Women of Letters: Here's the next installment!

Chapter 8

~Supernatural~

Dean could feel Vincent's accusing stare as he exited the bathroom following his morning shower. V seemed to have been waiting for him. He gave a smile to the beast as if nothing was wrong. The trio had arrived the night before at Klaus's place in New Orleans. Actually, the hybrid had told them it was an old plantation house his family had bought out many years ago. Dean found the place quite comfy and full of luxuries he had never had. As Dean slid past Vincent, he could have sworn there was an eye roll or something. Dean figured that it was because he had been singing old rock tunes during his shower. He had taken a bit longer because the water flow from the shower head was ten thousand times better than any shower head he had ever used. Ever since their pit-stop at the motel, Vincent had been treating him differently. He felt as if Vincent was keeping tabs on him. He wanted to know why, but he couldn't risk their newfound friendship by asking. V wasn't Sam nor was he Cas, meaning Dean couldn't ask questions the way he would ask them. He knew V could beast-out on him—that was the last thing he wanted.

Shaking off the feeling that Vincent was watching his every move, Dean made his way downstairs and into the sitting room. The vast room was just another rich person's room with the piano in the corner as well as lots of windows and expensive furniture; Dean wasn't as amazed or uncomfortable like Vincent and Catherine were. Being a hunter, he had seen his fair share of rooms like this. He stood in the center of the room, unsure of what he would do in there.

"It's quite the room isn't it?" came a female's smooth British accent from the hall behind him. He turned around to see a thin, blonde woman about his height. Dean had to admit, she was pretty hot. He looked at her, checking her out before answering.

"Yeah… I guess." Dean shrugged. "I'm guessing you're Rebekah?"

The girl smirked. "I should have known you would know who I am, Dean Winchester."

The elder Winchester smiled. Even though she was a vampire...Nope. Dean Winchester did not do that sort of thing with a vampire. But she was smokin'! Stop it Dean. He mentally scolded himself.

She rolled her eyes. "Stop drooling. It's not like you haven't seen a female vampire before."

Dean shook his head. "Right… Sorry...So...uh-"

"You know I'm still trying to figure out why my brother drags a hunter, a science experiment and a member of the NYPD into our home in the middle of the night last night," Rebekah stated as she put a hand on her hip.

"He won't tell you anything either? Awesome." Dean groaned.

The Original vampiress narrowed her eyes. "Looks like we're in the same situation. Typical Nik. He brings people onto his side of the board and explains nothing. I think Elijah went to New York to see what Nik was up to. Perhaps he'll have some answers."

That surprise Dean. He wondered if Sam, Cas and the rest of the gang knew. "Actually, the reason we were told to come down here was because there's a hybrid that my brother and I killed that went missing. We think it has something to do with a secret organization called Muirfield; your brother said that there might be a lead here."

Rebekah didn't look pleased. "You might as well pack up your things and leave because the only thing that is going on here is a war between my impudent brother and his protégé. You won't find any leads to your case here."

Dean rolled his eyes. Was she trying to get rid of them? Why? "Unh unh. You ain't gettin' rid of us that quickly, sister. I didn't just drive eighteen plus hours only to hear you say that there's a false lead. I'll determine that myself."

The sound of footsteps coming down the stairs could be heard behind Rebekah. Dean looked and saw Catherine making her way towards them. "What's going on?" she asked.

"You're leaving that's what," Rebekah ordered.

There was confusion on the cop's face. "But we just got here, and we may have a lead that could bring us straight to Muirfield."

"That's what I've been saying. But Vampire Malibu Barbie, says otherwise." Dean crossed his arms. "And I told her we're not leaving until we know for sure if there's really nothing or something."

Rebekah seemed offended. "I warned you." After a glance at Catherine, Rebekah left the room with an air of annoyance surrounding her.

"Who was she?" Catherine pointed with her thumb as she turned to look at Dean.

"The family bitch, aka Klaus's sister, Rebekah," Dean explained. "Another Original Vampire."

