Chapter 12

Early the next morning, Emma was awoken by a new nurse, shaking Emma's shoulder slightly to wake her.

"You have to go back to your own bed," she whispered, trying not to wake Regina in the process.

"No, please. Let me stay with her. Please," Emma pleaded.

"She needs to lay flat on her back to make sure she doesn't pull on her stitches in her abdomen," the nurse said, pulling the blankets off Emma slightly.

"What if I just sit on the side of her bed then?" Emma said, not moving.

"You need to rest as well. You can sit with her after you've both slept," the nurse said, gently nudging Emma off Regina's bed. Regina woke up as soon as her hand was removed from Emma's chest, sensing the loss of Emma's heartbeat.

"Wait! Where are you going?" Regina asked, her voice hoarse from sleep, her arms reaching for Emma in a panic.

"They're making me go back to my bed," Emma explained, reaching over to place a soft kiss on Regina's lips. "Roll over onto your back. You need to lay flat to make sure you don't pull out your stitches. I'm going to be right over there. Just call me if you need me."

"I always need you, Emma," Regina said, pulling Emma in for one last kiss.

"I always need you too. Get some sleep. They won't let us lay together until we sleep. I'll see you in a few hours," Emma said before the nurse gently pulled her toward her cold bed on the other side of the room, staying until Emma settled into her bed and closed her eyes.

A half an hour later, Emma was back in Regina's bed, their arms wrapped around each other, Regina's hand firmly planted against Emma's chest.

They spent the majority of the next day laying in each other's arms, simply staring at each other, afraid that if they were too far apart, the other would disappear. The nurses eventually stopped trying to separate them, finally understanding that they needed to be near each other to heal, that their bond was more important than anything. They were desperately trying to fix their broken connection, and the only way they could do it was to be near each other. The nurses eventually pushed their beds together, allowing them to be close while still keeping Emma in her own bed.

"Good afternoon, ladies, may I come in?" a strange voice asked after knocking on their door and opening it slightly, waiting for their response.

"Of course," Regina answered, shifting slightly to look at the new visitor, making sure to keep her hand on Emma's chest.

"My name is Vanessa Peters and I'm a social worker here at the hospital. Your doctors have asked me to come talk to you both regarding what happened. Is now a good time?" Vanessa asked, standing at the foot of their combined bed.

"It's okay," Emma said, looking over at Regina for a response. Regina simply nodded.

"Great, may I sit?" she asked, pointing to the foot of Emma's bed. Emma nodded and shifted closer to Regina, partially in an effort to protect her. "How are you both feeling?"

"Alright…" Emma answered, her voice sounding distant.

"Sore…" Regina added, shifting slightly.

"I suppose that is to be expected. I know you both experienced an incredibly traumatic event yesterday. How are you both feeling about that?" Vanessa asked, preparing to jot down notes on their responses.

"What can we say?" Emma said, reaching to grab Regina's hand that wasn't pressed against her chest. "A bunch of Alphas almost killed us because of something we can't control." Regina tightened her grip on Emma's hand as she spoke those words.

"And how does that make you feel?" Vanessa asked.

"Really fucking shitty!" Emma blurted out, causing Regina to jump slightly.

"Regina? How do you feel?" Vanessa asked, turning her attention to Regina.

"I don't know…" Regina says, unsure of herself. "I'm fine, I guess."

"I can see you have your hand on Emma's chest. Is there a reason you're keeping your hand there?" Vanessa asked.

"Because…well…because I can't feel Emma anymore. I can't feel her heart beating in my chest anymore," Regina answered, trying to hold back tears.

"And how does that make you feel?" Vanessa asked, trying to encourage Regina to open up.

"Empty," Regina said, her tears finally falling. "It feels worse than any of my other injuries." Emma shifted even closer to her, pulling her into her arms, making sure Regina's hand stayed firmly planted against her chest.

"That's what I'm here to talk with you about. That emptiness you feel, it's due to your severed connection with Emma," Vanessa explained what they already suspected. "It happened when your mating mark was removed from Emma's neck."

"I could feel it. I could feel everything they were doing to her…" Regina said, her body shaking as she cried. "But when they started to cut my mark off her, it was worse. It was like they were stabbing me with white hot pokers, in my chest. Right into the part of my chest that feels Emma's heartbeat."

"Please continue, when you're ready," Vanessa said as the couple paused, their bodies shaking with their sobs.

"The moment they fully removed my mark, it felt like someone was ripping Emma's heart out of my chest. I know it wasn't really in my chest. But it really felt like someone was ripping her heart out of my chest. And then, all of a sudden…" Regina said, taking a deep breath. "…nothing. I couldn't feel her anymore. I think that was when I passed out."

