"So, you're telling me that my husband can't take the house from me then?."
"Yes, that's correct Ms Wolfe."
Regina answered, "He will need an agreement from you if he plans to do anything with the house, since the mortgage and deed are in both of your names."

Regina sat at her desk, hands folded, opposite her client, Ms Wolfe, discussing the details of a divorce settlement she had hired Regina's family law firm for.
'Mills & Associates, LLP' was one of the largest and more formidable law firms in the Boston region, and was founded by Regina's father forty nine years ago. As orchestrated in his Will, the law firm  was now owned and operated by his surviving wife, Cora.
Regina, of course, had plans to take over the business, should the opportunity arise.

"Thank you for helping me with all of this Ms. Mills," the woman said, "I was truly at a loss when everything happened, but Everyone here at the firm has been so kind to me, I am grateful."
"Please, call me Regina." She replied warmly, "and Not to worry, Mr Wolfe may have cheated during your marriage to him, but he will not cheat you out of your fifty percent! You have my word on that."
The woman got up from her seat and made her way to the door to leave, "Thanks again, Regina. I will be in touch with the rest of the marriage documents you've requested later this week."

Just as Ms Wolfe walked out the door to Regina's office, her mother Cora floated in.

"You've been quite the busy bee, I see!" Cora observed, "Only making time for your clients.. Burying yourself in your work.."
Taking a breath in and squeezing her eyes shut for a moment, Regina replied "Only my clients?? Mother, you know damn right well I always find time for Henry."

"Yes of course dear," Cora answered, "that's not at all what I meant."
"Mmnnn.." Regina mumbled, turning her attention back to the pile of paperwork on her desk.

The relationship between the mother and daughter was a fragile one. Throughout her entire life, Regina was always trying to live up to her mother's strict expectations.

Cora tinkered around the room in silence while her daughter worked. Regina hoped that if she ignored her mother long enough, Cora would eventually give up trying to strike up conversation with her, and leave her alone.
Getting up to return some client files to their resting place across the room, Regina finally broke the silence; "Well, did you come here for something in particular? Or did you just come to check up on me Mother?"

Rolling her eyes at Regina's question, Cora simply replied, "Regina, as your mother I'm concerned. After all, you are my daughter. It's been weeks since you've spoken to Robin... and, I - "

"And what?! What are you getting at mother??"

"What I'm getting at, is if you ever hope to reconcile with him, you need to start talking!"
"And why would I want to do that?!"
"He is your husband, Regina. You need him, and Henry needs a father!"
Angry now at her mother's accusations, Regina began packing up her belongings as the work day was just about over. Taking her keys from the drawer in her desk, Regina stood up and grabbed her briefcase, replying to Cora, "Henry has me, and he is doing just fine! As for myself,; other than my son, I don't need anyone."
She walked passed Cora toward the door, pausing just before she left to add "And frankly, I don't give a damn what Robin 'needs'."

*****

"It's done!" A man's voice boomed from the doorway, startling Emma Swan from her desk work across the room, "Jesus Killian!" She jumped, turning to face him at the door, "You scared the hell outta me!!"

"My apologies Swan," Killian replied smiling, "I didn't mean to make you jump."
"...says the guy who startles me every time he walks into the room!" A small smile was shared for a moment between the two detectives before Emma continued "So? You found her then? You found Alice?"

"Yep! She stuck out like a sore thumb, believe it or not!"
"Haha, imagine that.. it only took, what? Three weeks? Alright then, case closed I suppose." Emma said, taking a red dry-erase marker and striking a line through the missing persons case they had been working on that was written on the old white board above her desk.
"Well, now that that's over with, What do you say I take you out for a bite to celebrate?" Killian suggested.
Emma, looking up from her desk again, raised her brow with interest.
"Me, you.. some fine wine and dinner." He offered through a wide grin.
Emma smirked, "I'll take you up on the dinner.. but you can keep your 'fine wine'. You know I'm more of a rum girl!"
"You know Swan, if you ever decide to date men, you'd be my kind of woman!!" Killian stated, smiling brightly, leaning against the wall opposite Emma's desk.
"...and if you ever decide to become a woman, I might even give you a chance!" She joked back.
"To the bar we go!" He said, headed for the door again, completely dodging Emma's answer. "Roni's it is!"

*****

Mentally exhausted from a long day at the firm, as well as her on-going battle about her separation from Robin with her mother, Regina was so ready to call it a day! Locking the front door behind her as she entered her home, she tossed her keys into the old, worn down candy dish that sat on the entry table in the foyer.
She never really cared much for things like candy dishes or trinkets, of any kind. In fact, she never would've had the candy dish at all, if it weren't a keepsake of her late father's.

