Riders on the Storm | 47
Synopsis: Andy is determined to prove she can stand on her own two feet without being a liability to the team. But can she? (feat. Gordon)
Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction using characters from CW's Supernatural. I am not affiliated with CW nor do I claim ownership of any part of Supernatural. The story I tell here is my own invention, and it is not purported to be canon.
Song credits: The Doors - Riders on the Storm; AC/DC - If you want blood (you got it); Foghat - Slow Ride; Travis - Love will come through; Talking Heads - Road to Nowhere
Note: This chapters takes place in season 2 sometime after episode 4, probably in early January 2007.
Supernatural
Chapter 4
"Riders on the Storm"
Andy sat up in the backseat of the impala, blinking away the sleep in her eyes. It was the early afternoon, and Sam was asleep in the front seat. She watched Dean in the rearview mirror. She'd seen that somber look on him before. Curious, she asked, "What are you thinking about?"
He hadn't realized she was awake and gave her a smile that didn't meet his eyes, "We're almost there."
She leaned over the back of his seat to kiss his cheek and stretched as she sat back and put on her seatbelt. "That's not what you were thinking about."
He'd been replaying his father's last words to him in the hospital over and over again, wondering what they portended. He'd also realized how impulsive he had been in inviting Andy along, and he was just as surprised at how easily she uprooted herself to follow him. He had to protect both of them, and he had no idea what was coming.
"So, what's on your mind?" she prodded gently.
"Nothing important," he answered and smirked, "Just wondering if the chicken or the egg came first."
She hoped he would open up to her about it eventually. "The egg came first," she replied, deadpan, "Chickens evolved from raptors."
Dean grinned, "Jurassic Park!"
Sam lifted his head, taking a deep breath as he straightened up in his seat, and looked out the window. "We're here already?"
"Hey, sleeping beauty. Rise and shine." Dean took the turn off onto a dirt road and parked outside the roadhouse. He pocketed his keys as he stepped out of the car and opened the back door for Andy. When she groaned, he asked, "You okay?"
"Yeah, long road trips will take some getting used to. My legs are stiff. I feel like I need to run in circles."
"That's why I spend most of the time sleeping or reading," Sam said, walking up to the porch.
"It's not so bad." Dean held the door open, "But I could use a drink."
"Howdy, boys," Ellen looked up from her newspaper when Sam walked in, then tilted her head at Andy before shooting Dean a look. "And girl."
"Hey, Ellen," Sam smiled back at her and took a stool at the bar.
Andy took a seat next to him and offered Ellen a crooked smile, "Uh, hi, I'm Andy."
"She's a hunter," Dean added. At first glance, one probably wouldn't guess by the clothes she was wearing. Andy wore her yoga pants with a tank top and sneakers for comfort's sake on the long drive.
"Nice to meet'cha," Ellen smiled before handing them each a beer. She wouldn't have believed it but knew Dean wouldn't joke about it. She studied Andy for a moment before asking, "Where did you meet the boys at?"
"On a job," Andy answered and tried to sound matter of fact about it, "Incubus."
Sam smirked and lifted the beer to his lips because he didn't want to be glared at by Dean or questioned by Ellen about what he found so funny. That's one way of putting it, he thought.
Andy knew what he was thinking and elbowed him, "Hey, I helped kick its ass, and don't forget what it cost me. I deserve a little credit."
Sam looked innocent, "I didn't say anything."
"What did it cost you?" Ellen asked.
Dean was ready to intervene, but Andy answered before he could change the subject, "A priceless book."
"Oh, it had a price..." Sam caught himself thinking aloud and cleared his throat.
"I hate you right now," Andy said, narrowing her eyes at him, then smiled.
"How long have you been hunting?" Ellen asked. She was suspicious, but she tried to sound like she was making small talk, rather than being nosy.
"It's a trap," Jo warned her, coming in through the back door with two cases of beer in hand. "Don't answer."
Ellen shot Jo a disapproving look. "Andy, meet Jo... my daughter."
Jo set the beer down behind the counter and smiled. "Nice to meet you." She looked at Sam and Dean. "Long drive?"
"I think my butt fell into a coma," Dean answered.
"Maybe you should walk it off." She leaned against the counter and turned back to Andy, curious, "So, you're a hunter, huh? What's your last name?" Jo tried to familiarize herself with the hunter community the best she could being cooped up in Nebraska. A lot of hunters passed through, but there were plenty who didn't that she had learned about through the Hunter's Blog.
"Kimber," Andy answered, unsure why it mattered.
Jo knitted her brows, "Your name sounds familiar."
"Oh, really?" Ellen was earnestly surprised.
Dean interrupted, "She's got herself a famous last name, but we're not here to fill out family trees. What's the lead?"
"Famous?" Jo raised her eyebrows.
"I'm not famous," Andy rolled her eyes.
Ellen turned around and picked up a folder she'd tucked behind the counter. "A hunter came through here the other day-"
"He was new," Jo added.
Ellen shot her another look that said 'don't interrupt me.'
Jo put her hands up and rolled her eyes as she turned away. "Sorry."
Ellen plopped the folder down on the counter for them to read. "His name is Jasper. He said he was investigating a series of mysterious deaths and disappearances over in Tennessee and he needed to lay low because someone was stalking him."
Sam opened the folder, "Someone from the case he was working?"
"He seemed to think so. He decided to drop the case. I figured you guys might want it."
"Thanks for thinking of us," Dean grinned and took a swig of his beer. "Where is this guy now?"
"He fell off the grid," Jo answered and exchanged looks with her mother. "We think something might have caught up to him."
"It could just be a serial killer," Dean shrugged.
Andy looked worried. "Do we draw the line at serial killer?"
Sam was scanning the articles Jasper pulled together. "We stick to the supernatural stuff and let the cops handle the rest unless we're forced to deal with them."
"Got it."
Ash came out from his room in back, reaching under his tank top to scratch an itch under his armpit. "Well, long time no see, you two." He rested his elbow on the counter and picked up Dean's half-finished beer to take a drink.
"Hey Ash...feel free to have some of my beer. No problem," Dean looked at him and smiled.
"Don't mind if I do..." Ash looked past Dean at Andy. "Well, who is this?"
"Andy," she smiled. "I've heard about you. Business in the front, party in the back."
"Damn right, girl." He flipped his mullet back. "I like you."
Sam sighed, "This guy's notes are all a mess."
Dean offered, "If it's too tough for you to figure out, we could always ask Ash-"
"No," Sam answered quickly and flashed a smile, "I got it." He unfolded a tattered a map and looked at the red circles marking the locations of bodies, then continued looking through the newspaper clippings.
Ash finished off Dean's beer and set the empty bottle down before asking Andy, "So, you're new, right? You have any fake ID's yet?"
She paused, wondering what gave her away, and decided it had to be her attire. "I do not."
"We'll hit up a Kinko's later," Sam said. "We were in a hurry to get over here and see what we were missing."
"Hell, I can do it for you. Gimme your ID and about 50 minutes. I'll have you set up, no charge."
"Wow, really?" Andy's eyes lit up and she dug through her purse for her wallet. "Thank you!"
"No problemo," Ash said, taking her driver's license and looking it over.
Before Ash could return to his man-cave, Dean stopped him and whispered something in his ear.
Sam held up one of the newspaper clippings. "Look at this. One of the victims had puncture marks on their neck. Suspected animal attack."
"You'd think they'd try to be inconspicuous and bite somewhere else," Andy said.
Sam gave her a confused look.
"Well, I mean... you know, to avoid getting the attention of you guys..." She shrugged, "So, we're looking at vampires, right?"
Sam exchanged looks with Dean. "Could be. But vampires aren't the only things that drink blood or bite people."
"This is the part where we go out and look at the bodies," Dean said.
"Alright, I'm betting it's a by-the-book vampire, then," Andy said.
Sam smirked and shook his head, "I don't know enough to take that bet."
Dean added, "There could be a nest, but vamps don't usually kill this many in such a short time. Not unless they want hunters swarming them."
"They could just be dumb," Andy reasoned, "Or new to the whole undead gig?"
