The only real lead we had was Samuel; he'd been resurrected at the same time so maybe he had some idea of what had brought them back. We started towards the Campbell compound within the hour mostly because it was obvious that Bobby didn't want Sam in his house any longer than necessary. For one, the fact that he was soulless just put the man on edge. For two, Bobby was absolutely furiouswith what Sam had implied he'd done to me.

Part of the problem was that I didn't want to give anyone specifics. I'm certain Sam would have happily given any if someone asked but no one did. Pretty sure Bobby was thinking I'd been assaulted and that Dean didn't believe me when I'd said it was my choice.

Regardless, I had no intention of being alone with Sam, purposefully or accidentally, until he was fixed. Thankfully, I had a literal angel on my shoulder looking out for me. While the others handled various logistics (Dean had to call Lisa, Bobby wanted to double check a few books, Sam moved a few belongings from his Charger to the Chevy) I packed a few things that I'd left in Bobby's spare bedroom. Castiel hovered in the doorway. "Is there a reason you've been standing there?" I eventually asked.

The angel continued gazing down the hallway. "I did not want you to be alone."

I buckled up the last of my things in a shoulder bag. "Why?"

"Because of Sam."

I sighed. "I'm a big girl, Cass. I can tie my own shoes and everything."

"I know." I'm pretty sure he was referring to my shoes. "It's just… I don't trust him."

He was being honest, but there was something… I don't know. I could swear Castiel was feeling responsible somehow for Sam's actions. Of course, technically, it turned out he was. However, at the time all I could think was that it was nice of him to care.

I hefted my bags to my shoulder and walked over to him. After lifting up on my tiptoes I pressed my hand to the side of his face and gave him a gentle kiss on the opposite cheek. "Thank you."

The angel looked puzzled. "You're welcome?"

I'd shoved shyness aside a long time ago. Being a demure little maiden had gotten me fucked up in the first place so why bother? But when I looked into those ancient blue eyes I suddenly felt really self-conscious. "Um, so…"

"Eva!" Dean shouted up from the foyer. "Ready?"

"Yeah, I'm coming!" I started walking towards the stairs, but when I felt a pull on my strap I came to a halt. To my consternation I found myself being scrutinized by a very confused angel. "What?"

Castiel leaned in ever so slightly before letting go. "Nothing. I will meet you there." A rush of wings later and he had poofed away.

Was… Was Castiel going to kiss me? On his own? Was he even capable of feeling anything with all his powers back…? Oh well, no use mulling about the enigma of angelic reasoning when I had to prep for a five hour drive with a sociopath and his cranky brother.

I hurried down the stairs and out the front door. Sam was sitting nonchalantly in the front passenger's seat of the Chevy while Dean argued with Bobby. "We need someone to hold down the fort."

"Boy," Bobby said temperamentally, "don't be talkin' to me like I'm stupid. You need backup."

"Eva's coming and Cass is meeting us there. You keep looking for some way of gettin' Crowley to hand over that soul o'yours. Figure it out and we'll be right back to help."

Bobby's mustache went through several grumpy wiggles before he uttered, "Fine. I got one lead, anyways. Gonna have to test it out before I know for sure."

"What is it?" I asked curiously.

"Nothin' you need to be hearing, girl." The old hunter gave me a good pat on the shoulder. "You watch her back," he told Dean.

I was about to object to the overprotectiveness when Bobby's eyes slid meaningfully back over to Sam. Instead of being belligerent I acquiesced. Sarcastically. "Back," I clarified to Dean, "not ass."

The elder Winchester rolled his eyes and headed for his car. I gave Bobby a farewell smile and followed. A quick rev of the engine and we were off.

Most of the ride was spent in uncomfortable silence. Dean and I were unwilling to start any conversations that might go askew with Sam in the car, and Sam just didn't care. It made for tension thick enough to cut with the proverbial knife.

