AUTHOR'S NOTES: When I consider the character of Pamela and her psychic abilities, I also kind of think of the idea of Legilimency from 'Harry Potter'. Hopefully, that explains the way I've written Pamela in this story.

Chapter 8


When he returned to the NCIS squad room, Gibbs looked at McGee and Sam who was sitting at Tony's empty desk. "Status update, McGee," Gibbs barked.

Sam started a bit when he heard Gibbs' brisk tone and looked over at McGee who was uploading images up to the main plasma screen. "Richard and Amy Milton," McGee reported, quickly. "Married in '76. Tried for almost 7 years for kids with no luck until 1985 when Anna was born. Rich Milton is a church deacon and Amy is a housewife. No criminal record on either of them."

"What about Anna?" Gibbs asked, looking at the family photo McGee had put up.

McGee brought up Anna's history and shrugged. "Honor roll in high school. Salutatorian her senior year and she was a journalism major until her psychotic episode two months ago."

Gibbs looked over at Sam and raised an eyebrow in a look that said 'Are you going to contribute or just let my agent do all the work?'. "Anything to add, Winchester?"

Caught off guard, Sam stammered for a moment before he said, "Uh, yeah. Yeah, it actually turns out that this recent psych episode of Anna's wasn't her first." Looking at the computer to double check the information, he went on. "When she was two and a half, she got hysterical whenever her dad got close. She was convinced he wasn't her real daddy."

While Gibbs gave Sam a 'What else?' look, McGee was frowning slightly. "Where'd you find that?" McGee asked, curiously.

Sam didn't respond to the question, but instead went on. "Anna didn't say who but she just kept saying that this real father of hers was mad. Very mad, like 'wanted to kill her' mad."

"Kind of heavy for a two-year-old," McGee commented.

Sam nodded in agreement and finished, "Anyway, she saw a kid shrink, got better and grew up normal."

"Until now," Gibbs said, thoughtfully. What was constantly troubling him right now was: Why Anna? Of all the people in the world, why was this poor girl tapped into the world of demons and angels? Momentarily distracted by his phone ringing, he picked it up, surprised to hear Abby's voice. "What is it, Abby?"

"I need you down here, Gibbs," Abby replied, quickly. "I found something seriously hinky in that blood sample you gave me."

"Be down there in a minute, Abbs," Gibbs promised before hanging up. Looking at McGee and Sam, he said, "With me."

Sam nodded and he and McGee followed Gibbs downstairs to Abby's lab where the forensic scientist was looking at something on the main computer screen.

"What do you got, Abbs?" Gibbs asked as he looked at Abby.

Abby turned to Gibbs and the others before starting her presentation. "Okay, first off—everyone knows that when we're conceived we get half of our genetic material from our mother and half from out father. But—" On the larger plasma screen she brought up the DNA samples she'd been running and went on. "Anna Milton's DNA is 95% identical to her mother's. That's impossible except sometimes in cases of incest but that's not what happened here."

"So what did happen?" Sam asked, wondering what to make of this latest wrinkle in the case.

"I don't know," Abby assured him. "I mean I ran the test three times but it just doesn't make any sense."

McGee had been quiet but at Abby's comment, he gave her a dry smile. "Abby, we're dealing with actual demons and homicidal angels. When did think this case would start making sense?" But while he'd been mentally cringing in preparation for Abby's wrath, he was surprised when she suddenly seemed excited.

"McGee, you're a genius!" Abby exclaimed, going to her computer again. "We could be dealing with an actual case of divine conception."

"Come again?" Sam asked, even more confused than Gibbs or McGee right now.

But Abby's excitement wasn't to be quashed as she looked at the demon hunter, a smile on her face. "It's possible that Anna can hear angels because she herself was conceived by them."

As McGee, Gibbs, and Sam exchanged looks, they all found themselves wondering what kind of 180 twist would this case take next.


Starting off on the road to Hayden, Illinois, Fiona had laid down in the back seat of the Impala and quickly fallen asleep.

After looking back at the sleeping Marine from the passenger seat, Ziva glanced over at Dean. "So your father and Fiona's father were friends?"

"Yeah," Dean replied with a nod. "When they were in the Corps, they were also tight with Gibbs. But then Dad and James left to become hunters while Gibbs stayed in the Marines."

"Where is your father now?" Ziva asked, curiously.

"Dead," Dean replied, succinctly. When he felt Ziva staring at him, he added, "This demon… he, uh… made a deal with Dad to save me."

