Chapter 4

The next few minutes felt like a lifetime with everything that happened all at once. Before we could make out where the arrows were coming from, there were bodies attacking and both the boys fired at will. I ducked and covered, and then remembered I was unarmed. Opening the door beside Dean, who took a second to give me a disapproving look, grabbed the blade from my bag and slammed the door shut just as an arrow pierced the window.

The fight that broke out was not like the coordinated moves one the show and I found myself stuck in the middle of both the boys, and their battle counterparts. Ducking down, I moved past Dean, between the two cars and snatched the keys out of the ignition of the sleek black car, Dean would just have to scold me later.

My only thought on how to help had to do with the weapons cache hidden in the floorboard of the trunk, and to get to that, I needed the keys. I'm pretty sure if I thought about it, while fumbling with each key until the right one slipped in, this whole situation would have me in total panic mode, but the thought of either men getting hurt once more had me on autopilot.

I used the sawed-off to prop the lid, the same way I had seen Dean do it a million times in the show, and searched for something specific. If these were vampires and I couldn't take off their heads, there was definitely one other way to slow them down.

There tucked in a back compartment was a quart mason jar of thick red liquid. My stomach didn't turn as easy as it used to, but looking at the container of dead man's blood, I could feel it start to flip. I closed the lid of the trunk quiet, ducked down and wrenched open the glass jar before dipping as much of the spectrum into it as possible, managing to coat the entire blade as the thickening liquid dripped down.

Sam was the first one I came up on. He was holding his own, but I could almost see the blood on his dark shirt as the stitches possibly popped and I held my breath as I snuck up behind the monster and with as much force as I could get, I plunged the blade through its back. As it stopped its movements, I listened to the grotesque sound it made, while I ripped the blade back.

"Down!" I heard Dean's voice from beside me and I tucked myself as low as I could go before his blade came whipping across the air, and the head that it connected with rolled down the hill beside me. Dean looked at me curiously as Sam reached for my arm, pulling me up beside him as he tucked me into the crook of his chest. "You done playing hero?"

"Bite me, Winchester!" I snapped and felt the fabric of Sam's shirt tightly in my gasp as I held on for dear life, since my heart was just about to pop out of my chest.

"How many was that?" Sam questioned.

"Six, maybe." Dean shrugged and looked around at the bloody mess. "We need to move." He stated and stared down at me. "Now."

Dean moved, reaching into my car to grab everything he could before tossing it in the trunk of the Impala, less than impressed that I left the keys and the Mason jar out in the open, and I heard him swearing under his breath. Sam pulled me close as he caught his breath, placing the gun in his lap as he wrapped both arms around me before kissing me on the forehead.

I released him, pushed out of his arms and stood to look at the damage around us. Sam pulled himself up and watched me with a little bit of concern as I ran my hands through my hair and left them there for a moment.

"You gonna be okay, Al?" Sam's voice broke through the silence that surrounded me and I was able to look up and focus in on him before nodding.

"Yeah, I guess I'm not as used to the carnage as I thought I was." I answered and moved toward the car. Sam watched as I stopped, glanced down at the blood on his shirt and shook my head. "How do you feel?"

"Nothing's broken, or ripped, I think it was just from the pressure." Sam smiled, but I could see the pain in his face.

"Ah-huh," I shook my head and grabbed the handle of the car. "You keep telling yourself that and when we get to Joplin, I'm going to look myself."

"I could always hop in the back with you and you could take a peek now." Sam smiled and I heard the low groan from Dean on the other side of the car.

"Why don't the two of you just get a freaking room?" He snapped as he lit up a cigarette. I guess that was the one thing that was going to take some getting used too. He glanced down at the stick in his hand before looking at me. "You got an issue with this?"

"No, just not something I expected." I answered, licked my lips and shot a glance to Sam as I opened the door and climbed in.

