Thank you AGAIN to my wonderfully amazing friend Keisha (charmingturkeysandwich on tumblr) for helping make this story a possibility!

Chapter 3

Emma woke up and went about her morning as normally as she could when she was up until 2:30-ish worrying about the stupid damn letter and any insane amount of scenarios that could happen.

Her all time favorite was the one where Robert Gold broke into her house with a tranquilizer gun to steal Henry in the dead of night. So she, of course, set the house alarm. Only to then wonder if he possibly was already staring in her windows from a nearby bush with super binoculars and saw her type in the code. So she installed a sliding lock. Yes, she installed a sliding fucking lock in her door at one in the morning.

Thinking she was finally safe to sleep, she crawled in her bed and laid there for a few minutes. Then there was a creak. Then a bang. Her logical, daytime mind would have reminded her it was an old house, and that the heat was just kicking on.

Nightime Emma is not so logical.

She crept upstairs, fearing the worst, with her heart in her throat. When she walked slowly and cautiously into Henry's room, she saw him sleeping safe and sound in his bed. He was just so sweet. His face was still a little chubby from his recent growth spurt, his cheeks a little red (she should probably adjust the heat) and he was clutching his newest bear from Grandpa.

She needed to get a grip. Whatever this letter meant, whatever he could do, meant nothing if she didn't continue to be the mom Henry needed. She needed to be healthy, happy, able to function...

After getting her fill of his chest rising and falling to ease her mind. She went down to her bed and was finally able to sleep.

So, it's no surprise that she's running late in getting ready. Henry, of course, was taken care of first. Breakfast (a bowl of cereal), teeth brushed, outfit ('clean underwear and socks' she reminded him), coat, hat, scarf, gloves, boots, shoes in bookbag, bookbag on back, vitamins, and oh god she really hoped she wasn't forgetting anything. She threw on the first semi matching outfit she found and grabbed a granola bar and her purse and ran out the door with Henry trailing behind her.

"Is today going to be a Mommy day after school? I like Mommy days." his high pitched little voice said from the back seat. "I'm going to build a rocket today in class. My teacher said that my rough draft of the rocket was really good! I think i'm going to change it from red to blue though, do you think that's a good idea, Mommy?" He chattered in the back seat without really waiting for an answer but Emma smiled and nodded along, oohing and ahhing at what he was saying.

"Mommy are you tired today?" this kid didn't miss a beat. She figured honesty was best right now. He always knew when she wasn't exactly telling the truth, and she wanted to make sure he grew up learning to actually tell the truth. She'd be damned if he turned out anything like his father in that regard.

"I am a little bit, sweetheart, but i'll be ok once I get some coffee in me. I'm really excited to hear about how your rocket turns out. Do you know what would be so cool on the blue? Yellow stars!"

Henry seemed pacified with that and continued to talk back and forth with her until she dropped him off at the school with a quick kiss 'Mom, my friends could see!' and hug before walking back to the car.

Once she got to the car she took a deep breath (guess that was her thing now. Deep breathing. Stupid.) and started the engine. She needed to go home and figure out where to start with all this mess. She was willing to see what Gold had to say, but she sure as hell wasn't going in there without representation. She knew nothing about law, but she knew that much.

She didn't even know anyone that ever needed a lawyer for such things, so she wasn't sure where to start. She figured she'd likely need a lawyer that specialized in family and juvenile law, because Law and Order taught her that much, but did they advertise like that? Google would be more helpful. Google and coffee.

She decided against going to the scene where she kicked that British guy yesterday. Was it only 24 hours ago? Feels like a lifetime.

Once she had a bearable amount of caffeine in her system, she sat down at her laptop and googled away.

'Family Law Office Storybrook Maine'

Three offices popped up

Nova Starr (what the hell was this, a fairytale?)

Leroy Martin (sounds like a drunk)

Jones, Loxley and Mills (pfft)

Well, she can basically scratch that last one. Mills. Probably related to the Mills of Gold, French and Mills and hell no.

She wrote down the numbers to the first two, decided she was being a judgemental asshole, and finally wrote down the third. She couldn't really afford to be picky right now, and she needed to have options.

She called and set up consultations for 12:00, 2:00 and 5:00, wanting to make sure with wait time, consult time, and drive time, she could speak to each one today. Better to get this over with and rolling.

She called her Dad to see if he could pick Henry up from daycare and he thankfully was getting off his shift early today anyway. Her parents are amazing.