"Well, she seems...lovely," Catherine replied as she folded her arms across her chest and walked further into the room. "Anyway, Vincent should be down shortly." Like Vincent's icy glare Dean received several minutes before, Catherine's tone was cold and dry.

Dean gave a smile. "Right." An awkward silence fell between the pair before Dean decided to break it. "I'm going to go to the kitchen and whip up some breakfast for the three of us." He started to move, but halted when he saw Klaus coming from the room he was headed to.

"I heard you met Rebekah," the Hybrid said with a smirk.

Dean scoffed. "Yeah. She's real friendly."

Klaus moved towards Dean. "Give her time, she'll warm up to you."

"I doubt it. Like you, she sees me as a threat."

"Or an ally," Klaus added. "She's always trying to get rid of me. I think you two will make great friends."

Dean rolled his eyes. "Believe what you want." He turned to look back at Catherine, then back to Klaus, lowering his voice he asked. "So why do you really want us here? Your snake of a sister told me that there are no leads to our case here, so the real reason lies with you."

"Dean, Dean, Dean," Klaus tisked, "Didn't your mummy ever teach you that patience is a virtue? Oh—that's right…" The hybrid laughed, "She never had the chance to, did she."

Did he just? Oh no that son of bitch didn't- Dean grabbed Klaus by the collar and thrust him against the wall, placing his arm forcefully against the Hybrid's neck. "Don't you ever talk about my mother like that," he threatened through clenched teeth.

"Or what?" Klaus grinned, "You can't kill me so your implied threat is empty."

Dean frowned. "I know about the daggers, you son of a bitch. If it doesn't kill you, I'm sure it does something more painful to you and I would love to see you in pain."

Klaus's grin vanished, "You should really watch your tongue, Dean Winchester. Your knowledge of those daggers does not worry me one bit. You see, although those daggers are in fact real, they are very rare, and thus hard to obtain. Like I said, your threat is empty against me.."

Dean smirked. "I don't have a problem with that at all. Sam and I once got a gun that could kill any monster and believe me, finding that thing was like finding a needle in a haystack. So, I'm pretty sure we'd be able to find these daggers."

Klaus darkened his expression, "Don't be too sure about that. Besides, I know all about your little toy. What was it called? Oh, yes, The Colt. If I remember the rumors correctly, you lost that pathetic piece of junk some time ago." Suddenly, Klaus dug his hand into Dean's chest, causing Dean to grimace.

"What are you doing to him?!" Catherine ran up to Klaus, and tried to pull him away from Dean. Klaus easily pushed her away, causing her to slide across the floor and hit the back wall. She coughed and struggled to breath after having the wind knocked out of her.

Ignoring Catherine, Klaus turned to Dean and frowned, "Next time, before you threaten me, remember whom you are dealing with. I don't really need you, Dean, and I could easily find another hunter to aid in my plans. If you ever try to threaten me again, I will rip your heart out of your chest faster than you can blink. Oh, and let's not forget that little deal we made a few nights ago. You cross me, I'll kill you and your baby brother will continue to drown within his own sufferings. Now, Dean, are we on the same page?"

As much as Dean didn't want to admit it, he nodded as he fought back the pain of Klaus's claw like fingers digging into his chest. "Fine. But your threat goes both ways."

Before Klaus could respond, Dean noticed Vincent standing at the foot of the stairs. Klaus turned his head to see what Dean was looking at and grinned. "Vincent! How nice to see you on this bright and wonderful morning. Did you come to join the party?"

"Put him down. Now." Vincent demanded as his eyes started glowing.

Dean looked straight at Klaus. "I would listen to him. He could rip your head off."

"Shut up," Klaus turned his attention back to Dean and squeezed the Winchester's chest harder. "I'm not the one with Vampire claws digging into his heart." Klaus moved his gaze back to Vincent. "You don't tell me what to do, beast boy. If you make one move towards me, I won't hesitate to rip his heart out."

"I'm warning you, Klaus. Let Dean go. You kill him, I'll kill you. Don't think I won't." Vincent growled as his own claws and fangs started to surface.

Dean smirked. "You've done it now, Klaus. The beast wants to play." He said breathlessly, still fighting the pain.

