Warning Signs
By: Sapphire (aka Malachite157)
Writer's Note: Not much action takes place in the first part/chapter of this fic, but this is because it's building up to a climax. If people are still following this series, please let me know! I don't know how many readers I have left after taking a year to update the last fic. (I won't take that long to update again, hopefully!)
Chapter One - Sixth Sense
Night:
"Maybe it was Neil Baker."
Piper was relaxing on the sofa, reading a magazine to take her mind off her daily worries. However, Paige's insistent tone finally brought her out of her daze. She looked up. "Neil...Baker?"
Paige stood to her left, hands on hips and a determined look on her face. "The good guy demon who appeared in our kitchen a few weeks ago? He gave us the Drawing Stone."
Piper's memory was jogged at the mention of the stone. It immediately put her in a bad mood. "What about him?"
"Piper, haven't you been listening to a word I've said? I'm suggesting that he might have been the person who rescued Phoebe from her poisoned penthouse."
Piper looked back at her magazine and pushed her hair behind her ears in a disinterested gesture. "Maybe. His girlfriend's a psychic so it'd make sense."
"Wife. His wife is a psychic," Paige corrected.
"Whatever."
Paige sighed, arms falling limply at her sides. "Piper, you seem completely disinterested in finding out who's after our pregnant and vulnerable sister."
Piper looked up sharply at Paige, a gleam of anger in her eyes. "She's expressly made it known that she doesn't want our protection and, might I remind you, I'm also pregnant and vulnerable."
Paige groaned loudly in exasperation. "You have GOT to put your hormone-induced differences aside! When I entered this family, I could see how tight knit everyone was. And I was so happy to become a part of that. But lately this family has been falling apart. No one's communicating anymore and that's dangerous. It's going to get one or all of us hurt, or worse."
The aggression in Piper's eyes faded and she closed them and sighed softly. She was still a moment, hanging her head as she composed herself.
"You're right, Paige. You've been right all along about this."
"Thank you," Paige jumped in.
Piper looked up wearily: "But it's not me who's instigating all the tension. Phoebe's the one being uncooperative and, well, damn right bitchy at times. We can't force her to accept our help in this. The last time I tried she blew me off cold."
Paige looked away, remembering that Cole had phoned two days ago wanting to talk to her specifically. Not being particularly fond of the half demon, she had procrastinated on returning his call. Now she was wondering if it had something to do with Phoebe's irrational behaviour over the past few weeks. Since the dinner a week and a half ago, she'd refused to come to the Manor at all, instead going to public places to spend her time after work until Cole had returned to the penthouse and it was safe for her to be there.
"She has been the difficult one, I admit," Paige said eventually. "You've also been touchy, though. I think being pregnant makes you that way naturally, but carrying magical children probably amplifies it."
"Tell me about it. I did NOT enjoy hiccoughing up bubbles the other day," Piper grumbled.
Paige couldn't help but giggle at the memory of it. "You should have seen your face!"
"You should have seen yours!" Piper retorted with a smile threatening at the corners of her mouth.
Paige grinned in relief at seeing her older sister expressing some humour for the first time in a while.
"Makes me wonder what other surprises your little one has in store for you," she said warmly.
Piper leaned back into the sofa, a distance coming into her eyes. "Me too," she murmured.
Sensing her sister wanted some alone-time, Paige took the opportunity to break away to make that phone call. "I'll be in the kitchen. I need to make a call," she said enigmatically.
Phoebe washed the last dirty dish and put it on the drip tray to dry. She grabbed a nearby kitchen towel and wiped her hands, mind distant as she drifted through her thoughts. She turned away from the sink and started walking when suddenly she felt something wriggling inside her. She dropped the towel in shock and gasped lightly. She blinked and slowly moved her hand over to her tummy and placed it against her now noticeable bulge. Sure enough, she felt movement.
"Oh my God!" she cried and then erupted in giggles.
