Author's note: Sorry i've been so horrible about updating lately! School has gotten really hard, and my grades were slipping, so i had to study a lot more this week to boost them back up! And sorry if there are typos, but i proofread this as fast as i could because i had somewhere i had to get to, but didnt want to have to wait another day!
Enjoy!
I own nothing but Lexie!
Chapter Thirty Seven
We dropped Logan's car off at his house, figuring it was better if we just took him with us. Sticking together and all that. I didn't really care. I was freaking out. The look on Dean's face when he had went to shoot that kid? It scared me. I had only seen that look when he was looking at something of pure evil. That kid had been pleading for his life.
Sam was looking up the town, which he had seen on a poster or something in the room. I was too busy paying attention to Dean to pay attention to detail. "Continue on OR-224 West" The operator said.
Sam snapped the phone shut and sighed. "There are only two towns in the U.S. named River Grove" he said.
"How come you're so sure it's the one in Oregon?" Dean asked.
Sam closed his eyes, remembering the vision. "There was a picture –- Crater Lake" he replied.
"Okay, what else?" Dean asked, for the millionth time. Sam and I had already repeated the images a few times. I looked to where Logan was staring hard at the back of Sam's head.
"I saw a dark room, some people, and a guy tied to a chair" Sam said, listing it all again.
"And I ventilated him?" Dean asked. Again.
"Yeah" I said, rubbing my temples. My head was still pounding from all this. "You thought there was something inside him"
"A demon? Was he possessed?" Dean asked, looking at me in the rearview.
"I don't know" I shrugged.
"Well, all your guys' weirdo visions are always tied to the Yellow-Eyed Demon somehow" Dean said, looking at Sam desperately. "So, was there any black smoke? Did we try to exorcise him?"
"No. Nothing" Sam said. "You just plugged him, and that's it"
Dean clenched his jaw, but nodded. "Well, I'm sure I had a good reason"
Sam sighed, and shrugged. "I sure hope so"
Dean glared at him. "What does that mean?" he asked. Sam said nothing, casting me a dark glance. "Sam, I'm not gonna waste an innocent man" Sam looked out the window now. "I wouldn't!" Dean insisted.
"I never said you would!" Sam exclaimed.
"Fine" Dean stated.
"Fine" Sam agreed. He fidgeted.
I sighed. "Look, we don't know what it is" I said, leaning forward. "But whatever it is, that guy in the chair's a part of it. So, let's find him and see what's what"
"Fine" They said together and I leaned back.
"Fine" I said quietly. I sighed, and looked out the window. Logan took my hand and squeezed it. I looked over to him and he gave me a slight smile.
"Are you okay?" he mouthed, and I nodded. He smiled, patting my hand. I moved closer to him and put my head on his shoulder. I hadn't done that in about a month now. I had missed this. I breathed out and closed my eyes.
We stopped to hit the bathroom, and Dean and Logan left me and Sam behind at the vending machines. "Do you think Dean wasted an innocent man?" Sam asked, as I put in a quarter.
I sighed, and looked in the machine. "You think I should get starburst, or peanut M&Ms?" I asked, ignoring his question.
"Lex"
I pressed the button, grabbed the M&Ms, and looked at him. "I don't know, Sam"
"Don't know?" he asked. "Or scared to answer?"
I stared hard at him. "I only saw the last ten seconds" I stated. "I don't know what happened, Sam. He could've been faking. Maybe he was possessed"
"He was a really good actor" Sam stated, looking distressed.
"Yeah" I agreed, and shook my head. "But it's Dean. I trust him"
"Thanks" Dean said, walking in, and stealing my M&Ms. "Trust me to do what?"
"To believe me when I say if you don't give me back those M&Ms I'll kick you" I said, grabbing them back. "And that we'll get there already. I'm freaking out"
"Well c'mon then" he said, as Logan came back. "Let's get our asses moving"
SPNSPSPNSPSPNSPNSPNSPNSPNSPN
We pulled into River Grove, Oregon not too long later, and stopped on a corner of the main part of the small town. I looked around, but nothing looked familiar to me. Sam nudged me. "Is that-?" he pointed. It was the black guy from the vision.
I nodded. "I think so" I said, and Sam and I lead the way as Dean and Logan followed confused. "He was there" I explained to Logan.
All four of us walked up, which I had to admit probably looked weird, but I wasn't going to be left out of this one. "Morning"
"Morning" the guy grunted back. "Can I help you?"
Dean took out an ID, and I realized that Logan and I didn't have one. Dean usually handed me one as we got out of the car. "Yeah. Uh, Billy Gibbons, Frank Beard –- U.S. Marshalls" Dean said. He looked at Logan and I. "They're in our custody" he said, winking at me. I rolled my eyes.
"For what?" the man asked.
"That's confidential" Sam said, staring.
"Okay. What's this about?" he went on.
"We're looking for someone" Dean said.
"A young man, early twenties" Sam said, from memory. "He'd have a thin scar right below his hairline"
The man frowned. "What'd he do?"
"Well, nothing" Sam shrugged. "We're actually looking for someone else, but we think this young man can help us"
"Yeah, he's not in any kind of trouble or anything" Dean added. "Well, not yet" He looked down. "I think maybe you know who he is, Master Sergeant. My dad was in the Corps. He was a corporal"
"What company?" the sergeant asked, narrowing his eyes.
"Echo 2-1" Dean replied, happily.
"So, can you help us?" I butted in, getting annoyed. I just wanted answers.
Sarge stared at me for a moment. "Duane Tanner's got a scar like that. But I know him –- good kid, keeps his nose clean"
"No, I'm sure he does" Dean smiled.
"You know where he lives?" I asked, as Logan pulled me back a little to calm me down.
"With his family, up on Aspen Way" Sarge replied.
"Thank you" Dean smiled and then gave me a dirty look. He grabbed my arm and led me across the street. "You need to calm down" he said and then let me go. I glared at him, and then grabbed Logan's hand almost like as a counter argument.
Sam stared at a telephone pole curiously. I wasn't sure what that had to do with anything, but he seemed serious. "Hey" he said, pointing to the word engraved in the wood.