"So, how long have you been hunting?" Ellen asked again, this time with a more demanding tone. "This isn't your first, is it?"
"No," Andy answered, pushing her beer over to Dean. "Fourth."
"Fourth? I reckon you should just wait here for them to return," Ellen offered, "I have a spare room out back you're welcome to stay in."
"Don't worry about it," Dean insisted. "We won't put her in any situations we don't think she can handle."
"And how many hunters have you trained?"
"I... uh... I trained Sam."
Sam looked at him, "Dean... Potty training doesn't count."
He looked away, picking up his beer, "Shut up."
"Wait," Jo looked at her. "You're a writer, aren't you?"
Dean nudged Andy with his elbow, "And you said you aren't famous."
"I'm not."
Ellen raised her eyebrows, "Jo?"
Jo popped the cap off a bottle of beer and set it on the table in front of Andy since she'd surrendered hers to Dean. "She wrote a vampire novel called Written in Blood, but it's completely fictional. I mean, it's not based on real vampires... It's more like-"
"Don't say it," Andy interrupted.
Jo paused, "If you thought I was going to say Twilight, I wasn't. I was thinking more along the lines of Interview with a Vampire."
Andy gave a sigh of relief, even though she didn't particularly like being compared to other authors, even those as respectable as Anne Rice.
"But I'm curious, why didn't you write something more accurate? I mean, don't you think it would help young hunters if they're trying to do some research? You're just throwing them off track."
"Well, my books were just intended to be entertaining, not educational. Who looks in the erotic horror section of the library for research?"
Jo tilted her head, "Well, considering most lore on vampires, whether it's real or not, is considered fictional, we have to look everywhere. I'm not trying to knock your books, I'm just surprised is all. I read a lot, and it's hard to find reliable sources. You're a hunter and a writer, you could be a huge help to the community."
Ellen added, "Vampires are real monsters, not romantic creatures like in your novels."
"I know. They have Baraka teeth." Andy tried not to sound exasperated and added pointedly, "I did say to cut off their heads to kill them. Isn't that the important part?"
Ellen knew she was being overbearing and decided to take a step back. "Well, I can't stop y'all. You're a grown up, you can make your own decisions."
"What about me?" Jo said, looking at her, "I'm a grown up."
"You're my daughter. That's different." Ellen sighed, "But could I have a word with you alone, Andy? Then, I promise I won't try to stop you anymore."
"Sure." Andy followed Ellen around the counter and out back.
Jo shook her head and smiled at Dean, "Oh, here we go. I've received this talk a hundred times."
"I bet. Your mom really makes you feel like you're about to be put in time out. It's scary."
Ellen crossed her arms, then uncrossed them and settled her hands on her hips. She didn't want to look imposing. "Whose idea was it for you to become a hunter?"
"Mine," Andy answered, even if Dean had some say in it.
"Why? Why do you want to join this fight?" Ellen hated to see her go down the road her husband took that led to his death. The same road her daughter wanted to follow. "To be a hero, to write a book? For a boy?"
Andy bit her lip, unsure what the correct answer would be.
"My advice? Be normal, use your imagination, find somebody else. Once you start down this road, there's no turning back."
"I've already started," Andy said.
"It's not too late," Ellen urged. "You might not know this, Andy, but most hunters don't have a choice. Every single one of them has a tragic story, a reason for them to fight. And it's in their blood. Dean and Sam, they're not the first in their family. They couldn't leave this life if they wanted to." She shook her head, thinking of John and her late husband, Bill. "You see, it follows you."
"What about Jo?" As soon as she asked, Andy could tell she struck a nerve and regretted it.
"A lot of hunters come through, and she likes listening to their stories. And she has memories of her daddy coming home from hunts when she was a little girl. She idolized him. She has a lot of big ideas about what the life is like... but she doesn't know what she'd be getting herself into."
Andy had the feeling Jo knew exactly what she was getting herself into and that her mother was just being protective. "Thanks for the advice, Ellen, really," Andy said. "I appreciate that you want what's best for me. But this is something I want to do."
"Okay," she conceded and opened the door back to the bar. "Just be careful. Don't let them drag you into something you're not ready for. I mean it... Don't let them put you in danger."
Andy took her seat between Sam and Dean and exchanged looks with a knowing Jo.
Ash came back out with a handful of ID cards. "Here's FBI, Health Inspector, US Wildlife Service, Tennessee Coroner's Office, Carroll County Sheriff's Department. You'll have to get the metal badges yourself."
Andy looked at her ID's, listing them off as she went through them, "Janis Joplin, Joni Mitchell, Stevie Nicks, Tina Turner, and Patti Smith?"
Dean grinned, quite pleased with himself.
"Where's Diana Ross?" Andy gave Dean a look.
Ash pointed, "I can do that. Oh, and here's a Tennessee driver's license, since that's where you guys are headed. It says you're Latina. Thought I'd spice things up a bit."
"Selena Perez? Ha!" Andy grinned and gave Ash a big hug. "Muchas gracias! You're amazing."
Sam couldn't help thinking hugging Ash would be unpleasant and kind of smelly. He glanced at Jo. She looked amused by the whole exchange, but he wondered if she wanted to be in Andy's place, on the road, hunting things, saving people. Not to mention being closer to Dean.
"De nada, senorita. I always deliver," Ash patted her back.
"Well, ready to go investigate some murders?" Dean asked, standing up.
Sam closed the folder in front of him. "Yeah. Looks like it's gonna be another long drive. We're goin' to Tennessee."
Andy nodded, "I've never been there, but I hear they have a lot of brown recluse spiders."
Sam looked at her quizzically.
"What?"
"We're going to fight vampires or some other neck biting monster and you're worried about a spider?"
Ash interjected, "Hey, those things will rot your hand off."
"See," Andy crossed her arms.
Dean added, "Vampires can't hide in your shoes, Sammy."
Sam surrendered, "My turn to drive? We could probably pull it off in one leg."
"Twelve hours going the speed limit," Ash accurately surmised.
Dean shrugged, "We'll knock it down to nine."
"Let me know how it goes," Ellen said.
"And maybe you should start a blog," Jo suggested, looking at Andy.
"I will definitely start a blog," Andy grinned.
Dean decided to drive, even though he'd driven the majority of the last twenty hours. "So, what did Ellen have to say?"
"Just that I'm making a big commitment. She made it sound like more of a curse than a lifestyle."
"She's right," Sam said, looking over his shoulder at her.
"If I hang out with you guys, am I going to end up with a target on my back? Because she made it sound like there is no normal after joining you."
"I wouldn't go that far, but it depends. I mean, you could become paranoid, start seeing things other people don't see. Like how we read the newspaper and see patterns of supernatural behavior that other people can't make heads or tails of."
"What does it depend on?"
"Well, if you become a well known hunter, some things might have it out for you."
"So, then, I'd be looking over my shoulder all the time?"
Dean looked at her through the rearview mirror, " You probably don't have to worry about that with spirits. Burn their bones and they're gone for good. That's more of an issue if you have a lot of run ins with vampires or shape shifters."
"Or demons," Sam added.
"Or demons," he echoed grimly. "I think you'll make one hell of a hunter though. You could use a different name when interacting with other hunters if you wanna be extra careful."
"I need be extra careful around other hunters?" she asked, confused.
Dean shrugged, "Sometimes."
Sam looked at him, "We should stop at a motel. We drove non-stop to get here."
"I could use a shower and a real sleep. In a bed," Andy added, then leaned forward to sniff Dean. "And you're a little funky. Time for a shower."
Dean scoffed, a little embarrassed, "That's not funk, that's my... musk. It's manly." He opened his jacket to quickly sniff himself.
Sam snorted at the face Dean made and pointed at the sign up ahead. "There's a motel at the next exit."
They stopped at the Bandwagon Motel, which advertised Magic Fingers for 25 cents and color TV. When they walked into the room, it had a rustic feel about it with wood paneled walls decorated by horse shoes, an iron wheel, and old photographs of settlers in covered wagons. The room's furniture was stained oak, but the blue carpets clashed with the rest of the decor.
Andy dropped her bag on the floor beside theirs and grabbed a change of clothes. "First dibs on the shower!"
