Chapter Five
"I can't believe it," Sam said after Dean had finished telling him about his blast from the past, "Mom… a hunter?"
After a few hours drive, and one pit stop at a gas station, Sam decided it would be okay for him to sit in the front seat. That was fine by me, I enjoyed stretching out over the back seat. I had rolled up a jacket as a pillow, placing my bare feet just next to Dean's head. I closed my eyes, but sleep was not a friend to me tonight. Not that I was expecting it to.
"I wouldn't have believed it, either, if I hadn't seen it myself," Dean admitted, chuckling, "That woman could kick some ass. Actually, kinda reminded me of you, True."
"I like her already," I muttered, stretching my arms toward the roof of the car and sitting up. I leaned over the back rest, crossing my arms and resting my chin on them, "Tell me, did she kick your ass?"
"She did almost take me down," Dean smiled.
"How'd she look?" Sam asked, "I mean, was she happy?"
"Yeah, she was awesome," Dean said, "Funny and smart. So hopeful. Dad, too. Until, of course…"
Sam sighed, shaking his head as he turned to stare out the window, but he didn't say anything. I tugged on a tuff of his hair, getting him to face me, "What's on your mind, Sammy?"
"Nothing," Sam shook his head, "It just… Our parents, and now we find out our grandparents, too? Our whole family murdered, and for what? So Yellow Eyes could get in my nursery and bleed in my mouth?"
The thought made my stomach turn over. I leaned back, feeling a copper taste in my mouth that made me want to gag. Dean was quite for a moment, his head turning. He glanced at Sam, "Sam, I never said anything about demon blood. You knew about that?"
"Yeah, for about a year," Sam admitted.
"A whole year," Dean breathed.
"I should have told you," Sam said, "I'm sorry."
"You've been saying that a lot lately, Sam," Dean looked at me in the review mirror, "What about you? You have any dark secrets you wanna share?" Something in my expression must have given me away, because Dean nearly whipped around in his seat to look me in the eye. The Impala jerked to the side, and Dean flipped back around to steady her. "True, please tell me you're not hiding something from me."
"Um," I took a deep beath, "I can't."
"Goddamn it," Dean smacked his hand against the steering wheel, "What?! What is it?"
I hesitated, this was as good as time as any to tell Dean and Sam about Claire. I didn't think it measured up to what Sam was doing, but necromancy was still pretty bad. I know Claire didn't want me to tell the Winchesters, but I couldn't keep this secret any more. Sam turned in his seat, giving me his signature puppy dog look. Encouraging me to speak, telling me he wasn't one to judge.
I swallowed hard, looking down at my hands I clenched in my lap, "About a month after you died, Claire came to me with a plan to get you back."
"What?" Dean demanded at the same time Sam said, "Why didn't you tell me?"
"We weren't exactly talking," I said to Sam first, because it was easier then meeting Dean's eyes in the rearview mirror, "Anyway, for about a month… she was practicing witchcraft, necromancy to be specific."
"Wow," Dean said, his voice thick with sarcasm, "You're just letting everyone venture to the dark side."
"Screw you, Dean," I snapped, "I didn't let her do shit!"
"Was that why you were hunting with her?" Dean demanded, "Because she could do magic? Did you try finding the demon she was getting this power from?"
"She's not getting it from a demon!" I was nearly shotting now. If he wasn't driving, I would have punched him, "And those where all cases she was working, that she invited me on. I tried to stop her, but she wouldn't listen! She just kept doing it anyway!"
"Okay, let's just calm down," Sam said, holding up his hands as referee, "Come on, Dean. You know, it's not True's fault."
"Yeah, I know," Dean snapped, he glanced at me again in the review mirror, "I'm sorry, okay? I shouldn't have said that." I didn't say anything, I crossed my arms over my chest and stared at the window. Dean cleared his throat, "Okay, whatever."
"Dean," Sam spoke softly, but then changing his mind said, "Whatever."
We lapsed back into silence. A few hours later, we arrived in Carthage, Missouri and got a hotel room. After unpacking, and one web search later, we had where parked outside of the unassuming suburb house of one Jack Montgomery. He looked like an average man, with an average build, and dark hair. If there was something suspicious about him, it wasn't his outward appearance.
