The Guard Changed at Dawn
Chapter 7
Louisville, Kentucky
Sam strode down the ramp toward the private terminal followed by James. It was close to one in the afternoon, and they'd just arrived in Louisville to pick up Caleb, Joshua, Ryker and Max.
Ever since he'd spoken with Dean he'd see-sawed between anger that Dean had set this hunt in motion without bringing him in, and understanding that his brother thought he was doing the right thing by allowing him and James time to go over the college situation. His main anger stemmed from the scope of the hunt. That both current and future Triads were going to be involved meant this hunt was of significant enough importance that he should have been notified immediately.
James eyed his uncle's ridged shoulders and knew he was angry at his father for not calling sooner. He felt responsible, since Uncle Sam had come to New York to go over colleges at his request. How could he have known that a hunt would come up during the visit? He couldn't predict everything, he reasoned with himself. Sighing, he adjusted his grip on Max's duffle. Squaring his shoulders, he moved to catch up with his uncle's long stride.
"Uncle Sam," James said, and when Sam didn't answer, he spoke louder, "Uncle Sam!"
Sam glanced over his shoulder and caught sight of James' flushed face. Slowly his gait, he said, "Sorry, Jimmy. I didn't mean to run off the plane."
"No, I'm sorry." James dropped the duffle. "Dad didn't call you right away because he knew we were going over my college choices. He wanted to give us as much time as he could before bringing us in on this hunt. It's my fault."
James' articulation of Dean's reason for the delay helped calm his anger. A different reaction from when Dean had told him the same thing. He felt the tension dribble from his body. "No, I'm sorry," Sam sighed. "It's not your fault. This hunt came out of nowhere, and that's just the nature of hunting. We have lives; you have a life that needs living. So we deal with both worlds the best we can." Smiling slightly, he said, "I forgot that for a second, that's all."
James grinned cheekily. "So, you think I'm already doling out some Scholar wisdom?"
Sam smiled and shook his head as they walked toward the entrance of the terminal where he could see Caleb and Max standing. "Don't get ahead of yourself. Everyone hits one out of the park once in a while."
"Gee, thanks," James muttered.
"Just keeping that potential wisdom balanced with humility," Sam stated. "It's my job as the current Scholar and your uncle."
They moved through the doorway and into the sparsely populated terminal.
Smiling, Caleb stepped forward. "Short trip from New York, huh?"
"Yeah, we're not at all annoyed you started a hunt without us, are we, James?"
"Nope, not annoyed at all." James slung the duffle at Max, who was able to catch it before it hit him in the face.
"Nice," Max snarled. "Very mature. Why didn't you just leave it on the plane? We're getting back on."
"Thought you might need to change if you've been wearing those clothes for the past two days," James retorted. "There's only so much Max-smell we can take."
Max took a menacing step forward, but stopped when Caleb cuffed James on the back of the head.
"Hey," James grumbled, smoothing his hair back into place.
"You deserved that," Max muttered.
"Don't throw the luggage around," Caleb warned as he fell into step beside Sam. "Sorry I didn't call yesterday. You'd just flown to New York and Dean wanted to give you at least one day to discuss Jimmy's MBA domination plans before pulling you into this hunt."
"Yeah, James said the same thing. I was annoyed: this looks like a big hunt. But Jimmy's important too."
"They don't call Jimmy mini-you for nothing," Caleb said with a smile.
"Don't call me Jimmy at all," James grumbled half-heartedly. His Uncle Sam had already spoken to him about his own struggles with getting his brother and Caleb to stop calling him Sammy, and the futility of the effort. He suggested that one day, James would welcome the nickname. The younger Winchester had yet to believe it.
James and Max wandered away and dropped into some nearby chairs.
"Where are Ryker and Joshua?" Sam asked tersely.
Caleb waved behind him to where Joshua and Ryker stood several feet away near a small eatery. "Checking in with Adam. We'd arranged to pick up Adam in Charlotte, but Ryker just found out he's already in West Virginia visiting the coven. The pilot is attempting to change our flight plans from Charlotte Douglas to Yeager Airport in Charleston."
"Why are we going to West Virginia anyway? Why does Joshua need to see the coven?"
"JT, Max and Jimmy's need talismans if we're going to hunt together."
"We're rushing to make talismans?" Sam was incredulous. Their talismans had taken months of intensive work. "We can't put the boys in jeopardy with makeshift talismans."
