Thanks to everyone who has read so far and a special thanks to those who put the story on alert and reviewed. Here's chapter 2 enjoy.

The Chosen – Chapter 2

Zara walked quickly away from the building making her way across the lot to the spot where she had left her car. Her eyes darted in all directions as she watched for signs of someone following her.

Despite the noise in the bar it was remarkably silent outside. The sounds of her footsteps the only sounds echoing in the night. She couldn't shake the ominous feeling that had been with her since she had awakened that morning the dream fresh in her mind. Somehow the Order had tracked her down. It was always the same the dreams would come and then within a day or so members of the Order would come. She had learned to read the signs and move on; she had intended to leave that night after her shift and despite her relaxed appearance she had been on edge the entire night. Sam recognizing her tattoo was all the confirmation she needed. It was time for her to go she had no time left.

Reaching her car, a small hot rod red VW Beetle, she pulled her keys from her bag and unlocked the door. Opening the door she threw her backpack into the backseat.

"Zee." She heard a voice call softly from behind her. Turning quickly, a sharp scream wrenched itself unbidden from her throat. Recognising Sam and his brother Dean she pressed her back to her car. Instinctively she knew that these weren't the men she was running from but there was something about the way that they held themselves that made her nervous. There was an air of danger around them. So even if they weren't there for her she knew that she would be wise to get away from them as quickly as possible.

Sam approached her slowly with raised hands, his eyes softening as they took in her startled appearance.

"I'm sorry if we scared you Zee. We just wanted to make sure that you were okay."

"Oh I'm fine. I'm just heading home for the evening but thanks for your concern." She lied, heart hammering painfully in her chest.

"Are you sure?" Sam pressed. "If you're in trouble we can help you Zee."

Zara looked between the two brothers momentarily taken aback by the sincerity in their twin gazes.

"I'm sorry but you can't help me it's too dangerous. People who help me usually end up dead."

"Wouldn't be the first time we've died sweetheart." Dean said as he threw a grin in his brothers direction.

"What!?" Zara asked incredulously, her eyes widening as she looked at Dean startled by his comment. He couldn't be serious, could he?

"Dean, I don't think that is helping." Sam growled quietly before turning his gaze back to Zara. "Zee, you'd be surprised at what we've seen and done, but since you're about to run let me tell you this. There is nothing, nothing that you could tell us which we would think was crazy. We can help you. All you have to do is trust us."

Zara could hear the sincerity and concern in Sam's voice; could she trust them? Could they help her? She was so tired of running. Could the two brothers be the answer to her prayers?

"Sam, you're right I am in trouble, big trouble and I do need help, but –"

"Okay, that's as close to a yes as we're gonna get." Dean said as he pushed forward and reached into Zara's car to pull out her backpack. "We'll take our car."

Zara looked from Dean, who was now moving quickly through the car park, to Sam.

"What just happened?"

"Looks like you're coming with us Zee." Sam said with a grin. "Come on let's get to the car and you can fill us in on what's going on."

"But...my car." Zara said as she turned and gestured to her little red car. "I can't leave my car."

Rolling his eyes Sam placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and guided the shell-shocked young woman towards the Impala.

"Just come on before Dean gets cranky."

Opening the door to the Impala Sam gestured to Zara to get in and watched as the young woman after only the briefest hesitation slid smoothly into the back seat of the car. As soon as she was safely inside Sam closed the door and made his way to the passenger side and got in.

"Let's go."

With a brief nod Dean started the engine, pulled out of the car park and headed to their motel. No one noticed the sleek black truck as it passed them heading towards the bar.

xxOOxx

"Right Sammy let's get our gear, then check out of this place and get on the road. I'd like to put some distance between us and this town." Dean said as he pulled into the car park of the motel.

Sam nodded his agreement and got out of the car, his long strides quickly eating the distance to their room.

Dean paused for a moment before getting out and turned to look at the young woman sitting silently in the back seat.

