Ch 38
A week later River found herself sitting in a secluded corner of a crowded coffee shop. She was sipping her fourth large coffee of the day while utilizing the shops free WiFi to search for cases. There had been a few potentials: a haunting in Dayton, mysterious disappearances in Lodi, and a possible Skin-Walker near Albuquerque. The reason she didn't pursue any of those cases was because she had exactly $10 to her name after her caffeine fix and hadn't settled on a endeavor that didn't involve robbing a bank to refill her wallet with gas money. Things had been a hell of a lot easier when she able to drop into a town and pick up shifts as a nurse; money being magically deposited into her bank account the moment she clocked out after a twelve hour shift. Except she no longer had a legitimate nursing license or even a bank account since she had been suspect number one in a string of serial killings and then 'died' in an explosion along with Dean and Sam. River sighed and rubbed her eyes, her thoughts stuck in a useless circle of blame and doubt. She had picked up her phone at least twenty times a day since Dean had driven away with the intent on calling him and begging him to hear her out. In the end she did as he asked and deleted their numbers from the small flip phone she kept as a backup in the bottom of her duffle bag.
The phone was now plugged into the outlet under the table along with her laptop. She might as well take the opportunity to make sure everything was charged before she would inevitably have to leave the shop. The phone buzzed suddenly, startling her. She picked it up smiled seeing the caller ID. "Hey Mama E."
Ellen Harvelle sighed heavily on the other line, "I should drive to wherever you are and kick your ass."
River smiled, "Miss you too, Mama. What's up?" She took a long sip of her lukewarm coffee and let her eyes trail over the patrons of the coffee shop. River ran her fingers along the lollipop charm back around her neck. She had found it tangled up in the bottom of her bag and had put it back on immediately. She didn't know how much she trusted Gabriel anymore since his lies and half-truths but she was certain the necklace would still offer her some protection from Angels and Demons.
"I gotta job. Might be nothing, might be something." Ellen continued, "Wanted to see if you want in."
"You want to work a case with me? You think you can trust me?" River asked her quietly.
Ellen sighed again, " Are you tryin' to warn me? Me and Jo can't trust you no more?"
"No, of course you can trust me, I just- things are kind of fucked up right now," she mumbled.
Ellen laughed, "Hey Jo, did you know things were kind of fucked up?" she yelled on end of the line. Jo hollered "No shit" and River smiled. "You want in or what? I ain't got all day."
"Yeah I want in? What is it and where?"
"River Pass, Colorado. Shooting star crashed last week outside of town. We've been seeing some pretty strange occurrences, the river near towns been running red, reports of an increase in violent crimes and this morning my contact inside the town stopped communicating. I can't reach him. We're two days out if we hustle. Can you make it?"
River thought for a moment, if she had money enough for gas she could make it by late tomorrow. "Yeah, I'll figure something out. I'll see you there. Thanks Mama E." She snapped the phone shut and thought again. Maybe just steal cars along the way every time she ran out of gas? Her eyes traveled along the coffee shop again, settling on the bulletin board. She'd read the sign a dozen times and put in the back of her mind. "Fuck it," she muttered. She stood up, walked to the flyer covered board above the cream and sugar, pulled the photocopied sign off and tucked it into her pocket, "$1000 grand prize! Open Pole night! Winner takes all!" She quickly tucked her belongings back into her duffle bag and left the coffee shop, she needed to hustle across town to register and figure out something to wear, do her hair and make up and win that mother fucking prize money.
The club closed at 2:00am. River was exhausted but also thrilled. It had been almost seven years since she had had to dance for money; the night started a little shaky but once she hit her rhythm the moves flowed and she walked out $1000 richer. It wasn't her ideal career but suddenly things didn't seem as shitty if she could still have some money in her pocket for essentials like food and ammo she thought to herself as she hot-wired a car from a dark parking garage and sped toward Colorado.