Immediately, Klaus removed his claws from Dean and fixed his eyes on him. "You were walking about the plantation. You were outside exploring and you went too far into the woods. Some unknown vampire found you and attacked you; you fought well and managed to kill him. You buried his body before you returned back here. Now, go upstairs and find the necessary appliances to clean and bandage your wound."

Dean looked at Klaus. His expression reminded the hybrid that he was still on vervain, but for Vincent and Catherine's sake, he played along and made his way upstairs to his room. That bastard was up to something and Dean was beginning to regret ever placing his piece on Klaus's chess board.

~Beauty & the Beast~

Vincent wasn't sure what had just happened, but now he was certain Klaus was able to mess with anyone's mind. Perhaps that was how the hybrid made everyone forget the events of that one day. Vincent remembered that Klaus's weird mind trick didn't work on Dean the last time, and even though the hybrid attempted to erase the older Winchester's mind, Vincent knew Dean was faking it. His heart wasn't calm like it should have been if he was really in a trance. Vincent could hear Dean's heart beating as fast as it was when Klaus dug his fingers into his chest. Dean purposely went up the stairs for a reason—the question is, why? He also recalled something about a deal that Klaus had made with him. What could be so important to Dean to make him obey Klaus in an instant?

Klaus slowly walked over to him, but he backed away. "Whatever you just did," Vincent said, "I won't let you do it to me."

"Don't worry, I don't bite." Klaus grinned before advancing Vincent. Almost instantly, the beast emerged and he growled fiercely at the hybrid. Vincent's beastly appearance startled Klaus—he wasn't expecting such a great change between man and beast. Vincent immediately grabbed the Original hybrid's neck and lifted him off of the ground.

"Now, now." Klaus said as he raised his hands into the air in defence, "You don't need to get this angry. I was simply having some fun."

"You're a monster!" Vincent growled through his bared fangs.

Klaus chuckled, "I could say the same to you." Vincent tightened his grip, but his strength didn't seem to faze the hybrid at all. Klaus suddenly grasped on to Vincent's shoulders and looked him square into the eyes, "You came downstairs, you saw your girlfriend gasping for air and immediately accused me of hurting her when I was actually trying to help her out. Now you are going to release me and assist her, and when she tells you I had tried to help her, you are going to apologize for assaulting me."

Vincent stared at Klaus in confusion, and blinked at the hybrid. The glow of his eyes faded, and his claws and fangs receded as he placed Klaus back on the ground. In seconds, the hybrid disappeared and reappeared next to Catherine. He whispered something almost inaudibly for Vincent to understand as he stood in his mental stupor.

Suddenly, seeing Catherine brought his senses back to him. He rushed over to his girlfriend and then glared at Klaus, "I don't know what really happened...everything seems a bit fuzzy…, but I know one thing for sure."

"And what's that?" Klaus challenged.

"That, for some reason, you can't be trusted." Vincent replied darkly before turning back to Catherine. Catherine finally regained her breath as Vincent picked her up into his arms. Without a word, Vincent carried Catherine back up the stairs, leaving Klaus in a slightly confused state of mind. Vincent didn't really understand what was going on. He felt like his mind was receiving two different memories. It was almost like his human side remembered Klaus trying to save Catherine, but his beast side remembered wanting to rip the hybrid's throat off for crossing him. Everything was a blur and he figured that if he dwelled on it too long, he would get a splitting headache—emphasis on the splitting part.

When he returned to his and Catherine's temporary bedroom, he placed her on the rather large—almost too large—bed with her stomach down. Without a word from both of them, Vincent pulled Catherine's shirt up passed her bra and pressed his fingers against her back as he examined her spine. It was certainly bruised, if anything, but nothing too alarming. "No spinal injury." Vincent said as he pulled her shirt back down and helped her flip over.

"Are you sure?" Catherine asked as she slowly sat up and tried to rub her back, "I sure feel like I have one."

"You have a bruise, but you didn't hit the wall hard enough to paralyze anything. Thank God for that." Vincent replied before kissing her forehead. He sat down beside her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "It'll take a few days to heal, but I'm sure you'll be back in shape in no time. You are, after all, one hell of a fighter."