"And Joshua wouldn't create anything makeshift," Caleb stated. "This is not just the future Triad we're talking about; it's his son. But they do need something, so Josh is consulting with the coven to see what they can make now."
"So Joshua and the coven are going to make quickie talismans for the boys. They'll need to be strong. How long will that take?"
Caleb was getting annoyed with Sam's patronizing attitude, an attitude he usually adopted when he was irritated. "We don't know, but Josh figured they could make something strong and layered in a couple days."
"We're staying in West Virginia for two days?" Sam demanded incredulously. "Whose brilliant idea was that?"
"Hey!" Caleb snapped. "Enough of the attitude, Runt. I get that your mad Dean didn't immediately bring you in on this hunt, but you can quit snipping at me and give me a chance to fill you in." Taking a deep breath to control his anger, he continued, "We need talismans for JT, Max and Jimmy, so we're going to take Joshua to meet Adam and the coven so they can work on protections that are as strong as possible."
"And you're not staying in Spenser," Joshua said, coming up behind Sam.
Sam stepped back so Joshua could face him and Caleb. His eyes shifted over to Ryker, who was now talking with Max and James.
"The plan is for the Ames jet to drop off me and Ryker. Adam will pick us up at the airport and drive us to Spenser. The Ames jet will fly on to Sioux Falls."
"Our pilot is working on changing the flight plans now," Caleb interjected.
"Adam, me, the coven, we'll work on making talismans for the boys. These talismans will be temporary, but strong. A permanent set will be created at a later date. After landing and leaving you, Caleb, Max and James in Sioux Falls, the Ames jet will return to Charleston and wait to take me and Ryker to Bobby's when we're finished."
"Dean and JT are driving. That takes at least sixteen hours without stops. We've got time to get there before the hunt is finished," Caleb finished sarcastically.
Sam stepped back slightly, his head hung a bit as he took a couple deep, steadying breaths. He hadn't meant to take Caleb's head off. Caleb had always been an easy target when he was angry at Dean, scared for Dean, defensive with Dean or just annoyed at Dean. In the last couple decades, he thought he'd gotten over making Caleb the target of his feelings. Guess he had more work to do on that front. Shaking his head, he looked up and said, "I didn't realize I was that angry. I'm sorry I bit your head off."
Caleb nodded. "That's family, Runt. Through good and bad, we're there."
Caleb Reeves, to the service counter. Caleb Reeves, to the service counter.
Glancing up at the overhead speakers, Caleb said, "Probably the pilot with an update. I'll be right back."
Sam watched as the older man strode off and shook his head again. "I didn't mean to take it out on him."
"The best thing about family," Joshua said, "is they're usually on your side, whether you're right or wrong."
"They'll just tell you how wrong you are later," Sam sighed.
Joshua smiled. "True, but they have your back when it counts."
Ryker, Max and James walked over. "What's the scoop?" Max asked.
"I believe we're waiting to see about the change in flight plan," Joshua said.
"Want to get something to eat?" James asked. "I'm starving."
"Why don't you get us some sandwiches," Sam said, pulling a card from his wallet and handing it to his nephew. "We'll wait here for Caleb. Make sure it has some nutritional value."
James grinned. "They've got Louisville's famous Derby pies and Modjeska candy in the airport. Chocolate and caramel marshmallows are nutritious."
Max shook his head. "Always with the sugar."
Sam rolled his eyes. James had the eating habits of Dean.
"How about turkey, lettuce and tomato sandwiches," Joshua said. "A sugar rush isn't the best idea when we're soon to be confined on an airplane."
"I'll wait here," Max said, pointing to a seat. "Get me something good, huh?"
"Will do," Ryker said, leading the way back through the small airport.
Caleb strode back over to Sam and Joshua. "We're set to take off for West Virginia in an hour and a half. But we're stuck there over night. Seems Sioux Falls airport has a traffic problem tonight. We couldn't get a landing time. We could fly into Rapid City, but then we'd have to rent a car and drive the six hours to Bobby's."
"There are no departure times even after midnight?" Sam asked.
"We could get a departure time at four in the morning, but I thought it would be better for us to get a good night's sleep then fly out."
"It's Sioux Falls," Sam said with a hint of annoyance. "How busy can Sioux Falls be?"