"Croatoan?" Dean asked, reading it.
"Huh" Logan and I said nearly at the same time. "That's weird" he added after.
Dean just looked out of the loop. "Roanoke?" Sam asked. "Lost colony? Ring a bell?" Dean shook his head. "Dean, did you pay any attention in history class?"
"Yeah" Dean said, annoyed. He waved his hand dismissively. "The shot heard 'round the world, how bills become laws…"
Sam smirked, amused. "That's not school! That's Schoolhouse Rock!"
"Conjunction Junction, what's you function" Logan smiled at me, and I snorted.
Dean just shrugged. "Whatever"
"Roanoke was one of the first English colonies in America, late 1500s" Sam explained.
:Oh, yeah, I do remember that" Dean nodded. "The only thing they left behind was a single word carved in a tree. "Croatoan""
"Yeah" Sam nodded. "And there were theories - Indian raid, disease. But nobody knows what really happened. They were all just gone. I mean, wiped out overnight"
"You don't think that's what's going on here" I frowned, looking around at the town around me.
"Whatever we saw in our heads, it sure wasn't good" Sam said. "But what do you think could do that?"
"Aliens?" Logan shrugged. I smacked him on the arm and rolled my eyes.
"Well, like I said, all your weirdo visions are always tied to the Yellow-Eyed Demon somehow, so…" Dean said, looking at all of us uneasily.
"We should get help" Sam said, with a nod. "Bobby? Ellen, Joshua maybe?"
"Yeah, that's a good idea" Dean said, pulling out his phone. He frowned, and held his phone up. "I don't have a signal"
The other three of us took out our phones, and I frowned when I saw I had no bars. "I don't either" Sam said. I nodded in agreement.
Logan pointed to the payphone on the corner. Dean picked it up and then sigh in frustration. "Line's dead"
"I'll tell you one thing –- if I was gonna massacre a town, that'd be my first step" I stated, looking at Sam. "Cut off the phone lines. No chance to get help, to warn people"
"Well you're pleasant" Logan stated, shaking his head.
"It's a gift" I shrugged, going right back to looking at Sam. "Maybe we should check out Duane's house now?"
"Yeah" Sam said, "See if anything weird is going on there"
We drove over to their house, which was slightly out of the way of the main part of town and by a small lake. "We can't all go up there" Dean scoffed, as we all got out of the car. "Four Feds? It's not happening"
"Well you can't leave me behind" I said, annoyed. "I had a psycho vision too" Dean stared at me and then looked to Logan.
"Fine, you and Sam go, but we'll be hanging around back just in case" he relented, and took Logan around the side of the house.
Sam knocked on the door. "Yeah?" a kid about my age said.
"Hi" Sam said, as we held up our badges. "We're looking for Duane Tanner. He lives here, right?"
The boy shrugged. "He's my brother"
"Can we talk to him?" I asked, getting annoyed. I wasn't asking for your brother just to make sure that he lived here. I wanted to talk to him. Now. Before Dean could just up and decide to waste him anyway.
The kid shook his head. "He's not here right now"
"Do you know where he is?" Sam asked, keeping calm. I wasn't sure how he was doing that.
"Yeah, he went on a fishing trip up by Roseland Lake" he said.
"Your parents home?" Sam asked.
The kid nodded. "Yeah, they're inside"
"Jake, who is it?" A male voice asked. He came to the door, and I noticed the way that he walked. It was almost too planned out. I couldn't explain it.
"Hi, U.S. Marshalls, sir" Sam said. "We're looking for your son, Duane"
"Why, he's not in trouble, is he?" Mr. Tanner asked nervously.
"No, we just need to ask him a couple routine questions, that's all" I shrugged, hoping we could just get to this kid before I went insane. "When's he due back from his trip?"
Mr. Tanner frowned. "I'm not sure"
"Well, maybe your wife knows?" I asked.
"No, I don't know, she's not here right now"
Sam frowned, confused. "Your son said she was"
Jake smirked. "Did I?"
"She's getting groceries" Mr. Tanner said, shaking his head. "So, when Duane gets back, is there a number where he can get a hold of you?"
"Oh, no, we'll just check in with you later" Sam smiled, and we turned to leave. The father put an arm around his son, and then closed the door. "That was kind of creepy, right? A little too Stepford?" Sam asked, glancing back.
"Big time" I scoffed. "Where the hell did Dean and Lo, go?"
We walked to the back of the property, where Dean and Logan were peering in the window, wide eyed. "Look" Dean mouthed, putting a finger to his lips. The mother was tied to a chair in the kitchen, looking terrified.
"It's okay, Mom" Jake smiled at her. "It's not gonna hurt"
Mr. Tanner grabbed a knife, and cut his sons forearm. He let the blood drip onto the identical wound that his mother already had on her shoulder. That was all I needed to see. I stood straight, and Dean kicked in the door. I grabbed my gun, and Dean shot down a screaming Mr. Tanner. I wavered as I watched that familiar look as he took him down. I shook it out of my head, and looked at Jake. Sam was pointing at him, but didn't shoot him. Jake just jumped through the window, and was gone. Sam had a clear shot, and had not taken it.
I started untying Mrs. Tanner, and Logan helped me by undoing her gag. She was crying. "It's okay" he said, comfortingly. "We're here to help you" She nodded, and then fell unconscious.
Dean swore, picked her up, and carried her to the Impala. He went back inside, and had Mr. Tanner on his back. "Where the hell are we going to put him?" I asked, and Dean didn't respond. He went in the trunk. Logan sat in the front while I made sure that Mrs. Tanner didn't kick it on the way there. We pulled up to Rivergrove Medical Clinic and Sam came around the car and pulled her out and carried her inside. I followed them in, and Dean went to go in the trunk to get Mr. Tanner.
"Hello? Hello, we need a doctor here!" I screamed, looking around for anyone.
A woman in scrubs came out from behind the door. "Mrs. Tanner, what happened?" she demanded, her eyes widening.
"She's been attacked" Sam replied.
The woman turned around. "Dr. Lee!" she shouted.