Catherine smirked, "If I can handle saving your ex-fiancée with a gunshot wound in my chest, I can surely survive anything thrown my direction with a bruised back."

Vincent remembered that dark period oh too well, and shuddered at the memory. "Let's not bring up the past, shall we?"

"Gladly," Catherine muttered before pulling him in for a kiss. Feeling naughty, Vincent enveloped Catherine into his arms and rolled themselves over until she was trapped underneath him. "I do have an injured back, you know."

"You said you could handle anything, remember?" he smirked before molding his mouth with hers. "Besides, I think it's time we make Klaus's ears beed. Don't you?"

"You're so bad." she laughed as she lightly smacked him on the arm.

"What do you say?" he leaned his head against her forehead and smirked even wider. "For what I have in mind, it's going to take both of us."

"We'd be making Dean's ears bleed too, Vincent. He is in the bedroom right next to us," Catherine said but Vincent shook his head as he slid his fingers underneath the hem of her shirt.

"He doesn't have super-hearing. I think we're good. Besides, I'm pretty sure it would be music to his ears anyway." Vincent caressed the sides of her stomach as he waited for her answer. "Well?"

"You're such a turn on," she rolled her eyes and let out a laugh before trapping him with her thighs as she mindlessly slipped his shirt off of his body.

"I'm going to take that as a yes." Vincent sneered before claiming her mouth with his. They kissed each other endlessly as clothes precariously found themselves scattered about the floor. Nothing—not even a mind-controlling, selfish hybrid (or a bruised back)—could stop the beauty and the beast from submitting to their desires for one another. It was their first day in New Orleans, and they were determined to make the most of it. The case could wait…, certain burning desires could not.

~The Originals~

Klaus walked about his library as he heard the beast mating with his human girlfriend. He did not understand how one who's so animalistic could mate with such a member from a vulnerable species. Then again, he recalled a certain family of vampires who fell in love with the same human girl who just so happened to turn into a vampire all thanks to his sister several years later. But vampirism is something that could spread—something that could make one's mate just as immortal if so desired. However, in Vincent's case, his DNA, to Klaus's knowledge, is not something that could be transferred from one being to another. So why? What did this human see within this beast? What made Catherine so different from other female humans? Granted, he did sense something different about her, but he couldn't put his finger on it. She wasn't a vampire or a werewolf or anything completely supernatural. She wasn't a beast either. Perhaps what he sensed was only Vincent's scent mixing with her own.

No matter. As much as he wanted to know more about Vincent and Catherine, Vincent's mini display from earlier proved to him that he needed to be more careful. Somehow, Vincent is developing some sort of resistance to compulsion. If that is indeed true, Klaus needed to be vigilant. He couldn't risk Vincent meddling into his plans. Not now, not ever.

~Beauty & the Beast~

"What time is it?" Catherine asked Vincent as she noticed the sun filling up most of their bedroom. It had to be at least noon; she and her boyfriend had been at it for quite some time now. Only minutes ago did they decide to let their bodies rest and just enjoy each other's company.

She watched Vincent as he lifted his wrist to look at his black sports watch and felt him raise his chest as he released a short sigh. "11:47." Vincent replied. "Why? Have somewhere to be?" he teased.

"No," Catherine laughed and smacked his bare shoulder, "but I am getting a little hungry. I never did eat breakfast this morning, you know."

"Sorry about that...I guess I kinda stole your appetite away." Vincent smirked but then quickly changed his mind. "You know what? I don't regret a thing." He kissed her forehead and tugged her closer to him. "I could stay in this bed with you all day."

Catherine rolled her eyes. "Naturally."

Before Vincent could reply, he heard Catherine's phone ringing on the floor beside his side of the bed. He leaned to his right and pulled her phone out of her back jeans' pocket before pushing himself back up. "It must be that video JT said he would send." Vincent handed the phone to Catherine and he leaned over her shoulder as she unlocked her phone to view the text.

