Bionic Charmed:
Trial and Magic
A Charmed/ Six Billion Dollar Man supernatural drama with surprise guests
By
Mark Raymond Dalpes
Chapter One
Getting ready to leave the Manor, Phoebe Halliwell grabbed her large white leather purse and headed downstairs. The married witch was in a sleeveless orange top and a flowered printed dress. She entered the yellow creamed painted colored kitchen and saw her older sister at the sink. Piper was washing dishes in a white tee shirt and black jeans. The two's half sister Paige was pouring a cup of coffee at the counter and she was in a red short sleeve blouse and blue jeans. She handed her sister Phoebe a tall glass of orange juice.
Phoebe's bionic husband was writing at the tan wooden table in blue jeans, a WWE Triple H tee shirt and grey slippers. She walked over to her lover and set her glass of juice next to the brown notebook he was writing in. The witch put her arms around his neck and leaned against him.
"Are you going to work on the new book all day?" Phoebe asked her husband.
"Until you come home tonight." Mark gave her a very passionate kiss on the lips.
"So, who is testifying today?" Paige asked her, knowing that her advice columnist sister was on jury duty.
"No one, its closing arguments." Phoebe answered, and then turned back to her husband. "Bye, Honey."
The two kissed once more.
"Give them hell." Mark wished her well, as she exited the kitchen with her sisters following.
"So, do you think the defendant is guilty?" Paige wondered. "And what's the motive?'
"I can't say." Phoebe giggled.
"Come on tell us." Piper wanted to know too.
"I can't even tell Mark, let alone you two." Phoebe grabbed a pair of car keys from the key rack, it was her husband's. Her car was in the shop. "Honey, I am taking your car. Ok?"
"Ok, just remember to put the WWE music CD back in when you are done." Mark yelled from the kitchen, as Phoebe grinned at the comment.
"You are the only person I know, who actually like getting jury duty." Piper pointed out.
"It's the only time I can take credit for stopping the bad guys." Phoebe opened the front door and standing there was a UPS delivery man with a small animal crate.
"Is this the Halliwell/Dalpes residence?" The heavy set man with the name tag 'Doug' asked.
"What a cute dog?" Phoebe saw a small beagle inside the crate, as she started off. "Bye, guys."
Watching their sister walk to Mark's Trans-Am and drive off. Piper and Paige also noticed the canine in the crate.
"Don't tell us, someone set us a dog." Piper scoffed. "Who would send us a dog?"
"Take it you are Phoebe Halliwell Dalpes?" Doug asked, looking at his clipboard.
"No, I am Piper Halliwell." Piper smiled.
"Are you Phoebe?" Doug turned to Paige.
"You just saw her leave." Paige pointed toward the direction where her sister drove off. "But, one of us will sign it."
"Paige?" Piper intervened. "I don't want a dog running around the house. They shed and they pee all over everything."
"You, Prue and Phoebe had a cat once." Paige reminded her.
"You know that was different." Piper told her half-sister.
"Come on Wyatt would love to have a dog. Boys love dogs." Paige playing on Piper's son's happiness.
"Oh, don't play that card with me." Piper started to laugh. "He is not even one yet."
"Excuse me, Ladies." Doug trying to get their attention, but it was useless. So he whistled. "Ladies!"
"What?" The sisters echoed.
"I got pacific instructions that only a Phoebe Halliwell Dalpes or a Mark Raymond Dalpes are the only two authorized to sign for the dog." He explained.
"Got it." Paige's eyes lit up, she turned back inside. "Mark, come here! There is a package for you and Phoebe!"
Walking up to his sister-in-laws the bionic writer saw the crate with the beagle inside it.
"What package?" Mark wondered keeping an eye on the crate.
"The one you are looking at." Piper pointed out.
"The dog?' Mark was doughtful then thought for a second. "Well, I haven't had a dog since my German Shepherd Spence died two years ago."
"You are not thinking of…" Piper didn't want a dog.
"Yep, one dog added to the family." Mark taking to the clipboard and signing it.
"He is all yours." Doug took back the clipboard, then handed Mark a small envelope.
The delivery man opened the crate and took out the dog carrier with the beagle inside. He then took the crate and placed it inside the UPS truck. He got in and drove off.
"We have a dog." Piper sighed, as Mark opened the envelope. "What is next?"
"Who sent.." Paige opened the crate and picked up the canine, then realized it was a male. "him?
"I can answer that question." Mark announced. "The Elders."
"He's magical?" Piper rolled her eyes, the Elders just won't quit.
The beagle gave a friendly bark.
"I guess that means 'yes'." Paige had a feeling that the animal could understand them. "I wonder what his name is?"
"It says here, that he doesn't have a name." Mark looked at the brown eyed dog with brown and black patches.
"He's your and Phoebe's dog." Piper didn't want anything to do with this.
"How does Max sound?' Mark took the beagle from Paige, when the dog started to wag his tail frantically and lick the writer on the face.
"I think he likes it." Paige laughed.
· * *
Later at the Denver City and County Courthouse, Phoebe sat in the jury box with eleven other people. She knew one of the jurors: John Future, a friend of Mark's. She also couldn't believe that WWE Superstar Randy Orton and adult film star Anita Dark were also on the same jury as her. Kit Porter a former singer and a big fan of 'Ask Phoebe' were too on the jury.
The prosecuting attorneys were Executive Assistant DA Jack McCoy and Assistant DA Serena Sutherland. The accused was Wendy Paul, wife of Senator Russell Paul and she was accused of murdering his secretary Holly McGown. Her attorney was Thorton Blaine, a top defense lawyer with expensive taste for suits.
Judge Ron Burns was presiding the trial; he was an older man with a greying beard.
"My client is an innocent woman who saw a vision of the murder. She showed up at her husband's office and accidently picked up the murder weapon." Blaine pointed to Wendy Paul. "She was there to stop the killer and help Ms. McGown, but found herself arrested for murder. She was at the wrong place at the wrong time."
Finishing up his closing argument, Blaine sat down by his client and Jack McCoy stood up.
"Mister Blaine is trying to convince you that his client is clairvoyant, but the evidence speaks for itself." McCoy picked up the silver letter opener that laid on the evidence table in front of him. It was the murder weapon. "Her fingerprints were the only ones found on the weapon and she was at the crime scene."
McCoy handed the letter opener to the first juror, who looked a lot like Jim Belushi in fact his first name was Jim.
"Clairvoyant or not, Wendy Paul also had a motive." McCoy continued, as the letter opener was being handed to juror to juror. "She suspected her husband was having an affair with the deceased."
The Charmed One was the last to receive the letter opener and when Phoebe touched it a vision flashed inside her head. It was of Holly McGown being stabbed to death by a man with a long scar on his right forearm and her wore black gloves. The jolt of the vision caused the witch to drop the letter opener, which distracted McCoy and turn to her direction.
"Sorry." Phoebe apologized to the prosecutor and handed the opener back to McCoy.
"Are you ok?" Kit Porter whispered to the married witch.
"Just a hot flash, I am two months pregnant." Phoebe told her, she was telling the truth about being pregnant. "Other than that, I am fine."
At the beginning of the trial, Phoebe's empathy power had told her that Wendy Paul was hiding something and that she was honest. Now, the Charmed One knew that Ms. Paul was honest about her innocence.
Entering the jury room and sitting at the end of the long brown wooden conference table, Phoebe watched a thin man in the grey suit take a handkerchief and wipe down his seat. This was Doctor Niles Crane, a psychologist and reminded Phoebe of Adrian Monk. Next to Crane was black haired woman in a leopard printed dress and high heels.
"You look very familiar." The woman in the nasal sounding voice turned to the adult film star.
"I am Anita Dark." Anita told her, she was in blue jeans and a light green sleeveless shirt.
"The porn star?'
"Yes." Anita answered.
"Oh, my god." The nasal woman put out her hand. "I am Fran Sheffield, my husband and I are huge fans. I can't count how many times we watched your videos, not to mention our butler Niles."
Next to them was Mark's friend John and seated next to him was an older lady with glasses, her name was Sophia Petrilo.
At the head of the table was Jim, who was the foreman much to the dismay of Randy Orton and a bald short man with glasses named George Costanza. Orton was in black slacks and white button shirt. Costanza was in an blue blazer, red striped tie and grey slacks. Both men were jerks and Orton was hitting on Phoebe all morning, along with Anita and Mrs. Sheffield. They sat next to each other. To the left of them was a black haired man in an nice brown suit. He was nice and little like Mark, which Phoebe liked. His name was Phil Dumphy, a real estate broker. Sitting next to Phil was a young woman I her mid-twenties with glasses and a long sleeve button shirt in a long brown skirt. Her name was Amy Farrah Fowler, a scientist.
"Boy, I thought my friend Rai was desperate." She whispered to Kit.
"What do you mean by that?" Orton turned to Amy.
"At least, he doesn't hit on married women." Amy pointed to Phoebe and Fran.
"Your friend probably has no taste." Orton winked at Phoebe.
"This coming from a man who tried to end the Undertaker's winning streak at WrestleMania and lost." Phil reminded Orton. "Isn't he still undefeated? Like 21-0?"
