Sam managed to narrow the signs down to a Warehouse Complex and they spend hours searching each of them looking for Castiel. Alora had been unusually quiet while they searched and Sam was starting to get worried, in his experience when women went silent it was usually the calm before the shit storm. Dean understood what the silence heralded as well because he got more and more tense the longer it took for them to find Cas. After a whole day of searching they still hadn't found Cas and it was while they were driving back to the motel that he broke the tense silence. "Look I'm sure we'll find him, this isn't an exact science."
She gave him a flat unhappy look and he felt the urge to duck his head like he was ten years old again and had gotten caught smoking. He sighed and held his hands up as she sat on the bed and took her shoes off. She rubbed her eyes and slumped. "I'm sorry Dean, I know this isn't your fault."
He sat on the other bed and leaned his elbows on his knees. You know I wish I could tell you that we'll find him and everything will be ok but I can't."
She nodded. "Yeah, I know. You're lives aren't exactly 'safe or sane'." She quoted.
He winced. "You heard that huh?"
She gave him a halfhearted smile. "Yeah well, you guys aren't as quiet as you think. It's ok, I get it. And I can even understand the worry over what you guys have to see as a whole new set of problems. I just wish I knew who took him or even why."
Dean reached over and awkwardly patted her shoulder as she rubbed at her eyes blinking fast. "When we find Cas we'll get an explanation but you should know he has a history of doing things he think are right and figuring out later that they were supremely bad ideas."
She gave a watery laugh. "You know he told me the same thing about you two once."
He chuckled. "Yeah well, we're all really good at screwing up."
She sniffed and wiped her watery eyes again. "I just hope he's alive to yell at."
Sam set the duffle bag on the floor and made sure the door was locked. Trust me if Cas was dead we'd know it. Someone would be bragging about it."
She looked over at him frowning. "How many people want him dead?"
"People? Not so many, supernaturals though…" Sam trailed off seeing the look on her face.
"It's why we live in a magically protected bunker and don't get involved with anyone. Our lives are too dangerous, Cas knew that but he obviously loved you enough to take the risk." Dean said.
She stood up and ran her hands through her hair making it stick up all over the place. "So what do we do now?"
"We get some rest and try again in the morning." Sam replied.
"Rest… sure… with the man… angel, I love being tortured out there somewhere and supernatural critters out for my face." She muttered and walked to the bathroom. "I need a shower."
She shut the door with a sharp snap and Sam gave Dean a sympathetic look, Dean shrugged back and grabbed the remote.
Castiel could barely see through the blood on his face, the heat of the ring of holy fire made sweat drip into his eyes and he couldn't feel his arms anymore. The Voice had returned several times asking the same thing over and over and he'd refused to tell him where Alora was. He hoped that she was with Sam and Dean in the bunker, of all the people in the world he knew Sam and Dean alone could keep her safe, he knew he didn't have much longer before the Voice would kill him and pursue alternative methods of finding Alora.
He cursed himself as he huddled chained and bleeding in the circle of fire, he'd been arrogant enough to assume that the spell had gone unnoticed, that the love of his life, his whole world would be safe now that she was functionally immortal. What he hadn't counted on was the safety measures in place in Heaven to keep humans from getting ahold of and misusing an Angels Grace. It had set off all kinds of warning bells in the halls of Heaven and after all the losses heaven had taken over the last few years they had become incredibly territorial over what little they had left. So many weapons had been lost, so much damage done that they felt the need to protect the last vestiges of what they held sacred and so much of their divinity and power was wrapped up in their Grace that the idea of a mere human possessing even a fraction of it had sent many of them into a fury.
They'd begun hunting her with a focused determination that stunned even him and he'd seen them wipe out entire continents. He felt the air move and knew the Voice was back. "You are running out of time Castiel. Tell me where the Abomination resides."
He spat blood into the fire and screamed when a lance of light speared his back. When he could breath again the Voice asked again and he shook his head unable to speak past the pain. "If you do not tell us where she is we will lay waste to this country. We will smite it with fire and blood."
Castiel shook his head his eyes going wide, he knew that alone wouldn't kill her but she would be the only one left in the wasteland and they'd be able to find her by the sheer fact that she was the only survivor. "You can't… you won't… please…" He rasped blood dripping down his chin.
"You have caused this Castiel. You are the source of her doom. Now tell me where she is and we may be able to simply remove the Grace you imbued her with and let her live." The Voice urged him and Castiel felt his resolve faltering at the thin hope.
He opened his mouth but then realized that they couldn't let her live, she had knowledge of an Angels Grace now, she had to die to protect that secret. He closed his mouth and shook his head then screamed again as another lance of light pierced him.