He's My Son

Chapter 4

Emma forced her eyes open to see she was in a hospital bed. The bright lights overhead caused her head to ache and she moaned out loud. "Emma?" The blonde cracked an eye open to see Regina sitting by her side. "You stayed." Emma croaked, her throat on fire.

Luckily, Regina saw right through her and held a cup to her lips. Emma gulped the cool liquid gratefully, feeling a little better. "Of course I did." Regina answered her as if her comment was ridiculous. Emma managed to sit up in the bed, frowning at the scratches and bruises on her body.

"How's Henry?" The blonde asked. Regina smiled and shook her head. "He is just fine. He's with Mother Superior at the moment." The older woman's smile faded as both of them remembered the situation that put Emma here in the first place. "So how bad is the damage?" Emma asked, touching the bandage covering her throat.

"Well, you have a couple broken ribs, a concussion, a small knife wound on your throat, sprained wrist, and cuts and bruises." Regina answered.

Emma immediately felt relieved. She had been through this before with some of the foster homes she was in. She still had the scar above her left eye where a liquor bottle was smashed against her head by an angry foster dad. Not to mention the countless times the guys in the households overstepped boundaries. Abuse wasn't an uncommon thing for her.

"The doctors also say that you were... raped." Regina avoided her eyes, almost embarrassed at having to bring the matter up. "I remember that part." Emma muttered sullenly. She remembered the certain blonde doctor that had done it too. And boy was he gonna pay for what he did.

"Do you know who attacked you?" Regina asked. "Yes." Emma said. The brunette reached over and grabbed her hand. "Who did this?"

Emma looked up at her, surprised at the angry tone coming from the older woman. When she had tearfully told the social workers what abuse she and the other kids had gone through, they had merely looked bored and jotted down notes on their clipboard. No sympathy whatsoever. To them she was just a number, another lost cause.

So she stayed silent. "Emma, you don't have to protect whoever did this. I have the power to get them locked away for a long time. If you're scared- "

"I'm not scared!" Emma wrenched her hand away from Regina. Quite the opposite, in fact. She was pissed, and hurt, and felt as if she had lost what shred of innocence she had left. She didn't care if she went to jail. She was going to make Victor Whale's life a living hell for the rest of the time she remained in Storybrooke.

And she knew he wouldn't do a damn thing about it. Not unless he wanted to get caught. "Emma, I know you're angry. But if you don't tell me or someone else who did this, then this person is going to roam free on the streets to find some other innocent girl. And if you're planning on revenge, that's not the way to go either. Just think about your son. Henry will grow up alone in this world if you end up doing something you regret."

Regina had a point. Emma had seen the way Whale had looked at those other girls. If she could help save just one person, then it would be worth it. If Henry can grow up with at least one good parent, then she would swallow her pride.

"Emma Swan." Sheriff Graham entered the room. "Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?"

Emma nodded and he took a seat on the other side of her. "If you could tell me with the best of your ability what happened after you left Regina's then I will be able to help you. These kinds of things don't go lightly here in our town, and I promise you whoever did this won't get away with it."

Emma grasped Regina's hand, taking comfort in her presence. "I was walking down the main street and I stopped at the White Rabbit to see Ruby. I ordered a drink without any alcohol when I was approached by a man. He was drunk, and he made crude remarks to me and Ruby. I left and he followed me. He dragged me into an alley and held a knife to my throat. He- "