Season 2 Chapter 3

Bloodlust

Word Count: 7,633

Content Warning: language and violence

DISCLAIMER: any words or phrases in bold in the story are not my own and are credited to the writers of Supernatural.

Baby flew down a two-lane highway as AC/DC's "Back in Black" blared from the speakers. It had been a few weeks since their last hunt and Dean had brought the Impala back to life. She looked good as new and seemed to almost sparkle in the sunlight.

The hunter grinned from ear to ear as he felt the leather of the steering wheel in his hands. "Whoo! Just listen to her purr. Have you ever heard anything so sweet?"

"You know, if you two wanna get a room, just let me know, Dean," Sam joked as he turned down the stereo.

Dean rubbed the dashboard. "Aww, don't listen to him, Baby. He just doesn't understand us."

The young Winchester chuckled. "Well, you're in a good mood."

"Why shouldn't I be? Got my car. Got a case. Things are looking up."

Riley stayed quiet in the back seat as she stared at the scenery whisking by. She had headphones on and seemed completely disengaged.

"And, uh—what about…?" Sam nodded back in the direction of the blue-eyed hunter.

Dean's face changed only slightly. "What about her?"

Sam scoffed. "Dean–," he stopped before clearing his throat. "Women can't be hunters, Dean. They're a liability." His voice was loud and teasing. When he realized she didn't bite his head off, he knew she couldn't hear them. Riley would have already smacked him upside the head. "When are you gonna make things right with her? I mean, she even started sleeping in her own room for crying out loud."

"Sammy, I told you. My relationship…is my relationship. Don't worry your pretty little head over it."

"I do worry, Dean. You love her. She loves you. What the fuck is the problem? You've been completely different with her since dad died."

"Can we just not talk about dad for like five fucking minutes, please?"

"Whatever" Sam scoffed. "You're being a fucking idiot, for the record."

"Noted." Dean paused. "How far to Red Lodge?"

Sighing, Sam replied, "about another 300 miles."

"Good," he said as he turned up the music once again. Dean leaned his foot into the gas and the Impala roared beneath the hunters.

—

Sam, Riley, and Dean had ripped off a couple of white lab coats from the intern locker rooms. They walked down the halls of Candler County hospital while Riley read off the notes from her research. "Alright, so I met with the Sheriff. Quick sidebar, dude looks like Colonel Mustard," she added looking up at Sam who chuckled. "Told him I was with the 'Daily World' newspaper and was looking into the murders in the area. By the way, all of which had their heads cut clean off. Sheriff told me he couldn't comment on the murders right now, though. Then I brought up all the local cow mutilations. Over a dozen cattle split open and drained of their blood. Told him I thought it sounded like some kind of satanic ritual if you add it to all the head rolling going on."

Sam smirked. "I'm sure he took that well."

"Oh, yeah," she said sarcastically. "You know how it goes…bring up satanism in the workplace? Always turns out like you hope."

"…he kicked you out, didn't he?"

"Flat on my ass within minutes. So, that's all I got," Riley finished as she closed her notebook.

"Well, we know the bodies are here, so we just gotta get a look for ourselves." Dean led the way as he opened the door into an office. An intern sat at the desk lost in his work and the hunter cleared his throat. "Hey, so Dr. Dworkin is looking for you. Says he needs you in his office right away."

"But," the intern said in confusion, "Dr. Dworkin's on vacation."

"Well, he's back. He's pissed and screaming for you. So, if I were you, I'd–" Dean trailed off as he whistled and nodded towards the door. The intern rushed out in a panic as the hunter went on. "Hey, those Satanists in Florida. They marked their victims, right?"

"Yeah," Sam answered. "Reverse pentacle on the forehead."

Dean grabbed rubber gloves and handed them to his partners as they walked into the examination room. "So much fucked up shit happens in Florida, man."

Riley checked the metal wall that held the drawers of recent corpses. Finding the right one, she pulled it out. The body of a woman laid on the slab. She was covered in a sheet and there was a large medical container at her feet.

"Alright, open it up," Dean ordered as he put his gloves on and met his brother's gaze.

Sam cringed. "Fuck that. I'm not opening it. You open it."

"Wuss," he snarked. Dean picked up the container and took it to a nearby counter. He exhaled deeply before flipping the lid open. With a look of disgust on his face, he turned away for a moment before looking back down. The woman's severed head rested inside. "Well, no pentagram."

"Wow. Poor girl." Riley looked almost distraught as she studied the woman's face.

"Maybe we should, uh, you know–look in her mouth, see if those wackos stuffed anything down her throat. You know, kinda like the moth in 'Silence of the Lambs'."

