Us Against the World
By January Lily
Oh morning come bursting, the clouds,
Amen.
Chapter 13: Faith
All the clues from their recent case had led the Winchesters to a small town in Oklahoma. They had rolled into town earlier that morning after Dean had spotted an awful lot of child abductions for a town. So far there had been half-a-dozen in the past month—too many for a small town that was nothing more than a pin-prick on a map. Whatever this thing was, it was acting at a quicker pace than usual. Knowing that they needed to act fast before this thing struck again—Elle, Sam, and Dean for once split-up to cover more ground. They each took a family of a child that had disappeared. Elle had taken the family of Beth Brown, the second child to disappear. The little girl's parents were very distraught when Elle talked to them about their daughter. Elle posed as a reporter for a college newspaper, trying to shed more light on the disappearances of the children. From what Elle gathered from the parents, Beth was seven and a very spoiled little girl—having been the only child until about a year ago. Apparently, the girl didn't take it too well that she wasn't the center of her parents' universes. Of course—most of this Elle had to gather from the subtext and nuances of the conversation—because what parent would want to look poorly on their missing child? But the mother was practically beside herself with grief. The night Beth disappeared, she had gone to her mother for a glass of water, but her mother told Beth she was big enough to get one on her own. The mother heard Beth's footsteps go down the stairs—but they never came back up. Elle's heart ached with these parents. She could never really imagine herself as a parent—at least not in this life, in this world. Too much could go wrong, especially with the name Winchester branded to her.
When Elle was done talking with the family, she headed over to the local library to meet up with her brothers and compare stories. Just as Elle walked up the steps of the building, the Impala pulled into the parking lot. She waited for Dean to jog to meet her before they went inside. The place looked rather abandoned which was just the way they liked it. It made things easier to work and people were less suspicious. Elle and Dean went to the most secluded part of the library—as usual. To their surprise, Sam was already there with a couple of books on the table. He looked up and nodded at his siblings as they sat down across from him at the table. They then compared notes. It seemed like all the children who had vanished were little snot-nosed kids who had a naughty streak to them. After they had figured that much out, Elle walked through the stacks to find some sort of book that might help them. Also, she needed to get away from her brothers so that she could take a Vicodin. She had grown very dependent on the substance recently, but she didn't want to bother her brothers about it. They were both already dealing with a lot as it was and Elle didn't want to be any more of a burden on them than she already was. Elle popped one of the pills and slowly leaned back against the bookshelves. She only had three more pills left. She was going to need to get more and soon. Elle pretended to pull out random books and look through them, but she wasn't really paying much attention to them. Hell, she was in the completely wrong section by this point. Well, unless Little House on the Prairie had changed since she had read it last in third grade. Elle continued to meander through the shelves when the song "Wannabe" by the Spice Girls began to play in her head for some reason. As much as Elle hated to admit it, the song was catchy, despite the Winchesters' obvious hate for it. Once Dean had caught her listening to the song on a CD she had stolen in the motel room and he "accidentally" broke it. Elle shook her head at this memory and looked around to make sure that Dean wasn't anywhere near her before she began to sing the song to herself and dance through the aisles. It even got so bad that she was doing the shopping cart dance move when Sam poked his head around the corner.
"If you wannabe my lover…" Elle sang.
"What exactly are you doing?" Sam asked.
"Shopping…" Elle said slowly. "…for books?"
"On second thought, I don't really want to know."
"That really is for the best."
"When you're done doing whatever it is you're doing—you might give Dean and I a hand."
"I'll consider it."
Sam shook his head and disappeared back behind the shelves. Elle sighed before she absently rubbed her wrist. She then moved to a different section of the library and began looking through the books. She found herself flipping through an old English/Irish book of legends and myths. On one of the pages was something rather hideous looking, but it was the rhyme that caught her. Rawhead and Bloody Bones/Steals naughty children from their homes/Takes them to his dirty den/And they are never seen again. This had to be it. She closed the book and walked back to where her brothers sat looking through the public records.
"Rawhead," Elle said as she plopped the book onto the table the boys were working at.
"That's not a very nice thing to call, Sammy," Dean retorted.
"If I was going to call anyone that—it would be you, Bloody Bones. Now read."
Dean looked at his sister for a moment before he looked down at the book. Elle then reached for her bag and began to dig through it.
"A rawhead is a type of boogeyman that lurks in basements and preys upon naughty children…blah blah blah…and they're ugly sons-of-bitches," Dean said reading some and paraphrasing some.
"Does it say anything about how to kill it?" Sam asked.
"Nope, but I bet that Dad's journal does."
"Already on it," Elle said.
Elle pulled the journal out of her bag as Dean made a comment that he wondered where the journal had gone to. The youngest Winchester sibling thumbed through the journal as Sam read over her shoulder. She scanned the pages until Sam told her to go back to a torn page in the journal. She wouldn't have given the half-page much thought before, but there was some Yoda scrawling about an 'awhead. Elle smiled up at Sam before looked at the information Dad had about the 'awheads. While the information Elle had found in the library book had been torn out, thankfully how to get rid of the sucker was still intact. But apparently, the thing's lair was tricky to track down. It was easier to find him in the act.
"Got it," Elle said. "We just need to electrocute him."
"Extra crispy, just how I like it," Dean commented with a grin.
"But now to figure out who's next."
"And we gotta be quick," Sam said. "The things gonna move soon."
"So what do we do? Go to the local grade school and ask if they have any little shits enrolled?" Elle scoffed.
"Something like that," Dean said with a shrug.
"Or we could just go to the school and watch the kids ourselves," Sam suggested.
"Because pedophile is gonna look so good on our rap sheets," Elle retorted.
"Not what I was thinking. There are less creepy ways to get into a school."
True to Sam's words—there were less creepy ways. She played the role of a college student interested in teaching and wishing to observe last minute to get her college credit while Sam offered to tutor kids and Dean was on playground duty. Elle was in and out of classrooms trying to find out which kids were the biggest problems. Teachers were quick to divulge which kids were the hardest to work with. By the end of the day, Elle had a list of a half-a-dozen potential kids that could be potential victims. She and Sam practically had to drag Dean away from the playground—he was enjoying his "job" a little too much. When the Winchesters reconvened in the car all three of their lists had two kids in common and thankfully, those children lived only blocks apart. They needed to stop this thing before it got them to its lair.
The Winchesters sat parked a few houses down from one of the kids in the Impala. Elle lay on backseat cuddled-up with her pillow. She was playing a Gamboy Advance SP. she had snitched from the lost and found at the school. The only game with the console was a Pokémon game—so she was trying to catch them all. Sam and Dean shook their heads listening to the awkward sound effects Elle made while playing the game. Elle was about to catch a Bulbasoar when she got a whiff of something awful smelling. She instantly bolted up-right and covered her nose and mouth with her hands. Sam sat there trying to hide a grin on his face so with one hand, Elle smacked his shoulder.
"Oh god—you're toxic," Elle groaned. "I need some air. I'll go check on the other house while you two air the car out. It better not smell like shit when I get back."
Elle began to walk slowly away from the Impala toward the other little kid's house. She looked back toward them before she felt in her pocket for the pill bottle. The Vicodin was slowly beginning to lose its effect—at least for a long period of time. She shook out her injured wrist which only made it hurt worse. She needed some immediate relief. She popped the bottle out of her pocket and bit one of the tablets in half—taking only half. She knew that it wasn't going to last long at all, but she needed to be on top of things tonight. She stopped in front of the kid's house and looked at it. Nothing looked suspicious. Then her phone vibrated in her back pocket so she pulled it out.
Sam: Elle it's here.
