Chapter 9

Freedom was the greatest thing ever. He was free and now he just needed to find something of authority and that nice young guy would do. It had been easy and now he could see what he had as he dispatched the bitch by locking her in the closet. He would deal with her later.

The room was full of sweet, wonderful children and he owed it all to the pair that freed him. He said, "Such sweet, wonderful children. I bet you want to have fun."

The children were sitting in the middle of the room and looking at him. He loved the scared looks on their faces and the wide eyed look. He was certain it was because his eyes were not normal human color. They looked up at him. Some were hugging stuffed toys. Hmm maybe it was because he got a little crazy after he was set free.

He walked around, avoiding a slight blood splatter. That was regretful but at least he could have some fun. He spotted one of the kids looking at him with a slight shivering. It was a small boy with dirt blonde locks and big blue eyes. He kneeled in front of him and looked at him. He then asked, "Do you like being here?"

"You're not Mr. Hugh."

He smiled and replied, "You are just too sweet. I could just eat you up."

"I wanna go home."

"Oh you won't be going home. You see, I like to have fun and I want to have it and it's sweet things like you that make me go crazy." He gave a slight small grin but it was not the friendly kind. He watched as the kid's eyes start to tremble and the lip quiver.

"Leave him alone."

He stood up. He turned towards the owner of the voice. It was the boy that picked the lock. He grinned and said, "Ah my especial favorite. I have you to thank you know. You made all of this possible."

A knock sounded at the door. It was a needless distraction but then again, there would be ample opportunity. He walked to the door and opened it slightly and saw a rather nervous looking man. He looked familiar but that didn't matter. He asked, "Yes?"

Darrell was standing outside the door. He had felt the tremors and wondered if something bad had happened. He didn't think that it was an earthquake. Those happened at places like California and the like. He figured something bad happened. He hated to think the worst if someone managed to break the lock and touched the horse.

He raced inside to find that the Christian Mothers retreat thing was relatively unharmed. It was the upstairs that he had a problem with. He picked up the pace as he made his way up the stairs. The playroom was supposed to remain open and he prayed that it was just some kid who played with the door and accidentally shut it. He knocked on the door.

Hugh opened it and inquired what he wanted. Darrell replied, "Just making sure that you are okay. That was a nasty tremor."

Hugh smiled and replied, "We're all fine."

"You do know that this door is supposed to remain open? Right?" Darrell asked the question as he studied Hugh. Something didn't seem quite right with him and he wanted to make sure that he was okay. He managed to get a peek inside and asked, "Where's Susan?"

At that moment one of the kids shouted something. Darrell paused and then saw it. The eyes of Hugh flickered and they were no longer human. They were inky black. Darrell had no idea what was going on but Hugh said, "That shout just cost you."

The next moment, Darrell found himself being flung against the wall and pinned. Kids were starting to scream and he shouted for them to run. Only a few made it out before the door shut on the rest of the kids. Hugh faced the closed door and shouted, "No one is leaving unless I say so. You all are going to stay there."

Darrell decided to be brave, "Let the kids go."

Hugh turned towards Darrel and his eyes flickered black, "You presume to tell me what to meat bag?" The black eyes surveyed the caretaker for a moment.

Darrell replied, "Look, just leave the kids alone."

Hugh at the time paused a moment and looked around. Something caught his attention. He grinned really big and looked back at Darrell. He then said, "You had no idea did you? Oh what fun."

Darrell didn't know what say to that. He thought that he was with a totally crazy Hugh and he had no idea where Susan was. Suddenly he was dropped and grabbed by Hugh. He said, "Hugh, stop this. Let the kids go."

"Not a chance meat bag." Hugh marched off towards stairs that would have led to the servants' quarters and up to the attics.

Everything was where it was. The stupid boy didn't touch a thing. Hugh flung the human into the room before slamming the door shut. He began walking through parts of the house, stretching his powers. He was still on a leash but not so short a leash. Now time to round up the rest of the brats and take care of a few loose ends.

Walking down the halls, he looked through the rooms. Suddenly the stupid boy appeared in front of him. He grinned, "Looks like I will win this one Thomas."

Thomas had gone back to the house since the door to the playroom had been barred to him and he needed to try again. Upon entering, he realized that the thing escaped the room and was now running through the house. He took to searching the rooms. He finally caught up with him and appeared. He replied, "You are still bound and can be put back."

