Content Warning: language and violence

Sam and Dean closed the doors of the Impala behind them as they headed towards the motel. Both were worn out from the hunt they just wrapped up with a Tulpa. Not to mention the wanna-be ghost hunters they had to deal with. Riley had stayed behind to fully recover from her concussion. She pushed to go, but the boys were adamant that she rest up.

As they walked in the room, they saw Riley. She was sitting cross-legged with her guitar in her lap. Her hair sat high in a messy bun and her glasses sat comfortably on her face. Riley was in a pair of sleeping shorts and an oversized sweatshirt that belonged to one of the brothers. She decided a while ago that she had claimed it.

Finn sat beside her and to her other side were pictures sprawled out on the comforter. Her head shot up in their direction and they could see she had been crying. She quickly used her sleeve to wipe her eyes and faked a smile.

"Oh, hey guys." Riley sniffled. "I thought you were gonna call when you were headed back."

The two looked concerned but knew it was never going to turn out well if they pushed when it came to Riley. She was soft-hearted, but never wanted to show it. How broken she was after Deb's death was almost embarrassing for her. It was important to her that she always fought to remain strong.

"Uh, yeah. Sorry. We just were only a short drive away. We crashed in the car last night." Sam put down his duffle as Riley's canine companion wagged his tail and hurried to greet the hunters. He bent down to pet him and say hello.

Dean had noticed a change in her behavior recently. He thought at first her concussion was affecting her, but he knew it was more than that. Walking over to her, he smiled softly and kissed her before moving a stray hair from her face. "We missed you. How are you feeling?"

Riley continued to try to keep up her act. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm good. I was able to take the stitches out last night."

"Sweetheart," Dean started as he crouched down in front of her. "You know I'm not talking about your head."

Sam walked in their direction to sit on the opposite bed. "C'mon, Rye. You know you can talk to us."

She wiped away another tear again as soon as it hit her skin. "Um," Riley cleared her throat. "This week—it'll be two years since I lost dad." She glanced down at the photos to her side and sighed.

"Can I?" Dean asked with his hand extended towards the pictures. She nodded. As he picked them up he stacked them together and sat next to Sam.

Three photographs that Riley had held onto through the years were all she had left of her family. As he flipped through them, they finally got a better picture of the life Riley had lived. One was of her mother and father on the day she was born. Her mom laid in the hospital bed holding a swaddled Riley and Jackson beamed at his new daughter.

She realized it was time to open up to her family. Riley refused to let people into her past, but Sam and Dean weren't just "people."

"My mom's name was Linda. She and my dad were head over heels for each other."

"She's beautiful," Sam said.

Dean smiled. "I can see where you get the red in your hair."

The next picture was of Jackson, Deb, and Riley in the diner. The three sat in front of a freshly baked pie. She couldn't have been more than seven years old and was grinning a toothless smile from ear to ear. Covered in flour and wearing large oven mitts, she showed off her first homemade pie. Her family stood beside her with their arms around each other. Dean couldn't help but let out a breathy chuckle at the little version of the woman he loved. They looked like a normal family.

"Deb always called dad, 'Jax'. They were always super close since they were kids."

In the final photo stood Riley and her father. Both had their hands on their hips in dramatic fashion in what appeared to be a Halloween picture. Jackson was dressed as Batman and Riley was Wonder Woman. The best part was that she was a grown woman in the picture. Even as an adult, she and Jack were incredibly close.

Both brothers let out small laughs at the picture and Riley could feel an emotion roll through them. It was love with a hint of jealousy. Even in living the life of a hunter, Jackson made time to be a real father. He was a proud parent, raising a young woman in a difficult and scary world. But he was never too busy to be with her or to just be "dad".

"He was a special guy, wasn't he?" Dean looked up at a tear-filled Riley.

"Yeah," she whispered through the lump in her throat.

"You know, Dean and I met him a couple times. He was always trying to make us laugh." Sam turned to his brother as he smiled. "Do you remember that time dad had to run out on an errand when we were kids and Jack was visiting? He stayed with us for the night and we watched movies?"

"Oh yeah!" Dean's eyes lit up at the memory. "I totally forgot about that!" he replied tapping Sam on the chest. "He uh—took us out for pancakes in the morning and we went to the park. We spent the morning playing catch before dad came back."

The left side of Riley's mouth curled up in a small moment of joy. "Yep. Sounds like dad." She put the guitar down as Finn jumped back up onto the bed to snuggle into her lap. "There wasn't a single moment that I wasn't proud to be that man's daughter." Tears urged themselves to fall as she sniffled again.

