I dont own them I just borrow them for entertainment and my fictions

A young women walked through down town San Francisco looking for somewhere to stay for the amount of money she had on her. She had been traveling all over the United States trying to find somewhere, someplace that she remembered. She had been in Los Angeles when something pulled her to San Francisco. She had no idea what it was. Maybe it was the tourist attractions. For one, she had as long as she could remember wanted to see the Golden Gate Bridge. And now the opportunity had come knocking and she had seen it. She was amazed by the structure of the thing, the length of it. She had not seen a bridge quite as magnificent as this one. But now as she walked away from it away from make believe, she wa... with the painful reminder that she had no where to stay, no where to go.
She walked the many roads, with the numerous hotels and motels, but still she could not find one she wanted to or could afford to stay in. She was at a total loss. And above all else she was hungry. She hadn’t eaten in hours.
The young women saw a restaurant up ahead that seemed okay for her to eat in. she didn’t have a lot of money or good clothes but she always made sure she looked clean and smelled it. Because as her motto went ‘you never know what is going to come at you until it is gone’. This she was referring to as numerous jobs she had lost because of the way she looked, dressed like and worse of all smelt like. Many people when they heard she had no where permanent place to live, didn’t believe her. Didn’t believe that a well spoken, well dressed young women would have no place of resident and no job.
Yeah she had a few jobs in her time. But none that paid by the bucket load, or any that came with free medical insurance, that she had so desperately needed when she had become ill from a virus that was going around Chicago when she was last there. She had lost her apartment because she couldn’t cover the expenses and she had lost her job as the boss didn’t like people taking time off work for long periods of time. It wasn’t her fault she got sick.
But the young women learned not to hold grudges for to long. Because grudges can come and bite you in the butt when you least expect it. This she was referring to an old boyfriend. One that had cheated on her with her best friend. The boyfriend that had come and attacked her for walking away saying that she could never forgive people who cheated and deceived her.
She had learned quickly what it was like growing up without a proper family. A proper base for love and attention. And she had dealt with it. Dealt with it the best that she could.
Since waking up from a coma 5 years ago she had had no recognition of who she was, or who her family was. She had cared at first who her family were, but as the months past and no one came to claim her, she began to lose hope fast. She grew up in a world full of hatred and rejection and she didn’t know why she deserved any of this. She didn’t even know her name, her birth place and even worse she didn’t know her birthday. The doctors had told her she would recover from her amnesia when she was willing to remember details of her past. And what had driven her to run into a street, which was in the middle of the rush hour. Only when she was ready the doctors had told her.
And now as she walked down the streets of San Francisco towards the restaurant where she hoped to be able to get a decent meal, she realized that she knew, that this was the place where she would learn about her past.
She felt her memories cascading through her mind thick and fast. And she had no way of stopping them. As she fell into the black abyss. Clutching her head as she fell to the ground.
The women opened her eyes and looked around. She was in a white room, with a white bed and white sheets. She heard a noise to her left and turned to find a monitor there.
‘Oh god’ she thought. ‘I’m in a hospital.’
The women began to panic, she hated hospitals. She couldn’t stay she had to get out of there. She reached for the IV line that was in her arm, about to rip it out when she felt another persons hand on top of hers, stopping her. She looked up to be met with the soft brown eyes of a woman.
She looked puzzled at her. "Who are you?"
The woman with brown eyes spoke. "Don’t worry I won’t hurt you. My name is Piper. What’s your name?"
The woman looked at Piper skeptically. "Rainie."
"Rainie? That’s an odd name. That short for anything?"
"Yeah Lorraine. Why am I here?"
Piper sat down in the chair next to the bed. "I was emptying some rubbish from a restaurant called ‘Quake’ when I saw you fall out of the corner of my eye."
"Oh."
"Do you know why you fell?"
Rainie remained quiet thinking things over. "You a doctor?" She didn’t trust doctors.
"Nope. I’m a restaurant manager and chef."
Rainie sighed. "I don’t want the doctors knowing. I don’t trust them."
"Okay. That’s fine. I won’t tell them."
"Thank you." Rainie paused. "I umm fell as I was bombarded with memories."
"Memories?"
"Yeah memories." Rainie sighed again. She didn’t want to tell a complete stranger about her past, but she knew that Piper would persist. She also could tell that she would keep her word, about not telling the doctor. "Five years ago I awoke from a 3 month coma with no recognition of where I was, let alone who I was. What my name was, age or birthday. I was no one."
Piper interrupted her. "So you real name is Lorraine?"
"No, I don’t know what it is. I just picked a name and bob’s your uncle I have an identity."
Piper looked sadly at her. "Oh."
Rainie ignored the look she had been getting them for as long as she could remember. "I had come to San Francisco as I felt drawn to it, while I was in LA. So I came and visited the Golden Gate Bridge and I wanted to view the other attractions that there is here so I was wondering around when I noticed ‘Quake’ and realized I was hungry. So I made my way over to it when my head started to hurt and images invaded my mind. That’s the last I remember before waking up here."
Piper was about to say something when the doctor walked in. "Ah, I see the patient is awake."
Rainie just smiled politely.
The doctor looked at his notes. "First we need a name, as there was no ID on you, then second we can get down to business and work out why you fell."
Rainie gulped. "My name is Lorraine."
"Okay Lorraine and your surname?"
Rainie looked away.
"Lorraine Warren." Piper spoke for her.
Rainie looked at Piper shocked.
"Okay Miss Warren." The doctor spoke, as he wrote on his clipboard. "Can you tell me what happened?"
"I guess I fainted."
"You guess?"
Rainie shrugged. "Yeah. I haven’t been eating that much lately and I guess it all caught up with me."
"Miss Warren, do I have to stress the importance of eating a healthy meal?"
"No. I know, it’s just that I have been traveling a lot lately and with the different time zones and what have you I have forgotten to eat, and when I do remember it’s too late to do anything about it."
"Okay. As long as you are aware. Plus we had already established that you were malnourished."
"Can I go doctor?"
"We just need to sign some papers. And then you are free to go but I want you to take care of yourself, eat and have plenty of rest."
"Okay Doc."
Rainie had been released from the hospital five minutes ago. She was now in Piper’s jeep. Rainie had not wanted a lift but Piper had insisted.
"Piper can I ask you a question?"
"Sure." Piper replied no taking her eyes off of the road.
"Why did you come to my rescue? With the surname thing."
"I noticed that you grew quiet when he asked you for your surname. And I remembered that you had not told me. So I just blurted the first one that came to my head. I’m sorry if I did the wrong thing."
"No you did the right thing. Thanks." Rainie smiled. "I don’t have a last name. Well I do but I don’t remember it."
"Well you are more than welcome to have Warren."
"Is that your surname?"
Piper pulled into a drive. "Nope. Mine is Halliwell. Though my ancestor’s last name was Warren."
"Thank you."
Piper began to get out of the car. "You coming?"
Rainie noticed that the car had stopped in front of a grand Victorian manor. "Um where are we?"
"At my house. You coming?"
Rainie nodded her head and followed Piper into the house.
Piper had taken her into the lounge and gone to get them both a cup of coffee. The kettle was just beginning to boil when she heard a crash followed by running feet and the slam of the front door.
Rainie watched Piper go into the kitchen to make them both a cup of coffee. She didn’t know what to do while she waited for her, so she began to look around the room at the different ornaments and pictures. When more memories invaded her mind.
Rainie clutched her head as the images of a little girl running around a park, a little girl climbing a tree and a little girl having a bed time story read to her blasted her mind. Maybe the worst image to invade her mind was that of the same little girl, playing on the front lawn of a house. A house that was pink. A house that was the spitting image of the one she was in.
Rainie dropped the picture she had been holding and bolted for the door. Not saying anything to Piper.
Piper spun around and ran into the living room, to find it empty and a picture frame on the floor, smashed. She ran for the front door, and swung it open running down the stairs to the road.
"Rainie!!" Piper called out as she saw Rainie running down the road. She was about to shout again when she saw a car come around the corner. "Rainie!! The car, watch out for the car!" Piper called out as she saw her looking back at her, not paying any attention to where she was going.