Elle's eyes widened as she quickly turned on her heel and began sprinting back toward her brothers.
Dean: Get ur lil ass back.
Dean: Where r u?
Dean: Goddamnit answer ur phone.
When Elle finally arrived back at the Impala, she was out of breath and leaned heavily against the car. Dean did not look happy and Sam looked hesitant to say anything. She wasn't sure that she wanted to question why they didn't go after the thing without her. But now it appeared that two kids were missing and the parents had heard something downstairs because the police sirens were in the distance coming closer.
"Damnit, Elle! We lost him!" Dean hissed.
"I'm sorry, I got back as fast as I could," Elle hissed back. "Hence the sweating and heavy breathing."
"Well now we lost the thing and we don't know where he takes the friggin' kids. This was our plan and you shot it to hell!"
"I said I'm sorry!"
"Well sorry isn't going to keep those kids alive, now is it?"
Elle glared angrily at Dean. She did feel guilty about that—but honestly, they didn't need her to finish a job. She climbed into the backseat of the Impala and pulled out her flashlight and a map of the city. She then grabbed a permanent marker and made dots where each child had been abducted. She went back and forth from pointing her flashlight at the addresses of the missing kids to finding the address on the map. She didn't even notice Sam leaning on the car, watching her.
"What are you doing?" Sam asked.
"Just leave me alone and let me think!" Elle snapped before she realized that it was Sam. "Sorry," she apologized. "I've seen this done on those procedural crime shows. I just thought that maybe it would help here."
"How?" Dean asked leaning through the window.
"Well, we know that kids were taken from each of these houses. We also know that this thing can't go very far without being noticed—but he needs a secluded run-down area to lay claim to. A place where people will leave him be. A place central to all the crimes. That leaves…this area right here."
Elle circled an old run-down, crime infested part of town with blue Sharpie.
"This is where we'll find him."
"You'd better be right about this," Dean muttered.
"I know."
Sam and Dean piled into their respective seats in the Impala as Elle went over her theory again—checking to make sure that everything made sense and it made complete sense to her. The rawhead had to be somewhere in that neighborhood. She just hoped Dean didn't complain that the area was too big to check. When they got to the neighborhood, Elle made Dean turn his stereo off and roll down all the windows. The Winchesters were completely silent listening for the cries and screams of children coming from a place without a light. Sam was the first one to notice the faint sound of crying and they drove until the sound began to grown a little louder and louder. They were in front of a disheveled house when Elle got a gut feeling about the place.
"Stop! They're in there, I can just feel it," Elle said.
Dean pulled the Impala into park and they got out of the car. They went to the trunk and pulled Tasers out, one for each of them. Elle shut the trunk before she and Sam followed behind Dean who had kicked down the door. Elle shuddered and wanted to gag at the smell of the place. This was definitely the place—it reeked of old blood and rotting flesh. The sound of footsteps scurrying stopped them for a moment. Sam mentioned something about the lore talking about basements before Dean nodded his head. Dean began opening doors until he found one that led to a staircase that went down. He nodded toward Sam and Elle to follow behind him. Dean slowly walked down the stairs, shining his flashlight around the area. He stopped in front of a closet and motioned for one of his siblings to open it while he held the flashlight. Elle hesitated for a moment, so Sam reached out and opened the closet door. Inside, two children gasped and backed away.
"It's okay, we're here to help you," Elle whispered as she got down to their level.
"Is it still here?" Sam asked.
"Elle, get 'em out of here," Dean said.
"Sweetie, grab your brother's hand and hold onto mine with your other," Elle said as she was on her haunches, level with the kids.
The little girl immediately took hold of Elle's hand, even before grabbing her brother's hand. It wasn't the girl who had been a pain in the ass at school earlier. It was her brother, but the Rawhead must've taken two for the price of one. Although, right now, it didn't really matter; Elle just needed to get the kids out of the house safely. Elle pulled the little girl behind her, but something kept them from going any farther. It was the boy, he refused to move. It was like he was frozen. Elle looked between Sam and Dean for some help.
"You get the boy—I've got the son-of-a-bitch," Dean said.
Sam nodded his head and scooped the boy up in his arms before tossing Dean his Taser. Elle picked the girl up in her arms and took off up the stairs first. She and the little girl were almost to the top of the stairs when something went wrong. She later found out that the Rawhead had yanked on Sam's foot from underneath the stairs—but the only thing Elle heard was Sam go crashing onto the stairs. This freaked the boy out because he practically flew out of Sam's arms and up the stairs. Sam yelled for Elle to get the kids out. So with the girl still in her arms, Elle led them outside to the Impala. She opened the door of the car and had the kids crawl into the backseat with her. Elle pulled the two kids close to her so that they wouldn't hear or see what was happening. She just held them as they cried softly—shielding what innocence they had left. It wasn't until Elle heard Sam scream Dean's name that she knew something was wrong. Elle told the kids to stay put before she raced back into that horrid house. She quickly ran through the house and to the stairs that went to the basement. She looked down the stairs to see Dean convulsing in a corner. She practically flew down the stairs to him.
"Dean!"
But before she could get to him, Sam wrapped his arms tightly around her—not letting her go. She fought to get out of her brother's grip, but it was no use.
"Let me go," Elle hissed. "Dean!"
"We could do more harm than good," Sam responded. "We gotta let it finish before we move him."
Elle looked around for the Rawhead, but all she saw was a pile of silver crap. That must've been it. But her eyes, which were beginning to mist-up, went back to Dean who had finished convulsing but was unconscious. Sam then released Elle before he flung Dean over his shoulder in a fireman's hold. Elle wasn't sure what to do. She numbly followed behind him. When they got to the car, Sam had the two kids crawl in the front seat while Elle sat in the back with Dean's head on her lap. Sam sped the car to the nearest hospital while Elle sat stroking Dean's face gently while singing the song he always sang to her when she was sick or hurt: Hey, Jude.
"'Hey Jude, don't make it bad/Take a sad song and make it better/Remember to let her into your heart/Then you can start to make it better…"
By the time they reached the hospital, she wasn't sure which verses or how many times she had sung the song. Sam got out of the car before Elle helped get Dean out of the car by pushing him from behind and into Sam's arms. Elle watched as Sam ran into the E.R. shouting that he needed a doctor and everything just seemed to go in slow motion for Elle. She vaguely remembered watching the children rush behind Sam into the emergency room. Somehow she made her way inside where Sam was pacing the waiting room. When he saw Elle, he rushed to her and enveloped her in a hug. Sam held his sister close until one of the receptionists asked Sam to talk to her for a minute about the billing. Elle wiped away the tears that stained her cheeks and found a corner and sat on the floor, holding her knees tight against the body, resting her chin on them.
After the cops had finished questioning both her and Sam—the doctor came out to talk with them. Elle slowly got up from her spot on the floor and walked toward the doctor. The guy didn't look like he had good news for them. Elle instinctively reached for Sam's hand as the doctor began to share Dean's condition with them. Apparently, the Taser had triggered a massive heart attack in Dean. Elle gasped when the doctor mentioned that—but that wasn't the worst news. Dean had only weeks left to live. Elle began to cry as she wrapped her arms around Sam. She couldn't lose Dean. She couldn't. The doctor said that he was sorry—but Dean wasn't awake to take visitors yet. Instead, they went back to the waiting room and Elle went to the corner she had occupied earlier as her thoughts centered on her oldest brother. She thought of the one time they had gone to San Diego—just the two of them. They went wading in the Pacific Ocean and Elle had pushed her brother into the ocean, fully clothed. She had actually surprised him—but he got his revenge by tackling her into the water. They both had been sopping wet messes, but it had been such a carefree day. They weren't going to get many if any of those. When the doctor finally said that Dean was awake, Elle couldn't get herself to move from her spot on the floor. Sam came to help her up, but she just shook her head.