As he pushed the container back in front of Dean, Sam replied. "Yeah, sure. Have at it."

"No, you go ahead." Dean looked over at his brother. 'Put the lotion in the basket, Sam'."

"And I'm the wuss?" Sam laughed.

"Oh, my god. I work with fucking children." Riley wiggled in-between the two brothers to handle the task herself. She gently opened the woman's mouth and looked inside. Sam and Dean seemed to almost gag as she examined the head. "Well, I don't see anything." Riley looked for another moment. "Wait. Look under her lip." She raised the woman's lip to expose her gums and pointed to what looked like a hole. The boys leaned in to look. She pressed down on the area and a sharp tooth came from the opening.

"Freaking retractable vampire fangs," Dean stated.

"I'd say this case just got more interesting."

—

The three headed for a local dive bar. Typical jukebox music flew through the air with the smell of assorted alcoholic drinks. It looked like a place the locals all came to escape the world at the bottom of a bottle at the end of the day.

Sam, Riley, and Dean walked up the bar. The bartender was a bigger built man. Didn't look like someone you'd want to mess with. His goatee was perfectly shaped around his mouth. "What can I get for you?"

"Uh–three beers, please." Dean pulled out his wallet to pay the man.

"Maybe you can help us out," Riley said with a flirty smile. "We're looking for some people. Maybe you've seen them? They would have moved here about maybe six months ago. Big partiers, pretty rowdy, like to drink…"

The bartender found her intoxicating. He looked at her with a smirk. "Yeah. I think I know who you're talking about. They don't seem to be around much during the day. Bunch of night owls, I guess."

Riley gave him a slightly bigger smile. "That's exactly who I'm talking about."

Dean looked over at Sam in a bit of surprise. They stayed quiet to let her work her magic.

"Barker farm got leased out a couple months ago. Real winners. They've been in here a lot– drinkers. Noisy. I've had to 86 them once or twice."

"Thank you so much for your help."

"Don't mention it," he answered as he bit his bottom lip.

She seemed to saunter away to continue her ruse as they made their way to a table. Riley leaned in towards the brothers. "We got eyes on us. Six o'clock. I can feel him. Let's go." They all headed for the front door and left. The three turned to head down a quiet alley. Finding a place to hide, they laid in wait, knowing they were being followed.

As soon as the stranger stalked their path, the Winchesters grabbed him from out of the darkness and pushed him against the wall. They held him there as Dean had a knife to his throat. Riley stood to the side with her arms crossed.

"Smile. Show us those pearly whites," Dean demanded.

"Oh, for the love of –you want to stick that thing someplace else? I'm not a vampire." The stranger seemed much calmer than he should have been. Sam frowned in confusion. "Yeah, that's right. I heard you guys in there."

"Guys," Riley interrupted. "He's telling the truth. He's human." She could only pick up on whether or not someone was completely human from time to time. But that night, she knew for certain.

The stranger looked back to the brothers. "Listen to the woman. Look–" he pulled up his gums to reveal nothing of note. "Happy?" Sam and Dean let him go reluctantly.

Riley stepped in closer as she got a better look at the man. He had dark skin and was tall like the boys. His hair was short and had a similar goatee to the bartender's. The man was probably in his late 30's. "So, you gonna tell us what you know about vampires, or is he gonna have to bring the knife back out?" She nodded in Dean's direction who was itching to do it anyway.

"I know how to kill them." He fixed his jacket to straighten himself up. "Who the hell are you guys?"

—

The trio followed the man to his red, older, two-door car. "Sam and Dean Winchester and Riley Munroe," He let out a soft and breathy laugh of surprise. "I can't believe it." The stranger opened the door and slid out a rack from behind the seat. It was a full arsenal of weapons and hunting tools. "I'm Gordon. You know, I met both of your fathers before. They helped me out on a hunt. Partners from time to time, right?" Riley nodded. "Great hunters. I heard they both passed, I'm sorry. Those are some big shoes to fill. But from what I hear, you three fill 'em. Great trackers, good in a tight spot–"

"You seem to know a lot about our families." Dean looked skeptical about the hunter.

"Well, word gets around. You know how hunters talk."

"Yeah." Riley replied as Dean spoke at the exact same moment, "no." They locked eyes in confusion.

Gordon raised his eyebrows. "I can see there's some things your father never told you boys." He looked over at Riley. "I've heard you were a spit-fire. Your reputation precedes you."

"So, these vampires," Sam started. "They were yours, huh?"

"Yep. Been on 'em for two weeks now."

"Did you check out that Barker Farm?"

Gordon shook his head and clicked his tongue. "It's a bust. Just a bunch of hippie freaks. Though they could kill you with that patchouli smell alone."

