Hello again! Not much to say except thank you to everyone again for reading, it's nice to know my stories can entertain you!
On with Heart.
Disclaimer: If I owned any snippets of Supernatural, I would have paid my way through medical school and been married to Jared by now.
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"This the first heart-free corpse in town?" Dean asked casually, polishing a gorgeous silver hand gun until it shone brightly. Sam strolled in the door casually, his long strides immediately taking him to the fridge to pull out a cold beer.
"First man." He answered. "In the past year, several women have gone missing, their bodies all washed up on the bay, too deteriorated to draw further conclusions." Grabbing his beer and a chair, he strode over to the bed his brother was sitting on and straddled the chair backwards, pulling the cap off his drink and taking a swig.
"But no hearts." Dean replied.
"No hearts." Sam confirmed with a shake of his head. "They were all hookers working Hunter's Point. Now cops are trying to keep things under wrap, but they're looking for a serial killer."
"Lunar cycle?" Dean asked, never once pausing in the thorough cleaning of his gun. Same nodded though another sip.
"Yeah, month after month, all the murders happen in the week leading up to the full moon." Dean nodded, barely able to hold back the glowing smile on his face and excitement in his eyes.
"Which is this week, right?" He asked eagerly. Sam nodded.
"Hence the lawyer."
"Awesome." Dean couldn't hold back the smile now as he reached for his weaponry case. His whole body gave off waves of excitement, like a child more than anything. Sam scoffed and rolled his eyes.
"Dean, could you be a bigger geek abut this?" He asked incredulously. Dean in turn scoffed at his brother.
"I'm sorry man, but what about a human by day, freak animal killing machine by moonlight don't you understand? I mean, werewolves are bad-ass." He opened a small, black case to reveal rows upon rows of bullets, gleaming dangerously in the light. They were all uniform in size, shape, and most importantly, composition. Everyone knows the only thing that can kill a werewolf. "We haven't seen one since we were kids!"
"Ok, Sparky." Sam said in a condescending tone. "And you know what? After we kill it, we can go to Disneyland!"
"Screw Disneyland." Came a voice from the door. Sam turned around to see his little sister entering the room, unloading a few plastic bags onto the table of the small motel room. "Disney World is where it's at." Sam chuckled.
"Where have you been?" Dean asked, not looking up from the silver beauties in his hand. Kate raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, I thought I'd hit the bars early, you know. See what kind of guys are around this town." She answered casually. Sam was unnerved by how quickly anger and denial swept through him at the declaration, even though he knew it wasn't true. Dean's head snapped up to her.
"You what?" His tone was angry and disbelieving. Kate rolled her eyes, gesturing to the bags on the table.
"I went and got groceries, dumbass." Dean raised an eyebrow and looked at the bags, unsure of what to think. He and Sam never really bought groceries, mostly just take out and diners. Sam looked a little excited by the prospect though.
"What'd you get?" He asked curiously, peering into one of the bags. Kate smiled proudly and began unloading.
"Well, I wasn't sure how long it would be before I could do this again, so I got some non-perishable cans to keep in the car. You know, beans, corn, powdered milk, potatoes, etc. But I also got some carrots, apples, grapes, onions, tomatoes, cold cuts, bread, rice, eggs, bacon, and some burger patties. I figure that way we can make a few meals and the food will last us for a while." Dean raised an eyebrow.
"First of all, the only real cooking we ever really do on the road is spaghetti o's." He told her pointedly, standing from his spot on the bed and stalking his way to the table, peering into the bags. "Secondly, how did you afford this stuff? You should really only use the credit cards for gas and quick transactions." Kate was confused.
"First of all, that's gross and unhealthy. I mean, I like spaghetti o's as much as the next guy, but that's all the cooking you do?" She asked, slightly disgusted. Dean and Sam looked at each other and shrugged. It worked for them, quick and easy. Kate rolled her eyes.
"Ok, secondly, credit cards? I don't have any. I shut down my bank account back home so that people couldn't trace me to my family." The brothers grimaced and guilt came over their faces. It was irrational really, but anytime Kate mentioned her family back in Boston, they couldn't help the guilt that plagued them, like somehow it was their fault she had to leave. The Winchester curse.
