Seven Devils

Chapter 14 / Upstairs, Downstairs

"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour."

— Peter 5:8

Alone in his room, Sam finally succumbed to his nagging suspicion. He pulled up all the files he could dig up on one Marlene Ter-Gabrielyan: publications, mentions, her social media, filled with bright, lively photos — Sam hadn't expected to see anything else. Even her university transcripts were impeccable, and there were no police records to date until March 2009 when everything had gone downhill. The entire world, really.

Marlene was a completely normal person. The kind Sam had always wished to become. However hard he tried though, something always dragged him back. Perhaps, it was just never meant to be. In a way, Sam was thankful for the childhood he'd had — it'd prepared him for what would eventually come. Yes, Marlene'd had it all, but now that it'd been taken away from her, she was absolutely lost. At least Sam had something to come back to.

He typed in her father's name and was surprised by the number of links that popped up. Marley wasn't kidding when she'd said that Arthur was a big deal. Going through the extensive list of his works on anthropology, Sam thought he'd actually read a couple of them in college. Arthur Ter-Gabrielyan really was a professor at Harvard and a highly distinguished one, at that — his faculty page was filled with numerous accolades.

Sam frowned, looking at Arthur's picture. What could a man like him be doing with the angels? An internationally renowned anthropologist with dozens of publications and unparalleled contribution to the field. It all looked so...polished. Perhaps, Arthur had struck a deal with a crossroads demon and needed a way out? That would definitely explain his success. But it didn't add up — Arthur had made a name for himself more than ten years ago. He would've already been dead. Yet everything about the Ter-Gabrielyan's was painstakingly outstanding, not a blemish on their family name.

And in Sam's experience, no one had a cleaner record than people who had something to hide.

𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐

Marlene walked into the bar like a woman on a mission. She had the entire night to overthink everything Sam'd told her — for better or for worse — and she was ready to speak her sleep-deprived mind.

"Hey, Lindsey," Marley called. The waitress turned around, surprised, a tray full of drinks in her hands, "Have you seen Sa — Keith? Have you seen Keith?"

"He's over there," she pointed to the table in the back. There he was, talking to a couple of rugged-looking fellows. Marley frowned. Judging by Sam's face, the discussion wasn't a pleasant one. He looked absolutely miserable.

"Who are these guys?" she asked.

"Keith's buddies. Apparently, he's a hunter," Lindsey snorted.

Marlene shot her a stunned look, "What did you just say?"

"You know, a hunter? Shooting Bambie and stuff?"

"Oh. Yeah, that's...disgusting," Marley replied distractedly, watching the table. After a few minutes, the three men stood up and Sam followed after them. Whatever they'd been talking about, they hadn't come to an agreement, that's for sure.

Sam's hunting buddies brushed past Marlene like a whirlwind, radiating disgruntlement. She met the eyes of one of them for a brief moment. Yeah, she would't want to be a Bambie in his way.

When the triumvirate of toxic masculinity finally left the bar, Marlene walked over to Sam. He was still standing at the table, dejected and lost. He didn't even notice her approach at first — his eyes were glued to the door.

"Are you alright?" Marley asked, worried.

Sam blinked away his thoughts and turned to her, "Hey, yeah, I'm just...those were the guys that Bobby sent." She quirked a brow. "To check out the omens?"

"Wait, you were serious about that?"

Sam gave her a confused look, "Why would you think I wasn't?" he walked to a table to clean it up. Marlene trailed after him.

"Because — because, Sam, you know you have to do it. You want to do it." He pointedly ignored her imploring eyes, loading up plates onto the tray, "I don't believe you actually enjoy this Sweet Home Alabama shtick. You have to get out there and kick their ass."

Sam let out a weary sigh, "Marlene, I already told you— I can't."

"Yes, you told me. And I heard you. But you know what? I don't care." Sam picked up the tray and turned to her, jaw set dangerously, "This world needs you right now, Sam Winchester. You can't just avoid it by hiding in this Hallmark dreamland."

"I'm not hiding — "

"Oh, really? This apron really brings out your lies, Sam," Marley hissed. She was getting too loud and threw a cautious look around to make sure no one was staring, "The more you avoid it, the harder it will be to face," she whispered to him, "Believe me, I'd know. My father had been hiding me away from everything for 22 years. Now look how that turned out."

