Chapter Three

Motel rooms, always hold the most secrets

Dean was in the shower when Sam had skidded inside the room, toppling over the clusters of destroyed door and landing safely on the double bed, just missing Bell who had hurriedly scooted over.

"Shit, what the hell happened, where's Dean?" he demanded.

"Well, from what I could gather we bumped into an old friend of yours, and now...well..now Dean's takin' a shower."

Sam looked about confused "who- "

And then he saw the corkscrew of black ringlets matted with blood and splayed around the bodiless head of Cassie.

"Jesus Christ-

"I'm sorry, I can't be more tactfull, but I came in here and she was trying to bite your brother so I did what I had to do, was there something going on between them when she was human?"

The conversation if heard by an outsider had the potential to sound altogether insane, but to Sam the absurdity of it all was the only thing now, that was familiar.

"Yeh, ah, they were very close-

Bell nodded, biting her lower lip and looking down at her hands "I am very sorry that I had to drag y'all into this, but we can't do this all by ourselves. It scares me how many lifes I will destroy in order to round up all of us hunters and now I wonder how many innocents linked to us, we'll serve up on a platter?"

Awkwardly Sam rubbed her back in a small gesture of comfort, the sentiment could have been honest if it weren't for the ring of truth in Bell's words, it was at that point however that Dean in a flurry of mist exited the bathroom, saving Sam from another round of unwanted truths.

"Dean!" Sam yelped, leaping upwards.

The eldest brother held off his brothers questioning eyes "Sam, I swear if you ask me what happened, or how I feel I will kill you...ok?"

Sam nodded, whilst Dean clapped his hands together and said "Ok guys, game plan."

Bell opened her mouth to speak only to be cut off by Dean "Right, so ah, I've got a mate in Texas and old Demon hunter who knows his stuff. He's got a large bit of land pretty well cut off from humans and anything else that may come our way, it seems to me the perfect place to begin..." at this Dean faltered, obviously put out by what it was he was going to say next "to, ah begin training."

Bell who had at first looked put out by Dean's interruption know smiled with new found admiration.

"Well we just have to do what we have to do, then." she said.

"Why?" Kirsty suddenly interrupted "Bell we know people here, people who can help us, we have to stay here and fight!"

Dean rubbed his chin with frustration "Look G.I Jane, in case you haven't noticed we're standing in a room with a headless vampire, who once was the girl I loved and a friggin' kicked in door, now if you wanna be here to explain all this to the landlord then be my guest if not, you can help me clean some of this shit up so we can haul ass out of here!" Dean cried.

The mood became icy with confrontational stares, but as the clock slowly ticked on etching away at the light source, the unlikely quartet slowly but surely began to distance themselves from the scene until after an hour or so as Dean looked inside from the threshold of the backdoor he saw nothing that would ever link them, or the events of that day to that small motel room.

-------------------------------They had been driving for over three hours and yet the only voice in the car was John Fogherty as he sung out over the cassette player. Dean knew Sam wanted to ask, needed to know that he felt something for the lose of Cassie and this notion hung in the air, provoking Dean to wonder if sometimes his own brother found him less human the he, himself did.

He could still see her almond eyes, not yet crinkled by age staring back at him, in his hockey sweatshirt which came down to the lip of the knee with hair carelessly tossed in a pony tail if he could remember her like this, forever then maybe he wouldn't completely fall apart but to say his feelings, to let Sam know that her death had taken its toll on him, meant that he lost all control of himself, and who was he after all if he wasn't the brave one?

"Alright, Sammy you going to keep on sulking over there?" Dean asked.

Sam twitched but his eyes never left the passing scenery out of his passengers window "I don't get you Dean, we lose dad and it takes you weeks to finally let go of what you were feeling and now you lose Cassie, I mean she dies in front of you and still nothing-

Dean replied sarcastically,"No, Sam the only reason I let go after dad died was cos I was sick of sitting with doctor Phil every friggin' day, and I would greatly appreciate it if there weren't any re-runs tonight."

Sam huffed, but carried on talking "What ever dude, all I'm saying is you just lost some one you loved and you just can't keep that inside man, it kills you. Trust me, I know."

Dean turned the radio off, wondering if Sam knew that this time he'd gone to far this time "Look man can you just shut up, seriously dude, just shut up. Cassie is dead, but it's all I can do but carry on,you just ogtta carry on because unlike you I don't have the luxury of some one watching out for me, you can make mistakes Sammy, you can feel emotion because you've got me to protect you, but me I got no-one but myself and I'll be damned if I fall apart now...I am FINE Sam!" he yelled.

His younger brother opened his mouth to speak, but was silenced as Dean turned the radio up to full blast and began to sing loudly to Creedence Clearwater Revival's 'Proud Mary'.

Sam continued to stare at his brother, wanting him to know that he was sorry that he was such a burden to him. There was nothing really left to say, Dean had put up his wall as usual and Sam like always would have to patienly wittle it away until he struck the other side. Until then however Sam admitted defeat and closed his eyes, knowing that sleep was a much less complicated affair.

