Precious Illusions
prologue
"And this just in...a thirty-five-year-old man was allegedly beaten to death in his own home this evening in the San Francisco area, not far from Prescott. Police quickly responded to the scene, after a frantic call from an elderly neighbor, who reported hearing his screams through an open window where the victim resided. The door was locked from the inside when authorities forced entry into the victim's front entrance, although strangely enough, no weapon has managed to surface. The young man has been identified as Derek Wilkinson, a lawyer who worked for the Jackman, Carter, and Klein law firm. We are asking anyone who has pertinent information about this case to come forward. We urge you to get in touch with the San Francisco Police Department at 553-0123. No suspects have been taken into custody at this time."
"Hey, turn that up!" Paige Matthews shouted over the noise, fighting to be heard amongst the crowded Friday night commotion in P3, gently smoothing out the wrinkles in her dark green dress, as she plopped herself down near the bar in her sister's club, her pretty face suddenly throwing itself into a massive frown. A small television set sat to her far right, and a few other people had since gathered around it like she had, as they most likely impatiently waited for the drinks they'd ordered with sullen expressions and the intense need to party for a bit longer before the day was over.
"What?!" Piper Halliwell shouted, as she gently tucked away a pad and pencil, abruptly peeling away a stray strand of brown hair from her face, tucking it carefully behind her ear.
"The TV! For God's sake, turn it up!"
"Okay, okay. No need to get all pushy," her sister mumbled under her breath, as she quickly reached over and adjusted the volume, briefly rolling her eyes. "Happy now?"
"And in other news today, an elderly man driving a pickup in Los Angeles, is said to have caused a car accident on the north...."
The voice carried on, while she merely stirred the drink she'd placed in front of her, her lips forming a quiet pout. "No, I'm not," she decidedly declared, clearly agitated. "Dammit."
"I didn't know you took such an interest in world events. I mean, I can see other-worldly, but maybe you hit your head a little too hard when you went to the bathroom."
"It was just- I just..."
Piper arched an eyebrow. "You just what? What is it, Paige? In case you haven't noticed, none of us have been blessed with reading minds yet."
"And oh, what the future could bring," Paige drawled sarcastically.
"Yeah," she lowered her voice, hands slanted against her hips, "so unless you heard that the manor was burglarized by a bunch of demons who just stole The Book of Shadows, I really don't see how anywhere on there, has anything to do with us."
"Not us, per se," Paige continued, as she began to drum her fingernails on the surface below, slowly tilting her head and offering just the briefest of glances out onto the dance floor. "But maybe someone else."
"Okay, who?"
"Look, it could be nothing, okay? I mean, far be it for me to freak out over something that ends up being something really trivial and stupid, all right?"
"So what's the problem?"
"There might not be a problem," she retorted.
"Actually, there is," another voice chimed in on a gruffer note, as he gently set a cardboard box down on the ground, casually edging up the sleeves of his old navy sweatshirt. "A big one, as it stands. It's a damn mess back there and it's not exactly good for business. But I trust you probably already knew that when you asked me to help, otherwise I wouldn't have nearly killed myself tripping over the rags piled sky high."
"Another country heard from," Paige countered.
"Yes, and I'm just going to naturally assume there's some other reason you're staring at me like that," Cole Turner added, calmly placing a hand on his unshaven face, his tall frame clad in tattered jeans, as it casually leaned itself against the bar. He grimaced slightly when he noticed the conglomeration of empty glasses strewn about it, abruptly adjusting the baseball cap covering his dark hair. "Because I somehow doubt you just had that whole round of shots over there. Although...just for the record, how many fingers am I holding up?"
"Wouldn't do anything to change what's already there," she countered. "So why bother?"
"Speaking of which, half the glasses in the new shipment are broken," he informed Piper, as he ignored Paige entirely, professing a soft grin. "But you'd be surprised to know the swizzle sticks actually arrived fully intact."
"Oh thank my lucky stars," Piper quipped, as she curiously peeked over the counter and into the box he had tossed down at his feet. "Everything's suddenly better because the swizzle sticks are safe. How many have I got?"
"Glasses? Because I don't even think CPR could save them at this point."
"Sticks," she offered, tossing him a slightly perturbed look.
"I thought that was your job," he confirmed, uttering a quiet laugh.