"Thanks for holding my keys, dad." Regina said to herself as she always did, walking down the two steps that led into her living room.
Her father's murder was still unsolved, fifteen years later. Of course there was always speculation of his murder being premeditated. However, all these years later, the Boston Police came up with no clues, no leads, and no witnesses. As far as Regina was concerned, her father was mugged by a random thief, desperate for a few bucks to get by.
Henry Mills Sr. was found laying on the ground in the parking garage near his law firm, in a pool of his own blood. A bullet between the eyes, and his wallet nowhere to be found.

Regina kicked off her heels onto the soft, white rug in the living room, pulling out her phone to check her messages.
Paying more attention to her phone then her surroundings, she sat at her couch reaching for the wine decanter she always kept on her coffee table. Quickly Noticing the carafe was lighter than usual, her attention shifted from her phone to the empty glass that always kept her favorite wine.
"Ugh," she sighed, "just perfect. Fresh out."
Putting the decanter back down onto the table, she opened a text message to Robin; "How's my boy?" She typed into the keyboard, hitting 'send' before she could stop herself.
She watched a return text bubble pop up on her screen before she could even put her phone down, "He's doing great, headed to bed soon. How are you, Regina?" Robin's text read.

Henry, her son, had been spending the weekend at Robin's. It was Regina's idea to let him have weekend visits. After all, just because she and Robin were over, didn't mean Henry had to stop seeing the only man he knew as dad.
Hesitating for only a moment as she stared at the screen of her phone, Regina closed out of the text conversation without reply, and put her phone on the table next to the empty wine carafe.
Slumping into the couch further, Regina sighed heavily and weighed out her options; just turn in early and get some long needed sleep, or, venture out to the bar for a quick drink or two.
She glanced at the Victorian grandfather clock in the room, opposite of where she sat on the couch.

9:55pm...

"Yeah, I'm gonna need that drink.." she said aloud to herself. Regina jumped up from the couch, and quickly ran up the stairs to her bedroom on the second floor to change. "I'll just swing down to The Rabbit Hole for a quick drink, no big deal." She thought.

*****

Emma and Killian walked through the doors of Roni's Pub, then stopped dead in their tracks, surveying the room.
"It's Thursday, isn't it." Killian said to Emma disappointingly.
"Yep." She replied, "Looks like everyone's starting their weekend a little early, like us..."

"Well, that or the dollar-shots brought 'Em in haha.. Do you want to go somewhere else?" He asked her.
"Nah, this is fine," Emma answered, "besides, they know us here."
"As you wish" Killian mocked her jokingly, "our night has just begun!"

Both detectives made their way through the patrons to a small table that was being cleaned by the bar keeper a few feet from the bar.
As they sat down, the bar keeper greated them, "Ah! Detective Jones, Detective Swan! We missed you last weekend, how are you?"
"Just swell my friend." Killian replied, Emma smiling. "And you, Jimminy, how are you?"
"Ohh, you know..!" Jimminy said with a smile, "This place would die without me!"
The three of them got a nice laugh out at this.
"So, what can I get you guys?"
"We'll take the usual, Jim." Killian answered, smiling at Emma.
"OK great! A couple of rums, and a basket of fries coming right up!"
"...actually," Emma paused offering a slight smile, "Bring us the bottle, Jim. We're celebrating tonight."

*****

Regina pulled up to the empty parking lot to The Rabbit Hole, a local bar she frequented not too far from her home.

She dishearteningly stared at the sign hanging in the window of the bar; 'Temporarily closed for renovations.'
"Fucking kidding me?!" She cursed to herself, "...of all nights!"
Regina leaned the back of her head on the head rest of the seat. "Might as well go for a drive," she reasoned, "gotta blow this steam from the day off somehow!"
Regina pulled her car out of the parking lot, and back onto the highway, not even caring if she got lost.

It wasn't long before Regina realized she was entering the city now.
'Welcome to Boston' the sign read,
'Population 4.3 million.'
It had been quite a number of years since Regina found herself in the city for something other than work relation.
"Fucking hate the city.." she thought to herself, "how the hell did I end up here??"
For Regina, the city of Boston harbored nothing but bad memories.

From her younger years in college; a very confusing time for her emotionally, the memory of the last huge fight she and Robin had before she realized her love for him went numb, to the last place she ever saw her father's face; at the City Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
She truly hated it here. Truthfully, The only good memory she had of Boston was giving birth to Henry 12 years ago.

Regina drove around the city for about twenty minutes before deciding she'd hop back on the highway and head back home. However, a mile or two before reaching the highway entrance, she rolled her car to a stop out front of Roni's Pub.
Regina smiled. She had forgotten about this place. Regina would end up here after every research paper she had to write in college, and every big event she had to orchestrate for her Sorority.
It's where she realized she was in love for the very first time, assuming the butterflies in her stomach would never fly away...

"One good drink for old time's sake wouldn't hurt." She said to herself, checking her makeup in the car mirror.
After parking her car in the lot next door, Regina walked into the pub for the first time since her college years.