"You sure that's him?" Dean asked, leaning towards the passenger side window and looking through his binoculars.
"The only Jack Montgomery in town," Sam confirmed.
"And we're looking for…?" Dean trailed off, handing me the binoculars as he leaned back.
"Travis said to keep an eye out for anything wired," Sam shrugged.
"Alright, well, yeah," Dean said, "I've seen big weird, little weird, weird with crazy on top. But this guy? I mean, come on, this guy's boring."
"There are countless things that can lurk under the surface," I said, peeking through the binoculars, "Vampires and werewolves don't show any outward signs of being different. Then there are diseases, infections, and what not that take time to develop in a host. Not to mention any latent and/or recent transformations that take time for your body to adjust to the rapid evolution of the cells."
I lowered the binoculars to find both Winchester boys staring at me. Dean took back his binoculars, "Laten or recent transformations?"
"You know, like getting bit by a werewolf," I shrugged, "Or some other genetic abnormality, often brought on by reaching a certain age or extreme stress. Stuff like that."
"Well, Travis seemed pretty sure," Sam said, holding up his own binoculars to stare up at Montgomery. "Woah."
"Woah, what?" I demanded, "What's he doing?"
"He's eating," Sam scoffed.
"More like scarfing down his food like he hasn't eaten in days," Dean mumbled, "And now he's eating raw meet.
"I'd say that qualifies as weird," Sam said as he and dean both lowered the binoculars.
"You know why he's eating meet raw?" Dean asked, eyeing me.
"Like I said, there could be a lot of things," I told them.
"Then let's get back to the hotel, find out what we are dealing with," Dean said, starting the car.
The ride back to the hotel was short, and we walked into our hotel room to find a man sitting at our table, drinking a beer. He was a white man, with a balding head, and dressed a lot like Bobby did in flannel and vest. His right arm was broken, wrapped in a cast. I reached for the gun I had tucked into the back of my jeans, but Dean turned to Sam with a smile.
"Travis," Dean said as the man put down his beer and stood up, "See, Sam. Told you we should have hid the beer."
"Smartass," Travis said, walking toward the Winchesters with a smile on his face. He was shorter than he looked, about my height, "Get over here!" He laughed as he pulled Dean into a hug, "Oh, good to see you."
"You too," Dean said stepping back so Sam could hug Travis.
"Man, you got tall, kid," Tavis said, looking Sam up and down. He turned to me, offering me his unbroken hand, "And who are you?"
I shook his hand, "True Bennett, it's nice to meet you."
Travis's eyes grew wide, "You're the Van Helsing, or at least that's what they say."
"Who says that?" I asked. I shouldn't have been surprised that news off who I was had spread around to different hunters, but it was weird considering everyone thought we were a myth.
"Oh, everyone," Travis said, beaming at me, "I don't know if it's true, but I gotta say, your way to pretty to be slumming it with these two yahoos."
"I agree," I returned his smile.
"As far as I see it, if your good in the Winchesters book, your good in mine," Travis turned back to the boys, "How long has it been?"
"Got to be ten years," Sam laughed.
"You still a... oh, what was it?" Travis asked, "A mathlete?"
Sam chuckled, "No."
"Yep, sure is," Dean piped up, patting Sam on the back.
"Been too long, boys," Travis smile grew, "I mean, look at you. Grown men. John would have been damn proud of you… Sticking together like this."
"Yeah, we're as thick as thieves," Dean said, his voice thick with the hidden meaning, "Nothing more important the family."
"Sorry I'm late for the dance," Travis signed, not catching on to dean sarcasm as he sat back down at the little table. Dean sat down in the other chair, while Sam sat on the corner of the bed closest to his brother. I sat down on the edge of the other bed, focusing on Travis as he continued. He gave a laugh, holding up his cast, "Thanks for helping out an old man. I'm a little, uh, shorthanded. So, you track down Montgomery?"
"Yeah, we found him at his home," Sam said.
"And?" Travis pressed.
"Well, he had a hell of a case of the munchies," Dean told the older man, "Topped off with a burger that he forgot to cook."