Cole hurried into the kitchen in his vest and shorts, looking alarmed. "Phoebe?" he said, shaving cream still on half his face.
"Cole come here, come here!" she urged, grinning and beckoning him with her hands.
"What's the matter?" he asked, the panic fading from his face as he realized nothing was obviously wrong.
She took his hand and placed it over her stomach. He started to speak when he felt a kick. His eyes widened.
"Did you feel it?" she asked excitedly, scanning his face intently.
He looked into her eyes and nodded, a broad smile breaking out across his countenance. "Yeah, yeah I did!" he laughed.
"Isn't that wonderful?" she squealed.
He knelt in front of her and placed an ear against her bulging midsection. "I--I can hear his heartbeat," he said softly, filled with wonder.
"You can?" Phoebe asked, her smile lessening a little as a multitude of emotions welled up inside her.
He drew back a little and then leaned forward and kissed her exposed stomach gently. He looked up at her adoringly.
"You're glowing," he commented.
A flicker of alarm crossed her features. "I am!"
He stood up chuckling and placed both hands on her shoulders. "Not in a bad way. I mean you're looking so happy and healthy."
"Ohhh," she sighed in relief and giggled a little. She fell silent and the two stared at each other in a shared moment of intense emotion. Tears started glinting in her eyes as she felt both frightened and ecstatic at the same time. To see the same look in his eyes was an incredible comfort to her. She giggled again softly and leaned forward to kiss him, when the telephone rang.
Both jolted slightly as they were startled out of the moment. Cole cleared his throat, looking a little irritable. "Do you want me to get it?" Phoebe asked quietly.
"No, no I'll get it," he replied and kissed her on the cheek. He turned and left the room. Phoebe watched him exit the kitchen, then let loose a trembling sigh and wiped away the moisture from her eyes with the back of her hand.
Cole answered with a rather rough hello. "Hi Cole, it's Paige."
He was mildly surprised to hear her voice but then remembered why she was calling him. "Yes, hi, Paige. I see you've managed to find a moment to return my call."
"I've been busy trying to protect two very moody pregnant sisters," she answered shortly.
"Yeah, that's kinda what this is about," he said, looking towards the kitchen to make sure Phoebe wasn't eavesdropping.
"Really? Elaborate, Cole, I don't have a lotta patience tonight."
"I actually think that it's something I should discuss with you in person," he said, hearing Phoebe's approaching footsteps.
"Why? How serious can it be?"
"It seriously affects your sister's relationship with the two of you, which is why I'd rather discuss it with you in person," he said slowly, hoping she'd catch his drift.
Paige was silent for a few seconds. Finally, she agreed. "All right Cole. When are we going to have this meeting?"
"Tomorrow, at noon? I could come by your office in your lunch hour."
He heard her grumbling. "Fine. I'll see you then."
He put the receiver down as Phoebe entered the room, giving him an inquisitive look.
"It's nothing important," he answered her impending question. He walked over to her and pulled her into a hug. She reached up to stroke his face and got a handful of shaving cream. She laughed and said: "You'd better finish grooming yourself. I'm gonna get into something loose and snuggly."
"Okay," he whispered with a wink and they departed each other's arms. He watched her head off to the bedroom, feeling a tiny bit guilty for conspiring behind her back. He had suggested before that the two of them inform her family of their idea of why she'd been acting so strangely lately, but she had firmly refused. She'd said she didn't want to give Piper any more fuel against her and their son and that was that. There was no arguing with her. Cole knew better than to try her patience at the moment. He couldn't say he cared greatly about Piper and Paige, but he knew that Phoebe, in her heart of hearts, loved them deeply and it would hurt her immensely to fall out with them. So he took it into his own hands to try and make amends on her behalf. It was important that they knew her actions had not been entirely her own, not just for preserving their sisterhood, but for preserving Phoebe herself. It could very easily become a serious problem if she lost control totally, and they had to at least be made aware of that.
