Some humor and the beginnings of a team featured in this one. Let's see how long they can work well together, though! ;) Hopefully more updates soon! Enjoy!
Chapter Eleven:
"People in town are saying what happened to you was a miracle. Do you believe that?" Samuel Winchester asked a middle-aged man with light brown hair sitting before him.
"I was shot in the heart at point blank range and didn't bleed a drop… so yeah, I'd say so," the man responded with a firm nod. "I mean, how else would you explain it?"
Dean and Sam watched him intently, waiting for him to continue. The slightly balding man glanced at his wife and daughter baking in the kitchen.
"Look, I wasn't the best father or husband before this whole thing, and I know this is gonna sound crazy…" he sighed, trailing off a bit.
"Try me," Dean muttered under his breath, shifting in his seat on the large, plush couch.
"I think God just wanted to give me a second chance… to make things right. You know?"
"Ugh, sure," the oldest Winchester said skeptically, causing Sam to shoot him a scolding look.
"Mr. Jenkins, you wouldn't have happened to stop by a crossroads, have you?" Sam asked, carefully reading the somewhat confused man.
"Um… no?" Jim Jenkins responded with furrowed eyebrows.
"Maybe you met someone. Probably had strange eyes… like black, or red," Sam pressed.
Mr. Jenkins folded his arms and leaned back in his chair by the living room window: "What's up with you reporters and your strange questions? Black eyes…" he muttered, frowning.
The Winchester brothers exchanged puzzled glances. Bobby had caught wind of the odd lack of deaths in this small Wyoming town a couple of days ago, and the surly old man swore that he had only told them about the possible hunt. So naturally, the boys had no clue what other hunter would have taken notice to Greybull's abundance of miracles and low death rates.
"Wait, what?" the youngest Winchester inquired, snapping Jim back into the conversation at hand.
"Some woman came here for a story for her religious website… real pretty, but asked the weirdest questions" he explained.
Immediately Sam and Dean had an intimation as to who was in town.
"Oh, yeah," Dean improvised. "Our other partner. Yeah, she's new," he smiled weakly.
Jim didn't seem fully convinced and asked them another question with a tone of suspicion: "What kind of website you guys runnin' anyway?"
"It's not very popular," Sam forced his own smile.
Eyeing them both closely, Mr. Jenkins paused, then asked with a tone and expression of discomfort: "Can you two go now?"
Sam and Dean immediately hopped out of their seats and rushed out the man's house with nods and words of agreement; they were just as happy to be done with the awkward encounter.
Once outside, both brothers loosened their ties and headed for the Impala parked across the street.
"You think Laura's in town?" Sam asked, walking around towards the passenger side. As he did so, he glanced back at Mr. Jenkins' house, where the still suspicious man was watching them from his window.
Dean glanced over his shoulder to where his brother was staring and quickly turned back around as they hopped into the car. Quickly starting the classic '67 Chevy, the eldest Winchester responded with raised eyebrows: "She's the only one that's constantly working the same jobs as us."
"Well if she is here, it's probably safe to say this has something to do with the 66 seals," Sam pointed out the fact that she seemed to be always popping up during such cases.
"That's comforting," Dean replied sarcastically, knowing that this job was indeed going to be way more complicated than originally anticipated.
Sam nodded in grim agreement: "Should we get her number from Bobby and give her a call?"
"All ready got it," Dean responded, feeling for his phone in his suit jacket as they drove through the town.
Sam gave his older brother an odd look: "Dude, why would you possibly have her number all ready?"
"What?" Dean glanced at his brother, who was staring at him with an amused expression. "I figured we might need it," he shrugged innocently.
Sam wasn't buying it: "Ugh, yeah… sure."
"Whatever, man," Dean finally got his phone out and found Laura's number in his contacts list. He then clicked 'dial' and grinned at his younger brother: "Let's see if Miss Cleo's in town."
The black Impala pulled up into the parking lot of the local motel and Dean parked it besides the familiar '66 Mustang. As they got out of the car, the eldest Winchester couldn't help but admire the vehicle. It was in pristine condition and was so clean someone could eat off of it; he was impressed: not only did the chick have a great taste in cars, but she also knew how to take care of one, as well.
Sam knocked on the door of room number 16, and within a moment or two, the young psychic unlocked the door for them.
"Hey boys," she greeted them, stepping aside as they entered her room.
Her usually wavy brown hair was styled in loose, shiny curls, and instead of wearing skinny jeans and boots, the young woman with bright blue-green eyes was dressed in a fitted corally-peach business dress and tan heels.
"Don't you two look nice," Laura complimented their suits with a slight smirk as she walked back over into the living room.
Dean's eyes hungrily traveled from her pumps, up her long, toned legs, and rested on her firm behind as he responded: "Thanks."
Sam watched his brother blatantly check Laura out, and nudged him, but Dean merely mouthed 'wow' and walked forward to follow her into the other room. Sam shook his head, closed the door, and headed into the living room, as well.
"So how'd you know I was here?" she asked, sitting down one of the sofas.
"Jim Jenkins," Sam replied as he and his brother also took a seat.
The beautiful brunette nodded her head.
"How'd you find out about the case?" Sam inquired, though he thought he all ready knew the answer to the question.
Laura made a face; she was clearly uncomfortable being asked about her abilities.
"Did you hear them talking again? The angels?" the youngest Winchester specified what he had meant.
"No," she glanced between the two of them. "I dreamt about it, actually."
"So you can see the future too?" Dean asked in disbelief.
"Listen," Laura sighed, "if you're looking for an explanation about what I can do, you're both gonna get a headache so let's just tackle one mystery at a time."
The Winchesters reluctantly set aside their great curiosity about the young woman sitting before them and agreed to comply with what she had suggested.
"What do you have so far?" Dean asked.
Laura took a case file from the coffee table and handed it to the brothers so that they could look at it: "No one's died in a week and half… people who've been on their death beds have just got up and walked out of hospice as if they're completely healed."
"Not to mention the accidents and assaults that would normally leave anyone a doornail," Dean added, flipping through the pages of the notably flawless file.
"Exactly, and I don't know about you two, but in my experience, miracles don't just happen without a price."
"So you're thinkin' demons, or some shady faith healer," Sam ventured.
"I don't know. That's where I'm stumped. There's definitely no spell work around town that I can sense and I haven't seen a demon in weeks let alone in Greybull," the brunette shook her head with furrowed brows.
"So maybe death's not in town?" Dean thought out loud, looking over at his brother.
Sam's eyes lit up in realization as Laura asked what the eldest Winchester was talking about.
"Reapers schlep souls to the other side, but if there's no reapers, no one's dying," Sam voiced his older brother's thoughts.
"So where are they?" the psychic inquired with a shrug.
"On strike? Playing nine holes?" Dean kidded.
Sam stared hard at Laura's case file and pulled out a picture of a young boy from a newspaper clipping: "I don't know, but he might."
"That kid?" Dean asked, not following.
"He was the last person to die in town," Laura said slowly as the wheels in her head were turning. "Sam's right. We should talk to him."
Dean looked between both his brother and Laura, still perplexed: "Ugh great… but how are we gonna do that?"
Laura and the youngest Winchester simply looked at one another, as smirks spread across each of their thoughtful faces: they had an idea.
