A/N: So I haven't done anything with this story in far too long. As a special treat I'm posting two chapters for this fic today. I'm also working on another chapter right now but with work I might get bogged down. In the meantime enjoy and I hope the wait was worth it!
Sam and Dean watched from the kitchen as Beckett and Castle went over the room trying to find something that would indicate what had happened. Castiel was, as usual, wandering around the apartment taking in clues.
"You think Cas really heard this guy praying for help and mistook us for him?" Sam asked.
"Honestly? I don't know," Dean answered, leaning against the counter. "I mean, how many times has the guy just landed in the car while we're driving? It's not like him to miss the mark." He stared at Beckett and Castle as they stood in the living room taking notes. "You think that Castle and Beckett are together?"
"Since the first Nikki Heat book came out right around the time they started working together I'd say that they are." Dean turned to his brother, his expression somewhere between disappointment and shock.
"Dude, how do you just know that off the top of your head?" he asked.
"Because I do more than just watch porn between cases," Sam shot back to which Dean chuckled. "Do you have any idea how weird it is sharing a room with you sometimes?"
"Yes and spending an entire car ride reading is more useful than doing research," Dean said sarcastically. "C'mon, we might as well get this over with." Sam gave a small frown but followed Dean regardless. There tied up in a reclining chair was a young Caucasian man in his early twenties with jet black hair. He was sweating and the glistening of his skin and hair likely the result of having not showered in some time.
"You're not going to untie him?" Sam asked Beckett.
"I'm a bit curious how he tied himself up," she said. "Some of these knots are really difficult to tie, even moreso on yourself. And his story is a bit..."
"I liked it," Castle replied a wide grin on his face. "You guys have got to hear this."
"I'm telling you the truth!" Michael Stofferson insisted. "These...people, came into my apartment, tied me up and then turned into me."
"How many?" Dean asked.
"At first it was just one," came the answer. "But after a few days then two more showed up and after that two more and a guy in a suit."
"Do you know any of the people who came here?" Dean continued but Michael shook his head. "Okay then. How did they change into you? Maybe a quick shave, some hair color..."
"When I said they changed into me it wasn't just some makeover," he snapped. "They literally peeled their skin off into garbage bags and chucked them in the dumpster. Then they took my clothes and did God knows what after that."
"What about the guy in the suit?" Castle asked. "Did you recognize him?"
"How could I not?" Michael replied, gesturing towards the TV. "It was him. He came here and said that if I even thought about escaping he'd turn me into puppy kibble." The four turned to the TV to see the news anchor Timothy Andersen seated at the news desk talking about recent disappearances and blaming the NYPD for not catching the culprit.
"Tim Andersen came here and threatened you?" Beckett asked disbelieving.
"He speaks the truth," Castiel interrupted, speaking for the first time since they'd arrived. "What reason would he have to lie, Detective Beckett?"
"We have him on camera staking out the alley where our John Doe was taken," she explained. "That means he's somehow connected to all of this. Besides, CSU's on their way, they'll turn this place upside-down and prove that no one 'peeled their skin off'. It was just him."
"The tapes with the actual kidnapping showed a group of about eight," Castle reminded her. "And they all looked about the same height and build, same as Michael's. Whoever did this went to a LOT of trouble to make this look like him. Maybe doing something to traumatize him was part of it, make him seem crazy so that anything he says is considered dismissable."
"Either way, he's coming back to the precinct and he's going to tell us the truth about what happened up here and in that alley."
"No, you can't take me from here!" Michael said, trying to wriggle out of the chair. "He'll kill me if you do!"
"He's just gonna run if you cut the rope around his ankles," Dean suggested. "How much of a problem is your Captain gonna have if we just bring him in like this?"
"Doesn't really give the NYPD a good name if we bring someone in tied up like this," Beckett replied. The brothers walked out of the apartment with Castiel just as CSU walked in with their equipment. Beckett cut Michael's bindings, much to his displeasure, and cuffed him.
"You know, you didn't say that when you tied me up last weekend," Castle whispered in her ear and Beckett smiled.
"I can take you into the precinct like that sometime if you want," she replied with a wink.
As they drove through the streets of New York, Sam turned to Castiel in the back seat. "So you just happened to 'accidentally' wing in on us and drop the name of the guy the shapeshifters are using," he said. "Why are you actually here, Cas?"
"I'm trying to be a hunter," the angel replied. "I just happen to be using the skills at my disposal. When you were still drinking demon blood you did not hesitate to exorcise demons with it, did you?"
