Chapter 3: Wendigo Part 1

Nothing was said on the drive to Blackwater Ridge. Dean drove with the music off, Sam fell asleep and I just sat there. I felt numb. Something kept telling me that I could have done something to help Sam. To help Jess. But I knew that was just guilt playing with my emotions, there was nothing I could have done.

"You okay back there?" Dean asked me and I nodded but didn't respond.

Dean sighed and drove on. It was nearing noon and when we drove past Grand Junction, Sam jerked up in his seat. He was breathing heavily and I sat up looking at him.

"You okay?" Dean asked.

"Yeah I'm fine." Was all Sam said. It was bullshit. If he was going to lie, he had to do it better.

I nodded. "Another nightmare?"

Sam just cleared his throat and that was an answer enough.

"You wanna drive for a while?" Dean asked. I looked at him wide-eyed and Sam had the similar reaction.

" In your whole life you never once asked me that ."

"Just thought you might want to, never mind." Dean shook his head.

"I'll drive." I said sitting up from the back seat.

Dean shook his head. "Do we not remember the last time we were driving my baby?" he asked me. "You nearly broke the brakes to prevent hitting that Constance bitch."

"Sam drove your car into a house!" I retaliated sticking my tongue out at him. I sat back and looked out the window.

"Look guys, you're worried about me, I get it and thank you but I'm perfectly okay."

"Uh huh." I said unconvinced and Dean nodded in agreement.

Sam just shook his head and let it go. " All right…where are we?"

" We are just outside of Grand Junction."

Sam looked at the map. "You know what? Maybe we shouldn't have left Stanford so soon."

"Sam we dug around there for a week, we came up with nothing. If you wanna find the thing that killed Jessica…" Dean trailed off.

"We gotta find dad first." Sam nodded.

"Your dad disappearing, and this thing showing up again after twenty years, it's no coincidence. Your dad will have answers; he'll know what to do." I said trying to be helpful.

"There's nothing at those coordinates, it's just woods. Why is he sending us to the middle of nowhere?"

"We're at Lost Creek." I said glancing at the sign as Dean pulled into the dirt road. We went inside a cabin looking around the room. We intended on talking to one of the Rangers.

"So Blackwater Ridge is pretty remote. It's cut off by these canyons here, rough terrain, dense forest, abandoned silver and gold mines all over the place."

"Dude check out the size of this freakin bear."

I rolled my eyes at Dean's inability to pay attention for ten seconds and nudged him as a ranger came in.

"You guys aren't planning on going out near Blackwater Ridge by any chance?" he asked.

"Oh no sir, we're environmental study majors from UC Boulder, just working on a paper."

Sam lied really badly sometimes and Dean tended to add to it.

"Recycle, man." Dean responded putting one fist in the air.

"Bull. You're friends with that Hailey girl right?" he asked and I looked to Sam and Dean.

"Yes, yes we are, ranger…" He looked at the nametag. "Wilkinson." Smooth Dean.

"Well I will tell you exactly what we told her. Her brother filled out a backcountry permit saying he wouldn't be back from Blackwater till the twenty-fourth. You tell that girl to quit worrying, I'm sure her brother's just fine."

Dean nodded. "We will. Actually you know what would help is if I could show her a copy of that backcountry permit you know so she could see her brothers return date."

Sam, Dean and I walked back out to the car with a copy of the permit and Dean started laughing.

"What are you cruising for a hook-up or something?" I asked.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"The coordinates point to Blackwater Ridge so what are we waiting for, let's just go find dad. I mean why even talk to this girl?" Sam seemed on edge lately. I wanted to say something but it always seemed like the wrong time.

"I dunno maybe we should know what we're walking in to before we actually walk into it." I said obviously trying to point out something to him. I widened my eyes for a second at him but he didn't catch it.

"What?" he seemed annoyed with me so Dean took over.

"Well since when are you all shoot first ask questions later anyway?"

"Since now." Sam said. There was an edge in his voice. Something that told Dean and me he was trying to end the conversation. So we left it and drove to that girl Hailey's house.

