Chapter 17
Before I start, I would first like to say, that I do not own the song in this chapter.
Eleana -Oona Chaplin
Preston - John Bradley
Bridgit - Ellie Kendrick
Ayleen - Nell Tiger Free
Hayley - Georgie Henley
Lucan - Art Parkinson
Kaela - Vanessa Lee Chester
Past
After Grim led Snow and Ruby back to Robin's camp to seek refuge for a few more days, they gathered their strengths so that they could leave. They didn't intend to stay too long since Snow and Ruby were worried that the Queen would find them, and Grim made it his mission to go back to Queen Regina's castle by training almost every day. Every time his arrow was released, he imagined it was Rothbart all the time. Grim was going to ensure that he wouldn't miss.
He couldn't help but look at Robin and his merry men as they all laughed at each other's stories with Ruby there but no Snow. He wondered where she was at first until he quickly saw her approaching him. Grim had no idea what she wanted, and to be quite frank, he didn't really care. As long as she didn't get in his way, then he didn't mind.
"You know the target's not going anywhere," Snow told him before gesturing over to the group. "Why don't you join us? It'll take your mind off everything."
"No thanks."
"Grim, I understand you want to save her, but-"
"But what?" Grim challenged her by facing her. "Am I supposed to move on and forget her?"
"You have a right to be frustrated, but you also have to think about what Odette would want you to do." Snow said to calm him down, "I'm sure she would want you to build your strength of course, but she also wouldn't want you to be angry all the time and feel guilty that you couldn't save her. You'll get her out. It's only a matter of time."
Grim hoped that was true. After all that she did for him, she didn't deserve to be trapped in Regina's castle. One day, he was going to set her free. He just hoped that Rothbart didn't torture her. If he did, then Grim would be sure to give him hell if she suffered.
Meanwhile, Odette was in Derek's village with his family after they sought after safe passage across to get away from the Queen's soldiers. Even though it had only been a little less than a week since they arrived, they found themselves at peace with Derek's family. They were interesting to say the least since Derek explained that they were not related at all. All of them were brought together after their parents didn't want them. They became brothers and sisters to each other which warmed Odette's heart to see them acting like a family as she reminisced what it was like when she had her family together.
The eldest was Eleana. She was a modest young woman that soothed her younger siblings with gentle words, yet her eyes carried a subtle strength that not many were aware of. Odette could have sworn that Eleana caught the eyes of many men in the village whenever they went out to do laundry together, but Eleana was much more attentive towards her adoptive family than any potential suitors.
Preston was only a couple years younger than Derek. He was rather large with a moon-shaped face, but he was unbelievably kind. He didn't have much muscle when it came to labor though. That was left to one of their neighbors whenever Eleana paid them with food. Odette would admit though that she found it a bit humorous whenever Preston stammered in front of her with his ears practically turning beet red whenever he needed to tell her something or if he wanted to compliment her. He even looked at the ground and twiddled his fingers like what a child did to avoid something. Odette nearly laughed when she thanked him for his kind remarks as he was stunned before backing away into a pile of logs as he almost tripped.
Out of all of Derek's siblings, the fearless one was Bridgit. She was one of the middle children who often went out hunting and often picked fights with the others boys whenever they messed with her younger siblings or Preston. Odette never forgot when she came back with mud all over her clothes and in her hair when Bridgit admitted that she wrestled a boy into a ditch after he pushed one of the younger girls. However, she didn't mind practical jokes when it came to her adoptive sister, Ayleen.
Ayleen was a pretty girl with exquisite curls that reminded Odette of the sun shining on her. She often helped Eleana and Odette with the housework and tended to act more like an adult than what she was as Bridgit constantly criticized her for it. Ayleen simply ignored it as she reminded Bridgit that if she behaved that way too, then Bridgit would make friends, even though Bridgit told her that she didn't really need any since all of the girls were too prim and proper and liked to play with their dolls.
At least Odette didn't have much to worry about Hayley. She reminded her more of herself when she was younger. Hayley was incredibly lively who often encouraged others with a smile stretching from ear to ear. She tended to get out of hand though with her chores as Eleana and Derek always had to remind her to not slack off and play so that Hayley could finish her work faster. Eventually, it led to Odette and Eleana cleaning up after her mess while Ayleen told her off by telling her to not be so clumsy, leaving Derek to be the one to talk to her in private.
As for the two youngest ones, Lucan and Kaela, Lucan was much smaller than most of the boys in the village, and he was much quieter than the rest of Derek's adoptive family. It made many of the villagers whisper about him, which often led to Bridgit scaring them away with a single look. Kaela, on the other hand, made everyone's expression turn bright with her innocence. She was shy at first when she met Odette as she often averted her gaze whenever Odette caught her, but she eventually opened up and often invited Odette to play with her, causing her to warm her heart whenever she approached her.
While Eleana, Odette, and Ayleen were preparing dinner, Eleana looked over at Odette cutting up the onions for the stew and smiled warmly at her. "For someone who hasn't cooked in a long time, your knife skills have been good."
"Well, after my mother passed away, I was left to take care of the work, so I guess memories of cooking are still in there."
"Well, at least, it won't matter. You'll probably get your own family soon anyway." Ayleen then came over to put some of the chopped up carrots in the pot, gaining Odette and Eleana's attention as she added, "I've already noticed many of the men in the village staring at you just like when they gaze at Eleana."
"Ayleen." Eleana's tone seemed like a warning, which confused Ayleen.
"What? I'm just saying that I would crave the attention to be admired like that."
"I'm sure they were looking more at the diamond." Odette gestured to the diamond on her head.
"I'm still wondering how you got that. Derek wouldn't even tell us."
"It's not our business to know, Ayleen," Eleana reminded her.
Odette knew that Ayleen meant well, but it was a pity how naive she was by filling her head with such fantasies such as marrying a nobleman and be in a happy marriage as she would have a family of her own with lovely gowns and precious jewels. Odette knew though that such material goods meant nothing if the person giving them had no good intentions. Her father, for instance, gave her many gifts to tempt to her to return home with him. Rothbart was no different. However, Odette didn't want to tell anyone about that. They didn't need to know about Rothbart's cruelty or Odette's parentage. Then again, Eleana already saw the bruises on Odette's body when she first arrived at the village when Odette came out of her bath. Odette was just thankful that she didn't question it as she offered her a sweet smile and handed her a nightgown to sleep in.
When Bridgit came through the door carrying a couple of rabbits tied together, she set them on the counter and her bow on the table, annoying Ayleen. "Do you have to put your bow on the table? And, don't just slam the rabbits down."
"Who cares where my bow is? And, I didn't slam them. Just focus on your cooking since I caught the food."
"Alright. Let's get to work." Eleana stepped in before Ayleen could retort back, causing Odette to smile a bit since it was refreshing to be a part of a family as it reminded her whenever her father had to calm Odette and Baelfire down when they fought.
Bridgit wasted no time cutting into the meat to take off its skin as Odette watched with somewhat fascination since she could never think about skinning an animal even if it was dead. That was why her father and her mother often did it. She remembered though when her mother tried teaching her, but Odette pleaded that she didn't want to do it, so her father reassured her that she didn't have to if she didn't want to as he told her to go play. Odette did hear her mother complain to her father to stop spoiling their children as she went out the door. When it came to Odette, her father did what he could to see that sweet, innocent face smile all the time even if her mother disagreed with him by wanting to be a little strict with her so that she was strong when she grew up.
Not long after, Hayley and Kaela came inside, and Kaela was carrying some wildflowers as she went over to Odette and held them out for her as she asked in an angelic voice with a bright smile on her face. "Can we use these for the table?"
"We thought we might get some new flowers since the other ones were losing their petals," Hayley chimed in.