"I don't think so. I broke your strongest spell. Even after a century or so you are still a novice in magic," Hugh replied. "I could have taught you so much more if you hadn't betrayed me."

"I was foolish to release you. Once I figured out what you wanted, I did everything I could to prevent it from happening," Thomas replied.

"And you certainly paid the price for it especially with that little brother bond spell."

"A necessity since you pointed out, I wasn't strong enough."

Hugh was going to reply when a noise caught his attention. There were two voices, one male and one female and it appeared that they were trying to explore the top half of the house. They were looking for something or someone. Hugh looked at Thomas and grinned sardonically at him. "You really know how to pick them."

"Don't you dare," Thomas replied, "The other spells will prevent y…" Thomas stopped and it looked like he was choking.

Hugh cut the ghost off by saying something in his language. The ghost phased out and he knew that it was going to be a while before the stupid little boy was able to get up enough juice to be effective. He started down the hall when he heard the brave little one who stood up to him earlier. He was shouting at his friend to follow him. He also heard other kids babbling about what to do. Maybe he could have a little fun. Hugh started saying an incantation. This would keep them busy for a while.

Jesse was scared but he tried not to let it show. He had to be brave for Petey. After he touched the horse to steady himself, the ground shook and he saw the horse's eyes glow red. Then something shot out of it. It was black and smoky. He watched as it hit the guy Hugh and forced itself down his mouth. After that, he had to protect Petey.

Hugh looked at the door to the playroom and then shut it. The stupid lady Susan was going to say something when the guy hit her across the face and knocked her out. He then dragged her by the hair and put her in the closet and ordered all the kids to get in the center. Jesse knew that something wasn't right with the guy and something was inside of him. He kept Petey close and whispered, "Don't worry Petey. I'll look after you."

"What is he going to do Jesse?"

"I don't know but we have to get out of here."

"How?"

"I'm thinking."

The chance came when the caretaker of the place came to the playroom. He inquired if the kids were okay and Jesse took the chance. He shouted that Hugh was a monster. It was enough to distract the guy but what he did to the caretaker was scary. Jesse grabbed Petey's hand and shouted at the kids to run.

Jesse ran dragging Petey with him until they found a broom closet and they hid in there. He had no idea how many of the others got out. Right now he had to keep Petey safe. He got him into this mess and he could sure as hell get him out.

"Jesse, what is wrong with Mr. Hugh?" Petey looked at Jesse with wide blue eyes.

Jesse stilled his breathed and shushed Petey so he could listen. He didn't think the guy followed them but he just wanted to be sure. When he was sure they were alone, he replied, "I don't know Petey."

"Did you see his eyes?"

"Yeah." Jesse gave a short nod, aware that Petey couldn't see him but it made him feel better all the same.

"What's wrong with him?" Petey's question came out in a slight whimper.

"No idea, but we need help," Jesse replied as he peered through the crack. He had no idea if any of the other folks in the house would be able to help. Heck he was willing to bet that his mom was still with the other moms and not giving another thought. That Hugh guy was adamant about keeping things normal but…

"What about Mom?"

Jesse didn't think that they could help. Still he did have to let Mom know something wasn't right. It was his Mom after all and Petey's mom may not like him over much but he wasn't going to let the kid down. "Yeah we have to warn them."

"What about Mr. Hugh?"

"We'll just have to avoid him," Jesse replied matter of fact. He stood up to slowly open the door. When he had it opened enough, he peered around the edge. Nobody was around so maybe they could get to the moms without problems. "Come on Petey."

Petey was scared but he trusted Jesse. He grabbed his outstretched hand and followed him through the hall. The house seemed bigger on the inside than it did the outside. One hall looked like another and he could hear people talking. He asked, "You sure you know the right way?"

Jesse didn't know. He did know that he needed to find the stairs. He replied, "We need to find the stairs. Once we get to the ground floor then we can find our way." He tried to make himself sound confident so Petey wouldn't be scared and would follow him.

They ventured down a hall when they heard someone sniveling. Jesse paused. It sounded like one of the kids that was in the playroom that got away. Jesse followed the sound to a door. It looked like the closet he and Petey hid in but upon opening it, he found a little girl. Jesse recognized her and said, "Gina?"