"Elle, c'mon," Sam said.
"I can't go in there," Elle whispered.
"Why?"
"Because it's my fault he's in there. If I wouldn't have gotten out of the car and taken so long we would've gotten him at the kids' house and then he wouldn't have gotten electrocuted nor had a heart attack."
"I'm sure he'll want to see you."
"But I can't see him. Just—just go on without me."
"Elle."
"I just can't."
Sam shook his head before he stood up and walked away from his sister, leaving her sitting there. She just sat there in her thoughts about Dean. She remembered another time when Dean had thrown a snowball at her and she thought that it was Sam. So she pushed Sam into a pile of Christmas trees causing them to fall over like dominoes. Dean had laughed his ass off as the Christmas tree guy chewed her out; but when he was done laughing, Dean came in and saved her ass. He was always saving her ass. She wasn't sure how long she sat there, but she was still there when Sam came out from seeing Dean. He said that he had things he needed to do and that he was going to leave her with Dean. It wasn't until a nurse came over and told her that she either needed to stay in her brother's room or leave that she finally went inside. She was thankful that Dean was asleep when she got in there. Elle started on the corner of the room on the floor—hoping that Dean wouldn't notice her, but he must've known she was in there because he tried to sing.
"Hey Jude, don't be afraid…" Dean sang very off-key before he started coughing.
Elle quickly rushed over to Dean's side and grabbed the cup of water on his bedside table. She tilted the cup toward his mouth for him as trickled a little water into his mouth before she set the cup back down. She brushed Dean's hair out of his face and smiled weakly at him. When she looked at him, all she felt was guilt. It was her fault that he was like this.
"Took you long enough," Dean said weakly. "I was waiting for you to come make fun of Daytime TV with me."
"I was busy," Elle muttered.
"Busy sulking."
"Just go back to sleep. You need your rest."
"Elle…"
"Sleep. I'll be right here on this uncomfortable hospital chair."
"Promise me that you're not going to leave."
"I—I—"
"Please."
"I promise."
"The remote's right there, but I'm sure there's nothing good on."
Elle chuckled as Dean watched her until she sat down on the chair beside him. He then shut his eyes. Elle sighed. She made a promise to her brother. She had to stay there with him—she promised. Promises between her and Dean weren't made to be broken. She reached for the remote and flicked the television on. After surfing through all the channels half-a-dozen times, she finally settled on a rerun of Walker, Texas Ranger. She didn't watch it long before she fell asleep in that hospital chair. The morning of Dean's third day in the hospital, Elle sat by Dean's bedside quietly. She wasn't exactly sure what to say to him. Thankfully, he was still asleep. Her stomach rumbled, so she figured that she would go find something in the vending machines. She set her bag on Dean's bed for a moment as she dug through her bag for money and picked out several dollars. Elle didn't realize that her prescription bottle had fallen from her bag onto her brother's bed. She walked out the door to go grab some junk food from the vending machine. She got a Kit Kat bar and bag of chips for breakfast before she headed back toward Dean's room. When she got back to his room, he was standing, leaning against his bed with an angry expression on his face.
"Now when did Dr. Ellicott have time to write you this?" Dean said.
"What are you talking about?" Elle asked.
She looked at her brother who was holding her pill bottle in his hands. Something inside of her just snapped. Despite the fact that she was trying to avoid any conversations with him—she knew that this one was inevitable and a fire was lit inside her. Something of her argumentative self was rearing its ugly head as Dean continued.
"I would ask which one wrote it, but the one was kinda busy being dead and you didn't have time to see the other one."
"What are you implying, Dean?"
"How long have you been popping pills, Campbell?"
Elle cringed slightly. If Dean was using her full first name, he was more than pissed off, but Dean being pissed off only made her more pissed off.
"It's no different than you going out and drinking and getting shit-faced."
"It's a hell of a lot different. So I'm just going to hold onto these and let Sammy know to keep his eyes on you."
"I need them! It's not like I'm taking them for fun."
"And what are you taking them for?"
"It never got a chance to set properly," Elle said holding her wrist up.
"Then you shoulda said something."
"I didn't exactly have time between getting poofed to Wisconsin and then you being pissed at me. I knew that 'Hey, Dean, you're being a complete asshole right now but could we swing by the hospital because my wrist is effed up' wasn't going to work!"
"You're wrong. Sure I was pissed at you—but you're my sister and at the end of the day keeping you safe is my job no matter what the circumstances. Because that's what you do for family."
Elle felt the tears beginning to well in her eyes before Dean even finished his speech.
"I'm going to die here and I'm not gonna have you following behind me."
"I don't want you to die," Elle said as she collapsed into her brother holding on to him tightly. She could feel how weak his breathing was.
"It's a fact of life. It was bound to happen sooner or later."
"We're going to find something—I promise."
"No. I know that Sammy's gonna do everything in his power and he's not gonna listen to me. I need someone to listen to me, please Elle." Dean said coughing frequently.
"Dean—"
"Elle, please, it's what I want."
"If you're sure."
"I'm sure."
"I'll do what you want, but don't expect me to be happy about it."
"Good. First thing's first, we're busting out of this joint…after we get that wrist checked out. I mean—we might as well use the insurance while we have it."
"It's gonna hurt."
"You're damn right it's gonna hurt, but it's what I want and you just agreed to do what I want."
The process of getting her wrist set properly and put in a plaster cast was not something Elle ever wanted to relive. It hurt like hell and to top it off—when the doctor prescribed her Vicodin, Dean ripped up the script. She was just going to have to be miserable and use non-addictive drugs. Thankfully, the cast stopped before her elbow and she had gotten a black one so that Dean couldn't scribble profanity all over it. But he was one step ahead of her and bought silver Sharpies so that he could scribble male genitalia on her cast as they waited for the taxi to come pick them up to take them to Sam's motel room. She knew that this was what Dean wanted to do—to live out the rest of his life the best he could, but it didn't sit right with her. It was her fault—no matter what Sam tried to convince her of otherwise. And there was nothing she could do for her oldest brother. The guy who had been there for her, her entire life was going to be gone soon. Elle's eyes started to water as she looked to her brother, her expression obvious.
"Don't you go crying on me," Dean said before he coughed. "Otherwise I'll tickle you and we both know that no one wants that. Do you remember that one time I was tickling you and you flailed and nailed me square in the nose with your head which gave me a friggin' bloody nose."
Elle smiled weakly at her brother as the taxi to take them to motel finally showed up. She helped her brother into the car before she told the driver the motel Sam was staying at. Dean leaned heavily against her as they walked up to the motel room. They knocked on the door before they stopped for a break against the door frame as they watched Sam who was on the brink of tears. Sam was surprised to see them. He questioned about Dean signing himself out of the hospital and Dean made a joke about not wanting to die in a hospital where the nurses weren't hot. Elle shook her head as she lead Dean over to the bed and set him down before she winched slightly at a wrong movement of her arm with her cast on it. Dean must've noticed because he simply shook his head at her before he tossed her a bottle of regular ibuprofen. He commented that he knew exactly how many pills were in the bottle and that he was going to be holding onto the bottle. Elle rolled her eyes before she took a regular dose of ibuprofen and tossed the bottle back to Dean. Sam looked confused by the exchange, but he didn't question it. Instead he went on to explain that he found a specialist in Nebraska who could help Dean. Dean didn't seem to like the idea and he looked to Elle to speak up for him, but Elle chose to keep her mouth shut. She was going to follow Dean's wishes the best that she could, but she wasn't going to get in Sam's way for doing what she couldn't.