"He really loved you, Rye." Sam looked again through the photos. "Even being that young, I still remember him talking about his little girl."

Dean sighed as his hands came together between his relaxed legs. "Jack was an incredible guy and a damn good hunter. I'm not surprised he raised someone like you." His eyes turned to look at Riley. "Our dad didn't do this stuff with us. We were too busy hunting to ever get to be kids. He did his best though."

Sam swallowed hard imagining having Riley's childhood. Finding the balance between training to hunt and just being a kid, was more than he could have ever hoped for. He was jealous that Riley got to have that, but loved her so much and knew it explained the heart she had.

"I know that I don't talk about dad much." Riley fidgeted with the ends of the sleeves of her sweatshirt. "It's just–it's too hard."

"What happened to him, Rye?" Dean asked reaching out to touch her knee.

She took a deep breath and fixed her glasses before looking back up at them. "He and I were in town chasing a shapeshifter. The son of a bitch wasn't making it easy to find him. We had spent the day doing recon and went back to the motel for the night." Riley's hands fidgeted more as she fought to keep talking. "Dad said he got a call, and he had to go handle something on his own. I tried to get him to let me come, but he insisted that he had to go alone. It–it didn't make any sense. Since I was an adult, we always went together. We were partners." The familiar taste of tears softly hit her lips. "But I let him go and…he was weird before he left. He hugged me so tight and kept telling me how much he loved me. I knew something was wrong, but he just wouldn't budge on it. He kissed me on my head and said 'goodbye'. That uh–that was the last time I saw him."

"Was it the shapeshifter? Did he come after your dad?" Sam was eager to hear more.

Riley shook her head. "No, I don't think so."

Dean's brow furrowed and he was confused. "You don't think so?"

"We don't know what happened." Her voice began to crack and more tears fell. The blue in her eyes was piercing as they contrasted from the red in them from crying. "Your dad. He was the one that found him."

"What?" both brothers asked in unison.

"Why wouldn't dad tell us that?" Dean looked at Sam.

"I was getting ready for bed. It was pouring rain outside and I heard a knock at the door. John was there. He was soaking wet and told me…" The memories seemed to leave cuts in her throat as they formed into words. She had never told anyone about that night. John was even the one that told Deb what happened. "He told me he got a weird call from dad. That he had told him to meet him at some abandoned barn down the highway. John said he didn't give him any other info. When your dad got there, he saw my dad's truck. So he went inside, and he saw…" Riley covered her face with her hands that were covered by her long sleeves. After a moment she tried to compose herself. "…he saw dad…on the floor of the barn. I guess he ran to go help him, but he was already gone. There weren't any marks on him, no sign of a struggle, not even any evidence that anyone or anything else was there."

Sam and Dean both looked bewildered at the story. "So…nothing? Dad didn't find anything?" Dean found it slightly hard to believe that a hunter as good as his dad wouldn't have been able to find something in that barn.

"Nope. But, John had brought his body back—back to me. I checked him myself. It was like he just collapsed. We brought him in to get an autopsy done. They didn't find a single thing wrong with him. The coroner said that it was as though he just stopped breathing." Riley felt a small sigh of relief after finally telling what had happened that night. It was like the burden had lightened in some small way. "We stole his body back of course and brought him back to Lawrence. We knew Deb would want to be there when we gave him his hunter's funeral."

Dean took a beat before pulling her over onto their bed after grabbing her hand. "Rye, do you want to know what happened to your dad?

She nodded as her eyes welled up again her voice breaking. "I haveto."

Sam put his hand on her shoulder. "Then we'll do it together."

The love Sam and Dean were showing her and the bond they had formed, was as real as anything she'd ever known. She knew that Jackson and Deb were gone, and it might always hurt that they were. But she realized, she had made her own family and it was one she knew any other hunter would kill for. Nothing would ever come between her and her boys.

Riley sniffled again as she lifted her glasses to wipe under her eyes before adjusting them. "Ugh. I'm sure I'm a fucking mess," she said chuckling. "I'm gonna go get cleaned up. I'll be out in a bit." As she headed towards the bathroom she turned around. They both gave her a small smile as she went into the room and closed the door.

"Sam, something about that story doesn't sit right with me."

"Me neither. Dad didn't find anything? A healthy hunter just dropped dead?"

"Nuh-uh. I don't buy it. We gotta talk to him about this."

Sam scoffed. "Well yeah, but who knows when we'll actually talk to him again?"

"Screw it. Whether he picks up or not, I gotta try." Dean got up and flipped his phone open to find the number for John's new burner. He closed the door behind him as he went outside and stood by the car.

