Disclaimer:- I do not own Supernatural or any of the characters. Only in my dreams!
AN:- I know it's been a while since I updated and I'm sorry! But here it is. The Hook Man. Enjoy! And pretty please review!
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The Winchester's… Plus One
Chapter Seven: Hook Man
SYNOPSIS
The infamous 'Hook Man', a vengeful spirit who kills his victims with a shiny hook that serves as his hand, terrorizes a small college town in Iowa. Sam, Dean and Emma learn that all the victims are connected to the daughter of a local minister and race to find and destroy the Hook Man's bones before he comes for them.
ooooOOOOoooo
Easter Iowa University and we're at the Theita Sorority. One of it's occupants, Taylor, is lay across her bed, magazine in front of her. She is waiting for her room-mate, Lori, to eventually produce herself from the bathroom.
A few minutes later, she does, showing off her outfit. She is wearing a denim mini skirt and a white blouse.
"Ok. What do you think?" she asked her friend, spreading her arms to show off her full outfit. Taylor turned to her, pulling a face at what she saw in front of her.
"Um…." She said, and that was enough of an answer for Lori.
"Oh God. Too Martha Stewart?" Lori said, pulling a face of her own. Smiling in answer, Taylor stood from her bed and walked to her drawers. Searching through them, she turned back to Lori with a red halter top in hand.
"Here. Wear this," she said, handing the top to Lori. Lori stood in front of the mirror, holding the top against herself, unsure of her feelings towards it.
"Um… I don't know if this is really me," Lori said.
"Lori," Taylor said, stepping up behind her. "There's a hot chick buried somewhere in there…."
"Ok, ok," Lori said, turning to change her top. Taylor sat back on the bed, waiting while Lori changed.
"So?" Lori said, turning back round to get her mates approval.
"Damn, girl, he's not gonna know what hit him," Taylor said with a smile. Lori stood back in front of the mirror, smiling herself.
"Ok, I think he's probably downstairs," Lori said, moving to the bed and picking up her jacket and bag. "I'll see you later."
"Don't do anything I wouldn't do," Taylor said as her friend headed for the door.
"There's nothing you wouldn't do," Lori said, smiling as she left the room. Taylor smiled to herself once the door closed behind Lori.
"That's true," she muttered into the empty room.
ooooOOOOoooo
Lori's boyfriend, Rich, had indeed been waiting, and the two were now sat in his car on 9 Mile Road. What they didn't notice was the shadowed figure watching them from the trees.
"I thought we were going to the party," Lori said, a slight nervous tone to her voice.
"Well, we can't arrive on time," Rich said, taking away some of her nervousness as she laughed gently.
"You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd think you brought me here on purpose," Lori said, smiling slightly this time.
"What? I'm offended."
"Yeah, I'm sure," Lori said with another smile from both of them as Rich leaned in for a kiss. Lori phone interrupted them as she broke away reluctantly, looking down at the caller I.D. Dad Calling, it said.
"You wanna get that?" Rich asked.
"Definitely not," Lori said, shutting off the ringer as Rich kissed her again. Things began to go in a direction Lori didn't want as Rich slipped his hand under the strap of her halter top.
"No," Lori said, pushing away from him.
"It's ok," Rich said, ignoring the uncomfortable look in Lori's eyes. Outside, the darkened figure both had yet to notice began walking closer to the car, where Rich was now kissing Lori's neck, his hand again sliding under the strap.
"Hey, I mean it," Lori said, pushing Rich away again. Before he could argue, a loud screeching noise could be heard from outside. The man, making his presence known, was dragging his hook along the Dead End sign.
"What was that?" Lori said, now switching from uncomfortable to scared.
"I don't know," Rich said. The sound came again as this time he dragged the hook along the 9 Mile Road sign.
"What is that?" Rich repeated, opening the car and beginning to step out.
"No! Rich, no!" Lori said, pulling on his arm to keep him in the car.
"No, just wait here," Rich said, getting out despite her pleas and the terrified look in her eyes. Rich looked around, hearing more screeching. Turning, he saw a long scratch being made in the side of his car… but not what was making it.
"What the hell?" Rich said, now beginning to get slightly scared himself.
"Rich, let's go!" Lori yelled from inside the car. She screamed loudly at the sound of the tires being punctured.
"Rich?" Lori yelled, searching out of the window for her boyfriend. But he was nowhere to be seen.
"Rich!" she continued to scream, but got no answered. Her fear increasing, Lori rolled up the windows and locked all doors.
"Rich, where are you?" she continued to scream. As an answer this time, there is scratching and banging on the roof of the car. Screaming, Lori jumped into the backseat of the car, cowering on the floor. The noise stopped but still she sat there, breathing heavily.
"Ok ok," she said, trying to push away her fears. Getting out of the car, she ran down the road, still in search of her boyfriend. Turning, Lori found him and let out an ear-splitting scream.
Rich was suspended from and tree by his feet, his fingers scratching on the roof of the car as his blood dripped from his body.
ooooOOOOoooo
At an outdoor café, Dean and Emma are sat at the table with coffee's and the open laptop, waiting for Sam, who was on a nearby payphone.
"Alright, thank you for your time," Sam said as he hung up and headed back to the table.
