strange and beautiful (I'll put a spell on you)

Chapter Thirty-Seven

"He saw nothing ?" Rebekah asked, her voice dripping with skepticism as she took a seat on her porch while Emma drank from her cup of coffee sitting next to her. Rebekah held a cup of decaf tea in her hands, an apology gift that Emma had brought her for showing up without calling first. The tea was a welcomed gift, given that it was still early in the morning. Rebekah didn't think Jefferson had even stirred awake when the doorbell rang, still asleep on the couch as Rebekah tiptoed downstairs. That had surprised Rebekah. Jefferson had always been a light sleeper; even more so once they had Grace. Always waking up at the slightest sound thinking it was their daughter. When she peered her head into the living room on her way to the door, he was still asleep on the couch, snoring lightly. Either way, Rebekah didn't invite Emma inside. Mostly because even though Jefferson no longer had his memories, Emma still disliked him and did not trust him.

"That's what he says," Emma said, taking another sip of her coffee. "The guy said he was texting and driving when he hit Hook."

Rebekah brought her drink to her lips, swallowing a small sum of it. "And you believe him?"

Emma nodded her head. "I didn't get the feeling I usually get when someone is lying to me." She explained to Rebekah, who nodded in response. If she had learned one thing in her time knowing Emma – it was to trust her gut. If Emma didn't think that the guy was lying, it was enough proof for Rebekah to believe it as the truth. "That's actually not why I'm here," she said, causing Rebekah to raise her brows. "Gold showed up at my apartment. He says he's cashing in my favor."

Rebekah sipped from her tea before she spoke again. "What does he want?" She asked.

The blonde woman snorted, taking a sip of her coffee before looking at Rebekah. "We're going on a road trip to find his son," Emma told her. "We leave at noon." Rebekah blinked in surprise. Gold was going to go find his son – her brother.

She swallowed hard, not knowing if she should keep that to herself or to tell Emma. No one knew; not Snow, not Ruby – no one. Just her, Cora, and Gold.

"There's something you should know," Rebekah said slowly, stomach twisting at the thought of saying the words out loud. "Gold told me something yesterday. Apparently..." How was she supposed to explain this? That somehow Gold was her father and Cora was her mother – that she was made of magic. "Rumpelstiltskin tricked Cora a long time ago after she had betrayed him and...that's how I came to be."

Emma was quiet, brows raised in confusion as she looked at Rebekah, waiting for an explanation. "Came to be?"

Rebekah sighed, running her fingers through her tangled bedhead. "Cora wanted more power. They mixed their magic together and Cora thought it would make her more powerful, but it actually just made me."

Emma's mouth slowly opened. "Mr. Gold is your father ?" 

She shook her head. "Henry Mills was my father," Rebekah stressed. "Gold is nothing to me."

Emma blew air out of her nose. "Bex – this is huge ."

"Yeah," Rebekah agreed, bringing her cup of tea to her lips and drinking.

"You have a brother out there," Emma said, her tone softer.

"Yeah, and if he's anything like Gold, I'm sure he's a psychopath," she said in a dry tone. "You need to be careful, Em." Rebekah warned her. "Especially if you still plan on bringing Henry along with you."

"Do you want to come?" Emma asked Rebekah. She was quick to shake her head. "Are you sure?"

Rebekah gave into a tiny laugh. "I have enough evil people in my family. I don't need to meet another one."