The fluorescent lights in the bathroom glared harshly and made everything in it seem tinted blue. Once Sam had returned to the room after his phone call, Lee had fled to the bathroom for refuge. She didn't want to look Sam in the eye, for fear of seeing him look at her with hurt and disappointment because of she failed to find Dean.
Lee snuck a look at her reflection in the mirror and grimaced at what she saw. Her eyes were red and puffy. Tear lines ran down her face and her lower lip refused to stop trembling. She leaned forward on the counter and placed her head in her hands.
Her mind was swimming with newfound knowledge. That Dean had been in hell. That he had been subject to unmentionable horrors. How he did the same to other poor souls. Lee's thoughts leapt to her encounter with Uriel. How he told her that she had been blessed.
"What does that mean?" Lee whispered to herself, "This doesn't make a lick of sense!"
Lee heard the motel room door being pulled open. She pressed her ear to the closed bathroom door and heard a female voice carry through.
"Their smell is everywhere in here," Lee heard the female say, "Seriously Sam, me being around angels isn't something I'm thrilled to be doing!"
"I need you to find Dean," Sam's muffled voice pleaded, "I don't know where the angels took them." Lee cast a long glance at the floor before quickly splashing her face with water and exiting the bathroom
Standing across from Sam was dark eyed brunette. She stood there nonchalantly with her hands stuffed into her pockets and Lee's presence went unnoticed by the both of them.
"Not sure I see the problem," The brunette continued, "Alastair gets a beat down, Dean gets revenge, and the angels get what they need to help them win. What's wrong with that?"
The corners of Sam's mouth pulled down, "He can't do it Ruby."
"I get it, you don't want him going all torture master again," She sighed lazily.
"That's not what he means," Lee's voice drawled from the corner. Sam and Ruby snapped their heads as she continued to speak, "Dean's been through a whole mess of sufferin' during his time downstairs. His soul hasn't healed yet and what those angels are fixin' for him to do… It'll injure him even more."
A hush fell over the room and Lee's cheeks began to burn from their stares. The brunette began to study her closely with pursed lips and Sam stood open mouthed, darting his eyes between the two women. Lee began to shuffle her feet and pick at the ends of her hair in the silence.
"Well look at you miss Southern belle," Ruby chirped and folded her arms, looking Lee up and down, "Who's this Sam? You pick this floozy up on the side of the road?"
Lee eyelids fluttered before fixing a cold and frosty stare, "Excuse me? Do you want me to kick your sorry ass?" She stepped towards Ruby, towering over her. The brunette merely smirked and for a split second, Ruby's image wavered and Lee saw her eyes flash pitch black. With a slight inhale, Lee took a half step back and Ruby tilted her head in satisfaction.
"Woah woah," Sam finally broke in, "Calm down Ruby, this is Lee, her father was a hunter." He explained, "She knew Pamela. She was at the funeral with us."
"My name is Haleli," Lee seethed, recovering from her shock, "My friends call me Lee." She explained, stressing the word friends. Lee felt uneasy at the way Ruby was studying her and tried not to let it show on her face.
With a shrug, Ruby turned her back to Lee, "Are you sure you can do this?" She asked Sam with raised brows.
"I'm strong enough." He replied.
Ruby walked outside to gather the materials she needed for her tracking spell. Sam rechecked his phone for the thousandth time, hoping somehow Dean called or left a message for him. With Ruby gone, Lee felt the need to confide in Sam.
"I don't trust that woman," Lee confessed, "Somethin' isn't right with her Sam. I can feel it." She turned a worried gaze to Sam, hoping he caught her drift.
"I know Ruby, she's here to help." Sam assured. He smiled as Ruby walked back in and set up a US map on the floor.
Ruby began to chant and slowly held the flame of a candle to the map's corner. It flew up in flames, burning and crackling. The flaming tips flickered and danced, filling the room with ash and smoke. Lee unconsciously stepped behind Sam as the fire continued to spread all over the map.
