Chapter 9.
Castiel had dropped the Winchesters off directly in front of the local police station, but even though they successfully did their FBI-thing, they weren't really able to gather any crucial information. Apparently nobody knew what had happened and the police did it's best to keep the whole story away from the public. While Sam talked to the officer who had caught one of the zombie kids, Dean read the report. So far, there were six kids, all of them different ages and with no obvious connection, who disappeared one day only to return two days later to attack their parents. Four of the children got away but two were caught by a police officer and a passer-by who died from a blood infection after the child bit him. The report finished with stating that both of the kids died shortly after they were brought to the nearest hospital, the cause being starvation. Exchanging a quick glance, the brothers both thought that this case was very unlike their previous encounters with zombies. They both thanked the police officer for his cooperation before leaving again.
"So…that was pretty much pointless. We're as clueless as before." Sam said, running his fingers through his hair. For once, the younger Winchester regretted having a rather long mane. He felt sweat trickling down his neck and most of his thoughts circled around how very badly he needed a cool shower, where they should actually stay focused on the case.
"Right, but at least we now know the addresses of the victims. We should have a look around there. We both know we're a lot more thorough than the cops so we might actually find a lead there."
They decided to walk to the first address since it was pretty close and they didn't want to give up the parking slot Castiel had found for them, even though Dean would have preferred to drive his baby instead of being exposed to the cruel, merciless sun. For a while they walked in comfortable silence, the older hunter even had a relaxed smile on his face- something rarely ever seen nowadays- but of course Sammy hat to broach the wrong subject at the wrong time.
"Soooo you an Cas…are you a thing now?"
Dean hated his brother's super inquisitive voice, especially whenever he used it on him. Why couldn't he just keep his mouth shut for a while? Groaning, the older Winchester scratched his eyebrow with the blunt nail of his thumb and stared awkwardly at his own feet.
"No, no definitely not. Can we not talk about this now, Sammy? We should keep our minds on the case."
"Dude, we're just walking here. What better time is there for talking? You were pretty pissed last night and it's not the first time this led to you banging some random chick. Only now, it's Cas and this is not okay, Dean. I know the two of you have a complicated relationship but please tell me you're not just playing with him. Seriously, man, don't break his heart or he'll smite your ass!"
"Listen Sam it's nothing like that, okay? I didn't just play with him and he knew exactly what I was up to. It was just two guys blowing off a little steam, nothing more. Can't blame a guy for being a little desperate after going without sex for so long, besides there's not many people who can claim they did the nasty with an actual Angel of the Lord."
Dean tried playing it down as always and he prayed to God (father-in-law? What the heck?) for his brother to just leave it at that. Of course he knew Sam wouldn't just give up and by the time that familiar, dreaded bitch-face appeared on his brother, he knew he was doomed. Part of Dean just wanted to admit that he'd fallen for his best friend, that this goddamn Angel changed him in more ways than he could count and that, yes, he was attracted to him even though no other man ever struck his fancy. He really didn't know why he was still so emotionally constipated, why he couldn't just tell the one person closest to him what was going on. It almost was like admitting it would make it real…and real things could be destroyed, taken away from him again.
"It's okay, Dean. I know this is some weird self-defense-mechanism, because I have the same, but I can see right through you so there's no point in keeping up this farce. Oh and I should maybe inform you that lying really won't get you anywhere. You guys were so noisy last night you woke me up and even the ear plugs Phil gave me didn't do much to help me sleep. I heard most of what you said and…did. Believe me, I didn't want to, but my room is right next to yours."
"I hate you, you know that, Sammy?" Dean hissed, still staring at his own feet. Even if lying would get him nowhere, he could still deny everything or just refuse to talk about it again. It was bad enough that Cas seemed to want more than he could give, but with Sam getting on his nerves too, the older Winchester was bound to lose his mind soon.
"No, you don't. It's okay, Dean, it really is. If this is what you want, I'm happy for you. I mean, you and Cas always had this thing, it was only a matter of time for you to realize it. Besides, I think he's good for you. Hell, you guys really need each other so just cut the crap and admit your goddamn feelings to him, to me, and most of all to yourself."
"Okay…okay so I really like Feathers. He was there for me when I needed him, he saved my ass a million times in Purgatory and he's my best friend. It's just…complicated, okay? I will never forgive him what he did to you and I can't get over all the things that happened. Not exactly the best foundation for a good relationship."
"So that's what you want with him? A relationship?"
