The night sky was starless, not granting me any light to guide my frantic escape. With every hurried step I took, I prayed for some kind of intervention, divine or otherwise. Anything to save me from this nightmare. I had been running for what seemed like hours but perhaps it had only been minutes. My lungs burned with the strain of it and trees scratched at my bare arms as I darted between them.

As I finally reached a path the winded through the trees, I paused to take a deep breath. My mind raced so fast I could hardly process one thought before another demanded my attention. I had to be going crazy. That was the only way any of this could be happening. Nothing made any sense.

A twig snapped a few yards behind me and every muscle in my body tensed up. Could he be coming back to finish what he started? Panic overtook me. This was not how I wanted to die – alone and in absolute terror. I needed to get away fast but I before I could take another step, I heard more footsteps. They seemed to be coming from a different direction. There were more of them?

"Dear Jesus, please help me," I whispered to the night air, praying desperately to be heard.

A light appeared in the trees to my left. Someone was approaching. I considered yelling out to them but thought better of it. Out here, you obviously couldn't tell friend from foe.

Something grabbed my arm and terror bloomed in my heart, erupting into a scream. I tried to tear away but the grip tightened.

"It's alright." Someone whispered. "It's alright. I'm here to help you. Dad! Sam! I found her! She's over here!"

I trembled with fear as a man and boy about my age made their way toward me. I stepped back and inadvertently smashed the toe of the boy who had found me. He swore under his breath and I offered an apologetic smile.

"Hey," The man spoke in a soft but gruff voice. "What's your name?"

I blinked back scared tears. "Andy."

"What happened, Andy?" He laid his hand on my shoulder in what I was sure he meant as a reassuring gesture.

Wiping furiously at my eyes, I struggled to explain through the tightness in my throat. "My dog ran off into the woods and I chased after him. I got lost and it started to get dark. Then this man appeared out of nowhere and said he wanted to help me. And then he just-" I winced when my voice cracked. "He just attacked me." I couldn't tell him the whole story. He would think I was crazy.

"Listen, Andy. Sam here is going to take you back to the car. Dean and I will be right back and then we'll take you home, okay?" He didn't wait for an answer but motioned to the boy who had found me. Together, they tore through the woods.

Shivering in the chill of the October night, I looked up at Sam. I was sure I looked pretty pathetic – shaking and blubbering like a fool. But he just offered a kind smile and wrapped his coat around me before leading me through the woods to the road.

As Sam and I trekked through the woods to the main road, my eyes kept flickering over to him. I envied how calm he seemed in the midst of the craziness. As we finally reached the car, he opened the door to the backseat.

For a moment, I reconsidered it all. How odd was it that these three had happened across me in the woods. And what on earth were John and Dean doing? Going after the wack job that attacked me? Turning on Sam, I ripped the car door out of his hand and slammed it shut.

"How did you guys find me? How did you know I was even out there?" I meant for my words to come out sharp and accusatory but instead they came out squeaky and scared.

Sam sighed and leaned against the car. "We saw someone running through the woods and thought we'd check it out. You weren't that far from the road, you know" He reopened the door.

Again, I wrenched the door free of his grasp and slammed it shut. "What are John and Dean doing?"

There was a moment of silence.

Ha, stumped you. I raised an eye brow at him.

Finally, Sam spoke. "My dad loves dogs. He's probably making sure nothing happened to yours."

"There's a psycho out there!"

"He can take care of himself." He opened the door and gestured towards it. Exasperated, I climbed in, Sam right behind me. "So, Andy, what did this guy look like? The one that attacked you?"

I thought a moment and involuntarily wrapped Sam's jacket tighter around me. "He was tall, I guess. He had short hair. He was wearing a suit, which I thought was strange and he –," I stopped, realizing how strange it sounded.

"Yes?" Sam prompted me.

I opened my mouth for a moment before snapping it shut again. Thinking it through, I sighed. "It's just…I thought I saw - " I shook my head. "Forget it. I was seeing things."

Sam chewed on his lip for a moment as if considering something before he finally spoke. "Did he seem to…flicker?"

My heart stopped and I stared at Sam with what I'm sure looked like a pretty bewildered expression. "H-how did you know?"

At that moment, there was a knock on the car window. I screamed and jumped closer to Sam, flinging my arms around him.

"Relax, it's my dad." Sam pealed himself away from me, leaned across the seat, and rolled down the window. Large hands held a very fat beagle into the car.

I squealed in relief and took him as Dean and John climbed into the car. "Gambit! You're okay!" I buried my face in his sleek fur and smiled.

Sam smiled and scratched Gambit on the head. "Gambit as in X-Men?"

"As in chess."

"So, you're a chess wiz?"

I couldn't shake the feeling that Sam was trying to distract me from the truth but for the moment, I allowed him to. "Something like that." Turning to face the front seat, I surveyed John and Dean. There faces were dirty and sweaty but it hardly hid the fact that they were concerned. Had finding Gambit been their only motive for taking off into the woods?