Dean started stacking quarters he found in his pockets beside the Magic Fingers while Sam removed his boots and relaxed in the bed nearest the bathroom.
Sam opened his laptop and turned his head to look at Dean when the bed started whirring and vibrating. "Dean, are you sure about this? Maybe Ellen was right. I mean, I get that you like her, but why would you want this life for her? I would never have roped Jessica into this."
Dean held his hand up. "Don't ruin this for me."
Sam rolled his eyes and checked his email. Ten minutes later, when the Magic Fingers stopped, he forgot he'd started a conversation with Dean until he picked up where it left off.
"Sammy, her eyes are already open, and she can put up a fight. I didn't rope her into anything. She wants this."
"Are you sure about that? Or is she just doing it to be close to you?"
"I'm sure about it. Trust your big brother on this one."
"And what if things don't work out between you two? She might be trained to be a hunter, but she'll be used to having us to back her up. As soon as she goes out on a hunt on her own, if she doesn't quit right then, she'd probably find herself in a lot of trouble. It's not just a big commitment on her part, it's on you too. Do you really like her that much? Because if you did, I think you'd want to protect her."
Dean sat up, raising his voice. "I'm not you, Sam. I am protecting her. I'm teaching her about the big bad monsters in her closet while keeping an eye on her. You think I don't know it's a big commitment? I know the risks, and I'm not making this choice lightly."
"Is she? Talk to her about it." When Andy came out of the bathroom in her PJ's with a towel wrapped around her head, Sam set his laptop aside and stood up. "I'm gonna go get a soda."
Andy bent forward, wringing the towel around her hair and rubbing her head before folding the towel and setting it down on the counter. She looked at Dean, noticing the pensive look on his face. "Everything okay?"
Dean was grumpy. "Yeah, peachy."
She walked over and sat on the edge of his bed and kissed his cheek. "What's wrong? Why did Sam make himself scarce?"
He withheld a sigh and looked at her, answering her question with a question. "Why did you want to become a hunter?"
Andy frowned, "Is this about what Ellen said?"
"Mostly." He also thought it was about Jessica, but he didn't want to bring that up.
She hesitated, "Well, selfish reasons, I guess. I don't have a personal vendetta against monsters, but I know they're out there now. I can't just pretend they don't exist anymore. The more I learn, the better I can prepare and protect myself from them. I also don't want to feel like a civilian dating a soldier." She knew she was rambling and admitted, "Mostly, I want to be with you and help you." She almost threw her hands up, realizing how corny a reason that might be, and knew Ellen would have said, 'I knew it!' She kept talking to defend herself before he could tell her it was the wrong reason. "I get it, that it's a huge lifestyle change and that I'm putting myself in danger. I'm okay with that as long as I can settle down someday. For all her talk, I did notice Ellen has a daughter, so it's not like I can't have some semblance of normal in my future."
Dean cracked a bittersweet smile and put his arm around her. "I want you with us." He kissed her, "Besides, it makes it easier to explain why I come home looking like I've been beat to hell and back."
Sam let himself back into the room, drinking a soda.
"So," Andy changed the subject, "I've never felt the Magic Fingers before."
"You're in for a treat," Dean grinned, reaching over for his quarters. He looked at the empty space on the bedside table where he'd stacked them.
Sam slurped his soda.
Dean glared, "Sam! Those were my quarters!"
Sam grinned and shrugged, "Sorry."
Dean grabbed Sam's wallet off the table and took a five dollar bill out of it. "I'm gonna see if I can get some change. This oughta do it." He tossed Sam his wallet, hitting him in the chest with it, then went to the lobby.
Sam pulled a T-shirt and underwear from his bag to wear to bed after his shower. "You may want to invest in a pair of earplugs. I guarantee you won't be able to sleep with the rattling the bed makes."
"Is it really that bad? Seems like it relaxes him." She fell back on the bed and rolled over on her side, "Hey, Sam..."
"Yeah?"
"I may not know everything that I'm getting into, but I think I'm ready. And if I get in the way, I'll stay out of it. But give me a chance, okay?"
He looked over at her, "Yeah... okay." He walked over to the bathroom and stopped in the doorway. "I just don't want to see either of you get hurt." He'd already lost Jessica and his father. He was tired of losing, and he didn't want Dean to experience what he did.
"I know."
Dean returned with a handful of quarters. "Are you ready for 2nd best bed experience you'll ever have?"
Andy chuckled, "Ready!"
When Dean popped in a quarter and pushed the button to turn it on, the bed started vibrating, and he lay back with his hands behind his head.
Andy jittered, "Whoa." She noticed how boyishly happy it made Dean and rested her head on his shoulder as she looked up at the ceiling.
"Best invention known to man," he said.
When Sam came out of the shower, the bed was still vibrating. "Dean, seriously, only fifteen minutes. We need to sleep."
"Let the rattling lull you to sleep like the hum of a car engine," Andy said.
"It doesn't bother you?"
"After the first ten minutes, I got used to it, but I don't think I could sleep through it." When the vibrating stopped, Andy nudged Dean. He'd almost fallen asleep. "Dean, your turn to take a shower."
He grunted and rolled out of bed, sleepy and relaxed.
Early the next morning, Dean took the wheel and drove to Carroll, Tennessee, stopping only for gas and lunch from the convenience store. They checked into their motel room by mid afternoon with enough time to begin their investigation.
Sam and Dean changed into their suits. On the way to the morgue, they dropped Andy off at the nearest mall. She had packed light when she left San Diego, deeming most of her wardrobe inappropriate for hunting. At the top of her shopping list was a suit and a pair of boots, but she knew she could use a jacket now that she was leaving the comfortable climate of southern California.
Dean flashed his badge at the coroner when he looked up from the body he was performing an autopsy on. "Agent Gillan. This is my partner, Agent Tate. We're investigating a series of recent murders and wanted to see some of the bodies." Dean glanced at the embroidered patch on the coroner's lab coat, which read Miles.
Miles' eyes flashed back and forth between them, and he gave them a twitchy smile as he stuttered, "Murders, bodies... oh, yes! Ah-ha, I was waiting for you guys to show up. Everyone thought I was crazy when the first couple of deaths happened. Ohoho, but I knew... I told 'em..." He covered the body on the table with a white sheet and waved them over as he walked quickly to one of the freezer compartments in the wall. He pulled the tray out, revealing the body of a young woman. "Sad. Poor girl. Well, here you go."
Dean scrunched his nose and pointed at a line of puncture marks on her inner thigh. "Maybe Andy was onto something."
Sam looked at Miles, "Can I see the autopsy report?"
Miles retrieved the files from his cabinet and handed the folder to Sam, then opened another compartment. "The latest body was a real doozy," he said, sliding the tray out to reveal a middle aged man with a gaping hole in the side of his neck. "You know what I think it is?"
Dean leaned over and whispered to Sam, "Ten bucks he says chupacabra."
Miles leaned over the body and looked around suspiciously. "Aliens." He nodded, walking around the body to push the first back into the freezer. "I was abducted before. Nobody believes me, but I know. They're harvesting our blood in order to get our DNA."
Dean choked on a laugh but stopped when Sam elbowed him in the ribs. He cleared his throat, "And all the other bodies were being drained of their blood?"
"That's right!" Miles started to push the second tray back into the freezer compartment, but Dean stopped him.
"Wait, just a sec." Dean wanted a closer look. It was hard to see what the bite mark looked like on this body, compared to the last. Whatever it was didn't just drink his blood, it took a chunk out of him.
"You don't think it was the same thing that did it?" Miles asked.
"Well, you're the expert," Sam said, looking at him.
"Right, well, the bite marks are pretty similar, like they came from the same alien species, but maybe not from the same alien," Miles answered excitedly. "I've been trying to get through to you guys for years! You tell your bosses. Bring the army because I've got a bad feeling. Ever see War of the Worlds?"
"That movie with Tom Cruise?" Dean raised his eyebrows.
"What? No. Gene Barry." Miles pointed, "You wait and see."
Sam smiled, "O...kay. Well, I think we're done here. I'll be sure to let them know of your concerns back at the office. I'm just going to take these files to show them."
