Getting Ranger Dan into the dungeon had been an intense struggle, but they had done it, mostly due to Cas' help. Crowley had been useless as usual, and Dean and Sam weren't strong enough to hold him. Even without using his powers, Daniel was strong enough to take on two hunters. Now he was strapped by normal chains and the magic-zapping manacles to a chair in the dungeon and wouldn't look any of them in the eyes. Dean wasn't surprised by that. The last time that Sam and Dean had met him he'd seemed like a good guy; Lucifer likely had some sort of bargaining chip.
"So, Daniel, what's your reward for being a skeevy douche? Did Lucifer promise you something? Money? Power?" Dean asked roughly.
Daniel didn't say anything, but Dean noticed a vein in his neck twitch. Despite treating him so roughly, Dean did feel kind of bad for the guy. Daniel looked awful, so the part about him being captured by demons was most likely true although not the entire story.
"Well, Dean, I can get that information," Crowley interjected. "You see, Daniel, I may be considered a traitor now, but I was once known as the King of the Crossroads. I can even see some minute details of deals that aren't even mine. They just take a bit more force. Sorry, darling Daniel, but this is going to hurt you a lot more than it will me." Crowley stepped towards Daniel. His eyes glowed a foreboding red, and his mouth twisted into a wicked grin.
"Okay! Okay. Just don't. I made a deal with Lucifer. He said that if I gave him Sydney, he'd bring back my brother Liam," Daniel explained and looked at Sam and Dean with pleading eyes. "Don't act like you're so much better than me. What would you do to bring back your family?"
"I wouldn't offer up an innocent person like a bargaining chip!" Dean argued. "And last time I met your brother he was planning on using us as sacrifices, so excuse me if I'm not too sympathetic."
"You don't understand. Magic… it's like a drug, particularly dark magic. He wasn't always like the way you saw him that night. Our parents died performing some of the spells in that book he was using. If anyone should have died, it should have been me! I was the one who kept that book for so long despite knowing what it had inside. I didn't think that my brother was capable of killing people for more spell books… or more power."
Daniel had his head in his hands. He looked like a broken man. Dean knew that despite what he had told Daniel that he would go to crazy lengths to keep Sam safe, and he was finding it hard to blame the man.
"That still doesn't change the fact that you were willing to exchange Syd for your brother to the actual devil," Sam retorted. "Just what do you think he plans to do with her?"
"Look. Part of the deal was that if Lucifer or one of his demons hurts Syd, he'll get sealed away, so I'm pretty sure that he won't let anyone harm her."
"Wait, what?" Sam asked and looked to Dean and Crowley.
"Yeah, I'm not a monster. I wouldn't trade someone for my brother without knowing that person wouldn't be hurt."
"How did you know that we were even at that campus?" Sam asked, changing the subject. "Are there demons helping you?"
"If there were demons helping me, do you think that I'd be tied to this chair right now?"
"Good point," Crowley admitted, and Dean looked at him with exasperation.
"So how did you find the campus?" Dean asked.
"I looked online. Some guy got his eyes ripped out in a room full of mirrors and said that there were two guys that helped him. Once I found out that he was the stepfather of a girl murdered on campus, I went there to ask around. Just got lucky, I guess. When I didn't get any calls, I went to investigate what was going on in Joplin, and that's when you called me."
Dean had to admit that the story made sense, but he wasn't so sure about Lucifer's deal with Daniel. If Lucifer had made the deal not to hurt Syd, how was he planning on using his grace? Wasn't that the reason he had sent Ranger Dan after Syd? None of that made sense to Dean, but by the look on Daniel's face he believed it.
"Lucifer seemed to believe that the girl had something of his. If you can just convince her to give it to me, I can give it to Lucifer, and he won't need to go after her anymore," Daniel pleaded.
Dean turned to Sam and gave him a look. Lucifer hadn't exactly lied to the ranger, but he sure hadn't told the entire truth.
"It's not that easy," Sam replied.
"How so? Isn't that what's best for the girl too? Whatever she has can't be worth all this trouble."
Dean said nothing, and Crowley and Sam kept quiet too. They must have thought the same thing as Dean had. It was probably better for them not to tell him about Syd's soul. Maybe they could trick him into believing that Lucifer really was just after an object.
The door to the dungeon area opened, and Cas called out, "Dean, Sam. I need to speak with you." Cas motioned for them to follow him quickly and left with Sam walking behind him. Dean turned to Crowley to see him looking far too happy at the chance to have some alone time with Daniel.
"Crowley, you come too," Dean commanded. Crowley rolled his eyes but followed Dean outside the dungeon.