David Nolan was not a happy camper. He didn't exactly expect his first day of looking to bring him exactly what he wanted, but he expected a clue. There was nothing. There was absolutely no clue as to where the damn man could be. Jefferson was gone. He just up and disappeared just as Rumpelstilskin had suggested.
The fact that Nathan Ford allowed Sophie to get drunk last night was also running through his mind. It had everything to do with his distraction too. He was absolutely aghast that somebody would dare do that. How could he just let that woman, who just got out of the hospital, to do whatever she wanted? It made him so angry he almost destroyed the phone he was playing with.
"Maybe I should call," he thought.
He hung up the phone for the fourteenth time in the last two hours. He couldn't very well call the mastermind without bringing suspicion. The man was a walking Sherlock Holmes. He was constantly calculating and thinking. Every move, every word meant something to him. Something as simple as a phone call to make certain orders were carried out would be too much. Nate would probably assume the entire town was researching ways to kill Sophie and try to leave.
"For all I know, that's exactly what she needs," he growled.
"What's what who needs?"
David jumped. It figured. He spent five seconds thinking about calling and Eliot Spencer came in answer. The hitter was leaning against the wall quite casually. His long hair was tied back in a sharp ponytail. He was clearly prepared for running too. That meant one of two things. They were about to go look for trouble. Or trouble went through the trouble of finding them.
"A visit to the shrink," the sheriff replied, "I was thinking that was exactly what Sophie needed. She used to be friends with my wife, Mary-Margaret. Of course, at that point in time she wasn't my wife but I feel like I know her."
"Yeah," Eliot nodded, "I feel like I know people I drive out of town and then ignore after fifteen years of not seeing them too."
David laughed at that. Mostly because he understood where the hitter was coming from. It was probably very odd, having somebody talk so fondly of someone they barely knew. But David wasn't exactly telling the truth. Of course, something inside told him Eliot was more than aware of that.
"I wouldn't know anything about that," he replied, "I was in a coma up until last year. Mary-Margaret never told me about it so I just assumed she was dead."
"Well," Eliot looked chastised for the moment at least, "You should have done some better research."
"I'll try to keep that in mind," David nodded. Eliot nodded back. An awkward moment began to pass between them. Finally, his curiosity was too much. "Eliot, what are you doing here?"
The hitter sighed deeply, as though he was reluctant to even be anywhere in this position. He stepped away from the office door, slowly moving in. His shoulders looked as though they were carrying an enormous weight. His eyes were scanning the area out of habit. Clearly he was still uncomfortable being anywhere near a jailhouse.
"I came to offer my services," he shrugged, "Considering Sophie's current condition, we're currently on hold as far as jobs go. I'm not exactly enjoying being cooped up. I figured I might as well do something useful while I'm here."
"You're looking for a distraction," David realized.
The hitter looked guilty. He was shuffling his feet and refusing to make eye contact. That had to be it. He looked too uncomfortable for that not to be the reason. But he was a con artist, a thief. He was trained to pretend anything. Yet the stress was apparent all over his face. If this was a con, it was based on some semblance of truth.
David decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. After all, he was using him too.
"I've got the perfect distraction," he said, "I can't seem to find Jefferson anywhere."
"He's the one who called Sophie before…" Eliot looked towards the ground and silently cursed, "You want me to help you find him?"
"Not alone of course." David felt he needed to clarify that one specific piece of information. He couldn't take the chance of the hitter taken justice into his own hands. "You interested?"
"Very," Eliot replied.
His voice held something dark within. It was almost as though every ounce of hatred he had, every moment of frustration was gunning towards the mad hatter. David almost felt sorry for the man they were hunting. By priorities had to be made if he was going to save Sophie. She was the ticket he needed to saving his wife and daughter. Everything else had to come second to that.
"He was last spotted in the woods here," David said. He pointed to the map on the desk. He'd been looking at for quite some time. That was when the phone call idea crept into his head. "I don't know what it is, but my gut is telling me he's not there anymore."
"I see why you're so interested," Eliot nodded, "That's a giant piece of land within the town limits. If he steps beyond that, we'll never find him. Luckily for you I'm not exactly normal."
"What do you mean?"
The hitter gave him a dark smile and David felt the impulse to run for his life.
"Because I know what it's like to be on the run," he said, "the first thing he's going to need are supplies. Any grocery stores with camping equipment nearby?"
%%%%%%%%%%%%%
"And how does that make you feel?"
Sophie hated this. Archie was doing everything he could to make her open up and she couldn't. He was just sitting in his chair, holding that clipboard and scratching away with that annoying pen. If she hadn't promised Nate she wouldn't have even bothered to stay the full hour. She was even considering doing that anyway when the pen fell from the psychiatrist's hands.
