Emma and David race against the clock to reunite a family before it's too late.
***
"You never talked about him."
Emma raised an eyebrow, not looking away from driving on the road to the pawnshop. "Who?"
"Henry's father," David elaborated, and Emma's hands clenched on the steering wheel. "I just realized . . . since I regained my memories, I've heard how you had Henry and everything that happened once you met Harry, but you never once mentioned Henry's father."
"That's because there wasn't anything to say," Emma said curtly as she parked. "He is in my past, and that's where I want him to stay."
David paused as he stepped out of the car. "Things didn't end well between the two of you, did it?" he guessed.
Emma barked in laughter. "I landed in jail, Dad, and I never saw him again. That's not enough of a clue?"
David's expression darkened, and he held out a hand to stop Emma from approaching the shop. "Is he someone to be concerned about?" he asked, eyes narrowed protectively.
Emma gave him a thin-lipped smile. "No," she answered. "Because I have no idea where the hell he is, and I intend to keep it that way."
"And if Henry somehow finds a way to find him like he found you?"
Emma bit so hard into her cheek she tasted blood. "I'll cross that bridge if it comes to that."
David still looked concerned, but he finally nodded. "I'm sorry," he sighed, running a hand through his hair in frustration. "I just keep hearing of everything you went through, and I wonder . . . " His shoulders slumped. "There are so many what ifs," he whispered defeatedly.
"There are," Emma agreed, placing a hand on his arm. "And unfortunately, we can't turn back time to see if we can change the past. Focus on me right here in the present: happy and with a family I love and who loves me in return."
David placed his hand on top of hers with a wobbly smile. "That's all a father could hope for his daughter."
Emma beamed at him and quickly kissed his cheek. "Now, let's find the Zimmers' father."
David held open the door for her and gave her a cheeky grin. "After you."
Emma grinned as she entered the pawnshop, and Mr. Gold glanced up from cleaning an oil lamp. "Emma, David," he greeted. "How lovely to see you. I'm flattered you would take time off your busy schedule for me." He set the lamp and his cleaning cloth down and folded his hands atop the counter. "What can I do for you, Sheriff?"
"I'm looking for information on this old compass," Emma answered, placing Ava's compass on the counter. "Any idea where it could've come from?"
"Well, well," Mr. Gold marveled, carefully picking up the compass to examine it. "Look at the detail. You know, this is crystal," he gestured to the cracked compass. "This jeweled setting. And despite the rather unfortunate shape it's in, this is actually quite an unusual piece. The person who owned this obviously had great taste."
"Do you know where someone like that would buy it?" David asked.
Mr. Gold smirked. "Right here, of course."
"You know it?" Emma asked hopefully.
"Indeed," Mr. Gold confirmed. "A piece like this is difficult to forget."
"Do you happen to remember who bought it?"
Mr. Gold scoffed and backed away from the counter. "Well, I'm good with names, Miss Swan, but maybe not that good. However, as luck would have it . . . " He beckoned the pair over to the other side of the shop. "I do keep quite extensive records." He picked through a drawer and smiled. "And, yes. Here we are."
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Operation Cobra (Book Two of The Savior Fables)
Fanfiction"It was the kind of small-town with nothing to look at - unless you knew where to look. After all, it's a town no-one knows exists." In which it's time for the small, sleepy town in Nowhere, Maine to wake from its twenty-eight-year nap. When Emma Sw...