"That's him, all right," Travis said with a shake of his head.
"What's him?" Dean asked.
"Boys, and girl," Travis started
"Woman," I interjected.
Tavis smirked at me and went on, "We got a Rougarou on our hands."
"Oh," I nodded slowly, "That would make sense."
"A Rougarou?" Dean asked, looking from Travis to me, "Is that made up? That sounds made up."
"It's like a werewolf," I told him, "You get them a lot in Louisiana, in the bayou."
"You really know your stuff, kid," Travis said, nodding at me, "They're mean, nasty little suckers. Rotted teeth, wormy skin, the works."
"That doesn't sound like a werewolf at all," Dean said, sitting back in his chair, "That ain't this guy. I mean, he was waring a cellphone on his belt."
"Werewolves change their shape, Dean," I told him.
"He'll turn ugly soon enough," Travis said, "They start out human, for all intents and purposes."
"So, what, they go through some kind of metamorphosis?" Sam asked.
"Yep," Travis confirmed, "Like a maggot turning into a bull fly."
"It's a latent gene," I said, "Comes on later in life."
"At about thirty," Travis agreed, "Bones shift around, animal instinct kicks in. But most of all, they're hungry."
"Hungry for what?" Dean asked.
"He was eating raw meat," I reminded him, "What do you think?"
"He'll want that long pig, soon," Travis said.
Sam scoffed. Dean looked at his brother, "Long pig?"
"He means human flesh," Sam told him.
"And that is my word of the day," Dean said, smiling slightly.
"Hunger grows in, till they can't fight it," Travis went on, "Till they go to take themselves a big, juicy chomp, and then it happens."
"What happens?" Sam asked.
"The metamorphosis is complete," I said, "Then there's no going back."
"It'll happen fast," Travis added, "They feed once, they're a monster forever. One bite's all it takes. Eyes, teeth, skin all turn. And our man Jack's headed there on a bullet train."
"Well, how'd you find this guy?" Dean asked, "If he's a walking, talking human?"
"Let's just say it runs in the family," Travis said cryptically.
"You mean…" Sam trailed off, leaving Travis to fill in the blank.
"Killed his daddy back in '78," Travis elaborated, "Son of a bitch mangled eight bodies before I put him down. Guy used to be a dentist. Cadillac, trophy wife. Little did I know, pregnant trophy wife. She put the boy up for adoption. By the time I found out, he was long gone, lost in the system."
"You mean to tell me you couldn't find someone?" Sam asked, smirking.
"And what if he had?" I asked, not to kindly as I turned to Travis. Dean shot me a warning look, and Sam gave me a sympathetic on, but I didn't care. Monster or not, it just didn't sit well with me hurting a kid of any breed, "You would have killed him as a baby?"
"Honestly, I'm not sure I wanted to find him," Travis sighed, "The idea of hunting down some poor kid… I don't think I'd have had the heart. I wanted to wait, make damn sure I had the right man. Apparently, I do."
"So, what's the plan?" Dean asked.
"We got to get to work," Travis said, rising to his feet, "Got supplies to make flame throwers. Why don't you boys help me get in from my car."
I reluctantly waited in the room while the man did all the heavy lifting. A few minutes later, Dean and Travis walked into the room with plastic bags in their hands, while Sam had apparently gone off to do some investigating. Travis and Dean set it up at the table, and got to work. They were quite for a while, focusing hard on getting done.
"So, fire, huh?" Dean asked as he and Travis worked at the table.
"The only way I found to kill these bastards," Travis said, "Deep fry 'em."
"Well, that's gonna be… horrible," Dean said, not looking up from his work, "Is that what you did to Jack's dad?"
"Uh-huh," Travis confirmed.
The door opened and Sam strolled in, holding papers in his right hand, "Not wasting any time, are you?"
"None to waste," Travis said, "The guy hulks out, we won't be finding bodies, just remains."
"What if he doesn't hulk out?" Sam asked, but continued before anyone could respond, "I did a little homework. I've been checking out the lure on Rougarou's."
"What, my thirty years of experience not good enough for you?" Travis demanded, taking a sip of his coffee.
