A/N: Song this chapter is Incinerate by Sonic Youth. Chapter includes episode content from Are you there God? It's Me, Dean Winchester.
Chapter 22: Ripped Your Heart Out
I ripped your heart out from your chest
Replaced it with a grenade blast
Incinerate
Incinerate
Incinerate
Incinerate
The firefighters hose me down
I don't care, I'll burn out anyhow
It's four-alarm girl, nothing to see
Hear the sirens come for me
You doused my soul with gasoline
You flicked a match into my brain
Incinerate
Incinerate
Incinerate
Incinerate
The firefighters are so nice
I remember you so cold as ice
The flames are licking at your feet
The sirens come to put me me out of misery
You wave your torch into my eyes
Flamethrower lover burning mind
Incinerate
Twenty minutes later, Sam and Dean prepped salt rounds, trying to ignore Ellen's anxious pacing as she worried over Jo and Bobby's muttering to himself as he poured through various dusty old books. Sam had offered to help him, but Bobby had nearly bitten his head off for 'pestering him,' so he'd retreated to sit next to Dean instead. Dean, meanwhile, was trying really hard not to think about Ty and what kind of danger she was almost certainly in. Thankfully, Bobby interjected before his thoughts could run away with him too much.
"Found it."
"What?" Sam asked.
"The symbol you saw, the brand on the ghosts…" Bobby explained, "Mark of the Witness."
"Witness? Witness to what?" Sam asked with a frown.
"The unnatural. None of them died what you'd call ordinary deaths. See, these ghosts, they were forced to rise. They woke up in agony. They're like rabid dogs. It ain't their fault. Someone rose them...on purpose."
"Someone like Lilith." Dean asserted, scowling, "What book you find this in?"
"Well, long story short, Revelations. This is a Seal, boys." Bobby nodded.
"So your girl was right." Ellen said, drawing the men's eyes to her, "We need to get out of here and find them."
"First things first. How about we survive our friends out there?" Bobby suggested.
"Great." Dean agreed, "Any ideas aside from staying in this room until Judgment Day?"
Bobby nodded and gestured again at the book in front of him, "It's a spell to send the witnesses back to rest. Should work."
"Should. Great." Sam said sarcastically, standing and drifting over to look down at the source Bobby was using.
Bobby ignored him, "If I translate it correctly. I think I got everything we need here at the house."
"Any chance you got everything we need here in this room?" Dean asked.
"So, you thought our luck was gonna start now all of a sudden?" Bobby asked sarcastically before climbing back to his feet, "Spell's got to be cast over an open fire."
"The fireplace in the library." Sam surmised.
"Bingo." Bobby agreed.
Dean glanced from one hunter to the next, "That's just not as appealing as a, uh, ghost-proof panic room, you know?"
Sam just exhaled sharply, knowing this wasn't going to be easy. Ellen glared at them, moving over and grabbing a shotgun from the store of weapons against the wall and tossing it at him.
"Well, let's go!" she snapped.
Spurred on by Ellen's urgency, the other hunters quickly shifted into gear. Dean gathered the ammo he'd prepared and distributed it while Ellen passed out more weapons. Once everyone was locked and loaded, they moved towards the panic room door.
"Cover each other. And aim careful. Don't run out of ammo until I'm done, or they'll shred you." Bobby cautioned, shotgun in one hand and the book with the spell he needed tucked under his arm, "Ready?"
The other hunters all gave him quick nods, so he unbarred the iron door and slowly swung it open. Sam took the lead, his own shotgun at the ready and sweeping the basement for any sign of a spirit. Dean was close on his heels and Ellen brought up the rear. They moved cautiously as they headed for the stairs back to the main floor, but there was no immediate sign of anything in the basement with them. But when they rounded the corner at the base of the stairs and looked up, there was a figure sitting at the top of the stairs, blocking the entryway. It was a young man with longer, curly dark hair and a kind face. Dean immediately lifted his gun when he spotted him, but the figure lifted his head and gave him a small smile that had him freezing in his tracks.
"Hey, Dean. You remember me?" the ghost asked softly, almost hopefully.
