Ch 25

"Mornin' Sugar Cookie." River's eyes sprang open as the Impala veered wildly on the road, Dean muttering an angry "Son of a bitch" as he straightened the car out.

"Get the fuck outta my car!" Dean yelled over his shoulder at the Trickster. River stared wide eyed at her friend, shaking her head and glancing nervously between him and the Winchesters in the front seat. Sam had reached for his gun and was looking like he was ready to shoot.

"Are you insane! You can't be here with us!" River yelled at her honey eyed friend and raised her hand to block Sam's gun. "I am sorry for I what I said. Please get out of here."

"That's not good enough lemon drop. You're comin' with me. Boys, I'll return her in one piece. Probably." With a snap of his fingers he and River disappeared. They reappeared an instant later in one of Gabriel's safe houses. Gaudy furniture, mirrored ceilings, grainy punk music playing in the background and every imaginable type of candy and sweet within reach. "You think you can just drop me like a bad habit, lollipop? After everything I've done for you."

"Gabe, I know. I'm sorry but you don't understand what's going on right now."

"I don't understand? I was there when Daddy locked up Lucifer and threw away the key."

River wrapped her arms around herself, "Then help us. You could smite Lilith in a second if you wanted to. End this before she gets any further. We need you on our side."

"I can't. You know I can't choose sides."

"You've already chosen a side; your own! You sit back and watch as I get my ass handed to me, Dean almost dies again and Sam- what the fuck is going on with him?"

"This has to play out….it's prophecy remember." Gabriel chose a piece of licorice out of one the bowls and took a bite. River grabbed a handful of peanut M and M's and pelted him with them.

"Prophecy, right. 'cause your real concerned with that. I was supposed to die, Gabe, remember."

"You did die, sugar. I resurrected you," the archangel winked at her, "There's always wiggle room."

"You kept me from heaven, you brought me back for what? To watch the world end? To be terrified of being ripped apart by Lilith again? Or having Dean or Sam or both them die in front of me?"

He turned on his heel with a flourish, "Don't be so dramatic. Heaven will be there the next time one of those idiot Winchesters gets you killed."

"I just want to be with my sons again. I want to meet them. I want to watch them grow up. I want to stop feeling like this," she said quietly squeezing her eyes shut against the burning tears that threatened to spill out.

"If I could fix this I would," Gabriel tapped her forehead and gathered her in a strong hug. Since he was only a few inches taller then her she could easily rest her head on his shoulder and took a deep breath. He always smelled like a bakery: vanilla, brown sugar and chocolate. "I wish I could tell you if you went to heaven right now they would be waiting for you. But they aren't. They weren't born lollipop, they didn't draw breath. Their souls went somewhere else."

"Where?"

"I don't know everything, Lemon drop. I just want you to stop being sad. You're a real bummer to be around sometimes."

River sniffed, "You need to take me back, Dean's gonna be pissed."

"When is Captain Douchepants not pissed at something? Come to Madrid with me. I found this place with amazing Sangria."

She chewed her bottom lip for a moment. It had been months since she'd been able to go out with Gabriel. "Your little brother, Castiel , has a really bad habit of just popping up unannounced. Dean could send him looking for me. You could get caught."

He waved his hands at her dismissively, "I'll take that as a yes." He snapped his fingers again and they disappeared from the safe house. Three pitchers of Sangria and a dozen rounds of Flamenco dancing later Gabriel deposited her into the backseat of the Impala. Her snoring woke Dean from where he had been sleeping off his own hangover in the front seat. He sat up groggily letting his hazy vision focus for a moment. Realizing the giant body of his brother had been replaced by River's much smaller, softer form. Her red hair splayed out around her pale face, her arm thrown over her eyes and one leg hanging over the front seat. "Wake up, Princess." He pushed her leg off the seat and she grumbled angrily turning over and burrowing into the soft leather. Dean stretched and got out of the car watching as Sam walked back towards him carrying a sack of food and two cups of coffee. "Riv's back, pretty sure she's sloshed," he rolled his eyes and drank the hot coffee his brother had procured. "We need to find a way to kill that trickster and make sure he stays dead." The brothers sat on the hood of the Impala and ate their breakfast sandwiches, enjoying the cool air blowing off the lake they were parked in front of.

"Will one of you answer that fucking phone!" a disgruntled voice yelled from the backseat. The brothers looked through the front window and saw River sit up, climb ungracefully over the front seat and begin digging through the glovebox. She found the offending phone and held it to her ear.

