Just over an hour after leaving Emma's, August is pulling up at the cabin in the woods that David had given him coordinates for. The man himself was leaning against the hood of his SUV that was parked between some trees next to the cabin. August pulls off the dirt track and parks up close to David's car, shutting off the engine before getting out to greet his old friend.

"David, thanks for meeting with me." August applauds as he grasps the taller man's hand in his own for a firm handshake.

"Not a problem. Let's go inside." He looks around him, making sure no one has followed them, not that there would be a reason for that but he was always a careful man. They make their way through the log effect door once David has opened it. "You need to tell me everything you know." The sandy blonde haired man orders.

"You know how this works, David. If you want information you are going to have to give me some reassurances first." August retaliates as they both sit down on high backed fabric chairs in the lounge.

"What do you want?" David asks with a sigh. He had been working this case for over a year and the phone call with August earlier in the day had him hoping that he would finally be able to take down Gold and his criminal consortium. After everything he had learned about the evil man he just wanted it wrapped up as quickly as possible so he was no longer a threat to anyone, but that's not to say he was willing or able to be held to ransom for information.

"I need to know that the three women I am helping with be kept safe. That's all I ask."

"Three? You only spoke of two women earlier." He questions suspiciously, anything to with this case always put him on high alert. One thing had learned from it all; no one could be trusted.

"I have two inside witnesses and one woman...well, she's got caught up in helping them. She's a public figure so we need to keep her out of this."

"I can make sure the two witnesses are protected, but as for the other woman, I'll do my best but I can't make any promises unless she is of some use to us. That's just the way it is."

August nods his head in understanding, he knew that would be the answer, it was the best he could have hoped for really. "Okay." He agrees.

"Why are you even caught up in this, August? I thought you were retired and living on a beach down in the sunshine state."

"I was. I am. It's a long story, let me start from the beginning." He rubs the back of his neck, knowing what he was going to have to admit to in order for David to trust him and to bring an end to Gold and his reign of terror. He explained all about the brothel he ran, using the term loosely because none of the girls that were under his protection were ever forced to do anything they didn't want to. They were protected as they did the job they chose to do.

"Jesus, August! That's completely illegal. You could end up in jail." David accuses without threat.

"Don't you think I know that? What would you have me do? Let these innocent women get beaten and used and then have them thrown in prison because society has decided that a woman can't do what she wants with her body?" His voice grows louder and angrier as he passionately defends his beliefs. "Would you rather they were left to the mercy of someone like Gold? We both know what men like him are capable of." His frustration at all the wrongs in the world that he can't fix plainly showing on his face and his clenched fists.

"I know. I know. I'm not saying the system always gets everything right but that is the situation, whether or not you like it." David's voice is calm as he tries not to stoke the fire of his friends passionate defence.

"Don't worry about me. Contrary to popular belief there are some good cops out there and I have a few of them that look out for me and the women. I'm more concerned about how we are going to handle this situation."

"Alright. Tell me everything you know about Gold." David requests, hoping this could be the big breakthrough he has been waiting for.

August gives him every detail that had been passed to him by Kathryn and Regina. He knows a lot of the information is resonating with David by the small 'tell' movements his face gives away. The average person wouldn't notice them but they are more than obvious to a trained cop.

"Fuck." David breathes out when August has finished reeling off the catalogue of atrocities Regina and Kathryn had disclosed to him. "And they are really going to testify?" Every time David or one of his team had hauled in a low-level criminal associate of Gold's, not one of them would spill anything. Some had even gone to prison rather than bargain with the FBI for their freedom, Gold's hold had been that strong.

"As long as they are promised protection." August demands as he stares at David for confirmation of the fact, even though he has already been told they would be protected.

"Yes, of course. This could be exactly what we need to get the bastard." He then tells the bearded man several possible outcomes to where all this new information may lead him and his team. He was careful not to give away too much information. "I will go back to my sergeant with this information and get the ball rolling. We'll discuss the best way to protect them. I will probably need to get the women's testimony later, will that be a problem?"

"No, it shouldn't be a problem at all. You've got my number, give me a call when you're ready." August offers as he stands up, impatient to leave and get back to Emma's to relay everything to the anxiously awaiting women. They say nothing else as they leave the cabin, August walking briskly to his car as David locks up. He sets off down the dirt track, replaying the options David gave him over and over in his head without a second glance in his rear-view mirror.

XXXXXXXX

"WHAT?!" Emma doesn't mean to shout at August but this wasn't one outcome she was prepared for.

