Author's Notes:
Special Thanks to ale_nena for reviewing this chapter and the beautiful cover art that can be found on Twitter at ale_nena.
Setting: Misthaven non-magical modern AU. The society and political system will be based on a combination of modern countries, with a probable bias toward the American system as I am an American. However, all characters are fictional and resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidence.
* 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 *
The next hour was a blur of activity as he and Razoul rushed Regina to get her stuff packed. She had wanted to call her father, but, luckily, listened when Razoul assured her that Kronk had him taken care of, and that using her cellphone at that moment was not a good idea.
Within 10 minutes they were rushing her and her suitcase out to the front curb. The lobby was bustling with activity as the hotel staff attempted to evacuate the guests. Predictably, though, arguments between hotel security, private security, and staff were breaking out.
They managed to spirit past it.
"Take her around to the side of the lodge!" Razoul ordered as he hurried to the parking lot.
Shifting her suitcase to one side, Robin led Regina around through the crowds, watching carefully for anyone who might try to detain her.
When they finally managed to break out of the crowd, Razoul was just pulling the town car up to the side of the parking lot.
Robin quickly opened the door for Regina to get inside, stored her suitcase in the trunk, and then got in the front next to Razoul.
The other man sped out of the parking lot until they were stopped near the entrance by the local police.
"I'm sorry, no one leaves," the officer ordered, "Just move beyond the lodge. There should be officers up there directing you."
"Excuse me, Sir," Razoul said, "Our client isn't safe here. We need to move her away from the property."
"I understand your concern," the cop said patiently, "We have the situation under control and I assure you everyone's safety is our utmost concern-"
"The woman in the back of his car may very well be the target of this threat! She isn't safe here!" Razoul insisted, displaying his usual lack of tact.
The cop looked at him skeptically, moving his flashlight to try to see in the back of the town car.
With an eyeroll, Regina leaned over to roll down the window.
"Regina, don't!" Robin said. but it was already too late.
"Excuse me, I'm sorry for the trouble but my family has had some threats," she explained, "My security team is just concerned for me and my father."
"What's your name, Miss?"
"Regina Mills."
"Mills?" the cop asked.
"Yes," she confirmed, "My father is Henry Mills."
Looking beyond her, he asked, "And you said he's with you?"
"He's in another car. I believe they already took him out of here, but I'm very concerned for him, I'd like to see him and make sure he's alright," she said, turning on the charm.
He thought it over for a moment before answering, "Well...we'll need to have our dogs scan over your car just to make sure and I'll need one of your security guards to stay behind to make a statement about these threats…"
She smiled, "Thank you very much, I'm sure that won't be a problem."
In the front seat, Razoul looked over at Robin expectantly.
He nodded, unbuckling his seatbelt, "I can stay."
As he got out of the car, the officer directed him to stand aside as they moved forward to scan the car with a bomb sniffing dog and mirror to see under.
Finally, they declared everything clear and waved the towncar out the front gate.
He watched as the tail lights disappeared down the dark road into the distance. He hadn't wanted to leave Regina, but he was glad she was going to be far away from the vineyard. If the bomb threat was really aimed at Henry or her…he didn't even want to think about that.
"Sir?" the cop called his attention.
He shook himself, "Sorry, yes?"
"Can I get your name?"
"Robin Locksley," he answered.
After jotting it down the officer said to him, "Alright, Mr. Locksley, just wait here. We'll take your statement once the situation here is under control."
"Alright," he agreed, "Anything I can help with?"
"No," the officer shook his head, "Just don't go anywhere."
* 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 *
When Robin volunteered to stay behind she'd wanted to argue. She wanted to open the door and pull him back inside the town car, but she couldn't. She'd already agreed that one of her guards would stay behind with the police.
She'd assumed, however, that it would be Razoul.
In thinking about it, it was probably good that Robin was the one staying. Razoul had been with the security team for a long time, but he was quite hot headed. He wasn't good at knowing when to be diplomatic, and, whatever faults he might have, Robin could be charming when he wanted to.
