Trigger Warning - Domestic Violence


Chapter 8 Cover Up

Emma had been in the sheriff's station accepting her new badge when the earth beneath her feet rumbled. At first she and Sheriff Graham thought it was an earthquake, until the phone started ringing and the citizens informed them that the old Storybrooke mines were collapsing. She and Graham rushed to the scene to see the entrance to the mines caving in. People were crowding around it and she and her new boss rushed to control the crowd.

It wasn't long till a familiar black Mercedes Benz pulled up. She watched the mayor step out and address the citizens about tearing down the mines and building over it. Her eyes were fixed on the darkened windows of the car. She wondered if Regina and Henry were in there. If they were, she didn't want Regina to catch her staring so she averted her gaze and focused on taping off the area.

"So now you're deputy," a familiar voice hissed over her shoulder minutes later. Emma turned to face the hot tempered wife of the mayor.

"I'm just building roots," Emma said smugly, unable to help herself from goading her.

"Emma! You can't let him tear down the mines. There could be something down there!" Henry suddenly came running towards them. "What are you hiding!" he yelled at Regina accusingly.

"Henry, I said wait in the car," Regina glared at him.

"So did dad and you didn't listen either," he threw at her and Emma could have sworn she saw a flash of fear in her eyes before she masked it with an impatient glare.

"Enough," she scolded him.

"Kid, what on earth could possibly be down there?" Emma asked.

"Evidence," he said confidently and then looked up at his adoptive mother. "Whatever it is, we'll find it."

"Regina!" Leopold called from the car and Emma saw her flinch at the harsh tone. Her complexion paled as she realized she didn't stay in the car like he asked. The fear she saw earlier flickered in her eyes once more and this time Regina couldn't hide it.

"Henry, go," Regina said shakily, trying to gain her composure. "I'll be there in a second."

"But I know there's something down there!"

"Henry, now!" she snapped, surprising all of them with her harsh tone. Henry's eyes opened wide and Emma could see the guilt in her face as he shot her a glare and ran back to the car. Emma had a feeling she didn't mean to be so harsh, but probably couldn't control her frustration with the news of her enemy becoming deputy. It didn't help that both Henry and Leopold were shouting at her. Emma could hear in Leopold's voice that he wasn't happy that Regina didn't follow orders to stay in the car. However, it didn't stop Emma's lip from curling into a snarl out of protectiveness for her son.

"Look, I get Henry is wrapped up in his fairytale world, but do you really have to snap at him?" Emma growled.

"Oh, so now you have parenting tips!" she fired at her, the fear in her eyes turning to hot searing anger. "You becoming a deputy means nothing."

Emma watched her walk away and back to the husband that was no doubt pissed, even as he tried to hide it. She watched as he roughly grabbed her wrist and whispered something close to her ear. Regina nodded, and when he finally let go, she got into the car.

Emma quickly looked away when Leopold suddenly looked in her direction. She hoped he didn't catch her staring as she busied herself with the yellow tape. When she looked up again, he was heading towards her.

"Shit," she grumbled under her breath.

"So I see the sheriff made you deputy," he said and she looked up at him. There was something in his eyes that she couldn't quite place. Like he was expecting her to admit to what she knows or might have just seen.

"I decided to stay long term," she said, not giving him any more information on her decision to stay.

"I see," he said, his eyes narrowing at her. "Get on with your job then Deputy Swan."

She watched him walk away, shuddering at the thought that he was now suspicious of her.


The whole car ride home, Regina was shaking in her seat. Leopold's threatening words that he'll deal with her when they get home echoed in her head. He was pissed that she had gotten out of the car when he told her to stay. It didn't matter that he was overreacting. It was the fact that he felt she was undermining his authority, a constant battle between the two of them. He was also suspicious of Emma Swan and was threatened at the fact that she had been made deputy. He didn't like that they had been talking. Of course he didn't believe her when she explained that they were just arguing over Henry as usual. He believed Emma knew something, and in a way he was right. Emma was highly suspicious of Leopold's abuse towards her.

The moment he pulled up into the driveway, Henry raced out of the car and towards the front door. He knew his father was upset and didn't want to be caught in his wrath since he didn't stay in the car either.

Regina was about to open the car door herself, but stopped when he activated the locks. She gasped, pulling the handle and realizing she was trapped. She watched Henry disappear inside and the moment he closed the door, Leopold turned on her.

He backhanded her so hard in the face, dark spots clouded her vision. Her hand flew to her throbbing cheek as she desperately tried to regain her composure.

"That's a reminder for what happens when you don't listen," he said in a low dangerous tone that had her avoiding eye contact and shrinking into her seat. Her cheek was burning and she willed herself not to cry.