"Who the hell is this? Adam Milligan? You're looking for John Winchester?" she waived to the brothers and they slid off the hood, "Umm…listen, John Winchester died two years ago. Who are you?…I see…Hey kid, I worked with John I can help you, give me your address." She reached back into the glovebox and grabbed the pad of paper and pen they had stashed there. She quickly scribbled out the provided info and hung up the call. River clutched the old flip phone in her hand and looked at Sam and Dean.

"Who the hell was that?" Dean asked.

"This was John's phone," she said absently scrolling through the contact list. "My old number is still in here…I think we need to go to Minnesota."

"What the hell for?"

"That kid, Adam, said he's John son," she said quietly handing Dean the phone and the piece of paper. "Said he needs help. His mom went missing a few nights ago." The brothers stared at her wordlessly for several minutes before looking at each other and sharing a silent conversation. They walked to the trunk and River heard then shuffling things around before they climbed into the front seat. Dean had John's journal and Sam had his laptop and was quickly checking the viability of Adam's story.

"As far as I can tell Adam is real. Mom is Kate Milligan, no father listed on the birth certificate. Born 1990. Graduated high school with honors. He's a freshman at the University of Wisconsin…" Sam listed off. River had called Adam back when they were four hours outside of Windom and suggested they meet at a diner. Dean had been silent and brooding for most of the ride, his jaw clenched, fingers squeezing the steering wheel. He swung the Impala into the parking lot at Cousin Oliver's Diner in Windom, Minnesota and jumped out of the car as soon as he cut the engine off. River met him at the trunk and they started gathering various weapons and tucking them into pockets and holsters. "Are you guys listening?" Sam said after a moment.

"Yep. Eagle scout, no police record, blah blah blah still might be a monster," River smiled, "I'll set next to him, you two sit across. Looks like a small diner, if shit hits the fan there might be a lot of witnesses." Dean grunted and they chose a booth at the back of the restaurant. The hunters quickly scanned the building, only one entrance, windows facing the streets, kitchen to the left. River slid into the seat next to the window, Dean sat across from her and Sam next to him. The waitress came quickly and set the table for them setting down glasses of water and place settings. River grabbed one of the sets of flatware and unceremoniously threw them under the table replacing them with a set of actual silver utensils; Dean dumped the glass of water into the silk plants on the windowsill and emptied his flask of holy water into it.

"What are you guys doing? I'm telling you this guy checks out," Sam said watching as River and Dean worked in tandem preparing for Adam.

"Checks out how? That he's a person that was born on planet Earth? Too bad he's got a demon in him. This is a trap," Dean grumbled. "Using Dad? This guys gonna be sorry he ever climbed out of the pit."

"Dean, there's an entry in dads journal from January 1990, he's headed to Minnesota for a case. The next couple of pages have been torn out," Sam said showing his brother the journal. Dean's green eyes darted down to scan through his fathers neat handwriting. "Come on. Dad would be gone for weeks at a time. Hunter rolls into town, kills the monster, saves the girl…that was your exact M.O. before we met River, where did you learn it from?" Dean rolled his eyes at his younger brother.

"Could be a shifter. Or a Leyak or a Mai-coh…I think thats him," River said watching as a young, blonde man walked quickly into the diner. River turned in her seat and waved, "Adam?" she called brightly.

"River?" he walked up and held out his hand.

She shook it quickly and made him sit, "This is Sam and Dean, they worked with your dad too." Adam held out his hand to the brothers, Sam gave him a brief shake and Dean ignored him.

"The usual Adam?" the waitress called from the kitchen.

"Yeah, Gretchen. Thanks. Did you guys order?"

"We're not hungry. So you're John's son?" River asked pushing herself flatter against the window watching as Dean shifted in his seat no doubt aiming his gun under the table at Adam.

"Umm… Yeah." Adam paused. He picked up the glass of holy water in front of him took a drink and the three hunters held their breath. He put the glass back down unfazed, smiling as Gretchen brought his plate of food. "You sure you guys aren't hungry?" River and Sam shook their heads quickly, watching as he picked up the silver fork and took a bite of his omelet. Sam smiled and visibly relaxed into his chair, River glanced at Dean and raised her eyebrows eyes darting down to the gun he still had trained on Adam. Dean clenched his jaw and uncocked the gun. "So, how did he die? My dad? We never even got a call." The three hunters looked at each other unsurely.

"He died on the job." Sam answered.

Adam set his fork down, "He was a mechanic, right?"

"Car fell on him, " Dean grunted.

"When was the last time you saw John?" River asked.

