Emily awoke with a uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. She glanced over at the other bed in the room and saw Sam sleeping peacefully. She felt a little less anxious at the sight of at least one of her friends safe. Being as quiet as she could manage, Emily slipped out of bed and wandered into the bathroom to get dressed for the day. When she came out, she found Sam sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

"Morning, Sam." She said.

"Hey, Em." He yawned. "So, what exactly happened yesterday? I mean, I remember the warehouse, Dean and Madison getting locked inside and then you, me, and Cas getting jumped by demons, but after that it's like I wasn't even there."

"That would probably be because one of the demons managed to knock you out." Emily informed him.

She then proceeded to relay to him the details of the previous day's happenings. She told him about how Cas had vanished in the middle of the fight. How she had been cornered after he had passed out. She talked about how Cas had reappeared just in time to save them both. She did however, leave out the bit about the burning sensation she had felt surface inside her once she had been surrounded. The whole situation had frightened her and she really wasn't ready to talk about it. Not yet anyway. First she wanted to talk to Cas and find out what exactly it was he had done to her. It was strange, she could still almost feel his hand resting firmly on her shoulder, as it had the day before when he had saved her and Sam. She raised up her own hand and placed it where his had resided, the skin tingled under her touch. She shuddered and quickly pulled her hand away, returning her focus to the man standing in front of her.

"Where is Cas anyway?" Sam asked. "Did he say he have to leave or something?"

"No, he didn't." Emily felt her stomach tighten. "In fact, he made a point last night to tell me that he would be staying with us so he could figure out what to do about Dean and Madison..."

"That's weird."

"Maybe he's outside." Emily said, trying her best to remain calm. "I'll go check."

"I'll come with you."

The pair ventured from the motel room, unsure of what they would find. They both immediately noticed the faint smell of sulfur and exchanged a worried glance. Emily's hands were beginning to shake, she felt more and more afraid as the minutes wore on. Then she found something that made her heart nearly stop.

"Sam!" She called the other hunter over.

"What is it, Em?" He asked.

She held out her hands, in which rested a long, thin metal object. "It's Cas's angel blade." She said, trying to conceal her concern. "I found it lying on the ground over there."

She pointed to a spot nearby as she spoke. Sam took the blade in hand and studied it, a frown forming on his lips. It was indeed Castiel's angel blade that Emily had found. And if the sulfuric scent in air was anything to go by, this had been the work of demons. Somehow they must have managed to restrain Cas and he dropped his weapon in the struggle. There was no other logical explanation.

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Sam asked.

"That Cas was attacked by demons? Yeah."

"So, what now? Do we go after him?"

"What good would that do?" Emily said, her voice trembling.

She wanted to go after Cas, she really did. For she had questions that only he could answer. But what use would it be? They didn't know where the demons had taken him, he could be anywhere.

"We haven't got a clue where he is." She continued. "I think... I think we should go after Dean and Madison."

"But, you told me that Cas said you shouldn't go back. That if you did you'd only make things worse for all of us."

"Yeah well, Cas is gone now. What other choice do we have, Sam? Do you honestly want to leave Madison and your brother in Crowley's hands?"

"Well, no but-"

"Then it's settled. I'll go pack."

As she trudged back to the motel room, Emily wondered if she was making the right decision. She felt conflicted, as though her soul had been torn in two. Because Sam was right, Castiel had made a point of telling her not to return to the warehouse. That it was too dangerous. But on then other hand, she couldn't just stand by and leave her friends at the mercy of a cruel, sadist demon either. Whether the choice she had made was wrong or right, it was better than sitting and doing nothing.

"Ah, Amanda." Crowley greeted as he glanced up. "I trust you've taken care of our fine feathered friend."

"The angel has been dealt with." Amanda nodded. "It's a shame you couldn't have been there to see it yourself. His face was priceless."

In the next room, Dean listened intently to the two demons' conversation. His heart sank the moment Amanda's words reached his ears. Cas was dead. How could this be true? How? Cas might not have been the sharpest tool in the shed, but he certainly wasn't weak. How could one small demon have managed to have overpower an angel of the Lord? It didn't add up. The thought of losing one of his best friends was almost too much to bear. Dean's eyes brimmed with warm tears that threatened to spill down his cheeks and onto the floor below.

"Dammit, Cas." He choked, his throat so tight he could hardly force the words from his mouth.

"Oh Dean, I... I'm so sorry."

"Sorry? How could you be sorry? You hardly knew the guy!" Dean thundered. "Don't pretend that you care!"

