February 22nd, 2007
Sam and Dean had stumbled across a case about two spirits who had caused twelve accidents over fifteen years on Highway 41. Molly McNamara and her husband, David, had been traveling when they hit Jonah Greeley and then swerved and crashed on the side of the road. David had been the only one to survive the accident, so Sam and Dean had gone to talk to him about Molly. They had found out that Molly had been cremated. There was also no one they could talk to about Greeley because his wife had disappeared shortly after he died. So, the only choice we had was to drive down Highway 41 on the anniversary of their deaths to find some way to put an end to the haunting.
Suddenly, a woman ran out into the road right in front of us. "Stop! Stop!" she yelled as she waved her arms.
I quickly realized that the woman was Molly, the woman who had been causing the accidents.
Dean slammed on the breaks. "Holy!"
"You have to help me!" Molly yelled.
"I don't think she knows she's dead," Sam said softly.
Molly ran over to Sam's window and started banging on it. "Please! Open up! Please!"
"Okay, okay!" Sam rolled down his window. "All right, all right. Just calm down. Tell us what happened."
The three of us got out of the car to listen to her story.
"There was a man in the middle of the road and I— I swerved, a— and we crashed," Molly stuttered, "And when I came to, the car was wrecked, and my husband was missing. I went looking for him, but that's when the man from the road, he— he started chasing me."
"Did he look like he lost a fight with a lawnmower?" Dean asked.
Sam gave Dean a sharp look.
Molly furrowed her brow. "How did you know that?"
Dean shrugged. "Lucky guess."
"Ma'am, what's your name?" Sam asked.
"Molly. Molly McNamara," she said.
The three of us exchanged looks because she was exactly who we had been looking for.
"I think maybe you should come with us. We'll take you back into town," Sam said.
Molly shook her head. "I can't. I have to find David. He might have gone back to the car."
"We should get you somewhere safe first. Then the three of us will come back. We'll look for your husband," Sam said.
"No. I'm not leaving here without him. Would you just take me back to my car, please?" Molly asked.
Sam nodded. "Of course. Come on."
The four of us piled into the Impala and drove down the road until Molly pointed to where she believed her car was. We got out and followed Molly into the woods.
"It's right over there." Molly pointed, but when we looked over the edge of the hill, there was nothing at the bottom. "I don't understand. I'm sure this is where it was. W— We hit that tree right there. This— This doesn't make any sense." She walked down to investigate, we stayed behind, knowing she wasn't going to find anything.
"Dean, we got to get out of here. Greeley could show up at any second," Sam whispered.
"What are you gonna tell her?" Dean asked.
Sam shrugged. "The truth?"
Dean shook his head. "She's gonna take off running in the other direction."
Molly walked back up to us. "I know it sounds crazy, but I crashed into that tree." She pointed. "I don't know who could've taken it. It was totaled. Please. You have to believe me."
"Molly, listen, we do believe you," Sam said softly, "But that's why we want to get you out of here."
"What about David?" Molly asked. "Something must have happened. I have to get to the cops."
"Cops..." Dean nodded. "That's a great idea. We'll take you down to the station ourselves. So, just come with us. It's the best way we can help you and your husband."
"Okay." Molly nodded, and we headed back to the Impala.
Molly and I sat in the backseat as we made our way back to town.
"We're supposed to be in Lake Tahoe." Molly sighed.
"You and David?" Sam asked.
Molly nodded. "It's our five-year anniversary."
"A hell of an anniversary," Dean said sarcastically.
"Right before, we were having the dumbest fight." Molly sighed. "It was the only time we ever really argued... when we were stuck in the car."
Sam laughed. "Yeah. I know how that goes."
Dean and I snapped him a dirty look.
"You know the last thing I said to him?" Molly asked, "I called him a jerk. Oh, god. What if that's the last thing I said to him?"
Sam turned to face her. "Molly... we're gonna figure out what happened to your husband. I promise."
Suddenly, the radio started making noises and then played "House of the Rising Sun."
