Chapter 13

Emma sat fidgeting with the envelope in her hands. Anton had located the footage from the night Regina and Kathryn had been drugged. Now she just had to wait for one of Gold's goons to come and collect it.

"Emma, you need to relax. Everything is going to be fine," Zelena said from the seat next to her.

After the unpleasant prank her brother had played on her, she had found out that her brother's fiancé was an attorney. August had somehow convinced their father that she was perfect for representing both the club and his sister. Emma was pretty sure the redhead played the bigger part in convincing their father.

"I'm trying. I just have a lot on my mind and this isn't making it any easier." Emma said, rubbing a hand against the back of her neck.

"You know, I might be able to help you if you would tell me what happened." The redhead said leaning closer.

Emma couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped her lips. Instead of answering the question she looked around the bar, "I've been thinking of renaming the bar."

She didn't miss the exasperated sigh from the woman next to her. Zelena seemed nice enough, but there was no way she could tell her everything. First of all, she didn't know her. Second, she didn't even know if she could trust her own brother let alone this stranger. Her father had to be getting something out of selecting Zelena in some way, she was sure of that.

"Emma, how am I supposed to help you if I don't know what I'm protecting you from?" The redhead asked.

The blonde shook her head, "I'm sure you've had countless clients that you didn't know much about, yet you were still able to win the case. This isn't much different."

Before the lawyer could answer, Anton, escorted Neal Gold and another man up to her table. Emma had to force herself to school her features. She absolutely loathed Neal Gold.

"Hey Em. How's it hanging?" Neal asked with a smirk as he arrived at her table.

"Neal," Emma said through her teeth. Of all the people in the world Mr. Gold could send, he sends this moron.

The blonde passed the envelope containing the disc to him, "Here's the footage Mr. Gold requested."

The man took the package, but his smirk remained, "Just to think this is all over some bitch you wanted for yourself."

Emma was slightly puzzled by the comment, "Excuse me?"

Neal chuckled, "The Blackwells and the Golds always get what they want."

The blonde clenched her teeth together, "What the hell are you talking about?"

"I've seen the lawyer's wife. And I must say, she is one fine piece of ass. I bet she looks even better down on all fours." Neal said in a sickeningly low tone.

"You son of a…" Emma said as she stood from her chair.

A hand firmly grabbed the blonde's arm, "Emma, don't." Zelena warned.

"Oh, so you do want her for yourself?" Neal said as he smiled.

"You have the damned video, now leave," Emma said pulling her arm out of the redhead's hold and turning to go back to her office.

"We'll see who gets her first." He sneered.

The blonde pounced on him before anyone had time to react. She grabbed the lapels of his jacket and shoved him back, "You lay one finger on her and you're dead."

The man's smile faltered for a second, but he quickly recovered, "Glad I have your attention." He pulled himself free of Emma's grasp and nodded towards his companion, "Let's go."

The blonde stood firmly as she watched the two men exit the club. She missed her New York days. At least in those days, she only needed to worry about herself.

"Way to go. You have just given that family ammo." Zelena said, snatching her briefcase from the table.

"I didn't give him anything. He's a fucking creep who needs to keep his mouth shut." Emma snapped while still staring at the door.

"You let him get a rise out of you. Now he knows what your weakness is. And so does the rest of us."

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Maybe this was a bad idea. She's been trying to talk herself into turning around ever since she left the clinic, but something in her refused to listen. She stood stone still staring at the club's name that looked very different during the day without neon lights illuminating the words. 'Will Power', the sign read. It was kind of lame if you ask her, but it wasn't her club.

What is she doing? Nothing good will come from any of this. This? What is this exactly? Regina quietly growled in frustration. There was no turning back now, she realized as she stood in front of the nightclub's doors.

Even though she spent most of last night being mad at Emma, she was glad Emma came. She remembered the disappointment she felt when the blonde had said that she was leaving. Regina didn't fully understand why. She had yet to find anything else she had in common with the other woman, except that both their mothers died when they were the same age. She had tried and almost succeeded at making herself believe she was only being nice to the Nolan woman for Henry's sake.

