Chapter 8:
"So what exactly is it that brought you and Sam down here?" Booth asked. "I mean the details of this nest."
"The nest is turning kids," Dean said quietly. "They figure there are multiple advantages to this. First off, hunters will hesitate before killing them. Second, people will be less suspicious of them, and survival rate will go up."
"Jesus," Booth murmured.
"Ya. What are you guys out here for?"
"There were some remains found in the forest by some hikers. Basically just bones, so they called us in."
Dean glanced at his cell phone, which still had no reception, and sighed. "Still nothing."
Booth gave a grunt of confirmation as he checked his cell. "Same." He hesitated. "Dean?"
"Ya?"
"I got a question for you."
"Is this another Bigfoot question or—?"
"Nah, nah, it's…ah…. When did you first learn about this stuff?"
Dean looked over to him. "Pretty much as soon as my dad did, which was a couple of months after my mom was killed."
"And Sam?"
"Sammy? Ah, I managed to keep him out of it til he was nine."
Booth nodded. "Alright. Let me ask you this. How am I supposed to look my son in the eye and tell him that there's nothing in his closet…when I can't know for sure anymore?"
Dean licked his lips and swallowed, thinking. "How old?"
"Six."
Dean paused for another second. "You lie."
Booth nodded. "Uh huh. Yea. That's…that's was the problem I was facing. That's why I asked you the question."
"So that didn't really help."
"No."
Dean sighed. "Look, man, kids have their innocence. That's what makes them kids. When you take away that innocence, you take away something that you can never give back. I mean look at Bones, she freaked out when she found out vampires exist and she's a full grown adult. How can you expect a kid to handle it?"
"You can't."
"No, you can't, so you don't put it on them. To put this on a kid is to take away any possibility of a normal life. So you lie to him. You don't tell him about monsters the same way you don't tell him about rape and murder and kidnapping. The same way you don't tell him about the people you took out overseas with that sniper rifle."
Booth closed his eyes for a second and swallowed, reopening them. "Yea. Yea I guess I get that." He sighed. "Answer me this one. If these vampires are turning kids…there's no cure for vampirism is there?"
Dean shook his head grimly. "No."
"So either we kill them…."
"Or they kill us. With their strength, we wouldn't stand a chance. A kid ripping open your neck is just as effective as an adult ripping open your neck."