Yeah, I had been in the back seat of Dean's baby before, but only during photo shoots with the fan cars, this one smelled different, a little like Sam, a little like Dean and a lot like some serious trouble. I grabbed the kit once again, probably the one thing that Dean hadn't thrown in the trunk and waited for Sam to climb in the other side so I had better access to the bandage.

I looked up at Dean in the mirror, his green eyes locked on mine and I couldn't help but feel like I was being scrutinized by him. Was he jealous or protective, did he think I was a threat to him or his brother, and why the hell was he looking at me like that?

The Impala's engine rumbled beneath me and I smiled, let my eyes roll back and rested my head against the back seat. I heard Sam chuckle and opened one eye as he and Dean seemed to have matching smiles.

"You look like you're in heaven." Sam said as he leaned against the rucksack that was braced against the door his knee touching mine. Dean snorted.

"She looks like she's in the middle of sex." Yep, he was the one that had to go there.

"You're both right," which got me some questioning looks. "The back seat of a mint 67' Impala, and one that sounds like this. Sex on wheels and yes, I'm in heaven!"

Dean knew his car was sexy as hell, and just smiled proudly but as my gaze turned to Sam, I watched the tight lipped grin on his face as he looked down at where our legs touched. He was harder, rougher and had seen more real pain and death than the Sam I knew, but that smile seemed to brighten him up, make him look happy. I reached down and placed my hand on his thigh, which snapped his eyes up to mine.

"Let me take a look." I had never seen a man move so fast lifting his shirt and this time he didn't do it half-assed, he was nearly naked as I leaned over and inspected the line of blood that came through the bandage. Biting down on my lip, I peeled back the tape once more and looked over the stitches, this time following the line as I counted with my finger. Sam made some low noise deep in his throat and I paused, biting down harder to keep from smiling. Nothing was popped or ripped which was good, so switched out the gauze once more and taped him back up. "We're going to have to stop in Joplin for some supplies."

"Yeah, after we make sure you're safe." Dean reiterated and watched as I shook my head. "You look beat, why don't you catch some shut-eye. Sammy will wake you up before we hit the city limits."

"Sleep sounds great." I mumbled and watched as Sam pulled some sort of move that had him sitting on the other side of me.

Suddenly tired and on edge, I let his strong arms pull me towards him and I found the heat of that crook once again. My hand flattened against his hip as I closed my eyes, barely hearing the slight laugh from the front seat as I settled into a dreamless sleep.

I could hear the voices as I drifted in and out of the sleep that the rocking of the car had put me in. For probably a few hours there had been only silence but as the ride continued, I could hear Dean's voice lightly over the hum of the engine and Sam's as it vibrated through the fabric beneath my skin as I rested against his chest.

"I don't know, Sammy, there's something about her." Dean started and I could almost imagine him staring at me in the mirror.

"Yeah, the something is that she's not bending to your every whim," Sam laughed softly, his fingers running over my arm back and forth as he kept me locked into that light sleep. He was gentle and soft, something that I would have never expected if I hadn't known his other world, or him from the other world.

"It's not that," Dean admitted, but at least that meant he was admitting something, "she has this feeling about her."

"A feeling…you…the one who says nothing is coincidence, is going on a feeling?" Sam was the only one I could actually feel moving when he adjusted himself in the uncomfortable position I must have put him in, but when he sighed, I got the idea that he might actually agree with his brother. "So the vampire and scent thing, what? That's all a cover to keep her around while you figure out this feeling?"

"NO!" Dean snapped defensively and I wanted to smile, but I kept as relaxed as I could. "The danger is real, Sam, we saw that back there. They're tracking you, and her, and yeah maybe the whole idea of her being a mystery throws me off, but we need to keep her protected."

"Why, because she says she knows Cas?"

"She doesn't," this made me almost stiffen, but there was no distrust in his voice. "What she said to me before she walked out the door, about him. I mean, it's obvious that she knows of him but there are just little loopholes in her story that I'm not buying. Cas is family, but he never betrayed my trust, so why would she say something like that."