Shaking her head, she pulled open the large metal door and walked inside. The club seemed darker than she remembered, but then she realized her eyes were simply adjusting to the lack of light in the club.

The long dark haired bartender glanced up at her while as she continued drying a tumbler, "Please tell me you're not here to assault the boss again?"

Regina seemed to have briefly forgotten that incident and smiled as she blushed, "Ummm. No. I was bringing her lunch, actually."

The dark haired woman tilted her head slightly, "Well, she's just finishing up her meeting." The bartender pointed towards the back of the club, "Can I get you something to drink while you wait?"

"No, thank you." She said more sheepishly than she had intended.

Emma was standing with her back to the bar. The blonde was in what appeared to be a heated discussion with none other than Zelena Ozman. It was the same Zelena who Regina's husband hated and despised. Robin was convinced the woman screwed her way to the top and David Nolan was sleeping with her. A couple of years ago, Regina would have agreed with her husband. He had been pissed off because of the competition between him and this lawyer, she and Henry paid the price for his frustration.

The nervousness that the brunette had been feeling was rising again. She just wanted to leave the bag and go, but before she could act on it, the redhead made eye contact. It could have been Regina's imagination, but she was pretty sure she saw surprise reflected in the sky blue eyes.

The redhead nodded her head in the brunette's direction, causing Emma to turn around. The same surprise was in the younger woman's eyes, but then it was quickly replaced with a smile. Regina took that as her cue to approach, "I didn't mean to interrupt, I just came from the clinic and thought I'd swing by."

"No, you're not interrupting. We're done here." The blonde looked at the redhead who rolled her eyes.

Zelena paused as she walked passed Regina, "Mrs. Locksley." She then cut her eyes back to the blonde, "Emma, I'll see you tonight at dinner."

Regina watched the two women with curiosity. She really hoped she hadn't read any of the signs wrong. Surely the blonde and the other woman were not dating.

The redhead didn't wait for a response. Instead, she walked away with her briefcase in hand. She silently watched the redhead leave. Regina really didn't want to make a fool out of herself and as much as she wanted to know the nature of tonight's dinner, she couldn't ask.

Emma's voice brought her attention back, "Hey, what a pleasant surprise."

Regina gave a half smile, "Yeah, like I said, I was passing by and thought I'd swing some leftover lasagna and apple pie by."

Emma's eyes lit up, "Really?"

Regina followed the blonde to a table at the back and the blonde gestured towards a chair, "Please, sit."

The brunette wanted to refuse. She wanted to make up an excuse as to why she needed to leave, but she couldn't. Maybe it was because she couldn't think of a plausible lie at that moment or maybe it was something much more complicated.

She placed the large tote on the table and pulled out the two containers, a fork, and paper towels from inside. After placing them on the table she stiffly sat down. Emma wasted no time in popping the lids off the plastic bowls and digging in with the fork.

She watched the younger woman take a bite and let out a throaty moan. Regina felt something in the pit of her stomach flip at the delicious sound but now found herself even more uncomfortable.

"This lasagna is amazing. I don't think I have ever had something that tastes this good." Emma said as she took another bite.

Regina was trying hard not to watch the other woman eat. She had always found it nerve-wracking and sometimes downright disgusting to watch others eat, but for some unknown reason, she was finding the way Emma ate to be mildly arousing.

She cleared her throat in hopes to clear her mind, "How was your meeting?"

The blonde swallowed her food and shrugged, "Stressful." Emma wiped her mouth with a paper towel and sighed, "I'm not sure I'm cut out for this. Sometimes I think I should've just stayed in New York."

Before she could stop herself, Regina said, "I'm sure you were having more fun at least."

"I didn't mean it like that. I just meant…" The blonde trailed off with a sigh.

The brunette was kicking herself for her inability to keep her mouth shut, "It's okay, you don't have to explain."

