Bobby's spirit had attached itself to the flask Dean had kept. He told them that the empty field the coordinates he'd given them led to was for a brand new biotech lab that was actually a slaughterhouse for people, and thanks to stuff like the drugs in the Turducken, people would be none the wiser. "They're not hunting anymore," Bobby said. "They're engineering the perfect herd. Now, we've gone up against plenty liked to eat a few folks in the woods. This ain't that. This is about knocking us off the top of the food chain. This is about them Levis living here forever, one-percenter style, while we march our dopey, fat asses down to the shiny new death camps at every corner."
Sam's laptop beeped. "It's an email…" he opened it. "From Frank." Dean blinked. "Frank's alive?" He went over to look over Sam's shoulder. "That jackass, always stealing my thunder," Bobby grumbled. Sam began reading aloud, "'Sam and Dean, if you're reading this, I'm dead… or worse. This email was sent to you because some prince is trying to hack into my hard drive right this second, so unless it's you, you got trouble.'" At the other end of the table, Mack chewed her nail, listening quietly. She'd been reserved ever since they ditched Cas at the hospital. "Um, okay. 'My drive is full of compromising info. Your new aliases, hangouts, where you stored your car…'"
"Baby?" Dean whimpered. Sam glanced at him briefly, going back to reading. "Even though he encrypted the crap out of his drive, he says we should assume that someone can hack into it eventually. He did put a tracking device on it." He clicked the link to the 'Hard Drive Tracker' application. "Alright, let's see where Frank's drive is." A box appeared on the screen saying the drive was in Richard Roman Enterprises. "Perfect," Dean groaned sarcastically. "It's in the middle of the Death Star. Alright, well, off to Chicago."
Sam, Dean and Mack sat in the living room of Charlie Bradbury, the person who'd hacked into Frank's drive. Charlie was a geeky redhead, who was freaking out after they told her the truth about monsters- she already knew about the Leviathans and how Borax hurt them. "So you're saying you guys are monster hunters?" Charlie asked. "So, there are other monsters?" Sam opened his mouth to speak, but Charlie waved her hand dismissively at him. "Stop. Never mind. Just shh. Okay, I get how you tracked the drive- straight GPS- but it's still in the office. How did you find me?"
Sam cleared his throat, opening his laptop and showing her the screen, which had video footage of herself. "Aw!" Charlie groaned. "Son of a gun jacked my webcam?!" Dean smirked, "Welcome to Frank." She sighed. "It's creepy, but I'll give it to him. So you're telling me everything he had on his drive is true."
"That and more."
"Wait," Sam interrupted. "How long did it take you to crack Frank's drive?" Charlie shrugged, "A day or so."
"Is there anything you can't hack into?"
"Not yet."
"What about Dick Roman's email?" Sam asked. "Why would I… Oh," Charlie's face lit up in understanding. "He's one of them." Sam shook his head, "No. Uh, he's their leader." Charlie stared at them like they were insane. "So what's the end game- steal our resources, make us some slaves?" Dean corrected her, "Planet-wide value meal. We're the meat." She blinked. "You can't be… serious. Okay. Alright. Let's do this. What am I looking for?" She sat down at her laptop, ready to get to work. "Well, for starters, uh, anything about archaeological dig sites."
"Like Indiana Jones stuff?" Charlie asked, already typing away. "All we know is that Dick has been digging all over the world, and we need to know what he's looking for." Charlie started muttering to herself. "You know, I was having a really good week. I met someone, downloaded the new Robyn album. Everything was coming up me. Oh, crap." Sam sighed, "Look, we get it sucks." Charlie shook her head. "No, not that. This," she gestured to the screen. "Dick's email isn't on the company server. It's on a private one, in his office."
"Meaning?" Dean asked. "Can't get into it unless you have his phone or you're at his desk." Dean frowned, "So you're saying that if we're inside Dick's office, then we can hack into his email?" She shook her head again. "You can't. Only someone like… But I sure as hell ain't doing it. I am doing my job and… What are the chances I see everything on that drive and Dick lets me live anyway?" Sam gave her a look. "I think you know." She nodded, muttering to herself some more. "So I erase the drive first, protect me and you. Then I go back to my old life, right?" She noticed their faces. "What?"
"It's not that easy," Dean grimaced. "You're on Dick's radar, which means you don't have an old life anymore." Charlie swallowed, eyes wide. "I'm gonna die. I should have taken that job at Google." Sam and Dean exchanged a glance. "Look, Charlie, it's okay if you can't do it. I mean, you didn't volunteer for this," Sam assured her. "Totally. Exactly. But now I volunteer."
"What?"
