Chapter Two
The next morning we still didn't have any leads on Yellow Eyes but Bobby insisted that we hunted together until something comes up. I only agreed so we could get going seeing how it was going on noon and Dean didn't get up until eleven. I had slept in the spare bedroom last night and mostly just lied there thinking about how we were going to do this together. I've never hunted with anyone before, at least not long term. It could take a year before we figure out Yellow Eyes plan, or even longer. I was dreading this so bad but at the same time had a good gut feeling about Dean. I started taking stuff out of my car and Bobby said he'd keep it on the side of the garage until we get back. The cars a piece of shit anyways, I could care less about it. I put all my guns and knives in with Deans as he was inspecting them.
"These aren't half bad. Where did you get them?" he asked putting them in with his.
"They were in the family." I responded. He just nodded and when we were finished moving things around and getting organized for the ride Bobby came out of the house with some papers.
"I found this job for you guys in Palo Alto, California. Two boys missing in the woods, say it might be a grizzly bear but it looks too suspicious."
He hands me the papers as I look over the newspaper clipping he printed offline.
"Alright, thanks Bobby." Dean says as he gets in the car and Bobby pulls me aside.
"This will be different for you but I think you two will get along just fine." Bobby said. I looked behind Bobby and saw Dean looking over at us trying to listen in.
"It'll be interesting. We could be doing this for a year or longer until we get Yellow Eyes." I said worried. "What if it doesn't work?"
Trust me Sam, Dean's a good guy. You two will be just fine. You both are set on Yellow Eyes, you'll find him together." Bobby spoke in confidence and I hope it was true. I got in the car with Dean and we set out for California.
Not even three hours into the drive and I was passed out. I was having a nightmare about Yellow Eyes and seeing him in my sister's room. Nothing was making sense because then Dean was there taking me away from the fire and I was twenty five, not eight years old. And he was holding me and when I looked at him, his eyes weren't green but yellow and nothing was making sense. Where was Sarah? Where were my parents? I felt something shaking me…did I pass out?
"Sam! SAM!" Dean screamed in my face. I woke up startled and sweating all over. "Jesus Christ Sam, you scared me half to death." I looked around and saw Dean had pulled over along the highway. The sun was just about to set and Dean gave me this look of relief. "I thought you were having a panic attack or something."
"I probably was." I mumbled. I sat up and rolled the window down for some air. I breathed in the fresh air and tried to take my jacket off but it got caught.
"Want some help?" Dean offered. I didn't respond and after a few moments of struggling he helped me get uncaught. I threw my jacket in the backseat and put my head back in defeat. I was wearing some ripped jeans and a black V-cut t shirt. I closed my eyes trying to think of something comforting like, the time me and Sarah went to the beach and had a few beers while my nieces played in the sand. That seemed like forever ago. I heard Dean start the car without another word. This was going to be a long trip.
I knew I was having nightmares since I was kid but I never knew they were that bad. Dean barely said two words until we got to a motel.
"You hungry?" he asked. We were just settling in, well if you could call it that. We got a two twin beds and I couldn't help but think it would've been cheaper for a one bed, but I wasn't going to push it. I could tell Dean was extremely annoyed with me. I passed out right away and then had a nightmare. I didn't even bother trying to start a conversation with him. I don't know why Bobby wanted us to hunt together except for the fact that we both want Yellow Eyes dead. We would get it done faster working together than alone. That part I agreed with but doing other hunts together would just be a waste of time.
"Sure, I'll have whatever you're getting." I responded indifferently. I heard him put his bags down and close the hotel door. Alone. Finally. I grabbed some fresh clothes and jumped in the shower. The hot water felt so good on my skin. I did my best thinking in the shower. I figured if we finished this hunt in at least three days we can get back on the road and find some of those adopted children that are linked to Yellow Eyes. They went missing just recently so they have to be in their twenties. I couldn't get out of my head what Yellow Eyes would want with them. It's been twenty years, why now? I turned the water off and got dressed in my sweats and AC/DC shirt. It was all ripped tethered from wearing it so much.
I walked out of the bathroom and Dean was reviewing the newspaper clipping Bobby had printed out for us. "Anything good?"
