Chapter 8
Emma staggered outside into the early morning hours. It was still hours from sunrise and the skies had opened up. Lighting flashed across the sky as the blonde closed her eyes. What had she done? She looked down at her blood covered hands and slowly fell to her knees.
The rain completely soaked her within a matter of seconds. Lightning flashed again followed by a loud clap of thunder that seemed to roll across the sky for miles. She had taken two of the pain pills the doctor had given her and her body felt numb.
"Emma?" Anton's voice called from behind her. "We have to call Dr. Mills."
The blonde didn't turn nor did she stand up. She closed her eyes again and tilted her head up letting the rain fall on her face. She took a deep breath before speaking, "Call him." Her voice was calm, but there was a chill to it.
After a moment, she heard Anton speak again, but she could tell he was on the phone, "Yes sir, it's Anton. We have a situation that requires your services, Doctor." He paused as he listened.
The giant sighed, "It's bad sir. One of them is dead, but three need immediate medical attention." His voice died out as he went back inside the building.
What would the good doctor think of her now? She slowly climbed to her feet, but she remained in the rain. The temperature outside was in the fifties, but add the wind and rain, it was practically freezing. Her teeth chattered as she stared off into the distance. She didn't know herself anymore. She guessed she had never known herself, but now she was frightened. Frightened of the person she had been and frightened of the person she was becoming.
"Boss, you should really come inside before you catch a cold or worse," Graham called out.
She nodded her head as she tried to make sense of everything. The blonde turned around and walked back into the building. She followed Graham up a set of stairs to a small room. Inside, it was set up like an office of sorts, but it hadn't been used in a very long time. The old bulky desk that sat in the far corner of the space had a thick layer of dust covering it. Papers were scattered around on the floor and an overturned file cabinet lay near the door.
"The doctor will be here soon." The man said as he left her standing in the musty dust covered room alone.
Emma walked up to a large multi-paned window. She noticed that several of the panes had been broken and pieces of glass hung loosely from the seals. The blonde looked out over the warehouse. She stood where she could see the entire scene from a different angle.
She walked over to the desk chair and nudged it with her foot. One of the casters had fallen off so it leaned back at an uneven angle. She shrugged and sat down. The adrenaline was wearing off and she winced slightly at the pain in her ribs.
What had she done? She was so tired of being strong because right now she felt anything but. Emma lowered her head to the dusty desktop and began to sob uncontrollably as her shoulders shook.
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Henry had managed to convince a taxi driver again to give him a lift to Emma's club. Eventually, his luck would run out when it came to the cab drivers. Everyone knew they were not supposed to take minors without an adult, but he supposed the powers of persuasion are what he inherited from his father.
There was no line up at the entrance, which meant it was nearly 2 AM. Henry jogged down the alleyway to the back door and banged loudly. After a minute, a bouncer he had met prior to, opened the large metal door.
"Henry? What are you doing here?" He asked.
The boy shifted uncomfortably under his umbrella, "I need to see Emma, it's important."
"Sorry buddy, but she's not here. She and Anton went running some errands." He answered stepping to the side so the boy could come inside.
Henry frowned, "Oh. Do you know when she will be back?"
The man shook his head, "Nope. They didn't say."
"Henry? What are you doing here?" A voice called from further inside.
The boy turned to see Killian and his eye grew wide, "Um, nothing. I just came to see Emma."
"At two in the morning mate?" The dark-bearded man asked skeptically.
The boy's eyes remained large and he swallowed nervously. He still didn't know who the mole was, but Killian definitely fit the profile. He was the club manager and had access to everything and everyone. He knew all of the comings and goings of this place.
"I ate a lot of candy and couldn't sleep." He said with a sheepish smile.
The man's look remained but he nodded, "Ahh. Well, I'm sorry to tell you, but you've made a trip for nothing, lad."
"I know Emma's not here." He answered.
"Does your father know you're here?" Killian asked raising an eyebrow.
Henry hesitated. He wasn't sure what would be worse. His father finding out that he snuck out, that he came to Emma's club or both. The boy lowered his head, "No sir."