Sam all but dropped the tray on the table and turned to face her, "Funny you should talk about lies, Marlene."

She narrowed her eyes at him in disbelief, "Excuse me?"

Sam threw the washcloths that was hanging over his shoulder on the table and walked to the backdoor. Marley hurried after him, adrenalin pumping through her body. Did he know? How had he found out?

"What the hell was that?" she demanded as soon as they were in the alleyway.

"Why is your father working with the angels?" Sam asked point-blank. Marlene halted.

Her rage slightly faltered, "He's not working with them — "

"You lied about his deal, about the demon blood — what else are you hiding?"

"Sam — "

"No, Marlene," he said measuredly, "I know you're not telling me something. Like, why was Lilith after you in the first place? And how did you get out of the Convent? God, there are so many things that just...don't add up."

"Sam, I promise you, I'm not the bad guy here," Marlene took a step closer, reaching a hand towards him, "You know me. I'm trying to help — "

Sam backed away, "Do I? Know you?" he looked at her like she was a stranger, "I think Dean was right. I trust too easily."

Marlene flinched, her eyes burning. She knew Dean didn't trust her — he'd made it clear from the very beginning. But Sam...He'd made her think that he cared, that he listened, that they were in it together, only to later put a steaming load of shit onto all of it.

"Alright then," she said cooly, "Go clean some tables and wallow in your misery while the world goes to shit. Poor Sam, who made all the wrong choices and can't stop feeling sorry for himself." Marlene could feel how deep her words cut. She could see it on Sam's face. "You know what? You're just a coward, Sam. I hope you enjoy all those people dying because you were too scared to pull your head out of the sand."

Marlene walked away, feeling his eyes burn her alive.

𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐

The ceiling in her room had 23 little holes in it. 3 strange splatters that were not from cranberry juice. A strange mould in the corner which could be potentially life threatening. And the dust in the lamps which struggled to stay alive had very possibly developed into its own entity.

Marley heaved a sigh and continued to stare blankly into the ceiling. Perhaps, therein lay the answer to why she was feeling like absolute crap. Marlene wasn't a confrontational person. She was the kind of person who'd let her feeling simmer down to a boil and burn everything inside rather than risk spilling them on someone else. She prided herself on being able to rein in her emotions and move on.

Sometimes, though, when the stress was too much to handle, Marley would let her mouth run a twenty-mile marathon.

Did she feel guilty? Yes. Did she feel righteous? A little. Was she angry? Not anymore. Sam had been a dick, which is what Marlene had been telling herself all this time to justify every single word she'd said to him. But with every hour, this excuse seemed less and less valid, and by the end of the day, Marley started to feel like a dick herself. Sam had been right, even though he'd been a douche about it. She had been lying to him. Her father was working with the angels. "They must know the truth, Marlene, and it's better that it comes from you."

It was nearing midnight when she finally mustered up the courage to face him. Marlene figured Sam'd already finished up at the bar and went to knock on his door, but there was no reply. It could be one of two things: he was either really pissed at her and refused to open the door or he was still working.

So Marlene decided to put all her eggs into the second basket and went for a little evening stroll.

𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐

Everyone had left an hour ago, but Sam stayed behind to clean up. Lindsey'd offered to take his shift — she'd noticed that he hadn't been himself all day and wanted to help. But Sam'd insisted that everything was alright and that he could do it himself. Because nothing was ever wrong with Sam.

His couldn't stop thinking about Marlene's face, the pain in her eyes at his unnecessarily harsh words. Perhaps, they were true, perhaps she was lying, but Sam always felt like he could trust her. He wanted to trust her. He knew that Marlene trusted him too and then selfishly used it to hurt her.

It was cruel what he'd done.

Sam couldn't seem to stop hurting people and then wonder why they never stuck around.

He didn't look back when the door chimed open, "We're closed!" he yelled out, polishing a table. When no sound followed, Sam turned around. He froze, "Marlene?"

"Hi, Sam," she mumbled sheepishly, "Can we...can we, uh, talk?"

It took him a moment to recover from shock, "Marlene, I'm so sorry. What I said — "

"No, no I'm sorry," Marley walked closer to him, "I didn't mean a single word. Not one. Sam, you're the last person I'd call a coward," she huffed out a laugh, "If anything, I'm the coward for not having the guts to tell you the truth this whole time."

