Chapter 3

"God damn it, Abby! Watch your blood splatter!" I cried as the blood of the vampire Abigail had just killed splashed across my new sneakers. I knew I shouldn't have worn them. Another vampire started coming at me from behind. I spun around and lobbed her head off in one quick, clean swipe.

"Sorry! Maybe you shouldn't wear new shoes on a hunt!" she yelled back as she got stuck between two other vamps that were twice her size. I was free, so I sent my knife sailing at one of them. It took the head off of the one behind her so she could focus on the one in front of her. I had the blade boomerang back so I could take on one of the only ones that remained.

She was tiny and blond. She couldn't have been more than sixteen when she was turned. I remembered her. She'd been there when my family was slaughtered. I took absolutely no time in killing her. Her head rolled off of her shoulders and onto the ground by my feet just as Abby killed the one she'd been wrestling with.

"That was the last one," I said.

In the months since we'd left Missouri's house in Lawrence, we'd gotten better at hunting. In between finding and killing the vampires we were hunting, we did odd jobs that included getting rid of vengeful spirits, snuffing out a couple of shape shifters, and even exorcising one or two demons. It was amazing how much we were able to do after Missouri taught us how to refine our psychic skills.

"Let's get this mess cleaned up," Abby smiled. We were so close to killing the last few vampires we were hunting. I started up a fire to burn the bodies and helped Abby lug them all into the flames.

As we watched them burn, I wondered vaguely what we would do after this was all said and done. Going back to a normal life and readjusting would be too difficult. Would we continue to hunt things that went bump in the night? Or would we just keep moving, go places, see things? "You ready to go?"

"Yeah," I nodded. I picked up my blade and put the fire out once I was sure the bodies were destroyed. I didn't want the warehouse they'd been hiding in to catch on fire. It would call too much attention to us.

The knife I'd brought with me was about twenty five inches long, made of steel, and was easy to swing around telekinetically. It was my vampire-hunting weapon of choice. Abigail's favorite weapon was a heavier antique sword that looked very similar to a Samurai sword. It was nice, but it wouldn't have been my first choice.

Once everything was cleaned up, we headed back out to the car. I listened for a minute, just double checking to make sure we didn't miss any vampires who were hiding. The silence meant we were all clear. We slid into the Challenger and drove away. "Only one coven left," I reminded her. "Where to next?"

"Bobby said there have been some signs cropping up just outside of Chicago. Might be the ones we're looking for…"

We were both thinking the same thing. Since we'd left Illinois for Bobby's house, we hadn't been back. Had anything changed in the year and some months we'd been gone? We had changed so much as individuals. It would be strange to go home and have everything be exactly the way it was when we left it. And we were, of course, thinking about how to take our revenge out on the leaders of the vampires who had killed our families. I was opting for torture, but Abby wanted it over quickly.

So far, we'd killed all but three of the vampires who had been present when our families were killed. Incidentally, these vampires were the ones in charge. They had to know by now that we were coming. They'd been bouncing around all of the mid-western states for some time now. We'd catch up with them eventually. There was no hiding from us now that our abilities were honed. I could hear thoughts from miles away, and Abby could track someone's actions as far back as a year if she wanted to. Not to mention that individually we could move things that weighed over a ton without lifting a finger. Imagine what we could do together.

"Let's get something to eat. I'm starving."

"Me, too," I agreed. After all that hard work, a steak sounded spectacular. We only ever ate out after a successful vampire hunt. Other than that, we usually picked a motel to stay at and made our own food. It was cheaper that way.

I drove into the next town and we stopped at a local steakhouse. Abby and I both ordered steaks, but she got fries and I got a baked potato. "So, how long do you think it'll take us to get from here to Illinois?" 'Here' was a pokey little town in North Carolina.

"About twelve hours," I replied. "We'll have to start by getting onto I-40, and then we'll just have to follow the map. I'll need you awake for this one, so we'll leave first thing tomorrow morning."

"Right," she smiled. "I can't believe this is almost over. Can you?"

"No. I just wish it changed what happened. Nothing we do is going to bring them back."