Dr. Lee came out, and waved us to the back. "Bring her in" she said, and Sam followed her back.
Logan came in, helping Dean carry Mr. Tanner. He was wrapped in the old blanket we had in the trunk. "Hey" Dean said, stopping me. I held the door for him.
Dr. Lee looked over a gasped. "Is that…?"
"Mr. Tanner" Logan grunted.
"Was he attacked, too?" Dr. Lee asked.
"Uh, no, actually he did the attacking and then he got himself shot" Dean explained.
Dr. Lee's eyes narrowed. "Shot?" Dean nodded. "And who are you?" she asked.
"U.S. Marshall. I'd show you my badge, but, uh…" He gestured to Mr. Tanner.
"Oh, sorry" Dr. Lee said, motioning to the bed in the back. "Bring him back here" Dean put him on the table. Logan looked to me, and pulled me aside.
"What?" I asked.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah" I said, looking over to where Sam was talking to Mrs. Tanner now, who was getting her shoulder fixed. I glanced at Logan. "Why?"
"You seem, I don't know, freaked?" he shrugged.
I paused. "I am freaked!" I said, incredulously. "Dean is going to shoot somebody!"
"We don't know that" he replied, staring hard at me. "Don't think that way" I sighed, but gave a short nod so that he would shut up. I was not in the mood to talk. I pulled him over to where they were talking.
"Wait, you said Jake helped him?" Dr. Lee asked, surprised. "Your son, Jake?"
Mrs. Tanner nodded. "They beat me…tied me up" she said, tears in her eyes.
Pamela sighed, shaking her head. "I don't believe it"
"Pam" Dr. Lee said, motioning for her to shut up. "Beverly, do you have any idea why they would act this way? Any history of chemical dependency?"
"No, of course not" she said, starting to sob. "I don't know why. One minute, they were my husband and my son. And the next…they had the devil in them"
Dean whispered something to Sam, and then nodded his head to the waiting room. I followed them. "These guys are whacked out of their gourds" Dean said, whispering violently at us as the door closed.
"What do you think?" Sam asked, starting to pace. "Multiple demons? Mass possession?"
"If it is a possession, there could be more" I added.
"God knows how many there could be" Dean nodded. "It could be like a friggin' Shriner Convention"
"Great" Logan remarked, looking at Mrs. Tanner inside the room.
"'Course, that's one way to wipe out a town" Dean scoffed. "You take it from the inside"
"I don't know, man" Sam said, shaking his head. "We didn't see any of the demon smoke with Tanner, or any of the other usual signs"
"Well, whatever" Dean said dismissively. "I mean, something turned him into a monster. And you know, if you would have taken out the other one, there'd be one less to worry about"
"I'm sorry, all right? I hesitated, Dean, it was a kid" Sam said.
"No, it was an "it". Not the best time for a bleeding heart, Sam" Dean scoffed.
Dr. Lee came out and stared at us. "How's the patient?" Sam asked.
"Terrible" she said, annoyed. "What the hell happened out there?"
"We don't know" Dean said softly.
"Yeah? Well, you just killed my next-door neighbor"
Dean looked uneasy. "We didn't have a choice"
"Maybe so, but we need the county sheriff. I need the coroner" Dr. Lee said, shaking her head.
"Phones are down" I replied.
"I know, I tried" she said. "Tell me you've got a police radio in the car"
"Yeah, we do" Sam said. "But it crapped out just like everything else"
She sighed, hand on her head. "I don't understand what is happening" she cried, frustrated.
"How far is it to the next town?" Dean asked.
"It's about forty miles down to Sidewinder" Dr. Lee replied.
"All right, I'm gonna go down there and see if I can find some help" Dean said. "My partners will stick around –- keep you guys safe"
Dr. Lee frowned. "Safe from what?"
"We'll get back to you on that" Dean said, eying me. He went to leave, and I followed. "Stay here" he instructed.
"Just be careful out there" I said, watching him go.
"I always am" he smiled, and then he disappeared. I sighed, and I sat at a table in the waiting room, not knowing what to do. I could only wait for Dean to get back, or for someone else to try and come kill us I supposed.
"Lex" Sam called, sounding terrified. I looked at Logan, who was sitting next to me, and we jumped up and ran over to the office again.
"What is it?" I asked, concerned. The look on Sam's face told me more than his words could. Something happened. "What?" I asked again, when he said nothing.
"Sulfur" he stated. "Mr. Tanner was fighting off a virus of sulfur"
I opened my mouth and then closed it again. "I'm sorry, I don't get it"
Dr. Lee looked in her microscope again. "Mr. Tanner was fighting a virus when he died, like a cold except much worse. I don't know if the virus is what made him go psychotic, but I think it had traces of sulfur in it"
I looked up at Sam. "A demon virus, Sam?" I asked incredulously. "Really?"
"We can't rule it out" Sam replied, looking at Mr. Tanner's body under the sheet. I sighed. "I'm just saying that right now, that's our only lead"
"I know, Sam" I replied, and looked over to where Dr. Lee was talking to Mrs. Tanner. She seemed to be explaining the situation. I walked over.
"I don't understand" she cried. "Are you saying my husband and Jake had a disease?"
"That's what we're trying to find out" Dr. Lee nodded. "Now, during the attack, do you remember…did you have any direct contact with their blood?"
"Oh my God" she said, terrified. "You don't think I've got this virus, do you?"
Dr. Lee frowned. "Beverly, I don't know what to think. But with your permission, we'll take a blood sample" Mrs. Tanner paused, looking uneasy, and then smiled, holding out her hand.
Out of nowhere, Mrs. Tanner screamed, and jumped off the table. I didn't even have time to react until she had knocked Dr. Lee to the floor. She pushed me into the wall, and I felt the wind fly out of me. I was helped to my feet by Logan. She shoved Sam into the cabinet. Without a word, I threw him the oxygen tank lying on the floor. He caught it, and knocked her out with one swift move. "Bitch" I said, as she slumped to the floor.
Logan looked at me, giving me a funny look, and walked out. I followed. "What?" I asked a little annoyed. I wasn't in the mood for any crap.
