April 15th, 2009 - Humboldt, South Dakota
Amy woke up to the sound of Dean falling out of the car. She sat up in the back seat, stretching her tense muscles from sleeping on the leather seats the night before.
"Hey. How'd you sleep?" Sam asked them. He was looking out at the lake they had parked near the night before.
Amy opened the car door and slid out of the car, walking up to join Sam near the hood. "That was the most uncomfortable sleep I've ever gotten," she said.
Dean picked himself up from the dirt. He stretched his arms as he walked around the front of the car to join his brother and Amy. "I'm starving. Let's get breakfast."
Amy nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I'm with Dean. I could eat."
Sam scoffed. "Where? We're like two hours from anything."
"But I'm hungry now," Dean whined.
Sam pointed his toothbrush towards the backseat. "There's probably still a sandwich in the back seat."
Dean rubbed a hand over his face as he walked around to the back seat and stuck an arm through the open window. He pulled out a paper bag and sniffed it, before immediately leaning his head back and gagging.
"It's tuna."
Amy wrinkled her nose. "Is that what I was smelling last night?"
Before anyone could say anything, a phone rang inside the car. Dean tossed the bag back into the backseat, before sticking his head inside the car and reaching into the glove compartment to find the ringing phone.
"Isn't that Dad's phone?" Sam asked as Dean glanced at the caller ID
Dean flipped the phone open, putting it to his ear. "Hello?" There was a brief pause as someone on the other line spoke. "He can't come to the phone," Dean informed the caller. "Can I help you?" There was another pause. Dean let out a long sigh. "Well, sorry to be the one to break this to you, pal, but John died more than two years ago."
At this, Sam and Amy turned around, both wondering who Dean was talking to. Dean looked back at them in confusion. "Who is this?"
There was a very short pause. "What?" Dean suddenly asked. He nodded a couple of times, listening to whoever was talking on the other line. "Yeah, we used to work with John. Uh, maybe we can help?" There was another pause. "Great. Okay, sure. Uh, how about we meet somewhere? What, uh, where would be the best place?" Another pause. "Cousin Oliver's in Windom, Minnesota. Alright, we'll meet you there in a few hours."
Dean hung up the phone and walked back around to rejoin Sam and Amy.
"Who was that?" Sam asked.
"Some kid looking for dad. Said his name was Adam Milligan and that he was dad's son."
Amy thought for a moment. "That name does sound familiar," she said. "I think he actually is your brother if I remember correctly. Half-brother, at least."
Sam and Dean exchanged a look as if silently asking the other something. After a moment, Sam shrugged.
"I say we go meet the guy," he said.
"It could be a trap," Dean stated. "Could be something that wanted to trick dad into meeting it so it could kill him."
"Or," Amy said, "and hear me out here, it's an actual human being that needs help."
Dean shook his head. "No, there's something off about this. I wanna find out what this thing's deal is."
Amy sighed before climbing back into the backseat behind Sam. "Can we at least find somewhere to stop first and get something to eat?"
Dean nodded. "I'll stop at the first mini-mart I see. We can pick something up there."
Amy nodded as she folded her hoodie into a pillow and put it against the window as Dean pulled the car back onto the main road and started driving.
Windom, Minnesota
Dean pulled the Impala into the parking lot of Cousin Oliver's Hilltop Cafe. He got out of the car, a stern expression on his face, and made his way to the trunk.
Amy and Sam followed him around to the trunk.
"Dean, I really don't think this is a trap," Amy told him.
"I think Amy's right," Sam agreed. "Dean, look, best I can tell, Adam Milligan is real." He opened a file that he had picked up on the Milligan family on the way there.
Dean opened the trunk and propped up the weapons box, ignoring Sam as he read one of the papers in the folder.
"Um, born September twenty-ninth, 1990 to Kate Milligan. No father listed on the birth certificate. He's an Eagle Scout."
Dean pulled out various weapons from the trunk, including Ruby's knife.
"Graduated from high school with honors and currently goes to the University of Wisconsin—biology major, pre-med," Sam continued. He looked up as Dean closed the weapons box. "Dean? You listening?"
"This is a trap," Dean said decisively. He slammed the trunk closed and walked past Sam and Amy.
Sam and Amy exchanged a glance, before following Dean.
A bell rang over their heads as they entered the diner. Faint music played overhead as they searched around for an empty booth. Dean spotted one in the corner and led them over.
Amy sat down in a chair nearest the window, while Sam and Dean sat opposite her, leaving the empty chair next to Amy open for Adam.
Sam put their dad's journal and the folder on the table in front of him. "Dean, I'm telling you, the kid checks out."
"Great, so he's an actual person on the planet Earth. Sucks he's got a demon in him."
A waitress walked over to them with menus and three glasses of water. She was wearing a nametag that said 'Denise' on it.
"Hi. Welcome to Cousin Oliver's," Denise said cheerfully as she put a glass of water in front of each of them.
Sam smiled. "Thanks."
"Can I—"
Dean cut the waitress off. "We're actually waiting on somebody."
"Sorry about him," Amy apologized for Dean.
Denise scoffed, clearly annoyed, and tossed the menus down in front of them before walking away.
"Thank you..." Sam trailed off when Denise was too far away to hear him.
Dean took his glass of water and poured it into the potted plant behind him.
"What are you doing?" Amy asked.
In response, Dean took out a flask and unscrewed the top
"Holy water?" Sam asked as if he couldn't believe what his brother was doing.
"Yup." Dean picked up the empty glass and filled it up with holy water under the table. "One sip of Jesus juice, this evil bitch is gonna be in a world of hurt."
Amy rolled her eyes as Dean put the glass in front of the spot Adam would sit at.
"I don't think he's possessed, Dean," Amy said.
Dean put a felt wrapped package out of his jacket pocket and undid it. "Then he's a shapeshifter," he said. He took the silver cutlery and replaced the silverware at Adam's place with it, dropping the silverware already there on the floor.