"You're right. But they would have been proud of us, Gabby."

"I know they would." I wanted to stop talking about it, so she pulled her mental feelers away and left me with a little privacy. The waitress brought our food, and we ate in silence. I was really starting to feel the day weigh on my shoulders. Fighting was easy…until your muscles started to ache later.

By the time we found a motel and got settled in, my muscles were screaming. Most of the vamps had been bigger than me, so I'd pulled several muscles by trying to physically push them off of me. Apparently Abby had, too, because she moaned in pain every time she moved around in her sleep that night. I, however, didn't sleep much at all. I called Missouri from the motel phone to let her know we were alright, and to tell her where we were going next. She wished us the best of luck and told us to be as careful as we could.

"These vampires will be a lot stronger than the previous ones, I'm sure. Just be careful, sweet pea. You get some sleep. You sound exhausted."

"I will," I yawned. "Night, Missouri."

"Good night, dear."

I awoke the next morning to the screeching of the phone. "Hello?" I demanded.

"Good morning! This is the wakeup call you asked for!"

"Oh, okay. Thanks." I slammed the phone back down on the receiver and forced myself into a sitting position. "Abby, wake up."

"Five more minutes," she groaned and rolled over. "Go take a shower, then wake me up."

"Fine." I went into the bathroom and started the shower up. All of a sudden, I started to feel dizzy. And then I was looking down at a gun. It was an antique Colt with a bunch of inscriptions. I saw Sam and Dean through John's eyes. They were shocked because what they were looking at was a gun that could kill anything from ghosts to vampires to demons.

I was back in the bathroom, lying on the floor. I suppose I'd lost consciousness of my own body while I was inside John's mind. Why had I seen that? I didn't need a gun like that with my abilities. What was the point of showing me that? I shook it off and got in the shower.

Abigail was finally dressed and ready to roll around seven, but I could tell she still needed coffee. Luckily, the motel we were at served free breakfast, so she was one-hundred percent by seven fifteen.

The entire drive to Illinois, the vision of John Winchester and his sons ate at me. I still didn't understand the purpose of me knowing that the Colt from the legends actually existed. We still had no use for it. Had I just picked up on John's thoughts without realizing it?

"You okay?" Abby asked me when we stopped for gas at the halfway point. I showed her what I saw, and she didn't look surprised. "You're probably just picking up on it. I don't think there's any real reason."

"You're probably right." I sighed.

"You want me to take over? You've been driving for a long time."

"No, it's fine. I'm not as good at reading the map as you are."

"You mean I'm not as good at driving as you are," she joked.

"You're damn right. I'd rather we get there in one piece." We both laughed and walked into the gas station to pick up some lunch. I grabbed chips, two waters, a pack of Go-Gurt, and two turkey subs from the refrigerators while Abby picked up some of the necessary toiletries we were running low on. And then we hit the road again.

"Are we almost there?" I asked when it started getting dark. "What does the map say?"

"Yeah, we're about an hour away."

I felt a spike in my pulse. "We're going to finish this, Abby. Tonight." The world would finally be rid of the monsters who took the lives of my sisters, my parents, and Abby's family too. Every single last one of the bastards responsible would be dead. It had taken a year, but it was worth it.

This was sinking in with Abigail, too. Her mind was racing. "How are we going to do this? I want it to be over quick. What are we going to do? I can't believe it's almost over." I was there with her on that. A year's worth of hard, hard work all led up to this. What were we going to do?

I knew, now that I'd slept on the idea, that I was going to keep hunting. I hoped Abby would stay with me, but I would understand if she didn't want to. She was the smart one in high school. She could go back, go to college, find a different career. Hunting was the only thing I was good at anymore. I used to be good at so many things, but now I'd forgotten how to do them.

"I'm hungry," Abby said just as we were pulling into the Chicago city limits, so I pulled into a burger joint I used to go to with my dad after a Cubs game. Nothing seemed to have changed, except us. And that's what I was afraid of.

