A Mother's Fight
Chapter One
Another Friday Night Football Game
Magic was worked once again at the manor, and although Piper had told Grams that things were going just fine for them all, she still insisted on giving Prue and Patty back to her girls. Phoebe and Paige were of course thrilled that they were getting Prue and their Mom back, and Piper was too, but she knew that it would be chaotic on the kids. Wyatt and Chris had already been informed about Prue and their Grandma, but Paige's twin girls, Marcie and Melinda, had no clue. Phoebe's daughters, Jessa and Jennifer, knew more than what they should have known about magic, and kept asking anyway, about when and how could their Aunt Prue and Grandma, come back to them. Phoebe had to explain everything to them, and then they kept praying every night that they went to bed, that they would one day come back. She just didn't know that Grams had already been planning the surprise of a lifetime for them all. So far, Paige only has the girls with Henry, and not quite had her boy yet, and Phoebe and Coop, they only have Jessa and Jennifer so far. Jessa is thirteen and in the high school marching band, so she has to be at the football games, even if she doesn't want to be there. It's Friday and when the girls get home from school, Jessa doesn't even stop to talk like she usually does.
"Jessa, where's Jennifer?" Coop asks her.
"Still outside talking to some boy. I have to go get ready Dad. I'll talk in a few minutes, I promise." Jessa says, while she continues to make her way down the hall.
"Oh. Okay. Hey listen, your Mom called from work and said that she's gonna be running a little late tonight, and she wanted me to ask you and your sister what you guys would want for supper tonight. I figure though, that you'll probably eat at the game right?" Coop replies, hollering down the hall to her.
"Yeah. I was going to, unless Jennifer decides she wants to eat here at home, and then if she does, I'll just throw something together. Have you talked to Aunt Piper or Aunt Paige today?" Jessa says, as she hears the front door open, then close really slow. She sticks her head out into the hall, and looks around.
"It couldn't be another demon. Mom said they were destroyed along with the avitars before we were born. Hmm, oh well." Jessa says to herself, and she goes back into her room to finish getting ready. While Jessa is just about to head back into the living room, she hears those four words coming from Jennifer's mouth, that she always dreads hearing. She hears, "I hate that guy!" Jessa sighs and goes to talk to her about it, just as Phoebe does get home in time for everything.
"What's going on guys?" Phoebe asks, hugging them both.
"Mom, I hate that guy next door. He always stops me to talk when I step foot off of that bus every day. I know he has problems and all, and I do feel sorry for him but, he won't leave me alone. I keep telling him that I'm not interested, and he doesn't want to listen to me when I tell him NO CHANCE!" Jennifer says, while bringing her hands up when she yells no chance, and Phoebe has to grab them really quick.
"Whoa there. You got your Aunt Piper's power to freeze and blow things up. Easy girlfriend." Phoebe replies, as she hugs her again and pats her on the back, and gets her to lower her hands.
Later on that evening, Piper is calling Phoebe on her cell phone to let her know that she needs her and Paige back at the manor. Paige and Phoebe had moved out of the manor with their families and left the house for Leo and Piper, and the boys, since Piper was left being the oldest, ever since they lost Prue.
"Well, I'll call her, but I don't know if we'll be able to make it there or not. I really don't want to leave the girls here by themselves. You know, Jessa's only thirteen and Jennifer's eleven. I have another one due in four months. Paige, she has her baby due in six months. I'll call her but, what's this about?" Phoebe asks, explaining everything, then cheering for their team that just made a touchdown.
"I was just up in the attic looking for the winter clothes to get them all switched out for the rest of the year until spring, and Grams paid a visit." Piper tells her.
"Grams? What did she need? Is she okay?" Phoebe asks.
"She's fine. Everything's good. She did say however, that Prue and Mom are ready to join us again, and this time, for a hell of a lot longer than what they were here for before they left us the last time. She said, she needs the three of us, to help them come back. So, that means I need you and Paige. Don't tell her over the phone because people will hear, and it will just start chaos." Piper explains to her.
"Yeah. God knows we've done had enough of that in our lives as it is. Okay, give me a couple of minutes. The band is getting ready to play again, and then I'll call Paige and we'll be over there." Phoebe tells her. They both hang up and Phoebe gets back to the game and the band, then makes her phone call. Once Phoebe gets done with her phone call, she gets back to the game, which only had fourty minutes left anyway.