Frank stumbled and shouted an obscenity. His shoe lace had come untied again and he'd nearly fallen flat on his face this time. He grumbled and knelt to tie it. A demon knocked into him from behind and he yelled at him crossly. Another shoved past him roughly just as he attempted to tie the lace for the fifth time that day. "What is WITH you demons!" he snarled.
Frank was kneeling in the middle of a usually quiet passageway in the central zone of the Western USA Underworld. He'd been on his way to talk to the Seer about what had happened to him ten days ago when the place seemed to come alive. As he stood and backed up against the wall to allow a small clan of lower-level slasher demons passage, he realized some big event must have been taking place, for behind the slasher demons were an entire assortment of demons and warlocks coming his way. He knew this passageway went through the Black Alter which was a favourite meeting place for demon clans, so he could only assume a rather large gathering was forming there now.
Intrigued by this, he followed the parade of evil beings to the old sacrificial alter. Witches were usually killed on the black slab as an offer to whoever the current Source was. As there hadn't been a Source in a while, it hadn't been used much lately. Presently, there was a smarmy looking individual preaching to the groups of demons who'd gathered around him. Frank levitated himself high enough to get a good view of the speaker. Whoever he was, he'd attracted quite a crowd.
"Fellow demons and warlocks and all other evils who have communed here to listen to my proposals, I welcome you in this black hour. These are dark times even for creatures such as ourselves, for not only are we without a Source, but we are without order and structure. The entire underworld has plummeted into mayhem. Demons stabbing demons, turning on their friends and brothers... What unity there was under the last Source has all but crumbled to ruin. Is it any wonder the forces of Good have a considerable upper hand on all forces of evil at the moment?"
"Get on with it!" shouted a demon from somewhere to Frank's left. A few others grunted in support of this demand.
The speaker smiled toothily, apparently unperturbed, and continued. "Perhaps not all of us are aware of WHY we are in such a dilemma. My simple answer... is witches. Most of you would have heard of the Charmed three, a trio of powerful witches who have thwarted demonic plans for years. They and their line have been a continuous headache for all who have tried to get a significant foothold in the world of mortals. Recently, one of these witches paired with one of our own! A demon and former servant of the Source, he has betrayed us all by choosing this witch over everything he has fought for for a century. Together, they have created a child of devastating power. I suspect we ALL have been sensing this growing threat above ground."
There was a general murmur of agreement and a few shouts of anger at this recent development. Frank felt something in his stomach knot. They were talking about the very being he had signed his soul away for and who he had risked everything to protect. The way this meeting was going did not bode well for him. Something big was definitely on the horizon. He continued to listen with a feeling of dread.
"Efforts have been made by small and insignificant numbers of demons to either harvest or eradicate this force. All such efforts have failed, for this child, even though it still dwells in the womb, has deflected our every attempt. Possessing the power of an offensive forcefield, an evil-revealer, fire and who knows what else, it has through its mother decimated all in its way. Fellow demons, we cannot allows this menace to continue to grow and develop. If we do, it will surely amount to a being so powerful, so devastating that the world of evil shall crumble to its knees. We must stop it NOW, while it is still vulnerable."
"How?" a gruff, bulky looking creature roared. Frank was standing only several feet away from the repulsive, smelly thing.
"By teaming together," the speaker said, black eyes flashing with a slightly insane light. He opened his arms out and closed his hands into fists. "I know it is not in our nature to trust and we rarely work together to defeat a foe without stabbing each other in the back, but in this case we simply cannot afford to handle this alone. We have no choice but to team up and take on the threat as one powerful and unshakeable force. We need to put our ideas and strengths together and come up with a strategy that cannot, by sheer strength of numbers, fail."
The crowds erupted in chatter, growling and snarling. The speaker was definitely right - working together did not come to them easily. If there was one inherent trait through all evil, it was not to trust any other dark force. However, what he was proposing made perfect sense. It was this conflict of logic and instinctual wariness that unsettled his audience. He was quick to notice and attempt to dispel the confusion.