"Guess we both have some apologising to do," Sam told her, a warm smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

Marley breathed a sigh of relief. Now, it hadn't been that hard. The worst part was still to come, though. "I wanted to tell you, Sam, I did. It just never seemed like the right time."

He gestured to the empty bar, dimly lit by the street lamps outside, "Now's as good a time as any."

It's now or never, Marlene

"You were right, my father is working with the angels," she said slowly, "But it's not what you think."

Sam's eyes held no malice or distrust like they did the last time. He looked patient, understanding, "I don't think anything, Marlene. I just want the truth,"

She worried her lip to the point where she could taste blood. What if Sam thought she's a monster? What if that would break the little trust he had left? Marley glanced up at him, face a grimace of indecision. He gave her an encouraging nod. "Sam," she let out a shaky sigh, "My family — "

The chime startled both of them. Marlene's head whipped to the door and she stilled. There was one of the man she'd seen earlier that day, one of Sam's "hunting buddies" as Lindsey'd put it. The one who'd looked at her when he passed by. Only now he was covered in blood and grime.

"Hey, Tim," Sam said slowly, brows furrowed. Clearly, they hadn't agreed on having drinks that evening.

Tim looked at Marley, his face devoid of any expression. The darkness in his eyes unsettled her. "Something you want to tell me, Sam?" he asked, kneading his bloody knuckles.

Sam frowned, "What? No..."

"You sure about that?"

"I — I don't know — jeez. Are you okay? Where are Reggie and Steve?"

"Oh, Steve's good," Tim said sarcastically and walked inside. Marlene moved closer to Sam, "He's, uh, his guts are lying roadside outside the Hawley Five and Dime."

Her stomach churned at the gruesome image. Sam had been right about the omens in Tully. And upon his rising, there shall be hail and fire mixed with blood. Blood. They hadn't been able to stop it.

"I'm sorry," Sam said.

"Sorry don't cut it, Sam."

He cut Tim a confused look, "What do you want me to say?"

"The truth."

Marlene looked from Sam to Tim, who was growing increasingly frustrated.

"Okay, fine," he greeted out, "Let me give you some of my own, then. We go into town, we catch ourselves a demon, we get jumped by ten more. Steve bought it."

"I'm sorry."

"Saying it twice don't make it so, Sam. You see, this demon, he, uh, he told us things." Marley glanced over at Sam. He was struggling to keep his composure, "Crazy things. Things about you, Sam."

"Demons lie."

"Yeah?" Sam nodded. It didn't seem to convince Tim, "I'm gonna ask you one last time. The truth. Now."

"Hey, why don't we all calm down?" Marley said, her voice shaking. Tim cut her an annoyed glare, "Let's get you a drink, yeah? And you two can talk about it — "

Tim scowled, "Oh, I'm done talkin'."

The door chimed opened again and in came one of Tom's friends, a tall dark-skinned guy, dragging Lindsey inside with him. The girl looked terrified, her face stained with tears as she tried to wriggle her way out.

"Lindsey!" Sam screamed.

The man held a knife to her neck. "What's going on?" she cried.

Sam wanted to launch forward and beat the crap out of the bastards, but he knew that a single wrong move could cost Lindsey her life. So he held his hands up to placate them, "Just take it easy, okay?" Sam said carefully, "Put the knife down."

Marlene, though, decided to throw caution to the wind. As soon as Tim's buddy brought the knife to Lindsey's neck, she pulled out the gun from her belt and pointed it at Tim. Sam turned to her in shock, eyes widening at the weapon in her hands.

"Tell your girlfriend to put away the gun, Sam," Tim told him, keeping his eyes on Marley, "Or the girl dies." The dark-skinned man brought the knife closer to Lindsey's throat.

Sam looked at Marlene pleadingly. God, if only she knew how to fight, they could've taken those guys down together. After a moment's hesitation, Marley's hand wavered and she lowered the gun, burning Tim with a seething glare.

"Be a darling and slide it over to me." Begrudgingly, she did so. Tim picked up the gun.

"The knife," Sam demanded.

Tim gave his friend a nod. The guy put the knife down on the bar but didn't let go of Lindsey. At least now, she wasn't in any immediate danger. "It's true," Sam finally told them, "What the demons said, it's all true."