0o0o0o0o

After Hailey's, and finally dragging Dean away from his really bad pick up lines, we headed to the bar to talk over what she'd said.

"So maybe her brother just lost cell reception." Something didn't feel quite right about this job. It was making me squirm inside and Dean noticed.

"What's wrong?" he asked me as we headed back to the table with drinks.

I shook my head. "This doesn't feel familiar to you?"

He shrugged. "No I guess not. Feels like any other job."

"I just feel…I don't know. Weird I guess. Maybe I'm just tired." I shook my head and placed the glasses on the table and took a seat next to Sam. Dean sat next to me and kept glancing at me. He reminded me of my father when he did that, stealing looks at me trying to see if I was ok. I looked at him and smiled slightly trying to get him to stop. I loved Dean to death, but I didn't need him to be my father.

"So, Blackwater Ridge doesn't get a lot of traffic, local campers mostly. But still, this past April two hikers went missing out there, they were never found." Sam said.

"Any before that?" Dean asked sipping his beer.

"Yeah eight different people all vanished in the same year. Okay watch this. Here's a clincher. I downloaded that guy, Tommy's, video to the laptop. Check this out."

Sam played Hailey's brothers video and it showed something running past him in the background really fast.

"Do it again." Dean said now looking closer at the screen.

Sam played it again and I stared at the screen. "That's three frames. That's a fraction of a second. Whatever that thing is, it can move."

Sam nodded agreeing with me. "Yeah. I got one more thing. In '59 one camper survived this supposed grizzly attack. Just a kid. Barely crawled out of the woods alive."

0o0o0o0o

I nearly fell asleep while Dean and Sam went to go question Mr. Shaw. I hadn't been feeling well since I had woken up. As soon as I got in the backseat of the Impala I laid down and closed my eyes. The only thing that ever bothered me about being around these two all the time, no privacy. So if I was sick or upset or just wanted to be alone, I could basically forget it, Dean and Sam would be right next to me trying to figure it out or trying to make me better. So, I guess I couldn't really complain.

Sam reached back to wake me but I heard Dean stop him. "We'll only be five minutes, let her sleep. I don't think she's feeling too good." Thank God, I wasn't in the mood.

Sam seemed to back off and they got out. Although as soon as they shut the doors I realized I wasn't going to be able to fall back asleep anyways. I sat up and waited for them to come back. I saw John's journal sitting in Sam's seat and I grabbed it and started to leaf through it. Maybe I could find something before Dean and Sam got back. After ten minutes or so I had found nothing, great hunter I turned out to be.

"…which means we can kill it." I heard Dean and Sam come back outside and I got out stretching my legs.

Dean opened the trunk and propped it open with a shotgun and saw me.

"How ya feeling?" Sam asked.

I shrugged. "I got a headache, but I'm okay. Ready for the hunt."

Dean nodded and put some pistols in a duffel bag.

Sam shook his head, watching Dean. "We cannot let that Hailey girl go out there."

"Oh yeah? What are we gonna tell her? That she can't go into the woods because of a big scary monster?" Dean asked sarcastically but apparently Sam didn't do sarcasm anymore.

He nodded seriously. " Yeah."

Dean wasn't amused, or swayed for that matter. "Her brother's missing Sam. She's not just gonna sit this out."

I nodded and Sam didn't look happy about it. "Dean's right. We go with her, we protect her, and we keep our eyes peeled for our fuzzy predator-friend."

"So Finding dad's not enough?" Sam asked angrily slamming the trunk. " Now we gotta babysit too?"

Dean and I just stared at him. This wasn't Sam. In all my life I'd seen some pretty scary things but Sam was actually scaring me.

"What?" he asked shortly. I guess he was tired of us looking at him like he was going to snap or break all the time. But the thing is he was.

Dean just shrugged and threw the duffel bag at him. "Nothing."

I shook my head and got back into the car. First we needed to protect this Hailey girl and find her brother. Then I'd worry about Sam.