"Your, uh, half-caf, double vanilla latte is gettin' cold over here, Francis," Dean said as he approached, looking over Emma's shoulder at the computer screen.
"Bite me," Sam said, taking a seat beside Emma.
"So, anything?" Dean asked, referring to the phone call Sam had just made. Sam shook his head in answer.
"I had 'em check the FBI's Missing Persons Data Bank. No John Doe's fitting Dad's description. I even ran his plates for traffic violations."
"Sam, I'm tellin' ya, I don't think Dad wants to be found," Dean said. Sam said nothing, just gave him a disappointed look.
"Check this out," Emma said, changing the subject and turning the laptop to Sam. It showed the article on Rich's death.
"It's a news item out of Planes Courier," she said. "Ankeny, Iowa. It's only about a hundred miles from here."
" 'The mutilated body was found near the victim's car, parked on 9 Mile Road,' " Sam read from the article.
"Keep reading," Emma urged on. And he did.
" 'Authorities are unable to provide a realistic description of the killer. The sole eyewitness, whose name has been withheld, is quoted as saying the attacker was invisible.' "
"Could be something interesting," Emma said once he finished.
"Or it could be nothing at all," Sam said. "One freaked out witness who didn't see anything? Doesn't mean it's the Invisible Man."
"But what if it is? Dad would check it out," Dean finished, giving Sam a look saying he knew he was right himself.
ooooOOOOoooo
Taking on the case, Sam, Dean and Emma drove to the fraternity where Rich had lived. Sam and Dean got out of the car, not paying attention to the fact that Emma was refusing to budge.
"One more time, why are we here?" Sam asked.
"Victim lived here," Dean said simply, turning to his girlfriend to find she wasn't behind him.
"Oh, would you come on," Dean said, turning to the car and glaring at the still seated Emma.
"Why am I always the one who ends up dressed like this?" she yelled out at him.
"Because you're the girl. Now come on," Dean replied. Bad move.
Emma got out of the car, a scowl on her face that did not match the persona of what she was wearing. She was showing a lot of tanned skin in the low cut top and mini skirt she was wearing. She stood in front of Dean, her arms crossed over her chest and glaring at him as she tapped her kitten heeled shoe on the floor. Dean simply smiled, definitely liking what he was seeing.
"That's sexist, you know that," Emma said simply.
"Come on, you look great," Dean said.
"You would say that," Emma said with a wry smile. "But I still don't see the problem with me wearing what I always wear."
"This is a fraternity house," Dean told her. "The boys in here are very shallow Emma. This is the only way you're getting in." Taking her round the waist, Dean walked Emma up towards the dorm, Sam following them.
"Nice wheels," Dean said as they stopped in front of a group guys who were working on a car. They all turned to the trio, looking at them strangely.
"We're your fraternity brothers," Dean continued. "From Ohio. We're new in town. Transfers. Looking for a place to stay."
He grinned widely as he watched the guys give Emma the once over. She smiled sweetly, although Dean felt her tense slightly in his arms under the guys roaming eyes. She wasn't the type of girl who marvelled over guys looking at her like this, whether she had the goods or not. But even she knew Dean was right. Looking like this was the only way she was getting in as well. Most all guys, living in a fraternity or not, were extremely shallow when it came to their women.
ooooOOOOoooo
The boys, and Emma, were showed into the fraternity house and their new dorm room. There they found a shirtless frat boy in yellow shorts who was painting his body purple. With a strange look on their faces, they knocked on the door, catching the boy's attention.
"Who are you?" he asked as he turned to them.
"We're your new roommates," Dean answered, striding into the room with Emma at his side. Taking this on board, the boy held the paint tin and brush out to Dean.
"Do me a favor?" he asked. "Get my back. Big game today."
"He's the artist," Dean said, pointing to Sam. "Things he can do with a brush."
With a mortified look on his face, Sam took the brush and can from the boy. Smiling, Dean flopped into a chair, tugging Emma onto his lap and picking up a magazine.
"So… Murph," Dean said, looking at the name on the magazine. "Is it true?"
"What?" he asked.
"We heard one of the guys around here got killed last week," Dean said.
"Yeah," Murph said, his voice dropping slightly.
"What happened?" Sam asked, speaking up for the first time.
"They're saying some psycho with a knife," he answered. "Maybe a drifter passing through. Rich was a good guy."
"Rich he was with somebody?" Sam asked.
"Not just somebody. Lori Sorensen."
"Who's Lori Sorensen?" Sam asked before turning to Sam. "You missed a spot. Just down there. On the back."
Sam just glared at him, an annoyed look on his face, while Dean and Emma grinned, Emma trying to hold back laughter.
"Lori's a freshman," Murph said in answer to Dean's earlier question. "She's a local. Super hot. And get this: she's a reverend's daughter."
"You wouldn't happen to know which church, would ya?" Dean asked.
ooooOOOOoooo
Murph did in fact know what church. And right now, the service for Rich was in full flow.
"Our hearts go out to the family of a young man who perished," Lori's father, Reverend Sorensen was saying. "And my personal prayers of thanks go out as well because I believe he died trying to protect my daughter."
He turned to his daughter with a small smile. She just lowered her eyes, embarrassed.