"I'm doing my job. I've been doing my job all night-" she stopped a moment, sighing. "I thought we had an agreement here, Cole. I'm backed up to my ears, and you've got some time coming. Would it really hurt to lend a hand to a struggling club owner in need of a little break?"
"Funny you should say that, because I'm suddenly thinking we could work this both ways."
She simply raised a brow. "Meaning?"
"How would you like to come to my office in a few weeks? Help me go through some papers? I think they'd really love a witch's touch."
"Yeah, see, I really don't think so."
"Oh, c'mon. I'd get you your own desk and everything. Temporarily, that is. I doubt Sharon would even miss it for a few hours."
"While it's awfully tempting, I think it's fair to say that I've never cheated or bent the truth unless it was absolutely necessary."
He shot her a fairly amused grin. "Is there a moral to this story?"
"Lawyers creep me out. They lie, they stretch every possible motive for every case out there. You name it they've toyed with it, putting their grubby little hands all over it. Remember Rickman? Losing his head? Ring a bell?"
"Oh, God," Paige sided. "Ugh. You know, that was really gross, wasn't it?"
He raised a brow in her direction. "Hate to break it to you, but you were already dead at that point, so with all due respect, it really shouldn't matter what y-"
"Yeah, all right, but just the thought of it makes my blood run cold. I mean, seriously. The bastard had it coming."
"Typical, seeing as your response to the situation more or less warranted instant death," he muttered, frowning at her. "You practically fed yourself to the big bad wolf voluntarily."
"And just how many times does poor little Alex have to endure Little Red Riding Hood?"
"My daughter isn't the topic of this conversation."
"No, but justice sure as hell is."
He smirked. "I think it's fair to say we didn't get it."
"Yeah, but we didn't die in the end, either, right?"
"And Cole killed someone," Piper added, just a bit too loudly, before she caught herself.
"Thanks," he drawled, shooting her an annoyed glance. "You know, maybe you should go ahead and post a damn bulletin. Might just bring in some extra customers looking for a weekend thrill."
"Do you think Andy's covering that homicide?" Paige cut in.
"Okay...um...where'd that come from?" Piper asked her, blinking, as she moved closer, her pretty face masked with a rather puzzled expression.
"Huh?"
"You just mentioned that right out of the blue," her sister protested, frowning. "What homicide?"
"Look, I think I'm gonna call it a night, all right?"
"Whoa, Paige, what homicide?"
"It's nothing."
"And would you stop saying that? God, it could-"
"Like I said, it could be nothing."
"Paige-"
"Just gonna check something out, then head home. Trust me, I can take care of myself. Or did you forget that I'm one of the all powerful-"
"But not invincible," Cole tossed into the ring.
"Charmed Ones," she finished, smacking him on his chest.
"Ugh...." Piper threw up her arms in a defeated gesture, her mouth forming a tight line, as she moved around and out from behind the bar, her hands going to her hips. "Cole, go with her, would you?"
"Can we take a vote, or has it already been decided?" he countered curiously.
She clenched her teeth. "I voted, and I decided."
"Oh, well, in that case- I guess I'd better follow suit if I don't want to end up like Leo did on Christmas, right?"
"You're trying my patience," she murmured, her voice managing a sing-song vibration.
"And you always tried mine when I was still trying to kill you," he quipped, throwing her a winning smile, as he hurriedly began to trail after his other sister-in-law, silently admitting to himself that his plans for the night were now shot, due to his unwavering reluctance to protect the one sister that seemed to continuously loathe him the most. "Have a great night!" he called back.
"Yeah, yeah," she murmured, her lips forming a quiet frown.
"Hey, hey, hey! Wait up, will you?!"
Paige didn't turn around, as her heels clicked noisily, but steadily across the hard pavement. "I don't need a babysitter or a bodyguard, Cole. So beat it."
"Apparently, I'm neither," he added, as he caught up to her and matched her stride, a small smile decidedly falling victim to his gorgeous countenance. "So what's with all the hostility? Are you taking up female mud wrestling or have you joined the force?"
"Just because I'm interested in something that's currently none of your business, doesn't mean I've shacked up with Darryl and gone all Nancy Drew."
"No, it just means you're projecting that kind of attitude onto everybody else," he finished for her, absentmindedly shrugging. "Where are we going?"
"We're not trapped on another plane anymore," she concluded. "Which means I no longer have to tell you everything."