Halfway there we made a necessary pit stop at a gas station where Dean gave his brother a shopping list of junk food (beginning with pie and ending with pie). I got out, stretched, and leaned against the car. "You gonna talk?" Dean asked as he waited for the gas to pump.

"About?"

"You and Sammy. Just… if you need someone to talk to I'm here."

"Dean," I sighed, "if… when Sam gets his soul back he'll be your brother again. Do you really want to hear about things you might not be able to forgive him for?"

The pump clicked. "That bad?"

I bit my lip, remembering. How Sam would slam the door closed before backing me up against it and ravaging my lips with his. How he'd roll me on top and fuck me, my head thrown back and my hands on my own breasts. How he'd give me gentle caresses, light kisses, sending us both careening over the edge… and how he'd turn away as soon as the feeling faded.

Dean replaced the pump. I saw Sam returning from the convenience store, bag in hand. "Sometimes," I finally answered.

The older Winchester looked worriedly at me, but closed the conversation when Sam came up and announced, "They only had those Hostess fruit things."

"Fine by me," Dean replied and snatched a cherry pie out of the bag.

Sam gave me a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes and asked, "Want one?"

I ignored him and opened the back door. Another few hours and maybe we'd have some answers. Samuel or one of his ilk could bring me back to Lisa's so I could grab my bike and then I could say farewell to the six and a half foot tall pile of shit.

We got to the Campbell compound just as the sun was setting. Mark was doing guard duty. When he spotted Sam he waved us on in. I saw him look appreciatively at the Chevy (the Impala, as Dean so adamantly corrected at one point) before giving me a curious glance.

Samuel, Gwen, and Christian (the complete and utter asshole of the Campbell bunch) were huddled around the conference table. Sam got a hearty welcome from the men and Gwen walked over to give me a brief hug in welcome.

Dean's only greeting was an exchange of suspicious stares between himself and Samuel. Sam had explained who was who on the way, but I don't think Dean had been totally convinced that their grandfather, who had been killed before they were even conceived, was now walking about. There was apparently some history, something having to do with a powerful, yellow-eyed demon and the Winchesters' mother, but I hadn't been privy to the exact details.

Samuel gave me a warm smile. "We were worried," he said to me after his and Dean's staring contest was done. "Sam said you'd been abducted."

I scowled up at Sam. "You're a dick."

"Can we talk?" Dean asked Samuel. "Somewhere in private?"

The older man lifted an eyebrow and waved off the others. Samuel led us into his office, shut the door, and asked, "What's this about?"

"The day you got back, what happened?"

"I was dead. I woke up, pow, I was on Elton Ridge. Don't know how, don't know why."

"Are you certain?" Castiel said from behind him.

Samuel swiveled around. He kept his cool remarkably well. "The angel, huh? You're scrawnier than I pictured."

"This is a vessel." Cass sounded almost offended. "My true form is approximately the size of your Chrysler building."

Samuel ignored the flat-spoken boast. "I still don't know what this is about."

"Cass needs to check something," I told him as the angel rolled up his sleeves.

"And what's that?"

"Please hold very still," Castiel instructed. After that highly informative statement, Samuel froze. The angel plunged a hand into his belly, eliciting a monstrously horrendous scream from the Campbell patriarch.

The process didn't take nearly as long as it had with Sam; Castiel merely rooted about for a few seconds and withdrew. "His soul is intact," he said as Christian came bursting through the door.

The dickhead cousin gave us all steely glares. "What the fuck…?"

"I'm fine, Christian," Samuel panted out. "Just give us a minute."

"But—"

"Just give us a minute."

After another round of suspicious glances Christian left. "What was that about my soul?" Samuel asked, still bracing himself against his desk.

"Whatever dragged me out," said Sam, "left a piece behind." After a moment he asked, "Did you know?"

"No, but I… I knew it was something." Samuel sighed and looked from him to me. "You're a hell of a hunter, Sam, but the truth is sometimes you scare me. And then whatever was going on between—"

"We need help figuring this out," I cut across him. I didn't need to be wallowing in anymore memories.