Odette set her knife to the side to kneel to Kaela's level as she gladly accepted the flowers and smelled their nice fragrance before smiling warmly at her. "They're lovely."
When Kaela thanked her for her compliment, Odette smiled warmly and went over to cut half of the stems so that they could fit inside the vase. "How much longer does it take for them to get the firewood?" Ayleen asked.
"Derek, Preston, and Lucan should be back soon," Eleana reassured them.
"Derek did tell us that they were almost done," Hayley confirmed.
"Well, we'll just have to wait then."
Odette helped Ayleen carry the bowls and the spoons over to the table. Bridgit wasted no time sitting down before putting her feet up, so Eleana had to tell her to put them down. Hayley and Kaela went over to sit next to each other along with Ayleen, who sat across from the girls. Eleana encouraged Odette to sit too, but Odette wanted to know if she needed anymore help. When Eleana told her that everything was done, Odette sat by Kaela's side who smiled up at her, so she smiled back.
Not long after, Derek, Preston, and Lucan carried firewood over to the fireplace. "We got enough right?" Preston asked.
"We got plenty," Derek told him before putting the firewood inside.
Derek then knelt down with flint and steel to start the fire as sparks shot out and inflamed the wood. He then helped Eleana lift the pot so that the stew was hovering over the fire for it to cook as Lucan and Preston sat at the table, waiting for them. It was even nice to hear everyone how their days went even though not much happened. Everyone was just trying to finish their chores, and only Hayley and Bridgit were causing trouble in the village, especially Bridgit by picking fights with the boys, while Hayley accidentally cut her finger with a knife when she insisted that she wanted to help as she pleaded to Odette with the cloth wrapped around her finger as proof of her injury.
By the time the pot boiled, Eleana and Derek filled everyone's bowls before taking their seats across from each other. Odette then took Derek and Kaela's hands since they were right next to her as everyone did the same to the person next to them. They all bowed their heads while Derek offered his grace for the meal, allowing everyone to dig in.
Hayley spilled a few drops on her dress while Bridgit didn't seem to care how she scarfed down the bread when she dipped it in the soup after Eleana offered her a piece. Odette found Kaela to be adorable when she blew onto her spoon before carefully putting the soup into her mouth. Eleana and Ayleen were much more lady-like with how they ate their soup even though Ayleen seemed cautious not to forget her manners. As for the boys, Derek ate at a steady pace before asking Odette how the rabbit stew was, to which she said was great. Lucan, on the other hand, was looking down at his food the whole time, avoiding any eye contact, and Preston spared a few glances at Odette before turning away whenever she caught him, causing a small smile to grace her lips.
When they finished, Odette helped Ayleen collect the bowls and spoons to put in the wooden basin while Eleana washed them. Derek and Preston helped lifting the pot so that Eleana could wash it too since the stew was all gone after everyone wanted a second serving. Everyone else sat by the fire, laughing and telling stories. Odette didn't mind sitting on the ground with them as she shared a few smiles and laughter too, especially when it came to Bridgit's stories since her tales seemed unbelievable when she took the stool.
Eleana was the last to join in as she sat next to Odette, who smiled at her. "Alright. Anyone want to start?" Eleana asked.
Odette thought it was great how Derek and his adoptive family had a tradition that after they ate, one of the members sat on the stool and either told stories or sang a song. Most of them often told stories since they were too embarrassed to sing. Odette, however, never had the chance to take the seat since she was rather nervous. She was just thankful that none of them ever pushed her to do it.
First, came Preston who sang a nice song. Odette could tell how nervous he was by looking around the room, but he eventually pulled through. Then came Hayley with her story about a kind traveler who gave away all of his possessions to people who needed them most until he came across demons who said that they were hungry, so they ate him and left his head on the ground before giving him a plain strip of paper as they thanked him, but the man couldn't see the gift since the demons ate his eyes, yet he was thankful since he received a gift for the first time. Lucan and Kaela were a bit uncomfortable by Hayley's story, while Odette thought it was sad. Derek was next, and he told a story about a king who was bored, so he asked everyone in the kingdom that if they were the best liar, then they were gifted a golden apple. All tried but failed until an old peddler came in and told the king that he came to collect the king's pot of gold. Realizing that the king had no choice but to give up his golden apple as he deemed the peddler the best liar in the whole kingdom.
"Anyone else want to have a go?" Bridgit asked.
Kaela then looked over at Odette and asked in her sweet voice, "Won't you sing for us?"
Odette was a little taken aback how Kaela spoke up, but Derek intervened, "You don't have to if you don't want to, Odette."
"What's there to be embarrassed about? We've all done it," Ayleen pointed out.
"Hush, Ayleen," Eleana warned.
"What? It's the truth."
Hayley then agreed with her adoptive sister, "But, Ayleen's right. I've even heard Odette's voice when she was plucking berries. It sounds just like a nightingale."
"I-I would like to hear it too," Preston spoke up, causing everyone to turn to him before he made eye contact with Odette and turned away. "I mean...unless you don't want to."
"I want to hear it too," Lucan finally admitted.
"Well, it's her decision," Bridgit defended.
Odette looked at Derek and his adoptive family and thought that it would be alright. The only reason why it was fine before at the Queen's castle was because Sinbad challenged her. Going up on that stool though made her a part of their family. A part of her was scared because she didn't know if that would be true, but after all they had done and how they treated her, Odette thought it was the least she could do. She took in a small breath and opened her mouth to sing.
I'd a-pluck a fair rose for my love
I'd a-pluck a red rose blowin'
Love's in my heart, I'm tryin' so to prove
What you heart's knowin'
I'd a-pluck a finger on a thorn
I'd a-pluck a finger bleedin'
Red is my heart, wounded and forlorn
And your heart needin'
I'd a-hold a finger to my tongue
I'd a-hold a finger waitin'
My heart is sore, until it's joined in song
With your heart matin'
My heart is sore, until it joins in song
With your heart matin'
When she finished, everyone clapped and commented on her singing. They told her how beautiful it was. If Odette was being honest though, she thought about Grim. She wanted him to be here with her, but she knew it was impossible since he was living his life now that he had freedom back. That song was the pain wrapped around her heart as she hoped that he found his happiness.
"Alright. It's time to go to bed, everyone," Derek said as he picked up Kaela when she started rubbing her eyes.
They all wished each other well and to have pleasant dreams as they changed and got ready to bed. Kaela, Hayley, and Odette were all huddled up with each other in the straw bed. Ayleen and Eleana slept across from them in the other straw bed. Bridgit and Lucan used hammocks, and Preston and Derek slept on the floor with pillows and blankets that Eleana gave them. While Odette drifted off to sleep, she thought about Grim and hoped that he was enjoying his freedom.
Present
After conducting a meet-up with Gold and Emma back at the station at night, Graham left his apartment and headed to Main Street. No one was there of course, which was expected. All of the stores were closed at this time except for the bars. However, Graham stopped when he noticed two familiar faces, so he went over to them by making himself known to them.
"Nora. Ruby." They finally turned to him, and Nora smiled right away when she saw her boyfriend approaching them. "Another girl's night?"
"Girl's gotta have some fun around here," Ruby chimed in.
Nora shook her head at Ruby and smiled cheekily at her before turning back to Graham. "You wanna come with us?"
"No. It's okay. I need to meet with Emma and Gold at the station."
"Mr. Gold?"
Graham already felt guilty since he hasn't told her how much had happened, and both Nora and Ruby were a little taken aback when he admitted, "He's Mary Margaret's attorney. It was probably for the best since he has influence over town."
"Smart, I guess," Ruby commented even though her tone didn't seem genuine, but it was expected since Gold wasn't one of her favorite people in Storybrooke.
When Graham wished them to have a great girl's night, he walked away, but Nora stopped him by excusing herself from Ruby to catch up with him and stopped him. "Is everything okay?"