"Hence the silver," Sam realized. He placed their dad's journal on top of his menu.
"Look, either way, this thing is gonna bleed," Dean stated. "I mean, using Dad as bait? That's the last mistake of its short, pitiful life."
"Okay, say Adam is a monster," Amy said. "What are you gonna do, gank him in a crowded place like this."
Dean ignored her. He finally noticed Sam frowning at him and looked over. "What?"
Sam looked away.
"What?" Dean repeated.
"Dean...listen. There's an entry in Dad's journal." Sam flipped through some pages until he found what he was looking for. "From January of 1990, saying he's headed to Minnesota to check out a case. That's, roughly, oh, about nine months before the kid was born."
Dean rolled his eyes. "Coincidence."
"Coincidence," Sam repeated. He flipped to another page. "Next two pages of the journal—torn out."
Sure enough, all that remained of the pages were the edges that had been torn along the three metal rings.
Dean stared at the journal for a moment. "You're not actually buying this, are you?"
"Dean, I don't even know if I believe it," Amy said. "But it could be possible."
Sam closed the journal and picked it up, waving it in the air. "Dean, Dad would be gone for weeks at a time, and he wasn't exactly a monk." He put the journal away. "I mean, a hunter rolls into town, kills a monster, saves the girl...sometimes the girl's grateful."
Dean rolled his eyes. "Well, now I'm thinking about Dad sex. Stop talking."
"Maybe he slipped one past the goalie," Sam continued.
"Sam?" Amy asked. "I'm begging you, please stop."
The hunters looked up as the bell above the door chimed and a young man wearing a tan jacket and a backpack entered the diner. He looked around the diner as if looking for someone.
Sam held a hand in the air. "Adam?"
Adam spotted them at the table and walked over.
"You Sam?" he asked.
Sam nodded. "Yeah. Uh, this is Dean, and that's Amy."
Amy waved. "Hi."
"Hey." Adam set his backpack on the floor next to the empty chair and sat down. "So, um...how did you know my dad?" he asked awkwardly.
"Uh, we worked together," Sam told him.
Visible confusion flashed across Adam's face. "How did he die?"
"On the job."
Adam frowned. "He was a mechanic, right?"
"A car fell on him," Dean stated bluntly.
Denise came back up to the table with another glass of water.
"Hey, Adam," she greeted. "How you doing?" She set the water in front of Adam.
Dean reached over and grabbed the glass. "Oh, I'll take that. I am very thirsty." He took a sip of the water.
Amy rolled her eyes. "Dean..."
Denise sighed before turning back to Adam. "The usual, Adam?"
"Uh, yeah. Thanks, Denise."
Denise left and Adam picked up the glass filled with holy water. He took a drink of it, but nothing happened. Sam and Dean relaxed.
"So, uh, when's the last time you saw John?" Sam asked as Adam set the glass down.
"I don't even know," Adam admitted. He thought for a second. "It's...a couple of years."
"Why did you decide to call him now?" Sam asked.
"I didn't know who else to call. He's the only family I got." At Sam's confused look, Adam added, "My mom's missing."
"Really?" Sam asked. "I'm sorry. Uh, for how long?"
"It's tragic, really," Dean interrupted. "But if you're John's kid, how come we've never heard of you?"
Adam sighed. "'Cause John and me didn't really know each other. Not until a few years ago, anyway."
"What do you mean?"
"My mom never talked about him. I knew some stuff."
"What kind of stuff?" Dean asked.
"My mom's a nurse, and Dad came into the ER, pretty torn up. Hunting accident or something," Adam explained. "And I knew his name. John Winchester. That's about it. We're not exactly a nuclear family."
"I don't think anyone really is these days," Amy piped up.
"So, when did you, uh, when did you finally meet him?" Dean asked.
"When I was twelve." Adam shifted in his seat as he told them the story. "My mom had one of his old numbers, and...and after I begged her—God, twenty-four-seven—she finally called him." Adam smiled. "God, when John heard he had a son, he raced to town. I mean, he dropped everything. He drove all night."
Denise came back and put a plate in front of Adam. "There you go."
"Thanks."
"Well, that's heartwarming," Dean told him.
Adam pointed to his food. "You mind?"
Dean smiled, almost menacingly. "Please, dig in."
Adam took the napkin out from the silverware without touching the silver. Amy heard the faint sound of a pistol cocking under the table.
"He would swing by once a year or so." Adam picked up the knife and fork, but nothing happened. "You know, called when he could. But still..."
Dean glanced away and put the gun back in his jacket as Adam took a bite of his food.
"He taught me poker and pool and even bought me my first beer when I was fifteen. And, uh...he showed me how to drive. Dad, he had this beautiful 'sixty-seven Impala—"
Dean suddenly cut Adam off. "Oh, this is crap," he declared. "You know what, you're lying."
Adam looked up at him in confusion. "No, I'm not."
"Uh, yeah, you are."
"I'm sorry, but who the hell are you to call me a liar?" Adam asked angrily.
"We're John Winchester's sons, that's who." Dean waved a finger between himself and Sam. "We are his sons."
Adam stared at Sam and Dean for a moment. "I've got brothers?" he asked. He turned to Amy. "And a sister?"
"Oh, no." Amy shook her head. "I'm not related to them."
"No, you don't have brothers," Dean snapped. "Look, man, I don't know if you're a hunter or what kind of game you're playing here."
Adam shook his head. "I have never been hunting in my life."
Dean scoffed. "Whatever. I'm out of here. Sam, Amy, let's go."
Dean stood up to leave, but Sam and Amy stayed seated.
"I can prove it," Adam called after him.
Dean stopped in his tracks and turned back to face Adam. He walked back over to the table. "How?" he demanded.
"I have pictures of dad at my house. Pictures of the three of us together." Adam looked around at the hunters. "I can show them to you."
"And we're just supposed to follow you to your house?" Dean asked.