"I'm sorry, it won't happen again," she whispered.

He suddenly grabbed her face, ignoring her fearful flinching, and forcing her to look at him. His tight grip on her chin hurt, but she knew better than to struggle against him.

"You always say that and you still don't learn."

"Leopold…" she pleaded, her dark eyes full of raw fear. She was trembling, and her breathing sped up. A tear escaped and streamed down her cheek.

"Don't cry now, or I'll give you a reason to," he warned, a smirk playing on his lips. She knew he loved seeing her so scared of him. She took a shaky breath and forced herself to pull herself together. Crying always made it worse.

He thoughtfully observed her for a moment, and the longer he held onto her face, the more uncomfortable she became. Of course she ignored the pain, and stayed as still as possible, hoping he wouldn't hurt her anymore.

"What does Emma Swan know?" Leopold suddenly questioned her and she felt like she suddenly couldn't breathe, because despite her denial, Emma now knew about the domestic violence.

"No… nothing," she stammered, terrified that he'll spot the lie that slipped through her lips. "She doesn't know anything."

He stared at her hard and she did her best to control her breathing and mask the fear in her eyes. She couldn't give him a reason to believe she was lying. If he found out Emma knew, it would be bad.

He finally let go of her and she shrunk back against her seat once more, trying to put as much distance from him as she could.

"For your sake, you better hope she doesn't," he growled. "And I'll find out if she does. You better not be lying to me. Now, get out of the car. You still have those reports to finish."

She did as she was told. She got out of the car and followed him inside. She had so much work to do and as she realized she wouldn't be finishing any of her own work, she grew frustrated. She had wasted time going out to the mines and now she was stuck finishing her husband's work.

Once Henry was in bed, she situated herself at the kitchen table and started working quickly. She could hear Leopold speaking on the phone and dealing with the situation of the collapsing mines. He sounded frustrated and right before he ended his call he was practically shouting at the poor person on the other end.

"Regina!" he was suddenly shouting and she jumped in her seat. Her heart skipped a beat out of fear. Her hands shook as she gathered the reports and rushed into his study. Why couldn't he just leave her alone for one moment?

"I'm still working on them," she said, standing by the door and afraid to move closer to him. He sat at his desk, looking frustrated and exhausted. She eyed the drink in his hand. He's been drinking a lot this week and she prayed he wasn't falling back into his addiction. He was at his absolute worst when he was drinking.

"Bring them here," he said, holding his hand out. She immediately did as she was told, walking inside and handing him the reports. He shuffled through them, taking the completed ones and handing her the few that were left. "Sit down," he said, waving at the chair in front of his desk.

Sitting across from him while doing his work was the last thing she wanted to do, but she didn't have a choice. So she sat down and continued working, unable to even look at him.

They worked in silence for a while, besides from the critical comments he'd make towards her work as he checked the completed reports, but had made no move to change anything she had written. He just liked to feel superior to her and remind her that she was nothing more but a college professor. She couldn't help but think he was full of bullshit. She couldn't control the flare of anger sparking up inside her like a match. She held it in, not daring to show him exactly how she was feeling in case it triggered a beating.

After a while he let out a tired sigh and stood to refill his glass. She looked up at him, noticing the bags underneath his eyes. He was stressed and tired and she couldn't blame him. The mines collapsing was a huge problem and needed to be taken care of right away. It was hard to do when there were so many permits and paperwork standing in the way.

She watched as he took a sip and sat back down across from her.

"Don't look at me like that," he grumbled.

"You're tired," she stated, wanting to stop him from consuming anymore alcohol. She was afraid of him becoming an alcoholic again after having to suffer through many drunken rages in the past. "I'm on the last report. Let's go to bed after."

"Since when do you ever want to go to bed with me?"

"I'm exhausted too."

"I have too much work to do now before going into the office tomorrow morning. You can go up to bed yourself."

No… She needed him to stop drinking. He needed to put his glass down. She had lost track of how much he had to drink since returning home. He always went too far with her beatings when he was drunk, and she was scared.

He must have seen her fearful expression and the way she was eyeing the glass warily, because he was up in a flash and grabbing the collar of her blouse. She cried out in shock as he pushed her up against the wall.

"What is this really about?" he snapped, pinning her with his weight.

"I'm just concerned," she lied, bringing her hands up and holding on to the fist that was holding her shirt. "Leopold, you're hurting me."

"Don't lie to me!" he yelled, pulling her forward and then slamming her so hard against the wall the back of her head hit it as well. She cried out from the pain, her vision nearly going dark from the trauma to her head.