Madison didn't respond and Dean quickly regretted his harsh words. Slowly, he raised his head and met Madison's gaze. Her eyes glistened with nothing but sympathy and concern. Dean felt sick to his stomach. Here he was, practically untouched by Crowley, shouting at the woman who had been forced to bear the pain that should have been his own. She had been beaten, her flesh had been cut and mutilated. And yet here she was, apologizing for something that wasn't even her fault, trying to comfort Dean when he should have been the one comforting her. For he had dragged her into this mess and she alone had been left to face the consequences.

"Look, I'm sorry, Madison." Dean said, his throat still tight. "I shouldn't have said that, it's just that, Cas... He was my friend and I just don't know what I-what we'll do without him."

"It's all right, Dean." Madison smiled. "I know what it's like to lose a friend. After Jess died I felt like the entire world had come crashing down around me. Nothing made sense anymore, I was angry all the time, I..." She paused and averted her gaze to the ground for a brief moment. "My point is, things'll be rough for a while, but you don't have to do this alone. We'll pull through this. Together."

Dean managed a weak smile and nodded, "Together."

Castiel was raised from his unconscious state by a sharp pain in his side. He yelped and sat straight up where he had been laying. He placed a hand to his side and the pain relented. Once he had a moment to clear his head, he took a quick look at his surroundings. He was in a small one room apartment, complete with a kitchenette, bathroom and an alarming amount of Ikea furniture. A sudden voice sounded behind him, a voice he recognized almost immediately. He turned to face the speaker and was meet with the exact face he had expected to see.

"Cas, so good to see you again, it's been ages."

"I would hardly refer to the length of three weeks as ages, Balthazar." Castiel remarked, as he stood up. "And yes, it is good to see you too. Though I must confess I am a bit confused as to why I'm seeing you."

"Ah yes, about that...Look Cas, I really am sorry about the whole knocking you out thing."

"That was you?" Castiel's expression held a hint of disbelief.

"Yes, I'm afraid it was. But you have to understand that it was necessary in order to-"

Balthazar's words were cut off by the slam of a door, followed by a series of quick moving footsteps. The door to the apartment in which the two angels stood opened, and in walked a woman who Castiel felt seemed vaguely familiar. He knew he had seen her somewhere before, he just couldn't quite put his feathers on it. Then he remembered. She had been the same woman he had seen last night before he blacked out. The demon. Castiel shoved Balthazar aside and flung himself at the demon. He pinned her to the ground, wrapped his hands around her throat and began to strangle her. Balthazar was at his side in seconds, attempting to pull him away.

"It's alright, Cas!" The sandy-haired angel tried to assure his brother as he pried his fingers from the demon's neck. "She's with me!"

"What?" Castiel froze, his eyes locking with Balthazar's, hoping, pleading for an explanation.

"You heard him." The demon stated cooly. "Now release me."

Castiel hesitated a moment before allowing her to slip from his grasp. She stood, dusted herself off, and then moved to stand beside Balthazar, arms folded across her chest and lips pulled back in a thin line.

"You're working with a demon?" Castiel asked after a brief silence.

"Yes Cas, I am. But before you start to lecture me, allow me to explain."

"Explain?" Castiel said angrily. "What explanation could there possibly be for this?"

"Please, Cas." Balthazar was practically begging now. "Just hear me out. I promise there is a reason as to why Amanda and I are working together, a pretty damn good one too."

"You are familiar with the Aestus, I trust?" Amanda cut in, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Yes, of course I am." Castiel nodded, he already didn't like where this was going.

"And I take it you are also aware that my father, Crowley, has made plans to obtain it?"

"You-" The dark haired angel's eyes narrowed. "You're Crowley's daughter?"

"That is what I just said."

He turned to the other angel, his expression dark and enraged. "You're working with Crowley's daughter? Really, Balthazar? Even for you this is madness."

"Ugh." Balthazar groaned. "Would you just shut up for five minutes and listen? Father almighty, you can be such a stick in the mud."

"Listen to what?" Castiel snarled. "Listen to this demon whore and her godforsaken lies? Allow her to manipulate and deceive us both?

"I'm not interested in manipulating or deceiving anyone but my own father." Amanda announced.

Castiel's sharp glare was enough to let her know that he didn't believe her. "Why would you betray Crowley?"

"Why wouldn't I?" She practically laughed in his face. "He's the one who drug me down to Hell and damned my soul to a millennia of torture. I spent my whole life cowering in his shadow, I know him better than anyone. I'd sooner die than let him get his hands on the Aestus for a even single second."