"You've reached John Winchester. Call my son Dean if this is an emergency. 785-555-2476" The tone beeped.

"Dad. I know we said we were gonna let things settle before we reached out again, but I gotta talk to you. Riley just told us about Jack and what happened to him. She still has so many questions and I don't think she's gonna be able to move on until she has some answers. Please call me back. I wanna help her but I need to know what you know, dad." Dean closed the phone and leaned against Baby. There was more to Jackson's death. And for Riley's sake, he was going to find out what.

—

Later that night, Sam and Riley sat in the motel room. Sitting in a chair by the window, Sam worked on bettering his guitar skills while Riley coached him. She was lying on her side on the bed, practically spooning with her furry friend. Her fingers ran through Finn's soft fur. She watched her "brother" stumble through the chorus of The Clash's "Should I Stay Or Should I Go". Moments like that brought her so much joy. She felt almost normal.

Dean walked through the door on a phone call. "Yeah…well thanks for the help, Cliff. Let me know if you get wind of anything else. Take care, man." Closing his phone he turned to Sam hearing to his attempt to play. "Dude, why are you trying to torture us?"

"Be nice!" Riley teased. "He's doing great."

Sam scoffed. "We always miss you so much when you're gone," he said with sarcasm.

"Yeah. Where were you all afternoon anyway?"

"Well, after we talked today, I made a couple calls." Dean walked over towards Riley and handed her a newspaper article as she sat up. "You and your dad never found that shapeshifter, did you?"

"No, we didn't." She sat up and stopped to look over the clipping before reading out loud. "Bethany Giles, 22, of Fargo, North Dakota–" she paused. "That's where we were hunting."

"I know. Keep reading." Dean flipped the chair from the small table so he could sit on it backward, his legs straddling it.

"–claims to have been attacked by her boyfriend, James Landon. She was beaten and stabbed within an inch of her life while held captive by Landon. Giles is currently on life support. Evidence confirmed that Landon was, in fact, the perpetrator. However, the family of Landon says that he was with them at the time of the assault. That there was no possibility he could have taken part in the events. James Landon adamantly states his innocence and that he was not involved. He was arrested this past weekend and waits to stand trial for the attack on Ms. Giles."

"One guy, in two places at once? Sound familiar? And that's not all. This is only one of three cases in the last two and a half years that tell the same story. Except—" Dean looked at Riley.

"–except none of the other victims survived. Their throats were slit." A look of shock came over her.

"Only reason this girl is still alive is because one of her sisters showed up for a movie night they had planned. Saw the guy herself as he ran out of the house."

"Oh my god. That's our old case. This is the exact one we went to Fargo for. Those other two murders brought us there."

Sam put the guitar down against the wall. "So the shapeshifter's still out there."

"Yep. It must have gone into hiding after Riley and Jack came to town. No one's heard from it since." The eldest Winchester looked at his brother. "Cliff? One of dad's old contacts? Says he, another hunter, and Rye went after this thing themselves after Jackson died. They worked it for two months and didn't find a thing." He turned to Riley. "Sweetheart, you never told us that you went back for it with them."

Riley looked up from the clipping to find the gaze of the green eyes looking back at her. There was silence as she couldn't find the words. She quickly got up and marched outside, closing the door behind her.

Both Winchesters sat confused at the turn of events. "What the fuck just happened?" Dean asked.

—

A few hours later, there was a sound at the door. Riley came in with a bottle of whiskey in hand. She had been drinking as she stumbled into the door.

"Rye! Where have you been? We've been calling you." Sam ran to her side. "Dean's out looking for you."

"I'm fine," she slurred. "Can't a girl go for a walk with her good friend, Mr. Daniels?" Riley waved the bottle in front of her and let out a small chuckle.

"Wow, you are drunk."

"And you," she poked his nose, "are very observative, Samuel." Riley tripped a little as Sam caught her.

"Okay," Sam said taking the bottle. "I think we're all good on the whiskey now."

"Aw, party pooper." She fell onto the bed on her back and sighed as she closed her eyes.

The door popped open and Dean hurried inside. "Sam, I can't find her anywhere. I'm starting to freak out, man."

"Uh–Dean?"

As his brother pointed to the bed, Dean ran to Riley's side. "Where the hell have you been? Why haven't you been answering your phone? I've been looking everywhere for you!"

Even though she was too drunk to really function, her empathic ability kicked in. The amount of worry that spilled from Dean made her even dizzier than she was before. She sat up with some difficulty trying to fight off nausea. "I'm fine, Dean. I'm a big girl."

Sam went to get a glass of water and brought it over to her, nudging her to drink.

