Chapter 12
"So you still plan on doing this hell raising plan of yours in spite of what happened in the Morton House?" Crowley looked at his sweetheart with an annoyed expression. The fact that she was ignoring him was either a good thing or a bad thing depending on the situation. At least the look she shot him gave him fuel to continue, "Oh I know about the place and the fact that you were lit up like a Christmas tree in there."
"Fuck off, Crowley. We're not in school until later," Angela murmured as she grabbed a paper and started contemplating on means of getting back at Dean for the stuffed ferret he found and waved in her face.
"I know that love but I just had to see how you were doing. After all fear is a powerful crippling effect," Crowley replied as he reached up and began to stroke one of the loose tendrils that fell from the loose knot at the base of her head. He ran it through his fingers slowly to feel the silky smoothness. "And yet you managed to function without losing your mind."
"And it's a wonder I haven't lost it talking with the likes of you," Angela muttered. She was glad that she was alone for now and Crowley seemed to like to pop up when they weren't around so she was somewhat safe. Then again she was dealing with a demon. "What the hell do you want?"
"Just stopping to smell the roses, love," Crowley replied taking a slight whiff of her hair. "You definitely need to stick with that odorless stuff. Your natural scent comes out stronger."
Angela inwardly cringed. She could feel Crowley's breath on the back of her neck and it was too close a reminder of other times. "No fly zone Crowley. Now what the fuck do you want?" She had spoken through gritted teeth in an effort to not make a scene.
Crowley stepped back. This was twice she asked and both were in the tone of voice that said that she would rip his head off if he decided to get cute in his responses. She expected a certain amount of his charm but she was low on the patience with mind fucking. He rather liked it since that meant that she would take his lessons seriously but it also meant that she was not above killing him if she was tired of this arrangement. Okay he could get straight to business. "Alright love. I came to see if you finally understand why you need to give up this cause for Lilith."
"So this is a campaign to get me to stop a plan that was literally dropped in my lap?"
"You nearly lost your mind in that house. What do you think is going to happen when you meet Lilith face to face? She will exploit the rawness of your emotions; the deepest, darkest secrets of your soul and bury you in it," Crowley replied as he stared intently into Angela's eyes. "You aren't ready to face her and even if you were, you wouldn't be able to do what is needed to get what you want from her."
Angela stared back at Crowley. "Everyone has been telling me something similar. You. Ruby. Who are you going to send next? One of your underlings?"
"I admire your courage sweetheart but I am being serious. Lilith will skin you and quite frankly I don't want that."
"Oh you're breaking my heart."
"You may think that this is a joke sweetheart but it isn't…"
"I know Crowley," Angela interrupted. She held up her hand to stop him from continuing. "I know that Lilith wants me and not necessarily dead. If that were the case, she wouldn't have sent one of her pets to bring me in alive."
Crowley raised his brows in surprise. "I see. And who gave you that little tidbit? Ruby?"
"What do you care?" Angela twisted her features into a look of boredom as she studied the demon. "It's not like you've warned me about her. I had to have a pet tell me and that was when said pet tried to break me."
"Believe it or not I do care which is why I am here. I didn't have to agree to teach you everything about making and breaking deals. I'm the king of the crossroads, love and I know a few more tricks than what you've learned so far. I could just as easily have turned the tables on you."
"And yet you didn't," Angela replied as she crossed her arms. "So that tells me that if you were the good businessman that you are, you see me as an asset. Now the smart money is that a good asset is never wasted. You want something out of me and you probably will use this to hang over my head for a future business transaction."
Crowley couldn't help but smile and be proud of his sweetheart's deduction abilities. "Very clever and that is a possibility but in the grand scheme of things you created our little contract and therefore it is your rules, not mine, that dictate out relationship. Though you probably have figured it out that I can use our little business transactions as blackmail. I am sure that Sam and Dean won't be happy about it."
Angela narrowed her eyes at Crowley. She was aware that she hardly looked intimidating with the bruise on her cheek. She joked with Sam that it looked like she went ten rounds with Rocky Marciano. He looked at her to see if she was serious. That was one thing that she would let him think about but honest truth, she did back Marciano's corner and provided some training advice. She hadn't known a thing about boxing but she knew fighting. Same principles but just toning it down enough.