She arrived in the small town a little before dusk the next day. The only way in or out of town was a bridge over a trickling river. She noted the pale red tinge that still clung to the water as she drove over the cement bridge. A sick feeling hit her in the gut the moment she parked the car in the town center, no one was out enjoying the mild evening, shops and restaurants were shuttered and closed. She sent a quick text to Ellen, praying that it made it when she saw the one lone bar on her cellphone flickering. River shouldered her duffle bag, comforted by the weight of her shotgun and the feel of the cold metal of her pistol against her back. The town had one small bed and breakfast and thats where she headed to get a room and set up a base while she waited for the Harvelles to arrive.
There was no one waiting at the small front desk, no sound from any where in the house when she entered. Her eyes wondered over the tacky country decorations before settling on the small silver bell sitting on the desk. River stepped forward and tapped her finger quickly on the button on top of the bell. The 'ding' echoed in the house and she felt the tiny hairs on top of her neck stand up. She slung her duffle onto the floor and reached behind her, wrapping one hand around her pistol. Heavy footsteps sounded from a closed room to her left. The door was flung open and a man charged out swinging a baseball bat. River had just enough time to see the angry flash of black eyes before she unloaded her clip into his chest. The demon fell to the ground dead, no black smoke, no flash of orange light. "What the fuck?" River muttered poking the corpse with the toe of her boot. The body stayed dead and she let out a long breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. She walked around the desk to try the land line phone, she needed backup now. She quickly dialed Ellen's number and the older woman answered on the second ring, "How close are you?"
" 'bout six hours away." Ellen answered quickly.
"We're gonna need back up. You know Rufus Turner?" Ellen did. "Call him, I'll meet you at the Cozy Cottage when you get he-" A huge explosion went off, jolting the house on it's foundation. The line instantly went dead and River ran out of the house towards the orange fireball visible against the setting sun. She skidded to a halt and saw the remains of the bridge into town crumble down into the river bed below. Several shadowed figures turned away from the wreckage and saw River standing in the middle of the street. "Shit," she muttered before turning and running back towards town.
Dean and Sam returned to Bobby's after their escapades in TV hell. They'd told Bobby about Gabriel and River. Bobby had been furious at them for leaving River and hadn't spoken to either brother in three days. He rolled around the house sullenly or sat at his cluttered desk rereading the same archaic tomes. Dean was stuffing clean clothes into his duffle bag when he heard Bobby's cellphone ring. He and his brother were heading towards a possible werewolf attack in Wyoming. "Rufus?" Dean turned towards Bobby's loud voice, "I can't hear you man? Where are ya?…River Pass, Colorado? Rufus? What'd ya say?…Demons. Damn it, the line went dead!" Bobby slammed the phone down on the table.
The brothers looked at the older hunter then each other. "Guess we're going to Colorado," Dean smirked. The town they found was in much worse shape then what River had stumbled into four days prior. Cars were overturned in the streets, belongings lay abandoned where they had been dropped, house lay empty the doors open. They found a few bloated bodies and lots of dried puddles of blood. "I don't think we brought enough guns," Dean muttered as he and his brother walked down the silent main street. They walked past a cherry red 1966 mustang and Dean whistled appreciatively at the beautiful car. The brothers were distracted by the scene around them and didn't notice the figure sneaking up from behind a parked car. The cold click of a pistols hammer made them do an abrupt about-face, weapons raised. "Ellen?" Dean said surprised.
The older woman smiled, squinting against the early morning sunlight, "Hello, boys."
"What the hell is going on here, Ellen?" Dean asked her. She stepped forward still smiling instead of answering she threw a flask of holy water in his face. Dean signed loudly as the water dripped down in his face and soaked his t-shirt, "Every god damn time…We're us."
Ellen nodded and put the safety back on her pistol, "Follow me." She walked quickly down the street and headed for the white church at the end of the block. They entered the quiet church, the doorway lined with salt and a devils trap. "Church is warded up pretty good…" Ellen paused at the top of a staircase that twisted down into darkness. She took a deep shuddering breath and turned to face the brothers. "Real glad to see you boys," her bottom lip shook and she pulled Dean into a tight hug. She stood back smiling then slapped him across the cheek, "The can of whoop ass I ought to open on you! It's been what? Eight or nine months since you've been back and you can't pick up the damn phone! I already let River have it but you two…" she turned away from them and headed down the stairs.