Gina wiped the tears away and nodded. "I want my mommy."

Normally Jesse didn't like it when the girls cried because he found it too chick flick. It made him uncomfortable and he avoided girls like the plague. This time though he needed to be the tough guy since Gina was about Petey's age and they needed someone to look after them. He replied, "Okay. Come on. We're trying to get to the stairs and then we can see where your mom is."

Gina nodded and started to get up. She held onto Petey's hand as they followed Jesse. Suddenly she felt a shiver up her spine. She stopped and was nearly pulled off her feet when Petey tugged on her arm. She said, "Something isn't right."

Jesse had felt it too. He didn't like it. There was a noise coming from one of the rooms. It was muffled like someone was struggling. He wasn't sure what to do as he looked at the door. The noise came again. He looked at Petey and Gina and they looked back with wide eyes. Showing more bravado than what he was feeling, he put his hand on the door knob, turned it and opened it. As the door swung open they were greeted by something and the only thing that could be heard was the sound of the three of them screaming. Jesse managed to shout, "Run!"

They took off running down the halls of the upstairs. Jesse kept Petey and Gina in front of him so that he could try to keep them together. They went through a door and through a room and through another door back through to a hall. At one point something popped out in front of them and they yelled and turned around.

"Turn left," Jesse said as he looked behind him.

It was a dead end but there was a door that led to a stairwell. Petey pulled it open and led the way down. Jesse was the last to go through. At the last moment, he thought of something. He saw a vase with those decorative pebbles. It was kid stuff but hey, it might work. He pulled out the flowers and then dumped the pebbles on the ground. He put the vase and the flowers back sloppily and went down after closing the door.

Petey and Gina were at the bottom and they were in what could have once been a kitchen. At the moment there seemed to be no way out. Jesse started looking around. The place looked old and dusty, like no one cleaned it in a very long time. There was no where to go at the moment and they definitely weren't going back up the stairs. Jesse sat on an old barrel, not noticing the etchings on the side. Petey and Gina joined him with Petey asking, "What are we going to do now Jesse?"

Jesse looked around and reply, "Not sure. Just hang tight while I think of something." He sat there looking around. It was hard to see anyway out. He then saw a window and jumped down closely followed by the other two. They ended up knocking over the barrel as they tried getting the window open.

Akira felt chills going down her spine and she was sure Christian was filling it too as they walked through the halls. It was similar to spirits but this felt different. Whatever that earthquake was about, it must have released something big. It would be fascinating to study but the risks would have outweighed the rewards in that case. She said, "Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to separate after all."

"It probably wasn't."

Akira made a slight face at Christian and then slapped his shoulder. "You have about the same emotions as a lizard. Wait, that would be insulting to the lizard."

Christian looked at Akira wondering why she just insulted him about his emotional capability. He was just speaking the truth about that. They probably should have stayed in one place and tried getting the elder Winchester out. The younger one was safe was with Angela since she was like panther or some other large predatory cat. She was ruthless when it came to a fight. "You wound me."

"It's the truth when it comes to sensitivity, you need a little work," Akira replied as she opened a door to inspect the room.

"Emotion counts for little when you're on the job."

"It doesn't mean you have to be a stiff all the time," Akira countered. "You miss a lot doing that, especially the obvious… like Angie and Sam."

Christian looked at Akira. If it wasn't Austin, it was her telling him that he missed things. He didn't miss anything. Did she know how hard it is to be the rational one when working with someone like Austin? Then she mentioned the younger Winchester and Angela. "What?"

"There you go again," Akira replied teasing him. "Dean may have told Sam to go after her but Sam would have gone with little to no encouragement."

"You don't know that."

"I know Angie." Akira said nothing more as she looked around. "Where exactly is this spirit?"

"We're not looking for it."

"Could run across it."

Christian would have said something when he picked up screaming. It was the sound of children screaming. He could tell that Akira heard it because she turned in the direction of it and started moving. He followed close behind.

It was hard to tell where it was coming from since there was the constant thumping of wood. They had to take to running just to be able to react should the worst happen. They ran through rooms and the doors were slamming all over the place. Christian couldn't make out the kids footsteps with all the slamming of the doors.