Sam let Dean take a nap and rest a bit before they got back on the road in the Impala the next morning. Dean lay on the backseat with Elle's pillow and stuffed Tigger while Elle sat in the front passenger's seat and Sam drove. Elle played her stolen Gameboy Advance SP when her arm began to itch inside her cast. She began to dig through her bag for one of her drawing pencils. Elle looked around before she managed to finagle her pencil inside her cast and began to itch her arm. It felt good.
"I wouldn't do…" Dean started.
But it was too late. Part of the pencil broke off in her cast.
"Damnit."
Dean managed a hoarse chuckle before Elle dug in her bag for her tweezers to get the pencil shard out. Thankfully, the broken part of the pencil wasn't too far in her cast and she managed to get it out. She was going to have to be more careful. Sam made a comment that the itching was only going to get worse to which she rolled her eyes. The rest of the drive to Nebraska was uneventful—although, Elle would look back at Dean from time to time and her heart would hurt—so would her wrist, but she knew that Dean was going to be stubborn about this. She was glad when the Impala pulled down a gravel road toward a big white circus tent set up in a field. She looked at Sam curiously—specialist was definitely one word for this. Elle practically pressed her face against the glass as she watched people making their way to the tent. As they drove past a sign that read The Church of Roy LeGrange: Faith Healer. Witness the Miracle, Elle hoped that Dean didn't see the sign—but that was probably too much to hope. Dean grimaced as he tried to pull himself out of the backseat and Sam moved to help, but Dean pushed him away telling him that he could do it himself. Elle was pretty sure that wasn't the only thing he was pissed about though. They slowly began to walk toward the tent, allowing Dean to set the pace.
"Man, you are a lying bastard. Thought you said we were going to see a doctor," Dean groaned.
"In his defense, he said specialist," Elle commented.
"You're supposed to be on my side," Dean groaned.
"I am. But you never made me promise to stop Sam—just that I wouldn't do anything. I've kept my promise perfectly."
"You and your friggin' loop holes."
"I prefer to think of it as a compromise."
"And you—" Dean said turning toward Sam.
"C'mon man, this guy's supposed to be the real deal," Sam argued.
"I can't believe you brought me here to see some guy who heals people out of a tent and that you let him do it."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"I mean c'mon, guys, a faith healer?"
"Maybe it's time to have a little faith, Dean," Sam suggested.
"Have a little faith in me," Elle sang.
"Real funny," Dean groaned. "You know what I got faith in, though? Reality. Knowing what's really going on."
"How can you be a skeptic?" Sam questioned. "Especially with the things we see every day?"
"That's exactly why. We see them, we know they're real."
"But if you know evil's out there, how can you not believe good's out there too?"
"Because I've seen what evil does to good people."
"Elle," Sam and Dean said at the same time.
"I plead the fifth on this one," Elle commented with her hands in the air in defense. "Besides, my injured wrist makes my brain all fuzzy."
"That doesn't even make sense," Dean scoffed.
"Too bad."
As they drew closer to the tent, there was a girl standing outside who was about Elle's age. Elle just smiled at the girl and moved to go inside, but the girl must've overheard their conversation because she brought up something about God working in mysterious ways. After a little bit of Dean flirting with the girl, he introduced himself, Sam, and Elle to the girl who then introduced herself as Layla. Dean didn't get much farther in his flirting because Layla's mother approached her daughter and brought her inside the tent. Dean had a goofy grin on his face after Layla left. Only Dean could be dying and still be the same pervert, Elle thought with a sigh.
The Winchesters then entered the tent to find it full of people sitting in folding chairs with a small stage at the front. Dean muttered something under his breath before he moved to take a seat in the back when Sam yanked on his arm. Sam suggested that they sit closer to the front. Elle wasn't entirely sure what Sam was up to. He hadn't told her anything and all she knew that he figured it was something that could heal Dean. An annoyed Dean slapped at Sam's hand which still gripped his arm before he followed Sam to three chairs in an empty row behind Dean's new friend Layla. Elle moved to let Dean sit between her and Sam, but Sam said to have Dean sit on the end. What exactly was he up to? Elle rolled her eyes at Sam before she sat between her brothers when a blind man wearing sunglasses was helped onto the stage by a woman. Elle looked over at Sam who nodded his head at his sister who looked at her brother hesitantly. How was a man who couldn't even help himself supposed to help her brother?
Roy leaned against his podium before he began to speak about how his wife would read the news to him—and that it was never good. That were was always someone committing some immoral, unspeakable act. Elle looked around to see the people of the crows agreeing with him. While Roy continued to talk, Elle looked to the table on stage—it was probably some sort of altar in a sense because it had an old wooden cross among other items. Elle folded her arms across her chest, but she couldn't get comfortable with the cast on her arm. Roy was talking about how God rewards the good and punishes the corrupt when she finally gave up and rested her cast on her lap. People continued to agree with what the man was saying. Roy then brought up that it was "the Lord" who healed the people. Elle wasn't completely sold on the idea of a God like Sam—but she wasn't a complete doubter like Dean. She was on the fence with the issue—as she was in many aspects of life.
"The Lord who guides me in choosing who to heal by helping me see into the people's hearts," Roy said.
"Yeah, and into their wallets," Dean whispered to Elle which made her chuckle.
"Wish God was that good to me," Elle joked back.
"Well, I don't think we're important enough to the big guy upstairs if he even exists."
"You think so, young man?" Roy said.
Dean's eyes widened for a moment as Elle tried to stifle a laugh, before she realized that she probably shouldn't be laughing at his expense given how much time he had left to live. All of Elle's emotions seemed to contradict each other but she pushed them aside to listen to Dean mutter an apology to the man—who ended up making a blind joke which made the crowd roar with laughter.
"What's your name, son?" Roy asked.
"Dean," Dean responded hesitantly after clearing his throat.
"Dean. I want you to come up here with me."
The crowd began to clap as Dean looked over to Sam and Elle. Elle was in shock, but Sam's expression was an elated one. This was Sam's plan. Get Roy to notice Dean and then get him healed. Roy's wife, Sue Ann moved to center stage and motioned for Dean to come up. Dean looked at Elle again who simply shrugged her shoulders before he looked back to the front and shook his head and declined the offer. Sam hissed at Dean from the other side of Elle before he reached across his sister trying to push Dean out of his chair. Despite being blind, Roy noticed Dean's hesitancy.
"You've come to be healed, haven't ya?" Roy asked.
"Well, yeah, technically, but uhhh…maybe you should just pick someone else," Dean responded.
"Oh, no. I didn't pick you, Dean, the good Lord did."
The crowd began cheering louder and louder for Dean to get up there. Dean looked to Elle once more for her to help him with the situation. Elle hissed at her brother asking him what exactly she was supposed to do, but Roy continued to engage Dean.
"Come unto me ye who are weary and I will give thee rest," Roy said. "C'mon, son."
"Heal her wrist first," Dean said holding up Elle's arm with a cast on it—which made her wince.
"That's not how it works, son," Roy said.
"Get up there," Sam said excitedly.
Dean glanced toward his sister as if he were trying to get her take on the situation.
"What's the worst that can happen? It doesn't work?" Elle asked.
"If this is some bad mojo thing, I swear to God—" Dean started.
"Now's probably not the best time to be swearing."
Dean shook his head and muttered that he was going as he slowly got to his feet while the crowd cheered him on. Sue Ann came down to help Dean onto the stage. Elle looked to Sam who looked on enthusiastically. When Dean got up there, Sue Ann turned him toward the crowd and Dean waved awkwardly before he turned toward Roy. Dean and Roy exchanged a few lines of a conversation that Elle wasn't sure—but she assumed it was something sarcastic. Roy then turned to the crowd and asked for them to join him in prayer. The crowd lifted their arms up and joined hands. Elle was somewhat surprised to see Sam joining them—he even grabbed her hand and lifted it up. Sam closed his eyes but opened them to peek over at Elle, who just stood there awkwardly with one arm raised with Sam holding onto it.
