Chapter 7:
Flashes of memories flickered through the minds of the Winchesters like pieces of a movie that someone else was now watching. Minutes dripped slowly by like sand from an hourglass as they remembered everything from the car crash to the ambush. Conversations and thoughts echoed in their heads, but suddenly silence entered the room, which was even more deafening.
"Enough! Damn it! Are you satisfied now?"
Green eyes locked onto John Winchester, who sat in a wooden chair in-between his two boys, Sam and Dean. Long, white hair flowed around a woman still standing before him. Her pale, long fingers gently tapped her side before she finally nodded.
"We weren't going to hurt you, Helena. Onyx only wanted us to find you," Dean said.
"But I guess you found us," Sam said.
"I had to be sure. There is no time for mistakes." She gestured to the man nearby to release the Winchesters from their binding. "There were only supposed to be four of you not six, and you were infiltrated."
"By who," John asked.
Rush hour echoed throughout the diner as the door swung open for another customer. Dishes clattered to the floor as a waitress cursed under her breath, but the man nearby made no move to help her. Children screamed and raced around waiters and waitresses who carried more food to the cluttered tables in their section. Among the chaos of the dinner hour, one man sat in a booth, trying to steady his hand as he drank his coffee.
Putting the coffee cup shakily back onto its saucer, Ryan Mitchell pulled out a crumbled note from his coat pocket. He stared at the white paper before slowly unfolding it. His eyes fell on the black ink still shining against the white: MURDER BUYS YOU A ONE-WAY TICKET INTO HELL, BUT I HAVE YOUR GET OUT OF HELL FREE CARD. COAST DINER AT SIX.
Ryan sensed someone watching him. It was a man sitting across from him in another booth. He folded the note and placed it back in its pocket before looking at the man. When his eyes locked with his, the man's eyes turned black.
"Ryan Mitchell," the man said as he walked over to him and sat down opposite him. "You look like you've seen a ghost, but I, my friend, am no ghost."
"More coffee, sir… Oh. I didn't see your friend come in." The waitress looked puzzled at the man, who now had brown eyes. "What can I get you, sir?"
"Coffee. Black like our friend here is having."
"Sure," and she walked away.
"Nice girl," the man commented. "She's got to be careful around you."
"It was an accident," Ryan said, trying to compose himself but failing in the process.
"Sure, it was. Have the police found her body yet? Was she your first, or were there others? I can never keep track."
"She was the only one."
"But there were almost two."
"Look, what the hell do you want?" Ryan regretted those words as the man's eyes returned to their black orbs.
"Call me Ronan, and I have a job for you. Your expertise is required."
"With a woman?"
"Yeah. With a woman." Ronan watched Ryan's hand shake as he drank his coffee. "My sister, Kyle." He smiled as Ryan nearly choked on his coffee.
"What!"
"Oh, it's this whole big complicated thing, and she's supposed to be dead. But isn't."
"You want me to kill your sister?" He glanced at the waitress, who returned with more coffee.
"Well, she isn't really my sister." Ronan waited until the waitress walked away, and then his eyes became black.
"What are you?"
"A demon." Ronan sipped his coffee and then pushed it away from him. "Disgusting." Ryan was looking at the exit door now. "You don't believe me?" Ryan looked back at him. "When you were four, you let the dog out of the house. He was barking so much, and nobody was around to walk him. So, you let him out, thinking that he would do his business and walk back in." Ryan shuddered. "However, you weren't counting on him crossing the street and getting killed by that car. Your mother was so distraught. She really loved that dog."
"Stop it!" Everyone at the diner looked at them. "Please."
"And what did you tell her, Ryan? What did you tell her when she asked you how the dog got out?" Ryan's eyes watered. "You said…"
"I know what I freaking said."
"You said that you opened the door to go play outside when the dog ran past you and out into the street." An evil grin spread across Ronan's face. "And she believed you, but you never got a dog after that."
"You bastard."
"Thank you. Let me ask you a question. Do you want to go to hell?"
"No."
"Good. Then, we leave now and take a little trip."
"Where are we going?"
"To meet my sister."
"And you want me to just kill her?"
"No. You have to do something else first, but afterward, yes, you kill her." Ronan stood up from the table and dropped a twenty on it. "Shall we go?"