"Dean, I think we should," Sam said. "I mean, if what Adam is saying is true, then that means he really is our brother and his mother is missing."
"And if he's lying?" Dean snapped.
"You know, I'm right here," Adam spoke up. "Look, just let me prove it to you. I'll take you to my house, and you can see for yourself."
Sam, Dean, and Amy exchanged glances.
"I say we go," Amy finally said. Sam nodded in agreement.
Dean let out a frustrated groan. "Fine! Let's go."
Adam paid for his meal and picked up his backpack, following the hunters out of the diner. He pointed to a white pick-up truck across the parking lot. "That's my truck over there. The house is just a few miles straight down the road."
Sam nodded. "Alright, lead the way. We'll follow." He started to open the door to the passenger side of the Impala
At the sight of the car, Adam seemed to freeze. He stared at the black car as if it was the most beautiful thing he had ever laid eyes on.
Dean cleared his throat, getting Adam's attention. Adam got the hint and hurried off to his truck, pulling out of the parking lot and starting the drive down the road. Sam, Dean, and Amy climbed into the Impala and drove after him.
It was a short, ten-minute drive to the Milligan house. Dean parked the Impala next to Adam's truck and Adam led them inside the two-story house.
Adam led them into the living room and picked up a picture frame from the coffee table. "Here," he said as he handed the picture to Dean. Sam and Amy examined the picture with him.
The picture was one of Adam and John Winchester. John was wearing a baseball cap in the image.
"He took you to a baseball game?" Dean asked in disbelief. His voice was shaking unsteadily.
Adam smiled. "Yeah, when I turned fourteen."
"Ah," Dean said as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Dad was around for a few of my birthdays," Adam continued.
Sam flipped open their dad's journal. "September twenty-ninth, two thousand four," he read. "One word. 'Minnesota.'."
Dean's voice quivered slightly "He took you to a freakin' baseball game?" Dean repeated quietly.
"Yeah. Why? What'd Dad do with you on your birthday?" Adam took the picture back.
Dean looked like he was trying not to hit something. "Oh..."
Sam changed the subject. "Adam, you said you called Dad because your mom was missing."
"Yeah."
"How long has she been gone?"
"Three days."
"Who was the last person to see her?" Dean asked.
"Mr. Abbinanti, our neighbor. "He saw her come home Tuesday night, but she never showed up to work on Wednesday."
Dean looked over at another picture. Amy followed his gaze to see a framed photo on the fireplace of John hugging a woman. She put a comforting hand on Dean's shoulder. Dean took a deep breath and looked down, his shoulders relaxing slightly.
"Did you call the police?" Sam continued.
"Mom's supervisor at the hospital did," Adam confirmed. "And then I drove down here as fast as I could." He paused for a moment and his face fell. "I should have been here," he said sadly.
"What did the cops say?" Amy asked.
"That they, uh, they searched the house. They didn't find anything." Tears started forming in Adam's eyes. "She wouldn't leave without telling anybody. It's like she just dropped off the face of the earth, you know?"
"Maybe we could look around," Sam suggested. "See if there's anything the cops missed."
Adam scoffed. "You think the cops missed something?"
Amy shrugged. "I mean, it is possible."
"Please, Adam," Sam said. "Just let us take a few minutes to look around."
Adam hesitated a moment, before nodding. "My mom's room is upstairs."
Dean nodded. "Lead the way."
"Dean, Amy." Sam motioned the other hunters over to a place Adam couldn't hear them. "I'm gonna go talk to the cops while you guys search around here. See if there's anything they can tell us."
"Sounds good," Amy said.
Adam led Amy and Dean upstairs and down the hallway to his mother's bedroom.
"Feel free to look around," he told them. He stood in front of the closet, watching the two hunters.
Amy and Dean moved to opposite sides of the room. Amy spotted a broken picture of John lying on the ground next to the knocked over nightstand by the bed. She examined the area around the nightstand but didn't find anything unusual.
Dean shifted a white dresser out of the way, but found nothing and moved it back. He focused on another picture on top of the dresser, before clearing his throat and turning back to Adam. "The, uh, nightstand was knocked over. Was there anything else?" he asked.
Adam shook his head. "Oh, not really. The sheriff said there's no sign of a break-in."
Dean scoffed and looked around the room. "Amy, you find anything?"
"Just a broken picture frame," Amy replied.
"What, you think the cops missed something?" Adam asked.
"Maybe. Yeah. They don't have my eyes." Dean walked over to the window.
Adam frowned. "You're a mechanic."
"Yeah. That's right."
Adam hesitated as if he didn't know how to ask his next question. "Dean, what else can you tell me about Dad?"
Dean didn't even look at Adam. "You knew him."
"Not as well as you," Adam admitted.
Dean scoffed. "Trust me, kid, you don't want to know."
Footsteps could be heard in the hallway and Sam appeared a moment later, holding some papers.
"Give us a minute."
Dean and Amy followed Sam out to the hallway.
'You talk to the cops?"
"Yeah," Sam said quietly enough so that Adam didn't hear. "Like Adam said, no leads on his mom."
Dean scoffed. "Shocker there."
"So, now what?" Amy asked.
"I found this." Sam flipped through the papers."Um...here." He handed Dean a newspaper article. It was a copy of the 'Windom Gazette,' dated January ninth, 1990 with the headline 'Missing Bodies Found' with the 'Seventeen bodies recovered from abandoned shed.' "In nineteen ninety, there were seventeen grave robberies in Windom."
"You think that's why Dad came through here?" Dean asked.
"I'd say so. Check it out." Sam pointed to the picture under the headline.
Dean moved the paper closer to his face to get a good look. Amy had to stand on her toes to see but hidden just behind the arm of one of the other people in the picture, was the faint image of John.
"What was he hunting?" Amy asked.
"No idea. Those were the pages he threw out of the journal. But last month, the corpse snatching started up again. Three bodies from the local cemetery.
"So whatever he was after, he didn't kill it," Dean realized. "It's back."
