Chapter One

April 2013

"I had the strangest dream last night," Dean told Jo as they lay curled up in bed together. "I was drinking with all these guys who were speaking some language I don't know, but somehow I knew what they were saying. I didn't like them very much, but they were buying so I didn't complain. It was weird."

"Fascinating," Jo replied dryly. "I had a dream that purple giants were attacking a village made of candy cane, and you were trying to save the village by eating it. You kept shouting that you contained worlds."

Dean did a double take. "Really?"

Jo rolled her eyes. "No, but you have to admit it would have been weirder than your dream if I had."

Dean shrugged. "What are you still doing here?"

"Nice to know I'm wanted," Jo replied with mock-hurt. "I told you last night that Jeremy had a business trip."

Dean snorted. "Like I was listening to anything you were saying last night."

She sighed. "Jeremy won't be home until Thursday, so I told him that I was coming to visit my mother. I thought I could stay here."

"I don't think Ellen'll like being used as your cover."

"Like Jeremy is going to call my mother to check up on me," Jo answered defensively.

Dean shrugged. "He's not my husband. Do what you want. And, yeah, you can stay here."

He rolled out of bed, naked, and headed for the bathroom. "I'm late for a meeting with Bobby and Sam," he called over his shoulder. "There's food in the fridge if you want something to eat."

"Besides you?" she called after him seductively.

He stopped at her words. "I'm late, Jo," he reminded her.

She grinned. "Since when has that stopped you?"

Dean leered at her. "You are a very bad girl, Josephine," he said, stalking back towards her. She laughed throatily and rose to meet him as he got to the bed.

XXX

"Where the hell is Dean?" Sam asked irritably, checking his watch for the umpteenth time since he had arrived at Bobby's.

Bobby raised an eyebrow at Sam. "I think we both know where Dean is," he replied dispassionately.

Sam nodded his understanding. "Nothing about that is going to end well."

"When has that ever stopped Dean?"

"True," Sam agreed and started pacing impatiently. "Do you want me to call him again?"

Bobby shook his head. "I don't really see the point. It's not like Dean would actually be listening to what I had to say. I can just give the information to you."

Sam stopped pacing. "I guess that's true. What's the job?"

Bobby handed Sam a thin folder. "It's nothing special," he explained, "just a poltergeist in Detroit. I would send someone else, but I am a little shorthanded since Steven died. Plus, you and Dean are the most experienced hunters I've got, and I can't afford to lose anyone else right now."

Sam was taken aback. "I didn't know that Steven had died. When did that happen?"

Bobby suddenly looked years older. "A couple of weeks ago. Some vampires in eastern Oregon got him. He didn't have any family, so there is no one to notify. We had a memorial, but there was no body to bury."

Sam's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "They turned him?" he asked, his shock coming through in his voice.

Bobby shrugged but was obviously affected by the boy's death. "Yeah. It's been happening more and more recently. Seems like evil's recruiting."

"Do you think something big is on the horizon?" Sam asked curiously.

Bobby shrugged again. "Looks that way. I guess we should just be grateful we've had so many quiet years recently and start preparing for whatever gets thrown at us this time."

Sam nodded thoughtfully. "It's not like we haven't faced the end of the world before."

"We can face it again," Bobby agreed solemnly. "Anyway the packet I gave you has maps and all the info I could find on the ghost. You can meet up with one of my hunters in Detroit. She lives near the haunted house and has been staking the place out. Her name's Sandy. She said you could stay with her if you want."

"Sounds good," Sam said. "I guess I'll go get Dean and get on the road. Hopefully, we can leave within the next couple of hours. I'll call you and let you know when the problem's taken care of."

"Be safe, Sam," Bobby requested worriedly. "The things that go bump in the night have been winning too many recently."

Sam shrugged him off. "Dean and I are always careful, Bobby. There's no need to worry."

XXX

"Hey, Jo," Sam greeted awkwardly when Jo opened the door to Dean's apartment dressed in only a robe.

"Hey, Sam," she replied without a trace of embarrassment. She moved out of the way to let him into the room. "Dean's in the shower."

"Oh."

"You can come in if you want."

Sam followed her into the living room area, and they sat on opposite ends of Dean's ragged couch in uncomfortable silence.

"So how are you?" Sam asked politely when he could not take the silence anymore.

"Good," Jo replied.

There was another beat of silence. "How's Jeremy?"

"Away on business," Jo responded tersely, obviously not happy with the direction the conversation had taken.

