A/N: This is it, the end of the journey. Thank you for hanging in there through all the letters. Reviews would make my day. NC
Z
Part II
The brothers walked down the hallway and turned the corner seeing a sign stating the morgue was farther down the hall. Dean stopped at the double doors and pushed one open to step through it into a room that was colder than the hallway. A slight chill went up his back and he shook it off feeling his brother's body close by him.
The room was brightly lit with florescence lights that made them squint for a moment. The room smelled of the death, harsh cleaning solutions, and coldness. There were three empty stainless steel tables sitting slightly off center of the room, two desks, filing cabinets and two other doors leading out of the room. On the far wall were the cubicles set into the wall for the bodies that were brought here.
"Hello," Dean called looking around for the coroner, Doc Roberts, the sheriff had called him.
One of the doors opened and a salt and pepper haired man stepped through one of them. He looked to the brothers for a moment before moving closer.
"You must be the FBI that the sheriff called about. I'm Doc Roberts."
"We are, Agent Wilson and Platte. We'd like to see the recent murder victims," Dean replied.
"Of course, if you'll step this way." The doctor walked across to the cubicles and looked at the tags before pulling three out.
Sam looked around and found gloves and handed a pair to Dean as he slipped on some. "Could we get a copy of your autopsy reports?" Sam asked.
"Alright, I'll get them while you look at the bodies."
Dean waited for him to walk away before pulling down the white sheet from the first body. It was a middle-aged man of slight build. They saw right away that his head didn't set right on his body. Dean reached to move his head and realized his neck had been viciously snapped.
"It looks like it was almost torn from his body," Sam whispered.
"Someone had to be strong to do that," Dean noted.
Sam moved to the next body and pulled the sheet down to see another younger man that had his throat deeply cut. The ragged edge was raw and bloodless, but the rest of his body showed no signs of trauma. Sam checked his hands and saw no signs of defensive wounds on either one. He hadn't put up a struggle that he could tell.
Dean went to the last body and uncovered it to find a middle-aged woman with a wound to her chest that looked like a knife or some sharp object. Like the others there were no other injuries on her body.
"Do you see any other marks on their bodies?"
"No, it's like they didn't fight back."
"Here you go gentlemen, my reports," Doc Roberts said. He held out a file to Sam who took off his gloves and took it.
"Thank you," Sam replied.
"We've seen enough, thanks Doc," Dean told him. He popped off the gloves and tossed them before nodding to the coroner and turning to leave. He headed out the doors with Sam close behind.
Once they were outside in the parking lot of the hospital, Dean spoke again, "I think we need to visit this Aurora Chambers."
"You thinking maybe a vengeful spirit?"
"Don't know, who's the first witness to check out?"
"The wife of the first victim, Nora Phillips. She lives about fifteen miles from here," Sam said looking at his notes. "You can loop around the town and not have to go through it."
"Just tell me where to turn," Dean told him cranking the Impala and getting back out on the main road. He followed Sam's directions and twenty-five minutes later pulled into a nice housing development.
"The house number is 1246," Sam told him checking the mailboxes as Dean drove slowly down the street. "There up ahead," he pointed to a two-story house with a circular driveway.
Dean pulled up the drive and parked. They got out and walked up the walkway to the front door. Sam rang the bell and stepped back waiting for someone to come to the door. Sam looked down at a young boy who looked around five peeking around the door and starting up at them.
"Hi, is your Momma home?" he asked giving him a warm smile.
"Troy, I've told you about answering the door," a middle-aged woman said.
"Mrs. Phillips, we're with the FBI and would like to talk you about…" Dean started looking down at the boy listening before continuing. "Your husband."
"Troy, honey, go play in your room, okay?" she told her son before turning back to the brothers. "Come in." Mrs. Phillips led them into a family room and motioning them to the couch, while she sat in a chair across from them.
"We're sorry for your loss. I know this must be hard, but if you could answer a few questions for us," Sam told her gently.
"Sure, but I don't know what else I can tell you that I've not already told the sheriff," she replied wiping at her eyes that were red rimmed from crying.
"The police report mentions you said your husband thought he was being haunted," Dean started. "What did you mean by that?"
"I'm not sure, Stan got really paranoid right before…He told me one of his co-workers was stalking him."
"And who was that?" Sam asked.
"Sylvia Chambers, but that can't be right. She died in a car crash along with her husband less than a month ago. We went to the funeral."
"Did Sylvia have a grudge against Stan or anything?" Dean asked.
"I don't know, Stan didn't really talk about work when he was home. He wanted to enjoy the time with us and not deal with it."