Sam chuckled, "What? No, I just wanted to be prepared. I mean, not that you didn't-"
"Sam loves research," Dean said to Travis, "He does. He keeps it under his mattress right next to his K-Y. It's a sickness, it is."
Travis chuckled and Sam said, "Look, everything you said checked out, of course, but I found a couple of interesting stories about people who have this Rougarou gene or whatever. See, they start to turn, but they never take the final step."
"Really?" Dean asked.
"See, if they never eat human flesh, they don't fully transform," Sam said.
"That's gonna be one hell of a daily struggle," I said, mulling this over. If this guy hadn't killed anyone yet, then he was innocent. It wasn't his fault he was what he was, he couldn't help it.
"So, what, go vegan, stay human?" Dean asked.
"Basically," Sam said, "Or in this case, eat a lot of raw meat, just not-"
"Long pig," Dean interrupted proudly, a smug smile on his lips.
I couldn't help but smile at how adorable he was, and Sam said, "Right."
"Good on you for the due diligence, Sam," Travis said, picking up his coffee but and rising from the table with a sigh, "But those are fairy tales. Fact is, every Rougarou I ever saw or heard of, took that bite."
"Every Rougarou you ever saw or heard of," I said.
"True," Dean warned.
"No, Dean. You may not want to go there, but sure as hell do.," I snapped, turning back to Travis, "Currently, that man hasn't hurt anyone. And you are suggesting that we kill him?"
"Exactly," Sam said, also rising to his feet. Dean and I did as well. "It doesn't mean that Jack will."
"You to want us to sit here and hope and wait for a body count?" Travis asked sarcastically.
"No," Sam said, his voice natural, "We talk to him, explain what's happening."
"I think that's a great plan," I said, moving to stand beside Sam.
"That way, he can fight it," Sam continued, never taking his eyes off of Travis.
"Fight it?" Travis scoffed, before letting out a loud laugh, "Are you kidding me? You ever been really hungry? I mean, haven't-eaten-in-days hungry?"
"Once," I said, all eyes turning to me, "I got lost in the Sudan desert in Africa hunting an apeth, took me three days to find Echo."
"Right, then," Travis said, nodding, "Somebody slaps a big juicy sirloin in front of you, you walking away?"
"That's completely out of context," I said.
"That's what we are to him now," Travis said, staring at me, "Meat on legs. I'm sorry. I'm sure he's a stand-up guy."
"Really?" I demanded, "Cos it sounds like you don't care enough to at least try to talk to the guy."
"It's pure, base instinct," Tavis said, "Everything in nature's got to eat."
"You're a pure, base dumbass," I muttered.
"True," Dean snapped, glowering at me.
"You think he can stop himself 'cause he's nice?" Travis demanded, looking from me to Sam.
"I don't know," Sam admitted, "But we're not gonna kill him unless he does something to get killed for."
"I'm with Sam," I said again, "Otherwise, what you're talking about is murder."
Sam walked over to the door, exiting the room and shutting it behind him. I glanced at Dean who was staring at me, secretly telling me that I needed to knock it off with the attitude. I didn't know if it was because he kept blaming me for what Sam had done or just everything that's been happening since he's been back, but I didn't give a shit what he wanted me to do. I turned on my heel and walked followed after Sam. I ran down the hall, falling into step behind him.
"Dean will come around," he told me.
"I know," I said back.
Dean was a good guy, he wasn't just gonna kill someone with out making sure they couldn't be saved. Sam and I walked around the block a few times, not speaking and enjoying the cool night air before returning to the room. The next morning, we filled into the Impala and headed to confront the Rougarou in person.
"So, we are just gonna have a chat with this guy," Dean was saying as we cruised down the round, "Which, you know, I'm down. But I want to make sure, if push comes, you're gonna shove."
"Do you expect anything less?" I asked from the back seat.
"Odds are we're gonna have to burn this guy alive," Dean looked from Sam to be in the rearview mirror.
"This guy has a name and a wife," Sam pointed out.
"Yeah, who we're probably gonna make a widow, okay?" Dean said. I mean, he wasn't wrong. "You heard Travis. He's gonna turn, they always turn."
