Disclaimer: All previous disclaimers apply.
Chapter 05: Puzzles
Cole Turner's Office
San Francisco, CA
August 30, 2031
4:00 pm
"Mr. Turner, I will not wait any longer! I have been waiting for the last 10 minutes. You said that if I returned you would have something for me to do. So, here I am," Emily says as she barges into Cole's office.
"Sir, I tried to stop her, but she wouldn't listen," Cole's secretary says.
"Miss Blake, I am advising a couple of clients right now," Cole icily says.
"What a great opportunity for me! I get to advise a client. Proceed," Emily says as she pulls out a notepad and pen from her purse and takes a seat next to the window.
"What are the facts of the case?" Emily asks.
"Who is she?" Mr. Young, the 6'0" tall brown-haired man asks.
"Be quiet," the man's 5'7" tall brown-haired wife who has freckles on her nose admonishes.
"I'm Emily, Mr. Turner's intern," Emily says with a smile as she holds out her hand for Mr. and Mrs. Young to shake.
Mr. and Mrs. Young shake Emily's hand.
"See, Mr. Turner! Some people actually observe the social niceties," Emily says.
Cole mumbles some words under his breath.
Emily ignores him and turns her attention to Mr. and Mrs. Young.
"How may Mr. Turner and I help you?" Emily asks Mr. and Mrs. Young.
"Our son is on death-row because the police believe that he murdered Miss Calloway, a little old lady with fluffy white hair and sparkling chocolate eyes. We believe that he was framed and that he is innocent," Mr. Young says as his wife nods.
"What evidence do you have of your son's innocence?" Emily asks.
"The murder weapon was an athame. The District Attorney presented it at the trial as evidence, but he called it a knife. Athames can be directly traced back to their owner and the athame was traced back to Vesperto, not my son," says as she hands the photograph of the athame over to Cole.
"What is an athame and how do you know what an athame is?" Emily asks.
"Mr. Turner, is it safe to answer her questions?" Mrs. Young asks.
"No," Cole says.
"How did the photograph of the athame come into your possession? Emily asks.
"I asked the Judge if I could have the athame, but he said that it was evidence and that if I touched it I might be considered a suspect. So, I asked if I could take a photograph of it. The Judge agreed. I quickly pulled out my camera and took a photograph of the athame," Mrs. Young says.
"How was this athame traced to Vesperto?" Emily asks as she studies the photograph in Cole's hands.
"May I keep this photograph?" Cole asks.
"Yes," Mr. Young says.
Emily is about to open her mouth to ask another question when Cole says, "Thank you for your time, Mr. and Mrs. Young."
After Mr. and Mrs. Young climb into their car and drive away, Emily asks, "Mr. Turner, why did you send the clients home instead of having them answer my questions," Emily asks.
"You are not ready to hear the answers, Miss Blake," Cole says as he places the photograph of the athame in his briefcase, closes the briefcase and grabs his jacket.
"Where are you going?" Emily asks.
"The Bay Mirror," Cole replies.
"Why?" Emily asks.
"I have a friend there. She may be able to help," Cole says.
"Wait for me!" Emily says as she grabs her jacket and briefcase.
"After you, Miss Blake," Cole says as he holds the door open for Emily.
"Thank you, Mr. Turner," Emily says as she exits Cole's office and turns around to make sure he is behind her.
"Miss Blake, I just remembered that my car is at the mechanic's shop," Cole says.
"No problem. I can drive us to the Bay Mirror. Just give me the directions, Mr. Turner," Emily says.
So, Cole climbs into the passenger seat of Emily's car and they drive over to the Bay Mirror.
Bay Mirror
San Francisco, CA, USA
August 30, 2031
4:45 pm
Phoebe hears footsteps and looks up from her computer and comes face to face with Cole and a red-haired, green-eyed young woman.
"Cole, I don't want you in my life. Please leave," Phoebe says as she points towards the door.
"I am not leaving until you help me," Cole says.
"Tough luck," Phoebe says as she returns to her work.
Since nothing is getting accomplished, Emily interrupts Phoebe's and Cole's staring match by noticing the name plaque on Phoebe's desk that says Phoebe Halliwell and saying, "Please help us, Mrs. Halliwell. Mr. and Mrs. Young's son is on death-row for murdering Miss Calloway, but his parents say that Vesperto framed their son, because the murder weapon belongs to Vesperto."
"Vesperto? Why is that name familiar? I can't remember. Maybe Harry knows," Phoebe thinks.
Phoebe walks over to her phone and dials Harry's phone number at Potter Manor and gets:
Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring! "You have reached the Potter residence. We are not home right now. Please leave your name, your phone number, and a brief message and we will return your call as soon as possible. Beep!" Harry's voice says.
"Harry, I know you are sleeping, but I need your help," Phoebe shouts into the phone.
"Okay, I am coming!" Harry says as he plods over to the phone and dials Phoebe's phone number at the Bay Mirror.
"Hi, Harry!" Phoebe says as soon as she picks up the phone.
