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CHAPTER TWENTY- ANGELFIRE

Following the sketches in Anna's notebook, we find ourselves creeping inside a church attic.

Dean, Sam and I exchange looks as the silhouette of a person trying to hide comes into view, keeping our guns at the ready.

"Anna?" Sam calls out cautiously. "Is that you?"

I decide to join him.

"Hey, listen, we're not going to hurt you. We're here to help. I'm Odette, and these are my brothers Sam and Dean."

Anna peeks out from under a mane of dark red hair in surprise.

"You're her. You're Odette, the Odette—the angel girl. My God, they talk about you so much."

My eyebrow rises up as Anna gushes, eyes getting wider as she sees Dean and Sam.

"You must be Sam Winchester," Anna points at his tall frame excitedly.

"Uh, yeah," He says awkwardly.

Then she whirls around." And you're Dean. The Dean?"

"Well, yeah." Dean scratches his head. " The Dean, I guess."

"It really is you guys," Anna gapes at us. " Oh my god. The angels talk about you. You were in Hell, but Castiel pulled you out, and some of them think you can help save us. And some of them don't like you at all. They talk about you all the time lately. I feel like I know you."

We exchange dubious glances.

"So, you talk to angels?" Dean ventures to ask.

"Oh, no. No, no way." Anna shakes her head. "Um, they probably don't even know I exist. I just kind of... overhear them."

"You overhear them?" I echo incredulously.

"Yeah, " She bobs her head rapidly. "They talk, and sometimes I just hear them in my head."

"Like... right now?" Dean waits.

"Not right this second, but a lot," Anna sighs. "And I can't shut them out, there are so many of them."

"So they locked you up with a case of the crazies when you were just... tuning in to angel radio," I realize.

She exhales gustily. "Yes, thank you."

"Anna, when did the voices start?" Sam questions. "Do you remember?"

"I can tell you exactly," Anna says. "September 18th."

I slowly turn around to stare at Dean.

"The day I got out of hell," He confirms.

"First words I heard, clear as a bell," Anna intones solemnly. "'Dean Winchester is saved.'"

Dean turns to look at us. "What do you think?"

"It's above my paygrade, man," Sam shrugs.

"Well, at least we know why the demons want you so bad," I narrow my eyes.

"They get a hold of you, they get a direct line to what the other side is planning."

Anna catches my hand. "Hey, um, do you know if my parents are okay? I didn't go back—I was afraid."

I blanch and swallow tightly, glancing uneasily at the other two.

I'm saved from answering Anna as the door is banged open.

By Ruby.

"Good you got the girl," She jerks her head. "Let's go."

Anna grips my hand tighter. "Her face!" She says in horror.

"She's here to help," Sam assures.

"Yeah, I wouldn't be so sure," Dean grunts.

I scowl in agreement.

"We have to hurry." Ruby persists.

"Why?" I snap at her.

"Because a demon's coming," She spits. "Big-timer."

"Well, that's pretty convenient," Dean crosses his arms. "Showing up just when we get the girl with some bigwig on your tail."

"I didn't bring him here," Ruby glares. "You did."

"What?" My voice whips out.

"He followed you from the girl's house," She spits. "We got to go now."

"Guys," Sam calls, pointing to a statue of an angel.

It's bleeding from the eyes.

My fingers lock around my gun.

"It's too late, he's here," Ruby confirms.

I pull Anna into a closet. "Stay there and don't move," I tell her firmly.

Her face is pale. "Okay."

Sam pulls out a flask of holy water.

"No, Sam," Ruby shakes her head. "You gotta pull him straight away."

"Whoa, wait a second," Dean shoots out a hand.

"Now is not the time to bellyache about Sam going darkside, Dean!" Ruby snaps. "He does his thing, exorcizes the demon—or we die."

The door blasts open a second time and a sandy-bearded man in scrubs walks through.

Something in the casual menace of his tread raises the hair on my arms.

Sam puts away his flask and flexes his arm, contorting his face in the effort.

"That tickles," The demon drawls. "You don't have the juice to take me on, Sam."

He sends Sam reeling downstairs.

"Maybe I do," I say levelly, doubling up my fist and pushing it toward the demon.

He skids back a few steps, looking surprised.

Out of the corner of my eye I can see Ruby pulling out Anna.

"My, my, Odette," I stiffen at the use of my name. "I always said you had potential."

The words, and the coolly cruel way he throws them out in makes me quiver in fearful recognition.

My torturer back again.

"Alastair," I whisper.

I can see Dean whiten visibly as he stabs Ruby's knife into Alastair's back.

He barely flinches. "You're gonna have to try a lot harder than that. Dean."

A bead of sweat trickles down my forehead and my hand shakes as he fights my control.

Alastair is too strong.

I flick my eyes to the large stained-glass window to my side.

Thankfully, they understand.

Alastair advances.

We jump through the window.

¬Supernatural¬

Dean and I stare at Sam, nonplussed, as he explains how Ruby saved his life, coached him, prevented him from making rash decisions—stopped him from throwing his life away.

The two of us exchange disbelieving glances.

"She came back for me, no matter what you say about her," Sam finishes quietly. "What she said—it got through to me. It was what you would have said."

Sharp knocking on the door snaps us out of our reverie as a rotund black maid steps through.

"I'm at this address," She shoves a paper at us. "There are demons in the hallway. Get in the car and move."

"Ruby?" The three of us echo in disbelief, staring at the maid.

"Yeah so I'm possessing this broad for a hot minute," She snaps. "Go!"

We flee.

¬Supernatural¬

We reach the cabin Ruby sent us to and breathe a sigh of relief.

I spare a brief look at Anna, who seems unharmed.

"Glad you could make it," Ruby nods.

Dean and I eye her awkwardly.

"Guess I owe you one for Sam," Dean says haltingly.

"Yeah," I mutter.

Ruby's reply is lost as Anna suddenly jerks.

"The angels are here," She whispers.

Ruby curses and drags her out of the room.

In the next second, Castiel and Uriel appear in a flash of light.

I stubbornly ignore how hard my heart beats at the sight of him.

"Please tell me you're here to help," Dean eyes them.

"We've been having demon issues all day."

Uriel rolls his eyes. "You want to explain why you have that stain in the room?"

"We're here for Anna," Cas says tonelessly.

My voice sharpens. "Here as in?"

"Give her to us," Uriel orders.

"Are you gonna help her?" I ask skeptically.

Cas meets my eyes finally—his expression is flat and cold.

"No. She needs to die."