"The drinking!" she cried. "I was just worried about the drinking," she cried, unable to stop her tears at this point. She was so scared, and in so much pain, she couldn't help but shout out the truth. She should have kept quiet, finished that last report and quickly gone up to bed. She regretted saying anything to begin with. His cold, frustrated eyes became furious and she screamed as he slammed her against the wall again. This time her head made a harder impact and she fell to the floor in a shocked daze. She could feel a warm sticky substance in her hair, and couldn't understand the words Leopold was shouting at her. He kicked her once in her belly and she curled up into a fetal position. Her ears were ringing and her world was spinning.

Leopold grabbed his glass, downing the last of the whiskey before throwing the glass against the wall that he had bashed her head in. The last thing she could remember was the shards of glass raining down on her.


After sealing off the mines and playing crowd control, Emma and Graham went back to the station. Emma sat at her new desk, exhausted and knowing she and Graham had a lot of paperwork to do tonight. She worked on a good portion of the reports but couldn't stop thinking about the interaction she saw between Leopold and Regina. He had grabbed her roughly, and whispered something in her ear that frightened the hot tempered brunette. She practically snarled as she realized he must have threatened her for not staying in the car. She briefly wondered if there were any reports filed against Leopold for domestic violence charges. Then again he's the mayor and she realized that if there had been, they've probably been destroyed.

She decided to check anyway.

She looked over at Graham to see he was at his own desk behind the glass divider, preoccupied with paperwork. So she brought her attention back to her computer and minimized her screen with reports. She typed in Leopold's name into the database.

She cursed under her breath when the page loaded. There were way too many reports on file. It made sense since he was the mayor and was probably involved in many of the town crimes and accident reports.

So she decided to type in Regina's name instead.

There were no reports on domestic violence which she wasn't surprised about. If there were, Leopold must have made sure they were destroyed. However, she was surprised to see a couple of arrest reports, one of them being connected to a DUI years ago.

That was the first one she opened. Her eyes widened as a mugshot of a 17 year old Regina popped onto the screen.

What the hell!

She quickly read the report and was shocked to learn that Regina had been driving under the influence with a 13 year old Mary Margaret and another teen, Daniel Colter. They had crashed which resulted in the death of Daniel. Mary Margaret had suffered a brain injury and was in a coma for a week after her surgery, but had pulled through. Regina came off lucky with just a broken arm and a concussion. She was charged with driving under the influence, minor endangerment, manslaughter, and 30 years of prison. However, somehow the court had forgiven the charges and gave her a 1,000 dollar fine, 6 months of community service and a year of probation. Plus the suspension of her license until she turned 21.

This didn't make any sense. If the court didn't forgive the charges, she'd still be in prison. Why the hell would they not go through with the charges. There was no explanation written.

It suddenly hit her. Regina was 17 when she married Leopold. He had to have a hand in this. It was no way a coincidence.

She backspaced and clicked on the second arrest that was listed. This one was 12 years ago, two years before she was supposed to have adopted Henry. How the hell did they even adopt a kid with Regina's record? Leopold had pulled some strings, she was sure of it.

A new mugshot appeared and she could hardly believe it was the same woman. She was thin, her hair wet and sticking to her face. She must have been out in the rain. Her right eye was bruised and her lip was busted open. She looked terrified and so small, Emma couldn't help but feel bad for her.

She read the report.

She had stolen money from her husband, bought a bus ticket, and got as far as Atlantic City where she was arrested after a month of looking for her. Sheriff Graham had made the arrangements to transfer her back to Storybrooke. If Emma could take a guess, Regina had tried running away from an abusive husband, but to the courts she was a wife stealing from her husband.

She was charged with theft, charged another fine, and did more community service. She was also on probation for about a year. Since then, her record has been clean. Emma figured she didn't dare try to run away again once she had Henry. If she did it wasn't documented. Emma remembered Mary Maragret had mentioned Regina made another attempt a year before getting Henry, which resulted in a great loss for Regina. She wondered what that loss had been.

Emma took a breath, unable to read the reports anymore.

She exited the screens, returning back to her report on the mines. Her mind was swirling with all the new information she had learned. Regina's life as the mayor's wife was anything but glamorous as it looked to some people. Emma got the feeling she was forced into this marriage by blackmail. There were so many missing pieces to the story and she decided she needed to get Mary Margaret to talk about that fateful night.

As she sat there, trying and failing to concentrate on her report, Graham's cell started ringing. He quickly answered it and she moved over to the coffee pot for a fresh cup. It was right outside his door so she could hear parts of the conversation. She tried ignoring him, busying herself with pouring coffee into her mug until she heard him addressing the mayor. He was talking to Leopold.