"Yeah, it's from JT." Catherine replied and pressed the video's play button after angling herself a little bit so Vincent could get a better view. The video started at the point where Klaus had grabbed Gabe's neck in order to negotiate things on his terms. Words were exchanged between Klaus, Dean, Vincent, JT and Sam for several minutes until the hybrid tossed Gabe away from him and grabbed Catherine's neck in the former beast's place. Everyone was shouting at Klaus to let Catherine go, but the Original refused to listen to them. Vincent and Catherine watched in silence and widened their eyes when they saw Catherine jab her foot into Klaus's knee. Enraged, the hybrid instantly grabbed Catherine by the collar and tossed her across the room. Vincent was starting to breathe heavily as he watched the entire scene take place. The Catherine in the video had crash landed into the corner of a mini table as the rest of her body slammed against the wall.

Knowing what this video was doing to Vincent's adrenaline, Catherine gripped his hands to help him calm himself down as they continued to watch the feed. Almost immediately after Catherine had been thrown, Video Vincent beasted out and charged Klaus, but the hybrid wasn't as easy to kill as his other victims. Klaus whipped around Vincent and grabbed his neck before running him into the wall. Klaus said something to him as he stared into the beast's face. Vincent had calmed down instantly and noticed Catherine's dire condition. He raced to her and shook her gently to see if she was conscious.

Blood was seeping from a cut on her head as well as from her nose. "JT! Grab my medical appliances!" Vincent had hollered but Klaus shook his head.

"Amateurs." Klaus said before biting into his arm and forcing Catherine to drink his blood. "She'll be fine in a few seconds." As Catherine's head miraculously healed, Klaus raced across the room, doing the same mind thing to JT, Dean, Sam, Tess and Gabe.

When the video finished playing, Catherine locked her phone and tossed it onto the small bedside table to her left. Vincent, on the other hand, was already out of bed and slipping his boxers on. "Just wait until I get my hands on that bastard!" He was breathing heavily and his eyes were glowing. Catherine raced to him and cupped his face, urging him to calm down.

"Vincent, you need to calm yourself down," Catherine said slowly.

"Not until I rip his head off of his shoulders!" Vincent growled and started walking, forcing Catherine to move with him.

"No! You need to sit back down on that bed and take a deep breath. Think about it, maybe Klaus wants you to lash out on him. Maybe it's all a part of his big plan. If he can succeed in making you this angry, imagine what he could do to make you lose your humanity, Vincent. So, please, Vincent; calm down!" Catherine forced him to walk backwards and he reluctantly sat on the side of the bed.

Catherine was right. Perhaps Klaus did want him to get angry. Perhaps he knew there were cameras in the room and wanted Vincent and Catherine to learn the truth after being mind controlled to forget. That certainly pissed Vincent off, and if Klaus wasn't a manipulative, conniving bitch, he might have his way with the bastard. For now, Vincent would put Klaus's death wish on hold for Catherine's sake. Remembering the deal he had made with Klaus—that Catherine would be killed if he were to ever betray the hybrid—Vincent sighed. There really was no win within the situation. "Fine." Vincent looked into his girlfriend's eyes and nodded. "But if he ever pulls a stunt like that again, I can't promise you I'll walk away without his liver in my hands."

"We'll deal with it one day at a time, all right? I don't like the guy either, but if we all want to survive New Orleans, we might just have to play things his way for a while. Okay?" Catherine stated as she sat down next to him and leaned her head on his shoulders. "We'll get through this ordeal like we get through everything."

"Which is?" Vincent smirked as he raised his eyebrow and turned his head to look at the beauty leaning on his shoulder.

Catherine smiled. "Together."

"Right." Vincent laughed. It didn't matter how many times Catherine forced him to calm himself down, he was always in awe of her. She was braver than any woman he'd ever met. Hell, not even JT or Dean had the guts to approach him when he's in Hulk Mode. Catherine caressed Vincent's face and pulled him in for a short kiss.

"Now…. I think it's time we get dressed and find something to eat. Perhaps we could go somewhere into town? This is a house of vampires…. I'm not thinking they would have anything appetizing in their fridge." Catherine said as she stood up and walked around to gather her clothes.