Dean looked over at Sam. "Did you—"
Sam shook his head. "No."
Dean nodded. "I was afraid you'd say that."
"This song..." Molly whispered.
"What?" Dean asked.
"It was playing when we crashed," Molly said.
The radio crackled and then skipped to another station, where a creepy man's voice came through. "She's mine. She's mine. She's mine."
"What is that?" Molly asked.
Greeley suddenly appeared in the middle of the road in front of us.
Dean floored it, heading straight for Greeley. "Hold on."
"What are you doing?!" Molly yelled.
As soon as we hit Greeley, he exploded into a puff of black smoke.
"What the— What the hell just happened?" Molly asked, shocked.
"Don't worry, Molly. Everything's gonna be all right," Sam said.
The Impala started to shudder and slow down.
"Spoke a little too soon, Sammy." Dean groaned as the Impala coasted to a stop on the side of the road. He tried to start it again, but the ignition just sputtered. "I don't think he's gonna let her leave."
We all got out of the car.
"This can't be happening," Molly said as she looked around, completely distraught.
"Well... trust me. It's happening," Dean said as he rounded the back of the Impala and started going through the trunk.
Molly walked around back and looked into the trunk, clearly startled by the small armory we had. "Well... okay. Thanks for helping, but I think I got it covered from here." She quickly turned and started down the road.
Sam went after her. "Wait. Molly, Molly, wait a minute."
"Just leave me alone," Molly said.
"No, no, no. Please. You have to listen to me," Sam pleaded.
"Just stay away." Molly continued walking.
"It wasn't a coincidence that we found you, all right?" Sam asked.
Molly quickly turned back. "What are you talking about?"
Dean turned toward Sam and Molly. "We weren't just cruising around when we ran into you, sister. We were already out here. Hunting."
"Hunting for what?" Molly asked.
"Ghosts," Dean said and then turned back to the Impala.
Sam looked exasperated. "D— D—Don't sugarcoat it for her."
"You're nuts," Molly said.
Dean quickly turned back. "Really? About as nuts as a vanishing guy with his guts spilling out? You know what you saw." He turned and continued going through the trunk.
"We think his name is Jonah Greeley. He was a local farmer that died fifteen years ago on this highway," Sam said.
Molly shook her head. "Just... stop."
"One night a year, on the anniversary of his death, he haunts this road. That's why we're here, Molly. To try and stop him," Sam said.
Molly furrowed her brow. "Now, I suppose this... ghost made my car disappear, too."
"Crazier things have happened, huh?" Dean asked as he walked up and smacked Sam in the arm.
"Ya know what?" Molly shook her head and backed away slowly. "I'm all filled up on crazy. I'm gonna get the cops myself."
"I don't mean to be harsh, but I don't think you're gonna get too far," Dean said.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Molly asked, now looking terrified.
"Means that plan A was trying to get you out of here. Obviously, that didn't go over too well with, uh, Farmer Roadkill," Dean said.
"Molly, we're telling the truth," Sam said calmly, "Greeley's not gonna let you leave this highway."
"You're— You're serious about this, aren't you?" Molly asked.
Dean nodded. "Deadly."
"Every year, Greeley finds someone to punish for what happened to him. Tonight, that person is you," Sam said.
Molly shook her head. "Why me? I didn't do anything."
Sam sighed. "Doesn't matter. Some spirits only see what they want."
"So, you're saying this... Greeley, he took my husband?" Molly contemplated that thought for a second. "Oh, god."
"Molly, look, we're gonna help, all right? But first, you gotta help us," Sam said.
"Help you? How?" Molly asked.
"Where did Greeley start chasing you?" Sam asked.
Molly led us through the woods until we reached a cabin. Molly, Dean, and I walked into the cabin while Sam looked around outside.
"This is it. This is where I saw him," Molly said.
"Must have been his hunting cabin," Dean said, shining his flashlight on tools and a bloodstained table. "Huh. Seemed like a real sweet guy."
"No markers or headstones outside," Sam said as he walked in.