Crowley voiced the very fears that she had. She knew that if they knew she was conversing with the king of the crossroads, they would demand the who, what, when, where and why. Then it would be Dean rounding in on her for even learning what she was learning about deals and she could imagine that hurt puppy look on Sam's face. That alone tore her up. She looked at the demon and replied, "They know that I occasionally talk to your underlings."
"If you mean Cary…"
"Don't diss the little guy darling," Angela replied, not meaning the sentiment at all. She used it loosely and to mock the demon. "Cary may be a little worm but even you have to admit that he knows things that your more self-respecting underlings would consider beneath them." She turned to walk away. She then paused to turn and look at Crowley. "Besides, they met Cary, and they know how I deal with him."
"Certainly you do. I have seen your handiwork on Cary. Very nice and permanent."
"He was fucking with me," Angela replied looking at Crowley. "Besides it led me to you." She raised her brow in bemusement. It had been the plan to get his attention and she went through Cary. "And that was my plan all along."
Crowley couldn't help but grin. She was good and that was why he loved her. He had to admit that because of her run in with Cary, he became interested in her. So she had Cary put the word out that she was looking for him. "And now you're stuck with me love. I'll admit you made me an offer I couldn't refuse."
Angela gave a wry grin as she shook her head, "You always did like the mobsters."
"It's good business sense," Crowley said with his shrug. He gave a slight grin in return. Their relationship wasn't going to end anytime soon but he knew that she was setting the tone for it.
"Just like this is business," Angela pointed between him and her. "So do you have anything useful for me?"
"Only that I have what you've been asking for. I think that if you do well with tonight's lesson, I just might give it to you," Crowley replied. "That is if you do well."
Angela rolled her eyes. She knew what he meant by that. This was the retest coupled with the next lesson. She turned to walk back to the motel.
"Oh, incidentally one of my associates has gone missing," Crowley said as she walked away. When she turned back he affirmed, "Oh yes. Cary is gone. You might want to think about that as you are making your game plan love."
The garage was certainly a geek haven in Angela's view. She raised a brow at all the equipment; the cameras, the computers and the viewing equipment. It was definitely geek central to her as she was ushered in with Sam and Dean. She took her seat between the boys and sat there waiting.
It was rather funny to Sam and Dean, more on Sam's end because she looked like she was sitting down for tea. He knew though that position could mean anything. She once pounced on Dean for trying to hide an injury. It was funny because Dean looked very contrite and he had never seen his brother being cowed by someone with the look of a schoolmarm.
The appearance she was giving was vastly different from when she was in the Morton House and he could tell that the Ghostfacers were seeing that too. It was hard not to laugh at the looks on their faces as they watched her sit there. He had to chew on his lip when she said, "Hey, theatre was a lot different back in its heyday."
Angela knew that she was making an interesting picture sitting the way she was. Part of it was out of habit when it came to visiting places like the movies or stage theatres. When you went, you sat in your seat and gave your full attention and that was straight up and at attention. She also had piano lessons as a girl and that played into it. It was pretty funny and she could tell that Sam was vastly amused and he was remembering the incident involving a certain book and an experiment gone wrong.
At least her face wasn't an issue. Normally she didn't wear makeup since she didn't really need it. That was another thing about the vampire genes. The whole youthful look thing was the one thing that Hollywood got right. She was self-conscious about the bruise though and she didn't want to give people the impression that her boys beat her up or anything so she pulled out her emergency kit and applied it to her face. She was wearing a jacket so she didn't have to worry about her arms.
She was more concerned about what she learned from Crowley. After their lesson for the night, he actually had a genuine compliment. Not only did she get through the part where she failed miserably, she sailed through it as well as the other lesson. He said that she had the makings of a fine dealer. She guessed that it could be called a compliment. It was Crowley after all. After that he gave her what she had requested of him. Then she asked about his missing associate.
The fact that Cary was missing spelled some problems. Yeah there were more of his type that were itching to fill the spot of her personal stoolie but they didn't have the connections Cary had. Her main concern was that Cary would sell her out to whoever had him. She was assuming a lot in that someone had him but that was the worst case scenario. Cary dealt in information; that was his main business. That meant he had the goods on her and anyone else that would be worth the dough.
If she had to venture a guess, the most likely candidate was Lilith. That would prove to be a problem. Not only did Lilith want Sam dead and her for whatever reason; actually she knew what it was about but she wasn't telling and she wasn't who Lilith thought she was, she had a good source of information and could counter anything she put up. Cary had no love for her and she knew that. He indulged because she was one of the few that gave him the biggest currency and that was his life since he knew she was a hunter.