"Well, maybe he won't," Sam snapped, "Maybe he can fight it off."
"And maybe he can't," Dean insisted, "That's all I'm saying."
"All right," Sam said, "We'll just have to see, then, okay?"
"This is what I mean, Sam," Dean started, his voice growing a few degrees colder, "You sure your emotions aren't getting in the way here?"
"What are you talking about?" Sam asked, his brows pulling together in confusion.
"You know," Dean said, after a moments hesitation, "Nice dude, but he's got something evil inside him. Something in his blood. Maybe you can relate."
"Stop the car," Sam ordered.
"What?" Dean asked.
"Stop the car or I will!" Sam snapped, breathing heavily.
I couldn't deny the sudden fear that made my heart pound in my chest at rather Sam was actually capable of stopping the car with his mind. Luckily, I didn't have to find out. Dean pulled off the road, sliding between two trees. Dean hadn't come to a full stop when Sam threw open the door and got out and slamming the door shut. Dean quickly shut of the Impala and got out of the car; I did the same. Sam was fuming, he took a few steps forward then spun around to glare at his brother.
"Do you want to know why I've been lying to you Dean?" Sam demanded, "Because of crap like this!"
"Like what?" Dean asked, closing his car door.
The started walking toward the front of the Impala, staring each other down. I stood where I was, this felt like a family thing. Nothing I could say or do would affect the outcome, they just had to dish it out. Get everything off their chest, that way they could hopefully move on and we could stop arguing about this. I crossed my arms over my chest, leaning back against the car but never taking my eyes off of the Winchesters.
"The way you talk to me," Sam shouted, throwing his hands in the air. He gabbed his fingers into his chest, "The way you look at me like I'm a freak!"
"I do not," Dean said, turning as Sam walked past him.
"You know, or even worse, like I'm an idiot!" Sam rounded on him, "Like I don't know the difference between right and wrong!"
I bowed my head. I hadn't seen Dean look at his brother any differently other the being extremely angry, but I couldn't be sure of my own face had betrayed how I truly felt. I cared for Sam a great deal, but the fact that he had psychic powers gifted upon him by a demon did not sit well with me, or the fact that he had gotten so good at using them. It freaked me out, and truth be told, Sam was a freak. He was unique, there hadn't been anything like him before. And while there where people gifted with supernatural powers, none could claim it was because demon blood.
Sam sighed, putting his hands on his hips as he begun to pace. He looked back at Dean who only shook his head. Fuming, Sam demanded, "What?"
"Do you know the difference, Sam?" Dean asked, "I mean, you've bee kind of strolling a dark road lately."
"You have no idea what I'm going through," Sam snapped, "None."
"Then enlighten me!" Dean yelled.
"I've got demon blood in me, Dean!" Sam yelled back, "This disease pumping through my veins, and I can't ever rip it out or scrub it clean! I'm a whole new level of freak! And I'm trying to take this curse… and make something good out of it. Because I have to."
Sam bowed his head, breathing hard. Dean turned away, turning these thoughts over in his head. After a shot pause, Dean turned back to Sam, "Let's just go talk to the guy." Sam scoffed, and Dean quickly went on, "I mean Jack, okay?"
Sam didn't say anything, just walked back to the Impala. Dean met my eyes as he turned around, but he also didn't say anything as we got back into the car. The drive to Jack's house was silent, none of us really knowing what to say. Dean parked the Impala out side of the suburb home, and we knocked on the door. There was no answer.
"Car's here," Dean pointed out, "Maybe he's out back?"
Sam and I followed after Dean, rounding around the side of the house to the backyard and slipping through an open gate. Jack was standing with a hose in his hand, absentmindedly watering a little garden that sat in the middle of the hard. It was beautiful, build with a foot-high rock wall, and a round globe in the middle. He didn't notice us as we walked toward him. I felt awkward, about to tell this man he was a monster.
"Jack Montgomery?" Sam called to him. The man slowly turned around to look at his. Sam continued, "I'm Sam Winchester. This is my brother, Dean, and our friend True. We need to talk."