"You know nothing!" Orton yelled at Phil.
"Can we get going and vote here?" Jim asked, when Orton turned to him.
"I want to know why you are the foreman." Orton asked.
"Because, I must be the most intelligent person here." Jim pointed to his temple and being smug.
"You were in the first seat." George smirked, as Jim glared at him.
"Can we vote?!" Jim frustrated, but got down to business. "Ok, who thinks this wacko broad is guilty as hell like me?"
"If she was in a WWE ring, I would give her a RKO*." Orton said. "Then kick her in the head."
"Is that a guilty?" Jim asked Orton.
"Yes, it is you moron!" Orton confirmed.
"She is guilty." George voted.
"Guilty." Kit agreed.
"Guilty" Phil voted.
"There is 100% chance she is culpable of the crime in question." Amy said, as Jim rolled his eyes at her.
"Oh, man." Jim shook his head in disbelief, then turned to Sophia. "Mame, What is your vote?!"
"I am old, but not deaf." Sophia pushed up her glasses. "She is guilty, just like Orton's attitude toward women."
"Hay." Orton was insulted.
"She's guilty." John voted.
Both Anita and Fran voted guilty.
"Guilty as Leopold and Lobe." Niles Crane voted, then everyone had their eyes on Phoebe.
"Not guilty." The Charmed One knew the truth.
"What?!" Jim was shocked, so was everyone else. "Are you serious? The broad is guilty and should be put in the nut house. They should toss her in a rubber room and throw away the keys."
The married witch knew her premonition had to be connected with the Power of Three. So, she had to think fast. Touching her stomach, the Charmed One had an idea.
"I have to use the bathroom." Phoebe started to stand up. "Morning sickness. The problems of being two months pregnant."
The married advice columnist ran into the bathroom, which was located in the corner of the room and she was seated next to it.
"Come on!" Jim threw up his arms.
Closing the door behind her, Phoebe locked it and called her brother-in-law whitelighter
"Leo?" Phoebe looked up. "Leo?"
Orbing in white and blue lights, the brown haired Leo Wyatt appeared in front of her. He was in a green tee shirt, blue jeans and a blue flannel shirt.
"What is going on?" Leo asked. "I was in the middle of a meeting with the Elders. Does it concern the Power of Three?"
"Just orb me back to the manor." Phoebe grabbed on to him. "Quick."
The two orbed out of the bathroom and back to the manor. There Phoebe and Leo met the newest member of the family. Phoebe instantly fell in love with Max the beagle.
"He is so cute." Phoebe bent down to pet the dog, as she explained her vision to her sisters, Leo and her husband. "The secretary was killed by a man with a scar on his right forearm."
"So, Wendy Paul is not the killer." Paige summed up.
"Holly McGown's murder must be connected to magic or you wouldn't have had the vision." Leo thought, as they went into the living room.
"That is what I think." Phoebe sat on the tan printed couch, with Mark by her side.
Piper sat in a brown chair, as Leo sat on the arm of it. Paige stood. Max the beagle jumped into Phoebe's lap and laid on her, placing his paw on her stomach.
"Woof." He playfully barked.
"He knows your pregnant, Phoebe." Leo told her. "Dogs know those things."
"Any case, we have to save this woman." Piper took the lead. "She is an innocent."
"I'll go back and stall the jury." Phoebe had no choice.
"How?" Paige asked,
"I will think of something." Phoebe started to stand up, as Max jumped off her lap. "Leo, orb me back to the jury room."
"After that, Leo and I will go and talk to Wendy Paul." Piper suggested. "I will call either Darryl or Captain Stottlemeyer and get us access to her."
"I think I will talk to Senator Russell Paul." Mark turned to his sister-in-law Paige. "care to join me?"
"Boy. I always wanted to meet a US senator." Paige nodded. "Even if he is a murder suspect."
"I will call Mark's parents maybe they can watch Wyatt." Piper trusted her brother-in-law's parents with the family secret.
Leo orbed Phoebe back to the jury room's bathroom and the witch exited, but before she did she flushed the empty toilet.
"Sorry, I am still suffering major morning sickness." Phoebe explained, as she sat back down.
"And here we thought you were playing solo stink finger." John joked, as George screwed up his face.
"That's disgusting." Constanza said. "I thought I was disgusting, but you are the champion."
"Is there any way we convince you to change your mind?" Jim begged Phoebe.
"I still think she's innocent." Phoebe stood strong.
"Are you kidding me?" Jim hated this, so did the others. "Some of us have families to get to."
"Sorry." Phoebe grabbed a note pad, pencil and the large black evidence notebook from the trial. "But, I intend to review every piece of evidence."
"Sweet Reese's, Butterfingers and Snickers!" Phil Dunphy rolled his eyes, as the rest of the jurors moaned.
Chapter Two
Piper and Leo entered the visitor's room of the Denver City and County Jail. The room was grey with four matching chairs and a table. The room had a two way mirror and another door, where Wendy Paul came out with her lawyer Thorton Blaine. Wendy seemed tired and scared. She was in an orange prison jumpsuit and had no make-up, she wondered who these people were.
"Lieutenant Morris and Captain Stottlemeyer said you two wanted to talk to my client." Blaine said. "But, if you want to talk to her. Then you have to talk to me as well."
"Wendy, we believe your story." Piper ignored Blaine and faced Wendy. "We believe you had a vision of Holly's murder."
"That does it!" Blaine had enough of the supernatural angle. "Get out!"
"No, let them stay." Wendy found a ray of hope for herself. "They are the only ones besides my husband who has believed me, that is including you."
"Ok." Blaine trusted his client. "I will leave you alone."
"Thank you." Wendy watched her attorney leave the room, then she turned to Piper and Leo. "So, you do believe me?"
"Yes, we do." Piper brushed some hair out of her face, as she and her husband sat down at the table.
"And we also believe you're innocent." Leo added.
"Can you think of anyone who would want to kill Holly?" Piper got down to why she and Leo were there, as Wendy sat down as well.
"No, everyone loved her." Wendy recalled.
"Did you see who killed her in your vision?" Leo pitched in.
"I just saw a shadow and where it was committed." Wendy informed them, she then remembered something. "I do remember that Holly was having problems with her boyfriend and his father."
"Who was her boyfriend?" Leo asked.
"Liam Patinkin." Wendy told them. "I saw them fighting the morning she died."
"Where can we find Liam's father?" Piper asked.
"I don't know, but my husband Russell might." Wendy said. "Are you going to talk to Russell?"
"We got people working on that." Piper and Leo stood up. "Where can we find Holly's boyfriend?"
"He works as a bagger at the Safeway on 26th and Federal Boulevard." Wendy informed them. "Are you going to talk to him?"
"We will try." Leo told her, as Piper knocked on the main door to let the police officer who was guarding the room they was done. "You do have friends, Wendy."
The officer opened the door.
"Jonathan and Jennifer Hart coming threw." Piper headed out the room, as Leo followed. "Make way.'
Colorado State Capitol
Colfax and Lincoln
Senator Russell Paul's office
Mark and Paige were let into the senator's office by an assistant secretary. Paul's office was painted white with brown oak trim on the doors, which matched the heave doors and his oak desk. A photograph of Wendy was sitting on the right side of the desk in a silver frame. The rest of the desk was filled with typical office supplies, similar to Marl's desk at the manor. Paige thought her brother-in-law's office was nicer and more fun, because he had posters of WWE superstars and movies on the walls.
"I feel like I am back in my high school principle's office." Paige commented, as Mark smiled.
Senator Russell Paul entered his office and started to sit at his desk in his forest green leather chair. The senator was an older man in his late fifties with brown hair and graying sideburns. His height was average and he wore a dark brown Brook Brothers three piece suit.
"Sorry to keep you two waiting, but with my wife on trail for murder and the state senate things are quite hectic." Paul apologized.
"We understand." Mark assured him, as he took out a note pad and pencil.
"Now, why is the NCIS interested in my secretary's murder?" Paul wondered. "You don't think my wife murdered Holly do you? Because, she didn't do it They were best friends since high school. In fact, it was Wendy's idea to have Holly work as my secretary."
"We do not, Senator." Paige told him. "We think your wife is innocent."
"So, what does the Navel Criminal Investigation Service need from me?" Senator Paul started to get worried.
"Actually, Senator." Mark got down to it. "I only work for the NCIS part time, I am really working on my next Sam Draw novel and I am taking one of those ripped from the headlines approach to it and it just happens to be your wife's case."
"I have read some of your work, Mister Dalpes." Paul leaned back in his chair. "If you need anything, I will be very happy to help."
"We heard that Holly was dating a Liam Patinkin." Paige got into the conversation.
"Yes, she was." Senator Paul clinched his right fist. "Patinkin is an ass hole. He didn't treat Holly with the respect that she deserved."
"Sounds like she was more than a secretary to you." Paige said.
"She was and no I was not having an affair with her." Paul crossed his arms over his chest; he knew what they were thinking. "She was like a sister to me."
"I know that feeling." Mark looked over to Paige, then back to the senator. "My wife's sisters are like that to me too and I have an older sister."
"You know where I am coming from then." Paul leaned forward and placed his hands on his desk.