"And, what, it's stepped up its game to fresh meat? I mean, Kate's missing, and, uh—" Sam handed Dean another photo. It was of a man in large glasses. "So is a local bartender—a guy named Joe Barton."
Dean took the photo and went back into the room. After a moment, Sam and Amy followed.
Adam was sitting on the bed when they entered. Dean showed him the picture of Joe Barton. "Hey, does your mom know Joe Barton?" Dean was asking.
"Uh, I don't think so," Adam said. "Why?"
Dean sighed as he looked back at Sam and Amy. He turned back to Adam but frowned when he noticed something on the floor. He walked over to get a closer look.
Adam stood up from the bed. "What is it?"
"Watch out." Dean flipped the edge of the comforter up and looked under the bed. After a moment, he stood back up. "Give me a hand with the mattress," he instructed.
Sam and Amy watched as Dean tossed the pillows aside and, with Adam's help, moved the mattress off the frame.
Directly under the bed was a vent large enough for someone to fit through. Sam and Dean stared at it for a moment, then raised a fist for rock-paper-scissors. Amy stopped them before they could make any moves.
"Oh, for God's sake, I'll go," she huffed. "I'm small enough, I'll fit."
Dean shook his head. "Not happening. Sammy or I will go."
"No negotiations," Amy said. "I can fit down there, so I'll go."
Sam and Dean exchanged a glance. Sam nodded.
"Alright," Dean said. "Just...be careful."
Sam and Dean pulled the cover off of the vent. It was too dark to see anything underneath.
"You got a flashlight?" Dean asked Adam.
Adam opened a drawer in the nightstand and pulled out a small flashlight, tossing it to Amy.
Amy carefully lowered herself into the air duct. The light from her flashlight shone on bloodstains that led to a T-junction. The stains seemed to get bigger as they went along.
"There's a lot of blood down here, guys," she called back to them.
"Shit," she heard Dean hiss. "See anything else?"
"Hold on."
Amy army crawled down the air duct, following the pool of blood. As she reached the t-junction, she could see more blood going around the corner. The unpleasant, but the familiar smell of death started to reach her nostrils. Amy shined her light around one corner but didn't see anything. She turned to look down the other corner, and her blood ran cold.
Down the other side of the junction was a lot of blood, along with various pieces of flesh, bone, and hair. Amy gagged as she quickly made her way back out of the vent. Sam and Dean quickly pulled her out of the duct.
"Well?" Sam asked.
"Uh, there was a lot of blood down there. Way too much. "
The color drained from Adam's face as he sat back down on the bed. "My mom. Is she...?"
"We don't know that," Sam assured him.
"Okay, uh, Adam," Dean said, "call the cops. Let them know about the vent. Me, Sammy, and Amy need to get going, though." He started walking for the door.
"Woah, wait," Adam stopped them, "you have to leave? Now? You're the ones that found the vent, the cops are gonna wanna talk to you."
"And that's exactly why we can't stay." Leaving a very confused Adam behind, Dean led Sam and Amy out of the house and back to the Impala. Amy saw Adam watching them from the second-floor window as Dean pulled the car away from the house.
They checked into Kelsey Manor a few miles down the road. Sam checked them in while Dean called Adam to let them know where they were staying.
"So, what exactly did you see down there?" Dean asked as Sam led them to the room. "I could tell you were leaving some stuff out, for Adam's sake."
Amy took a deep breath. "There was a lot of blood covering all sides of the duct, along with a lot of flesh, bone, and bits of blonde hair. If anyone was down there, it's pretty unlikely they survived."
Dean nodded as Sam unlocked the door to the room and let them in. "What do you think, Sammy?"
Sam tossed his bag onto the bed. "Shapeshifter, maybe?"
"It's possible." Dean put his bag onto the table. "I mean Adam wasn't one but that doesn't mean his 'mother' isn't. But, then again, there's more than one monster that fits what this thing is doing."
"How are we gonna find it, though?" Amy asked.
"Well, there's a good chance it'll come back for Adam next," Dean said as he opened his duffle bag up and pulled out his shotgun and a rag. "We just gotta catch it before it's too late."
Twenty minutes later, there was a knock on the door. All three hunters looked up as Sam cautiously made his way over to answer it. Sam opened the door and Adam shoved his way inside.
"Who the hell are you?" Adam demanded.
Amy sat up on the bed. "Adam?"
"Hey, take it easy." Sam closed the door behind Adam as Dean flipped a cloth over his shotgun.
"No, don't tell me to take it easy, okay?" Adam's voice shook as he walked around to stand in front of the beds. "My house is a crime scene, my mom's probably dead, and you three-" Adam scoffed, "-well, you tell me to call the cops, but you got to bail before they show? So, who are you really?"
The hunters exchanged a look, but no one said anything.
Adam looked over at Dean. "Cops didn't know where to look for my mom, Dean, but you did. And I heard you talking earlier—something about grave robberies." Adam's eyes flickered over to the end of the shotgun that hadn't been completely covered by the cloth. "You're not mechanics," he realized. "I just want to know what's going on."
More silence filled the room.
"Please," Adam pleaded.
Sam hesitated for a moment, before finally speaking. "We're hunters," he admitted.
"Sammy!" Dean snapped.
"He deserves to know, Dean," Sam argued.
Adam looked up at Sam. "What do you mean, 'hunters'?"
Dean shook his head.
Amy sat on the edge of the bed. "He means we hunt monsters," she clarified.
"Amy!" Dean snapped.
"No, Sam's right, Dean!" Amy argued back. "Adam's your brother, he deserves to know the truth."
"What are you guys talking about?" Adam asked. "Monsters?"
"Ghosts, werewolves, vampires, those sorts of things," Dean replied. "We hunt them down and we kill them." He pulled his shotgun out from the cloth and tossed it next to the pillows, before standing from the bed.
"But..." Adam scoffed, "I mean, come on, those things don't exist, right?"
