I was planning on waiting to post this chapter, but I'd already written it, and who wants to wait to read the fun stuff? ;) Leave a comment and enjoy!
Dean stood in the kitchen looking at the gorgeous woman washing dishes.
"So, you and your… partner are here to investigate Garrett's disappearance?" she asked, not looking at him. Dean nodded, leaning over the counter and shooting her a winning smile, though she barely turned to look at it.
"That's right, ma'am. We're, uh, here to try and get any information the local boys might have missed." Ella's shoulders tightened.
"Well, I'm not sure what else I can tell you that I haven't told the police already. Garrett was happy here. He loved me, he loved his job, and he loves…" she choked a little. "He loved Lily. He wasn't the kind of man to run away. He even went through that whole midlife crisis phase, bought a red sports car and everything. But since then, he's been happy! Even if he did leave, he wouldn't have left without saying anything to me. I just can't believe that he's gone, I won't!" A tear slipped out of her eye and Dean, seeing his moment, swooped closer. He placed a rough hand on her shoulder. Damn, Sammy would know what to do with a crying vic. Unfortunately, his more emotionally intelligent younger brother was upstairs, investigating the rest of the house. Dean had taken one look at the gorgeous wife and staked his claim. He now regretted his choice.
"Well, uh…" He cleared his throat, awkwardly. "I'm sorry about your husband ma'am. Tissue?" He said, pulling one out and offering it to her. Ella continued to cry, eventually turning her body and pressing into him, crying into his broad chest now. His mouth was open in surprise. Great, now what was he supposed to do?
"I'm sorry, I just… After those boys disappeared, I never would have believed that my own husband would be next!" She wailed, and he patted her on the back uncomfortably.
"Those boys? Did you know them?" He asked, trying to lean back. She wouldn't let him.
"Well, a little. They were some of the workers who were here to help with some renovations. They disappeared halfway through the job." Ella said, taking a deep breath. "I mean, them I get, they were just a couple of kids. But Garrett was a good husband, and a great father. There's no way he would have just left."
"What about Luke, your husband's brother?" Ella looked at him.
"Oh, Luke. I mean, that man was always knee deep in some project or another. It's just like him to disappear for a week or so at a time. But he's never gone away without checking in on Garrett. They're really close, and I can't get ahold of either of them!" She started to cry again, and fell back into his chest, clinging to his jacket.
He placed a hand on her back, cringing and looked up at the ceiling. Where the hell are you, Sam?
Sam was upstairs, searching the master bedrooms for sulfur or a hex bag, and having no luck. He rolled his eyes as he thought about the way Dean had ditched him downstairs to talk to that woman. He didn't miss the way his brother looked at her, a grieving potential widow. Ella was gorgeous, that was true, but she was also an emotional wreck, having already begun to tear up when they'd first knocked on the door. Dean had shooed his younger brother away, ready to take his chances down there alone. Whatever, Dean could handle himself. He hoped.
As he left the master bedroom, a soft noise caught his attention. A little girl was sitting in her bedroom at a little doll's table, which was set up for a tea party. Sam wasn't an expert on tea parties, but he was surprised that there were no other toys set up at the table with the little girl. He ducked into the room, his 6'4" stature almost brushing the top of door frame.
"Hey, you're Lily, right?" He asked, in a gentle, disarming voice. The little girl looked up at him and nodded. "I'm Sam." He said, holding out his hand. The little girl only shrugged and looked back at her empty table. Sam sat himself down on her bed and looked around. It was a pretty girly room, with a pink bedspread and butterflies stenciled on the wall in pastel paint. He was startled to see what looked like a little construction worker doll with red hair sitting by her toybox. It seemed distinctly out of place among the frilly décor.
"Hey, Lily. Me and my partner are here to find out where your father went." Sam tried again, folding his hands and slumping his shoulders. He always tried to make himself appear smaller around children, he felt like it made him less intimidating. He was a tall man, overtaking his older brother in height at 17 years old. Dean would never say anything, but Sam could tell it rankled him to be the shorter of the two. It gave rise to a million nicknames, especially Sasquatch. Lily looked over at Sam, turning in her chair to look at him.