"That was just, uh…" he said, running a hand through his hair. "Just, weird"
"Well she apparently has a demon virus" I said, looking over to where Sam was locking her in the closet or something. "That's not normal"
"No I mean, you just reacted" he said. "With Sam? It was like you barely event thought about it"
"You've seen me hunt before" I scoffed, with a small smile.
"Not like that" he said, giving me no smile in return. He just stared at me, and then sat down in the waiting room. I watched him and the followed.
"Lo, its always been this way" I said. "It's just now you're…more aware" He said nothing. "Logan, you can't freak out on me like this, okay? There's already too much stuff on my mind"
I walked away, fed up. He wanted to make it better by coming along, and was only going to screw it up more. I wish things could just go back to how they were. When seeing him was a break instead of a chore. "Wait, Lexie" he said, stopping me from going back to where Sam was.
"What?" I asked.
"Why can't you just understand that I'm worried about you?" he asked, glaring at me. "Why are you so critical? Excuse me for caring"
"I'm glad you care, just…" I sighed, not knowing what to say. "Logan, it's been like this since day one. I've been in the same amount of danger since say one. I can't quit hunting. I can't fix this" I pulled my arm out of his grip. "You can"
"I can't stop caring"
"Well try," I snapped, and walked back to Sam. He gave me a look, and I shook my head. I wasn't in the mood to talk.
"What if we all have it? What if we all go crazy?" Pamela asked, as we all crowded around the door.
"We've gotta stay calm. All we can do is wait" Dr. Lee said. "The Marshall's bringing help"
"No, I can't. I've gotta go" she said desperately. She went to leave, but Dr. Lee tried to stop her. "No, you don't understand" she pleaded. "My boyfriend's out there. I've gotta make sure he's okay"
"Wait, wait. Please" Sam said, grabbing her arm and stepping in front of her. "I know you're upset, all right? But it's safer if you stay here for now. Help is coming"
I heard the Impala coming. "Dean's back" I stated, and ran to the door.
"Lexie, open up!" Dean yelled.
I opened the door and was surprised to see not only Dean, but the Sarge from earlier as well. "Why is he here?" I asked, in a whisper.
"I found him" he whispered back.
"Did you guys get to a phone?" Sam asked, walking towards him.
Dean shook his head. "Roadblock" he said. He nodded at Sarge. "I'm gonna have a word. Doc's inside" The Sarge left the room and went to go talk to the doctor.
"What's going on out there, Dean?" Sam asked, as we huddled aside.
"Man, I don't know. I feel like Chuck Heston in The Omega Man" Dean said, looking out the window. "Sarge was the only sane person I could find. What are we dealing with, do you know?"
"Yeah. Doc thinks it's a virus" Logan replied.
"Okay, great" Dean said, nodding. "What do we think?" He looked at Sam and then at me.
"I think she's right" Sam said, nodding.
Dean looked at him in disbelief. "Really?"
"That's what I said" I sighed.
"I think the infected are trying to infect others with blood-to-blood contact" Sam replied, giving me a look to shut up. "Oh, but it gets better. The virus leaves traces of sulfur in the blood"
"A demonic virus?" Dean asked.
"Yeah, more like demonic germ warfare" I scoffed.
"At least that explains why I've been having visions" Sam said, with a shrug.
"It's like a biblical plague" Dean sighed.
"Minus the locusts" Logan said, looking out the window.
"Yeah" Sam snorted. "But you don't know how right you are, Dean. I've been poring through Dad's journal. I found something about the Roanoke colony"
"And?" Dean asked.
"Dad always had a theory about Croatoan. He thought it was a demon's name –- sometimes known as Dever or sometimes Reshef" Sam said, "A demon of plague and pestilence"
"Well, that's terrific" Dean remarked. "Why here? Why now?"
"I have no idea" Sam said, shaking his head. "But Dean…who knows how far this thing can spread? We've gotta get out of here, we've gotta warn people"
"Yeah" I nodded. "Hey guys, watch out! There's a demonic virus going around!" I smirked. "That'll go over well"
"They've got one! In here!" Sarge yelled from the back room.
I exchanged glances with Sam and we ran to the back, following after Dean. "What do you mean?" Dean demanded.
"The wife" Sam replied. "She's infected"
"We've gotta take care of this. We can't just leave her in there." Sarge said, shaking his head. "My neighbors –-they were strong. The longer we wait, the stronger she'll get"
Dean took out his gun and I stared him down. I wasn't going to deny that the lady was a lost cause, it just seemed like with every damn second the vision was coming closer and closer.
"You're gonna kill Beverly Tanner?" Dr. Lee asked.
"Doctor, could there be any treatment? Some kind of cure for this?" Sam asked, desperately.
"For God's sake, I don't even know what "it" is!" she cried.
"I told you, it's a matter of time before she breaks through" Sarge said staring at the door.
Pamela groaned. "Just leave her there! You can't shoot her like an animal!"
Dean cocked his gun. "Sam" They walked over to the closet, and Logan grabbed my hand comfortingly. I gripped it, even though we were still mad at each other.
"Mark, what are you doing?" she screamed from inside the closet. "Mark, it's them! They locked me in here, they tried to kill me! They're infected, not me! Please, Mark! You've known me all your life! Please!"
Sarge held his gun steady, but did nothing. Dean looked to Sam. "You're sure she's one of them?" he asked. Sam slowly nodded. Dean took one last look at Mrs. Tanner, and pulled the trigger.
It soon grew dark, and I could do nothing but sit quietly next to Logan on the chair in the office. Sam and Dean were preparing the weapons, and had told me to just keep an eye out for movement. I just stared into the darkness where I could only see the one streetlight that was shining in the street. There were about four people milling around, all in a group. Out of nowhere, a scream made me jump. I tried to calm down as I looked over. Pamela was crying, pointing at the vial of spilled blood on the floor. "Oh, God! Is there any on me?" she cried "Am I okay?"
"You're clean, you're okay" Dr. Lee said, sweeping the blood aside.
"Why are we staying here? Please, let's just go!" she sobbed, looking to Dean.