"Yeah." Ronan smiled at the resignation in Ryan's voice. "Let's go," and he followed Ronan out of the diner.
"But I didn't kill her!"
Ryan looked from the Winchesters to Helena and then at a man dressed in black military clothes. His wrists were bound to the wooden chair that he was sitting in. An overhead lamp swung gently over him. "I wasn't going to kill Kyle!"
"I don't believe you," Helena said. "I don't."
"You have to believe me, please." Ryan stared at the Winchesters. "You know me."
"No, we don't," John replied. "I was right to not trust you."
"Come on! If I was going to kill all of you, I would have done it already!"
"So, what were you waiting for? To take Kyle out first?" Dean approached Ryan when his father grabbed him by the arm.
"No! No. I thought maybe if I fought on your side, I wouldn't go to hell."
"You killed a woman, Ryan!" Everyone looked at Sam. "You killed her and then hid the body."
"I was scared."
"Yeah, well, you're going to hell."
"Sam!" He looked at John.
"Okay. Everyone out!" Helena motioned for the Winchesters to leave the room. "Except him." She pointed at Ryan.
"Come on! I wasn't going to kill her! I swear I wasn't!" The door slammed shut. "I wasn't going to kill her!"
"You okay?" John noticed that Helena looked drained.
"I need to rest," Helena said. "Then, I need to finish with him and then work on the little girl, Beth."
"Beth," Sam asked. "She's just a kid. She's not the mole."
"Maybe, Sam, but I would still feel better if I checked her out."
"And what about Kyle?" Everyone looked at Dean. "Where is she?"
"Resting." Helena walked away.
"Hey! I would like to see her."
"Not now, Dean."
"Wait a damn minute! You ambush us, go through our minds like some kind of movie, and now you're telling us what to do!"
"Dean."
"What!" He looked at his father.
"She needs to rest, Dean." He looked at Helena.
"Why?" She looked at Sam. "Why can't we see her?"
"Look, you did what you were supposed to do. You brought her to me, and she is now in my care. Okay?" Helena vanished before them.
"What kind of crap is that!" Dean looked at his father and then brother. "Seriously!"
"Dean."
"What?"
"You really like this girl, don't you?"
"What if I do, Sam?"
"Look, boys, for right now, we have to do what Helena said. Let's go to what they call a cafeteria here and get some food."
"Fine, but we or I am going to find Kyle later," and Dean stormed away.
A town in chaos, police were escorting teachers and children from a school that was partly on fire. Fire fighters battled the blaze as the police led everyone a safe distance away. Two police officers were about to get in their squad car when they spotted a little girl, Beth, in the window, screaming for help.
"Shit!" One cop looked over at the other officers, who were still pushing people back from the school. "Let's go!" He hurried over to the school with his partner close behind him.
"How could we have missed her? I thought we got everyone out." They hurried up the stairwell toward the second floor.
"Somehow, we missed her."
Suddenly, the steps creaked underneath them. The two police officers grabbed the railing and held on for a minute. Exchanging looks, they hurried faster up the stairs and out onto the second floor.
"This building isn't going to stand much longer." They surveyed the hallway but didn't see her. "Which classroom was she in?"
"Damned if I know."
"Okay. I go right. You go left."
"Be careful."
"You too."
Along the right side of the school, the cop checked every classroom that he approached. The hair raised up on the back of his neck and arms, and he quickly rubbed both, trying to silence whatever bad vibe he was sensing. Looking into a laboratory, he saw Beth cowering in the corner near the window.
"Hey. It's okay. It's okay." He approached her with his arms held out.
"Behind you."
Suddenly, before the cop could react, Ronan snapped his neck. A bone was heard breaking. The cop's body fell to the floor.
"I want to go home." Beth started to cry.
"You will, but you have to call for help one more time. I will tell you when."
"Jesus, you killed him."
Ronan slapped Ryan across the face. He then grabbed him by the neck and threw him against the wall. Eyes glazed black, he stared at him and then over at Beth.
"Change into his clothes, and be fast about it."
"His partner is still up here."
"I'll take care of him, and sweetie?" Beth looked at Ronan. "Go into the room across from us." He watched Beth hurry out of the room. "Change!" He glared at Ryan one last time before leaving the room.
