The Bad Place Part 1

Lebanon, Kansas

Dean descended the stairs, carrying a paper bag. He walked down the corridor with his phone pressed to his ear, having reached Patience's voicemail.

"Hi, you've reached Patience Turner. Please leave a message, and I'll get back to you as soon as I can." Her voicemail played.

Dean sat down at the table where Sam and Angela sat, working on Sam's laptop.

"Patience, hey," Dean started. "This is, uh, Dean Winchester. Listen, I know that I, uh, told you to avoid this life, but, uh… me and my family, we're—we're looking for someone. And we put an APB out with every hunter we know, and… nothing. We really could use a psychic's help on this. So… if you could call me back. Thanks." He hung up and looked at Sam and Angela. "Any word from Cas?"

"Yeah," Sam nodded. "Uh, he says he's still looking for Jack, working a lead in Tucson."

As Sam spoke, Angela's phone started ringing and she put it on speaker.

"Hi, Jody." She and Sam greeted simultaneously.

"Hi, Jody! What's going on?" Dean asked.

"Hey guys," she started. "I got something for ya. Friend of mine from Bismarck PD called with a lead. He said that a local artist was found dead with his eyes burned out."

Sam startled while Dean was digging into his bag.

"Sounds angel-y," Dean noted.

"Yeah, that's what I thought," Jody agreed. "Except for that there was a witness—the victim's girlfriend. She pegged someone at the scene. She gave the police a description. I think it's your boy."

~/~\~

Bismarck, North Dakota

Derek's girlfriend walked around his studio holding Jack's photograph, while the Winchesters interviewed her. Grace stood next to Sam, holding his hand.

"That's him," Paula nodded. "He said his name was Jack, that he was a buyer."

"Um… a buyer?" Angela asked and Paula pointed at numerous paintings around the studio. "Ah."

"Some freaky stuff here," Dean commented. "Derek had quite the imagination."

"He hated that word," Paula whispered.

"What, freaky?" Sam asked.

"Imagination," she corrected. "He liked to think of his art more as reportage."

"Reportage?" Angela lifted a brow. "Reportage from where?"

Meanwhile, Dean kept walking around the studio. He stopped near a particular painting that was partially hidden behind a stack of other canvases.

"Derek was a dream walker," Paula explained.

"Sam?" Dean called out.

Sam and Angela turned around as Dean revealed one of Derek's paintings, depicting the landscape from the Apocalypse World.

~/~\~

The Impala was parked outside of Derek's studio. In the front seat, Sam and Angela were going through John Winchester's journal while Grace sat in the backseat playing with her dolls. Dean walked towards the car with a tray of coffee in hand. He slid into the front seat and offered Sam and Angela a cup of coffee.

"Hey. Thanks." Sam took his cup gratefully.

"Yeah."

"So, the lore on dream walking is pretty inconsistent," Sam started. "Uh, there are stories about it across numerous Native Amer—

"Guys, are we gonna talk about it?" Dean interrupted.

"What?" Angela's brows creased.

"You both saw that painting."

"Yeah." Sam nodded.

"Gracie, earmuffs," Dean told his niece and she held her hands over her ears. "Well, it looks like Jack gave up on us and he's looking for daddy."

"Dean, we don't know that," Angela argued, not wanting to believe that Jack could be going dark side.

"Don't we?" Dean raised his brows. "A guy is dead. Look, I hate this too, but we've gotta be prepared."

"To kill him," Sam muttered.

"Look, this isn't an 'I told you so.' Okay? I mean… I actually like the kid." Dean admitted. "I do. But we're in worst-case scenario land here."

"Yeah, but Dean we need more information. I mean," Sam sighed. "We gotta figure out what Jack wanted, how—how dream-walking even works."

"Okay, well, then let's go to a reservation. Let's talk to a—a chief or a tribal leader."

"Or, we talk to a dream walker," Sam handed Dean his iPad. "I hacked into Derek's email. He's been corresponding with another dream walker for months, a girl named Kaia Nieves. He had been trying to coach her, to teach her to control her power."

"Alright. Where is she?" Dean asked.

~/~\~

Mankato, Minnesota

The Impala pulled up to the group therapy center and the Winchesters got out of the car.

"So… Kaia never knew her father," Angela started. "Her mom died in an accident when she was 12, so her aunt took her in, and then she died—cancer."

"Damn," Dean muttered.

"Yeah, been on her own ever since," Sam added. "Until her OD and arrest."

"Bad hand."

"Yeah." Sam agreed.

"No wonder she ended up here," Dean replied.

~/~\~

Jack grabbed Kaia's arm just as she turned to walk away and said in a forceful tone, "You will help me."

Suddenly, the door that Jack had broken slammed open and the Winchesters walked out.

"Jack!" Angela called out.

"Angie?" Jack turned around, his brows furrowed.

With Jack distracted, Kaia kicked him to the ground and he let go of her arm. She then proceeded to punch him in the jaw and sprinted away. Jack grunted in pain and stood up, a baffled look on his face.

"She hit me."

"Yeah, good." Dean snapped.

"No! She's getting away. I—she can't—

Sam and Dean grabbed Jack from both sides, and the boy tried to break free so that he could chase after Kaia.

"No, no, no, no, no. He, we're not letting you near her until you tell us what's going on." Dean demanded.

"No, I need her," Jack stressed.

"You need her like you needed Derek?" Angela asked warily.

"Yes." Jack nodded.

The brothers let go of Jack and the three hunters exchanged worried glances.

"You don't…" Jack frowned. "I'm—I'm doing this for you."

"Oh, you killed Derek for us?" Dean scoffed.

Jack became even more confused at Dean's question. "Derek's dead?"

"Wait, hold on a second," Angela cut in. "Jack, honey, tell us what happened. Everything."

"I left to try and get a grip on my powers. I wanted to prove to you that I'm good, to do one good thing. So I did the thing you wanted the most. I experimented with opening doors to other worlds. I could almost do it." Jack explained. "I could get right to the edge. But I couldn't see. I could only feel around in the dark. I needed eyes. A seer."

"A dream walker." Sam realized.

"Yeah." Jack nodded. "So I researched, like you taught me. That's how I found Derek. I didn't know if it would work, but it did. He dream-walked and I joined him… in the Apocalypse world. I could see what he saw. And I saw…And I saw them."

"Them?" Sam raised his brows.

"Your mother and your father," Jack answered, stunning the hunters into silence. "They're alive."

Tears filled Angela's eyes and she grabbed Sam's hand.

"What?" Dean asked in disbelief.

"But they're in danger," Jack stressed.

"W-what does that mean?" Angela stammered. "What—what kind of danger?"

"It's easier if I show you."

Jack held his hands out, offering to show them what he's seen with his powers. Dean leaned away, wary of what Jack intended to do to them.

"Wh—

"Dean?" Sam asked.

Jack placed his hands on Sam and Dean's temples. Jack's eyes glowed yellow, as did the Winchesters'. They saw visions of Mary and Robert trapped and groaning in pain. Jack released them and their eyes returned to normal.

"Mom." Dean breathed out.

"Dad," Angela sobbed.

"I was so close to them," Jack started. "I could've touched them. But, Derek wasn't strong enough to hold the connection."

"Wait," Angela's forehead creased. "You didn't burn him out?"

"No, I stopped," Jack answered honestly. "Derek, he wasn't strong enough, but he knew someone who was. Kaia, she's the key."