22 years later:
"Grace!" I sigh, not this again. When would they understand that I was not going to the stupid Halloween party? Was I not clear when I said that I had to study for the major test that was upcoming? I run through the list of reasons that I had for not going to the party, and I come up blank. It was going to take much more convincing that I had to make her stop begging me to go. I try not to roll my eyes as I turn and look at Sammy's girlfriend, Jess, who, for the last two weeks had been begging me to go with her and Sam to this party tonight.
"Yeah, Jess?" I quickly shoot her a tired smile to cover the fact that it came out a slight bit sharper than I had meant for it to be. I brush back a strand of my mud-brown hair. She is a nice girl, Jess, and I really don't want to hurt her feelings. Sam would kill me. She just has this attitude and life about her. And the way she can get Sam to do almost anything is unbelievable. It makes me wonder how she got Sam to agree to go to this God forsaken party tonight.
"Grace, come on! You have to go tonight. Sam will be disappointed if you don't come!" I cringe. Yeah, use my own best friend against me. The boy I see as a younger brother. Jess pouts. "Grace… Everyone is going to be there. Besides… Everyone knows what a hit your books are! You should be celebrating!" I sigh.
"Jess… I'll tell you what. I'll go tonight if you and Sam promise to work with me on my next chapter. Halloween or not, I am not going to write one of my 'hit' ghost stories if I don't get some ideas from Sam. He is the king of knowing creepy." I smile at her, knowing that if I went tonight, I could still get some work done. Creative Writing at Stanford was not an easy task, especially not with Architecture and Design as a major. I shift my weight to my left side absentmindedly while I let Jessica decide my fate.
"Yeah, Grace. We'll help you. Now, let's go! You have to get ready!" I groan as she drags me along. This was definitely not how I wanted to be spending my Halloween. Not while I know just what could be lurking in the shadows. I trudge up the steps to my apartment, Jess almost walking on my heels the whole time. I laugh quietly, knowing that when she wanted something, she got it.
I unlock the door and push it open slowly. If I'm not careful, Fang, my loyal husky, will dart out into the street. Pressing Fang back with my foot, I wave goodbye to Jess and shut the door, leaning against it when I feel like I can relax again. Fang presses her nose into my hand and I laugh. It was always Fang to cheer me up when times got tough. I rub a hand all over her head before I walk into the bedroom. I pull off my usual leather jacket and classic rock t-shirt, before slipping out of my jeans and under clothes and into the shower.
Quickly washing, I step back into the empty bathroom and comb my hair. Walking back into the bedroom, I grab my brand new AC/DC shirt from the rack, a pair of faded black jeans, my leather boots, a new set of underclothes, the small silver necklace I got from the Winchesters when I was three, and my jacket from the bed. Halloween or not, I will under no circumstances, wear a costume. It's childish and would not look well in the small scrapbook I keep tucked under my bed. I grimace as I realize that there is hardly a college party that goes without alcohol. I hope they don't expect me to drink.
Looking around the room, I grab the little black messenger bag that doubles as my book bag. Rummaging through it, I pull out the papers I will need for studying tomorrow and place my journal and leisure reading book into my bag in their stead. Grabbing my scrapbook and leafing through it, I decide to put that in there, too. I might need it if I head over to the place where Sam and Jess are staying after the party. With a sigh I grab my black shades and the pocketknife I keep hidden in my jacket pocket before shouldering my bag and leaving the apartment, locking the door behind me.
"So here's to Sam and his awesome LSAT victory…" Jess starts with her glass raised and a smile. Sam just chuckles as he looks over to her. She is cute in her nurse outfit, I do have to admit. No wonder Sam is in love with her. Then again, I wouldn't know what that feels like. I was always too busy studying and preparing stories. I didn't have time to try and write a love story of my own.
"Alright, alright. It's not that big a deal-"
"He acts all humble, but he scored a one-seventy-four." Jess is trying not to laugh as the man between her and Sam shoots back his drink only to almost spit it all over us. I laugh. He wasn't expecting Sam's score to be that good. I knew better. I was the one studying with Sam all those nights, well, Jess and I were the one;s studying with him. Sam was sometimes more of an over-achiever than I was. Especially when it came to something that wasn't hunting. I still don't think he's told Jess about what we used to do for a living.
The man looks at Sam with wide eyes. "He's that good?" He looks between me, Jess, and Sam. Jess nods with a small laugh. "Scary good." The man laughs. I try not to laugh as I watch Sam shoot back his drink with a grimace. He never was much into drinking either.
"So there you go, you a first round draft pick…" He pauses for a moment clapping Sammy on the shoulder. "You can go to any law school you want." Sam just smiles as his friend sits in between me and him.