"Where's the nest then?" Dean asked.

"I got this one covered." The hunter pushed his gear back into the car. "Look, don't get me wrong. It's a real pleasure meetin' you three. But I've been on this thing over a year. I killed a fang back in Austin, tracked the nest all the way up here. I'll finish it."

"C'mon, man. I've been itching for a hunt."

"Sorry. But hey, I hear there's a Chupacabra two states over. You go ahead and knock yourselves out." Gordon got into his car and looked out his open window. "It was real good meeting you, though. I'll buy you a drink on the flip side." Without another word, he drove off into the night.

There was a moment of silence before Riley turned to the others. "…we're still gonna follow him, right?"

—

The Impala had followed Gordon to the docks of a large lake not far from where they had met. The three were only a few minutes behind him as they closed the car doors. Water trickled and sloshed in the background and a sawmill sat at the edge of the water.

Sounds of a struggle came from the mill and the hunters looked at each other. "That's our cue," Riley stated as they all went into a sprint in its direction. A loud mechanical noise started to whir as they got closer.

They ran up the wooden ramp connected to the docks. Up on the main deck was Gordon. He was on his back taking hit after hit before the vampire began to lower a mechanical chainsaw on top of him.

Sam rushed to Gordon's aid as he grabbed him by the ankles and yanked him away to safety. Riley grabbed what looked like a large fishing spear off the wall and charged. She jammed the end of it into the creature's stomach and then into his face. Grunting, Riley took one final swing that sent the vampire to the ground. She raised the weapon above her head and stabbed it in the gut as it pinned him to the plank of wood beneath him. The monster shouted in pain as its rows of fangs were bared.

Dean hurried to her side giving the vamp a few solid punches to the face. He looked up to the saw still on and pulled it down. As he forced it into the creature's throat, it wailed in terror before a large squirt of bloodshot Dean in the face. Without missing a beat, he drove the machine all the way through its neck until there was a crunch as its spine was cut.

With blood splatter covering his face, he turned towards the others as the docks went silent. They stared at him. Riley and Sam stood stunned.

"So, guess I gotta buy you that drink now," Gordon said as he caught his breath.

—

Back at the bar, they had found themselves at earlier, the four hunters sat at a wooden table. A fresh round of shots had just hit the table.

"Another one bites the dust." Gordon raised his glass.

Joining in the hunter's celebrations, Dean raised his in return as they clinked together. "Damn straight."

"Dean," the older hunter laughed. "You gave that big-ass fang one hell of a haircut, my friend. I mean, beautiful. Absolutely beautiful."

Sam and Riley sat quietly. Both were uncomfortable with the way things had ended at the docks and with how Gordon encouraged Dean's behavior. Riley's eyes stayed on the stranger. She didn't trust him. Unfortunately, that was one of the moments her telepathy wasn't kicking in. Still, the energy she could feel pour from him, made her want to make a b-line for the door.

"Thank you." Dean smiled with pride. He turned to his partners. "You guys okay?"

"We're fine," Riley added with a hint of bitterness.

Gordon let out a small chuckle as he took another drink. "Aww, lighten up, Rye."

"They're the only ones that get to call me that." She continued to meet his gaze.

He put his hands up in surrender. "Just celebrate with us."

Sam scoffed. "Right. Well, brutal decapitations aren't always our idea of a good time I guess."

"You guys gotta have more fun with your job. Learn to enjoy it a little."

"Listen," Riley started as she stood to leave. "I'm not gonna bring down the party. I'll just meet you back at the hotel." She looked at Sam. "Wanna come with?"

"Yep," he replied.

Dean threw the keys in Sam's direction. "Buzzkills."

The two grabbed their jackets and made their way to the door. Sam's hand guided her through the bar crowd.

—

The motel the hunters were staying at was reminiscent of an adobe home. As the two walked from the car, Riley pulled out her key card and Sam noticed a sadness in her. "Hey, would you wanna come in? I don't think Dean's gonna be back for a while. We could hang out, watch a movie or something." Sam smiled at her. "C'mon. We haven't spent time just the two of us in forever."

Riley couldn't help the small grin that grew on her face. "That's not fair. You know I can't say no to you." He let out a laugh knowing he had won. "Just gimme a couple minutes, I'm gonna go take care of something and then I'll meet you over there." Sam agreed as they went to their rooms.

Going inside, the room was decorated with a desert vibe. Sam placed the keys on a small plastic cactus and went to sit on the bed. He pulled out his cell phone and scrolled through it.

