Chapter Eleven
The cabin hadn't been occupied for almost a year. They would need to stop and get supplies before heading up the mountain.
Alyssa parked in front of the local grocery store parking lot, the Impala pulling in next to her. She took a moment to push away the memories of her last visit here and put on her best game face.
Alyssa realized too late that taking Sam and Dean to the store was a nightmare. Where was the caution label for this?
After thirty minutes of bickering about sodas, steaks, and everything else under the sun, Alyssa sent Dean to the local hardware store across the street. They would need some supplies for repairs and weatherproofing.
Sam was assigned the job of procuring firewood. The nights could get a little chilly on the side of the mountain.
Finally alone, she finished the shopping and met the guys outside. They would have to follow her up to the cabin, because the roads were a bit tricky.
"Nice place," Dean mused, observing the massive size of the cabin.
Nestled at the end of a well-worn dirt road sat Alyssa's home away from the road. It was absolutely huge, sporting two stories. The porch wrapped completely around the front and sides of the cabin. A porch swing sat on the left side, and a couple of benches on the right made a nice conversation area.
Alyssa dug the key out of her pocket and walked up to the door. On the other side were memories. Was she ready to face them again?
"You okay?" Dean was holding two of the grocery bags, and Sam was waiting behind her with a couple of more.
"I'm fine," she unlocked the door and stepped inside.
Alyssa turned on the lights. At least the electricity was still working, she spoke to the voice in her head, but she heard nothing in response.
She looked around, and it seemed nothing had changed. Things were a bit on the dusty side, but that was easily remedied with a good cleaning.
Her mother had decorated in a more conventional style, leaning towards the comfort of a cushiony couch while still maintaining the look and feel of a cabin in the woods.
Dean stepped in behind Alyssa, taking it all in. He was really impressed.
The first thing that caught his eye was the huge fireplace. Sam had said the firewood would be delivered within the hour.
The living space in front of the fireplace suggested Alyssa's parents were romantics. There was a bearskin rug on the floor strategically placed to enjoy a roaring fire up close and personal.
The kitchen was off to the right behind the massive dining table. It could comfortably seat six people, but eight wasn't impossible. He motioned for Sam to follow him to put the food away. They had to unload the cars and make sure everything was up and running before dark.
Alyssa made the rounds to check that all the light bulbs in the rooms were functioning and that there was running water in the two bathrooms.
Sam and Dean were loading the refrigerator and cupboards with the food. They kept things quiet and to themselves for the time being, not sure of what to say about their new surroundings.
After everything was in its place, Alyssa started the tour.
"There are three rooms upstairs. Each of us can have one, but I get the big one. It's my parents' room. You two can fight over the other two. There's a full bathroom on both floors; however, if someone needs to shower, no one can use the shower in the other bathroom."
Alyssa led the way up to the second floor of the cabin. At the top of the stairs was her room, or rather her parents' room. She still couldn't completely accept the room as her own.
She opened the door to reveal a king-size four-poster bed and a massive six-drawer dresser. Throwing her bag on the floor near the dresser, she sat on the bed and let out a ragged breath. Being here again was going to be harder than she first thought.
Sam and Dean walked past Alyssa's room, and at the next door, Dean called it.
"I'll take this one," he gestured towards the door.
"Why do you get this one?" Sam thought the next room would be just as big as Alyssa's.
"I'm older. I get first pick," Dean gave him that older brother cheesy grin as he opened the door to his room.
Pink! The room was pink!
Sam laughed as he walked down to his room.
Apparently, Dean had chosen Alyssa's old room. The double bed was covered with a comforter decorated with roses. The curtains on the small window were of the same fabric.
This is just perfect, Dean thought sarcastically. He threw his duffle bag on the bed and walked down to Sam's room.
Sam stood in what seemed to be a boy's room. Dean came in behind him seeing the bed was the same size as the other one only it was done in dark blues and reds.
Sam gave Dean as innocent a smile as he could.
Dean left his brother to talk to Alyssa with hopes of altering the sleeping arrangements.
Sam placed his bag on the bed. On the dresser under the window he noticed a picture. He blew the dust off the frame and could see a man, a woman, a girl about the age of nine or ten, and a young boy who looked maybe five or six years old.
He could tell the girl was Alyssa, so that should make the adults her parents and the boy her brother. Alyssa never mentioned having a brother. He wondered where they were right now.
The commotion outside drew Sam's attention away from the picture. He set it back down and walked out of the room to see what was going on.
The firewood had arrived, and Alyssa had set to chopping it up first, since it was her home. It was exhausting work, and thirty minutes of swinging the axe had her completely wiped out.
Dean took his turn, wanting to get some aggressions out and finish the chores before night fell. He swung the axe allowing each impact to take little bit of his anger with it.
