Disclaimer: I still don't own Supernatural or its characters. I and am not making any money on this…I'm just having fun filling in the time until September!
Ghost Hollow
Chapter 6 – Shirley and Brett
Dean woke and quickly looked over towards his brother's bed. He smiled as he saw the lump that had to be his brother. Sam had drawn the covers over his head during the night and was now totally encased in blankets. Dean stretched as he saw the sun beginning to shine through the thin curtains of the motel. It was just past 6:00, a bit early for Dean but then he had some more research to do before the funeral today.
Dean had just finished getting dressed when he saw the lump that was his brother begin to move. "Hey there sleepy head, this has got to be a first, I'm up and dressed before you!"
Sam groaned as he slowly rose to a sitting position on the side of the bed. "Well the least you could have done was get some coffee!" Sam groused as he tried to stand, swaying slightly as his rib reminded him that it had been cracked. He felt his brother's arm steady him as he made his way to the bathroom.
"Will you be ok from here?" Dean asked quietly, concerned by the paleness of his brother's face.
"I'll be fine Dean once I have a cup of coffee" Sam said as he closed the door.
"Fine, your royal highness…but you better be here when I get back!" Dean was glad that he had grabbed the keys when he got dressed this morning…somehow he didn't think Sam would be amused by his big brother popping in while he took his shower.
Sam listened to the door closing and sighed. He knew that his brother's protective instincts were in high gear, especially after last night. Sam knew that they were dealing with a spirit and he even remembered some of what had happened prior to his taking his moonlight swim. The girl and her horse had visited him in his dreams more than once last night. The question was, why couldn't he tell Dean what was going on? Even now, just thinking about telling his brother was bringing back the pain…he had to find a way to tell Dean. Sam sank to the floor of the bathtub, holding his aching head in his hands.
Dean made the trip to the restaurant and back quickly; he didn't want to leave Sam alone for any length of time. As he opened the motel room door, he paused as he thought he heard the sound of sobbing coming from the bathroom. Placing the food and drink on the table, Dean hurried towards the door. "Sammy…Sammy…are you ok?" But the sobs continued. "Ok Sammy, I'm coming in!"
Dean opened the door and was shocked to see his little brother sitting in the tub, his knees drawn up to his chest, one hand fisted in his long brown hair as if he was trying to pull it out. "Sammy!" Dean walked quietly towards his brother, not wanting to spook him. He had been fine when he left, but he was afraid to ask what happened. Those types of questions had only caused his brother more pain in the past.
"DDeannnn…can't tell you…want to tell you…argh!" Sam's eyes closed as another waive of pain hit him. He had decided that no matter what the pain, he was going to tell Dean what happened. But the more he thought about it, the worse the pain had gotten until he was almost out of his mind from it.
"Shhh…Sammy, I know you want to tell me what is happening, and I know that you are being affected by something in Ghost Hollow. I also know that something is trying to prevent you from telling me what is going on…so, stop trying to tell me ok? We'll figure this out I promise!"
Dean sat on the edge of the tub and reached in to help his brother to his feet. Grabbing a towel, he gently wrapped it around his brother's waist as he helped Sam from the tub and onto the bed. "Now just sit there for a minute Sam…I want to get the first aid supplies so that I can re-wrap those ribs of yours."
Sam just sat on the bed, trying to think of nothing. He began to use one of the meditation techniques that Missouri had taught him to completely clear his mind. By the time Dean returned with the first aid supplies, Sam was in control once more.
Dean smiled as he saw his brother looking up at him with calm eyes. "Feeling better?"
"Yeah…you know those meditation techniques Missouri taught me help…the pain is almost gone..ow!" Sam jumped as Dean hit the sore area on his ribs.
"Sorry bro' but I have to get this wrapping tight to support the broken rib. I know those bruises have got to be hurting you as well. As soon as you get some food into you, I want you to take a couple more pain pills."
"Thanks Dean." Sam once again was grateful that his brother was back in his life. He had almost lost him in Nebraska and then again in the cabin when the demon tried to kill his brother. He just wished he could tell Dean how much he meant to him.
Dean helped Sam get dressed as bending over was difficult and then he helped him over to the table. As Dean distributed the food and coffee, he smiled as he saw his younger brother dig in. At least his appetite wasn't affected. "So, you think you're up to the funeral this afternoon?"
"Sure Dean, but do you really think that Shirley knows anything?" Sam wondered if Brett had been affected the same way he had.
"I don't know Sam, but we have to start finding out what's going on around here…you scared me last night Sam…I thought…I mean." Damn, he hadn't meant to bring it up, especially since he could see the pain starting on Sam's face again.
"What did you think Dean…go ahead and tell me." Sam had seen the fear in Dean's eyes and wanted to do something to remove it.
"God, Sammy! When I came out of the woods and saw you leaning over the bridge…I mean it looked like you had jumped! I guess I can see why some of the deaths have been listed as suicides."
"You know I would never…Dean, no matter what happens; you have to believe that I would never do that nor would I want you to blame yourself. I intend to hang around and be your pain in the ass little brother for as long as I can!" Sam smiled at Dean.
"I know, besides I figured it out that you hadn't jumped when I looked at your injuries last night." Dean watched, but other than a slight wince Sam didn't seem to be in any pain. "Hmmm….I wonder?"
"What Dean?" Sam could see that his brother thought he was onto something. He watched as Dean got up and began to pace.