Adam let out a long breath, "Been a couple of years. My high school graduation I think." River smiled gently at him, casting a sideways glance at Dean and Sam. Dean, who had dropped out because he didn't see the point and Sam, who had walked across the stage alone while his father and brother were hunting vampires two states over.

"Why try and reach him now?" River asked.

"He's the only family I got left. My mom is missing and the cops…they aren't helping."

"If you're John's son, how come we've never heard of you?" Dean suddenly asked.

Adam shrugged, "We weren't very close. He wasn't in my life until I was eleven. I asked my mom who my dad was; told her I wanted to meet him. She was kind of embarrassed, it was a weekend fling. She met him in the ER where she worked, he was in a car accident or something. Came in real banged up…" he paused again and took another drink of water. "She found one of his old numbers and we called him. When he found out he had a son he drove all night to meet me. I think he tried to make up for lost time when he could except he wasn't around very often; he'd just kind of breeze into town for a few days and then he'd be gone for months. We'd be lucky if we got a phone call. He bought me my first beer when I was 15. Taught me how to drive…he had this beautiful '67 Chevy Impala."

Dean slammed his hand on the table causing several patrons in the small diner to look back at them, "You know what? You're lying."

"No, I'm not." Adam retorted.

"This is bullshit and you are a damn liar," Dean spat. River reached a hand across the table and laid it gently on his.

"Excuse me but who the hell are you to call me a liar?"

"WE are John Winchesters sons, thats who. We are his sons." Dean yelled.

Adam sat back, his eyes and face brightening. "I have brothers."

"No you don't." Dean said shortly.

"Oh my god, are you my sister?" Adam asked turning to River.

River laughed, "Hell no. I got enough issues with out being one of John's kids."

"Fuck this. I'm done. I don't know what type of game your playing at. If you're a hunter…" Dean said standing up and nodding for River to follow. She stayed in her seat and looked towards Sam.

"I've never been hunting in my life!" Adam said to Dean as he walked angrily towards the exit, "I can prove it!"

The hunters held a heated conversation in the semi-privacy of the Impala. Adam leaning against his car watching as the three argued. "God damn it, Dean. He is the real deal, he is your family and he needs help. This kid doesn't know a thing about what John really did. If this gets out, if Lilith or the Angels or any other big bad finds out about him, he is yesterdays meatloaf." River told him angrily from her position crammed in between the two giant hunters.

"How would you feel if some rando called and said he was your long lost brother, huh?" Dean shot back.

"I don't know D. My family was eaten by a fucking werewolf 22 years ago. I didn't have a Sam, or a you, or a Bobby. I didn't have anyone but a mean old cunt that shared a few strands of DNA with me," she replied crossing her arms angrily over her chest. Dean stared at her for a full minute while she obstinately stared out the front window, he glanced over her strawberry blonde head and glared at his younger brother. Sam climbed out of the car and walked to Adam, they shared a few short words before Adam smiled again and shook his hand. He turned and got into his beat up Honda and waived at them before turning out of the parking lot. Dean started the Impala and followed him silently.

River squeezed Dean's knee affectionately as he parked in front of a small, well maintained home. Sam climbed out of the car first. "You're a good big brother," she told Dean kissing him gently before sliding out after Sam.

"He took you to a baseball game?" Dean asked incredulously. He held a framed photo of a smiling John Winchester and Adam wearing matching baseball caps.

"Yeah, I think I was 14. What'd dad do with you?" Adam asked innocently. River choked on a laugh and looked at the remainder of the family photos.

Sam skimmed through his dads journal, "September '04 one entry, Minnesota"

"This your mom?" she asked pointing at a smiling woman in another photo.

Adam nodded, "Yeah, she's a nurse. Works nightshift in the ER."

"I used to work in ER," River smiled.

"I thought you worked with my dad in the shop," Adam asked.

"I used to do a lot of things," she answered quickly. "When was the last time anyone saw your mom?"

"Yeah, our neighbor Mr. Abernathy saw her come home Tuesday morning, she never showed up to work Wednesday night." Adam cleared his throat and held the picture of his mom tighter, "I got a call from the police. I left school, drove all night. I should've been here."

Dean shifted uncomfortably, feeling ashamed at yelling at him at the diner, "What'd the cops say?"

"Not much. They checked the house said maybe she just skipped town went on some vacation or…" he stopped again, his voice cracking. "She wouldn't leave without telling me." Sam took over interviewing Adam while River and Dean investigated the rest of the house. They quickly found their way to Kate's room. River checked behind furniture and in the closet while Dean lost himself in more photos of his smiling father.