"I got to go back in and wipe Frank's drive, anyway. Might as well break into Dick's office, too," she shrugged. "Are you sure?" Sam pressed. "No. But these things are gonna eat everyone I know. What kind of douchebag stands by for that? However, I have never broken into anything in real life, so… plan?"
"You got a Bluetooth?"
"Yeah."
Sam and Dean joined her at the table, Mack stayed on the couch, picking at her nails and chewing her lip nervously. "Security system- can you get into that?" Dean asked. "I can reroute any surveillance cameras we need," Charlie confirmed. "Alright, let's start with that."
The Winchesters were camped out in the back of Bobby's old van later that night. Sam sat at a station Charlie had helped set up. "How's it going?" Dean asked, joining Sam in the back after setting Mack up with a makeshift bed up front. "Great, since she set all this up. Um, look." Sam hit some keys on Charlie's laptop, showing Dean the security footage. "See this? I can put each camera on a pre-recorded loop. Once I do that, she'll have fifteen minutes."
"Fifteen minutes ain't a lot of time."
"No. She said if it took her longer to hack his desktop, then she deserved to be eaten." Dean grinned. "I like her." Sam glanced toward the front of the van. "She still refusing to talk?" Dean sighed. "Yeah… Still upset over leaving Cas behind." He became distracted as he spotted something on the footage showing Charlie standing outside the building. "Wait. Is that… Son of a bitch." Sam furrowed his brow in confusion. "What?" Dean gestured, "Look at her bag." Sam looked at the screen, spotting Bobby's old flask in one of the side pockets.
"Bobby. Wait. Y-you think he, uh-"
"Hitched a ride after we told him to cool his jets? Yeah," Dean nodded. "What the hell's he thinking?" Sam shook his head, "He's not. So what do we do- call the whole thing off?" Dean clenched his jaw, "We only got one shot at this." He took out his phone, dialing Charlie and putting it on speaker. "I used to think maybe you loved me…" Charlie's voice carried through. "Charlie, it's Dean," he cut her off. "Are you singing?"
"I sing when I'm nervous. Don't judge me." Dean swallowed. "Judgment free zone. Listen, uh, check the side pocket of your bag." On screen, they saw her reach in and take out the flask. "Oh. Thank you," she drank from it. "Mm. Good idea." Dean bit his lip. "Yeah, no problem. Look, that's, uh, kind of a family heirloom. It's a good luck charm, okay, so don't lose it."
"Copy that," she put the flask back in her bag. "Okay, let's do this." She didn't move. "Uh, Charlie?" Dean asked, but she still didn't do anything. "Uh, Charlie?" he repeated. "I'm having a hard time moving," she stated the obvious. "You can do this," he assured her. "Uh, I'm not- I'm not a spy. No, I can't do it. I can't do it. I can't do it. I can't." Sam grabbed the phone from Dean. "Charlie, hey, it's Sam."
"I'm sorry, Sam. I'm sorry. I- I just-"
"It's okay. Uh, listen, w-who's your favorite Harry Potter character?"
"Uh, Hermione," she answered. "Hermione. Well, uh, alright, did Hermione run when Sirius Black was in trouble or when Voldemort attacked Hogwarts?" Dean scoffed, "Seriously?" Sam hissed back at him, "Shut up." Charlie was answering Sam, "No, of course not." Sam refocused. "What did she do?" he asked her. "She kicked ass. She actually saves Harry in practically every book. And then she ends up with the wrong-"
"Uh, stay on track," Sam interrupted. "Okay, so she kicked ass, right? So, then, what are you going to do?" Sounding more determined, Charlie replied, "I'm gonna kick it in the ass." On screen, they saw Charlie walk toward the building and go through the front door. "Good girl," Sam murmured. "Oh, you go, Dumble-dork," Dean smirked.
As soon as Charlie got to level four of the building, he started the looped footage at security. They could still see the actual footage from the van. Charlie got back into the elevator, heading all the way up to level eleven. "I'm in," she murmured through the Bluetooth. "I've always wanted to say that." Dean rolled his eyes, smirking a little. "You're on the clock. Move." They watched her get off the elevator and then almost immediately flatten herself against a wall. "Hey, there's a big-ass guard up here, blocking the door," she hissed. "What do I do?"
"Just wait it out," Dean answered. They saw Charlie peek around the corner and then hide again. "He's not going anywhere." Dean swallowed, "Okay, uh, you work there every day. Do you know the guy?" Charlie peeked around the corner again. "I guess," she said. "I mean, I've seen him. I've never talked to him." She pulled her head back. "Okay, when you've seen him, does he look at you, or does he just kind of slide his eyes by?"
"Um… eye contact? I don't know. He always kind of smiles a bit. I don't really-" Dean cut her off. "Good. What you're gonna do is you're gonna walk right up to him, and you're gonna flirt your way past." Charlie protested. "I can't. He's not my type." Dean frowned, "You're gonna have to play through that."