"You do that!"
Once Dean was clear of the office with Sam, he looked at him, "He seemed just a bit..." He whistled, swirling his finger at the side of his head. "Cuckoo."
"He would sound just as crazy to normal people if he said vampires are real."
"But vampires are real. What does little green men with anal probes have to do with bleeding people dry?"
Sam looked at him, amused, "Who says they're little green men?"
"Everybody."
Sam scoffed, "Those are some old movies you've been watching."
"Until an alien shows up and objects to our portrayal of his species, they're little green men." He opened his phone as he turned the key in the ignition and dialed Andy. "Hey, we're on our way. We'll meet you in the food court."
After making her final stop at the lingerie store, Andy made her way across the mall to the food court carrying four large bags with a few smaller bags tucked inside.
Dean was already eating a burger and fries while Sam looked over the autopsy reports. He stared at Andy's bags as she plopped down in a seat next to them. With his mouth full, he garbled, "I hope you know the impala doesn't have a closet."
She chuckled, "Don't worry, it looks like a lot, but it's not really. I got two jackets, a couple plaid shirts for layering, some tank tops, skinny jeans, a pair of boots, and a suit. I also got a pair of heels to wear with the suit and realized how short I am because the girl at the cash register is still taller than me even with three inches added to my height. I thought 5'4" is average but evidently I've been hanging out with short people most my life."
Dean popped the lid off his soda and held the cup to his lips to drink. "How do you feel about small, tight spaces?"
She rolled her eyes, "I'm not claustrophobic, but I am afraid of spiders, so if you want me squeezing under a house or something, I might start screaming if things start crawling on me."
"So, then I shouldn't tell you that we have a job at a spider sanctuary coming up, huh?"
"Nope." She looked around at the different fast food restaurants, then looked at Sam, who was focused on studying. "Hey, what did you eat?"
"He hasn't eaten yet," Dean answered for him.
Sam opened the map from Jasper's case file and compared the locations he circled with the news articles and autopsy reports, numbering each circle in order of who was killed. "It's looking more and more like there's a nest nearby."
"So, I was right," Andy said before walking over to Subway.
Sam circled two more locations and rotated the map around for Dean to see. "Look. It's over about ten miles, but there's a pattern. It kind of forms a rectangle. I think their hunting grounds are somewhere in between here," he pointed at one of the circled locations on the west end of the map, then at another on the opposite end of the map, "and here."
"Vamps like to frequent bars," Dean said, scanning the map.
Andy set a sandwich down in front of Sam and unwrapped hers to eat. "Why?"
"Drunks are easier to get a hold of," Dean answered.
"Thanks." Sam took a bite of his sandwich and set it down to put his laptop on the table. He'd have to look up the local bars online because the map didn't include businesses. "Hey... if these are vampires, what if we run into Gordon again?"
Dean groaned, crumpling up the wrapper for the burger, "I really don't want to have to deal with that psycho again. But maybe he's busy stalking some other vampires."
"Or maybe he's stalking us."
"Dude, that's not funny," Dean fixed Sam with a look.
"Who's Gordon?" Andy asked.
"A sociopath vampire hunter who really doesn't like us," Sam answered before taking another bite of his sandwich.
"Why not?"
Dean shrugged, "We might have saved some vampires from him, then tied him up and punched him in the face."
"Considering none of the recent murders were decapitations, I think it's safe to say he isn't here yet," Sam said.
"Let's hope so."
Andy had never been in a real confrontation with another human being, so she wasn't sure how different it would be in comparison to dealing with the kishi, but she knew if Dean or Sam were in danger, she would do whatever it took to protect them. Like a mama bear with her cubs. "So, let's be careful how we proceed. Scope the place out for any signs of him before we look for vampires?"
"Maybe we should double check on the beheadings with the coroner. That's a damn sure sign there's another hunter here. And considering all the other victims were bitten and drained of blood, he might not have mentioned it because it would be unrelated."
"Doesn't sound like something aliens would do?" Sam smirked and shook his head, "I think he would have mentioned it. Bodies are still dropping, so let's just start looking."
Dean stood up and threw his garbage in the trash. "Works for me. Let's get changed and go out for a drink. I sure could use one."
"I'm grabbing a smoothie before we go," Andy said, picking up her bags.
After returning to the motel room, Sam found a bar central to the circled locations on the map. After they changed into their casual clothes, they piled into the impala, and Dean started driving.
"We're going to have to get you your own handgun," Sam said, handing her Dean's Kershaw Storm II folding knife. "And you might need this."
"Thanks." She opened and closed it, then put it in the pocket of her utility jacket. "Oh, hey, this song is perfect! Crank it up!"
Dean chuckled and turned the volume up to AC/DC's If you want blood (you got it), then drummed his hands on the steering wheel.
Sam looked at Dean, "Do you think she should go in ahead of us? Just to check for Gordon or anyone suspicious?"
Dean didn't like the idea of sending her in alone, but he didn't like the idea of running into Gordon again either, especially not after he'd left him tied up for three days. "Well, he doesn't know Andy's with us or that she's even a hunter..." He looked at her through the rearview mirror, "What do you say, Andy? We'll be right behind you."
"Works for me. What's he look like?"
Dean puckered his lips as he thought about it, "He's black."
Sam waited for more, then turned his head to look at Dean, incredulous. "That's not a description, Dean."
"Yes, it is!" He scoffed, "Think about it, Sam. We're in white people central! The only black person crazy enough to hang around a bar full of hicks is Gordon."
Andy thought about it. "He's got a point. I didn't see anyone who wasn't white at the mall, now that I think about it. We probably need to find more populated cities like Memphis or Nashville for diversity."
Sam didn't have anything to say to that. "Okay, fine. Well, he drives a red El Camino, so let's keep an eye out for that too."
"Drop me off here, and I'll walk the rest of the way," Andy said. It would be silly for them to see them all drive up in the same car, even if they walked in separately. She got out and walked ahead in the dark. When she entered the pub, there were only four people seated inside in the corner, so she took a seat at the bar and texted Dean: No Gordon.
"Beer's two bucks tonight for the ladies," the bartender smiled at her.
"Oh, lucky me. I'm waiting for a girlfriend to meet me, but I guess I'll have a beer."
"A bottle or from tap?"
"Whatever you have on tap is fine."
He turned around and poured her a pint, then placed it on the counter in front of her. He looked past her at the group of unsavory individuals in the corner and smiled, "Can I get you another round, Joe?"
Andy took a drink of her beer and tried not to make a sour face at the taste. She looked over her shoulder, and the surly man in plaid raised his hand for another round. A young woman in leather pants and a frayed top slid out of her chair and walked down the hall to the restroom.
"So, when is your friend supposed to meet you here?" the bartender asked and rested his hands on the edge of the counter.
"Oh, I got here early. She's not off work for another half hour. But since I came from out of town, I have nothing better to do than wait." She lifted the glass to her lips again, drinking as a way to avoid continuing the awkward conversation with the bartender. She looked over her shoulder again when the door opened and Dean and Sam walked in. They sat at the other end of the bar.
The bartender gave them a look of acknowledgement but didn't take their orders yet. "Is she a local? Maybe I know her."
"Yeah, but I don't think she gets out much."
"What's her name?"
"Anne."
"Anne what?"
Andy hesitated, "Anne... Shirley."
"Yep, I don't know her," he shook his head and watched her.
She took another sip of her half empty beer and cast Dean a sideways glance, hoping for a rescue.
"Hey, Malone!" Dean waved his hand for his attention.
The bartender looked over at Dean. "Name's not Malone, pal. What can I do for you?"
"A couple of beers for me and my friend here."
The bartender popped the caps off a couple bottles and set them on the counter in front of them. "Here you go. A beer for you and your 'friend.'"
Dean exchanged looks with Sam, as if to say 'What the hell?'
Andy was still nursing her beer, but she was feeling strange and wondered if she was really that much of a light weight. She'd only had a little more than half her pint, and she was feeling impaired.
The bartender smiled at her, "You should find a better friend."
"What?"
"Leaving you here waiting for her like this."