"Good call." Vincent nodded before following suit. It didn't matter how much control the hybrid might have within his household. Vincent wasn't going to stay cooped up within the house just because the hybrid had a bad temper. "Once we're dressed, I'll fetch Dean and then I'll jump us out of the window so we can sneak off into town. If anyone asks, we'll just tell them we're visitors."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Catherine grinned as Vincent tossed her her shirt. "Hurry up, now. I'm starving."

~Supernatural~

~New York City~

Sam sighed as he paced the floor in his room. Castiel sat on the edge of the bed looking expectantly at the younger Winchester. "Would you please stop staring at me, Cas? It's hard enough for me to think with a headache, but with you staring at me, it doesn't really help my case."

Cas lowered his head. "I am sorry, Sam. I-I didn't know…Are you alright? You haven't seemed well."

Sam sighed as he came to a stop in front of Castiel. "No, I haven't. Something's wrong with me…Still," he explained, a little irritated. "But that's on the backburner."

Cas squinted his eyes as if he was thinking of something. A second later, his expression was one of confusion. "I don't get it. Why would someone want to burn their back?"

Oh boy. Sam thought. He hadn't been around Cas this much in a long time… much less been alone with this human version of him. "It's an expression, Cas. Picture a stove with four burners. Typically, you put whatever you're cooking on the front two burners. If they have something that needs to simmer or boil they'll place it on one of the back two burners while they work on something new on a front burner." He paused to see if the ex-angel comprehended what he was saying. Castiel's expression hadn't really changed. "Okay. Basically it means that if someone has two situations and one is more important than the other, they save the least important one for later."

Castiel raised his eyebrows as the figurative light bulb clicked on. "I understand. That's a much clearer way of putting it."

Sam nodded and went back to pacing. His fight with JT hadn't been good. He should have sympathized with him because they needed to work together. Sam Winchester, of all people, knew what it was like to be lied to. The most recent situation that came to mind was between him and Dean. He remembered how he felt when he found out that Dean had gotten an angel to possess his body without his consent. Sam had been as pissed as JT currently was when the cat finally jumped out of the bag. There had to be some way to mend the Winchester's relationship with JT and Vincent…

"Sam," Cas said suddenly. "I know you're thinking about what happened with JT. I understand why you didn't tell him what really happened, but yet I've been on the same end as JT before. It's not fun. You have a feeling of anger and loneliness, like you don't matter. I know you've been there as well. Many times. I think it kind of comes with being in any type of relationship with Dean. It's a requirement." He laughed a little.

Castiel's comment made Sam smile. It was the truth. The brothers had been through so much in their lives and over half of that time, the brothers had spent hiding secrets from each other. One. Cruel. Secret. After. Another. In fact, until he was eight, his entire life had been a lie. He remembered that horrible Christmas night when he had waited in the motel room with Dean for their father to return from what he now knew to be a hunt. After an argument, Dean finally came out and told him that their dad hunted monsters and every day after that, Sam began to learn the family business.

He once yearned for a normal life...but after Dean returned from Purgatory earlier last year, Sam knew he could never have a normal life—that this life that he had lead for the past thirty years would be his normal. He felt stupid for ever thinking he could find a nice girl and settle down. Yet, he still had those dreams...he just placed them on the furthest back burner of his mind… putting a cage around it and blocking it up with walls, making it virtually unreachable. And now he and his brother… and Cas, had dragged these other innocent people, Vincent, Catherine, JT, Tess, Gabe...into their world of danger. Sam was surprised any of them had managed to stay alive this long around them. They were, by the day, in too deep a hole with the Winchesters and their ex-angel friend. Sam decided that it would be his mission to keep those of their new allies that remained in New York alive. No more would he allow anyone who formed a relationship of some kind with the Winchesters to get into some trouble and die. He couldn't—no, he wouldn't let that happen. Too many people had passed into and out of the lives of the brothers, from Jessica to Jo and Ellen, to their father John and their mother Mary, Ash, Rufus, Martin, and even Bobby...He wouldn't let these innocent people receive the same fate as their friends who had been long gone from this world and in order to do that he had to first mend things with JT and then get ahold of Tess to see if she and Gabe found anything on the van…

"Cas?"