Chapter Two
Little Girl Lost
It's been two months since Phoebe and Paige met Piper at the manor to bring back Prue and their Mom, and at first, all of the kids kind of shyed away from them. Now, it's getting to be a normal thing for Phoebe's girls to be at Aunt Prue's on the weekends. One Friday night, Jessa, Jennifer, and Prue, are all walking into Prue's house where Jessa drops on the couch and says she's not moving until the next morning.
"Honey, I've got rooms upstairs. You're welcome to sleep up there if you want too. You don't have to sleep down here on that lumpy old couch. Grams gave it to me when I got back. She had this whole place furnished, and even your Grandma's place too." Prue tells her. Jessa just grumbles, and waves her hand like she's saying, "I promise, I'm good right here."
"Okay. It's up to you. In the meantime, I'm gonna go whip up a quick late dinner. It'll be done in about thirty minutes if you're hungry okay." Prue says, and Jennifer informs her that on the nights she has to be at the games, she's nearly wiped out from marching and performing at half time. Prue is going about her business in the kitchen when she gets a call on her house phone. They had tried to call her cell phone, but didn't get through. She has Jennifer to answer it, and it's just Patty seeing if they are okay.
"Yeah Grandma. We're great. Well, scratch that. Jessa acts as if she's dying from the game and all the marching. Other than that, we're fine. Why? What's wrong?" Jennifer tells her.
"Oh, just a little thing I always do, or used to do. I would always call and check on family members, making sure they are doing okay, and seeing if they need anything. Let me talk to your Aunt Prue okay." Patty replies.
"Okay. Hang on, she's cooking a late dinner. I'll get her. Aunt Prue! Grandma's on the phone!" Jennifer says, talking to Patty, then hollering for Prue.
"Okay baby, thanks. Tell her I'm coming. Come in here and keep an eye on this for me okay. Just stir it once in awhile, and then add what the box says to add." Prue tells her, while taking the phone and sending Jennifer to take over for her.
"Yeah Mom. What's going on?" Prue asks, while sitting in a chair near the door.
"I just seen on the news that there was a prison break in the area, and the man is still on the run, and believed to be armed and dangerous. Be very careful, and I would really like to have you and the girls to come to my place, and from here, we'll all go over to the manor. Piper and Leo won't have any trouble with all of us coming over. I've called Paige and Henry, and she said for now, they are okay. Phoebe and Cooper, well I can't get a hold of them for nothing." Patty explains to her.
"You probably, might be able to find them at Quake. That was always Phoebe's favorite place to eat at when Piper was the manager there. I think they usually go there on the weekends when Jessa and Jennifer come over here. We're gonna get something to eat, then we'll meet you at the manor." Prue replies. They both get off of the phone, and Prue goes to check on how things are going in the kitchen.
"Mmm, smells good in here. You're doing a great job. What part of supper are you on right now?" Prue says, walking back into the kitchen, and seeing how well Jennifer is doing.
"I've got the tuna helper just about done, the potatoes are in the microwave, I'm getting ready to check on those, and the peas have just gotten done." Jennifer tells her.
"Wow. Your Mom sure taught you a lot about cooking. It had to be either your Dad, or Aunt Piper cause I don't really remember your Mom cooking that much." Prue replies.
"Oh she's really came around. She couldn't really cook before but you're right. Dad and Aunt Piper got together with her not long after we lost you, and she started discovering cooking talents that she didn't even know she had. What did Grandma need? Is she okay?" Jessa says, coming in from the living room. Prue tells her what all was said and tells them not to worry. They sit down and have their supper, clean up, and go to the manor, not knowing what the rest of the night is going to bring.
Three hours later, Prue has still not ever made it to the manor, and when Coop volunteers to go out looking for her, he finds her car on a remote highway, nearly ten miles from the manor. He knew something was up when he seen Prue laying on the ground next to her car, and un responsive. He checks everything, and notices that Jessa is nowhere to be found. He starts hollering for Jennifer, hoping that she is still there and okay, or at least still alive. He listens really close, and when he hears soft crying in the distance, he goes over to a twenty foot drop off the side of the road, and when he looks over it, he finds Jennifer hanging on for dear life, about four feet down. She's got her feet dug into the rocks and mud, and she's hanging onto roots and weeds.
"Jennifer. Hang on honey. Daddy's here. Don't you let go." Coop tells her, while calling 911 and giving them the location and telling them what happened.
