You and Tequila

Chapter Twenty-Three

Emma arrived twenty minutes early just to make sure she was well prepared for the interview with the Today Show. Except, she hadn't planned for the unexpected delay that has her standing outside of Regina's room with Jefferson and Ruby beside her. She clenches the strap resting snuggly against her chest and breathes through the panic that something is horrifically wrong and waiting on the other end of that door for them.

Suddenly, the door swings open, revealing the wicked mother with enough tension stressing her features that Emma finds herself taking one step back. She contemplates making a mad dash for the lobby, but she knows that if Cora is this seething mad, then Regina must need her, wherever she maybe.

"Get in," Cora barks out, persuading all three sets of legs to jump dutifully into the hotel room. She softly closes the door, despite her anger pulsating all around them like a ticking time bomb. "It seems my sorry excuse for a daughter cannot grasp the concept of control."

Emma swallows thickly, the bones in her body feeling heavier than ever before. She takes a quick gander around the room, but finds it completely empty. Her flesh breaks out in a cold sweat and she clenches her bag even tighter.

"I don't know how we are going to push through this month with her incompetence. One would assume she enjoys being locked away like the insolent child she is," Cora sneers, slandering her daughter once again while Emma, Ruby and Jefferson stand obediently in silence.

Maybe, just maybe, Emma thinks, that if they keep their lips sealed and they don't move or even breathe, Cora will continue yelling at them and for once leave her daughter alone.

"You three have one hour to produce the star that America is waiting for or I will have each of your jobs. Do I make myself clear?" She snaps, like the last branch of her patience breaking from her tree.

All three nod along and mumble their agreement before Cora spins on her five inch heels and stomps out of the hotel room. The minute the cruel woman vanishes, Emma untangles herself from her bag and drops it to the floor before rushing into the ensuite. Her heart leaps into her throat and her stomach bottoms out when she finds Regina passed out on the cold, hard floor.

She rushes forward, instantly dropping to her knees with Jefferson and Ruby hot on her heels. "Regina," she groans while her fingertips delicately sweep away the brunette's straggly hair covering her blotchy face. "Fuck, what did you do?" She whines when Regina lies unconscious, a heap of heavy limbs soaked in Vodka, by the nose curling stench.

"Baby girl," Jefferson coos as he shakes Regina's shoulders roughly, eliciting the faintest of grumbles in response.

Ruby steps around all three on the ground and yanks on the shower handle. The harsh water sprays aggressively from the spout, the sound bouncing off the walls, but Regina doesn't budge. Emma's not sure if she's utterly crushed or seething mad, but she knows her adrenaline is pumping harder and she needs to find a way to get this woman up.

"Regina," she urges, cupping her head and forcing it off the ground. "Get up!" She screams, encouraging a light flutter from those thick, dark lashes. "Come on, wake up. You have to get up!" Her thumbs press down into Regina's cheeks to awaken her senses as she caresses the silky soft flesh, stained with old salty tears. "Regina, please."

"Come on, help me lift her into the shower," Jefferson sadly instructs, which provokes a panic deep within Emma.

"What? No, she's not even awake. We can't just toss her in there," she exasperates, subconsciously tugging Regina's face further into her lap to protect the sad woman below.

"The water will wake her up, trust me, Swan, her mother's been doing this for too many years to count," he supplies, but no matter how comforting he sounds, it just doesn't sit right with Emma.