"I just meant everything else. I've never been put in a position like this and it's taking some getting used to." When Regina chewed her lip, Emma continued, "If it weren't for Henry, I would've gone crazy by now." She smiled as she closed the lid on the container.

Regina watched the other woman's face trying to read her. She remembered saying those very words about Henry herself. Her own husband didn't think that way, so she found it hard to believe that a complete stranger could. She released her lip and asked, "How has my son helped you stay free from insanity?"

Emma's eye shot up, locking onto the brown ones that stared deeply into hers, "Uh, well…" She let out a strained chuckle, "Well, he makes me smile. He's smart and funny. And I don't know." The blonde sat up in her chair fidgeting with the paper towel in her hands, "The other night, I wanted a drink. Hell, I wanted to get smashed, but as I was going for the minibar in my office, he called. For the first time in my life, I didn't need a drink, I guess I just needed a friend."

Regina watched as the other woman blinked away tears, "You know, Henry has been happier since meeting you too. Not to mention my father." She laughed lightly, "I guess I should get going. Kathryn took Henry with her to get ice cream, I'm sure they will be heading back soon." Regina said, pushing her chair away from the table, "I'll leave the containers with you and you can drop them off some time."

Emma looked as though she was struggling with something she might want to say, but instead, she smiled, "Thank you for lunch. It's definitely been the highlight of my day."

Regina nodded as she started to walk away, but then turned back, "Mine too." She winked then turned, walking out of the bar.

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Emma pushed her food around on her plate with her fork. She wasn't hungry and the only thing she was able to think about was Regina Locksley. She was still finding it hard to believe the woman went out of her way to bring her food, not to mention the wink. Had it just been friendly or was the woman flirting?

"Emma? Are you listening?" August asked.

She snapped her head to look at her dinner companions, "No, sorry, what were you saying?"

She caught the way the redhead cut her eyes to her brother and then back to her, "Em, this is serious. You shouldn't have let that asshole get to you."

The blonde nodded her head more to confirm to herself she now knew what he was talking about, "Give me a break, Okay. I'm trying here. Why can't anyone see that?"

August raised his eyebrow, "I have seen it Em. You have been doing really well, I'm just worried that this Re…"

"Don't," She interrupted, "Will everyone stop throwing her into this?"

August cut his eyes to his fiancé who spoke, "Look, Emma, You're not concentrating on your responsibilities as much as you should be."

Emma put her fork down and glared at the other woman, "I don't know you." She looked at her brother, "Why is she in my business?"

Her brother sighed, "She is trying to help Em."

"I don't need her help. I just want everyone to leave me alone." The blonde knew she was being a bit dramatic, but she couldn't help it. She was frustrated and so ready for the 30 days to be up. She had slept like shit every single night since the warehouse, been worried about the castrated guys going to the cops, and now she was worried that Mr. Gold might find out that she had killed his nephew.

"Oh stop acting like a child," The redhead sneered. "You're acting like some spoiled brat when all we are trying to do is help you, yet you won't listen to us."

Emma flicked her eyes to the blue ones. Who in the hell did this bitch thinks she was? She looked down at her watch and chuckled to herself, "I thought the father was supposed to be here?"

"His meeting ran over. Don't try and change the subject." August said taking a sip of his wine.

"I've done what I was told." She said through clenched teeth.

"No Em, you haven't. You were supposed to stop seeing Locksley's wife and kid." August tried to soften his features, but it did little to suppress the blonde's steadily rising anger.

"I will not stop seeing them because of Robin Locksley. If he wanted her, perhaps he should have treated her and his son better. And just so we are clear, Regina Locksley was never part of the agreement," Emma was finding the urge to grab her brother's wine glass and down its contents increasingly hard to avoid.

"Please stop being so damned stubborn on this Em. Dad will not approve." August reached across the table and laid his hand over his sister's.

Emma pulled her hand away, "Tell me something," She looked from Zelena and then to her brother, "Did you two get engaged out of necessity or love?"

August sat back in his chair placing his napkin from his lap onto the table, "Em, this isn't about me."