In the next room, Riley looked in the mirror and sighed. She needed a minute to herself. Lately, nothing had felt like it used to and tensions were still high. It exhausted her having to constantly block out all of the toxic emotions. Riley even looked tired. She studied her face for a moment realizing how drained she was. It felt as though she was going to cry all the time, and yet nothing happened. Maybe she didn't have any tears left. She checked the makeup under her eyes before turning off the lights to leave.

When she had finally made it to the boys' room, Sam was finishing a phone call.

"Right. Okay. Well, thanks, Ellen. Talk soon." He flipped the phone shut and let out a sigh. "You good?"

"Mm-hmm. I'm fine. Everything good with Ellen?" Riley sat on the edge of one of the beds with one leg tucked beneath her.

"Yeah. Uh—actually I called her about Gordon."

She stared at him intently. "Why? What's up?"

"I don't know, exactly. I just—something feels off I guess."

"I'm right there with ya. Something's up with that guy. I can feel it. He makes me really uncomfortable, Sam."

He scoffed. "Yeah, that makes two of us. Maybe for good reason though. Ellen said he's a good hunter but that he's dangerous."

Riley's eyebrows furrowed. "Dangerous? In what way?"

"Not sure. She just said that if he's working a job, we should stay away and get outta town."

"Well, that's not concerning at all," she added almost rolling her eyes. She paused as he nodded in agreeance. "Look, I'm gonna go get a soda from the machine. You want one?"

"Sure. Thanks."

Riley went outside and walked down the stretch of rooms. She put coins in the soda machine and chose two for her and Sam. As she reached to get them, she heard a noise in the bushes nearby. Riley looked in its direction and waited still for a moment. When nothing more happened, she cautiously walked back to the room. Looking around carefully, she opened the door to go inside.

"They didn't have root beer, so you'll just have to deal." Her head was down as she immediately went to put the cans on the small table by the door. When she looked up, Sam was on the floor unconscious and a vampire stood beside him. "Sam!" After taking in the shock, she charged at the creature ready for a fight. A grunt came from the back of her throat as she punched it with full force. Little did she know, another was behind her and it clocked her in the back of the head with a rotary phone. It dinged as it hit her skull.

—

Riley and Sam came to, but it was dark around them. There were sacks over their heads and gags in their mouths. They had been tied to chairs. Sam grunted as he struggled to free himself while Riley took in deep breaths trying to remain calm.

Their eyes struggled to focus as their sacks were taken off their heads. They were in some kind of old farmhouse. All the surrounding furniture mismatched and it looked like squatters were living there. Both hunters looked up to see the bartender they had met, standing in front of them. He opened his mouth and a full set of fangs grew from his gums. There was a guttural growl coming from his mouth as he leaned into Riley. Her eyes challenged him as he was only inches from her face.

"Don't you fucking touch her," Sam seethed as he fought against his restraints.

"Step back, Eli." A woman came from around the corner and the bartender obeyed her command. She couldn't have been much older than Dean. Her voice was surprisingly smooth, even with her order. The strange woman went to the hunters and removed their gags. "My name is Lenore. I'm not gonna hurt you. We just need to talk."

"Talk?" Riley scoffed. "Forgive me if I get distracted by Eli's teeth."

"He won't hurt you. You have my word."

"Your word? Oh, great. Thanks." Sam's tone was harsh and condescending. "Listen, lady, no offense but you're not the first vampire I've met."

"We're not like the others. We don't drink human blood and haven't in a long time. Now, we live off cattle blood. It's not exactly ideal, in fact, it's disgusting—but we get by."

"What?" Riley asked in shock. "Why?"

"Survival. No deaths, no missing locals, no reason for people like you to come looking for people like us. We blend in. Our kind is practically extinct. Turns out we weren't quite as high up the food chain as we imagined."

Eli's breath was ragged as he struggled to contain himself. "Why are we even explaining ourselves to these fucking killers? They murdered Conrad tonight and celebrated."

Lenore looked at him sternly. "What's done is done." Turning back towards the hunters, she went on. "We're leaving town tonight."

The young Winchester stared up at the woman that held them captive. "Then why did you bring us here? Why even talk to us?"

"Believe me, I'd rather not. But I know your kind. Once you have the scent, you'll keep tracking us. It doesn't matter where we go. Hunters will find us."

"So, you're asking us not to follow you."

"We're not hurting anyone. All we ask is the right to live, just like anybody else."

With a look of disbelief, Riley tensed as she could hear the growling inside them. "Give us one good reason why we should trust you."

Lenore got in the face of the auburn-haired hunter. "Fine. I'm gonna let you go." She looked at her and then at Sam, who was shocked. "Eli, take them back. I don't want a scratch on either of them."

A second vampire came in from a side room after hearing the command. He and Eli put the sacks over Sam and Riley's heads again and stood them up. They led them out and back into the car they had brought them in.