Ziva didn't say anything at first but after a long silence, she finally said, "About two years ago one of Gibbs' agents was killed by a terrorist sniper." When Dean looked over at her, she added, "He was also my half-brother. I killed him in order to save Gibbs."

Dean was quiet for a while, thinking about the idea of sacrifice—obviously something Ziva understood. "When Sam died… I made a deal with a demon to bring him back. I had a year and, uh… when it was up, I was killed by hellhounds."

"Sometimes I wonder what might have happened if Ari hadn't hated my father so much," Ziva mused out loud. "I wonder if… If I could have him back, if we could be a family again."

Looking over at Ziva, Dean said, "I was four when my mom was killed by the same demon who killed my dad. Sam was just 6 months old. Dad handed Sam to me and told me to take him outside. For just about my entire life I've just had one responsibility: Look out for Sam."

It was something Ziva understood quite well. She was, after all, a middle child. Ari had been older than her and she remembered seeing the anger on her father's face when Ari had neglected his duty to keep her and her little sister safe. They had been children and Ari had turned his back for only a minute and Tali had fallen from the tree she'd been climbing and Ziva had tripped on the roots hurrying towards her little sister. She knew the responsibilities of being an older sibling and knew the pain of being the younger, seeing how Ari would sometimes take the brunt of her father's anger to shield her from punishment.

"I think you and I are very much alike," Ziva concluded. "We are both trying to live up to the expectations of our fathers."

Dean was about to argue, to say that Ziva didn't understand, but when he caught her eye, he knew the she did understand—perhaps more than any woman he'd ever known.

xxxxx

A few hours away from Pamela's, they stopped at a rest area after refueling the Impala and Fiona moved to the passenger seat while Ziva grabbed a 'bat-nap'.

Looking over at Fi once they were back on the road, Dean asked, "How're you holding up?"

Fiona shrugged as she stared out the passenger side window. "I was just thinking about… about Dad. I spent so much time fighting him and now… I know he'd dead but it just doesn't feel real yet."

"It will," Dean replied, quietly.

Rubbing the back of her neck, Fiona sighed, deeply. "I just feel like my whole life is spinning out of control." With a soft smile she added, "I guess that's why I understand how Anna feels."

Dean was lost in thought for a while as they continued driving. There were so many things he wanted to say to Fi but he couldn't think of the right way to say them. Catching Fi gently rubbing her arm where she'd been cut, Dean thought about how it wasn't fair that she would be scarred so soon after reuniting with him and Sam.

As if sensing the line of thought, Fiona looked over at Dean and said, "So when Castiel pulled you out of Hell, did he also heal all your past injuries?" Catching Dean's look, she added, "Well, when we were in Autopsy I noticed that the burn scar on your arm was gone. You know, from that wendigo when I was 16 and you were 12?"

Dean nodded, thinking about the absence of all his old scars. "Feels kinda weird, honestly. You know, I earned those scars."

"There's a few scars of mine I wouldn't mind losing," Fiona admitted after a while.

Dean looked over at Fi and when his curiosity got the better of him, he asked, "Like what?"

Fiona shrugged and rolled her right shoulder a bit. "Oh… like the shrapnel scars on my right shoulder. I lost a good friend that day and the scars are a reminder. I don't know, I guess it all just makes me look older than I really am."

"Hey, there's an upside," Dean pointed out with a smile. "My knees are way better than they used to be."

"Yeah, but you must have forgotten how much it hurts to dislocate a shoulder," Fiona said with a smirk. "I saw how much pain you were in."

"First dislocation always hurts the most," Dean argued.

xxxxxxxxxx

Pulling into Pamela's driveway, Dean parked and once he, Ziva, and Fiona were out of the car, he was surprised when the front door opened and Pamela Barnes stepped out onto the porch. "You guys gonna come in or just stand around all day?" she asked with a smirk.

Ziva frowned slightly and started towards the porch. "Pamela Barnes?" she asked, wondering if this was the right person. Hadn't Dean said that she was blind?

"That's me, Officer David," Pamela replied, smiling as she sensed the Mossad officer's surprise. Ziva's aura was a rich swirl of contradictions and Pamela could feel passion simmering below the surface melding with perfect calm. Turning her focus on Fiona Brendon, Pamela was caught off guard by the intense psychic pain coming from the Marine. "Come on inside and we'll talk."

Once inside and sitting in the living room, Pamela asked, "So what're you doing here again, Dean?"

Dean cleared his throat and leaned forward. "There's this girl, Anna. Demons are after her and the angels want her dead."