"Hi, Pheebs! What may I do for you?" Harry asks.
"Who is Vesperto?" Phoebe asks.
"He is the demon that tortured Chris on Ailin Callahan's orders 10 years ago," Harry says.
"Why do you want to know?" Harry asks.
"Evidently, Vesperto murdered Miss Calloway, a little old lady, and Mr. and Mrs. Young's son is on death-row for the murder, even though he is innocent," Phoebe says.
"That is impossible," Harry says.
"Why?" Phoebe asks.
"Chris vanquished Vesperto with his lightning bolt power," Harry says.
"Then, why is Vesperto back?" Phoebe asks.
"Someone resurrected him from the dead," Harry says.
"Who?" Phoebe asks.
"Bianca," Harry replies.
"Okay, I will see you later," Phoebe says and hangs up the phone.
"I will help you, Cole. Give me the photograph," Phoebe says.
Cole hands her the photograph. Phoebe touches the photograph and gets a premonition.
Premonition begins.
A young man with black hair and blue eyes walks a little old lady with fluffy white hair and chocolate eyes across the street.
"Please accept this $10.00 bill in exchange for helping me cross the street," the old lady says.
Instead of accepting the money, the young man somersaults over her head and thrusts an athame into her back.
Some passerby gather around the old lady to find out what happened. One of the passerby calls the paramedics on his cellular phone. By the time the paramedics arrive, the old lady is dead.
Premonition ends.
"What did you see?" Cole asks.
"I saw a black-haired, blue-eyed young man murder a little old lady," Phoebe says.
"Does that help you?" Phoebe asks.
"I am not sure, yet. Thanks for your help, Phoebe" Cole says as he exits Phoebe's office with Emily.
Halliwell Manor
1329 Prescott Street
San Francisco, CA, USA
September 08, 2031
5:30 am
"Wy!" Wake up!" Chris says as he shakes Wyatt.
"What do you want, Chris?" Wyatt asks as he rubs his eyes.
"May I borrow the mirror Harry gave you for your 18th birthday?" Chris asks.
"Yes, it is in the top drawer of my dresser," Wyatt says as he puts the pillow over his eyes and goes back to sleep.
Chris opens the top drawer of the dresser, pulls out the mirror and says, "Harry!" into the mirror.
Harry picks up the two-way mirror that allows him to talk with other people and says, "Hey, Munchkin!"
"Uncle Harry, please bring your family to the manor tonight for Halliwell Family Dinner Night," Chris requests.
"Does your mom know about this?" Harry asks.
"I will tell her when I get to the Charmed restaurant," Chris says.
"Okay, I will bring the gang," Harry says.
"Thanks, Uncle Harry!" Chris says as he picks up the phone.
Then, he dials the phone number for the O'Keeffe residence.
Aisling's Home
San Francisco, CA, USA
September 08, 2031
5:45 am
Ring! Ring! Ring!
"Chris, it is 5:45 am. Say whatever you have to say quickly so that I can go back to sleep," Aisling whispers into the phone.
"Please come to Halliwell Family Dinner Night at the manor tonight with your family," Chris says.
"Why?" Aisling asks.
"I have a surprise for you," Chris says.
"Oh! I love surprises!" Aisling says.
"So, you will come with your parents?" Chris asks.
"Yes," Aisling says.
"See you tonight," Chris says.
Charmed Restaurant
San Francisco, CA, USA
September 08, 2031
6:00 am
"Hi, Mom!" Chris says as he unloads the boxes of catfish, salmon, flounder and cod from the Bay Fisheries deliverytruck.
"How are you, Peanut?"
"I'm fine," Chris says.
"Then, what's on your mind?" Piper asks.
"How do you know?" Chris asks.
"You always stare at your shoes when you have something to say to me that you think I will not like," Piper says.
"I want to propose to Aisling tonight," Chris confesses.
"Well, you will need a ring," Piper says.
"May I give your engagement ring to Aisling?" Chris asks.
"Sure. I will give it to you after work," Piper says.
"Is there anything else?" Piper asks.
"I invited Uncle Harry and his family and Aisling and her family to our house tonight," Chris says.
"No problem. We will just make extra food here and take it home with us," Piper says.
"I love you, Mom!" Chris says as he hugs Piper.
"I love you, too, Peanut," Piper says as she ruffles Chris's hair and returns the hug.
Halliwell Manor
1329 Prescott Street
San Francisco, CA, USA
September 08, 2031
8:30 pm
The Potter family, the O'Keeffe family and the Halliwell family gather in the living room of the Halliwell Manor after a delicious dinner of grilled salmon with wild rice pilaf and asparagus and salad.
"Peanut, now might be a good time for you to reveal your surprise," Piper says.
"What surprise?" Phoebe asks.
"You will see," Piper says with a smile.
"Is it good or bad?" Melinda asks.
"Good," Piper says.
"Then, I want to go first. I have something I want to discuss with all of you," Melinda says as she takes a deep breath and swallows the lump in her throat.
"What is it?" Patience asks.