Tim looked back at his friend, then glared at Sam, "Keep going."

"Why? You gonna hate me any less? Am I gonna hate myself any less? What do you want?"

"I want to hear you say it."

Sam's eyes burned defiantly, his chest heaving, "I did it," he greeted out in a challenge, "I started the Apocalypse."

Tim shook his head, and scoffed, "You son of a bitch."

Lindsey, still in the hunter's grip, stared at Sam in horror. He had to look away to avoid facing yet another person he'd let down.

"That's all you came here for?" Marley asked, "A confession?"

Tim threw her a dismissive look, "You stay out of it, girl."

"Psycho and sexist," Marlene drawled, "Boy, you're a whole package."

"You'd better watch your mouth — "

Sam stepped forward, shielding Marley away from him, "What do you want, Tim?"

Tim levelled her with a derisive glare and took something out from the pocket of his coat. It was a vial of red liquid. Which bore an awful resemblance to blood.

"What is that?" Sam asked, his voice shaking. He already knew the answer. He could smell it.

"What do you think it is?" Tim rolled the vial between his fingers, "It's go juice, Sammy boy."

Marley's stomach dropped. She looked over at Sam and noticed his whole body trembling, lip curling into a snarl. He was struggling to fight it.

"I don't trust myself around them."

"I almost caved again. The blood."

"Get that away from me," Sam hissed.

"Away from you? No," Tim sneered, holding up the vial as he walked closer to him, "This is for you. Hell, if that demon wasn't right as rain. Down the hatch, son."

"You're insane," Sam spat.

"Look, here's what's gonna happen. You're gonna drink this, Hulk out," Marley's eyes flashed to Lindsey. Tim's crony had her handcuffed to the bar, "And you're gonna waste every one of the demon scum that killed my best friend," Tim turned to the waitress, "Or she dies."

"You wouldn't do that," Sam said.

"It's funny how watching your best friend die changes that," Tim and the other guy advanced on Sam. He stepped back, grabbing Marley by the arm to push her behind, "Come on, you know you want it, Sam. Just reach out and take it."

The dark-skinned guy prowled closer, his eyes glowing with malice. Marley glanced at the vial. If Sam took it, if he drank the blood...he would never recover. Not again. Not from this — "I can do it," she stepped forward.

Sam turned to her, "Marlene, what — "

"You?" Tim derided, "And who the hell are you?"

"You give me that blood and you find out," Marley challenged.

"Marlene," Sam hissed at her, "You don't know what you're doing..."

Marlene extended her hand, "The blood?"

Tim and his friend exchanged wary looks, "See, the demon said nothing about you, so I'm not gonna take any chances," he said, mouth curled into a mocking smirk, "Move away, or I'll make ya."

Marley stood taller, holding his eyes defiantly, "Then make me."

"Marlene, get away," Sam whispered, "Don't you dare — "

"Alright," Tim said after some consideration, "So you say you can do what he does?" he pointed at Sam.

"Yes."

"She can't," Sam cut in, "I'll take it."

"Oh, now isn't that gallant? But, you see..." Tim strolled up to Marlene, "...we might as well just have ourself a little experiment. What do you say?" he looked at her and Sam, "After all, two freaks are better than one, right?"

"You're sick," Marley breathed. Tim grabbed her by the arm an hauled her closer.

Sam's face turned furious and jerked forward to push him away from Marlene, but was stopped by Reggie his way. Marlene struggled against Tim's grip as he uncorked the vial and brought it to her lips, "Didn't think I'd hand that right to ya, did you?" he hissed in her ear and tipped the vial. The warm liquid flooded her mouth. It was thick and tasted of copper, making Marlene nauseous. She felt an overpowering urge to spit it out, but before she could open her mouth, Tim pressed his hand to it so she'd swallow. Marley convulsed against it like a writhing snake and sank her teeth into his palm. Tim jerked his hand away, hissing from pain, "You bitch!"

Right in that moment, Sam charged at Reggie. He knocked him down and straddled him, landing a series of ferocious blows on his face. Tim rushed to help his friend and grabbed Sam from the behind, choking him. But he had another thing coming. With an animalistic snarl, Sam sent an elbow straight into Tim's nose, then whipped around and slammed him into the bar. He grabbed Reggie's knife and held it to Tim's throat, breathing heavily.