"You're looking for Greeley's grave?" Molly asked.
Sam nodded "Yeah."
Molly shook her head. "Why?"
"So, we can dig up the corpse and salt and burn it," Dean said, bluntly.
Molly raised her eyebrows. "Oh. Sure, naturally."
"It's a way to get rid of a spirit," I said.
"And that'll save David?" Molly asked.
"Well, this is what'll help both of you, provided there's a corpse to be found," Sam said.
"So, how do we find it?" Molly asked.
Sam shrugged. "I'm not sure. After Greeley died, his wife claimed the body. And that was the last anyone saw of her. So, good guess she brought him back here. But they had a thousand acres. He could be buried anywhere on 'em."
"So, this is really what you guys do? You're like Ghostbusters?" Molly asked.
"Yeah," Sam said.
"Minus the jumpsuits," Dean said briskly, "This is a fascinating conversation and all, but this highway is only haunted once a year, and we got 'til sun-up to wrap this thing up. What do you say we move it along, okay? Great." He quickly walked out.
I followed behind. "Dean, you've gotta be nice," I whispered.
"Nice? We don't have the time, and I definitely don't have the patience to ease her into this," Dean whispered.
"I know, but try to be a little more understanding," I said.
Suddenly, we heard a scream.
"Come on." Dean nodded at me, and then we took off running in the direction of the scream.
A few moments later, we ran into Greeley with his arm around Molly's neck.
Dean ran up and pointed the shotgun at Greeley. "Whoops." He shot him in the head, and then he vanished into a cloud of smoke.
Sam came running up to us. "Hey! Are you all right?"
Molly caught her breath. "What has that son of a bitch done with my husband?"
"Just take it easy, all right?" Sam tried to calm Molly down. "You're gonna see David again. You will."
"Hey," Dean said, causing us all to face him. He was pointing his flashlight down a gloomy path. "Follow the creepy brick road."
Sam gestured for Molly and me to go first. "Go ahead."
"So, you can shoot spirits?" Molly asked.
"Well, that shotgun actually shoots rock salt," I said.
"That thing shoots rock salt?" Molly asked, looking confused.
Sam nodded. "Yup."
"And plain salt keeps away spirits?" Molly asked.
"Simple remedies are always the best," Sam said.
"Salt is actually a symbol of purity in most cultures," I explained.
Sam nodded. "So, it repels impure and unnatural things. Same reason you throw it over your shoulder."
When we rounded the corner, we looked up to see a creepy old house in front of us.
"Ya know, just once I'd like to round the corner and see a nice house," Dean said.
Sam, Molly, and I walked into the house and started looking around with our flashlights. Dean joined a few minutes later.
"Any headstones outside?" Sam asked.
"Yeah, right." Dean scoffed. "Is it ever that easy?"
Sam shrugged. "I guess not."
Dean pointed to Sam and Molly. "You two check upstairs. See if you can find any notes or records telling us where he's buried." He gestured to himself and me. "We'll just check down here."
Sam and Molly nodded and then walked upstairs.
"Are you all right?" I asked after they were gone.
Dean furrowed his brow as we walked around the house with our flashlights. "What do you mean?"
I shrugged. "You just seem really on edge."
"I'm just worried Sam's gonna tell her the truth. We need her to stick around," Dean said.
"Is that why you're being rude to her?" I asked.
"I'm not being rude," Dean said.
I shrugged. "Eh, a little."
"It's just annoying, to have to tiptoe around it. I mean, how would she not know?" Dean asked.
"You know as well as I do what a traumatic death can do to a spirit. It makes sense that she's confused. She died suddenly, in a tragic way," I said.
"Yeah, I get it." Dean nodded.
"Look, all I'm saying is... just remember she was human once, she's just confused and needs our help," I said.
"No, you're right. I know." Dean sighed. "There's nothing down here. Let's go get them."
I nodded and followed Dean up the stairs. As we made our way up, we could hear Sam and Molly talking.
