To avoid any confusion, though I doubt there will be, the biblical guy with the mark was Cain, but in tribute to a few of my favorite work colleagues I named a couple of the fuzzy characters after them, one being Kane, I just don't want anyone to see the name and do a double-take
Bryan was content to keep driving as they neared Hammond, Indiana, but Claire's phone rang with an order from Dean to follow him at the next turn off for gas, admittedly the Buick could use a top off after the heavy acceleration for several hours.
"What'cha got on the witch's web?" he asked Claire after she hung up the phone and returned to the map on her tablet.
"Well," Claire expelled a short sigh, "if she's on land we might not be in that bad of a spot."
"What if she's on an island?" Bryan asked, making sure all possible scenarios were considered.
"Satellite map doesn't show any," Claire shook her head, "There's only a sliver a land in the three corners, but they're pretty spread out."
Bryan nodded, holding back his negative thoughts.
Dean exited the highway taking a left towards a mess of gas stations and fast food restaurants. Bryan hoped no one was hungry, he didn't want this stop to take any longer than filling the tank, pulling up to the pump behind Dean as Sam rumbled on the opposite side in his Mustang.
Castiel got out of the vehicle and Bryan bit his lips, holding in his anger as he roughly shoved the nozzle into the Grand National's gas tank. The angel didn't need to use the bathroom, or eat, or any of those inconvenient human requirements that was already slowing them down, Bryan thought he should just stay in the car, like Claire.
"I'm gonna use the bathroom," Claire said, closing the passenger door behind her and the young man actively stifled a growl.
"Sam," Dean jerked his head at Claire and the younger Winchester nodded.
"I'm-" Claire began to protest, but at the identical glares she received from the brothers, thought better of it and just shook her head, walking into the gas station with Sam.
"Hey, Bryan," Dean said, "We're all in a hurry."
"I know," Bryan furrowed his brow in confusion at the raised eyebrow expression Dean was giving him.
"Get off my ass if y'know what's good for yours," Dean said simply and Bryan felt heat rise on his face from anger and embarrassment as Castiel observed the exchange.
"Yes, sir," Bryan mumbled.
Claire and Sam returned a few minutes later and Claire handed Bryan a bottle of water that he had no intention of drinking, but thanked her anyway.
"Ok," Dean began, glancing around, but there was no one else in the parking lot in the start of late afternoon, "Benton Harbor's closest to us now, 'n Jody's already closin' in on Manitowoc up in Wisconsin, so Claire, you're goin' with Sam in the Impala t'meet them, Cas is takin' the Mustang up to Ludington 'n Bryan 'n I are headin' to Benton Harbor."
Bryan's stomach churned thinking about riding alone with Dean. The last time he'd been in a car alone with the man had been immediately following the whipping of his life, though the conversation following had brought a new side of Dean to light and the young man couldn't help but admire the experienced hunter even more after the entire ordeal. Still, riding alone with Dean Winchester when the mission was to save a girl they mutually cared for in vastly different ways was extremely intimidating. He nodded his understanding, reminding himself that Dean had the Colt and at least he would be with the gun, hoping they found Morgan and the yellow eyed monster that had taken her, wishing he could be the one to put a bullet in her satanic royal skull.
"If Bryan 'n I come up with squat," Dean continued, "We're headin' North t'meet Cas, we all need t'stay in contact as much as we can, if somebody gets a whiff, send up the flares before you go in, or better yet, wait for back up if y'can."
"Wait?!" Claire scoffed, "If I see Morgan 'n she's-"
"Claire!" Sam barked, shocking everyone and gaining all of their attentions, "We're all scared, but you follow your orders. Got it?"
She nodded at the ground, either surprised that Sam had scolded her or accepting the situation for what it was, Bryan wasn't sure, but figured it was probably a bit of both.
Dean grabbed a couple duffels from the Impalas trunk, but before he slammed the lid a screech overhead turned everyone's heads to the sky. Shielding their eyes to the late afternoon sun, Bryan's heart raced at the shadowy wingspan of a large bird circling them.
"No way," Sam said in awe.
"Elsu!" Claire gasped.
The familiar falcon came to rest on the overhang roof of the gas pumps, inclining his head one way and the other at the group staring up at him from the ground.