"So then how did you pay for all of this?" Sam asked.
"Uh, cash?" Kate answered like it was the most obvious answer. Dean rolled his eyes.
"Duh. But he means where did you get the cash?" answered Dean. Kate looked at her brothers, as if expecting them to laugh and suddenly remember where they always got cash, like they should really know. When they stayed quiet, looking at her expectantly, she was surprised.
"Well, I had it leftover from my last job." She explained, still waiting for the realization to come to their faces. To her surprise, they looked a little angry.
"Are you saying you charge money on a job?" Dean spat, disgusted. Sam's eyes widened in surprise, and a little hurt that his baby sister would do such a thing. Kate looked at them, equally as shocked.
"What? Oh, God, no!" She exclaimed. She couldn't imagine someone asking for money in exchange for killing monsters. "No no no, I mean real, normal jobs! The ones people have when they don't do what we do. You know, waitress, bartender, housekeeping, whatever little odd jobs come around while I'm hunting." Dean and Sam outwardly sighed in relief, then looked a little confused.
"You mean, you work a job… on a job?" Sam asked. She nodded.
"Well yeah. How else do you pay for food, clothes, public transportation, all that jazz?" She laughed and began pulling out some of the treasures she'd picked up and organized them so she could refrigerate things and put the rest in the car. "Though, I suppose you guys have a car, so you just need to pay for gas, but that is getting expensive. What do you guys usually do for cash?"
"Uh…" The boys gave exchanged unsure looks. Do they tell her the true nature of their finances, or…?
"Well…" Sam began, shuffling uncomfortably. "We don't really…" Kate stopped in her movements and looked at her brother, raising an eyebrow.
"You don't what?" She asked suspiciously. Sam looked to Dean, scratching the back of his head sheepishly.
"It's complicated." Dean said, an air of finality around his words. Kate eyed her brothers for a moment, then simply shook her head and went back to putting away the groceries.
"So, any new information about what we're dealing with?" She asked. Dean nodded excitedly and walked back over to where the box of easily his favorite weapon was still lying on the bed. He carefully lifted it, inspecting the silver beauties inside again. Sam smiled slightly and shook his head.
"All of the victims had their hearts ripped out, every attack was in the week leading to a full moon, and the coroners all think it must be some kind of animal. What am I?" Dean teased.
"Oh, a werewolf case? Sounds interesting!" Kate answered. Dean beamed at her with triumph, much to Sam's annoyance.
"And you know what the best part is?" He asked. She shook her head. He pulled out on of the many silver bullets, caressing it between his fingers as he held it in front of his face. "We already know how to kill it. One of these bad boys, right to the heart." Both of his siblings nodded.
"So, where do we start?" Kate asked, turning to the taller brother.
"Talk to the girl who found the body." He dug into his pocket, pulling out a sheet of paper with some simple notes messily scrawled. "Madison Heathe(1)."
"Did she know him?"
"Yeah, she worked for him. Secretary, I think." Kate grimaced.
"I can't imagine being someone's secretary." She moaned.
"Well, luckily, you don't have to worry about that." Dean said cheerfully. He rose from the bed and picked up a bag, slinging it over his shoulder. "One of many perks of being a hunter." She rolled her eyes before following.
Both of them missed the sorrowful and slightly guilty look on their brother's face.
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Kate was happy to see that the apartment building was not run down, or falling apart, and did not wreak of death. On the contrary, it was beautiful and homey. The front stairs were painted a bright white while the rest was deep blue, with a tower-like structure in the front that gave the whole place a much more regal feeling, even if it was smaller than it seemed.
As Dean pulled the Impala to the curb, Sam absently reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out two badges before handing one to his brother.
"So, cops investigating further details?" Dean confirmed. Sam nodded.
"Seems the safest route to go." He turned to the back seat.
"Kate, I was thinking you could be a junior officer, like shadowing us for a while during your time at the academy." Kate bit her lip.
"Actually, I thought it would be easier if I went in as a student of zoology from the local college." She replied. "It's too easy to find out that I'm too young to be an officer, and certainly to realize that you don't shadow until after graduation." Dean nodded appreciatively at the idea while Sam thought for a moment.
