Rock and a Hard Place Part 2

Suzy regained consciousness and looked around the dark underground room.

"Hey. Dean." She shook his. "Dean. Hey, come on. Dean. Dean."

Dean jerked awake. "Where are we?"

"Hell," Neil replied grimly.

~/~\~

Sam was in Suzy's apartment, looking at the Casa Erotica DVDs, putting two and two together. Angela walked into the apartment.

"Hey, babe." Sam greeted.

"Hey."

"Neighbors see anything?" he asked curiously.

"Flash of blue," Angela replied. "What the hell are you looking act?"

Sam held up the DVDs. "I think Dean crossed someone off his bucket list."

~/~\~

Dean stood on the ladder, trying to push open the tightly shut trap door.

"We tried," Neil commented. "There's no escape."

"Are we gonna run out of air?" Suzy asked concernedly.

"I don't think so," Neil replied. "Somebody wants us to die nice and slow."

"And then it's gonna take us," Honor added. "Just like it took Pastor Fred."

"What took him?" Dean questioned.

"We couldn't see, exactly." Honor answered. "It—It was so bright. I-it was like it was on fire."

~/~\~

Sam and Angela were back in the motel room with Jody, who had Grace in her lap.

"Hey," Jody started, staring at her laptop. "Virgins, fire—sound familiar?"

Angela leaned over Jody's shoulder. "Vesta, Roman Goddess of the Hearth."

"In ancient Rome, six virgins were dedicated to this chick every year," Jody explained. "Their main duty was to tend Vesta's hearth."

"Wait, so, fire is connected to virginity?" Sam asked, brows furrowed.

"Yeah," Jody nodded. "The girls had to be pure because fire is the symbol of purity."

"Huh." Sam nodded. "Okay, as long as Vesta's fire was kept lit, Rome received a good harvest."

"The virgins had to stay celibate for 30 years." Jody read. "If they broke their vows, they were buried alive."

~/~\~

"Son of a bitch," Dean grumbled as he tried to open the trap door again.

"Dean," Suzy sighed. "Maybe God wants us down here—because of what we did."

"Trust me," Dean replied as he climbed down the ladder. "This is not God's work. Son of a…" he checked his pockets.

"What's wrong?" Suzy questioned.

"They took my phone," Dean muttered. "Luckily…" he pulled out a second one. "I keep a spare." He added as he held the phone over his head. "Come on, bars."

Honor watched Dean attempt to use his phone and then caught Neil staring at her suspiciously. Honor immediately averted her eyes.

~/~\~

"Vesta was often enveloped in a blue halo of light, which she could control at will to disorients, to maim—ohh—or to kill." Jody read.

"Okay, what about some way to kill her?" Angela asked. "A-a weapon or—or something."

Jody went back to typing, but was interrupted when Sam's phone started to ring.

"Dean?" Sam answered.

"Sam! Sammy!" Dean's voice rang through.

"Dean. Hey."

"Hey, listen to me." Dean's voice was full of static. "I'm—

Sam's brows furrowed. "Dean, wh—

"Underground."

"Say it again," Sam replied. "I can't hear you."

"We're—some kind of—

"Dean!" Sam exclaimed. "I lost him."

"What?" Jody and Angela asked concernedly.

"Listen," Sam looked at Jody. "Is there some kind of train station around here or something? I-I could have sworn I heard a whistle."

~/~\~

"Don't, Neil." Barb pleaded. "Please, don't."

"Shh. Shh." He hushed.

Dean narrowed his eyes. "Don't what, Neil?"

"Just mind your beeswax, pal." Neil snapped.

Dean marched over to Neil. "Hey. Hey! Listen, we're all stuck down here together. So, you got something to say, you say it."

"Okay," Neil pursed his lips. "Look, whatever that fireball thing was, it's taking the weakest, and I am not gonna be next. So, the way I see it, her leg's busted anyway." He motioned to Honor. "We serve her up. It could buy us some time."

"Screw you, Neil." Honor scoffed.

Dean shoved Neil to the wall. "Busted leg? Try a sprained ankle, okay? Nobody's serving anybody up!"

"We are under the gallows, all of us." Neil retorted. "Give it Honor. It might save the rest of our necks, unless you have a better plan."