"If you want to keep your name out of all this then you need to take a step back and let the FBI do what they need to do to protect Regina and Kathryn." August counter-argues with a level voice.

"It's okay, Emma. It's for the best, we'll be okay." Regina stands in front of the blonde and cups her cheek, stopping her frantic pacing.

"No, it's not. I promised to protect you. How can I do that if they take you into protective custody?" Emma replies, her voice wavering as she puts a hand over the one cupping her cheek.

"It's protective custody," the brunette emphasises the middle word kindly, "I'll be okay, we both will."

"But you won't be here." She looks down, unable to look Regina in the eyes as her own vulnerability makes its way to the surface.

"Emma, it's only a possibility. It's not definite." August interrupts their moment. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves until we know more from David."

"He's right, Emma." Regina agrees.

Kathryn has kept quiet throughout, listening intently a first but then becoming more interested in Emma's reaction to the news. If she ever had any doubts about just how far Emma would go for Regina and by proxy, her, they were long gone.

"Sorry." The blonde whispers into Regina's ear as she pulls her into a hug.

Kathryn looks at August and nods her head in the direction of the kitchen, signalling him to follow her through there so Emma and Regina could be left alone.

"It's okay. But you don't need to worry about us. We will be okay." She tries to placate the blonde as strong arms hold her tighter. She doesn't really believe it herself but Emma had been strong for her and now it was her turn to return the favour. The blonde breathes out deeply, the rush of warm air blowing through soft, brunette locks as Regina rubs the blondes back. They slowly separate, Emma reaching for Regina's hand as their bodies part, unwilling to be without contact with the brunette.

"Where's Kathryn and August?" Emma asks with a quirked eyebrow as they both look around the room for their missing friends.

"Kathryn?" Regina calls out.

"In here." Her friend replies from the kitchen.

They follow her voice, hands still connected, to find August sitting at the kitchen island and Kathryn looking through the fridge.

"Kathryn!" Regina reprimands. "You can't just go through Emma's things."

"Of course she can." Emma answers. "You can have whatever you want, both of you."

"See." Kathryn smugly looks at her friend before she continues to rummage through the fridge. Kathryn and Regina had had completely different upbringings. Kathryn had been spoilt and Regina was never allowed anything without explicit permission from her mother.

"Seriously, sweetheart," Emma says as she looks at Regina, "feel free to take whatever you want and if you can't find what you want just let me know and I'll get it for you."

Regina's heart flutters at the term of endearment Emma uses. "Okay." She whispers in understanding. She wasn't sure if she could just go through Emma's stuff and just take what she wants, that was a lifelong habit she was going to have to learn to break.

The four of them spend the rest of the afternoon chatting and watching TV in the lounge. August had to intermittently leave the room to take calls from his associates down in Florida, he still had responsibilities and people relying on him. Each time his phone rang Emma would feel a little guiltier that she had pulled him from his life to help her with this mess. Even though she felt guilty she didn't regret it, Regina was her priority after all.

XXXXXXXX

Later in the evening August's phone rang once again, the pang of guilt erupting within Emma for what felt like the hundredth time that day.

"It's David." August announces when he looks at the name on the flashing screen, catching everyone's attention and making them sit up straight in their seats. Just like earlier he puts the device on speaker phone and places it in the middle of the coffee table.

"August." David's voice booms down the line in greeting.

"David." August greets in return. "What's the word from your sergeant?" He was just as impatient as the women in the room to discover the outcome of their meeting.

"Sarge thinks that once we get the witness testimony secured we will have enough to release warrants for the arrests of Gold and almost two dozen of his associates. We could potentially have them in custody by the end of the weekend." The sense of relief in his voice was obvious for all to hear.

"Fantastic!" August exclaims, taking in the startled but happy faces of his friends.

"Given everything we know about Gold and how he has eyes everywhere, I think it will be safer if I bring a colleague along with me and come to where the women are. I just need an address and we will be on our way."

August looks at Emma for permission, for the sake of her career she needed to be kept out of this as much as she could but she knows she will do whatever it takes to keep the women as safe as possible so she nods her head in consent. August relays the address over the phone before thanking David and hanging up.

"He could be locked up by the end of the weekend." Regina states to no one in particular as she stares into space, her mind whizzing through the news.

"This is incredible!" Kathryn exclaims. "It's really happening. I knew you said you would save us but it's really happening." She looks at Emma with a soft smile and watery eyes.