"No, we can't, 'cause those things are everywhere" I said, pointing to the window. "They're waiting"
Pamela started to sob harder "Oh, God" Dr. Lee tried to calm her down, shushing her. I leaned into Dean, hoping that he would have some sort of answer for all of this.
"She's right about one thing" Sam sighed, turning to look at us. "We can't stay here. We've gotta get out of here –- get to the Roadhouse, somewhere. Let people know what's coming"
"Yeah, that's a good point" Dean said. "Night of the Living Dead didn't exactly end pretty"
"Pretty?" I asked. "Dean everyone died" I pointed back to the window. "We've got to get out of here"
"I'm not sure we've got a choice" Sarge said. "Lots of folks up here are good with rifles. Even with all your hard work, we're easy targets. So, unless you've got some explosives…"
I sighed, we were so screwed. "We could make some" Sam smiled, going to the shelf. He held up a bottle of potassium chlorate and grinned.
"Hey, let me in!" A voice screamed. "Let me in, please!" They pounded on the door desperately. We all ran to the door, and I watched as Sarge's eyes widened.
"It's Duane Tanner!" he said, and opened the door. Duane fell inside, panting. Sarge helped him up straight. I frowned, and looked to Sam.
"Oh, thank God" Duane said, crumpled over.
"Duane, you okay?" Sarge asked him, concerned.
"That's the guy that I, uh…" Dean made the motion like he was offing someone.
"Yeah" Sam and I said together, sharing a glance again. We both looked uneasy. I didn't know what to do about this.
"Who else is in here?" Duane asked, already looking around.
Dean stopped him. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Easy there, chief" he said. "Hey, Doc, give Duane a good onceover, would you?"
"Who are you?" Duane asked, frowning at him.
Dean shook his head, pushing him to the doctor's office. "Never mind who I am. Doc?"
"Yeah, okay" Dr. Lee said, preparing a needle and other things.
Sarge stared at him. "Duane, where you been?" he asked, curiously.
"I was on a fishing trip up by Roseland" he said. "I came back this afternoon. I saw Roger McGill being dragged out of his house by people we know. They started cutting him with knives!" He looked up at us, clearly terrified. "I ran, I've been hiding in the woods ever since" He looked around. "Has anybody seen my mom and dad?"
Dean rocked on his feet. "Awkward" He whispered to himself.
"You're bleeding" Dr. Lee said, deadpan. She stared at his leg, where there was blood on his clothing. He was bleeding.
"Where'd you get that?" Logan asked, uneasily.
He looked down at the cut. "I was running" he said, with a shrug. "I must've tripped"
Dean looked at Sarge. "Tie him up" he said. "There's rope in there"
Duane's eyes widened. He stood up, scared. "Wait—"
"Sit down!" Dean shouted, raising his gun. He glared at Duane menacingly, and then caught my eye. I was glaring at him, telling him to stop it. He had no idea what was going on. He wavered slightly, but then looked away.
"Sorry, Duane, he's right" Sarge said, "We've gotta be careful"
Duane was still freaking out. "Careful? About what?"
"Did they bleed on you?" Dean demanded.
"No, what the hell! No!" Duane said, confused. He looked at Sarge who was grabbing the rope.
"Doc, any way to know for sure?" I asked, desperately. "Any tests?"
"I've studied Beverly's blood work backwards and forwards" Dr. Lee sighed.
Duane looked up, in shock. "My mom?"
"It took three hours for the virus to incubate" Dr. Lee went on, ignoring Duane. "Sulfur didn't appear in the blood until then, so…no, there'd be no way of knowing. Not until after Duane…turns"
Sam looked at Dean. "Dean, I've gotta talk to you" he said, "Now" Dean sighed, but followed Sam. Sam looked to me and Logan, and nodded for us to follow as well.
"This is my vision, Dean. It's happening" Sam said, closing the door behind him.
"Yeah, I figured" Dean scoffed, watching him walk back and forth.
"You can't kill him, all right?" Sam said, looking at him. "Not yet. We don't know if he's infected or not" He stopped walking and stared at Dean.
"Oh, I think we're pretty damn sure" Dean said, incredulously. "Guy shows up out of nowhere, he's got a cut on his leg, his whole family's infected"
"All right, then we should keep him tied up and we should wait and see" I said, nodding at Sam.
Dean rolled his eyes. "For what? For him to Hulk out? Infect somebody else?" he asked. "No, thanks, can't take that chance"
Dean went to leave, but Sam stopped him. "Look, man, I'm not happy about this, okay? But it's a tough job and you know that" Dean said.
"It's supposed to be tough, Dean!" Sam said. "We're supposed to struggle with this, that's the whole point!"
"What does that buy us?" Dean asked.
"A clear conscience, for one" I said, shrugging.
Dean glared at me. "It's too late for that"
"What do you mean it's way too late for that?" I asked. "Dean, you can't just kill him. We don't know anything yet"
"We know" he said, staring at me. "You two think you're so smart with your psycho visions, and you aren't thinking clearly" He looked to Logan. "You agree?"
Logan looked uneasy, and then looked to me. "I think he's more than likely affected but—"
"There" Dean smirked. "I rest my case. Logan?" Dean and Logan walked into the hallway, and Sam and I followed. I wasn't going to let Dean just do something he would regret.
"What the hell has happened to you?" Sam asked, stopping him from leaving the room. "You might kill an innocent man, and you don't even care! You don't act like yourself anymore, Dean. Hell, you know what? You're acting like one of those things out there"
"Mm-hmm" Dean said, and pushed Sam backwards, swung the door closed, and locked it.
"Dean!" I shouted. "Open it!" Logan was staring at his shoes. "Logan, open the damn door!"
"Hey! Open the damn door. Dean!" Sam screamed. "Don't do it, Dean! Don't!" He pounded against the door, but got nothing. I waited for some sound of a gunshot, but there was nothing. My head started to hurt.
"Sam?" I asked, leaning on the table. "You aren't having a vision, are you?" He turned, and looked at me. I took that as a no. My head exploded, and I saw the street outside.