—

Gordon and Dean sat at the table of the motel room. A map laid spread out in front of them as they went over what Gordon had already gathered through his research.

"This is the best pattern I can establish." His finger traced a circle over a small area of the map. "It's sketchy at best. Problem is, we're talking about an area with 35 to 40 farms. I've searched half of them, and I haven't come up with shit. The fuckers are good at covering their tracks."

"Well, I guess we'll have to search the other half." Dean looked down at his watch. "What time is it? Where are those two?"

Gordon peered out the window. "Car's parked outside. They probably went for a walk. Sam seems like the 'take-a-walk' type." His tongue darted out over his lips. "But that Riley, though? Whoo. Girl's feisty as hell. Not bad on the eyes either."

"Yeah," Dean said with a small smile. "I'm a lucky man."

"Wait…" Gordon's eyes lit up and he leaned into the table. "You and her?"

The Winchester nodded. "For a little over a year now."

Gordon whistled. "You gotta tell me, is she that fiery off the job too?" he asked as he shot Dean a look of approval.

The door opened and Sam and Riley walked in. They both stared at the two hunters at the table, irritated almost to see Gordon there.

"Where you guys been?" Dean asked.

Sam looked at his brother. "Can we talk to you alone?"

The older Winchester turned back to look at his new companion. "You mind chilling out here for a couple minutes?" Gordon shook his head and Dean got up to follow his family outside.

Walking down the steps, Sam waited until they were out of earshot. He glanced over at Dean as they walked into the parking lot. "I think we gotta rethink this hunt, man."

"What are you talking about? Where were you?"

"The vamps found us, Dean. The took us to their nest."

Dean's eyes grew. "What? How the fuck did you get out? How many did you guys kill?"

"None," Riley said as she stopped and crossed her arms. "They let us go."

Shooting his eyes back and forth between the two, Dean appeared to be in disbelief. "Well, that doesn't make any goddamn sense. So, where's the nest?"

"We don't know. We were both blindfolded. All we know is we went over a bridge at some point outside of town. But, Dean…" Riley's hands found her pockets. "…we don't think we should go after the nest anymore."

"What?" Dean asked in shock. "Why the hell not?"

The youngest Winchester added, "we don't think they're like other vampires. They're responsible for all the cattle deaths. They live off animal blood instead of human."

"And you believed them? No, man, no way." Dean chuckled. "I don't know why they let you go. I don't really care. We find 'em, we waste 'em." He began to walk back towards the room.

"Dean…" Riley started as she caught up to him.

"What part of vampires don't you understand, Rye? It's supernatural, that means we kill it. That's the job. End of story."

"No. That's not the job, Dean. We hunt evil. And these things aren't hurting anyone. They're not evil."

Dean rolled his eyes. "Of course they're killing people, that's what they do, Riley. They're not human, okay? We have to exterminate every last one of them. Gordon's been on those vamps for a year now, he knows."

Sam stayed quiet knowing that there was too much tension built up between the couple. The emotions were bound to bubble over. That moment was their first real conversation in weeks.

"Oh, Gordon?" she asked with sarcasm. Riley smiled finding his naivety humorous and she bit her lip trying to control her need to yell. "So, you're just gonna take his word for it? Even though I'mtelling you something different?"

"Yeah, I guess I am," Dean said with certainty.

She scoffed and folded her arms again. "Unbelievable. You push me away for weeks and what do I do? I wait. I wait and I deal with your bullshit brooding all the time. When was the last time you even acted like we were together, Dean? Huh? Are we even together?"

Dean was annoyed with her question, "of course we're still together."

"Then what the fuck are you doing? Why don't you trust me anymore? I'm a damn good hunter, Dean. Hell, I'm a fucking psychic for Christ's sake. But you've benched me and acted like I'm invisible." She began to shout a little. "If I tell you Gordon's bad news, then you're supposed to believe me!"

Running a hand down his face, Dean tried to grapple with his conflicting emotions. Riley had already shut off the switch in her mind. In that moment, she didn't care what he was feeling. She had stayed quiet long enough.

"Dean listen to Riley, man. Even Ellen says the guy's bad news," Sam added.

"Of course you called Ellen." Dean chuckled with frustration. "And I'm supposed to listen to her? We barely know her, Sam. No thanks, I'll go with Gordon."

"Right, 'cause Gordon's such an old friend. You don't think I can see what this is? He's a substitute for dad, isn't he? A poor one." Sam was almost pleading with his brother.

"Shut the hell up, Sam," Dean said with a small breathy laugh as he turned to leave.