"Where did your husband work?"
"One of the accounting firms in town, Hooper, Walker and Associates."
"Mommy, I'm hungry," a small voice said from the doorway.
"If there's nothing else, I need to fix Troy's lunch," she said getting up.
"That should do it, thank you and again, we're sorry for your loss," Sam told her as they got up to leave.
"Guess we need to go visit this accounting firm," Dean noted once they were in the car.
"Why don't we split up and I'll see what I can find on this Sylvia Chambers and if she had any connection with the other two victims. I'll go over the rest of the reports and see if anything stands out. You can check out the accounting firm and the other witness. We can meet back up for lunch to compare notes?" Sam suggested tearing the address from him notepad.
"Fine with me."
"Drop me at the motel. I can take a bus back into town to meet you."
spn
Sam got off the bus and looked around getting his bearing and headed down the street. He was in luck and the diner Dean picked to eat at was only a block away. The air was cool, but not uncomfortable and Sam window shopped as he walked toward his destination.
It wasn't hard to find his brother, who had gotten a booth away from most of the other customers and slid in across from him. He ordered a sweet tea from the waitress and picked up the menu to look at. They placed their orders and after the waitress left began to compare notes.
"Me first," Dean said. "Seems like Sylvia blamed good old Stan for stealing one of her ideas and he got a promotion out of it. Her co-workers said she wanted to kill him for doing that. And the female victim, she may have been having an affair with Sylvia's husband, but no one could confirm it. That's two out of three. It's looking more like a vengeful spirit here."
"Sylvia and Mark Chambers and their daughter Aurora where in a car accident about a month ago. Seems a deer ran out into the road and when they hit it, it went through the windshield. Sylvia was impaled by the antlers and her husband was killed when he lost control of the vehicle on the wet road and went over an embankment. The daughter only received minor injuries and had to crawl out and up the embankment to get help. She blames herself for the accident because they were fighting when it happened."
"About what?"
"Aurora's ex-boyfriend. He cheated on her and was trying to get her back. The ex-boyfriend was the third victim."
"I think we need to pay this Aurora chick a visit. See if she's seen Mommy dearest around lately," Dean commented dryly. He dropped the conversation when the waitress came back with their food.
They set about eating and deciding how to proceed with the case. After finishing the meal and paying, they headed out to the Impala and to go interview the daughter. Sam gave Dean directions to where she worked figuring she would be there. The business was in a large office complex on the opposite side of town.
"How are we going to approach this?" Sam asked getting out of the car. "We can't just ask her if she's seen the ghost of her dead mother."
"Let's just play it by ear. See what she says about her mother's connection to the victims."
"Alright."
They went into the building and found the business. Dean asked the receptionist to speak with Aurora Chambers. She placed a call and they waited nearby, checking the place out. It wasn't long before an attractive, young woman came out to greet them.
"Hello, I'm Aurora Chambers, how can I help you?" she asked eyeing the brothers warily.
"Ms. Chamber, I'm Agent Wilson and this is Agent Platte. Is there somewhere we could talk?" Dean asked her.
"Of course, we can use a meeting room. It's just down this way." She led them down a hallway and into a small room with a table and chairs surrounding it. There was a white board on one wall and a podium in front of it. One wall was glass windows that made the room very bright.
"How can I help you?" she asked taking a seat and clutching her hands on the table. She quickly dropped them to her lap as she looked at the brothers, fear in her eyes.
Dean and Sam sat near her and studied her nervous behavior.
"We're sorry to hear about your parents, Ms. Chambers," Sam started. "I know the loss must be devastating to you."
"It was," she said looking down at her clasped hands in her lap. "To lose them both at the same time was very hard."
"Ms. Chambers, I'm sure you've heard of the latest murders in the past couple of weeks," Dean said. "Did you know any of the victims?"
"Well, one worked with my Mom. I had met him once or twice when I went to see my Mom at her work. I didn't really know him. I don't know the woman, but…" she trailed off looking down at the floor like she was trying to gather her words. She was shaking and stumbling over her words as she tried to talk. She couldn't look them in the eyes and kept licking her lips and clearing her throat.
"But what?" Sam asked gently, giving her an encouraging smile.
"The third one was my ex-boyfriend. We had been dating for several months and I broke it off with him when I found out he was cheating on me. He had been trying to get me to take him back."
"Your mother's co-worker, Stan, did you know he claims to have seen your Mom right before his death? He said she was haunting him."
