1Chapter Eight
"All you had to do was let her swallow you up." It was an insane sort of statement with a sigh that showed remorse only for the fact that the plan had failed. Dean rolled his head around and took in Nia with double vision.
She was laying sprawled out in the back of the truck next to him unconscious, but breathing. Dean felt like lead again and it was hard to focus. He tried to pick his head up but it fell quickly back to the truck bed. "I give to the earth. She gives to me. All you have to do is go in alive. You Couldn't let it stay simple could you?" he mumbled under his breath as he tightened Dean's bindings. Dean groaned trying to drum up enough stamina to move.
"You're the real guy." Dean whispered. As if it some how made sense now. They had torched the wrong bones. The man they torched wasn't the killer at all. How he made the guy the state had executed for the crimes confess Dean may never know, but his victims were sure getting pissed as their ghosts were trying to warn his intended victims.
"I only make sacrifices for the one that sacrifices for us all. Someone has to do it. She chose tonight. Wanted a matched pair - the second of the twins, but you got in the way."
"You think the earth wants you to kill people?" Dean asked as his head lulled to the other side. What he wouldn't give for his gun, his cell phone, a knife, some ear plugs. Did he always have to hear the insane rambling of people who thought they were doing the right thing?
"We take from her. Why shouldn't we give back?" The man was tying up Nia now. Dean was already trying to loosen his bindings up.
"You could always just plant a tree." Dean replied as he heard Nia groan beside him. "Why don't you let her go and just plant me?"
"She wants you to drown tonight." The insane man replied. "I can't argue with her. She always wins."
"Woman can be that way." Dean sighed. Why him? Why did he have to get the crazy serial killer? Why? He was still fighting off the concussion as he blinked several times to clear his vision. Mr. Insane finally finished tying Nia up and came back for Dean. He wrapped both arms around him and pulled him up over his shoulder with a grunt.
Dean tightened his fist not intending to go where ever Mr. Insane had planned. When he cleared the truck Dean pulled his head up and slammed it into the side of the man's head. It packed enough of a punch to make him drop him, but Dean slammed into the ground like a sack of potatoes underestimating whatever it was this guy had given him. "What did you give me?" Dean panted falling on hands and knees.
"Just a little sedative to help you succumb." Mr. Insane replied a hint of anger to his voice. "You shouldn't fight. This is a privilege."
"Says you." Dean pushed himself up and swayed on his feet. He managed to stay up right though. Mr. Insane was about 5' 9 with a thin wiry kinda of build. He looked like the guy that bullies loved to pick on and probably had. And he had been killing for almost eight years because of that or his mother or God only knew why. The man was crazy. Why couldn't he just be a monster? Not that he was any better then one. In fact Dean had battled a few that this guy may have had beat just by sheer body count.
"So you killed all those men and women - mostly women, get someone else to confess, let the media sensation die down then get back to work?" Dean needed a bit of clarity. He just wanted to make sure he had it right.
"She was calling again. She needed the sacrifices." Mr. Insane replied. Dean took that as a yes to all of the above.
Dean gave a half nod of understanding. "Yeah." All at once Mr. Insane ran at him and there bodies connected with an explosion of movement. Dean put up a limited fight that was more heart then force as Mr. Insane managed to push him to the edge of a well wall. Dean was bracing himself on the back of it to try and use it as leverage. Something to stay on is feet when He finally lost his battle with his own balance. Mr. Insane shoved him over the edge and it was a long way to the bottom.
Dean screamed when he connected with this shallow water. He dipped under and quickly found his way to the surface slinging his hair out of his face just in time to dive out of the way as Nia came sailing down beside him.
She was awake when she hit the water. Dean thought he heard a curse in another language as she got to the surface. They both looked up in unison in time to hear a groan of work and then gasped as he began to put a seal over the top.
"You Son of a bitch!" Dean screamed when he realized he planned on not only leaving them but entombing them. Dean cursed again under his breath and slammed his hand against the top of the water. This was not happening...this could not be happening...Where was Sam?!
Nia and Dean were both watching at the seal eclipsed the limited moon light of the night sky overhead. Suddenly there was a sound like a scream and Dean could have sworn that he saw the ghost from the bar up, Nia's sister, there with Mr. Insane her form in a blur of wavering movement. Suddenly Mr. Insane was plummeting into the depths with them. Dean didn't waste any time. As soon as Mr. Insane hit the water he jumped using the now slack bindings around his wrists to wrap around the man's throat.
Dean used what he thought was the last of his strength to give the earth her prime priest before near collapsing against the back wall of the well. "You alright?" he asked Nia through frantic breathing. She nodded looking down to where Mr. Insane had sunk into the water. "Hey, you alright?" he asked again knowing that she probably wasn't.
"Yeah." she finally replied looking up to meet his eyes. They both breathed a sigh of relief as they looked heaven ward realizing that now all they had to do was climb out. As their gaze soared upward the ghost leaned over the top of the well smiling down at them. She disappeared in a wisp of air as Dean moaned and pulled the rest of the rope off his arms. He took Nia's hand in his own and pulled the rope off before grabbing the stone brocks in the wall of the well and beginning to climb.
"Come on." he called to Nia who quickly complied. There was a soft smile that mirrored the ghostly form above before she had disappeared. Tears dotted her dark eyes.
They were out in half an hour and sitting against the well waiting for the drugs they had been given to wear the rest of the way off. They had shared the easy enough stuff. Names, semi truthful occupation descriptions, not nearly truthful enough family histories. It was the kind of get to know you without many facts discussion that two people that had nearly died together twice liked to get out of the way before they rode into town to get cleaned up.
Nia was from a wealthy New York family that had just finished putting her through medical school. They were actually in town she had said as they sat there by the well. They were readying to move her back home, but she didn't want to go. This was supposed to be her last hurrah with her roommate. The change in her routine that signified the end of a very long job well done.
They stole Mr. Insane's truck to get back into town. Dean decided that the man wouldn't be needing it from here on out. They still had a whole host of questions, but neither one spoke much as they were so tired, wet, and grimy, that they lacked a desire to make small talk. The silence was comfortable. Nia asked if Dean minded her cleaning up at his place as she didn't want to have to explain her appearance to her family.
Dean didn't mind. He just hoped that Sam was there when they got in. He was still concerned about where he was. He hoped that they hadn't missed something. That Sam had indeed stayed out of Mr. Insane's plan tonight. It wasn't until they pulled into the hotel parking lot though that Dean had a feeling a rest of the story moment was to come.
Dean climbed out of the truck surveying the goat tied to the bumper of his Impala that simply looked up at him and let out a loud bleat. He didn't stand there long as he was going to need one hell of an explanation for this. Dean approached the room though and heard screaming. Lots and lots of screaming. Screaming in a language that he didn't know. Dean saw that the door wasn't closed all the way and pushed it the rest of the way open. Nia moved up quickly to his side.
And neither one believed what they saw...