Montgomery looked each of us over. When he got to me, I gave him a little wave. He didn't acknowledge me, just turned back to Sam and asked, "About?"
"About you," Sam said, "About how you're changing."
"Excuse me?" Montgomery's eyebrows creased as he blinked up at Sam.
"You're probably feeling your bones move under you skin," Dean elaborated, "And your appetite's reaching, you know, Hungry Hungry Hippo levels. How am I doing so far?"
Montgomery looked back and forth between the brothers, glancing over at me, "Who the hell are you guys?"
"We're people who know a little something about something," Dean said cryptically.
"We can help," I said, "If you give us a chance."
"Please," Sam said, "Just hear us out."
Montgomery nodded, "All right."
"We think you're a Rougarou," I told him, "It's a gene you inherited, makes you go through some serious growths spurts, changes your physiology, and increases your need to eat."
"A what?" Montgomery asked, running his hand across his forehead.
"A Rougarou," Dean repeated, "Sound's made-up, I know, but, believe me, it's not."
"Alright," Montgomery admitted, "I've noticed certain things. I mean, some strange things, but I just… I don't know. You're saying I'm turning into… I'm sick or something. I'm not turning into some sort of monster."
"Your father was one of these things," Sam said. When Montgomery whipped around to look at him, he elaborated, "Your real father. He passed it on to you."
"No," Montgomery shook his head, "Are you three listening to yourselves? You sound like-"
"Skip the whole 'you guys sound crazy,' shall we?" Dean interrupted, any patients he had gone, "You're hungry, Jack. You're only gonna get hungrier."
"Hungrier for?" Montgomery asked.
"Long pig," Dean told him. He was officially obsessed with that word, I had to fight the urge to roll my eyes. "You know, a little manburger helper, may have crossed your mind already."
"No," Montgomery said, taking a step back.
"It doesn't have to be like this, Jack," Sam said, his ever-present puppy dog eyes pleading with the other man, "You can fight if off, others have."
Montgomery waved his hand, dismissing Sam but Dean said, "We're not gonna lie to you, though. It's not gonna be easy. You're gonna feel like an alcoholic swimming around in whiskey. But I'm telling you, you got to say no, or-"
"Or what?" Montgomery demanded.
"We'll stop you," I told him, before Dean could, "That's what we do. Stop the bad things."
"You feed once, and it's all over," Sam added.
Montgomery looked at me, "Stop me? My dad, did somebody stop him?"
"Yes," Sam admitted softly.
"Get off my property right now," Montgomery ordered, "I see any of you again, I'm calling the cops."
Dean nodded, dropping his head as if he had expected no less. I was ready to leave, at least he was aware of what he was now. The rest was up to him. Sam gave it one more try, "Jack, your wife, everybody you know, they're in danger."
"Now!" Montgomery yelled at us.
A neighbor who was trimming his bushes paused in his work and glanced over at us. With little else to do, we turned and walked away. Dean pulled out his car keys, patting his brother on the back, "Good talk."
"We can't just walk away," Sam said as we walked back to the Impala, "We gotta keep an eye on him."
We climbed back into the car, but we didn't drive off. A few minutes later, Montgomery came out of the front door and headed down the street. Dean followed after, keeping as far back as he could without losing him. Night fell, as Montgomery collapse on a bus bench. He pulled out his phone, pressing it to his ear for several beats before slipping it into his pocket. His head was tilted slightly, his focus on a pretty brunette undressing in an upstairs window. Montgomery rose to his feet, walking toward her building.
"Damn it, Jack, no!" Sam hissed, taking the flame thrower I was holding out to each of them.
"Come on!" Dean ordered as we quickly got out of the car.
We ran across the road, wasting no time. Montgomery was moving fast, already climbing up the fire escape, approaching the woman's window. The three of us ran up the front steps. Sam threw open the door and we ran inside, taking the stairs two at a time as we hurried. If we got there in time, maybe we could save both of them. We got to her floor, racing down the hallway to her door. Dean kicked it open, him and Sam entering the room with me taking up the rear.
The girl rounded the corner, screamed, and the fell back into the room she had just exited, slamming the door shut. Dean yelled after her, "We're here to save you, I guess!"