"Cooper? Cooper, what happened? Where are the girls?" Prue says, finally waking up a little bit. He goes over to her, and once he checks out everything, he sees that she has a cut on her head, and her shoulder and back has a couple of stab wounds. He tells her everything he knows so far, and the ambulance finally shows up. Next he calls the manor to let everyone know what happened. Phoebe is livid and full of rage, and fear.
When Darrel shows up at the hospital, he is trying to ask what happened and all of the different questions that go with crime scenes and children disappearing.
"I'm just trying to find out what happened here is all. I can't do that if I don't have any leads." Darrel tells them all.
"Don't have any leads? Don't have, any leads? Darrel. Are you even freaking listening to yourself right now? My daughter had the holy hell beat out of her, one of my grand daughters kidnapped, and the other one got thrown off a cliff, Thank God she's still alive. You want a lead? How about checking about that escaped convict who is still on the run? Start there." Patty tells him, and she is not shy about letting him have it. Patty just stands there, staring Darrel down and then she just sighs, uncrosses her arms, and goes back down the hall toward the OR.
"God don't take them from us please." Patty says silently just as the doctor comes through the door to talk to them.
"It's okay. Don't worry. Prue is badly beaten but she's not real critical. She needed some stitches here and there, and Jennifer just needed her left shoulder put back in place, and she's kind of banged up. She had a laceration on her leg around five inches long like someone tried to stab her to death and she fought back. Prue, had the worst done to her, but they are both alive and back in a room together. I was going to seperate them but I thought it would be best to just leave them together. When I asked about Jessa, Prue was in and out of it but she said that Jessa was thrown over the cliff. It'll be a miracle if, when and if they do find her, she'll still be alive." The doctor informs her.
"Then, we've got to get back out there. Why does everything always happen to us? Thank You doctor. Can we see Prue and Jennifer?" Patty replies.
"The best bet would be to see Prue first. Children in distress from a large amount of pain, are not that easy to talk to and sit with. You'll need to give her some time for her pain medication to work to where she's calm enough to withstand a visit. Come with me." The doctor tells her and Patty sticks her head back around to the waiting room and says, "Hey guys. This way."
Chapter Three
How Did I Get Here?
Jessa was somehow able to stay alive even though she had been thrown off of the cliff. She was limber, flexible, and physically fit enough, to grab onto weeds and rocks and shrubs all the way to the bottom where she had hit her head and got knocked out cold to where no one could find her until a little old man was out walking his dog near the cliff, and found her.
"What in the world? Stay Ellie. Stay, that's a good girl. Hey, are you okay honey? Wake up and talk to me. Please say something." The man tells Jessa. She slowly wakes up, and is so scared to death of him at first until he smiles so warmly and sweetly, that her fears disappear.
"Who are you? Where am I?" Jessa asks, while trying to sit up.
"No no honey, don't move. Here, let me help you. I used to be a military doctor back in the day. My name is Carl Belmont. What's your name honey? Where did you come from and what happened?" Carl replies, while sitting by her and calling for Ellie.
"I don't know. Sir, I have no idea how I ended up here, or what my name is, or where I came from or anything. All I know is, I am so hungry. I'm tired, and I want to lay down somewhere warm and soft. This ground is so cold." Jessa tells him and he takes his jacket off and tells Ellie to stay with her and watch her while he calls for help. Ellie sits there and smiles at Jessa, and once she lays down and rolls over on her back, Jessa knows that she can trust the both of them.
"Come here pretty girl. You are so sweet." Jessa says to Ellie, and Ellie walks over to where Jessa is laying back down, and she crawls up on top of her and tries to keep her warm until help arrives. Carl is only on the phone for a few minutes with the local police department and paramedics when they hear sirens, and Jessa just starts crying.
"Ellie, get off of her. You're hurting her I think. Babe are you okay?" Carl says, running back over to her and trying to shoo Ellie off just in case if that's why she's crying.
"No. No Mr. Belmont. Don't run her off. That's not why I'm crying." Jessa tells him.
"Why then? What's the matter? Are you hurt? You know, any more than what you are now?" Carl asks, while shooting a flare gun up over the highway so they know where to find them.
"Because. You're such a nice guy, and right now, the only person I really know. I'm scared and I feel safe here with you, and I don't want to be moved. I'm in that much pain." Jessa explains to him.