Dean pushed the hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. "Rye, you had us worried about you all night. Why did you run out earlier?"

As she swallowed the water she wiped her mouth. "Because its– it's my fault."

"What? What are you talking about?" Sam sat on the other bed with Finn who wasn't too keen on the smell of alcohol.

"I was–I was off my game after dad died." Her words seem to string together as the alcohol made it difficult to speak. "This bastard was so evil, guys. He slit the throats of his victims when he was done with them. It was brutal." Riley felt so much guilt that it felt as though it would eat her alive. "I shouldn't have stopped hunting. I gave up. Now another woman is dead because of me."

"Sweetheart, it isn't your fault." Putting his hand gently on her back, Dean tried to comfort her. "This guy has been slipping through hunters' fingers for years now."

Leaning forward, Sam closed some of the distance between him and Riley. "He's right, Rye. You can't blame yourself."

"My dad…" tears dripped down her face. "He would be so disappointed in me."

"No, he wouldn't." Dean's voice was slightly firm. "You know your dad would have understood."

After a moment of silence, Riley looked up to look at them both. "I have to make this right. I won't be able to live with myself if I don't." She stood up and wavered a little with the whiskey still in effect.

Sam chuckled lightly as he and Dean stood to support her. "Okay. We'll go to Fargo. But tomorrow. Tonight? I think it's safe to say you need some rest."

"Can I sleep in the back seat? It's a long drive to North Dakota," she pleaded.

"Pretty sure that's as close to a middle ground as we're gonna get, Sammy." Dean kissed her forehead and went to pack their bags.

—

The soft sound of Journey played in the background as Riley slowly came to. Her eyes were fighting to open and her head was pounding. She groaned as she reached for her head and sat up.

"Morning." Sam sat in the front seat with Finn sitting between the boys. He gave her a soft smile knowing that she must have been pretty hung over.

"Ugh. It's so bright," she said pulling the jacket Dean had covered her with over her face and leaning against the seat.

He could see her in the rearview mirror. "Oh, yeah. We've all been there."

"Are we close?"

"About an hour out, sweetheart."

"Coffee." Riley groaned. "Must…have coffee."

Sam let out a breathy chuckle. "I could go for some coffee."

—

The hunters had found a small food truck that sold authentic Mexican food. Dean swore it was the cure for a bad hangover. Sitting at one of the small picnic tables, Riley sat covering her eyes. Finn laid on the ground beside her watching everyone go by. As he walked over to the table, Sam carried a tray of coffee cups. He sat them down and handed one to Riley.

"You're a godsend, Sam." She sipped at her coffee and hummed at the taste. "Oh, sweet nectar of the Gods."

Dean walked over with the warm food and joined them. "Here." He pulled out a pair of sunglasses he had swiped from a kiosk nearby.

She put them on and sighed in relief. "If I haven't told you both today, I love you." Riley tore into the burrito and took a large bite before continuing, "…so much." The brothers chuckled as they got started on their own breakfasts.

Sam and Dean looked at each other with discomfort. One of them was going to have to talk to her about what the plan was. The youngest Winchester widened his eyes as he insisted Dean should be the one to do it. The older brother's eyes fell for a moment as he twisted his coffee in his hands.

"Rye?" Chewing her most recent bite, she looked at them. "Sam and I talked. We think the best place to start," Dean hesitated, "would be the motel you and Jack were staying at. Then we could work from there." His finger tapped on the side of the cup waiting for her response. They knew this wasn't going to be like other hunts.

She slowed her eating and swallowed. The bite was hard to get down over the lump in her throat. Riley hadn't been back there since that night. She took a sip of her coffee and her eyes cast down. This was the only way they were going to get answers and find the shifter. Riley had to face her past.

—

Baby's engine purred under them as they came to a stop. In the front seat, Riley's eyes sat fixated on the motel in front of them. "Fargo's Lodge" Neither brothers spoke as they let her take in the moment.

Sam cleared his throat after a moment. "You said room 13 right?" She nodded, never taking her eyes off the room ahead of them.

The parking lot was nearly empty and no one seemed to be around. Though the sun was shining, Riley felt as though the clouds had rolled in above her.

"Do you want us to go with you?"

Riley shook her head and swallowed hard. A large hand reached out and took hers. She turned to see Dean looking back at her. His face was softened and filled with concern. He wanted so badly to protect her from her memories.

"No." Her voice was almost a whisper and her pain was evident. "I gotta do this."

Willing herself forward, Riley opened the door and stood staring at the room number. Never breaking contact with it, she closed the door behind her.

