A/N: If you're reading and enjoying, let me know! Thanks!
Dean and Brinley drove in silence for a while. Dean was still recovering from his fight with Sam and Brinley was sound asleep in the backseat with her new fleece dog blanket pulled up over her face. After a few hours, they finally stopped at a small diner called Scotty's Café. An older man in his late fifties, early sixties sat in a chair on the porch.
"Where are we?" yawned Brinley.
"Stay in the car," Dean replied abruptly.
"Ugh….rude," she huffed. Dean hopped out and walked up to the man. Brinley rolled down her window slightly so she could hear what was going on.
"Let me guess…..Scotty," Dean said as he pointed at the man.
"Yep," the man replied.
"Hi, my name's John Bonham," Dean lied. Brinley laughed to herself and slightly impressed at his ability to lie with such ease.
"Isn't that the drummer for Led Zeppelin?" Scotty questioned. Brinley laughed again.
"Wow. Good. Classic rock fan," Dean replied with a chuckle, "My parents were big fans."
"What can I do for you, John?" the man asked. Dean took two pieces of paper out of his pocket. They were fliers for missing people – Holly and Vince Parker – the names his Dad had given to him.
"I was wondering if, uh, you'd seen these people by chance?" he asked. Scotty took the papers and looked at them.
"Nope. Who are they?" Scotty asked.
"Friends of mine. They went missing about a year ago. They passed through somewhere around here, and I've already asked around Scottsburg and Salem," Dean replied.
"Sorry," Scotty replied as he handed the papers back to Dean. "We don't get many strangers around here." Dean nodded his head in response. "Is that your daughter in the car?" Dean glanced back at his car, and laughed in embarrassment at the idea of Brinley being his daughter.
"My sister," he replied. "The parents are out of town and we decided to go on an adventure together."
"Oh sorry, one never knows these days," Scotty replied, "I thought you looked too young to have a kid."
"Scotty, you've got a smile that lights up a room, anybody ever tell you that?" Dean teased. Scotty stared at him strangely and Dean chuckled. "Never mind. See you around." Dean turned and headed back to the car.
"So, what do you think? Does he know anything?" Brinley asked curiously. "I thought seemed nice."
"He's hiding something," Dean replied confidently.
"How do you know?" Brinley wondered.
"He couldn't look me in the eye when I asked him about the missing people," Dean replied, "But he looked me in the eye every other time."
"Ohhhhh," Brinley replied. "I'm starving, can we eat here?"
"Yeah, but not now, grab a snack from the bag," Dean replied, "We have a few more stops to make." Minutes later, Dean pulled into the Jorgeson General Store.
"Wait here," he said to Brinley as he hopped out of the car. He showed the owners, an older couple named Harley and Stacy, the same picture. "You sure they didn't stop for gas or something?" Harley showed the picture to Stacy and she shook her head no.
"Nope, don't remember 'em. You said they were friends of yours?" Harley questioned.
"That's right," Dean replied. Their niece, Emily, came downstairs carrying some boxes. She was a young, pretty girl in her late teens/early twenties.
"Did the guy have a tattoo?" she asked.
"Yes, he did," Dean replied. Emily put the boxes on the counter and looks at the picture.
"You remember? They were just married," Emily said to Stacy and Harley.
"You're right. They did stop for gas. Weren't here more than ten minutes," Harley replied.
"You remember anything else?" Dean questioned.
"I told 'em how to get back to the Interstate. They left town," Harley replied.
"Could you point me in that same direction?" Dean asked.
"Sure," Harley replied.
"So….what happened?" Brinley asked as Dean got back into the car.
"They saw them," Dean replied as they drove down the interstate, following the directions that Harley gave to Dean. As they passed by an orchard, a beeping noise came from Dean's bag that was next to Brinley.
"What the hell?" Brinley questioned, startled. Dean pulled over and leaned over the backseat and reached into his bag. He pulled out an EMF meter which was beeping frantically. "What is that?" Brinley asked worriedly.
"An EMF meter…..means there's a spirit nearby," Dean replied. They both looked into the orchard next to him. "Stay here, it must be close by," Dean said to Brinley. He noticed her hands shaking and a worried expression on her face, and felt bad. "You can come," he sighed. "But stay close." Brinley nodded with relief and followed him out of the car. As they walked, they noticed a scarecrow on a post and walked over to him. Brinley was horrified by the looks of it.
"That's not like any scarecrow I've ever seen," she said, her voice wavering.
"Dude, you're fugly," Dean commented to the scarecrow. The scarecrow didn't move and Dean noticed a sickle in the scarecrow's hand and a design on its arm. He took a ladder from a nearby tree and climbed to the top so that he was eye level with the scarecrow. He moved its clothing and recognized the design from Vince's tattoo. He pulled out Vince's flyer and compared the designs, which were exactly the same. He looked at the scarecrow again. "Nice tat," he commented.
"Dean, what is it?" Brinley asked as he climbed down from the ladder.
"I'm not sure yet," he replied. "Come on." They headed back to the general store. Dean hopped out of his car with Brinley close behind.
"You're back, and I see you've brought your daughter," Emily commented.