"The fact that we must all face is that, if we do not act soon to preserve our own existence, then we will fall to the forces of Good. We all know that it only takes one being of immense power to tip the balance of good and evil to either side. While it may appear a more profitable option to rather take this child and raise it as our own, this would only further increase the tensions and mistrust running rampant through our population. No, my comrades, we must destroy this witch spawn completely and, in so doing, we will become united once more. The possibilities that await us if we pull this off together and remain together are endless. We can accomplish much more in numbers than we can individually. So! I propose this to you all: every group here today offers one representative to put forward ideas and offer support and tactics. All the appointed reps will join with me in forming a plan to overthrow our enemy and once this plan has been developed, we shall gather again like we are now and learn of it together. We will rise up and overwhelm our foe! What say you to this?"
There was a small, suspenseful pause before the first demon spoke up and said: "I'm with you!" This cry of loyalty started a chain reaction and soon the cavern of the Black Alter was filled with the cries and shouts of demons and warlocks all pledging their allegiance to the cause. Frank listened and watched them all in silent horror as they rallied around the leader and it was then he learnt of his name. Chants of "Kaulkan!" around the tall, pale man with the dark eyes and shock of black hair were his answer. Frank was perhaps the only one not punching the air, shuffling about and screaming. He remained there, staring intently at the demon who had just become his biggest enemy. With a new, determined light in his eyes, Frank finally turned away and pushed his way through the crowd and headed straight for the quarters of the Seer.
Paige found herself glancing at the clock for the better part of the morning. She knew Cole was going to turn up around noon and the thought made her a little nervous and irritated. She wasn't keen on him imposing on her during her work day and around her colleagues, but that was only part of it. She also knew he liked her as much as she liked him, so for him to go out of his way to meet with her in private, well, something definitely had to be up. It made her worry.
When one o'clock finally came, she started putting her papers aside and set her computer on stand by. She was busy digging in a drawer when she heard a voice.
"So this is where you work."
She jolted, startled, and glared up at the speaker. Cole simpered.
"Is this going to take long?" she asked, closing her drawer and standing up.
"Depends on your reaction. It's something I'd rather discuss in a less crowded venue," he said lowly, glancing at the people moving about the office.
Paige sighed. "Fine. We can go to the park and talk there."
"Sounds good to me."
Only stopping briefly to get herself a giant pretzel, Paige and her brother in law went directly to the local park. As they headed for a bench by the lake, Cole began to speak.
"You're probably well aware of the tension between your sisters," he stated.
"It's impossible not to be," Paige replied irritably.
"Well, I've noticed Phoebe tends to be the antagonist in those situations, but it goes further than just some maternal rivalry."
"She being a b---witch, to you too?" Paige enquired.
"No, but she's been very irrational, to the point where she's put herself and our son in danger without a care. The other day she had a premonition of an innocent being attacked outside a news house. He told me of it and I said we should get you and Piper. She completely dismissed the idea and insisted we just go together. She again used the baby's force field to protect us and destroy the attacking demon."
"What the heck? I thought it was agreed that was bad for the kid! What's wrong with her? And going without us, too!" Paige erupted.
"I know! I told her off for it and she...she says she feels as if she's..." he paused to swallow, finding the next few words difficult to say, especially to Paige. "She's losing control. It's often not her talking, nor is it all her when she's acting so rash. We think that her thoughts and actions are being influenced by the..."
Paige stopped and stared at him. "By the baby?" she finished. He nodded.
With a snort, she continued walking and he followed alongside her. "It makes sense. Now what does THAT tell you about this kid..."
This time Cole stopped short. "It tells me nothing! You can't possibly be blaming the little guy for trying to---"
"To what? Separate his mother from sense, not to mention her sisters? You're right, there's definitely some maternal rivalry between Piper and Phoebe and I think that's caused by the fact they they're both carrying children of opposing potentials."
Cole glared furiously at Paige, who returned the look. Finally, he glanced away, sighing and shifting uncomfortably.