"Because you're worried," he told her, his voice lowering itself an octave, calmly reaching out a hand, as he placed it gently on her wrist, quickly causing her to halt in her tracks. She shifted her attention to the small purse she carried on her shoulder, nervously unzipping it as if to search for something important, her eyes cast downward into the mess that lay inside. Her hands began to shake rather lightly, as she fumbled carelessly through the contents, finally retrieving a shade of bright red lipstick. "About me."
"That's ridiculous, and you know it," she said softly, her voice only inches above a whisper.
"What I know...is that it's obviously still beyond you to publicly display any kind of sentimental value where I'm concerned, but I also know what I saw on your face back there, and I'll be damned if I'm just going to let it slide."
"You have no idea what you're talking about."
"Mmm, and far be it for me to deny using my powers with no one in sight."
"Look, I don't want to fight with you," she snapped.
"Then wh-"
"It's nothing."
"Yeah, see, that excuse might just keep working on Piper, but it's not going to work on me."
"That's just too bad then, isn't it?"
"Who died, Paige?"
"Who said anyone died?" she returned, raising her eyes up to meet his in a brief, yet persistent gesture.
"Obviously you did, if you're running out here at night like a crazed maniac, rant-"
"Me? A maniac?" she scoffed, abruptly yanking back her wrist. "Hardly. It could just be some idiot who had a grudge against the poor guy. It could even be some lame coincidence. Point being, I'm not about to get you involved, unless it's absolutely necessary. You and Phoebe have had more than enough to deal with these past few months."
"Oh," he mused quietly, his expression mockingly pondering, "but what's another problem on the table?"
"You know, that was a genuine attempt at expressing heartfelt concern for you, and already you went ahead and shut me out again. Slammed the door right in my face. Shows how much you kn-"
"Who was it?"
She took a deep breath, both hands falling into loose fists at her side, her brown eyes gazing up at the night sky, as they squinted somewhat at the small stars that had taken up residence, gently polluting the solid black. "Do you know a Derek Wilkinson?"
"Derek..."
"Wilkinson," she repeated impatiently.
"Not well," he admitted, shrugging. "I mean I've heard he was quite the screw-up in the office, but other than that, we've never actually had any contact at all."
"So someone could have easily hated this guy's guts then? Hypothetically speaking? It could just have nothing whatsoever to do with magic, right?"
"Paige, I didn't know him. I have no idea what he was into or who he might've pissed off in the process. But I'm actually sad to say it wasn't me this time."
"He was beaten to death at his place," she sided, looking up at him again. "And when I heard he worked at your firm, I got curious. Maybe it's worth investigating...I don't know. Maybe it'd be best to just leave it alone. I'm kind of drawing straws at this point."
"Yeah, well, we kind of left those back at P3," he confirmed, clasping his hands together with amusement, as he gave her a small smile. "So what'd you say we take a little stroll and have a look around?"
"Cole, it's a crime scene. We'd need Andy to gi-"
"No. We don't," he told her matter of factly.
"Well, unless you're thinking of impersonating a cop- and a bad one at that, I'd say we don't stand much of a chance." She paused a moment. "I was going to say I was his girlfriend."
"Oh. Yeah. That oughta work."
"Hey! I can be pretty damn convincing when I play it sexy."
"You may not need to be anything at all. Chances are they've left by now, and we can sneak in through the back way."
"But you couldn't just go poof and give us all new outfits or anything, right?"
"Poof?"
"As in working your magic skills- your...whatever the hell you managed to pick up from the wasteland a few years back?"
He raised an eyebrow. "That would be personal gain."
"And since when are you above using it?" she questioned, folding her arms firmly across her chest.
"Since Phoebe took me back," he urged, "which would automatically have me assuming we're not exactly on the same page here."
"No, I just skipped ahead to the good part," she volunteered, smiling.
"Where does he live?"
"Like I said, I'm perfectly capable of handling this on my own. I don't ne-"
"Where does he live, Paige?"
She professed a short sigh, her hands currently lingering at her sides in sheer frustration. "It looked like it was a house about a block over from Prescott."
"Now...saying someone wants to kill me, which we're currently not even sure about yet..." He tilted his head, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his worn jeans. "Pray tell, what would be the motive, and why are you so hyped about it?"
"Maybe I'd like to see them succeed," she added.