The younger Winchester chased after him. "He's not even close, Dean. Not on his best day. You know, you slap on this big fake smile, but I can see right through it. Because I know how you feel, Dean." Pain swelled through Sam's chest and he couldn't stand Dean being in denial for another second as he raised his voice. "Dad's dead. And he left a hole, and it hurts so bad you can't take it, but you can't just fill up that hole with whoever you want to. It's an insult to his memory."

Dean smirked. "Okay," he replied as he went to walk away. But immediately, he spun around, and his fist connected with his brother's face.

"Dean!" Riley yelled as she went to Sam.

The hunter stumbled before he looked Dean in the eye. "It's fine, Rye. He can hit me all he wants. Doesn't change a damn thing."

"I'm going to that nest. You don't wanna tell me where it is? Fine. I'll figure it out for myself." In a huff, Dean went up the steps back to the room.

Sam and Riley hurried behind him. When they all got inside, they saw that Gordon had left. Riley looked at them both with worry. "Gordon went after them. We gotta stop him."

"Really, Rye?" Dean asked in irritation. "'Cause I say we lend a hand."

"Dammit, Dean." Riley sighed and tried to calm herself. "Just, please—give me the benefit of the doubt here. You owe me that."

"Fine. Where are the keys? I'm driving."

Sam turned to the small plastic cactus he had put them on. They were no longer there. "Son of a bitch snaked the keys."

—

With a grimace on his face, Dean worked the wiring to hot-wire the Impala and it sputtered beneath him. "I can't fucking believe this. I just fixed her up, too." The car finally roared to life. "So, you crossed a bridge, is that all you got?"

Sam looked down at the paper map in his lap. "The bridge was four and a half minutes from their farm."

"How do you know?"

"I counted." The young Winchester traced his finger over the route. "They took a left out of the farm. Then turned right onto a dirt road, followed that for two minutes. Went slightly up a hill, and then took another quick right and we hit the bridge."

Dean nodded his head, pleasantly surprised. "You're good. You're a monster pain in the ass, but you're good."

Feeling she had nothing left to say, for the time being, Riley kept her mouth shut. She had had enough arguing for the night and was still too pent up.

Baby pulled from the motel parking lot and eased onto the main stretch of road.

—

As Sam, Dean, and Riley arrived at the farmhouse they scurried inside. When they found the main room, Gordon was there with Lenore. She was tied to a chair, beaten and bloody as Gordon held a knife to her. She seemed to be gasping for air as she struggled through the pain. The three stood in horror at what they saw.

"Hey, you guys," Gordon said as he stood to greet the hunters. "Come on in." He motioned for them and his demeanor was unsettling.

"Hey, Gordon. Uh—what's going on?" Dean asked.

"Just poisoning Lenore here with some dead man's blood. She's gonna tell us where her little friends are. You wanna help? Grab a knife, I was just about to start on the fingers." Gordon drug the bloody knife across her chest. It seemed to sizzle and branches of veins grew dark and visible around it.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hey, let's all just chill out, huh?"

"Gordon put the knife down. Just step away from her, alright?"Sam ordered.

The older hunter threw his knife onto the table. "You're right. I'm wasting my time here. This bitch will never talk. Might as well put her out of her misery." Gordon took out a much larger knife and unsheathed it. He held it to the light and admired it as it glistened. "I just sharpened it, so it's completely humane." He turned towards Lenore with his knife in hand.

Riley made her way over to the injured vampire. "I'm letting her go, Gordon," she said adamantly.

Gordon stopped her with a knife in front of her chest. "You're not gonna do a damn thing."

Stepping forward, Dean clenched his jaw as his stomach turned seeing Riley in danger. "Gordon, let's talk about this," he said as he walked around the table. Sam stayed close behind Riley.

"There's nothing to talk about, Dean. She's a goddamn monster."

Gordon's voice was eerily calm to a point it sent chills down Riley's spine. She stared him in the eyes and didn't flinch. The only monster in that room was the man in front of her.

"I hear you, I get it," Dean said sternly.

He chuckled. "Do you, Dean? I had to watch one of these filthy fangs attack my sister. And it didn't kill her…no." Gordon shook his head. "It turned her. It made her one of them." His eyes stayed vacant as if he felt nothing as he looked at the others. "So, I hunted her down and I killed her myself."

Shocked, Dean asked, "You did what?"

Grabbing Riley's wrist, Gordon sliced his knife across her forearm. She winced as he held her still and reached to push the blade towards her throat. Her free hand held tightly to his wrist that gripped his weapon and she struggled to push it away.

Dean drew his gun and cocked it, and Sam did the same; both aiming at Gordon. "Let her go." Riley struggled to break free as the older Winchester shouted, "now!"