"Face it Cole. There's a lotta conflict going on in that child of yours and the internal battle he's already experiencing is having an effect on Phoebe. You know this, that's why you came to tell me."
He turned and regarded her coolly. "I'm suggesting it as a possibility. Phoebe wouldn't admit it to you, because she feels it'd give you more reason to gang up on her."
"Is that how she feels? Ganged up upon?" Paige asked a little more softly.
"Yeah, I think so. Anyway, I thought it best that you and Piper at least be aware of this. For her protection, and your sanity."
Paige nodded slowly, gaze distant as she absorbed this new information.
"I expect you'll tell Piper and Leo?" he asked.
"Too chicken to tell them yourself, huh?"
"Don't make this any more difficult for me, Paige."
She laughed shortly and smiled casually. at him. "Thanks for telling me, Cole."
With that, she turned around and headed back to her office. Cole watched her go, hoping he'd made the right decision in telling her. She'd probably use it against him for the rest of his life. Still, it was better to be safe than sorry when it came to the two people he loved.
"Seer!"
Frank pounded on the door with his fists. He received no answer. "Seer, open up if you're there! I urgently need to speak to you."
Growing impatient, he shimmered, only to be blocked by a magic seal. He reappeared outside her door, cursing. Just then, he heard a click and the door opened. The Seer glared up at him, adorned in night robes of rouge and navy. She looked very angry. "This had better be good," she hissed.
"Oh? So your power of premonition hasn't warned you of the great freaking gathering at the Black Alter?"
She frowned. "What are you talking about?"
"Can I come inside?" he asked tetchily.
Her glare lingered on him a few seconds longer before she stepped back, grumbling. He pushed inside and closed the door with his telekinesis. He wasted no time in informing her of what he had seen.
"An uprising," the Seer murmured at the end of his retelling.
"Yeah, an uprising. One that threatens both of us. We can't fight all those demons," Frank ranted, pacing back and forth across the room.
"This is true. But we can at least warn the witch and her sisters," the Seer said calmly.
Frank stopped abruptly and stared at her incredulously. "Warn them? How? How are we going to alert them without exposing ourselves?"
"The same way I warned her of the attack on you."
Frank's frown deepened. "Yeah about that..." he began but the Seer silenced him by raising her hand.
"This is no time to lose your cool over past occurrences. The simple fact is that the witch who carries our Source-to-be has the power of premonition and so do I. I was able to send her one of my own which made her think you were an innocent in need of saving. She didn't suspect a thing. All I did was time it. I made sure she was touching an object related to the event so that she thought she had received it from there."
"So you could predict when she was going to touch some random object but you couldn't see this mass uprising coming?" Frank remarked condescendingly.
The Seer scowled at him. "I cannot see everything. It is an unreliable gift at times, I admit. However, if I tune into someone or something and concentrate, I can usually pick up a reading. I will do this in order to warn the witch."
"That's all very well, but this is assuming she and her siblings will be able to cope with a hundred or so demons attacking at once. Powerful she and her sisters may be, but they're not strong enough to withstand that."
"Hopefully they will figure out a solution so that it never reaches that stage. But, if they don't, we will aid them," she said, turning to an armchair and sinking down into it.
"We, again. Whatever happened to, 'I'll see you in seven years, Frank'?"
"Believe me, I'm not enjoying working with you prematurely, but as you have so astutely noticed, things have arisen that need attending to. It is in your best interests that you protect your investment, or have you decided your soul's not that important anymore?"
Frank raised his fist threateningly and glared venomously at her, panting furiously through his nostrils. He managed to calm himself down enough to back down and say: "All right. But this had better be the last time I put my life on the line before that kid's seventh birthday."
"If we play our cards right, it should be," she told him coolly.
"What's your plan, then?"
The Seer paused a few moments, staring through him thoughtfully. Her eyes refocused on his and she smiled enigmatically.