"I know this isn't exactly easy," Archie explained, "I'm here to help and the best way for me to help is to ask you these stupid questions. I'm here when you're ready to speak. If you want me to just keep talking at you I can but that's not going to do anything for you. Mr. Ford is paying me for these sessions. I'm not exactly a fan of wasting money."
"So?" Sophie asked.
She knew she was acting childish but she couldn't' exactly help it. She was counting the time and trying to figure out a way out. She needed to at least appear as though she was getting better. She didn't want to be in this town with all of these people she used to know. She was too afraid they would tell Nate the truth.
"So," Archie sighed, "Tell me what I can do to help you. Even Regina wasn't this stubborn during our first meeting."
That got Sophie's attention. "Regina was here?"
Archie balked. His eyes grew wide and the guilt was clearly written all over his features. He turned away from her and stared at his dog contemplatively. He was tapping that annoying phone on his clipboard, thinking a way out. So it was true.
"I shouldn't have said that," he said, "I'm sorry. That wasn't fair to your sister but if it helps to know you aren't alone… then yes she does."
"What did she say?"
Did she feel guilty? Did she tell him what she did? Did he know? Would he be able to help her hide it from Nate? That was the most important thing. Nate couldn't know the truth. It was too dangerous. She didn't even know how he would react.
"You know I can't tell you that," Archie sighed. "That's private information."
Sophie sagged. She'd forgotten about that. She thought she had her way out. She wouldn't have to talk about it. Nate and the others wouldn't know the truth and she could at least pretend she was normal again. Unfortunately Archie was an honest man. He wouldn't violent his clients' trust even when death was thrust upon him.
"Oh," she said, "Right."
Archie stared at her for a while. She could tell he was thinking about a way around this. He was trying to help her. He would even sacrifice his own sanity for it. He just wanted to help her sister too. If he had his way, he would probably heal the world with just his words.
"She told me about your mother," he said, "Would you like to talk about that? I know she wasn't exactly the nicest person in the world."
"That's an understatement," she laughed, "Did Regina tell you about the time she buckled her boots to the floor, with her still in them? She wouldn't let Regina go until she admitted she was wrong and that power wasn't everything."
"And what did you do?" Archie asked softly.
"I did what Mother told me to do," Sophie growled, "I used my magic against her."
Her hands flew to her mouth in moments flat. She'd been so close. She hadn't meant to admit that she knew. She was just so focused on everything else, she forgot. She was a seasoned grifter. She shouldn't be making these mistakes. Clearly her mind wasn't in the right place. She shouldn't have agreed to coming here.
"So you do remember who you really are?" Archie sighed. He sounded absolutely heartbroken over it. His eye even filled with sad tears.
"Yes," she nodded. There was no use lying now. Maybe it would help her too. Maybe she would be able to leave with Nate and not have to worry about him finding out…
"Do you know why you had your attack?" Archie asked, "If you don't mind me prying. I just want to know what we're dealing with and how much I can really help you."
"I remember bits and pieces," Sophie sighed, "I had a son… and a daughter once."
"Do you know what happened to them?"
She shook her head. Archie nodded. He looked as though he was becoming more frustrated than before. His knuckles were growing white as they clung to his clipboard. He was keeping something from her, something important. She was even tempted to ask him what that could be.
"I tried to get Regina to tell me about it," he said, "but she seemed just as in denial as you. Would you like to talk about anything else?"
"Can I go now?"
She knew their time wasn't up. She just couldn't keep her promise to Nate anymore. The guilt and the secrets were too much. She couldn't tell the person she wanted to. She couldn't even stomach the idea of Regina being just as upset. That woman had absolutely no right in being upset. It was her fault. She did this. If she couldn't live with the consequences than that was her fault. She didn't deserve to be upset.
"Sophie," Archie put his hands on her knees and looked her directly in the eyes, "I'm not trying to push you. I just want to help. If you don't want to talk about what happened, you don't have to. We can talk about anything else. Do you want to talk about your current relationship with Robin…? I mean Nate. His name is Nate."
"I don't want to talk about that!" She hissed.
She could feel her temper rising. She could even feel the memories threatening to consume her. She didn't have much fight left in her. She needed out and she needed it right now. Nate was going to be furious.
"Okay," Archie replied, "We don't have to talk about that. I just have to ask you one question."
Sophie didn't like where this was going. His tone implied he was going to ask something bad. He was going something about her past, something she couldn't answer. This was a mistake. She only agreed to ease Nate's worry. She shouldn't have come.
"Ask away," she said.
"Does he know?" Archie winced at the way he phrased it. He leaned forward softly and made certain their eyes were gazing into each other. Then he took her hands into his and smiled sadly. "I meant does Robin know what happened?"