Dean couldn't help but smile as he recalled meeting the young, former bank security guard, "Ronald, huh? With the laser eyes?"
He sobered as he remembered how that hunt had gone. Ronald hadn't made it.
"I wish I could say it's good to see you." Dean finished.
Ronald stood and started down the stairs, his eyes going angry, "I am dead because of you. You were supposed to help me!"
Dean just stared back helplessly in the face of Ronald's fury. He was right. He should've been able to save him.
The loud bang of a shotgun blast made Dean jump and his eyes snapped to Bobby who had fired at Ronald, dispersing the ghost before he could get any closer. Bobby looked back at Dean incredulously, "If you're gonna shoot, shoot. Don't talk."
Dean had nothing to say to that so he just followed as Bobby took the lead up the stairs. When the hunters reached the library, Ellen started making a salt line while Dean moved to the fireplace to get the fire going. Bobby dropped his book on the desk and took quick stock of what he'd need.
"Sam," he called, "Upstairs, linen closet, red hex box. It'll be heavy."
"Got it." Sam said before heading quickly for the stairs.
Bobby moved to open one of the desk drawers, but before he could dig out any of the other components he needed and before Ellen could finish the salt warding, Wendy and Marie reappeared.
"Bobby." Wendy called, making the hunter's head snap up.
Dean quickly looked up from the now growing fire in the fireplace and, seeing Bobby standing frozen in much the same way he'd been when faced with Ronald, he quickly snatched up his shotgun and fired at the girls. They vanished, but their giggles lingered after them.
Trying to shake off this latest encounter, Bobby barked more orders at Dean, "Kitchen. Cutlery drawer. It's got a false bottom. Hemlock, opium, wormwood."
"Opium?" Dean asked in surprise, holding up a hand.
"Go!" Bobby snapped.
Dean let his hand fall back to his side and headed for the kitchen. Bobby turned back to the spell, using a piece of chalk from the desk drawer to start drawing the diagram from the book. Ellen finished the salt line and retreated to stand near him and guard him while he worked. Unfortunately, the ghosts of the little girls were back already, standing just outside the salt line.
"Bobby." Wendy said again, "You walked right by us while that monster ate us all up."
"You could have saved us." Marie accused.
Bobby felt his heart racing as he looked at them and the guilt he felt was making it hard to breathe, but Ellen fired at them without hesitation.
"Keep going." she ordered over her shoulder.
Upstairs, Sam heard the gunshot and knew that he needed to hurry. He moved quickly to the linen closet and shoved piles of sheets out of the way until he uncovered the red hex box, but before he could grab it a familiar voice called from behind him.
"You know what really pisses me off, Sam?"
Sam turned quickly towards the voice, lifting the shotgun to his shoulder in a practiced motion. He barely hesitated to fire when he saw Meg, but it was evidently enough for her to disappear before the salt round reached her.
Reappearing behind him, she continued, "You saw how I suffered for months."
Sam turned towards her again, but this time his eyes met hers and he couldn't bring himself to fire again. She looked different than when he'd last seen her, but he still recognized her. And he also recognized that look in her eyes. He'd been possessed by the same demon as this girl, been forced to do things he'd never do. There was a level of understanding between the two of them because of that that went beyond words.
"I thought you must have learned something. I thought I died for something." Meg continued, her eyes bright with unshed tears.
"Meg." Sam began, unconsciously lowering his gun.
"But what you're doing with that demon, Ruby…" Meg continued, her voice hardening, "How many innocent bodies has Ruby burned through for kicks? How many girls, just like me? And you don't send her back to Hell? You're a monster!"
Something inside of Sam said, "She's right," but he forced himself to ignore that inner voice. He lifted his rifle, aiming it nearly point blank at her face, and fired.
Out in the woods, Ty had taken both trucks apart looking for something that would help them. She'd managed to find her phone where it had fallen out of her pocket and wedged itself unhelpfully between the frame and the seat. She'd even tried calling using her phone instead of Alex's, but it hadn't made a difference. Alex's dad's ghost had not returned since she'd put up the salt circle and Ty was starting to feel like maybe she'd been wrong before. Maybe she should try to get back to Alex and Jo.