"Well then, for the safety of this club and my job, let's make sure it stays that way." The man said turning to the bouncer, "Have one of your guys bring my car around here and I'll drive him home."
Henry's eyes shot up to meet Killian's, "You're not going to rat me out?"
The man snorted out a laugh, "Come on kid, what do you take me for? I kind of like my job."
Henry smiled at the man as relief washed over him. He still wasn't 100% sure he trusted the man. Killian was still high on his suspects' list and he reminded the boy of a pirate with the way he talked.
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The rain was beating down on her windshield profusely. This storm was supposed to last until late afternoon according to the radio. Her wipers were on the fastest setting and it was still hard to see the road in front of her.
Regina's father had called her a short time ago and told her that he desperately needed her assistance. He had warned her a little of what to expect when she arrived. He also told her that it was the date rape group and one of them was dead.
Kathryn was still awake when she got the call and refused to let the brunette leave without her. No matter how much she told her she needed to stay there, the blonde wouldn't listen. She was hell-bent on witnessing.
They were only a minute or two away from the address her father had given her and she glanced over at her friend who sat nervously biting her nail, "Kathryn, I wish you would have stayed behind. Dad told me it's messy."
"I went to med school too, Regina. I can handle a little blood." She said as she turned to look out the passenger's side window.
The brunette sighed as she slowed the Mercedes to watch for her turn. It was in a very secluded part of town. This was the part of town where most people wouldn't go alone even if their lives depended on it.
Pulling through the high chain linked gate, she could see her father's car. The large building was covered in corrugated tin and could easily be close to three stories high. The only light came from a rusty fixture that hung over the entrance. It had an eerie yellow glow and with all of the rain and lightning, she felt as though they had arrived at the scene of some horror flick.
She put the car in park and looked over at Kathryn, "Are you sure you want to go in? You could wait here."
"Regina, I'm going in." The blonde said as she opened the car door.
Before Regina could say anything else the woman had closed the door behind her and was running for the entrance.
The brunette chewed at her bottom lip for a second before she stepped out of her car and ran for the entrance. She had an umbrella, but it was in the trunk. Regina might have been a bit more prepared had it been any other situation, or the appropriate hours of the day, instead of the wee hours of the morning. She had barely slept in the past several days and she felt as though she were running on autopilot.
She yanked the big door open and hurried inside. She took a second to shake as much excess water off as she could before looking around at her surroundings. Her hair and her coat were drenched.
Looking up she realized she was in a giant maze. Of course, she was, because the Nolans would never do anything simple. She swallowed as she thought of how illegal this was. How could her father be all right with this?
She made her way through the maze. It felt like she was going in circles, but she continued on. It wasn't exactly like a maze. It didn't have false turns, but it was still a little disorienting. With one final left, she could see lights and an open area where she saw five figures hanging from chains. She couldn't contain the gasp that escaped her lips.
The concrete floor was covered in blood, but the two men she could see didn't appear to have any injuries significant enough for that amount of blood. The last dangling chain was vacant, so she could only assume it was where the dead man once hung.
She straightened her posture and walked towards the men. Kathryn stood blocking her view of the last three. She had to make sure her best friend was okay.
"Kathryn?" She called lightly.
The blonde turned slightly revealing the last three. Their pants were down around their ankles and blood was dripping down their thighs. Regina's mouth fell open. She walked passed her friend for a closer examination.
All the men appeared to have been castrated. She looked up at their faces and two of them appeared unconscious, but the last one was still awake as she heard him sobbed lightly. She felt a presence beside her and she turned. Kathryn was standing nearly shoulder to shoulder with the brunette looking up at the man.
"I'm s-sorry." The man said quietly as his pleading eyes looked down at Regina's friend.
Regina watched as Kathryn said nothing as a single tear rolled down her cheek.
Now wasn't the time for reconciliation. Her father had called her because he needed another doctor. She stood there for a second looking at each man.
"Get them down." She heard her father say, but his voice sounded far away as she stared up.
"Regina!" He shouted, pulling her out of her reverie.