Pamela frowned a bit at that and after a moment asked, "So why come to me?"

"Because we're out of other options, Dean confessed. "We don't know anything about this girl except that she can hear angels talking. She's hiding something but we can't find out what."

"Will you help us?" Ziva asked, gently.

Chuckling lightly, Pamela nodded. "Yeah, I'll help. So… what do you need?"

xxxxxxxxxxx

On the drive back to Washington, DC, Dean filled Ziva and Fiona in on the details of his first encounter with Pamela and he filled Pamela on what exactly had happened with Anna.

Sitting in the backseat of the Impala with Fiona Brendon, Pamela thought about her three companions. Dean may have come back from Hell physically unharmed but his psychic scars were red, raw, and angry. And there was something like a deep-set ache in Dean's soul when she tried to touch the thoughts and memories of Sam.

Thinking of Sam Winchester, Pamela could remember the power emanating from him—strong and dark. Abilities and a destiny that had been building ever since he'd been born. But after meeting Fiona Brendon, she now understood something she'd never fully been able to touch. While Sam's love for Dean was wild and savage—the two brothers forever doing whatever it took to save and protect one another—Sam's love for Fiona was soft, yet strong. Pamela had sensed it months ago, but it was something that Sam had guarded fiercely—no doubt afraid that it would be used against him.

Fiona was another interesting person, both psychically and psychologically. That woman had some deep, dark wounds that had clearly been festering for a long time. The very first thing that Pamela had sensed was that Fiona not only felt responsible for the death of her father, but she also believed that had she been there she might have saved Sam from being stabbed and Dean from going to Hell. There were also psychic wounds from her time with the Marines and memories of people she couldn't save. But Fiona also had the deepest love for the Winchesters. She regarded Dean as a brother and Sam as… Pamela smiled to herself as she touched Fiona's memory of making love with Sam on a cold basement floor. True love, indeed…

And then there was Ziva David.

Pamela would be willing to bet anything that Sam, Dean, and Fiona knew next to nothing about the mysterious Israeli Mossad officer. But Ziva's essence was hard to read in depth. She'd obviously had a lifetime of experience burying her emotions. But her soul on the other hand… Pamela had known hunters who secretly longed for a peaceful ordinary life and she'd known ordinary people who longed for excitement.

Ziva David wanted to live in both worlds. She wanted a life where she didn't have to hold back in a fight and she wanted to save people, and to do good. And she while she also wanted something permanent, Ziva also wanted the kinds of family ties she saw in Sam, Dean, and Fiona.

x

As the trip went on, Pamela eventually drifted off to sleep and as she started to dream, she found herself sitting on a park bench, overlooking a meadow.

Ever since the angel, Castiel, burned her eyes out of their sockets she'd lived in a darkened world and even in her dreams she sometimes only heard voices.

But one look around and Pamela knew this was no ordinary dream. Especially when she turned and saw Castiel sitting next to her, also staring into the distance. "You have got a lot of balls showing up like this," she said, her anger simmering below the surface.

"I warned you to go back. I never meant to harm you," Castiel replied, his tone deadpan.

"Yeah, well next time," Pamela snapped. "—try harder. What do you want?"

Castiel turned to face her, his blue eyes reminding her of ice floes. "Do not help Anna Milton," the angel warned, his voice cold. "She was not meant to be saved."

"Let me tell you something," Pamela replied, her tone as cold as Castiel's. "You stole my eyes. Who knows how many people you may have hurt? I'm not going to let you make that innocent girl another victim."

Castiel's blue eyes bore into Pamela's and he leaned forward slightly. "Anna is not innocent. You have no idea how dangerous it could be if she is allowed to go free."

"You can threaten me all you want," Pamela said with a self-satisfied smile. "You've already taken my eyes. There's nothing more you can do to hurt me."

Castiel's eyes narrowed and he replied, "You do not know the half of what we can do." Raising two fingers he touched Pamela's forehead.

In an instant, Pamela saw and felt what life would be with out her psychic abilities as her eyes burned away once again. She tried not to but she started to scream.

x

"Pamela!"

Pamela woke with a start, breathing hard against the nightmare. It took a moment for her to calm down and when she heard Dean say her name again, she managed to reply, "I'm fine."

"You sure?" Dean asked, watching Pamela in the rearview mirror. "You don't have to help us, you know."

"No," Pamela replied, quietly, thinking of Castiel's warning and threat. "I do," she added with determination.