"Yes, I would expect that you would pass out when that happened. When you violently and abruptly sever a mating connection like that, it almost always has adverse consequences. And I believe the men who did this to you knew exactly what would happen when they did it. I also believe that is why they waited to remove your mark last, because they knew whatever they did to the Omega would also affect the Alpha."

"It did… I felt it all…everything…" Regina said, her voice shaking.

"What other adverse consequences could happen?" Emma asked, now increasingly more concerned about Regina.

"I believe that the severed connection was also the reason Regina's heart continued to stop beating until you two were reunited," Vanessa explained.

"She was literally dying without me?" Emma asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yes," Vanessa answered. "You must remember, you were connected. When you mated and were marked, you were essentially becoming one person. And then suddenly, that other person, your other half, was ripped away from you. A part of you has been ripped away. It's going to hurt."

"How long will it last? The way Regina feels now?" Emma asked, her concern even more eminent in her voice.

"I don't know the answer to that," Vanessa said, grabbing the briefcase she had left on the floor next to her. "However, I do know quite a few very good counselors that specialize in these types of cases. I would very much advise you both make an appointment to speak with one of them." She handed Emma a list with names and contact information on it. "Things are going to be tough for both of you for a while. I strongly urge you to seek help before things get out of control."

"That's not a bad idea," Emma said, looking at Regina, tears still falling from her eyes.

"I agree…" she whispered.

"Do you have any family you two can call? Someone to stay with you for a few days after you're discharged to help you out?" Vanessa asked.

"Ummm…we could call Regina's father. He's the only family member who approves of us," Emma explained, suddenly sensing the hesitation in Regina's eyes.

"Good. And if you two need anything while you are still here, please do not hesitate to call. My office is right upstairs," Vanessa said, handing Emma her business card.

"Yes, thank you. We will," Regina said, shifting closer to Emma. Vanessa stood from the bed, letting herself out, closing the door behind her.

"She's right, you know. We should call your father and let him know what happened," Emma said after a few minutes of silence.

"I know. I just don't want him to worry. He'll be beside himself knowing something happened to us. I don't want to put him through all that."

"Sure. I can understand that. But imagine how angry he'll be when he finds out we kept something like this from him. He'll probably be just as hurt knowing he could have done something to help us, but instead we kept it from him," Emma said, knowing Regina knew she was right.

"Either way, he gets hurt." Regina frowned. "But you're right, he should know. We'll call him in the morning. Right now, I just want to lay here with you, if that's alright."

"Of course, my love. Anything you need." Emma smiled, kissing Regina's forehead.

They spent the rest of the day in relative silence, holding each other and watching mindless television, before falling asleep in each other's arms.

The following morning started just like the previous. Nurses coming in and out, taking their vitals, wheeling them around for more tests to make sure there was no more internal bleeding or brain damage from the attack. Both their doctors visited and examined them, declaring that they were both doing well, and barring any unforeseen complications, they could both go home on Friday.

By Wednesday afternoon, they had waited long enough. It was time to call Henry and let him know what happened. But when the time came, Regina couldn't bring herself to make the phone call, leaving it up to Emma to call him.

"Regina! What a surprise! I didn't expect to hear from you for at least a week, while you two drown in your newlywed bliss! To what do I owe this pleasure?" Henry asked as soon as he answered the phone.

"It's actually Emma, sir," Emma answered.

"Emma! What an even bigger surprise! Please, call me Dad! None of this sir business! How are you doing?" he asked his new daughter-in-law.

"Well…that is kind of why I called…" Emma said, hesitating.

"Emma? Is something wrong? Are you alright? Is Regina alright?" he asked, his demeanor changing very drastically.

"Okay, before I say anything, just remember, we are both okay. I promise, we are both okay…" she said as she heard Henry take a deep breath on the other end of the phone, preparing himself for the bad news.

"Emma, please just tell me…" Henry said, his voice pleading.

"Regina and I were attacked…Monday evening…" Emma said as she uttered the hardest words she has ever had to say.

"My daughters…" Henry said, his voice filled with emotion. Emma's heart swelled when she caught him calling her his daughter.

"Like I said, we are okay. I won't go into any of the details. Just that we are currently still in the hospital."

"How much longer do they think you two will be staying?" Henry asked.

"The doctors think we can probably go home on Friday."

"Regina…is she…can she…?" Henry started to ask, realizing he had yet to hear his daughter's voice.

"She's right here," Emma said, putting the phone on speaker.

"I'm here, Daddy," Regina said, tears falling down her face.