"Maybe I do." Dean sneered. "Maybe we'll give him you. Oh, what, you don't like that idea? The shut up!"

~/~\~

"Here we go," Sam started. "8:00 p.m. trail out of Sioux Falls. 79 miles an hour. What's five miles east of Hartford—anything?"

"Uh… Pasture mostly." Jody shrugged. "No—the old Wimmer farm."

"Anything on a weapon?" Angela asked as she shrugged on her jacket.

"Oak stained in virgin blood. Where are we gonna get a virgin?" Jody frowned.

"Angie and I are virgins." Sam realized.

"I think we need the real McCoy here, baby," Angela replied.

Jody adjusted Grace in her arms as she stood up. She gave both Sam and Angela motherly kisses on their cheeks.

"You two be safe, you hear?"

~/~\~

Tammy stared at Sam and Angela in horror.

"You need what?"

"Your blood," Sam replied.

"Just a dab," Angela added.

Tammy's brows furrowed. "But… Pagans use blood. Are you pagans?"

"What?" Sam scoffed. "Pagan? No, look, it's for a weapon that—

"You are in a House of God." Tammy interrupted. "Your psycho rituals aren't gonna fly here."

Sam rolled his eyes. "Okay, we don't have time for this."

"I don't have time for devil worshippers!" Tammy snapped. "I'm calling the cops."

Angela rolled her eyes and pulled out one of her fake FBI badges before punching Tammy square in the face.

"I am the cops." She countered.

Tammy frantically tried to stop her bleeding nose. "What the fudge, lady?!"

Angela wiped some blood off Tammy's face. "Wipe your nose, hon."

~/~\~

The Impala sped down the dark country road.

~/~\~

Sam and Angela walked into an abandoned barn with flashlights.

"Angie." Sam motioned her to go one way.

~/~\~

Sam looked around the barn. He noticed the trap door and started to clear the dirt and hay off of it.

~/~\~

Dean looked up when he heard a banging sound above his head.

"Told you," Neil noted frantically. "It's back for one of us. What are you gonna do now? Right, you should have listened to me—

"Shh!" Dean hissed. "Shut up."

~/~\~

"Angie!" Sam called over.

"Sam?"

"Dean!" Sam exclaimed. "We're here. We're gonna get you out! Angie, I found it!"

~/~\~

Dean climbed up the ladder to the trap door. "Sammy? Sammy! Sammy!"

~/~\~

"Hey, Dean, we're here," Sam assured. "We're gonna get you out."

Sam attempted to pry open the door but was suddenly flung away by an invisible force.

~/~\~

"Sammy, are you still there?!" Dean called out.

~/~\~

Angela rushed in to see Sam unconscious on the floor of a stall. "Sammy!"

Suddenly, Angela was grabbed by a shadow and it turned out to be Bonnie. She shoved Angela up against a post and yanked her left glove off her hand with her teeth.

"Now, now. Shh." Bonny smirked as her pointer finger lit up a brilliant blue.

~/~\~

"Really?" Angela raised her brows. "This is how a goddess acts?"

"What?" Bonnie snarled.

"I don't know, a Roman deity burying people alive in a barn?" Angela scoffed. "Sort of pathetic, don't you think?"

Bonnie punched Angela square in the face. "It only got pathetic when I started having to do it myself. Because of that hippie from Bethlehem—before him, they practically threw virgins at me. And now—

"They let your fire go out." Angela finished. "They forgot about you. Yeah, I know. Sucks to be Lindsay Lohan, doesn't it?"

Bonnie punched Angela again. "Actually, I figured if you can't beat them, join them. That's right," she threw a tarp off a slaughter table covered in blood. "I adapted! Now I chew on the cud of prayer. Heck… I even got a sweater set."

~/~\~

Dean ran his fingers over the trap door, finding a rusty screw. "Screwdriver, anybody?"

Honor rummaged through the first-aid kit, finding a pair of scissors. "Hey. From the first-aid kit."

~/~\~

Bonnie threw Angela onto the slaughter table and harshly started tying her down.

"Aah!" Angela yelled in pain.

"They used to beg to stay pure for me." Bonnie sneered. "And now I have to drag them kicking and screaming. And they're not even real virgins. They're born-again. You want to talk about pathetic?"