The car slammed on its breaks as Rainie just managed to jump out of the way of its path. Hitting her head on the curb as she went down. The last thing she saw before darkness consumed her was feet approaching her.
"Piper, what happened?"
"I don’t know."
"Well who is she?"
"Her name is Rainie short for Lorraine."
"Just Lorraine?"
"Well yeah, kind of. Her name isn’t Lorraine." Piper saw the puzzled look she was getting. "She doesn’t know her real name, age or birthday."
"Really?"
Piper told the person everything about Rainie that she knew.
"So she has amnesia?"
"Yeah."
"Poor girl."
"I know¡-" Piper was about to continue when she got interrupted by a moan coming from the couch.
"Rainie." Piper whispered as she knelt down by the sound of the couch.
Rainie moaned again, her eyelids flicking open. "Oh god, that hurts." She spoke as she tried to turn her head.
"Be careful Rainie. You hit your head pretty hard."
"Piper?"
"Yeah it’s me." Piper reapplied a damp cloth to Rainie’s forehead.
"What happened?"
"I as hoping you could tell me that. But what I know is that I left you to go make some coffee and I hear a smash followed by the front door slamming shut. I run in to find you gone and a picture frame smashed on the floor. So I run out the door to see you nearly getting knocked down by a car."
"Oh." Rainie whispered.
"Care to fill us in?" A new voice asked.
Rainie tensed up. Looking at Piper.
Piper seeing the confusion in her eyes spoke up. "Don’t worry she won’t hurt you, she’s my sister. The person that nearly knocked you down."
"Nice to meet you."
"You too."
"So what happened? What caused you run out of me?" Piper asked.
Rainie closed her eyes. "I had some more images, visions, memories that were longer this time."
"What did you see?"
"I saw a young girl with cute pig tails in her hair playing out in a park, the same girl having a bedtime story read to her by an old woman and then what freaked me out the most was that I had a flash of the young girl playing outside on the front lawn" Rainie paused. "Of this very house."
Piper and her sister gasped in surprise. "Really?"
"Yes. Now you know why I legged it out of here."
Piper looked at her sister then back at Rainie. "What did this girl look like?"
Rainie shut her eyes. "She had brown eyes, brown hair in pigtails with red ribbons and dungarees on." Rainie opened her eyes and looked around the room. "Like her, in that picture." Rainie pointed to a picture on top of the mantle place.
Piper and her sister look to where she was pointing.
"Phoebe."
Rainie looked to them. "Phoebe? She another sister?"
Piper looked to the ground then up at Prue. Prue taking the hint decided to explain.
"That there is our baby sister Phoebe. That was one of the last photos we ever got of her."
"W.w..what happened?"
"Piper, myself and Phoebe were playing outside. When Piper fell and hurt her knee. Our grams had just popped out so I took Piper inside, I thought Phoebe had followed us. I didn’t realize that she hadn’t, until I finished cleaning Pipers knee up. Well I helped piper off the counter and we went back outside to see why she didn’t follow us in. But she was nowhere in site. We looked everywhere but we couldn’t find her. I was only 12 I didn’t know what to do, but I rang round a few of her friends houses to see if she had run off to go play with them. But no one had seen her. By this time I was beyond worried. I didn’t have a clue what to do. And Piper she was only 10. She was crying hysterically, I couldn’t calm her down. We then rang my boyfriend’s father, he is a cop. He came straight over, and well people searched for her but no one could find her. People searched for days. With no luck. Grams was pretty worried you could see she wanted to shout at me."
"Prue!"
"What piper, its true. You didn’t see the way she looked at me. Like it was all my fault. That I should have been watching her and now she was missing."
"Prue that isn’t true. Grams didn’t think that at all. I know this because I asked her."
"You asked her?"
"Yeah I did. She had hardly spoken to you, since it happened. So I went and asked her why she was being the way she was being. As it wasn’t your fault. She told me that she hadn’t realised she was doing it and she was sorry. She was sorry that she always expected you to look after us both. She was sorry she was such a bad grandmother. She blamed her self more than she did you Prue. She could never blame you. She was crying when she was telling me this."
"She was crying?" Prue asked shocked.
"Yeah she was. She knew that you would be beating yourself up over what had happened and that she didn’t know how to fix the mess this time. She didn’t know what to do to help."
Prue looked down at her feet, hiding the tears that had come to her eyes. "so don’t blame yourself Prue."
Prue just nodded her head. She looked at Rainie. "Sorry about this."
"Don’t be. It’s your house you can do anything you want. Its me who should be sorry for bringing this up."
"Don’t be."
"So we had search parties trying to find her but no luck" Prue carried on. "Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. As the months went past we started to loose more and more hope. They had been sightings of her down the coast but they weren’t acted on fast enough and when the police finally did check them out, they were too late."
Rainie interrupted her. "I don’t mean to be rude Prue. But how do you know it was too late. It may have been a false alarm."
Prue shook her head. "A few of them were. But a lot of them weren’t. how do I know? Well the police went down and I tell you cctv shows many things and Phoebe was right there. Right on the TV screen, but the person that had her was so careful to hide there face. The police told us that the person was toying with us. That he was showing Phoebe to show us that she was still alive, that he wouldn’t show his face so that we couldn’t capture him. Well a few months went by with the same thing. But then nothing. There was no more screens with Phoebe on them, no more clues. We had nothing. And that was it. The years have gone by and we have come to face the fact that she is dead."
Piper went over to hug Prue.
"How long has it been?" Rainie asked quietly.
"She was 7 when she disappeared. She would have been 20 now, nearly 21. So 13 years."
"Oh." Rainie looked at them sadly. She thought she had had it bad growing up with no family, but she knew that the two girls in front of her had had it just as bad, loosing a sister at such a young age and not knowing where she was or if she was dead.
Piper looked at Rainie. "What I don’t get is why you are having visions of Phoebe."
Prue nodded her head. "I don’t understand that either. Piper told me these visions were parts of your memory.." Prue trailed off, looking intently at Rainie.
Rainie knew what she was talking about. "Oh no, no no no no no. That is bollocks."
Piper knew what Prue was saying and knew it might be true. "Why is it?"
"Because it just is. I cannot be Phoebe. I didn’t grow up in San Francisco."
Piper interrupted her. "How do you know? You can’t remember anything from that far back."
"I know I didn’t. I just know it. I was in a coma in Kansas! KANSAS! That is a hell of a long way from here!" Rainie shouted.
"But that was 5 years ago. You would have been what? 15? 16?"
"Yes, but still that doesn’t mean a thing."
"It does Rainie. Where were you the years before that? You could have been everywhere, moving around different states."
"I don’t need this crap." Rainie stood up. "I’ll see you around." She walked out the door.
Piper was about to follow her but Prue caught her arm. "Leave her Piper. She needs time to cool off and to think about what just happened."
"But that’s Phoebe!"
"Piper we don’t know that." Prue told her gently "She has a point. What we need to do is to process this. We need to know everything about Rainie and I mean everything. And we won’t be able to find that information out until she has cooled down. Until then we wait."
Rainie stormed from the manor, she wouldn’t let herself believe what they had suggested. It just couldn’t be true. She was Rainie. A girl with no memory, a girl with no family. It couldn’t possibly be true.
Rainie knew she had hurt the two sisters. But her mind was a jumbled mess, they had to understand that she didn’t know a thing and that what they had said was just bollocks. She felt sorry for them losing a sister, but thinking that she was her was just plain stupid.
Rainie made her way back to her motel. She needed a rest, she had had an eventful day and she needed to let her brain get some rest.
Piper and Prue were sat watching television, but their minds were else where. Each thinking of the past and what had happened with Rainie. They knew that they had frightened her, but they still believed that she could be Phoebe.
"Prue?"
"Yeah sweetie." Prue turned to look at Piper.
"How are we going to prove to her that she is Phoebe? I mean I know you don’t believe that much. But I do. I know in my heart that that is our Phoebs."