Alyssa watched as Dean worked on the wood. She couldn't take her eyes off him watching his muscles contracting and straining with every swing. She remembered feeling those muscles under her hands. She was lost in the memory of his sweat mixing with hers. Her breath quickened as the fire within her burned.
Dean could feel her eyes on him. He made sure to swing the axe as hard as he could. He wanted her to watch every bead of sweat on his body. He was not sleeping in a rose colored bed tonight.
Sam saw Dean chopping the firewood and Alyssa watching him intently. He could see she was truly enjoying the show Dean was putting on for her. He knew his brother well and knew he would do anything to get out of sleeping in a pink bed.
He smiled to himself and sat down at the dining table with his laptop. He hoped he could get an Internet connection up here. He'd heard some talk in town about some mysterious deaths here in the mountains and wanted to check it out to see if there could be a hunt in the near future.
He knew Alyssa wanted to come up here for a break, but there were no vacations for a hunter. He opened his laptop and was pleased to see Alyssa's parents had not left technology out of their own vacations. He began his investigation.
There had been seven deaths reported over the last two years in the mountains. Most of them had been attributed to animal attacks, but a few were unknown because the victims were never seen nor heard from again. People would come into the mountains but never come out. The deaths and disappearances were reported around the same time of year, from spring to summer.
Sam did more digging on his computer, oblivious to Dean and Alyssa's return. He didn't notice he wasn't alone until he felt a smack on the back of his head.
"We're out there doing all the hard work, and you're in here surfing for porn. Typical." Dean huffed at his brother.
"No, I was checking out something I heard about in town. Seven deaths in these mountains in the last two years. All during the period between spring and summer."
Alyssa was more than a little perturbed that Sam had been looking at another hunt.
"We're supposed to be on vacation, Sam. Remember? No hunting. Vacation. Time to relax, unwind, have fun."
"I'm sorry. You're right. But I couldn't help myself. It's a habit, I guess." Sam closed his laptop. He was going to do his best not to be a party-pooper. "So, what do we do?"
"Well, we should get a fire going and probably get to making some grub," Alyssa headed for the kitchen. It had been a long time since she made a meal for more than one, so she was going to need a head start on this.
Dean caught her in his arms as she walked past him on her way to the kitchen.
"You need any help?"
His eyes sent her stomach fluttering. How does he do that?
"No, I think I got it. If I need any help," she reached up and lightly touched her lips to his, "I'll let you know," she whispered. And with that, she was off to cook a man-size meal for three.
The last time Dean and Sam had built a fire together it was to burn their father's remains. This fire should have been happier, but it still brought up hurtful memories for both of them. They sat on the sofa staring at the flames, much the same way they had done that night.
"Dinner will be ready soon," Alyssa was setting the table. Dean hopped up out of his reminiscing to give her a hand.
"Alyssa, there's four plates here. Who's the other one for?"
Alyssa mentally counted the plates she had set on the table. He was right. She had grabbed a fourth plate out of habit. She felt a piece of her shatter just a little bit.
"Sorry, habit," She took the plate to return it to the cupboard.
He didn't know what this was all about, but it went deep. He could see that. He also knew how much damage could be wrought by keeping secrets. The deeper they were, the more damage they did.
They sat down to a dinner of roast beef, mashed potatoes, salad, and pie was waiting for dessert. As they ate, each of them told stories from their childhood.
Dean and Sam talked mostly about the pranks they had played on each other.
Alyssa told of the adventures she used to have in her neighborhood with her friends.
Sam saw this as the perfect opportunity to ask her about the picture in his room.
"Alyssa, there's a family photo in my room. I can tell the girl in the picture is you, and the adults are your parents. But who's the little boy?"
Alyssa had forgotten about that picture in Zachary's room.
'The time has finally come. Tell them.'
I'll handle this, thank you.
"Yeah, I'll get that out of the room after dinner. The boy is my little brother, Zachary. He was five in that picture. I was nine."
Sam had been almost dead-on with guessing their ages. He waited for her to say more.
Dean sensed the tension in the room rising. He picked at his food, waiting to see where the conversation was headed.
"Where is your brother?" Sam was going to prod as long as Alyssa allowed.
"He's dead." That's it. It was out. She said it.
'That's not what they need to know.'
Shut up. She kept eating her dinner, ignoring their curious looks.
Dean had to say something now.
"How did he die? And when?" She never mentioned having a brother when they first met.
He thought back to the days when they'd hung out as friends. She did seem pretty easy around his brother. She always had a candy for Sam, and she had even invited him along to a movie. It was like she had had practice being a big sister. Now he knew she had.
"He died about a year ago. He was shot." She tried so hard to not think of that day.
'Tell them the rest.'
If you don't shut up, I'm going to drill a hole in the side of my head and watch you drain out.
'You would die.'
At least it would be peaceful and quiet.