Abigail and I sat down in the restaurant, which was decorated with baseball memorabilia, and waited for our waitress to come around. I pulled out my tiny silver cell phone, which I only ever used when I had to. I didn't really like the thought of being tracked just because I was carrying around a tiny telephone. But I carried it anyway. I just kept it off, because then the tracker didn't work.

"Who are you calling?"

"Bobby," I replied shortly. "I want to get his opinion on how to do this." She nodded understandingly while I waited for Bobby to pick up.

"Singer," he said in his most professional tone.

"Bobby," I sighed. It was good to hear his voice again. We hadn't talked to him in weeks.

"Gabby! How are ya? How's the hunt goin'?"

"Great. We're closing in on the last few that are hiding out in Chicago."

"Don't you check your messages?" he cried. "Jesus Christ, I called you last week and told you that those vamps were haulin' ass to Colorado!"

"Colorado? Why?!" Damn it. God…fucking…damn it. All that gas, all that time. Maybe I should start checking my messages more often. Abby, overhearing the conversation, groaned and slammed her forehead on the table.

"Well, I'd assume it's because they know you're comin' for 'em. They wanna keep on the move. I'll let someone know and maybe they can pin 'em down for ya. I've got a few connections in a town called Manning."

"Oh, my God, Bobby. You are a life saver. If you can find someone who'll hold them but won't kill them then that would be great."

"You better hurry. No hunter is gonna want to keep a vampire alive for that long."

I knew he was right. We needed to haul ass before we lost the vampires. Most other hunters would kill the vampires on the spot. "Thanks, Bobby. We owe you one."

"Damn skippy," he laughed. "You two be careful."

"We will."

Once I was off the phone, I noticed that the waitress still hadn't shown up. Good thing, I thought, means we can go ahead and leave without any hold-up. "But I'm hungry," Abby complained.

"We'll get something at McDonald's. We have to go."

"You're right I guess. It's a fifteen hour drive to Colorado. I slept more than you did, so I should drive." Warily, I handed her the keys. I still held that letting a drunken person drive was safer than letting Abigail drive.

Abby drove us to the nearest McDonald's where we picked up two double cheeseburgers, two small fries, and two large Coke's. And then we were off again, heading west. I felt like every bite I took of my food made me more tired, and up until then I hadn't realized how much sleep I was missing out on. Every chew took more energy than I had. Eventually, I just gave up on eating, leaned against the window, and fell asleep.

For the first time in almost a year, I didn't have any nightmares. I was too tired, too worn down, to dream of anything except more sleep. The only time I came even close to dreaming was when I opened my eyes as we were passing through a bigger city. All of the lights were swirly and closer than they actually were. At first I was a little freaked out, but went right back to sleep because I was still too tired.

Abby woke me up around seven in the morning by giving me a mental prod. "I need you to take over." I sat up and looked around. She'd pulled into a truck station about three hours from where we needed to be. "I'll stay here. You can go in and take a shower or whatever."

I absolutely hated taking showers at truck stops. I always felt like I was being watched. But the nice part was it was always super clean. They gave you individual bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and soap, your own wash cloth and towel, and had a room where you could change and do your makeup.

I left Abigail in the car so she could sleep and went into the truck stop. As usual, there was a line for the men's showers, but absolutely nobody was in the women's shower area at all. So, I took my time. I gave my scalp a good scrub, left the conditioner in, shaved my legs, and washed my body really well. Once I was clean, dry, made up, and dressed I went to the restaurant part of the truck stop and got coffee for Abigail and myself. While I was at it, I picked up some breakfast for myself too.

It was nine o'clock before we were back on the road again. I hoped, as we passed yet another state line, that the vampires hadn't gotten too far. We had another few hours to go before we were even in the same state. I didn't even ask where they were specifically. Damn it.

Since I'd managed to miss out on some important info by not checking my messages, I decided to check them now. The first one was from Missouri. "Just makin' sure you were okay, darlin'. I'm certain you'll call, but I'm getting antsy. I want to know how you're doing." That message was from ten months ago. The next one was from six months ago. "Hey, Gabby. It's Bobby. Haven't heard from ya in a couple of weeks. Was just making sure you were on the right trail. I'll try again later."