"Zee will you be okay here for a couple of minutes while we get checked out or do you want to come in with us?" He asked, knowing full well that she could bolt as soon a they were out of sight.

Zara turned a thankful gaze to Dean. "No I'll wait here if that's okay?" She replied.

"Not a problem, we'll only be a few minutes."

Getting out of the car Dean walked quickly into the motel room behind Sam and started putting his gear into his backpack. Once done he watched Sam as he talked quietly into the phone.

"Okay Bobby let me know if you find anything."

Closing his phone Sam turned to Dean.

"Bobby's gonna research Zee's tattoo find out what we're up against. He'll call us as soon as he finds anything."

Dean nodded. "You got everything Sammy?"

"Yeah."

"Let's go then."

The brothers made their way out to the car and tossed their stuff in the trunk before getting back into their respective seats. Dean quickly reversed out of the car park, all the while watching for signs of being followed.

Once they were safely on their way Sam turned to Zee who was staring intently at her tattoo.

"Zee, we're gonna head to a friend of ours in Sioux Falls. We'll be able to lay low there for a while. It's the safest place that we know." Pausing briefly he took in the shadows under her eyes and the tension in her body. He knew that she afraid, fear was radiating from her in waves. "Why don't you tell us what you're running from?" he asked gently

Sighing softly Zara weighed up her words. She looked up into Sam's eyes, his hazel eyes soft as he waited for her to speak and felt safe for the first time in as long as she could remember.

"Sam, I'm only putting you and Dean in danger by being with you. You have no idea what I've dragged you into." She said quietly.

"Why don't you let us be the judge of that Zee? I meant it when I said that nothing you could tell us would surprise us." Sam insisted trying to reassure her that they wouldn't freak out no matter what she told them.

Dragging her gaze from Sam's; Zara looked out of the window of the Impala staring unseeing into the darkness of the night.

"My tattoo, it's not a tattoo it's a brand. A symbol that my life isn't my own. I was born into something so much bigger, so much more than one small life. Sam you said that you recognised it. Have you ever heard of The Order of Baliel?"

Sam drew in a quick startled breath. "You'd better floor it Dean we need to get to Bobby's and get Zara hidden as quickly as possible."

"What the Hell Sammy?" Dean asked glancing from the road to his brother. "What's going on?"

Ignoring Dean; Sam looked back at Zara and asked "Are you The Chosen?"

Stunned that Sam knew enough about the Order to know about The Chosen; Zara could do no more than say "Yes."

"What the freaking hell are you talking about Sammy and why do you look like you want to throw up?" Dean asked urgently a little freaked out by how quickly the atmosphere in the car had changed.

"Dean, Baliel is a Demon God one of the four crown prince's of Hell. The lore is pretty clear he's one nasty son of a bitch and he gets the chance once every five hundred years to come back to earth. If that happens hundreds of thousands of people will die."

"And Zee's part in this?" Dean asked meeting Zara's eyes in the rear view mirror.

"I'm his mother." She replied quietly.

"SON OF A BITCH!" Dean cursed. "So how do we stop it Sammy?"

"Without Zee they can't carry out the ritual so we make sure she's kept safe and out of their way." Sam responded before turning to Zara and asking "How long do we have?"

"Two weeks, by the next full moon. If I can stay away from them until then, then it's over and they'll have to wait another five hundred years until the next Chosen is born. They won't stop looking me, over the next two weeks they'll throw everything they have at finding me and they have a lot. This isn't some back water sect that we're talking about. It's a multinational organisation with cells throughout the world. Their resources are immense. It's been all I could do for the last fifteen years to keep one step ahead of them." She paused, eyes filled with anguish. "Maybe you should drop me off somewhere I shouldn't have agreed to come with you it wasn't fair of me to put you in danger. I'll understand if you do, I guess it's not every day you come across someone who could cause the end of the world."