"It's a Regional airport," Caleb said, trying not to give in to irritation again. "There's a limited amount of space for incoming and outgoing flights. I thought if we spent the night in Charleston, we could research the Indian tribes in Northwest. With Dean and JT driving, they're not going to be doing much research."
Joshua looked at Sam and could see his frustration. "Its research that needs to be done," he said. "Plus, we could use your research skills and resources to find out more about the myths we think are relevant. Does it matter whether it's done in Charleston or Sioux Falls?"
Sam sighed. "No, I guess not. Yeah, okay. It'll be good to sleep in a bed instead of waiting in the airport for a four AM flight."
"We'll be there soon," Caleb said, a comforting hand on Sam's back.
"Yeah. All right, let's hear about this hunt," Sam said, squaring his shoulders.
After listening to Sam and Joshua discussed the hunt for a bit, Caleb stepped away and walked over to where Max was sitting.
"What's up?" Caleb asked. He'd been eyeing the young man for the last fifteen minutes and could tell Max was brooding over something.
Shrugging, Max said, "Nothing."
Caleb dropped into a seat beside the younger man. "Then why aren't you off making sure Jimmy isn't buying his weight in sugar?"
Max smiled. "Ryker's on duty."
Caleb frowned. It wasn't often he had to pry information from his protégé. But today, Max didn't seem willing to share. "Come on, you've got something on your mind."
Max sighed and looked over to where his father and Sam were talking. "It's just … owls, owl people. What kind of hunt is this? Seems like something for either National Geographic or SCREAM magazine. Not the Brotherhood."
"It isn't our usual hunt, is it? But in a world of strange, we've had stranger. You learn not to rule anything out."
"Yeah, I get that," Max said slowly. "But JT has a dream, you have a dream, and suddenly we're hunting owl people. I just don't get it."
Laughter floated across the terminal, and Caleb and Max looked over to see Ryker and James returning, their arms loaded down with sandwiches, drinks, and a couple derby pies.
"As hunters, we can't afford to look the other way," Caleb said, rising. "We go where the work takes us, no matter how weird."
"Yeah," Max replied softly. He walked over to where Ryker and James were unloading their lunch offerings onto one of the small tables near the terminal seating area.
"What did I say about a sugar rush?" Joshua asked, his eyes on the pies.
"I'll eat them after we land in Charleston," James stated, a mischievous smile on his lips. "That way I can run around the airport if I need to."
"With as much sugar as Jimmy's eaten growing up," Max said, leaning down to pick up a sandwich, "sugar is a vitamin group now."
"Nature greens, bred meat and refined granular," Ryker said with a smile.
James grinned at Max and Ryker while giving them the finger behind his Uncles' backs.
"I saw that," Caleb remarked as he peeled the paper away from his sandwich.
Sam looked at his watch before saying to the boys, "We've got another hour before takeoff. We'll be spending the night in Charleston."
All the humor dropped from James' face. "Seriously? Can we afford the time?"
Caleb and Joshua eyed one another. "Must be a Scholar thing," Caleb said.
"Undoubtedly," Joshua agreed before taking a bite of his sandwich.
"Hey!" Sam and James said in unison.
"Oh, yeah," Max snorted with laughter, "definitely a scholar thing."
Charleston, West Virginia
The Ames Jet landed at the Yeager Regional Airport in Charleston, West Virginia just after seven in the evening. Caleb, Sam, Joshua and the boys had made good use of the four hour flight time by going over all the research that had been done of the hunt thus far. Sam was intrigued by the Native American myths and wondered just how many of them had their impetus in reality. He thought most were pretty farfetched, even for hunters who dealt with the impossible on a daily basis. A panther that swims under water? Heads they flew without bodies? Even in the realm of the supernatural, those were out there.
"I wonder if anyone has ever seen a merman," James mused. "There was that documentary on Animal Planet."
"It was a mockumentary," Max said with an eye roll.
"There are vampires and werewolves, revenants and banshees and loads of other things no one thinks is real," argued James. "Maybe mermaids and mermen are too."
"How about we deal with this hunt and leave the mermaids to themselves," Caleb said, rising from his seat and heading down the aisle.
Sam smiled and looked down at the pages he was holding. "This is good work, but it's pretty thin evidence for a hunt."
"Not if you factor in Pastor Jim's warning and Caleb's dreams," Joshua said.