On and on it went, either Missouri or Bobby trying to get in touch with us. Sometimes the messages were from some of the hunters we came across on our travels. One hunter in particular stood out from the others: Gordon. He hated vampires as much as we did, but he was crazier. There wasn't a person he wouldn't kill if they stood even remotely in the way of him killing a vampire. Abby and I had tried to distance ourselves as much as possible. His message was benign, but getting a call from him still made me want to change my number.

Finally, I got to Bobby's messages about the vampire's turning around. "Hey, Gabs. Just thought you should know that these vamps are making a little bit of a turn toward the west. Call me back."

"Gabby, this is gettin' serious. I think they're really gonna high-tail it to the west coast. I need you to call me back."

"Gabrielle! Check yer damn messages. Ugh. Just thought you oughtta know your vampires have turned completely and are headed for Colorado. Got a connection there. He says they'll be up there any day now. Call me back!"

And that was it. I emptied my inbox and went back to focusing on driving. The scenery was starting to get much less inhabited. The further west we went, the fewer the people and the more the mountains.

Abby woke up right around lunch time. "Are we almost there?" she asked and took a sip of her cold coffee. After making a face of distaste, she tossed the liquid out the window. "Because I need to make a pit stop."

"Yeah, we're almost there. Once we get there we can utilize the remaining daylight to prepare, I guess."

"I guess," she sighed and winced as the urge to pee got stronger.

"The next rest stop is about a mile up the road," I assured her just as the stop became visible. She got out and ran while the car was still moving. I didn't have to go, so I took the opportunity to call Bobby.

"Singer" he answered.

"Bobby," I replied. "We just crossed the Colorado state border."

"Okay. Manning is about an hour away from the state border. That gives you two some time to get ready."

"Our thoughts exactly."

"So what are you guys planning to do once this is all, ya know, over?"

"No idea," I admitted. "All I know is I want to keep hunting."

"Well, I've got oodles of cases you could work after you kill off the last of these sons of bitches."

There were times, like this, where I thanked any deity that existed for Bobby. Any problem we had, any question…Bobby could help. I missed being at his house, even if it did always smell like whiskey. "Thanks, Bobby."

"No problem, kiddo. You call me when you get this job finished. Maybe you two can come back and do the housework I've been refusing to do."

I had to laugh. Thinking of what state his house was in made me shudder, though. It wasn't perfect when Abby and I had left it, but it was damn near livable. Bobby had probably returned it to its previous state in the year and a couple of months that we'd been gone. "Alright, I'll call you as soon as we finish the last vamps off."

"Be safe."

"We will. Bye, Bobby."

Abigail returned from the bathrooms with a couple of bottles of water and two bags of chips. She'd pulled her hair into a ponytail and brushed her teeth. "Hey," she thought as she climbed into the car. "You called Bobby."

"Mmhm. He told us to be careful. We're about an hour away from the vampires, he said."

"Mkay. I just want to get this over with so we can relax a little. I want to go back to Bobby's and do some more training, learn some more stuff."

"Me too." I was glad that Abigail was on the same page as me. Having her to back me up, and me to back her up, had been easier than working alone since the first grade.

"You honestly thought I was going to leave you?" she asked, as if it had been obvious that she'd stay the whole time.

"I didn't know what your plans were. You could've swung either way."

"Gabby," she grumbled in frustration. "You're my best friend. Why the hell would I leave you to hunt on your own?"

"Like I said, you could've chosen to go to college…chosen to have a life…"

"Don't be stupid." The conversation about life ended there, and we began to talk about game plans until we reached a hotel in the town we were supposed to be in.

Manning was a tiny town that sat just below a few mountains and was surrounded by forest. I got the feeling that finding the vampires in a heavily wooded area like this would be sort of difficult. It was always a lot easier when they were out in the open. Usually we followed them to their nests and just killed them all there. This time, however, the vampires would be expecting us and wouldn't bunker down in an abandoned warehouse like they usually did. They'd be somewhere a lot less obvious.