"Well I’ve been thinking. It’s a long shot but it may just work." Prue told Piper her plan.
"Prue that will never work. How are we meant to do that?"
"I don’t know, I’ll think of something. We will just have to wait for her to show up here." But while we are waiting I was thinking that we could do some research. You know get some facts about Rainie." Prue saw the way Piper was looking at her. "I know her name isn’t really Rainie, but I was thinking that we could look through records of girls that went missing around the time that Phoebe did. And maybe look at Rainie’s records when she was in the coma. We may find out that she is Phoebe, and we may find out that she isn’t Phoebe. But what Rainie deserves is a family. And we will give her one. whether it is us, or someone completely different. We will find it out."
Piper sighed. "Prue do you know how long that will take?"
"Yeah piper I do. But if we work on it as soon as possible I have a feeling it will get done quicker. Also one of us can look around the time Phoebe went missing and the other well one of us can look into post coma Rainie. How does that sound?"
"Like a long shot!"
"Piper! Come on. It’s the only shot we have. Plus the little idea I told you about. But we can’t do that unless Rainie is here."
"Okay okay. I’ll do it. But no way am I looking for missing girls. You have got to understand that."
Prue pulled Piper into a hug. "I know sweetie. I know."
Rainie was fast asleep in the motel bed. But she wasn’t having a peaceful sleep. She was tossing and turning as more images flashed in her mind. Some were longer than others but they were all telling her the same thing. What had happened to Phoebe Halliwell.
Rainie jerked awake. She couldn’t believe what she had just seen. It couldn’t be true. That Poor girl. No one should be put though that. No one, young or old, bad or good. No one should have to endure what she just saw that girl endure. But was it true or was the images she saw just part of a very weird dream. Rainie didn’t know. But she intended to find out. Not just for herself but for the Halliwell sisters.
Prue came down the stairs early the next morning, to find Piper already up. "Hey Piper."
Piper looked up. "Hi. Coffee is ready for you. What would you like for breakfast?"
Prue went over to the coffee and poured herself a cup. "Nothing thanks. I’m meeting Andy soon."
"Why?"
Prue sighed and looked down. She had hoped she wouldn’t have to tell Piper why. "I’m going to ask him for umm umm Phoebe’s file." Piper looked at her in shock. "We need it Piper."
"I know but I don’t have to like it."
Prue went over and hugged Piper. "I love you."
"Love you too. Be careful."
Prue smiled nodding her head, drawing out of the embrace. "Are you going to look into Rainie’s past?" Piper just nodded her head. "Good. Where you starting?"
"I thought I would check paper clippings for anything of a girl with amnesia. You know Rainie lost her memory in Kansas. Thought I would start there. Go down to the library and use their resources."
"Good idea sweetie."
"I just thought it may give us a clue. See what really happened to her, what she looked like, see if there was any resemblance to Phoebe. And that." Piper shrugged.
"Sounds good. How about I meet you back at about 4 pm. That way we will have had ample time to find things out."
"Yeah sure."
"Okay. Well I best be off. See you at 4."
"Yeah. Bye Prue."
Prue smiled and walked out the door.
Meanwhile across town.
Rainie looked at the map in her hand. She was trying to locate the library.
"Aha! There you are." She tapped the sheet.
Rainie had decided when she had woken up that she would search for this Phoebe Halliwell, and see what had happened to her. What the older Halliwell’ had said the night before had struck a cord and she wanted to prove them wrong. Or so she let herself believe.
****
Police station
Prue walked into the station and to the front desk.
"Hello I’m here to see Andrew. I have an appointment."
The woman is the desk looked up. "If you would like to take a seat. And who shall I say is here?"
"Prue Halliwell."
The woman nodded her head and picked up a phone. A Few seconds later Andrew walked through the double doors.
"Hello Prue. Its been a while. How are you doing?"
"Hi Andrew. I’m doing good thanks. How are you?"
"I’m good thanks. I just got promoted."
Prue smiled as they walked to his new office. "That’s great. I bet your parents are very proud."
Andrew just nodded as he sat down gesturing to Prue to do the same. "so what brings you here?"
"I just came by to ask if I could have my sisters file please."
Andrew looked shocked. "Prue?"
"Please, I know it was a long time ago but I just need to borrow it for a little while."
"Why Prue, why bring up the past? I thought you had gotten over this?"
"I’ve never gotten over it. I never will be able to."
"Prue you can’t blame yourself."
"Can I just have the file please?" she said again, ignoring him.
"First you need to tell me why you need them."
"Okay okay." Prue sighed in defeat and told him what had happened yesterday.
"Prue, what does this girl have to do with Phoebe?"
"The memories she was having. Were of Phoebe!"
Andrew looked shocked then he realized something. "So you reckon this girl could be Phoebe?" Prue nodded her head. "Has it crossed your mind, Prue that she may just be pulling your leg?"
"I can do this with or without your help Andy. With your help will be a lot faster then without."
Andy sighed. "Okay. I’m not meant to but just this once. You will have to sign for it and all that."
"What ever it will take." Prue stood up and followed Andrew through the doors to the back.
***
Piper hasn’t had much look with the research she had been doing. She had looked up newspaper clippings about coma patients that were 14 ¨C 16 years of age in the year of question. So far nothing had shown up. Piper was about to click another link when something caught her eye. As she looked more closely she could make out two words ‘Coma’ and ‘Amnesia’. Piper clicked on the little newspaper icon and waited for the page to load.
As the page loaded words were thrust upon the screen.
"Girl Awakens From Coma ¨C No recognition who she is."
Piper read the article never missing a word or skipping anything. She scrolled down the page and stopped, breathe catching in her throat as a picture was displayed underneath the text.
"My god." Piper whispered to herself. The picture was horrible. It showed the wreckage of a car and a body lying a bit further up the road. Then two pictures underneath one of a girl in a hospital bed, then another of the girl walking out of the hospital.
Piper frowned looking at the woods underneath the last picture she couldn’t believe anyone could be so heartless.
"Young girl walks away from hospital ¨C all alone with no family ¨C what will happen to her?"
Piper couldn’t see any more links for anymore stories relating to this page. She had made progress though. The article had stated that her name was Lorraine. And Piper knew that this girl
Piper walked through the doors and saw Prue sat hunched over the coffee table reading something thoughtfully.
"Hi Prue."
Prue jumped causing the sheets in her hand to flutter to the ground. Prue bend down to pick them up.
"Hey Piper. You scared me half to death."
"I guessed as much. That Phoebe’s file?" Piper asked sadly.
"Yeah. I’m just going over some facts that were left out when the police were telling us things."
This got pipers attention. "Like what?"
"Like the fact that Phoebe’s shoes had been found in a park in Nevada. That her jacket was found in eureka also in Nevada and that all of the items of clothing she had on that day were found in different states, different towns. It just doesn’t make sense Piper. The man was toying with us all along. Leaving clues but yet the police didn’t act upon them."
"Prue we know the police slacked. The information came through to them from a caller who wouldn’t leave his name or number. You would have thought that they could have done more about that. Got a location from him. But they didn’t."
Prue sighed. "So did you find anything?"
Prue gave Prue the article she had printed off. "I found this one article that holds everything we have been looking for."
Prue looked over the article as Piper spoke.
"A girl was knocked down in a little town in Kansas, she was in a coma for 3 months when she woke up she didn’t know who she was or where she was. She gave her self the name Lorraine but liked people to call her Rainie. She left the hospital a few weeks later to be placed in foster care until she was 16 years old."
"That’s terrible."
*****
Rainie walked through the motel car park to her room. She had done a little research that had actually helped her understand the Halliwell sisters more. She knew she shouldn’t be doing this. But she couldn’t help the pull that was pulling her in their direction.
She sighed then glanced down at the sheets she held in her hand as her mind wandered back to the day at the library. She had seen Piper at the library but had refrained from going over there. She didn’t know what Piper was doing and she didn’t want to pry.
She sat down on the worn out bed and began leafing through the various accounts of what happened the day Phoebe Halliwell was taken.