"Actually, Adam, they do," Sam said. He sat down on one of the beds. "Those monsters, and more, are real."
Adam sat down next to Amy, on the bed across from Sam. "Okay, so...basically, you're saying that every movie monster, every nightmare that I've ever had, that's all real?"
"Godzilla's just a movie," Dean offered helpfully from his chair over by the window.
"We hunt them," Sam said. "So did Dad."
Adam took a deep breath. "Okay."
Amy raised an eyebrow. "That...is not the response I was expecting."
Adam shrugged. "What am I supposed to say?"
"That we're liars, that we're crazy," Dean told him. "Nobody just says "okay."."
"Well, you're my brothers. You're telling me the truth, right?"
Sam, Dean, and Amy exchanged a glance.
"Yeah," Dean finally said.
Adam nodded. "Then I believe you." He looked over at Amy. "And, what about you? You're a hunter as well?"
Amy nodded. "Yeah. I only met Sam and Dean a couple of years ago, kinda unexpectedly."
"Yeah, she kinda got pulled into this life," Dean added jokingly.
Adam nodded again. "Now, what took my mom?" he asked
"We're not sure," Sam admitted. "Something's in town stealing bodies, living and dead, but we don't know what."
"There's a long list of freaks that fit the bill."
"You think maybe she might still be alive?" Adam asked hopefully, turning to Dean.
Dean looked down at the table, avoiding eye contact with Adam. Adam looked over at Sam, who also looked down, and Amy, who fidgeted with the sleeve of her jacket.
Adam seemed to realize what they were implying. "Oh." His gaze fell to the floor. "How can I help?"
"You can't," Dean said.
"This thing killed my mom," Adam reminded him. "If you're hunting it, I want in."
Dean shook his head. "No."
"Adam, hunting isn't just something you can learn how to do in a day," Amy said. "It took me a pretty long time to learn how to do this. Plus, it's dangerous."
Sam sighed. "Look, maybe—"
Dean cut Sam off. "Maybe what?"
"He lost his mother," Sam snapped. "Maybe we can understand what that feels like."
Dean stood up and strode over to the bed. "Why do you think Dad never told us about this kid, Sam? Huh?" He held up their dad's journal. "Why do you think he ripped out the pages?"
"Because—"
"Because he was protecting him!" Dean finished.
"Dad's dead, Dean," Sam said quietly.
"That doesn't matter!" Dean shouted. "He didn't want Adam to have our lives, okay? And we are gonna respect his wishes."
"Do I get a say in this?" Adam asked.
"No!" Dean snapped.
Sam held up a finger. "No," he said a bit more calmly than his brother.
Dean stared in disbelief at Adam for a moment, before walking for the door. "Babysit the kid."
"Where are you going?" Sam asked.
Dean grabbed his jacket. "I'm going out!" He stormed out of the motel room, slamming the door behind him.
Sam exhaled sharply.
"Is he always like that?" Adam asked.
"Yeah, pretty much," Amy said.
"Welcome to the family," Sam added. There was a brief pause as he seemed to decide something. "Here." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out his pistol, ejecting the clip. "I'm gonna teach you a few things."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Amy asked.
Sam nodded. "Yeah, I am."
"Uh, Dean said—"
"I know what Dean said," Sam said, cutting Adam off. He unloaded the gun and handed it to Adam, who cautiously took it. "And I know what it's like to want revenge."
Amy sighed, before pulling out her pistol as well. "Guess there's no point in just sitting here, then, while you teach Adam all this stuff."
Sam nodded. He turned back to Adam. "Alright, let's go over the basics."
They sat with Adam for the next hour, teaching him everything he needed to know about guns.
After a while, Sam let Amy take over while he cleaned his shotgun.
"Sam," Adam asked, breaking the long silence, "how did Dad really die?"
"Demon." Sam continued cleaning his shotgun, not looking at Adam.
Adam nodded. "You all hunted it down? Got revenge?"
"They did." Amy nodded towards Sam.
"Dean killed it," Sam clarified.
"So it's over for you."
Sam finally looked over at Adam. "It's never over."
As soon as he said those words, the lights went out in the room.
Adam looked up. "What the—"
Sam cut him off. "Shh."
Something rattled in the vents above them. Everyone stood up, Sam and Amy on high alert.
"It's in the vents," Amy whispered, grabbing her gun.
"Adam, stay here," Sam instructed.
Sam and Amy readied their guns and approached the door, guns aimed at the vent near the ceiling. Whatever was in the vents moved again.
"Go, go!" Sam yelled. He fired a shot at the vent and hurried Adam and Amy out of the room.
"Where's your car?" Sam asked as they ran down the stairs to the parking lot.
Adam pointed to his pick-up. "Over here."
"All right, keys."
"Here." Adam tossed the keys over to Sam and ran for the passenger side while Amy hurried to the driver's side with Sam.
As Sam fumbled with the keys, Amy felt something grab her ankle. Sharp claws dug into her skin as she was suddenly yanked to the ground. She grabbed onto the bottom of the truck as the creature tried to pull her further underneath.
"Amy!" Sam dropped the keys and grabbed one of her arms as Adam ran around and grabbed her other arm.
Amy kicked her free foot in the direction of whatever had a hold of her, as Sam and Adam tried to pull her free. She felt blood trickle down her ankle as the creature's nails dug deeper into her skin.
At that moment, the Impala sped up and Dean rushed out, dressed in his FBI uniform.
"Dean, help!" Adam called out.
Sam and Adam finally managed to pull Amy free. Dean grabbed his shotgun and aimed it under the truck, firing blindly. There was a shriek followed by the clanging of metal.
"I think I hit it," Dean said. He picked the keys up from the ground and hopped into the truck. Sam helped Amy to her feet as Dean backed the truck up to reveal an open sewer grate underneath the vehicle.
"How's your ankle?" Sam asked.