"I'm calling the police!" The girl yelled through the door.
"We should go," Sam said.
"Ya think?" I asked as Dean pushed me back out into the hallway, shutting the door as we left.
I didn't look back as I hurried back out the way we had come, not slowing down until I was safely in the back seat of the Impala. Dean started the car and we raced off toward Montgomery's house. I was relieved he hadn't killed the girl, but hopefully that's where he was. Dean pulled up in front of the house, turning off the car. He got out of the car, flame throwers in hand and started up the walk.
"I guess now we know where Travis is," Dean said, nodding to a blue truck parked across the street.
"That stupid son of a bitch," Sam muttered.
Dean motioned for me to stand back, and I did. He reached for the door knob, and the door opened with a soft click. Pushing the door inward, Dean and Sam walked into the house. I followed after, my eyes darting around for anything that might jump out and eat us. The smell of gasoline burned my nose as we made our way to the living room, my eyes instantly following on blood stain on the carpet with a train that disappeared behind the couch. A gas tank had been discarded under the coffee table, with its contents poured out onto the couch. To the right, toward the dining room was a chair. The back half had been ripped up, and rope was lying on the ground a few feet away. We invested the trail, finding the eaten remains of someone.
It was an easy picture to paint. Travis had arrived while we were tailing Montgomery, and had attempted to set the house on fire. Either to protect him or his wife, Montgomery had attacked Travis. His instincts kicked in and he lost control. Hopefully his wife had gotten away.
"Oh, god," Dean whispered, "Do you think that's Travis?"
Sam sighed heavily, "What's left of him. I guess you were right about Jack."
Before any of us could say anything, I was ripped backwards. I crashed into the dinning room table just as another crash came from the living room. I heard Sam call out and then another bang as he was knocked to the floor by Montgomery. I pulled myself to my feet, running to the living room and stood in front of them. I pulled back my leg and with all my strength, kicked him hard in the side of the face. Montgomery reeled, releasing Sam and toppling to the side. Sam quickly got to his feet at the Sam time as Montgomery, both of us pointing our flame throws at him.
The other man back away from us, hovering over Dean who was laying face first against the coffee table. I stared had at his back, watching it rise and fall with each breath. I turned to the Rougarou, ready to light this bitch on fire. But Sam held out his arm, stopping me from doing anything.
"After what you did, you're lucky he's alive," Montgomery snapped, inching closer to Dean.
I was momentarily distracted by the statement, my eyes flicking at the Montgomery. He did not look good. His eyes were dark, and black veins where protruding from his face. Blood smeared his lips, cloths, and hands. He looked feral, and very angry. This was not what I had imagined a Rougarou to look like. At this point I didn't care, if he got any closer to Dean, I would lose what little control I clung to.
"What do you mean, what we did?" Sam asked, his voice strained.
"You sent your friend here," Montgomery hissed, his voice cracking, "He tried to burn my wife alive!"
"What?" Sam asked, shifting his weight. He held up a hand, to prevent Montgomery from attacking Dean, "Why?"
"She's pregnant," I said, looking directly Montgomery, "Isn't she? Travis wasn't going to make the same mistake again."
Montgomery nodded, his eyes trailing down to Dean. Blood was leaking out of his mouth, creating a small pool on the table. Montgomery inched closer, but so did Sam and I. Sam said, "Listen to me, okay? We never would have hurt her."
"No matter what, she is an innocent," I told Montgomery.
"Oh, god, I'm so hungry," Montgomery slid his fingers into Dean's blood, then stuck them in to his mouth. I ignored the flip of disgusted my stomach did, keeping my muscles ready.
"Jack, don't do this," Sam insisted, inching closer.
Montgomery turned back to us, his eyes flickering back and forth, "I can't ever see my family again. You three, your friend, you made me into this!"
"No one's making you kill us," Sam said, he took a deep breath, "Listen to me. You got this dark pit inside you. I know. Believe me, I know. But that doesn't mean you have to fall into it. You don't have to be a monster."
Montgomery scoffed, laughing, "Have you seen me lately?"
"It doesn't matter what you are," Sam insisted, "It only matters what you do. It's your choice."