Sam raised his eyebrows and grinned like a fool. His older brother could be so adorable when he was in love.
"Just shut up, Sammy. This conversation is officially over."
They passed a small store and decided to stop there to buy two bottles of cold coke. They'd get food later but for now keeping their bodies hydrated was more important in this torrid heat. The shopkeeper was an amiable fellow with a very heavy drawl and while Sam paid for their drinks, he convinced them to buy suntan lotion too so they wouldn't have to deal with a nasty sunburn.
The brothers continued their walk down the streets of New Orleans, passing colorful houses and people staring at them from their balconies. They noticed a lot of wary faces but maybe that was just their interpretation of things, after all a life of hunting supernatural creatures made you just a tad bit paranoid.
Eventually, they stopped in front of a nice, red house with white windows and a white balcony. The front door was sealed with caution tape but this really wasn't something that could ever stop the Winchesters. They posed as FBI-agents after all, so entering a sealed house wasn't exactly a problem. Inside, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. It was your stereotypical upper middle-class house with lots of family pictures, kids' toys strewn across the floor and a rather impressive TV in the living room. It was in the child's room where they found signs of what had happened here. There were dried blood splatters on the walls and on the floor and a table lamp laying broken one the ground. The brothers checked for supernatural activities, first in this particular room and then in the rest of the house, but couldn't find any.
"Okay, I guess we can rule out vengeful spirits. Do you think it's really just a zombie?" Dean asked while checking the child's room one more time to make sure he really didn't miss anything.
"Well, as far as I know there are different kinds of zombies, and New Orleans is quite famous for its voodoo and hoodoo. Maybe we should try and find some voodoo shaman or whatever they're called."
"Good idea, Sammy. I bet Phil will know where to go."
As they turned to leave, they both stopped dead in their tracks as they saw a familiar silhouette standing in the shadow of the doorframe.
"Hello boys, long time now see. Did you miss me?"
The brothers both groaned as they heard the familiar English accent and saw Crowley himself stepping out of the shadows. Of course there had to be a demon in this. After all, the spawns of Hell always managed to turn plain, ordinary salt'n'burn jobs into a matter of life and death, not only to them but usually also to the rest of the world.
"What do you want, Crowley? We don't have time for your shit now."
Dean clenched his fists. He felt his anger rising. The last time he'd seen this particular demon was the day he and Cas landed in Purgatory together and the memory was not a happy one. True, they had relied on the king of Hell's help before, but he was pretty sure they all preferred not to be working together or getting into each other's ways again.
"Well, I believe you guys owe me one for all my help in the past, wouldn't you agree? And luckily, since we're both here, we seem to be after the same thing."
Sam squinted his eyes, looking at Crowley long and hard, apparently trying to make out what the demon's plans were just by observing his body language. Unfortunately though, the hunter wasn't Sherlock Holmes and the demon's grin was as inscrutable as ever. "What do you know about the zombie kids here?"
"Let's see…First of all, it's not really about the kids. They were just easy victims. There were others too though, but nobody missed them when they disappeared. I can assure you, the bad guy is not a demon. None of my mates could do something this uncreative and dull. " The king of Hell petted something large and invisible next to him, causing Dean to feel his stomach sink. He hitched his breath, averted his eyes for a split second before facing the invisible beast again. How he hated hell hounds. There were some things you just couldn't get over, and being ripped to shreds by invisible beasts and then being dragged to Hell was one of them.
"Then why are you here? To threaten us? Just fuck off and let us do our job or I swear we'll kick your stupid ass." Dean's voice was a low growl. The hunter's hand was already on the grip of his pistol, ready to draw it any second, even though it wouldn't help much against a demon and his hell hound. He mentally scolded himself for not having brought more and better weapons but there was nothing to be done about this now. If the worst should happen, he'd just call Castiel again.
"I'm here because this concerns me too, darlings. You see, some of those people belonged to me. They were brought back though and I really don't like losing my souls to some little rascal trying to play with big guy toys."
Crowley smirked and straightened his tie but his smile didn't reach his eyes. If Sam didn't know it better, he'd have guessed the demon was under a lot of stress right now, and the younger Winchester wasn't sure if this should make him happy or deeply disturb him.
They were interrupted by the screeching sound of a door opening followed by a high-pitched scream.
"Looks like we got company, boys. I'm out of here, have fun!"