She softly tapped on the door waiting for a reply. When no one answered, Riley, took out a small pick locking kit from her pocket. Looking around her, she worked to pop the lock until it finally clicked. Her breath hitched in her chest as she realized how terrified she was to open that door. She mustered up what strength she had and with one final deep breath, she closed her eyes and turned the knob.

As the door was pushed open, Riley forced herself to open her eyes. Suddenly, flashes of moments long gone rang through her. They didn't even seem to happen in her mind, but all around her. She was reliving them. The sound of her father's laughter flooded the room and she trembled. Riley could see her sitting with him the night before his death as they debated the "best bands of all time". As quickly as it came, the moment passed and she could hear the rain pouring outside as she heard John's voice. "Riley, it's your dad. I'm so sorry, kiddo."

Sam and Dean watched and waited eagerly in the car as she stood in the doorway frozen. In an instant, she flew from the entrance and disappeared into the room in a sprint. They both hurried out of the car to chase after her with Finn following behind. When they ran inside, they saw the door to the bathroom open and the sounds of sobbing and retching came from it. As they neared the door Dean went inside and Sam stayed with Finn close enough to peer in.

Riley was hung over the toilet. She was hysterical and had been vomiting. Dean fell to his knees to hold her and pull back her hair. When she turned to see him, she fell into his chest and sobbed. He rocked her with his arms around her. "Shhh. It's okay, sweetheart. I'm here." Dean turned his head to look at his brother. They both shared a moment of sadness between them not knowing how to help her.

Between her sobs, she raised her head to look at them both. "I–I saw dad. He was here. I could feel him." Riley was shaking from the emotions and memories.

Sam went to run a washcloth under cool water as Dean ushered her into the bedroom to sit her down. He returned with the wet cloth and helped to clean her face.

Still crying, but more coherent, Riley went on. "It was like I was reliving the memories." She sniffled hard. "Like flashbacks, but real." Dean rubbed her back as she tried to put her words together. "But the room. It–it's the room. The one from my nightmares. I didn't remember the wallpaper until now. The green patterned wallpaper."

"The one with your dad finding you?" Sam asked as he crouched in front of her.

She nodded. "Why would I dream that? Why would it be in thisroom?" Riley turned to face Dean. "Babe, I'm so confused. What's happening to me?"

Pulling her in tight, he rested his chin on her head. His voice was gentle. "I don't know, Rye."

—

The team had retreated to a different motel that night. The day had been taxing on everyone and Sam and Dean worried about Riley's emotional state. She had been in a weird and vacant fog since they had left the lodge. In the morning, Finn stayed behind in the room so they could get some intel.

As they walked down the street, the three reviewed what they had learned. "Alright," Sam started. "So Bethany is still in intensive care. They have her still under to recover from her intensive surgery. The stabbing was pretty ugly."

Throwing her head back Riley groaned. "Dammit! I can't believe I let that son of a bitch go. A part of me doesn't even want it to be the shifter and just some psycho. I wouldn't be able to blame myself that way."

Dean took her hand. "Rye, you didn't let him go. He's just good."

Sam went on. "So James' family lives in an apartment building down the street. We need to go have a talk with them and see how sure they are that he was with them that night. The attack happened around 8:00. That's when the sister showed up."

In true Winchester fashion, Riley was being swallowed whole by her guilt. Maybe this wasn't even what they were thinking. But odds were, unfinished business had returned to Fargo.

—

Riley took a deep breath before knocking on the door. Sam and Dean stood at her sides as they heard someone coming their way. The door opened and a middle-aged woman stood in the entryway.

"Hi. Mrs. Landon?" Riley asked. The woman nodded. It was obvious she had been crying. "We're so sorry to bother you. I'm Riley. These are my friends, Sam and Dean. We go to school with James and were shocked at the news. I was kind of hoping we could talk to you?"

Mrs. Landon's soft brown hair was up in a neat bun. She was a very clean cut woman who seemed to come from quite a bit of money. Her face was soft and her voice quaked. "Of course. Please, come in."

Walking into the apartment, the three couldn't help but stand in awe of the place. It was huge and beautifully decorated. They found their way to the couch as they were ushered in. It was white and they all checked to make sure they were clean enough to sit on it, wiping the back of their jeans.

"Would you like some tea?" Mrs. Landon asked as she began to pour from a still warm china teapot on the table in front of her.

"Sure. Thank you, so much." Riley took the cup handed to her and the brothers did the same.

Dean took a sip and tried to hide his face of disgust. Tea was never his thing. He quickly moved to the bowl of sugar. Dumping lump after lump in his cup, he tried to make it taste remotely drinkable. Dean feigned a smile of gratitude as he tried to drink it again. After realizing it was still terrible, he fought to swallow it as he put the cup down on the table again.