"In that case-"
"I'm joking," she reasoned. "Really. I just...I just wanna make sure we're clear off the radar for the time being. I mean, Phoebe's got the baby coming, Piper and Leo aren't exactly calling themselves a team these days, and I- face it, we're toast if a demon decides to attack."
"You?" he inquired.
"Me?"
"You're what?" he prompted.
"I'm still trying to see where I want to go with Nick."
"You guys are taking a vacation?" He seemed entirely surprised by the prospect, his blues widening slightly.
"I mean, our relationship. We've already had sex, but sometimes it's just hard to take a step up to the next level. Especially when you always have to dodge demons. See my point now?"
"Yeah, and that's a little too much information for me. You should have graciously included a gag warning free of charge. But who knows? Maybe I'll be reading the tell-all book, and it most likely won't be by choice." He patiently held out a hand then, urging her to place her palm into it with a single gesture. "C'mon."
"Hey, I've got a power too, you know."
"I know, but it's easier this way. We'll meet up at the same place together, rather than apart. It's safer," he emphasized.
"Fine," she whispered, reluctantly grabbing a hold of it, as she let out a quick breath.
The small house stood out like a sore thumb on the darkened street corner, as both of them shimmered into view, the street lamp lazily flickering in and out of focus amongst the vast pile of tainted nothingness. It was a crisp white shade in color, although the paint towards the very bottom was slowly peeling away to reveal a rather crusty surface underneath. It very nearly resembled the shade of brown the lawn had begun to take on. Yellow crime tape had invaded and taken up space in the doorway, flapping about in the soft breeze that drifted through the confines of the night, warding off any individuals who wrestled numbly with the overwhelming curiosity that overtook them as they randomly passed by. A small calico cat pranced delightfully across the driveway, the small steps echoing silence, as its paws finally touched dirt, and began wading carefully through it.
"I really thought he could've done better with the salary," Cole commented, as he gave the place a short glance, a light smirk falling across his face.
"Yeah, well maybe you weren't too far off when you said he might have been into something. Might've been seriously unhappy deep down. You never can tell sometimes."
"Might've," he observed. "But probably wasn't. It's cozy if you're not looking to be disturbed."
"And no cops," she noted, seemingly relieved.
"Nothing out of the ordinary."
"You're sure?"
"To a human," he finished, winking. "To a former demon, it might just say otherwise. Of course, we always get the best invitations, don't we?"
"You sense something?" she tried.
He studied it for a moment longer, his blues gracing it with crinkled eyes, his generous mouth quietly pursed. "They should have had the others around him evacuated."
"Okay..."
"And for good reason," he murmured. "Either way, I really don't think we should go in there."
"What? Why?" She followed his line of vision, still clearly perplexed on the matter, slowly rocking back upon the heels of her feet. "Hello? You still there?"
"It's just...I can't-" He shook his head, shaking off the brief shiver he felt go through his spine, a hand faintly touching the front of his ball cap. "It's just not coming to me like it usually does. It's odd, really. Can't place it."
"You mean like a shield?"
"Maybe."
"Does Phoebe still find you attractive when you're this cryptic?"
"He was beaten to death, right?"
"Yeah, that's what they said."
"I'm going to take a wild guess and say the kill was perfectly natural. But the motive- not so much."
"Not following."
"Just a hunch," he whispered.
"Okay, Cole. What part of creeping me out didn't you understand before?"
"Could've hit the mark," he mumbled, right before he shimmered away again, leaving her there by herself, as she quickly turned towards the vacant air, her complexion forming a tight frown, as she clenched a hand together in a small fist.
"Dammit," she hissed. "Always left with the dirty work." Tapping her foot absentmindedly on the pavement, she abruptly orbed out with a loud sigh. "He is so going to get it, I swear. Even if I have to threaten him with a vanquish myself."
The slender hand was drenched in blood, calmly placing its fingers around the door frame, as the figure watched her depart, its breathing loud and prolonged in the shadows, as a pair of bare feet treaded emotionlessly across the cold, bare floor. Strands of damp blonde hair trailing all the way down a long and equally bare back, hung around a pretty face coated with wide green eyes, their surroundings slicing those same shadows with just the briefest hit of familiarity. A pair of full, pale lips gently pried themselves apart, as a set of straight, white teeth reflected and shone through the small windowpane in the front door. "Death," it finally spoke, the voice hoarse and unsure of itself, reaching over to touch the doorknob, coating it eerily in the red liquid. "Dying."