A/N: Alrighty, last chapter. Good luck guys, it's been fun. Tell me what you think.
I don't own Supernatural...
Several months had passed and, much to Dean's disdain, Jo had become an integral part of the Winchester team. Together they had taken down ghosts, werewolves, vampires, and even a few demons. Jo turned out to be a ruthless hunter, picking up the slack whenever Sam or Dean was injured. Jo had a way with people too; she was often able to get the most stubborn witness to give vital information.
Given their recent track record, this coming hunt promised to be simple. They had tracked a low level demon to a nearby town, where it was wreaking havoc on the locals.
"Alright. Everyone know the plan?" Dean said, still trying to be in charge of the situation.
Sam rolled his eyes, "I'm going to the morgue to check out the corpses."
"I have to visit some witnesses at their homes," Jo said, determined.
"Right. Meanwhile I will check out the bar and see what the locals are saying," Dean finished, "And then we all meet up at the motel to review our notes."
At this the trio dispersed and headed towards their respective duties.
"Well, that knife wound definitely wasn't accidental."
"Yes. Tell me more about you friend."
"As much as I loved hearing about your gout, I've got to go."
The sun was just beginning to kiss the horizon when everyone returned to the motel. Sam and Dean looked disappointed but a smug smile was plastered on Jo's face, especially after hearing about her guardian's failure.
Dean paced around the room, "Status report. I'll start. I got absolutely squat. The longest conversation I could get was an old geezer describing his gout."
"Well I got a look at the body. It's definitely a demonic attack. Throats were slit but very little blood was found at the crime scene. Unfortunately, there were no special markings which might help us identify the demon we're after. Everything just sort of confirms what we already know," Sam explained.
Jo looked back and forth between the two men in front of her, "So you guys have nothing? Well good thing I found something, or else we'd be stuck. One of the guys I talked to has a friend that's been acting strangely. He said that a few weeks ago his friend stopped talking to him and quit his job. I asked him if he smelled sulfur and the guy said that his friend had smelled like that but he figured that it was just BO. Even better yet, the man told me that his friend had been sneaking out at night and going up to an old warehouse on the other side of town."
Dean leaned on a chair, "Alright, here's the plan."
Night had fallen by the time that the trio had gathered outside of the warehouse. Sam and Dean snuck around to the back while Jo walked confidently up to the large double doors. Dean had reluctantly agreed to let her be the distraction while they snuck around and caught the demon from the back.
As Jo opened the massive door, she allowed a look of panic to take over her face.
"Hello? Is anyone there? My car won't start and I need a jump," Jo called, her voice ringing in the silence.
Carefully she walked forward, her flats slapping against the hard concrete floor. She had wanted to wear heels but her dad thought that it was bad enough that she was the distraction; he would rather not have her fighting in heels.
Once more she cried out, "Please. Can anyone help me?"
Right on cue a well-dressed man stepped out of the shadows. He had a shocking mess of red hair stacked messily on his head. His suit was all black but his lapel held a single yellow rose.
"Hey sweetheart. What are you doing out so late at night? Don't you know that it's dangerous around these parts for pretty ladies such as you," the demon said, his voice as smooth as honey.
Like a jungle cat, he stalked towards her and held out his hand, "Come with me and we'll fix your car."
Lightly, Jo placed her hand in his, her body preparing for a fight. With a single blink the demons eyes turned black and he looked at Jo, "Didn't I tell you these were dangerous parts?"
Before the demon could take another breath, Jo had flipped him over her body and had him pinned against the floor, "What are you doing here?"
The demon laughed, "I'm just having a little fun."
Jo pulled on his arm, satisfied when she heard the loud crunch of his shoulder leaving his socket, "I won't ask again. What are you doing here?"
"Nothing. I just heard that there were some hunters in the area and I thought I'd play myself a little game," the demon gasped, "I know that your partners are around back."
Jo was horrified. "You didn't think I'd come alone, did you? Your buddies will die if you don't let me go."
Seconds later two large men roughly towed her caretakers in, guns pointed to each of their backs. Reluctantly Jo released the man but subtly flashed a wink at Sam and Dean. Taking the hint, the trio burst into action. An all-out brawl was afoot and the Winchester team fought like fury. Punches flew and before too long, all three demons were tied up on three separate, hastily drawn devil's traps.
"Not so tough now," Dean gloated, "Sam, go ahead."
"Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus, omnis satanica potestas…" Sam chanted while Dean looked over at Jo. She was rubbing her chest, her breathing labored.
Dean ran to her just as she fell to the ground, "Baby? What's wrong honey?"
Gasping Jo looked up at Dean, "I don't know daddy. But my chest, it hurts."
Helpless Dean looked over to Sam as he was shouting the last words of the exorcism, "Sam! Something's wrong with Jo. Call 911."
Dropping his things, Sam ran to Dean and Jo and felt her pulse, "I think she's having a heart attack."
"She can't be. She's only eighteen for God's sake," Dean shouted. He searched her face for some sign that Sam was wrong. He found nothing. Dean had tried to hold it back but now the tears were flowing steadily out of Dean's eyes. Sam dialed 911 with shaking fingers, "Hello? We have a girl here having a heart attack."
Dean wanted to scream at Sam, She isn't just a girl, she's my girl. She's my daughter. From the moment I pulled her out of that fire, she became mine and I became hers.
Jo's eyes fluttered, "Daddy?"
"Yes baby?" Dean said, stroking her face.
"It hurts, daddy," she cried.
Dean was ripped in two as he saw the independent woman who he had raised from a child, refer to him as daddy, "I know baby, we're trying to help."
Gently she pawed at his shirt. "Tell me what you need Jo," Dean comforted.
"I love you, sir Daddy of Impala."
With those words, Jo took one final gasp and stilled. Dean hugged her still-warm body to his chest. What the hell had happened? One second she was taking out some demons and the next she was laying in his arms, dead.
In that moment, Dean stopped. He stopped crying, he stopped feeling, and he even stopped breathing for a moment. It was as if the world around him had gone into slow motion, Sam frantically stowing the bodies of the demons in a place where the police were unlikely to look.
Dean sat, as if in a trance, as the ambulance pulled up. Sam had to pull him away as the paramedics came in to work and eventually pronounced her dead. Dean hated the way that they handled her, as if she were a sack doll instead of the little girl that had run to him when she was woken with nightmares. Dean had suffered loss in his life but never before had it cut him this deep. This little girl was his child and now she lay dead at his feet.
Carefully Sam maneuvered Dean to the Impala, where they drove up the hospital and listened as doctors pronounced her heart attack caused by a congenital heart defect. Dean didn't even hear the doctor but this news brought Sam to his knees all over again. Not once had they ever taken Jo to a doctor. She hadn't ever been sick enough and with their meager earnings, they couldn't afford it. While Jo was Dean's child, she was also Sam's niece and she was as close to Sam as she was to Dean. Sam wanted to die knowing that her death could've been prevented with a simple checkup and possibly a small surgery.
Sam wanted to punch something but he abstained and looked over at Dean. All Dean wanted to do was leave. He didn't like staying in one place for too long. It made him feel claustrophobic; like he was trapped with no escape.
A/N: For any interested readers, Jo died of aortic valve stenosis. I made sure to research the disease so that it sounded believable...