He wanted to tell her, but the problem was that he wasn't sure how she would react if he did since he hadn't told her about the relevance of the murder weapon. Both him and Emma knew that Amir was involved in this, but they didn't have legitimate proof that could be presented in. court of law. However, Graham wanted to ensure Nora's safety since if his speculation was true that Amir killed both Kathryn and Derek, then he wanted Nora to be careful with Ruby.
"Where are you going with Ruby?"
She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as she asked, "The Moonlight Mirage, why?"
His anxiety heightened as he wished that she didn't go there. "I just want you to be careful."
Nora seemed to have an idea what he was referring to by looking away and giving him a solemn expression. "If it's Amir, then you don't have to worry about me. I can take care of myself."
Before she had a chance to turn away, he stopped her. "This is serious, Nora. Emma and I may have found a link that connects him to Kathryn and Derek's murders."
"What?"
"The murder weapon. It was used on both of them. Emma and I are sure of it." Graham looked over at Ruby and saw how she was confused since she couldn't hear everything that was going on, so he turned back to Nora. "We're so close to this case, but I don't want you to be alone with him. Stay close to Ruby. Don't let him suspect anything."
Nora was taken aback by this announcement, but she swallowed the small lump in her throat and nodded. "We won't stay long."
Graham then kissed her and nodded over to Ruby to look after her before he went on his way to the station. He couldn't help but look back to see her worried expression. Graham didn't want to tell her, but he felt like he had no choice. She needed to be on guard and close to Ruby so that Amir wouldn't try anything on her. If Graham and Emma were close to cracking the case, then they needed to make their move and close in on Khan before he sets his sights on Nora to get to Graham.
When Graham met Emma and Gold outside the station, he went inside and saw Emma's son, Henry sitting on a chair, reading his storybook. His mother asked what she was doing here, to which he told her that he came to congratulate her, confusing her, so he clarified that it was her genius plan, whatever it was. Graham then followed Gold to Mary Margaret's office, only for both of them to freeze when they saw that her cell was empty.
"Emma, you have to see this," Graham called out, causing Emma and Henry to join them, and Henry had the same surprised look on her face as Graham. "She's gone."
Right away, she already accused her son, but he told her that he didn't do anything since Mary Margaret was gone before he came here. "Her arraignment's tomorrow. If she's not there..."
"She's a fugitive," Emma pointed out, cutting Mr. Gold off. " Doesn't matter if she's convicted for Kathryn or not, she's screwed."
"We'll find her," Graham reassured her.
"We better before someone notices that she's missing."
"Oh, you mean Regina?" Gold asked.
"The arraignment's at 8:00 A.M. I'm sure she'll be here bright and early to celebrate her victory."
"Well, you have until 8:00 A.M. then."
When Henry asked how he could help, Emma told him to go home. Despite Henry's persistence, Emma warned him not to argue with him since this was now serious. With Mary Margaret's escape, it made her look even more guilty. Emma and Graham were so close to catching Amir. They needed Mary Margaret to come back and hold out longer so that they could prove her innocence. Gold even tried warning Emma that she may lose her job if she was caught helping Mary Margaret, but Graham actually admired her bravery for saying that she was willing to risk it rather than losing a friend.
Past
Derek was chopping wood with Preston while Lucan was up on the tree staring out in the open. "You think Odette will stay with us?" Preston asked.
Derek smirked at him since he knew why his adoptive brother questioned him about Odette. "Taking a liking to her, have you?"
In an instant, his face flushed, and he stammered, "N-No. I-I-I just think sh-she would want to stay given how...long she's been here."
As nice as it sounded for her to stay given how much she'd been through, Derek knew that she preferred to be with Grim. He never forgot to look on her face whenever she saw him. Odette made it too obvious. It was a miracle how Grim couldn't tell. Then again, he didn't mind having her around. In fact, Derek could tell that Grim enjoyed her company even if he didn't have a heart to convey his emotions towards her. However, Odette must have been in love with him, because she was willing to sacrifice her freedom for his as she told Derek that she preferred if she was away from Grim since she was sure that Rothbart, Sinbad, and her father would come after her. As much as Derek would want her to stay with his family so that she could be around people who would love and accept her, he knew that she would eventually leave. It was only a matter of time.
"Derek. Preston," Lucan called out.
"What is it?" Preston asked.
"There are soldiers heading toward the village."
That alarmed Derek as he shouted back, "Soldiers?"
"Yeah. There's so many!" Derek wished that he could see, but he had a horrible suspicion that he knew who was leading the soldiers to the village. "Lucan, climb down."
"What?"
"Climb down!"
Preston then stepped in by taking Derek's shoulder. "What's going on?"
"We need to hurry. They're after Odette and me."
Preston then shouted back at Lucan to start climbing down, and he did. Lucan was a little slow at first because he was careful not to trip and plummet to the ground. When Lucan made it, Derek told them to hurry as he rushed back home with the bells sounding off in the village, alarming everyone that the soldiers were coming.
By the time he made it back home, Odette listened intently to the bells and turned to Derek when he approached her. "What's going on?"
"They're coming, Odette."
Her face paled, already knowing what they meant, but some of the younger children didn't know like Hayley for example as she asked, "Who?"
"The soldiers," Eleana answered.
Derek then grabbed Odette and took her inside to hide her under the floorboards after lifting the rug off one section and lifted the door. He then helped her inside and quickly put the rug over it. Derek prepared it in advance in case the soldiers ever came to the village. This way, Odette could hide out while the soldiers passed through, and Derek could stay out and defend his family if the soldiers ever tried anything. He wasn't afraid to face them.
"Derek, they're here!" Eleana called out.
He rushed outside and stayed by his family's side as the soldiers approached their home, and sure enough, there was Sinbad riding on a horse. As soon as he noticed Derek, Sinbad smirked at him. He pulled the reins on his horse and climbed down with ease. Kayla, Ayleen, and Lucan stayed close with Eleana, Preston avoided Sinbad's frightening eye contact, Hayley had a terrified expression on her face, and Bridgit stared him down.
"Isn't this a splendid reunion, Derek?" Sinbad somewhat mocked before noticing the sword at Derek's hip. "You shouldn't be carrying that since you're no longer a soldier for the Queen. Also, there seems to be a key person missing. Where's Nora?"
Derek was going to be in trouble no matter what since it was treason for what he did, but he was not going to let Odette go down with him given everything she had been through. "She left sometime ago."
"You expect me to believe that?" Sinbad scoffed before nodding over to Derek's house. "Why don't I take a look then?"
Derek grew more anxious with every step Sinbad took towards the house, but he couldn't stop him with many soldiers here. His family could get hurt. Also, Odette was safe and hidden as Sinbad looked around for her only to find her nowhere inside the small house. However, Sinbad seemed skeptical as he looked around carefully.
When Sinbad walked closer to the rug, Derek got more alarmed as he finally stepped forward so that he couldn't get nearer to it. "I told you. She's not here!"
As soon as Derek grabbed Sinbad's shoulder, Sinbad spun around and unsheathed his dagger, pressing it against his neck, and Derek heard his younger siblings gasp while Bridgit shouted to let him go, and Hayley shouted no. Eleana turned Lucan and Kaela away so that they wouldn't see Sinbad's blade digging deeper into Derek's neck as he felt his blood tricking down his neck.
"It's treason for what you did by helping her escape. You should've minded your own business," Sinbad warned with a malicious grin.
Derek didn't want Preston to interfere, but he did, "Wait, please. We can settle this."
"Preston, no!"
Derek's warning was too late as two soldiers rushed behind Preston and pinned him to the ground with his face scrunched against the wood near the rug, moving it a bit, and Sinbad looked for a moment to smirk at Preston, but his eyes soon widened when he noticed the panel. "Hold him."