"Yeah," Angela scoffed. "You're a real charity case."

"Oh, no, sweetheart." Bonnie laughed. "This isn't charity. I take what I deserve. When those trollops are about to die soaked in their juicy fear, I… eat… their… livers! Because that's the only part of them still working to purify the body that they've trashed. Now, normally, I like them weaker, but let's just call this a hunter's exception, shall we?"

"Sure," Angela grunted.

She pulled out the oak stake dipped in virgin's blood. She attempted to stab Bonnie, but she pulled it out of Angela's hands.

"This is how a goddess acts!" Bonnie exclaimed.

Sam attacked Bonnie from behind and she fell forward, stabbing Angela in the chest. Angela yelled in pain and Bonnie flung Sam back into the stall.

~/~\~

"Come on," Dean muttered as he worked on the screw. "Come on, come on, come on."

~/~\~

Bonnie's finger lit up again and she pressed it to Sam's stomach. Angela started to painfully pull the stake out of her chest.

"Aah!" Sam yelled.

"What's wrong with you?" Bonnie sneered.

Sam's brows furrowed in worry. "What?"

"Your liver," she started. "It's—it's no good. Dear boy, you're all duct tape and safety pins inside. How are you alive?"

Angela stabbed Bonnie with the stake from behind. Bonnie evaporated in a brilliant blue light. Sam immediately got to his feet and checked on Angela. Dean finally popped the trap door open.

"What did I miss?" he looked around.

~/~\~

Angela's arm was in a sling as she packed up her things.

"Aah." She muttered in pain.

"Baby, let me help you." Sam cut in softly.

"Thanks, babe." Angela smiled softly.

Jody adjusted Grace in her arms. "I'll get the little one set up in the car. I'd tell you three to stay out of trouble, but what's the point?"

"Thanks, Jody." The three hunters replied simultaneously.

Sam sighed heavily after Jody left. He sat on the bed after he finished packing up Angela's things.

"What's up?" Dean questioned.

"What if there is something wrong with me—something… really wrong?" Sam whispered.

Dean sighed. "You're just crapped out, man. You need some rest."

"Oh, it's more than that. I mean, Vesta said I was practically dead inside." Sam replied.

"Oh, and she's in the circle of trust now?" Angela sat next to her husband.

"Why would she lie?" Sam countered.

"It's probably the trials, okay?" Dean shrugged. "Probably some sort of a, you know, aftereffect. It's not like you're bouncing back from the flu here. I mean, you were glowing with freaking trial juice."

"I don't know," Sam muttered.

"Well, what else would it be, baby?" Angela asked softly.

"Why does it have to be something else?" Sam questioned. "It's always something else. We're always scraping to find some other explanation when maybe it is… just me."

"Oh, come on, babe." Angela sighed.

"I'm a mess, Angie," Sam stressed. "You know it. Dean knows it. And sometimes, I feel like maybe I'm never gonna actually be alright."

"You will," Dean assured. "Alright, 'cause whatever it is, we'll figure it out."

"Or this is… just the way I am." Sam argued.

Angela closed her eyes and sighed heavily. "I can't let you put this on yourself, baby. Listen to me. It's not you, Sam."

Suddenly, Sam's eyes flashed blue and he straightened up.

"I wouldn't do that, Angela," Ezekiel warned her.

"He deserves to know." Dean cut in firmly.

"Sam is not ready," Ezekiel stressed. "If he rejects me, he will not make it."

"Dammit, Ezekiel!" Angela snapped. "How much longer do have to keep playing this?"

"Not much longer. I promise you that." He assured before letting Sam take over again.

"What?" Sam asked, sounding slightly defeated.

"What?" Angela repeated, guilt settling in her gut.

"What? What—what's not me?" Sam reminded.

"Nothing." Angela shook her head. "I just—I-I meant that… if there is something wrong… it's not your fault. We'll deal with it. But you have to have a little faith, baby."

A/N: Hey. guys! I hope you liked this chapter :) There are some exciting things coming up in the next few chapters, so look out ;) Also, thank you for any recent reviews! Your feedback is extremely important to me. And I hope you guys have a happy New Year! I hope 2019 is amazing for every single one of you. Love you guys, xoxo :)

~Emily