"Rivers here?" Dean asked shooting a look over his shoulder at his younger brother.
"Who do you think did all this shit?" Ellen waived her hands at the sigils spray painted all over the walls. Dean grunted and followed Ellen down the stairs.
"So whats goin' on, Ellen?" Sam asked as they descended into darkness, a battery operated lantern was the only faint light as the staircase took another turn.
"Demons. Lots of 'em. More than we can handle," Ellen answered. "Pretty much the whole town. Except the dead ones. And these guys…River had most of 'em squared away down here by the time we rolled in." Ellen paused at a door at the bottom of the stairs another devils trap, more salt and large intricate signs and latin words were written across the door frame. "So this is it right? End times?"
"Seems like it," Sam answered quietly.
Ellen nodded and turned towards the door, she gave three quick knocks and a make shift peephole was slid open, "It's me." She told the person on the other side of the door. The door was opened and the brothers and Ellen walked into the makeshift shelter. A dozen or so scared faces watched as they entered. Candles and more lanterns flickered around the cold room. "This is Sam and Dean, they're hunters. They're here to help." Sam and Dean nodded politely to the survivors who watched them warily.
"You guys hip to the whole demon thing?" A young man cradling a assault rifle asked.
"Yeah, you?" Dean answered.
A man sitting at a table nodded his head, he took his wire rimmed glasses off and wiped them on his shirt, "My wife's eyes turned black then she came at me with a brick. Kind of makes you embrace the paranormal." Towards the back of the room a red headed figure kneeled in front of a cot, a very pregnant woman lay on top breathing slowly and rubbing her swollen stomach. A few more murmured words and the figure stood and turned towards Ellen and the Winchesters. Dean's jaw immediately tightened and made a point to look everywhere but her. River pointed to a secluded corner and Ellen led the boys. "How's Amy?"
River sighed, "She having Braxton-Hicks, practice contractions. She's due any day." She said wrapping her arms around her self, she was cold, she was always freaking cold lately.
"Can you help her deliver if she does go into labor?" Ellen asked.
River nodded, "I need supplies. We're running low on everything."
"How about you catch us up first?" Dean said quietly.
"Doubt we know much more than you. Me and Jo were headed into town to investigate some omens. Called River invited her along for the party," Ellen began, "She beat us here by half a day or so. Some demons blew up the bridge, took out the phones. Then the whole damn town was possessed. I was able to call Rufus and give him heads up."
"You're hunting with Jo?" Dean asked.
"Yeah for a while now…we got to town a couple of days ago found River. Never did find Rufus, figure he's gotta be here somewhere."
"Rufus called Bobby, so he was alive as of yesterday," Dean told Ellen and River.
"Where is Bobby?" River asked. Sam and Dean exchanged a look, they hadn't got around to telling River about Bobby's injury.
"You two didn't tell her?" Ellen said putting her hands on her hips and looking like she was about to open another can of Harvelle whoop-ass.
"Bobby got possessed right after that night," Sam began. "He got hurt, bad. He's paralyzed from the waist down."
River brought one hand to her mouth disbelieving, "But why didn't Cas-
"Heal him?" Dean started, "Cas is cut off from the heaven juice. Here's a thought, how 'bout you call Gabe and get him to fix Bobby."
River's cheeks flushed pink and she looked at her feet, her eyebrows drawn together. She hadn't seen or heard from Gabriel and didn't think she would anytime soon. "Yeah, well, if I find him or he ever answers one of my prayers again I'll ask him."
"Where is Jo?" Sam asked breaking the uncomfortable silence that settled over them.
"Me and Jo went for a milk run late yesterday, we got separated," River said quietly.
Dean sighed and Sam glanced back at the survivors. "You got all these people here?"
River nodded, chewing her bottom lip, "There was a lot more but…"
"What happened?" Dean asked.
"We made a run for it. Right after Jo and Ellen got here. There used to be 20 of us…" River said.
"Shit," Dean murmured, "Well I say we try again, we need to get these people the hell out of here."