River watched him pick one of the photos, hand shaking either from barely suppressed rage or grief. She snaked her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. "He just…everything was always about the hunt. Fighting, killing, running…you know what he did for my fourteenth birthday? He buried me in a pine box and made me dig my way out. Then he yelled at me when I finally got out for taking too long." Dean set the photo back on the dresser and turned to face River. "I was never good enough for him. He was proud of this little fairy tale. He didn't want me to ruin it."

"Bullshit. You're a good man despite being raised by John Winchester," she cupped his chin in her hand and brought his lips down to meet hers. A board creaked in the hallway and the hunters turned and found Adam standing nervously in the doorway. "So Adam, the cops told you the nightstand was knocked over?"

"Yes but there was no signs of a break in." He stepped into the room and looked around noting the look shared between River and Dean. "You think the cops missed something?"

"Maybe. They don't have my eyes," Dean said moving back towards the window and checking the lock and screen.

"You're a mechanic." Adam replied. Dean nodded and River smiled walking towards the nightstand. "Dean, tell me about dad."

River turned around and stared at Dean from behind Adams back, he rubbed his jaw nervously and avoided her blue eyed stare. "Not much to tell. I mean you knew him."

"Not like you did."

"Trust me kid. Just drop it," he paused when Sam motioned to him from the hallway. "Why don't you ask Riv about Dad? I'll be right back." Dean met his younger brother in the hallway while River raised her eyebrows expectantly at Adam.

"So umm did you meet Dean at work or…"

"Yeah at work." She answered quickly turning her attention back to the nightstand and the floor underneath. "What the hell?" she muttered quietly. Eight deep gouges marred the dark wood floor under the bed. "Dean, Sam I got something." The brothers returned to the room and River pointed to the marks.

Dean got his hands and knees next to River, "Help me move the bed." Adam nodded and the two shoved the bed several feet away from the wall revealing a metal grate in the floor. The hunters faced each other in a circle and held their fists out to play the ageless game of rock, paper, scissors.

"If I get stuck, just let me fucking die in there ok. I swear to the gods if you call the fire department and they have to use the jaws of life to get my chubby ass out…"

"Curvy ass," Dean interrupted patting her butt appreciatively. "And your shorter and bendier you can get around any turns easier than us."

"Shut up. Gimme the flash light," River took a deep breath and leaned down cautiously flashing the light in the small, narrow metal duct that ran under the floor. Seeing no immediate threat River dropped the flashlight and her gun gently into the hole and climbed ungraciously head first into the duct.

"Just scream if something tries to eat you," Sam yelled after her then looked up at Adam's shocked face. "Sorry, it's an inside joke." Dean paced around the room, listening for the soft clanging coming from under the floor as River progressed through the ventilation system.

"Communication breakdown/ it's always the same/I'm having a nervous breakdown/drive me insane…" River voice echoed out of the one of the ducts in the hallway followed by a thud and "Fuck." She never realized she was claustrophobic until she had to squeeze her ass into a 36x36 metal duct that may or may not have a monster hiding somewhere in it. A few feet into the duct and River noticed the first dark red splash of blood on the bottom and side of the metal.

"Baby, you ok?" Dean yelled into the duct.

"Yeah, I got blood in here…I'm gonna keep looking," her voice came back fainter as she pushed further into the house, "Hey girl I got something you ought to know…"

"Is she singing? Why is she singing?" Adam asked Sam, "She's said theres blood in there."

"She's sings when she's nervous. She likes the noise. She'll let us know what she finds. Why don't you go make us some coffee," Sam told him gently.

She came upon an intersection in the duct and took a deep breath gripping her gun and the flashlight tightly in front of her, "Sam always chooses rock…" She pushed out and to the right and came face to face with another grate and a pair of green eyes. River let out a startled scream. "Son of a bitch! I could'a shot you!"

"Just checkin' on you. You stopped singing," Dean smiled back.

"You could've done the chivalrous thing and done the spelunking," she grumbled pushing backwards into the duct she had just come out of.

"If I had done that it would have undermined our entire system of checks and balances. Ro sham bo brings balance to the universe, sweetheart."

"Ka is a wheel," River muttered as she backed up far enough and shimmed in the tight metal duct enough to turn the other direction. This side of the duct was covered in clotted blood, patches of hair and left over lumps of flesh. "Shit," she murmured sadly. "D, I'm going back." More cursing and rattling came from the duct as River turned around and went back the way she came. Two strong arms reached down and helped pull her out of the confining space. "Blood, chunks of stuff…Adam should probably get the police back out here and we should get scarce."