Abigail pointed out a decent looking motel just inside the town's limits. It seemed like the perfect place to sit down and get ready for what was ahead of us. I parked the car around the back and walked around the front, leaving Abby with the car. The wizened old woman at the check-in desk welcomed me warmly to her motel.

"I'd like a room with two beds, please."

"Certainly, dear." She waddled over to the wall behind her where all the keys were hung up on little hooks. "A room with a view?" "Pretty girl. Wonder who she's here with. Not a lover, because of the two beds…"

"Sure." I really didn't care about a room with a view. We wouldn't see it much anyway. We'd be too busy polishing our machetes, checking our supply of Dead Man's Blood, and cleaning our guns.

I went back to the car, where Abby was putting all the necessary weapons into a duffle bag. "Apparently we're getting a room with a view," I told her and began helping her grab stuff.

"Oh, boy," she laughed. "I think we got everything we need. What do you think?"

"Yeah," I agreed. "That looks like more than we need." She had grabbed at least three different types of blades for the both of us, two jars full of Dead Man's Blood, couple of different guns, and enough ammo to put down a few elephants. "Let's go see what this room looks like."

Carrying all that gear up the stairs should have been easier than it was, but the air was so thin here near the mountains that I had a hard enough time walking. I would have moved it with my mind, but I was more than a little light-headed. "What is up with this?" I growled as I heaved my legs up another two steps.

"I have no idea," Abby panted aloud. "I hope this doesn't affect our plans for tonight."

"Oh, we'll have those vampires' heads if it's the last thing I do. Nothing and no one will be able to stop me or you."

"Mmhmm," she grunted as we reached the top of the stairs. I helped her lift the heavy suitcases full of our clothes up the last couple of stairs. Thank God we'd gotten the rolling suitcases, otherwise we'd still have to physically carry them down the hall.

Our room looked almost exactly like all the other rooms we'd stayed at. Shitty wallpaper, two single beds, a table in between them with a single lamp, and a small kitchenette was the main room…as always. The bathroom here was bigger than a few we'd been in before, but that didn't mean much. I opened the curtains to see this 'view' the lady spoke of.

It was a spectacular view of the mountains. They were covered in pines and fir trees topped with snow. The earth that the trees were planted in was red clay, instead of the dark brown dirt I was used to. The forest was littered with the few creatures that weren't in hibernation. I could feel their energies as they scurried about in search of food that was either not there or wasn't enough to matter. I wished I could help them, but I could barely afford the food for myself.

I closed the curtains up and sat down at the little table in the tiny kitchen. "Do you want to work on the knives or the guns?"

"Knives." Abigail lifted the suitcases onto our beds then started pawing through the duffle bag. She retrieved all of the guns she'd brought, all the cleaning supplies, along with the ammo and put it down in front of me. "I need to get better at sharpening anyway."

I had to agree with that. Abby was fine at cleaning and loading the guns, but when it came to sharpening the knives she was terrible. A lot of the time, it was just because she couldn't get the right angle on the whetstone. I grabbed one of the rifles, popped open the barrel, and started with the cleaning process.

The guns didn't need much cleaning, since we cleaned them habitually after every use. So, all I had to do was oil them up, clean the grime off the wooden parts, and reload them with the proper ammunition. The salt-filled shells were our go-to form of ammunition in our main guns, but tonight I decided to load our shotguns with regular shells. They stung more than the salt when it came to vampires.

About halfway through our cleaning process, I caught Abigail thinking about her family. As usual, I decided not to invade, but she was projecting loud and clear. She was thinking about how she used to play tag football with her little brother, how we used to drive around town with her little sister and act like stupid fools, and how we used to go to the lake with her mom before she got Multiple Sclerosis and couldn't handle outdoor temperatures above eighty degrees. They were good memories that included me a lot of the time. Then again, a lot of my good memories included her, too.

"I think I'm done," she thought around six o'clock. The sun was just starting to set behind the mountain tops. I walked over to the table to inspect her work. The knives were fairly sharp, so she was getting better with the angle she was using. "Not bad?"

"Not bad. We should get ready. Practice a little with the blades while I take a shower. I feel gross."

