A limousine was waiting for them out front of the manor. It was a stretch limousine that afforded all the comfort possible in an automobile. As they climbed into the car, Piper noticed that the windows were tinted. They were tinted so dark it was impossible to see through them from either side.
"It's a security measure," explained Holmes. "Your destination is a secured facility whose location must remain a secret."
Once inside the limousine, they all noticed that there was no way to roll down the windows or open the doors from the inside.
"Can you spell paranoid?" said Phoebe sarcastically.
"They're kidding, right?" asked Paige. "Piper can blow the door off the hinges and I can orb out any time I want to. Do they really think this can stop us?"
"It's probably the best they can do," said Piper. "They probably have no idea exactly who they're dealing with."
"Well, I'll be glad when we get there," said Phoebe. "I'd like to know what this is all about."
With nothing else to do, the three settled into the car to await the arrival at their destination. They drove for several hours. With no way to see where they were going, it was impossible to know their destination. For all they knew, the car simply drove around in circles for those hours.
Finally the car stopped and someone opened the doors from the outside. The sisters got out of the car into what appeared to be some kind of underground garage. There was a single ramp leading up which the car had obviously come down. There was also a set of doors in one wall that reminded them of elevator doors.
There were also armed men all around. Stationed all around the garage were men dressed in military-style uniforms armed with automatic weapons. Few of them took notice of the sisters.
"If you'll take that elevator," said Agent Holmes, pointing to the doors set in the wall, "someone will meet you."
He didn't wait for a response, but set about giving instructions to the armed men. As Piper, Phoebe, and Paige approached the doors, they opened by themselves. The girls stepped inside and the doors closed behind them.
"Look," said Phoebe, "there aren't any buttons."
"The elevator is remotely controlled," said a voice from a speaker in the ceiling. "It is part of the security system."
"Kind of cloak and daggery, isn't it?" asked Piper.
There was no response from the speaker. The girls simply waited as the elevator silently descended beneath ground. After what seemed like an eternity, the elevator stopped and the doors opened. An Asian woman, about thirty-five and dressed in a typical business suit, stood outside. Next to her stood a man wearing a suit and tie.
"Piper, Phoebe," said the woman, "it's good to see you again. I was sorry to hear about Prue's passing. It was a great loss to all of us. You must be Paige. I'm Amy Chin. I've been looking forward to meeting you."
"Amy," said Piper, "it's been a long time. What's this all about? Your letter made it seem like it was the end of the world or something."
"You have no idea just how right you could be," said the man. "My name is Marcus Van Dyke. I'm in charge of this complex. If you'll come with me, we'll try to explain what's going on and why we asked you to come here."
They followed Amy and Marcus through several corridors to what looked like a large conference room. Along the way, they saw many armed guards. Closed circuit television cameras were everywhere, as were emergency lights.
Inside the conference room was a large table with chairs around it. At one end of the room, nearly covering the entire wall, was a television screen. Marcus indicated that everyone should take a seat at the table.
"To begin with," said Amy, "Marcus knows all about us. He knows that we're all witches and he knows about the demons. And about White Lighters. Actually, that's the reason this complex exists."
"Amy, I thought you lived on the east coast," said Piper.
"I did until about two years ago," said Amy. "When Marcus was put in charge here, he brought me in as sort of as an expert advisor, so to speak."
"Okay," said Phoebe. "So why couldn't Leo, our White Lighter, come with us?"
"He'd set off every alarm in this place," said Marcus. "There's a security sensor net over the entire complex. It's calibrated to detect only human life signs. If anything non-human enters the corridors or any of the offices, an alarm is sounded."
"Amy, what's going on?" asked Piper.
"We aren't really sure," said Amy. "It's kind of complicated. And we're not exactly sure what we're up against. That's why I had you bring the Book of Shadows. We might need it."
"So why are we here?" asked Paige. "Holmes mentioned something about needing the Charmed Ones."
"Yes," said Marcus. "While Amy is powerful, she's been pushed to her limit of late. Your power may be the only thing that will save us all. And save mankind."