Montgomery groaned, throwing his head back in pain before doubling over. He glanced back at Dean, at the pool of his blood. Dean's eyes fluttered, I again had to force myself to stay in place and not run to him. I could see the inner battle raging behind Montgomery's eyes, but if Sam was able to get through to him, we could save Dean.
Montgomery looked at Sam, his eyes flickering to me and then back again. Without warning he shoved him self away from Dean, charging at us. Sam side stepped, pushing me with his as he lit his flame as Montgomery stumbled past us. I ran to Dean as he sat up, covering as much of him as I could with my body as I pulled him to his feet and away from the flaming body. Montgomery's screams filled the air, the smell of burning flesh overwhelming the smell of gasoline. Dean's arms held me tightly against him, but his gaze was fixed on Sam.
The next several minutes flew past in a blur. Dean ushered me out of the house with Sam on our tail. We got back into the Impala and raced back to the hotel together our things, then we hit the road as fast as we could. Dean and Sam where up front as usual, and I seat in the middle of the back seat. I sat with my legs crossed with my hands in my lap, staring out the windshield.
"You did the right thing you know," Dean said, turning his head slightly to glance at Sam, "That guy was a monster. There was no going back."
Neither Sam or I said anything. I got the feeling that Montgomery wanted for us to kill him. He knew there was no coming back, that he had crossed a line. The only way to stop himself was to end it all. He loaded the gun, but made Sam pull the trigger.
"Listen, guys," Dean said, "I wanted to tell you that I'm sorry. I've been kind of hard on you both lately."
"Don't worry about it, Dean," Sam said, his tone suggesting that Dean drop it.
"It just that your psychic thing, it scares the crap out of me," Dean sighed, glancing at me in the mirror, "And it's not your fault, True. You were right."
Sam spoke before I could, "If it's all the same, I'd rather not talk about it,"
"Wait a minute," Dean scoffed, "You don't want to talk? You?"
"There's nothing more to say," Sam said, "I can't keep explain myself to you. I can't make you understand."
"Why don't you try?" Dean demanded.
"I can't," Sam insisted, "Because this thing, this blood, it's not in you or True the way it's in me. It's just something I got to deal with."
"Not alone," Dean said.
Sam heaved a heavy sigh, "Anyway, it doesn't matter. These powers, it's playing with fire. I'm done with them. I'm done with everything."
"Really?" Dean asked, "Well, that's a relief. Thank you."
"Don't thank me," Sam said, "I'm not doing it for you. Or for the angels or for anybody. This is my choice."
I took a deep breath, lying down in the back seat as silence filled the car. Dean flicked on the radio, filling the air with a soft classic rock sound. I stared at the back of the seat. I wanted to believe that Sam would give up the psychic stuff, but I couldn't help thinking about Claire. She liked having magic, made her feel strong. It was something she could control in this crazy, chaotic world. No mater how dangerous it was. I wasn't sure if anyone could touch that kind of power and not get addicted to the rush that it gave them.
"Hey, True."
I looked up in time to see Dean turn back around to face forward. I licked my lips, "Yeah?"
"Do you want to talk about it?" Dean asked, peaking at me.
"Talk about what?"
"Claire, and her witchcraft," Dean said.
"What do you want to know?"
"I don't know," Dean shrugged, "Everything."
I told them about the spells Claire was able to conduct and how she could bring small animals back to life. I told them about her trying to communicate with Dean in hell, and that she was trying to do a spell to talk to Dean in the past when I had the dream about the shadow. I explained how she had decided to move back to Salt Lake and that she was planning on joining a coven, and that she had no intention of stopping using her powers. I also told them that if either of them tried to hurt her I would castrate them, which earned two very eager promises to stay away.
I did not, however, tell them about how I had seen the shadow on more then one occasion. They seemed to have enough on their plate as it was. And since I still had no idea what the hell any of it meant, there was no point in stressing about it. I also had no idea what dream Claire meant when she said not to open a door. I wanted to chalk it up to being just a really weird dream, but even Sam and Dean seemed to know otherwise. I tried not to stress, but I couldn't help feeling like the dream was a foreshadowing of that was to come.