"As in he's not a girl," Charlie hissed. Dean took a split second to process that. "Oh, oh," he swallowed. "Pretend he has boobs." Sam gave him a look and he glared back. "Worse," Charlie said. "Well, I don't know. Um, do you have any tattoos? Give him a little sneak peek there. All tattoos are sexy." Sam rolled his eyes as Charlie answered. "Mine is Princess Leia in a slave bikini straddling a twenty-sided die." Dean didn't know how to respond, looking at Sam. "I was drunk. It was Comic Con," Charlie defended herself.
"We've all been there," Dean muttered. "Okay, I'm gonna walk you through this." Charlie went around the corner, approaching the security guard. "Start with a smile," he told her. She still looked too tense. "Relax, Charlie. You just got home, and Scarlett Johansson's waiting for you." Her shoulders relaxed and her smile became more natural as she let out a contented sigh. The security guard stood as Charlie approached. "Can I help you, miss?" he asked. "Hey… Bill. Charlie, from I.T."
"Oh, burning the midnight oil, huh?" Bill smiled. "Just like you- I mean, when you're not at the gym. What, do you work out with all your free time?" Dean asked, Charlie repeating him word for word. "I try to get to the gym at least three times a week," Bill told Charlie. "Just trying to get back to my fighting weight, you know?"
"It shows. You look amazing," Dean supplied, and Sam smirked over at him. "It shows. You look amazing," they heard Charlie repeat. "This never happened," Dean hissed at Sam, then spoke into the phone. "Do you do anything else in your free time, like take a girl out for a drink?" As Charlie echoed the words, Sam started laughing. "Stop laughing, Sammy," Dean told him. "Stop laughing, Sammy," Charlie repeated, then froze. "Um… Y-you know that bar- Stop Laughing Sammy?" Sam stifled his laughter with his hand. "That place is bringing sexy back. Which is easy…"
"Stop talking, Charlie," Dean told her. "... 'cause they kept the receipt. Stop talking, Charlie," Charlie paused again. "Right. So, um, y-you were saying about going out," she played with her hair, "drinks?" Bill was eyeing Charlie. "Um… Yeah, yeah. That'd be great." Sam continued to muffle his laughter as Dean spoke into the phone one more time. "Cool. Pencil that in. Hey, can I ask a favor? The ladies' room downstairs is nasty. Can I use the exec washroom to powder my nose?"
"Yeah, yeah. Why not? Um, it's right down the hall. It's the first door on the right," Bill said. "Okay, now smile and wink, and get out of there," Dean told Charlie. She did so, hurrying down the hall. "I feel dirty," she said. "You and me both, sister," Dean agreed. "The eagle is landing. Going radio silent."
Thanks to the files Charlie found on Dick's computer, they managed to get the item the Leviathans were after before Dick's people could. After a confrontation with Dick where Bobby nearly went vengeful and hurt Charlie in the process, the Winchesters dropped her off at a bus station. "Thank you," she told them outside the terminal. "Thanks," Dean returned. "I left your dumb flask in the backseat, by the way. Worst good luck charm ever." Dean handed over her bag. "Here you go." Charlie smiled, "Thanks."
"So, listen," Sam said, "um, we can't thank you enough." Charlie smirked, "Actually, you can. Never contact me again, like, ever. Deal?" She held out her good arm for a handshake. "Deal," Sam agreed, shaking. Dean shook next. "Keep your head down out there, okay?"
"This ain't the first time I've disappeared. You think my name is actually Charlie Bradbury? Please. So, good luck saving the world," she saluted with the Vulcan sign. "Peace out, bitches." She turned, handing her bag to the bus driver to stow. Sam and Dean watched her go, Mack holding Dean's hand at his side. "She's kind of like the little sister I never wanted," Dean commented. "We got to talk," Sam said. They started heading back toward the van. "What, you mean before we get back to the car and the flask?"
"Exactly. So, what the hell happened in the lobby, Dean?" Sam asked. "Man, if I had a free shot, I'd've bitch-slapped the hell out of Dick, too," Dean commented. "Yeah, but I mean," Sam stopped, facing his brother and niece, "Charlie got her freaking arm broken. If Kinley hadn't been in the van-"
"I know," Dean grimaced. "But he didn't mean to do it." Sam nodded, "Exactly. He's not in control, not about Dick. That was vengeful spirit crap." Mack looked worriedly up at Dean. "I know. But it's still Bobby."
"But if he really goes there, he won't be anymore, and then we won't be able to pull him back. And then what are we supposed to do?"
"I know. Look, let's just figure out what that thing we stole is, and then we'll figure out what the hell to do with Bobby."