With Sinbad's command, one of the soldiers rushed forward to grab Derek's hands so that he wouldn't move. Derek struggled at first, but it was useless. He just wasn't strong enough. Now, he had to stand there and watched helplessly as Sinbad knelt down to remove the rug and opened the door, revealing a scared Odette who clutched onto her swan necklace while Sinbad smirked wickedly at her. He then ordered his soldiers to arrest every member of Derek's family for harboring fugitives as they hauled them into a carriage after chaining their hands together before he grabbed Odette and tied her hands using rope and lifted her out, carrying her on his shoulder as she struggled to break free.
Derek, however, broke free from the soldier before they chained him, and he unsheathed his sword, pointing it at Sinbad, amusing him. "You think it's wise what you're doing?" Sinbad asked.
"I told you once before. I fight for my myself and for my family. I'm not letting you take them."
When the soldiers approached Derek, Sinbad raised a hand, stopping them. He then set Odette down and held her before nodding over to a soldier so that he could take her as Sinbad drew his sword and slowly strode over to Derek with a toothy grin. In an instant, Derek knocked his sword away from his neck when Sinbad raised his sword at him.
Their swords clashed and clanged as they struggled to overcome their opponent with their strength. Sinbad was much swifter with his movements though that Derek could hardly keep up. He even cut Derek a few times and knocked him to the ground while his adoptive family and Odette watched helplessly. Derek, however, refused to give up. They continued to fight and going around each other with Derek blocking at the last minute every time Sinbad tried to strike him down. Derek even tried bringing his sword down on him only for Sinbad to duck down and sweep his legs, causing Derek to fall. He then rolled out of the way when Sinbad was about to deliver a killer blow.
As soon as Derek stood back up, he stared at his opponent and held onto his sword. They faced each other and stared at one another. Sinbad was clearly playing him. He always did enjoy toying with his victims before he went in for the kill. However, Sinbad's grin soon faded when one of his soldiers stepped in and stabbed Derek as he cried out and fell to the ground.
Derek helplessly clutched onto his wound, and Sinbad glared daggers at the soldiers who hurt Derek while Derek's family and Odette cried out. They begged for Derek to get back up, but he could barely move. Sinbad then twirled his sword before going over to Derek and grimaced at his state. Derek thought it was the end for him as Sinbad would finish him off, but he was practically bleeding out. Instead though, Sinbad used the hilt of his sword to knock out the soldier who stabbed Derek. He must have not liked how the soldier stepped in.
"Let's move out. We have what we came for," Sinbad ordered as he climbed back on his horse, while the soldier threw Odette inside the carriage with Derek's family inside.
Derek tilted his head and watched them leave while his eyes grew heavy from the amount of blood he was losing. He wanted to go after them, but there was no possible way he could take them all on especially with his injury. He certainly didn't want to die like this. However, he had no strength to carry on as he slowly drifted off while his blood continued to seep out.
Present
Nora and Ruby were at The Moonlight Mirage, and the crowd was rowdy as ever. Then again, it wasn't really surprising since they were always like that. It was a popular bar after all-bigger than The Rabbit Hole, but after what Graham told her though, Nora felt uneasy every time she glanced at Amir, who was speaking to his employees. Amir may have blackmailed many women to get information out of men by making them have sex with them, but could Amir really be capable of murder? She certainly didn't want to find out.
"Hey, you okay?" Ruby asked. "Has Amir been bothering you lately."
"Thankfully, no, but I still feel uneasy around him."
"Don't blame you. What girl wouldn't be?"
Nora felt the need to tell Ruby, because if Amir really was dangerous, then Ruby should know. "It's not just that. Graham told me something about him." Ruby was confused as Nora looked back to make sure that Amir wasn't watching them before Nora whispered to make sure that no one else heard. "He thinks that Amir killed Kathryn and Derek."
"Wait, what?"
"I know."
"But, why would he do that? It doesn't really make much sense."
"I have no idea, but Graham and Emma want to find out."
"Well, one things for sure. There's no way Mary Margaret killed Kathryn."
Nora shook her head, agreeing with Ruby, "I don't think so either."
She then looked back at Amir and saw him heading to the backroom. Now that Nora didn't trust Amir, she needed to be wary of him. He still hadn't asked her to do anything for him yet by taking a man to the back room so that he could record her having sex with them to her relief. However, she knew it was only a matter of time before he approached her. For now, she was going to keep her claws behind her back and keep a watchful eye on him.
Meanwhile, as Emma drove in her yellow bug with Graham in the passenger seat, they were talking about finding Mary Margaret. They both were determined to find her since they were so close to cracking the case. As they continued going doing the road though, Emma was a little distracted talking to Graham that she didn't notice a man on the road, so Graham warned her, "Emma, look out!"
She pressed on the brakes hard as the man dodged out of the way. Emma and Graham got out of the car to check on the man who slowly stood back up. Emma apologized right away and asked if the man was okay. He told them that he was fine and introduced himself as Jefferson.
"So, Sheriff, Deputy, what brings you out here in the middle of the night?" Jefferson asked.
They couldn't risk telling anyone about Mary Margaret's escape, so Graham was quick on his feet by lying, "We received a call about a lost dog. We're out here looking for it. Not a big issue though."
"Well, I hope you find what you're looking for."
When Jefferson tried walking away, they both noticed the limp as Emma pointed out, "Oh, youarehurt!"
"No, I just twisted my ankle, I think. I live just a mile down the road, I'll make it okay."
"No, let us drive you back. We insist."
Graham thought it wouldn't hurt since the man was injured, and if his house was a mile ahead, then he thought it would be alright, especially since Graham also pitied the man for having to walk with a limp all the way back home. "Yeah, it'll be alright. Come on. We'll take you back. Just tell us where to go."
Jefferson thanked them both for their kindness before hopping inside the backseat as he told them where to go. Sure enough, about a mile down the road, they found his home as he thanked them again and exited the vehicle. Emma seemed astounded by how big his house was. It looked more like a mansion to Graham though. Whoever this man was must have been rich.
"Wow, this is your house? It looks more like a hotel! You must have a huge family," Emma said to Jefferson.
"Nope. It's just me."
When they saw him limping up the stars, Emma went over to him to help him. It wasn't as if Graham didn't want to help, but he also didn't want to waste time to find Mary Margaret before she escapes. The quicker they helped this man though, the sooner they could leave, so Graham went over to grab Jefferson's keys as Emma took his arm and wrapped it around her shoulders to help him up the stairs. Jefferson then told him which key it was, so Graham used it to open the front door as they made their way inside.
Graham then set the keys on the counter and turned to Jefferson when he made his way inside with Emma. "Alright. Well, we're glad you're okay, but we need to get going."
Before they had a chance to leave, Jefferson stopped them. "Wait, please. Why don't I make you some tea? I thought you guys might want to warm up for your search since it's cold out there."
Emma shook her head, telling him, "That is kind of you, but I think we should get back to it."
"I know. That's why I have a map to help you. I'm a bit of an amateur cartographer. Mapping the area is a hobby. Maybe it will help you track down the dog." Before they had a chance to decline his offer, "Please, I should find some way to pay you back."
Emma looked over at Graham, and Graham knew that she thought it would be a good idea. He had to admit that it would be nice to have a map showing the entire area so that they could get a head start to catch up to Mary Margaret by getting some sort of idea of where she would go. Eventually, they agreed, so Jefferson smiled and went to go get the map for them as he unrolled it on the table for them to look. He then went into the kitchen and told them that if they needed anything, then they should ask him.
Emma and Graham stared at the map and pointed out places where Mary Margaret could be heading towards before Jefferson came back with a tray of tea as he handed them their drinks. "Is it good?" he asked them after they took their sips.
"Yeah, thanks," Emma told him.