"And now," he continued. "As time heals all our wounds, we should reflect on what this tragedy means. To us, as a church."
During his sermon, Sam, Dean and Emma, now back in her normal clothes, walked into the church. The door slammed behind Sam, the last of the three to walk in. the whole congregation, including Dean and Emma, went silent and turned to him.
"As a community, and as a family," the reverend continued, bringing the congregations attention back to him. "The loss of a young person is particularly tragic. A life unlived is the saddest of passings."
Sam, Dean and Emma took a seat at the back of the church, now being as quiet as possible. As they sat, Lori turned to them, and Sam smiled weakly at her.
"So, please, let us pray," Reverend Sorensen said. "For peace, for guidance, and for the power to protect our children."
The whole church bowed their heads in prayer, even Sam and Emma. All but Dean. Noticing this, Emma elbowed him in the side, motioning round the room. Seeing he was the only one still with his head up, Dean too bowed his head.
ooooOOOOoooo
Once the mass had ended, the church populace made their way outside, chatting away in small groups. Lori and Taylor were part of this crowd, making their way out of the church.
"I can't," Lori said to her friend. "It's Sunday night."
"It's just us girls," Taylor told her. "We're gonna do tequila shots and watch Reality Bites."
"My dad makes dinner every Sunday night," Lori said.
"Come on, Lori. I know this has been hard, but you are allowed to have fun."
"I'll try." Was Lori's answer, to which Taylor rolled her eyes.
"Ok," Taylor said, pulling her friend into a hug. She backed away, mouthing the words 'You Better' as she left. Sam, Dean and Emma took her place, stepping g up beside her.
"Are you Lori?" Sam asked.
"Yeah," Lori said as she turned to them.
"My name is Sam. This is my brother, Dean, and his girlfriend Emma."
"Hi," Dean and Emma said together, waving slightly.
"We just transferred here to the university," Sam continued.
"I saw you inside," Lori said matter-of-factly.
"We don't wanna bother you," Sam said. "We just heard about what happened and..."
"We wanted to say how sorry we were," Dean finished.
"I kind of know what you're going through," Sam told her. "I… I saw someone… get hurt once. It's something you don't forget." Lori nodded slightly as her father walked up to them.
"Dad," Lori said, turning to him. "Um, this is Sam, Dean and Emma. They're new students."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, sir," Dean said as he shook the reverends hand. "I must say, that was an inspiring sermon."
"Thank you very much," the reverend said. "It's so nice to find young people who are open to the Lord's message." Dean chuckled slightly as Emma stepped forward.
"Listen, uh, we're new in town, actually," Emma said as she and Dean led the reverend away. "And, uh, we were looking for a, um, a church group."
They moved the reverend away from his daughter, leaving Sam and Lori to talk in private.
"Tell me, Lori. What are the police saying?" Sam asked as they began walking in the opposite direction.
"Well, they don't have a lot to go on. I think they blame me for that," Lori said.
"What do you mean?"
"My story. I was so scared, I guess I was 'seeing things'," Lori said as they stopped walking.
"That doesn't mean it wasn't real," Sam said as the two held each other's gaze for a few seconds.
ooooOOOOoooo
With what little they knew, the three made their way to the library, walking through the stacks.
"So you believe her?" Dean asked.
"I do," Sam said.
"Yeah, I think she's hot, too," Dean said off-handedly, earning himself a smack across the back of the head. Dean just took it lightly, rubbing the spot where she had hit. He was too used to it now.
"No, man, there's something in her eyes," Sam said. "And listen to this: she heard scratching on the roof. Found the bloody body suspended upside down over the car."
"Wait, the body suspended?" Emma said, clicking on to what Sam was getting at. "That sounds like the…."
"Yeah, I know, the Hook Man legend," Sam said, filling in the blanks.
"That's one of the most famous urban legends ever," Emma said. "You don't think that we're dealing with the Hook Man."
"Every urban legend has a source. A place where it all began."
"Yeah, but what about the phantom scratches and the tire punctures and the invisible killer?" Dean said, for once being the level-headed one.
"Well, maybe the Hook Man isn't a man at all," Sam said. "What if it's some kind of spirit?"
ooooOOOOoooo
Now sat at a table in the back of the library, Sam, Dean and Emma sat back while a librarian placed boxes in front of them.
"Here you go. Arrest records going back to 1851," she told them as Dean blew dust from the box, coughing as it came back in his face.
"Thanks," Emma said to the woman with a friendly smile.
"Ok," she said as se walked away.
"So, this is how you spent four good years of your life, huh?" Dean said once she had left.
"Welcome to higher education," Sam said as he opened one of the boxes. Dean and Emma followed suit with the other box, the three now reading through the contents of them. Hours later, and they were still there, a very bored Dean and Emma almost falling asleep.
"Hey, check this out," Sam said, knocking Dean and Emma back to reality. "1862. A preacher named Jacob Karns was arrested for murder. Looks like he was so angry over the red light district in town that one night he killed 13 prostitutes. Uh, right here, 'some of the deceased were found in their bed, sheets soaked with blood. Others suspended upside down from the limbs of trees as a warning against sins of the flesh.' "
"Get this, the murder weapon?" Dean said, turning to another page. "Looks like the preacher lost his hand in an accident. Had it replaced with a silver hook."