"It was so nice of you to come all the way down here." Mrs. Landon stirred her cup with a small and delicate spoon. "I know the university is quite a drive away."

"Not a problem at all, Mrs. Landon," Sam stated. "We just had to hear from a reliable source about what happened with James. We couldn't believe it."

Her face turned to that of slightly stern. "As you shouldn't. My James would never hurt anyone. And Bethany of all people? He loves her so much. Even bought her a ring to propose in the next few weeks." Her eyes welled up as she tried to keep her voice from breaking.

"So, James was here with you the night of that attack?" Dean went between slouching and sitting up. He had no idea how to present himself in a fancier environment.

"Yes. The entire night. His father and I have the children over every Friday night. Bethany usually joins us, but she had plans that night with her sister who came in from out of town."

Riley put down her cup and tried to read the woman in front of her. "Mrs. Landon, what time was James here? When did he leave?"

"We start dinner at 6:00 but he got here a half an hour early. He and his father played a game of darts in the billiard room and enjoyed a few drinks together. James couldn't have left here any earlier than 9:00."

"And how far is his place from here?"

"Oh, roughly an hour?" James' mother replied.

Riley could tell she was being nothing but forthright. There was desperation seeping through her and her heart ached to see her son. As Mrs. Landon turned to retrieve cloth napkins and lemon shortbread cookies, Riley turned to her partners and whispered. "She's on the up and up. James was here."

The saddened mother placed the cookies on the table and told them to help themselves. Dean smiled and grabbed four as he began to stuff his face. They were delicious and were getting rid of the foul taste of tea. Riley cleared her throat and widened her eyes before sending him a thought. "Winchester! Put down…the cookies." With his mouth still full, he placed the others on a napkin in front of him in disappointment.

Sam took another sip of his tea. "Have you been to see Bethany, Mrs. Landon?"

"Oh, I tried. The Giles family wanted nothing to do with me and ordered my husband and me from the hospital." She began to cry. "I love that girl as though she were my own."

"I'm so sorry for everything that's happened." Riley got up to sit next to the mother and took her hands. "We know James isn't responsible. We believe you."

Mrs. Landon squeezed her hands. "You sweet thing. Thank you. All of you. You don't know what it means to me to know that James has support behind him."

"Of course," Sam said sweetly. "We've taken up enough of your time. Thank you so much for the tea."

"Please come back anytime you want. You three are always welcome here." She walked them to the door and saw them out.

As they started down the hallway they made their way to the elevator. The doors closed and Riley punched the wall. "Goddammit!"

"Riley, we're gonna get him," Sam said with a hand on her shoulder.

"But even if we get him, we have no way of proving that James is innocent. He will spend years in jail on attempted murder. Mrs. Landon will lose her son." She ran a hand through her hair in frustration.

Dean knew the pain of feeling he had failed others in doing his job and gently took her arm. "This job, it sucks, Rye. Sometimes, we can make it right. We stop the bad guy and save the day. Others? We do what we can and have to let that be enough."

"I know." A tear fell from her eye as the elevator door opened. Riley's tone shifted and a hint of anger bit through her words. "This ends now."

—

A frustrated Riley sat tirelessly working on Sam's laptop. A beer bottle sat beside her that she nursed through her research. Sam and Dean sifted through newspaper articles and made phone calls trying to get more information while Finn had fallen asleep at Sam's feet.

"Ugh!" Riley closed the laptop and got up in a huff. "I can't find anything! This thing leaves no trace behind. I broke into the police database and looked at the records. The only evidence they found was DNA from James." Both of her hands ran up to her hair and grasped it. Her knuckles were bruised from her fit in the elevator.

"I'm not gonna lie, the son of a bitch is good." Dean took a sip from his beer.

Leaning back onto his hands Sam relaxed in his chair. "Yeah. The footage from the Landon's building showed James coming in and leaving at the exact times that Mrs. Landon told us. It's definitely not tampered with at all." He sighed. "It sucks the cops don't see that as enough to go against the DNA."

"Wait," Riley began. "There's gotta be someone with some form of surveillance in the area of Bethany's place." She grabbed her jacket and threw it over her. "I'm gonna go find it."

Dean pushed back his chair to stand. "We'll come with you."

"No, it'll be quicker if I go alone. Can I take the car, babe?"

"Of course." He tossed her the keys. "You sure you wanna go alone?"

"I'll be fine. Just gimme a couple hours. You guys keep digging. I love you." She headed out the door and the roar of the engine came on fast.