A whimper broke Sam out of the violent daze. He noticed Lindsey watching, her big blue eyes wide with fear. Sam looked at Tim, lip curled in disgust, and threw him over to Reggie.

"Go," Sam pointed to the door.

"Don't think we won't be back," Tim snarled.

"Don't think I won't be here."

Reggie and Tim stumbled out of the bar, the door chiming closed behind them. Sam wiped away the blood off his face with a sleeve of his shirt and looked over at Lindsay to see if she was alright. But the girl was staring at something behind him. Frowning, Sam turned around and saw Marlene sprawled on the floor, convulsing.

"Marlene!" he rushed to her and picked her shaking body up, "Marlene? Marlene!"

"S-sam," Marley croaked and then broke out in a violent fit of coughing. Sam pushed the tousled hair away from her ashen face, and saw blood trickling from her mouth and down her nose. Her entire face was stained with it.

And then she stilled.

𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐𖤐

Marlene had never thought that opening your eyes could be such a gruelling feat. It's like her eyelids weighed a whole ton and wouldn't lift without some assistance. They felt dry and crusty, and burned every time she tried to move them.

In fact, her entire body felt like it was on fire, like her blood was boiling. A liquid inferno suffusing her veins, scorching her nerves, melting her skin. Is that what Hell felt like? Dante's seventh circle, condemning her to an eternity buried in a burning tomb.

"Marlene?" she heard a voice. Was that Virgil? Did he come to lead her through the gates of Hell? "Marlene?"

Marley fluttered her eyes open, hesitant to meet the light after hours spent in the darkness. She was lying on a bed, in a motel room. In Garber, Oklahoma. Where she'd come to see Sam. Sam.

Marlene turned to look at him, wincing from the pain in her entire body. He was sitting by the bed, head buried in his hands. His hair was a mess, his clothes askew and covered in blood. Her blood. "Sam?" she whispered.

His head shot up, "You're awake," Sam said in disbelief. His eyes were darker, bloodshot. Sunken. The sun was already up. Had he been sitting here this whole time?

"Starting to wish I wasn't," Marley muttered, her body an aching mess. The last time she felt like that was after a hot pilates class Tessa had dragged her to in her yearly aspiration to stay fit. It'd usually lasted a week.

"How are you feeling?"

Marlene tried to lift herself up into a sitting position, "Achy. Exhausted," she said, "How long was I out?"

"Almost twelve hours"

Okay, that wasn't that bad. After what'd happened, Marley thought it would be something in the lines of an entire year. What exactly had happened, though?

"Do you feel any...different?" Sam raised a brow, clearly referring to the reason of her hangover.

Marley shrugged, "I certainly feel worse. But no urge to crush and destroy, if that's what you mean."

"Huh," Sam breathed almost in wonder, "That's interesting."

"Interesting?"

"Well of course, that's not the reaction I was expecting," he told her casually, sounding mildly disappointed. And different. Marley stiffened when the realisation finally hit her. "Your body rejected the blood. Like a disease," the creature squinted its eyes in fascination, "To purify itself. Though I guess I shouldn't be surprised, right? My little brother's blood and all. I wonder if that makes you my niece," he considered the thought and quickly discarded it with a frown, "Ah, no. That would make it weird."

What? —

"What the hell are you talking about?"

Sam smiled an indulgent, patronising smile, "All in good time, little one. All in good time. My father does reword patience, after all. And I hear you desperately want to win a ticket to Heaven. But I'll let you in on a little secret," he all but purred and leaned closer, "It's much more fun downstairs."

She woke up with a snap of his fingers. Marlene shot up from the pillow, sucking in a sharp breath of air, eyes jumping around the room in panic. She knew. She finally knew...

Sam was instantly by her side, "Marlene? Are you — " she flinched away from his touch, looking like a lost, wounded animal. Confused, Sam raised his hands and stepped away, "Alright, it's okay..." he said slowly. Too busy hyperventilating, Marley didn't immediately notice that his face was painted with concern, and his eyes filled with worry. That is was not...him.

"What happened, Marlene?" Sam asked when she'd visibly relaxed. But there was still an unsettling, haunted look in her eyes.

That's not the reaction I was expecting.

"S-Sam," she whispered shakily, looking up, "I need to tell you something."