Tru looked at her watch. It read nearly 9:15 a.m. She was glad she had gotten to the airport early. Flying had become something of a hassle since September 2001. The added security was designed to prevent a repeat of what had happened in New York and Washington D. C. She really didn't mind the extra time checking in. She, like most of the passengers, completely understood the need for the added security.
Still, it was something of a hassle. She should have brought a book with her. That would give her something to do while she waited for her flight. As it was, she had nothing to do but sit and wait. Well, it wasn't the first time she had done that. A lot of her time at the morgue was spent sitting around.
"Hi there," said Phoebe as she and the others walked u to Tru. "We just thought we'd see you off. One fellow New Yorker to another."
"Thanks," said Tru smiling. "I really appreciate it. It can be pretty boring just sitting around here waiting for my flight."
"Tru Davies," said Phoebe, "these are my sisters, Piper and Paige. And this is Leo, my brother-in-law. She's married to Piper."
"I kind of figured that but I wasn't sure," said Tru. "It's nice to meet all of you."
"Same here," said Piper. "This must seem kind of strange. Total strangers coming to see you off."
"Well, Phoebe's not a total stranger," said Tru. "We've met."
"Yes, well," said Leo. "Actually, we thought you might be able to help us. Phoebe said you told her you have some kind of visions of the future. That's how you knew I was going to be killed."
"Well, they aren't visions exactly," said Tru. "It's hard to explain. I just seem to know some things sometimes. I figure since I do I should try to help if I can."
"We'd like you to tell us everything you knew about that incident at the restaurant," said Piper. "We, uh, we just want to make sure that it was a random event and that no one was after Leo specifically."
"Well," said Tru, "there's not much I can tell you. Like I told Phoebe, it was just a robbery attempt that went bad. Some drug user came in to rob the restaurant and things just got out of hand. Leo and Phoebe were there and the robber turned on Leo. He sort of went crazy, thinking that Leo was challenging him or something. So he shot Leo in the chest four times then just ran out of the restaurant."
"Except there was no robbery attempt at the restaurant yesterday," said Phoebe. "Which means it couldn't have been a robbery gone awry."
"Well, I've learned," said Tru, "that when I change one thing, sometimes other things change as well. It's possible that by preventing you from going to that restaurant it changed other things and the robber didn't go in there."
"I guess that makes sense," said Leo. "Everything is interrelated. Even a small change can alter many events. I guess it's possible that things could have changed enough to prevent him from going in there."
"Of course," said Tru self-consciously. "All I know is that what was supposed to happen didn't happen. I'm just glad Leo is okay."
"And we appreciate, believe me," said Piper. "What did this robber look like?"
"Oh, nothing unusual," said Tru. "About thirty-five or so. It was strange, though. He was dressed in all black. Black T-shirt, black jeans, and a black windbreaker. He was clean shaven and didn't have any identifying marks or features."
At the mention of the man being dressed in all black, everyone looked at each other. Warlocks liked to dress in all black. So did Dark Lighters. But then, plenty of mortals also liked to dress in all black. Some thought it was cool, others were making a statement, and still others just liked dressing in black. It really didn't give them a lot to go on.
"You said he shot Leo," said Paige. "What did he shoot him with?"
"A gun," said Tru a little uncertain. "Why? What did you think he was shot with?"
"What kind of gun?" Piper asked.
"I'm not sure," said Tru. "I really don't know a lot about guns. I think it was a thirty-eight. It looked like the kind the police carry in the movies. Most of them seem to carry thirty-eights."
"And Leo died, right?" asked Phoebe.
"Yes," said Tru. "Right there on the floor. That's all I really know. I knew you were with him when he died and I saw an ad on a bus for your column. That's how I found out who you were and where to find you."
"Well, that's not much to go on," said Phoebe. "But thanks for telling us about it."
"Why?" Tru asked. "Is there some reason you think someone would be after Leo?"
"Oh, we just wanted to make sure," said Piper. "Everyone has enemies. We just wanted to make sure it wasn't one of Leo's old enemies come back to settle an old debt."
"An old enemy?" questioned Tru.
"I, uh, did some consulting work for a while," said Leo. "Made some really powerful enemies once upon a time. Nothing really to worry about. But once in a while an old enemy surfaces looking for revenge."
"I see," said Tru, not totally believing what they told her. "I hope I was some help."
"I'm sure you were," said Piper. "We'll have to do some checking but like Phoebe said, thanks for telling us. It's more than we knew yesterday."
"Glad I could help," said Tru. "If I think of anything else I can give Phoebe a call. Once I get back to New York I might think of something else that..."
Her sentence went unfinished as an alarm began sounding throughout the airport. They all looked around to see what the problem was. They saw a man running through the airport, several unformed, armed guards close behind. The thing that they all instantly noticed was that the man being chased was dressed in all black.
"That's him," said Tru. "That's the same guy who tried to rob the restaurant. The one who shot Leo."
Before any of them could react, the man ran past them, the guards close behind. Suddenly the man turned and grabbed Leo and stuck a gun in Leo's ribs.
"Hold it right there or I'll kill him," said the man.
The guards came to a screeching halt, their pistols pointed at the man.
"Give it up," said a man wearing a suit with a badge hanging from the breast pocket. "You've committed a dozen federal violations by trying to sneak a gun on the plane. Don't compound the problem. Let the man go, put down the gun, and no one needs to get hurt."
"Not likely," said the man. "Drop your guns or I'll kill him."
Piper looked around the airport. Everyone was watching them. She considered trying to freeze the area but she was pretty sure it was much too large for her to freeze all of it. She glanced over at Paige.
Paige looked at Piper. Piper looked at her, than at the gun in the mans' hand. Paige nodded slightly. Piper's meaning was clear. Piper couldn't freeze the area but Paige should be able to orb the gun out of his hand. Without the gun, the guards would easily handle the man. Paige raised her hand slightly and said "gun" very silently. The gun began to orb out of the man's hand and then suddenly the orb cancelled. Paige just looked at the man in total surprise.
"That won't work with me, witch," said the man.
Before anyone else could react the man pulled the trigger on the pistol he was holding. Four slugs entered Leo's body. He fell to the floor his life's blood pouring from the wounds. The man just smiled, and then turned and ran into the group of people gathered around. The guards rushed past the group giving chase to the man who simply disappeared into the crowds.
"Leo," gasped Piper, rushing to Leo's side.
The sisters and Tru gathered around Leo who lay on the floor dying. As with the incident in the restaurant, Leo's healing power never activated. He tried to speak but only a garbled sound came out. Then he collapsed dead on the floor.
"No," cried Phoebe. "This isn't possible. He can't die."
"That's the same thing you said," started Tru.
She quickly cut herself off. They might believe that she had "feelings" about what was going to happen. They'd never believe she could relive days over again.
"What?" Piper asked. "What do you mean that's the same thing he said? When? What haven't you told us?"
Tru looked around trying to think of an answer that would satisfy them. Suddenly, without warning, Leo looked up at her and grabbed her wrist.
"Help me," he whispered to her.
Without warning, Tru Davies' day rewound for the second time.