She shook her thoughts away and jumped into action, pulling her coat off and tossing it to the side. Anton and two other people quickly released the first man, and Regina rushed to him. Other than bruises and contusions, the only injury she could see was the cut on his scrotum. The cut was sloppy, but it was efficient. The last time she had seen castration like this was at a cattle ranch north of Houston where she spent a summer working with a veterinarian. She could tell that iodine had been applied by the dried burnt orange color on the skin around the cut.
Dr. Mills carried over a tray that had a needle and thread, already set up along with other things she might need. The man was unconscious, but a part of her wanted him to be awake for this. She hated herself for even thinking it, but she couldn't help it.
She slipped on gloves and picked up the threaded needle. Her hands started shaking. That had never happened to her. She let out a deep breath as she tried to calm herself.
"Which one of you is responsible?" Dr. Mills asked looking around the small group.
At first, no one answered. "If you want our help, tell me." The old man demanded.
The Asian beauty glanced at the man beside her then to Anton. The giant closed his eyes before pointing.
Regina's eyes followed the direction of his index finger and she could see a familiar figure standing behind a large paned window. She looked back to the giant, "Emma did this?"
All three nodded yes. She couldn't believe this. The club owner had mutilated these young men, for what? To prove a point?
Her eyes moved around the room. She spotted the dead man and immediately knew which one he was. He had tape over the bridge of his nose and she remembered the description her son had given her on how his nose got broken. The only problem was that he had been beaten to a pulp, his face was barely recognizable.
"Give me the needle," Kathryn said kneeling beside her.
"Kathryn, you are not a medical doctor." Regina looking at her friend, "And you shouldn't be here."
"I know how to stitch up a damned wound, and does it matter if I am a medical doctor or not?" She looked around the space dramatically, "I really don't think this is the place we need to worry about that, do you?"
Regina clenched her jaw. Her friend had a point. They were already breaking the law, so one degree versus another didn't matter much. Kathryn had graduated from the same medical school as she had, but never completed her residency. Somewhere along the way she lost interest in becoming a doctor.
"Go check on her," Kathryn said snatching the needle from her hand and gesturing with her head to the office space upstairs.
"I took the Hippocratic oath," Regina said.
"Yes, you did. So don't leave that patient waiting." The blonde said, pushing the brunette out of the way.
Regina looked over at her father. He had the same look as her friend. He nodded in the same direction towards the youngest Nolan, "Go check on the ugly duckling."
With a loud sigh, she stood and headed for the stairs. She was an MD, not a psychologist. This woman must have been completely insane to do something like this. Maybe it would be different had she only done it to one of them, but she did it to three men and killed another, and why in the hell did her father keep calling the other woman 'ugly duckling'?
She climbed the stairs slowly, throwing one last glance over her shoulder. Her father had busied himself by stitching one of the young men, while her friend resumed working on the other one.
As her hand reached for the doorknob, she was suddenly nervous. She didn't want to see this woman thinking she did the world a favor by doing this. She couldn't deal with another cocky asshole, male or female, and she certainly couldn't deal with a cocky Nolan. She would check on her, but she was going to give Emma a piece of her mind about pulling her father into her illegal and sick activities.
Regina turned the knob and pushed the door open. The space was poorly lit, even with the large window that looked over the interior of the warehouse. Right beside the window stood the blonde Nolan.
"Is your father's so disgusted with me, that he sent you?" The words were barely above a whisper and they sounded strained to the brunette's ears.
" No, he just wanted me to check on you." Regina's anger seemed to disappear immediately. This wasn't what she was expecting.
She stood in the doorway, watching the blonde. After a moment, the blonde turned up a whiskey bottle. Regina remembered what her son had said about the younger woman signing a contract and one of those stipulations was to not drink. She stepped further into the room and asked softly, "Where did you get that bottle?"
The blonde pointed at the desk, "It was in one of the drawers. The good thing about liquor is that it can keep forever."
Regina chewed her bottom lip slightly, "I don't think drinking is a good idea right now."
The blonde turned towards her and laughed, "Do you really think anything I have done has been a good idea?" Emma bumped slightly into the window frame as she seemed to be a little inebriated.
