AN: For everyone who guessed the monster (and it sounds like at least a couple of you did), kudos and virtual pie! For those who didn't, don't worry...there are other twists that are unlikely to be guessed by anyone because I haven't really given you any clues. For everyone who asked why Cas and/or Crowley didn't transport to Sam and Dean, I believe that Cas was incapable at this point since it's after the angels have fallen and Crowley is going more to mess with Cas (and the boys) than to help, so he's just riding along.

Please be warned: there are non-graphic references to animal cruelty and death of animal-like monsters in this chapter.

Janice doesn't just do the normal beta stuff, she even did some research on something we weren't sure about. Full service beta!

* * *

Barb drove as fast as she dared, which was not quite as fast as Crowley had gone, but still well above the speed limit. She had had an unhealthy love of speed in her younger days and was a skilled driver. It was a little annoying that the beautiful Maserati had an automatic transmission, but it still handled like a dream. She was fairly certain that Crowley had stolen it, but being an accessory to grand theft auto or the recipient of a reckless driving charge couldn't be as important as the lives of the two young men she'd grown to care for. Besides, one of the two supernatural beings pouting in the back seat had to be able to help with any fallout, right?

She was grateful that they'd responded to her famous "mom voice" like most boys (grown or not) tended to. She hadn't raised four sons for nothing.

There was a sense of urgency she couldn't deny, and she accelerated to 95 out of a curve, passing an SUV like it was standing still. Even if she could keep up the pace, they were hours away from Yakima, and all three of them knew that Dean would never call for help unless it were a real emergency.

A tinny version of S.O.B. rang out through the car, and Crowley fished out a phone with a very glittery case. "Squirrel," he answered inexplicably. "You're on spea –"

"It's hellhounds and they're here at the hospital," Dean interrupted, sounds of screaming and other chaos in the background. "Weird hellhounds, but that's what they are. Sam can't be moved. Get your –" And the phone disconnected.

"Oh, dear," Crowley said, not sounding especially worried. "You should drive faster."

"You're the only one who can teleport, " Cas growled in a way that was really not angelic. Actually, he sounded downright pissed. "Get there and help them now!"

Crowley took his time to carefully put the phone back in his inside jacket pocket and straighten his clothes. He sighed dramatically. "Oh, very well. But I'm not going alone. I intended to save this little spell for a rainy day, but by all means, let's go save a moose." He pulled a strange little packet out of his pocket and lit it on fire right there in the car. It smelled like lavendar, burnt hair, and pig manure. Crowley snapped out a word and

they

were somewhere else. Barb's hands were still on the steering wheel and her foot was pushing down the gas pedal, but the car was in park and sitting still and there was a big, shiny sign that said No Parking, Hospital Loading Zone right in front of them.

"Barb, stay in the car," Cas called, flinging himself out of his door holding a really long dagger Barb hadn't noticed before. "Please." He ran toward the main entrance, coat flapping behind him.

"That is good advice," Crowley admitted. He slid across the seat toward Cas' still-open door unhurriedly. "Hellhounds don't always stay the course and they are rather brutal, as you can see." Barb looked around at the chaos throughout the parking lot. People in scrubs were working frantically to evacuate patients and some were working on people who were bleeding. Crowley climbed out of the car at the same leisurely pace. "Oh, and you won't be able to see them," he added, then closed the door and disappeared.

Literally. He was there then gone.

For the first time, Barb wondered if coming along had been a colossally stupid idea.

WINCHESTER * WINCHESTER

Dean had been backed into corners, both figurative and literal, plenty of times before. He didn't like it ever. (Who did?) He disliked this time more than most...way too damn many corners.

He heard the hellhounds coming, heard the screams of their victims. And he couldn't go help a single one. Not when Sam was lying there completely helpless. That was corner one.

If the hellhounds were after Sam, which seemed likely given the attack inside the castle, they would be there soon. They could follow a scent anywhere and didn't give up until they'd ripped their target to shreds. Sam, hooked up to all kinds of things, in a medically-induced coma, and with a serious head wound, wasn't in any shape to be moved. That was corner two.