"Well, I'm here to help, of course," he said. His eyes lingered on me for a moment more; he was going to bother me about this later. Joy. "What leads you working?"

Sam, Dean, and grandpa Campbell discussed their lack of information while I paced. After a few minutes I noticed Castiel staring upwards worriedly. "What is it?"

"I have to get back."

"You're leaving?" Dean asked incredulously.

"I'm in the middle of a civil war," the angel replied crossly.

"You better tear the attic up, find something to help Sam."

"Of course. Your problems always come first." Castiel said it with so much weary, veiled irritation that it sparked my temper. "I'll be in touch."

As soon as he'd disappeared I walked up to Dean and snapped, "What was that?"

"What was what?"

"You! What you told Cass! Don't you realize what he's been doing?"

"So the angels are bickering again," Sam scoffed. "No big deal."

"It's not like this is something new to them," Dean added.

"He's being forced to kill his family! Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

"Those douchebags tossed Cass out on his ass! If he's decided to stick up for them that's his mistake!"

Both of our voices had risen to shouts. "He can't be doing shit for you when he's in the middle of a fucking war! You're going to get him hurt."

Dean glanced over at his brother. "We got bigger crap on our plate right now than worrying about a bunch of feathered assholes."

I tipped over into pure fury. "You stupid, pig-headed, selfish—"

"Hey hey hey!" Sam yelled, one of his hands grabbing the fist I'd raised. "That's enough already."

I yanked my hand out of his grasp and stormed out. The door clanged quite satisfyingly when I slammed it shut. Gwen walked over and held out my keys. "Everything okay in there?"

"Sure." I started walking to the exit. I wanted distance between me and the Winchesters. Maybe I could hitch a ride. Take a train. A bus. A freaking bicycle.

"Wait!" Gwen cried. She jogged over and laid a hand on my arm. "Stick around. We got a big one coming up."

"Big as in… what?"

"Big as in huge. Finally got a good lead on that Alpha Vamp."

I decided to stay, at least for this. After all, that's what I had stuck around for. Even if it wasn't Crowley the one who was delivering, it was still an end result. I could be taking revenge for my family in a matter of days.

We spent the next few hours preparing. Shotguns to slow them down, machetes for any followers the Alpha might have with him, and about two adult bodies' worth of dead man's blood. I helped catalogue ammo and then headed out to the Impala for my bags and a spare set of clothes. New underwear, socks, tank to—

"Eva?"

I spun around and tried to impale Samuel with my… socks. "Don't do that!"

The older man lifted his hands in surrender. "Sorry. I just wanted to see how you were."

I gathered up my clothes. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." This line of questioning was really getting tiresome.

He sighed. "I just wanted to apologize."

"For?" What was this about?

"I thought… I thought what was going on with you and Sam was kind of a relationship thing. Didn't think I had any business interfering."

Oh. Knew he wasn't going to leave that be. "I'm an adult, Samuel. I could handle myself."

"Could you? Really?" He didn't wait for an answer before plowing forward. "We all knew. Neither of you said anything, but we knew."

Shit. "It was sex. That's it."

"If it was just sex, then what was up with the bruises?" At my lifted eyebrows he added, "You didn't hide them as well as you think."

I squirmed. "Because he's a dick. Apparently a dick with no soul."

Samuel nodded slowly. "Be careful, Eva."

I swallowed an unexpected lump that had taken root in my throat. "Thanks."

The old man felt guilty; he was the one who asked Sam to tail me, after all. It never occurred to me that he'd noticed what else had been going on with Sam. Now I knew that it was sort of a selective silence, kind of like the way my father never spoke about the fact that he knew Josie wasn't a virgin even though he'd picked up her birth control pills multiple times.

