Two years later, there was an explosion of demonic activity around El Paso. Claire had taken the trip, just because she loved the way demons screamed when their flesh sizzled off at the touch of Holy Water. Some would argue that she enjoyed her work too much, but she thought she liked it just enough.
She was swarmed in the town square. Five demons on one hunter. Even as experienced in demon hunting as she was, she knew she'd never be able to take five. They'd have her pinned down and gutted before she could even think about muttering, "Exorcizamus te." That's when Jesse fired a round of rock salt into the tallest one's chest. The demon dropped Claire, and she was able to scramble away. She ran and rounded a corner, landing with a crash on top of Ben Braeden.
"A girl like you shouldn't have a knife like that." Ben laughed as he helped her to her feet. "You could poke someone's eye out." He dusted off he jeans and leaned back on the building with a cocky smile.
"Could you be any more sexist?" She started walking back towards the demon party, knife in hand. She didn't expect Ben to chase after her, and if he did, she could just let him get a taste of Thomas.
"Braeden. Ben Braeden." He said before holding out his hand for a shake. She wanted nothing to do with the snarky little bastard that was chasing after her. She had bigger fish to fry.
"Do you want a fucking medal for knowing your name?" She buried the blade in her hand up to the hilt in a demon's chest. There was barely a glimmer of remorse in her eyes as she held him down and ran through the exorcism. The man inside was going to die, and she didn't care. The girl was different than anyone Ben had ever met. "It's Novak, by the way."
"That's Turner over there." Ben explained to her as they made their way back to their cars. Jesse was cleaning up, counting up the bodies and trying to call their families. He was always good with the sensitive crap like that. Ben couldn't imagine dealing with anything like that, and Claire… Ben wasn't sure Claire had an imagination, but he still asked her to travel with them. There was something about her eyes, the sadness and memories in them, that made Ben need to get to know her. She was complex and introverted, he simple. She seemed like the perfect addition to the team. They needed someone cold and calculating that would whip their butts into shape and keep them running like a well-oiled machine.
That was the Claire they signed up for. In a twist of fate, the Claire they received was damaged. She'd toss and turn half the night and wake up in tears. It was almost heartbreaking to watch the strong warrior by day turn into a mess by night. Ben wondered what had happened to make her like this, but he didn't dare pry. Hell, he had been traveling with Jesse for years, and never asked him why he thought he was a monster. Maybe Ben just didn't care…
Truth was, he just cared too much.