"Relax. If I wanted her dead, she'd already be on the floor. I'm just making a point." The deranged hunter drug her over to the vampire. He squeezed her arm to get the blood flowing so it would drip down over the creature's face. As a drop fell on her cheek, she gasped, and her fangs released themselves. Lenore snarled and hissed as everything inside her ached for the bleeding arm above her. Gordon looked back and forth between the three. "You think she's so different? Still want to save her? Look at her. They're all the same. Evil, bloodthirsty."

Lenore whimpered as she fought against her every instinct. She soothed herself and retracted her fangs as she tried to catch her breath. "No. No. I won't do it."

"Do you even hear her, Gordon?" Riley asked with frustration. She pushed Gordon's hand away and took a step back.

With his gun still raised, Sam hurried to Riley's side. "We're done here."

She glanced down at the sick and broken creature before her. Lenore carried a curse, but she was no monster. "Get her out of here, Sam."

Doing exactly that, Sam gave Riley his gun and went to pick up the badly injured woman. She groaned as he moved her, and she nearly fell limp in his arms. Sam hurried her out of the room and to the car. A still hell-bent Gordon went to stop him, but Dean and Riley held their weapons ready to fire.

"Uh-uh. Uh-uh!" Dean warned him. Without breaking eye contact with Gordon, he spoke out to Riley. "Babe? You alright?"

"Yeah. I'm good." Riley's eyes slanted slightly as she grappled with the urge to shoot the insane hunter.

The Winchester made his way closer. "Gordon, I think you and I've got some things to talk about."

Gordon scoffed in response. "You can't be serious. You're going to just let her go?"

"I'm having a hard time believing it too, but I know what I saw. If you want those vampires, you gotta go through me."

"Dean?" Riley's voice was nervous. "What are you doing?"

"I'm good, sweetheart. But I'm gonna need you to back up. This is between me and the big guy." Dean didn't falter. He was ready for whatever Gordon would throw his way. Riley hesitated, but she withdrew her weapon and stepped back.

"Fine." The dark hunter answered as he jammed his knife into the wooden table. Dean returned the favor by taking out the clip in his gun. Before he could put the weapon down, Gordon had charged at Dean and threw the first punch. Without hesitation, Dean hit him right back.

When Gordon stumbled, he grabbed the blade he had stuck into the table. Riley's eyes grew seeing the rearmed madman. She went to join the fray when Dean heard her come behind him.

"No." His arm went out to block her. "Stay back."

A still fearless Gordon swung his blade at the Winchester. When he missed, Dean grabbed him to shove him against the wall. His hand held tight to Gordon's wrist as he slammed it against the doorframe to release the weapon.

As the blade clattered on the ground, Riley went and grabbed it away. Gordon and Dean clung at each other's clothes, trying to keep the other at a distance.

"What are you doing?" Gordon asked through his shallow breathing. "You're doing this for a fang? We're on the same side, Dean!"

Through his gritted teeth Dean seethed, "I don't think so, you sadistic bastard."

Gordon thrust his elbow into Dean's face to disorient him before he kicked his boot into the hunter's chest. The Winchester was sent backward and landed on a small coffee table. It broke beneath his weight and he groaned.

"You're not like her or your brother. You're a killer…like me."Gordon's words were unnatural and almost sinister.

When he had gotten close enough, Dean swiped his leg under Gordon to trip him onto the ground. He stood to get on top of him and his fist flew into Gordon's face again and again. Picking him up, Dean then shoved him into a bookshelf. Glass and other items on display shattered and fell over the beaten man. With two more final punches, Dean had weakened the crazy-eyed hunter enough to drag him to a chair.

Dean pulled a thick rope from his bag and threw it around the injured hunter. He wrapped it around him tightly and made a solid knot. "You know, I might be like you, and I might not." The Winchester's lip bled as he bent forward to look at Gordon. "But you're the one tied up right now."

—

Morning had come and shined over the farmhouse. Light leaked into the room through the blinds as a now alert Gordon sat glaring at Riley. She leaned against the wall in front of him as Dean paced keeping watch. Outside, the sound of a car came through the silence of the sleepy early hours. The oldest Winchester stared down at Gordon who had hate in his eyes for the hunter.

Sam walked in and greeted Riley with a hug. "Did I miss anything?"

"Nah," Dean replied. "Not much. Did Lenore get out okay?"

"Yeah, they all did." Sam shot a look at Gordon. He wanted him to know he had lost.

Riley looked over to at the clearly unhappy man in the chair. "Well, I guess that means our work is done here." She smiled at him playfully.