"Yeah, but…"
"We'll be landing in fifteen minutes," Caleb said, returning from the cockpit. He looked at Joshua. "You want to get Jimmy's samples now?"
Joshua nodded and collected his crafting case. He pulled out a pair of silver tweezers and a silver scalpel along with three small medical cups. "I'll need a skin sample, a blood sample and a hair sample."
"As long as you don't ruin my hair," James said, eyeing Joshua's tweezers.
"No promises," Joshua said with a smile.
After collecting and stowing James' samples in his case, he put it back in the overhead compartment and returned to his seat.
"Please fasten your seatbelts and put all trays in their upright position," came the captain's voice over the intercom system. "We are on direct approach to Yeager Regional Airport and will be landing in five minutes. Until tomorrow, thank you for flying Ames Airways."
Once the plane landed and everyone had deplaned, Caleb took a few minutes more with the pilot. After a brief conversation, Caleb shook his hand and walked down the ramp to the airport terminal where everyone was waiting.
"Our take off tomorrow is twelve-thirty."
"Why so late?" Sam asked.
"We were originally scheduled for eight, but another flight has priority. The airport has been closed until noon."
"What flight could close an airport?" Max asked.
"Air Force One," Caleb, Sam and Ryker said together.
James and Max goggled. "Seriously? We can see the President?" James was practically bouncing on his toes.
"No," Caleb said as he led the way through the terminal toward ticketing. Adam would meet Joshua and Ryker outside while the rest of them went to baggage claim to pick up their rental car. "Air Force One isn't stopping here. Yeager is in their direct flight path, so they're closed until the President's plane has passed."
"So they're closed all morning?" Max asked.
"The airport leaves time for any conflicts that may detain the President," Joshua remarked, his eyes on the long glass windows of the terminal. "There's Adam," he said.
Ryker smiled and gave a short wave to Max and James before heading to the doors.
Joshua turned to Caleb and said, "We'll meet up with you in Sioux Falls in a couple days. JT, Max and James will be protected."
"Thanks," Caleb said, clasping Joshua's hand in a warm hand shake. "See you soon."
Caleb didn't follow James and Max to the windows, where they stood waving off Joshua and Ryker. He and Adam had never been anything more than cordial. Though Caleb was Joshua's stepbrother, Adam had never warmed up to hunters.
"You have hotel reservations?" Sam asked, his eyes on Caleb as he watched James and Max.
"Yeah," Caleb said absently, before turning his full attention to Sam. "Yes. We're staying at the Charleston Capital Hotel. How about I head down and get the car. I'll meet you guys back up here and we'll get going."
After a late dinner at Bricks and Barrels near the hotel, James and Max went to their room while Caleb and Sam met up in Caleb's room for a couple hours of research.
Since Max and James had yet to join them, Caleb told Sam about JT's dream.
"JT?" Sam said incredulously. "How did Dean take that?"
"As you'd think," Caleb said sadly. "Thought it was a judgment on his actions in hell."
"But Dean said he had a dream." Sam stated.
Caleb looked up. "He told you that already?"
Sam nodded. "When we spoke before he and JT left the farm. He said speaking to Pastor Jim again was like going home."
Caleb felt the emotions well up inside him and he looked down at the empty legal pad on the table. Dean, so stoic, strong and tough, and so sentimental inside. He was the best man Caleb had ever known.
"Does JT know Pastor Jim used him to open the door for Dean?" Sam asked quietly.
Caleb shook his head. "No, and he won't. Dean would never let that happen. Besides, we don't know that past Guardians haven't communicated with up and coming Guardians before. There hasn't been time to look into that."
"I'm glad Pastor Jim went to JT, and that JT got to meet him. But I'm even happier that Dean got to talk with him again."
Caleb smiled and said, "Me too."
There were a few dozen knocks on the door, and Caleb shook his head as he got up to let James and Max inside.
When they were all seated around the large table in Caleb's room, Sam asked a question that had been nagging at him since Caleb had updated them on research. "Earlier you said you had a dream about a field and darkness. How? Was it a psychic connection? I don't think anyone has delivered dreams to either of us before, so how did this person get into your head? I mean, you're blocks are titanium."
"Ryker suggested that I didn't view them as a threat, so didn't reject the contact. Guess I saw it more as a distress signal than an infiltration."