"No! No! That's not true," she gasped it shock. "It couldn't be; my parents are buried in the cemetery. I was there!" she insisted. Aurora's breathing became erratic and she started to panic. "I can't, no…." she cried rushing from the room, leaving them sitting at the table.
"Seems to me she's got something she's hiding," Dean surmised.
"Yeah, she was far too upset," Sam agreed.
"Guess we're visiting a cemetery tonight," Dean sighed getting up to head out since it didn't look like Ms. Chambers was coming back. "Looks like a salt and burn the bones deal."
"You do know the mother's only been dead less than a month."
"So?"
"There won't be any bones to burn. There'll be a stinking, decaying corpse in the coffin."
"So, we wear nose plugs," Dean shrugged.
Sam rolled his eyes and stared in disbelief at his brother wondering how he came up with these things. He got in the Impala and they headed back to the motel to change and find the cemetery where Sylvia Chambers was buried. He didn't like to disturb the dead, but in their line of work, it had to happen.
spn
Sam's shoulders ached as he threw another shovel full of dirt from the grave they were digging up. He heard Dean grunt and mutter under his breath wishing there was an easier way of doing this. They were covered in sweat and their bodies were sore from the digging. Sam kept a watchful eye out for Sylvia's spirit, knowing she wasn't going to like being dug up. He was surprised when she hadn't appeared by the time they got to the coffin.
"Do the honors," Dean said. He stepped back so Sam could open the coffin.
Using the shovel, Sam broke the lock on the coffin and took in a deep breath before opening it to reveal an empty coffin.
"So, where the hell is the body?" Dean questioned when he shone his light inside of it.
"Beats me. I don't think this is a vengeful spirit."
"What's with the weird writing?" Dean asked letting his light play over the inside lid of the coffin.
Sam grabbed it and bent down to get a closer look.
"Hey!" Dean fussed.
"We've seen this before," Sam said slowly. His brain started to pull up old memories and flip through them, finally stopping on one. "Remember the college guy who brought the girl he was in love with back to life with necromancy?"
Dean leaned back, wiping his face as he thought of all the hunts they had gone on, trying to bring that memory back.
"You know, we went to visit Mom's grave, at least I did. It was after Dad died."
"Yeah, he was a TA for some guy who taught Greek crap. Dude, are we dealing with a zombie again?"
"This is Greek writing and I think it's the spell to communicate with the dead. If whoever did this has the ritual to bring the dead to life…."
"And the prime suspect is the daughter. Who else would want to do it?"
"Maybe that's why she was so upset when we interviewed her. I think she's losing control of her Mom and she's killing people who wronged her or her daughter."
"Guess we need to go pay Ms. Chambers a little visit in the morning."
"At least we know the easiest way to kill a zombie, take off the head," Sam said. He closed the coffin and jumped out of the grave. "Should we leave this open to put the body back?"
"You think anyone will notice?"
"It does seem in a less used location. Maybe we can chance it."
"I need a beer and a hot shower," Dean groaned. "You know I'm getting to old to be digging graves."
"I know the feeling."
The brothers headed back to the Impala with plans on confronting Aurora the next day and find out where her mother was. They needed to stop her from killing anyone else or killing Aurora in a fit of rage. Zombies can appear normal and act normal, but it doesn't last for long.
spn
The Chamber's home was set back from the road and was hidden from the neighbors by a six-foot fence on one side and a row of trees on the other. Dean parked the Impala on the street, and they walked up the driveway to the house. It was a nice two story, brick home with manicured lawn. Sam glanced at the flower beds around the porch and the flowers hanging from the ceiling.
"Look," he told Dean, pointing the dead plants. "She's here."
Dean knocked loudly on the door but didn't get a response. He tried again and when no one came to the door, he motioned Sam to follow. He led them around the house to the back, looking for another way in.
"Over here, basement door," Sam whispered. He bent down and used his lock picks to get the door open. They slipped inside and gagged as the smell hit them. "What the hell," Sam coughed as he covered his mouth.
Dean moved deeper into the room and flipped a switch on the wall turning on the lights.
"I think we found Daddy dearest," Dean offered moving to a cardboard box coffin. He looked to the other empty one and found more Greek writing and picked up the tome from a table. "Found the spell."
"So, why bring Mom back and not Dad?" Sam asked as he covered his mouth with his arm.
"Maybe Mommy didn't want her cheating husband to come back," Dean speculated. "Let's see if she's home." He headed for the stairs that lead to the upper part of the house. If they were lucky, it wouldn't be locked. Dean pulled out his machete as he slowly turned the knob on the door and opened it a crack to look out before stepping into a laundry room.