"Yeah. Uh, it could be revenge. Could be love. Or hate. Whatever it is, they just hold on too tight. Can't let go. So, they're trapped. Caught in the same loops. Replaying the same tragedies over and over," Sam explained.
"You sound almost sorry for them," Molly said.
"Well, they weren't evil people, ya know? A lot of them were good. Just... something happened to them. Something they couldn't control," Sam said.
"Sammy's always getting a little J. Love Hewitt when it comes to things like this," Dean joked when we reached the doorway. "Me, I don't like 'em. And I sure as hell ain't making apologies for 'em."
I elbowed Dean in the side.
Dean cleared his throat. "There's nothing downstairs. You find anything?"
"Uh, just about every piece of mail or receipt they ever had." Sam shook his head. "Looked through a couple, but nothing about a grave so far."
Dean furrowed his brow and then approached a cabinet on the wall across from us.
"What?" Sam asked.
"There's something behind here." Dean tossed his flashlight to Sam. "Here." He moved the cabinet to the side to reveal a small hidden door. He crouched down, pushed on the door, and then looked up at us. "It's locked from the inside."
Dean stood up and turned around, giving the door a back kick, which did nothing. He looked surprised and then braced himself and kicked harder.
The door swung open. He nodded at us, and we all crawled through the small opening. When we made it into the room, my heart sank, and my skin crawled as I looked around at all the cobwebs. Sam and Dean brushed away some of the cobwebs. I looked down and frantically wiped cobwebs off of my clothes.
I jumped back, bumping into Sam as I swiped a spider off of my jacket. "Ew, ew, ew! Get off me! Get off me!" I quickly spun and looked up at Sam. "Is there more? Is there more? Get 'em off. Get 'em off." I quickly spun in a circle.
Sam laughed and put his hands on my shoulders, stopping me from spinning. "All right, calm down. Let me look." He inspected my front and then had me turn. "No, you're all clear. You've just got some cobwebs caught in your curls." He brushed them out and then patted me on the back.
"You all right there, jumpy?" Dean asked wide-eyed.
"Pff... yeah, I'm fine. What are you talking about?" I asked.
Dean chuckled and shook his head. "Yeah, okay."
"I just don't like spiders." I shrugged.
Dean frowned and sniffed the air. "It smells like old lady in here." He turned and continued walking, shining his flashlight on a corpse hanging by its neck from the ceiling. "And that would explain why. Well, now we know why nobody ever saw her again."
Molly shook her head. "She didn't want to live without him."
Sam picked up the chair underneath the corpse and set it down in front of her. "Dean, give me a hand."
"Really?" Dean groaned.
"What are you gonna do?" Molly asked.
Sam furrowed his brow. "We can't leave her like this."
"Why not?" Dean shrugged.
"Oh, I don't know... she's a human being," I said.
"She deserves to be put to rest, Dean," Sam said.
"Jeez, all right." Dean reluctantly agreed and walked over to Sam and the corpse.
Sam stood on the chair and started cutting the rope.
Dean wrapped his arms around her waist and turned his head. "Son of a..."
Sam and Dean got to work digging a grave for Mrs. Greeley, right outside of the house.
"So— So, if you manage to put Greeley to rest, too... what happens to them?" Molly asked.
"Lady, that answer is way beyond our pay grade," Dean said as he dug.
"You hunt these things, but you don't know what happens to them?" Molly asked.
"Well, they never come back. That's all that matters," Dean said.
Molly frowned.
I could see that Dean's answer wasn't what she was looking for. "I like to think of it like we are helping them move on," I said, trying to make her feel a little better.
Sam nodded and stopped digging. "After they let go of whatever's keeping them here, they— they just go. I hope someplace better, but we don't know. No one does."
Dean placed Mrs. Greeley's body in the grave, and then they quickly shoveled the dirt back into the grave.
"What happens when you burn their bones?" Molly asked.
"Um... well, our dad used to say that was like death for ghosts, ya know? But... the truth is, we still don't know. Not for sure." Sam looked over at Dean and me. "Guess that's why we all hold on to life so hard. Even the dead. We're all just scared of the unknown."
