CHAPTER TWO
It was a typical day. Everyone ate breakfast together before everyone scattered.
Kalen had flown away with Marbles to join up with Benny. She promised to be home by dinner.
Sam disappeared off to parts unknown with Gabriel. Dean tried not to put too much thought into what they could be doing. Cas spent part of the morning assisting him in the garage before leaving to do some things on his own.
He ate some lunch when he was done on the car. After lunch, he tinkered with a few things around the bunker. When the dinner hour rolled around, Dean was surprised to find Castiel his only company.
"You seen Kalen?" Dean asked.
Castiel shook his head. Dean pulled his phone out.
"No missed messages," Dean said.
Castiel slowly pulled food to his plate. He watched Dean click on his phone and hold it up to his ear. With the silence, he could hear Kalen's voicemail on the other end of the line.
[-for calling. Leave the name and number and quick message. I'll get right back to you.] BEEP!
"Hey, Pix. Guess you're running over late with Benny. I'll save a plate for you."
Frowning, Dean put his phone down face down as he pulled a seat out.
"What's wrong, Dean?" Castiel questioned.
"Kid's never missed a breakfast or dinner since she moved in. Just weird," Dean commented.
Castiel glanced down to Dean's phone.
"You said she was going to see the vampire? Do you not have his number?" Castiel asked.
Dean nodded as he lifted his phone back up. He thumbed through his contacts, tapped his phone, and brought it up to his ear. It was picked up in three rings.
"Well, hello there, brother. What can I do for you, Dean?"
Dean grinned.
"Hey, Benny. I heard Kalen was spending the day with you. She still there?" Dean asked.
He heard Benny chuckle on the other end.
"Kid told me she moved in with you and your brother. Yeah, she was here for lunch. But she was goin' to some lecture at the university here in town. It might have run long. I'll go check on her for you."
"Appreciate it, Benny."
Dean hung up, placing the phone down face up this time. He loaded his plate up and started eating. He listened to Castiel as the angel told him about his day. Sam came in and joined them. Dean was up drying off the plate he had washed when his phone started going off.
"Benny, hey! You find Kalen?" Dean asked.
"Dean…brother…I found her canine. Dean…"
Castiel was smiling at something Sam had said, but turned his attention to Dean when he felt a shift in their connection. Confused, Sam turned his head. He lowered his fork when he saw the color draining from his brother's face.
"Dean, wha-?" Dean held up his hand to quiet him.
"Where?"
Dean nodded as Benny relayed the information.
"I'll be there in a minute."
Dean hung up and jammed his phone into his pocket.
"Cas, Sam, we gotta go. Gabriel!" Dean shouted
Both stood swiftly to their feet. The archangel popped in between them.
"Dean, what is it?" Castiel asked.
Gabriel took in both his brother and his lover's confused looks.
"Benny just found Marbles with a dead body. And Kalen's nowhere to be found."
/…/
The four reappeared into an alley. Benny was knelt down with his hand on a bloody mass of fur. Sam and Dean were kneeling down with him in a matter of seconds.
"Marbles."
The canine released a tiny whimper as his bloodshot eyes opened to look up at them. Sam looked him over carefully. There were deep wounds all over the Saint Bernard. He was surprised the canine was still alive. He flashed the canine a small smile when the dog opened his mouth and let a bloody hand slip from between his teeth.
"Benny, what happened?" Dean asked.
Benny slowly shook his head.
"I don't know. I went to the university and found out that lecture let out three hours ago. Found Kalen's scent and followed her here. I found the dog here and what's left of that body over there. I don't know where the kid is," Benny explained.
Patting his brother on the shoulder, Sam swiftly stood up and joined the angels. He was greeted by a sight that was beyond grotesque. How someone hadn't alerted the authorities to it, he would never guess.
The alleyway was splattered with blood. The dead body was torn from limb to limb with deep, oozing wounds. The head was a gruesome mess with an eye and half the face missing. Sam tried not to hurl watching Gabriel bring a hand soaked in blood up to face and sniff. The archangel released a deep, animalistic growl before suddenly disappearing.
"Wha-? Cas?" Sam questioned.