"We also heard that Holly and Liam were arguing over Liam's father." Mark was taking notes. "Do you know what it as about?'
"Liam's father Adrian really wanted him to sire an heir with her." Senator Paul took a deep breath. "She didn't want to get pregnant."
"You think he killed her for that?" Paige asked.
"I think his father did." Paul's voice had a touch of anger in it.
"Why do you think that?" Mark's interest peaked.
"Something about the man doesn't seem right." Senator Paul suddenly got nervous.
"Where can we find Adrian Patinkin?"
"He lives in a very very secured estate over by Coors brewery just outside Golden." Senator Paul looked at Mark. "Maybe your NCIS people could get in to see him, because I couldn't."
"You and Wendy have never met him?" This shocked the bionic writer.
"Holly never had never met the man." The senator shrugged his shoulders. "I don't think no one has."
Leaving the state capital and heading towards Paige's green Volkswagen bug, the Charmed One and her bionic brother-in-law started to talk.
"I guess the senator is off the prime suspect list." Paige guessed.
"But we added two." Mark confirmed.
"Ok, you are the mystery writer and NCIS agent, what do we do next?" Paige asked.
"First we compare notes with Piper and Leo, and then find out why Adrian Patinkin wants his son to sire a heir for him." Mark took charge. "It could be one of two reasons."
"What?' Paige asked.
"One, he is a monarch of a powerful country or…." Mark started.
"Or he is a Demon and needs a human female to bring forth the next generation of evil demons into this world." Paige finished Mark's thought, who chuckled.
"Ok, make those three things."
"What was your second reason?"
"He wants a child, so he can sell it on the black-market." Mark gave his theory. "Since Phoebe had a premonition."
"You vote for my theory." Paige seemed proud and gave her brother-in-law a playful wink, as Mark chuckled and smiled.
"I think I will check with Gibbs to see if the NCIS has anything on this Patinkin family." Mark had an idea. "Just in case, it's not magical."
Piper and Leo got word to Paige that Liam Patinkin had quit his job at Safeway and had disappeared. So the only place left was the NCIS. Mark borrowed Piper's black Ford Explorer and headed to the Denver NCIS office on Colfax and Lincoln. Stepping off the elevator, the bionic writer headed toward the bull pen and saw fellow NCIS special agent Jethro Leroy Gibbs at his desk drinking his usual Starbucks coffee and working at his computer. Gibbs was a graying haired man in his fifties and was an ex-marine. He had on blue jeans, green polo shirt and a light brown sports jacket.
"What are you doing here, Agent Dalpes?" Gibbs looked up to him. "I thought I gave you the day off."
"You did, but I need to know if the NCIS has any information on Adrian and Liam Patinkin?" Mark told his boss. "Have you been following the Wendy Paul trial?"
"No. Why?"
"I have." The voice came from Anthony DiNozzo, who was behind them. "She is the one accused of murdering her husband's secretary."
The brown haired NCIS agent was dressed in a brown suit.
"She is accused." Mark turned to him. "Phoebe is on the jury and she had a vision of Holly being murdered and it wasn't Wendy Paul killing her."
Mark's fellow agents knew about his wife and her sisters being witches.
"Isn't weird that your wife is on the same case we are currently on?" Tony asked Mark, as Gibbs walked up behind both of them and slapped them both in the back of the head.
"Ow." Mark and Tony both said.
"What was that for?" Mark asked Gibbs.
"You didn't realized that the connection we started this investigation?" Gibbs asked Mark. "Why did you think I took you off this case?"
"Liam Patinkin dated the deceased and also dated Petty Officer 3rd Class Britney Simpson, our dead navel officer." Gibbs informed the bionic writer. "I can't have one of my agents whose wife is on the jury investigating the same case. It's a conflict of interest."
"It's connected?" Tony asked.
"Yes, DiNozzo." Gibbs stated the obvious, then turned on the big screen TV between Tony's desk and McGee's.
On the screen was a picture of Liam Patinkin. The man had dark black hair and was very handsome.
"Liam Patinkin is twenty nine and a Harvard graduate." Gibbs gave Mark the bio, as a black haired woman in a black long sleeve shirt and matching pants approached them.
This was Ziva David, a former Moussad agent and now a fellow NCIS agent.
"I see why Holly fell for him." Mark commented on the man's good looks.
"I think Ziva has the hots for him too." Tony told Mark and teasing the Moussad woman too.
"I do not have the heats for him, Tony." Ziva had trouble with American slang and catch phrases.
"That is 'hots'." Mark corrected her.
"You know what I mean."
"Can we get back to the case?" Gibbs gave them that entire look that meant let's get serious and enough already.
"Sorry, Boss." They said.
"Holly and Petty Officer Simpson weren't the only ones." Gibbs clicked on a photo of Simpson, who was blonde and with green eyes. "Remember she was twenty one, when she disappeared and was pregnant when we found her body."
"She dated him and my guess he got her pregnant." Mark said, as Gibbs put up another picture. This one was a woman who was blonde also, but she had blue eyes.
"He had her too?" Tony asked.
"Her name was Jessica Spears and she was twenty five, she vanished a year ago." Gibbs informed them.
"The police never question Liam Patinkin?" Mark wondered.
"He had two solid alibis." Ziva jumped in with information. "We believe he and his father are running a baby black store."
"That is black market." Tony corrected Ziva this time.
"Anything on Liam's father?" Mark asked.
"Nothing." Gibbs sounded disappointed. "We don't even have a photograph of him on file or a description of what he looks like. McGee has been trying to find anything on him."
"Senator Paul said the same thing." Mark recalled, as Gibbs clicked on a photograph of a man in a white suit and white hair. He was opening a car door for Liam.
"This is Lance Remington, their head of security." Gibbs reported. "He has a past history of assaults, but the cases were dropped due to lack of evidence and Patinkin's attorney Morgan Amquee."
Then another photo appeared, this one of a tall red pony tailed haired man with very bright yellow eyes in a black suit.
"This is Salvo." Gibbs informed Mark. "His first name and age are unknown. He is Adrian Patinkin's personal bodyguard. We don't know much about him either."
"What does the NCIS know about Adrian Patinkin?" Mark asked.
"We do know that Liam is adopted." Ziva informed him.
"He isn't Adrian's biological son?" This had the bionic writer wondering if Paige's theory was true. "Does Liam have any distinguishing marks on him?"
"McGee!" Gibbs turned to a brown haired man in a blue shirt, grey slacks and matching sports jacket. He was sitting at the desk next to Tony's.
"Yeah, Boss?" Special Agent Timothy McGee looked up from his computer.
"Show Dalpes, the photographs from the Patinkin estate." Gibbs told McGee.
"Sure thing, Boss." McGee stood up and grabbed a pile of photos from his desk and handed it to Gibbs. "I have been on surveillance at the Patinkin estate for at least two weeks and I photographed everyone in and out of that house. Except…."
"Adrian Patinkin." Tony finished McGee's thought.
"Timothy thinks Patinkin is video shy." Ziva added.
"That is camera shy, Ziva." Tony corrected her.
"Isn't that the same?"
"No." Tony shook his head, then thought for a second. "Well, maybe it is."
Gibbs searched the photos for a particular picture and handed it to Mark. It was of Liam at the pool with his shirt off and on his right forearm was a long scar.
"Looks like we just found Holly's killer." Mark was confident. "I just hope this is exactly what Phoebe needs."
Denver City and County Courthouse
Jury room
"First off, I don't believe in 'psychics'." Orton did the quote finger action. "And second, there is no such thing as magic."
"Do any of you believe in magic?" Phoebe asked them.
"I do some magic tricks, but that is mostly sleight of hand." Phil told her. "Actually, I am pretty good."
"Sleight of hand." George scoffed. "Like pulling a quarter out of my ear."
"I can do more than that, pal." Phil gave George a devilish grin.
"I am talking about real magic not tricks." Phoebe said, all the jurors shook their heads no and Phoebe stood up. "There is real magic."
The advice columnist started to walk around the table.
"It happens every day." She explained. "Like knowing who is going to call before the phone rings. The miracle of birth and falling in love."
"Are you saying falling in love is magic?" Kit asked her.
"Yes."
"Did you fall in love with your husband at first sight that writer guy?" Jim wondered.
"In matter of fact, I did." Phoebe turned to him. "What about you, Jim? Did you fall in love at first sight with you wife?"
"It was more like lust at first sight." Jim chuckled.
"I fell in love with my wife Claire at first sight." Phil said to everyone, as Phoebe saw Kit with an angel pin on her shirt.
"Kit, why do you ware that angel pin?" Phoebe asked her.
"My late father gave it to me." Kit recalled.
"Why did he give it to you?" Phoebe leaned closer to her.
"I guess to watch over me." Kit shrugged her shoulders.
"That is magic." Phoebe straightens up and started to pace again.
"I bet that pin is a gift and it is made out of gold." George raised a finger. "It's probably ten times more valuable that magic, I grantee it!"
Phoebe rolled her eyes at George, when she saw a blue flickering light coming from the bathroom door.
"Oh, no. I am getting that morning sickness again."
The pregnant witch ran into the bathroom, when Jim glanced at his watch.