"It's happening but don't get too far ahead of yourself, men like Gold are full of tricks. Until he has been prosecuted and is in a maximum security facility we can't take anything for granted." August reminds them all.

Emma scrubs her hands over her face and puffs her cheeks as she breathes out. "It's progress at the very least." She didn't want Regina to feel dejected by his stark reminder that this really was just the start of things. The blonde squats in front of Regina as the brunette sits on the couch next to Kathryn and she places her hands on the smaller woman's knees. "You've taken the biggest step already, you took that step to save Kathryn and yourself. As hard as it's going to be to face the rest of it, you have already done the hardest part." She smiles kindly to the woman who had stealthily become the most important person in her life.

Regina takes the blondes strong jawline in her hands and pulls her in for a chaste kiss, too aware of the other two people in the room to deepen it even though she knew it was something she would have comfort in. "Thank you." She murmurs against pale pink lips.

XXXXXXXX

August answers the door to David and his colleague when they arrive at Emma's home within the hour.

"Evening, August, this is my colleague Fred."

"Hello." Fred greets the man at the door as he offers him his hand.

"Hey," he shakes the offered hand, "please, come in."

All three men walk through to the lounge where the three women are anxiously waiting. They had discussed Emma waiting in another part of the house until the agents left so that her identity would remain anonymous but she wanted to stay with Regina so that the brunette didn't have to go through any of this without her. August had also told the women that there was a good chance the agents would run her address through their database as part of their security procedures before turning up there.

Both David and Fred stop dead in their tracks when they immediately recognise the young blonde women who is looking right at them. They had indeed run the address through their security system but nothing conspicuous had returned, it was simply a house in an expensive neighbourhood.

"Hi." She self-consciously says to the men with eyes as wide as saucers.

"Emma Swan," Fred says through a full smile, "cool."

David quickly gathers himself and nudges his colleague. "Sorry about him." He apologises for his colleagues momentary lack of professionalism. Fred immediately drops the wide smile from his face and clears his throat.

"Now I understand why you wanted to remain anonymous." David acknowledges the blondes earlier request that was made through August.

"Yeah, it would certainly be helpful if you could do that for me."

David could see her hand was clasped with the scared looking brunettes which made things start to fall into place for him. He had assumed that the third person wanted anonymity because they were a pissed off associated of Gold's, that was something he wasn't overly enthused about doing but now he could see that wasn't the case at all. "We will do everything we can to keep your name out of it."

Emma smiles at him before offering them both something to drink. A few minutes later and they are all sipping tea or coffee as David and Fred prepare to take down Kathryn and Regina's statements.

Once David has the camera set up and Fred has the laptop turned on, they excuse everyone but Regina to the kitchen, wanting to get her interview done first. Emma had wanted to stay but Regina had convinced her it was for the best that she wasn't on the camera.

"Fine, but I'll just be in the kitchen. Call me if you need me, okay?"

"Okay." The brunette agrees.

"Promise?" She really didn't want Regina to think she was on her own.

"I promise." Regina sincerely answers.

Emma offers her a weak smile before very reluctantly making her way to the kitchen to join August and Kathryn. She sits at the dining table next to Kathryn, it still has the flowers she bought for Regina on it, her right leg starts nervously bouncing against the tiled floor.

"She will be okay, Emma. She's scared and hurting but she has an indominable will."

"It's just not fair. She's the most wonderful person I have ever met, none of this should have happened to her or you. It's so fucked up."

"You're right. It is fucked up and it is unfair but the situation is what it is. You need to focus on the future and how things will be after all this shit has been sorted out."

"Yeah, I'm sure you're right." She solemnly replies.

They wait patiently, making small talk as they seconds slowly tick by before Regina's interview is over. When the kitchen door finally opens and a teary eyed Regina walks through, Emma jumps up and is the first one to the brunette, pulling her into her arms. No words were needed as she held the brunette, whose tears came back full force when she was in the comfort of the blondes embrace.

Once the tears had receded she takes a deep breath and pulls back to wipe at her tears. "They asked for you to go through when you're ready." She addresses Kathryn.

"Let's get this over with then." Her blonde friend replies. She squeezes the brunettes shoulder as she makes her way passed her to the lounge, shutting the kitchen door behind herself.

"Could I have a glass of wine, please?" Regina asks the blonde, who still has her hands placed loosely on curvy hips.