Sam's stupid room had the big glass wall thingie and was utterly indefensible, so Dean switched off every IV machine and monitor, disconnected what he had to (since he was skilled at hospital escapes) and wheeled Sam's bed right out the door. He paused only long enough to retrieve the plastic bag full of Sam's effects and toss it at his brother's feet.

He was facing multiple opponents that he couldn't actually see, so his only hope was to find a small enough space that they had to come at him one at a time and couldn't flank him to get to Sam. So instead of finding a place to make a stand with at least one exit available like he normally would, Dean found a linen closet at the very end of the hall.

"Sorry, man, sorry," he muttered as he manhandled Sam's limp form off the bed. He cradled Sam's head to his shoulder doing his best to at least minimize the damage he was causing. Sam's legs dragged on the floor and his arms flopped down and he weighed a metric ton. But the hardest part of it was that it felt just like moving a dead body. He had to content himself with feeling Sam's chest inhale and exhale. Dean leaned back slightly so gravity would hold Sam against him and staggered into the closet. "Cas'll be here soon."

People were yelling at him, but he didn't have time to listen or heed. "Get outta here," he yelled back. "Hear those screams? You gotta get as many people out as you can!"

The heavy door fell shut behind him, and Dean used his knee to knock several stacks of blankets onto the floor. He crouched and got to his knees where he could finally lower Sam down onto the makeshift bed. He hadn't so much as twitched the entire time.

Dean pulled over one entire set of shelves, making the space the hounds had to come through to get to them even smaller. That was corner three, but at least this one was one of Dean's own choosing.

Dean started to dial Crowley and cracked the door open so he could peek out. The activity was frenetic now that people had realized the hospital was actually under attack. He felt guilt crushing him for a moment that he was simply leaving them to fend for himself. The hounds shouldn't come for anyone else...wait. Except for Tanner, the last of their would-be kidnappers, who was also in the hospital. Maybe, just maybe the hounds weren't there for Sam at all. If that were the case, it was too late for Tanner already and Dean's best hope was that they'd leave once their job was finished.

There was a crash down at the far end of the hall, and a cart full of trays of inedible hospital food went careening into the wall, a huge new dent in its side though whatever had hit it was invisible. An empty wheelchair spun off next, then suddenly Dean could see the hellhound.

If it was a hellhound. Not only could he see it without treated glasses, but it didn't look like any hellhounds he'd seen. It looked like an ordinary German Shepard mix. It had a snarl of hatred on its face, too many teeth, and a smoky aura like hellhounds, but the rest looked just...dog.

"Squirrel," came that familiar, grating voice over the phone. Something took the corner too fast and crashed into the still-rolling wheelchair. As the German Shepard flickered back to invisible, Dean could see a full-size poodle without the stupid haircut and one of those water dogs that looks like it has dreadlocks, but that latter was only clear for a second. These dogs, too, had the auras of hellhounds.

Crowley was still talking while Dean gaped. "You're on spea –"

"It's hellhounds and they're here at the hospital," Dean interrupted, having to raise his voice to be heard over the screams that were growing ever closer. "Weird hellhounds, but that's what they are. Sam can't be moved. Get your –" Something heavy smashed into the outside of the door so hard that it slammed shut and knocked Dean onto his ass. The phone went sailing and made an ominous crack when it bounced off the wall.

Dean stuffed it back in his pocket, drew the demon killing knife, and half crouched in front of Sam, waiting. The kind he was familiar with or not, the hounds weren't stupid, and were obviously stronger than your typical dog dog. He knew they'd get through the door one way or another.

The door banged again, then a third time, the last one actually warping the heavy metal. The shelves quivered, the light flickered, and a stack of washcloths fell onto Dean's head. He knew that the door wouldn't take another blow like that, so he counted to three in his head and jerked the door open. He had a brief impression of a wolf-like face twisted into a feral snarl. Even as it disappeared again, Dean slammed the knife home into the torso he couldn't see. An ear-shattering howl reached him and black blood poured out onto the floor, the body landing on his foot. A second attacker lunged for Dean, but he'd sensed the movement in the air just in time. Jaws barely closed on his wrist as he buried his knife in the throat and that creature fell too.

