EDITED! I should have three up within the week.

-Han

Chapter 2

The door closed with a click behind her and Kat felt a small blush work its way onto her cheeks. She had to struggle to keep her eyes on Ash, as they ached to look at the man. His voice was simply that commanding. It had a deep timbre, the kind that was somewhere between gravel and the purr of an engine. The kind of voice that she knew women fantasized about. It demanded not only attention, but a lusty, wanting need.

Ash smiled a greeting at him, and Kat had to remind herself that another person was supposed to be with him. She turned slowly to the now closed door, absently looking at the newcomers.

Her eyes focused enough to take in the speaker. He was tall, maybe 6' 1". His hair was either dark or light brown, it was hard to tell in this light, and his eyes were a vibrant green. Even from here she could see them. A brown leather jacket hung off his shoulders and she could only guess the strength of the muscles beneath it. His face was angularly carved with high cheekbones and cupid's bow lips.

Kat was suddenly glad that she'd never really felt anything remotely sexual for anyone, and that lust was not something she had had to deal with. Because, she thought, absently wincing as Ash tied the stitches, he is sex personified.

She'd never had thoughts even remotely resembling that, simply because of her background. But now, now she was imagining how soft his skin would be, should she run her fingertips over it. She was wondering exactly what words it would take for her opinions to change.

She was wondering if his back was as muscular as she thought it would be, and if she could get him to grin, and what that grin would be like… would it make her heart stutter. She was wondering all the things she told herself she would never even think about again. She was wandering into dangerous paths and winding roads that could only hurt her.

"Hey," a soft voice broke her out of her thoughts and she was proud enough to note that she'd only been lost in thought for a few awkward seconds, while the two men had been sizing her up. She shook herself, remembering there was a second man, the one who'd spoken so gently. She gave a small nod in greeting while looking him over.

This man was taller than the first by maybe three inches and leaner, with a softer face and warm eyes. She could practically see the ease in which he could fall into a pout. His eyes were either hazel or a very murky blue, but it was hard to tell from his position at the door. His hair was a dark brown and much longer than the former's. It parted at his forehead and hung past his ears.

Not only were they two of the most striking hunters she'd ever seen, but they both looked remarkably like John. Not in an overbearing way, either.

There was the strong jaw line of the taller one, and the broad shoulders of both. Kat tilted her head slightly, seeing beyond the physical for a moment. Both men reminded her of John in that they had haunted eyes. Like her.

She jumped slightly from the awkward cough Ash gave in her ear and realized she'd yet to say anything. She took a moment to look over the new butterfly stitch and give a thumbs-up to Ash.

"You just gonna stand there?" she asked, looking back to the awkwardly standing men. She motioned for them to walk further inside and prepared to stand. "Do you want me gone, Ash?" she asked, not really caring what the others thought.

She caught herself before her eyes could slide over to the shorter one, berating herself harshly for even wondering about him. Her face fell into the mask of a hunter, her eyes hard and her expression blank. She was looking at Ash, her posture not indicating any of the pain she felt from the wound on her shoulder.

Her body language practically shouted hostile and unbreakable as if to say, 'I'm a real woman. I don't even wince at a knife wound. Come, cut me again so I can laugh at your feeble attempts to draw my attention.' Of course, it still hurt like a bitch, and she didn't really want another anytime soon, but they didn't have to know that.

"I think you should stay," Ash said softly. She shot him a curious glance and slid back into the couch. "Kat, meet Sam and Dean." Kat looked at Ash with harsh eyes, practically screaming at him. All she could think about was John. They had a relation to him, his sons, maybe? They could tell her where he was.

Her eyes darkened as she decided she'd rather not know. She'd rather be ignorant and pretend he was living the rest of his life playing eighteen holes on the green instead of still hunting or worse.

"So, you boys had somethin' for me?" Ash asked a little too brightly, rubbing his hands together for emphasis.

"Well, like we told you on the phone, we think it's a demon or something corporeal," Sam said. His voice was softer, the tone almost vulnerable. Childlike. Kat glanced at Ash, sure that this was the one he referred to as 'Prettyboy.'

"And it's been kidnappin' kids?" Ash asked, looking pointedly to Kat, to be sure she was paying attention. "What're the areas?"

"Northern Maine and this is only the second time it's done it," Dean said, looking over a file that Sam had brought in the room.

"When was the first?" Kat asked, her voice not the soft, gentle one she had used with Ash. This one meant business. Dean looked at her for a long time, like he was sizing her up. Unspoken hostility hovered in his eyes and his body was tense. He didn't trust her, but that was okay. She didn't trust many people either.

"The parents were murdered and the children taken sometime in the fall of 1992," Sam said, not looking up from his notes or even acknowledging that she was there.

Kat was quiet, her eyes on the floor. Jack Daniels bottles and candy wrappers littered old hardwood and area rugs. Cut-up pieces of gun magazines in 'orderly' stacks along a far wall and the furniture crammed in the rest of the space. She was lost in thought, but was quickly pulled back down to Earth.

"We were thinkin' of headin' up that way sometime tomorrow," Dean was saying, looking pointedly at Ash only. There was no mistaking the predatory glint in his eyes. He was the boss, and he was keeping this job in the family. She imagined they did that a lot.

"I have to go," she whispered. Sam looked up then, as though expecting her to stand and walk into the bar for something she needed. She remained seated.

"No," Dean said immediately. He had seen the sudden determination in her body language and knew what she wanted. Kat was quiet for all of a minute, until her demeanor sagged. Her shoulders slumped inward slightly and her eyes were on the ground.

"I have to. It's for a friend," she said. She looked up and met Sam's eyes, sensing he would be easier to break. "She was part of the first family," she said.

Dean's eyes narrowed, unsure whether to believe her or not. Sam was simply giving her the 'look.' The one he usually reserved for the victims they were interrogating. The look that spoke of safety and assurance.

Ash was watching her with both surprise and apprehension. It wasn't like her to divulge anything willingly. She must have some hope left after all. Or maybe it was just vengeance.

"She escaped along with her brother, Blake, and I traveled with them for a while. She'd been looking for the demon for years. She died about a year and a half ago," she said, her posture strong enough to assert herself as a hunter and bowed enough to make her look like she was grieving. "Her name was Jenna," she added. Make it personal, she told herself sharply. She'd been doing this long enough to know how you convinced someone of your lie.

At least they hadn't known her long enough to see her tell-the almost imperceptible twitch of the first two fingers of her right hand. She took a deep breath and prepared to continue.

"She devoted herself to finding it, to avenge her family. It was all she could ever think about. I think it ended up making her reckless, and she slipped up on a hunt. And she died." Her voice cracked just right at the end, providing the boys with the only indication that she was 'hurting.'

Dean was looking almost guilty, squirming uncomfortably in his seat. Sam's eyes were huge and sad.

"When she was dying, I promised her I'd find it. That I'd kill it for her," she said proudly, as if it were now her life's mission. Ash was looking at her with something in between pride and sadness. He remembered when she couldn't lie to save her life and faking emotions was just as hard as touching the real ones.

There was a silent moment of deliberation, one where the quiet was suffocating. Kat was now looking at Dean, and there was no fear in her posture or in her eyes. Just determination. She would show up even if they didn't formally invite her.