From what she had read she understood that Phoebe had been taken while playing in her front yard. Something the Halliwell sisters had told her already. She continued reading different eye witness testimonies, all which basically said the same thing. Yet no one had come to her help when she had been kicking and screaming being thrown in the back of the family saloon. No one had gotten the car license plate number. This told Rainie that some people were just jumping on the bandwagon and telling the cops what they wanted to hear. Rainie went to the next page and the face of little Phoebe Halliwell struck her right in the face as a memory caught her off guard and she landed on the floor with a thud.
She awoke a little bit later. Trying to comprehend what she had just seen. Rainie shook her head thinking that what she had just seen was brought on from what she had been reading but as she once again looked at the various newspaper articles she knew that the facts didn’t come from them, the information given in the newspapers wasn’t what she had seen.
Rainie closed her eyes but couldn’t get the sight of the back seat of the car Phoebe was thrown into out of her mind. It looked very familiar but try as she might she could not recall where she had seen it before.
***
Piper stood at the stove making tea for herself and Prue. They had had a talk and decided to try and find Rainie tomorrow. Prue was walking into the kitchen when the doorbell rang.
"I’ll get that."
Prue walked up to the front door and threw the door open.
"Hi Dad. What brings you by?"
Victor drew Prue into a hug. "I just thought I would come see how my girls are holding up. Especially at this time of year."
Prue looked down as she pulled away from the hug. She didn’t like to be reminded that it was getting close to the anniversary of Phoebe’s disappearance. "thanks dad. Piper’s in the kitchen."
Prue shut the door and followed her father into the kitchen. Prue thought back to the time he made a reappearance in their lives.
He had walked out on them a month before Phoebe was taken and had come back 6months later. He had been over seas trying to get his head around what had happened with Patty and he had no idea that Phoebe had gone missing. He couldn’t believe he wasn’t there for his girls.
"Would you like to stay for dinner dad?" Prue heard Piper ask him.
"No thank you. I’ve just eaten. I just came over to see how you both were."
"We’re fine thanks. Just a little bit tired."
"you both need to take it easy."
"We know dad. But this house costs a fortune and well my job doesn’t exactly pay by the bucket. " Piper replied as she turned back to the stove to stir the soup.
"How about you Prue? How’s your job going?"
Prue smiled. "It’s going well thank you."
"So your still working at the auction house?"
"Yep, this will be my 2nd year there."
"They promoted you yet?"
"Well I have my own office now." Prue smirked.
"That’s great." Victor was about to continue when there was a knock at the front door.
Prue turned and walked out the room making her way towards the front door yet again.
"Rainie Hi." Prue said surprised as she saw her standing on the other side.
Rainie looked down then back up. "I hope this isn’t a bad time?"
"No not at all. Why don’t you come in. we were just about to start dinner would you like to stay?"
"If its not to much trouble?"
"not at all. Piper and my father are just in the kitchen."
Rainie followed Prue in the direction the kitchen was.
"Piper. Look who has come back." Prue smiled as Rainie came into view of Piper.
"Hey Rainie. I’m glad you decided to come back. We need to talk about some things."
"Piper not now." Prue scolded.
"I know. I’m just saying we need to."
"You not going to introduce me to your friend?" A voice spoke from the left of Prue.
Prue twirled round to her dad.
"Oh yeah sorry dad this is Rainie, Rainie this is my dad."
Prue moved out the way so Rainie could see her father and vice versa.
"Please to meet you." Rainie spoke as she came out from behind Prue’s back.
"Like wise." Victor held out his hand for her.
Rainie went to reach for it, as she looked up into his eyes she gasped and pulled back.
"Rainie what’s wrong? Piper asked she saw her stumble backwards away from their fathers out stretched hand.
"It was a mistake coming here. I’m sorry." Rainie turned around and ran straight into Prue. She fell backwards on to the floor, hitting her head on the concrete floor. Blackness consumed as she remembered where she had seen those eyes before.
"Dad?" Prue started once they had settled Rainie on the couch.
Victor looked up from where he’s eyes were focused on Rainie. To find his two daughters staring at him. "Huh?"
"We were asking why Rainie acted this way to you?"
Victor shrugged. "I don’t know." He glanced at his watch. "Look it’s getting late. I will see you later."
Prue and Piper just stood there in shock as there father walked away from them and out the door.
"Prue?"
Prue shook her head. "I don’t know Piper. I really don’t know."
"Not that Prue. About that thing you said earlier. About proving if she is who we think she is."
Prue looked at Piper then back at Rainie. " I don’t know about that anymore Piper. We will be doing it without her wish to do so. And well maybe she doesn’t want to know who she is. What right have we got to go against her wishes."
"We don’t know that Prue. She might be dying to find out who she is. Just hasn’t got the nerve to ask us to help her."
Prue sighed she knew Piper was right.
"Look okay, you do it. Then we will talk to her about it when she s feeling up to it tomorrow. Or whenever she wakes up."
Piper looked at Prue. "But I thought."
"Look Piper. You want to know. So you do it. And I just hope she doesn’t hate us for doing this with out her consent."
Piper walked towards Rainie then bend over and quickly pulled a few strands of hair out of her head.
"Done it." Prue looked at Piper then at her watch.
"Look its nearly 9pm. why don’t we just wait until tomorrow to take them to Andy and watch a film."
"Okay. I’m just going to put them away. Somewhere safe."
Morning came around and Piper saw Prue sleeping in the chair across from Rainie. Who had yet to wake up.
Piper moved further into the lounge to open the curtains when she heard a soft grown. She pulled back the curtains then moved over to where Rainie was on the couch. As she reached her she could see her eyes were wide open.
"Morning." Piper said quietly.
Rainie looked up then blinked. " Um good morning. Why I am here?"
Piper looked puzzled. "You don’t remember?"
"Remember what?"
Piper sighed. "You came over here last night. Prue showed you in. then you met our father and well then you woke up."
Rainie was looking at Piper strangely.
"What she means is that. My father went to shake hands with you when you recoiled, with a look of terror on your face, you slipped and fell banging your head on the ground."
"Do you remember any of this now?"
"I thought it was just a dream." Rainie spoke quietly.
"Do you want to tell us what happened?"
Rainie pulled her legs up to her chest. "You will only hate me and not believe me."
"Just give us a shot."
"Why? You won’t believe me. I already know that you wont."
"You can’t really say that when you don’t know us."
"I know but what I have to say. Well you will hate my guts."
Prue sighed she hated going round in circles.
Rainie took a deep breath "okay. I’ll tell you. But promise me you will listen to what I say. It’s still a little fussy but I know I’m not lying."
"Okay." Piper said while Prue nodded.
"Well yesterday I went to the library to find some information on your sister. I did then returned home. Well back to the motel. I was looking through them when I had like a vision a memory flash through my mind over and over."
"What was it of?"
"Back of a car. A dark blue family saloon car."
Prue gasped Piper looked on in shock.
"Look I know what you are thinking that I am some loon that is trying to fool you. But I swear. I was leafing through the information and next thing I know I having flashes of the back of a dark blue family saloon car. And then I see this man. One with piercing blue eyes. Reach over and tell someone in the back to be quiet next thing his had is striking someone, then I wake up."
Prue looked at her. "About my father last night?"
Rainie sighed she so did not want to tell her what she knew she must. "His eyes-. His eyes were the ones in that car."
Piper stood up quickly. "You must be mistaken."
"Look you said you wouldn’t judge me that you would listen to what I had to say."
"And we have, we can’t just sit here while you accuse him of kidnapping Phoebe."
Rainie stood up shakily. "You asked me what I saw." She began in a small voice. "And I have told you. It’s up to you if you want to believe me or not." Rainie started moving towards the door. "I will understand if I don’t see you again. Good bye."
Piper watched Rainie walk out the door. The turned to Prue who hadn’t said much. "Prue?"
Prue looked up at her.
"Aren’t you going to ay anything."
Prue shook her head. "I’m still trying to process what she told us."
"Why? There is no way that what she saw is real. She is a loon Prue. A raving loon."