Molly sighed. "The only thing I'm scared of is losing David. I have to see him again." She paused for a moment. "I have to."
We decided to wait in the house to see if Greeley would show up. Molly was pacing in the kitchen while looking at an old photo album. Sam, Dean, and I waited in the living room.
Sam sighed. "I think we should tell her about her husband."
Dean shook his head. "We can't."
"Dean, it's cruel, letting her pine for him like this. I don't like keeping her in the dark," Sam said.
"It's for her own good." Dean stood up. "Man, I know you feel guilty, all right? But let's just stick to the plan."
I spotted Molly walking over to us, so I cleared my throat, trying to get their attention.
"Let's get her out of here. Then we'll tell her." Dean finished.
"Tell me what?" Molly asked, looking upset. "What aren't you telling me? It's about David. You know what happened to him."
Sam sighed with sad eyes. "Molly—"
"Sam, don't," Dean snapped.
"Don't what? Don't tell me because I'll mess up your hunt?" Molly was getting angry. "You don't care about me or my husband."
Sam shook his head. "That's not true."
"Really?" Molly asked. "Then whatever it is, tell me, please."
Sam swallowed hard, fighting back, telling her the truth when we heard the static from a radio, and then "House of the Rising Sun" started to play.
Molly looked around, terrified. "He's coming."
Dean looked at Sam and me. "Stay with her." Then he cautiously walked into the next room.
Suddenly, a figure crashed through the window and dragged Molly out. Dean came running back into the room.
"He's got Molly!" Sam yelled.
We all jumped through the window and chased after them, but we lost sight of them and stopped in the middle of the woods.
We decided to head back to the house, hoping to find some clue as to where Greeley was buried, given the fact that that was all we had to go off of.
"This guy is persistent," Dean said as he searched the house.
"We gotta find Molly," Sam said.
"We gotta find Greeley's bones." Dean looked out of the window. "And, uh, no pressure or anything, but we got less than two hours before sunrise."
Sam walked over and picked up the photo album that Molly had been looking at. "Hey."
"What do you got?" Dean asked, and we both walked up to Sam.
Sam spun the album around to show us a picture of the Greeley's. "February 6, 1992."
"That was like two weeks before the accident, wasn't it?" Dean asked.
"Yeah. I mean, it looks like the hunting cabin, but... I swear there's a tree there right where they're standing." Sam sighed and shook his head in realization. "I should've thought of it."
"What?" Dean asked.
"It's an old country custom, Dean," Sam said, raising his eyebrows.
I gasped in realization. "Oh yeah... they used to plant trees as a grave marker."
Dean looked at us and shook his head. "You two are like walking encyclopedias of weirdness."
Sam looked down. "Yeah. I know."
I just shrugged.
We ran up to the hunting cabin, Sam and Dean carrying shovels. Then we started to hear Molly scream.
"Go get Molly," Sam said to Dean.
Dean nodded, handed me his shovel, and then ran inside. Sam and I started digging in front of the tree, and then we heard something crash inside the cabin.
"Hurry up, guys!" Dean yelled from within the cabin.
We started digging faster until we hit something hard. We brushed some of the dirt away and revealed bones.
I quickly ran over and grabbed the box of salt out of our duffel bag and tossed it to Sam, who emptied its contents into the grave. I pulled out a small container of gasoline and poured it into the grave. Sam pulled matches out of his pocket, lit one, and then dropped it in.
As the bones flared up, we heard Greeley yell out in pain from within the cabin, and then we ran in.
Sam helped untie Molly from the hook she was hanging from, and then we made our way back to the Impala.
As we walked up to the Impala, Dean opened the back door and put the duffel bag in the back seat. "Oh, baby, it's been a long night."
I walked up and sat in the back. Dean closed the door for me and then got in.
"All right. Let's get you out of here." Sam opened the other back door for Molly.
"I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what happened to my husband," Molly said.
"Molly..." Sam said softly.