"Do you know this bird?" Castiel asked.
"Morgan made him," Dean sounded proud and sad, glancing hopefully at his brother, "Do you think he knows where she is?"
"How're we gonna know?" Sam shrugged in frustration, "We're lookin' for the only person who can talk t'that thing."
"Morgan communicates with animals?" Castiel asked.
"Yeah," Dean said nonchalantly, "It's just a spell, she doesn't have to drink any crappy potions or anything," at the angels confused expression, Dean shook his head, "Never mind."
Castiel however, turned his gaze up at Elsu, who turned his beady eyes on the angel. It was a moment before everyone saw what was happening, watching the bird nod and tilt his head occasionally how he did during a silent conversation with his creator. Castiel as well was nodding or shaking his head every once in a while, his expression changing while no words escaped his lips. After a few minutes of undisturbed quiet, the angel extended an arm and the falcon fluttered down, landing softly with its talons wrapping around the tan trench coat sleeve as Castiel gently stroked Elsu's feathers with the back of his other hand.
"Cas?" Dean broke the silence finally.
"Yes?" Castiel turned with wide eyes, shaking his head as if from a daze a brief moment later, but his smile only grew, "Yes, Elsu here has been very helpful. He found Morgan in a barn in the early hours of this morning."
The news seemed to hit everyone differently as Bryan's eyes went wide at Dean, begging for an order as he formulated his own plans in case the Winchesters didn't make a decision quickly enough. Claire grabbed Castiel around the waist, causing Elsu to flutter his wings angrily, but stayed latched onto the angel's arm. Sam was swiping madly on his phone and Dean turned to the bird as if he intended to speak to it.
"Where?" Dean demanded.
"Considering where he said he came from, how long it took him to get here and where the lake was on the journey," Castiel said rationally, turning back to the falcon for a few moments before nodding and looking again at Dean, "Wisconsin."
"Why is it always freakin' Wisconsin, man?" the oldest Winchester growled, but his tone was at least more hopeful than it had been.
"Hey, check this out," Sam stepped forward with his phone screen flat in his hand, pinching to enlarge a satellite map, "There's a few miles of Manitowoc on the shore that fall in the triangle. Right here," he adjusted the map to show the skeletal remains of a farm surrounded by forest and fields, "Government owned on the preserve, off limits to the public."
"Let's go," Dean was already tossing his duffels back in the trunk and heading for the driver's seat.
Bryan wasted no time jumping behind the wheel of the Grand National, feeling a small amount of relief with a destination, still unsure of Morgan's fate, though she'd still been alive in the early morning according to Castiel's conversation with the magic falcon. He also felt a bit relieved not having to ride alone with Dean, sure the older man would've insisted on driving and Bryan wasn't big on the idea of sitting shotgun in his own car. As they plowed onto the highway, though, the young man was conscious of staying back a little further from the Impala's rear bumper.
Morgan's mind was racing, trying to think of anything to say that would deter Phelan from removing her from the barn, in complete disbelief of herself for wishing to stay, but knowing hope was higher if she did. The Betas loomed forward in the pale moonlight shining through the holes in the barn roof, Julian licking his lips at her disgustingly, the rest just glaring with menacing eyes, waiting for instructions from their leader.
Phelan smiled evilly, "Marco, Kane, remove her from that chair."
Two of the Betas, one with very short, dark hair and tan skin, the other, nearly the size of his Alpha, with shaggy, blonde hair, stepped forward and Morgan tensed, pulling again at the bindings on her legs and wrists, biting her lips on the pain. They smelled like the worst kind of cologne, and a lot of it, the blonde smirked, lowering his hands to either side of the seat to hold the chair steady as his partner disappeared behind her.
Anxiety and concern turned to hot anger the moment the blonde werewolf's fingers grazed along the outsides of her thighs, he grinned as she flared her nostrils at him. Working her only defense with her tongue a moment before hocking a wad of spit into his very close face, ready for the backhanded smack well before it came.
"Stop!" Phelan barked, pulling his Beta away from Morgan.
"Sir," he cowered, making himself look much smaller than the Alpha despite the similarity in their size, "She spit on me."
"I saw," Phelan nodded calmly, "I imagine she did not appreciate where your hands ended up, Kane."
