Disclaimer: I don't own Charmed.

Findings

Cole shimmered into the manor's attic several hours later, worry evident on his face.

Piper glanced up at him. "None of these spells are working. I can't bring her to me or me to her. And the scrying still won't give me a location. Keilphorte's place must be really well protected."

"Did you find anything?" Paige questioned a suspicious glint in her dark eyes.

Cole took a seat on an old couch before replying. "He must have gotten more minions since he succeeded in capturing a Charmed One, because now I can't get any demons to even think of giving me any information. Although, it does seem a bit strange that demons would suddenly flock to him just because of that. You guys have been kidnapped before. But, anyway I have searched just about everywhere in the Underworld. There're only about five or six ancient lairs I haven't looked into. They're heavily guarded and surrounded by magical barriers."

"So, Phoebe and the baby must be in one of them, right?"

"They have to be. Keilphorte's not the type to hide above ground. He hates mortals. I figured I should get you two for backup before I try to get in, though. My powers alone can't beat him and the only way to really save Phoebe and Prue is to destroy that monster."

"Then, let's go," Piper said, grabbing several potion vials as she made her way towards Paige so they could orb behind Cole's shimmer. Demonic transportation always made her a bit queasy, so she preferred to travel with her sister.

Cole stood, ready to leave, when a ball of orbs gathered in his arms. He allowed a weary small to cross his face as he looked down at a giggling Grace. "I'll take her downstairs to Leo," he offered when Paige started forward.

"No!" Paige said, quickly grabbing her baby from the tall man's arms. She caught Cole's confused, and a little hurt, glance and hurried to add, "I mean, I can do it. We might just be walking into our deaths, right? So, I'd like to say goodbye to my family first."

Cole watched as she turned on her heel and headed downstairs.

"I'm gonna say goodbye to Leo and the kids, too, you know just in case," Piper told him, anxious to get away before he started asking questions.

"Wait, Piper. So tell me, is it just me or is that not the reason Paige didn't want me to bring Grace downstairs?"

"Um…"

"In fact," Cole continued, "it almost seemed like she didn't even want her kid in the same room as me."

"Actually…" Piper trailed off. She sighed. "You deserve to know, I guess."

"Know what?" Cole prompted. He glanced at the stairs. "And she'd better hurry up. We have to get to Phoebe as soon as possible."

"She's hurrying, I'm sure. But, about her snatching Grace away from you… she kind of suspects that you're behind kidnapping Phoebe."

"What? How could she-"

"She doesn't want you to be," Piper hastened to continue, "and I told her she was way off. But, with your past, even though you guys have reached an understanding, she still thinks it's possible for you to revert back to evil."

"I thought we were past all this. I thought… never mind," Cole cut himself off before he could say he thought they were family. Apparently they weren't, and it hurt Cole more than he cared to admit. He thought of Paige and Piper as siblings, but they didn't seem to feel the same way.

"I told her she was wrong. That we had no reason not to trust you. But she's suspicious about your time in the Underworld lately and-"

"I was trying to protect all of you!" Cole burst out, the betrayal he felt making itself known in the form of anger.

"Well, Paige thinks you might have been scheming, what with the scarce information you provided and everything."

"I've found out stuff."

"But, it took you a long time."

"So because Keilphorte is one of the best demons out there and can cover his tracks, I'm suddenly evil?"

"Hey, I didn't say I agreed with her," Piper threw her hands up defensively. "Stop yelling at me."

"You guys ready to go?" Paige asked as she appeared at the doorway.

Cole glared at her and silently shimmered out."

"What's his problem?"

"What do you think, Paige?"

"I don't kno… you told him?! Piper, how could you?"

"We can argue later. Just follow his shimmer now."

"Um, Sir? Belthazor has already killed a good bit of demons looking for his witch. Perhaps it would be a good idea to take the child now. If we wait the last few months to let it be born naturally, Belthazor and the other Charmed Ones will surely find us. Then, you won't get the power."

"Shut up!" Keilphorte hollered. "I know all that, you fool. But that baby's powers aren't fully developed. I must not be found by Belthazor and the witches for several weeks at least."

"I don't think that's going to happen, Sir. You should act now."

"No one orders me around. No one," Keilphorte announced as he threw a fireball at his most loyal servant.

Inside her cage, Phoebe shivered at the evil that was practically dripping off Keilphorte's form. She yet again tried to break free from her magical chains. Nothing worked, not even Prue's shimmering.

An anguished scream sounded from outside the lair's entrance. It was soon followed by several more. Then, much to Keilphorte's horror, voices were also heard. Phoebe sighed in relief as she listened to the conversation of her saviors.

"She has to be in this one," Piper declared, her voice slightly muffled through the cavern's walls.

"Really? Did the fact that we've already vanquished every demon in the other five places and didn't find her tip you off?"

"Shut up, Paige. We don't need your sarcasm now."

Phoebe grinned at her husband's voice, not noticing the extra bite to his tone as he reprimanded her baby sister.

"Anyway, just because we destroyed all the guards doesn't mean we can get in. The barrier protecting Keilphorte must be stronger than the ones surrounding the other lairs."

"They'll never get through it," muttered Phoebe's captor.

Just several mere feet of rock away from her little sister, Piper watched as, in answer to her previous statement, Paige grabbed a few potions from her pocket and flung them at the wall. Cole threw several energy balls in rapid succession at the same spot the potion's had hit.

"No good," Cole told them, as he threw a small rock at the force-field and watched it become dust. "It's still strong."

Piper tried her own luck with her explosion power. Then, another rock met the same fate as the first one. Cole tried, not for the first time, to shimmer through, and Paige attempted an orb, but both failed.

"Power of Three?" suggested Paige.

"There are only two of us."

"Maybe Phoebe will hear us and help. It's worth a shot."

Piper shrugged, unable to come up with a better idea. She and Paige joined hands as they began reciting one of the Charmed One's oldest spells repeatedly. "The Power of Three will set us free. The Power of Three will set us free. The Power of Three will set us free…"

Phoebe's eyes widened when she heard her sisters. 'Please work,' she silently begged and looked down at her round stomach, 'for my baby.' She joined the chant, "The Power of Three will set us free…"

"That won't work!" yelled Keilphorte, hoping he was right. He quickly extinguished the energy ball that had instinctively formed in his palm. He needed the baby's mother alive in order for it to keep developing. He would not kill her unless absolutely necessary.

"…er of Three will set us free…"

"I think it's working," Paige paused long enough to say. The wall where the group knew the shield to be had started glowing brightly.

"…free. The Power of Three will set us free…"

In a great burst of light and magical power, the shield shattered. Piper's hands automatically stretched out before her and blew up the wall behind it.

Phoebe rushed forward to greet her family as they walked through Piper's make-shift door.

"Phoebe!" Cole said in relief at seeing her unharmed.

"Just because you've found me and temporarily freed her, don't think that means you've won."

Phoebe had stopped her forward motion at Keilphorte's cry of outrage, his words causing her to realize that she was no longer chained and that her cage had disappeared. The spell had worked better than she'd hoped.

Before Phoebe could embrace her husband and sisters, Keilphorte jumped into her path. Flames leapt from his hands as he quickly formed a plan that he felt would be sufficient in defeating his opponents.