"Alright. Route 6 runs the boundary of the forest, so..." As Graham pointed out the map, he felt a little lightheaded, so he took another sip of his tea before continuing, "So if we just follow that we should... be able to..."
"Something wrong?" Jefferson asked when he noticed both Graham and Emma's state. He even caught Emma when she nearly stumbled. "Oh. Let me help you."
He led Emma over to the couch to set her down, while Graham held onto the table and felt even more dizzy, but he soon looked over when he heard Emma say, "Your limp..."
Graham noticed Jefferson smirking and that he was walking just fine. "Oh. That. I guess you caught me."
Graham then tried to grab his gun to defend himself and to protect Emma, but Jefferson beat him to it as he grabbed it from him right at the moment when Graham pulled it out of his holster and smacked him with it, knocking him to the ground.
Past
Sinbad didn't particularly care to bring in Derek's adoptive family with him back to the Queen's castle, but Rothbart ordered him that if Odette was being protected by anyone, then they were to be brought to him. He knew that things would not end well for that family. Rothbart was the not the type to show mercy to anyone, including women and children. If they harbored Odette, then Rothbart viewed them as those who stood in his way, so Sinbad ordered the soldiers to lock them in the dungeons without the Queen noticing as he grabbed Odette's arm and led her back to her room where Rothbart was waiting.
She didn't even bother glancing at Rothbart to see how his smirk didn't extend to his piercing gaze. Her eyes were casted to the floor, refusing to look at him. All Sinbad did was watch the display unfold as Rothbart slowly made his way over to her. Sinbad could tell though how furious Rothbart was since she was the only one who got the best of the sorcerer. After all, Rothbart was always three steps ahead of her by knowing exactly what she was doing as it was part of Rothbart's plan for her to get close to Grim. However, he certainly wasn't expecting for her to run away. It was a miracle to Sinbad how composed Rothbart was.
"Do you have any idea how worried I was?" Sinbad knew that Rothbart was lying though since he didn't particularly care what happened to Odette. "Look at me when I'm speaking to you." Not moving an inch made Rothbart even more frustrated as he practically seethed and scoffed, "You'd rather look at me boots? Then take a look!"
His gloved hand burned into a burnt orange, and Nora gasped and grunted in pain as he brought his arm down in an instant, causing her to fall to her knees. She cried out in pain before clenching her teeth. All Sinbad did was watch. He couldn't stop it since it was unwise to go against a sorcerer if he couldn't wield magic. It was best not to get involved.
"Now, look me in the eye." After hearing his chilling tone, Odette finally looked at him only to find so much hate yet sorrow in her eyes. "There now. Isn't that better? You need to know your place after all the trouble you caused me."
Sinbad was astounded at this woman before him by slowly getting back on her feet to tell him with such disdain, "I can do whatever I want. You don't own me, Rothbart."
"But, you see. I do. You seem to be forgetting that if it weren't for me, you would have stayed at that lake for the rest of your life. If you don't behave, I'll send you back there."
"You think I believe you will. You needmeto get to my father. You want him dead after all, so you want to use me to get to him." Sinbad was impressed how quickly she figured out. "My father was right after all. People like you will just others to get what you want."
"You're right, I do, but you see, why would I waste my time killing you when attacking your heart would be much more effective to him," Rothbart said, smirking wickedly, but Odette was confused what he meant so he added, "That family who took you in. I have no problem torturing each and every single one of them to get you to behave."
Sinbad already knew what Rothbart was planning to do, but it clearly was shocking to Odette as she already pleaded, "No. No, please! I was the one who ran away."
"Yes, but they took you into their home. I need to think of a suitable punishment for them so that you would learn your lesson."
"Rothbart, please. You can do whatever you want to me, but please, set them free."
Hearing her voice break and tears slowly rushing down her face almost made Sinbad pity her since he knew how hopeless it was to reason to Rothbart as his grin grew. "You're right. I'll set them free as long as you receive your punishment."
He then used his magic to toss her onto the bed and pinned her there as she laid flat on her stomach. Odette didn't struggle, probably because she wanted Rothbart to keep his promise to set Derek's family free after helping her. She was willing to do whatever it took to save them even if it meant she would be hurt in the process. It made Sinbad admire her even more as the soldiers took her shoes off and flogged her feet as she cried out in pain with every lash. Blood streaked from her feet and dripped to the floor as the soldier didn't stop while Odette continued crying out, so Rothbart made sure there was an enchantment on the door to ensure that no one heard her screams, especially the Queen.
After about the twenty-fifth lash, her bare feet were a complete bloody mess, and Odette was already passed out. There was no doubt in Sinbad's mind that she would be left with a hell loud of scars. Her cheeks were still wet from all of the crying she released, and Sinbad didn't know what to make of it at first. When Sinbad first heard about Rothbart's mission to take down The Dark One, he wondered what was so special about Odette. After finding out who she was, it was obvious that Rothbart was using her to torture Rumplestiltskin. However, Rothbart's brutality seemed a bit much since the poor girl was going to die soon anyway after wearing the diamond as it still shined brightly on her head.
"Was that really necessary?" Rothbart glared at Sinbad for speaking up as Sinbad pointed out, "I thought you wanted to wait until Grim moved on with someone else so that she would be killed by the ROC diamond. If you have a means to kill her, then why go through this length? Just kill her and be done with it instead of torturing yourself by doing this."
Sinbad didn't know many men who could intimidate him so easily, but Rothbart was certainly one of them as his eyes held no compassion for Odette when he glanced at her for a split second and turned to Sinbad with so much hate in his eyes. "Who says I just want to kill her?I want to break her first."
His intention alerted Sinbad since he never thought that Rothbart would go through this length. He had seen Rothbart cruel towards others before, but whenever the sorcerer turned back to Odette, Sinbad saw how much he hated Odette, and he couldn't understand why when she clearly didn't do anything to him. Sinbad knew Rothbart couldn't stand Rumplestiltskin as asking Sinbad about Rumplestiltskin's weakness-hence the dagger. However, the one thing Sinbad could never figure out was why Rothbart hated The Dark One so much that he was willing to go through such lengths to kidnap The Dark One's only daughter and torture the poor girl. Obviously, Rumplestiltskin did something to him, but Sinbad had no idea what.
Present
When Emma wakes up, she found herself tied up on the couch. Noticing her teacup on the floor, she covered it with a pillow and stomped on it, breaking it. She then used a shard to cut the tape around her wrists and freed herself. She went out into the hallway and checked the windows, finding them sealed, and noticed Jefferson's telescope. Emma looked through it, finding it was pointed at the Sheriff's Station. She used the telescope to look at the holding cell, which was still empty. When Emma heard a strange scraping sound, she quietly went over to a door that was slightly ajar. In the room was Jefferson, sharpening a large pair of scissors.
His cellphone soon rang, so he picked it up. "Yeah?" He paused for a moment before saying in a somewhat bored tone, "I told you already. She's in the basement. Just get her out and deal with it like what was planned."
After he hung up, Emma needed to find Graham, so she carefully moved away and continued down the hall to find Graham. The floorboard creaked when she took a step, and Emma knew she needed to hurry. She quickly went into one of the rooms to hide since she was worried that Jefferson heard her only to find Graham tied up to a chair with a gag over his mouth, shocking Emma.
Emma immediately went over to him to help him as she removed his gag and went to undo the bindings on his chair. "Are you okay?" she asked with concern.
"I'll be fine. Let's just get out of here before that psycho comes back." As soon as she undid the last knot, Graham grunted and stood, rubbing the burn marks he got from the rope, but his eyes widened, when he looked out the window. "Emma."
She went over to the window and saw Mary Margaret unconscious and being carried out of the house by someone. They couldn't make out who it was though from the angle they were in. Jefferson must have found Mary Margaret in the woods and maybe contacted someone by telling them Emma and Graham were at his house. They then saw the person putting Mary Margaret in the backseat of a truck before driving off.