Ty moved around a bit, testing her range of motion. Everything still hurt and certain movements made it feel like she was being stabbed in the side, but it was good enough. She stocked up with as many salt rounds as she could from both vehicles and grabbed a shotgun as well. She also shoved a couple flashlights and as much salt as she could find in the bag with the ammo. It was almost more than she could manage to carry it all, but she gritted her teeth and shouldered it anyway. With one last nervous glance around, she flipped a flashlight on, pointing it at the ground to follow their tracks back into the woods.
Ellen kept her guard up, sweeping the room with her gun while Bobby worked. She was ready for another apparition to manifest, but the voice that echoed through the library a moment later caught her by surprise all the same.
"You promised me, Ellen." Leanna Flynn accused.
Ellen swept the space with her gun with increased urgency, but she couldn't see the woman's spirit anywhere.
"You swore you'd protect him like he was your own." the spectral voice continued.
"I'm sorry, Leanna." Ellen said, even though she knew she shouldn't engage with her, that it would just make this harder.
"But then, you're still alive. You still get to be with your kid. Who cares about anyone else, right?" Leanna snarled, suddenly appearing just the other side of the salt line.
Unlike the first time that Alex Flynn's mother had appeared to her, this time the spirit's clothing was riddled with tears from the knife wounds that had killed her, stained with her blood. Ellen briefly squeezed her eyes shut against the gruesome sight.
"Look at me!" Leanna shrieked, "This is how my son had to find me! Where were you then?"
"Ellen!" Bobby called her sharply and Ellen immediately clamped down on her feelings, shutting out everything, and fired.
In the kitchen, Dean was frantically yanking open drawers, looking for the false bottom Bobby had described. It took a couple tries before he located the right one, but just as he was lifting out the tray of silverware to uncover the hiding place Bobby had mentioned, the french doors separating the kitchen from the living room that Bobby always kept open swung suddenly closed.
"Dean?" Bobby called from the other room.
"I'm all right, Bobby! Keep working!" Dean yelled back.
He pulled the false bottom out of the drawer and hastily started loading the ingredients Bobby needed into a bowl to take back to him, but before he could grab them all, Henriksen's ghost appeared at his side.
"Victor." Dean said as he straightened. He'd been expecting this confrontation, figuring it was only a matter of time before Henriksen's ghost came for him as the person really responsible for his death.
"Dean." Henriksen replied shortly.
"I know." Dean said gruffly, the only way he could think of telling the other man that he agreed with him, that he deserved his wrath.
"No. You don't." Henriksen said sharply.
Dean just shook his head, "It's my fault you're dead. I left you behind. And the minute I heard about that explosion, I thought, 'I should have known.' I should have protected you."
It was all the truth, but Dean also knew that he still needed to protect the others so he reached behind him, trying to grab the shotgun he'd set on the stove while he'd looked for the right drawer. However, before he could close his hand around it, it went flying across the room.
"Unh-unh. Not so fast." Henriksen said, drawing Dean's gaze back to him, "You think you left and Lilith came and we all died in a beautiful blast of...white light? If only. Forty-five minutes."
"What?" Dean asked in confusion.
"Over forty-five minutes. Lilith said she wanted to have some fun. The secretary was first. Remember her? Nancy, the virgin. Lilith filleted Nancy's skin off piece by piece. Right in front of us, made us watch. Nancy never stopped screaming." Henriksen explained.
"No." Dean denied.
"I was the last." Henriksen said.
"Victor…" Dean began again, thinking maybe if he could just explain to the agent that he could have his revenge if he wanted, that he agreed that he deserved it, if he would just let him save the others first, that he could get through to him.
But before Dean could get out another word, Henriksen's hand surged forward, somehow reaching inside Dean's chest and tightening around his heart. Dean gasped at the pain, unable to move as he felt his heart pounding in Henriksen's vice-like grip.
"Tell me how it's fair. Why do you deserve to live, Dean?" Henriksen demanded.
