Chapter 4

When Dean walked back into the motel room, he glanced around the room, wondering where Jessie was. He found her lying in the bed, covered up, facing away from the rest of the room. He sighed in frustration, sitting down on the couch beside his brother.

"What did you do?" Sam asked his brother quietly.

"Why do you think I did something?" he asked, trying to sound innocent.

"Because you have a way of upsetting people."

He rolled his eyes. "I don't think it takes much to upset that woman."

"She's a hunter, Dean. We don't know what she's been through."

"Whatever," he said dismissively. "If you don't mind, can you take first watch?"

Sam nodded, getting up from the couch with his laptop, moving over to the table. He watched as Dean stretched out on the couch, closed his eyes, trying to sleep. He wasn't sure what had happened outside between the two of them, but he was slightly concerned. He decided not to worry about it for the moment, and went back to his research.

It was almost an hour later when Jessie got out of the bed, walking over to the table, sitting down beside Sam. She grabbed her bottle of vodka, taking a long swig, then set it down on the table in front of her.

"I'm sorry, Sam," she said, obviously exhausted. "I'm really not used to being around other people, not for more than a few minutes at a time."

He glanced at her sadly. "I hope you don't mind me asking, but, how long have you been a hunter?"

"Just over eight years now," she replied, taking a sip from her bottle. "It wasn't my first choice of lifestyle, that's for sure."

"If you want to talk, I'm here. I won't judge you."

She wasn't sure why, but he seemed very kind, genuine, and easy to talk to. Other than Bobby, no living person knew her entire life story. But after all she'd been through the past few months and all her doubts, she felt like talking.

"Eight years ago, I was in university, majoring in computer technology. One day out of the blue, I got a phone call from my grandfather asking me to come home. I was lucky enough to only be an hour away from his house, so I left immediately." She stopped, taking another drink. "When I got there, he was injured. That was when he told me all about hunting. I didn't believe him at first, but he convinced me eventually, explained that was why he'd taught me how to hunt animals and survival skills. It was his way of teaching me to take care of myself, but not tell me about monsters and demons. He didn't want this life for me." She stopped to take another drink, a lone tear fell from her eye, completely unnoticed by her, but Sam didn't miss it.

"He went on to tell me about my parents, the real reason they died was because they were killed by something they were hunting. They were hunters too. It was your dad, John Winchester, who saved me that day. He brought me to my grandparent's house, and they raised me, until my grandmother died a few years later. After that it was only my grandfather and I."

"How old were you?"

She took another drink before answering. "I was about ten. I don't really remember much. I guess I was too scared to remember." She stopped for a moment, looking at Sam sadly. "I really hate them, for doing this to me. They left me, all because they had to hunt. Why wasn't it enough they had me? Why?"

Sam put his arm around her supportively. "Maybe you should get some rest, Jessie."

She stared at him uncomprehendingly for a moment. "They quit hunting when they had kids, until my older sister was killed by a werewolf. Then I didn't matter to them anymore. All they cared about was revenge."

"Jessie," he called gently.

"Don't you see, Sam? That's all I've been living for eight years now, revenge. I have no family, no friends, nothing. All I had was revenge and now that's over. What am I supposed to do now?"

She'd become nearly hysterical, tears flowing heavily, when Sam nearly picked her up, supporting her until she made it into the bed, then covered her up. She sobbed quietly for a few minutes before she became silent, falling asleep.

Sam breathed a sigh of relief when she finally became quiet. He felt really bad for her and hoped that a good night's sleep would help, if she didn't happen to change into a werewolf.

He sat back at the table and was about to do some research on her family, but he decided on the next best thing, Bobby. Even though it was getting late, he figured he would still be awake.

"Bobby."

"Sam? Is something wrong?" Bobby asked with concern.

"No, not exactly. I was hoping you could tell me more about Jessie Drake."

"Look, Sam. She's a very private person. She'd be pissed if I told you anything."

"She just got really drunk and started telling me about her life. I just want to know more."

Bobby paused for a moment, sighing deeply. "She comes from a long line of hunters, probably one of the oldest hunting families around. Her grandfather quit hunting when he became older, handing over the reigns, so to speak, to his son, which was Jessie's father. He met another hunter, got married and had two beautiful girls. They quit hunting after their first child was born, even though several hunters, including your own father, tried talking them in to coming back to it. Then one day, a werewolf attacked their oldest daughter and that was when they went back to hunting. It was the same werewolf who ended up killing them not more than six months after that."

"Jessie told me our dad saved her. How did that happen?"

"He was helping her parent's track the werewolf. He just happened to be going to visit them the night they were attacked. He was able to save Jessie, but not her parents."

"What happened to her grandfather?"

"He was attacked by the same werewolf that killed Jessie's parents. He'd made the mistake of trying to track him, but he was getting on in years and, well, he wasn't as quick as he used to be."

"Is that the same werewolf we killed last night?"

"No, she finally killed that one a few months ago. The one from last night was the last surviving werewolf he'd turned."

"Wait a sec, Bobby. She told me her grandfather was attacked, but he managed to call her and explain what happened. How is that possible?"

"I don't think I should tell you that."

"Bobby, please."

He sighed. "He was bitten, but not killed. He turned into a werewolf that night and...Jessie had to kill him."

"She killed him?"

"What would you have done, Sam? He was a werewolf. She had to kill him."

Sam was quiet for a few moments. "Why is it we've never met her before, Bobby?"

"She hunts alone. She doesn't trust anyone. Hell, she barely trusts me."

"I hope for her sake she wasn't bitten by that werewolf, Bobby."

"Me too, Sam."

"Thanks, Bobby."

"Sure. Be good to her, Sam. She deserves a break. And tell your brother to behave."

After Sam was finished with the call, he glanced over at Jessie, who was sleeping soundly. He felt bad for her, hoping she would feel better when she woke up, though he really doubted it. He knew what it was like to lose just about everyone he ever cared about, but he wasn't alone, he still had his brother. He couldn't imagine what life would've been like if he'd spent the last few years hunting alone.

He went back to researching, looking for something new to hunt. He couldn't imagine Dean would want to stay here very long and he doubted Jessie would want them to stick around either. But he couldn't keep his mind on research, instead he kept thinking about her. He was glad when Dean finally woke up.

"Where's the beer, Sam?" Dean asked looking in the fridge. "I thought you got some earlier."

"No, I didn't, Dean. I thought you were going to."

"Damn it!" he said, looking around. "Do you think she'll mind if I drink some of her whiskey? She doesn't seem to be drinking it."

"I don't know," he replied absentmindedly.

"What's gotten in to you, Sam?"

"Huh?"

"What happened while I was sleeping?" he asked, pouring himself a drink.

"I'm tired, Dean."

He looked at his brother strangely. "Did something happen?"

He thought about telling him about Jessie, but he changed his mind. He figured he should sleep on it, before making a decision. He could always tell him later.

"I'm going to sleep, Dean," he replied, cutting him short.

Dean was left wondering what had happened while he was sleeping.

A/N: I know, short chapter, but sometimes it just ends up fitting that way. Btw, I hate to ask, but I'd appreciate at least one review to see how I'm doing.

Thanks for reading!