I went into the bathroom and put the water on at a temperature that was hotter than I usually liked it. My head was foggy, and I needed to be as alert as possible for this hunt. As I was washing the soap off of my limbs, Abby came in to the bathroom. "Hey, let's get a move on. You've been in here for forty-five minutes."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll be out in a second," I groaned and finished rinsing. I'd really wanted to take my time. Washing my hair alone had been a time-consuming thing, since I have so much of it. Getting all the conditioner out took almost five whole minutes, and that was exhausting. I pulled the shower curtain aside and wrapped a towel around myself.

I took my time with putting lotion on. The dry mountain air was already taking its toll on my skin. After that, I dried my hair, put my makeup on, and left the room to get dressed. Abby was sitting on her bed with her machete in her lap. She averted her eyes when I let the towel fall off so I could put my clothes on. "Where should we start?" I asked while I was pulling my jeans up.

"Well, there's a bar we could stop in to just up the road. If the vampires touched anything there, I'll be able to tell where they went."

It seemed as good of an idea as any. I slipped my boots on, instead of my sneakers, because of how cold it was. I could hear the people outside thinking about the temperature…a brisk thirty degrees. I threw on my coat, put a pistol in the back of my pants, a knife in my boots, and made sure I had my fake I.D. "Alright," I said as I grabbed my machete. "You ready?"

"Ready." We grabbed our shotguns and got ready to leave. "Let's try not to pass any people while we're carrying these. I hate when people ask questions."

"That's why I parked around the back."

Parking around the back meant avoidance of all the people who could see us with our guns. We made it through the halls without bumping into a single soul. The only people in the hotel rooms near us were a few animal hunters, a raunchy couple, and some people who were in Manning to go hiking. None of them saw, heard, or cared about us and what we were doing.

It was funny how much it irritated me that no matter how many people we saved, we never got thanked. The people in the motel had no idea that they could feel safe and warm in their beds because we were out hunting the things that went bump in the night. I shook it off, however, and started up the car.

The bar was grimy, as most were, but at least the bar tender was nice. She served us our illegal alcohol with a smile and started gossiping with one of the other customers. I put my filter on and started sifting through peoples' thoughts for anything that sounded like it could be related to the vampires we were searching for. I kept coming up with nothing, so I ordered a couple shots of whiskey for Abigail and myself.

I wasn't a huge fan of going to random bars for information, but they were still the tried-and-true method of getting helpful information. Sometimes we ran into other hunters in the bars, sometimes we got the information we needed, and sometimes we sat there for hours until the bar closed without getting any info at all. But again, it was necessary.

After our first two shots I quit, but Abby got a beer. I couldn't stand beer. It tasted the way it smelled and was altogether dissatisfying for me. So, instead I got a Coke and waited for something that sounded useful to come up in someone's mind or conversation.

"Gabby," Abigail thought. "The bar tender…she knows something. Apparently there was a group of vampires here a couple of days ago. She doesn't know they're vampires, though."

"Very helpful," I replied sarcastically. "That doesn't tell us where they went."

"Well, it looks like right after they left here some man named Nathaniel Elkins was found dead in his home. Apparently he always kept a rather large journal with him."

"Okay," I nodded and sipped my Coke. So, this Nathaniel Elkins had come across some vampires, who weren't the ones we were looking for, in the bar and was found dead right after. I wondered where she was going with this. I tuned in to the woman's thoughts and started sifting through her conversation.

After a few minutes, I found what I was looking for. She'd seen a car, some crappy nineties model, that turned down a side road. Inside the car were the vampires we were looking for. Then I saw a street sign, the one we'd seen coming in to town.

So, that's where they were hiding…off a side road just off the main road into town. Abigail took one last swig of her beer, laid thirty dollars on the bar, and slid off her stool. I followed her out into the cold, where she opened her hand for the keys. I decided to let her drive this time. She had seen where the vamps were hiding better than I had, because she'd been paying more attention.

I slid into the passenger seat, where my machete was waiting for me. Abigail started the engine, tore out of the parking lot, and skidded onto the main road. "I guess we can park and scope the place out," I said. That was our plan, at least.

