NINE

"Well," said Prue, "as I see it our first problem is figuring out where to vanquish Kernian. We can't just walk into this office in city hall and do it. There are too many innocents around and it would be a little hard to explain."

"We need to draw him out," said Piper. "Get him some place where there won't be any witnesses."

"That won't be easy," said Cole. "Kernian Isn't an upper level demon simply because of his power. Power is only one aspect that determines which are and which aren't upper level demons. It also involves how smart they are. Having all the power in the underworld doesn't do any good if you don't know how to use it."

"And being a first level demon means he's one of the smartest," said Leo.

"Being smart doesn't mean he can't be tricked," said Prue. "Even the smartest people have problem in some areas. I once read that Albert Einstein failed his college entry exams."

"Prue's right," said Phoebe. "Smart doesn't mean invincible. There has to be something we can use to our advantage."

"We could summon him," suggested Piper.

"That may not be the best idea," said Cole. "Kernian Is a very powerful demon besides being very smart. If you summon him he's going to know it. If he attacks before you can vanquish him it's very possible one or more of you could end up getting hurt. Or worse."

"Which means we'll just have to vanquish him before he has a chance to do anything," said Prue.

"Easier said than done," said Leo. "First you have to exorcise him from Sperrle's body. Then you have to use a Power of Three spell to vanquish him."

"Well, we've got the spell," said Phoebe. "I wrote the vanquishing spell when I wrote the dispossession spell."

"You still have to be able to use it," said Cole. "And as Leo explained, Kernian will have plenty of time to react. It's just too much of a risk."

"I'll freeze him," said Piper. "That will keep him from doing anything while we vanquish him."

"You're freezing power won't work on him," said Cole. "Remember, he's a first level demon. He has protection that lower level demons don't have. I won't even be of much help against him because he's more powerful that even Belthazor."

"Well we can't just sit around doing nothing," said Piper. "If he's a demon he must be planning something and we can't just wait for him to complete his plans."

"I wonder what his plans are," Phoebe said.

"That's hard to say," said Cole.

"You did say that local elected positions are often the springboard for some higher political position," said Phoebe. "Say like a Senator or Representative."

"Yes," said Cole. "It's very common."

"He also wasn't surprised to see Cole with us," said Prue. "Wouldn't he find that odd? A demon working with witches?"

"Not if he knew about my betrayal," said Cole. "Even if he was in hiding it is possible he could have heard about that."

"Where?" Leo asked. "Any demon who discovered he was still alive might have told the Source trying to get in good with him."

"That's true," said Cole. "Still, there are places he could have heard something like that. At his level there would always be some low level demons who would keep his secret."

"Any way to find out what demon may be keeping his secret?" Piper asked.

"That would be difficult," said Cole. "Kernian would be extremely careful who he associated with. His life would literally be riding on it."

"Well he must be associating with someone," said Prue. "He has to be getting his information somewhere."

"His assistant," said Cole.

"What about his assistant?" Leo asked.

"Most politicians have a personal assistant," said Cole. "Someone who keeps their schedules straight, run errands for them, all sorts of things. And many times their personal assistant is also a personal confidante. If he is working with someone his personal assistant would be the most logical place to start."

"And his personal assistant wouldn't be a public a figure as he is," said Phoebe. "Which means we need to find out who his personal assistant is."

"That should be easy enough to find out," said Prue. "I can go down to his reelection campaign office. That kind of information is usually easy to find out."

"You can go tomorrow," said Piper. "I'll go with you. You shouldn't be going alone."

"Actually I should go with her," said Cole. "I still have my ADA credentials. If she has any trouble getting the information I might be able to get it that way."

"But you aren't an ADA any longer," said Phoebe. "It could be dangerous if you do that."

"Not very," said Cole. "They aren't likely to check on my credentials. It's like when you get pulled over by the police. Do you ever ask to see their identification before they write you a ticket?"

"No, not usually," said Phoebe. "It isn't a good idea to tick off a cop."

"My point exactly," said Cole. "It may not be necessary. But if it is I can probably flash my identification and get what we need. I doubt there will be many questions."