His shaggy blonde hair covered his face as he hung his head further in front of his leader, who simply pushed him back into line and turned to the always eager, Chicago born wolf, "Julian, would you care to demonstrate the art of being a gentleman while taking a female captive."
"With pleasure, sir," Julian smiled threateningly as he took a step towards Morgan.
"That won't be necessary," Dagon's voice dragged all of their attention to the barn door, where the demon leaned lazily in the doorway, "She's not going anywhere."
Morgan couldn't believe she felt relieved to see the evil bitch, but, desperate times.
"Dagon," Phelan said in the same calm voice, "good of you to join us."
"Is it?" Dagon chuckled, "I appreciate you checking on my guest, but she's perfectly fine."
"Of course," Phelan nodded, reflecting the demon's ominous smile, "and she will continue to be so, under my eye, until the full moon."
"Nice try, Sparky," Dagon sneered, taking a step into the barn, "You and your mangy mutts have until the end of this sentence to leave before I kill you all."
"And lose your last opportunity to avenge your master's death and fulfill his purpose?" Phelan nearly laughed, "No, you and I are not equals in this, you are right, but you are mistaken if you believe I am the inferior one. I am the one who must perform the act, and, I am the one with an army."
Morgan's eyes widened, shifting between the Alpha werewolf and the Prince of Hell with terrified anticipation. Everything happened quickly, in a matter of seconds. Dagon sent a fiery blast at Phelan, who dodged it, pulling Kane out of the way, but colliding with Julian and the force of three werewolves toppling into each other pushed Morgan into Marco behind her and she heard snapping and cracking as she landed on him with Julian on top of her. He was gone in the same moment it seemed that he landed, though Marco was writhing in pain as Morgan rolled to the floor, kicking her legs of the chair debris. Something in her arms was definitely dislocated, or broken, or both, but she was free. At least of the chair and while the wolves rushed the demon, the little witch snaked herself quickly towards a hole in the bottom of the wall she'd been staring at over the time she'd been there, sure she could fit it.
The backs of her knees were repeatedly punished by the remaining pieces of chair legs tied to her calves, but, in her desperation, it took less than a moment to slip herself all the way through to the grass outside. Biting her lips together, Morgan scrunched her legs as best she could and rapidly pulled her arms under her feet, muffling the grunt of pain and jumping to her feet as soon as she pulled the wood from behind her legs. She ran as fast as she could away from the barn, not knowing where she was or where she was going, but there were trees ahead and decided some type of coverage would be her best option.
Her shoulder ached, badly, not that the rest of her felt great, but there was definitely something wrong with her right shoulder. Small price to pay if she succeeded in escaping. The scuffling in the barn faded as she sprinted towards the woods, but Morgan assumed that was due to distance, or hoped it was, if they noticed she was gone that might just be what brought them together as a team again.
When she reached the edge of the forest, Morgan turned back only briefly, relieved to see no one following, also comforted by the direction she chose as the hint of a large lake, the moon reflecting luminously even it's quarter stage, could be made out in the near distance beyond the fields. That was definitely not the way she wanted to go, and she hurried into the forest with the next issue of removing the cuffs wracking her brain.
Her heart was still pounding after fifteen minutes of walking in the dark forest, turning her head constantly and listening for any and every sound that might mean the werewolves or Dagon had found her. She'd found a creek and practically bathed in it a brief minute, it was freezing and Morgan knew that alone might kill her in the icy conditions, but there was a chance her scent would be lost to the wolves and that was worth the risk. Her teeth chattered as she continued walking, clasping her hands together at her chest in a strange pretzel since the cuffs wouldn't allow her to cross her arms, just trying to keep her heart as warm as possible. Her clothes were turning to icicles on her body as she crunched along dead leaves and twigs, tripping occasionally, but only falling once.
The trees began to thin and it was a relief to find a road, though the idea that the werewolves would pull up and snatch her from the side of it into their giant, black SUV was scary enough she stayed hidden in the woods, deciding to follow the road from a distance. She heard a car pass after a few minutes, her pants too stiff to let her run and she missed the chance to get to the road before they were gone. Morgan decided to stick a little closer to the road, though still near the trees, it was dark and there were no streetlights, she had to take the chance.