"Oh honey. You've got to go and get some help. I don't know how many days you've been here, but you really don't look that good." Carl replies, and when the police get there to them, Darrel jumps out of his car and says, "Jessa! Oh my God hon, you have no idea just how bad your Aunt Piper and Aunt Prue, and your Mom and Grandma, are broken up about you being gone. Carl Belmont. I had wondered what happened to you over the years." Darrel shakes his hand, and gives him a quick hug, thanking him for taking such good care of Jessa, and for his service. Carl had pretty well went off the grid after his service in the war. He had told everyone that he was going to leave and just stay to himself because all the images were still there of all of his friends and fellow men being blown away all around him, and he just didn't want to get close to anyone ever again.
"Carl, I thought you said when you left that you didn't want to ever get close to anyone again. Thank You for taking care of Jessa today. When did you find her?" Darrel says, while they get her on the cot and start a line on her and make sure she's warm.
"Yeah Darrel. I know I did but, when Ellie found her today, I couldn't let her just lay there. She's only a baby. That was the one thing the war taught me. Never leave a man behind. I just reminded myself, you can't leave anyone behind. I couldn't just let her lay there and dehydrate the rest of the way, or God knows what else would have happened to her." Carl says.
"Well, whatever you did for her, I thank you and I know her family will too. If you want, you can ride along to the hospital with her. Right now, with her having amnesia, you're really the only one she knows. Here. If you want to go ahead and hop in the back of the ambulance, I'll take Ellie and put her inside for you." Darrel tells him, while reaching out for Ellie's leash.
"Thanks Darrel. Ellie, up. Go to the house." Carl says, as he lightly tugs on her leash and hands it to Darrel. He then hands his keys to Darrel and says, "Lock up for me will ya? Meet you at the hospital." They finally get to moving and the EMT keeps asking question after question to keep her awake.
Chapter Four
Surrounded By Strangers
The police have found, picked up, and starting questioning the escaped convict who attacked Prue and tried to kill Jessa and Jennifer. Jessa is now at the hospital with a concussion, severe cuts all over her, and black bruises pretty well from head to toe. She even has a broken wrist from where she tried to keep herself from falling all the way to the bottom of the cliff. Carl sat with her for awhile until she went to sleep and then he had her family to go in and be with her.
"Hey there sweet girl. Are you doing okay?" Phoebe asks, while sitting beside her on the bed, and trying to hug her.
"I'm okay but, I don't know who you are." Jessa tells her.
"I'm your Mom honey. This is your Dad, and your Grandma is right over there, and that over there is Aunt Piper. Your Aunt Prue is in that bed over there. We're your family honey." Phoebe replies.
"Well, you're pretty and all, and you guys seem nice but, seriously, I don't know any of you. I'm sorry but, I don't even know how I got to the bottom of that cliff, what happened the last few days, or any time of my life. The only person I know is Carl. The man that found me, and got me here." Jessa says, as she scoots herself back down under her blankets to go back to sleep. Phoebe wipes a tear away and as Jessa goes back to sleep, she whispers, "I'll never stop fighting this battle until the day you do remember us. We'll work on parts of your life later. Right now, we got us a war to fight with getting you to know us again." Phoebe sends everyone out, and she leaves with them.
"Coop. Can you go to the house and bring me all of the photo albums you can find?" Phoebe asks him.
"Yeah. I can do that but, maybe you should just give her some time. She's been through quite a bit already." Coop replies, but he goes on ahead back to the house, and everyone else goes their seperate ways.
"You call and let us know when she feels like some company, or even when she is able to go home." Piper tells her.
"I will. I promise. Right now, she acts like she doesn't even want me. I may just go home later tonight for awhile too." Phoebe says, when a nurse runs past her.
"What happened? Is it Jennifer? Prue maybe? Jessa? What?" Phoebe asks, chasing after her.
"Jennifer fell getting up to go to the bathroom. She hasn't asked for help one time since she's been here." The nurse replies.
"That's my Jennifer. Always independant." Phoebe says as they both get in there and get her back on her bed.
The next morning, Prue and Jennifer are being released from the hospital, but Jessa has to stay for a couple more days. To her, that was just fine because she had already said that she wasn't leaving there with a bunch of people she didn't know. She's having breakfast when Phoebe walks in and tries one more time.
"Jessa um. We're heading home now with Prue and Jennifer. I just wanted to drop by and see you before we go and see how you are doing." Phoebe tells her.
"I'm doing fine. Thanks for asking. Have a safe trip back home. The nurse told me today when she came in that traffic is insane today. It was really nice meeting you Phoebe." Jessa replies.