"Well the food sucks. But tomorrow we got to check out this Hayley girl. She's the sister of one of the missing boys. They just vanished in the woods." He started surfing the web on his computer and came across other missing people. "That's weird. Every twenty three years people go missing around here."
"Why twenty three? That's an odd number." I responded. I opened up my burger and took off all the onion and pickles. I took a bite then spit it back out.
"Told you it sucks." He said throwing the rest of his in the trash. I looked at the burger and saw it was raw in the middle. Just perfect. Dean's phone went off and he immediately went outside. I could hear him some of what he saying. "Where are you...What are you doing…alright…are you sure? I've been looking for you for months and…yes Sir. I got this chick with me...not like that. She's a hunter…well Bobby said…alright. Next week? Yes Sir. Bye." I could see his shadow through the window just standing there. I went over to one of the beds and lay down. I must've dozed off because when I woke up it was three am and Dean never came back inside. At that point I was too tired to care.
It pretty much remained like that for the next few days. We barely said a word to each other except when we were working the case or discussing Yellow Eyes information. I didn't pry into his life or question anything he said. I need his help just like he needs mine. All I want is to get through this and so I can go back home and spend more time with Sarah. I worried after a while where Dean was going but figured he just needed time alone or making secret phone calls or going to the bar to drink. Just as long as he didn't leave me here stranded, it didn't bother me much. Then one night Dean actually came back early and completely trashed. And with my luck I was still awake.
I was reading up on some case files from the missing kids that Yellow Eyes targeted when he stumbled into the motel room and slammed the door behind him. He had this look on his face of complete utter confusion when he saw me sitting on the bed. "Hey, Sammm." He slurred. I cocked an eyebrow at him and watched as he fell back on my bed. He landed on all my papers while some stuff flew off the bed. "What the hell Dean." I said in frustration.
"What the hell what SAM!?" he yelled back at me.
"You just flew my papers everywhere." I retorted. I got up and picked up the papers and put them back into their folder and into my carry on.
"You know what your problem is Sam?" He said a little more sober. "You don't ever relax. You just work all the time. You need to go out and have a few drinks and just get laid or something."
I looked over at him and saw his green eyes looking over at me. "You're absurd. I'm the most relaxed person I know and just because I like to work doesn't mean I don't like to have a good time."
"Well how many people do you know?" He chuckled. He looked up at me and saw me glaring down at him. "I mean, ya know…as a joke."
"I know many people. I just choose to keep to myself. And this is mostly the reason why." I barked back. I put my shoes on, grabbed my jacket and walked out the motel room. I was tempted to hot wire his car but didn't want to piss him off. It was made perfectly clear that he would be the only one driving his and if I did he would 'do something outrageous' to me. I rolled my eyes and started walking a few blocks. There had to be a bar around here somewhere, I thought. It was late, probably past midnight. I saw some broken lit sign called "Smokey's Bar". Good enough. I walked in and it smelt horrible. Probably the worst stank ever just fogged the whole place of stale cigars and puke. There were a few tables with people sitting down having drinks and these two guys at the bar talking with the bar tender. I walked over to the bar and sat three seats down from one of the guys. They had some football game on the TV that looked like it was from the eighties. Some pictures and beer logos on the wall but it wasn't much.
"What can I get for you?" The bartender asked. He looked older than what he probably was. He had tattoos up and down his arms with a huge frizzy beard like Santa Claus except dark with gray coming in.
"Shot of tequila. And just keep them coming." I said. I looked down at my phone and saw that Bobby had called me. The last thing I wanted was to be checked in on. I called him back as the bartender gave me my first shot. I threw it back town right as Bobby picked up.
"Hey Sam, I tried calling you." He said.
"Hey, yeah I know. I just got to the bar." I said back. I felt the tequila burn in my mouth but it felt so good.
"Where is Dean?" Bobby asked. I rolled my eyes at his question.
"Is it my turn to babysit him?" I asked sarcastically. "I must have forgotten." I downed the second shot.
"Very funny Sam." He didn't sound as amused as me.
"He's at the motel where I left him, but I can't guarantee he's still there." I said looking down at the chipped wood on the bar. "Besides we are just having a dandy time together."
"I didn't think you two would but you both need this. Yellow Eyes is still out there. Out of everyone I know you two are the only ones working on this case. So be smart and get to it. Besides Dean's father, I don't know anyone more devoted to this than you."
