Chapter 21
The school year was ending, and Dean was ready for summer break. He was at the top of his class, even after a few fights that sent him to the principal's office and even suspended him from school for a week. Dean didn't make friends easily and some of his richer classmates taunted him about his secondhand clothes and called Bobby the 'town drunk'. That was something he would not tolerate and had no problem putting the bullies in their place. They learned quickly not to make him mad unless they wanted to feel his wrath.
Bobby tried to talk to him about his temper and how he needed to control it. He finally got it through his thick head when Bobby threatened to take his car keys and put the Impala under lock and key where he couldn't work on it. That got Dean's attention and he kept his fights to off the school property and made sure not to break any bones of his opponents. He did work on reining his temper in and not letting what the popular kids said rile him. He was getting a bad boy reputation and a defender of the underdogs, which he didn't mind. It made most of the bullies think twice about tangling with him or others that usually got picked on.
The first time he cranked the Impala it was like music to Dean's ears as she roared back to life and settled into a steady purr. It was like she was speaking to him and happy to see him again. He was proud of his accomplishments and that he had done most of the work on her himself. Bobby did have to help with a few things, but let Dean do most of the manual labor.
He had washed and waxed and buffed her body until it shone like a new car. Bobby let him drive it up and down the road in front of the salvage yard to get the feel of it and to learn how to do a three point turn before letting him drive into town in traffic. Dean was cautious and paid extra attention to everything and everyone around him. They went to the diner to celebrate and had pie and coffee.
Bobby had helped him build a fake floor for the trunk of the Impala and Dean had already added things he would need for hunts, like rock salt, wooden stakes, holy water, machete, and other small things. Looking inside the trunk, no one would think there was anything off about it. He wanted to drive the Impala when Bobby let him go on another hunt and hoped it would be soon now that school was almost over.
Dean woke up early on the last day of school and lay there for a moment to gather his thoughts. He was excited that school was out for the summer, and he would have more time to train and improve his skills with hunting. He was going to do schoolwork during the summer so he could graduate early. Bobby had talked to him about college, but for now Dean wasn't sure he wanted to go down that path. His main focus was hunting, like he seemed to be born to do it. It was like it was in his blood and could be removed.
He pushed himself from the bed and headed into the bathroom to shower and get ready for school. They only had to go half a day today and part of that was an awards ceremony. Dean found Bobby in the kitchen fixing oatmeal and eggs for their breakfast. He always made sure Dean had a good breakfast before heading to school.
"So, are you excited about this being your last day of school?" Bobby questioned him.
"Yes, I'm hoping maybe you'll take me on a few hunts while I'm out of school this summer," Dean hinted arching his brows at him.
"We'll see…" Bobby trailed off. "Now eat your breakfast so we can head out."
"Yes sir," Dean replied picking up his spoon to begin eating. He finished quickly and went upstairs to brush his teeth. He grabbed his pack and went down to let Bobby know he was ready to leave.
They got into Bobby's old pickup truck and headed for school. Dean climbed out when Bobby stopped in front of the school. He gave him a wave and headed inside speaking to a few other students along the way. He hoped the day passed quickly because that would mean he would be free for nearly three months.
Dean moved through the day with his head in the clouds. He got an award for his baseball achievement and several certificates from other classes. He watched the clock during the last fifteen minutes, and it seemed to take hours for those minutes to pass until the bell ran and everyone jumped out of their seats to leave. Dean let the others rush out into the hall before following at a slower pace and headed for the front doors. He looked down the row of waiting vehicles for Bobby's truck and finally spotted him toward the back. He ambled that way, throwing his hand up to other students in passing and wishing them a good summer.
"I hope you're ready for a road trip," Bobby told him as he got into the truck.
"Really? Where are we going?" Dean asked excitedly hoping it was a hunt.
"Macon, Missouri. A hunter friend called seems he found a stash of curse boxes that need picked up."
"Curse boxes?" Dean questioned. "I think I've read about them."
"Yeah, made a few in my time. They store cursed objects to render them dormant and safe."
"What are we going to do with them?"
