A/N: So...I don't want anyone to be discouraged by the upcoming events. I know I put down the main characters of this story as being Prue and Cole in a romance genre. That is still the objective but I've read fanfics where it happens right after Phoebe's death and that just doesn't ring true to me. It's probably going to be drawn out and so of course I have to bring in other love interests to make it interesting. Please Read and Review.
"So what do you think we should do about it," Piper asked.
"Well, we could confront Paige straight on and ask her about it," Prue said liking the straight forward approach, "or we can search the internet and see what we come up with on our own. It's less direct but it will give us a stepping off point."
Prue grabbed the empty popcorn bowl and the wine glasses while Piper grabbed the pizza box and the wine.
"I just wish that we had known. I mean, she had it even worse than we did," Piper continued on the subject. "At least we had Grams and each other, but she lost everyone."
"We can talk to her tomorrow. I have the day off so I can see what we come up with and ask her during dinner."
Prue felt a mix of emotions. Shame and guilt for being so caught up in her own grief over Phoebe, as well as trying so hard to help Paige fit into their lives that Prue hadn't thought to figure out where they fit into Paige's life.
And Paige did have a life before them; one that included an amazing college education at UC Berkley and rich friendships. Where were those friends now? Was Paige on the way of sacrificing those relationships because of her new destiny as a Charmed one just like her older sisters had?
"Well, I guess we'll find out tomorrow," Piper said and turned off the lights.
"Incoming," Paige yelled across the office floor and swiveled in her chair as she bounced up to go meet the fax that was coming in, avoiding that sleaze bag Donnie who kept hitting on her every chance he got.
"Hey, Paige," Lila snuck up behind Paige who jumped at her voice. "Woah, sorry," she held out her hands in defense. "Didn't mean to scare you, I was just wondering if you were gonna hit happy hour with us."
"I'd love to, but I'm having a family dinner tonight and I also want to avoid Donnie as much as possible. You'd think he'd get the hint already," she sighed.
"Yeah, especially after we ditched him at the last happy hour and moved to another bar," the other woman laughed. "Well, tell your Aunt Julie and Uncle Dave I said hi and maybe we can get together over the weekend for drinks."
"Thanks Lila," Paige said, not correcting her friend's assumption that she was meeting her aunt and uncle.
Truth was Paige hadn't told any of her friends about her sisters yet. She just didn't know how to tell them without it turning into a big deal. Granted, it was a huge deal but the young woman had way too much to deal with at the moment and that included powers she had only just started to learn how to control.
"Well, at least the O'Brian application is done," she said before heading back to her desk.
"Long time no see," Darryl Morris stood to hug her before offering her his seat.
"Thanks, it's just been a really busy time for us—"
"There's no need to explain, Prue. You must be dealing with so much right now, especially with Lopez looking into Phoebe's case."
Prue's gaze turned down as her eyes began to water. "I'm just glad that we've had the time to cope with everything."
"So what's going on," he asked.
"I need your help with a couple of things," Prue told him. "First," she scooted, "I need to know more about Paige's past."
"That's your long lost sister that just appeared on the scene?" Darryl reached over her and grabbed a folder sitting on her desk, handing it to her. "Lopez was surprised to hear you had another sister so he had me check into her past. It seems like your sister was abandoned at a nearby church on August 2nd, 1978. She was adopted by a nice couple; a firefighter and a stay at home mom.
"Unfortunately, Paige was in the accident that killed her parents," he said and took out several pictures. "The car went up in flames, killing her parents while she was found thrown from the car."
"That's horrible," Prue said. "How old was she?"
"About sixteen. She had been in some trouble for partying but after her parents died she turned it around. Went to Berkley and got her bachelors and masters in social work, all on scholarships."
"How did she manage to take care of herself after they passed?"
"Paige has an aunt and uncle who took her in until she finished high school the next year," Darryl said. "Anyway, Lopez is trying to figure out how and when Paige came into your life. He's like a dog with a bone, Prue. He thinks something about Phoebe's death is fishy and he'll hound you until he finds what he's looking for."