"We're praying," Sam hissed.
Elle rolled her eyes at Sam before she shut her eyes. She wasn't entirely sure how to pray. No one had exactly taught her how to pray. What was she supposed to do? She opened one eye and peeked over at Sam—who appeared to be focused on his breathing and thinking. So—she supposed that she was going to do the same. She closed her eyes again and started to think about Dean. Was she supposed to ask for something? How was she supposed to know that someone was listening on the other end? But before she could question it—Roy began to speak. Elle's eyes instantly opened as she watched as Roy put one hand on Dean's shoulder and one on Dean's cheek. Then suddenly, Dean's knees began to weaken and he and brought down on them. Elle gasped but when Dean began to wobble she got out of the aisle and ran up to her older brother. So much for it being safe. Elle was at Dean's side when the crowd began clapping excitedly. She leaned over him and gently slapped at his cheeks as Sam came up and grasped Dean by his hoodie. Suddenly, Dean's eyes burst open and he started to gasp. Elle flung herself at him, wrapping her arms around him which made him groan.
"If you would've died, I would've killed you," Elle whispered.
"Give him some room to breathe, Elle," Sam chuckled as he pulled Elle back before turning the conversation to Dean. "So?"
But Dean didn't respond. Instead he seemed to stare at Roy—or behind him. Elle wasn't sure. But as Sam and Elle helped Dean to his feet the crowd began to clap even more. Dean said that he needed some air and without Sam or Elle's help he walked out of the tent; but he'd get stopped every now and then to be congratulated although Dean just brushed it off. Elle quickly ran after Dean while Sam thanked Roy first and then walked out. Elle followed Dean back to the Impala.
"Dean, are you—" Elle started.
"Just give me a minute, Elle," Dean said.
When Sam got back, he asked Dean the same question, but Dean responded a bit differently.
"I'm not going to believe it until I can see it for myself," Dean said.
He needed proof—medical proof that things were different. Sam drove them to the hospital in the small Nebraska town. He parked the car and the boys got out of the car. Elle didn't get out of the car; instead she just sat there until Dean knocked on the window. She rolled it down and looked at her brothers innocently.
"Elle-Belle, you coming?" Dean asked.
"You don't go with me to the lady doctor, not that I've ever been to one, but still, I'm not going with you to the manly one," Elle retorted.
"You do realize that we're going to a cardiologist—a heart doctor," Sam said.
"A part that you have," Dean added.
"Yeah—I know," Elle said slowly, trying to cover her momentarily lack of sense. "I just have had enough with doctors. I'll—I'll just stay in the car. Pokémon is calling my name. Can't you hear little Pikachu? 'Elle! Play with me, Elle! Play with me! We gotta catch 'em all!'"
"God, she's a freak. I'm not sure how we're related to her."
"You're the one who taught her," Sam joked.
"No, the nerdiness was you."
"Are you two going or not? Charmander and I need our alone time," Elle said.
Elle sat in the car playing Pokémon and ignoring the itching sensation coming from her cast while the boys were at the cardiologist. While she waited, a though went through her mind to go into the E.R. and say she was in a bunch of pain from her wrist—which would technically be true—and then they would prescribe her some more Vicodin. But she made Dean a promise—a promise that she had to keep. Mind over matter, right? So instead, she focused on her game. Sam was practically beaming by the time the boys got back to the car. Elle watched as Dean snatched the keys back from Sam and then slipped into the driver's side. Dean started the car after Sam got in and pulled out of the parking lot.
"So…how'd it go?" Elle asked.
"He's fine, just like I knew he'd be," Sam said.
"You gonna tell her the rest or should I?" Dean asked.
"Dean, saw a guy."
"Believe me, I understand why that would be upsetting because of you two," Elle retorted. "Was he at least attractive?"
"Not that kind of guy," Dean groaned. "An old man or something. Not to mention that it's a hell of a coincidence that a perfectly healthy guy my age dropped dead of a heart attack yesterday."
"So, what does this mean?"
"Elle, you're going with Sam to check out the heart attack guy while I visit the revered."
"No, I'm going with you," Elle said stubbornly.
"The doctor said that I'm fine. Go with Sam."
"I heard you the first time. Doesn't mean that I'm going to listen."
"No, you're gonna do as I say."
"No, I'm not."
"Dean," Sam sighed knowing exactly what Elle was doing—being over-protective of Dean. "Just let her go with you. Besides, maybe she can talk with Sue Ann about the rev."
Dean muttered under his breath but Elle got her way and went to Roy and Sue Ann's house with him. They were warmly welcomed into Roy and Sue Ann's home. They immediately recognized Dean and ushered them into the living room. They weren't seated more than five minutes when Dean elbowed Elle in the ribs. At first she pretended not to notice, but she knew that Dean was getting antsy, so she finally gave in.
"Mrs. LeGrange, you wouldn't happen to have something to drink, would you?" Elle asked sweetly.
"Of course, honey, why don't you just come into the kitchen with me," Sue Ann responded. "I'm sure your brother could use some time with the reverend."
"Yes ma'am."
Elle followed Sue Ann into the kitchen before the older woman set a plate of cookies and a glass of milk on the table. She smiled warmly at Elle before she motioned for her to sit down, which the younger woman did. Elle reached for a cookie and nibbled on it—it tasted delicious and the cool milk was wonderful. She wiped away her milk mustache only to find Sue Ann watching her. The older woman asked what happened to Elle's arm which she responded that it was a mishap at church—to which Sue Ann responded that it was all part of the Lord's plan.
"Sometimes, we don't understand his plan," Sue Ann said.
"Like what happened to Roy?" Elle asked.
"Exactly like that. He just woke up one morning, blind as a bat. The doctors told him that he had cancer and maybe a month to live. So we prayed—and prayed. For a moment there, I wasn't sure he was going to make it because he went into a coma. But somehow when he woke up his cancer was gone."
"And what do you think made him better?"
"Prayer."
"And how exactly did you pray?"
"I asked that God's-will would be done and that my husband would be healed of his ailments."
"Isn't that just wishful thinking?"
"Not when you're talking to the guy upstairs."
"Does he at least pay rent?" Elle joked but it fell flat against Sue Ann. "So—uh, does the same guy help Roy pick out the people that he heals?"
"Of course, who else would it be?"
At that moment Dean walked in with Roy and snatched a couple of cookies. Sue Ann told them to finish up the cookies as she put Roy down for a rest. Elle watched as Dean practically inhaled the rest of the cookies, without milk, which almost seemed like a crime. In hushed tones, they exchanged the information they had each found out before Sue Ann got back. She noted the empty plate and packed a gallon-sized baggie with cookies before she sent the two Winchester siblings on their way. Dean and Elle walked out the front door, with their cookies, to find Layla and her mother waiting outside to go in. Layla kindly asked how Dean was doing. Elle could see that Mrs. Rourke could barely look at Dean—clearly she wasn't happy that Dean had been cured; but that wasn't exactly the way Elle expected a Christian to act. Mrs. Rourke asked if she and Layla could go in, but Sue Ann told them that Roy was napping. Apparently, that wasn't good enough for Layla's mother. Her insistence seemed to be embarrassing Layla. But Layla shied away until her mother snapped at Dean.
"Mom, stop," Layla pleaded.