—

The boys had just finished dinner as the Impala could be heard parking outside. She had a very distinct purr that they knew all too well. Dean hurried to open the door as he put his beer down. Riley slowly walked in looking defeated.

"Nothing?" Dean asked.

"Nope. Jack friggin squat." Tossing her jacket onto the bed she grabbed a beer and popped it open. "This is going nowhere."

"We're not giving up. It just might take some time." Sam's voice was reassuring and full of love.

"We don't have time!" Riley added in frustration. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. "I just–I think I just need some time to myself."

Dean looked at Sam and nodded. "Sure. No problem. We uh–we'll take the mutt out for a walk and you can do whatever you need to. We'll take our time."

She looked at him, feeling the love and patience he truly felt for her, "thank you, Dean."

"Of course." He kissed her head. "Call us if you need anything or want us to bring you home some grub."

As Dean held open the door, Sam put the leash on Finn and looked back at her. "It's gonna be ok. I promise." Pressing his lips together, his dimples showed as he forced a half smile as they left.

—

Riley took the time alone to gather her thoughts. She had taken a long hot shower and decided to lounge on the bed with the radio playing. Music always seemed to help, but she still couldn't get Mrs. Landon's face out of her head. Riley felt to blame for ruining their family. She held the original article about the attack. The picture of the beautiful young woman whose life hung in the balance looked back at her.

"If I had just done my job, none of this would have happened."

A knock at the door pulled her back into focus and she hopped up to answer. Riley looked through the peephole to see Dean. Confused, she opened the door. He smiled. "Hey, sorry I must have lost my key."

She moved for him to come inside as he kissed her cheek. Something didn't feel right but she couldn't quite place it. "No biggie. Where's Sam and Finn?" Riley walked across the room to throw on her sweater.

"Uh–" he started. "They'll be back soon. I decided to come back on my own so we could spend some time together. His face grew devilish and his eyes filled with hunger as he put his hands on her waist.

Riley was hesitant as her gut instinct and empathic abilities kicked in. "You seem…weird."

Dean laughed. "Weird? Is it weird that I just wanted to spend time with you? C'mon, baby. We haven't had time alone in too long." He pulled her in closer.

"…baby?" She could hear a low growl in his mind. That was not Dean Winchester. Riley shoved him off and readied herself. "You're not Dean!"

His face changed and a smirk grew on his face that sent chills up her spine. The eyes staring back at her flickered as those familiar green eyes became a strange white before changing back. "What gave me away?"

"Dean would never call me 'baby'."

"Ah, rookie mistake," he said snapping his fingers. "Guess I just got carried away in character."

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"You think I don't keep tabs on any hunters that come through here?" The shifter snickered. "There's a reason none of you fucking morons have caught up to me," he added as he stepped towards her. "But I should be asking you the same question." Emphasizing every word, he continued, "what the hell are you doing here?"

"What are you talking about?'

It continued to step towards her as she stepped backward. "When I saw you and your 'partners' in town, I was shocked. I knew hunters would come sniffing around so I kept my eye on the Landon's building. What I wanna know, is what are you? There's no way you survived. I made sure you were dead. It's just a shame I didn't get to your father." The thing wearing Dean's skin grew more aggressive and Riley felt its urge to kill.

"You're insane." She had unknowingly backed herself into a corner. Riley's blood ran cold as she stared up at the thing pretending to be the love of her life.

"You should be rotted in the ground somewhere after two years. Thistime when I kill you, I'll make sure you stay dead." It scoffed in disbelief. "You are so blinded by love that you let me in last time because I looked like your "daddy". But how poetic that it should be your boyfriend that ends your pathetic little life this time. You should know, this really will break his heart."

The hand that she knew only in love made a fist and struck her in the face. She knew this was it for her. A large knife was unsheathed from its leather cover attached to his belt loop. She shook in fear but she wouldn't go out without a fight. As he lunged at her, Riley grabbed his wrist and used all her strength to hold him back. The knife slowly edged its way in her direction.

At that moment, the door opened and a shocked Sam and Dean took in the moment. "Riley!" they screamed as they hurried towards her. Finn was off his leash by then and hurdled over the beds in a full charge. With his teeth bared, he jumped onto the shifter. His bite took hold of the monster's shoulder as he forced the evil thing away from his owner. The creature howled at the pain and swung the knife in his defense. Finn whimpered without releasing him as the blade caught a slice into his muzzle.

Dean drew his gun and fired several silver rounds into the attacker's back. With one final look at Riley, it fell to the ground as the life faded from him. Finn released his grasp from the corpse.