As we got closer to the edge of town, I started to pick up on a few different energies in the woods on either side of us. Two of energies were human, and the other three weren't. Unfortunately, we were still too far away for me to be able to tell exactly what was going on. But I was sure the three inhuman energies would be the vampires we were looking for.

The human energies worried me, though. Were they hostages that were being fed on? Were they being chased? If they were being chased, I didn't want to take the risk of them being caught in the cross-fire. "What the fuck is going on?" I wondered and started unbuckling my seatbelt. "Park the car."

"Wait. Let's get as close as we can," Abigail suggested, and kept driving. I shook my head and started to lean out of the window, just to see if I could see what was happening. All five beings were moving around. One was coming closer. It was definitely a vampire. I could feel it clearly. Another vampire was coming from the other side, and the last vampire was about to swing right out in front of us.

"Abigail! Park the car!" I yelled and swung my torso out of the window.

There he was…a large, dark vampire with flashing eyes. He jumped out in front of us, causing Abby to turn the wheel so hard that the car spun around in circles. I almost fell out of the car window, but managed to anchor myself on the hood by imagining my hand was attached. Thank God for telekinetics.

I tried to keep my eyes fixed on the vampire, but he was steadily getting further away. I had to act, or else we would lose him. I launched my machete at him, and tried to curve it with my mind so that it would take off the head. But something happened, and it got stuck in the vamp's vertebrae.

"What the hell?" Someone's thoughts came through loud and clear…Dean Winchester. It all became very apparent what was going on. Sam and Dean Winchester had been hunting the same vampires that we were. That would explain the extra human thoughts. "Not human. Who should I kill? Vampire's first." Dean shot one of a female vampire with his crossbow while Sam was trying to figure out where the last one went.

The car finally stopped spinning, so I could see properly. The last vampire was running away in the opposite direction as fast as he could…too fast for human legs to catch up. Pissed off and ready for this to be over, I grabbed another blade from the back seat and mentally yanked the vampire back so that he'd be close enough to kill. Once he was within fifty feet of me, I launched the blade at him and took off the head in one clean slice.

Abigail got out of the car. "Did you get them all?"

"NO!" I screamed. "I told you to park the fucking car, Abby! If you'd parked it half a mile back like I said, then I would have been able to get them all!" I ran over to the vampire who was only half-way beheaded. He was trying to pull the machete out of his neck, but the Dead Man's Blood was taking its toll. "Well, hey there, ugly."

"Bitch," he swore and tried to grab my ankle. I yanked my foot back and pushed the machete the rest of the way through his neck as slowly as I could. Once it was past the vertebrae, he laughed. "Your little sisters screamed and cried for you, but you couldn't save them."

"Shut up," I mumbled and pushed the machete the rest of the way through, severing his head completely. What he'd said wasn't a lie, but there was nothing I could do about it now.

I could feel that the last vamp Dean had shot with his crossbow was still alive. Typical…he would be so cocky as to leave her alive long enough for the Dead Man's Blood to wear off. If you wanted something done right…. I turned around to make sure Abby was burning the bodies, but found a gun in my face instead.

"Who are you? Well, the better question is, what are you?" "No human I've ever met has that kind of mojo." I could see him going over different creatures in his head, but the only one coming up was a demon.

"Dean," I sighed and closed my eyes. "Put the gun down. I'm human."

"How do I know you're not lying? And how do you know my name?"

Sam, who had a gun on Abby, gasped. "We met you guys at Missouri's house. Abby and…Gabby…right?" "I thought they looked familiar…but they could still be dangerous…doesn't mean they're not human."

"Right," Abby nodded. Her hands were raised and she looked terrified. Neither of us had yet perfected how to block bullets.

"You still haven't answered the question," Dean pushed the gun a little further into my face. "Who and what are you?" "It'll be a shame if we have to kill 'em. They're both really pretty…"

"Just tell him, Gabby," Abby pleaded. "I can't imagine getting our faces blown off would be a pleasant experience."

