Chapter Thirty
Late that Evening
Cole appeared in the private hospital room and watched Phoebe from the across the room. She was curled up under the covers with her back to him and he hesitated to move closer. He knew how long it had taken to get her to relax and he didn't want to disturb her if she'd finally fallen asleep. But he couldn't leave her either. He had to be with her even if it was after his allotted visiting hours. He'd nearly lost her today. Not just the baby but Phoebe herself and it had been so long since he had felt that fear from such a close call. But, tonight, her spirit had actuallyCole shook his head and tried to banish that image out of his mind. Unfortunately, it was merely replaced with one of Phoebe lying on the altar after Hasoaf had butchered her. Just the thought of what had been done to herall that bloodher torn body
He pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut. For the thousandth time since he'd first brought Phoebe to the hospital, the day's events replayed themselves in his mind. In between filling out forms and convincing Phoebe that the baby was healthy and safe, Cole had continuously flashed back to different points from that day. He came so close to blasting several nurses out of existence for the smallest and most innocent of concerns. His anxiety level was at an all-time high but all he had to do was look at Phoebe's tired and wan face and he'd be reminded of all he had to be grateful for. Lost in his thoughts, Cole missed Phoebe's soft moans as she stirred.
She twisted sharply in the bed and cried out as she bolted upright, "No!"
Cole darted to the bed and had his arms around her before she even opened her eyes. "It's okay, Phoebe, I'm here. You're safe."
Her heart was racing and her eyes glanced wildly around her in confusion. "Cole? What? Where?" Before he could answer, she'd noticed the difference in her body and panicked, "The baby? What happened? Oh God, Cole"
"Shhh," Cole murmured as he embraced her and kissed her temple, "he's okay, he's in the nursery." He thought he heard a slight change in her breathing and continued to comfort her, "I just checked on him. He's fine, I promise."
"Hasoaf" she whimpered.
"Is burning in hell," Cole told her. "He can't hurt you anymore."
"Hewhat he did," she gulped, "wanted to doand shethe demonessshe wasin-in-inside me"
Cole kissed her tenderly, "Piper sent her to hell, too. You're safe, baby, no one can hurt you or our son." But Phoebe's soft cries became wracking sobs so Cole continued to rock her and murmur to her and patiently wait for her to calm.
Phoebe began taking deep breaths and rested more between them. Eventually, she was leaning quietly against Cole, taking in some of his strength as he tightly wrapped his arms around her. "Cole," she murmured, "I don't --"
"Shhh," he stopped her as he stroked her hair, "no talking. It's just the two of us right now and I don't want to talk. Let me just hold you, okay?" He felt her nod and he smiled as he kissed her again. He rubbed her back and continued to rock her ever so slightly. Suddenly, she pulled back and he asked with concern, "What's wrong?" She didn't answer but had brought a hand to the base of her throat and was breathing heavily as though she was trying to control it. "Nauseous?" he asked as he quickly stood and began pulling the covers off her. She managed a nod before her hand covered her mouth and he immediately used his powers to bring them into the adjoining bathroom.
He knelt behind her as she hunched over the bowl. As she retched, he held back her hair and rubbed her back. After a few moments, she sagged back and he created a small cup of water for her. "Rinse," he softly instructed. He "refilled" the cup a number of times until she indicated it was enough. He then created a moist washcloth and patted her face with it. Then he kissed her tenderly on her forehead and pulled her into his arms and held her tight as they sat on the bathroom floor.
After a few moments, she muttered in a hoarse voice, "Must be love if you can stand watching me puke all the time."
Cole let out a laugh of relief and, as he stroked her hair, murmured, "Must be."
"Can we get out of here?" she asked in a tired voice.
"Sure," he replied with a smile as he carefully stood before he helped her to her feet. She was trembling slightly so he scooped her up into his arms and carried her back to the bed.
"Adam's really okay?" she questioned as he covered her with the sheet and brushed some hair from her eyes.