"Nothing Sam…I need to check a few things out first…now how do you feel about a trip to the library to do some research before we head to the funeral?" Dean figured that he would see how Sam reacted to doing the research, then maybe he had figured out a way to break the curse or whatever it was that was keeping Sam silent.
oooooooooooooooooooooo
Sam rubbed his hands over his eyes as he made another copy of an article that described the unfortunate death of a young man who had apparently jumped into the river from the bridge. The story was a little too close to what had happened to Sam. He could feel something tugging at his memory, but as the pain started…he immediately began to meditate, clearing his mind.
Dean watched Sam and saw his reaction. He smiled as he saw Sam begin to use the meditation technique that he had mentioned earlier. Once again, it appeared to work. "That's my boy!" Dean said quietly as he checked his watch, it was time to leave for the funeral.
"Ok, Sammy time to go…we can always come back later." Dean watched as Sam sighed with frustration. He knew how his brother felt. They still had no idea what they were up against. But he intended to find out and soon.
oooooooooooooooooooooo
It looked like most of the small town had shown up for the funeral services. Sam and Dean had spent some time talking to people who had known Brett. All of them were shocked that the young man had died. But no one was able to shed much light on what had happened. Finally, Sam and Dean were able to find Shirley alone as she sat on a bench, looking at the recently filled grave of her boyfriend.
Sam placed a comforting hand on Shirley's shoulder. "I'm sorry about what happened Shirley. I know what it's like to lose someone close to you."
Shirley looked up at the young man's face and recognized it as one of the men who had gone to help find Brett. She could also see the sorrow in the young man's eyes and the pain that mirrored her own. "Thanks…I really appreciate you and your brother trying to help…not many strangers would do that."
Sam sat beside the young girl. "My name is Sam and this is my brother Dean. So were you and Brett dating long?"
Shirley smiled. "Seems like most of my life. We started out being friends and then, well one day we realized that it was much more. I just wish my father could have accepted him."
"But you could have married him anyway right?" Sam asked quietly, encouraging the girl to talk.
Shirley sighed as tears began to run down her cheeks. "This is all so messed up. I mean, Brett had been acting odd for the last couple of week, ever since I turned down his marriage proposal. I just couldn't go against my Dad's wishes. I told him that it wasn't going to work. But he insisted that we could make a go of it."
"You said he started to act odd…in what way?" Dean asked as he watched Sam begin to fidget.
"I don't know, he kept taking walks in Ghost Hollow and whenever I asked him about it, he would complain that his head hurt. He was keeping something from me, I know it. The night he…the night he drowned, I had followed him to Ghost Hollow to confront him…I mean, I still loved him, even though I couldn't marry him. He was talking to someone as I came up behind him and I could have sworn that I saw…but it couldn't have been." Shaking her head, she continued. "He turned to me and told me to go home, it wasn't safe for me there. We were heading back towards the car, when I noticed that he was no longer walking behind me. I called for him and I searched, but I couldn't find him…I really tried to find him!" Shirley broke down and began to cry again. Sam let her cry on his shoulder, gently patting her on the back as he looked up at his brother.
"Shirley, there was probably nothing you could have done. If he fell into the river, you wouldn't have been able to save him…you would have drowned with him. This isn't your fault." Sam said softly, trying to comfort the distraught girl.
Shirley sat up and wiped her eyes, a slight blush on her cheeks as she realized she had just cried on a stranger's shoulders. But she could feel the strength and compassion from the man sitting beside her. She had the sense that he really did understand her guilt and grief. "Thanks Sam…I'm sorry that I unloaded on you like that. I really should be getting back before my father worries."
"Hey, no problem…sometimes it's easier to talk to a stranger than someone close to you. Before you go though, you said you thought you saw something…what was it?" Sam coaxed gently.
"I'm not sure, and I mean…maybe it was just my imagination. After all, I've heard the legend since I was small about the haunting of Ghost Hollow."
"What legend?" Dean asked, finally they might be getting some where.
"It's just a tale told to children to keep them out the hollow. It can be dangerous during heavy rains, it fills with water. But as I recall, on foggy nights you can hear the sobbing of a woman on the wind and if you look real close, you see the figure of a young woman riding a great black horse. They say that she is cursed to ride the horse until she can find someone to love as much as the young man that her father forbid her to marry. If you get too close, she will lure you to your doom." Shirley laughed bitterly as she stood to go. "I must have been thinking about her, I mean her story is so close to mine, a love that I could never have just like her. That's probably why I thought I saw her and her horse riding off into the woods. But it was just my imagination!"
Sam stood and smiled. "Your probably right…I know it's hard right now Shirley, but in time it will get better…I promise."
Sam and Dean watched as Shirley headed back towards the crowd of people. Dean turned to Sam, watching him to see his reaction to the young girl's story, but his brother appeared to be ok. "So Sammy, looks like we need to find us a ghost…I just wish we knew her name…it would make things a lot easier!"
Sam fell to his knees, grabbing his head as he spoke "Marie….Oh God, I can't ….she told me her name was Marie…..argh!" Sam screamed in agony as Dean knelt beside his brother, trying to comfort him.
"Sam…stop it! You're going to hurt yourself! We'll figure it out!"
But Sam was determined, he knew that if he didn't do this, it could take days to find out her name and somehow, he didn't think he had that much time. "NO! Dean…I have to tell…not much time…her name….her name is Marie Gonzales!"
Sam screamed as he pitched forward, unconscious.
TBA
Raven524: So this chapter is a little longer. I was going to break it into two parts, but couldn't seem to find the right breaking spot…so, a little more to read and review!