"How? Even if we did run I don't think Amy could make it," she glanced at the pregnant woman now asleep on the cot.
Sam rubbed his chin, "We arm everybody. One of us can carry baby bump, we get 'em to the bridge at least."
Dean nodded, "There's a sporting good store we passed on the way in, I bet they got guns. You said you need supplies anyways. We get guns, ammo, salt, whatever else you need."
River agreed, "Mama E, we'll go. You stay here."
"We don't need you. We got it covered," Dean said turning back towards her.
River scoffed and shook her head, "Ok, so you know where the general store is? And the vet office which might have some of the stuff I'll need if Amy does go into labor?" Dean shifted on his feet. "That's what I thought. I'm coming and you can suck it up. We all make it out of this alive and I'll be the first outta this shit hole town, trust me." She slung a backpack on and gripped her shotgun in one hand.
River led the way out of the shelter and waited for the brothers at the foot of the stairs. The door shut behind them and they heard something heavy being pushed against it. "I'll go for the vet office. Stores down the street, they should have salt. You already know where the guns are."
"We'll all go together," Dean said.
River and Sam stopped and turned back towards Dean. "Dean we need to hurry."
"We're not splitting up," he said stubbornly staring at his brother.
"What? Is this about the demons? You don't trust me around demons?" Sam asked. Dean sighed.
" I don't have time for this bullshit. Meet me back here in 10 minutes," River said pushing past Dean and running down the street towards the Vet office. Dean muttered under his breath as he and his brother went their separate ways to gather the other supplies. River quickly filled her back pack with dressing supplies, IV fluids, antibiotics and anything else she thought the survivors may need.
Sam entered the quiet general store, the rank smell of curdled milk and spoiled food hung in the air. He grabbed boxes of protein bars, some aspirin and then found the aisle containing cartons of rock salt. Sam had just grabbed the last jar of salt when the bell on top of the door jangled, signaling someones entrance into the store. He looked up at the curved security mirror and saw two strangers slink in. Their pitch black eyes clearly visible in the reflection. The two demons hurried to the now defunct cooler and grabbed cans of brightly colored energy drinks. The closest demon was less than ten feet in front of him, the Demon blade was within arms reach on top of a row of canned peaches where he'd set it down to grab the salt. Sam grabbed for the knife and inadvertently knocked one of the cans onto the dull linoleum floor. The can made a hallow 'thunk' and rolled away. The demons spun on their heels away from the cans of carbonated caffeine and sprang at the giant hunter. Sam was by far the more skilled fighter and within half a minute the demons lay dead at this feet. Their blood slowly spread out in long red rivulets along the slick floor and glistened tantalizingly at the end of the Demon blade. Sam ran his finger along the edge, collecting a few precious drops on the tip of his finger. He stared transfixed at it for several seconds until the bell over the door signaled another intruder.
"Sammy!" Dean yelled. His shoulders weighed down by the heavy bags of guns and ammunition he had commandeered from the sporting store. Sam quickly stood to his full height so his head was easily visible over the metal shelves of grocery items. "You get the salt?" He stopped in his tracks and stared at his brother and the dead demons at his feet. Sam's jaw clenched and he wiped the blood off the blade before tucking it into his jacket.
River returned from the Vet office and stood in the street, the Wonder boys had exactly 45 seconds to get their happy asses back or she was leaving without them. The seconds ticked away and she turned back towards the church. "You get your stuff?" Dean called to her back.
"Yep," she turned back around avoiding looking either brother in the eyes and instead focused on the heavy bags they both carried. "Are we really gonna aim Mayberry against a bunch of demons?" The brothers nodded. "Well alright then. Fuck it dude, let's go bowling." They spent the next few hours teaching the frightened survivors how to safely handle the guns Dean had procured. River knelt beside Amy, the mother to be, and showed her how to use a hand gun. Ellen paced restlessly, watching the men and women fumble with the guns, drop rock salt filled shells and clumsily aim the weapons.
"I'm not staying here while my daughters still out there," she said finally. "Get these people out of here. I'm going after Jo."