When Paige came home that evening, she was greeted by a mess. Shattered glass and broken vases littered the floor, along with splinters of wood, soil from overturned pot plants and several other now undistinguishable objects lay in pieces in the main hallway right up into the living room.
"Piper?" she called out worriedly.
"Over here, Paige," a voice drifted down the passageway. She picked her way through the debris of pottery and furniture and found Piper sitting on the bottom step of the staircase, holding an ice pack to the side of her knee.
"Oh my God, what happened?" she asked.
Piper sighed. "Demon attack. You know, the usual shimmer in the middle of the house, throw energy balls, try to kill me type."
"Did he hurt you? I mean, badly? And did you vanquish him?" Paige knelt by her sister, putting comforting hands on her left forearm.
"No, other than knocking me to the floor with telekinesis. I blew him to itty bits on my third attempt."
"Third?"
Piper looked at her youngest sister in the eyes for the first time. "Yeah, third. The first time I conjured up a small display of fireworks. The second time it was balloons. After hurting my knee I was pissed enough to override baby's desires and finally kick some ass."
"Wait, you hit the demon with fireworks and balloons?" Paige asked in disbelief.
"Yes! That's what I just said," Piper replied irritably.
Paige took a moment to digest the information, then said: "Were you alone when this happened?"
Piper nodded with a sigh. "Why didn't you call for Leo? He could have helped."
"I thought I could handle him. And I did, it just took longer than expected was all," Piper answered wearily. Paige could see there was something wrong.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"What is this, the third degree?" Piper grumbled.
"I just want to know that you're all right. You had to fend off a demon by yourself with...obviously screwy powers. You shouldn't have had to do that alone," Paige said gently.
"I've handled demons plenty of times by myself. Having a baby in me doesn't... It doesn't... Yeah, it does. It does make a difference," she finished, voice starting to break. She blinked back tears and looked away miserably.
"Oh, honey," Paige leaned forward and hugged her. Piper sighed again. "It only really dawned on me afterwards how much worse that could have panned out. If I'd been hit front on..." She was unable to finish her sentence.
"I understand. We're going to have to work on keeping you protected," Paige comforted.
"But it's impossible to keep me safe all the time. And when I can't even rely on my powers... Argh, I just felt so desperate without them working properly. It's so...so strange having a force within you controlling your magical actions."
"Now you know what Phoebe feels like," Paige remarked. She felt Piper stiffen, then gradually pull out of the hug. Her eyes were downcast.
"Piper, I didn't mean..." Paige began, but Piper cut her off.
"No, you did meant it. And you're right," she said in a strained voice. She looked up sorrowfully at Paige. "I've been so hard on her. I should have been more sympathetic. I only understand now what an influence a magical child can have on the person carrying it."
Paige nodded softly. "Which reminds me... I had a visit from Cole, at work, today."
"Really? What about?"
"About just this. He reckons Phoebe's been acting so weird lately because her son is influencing her. She's grown irrational and careless, but she's apparently aware of it and feels like she's losing control."
Piper frowned. "Well why didn't she tell us that? It would have helped ease the tension between us if I'd known."
"Cole said she was afraid you'd use it against her, what with her son being partially evil and all that..." Paige trailed, wanting to say more about the issue but thinking better of it. She had her own thoughts and feelings about the way Phoebe's son was behaving.
"I wouldn't have... I mean, I'm concerned that her child's having a largely negative effect on her, but then...my daughter's not exactly thinking along the same lines as me, either," she said, rubbing her temples to ward off an oncoming headache.
"You understand that now, having had that experience, but before you weren't so empathetic," Paige pointed out.
"Hmm. I guess you're right."
There was a thoughtful silence between them. Finally, Paige spoke. "There's...something else that's been on my mind, about this whole situation between you two."
Piper looked up at her and could see Paige was having difficulty in expressing herself. "What is it?" she asked gently.
"You know how Phoebe's son rejected that Drawing Stone, because it was a threat to him?" Piper nodded. "Well, what if he's rejecting your daughter? You know, he can sense you're carrying a good, magical child. They're like polar opposites. Maybe the friction between you two is more the friction between..."