"We gotta go," Emma said.
Before they had a chance to leave though, they turned around and saw Jefferson staring at them with a smirk and Graham's gun in his hand as he pointed it at them and addressed to Emma, "Now, how did you get out?"
She knew she needed to find a way to scare him to let them go, so threatened him, "I've already called for backup, they'll be here any second."
Without missing a beat, Jefferson immediately told her, "You haven't called anybody...because you don't want anyone to know about your friend who's a fugitive, which is why you're both out at night to look for her. You don't want anybody to know you're here, which means nobody does."
"But she was here...with you." Emma knew that phone call he made wasn't a coincidence. "You kept her in the basement and waited for someone to get her. Where are they taking her?"
"You should be more worried about yourselves in this situation right now," he reminded them as he showed off the gun before pointing it back to Emma. "Now, tie him back up."
Knowing that they had no other choice, Emma tied Graham and put the gag over his mouth before whispering to him that everything was going to be okay as she followed Jefferson out the door, while Graham tried muffling out to not hurt her before Jefferson slammed the door.
Past
When Odette slowly opened her eyes, she saw how dark her room was. She looked at the window and saw that it was night. Odette couldn't believe how long she slept, but then again, the pain was too unbearable that she passed out from the shock. She even tried moving her leg, but her feet were still aching when they brushed against the covers. It wasn't until when she noticed how ugly the scars on her feet were that her tears slowly streaked down her face as she wept.
No one had ever treated her this way before-not even her father. He may have cursed her, but he never abused her physically. Rothbart was absolutely a cold and cruel man. She needed to find a way out of here, but the only reason how she escaped was because of Derek. Now, Derek was gone. It meant that she needed to figure it out on her own. She was now alone in this world, and she didn't know what to do.
When her door opened, she wiped her tears away quickly and sniffled some of her sobs back as Sinbad made his way inside. "Rothbart wants me to take you to him."
She knew it was better to go along with whatever Rothbart wanted for now so that she wouldn't be tortured anymore even though it was highly unlikely. At least for now, if she obediently did as she was told, then he may go easy on her, or she hoped so. It was going to be a little difficult walking though since the minute she put on her shoes, she felt a sharp pain shoot through her core, and all Sinbad did was watch as she slowly followed him with every painful step she took.
There were times where she needed to stop since the pain was unbearable. It was just too much, but she didn't want any of them to see her in such a pitiful state by seeing her cry. That was why she gathered her courage and continued following Sinbad as he stopped for her every time she stopped.
As soon as they made it outside, it was pitch black when they headed towards the lake, and Rothbart stood there with a wicked smirk, signaling to Odette that he was up to no good. "Evening, Odette. I trust you slept well."
It took her a moment to admit in a whisper with her voice coming out a bit hoarse, "No."
"Shame, but then again, I think seeing those friends of yours will help ease your pain."
Odette was confused as she looked at him, knowing that he had something up his sleeve, and when he turned towards the lake, she did too only to freeze and her eyes widened when she saw every single member of Derek's adoptive family's heads mounted on pikes. "No, please! No!"
Her crying out and turning away wouldn't matter since the soldiers grabbed her arms and spun her around to force her to turn back, but Odette couldn't bear to see their severed heads as Rothbart spoke, "So, this is the family that you in? What a tragedy indeed."
"You promised to set them free," Odette wept.
His tone was humorous to him as he told her, "But I did.I freed their wretched heads from their miserable shoulders."
It was cruel-absolutely cruel. Now she knew exactly what Derek meant by seeing who Rothbart truly was. Abusing her was already enough, but mentally torturing her by twisting his words to make himself sound right was too much for her. She never knew anyone like this before. And, for Rothbart to have cold smile by speaking about children's deaths as young as six years old like Kaela was absolutely inhumane to her. They didn't deserve such treatment.
Odette fell to her knees and cried even more for their deaths, but she soon found her head snapping at their heads when Rothbart grabbed a fistful of her hair, forcing her to look at them as she yelped and continued to cry when he told her off, "Do you not understand how you inflicted harm on these people? And, for what? A selfish dream for freedom?They are punished through you! You couldn't even bother to escape and survive on your own. They would have lived a long life if you didn't involve them. You have no will! You aren't even a hero;you are a coward."
When he let her go, her eyes were red and puffy from all the crying she let out, and she brought her head down as she continued to weep for her dead friends. She couldn't believe that Rothbart would ever do something like this. It was absolutely heartbreaking. He truly broke her for the soldiers and Sinbad to witness while Rothbart continued to smirk down at her.
Present
Graham struggled to break free from his chair. He needed to find a way out to help Emma and get Mary Margaret. The longer they were staying here, the more they were running out of time. He looked around to see if anything could help him, but there was nothing. He couldn't even move with his legs tied to the chair. It was hopeless.
Not long after though, Emma came through the door and rushed to help Graham. "It's okay. We're getting out of here."
When Emma removed the gag off his mouth, she went to undo the knots, but Graham looked up to see Jefferson at the door, so he warned her, "Emma, look out!"
Jefferson charged at Emma, knocking them all to the ground. Graham struggled out of the ropes, but Emma made them loose enough for Graham to get out while Jefferson and Emma wrestled to the ground. She desperately tried reaching for Graham's gun only for her to be pulled back and threw her across the room when he grabbed her hair and stood up with her, giving him an opportunity to grab the gun and point it at her.
He then took a hat off the ground and placed it on his head as he grinned from ear to ear like he was a madman before saying, "Off with his head."
Graham then discreetly stole one of the croquet mallets from the wall and struck Jefferson in the back with it before kicking him towards the window as he crashed through it and fell to the ground. Emma and Graham rushed towards the window to look and saw him unconscious, but they didn't know if he was. Still, they needed to hurry and find Mary Margaret before something horrible happened to her. That was why they rushed outside and froze when they saw that Jefferson wasn't there anymore.
"Where the hell is he?" Emma asked.
As much as Graham wanted to know, they didn't have time to worry about him. "Don't know, but it doesn't matter."
"What do you mean it doesn't matter? He kidnapped us and Mary Margaret. He knows where she is."
"We don't need him." Graham knew where the road would take them if they continued driving on it, which was where the truck was heading. "This road only goes north towards the cliffs, so we need to hurry."
Meanwhile, Mary Margaret slowly woke up and found herself confined in a wooden box. She panicked and shouted for someone to help her. She even realized that she was being transported somewhere as she heard an engine running, but it soon stopped, which alarmed her. Mary Margaret then tried getting the tape off her hands, but it was too strong. Then, she noticed a needle sticking out, so she tried to cut the tape using the nail by repeatedly pulling the tape using the nail.
She froze though when she felt the box being lifted only to be dropped to the ground with a hard thud as she grunted when her head banged against the wood. When she felt the box moving, she felt her heart beat quickening, so she hurriedly tried to break free from the tape. Mary Margaret finally released a sigh of relief when she managed to get the tape off her wrists. She then desperately tried to push the lid off but couldn't no matter how hard she pushed.
A shadow loomed over the box, and she could tell there was someone there since the cracks in the box got darker. She didn't know what was happened, but someone was clearly trying to do something horrible to her, and it terrified Mary Margaret. Her nerves slowly grew when the box was being pushed again until she felt something on her side, so she dug around to find a screwdriver beside her as she held it up and waited for the right moment until she saw the person's shadow again and stabbed the person when they came into view. It sounded like a man grunting in pain, and she heard him running away from her.
"Help! Help me!" she cried out.
"Mary Margaret?" She felt the box being pulled away before hearing Graham as he told Emma to help her before they tried to remove the lid. "Use this."