Dean couldn't answer, could only grunt in pain, but he didn't have an answer for him anyway. He could feel Henriksen clenching harder when suddenly the agent sighed and his eyes shifted to the side, following the barrel of a shotgun aimed at his head to the other Winchester brother holding it. Sam fired and the ghost vanished, releasing his grip on Dean. Dean crumpled to the ground and Sam rushed to check on him, glad that he'd been able to reach him in time.
"You alright?" he asked quickly.
Dean leaned heavily back against the stove, trying to catch his breath. He lifted a hand to his chest, half-expecting to find a gaping hole, but there was nothing. Still, he glanced back at Sam and replied, "No."
Sam just reached down and grabbed his arm, pulling him back to his feet, "Let's go."
Dean groaned but allowed his brother to pull him off the floor. Sam grabbed the hex box and Dean snatched the bowl of items he'd pulled from the drawer before both brothers hurried back to rejoin Bobby and Ellen. They set the items down on the desk for Bobby and he quickly started incorporating them. Dean shifted his attention to reloading his gun, but before he got far, Ronald reappeared in front of him.
"Ronald." Dean greeted him before resuming reloading the gun, "Hey, come on, man. I thought we were pals."
"That's when I was breathing. Now I'm gonna eat you alive." Ronald replied with a sinister smile.
Dean chuckled nervously, "Well...come on, I'm not a cheeseburger."
With that he swiftly cocked the gun and lifted it to shoot Ronald, but he'd already vanished. He glanced back at Sam on the other side of the room, then at Ellen standing next to Bobby at the desk, but there was no sign of Ronald or any other spirits at the moment. Bobby finally began reciting the spell, the Latin sounding loud in the silent room. He hadn't said more than a few words when the windows suddenly slammed open and wind surged into the room.
Alex felt Jo stiffen a moment before he felt the chill. The wind picked up next, practically howling as it blew through the trees. Alex had been refusing to look at anything but Jo since he'd joined her on the ground, but now he couldn't keep himself from looking anxiously around them. His eyes landed on the salt circle as the wind blew it apart.
"Shit." he said, climbing to his feet.
He pulled Jo up next to him, but she was practically catatonic. She didn't seem to see or hear him at all. Her cheeks were coated with dried tears. And she wouldn't stop shaking. He stepped in front of her, drawing his gun again. He wasn't sure he had it in him to fire at his own father if he reappeared, but it did feel a little comforting to have a weapon in his hand. The sound of the ghostly infants stopped the second he released his hold on Jo, making the night sound unnaturally quiet in comparison.
"You're not going to shoot me, son."
In between one blink and the next, his father had returned. He stood directly in front of him, but this time he was covered in blood, just like the last time Alex had seen him when he'd been lifeless on the floor next to his mother. Alex had to close his eyes, unable to make himself see that sight in front of him once again.
"Don't be shy." his dad growled, "This is what that bitch is steering you towards."
Alex shook his head weakly, but he couldn't open his eyes, couldn't even speak.
"Alex!" his father barked, his voice practically sounding in his ear.
Alex flinched, but before he could react any further, he felt that icy intrusion through his chest again. Alex's eyes finally flew open and he found himself staring into his father's homicidal gaze as his spectral grip closed around his heart.
"This is the only way to save you, son." his father said through gritted teeth.
The pressure continued to increase and Alex was sure that somehow his dad's ghost was about to rip the organ right out of his chest. He couldn't move, could only wince and make strangled noises of pain. Suddenly, there was a loud bang and for one irrational moment he thought maybe the sound was his heart exploding through his ribs, but then he collapsed to his knees as he realized the pressure in his chest was gone and he could breathe again.
"Alex!" Ty called urgently, knowing that she couldn't lower her guard and check on him, "Talk to me."
Alex coughed weakly and groaned a little. Ty figured that would have to do for confirmation that he was alright for the moment. She didn't have time to feel any relief yet, but she knew that they'd been lucky. If she'd arrived a moment later…well, she didn't want to think about that.
Ty shucked the bag from her shoulder and tossed it in Alex's direction, keeping her eyes focused on their surroundings. A spectral form reappeared in her peripheral vision and she whirled, firing the shotgun again at Erik Flynn before he could close in on her. Whatever was going on, it was definitely getting worse. The ghost was manifesting again much more quickly now.
