Crossing Paths

Chapter 15

She started crying again and hid her face in her hand palms. I didn't know what to say. Too many questions were flying through my mind.

Why had the serial killer been after Regina? How could it be that Killian sacrificed himself for the woman who was sitting in front of me? Did she know this?

"What was his name?" Regina asked between two sobs and I didn't reply at first.

I remembered the name better than I wanted to, but speaking it out loud was awful.

"Nick," I said as I gritted my teeth. "Nick Branson."

Regina flinched at the mention of the name and wiped her tears away, but it was of no use as they kept rolling down her cheeks.

Suddenly, through all my conflicted emotions, I felt one rising above the other. Compassion. I felt sorry for Regina as she was crying on the couch and I immediately knew she hadn't heard of this entire situation.

How could she have known? No one had gone up to her saying "Funny story. There was this serial killer who wanted to murder you, but a sheriff gave his life for you, so you live. Oh, and you're going to kiss his wife in the future".

I scooched closer to her and wrapped my arms around her. She immediately collapsed in the embrace and I felt her trembling under my grasp.

"I'm so, so sorry," she said as her cries slowly softened. It seemed as though the hug helped her relax and she nestled her head in my neck as I stroked her back.

"Did you know him?"

Regina nodded slowly, but didn't talk. She sighed softly and yawned. Apparently, the crying had made her tired.

I felt her head becoming heavier and soon her first so erratic breathing, became steady. The emotions, feelings and thoughts had taken over and sleeping was the way to cope with it for Regina.

Even though there were many things I wanted to ask her, I didn't want to wake her up. Hearing that you were supposed to be a victim from a serial killer couldn't be easy.

I held her in my arms for a while, until I was certain she was in a deep sleep and laid her on the couch. I spread one of the two blankets over her body and grabbed the other one to cover myself with as I lay down on the soft carpet.

That night, I didn't sleep at all. The only thing keeping me sane at that moment was Regina's steady breathing.

I would have to work to process and understand all this, but I knew this wasn't a reason to shut Regina out.

That had been my technique many years ago, right after Killian had died. I figured that if I didn't have people in my life, I couldn't be sad when they passed away and until I met Regina I'd lived by that, Belle being the exception.

Now that I knew Regina and I were linked together many years ago, it felt like us meeting wasn't some coincidence.

The entire night, I kept thinking about me and Killian and me with Regina. Until the moment the sun started rising and I heard Regina move on the couch.

She muttered something half asleep and I turned around to look at her. Suddenly, she sat up straight in bed and looked startled.

"Emma!" She called out and breathed heavily, until her eye caught me and she calmed down.

I stood up and took place beside her on the couch. I could practically see the memories from last night replaying in her head and she turned to me.

"I, uh.." she cleared her throat and swallowed. "I can't believe your husband.. died.. to save me," she confessed softly.

I smiled slightly and gave her a nod. "He was a good man."

The night alone with my thoughts had been good for me. I'd had time to order everything and place everything and process every thought and feeling.

"Nick Branson." Regina's tone was laced with disgust and I even noticed a hint of fear. "I hated that guy from the moment I first saw him."

"How do you know him?"

"That weekend, when I worked at the bar, he was there," she said and my hand found hers. "He started talking to me about his job and how important he was. He was a lawyer, a good one, with loads of money and a good reputation. "But one mistake and my entire career is ruined," he'd told me. "And along with that my entire life". I felt rather uncomfortable around him, so I just nodded with a polite smile before I continued helping other customers."

She sighed softly. It was still quite early, but as the sun was starting to light the town, I could see the dark circles under Regina's eyes that had appeared this night.

"First, I thought that whole conversation didn't mean anything, but later on I realized he'd only said that to make me feel guilty."

"Guilty?" I asked confused and Regina squeezed my hand briefly before she released it.

"That night I walked to Granny's B&B. I stayed there that weekend, but I always walked via the back entrance of the bar, to avoid having to hold a conversation with Zelena. He, uh.. he followed me. I started hurrying, because I didn't feel safe, but he picked up this pace as well, until he'd caught up with me and grabbed my arm. That's when I felt his hands on my body and later on, he.." Regina swallowed thickly. "He raped me," she croaked out.

I gasped and covered my mouth with my hand. "What?"

"I went to the police and because I did, many other girls came to the police as well, saying he'd raped them as well. They found evidence for all seven girls, including me, and arrested the guy. His career and thus his life, was ruined."

He'd killed the other six girls. I knew that. Killian and I had asked for his file as soon as we'd found his identity, which took more time that I was proud of, but the file came too late. It arrived at the sheriff's station the day after Killian had passed away.

The police station in Boston had hold onto it and they didn't want to mail it, because at that time, hackers were rather active.

"I am so sorry, Emma. I didn't know he was after me, I thought he was still locked up. If I'd known he'd killed your husband because of me, I-"

"He didn't kill him because of you," I interrupted her. Now that I heard the side of her story, I understood her. She had done nothing wrong and now all I wanted to do was help her. "He killed him, because he's a psychopath."

Regina looked me in the eyes and her face held nothing but disbelief. "You're not angry?"

I shook my head. I'd been angry for a long time after Killian passed, but I wasn't anymore. At least, not at Regina.

"All this... I think it's only brought us closer together," I confessed and drew patterns on the back of her hand with my thumb.