"What morning sickness, it's one in the afternoon?" Jim scoffed.
"Don't knock that." Phil said. "When my wife Claire as pregnant with my oldest daughter Haley, she had morning sickness twenty four hours a day."
The Charmed One was surprised to see Paige and her husband Mark in the bathroom.
"Sweetie." Phoebe was glad to see her bionic man, as she gave him a passionate kiss and tight hug.
"Boy, you are stressed." Paige realized.
"You don't know the half of it." Phoebe said, still in Mark's arms. "What do you guys find out?"
"Piper and Leo talked to Wendy and she mentioned a Liam Patinkin." Paige reported. "Senator Paul told us that Liam wanted Holly to get pregnant and she didn't want to be."
"Did Liam kill Holly?" Phoebe asked.
"Ask your man." Paige let Mark take the stage. "Because, this whole thing gets very weird."
"Weird?" Phoebe got curious.
"Oh, yeah." Mark raised his eyebrows. "Remember that case, Gibbs took me off of?"
"Yes."
"Well, it's connected to your trial." Mark told her. "The dead naval officer dated Liam Patinkin and got her pregnant. He also dated another woman who disappeared."
"You think he killed these other women and their babies?" Phoebe asked her husband for his theory.
"I do and so does NCIS." Mark told her. "Gibbs believes Liam and his foster father are selling the babies on the black market. Honey, Liam has a long scar on his right forearm."
"Like the one in my premonition." Phoebe finished her Six Billion Dollar Man's thought.
"Exactly the way you described it." Mark confirmed. "But, there is no way to prove it."
"Maybe there is a way." Phoebe had an idea.
"What do you mean?" Mark was wondering what his wife had in mind.
"How?" Paige did too. "Because the only person who knows who killed Holly is Holly."
"I know that look." Mark realized what his beautiful witch was up to.
"I have to bring Holly back from the afterlife and have her tell the jury who murdered her." Phoebe told them her plan.
Chapter Three
After her half sister and her husband had orbed out, Phoebe returned to the other jurors.
"What are you doing in that bathroom?" Jim didn't believe that the advice columnist was pregnant.
"Excuse me?" Phoebe stared to get worried.
"Because, when my wife Cheryl was pregnant with our kids. She didn't spend half the time in the bathroom like you do." Jim recalled. "Hell, my sister-in-law Dana isn't pregnant and she is never in the bathroom that much."
"I am pregnant, two months to be exact." Phoebe told him.
"She is." Fran taking the Charmed One's side on this subject. "When I was pregnant with my twins, I basically moved into the bathroom."
"You know what really gets my goat?" Jim wasn't finished criticizing Phoebe. "You believe in magic. My daughters Ruby and Gracie don't believe in magic and they both are under the age of twelve."
"Magic is real." Phoebe stated.
"Ms. Halliwell, I am a fan of magic and even I know it is just sight of hand." Phil told her.
"I can prove to you that magic is real." Phoebe told them.
"That does it!" Orton stood up. "She is crazier than that broad on trial!"
"You are right, Orton!" George stood up and headed toward the door. "I can't believe I am agreeing with you, but she is nuts'o! Bailiff?"
George knocked on the door.
"What are you doing?" Phoebe wondered, as a large black man in a bailiff's uniform opened the door.
"As they say in baseball, lady!" George was very cocky. "You are out of here! Trust me, I used to work for the New York Yankees!"
"Yes?" The bailiff asked George.
"We want one of the alternates." George told him, as he paused. "We want that hot internet model Eve Freeman."
"Exactly." Orton agreeing.
"Why?" The bailiff wondered.
"One of our jurors isn't of sound mind." George smirked and looked at the Charmed One.
"Are you serious?" The married witch couldn't believe this.
"Yes and you are crazy!" Orton told her, then turned back to the bailiff. "Send in the hot internet model!"
"Ok." Phoebe put up her hands. "Let's make a deal."
"Why should we?" Orton asked.
"Wait; let's hear what she has to say." Jim took charge and wanted to hear this.
"Why?" Orton still protesting.
"Because, I am the foreman!" Jim starting to lose his patience with both Orton and Costanza, then turned back to Phoebe. "We are listening."
"If I can convince all of you that magic is real, will you all vote not guilty with me?" Phoebe asked them.
"And if you can't." Jim asked.
"I will vote guilty with the rest of you." Phoebe assured them. "We got a deal?"
"Deal, only if we shake on it." Jim went over to Phoebe and put out his right hand. "To seal the deal."
"Ok." Phoebe shook Jim's hand, then turned to the bailiff. "I am going to need some things."
"Like what?" The bailiff asked the witch.
"I am going to need five white candles, a sage stick and incense." Phoebe told him.
"What are you going to do?" Jim asked. "Saw the shrink in half?"
"I beg your pardon." Niles got snooty.
"No, she is going to call the Undertaker!" Orton hated this whole idea. "Listen, lady! I work with the Deadman and he makes magic look very real, but I never buy it. It is all fake. What makes me believe that you can do real magic?"
"Just watch me, Mister Orton." Phoebe told him. "See my husband is a huge WWE fan, Mister Orton. He knows that what the Undertaker does is most likely done with special effects. He has seen what I can do and I don't use special effects."
"I will be the judge of that, Lady!" Orton was very smug.
"I want to see what she can do." Kit spoke up.
"Me too." Phil said. "I would like to see some real magic."
So, what is your trick? You are going to pull a rabbit out of your purse?" John asked.
"No, I am going to summon the dead." Phoebe looked very serious at everyone.
The door bell at the manor rang a second time that day and this time the bionic writer answered it. Mark opened the door to see McGee standing at the door step. The NCIS agent walked into the large manor's foyer and saw that the walls were painted a dark yellow with a dark brown wood trim around the doorways. In the foyer was a round brown stained oak table with a blue painted vase with two dozen red roses in the center. To the left of the table were a wood bench and the staircase which lead up to the second floor. To the right was the doorway to the living room and the grandfather clock. Behind the table was the large dinning room and from there the manor continued: The sunroom/conservatory, Mark's den and family room with a big eighty inch flat screen TV to the left. The kitchen, downstairs bathroom, doorways to the garage and basement plus the garden was to the right.
"Nice place, Mark." McGee was impressed with the manor. "How many people live in this place?"
"Well; my wife, her sisters, my brother-in-law, my two children and me." Mark told him.
"Wow." McGee couldn't believe it, as Mark smiled.
"Let's go into the living room." Mark guided his fellow agent, who had a file with him. "So, what brings you by?"
"Gibbs told me to give you this file on Remington." McGee held up the file folder, when Piper and Paige entered.
"We heard the door bell." Piper saw McGee.
"Timothy, these are my wife's sisters Piper and Paige." Mark pointed to the women.
"Hi." McGee smiled. "I heard so much about you two."
"How much did you hear?" Piper was very cautious with strangers, especially ones from the NCIS.
"Just that you and your sisters are witches. The rest is top secret only to top level personnel like Director Goldman, Assistant Director Vance, Doctor Welles, Doctor Mallard and Agent Gibbs." McGee informed them.
"Can Agent DiNozzo get added to that list?" Paige had a thing for Tony.
"I don't think so, Paige." Piper shook her head in disbelief.
"Oh, come on. Agent DiNozzo is cute." Paige nudged her half sister.
"Oh, that is a good reason." Piper chuckled.
"For Tony it would be." McGee smiled and agreeing, as white and blue orbing lights came from above.
It was Leo and he just came back from seeing Phoebe. McGee's eyes were wide open from the shock of seeing Leo orb in.
"Timothy, this is my brother-in-law Leo Wyatt." Mark introduced him. "Leo, this Special Agent Timothy McGee for the NCIS."
"Hello." Leo waved, as McGee just gave him a slow nod.
"How is Phoebe doing?" Mark was worried about his wife.
"She is having trouble contacting Holly from the other side; I think she needs the Power of Three." Leo reported.
"We better go. It was very nice to meet you, Timothy." Piper knew it was the only way to save Wendy.
"Like wise." McGee watched as Mark's in-laws orbed off. "What was that?"
"My brother-in-law." Mark stated the obvious.
"I know he was your brother-in-law, but was the white and blue lights?" McGee asked.
"Oh, Leo is a whitelighter." Mark acted like it was nothing unusual and noticed Timothy's blank expression. "What were you expecting brooms?"
"No, I was thinking in the line of a talking black cat named Salem." McGee shook his head.
"You have been watching too much Nick at Nite." Mark laughed, as he patted his fellow novelist on the back. "You said you had a file on Remington."
"Oh, yeah." McGee snapped back from the magical realm and sat in one of the tan printed chairs. "It's not just about him, but the Patinkin estate too."
Mark sat across from McGee in one of the other matching chairs, as Timothy opened the file and layer out several photos on the brown oak coffee table.
"The estate has a steel gate which is electrified and the entire place is surrounded by a fifteen foot cement wall." McGee reported. "Plus, they have two security guards doing sentry duty around the grounds and one man guarding the front door."
"Adrian Patinkin really doesn't want anyone to see him." Mark commented.