The lid of the box slowly opened as she saw Graham using a crowbar to get her out, and Mary Margaret was quick to get out of the box as Emma comforted her, telling her it was okay. She then looked back and saw that she was practically at the edge of a cliff. Whoever that man was tried to kill her, and it terrified her just thinking about it.
"What's that?" Graham asked.
Mary Margaret looked at the bloody screwdriver in her hand and released a few tears as she explained, "I stabbed him with this. It was in the box."
"Him? Did you see who he was?" Emma pressed.
"No, but I heard him when I stabbed him." More tears spilled out of Mary Margaret's eyes after thinking about what just happened. "Oh God. If you guys hadn't been there, I would have..."
"Hey, hey. You're safe now. We're not going to let anything happen to you."
Graham then took the screwdriver and observed it carefully as Emma wondered what was going on through his head. "Graham, what is it?"
"How quickly do you think Amir could cover this up?"
"What?" Mary Margaret seemed stunned by this. "You think Amir Khan did this?"
"We're going to find out, and there's only one way to catch him tonight."
Emma knew exactly what Graham was talking about. It was a long shot, but if Graham was right, then they needed to be sure by checking on Amir. If Amir was here at the cliffs, then there was only way to prove that theory. They needed to confront him about it.
After they took Mary Margaret back to the Sheriff's station and put her back in her cell, they headed to The Moonlight Mirage. Nora and Ruby were already there, drinking, but Nora's smile quickly faded when she noticed Emma and Graham and how serious they looked. Ruby, on the other hand, went over to them with Nora by her side.
"Hey, guys. Taking a little break from the law?" Ruby asked cheekily.
"No."
After hearing Emma's tone, Nora turned to Graham to ask with concern, "Is everything okay?"
"I'll explain everything." He then nodded over to the backroom at Emma, so she followed his lead, but they were stopped by security. "We need to speak to Amir Khan."
"Mr. Khan's busy."
Emma then stepped in to show off her badge. "Well, I'm the sheriff, and we have an important matter to discuss with him."
The security guard told them to wait a moment before going to the back only to come back out moments later. "He'll see you."
They followed the security guard to Amir's office, and Amir was typing something into his laptop before looking up from his screen and shut his laptop as he gestured for the security guard to give them privacy. "Sheriff. Deputy. What can I do for you?" Amir asked with a sly grin as he went around his desk to lean against it.
"Someone tried to kill Mary Margaret," Graham immediately said.
He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion as if he had no idea what she was talking about. "Okay...? And, this has to do with me with...why exactly?"
Emma then interjected by saying, "She stabbed him with a screwdriver, and we need to confirm if it was you or not."
Amir scoffed and shook his head. "You're joking?"
"This is as serious as it gets."
Seeing how determined they were to find out if it was him, he stood straight. "If I prove to you it wasn't me, you'll leave?" Their silence was a confirmation for him, so he smirked and shook his head as he unbuttoned his shirt and took it off only to reveal the scar he already had on his chest. There wasn't any fresh injuries anywhere on his body, which unnerved Graham. Emma, however, was rather suspicious by Amir's demeanor given how calm he was, almost as if he was expecting it.
"See? Nothing," Amir told them.
Emma couldn't explain it, but there was something off about Amir. She had a pretty good sense of people when they were lying, and Amir was too calm for this accusation. Her intuition was telling her that he was hiding something, but she had no clue what. However, it didn't mean that she wouldn't find out as she was going to watch him carefully from now on as they walked out of his office.
Past
Sinbad wanted to check in on Odette since he never saw her in such a state before. He actually pitied her for what happened at the lake. It was rather gruesome to see those severed heads. He was even certain that her fragile heart couldn't handle such cruelty.
When he went inside her room, he saw an assortment of food on her table that was left untouched as Odette continued to stare at them. She didn't even bother looking up to see Sinbad approaching her. Rothbart must have broken her spirit, but Sinbad didn't want that. Sinbad actually admired Odette for that since it allowed her to be unpredictable. It made her much more entertaining and exciting for him. Seeing her like this though was just pitiful to him.
He huffed out a breath and sat beside her, but she still refused to look at him. "You haven't eaten anything."
Even her voice was filled with sorrow when she opened her mouth. "That's because I don't want to eat."
"It's been two days since you came back."
Tears slowly welled in her eyes and eventually fell when she asked, "Why do you care?"
"I shouldn't, should I? But, then again, I don't like seeing a woman's spirit broken, especially yours." When he reached out to take her hand, she immediately brought it back to her lap. "You should learn to save yourself some pain already and just give him what he wants."
"So, you're saying I'll still be tortured, tormented, and humiliated by him? How can anyone not fight back against that?"
"You really do have a tender heart, and that makes you better than all of us," he scoffed, making her look at him as she was stunned to him say that as he continued, "But, you should know...carrying such a heart won't get you anywhere in this world. You have to do things to get ahead in life, or else you'll die. That's why you shouldn't care too much about others and look out for yourself. Take it from someone who knows."
As he left, he hoped his message sank in her head. He certainly didn't want Odette to lose some sort of hope given how much she had been through. Sinbad never met a woman quite so exciting like her even if she appeared delicate to many men, but she was clearly so much more than that. That was why he wanted her to see her be strong for herself.
Meanwhile, Robin and his merry men set foot into a village to find it completely destroyed with bodies laid out on the ground. A massacre had taken place, and it sickened all of them. They didn't understand who could have done this.
"Robin!" Little John called out.
Robin Hood ran towards Little John and saw a man clutching onto his wound as he slowly stood and stumbled into a home while dropping a sword from his hand, so Robin rushed over to him and grabbed him in time. "Are you alright?"
When the man didn't answer, Robin checked to see if the man was close to death as he looked at his wound. "Is he dying?" one of his men asked.
"We'll find out. Let's take him back to camp. God only knows what this man's been through given what we witnessed."
Little John then lifted the man with ease as Robin and his men took him back to camp where Grim, Snow White, and Red were. Robin then ordered for a healer to check on the man, and nearly all of the women were shocked to see the man in such a state. When Grim got closer to the man, his eyes slowly widened, and he rushed over as if he recognized him, and sure enough, he did.
"Derek? Derek!"
Grim noticed the wound on Derek's side and heard Derek coughing for air before slowly opening his eyes and saw his friend. "Grim? Where-Where the hell...am I?"
"You shouldn't move, lad," Robin warned. "The healers will take proper care of you."
Derek then reached out to grab Grim's vest as he pulled him towards him. "O-Oddette...she was with...me."
Grim's eyes widened as he questioned, "She was here?"
"We...escaped," Derek grunted through the pain. "But,...Sin-Sinbad found us and...took her. I couldn't doanything."
Shocked by this announcement, Grim took a step back, and his eyes slowly narrowed, thinking that he was not going to let Sinbad or Rothbart get away with this. They did this all for what? To torture a poor, innocent woman? It was precisely why he couldn't stand men like them. He wanted them to pay for what they did to Odette and to Derek as Derek was being carried away to get treated by the healers.
He then walked away and ordered Akela to stay when he saw his wolf brother following him. Grim needed to be alone though. He wanted to vent out his anger and frustration as he picked up a rock and threw it. Grim wanted more than anything to help Odette now more than ever since he knew that Rothbart was probably going to torture her, and Grim, was not going to let that happen.
When he heard footsteps behind him, he thought it was Snow, so he sighed and said, "I want to be alone right now." When he didn't hear her walking away, he whipped around to tell her off, "Snow, leave me alone."
He froze when he found a man. Grim certainly had never seen this man before, but he acted childish with the way how he cackled with an imp-like grin plastering his face. His skin reminded him of bronze, and it was a strange scaly texture. His teeth were yellow as were his fingernails, and his hair reminded Grim of a wild animal he once killed. His regal clothes definitely did not resemble his beast-like appearance at all.
"Expecting someone else, were you?" the man chuckled.
