"Can you forget Killian and Henry for a moment please?"
Emma asked all serious and held Regina's hands insider her own.
"I can't... they are real people... and they are your family! I can't take you away from them. I might be the one to blame for hundreds of crimes but I would never ruin my son's family and happy ending."
Emma sighted and shrugged her shoulders. Silence covered the entire room as both women were avoiding any eye contact with each other. Regina's heart beat was rising. She was afraid that Emma could hear her fast heartbeat as well.
Even though she wanted to grab Emma and place millions of kisses all over her body she couldn't get in the middle of a beautiful and happy family. She was the reason why they all suffered once and now she had to try hard and help Emma maintain that peace.
"I don't wanna be with Killian... the love we had for each other has disappeared many years now."
She finally admitted out loud and felt like a huge weight got off her shoulders.
"I'm sorry... but you two are still together Emma it wouldn't be fair for him!"
"Let me try please! You might like it! In case we manage to work this out I'm gonna ask him for a divorce as soon as the case is over."
She approached Regina and cupped her cheeks with her palms.
"What about the worst case scenario? What if we won't manage to work it out? You get back to him like nothing happened and I'll just get back home all alone fighting with my guilts. That's not fair."
"There's only one way to find out. Just trust me. Trust me regina! For once in your life trust me!"
She raised her voice and run her fingers through the brunette's dark hair. Regina swallowed hard looking at Emma in confusion.
"I can help you decide you know..."
Regina huffed and looked down. Emma raised Regina's head slowly and connected their lips. She French kissed the brunette's juicy lips and slowly inserted her tongue inside the other woman's mouth. Their tongues were now dancing... A small smile appeared on Regina's face as she wrapped her arms around Emma's body and pulled her closer for an even more passionate kiss.
The blonde woman helped Regina lay on the bed comfortably and then joined her underneath the blankets. She pulled the blanket up, over their heads and grabbed Regina's tiny waist, pulling Regina above her.
"You look so beautiful."
Emma whispered and tucked Regina's hair behind her ear.
"You know exactly how to make me consent Miss Swan."
She admitted and bit her lips looking down shyly.
Even though Regina was a powerful woman and probably the devil himself for most of the people that had met her, she would always turn into an angel during vulnerable moments like this with Emma swan by her side.
"I know your buttons madam mayor."
She smirked and kissed her again. The brunette woman arched her back in need for more but Emma wouldn't let her have it that easily this time. They were both sober tonight. That means that they would have to fight for what they craved.
A couple of hours later they were laying on the bed asleep and fulfilled with satisfaction and lust for each other. Regina's phone started ringing and the brunette woman opened her eyes searching for the beeping phone inside the darkness. She got out of the bed with her naked figure wondering around the room until she found the irritating device.
There was that unknown number shining brightly on the screen of her phone. There was no doubt... she knew it was him. She knew he was finally back and in the mood to hunt her down. She pressed the answer button and walked inside the bathroom in order not to wake up Emma.
"Robin?"
She asked in trembling voice.
"Smart girl. What took you so long?"
"What do you want from me?"
"You're gonna find out soon my love... how was the doctor's appointment?"
She froze. She could barely feel her feet. Her heart was beating faster and faster now while her hands were now shaking. Her muscles were tightening and her throat was dry.
"How the hell do you know that?"
She managed to say almost choking at her words.
"I know everything darling. The walls have ears too."
He smiled evilly.
"Just tell me what you want! I'll give it to you! Anything! Just leave me the hell alone please! I can't do this all over again... please!"
Tears of desperation rolled down her cheeks. She slid down on the floor and hugged her knees still pressing the phone against her ear.
"You're gonna have to wait... you're gonna give me what I want Regina... we just have to wait."
"Wait for what Robin? WAIT FOR WHAT?"
Her terrified voice echoed in the bath and a loud sob followed.
"Shhhh... it won't be that funny if I tell you know. Goodnight love."
He Hugh up the phone and Regina threw the phone across the room breaking into pieces.
She kicked the bathroom floor and knocked her head on the door desperately. That son of a birch managed to get out of prison... and she had to find out how! The least she could do was to make sure that he wouldn't get close to her.
She had to deal with two cases now... she walked outside of the bathroom and grabbed Emma's cellphone. She dialed the prison's number that Robin was locked up in and pressed the call button.
"Hello?"
The voice of the secretary came from the other line and a small grin of relief spread on Regina's face.
"Hi. This is Regina Mills! I'm calling to ask you a couple of questions about a former prisoner."
"I'm sorry ma'am but I can't give you such information."
"I'm working for the FBI and I can come over there tomorrow morning to certify that! I just need to ask you one question!"
The sound of a huff came from the other side of the phone when the secretary cleared her throat and continued.
"Alright. Only one question."
"I'm referring to your former prisoner Robin Hood. I want to know how he got out of prison!"
Her voice filled up with nervousness.
"Okay.. give me a minute to take a look on his file."
"Alright."
Regina replied and tapped her fingers neurotically on the counter's surface. Her forehead was getting sweaty. The anticipation was killing her.
Two minutes later she heard the gentle voice coming from the other side of the phone again.