It was the first time Emma had ever heard Regina ask for anything and a big part of her was happy that the brunette felt comfortable enough to finally voice herself. "Yes, of course. You know you don't have to ask, sweetheart." She grabs a bottle of wine from the fridge as Regina grabs herself a glass, she then gets a beer for herself and August. They sit in contemplative silence at the dining table, Emma slings arm around the brunettes shoulders and gently strokes the cotton covered arm. Both Regina and Kathryn has been borrowing Emma's clothes since they arrived there. Emma didn't mind at all but she made a mental note to make sure the women did some online shopping when they were feeling up to it.

Kathryn's interview took just as long as Regina's as she relived all her years under Gold's control, down to every last inconceivably painful detail. The agents were patient and kind as they listened with poker faces to the hell the blonde had been through, her story very similar to the brunettes. Just like Regina, once she had talked them through the worst years of her life, they then asked softly probing questions. They were after as much incriminating evidence as they could get. They showed many pictures of men they were investigating to the witnesses to see if any of them were recognisable and to gather information against them too. Both women had been able to name almost every man they were shown.

After the statements were taken and all their questions had been answered, often in more detail than they could have hoped for, they knew they had the break they needed in the ongoing investigation. Once they had packed up all their equipment they thanked the women and promised they would be in touch the next day once their sergeant had decided on which course of action to take. Everyone in the room could breathe easier now that they knew something would be happening.

After the agents had left they all decided to call it a night. Emma showed August to one of her spare rooms as the two women got ready in theirs.

"Soooooo, where will you be staying tonight?" Kathryn asked her friend with a teasing glint in her eye.

"I'm sorry I left you last night." The brunette answered seriously.

"Don't be silly, it's normal to want to be with your girlfriend," the blonde winks, "besides, it was the best night sleep I have had in a long time."

"She's not my girlfriend." Regina replies, a slight twinge of sadness twisting at her insides at the truth.

"Pah! Try telling that to Emma."

"No, really. We decided to wait until after all of this is over to see how things go."

"That may have been what you agreed on but it's obvious to anyone with eyes that she thinks you hung the stars in the sky." The blonde replies as if it were fact.

Emma had been about to walk into their room to say goodnight, she may have also hoped Regina would have come with her to her own bedroom, but when she heard the conversation they were having she stood in the hallway and listened. She knew she shouldn't but any insight into Regina was welcome, even if that meant earwigging on Regina and her best friend.

"I really don't think that's true. It's not like I'm anything special." Self-deprivation was a wonderful defence mechanism to beat other people at running you down.

"Actually, that is true," both women shoot around to see Emma entering the room, "and you are so special, Regina. Actually, you are downright fucking incredible, excuse my language but you really are. If you could see yourself through my eyes you would never doubt yourself ever again. I don't want to suffocate you with my feelings because I know you are going through enough as it is, but I can't stand to hear you speak about yourself like that. I didn't have a life until you came along, I was simply getting by, but I didn't realise that at the time. I know we said we will see what happens after all this is over, and that still stands. I won't say any more about how I feel if that is what you want but you do need to know how I feel."

Kathryn smiles but Regina just stands there in shock, her mind is still trying to catch up with everything the blonde had just said. The heartfelt words touched her in a way she had never experienced. Her father had always spoken sweet, caring words but he had never backed them up with actions, always allowing Cora to be in control and treating their daughter however she wished. But here Emma was saying things the brunette thought she would never hear another human being direct towards her, let alone back them up with actions. Emma was literally putting her career on the line for the brunette. Not just her career but her entire life, if it ever got out about Emma she would lose everything she had ever worked for. She was risking everything for Regina.

"I'm not worth it. I'm not good enough." The brunette states in a whisper as her eyes glaze over with tears.

Before Kathryn can even comfort her friend Emma as is pulling her into a familiar hug. "You are worth everything, sweetheart, and if you'll let me I will spend as long as it takes to prove that to you."

"Can I stay with you tonight?" Is all Regina can manage to stay, the emotions are just to much for her to acknowledge.

"Of course, whatever you want." Emma says as she kisses her temple.

Kathryn sits on the bed and watches them, once again totally awe struck by the devotion Emma shows her friend. "Thank God! I won't have to put up with her fidgeting when I try to sleep!" She jokes.

Emma laughs a little, "Your loss is my gain," she directs to the blonde. "Ready to go to bed, sweetheart?" She then whispers into the brunettes ear.

"Yes, please." She lifts her head from Emma's shoulder and lightly kisses her lips. Emma blushes lightly as she does every time Regina shows her genuine affection. They leave Kathryn for the night and get into Emma's bed together, Regina sinking into the taller woman's arms just as she did the night before.