River walked to Ellen's side and placed a hand on her arm, "I'll go with you. You shouldn't go out there alone."
Ellen shook her head, "Amy needs you. If something happens you should be here with her."
"Then I'll go," Sam piped up.
Dean glared at his brother, "Can I talk to you for a minute?" He pulled his younger brother aside and the shared a muted conversation. River and Ellen looking at each other briefly before turning away from the brothers. "You don't need to go out there. I'll go with Ellen. You stay here with the Howdy Doodie bunch."
"Again? Really? Just can't trust me to be around some demons?" Sam hissed, "Think I'll fall off the wagon?"
"Will you?" Dean asked.
"I just want to do my job, Dean." His brother stared at him a moment longer before relenting. A few minutes later Ellen and Sam left the safety of the churches basement. Dean stared at the closed door for several minutes before turning away and coming face to face with River.
"Dean-"
"Nope," he said cutting her off.
"Can I just-" Dean pushed angrily past her and inspected the rock salt filled rounds that were sitting on a table. "Will you stop being so fucking childish. You're pissed I get it." He turned back towards her, his brow furrowed. Several of the people sitting around the table had stopped and turned towards them. He grabbed her by the arm and led her forcefully to a dark corner of the basement.
"I'm pissed? Hell yeah I'm pissed! You fucking lied to me! To all of us. You had Gabriel on your shoulder while we were chasing our god damn tails." His growled.
"He never told me about any of this shit about Michale or Lucifer. He told me if the other angels found out about him, found out that he resurrected me they would kill all of us. Including you and Sam," River told him quietly. "He wouldn't let me tell you. I tried…this stupid necklace protects me from other Angels poking around in my head but I couldn't even say his name. I couldn't tell you anything he didn't want me to."
Dean shook his head angrily, "I don't care. I trusted you…I laid it all out for you. And you still lied to me. You chose him over us. Over me."
River wiped tears off her face, "I'm sorry."
"It's not good enough," he replied throwing her words back at her.
"You know what Winchester, fuck you. I've stuck by your side. I ran back and forth across the lower 48 trying to save you. I summoned a fucking goddess of death to try and get you back. And you fucked three, three other women behind my back…," River angry blue eyes stared up at him, "You left me alone. With half a clip in my gun and nothing else. Every god damn angel and demon on the planet knows who I am and you assholes left me to fend for my fucking self. But I can fend for myself and I forgot that. I forgot that I could survive on my own but Gabe reminded me. I don't need you or Sam or Cas or anyone else." She pushed past him to check on how the civilians were doing with their crash weapons course.
"River, wait a minute," Dean reached out for her.
She shook his arm free snarling "Eat a dick" and stormed off. Three loud knocks sounded at the door and one of the men at table rushed towards. After checking the peephole it was swung open. Ellen hurried in a moment later, Sams huge presence glaringly absent.
"Where's my brother?" Dean barked over the crowd.
Ellen shook her head and sat wearily at the table, "We got surrounded by demons. They took him."
Amy sat forward, "What if the demons get in here? Are we even safe?"
"We're safe in here, ok. Don't panic. They can't get it in here," River told her calmly.
Dean cursed under his breath grabbing a shotgun and box of shells off the table. He wrapped his hand around the doorknob ready to run into the storm looking for his brother. He stopped and took a long breath before muttering another angry curse. "Ok look, we need to get a damn plan together. And you need to tell me everything!" Dean turned back towards Ellen and River and sat at the table opposite them.
"There's a house about six blocks from here, we saw smoke comin' from the chimney," Ellen started shakily taking a sip from a cool bottle of water. "We got jumped by a couple of demons. Jo was with them."
"Is she possessed?" River questioned quietly.
"Yeah, we gotta that demon outta my daughter without hurting her," Ellen said shaking her head, "She called me a bitch."
"She didn't mean it," River told her.
"No…she called me a black-eyed bitch," Ellen clarified. "What the hell kind of demons are these? Holy water and salt roll right off of 'em." River and Dean sat quietly their faces lit by the flickering candles on the table in front of them.