"Oh Regina…" Henry said, now audibly crying upon hearing Regina's voice. "Is there anything I can do?"

"I don't think so. We're going to be here for another few days. After that, I think we'll need some therapy. But I think we're on a good path toward recovery already," Regina said, only half lying.

"I suppose that's good to hear," Henry said, his voice sounding better. "Please let me know if there is anything I can do. Anything at all, do not hesitate to ask."

"We will. I promise," Emma said, knowing Regina would be less likely to actually ask for help.

"Thank you. Please keep me updated."

"We will," Regina said.

"I love you both, so much. Please take care of each other for me," Henry said, almost pleading again.

"That I can promise!" Emma said. "And we love you too! We'll talk again soon. I promise." Emma ended the conversation, knowing that both Henry and Regina were becoming very upset.

"Thank you…" Regina said as Emma hung up the phone. "For making the phone call. I don't think I would have been able to."

"Of course," Emma said, kissing Regina's forehead. "I always have your back."

By Wednesday night, Emma started to see a change in Regina. She was becoming more and more depressed, often clinging to her for dear life. The doctors and nurses assured Emma that Regina was just feeling down because of their attack. But Emma knew better. She could feel it. Regina was starting to feel the effects of their severed connection even more. She could tell it physically hurt Regina to be away from her, even if she was simply making a trip to the bathroom. She did everything she could to stay with her every moment, making sure they were always making contact. Emma was suddenly glad Regina couldn't feel Emma's heart, because it was breaking just seeing Regina in so much pain.

Thursday afternoon, there was a soft knock on their door. Regina didn't even stir from her cozy spot in Emma's arms, her head resting against Emma's heart as Emma gave the mystery person permission to enter, expecting another round of doctors or nurses checking their vitals. They did not expect to see Henry walk through the door, three cups of coffee and a pink box of pastries in his hands.

"Mr. Mil…errr…Dad? What are you doing here?" Emma asked, causing Regina to look up suddenly.

"Daddy?" she asked, her voice sounding so childlike.

"Did you really expect me to sit around in a different state, when my lovely daughters are laying in a hospital bed miles and miles away?" he asked, pulling a chair over toward the women in the bed. Emma's eyes filled with tears once again as Henry referred to her as his daughter. She would never get tired of hearing that.

"I'm glad you came," Emma said, holding back the tears that now threatened to fall.

"Me too," Regina whispered, daring to climb off Emma's chest. Emma grabbed her hand suddenly, reminding Regina that she was there for her.

"What happened?" he whispered as he handed them each a cup of coffee, knowing how bad hospital coffee is.

"We…well…we…" Emma started to say, not sure if Regina wanted her father to know the whole truth of what happened. Regina nodded slightly, letting Emma know she could continue. "We were walking out of the firehouse after my shift Monday evening. We were going to grab dinner and head back home to spend a quiet evening together. The next thing we know, we're waking up in an alleyway nearby. And…and…"

"Four men were attacking us. My arms were bound behind my back and one man was holding me down, forcing me to watch as they…as…as they…." Regina stopped suddenly, tears falling down her face, her voice completely gone. Neither one of them could finish the story.

"They cut you off Emma, didn't they?" Henry asked, completing the story for them.

"Yes…how…how did you know?" she asked after a few moments of silence.

"The bandages on your neck and arm. They are directly over your mate mark and Soulmate tattoo."

"They cut me off of her, Daddy…" Regina cried, her body shaking.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry this happened to both of you," Henry practically crawled in bed with them as he pulled them both into his arms, holding them both tight. "What can I do? How can I help?" Henry asked, tears falling down his own face.

"I don't think there is anything you can do," Regina said, pulling away from her father.

"Well, you could keep bringing us coffee and pastries. It's scientifically proven that bear claws help increase healing by seventy percent!" Emma said, trying to lighten the mood.

The sound she heard next was like music to her ears. Regina started laughing. Before they knew it, all three of them were laughing at Emma's joke. It felt good to laugh after so many days of crying.

"How long are you staying, Daddy?" Regina asked, wiping the tears from her face from laughing so hard.

"Until Sunday evening the earliest. I want to be there for you both when you go home tomorrow. And I want to stay with you both through the weekend at least, unless you want me to stay longer," Henry explained.

"Thank you," Regina whispered.

Henry stayed with them for the remainder of the day, staying until the absolute last moment, leaving only when the nurses threatened to call security to have him escorted out of the hospital. He let them know he was going to stay in their apartment and make sure everything was cleaned and ready for them when they were discharged the next day, promising to bring them more coffee and pastries in the morning, as well as clean clothes. They both felt lighter as they settled in for the night, Henry's presence seeming to lift a huge weight off their shoulders.