"Remington has a six degree black belt and is a ladies man." McGee continued. "He would be Tony's new hero if he wasn't a scumbag."
"Did Gibbs find anything on Salvo?" Mark asked.
"Salvo has no history, Mark." McGee held up the picture of Salvo, when Max the beagle ran in the room and snatched the photo from Timothy's hand. "Hay!"
"That is our new dog." Mark and McGee started to chase the dog up the stairs.
The two NCIS agents followed the beagle into the attic and by the 'Book of Shadows', which was on a wooden stand by the round stain glass window looking out the front of the house. The dog laid besides the stand with the dark green covered book with the Triquetra embossed on the cover. The bionic writer knew what it meant.
"Great." Mark sighed.
"What is it?" McGee asked.
Mark picked up Max in his arms and handed McGee the photo, he then started to flip through the Book of Shadows.
"What is that?" McGee pointed at the book, then he changed his mind. "In second thought, never mind."
The husband of Phoebe found a certain page and it had a drawing of a red haired pony tailed man in a black suit and white eyes. On the page it read: Salvo.
"Isn't that Patinkin's personal body guard?" McGee looked over Mark's shoulder and saw the drawing and couldn't believe his eyes.
"And he is a warlock." Mark sighed again.
"Is that good news or bad news?" McGee asked.
"It's the worse news." Mark explained. "Warlocks steal witches powers and kill them."
"What does that mean?"
"It means he is after my wife and her sisters' powers." Mark hated the thought of anyone going after the woman he loves and her family, he then read the page and told McGee what was on it. "According to this, Salvo is an upper level warlock and usually cohorts with upper level evil beings. He can be vanquished by the warlocks spell and a potion."
"You know if Abby was here, she would be in heaven with all this." McGee commented.
· * *
The bionic writer's wife was having a hard time with the Summoning of the
Dead spell. She had set up the white candles and incense, with the sage stick in her hand.
"Hear these words, hear my cry.
Spirit from the other side
Come to me, I summon thee
Cross now the Great Divide
Beloved Spirit, Holly
we seek your guidance.
We ask that you commune with us
and move among us."
Nothing happened, it was the third time Phoebe chanted the spell and the other jurors were fed up.
"This is worse than when my brother Frasier and I tried to take an auto repair class." Niles commented, but Orton had enough of this whole 'magic' thing.
"Nice try. Lady!" Orton stood up. "It is time to vote guilty. A deal is a"
Orton was frozen; in fact all the jurors were frozen with the exception of her. Phoebe saw her sisters and Leo exit the bathroom, it was Piper who froze the jurors in the room.
"Boy, I am glad you showed up." Phoebe let out a sigh of relief.
"Let's get this over with so, Leo can sprinkle his whitelighter dust over them." Piper said.
"Are you ready?" Paige asked them.
"Ready as I ever am." Phoebe said.
Then the Charmed Ones started to chant.
"Hear these words, hear our cry,
Spirit from the other side,
Come to us, We summon thee
Cross now the Great Divide.
Beloved Spirit, Holly,
we seek your guidance
We ask that you commune with us
and move among us.
A slight breeze of air filled the room.
"It is working." Phoebe told them. You guys better go."
Leo and her sisters started to go back into the bathroom, when Piper stuck her hand out and unfroze the jurors.
"deal." Orton finished his thought, but was in shock at the sight of white lights swirling above the candles.
The other jurors were either in shock or too scared to talk, but Doctor Crane started to sneeze.
"Are you ok, Doctor Crane?" Phoebe started to worry about him.
"Sorry, but I am allergic to incense." Niles took out a handkerchief and allergy pills. "Once I take a couple of these I will be fine."
Niles poured a glass of water in one of the glasses supplied by the court and took his pills.
"Please do continue with your spell." Niles turned to the Charmed One.
That is when a ghostly figure appeared over the table. The ghost was a blonde haired woman in a flowing white gown and she had brown eyes.
"Where am I?" The ghost looked around the room.
"You are in a jury room, Holly." Phoebe informed the ghost. "Your best friend Wendy is on trial for your murder."
"What?" Holly was flabbergasted. "That is not true."
George stood up and walked over to the ghost and put both of his hands threw Holly's mid-section. He waved them back and forth through the ghost. The Charmed One saw this and rolled her eyes.
"What are you doing?" Phoebe asked him.
"I am trying to find the wires and mirrors!" George replied.
"Do you see any?"
"No, but they are there baby!" George snapped.
"Please sit down, Mister Constanza." Phoebe told him.
"Alright, but I don't like it!" George sat back down, as Phoebe turned back to Holly.
"Was it her husband and were you sleeping with him?" Jim asked Holly.
"Excuse me, but I am the one asking her the questions." Phoebe looked over to Jim.
"I am just trying to help." Jim told the Charmed One.
"It wasn't Russell and no I wasn't sleeping with him." Holly told Jim.
"Thank you." Jim nodded in his usual cockiness. "You know for a ghost, you are not that scary."
"Holly, who did kill you?" The Charmed One asked her.
"It was Liam Patinkin." Holly told them. "He was the one who killed me. Please don't let Wendy take the blame for my death."
"We won't I promise, Holly." Phoebe said, as Holly started to fade away.
"Wait, I have a question." Phil spoke up, but it was too late and Holly's ghost disappeared. "Sweet and Sour Chicken!"
"What is wrong?' Phoebe asked Phil.
"I wanted to know if she could ask Houdini for the secret to the Milk Can Escape." Phil told her.
Chapter Four
When the jury came back into the courtroom, Phoebe saw her family sitting in the public gallery. Her two sisters, her brother-in-law and her husband sat quietly waiting for the verdict. The courtroom watched as the jury sat down with the exception of Jim, who handed the bailiff a folded sheet of paper. The bailiff in turn handed the paper to the judge, who read it and returned it to the bailiff.
"Has the jury reached a decision?" Judge Burns asked the twelve jurors.
"Yes, we have your honor." Jim still standing proudly admitted.
"Will you please read the verdict?" Burns saw the bailiff hand the paper back to Jim.
"We find the defendant Wendy Paul not guilty." Jim looked over to Phoebe and then back to the judge.
"Are you all in agreement?" Burns asked all the jurors and they nodded 'yes'.
Wendy started to cry tears of joy, as her husband Russell gave her a caring hug.
"Case dismissed." Burns banged his gavel, as Wendy and Russell turned to the Halliwell/Dalpes family.
"I thank you." Wendy was very grateful, as Phoebe walked up from the jury box.
"No, you should thank Holly." The advice columnist told her.
"What?" Wendy didn't understand.
"It's not important." Phoebe took her hands into hers. "You have a very special gift, Wendy. Don't ever take it for granted. Excise it and make it stronger."
"I will." Wendy assured her, as she took the hand of her husband and the couple walked off.
"Leo, you better use your dust on the rest of the jury." Mark reminded his brother-in-law. "Especially, on Randy Orton."
"Don't forget the bailiff." Paige added, as they watch Leo go over to the other jurors.
"Holly told us in the jury room that Liam Patinkin murdered her." Phoebe told her sisters and husband.
"That is no surprise." Paige scoffed.
"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but…" Mark started.
"What is it, Honey?" Phoebe put her arms around her bionic writer.
"Liam Patinkin's father's body guard is a warlock and he is in the Book of Shadows." Mark reported.
"We have to vanquish this warlock." Piper took charge, as she started on her heel.
"I think there might be one little problem." Mark stopped her, when Leo returned. "The Patinkin's estate security."
"Honey, you forget." Phoebe started to guide her husband out the courtroom with the others following. "We are the Charmed Ones, security guards and steel gates are nothing compared to us."
The Patinkin Estate
Golden, Colorado
Driving up in Piper's black Ford SVU and Mark's black 1999 Trans-Am, the Charmed Ones and the bionic man exited their vehicles and saw the large black steel gate leading to the estate. They also noticed the fifteen foot cement wall.
"This is it, just the gate?" Piper wasn't too impressed with the security.
"Yes and its electrified." Mark said.
"For Piper this is a piece of cake." Paige told him.
"You can say that, Paige." Piper put her hands out and flicked them towards the gate.
She tried to blow up the gate, but some kind of force field blocked her magical powers. Piper tried again and again, but it was useless. The force field stopped the Charmed One's powers.
"This is not good." Phoebe was shocked.
"Paige, try to orb in." Piper suggested.
The half witch half whitelighter orbed into white and blue lights. The orb went up and headed toward the estate, but then was bounced back to the others. Paige Matthews fell to the ground and she was helped up by her family.
"Paige, are you alright?" Piper was concerned for her half sister. "Any broken bones?'
"I am ok." Paige assured her.
"There must be a spell protecting the estate." Phoebe guessed.
"Either that or they put rubber cement around the place." Paige chimed. "I don't think good magic is going to get in there."
"Our powers are useless." Phoebe was disappointed.
"The Power of Three might not work, but how about bionics." Mark was determined.
The cyborg writer looked around and started to go right by the wall. The witches followed him. Mark saw no cameras and walked across the street.
"What is your husband doing?" Paige asked her sister Phoebe.
"Why are you asking me?" Phoebe was as clueless as her sisters.