"But wouldn't it be just as easy to find out you're not in college, or old enough?" He asked. Kate shrugged.
"Well, technically, I skipped a grade before I left Boston, so I really would be in college by now. And school records can't be accessed by anyone without the expressed permission of the student."
"Wait wait wait," Dean interrupted. "You skipped a grade?"
"Well… yeah." She answered quietly, blushing. "That's not really what's important right now. We should get going." Without another word, she jumped out of the car and shut the door behind her. Both brothers exchanged looks, then followed suit.
Sam's eyes came out just a bit sadder.
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"I don't understand, I already gave my statement." The pretty brunette, Madison, declared. Kate could easily see she was gorgeous, with her long brown hair that curled just right and dark, sparkling eyes. Her pale skin seemed to glow in the sunlight pouring through the large windows, and her slim but curved and defined figure topped off the complete package. Judging by her brothers' expressions, they noticed.
"Right, well," Sam began, following Madison into her apartment. "We just need to verify a few things."
As the trio followed her into the living room, a man just a little older than the boys jumped up from the couch. He had dark curls that grew down from the side of his face into a beard and moustache combo. His eyes seemed to be consumed by color, the whites hardly visible. Kate reasoned that the effect was more than likely due to the coloring framing his entire head, combined with his pale skin. She tried not to laugh when she saw his dingy t-shirt which read "Mission Church". He seemed friendly enough, politely smiling as they all entered.
"Officers, this is my neighbor, Glen. Glen, this is Detective…" She gestured toward Dean, who apparently just realized they had not given their aliases yet.
"Landis. And Detective Dante." He replied, patting Sam heavily on the back. Kate wasn't sure why, but Sam seemed to be unhappy with the name. Must be some reference I'm just not getting.
"And you are?" Glen asked kindly, looking right at Kate. She smiled back.
"Alyssa Green, I'm a student at Lincoln(2) studying aspects of this case. Its nice to meet you both." She extended a hand in greeting to Glen, who shook it, and then to Madison, who smiled and took it.
"Likewise." She replied. Glen cleared his throat.
"Well, I guess I'll leave you to it." He announced, moving toward Madison. The two exchanged a quick hug.
"Ok, thanks for the casserole!" He smiled as he walked briskly to the door.
"Oh, how thoughtful." Dean muttered sarcastically. Sam gave him a quick, berating look, but he pretended not to notice as he checked out the apartment.
"Just call if you need anything." Just as Glen was about to close the door, everyone was walking to the table. Kate, after not hearing the door close, looked just in time to see the almost longing look Glen cast toward Madison, before he finally left. She couldn't help but feel a little bad for the poor guy. Being friend-zoned was never fun.
"He seems nice." Kate noted, coming back to the group. Madison smiled and nodded.
"He's sweet. He came over to check on me." She said it quietly, and Kate could easily observe the guilt in her eyes. So I am not the only one who noticed the puppy eyes.
Madison shook her head fiercely. "Please, have a seat." She offered, gesturing to the table. The four sat down, Madison and Kate on one side, Sam and Dean right across from them.
"You must be pretty shaken up." Sam inquired gently. "You were Nate Mulligan's Assistant, right?" Madison nodded.
"For two years, yeah."
"So you knew all about him?" Dean seemed to have a way of asking questions by not asking, but instead just searching for confirmation of facts he already knew, or assumptions he made. The only time Kate noticed he would ask a question was when he needed to in cop mode, or when it was rhetorical. It was interesting, and a thought she filed away for later evaluation of her mysterious brother. Madison smiled.
"Probably knew more about him than he did. Nate was…" She paused, and her smile grew a mix of sad and unsure. Sam seemed to notice as well. "Nice."
"But?" He urged her. She immediately jumped defensively in her seat.
"Nothing, really. I-" she grimaced. "He had a few scotches in him, and he'd started hitting on anyone in a five-mile radius. You know the type." She directed toward Kate, who nodded. Sam raised an eyebrow, his expression clearly telling her that they would discuss this later. Kate silently responded with a yes, much later look. He then glanced at Dean and tried not to roll his eyes. There he was, practically drooling with a lecherous grin taking over his face, his eyes blatantly and shamelessly roaming up and down Madison's body.