No one around. I glanced sideways, and saw Logan, and he was pulling me. Even though I wasn't sure why, I was upset. No, more than upset. I was fuming. "Because they want you to live, Alexis" Logan replied. He put his hands on my shoulders, turning me away from the door. "We've got to go"
I came out of it, panting and being held up by Sam. "What the hell?" I asked, confused. I had never had a vision all by myself before, and of myself at that. That had never happened before either. Dean entered and put his gun on the table.
"I couldn't do it" he said, and then looked up. "I couldn't shoot him"
Sam nodded solemnly but said nothing else. He looked back to me. "What did you see?" he asked. "Something about all of this?"
"What?" Dean asked, immediately concerned. "You had a vision? By yourself?"
"I guess" I said, my head still throbbing. "But I don't think it was important" I added. "It was about me and Logan"
"And?" Dean asked.
"We were fighting" I said. "But safe" I looked up at them. "Nothing bad even happened"
Dean sighed, but grabbed the bottles from before. "Alright" he said, "We'll worry about that later. We've got bigger fish to fry"
We started back up to make the explosives. I sat as the table, Logan and I working together, and Dean and Sam also working together. I held the bottle, and he poured in the chemicals. "You really think this is going to work?" I asked Logan, in a whisper.
"No" he replied, stuffing in the cotton. "I think we're screwed"
"Okay" I sighed, grabbing a new bottle. "Just making sure its not only me"
"We need more" Sam said, shaking the empty bottle. "Logan you wanna—"
"Yeah, sure" he said, and then they went to the closet to get the supplies. I finished off the last of the supplies at the table, and looked to Dean.
"I knew you wouldn't shoot him" I stated, looking at Dean. He looked up, questioningly. "I knew you wouldn't do it. You could have, in a heartbeat. But you wouldn't if we told you not to"
"What can I say" he smirked, patting my hand. "You and Sammy are my weakness"
Logan and Sam came back, and then we went back to silence, until Dr. Lee walked in. "It's been over four hours" she sighed. "Duane's blood is still clean. I don't think he's infected. I'd like to untie him, if that's all right"
I looked to Dean, who slowly nodded. "Sure, yeah" Sam replied, after noting Dean's nod. She left to go untie him. Sam stopped what he was doing and looked at Dean. "You know I'm gonna ask you why"
"Yeah, I know Dean said, meeting my eye for a moment. It was a look to keep my mouth shut.
"So, why?" Sam asked. "Why didn't you do it?"
There was a long pause, where Sam, Logan and I all stared at Dean waiting for his response. He sighed. "We need more alcohol again" he stated.
Sam stood up and went to go and get it. I waited, looking at Dean for some kind of reason. I wanted to know why he couldn't just answer the stupid question. My head started to pulse. I looked over as I heard a loud crash. "Sam" Dean and I breathed.
We both ran over, immediately started to pound on the door to the supply closet. Dean pushed me out of the way, and kicked the door in. He pulled out his gun, and shot Pam several times, until she fell off Sam, dead.
"She bled on him" Sarge said, as Dean went to go and help Sam off the ground. "He's got the virus"
Dean, Logan, Sarge, and I all stopped moving, stopped breathing, and stopped everything. We stared at Sam.
He had the virus.
SPNSPNSPNSPNSPNSPNSPNPNSPN
I paced around the waiting room while Sam sat on the table in the back with a bandage to his chest. I could feel the tears brimming in my eyes. "Lo, what do I do?" I asked, wanting to cry. He just watched me silently, saying nothing. "Are you going to say something or not?" I demanded,
turning on him. He still said nothing. "Look, Lo, you wanted to be a part of this, be a part of it, okay? Tell me what to do"
He put his hand on my shoulder, and sighed. "I don't know what you should do" he said, exasperated. "They don't exactly tell you this at boyfriend's 101"
I stared at him for a moment, and then went back to where Dean was pacing and Sam was still sitting, looking terrified. "Doctor, check his wound again, would you?" Dean asked, desperate. She did nothing. "Doctor!" Dean shouted.
Sarge sighed. "What does she need to examine it for? You saw what happened"
"Did her blood actually enter your wound?" Dr. Lee asked, looking at Sam for some sign that this wasn't really happening. He wasn't really infected. He couldn't be, he was my brother, and I wasn't goin to let him die.
"Come on, of course it did!" Sarge scoffed, throwing his hands in the air.
"We don't know that for sure!" I shouted, annoyed.
"We can't take a chance!" Duane said, shaking his head.
Sarge looked to Dean. "You know what we have to do"
"Nobody is shooting my brother" Dean said, angrily. He started pacing again.
"He's not gonna be your brother much longer" Duane argued. "You said it yourself"
"Nobody's shooting anybody" I insisted, moving closer to Sam, and giving him a strong glance.
"He was gonna shoot me!" Duane said, pointing at my brother. I looked to Dean, and opened my mouth to counter him back, but Dean was already in his own defense.
"You will shut your pie hole, I still might!" Dean shouted.
"Dean, Lex, they're right. I'm infected" Sam said, shaking his head. "Just give me the gun and I'll do it myself" he said, holding out his hand.
"Forget it" Dean said.
"Dean, I'm not gonna become one of those things" Sam argued, not dropping his hand.
I smacked his hand down. "Sam, we've still got some time—"
"Time for what?" Sarge asked. "Look, I understand he's your brother, and I'm sorry. I am" He took out his gun, and looked to Sam. "But I've gotta take care of this"
"You shoot him, you gotta go through me" I said, standing in front of him.
Sarge wavered slightly. "You better move" he stated. "I'm not above hitting a woman"
"I'm gonna say this one time" Dean said in his scary calm voice. "You make a move on him or her, you'll be dead before you hit the ground, you understand me? Do I make myself clear?" He was shouting by the end of hit.
"Guys!" Sam shouted.
"Then what are we supposed to do?" Sarge asked.
Dean paused for a long time, looking from me, to Sam, to Sarge, and then back to me. "Get the hell outta here, that's what" Dean said. "You've got the explosives, there's an arsenal in the trunk of the car out front" He looked to Dr. Lee and Duane. "You two go with them. You've got enough firepower to handle anything now"
I looked at him in shock. "What about you?" Sarge asked.