Riley was still in the corner, shaking. Her lip was bleeding and she looked dazed. Dean ran to her and took her face in his hands. "Sweetheart? Riley, you okay?" his fear coursed through him as she searched her for injuries.

"I think so." She looked down at the body in front of her as Finn came up to her. He whimpered as he pushed past Dean's hands to lick her face. "Hey," she said rubbing his head. "Thanks, buddy."

Smiling at the canine, Dean rubbed his ears and head. "Good boy."

Everyone was still catching their breath as Sam dropped his weapon onto the bed. Remembering their first run in with a shifter, he smirked with a scoff. "Dean, how many times are you gonna have to kill yourself?"

—

Sam came back in the room after disposing of the body. He was dirty and carrying a shovel. "Well, I don't think anyone will find it. I would have burned it, but there's nowhere around that someone wouldn't have seen it."

"Thanks, Sammy. Don't need the cops finding another me."

Scoffing in a moment of humor, Sam went to take a shower.

Riley sat in a daze as she pet Finn and leaned against the headboard. His nose has been cleaned up and he was lucky it hadn't cut him deep. She stared down at the bloody floor beside her.

The bed dipped next to her and Dean joined her. His hand took hers and she jerked away before looking up at him. She was still in a state of shock and seeing Dean startled her for a brief moment. He sighed as he thought, "fuck. She's scared of me." Sadly, he stood to give her her space before she reached to grab his shirt.

Riley looked up at him. "I'm okay. I'm sorry. I'm just–a little jumpy is all."

He sat beside her once again. "Are you sure?"

She could feel such a deep sorrow as he wondered if things would be different between them now. Riley cupped her hand to the side of his face as her thumb ran over the stubble on his jaw. "I'm sure." She pulled him in to kiss him before whispering, "I love you, Dean Winchester."

"I love you so damn much, Rye," he replied as his forehead met hers and he closed his eyes. Dean took the moment to soak her up. Her smell, the touch of her skin, the warmth he felt when he held her…it felt like home to him.

As they broke apart, Dean looked down at the golden pup that laid beside her. Petting Finn, he smiled at him, grateful that he had saved the woman he loved. "You know, you're not so bad, mutt. Looks like you're a hunter after all."

—

Back on the road, Riley finally broke the silence as she sat in the front seat with Dean's arm around her. "Guys, I gotta tell you something."

Sam had been reading in the back and immediately closed his book to give her his attention. "What's up?"

"The shifter, it…said something."

Dean's brow furrowed and he looked back and forth between her and the road. He waited anxiously to hear what she had to say.

"It–it told me that it thought I was dead. That it had killed me two years ago."

"What?" Dean said in a state of confusion. "That doesn't make any sense."

"I know. But it was so sure of itself. It even said it was after he had shifted into my dad. I just–I don't know what to think." Riley pulled herself away from Dean for a moment so she could shift to look at them both. "You don't think it has anything to do with my nightmare, do you?"

"I don't know, Rye." Sam knew it definitely went deeper than it all appeared. "What I do know is with your abilities growing, it's completely possible that they're tied together. Maybe we just don't understand what that means yet." Riley sighed as she racked her brain trying to figure it all out. "I mean, you even were getting flashbacks. That's new. Who knows what else you can do?"

"Well what about you, Sam?" she asked. "Has anything else happened for you? The premonitions and the one time you used the telekinesis?"

Dean listened intently hoping the answer wouldn't be what he was afraid of. The fact that Riley was growing more powerful every day still worried him.

"No. Not at all." She could feel Sam's honesty and it left her even more confused. "Hey," he said trying to regain her attention. "We're gonna figure it all out."

"Sam's right. We do this together, remember?" Dean added as he shot her a loving look. As worried as he was for her, there wasn't a thing in the world that would tear him from her side. Not only was he madly in love with Riley, but she was the best friend he had ever had. He would never let anything change that. Dean took her hand and pulled it to his lips to kiss it as he drove on.

The boys helped to soothe her worries to an extent, but the unknown was too much. What really happened in the motel room the night Jackson died? Why were her abilities growing so quickly and developing into more? Riley was scared by the questions but she would never stop until she found the answers. Dad wouldn't want her to.

Pulling out her picture of her and Jack in their Halloween costumes, she smiled as that beautiful memory warmed her heart. It was fitting that the shifter died on the anniversary of Jackson's death. She flipped the photo over to see her father's handwriting. Dated the year before he died, it read: "You'll always be my Wonder Woman. Remember, baby girl, 'Munroes fight 'til the end'." The memory of Jack's motto whispered in her mind as determination filled her soul.

"'Til the end, dad."

—