After everything was said and done, she had about half an hour to get ready before she had to be to Ms. Starr's office so she brushed her hair, threw some light makeup on, and made sure she wasn't covered in some kind of kid gunk somewhere. She grabbed the letter and made her way to the first office.

To say Attorney Starr was sweet was an understatment. She was a puppy. An adorable little puppy. She talked about mediation and peace and how wonderful it was that Henry's grandfather was reaching out. Yeah. Wonderful. She kept saying how great it was that Henry was so loved that so many wanted to spend time with him.

That's all well and good, but Emma could not, for the life of her, get the woman to understand that he'd never met Henry. Let alone have any feelings towards him whatsoever. Of course he was awesome, he was a great kid. Anyone he met and created a relationship with would be lucky to have him. The problem was she couldn't get this guys angle, and she wasn't willing to send the human equivalent of a giant happy puppy into whatever horror show this guy created. Nope.

Sighing heavily, hoping the next one is better, she got in her car and headed to see Leroy Martin. She probably should have gotten lunch on the way there, but she was hoping to have time to grab something real quick after.

After she left that particular office 2 hours and 37 minutes later (just enough time to make it to her last consultation) she kind of just sat in her car for five minutes and wondered what the hell had just happened.

She met with Leroy Martin after waiting in his waiting room for 48 minutes. Which was fine, she made the appointments for the times she did because she wanted to make sure if this happened, she was prepared.

The first thing he said to her, the first damn thing, was 'So sister, what was it? Drugs? Prostituiton? Bad boyfriend? I need to know what we're working with here if we have to go to court.' And it essentially escaltated to him somehow talking about a case he took a while back where a woman worshipped cats and refused to let her kids go to school and got them taken away, but it was ok in the end because she was happier with just the cats. There was also something about a hooker living in the basement and making meth in there, but she honestly just tuned it all out after a while.

She really needed to look into moving somewhere else. Clearly this town was insane. As were most of the people in it.

She hadn't even got to talk to him about her case. She just nodded for a while and let him spin his wheels for a bit.

She deflated when she got in her car. What an absolutely horrible meeting that was. She was putting all her eggs in this last basket. If they weren't what she needed, she could branch out a bit, sure, but she really didn't want to have to travel back and forth with her schedule for meetings. She knew Gold came from a bigger town about 35 minutes away, but the further she kept from that area, the better.

She mused on what she'd be walking into with this next law office. Her luck there would be a greasy middle aged man that hit on her in this next office. Because she had the best luck lately it seemed.

Seriously though, the cosmic shit show can come to a halt now, please and thanks.

She pulled into the parking lot and noticed that this office was a lot more well kept than the other two she'd been to. There was nice landscaping all around, the building was very non-imposing, quaint but not small. It was a perfect location, kind of set away from the rest of the town. Dense trees lined one side and you could see the beach from the other angle. It calmed her immediately.

She walked up to the building and braced herself for another onslaught of insanity (seriously though, crazy magnet, all areas in life) just in case and opened the door.

When she got inside there was a tiny red headed woman sitting behind a counter. She brightened immediately and greeted her.

"You must be Ms. Swan! I'm sorry, but Mr. Loxley got called away for an emergecy this afternoon, but another associate is going to meet with you and get all your pertinent information to him. Answer any questions you may have, that sort of thing. He wanted me to assure you that only things of the utmost importance (he means his son you know) take precedence over clients. He's a widower and he has a little boy. While it's rarely an issue, things do come up from time to time and that, sadly, just can't be avoided. If you'll take a seat for a moment I'll buzz them and let them know you're here."

So she was an over-sharer. She seemed sweet, but for the love of God, she didn't think the redhead took a breath in that whole exchange. Emma wondered if she'd even realized that she hadn't said a single word in that entire time. Not even a hello. She figured if she wanted a chance to at least speak she'd manage a 'hello' but before she knew it she heard a smooth British voice behind her say "No need, Ariel, I've just gotten off the call and was coming up to see if Ms. Swan had arrived yet." He then started to walk around Emma, and she knew exactly who he was before she even saw his face. "Good afternoon, Ms. Swan, I'm Killian Jones and i'll be filling in for-YOU!"

Oh, so he remembered her too. Good. Good. She managed a meek "Hi." before getting ready to leave the office. Of course. This is her life, after all, why wouldn't the universe see fit to blow up in her face once again? She had almost made it to the door when he spoke again.

"Now, this will be the second time in as many days that you've walked out of a place without letting me get so much as a coherent thought out. Ms. Swan, please, let's go to my office. We can discuss your case there. Robin talked with you this morning over the phone and told me about your case before he left. He feels very strongly that we should take it, but I do need to sit and ask you a few questions. If you'd be so obliged? I can assure you, I am able to be a professional."