Andy looked across the bar at Dean and returned his flirtatious wink with a smile. She looked into her beer and blinked hard, spinning the cup in her hand so the condensation pooled around the bottom and soaked the napkin it sat on. She was dizzy.
"Hey, you okay?" the bartender asked, concerned. "You look like you're gonna be sick. The restrooms are through that door and down the hall on your left."
Andy wobbled as she stood up and followed his directions.
The surly man in the corner stood up and dropped a quarter into the jukebox, selecting Foghat's Slow Ride from the selection.
Andy stumbled into one of the stalls and knelt in front of it. She cringed at the thought of trying to make herself throw up, but she was almost sure she'd been drugged. "Damn it."
The biker in the leather pants Andy had seen earlier kicked the door into her stall and grabbed her from behind in a bear hug before she could turn around. Weak and dizzy, Andy struggled against her and planted her foot against the rim of the toilet to push back, sending the biker stumbling backwards against the sink. Andy threw her head back, hitting the biker in the face with the top of her head. "DE-"
The woman clamped a hand over Andy's mouth so she couldn't call out for help and licked the blood that dripped from her nose to her lip. "Feisty bitch," she hissed.
Andy threw her elbow back into her attacker's ribs repeatedly to try to loosen her hold.
"You've got some fight left in you," the woman growled and tightened her hold on Andy, constricting her so she couldn't breathe.
Dean leaned over to whisper to Sam, "Andy must be a lightweight. She looked ready to blow chunks."
"We can't all be attuned to drinking like you, Dean."
Dean glanced around the room, eyeing the group in the corner. "Hey, you think...?"
"What? That the suspicious looking group sitting in the corner of the bar might be up to something?"
"No, I was going to ask if you thought his jacket matched his boots."
Sam rolled his eyes, "So, check up on Andy, and we'll wait in the car for them to leave, then follow them."
It had only been a couple of minutes, but Dean was worried about her. When he stood up, the three bikers in the back rose up out of their seats at the same time. "Damn it."
The bartender blocked his path when he tried to walk down the hallway. "Hey, you can't go back there."
Dean grabbed him by the shirt and threw him back into the bar before barging into the women's restroom. "Andy!"
Sam stood up when the bartender crashed into the counter, and he looked back at the bikers as they left one by one. "Hey, Dean?"
The surly man in the plaid shirt stopped and turned to face Sam, then barreled towards him. Sam moved away from the bar, so his back was against the wall and prepared himself. When the biker threw a punch, Sam ducked it and countered with a jab to his ribs. That didn't seem to have much effect though as the biker picked Sam up and smashed him down against the table.
"She's not here!" Dean ran back into the barroom. "HEY!"
The biker chuckled and released Sam before running out the door and joining the others in the van.
"Come on!" Sam stood up from the table and ran out to the impala with Dean.
Andy felt detached from her body and unable to move, but she opened her eyes. The voices around her sounded like she was underwater.
"She's a pretty little thing. Bet she tastes good." She couldn't tell who was speaking, but the voice was deep and had a thick southern accent.
"She's mine." She recognized the woman's voice from the bathroom.
"Ava, you're not thinking of turning her, are you?" Another voice.
"We'll see."
Andy closed her eyes again, unable to stay lucid.
"Son of a bitch," Dean cursed, slamming his hand against the steering wheel as he peeled out of the parking lot to follow the van. "You okay?"
"I'm fine."
"Do we have dead man's blood? Those blood suckers are going to pay!"
"Yeah, in the trunk." Sam noticed headlights behind them and glanced in the side mirror. "Hey..." He looked back over his shoulder. "Is that an El Camino behind us?"
"You have got to be kidding me!" Dean groaned, squinting at the headlights flooding his rearview mirror. "Well, isn't that great. He followed us."
"Hopefully we can keep his attention on the vampires and use him as a distraction long enough to get Andy to safety."
Dean clenched his jaw, contemplating his decision that put Andy in danger. "Let's not tell Ellen about this... we wouldn't hear the end of it."
Sam reminded him gently, "That could have been you or me."
Dean saw the van turn down a side road toward a farm house and followed them, then pulled off to the side of the road and quickly exited the car, gun drawn.
Gordon slowed down behind them and stepped out of his car, hands raised. "Funny running into you two here. Don't tell me these fangs are your buddies too."
"Far from it, you psycho. Those vampires abducted an innocent girl."
His tone was unsettlingly calm, "A truce?"
Sam stepped out of the car and rested his forearms on the roof. "We don't want any trouble. These vampires are killing people. We just want to save the girl."
Gordon mulled it over, nodding slowly as he looked back and forth between them. Then, he smiled, "I still have unfinished business with you two, but it seems we're on the same page this time. So, what do you propose we do? What's your strategy?" He smirked, "Wave a white flag and ask them nicely?"
Dean's face remained hard, "No. How about you go in first and cause a distraction to draw most of the vamps away."
Gordon studied him suspiciously, "You're not trying to serve me up to be food for these fangs, are you?"
Sam shook his head, "Of course not. We can slip in while you're causing the distraction and get the girl."
Dean raised his eyebrows, "We'll go in and get her, then we'll stay out of your way while you go on your killing spree."
Gordon gave them one last look before agreeing, "Fine." He slipped back into his vehicle and sped off ahead of them.
Sam sat back inside the car with Dean. "We can't trust him."
"Of course not. He's going try something the moment Andrea is safe. That is if he doesn't know she's with us yet."
"I doubt he'll even wait til Andy is safe. He'll probably assume they turned her. Or he'll see her as collateral damage."
"Then let's hope there's enough of them to keep him busy while we get her back."
Andy felt hands underneath her arms half carrying, half dragging her through a house. She tripped trying to work her legs, but the hands kept her up. She had no idea where she was or who was holding her up, but she opened her eyes as they led her through a kitchen and down a set of wooden steps into a large, dimly lit basement. There was another set of stairs directly across from the staircase they'd descended, presumably leading outside.
"Took you long enough." A dark-haired man in jeans and a tank top stepped out from the shadows, arms crossed.
Ava, the woman that had attacked her in the bathroom, spoke, and Andy realized she was one of the hands holding her up. "The bitch still had plenty of fight in her even though she was roofied. I want to make her mine."
The other hand that held her gave her arm a firm squeeze as he twisted and pushed her to the ground. She grunted when she landed against cold metal, and the clatter of a wire cage door shut in front of her.
A sweet, soft drawl entered the room from the stairwell leading to the kitchen. "My, do watch your tongue, Ava. That sort of language isn't fittin' for a lady." The voice belonged to a porcelain skinned woman in a sun dress with her golden blonde hair tied up in a bun and her lips painted a ruby red. She stopped in front of Andy's cage.
Andy cleared her throat to find her voice and slurred, "Don't turn me..."
The southern belle knelt in front of Andy's cage. "What's the matter, sugar? Don't you fear death? You might could have so much more life if you join us."
Andy felt sick and closed her eyes, focusing on her breathing as she repeated, "Don't turn me."
"Bless your heart... You don't have much choice in the matter. Whether we eat you or turn you. We'll talk later when you've sobered up. Okay, darlin'?"
"Lady Marilyn," the surly vampire started.
"Speak up."
"We were followed by hunters."
She breathed a soft sigh through her nose. "You're just tellin' me this now?"
"It was just one car, two kids. They threw a molotov onto one of our trucks. Ricky and Bobby are following them."
"I want you to go too," she said, raising her chin. "Take Lewis with you. Bring me their heads."
"Yes, ma'am."
"And if you don't... I'll have yours."
"Okay, let's go!" Dean waited until the other two hunters piled into their pickup truck and sped off after Gordon before coming out from where they knelt behind a tree a few hundred feet away.
"I'll take the porch on the left," Sam said as he ran toward the side of the house, armed with a crossbow and dead man's blood tipped bolts.
"Fine, I'm going in through the front!" Dean yelled back in a whisper, holding his machete, ready to take off a vampire's head.
Gordon led the four hunters away and tossed another molotov onto some dead crops, then he drove into the field, circling the farmhouse so he could deal with the vampires inside as soon as he finished off those that tailed him. He stepped out of his car with his gun and his hunting knife covered in dead man's blood.