The blonde stood up letting her own napkin fall to the floor, "It never is, is it?"

"Em, wait. Please. I'm only trying to help you." He stood reaching for his sister's arm.

"You, know I thought you of all people would understand, but it's clear you're still father's little errand boy and things will never change." Emma jerked her arm free and stormed out of the restaurant.

Before she knew it she was sitting in her BMW driving aimlessly as her mind swam in a million different directions. How could August not see that whatever this was with Regina was different? She wasn't some floozy she met in a club somewhere. She was unlike anyone she had ever met. And there was Henry. Emma had spent the last ten years caring about no one but herself and even then it was limited, but here she was caring for some kid.

She looked down at the clock on her radio display. It was nine o'clock. She turned the car down Montrose and headed for the clinic. She knew it would be closed, but it was the only place she could think of.

Pulling up in the alleyway, she killed the engine. As soon as she stepped out of the car, the skies opened up. Heavy rain poured down, soaking her almost instantly. She ran up to the back door and banged loudly.

After a few minutes, Dr. Mills' voice came through the small call box attached to the brick wall, "We're closed."

Emma looked around, feeling bad for bothering him, "It's me, Emma."

Within seconds, she heard the sound of the lock being turned and the door cracked open slightly. Dr. Mills peered out to ensure it was in fact who she said it was. His eye widened and he opened the door, "Come inside child."

Emma walked in, giving a small smile as she passed the old man, "I'm sorry to bug you so late. I hope I didn't wake you."

The doctor shook his head curling the edges of his lips up, "You are always welcome here, Swan. And no, I wasn't sleeping. I was just going over some paperwork."

There was a moment of silence before Emma spoke, "Do you mind if I…" She pointed towards the morgue doors.

He smiled and nodded, "Sure. Take your time." He patted the blonde on the arm, "I'll be in my office if you need anything."

Emma let him disappear down the hallway before she pushed the swinging doors open and walked inside. She had been here less than a week ago, but looking at the dimly lit room now, it seemed it had been forever ago since she had been in this room. She moved towards the morgue refrigerators.

The wall was stacked with coolers. There were eight in all, four on top and four on the bottom. It was much smaller than the other ones she had seen on TV shows, but it still looked similar. They were slightly tarnished since her visit as a teenager, but the same feeling she had at twelve washed over her as she stared at the number four cooler drawer.

Emma realized that her hands were now shaking almost violently. She wasn't completely sure if it was from nerves or from getting wet in the rain. She had been biting the inside of her cheek as she tried to work up the courage to talk to the door like she had as a child. I had no clue how much time had passed as she stared. She was just being silly. She knew her mother's body was no longer there, but she couldn't help the desperate urge to talk to her.

Her mother had been the only person in the world who fully understood her. Yes, she had been close to her dead brother Will, but their connection was nothing like her and her mother's. Guilt flooded her senses as she remembered the last time she had spoken to her mother since her passing. It was in this very room where she would tell her mother everything. Most kids kept diaries, but not her. She would just climb in through the window, sit with her back against cooler drawer number four and tell her mother everything.

Emma swallowed. This was harder than she thought. She clenched her fists in hopes of calming the shaking, but to no avail. She knew the doctor kept a bottle of liquor in the roll-about tray, or at least he used to.

She shuffled over to the tray and pulled the drawer open. Sure enough, there was a bottle of scotch and two glasses. She noticed one had lipstick on it and it seemed to match Regina's. She pulled out the glass and the bottle and walked back over to the cooler drawers. If she got drunk in here, no one would know. She wasn't hurting anyone but herself, right?

She slowly slid her back down the coolers until she was seated on the floor. She unscrewed the cap and carefully poured the amber colored liquid into the tumbler before putting the cap back on and setting the bottle on the floor. She raised the glass up to her nose and inhaled deeply. The pungent alcohol cause goose bumps to rise on her skin and a shiver to run up her neck.

She lowered the glass and sighed. She had felt lonely most of her life, especially after her mother died, but now it seemed worse. Maybe because she was sober and for the first time in years she was letting herself feel emotions instead of drinking them away. Either way, she didn't like it.