From his kneeling position, Castiel stood and turned, revealing a bloody mess all over himself. Sam bit back his gasp when his eyes fell to an object the angel had pulled from the mess.
"That's…" Sam started.
"…an angel blade, yes," Castiel finished.
"An angel did this?" Dean growled, slipping into view beside his brother.
Castiel tilted his head as he stared at the blade.
"That is evident by what Gabriel and I have found," Castiel explained.
"Where did Gabriel go?" Sam asked.
"To find who is responsible," Castiel said point blank.
"We gotta find Kalen," Dean told them.
Sam nodded in agreement. Benny slowly joined them, coming to stand between him and Dean.
"Dean, man, I caught a trail on Kalen. I'm going to follow it and see if I can find her," Benny told him.
"I will join you," Castiel said firmly, leaving no room for argument.
"Whatever floats your boat, angel," Benny replied. "Hope you can keep up."
Sam watched them go as Benny led the way out of the alley. He turned back around to find Dean kneeling by Marbles' side again. As he approached, the quieting whimpering of the canine filled his ears. He bit hard into his bottom lip. There was nothing either of them could do for the Hell Hound.
Dean smoothed a hand over the top of Marbles' head. He leaned his head down close.
"You been a good boy, Marbles. It's okay. We'll find her," Dean murmured.
Marbles lifted his head to give Dean a small lick on his face. He lowered it back down, closing his eyes. Slowly, his whimpering grew quieter until there was complete silence. The canine's body sagged with one last breath, and he stilled.
Sam watched his brother pat the dog a few times on the head before whispering something and standing up. His brother's eyes were misty, like he knew his own were.
"We got a mess to clean up. Then we got us an angel to find," Dean told him.
After making a call to Bobby, the boys started cleaning things up. They didn't even question when Bobby pulled up and Crowley climbed out of the passenger seat. The demon didn't speak a word as he went straight to Marbles' body.
"Bobby, what's he doing here?" Dean asked, his voice straining.
Bobby squeezed his arm.
"Leave it be, Dean. Dog was one of his. Crowley'll take care of him," Bobby told him.
/…/
It was late in the evening when Bobby dropped Sam and Dean off at a hotel. They refused to bring up the subject of the King of Hell having accompanied the older hunter earlier. They were settling into their room when Dean's phone rang. It turned out to be Benny checking in.
"You lost the trail?" Dean growled.
"Not what I said, brother. The trail went cold. Even your angel can't seem to pick it back up. He left a minute ago to join that other angel of yours."
Sam waited as he listened to his brother share a few more words with Benny. After Dean hung up, Same spoke.
"They can't find her?" Sam asked.
Dean shook his head as he threw his phone into the pillows on the closest bed.
"Not yet. Benny said the trail went cold. He said something about Cas going to find Gabriel."
Dean was silent for all of three seconds before scooping his phone back up and spinning around on his heel.
"Come on, Sam. We're going out to find her ourselves."
Sam shot up to his feet.
"Go where, Dean?" Sam demanded. "We don't even know where to start looking."
Dean whipped around, his eyes flashing angrily at his brother. Sam threw his hands up and took a step back. His eyes darted around carefully to take stock of where he knew all of his brother's weapons were hidden.
"Sam, Kalen's gone and we have to find her," Dean declared.
"Dean, you think I don't know that? I'm worried too. Marbles died trying to protect her. Now I know Cas and Gabe didn't say it…but we both know all of that blood didn't come from just Marbles and the dead body," Sam told him.
Dean gritted his teeth. He hadn't wanted to say it out loud, but Sam's words rang true. The body had been mangled, but it hadn't accounted for the amount of blood found in the alley.
"We can't just do nothing," Dean declared.
Sam glared.
"Dean, there's nothing we can do right now. We don't even know who has Kalen right now! The dead body was an angel, but what's to say something else didn't grab her?"
Dean's hand twitched as his side, causing his brother's eyes to follow the movement. Dean stared at him for a long pause before letting out a heavy sigh and collapsing onto his hotel bed.
"Sam…" Dean trailed off.
Sam nodded as he sunk down to his bed.
"I know, Dean."
END OF CHAPTER TWO