Abby took the boys on a tour of the city, focusing her efforts on the city's hidden treasures. She did, however, want to show them a very popular tourist attraction, the fort Castillo de San Marcos. Plus, she figured it would actually be a spot Dean would appreciate.
She found herself marveling at the citadel. It was a good twenty years older than herself and had seen it's share of battles, nationalities, and piracy. And to think, it was only made of coquina; a limestone like mixture of sand and crushed shell. It was made of tiny, fragile pieces, yet it had managed to stand the test of time. Abby wondered what she could do to make herself more like that.
"And this," she said, loosing her thoughts. "Is the dungeon."
"So I'm guessing a lot of people were held captive here," Sam said. "You know, any of these could be a vengeful spirit."
"Could be," Dean said as he leaned against a facing wall, rubbing his arms. "It's pretty frickin cold in here for having no A/C and it's as hot as hell outside."
Abby laughed. "You want an example of a resentful spirit? One of the commanders of this fort went crazy once; he found out his wife was having an affair. So…he walled her and her boy toy up alive behind a wall."
"Woah, woah. He just sealed her and the dude she was boinking in here?"
"Actually…they found the two skeletons chained up right where you're leaning."
Dean jumped away from the stone, causing Abby and Sam to roll with laughter.
"Ha. Ha. Very fucking funny," Dean sulked.
"Come on," Abby chuckled. "I'll show you the rest of the town. But you know guys, it's going to be hard to just narrow this down to one vengeful spirit. This whole city is literally crawling with ghosts."
Abby led them down the same streets they had earlier, but Sam had to admit it was useful having her as a guide. She knew so many stories from the city's past and it seemed like she had information about every single building in town.
"What about that one," Sam said as he pointed to an old tavern bar with the upper floors designated as a hotel.
She paused suddenly, her eyes refusing to look at the building. Her face suddenly sank and she turned away. Dean approached her, putting an arm around her shoulders and led her away. The realization hit Sam where they must be. He recalled the story Dean had told him about Abby's past and the reason how she was frozen seventeen. The traumatic event with her ex-lover had taken place in a hotel above a tavern. It was this same building. Sam ran to catch up to them.
She turned to him, shrugging Dean's arm off her shoulder.
"Sorry guys. That place usually doesn't get me that much anymore. I don't know…it just feels different today."
"It's ok, Abby," Sam said while giving her a crooked, reassuring grin.
"Well, we still have an hour till nightfall," Dean said, glancing down at his watch.
"Let's go to dinner. My treat," she smiled.
Abby led them down the dusk lit streets to her favorite restaurant. She claimed she had gone there for years and Sam could believe it considering it had been around since 1905. The interior was reminiscent of an old-style Spanish villa, even with a working fountain in the center. The restaurant was definitely nicer than the diners they were most accustomed to.
They were seated on the second floor next to the balcony. Sam glanced over his menu and could see Dean start to sweat.
"What, no burgers? No pizza," Dean asked, tossing the menu down on the table.
"You should be more cultured, Dean Winchester," Abby smirked. "Look, I'll help you out…"
Abby read the Spanish words in the Cuban-based menu impeccably and tried to explain to Dean what was what. Like a child, he gave her a dirty look.
"Maybe I'll just order from the kid's menu. They have chicken fingers."
"Dean," Sam laughed. "It says for age ten and under only. Good luck."
"Are you ready to order," their waiter asked.
"Yes, sir. No food for me but I'll have a Café con Leche. And HE'll," she said as she pointed to Dean, "have the Filet Mingon."
Sam laughed at the look on Dean's face as she ordered for him. He turned to Sam stunned, causing the younger Winchester to chuckle even harder.
"I'll have the Arroz Con Pollo," Sam said, handing the young man his menu.
Dean continued to stare daggers into Abby. She turned to him, shaking her head and giving him a half smile.
"Oh for Pete's sakes! I picked the one thing on the ADULT menu you'd eat, so shut up!"
Sam couldn't help but spit out the water he was drinking.
"I'm so full I could fucking burst," Dean said as they walked to stake out the apartments.
"I told you it was good."
"Well, how did I know you knew? You don't eat real food," Dean smirked.
"Well, what do you think YOU taste like after eating that steak," she sinisterly smiled, playfully snapping in his direction.
He only hoped that was a joke. They turned a corner to see the building dimly lit by candled street lights. Nice lighting for atmosphere but not really cool for ghost hunting. They found a porch across the street from the house where they could sit and wait.
Dean hadn't realized just how much Abby was ready for the hunt. She couldn't sit still as they hunkered down behind a half stone wall. He wondered why she was so jumpy. Was she just hyped up for her first hunt? He only hoped it wasn't the scenario going on in the back of his mind; that she was going to run in and pounce any minute. What would he do if she really was the killer?
Suddenly, a scream cut through the still night.