AN: Thanks for the incredible response to this Snowing story! See previous chapter for important authors notes on characters and story notes.
Important note: Milah is not Neal's father in this universe. Cora is I've taken some liberties again with characters and back stories. :)
Special Note: By now, most of you know that NBC made the horrible decision to cancel Manifest, despite ending season 3 on a terrible cliffhanger. Thankfully, Netflix has saved Manifest and is giving us a final super sized season 4 with 20 episodes!
Another Special Note: The character of Cody Webber is from Manifest and not a Once character, FYI. The character of James Griffin is also a Manifest character.
This one will update bi-weekly on Monday nights. Please consider leaving a review, it is much appreciated. Here are individual responses to reviews:
Ghostwriter: Yep, Griffin is bad news. Glad you're enjoying it.
Jennifer Baratta: Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.
Number Ten: Yeah, Killian better let it go or he might make things worse. Yep, jealousy makes people do stupid things. Yep, Griffin is scum and dangerous. Glad you're enjoying!
Grace5231973: Yep, you and I know that Griffin will regret his actions. Yeah, Killian's jealousy is blinding him and it may cost someone. Glad you're enjoying!
Sexystarwarslover: Unfortunately, we know Griffin is going to walk. No, it's not Emma's fault. Griffin is just a very bad person. I know, lol, Emma does eat like a child. I know, I couldn't help with shirtless David in glasses. Yeah, Griffin does not deserve a second chance. Yep, the whole family is going to research together. Yeah, Killian's jealousy is probably going to bring trouble. Yeah, Griffin is on edge with Emma. Yep, Griffin thinks this is his get out of jail free card.
AnonSnowing: No, there was no dark lightning in Griffin's case that they know of. Yeah, Cody is a bully. No, there is no comparison between Griffin and the Nolans. Griffin is a rat. No, Griffin didn't kill Ruth, though I thought about it. But the timing doesn't work. Yeah, it has to be very painful for Emma. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you too!
This is the last chapter of Lightning in a Bottle in 2021. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! See you in 2022!
Lightning in a Bottle
Chapter 46: Hard Landing, Pt 3
Margaret arrived at the food pantry that had been listed as Angela Graham's place of employment online and spotted the woman she had seen in a photo. She took a deep breath and cautiously approached.
"Excuse me…Angela Graham?" she asked.
"Yes…can I help you?" the woman answered.
"My name is Margaret Nolan…and I have a few questions about a man you once fostered. James Griffin," she said. The woman stiffened a bit.
"Are you a reporter?" she questioned.
"Oh no…just a concerned mother. I assume you've seen the news?" Margaret asked. The other woman nodded.
"Oh yes…leave it to Griffin to come up with a scheme to avoid facing the penalty for his crimes," she commented.
"We're trying to stop him and convince him to do the right thing. We're looking for some insight that we hope you could give us on how to convince him to give up the information he has that could save people without using it to leverage his freedom," Margaret said.
"What does this have to do with you?" Angela asked.
"Griffin…should be dead, but he came back. My family was on flight 828 and they came back too. Naturally, they are being connected and compared to Griffin and from one mother to another, I'm sure you can understand how much danger that could bring to them," Margaret replied.
"My husband, my sister-in-law, and my little boy came back to me and it was a miracle. But Griffin is going to pervert that miracle and use it for evil. People want to come after my family, because of him. Please help me stop him," Margaret pleaded. Angela sighed.
"If only I could…" she confessed.
"But Devon was the only person Griffin ever trusted or listened to and he's dead," she confessed.
"After that robbery went bad, they ended up in Juvenile detention and I never saw them again," she added.
"I had hope for Devon…I thought he might be able to turn his life around and there was a time when I thought he might have helped James change as well. But if I'm being completely honest…Griffin was always a bad seed. He was broken when he came to me and was broken for good when Devon was killed," she confessed and Margaret's heart fell.
"If there was anything I could do to get through to him…I would. But he's a lost cause and while I do believe in second chances…Griffin doesn't deserve one," Angela said. Margaret nodded.
"Thank you for your time," she said.
"I'm just sorry I don't have better news for you. I hope you can protect your family from him…please keep them far away from this man," Angela warned. Margaret nodded and dejectedly headed back to her car. There was a man that might endanger everyone she loved and there was nothing she could do to stop him.
On his way back to the Nolan house, Neal made a stop in a shady alleyway and made a purchase, which couldn't be seen by the officer tailing him. But whatever it was, it was in a brown paper bag. The officer noted it and would report back to Detective Rogers.