She was relieved when Alex regained his feet and picked up one of the flashlights and his weapon. They backed up to form a tight group around Jo, but her relief was short-lived when her own flashlight landed on a new ghost that had manifested itself.
"Hey, Ty." the familiar-looking man with a dark complexion and short, dark, tightly curled hair greeted her with a grim look on his face. Ty hated that she couldn't even recall his name, but she knew who he was. He was someone she'd failed to save when she'd been on her reckless solo-hunting tear, more focused on her own trauma than on doing the job right, "Forgot all about me, didn't you?"
Before she could reply, Alex fired at him. Ty gulped, hoping that she wasn't about to be confronted by all of her past mistakes until they finally managed to overwhelm them. As Erik Flynn and the man she'd failed both reappeared simultaneously, causing her and Alex to both fire again, then quickly dig more ammo from the bag to reload, their chances didn't seem good.
In the library, Bobby quickly grabbed onto the papers with the spell to keep them from blowing away, but the wind disrupted the salt line. As the protection disappeared, the spirits began rapidly reappearing. Meg and Henriksen both appeared before Sam, vanishing again when he shot them. Leanna Flynn started towards Ellen but she unloaded another round into her. Dean called out a warning to his brother as Meg appeared behind him, firing around him to strike her before he had to whirl the other way and fire again at Ronald. Bobby threw himself back into the ritual, reading as quickly as he could, but it seemed like the spirits were gaining strength, too. The salt rounds were only dispelling them for mere moments now before they were back. The blast of weapons and the clatter of cartridges hitting the floor was coming more and more quickly. Dean had to stop to try and reload but before he could get another round in the chamber, Henriksen appeared and, with a fling of his arm, sent Dean's shotgun flying out of his hands. Dean quickly backed up a step and grabbed Bobby's shotgun off the desk, but when he fired it, he found that it was empty, too. Henriksen almost smirked at him as he moved closer. Desperate, Dean backed up another step and grabbed another iron poker from the fireplace, swinging it through the agent's spirit to ward him off.
"Boys, I'm out!" Ellen yelled, tossing her gun aside and backing away as Leanna's spirit moved towards her.
At the same time, Sam was encountering a similar problem when he ran out of ammo. He stopped to reload, but Meg's spirit sent a desk across the room, pinning him against a wall. Sam tried to shove it away, even reaching inward for his powers, but he must have been too low on demon blood because they didn't respond. He was trapped.
"Sam!" Dean called in concern, seeing his brother cornered.
"Cover Bobby!" Sam yelled back.
Dean looked from Sam to Bobby and Meg followed his eyes. Meanwhile, Wendy and Marie had reappeared on the edge of Bobby's desk just as he was lifting the bowl of spell ingredients in what appeared to be a culmination of the spell, poised to attack. Dean started to move towards him, armed with the poker, when Leanna suddenly thrust her hand into Ellen's chest, making her scream. Before Dean could move to her defense, Meg appeared behind Bobby and plunged her hand into his back. Bobby cried out, teeth gritted and groaning with pain.
"Dean!" he called as the bowl started to slip from his fingers, "Fireplace!"
Dean's eyes widened and he threw himself towards the bowl, just managing to catch it and flinging the contents into the fireplace. The fire immediately turned blue and then a blue light surged outwards through the room, encompassing all of the spirits. In a flash, they all vanished and both Ellen and Bobby fell to the ground.
"Bobby?" Dean asked in concern.
"I'm okay." Bobby grunted, panting, "Ellen?"
She didn't immediately respond so Sam quickly pushed the desk away, freeing himself, and hurried over to check on her. She didn't seem to be able to form words, but she nodded to him that she was alright and he helped her back to her feet. Everyone took a few long moments to catch their breath and recover before, by unspoken agreement, they moved back to the living room to collapse onto chairs and sofas. Ellen and Dean both had their phones out shortly afterward. They shared another look as they both held the phones to their ears, waiting for someone to pick up.
"Dean?"
Dean closed his eyes and sighed with relief at the sound of Ty's voice on the other end of the line. The connection was terrible, but at the moment it was practically music to his ears, "Yeah, it's me. You okay?"