"It was more than nice Jessa. You're my daughter and weather you remember me or not, that's something I can't make you do or feel. You're going to have to do that on your own. Search your heart Jessa Marie. You'll come to realize that I'm telling the truth. When you get released, I will be here to pick you up, and you won't be going to Carl's house. You'll be coming home with us where you belong. I have to get your Aunt Prue and Jennifer home and settled in. I love you." Phoebe tells her. Phoebe turns to leave the room and she hears "Wait! Please, come back here for a minute." Phoebe turns around to face Jessa and then she is asked, "What's my favorite things to do with you?"
"On Fridays after you're done with the football games and marching band, we sit on the couch under a blanket, watching a movie while we eat popcorn and drink coke together until about midnight or later." Phoebe says, while sitting back on the bed.
"That does sound like something I would enjoy doing." Jessa replies, and Coop was headed in to let Phoebe know that Jennifer and Prue are ready to go, but when he hears Jessa and her talking, he leaves them alone and takes Jennifer and Prue home without her, while planning to come back and get Phoebe later on that evening. Phoebe and Jessa talk for awhile and the more Phoebe talks about the activities that Jessa likes so much, the more she starts to remember them.
"I know what happened now. We were staying the weekend with Aunt Prue and Grandma called saying that some guy had escaped from prison, and was in the area, and was said to be armed and dangerous. She wanted us all to go over to the manor where we could all be together, so she would know we were safe. Aunt Prue got us supper that night, and then when we were on our way, Aunt Prue got stuck in traffic and when she finally was able to get going again, this guy was standing in the road, looking like he was needing our help. He waited until we came to a near stop, and Aunt Prue not wanting to get us exposed as witches, didn't make him go flying. Anyway, he pulled a gun and told us not to scream, not to move or bring attention to ourselves on the way to the manor. I'm guessing he was wanting to hide out there until morning or whatever. We did what he said and when he had enough of us, he shoved Aunt Prue out of the car, started beating on her, cutting her, and stabbing her, and Jennifer and I jumped out of the car, trying to help Aunt Prue, when he grabbed Jennifer, and threw her to the ground, then me. Once he got us to where he thought we were near dead, he tried to throw us over the cliff. Well me, he got me to the bottom of the cliff, but Jennifer was able to hang on." Jessa explains.
"We'll call Darrel and let him know what all happened then." Phoebe replies, while pulling her phone out of her purse.
A few days later when Prue and Jennifer are on the mend, Jessa is getting ready in her hospital room to go back home when Darrel comes in to talk to her.
"Hey there. You're looking better." Darrel tells her.
"Starting to feel a bit better too. From what Mom tells me, that guy really messed me up quite a bit, so you might say I'm an injury behind in marching band. I won't be able to get back to it right away, and that's what I want to do. I want to reclaim my life. What's up?" Jessa replies, while looking for her little white bear that Coop got her from the gift shop.
"Jessa, sit down for a minute hon. I have to talk to you. Yes the man that did all of this was picked up and questioned and everything, and returned to finish out the remainder of his sentence. Here's the thing though. He can't be tried for what he did to you and Jennifer and your Aunt Prue. He's already in there for the rest of his life for murder, and assult on a police officer. The judge won't add anything to his sentence, because he's already in there for life. The judge said the only thing you can really do, is just be thankful you're alive and say that he has the rest of his life to think about everything." Darrel explains.
"No." Jessa says, as she stands back up to continue her search.
"Excuse me? What do you mean no?" Darrel asks, and it starts a big controversial argument.
"What I mean by no is, I'm not going to just let it go. Who cares if he's already in there for life for murder? I sure as heck don't, and I'm not just going to let this stand. Neither is my family. You wait and see, something will be done. Either magically or physically, I don't care. Something will be done. Ya know, Mom did tell me once that a certain judge was a demon that they didn't know about right away. When they did find out, yeah it took awhile to get rid of him, but I think a man named Cole Turner did that. Mom said she and Cole dated for awhile. Anyway, there are ways to get rid of certain people, and you mark my words Darrel. Something will be done." Jessa replies, letting him have it.
Chapter Five
The Final Trial
Jessa has not yet been released from doctor's care and while she's laying in her room, listening to her music one afternoon, Coop goes in there to talk to her, and finds her singing along to the song 'Breathless' by The Corrs.
"So go on go on, come on leave me breathless. Tempt me, tease me, til I can't deny this lovin' feeling. Make me long for your kiss, go on go on, yeah, come on." Jessa sings along, and then she feels her Dad nudge her bed. She looks his direction, and takes her ear phones out of her ears long enough to sit up and talk.