Prue looked like someone had just slapped her as she stood up. "Weren’t you the one who wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt but now that dad has come into the equation you are fast to dismiss it."
"Don’t say you believe what she has just said."
"I don’t know what to believe. All I know is that dad shows up out of the blue and then makes a quick exit when Rainie comes over. It just doesn’t seem right. I saw the look on dads face when I introduced him to Rainie. He was all smiles. Then he saw her and I don’t know Piper. Something isn’t right here."
"You have that right. Rainie or who ever she claims to be has just accused our father. OUR FATHER of having to do with Phoebe’s disappearance!" Piper shouted before she broke down into sobs.
Prue quickly pulled her into a hug rocking her back and forth.
"Look Piper. I don’t want to believe it either but we have to face the possibilities. And the only way we are going to be able to do that is with proof. We have a sample of her hair to be tested. We have seen how they reacted to each other. I believe we need to ask dad what he was doing when Phoebe disappeared and well we just need to see if his stories match up to that of his interview with the police when he returned after 6 months."
Piper frowned.
"I know Piper. But what choice do we have?"
****
Rainie walked slowly through the park towards the motel she was staying in. She couldn’t get the images out of her head. Especially those of Victor’s eyes. Rainie knew for a fact that they were the same ones. Without a doubt. But why would she be getting them. Why now and why her?
Rainie knew there was a reason for all of this and she knew that what Piper and Prue had believed could be true. She knew that there would be only one way to find out for sure. And that was a blood test to find out her if her DNA matched that of Phoebe Halliwell.
She didn’t know where to go but she knew that the police station would be her best bet. Now all she had to do was find it.
****
Prue sat down on the edge of Piper’s bed. "Look sweetie. We will go to Andrew tomorrow and ask him if he could help us. I don’t know what he will think. He already thinks this women is after money. But I don’t think she is."
"Well I do. I don’t trust her."
"You have every right not to trust her. But don’t forget you were once willing to trust her."
"Andrew might not be able to help us."
"I know that. That’s why we are going there straight away in the morning so that if he says no, we can look at other possibilities."
"Like what?"
"A private investigator."
Piper looked stunned. "But they cost an awful lot of money."
"I know that. But I think finding out the truth is more important than money."
Piper sighed as she laid down.
"I guess your right."
******
Rainie looked at the building in front of her then her watch. No way were they going to let her in at this time. She took a deep breathe and pushed the door open walking to the front desk.
"Hello how may I help you?" A young male policeman asked.
Rainie could feel her palms start to sweat. "I would like to talk to the person who is or rather was in charge of the disappearance of Phoebe Halliwell."
The young cop looked at her and frowned. "I don’t know if there is such a case."
"It was a long time ago. About 14 years or something like that."
"Well no wonder I don’t remember it. I’ll talk to the inspector in the back if he can help you. Excuse me." The young man walked around the desk and through a door in the back.
Rainie looked around and saw two chairs against a wall. She sat down in the one nearest the door. And sat twiddling her thumbs.
10minutes later the same man walked back through the door.
"Excuse me Miss?" Rainie looked up. "The inspector would like to know what this is about."
"Can you just tell him that I have some information he might like. I don’t know if it will help him or not."
"Okay." The police man picked up the phone and told the person on the other end exactly what she had said, he placed the handset down and beckoned her forward. "The inspector has agreed to see you."
"Thank you." Rainie stood up and followed the man.
"If you want to go inside. He is waiting for you."
Rainie took a big deep breathe and then walked to the door he was pointing at. Knocking at the door she waited for a reply.
"Come in." Rainie walked in hesitantly. "So Miss?"
"It’s Rainie. Just Rainie."
"Okay Rainie. What can I help you with?"
Rainie took the seat which was in front of his desk.
"I’m here about an old case. The kidnapping of Phoebe Halliwell. I umm well I. " she took another breathe to control her breathing. "I have reason to believe that I can help you with finding her."
The inspector stood up. "And how can you do that?"
"Well I have recently met the Halliwell Sisters. Prue and Piper."
The inspector cut her off. "SO you’re the loon that has been pestering them?"
Rainie was hurt by his words. "I’m not a loon and I haven’t been pestering them as she put it."
"The tell me. How did you come to the conclusion that you could help."
Rainie wiped her hands on her jeans then began the story of how she met them and up to that evening.
"So let me get this straight. You believe that Victor Bennett was involved in taking his daughter, though you have no reason and no proof. And you go as far as telling me that in these visions it is Mr. Bennett that you see?"
"Look I know you don’t believe."
"Damn straight I don’t"
Rainie could see that what she had said had hit a soft spot. "You’re a friend of the family aren’t you?"
The inspector sat down. And stared at her. "That is none of your business."
"I’m sorry." Rainie looked down.
"Look I don’t see how this can help any. Now I suggest you leave those girls alone and go pester someone else."
Rainie stood up and headed to the door. But stopped and turned back to him. "Will you at least consider doing a blood test? To match DNA?"
"Why?"
"Just to see. To see if I am a loon, as you put it or if in fact I am who the Halliwell sisters believe me to be."
"And who do they believe you to be?"
"Their sister Phoebe."
Piper and Prue slowly walked towards the doors of the police station. They had phoned ahead and talked to Andrew, he was waiting for them as they walked up to the front desk.
"Hi Andy." Prue greeted.
"Hello Prue, Piper."
"So can you help us?"
"I think we should talk somewhere more private." Andy motioned Prue and Piper to follow him.
"Please have a seat."
Prue and Piper sat down.
"Look Andy, I know you don’t believe us. And I can’t say I don’t blame you. But we need to know."
"Why?"
"We need to know for closure." Piper said quietly.
"Okay. What is it you want me to check out?"
"The girl Rainie was knocked out while she was at our house. While she was asleep we took some strands of her hair. We were just wondering if it is possible to check the DNA on them to them you have of Phoebe."
Andrew sighed. "Look I can do it. But I have to tell you, she visited me last night."
"Who did?" Piper asked.
"Rainie."
"Oh. What did she want?"
"Exactly the same thing as you do. The truth."
"So she came last night. Asking for a DNA test?"
"Yep and she is currently down at the hospital having some blood drawn."
Prue stood up.
"Where you going Prue."
"We need to be there with her when the results get back in."
"Prue they won’t be back for at a least a week. This isn’t a high priority case."
"We still need to be there for her."
Piper looked up at Prue. "Why Prue?"
"Piper you said it yourself when you first met her. You believed her to be Phoebe."
"Yes but that was before she came out with some cock and bull story about our father."
"Look Piper. Where has dad been all these years. Where was he when Phoebe was missing? He came back 6 months later then he disappeared again for 10 years then suddenly springs up on our doorstep asking us to forgive him for being absent when we needed him most."
"So that doesn’t mean a thing."
"I was thinking last night. You know of the information that you found? And there is just too many coincide with the dates he was missing and those dates in the paper. I know you think I am probably nuts and wrong to distrust our father. But I believe we have every right to after his act last night."
"Prue he was probably just scared he had hurt the poor girl."
"Then why did he spilt?"
"I don’t know."
"Look Piper I am going to that hospital to be with her. You can come if you. Its up to you." Prue walked out the door, leaving Piper stills at in her chair and Andrew standing there shocked.
********
"Right this will hurt a little but I want you to keep clenching and opening, okay?" the nurse spoke softly.
Rainie nodded her head.
The nurse gently pushed the needle into her arm. Once she was done she put some gauze over it to stay in place then sat next to her.
"So why have the police sent you to have your blood tested?" The nurse queried.
"I volunteered. It was my idea to."
"why would you do such a thing."
"I don’t know who I am. And I want to find out if I am this girl that went missing some years back. I just want closure to this. I want to know who I am."
"I’m sorry."
"It’s not your fault." Rainie closed her eyes.
"So who is it you think you might be?"
Rainie sighed she just wanted to rest. "I well about 15 years ago a girl went missing, a Phoebe Halliwell and well her sisters believe I might be here."
"Do you?"
