Dean pulled up in his black Impala to an apartment complex similar to the last one. Except, this one looked about a century older and a lot dirtier.
He slammed his door shut and straightened his suit, the cool metal of his rock-salt filled gun sank through his shirt and into his skin. It didn't take him long to find the door that the sheriff had given him through the outside.
Dean knocked four times before a man opened the door. He was short and skinny, with a thin face and a growing beard.
"Hello. Are you Alex Young?" the man nodded. "I'm Agent Bonham," he held up his fake FBI identification. "I would like to ask you about the death of your girlfriend, Olivia Marten."
Alex nodded hesitantly. "Of course, come in." Dean nodded his thanks. "So, um, what do you need to know? The police already came by right after she died."
Dean nodded, "It just became a Federal Investigation. We just need to go over it for our records." Alex inhaled sharply, then nodded. He led Dean over to a dining table and they sat down.
"Well, I don't know if you'll believe me. The cops think I'm crazy, they say that because I was under stress my mind played some trick on me."
Dean's face became serious, and he looked Alex directly in the eyes. "Well, I'm not like those cops. Let's just say that I've seen things that they haven't."
Alex nodded, unsure. "I had just proposed to her that night. I was -"
"Wait, you were engaged?" Dean interrupted.
"No, not exactly. I gave her the ring, but she said she needed time to think about it. Anyways, I left her alone in our apartment because she said she needed space. When I returned, I saw through the windows..." he trailed off, looking down.
"Saw what?" Dean persisted. "What did you see?"
Alex's voice became hushed, as if he was afraid talking about the thing would make the thing itself appear. "Look, I know everyone is calling this a murder; that the thing that killed Olivia was a serial killer. I don't think it was, I don't even think it was a person. That night, I don't know what it was that I saw, but I do know that it was very tall and dark and not human at all."
At that moment, Dean's phone rang and the silence between them broke. "Sorry, I got to take this."
He stood, entering a nearby hallway to get some privacy. "Dean," Sam said when Dean accepted the call and put the phone to his ear.
"What do you got, Sammy?"
"I think I might have found a connection between the vics. All of them were engaged, except for Olivia Marten. Did you figure anything out?"
"No, she was engaged. I mean, not exactly, but Alex proposed to her. He gave the ring."
"The ring?" Sam asked. "I mean, if all of our vics were engaged hours before they died then -"
"You're thinking the ring might be haunted," Dean continued.
"Yeah," Sam agreed. "Find out where Alex got it, then maybe we can try to figure out if it was the same ring Amy and Sophie were given."
"Alright. Meet me in the town square in fifteen." He hung up and re-entered the room. Alex was where he left him, was the same empty gaze in his eyes.
"I believe you." The shock on Alex's face was unable to hide. "But I need to know about the ring you gave her."
"Er, I don't know. It was a silver band. Why? Why is that important?"
"Where did you find it?" Dean's voice was serious, urgent.
"Some place in Grandview, in the square. I don't remember what it was called."
Dean headed for the door and Alex stood to follow. "Thank you, and I'm sorry for your loss. I will find the thing that killed her, I promise. Call me if you think of anything else." He handed Alex his card and left the apartment.
As Dean pulled away, heading for the square he realized they needed to find this ring, if that even was the problem. It would only be a matter of time before this spirit would strike again.