Sam followed behind him, glad to have some fresh air after the stink. He had his machete out and looked around as they made their way into the kitchen, ever wary of any noises around them. Dean stepped into a hallway and was moving down it when he heard locks being disengaged at the front door. He quickly stepped behind the door and waited as the last one was opened, and Aurora stepped inside carry a bag. He grabbed her clamping a hand over her mouth so she wouldn't scream. She dropped her bag and tried to struggle but stopped when she saw the machete.
"We're not here to hurt you," Sam said quickly when he saw the panicked look in her eyes.
"Where's your Mom?" Dean asked as he slowly took his hand away from her mouth.
"My Mom dead," she cried.
"Yeah, we know that, and we saw your little altar downstairs and dear old Daddy. You've been messing with crap that you shouldn't be. That's not your Mom you brought back, and I think you know it."
"What you did was wrong Aurora," Sam told her. "That thing is dangerous and is a killer and she won't stop unless we stop her."
"I-I-I couldn't let it end like that. I needed her back…." she sobbed.
"Where is she?" Dean asked again with a harsh voice.
"No!" a female voice screeched behind Sam. Sylvia ran from a room near Sam and struck him, knocking him to the floor before he could react. She was on him, screaming and clawing at him as he tried to defend himself. Her face was contorted into a vicious, crazy monster and her blouse was wet and stinking from the decay coming from her chest wound.
Dean wasted no time shoving Aurora away and coming to his brother's aid. He raised his machete and with a strong, steady swing took off her head.
"Sammy?" he questioned as the body fell limply onto him and the head rolled away from him.
Aurora screamed and crumbled to the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. She wrapped her arms around her body and gasped for breaths as she rocked back and forth.
Dean pushed the body off Sam and held out his hand to help him up. He gripped his arm to hold him still as he looked him over. He had scratches on the side of his face and neck but didn't seem to be too badly hurt.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, got the wind knocked out of me," he wheezed, wincing as he drew in breaths of air. "A few scratches and bump on the head. I'll live."
Dean looked down at the body and the head and over to Aurora who was making weird noises as she rocked her body back and forth with a vacant look in her eyes.
"Guess we need to get this cleaned up and her taken care of," he sighed.
"We can put the body downstairs until tonight and take it back to the cemetery."
"Yeah, we'll need to plant Pop too and get him out of the house. They're never going to get the smell out of that basement."
Sam helped Dean carry Sylvia's body to the basement and left her in the coffin. They went back upstairs, and Sam found a bathroom to clean the smelly crap off his clothes and check the scratches, while Dean got Aurora up and took her to the kitchen. He sat her in a chair and looked through the cabinets until he found a bottle of whiskey.
"Here drink this," Dean told her putting a glass in her hand. When she didn't respond, he lifted the glass to her mouth and tilted it enough to get her to drink it. She started coughing as the whiskey burned her throat. "Sip the rest of it, you need it."
He poured two shots into another glass and gulped half of it in one swallow as he watched Aurora take a small sip of her drink. Her body was trembling, and tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Look, I know this is a lot, but you know I did the right thing. She was not your Mom; not the Mom you remember. It would not have been long before you said something or did something to make her mad and she would have killed you too."
"How is she?" Sam asked coming back into the room drying his hands on a towel.
"In shock. She had to see her Mom get killed again."
"Right,"
"Here, drink," Dean ordered as he handed him a glass with a shot of whiskey.
"We can't leave her alone like this," Sam said.
"Look, you stay here with her and I'll head back to the motel and get our things. Once we take care of the bodies tonight, we'll head back to the bunker."
"Sounds good to me."
Dean headed to the front door and left Sam to take care of Aurora.
"Why don't we go into the living room and you lay down on the couch?" Sam offered getting up and helping Aurora to stand. He could feel her trembling body against his as he guided them into the other room. Once he had her laying down on the couch, he grabbed a throw and covered her. Sam knew there wasn't anything he could say to make her feel better and sat down in a chair nearby to watch over her. He could hear her soft sobs and knew this was something it would take her a long time to get over.
They had lost so many family and friends over the years and it never got easier or hurt any less. He gently touched one of the scratches that was burning and grimaced in pain. When Dean got back, he was going to get the first aid kit and put some antibiotics on them. He had washed them with soap and water to try and clean them but wasn't going to take any chances of them getting infected. He closed his eyes and leaned his head back, letting his body relax now that the hunt was over.
It felt good to work a case and kill the monster in the end. It felt good to be with his brother doing it, just like old times.
The End