Emma blinked. He seemed much...different...than the man she kicked at the coffee shop. The mortification washed over her once again. Oh god, she kicked a lawyer. He was probably going to take her back there to tell her he was going to sue her. She was going to go to jail. Isn't that what they did with people who got sued and didn't have any money? Did they go to jail? What will happen to Henry when she goes to jail? God, what will happen to her parents. They'll be so upset. All because she acted like an impulsive, moronic, self centered-.

"Ms. Swan." he interrupted her train of thought before it completely derailed and took her to crazy town. "Please, I can see you're stressed. I know you need help, I would like very much to not discuss this in our lobby, but if you'd feel more comfortable doing so..."

"No. I'm sorry. Just internally freaking out." Did she seriously just say that? Why? Great, now he knew she was a lunatic on top of everything else. Well, honestly, if he didn't think it before with the whole kick and dash with a side of bitchiness thing then he was a little loco himself.

"No need to 'internally freak out' as you said. Water under the bridge. Please, follow me."

As she followed him down the short corridor she noticed the office was lined with photographs of local landmarks. The beach, the lighthouse, a ship (yacht? Boat? She never knew the difference between all those) some artsy shots of the woods, a nearby stable her father used to take her to when she was a preteen.

All too soon, they reached his office. He opened the door and gestured for her to go ahead of him. "Go ahead and take a seat Ms. Swan." He walked past her and around his desk. It was large and made of a dark wood, seemed very imposing, yet comforting. Despite the awkward situation they were currently in, she was oddly at ease. Maybe he was into that fung shei or something?

"Ok, Ms. Swan-"

"Emma, please, call me Emma. Ms. Swan is just so formal. Makes me feel old."

"Only if you'll call me Killian." He said with a kind smile. "Now, Emma, why don't you tell me why you're here. I know you gave Robin some information over the phone, but I'd like to know we're on the same page here so I can properly gauge the situation."

"Well, a letter came to my parents' house for me, from Robert Gold... He claims he's my sons grandfather. He has never met Henry or myself, and from what Henry's father told me he didn't raise him either. Neal passed away a little over two years ago, and now it seems that Mr. Gold wants 'companionship time' with my child. I brought the letter if you'd like to see it?"

"Please." She hands over the letter and watches his expression as he reads. He looks at it with what can only be described as detached curiousity at first, then his expression darkens "he's trying to scare you."

"Why though, I just don't get it? He was hanging around my parents house for a while and always trying to talk to them, but from what I gather he wasn't being very threatening. Just a nuisance, really. Not leaving, like an annoyance type thing. I didn't even know anything about it until the letter came. And he had nothing to do with us at any point before now, so I guess I just don't get it?"

His face kept its dark demeanor, but she could tell it was more towards her situation than her "Gold doesn't normally have reasons other than to make others' lives hell... Tell me, this Neal, Henry's father-did he ever give you any reason to believe he wasn't entirely truthful?"

That's a Russian doll of issues that she's not entirely sure she should get into right now, but she supposes she needs to be truthful if this is ever going to get resolved. And she does need his help. Or his associates. Whatever.

"Ok, so, to be completely honest... He was not the best. He cheated, did drugs, and constantly lied. When he wasn't doing those things, he was bleeding us dry financially. He barely held down a job, took my money constantly and I couldn't trust him alone with Henry. I met Neal in college and he basically tricked me into thinking he was a good guy. He took me on dates, held open doors, the usual stuff. After I found out I was pregnant with Henry, he kind of shifted his attitude. It became him always accusing me of being crazy and saying I was letting this baby get to my head. I don't really know why I stayed with him, but it didn't start off all those things. It gradually turned into my own special brand of hell. Don't get me wrong, I did love him, but I think I loved more who I thought he was, rather than who he actually was." She felt a little awkward after that all came spilling out, and looked to her lap. She had to consciously remind herself to keep her hands steady.

"I'm very sorry you had to deal with that." He said kindly, no pity lacing his words, more like a bit of pride. "You seem to have done well for yourself in not taking such behavior any longer, that's a good thing." He winked at her and gestured for her to continue. "Is there anything else?"