Sam and Dean glanced at each other their eyes sparkling at the irony of Zee's statement, although they didn't make any verbal comment; both instinctively knew that it wasn't the time to tell her about the Apocalypse.

"Zee, we're not dropping you off anywhere. We said that we'd help you and we will." Sam responded with a reassuring smile. "We won't let anything happen to you. We'll keep you safe."

Looking into Sam's eyes she could tell that he was telling the truth. "Thank you."

xxOOxx

"Okay Sammy what say we get a room for the rest of the night?" Dean said as he pulled of off the road into the car park of a motel.

They had been driving for six hours and in that time the roads had been completely clear. No one was following them. He was sure that they'd be safe to sleep for a few hours, and then get something to eat before heading off again.

"Sounds like a good idea Dean." Sam replied. He turned to where Zara was asleep in the back seat. He took in her peaceful expression and was loath to wake her. "Dean you get a room I'll get Zee and meet you there."

"Sure thing Sammy, you get the girl and I'll get a room." Dean replied only slightly sarcastically as he got out of the car and went to get them a room. He couldn't help but notice the soft expression on Sam's face and hoped that it didn't spell trouble; he remembered Sam's fascination with her back at the bar; clearly he wanted her, but the last thing that they needed was Sammy acting like a love-sick puppy when they were neck-deep in whatever the hell was coming their way.

Opening the rear door of the Impala Sam reached in and lifted Zee carefully; cradling her soft warm body securely in his arms. He looked down as she stiffened slightly, her startled eyes opening and landing on Sam.

"Go back to sleep Zee, we're just stopping at a motel for a few hours." He laughed as she closed her eyes and with a soft sigh snuggled deeper into his arms. Turning he nudged the door of the Impala closed then made his way towards the room that Dean had just entered.

Moving into the room Sam placed the still sleeping Zara on the large sofa and pulled off her shoes before placing a blanket over her body. Standing he turned to find Dean watching him with a curious expression

"What?"

"Sammy how come you never pick the easy chicks? It's always the ones that spell trouble, a werewolf, a demon and now a girl who's supposed mommy to a monster. Come on Sammy this one's got trouble all over her with a capital T." Dean said as he gestured towards the sleeping young woman.

"Shut up jerk, she needs our help that's it. We promised we'd help her and that's all I intend to do. Don't you think I've learned my lesson about getting involved with girls when we're on a case? It's the end of the world again but it's still a case. Zee is our case and I have no intention of getting involved with her so back off." He whispered tensely as he glanced back at where Zara was sleeping peacefully on the sofa, his expression softening.

"Yeah you keep telling yourself that Sammy-" Dean replied with a laugh "-just don't say I didn't warn you."

Without a word Sam picked up his backpack and walked into the bathroom closing the door softly behind him; dropping his bag on the floor he sat stiffly on the edge of the tub, his brow furrowed as he considered Dean's words. He could admit to himself that he was attracted to Zee, I mean who could blame him, she was totally hot and if he'd had his way back at the bar he would have picked her up and taken her back to the motel for a few hours of fun. Now that was out of the question. She was their case and needed his protection; he needed to stay focused on the job, keep her safe and out of the hands of The Order of Baliel.

Running his hands through his long hair he sighed as he remembered how soft Zee had felt in his arms. How she had trusted him when she realised that he was the one who had held her and how good it had felt to hold her.

Shaking his head he pulled his thoughts back from what could only be dangerous territory; he had long since decided that he wasn't ever getting into a relationship again. With his job, the demon blood in his system and the blood on his hands. He was tainted, flawed. He had loved Jess so much and she had died because of him, because of his fate and he wouldn't take that risk again. No he'd keep Zee at arm's length and forget about how good it felt to hold her and how his heart tightened ever so slightly when he looked into the depths of her grey eyes. He couldn't ever forget that he was a monster and that he would always be a monster in the guise of a man.

TBC