Dean said nothing, and Sam freaked. "Dean, no. No. Go with them. This is your only chance"
"No, you're not gonna get rid of me that easy" Dean said, shaking his head.
"He's right, man" Sarge said, "Come with us!" Dean just gave him another look. "Okay, here's your funeral" They all started to walk out the doors.
"I'm sorry" Dr. Lee said, "Thanks for everything, Marshalls"
"Oh, actually, we're not really Marshalls" Dean shrugged.
"Uh…oh" she said, and just walked out. Dean looked to me, and I automatically knew what was coming. I knew what he was thinking, but I was going to wait for him to say it, because I wasn't sure I could say it myself.
He went into his pocket, and took out his car keys. "Dean…" I said, my eyes watering. "Don't"
"Take good care of her" he stated, tossing them at me. "And don't you dare try to get rid of her, I'll know, and I'll come back to life and kill you"
I caught them, and shook my head. "Dean" I said, "Please"
"Lex, you're not staying" Dean said, uneasily, shaking his head slowly.
"I'm not leaving you two here to die" I said, choking back my tears. "I'm not doing it, De" I added, adamantly.
"Dean, she's right" Sam said, looking like he was about to cry as well. "All of you should go"
"Shut up, Sam" Dean and I said together.
"Alexis Marie" Dean said, sternly, using his I'm-your-scary-older-brother voice. "Get out of here. Leave" I didn't move. "Now!" he shouted. I wavered, the part of me that was scared wanting to listen. It was taking a lot of strength for me to not move.
"No" I said, standing my ground. "If you want me to leave, you're going to have to drag me out of here yourself"
"I'll do it" he said, stepping closer, so that I had to look up at him. He was sizing himself up to me, trying to psych me out. It may work usually, but now I was too far in. I wasn't going to do it. "I will drag your ass out of here" he threatened again.
"Then do it, Dean" I said, shaking my head.
He stared at me for a moment. "Logan" he said, looking over. "I want you to make sure that she gets out. Make sure that she's okay. Make sure Lex is safe" His lip quivered. "Make sure she never comes back here, or looks for us"
"Dean!" I shouted, grabbing at his jacket. "Please, don't"
"Okay" Logan replied, not looking at me. "I'll make sure"
Dean looked to me. "Last chance, Ankle Biter"
"I'm not moving, Dean" I said, shaking my head.
He stared at me for a moment, telling me with his quivering lip and red eyes that he really didn't want to do this. I would make him. He lunged at me, trying to push me to the door. He tried to pick me up, but I wouldn't let him. I knew all his moves. I fought against him, as he finally got the best of me. He shoved me out the door, and swiftly slammed and locked the door behind me. I pounded on it, angry tears pouring down my face. "I'm sorry" he shouted through the door.
"Sam!" I screamed. I got no response. "Dean I hate you!"
"Logan, get her out!" Dean shouted and then disappeared so that I couldn't see him anymore.
Logan abruptly grabbed my arm, and I was barely fighting him. I had no strength left. I was choking on sobs now. I just couldn't do it. "Let go of me" I said, angrily, twisting my arm out of his grip.
"No" he said, pulling me out of there. "We can't stay here"
"I'm not leaving them" I said. "How could you even let them do that?"
"Because they want you to live, Alexis" Logan replied. He put his hands on my shoulders, turning me away from the door. "We've got to go"
I paused, remembering my vision. I guess this was it. "I can't leave them" I insisted, but he just grabbed my arm. "I'm not leaving them here to die"
He pulled me, yanking my arm so hard I was surprised that it didn't come out of the socket. I fought him tooth and nail, but I was so tired I couldn't really even fight him that much. I clawed at his hands, but he didn't seem to notice as we got to the outside. "Stop it" he said, as we hit the last door to outside. "You don't need them"
I paused, and then smacked him as hard as I could. My hand was actually tingling, and I could already see the redness appearing. The worst part was that I didn't care in the slightest. "They're all I have left" I choked, hiccupping from my tears.
He felt his cheek, shocked, but just let go of my wrist. "Do you love me?" he asked.
"What?" I asked, incredulously.
"Do you love me?" he asked. "Because if you did, you wouldn't want to die. You wouldn't want me to let you die"
"This really isn't the—"
"Yes it is!" he shouted, throwing his hands up. "These past few months have sucked for us. They sucked! And every time we try to fix it, it only gets worse" He choked on tears of his own, and it scared me a little. "So, if you say it, if you say you don't care anymore, you can go back in there. Right now"
I looked behind me, choking on the words that were struggling to come out. "If you loved me, you wouldn't make me make the choice between you and my brothers" He said nothing, just staring at me. "And I think you know what I'm going to choose" He looked down.
"Guys?" Dr. Lee asked, walking back right inside the door where Logan and I stood. "I think we have a problem"
"What?" I asked, automatically switching gears. "What's wrong?"
"There's no one out here" she said, pulling me out into the open air. "Everyone's gone"
Sarge looked around again, and then to me. "We should tell your brother" He ran back in with Dr. Lee, and I followed without another word. She knocked on the door, and Dean looked out the window before he opened the door. Dr. Lee got him to come outside.
"There's no one. Not anywhere" she said. "They've all just…vanished"
Sarge and Dr. Lee searched the entire town for the next few hours. Sam still hadn't turned apparently, and we were getting iffy on if he even would. I sat in a corner of the clinic, all by myself. No one else even bothered to talk to me, and that was good. I might have tried to kill them if they tried.
"Well, it's been five hours and your blood is still clean" Dr. Lee said, inspecting Sam's blood. "I don't understand it, but I think you dodged a bullet"
"But I was exposed. How could I not be infected?" Sam asked.
"I don't know. But you're just not" Dr. Lee shrugged. She looked at the other microscopes. "I mean, when you compare it with the Tanner samples—what the hell?"
"What?" Sam asked, confused.