"Yeah, I do actually." Sam said thirdly. Dean seemed to catch his expression and adjusted his position, trying to bring back some semblance of professionalism.
"Did, uh, did he have any enemies?" Madison looked confused.
"What do you mean? It sure looked like an animal attack." Kate smiled.
"Actually, that's kind of why I'm here." Her expression grew serious. "I mean, think about it. It had to take a pretty significantly sized animal to cause that kind of damage to a grown man. And for there to be no mess in the outer office? It would have been searching for something specific. Not to mention riding the elevator up to that specific floor. I believe that this was a trained animal, and someone else must have brought it there and forced an attack." Madison blinked.
"So… you think he was murdered?" She gasped. Kate nodded.
"That's why I came and talked to the Detectives, and why they wanted to talk again." Her eyes softened and she smiled sympathetically. "I'm sorry to make you re-live this, it must have been beyond horrific. But it's worth looking into, right?" Madison nodded, and smiled a watery smile. Dean recovered from his slight surprise at his sister's impromptu explanation and cleared his throat.
"So, anyone that might have had a beef with him- former client, ex?" Madison's expression seemed to shift and darken.
"What?" Sam asked. Madison looked uncomfortable.
"Well, this is embarrassing, but my ex-boyfriend, Kurt-"
"Kurt have a last name?" Dean interrupted.
"Mueller. After we broke up, he kind of went nuts. He's… well, he's kind of been stalking me." Kate shivered, something Sam also filed away for a later discussion. "He got it in his head that something was going on between Nate and I. He showed up at my office."
"What happened?" Sam asked. Kate almost smiled, he looked like he was trying to stay professional, but couldn't hide his concern for her.
"Kurt got into it with Nate, threw a punch before security grabbed him. I was lucky to keep my job." Dean leaned forward a bit.
"When was the last time you saw Kurt?"
"A few nights ago…" Her eyes widened in slight panic. "Actually, the night Nate died. We were all grabbing drinks at the bar, and Kurt showed up."
"And?"
"Nothing, it was… like he was watching me. Then he was gone. To tell you the truth… he scares me." She hung her head. Kate wrapped an arm around her, trying to comfort her.
"It's ok, he's a sketch. Any smart girl would be afraid of a guy like that, you'd be stupid not to." She reasoned. "We have instincts for a reason, and often fear is what saves lives."
Sam and Dean digested the double meaning and knew it to be true. Madison smiled appreciatively.
"So, zoology, huh?"
Kate beamed.
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"So, what do you think?" Dean asked, looking behind him as the trio walled towards the car. Sam shrugged.
"Stalker ex-boyfriend? He hates the boss. And he was there that night."
"Think he's our dog-faced boy?"
"Well, it's a theory."
"I don't know." Kate thought out loud. The brothers stopped, each sibling at their respective doors.
"What do you mean? Makes total sense." Dean said simply. Sam was inclined to agree, but he knew as well as anyone that sometimes just because something so seemingly simple is actually far more complicated than planned. Kate sighed.
"I don't know. It just…" She hesitated. "Doesn't it feel off? It seems just a little too neat, too obvious."
"So?" She looked down.
"So, let's be honest. When is it ever really that simple?"
No one else said a word. After a moment of silent contemplation, Dean threw open his door and climbed in. Kate and Sam soon followed.
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Sweet! Another chapter done!
Thank you thank you thank you again to everyone for reading, reviewing, subscribing, favoriting, etc. It means so much to know even one person likes my writing, let alone all of you guys!
For the record, I am not going to allow Kate to become that perfect piece of crap that every one of us can't stand reading about in OC fics. She has some serious flaws, and they will no doubt become obvious.
Thanks again, hopefully I'll be quick with the next chapter too!
I made up the last name, since I couldn't find mention of it anywhere. If somebody finds it, could you send it to me? That would be great!
2. Also a made up school name. Don't put too much thought into it. Lol