"Okay here it is. Looks like someone bailed him out."
"Excuse me?"
"That's the only thing I know ma'am."
"Is there any chance you can tell me who paid all that money to bail him out?"
"I'm sorry but I can't share the name of that person. You can only find out after paying us a visit with your FBI sign and a good reason why you need to know."
She stayed there skeptically.
"I'll be there tomorrow morning."
"Okay. Goodnight."
She hung up the phone and erased the call making sure Emma wouldn't notice a thing. She placed the phone carefully on the nightstand and placed a soft peck on Emma's cheek.
She had to do this... alone. She couldn't risk Emma's life after everything that Emma did for her. She stood by her side and held her hand when no one else did... she had to make sure that Emma would stay out of this and be safe.
She wrote down on a piece of paper a silly excuse, specifically that she had to visit an old friend of hers that could possibly help them with the case. She placed the paper next to Emma and grabbed her coat. She would have to be quick... traveling to the USA and back in French within 28 hours would be a challenge but she was always up for a new challenge.
She opened the door and left the room.
The next day came and the blonde woman opened her eyes sleepily. She twirled on the bed seeking for Regina's warm body when she realized that there was no one there. She sat upright looking around the room, to see that Regina had left the room.
Her eyes wondered around the small area and finally landed on the yellow post card next to her.
"I'm so sorry for leaving but I'll be back in a day I promise. I visited a friend of mine in San Diego that can possibly have a couple of informations about our case. It won't take long and I'll be alright. Make sure to call Killian and ask him about the coroner's opinion on the dead bodies. He might noticed anything weird that can help us. Take care!"
Emma huffed and rubbed the poster card with the tip of her thumb. She trusted Regina... she knew that she was gonna be alright... but her heart couldn't help but get worried over the brunette woman. She was definitely going through some stuff, and traveling all alone especially when they had to deal with a serial killer wasn't the best choice.
She shook those thoughts away and started getting dress. She had to move on with the case all alone today and find at least one more clue that could help them proceed with the case.
She put on a pair of white jeans that matched her red leather jacket. She fixed her hair into a high pony and rushed downstairs inside the dinning room to have breakfast. She grabbed a mug filled up with fresh warm coffee and sat down on a table underneath the shadow of a high greet. It was the best spot to find quiet and peace.
She grabbed her phone and texted Killian:
Emma: Good morning. Any news from the coroner?
Killian: Good morning love! I'm gonna text you his number so you can call him. I didn't get the chance to call him myself due to loads of paperwork. How's your day so far?"
The blonde woman didn't even bother answering to him. As soon as she hears the buzzing sound of another message she copied and pasted the number of the coroner on her contacts and called him right away.
"Hello? Doctor Allen speaking."
"Hi. This is Emma Swan. I'm calling for the results of the autopsy. We are really struggling with this case since we can't find a single clue around the hotel so we I really need your evaluation on the dead bodies."
The doctor cleared his throat and drunk a sip of his black coffee when he replied.
"Of course. The autopsy is about Alessandro Russo am I correct?"
"Yes!"
She replied in confidence and grabbed a notebook from her purse to write down all the details.
"So... he was indeed murdered. There's no chance he committed suicide. The deep cut on the side of his neck is the proof of that. There's no way he would be able to cause such a deep cut to himself. I do believe that whoever killed him used a Ka-Bar modified Tanto knife to do the job. The blade of that specific knife is thin and sharp in order to cut deeper and cause an instant death. Cause of death severe loss of blood. What's worrying me the most is that I discovered a weird substance that the victim had consumed a couple of hours before his death. That substance would be the one of the most dangerous and well known poisons. The murderer managed to make the victim consume arsenic. Arsenic is one of the most dangerous poisons that manage to kill you instantly and most of the criminals use it because it's really hard to be traced inside the food or a drink. This specific poison caused complications and disaster on the gastrointestinal tract, it caused capillary bleeding and drop in the victim's blood pressure."
"So whoever did that was well educated about the use of that specific poison. He or she had no time to lose so the poison he used would guarantee him that the victim would die immediately.
"Exactly. Think of someone that had the chance to approach the victim and have access to what the victim ate and drunk that night."
The doctor noted.
"Well that makes it even more difficult since there are so many people working in the restaurant and bar of the hotel that have access to what people drink and eat."
"No no! It's not someone from the hotel crew. They wouldn't be able to predict which plate Alessandro would have taken. It would be a huge risk for them to risk to poison an entire hotel. It's someone close to him."
Emma rubbed her chin while she kept keeping notes of everything.
"What about his husband Rodolfo?"
"Rodolfo is supposed to be missing. I doubt it's him. It's probably someone that has the ability to move inside the hotel without anyone noticing. Someone that can be «invisible»".
"Then I gotta rewatch the hotel's camera footage."
"Good luck with that miss swan. Call me in case you need anything."
Emma nodded and hang up the phone... the very next moment she heard a woman crying out for help in terror. A bunch of people started running towards the gardens while a bunch of the stuff members were running around the area like crazy. What the hell was happening?
She grabbed her purse and run towards the terrified mod of people...
—Next part coming soon lovelies. Who do you think the criminal is?