"No, Layla! This is too much. We've been to every single service. If Roy'd stop choosing these strangers over you—strangers who don't even believe. I just can't pray any harder," Mrs. Rourke responded.
"Layla, what's wrong?" Dean asked.
"I have this thing…"Layla started.
"It's an inoperable brain tumor! Six months!"
"Mom…"
Elle could feel her heart sinking. Why only earlier this morning she had been in the same situation as Layla's mother—willing to do anything to make her loved one get better. As Dean apologized, Elle reached her hand out and squeezed Layla's It was the only thing she could think to do, but Layla's mother pulled her daughter's arm away from Elle. Elle muttered an apology but Mrs. Rourke said that feeling sorry wasn't going to do anything for her daughter and questioned why Dean deserved to live but her daughter didn't before she stomped away with her daughter. Elle and Dean walked back to the Impala. The youngest Winchester leaned against the car looking back at the house, Dean did the same.
"That went well," Elle commented.
"Sometimes I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not," Dean said shaking his head.
"Both. Always both."
Dean punched Elle in the arm before they got back into the Impala and drove to the motel where Sam was going to meet them. Elle snatched the motel room key from Dean's hands and went in before he did. She did a running jump and dive onto the first bed. Dean responded by throwing his jacket on her, but she didn't care. She was laying claim the bed—of course, Dean did almost just die. Maybe she'd be nice just for tonight, but she was too comfortable to get up at the moment. Dean sat down at the table beside Sam who was researching on his laptop. He asked Sam what he had found out and it wasn't good. Apparently, the heart attack victim died at the exactly same time that Dean was healed.
"So—I put together a list of everyone Roy's healed, six people over the past year, and I cross-checked them with the local obits. Every time someone was healed, someone else died. And each time, the victim died of the same symptom LeGrange was healing at the time," Sam said.
"Someone's healed of cancer, someone else dies of cancer?" Dean questioned.
"Somehow. LeGrange…he's trading a life for another," Sam responded.
"That's disturbing," Elle muttered with her head resting on a pillow.
"Wait, wait, wait. So, you're telling me that Marshall Hall died to save me?" Dean hissed.
"Look, Dean, the guy probably would've died anyway and someone else would've been healed," Sam argued.
"You never should have brought me here, Sam! And you shouldn't have let him do it, Elle!"
"Hey, I didn't do anything!" Elle retorted.
"Because you've been too busy popping pills!"
"That's not fair! I stopped!"
"Wait, what?" Sam questioned.
"Elle's been taking pain meds behind our backs—pain pills she stole from Dr. Ellicott."
"Elle, what the hell?"
"First of all, we're supposed to be angry at Sam. Second, I didn't steal the pills from Ellicott—I forged his signature. Thirdly, I stopped," Elle hissed
"Because that's obviously more legal," Sam scoffed.
"You're the one who got a guy killed, that's prosecutable, isn't it?"
"Dean—I was just trying to save your life."
"But now some guy is dead because of me," Dean groaned.
"I didn't know."
There was a lull in the conversation. By this point, Elle was sitting up on the bed looking between her brothers and they were doing the same looking around the room. Elle broke the eye contact by groaning and falling backward against the pillows. Sam scratched at his head before he began talking again.
"The thing I don't get is how is Roy doing it? How's he trading a life for a life?" Sam asked.
"Oh, he's not doing it," Dean scoffed. "Something else is doing it for him."
"What do you mean?"
"The old man I saw on stage…I didn't want to believe it, but deep down I knew."
"Oh shit, you've got to be kidding me," Elle groaned. "There's only one friggin thing that can give and take life exactly like that."
"I wish I was, but we're dealing with a friggin reaper."
"Damnit, this totally sucks."
"You two really think it's the Grim Reaper? Like, angel of death, collect your soul, the whole deal?" Sam asked.
"Not the reaper—a reaper, there's a difference."
"She's right—there's reaper law in pretty much every culture on earth, it goes by 100 different names, it's possible that there's more than one of them," Dean responded.
"First, how do you know so much about them? Second, you said you saw a dude in a suit," Sam questioned.
"I can answer the first one," Elle responded. "We thought we ran into a reaper in Independence a couple of months before we got you from Stanford. As far as the guy in a suit…"
"What? Should he have been working the whole black robe thing?" Dean scoffed. "You said it yourself that the clock stopped right? Reapers stop time. And you can only see 'em when they're coming at you which is why I could see it and you two dorks couldn't."
"Maybe, but…" Sam started.
"There's nothing else it could be, Sam! The question now becomes how is Roy controlling the damn thing?"
Elle thought for a moment before she popped off the bed.
"He's got to be using some sort of dark magic," Elle said.
"She makes a fair point. There were priests in the early Christian era who didn't give up magic and some of them veered kinda dark," Sam said.
"Ok, then we need to stop Roy," Dean said.
"But the question is how."
"Oh you know how."
"Wait, what the hell are you talking about, Dean? We can't kill Roy."
"The guy's playing God. He's deciding who lives and dies. That's a monster in my book."
"No. We're not going to kill a human being. We do that and we're no better than he is."
"Ok, we can't kill Roy, we can't kill death. So what are we supposed to friggin do?"
"You stopped reading once we found out the thing in Independence wasn't a reaper, didn't you?" Elle questioned. "If this thing is being controlled by black spell, we gotta figure out how to break it so that Roy isn't in control anymore. We're probably looking for some kind of spell book"
"So, we go back to the church and see if we can find it," Sam responded.
"Only we're going to have to hurry up, the service starts in fifteen minutes," Dean added. "Gonna have to figure out how to stall him."
"That's what you are for," Elle said with a wink. "Besides, it's much safer than creeping."
"Elle, I'm fine. I'm not dying anytime soon."
"That's what I thought a few days ago, but then…"
"Elle."
"Okay, okay—let's just get this over with."
Dean drove the Impala back to the church. The entire ride there, he had to convince Elle that she was needed to search for Roy's control on the reaper. Elle knew that her time would be better spent doing that—but she was stubborn and didn't want to take the chance of losing Dean again, but he convinced her that he wasn't going to let Roy do any healing, meaning that he would be just fine. Elle looked inside people's cars as she and Sam searched through the area looking for anything that might be helping Roy. She and Sam slipped inside the LeGrange house to search. Sam looked in the library while Elle went to the kitchen and snatched a cookie before she went back to the library.
"So—you were taking pain pills?" Sam asked.
"Oh, my god-now's really not the time, Sam," Elle groaned. "I wasn't addicted or anything."
"Because Dean caught you?"
"I'm not stupid. Besides, I have a broken wrist in case you haven't noticed."
"I never said you were stupid. You always do that. You take one thing I say and twist it."
"I do it to Dean too if that helps at all. Sam, stop!"
"What?"
"Do you hear that?"
A male voice calling for help echoed through the air. Elle and Sam ran back outside before they scanned the crowd to find the guy, but it was the guy who found them first. He was quite frantic when he got to them—asking them for help and saying that there was an old guy in a suit after him. Sam asked the guy where the old man was and the frightened guy pointed over his shoulder before Sam grabbed the guy's arm and began to run with him. Elle pulled her phone out of her pocket to call Dean. She needed to make sure that he was all right—but it was sort of hard to dial with one hand while running. It took several rings before Dean answered his phone.
"Dean! Are you all right? The reaper…" Elle started.
"I did it, Elle, I stopped Roy," Dean responded.
"Sam, Dean stopped 'im," Elle said holding her cast over the receiver in the phone.
Sam understood what that meant. They stopped running to catch their breath while Sam explained that guy was safe now. The guy turned to lean against a car when his eyes widened and he started yelling again. She was just about to hang up with Dean, but she began to look around.