"I watched him for a good ten minutes before I came in to see you," Cole responded with a reassuring smile. "In and out of the nursery without anyone seeing."
"The cameras" Phoebe warned.
Cole shook his head, "Don't worry. I took care of them."
Phoebe's forehead creased with worry lines, "What about --"
"The shield is in place around his bassinet," Cole assured her. "He'll be protected from anyone intending him harm." Phoebe sighed and he admitted, "The only one anyone is worried about right now is you."
"I'm okay," she lied.
"No, you're not," he stated, "but you will be, in time."
"Do you have any idea how much I love you?" she whispered with tears in her eyes.
Cole kissed her lips tenderly and teased, "I think I might."
But Phoebe didn't laugh and fingered his shirt. "Cole, did you" she hesitated, "did you mean what you said about marrying me?"
"Did you mean what you said when you asked?" he countered.
"But are you sure?" she shook her head. "Do you really want to be with me?"
Cole laughed, "I gave up being sure the moment I realized I was in love with you. Haven't you realized yet, I don't have a choice when it comes to being with you."
"I'm serious," she quietly told him. "You know how I can be and you know I can't change."
"You have," he assured her, "and --"
"Debatable," she interrupted. "The point is, you're mixed up with a Halliwell and, given both our backgrounds, I don't think we'll ever have it easy even with the Elders staying out of it for now and now with Adam --"
Cole cut her off in mid-sentence, "What did your grandmother tell you before she left tonight?" Phoebe looked back at him with confusion so he continued, "She told you that love takes work. And she's right. You know, Phoebe, you're not the only one who's changed since we met. I have too and I know you've seen it. I think even your family's seen it unless they were merely caught up in the moment before. But that's not the point. Think about it, how often did we have to fight to be together? Fight demons, the Source, your familyeach other? And in spite of it all, in spite of all the bad feelings and difficult times, we found our way, didn't we? Adam's opening a whole new world to us, full of new"
"Adventures?" Phoebe shyly supplied when he paused.
He chuckled and admitted, "I was going to say complications." He turned serious, "If we still have to fight our way against adversity, I'm more than ready and willing to take it on. So what about you? Do you think our love is still worth fighting for?"
"Absolutely," she whispered as she quickly hugged him. "We're worth it. We are. You, me, the babyI don't ever want to stop fighting for us."
Cole smiled and buried his face in her hair, "I love you, Phoebe, more than anything in this world." He quickly pulled back and told her, "If I've learned anything from the past nine months, it's that it's not our powers that make us strong."
Phoebe caressed his cheek, "It's our love."
He nodded and, in a choked voice, added, "If we love each other, and love our son, we'll be able to overcome anything that comes our way eveneven death."
She began to tremble and, in a shaky voice, urgently told him, "I don't want to wait. I don't want to waste any more time. I want to marry you."
Cole brushed his thumbs along her lips, "Then you have to build up your strength so you can get out of here and come home with me."
"Home," she murmured with a happy sigh before she panicked, "Home! Cole, nothing's ready! We don't --"
"Uh, uh," he admonished as he put an index finger to her lips, "no worrying. I've already spoken to --"
"Cole, look out!" Phoebe shrieked as she ducked behind him and narrowly missed being hit by a fireball.
Cole jumped off the bed, spun, and destroyed one of the two invading demons with one quick energy ball.
The second demon used the distraction to shimmer out and instantly reappear at Phoebe's side. He grabbed her and put an athame to her throat.
Phoebe was still too weak to attempt to break free from his hold and pleaded to Cole, "Just get Adam. He comes first." Cole hesitated and she tearfully insisted, "Adam firstWe can overcome anything, even"
"I love you," he somberly told her as he faded out of the room.
"He's even more the coward than I'd anticipated," the demon sneered as he pressed the blade into Phoebe's throat.
