"You're sure they were demons?" Prue asked after Phoebe explained to her sisters what had happened. "And you're sure they're after him?"
"They just appeared out of nowhere," Phoebe said. "And they were definitely after him. I don't know what that spherical thing was they had but it couldn't be good."
"So," said Prue, looking at their guest, "any idea why demons might be after you, Mister..."
"Oh, Smith," replied the man. "Jonathan Smith. And, no, I haven't the foggiest."
"John Smith?" Piper asked, more than a hint of disbelief in her voice. "Your name is John Smith?"
"Yes, actually, it is," said Smith. "If it would help, I could show you my drivers license if you'd like."
"No, I don't think that will be necessary," Prue said. "I guess there have to be some men named John Smith. You probably get that reaction a lot."
"Not as much as you might imagine," said Smith.
"Okay, Phoebe," Prue said, "you go upstairs and see if you can find these demons or whatever they are in the Book of Shadows. We'll talk with Mr. Smith and see if we can't figure out why these demons are after him."
"You don't seem surprised to find demons after you," Piper said after Phoebe had gone to the attic. "It doesn't surprise you to find that demons are real?"
"I'm not sure quite what to think," said Smith. "I did research your culture before I came here. Apparently there are a large number of people here who believe in such things. Even if they are only legends, most legends have their origins in some form of fact."
"You don't believe in demons?" Prue asked.
"I'm afraid belief in demons was abandoned by my culture some time ago," Smith said. "However, that does not necessarily preclude their existence."
"Your culture?" questioned Piper. "What country are you from?"
"As I told Phoebe," Smith said, "I'm sure you've never heard of it. It's not very well known."
"I see," Prue said. "So, how long have you been in the United States?"
"Not long," Smith said. "Actually, I arrived only three days ago. I'm on a vacation of sorts. And I love to travel. I had never been here and I felt it the perfect opportunity to come here."
"Uh huh," Prue said. "So, we need to figure out why demons are after you. What do you do for a living?"
"A living?" questioned Smith.
"Yes," Piper said. "What kind of job do you have?"
"Oh, a job," Smith said. "Well, I suppose you could say I run the family business. I inherited it when my father passed away."
"What kind of business?" Prue asked.
"A variety of things, actually," Smith said. "I believe the term 'conglomerate' would probably best describe it."
"Is it very big?" Prue asked.
"Moderate size I suppose," Smith said. "Most of my day is filled with handling the major responsibilities of the business. I have others who handle the more mundane day-to-day things."
"I suppose it could be a rival businessman," Piper said. "Maybe someone who hired a demon to get him out of the way so he could take over the business."
"Maybe," Prue said. "Are you married? Have any family?"
"No, not married," said John. "Although in a couple of years I will marry. I have only a younger brother and sister."
"You might want to call them and let them know what's going on," Prue said. "It might be hard to convince them there are demons out there. But you could at least warn them that they might be targets for kidnapping or assassination or something."
"I doubt that is a possibility," Smith said. "There would be nothing to gain by harming them."
"Except your cooperation," Piper said. "If this is a rival businessman, he might take one or both of them hostage to get you to do whatever it is he wants."
"Perhaps you're right," Smith said. "I will contact them at my first opportunity."
'You can use our phone, if you want," Prue said.
"I'm afraid that would not be possible," Smith said. "It would be difficult to reach them at the moment. However, I shall contact them as soon as possible."
"Okay," Prue said. "Where are you staying?"
"Actually," Smith said, "I am still looking for accommodations."
"Well, I suppose you could stay on the couch for a day or two," Prue said. "At least until we figure out what demons these are and why they are after you."
Smith reached into his pocket and pulled out a large wad of hundred dollar bills.
"I would be more than happy to compensate you for the inconvenience," he said. "It seems only fair if I am to be a guest in your home."
"I don't think," Piper began.
"Maybe just one hundred dollars," Prue said, glancing at Piper. "We'll have to stock up on food. And we may need some special ingredients for any potions we may have to make up."
Piper just stared at Prue. They had never asked for money from an innocent before. If Prue was taking money from this one she must have reason.
"Not a think about them in the book," Phoebe said, coming down the stairs. "Nothing even remotely like them. And I couldn't find anything about that orb thingy either."
"Anything about demons in uniforms?" Piper asked.
"Not a word," Phoebe said. "Whatever these are someone must not have encountered them before. Or at least they didn't make an entry about them. I find that just a bit odd."
"Well, I suppose there are demons that none of our ancestors have encountered," Prue said. "We've encountered things that weren't in the book before. We'll just have to keep our eyes open and see what we can find out. Mr. Smith..."
"Please, call me Jonathan," said Smith.
"Okay, Jonathan," Prue said. "Would you excuse us for a minute. We need to confer on this and see about making some arrangements to protect you."
"Certainly," Jonathan said. "May I watch your television?"
"Help yourself," Piper said.
"Okay, what's going on?" Phoebe asked when the girls had gone to the kitchen.
"That's what I'd like to know," Prue said. "Phoebe, are you sure those were demons that were after him?"
"I described them to you," Phoebe said. "They certainly weren't human. And they just appeared in the parking lot. Right out of thin air. Why do you ask?"
"Because Mr. Smith is lying to us," Prue said.
"You caught that too, huh?" Piper asked.
"That's why I agreed to take the money," Prue said. "It might help us figure out what's going on."
"What are you talking about?" Phoebe asked.
"He said he had only been in the United States for three days," Piper said. "But he offered to show us a drivers license."
"Maybe it's one from whatever country he's from," Phoebe said.
"He also said he didn't have a place to stay," Prue said. "That he was still looking for accommodations, as he put it. It he doesn't have a place to stay, where's he been staying the past three days?"
"You think he might be a demon or something?" Phoebe asked.
"I don't know," Piper said. "But he's up to something. Whatever it is, it's probably best if we have him around here so we can figure out what it is."
"I agree," Prue said. "Piper, try to get hold of Leo. See if he can figure out who this guy is or what those things were that were after him. For the time being, I think it's best if we don't let Mr. Smith know about Leo. That will give us a little edge over him."
"I think you're wrong about him," Phoebe said. "He hasn't done anything to show he's a danger to us. In fact, those demons were going after him."
"Jeremy didn't do anything until after I got my powers, either," Piper said. "And I dated him for six months."
"Good point," Phoebe said. "Okay, we'll keep an eye on him. But somehow I don't think he's threat. He may not be telling us the truth but there could be a reason for that."
"Whatever it is," Prue said, "I want to know the reason. In the mean time, let's just pretend like nothing is wrong. No need to let our guest know we're on to him."
Prue and Phoebe went back into the living room while Piper stayed in the kitchen and called for their White Lighter.