"It depends on how many they are and what the objects are. Some can be incinerated to destroy the object and others I may have to store under lock and key so no one can use them."
"Interesting. Guess we'll have to take the truck then," Dean sighed.
"I know you want to get your car out there, Dean," Bobby told him. "On the next hunt we go on, we'll take it."
"Thanks Bobby."
"I might even let you drive the truck part of the way."
"Cool. I can do that."
"When we get home, pack a bag and we'll head out. It's less than seven hours from here. We'll stop along the way and get something to eat."
"Alright. It won't take me long."
Bobby pulled through the gates of the salvage yard and around to the front of the house. They got out and Bobby unlocked the front door. He headed to his bedroom to pack a bag and Dean ran upstairs to pack and use the bathroom. He grabbed a book to take with him to read before heading down and going into the kitchen for an apple and Gatorade.
"Let me get a travel cup of coffee and I'll be ready," Bobby commented pulling a cup from the cabinet and pouring the last of the coffee into it. He unplugged the pot and gave the room a quick once over before heading back into the living room with Dean close behind him.
"Okay son, let's get on the road."
spn
After stopping partway for a late lunch, Dean took over driving. He got back on the highway and settled on a spot behind some fast-moving vehicles. Bobby cautioned him to watch his speed, he didn't need to be getting a speeding ticket. Dean heeded his words and kept his speed a few miles over the speed limit. He kept his distance between the other vehicles as he continued with their journey.
The outskirts of Macon, Missouri was only a few miles away and Bobby had Dean stop at a gas station to fill the truck and switch drivers. He had the directions to the family home of a Josiah Benfield which was located on the other side of the town in the country.
It seemed Josiah Benfield's mother, grandmother, and great grandmother were witches and with his mother's passing, he inherited all her possessions, including a cabinet filled with curse boxes. Not knowing what they were, he opened one and ended up being killed by the cursed object. A hunter came across his strange death and when checking it out found the large cabinet and the other boxes. He immediately called Bobby knowing he would know what to do with them. And thus, Bobby and Dean's trip to Macon. The hunter had gotten permission from Benfield's next of kin to remove the cursed boxes for safety reasons.
"Okay, when we get there, I want to check to see if we can move the entire cabinet with the boxes in it or if we'll have to unload it to get it onto the truck."
"Got it. Do you have curse boxes at the salvage yard?"
"Yeah, I wait until I have enough and take them to a friend who runs a crematorium to destroy them. There's nothing left but ashes once he's done and those ashes I take and bury in a cemetery, concentrated ground to be on the safe side."
"I see," Dean nodded as he stored that away in his head for later reference. He looked around at the scenery as the closer they got to Macon, the more populated it got.
Bobby drove them around the town and exited from the bypass to head into an area where farms were plentiful. He drove about thirty minutes away from town before turning onto a long driveway that took them to a house that was set among some trees with a barn off to the side. There was a car parked in front of the house and a woman sitting on the porch. Bobby pulled his truck to the side, parked, and got out, followed by Dean.
"Hello, are you Bobby Singer?" the woman asked, getting up to meet them.
Yes ma'am, and this is my son Dean," Bobby replied shaking her hand.
"I'm Sarah Benfield. Thank you for coming so quickly."
"Of course. If you can show me the cabinet, I'll see what we need to do."
"It's in the barn. If you'll come this way." Sarah led them around the house to the small barn that she unlocked so they could go inside. "Josiah Benfield kept the items in question in a locked room, in a locked cabinet. He became the guardian of the boxes when my grandmother passed."
Bobby and Dean waited as Sarah unlocked another door and flipped on a light to revel a small room that had a metal cabinet sitting against one wall. The only other things in the room were a table and chair. Dean gave the room a quick once over before walking to the cabinet to look at it. It was about six feet tall, four feet wide and two feet deep. It didn't look like anything special or out of place that he could see.
"Here you go," Sarah told Bobby handing him the key. "Once you take the cabinet and its contents, I'm putting the house on the market and selling it. There's newspapers and rags in the barn you can use if you need them."
"We'll be as quick as we can Ms. Benfield," Bobby assured her. "And thanks."