However, now she was driving away, leaving him alone where there might be a bomb, and all she could think was how terrifying that thought was.
Taking a deep breath, she tried to remind herself that this sort of thing was his job, and, besides, it wasn't as if he was going to be handling searching for the bomb himself. That was the police's job. He was just staying to make a statement about the threats her family had been receiving.
He'd be far away from any danger...he had to be.
Lost in her musings, she didn't noticed Razoul talking on the phone, and then pulling the town car into the parking lot of a cheap motel.
Finally snapping back to reality, she looked around, "Razouls, where are we?"
"It's just for temporary," he assured her as he drove around to the back of the building, "A safe place to wait until we find out more."
He moved around to the back to open the door for her and quickly ushered her into one of the rooms. The door opened without him even having to knock as Kronk stepped aside to let them in.
Regina was relieved to see her father also waiting for her in the room.
"Regina!" he cried in relief.
Quickly, she rushed over to allow him to hug her. Pulling back, Henry looked her over, "Are you alright?"
"Yes, yes," she nodded, "I'm perfectly fine, but...what is going on here?"
"I don't know," Henry said in frustration, "Dion called me just as was I about to get ready for bed...it must have been serious if he called personally, he was drunk when we left him at the fundraiser!"
"Yeah," she agreed.
"Anyway, I'm so glad you're safe," he hugged her again.
"I'm afraid the local police asked us to stick around, though," Razoul informed him, "They didn't even want to let us off the property, but finally agreed so long as Locksley stayed behind to make a statement. It looks like we'll have to wait here a while."
"I see," Henry frowned, "Well I suppose there's no choice."
As her father and the two other men settled down, Regina started to feel the adrenaline of the evening wearing off and suddenly the necklace and matching chandelier earrings she'd worn to dinner felt very heavy.
Clearing her throat, she asked, "Kronk, would you mind getting my suitcase out of the car? I'd like to change."
"Oh!" Kronk hopped to attention, "Right."
As the large man went outside to get her luggage, Regina sat down at the small table in the corner of the room to mentally prepare herself for that was sure to be a long night of waiting.
* 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 *
Robin yawned at the Flyt driver dropped him in the parking lot of the motel that Razoul told him they ended up.
It was a tiny, hole-in-the-wall that was very unlike the sort of places the Mills family usually stayed, but he supposed that was probably the point.
Walking around to the back of the building, he found the room number and rapped on the door.
After a few moments, he heard the safety chain being undone and the door swung open to reveal a scowling Razoul.
"Locksley," he stepped aside to let him in, "It took you long enough!"
His voice blended into the background, however, as the brunette sitting at the table in the corner of the room was the first thing his eyes sought out.
She leapt up as he entered, meeting his eyes.
He scanned her over with relief. She'd changed out of her gown into a simple everyday outfit, and looked tired, but, otherwise, she was fine.
"Well?" Razoul demanded.
"The local police wanted to know all about the threats against the family," he explained, tearing his gaze away from Regina, "I had to call Drake to mediate how much information we were going to share with them, and, of course, they didn't like that….I'm sorry, Mr. Mills, I tried to protect your privacy as best as possible."
Henry waved off the apology, "It's alright. What matters is everyone is alright."
Robin nodded in agreement.
"Well they haven't exactly been keeping us in the loop!" Razoul said irritably.
"The news is saying the threat is clear," Kronk chimed in as he motioned to a muted news report on tv.
"Yeah," Robin went on, "They did tell me that they cleared the lodge and the vineyard property, and didn't find anything suspicious so likely it was a bluff or even just someone playing a prank."
"Do they know who it was?" Razoul asked.
"No," he answered, rubbing his head, "Or if they do they aren't sharing it."
Razoul growled, "Drake isn't going to like this!"
He was absolutely right, but, even so, Henry jumped in, "Now, now let's not get too worked up. They didn't find anything so it probably was just some kids playing a prank."
Robin met Regina's eyes, the two of them exchanging a doubtful look.