"What's up Dad? Am I in trouble?" Jessa asks.
"Well sort of, yeah. Darrel called and told me about the little discussion you and him had at the hospital the other day. I guess he wanted you to have some time to recover a bit before telling me about it. Jessa Marie Micheals, why in the world would you threaten an officer to use your magic on someone? Don't you know about the whole personal gain thing? You can't be doing that." Coop tells her.
"It's what Mom would have said. You had been watching her for awhile before you made your appearance, so you already know she would have said that." Jessa replies.
"Yeah, but honey. You're only a teenager, and you could have gotten your Mom and your Grandma, and your Aunts, in serious trouble. Don't tell me that you didn't know that already." Coop says, as Phoebe gets home from work, and she can hear them talking. She goes to see what's going on, and then she gets in the conversation as well.
"What's going on in here?" Phoebe asks, who says she could hear them all the way in the living room.
"Our daughter decided to threaten Darrel with her magic. She said in the hospital the other day that if that guy who did all of that to them, didn't get charged any farther, then she was going to do something to him herself. The judge said that since he was already in there for life for murder, he was not going to get anything else, and that the girls and Prue should let it go, and be thankful they are alive, and to just start rebuilding their lives. So, Jessa here took it upon herself to tell Darrel that she was not going to let it stand and she would do something about it herself. She then went on to tell him about the one judge that Cole Turner got rid of when you, Piper, and Prue, had to fight off everyone in the court room, when the judge was a demon, and everyone in the court room was his pawns. She also just told me that you would have said the same thing to Darrel." Coop explains to her. Phoebe sits down in the chair Jessa keeps by the window and she sighs and says, "I would have too."
"What?" Coop asks with his arms crossed.
"Coop. You can't expect her to just be calm and cool about this. For God's sake, the man tried to kill her, Jennifer, and Prue. He just about got it accomplished with her. I don't blame her for being pissed, and I'm surprised that you are in here jumping her for what she said. Like it or not baby, she's just like me. Jennifer's more calm and layed back like you, Jessa, she'd just assume kick a person's ass than look at them if she's mad at them. I'll call Darrel and have him over for supper tonight, and we'll settle this whole thing. I would have his wife and kids over too, but they got divorced last year." Phoebe tells him.
Later that night, Darrel is knocking at the front door, and when Jennifer opens the door for him, Jessa takes off running back to her room, where she closes the door, locks it, and jumps in her closet under a pile of blankets, thinking that she's hidden. She isn't afraid of Darrel, she just doesn't want to talk to him anymore until he takes the man to trial again and makes sure he's tried for what he did to her, Jennifer, and Prue. Coop used his magic to get into Jessa's room and get her out of the closet.
"I'm not here to take you in for what was said. Your Mom invited me to supper tonight, so we can talk. Here's what I'm going to do. I'll talk to the judge, and I happen to know he is not a demon. Your Aunt Prue done her asto projection on him, and hid in his house somewhere so he wouldn't know she was there, and she checked him out for us. Now, first thing in the morning, I'm going over to the court house early before they even open, and I'm going to talk to him about trying Mr. Rogers for the crimes against you, Jennifer, and Prue. The reason it couldn't go to trial the last time we tried is, well because he wouldn't talk to us about anything. I think, if we can get him to confess to it, we may just be able to get something else done. I hate to say it but, the state of California clearly states that if you are already in prison for murder, and something else happens, your sentence can and most of the time, will be upped to a more severe punishment." Darrel tells her, while reaching for a dinner roll.
"You don't mean?" Jessa asks.
"Yeah. I do. I'm talking Lethal Injection. Murder is one thing but, escaping, going on the run, attempted murder for a third time, resisting arrest, and assulting a police officer, then the sentence does go up. We need someone to tell us exactly what happened, then we need physical evidence at the crime scene as well." Darrel replies.
"What all do you want to know?" Both Jessa and Jennifer say together, and Phoebe asks them, "Girls? What's up?" They take Darrel aside and tell him everything, and both of their stories matches up with each others.
Two weeks later, the new trial is finally underway. The whole Halliwell clan, and their extended family is in the court room supporting Jennifer, Jessa, and Prue. The other kids are in school that day, and the adults took off of work at their jobs.
"I hope they are able to get somewhere. I would not ever wish death on someone, but this guy has it coming if the judge decides that's his new fate." Piper whispers over to Patty.
