Chapter 10: Information
Amber jumped off the second to last step, following Dean and Sam to the impala.
"Are you cruisin' for a hook-up?" Sam asked, walking quickly to the car.
"What do you mean?"
"The coordinates point to Blackwater Ridge!" Sam said, annoyed, "so what are we waiting for, let's go find dad! Why do we even need to talk to that girl?"
"I don't know, maybe we should know what we're walking into before we actually walk into it!" Dean unlocked the impala and just as he was about to climb in, he stood up again and leaned against the side of the door, "Since when are you all shoot first, ask questions later anyway?"
Sam was standing in front of the car door, so Amber cleared her throat, trying not to interfere with their little argument. Sam pulled open the door and allowed Amber to climb in,
"Thank Sam," Amber smiled, climbing into the back.
"Since now," Sam said, climbing in and slamming the door on Dean.
"Really?" Dean asked, smirking and climbing in, starting the car.
"So, where are we heading now?" amber asked from the backseat over the loud Metallica music.
Dean reached for the radial knob and turned the music down a fraction.
"To that girl, Hailey's, house," Dean replied.
"To find out…?" Amber asked.
"To find out where her brother was when he supposedly went missing," Dean told her, turning to look at her once before turning to look back at the road in front of them.
"…And to try and hook up with her," Sam added, shaking his head.
"..Oh.."Amber felt her heart sink for a fraction of a second.
Dean elbowed Sam in the side,
"Shut up!" Dean rolled his eyes as he continued to drive.
Amber stood behind Dean and Sam as they knocked on Hailey's door,
"Dean, I don't think this is a smart idea," Amber fidgeted nervously, hands in her denim jacket.
"shhh," Dean snapped as the front door opened.
"You must be Hailey Collins," Dean looked her up and down, "I'm Dean, this is Sam and Amber," Amber and Sam nodded at Hailey, smiling, "we're rangers from the park service."
"Ranger Wilkinson sent us over," Amber added from her spot behind Dean and Sam.
"We were wondering if we could talk to you about your brother," Dean finished.
Hailey looked at the three of them standing in front of her, hesitating before replying,
"Let me see some ID."
Amber looked wide-eyed at the ID Dean pulled out of his pocket and held in front of the screen. Hailey looked at the ID then up at Dean then back at the ID before finally pushing open the screen door, allowing the three of them to enter.
"Is that your car?" Hailey asked, eyeing the Impala.
Dean nodded,
"Nice car," Hailey walked in front of them, leading them into the kitchen.
They stopped in the kitchen where her younger brother was eating dinner, which Hailey was in the middle of preparing.
"So, how do you know he's missing?" Amber asked, "I mean, he isn't due back until the 24th," she added.
"He has a cell phone, he sends me messages on the phone and laptop everyday, sometimes a few times a day," Hailey sat a bowl onto the wooden table in front of them, her brother hunched over his bowl, silent, "but it's been a few days since he last sent us a message."
"Maybe he isn't getting reception," Sam stated.
Dean looked around the kitchen. A pot was on the stove, steam pouring out of it. It was rather dark and small.
"He has a satellite phone too," Hailey added.
"Did you ever think that maybe they're all having a good time and he just forgot to check in?" Dean continued to eye the room.
"He wouldn't do that!" Hailey's brother spoke up angrily, defending his brother.
"Our parents are gone, it's just my two brothers and me," Hailey said sadly, "We all keep close tabs on one another."
"Could we see the things he sent you?" Sam asked, pointing towards the laptop at the edge of the table.
"Yeah," Hailey said, turning on the computer and pulling over a chair for Sam to sit on.
Sam, Dean and Amber watched the videos Tommy, Hailey's brother, sent them. Tommy had brown hair and was wearing a blue long-sleeved shirt in the video. He looked pretty young. In the video he was telling Hailey and her brother that he was having a good time and that he would check in later. Amber cocked her head to the side, trying to figure out what she just saw. She elbowed Sam lightly. Sam looked up at her, the same bewildered expression on his face. Dean raised an eyebrow at them, noticing their behavior. Sam turned in his seat towards Hailey,
"Could you send these to me?"
"Yeah…sure," Hailey nodded.
"Well, we'll find your brother, we're heading out to Blackwater Ridge first thing in the morning," Dean spoke up from behind Amber and Sam.
"I'll see you there," Hailey put down another bowl on the table, "Look, I can't sit around here anymore, I hired a guide and he's going to take us through Blackwater Ridge, I need to find my brother," Hailey added.
"Sure," Dean nodded.
"Well, thank you for your time, but we'll leave you alone to have dinner," Amber raised her eyebrows at Dean.
"Yeah, sure," Hailey smiled a little.
Amber was the first to leave the house in her blue jeans, vans, "Rolling Stones" t-shirt and denim jacket. Dean and Sam followed behind, unlocking the impala.
"I can't believe you guys did that!" Amber said from the backseat, running a hand through her hair.
"Did what?" Dean and Sam asked at the same time.
"Lied to her! Used a fake ID…" Amber laughed.
"Relax," Dean laughed, "We do it all the time!" Dean said like it was nothing.
"Oh! That's reassuring!" amber laughed.
"We haven't been caught yet," Dean stated matter-of-factly, winking at Amber and turning on the radio.