"I get you," Piper murmured. Paige looked at her helplessly. "I don't want to be right...and it's just a theory, one that's probably way off the mark but...worth considering, at least."
"I hope you're wrong, Paige. But thank you, all the same, for sharing that with me. I'm glad you and I at least have good communication."
Paige smiled lopsidedly. "Me too."
Just then, Leo orbed in. "Whoa! What happened here? Piper, are you okay!"
"Calm down, honey, I'm fine. The demon's dead and vanquished, no need to panic."
"Demon!" Leo exclaimed. He came to her side. "Let me see that..." he said, gesturing at her injured knee.
Paige moved out of the way and stepped back, watching as Leo healed Piper while interrogating her. She decided she'd leave Piper to tell her husband about what they'd been discussing and headed for the kitchen to get a broom and some cleaning liquids. She was tired and stressed herself, but knew that her sisters needed her to keep it together for them. They were going through far worse turmoil than she was at the moment.
Phoebe had been in such a good mood that day that she worked late, finishing all the work she'd put off over the past few weeks. Her morning sickness had gone, she was getting less headaches and generally just felt better now that she was five and a half month's pregnant. It was apparently the best stage of a pregnancy.
Her cell phone startled her when it rang, breaking the perfect silence of her office. She wasn't alone in the building as a colleague of hers was also working a late shift just next door and security was doing its patrol, so as far as she was concerned she was safe enough. However, she was still a little on edge. She hadn't fully recovered from her near-death experience. She grappled at her handbag and pulled her cell phone from its pocket.
"Hello?"
"Hi, Phoebe? Are you still at work?"
Phoebe closed her eyes as she realized she's forgotten to call Cole and tell him her plans for the evening. "Oh, yeah, sorry sweetie... I didn't realize it was so late. When did you get home?"
"Right now. Why are you still at the office? Surely everyone else has gone home. Phoebe, it's not safe for you to be--"
"I know, I know! I just lost track of time. Look, I'll leave now and be back before you know it."
"Phoebe, maybe I should---"
"I can take care of myself. Stop worrying. I'll be there in fifteen."
She hung up and started clearing her desk, a little annoyed. Why couldn't she work late once in a while? She was in such a productive mood. Normally, people in productive moods capitalised on it. 'Only, you and your situation aren't normal', she reminded herself mentally. With a sigh she gathered up her folder and handbag and left her office.
She couldn't help but feel edgy as she walked down the dimly lit corridor to the parking lot. She glanced about nervously as she crossed across the empty lot to her car. It was so quiet, almost too quiet...
She shook her head, trying to calm her nerves and get a grip. It was good to be cautious, but not to the point where she over-analysed even the silence. The thought still didn't prevent her from checking the back seat of her car through the window before she got in. She'd seen enough horror films where killers popped up behind the unsuspecting driver. Satisfied there was no one in the vehicle, she got in, started it up and hit the street. Her drive home was uneventful, but she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched.
Finally, she came home. She entered the apartment with a big sigh of relief.
"It's about time," came a voice to her left. She turned and saw Cole standing by the window, looking at her disapprovingly.
"Oh, Cole, it was an innocent mistake. I was in a good mood and felt like getting some back-logged work done. I'm sorry I didn't call, but you know how easy it is to lose yourself in something."
The critical look in his eyes faded somewhat and he walked over to her. "I know, but you've got to be extra careful at the moment," he admonished gently.
Phoebe sighed dramatically and put down her things. "I'm aware of that..." she said exasperatedly.
"Good," he ended the discussion there before it escalated into an argument. He knew how touchy she was at the moment. "I bought some Chinese on the way home. Are you hungry?"
"Yes, very," she said with a smile. The couple chatted casually as they headed for the kitchen to get their meal and all thoughts of being watched disappeared from Phoebe's mind...
To be continued...