I really didn't want to tell them. Missouri was the only person who really encouraged what we did. Even Bobby didn't thoroughly understand, and he was a little afraid of it. But, to save our necks, I told him. "We're psychics."

"I've never seen psychics pull crap like that. At least, not psychics who were born that way." In his head, he started going through images of a kid who was about Sam's age. He had a knife pointed at his mother's face, but he wasn't using his hands. And then I saw a man with yellow eyes…a demon who had something to do with Sam. Was Sam a psychic, too?

I gave him a mental prod that any psychic would understand, but he didn't seem to notice it at all. So, it was back to dealing with Dean. "We're telekinetic psychics. We can hear thoughts, move objects with our minds…" I left out the tracking part. It was a minor detail that they didn't really need to know.

"You can hear thoughts?"

"Missouri could hear thoughts," Sam reminded him. "And telekinetic people do exist." Slowly, he started to lower the gun (but kept it ready). Dean, however, kept his poised right in front of my forehead. "Maybe we should let them go. It's not like they were hurting anybody. They were just hunting vampires."

"Dean! Sam!" John Winchester called out from the woods. "Where the hell are they? Told them to stay put…" He emerged from the woods, holding a crossbow and a bloody arrow. When he saw what was going on, he moved toward us a little faster with a disconcerted look on his face. "What the hell's going on? Gabby, Abby…?"

"You know these two?" Dean demanded.

"Yeah, I know 'em. They were stayin' at Missouri's at the same time I was, training to hunt and kill vampires. They actually helped me out a lot."

That seemed to do it for Dean. If John trusted us, he trusted us. Dean lowered the gun and turned to speak to his father. "Where'd you go? You missed all the action." "Wonder if he knows they're psychic-telekinetic-freaks, or maybe they left that part out."

"How many were there?" John asked and stared at the bloody arrow in his hand. "Never answered the question," Sam seethed in his head. The look of distrust was plain on his face. It seemed that Sam trusted his father less than he trusted a complete stranger when it came to telling the truth.

"There were three," Dean told him. "They got the two big ones here, and I left a female back there with an arrow in her chest."

John looked confused for a moment then held up the arrow in his hand. "You mean this one? Damn it, Dean! You didn't kill her before the blood sickness wore off!"

"Oh, my God!" I screamed and stomped my foot on the ground. "Are you fucking kidding me?" Abigail sank into a sitting position on the ground and buried her hands in her face. I reared on Dean and yelled, "Do you know how long it has taken us to get here? She was the last one we had to kill and you let her get away!"

"Hey, if you two hadn't been distracting us with your telekinetic crap we wouldn't have forgotten to kill the bitch!"

John got in between us and pushed us apart. "Enough! Dean, you did let her get away because you were being careless. Gabby, we'll help you track her down again. She couldn't have gone far."

"She's gotten far enough," I grumbled and crossed my arms over my chest. "We have no idea which direction she went or anything." Since vampires were so rare, I had serious doubts as to whether John was aware of how difficult they were to track.

"Let me see the arrow," Abby sighed and held out her hand. Dean and Sam both raised their eyebrows as John handed the arrow to her. She ran her hands over the length of it, covering her fingers with blood, and closed her eyes.

"What good will that do?" Sam wondered.

"Shh," I said while Abby started turning it over in her hands. After a few moments, she opened her eyes again.

"She went north. That much I know."

Both Sam and Dean were thinking the same thing: "?!" I didn't really feel like explaining it, but I knew they wouldn't accept it if we didn't tell them exactly what just happened. "Abigail can track someone just by touching something they've touched."

"This is so fresh that I can hear what she was thinking. It was just one word… 'North'."

"Good. Sam and Dean, you two can help them find this vampire while I see if I can track down more information about the demon we're hunting," John told them.

"Dad, don't you think the demon takes top priority?" Sam interjected. "I'm really getting sick of this bullshit."

"Of course it is, but Dean fucked up so he has to fix it." Sam threw up his hands in protest and Dean started to argue, but John wouldn't hear it. "That's an order," he said and began to walk up the road back towards town.