He meets my gaze before speaking. "Actually I got an interview here, Monday." He looks over a Jess. My eyes widen, but he continues on before I can speak. "If it goes okay, I think I got a shot at a full ride next year." He nods his head in agreement to what he was saying. He looks over to Jess who reaches over and grabs his arm.
"Hey, It's gonna go great." She leans towards him for a moment before moving back. Sam leans back in his chair, a slight smile on his face as his eyes travel over to me. "It better." He just shakes his head.
The other man just reaches towards him and starts talking again. "How does it feel to be the golden boy of your family?" I grimace. That was definitely not a question for Sammy. And I already know his answer. It's the answer I always give. I grew up with his family, as if they were my own.
Sam looks over to me. "Nah, they don't know."
"They don't know! I would be gloating!" He get up and spreads his arms wide. "Why not?" His arms swing behind his back.
"'cause we're not exactly the Brady's. Just ask Grace." Sam gives a half smile.
" And I'm not exactly the Huxtables. More shots?"
A unison no resounded from Sam, Jess, and I, but he still went to get more. Jess looks over at Sam in a way I've only ever seen a few times. "Seriously, I'm proud of you. And you're gonna knock 'em dead on Monday and you're gonna get that full ride. I know it." I nods in agreement when Sam looks over to me.
Sam shakes his head looking between us. "What would I do without you?"
Both Jess and I returned with a counter of "Crash and Burn." before laughing. I just watch as she pulls him in for a kiss. It's a funny way to spend my Halloween, that;s for sure. I glance down at the still full shot glass in front of me. Perhaps I should take at least a sip of it. There is no use in being here if I'm not going to do anything at all.
Suddenly I find myself the center of attention as Sam looks over at me and says, "We can't forget Grace. She has written some of the best horror stories I've ever read." I just laugh. He knows exactly what my stories are, and is going with the cover I gave him. I used to keep track of every hunt I ever went on. And now I'm turning them into books. Every hunt is a new book. Sam thinks it's amazing since he knows that I wanted the best of two worlds. I loved hunting, the feeling of knowing that at any moment the hunter could become the prey. But I also longed for a life that allowed me to settle down. Fall in love. Stay in a single place for longer than a month.
Jess smiled at me from across the table as I blushed a light pink. "It really wasn't anything. Just a couple of fictional stories that I wrote when I was little." I took a long look at the shot glass before me before shooting it down. I grimace and look at Sam. "Besides, Sammy, It's wonderful that you'll finally be getting into law school."
Sam just shakes his head. "Oh, no you don't Grace. I know what you are doing. If I've got to be here for this, you have to be, too. You got a scholarship for creative writing before you even thought about writing one of your books." He smiles at me. "Besides, Gracie, it's not like Dad or Dean even know about what you've done either. Don't you want just a little bit of freedom?" I sigh. Maybe I should have stayed home after all. Never was the partying type anyway.
I grab my laptop from my book bag and open it. "Alright, I know it's late, but Sammy, you have to help me. We all know that you are the king of creepy." I glance at Jess and see her give a small wink and a yawn. "Maybe I should wait until morning. You guys look tired. Besides, I guess I've had one too many of those shots, and I only had one. It makes me nauseous." I reach to shut the lid of my computer, but Sam's hand stops me.
"Grace, you can't keep doing this. If you need help, just ask. I'm always going to be just half a step behind you." He gives me one of his best smiles, one of the smiles he usually saves for Dean. "And I know the real reason you are here."
I sigh. Sam always could see straight through me. "Yeah, Sam. I know. It's just… Mom's death still haunts me. I lost three parents that year… " I hold back tears as I look at Sammy, trying to give him a smile. But all I can muster is a frown. I turn away from him, reaching over and grabbing my laptop, shut it, and place it in my bag.
I stop moving when I feel Sam wrap his arms around me. I always knew Sam was more the emotional type than Dean… But that never stopped either of them from giving me a hug. It makes me feel safe. I eventually return the hug before pulling slowly away. I don't want to keep him and Jess from sleep any longer.
A crashing sound from nearby makes both of us glance at the door and then back at eachother. Without waiting to find out what was happening Sam runs outside with me hot on his heels. We don't wait to see if Jess is coming. Too much risk involved to wait.
Sam and I pause and look around to see if we can find anything. Eventually we see a shadow cross in one of the rooms through a curtain of beads. We slowly sneak into the room, Sam leading the way. Sam pauses as we come to a door that holds a glass panel. We wait a few seconds for it to open and reveal the perpetrator before Sam attacks. Apparently the man who broke in is also well versed in the art of fighting because he blocks Sam's initial attack. A few block, punch, kick combinations later the man is standing victorious over Sammy in the closest room.