It was evening when they returned to Gibbs' house after dropping Ziva off at NCIS and Dean parked on the street before getting out and getting the door for Pamela. When he saw her pause, he asked, "Something wrong?"

Pamela shook her head but as Dean led her into the house, she could feel the psychic memories of Gibbs' family still clinging to the house. With one hand on Dean's shoulder, she let the young hunter lead her through the house and to the basement door. She caught a flash of something in the laundry room—a memory not of Gibbs, but of Ziva as she crouched, aiming her gun at a man standing in the middle of the basement.

"We're here," Dean said as he guided Pamela down the stairs, Fiona behind him.

"Pamela," Sam said in greeting as he came over to the steps from the workbench where he'd been sitting. "Hey."

"Sam," Pamela replied, happy to hear his voice again. But as she heard the awkwardness in his voice, she understood that Sam wasn't quite sure how to approach her now that she was blind. When she felt him put a hand on her shoulder, she decided to play it up just a little. "Sam, is that you?" she asked, reaching out a hand to touch his cheek.

"It's me—Sam. I'm right here," Sam said with an self-conscious grin.

"You know how I can tell?" Pamela said, reaching a hand around and smacking Sam on the butt. "That perky little ass of yours." Turning in the direction of Fiona, she added, "You could bounce a nickel off that thing!" Turning back to Sam's direction, she laughed as she said, "Of course I know it's you, Grumpy!"

Sensing a demonic presence and a cloud of recent emotional distress, she faced the two and added, "Same way I know that's a demon and that poor girl's Anna." Turning to Sam again, she smirked as she said, "And that you've been eyeing my rack." Pamela had said the last bit as a joke but hearing Sam's stammering she figured it had probably been accurate. Laughing she decided to cut Sam a break. "Don't sweat it, kiddo. I still got more senses than most."

Going over to Anna and introducing herself, Pamela added, "Dean told me what's been going on. I'm excited to help."

"Oh," Anna said, a bit surprised that this psychic was so eager to assist. "That's nice of you."

"Well, not really," Pamela admitted thinking of the nightmare she'd had on the way over and what Castiel had said. "Any chance I can dick over an angel, I'm taking it."

Anna seemed a bit puzzled and she asked, "Why?"

"They stole something from me," Pamela replied, removing her sunglasses and exposing the white, artificial eyes. Hearing Anna gasp slightly, she smiled. "Demony, I know. But they're just plastic. Good for business. Makes me look extra psychic, don't ya think?" Laughing, she put the glasses back on and put an arm around Anna's shoulders. "Now, why don't you tell me what your deal is?"

After a few moments, Fiona went over to Ruby and gripped the demon's arm in a strong hold. "Let's talk in the backyard," Fiona said, quietly, making it clear that Ruby wasn't going to get out of it. When the two women were standing in the yard, Fiona suddenly grabbed Ruby and flung her to the ground, grinning smugly when Ruby got up and started towards her.

But before Ruby could retaliate, she found herself stuck and when she looked down, she saw that someone had cut up the ground and it didn't take a genius to figure out that she was in a Devil's Trap. "So now what? You don't have the knife. And you can't exorcise me."

"No, you're right," Fiona admitted, circling Ruby. "Sam lost your knife. Mine is still considered evidence in a murder case. And I can't remember the exorcism rite." Stopping, she hauled off and punched Ruby in the face as hard as she could, knocking the demon to the ground again. "But you know what I can do? I can beat the crap out of you, you demonic bitch!"

"You know what?" Ruby said, not fazed at all. "It doesn't matter how much you care about Sam or how many times the two of you screw each other. Because Sam and I are already closer than you and he will ever be."

Fiona stiffened at that. "What are you talking about?"

But Ruby grinned and after a moment, she said, "Demon blood—My blood." Going as close to Fiona as the Devil's trap would allow, she gave her a twisted smile. "It's called addiction, honey. And I've just started with Sam."

Before Fiona could respond, she heard a scream coming from the basement of the house. Racing back inside, Fiona ran down the basement stairs, shocked at she noticed how calm Anna seemed. "What happened?"

"It's okay," Anna assured her with a light smile. "I remember now—who I am."

Fiona still looked confused and judging by the looks from Dean, Sam, and Pamela, she wasn't alone. Turning to Anna, Fi said, "I'll bite. Who are you?"

"I'm an angel," Anna replied, simply.

Sam and Dean still looked surprised but Pamela couldn't help the feeling in her gut that this was why the other angels—and Castiel—wanted Anna dead. And she also wondered if this was the reason Castiel had warned her against helping.