"Look where all this happened," Emma said, pointing to another page.
"9 Mile Road," Dean read.
"Same place where the frat boy was killed," Sam said.
"Nice job, Dr. Venkmen. Let's check it out," Dean said, slapping Sam on the back as he gathered the research and the three left.
ooooOOOOoooo
At Lori's sorority, Reverend Sorensen pulled up outside, his daughter in the car.
"I know this is your first time really living alone since Mom died," Lori said at his concerned eyes.
"That's not it," her father said. "I worry about you."
"There are 22 girls in there and perfectly safe," Lori pointed out.
"That's exactly what I'm worried about," the reverend said. "You don't think I know what goes on in there?"
"Dad, do we have to have this argument again? I'm over 18. I can live my own life."
"Oh, which means, drinking, partying with that roommate of yours!"
"I'm an adult. I can take care of myself. Good night," Lori said, getting out of the car and slamming the door a little too heavily.
"Lori," he called to her retreating back. "Lori, come…. Lori!"
But Lori didn't listen. She just carried on walking into her sorority and to her dorm room. She passed a long scratch on the wall leading up to the one room where she paused. Inside there was a girl innocently working on her computer. She just ignored it and walked to her bedroom. She was about to flick on the bedroom light when she saw that Taylor was asleep.
"Taylor, you awake?" she called softly into the room. Taylor didn't wake up. Lori left the light off and proceeded to get ready in the dark.
ooooOOOOoooo
Up at 9 Mile Road, Sam, Dean and Emma had just pulled up and were rummaging round in the trunk.
"Here you go," Dean said, handing Sam a rifle.
"If it is a spirit, buckshot won't do much good," Sam said.
"Yeah, rock salt," Dean said, handing the rounds to him.
"Huh. Salt being a spirit deterrent."
"Yeah," Dean said, taking out a coil of rope and closing the trunk. "It won't kill 'em. But it'll slow 'em down."
"That's pretty good," Sam said as they walked towards the trees. "You guys and Dad think of this?"
"I told you. You don't have to be a college graduate to be a genius," Dean said. They were stopped in their tracks as they heard a noise in the trees in front of them. Sam instinctively rose the shotgun, fanning around for the location of the sound.
"Over there. Over there," Emma said, pointing towards the trees. Sam cocked the gun and aimed in that direction, watching as a figure walked towards them.
"Put the gun down now!" the figure yelled, who appeared to be the sheriff with his own gun. "Now! Put your hands behind your head."
"W-w-wait, okay, okay!" Dean called out.
"Now get down on your knees. Come on, do it! On your knees!" The three obliged, getting on their knees as Sam dropped the shotgun. "Now get down on your bellies. Come on, do it!"
"He had the gun!" Dean moaned out as they did, lying on their stomachs.
ooooOOOOoooo
Back at Lori and Taylor's room, Lori comes out of the bathroom, now changed into her pyjamas. She looked over at Taylor, who shifted slightly in her sleep, then slipped into her own bed.
As Lori turned over, the closet door swung open slightly, revealing the Hook Man stood in wait.
ooooOOOOoooo
Next morning, Lori rolled sleepily over in her bed, opening her eyes slowly. When she did, they fell on a pool of blood leaking from Taylor's bed. Her eyes travelling up, she found Taylor dead, her eyes staring blankly out and lying in a pool of her own blood.
"Oh my God," Lori exclaimed and she screamed as her eyes travelled higher. Written on the back wall in what could only be Taylor's blood are the words, 'Aren't you glad you didn't turn on the light?', an intricate cross pattern beneath it.
ooooOOOOoooo
Up at the sheriff's department, Sam, Dean and Emma are finally leaving after spending the night trying to get Sam off the hook.
"Saved your ass!" Dean exclaimed as they walked out. "Talked the sheriff down to a fine. Dude, I am Matlock."
"But how?" Sam asked.
"We told him you were a dumbass pledge and that we were hazing you."
"What about the shotgun?"
"We said that you were hunting ghosts and the spirits were repelled by rock salt," Emma filled in. "You know, typical Hell Week prank."
"And he believed you?" Sam said.
"Well, you look like a dumbass pledge," Dean said blatantly as they walked up to the car. Just then, the officers who they had spent the night persuading ran from the building, into their cards and sped away. Sam, Dean and Emma exchanged a look. Most definitely something bigger going on.
ooooOOOOoooo
And the big event was that at Lori's sorority. Police and ambulance were parked everywhere, and the impala joined them as it drove by. The occupants watched Lori as she sat in the back of an ambulance, wrapped in a blanket, before driving off round the building.
Also watching his daughter, Reverend Sorensen was stood talking to the sheriff.
"I just want to take her home," he said almost pleadingly.
"I understand that, Reverend," the sheriff told him. "But Lori's now connected to two murders, and I can't ignore that."
"Listen to me. Arrest her now, or let me take her home." The sheriff thought about this for a minute, turning to Lori.
"Make sure she's available for questioning," the sheriff said eventually.
"Thank you," she said, walking over to his daughter. "Sweetheart, you ready to go home?"