"You don't want to be like her, do you?" Ava leaned against Andy's cage and slammed her hand down on the wires to rattle her. Andy's gaze fell on a girl in another cage across the room. She couldn't tell if the girl was still breathing. "She's dying, you know. Slowly. The drugs wear off, and we drink, listening to her scream and cry and plead for us to let her live. We're giving you an opportunity she begged us for." Ava looked to her leader. "I want to turn her, Marilyn. Please, can I?"
"Why don't you show mercy to that poor thing in the cage over there? She's been begging to be turned."
"I don't want her."
Marilyn gave Andy one last glance and waved her hand, "Oh, very well. But don't say I didn't warn you that she might hold a grudge. Do it before she comes to."
Ava opened the cage and pulled Andy out by her feet, amused at how she clumsily tried to kick her. "You'll thank me later."
"I'll kill you-"
Ava slapped her and growled, "Don't be ungrateful." She lifted Andy up so she sat propped up against the cage, then she cut her own arm below the wrist and placed it above Andy's mouth. "Drink and you'll live." Andy kept her mouth shut, but Ava gripped her face with her other hand, digging her fingers between her jaws to open her mouth. "Drink!"
"Ahh-ah!" Andy recognized the coppery taste of blood in her mouth and knew she had to resist.
"Swallow it."
Before she could black out again, Andy spit it out.
Ava curled her lip. "Then, I'll cut you open."
Dean put his ear to the front door and heard two muffled voices on the other side. Noting the door opened inward, he put his hand on the doorknob and turned it as he pushed it open hard with his shoulder, slamming into the two vampires and catching them off guard. He kicked the nearest one in the chest, causing him to stumble back, and swung his machete into the neck of the second behind the door.
The brief moment Dean took to pull the machete from the vampire's neck gave the first the chance he needed. The man stood nearly as tall as Sam, and he bore his fangs as he grabbed Dean by the jacket in both hands and threw him into the wall.
"Ugh!" Dean landed on his side, cringing, and didn't recover quickly enough.
The vampire picked Dean up by his jacket again and head butt him. "I'll kill you!"
Dazed, Dean shook it off and lifted his legs, placing his feet on the vampire's hips, and pushed as hard as he could to kick him back. Then, he took an upward swing with the machete when the man lunged forward again, slicing through his chest. When the vampire covered the wound and looked at the red on his hand, Dean smirked, "That's right, pal. Dead man's blood."
"I have plenty of time to kill you before it kicks in," he said, swinging wide and looping punches at Dean.
Dean blocked the blows with his forearms, then punched the vampire in the throat and kneed him in the gut.
The vampire was driven back by Dean's attack but quickly regained his composure and dodged Dean's next punch, countering with an uppercut to Dean's solar plexus.
Dean wheezed, having had the wind knocked out of him, and reeled back. As he struggled to catch his breath, he saw the vampire lunge forward, and he side stepped him, circled around behind him, and swung his machete, cutting clean through the vampire's neck from behind. He took a deep breath and wiped the blood from his lip.
Sam came up on the porch on the side of the house with his crossbow raised and ready. When he saw a vampire standing on the other side of a screen door, he loosed a bolt, hitting her in the shoulder.
She hissed in pain and ripped the bolt out, then crashed through the screen door, bearing her teeth. He ran toward her and used the crossbow as a weapon; swinging it horizontally, he struck her across the jaw with it, spinning her and knocking her off balance. He unsheathed the machete at his side, standing over her, and hesitated for only a second before swinging the blade at her neck when she turned on her back and swiped at him. He sheathed the machete and he walked up the porch, reloading his crossbow.
Sam passed through the sitting room and walked down a short hallway with a door at the end, carefully pushing open doors on the way to check the rooms to make sure they were empty. When he opened the door at the end of the hall, he saw Dean across the room grappling another vampire. As soon as Dean broke the man's hold on him, Sam shouted, "Dean, duck!" He fired a bolt into the heart of the vampire just as Dean's head was low enough.
Dean spun around, "Whoa, Sammy, you almost hit me!"
Sam shrugged, knowing he wouldn't have hit him, and reloaded. "I had to take the shot."
Dean swung the machete at the vampire's neck, taking off his head. "Think they heard us?"
"Considering they have the hearing of a bat, probably."
"So much for the element of surprise. But Gordon must have attracted the bulk of them."
"Lucky for us, then."
"We'll be lucky if they take him out and he takes them down with him."
"Knowing him, we'd better just hurry and get out of here with Andy."
"Well, you covered that side, I covered this side, let's go that way."
They walked through the kitchen and Sam tried the door leading into the basement. "Locked."
"Move aside." Dean kicked the door open and felt his heart leap into his throat when he saw Ava standing over Andy with blood on her mouth. "ANDY!"
Sam pushed past Dean, quickly taking aim and shooting Ava with the crossbow before she could do anything else. As she tugged at the bolt in her chest, the dead man's blood weakened her, and she gurgled in pain.
Marilyn knew when they were coming through the house that if she tried to escape, she would likely be killed. She spun around and grabbed a hold of Andy when Sam loaded another bolt on the crossbow. "Ah, ah, ah. It seems you two uncouth gentlemen have some cunning about you. I must say, I am impressed. Why don't you let me go on my way? I'm just one little vampire, and I'd really hate to sully my new dress with her blood."
Dean walked down the steps slowly, still tightly gripping his machete. "Fine. Let her go."
The double doors at the top of the staircase opposite Sam opened, and Gordon descended the steps slowly, covered in blood. He raised his crossbow, aiming at Marilyn, but his eyes shifted to the Winchesters. Marilyn turned with her back to the cage, caught between Sam and Gordon, and extended her fangs.
"Whoa, whoa, stop!" Sam shouted.
"C'mon, Gordy, she has a hostage," Dean said. "Lower the crossbow."
Gordon kept his finger poised on the trigger and looked at the blood around Andy's mouth. "They've already turned her. It's too late."
Dean took his colt .45 out of his jacket and aimed it at Gordon's head. "You take that shot, and I'm gonna put one in your head."
"You said you weren't going to get in my way. And yet here you are, trying to stop me from killing another vampire."
"I told you, we just want the girl."
Gordon turned his head to look him square in the eye. "She's not a girl anymore, Dean." He smiled ruefully, shaking his head, "She's been fed. She's one of them."
Marilyn retracted her fangs to speak. "I'm sorry to think I might disappoint you, sir, but she's not." She glanced at Sam, "It would seem we've reached a bit of an impasse. So, how about you let me go and I'll leave the girl unharmed?"
"It's a deal," Sam answered.
Gordon gave him an incredulous look, "No, it's not."
Dean sighed, "You're trying to bargain with a head case, lady."
Marilyn stared at Gordon for a moment and knew he'd kill Andy to get to her. "You're fixin' to kill an innocent in order to take a shot at me?" she smiled with a hint of flattery.
Gordon's focus was on aiming at where her heart would be behind Andy as he answered coldly, "Yes. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of one."
Dean's lips twitched with rage and he shouted, reminding Gordon of his presence, "Pull that trigger, Gordy, and you're dead!"
Sam lowered his crossbow and stepped down the staircase for Marilyn to move past him. "Let her go."
Marilyn backed up toward the stairs cautiously, "You two are quite a curious duo. Our dark complexioned friend, on the other hand, has made his intentions clear."
Gordon clenched his jaw, tempted to fire, but knew Dean had him in his sights. He took his finger off the trigger and backed up the steps. "Okay. Go ahead."
Once Marilyn was up the stairs, she released Andy and shut the door behind her, locking it. At the same time, Gordon closed the double doors leading outside and shut the latch.
Sam caught Andy before she fell down the steps and inspected her arm. "She wasn't lying. She hasn't been turned. Look." He raised her forearm, where there was a long scratch from where Ava had intended to introduce her blood directly into her bloodstream.
Dean rushed to her side and noticed her eyes were open, but she seemed dazed and confused. "Andy?"
"Did you hear that?" Sam looked toward the door Gordon left through, where he thought he'd heard glass shatter. The orange flicker of flames spread around the door. "He's setting the house on fire!"