"I agree." Patty tells her, just as her phone starts ringing and the judge glares at her.
"Maam, turn that thing off or take it outside." The judge tells her.
"I'm really sorry sir. That's my daughter Paige, and she said she would call when she got back into town. Again, I'm sorry." Patty replies, while getting up and leaving the room.
"Oh darn it Grandma. Okay your honor, this is what happened from what I can remember. It was Friday of a couple weeks ago, and I had just gotten back from the football game. I'm in the marching band so, I gotta be there when I don't really want to be. Anyway, Jennifer and I were staying the weekend with Aunt Prue and I crashed on the couch as soon as we walked through the door. While Jennifer was helping Aunt Prue with supper, Grandma called and told her about the man that had escaped from prison in the area, and said to be armed and dangerous. We found out the hard way how true that was. Grandma wanted us all to go over to her place so she knew we would be okay, and then from there, go over to the manor. That's what generations of my family has always called the house. On the way there, Mr. Rogers stopped us when he was standing in the middle of the road. He said he needed help, and Aunt Prue wasn't going to be dumb enough to come to a complete stop, but it didn't work. He pulled out his gun, jumped up front with Aunt Prue, told her exactly where to go, shoved her out, then got out himself, and started beating the crap out of her. I jumped out in an attempt to help Aunt Prue, and then Jennifer got out to help me. We all tried to take control of the situation. From that point, he started stabbing Aunt Prue, then done the same to Jennifer and I, and threw us off the cliff. Jennifer was able to make it out of there the same day that Aunt Prue did." Jessa explains to the judge.
"Ms. Micheals." The attorney says, getting ready to question her.
"It's Ms. Halliwell. Please get it right." Jessa tells her.
"Of course. Ms. Halliwell. On the night that you say you, your sister, and your Aunt, were abducted, what else happened that night? You're in marching band, and your sister is in sports. Are you sure that neither one of you had an injury and was taking pain killers, or that your Aunt wasn't drinking something?" The attorney says, and it starts getting to Jessa.
"What I told the judge is exactly what happened. I'm telling you everything that was relayed to me. The only part I can tell you that I know for myself, is that one afternoon I woke up and there was a cliff above me. I met Carl Belmont that day, and for awhile he was the only one I knew. I had lost my memory apparently, and then my Mom. I'm sorry. I didn't even know my own Mom, or anyone in my family." Jessa replies, and then the attorney thinks that she has her then.
"So. You don't really know much of what happened? Your family could have been lying to you. That's it exactly. Your family was lying to you to get my client the death penalty. He's already in prison for life for a previous murder so why not blame him for attempted murder when it could have been anyone who did that to the three of you." The lady tells her when her client stands up and says, "Your honor, that's enough of this lady badgering that poor kid. I feel terrible for doing that to this family. They seem like very good people. I just wanted to get some free time so I escaped. When I seen them that night, I freaked and took out my rage, and fear on them. Do with me what you will but, please. Make her stop hounding that girl. I admit it okay. I did it, and I'm not afraid to say it anymore." The man who took them, tells the court. He sits back down and the judge asks him, "Anything else you want to add before I continue?"
"Just one thing. Maam, I want to humbly apologize for what I've done to your family. The legal system has called me a monster, and said that I have no remorse or anything of the sort. I stand before you now, a convicted felon, and possibly a soon to be member of death row, who's asking for your forgiveness. If I never get it, I can understand that, and I would not blame you." Mr. Rogers says, with his back to the judge, but facing Phoebe and her family, when Patty walks back in and asks what she missed.
"Maam, I've apologized for my actions toward your family. I've been telling your daughter how sorry I am for everything, and I know that I could have killed them girls. I didn't mean it, I really didn't. I'm so sorry." Mr. Rogers tells Patty with tears in his eyes. Patty sits down but tells him anyway that she forgives him. Phoebe even says that she is able to forgive. It really shocks the entire room when not only Prue, but Jessa and Jennifer are able to say that they forgive him too.
"You do?" Mr. Rogers asks them.
"We were raised to forgive and forget, and not hold a grudge. Yeah, we're mad about the whole thing, and will be for awhile. We do forgive you though." Jessa says, as she walks off of the witness stand, goes across the room to him, and places her hand on his shoulder, and smiles the best she can at that time.