No more cars came as she continued trudging through the edge of the woods, praying for a miracle, praying for Dean, for Sam, for Cas. She wasn't sure if Cas heard prayers anymore, she knew her brothers had used it to call him years ago, but all she'd ever seen them use to communicate was a cell phone. If she only had her cell phone. What had that bitch done with her phone? Morgan couldn't believe her own thoughts as she found herself hoping whatever that cloud thing was worked, scoffing at herself, even if the concern had been unintentional, she was lucky to be alive.
It was quiet and several times Morgan turned, thinking she heard the sound of her name being called, but, after a few moments of stillness and intense listening, realized she was being ridiculous and continued her trek. When the rumble of the Impala echoed in her ears she actually rolled her eyes to avoid tears, angry at her own mind for playing such mean tricks on her. Morgan shook her head, but the sound only grew louder. Her heart raced as the familiar glow of the wide-set quad-style headlights lit up the road and her feet were pounding onto and into the road without any contemplation.
The Impala screeched to a halt a few feet in front of her, Morgan was blind in the brightness of the headlights, but her chest was seizing with anxiety, relief, terror, concern and hope all at once. As the driver's door flew open and her oldest brother got out, his expression an exact match of hers, Morgan felt her knees going weak, wobbling towards him, but he had her in his arms before she could take more than two steps.
Dean held her so tight Morgan could hardly turn her head, but knew who it was when another large body pressed against her back, completing a very necessary family hug. She didn't even realize she'd started bawling until they released her, at least Sam stepped next to Dean while the oldest kept his arms around her, his shirt soaked from her tears. Morgan couldn't wipe them away fast enough as they poured from her eyes and Dean swiped his thumbs across her cheeks, pulling her head towards himself and planting a kiss on her forehead, finally letting her go.
"Are you okay? What happened?" Dean began quickly, "Where were you? How did you get out? Are you okay?"
"Dean," Sam said firmly, "Gotta give her room t'answer, man."
"I'm mostly okay," she shrugged, wincing at the pain, "My shoulder's fucked up."
"Hey," they both admonished automatically.
"Really guys?" she furrowed her brow challengingly, "I just spent the last day 'n half gettin' kicked around by a Prince of Hell, nearly dragged off by Phelan and his followers, escaped due to a fluke distraction and just ran miles through the woods after takin' an ice bath in a creek, so yeah, sorry, I'm a little fucked up."
Neither Sam or Dean looked remotely angry, just shaking their heads in what seemed to be happy amusement and disbelief at her fiery attitude.
"What'd y'take the dip for?" Dean asked as he reached into the car for a blanket.
"Thought it would help lose my scent 'r somethin'," Morgan shrugged, realizing it was probably stupid.
"Smart," Dean nodded, wrapping the blanket around her shoulders.
"Let me get those cuffs off you," Sam offered, pulling his lock pick from his pocket.
"Sam," Cas suddenly stepped forward, "let me," with a wave of his hand, the restraints vanished.
"Thanks, Cas-ELSU!" Morgan looked up from her hands to thank the angel and found her falcon sitting on his shoulder.
"Yeah that things a hoot in the car," Dean muttered.
"He didn't enjoy it either I assure you," Cas retorted.
"Elsu," Morgan sighed happily, locking her eyes on the bird, 'Thank you. You've saved me.'
'It looks as though you saved yourself,' the bird nodded.
'Hardly,' Morgan shook her head, 'I will never be able to repay you for this.'
Elsu cocked his head so far it was nearly upside down, 'You gave me wings, and outside, it is I who will never be able to repay you, Morgan, but I am glad to be able to do you this favor. I like this one,' he gently squeezed a talon on the angel's shoulder, 'Though why he chooses your brother as his best friend I will never know, that man,' Elsu simply ruffled his feathers in completion, 'I shall leave you now, but we will see each other again, I'm sure.'
Morgan waved with her less injured arm as the bird took flight, quickly getting lost in the darkness.
"Okay," Dean clapped his hands, "we need t'get the hell outta here."
"Home?" Morgan asked hopefully.
"Home, Sweetie," he opened the rear door of the Impala for her to slide in, Morgan offered a quick and encouraging smile to her friends standing by their open doors of the Buick before sliding onto the familiar, black leather.
I didn't cliffhanger you this time, I hope you enjoyed, I'd love to hear