The writer walked up the hill that was across the street and noticed he could see the top of the second level of the house. Using his right bionic eye's telescopic vision, Mark saw no security guards on the second level and then came back to the sisters.
"What is your plan?" Piper wondered.
"Well, since Phoebe can only levitate ten feet. She can't go over the wall, but I can." Mark pointed up.
"You are going to jump over the wall?" Paige found that very doubtful.
"That is my plan." Mark cocked his head.
"Paige, Mark can jump up to thirty feet in the air." Phoebe knew her husband's abilities and limits, and then turned to him. "Good luck and be careful, Honey."
"I will." Mark gave Phoebe a quick kiss. "If I don't open the gate in twenty minutes call Oscar or Gibbs. They will come with more men and get you in."
"Just go." Phoebe watched her bionic man bend his knees and jump up into the air.
Watching Mark leap over the wall, Paige smiled.
"Now, that is impressive." Paige was amazed.
"I love that man." Phoebe pulled her hands close to her chest, as if she was praying for Mark's safety.
The bionic man landed on the other side of the wall and on the soft grass. Scanning the area where he landed, Mark noticed the grounds were big and he has on the side of the house. What the writer didn't know was that he was being monitored.
In the security room of the estate, security man got Lance Remington's attention.
"Sir, we have an intruder on the grounds." The black haired guard in the grey suit informed Remington.
Remington saw Mark on the security screen and was intrigued. He rubbed his chin.
"How did he get over the wall?" Remington was baffled.
"This is how, Sir." The guard played back the video footage of Mark jumping over the wall.
"That is incredible." Remington was shocked.
"I can't believe it." The guard replied.
"What is this guy?" Remington asked. "Let's see what else this strange man can do. Send in Moss and Evans after him."
"Yes, Sir." The guard picked up a walkie talkie. "Evans, this is Harker. You and Moss take care of the intruder."
"Our pleasure." Evans' voice came over the talkie.
Both Evans and Moss were large body builder type men dressed in black long sleeve shirts and black slacks. They approached the bionic writer.
"This is going to be a snap." Moss told Evans, as they saw Mark. "We can break this skinny geek in two."
"Great." Mark rolled his eyes and seeing them run toward him.
Moss and Evans had two long steel pipes with them. Moss swung his pipe at Mark, who put up his bionic right arm. As the pipe hit Mark's bionic arm, it bent the pipe. Mark grabbed the pipe and threw it over the wall. It sailed in the air landing behind the wall. Then Mark grabbed Evans' pipe with his same bionic hand and bent the pipe in half. Moss and Evans tried to lunge at the bionic writer, who jumped over them. Landing behind Moss, Mark grabbed him by the back of his pants and lifted him up.
"What the..?" Moss cried.
The writer tossed Moss against the cement wall, causing Moss to knock himself out. Evans tried to get away, but Mark grabbed him by the back of the neck and lifted him up too.
"Where are the controls for the main gate?" Mark asked.
"Inside the security office by the gate." Evans pointed to a far distanced cottage.
"Thanks." Mark pinched Evans' neck and shoulder area, a trick he learned from a certain Starfleet Vulcan and Evans was out cold.
Back in the security room, Remington was pissed off.
"Damn it!" He hit the counter. "Turn on the damn lasers!"
"But, the lasers fire every ten seconds." Harker warned.
"Just do it!" Remington pressed the red button labeled 'Auto Lasers'.
Running at ninety nine miles per hour, the lasers were missing Mark by centimeters. The lasers continued to fire at the bionic man, as he arrived at the cottage. The white door to the cement cottage was locked, so with his right bionic leg Mark kicked down the door. Mark entered the structure. He saw a small control panel to the right and knew it was to the gate. Grabbing the corner of the steel panel with his right hand, the writer started to rip out the front panel exposing the wires and electronic components. Mark started to tear out the wires. Sparks flew and disabling the gate, but the entire security system and the automatic lasers.
The bionic man ran over to the main gate and saw his wife and her sisters waiting. Without hesitation, he tried to open the large gate and it was still locked.
"How are we going to get in?" Paige wondered, as Mark had a smirk.
"Just watch." Phoebe knew what her husband had in mind.
Grabbing one of the black bars on the gate with his right bionic hand, Mark started to bend it to the right. He then grabbed the bar next to it and started to bend it to the left. Making a medium sized opening, so the Charmed Ones could squeeze in and meet Mark on the other side.
"I just hope we can use our powers now." Phoebe wondered, as two security guards started to run up to them.
"We are about to find out." Paige told them, when Piper flung up her hands at the men.
The two men were frozen in mid-run.
"I guess that means we can use them." Piper said.
Two more security guards were heading toward them. Phoebe wanted to levitate, but with some reason she tossed the two men into a large oak tree.
"Since when did you get Prue's powers?" Piper asked her sister.
"I was trying to levitate." Phoebe had no clue how she did that power.
"We will worry about that later." Mark wanted them to move toward the front door.
Coming up to the main door, they saw a large black man with a M-16 machine gun on duty, He cocked the gun.
"Machine gun." Paige put out her hand and the gun orbed out of the guard's grip, she then orbed the machine gun away and she saw a large flower pot to his left. "Flower pot!"
The flower pot orbed out of its spot and over the man's head. The guard looked up and the pot dropped right on top of him. He was out like a light, with soil, ceramic pieces and assorted flowers all over him.
"That is what I call flower power." Paige joked, as they opened the large oak doors.
The Halliwell sisters and Mark saw Salvo and Liam standing in the foyer with four men who were all dressed in black.
"Are you the welcoming committee?" Piper sarcastically said.
"Attack!" Salvo ordered the four men.
What the Charmed Ones and the Six Billion Dollar Man didn't know was that these men were actually demons, who conjured up energy balls and aimed them at the witches and the bionic man.
Piper flung her hands out twice to use her Molecular Combustion powers and destroyed both her demon and his energy ball.
"Energy ball." Paige orbed her demon's ball to her and then turned it back to him to destroy him.
Phoebe tried to levitate again, but this time her demon was flung into his own energy ball.
The demon who threw the energy ball at Mark didn't expect the bionic man to quickly dodge the ball. Mark then used the laser in his right bionic eye to blow up the demon.
'Let's get out of here!" Liam told Salvo, who blinked them out.
"Let's find his father." Piper took charge, as they saw two large red doors to the right of them.
"My guess, he is behind those big red doors." Phoebe pointed to them.
"You are very bright, Witch." Lance Remington was walking down the spiral staircase. "I must be in the presence of the great Charmed Ones and their…."
"Let just say I am an interested party." Mark told Remington.
"You have some extraordinary talents." Remington was impressed, as he straightens his cuffs and tie. "You took out my security system and two of my best men, plus you out ran my automatic lasers."
"You haven't seen anything yet." Mark assured him.
"Really?" Remington started to take off his white blazer and yellow tie. "I was going to let my boss take care of you."
"Is he a demon?" Piper asked, but knowing the answer.
"He is an upper level demon." Remington was very smug.
"We will take care of Adrian Patinkin." Phoebe told her husband.
"You ladies do that." Remington snickered. "Because, I am going to take care of your friend. Oh, by the way good luck with my boss."
"Go." Mark told the Charmed Ones, as Remington started down the stairs and reached behind him.
Waiting for Phoebe and her sisters to get to the doors, Mark watched Remington take out a long black whip and started to crack it.
"As I said before, I was going to let my boss take of you." Remington had an evil grin on him. "But, I decided to take care of you myself instead."
"I am honored." Mark sarcastically replied.
"You should be." Remington cracked the whip and slashed the bionic writer in the chest.
"Aggh!" Mark yelled in pain and grabbed his chest, luckily he wasn't warring one of his WWE tee shirts or a shirt Phoebe got him. It was a blue polo shirt he got himself.
Remington continued to crack the whip at the bionic man, cutting and slashing at his clothes and back. That is when, Mark had enough of it. When Remington wrapped the whip around Mark's right bionic arm, the writer grabbed the weapon and pulled it toward himself. Lance Remington was sent flying to the white tile floor.
The man stood up and tossed the whip away.
"I don't need a damn whip!" Remington did a roundhouse high kick to Mark's head and knocked the writer to the ground.
Still bent over and dazed from the kick, Mark felt Remington kick him in the stomach and the chest where he was cut earlier. Remington grabbed the bionic man by his hair and pulled up.
"You are nothing!" Remington yelled at the writer, who grabbed his attacker by the throat with his right bionic hand.
"I just got two words for you, asshole. Suck it!" Mark quipped, as he gave him a bionic choke slam into a black Grand piano and smashing the musical instrument into smithereens. Mark walked over to the unconscious Remington and holding his cut up chest. "And oh, by the way. I am married to a Charmed One!"
Meanwhile behind the two large red doors, the Charmed Ones were face to face with Adrian Patinkin. He was a tall man with dark black hair slicked back. The demon wore a red three piece suit and smoked a Cuban cigar. He was sitting in a large white velvet room on a big black throne with skulls carved in it.
"This guy is very full of himself." Paige observed.
"I am the one who is going to kill the all powerful Charmed Ones." Patinkin raised his arms to the heavens, and then started to throw energy balls at them. "My name will be immortalized in the Underworld!"