"Daddy didn't go anywhere." Lily said in a petulant voice. She folded her little arms. "He just doesn't want to play with me anymore." Sam felt his heart twist. He didn't have to imagine what it felt like to be abandoned by a father, especially as a child.
"Lily, I'm sure he still wants to play with you. That's why me and my brother are here, to help him come home again." Lily shrugged, but didn't say anything else. Sam turned his attention to her table. "Where are they rest of your… uh, guests?" he asked, motioning to the empty chairs.
"None of them want to play tea party anymore." She said, her bottom lip pushing out. "I even asked nicely, and they all just want to sleep in the toybox. Except that one." She pointed over to the doll on the floor. "He's in timeout." Sam smiled down at her. It was sweet of her to care so much about her toys.
"Well, uh, it's really nice of you to ask them, but maybe they're just, uh… tired." He said. He felt like a gigantic idiot. He was usually the more skilled of the two hunters at talking to the victims, but he felt out of place in this frilly little bedroom. "Lily, did your dad say anything to you before he disappeared?" Lily frowned.
"Daddy didn't disappear; he just didn't want to play with me anymore! That's what he told me!" She said, her little eyes starting to tear up. "Mommy said that daddy had to play with me, but he told me he just doesn't want to." Sam held up his hands.
"Whoa, no, of course he didn't disappear." He eased himself off the bed and onto the floor. "He's going to come back. Dean and I are going to bring him back, I promise." Lily sniffled, looking over to him. She gave him a little smile.
"Do you wanna have a tea party with me?" she said, in her quavering little voice. Sam smiled, happy to see her perk up.
"Ah, sure." He agreed, although now he was a little nervous. He didn't want Dean to come clomping upstairs and see him playing tea party in this room with the vic's daughter. He could only imagine the teasing that would follow. But now Lily was looking at him with a big smile, the only smile he'd seen from her so far and he couldn't say no. Maybe he could continue to build the rapport with her. Children were often more sensitive to the occult, so maybe she'd seen something, or heard something that her mother missed.
Sam half crawled, half scooted himself to the tiny table, electing not to sit on and crush one of the doll sized chairs. Lily, now smiling happily, went to retrieve a little set of dishes for Sam, setting down the pink and purple plate and fork in front of him. Sam smiled awkwardly. This was weird, and the whole time he could imagine Dean calling him a wussy little pansy for sitting here and having tea with an eight-year-old girl. He leaned his head towards the door, but he didn't hear Dean's heavy footsteps at all, just a muffled conversation from downstairs. He hoped Dean was handling himself all right.
"Here, this cup is for you." Lily said, holding out a small cup in her hand. It wasn't pink or purple, it looked like it was a real antique, like unpolished copper. Lily had already set down a flowery porcelain cup in front of herself. Inwardly grateful he at least didn't have to use the purple teacups the size of his thumb, he reached for the cup.
His fingers made contact, and instantly it felt like a bomb had gone off in the room. Bright light flooded his eyes, and a loud ringing in his ears overtook his hearing. His muscles tensed in pain as he fell to the floor, but the pain didn't subside. He squeezed his eyes shut as he let out a pained groan, trying his hardest to call out for his brother.
"D-Dean…" he squeezed out through clenched teeth, definitely not loud enough to be heard. He rolled onto his back, clenching his fists. "Lily, go get Dean." He managed, but Lily simply stood there, looking at him. She shook her head.
"It's not done yet." She said, keeping her eyes trained on him. Sam's heart began to race and he tried again.
"Dean!" His voice was strangled, and he couldn't manage another try before the pain caused him to black out.
Sam awoke a few seconds later, his mind still reeling and his ears still ringing.
"Dean?" he asked, trying to push himself off the floor. He looked down, his eyes adjusting. Something was wrong. He was sure he'd passed out on Lily's floor, which was nice hardwood. This was something else, it was rough and cracked, almost like a broken-down cabin. The panels were massive, but rough, and the dents in the wood were deep enough to trip over.