Ty sounded as out of breath as he was when she answered, but her words were comforting, "Yeah, yeah. I'm okay. Is it over?"
"Yeah." Dean nodded, "It's over."
Looking over, he saw Ellen frowning as she lowered her phone from her ear, evidently not having gotten an answer.
"Hey, is Jo there?" he asked, noticing Ellen's eyes snapping to him at the sound of her daughter's name.
"Yeah, she's here." Ty confirmed. It was hard to tell with the bad connection, but Dean thought he heard something in Ty's tone that made him wary.
"Can you put her on? Her mom needs to hear from her." Dean said.
"Hold on a sec." Ty said and Dean could just barely hear her calling Jo's name. Ty had to repeat herself a few times, but Dean finally heard Jo reply. She didn't sound anything like the Jo he was used to, confident to the point of almost being cocky, but given what she must have been through, he wasn't that surprised. Silently, he held his phone out to Ellen.
Ellen shifted forward to take Dean's phone. She paused for a moment as she closed her hand around it, sending him a silent look full of gratitude. Dean just nodded in response. When Ellen finally brought the phone to her ear and heard her daughter's voice speaking to her, she looked like she was close to tears. Uncomfortable witnessing her looking so shaken, Dean coughed and stood, gesturing for Sam and Bobby to follow him into the kitchen to give her some privacy. Besides, after everything that had happened, he could really use a drink.
Later, as the sun came up, Dean was still hunched over the kitchen table with a glass of whiskey in front of him. He lifted the glass, swirling the contents as he stared at the amber liquid and tried to remember how many glasses he'd already had. Finally deciding that he didn't care, he downed the contents.
Bobby, Sam, and Ellen had all retreated to various beds and couches to get some sleep and, upon strict instructions from Ellen, Alex and Ty had taken Jo to the closest motel they could find to get some rest, as well. But Dean couldn't stand the thought of closing his eyes just yet. Sure he was exhausted, but he'd much rather deal with physical exhaustion than all the crap he was sure his unconscious mind would unleash on him. First and foremost being the voice he'd been trying to drown in whiskey all night, Henriksen asking him why he deserved to live.
He didn't want to die, but why did he deserve to live if his continued existence was going to bring such a horrible end to people like Nancy? He'd always believed that his life had meaning because he saved people. Sure, you couldn't save everyone. That was just the reality of being a hunter. But you could end the thing that killed people and keep it from hurting anyone else. And yet, after last night, he was starting to wonder if maybe this time was different. He wasn't sure they could kill Lilith and, in the meantime, he was putting a target on everyone he came into contact with. Summoning Melchiresa had been the only thing he could think to do to change things, but that had just made things even worse. So, what did that leave?
Dean eyed the whiskey bottle, considering pouring himself some more, but before he could decide, Sam stumbled into the kitchen. He looked from Dean to the whiskey bottle and frowned.
"Don't even start on me, Sam." Dean warned, in no mood for a lecture on his drinking at the moment.
"I wasn't going to." Sam protested, but Dean just scoffed in disbelief. Shaking his head, Sam moved around the table to the fridge. He pulled out some items and set to work making his brother something less alcoholic for breakfast.
Dean didn't protest when Sam slid a plate with a sandwich on it in front of him and took the whiskey bottle away. As long as he didn't try to make him…
Dean sighed as Sam took a seat next to him and fixed him with his concerned gaze. Of course, Sam would want to talk.
"I don't want to talk about it, Sam." he said firmly.
"Dude…" Sam began.
"Nope. Let's just agree that sucked and move on." Dean interrupted.
Sam frowned at him, his mouth tight with frustration, but finally he relented. Shaking his head, he turned to his own plate and picked up the sandwich, taking a bite. As a silent compromise, Dean picked up his, as well. He wasn't really hungry, but he figured that Sam would feel better if he ate something. After a few minutes of silence, Sam finally broke it.
"You want to drive out there? Go get Ty?"
He doubted it, but there was a chance that maybe he'd talk to Ty even if he wouldn't talk to him. And, even if he wouldn't, he knew that having Ty around still provided a level of comfort that his brother needed right now no matter what he said.