I was on the verge of tears. Samuel's kindness was so unexpected it threatened to break more of that wall around my heart. Dean had already chipped at it all those months ago after Sam had thrown himself into Hell. Now that crack was widening.

This was no good. I'd survived all these years by making myself hard. A fighter, a warrior. We were about to dive into the lair of the vampire and I needed to be able to cover their backs. No way I could do that as a stinking lump of emotional shit.

The compound door creaked open. "Hey!" Gwen called. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah," I cracked out. After clearing my throat I repeated, "Yeah. Just give me a sec."

Fuck this nonsense. Go in, behead some vamps, and I'll be good to go. After that… well, after that would be after. First things first. Time to bag big daddy bloodsucker.

Gwen and I ended up in the Impala with Dean while Samuel bullied Sam into the van. I had this feeling grandpa Campbell didn't want Winchester taller anywhere near a female member of his group. Old fashioned chivalry, I suppose.

I explained the bag and tag operation to Dean on the way. "What the fuck?" was his response.

"I don't like it anymore than you do but that's what Crowley asked and that's what we're doing."

"So I get why you're doin' it," Dean told me. He turned slightly over to the back seat. "What I don't get is why you all are."

"I trust Samuel," Gwen said simply. "Demon or no demon, whatever he's doing must be for a good reason."

"Do any of you even know what Crowley's even after?"

"All we know," I replied, "is that they get taken somewhere, they get grilled for info, and that's the last of it."

"Torture," Dean stated harshly.

"So suddenly you're all heartfelt and squishy for monsters?"

Dean's mouth pressed into a thin line. He was silent for a few miles. "Still don't like it. Either of you even been there when it goes down?"

Both Gwen and I said "no." "Samuel doesn't want us there," Gwen said bitterly. "He thinks we'd be too soft on them."

"Soft?" Dean scoffed. He thumbed at me. "This one nearly caved my face in last year."

"Really?" Gwen asked interestedly.

"Long story," I replied. "Look, we haven't been to these QA's and so we don't know where it goes down. So play nice or don't play at all."

Unspoken was the idea that if we didn't go along we'd never find out what the endgame was. I hoped Dean understood. At the very least he capitulated and shut up about the whole messy situation. With a twist of his wrist he turned up the radio and effectively killed any further conversation.

The actual operation went off without a hitch. Samuel made Gwen and Dean stay outside and pick up stragglers. He tried to make me do the same, but I gave him the finger and walked towards the entrance, machete resting on my shoulder.

Lots of flunkies inside to chop, and after getting stabbed and pumped full of dead man's blood the Alpha Vampire wasn't in any condition to fight back. Pretty much went off without a problem.

We watched them stuff the Alpha into the back of the van before prepping to leave. Gwen automatically sat with Samuel in the front of that vehicle (where she usually went) and I unfortunately ended up in the back of the Impala with the Winchesters. It took all my willpower not to stab through the leather into the passenger's seat.

The pair had a loud row on the way back to the compound. Sam was blunt when asked why Dean had been kept out of the loop for so long; apparently the elder brother's traditional method of "shoot first and ask questions later" would have gotten in the way. I didn't believe it and neither did Dean.

"And you two fucking?" Dean demanded angrily. "How does that figure?"

"I'm sitting right here," I said sourly.

"She was available," Sam replied casually. He turned towards me, that damn smirk on his lips. "No use denying that you wanted it just as much."

I didn't really need the reminder of how easily I gave in. Sam, however, really did need the black eye I gave him a second later. He shouted out several obscenities and then looked at his brother for support. Dean merely told him, "That's what you get."

In the end Dean gave Sam an ultimatum. "You want this to work then I drive the bus, I call the shots and you tell me everything whether you think it's important or not because, trust me, you can't tell the difference. Or, you know what, go stay with Samuel. See how that goes. It's up to you."

We'd reached the road outside of the compound at this point. Sam's face was inscrutable. After a few minutes of silence he got out of the car. Much to my surprise, rather than taking off Dean killed the engine. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Waiting."