"Maybe she doesn't know, maybe that's just what happened between them, I don't know but you have to admit it's kind of weird to run into her and have her know so much about him." The fingers that ran over my arm, stopped for a second, and I felt his breath against my head as he leaned down and kissed it softly. "She knows so much about us."

"Yeah, so what's with you?" But Sam didn't reply. "Come on, Sammy, you never take to a girl like this, I mean look at you, when was the last time you held anyone that close?"

"You mean Jess?" Sam's voice deepened and my heart broke. So he had a Jessica here too, probably one that had passed away, but I felt his chest rise as he drew in a deep breath. "You're right, there is a feeling about her and I have a need."

"Yeah, we all got needs." Dean snickered.

"No, a need to protect her, to keep her close." But his voice had an angry tone to it, almost as if admitting it out loud hurt him. "I don't know, it's not just the vampire thing either. When we saw her in the diner…"

"When I saw her and pointed her out to you, you mean?"

"Whatever! Either way, there was something in the way she looked at us, something…strange, ya know."

"I get it." Dean sighed and cleared his throat. "Joplin limits are about five miles ahead, you wanna wake up Sleeping Beauty?"

"Sure." Sam mumbled, as if his thoughts weren't even where he expected them to be, but I felt the fingers of his free hand, not the one caressing my arm, move up and there was a light touch against my face.

I wasn't going to respond. I was just going to be happy and let that feeling take over, but it started to tickle and then it started to… and I let out a low moan as I shifted against him. Sam instantly stopped, his fingers pressed against my jaw ever so slightly.

"Hey, Al, time to wake up." His voice was almost as alluring as his touch and it sucked! I shifted against him, used the seat beside his stomach to push myself up and away from his body. I moved my head just a bit to catch his eyes with mine but I watched his flicker to my lips as I tried to lick the dryness away. He cleared his throat, swallowed hard and let his hand drop away. "We're almost there, maybe you should call your friend."

"Um," I breathed lightly, "okay."

I did my best to pull off being still half asleep but their conversation had brought me so close to consciousness that it was hard to stay that way for long. I moved over to the other side of the car, letting Sam finally move and pulled out my phone. Texting Danni was easy, since she was my first contact and my last phone call, and I let my fingers slide over the screen. She was almost at the spot, a Chili place called Fred & Red's, a small greasy spoon diner on Main Street in town.

"Fred & Red's, a Chili place on main." I mumbled and turned in my seat to look at Sam, who nodded and seemed to look a bit guilty. "Anything fun happen while I was asleep, no ghosts in the machine or anything?"

"Are you kidding, Baby's protected by Enochian, no vengeful spirits getting in my ride." Dean spoke up with pride as he patted the dashboard. I smiled at this and wait for him to realize what he said, it took a minute, but mostly it took him looking in the mirror to see the shock on Sam's face before he realized what he had said.

"I'm not going to ask, if that's what you're waiting on." I shrugged and watched as Sam snapped his gaze quickly to mine. "I know what Enochian is."

"Okay," Dean turned the mirror, aiming it so I could see the intensity of his stare, and flicked from watching the road, to watching me. "When we get to your friend and I know you and Sammy are safe, you and I are going to sit down and have a little talk about just how well you know Enochian."

"Well, I can tell you now I know it just as well as I know Latin." I crossed my arms over my chest and turned away to look out the window. I thought I felt Sam edge closer but I didn't bother to look, I just needed a few minutes to figure out HOW to tell them what I know, not what.

As it turned out, I had about a half an hour to get my shit together. The boys dropped me at the diner, blade attached to my belt, and knife tucked in my pocket, but the only thing I was wearing was the leather jacket Dean managed to grab from the trunk before he shoo-ed me into the building and told me to have a seat while they parked close by, watching.