After making his purchase, Neal made his way back to the Nolan house. He didn't like that he had to do this, but if Griffin was intent on exposing their secret, then he was determined to stop him, even if it meant going down himself. He peered in the bag at the gun he had purchased on the street. It was illegal, but he cared too much about Emma and her family. He knew guys like Griffin all too well. He would milk the Callings for everything he could and wouldn't care who he destroyed in the process. He arrived just as Margaret got home too and he followed her inside, noticing that his father was there too.
"Any luck?" David asked. She shook her head.
"No…she pretty much told me that there is no reasoning with Griffin. She said that Devon was basically the only thing holding him to any shred of humanity," she said dejectedly, as he swept her into a hug.
"It's gonna be okay," he whispered. She sniffed.
"Is it? Next time, it might not be just a rock through our window," she lamented.
"We still have time…we have to keep trying to get through to him," David said.
"No…she's right and so is that woman. There is no getting through to someone like him. Believe me, I've met enough people like him in my line of work. We must prepare for the worst," Gold stated.
"And just how do we do that?" David asked.
"We won't go there until we must, but you need what I call a doomsday plan," Gold suggested.
"You mean…leave?" Margaret asked. He nodded curtly.
"I know it's drastic. Fortunately, I have planned for everything and with my considerable wealth, we can all disappear if needed," he said.
"Disappear to where?" Neal asked curiously.
"Since the plane came back, I've been making inquiries about land that might be suitable and recluse," he explained.
"New York has a lot of wilderness upstate, but even it is too heavily traversed. However, I found that much of the wilderness in Maine is very thick and reclusive. There is even an area near the ocean and an abandoned port. My guess is that a town used to be there in the past and is no longer there," he said.
"You want us to take our kids and live in the woods?" David asked incredulously. Gold smirked.
"No…nothing so barbaric. I have had a large house built here," he said, pointing to a map of the state of Maine.
"It is large, not unlike Glinda Goode's secluded beach house. It has all the modern amenities and accommodations needed. It's about a hundred miles from the nearest city or town, so supply runs wouldn't be too difficult," he said.
"So if things get bad…we just pack up and leave?" Neal asked.
"It's a worst case scenario," Gold replied.
"Emma will never agree…she loves her job," David said. He looked at the taller man.
"If this goes badly for the passengers and they find out what she can do, she may be forced out and even if she isn't, I don't think you can trust her other colleagues to have her back, with the exception of Detective Rogers, perhaps," Gold replied. Margaret shook her head.
"He's right and that goes for Regina too," Margaret said.
"Like I said, it's the absolute last resort, but it will safeguard our families," Gold replied.
"And the other passengers?" Margaret asked. He shook his head.
"I have and will do whatever is necessary for this family and mine. The others will be on their own," he replied. Neal clutched the bag in his hand. He hated the idea of this family and Emma being uprooted and having all their lives destroyed. And by a criminal who just wanted to make a buck, no less. Perhaps though their lives didn't have to be ruined; not if he stopped Griffin before he opened his mouth to the press and the world. His life would be ruined…but everyone else he had come to care about would be okay and that was a sacrifice he was willing to make…
Killian watched Emma, as she talked on the phone with her brother. They were moments away from the FBI releasing Griffin and a murderer walking free. But all he could focus on was her and the budding relationship she seemed to have with Neal Cassidy.
"Detective Rogers…those prints you wanted are back from the lab and we got a hit," the desk sergeant said, as he handed the file to him.
"Thank you," he said, as he opened it to find Neal Cassidy's mugshot and rap sheet, which had misdemeanors and minor criminal activity, mostly drug possession and petty theft. But to him, it just proved that Neal Cassidy was no good and he couldn't wait to show Emma.
"Hey…I need to talk to you," he said, just as two FBI agents walked out with Griffin and his lawyer. He was wearing a nice suit now and had his walking papers. Emma ignored Killian and followed him out, as he was about to get into his attorney's car.
"The Callings can't be abused," she warned again. He smirked.
"See you around, Detective," he said, as the car drove off and she sighed, before going back inside, only to see the Captain and remaining FBI gathering the entire squadron.
"Okay…listen up, we're forming a joint task force to eliminate what we believe is a terrorist attack in Time Square," Graham announced. So that was it. A bomb in Time Square was what Griffin had claimed and likely was right. The Callings were never wrong, just wrongly interpreted from time to time. But this one was pretty clear and Griffin had used it to gain his freedom.