Amy's ankle had deep, long cuts going all around it from and blood coated her socks and shoes from when the monster's nails were dragged down her skin. The adrenaline was running out and she was quickly feeling a lot of pain run through her leg. The look she gave Sam was the only answer he needed.
"Come on." Sam helped her over to the Impala and sat her down on the hood, taking all weight off of her injury. "We'll get that looked at later. Might just need a few stitches."
Dean was examining the blood on the edge of the sewer grate. He stood up and walked over to Sam and Amy.
"I winged it." He turned to Amy. "Did you see anything?"
Amy shook her head. "I was too busy trying not to get pulled into the sewer."
"What the hell is this thing?"
Adam stood back up. "Why-who-" he stuttered, "should we go after it?"
Dean shook his head. "No, no. In that maze? That thing's long gone."
Sam sighed. "All right, so, we don't know what it is, but we do know who it's going after. Joe Barton, Adam's mom—"
"And Adam," Dean continued. "It was under his truck, just waiting for him."
"It set a trap, and I walked right into it," Sam said solemnly.
Dean shook his head. "Doesn't matter. You're right—there's a pattern. Joe Barton was a cop. I'm pretty sure he helped out Dad. So we've got him, Dad's girl, and his son."
"All the people Dad knew in town."
"Why did it grab me, though?" Amy asked.
"Maybe it thought it was grabbing Sam," Dean suggested. "But at least we know why it's back."
"It wants revenge," Adam spoke up.
The hunters turned to look at Adam. He had a grief-stricken look plastered on his face as he stared directly at the open sewer grate underneath where his truck had been parked.
"Alright, new plan," Dean said. "Adam, we're getting you out of town."
Adam looked over at him. "What?"
"We have a friend in Sioux Falls," Dean continued. "He's a hunter, like us. He can keep you safe while the three of us find and kill this thing."
"I don't get a say in this, do I?" Adam asked.
Dean shook his head. "No, you don't. Right now, our main priority is keeping you safe, okay?" He handed Adam his keys. "We'll follow you to your house so you can grab your stuff and then we're hitting the road."
Adam nodded. He took the keys from Dean and hopped in his truck, pulling out of the parking lot and started the drive towards his house.
Dean watched Adam drive away, before walking over to Sam and Amy. "How's the ankle?"
"It'll feel better once I get it wrapped up, I think," Amy said. "But right now I can't put any weight on it."
Dean nodded. "We'll take care of that back at Adam's then."
Sam and Dean helped Amy off of the hood and into the backseat of the car. She propped her injured ankle up on the seat next to her. The Winchesters got into the front seat and Dean pulled out of the parking lot, following Adam towards his house.
They reached Adam's house a short while later. The pain in Amy's ankle had subsided enough that she could now walk on it, and she followed the others inside the house. They entered the back door to the kitchen.
"Grab your stuff," Dean told Adam. "We'll hit the road."
Adam flipped on the light and headed upstairs. Amy sat down at the table, putting her ankle on the chair.
"We shouldn't leave," Sam said. He tossed Amy an ace bandage.
Dean scoffed. "Yeah, let's stay here, where the kid's mom got ganked. Good one."
"I'm serious."
"Sam, are you crazy?" Amy asked.
Sam shrugged.
"Sam, we're gonna take the kid, we're gonna drop him off at Bobby's," Dean snapped, "and then you, me, and Amy are gonna come back here and finish what Dad started."
"How?" Sam asked. "We got no leads, no witnesses. We do have what this thing wants."
Amy stared up at Sam in disbelief. "You can't seriously be suggesting what I think you are."
"You want to use the kid as bait?" Dean realized. "That's why you want to stay here?"
Sam shrugged. "Maybe this thing will come back. We could train Adam. Get him ready."
"In a day?" Amy asked. "It took me months to learn how to hunt." She unrolled the bandage and began wrapping up her ankle.
"He could die, Sam," Dean added.
"We could all die, Dean," Sam argued. "Even if we do kill this thing, there are tons of other freaks that want revenge, on Dad, on us. What if they find the kid instead and he's not ready?"
"I'll do it." The hunters looked up to see Adam standing in the doorway, holding a backpack. "Whatever it takes, I'll do it. I want to do it."
Dean sighed, seeing the determined look in Adam's eyes. There was no talking his half-brother out of this. "Fine," he said, "get some sleep and tomorrow morning we'll get some practice in you. Me, Sammy, and Amy will stay here tonight, just in case this thing tries to finish the job."
Adam nodded. "Okay." He looked around the room. "There's a guest bedroom upstairs, or the couch in the living room, whichever you prefer."
"Amy, can you make it up the stairs?"
Amy finished wrapping up her ankle and stood up from the chair, cautiously putting her injured leg on the ground. She took a few steps, and when she didn't feel any pain, she looked up at Dean. "Yeah, I think so."
"Okay, you can take the guest bedroom, then."
"I'll take the couch," Sam said.
"And I can just sleep on the floor."
Adam nodded. "Okay. Amy, I'll show you where the guest bedroom is."
"Alright." Amy followed Adam out of the kitchen. "Night, guys."
Adam led her upstairs and down the hall. He opened one of the doors and turned on the light. "Here you are, then."
Amy stepped inside the room. "Thanks, Adam."
"No problem. Night." Adam closed the door as he left the room.
Amy sat down on the wire-frame bed and kicked off her shoes. The bed squeaked as she laid down and drifted off into sleep.
April 16th, 2009
The next morning, Amy was woken up by three continuous gunshots from outside. She stood up and made her way over to the window. Looking out, she saw Sam, Dean, and Adam outside in a makeshift shooting range. Dean was leaning against the Impala as Sam taught Adam how to shoot a gun.
Amy slipped her shoes on and headed downstairs. She made it outside just as Adam fired three rounds fairly close to each other in one of the targets Sam had put up.
"Beginner's luck, right?" Adam asked.
Sam pat Adam on the back. "Nah, man. You're a natural. Good shooting."
"Thanks."