"I don’t know what to think. I desperately want a family. My heart is telling me that this is it. This is who you are. But my head is telling me to get real. Telling me that this wont help anything and I will be Jane Doe all my life."
"That isn’t true." Rainie looked up to the voice at the doorway. "This will help you, even if it proves that you aren’t my little sister it will still help you find a family you are so keen to have."
"But will they be so keen and happy to have me back Prue?"
Prue walked in to the room. The nurse quietly excused herself saying she would be back in five minutes.
"I can’t say yes Rainie. As much as I want to I just don’t know. I mean people might still looking for you or they may have given up and moved on. I know when we lost Phoebe that I couldn’t move on. I knew my baby sister was out there. But as time went on I came to realize that Phoebe was lost never to return. It broke my heart. But then this women walked into ours lives. A women with so many things my Baby sister possessed."
"Prue I may not be that person you so desperately want me to be."
"I know that. And though it is hard to accept I know that these tests may prove that you have a family in Georgia or maybe a family in Europe or they may tell me that the woman sitting in front of me is in fact my sister, Phoebe."
Rainie wiped her eyes as tears started to fall. "I just don’t want you to get your hopes up. Because if I’m not your sister then you will fall hard. And let me tell you Prue that hurts so much."
"Rainie, what happened? The accident?"
Rainie sighed. "I don’t remember much about it. All I can remember is that I was running from something and next thing I know I am waking up in a hospital bed with wires all over me."
"Do you know what you were running from?"
Rainie turned and looked away from her. " I didn’t until last night."
"Victor?"
"I don’t know Prue. All I know is that I have seen those eyes before. From the back seat of a car and when I was running. It may just be my imagination, I don’t want to spilt your family a part."
"He has done a pretty good job of that himself."
"Prue, please don’t be so fast to judge, this could all be for nothing."
Prue was about to speak when the nurse cam back in.
"Right I am just going to take this thing out." The nurse did a quick job taking the test tubes and blood bag of the end of the needle and putting cotton wool over the blood that was coming out of her arm. "Okay I want you to take it easy for 5 minutes. Rest. Then I want you to have a little drink and a biscuit. Then you are free to go and we will contact you within 48 hours with the results."
"I thought the results would take longer than that?"
"Well it quiet here at the moment. It may not even take that long. But we will contact you with the results when we have them at hand. I hope everything turns out okay. Take care." The nurse walked out the door leaving Rainie and Prue to ponder what the test results would disclose.
Prue and Rainie walked out of the hospital together, both silent in thought.
Rainie stopped and looked at Prue. "Well I guess I will see you later then. I will let you know the results. Then I will be out of your life forever."
"Rainie."
"No its okay. I’ve already caused problems between you, piper and your father. Problems that I hadn’t intended to do. So I’m sorry. I’ll ring you." Rainie began to walk away.
Prue stared after her, half of her wanting to go to her and half knowing that what she said was true.
"Rainie wait!" Prue’s resolve broke and she ran after her.
Rainie stopped in her tracks upon hearing her name. she slowly turned around to see Prue running up to her.
"Look. I can’t say for Piper but I can speak for myself. And that is that whatever the outcome I will help you." Prue noticed that Rainie was about to speak. "Look. You probably are thinking ‘why help’ well the answer is because I care. I’ve been hiding my feelings for too long, since Phoebe disappeared I haven’t exactly told anyone how I am feeling. They only went by what they could see. If I smiled they thought I was happy, if I frowned they knew I would be sad. But nobody knew the real me. Nobody knew what I was feeling and the truth is I’ve been sad since it happened since the day Phoebe went. Now you have come into our lives and you have brightened my days. Maybe that’s because a part of me hopes that you are her. That you are my baby sister. Another part of me knows that you could be a complete stranger but that doesn’t matter to me anymore. All I know is that before I met you I was lonely. I had a wall up against my heart but since I met you that wall has been crumbling bit by bit. What I’m trying to say is that whatever the outcome I will help you. If you are Phoebe then I will help you become part of the family again. A family that has never disserted you. If you aren’t Phoebe well I will be upset but I will help you find your real family. A family that will be missing you like crazy. And if you aren’t her then I will still welcome you with open arms. I won’t dissert you. my days are brighter now then they have been in a long time." Prue finished off with tears running down her face.
Rainie stood there and listened to every word that Prue was saying. She pulled Prue into a hug tears falling from her eyes and landing on Prue’s shoulder.
"Prue." Rainie pulled away. "I understand what you are saying I totally do but it will be too hard either way. I know what you are feeling also. When I awoke from the coma all I knew was gloom and then I met you and well light is shinning in more and more." Rainie blushed. "But my life is just too complicated, it has too many strings attached and I don’t want to complicate your family any more than I already have." Rainie gave Prue a quick hug then pulled from her embrace and walked away.
"Rainie!" Prue shouted after her tears following faster down her face. "Rainie Please!"
Rainie continued walking. If she turned back now she would crumble and she couldn’t allow her self to do that.
*******
Prue walked through the door to the manor with heavy feet. She walked slowly into the lounge and fell onto the couch with a soft thud.
Piper came round the corner from the kitchen and saw her sister with her head in her hands.
"What happened?"
"She had the test."
"And?"
"She thinks she has burdened us. That she has complicated our lives more than it already was."
"That wouldn’t make you so upset."
"Either way she wants us to know that," Prue took a deep breath and looked up at Piper. "That she wants us to forget that she ever came here."
"What did you say?"
"I didn’t get a chance to say anything. She walked away. But I already told her how I felt."
Piper embraced Prue. "And what was that?"
Piper was feeling a little bit hurt, her sister never discussed her feelings with her and here she was telling a complete stranger her feelings.
"That I would welcome her whatever the result. That I would help her find her family if the tests results were negative and if they were positive well I would help her discover the real us. help her to understand how much we love her. That since I met her she has brought a new meaning to my life." Prue looked up once again at Piper and could see the hurt in her eyes. "Piper what you give me no one else can. You’ve been my anchor of support. Someone I go to when I need someone. But Rainie I don’t know. She has this quality about her that our family is missing. I hope you understand."
Piper looked at Prue shocked. She never knew she felt that way. "Prue. I know what you are saying I really do. But I don’t know if I can trust this women. I know you think that she is Phoebe. And I know half of me wants to believe it. But I can’t. I know I did at first but look at the facts Prue. She is nothing like Phoebe."
"How do you know Piper? We have no idea what her qualities, her characteristics are, what her favourite things are. Neither does she. She has no idea who she is. Where she belongs. You told me this the other day. You felt so sorry for her, then so strongly that she was our sister. Where has that feeling gone?"
"It went when she accused our father of doing something wrong. Something indescribable."
"No she hasn’t. She hasn’t said anything like that."
"Well she has implied it."
"Maybe she has. But where was he Piper. Where was he!"
"He didn’t take her Prue!"
"Where was he Piper? He disappeared 5 months after mum died. 5 months. Phoebe goes missing a month later. We don’t see our father again for 6 months by which time the man has stopped toying with us. He then disappears a year later not to return until we are in university. Doesn’t that strike you as odd?"
"Nope it doesn’t."
"Well then add what Rainie has been through. Think about it Piper. Rainie was in a coma when she was 16ish. That would have made me 22 and you 20. The exact same time dad came back."
"I see what you are doing Prue but it isn’t going to work."
Prue had had enough. "For gods sake Piper. Open your eyes. Dad isn’t the saint you think he is!"
Rainie sat on the bed in the motel room. Her mind working over time. She couldn’t get Prue’s heartfelt words out of her head. And she knew that as much as Prue wanted her to stay whatever the outcome, she couldn’t. She had destroyed a family in less than a week. Broken up their relationship with one another, but Rainie couldn’t stop thinking the worst about their father, victor.
Rainie began to stand up when she was overcome with another memory. She gripped her head as the images played out in front of her, like she was a bystander, an extra to what was playing out.
A little girl with blue jeans with flowers on them, pink top and pigtails in her hair tried desperately in vain to free her hand from the grip a man had on her.