"Woah, easy tiger." A familiar face smiles down at him as his voice matches the place Dean always held in my heart. I stay silent, hoping that I might get a chance to catch him off guard. I feel Jess stand beside me as we watch the brothers before us.
"Dean…?" Sammy breathes out. Dean just laughs as he keeps Sam pinned to the floor. "You scared the crap out of me…"
"That's 'cause you're out of practice…" He smiles down at his brother. I silently laugh as I see the plan forming in Sam's head as he smiles back. A well placed headlock later, Dean is the one eating his own words. "Or not." He chuckles. "Get off of me."
Sam gets off of him and offers him a hand up, before staring at him. "Dean, What the hell are you doing here?"
Dean laughs and grabs him by the shoulders in a joking manner. "Well, I was looking for a beer." He lets his arm drop just before Jess flips on a light. "Sam?"
Both brothers look at her with a deer caught in the headlights look. I can't contain my laughter at this point and Dean's eyes widen more when he sees me.
Sam looks to Jess. "Jess… hey… uh…" Jess moves closer looking at the two of them in a confused manner. "Dean, this is my girlfriend, Jessica."
Jess moves forward with a look of realization. "Wait, your brother Dean?" She points at him and I smile. Leave it to her to make a very awkward situation that much less awkward.
And leave it to Dean to ruin the moment with is need to say something stupid to every chick on the planet who isn't me or his grandmother, so to say. He gestures to her shirt. "I love the Smurfs… " He steps forward and smiles at her. "You know I gotta tell you… You are completely out of my brother's league."
Jess gives an almost deprecating smile as she looks to Sam and then back at Dean. "Just… Let me put something on."
And once more Dean just has to say something to his brother's girlfriend. "No, no, no… I wouldn't dream of it." He shakes his head as he looks at her. "Seriously." She rolls her eyes. He turns away to look at me. He waves a hand at me. "Hey Grace." He looks between Sam and me.
"Anyway I gotta borrow your boyfriend and your friend over there to talk about some private family business." He walks over to me and rests an arm on my shoulder. He points back at her. "But, uh, nice meeting you."
But before anything else is said, Sam takes a look at Jessica and walks over to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "No. No, whatever you want to say, you can say it in front of her."
I can see the look in Dean's eye as he takes that for a challenge. He glances sidelong at me. "Okay, um, Dad hasn't been home in a few days." My eyebrows furrow at the statement. Did Dean really come all the way out here to tell us something he could have said on the phone? I give a slight chuckle.
Sam answers Dean's prompting with a smile. "So he's working over time on a miller time shift. He'll stumble back in sooner or later."
Dean hangs his head as if he had been expecting that. He looks to me. "Dad's on a hunting trip… and he hasn't been home in a few days." His smile is gone as he looks between me and Sam now. I watch as a look of something darker washes across Sammy's face. I can't name it. And his silence is unnerving. He doesn't even look at Jess when he speaks. "Jess, excuse us." I frown. What would make Dean so desperate that he would drag both Sam and I from college?
We follow Dean out and down a flight of stairs, Sammy complaining the whole while. I trailed behind them, not wanting to be part of one of their arguments Those never really end well, and since it is still the middle of the night… I really don't want to have to break one of them up either.
"I mean, come on, you can't just break in, middle of the night and expect us to hit the road with you!" Sam tries, but I just shake my head. Dean was one of those men that shot first and asked questions later. He always has been. That's how John trained us to be.
"You're not hearing me Sammy… Dad's missing. I need you to help me find him."
"Remember the poltergeist in Amherst? Or the Devil's Gates in Clifton? He was missing then too. He's alwaysmissing and he's always fine." Dean turns to look at Sam and I, stopping us where we are.
"Not for this long. Now you gonna come with me or not?" He gives Sam and I a says he already believes we are coming. I sigh. There was no talking Dean out of this one. A couple days away won't hurt, though. As long as we are back by Monday. Sam's interview is on Monday, and my architecture test starts at eight.
Sam's answer though causes me to look over at him. "I'm not." He looks down at Dean, who is a few steps below him.
"Why not?" Dean questions.
"I swore I was done hunting. For good." He sighs and looks away.
Dean frowns. "Come on. It wasn't easy, but it wasn't that bad." He allows us to continue going back down the stairs.
"Yeah. When I told Dad I was scared of the thing in my closet, he gave me a .45." He pauses just before the gate to get out.
"Well what was he supposed to do?" Dean stops and turns to look at Sam.