Amy made her way over to Dean. He turned around as she approached.
"Hey, you're up," he greeted.
Amy sat on the hood of the Impala. "Yeah, well, it was kinda hard to ignore the gunshots." She nodded towards Sam and Adam. "How's Adam doing?"
"Sam's been teaching him some basics this morning. Adam's actually pretty good with a gun, I'll admit." Dean sighed. "I still think we should get him to Bobby's though."
"Adam wanted to do this, Dean," Amy reminded him. "He wanted to help."
Dean sighed. "He's just a kid."
"He's only a year younger than me," Amy pointed out.
Dean crossed his arms. "You realize that doesn't make me feel any better, right?"
Amy sighed. "He's not a kid, Dean. If he wants to help, I say let him. I'm not saying let him keep hunting after," she clarified, "but let him help with this one thing. Let him help take down the thing that killed his mother."
Dean didn't reply. He turned back to watch as Adam fired three more rounds into the target.
When Sam and Adam were done practicing with the gun, they headed inside. Sam grabbed some lore books from the Impala and carried them inside, setting them on the table.
Adam sat down with Sam at the kitchen table while Amy and Dean sat across the room and watched. Sam began telling Adam about their hunts, including the Rougarou they had hunted down the year before.
"A rougarou?" Adam asked.
"They're these things that go through this metamorphosis process," Sam explained. "See, they start out human, but then they start craving human flesh. Once they take a bite of that, they change."
"Into one of those things," Adam said.
Sam nodded. "Exactly. Last year, we hunted our first one down. This friend of ours, Travis, called and asked us to help him take it down before the rougarou ate any human flesh and transformed. The only way to kill one is with fire, so we built flamethrowers and went after it."
Sam shifted in his seat. "Long story short, the plan went a little sideways and Travis was eaten. We tracked it down to its house, but it started going after us. So, then we lit it on fire."
"With a homemade flamethrower?" Adam asked in awe.
Sam chuckled. "Yeah. They're easy to build. I'll show you."
Adam smiled. "That is some job you got, man."
Sam's face fell. "Being a hunter isn't a job, Adam," he said. "It's life. You're pre-med. You got a girlfriend, friends?"
Adam nodded.
"Not anymore you don't. If you're really gonna do this, you can't have those kinds of connections, ever. They're weaknesses. You'll just put those people in danger, get them killed."
Dean looked away. Amy put a comforting hand on his shoulder, but even she couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"That's the price we pay," Sam continued. "You cut 'em out, and you don't look back. There's only one thing you can count on. Family."
"Sam," Dean spoke. Sam looked over at him. "Can I talk to you?"
Sam stood up and followed Dean out into the hallway.
Adam looked over at Amy. "Are they always like this?"
Amy sat down in the chair Sam had been using. "Pretty much? You kinda just get used to it after a while."
Footsteps approached and Sam reentered the room.
"Where's Dean?" Amy asked when the older Winchester didn't enter.
"He went out," Sam said simply. He pulled another chair up to the table and sat back down. Amy decided not to press the matter any further.
Sam and Amy spent the next several hours teaching Adam everything they could about hunting. By the time night fell, Adam knew almost everything he needed to about hunting.
"We don't have much time," Sam realized, "this thing could be here at any moment."
Adam nodded. "What do we need to do?"
"We need to cover all but one entrance," Sam explained. "Do you have any wooden boards?"
"Yeah, in the garage."
"Okay, good, I'll help you carry those in. We need to board up all but one vent." Sam turned to Amy. "Salt the windows and doors while we're outside." He stood up and headed outside.
Amy looked around the kitchen. "Adam, where's your salt?"
"Cupboard above the fridge." Adam hurried off after Sam.
Amy grabbed the salt and began salting the windows and doors throughout the house. Sam and Adam came back in with wooden boards, nails, and a hammer. For the next twenty minutes, they boarded up every vent and salted every window and door.
Finally, they had all but the vent on the floor in Kate's room boarded and salted. They left the cover slightly off and stood over it. Sam and Amy each had a shotgun in their hands.
"If anything's coming in, it'll be through here," Amy said.
At that moment, there was a creak from downstairs, like a door was opening. Sam, Amy, and Adam all looked up at the sound. They could hear faint footsteps down below.
"You were saying?" Adam asked.
A woman's voice came up the stairs. "Adam!" she called out in a panic. "Adam!"
Adam stared up at Sam. His breath was shaky. "Mom?" he called out. He ran out of the room
"No," Sam called after him. Adam didn't stop.
"Adam, wait!" Amy called out. She took off after Adam, her shotgun ready to fire.
Adam suddenly took off running downstairs. "Mom!" Adam shouted.
"Adam!" Amy heard Sam run downstairs behind her.
"Wait!"
Sam and Amy took off running down the stairs after Adam.
Adam ran into the kitchen, where the blonde woman from the photos with John and Adam was waiting downstairs, her hair was matted and she had on tattered clothes. He ran up to her. "Mom."
"Adam, wait!" Sam yelled as he ran into the kitchen with Amy. His shotgun was aimed at the woman
"It took me, but I got away," Kate said through tears.
"It's okay." Adam hugged his mother.
"I got away," Kate sobbed.
Amy aimed her shotgun as well. "Adam, that's not your mom."
"Step away from her," Sam ordered.
Adam looked at the two guns pointed at what he thought was his mom. "Sam, Amy, what the hell?!"
"She's not your mother!" Sam snapped.
"Adam, who—what is going on?" fake Kate asked.
"Get away from him!" Sam yelled.
"What is going on?" Kate demanded.
"What's going on, is you're not Adam's mom," Amy growled.
"Are you guys insane?" Adam asked as he shielded the woman from the gun. "It's really her, okay?"
"Adam, that vent was filled with a lot of blood, human flesh, bone..." Amy told him. "If anyone was down there, there's no way they could have survived."
"Your mother's dead," Sam said apologetically. "There was too much blood in the vents!"