"Their blood" She said, her eyes wide. "There's no trace of the virus. No sulfur, nothing"
SPSPNSPNSPNSPNSPNSPNSPNSPNSPN
"Doctor, the Sarge and I are getting the hell out of here, heading south" Duane said, packing up the truck. "You should come"
She shook her head. "I've gotta get over to Sidewinder. Get the authorities up here –- if they'll believe me. Take care"
Sarge waved goodbye as they drove away. "What about him?" Dean asked, nodding at Sam.
"He's gonna be fine. No signs of infection" She smiled, and then went back inside.
"Hey, man, don't look at me" Sam said, putting his hands up. "I've got no clue"
"I swear, I'm gonna lose sleep over this one" Dean said. "I mean, why here? Why now? Where the hell did everybody go? It's not like they just freakin' melted"
"Why was I immune?" Sam asked quietly.
"Yeah, you know what, that's a good question" Dean said, and opened the car door. I climbed in the back, and went back to staring out the window. I wasn't going to talk. Not now. "You know, I'm already starting to feel like this is the one that got away" Dean reached in his pocket for the keys, and then looked at me.
I held up the keys, which I had never given back, and handed them to him without a word. He gave me a small smile, which I did not return, and then looked at Sam. They shared a look, but they said nothing.
The car drive was really long, and really silent. We dropped Logan off, and I got out to tell him goodbye. "Bye" I stated, as we walked back up to his house.
"I'm sorry" he said, shaking his head.
I stared at my feet. "I think it's too late" I looked up. "I'm sorry I smacked you though"
"It's okay" he said, awkwardly. We stood for a moment. "Are we over, then?"
There was a long silence. "Yeah" I said, "I think we are"
We both looked up at each other, and although I think both of us wanted to convince each other that we weren't over, that it would be okay, and that we could do this, we knew it was nowhere close to the truth. It was over. It was way over. "I'll always love you" I said, giving him a hug.
He wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me close, knowing it was the last time. "Me too" he said, and then let go. "Bye, Lex"
"Bye, Logan" I said, and then walked away to the car, tears pouring freely down my face. I got in, sitting in the back. Sam turned around, but I silenced him with one look, and he turned back.
There was nothing to say.
SPNSPNSPSPNSPNSPNSPNSPSNPN
We drove for a few hours, and then took a bathroom break somewhere out of Iowa. "Hey" Dean said. I turned to look at him, and he pulled me into a strong hug, smooshing me to the point I could barely breath. "I'm sorry"
"No you're not" I said, pushing him away. "How dare you leave me like that! I would've rather been dead"
"I thought maybe you could handle it" he remarked, looking hurt.
"Dean" I scoffed. "What part of you made you think leaving me all alone on earth was okay? You realize I am all alone, right?" He said nothing. "You and Sammy are all I have"
"You had Logan at the time" he stated, looking past me. "You shouldn't have broken that off because I made him—"
"That wasn't why" I sighed. He gave me a blatant look. "Well, okay, that's part of it, but not all of it. I just…we weren't right. He didn't get it like I thought he did"
"It's your choice I guess" he shrugged.
"Yeah" I said, and then pulled him back into the hug, this time squeezing him. "If you ever try to leave me alone again, I will kill you"
"Ditto" he chuckled, and hugged me back. "Chick flick over?"
"For now" I smirked, and he piggy backed me to the Impala.
We pulled over randomly after about seven hours of more driving in random directions. It was what we did when we were upset. We just drove, and then stopped. Dean pulled out a few beers, and we would either sit on the impala, or just laze around. This time, we were at some river. We sat on the fence, drinking and sitting in silence. "So…last night" Sam said, finally breaking the silence. "You wanna tell me what the hell you were talking about?"
"What do you mean?" Dean asked, playing dumb.
"What do I mean? I mean, you said you were tired of the job" Sam said. "And that it wasn't just because of Dad"
Dean put the bottle to his lips. "Forget it"
"No, I can't" Sam argued. "No way"
"Come on, man, I thought we were both gonna die" Dean scoffed. "You can't hold that over me"
"No, no, no" Sam said. "You can't pull that crap with me, man. You're talking"
"And what if I don't?" Dean asked.
Sam smirked. "Then I guess I'll just have to keep asking until you do"
"I don't know, man" Dean sighed. "I just think maybe we oughta…go to the Grand Canyon"
I looked up, this actually making me cringe. "What?" I demanded.
"Yeah, you know, all this driving back and forth, cross-country" Dean sighed. "You know I've never been to the Grand Canyon? Or we could go to T.J. Or Hollywood, see if we can bang Lindsay Lohan"
"You're not making any sense" Sam said.
Dean shook his head. "I'm saying we should take a break from all this. Why do we gotta get stuck with all the responsibility, you know? Why can't we live life a little bit?"
"Why are you saying all this?" Sam asked.
Dean hopped off the fence, and Sam and I followed. "No, no, no. Dean, you're my brother, all right?" Sam said. "So, whatever weight you're carrying…let me help a little bit"
"Me too, Dean" I said, even though the last thing I wanted was to talk right now. I would do it for him though. I would make myself suck it up.
"I can't. I promised" Dean said, quietly.
"Who?" I asked.
"Dad" he said, looking at his boots.
"What are you talking about?" Sam asked.
"Right before Dad died…he told me something" Dean sighed. "He told me something about you" He looked up at Sam, and then me. "Both of you"
"What? Dean, what did he tell you?" Sam asked.
I looked at Dean's conflicted face, and wondered what the hell could be so bad that he couldn't just say it. My dad made some scary requests, but I didn't think he'd make him do anything so bad.
"He said that he…he wanted me to watch out for you and Lex" Dean said. "Take care of you two"
"He told you that a million times" Sam said, not getting it. I had to admit, I didn't get it either.
"No, this time was different. He said that I had to…save you" Dean said, struggling to make the words come out of his mouth. This time, he was only looking at Sam.
"Save me from what?" Sam asked.
"He just said that I had to save you. Nothing else mattered" Dean said. "And if I couldn't, I'd…" He trailed off.
"You'd what, Dean?" I asked, wanting him to just spit it out already.
"We'd have to kill you" Dean said, looking at me. "He said that Lexie and I might have to kill you, Sammy"