The girls started to dodge the energy balls, including the two month pregnant Phoebe. The sisters hid behind one of two large pillars that were in front of the doors.
"Are you ok, Phoebe?" Piper was concerned for the pregnant sister.
"I am fine." Phoebe assured her. "I just can't do any diving, high kicks or cartwheels."
"Don't worry; we will make sure nothing happens to our little niece in there." Paige pointed to Phoebe's stomach.
"I know." Phoebe smiled, knowing that her sisters would do anything to protect her and her unborn child.
More energy balls were hitting the pillar.
"Is this guy determined or what?" Paige asked.
"Very." Piper peeked around the pillar and started to blow up Patinkin, but it was just stinging him and not really hurting him.
Phoebe's husband opened the doors and eyed Patinkin throwing energy balls at his wife and her sisters. The demon saw the bionic man and threw an energy ball at the new intruder, but watched the bionic man run behind the pillar in a blur.
"Boy, you are fast." Patinkin thought out loud. "I thought whitelighters just orb and don't have super speed."
He continued with the energy balls.
"You should not be here, Honey." Phoebe was very worried for the man she loved and the father of her unborn child.
"Don't worry about me." Mark told the woman he loved. "Can you vanquish him?"
"Not without a piece of his flesh." Phoebe informed her husband. "Then we can use a potion."
"So, when you have a piece of his flesh. All we have to do is get back home to make a potion." Mark stated.
"That is the idea." Piper said, as she noticed the writer had a plan. "What is your plan?"
"Paige, when I say 'now'. You orb his ear into your hand." Mark told her.
Mark tighten up his right bionic hand into a fist and aimed his right bionic eye at Patinkin's right ear, the girls saw a very intense red laser beam come out of the writer's right eye and slice off Adrian's ear off.
Patinkin screamed in pain and grabbed his head where his ear was.
"Ear." Paige put out her hand and orbed the ear into her palm. "Yuck!"
Still in pain, Patinkin threw another energy ball at Mark. This time it connected and hit the writer in his left bionic leg. Panicking, Phoebe went over to her fallen husband.
"Leo!" Phoebe called her brother-in-law, as he orbed next to the witch and the writer. "Orb us back to the manor quick!"
Without hesitation, Leo grabbed on to Mark and Phoebe. He orbed out with the couple. Paige took Piper's hand they followed suit.
Chapter Five
Orbing back into the attic of the Halliwell/Dalpes manor, Leo and Phoebe helped her husband to the old red antique couch of Aunt Pearl's. Piper and Paige arrived just seconds afterward. Mark took a look at his damaged left leg. Smoke was coming from the calf and so were several wires.
"Does it hurt?" Paige never saw her brother-in-law's bionic components before and it was very uncomfortable for her.
"No." Mark saw that she was uneasy. "What is wrong, Paige?"
"I never had seen bionics before."
"You battle demons, warlocks, vampires and other supernatural beings, but you can't handle my bionic parts." Mark chuckled.
"I just have to get use to it." Paige admitted and then turned to her other brother-in-law. "Can you heal him?"
"Mark's leg isn't human; it has to be real flesh and blood for me to heal it." Leo explained, while Phoebe flipped threw the Book of Shadows.
"What are you doing, Phoebe?" Piper wondered, as her sister stopped at a certain place in the book.
"I wrote a spell especially for this type of emergency." Phoebe looked at Piper and then at her husband.
"What type of spell, Honey?" Mark also wondered, while Piper read the page.
"Repair Bionics Spell." Piper read it out loud.
"What?" Leo was confused and shocked at the same time. "Isn't that a personal gain spell?"
"No, it is to help the man I love spell." Phoebe assured Leo; she then knelt next to her husband and took his hand.
"You were attacked by something demonic
You are partly made with electronics
Please restore my husband's bionics."
Magically the wires started to repair themselves and the imitation skin grew back over the damaged parts, even the pants Mark was warring were fixed up like new.
"Wow, now that was cool." Paige smiled.
"How does your leg feel, Sweetie?" Phoebe asked her bionic man.
"It feels great, like it is brand new." Mark stood up and went over to his pregnant witch and kissed her softly on the lips, while Piper continued to look threw the Book of Shadows.
The oldest Charmed One found Adrian Patinkin on one of the pages and showed it to the others.
"He is an upper level demon alright. His real name is Hedeon and to vanquish him is to get some of his flesh…." Piper informed her family.
"Unfortunately, I got that right here." Paige put the ear into the Halliwell mortar.
"and the vanquishing potion." Piper finished.
Phoebe and Piper gathered the ingredients. The Charmed Ones boiled in cockleshells, pig's foot, crickets, elm bark and mandrake root together. Paige added Hedeon's left ear into the mortar and the sisters started to recite.
"Spirits of the air, forest and sea,
Set us of this demon free.
Beast of hoof, beast of shell,
Drive this evil back to hell."
A small smoking explosion came out of the mortar, indicating it was very active. They poured it into a small bottle and sealed it with a cork.
"One kick ass upper level demon vanquishing potion made!" Paige stood proud, as Max the beagle trotted into the attic.
The dog snapped on to Phoebe's long dress to get her attention.
"Hay, there what are you doing?" The advice columnist was surprised at the animal's behavior.
That is when the dog started to bark and jump frantically.
"I think he is trying to tell us something." Paige said.
"You think?" Piper stated the obvious, while Leo healed Mark's whip cuts.
Max continued to bark.
Patinkin shimmered into the attic of the manor Max the beagle put up a protection bubble just like Piper's son Wyatt. Inside the bubble, the dog started to growl at the demon. Patinkin started to throw energy balls at the beagle, but the balls just fizzled away on contact of the bubble.
"Haven't you heard of animal protection laws?" Phoebe didn't want to see her new pet hurt, as Piper tried to freeze Patinkin and Paige threw the vanquishing potion at him.
Piper's freezing didn't work on Patinkin, but Adrian's skin did start to melt off when the potion hit him. It revealed a grey skinned demon with black spots and white horns on the top of his head. Hedeon's eyes were dark yellow and he had dark green teeth.
"Nooooo!" Hedeon screamed as he burst into flames.
The demon exploded into nothingness and Max lowered his shield.
"He has a protective shield like Wyatt?" Piper couldn't believe it. "Van he orb like him and Paige?"
Max the beagle suddenly orbed into Mark's arms and gave Piper a friendly bark.
"Leo, what is going on?" Piper turned to her husband.
"Max is what we call an Alerter." Leo explained. "Special whitelighter animals that can sense impending danger and warn of evil beings. The Elders usually give Alerters to high powered witches as awards."
"He is cute for an award, but I would have liked a new car." Paige petted the pup.
"I would like to have Wrestle Mania tickets." Mark chuckled.
"We have more problems: Liam Patinkin and Salvo." Piper reminded them.
"For that, I have an idea and it involves two things: Max here and the news of Hedeon's vanquish." Phoebe looked at Max and her family.
Back at the Patinkin estate, Liam was pacing up and down in the throne room. Salvo, who sat in a folding metal chair, was trying to scry for Hedeon with a crystal and a Denver metro area map, Lance Remington was leaning against a pillar and holding his ribs from Mark's attack.
"I can't get anything." Salvo threw up his hands.
"Hell, with this back magic crap!" Liam furiously knocked over the table with the map on it. "My father is missing and the Charmed Ones are going to die!"
"Not to mention their friend!" Lance Remington fighting his pain.
"I think the Charmed Ones kidnapped your father to get to us." Salvo theorized.
Like on cue, Max the beagle orbed into the room with a note in his mouth. The dog ran over to Liam and dropped the folded note on the floor.
"Whose dog is that?" Remington wondered.
"I bet it's the Charmed Ones' " Liam dove toward the beagle, but the loveable pup orbed out. "Damn!"
"Out smarted by a dog." Salvo chuckled.
"Don't start, Salvo." Liam picked up the not and read it. " 'We have your father. Come and get him, The Charmed Ones'. Salvo, let's go."
"It could be a trap." Salvo warned Liam.
"I don't care!" Liam growled. "You, Remington and me are going to get rid of the Charmed Ones for good!"
Halliwell/ Dalpes Manor
One hour later
Blinking in with Remington and Liam, Salvo looked around the foyer of the manor and saw the spiral staircase that lead up to the upper level of the house. Liam started up the stairs, but Salvo stopped him.
"What are we waiting for?" Liam was very impatient. "Let's get them."
"This could be a trap." Salvo being cautious. "We can't go half cocked here."
"A trap that is nonsense." Liam blew it off. "This isn't a trap."
"Think again." Piper said, as she and her sisters orbed into the foyer.
"The Charmed Ones!" Remington took out his 9mm automatic pistol, then Piper froze him and Liam.
Salvo conjured up an energy ball and aimed it at the sisters. The Charmed Ones started to chant:
"Evil is a faithful foe,
but good does battle best.
We witches will with these words
Waste this warlock's evil zest."
Salvo started to twirl at an incredible speed and a bright light began to glow in his chest.
"No!" The red haired warlock yelled, as he exploded within the blue light.