Without a word, Lori stood up and let her father guide her away. Round the back of the building, Sam, Dean and Emma parked up on the street and made their way to the back of the sorority.
"Why would the Hook Man come here?" Sam said. "This is a long way from 9 Mile Road."
"Maybe he's not haunting the scene of his crime," Dean suggested. "Maybe it's about something else."
While they were talking, a pair of sorority girls came out of the building, intrigued by the commotion outside. Sam, Dean and Emma lean up against the side of the building, hiding amongst some bushes to avoid being seen.
"Dude, sorority girls!" Dean said almost playfully. "Think we'll see a naked pillow fight?"
Emma thumped Dean on the arm, bringing his attention to Sam trying to climb onto the balcony. Dean helped him up, then Emma, then joined them himself. They crept over to Lori's window, climbing through in the same order. Dean ungracefully fell through the window, landing equally ungracefully on top of his girlfriend.
"Oh, sorry!" Dean muttered.
"Be quiet," Emma hissed at him.
"Me be quiet? You be quiet!" Dean retorted.
"Both of you be quiet!" Sam hissed back at both of them. They were now in Lori's walk-in closet. Sam opened up the door and watched as the sheriff leaves the room, closing the door behind him. Only then did Sam, Dean and Emma step into the room, seeing the blood, the police tape, and the writing on the wall.
" 'Aren't you glad you didn't turn on the light?' " Sam said, reading off the wall. "That's right out of the legend."
"Yeah, that's classic Hook Man all right. It's definitely a spirit," he said, tapping the end of his noise to indicate the smell around them that the police hadn't picked up on as more than the normal smell of a dead body.
"Yeah, I've never smelled ozone this strong before," Emma said, agreeing with him as he moved to the window.
"Hey, come here," Sam said, his eyes still on the wall. Dean walked over to stand beside him and Emma.
"Does that look familiar to you?" he asked, indicating the cross symbol below the writing.
ooooOOOOoooo
Dean and Emma did in fact recognise the symbol. They figured where from as they sat on the hood of the car, going over the research they already had on Reverend Jacob Karns.
"It's the same symbol," Sam said, pointing to the symbol of the cross that was etched into the hook the reverend had for a hand. "Seems like it is the spirit of Jacob Karns."
"All right, let's find the dude's grave, salt and burn the bones, and put him down," Dean said as Sam read over the research.
" 'After execution, Jacob Karns was laid to rest in an Old North Cemetery. In an unmarked grave,' " Sam read off to them, the information clearly annoying his brother and best friend as much as it was him.
"Super," Emma said sarcastically, thinking just how long it was actually gonna take them to get this seemingly simple job finished.
"Ok. So we know it's Jacob Karns," Sam said. "But we still don't know where he'll manifest next. Or why."
"I'll take a wild guess about why," Dean said as the three moved to get back into the car. I think your little friend Lori has something to do with this."
ooooOOOOoooo
Looking for new information, Sam picked possible the worst place to bring Dean. A college party. While Sam stood in the middle of the room, the goings on around him not of any matter to him, Dean and Emma walked towards him, Dean with a look on his face like Christmas had come early.
"Hey," Sam said as they stopped in front of him.
"Man, you've been holding out on me," Dean said, his excitement showing in his voice. "This college thing is awesome!" He winked and smiled slyly at a passing girl. He tensed slightly, expected the usual smack from Emma. Instead, all she did was roll her eyes. Dean was Dean, and now amount of smacks around the head would knock any sense into him. Emma had a small inkling the damage had been done at birth.
"This wasn't really my experience," Sam told him.
"Let me guess. Libraries, studying, straight A's?" Dean said. Sam just nodded. "What a geek. Alright, you do your homework?"
"Yeah," Sam said, finally getting excited about something. "It was bugging me, right? So how is the Hook Man tied up with Lori? So I think I came up with something."
He unravelled a large and very old looking piece of paper, showing it to Dean and Emma.
"1932. Clergyman arrested for murder," Dean read off. "1967. Seminarian held in hippie rampage."
"There's a pattern here," Sam said. "In both cases, the suspect was a man of religion who openly preached against immorality. And then found himself wanted for killings he claimed were the work of an invisible force. Killings carried out, get this, with a sharp instrument."
"What's the connection to Lori?" Dean asked.
"A man of religion? Who openly preaches against immorality?" Sam told them, making it seem like it was obvious. And what Sam really was getting at hit them before he continued. "Except maybe this time, instead of saving the whole town, he's just trying to save his only daughter."
"Reverend Sorensen," Dean filled in the blanks. "You think he's summoning the spirit?"
"Maybe," Sam said.
"Or you know how a poltergeist can haunt a person instead of a place?" Emma reminded them.
"Yeah," Dean said. "The spirit latches onto the reverend's repressed emotions, feeds off them, yeah, okay."
"Without the reverend ever even knowing it," Emma finished.
"Either way, you should keep an eye on Lori tonight," Dean told Sam.
"What about you two?" Sam asked with a nod. Dean attention was momentarily caught by an attractive blonde girl smiling at him from beside the pool table.