"I miss that," Emma whispered as they laid in each other's arms, the light of the moon lighting the room.

"Miss what?" Regina asked.

"Your laugh." Emma smiled, reaching to cup Regina's face.

"Me too…" Regina said, her smile falling.

"Thank you for not telling your father that the men…that they…" Emma started to say, unable to say the words they both knew she was trying to say.

"Of course. We can keep that to ourselves," Regina answered, tears falling from her eyes as she remembered that day. "Are we going to be okay?"

"I hope so," Emma whispered. "But no matter what happens, we will always have each other. And as long as we are together, we can do anything."

"I meant what I said…in my vows to you…" Regina said, shifting closer as a stray tear fell from her eye. "Right now, all I can see is darkness. Except you. You're my ray of light amongst the sea of darkness.".

"I will always be your ray of light, Regina. And I will never let you drown in the darkness."

"Promise?" Regina asked, as if she wasn't sure.

"I promise!" Emma said. "Always!"

Henry knocked on their door at exactly nine o'clock the next morning, a tray of coffee and a box of pastries filled his arms, eager to see his daughters once more. Not long after he arrived with their breakfast, their doctors came in one last time to give the good news. All of their tests came back negative and everything looked great. They were officially being discharged that afternoon. Emma carefully helped Regina change into clean clothes, careful to avoid jostling her right knee, which was now secured in a brace, while Henry waited outside. They signed their discharge paperwork and Emma was handed the final dose of the emergency contraceptive with explicit instructions to take a pregnancy test if her period was more than a week late, just to be certain. Henry made a face of equal parts hurt and disgust. He didn't have to be told what happened to understand why Emma would need emergency contraception. He never asked them about it, and they never told him the whole truth of that day.

Henry rushed off ahead of them, hailing a cab to bring them back to Brooklyn, holding the door open as the nurses wheeled them out of the hospital. Emma was by Regina's side immediately, helping her out of the wheelchair, making sure she was steady on her crutches as she hobbled to the car. They squeezed themselves into the back of the small cab and embarked upon their journey home, Regina's hand pressed against Emma's chest the entire time. Henry only smiled as he looked over. Despite all they had been through, he knew they had each other, and that was all he could ever ask for.

Once they made it home, Henry insisted that they both lay down and spend some alone time together, away from nurses and doctors poking them every few minutes. They settled into bed and immediately fell asleep in each other's arms. The feeling of their warm and safe bed calmed them enough to fall asleep quickly. They woke up to the smell of Henry cooking dinner in the kitchen.

"I'm glad your dad is here," Emma said, her arms tightly held around Regina. "I can't even think about cooking right now. All I want to do is lay here with you."

"Me too. But that food does smell good." Regina smiled. She was clearly starting to feel more like herself already.

"Let's get some food." Emma smiled. She slowly climbed out of bed, rushing over to help Regina up and back into her brace, before they finally emerged from their bedroom, following the scent to the kitchen, where dinner was already ready.

By the time they all retreated to bed for the night, Regina and Emma were already starting to feel better and more like themselves. Being out of the hospital and safely tucked away at home was just what they both needed.

"Happy one week anniversary," Emma whispered that night as she held Regina close.

"What a shitty week it turned out to be," Regina huffed.

"Yeah, it has been." Emma sighed. "But we've been through something almost as bad, and we made it through that. We'll get through this too."

"Yeah, you're right. We'll get through this too…eventually," Regina said before settling into Emma's arms, falling fast asleep with her head on Emma's chest, the sound of Emma's heart beating soothing her to sleep.

Henry stayed with them for the entire weekend, waiting on them hand and foot, even going to the pharmacy to pick up their prescriptions and going grocery shopping for them. He even made sure they had more than enough sterile gauze and medical tape and every kind of ointment the doctors recommended to make sure all their lacerations and surgical incisions healed perfectly. He wanted to make sure they had everything they needed for the next week or two, so they had one less thing to have to worry about while they recovered from the horrible ordeal.

By the time Henry left Sunday afternoon, they were already starting to feel better. Being home and away from all the hospital machines and staff was really what they needed. All that was left was to heal. And although they loved Henry very much, it was nice to finally be alone, just the two of them.

They had a quiet dinner together, chicken parm that Henry had made that morning and left baking in the oven when he left, and settled on the couch for the evening, Regina nestled in Emma's arms, her hand firmly pressing Emma's chest. Even though they were covered with the physical evidence of their attack, being together on the couch suddenly felt so normal.