River briefly told Adam what she had found and gave him specific instructions on what to tell the police as Sam and Dean returned the grate and bed to their original positions. Then the hunters climbed into the Impala and headed to the only motel in town. "So your dad was hunting something here 20 years ago and he didn't kill it?" River asked sitting crosslegged on the floor cleaning her shotgun.

" Maybe. There was a string of grave robberies and missing corpses back in 1990," Sam told her. "Then nothing. Then it picked up again a few weeks ago. There's been a few missing bodies and one other missing person. Some bar tender."

"So…something thats been taking dead bodies suddenly get a taste for live flesh?" River said to herself. "Hi, Cas." The trench coated angel appeared in their motel room with a flutter sending Sam's pile of newspaper clippings all over the room.

"Hello, Dean. River. Sam," he nodded to each of them in turn. The angel stood in the center of the room looking very unsure of himself.

"You need something Angel?" River asked after an amused moment of staring at the socially awkward heavenly being.

Cas nodded, "I…I need Dean's help."

"Cas, we're kind of in the middle of something," Dean told him shortly. Castiel shifted on his feet nervously and remained silent.

"What do you need, Cas?" River asked standing up and putting her gun on the bed next to Dean.

"We believe we have tracked another of Lilith's top commanders. My superiors want her captured for interrogation."

" 'Cause that worked so great last time?" Dean said angrily.

"Dean, I don't call the shots as you humans are fond of saying," he said sighing loudly. "I simply follow them. To the best of my ability."

River grinned, "Is that sass, Castiel? That isn't very becoming of an Angel. Why do you need Dean's help to capture another Demon douchebag?"

"The demon has barricaded herself in a building that is warded against angels. We fear she may be trying to break a seal as well as muster Lilith's forces against an angelic battalion we have stationed nearby. We need Dean to break the seals so we can lay siege."

"You don't really need Dean, though. You just need a human to break the warding, right?" Sam asked.

"Technically that is correct."

"So go grab some poor schmuck and give them the know how to break the warding so you can smite some black eyed assholes. I'm busy." Dean barked.

"Where is the demon?" River asked crossing her arms over her chest.

"A place called Los Angeles; it is home to several million humans. If the demon troops descend it could be catastrophic." Castiel stated. River smiled and chewed her lip giving Dean a coy smile.

"No. Absolutely not." Dean barked.

River tilted her head and stepped closer to Dean, pulling at his shirt all the while continuing to smile up at him. "Come on, hot stuff. I haven't been home in forever. I'll be fine. I got Mickey Blue Eyes to look after me." Dean sighed loudly and glared at Sam who had started snickering.

"I do not understand. Dean are you accompanying me to Los Angeles?" Castiel asked quietly.

"No,Cas. Dean and Sam are working a case. I'll go," River volunteered. The angels eyes narrowed and brow furrowed together as he considered his alternatives. River grabbed her duffle bag and began tossing her weapons and ammo into it. "Come on, Cas. You need a human you can trust to not fuck this up and I just happen to be a human that will try my damnedest not to fuck this up."

"It could be very dangerous." Castiel deadpanned.

"Sounds fantastic. Can I have the demon knife please?" River asked Sam. "Relax Cassie. I'll take you to this awesome hot dog stand, we'll get vegan chili dogs and onion rings then go fuck up some demon bitch's day." She finished packing her supplies and swung the duffle bag over her body.

"I don't eat." He responded.

River let out a deep breath. "You're gonna eat a chili dog and some onion rings and fucking like it. Ok, Angel?" Castiel gulped and cast Dean a nervous glance.

"Good luck," Dean said shaking his head. River gave Sam a quick hug and kissed Dean goodbye.

"You know, while we're there we should swing by Beverly Hills and see if we can find a doctor to remove that stick you have shoved up your ass. I'm surprised I can't see twigs coming outta your nose," River told Cas as she stood next to him. "Let's go I'm starving." Castiel gave Dean one last pleading look and with a flutter of wings they disappeared from the room.

Not ten minutes later a frantic knock sounded on their motel door. "What now?" Dean yelled. Sam checked the peephole before opening the door.

Adam pushed through yelling, "You two better tell me who the hell you are! My home is a crime scene! My mom is probably dead! You tell me to call the cops and then you bail before they get there!"

Dean set his beer down and held up his hands in surrender, "Look kid, relax."

"Relax! Relax! Who are you guys really? And where the hell is River?" Adam exclaimed shoving his hands in his pockets.