CHAPTER 2

Kat awoke to darkness. She heard the torturous dripping of water bouncing off of cavernous walls as she feebly struggled against her bindings. The bonds didn't feel like rope; when she twisted her hands she felt something smooth ripping at her skin. Her eyes searched for any light to collect to get her bearings. When she finally found a small reflection and adjusted her eyes to the dark she cringed in horror.

She understood where she was. Underground…in the sewer. Between the feelings of incredulity and hopelessness she began to more frantically search for a way out. She didn't doubt the agents but how long would it really take them to find this specific storm drain. The more her mind raced the more hopeless and desperate she became, finally emitting little noises of struggle; seeking any outlet for her crushing anxiety.

"Awake are we?" a shrill voice coddled. Kat twisted desperate to find the source of the disembodied voice. Again, it sounded from the darkness "Those imbecilic brothers are looking everywhere for you."

Unwilling to show confusion and therefore weakness, Kat stomached her fear as best she could. She wouldn't rise to the bait. She knew anonymity was her best bet at survival. In her head however she bounced between thoughts like nerve endings sparking. 'Brothers', 'Shouldn't there be more than just them', 'Are they here alone'?

Slowly a slim but muscled figure appeared from the shadow. He was seemingly human. Kat thought it was the darkness playing tricks on her because she saw eyes far too big for any human face thin into slits, staring at her with what she could only describe as lust. The hair, was also not human, it fell in wiry sheets, fraying at the end almost…almost like a horse. At this realization she screamed; because she was scared and also feared she was losing her mind.

"Now that won't do. I need you to use your words Katherine." It barked. It advanced and she kicked her legs in an attempt to keep it at bay. "I need you to tell me exactly what you told those boys about me."

Kat stopped, as if she had been paralyzed. She felt the oddest sensation of water trickling UP her leg, not down it. The sensation sent chills up her spine and she attempted to kick it off. What she did manage to scrape away, just came back and worked its way around her entire body. The ultimate panic sparked her brain once the liquid reached her throat. She began to gurgle, drowning in the water. Tears escaped her eyes as she gasped at what air she could find.

"Now, Katherine. And I'll make this quick."

It took Sam and Dean an hour to, weasel their way into the county clerks office and get hier hands on a blueprint of the sewage system. They drove, furiously in a routine silence. As mucha s neither of them wanted to admit it, this type if thing happened more often than not. It had been eleven years since Dean had gotten Sam from Stanford and it seemed they had lost more than they'd saved. Maybe it was selfish because in reality they both knew the only people they had lost were the ones that meant something more to them than a job. That the people they saved far outweighed the fallen but to them, the loss of their friends seemed almost not worth the victories.

They pulled the car up to the water works reserve hoping that some luck would come their way and the monster would be keeping her in the first one they checked, seeing as there were only two in town.

After 15 minutes of wading through god knew what Sam threw out his arm to stop Dean. He nodded towards the fork to the left of their path and Dean listened. It was then he heard the faint voices coming from about 50 feet away.

"How could I have told them anything? I don't even know what you are?" Spat the voice Dean recognized as Kat's. He could hear her resolve slipping.

"I'll say this again Katherine…that is neither the truth, nor the answer I want to hear." The brothers then heard a horrifying sound. Kat's gasping, coughing, and struggling against the water in her throat.

It was Sam that ran first down the stone hall, bursting in, gun held high, pointed at the creature. Dean followed suit.

"Finally! I was beginning to wonder if you were ever going to come and claim your damsel." The Kelpie exclaimed circling behind Kat, probably for protection because he knew the Winchesters would never fire at the victim.

"Yeah? Well we're here now. Why don't you come out and fight fair?" chided Dean as he stepped forward.

"No can do, Dean. I need to stay alive you see, I've been hidden away in purgatory for a long time." The monster gushed gleefully.

Sam knew they had to keep it talking in order to distract it long enough to get a shot. "So, how'd you break free?" he prodded. Shooting Dean a microscopic look; he flitted his eyes to the right, signaling him to circle around towards its back.

"Well you should know Sam, it was your deal with Rowena after all." Both brothers stopped momentarily knowing now, it was imperative they keep it talking.

"Huh." Sam grunted, bemused. "So the Mark of Cain cut you loose?" He finished

"Correction: it cut the Darkness loose. And she is what gives all us pagan's power." It was after that, Dean remembered Kat was hearing this exchange. Her eyes were wide with incredulity. He'd seen the look on many people before and he felt instantly sorry she was the next person who they exposed to the truth. "Imagine my surprise…" it continued, "that while carrying out my orders from her, I find you two on my tail. Rowena will be so pleased that I'll be able to present you to her on a silver platter."

Everything happened so quickly Kat could barely take it all in. The Kelpie galloped from behind her towards Sam. Its elongated legs and large muscular chest looked oddly balanced as it swiftly charged, hair flowing like a horse's mane. A shot rang out from her left. She looked and saw Dean, gun erect having just fired the shot into the Kelpie's left thigh. It yelped and turned on him as Sam regained his composure. Kat struggled, and in her writhing she saw a brass fixture on a leather strap hanging from its neck. Slowed down by the bullet the creature had only just reached Dean. It pinned him against the wall as she cried "SAM!" She wriggled one hand free, bringing all her body weight down on her right shoulder. She heard it pop out of its socket before she felt it. In the split second it took for the pain to climax, she pointed to her neck and screamed, "The bridle!"

Sam immediately knew what she meant and leapt forward. In one swift movement he fired a silver bullet into the creature's chest and ripped the leather necklace from it. It stood very still for five seconds and then, it whinnied, loudly echoing through the stone walls and making their ears ring. The Kelpie began to violently shake and water poured from its orifices; until suddenly, the whole thing was engulfed in it. With one last cry, it exploded out like water breaching a bulkhead, cascading from too much pressure.