She had to get Cary back. There was no other way and she couldn't believe she was entertaining that idea. Certainly it would blow a gasket for Dean since he indicated through his actions that he was depending on her to keep Sam out of trouble and not just now but for when his ticket was up. Sam would probably be a bit more acceptable of the idea but he would raise objections too. Besides why should she do it? The only answer she could come up with was more of a tactical advantage.
Certainly that was on her mind as she was treated to the pilot episode that the amateurs came up with. She certainly was amused at what she saw. What had her worried was the fact that the parts she was in actually caught brief glimpses of her eyes flickering. It was brief, very brief and if you weren't looking for it, you would miss it. She noticed that it was most prominent when Sam disappeared but it was not noticeable. She had to admit that she had been worried about what was going to show up. She did have to admit that the group had been circumspect about her wigging out.
The only exception she had was the showdown in the basement. Most of the action was caught like her chakram flying. She was suspicious at the cutting of her experience with Daggett. She was certain that it would come out but it wasn't there. She watched with a raised brow at that as she watched. Apparently they caught her giving a hand up to the boys and she was slightly embarrassed that they got Dean's shoving her behind Sam. The only impression they would get is that they were like her bodyguards or something.
She could admit that it was amusing in some aspects. Still she didn't like the fact that they had the other footage stored on hard drives in this geek haven. She had always been careful about being caught on film. Some things couldn't be avoided though… like the missing portrait that was somewhere out there.
War changes man.
And Maggie.
War changes man and one woman. You know, Corbett, we just… Oh, gosh, we just like to think that you're out there watching over us.
As far as we're concerns, you're not an intern anymore. You have more than earned full Ghostfacer status. Plus it'd be cool to have a ghost on the team.
Angela raised her brow some more. She hadn't shifted her position since the thing started. Her bandaged wrist was held up and her forefinger was rubbing her chin. It was more of an effort to refrain from laughing and chortling. While she was worried about her exposure, she was amused by the whole thing. They had talent with a camera but the subject matter was something that wasn't for amateurs. She pursed her lips and her eyebrows were probably going to pop right out of her head as the tribute to Corbett showed on the screen.
"So guys, what do you think?"
Angela didn't move but continued to rub her chin. Dean though replied to Ed's question, "You know, I kind of think it was half awesome." He glanced at her and Sam with an amused expression on his face.
"Half awesome. That's full on good, right?" Maggie was excited for the opinion.
"I'll admit to good camera work," Angels finally said. It was more of politeness since she wanted to laugh a little. It was good if she wasn't so worried about other things.
Sam looked at her and realized that she was holding in her amusement while trying to be a proper critic. He gave a slight smile as he looked at his brother and back at her. She was always so proper when it came to critiquing something. He added, "Yeah. I mean, it's bizarre how y'all are able to, uh honor Corbett's memory while grossly exploiting the manner of his death." He turned to look at the Ghostfacers.
"Yeah. No, it's a real tight rope you guys are walking," Dean added after playing with something in his bag he left behind.
They were subject to some cockiness. Ed and Harry talked about sharing the footage with the world. Sam and Dean tried to explain that telling the truth got you a straightjacket or a punch in the face or sometimes both. Angela had bumped into the table where the computer was at that time and added in an undertone, "Or you end up getting your friend shot in the ass."
She walked past Sam and Dean as they shared a look. "Yeah. Well, we'll see you guys around," Sam said.
"As long as it doesn't involve lights and cameras," Angela added. She followed Sam and Dean out.
Once at the car, Sam asked, "We clean?"
The noise coming from the garage was comforting as the three shared a smile as they got in. Dean explained, "Electromagnet. Wiped out every tape and hard drive they have."
"Saved my ass Dean," Angela replied with a slight smile on her face. She patted his shoulder.
"World just isn't ready for the Ghostfacers… or the fact that there are people like you Angie," Sam replied.
"That's too bad. I kind of liked the show but we couldn't let you get exposed Angie." Dean looked back at her and gave her a smile. It wasn't her fault by what happened there once Sam filled him in and she did too about the hot spot thing. He was doing his job of protecting his family.
"Tell me about it. I would be responsible for DBS's… death by stupidity," Angela replied. She chuckled, "But the show did have it's moments. I don't think I can recall any other time that had me near to bursting."
Dean grinned as he started the engine. He peeled out of the driveway and onto the road. It was onward to the next case.