By the time the tension settled in the car, the moon had risen, bright and pregnant in the gaping black sky. Sam was now fast asleep and Dean relished in the fact that his brother's eyes weren't boring into the side of his head.

After rounding the bend Dean noticed that he no longer saw Bell's headlights in his rear view mirror. Not thinking much of it, but making sure he pulled out his phone from his pocket and dialled Bell's number.

"Dean?"

"Bell, where you gone, lost your headlights."

"Yeh just punctured a tire is all, was going to call you just as you rang, we shouldn't be more then..." The line crackled, but Dean distinctly heard Bell curse.

"Bell?!" he cried "Bell?!"

"Dean, ah shit, Dean we got vamps here, y'all better double back we're at the first turn off just before you reach the corner y'all just turned off...Dean they've come pre-

The line went completely dead.

Jolting Sam awake with a firm prod in his arm, Dean turned the car around at such a speed he smelt the distinct scent of burning rubber "I'm sorry baby." he muttered to the Impala

"Dean what's happening?" Sam yelled, bracing himself against the door and glove box as the car pushed past 70miles.

"Blood suckers just trapped Bell and Kirsty,and from what I could gather it seems like quite a party!"

Dean saw Bell's fading headlights before he saw the crumpled form of Kirsty lain out flat along the road. He had just enough time to break and for a moment he lost the sight of Kirsty as the front of his car engulfed her "Jesus Christ, did I hit her?" Dean cried.

Sam breathed out deeply, unbuckled himself and flew out the door.

Dean killed the ignition and followed after Sam, who rose from in front of car, the younger Elkin's girl nestled within his arms. "She's breathing, just knocked out cold."

"Ok, ok get her in the car, I'll get the dead man's blood."

--------Bell watched helplessly as her and Kirsty were slowly and strategically circled around their car. Kirsty braced in her hand a tire iron and Bell, who felt completely naked without a weapon, had only her fists which now seemed small and meek against the growing numbers

"Can you reach the boot?" Kirsty hissed, hoping to arm herself a bit more heavily.

Bell shuffled her feet a little "No I'm sorry I can't." she gritted her teeth against the frustration and defeat which rose in her throat like thick bile, and continued to speak "This can't be it Kirsty, I just can't believe that after everything, and what is to come, that we can die here...if die I will be so friggin' pissed at you!"

Her cousin smiled, illuminating the darkness of her eyes "The same goes for you!"

"Gunna go down swinging?"

Bell inched forward ever so slightly "Till the bitter end?"
"Till the bitter end." Kirsty confirmed.

With their final sentiments made, and all hope now at a complete and utter lose the two girls, who had lived and breathed hunting vampires, ran head on at a break neck pace at what they both knew, but neither said was to ber their last ever battle. It would have been beautiful if it weren't for the inevitable loss hanging in the air.

Bell dodged a well aimed kick to the temple and threw herself onto vampire who had dealt it, but to her surprise she was launched without much of an effort from the vampires part, a good three metres in the air and landed heavily and painfully on the bonnet of her car. The wind escaped her in one single rush, it tore away at the lining of her lungs and left her gasping and screaming for breath. Within a moment Kirsty flew over the car altogether and skidded across the ashphalt.

"Kirsty!" Bell roared.

Her younger cousins body was sprawled out along the centre lines of the road, her blood staining the glowing white lines, the hue of red even more horrific in the dying moons light. The black curls which made Kirsty look so striking in life now framed her bruised face and only ecsentauted the growing ashen in her skin.

Bell began to stand but was forced to pin herself to metal of her car as flurry of arrows shot over the crown of her head.

She didn't remember it at the time, but her eyes were tightly closed and all there was, were Sam's and Dean's grunts of exursion as the threw themselves into the thick of it.

The eldest Winchester's voice, loud and fear streaked brought her back. She planted her palms firmly against the indented metal of her car, and forced herself to standing position.

For a moment of confusion Bell looked about at the scene. The Winchester brothers, to their credit, had managed to take down three; they lay in a headless heap just shy of the car. At this point however the boys looked vaguely as if they were losing the battle.

There were four left, all over six feet tall, all equipped with various war instruments and all female. They were clad in normal roadie attire, scuffed leather jackets with different motifs, tight black jeans and heavy combat boots; but as Bell surveyed their moves more closely she realized that they were not dealing with just your average run of the mill blood suckers. These ones moved with effortless grace and precession, the caught every blow dealt by the Winchesters and dodged with ease the many thrusts and swings of the axes and hatchets. This wasn't right, Bell thought frantically, the women looked as if there was no excursion at all and they seemed to be merely blocking the attempts made by the brothers never delivering their own, it was as if they were toying with the pair, tiring them out until death was their only escape.

"Dean, throw me an axe!" she hollered, launching herself off the car and catching the axe just as feet hit solid ground. She swung at the smallest one she could find, but missed sorely her axe only tasting air, taken by surprise she was easily swept off her feet and for the second time that night, ate dirt.