"When it's just us Cas that's fine," Dean added. "But when we get involved with the police or authorities of any kind then we need to dial down on the truth. Make some other crap up that could explain it."
"So you think the shifters got to the new anchor too?" Sam asked. "There's a pretty short list of things that can copy someone like that."
"Well, ghouls turn into the last person they ate," Dean said, checking off monsters in his head. "Could be a demon too. Maybe the news guy is just a certified wacko. We'd need to actually talk to him and get some answers." He pulled out his phone and dialed Beckett's number. "Det. Beckett? Hey, it's Agent Young. Listen, Agent Richards and I are gonna check out the news anchor. Yes, I know we don't have probable cause but if nothing else then we can say we at least looked into it. We'll let you know if we think we have anything." He hung up and stuck the phone back in his pocket.
"I'll wait for you at the news station," Castiel said. He was gone before either of the Winchesters could object.
"Great. Just freaking great," Dean muttered. "We got a bag full of crazy heading to the police station and the angel in our pocket just flew off."
"He may not be any kind of shapeshifter at all, Dean," Sam pointed out. "For all we know the guy's a vamp. And was it just me or did the line about 'turning him into puppy kibble' sound a little familiar?"
Dean was silent for a moment as they drove through the busy streets. "You don't mean..." he started as the realization settled in. "No. No way man. Not a freaking Leviathan."
"They're still out there, Dean. We only killed Dick and a handful of others. God only knows if hunters have taken out any more." Dean growled as he turned down a side road to get to the station. Ahead of them they could see the sign for the news station so they pulled into one of the spots, fed the meter, and went in to meet Castiel.
It was almost a half hour later before they finally got to meet with Timothy Andersen. "What can I do for the FBI today?" the anchor asked.
"It's probably nothing but we want to make sure we've got all our bases covered," Dean told him as they put their badges away. "The NYPD recently took someone into custody that claims you made threats against his life. Now, my money's on that he's whacked out on some prescription meds but in the event that he's not we need to make sure we can put him away without a shadow of a doubt."
"Well I can tell you with all certainty that I've never threatened to harm someone, let alone kill them," the anchor replied, a bit shocked by the allegation. "I have to say that I'm a bit offended by even the notion-"
"I'm very sorry, sir," Sam quickly apologized. "It's just something we need to ask just in case our suspect's lawyer brings it up. Like my partner said we just need to cover all our bases in the event our suspect can hire a competent lawyer."
"Then maybe you can tell me why those incompetent fools at the NYPD haven't caught the guy who broke into my home?" the anchor asked angrily. Sam and Dean looked at each and asked what happened. "Some nut made it past my security, broke into my house, stole a large number of clothes and other personal effects before escaping. This is the guy those morons should be after, not some nut who claims that I made false threats against him. Don't these idiots know who I am?!"
"Timothy Andersen, age forty-two. Male, Caucasian with some Jewish heritage dating back to the second World War," Castiel answered before the brothers could respond. "You're also one of the top news anchors not only in the city but in the entire tri-state area, not counting New Jersey."
"See? Even Rainman here gets it!" the anchor said before storming off.
"Gotta say that I wouldn't mind seeing him get offed by a monster," Sam admitted on their way out of the studio.
"No kidding. 'Don't they know who I am?' What kind of douche says that?" Dean added as they got into the Impala. "Looks like a shifter did get to him though."
"How can you tell?" Castiel asked from the backseat as Dean pulled out of the parking spot and drove down the road.
"We ran into a shapeshifter in St. Louis a while back," Sam explained. "It would break into the houses it was targeting, steal the husband's clothes, and go back in after he'd left to either torture or kill their wife."
"Son of a bitch jumped me too," Dean added, angrily remembering the entire incident. "That sounds like what happened to our 'number one anchor' too. So, shifters grabbing a famous TV personality I get. But why are they kidnapping people off the streets and how are they tied to the vamps?"
"Maybe there's no connection," Sam suggested. "Maybe what Benny mistook for an alliance is just a turf war between vampires and shapeshifters."
"Great," Dean muttered as he came to the intersection. "Now instead of one case we have two. Just freaking wonderful." He looked around to see if he was clear for the turn when a face across the street stopped him cold. "What the hell?"
"Dude, you just missed a chance to turn," Sam said as he nudged his brother. "What's wrong?" he added and looked where Dean was looking. "You've gotta be kidding me."