"Did Missouri get a message?"
Caleb frowned. He hadn't thought to ask.
"You didn't call her, did you?"
"She's long past retired," Caleb stated. "Who knows if anyone even comes calling anymore?"
Sam rolled his eyes and pulled out his phone. "I believe a psychic is open twenty-four, seven for distress calls."
Caleb half listened to Sam's call with Missouri while checking his own phone for messages.
Sam hung up and said, "Missouri said she hadn't heard anything, not even a dream. She said to watch your back."
Caleb gave a dismissive shrug. "Sage advice; watch your back. Don't know why I didn't think of it."
Caleb's relationship with Missouri had never been the same after she'd lied to them about her father when they'd desperately needed help fighting Lucifer and the Apocalypse. When she did step up and reveal that he was alive, she had acted like they should thank her for finally telling the truth. He viewed her withholding of information as a violation of her role as Advisor, as disrespectful to Mac, the sole remaining member of her Triad, and ultimately disrespectful to the future Triad. It was like she spat on all the tradition and honor of the Brotherhood. Then, when her father was killed by Malachi Harris, she'd blamed them, which Caleb thought was the height of hubris and pride. Though he was sorry she had lost her father, he couldn't help but feel if she'd been upfront in the first place he would still have been alive. Though he'd been cordial to Missouri through the years, Caleb had never truly been able to forgive that.
"Anyway, during the last dream I called out, and they answered; said they needed help."
"Still, I don't like it. You're blocks are stronger than anyone's. I don't see how whoever it was could have gotten in as far as they did. If they can get through your blocks, then they're a threat to anyone in the Brotherhood. We need to be careful."
"We need information," Caleb said. "Listen; I'm not sure how he or she got through, but I've had psychic contact with other people before. I'm an open hotline for visions."
"But you said this wasn't a vision," Sam countered. "That means you're psychic bat signal wasn't shining and this person still made it into your dreams. I'm just saying we need to check them out, make sure they're not the threat."
"I agree," James said. When Sam and Caleb both gave him their Triad leadership stares, he swallowed a bit nervously but plowed on. "This is the leadership of the Brotherhood, not just someone who had a dream. Someone got into the Knight's head while he was sleeping. That is either the biggest distress signal of all time, or a possible attack on the Brotherhood. We can't be cavalier about this."
Sam's heart warmed with the pride he felt in his nephew. As the youngest of the proposed Triad, James had been the most reluctant to give his attention to the Brotherhood. His post-high school interests had been more fixed on college, parties, and the running of the Ames conglomerate. Sam had begun to worry that James might follow his own path and opt out of the Brotherhood. But the last couple years had been a turning point for the youngest Winchester, and his leadership abilities were taking shape. He'd even slowed his college plans so he could have more time for JT.
Originally James had planned on going directly from college into the MBA program. After Sydney Matthews had been killed, his plans changed. JT needed him more than he needed to dominate the competition, and for the first time in his life, he put himself second and JT first. Instead of going directly to business school, he took a year internship at Ames Industries and made himself available for more hunts with his brother.
Working more closely with JT, Max and Ryker had changed his perspective on hunting. Before he had squeezed hunting in between classes and parties. Now he hunted with partners, and not under the supervision of his uncles or father. He truly relied on them for his safety, and they relied on him. It was a new feeling, one in which he found great satisfaction.
"We are taking this situation seriously," Caleb said reassuringly. "But after decades in the field, I've got good instincts when it comes to the psychic, and I didn't sense anything but a need for help from this person. That doesn't mean they won't be approached with the utmost caution. We'll have every measure of defense in place. We're not going to leave any rock unturned to figure this out, okay?"
James nodded, his mood lightening. "Yeah, okay."
"So," Sam said, his eyes going to the notes in front of him. "We're looking into tribes that are indigenous to Washington and Idaho? There are hundreds in that part of the United States."
"Focus on Washington," Caleb said. "That's where the dreamer said they were located."
"And check for the owl connection," Max interjected. "Most tribes have owl imagery, but maybe some have a deeper connection."
James' fingers flew over the keyboard of his computer. "There are the bird tribes. Looks like Cherokee and Lakota have a special connection to owls, though I think owls is a common thread throughout all Indian culture."
"Native American," Max corrected.
"Huh?" James mumbled, his concentration fractured.