I sighed and got comfortable. My eyes were starting to drift shut when Sam abruptly returned. He greeted his brother and ignored me. "You didn't think I'd come back," he accused.

"I figured sixty-forty," Dean replied with a shrug.

Sam ignored the implications. "So, Samuel didn't take the bait. I went with plan B."

My eyebrows shot up. "You guys had a plan B? You actually thought through something? That's a first."

"Yeah," Dean said grumpily, "except we didn'thave a plan B. What the hell did you do?" he asked his brother.

"Fired up the GPS on one of his cellphones. We should be able to track him right to the Alpha."

"The old man won't notice?"

"Trust me. He thinks Velcro is big news."

Samuel's phone led us to the industrial district of Lawrence, a good hour or so drive from the compound.

We picked our way inside. Down an adjoining hallway we heard a new voice sardonically say, "Ouch. Stop. That hurts."

Samuel's voice replied with a threat that was half-hearted at best. Metal clattered to the floor a minute later and footsteps marched away. We crept forward, Dean leading, keeping to the shadows and trying to avoid detection from what we all knew was the Alpha Vampire.

Turned out it was for nothing. "Are you going to hide all night? Come on out now, don't be shy." Once we were in the light, the Alpha asked pleasantly, "How can I help you?"

"We got some questions for you, skippy," Dean said cockily, "since you're going nowhere fast."

"Don't be so sure." The vamp locked eyes with me. "Hello, Evangeline."

My eyes widened. I'd never met this thing before in my life. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize we were on a first name basis."

He chortled. "We aren't. But you are so, so very well acquainted with one of my children. I know what all of them are up to, especially those that have been around for a very long time. My dear Liu—" his smile widened, "—I'm sorry, Louie, is always thinking about the one that got away."

I could feel the blood draining from my face. "Eva?" Dean asked worriedly.

Sam was asking the Alpha questions, like defining who, what, why, and where, but I barely heard him. Something about Purgatory. About mothers. Dean inserted the odd comment here and there but his hand was on my shoulder and I knew his primary focus was whatever was on my mind.

Every single one of my scars flared up under Dean's fingers as the Alpha's voice rolled over my ears. It knew. It knew and it approved of what had been done to me. Who could imagined such horrors? Had he taken pleasure in watching Louis's handiwork? Was the Alpha even now hearing Louie think about me, reminisce about me, plan what he would do to me?

I felt violated all over again, my skin laid bare in preparation to be flayed.

No.

NO.

He didn't get to do this to me. Not again. Not ever again.

Dean was saying something obnoxious about Kermit as I found my hands on the bars of the Alpha's cage. "WHERE IS HE?" I screamed. "WHERE THE FUCK IS HE? TELL ME WHERE THE FUCK HE IS!"

That motherfucker laughed at me. I stretched my arms at him, still shrieking nearly incomprehensible inquiries. Two pairs of hands yanked me back just as the click and catch of a shotgun being prepped echoed through the room. "Evening," Samuel said pleasantly after Dean's hand clamped over my mouth.

Samuel gestured us from the room with his gun barrel, Christian and another Campbell cousin standing with him to make sure we complied. I jerked away from Dean and stomped on ahead. We went down an adjacent hallway and stopped. The cousin walked away, I assume to go watch over the Alpha.

While Samuel kept his shotgun trained on us, Christian patted us down and divested us of our weapons. He did the Winchesters first. An impressive array of blades and firearms was piled up on the floor when he was done. When he got to me he started on my boots, slipping lockpicks and knives out, slid his hand around my ass, took my sword from its sheath, and rather thoroughly "searched" my chest for any hidden items. I closed my eyes and willed myself not to react.

I opened my eyes as Dean snapped, "Wow, you know, I have seen some stupid in my time, but you take the crown."