"You two ready for pie? I've got whipped cream in a bottle in the fridge." She got up to get their dessert, effectively ending her part of the conversation.
Dean looked at Sam and shook his head. He thought it was best to let it go for now.
Sam nodded his agreement.
Alyssa returned with the pie and whipped cream. She served them each a slice and opened up the whipped cream bottle. She always had a problem with working the tops of those things, and usually ended up making a mess. Well, true to form, she screwed it up and sprayed whipped cream on Sam's face.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Sam," Alyssa tried so hard not to laugh.
But Dean wasn't hearing it. Fun at his brother's expense? Right on! He busted out laughing at Sam.
What's this? Alyssa thought. You think you're too cool for this? She sprayed cream on Dean's cheek.
Sam had his turn at laughing at his brother.
So, we want to play that way, do we? Dean chased Alyssa around the table until he caught her.
They wrestled with the bottle spraying whipped topping all over the kitchen table and each other.
Alyssa finally won the bottle back and threw it to Sam.
He attacked Dean with perfect accuracy, spraying whipped cream in his hair.
The bottle ran out just as Sam and Dean both had Alyssa on the floor making sure to cover her from head to toe.
It had been a long time since any of them had had a good laugh. It felt wonderful, and cleansing.
They cleaned up the whipped cream fight and the remains of dinner.
Sam took a shower first, leaving Dean and Alyssa to wait their turns. They couldn't sit on the furniture until they were cleaned up so they patiently waited in the kitchen.
Alyssa hopped up on the counter, the way she used to when watching her mother bake or her father clean the fish he and Zachary had caught on their daily expeditions to the river. But they weren't here anymore. She was all that was left of her family now.
Dean caught the haunted look in Alyssa's eyes. Even though he wanted to know more about her, he wanted to make sure she trusted him enough to talk for herself.
Sam had started to press too much, making her uncomfortable. Dean knew he didn't like being pushed to talk more than he wanted, and Alyssa was pretty much the same way.
"You missed a spot," he kissed her cheek where the spot of cream was supposed to have been.
Her breath caught in her throat at the touch of his lips. The thoughts of her family scattered to the winds. She was no longer in the past. She was here in the present, with him. She met his eyes matching the fire she saw burning in his. He wrapped her up in him, kissing her, diving into her. The world no longer existed as they felt the heat growing between them again.
"Uh-hum," Sam coughed. "Shower's free." He headed off to his room, hoping they would be at it again tonight. He was craving the burning, the release.
Showered and dressed, Alyssa sat on the sofa by the fire. She became entranced with the flames, losing herself in the past. There were many memories of this place: her family when they were at their happiest, and the more recent visit which wasn't something she wanted to remember. She was so lost in her own thoughts she didn't notice Dean had entered the room and sat down near her.
The fire reflected in her eyes, reminding him of Sam's vision. He could see she was revisiting those far away places in her mind. He'd done it so many times, reliving moments he wished he could forget. Somehow, though, those memories always found their way back.
"Care to share?" He startled her, which brought a chuckle of amusement to his throat.
"Sorry," she recovered her wits. "Just thinking of a time long ago."
"I've done that myself a few times." Her skin glowed in the firelight. Her hair was still damp from the quick shower she'd taken so he'd have enough hot water for his.
Dean took Alyssa's hand and pulled her so she lay on him. They were so much alike: both haunted by a past, keepers of secrets, and warriors fighting for a side that seemed to not notice their efforts.
Dean thought about the women who had come into his life, not the ones who were passing fancies used for a night of uncomplicated sex, but the few who had touched him.
He had loved Cassie enough to tell her the truth. She shot him down, calling him crazy. Only after she needed him to help her with a vengeful spirit did she realize that he had been telling the truth. Even that hadn't changed anything, for she had said goodbye, permanently.
Alyssa had been the other one who could have been someone to him, early in his life. However, her disappearance had sent him on the path to becoming the cynical, cold heart he was today. But she was getting to him now. She was breaking through a few of the walls he had built around his heart and mind. He knew he could trust her with anything. He only had to learn to let it all go.
She leaned further into him, kissing him, not knowing what was going through his mind at that moment.
Alyssa was part of their world. She knew what was expected and what to expect. He could talk to her about their hunts, and she would understand and even learn from him. He could be honest and free with her. He kissed her intensely, wanting her to feel what he couldn't put into words.
The blood-curdling scream pierced the night, echoing across the skies.
Alyssa and Dean jumped up off the sofa and ran for the front door.
Sam had heard the scream too and was pulling on a shirt as he came out of his room.
"What the hell was that?"
All three of them became hunters again; their guns and flashlights appeared as if by magic. Locked and loaded, Sam, Dean, and Alyssa headed outside to find the origin of the scream. Doing a perimeter sweep around the cabin gave them nothing, so they went back inside, secured the cabin, and got to work. Apparently, Sam had been onto something earlier.