"Tell Dean that it didn't work!" Sam shouted.
"Dean, it didn't work. The reaper's still coming," Elle told Dean.
"That's not possible. Roy's not doing anything," Dean said.
"I'm telling you that it didn't work!"
"Maybe Roy's not the one controlling it," Sam suggested.
"Sam says that maybe Roy's not our guy," Elle told Sam.
"Then who the hell is?" Dean asked. "Never mind—I got it. It's Sue Ann."
"How sure are you?"
"Well, she's in the corner holding a cross and talking to herself."
"Creepy. But her cookies were so good," Elle groaned.
"What cookies?" Sam asked.
"They're not important right now. Dean says that it's Sue Ann and I need to get over there and help him."
Without even waiting for Sam to respond, Elle took off in a sprint toward the tent. She wasn't going to let Dean take this bitch on by himself. By the time she got back to the tent, Dean was being manhandled by two cops outside as Sue Ann followed behind. Elle told the cops to let her brother go as Dean managed to shake them off. Sue Ann acted like Dean had been the one in the wrong in front of the cops—but Elle knew better. But her damn cookies. The cops told Dean that if he came back that they'd put the fear of god in him to which Dean responded with a sarcastic comment. Before Elle could ask Dean what happened, his friend Layla came back with a disappointed look on her face. Dean asked Elle to give him a minute to talk with Layla.
"What did you do now?" Elle asked.
"Elle, please?" Dean hissed. "One minute."
"I'll be timing you."
Elle took a few steps away from Layla and Dean to find Sam walking toward her. Elle rolled her eyes back at Dean which made Sam laugh. As they waited for Dean, they overheard Roy tell Mrs. Rourke that he was going to give Layla a private session later in the evening for which Mrs. Rourke thanked the reverend. With Sue Ann giving Dean the stink-eye, the Winchesters piled back in to the Impala and back to the motel. Back at the motel, the Winchesters sat at the table discussing what had transpired.
"So, Roy really believes?" Sam asked.
"I'm pretty sure he doesn't have a clue what his wife's doing," Dean responded.
"But the cookies," Elle groaned.
"Get over the damn cookies. They weren't that good anyway."
"They were better than the cookies you tried to make me for my tenth birthday."
"Transitioning away from the cookies. While Elle and I were looking—I found this book," Sam said. "It's ancient, written by a priest who went dark side, and there's a binding spell in here for trapping a reaper."
"Sounds about right," Elle commented.
"It must be one hell of a spell," Dean added.
"That's an understatement," Sam responded. "You gotta build a black alter with seriously dark stuff: bones, human blood…ugh, to cross a line like that. A preacher's wife, black magic, murder, evil."
"Desperate," Elle said. "Sounds like someone else I know."
"Elle, Sam didn't go Vader...intentionally. But what we do know is that Sue Ann must've used that spell to keep the reaper away from Roy," Dean groaned.
"Literally cheating death," Sam sighed.
"But I have a question—Roy's fine. So why is she still dark siding it?" Elle questioned. "She has to know that all magic comes at a price."
"But right now that price is the immoral. That's who the reaper is going after on Sue Ann's crusade."
"May God save us from half the people who think they're doing God's work," Dean scoffed.
"We gotta break that binding spell," Elle groaned. "So we have a creepy cross in the church and according to Dean, Sue Ann has a creepy cross necklace."
"So which one do we destroy?" Sam asked.
"To quote Elle: both. Always both. And we're gonna do it tonight," Dean said solemnly.
As they pulled down the gravel road, Dean turned the lights off on the Impala. The moon gave them enough light to see Layla's car in the dark. She was there to be healed by Roy. Elle listened as Dean told Sam that Layla would've been healed if it wasn't for him. That if she wasn't healed tonight, she was going to die in a couple of months. Dean was obviously feeling some unexpected guilt—but Sam reminded him that no one gets to play God—except for God, to which Dean responded by shaking his head. The three Winchesters slowly and silently got out of the car and crept on the tent. Elle, being the smallest, looked inside the tent. She saw Roy speaking with a small group including Layla and her mother.
"Sue Ann's not in there," Elle whispered back.
"Then where is she?" Dean asked. "That's where she was last time."
"She probably knew we'd be coming back. She's got to be in the house," Sam responded.
"You two go in the house. I'll—uh—I'll catch up later."
"You really think I'm going to let you out of my sight again?" Elle hissed.
"Quite suffocating me. I'm a grown-ass man who doesn't need his little sister protecting him from everything—including germs and old ladies. Just let me do this. Besides, Sue Ann isn't going to be expecting you two not to mention that you made me a promise."
"But you're not dying anymore."
"You're right. I feel so alive that I could use a run."
"Who are you and what have you done with my brother?"
Dean winked at his sister before he began to run toward the cops, shouting at them as he ran before he veered between the cars. Sam grabbed Elle's arm as they ran up the stairs to the house. Before they walked in the house, Elle pulled her rock-salt loaded shot-gun out for protection. She might not be able to kill Sue Ann, but she might be able to scare her and injure her. Sam and Elle searched through the house in the darkness, but Sue Ann wasn't out in the open. Sam was about to go upstairs when Elle noticed a crack of light outside the basement entrance.
"Sam, have you learned anything from these situations? It's always the creepy basement," Elle said seriously.
Sam chuckled quietly before he went down the stairs in front of Elle. As they descended the stairs, Elle cringed at what she saw. The basement was lit by candlelight, but the creepiest thing was the altar. The altar had parts of dead animals, blood, horns, among other creepy crap. But there was also a photograph of Dean in the middle—only his face had been crossed out in what looked like blood.
"That bitch," Elle whispered.
"That's not a very nice name to call someone who gave your brother life and who can take it away," Sue Ann said from behind them.
"You do realize only a bitch would say something like that, right?"
"Filthy language like that isn't going to get you a God-fearing husband."
"Now, Elle!" Sam shouted.
As Sam ran forward to flip the table the altar was one, Elle rushed for Sue Ann—but the woman was a lot faster than she looked. Elle managed to catch-up to her for a moment, before the old woman sharply twisted Elle's wrist that was in a cast. Elle screamed in pain before she slightly collapsed on the stairs giving the woman enough time to scurry up the stairs and close the hatch behind her. Elle tried to pound against the door to open it, but Sue Ann managed to put a beam across the door so that it wouldn't open. Elle called for Sam and he rushed up behind her to open the door, but even he couldn't get it to budge.
"You're right about one thing, Elle. She's definitely a bitch," Sam commented.
"Can't you two see? The Lord chose me to reward the just and punish the wicked. He deserves to die just as Layla deserves to live. It's His will," Sue Ann said through the door.
"Then I'm going to pray that it's his will that you get the end you deserve, you bitch!" Elle hissed.
Elle frustratingly ran her fingers through her hair but her cast got stuck in her hair. She screamed. If it wasn't for her friggin re-broken arm, she could've had the woman. She didn't have more time to wallow in self-pity because Sam told her to duck as he smashed in an old boarded-up window. Glass and wood splinters shattered over the ground as Elle moved carefully toward Sam. He boosted her up first, pushing her through the window. Sam was tall enough to climb out without assistance. They spotted Sue Ann just outside the door to the church. With his larger stride, Sam was able to run faster and reach her first. He tore the cross Sue Ann was holding out of her hands and threw it to the ground, breaking the glass bottle of blood. Knowing that Dean should be fine now—but feeling rather vindictive, Elle took a couple shots of salt-rounds at the woman which caused the older woman to fall to the ground.
"Who's the bitch now, bitch?" Elle scoffed. "Oh, that would be me…wouldn't it?"
"Elle, overkill much?" Sam asked.