"You guys really are stupid, aren't you?" Phoebe whispered. "Cole doesn't have an ounce of cowardice within him," she stated in a stronger voice, "and I'd hate to be in your shoes when he comes after you."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Cole commented gratefully as he suddenly appeared behind the demon. In one swift move, Cole had grabbed the demon from Phoebe and twisted the demon's neck. He heard its snap and shoved the body to the floor before he pulled Phoebe into his arms. "Are you okay?" he asked as he quickly pushed her back and inspected her neck for cuts.
"Adam?" she questioned as she nodded.
"No one could get to him," Cole assured her as he hugged her again.
She instantly pulled back. "Didn't you check?"
"I didn't have the time," he confessed. "I only had a few seconds to make that demon think I'd left."
She angrily shook her head, "And you didn't check on him?"
"Phoebe, I didn't want to risk your getting hur--" he began.
"I want to see him," she announced as she tried to get out of bed.
"What is going on in here?" the nurse chastised as she burst into the room. "Mr. Turner, what are you doing here?"
"Good thing I'm here," he claimed as he ignored her question, "she had a terrible nightmare."
Phoebe had frozen with the interruption but still managed to glance at Cole and motion to the body behind the bed and the nurse's line of vision. "I want my son," she told the nurse.
Cole bent to the floor under the pretense of looking for something but instead shot an energy ball at the corpse and vaporized it. He stood and announced, "I found your bracelet, honey. I'll take it to the jeweler in the morning and have the clasp fixed."
The stern-faced nurse stood with her hands on her hips, "Visiting hours are long over, Mr. Turner."
"I want my son," Phoebe told her again.
"He's sleeping in the nursery," the nurse assured her. "We'll bring him to you if he wakes up hungry."
"I want to see him now," Phoebe demanded.
Cole went to her side and said, "He's o--"
"Don't patronize me, Cole," she shouted, "I want to see him. I want Adam."
He glanced at the nurse with concern and assured Phoebe, "Adam's sleeping. He's fine."
"I want to see him," she repeated in a slightly higher tone, "I have to see him."
"Maybe you can bring him in," he suggested to the nurse.
"It's highly irregular," the nurse replied, "and Ms. Halliwell needs her rest."
"You can't keep him from me," Phoebe cried out as she struggled in Cole's arms. "He's my son. I have to see him."
"I'll be right back," the nurse decided as she glanced at Cole and turned from them. "And I'll get the doctor."
"Okay, she'll bring Adam," Cole spoke quietly to Phoebe, "but you have to calm down. Remember what Ava said about your blood pressure. Besides, you don't want to upset Adam, do you? He'll be able to sense your distress."
"You don't understand," she nervously insisted as she tried to control herself but still spoke in a rush, "the demonsthey weren't just after me."
"The shield is up. They can't get to him," he patiently reminded her. But, suddenly, he looked at her with a new awareness, "You didn'tDid you have a premonition?"
She shook her head, "But I have to see him, make sure he's okay." She tightened her grip on his upper arms, "You heard what Leo told us. Adam's a target now. Cole, you have to get him. You have to make sure he's okay."
"The nurse will bring him in," he assured her.
"I want you to go," she tearfully insisted. "Please, Cole, please, make sure he's okay."
Cole sighed, "Only if you lie back and close your eyes for me." She agreed and he kissed her forehead after she lay back against the pillows. "Deep slow breaths," he instructed as he turned to go, "I'll be right back."
Cole met the nurse halfway down the hallway. "Where is he?" he asked as he glanced at her empty arms.
"Mr. Turner, I don't --" she nervously began.
"What?" he sharply asked. "What's wrong?"
"I don't know how this happened," she stammered. "Our hospital security's one of the best around and --"
"Where's my son?" Cole practically shouted as fear rose within him.
"I don't know," she confessed.
"What do you mean?" he whispered in shock as he glanced down the hallway at Phoebe's door.
The nurse looked at him with a stunned expression, "I'm sorry, Mr. Turner, but your son is missing."
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