Dean considered it for a moment. It was a little silly to drive out there when the other hunters were going to be heading back this way as soon as Jo had a chance to rest, per Ellen's orders (which no one in their right mind would disobey). On the other hand, it would make him feel a little better to have her with him again. As bad as last night had been for him, he was sure she'd had a rough go of it, too. Maybe she needed him. They hadn't had a chance to talk much, just that short conversation before he'd passed the phone to Ellen, and it had been a whirlwind of crap these past few days. Yeah, he should go and make sure she was okay.
"Yeah, sure." he finally answered Sam, "Let's go make sure she's alright."
Sam nodded. He should have known that Dean would be on board if he could convince himself it was about taking care of someone else. With that thought in mind, Sam decided he'd have better luck stalling Dean for a little bit by framing it in someone else's interest rather than telling him he needed to sober up first, "Okay. Finish your breakfast first. They're probably still asleep."
"Yes, mom." Dean replied sarcastically, but he took another bite of the sandwich so Sam considered that a win.
A few hours and a cup of coffee later, Dean was steering the Impala away from Bobby's and towards the motel Ty, Alex, and Jo had holed up in. At the motel, Ty and Jo were both still asleep, although Alex was up. He and Jo had both practically collapsed from exhaustion when they'd arrived, but he hadn't slept long. Nightmares plagued his rest and drove him from his spot on the motel room couch after only a few hours. When he'd woken, he'd found Ty still awake. It was the wee hours of the morning, but she was staring fixedly at his laptop that she'd brought in from his truck. The glow from the screen illuminated her face, making the dark bags under her eyes look even more pronounced.
He'd approached her slowly, trying not to disturb Jo who was still sleeping soundly, "Hey. Can't sleep?"
Ty had shaken her head wearily. Alex was well aware of her problems with insomnia, but this seemed worse than her usual restlessness. He sat on the bed next to her, waiting patiently for her to tell him what was bothering her. Ty didn't react well to being pressured or told what to do, but he'd learned that he could wait her out with his greater well of patience.
"I didn't even remember his name." she'd finally admitted quietly, "I had to find it. He was Carl Bentley. He has a little sister named Tammi. A niece and a nephew, twins."
"Ty, stop." he'd interrupted her before she could continue, "Stop punishing yourself."
Ty had just frowned, eyes still fixed on the computer screen. It was obvious she wasn't about to listen to him, so he had taken the laptop away. It made her glare at him, but he'd still considered that an improvement.
"Try to get some sleep, okay?"
She hadn't made any promises, but she'd let him take the laptop with him when he went back to the couch and eventually she'd laid down and succumbed to her own exhaustion. Looking over at her now, Alex heard his father's words echoing in his head. The words still hurt, even as memories. He still didn't believe what his father had said about Ty caring only for herself and he didn't blame her for how things had turned out with Melchiresa, but it still felt like his relationship with his partner had changed in a way that he couldn't fully articulate.
Turning his attention to the other young, blonde hunter in the room didn't necessarily bring any less concern. Alex had developed a thing for Jo months ago, but he'd kept it a secret from everyone, even Ty. While he and Jo had known each other for almost as long as he could remember since their parents had known each other, it had still caught him by surprise when he'd found himself looking for more and more excuses to stop by the Roadhouse before it burned, or to just call and talk to her. And the more they talked, the more he'd found himself falling for her. He still hadn't said anything to her, but it felt like his feelings had to be obvious by now. Or maybe not. She'd been through so much trauma recently, romance had to be the last thing on her mind. And that was fine for now. He just wanted to be here for her, support her and, hopefully, help her find a way past this.
Ty's phone buzzed on her nightstand and Alex leaped to his feet to go grab it, hoping he could get to it before it disturbed either of the girls. He snatched up the phone and muffled it against his chest. Ty groaned and rolled over on her mattress, but she didn't wake. Jo continued to sleep peacefully. Moving quickly out the door, Alex shut it gently behind him before looking down at the phone to see who was calling. He wasn't surprised to see that it was Dean. He answered before the phone rang through to voicemail.