"Gear up and let's move out!" the order was initiated and there was no time for anything else at the moment.
As they waited to hear from Emma, Margaret busied herself in the kitchen, scrubbing a poor pan that probably didn't deserve steel wool. David looked at her and gently put his arms around her from behind. She sighed and stopped scrubbing, as he turned the water off. He offered her a towel and she dried her hands, before turning in his arms.
"What are we going to do?" she asked. He kissed her forehead.
"I don't know…but we're going to get through it together. We always have," he assured. She smiled slightly and remembered everything they had gone through as kids. Somehow the stakes had definitely been raised here, but their childhood had been anything but typical.
Flashback
David impatiently waited outside the penitentiary with Margaret and Emma. They were on holiday break from their first year in College, as was Emma from high school, and this was the last place they wanted to be. But the corrections system had decided to put their mother's murderer up for parole. They had been outraged that a murderer was even being considered for release at all, much less release after only serving a little over ten years. The person that had taken Ruth from them was barely an adult when he did it and due to good behavior, they were considering his release. David was furious, of course; they all were for that matter. None of them wanted to look this man in the face, but he was more worried about his father having to do so.
Robert was only two months sober and doing well in rehab, but he feared that this could set him back. But Robert insisted that he needed to be there to ensure this man did not go free and obtained a day pass.
"He's late…maybe he decided not to come," David said nervously, as a cab pulled up.
"No…I knew he'd be here and we're not going to let that monster go free, at least, not without having our say to the parole board," Margaret said, as she kissed his cheek. Robert got out and they all shared hugs.
"You look really good," Margaret said, with a soft smile.
"Thank you…I'm feeling good and I'm doing well in the program," he assured her, as he looked at his kids.
"And, as usual, it seems you've been taking good care of these two," he mentioned fondly.
"She is…I just wish we were having a reunion for other reasons," David said. Robert squeezed his shoulder.
"Me too, son," he said, as they made their way inside and to the room where the hearing would be taking place. There were a few others in the room, including several young men they assumed were friends. One thing they knew about Ruth's murderer was that he was an orphan that ran with other orphans that had fallen into crime.
"This hearing will come to order in the matter of the early parole of Peter Banning," the head of the parole board said, as the young man was led into the room. David clenched his fist and Margaret laced her fingers with his, squeezing his other hand in support.
"Mr. Banning…please tell this parole board why you deserve early release," the chairperson began.
"Thank you Sir…I would just like to say that I've done immense therapy on the inside and have truly turned my life around," he said, as he looked at his victim's family.
"I'm deeply sorry for what I did to your Mother…and I know nothing I can say can ease that pain," he added.
"He's right about that," David muttered.
"But I was a kid myself…and things went very badly that day. I never intended to hurt anyone and I'd like the chance to make it right by giving back to society, work with charity, even mentor little kids like myself. I'm only asking for a chance," Peter said. He seemed to endear himself to the board, but Emma could see that he was lying. She had always been good at spotting a lie.
"He's lying…he's a sociopath," she said. They tended to agree with her and David and his father had proceeded to make impassioned speeches about why he shouldn't be released and the devastation he had caused their family. Fortunately, the board had listened that day and he was denied parole.
However, the next time he came up for parole, three years after the plane went missing, Margaret and Robert's pleas weren't enough that time and Peter Banning was released.
She told David about it after they returned one night and while he was angered by that, no one seemed to have heard from Peter Banning since his release. He had dropped off the radar and it suited David fine if he never darkened anyone's door again. But he knew the consequences of a criminal walking free. They were seeing it with Griffin. With him walking and talking, people were going to get hurt and it was possibly going to put his family in the spotlight of both government and public scrutiny.
Not even twenty minutes later, the joint FBI and NYPD task force, including Emma and Killian descended upon a busy, lively Time Square. They caused immediate panic and commotion, as people cleared the way and they descended upon a seemingly innocuous hot dog stand. The owner moved away, as Emma looked beneath the cart and saw the pack of C4 duct taped to the bottom of the cart.
"It's here," she called, as the bomb squad, complete with blast shields moved in and gently turned the cart on its side. The rest of the officers cleared people away from the blast zone, while Killian and Emma stood by and waited for the bomb squad to diffuse it. There was a sigh of relief through everyone present, as they deactivated it. Except Emma, for the moment it was diffused, she heard a growling and snarling behind her. She turned to find the wolf there, even though she was the only one that could see it.
"It's over," Killian said. But Emma shook her head, as the wolf ran off.
"No…it's not," she uttered, confusing him…