"No," she replied, "I know where you're going and no. He wasn't there when it happened. He can't know what happened. Nate won't survive it."
"Well if you ask me Sophie, you can't either," Archie shrugged, "Maybe Nate knowing is the way to go."
"Sam," Sophie sighed, "He had a son with another woman."
"Oh," Archie replied.
She smiled at his thoughts. She shook her head and nearly cried. He didn't see. He didn't really know. He was only guessing and thinking she was just a selfish woman. She was but not for that. She loved her husband. She wanted him to be happy. She would have given anything for Sam to be alive again.
"He died," Sophie cried, "Sam died and it… it changed Nate. I don't think he could handle… He can't know about us."
Archie pulled her to him. He gave her the biggest hug he could muster and held her as she cried. She should have cringed away from the contact. Nate was bound to be furious when he walked in. He would blame Archie. He would attack first and ask questions later, another trait that belonged to Robin.
%%%%%%%%%%%
"What are you reading?"
Parker wasn't exactly expecting to find the boy so easily. She especially wasn't expecting to find his nose in another book. She went to the park to clear her head. The locket was talking to her again. It kept warning her about an incoming doom and how it was her job to stop it from happening. She stopped listening after that. It was just too much to take.
"I'm reading about Robin Hood and Marian," Henry said.
He smiled broadly at Parker. Then he was waving her over. He even patted the spot beside him the way Sophie did. The simple action brought tears to her eyes. She could barely stand to be around people. How did Nate expect her to get the information they needed?
"Did you know they had two kids?" He asked, "A boy and a little girl. The boy's name was Icarus but I can't figure out what the daughter's name is quite yet."
"It doesn't say?"
That was odd. Sophie said books usually gave you all of the important information in the beginning. Well, they usually gave you each of the main character's names. Maybe she wasn't a main character. Maybe she was just an addition. Sophie said they sometimes did that, added characters to the end of the book to make it interesting. Nate laughed and said it was so they could make money on a possible sequel. Then they did that weird eye conversation thing and Parker got lost.
"No," Henry growled, "I bet you it was something cool. Like Melody or Ariel or something."
"Isn't Ariel supposed to be a mermaid?" Parker asked, "Those are real, you know. Unicorns too. And fairies are apparently really mean when you aren't nice to them. Eliot says so."
"Fairies?" Henry asked, "Mother Superior is the Blue Fairy. None of the fairies are very mean usually. Grumpy's in love with one of them. Did you know that?"
"Grumpy?" Parker frowned in concentration, "I don't know Grumpy… Oh, wait! Grumpy is that mean dwarf from Snow White, right? He's the one who didn't want to wash his hands."
"Oh yeah," Henry laughed, "I forgot about that."
"You know him!" Parker squealed in excitement. "That's awesome! Can we meet him right now? That would be so cool! I'm gonna get Hardison and Eliot. They'll love to see this."
Henry stared at her the way Eliot did when she described her childhood. He grabbed her hand and frowned. Then he turned towards his backpack. He pulled out yet another book. He was flipping through the pages as an expert forger would when choosing his paintbrush. He cried in excitement and showed the tiny thief a picture.
"Here," he said, "This is Grumpy. You'd know him better as Leroy."
"Leroy?" Parker stared at him in shock, "You mean the grumpy guy who met us when we first came to town. That's Grumpy?"
"Yep," Henry smiled, "and the sheriff is my grandfather."
"You already told me that," she shrugged.
"Did I tell you he's Prince Charming and that my grandmother is Snow White?" Henry asked. He was suddenly very excited and Parker couldn't help but follow suit. The kid was kind of cool.
"Who's your mom?" She asked, "Is she like Cinderella or something?"
"No," Henry laughed, "She's actually normal. Her name's Emma. She's… on vacation."
"Oh!" Parker felt sad now. She understood what the kid meant. She used to say that to grown-ups all the time. When she was living in New York City, adults would constantly stop her and demand to know where her parents were. She just told them they were on vacation and climbed a tree. She liked trees. She felt at home there.
"How long has she been on vacation?" Parker asked softly.
Henry gave her a funny look. It looked as though he couldn't decide if she was serious or not. Then a huge smile cracked against his lips. He started giggling uncontrollably. His hand found Parker's, squeezing it gently.
"It's not like that," Henry said, "She's with my grandma. They used Jefferson's portal to get rid of the wraith and accidentally got sucked into the portal. We don't know where they are exactly. They're somewhere in the Enchanted Forest."
"Oh," Parker knew what that was code for too. "My parents are dead too."