"Hey, Dean. Ty's asleep. What's up?" he asked.
"How is she?" Dean asked after a momentary pause.
Alex figured he probably wasn't thrilled to be talking to him instead of her, but he, for one, was ready to put the hostility between them behind him. There was just too much else to deal with now, "Honestly? Not great. None of us are. I'm guessing it was just as bad for you guys."
"Yeah, that's probably a safe bet." Dean replied gruffly, "Look, I just wanted to give you guys a heads up that Sam and I will be there soon, but you don't have to wake her up."
Alex nodded. It didn't surprise him that Dean wasn't willing to wait for them to make it back to Bobby's. If their positions were reversed, he'd probably do the same, "Sure. You know the place?"
"Yeah, got the name from Ellen." Dean confirmed.
"Room 14." Alex added, "Shoot me a text when you're here."
Dean mumbled his agreement then disconnected.
It was only about 15 minutes later that Alex's phone buzzed with a text from Sam letting him know they were parked outside. He slipped back outside to meet them, letting the girls continue to sleep. The Winchesters were both standing next to the familiar black Impala so he strode over to join them.
"So, what the hell was that?" he asked, still too worn out to bother with small talk.
"Another Seal." Sam answered, "Raising of the Witnesses, Bobby said. Ghosts of people who died supernatural deaths were forced to come back."
Alex accepted that explanation without comment. They stood silently for a moment before Dean cleared his throat, breaking the awkward silence.
"So…girls still out?"
Alex nodded, "Ty hasn't had much sleep, but I don't think she'll mind if you wake her."
Dean considered it for a moment before he shook his head. Now that they were here, it seemed more important to let her get what rest she could than to rush a reunion. Glancing over at Sam, he made a quick decision, "No, that's okay. We'll just book a room, too. Bobby's is getting kinda crowded. We can stay here for a bit."
Sam's eyes widened a little in surprise, but he didn't protest. Maybe a little distance from where everything had gone down last night would help Dean relax. Plus, he really needed to talk to Ruby and it was next to impossible to do anything discreetly at Bobby's.
"I got it." he volunteered, heading towards the office.
Alex and Dean waited in awkward silence until he returned with a key for room 16. Alex promised to let them know when Ty was up before heading off towards his truck, figuring he might as well track down some coffee and breakfast while he waited. Meanwhile, Sam and Dean retreated to their room. Sam could tell that the lack of sleep was starting to catch up to Dean and decided it was worth risking more resentful and/or sarcastic remarks to try and get him to at least take a nap while he waited for Ty to wake up.
"You know, you might as well get some sleep, too, Dean." he said, eyeing his brother where he'd slumped onto the other bed, "I know you were up all night."
"I'm fine." Dean protested.
"Alright." Sam shrugged, "But Ty's probably going to be out for at least a couple more hours since Alex said she hasn't gotten much sleep yet. So, yeah. Enjoy the daytime television."
"God, you're annoying today." Dean grumbled.
Sam shrugged unapologetically, "So, give me the keys and I'll get out of your hair for a bit. Go restock the car. At the very least, I know we're low on salt."
"Jesus, fine." Dean said, digging his keys out of his pocket and throwing them at Sam, "And don't come back without pie this time."
Sam caught the keys with a grin, "Deal."
Driving into town, Sam pulled out his phone and dialed Ruby. She answered after only a couple rings.
"Sam, I heard Lilith broke another Seal. You okay?" she asked quickly.
"I'm in one piece." Sam confirmed, "Where are you? I need you to meet me."
"Just gave a couple of idiots the slip. Where do you need me?"
Sam glanced out the window at the road signs, "Can you be in Spencer, Iowa in the next hour?"
"Spencer, Iowa? Gee, Sam, you take me to the nicest places." Ruby replied sarcastically, "Yeah, I'll be there."
Before Sam could say anything else, she hung up on him. Sam just rolled his eyes and dropped his phone onto the seat next to him. He'd call her back when he pulled into town and found a decent spot for them to meet up. In the meantime, he figured he better make sure to restock the Impala and track down some pie or Dean would never let him hear the end of it.