"There's a lot of wrong going on around here," River said after a moment. "I don't get it. I feel like we're missing something obvious."
Dean sighed and sat back in his chair, "Why'd you pick this town in the first place?"
"Omens," Ellen answered.
"The river was running red," River added.
"When?"
"Last Wednesday," the churches Pastor, Aaron, answered. "The demon thing started the next day."
"That would've been Thursday. I got here late Friday. That's when they blew the bridge and the phones went down." River told him.
Dean nodded, "Anything else?"
A few survivors had gathered around the small table. "Maybe, but it's kind of random," Anthony, a young Iraq war Vet said.
"Randoms ok," River encouraged.
"There was a shooting star, really big landed just by the river outside of town. Set off every car alarm in town."
River chewed her bottom lip again and looked across the table at Dean, "End of days."
Deans eyes grew wide at the reference and he ran to the bookshelf that was leaning against the wall. He ran his fingers down the spines of several books before he found the old leather bound, gold trimmed book. He flipped through the thin pages until he reached the back of the book. "And there fell a great star from heaven, burning like a torch and it fell upon the river, and the name of the star was Wormwood and many men died."
Pastor Aaron ran trembling fingers over the silver cross handing from his neck, "Revelation 8:10. Are you trying to say this about the Apocalypse?"
River tilted her head slightly, "Yeah I think we are."
"These signs are a prelude to what exactly?" Ellen asked.
"The four horsemen." The Pastor answered. River cursed under her breath.
"Which one rides the red horse?" Dean asked suddenly remembering the car he and his brother had passed on the way into town.
"War," River answered. "Shit…" she muttered again, "You see that car on main?"
Dean nodded, "The cherry red mustang?"
The Pastor stared at them disbelieving, "You can't really think a car-"
"It's the way I'd roll," Dean answered. "Think about it all makes sense. If War is a dude and he's here-"
"He's messing with our heads. Jo called you a black eyed bitch, we already know the salt and holy water's not working. No black smoke when they go down," River said looking between the other two hunters.
"We think they're demons, they think we're demons." Dean sighed.
"We've just been killing each other…fuck. I've killed six people," Rivers eyebrows drew together. "Zombies are so much fucking easier than this shit."
"Wait a minute, are we really talking about the Apocalypse? And zombies? The Pastor yelled again.
"No not zombies, not yet anyways," River sighed again, "You got the Apocalypse play by play manual right here. Might wanna bone up on it." She slid the thick book across the table. "So there's no demons, what the shit do we do now?" Before Dean could answer someone started franticly pounding on the door.
"Let me in! Let me in! It's me, Roger!" a muffled voice echoed from the hallway outside the door. River stood up and searched the survivors faces quickly. Roger's and his stark white hair and thick coke-bottle bottom glasses were missing from the crowd.
"Son of a bitch! When he did leave?" River yelled as Dean ran to the door. He swung the door open and Roger stumbled in, panting and shaking.
"The demons! The demons are coming!" he wailed in a high pitched tremble. A chorus of frightened cries rose up from the other survivors.
"Everybody relax!" River called over the cacophony. "Roger where the hell did you go?"
He took his glasses off and wiped the grime on his suit jacket, "I went out. Someone had to! To see what was happening out there. I ran into a group of demons and they're coming here and they're gonna kill all of us!" More screams, Amy grasped her protruding stomach and grimaced.
"You just said this wasn't a demon thing!"
The hunters stood shoulder to shoulder and exchanged a wary look. "Listen to us! There are no demons!" Dean yelled.
"They are gonna come here and kill us if we don't kill them first!" Roger shouted.
River stepped forward and raised her hands placatingly, "No, no. That's not gonna happen. We all need to calm down and think!"
"No, it's time to make a stand. No more talking. All the able bodied need to grab a weapon and follow me!" Anthony commanded. Several people shook their head in agreement and began grabbing guns off the table.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow your roll GI Joe and listen!" Dean looked between the paranoid faces, the lantern light reflecting several pairs of wide glistening eyes. His green eyes settled on Roger who stood near the back of the group smiling like the cat that just caught the proverbial canary. He raised his hand at Dean, showing a glinting gold ring on his finger.