Moaning, he rolled himself over onto his side, trying to get his bearings. Nothing felt broken, but his limbs felt tingly, like he'd just been struck by lightning. Instead of seeing Lily's painted walls, he was looking at a solid blue wall, one that stretched high above his head. Even higher above that he could see the ceiling, hanging so high above him it was like looking at the sky. Where the hell was he? He sat up, his head beginning to clear, but the shapes around him refused to put themselves in order. Everything felt so far away and out of focus. Suddenly, a LOUD voice above him boomed, and he could feel it rumbling through his bones.
"There you are, Sam! Are you ready to play, now?" It was Lily's voice, but there was no reason for it to be so loud. He looked up, his hazel eyes locking onto the impossible form of Lily, towering above him. Her face hung in the sky like the moon, gigantic blue eyes locked directly onto him. He tried to scramble to his feet but couldn't get them to work. Instead, he skittered backwards, away from the looming figure.
"W-what?" he said, his mouth shaking. "What the hell?" Lily was still sitting, but from his perspective she was like a three-story building. She smiled down at his diminutive form. Without warning, her hand reached down for Sam. He let out a strangled shout, trying to continue his backwards scramble, but his back hit the blue wall behind, which he now realized was just one of the legs of the table. Fingers that were almost as long as he was tall reached for him, closing gently around his back, curling around his body and pressing his arms tightly to his torso. Her thumb pressed firmly into his chest, ensuring he wouldn't be able to escape the grip she had on him. He struggled against her fingers, his little arms thrashing uselessly in her firm but gentle grip. He could hardly kick his legs against the pinky finger wrapped around them. He couldn't believe he could be trapped like this in someone's hand. Then his heart dropped to his stomach as he was off the ground, lifted effortlessly up in front of Lily's face.
"I think you'll like everyone else, Sam." She said, ignoring his futile kicks and struggles. Sam felt his heart beating wildly, his struggles amounting to nothing while being clutched in the giant's hand. She didn't even seem to notice him pushing at her fingers. Her thumb, placed directly on his sternum and covering his entire torso, exerted enough pressure to ensure he couldn't move at all.
"Put me down, Lily!" He shouted, adrenaline pounding through his head. He wasn't afraid of heights like Dean was, but to be completely helpless, suspended over the ground at the mercy of a giant? He couldn't help but panic.
"No, you said you'd play tea party with me!" She said, her face darkening. Sam couldn't help but feel his blood run cold in fear. He would normally never have been scared of a little girl. Well, unless she was a changeling or a ghost or something else. But he was gripped tightly in Lily's little fist, relying on her not to drop him, or crush him, or…
"Sammy?" he heard a faraway voice call. Dean! He renewed his struggle, his fear forgotten in the face of hope. He wasn't even thinking about what would happen to him if she did let go, still suspended in her hands over the floor.
"Dean! I'm up here, Dean!" He shouted, but he knew his tiny voice would hardly reach him. Lady luck was on his side, though, as he heard Dean's signature clomping up the stairs, those distinctive heavy bootsteps growing louder and louder. He cringed, feeling the floor shake from those heavy steps. He almost couldn't believe how loud they were getting as he got closer.
"Sam, are you up here?" he heard the gravelly rumble as his brother passed by the room. Immediately, he was whisked behind Lily's back, still clutched tightly in her hand. The sudden movement made him dizzy, and he froze. He couldn't believe she could move so fast, especially not with his entire body in just her hand. He continued to try and fight against his captivity, but her grip only tightened around him, momentarily squeezing the wind out of him. His arms were pressed into his own body, that thumb on his chest felt like it was moments away from crushing him.
"Dean…" he wheezed, trying to catch his breath.
"Hey, little girl. Have you seen my brother? He was supposed to be up here, looking around." He flinched from the volume of Dean's booming voice. It shook him to his core. Sam finally caught his breath, ready to shout again, when the little girl's other hand reached over to him, placing a massive fingertip over his face and stifling his cry. He reared back, trying to breathe again, but was only pressed up against her back, his face completely covered by her fingertip. He continued to struggle, aching to breathe again and call out for his brother, but her finger was unrelenting. He felt like his bones were at the point of breaking, every nerve in his body was screaming at him to get away.
"I haven't seen him." He heard Lily say, and he felt her voice all around him, traveling through her body, surrounding him. He felt his vision go dark, the lack of oxygen finally taking its toll. He fell limp in her hand, just as Dean rumbled something above.