"Well, it's been 10 years since I last talk to you." She said into the darkened room.

"Sorry about that. I was a little preoccupied with trying to drown my life with…" She raised the glass as if showing her mother the liquor.

"I wish I could tell you how my life's accomplishments would make you proud, but I'm sure you know the truth to that." She snorted as she stared at the dark red lipstick stains on the tumbler in her hand. "I finally met someone. I mean, I don't know if anything will come of it, hell, I don't even know if she likes me back, but she's beautiful, Mom. And she makes me smile. And she has the most amazing kid. I wish you could meet them, you would've liked them." Emma stared harder at the glass, wanting to take a drink but fighting with her willpower to say no. Tears were welling up in her eyes and she was finding her focus on the tumbler distorted. She closed her, eyes tilting her head back to rest on the drawer behind her.

"Emma?"

The blonde jumped spilling some of the liquid as she opened her eyes. She thought for a second that her mother had spoken, but then she saw a movement towards the door. Regina stood with her arms wrapped tightly around herself; her features were a little hard to make out in the dark room.

Suddenly the fluorescent lights came on, making the blonde flinch, "Regina?"

"Hey." She said moving closer to the other woman.

Emma looked up to see concern etched on her face. The brunette's eyes moved to the tumbler in her hand and then back to the watery green eyes.

"I haven't taken a drink yet." The blonde said looking back at the lipstick stain on the rim of the glass, "I want one so bad, but I just can't bring myself to do it."

She watched the other woman as she seated herself next to Emma, her back also against the cooler doors, "That's good." She gently took the glass from the blonde and sat it on the concrete floor.

"What are you doing here?" Emma asked, wondering how much the other woman had heard before she made her presence known.

"Well, I couldn't sleep and called my father to check on him like I do every night and he told me you were here." She said leaning her head back against the metal.

There was an awkward silence before Regina said, "I used to talk to my mom's ashes when I lived with my dad."

Emma hummed to let the other woman know she was listening, but she said nothing. The brunette continued, "I would talk to her every day. When I got pregnant, I was so ashamed of myself. I thought my mom would be too so I stopped talking to her." Emma turned to look at the older woman as she told her story, "I cried every night for several weeks before I even told my dad. He, of course, told me that it would be rough having a child when I wasn't prepared, but that he still loved me. He too knew I stopped talking to my mom, and told me she was even more forgiving then he was."

"Well, at least you had a dad to turn to when all hell broke loose. My father didn't even have a funeral for my mother. A bloody, broken body was the last time I saw my mom, in this very drawer." She used her head to knock lightly on the metal drawer front behind her.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that alone. If I had known you then, I would have tried to reach out." The brunette said.

"It's not your fault. It's just how life goes. We're all dealt hands, just some are better than others. Maybe I should've folded a long time ago." The blonde said closing her eyes again.

"Don't say that." Regina snapped.

"At least my mom was able to get out. She's the lucky one." Emma opened her eyes only to see the glare on the brunette's face.

"The lucky one? She left behind three children, one of which is a very confused little girl. You had to deal with your father all alone. I could and would never leave Henry like that. I love him too much to see him turn out like…" She stopped herself.

"It's okay, you can say it. Turn out like me, right?" Emma laughed weakly as she stared up at the bright white lights in the ceiling.

"Oh God, I didn't mean it like that. I just meant I wouldn't want him to feel like you do." Regina explained turning to face the other woman.

"Your family was Catholic right?" The blonde asked nonchalantly.

"Uh, yes, why?" Confusion crippled the other woman's features.

"Your mother died of cancer. I'm sure there was an elaborate funeral. I asked my father why we didn't have a funeral for my mother and you know what he said? He told me that God doesn't accept those who commit suicide. He told me she would burn in hell for all eternity." Emma leaned forward in an attempt to reach the glass on the floor, but Regina stopped her.