"Last week I met Emily Blake at Old Joe's Coffee-shop. When I shook her hand, I got a premonition. She was skipping down the street toward Stacy's Dance School when a tall man grabbed her and shimmered her away," Melinda says.
"Does Emily Blake have red hair and green eyes like Dad," Albus asks.
"Yes," Melinda replies.
"Then, I know her. I worked on a project with her in Dr. Sutton's class. Mel, be careful around her. She is very perceptive and might find out your secret," Albus says.
"I find it odd that she is skipping towards Stacy's Dance School. What is her connection to the dance school and why is she skipping?" Chris asks.
"She could be a dance instructor at the dance school and she just cannot wait to see her students or maybe she is having a very good day," Paige suggests.
"Aisling, you are working at Stacy's Dance School. Do you know Emily Blake?" Chris asks.
"Her name is not in this year's directory. Maybe Emily Blake is going to join the dance school in the future," Aisling says.
"Or maybe she is using an alias at the dance school," James says.
"That's stupid," Lily says.
"No it is not. We do it all of the time," James says.
"We do it so that muggles do not associate us with Dad or the wizarding world. So, if she is using an alias, what does she have to hide?" Albus asks.
Nobody has an answer. So, Coop decides to mention another point.
"Then, Melinda's premonition might be showing the future," Coop says.
"The question is how soon in the future," Henry Senior says.
"I can search the database at the police station for Emily Blake. Maybe the computer will turn up something," Wyatt says.
"Speaking of Emily Blake, I have another piece of news. I met her at the Bay Mirror. She came with Cole. They were working on a case in which Vesperto framed Mr. and Mrs. Young's son for the murder of Miss Calloway, a little old lady, and they needed me to get a premonition from a photograph of an athame," Phoebe says.
"There are so many questions we can discuss with your news, Pheebs. Which one do we tackle first?" Piper asks Paige.
"Cole," Paige replies.
"Didn't we vanquish him?" Piper asks.
"I thought so, but apparently he is back. He has built a prestigious law firm and Emily Blake is his intern," Phoebe replies.
"So, what do we do about the unvanquishable Cole?" Paige asks.
"Have you tried setting him up with someone?" Ginny asks.
"How? All he thinks about is Phoebe," Piper says.
"Then, ask Lily or Rose or Pan or one of the other children who Cole doesn't know to interview him at his office and find out what kind of woman he likes. Then, go and find that woman," Ginny suggests.
"I don't care about Cole, let's talk about why Vesperto is back," Chris says.
"Bianca resurrected him, Chris," Harry says.
"Then, let's scry for Bianca," Chris says.
"First, we need to find Vesperto. What does he look like?" Piper asks.
"He is a black-haired, blue-eyed young man with a red Phoenix on his wrist," Phoebe says.
"That is Ailin Callahan's appearance," Wyatt says.
"Vesperto is a shapeshifter. He must have transformed into Ailin Callahan to fool everybody. However, the police arrested Mr. and Mrs. Young's son because he has black hair and blue eyes and was at the scene of the murder," Chris says.
"Is that all of the bad news?" Chris asks.
Everyone nods.
"Then, it is time for my surprise," Chris says.
He walks over to Aisling, gets down on one knee, pulls a small box out of his pocket and says, "Aisling, I have known you for the last 10 years and everyday, I love you more and more. I want to grow old with you and live in a brick house with a white picket fence and a little dog and a few little ones. With our families as witnesses, will you marry me?" Chris asks.
"Yes, I will marry you, Chris," Aisling says with tears in her eyes as Chris slips Piper's engagement ring on her finger.
"This calls for a toast!" Harry says.
"Hold on," Piper says as she pulls out glass champagne glasses that have golden Christmas bells and mistletoe printed on them and hands the glasses out to everyone.
Then, she goes down to the basement and returns with a bottle of wine and some grape juice for Psyche and Pandora. Afterwards, Piper pours the wine into everyone's glass except for Psyche and Pandora. Next, she pours grape juice into Psyche and Pandora's glasses and waits for Harry to begin his toast.
"Marriage is a commitment. It won't be easy. There will always be ups and downs. Be each other's rock and bring out the best in each other. I wish you many happy years of marriage. Congratulations, Aisling and Munchkin!" Harry says.
"Here! Here!" Henry Senior says as everyone holds up their glass and clinks their glass with everyone else and then takes a sip of their wine or grape juice.
"I would also like to say something," Piper says as she stands up.
"My Peanut is getting engaged and I cannot help but remember all of the mischief he got into with Wyatt and how he got Wyatt and himself out of those scrapes. I am so proud of you, Peanut. Aisling, you are now officially a Halliwell. Welcome to the family!" Piper says.
"We are both proud of both of you, Chris and Aisling," Leo says.
Laura says, "Chris, take care of my Aisling."
Mark says, "I thought nobody would be good enough for my Princess, but I have seen how you nicely you treat her and how much you love her, Chris. Take care of her, Chris. You have my blessing," Mark says.
"Thank you for all of your good wishes," Chris says.
On that note, everyone leaves.