Caleb hated to wake Dean. The kid had gone to bed late the previous night after they had stayed up later watching movies, and spending some quality time with Sam, who had felt just the slightest bit abandoned by his younger guardian and brother. Because of that, they had all gone to bed much later than they probably should have, and now they were paying the price. Insomnia was always a risk, especially when you hunted and had uneven sleeping hours. It was something that Caleb had struggled with, and it was something that Dean was now learning, as he slept soundly upstairs.
Walking up the staircase, he paused outside Dean's door, wondering if he should wake him so early. The boys were used to early wake up calls when school was in session for them, but since the guys had yanked them out for their own safety, they had enjoyed the rare opportunity to sleep in and enjoy unlimited amount of down time. Walking into the typically messy room, he crept over to Dean's still form, and laid a hand on his shoulder. He barely stirred, just rolled over a little in his sleep, as he reflexively drew the covers over himself, shielding him from the outside cold and intrusions.
"Dean," Caleb whispered, gently shaking his shoulder to rouse him from his deep slumber. "Come on, kiddo, time to wake up."
As predicted, Dean instantly rebelled against the rude awakening, as he faced away from Caleb and pulled the covers up over himself again. "No," he mumbled. "Tired."
"I know," Caleb said softly, as he turned the light on beside his bed, hoping that the sudden change would propel him further into consciousness. "But we have to go right now."
Opening one eye blearily, Dean glanced over at Caleb. "Why? What time is it?"
"Almost eight. I let you sleep in almost an hour past the time we were supposed to go."
Groaning, Dean dropped his head back on his pillow, as his mind struggled to catch up to his body, and what it was telling him to do. It had always been hard to force himself to wake for school, and now that he was on a job and having to wake early again, it was difficult to get used to the rough transition.
"Where are we going?"
"The library, and then back into that town to see if we can dig up more about this thing."
"And hopefully solve it, right?" Dean said, as he struggled to a seated position as he palmed his face tiredly with his hand as he dragged the nearest set of clothes toward him.
"If we can. Bobby gave us a good set of tips to follow up on."
When they had confided in Bobby the details of the case, and in particular, the odd lion head door knocker, he had suggested they shift their focus from the murder victims at the center of the investigation, and instead focus on the house itself, and what secrets it had stored inside its massive walls. It had been an ingenious idea, and something that they were aiming to do today, as they headed for the local library, intent on brushing up on their research, before going back to that town to search around some more.
"Right," Dean said, as he shakily rose to his feet, and went over to his closet to retrieve a good sweatshirt to combat the frigid temperatures he knew to expect from the rough winter they had been having. "So what if it's a spirit?"
"Then the usual drill."
"What if it's an animal possessed by a spirit?"
None of them had ever come up against something like that, and the more Dean considered it, the more it seemed too far-fetched. Even for them. But it was a possibility they either had to rule out conclusively, or delve deeper into.
"Then we'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Caleb said, thoughtfully. "Or call up the local zoo and ask why they aren't keeping better track of their animals."
Dean cracked a smile, it felt nice. "Is Sam going?" he asked, as he prepared a small bag of essentials for the short journey they would take that day.
"No," Caleb said with a laugh. "I went in there and asked, and his exact response: "Leave me alone, I'm sleeping."
"Sounds about right," Dean said with a wry smile.
"Tell me all about it. The kid practically shoved me out the door."
It was a running joke in the family. Sam was usually a very bright and cheerful kid, but when you threw him into a morning routine, he became sullen and disgruntled as his little body struggled to fully adjust to the waking world after a full night's rest.
"Awesome."
"I made some food for Bobby to give to Sam," Caleb said, as they began walking down the stairs. "But do you want to eat now or later?"
"What did you make?"
"French Toast," Caleb said, raising an eyebrow, knowing how much Dean favored that particular breakfast dish.
"I'll eat now."
"I thought so," Caleb said with a laugh. "Hurry it up, though."
"I know."
Walking into the local library, Dean and Caleb immediately made a beeline for the back section of the library, which housed all the public records and documentation related to the town and the citizens in it. Once they had (reluctantly) acquired help from a helpful employee, they set to work on the enormous task before them, as they set out their bountiful research on a few tables that had been pushed together to make more room.
"Alright," Caleb said, as he sorted through the wealth of information they had suddenly received. "Look for anything to do with any deaths or disappearances."
"No crap, Sherlock."
It was slow, arduous work. Each case was either completely unrelated to the one they were dealing with now, or the facts didn't match up all the way. Dean knew this part of the job to be boring, and he tried his best to hold in his frustrations while he sorted through some more paperwork.
"Find anything?" Caleb asked, glancing up at Dean, a short time later.
"Nope."
"I think I did."
Relieved, Dean leaned foreword, as he looked down at the article in question. "What is it?"
"Back in the early 1800's, when the house was first built," Caleb said, as he gazed down at the paper. "A wealthy family moved into it. The husband was a lawyer, he had an excellent reputation in the community, and a family to show around town."
"Right," Dean said slowly, "so how does that tie into what we're looking into?"
"The husband," Caleb said, giving him a wry look, "had a wandering eye, and cheated on the wife. Back then, those issues were kept behind closed doors, but the wife was devastated and asked him for a divorce. He obliged, and then came the issue of who would get custody of their daughter."
"Who did?"
"Since the father was so well known in the community, he was able to pull a few strings, and get custody of their daughter. There was nothing she could do, especially when he made it seem like she was the one who had been unfaithful."
"Right..."
"The mistress of the guy, she was insanely jealous of anyone who claimed his affections over her. Even his own kid, apparently."
"Are you kidding?" Dean said, catching onto what he was trying to say, and not entirely believing it himself.
"Well," Caleb said, grimacing. "When she saw how much the father doted on his little girl, she became enraged, and killed her."
"In the house?" Dean asked, feeling sick to his stomach, as he glanced up at Caleb.
"Sam spot where the little girls were found."
"She," Dean said with a noticeable gulp, "did to the girl what happened to the other victims in this case?"
"Yeah," Caleb said, bowing his head to research further. "After the husband discovered her betrayal, he had her arrested, and the woman was put to death. As a memorial to his now deceased daughter, he wanted to put something of hers on the house."
"You mean the-"
"Her favorite animal was a lion," Caleb said carefully, "and so as a tribute to her, he had a lion head knocker put on the front door. Partly as a good luck charm against any approaching evil, and partly as a reminder of the evil that came through those doors."
"And those people were ancestors of-"
"Of the people that live there now," Caleb finished.
"Was the daughter buried?" Dean asked, already itching to go to the burial site and finish the case."Yeah. We'll go there, but first we have to go by the house."
"And do what?"
"Destroy the knocker, and then go burn the bones."
"That will go off well," Dean said, shaking his head.
"At least they'll be alive."