"Towards the end of his life he would disappear for days at a time. He'd claim he was working, despite the fact that he normally didn't have any money. I just assumed he was doing drugs or women and at that point I didn't care. I was just happy we had some kind of stability. Knowing he'd never be there. Every time I told him to leave he'd just end up coming back. He didn't really care about much besides himself. He did love Henry, but he acted more like a buddy to him. There were good times, they were mostly when I could get him off drugs and away from his friends long enough that he was finally becoming a little clear headed. I think that, for a while, I saw the good times as hope for what the future could be, not the exception rather than the rule." She felt like she was just dumping all this on this poor guy that she assaulted the day before, but once it was out there, there was no stopping it.

She felt like she had to explain why she wasn't a terrible mother to her son. That she was doint the best she could. Then and now. How do you explain to a total stranger that you loved a man that hurt you so bad in life and then in death? How do you reconcile the two things. If she wrote it all on paper no sense would be made of it all. That's just the way it went for years. She loved who she thought Neal was, the possibility of what he could be. He exploited that, made her life hell, and didn't really seem to care. Then he died, and all that future went down the drain. She mourned for her son, she mourned for her dream, and she mourned for the effort she put into things and the time she now felt was wasted. It was messy and confusing and she could barely make sense of it herself, let alone explain it to someone else.

"I don't feel like i'm explaining this too well." She said anxiously. "He wasn't the anti christ, he wasn't always a bad guy. He just made some really awful decisions. And now all this is coming up and I honestly don't know which way is up right now, but I feel so betrayed. Because even in death things that are tied to him are haunting me. I just don't really want to deal with it. I know I have to, but it's really overwhelming to me right now."

"No, i'm getting a very good idea as to what you're describing. We all have our demons now, dont we?" He said quickly and then added "Of course, I do have to say i'm surprised you came out of that so well. Not many have such strength of spirit. I've seen many fail to come out of such a situation relatively unscathed. So I guess the main question here, is how Gold even comes into play? And why?"

"I wish I had any idea at all. I really do. As I said before, to hear Neal tell it, he didn't even have a father. So as far as I know, he didn't even know who Neal was. I'm willing to meet with him to find all this out, but I didn't want to go without legal counsel. Do you think your office can help me?" She didn't mean for it to come out so desperate, but let's face it. She was.

"A wise decision, and I believe very much that Robin will be able to help. I, unfortunately, am more geared towards DUI's and bankruptcies, or I'd take the case myself. I believe I have enough information for Robin to get a good idea of the situation." He shuffled the papers on his desk around and added a few more notes to the pages in front of him. "I don't really have any questions for you at this point. We just need a broad view of what we have going on here. Is there anything at all you wanted to add?" He cocked his eyebrow and stared straight at her.

"I'msorryikickedyouyesterdaypleasedon'tsueme." came out in a jumbled rush as her face turned beat red, this time from embarrassment rather than anger. She heard his chuckle and lifted her head to look at him again.

"Well, why I thank you for your apology, and must say that I accept. I was asking if there's anything else you'd like to add about the case." He said with a smirk that she simultaneously wished she could slap off and just stare at. Because she wasn't blind and noticed that he was probably the hottest man she'd ever seen up close. He was movie star hot. Scratch that. TV show hot. His face was one you'd want to see week after week. Before she let herself get carried away she responded with a quick "No, I think you've got everything you need."

She really hoped he couldn't tell by her facial expression that she was attracted to him. Awkward. For a bunch of different reasons. Even if he did, it wouldn't matter. The odds she'd see him after this were incredibly small. He spoke again as she was standing up to leave.

"Ah, lass, one more thing. I need a phone number for you."

While she thought it odd they didn't grab it before when she called, she gave it to him anyway and shifted her purse on her should, ready to shake his hand and say her goodbye.

"It was lovely meeting you, Emma. I do hope Robin can take care of this for you quickly." He handed her two business cards. "Robin will surely call you tomorrow or as soon as he's able to discuss when you can meet and finances and the like. Here's his card." He waited a beat before adding "I know you are a busy woman, and have a lot going on at the moment, but I included my card as well. My cell is on it. If you'd like to get together some time, i'd be honored. No pressure, I just couldn't belive the angry blonde angel stormed out of my life before i'd even been given a chance. I wasn't letting that happen again." He kissed her hand and opened the door for her, watching her walk down the corridor and to the lobby.

She didn't really know what to do other than blush and keep her face forward as she left. Only slightly turning her head to the right to say a quick goodbye to Ariel. She power walked to the car and opened the door to quickly get inside. Only then did she flip over his business card to see his elegant script with his phone number and a short note.

I quite fancy you when you're not yelling at me.

Give me a call.

K Jones

How he fit all that so elegantly on a business card she'd never know. But smiled before she caught herself and shifted out of park into drive.

Her life was so fucking weird.

She was definitely calling him though.