"How you doin', Gordy? Gotta tinkle yet?" Dean walked around him back towards the table as he teased him. "Alright. Well, get comfy. We'll call someone in two or three days, have them come out, untie you." He stabbed the knife back into the wooden table.

Sam asked, "you ready to go, Dean?"

"Not yet." He made his way back in front of the man he had bested. "Well, I guess this is goodbye," Dean chuckled. "It's been real."He looked down at Gordon one last time before punching him hard across the face. The chair he was in fell backward and he laid stuck to it on the floor, groaning. Dean fixed his jacket and sniffled. "That's for putting your fucking hands on my girlfriend," he added before turning back around to his partners. "Okay, I'm good now. We can go."

Riley smiled as he made his way back over with his bag over his shoulder. She waited for him to stop to hug her as he continued to walk out and passed her by. Her heart dropped into her stomach and Riley cleared her throat, trying to stop herself from crying.

They all headed down the steps of the farmhouse and began to walk towards the car. It was still quiet as birds chirped in the distance. Riley's boots crunched the dirt beneath them and she went on ahead of them.

Stopping, Dean sighed. "I wish we never took this fucking job. It just fucked everything up."

"What do you mean?" Sam asked.

"I mean, just think about all the hunts the three of us have been on. All the things we've killed. What if we killed things that didn't deserve killing? You know? I mean, the way Dad raised us…"

Sam's face softened. "Dean, after what happened to mom? Dad did the best he could."

"I know he did. But the man wasn't perfect. And the way he raised us, to hate those things; and man, I hate 'em. I do." Dean bit his bottom lip as he tried to work through his thoughts. "When I killed that vampire at the mill, I didn't even think about it; hell, I even enjoyed it."

"…but you didn't kill Lenore. And yeah, you could've. But you didn't. That's what matters."

The sun peeked over the horizon and cast a glow over the fields and their faces as Sam and Dean continued towards Baby. The older Winchester nodded softly. "Yeah. Maybe."

—

Dean had gone out for breakfast a few hours later. He walked back into his and Sam's room with a carrier of coffees and two bags. There was one he held in his free hand and the other hung from his teeth. Kicking the door shut behind him, he put it all on the table. "Alright, they were out of chocolate donuts. Rye is not gonna be happy about that one. I got her glaze. You think that'll work?" He looked up at Sam who sat on one of the beds with his head hung. The young Winchester didn't reply. In his hand was a small piece of paper. "What's going on, Sammy?" he asked walking over to his brother.

Without even looking up, Sam held the paper out to Dean. As he took it, his brows scrunched in confusion as he went to read it.

I need some space. Please don't come looking for me. I'll call when I'm ready. I love you both.

xo Riley

The older Winchester's heart began to race as Sam uttered, "she's gone, Dean."

Turning on his heel, Dean rushed out the door and ran to her room. He banged on the door again and again with no reply. Remembering he had an extra key, he hurried to get inside. "Riley?" The door swung open and the hunter felt his legs shake beneath him as he stared into an empty room. Her duffle bag, guitar case and all other traces of her were gone.

A lump swelled in his throat and he ran his hands forward over his hair. Dean realized how deeply he had hurt her. He took out his phone and dialed her number and his eyes were large and panicky as he put it to his ear.

"The number you have dialed is no longer in service, please try your call again later."

Dean shut the phone and put it to his forehead as the anger he felt towards himself exploded inside him. He flung the cell phone across the room. "Son of a bitch!" Dean yelled as he swung around and threw his fist into the wall.

As he barely made it out the door, he held on to the frame to steady himself. Dean stood looking off into the distance wondering how far she already was. He couldn't contain the guilt and loss he felt as tears streamed down his face. Riley was the one good thing to ever happen to him; the only thing that ever made sense besides his family.

He wiped his face and stomped back into his room. "We gotta go," he stated firmly as he quickly grabbed his things.

Sam stayed seated as he watched his brother frantically move around the room. "What? Go where?"

"After her. We gotta find her."

Sighing, Sam replied, "she said she wanted space, Dean. Maybe we should just respect that."

"What? Hell no," Dean scoffed.

"Look, man, I'm just as broken up about her leaving as you are, but she doesn't want to be followed."

Dean couldn't contain himself as he nearly shouted. "Sam, the demon is still out there, and she could be in danger. Riley's going through too much to be alone and I have to make this right. I have to fix this–" The pain in his face was obvious and his voice broke as he pled to his brother. "Please, Sam. You were right. I fucked up." Dean's mouth opened slightly as no words came out and his eyes flooded again. "I–I can't lose her."

Sam ran his hand through his hair and lightly nodded his head. "Alright," he agreed standing up to grab his things. "Let's go bring her home."

—