"I was nine years old! He was supposed to say 'Don't be afraid of the dark'."
"Don't be afraid of the dark?! What, are you kidding me? Of course, you should be afraid of the dark! You know what's out there!"
"Yeah, but still. The way we grew up after Mom was killed… and Dad's obsession to find the thing that killed her. But we still haven't found the damn thing! So we kill everything we can find!"
Dean looks over to me and down before speaking. "Save a lot of people doing it too." He smiles smugly at Sam. Sam just chuckles and looks over to me and then back to Dean.
"You think Mom would have wanted this for us? For Grace?" He counters.
Dean just turns away. We follow him out the gate. Sam is hot on his heels, still trying to get Dean to see sense. I sigh. These boys were always arguing about something or another. And when it gets bad? Guess who gets dragged into it? Me. They both expect me to choose a side that would be pitted against the other. All I want is for the fighting to stop.
"The weapon training? And melting the silver into bullets? Man… Dean we were raised like warriors!" He turns and looks at Dean as we finally reach the parking lot.
Dean scoff and continues to walking beside Sam. "So what are you going to do? Just live to normal, apple pie life? Is that it?" He stops us at the trunk of the Impala.
Sam just sighs. "No. Not Normal. Safe."
Dean looks between the two of us. "And that's why you both ran away?" Dean scoffs once more.
Sam looks at me and then back at Dean. "We were just going to college. It was Dad who said if we were going to go… we should stay gone." He looks seriously over to me. "I just followed a few years behind Grace. And that's what we're doing."
"Yeah, well Dad's in real trouble right now." He shakes his head at us. "If he's not dead already. I can feel it." He sighs. "I can't do this alone."
Sam just gives him one of his denial faces. "Yes you can."
Dean looks away. "Yeah. Well, I don't want to."
The silence is almost deafening between the brothers as I wait for someone to say something else. Because I certainly don't want to get into one of their cat fights. I am already going to be dragged who knows where, by Dean. The least he can do is not argue in front of me. They both know just how much I hate it.
Sam glances at me before finally giving in. He looks down and breathes out a harsh breath, "You are going, aren't you Grace?" I cringe. I hate that tone. He only uses it when he's disappointed with me. I look at Dean before I answer. "I don't see why I shouldn't. You guys are family after all. And besides my career, you guys are all I have left." I look at the ground remembering the conversation I had just had with Sam. "If Dad is missing… I at least have to try to find him."
Sam sighs before staring at Dean in a calculating manner. "What was he hunting?"
Dean thinks for a moment before leaning over and throwing open the trunk of the impala and removing the false bottom. Underneath is all the weapons a hunter would need to go hunting just about anything. I watch the two brothers. They may always be fighting, but they made a hell of a team when they got along.
"Alright, " Dean rubs his hands together. "Let's see… where the hell did I put that thing?" He rummages through the different compartments, looking for something in particular.
Sam watches him. "So when Dad left… Why didn't you go with him?" I frown. Sam is right. Dean was always with Dad. No matter how dangerous or docile the hunt was. Dean is still rummaging through the trunk when he speaks.
"I was working my own gig. This voodoo thing down in New Orleans."
Sam smiles and I laugh. It was almost funny to think about. I speak first, in mock surprise. "Dad let you go on a hunting trip, by yourself?"
Dean stops and looks at me with a serious face. "I'm twenty six, dude."
Sam and I silently laugh as Dean finally locates a brown folder and a stack of papers. He removes some of them and looks between me and Sam. "Alright, here we go." He straightens up and looks down at the papers. "So Dad was checking out this two lane blacktop just outside of Jericho, California." He holds out a page to Sam. "About a month ago, this guy, they found his car but he had vanished. Completely MIA."
Both Sam and I look down at the page that reads "Centennial Highway Disappearance" with a picture of a man with blonde hair. Underneath is a caption that says his name is Andrew Carey. We look up at Dean. Sam was the smartest of us so I let him speak this time.
"So maybe he was kidnapped."
Dean stops at looks at us."Yeah well, here's another April, another one in December '04.'03, '98, '92, ten of them over the past twenty years." He snatches the paper from Sam and places it with the others in the trunk. "All men. All same five mile stretch of road." He moves things around and grabs a small olive green bag, setting it down in the middle and opening it up. It turns out to be a type of book of sorts. With plastic over it's cover pages. He stares down at it.
"Started happening more and more , so Dad went to go dig around." He sighs and looks down at the book before glancing at me. "That was about three weeks ago." He looks back down. "I haven't heard from him since, which is bad enough." He reaches down and pulls something else out. It's a tape recorder. "Then I get this voicemail yesterday." Both Sam and I lean closer to listen as he presses the play button.