"Indian isn't PC."
James snorted and returned his focus to his computer screen. "Give me a few minutes."
Sam and James worked on their computers for several minutes while Caleb reviewed their research and Max doodled on his legal pad.
"I don't think there's any one tribe in Washington that has a specific owl association," James said eventually.
"Focus on tribes near the Wenatchee mountain range," Caleb said. "That's where the dream sender lives."
James bent back over his keyboard and typed. After another ten minutes he said, "Lot's of tribes in that area have owl masks or totems, but not one more than the other. Maybe Uncle Sam can find something on the Brotherhood database."
"I've tapped into the database and can't find anything about owls being specific to any one tribe," Sam said. "Owls seem to have an ominous meaning to pretty much every Native American tribe. But maybe we can find a specific tribal connection to one of the myths. I sent an email to Professor Burgess at the University of Washington. He specializes in Pacific Northwest History with a specialty in native peoples. It's…" Sam looked at his watch, "eight there, so I may not hear from him until tomorrow, but we'll see if he can give us any information on tribes with deeper owl connections."
"Searching for owls and Native Americans is just too broad a search, don't you think?" asked James.
"Then let's narrow it to myths associated with specific tribes," Sam said.
"Like the Skuddakumooch or the Tah-tah-kle'-ah being connected to a specific tribe," James said, and nodded.
Max frowned slightly, watching Sam and James go back and forth, collaborating on the research.
James typed for a few minutes, then leaned back. "There are a lot of Native American tribes in Washington and in that area. I've got twenty-eight tribes, the main ones being Chehalis, Chinnok, Coeur d'Alene, Kalispel, Spokane Salish, Makah, Quieluete, Skokomish, Walla Walla, and Yakama."
"Searching every tribe for Skuddakumooch or the Tah-tah-kle'-ah, or another witch connection is going to take time," Sam stated. "Maybe we can narrow this down further."
"Do you know whether your dream partner was a member of a tribe?" Sam asked Caleb.
Caleb shook his head. "I don't know. They didn't say anything about an Indian Tribe, though I was in contact with them for less than a second."
"So," Max interrupted, "because of owls, we're searching for Native American tribes in Washington State."
"We're searching Native American Indians because of Pastor Jim," Sam said. "Owls have the biggest symbolic footprint in Native American Culture."
Max doodled on his paper. "We're placing a lot of relevance on JT seeing Pastor Jim in a dream," he said softly, not looking up to meet anyone's eyes. "Just sayin'."
"You think my brother is lying?" James demanded.
"No!" Max said, an angry flush coloring his cheeks. "But we've mobilized both current and future Triads and we're heading to South Dakota on the Ames jet based on an owl in a dream. It's … I don't understand. I have dreams too, some scary ones, and we all don't run off to track those down. It just seems…"
"Incredulous?" Sam said quietly.
Max fiddled with his pencil again. "Yeah."
Sam remembered the first time Dean had a dream featuring Pastor Jim. He'd told Dean that he was just normal, not the one with the visions. He didn't believe that Dean had really seen Pastor Jim. He thought Dean had merely dreamed Pastor Jim, and that he was basing their entire hunt for an in-danger Caleb on a dream.
Sam smiled. "I get it. The first time Dean saw Pastor Jim in a dream, I thought he was just missing him. Then Dean said we needed to go on this hunt to save Caleb. I didn't understand how Dean could have a dream that Caleb was in trouble. I didn't have a dream; I didn't have a vision, and I was the one with visions, not him."
Caleb watched Sam. Though he didn't remember much about his nightmare vision after he'd been poisoned, he remembered he'd been terrified and despondent, resigned to dying because he thought Dean and Sam were gone. When they'd come and finally convinced him they were real, he had hope once again.
"Then we discovered that Caleb was in trouble; that he'd been poisoned and would have died if we hadn't gone and found him." Sam sighed. "We were able to save Caleb and our Triad that day. Guardians have a connection to other Guardians, past and future. I don't know how or why, and I don't understand it, but they do. I've seen it through the years."
Caleb gave Max a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "You'll get used to it; I promise."
Max's shoulders relaxed as he nodded. "Yeah, okay. I was just finding it hard to believe all this stuff."
James watched Max and understood what he was going through. If he were honest with himself, he wouldn't have believed JT's dream either. He would have been like Sam; questioning his brother's logic and instincts. He was ruled by his head, JT by his heart. He needed to listen when JT's heart spoke.