The bell above the door jingled and for the umpteenth time, I looked up, waiting on another disappointment, but she was standing there, her long hair pulled back in a ponytail with a wide-eyed and frantic look on her face as she whipped her head back and forth up and down the aisle. I stood from my seat catching her attention and watched as she moved towards me. Danni Danvers wrapped her arms around me like a shaking older sister, one that was pissed off but relieved that I was alright and I almost braced myself for a swing but she stepped back and looked me over.

"Okay, you've got a coat, your blade, you knife, no bag, a bandage on your arm and," she paused to take a breath, "where's your freaking car?"

"Dead on the side of the highway about three hours north." I said softly and slowly sat down. Danni followed suit and stared at me. "Hey Sis." I smiled and watched as she dropped her head to the table in a gesture of either wanting to kill me or strangle me just to the point of me passing out.

"Don't 'hey Sis' me, chick, what the hell?" She replied, but the smile crept up on her lips. "So, three hours up the highway, what the hell happened?"

"Well, someone put sugar in my gas tank," I stated and watched as the waitress brought over a cup of coffee for Danni and refilled mine. I waited until she left before I went on. "While we were looking at the engine, the ones I can only guess were vamps blew a hole in my tire with an arrow, proceeded to attack and hurt Sam, and I knifed another one."

She was silent for a moment, knowing that I had only given her the cliff-notes version of it and I watched as she folded her hands on the table. "Well," she started, sucked on the back of her lip and then let out a sigh, "ain't that a bitch."

I knew she would take it with a grain of salt because it wasn't as if I didn't tell her some screwed up stuff as it was but she looked around the place and shrugged.

"So, where are they?"

"Lying in wait, so-to-speak." I replied and fixed up my cup with sugar and cream. "They can see us from here and once I give the signal, they'll pull around."

"And if you don't?" She whispered, which made me look at her, questioningly. "Give the signal, I mean?"

"Then they'll follow us back to Vinita." I answered, which made me think, really think about the two men I had been traveling with. "You know, it sounds stalkerish but once you see them, you'll know who they are, and Danni, they're not lying. They are Sam and Dean Winchester, I swear to God."

"I believe you," she pushed aside her flannel shirt and let me see the small gun tucked into her belt, "but, you know, just in case."

"How long do you want to sit here for before we get this inevitable shit-show on the road?" I smiled and watched her down half the coffee in front of her. She placed the cup down and sat back, looking at me with raised eyebrows.

"Now is just a good a time as any." She slapped her hands down on the table and rose. I couldn't help the grin that crossed my face. This was going to be one interesting hell of a night.

Placing the bills on the table, Danni and I stepped out into the night. Her 2015 Silver Escape was parked on the side of the building, a couple lines down from the bright lights of the diner, but it sat under a street lamp. Looking around, I noticed there wasn't another car for what seemed like forever, in fact the streets were pretty empty.

Danni leaned against the hood, her arms and ankles crossed as she stared me down. I stood under the light and paced, hands in the pockets of my coat and let out a breath as she shook her head. I stopped and smiled at her, pushed my hair back from my face and stared up at the sky.

"You think they finally decided they had enough of ya and ran?" Danni smiled, but that was when I heard the low rumble of the car.

"No such luck." I answered and turned to look out at the dark road. She stood straight at the sound of the rumble and watched the sleek black car roll in under the cover of night, no headlights until they were less than ten feet from us.

"Holy hell, is that really Baby?" She questioned, moving to stand next to me as I bit down on my lip, staring straight into the headlights of the car.

"Yep," I nodded and listened to the engine cut, the lights still illuminated the spot we stood and we both watched as the doors opened. Dean closed his door first, slipping out the driver's side, hidden mostly by the blinding light, but Sam, I could make him out just by the way he braced himself on the edge of the car. They stepped forward, both close enough so that Danni could make out the features of their faces, just to the side of the lights so that the four of us faced each other and her mouth just dropped. "Danni Danvers, meet Sam and Dean Winchester."