"Is she breathing?" he whispered, trying to hide it from Emma. Her blood ran cold at what she just heard. Regina...

Graham is in on the abuse.

No wonder Regina couldn't escape. It explained why the reports on Leopold were non-existent. It was all a cover up.

"Keep her awake, I'll be right there," he finished, hanging up the phone and gathering his things. She rushed over to her desk, acting as if she didn't hear anything. She discreetly slid her keys into her pocket. She planned to follow him.

He came out from his office, sliding his jacket on and grabbing the emergency first aid kit they kept in the storage closet. During her interview she had learned he had a background as a paramedic and would sometimes volunteer at the hospital if they were a paramedic down.

Leopold seemed to be using him as his personal EMT.

"That was the hospital," he explained. "They need some help. Do you mind finishing the night shift for me?"

"Sure," she agreed, anxiously waiting for him to leave.

When he was finally gone, she hopped into her bug and took the back streets to the mayor's house. She didn't need to follow him. She knew exactly where he was heading.


She could hear a voice as she slowly started to wake up. At first Regina couldn't recognize it or figure out where she was until the harsh voice was snapping at someone. She jumped in fear, immediately recognizing it as her husband. Images of what had happened flashed in her throbbing head; Leopold grabbing her from her chair, slamming her against the wall, screaming at her, bashing her head until she fell and the feeling of glass falling upon her. She opened her eyes, her vision was blurry as she watched him pace the study while speaking on the phone. She guessed he was talking to Graham, the only person he called when he would go too far in his punishments.

She closed her eyes and couldn't help but groan in pain. She was still curled up on the floor surrounded by glass. The stench of whisky made her want to vomit.

"I think she's waking up, just get here now!" he ordered and she couldn't help but let out a fearful sob as he hung up and came towards her. She curled in even tighter as he knelt down, brushing her hair from her face.

"Let's get you up," he said, pulling her up into his arms and carrying her over to the couch. He lied her down and checked the source of where the pain was coming from. She winced as his fingers checked the bloody wound that she could feel on the back of her head. She felt like he broke her skull and she started to panic. Tears streamed down her cheeks and fearful shuddering breaths shook her body.

"Calm down, Graham is on his way," he said coldly as he got up and left the room for a moment. She tried to calm her sobs, but she couldn't stop. She was scared and in so much pain. She wanted to go to a hospital, but knew he would never take her unless it was something Graham couldn't treat. If she did, then she was drilled relentlessly by Leopold on a cover story no matter how much pain she was in or how disoriented she was.

Leopold came back in with a towel and knelt beside her. She shied away as he pressed it against the back of her head to stop the bleeding. "Stay awake," he ordered and then left the study once more. She closed her eyes despite his orders. She was nauseous and so dizzy. Her head hurt and she couldn't resist the urge to sleep the pain away.

She must have dozed off because the next thing she knew, Graham was shaking her awake.

"Regina?" he said softly. "I know your head hurts, but you need to wake up."

She reluctantly opened her eyes and winced when he shone a penlight into her eyes. She shrunk back when she noticed Leopold hovering over the sheriff's shoulder.

"I told her to stay awake," he said with annoyance.

"She has a head injury. She can't help it," Graham fired back and then looked back at her in concern. "Her pupils are dilated. How are you feeling?" he asked her.

"Dizzy," she whispered. "I'm seeing double vision."

"I need to see your wound so you're gonna have to sit up."

She struggled to sit up even with Graham's help. She cried out from the pain in her belly from where he kicked her. The sheriff tilted his head, eyes full of concern as she breathed heavily from the small movement. After all, her ribs were still so sore from the last beating.

"Does your stomach hurt?" he asked. She didn't answer. Instead she looked up at Leopold, silently asking permission to answer the sheriff. She was afraid of saying the wrong thing and possibly upsetting him. Graham didn't wait for an answer. He unbuttoned her blouse to see the fading old bruises that littered her belly and ribs. She was sure a fresh one would soon be forming over the area he had kicked her. He slid the shirt off all the way, leaving her shivering in her bra as he uncovered the healing lash marks on her back.

"Jesus Leopold!" Graham snarled at his boss. "I've told you to take it easy on her!"

"Just fix her, will you!" Leopold snapped.

Graham shook his head in disgust. She could see the regret in his eyes for letting this man get away with this for so many years. He was too much of a coward to stand up to him, and Regina lost faith in him long ago that he could ever help her. He just patches her up and turns a blind eye.

"Can you bring a bowl of warm water and some clean towels?" Graham asked, opening his medical kit and pulling out different supplies. Once Leopold was gone, Regina let the tears fall.