"Just be careful," said Leo. "This isn't just a Nazi we're dealing with. It's a senior level demon. There's no telling what he's liable to do."

"You don't have to warn me about Kernian," said Cole. "I know him personally, remember? I know full well what he's capable of. Besides, if he does try anything I can shimmer Prue out of there. Piper can't."

"We'll go in the first thing in the morning," said Prue. "Once we find out who his personal assistant is we can decide what to do next."

"Hi, my name is Prue Halliwell. This is Cole Turner. We're here to take some pictures for some of the Bay Area News."

"Well," said the young woman behind the desk, "I guess that would be okay. As long as you don't get in anyone's way."

"Oh, we won't do that," said Prue, smiling at the woman. "Just a few background shots and maybe some information about Councilman Simms and the people who work for him. They're planning to do a series of articles on all the candidates and they just want to have some background information."

"I can give you some literature on Councilman Simms if you'd like," said the woman.

"That would be great," said Cole.

"Are you a reporter, too?" the woman asked.

"No," said Cole. "I'm just a friend. I, uh, gave Prue a ride down here today, that's all."

"Oh, okay," said the woman, handing some pamphlets to Cole. "If there's anything you need don't hesitate to ask. Councilman Simms is a great man and he deserves to be reelected."

"What's your name?" Prue asked.

"Jennifer," said the girl. "Jennifer Walker."

"Okay," said Prue writing the name down in a notebook she had. "And I understand Councilman Simms has never married."

"That's right," said Jennifer. "He says he's waiting for the right woman."

"I see," said Prue. "What about his personal assistant?"

"Mr. Myers?" questioned the girl. "What about him?"

"Well, I was wondering who he was?" Prue said. "You said his name was Myers?"

"Yes," said the girl. "Connor Myers. He's been with the Councilman since the beginning."

"Okay," said Prue, glancing at Cole. "So he and the Councilman are good friends I guess."

"Yes, they are," said Jennifer. "Would you like to speak to him?"

"Speak to him?" questioned Prue.

"Yes," said Jennifer. "He's here right now. He's been running the Councilman's reelection campaign. He's in his office at the back of the building right now."

"Yes, we would like to speak with him," said Cole. "I'm sure he could give you some great background for your story, Prue."

"Yes," said Prue. "That's a good idea. Do you think he'd be available right now?"

"I could ask," said Jennifer. "Right now he's going over the figures from the last poll. If you'll wait here I'll see if he's available."

"This is great," said Cole as they waited for Jennifer to return. "We might actually be able to get some information out of this Myers."

"You don't think he's just going to come out and tell you anything, do you?" Prue asked.

"Well, now," said Cole smiling, "that depends on how we ask him. Sometimes what a person doesn't say or how they say what they do say can tell you a great deal. Not to mention that people speak volumes with their body language. I'm no expert but I do have some experience deciphering body language. We might just get some information from Mr. Connor Myers."

"Mr. Myers says he'll be glad to speak to you for a few minutes," said Jennifer, "He does have a meeting downtown soon so he can't be long but he's willing to give you a few minutes."

"Thanks," said Prue. "We appreciate it."

"His office is the door in the back of the room," said Jennifer, pointing to the door.

"Thank you very much," said Cole.

"You really think we're going to learn anything from this guy?" Prue asked as they walked to the door.

"It's worth a try," said Cole. "At the very least we might be able to rule him out as Kernian's accomplice."

Prue knocked on the door. From inside the room they heard a man say "come in". Prue looked at Cole and then opened the door and walked into the room.

"Mr. Myers?" she asked, entering the room. "My name is Prue Halliwell and this is Cole Turner. It's very nice of you to take time out of your busy schedule to speak with us."

"My pleasure," said Myers, standing up to shake Prue's hand. "It's always nice to get some publicity for the Councilman. Especially if it doesn't cost anything. As I'm sure you're aware running a campaign can be very…."

His voice stopped cold. He stood staring at Cole with his mouth open and a look of astonishment on his face.

"Lieutenant Grueber?" Myers questioned. "That's not possible. That was sixty years ago."

"Apparently it is possible," said Cole. "Isn't it Sturmbannführer Adler."