The former angel looked at him. "Yes Sam?"

He paused. "I'm going to go talk to JT," he said.

A smile came across Castiel's face. That was a sight Sam hadn't seen since the poor guy lost his grace. "Go easy on him… He's a gentle spirit."

Sam nodded. "I will." With that, he left the room, feeling the pressure of his headache lighten up. Moments later, he was knocking on JT's bedroom door. "JT, can we talk?" There was no answer. He sighed. "Come on JT… I want to apologize. You have to understand, Dean and I aren't used to working with people who don't know about the supernatural world. Just answer the door and we'll talk about the whole thing." He waited for an answer but again, there was none. He could swear he heard shuffling going on inside the room as if JT were pacing or moving something…or hiding in a corner, telling himself that this was all a bad dream. "JT, I know you're in there. I have ways of opening doors that you could only imagine." That was a lie. The only two ways he ever used were kicking down the door and picking the lock.

Suddenly, the handle on JT's door clicked and the barrier between the two men swung backwards until the professor was standing halfway outside the door. JT's crossed his arms and frowned. "What do you want?"

Sam looked at him. "I'm sorry."

JT clucked his tongue. "I'm sorry, what did you say? I couldn't hear you over the annoying ball of lies bouncing about the guild's walls."

Sam rolled his eyes. "JT… I know it's hard for you to understand… I've been on the receiving end of similar lies before. It sucks. Actually, I've spent half my life on the receiving end of similar lies, and yeah it sucks a lot, but you have to try to see from the other person's perspective. We don't normally work with others who don't really know what their doing when it comes to the supernatural; usually we're saving their asses." He shrugged. "Dean and I thought we were doing just that… you see, we have this motto: Saving people, Hunting things-the Family business. We were going by that motto when Klaus compelled you. We thought we were saving you from something you wouldn't want to know...turns out you would have wanted to know anyway...so it turns out we were wrong." He watched JT, waiting for a reaction. Hoping he would be forgiving.

"Damn straight." JT replied as he stepped out of his room and walked passed Sam. "Dude, I'm not the one who needs the manifesto...V does. Look, I'm not mad at you for lying; I lie to V—well, I try to lie to V—all of the time if I think something will protect him. I get that. However, Vincent, need I remind you, IS supernatural. There's nothing natural about him—not in the DNA sense anyway. I have known Vincent my entire life, and have seen him go through crap to get where he is today. Not many people know he's alive. It's dangerous for people to know he still has a working ticker. It's also dangerous for you and your brother to know about him…. We get that you two won't tell anyone about his condition, but if Muirfield or some other group were to get to you…torture you until you break...it would mean all of our lives. Anyone who has ever helped Vincent would die. Get that? So, that's why, Vincent has a hard time trusting people. He trusted you two from the get-go—a rarity of its own.

"I care about Vincent and Catherine very much, and all it takes is one lie, and we could all be dead. Muirfield doesn't like loose ends, and all of us—anyone who knows about Vincent—are considered breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert to them. We're meals to them and they'll eat us up if we're not careful. What I'm trying to say is that Vincent doesn't care squat about his life—he is one hell of a Captain America, if you ask me. He's altruistic in every sense of the word. He'll sacrifice himself first before Muirfield catches scent of any of us. He'll give Muirfield what they want—he's tried to do it before—if they ever catch wind of him and if he thinks it would save everyone else. He'll jump in front of a bullet for practically anyone. That's why...that's why it's my job to make sure he doesn't get his ass blown up. Vincent thinks he's protecting the world—that's fine. But someone has to protect him, and that's my job. Not yours. Not Dean's. Not Castiel's. Not even Tess or Gabe's. It's mine. Well, mine and Cat's. Got it?"

Sam listened to JT's side of things and nodded when he finished. There were a lot of similarities in JT's and Vincent's relationship and his and Dean's relationship—the idea that bonded the four would be bros to begin with. "Dean and I have a similar situation…I think the four of us can relate to each other in ways no one else can. From the way it sounds, the four of us are alive because of secrets." Sam began. "So here's what we're going to do. We're going to put our previous argument behind us and focus on finding out what Muirfield is up to. Deal?"