The next hellhound was on him before he could get the knife free, this one pug-like except that it was far too big and everything about it was twisted and overly muscled. It had more than one row of teeth, and they all were trying to get to Dean's throat. He grabbed the jaws to keep from being bitten but was barely holding his own. Another body barreled into his legs and Dean went down with over a hundred pounds of furious hellspawn on his chest.

Then there was a blinding light and both hounds' weight was gone.

"Dean!"

Dean got to his feet and clasped his friend's arm in thanks, stepping out of the doorway. "Nice timing, Cas. You gotta heal Sam. You don't have any glasses treated with holy fire or anything, do you?"

"No, I do not." Cas' glance darted up and down the hall, then he knelt on the floor next to Sam. "There is only one hellhound left on this floor but more elsewhere."

Dean nodded and adjusted his grip on the knife so he could watch Sam and Cas' backs until the former was healed. He could see the hound Cas had referenced, looking like a mix of Lhasa Apso, wendigo, and one of those bodybuilders who is so ripped they can't put their arms down straight. He whistled. "Hey, Fido! Free lunch over here!"

It whirled, and he realized for the first time that it had a second head that was even bigger and toothier than the first. As it covered half the length of the hallway in one leap, he considered that maybe attracting its attention hadn't been the smartest thing he'd ever done. (Better than letting it have free run on civilians, but…)

Dean set his feet wide and angled the knife to use its momentum against it. It flickered in and out of sight but not enough to ruin his plan. At the very last millisecond, Dean stepped to the side and drove the knife up. The beast had accelerated into the leap, however, and the knife went into its flank instead of its heart. Worse, it was wrenched right out of his hand.

He spun to anticipate another charge, but the hound was lying dead on the ground, both heads detached. Crowley was holding an angel blade and looking down at it. "What a pity," he said, pulling the demon-killing knife out of the body and tossing it to Dean.

"What –?" Dean started to ask but heard an oh-so-welcome voice behind him and turned so fast his neck cracked. "Sammy!"

Sam was buckling his belt but paused to give Dean a little smile. "I'm okay," he said and honestly, he looked almost back to normal. "Could use a sit rep, though."

Crowley stepped close enough to see inside the closet as Sam took off the gown and started to get his shirts on. "Why do you only invite me after the orgies are done?" he complained with a smirk.

"Shut up, Crowley," responded all three others in unison.

"Is that any way to treat someone who just saved your life?"

Dean ignored that in favor of giving Sam a quick, tight hug. "Glad you're okay," he said gruffly, throwing a nod of thanks to Cas. He handed Sam his boots and stepped back before he could say something sappy. "There are more hellhounds here at the hospital we need to take care of, but they're … weird. You can see 'em sometimes and sometimes not. And –"

"They're hybrids," Crowley interrupted. "Somebody is breeding my beautiful hellhounds with ordinary dogs. These –" He waved his hand at the body already dissolving on the floor. "These are far more dog than hellhound, meaning they've been at it for a while.

"I knew this was possible, but…" He actually looked sad for a second, then pissed.

"But why?" Cas asked the pertinent question. "They are clearly weaker than full hellhounds and do not seem able to maintain invisibility to humans."

Sam was trying to fuss over the teeth marks in Dean's wrist even though they were barely bleeding. Dean should have pulled away, but he was still caught up in the dizzying relief of seeing the guy on his feet, whole and hardy, and let him get away with it. Just this once. "It's gotta be the 'V' guy who hangs out with gangsters up in Seattle," he mused.

"Maybe he only has male hellhounds and he wants to increase his, er, pack," Sam suggested. "They might not be as powerful as full-blooded hellhounds but they're clearly still deadly."

"Why are they killing so randomly?" Dean asked. He liked it when monsters followed predictable patterns. It made them a lot easier to find and kill. "Far as I can tell, they aren't even hesitating to kill people who aren't part of their mission or whatever. I know the real deal likes to kill, but they make some effort to avoid taking out people other than their target."

"They're mad," Crowley said.

"They're always pissed, near as I can tell," Dean retorted.