"Out." Ruby commanded and the flames extinguished, leaving a small portion of the map unscathed by the fire. "Here he is. Angels aren't used to being spied on, I mean, who'd be stupid enough to try? It just makes it that much easier for us to find them."
"Obviously you must stupid enough to do it…" Lee muttered.
"Hey Lee," Sam said, "Can you wait in the Impala? I need to talk to Ruby really quick." Lee's mouthed opened to make a comment but closed it when she noticed the sick puppy eyes he was giving Ruby.
"Take all the time y'all need!" Lee frowned in disgust at the realization of his words.
Once she was outside the motel room, a sinking feeling hit her in the gut. Lee looked to the Impala and then back to the room. The window blinds were askew, leaving just enough space to peak. Following her instinct she slinked to the window and peered through.
Lee's hand flew up to cover her mouth as she fought the urge to let out a horrified cry. Through the blinds she saw Sam sitting on the bed with Ruby straddling him. Blood trickled down Ruby's arms as Sam sat there, vigorously drinking it every last bit he could. Ruby stroked his hair as he gripped her arm fiercely. She threw back her head with a smirk dancing on her lips.
The sight was too much for Lee to digest. She fled from her perch and dry heaved by the Impala. Tears pricked her eyes and her stomach flip-flopped. "Stop cryin'!" She ordered herself, "You are always cryin' for every gosh darn thing!"
The motel door flew open and Lee righted herself before the other two noticed anything suspicious. She sat in the passenger seat without so much as a peep. She was relieved Ruby decided not to tag along, but Lee was worried about Sam.
He was gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. Sam looked on edge, his eyes darting across the road. Lee noticed how dilated his eye were, making them almost black instead of their usual hazel color. The windshield wipers swish rapidly as the rain pitter-pattered against the car like harmless bullets. Lee turned to look out her window and watched the greenery pass by as her face contorted in horror.
The Impala skidded to a halt as they arrived at an empty warehouse. Sam burst out of the car and ordered Lee to stay put. Refusing to sit on the sidelines, she rushed in after him. Inside she struggled to keep up with Sam and eventually lost sight of him.
"Dean!" She called, "Sweet pea, where are you?"
Out of the corner of her eye, she sees a bright blue light shine through the cracks in the wall. Lee raced towards it in time to see Sam lift his hand as a bloody and broken man was slammed against the wall. The angel she had met earlier, Castiel, was sprawled on the ground and struggling to sit upright.
"Who's murdering the angels? How are they doing it?" She hears Sam roar. Near another wall Lee sees a dark figure slumped on the floor.
"Dean!" Relief rushes over her, but it soon dissipates at the sight of his injured body. Lee carefully cradles his head and touched two fingers to his neck, checking for a pulse. It was weak, but still beating. Blood from his wounds smeared onto her clothes, but Lee paid no attention to it, "Dean, sweetie, wake up!" She gently slapped his face.
Lee bit her lip until a metallic tang hit her tongue, "Please stay alive, for your brother. He's gonna need you to keep him strong…" Dean's eyes remain glued shut and his breathing grew fainter and a gash across his cheek continued to bleed profusely. Lee tore off a piece of her shirt and pressed it onto the wound.
The gash slowly begins to sew itself up and the bleeding subsided. Watching it shrink under the cloth, Lee recoils her hand in shock and the wound stops closing. She touches a trembling hand to her cheek and cringes when a gut-wrenching scream fills the room.
The man Sam is holding on to screams as a gold light flares up from inside. He collapses dead on the floor with Sam standing over him breathing heavily. Lee watches with wide eyes as she sees Sam wave the body aside and his face void of expression.
Author's Note: Thank you to everyone who's liked or read my story so far, I honestly wasn't sure if anyone was going to even read it! Well, I'm starting my new college semester next week, but I'm trying to finish this part of the story before then so it won't be too cut off. There will probably be one or two more chapters added before I take a break. I have a full load of course work coming up and I won't have a lot of time to spare, so updates will be much more spread out. Don't be shy about reviewing! I enjoy any feedback, good or bad.