Henry frowned at her. His bright eyes grew big with curiosity. He turned towards her slowly. His hand reached out and he squeezed hand as only a child could. He placed his head on her shoulder and sighed.
"My parents aren't dead, Parker," he said, "I'm telling the truth. My dad is dead but my mom's not. When did they die?"
"I don't know," Parker shrugged. She hadn't given much thought to it in a while. "The police just took me straight to an orphanage after they found me. Everybody always said my parents didn't want me. I just assumed that was true. I didn't realize they were dead until I met Sophie. She explained how a lot of orphans happen because they're parents are dead."
"Do you have proof though?" Henry asked. Parker didn't like that glint in his eye. It looked similar to the one Nate got. That never boded well.
"No," she said, "Hardison couldn't find any. But I didn't give him my real name. I just watched him and tried to do it afterwards. I couldn't find anything either. It doesn't really matter. If they didn't want me then they didn't want me. I have people who want me now."
"My mom wants me," Henry said, "She only gave me up because she was trying to give me my best chance. Maybe your parents were trying to do the same."
"No," she shook her head, "Usually people who are doing it for you don't leave you on the sidewalk where cars can run into you and stuff. Sophie said so."
Henry gave her another look. Then he turned the pages of his other book. Parker didn't understand why he needed two books. They weren't even interesting books. They were fairytales. They didn't teach you about stealing. They didn't even teach you about people. Why was the kid so interested in what those books had to say?
"You were left on the sidewalk?" He asked, "My mom was left on the street."
"Well that's not cool," Parker wasn't very happy. She didn't like this conversation anymore. She was just going to make up an excuse and leave. Sophie was due back from her appointment anyway. It would be nice to hear her breathing again. Without the tubes was much better than with them.
"Her name is Emma Swan," Henry said, "Do you know her?"
The thief stopped mid-stride. Emma Swan? She knew that name. Emma was the one who taught her how to pick pockets. If it wasn't for her, she would have never met Archie. Sure she was a year younger, but the girl was the first person to care about her. They used to hang out with each other all the time. Then Emma was taken to a foster home and Parker was sent to one somewhere in Wisconsin. She tried getting Hardison to find her once. She was just too afraid of what she would find.
"We were found near each other," Parker said, "People thought we were sisters for a while so they kept us in the same home. They found out we weren't sisters and separated us into Foster homes. She's your mom?"
"Yeah," Henry smiled, "and you two grew up together?"
"Sort of," Parker nodded.
Henry stared at her for a while. He held up his little fairy tale book, the one about Robin Hood. Then he held up the other one. Apparently he was comparing them for details. He put one down and suddenly grinned in triumph. He leapt from his perch and raced towards her. Parker was too busy wondering how he did that with all of those things in his arms. He wasn't very quiet either. Then he stood before her as if he had just triumphed in battle.
"I know who you are," he said, "You're parents didn't abandon you, Parker. It's the curse. It took you away from them. They must have figured out how to get you out of the Enchanted Forest too. Come on, we have to tell my grandpa… and my mom. My mom's your aunt. That makes us cousins. That's so cool!"
Parker didn't exactly know what was happening. She was just being dragged along for some kind of ride. Every word falling from Henry's lips just confused her further. How could Robin and Marian be her parents? Henry said they were Nate and Sophie and Nate and Sophie definitely weren't her parents. They were too young. They would have had to have been kids, younger than her and Hardison in order for that to be true. Plus neither one of them were blonde.
Maggie's blonde, she thought, but Henry didn't seem to know her. She definitely wasn't in any of his weird books. Besides, Nate and Maggie were married when Parker was born, right? Nate and Sophie would tell her if they were her parents, right?
You're forgetting about the curse, Parker, the locket replied.
The thief stopped moving the moment she heard that voice. That wasn't possible. She didn't even bring it with her. She'd left it safely tucked away in her top drawer. She even buried it under Hardison's socks because the hacker didn't exactly use them. He just liked buying them to bury stuff within. He usually wore sandals in warm weather. It was the best place to bury things, his sock drawer. So how was the necklace talking to her all the way over here?
I'm part of you, Parker, the locket replied. Magic is in Storybrooke. That's what I've been telling you. You're the only one who can save it. Marian needs you to save her. It's your destiny to awaken her.
"Parker?" Henry asked, "Are you alright?"
The thief gulped. She nodded her head sharply but made no move to continue walking. She just stood there and allowed the locket's words to wash over her. It was her destiny to awaken Marian? What was that supposed to mean? Wasn't that Robin Hood's job?
"Parker?" Henry called.
"You said something about Mother Superior being the Blue Fairy," Parker remembered, "Could you take me to her?"
"Yeah, why?" Henry asked.
"I've got a very important question to ask her." She replied.