"Oh do you mind making a quick stop?"
Terry was wiping tables when the bell clanged to indicate that a customer was there. "Be with you in just a moment. Have a seat."
It was roughly five minutes later before Terry was able to get to the customer. She looked around the dining room to find the customer. They usually found their own seats and that was it. Frowning, she wondered if someone was messing with her. She then looked at where the cashier stand was and there was that gorgeous woman that was in there before. She was back and she looked like hell.
Terry walked up to the woman and put on her best smile. As she got closer, she got the distinct impression that the woman had been in a fight or something. She could see a subtle darkness that looked like a bruise. She wondered if those two that were with her hit her or something. That kind of thing just made her angry. She carefully schooled her features and asked, "How can I help you?"
Angela smiled her best smile and replied, "Can I get one slice of all the pies you have for the day to go?"
"Pie?"
"Yep. I have a thing for pie. Thanks." Angela kept smiling to put the waitress at ease.
Dean thought she was nuts for wanting to make a pit stop but when she mentioned that it was the diner they dined in, he started in on the jokes about a girl having the hots for her. She was well aware that men and women found her attractive and frankly she didn't really notice it and she had eyes only for Sam so those singles out there were out of luck. Sam for his part tried to soften the jokes by saying that it was her charm… like that was a factor.
Angela just simply said that she wanted some pie. So here she was waiting for her pie. She knew that it was overkill ordering about twenty pieces of pie but she wanted road food since she was starving. Plus she had an idea that would work for a good prank on Dean as payback for the stuffed head thing. Originally she was going to use Dean's fear of rats in a prank but she relented after he apologized once he realized that she really didn't like them as much as Sam didn't like clowns.
Terry fetched the twenty pieces of pie and she wondered where the woman put all that food and still managed to look so good. She handed the bag of twenty individual little boxes and a few disposable forks over to Angela. "There you go."
Angela pulled out her wallet and the cash for the pie. She handed it over and said, "Keep the change as tip."
Terry felt like she had received a gift from God with the attention from the woman was giving. "Thanks," she replied giving a slightly bashful look.
Angela smiled and leaned in and then said, "No problem but I don't swing that way."
It was a letdown to Terry but she managed to keep smiling, "Oh."
"Hey, there's someone out there for you," Angela replied. "I would just learn to control that ability of yours. Sometimes strong emotions aren't a good mix."
"How…?"
Angela smiled and fished a piece of paper out. She put it on the counter and slid it towards Terry. "Here, this is a phone number to a friend who knows a bit about these things. Give her a call and she'll help you." She stood up straight and took the bag and started walking towards the door.
"Who are you?"
Angela paused. She turned to look back at the waitress. She replied, "Just someone who knows a thing or two about your special talents. Have a nice day." She then walked out and headed to where the boys were waiting.
"So did she ask you out?"
Angela shot a look at Dean and replied, "No. I just ordered some pie."
"Pie?" Sam frowned.
"I was hungry. Actually starving for carbs," Angela replied as she sat back in her seat. "I didn't get to finish my pie since someone decided to have a snack before the hunt." She gave a pointed look towards Dean as he started the car.
"Hey. I think I deserved it since the incident before that."
"I told you I didn't do it," Angels replied as she popped open a box that held the key lime. "The waitress did."
"What?"
"The waitress did. I figured it out after we left. The motion was more emotion fueled and after you mentioned her attraction, I figured she didn't like what you said." Angela took a bite and savored the taste. She could torture Dean by making moaning sounds of pleasure but she was self-conscious about it in front of Sam.
Dean kept his eyes on the road. "Okay so what is she?"
"Probably a witch. Don't worry Dean. I gave her the number of a friend. A specialist and possibly someone to keep the girl busy."
Dean grinned, "Playing matchmaker eh? Who knew?"
"Fang Boy and Akira I introduced and they're a thing now. They deserve it."
Dean didn't reply and neither did Sam. It was a peculiar response. Dean suspected that it was a double meaning and he was itching to set the record straight but not in front of Sam. He glanced at the mirror to see Angela looking back. She gave a slight nod as she finished her pie.
… Loss cannot be described in words, only felt. To lose everything, that would be death because in the end I would be alone…
A/N: Well we come to the end and Dean saves Angie from being exposed and Angie wraps up a few loose ends in town. Still there is more to come. Stay tuned for the next thrilling episode of Chronicles of Absolution episode 2.15 Blindsided...