"That's a horrible thing for a father to tell his child, and I'm so sorry Emma. I wish I could take all of the bad things that happened to you and wash them away." Regina said grabbing the younger woman's hand.

Emma's mouth went dry. The sincerity in the older woman's face was intense. Her skin felt like it was magically on fire where the other woman's hand rested. She watched Regina's lips. They were full and looked soft. She wanted to kiss where the scar was on her upper lip. Not only was she was curious how her lips would feel against her own, but she also wanted to kiss away any pain the woman had experience. Before she knew it, she was pressing her lips against Regina's warm and incredibly soft ones.

The brunette seemed to kiss her back at first, but after a second she pushed Emma away, "Um." She quickly climbed to her feet, "Emma, I…"

Emma scrambled to get up, "Shit, I'm sorry."

"I need to go." The brunette said moving towards the door.

"Wait, Regina, I'm sorry, please don't go." But Regina pushed the door open and was gone. "Shit!" Emma cursed out loud, as she stood staring at the still swinging doors.

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Regina quietly placed her keys in the bowl on her entryway table. She had a bit of a headache and knew there was no way she would be able to sleep after what happened. She walked into the kitchen to make some tea.

To the brunette's surprise, her friend was already seated at the island with two cups of tea, "How did you know when I would be back?"

"I didn't, but I figured it must have been a rough night since you sat in your car for 20 minutes before coming in," Kathryn said picking up the extra cup and passing it to her friend.

Regina accepted it as she took the seat across from the blonde, "Thanks. I just needed to think."

"Where did you go?" her friend asked before taking a sip of her tea.

The brunette sat her cup down but kept her hands around it as she stared into the steam, "My dad called and wanted me to go and talk to Emma. Seems she was having a bad night and went there to talk to her mother." She didn't miss the confused expression on her friend's face, "She likes to talk to her mother's spirit in the morgue, it's a long story."

Kathryn nodded in understanding, "Okay. What happened when you got there?"

"I went into the morgue and I heard her talking to her mother." The brunette paused as she wasn't sure what to say or not say.

"What did you hear her say?" Her friend nudged her to continue.

"She was telling her mother that she had met a beautiful woman who made her smile and her amazing son." Regina closed her eyes to calm her heartbeat.

"Wow. That confirms what your father and I already knew. Go on." Kathryn said with a slight smirk.

"Umm. After I let her know I was there, we talked. She was about to take a drink, but I stopped her. She told me about her sorry father and how he handled her mother's funeral. And then she told me that she wished she were dead like her mother." Regina rubbed the back of her neck with one hand.

"She said she wanted to die? Like, kill herself?" Kathryn asked in shock.

"Not in so many words, but it was implied. And I told her to stop thinking like that and then…" Regina chewed her lip.

"And then what?" Her friend asked on the edge of her seat.

"And then she kissed me," Regina said as the heat rose to her cheeks.

Kathryn was quiet for a moment. She must have been trying to comprehend what she had just been told. She tilted her head, "What did you do?"

Regina sighed, "I freaked. I told her I had to go and I left."

"Did she try to stop you," the blonde asked.

"Yeah, she begged me not to go, but what was I supposed to do?" The brunette asked looking her friend in the eye.

"So you just left her there," Kathryn asked?

"Well, yeah," Regina answered.

Kathryn stood up with a frown, "She told you things she would never tell anyone and that she wished she was dead and you just left her there?"

"What the hell was I supposed to do? I wasn't expecting her to kiss me." Regina stood up defensively, "You're supposed to be on my side here."

"I am, but she is in a bad place right now and you just left her." Kathryn walked around the island and put her cup in the sink, "I'm going to the clinic to check on her. And I thought you should know, that phone tracking app that Henry has on his phone to track Robin, it says he's been back in town since this morning."

Regina didn't have time to respond. The blonde stomped out of the house. She let her head fall forward onto the island top and she growled. Now she wouldn't be able to face Emma at all. Not only had she been freaked out about the kiss, but she totally left her in her time of need. She felt like a horrible person. Lately, it seemed she couldn't do anything right.