Suddenly something hit him in the gut. It didn't hurt since he had worse when he had to take care of things but it was startling enough. It was instinct for him to revert to his vampire abilities but he only reacted with his eyes. He looked down to find that three kids ran into him.

They looked at him and they screamed in fright. He realized that he scared them and tried to stop them and reassure them but they ran. It was stupid but he gave chase to try and flag them down. More doors slammed and Christian ended up separated from Akira. He continued on tracking down the kids.

He rounded a corner when suddenly his feet flew out from under him. Christian hit the deck hard on his back. He then heard laughter but it wasn't the kind that was funny or friendly. It was highly sinister and almost maniacal. He sat up slowly and looked at what he had tripped on and nearly scowled at the fact that he had tripped on glass pebbles. At least Austin wasn't around since he wouldn't let that one go.

As he got up, Christian realized that Akira was nowhere in sight. He looked around but didn't call out her name. He didn't want to alert whatever this thing was and goad it into doing something else. Inwardly he berated himself since he technically lost her and in their world, she was considered the most important thing and if anything happened to her…

There was also the matter of the kids. From the looks of things, they went down to a cellar like room. That meant that there was only the door that led down there and the door that led out. He did what he knew he had to do. He prayed that whatever forces were out there would watch out for Akira. He pulled open the door and walked down the stairs.

Akira was fast but not as fast as Angela or Christian and she fell behind but that didn't matter since they needed to make sure the kids were okay. She was right behind when she got cut off from Christian by a door slamming in her face. She tried jiggling the doorknob but it wouldn't budge. She contemplated busting down the door but like Dean, she didn't want to get stuck with a hefty bill.

Akira felt alongside the door, not sure what good it will do but stranger things have happened and who knows? She might get lucky. She also took the time to study the door anything else and she began to notice strange peculiarities. Some of the fixtures were newer than others which was a given since you refurbished old houses and you had to keep up repairs but it was the type of repair that had her interested.

Some of the fixtures were not made from typical materials. She was not an expert in materials but she knew enough to know that certain types of materials were used for various things in spell work and the like having seen variations of the stuff in her work.

"Several generations of work."

Akira turned to face a ghost. He looked a little lost and forlorn; nothing like the vengeful spirits that she had seen. "I admit that it is very good. So you are the one that is keeping Dean in that room?"

The ghost gave a slight shake of his head, "It is for his safety."

"He is a hunter and capable of taking care of himself," Akira replied. She found it strange that she was actually talking to a ghost but hell… If Angela could do it, then maybe she could too. It just was a matter of finding the right words she guessed.

"Not this time."

"But you just can't do that." Akira looked at the ghost incredulously.

"He will be fine."

"Then can you at least help me get out?" It sounded a little petulant but there really was no time for playing around.

The ghost moved its head slightly. It looked at the door and it popped open. He then looked back at Akira and then said, "He will come after anyone trying to stop him."

"Who?"

"An old evil. I will do what I can but the one must stay in the room. The evil one will go after it."

Akira looked at the open door and then at the ghost. Nothing made sense about what was being said yet it was clear that it wasn't the ghost behind the screaming of the kids. It was something else but the ghost couldn't tell her what it was and more likely it wasn't able to tell her. She took a closer look at the ghost.

To her, he appeared to be young and she surmised that he had died at a young age. He was still well put together though in terms of his being a ghost. What he said though was what caught her interest. She asked, "Go after what?"

"How he got free he broke the powerful spell but not completely since the original was sealed in blood," the ghost replied. He looked off in the distance and appeared to have a distracted air. He then said, "Old Bordeaux kept him in his prison and now…" He then flickered a little.

Akira realized that he was probably fazing out or something. She tried to bring him back to focus. She replied, "Okay so it is a spell. Why are you trying to protect Dean? What is so important that you have him locked in a room?"

The ghost then looked at her. He seemed to regard her quizzically for a time. Finally he said, "He likes bonds. He will go after the one that kept him prisoner."

"Okay. Is it…?"

The ghost gave a short sigh. His frame began to flicker some more. Apparently he was losing his juice to remain visible. Finally he said, "Brother bonds. He will go after it. He likes it and hunts for it."

A/N: Well it looks like the evil is a demon. A ghost and a demon. Who knew? Stay tuned for the next chapter of 'Trick'steen Candles...