"Never left," Dean replied.
"And I'm his sister," Brinley added with annoyance.
"Oh, sorry," for replied to Brinley. "Still looking for your friends?" she asked Dean.
"Yeah, something like that," he replied. "You mind fillin' her up there, Emily?" Emily grabbed a pump and started filling up the Impala. "You grow up here?" Dean asked.
"I came here when I was thirteen. I lost my parents. Car accident. My aunt and uncle took me in," she replied.
"They're nice people," Dean commented.
"Everybody's nice here," she replied with a smile.
"So, what, it's the, uh, perfect little town?" Dean questioned.
"Well, you know, it's the boonies. But I love it. I mean, the towns around us, people are losing their homes, their farms. But here, it's almost like we're blessed." Dean nodded his head.
"Hey, you been out to the orchard? You seen that scarecrow?" he asked.
"Yeah, it creeps me out," she replied.
"Me too," added Brinley.
"Whose is it?" Dean asked.
"I don't know. It's just always been there," she replied.
Dean noticed a red van parked in the garage. "That your aunt and uncle's?"
"Customer. Had some car troubles," Emily stated.
"It's not a couple, is it? A guy and a girl?" Dean asked worriedly.
"Mmhmm," she replied with confusion.
"Where are they now?" he asked.
"They went to the café to eat," she replied. "Why?"
"Come on kid, we have to go," Dean said urgently.
Meanwhile, inside Scotty's Café, Scotty was serving the couple whose car broke down. He put two plates of apple pie in front of them.
"We're famous for our apples. So, you gotta try this pie," Scotty replied.
"Oh, no. It—please," she began to say when he cut her off.
"It's on the house," he replied as Dean and Brinley walked in.
"Oh, hey, Scotty. Can I get a coffee, black and a piece of that pie? My sister will take a sprite." Scotty walked away to get it. "Oh, and some of that pie, too, while you're at it. A piece for each of us." Dean and Brinley sat at the table next to the couple. "How ya doin'? Dean asked. The couple waved and smiled. "Just passing through?"
"Road trip," the young woman replied.
"Yeah, us too," Dean replied.
"Your daughter looks just like you," the woman commented.
"I'm his sister," Brinley piped up becoming more and more annoyed that everyone assumed that Dean was her father. The woman nodded sweetly. Meanwhile, Scotty came over and filled their ciders.
"I'm sure these people want to eat in peace," Scotty stated.
"Ummm…rude," Brinley interjected. "We can talk to them if we want to." Dean glanced sternly at Brinley and then looked back at Scotty.
"Just a little friendly conversation," Dean added.
Scotty walked away. "Oh, and that coffee and pie, too, man. Thanks," Dean called after him. As soon as Scotty walked away, Dean continued talking to the couple. "So, what brings you to town?"
"We just stopped for gas. And, uh, the guy at the gas station saved our lives," the woman replied.
"Is that right?" Dean asked, causing Brinley to laugh. Dean glanced at Brinley again and shook his head.
"Yeah, one of our brake lines was leaking. We had no idea. He was fixing it for us," the woman replied.
"Nice people," Dean commented.
"Yeah," the man agreed.
"So, how long till you're up and runnin'?" Dean asked awkwardly.
"Sundown," the man responded.
"Really. Wow. To fix a brake line?" he questioned. They both nodded. "I mean, you know, I know a thing or two about cars. I could probably have you up and running in about an hour. I wouldn't charge you anything," Dean offered.
"You know, thanks a lot, but I think we'd rather have a mechanic do it," the woman replied.
"Sure. I know," he replied and paused for a moment. "You know, it's just that these roads. They're not real safe at night." The couple exchanged looks.
"He means that you need to get the hell out of here now," Brinley announced. Dean glared at Brinley again and shook his head firmly.
"I'm sorry?" the woman questioned.
"Yeah, uh, sorry about her…I know this sounds strange, but, uh—you might be in danger," Dean stammered.
"Look, we're trying to eat. Okay?" the man replied with annoyance.
"Yeah," Dean replied disappointedly. "You know, my brother could give you this puppy dog look, and you'd just buy right into it." Just then the bell above the café door jingled and someone walked in and Scotty came out from the back room.
"Thanks for coming, Sheriff," Scotty greeted. Both Dean and Brinley looked nervous and frustrated. Scotty whispered something in the sheriff's ear, and they both looked at Dean, who looked away. The sheriff walked over to him and Brinley.
"I'd like a word, please," the sheriff stated. The sheriff ended up escorting them out of town.
"Now what?" Brinley questioned, "Those poor people…are they going to die?"
"No, I'm going back tonight…..I'll make sure they're ok," Dean replied.
"Do I get a gun or something to defend myself?" Brinley asked excitedly.
"No….your butt will be staying in the car," Dean replied firmly.
"Aw, come on Dean," Brinley pleaded, "I can help."
"No," he replied firmly. "Absolutely not. It's too dangerous." Brinley sighed disappointedly and shoved herself against the backseat.
"No fair," she pouted. "I guarantee I've been in scarier situations than this."
"It's not safe, and Dad would kill me if I let something bad happen to you on my watch," Dean replied.