My mind was still fogged, blood pumping loudly in my ears, and I missed much of the subsequent machoism. I sort of got back to reality when Dean attacked Samuel and Sam attacked Christian, an effort that was stymied by Gwen's fortuitous arrival. "Hi," she said cheerily after cocking Samuel's dropped shotgun.

"Gwen," Dean sighed. "And I thought we had something special."

Silence followed as both Campbells caught their breath. I stood where I was and stared at my sword. As soon as a scream echoed down the hall I snatched it up and ran back to the other room.

Both Dean and Gwen shouted my name, but I was past caring. The Alpha Vampire had escaped and the nameless Campbell cousin was dead. Upon seeing his body I ran out another door, focused on the hunt.

It knew where Louie Lee was and it was going to tell me before I killed it.

I jogged down hallways, my eyes scanning every shadowy alcove, every open doorway. The others were walking about cautiously, their footsteps taps that barely registered as sound, but I didn't care. It had been years and years of hunting and searching and I needed to know.

Of course, my stupidity got me caught. I rounded a doorway into an open area and found myself grabbed by the neck and slammed up against a support pillar. "Evangeline," purred the Alpha Vampire. "What Louie told me about what you two had together… really, I'm quite jealous."

"Fk… y…" I managed to eke out.

He leaned in and took a big sniff. Inadvertently, I received a whiff of his scent. The stench of death and blood and rot of so many years made me sick to my stomach. When he pulled back there was an alarmingly large grin on his face. "Why, Evangeline. Congratulations."

I was absolutely dumbfounded. "Wh…?"

"You're pregnant."

No.

Nope.

Not true. Not at all. My mouth moved opened and closed in a vain attempt to vocalize my denial but nothing came out.

The Alpha took the opportunity and pondered, "I've never personally turned anyone that was… expecting. I wonder, would the fetus survive? Let's test that, shall we?"

My eyes widened as his fangs descended. I was dead dead dead—except rescue came from an unlikely source. Christian's arm wrapped around the Alpha Vampire's neck and pulled him off of me in a show of strength that incongruent to his size. Then his eyes filmed over with inky blackness.

"Explains a lot," I said hoarsely through a bruised trachea.

Christian smiled cruelly. "Same with you."

Shit. He'd heard. Thankfully the others came pounding in, alerted by the loud snarls and imprecations coming from the Alpha. A moment later two more demons appeared… and then disappeared with Christian and the vampire.

An obnoxiously slow applause began coming from the other end of the room. Crowleystepped out and observed, "Well, that was dramatic."

Everyone's eyes were on King Dickhead which gave me the opportunity to start sidling towards the exit. "Bring Christian back now!" Samuel demanded.

"I'm sorry?"

"My nephew! The one you crammed a demon into!"

"Oh. No. I had him possessed ages ago. Samuel, really. I keep an eye on my investments."

"Since when do you give a crap about vampires or chubacabra or any of those shits?" Dean growled.

"Since, uh…" Crowley pretended to think. "What's today? Friday? Since… let's see…" The pontificating disappeared behind a smirk. "Mind your business."

"You may as well share with the class, Crowley," Sam snapped. "We know you're looking for Purgatory."

"So you heard about that?"

"Yeah. You want to tell us why?"

I didn't care. I wanted out. By that point in their exchange I'd reached the doorway and, contrary to my earlier flight around the building, I slipped out as quietly as possible. I burst from the door that we'd initially entered from and ran. I hotwired the first shitty car I could find and began to drive.

I hit the first twenty-four hour pharmacy and grabbed three different pregnancy tests. At the closest motel I tore open the wrappings and headed for the bathroom.

All positive.

Fuck me and fuck Sam fucking Winchester.

Acknowledgement : Some lines of dialogue are taken directly from the episode "Family Matters" (SPN 6.07).

Author's Note : Just a bit of fudging done with Gwen, who didn't know about the Crowley thing canon-wise until his big reveal. Here, obvs, she already knew.