"Let me go!" The little girl shouted as she kicked at the mans shins.
The man grabbed one of her pigtails and yanked her head to him while he slapped her face. "Shut up!"
The little girl began to cry, trying even harder to get away from him. "Please let me go. I’ll be good I promise I will. Please I want my sisters."
"Your sisters won’t help you now."
"Yes they will."
"No they will not Phoebe! They do not care about you, you are dead to them now."
"But,.. But."
"But nothing. Now shut up and keep walking or do I have to drag you?"
Phoebe glanced at the man. "I hate you Dad!"
Rainie laid down in the bed as tears fell freely down her face. She knew she had to tell Prue ad Piper what she had just seen but how do you tell someone their father abducted their sister. Especially when one already thinks she is a nut case.
*****
Prue sat in the chair that was by her bed, Tears making their way down her face as the photo in her hands made her take a trip down memory lane.
"Oh Phoebe. I’m so sorry." She put the photo frame back down on the dressing room table and stood up. She started to make her way down the hallway, down the hall to a room she had not been to in a while.
Prue pushed the door open and glanced around. The room had completely changed to what it had been like ten year prior. Prue and Piper had left it exactly the same way it was the day Phoebe vanished, with teddies on the floor along with crayons and paper to the unmade bed. But over time they had gradually gotten over most of the grief of losing someone, and had started to move on. It had taken a while but over time their Grams had started to move the little princesses items out of her room and made it into a guest room. But the smell was still there. The smell that would always be present. Prue shook her head, she didn’t want just the smell she wanted to remember what her baby sister had sounded like. But as time had gone on, the memories of certain little things had gone. Never to be remembered. She sighed as she closed the door.
Turning to go up to the attic she stopped when she heard a knock at the front door. Seconds later she could hear Piper shouting up to her.
"Prue, Rainie’s here to see you."
Prue walk down the stairs stopping on the second from bottom as she glanced at Rainie, who was stood in the doorway shifting from one foot to the other.
"Hi." Prue spoke softly.
Rainie looked up. "Hi."
Prue looked at Rainie. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah I’m okay thanks."
"No your not. You’re trembling." Prue walked towards her. "Piper go get a blanket for her."
Piper stood watching her sister interact with the woman before her. She had seen Prue be caring before but never had she been as caring to anyone apart from her. Piper heard her sister ask for a blanket and walked up the stairs.
"What happened Rainie?"
Rainie looked into Prue’s eyes. "I had another vision."
Prue took Rainie’s hand and lead her to the lounge. "What did you see?"
Rainie sat down and looked at her shoes. "I don’t know how to explain it."
"Just try."
"Its not that. Well it is but even if I told you, you wouldn’t believe me."
"Give us a shot huh?"
Prue and Rainie looked towards the doorway to find Piper stood there with a blanket in her arms. She walked towards Rainie and wrapped the blanket around her shoulders.
"You need to keep warm. Whatever it was you saw just tell us."
Prue looked at Piper puzzled. Just a few hours before she had been mouthing off about Rainie now she was okay with it.
Piper saw the look Prue was giving her and shrugged her shoulders.
Prue sighed and turned round to Rainie. "You okay to tell us?"
Rainie had seen the silent interaction go on between the two sisters and knew Piper was still skeptical.
"I was in my motel room when a vision came to me." Rainie took a deep breath. "I saw a little girl. One who was wearing dungarees and pink top with pigtails in her hair." Rainie stopped to let what she had said penetrate Prue and Pipers mind. She glanced down once again at her shoes. She didn’t know how to continue. She was about to get up and leave when she felt a hand on top of hers. She looked up to see Prue willing her to go on. She took another deep breath. "She was being led towards a house by a man. But she wouldn’t go she was kicking and screaming and got quite a good few kicks to his shins and I think she scratched his face. Because there was blood running down his face. He got angry and slapped her. But she wouldn’t give up. She said that..- She said that she wanted her sisters, that they would come for her. But the man told her they wouldn’t. That’s when he said her name. He said, well shouted Phoebe. And then she retaliated saying that she hated him. She said ‘I hate you dad.’
Rainie waited for the reaction from the two sisters. She had heard them both take in shocked breaths when she had said Phoebe’s name and once again when she had said their fathers.
"You certain you saw this?"
Rainie just nodded her head. Not looking at them. "I’m sorry."
Prue knelt down in front of her, lifting her chin with her hand. "It’s okay. It isn’t your fault you are getting these visions. And it isn’t your fault for the choices Victor made."
"But if I didn’t come here you wouldn’t have known. I’ve ruined your family."
"A family that was already ruined. All I had was Piper. Piper is my world."
"But, what about your father?"
"Rainie I want you to listen to me closely. All my family consists of is me and Piper. Victor, yes he is my father but what kind of dad walks out on his daughters at the point that he did. A month after loosing their mother they lost their father too. I have never forgiven him for not being there for us. For being there for us when Phoebe went missing. And if what you have seen is true then I hate him even more. Hate doesn’t even begin to cover what I am feeling for him right now."
"I’m sorry." Rainie looked towards Piper and could see her with tears streaming down her cheeks. Prue looked towards where Rainie was looking.
"Oh Pipe, come here."
Piper didn’t move. "You hate him?"
Prue turned so she was face to face with her sister. "Piper he left us to fend for ourselves. Left us to grow up with never knowing what a father figure was, I’m sorry but I do hate him for it."
Piper looked down then back up. "I thought it was just me who hated him for that. I thought you were happy that he had come back."
"I was Piper. Don’t get me wrong. I was. But what he had done, what he had put us through, I could never forgive him for that. I just played nice for your sake."
Piper hugged Prue. "Oh Prue. I didn’t know. I thought you loved him."
Prue shook her head as she hugged Piper tighter. "What made you change your mind about her?" Prue whispered so Rainie wouldn’t hear.
"What you said earlier today. Then what she said. I didn’t want it to be true. I just didn’t."
Prue pulled away from Piper and held her at arms length. "Its okay. It was okay to feel that way."
Piper looked towards Rainie. "Rainie I’m sorry for how I have treated you. I just didn’t want to believe you."
Rainie looked at Piper. "I appreciate what you are saying and its okay how you treated me. I accused your dad of something that might be false. Please don’t jump to conclusions. We need to wait and see. And I should be the one who is sorry."
Prue was about to speak when the phone rang. "I’ll get that."
Prue stood up and went to answer the phone. Piper stood up and sat next to Rainie.
"what Prue said to you earlier today goes double for me okay?"
Rainie smiled. "Thank you."
Prue came back into the room holding the cordless phone. "Rainie it’s for you. It’s the hospital, they have your results back."
Rainie got the phone off of Prue and put it to her ear. Hundreds of thoughts and outcomes flying through her mind.
"Hello. This is Rainie." Rainie listened to the women on the other end of the line. Her face was pale and her hand was shaking. "Thank you. Good bye."
Rainie switched the phone back then handed it to Prue.
Prue and Piper had been watching Rainie intently through the whole conversation. They didn’t know what to think.
"So? What did they say?" Prue asked breaking the silence.
"I umm, they said that I umm."
Prue approached Rainie and grabbed her hands trying to stop them from shaking. "Hey its okay. Just tell us."
Rainie let tears fall down her face. "The results were negative."
Prue could hear piper gasp in shock as she just stood there looking at Rainie in shock.
Rainie pulled her hands free of Prue’s. "I’m sorry." Rainie ran to the door running out of the manor before Prue or Piper had a chance to move.
******
"Prue. Are you okay?" Piper asked Prue softly as she walked into Prue’s room.
Prue looked at Piper. "As much as I knew that this could be a possibility. I just never let my heart believe it. All along I had thought she was our sister. And as much as I still want to believe that. I know it’s not true. But it hurts so much."
Piper sat besides Prue on her bed pulling her into a hug. "Even though these results prove she isn’t our sister. You promised her that you would still help her."
"I know Piper. But I don’t know. I don’t know if I could face her."
"why is that? You told me yourself that you had never felt this way about someone before. Prue I know you love her like a little sister. What I’m saying is that I think we should go to her. You should go to her. Welcome her to our family."