"We're gonna go see if we can find that unmarked grave," Dean said. Seeing where his attention was, Emma dragged Dean away, this time taking action on his flirtatious nature.
ooooOOOOoooo
Despite his almost desperate want to stay at that party, Dean was now searching through the graveyard with Emma, the only light the flashlight beam in front of them. The silence of the night was suddenly disturbed as a twig broke behind them. Jumping round, Emma gripped onto Dean's arm. Dean laughed slightly at the hunter beside him who had the spooks so suddenly.
"All the things we've seen and you're still scared of a cemetery," Dean said to her.
"Just shut up and let's find this thing quickly," Emma snapped out at him.
They did just that, walking through the headstones. Despite trying to put on a brave front, Emma still had a vice like grip on Dean's arm. The flashlights beam finally fell across a gravestone with the familiar cross pattern engraved into it.
"Here we go," Dean said as they walked towards it.
ooooOOOOoooo
Out on guard duty, Sam was stood outside Lori's house. He watched silently as Lori and her father argued, their words unheard. He felt for the girl, the scene all too familiar to him.
ooooOOOOoooo
Back at the graveyard, the reverends grave had almost been dug up, thanks to Dean. Emma knelt beside the open grave, watching but not helping.
"That's it," Dean said, breathless and his t-shirt sticking to him. "Next time, I get to watch the cute girl's house." This earned him a light tap across the head with Emma's foot, drawing his attention to her.
"You know, this would go a lot quicker if you helped," Dean said.
"I'm the girl of the group remember," Emma said, smiling sarcastically at the guy who was glaring at her. "I'm just here to look pretty and get you into places. Digging graves is a mans job."
"I said I was sorry about that," Dean said. Still not liking the look on his face, Emma wanted to remind him about the countless others times she had been simply their 'skirt' so to speak. Like the time they wanted to see the plane wreck from the phantom traveller and had stood and let two pervy guards give her the once over to get them in. But she didn't. She just watched as Dean's shovel finally hit wood, shattering through the coffin. And there was the remains of Reverend Jacob Karns.
"Hello, preacher," Dean said, throwing his shovel aside, and Emma could swear he aimed at her.
ooooOOOOoooo
Outside Lori's house, Sam continues to watch from a safe distance. The argument was now finished and Reverend Sorensen was turning the lights out in the house. Lori, however, was outside and walking to where Sam was sitting. While he looked somewhat embarrassed, she simply sat next to him on the bench.
"I saw you from upstairs," she said simply. "What are you doing here?
"I'm keeping an eye on the place," Sam said. Lori just continued to stare at him. "I was worried," he finished.
"About me?" Lori asked.
"Yeah. Sorry," Sam said, his embarrassment kicking in again.
"No, it's cool. I already called the cops," Lori said with a smile. Sam just laughed slightly.
"No, seriously," she continued. "I think you're sweet. Which is probably why you should run away from me as fast as you can."
"Why would you say that?"
"It's like I'm cursed or something. People around me keep dying."
"I think I know how you feel," Sam said, his mind unwittingly flicking back to both his mother and Jess.
ooooOOOOoooo
Back at the cemetery, Dean was now out of the grave, Reverend Jacob Karns uncovered and ready to be burned. Dean poured salt and lighter fluid over the bones while Emma lit the match.
"Goodbye, preacher," Dean said as Emma threw the match onto the highly flammable body and the two watched at it went up in smoke and flames.
ooooOOOOoooo
Lori and Sam were still sat outside the house, Sam listening carefully at Lori spilled everything to him.
"No one will talk to me anymore. Except you," Lori told him. "The sheriff thinks I'm a suspect. And you know what my dad will say? Pray. Have faith. What does he know about faith?"
"I heard you guys fighting before," Sam said simply.
"He's seeing a woman," Lori continued. "A married woman. I just found out. She comes to our church with her husband. I know her kids. And he talks to me about religion? About morality? It's like, on one hand, you know, just do what you want and be happy. But he taught me, raised me to believe that if you do something wrong you will get punished. I just don't know what to think anymore."
Much to Sam's confused, Lori leant into him slowly, hugging him. Overcoming his con fusion and trying to comfort her, Sam hugged her back. She caused Sam more confusion when she pulled back and kissed him. Again, he found himself kissing her back for a second, until he gently pushed her away.
"Sam?" she asked, confusion now showing in her voice.
"Lori, I can't," Sam said simply.
"That someone you lost?" Lori asked. Sam just continued to stare at her. "I'm sorry," she said softly as her dad came outside.
"Lori? Come inside, please," the reverend said.
"I'll come in when I'm ready," Lori said, her voice showing just how what she felt towards her father right now. Before he could argue back, the hook man appeared behind him, digging his hook deep in the reverends shoulder. The last thing they heard were the reverends screams as the hook man slammed the door. Without a seconds pause, Sam grabbed his gun and ran into the house, listening for the reverend.
"No! No, please! No!" Sam heard the reverends voiced shouting upstairs. Following the sound, Sam was in time to see a door slam shut. Running and pulling it open, Sam now saw the hook man towering over the reverend, his hook ready to strike.
"No! No, no!" the reverend continued to scream. Sam took aim and shot the hook m an in the side. The hook mans attention now on the new entity in the room, Sam shot again, the hook man turning to dust and the shot shattering the window. From downstairs, Sam could hear Lori screaming and her heavy footfalls as she ran up the stairs.