Roger twisted the ring and then pointed at the hunters, "Oh my god ! Look at their eyes! They're demons!" The hunters took a defensive step back. The survivors screamed and shrank away from their pitch black eyes. Anthony and a few others raised their guns.
Dean turned towards the women behind him and pushed them towards the door, "GO! Run now!" River ripped the door open and pushed Ellen through. The three of them ran up the stairs barely missing being blown apart by a shotgun blast. They ran for several blocks before stopping.
"Ok, ok. Shit!" River mumbled turning in a quick circle, "Where did you and Sam get cornered?"
Ellen checked the street signs and pointed west, "There at the end of the road there's a big old farm house." They nodded and headed towards the farm house.
They signaled silently to each other and flanked the house, Ellen taking the back side, River and Dean taking the front porch. Dean tried the first large window he came to, the faint click of Rufus' booby trap made both their hearts freeze. Dean had a split second to thrust himself away from the window, crashing on top of River trying his damnedest to block both of them from the exploding glass. The smoke cleared and River took a painful breath in, Dean's heavy body pinning her to the rough wood of the porch. She tried to push him off but he lay dazed and non-compliant. "Come on Winchester. Get your heavy ass off me," She grunted finally pushing him up enough so she could roll out for underneath him. He sighed and shook his head trying to clear the ringing. Before he could gather all his senses River scrambled up and dove for the smoking hole that used to be the window. She rapped her hands around a protruding rifle barrel and pulled. Rufus came tumbling out of the window caught off guard by her sudden attack. The old hunter pulled a bowie knife from somewhere within the folds of his jacket and swung it's deadly edge at Rivers face. She stumbled back away from the knife yelling, "God damn it, Rufus! It's me!"
"You demon bitch!" he growled swinging the knife again. To him, Dean and River's eyes shone black and soulless. The sharp tip was driven into the floor boards a millimeter from Rivers left ear. Dean finally got his limbs to cooperate and pushed himself towards River and the older hunter. He grabbed Rufus by the jacket and in one smooth movement swung him off River and into the wall.
"Rufus, you mean old bastard, listen!" Dean yelled into his face, slamming him into the wall, "The omens! Think about it! WE ARE NOT DEMONS!" Rufus continued his struggle, landing a few good punches before getting the leverage to push Dean away.
"Go to hell!" He yelled. He reached into his jacket trying to grab some other hidden weapon. River kicked him quickly in the knee, driving the older man down then jumped on top of him.
"Rufus! Listen to us! The river, the star! The red fucking Mustang! It's WAR!" River yelled in his face.
Rufus got one arm free and punched her in the nose, "Hell yeah this is war!"
"Fuck!" she screamed falling sideways and cupping her bleeding nose.
Dean was there in an instant to take her place. "The Horseman, you jackass!" he yelled.
Rufus blinked twice, "The horseman?" His struggles dropped by an octave.
"Yes, He's turning us against each other!" Dean shook him for good measure, "You are hallucinating!" Rufus blinked again and the horseman's spell was broken. Dean's green eyes came into focus.
He turned his head and saw River's blue eyes looking back at him as she pinched the bridge of her nose trying to staunch the bleeding he had caused. "The horseman?" the older hunter took a long breath, "Glad you're still the brains of the operation." River spat a mouthful of blood onto the wood porch and flipped him off. She stood up and brushed glass shards and dust off her jacket.
"Shit, they're coming." River pointed to a group people running down the narrow road towards them. From what they could see each of the men and women were carrying a pistol or rifle. Anthony, the young Iraq Vet was in the front of the group throwing hand signals and yelling orders. They rushed inside and were once again face to face with the barrel of a shotgun. This time being held steadily by Ellen Harvelle. Jo stood behind her mother watching Rufus, Dean and River warily.
"We all on the same page?" Ellen asked thumbing the safety off the shotgun.
"Yeah Mama E." River said shutting the door behind them. "We got company."
"Where the hells my brother?" Dean asked.