Prue looked at Piper in shock. "Piper she isn’t our sister."
"I know that Prue. And so do you. But you said it yourself that you would welcome her with open arms whatever the results. So why aren’t you?"
"I don’t know. Its just to soon."
Piper gently kissed her sister on the forehead. "Okay. But first thing in the morning when you are ready we will go okay?"
Prue just nodded her head as she sank further into Piper’s embrace.
*****
Rainie laid crying on her bed. She had wished and prayed that the results would comeback positive. But they hadn’t. she had been planning on how to be a sister to Prue and Piper, but now she was just a mere stranger again. She didn’t understand the feelings she was feeling. She was heartbroken, she just wished there was someone to comfort her.
Rainie woke up to find that it was 10:30am. She shook her head and stood up when the events of the day before caught up with her and she fell back down on the bed.
She didn’t know what to do. Stay there and build a new life or move again and cut all ties with San Francisco. She thought the latter would be best, that way she didn’t have to deal with seeing the Halliwell’s again and stirring up old feelings and memories. She needed to start a fresh even with only knowing them for a little more than a week.
She stood up and started to collect her things together when there was a knock at her door. Rainie frowned wondering who it could be. She reached the door and looked through the peephole. Standing there was Prue and Piper Rainie hung her head while she lent against the door. She didn’t want to see them, to talk to them.
But the knocking persisted.
"Rainie we know you’re in there. Please we just want to talk to you."
Rainie wiped at her tears with her sleeve. "Please just go." She whispered through the door.
"Rainie we won’t go away. Please we have to talk."
"I don’t want to talk. I can’t. Please just go." Rainie sank to the floor her back resting against the door.
"We won’t go away until we have talked. And I would prefer to do it inside. Where it isn’t raining." Rainie heard piper say.
Rainie shook her head and gradually got to her feet. She reached for the bolt and undid it. Hesitating she opened the door.
"Aw Rainie." Prue went to hug her but Rainie moved away.
"Please I can’t do this."
"Don’t you think it’s hard for us also?"
"Piper!"
"I’m sorry. Its just Rainie we got our hopes up just like you. And even though it might not have looked like I wished you were Phoebe it didn’t mean I didn’t. Please we are hurting as much as you. Just listen to us."
Rainie sat down on her bed, nodding that they could talk.
Prue went and sat next to her, saying a silent thank you that she didn’t pull her hand away when she reached for it.
"Look sweetie. Me and Piper care for you a lot. I know we haven’t known you for a long time but the brief time we have known you, you have lightened up our days. I know what your heart and head are telling you cause I feel the same way. But please don’t make any rash decisions. I told you yesterday that I would stick by you whatever the outcome and I will."
"That goes double for me."
"Me and Piper have been talking and we would like it if you moved into our home?"
Rainie was shocked. "But you don’t know me. I could be a drug dealer for all you knew."
"Rainie. We trust you."
"I need time."
"We understand. If you want anything you know where to find us." Prue stood up and walked out the door leaving Piper to talk to Rainie.
"Look I know I haven’t exactly been the most welcoming person but that’s because I didn’t want to be hurt again. Loosing Phoebe killed me inside and its only because of Prue that I am here today. Prue isn’t one to take to strangers. Not at all. What you and her have got is special. Extremely special. Please think over what she has said. You are welcome at our home Rainie. And our home is your home. Please remember that." Piper gave Rainie a hug then stood up and exited the motel room shutting the door on her way out.
Rainie just stared into space. Thinking about what each sister had said over the course of the few days she had known them.
Part 14.
"Prue I don’t think she is coming. Its been two days now."
"I know Piper. Just give her time. She has a lot to sort out like us. The only difference is she doesn’t have anyone to go to, to talk about her feelings. I have you."
Piper moved closer to Prue laying her head onto her chest as Prue laid her arm across Piper drawing her further into a hug.
"I love you."
"I love you too."
The two Halliwell sisters had been sat in their own thoughts for 10 minutes when there was a knock at the door.
Piper sat up and looked at Prue who had done the same.
"What happens if that is her?"
"Then we listen to what she has to say." Prue replied standing up.
"Prue" Prue stopped and turned around. "What happens if."
Prue cut her off. "It’s her decision. Whatever choice she makes. We just have to let her know we are here for her."
Prue walked towards the door with Piper behind her. Prue reached for the door handle and opened the door.
"Hi."
"Hi Rainie."
"Can I come in?" Rainie asked.
"Yes sure. Prue opened the door wider for her. That is when she noticed the bag near her feet.
"Do you need a hand?"
"No its okay." Rainie picked up her bag and walked in placing the bag inside the door.
"So how are you?" piper asked, not knowing where to start.
"I’m okay thank you. I’ve been better. You?"
"The same."
"You want to come sit down?"
"Umm, no its okay."
Prue looked at Piper. They had the same expression written across their faces.
"I’ve umm, I’ve come to let you know that I am going away."
"What? Where?" Prue shouted in shock.
"I need to get away from here. I don’t belong here, this isn’t my family and as much as I wi... was and as much as you say I can stay here I know we will all be thinking the same thing. ‘If only I was Phoebe.’ I can’t live like that and neither can you. I have to move on. Start looking for my own family and you have to move on. You have to talk to your father and work out your differences. Differences that I caused."
"Rainie we told you it doesn’t matter that your not Phoebe and our dad, well we have had differences all through our lives. You were not the cause of them."
"Prue please. I’m not Phoebe and never will be. You have to move on and the only way for you to do that is for me to go."
"Will you keep in touch?"
Rainie shook her head. "No. You need to move on. Forget you ever met me. I’m sorry." She picked up her bag and turned to the door.
Piper gabbed her arm stopping her. "Please don’t go."
"I have to. I need to. I need space and so do you. We might meet again or we might not. All I know is that you need to move on and I need to look for my family and try to remember more of my past."
"But what about the memories, the visions you had of Phoebe."
Rainie sighed. "That I can’t explain. I just don’t know. Maybe I imagined them. Trying to get closer to your heart, for you to want me, or maybe they are real. I just don’t know and I don’t want to speculate. Look I need to go, a taxi is waiting outside for me."
Prue reached for her purse, which was on the table by the door. "Take this." Prue handed her a business card and a $50 bill.
"I can’t take this money Prue."
"Yes you can. And you can take some more. You have no money what’s so ever. You are just skin and bones."
"Prue."
"No Rainie please. For peace of mind?"
Rainie sighed then put the $50 bill and 5 more $20 bills in her pocket. "Thank you."
"Rainie, just promise me one thing."
"What’s that?"
"That you will let us know how you are getting on. I know you don’t want to but I need you to keep in touch. Even if its just a odd postcard here and there. That’s all I ask."
"Okay, I’ll do that. Thank you for the money."
"Your Welcome." Prue reached forward and hugged her. Prue let her go and Piper did the same.
"Remember you have a home here, whenever you need it you are welcome."
"Thank you." Rainie walked through the door and towards her waiting taxi.
Prue and Piper held each other in an embrace waving to Rainie.
Rainie threw her bag in the back seat and turned towards Prue and Piper. She gave a wave and mouthed a silent thank you. Then she got in the car.
Prue and Piper watched the car until it had turned the corner.
Prue let go of Piper and walked slowly back inside.
"Prue. It’s what she wanted."
"I know. It just hurts."
"I know it does sweetie."
Prue was about to sit down when the phone rang. "I’ll get it."
Prue walked out of the lounge while Piper sat down on the settee.
Prue returned a few minutes later.
"Prue what’s up?" Piper asked worried at the way Prue was looking. Prue didn’t answer her. "Prue please. You’re scaring me." But Prue still wouldn’t answer as she moved towards the window. "Prue what? What is it?"
"That was the hospital Piper." Prue said without turning around or breaking her gaze from the window.
"The hospital?"
"They got the blood results mixed up. They were positive Piper."
Prue let her words sink in; she slowly turned around to face Piper. "She was our sister Piper. That was Phoebe."