"At this time, I would like to take a small recess. Mrs. Micheals, would you be so kind as to take the girls on home? Their part in this trial is over. There's really no reason for them to stick around. Take them home, get them something to eat, or whatever. I'll make you a note during the recess for them to take back to school with them on Monday. Enjoy your weekend." The judge tells her, and Phoebe and the rest of the family head out of the court room, and never look back.
The girls are back in school and doing all of their activities that they used to do, and it being a Tuesday, Paige is visiting Prue at Buckland's since she's off that day.
"Hey. I almost thought for awhile that you had completely dropped off the face of the earth or something." Prue says, while getting up from her desk, and getting ready to clock out for the day and head on home.
"I know, I know, you're right. I've been so crazy busy here lately and I know that's no excuse. You should always make time for your family, and that's what I plan to do. I've already talked to Coop and Phoebe, and their girls, Mom and Dad, Piper and Leo, and the boys, and Henry said it would be a great idea as well." Paige replies while Prue is putting her jacket on.
"What's a great idea?" Prue asks, while looking through her desk to make sure everything's where it should be for the next day.
"If everyone comes over to the house tonight for a big family get together, dinner type of thing. Everyone else is already over there, and Henry's putting the finishing touches on dinner. I just had to come and get you, and see if you even was able to make it tonight." Paige replies. Prue stands back up from checking her desk, stretches in four different positions, and finally says, "Why not? It will be nice to see everyone together again. Let's go."
At Paige and Henry's house, they may be a little crammed up and running out of room to put people while they eat, but they manage, as usual. Phoebe hears someone laughing hysterically, and when she looks in the direction of where the laughing's coming from, she sees Jessa almost down in the floor from laughing so hard. She's talking about the latest football game that she had to attend again because of her marching band activities. She mentions how the other team got taken on a play because one of their players wasn't watching like he was supposed to do.
"I swear Aunt Piper. I'm not lying. This guy totally got side swiped. They weren't watching their blind side, and that's what happens. You have to protect that quarterback, if you don't, you're screwed, and you lose the game." Jessa tells her, and she starts laughing again.
"Jessa, that's mean. What was really funny was when the one dude lost his drawers while running across the field." Jennifer adds to the conversation.
"Oh my God. I remember that happening. I was coming back from the restroom, and there he was. A young boy who couldn't have been any more than fifteen years old, running bare ass across the field. He made the touchdown though." Prue says, and Phoebe just about died laughing on that note, cause even though she wasn't able to be at the game, she could only imagine how funny it would have been to see everything that her sister and daughters are talking about. Coop had asked Darrel to call them either way and let them know what the ruling was on Mr. Rogers's case as to what they were going to do. When Darrel questioned him about it, Coop only told him it's because they are such loving and caring, forgiving people, that they wanted to know. Coop's phone rings, and he tells Phoebe that it's Darrel.
"Hey Coop. I hate to give this kind of news. Mr. Rogers has been forgiven by you all, and although he did throw himself at the mercy of the court, there's no easy way to say this except to just tell you straight out. He was executed at 12:00 this morning by lethal injection. He wanted me to pass on a message to you, for the girls. He said again how sorry he is that he hurt them, and that it shouldn't have even gone that far. He told me just how beautiful they are, and that they should make the most out of life, and do not ever stray away from the straight and narrow. That's the end of the message. Now, whenever you choose to tell them, is up to you. I got to get back inside." Darrel tells them.
"That poor man. I know he sealed his own fate a long time ago with the first kill of his but, he seemed like he was remorseful." Phoebe tells Coop, not knowing that Jennifer heard the whole thing. She went and told Jessa, and even though it hurt them, they instantly bounced back and just got back to the get together. Coop looks at Phoebe like, "That meant nothing to them. Now what?"
"We'll talk to them more tomorrow. For now, let's just go back in here and enjoy our time together." Phoebe tells him. They go back in the living room with the mind set that in time, the girls will come to terms with everything. Coop knows that right now, they are really too young to deal with life and death, and Phoebe knows her girls just as much as Coop does. Phoebe knows in her heart that, even though it's going to be tough on them for awhile, they're going to get through it. They'll get through it because of their support system through their family, and also, they have each other. Phoebe and Coop put on their brave faces, head back to the gathering, and just let things play out for themselves, in their own time. They're all just glad to have things back to normal, and have the girls, and Prue home safe and sound. Patty is back full time, but she never thought that she would be part of the trauma that happened with her family. She looks up like looking toward heaven, and she mouths the words, "Thank You Mom and God, for everything."
THE END