The brunette walked up to the blonde for fear she might fall from the window. She noticed the blood on the woman's shirt and the tear streaks down her face, "How much have you drank?" She asked cautiously.
The blonde shrugged her shoulders, swaying dangerously close to the window. Regina gently grabbed her upper arm to ground her. Emma didn't seem to notice as she held the bottle up and shaking it slightly, "This much."
Regina shook her head to herself. There was only about a quarter of a bottle left, so the blonde must have drunk the entire thing, "Maybe we should sit down over here so we can talk. What do you say?" Regina asked as she pulled the woman away from the window.
The brunette sat the younger woman down in the desk chair. Now she didn't have to worry about her falling to her death.
She watched as the blonde turned the bottle up to her lips and she asked, "Why did you do this?"
Lowering the whiskey a sloppy smile crept up on Emma's features, "Because I'm a Nolan. That's what we, Nolans, do. Kill, maim, steal, extort…"
"Emma! Stop! That's not why you did this." Regina interrupted.
The blonde snorted out a laugh, "Of course it is. That's what you think. I'm a Nolan so this is expected of me, you've said as much." She turned the bottle up again.
Regina snatched the bottle out of her hand. The amber liquid sloshed out and ran down the younger woman's chin, "Stop it! That's not why you did this, Emma."
Emma eyed the bottle but made no attempts to get it back. Instead, she stood up again, "What do you care? Now your friend doesn't have to worry about facing those men in court and the other fucker can never threaten anyone again. I told you I would make things right." The blonde winced slightly as she straightened her back.
Regina wanted to yell at her, telling her that she cared because her father was here putting his career in jeopardy over some girl he felt sorry for when she was a child. The brunette's mind went blank when she saw the blonde fall to her knees and sobbed.
"I'm not sorry for what I did to those three. They deserved it. They deserved more." She paused before looking down again, "I was going to do it to all of them, but Anton said that since the guy who drugged you didn't actually get the opportunity to commit the act, I should be a bit more lenient with him." The blonde took a shaky breath, "But he…" Another sob escaped and Regina walked closer, "He wouldn't apologize. He just kept running his mouth about things he would have done to you. Then he said he knew where Henry lived and when he got free he would find him."
Regina knelt down in front of the younger woman. She could only imagine how she would have reacted if she had been there and heard him threaten her son. She listened as the blonde went on, "I hit him every time something vile came out of his mouth, but he wouldn't stop, he just kept talking. When I hit him again, I couldn't stop. I hit him again and again." Tears were streaming from the emerald eyes that were now looking at her, "I just wanted him to shut up." The blonde sobbed louder and fell forward into the brunette's arms, "I didn't mean to kill him."
At first, Regina wasn't sure of her own emotions, let alone how she should respond, but the woman in her arms was shattered and it was hard not to feel for her. The brunette wrapped her arms tighter around the other woman and held her. This woman didn't know her, yet she had defended her and her son three times now.
"Shhh. It's going to be okay." Regina found herself whispering into the blonde's hair.
Regina heard footsteps coming up the stairs. She wasn't about to move or even release the woman. Anton appeared in the doorway.
He paused briefly as he looked at the two women. His eyes moved to the desk where the bottle of whiskey now sat. Regina watched as the disappointment from the blonde's slip up flashed across his face, "I was going to have Mulan take her back to the club, but she can't go there like this."
"I'm sorry." The blonde sobbed out, still attached to the older woman.
Regina was surprised at her own words, "I'll take her home with me until she gets some sleep and sobers up, and then I'll drop her by the club later this evening."
The giant nodded and started to walk away. He paused and turned back, "I tried to stop her before things got out of hand." He looked down at his blonde boss, "But I couldn't pull her off of him in time." As the brunette watched the giant walked away, she could see the regret on his face.
Regina found herself battling with what was considered right and wrong. The man Emma had killed had drugged her, he had planned to assault her, and he even attacked Emma in front of Henry. She hadn't thought he deserved to be murdered for it, but after hearing he threatened her only child, Regina was having second thoughts. She mindlessly placed a kiss to the crown of Emma's head as she sobbed in her arms.