"All this time... I've been looking for him, and you knew that... you knew that Greeley killed him, didn't you? He's dead," Molly said, sadly.
"No, Molly. David's alive," Sam said.
"What? You're sure?" Molly asked, sounding excited.
"I'm sure. We'll take you to him. Come on," Sam said.
We pulled up in front of a nice suburban home with the lights on and got out.
"He's in that house, right there." Sam pointed.
Molly shook her head. "I don't understand."
"You will," Sam said.
We walked up closer to the house, and we could see David inside, in a bathrobe, pouring himself a cup of coffee.
"That's... not... it can't be." Molly shook her head.
David looked up as a woman approached, also in a bathrobe, and they kissed as they embraced.
"What's happening?" Molly asked and then looked at us. "Who is that?"
"That's David's wife," Sam said.
Molly furrowed her brow and then turned back to the house, then back to us.
"I'm sorry, Molly," Sam said softly, "Fifteen years ago, you and your husband hit Jonah Greeley with your car. David survived."
Molly shook her head. "What are you saying?"
"We're saying there isn't just one spirit haunting Highway 41. There are two. Jonah Greeley and... you," Dean said.
"For the past fifteen years, one night a year, you've been appearing on that highway," Sam explained.
Molly shook her head. "No, that's not possible. It was our anniversary... February 22nd..."
"1992," Sam said.
Molly nodded. "Yes."
"Molly, it's 2007," Dean said.
"Oh, god." Molly looked down and then turned to stare up at the house for a moment. "And Greeley?" She turned back to us.
"Each year he punishes somebody for his death... chasing them... torturing them. And each year, that somebody is you," Sam explained.
Molly shook her head. "But I don't remember any of it."
"Because you couldn't see the truth, Molly," Sam said.
Molly took a deep breath. "So, that's why he won't let me off the highway. Because... I killed him. I killed us both." She slowly sat down on the sidewalk. "Why didn't you tell me when you first saw me? Why wait until now?"
"You wouldn't have believed us," Dean said.
"And you needed me for bait." Molly accused.
"Well, we needed you," Sam said.
Molly looked down sadly and sighed. "David."
"Molly, we brought you here so you could move on," Sam said.
Molly shook her head. "I have to tell him—"
"Tell him what? That you love him? That you're sorry?" Sam asked. "Molly, he already knows that. Look, if you want to go in there, we're not gonna stop you."
"Yeah, but you are gonna freak him right out. For life," Dean said.
"David's already said his goodbyes, Molly. Now it's your turn. This is your unfinished business," Sam said.
"What am I supposed to do?" Molly asked.
"Just... let go," Sam said, "Of David. Of everything. You do that... we think you'll move on."
Molly started crying. "But you don't know where."
Sam shook his head. "No. But Molly, you don't belong here. Haven't you suffered long enough? It's time. It's time to go."
Molly nodded sadly, stood up, and slowly walked away from the house.
As the first light of dawn crept over the rooftops, she lifted her head, letting the light swarm her, and then she vanished.
"I guess she wasn't so bad... for a ghost. You think she's really going to a better place?" Dean asked.
"I hope so," Sam said.
Dean shrugged. "I guess we'll never know. Not until we take the plunge ourselves, huh?"
"Doesn't really matter, Dean. Hope's kind of the whole point," Sam said.
"All right, Haley Joel." Dean smacked Sam on the shoulder. "Let's hit the road."
We quickly crossed the road over to the Impala and got in, as it started raining.
Sam looked down at the seat next to him. "Huh."
"What?" Dean asked.
"I got a voicemail." Sam picked up his phone and put it to his ear. He listened for a moment and then pulled it away. "I think you guys should listen to this." He clicked the phone to speaker and then played the voicemail.
A woman's voice came through the phone, "Hi Sam, it's, uh, Renee... Renee Thomas. Um, you called me a few weeks ago about Maddison. I've been feeling horrible about how we left things off. I was just caught off guard. If she's still interested in meeting me, I would love to meet her... Uh, okay. Just give me a call back if that's what she wants."