"Anyway," the older man continued to go on, "It's been a very long night for everyone. Perhaps we should get a few more hotel rooms and try to get some rest-"
"Actually, Mr. Mills," Razoul interrupted, "Drake has ordered that we get you and Ms. Mills back to the estate as soon as possible. I'm sorry."
"Oh," Henry sighed heavily, "Alright."
"Kronk, Locksley, mind getting the bags?"
Razoul waited inside while Robin and Kronk carried the suitcases that had been moved into the room back out ot the cars.
After some discussion it was agreed that they'd take the extra precaution of leaving at different times so there was some distance in between their cars.
Robin and Kronk took Regina out of the first town car while Razoul stayed behind, to leave with Henry and the other town car in an hour.
Kronk drove while Robin sat in the passenger's seat quietly. Regina was similarly silent in the backseat.
They were on the road for an hour when her phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Regina!" Cora snapped on the other end of the phone, "What on Earth is going on?! Drake informed me there was a bomb threat!"
"Yes, Mother," she answered, "There was. It turned out to be nothing, though."
"Yes, that's what your father said," Cora sighed unhappily, "He doesn't seem to be taking this seriously at all! This is completely unacceptable!"
"Well, Mother, I think he takes it seriously," Regina defended, "But the police did a check of the vineyard and there was no real threat. They don't know who's responsible for this, but, obviously, there was no real threat-"
"It doesn't matter!" her mother snapped, "The fact that someone thinks they can make threats against my family! They have no idea who they're dealing with!"
She sighed, "Mother, we don't know that it had anything to do with us. There were a lot of elite families at the vineyard for the fundraise. Maybe Daddy and I weren't even the target...if there even was a target. It is possible it was just someone wanting to cause general chaos. We can't assume it had anything to do with us!"
Cora huffed in frustration, "Oh for Gods' sake, Regina, you're as naive as your father!"
Regina pinched between her eyebrows as she felt a headache beginning to form, "Mother, I don't think-"
"Forget it!" her mother interrupted, "I'll take care of this myself, as usual!"
She didn't know what to say to that.
"Where are you now?" Cora asked.
"On my way home," she answered tiredly.
"Well you'll have to fend for yourself tonight," Cora told her, "I'll be working late."
With that she unceremoniously hung up.
Setting the phone down, she stared out the window at the passing countryside. After thinking for a few moments, she opened her address book and pressed her father's contact.
After a few rings he answered, "Hello?"
"Daddy! It's me."
"Are you alright, Sweetheart?" he asked.
"Yes, I'm fine. I just wanted to see if you'd gotten on the road."
"Yes," Henry answered, "We just left."
"Oh good," she let out a breath and went on, "Mother called."
"Yes," he responded, "She called me as well. This bomb threat upset her."
"Yeah," she agreed ruefully, "She made that clear."
"She's just concerned for this."
Regina scoffed under her breath, "From what she said on the phone she's concerned that someone would dare threaten her family!"
"Yes," Henry answered, "That's how your mother shows concern."
She didn't respond.
"Listen, I'm going to have Razoul drive me straight to her office when we get to Unity City," Henry told her, "I'll make sure she's alright."
"Okay, are you sure?"
"Yes," he said, "Will you be alright on your own this afternoon?"
"Yes, of course, Daddy," she responded.
"Alright, I'll see you later," he said goodbye.
Looking at her phone with a sigh, she set it aside and settled in for the rest of trip.
The rest of the ride was uneventful and she even managed to sleep a little until they reached the outskirts of Unity City. They bypassed going through the city traffic by taking the perimeter highway around to the suburbs.
Finally, the town car pulled up at the gatehouse at the Mills estate.
As he drove the car down to the house Kronk said, "Wow, it's good to be home! You must be very relieved, Ms. Mills?"
"Yes, very," she answered.
"Yeah, I'll bet," he laughed, prattling on. She didn't even mind, though. Instead she simply tuned him out as she watched the house coming into view.
He drove around the fountain at the front drive and stopped for her to get out.
Unbuckling his seatbelt, Robin said, "I'll get your bag, Ms. Mills."