Sam looked back at his computer. "Because we're not sure what we're looking for, we're going at this looking at everything. We need to logically narrow our focus. If this evil is big enough to have Pastor Jim involved, big enough to bring all of us into the fight, then I think we're looking at a major tribal connection, not one of the smaller tribes."
"Don't all major tribes belong to a reservation?" Caleb asked.
"Yes," Sam said, his finger flying on his keyboard. After a couple minutes, he said, "The larger tribal reservations are the Puyallup Indian Reservation with four thousand members, the Lummi Indian Reservation with six thousand, six hundred members, the Colville Indian Reservation with seven thousand, five hundred and eighty-seven members, and the largest is the Yakama Indian Reservation with ten thousand, eight hundred and fifty-one members."
"Where did you find all that?" Max asked.
"Wikipedia," Sam said with a smile.
Caleb gave a shout of laughter. "Does Wikipedia say where these reservations are located?"
"In fact, it does," Sam said. "Puyallup is primarily in northern Pierce County near Tacoma, Lummi reservation is way up north near Birmingham at the Canadian border. Uhh, Colville is also up north near the Canadian border, and the Yakama Reservation is in south central Washington."
"Where is the Enchantment Lake Basin," Caleb asked, leaning forward with more interest than he'd shown before.
Even James and Max were focused on Sam and his computer.
Sam's fingers flew across his keyboard as he searched for the Basin. Finally, he pulled up a map and studied it for a moment before sitting back and smiling. "The Enchantment Lake Basin is in directly in the middle of the Yakama Indian Reservation in South Central Washington."
"Boom," Max declared, a wide smile on his face.
"Looks like we have a touchdown location," Caleb said.
"We still need to know a lot more about the Skuddakumooch and the Tah-tah-kle'-ah," Sam said.
"You live to bring me down," Caleb grumbled.
James was frowning, his fingers flying across his computer keyboard. "Since we're looking specifically at the Yakama, I can now confirm that the origin of the tale of five supernatural women who resemble giant owls is a Yakama myth," he smacked his laptop gently but firmly shut, a satisfied smirk on his face. "And they're called the Tah-tah-kle'-ah."
"Nice," Max said.
"Good work," Caleb said.
Sam looked over at his nephew and smiled. "Well done."
Uncle Sam's praise was rare and hard won. James' smirk turned into a genuine smile.
Yeager Regional Airport, Charleston, WV
The four were at the airport by ten the next morning in case the presidential plane flew over on time and they were able to fly out sooner than twelve-thirty.
Max walked over to where Caleb, Sam and James were standing. "The information desk says that they've had no word yet on when Air Force One will make its pass."
Caleb nodded, running his fingers through his thick, gray hair. "Then we've got a couple hours before we're scheduled to fly to Sioux Falls. Let's get something to eat." Due to a late night of research, the group hadn't risen, showered and packed in enough time to take advantage of the hotel's complimentary breakfast buffet. Caleb knew hunger would make tempers short, and he wasn't keen on going another round with an annoyed Sam or grumpy Max and James today.
James and Max voted for eating at UFood Grill, but since Caleb was paying, they went to Café Intermezzo.
Sam got a garden wrap while Max and James both ordered burgers. Caleb opted for a chicken salad croissant, which had Sam covering a smile.
Caleb and Dean were cut from the same burger-clothe unless Dean wasn't around. Then Caleb usually opted for healthier fare. In fact, Sam knew the only reason Dean was a healthy sixty-one was the Winchester constitution and Juliet's influence at home. Otherwise Dean would eat cheeseburgers for breakfast, lunch and dinner with the occasional chili cheese fries thrown in.
Caleb watched Sam while Max and James squabbled good-naturedly about the kind of clothes the younger man had packed for older. "What are you smiling about," Caleb asked as he sipped his coffee.
"Just thinking about Dean and his quest for the perfect cheeseburger."
Caleb laughed. "He's been on that hunt for forty years."
"I think he's come close a couple times," Sam grinned.
"Like at Ben's Chili Bowl in D.C."
Sam laughed. "Weren't we in our forties when we went there? The place was filled with teenagers and college kids, but Dean didn't care. He just plowed right through all those bodies and ordered a cheeseburger."