"No, they're insane, moron. Probably don't have a strong enough handler or they are kept caged too much. Either can cause hellhounds to go insane. And that's without dumbing them down by breeding them with ordinary dogs." Crowley bent over and picked something up, gritting his teeth. "They deserve better! I bet not one dog in fifty survives the breeding, much less the whelping. Hellhound pups always try to eat their dam as soon as they're weaned."

Sam looked sick and Dean knew his expression had to be similar. "What is that?" He asked the demon rather than spend too much thinking about Crowley's words.

Crowley handed it over. He was clearly furious. "Luci hunting can wait. I want to know who's doing this."

Cas was crouched, most likely looking at a body Dean couldn't see. He looked up in surprise at Crowley's last words. "I'm not certain we should delay that…then again, these creatures are many generations removed from a hellhound, so whoever is doing it has been doing it for quite a while. Perhaps we should stay long enough to stop this...breeder and make sure we've destroyed all of the hybrids out there." He shrugged. "The why of this escapes me too."

Sam opened his mouth to say something but stopped when there were screams below. "Shit, we've gotta go before they kill more people."

"I hope Barb stays in the car," Cas said so casually that Dean almost missed it.

"BARB IS HERE?!" he demanded at the top of his voice, registering that Sam had yelled almost the same thing. "Whose bright idea was that?!"

"Where is she?" Sam basically growled at Crowley.

"In the car. I'm sure she's fi – "

Dean cut Crowley off with a glare. He almost sent Crowley off to make sure Barb was safe and keep an eye on her because he could get to her the fastest. But he really didn't want Crowley with the older woman. "Cas, go protect Barb. We'll clean out the hospital."

Cas nodded. "Sam, you should take my blade. I can kill hellhounds without it."

Sam waved him off. "No, you have to let them get too close to you for that and you might have to protect yourself and Barb. Besides, I have Dean to watch my back." He pointedly didn't mention Crowley.

Cas looked like he was going to argue but ran off toward the other side of the hallway.

Dean didn't like the fact that Sam was unarmed, but he supposed that just meant his newly-healed brother would have to stay out of the fight, which wasn't all bad. "Okay, Crowley, you need to be our eyes. I know you think these are cuddly pets or whatever, but we've got to destroy them or they're just going to keep killing."

Crowley bared his teeth but nodded too and the three set off in the direction of the most recent screams. Down one floor there were no people but Tanner, who'd been the last living of Sam and Dean's attackers out of Penny's. He was mangled and dead. There was a big smear of blood outside his door and Dean hoped the cop who'd been guarding him was still alive.

He didn't have time to think anything more because a whole mob of the hybrids (helldogs, Dean decided) was tearing apart a cart full of blood bags. Most stopped what they were doing and turned immediately on the three new threats. Dean shoved Sam through an open door marked Employees Only and slammed it in his face before he had time to do more than sputter. He turned and braced his feet.

"Jumping at you – now!" Crowley warned, giving Dean the warning he needed to stab the first helldog that reached him, since it was invisible. He finished off one of his own. He kept calling out information when any invisible helldogs came at Dean, and they fought surprisingly well together. But they were badly outnumbered and soon had their backs literally at the wall. Dean was sort of surprised that Crowley kept fighting and didn't just pop off somewhere and leave him and Sam to be helldog chow.

There was a splash and a sizzle and a whole lot of howls of pain. Sam was standing behind the helldogs with an empty bucket and a grim look. The monsters were distracted, kicking at their own faces and flanks, giving Dean and Crowley a chance to finish off the last of them.

"Careful where you aim your holy water, Moose," Crowley complained, wiping off his sleeve where it was sizzling.

"You made holy water in the janitor's bucket?" Dean asked, not even surprised.

"There was a rosary in one of the lockers," was Sam's only answer.

They stopped to catch their breath and Dean realized he was still holding the dog tag that Crowley had picked up off the floor. He looked at it and sudden worry twisted his guts when he saw how familiar it looked. It read:

Charon Rivercraft

of Avernus Breeders

If Found Please Call

"What's the matter?" Sam asked.

"Chloe has a tag like this. Same breeder. And her real name is Kolasi, which means –"

"Hell," said Sam at the same time as Crowley said,

"Damnation."

There were suddenly a huge number of screams coming from the parking lot, then there was a terrible crash that went on and on.