"Dad! Dad!" her voice rang out as she flew into the room, kneeling beside her father.
"Okay. It's ok, Dad, it's ok. It's ok," Lori said comfortingly to her father. And Sam watched, his eyes trained on the spot the hook man had just disappeared from.
ooooOOOOoooo
The next morning, Sam stood outside a hospital room, watching through the window as Lori stood beside her father's bed. The sheriff stood beside him, questioning on the events of last night.
"We were just talking," Sam said. "Then Lori's dad came out. And then he appeared."
"A big man?" the sheriff said. "Carrying a weapon, some kind of hook?"
"Yes, sir."
"Ever seen him before?"
"No, sir."
"Son, it seems every time I turn around, I'm seeing you. I suggest you try to stay out of trouble."
"Yes, sir," Sam said with a nod. His attention was drawn by his brother voice as he saw him and Emma trying to get past two officers.
"No, it's alright, we're with him. He's my brother," Dean was telling the officers before turning to Sam. "Hey! Brother!" He and Emma smiled and waved brightly to Sam.
"Let them through," the sheriff said and the officers stepped aside, letting them passed.
"Thanks," Dean said in the politest tone he could as the sheriff walked away and they made their way to Sam. Emma rushed forward, hugging him fiercely.
"You ok?" she asked.
"Yeah," Sam replied as he laced his own arms round her waist hugging her back.
"What the hell happened?" Dean asked.
"Hook Man," Sam said simply as he pulled away from Emma.
"You saw him?" Dean said.
"Damn right. Why didn't you torch the bones?"
"What are you talking about, we did," Emma said. "You sure it's the spirit of Jacob Karns?"
"It sure as hell looked like him. And that's not all. I don't think the spirit is latching on to the reverend."
"Well, yeah, the guy wouldn't send the Hook Man after himself," Dean said.
"I think it's latching onto Lori," Sam told the two confused looking people in front of him. "Last night she found out her father is having an affair with a married woman."
"So what?" Dean said.
"So she's upset about it. She's upset about the immorality of it," Sam said, trying to make them understand his point. "She told me she was raised to believe that if you do something wrong, you get punished."
"Ok, so she's conflicted," Dean said. "And the spirit of Preacher Karns is latching on to repress the emotions and maybe he's doing the punishing for her, huh?"
"Right. Rich comes on too strong, Taylor tries to make her into a party girl, Dad has an affair."
"Remind me not to piss this girl off," Emma said in all honesty.
"But we burned those bones, we buried them in salt," Dean said. "Why didn't that stop him?"
"You must have missed something."
"No," Emma said. "We burned everything in that coffin."
"Did you get the hook?"
"The hook?" Dean said, the confusion in his voice matching that on Emma's face.
"Well, it was the murder weapon, and in a way, it was part of him."
"So, like the bones, the hook is a source of his power," Dean said.
"So if we find the hook..." Sam began.
"We stop the Hook Man," the three finished together with a smile.
ooooOOOOoooo
Back at the library, the trio were no looking for where the hook might be, not the preacher.
"Here's something, I think," Dean said. "Log book, Iowa State Penitentiary. Karns, Jacob. Personal affects: disposition thereof."
"Does it mention the hook?" Sam said.
"Yeah, maybe," Dean said as he continued to read. "Upon execution, all earthly items shall be remanded to the prisoner's house of worship, St. Barnabas Church."
"Isn't that where Lori's father preaches?" Emma said.
"Yeah," Dean answered.
"Where Lori lives?" Sam said.
"Maybe that's why the Hook Man has been haunting reverends and reverends' daughters for the past 200 years," Dean said.
"Yeah, but if the hook were at the church or Lori's house, don't you think someone might've seen it?" Sam said. "I mean, a bloodstained, silver-handled hook?"
"Check the church records," Emma suggested. And that's what they did. It was of an hour before Emma came up with the answer.
"St. Barnabas donations, 1862," Emma read off. "Received silver-handled hook from state penitentiary. Reforged." With a heavy sigh, she closed the book.
"They melted it down. Made it into something else." And they were now no closer to finishing this.
ooooOOOOoooo
Taking their chances, the three had parked up outside the church, stood beside Impala.
"Alright, we can't take any chances," Dean said. "Anything silver goes in the fire."
"I agree," Sam said. "So, Lori's still at the hospital. We'll have to break in."
"Alright, take your pick," Emma said, motioning towards the church and the house.
"I'll take the house," Sam said.
"Ok," Dean said, watching as Sam walked away. "Hey," he said, making Sam turn again.
"Stay out of her underwear drawer," he said, which only earned him a glare before he turned to walk away again.
ooooOOOOoooo
In the church basement, Dean and Emma stood throwing all the silver items they had found into the fire. They turned to the sound of footfalls as Sam came running down the stairs with a bag.
"I got everything that even looked silver," Sam said.
"Better safe than sorry," Emma said as they began throwing the new stuff on the fire. The sound of footfalls met their ears again, but this time everyone they thought was in the church was down here.
"Move, move," Dean said as he motioned Sam and Emma up the stairs, him following with his gun drawn. Upstairs, pushing the door open cautiously, they found the new occupant was Lori, sat crying alone in a pew, crying.