Unfreezing Remington and Liam, Piper turned to her sister Phoebe.
"Where is Salvo?" Liam wondered, then realized whet happened when he saw a black spot on the wooden floor.
"That is him." Phoebe pointed to the spot.
"Let's get out of here, Liam." Remington got scared. "Or they will vanquish us."
"They can't, we are mortals." Liam knew that the Charmed Ones couldn't harm them.
"You are right." Piper shook her head.
"I told you." Liam told Remington, but didn't see Gibbs and some of his NCIS team sneak into the manor through the kitchen, "Shot and kill the Charmed Ones."
"My pleasure." Remington cocked his pistol and aimed it at Phoebe. "Any last words?"
"Just that my husband won't let you kill me or my sisters." Phoebe pointed up the stairs toward her bionic man, who was waking down.
Liam and Remington saw the bionic man, who was dressed in his NCIS vest and baseball cap.
"Oh, did I forget to mention that he works for the NCIS?" Phoebe smirked.
"Just one NCIS agent?" Liam chuckled as Gibbs and the rest of his team moved up behind Liam and Remington.
"No, just look behind you." Mark pointed to his team members.
"Drop the weapon! NOW!" Gibbs ordered Remington.
"You better do what he says, because he gets cranky when he hasn't had his morning coffee yet," Tony told Remington.
"Liam Patinkin, you are under arrest for the murder of Holly McGown, Petty Officer Brintey Simpson and Jessica Spears." Gibbs took out a pair of handcuffs and slapped them on Patinkin.
"I knew you were going to get caught." Remington got very cocky. "Three murder charges for you and nothing for me."
"I wouldn't brag quite yet, pal." DiNozzo spoke into Remington's ear.
"Why?"
"Because you are under arrest as well." McGee turned to Remington around and handcuffed him as well.
"What for?"
"For the attempted murder of an NCIS agent and his family." McGee turned to Mark, who walked up to Remington.
"Now, you are nothing." Mark said to him and that got Remington even angrier,
"Hold on for a second, Agent McGee." Phoebe walked up to Remington and not only punched him in the face, but kicked him in the balls.
Remington bent over in pain.
"That is for trying to kill my husband and the father of my unborn child." Phoebe told Remington, as she strolled over to Mark and put her arms around her bionic man.
"Boy, did you piss off the wrong pregnant woman." McGee lead Remington out the door, as Ziva lead Liam away as well.
"So, what happened to Salvo?" Gibbs turned to the bionic man and the witches.
"You are standing on him, Agent Gibbs." Paige screwed up her face, pointed to the black spot underneath Gibbs' right foot. "He was a warlock."
"And Patinkin?" Gibbs hated to hear about this one.
"There is an identical black spot upstairs in the attic." Phoebe pointed up.
"Warlock?" Gibbs asked her.
"No, demon." Piper answered.
"I will have some agents go to the Patinkin estate and pick up Adrian's other men." Gibbs looked at Mark and the Charmed Ones. 'Ok?"
"Ok." Mark nodded at his boss.
"And I guess I don't need a clean up crew here at your house. Do I?" Gibbs told Mark.
"No, Boss." Mark assured him.
"Good, I can start to get to know Mark's sister-in-law." Tony winked at Paige, who blushed and then Gibbs slapped DiNozzo on the back of his head. "Ow."
"Now is not the time, DiNozzo." Gibbs said.
Epilogue
P-3 Nightclub
Westminster, Colorado
The nightclub was full of people watching, listening and dancing to the band that was playing on the stage. In the VIP section of the club, sat the owner of the establishment and her family. Dressed in a dark brown dress, Piper Halliwell sat next to her husband Leo with his arm draped over her bare shoulders. The White lighter was in blue slacks and gray shirt. Her baby sister Phoebe, in black leather pants and low cut red sleeveless top, sat to the right of her man. The bionic writer was dressed in a light blue polo shirt and navy blue slacks. Phoebe was partly sad, because it was one of the last times she'll be able to ware her leather pants until after the baby was born. She and Mark both were drinking sparkling apple juice, while Piper and Leo drank white wine.
The Halliwell half sister Paige came off the dance floor with her date NCIS agent Tony DiNozzo. She was in a sleeveless white top and black slacks. Tony wore a back shirt and matching pants. The two sat with the others.
"Piper, I can't believe you got Motorhead to play P-Three." Tony chuckled.
"It was Mark who asked Triple H who got them for me." Piper expained, as Tony turned to his fellow NICS agent and friend.
"I can't believe you actually choked slammed a guy and told him to 'Rest In Peace." Tony laughed.
Mark's wife, her sisters and Leo all looked at him puzzled.
"It's a wrestling move where you grab a man by the…" Mark started.
"We get the idea, Honey." Phoebe patted her husband on his shoulder, she didn't want him to go into much detail about any wrestling moves or the WWE. She couldn't understand his interest in sports entertainment.
Leroy Jethro Gibbs entered the popular nightclub and saw his two agents with the Halliwells. The ex-marine and NCIS agent seemed very out of place with graying hair, blue jeans, brown sports jacket, blue shirt and Starbucks coffee cup in his hands.
"Boss, what are you doing here?" Mark figured Gibbs would never vist Piper's club.
"Looking for my two top agents." Gibbs turned to his agents.
"Sorry, my husband is officially on maternity leave, Gibbs." Phoebe told him.
"My Charmed One has spoken." Mark smirked.
"Who am I to argue with the Power of Three?" Gibbs said. "But, I'm actually here to see Phoebe."
"Me?" Phoebe was surprised.
"Yes." Gibbs reached inside his jacket pocket and pulled out a white envelope. "Senator Paul and his wife asked me to give this to you."
He handed it to the writer's wife and she opened it.
"What is it?" Piper wondered.
"A thank you letter." Phoebe told them. "Wendi not only thanks us for clearing her of the murder charge, but also Holly's reputation and her husband's."
"Boss, what is going to happen to Liam Patinkin and Remington?" Tony asked.
"Liam Patinkin is going to spend the rest of his life in prison for the three murders." Gibbs informed. "And Remington is claiming that three witches and a super strong man beat him up and vanquished his employer. Let's just say he is going away for a very ong time in a padded room."
"Why don't you have a seat and join us, Agent Gibbs?" Leo offered.
"Sorry. But I can't." Gibbs apologized. "I am meeting Assistant Director Shepard for dinner. I will take a rain check."
"I am a witness to that." Tony joked, as Gibbs leaned over to him and talked into his ear.
"Be careful, Tony or I will tell your date about that mission with you and Diva as husband and wife." Gibbs threatened.
"I will shut up, Boss." Tony blushed, as Gibbs said his goodbyes, Tony turned to Paige and asked. "Do you want something to drink?"
"A screwdriver." Paige wanted to let Tony get a breather.
"One screwdriver coming up." Tony snapped his fingers and got up, he was sweating and walking off.
"Leo, have you figured out why Phoebe all of sudden has telekinesis powers?" Piper was concerned for her baby sister.
"This is just a wild guess, but the power may not be Phoebe's." Leo had a theory.
"She is channeling someone's powers?" Mark asked, knowing that it coud happen with his wife's empathy power.
"Not necessary." Leo continued with his theory, as Mark rubbed Phoebe's right arm up and down. "But, whoever's powers it was it wasn't evil. The powers helped you stop demons and protected you from the guards."
"This might sound kind of silly, but what if this new power is coming from your and Mark's unborn child?" Piper had a hunch.
"Our child?" Mark couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"It would make sense." Piper continued with her hunch. "It happened when I was pregnant with Wyatt and Mom had the powers of premonition while she was with Phoebe."
"Our unborn daughter will have the power of telekinesis?" Phoebe touched her stomach, as Mark did as well.
"Look it at this way, Phoebe." Paige smiled at her. "You will have a little Prue in you."
"Prue." The two married couples sighed simultaneously, then Mark started to raise his glass.
"I say we have a toast to Prue." Mark had a good feeling about this.
"Me too." Phoebe agreed with her bionic husband.
"Let's do it." Piper rose her glass, Leo and Paige followed. "You begin, Phoebe."
"To our sister Prue Halliwell." Phoebe rose her glass. "The most loving sister a woman could have."
"I loved you, Prue." Piper was next. "Even when you were a pain in the butt and still do."
"You were like a sister to me, more than a sister-in-law." Leo toasted. "I will miss you, Prue."
"First, you didn't trust me, then you approved of me and knew Phoebe loved me." Mark took his turn. "I respected and loved you, Prue. I hoped you respected and loved me."
"I wished I knew you, Prue." Paige was at a loss to say. "You were my sister and I love you even if I have never met you."
Then Paige added.
"I would like to make another toast." The others took sips of their drinks.
"To who?" Piper wondered what her half sister was up to. "Grams? Mom?"
"I hope it is not Cole?" Phoebe dreaded that thought.
"God no." Paige assured her. "I just want to make a toast to someone who isn't here yet."
The others looked at each other and raised their glasses again.
"To Mark and Phoebe's unborn daughter and my first niece." Paige's smie grew bigger. "May the Power of Three be with you always."
"To the Power of Three." Mark, Phoebe, Piper, Leo and Paige did one last toast.
The End