The three started running again.

WINCHESTER * WINCHESTER

Barb hated waiting but she'd just be in the way if she went inside, she was sure.

As she watched and tried (and failed) not to worry, more and more people were pouring out of the hospital. Some were helping walking wounded, some were running in panic, and many were wheeling patients out in wheelchairs and beds. It looked like the aftermath of an earthquake or other disaster.

She couldn't sit here and not help. Barb was about to get out of the car to offer comfort and any other help she was capable of giving. She only had one foot on the pavement before the glass doors exploded outward and a mass of canine limbs and nightmare-inducing faces that seemed to be fading in and out of view landed in the midst in the parking lot.

Whatever they were, she couldn't let them get to all these people. There was only one thing Barb could think to do. She pulled her foot in, slammed the car door, and put the powerful engine into drive. She stomped on the pedal and hit something hard.

The terrible crunching went on and on, and after a few more impacts, the car flipped over. Barb thought, well shit, and her head hit the window next to her and the lights went out.

* * *

AN: I'm about to reveal a little spoiler so skip to the next paragraph if you don't want it. I warned you! Here it is: I would not kill Barb. Ever. No hate mail! LOL.

I looked up what kind of transmission Maseratis have, expecting it to be a manual six-speed and apparently they only make automatics. I fell down the rabbit hole of why and found out that most super high end sports cars have dual clutch automatic transmissions now. Weird.

Son of a Bitch (often styled S.O.B.) is a song by Nathaniel Ratcliff The Night Sweats. (It is also occasionally sung by Jensen and con concerts.)

In Greek mythology, Charon runs the ferry that carries souls across the river Styx into the underworld. Sometimes, people were buried with coins so they could pay him a toll and not be stuck wandering on the shore.

Kolasi is a Greek word that can mean Hell or torment.

Avernus is a lake in Italy with stinky vapors. Long ago, it was thought to be the entrance to Hell.

Colby's girl: Thanks! Oh, that is a fantastic visual! I might just have to have Barb whap Crowley with her purse. LOL. Sounds like you figured out the hell hounds, though of course, it was misleading because they are only partly hell hound. It's definitely helpful to have Crowley there. BTW, I was challenged to make Brussels sprouts one of their passwords. Did it work?

Long live BRUCAS: Cas couldn't fly any more by this point, which would have made things a whole lot easier! Crowley could have teleported but he needed the help of a spell to take the entire car. Excellent call on Chloe's tag being important. I know I didn't answer your question about how Jason found Sam so easily, but I will.

Jenjoremy: I think you guessed right with hell hounds, yes? I'm right with you on loving flashbacks. I did cheat a little to get Memphis in there because we're never told where Crowley had actually hidden the First Blade when it was guarded by Juliet. And it just makes me happy that you love Barb. Now she's been allowed to drive Baby and a Maserati!

Christine: So. Much. Yes. OMG! I'm not sure if I can finagle way for Crowley to meet Judy but I really, really want to. "King of Hell? It just so happens I like the heat!" I absolutely would not mess with Barb either, though I just adore her.

muffinroo: Not a whole lot of Sam in this chapter either, but at least he's not in a coma anymore! And he gets to make holy water in a janitor's bucket. I'm sure there are plenty of people who didn't guess the monster, especially because there were a few red herrings scattered around. Once I realized that Barb, Cas, and Crowley were all in the same story, I knew immediately that there would be a scene where Barb is driving the other two. It was too fun!

Kathy: Nice call with the hell hounds! Crowley didn't pop over because he's just messing with Cas in particular. I like to think demons who are powerful enough would "help" with traffic when driving. (I totally would if I could.) I knew you'd like a flashback, no matter how small.

Timelady66: Bwahaha! I feel like Crowley would listen to Barb partly because she sounded a little like Rowena and partly because he was just caught off guard by a human who just assumed he'd listen. LOL. That would be a good story to tell!

stedan: Oh, I bet it was amazing! I've actually never been to a con. Glad to have you reading along. It makes me happy that you enjoyed Cas/Crowley/Barb in a car. Thanks for the trust, LOL. Sam is fine now! And you were right about the hell hounds...they're just not completely hell hound.