"Thank you," she agreed, "That would be most helpful."
As the two got out of the car Kronk said, "Alright, I'll take the car around to the garage. See you later, Robin."
Robin waved to him as he got his and Regina's bags out the trunk, closed it, and tapped to signal Kronk he could leave.
The two silently made their way up the front steps, and Robin held the door open for her after she punched her entry code into the keypad lock.
The inside of the house was empty and cavernous. Her parents were, of course, not home and the staff was likely busy with various duties.
With a glance around to make sure they were alone, Regina turned to him, "I can take that."
He looked at her questioningly.
"The bag," she clarified.
"Oh right," he passed it over, "Are you sure?"
"Yes," she nodded.
"Listen about what happened…" he started.
She met his eyes as he trailed off. After a moment of silence, she smiled weakly in understanding and commented, "Very bad timing."
"Yes," he nodded.
Another long silence followed, before she finally spoke, "Maybe…"
She paused again but he waited for her to speak.
Swallowing hard she finally finished what she knew she had to say, "Maybe it just wasn't meant to be."
His face was blank but finally he stepped back and said quietly, "You think so?"
All tired so answer but no words came out so she had to settle for just a shrug.
"Okay," he nodded, shifting his bag to his left shoulder, "Goodnight, Ms. Mills."
"Goodnight, Robin," she answered.
With that he left her standing in front of the elevator. She wasn't sure quite where he was going, but she wasn't really thinking about it as the doors dinged open.
Numbly she pulled her bag inside and pressed the button for her floor.
What the hell had she just done? Why did she say that?
Getting off the elevator, she opened the door to her suite, closed it behind her, and let her bag drop to the floor.
She was numb as she leaned back against the door.
What was wrong with her? She'd blown it again and she didn't even know why.
Finally, she pushed herself up and reached for her bag, thinking she'd take it into the bedroom and collapse into the sheets. She felt completely exhausted, the craizness of the past few days finally catching up to her.
As she turned toward the bedroom, a knock at the door interrupted her.
Letting out a sigh, she set down the suitcase and walked back to the door.
Robin was standing on the other side when she opened it.
He didn't wait for either of them speak, stepping into her and drinking in her lips in one smooth motion as he pulled her to him.
She looped her arms around his neck without missing a beat, kissing back enthusiastically as the door clattered closed with a kick.
* 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 * 0 *
The repeated buzzing of her phone dragged her back to an grudging consciousness.
Licking dry lips, she rolled over onto her stomach, reaching through the maze of sheets until her hand it the edge of the nightstand and curled over her phone.
Swiping to answer, she tossed her hair out of her face and answered in a rough voice, "Hello?"
"Ms. Mills? It's Mrs. Lucas," the voice on the other end of the phone answered.
"Oh," Regina said, "Yes."
"I just wanted to know if you'd be down for dinner tonight. Your parents said they'd be out tonight."
Lowering her phone she quickly checked the time, "No, Mrs. Lucas. I'm very tired from the trip. I don't think I'll need dinner tonight."
"Alright," Mrs. Lucas answered, "I hope you feel better soon."
"Goodnight," she dropped her phone back on the nightstand and rolled back over into Robin's arms.
She tucked her nose against his collarbone, breathing in the piney scent of his skin as he reached up and gently stroked her hair.
After a few lazy moments, she opened her eyes, tiling her head up to meet his.
"Hi," he whispered.
"Hi."
He stroked the edge of her ear as the stared at each other quietly.
"So…" he finally said.
"So?" she repeated.
"I don't want this to just be a one time thing," he finally told her.
"No," she agreed, "Neither do I."
"So what do we do now?"
"Well," she shifted against his chest so that she could sit up and claim his lips, "I can think of a few ideas."
He laughed kissing her back, "What about your parents?"
She pulled back, "You're thinking about them now?"
He raised an eyebrow at her.
With a sigh, she answered, "This is our business. No one else needs to know anything about it."
He growled, turning them over to nibble at the side of her neck, "Works for me."