Putting the gun away, Dean motioned for Sam to go over to her while he and Emma went back into the basement. Sam moved quietly into the main church, stepping up beside her.
"Lori?" he said softly.
"What are you doing here?" she asked as she turned to him.
"What is it?" Sam asked, ignoring her question and kneeling beside her.
"I've been trying to understand what's been happening," Lori told him. "Why? Now I know so I'm praying for forgiveness."
"Forgiveness for what?"
"Don't you see? I'm to blame for all this. I've read in the Bible about avenging angels."
"Trust me, this guy—he's no angel," Sam said, trying to comfort her.
"I was so angry at my father," Lori said, ignoring his comment. "Part of me wanted him punished. And then he came and he punished him."
"It's not your fault."
"Yes, it is. I don't know how, but it is. I killed Rich. Taylor, too. I nearly killed my father."
"Lori..."
"I can see it now," she cut in. "They didn't deserve to be punished. I do."
At her final statement, Sam's attention was drawn to a noise from the back of the church. He watched as the candles extinguished, a slow breeze blowing through them.
"Come on. We gotta go," Sam said, bringing her to her feet. He led her towards the basement door but before he could open it, the hook man's hook came crashing through the wood, inches away from their heads.
"Go!" Sam screamed, running down the aisle with Lori close behind him. They ran into the back room, the hook man close behind them, smashing through the glass on the door Sam had just closed. Standing protectively in front of Lori, Sam let the hook man swing at him a couple of times, dodging each swing. But as he turned to run, his attention on Lori, the hook man swung again, this time catching Sam across the shoulder. He screamed out in pain, unable to do anything as an invisible force pulled Lori back across the floor.
"Come on. You okay?" Sam called out as he ran t Lori, stopping beside her. Before he could help her to her feet, the hook man appeared and knocked Sam backwards. Getting to his feet, Sam pulled himself up behind the hook man. Before he could attack, Dean and Emma ran round the corner, Dean with his gun drawn.
"Sam, drop!" Dean yelled. Sam did, crouching to the ground as Dean shot the hook man, watching as he disappeared.
"I thought we got all the silver," Sam yelled from his position beside Lori.
"So did I," Emma yelled back.
"Then why is he still here?"
"Well, maybe we missed something!" Dean yelled. It was then that Sam turned to Lori, noticing the silver cross necklace round her neck.
"Lori, where did you get that chain?" Sam asked.
"My father gave it to me," she answered.
"Where'd your dad get it?" Dean asked.
"He said it was a church heirloom, he gave it to me when I started school."
"Is it silver?!" Sam asked the pivotal question.
"Yes!" Lori called back to him. At her answer, Sam ripped the chain from her neck. The hook man decided to make himself known again then, a long scratch mark being drawn down the wall by an invisible someone as Dean and Emma turned to watch it getting closer.
"Sam!" Emma called as she turned back round, motioning for Sam to throw her the necklace. He did as Dean threw him the rifle and rock salt. While Sam shot at his invisible target, Dean and Emma ran to the basement to throw the last silver object onto the fire.
Sam tried to reload the gun against his wounded shoulder but was stopped in his attempts as the hook man knocked the rifle from his hand. With nothing else to do but wait for his brother and best friend to come through, Sam and Lori crawled away from their attacker, backing against the wall as he towered over them.
As the necklace began to melt in the furnace below, the hook man stopped, his hook raised in the air. The first thing to melt away was his hook, the rest of his body burning into nothing. As the hook man disappeared for good, Dean and Emma run into the room. The trio share a knowing look. At last, this was over.
ooooOOOOoooo
Daylight breaking, police cars and ambulances were now parked outside the church, the sheriff taking Dean and Emma's statement.
"And you saw him, too? The man with the hook?" the sheriff asked.
"Yes, I told you, we all saw him," Dean said. "We fought him off and then he ran."
"And that's all?" the sheriff asked in a disbelieving tone.
"Yeah, that's all," Emma said.
"Listen. You two and your brother…."
"Oh, don't worry, we're leaving town," Dean said, cutting off the guys sentence before he could say the inevitable. They walked to the car, waiting for Sam who was at the ambulance, getting his arm bandaged up with Lori watching over him.
"You gonna be okay?" Lori asked.
"Yeah," Sam answered, standing up.
"I still don't know what happened," Lori said. "But I do know you saved my life. My father's, too. Thank you."
All Sam gave was a simple nod and a smile as he turned to leave, heading back to the car where Dean was watching him through the mirror. Leaning forward from the back seat, Emma prodded Dean lightly in the back of the head.
"Stop it," she said. One look at her face and Dean knew what she meant. It wasn't the watching, but the interfering into his baby brother's life. With a sigh, Dean faced the front as Sam climbed into the car.
"We could stay," Dean said, knowing, despite Emma's warnings, the only way his brother would do anything would be with his interfering. But all Sam did was shake his head. Watching Lori through the mirror, Dean could clearly saw the disappointed look on his face. Shaking his own head in disappointment, Dean drove away, leaving the latest link in their chain behind, and ready to make a new one as they drove to their next destination.
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AN:- I know there weren't really that many major changes in this episode, but what do you guys think anyway? Please review.