"If you will lock the barn and leave the keys under the mat on the porch, I'll pick them up tomorrow. Thank you for taking care of this for me Mr. Singer."
"My pleasure ma'am."
Once Sarah had gone, Bobby stepped to the cabinet and used a key to unlock the doors. He pulled them open and revealed rows of curse boxes of varied sizes. The inside of the cabinet was covered in sigils and symbols, as were the boxes.
"Wow," Dean mumbled as he gazed at the contents. He started to reach to touch a box and was jerked back by Bobby as he yelled at him.
"Stop it boy!" Bobby growled jerking him back by the jacket collar. "You don't touch anything in there bare handed. Even with the cursed objects being in the boxes, you don't take the chance. Here put these on," he told him handing him a pair of leather gloves.
Dean accepted the gloves and put them on before turning back to the contents of the cabinet. He noticed a book laying on the middle shelf and picked it up, opening it.
"Look at this Bobby," Dean told him holding it out. "It's a list of all the boxes in here and what is in them."
"Now that will come in handy," Bobby replied taking the book to look at it.
"So, do we remove all the boxes to take the cabinet out first?" Dean asked.
"Yes, it'll be lighter and easier to move to the back of the truck. We'll wrap the boxes to cushion them and put them back in the cabinet. I'll go pull the truck around here closer and you get those newspapers and rags, Ms. Benfield said we could use."
"Okay," Dean nodded stepping from the room and looking around before spotting the stacks of papers and rags on a workbench. He gathered some in his arms before returning to the room. Dean started at the top and carefully removed the first curse box and sat it in the middle of a piece of newspaper to wrap it. He continued to do this as Bobby returned and started helping.
They worked efficiently and quickly removing the boxes and when the cabinet was empty, they used a small dolly to take it to the truck and slide it onto the bed. They used the rags to cushion the boxes when they put them back into the cabinet for transporting. Once the boxes were safely back in the cabinet, Bobby closed/ locked it, and covered it with a tarp before strapping it down so it wouldn't shift around when they drove back.
It was dark by the time they were finished and locked the barn and left the keys under the mat on the front porch.
"Why don't we get a motel room for tonight, clean up, and get some dinner?" Bobby suggested. "We'll head out in the morning."
"That sounds good," Dean agreed, suddenly realizing how hungry he was. He felt dirty and sweaty and thought a nice hot shower sounded like a treat.
Bobby headed back toward town and drove around it to a motel on the far side that had restaurants and gas stations nearby. He went in and got them a room for the night and came back out to move the truck around to their room. They grabbed their bags and went inside to shower before walking to a restaurant nearby to get something to eat. They were going to call it an early night so they could get started back to Sioux Falls early the next morning.
Bobby was going to let Dean drive half of it for practice since he would be going getting his license in a couple of weeks. He had to admit the boy was a cautious driver and didn't have a heavy foot on the gas. He was glad that he found the Impala for Dean to give him a link to his Dad and to his past. Bobby could tell Dean loved that car and even nicknamed her Baby.
The weather was in their favor as they left the motel the next morning heading for Sioux Falls. Bobby was driving first and then he was going to switch off with Dean and let him drive the last leg of the journey. He was taking it easy since they had the added weight of the cabinet and curse boxes and didn't want to jostle their load no more than needed, even though they had cushioned the boxes.
It was late afternoon and Dean was driving as he neared the town limits of Sioux Falls. Bobby suggested they stop at the diner for an early dinner so they wouldn't have to cook. Dean was agreeable with this and detoured toward the diner. He parked toward the back of the lot, and they went in to eat their meal. Dean already knew what he wanted and was going to have a large slice of pie to round it off.
Once they got back to the salvage yard, Bobby used a forklift to ease the cabinet from the truck bed and put it in one of his outbuildings until he could go through them boxes and take what he could to be destroyed. That would be for another day since there was no hurry to get rid of them because they were safely locked in Bobby's storage shed.
A/N: Dean has settled in nicely with Bobby and is anxious to do more hunting. Thanks for taking this journey with me. Reviews/Comments would be amazing. NC