"I figured," Sam answered a little acidly.

"Sam," Jo began tiredly, "I know that you don't like..."

"Hey," Dean interrupted from behind them, "I thought I heard someone come in." He had obviously just gotten out of the shower, as he was dripping wet and had a towel wrapped around his waist.

Sam nodded in greeting. "Bobby's got a job for us in Detroit. I figured that if we left in an hour, we could get there at a decent hour. We're supposed to meet up with one of his hunters there. Her name's Sandy, and we can stay with her."

Dean perked up. "Sandy, huh? Is she hot?"

Jo cleared her throat. "Not as hot as me, I'm sure," she said, jealousy evident in her voice.

Dean blinked at her for several moments. "I'm sure you're right," he responded half-heartedly and turned to Sam. "Why don't I meet you at Bobby's? Let me pack and get ready, and I'll come pick you up. Give me thirty minutes."

"Fine. Thirty minutes," Sam emphasized as he got up to leave. He showed himself out, closing the door softly as he left.

Jo watched him leave and turned to Dean. "Do you have to go?" she asked.

Dean looked at her like she had grown another head. "Hunting's what I do. You know that."

She sighed in response. "I know, and I know you need it. It's just...don't you think Sam can handle this one on his own? There will always be another ghost to hunt; it's not everyday that Jeremy has a business trip. I wanted to enjoy getting to see you."

Dean rolled his eyes and headed to his bedroom. Jo stomped after him and stood in his doorway tapping her foot.

"Well?" she prompted.

Dean sighed before answering. "Jo," he said finally, "you and I both know that you don't need a business trip as an excuse to find your way into my bed. This is what I do. It's what I'm good at. I'm not going to not do it because Jeremy went out of town and you want to play make believe for a couple days."

Tears came into Jo's eyes, but she blinked them back fiercely. "I took a week off from work, Dean. What am I supposed to do now that you are running off to have your adventures?"

Dean shrugged. "You could visit your mother. I'm sure she'd like that."

If looks could kill, Jo's responding glare would have slayed Dean. "That's not funny," she answered angrily.

Dean sighed in exasperation. "Then I guess it's a good thing I wasn't joking," he snapped at her. "You're mom—"

Jo cut him off before he could get started on the subject. "If I want another lecture from you, I'll let you know, Dean. Otherwise, shut it."

"Then I don't know, Jo," Dean said in frustration. He threw some clothes into a duffel bag. "You're a big girl; you'll figure something out. You knew when you started this what I was. I'm too old to change now, and even if I wasn't, I don't want to change."

"You would have changed for her," Jo said accusatorily.

Dean stiffened. "I'm going to pretend you didn't say that."

Jo laughed humorlessly. "Why, Dean? I did say it. Deal with it. Liz is dead, Dean. Forever. Dead, dead, dead, dead, dead. Make room in your life for someone else."

"Get out," Dean replied, barely controlled emotion straining his voice.

Jo looked contrite. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have—"

Dean clenched his teeth. "Get out, Jo! Right now."

She rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Fine. I'll see you at Bobby's."

XXX

"Dean, it's been an hour. Where the hell are you?" Sam said, leaving a message on Dean's voicemail.

"He still not answering?" Bobby asked, a trace of alarm in his voice.

"No. I'm gonna go check his apartment and see what the hold up is."

Sam headed out for Dean's. The drive there seemed to take longer than usual. After he parked, he jogged to Dean's door and banged on it.

"Dean? Are you in there? Dean?"

Dean opened the door after several minutes. "What?" he asked angrily, gripping the door for support.

"You were supposed to meet me thirty minutes ago," Sam replied. He looked down and saw the bottle in Dean's hand. "Are you drunk?" he asked in disbelief.

Dean shrugged uncaringly. "Not yet, but I'm working on it."

"Give me the bottle, Dean," Sam commanded angrily and reached out and took it from him. "What is your deal? Did you get in a fight with Jo?"

Dean sat down on the couch and laughed drunkenly. "She said some crappy things that were 100% true, so I told her to get out. That's not why I'm upset, though. I can't find my amulet."

Sam sat down beside him. "The one that Liz gave you?"

"Yeah. I quit wearing it a couple months ago when I was trying to convince myself that I was ready to forget her. I usually end up taking it out once or twice a week. And I always take it on hunts. I know it's stupid, but I feel like a piece of Liz is there with me when I wear it. And now I can't find it. It's not in the box I keep it in. It's not anywhere in my apartment. I need it, or I'll be off while I'm hunting."