Sam pulled Adam away from his fake mom and gave him the shotgun.
"Adam!" fake Kate cried out.
"Adam, that is not your mother," Amy repeated.
"Shoot it!" Sam yelled.
"He's crazy!" 'Kate' cried out frantically. "Honey, it's me!"
"No, it's not!" Amy said.
Adam pointed the gun at 'Kate,' then at Sam, and finally at Amy. He looked confused and terrified.
Adam aimed the gun back at his 'mother.' "Honey, it's me!" it shouted.
"Look, that's not your mother!" Sam yelled.
"Adam, shoot it! We don't have all day!" Amy insisted.
"Baby, please!" 'Kate' cried.
"Shoot it!" Sam ordered. "It's not human!"
Adam pointed the gun at 'Kate.' Amy saw his shoulders relax before he spoke.
"I know."
She only had a moment of confusion before 'Adam' hit Sam on the chin with the end of the shotgun. 'Kate' smiled as Adam spun around and swung the gun at Amy. Amy ducked out of the way and used her powers to throw 'Adam' across the room. He crashed through one of the kitchen chairs, splintering the wood.
As 'Adam was getting up, 'Kate' lunged at Amy, punching her in the nose. Amy stumbled backward, her eyes watering. She straightened back up and aimed her gun at fake Kate's head, pulling the trigger.
A shot rang out and the body dropped to the ground, head blown clean off.
"You're ghouls," Amy realized.
Ghoul Adam suddenly came up behind her, pinning her to the wall by her arms, causing her to drop her shotgun. 'Adam' kicked the shotgun away and Amy kneed him in the stomach over and over, to no avail. She tried to use her powers on the shotgun, but the ghoul swung a punch at her head, causing her to break her concentration and shift her head out of the way.
The ghouls punched a hole in the wall behind her, and Amy took the chance to duck out of its grasp. She dove towards the gun and aimed it at the ghoul's head, firing a shot just as it pulled its hand out of the wall.
Blood splattered on the wall behind the ghoul as its head was blown off. Amy fell back, breathing heavily as the corpse slumped down the wall to the ground. Sam stirred on the kitchen floor across the room and she hurried over to him.
"Sam?" Amy asked frantically, shaking the other hunter.
The back door suddenly opened up and Dean appeared. He spotted Sam on the ground and ran over. "What happened?" he demanded.
"Adam and Kate," Amy explained. "They were ghouls."
Dean looked over to see the headless bodies of both ghouls. "You took down both of them by yourself?"
Amy looked down at Sam, who was slowly waking up. "Not like I had much of a choice," she said.
Dean shook his brother. "Sammy?"
"Sam, wake up," Amy said, shaking Sam as well.
Sam groaned and his eyes opened up. He quickly sat up and looked around the room. "What happened?" he asked.
"They were ghouls," Amy repeated. "Don't worry, I took care of them."
Dean put a hand on his brother's shoulder. "You okay?"
Sam nodded. "I think so." He looked over at the bodies. "Nice work," he praised.
The hunters all stood up. Dean looked over at the body of ghoul Adam. He seemed to be hesitating to say something.
"We should burn the body," he said finally.
Sam looked confused. "What?"
"Ghoul or not, the real Adam was our brother," Dean said. "He deserves a proper burial."
Sam hesitated a moment, before nodding. "Okay." He left the room, returning a minute later with a sheet. Sam wrapped the body up in the sheet and picked it up, following Dean out of the house.
Amy picked Sam's shotgun up from the ground and followed them outside. Dean grabbed axes and lighter fluid from the trunk and led them to the back of the house and into the forest. Sam set the body down near a tree and they got to work chopping wood for the pyre.
Within twenty minutes, they had the pyre built. Sam lay the body on top of it. "You sure we should do this?" he asked.
Dean unscrewed the cap from the lighter fluid. "Ghouls didn't fake those pictures. They didn't fake Dad's journal." He poured the lighter fluid on the corpse. "Adam was our brother. He died like a hunter. He deserves to go out like one."
"I'm sorry, guys," Amy said.
"Maybe we can bring him back," Sam suggested. "Get ahold of Cas, call in a favor."
Dean seemed to ponder the idea for a moment, before shaking his head. "No, Adam's in a better place." He lit a match and tossed it on the fire. The body went up in flames.
They watched the pyre and Adam's body burn for a moment before Dean spoke again. "You know, I finally get why you and Dad butted heads so much," he said. "You two were practically the same person."
Sam looked over at his brother in confusion.
"I mean, I worshipped the guy, you know?" Dean continued. "I dressed like him, I acted like him, I listen to the same music. But you were more like him than I will ever be. And I see that now."
Sam scoffed. "I'll take that as a compliment."
"You take it any way you want," Dean said.
No one spoke as they watched the flames dance on the pyre, lighting up the forest behind them. The smell of burning flesh wafted through the air as the flames slowly started to die down.
April 17th, 2009
By the time the fire had completely died down and all that remained were ashes, the sun had started to rise. The hunters gathered everything up and headed back to the Impala, tossing everything in the trunk. Dean slammed the trunk closed and pulled the keys out of his pocket.
"Let's get out of here," he said.
Without a word, everyone climbed into the car.
"Amy, wait," Sam stopped her as she opened the back door.
Amy turned around. "Yeah?"
"Take shotgun," Sam told her. "I'm gonna sleep in the back."
Amy nodded as she walked around the front of the car to the passenger side. She opened the door and slid in next to Dean. "Where are we off to now?" she asked.
"I might have found us another case," Dean informed them as he started the engine. "Bodies found with their hearts missing in Appalokia, Kentucky."
"Sounds like a werewolf," Sam said.
"Bingo," Dean confirmed. He looked over at Amy. "You haven't hunted a werewolf yet, have you?"
Amy shook her head. "Not yet I haven't."
Dean seemed to ponder something for a moment. He looked over at her as he pulled away from the house. "Maybe it's time you did."