0o0o0o0o

We showed up at the trail just before Hailey and the others left.

"You guys got room for three more?" Dean asked.

"Wait, you want to come with us?" She looked confused.

"Who are these guys?" I didn't know who the hell that was but he was already getting on my nerves. The headache I had made everyone 10 times more annoying.

"Apparently this is all the park service could muster up for search and rescue, Roy." She said smiling a little.

"You're rangers?" he asked unconvinced. So the jackass's name was Roy.

I just nodded. "That's right."

"And you're hiking out in biker boots and jeans?" Hailey asked eyeing Dean.

"Well sweetheart, I don't do shorts." Dean said sweetly making that Roy guy seethe.

"What, you think this is funny? Its dangerous backcountry out there, her brother might be hurt."

Dean just looked at him. "Believe me, I know how dangerous this could get. We just wanna help her find her brother, that's all."

"Roy, you said you did a little hunting." Dean asked, leading the walk.

Roy was behind him and Hailey and her other brother, Ben, were in between and I leaned back with Sam.

Roy nodded. "Mostly buck sometimes bear."

"Tell me, uh…Bambi or Yogi ever hunt you back?" Dean said cockily and Roy grabbed him pulling him back. Sam and I stepped foreword as if we could attack him or something.

"Whatcha doin Roy?" Dean asked.

Roy put a stick into the ground making a bear trap go off under the leaves and grass.

"You should watch where you're stepping…ranger." He emphasized ranger and for once I wished we had pretended to be cops or friends of Hailey's brother.

Dean was pulled back as Roy started to lead the group.

Hailey looked at him sternly. "You didn't pack any provisions. You guys are carrying a duffel bag. You're not rangers so who the hell are you?"

Dean looked at us and nodded and Sam and I went ahead of them and let Dean tell her the story the way he wanted to tell it. Maybe for once he'd tell someone the truth.

"I'm worried about you Sam." I said after the silence crept in. It shouldn't have happened. Sam and I had been best friends for as long as I could remember.

He tried to shrug me off. "I'm fine Andy, don't worry about me." He looked at me and stopped walking, making me turn to face him.

"You feeling alright?" he asked me, looking concerned.

I shrugged. "Something about this whole hunt…and we don't even know what it is yet."

He put his one hand on the side of my cheek, letting it rest there for a moment. "You're warm." He said and I nodded and shrugged.

"It's a bit warm out."

Sam shook his head. "No it's chilly."

I shrugged again and shook my head. "Whatever, I'll be fine. I'm just getting a cold or something."

Sam put his bag down for a moment and took his jacket off and placed it over my shoulders. "Here, I don't want you to get worse while we're out here."

I smiled slightly, pushing my arms through the sleeves that were obviously too big for me. "Thanks Sam."

Maybe I was over reacting. This seemed like the old Sam, the one I knew. Or maybe he was just trying not to worry me. Maybe he wasn't alright at all.

0o0o0o0o

"This is it…Blackwater Ridge." Roy said as Dean joined the rest of the group.

"What coordinates do we have?" Sam asked.

Roy pulled out his GPS. "35-111." The same coordinates from their dad.

"Hailey, over here." Roy called seeing something off in the distance.

Everyone ran to Roy's voice and we came to their campsite. Or what was left of it anyway. There were tents and equipment torn open and covered with blood.

She placed hands over her mouth. " Oh my God…"

"Looks like a grizzly." Roy said and I rolled my eyes. How much people never knew…

Hailey started screaming for her brother and Sam tried to calm her down. He kept telling her that the thing might still be out there, but I understood how she felt. Her brother might have been alive and Sam was telling her to be quiet.

"Sam, Andy!" Dean called us over. "The bodies were dragged from the campsite. But here the tracks just vanish. I'll tell you what…that's no skin walker or black dog."

Suddenly someone started screaming deep into the woods and everyone started to run off in the direction of it.

"It seemed like it was coming from around here didn't it?" Hailey asked coming to a short stop.