Emma helped Regina shower, given strict instructions to wait a few more days before taking a bath, allowing the surgical incisions a few more days to heal before submerging them under water. As they stood together in the shower, Regina leaning against Emma for support, they finally started to see the aftermath of their attack. But it wasn't until they finished and were dried off did the severity really hit them.

After their shower, they needed to change all their dressings. Since leaving the hospital two days ago, Henry had taken on the added job of ensuring their dressings were changed and all wounds were cleaned and redressed appropriately. This was the first time they would truly see each other's wounds. Emma started with the wound on the back of Regina's head, checking to make sure it was healing correctly before applying healing ointment and placing a small bandage over it, the adhesive clinging to the small bald spot on the back of Regina's head. She knew once Regina felt better, she would certainly feel self conscious of the missing hair on the back of her head. Next came the small incision on Regina's abdomen where the doctors had to open her up to stop the internal bleeding caused by being kicked repeatedly in the abdomen. Regina's skin was severely bruised from this, large dark bruises covered most of her abdomen, and Emma tried so hard to hold back tears. The incision on Regina's knee was the next to be addressed, the area still quite swollen and red, which was to be expected given the nature of the injury and the extensive surgery required to repair it. Once Regina's knee was securely cleaned and redressed, and her leg once again secured in the knee brace, Emma moved to the final bandages, the ones around Regina's wrists. Emma carefully unwrapped each wrist and could no longer hold back her tears as she saw the ugly and red wounds underneath that wrapped all the way around each wrist.

"Regina…" she whispered as tears streamed down her face. She couldn't bear to think about how hard Regina must have been struggling against the restraints to cause such deep wounds.

"It's okay…they'll heal…" Regina said, knowing exactly why Emma was so upset.

"It's not okay, Regina. None of what happened to us is okay," Emma cried as her shaky hands began to spread the healing ointment across the angry wounds. Regina didn't know what to say, so she remained silent, tears dripping down her face as well.

Next, it was Regina's turn to address Emma's wounds. They both knew these would be the hardest to see. She started with the wounds on Emma's head and the side of her face, as Emma had done as well, making sure everything was healing properly. She took a little longer than she needed to, dreading moving to the larger injuries, her heart not ready to face that reality.

Eventually, she moved to address the bandage wrapped around Emma's left arm—the one that was covering up the portion of Emma's arm that had once carried Regina's name. Regina sobbed when she saw what was left, a large wound held together by dozens of black sutures. Emma rested her hand on Regina's leg for support as Regina made sure Emma's arm was cleaned and well covered with ointment before bandaging it back up, her tears already staining her shirt.

"I don't think I can do this, Emma," Regina cried as she looked at the final bandage. The one where her mating mark used to be.

"It's ok. I'll do it," Emma said, moving to stand.

"No," Regina said suddenly, straightening her back. "Let me. I need to. I can't run from it forever." She urged Emma to sit back down.

Emma sat down as Regina's shaking hands slowly began to peel off the tape holding the bandage to her neck.

"No…Emma…" Regina cried as she saw what remained of Emma's neck, what was left of the skin. The bed began to shake underneath them as Regina fell into Emma's arms, her tears staining Emma's shirt as she wept against the uninjured side of her neck. "They cut me off of you. They took you away from me. What if this means you're not marked anymore? What do we do then?" Regina cried.

"We'll figure something out. We'll get through this. We're stronger than anything those assholes did to us," Emma whispered, rubbing Regina's back for support, gently running her fingers through Regina's hair every so often, making sure to not disturb the stitches there.

"It hurts too much, Emma," Regina cried, clutching Emma's shirt. "It physically hurts so much that you're not there anymore. I don't know if I can do this."

"You can. I know you can. You're the strongest person I know," Emma said, trying to comfort her newlywed wife. "And this time you won't have to do it alone. I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere. What happened to us doesn't change anything between us. I made you a promise that I intend to keep. 'Til death do us part, remember?"

"'Til death do us part…" Regina repeated, her cries slowing.

Eventually Regina calmed down enough to continue her work, cleaning and redressing Emma's final wound. Once their wounds had been cleaned and dressed, and the supplies put away, they retreated to bed, the ordeal completely draining Regina. After checking to make sure the front door was locked and secured tight, Emma returned to their room to find Regina already settled in bed, waiting for her to return. Before joining her, she grabbed her stash of extra pillows and began to build a nest around Regina.

"You need this more than I do tonight," she said as she climbed into bed, securing Regina in her arms, completing the nest around Regina.

Regina fell asleep within minutes, safely tucked in Emma's arms, her hand pressed firmly against Emma's chest.