"Upstairs," Jo answered. Dean rushed towards the stairwell, a bullet ricocheted off the wall a few inches from his head. The hunters dove to the ground as Dean continued up the stairs.
"We need to find War before we all kill each other!" River hissed as another bullet hit the wall to her left. The brothers came running down the stairs a moment later.
"We got an idea," Dean rushed, crouching low under a window before chancing a glance outside. "The ring Roger was wearing. We need to get it."
"Ok, yeah sure. Maybe we should stop everyone from shooting first?" River yelled. The hunters dispersed through the house and outside trying to get the townspeople to listen and stop killing each other. River rushed to the front lawn where Pastor Aaron lay bleeding from a gunshot to his shoulder. He screamed and tried shoving his silver cross in her face. "Will you knock that shit off! I'm trying to help you." She swatted his hands away and pressed her palms firmly into the bleeding wound on his shoulder. "I need some help over here!" she yelled over her shoulder. "Anthony! Come help me press here-" Anthony swung the butt of his rifle into her tempel. She stumbled back from the bleeding man on the ground and away form the assault rifle the other had trained on her.
Anthony stood over her, the only thing he focused on were demonic black eyes. River grabbed for the muzzle of the rifle and jerked it to the side. He let go of the rifle and it tumbled out of both their grips and into a pile of fallen leaves. "Stop! Anthony, you don't want to do this. NO one else has to die!" River screamed. He shook his head pulling a knife from his belt loop and jumped on top of her. She threw her forearm up over her neck and blocked his downward thrust. With her freehand she grabbed his wrist and pushed up. "Ellen! Ruf-us," She yelled, "Jo!" Anthony swore under his breath and used his body weight to edge the knife closer.
A few blocks away Roger aka War walked happily towards his bright red car. The citizens of this little town had barely needed a breeze of his power to send them over the edge into paranoia and murder. Hopefully they'd kill the hunters and each other before sunset and by then he'd be on to bigger and better things. Maybe make a side trip to Syria for a few days. War was wrapped up in his twisted, blood covered thoughts when Sam and Dean appeared from behind a wall and pinned him against his own. "Oh! Boys, you are a pair of slippery little devils," he chuckled. Dean twisted him so that his arms were trapped above his head and Sam pulled the Demon knife from his jacket. He chuckled again, "Nice knife big guy. You know you can't kill War, right?"
"Oh we know, " Dean grunted. Sam surged forward the knife held out in front of him. He swung the knife down and cleanly sliced of three of War's fingers, including the one wearing the intricate gold ring. The ring fell and War and his cherry Mustang disappeared. No puff of smoke, no grand exit he was there one moment and completely gone the next. Dean was left struggling with nothing but air.
River's hand slipped and the knife inched forward slicing into the soft flesh of her throat. Anthony smiled and leaned forward pressing down again, River blinked sweat out of her eyes and when she looked up Anthony saw her bright blue eyes shining with fear. He let go of the blade and sat back looking around at his fallen neighbors. River brought a shaking hand to the small nick in her throat and looked at her bloody finger tips. "Could you get the fuck off me?" she grumbled at Anthony, who still sat on her chest. He jumped off her and held out his hand, helping her to stand and brush the dirt and leaves out of her hair.
The town's survivors quickly came together and made amends for their deadly mistakes. Ellen, Jo and Rufus disappeared in the aftermath each had offered her a ride back to civilization but she refused. Not wanting to answer questions when the police and medical response arrived from the next town River walked back to her car where it still sat parked in front of the bed and breakfast and retrieved her duffle bag. After being cooped up in the church basement a little quiet time and a long walk seemed like a dream. It was twenty miles to the next town and all she wanted was to do was get there before dark. After a quick hike across the shallow, slow flowing river bed and up a steep embankment she was free of the town. Baby was parked off to the side of the destroyed bridge and she spared it a final glance before walking away. The sound of the engine reached her a good thirty seconds before the glinting black car sped past. AC/DC blaring out the open windows and she caught a glimpse of Dean's eyes as he and his brother barreled past. She readjusted the duffle bag across her back and watched as the Impala disappeared over a hill.