"It hurts when I breathe from the last beating," she gasped.

"Ok, hold on," Graham said softly, taking out his stethoscope and listening to her heart and lungs. When he seemed satisfied that they sounded good, he put the device back into his bag and started palpitating her ribs and abdomen for any breaks or fractures. She hissed from the slight painful pressure of his fingers.

"Nothings broken, just likely bruised," he assured her. "You know I can't prescribe anything for the pain unless you go to the hospital."

"I know," Regina's voice shook as she attempted to dry her tears before her husband came back.

"I need to check that head wound out," he said, smoothing her hair back to get a better look at the wound. She winced as she felt him parting her hair and then grabbing some gauze and using it to stop the bleeding. She nearly vomited when she saw the towel that Leopold had previously used fall to the side, covered in her blood. "It's bruised and swollen, but you don't need stitches. It's not too deep. We just need to stop the bleeding."

Regina couldn't answer. Her gaze was fixed on the bloody towel. She just sat there frozen, unable to even acknowledge him anymore. What was the point? He won't help her anyway.

"I'm sorry, Regina," he said softly. "You know there's nothing I could do. My hands are tied."

"Save it," she growled, his apologetic words pulling her from her momentary shock. Those words made her angry, because as much as he apologized, he never stood up for her. Not even the few times when Leopold would hit her in front of him. He'd just turn away because he was unable to watch.

Leopold came in suddenly and closed the door in a rush. He handed Graham the supplies.

"Work fast," he ordered. "Henry woke up and almost came in here. I had to put him back to bed."

"Henry's awake?" Regina gasped, suddenly getting to her feet and then stumbling from the dizziness it caused. Graham gently sat her back down.

"Easy, he's fine," he assured her as he started cleaning the wound and putting disinfectant on it. She fell back against the couch, feeling exhausted from her spurt of energy. She hoped Leopold didn't yell at him or anything. She couldn't help but worry.

"How's it look?" Leopold asked, watching as Graham cleaned her up.

"It's not too deep and I think I controlled the bleeding. She won't need stitches, but she does have a concussion."

"Great," he grumbled as if her injury was an inconvenience to him.

"Well that's what happens when you bash her head into a wall!" the sheriff snapped back angrily. "I told you to take it easy and not beat her to this extent anymore. I also warned you about hitting her with your belt. You shouldn't even lay a single hand on her!"

"Watch yourself or you can kiss your job and your future goodbye," he threatened.

Graham shook his head in disgust and Regina averted her gaze from him. She was so tired she was sagging heavily against the couch. He continued to clean her wound.

"Almost done," he told her softly. He was being slow and gentle and Regina was grateful for it even if he wouldn't dare do anything more than patch her up.

"After what she did to my daughter, she deserves everything she gets," Leopold growled.

"She was 17 at the time and I think she's paid enough."

Leopold only grunted a non-interested response as he walked away and sat at his desk. He started shuffling through the reports and grabbed the single incomplete one that Regina was unable to finish.

Regina looked up at Graham, pleading for him to not leave her alone. She was terrified of being alone with her husband for the rest of the night when she was already so hurt.

"Don't leave," she whispered so quietly so only he could hear. He helped her lie down and she winced as she jostled her injuries.

"You know I can't," he said sympathetically and she looked away, unable to bear seeing the pity in his eyes. The same pity that was there when he had picked her up from Atlantic City in handcuffs and brought her back to her own personal prison all those years ago. Or each time he came over to make sure she didn't die from her injuries when Leopold would get too violent in his punishments.

He pulled a throw blanket up over her bare shoulders, frowning at the healing lash marks on her back. She buried her face into the couch pillow and tried to hide the sobs that were currently racking her body. Usually she was always in control, never letting anyone see her emotions. She shut them away and hid behind a mask… except for Graham because he witnessed her being broken down by her husband time and time again and she was unable to hide when she was so very hurt. He won't stand up to Leopold, so she wasn't surprised that he wouldn't stay with her to keep her safe for just one night.

"Get some rest," he told her gently, his voice full of guilt. He packed up his kit and stood before Leopold at his desk. He set a timer down in front of him.

"She needs to be checked every hour for the next four hours. After that she can rest. Go easy on her for the next week. She needs to heal."

"She'll be fine," Leopold waved him off and Regina couldn't help but feel just as worthless as her husband's disregard for her. She curled up under the blanket as Graham glanced over at her in concern. "Call me if she loses consciousness again."

Leopold grunted and Graham finally left, leaving her alone with him.

What she didn't know was that a certain blonde deputy was outside sitting in her car watching the sheriff leave the mansion.