call down to the diner for whatever you need - food, diapers, whatever - and they'll make sure you get it."
At that, Zelena looked surprised. "How hospitable of her."
"Yeah. Make sure you leave her a good tip."
"And now what?"
"Now… I get back to work."
Emma was already exhausted by the time she made it back to the station, sighing as she passed Regina's Mercedes, parked where Zelena had left it, with one wheel up on the curb, and made a mental note to move it before she went home for the evening. It felt like days had passed since Zelena had shown up, but it had only been a few hours.
David was there waiting for her when she got inside, and she relayed the details of the day to him.
"So, it was Regina," David said as Emma finished filling him in.
"We don't know that for sure. We don't even know if Zelena's story is true, and if it is, we don't know that it's connected to the murders. I mean… it's Regina and Zelena. They're at each other's throats all the time. And Zelena even said it was like Regina wasn't herself. We can't rule out the Evil Queen."
"Emma," David said, with a sigh, "I know you want to believe Regina, but we don't even have proof that the Evil Queen is still alive, let alone in Storybrooke. No one has seen her."
"I don't want to believe Regina," Emma corrected. "I believe her. She's telling the truth."
"So you think Zelena's lying then?"
Emma paused, and then shook her head. "No, she's telling the truth too. They both believe what they're saying."
"They can't both be telling the truth when their stories contradict each other," David reminded her.
"They only contradict if that really was Regina in the nursery with Zelena today. I don't think it was."
"So what now?"
That was the question that had been eating away at Emma since she left Regina's house. "I have no idea."