"She started it. I'm just finishing it. Besides, it's just rock salt—which hurts like a bitch."
Sue Ann began to crawl on the ground toward the broken vial of blood asking what they had done. Elle watched as the woman's expression turned to one of terror as she stood up and began to run. The woman didn't get anywhere before her eyes began to glaze over and she fell to her knees. The woman began convulsing, but Elle didn't need to see anymore. Sue Ann was getting the end she deserved. Sure, Elle may have gone a little overboard—but it was deserved. She should probably feel a little worse about the woman losing her life, but she did try to kill her brother after all. Elle began to run through the nearly bare field for parking to find her oldest brother—the one she knew better than to leave alone despite his pleas. She found Dean sitting on the hood of the Impala. Without saying anything, Elle launched herself at her brother, accidentally smacking him in the nose with her cast, before enveloping him in a hug.
"I think you broke my nose," Dean groaned.
"I'd much rather have broken nose you over dead you any day," Elle mumbled.
"Yeah, yeah—I know, it's been one hell of a week."
"How about we end it and get out of here," Sam suggested as he leaned against the Impala.
"If she ever lets me go," Dean groaned.
"Never. I'll never let go," Elle said.
"Did you just quote a chick-flick on me?"
"I don't know, did I Dean?"
"I—uh—just get off, Elle."
Dean pushed his sister off him before they drove back to the motel and ordered Chinese food. Elle ate her Honey-Sesame chicken before she took a shower, making sure to wrap a plastic bag over her cast. When she got back out, she found Dean and Sam relaxing on the big beds. Elle plopped on the bed beside Dean. Droplets of water splattered on Dean's face before she turned to look at him.
"Your bed is over there," Dean said.
"Just for tonight? You know, to watch over you?" Elle asked innocently.
"Fine, but just tonight. Although, I swear to God if you kick me in the balls while you're sleeping I'm pushing you off the bed."
"Deal."
Elle chuckled as Dean shook his head at his sister before he cuddled up with his pillow. She yanked her blanket off her bed before she cuddled up with the other pillow knowing that Dean should be safe. Elle quickly fell asleep knowing that just for a little bit, things might be all right. In the morning, Elle woke up to Sam and Dean talking about Layla's situation—questioning whether it was the right thing to do. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door which confused Elle as Sam walked over to the door and opened it revealing Layla. Layla smiled at them and tried not to laugh at Elle's terrible bed-head as she stood up and stretched.
"I'm gonna go grab a soda," Sam chuckled.
"I'm not…" Elle started.
"She's not staying here. She's coming with me."
Sam wrapped his arm around his sister's shoulder and dragged her out of the room.
"One minute. I'm timing!"
Elle could hear Layla laughing as she walked toward the vending machines with Sam. She got herself a Cherry Coke and some Bubbalicious bubble gum; but Sam made her eat something before she went back to the room. Elle groaned before she snatched the Twix bar from Sam's hands and shoved it in her mouth. Sam laughed as Elle ran back to the room with her mouth full.
"I've given you five minutes! I'm coming in!" Elle shouted from outside the room right after swallowing.
Layla sat on the bed with tears shining in her eyes—but Dean was gone. Elle scratched her head and opened her mouth several times to speak without actually saying anything.
"I—uh—I," Elle stammered. "Where's Dean?"
"You don't like other girls with your brother, do you?" Layla chuckled.
"Girls come and go—but I'm the one who's not going anywhere."
"He's lucky to have someone like you."
"I'm luckier to have him as my big brother. I literally would not be here if it wasn't for him."
"He has a good heart."
"I don't mean to come off as a bitch, but is there a reason you're talking to me?"
"Dean thought it would be funny if was still here and he wasn't. I'm humoring him. But the look on your face was definitely worth it."
Elle sighed. This girl actually did seem pretty cool. It was a shame that she had to die. Elle just hoped that there was some place better for Layla—some place free of pain and tears.
"I'm sorry you have to die."
"I would say 'me too' but I believe that God works in mysterious ways and that everything works out for the good of those who love him."
"I have to admit, I'm jealous of the strength of your faith."
"Don't be—I'm only human. I have my moments of weakness as well."
"Layla, if there's anything I can do…" Elle said empathetically.
"Pray for me. Pray that it will be peaceful," Layla said through the tears.
"I—I don't know how."
"Then I'll show you how."
Layla took Elle's hands and bowed her head. Elle followed Layla's example as the sick woman began to speak.
"Dear Lord, we thank you for all the blessings you have bestowed upon us in our earthly life: food, drink, family, friendship. We ask that you watch over us and that if it is your will that we will meet up again if not in this life then in the one to come. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen."
"Amen." Elle repeated.
Layla lifted her head up and smiled at Elle.
"That simple. Just like having a conversation inside your head."
"Good to know. Hey, can I ask a favor of you?"
"Yeah, sure."
"Can I get your number? For Dean, that is…"
"Um—yeah, but you can hold on to it too. You make me laugh and I think I'm going to need some humorous texts the next few months."
Elle agreed as Layla punched her cellphone number into Elle's phone. The girls hugged before Layla walked out of the motel room and Dean came out of the bathroom. Elle shook her head at her oldest brother before she attempted to itch inside her cast. Dean plopped down on the bed beside Elle.
"You got me her number? Nice," Dean said. "Best little sister ever."
"I only did that because I knew you were in the bathroom. You're going to have to earn it," Elle grinned.
"Most evil little sister ever."
"But you love me anyway."
"Give me your phone."
"No."
"Hand it over."
"I told you—you gotta earn it."
Dean then began to tickle his little sister causing her to snort and accidentally head-butt her oldest brother, knocking him off the bed. Sam didn't even ask what happened when he walked in the room. His expression read that he didn't even want to know. About an hour later, the Winchesters were packed up and walking toward the Impala to head back out onto the road. Dean went to go check-out and Sam slid into the car. Elle stalled for a moment just outside the car and looked up at the sky, which made her sneeze first, but then she continued to look up after she double-checked to make sure no one was watching.
"Hey, if there really is someone upstairs—I uh—I just wanted to put in a request order. It's not for me, it's for Layla. Can you just make sure she doesn't suffer too much? If anyone deserves that much, it's her. So—uh—over and out. Amen and all that jazz."
Elle looked around once more to make sure that no one saw her before she slipped into the backseat of the Impala. Her wrist gave her a bit of pain, but she chose to ignore it. She fluffed her pillow, snuggled with Tigger, and reached for her Gameboy Advance SP but it wasn't where she left it. She sat up to see that Sam was playing her game. Elle shook her head and tried to steal the game back but Sam managed to hold her back with his elbow. When Dean got back to the car, Elle tried to convince him to get Sam to give back the game. But Dean just chuckled and said that he was staying out of it as he started the car. As they pulled out of the parking lot Elle moved to a different tactic to get her game back: annoying him until he handed it over. As Elle repeated Sam's name over and over again, Dean turned his music up again so that he couldn't hear her—but if Elle wasn't mistaken, he was at least smiling and amused by the situation. So once again, the Winchesters hit the road to find their next case to solve.
Author's note: And another chapter! Yay! I hope that I at least did it some justice. I know the Vicodin kinda "ended" quickly…but as we know all too well with SPN, it's bound to rear its ugly head again eventually. I hope that you all had enjoyable holidays! Mine was spent making my father watch SPN. ;)Thanks again to those of you who have read/favorited/followed/reviewed my story. Honestly, it means so much to me! And for those of you who have found me on tumblr and asked awesome questions/ submitted manips/fan art, you guys rock my socks off! (That's probably why it smells. ;) haha.)
Thanks for all the tumblr interactions! They're awesome! Loving them!