"Yeah, I kind of figured. I'm actually supposed to be meeting him here in half an hour to discuss her case. That brings me to the second thing I came to talk to you about. I need the final paperwork for the new identity for Cole. He's still under investigation for his time as an A.D.A and with Phoebe's murder—"
"Leave it to me. My friends are taking care of that," Darryl said. In the corner of his eye he saw Lopez enter and stood, holding a hand out for Prue and guiding her up as the other detective met her.
"Ms. Halliwell, you're early," Lopez said.
"Yes, well I wanted a few minutes with Darryl." Prue was annoyed by this man not only for the fact that he was barking up a tree that was barren and had no leaves, but because his very existence posed a threat to her and her sisters as well as constantly reminding them of their recent loss.
"I remember that you two are friends," he led her over to his desk, leaving Darryl to his work. "How exactly did you two meet?"
"I used to date his old partner, Andrew Trudeau, before his death."
"Inspector Trudeau was killed in the line of duty, correct?"
"Yes." Prue refused to look away even as her eyes threaten to let loose at the thought of Andy. This man would not make her feel ashamed for her role in anyone's death any more than she already was.
"How did you meet Inspector Trudeau?"
"I've known him since we were kids. We lived across the street from each other and were high school sweethearts. After he transferred back from Portland we began seeing each other again."
"Well, I just have a few questions for you that might help us in the search for your sister's killer. Do you know anything about the whereabouts of a Mr. Cole Turner? He was a former A.D.A that was reportedly seeing your sister before he went missing."
"I know who Cole Turner is," Prue said. "Truth is I never much cared for him and I didn't like the fact that my sister was involved with him, but he disappeared a few months ago."
"Did you or your sister hear anything from him after he disappeared?"
Prue shook her head. "I know that Phoebe tried to find him. She didn't have it in her to think he was capable of just up and leaving without saying a word to her, or to see any of his flaws."
Lopez looked interested. "What flaws would those be?"
"I just never felt comfortable with him around," Prue said. She and Cole had strategized over just exactly what she should say during this interview and Cole had told her to keep it as honest as possible. The closer she stayed to the truth, the more it would read that way. "I couldn't put my finger on any one thing specifically, but it always seemed like he was hiding something and I didn't want my little sister to see him. I thought he was using her for whatever reason."
"How did your other sisters feel about Cole?"
"Piper never really said anything to me." Prue shifted in her seat. "Being the middle sister, she's always been more of a mediator between me and Phoebe. I think she was trying to keep an open mind towards Cole because I was very verbal about my feelings."
"And Paige," he asked, trying to see where she would take the bait.
"Paige is a recent discovery," she answered. "Truth be told, Piper and I only just found out about her after Phoebe's death. She didn't know Cole."
"How did you come to discover Paige?" Lopez was looking for every and anything he could to prove that the Halliwell sisters knew more about their sister's death than what they were pretending. Looking into their financial records he had discovered that upon receiving their shares of her life insurance policy that Prue and Piper had bought two new properties, which certainly gave them motive for their sister's murder.
"Paige approached us before the funeral. She wanted to extend her condolences," Prue fought to contain her tears. "I recognized her before she even told us who she was; she looks so much like my mother."
"Moving on, it seems that you and Piper are doing very well for yourselves. You both purchased new properties recently, didn't you?"
Prue didn't like where he was going with this but knew that it was better to cooperate with him. The truth was he was never going to find Phoebe's killer because she and Piper had already vanquished him, thankfully with no exposure this time around.
"Piper is a chef, and though she owns a successful night club, she wanted to get back to doing what she loves the most so she bought a building that she'll be renovating into a restaurant."
"And the property you bought," he asked.