Just as Ryan finished changing into the police uniform, he heard a man's scream echo throughout the hallway. He shuddered as he buttoned the shirt. He knelt down to tie his shoelaces when he sensed someone behind him.
As he turned around, Ronan stabbed him in the shoulder with a pair of scissors. He grinned as Ryan screamed. Pulling out the bloody scissors, Ronan looked at him.
"What the hell!"
"They won't buy the story, if you are not injured."
"Next time, warn me!"
"I will. Now, go downstairs, and don't forget the cop's gun."
"They still won't believe me."
"If they don't, then you are no use to me. Understand?" Ryan slowly nodded. "Good. Now, go! They should be here any minute."
"And the girl?"
"I still need her." Ryan shuddered as he walked past Ronan. "Don't worry, Ryan. You're not dead yet." He watched Ryan leave the room and then looked down at the bloody scissors in his hand.
A long, stone corridor led John and Helena down past several rooms. Most of the rooms seemed occupied by people in black military clothes. The overhead lights flickered for a moment but then stopped. Their footsteps echoed throughout the ever-winding corridor.
"This underground was used way back during the Civil War. Who would ever think that it would be used now in the war for this world?" Helena looked at John, who returned her look. "So, John, when are you going to give me that bullet that you have been keeping?"
"I'm not." Helena stopped walking. "That bullet stays with me."
"They won't be foolish and bring the Colt here."
"They might, and it stays with me."
"If that is what you want."
"It is." Helena started walking again. "What about Kyle?" She looked at John. "Why are you keeping her separate from us?"
"I'm not going to harm her. I need her to rest."
"Why?"
"You don't want to know why."
"Why!" He grabbed Helena by the arm. "What is she?"
"Human. Kind of."
"Kind of?"
"Look, John." She looked down at his hand, and he slowly let her go. "She's special like Sam, and I need her focused and not occupied by you, Sam, or Dean."
"You're going to torture her."
"Something happened to her the night that she died, and she needs to remember it. If she doesn't, we could lose an essential element that could win this war."
"Like what?"
"We shall find out, but seeing how you and your sons care about her, I must warn you. There is no telling how this is going to end."
"Meaning what?"
"Tell Dean to not get too attached to her." Helena walked away from John.
"Do you know why us humans are better than you angels?" Helena looked back at John. "We care about each other, and we don't let anything happen to those that we care about."
"I care, John, but this is war." She vanished a moment later.
"That's not fair," John muttered to himself.
Ryan opened his eyes and looked up to see a woman standing before him. He shook his head as the woman drew closer. As his vision cleared, he recognized the woman that he killed. "Hailey?"
"Hello, Ryan."
"But you're dead."
"I know. You killed me."
"Hailey…"
"It's okay, Ryan. I forgive you." She knelt down in front of him. "You did what you had to do."
"I didn't want you to leave me, but it was no excuse to kill you."
"But you still did." Ryan closed his eyes and sighed. "And now it's my turn."
Suddenly, Hailey's hands transformed into black claws. With swift motion, she rammed them into Ryan's chest, silencing his scream before it could echo. She pushed deeper as his body jerked violently, and then slowly, she withdrew her bloody hands. She even licked her fingernail dripping with blood as an evil grin stretched out across her face. "See you in hell, Ryan," and she left the room.
Minutes later, a guard entered the room, freezing in his steps. He ran outside into the hallway and sounded the alarm. He looked wildly around the corridor, but there was no sign of Hailey.
The Winchesters, Helena, and more military personnel hurried into the room to discover Ryan's body. Helena hurried over him and laid her hand over his chest. White light flashed and covered him, and Ryan jerked again, struggling to breathe.
"I was dead," he gasped as Helena released him from his binding. "Why did you save me?"
"We have a soldier demon," Helena said. "Beth."
"Beth," Sam exclaimed.
"Yeah, and now the demons know where we are. They're coming." She looked at Ryan.
"Why save me? I killed someone," Ryan said.
"Because if you want to save that soul of yours, you better fight on our side, or I'll return you to hell myself." Helena stormed out of the room. "Get ready, boys." She looked back at all of them. "War is coming, and this might be where it all ends."