"There, you see." Balthazar clapped his hands together. "Her motives are nothing more than distrust fueled purely by revenge. Now, let's all put our differences behind us and try to get along, shall we?"

Castiel eyed the demon warily. No one could doubt that her hatred for her father was anything but genuine, her tone and expression when she spoke of him could not have made it any clearer. But because of what she was, he doubted her integrity. Even if she did help put an stop to Crowley's plans, there was no telling that she wouldn't try to take the Aestus for herself afterwards. But Balthazar seemed to trust her, which was odd. Balthazar trusted only a handful of individuals, those being Castiel himself, Ezekiel, Inias, and now apparently this demon. Castiel decided that he would need to know the full details of their situation before he could make a proper assessment.

"Very well." Was all he said.

Balthazar smiled and nodded his thanks to Cas and then turned to Amanda. Castiel listened silently as she relayed the latest developments of Crowley's schemes. She also mentioned briefly the two humans that he was currently keeping inside the warehouse. This caught Castiel's attention and he immediately interrupted to inquire after them. Once Amanda had assured him that they would be kept safe and that arrangements had already been made for their "escape", he grew quiet again. It wasn't until the demon had left that he spoke again.

"I know you trust her, brother." Castiel said to Balthazar. "But why?"

The other angel walked over to the apartment's kitchenette and poured himself a glass of champagne before answering. "That's a long story, Cas."

"I need to know."

"Very well." Balthazar sighed, taking a sip the beverage. "You know that I faked my own death."

Castiel nodded.

"Well, let's just say that when I did, things didn't quite go to plan." Balthazar's voice grew softer as he spoke. "In the last battle we fought together, both my wings were damaged. I could still fly so I didn't think anything of it until I fell to earth. They snapped before I had made it halfway down and I...I should have died, Cas." Balthazar paused for a moment before continuing. "Of course the impact of hitting the ground wouldn't have been enough to kill me, but once I had landed I couldn't move. My vessel was completely paralyzed, and with both my wings in ruins, I couldn't very well leave his body. I spent days lying in an open field, hoping to Father that someone would figure out that I had faked my death and come looking. But no one did. Not even you"

"Had I known the truth I would certainly have come to your aid." Castiel said quietly. "But as it was, you did such an excellent job that no one suspected for a moment that you were still alive."

"It was rather convincing, wasn't it?" Balthazar smirked. "But anyway, Amanda happened upon me in my helpless state. I thought for certain she was going to kill or torture me, but she didn't. Instead she took pity on me and brought me to a small house in the country where she nursed me back to health. I admit that I didn't trust her at first either, but with time I found her to be a rather pleasant companion. We eventually became friends and one night after a bit too much to drink, she opened up and told me, well, everything. I don't feel that it's my place to tell you what she said, but I will tell you this, if you knew of even half the things that bloody piece of filth father of her's has put her through, you wouldn't be questioning where her loyalties lie. And as for the Aestus, she only wants it to be put somewhere safe. We both agree it's far too dangerous to be used by anyone, demon and angel alike."

Castiel's gaze hardened, "You know I need the Aestus to fight Raphael."

"Cas," Balthazar sighed, "We've been over this. It's much too big of a risk."

"I can handle it."

"No, you can't." Balthazar's tone was firm. "Look, I know you think you're doing the right thing, but the reality is that our family is going to hate one another no matter what. The fighting doesn't end with this war and the sooner you realize that, the better."

Castiel looked to the floor, he knew in his heart that his brother spoke the truth. But a part of him still dared to believe that if he triumphed over Raphael he could end this. He could end the fighting and bickering, stop the killing. And the Aestus would enable him to do just that. But then he had another thought, Emily... If he used the Aestus she would be sure to feel the consequences. It might even kill her. Castiel cringed at the thought. He knew could not let that happen, he was a warrior, not a murderer. He wouldn't take an innocent life to gain power, that would make him just as bad as Raphael. No, there had to be another way.

"You care about her." Balthazar's statement caught Castiel off guard.

"I-what?"

"The girl, Emilia or whatever her name is."

"It's Emily." Castiel corrected. "And I only care that she doesn't get hurt by all of this. She shouldn't be forced into matters that don't concern her."

"Oh, but they do concern her." Balthazar retorted. "You should know that better than anyone."

Castiel clenched his fists to his side, "I won't allow her to be involved in any of this."

Balthazar open his mouth to respond but his brother had already vanished. He shrugged and poured himself a second glass of champagne, all the while smiling to himself.

"Oh, Cassie." He chuckled. "You've got it bad."