My mind froze on the 'Dean's father'. So he's the one I ran into a few years ago. I was following Yellow Eyes fires from the eighties, and ran into an older man who too was following it. It didn't occur to me until about two weeks later when I had saw him repeatedly in the same towns as me. It wouldn't seem so suspicious if I wasn't going state to state. He followed me one night and thought I was a demon. That was the last thing I wanted to hunt. Although Yellow Eyes is a demon, I didn't want any other one. He cornered me into an alley and started asking me all these questions about why I was following him but really he was following me.
"Listen here man, I'm not following you. Besides you're too old and not my type." I said looking at the grays in his beard.
"You have been in every town as me the last two weeks." He defended.
"Yeah well, I guess we are both after the same thing, don't you think?" I said.
"Are you a hunter?" He asked a little confused. I didn't want to answer his question because I only knew a few other hunters out there and didn't trust new people. Hunter or not.
"Are you?" I asked back.
"Yes."
"So am I." We both just kind of looked at each other not knowing what to say next.
"You're young." He stated.
"I'm twenty three." I replied.
"That is young." I think we were both at a loss for words. "Why are you following me?" He asked again.
"I'm not. I'm on a trail and it's not yours. We might be on the same thing but I can assure you I am not following you." I felt like I had to defend myself. Why would I follow someone I didn't know?
"Why don't we talk somewhere more in private…?" He asked. I too was sensing that someone was listening. I looked around me and nodded my head. I followed him out to his truck and got in. I felt for my knife in my pocket just in case I needed it. We drove two minutes down the road to a little parking lot and he shut the car off before he spoke again.
"I think we are after the same thing." He said. We both let his words sink in and I didn't really know what to say.
"I don't think so. The guy I'm after hasn't been active since the eighties." I said matter of fact. "I know everything about him and I would know if someone else was after him too."
"How would you know?" He asked.
"Because, I'm not the only survivor. And I already checked out the other cases. No one else is looking." I said completely confident in myself. I looked over and his green eyes were looking down at me.
"Well if you're so sure then I guess we won't be on the same track." He said smiling. I could tell he was being assertive with that stupid grin on his face. Like he knew if we were to still be following each other then we would be hunting the same thing but I knew for a fact that he couldn't possibly be doing that. And even at his age he wouldn't fit the pattern unless Yellow Eyes killed his children it wouldn't fit. All the other cases had surviving children but no parents. All of the cases dated in the eighties. Unless Yellow Eyes screwed up… I didn't want to think if there was a flaw in my research. I spent my whole life being raised to hunt and kill people like him and with Yellow Eyes as my goal; I'd be failing my sister and my parents. He could tell I was starting to look concerned.
"I don't think we are hunting the same thing. Maybe our cases are just…crossing the same towns." He said trying to convince me otherwise.
"Yeah, maybe they are." I said getting ready to leave. "And if they're not, I don't want to know about it. I spent my whole life fighting this, and I don't want anyone screwing it up." I said ready to get out of the truck.
"Why not?" he asked. I looked back at him and saw the curiosity written all over his face.
"Because, that would mean I failed. And I can't live with that. I have too much at stake." I responded. He looked at me and nodded his head.
"I know what you mean. It would mean I failed too." I opened the truck door and stepped out. "You want a ride back?" he yelled out.
"Nah, I'll just walk. Besides it's a nice night. Don't follow me okay?" I said and closed the door. I kept going on my trail and if he was following me I didn't know about it. Either we did fail or it was just coincidence.
I got really quiet when Bobby mention Dean's father. That flashback came back at me full force and I drank another shot before I responded to him. "Well, I'll do the best I can. Dean's been a little more than tipsy lately." I heard Bobby sigh. "What's wrong?" I asked him.
"Nothing. Finish up the case you're on and head to Lawrence, Kansas. You tell Dean I say you go there and if he has questions and he can call me."
"Kansas? That's where I was when I needed your help. What's going on?"
"Dean will know. That's all I'm saying." Bobby knew more than what he was letting on.
"I trust you Bobby. I could be out there on my own doing this instead of travelling with some prick who barely communicates with me." I was irritated and Bobby could tell I was about to bail.
"Dean just needs some guidance. Once you get to Lawrence he will have that. Trust me." Did I really have much of a choice?
