Chapter 2

He smiled his greasy pointed smile, and gave a small wave. Emma woke up with a start, jolting upright. She looked around her, thinking this was rather familiar. This time though, she found she was in her bed, wearing her pajamas, like nothing had ever happened. Emma slowly got out of bed, taking in her surroundings, everything appeared to be the same, but still something felt different. It was almost like a chill in the air, maybe it was in her bones, it was cold, dispassionate, but refusing to dissipate. "Maybe this is what death feels like" Emma wondered, though she also hadn't remembered feeling that before. Or was that all just a dream? She brushed back her long blonde hair before exiting her room, determined to find breakfast.

Entering the kitchen, laying there neatly in a pile, were cards she had not left there the night before. She walked over to them, curious to investigate what they could be for. In the same fashion as Graham's, these cards read Emma Swan – Human Resource Coordinator, Ever After Talent Agency. She chuckled at her new found job title, supposing it was better than "serial killer".

Emma's stomach growled, drawing her attention back to her reason for being in the kitchen: breakfast. She began opening every cabinet she had, searching for that one perfect thing. "Cocoa Puffs, Frosted Flakes, Oatmeal- how old was that?" She flipped the can upside down before frowning at the expiration date- May 2014, and continued on her search. "Pancakes, a bag of donuts, mac'n cheese, ramen, well, looks like ramen it is."

She pulled out the bright red package and set to work, heating a bowl of water in the microwave and dumping the noodles in. It wasn't her favorite meal in the world, but it was something. Slurping down a mouthful of noodles she pulled out her phone, checking to see if there were any new messages.

There was one, from a number she didn't recognize and highly doubted anyone actually owned. It was all 0's, but the text underneath is what got her attention. Will Scarlet, last seen: New York. You have a week. Opening up the message fully, she saw a picture of him had also been sent. Not much information to go on, but Emma had had worse in the past. Luckily, New York wasn't far. She pulled up her bank's app and logged in checking her account before she decided how bad the bus or train ride up would be. She wasn't even sure either would be possible, but her poor bug wouldn't make the trip, not with the engine trouble that had developed last week.

There had to be a mistake, that's the only explanation. Her account had a couple extra zeroes at the end. No way that was possible, there was only $50.00 max last night and she'd missed capturing the guy to get paid. But what stared back at her now was a cool $10,000. No way the bank could make that mistake, she scrolled back to see when that money appeared, but there was literally no explanation, it all added up, and she couldn't find an extra deposit anywhere, it was as if she'd always had that money.

Another text from a different mysterious number popped up across her screen. It's Graham, I'll be your primary point of contact from here on out, report to me when you've completed your missions, they'll come through on various numbers though. We advanced you some pay to get you started, find him and there's more where that came from. Remember, don't tell anyone what happened, fail and you'll end up back here.

Emma placed her phone back in her pocket, Graham seemed to have some impeccable timing. She glanced back at her stack of business cards, smiling, she muttered "So I'm a human resource coordinator huh?"

With that, she walked out of her apartment, determining her car could use some fixing before her trip. Emma was determined to keep her yellow bug if it was the last thing she did. In the back of her mind a voice told her it wasn't a healthy level of attachment, but she didn't care. It had been her dad's, before the accident, the one that left her an orphan, forced into her aunt's life. It wasn't the worst childhood, but it definitely wasn't the best. Her aunt wasn't ready to have kids, being barely an adult herself, and Emma had only been a toddler. Still, it was better than being in the system. They'd fought through difficulties together, and while she had a place to live and a family that loved her , there hadn't been much room for extras in her life. Emma loved her aunt dearly; Ingrid had tried so hard to provide for them.

It had been on her 16th birthday that her aunt had presented her with the keys to her father's former car. She'd always wondered why it was exactly that he had chosen to drive a bug, but it would never stop her from loving it.

Emma had decided upon taking a train to New York while her bug would be in the shop. Hopefully a week would be enough time for her to track down the guy that death himself couldn't find. She stepped down off the platform, removing her sunglasses and looked around, her lone suitcase in tow. The bustle around the station was enough to prevent her from actually seeing what was around her. Maybe someplace less crowded would have a better outcome, if nothing else an attempt at locating the missing party.

First she would need to find some place to stay; she couldn't very well pull her suitcase around all day. Hopefully there would be something near the station that wasn't too expensive . Emma walked outside, sliding her sunglasses back on. The afternoon sun shone down brightly, warming her against the still lingering chill of the springtime air. She contemplated how to start finding this mystery man as she walked towards the first hotel she saw. This had never really been her job before. As a bail bondsperson she did have some skills in tracking people, however, she had mainly pulled surveillance and caught her mark, someone else had located them and given her the information. This was a new area to her.

But there was one person she could call, and with a smile she pulled out her cell. She punched in the number and listened to the phone ring a couple times before it was answered "Hey Emma, how'd last night go?"

"Hey Rubes, kinda sucked, the guy made me before I could arrest him, he ran out and got one over on me."

"Oh wow, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm okay, it wasn't that good a hit. Hey listen though, I need your help."

"Yeah, sure, what's up?"

"I need some help tracking a guy, I just have a name and a city he might be in. It's a personal favor for someone, but I'm not sure where to start."

"Gotcha, I'll send you some stuff, can't give away all my secrets though. Check your e-mail in a few ."

"Thanks Ruby, knew I could count on you. I'll be in touch."

Emma smiled into her phone, knowing this would be over soon. In the meantime, she had managed to find a hotel that wasn't too expensive and was on her way up to a room. She'd leave her suitcase there and go find a coffee shop. There was bound to be one nearby.