The demon just disappeared, leaving the brothers to share a quick looks before running out of the room to investigate the scream. In the hallway, they encountered a middle aged woman, propped up against the wall, clutching a wound on her side and panting heavily.
"Are you okay? What happened?"
Sam immediately was by her side, putting one of his big hands on her shoulder to calm her down, but it didn't seem to help much. The woman was bleeding like a skewered pig and the younger Winchester knew she'd be dead soon if they didn't get her help. She wasn't even able to give them an answer, just whimpered and sobbed as she tried not to lose consciousness.
"Sam…look at this".
Dean had opened the door and was looking staring at what was happening in the streets. People were fleeing, screaming in terror and the source of their panic soon appeared around a corner. There were more than twenty of them, men, women and children, and they were all very clearly dead. Still, their various stages of decay didn't seem to stop them from running after their victims with astounding speed. Only once did one of them trip over his intestines, hanging out of the huge hole in his belly.
"You ready for the zombie apocalypse, Dean?"
"Ready or not, here they come!"
The brothers had no other chance than to leave the dying woman behind. Drawing their weapons, they ran outside, positioning themselves between the zombies and their fleeing victims. The first of their opponents went down when Sam shot half of his face off, but the others were harder to kill. The bastards moved so goddamn fast and shooting them in any other place then the head only stopped them for a few seconds.
"We should've brought more ammo!" Dean growled as he finally landed his first headshot. They were down to 15 of these former humans, and they had circled them, attacking from all sides at once now.
"It's Resident Evil all over again!" Sam replied, kicking a zombie that got too close to the ground before he cut its head off with his knife, trying to save as much of their precious ammo as possible.
The brothers were surrounded, there was no way to escape and it started to look rather bad for them. Dean called out for Cas, hoping his angelic friend still had enough mojo left to hear his prayers and come to their rescue, but when he still wasn't there five minutes later, the older Winchester started to really get nervous.
"Fuck, we're so screwed!"
Sam would've never guessed it would end this way. It seemed so banal, being killed by zombies, when they survived the apocalypse, leviathans and more demons than they could count. He saw his brother severing the heads of two of these monsters with a single, clean stroke of his knife, but there were still too many of these creatures.
Their rescue was as sudden as it was unexpected. They were down to only eight zombies, and to their great surprise, they just tumbled over and fell to the ground. It was silent on the streets then, and the brothers looked at each other in confusion. They would never complain about escaping certain death once again, but finding a cheap way out left them with a feeling of uneasiness. A polite cough brought their attention to two women standing about 10 meters away from them. One of them was unmistakably Eva, though she looked different than on the photo in Phil's house. Her bare shoulders were covered in various tattoos and her black dress was torn and tattered. A purple scarf was wrapped around her fair hair and the red spectacles resting on her thin nose missed a glass. Her slender arm was put around the other woman who had impossibly dark skin, black dreadlocks reaching down to her shoulders and wore a really skimpy, red polka dot dress. She smoked a cigar and leaned on an elegant, black staff.
"Look, Nibo, it seems we finally found them. These are the little fuckers who last saw my husband. We finally found them…or rather they found us." the woman looking like Phil's daughter purred softly.
"Will they have answers for us, maman?" The other woman asked, though her voice, while rather high-pitched and nasal, was definitely male.
"What the…? Eva? Look, uh, we're friends of your dad. He asked us to find you. He's worrying about you, Eva."
Irritation was written on Sam's face and he found his own expression mirrored on his brother. This was just beyond weird, even for their standards.
"Possession?" Dean whispered into Sam's ear. The older Winchester's hand was still on the grip of his pistol, ready to shoot should the women prove to be any kind of danger. His brother just shrugged.
"I'm not Eva, child. I'm here for answers you little shit, so you better only speak when spoken to. We're looking for Angels. It was an Angel who killed my husband and I demand justice for the crimes against my family and my people."
"Look, uh…lady, we don't really know what you're talking about. I think you got the wrong guys."
Sam was careful and diplomatic as always, but it seemed to work little on these women.
"Maman is never wrong! I can smell the Angels on you, so don't you deny it. You saw papa die and we want answers. You have until midnight to bring us an Angel. We'll wait for you at the first St. Louis Cemetery and should you fail to meet our demands, we'll bring everyone buried there back to life."
With these words, both women just disappeared, leaving behind the corpses scattered around the brothers and a faint scent of cigar smoke.
"Okay…I'm calling Cas. This is serious shit." Dean mumbled, still staring at the spot where seconds ago the women had been.