Dean stepped over Andy to climb the stairs and kicked the door to the kitchen, nearly losing his balance on the stairs when the door jamb didn't break. He steadied himself against the wall and kicked it again with success.
"Take this," Sam said, handing Dean the crossbow, then scooped Andy up in his arms.
Dean moved into the kitchen to make sure there weren't any other vampires coming for them before waving at Sam to follow. "It's clear!" He stopped at the door leading into the dining room and hovered his hand over the handle. Feeling no heat, he turned the knob, raising his crossbow as he pushed the door open with his shoulder. The room was hot and heavy with smoke, but he led them to the foyer and saw that the front door was burning and falling apart. "Damn it!"
"This way!" Sam shouted, leading Dean past a burning stairwell and through the hallway he'd come in through. The fire was spreading but the door was clear.
Dean passed him to go outside first to make sure Gordon or Marilyn weren't waiting outside for them. There was no visible sign of either of them, but he could hear the sound of gunshots and speeding cars in the distance. "They're gone."
Sam followed him outside into the fresh air and took a deep breath. "We need to get her to a hospital."
They returned to the impala where it was parked behind a tree in a ditch down the road, and Sam sat in the backseat with Andy so she was lying across the backseat with her head elevated. "That bartender must have slipped her something."
"I'll kill him," Dean breathed, staring straight ahead at the road as he floored the accelerator. They had a long stretch of highway to go down to get back into the city.
"Don't go that far."
"He's helping vampires kill humans. I'd say that makes him fair game." Drugging Andy was enough to warrant a serious beat down though.
"We'll file a police report."
"Fine. But I'm dropping you two off at the hospital, and I'm going to pay him a visit." He glanced back at him in the rearview mirror reassuringly, "You know, just to make sure he doesn't leave town."
"Okay."
Sam carried Andy into the hospital and asked the staff to contact the police so he could file a report against the bartender. While he spoke under one of his aliases with an officer, Andy was admitted and hooked up to an IV drip.
When Sam went up to her room to see her, she was awake. He sat down in the chair beside her bed. "How are you feeling?"
"I've been better," she sighed, closing her eyes. "They made me pee in a cup."
"How much do you remember about what happened?"
"I remember being attacked in the bathroom." She turned her head to look at him, bunching the pillow under her head, careful not to snag the IV on the side rail of the bed. "I'm sorry."
Sam furrowed his brow. "What for?"
"Getting in the way. I told myself at the beginning, I have one job, not to be a liability." She bit her lip to prevent it from quivering and giving away her emotions, "I blew it."
He took her hand. "Hey. It's okay."
Her face contorted with the threat of tears and her voice wavered, "I failed the trial period, didn't I?"
Sam couldn't help smiling, "No, you didn't." There never really was a trial period anyway. He looked down at her hand and shook his head, "You should see how many times Dean's had to rescue me and vice versa."
"Really?" She looked at him, wondering if he was just saying that to make her feel better.
"Really. Like this one time, Dean was tied to a tree to be a sacrifice to a Norse god."
"Well, at least you guys were done in by supernatural things. I got duped by a plain ol' bartender."
"People can be monsters too." He released her hand and rested his forearms on his knees. "Are you sure you still want to tag along with us?"
"Yes," she rested her head back with her eyes closed. "If I weren't drugged, I would have kicked that vampire's ass. Well, I probably wouldn't have cut her head off in the bathroom..."
"Good. You can leave that part to us."
"Thanks, Sam." She opened her eyes and glanced around the room, "Hey, where is Dean?"
"I'm pretty sure he went back to beat that bartender within an inch of his life. I already filed a police report about him drugging you, so Dean wanted to get his licks in before the police show up to arrest the guy."
"Good. He needs to have his license revoked."
Sam chuckled, "Considering how many people he served up to those vampires, I'd say a revoked license is the least of his worries."
"Good point." She groaned, "I think I'm going to throw up."
"Should I get you a barf bucket or the nurse?" he asked, looking around the room for something to use. All he saw was a pitcher of water on the counter.
"No, I'll just sleep it off."
"Okay, get some rest... I'll be here."
"Wake me up when Dean gets here..."
When Dean arrived an hour later, he stood in the doorway and Sam stepped out to speak with him. He tucked his hands in his pockets and looked down at his feet then glanced at the doorway to her hospital room. He chewed his lip and frowned, "Sammy, you were right. I shouldn't have brought her along." It hurt him to admit it and more to accept it.
"No, Dean, I wasn't," Sam shook his head.
He ran a hand through his hair and rubbed the back of his neck, frustrated with himself. "I talked her into it. Hell, I practically volunteered her."
"She wants to be here. And that could have happened to any of us."
"No. It wouldn't." He looked Sam in the eye, "Because I know what beer tastes like. I'd know if someone tampered with my drink."
Sam looked incredulous, "You can't fault her for that. I probably wouldn't have known if it happened to me."
"I'm not. But I shouldn't have put her in that situation. We should've gone in with her. I should have been looking after her."
"And next time we will."
Dean hesitated, "I don't know that there'll be a next time. She still has a chance to back out of this."
Sam watched him walk into the room and sighed, following him inside. Dean took the chair beside Andy's bed, and Sam sat across the room, but neither of them wanted to disturb her much needed rest.
When Andy awoke early the next morning, she felt hung over but less like she was going to fall off the world. She saw Sam and Dean were both uncomfortably asleep in the hospital chairs, surprised the hospital staff didn't kick them out. She cleared her throat and spoke just above a whisper, "Dean."
He opened his eyes and sat upright, ignoring the cramp in his neck. "Hey..."
When Sam heard them, he woke up too and blinked away the sleep in his eyes. He knew they needed some space and stood up. "I'm gonna... go get some coffee."
Andy smiled at Sam and looked at Dean. "Think we can stay at the motel another day before we leave? I really don't feel like being in a car just yet."
"We're not going anywhere until you're better."
"Did the cops arrest that bartender?"
Dean nodded, "They went to question him and found him handcuffed to a table with a pocket full of roofies."
She simpered, "I do hope he needed medical attention."
Dean gave a smug little shrug, "He probably won't be answering any questions any time soon."
She rolled her eyes, "I feel pretty lame being the damsel in distress on this one."
"Hey, Sammy's a damsel in distress all the time," he joked, but looking at her, he couldn't help thinking she looked small.
She watched him in silence for a moment and frowned, "Uh oh. There's that look again."
"What look?"
"The broody look. What's on your mind?"
Dean wasn't sure anymore he could handle watching over both her and Sam. He was so overwhelmed by the task his father had given him, he tried to pretend nothing could go wrong. But every time he thought about it, he knew he had to come clean with Sam. And pulling Andy into whatever was coming their way was just as wrong. He hesitated, "Are you sure you still want to do this?"
"Yes." She tried to sound reassuring, "I'll be better tomorrow. Doc said the drugs should be out of my system in 48 hours."
He had a hard time looking her in the eye. "I think we should rethink this."
She was crestfallen, "What, me being here? Why?"
"You got hurt because I didn't protect you." He felt she was as much his responsibility to look after as Sam was.
"Are you kidding? You saved me."
"No, I put you into a dangerous situation-"
She cut him off, "The bartender took me out of the game, Dean. Who sees that coming? That's like being sucker punched by a nun."
He paused and raised an eyebrow, trying to register what she just said. The corners of his mouth twitched in a smile, "Not sure I get the logic there..."
"Neither do I, I was drugged, leave me alone. Something about trust and having a license."
"Do nuns have licenses?"
"I don't know, I didn't go to nun school. Wait, nun school, would that be church? I've been to church."
He raised his eyebrows, "You mean a convent."
"Yeah, never been to one of those."
He smiled ruefully, "Thank the lord for that." She could still put a smile on his face even when he felt as guilty and crappy as he did now, and that made him feel worse for pushing her away. He sighed, "Look, I was being selfish bringing you along."
She felt her heart sink into her stomach. "Dean, don't do this. I knew this would happen if I screwed up, but I didn't think it would be you."