Grim narrowed his eyes at him since he had no clue how this man appeared. "Who are you?"
The strange man gave a deep bow-almost mocking Grim as he introduced himself, "Rumplestiltskin, and yes, I know all about your troubles to save the one you love most."
Grim's heart beat quickened when he mentioned that he loved Odette, but still, that didn't mean that he was going to go along with whatever this man said. "How can you help me?"
"By helping you kill the sorcerer who took your true love in the first place." He smirked wickedly as red smoke appeared in his hand, and Grim felt his back light as he looked to see his quiver filled his arrow in Rumplestiltskin's clutch. "These arrows are laced with Dreamshade-one of the deadliest poisons known to man. It will kill Rothbart instantly as the poison sets in through his heart."
Grim was skeptical since he didn't know who this man or why he would want to help him, but one thing was for sure though, he was not going to let this opportunity pass by, so he reached out to take his quiver back, only for Rumple to draw it away from him. "Uh, uh, uh. Not without a price."
There it was as Grim finally understood that he wanted something from him. "What do you want?"
"Oh,...the pelt you wear on your back."
Grim didn't understand why he wanted it. He was hesitant to give it up though since the pelt belonged to his wolf mother, Raksha, after he caught her being killed by poachers. A part of her was carried with him everywhere he went. He couldn't just give it up, but then again, if he didn't, he may not find a way to rescue Odette. Grim may miss hitting Rothbart, but if the poison even pierced through the vile sorcerer's skin, then he would surely die, giving a chance to rescue Odette.
Having given it a second thought, he removed his pelt and handed it to Rumplestiltskin, who handed him his quiver back as Grim looked inside to see that his arrows were laced with the poison with the tip painted black. "Oh! And, before I forget,...don't miss."
With his final words, Rumplestiltskin disappeared. Grim never encountered The Dark One before. He heard many horrible stories about him from the taverns where he drank as he listened in on conversations. If there was one thing Grim knew though, Rumplestiltskin always had a purpose for getting involved, so he wondered why he stepped in when he did.
What Grim was not aware of though was that Rumplestiltskin not only wanted him to use the arrows on Rothbart so that he could get his daughter back, but also, he needed Grim's pelt. There was something on it that he needed as he teleported back to his castle and set it on the table. He then carefully looked through the pelt to find just what he was searching for: a strand of Grim's hair. He smirked to himself as he kept it inside a vial. All he needed now was a strand of hair from his daughter's head so that he would have everything he needed.
Present
After the crazy night he had, Graham went to Nora's apartment and told her everything that happened. He couldn't even begin to describe her expression. Nora was absolutely shocked that someone would go so far to kill Mary Margaret.
"I-I just can't believe it."
"I know," Graham told her.
"But, that doesn't mean that Mary Margaret killed Kathryn then, right? She has to be innocent."
"It seems like it, but that wouldn't be definitive proof in a court of law. I still can't shake that feeling off that Khan had to be involved. I hate that I can't prove it though, and Emma thinks so too."
That surprised Nora as she questioned, "Emma thinks Amir killed Kathryn and Derek?"
"She speculates, but she knows he's hiding something. That's what she told me at least. We're so close, Nora. I know it, and I'm not going to stop until we put Amir behind bars."
Meanwhile, Amir was at the docks, waiting for his men to bring in one of his employees as they dragged him to meet him. He was clutching onto his side, and all Amir did was smirk lowly at him. His employee failed at killing Mary Margaret, but then again, that was what Amir intended. However, his employee certainly didn't know that as he was practically quivering in fear when the men threw him at Amir's feet.
"Mr. Khan, I-I only did what I was told." Amir didn't say anything as the man desperately pleaded. "I'm sorry, Mr. Khan."
Amir scoffed as he told him, "What's there to be sorry for? You actually played the part well."
All of his men were confused, including his employee, but Amir knew that he couldn't risk having him around anymore, so he took his pistol out and shot him between the eyes before his employee could even blink. They were all a bit taken aback by Amir's action as they froze since Amir told him he did well only for him to get shot.
"Throw the body in the ocean, and clean up this mess before someone sees you," Amir ordered coldly.
His men got to work right away as Amir left them alone. He then headed back to The Moonlight Mirage to get a Rum Old-Fashioned. He never lost the crave for rum even after he lost his title as King of the Seven Seas. At least, having his own bar meant that he could help himself whenever he wanted.
Not long after, Mr. Smith approached him at the bar. "Mr. Khan?"
"What?"
"Well, um,...your guest is here."
Amir knew exactly who he was referring to. "Where is he?"
"Your office, sir."
Amir took another sip of his drink before getting up to head into the office. There sitting on his desk was Jefferson. He looked over and practically narrowed his eyes at Amir, but Amir didn't care. In fact, he didn't blame him for it since Jefferson had been through Hell. That was why Amir turned back around and told Mr. Smith to leave them alone as he shut the door in Smith's face.
"I'm guessing you need to hide out for a while."
"Well, I definitely can't go back to my mansion, now, can I?" Jefferson sounded somewhat annoyed that Amir asked him that.
"I expected it nonetheless." Amir then went to his desk to take a cigarette and a lighter out as he puffed out some smoke towards Jefferson, who closed his eyes and blinked them repeatedly, almost to get rid of the smoke, causing Amir smirk to widen. "I'll take you somewhere tonight. Don't worry."
Jefferson then looked down and seemed to have struggled to say something until he finally had the courage to ask, "How is she doing?"
Amir knew exactly who he was referring to since there was only one person who Jefferson truly cared for, which was his daughter. It was tragic how Jefferson's daughter doesn't remember him because of the curse. That was why Jefferson asked Amir personally to keep an eye on her and make sure that Regina never used her in any way to get to Jefferson since they weren't on great terms. Amir didn't mind since he was a lot closer to Jefferson than he was to Regina.
"She's fine. Happy with her new family, but she's fine." His answer seemed to have disheartened Jefferson, so Amir tried cheering her up as he pointed out, "Isn't it a little better this way though? At least, Grace isn't suffering of the knowledge that she's no longer home."
"Except seeing her with a newfatheris painful enough to me."
"We've been through a lot. Haven't we, Jefferson? We both were thick as thieves, working together to help Rumplestiltskin. I worked on the seas and you worked on land."
"Yes, and then for some reason, you gave up your title."
Amir scoffed as he reminded him, "Yes, for the same reason as why you hung up your hat. I lost someone important to me. But, at least I obtained a new life because of it only to be thrown away again because of Odette."
"Rumplestiltskin's daughter, you mean?"
Since Jefferson and Amir were old friends, Amir felt like telling Jefferson the situation since he trusted him as soon as they came to Storybrooke. "She always did the unexpected, and that was what made me want her even more."
"Sounds like you're in love with her."
Amir shook as he admitted, "No. Infatuation? Most likely. But, love? I swore I will never love again. As long she behaves herself and does what she's told, then she won't have any problems from me."
As Amir took a sip of drink, the liquor burned his throat in a pleasant way. He couldn't stop thinking about Nora and what happened to her in her previous life. She was an interesting woman, and she still was. The only thing Amir hoped was for Nora not to ruin his second chance at his life. Ever since she arrived at Regina's castle, he knew she would be nothing but trouble, and he was right since she was the cause of Rothbart's downfall even though Amir didn't care much for him. Still though, because of her, he lost his nobility since Graham was persistent to free her after she went through great lengths to procure Graham's heart to give it back to him. He just hoped that this time she stayed a good girl and listened instead of going off to do whatever she wanted to do.
Here's the Hat Trick episode! I hope you enjoyed it! I was really busy this week, which was why it took me a while to finish it, but it is finally completed. We are nearly at the end of season 1, and I am so excited for it. What are you expecting is going to happen? Let me know in the comment section, and stay tuned for more exciting chapters heading your way!