Covered in what was once a living creature, and dangling from the ceiling by a leather hoop and her dislocated arm, Kat breathed, "Badass" before losing consciousness.

There was a vibrating rumble bouncing inside of Kat's head. Faint at first, it grew louder. Begrudgingly, she forced her eyes open a crack to see she was in a car. An old one, the type that were metal cages. The two men she had believed to be FBI agents occupying the front seat.

"So let me get this straight…You're not FBI…and monsters are real?" She wasn't really expecting them to be truthful, because everything that had happened previously had been a lie. What she had seen was too unreal to be a fabrication but if she allowed herself to be trusting of these strangers she had to have been more insane than she thought.

Sam and Dean jumped, taken by surprise her voice, but recovered well. They settled into their seats and prepared for the talk they'd had many times before.

"No we are not FBI. And yes, monsters are real." Dean stated bluntly without looking back at her.

"Why should I trust you?" She countered glaring, willing him to turn around.

"Because we saved your life, and what other explanation do you have for what you saw?" Dean reasoned. This time he did look into the rear view. What he saw was fear. It evoked a sympathy in him that was lost before. He was too involved in what the Kelpie had said about Rowena.

"Fair enough." Kat conceded; however, she was far from finished with the conversation. "I think my shoulder is dislocated."

"It is definitely dislocated. We'll fix it for you when we get to our motel." Sam interjected.

"So you're doctors now…Sam isn't it?" she said in an accusatory tone. She was furious that she had been lied to but honestly, she couldn't justify to herself why they'd tell her anything in the first place.

"We know a thing or two about broken bones. My name is Sam and this is my brother Dean."

"Oh, we're well acquainted." She acknowledged. "Is that like your M.O.? Come into town, pick a girl, wine and dine… then almost get them killed?" Her voiced raised a little at the end of her sentence.

"Well I'm pretty sure you invited me back to your place." Dean retorted, secretly enjoying her spunk.

"…Before I knew you hung out with archaic legends reincarnate." Sam smiled at her tenacity. Despite the subject matter he enjoyed that this girl was going blow for blow with Dean.

"What was he talking about any way?" She segued. "Who's this Rowena bitch and what Darkness?" Kat demanded.

"If we tell you, you have to understand that it's not something you can really walk away from." Sam said softly, regretting the fact that another citizen was about to be privy to the fact that her world hangs in the balance, yet again.

"I don't see that I have any other choice." Kat said resolutely.

They reached the motel fairly quickly, riding the rest of the way absorbed in their own thoughts. When they stopped Kat pulled herself over to the door, opened it, and cradled her arm in the makeshift sling of a flannel she'd found on her. She could see now it was Dean's and was grateful. The trio walked into the room, which was strewn with empty beer bottles and a box of pizza. A laptop sat on the table and on the other side there were two unmade beds. Dean's head perked up from depositing his bag at the foot of one when Kat let out an involuntary wince.

"We should fix that." He coaxed. She nodded and let him approach her. She was rather like a wounded animal, a quality she'd always relished. Dean gently removed the flannel all the while holding her arm steady. He moved with a quiet skillfulness and Kat thought that maybe those were his two most prominent qualities. He extended her arm forward gingerly and she shut her eyes tight from the pain of it.

"Ready?" he whispered and before she had even followed through on the nod he slipped it back into place with a satisfying crunch and the worst pain Kat had ever felt. She grunted and her eyes flew open desperate for something to latch on to for grounding. Even though the pain lasted for a millisecond she found Dean's gaze and was appreciative of the fact that he was there to help her.

"Better?" he asked cautiously.

"Much." She managed.

Sam came to stand in front of them like an officiant, crossed his arms and looked between them both. "So, you want to know everything?" He clarified.

During the time it took to tell their story the three people in the small motel room had shifted positions. Kat had sat on the further bed. Sam had taken a permanent spot at the table and Dean, paced back and forth in front of the bathroom. It was Sam who had done most of the talking. He started with Dean receiving the 'Mark of Cain' all the way up to its removal three weeks prior. Dean interjected only to justify himself, never to correct. He seemed uncomfortable with divulging something that had been a huge part of not only his life but his body. He crossed his arms; both protecting his chest and hiding the place where it had resided. Kat took this all in stride. Thinking herself crazy, but knowing deep down that this was truth. Unlike Dean she didn't interrupt, or make any sound at all. She stared at Sam with a stamina he hadn't seen before. He saw her hesitation, but also her strength. Finally, when he finished Kat said carefully, "So… the closest you've come to stopping her is what that thing just told you?"

"Basically." Sam admitted. Kat ran her hand through her extra frizzy black hair, noting that it was positively filthy.

Kat took a deep breath and on the exhale began to say the words she somehow knew would alter her life—even if it were slightly—forever. "Well, as much as I don't want to go Indiana Jones-ing through sewage drains, I'd like to help." Both of the men chuckled at that and she took it as encouragement and continued, "You could consider me…resident researcher…" she stumbled, looking for the proper wording and smiled, "I have access to innumerable databases and I know how to navigate them like the back of my hand. I'm not war worn, like you two obviously are. But I do know that I can't sit on top of all of the resources I do have, and do nothing."

Her eyes glowed with a resolute passion, and both boys knew, despite what they'd lost, they couldn't deny someone the chance to do what they could as they themselves did. They couldn't have stopped Charlie, Jo, Ellen, Ash, or Bobby if they tried. They would just have to make sure Kat's name wasn't added to that list.