"Fine," JT said, "But please, don't keep any more secrets concerning Vincent or even Catherine from me. I care about them both. Just tell me whatever, and I'll make it my burden rather or not to tell them. Vincent seeks reason from me—well, when he wants to anyway—so he may hate my guts for a few days for keeping secrets from him, but eventually, he'll see the light."

Sam nodded again. "Deal." He gave a small smile. "So, shall we call Tess and see if she and Gabe found anything on the van?"

"What else do we have to go on?" JT shrugged. "I'll go get my phone and dial her up."

Sam raised his eyebrows. "Okay, great."

As JT left to look for his phone within his bedroom, Sam noticed Cas making his way towards him. "I gather, from the smile on your face, that things went well between you and JT?

"Uh, yeah."

"Good." Cas nodded. "It would seem we're going to need as many allies as possible to go up against this formidable Muirfield I keep hearing about."

Sam took a deep breath. "Yes, we are."

~Beauty & the Beast~

JT walked out of his bedroom with phone in hand as he made his way to Sam and Cas. "I'm going to call her now and put Tess on speaker." JT pressed a couple of buttons on his phone and swiped upward on his contact list until he could see Tess's name staring at him. He punched it once and his phone started calling Tess before pressing another button to put the call on speaker.

"Vargas." Tess had replied professionally. "What can I do to help you?"

"Tess, it's me...and Sam and Castiel. We're wondering if you've found anything juicy concerning the M-van." JT said as he held his phone in front of the other two.

"Actually, we did. We found surveillance marked two days ago of a van matching Vincent's description retrieving gas from a BP. We weren't sure it was the right van until Gabe saw Agent Kyle through the reflection of the van's left mirror. Luckily, the surveillance was clear enough to obtain the license plate number and we have been virtually tailing the van ever since. You'll never guess where it is, though." Tess said through the speaker.

"Canada?" JT guessed. He assumed taking a hybrid out of the country would be a certain way of making sure Vincent wouldn't track them.

"No... Gosh, I feel like I'm living inside a comic book for saying this, but the van's last checkpoint is in Starling City. As far as we know, the van has not moved in the last eight hours."

Sam smiled. "Starling City? Like The Starling City? From DC Comics?" The younger Winchester seemed a bit excited.

"That would be the one." Tess replied. "And I thought my life couldn't get any weirder."

"You think we might run into the Green Arrow by any chance?" JT asked with a smirk. Above science and technology, JT loved his comics. Although he would never admit it to anyone else other than Vincent, he owned the entire DC Comics collection and all of their issues are displayed proudly on several shelves in his bedroom.

"Starling City? Green Arrow?" Cas gave both Sam and JT a weird and horribly confused look. "I do not understand."

Sam turned to the former angel. "Starling City apparently was the fictional home of a superhero by the name of the Green Arrow, who uses a bow and arrow to fight his enemies in a comic book series." Sam looked at JT. "I uh... used to read them when I was a kid…"

"Dude, I still read them." JT sneered and then said to his phone, "Thanks Tess. That's all we needed to know."

"Hang on," Tess replied, "Don't tell me you three are actually planning a vacation to go to Starling City while Cat and Vincent are still in New Orleans!"

"Would it make a difference if you came along too?" JT asked into the phone. "I'm sure Gabe wouldn't mind, would he?"

"If it means kicking Muirfield's ass, he'll host all of us a Go Away party before we leave." Tess replied. "And yes, you can bet your asses that I'm coming! Starling City totally beats coming to the precinct every day."

"Great!" JT exclaimed, "Gabe can stay behind and cover for you…. Plus, we need him there in case we need to use any of the precinct's resources. I'm sure he won't miss us anyway."

"Not if I can help it." Tess replied.

"Well; that's it then." Sam said as he clapped his hands together. "I guess we're off to Starling City!"

Women of Letters: What did you think? We would love to know! :)