Sam sighed, his irritation drying up. "You don't need a necklace to help you hunt, Dean. You hunted for years before you had this necklace, and you can hunt now without it. It's not stupid to be upset, though, and when we get back, I'll help you find it. I'll get down on my hands and knees and scour the place inch-by-inch if I need to. Right now, we need to hit the road, though."

Dean did not trust himself to answer at first. He nodded and swallowed against his suddenly raw throat. "Thanks," he answered finally. "I guess you're right."

Sam started to stand up, but Dean grabbed his arm to stop him. "Do me a favor, though. Just let Jo think that I was upset about her. She gets weird about anything to do with Liz."

"Sure," Sam said. His phone rang then. He looked at the caller-id and answered it.

"Lauren, I'm kind of in the middle of something. Can I call you back?" Sam listened to her answer and sighed. "Well, I'm sorry. I've got to go. Love you," he told her and hung up.

"Trouble in paradise?" Dean asked, a cocky smile replacing all trace of his earlier emotion.

"Shut up," Sam replied.

"I'm just saying…"

"Well, don't. Everything's fine."

"If you say so."

"I do. Get your stuff and let's go."

XXX

"Sorry that I'm late, everyone," Dean said cheerily as he walked into Bobby's with Sam. He grabbed a package of Oreos out of the cabinet and plopped into a seat at the table beside Ellen. "So, what's the situation, Bobby?" Dean asked between bites. "Something about a ghost?"

Bobby stared at him angrily. "You're an hour and a half late. We were worried."

"My alarm wasn't working," Dean replied unrepentantly.

Sam sat down beside Bobby. "It just took Dean a little longer to pack than he anticipated," he explained.

"Drinking a fifth of tequila will do that," Bobby commented coldly.

"Actually, it was whiskey," Dean chimed in. "You know, it's funny that you mention drinking. I had a weird dream that I was in a bar and I couldn't understand anything that was being said. Only I could. It was weird. The drunker I became, the more sense everyone made. It all felt very real, as if it had happened to me before. Or was happening to me then. Oh, and I think I was a chick."

"You had this dream last night?" Bobby asked, suddenly curious.

"Yeah. What does it matter?"

"It doesn't. I was just curious. If you'll excuse me, I have some stuff I need to take care of." Bobby got up and walked away from the table without waiting for a response.

Everyone watched him go with confused stares. "That was weird," Dean commented.

"No weirder than you," Jo rebutted from the doorway. She had showered and changed into jeans and a T-shirt. She came into the room and sat across from Dean.

"Did anyone ever tell you how hilarious you are? They were lying if they did."

Jo stuck her tongue out at Dean, causing Sam to smile at the lightened mood.

"We can head out whenever you're ready," Sam informed Dean.

Dean stood up. "I'm ready now."

"Okay. I need to grab something first, but I'll meet you at the car in a couple of minutes."

"Sounds good," Dean replied, heading for the door. Jo tried to kiss him goodbye, but he caught her arms before she could wrap them around him and avoided her kiss. He threw a cautious look at Ellen, who was glaring daggers at him. "I'll see you in a few days," he told Jo, gently pushing her away. "Have a good vacation."

Jo rolled her eyes and sat back down with a displeased huff. Dean left the room quickly before Ellen decided to retaliate.

Sam made sure Dean was out of earshot before turning to Ellen. "Could you give me a minute with Jo?" he asked.

She nodded and got up from the table. "Maybe you can talk some sense into her," she said, shooting a disapproving look at Jo as she walked past her.

"Don't even try," Jo replied as her mother left.

"Don't worry," Sam replied. "I don't care that you're sleeping with Dean. I don't particularly like it, but it's none of my business. Did you take his necklace?"

"What necklace?"

"Jo, don't play dumb. You know what necklace. If you took it, I expect it to be back in its place by the time we get back. I don't care what reason you had for taking it."

"I didn't take it," Jo insisted.

Sam sighed. "Then do me a favor and find it for Dean while he's gone. A dead woman's gift is not keeping Dean from committing to you," he told her, his tone biting.

She stared at him angrily. "Okay. I'll look for it while you guys are gone. Happy?"

"Yes," Sam replied. "Oh, and I almost forgot. Jeremy called earlier. I told him that you had gone to the store and forgot your phone. You might want to call him and verify my story."

Jo got a scared look on her face and hurried out of the room to do just that.