Sam looked around. The screams had completely disappeared. "Everybody back to camp."

We ran back but it was too late. All the packs were gone.

"What the hell is going on?" Hailey asked and I looked to Dean and Sam.

Sam went over to Dean and whispered something in his ear and I started walking towards them. Dean shook his head as Sam went down the path.

"Stay here and watch them. I'll tell you what's up when we come back."

I nodded and watched Dean walk down to Sam. Something didn't seem right; they were keeping something from me. I took one more look at the group and snuck down the hill to where they were standing.

"I've never even heard of a Wendigo this far west…" Dean was saying and I froze.

"Did you say a Wendigo?" I asked.

They turned around surprised to see me.

"Andy…" Dean started and I shook my head and interrupted.

"Don't Andy me. Is it the same one? The one that killed my dad?" I asked and my voice started to shake. I tried swallowing it; I hated showing them I was weak. It was incredibly possible for it to be the same one. This was the same area. Why hadn't Dean or Sam recognized that before? Maybe that had and didn't want to go jumping to conclusions about it until we had the information.

"It's unlikely…" Sam started.

"Did you ever kill it?" It was the only thing I wanted to know.

Dean shook his head and Sam looked at me sympathetically. It made me sick. "It got away." Dean stated. It sounded like he was trying to keep emotion from leaking into his voice. Trying to keep it all as business. But I couldn't do it.

"I…" Their faces were killing me. I couldn't think and it felt like air was trapped in my lungs. I walked away from them and farther down the pathway. I leaned against a tree trying to get my breath back. I heard someone walk down the path after me and I turned my head.

"You alright?" Dean asked.

I was glad it wasn't Sam. I didn't feel like I knew him anymore. But Dean had been there when Sam hadn't. He'd been the one constant thing in my life, someone I could count on.

"Yeah, I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't be focusing on this. We have a job to do and those people are in danger." I tried pushing the job in front of my emotions. Like I was supposed to do.

But Dean wasn't making it easy. His normal rough voice softened. "You know Andy, in this situation you don't have to pretend you're strong."

He inched towards me and turned me around. His face softened to match his voice.

I nodded and bit my lower lip as a tear fell down my cheek. "Yes I do…" I tried saying. But my voice was shaking so bad I'm surprised Dean understood me.

He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into his chest. I rested my head against his shoulder and let a few tears fall.

"You gonna be able to do this?" he asked rubbing my shoulders.

I felt comforted so I nodded and held onto his jacket.

"Because you can take the car back to the motel."

"You're gonna let me drive your car?" I laughed slightly. "I really must look a mess."

He smiled and pulled away. "Well you always look a mess."

That time I did laugh and I rubbed my hand under my eyes. "Thanks."

He nodded, kissing my forehead and I froze. He always gave me a hug or touched my shoulder when I was upset but he'd never kissed me before. And the problem was I liked it. His lips were soft and warm against my forehead.

But I couldn't worry about that now, the job came first. When we walked back up the hill I could hear people arguing. No doubt it was Sam and Roy butting heads.

"You protect me? I was hunting these woods when your mommy was still kissing you goodnight!" Roy was saying.

"Yeah? It's a damn near perfect hunter. It's smarter than you, and it's gonna hunt you down and eat you alive unless we get your stupid sorry ass out of here." Sam said angrily. It looked like a small smile was spreading across his lips. What the hell was happening to him?

Rot just laughed and stepped closer to him. "You know you're crazy right?"

"Yeah? You ever hunt a wen-" Roy pushed Sam in mid sentence and before Sam could retaliate Dean intervened.

"Chill out." Dean warned pushing Sam back.

"Stop; stop it, everybody just stop. Look, Tommy might still be alive, and I'm not leaving here without him." Hailey said looking from Sam to Roy.

"It's getting late. This thing is a good hunter in the day, but an unbelievable hunter at night. We'll never beat it, not in the dark." I said quietly. I knew Dean was looking at me. But I couldn't look at him without losing it again. "We need to settle in and protect ourselves."

0o0o0o