"It used to be a summer camp that Piper and I attended. It holds special meaning to us so when it was up for sale I decided to buy it but just so you know, I purchased the property before Phoebe's death with my own savings. Not," she told him, "the money I received as a beneficiary of her life insurance."
Lopez made a mental note to look into Prue's claims. "What meaning does the property hold for you? You said it was a summer camp you used to go to; good memories?"
"No. Our mother died there when I was seven years old. It's the last place I saw her," she told him and noticed for the first time any semblance of compassion.
"I'm sorry that you experienced that kind of loss so early," he offered genuinely. "It must have been hard to deal with losing a parent that young."
"We didn't just lose our mother," Prue told him. "Our father left us in the care of our Grandmother for the next twenty years before we ever heard anything from him again. About two years ago he contacted us; tried to build a new relationship with us."
"Only two years, and then he loses a daughter he only just got back. He must be devastated."
"It's hitting him hard, especially since Phoebe was his youngest daughter."
Lopez had a sour look on his face. "I thought Paige was born after Phoebe," he said, looking through his notes.
"Paige is our half sister. Apparently, our mother met someone after her divorce and became pregnant. She gave Paige up because she couldn't afford to take care of another child, especially as a single mother," she told him, leaving out the part about Paige's father being a whitelighter or how they had met him the year before only for him to be killed during a vanquish.
"Well, I can't say how sorry I am for the losses you've experienced," Lopez said standing up. He offered Prue a hand and walked her to the exit. "I will say that I am determined to bring your sister's killer to justice. I'll keep you updated on the progress of the case."
"Thank you, Inspector," Prue replied. "My entire family will be extremely grateful to you," she said before leaving.
Prue stopped by 415 magazine before heading home. Her boss had called her in to discuss yesterday's photo shoot about an up and coming media mogul named Jason Dean.
She couldn't lie. For the first time in a while she had found a man attractive. Most of her previous relationships had been short lived because they had lacked the passion she had felt for Andy and later Bane. It helped that the businessman was extremely intelligent and seemed like a kind soul, spending much of their time together trying to earn a smile from her.
Stepping off of the elevator onto his floor, Prue strode toward his office and smiled at his receptionist before letting herself in.
Gil held up a hand, motioning her to remain silent as he finished up the conversation being held over the phone. Hanging up, her boss sat up straight and gestured for her to sit while he smiled.
"Here," he said, handing her a manila folder and waited for her to review the materials. "It's a contract with the magazine. Your work here over the past six months has spoken volumes and I know we had discussed you staying on for a trial basis but your work has more than earned you the position here."
Prue was ecstatic, though she kept her reaction guarded close to the vest. "It's a contract for the next three years," she said flipping through the documents.
"Well, the magazines new owner is looking to lock in all of our main talent. You'll see the position comes with a generous office space as well as a secretary. The pay raise is good too," Gil said.
"I wasn't aware the magazine was under new ownership," Prue looked up at her boss.
Just then his office door opened and Jason Dean walked in, wearing a dress shirt rolled up at the sleeves and dark slacks with perfectly matching loafers.
"Prudence," he greeted her with a huge grin, "I was glad to hear that you were in the office today," and sat down next to her. "I see you've had the chance to look over the proposed contract. Do you have any questions?"
"Well, I suppose the first question I would like to ask is why is an internet media mogul who created and sold one of the most successful dating websites as well as a vineyard in Italy making the move to magazines?"
He laughed, tilting his head to the side and looking at her. "You're very direct. I like that. The truth is, my business plan over the next five years include the purchases of several media outlets in magazines, newspapers and television. I chose 415 because while it's local to the Bay Area, it has the potential to go nationwide and I wanted the opportunity to grow the business; be a real part of it. I think some revamping will take 415 in a better direction and it starts with you."
"How so? I mean, I understand it from a visual aesthetic as I'm responsible for the look of the magazine, but other than contributing my photography how can I play a role in growing the magazine?"
"That's a great question. I think we should talk about it over dinner," Jason replied.