Caleb shook his head. "He sat there, critiquing the thing. Eventually all the college kids were sitting around, listening to him dissect the burger, savoring the taste even as he hypothesized about how it could be made better. Soon those kids were critiquing their own meals."
"And then the cook came out!"
Caleb shook with laughter. "And Dean told him … told him he needed just a hint of…"
"A-1 steak sauce," Sam said at the same time as Caleb.
Caleb nodded. "And damn it if the man didn't go back and make Dean another burger, this time with A-1!"
Sam and Caleb were laughing so hard, Max and James began listening in.
Sam nodded again. "Then there was the Cadillac Burger at P.J. Clarke's in New York where you took him for his, what was it, thirty-eighth birthday?"
Caleb nodded. "Damn, that was a good burger."
"Where else did you go?" James asked, his face alight with interest.
"Well," Caleb said, thinking, "Louis' Lunch in New Haven, Connecticut was up there in the realms of great burgers."
"The Burger Bar," Sam stated, poking a finger at Caleb.
"Vegas," Caleb said with a smile. "Build-Your-Own-Burger at The Burger Bar. Man, Dean's was about a foot high," he said with a snort of laughter.
"Remember him trying to get his mouth around that sandwich?" Sam gasped, barely about to talk through the laughter.
Caleb shouted out a laugh, his eyes streaming. "That … was…" he shook his head and wiped his eyes with his napkin.
"He finally had to use a knife to cut it down to manageable size," Sam laughed.
Both men laughed as Max and James watched, intrigued.
"I think one of the best was at Luger Burger in Brooklyn," Caleb said when he could speak again.
"Have we been there?" Max asked.
Caleb shook his head. "I've actually forgotten about most of the places we've gone, even there. But Luger Burger was fantastic."
Sam laughed again. "I remember that burger. We went there after…" he broke off suddenly.
Luger Burger in Brooklyn was the first place they'd gone after Dean had returned from hell and declared he needed to renew his quest for the best cheeseburger. That was before Castiel had become more of a friend than an angelic benefactor, before the final battle with Lucifer, when Dean and Caleb had pulled Sam back from the box.
Caleb cleared his throat slightly and quickly took a sip of coffee. After Dean's return, he and Sam had been so nervous that he would disappear on them. Even Dean was afraid Uriel or Castiel would toss him back in the pit. Caleb remembered that he hadn't wanted to go to Brooklyn for the burger, but Dean had insisted that a great cheeseburger was just waiting for him there. Gotta get back on the horse, he'd said, and Caleb had caved.
Forcing himself back into the present, Caleb said, "Yeah, that one was good, but not as good as the Black Label Burger from Minette Tavern. New York City; can't find a better cheeseburger than in New York." He gave Max and James a smile. "We'll take you guys there soon. You'll love it."
Max watched Caleb for a moment, knowing something had just happened, but not having the remotest idea of what it was. Pasting a smile on his face, he said, "Yeah, that'd be good. Then we'll see if I can beat it, make a better cheeseburger at Sawyer's."
Caleb smiled at his nephew. "Dean would love that."
James studied his uncles as he bit into his burger. This was another one of those times where his dad or one of his uncles said something that alluded to a past event they didn't want to talk about. He'd begun to notice those topic-change segues two or three years after he started hunting. Most changes were subtle, his dad or uncles steering the conversation into another direction. Some, like today, seemed to catch his family off guard. Whatever occurred was big and probably traumatic. He wanted to know what happened.
"I did more research last night on the Tah-tah-kle'-ah," Sam said. "You want to go over it in Sioux Falls?"
"Might as well," Caleb said. "Save you from having to say everything twice."
Sam ate the last bite of his wrap. "Is the jet fueled and ready for takeoff?"
"Since last night," Caleb said.
"How about we go on board and watch a movie," Sam asked with a smile.
"Die Hard 2!" Max and James said together.
"The Guardian isn't here," Sam said, rising. "How about we watch something else?"
"Uncle Sam," Max said. "We can't be in an airport without watching Die Hard: Die Harder. It's tradition."
Caleb dropped several bills on the table. "Yeah, Uncle Sam. It's tradition."
Sam rolled his eyes. "Fine. Die Harder it is. Let's get some snacks."
"Guess I'm paying for those too," Caleb grumbled.
"Why break with tradition?" Sam smirked.