A Charmed Reincarnation (Season 1)

Chapter 21: A Choice Must Be Made

I walk through the front door of the apartment, relief settling through me at the sight of home, but the ache within grows the longer I stay standing. I hate myself for thinking it, but I'm glad Anthony did not wait for me. The conversation with Piper, Paige, and Leo did not end well, and I really didn't want to discuss it again.

"So because you've had this bad feeling about Cole ever since we vanquished the Source, you've adopted this demon assassin persona and have been sneaking off to the Underworld to get information from upper-level demons about him. When you tried to vanquish a powerful upper-level demon, he almost killed you, so you kidnapped him and tried to get the information out of him by force which didn't work, so you decided to work with him. After sharing information, you discovered that Cole is, in fact, the Source of All Evil. Is that about right?" Piper asks.

I nod slowly. "Yeah, that about sums it up."

"Okay, wait," Paige shakes her head. "I didn't start to suspect Cole until he showed up in a fancy car and got his lawyer job back, but you suspected him since we vanquished the Source?"

"Like I said, it was just a feeling." I resist the urge to clench my fists. "The Seer didn't say we vanquished the Source; she said he went into the void. What was that supposed to mean? I didn't immediately jump to Cole's the Source, but like you said, once he had his job back, the car, the penthouse, and what happened at the cemetery, it just became too much to dismiss."

"But why didn't you tell us?" Piper asks me. "You've been keeping secrets, Ambrose. That's not—at least I don't think that's like you."

"I told Paige." I weakly say.

"But only after I told you I suspected him." She reminds me.

"I didn't want to say anything before I knew for certain." I scramble to defend myself. I look at Paige. "Look at what happened when you tried to tell Piper and Phoebe. They dismissed you. I didn't want that to happen, so I decided to get proof. It's not like I wanted it to be true!"

"So you decide to trust a demon to help you get this proof than us? Your family?" Piper asks.

"That is not what happened!" I yell at her. The glass vase on the table explodes into pieces causing the girls and Leo to flinch back. I stare at the glass vase in shock while the girls stare at me silently. After a moment of silence, I say, "The reason I didn't tell you guys is because I didn't want to ruin Phoebe's happiness. Regardless of Cole being a demon, he does love her, and she loves him. She just married him, for god's sake. So what should I have done?" I look at them, feeling tears well up in my eyes. "Everything I did, I did to protect you guys."

Piper and Paige stare at me with different emotions displayed in their eyes, but they don't say anything.

"Maybe we should talk about this tomorrow," Leo suggests. "It's been a long day for all of us. Emotions are too high right now."

I nod silently and look away. Leo orbed me home and wished me a good night, and I said the same.

I open the door to my room and kick off my shoes and start getting undressed while my thoughts spiral from one to the next.

Should I just apologize to make it better so we can move past it? But what am I apologizing for? For protecting them from having to deal with the burden of vanquishing the Seer? The burden of having to lie to them about Cole being the Source?

"You're finally home." A voice says.

I quickly turn around and throw my hand out. "Icaeus!"