My eyes widen when I hear the amount of EVP on the recording. It makes John message so choppy. "Hey, Dean. Something is starting to happen, and I think it is serious. I need... to find out what's going on. You may need…" The message fades and comes back in stronger. "Be very careful, Dean." The message fades again and Dean stops the recording.
I look up at him. "You do know there's EVP on that?"
Dean smiles at me. "Wow, Gracie, "I frown at the use of the old nickname. I haven't been hunting in seven years. "Kinda like riding a bike, isn't it?" Sam shakes his head beside me. We wait for Dean to reveal whatever else he has.
"Alright. I slowed the message down and ran it through a gold wave." He messes with the recorder and plays it back. "Take out the hiss and this is what I got."
A female voice all but hissed from the recorder. "I can never go home." Dean stops ti and both Sam and I lock eyes before looking at Dean, Sam looks down. "Never go home."
Dean slams the recorder down and looks over to me. He looks away with an expression I can't read. He slams the trunk down and leans against it before looking to his brother. "You know in almost two years I've never bothered you. Never asked you for a thing." He pauses and Sam looks at me. I step back with my arms up. "Don't drag me into this."
He sighs and looks back at Dean. "Alright. I'll go." He nods. "I'll help you find him. But I have to get back first thing Monday. Just wait here." He turns around, probably to go and get his things. Dean stops him. "What's first thing Monday?"
Sam stops and stares at Dean. "I have and interview."
Dean smiles. "What, a job interview? Skip it."
I frown. I forgot Sam hadn't been telling Dad or Dean how well he was doing in college. Sam was going to have his life set up for him if he did well on the interview, Monday. He was going to become a big lawyer eventually, and probably deny the fact that any of the rest of us exist. Sad though it is, Sam would probably deny me, too. He hasn't yet, but it wouldn't be the first time I was set aside by my own family. I used to have to break out of the motel room to join Dad, Dean, and Sam on hunts. Dad eventually gave in and trained me as he trained the boys.
Sam glares at Dean. "It's a law school interview, and it's my whole future on a plate."
Dean just smiles that half smile of his. "Law school."
Sam continues to stare at him. "So we got a deal or not?"
Sam walks away to go talk to Jessica and grab his things. I stay with Dean. I don't want to look at him, but I can feel his eyes boring into me. I lean against the Impala beside him, staring at the ground. He just keeps staring until I give in. "What is it, Dean?"
"So I've heard about this book series. For some reason, it sounds a lot like the hunts we went on with Dad when we were little." I smile and look up at him. "So, what, you think that was me?" He holds out a hand. Within it is a copy of one of the first books I ever got published. I give him a sheepish grin.
"So? They aren't just fantasy books. The author's name is Faith Jones. You think we wouldn't figure it out? Dad would wring your neck if he saw one of these. And if something else got its hands on these… We could be in serious trouble. Every secret about us and about everything we've ever hunted, and you are just sharing it with the world."
I pout. "Dean, they are just books. And it's not like anyone besides you, Dad, and Sam know the truth. Everyone else just believes that they are amazing horror and fantasy books."
"Yeah. Well, if I found out you've been working on something else that could endanger us if the law caught wind of the fact that your fictional characters weren't so fictional, I'm going to make sure you don't have the chance to do it again. No more books." He put the book into the bag I've been carrying with me.
"But, Dean! That's what I do for a living, now! I write books! Why do you want to ruin what little I have left?! And if we don't make it back by Monday Morning… Sam loses his chance at a full ride here, and I lose my one chance to finally get a normal life."
Dean takes a hand and rubs it behind his neck. "Look, we'll go and find Dad, and I'll bring you both back. Alright?" I nod. I look back towards the building.
"Yeah. I'll be back. Just let me grab a few things. I live a few doors down from Sam and Jess."
I turn and walk up the stairs to my left and unlock to apartment door. I can hear Dean's footsteps behind me. Fang growls from somewhere to my left but I shush her. She instead chooses to follow closely behind Dean, making sure he wasn't going to hurt me. I grab a few of the books stuffed around the room and a set of spare clothes. I brush back the fur on Fang's ears. "Sweet heart, I want you to go stay with Jessica while I'm gone. Is that alright." The soft bark makes me smile. I grab a leash and walk over to Sam and Jess's apartment just as Sam walks out. He gives me a small smile before walking back to the Impala. I walk into the door before it shuts. Offering the leash to Jessica, who says that she understands and can watch Fang while I'm gone, Dean and I make our way back to the Impala ourselves.