He interjected firmly, "You didn't screw up, Andy. I did."
"Don't take me back to San Diego. Don't leave me."
His smile didn't meet his eyes, "I just know that what I'm doing, making you a hunter, is wrong. I'm putting you in danger. Nobody chooses to do this-"
"Everyone who does this chooses it. And I have a say in the matter too. As insane a career choice this is, right now this is where I want to be. This - being with you and Sam - makes me happy. Don't send me packing." He opened his mouth to speak but she interrupted him, "Do you love me?"
"That's why I want to protect you-"
"Then, stop trying to act so noble, and tell me you want me to stay! Would you be happier if I were gone? I know I wouldn't be."
Dean was taught that his happiness came after the well being of others. It was a small price to pay to save lives. That was drilled into his head for as long as he was told to watch over Sammy and for as long as he knew his mother needed to be avenged. That meant he couldn't settle down and be normal. But could he pull her into it? Wasn't that just as wrong? He sighed, "No, I wouldn't. Damn it, why do you have to be so difficult?"
She raised her chin up, "I'm not going anywhere. You're stuck with me. I'll be careful, I'll learn, and you won't have to worry about keeping me safe."
He knew that wasn't true. If he still worried about keeping Sammy safe, he wasn't going to stop worrying about her, either. But he couldn't let her go. What he did, hunting down monsters, it was a unique brand of crazy, and she was willing to be crazy with him. And if he had any hope at a chance of being normal, she was it. He knew she was a keeper. "Well, you've got the stubbornness to be a Winchester."
"Damn right I do," she winked.
"One condition."
"What?"
"Don't run off." Dean stood up and leaned over her bed to give her a kiss on the lips. "Stay by my side while you're still learning the ropes."
"Deal." She smiled and pulled him down for another.
Sam waited until their conversation was over before coming back into the room with his cup of coffee. "I asked the nurse when Andy can go home; she said she'll be released today and to just take it easy and drink plenty of water."
Andy sniffed, "Coffee!"
Sam glanced down at the cup in his hand and back at her, "Oh, no. You have to drink water."
"But..."
"Doctor's orders."
She narrowed her eyes at him, "You scoundrel."
Sam smirked and sipped his coffee, making sure to slurp.
"I could use a coffee too," Dean said, standing up. As he walked into the hallway, he pulled Sam back outside the doorway by the back of his jacket. When they were down the hall from the room, he said, "She's staying."
"I know. I already talked to her."
"Well, I did too. I was gonna take her back home." Dean opened his wallet and tucked it back in his pocket, then turned to Sam, "Give me a dollar."
Sam rolled his eyes and dug a dollar out of his wallet and handed it to him. "Well, I'm glad you had the sense not to screw it up," he said, giving him a slap on the back.
Dean looked up at him, offended, "You sound like you expected me to screw it up." He inserted the dollar into the machine and it poured his coffee into a paper cup.
Sam started walking back toward the room and shrugged, "I just haven't seen you in a committed relationship before."
Dean chose to ignore him because he didn't have a retort. "We should come up with a training program of some kind."
He stopped and turned, "Like what?"
Dean picked up his cup of coffee from the machine and walked with Sam. "I don't know, but Dad was teaching us about this stuff for a long time before we really got our hands dirty."
"I know he did. But she's not walking into this empty handed either. At least she's already taken out two spirits. And she's crazy enough to go looking for more." Sam stopped outside her room and looked at him, "We should teach her the devil's trap though."
Dean pointed at him, "Yes!" He walked into the room and grinned, "Andy, when you're feeling better, we're going to have some fun training."
"What kind of training?"
"First, I want to teach you how to kill a vampire."
"Wait, but... there's no way to practice that."
"Sure there is."
"By... cutting off somebody's head?"
"...Kind of."
It was a few days before Andy felt well enough to attempt any strenuous activity or eating anything solid, but she was going stir crazy and wanted to get back into the swing of things. They were still in Carroll county when Dean started their first lesson. He drove Sam and Andy out into a field outside a farm.
"Ugh, it's humid," Andy frowned, wiping perspiration off her forehead. She hated feeling clammy when she hadn't even done anything yet. "What are we doing out here?"
"Vampire killing."
"They're still out here?"
Sam shook his head, "Nope."
Dean opened the trunk of the car. "It's time to practice." He pulled out a scarecrow and set it up in front of her, then impaled a watermelon on top of it.
Andy looked it up and down. "Creative. And creepy."
"Creative? That's it? How about awesome?"
Andy laughed, "Okay, so do I get a sword? A katana maybe?"
Sam chuckled, "We're a little more crude."
Dean teased, "A katana? I suppose you'll be wearing a skin tight leather outfit next."
"And make squeegy noises every time I move?" She shook her head, "No way."
Sam mused, "I don't think that's the word you're looking for."
"Well, how would you describe it?"
"I dunno, creaking?"
"That sounds like a floor board."
Dean unsheathed his Muela bowie knife. "That chick from Underworld manages just fine."
"She's wearing PVC, and I'll bet she lost ten pounds in sweat from wearing it too." Andy thought about it, especially in the humidity of Tennessee, "Oh yeah, I'd be ripe. Sexy."
Dean grinned and held the knife out to her by the blade, "You're going to be using this."
Andy took it from him and said in her best Australian accent, "Now, that's a knife."
Sam chuckled, "That was a terrible accent."
"Shut up."
Dean grinned, "Be careful with that thing. It's been sharpened to the point that it can slice through someone's neck like a hot knife through butter."
"Good. So do you want me to cut through the melon or the stick holding it up?"
"Try aiming for the bottom of the melon, here."
"So, is there a proper slashing technique? I don't want to waste our only melon."
"You'll want to make sure you go straight across," he said, gesturing how to do it. "Try to come at an angle that lets you hit the spine with full force."
She imitated him in slow motion a couple of times to practice the angle before giving it a real swing. When she cut through the watermelon and it toppled to the ground, she tried not to imagine having to do that to a real person...or thing.
"Awesome, you cut right through it." Dean retrieved the crossbow from the trunk and handed it to her, taking back the knife. "Figured you should get some practice in with this too. It won't kill a vamp outright, but it will sure as hell stop them in their tracks if they're shot with a bolt coated in dead man's blood."
"This will be a first," she said, putting some distance between herself and the melon as Dean set it back up on the stake. "Is it easier than using a pistol?"
"Treat it the same way you would a normal gun. You know BRASS?"
"Jarhead speak. Breathe, relax, aim, slack, squeeze," she answered.
Sam was surprised, "Yeah."
Dean looked back at Sam, nodding proudly, as if to say, 'That's my girl.'
"No kickback though, right?" She aimed and squeezed the trigger, surprised. "Whoa. More like a kickfront. Okay, I don't know where that one went."
"Try to make that first shot count because it takes a while to reload. You don't want to miss and make them angry."
She loaded another bolt and held the crossbow steady in both hands and squeezed the trigger, shooting the watermelon in the near center. "Got it!"
Sam clapped for her. "Okay, what do you guys say we head north? Or west. Somewhere less humid?"
"Definitely. You sweat like you're a whore in church."
Sam was dumbfounded and wiped the sweat off his forehead with his sleeve. "It's the weather."
Dean burst out laughing and walked past him to put the weapons back in the cache. "You're the only one who looks like he's been popping water balloons under his armpits."
Andy laughed and felt guilty when Sam got that pitiful puppy look on his face. "But you don't smell bad."
"Uh... thanks." Sam smiled because he knew she was trying to make him feel better. "Let's get going."
As they piled into the impala, Dean looked at Sam. "What do you think happened with Gordy?"
He rolled down the window and rested his arm on the frame, "He probably caught up to Marilyn and killed her."
"I would have expected him to try to find us afterwards."
Sam looked at him, "Well, maybe he's still chasing her."
"Or, maybe she captured him and killed him."
"I can't tell which you'd prefer."
Dean shrugged and turned up the radio.
We're on a ride to nowhere
Come on inside
Takin' that ride to nowhere
We'll take that ride
Maybe you wonder where you are
I don't care
Here is where time is on our side
Take you there... take you there
We're on a road to nowhere
