The Impala zoomed up a two-lane, driven by Dean. He was in a good mood, grooving along to the music.
"Whoo!" Dean cried. "Listen to her purr! Have you ever heard anything so sweet?"
Sam glanced at his brother. "You know, if you two, want to get a room, just let us know, Dean."
"Oh, don't listen to him, baby, he doesn't understand us," Dean said.
"You're in a good mood," Sam noted.
"Why shouldn't I be?"
"No reason."
"Got my car, got a case, things are looking up."
"Wow. You hear a couple of severed heads and a pile of dead bodies and you're Mister Sunshine."
"How far to Red Lodge?"
"Uh, about another three hundred miles."
"Good." Dean floored it.
They reached Red Lodge and entered. The three entered the lodge and a sheriff with an impressive mustache began talking to them; they were posing as reporters.
"The murder investigation is ongoing, and that's all I can share with the press at this time," the sheriff said.
"Sure, sure, we understand that, but just for the record, you found the first, uh, head last week, correct?" Sam questioned.
"Mm-hmm."
"Okay, and the other, a uh, Christina Flanigan-"
"That was two days ago. Is there-" A young woman knocked on the door and pointed at her watch. "Oh. Sorry boys, young lady, time's up, we're done here."
"One last question-"
"Yeah, what about the cattle?" Dean asked.
The sheriff frowned. "Excuse me?"
"You know, the cows found dead, split open, drained... over a dozen cases."
"What about them?"
Adeline tilted her head, shifting her grip on Eva. "So you don't think there's a connection?"
"Connection... with..."
"First cattle mutilations, now two murders? Kinda sounds like ritual stuff."
"You know, like Satanic cult ritual stuff?" Dean added.
The sheriff laughed. "You -- you're not kidding."
"No."
"Those cows aren't being mutilated. You wanna know how I know?"
"How?" Sam asked.
"Because there's no such thing as cattle mutilation. Cow drops, leave it in the sun, within 48-hours the bloat will split it open so clean it's just about surgical. The bodily fluids fall down into the ground and get soaked up because that's what gravity does. But, hey, it could be Satan. What newspaper did you say you work for?"
"World Weekly News..." Dean said.
"Weekly World News," Sam corrected.
"World-"
"Weekly World-"
"Weekly... I'm new."
"Get out of my office," the sheriff ordered.
As soon as they exited, Adeline glanced at Dean with an amused smile. "Wow, you sold it."
"I tried," he said.
HOSPITAL
Dean, Sam and Adeline, holding Eva, entered the morgue, still wearing their shirts and ties, and dress for Adeline, and wore lab coats. The intern on duty had a name tag that read J. Manners.
Dean looked the name tag, calculating. "John."
"Jeff," the intern corrected.
"Jeff. I know that. Dr. Dworkin needs to see you in his office right away."
"But Dr. Dworkin's on vacation."
"Well, he's back," Adeline said. "And he's angry, and he's screaming, dude, so if I were you, I would... okay."
The intern ran off and Dean questioned, "Hey, those Satanists in Florida, they marked their victims, didn't they?"
"Yeah, reversed pentacle on the forehead," Sam said.
"Yeah. So much f-d up crap happens in Florida."
Dean handed Sam a pair of latex gloves and put on a pair of his own. Sam opened a compartment and wheeled out a corpse to see a box between its legs.
"All right, open it," Dean said, taking Eva from Adeline while she put on latex gloves.
"You open it," Sam shot back.
"Wuss."
Adeline sighed and carried the box to another table and flipped off the lid. Sam and Dean approached, cringing.
She glanced between the brothers. "You guys are wimps."
Dean looked over the lid. "Well, no pentagram. Be nice, Adeline."
"Wow. Poor girl," Sam commented.
"Maybe we should, uh, you know, look in her mouth, see if those wackos stuffed anything down her throat. You know, kinda like Moth in Silence of the Lambs."
"Yeah, here, go ahead."
"No, you go ahead."
"What?"
""Put the lotion in the basket.""
"Right, yeah, I'm the wuss, huh? Whatever."
Adeline sighed again and started poking her fingers in the mouth.
Sam gagged. "Dean, get me a bucket?"
"Adeline find something?"
"No, I'm going to puke."
Dean told Adeline, "Wait, lift the lip up again?"
Sam frowned. "What? You want me to throw up, is that it?"
"No, no, no, I think I saw something." He gently pushed Adeline's hands away and pulled back the lip as Adeline took her daughter. "What is that, a hole?" He pressed on the gum and a narrow, sharp tooth descended.
"It's a tooth."
Adeline looked closer before saying, "Sam, Dean, that's a fang. Retractable set of vampire fangs, you've gotta be kidding me."
"Well, this changes things."
Adeline met his eyes. "Ya think?" She pulled Eva's hands away. "No, baby. That's dangerous."
BAR
That night, they made their way to a bar and Dean went around to park. They walked inside.
The four, the mother holding her daughter, approached the bar and a man, Gordon, was at a table to one side, watching them.
"How's it going?" Dean asked the bartender.
"Living the dream," the bartender replied. "What can I get for you?"
"Three beers, please."
"We're looking for some people." Sam said.
"Sure," the bartender noted. "Hard to be lonely."
"Yeah. But um, that's not what I meant." He pulled out a $50 and dropped it on the bar and the bartender took it. "So these, these people, they would have moved her about six months ago, probably pretty rowdy, like to drink..."
"Yeah, real night owls, you know?" Adeline told him. "Sleep all day, party all night."
"Barker Farm got leased out a couple months ago. Real winners. They've been in here a lot -- drinkers. Noisy. I've had to 86 them once or twice."
"Thanks," Dean replied.
They left their half-finished beers on the table and left. The man who was watching them was gone, a smoldering cigarette left behind. As the four left, the man watched, then began stalking the them. They went down an alley and he followed. He lost sight of them and he turned. Dean, Sam and Adeline were suddenly there, pinning him to the wall, Dean with a knife to his throat. Adeline stood back with her daughter.
"Smile," Dean ordered.
"What?" Gordon questioned.
Adeline narrowed her eyes. "Show us those pearly whites."
"Oh, for the love of -- you want to stick those things somewhere else? I'm not a vampire." Sam frowned. "Yeah, that's right. I heard you guys in there."
"What do you know about vampires?" Sam demanded.
"How to kill them. Now seriously, bro, little girl. Those knives are making me itch."
Dean cocked his head. Gordon started to pull away and Sam pinned him harder.
"Whoa. Easy there, chachi," Gordon said, slowly bringing his right hand to his lip and pulled it back to reveal normal gums. "See? Fangless. Happy?" Dean let up. "Now. Who the hell are you?"
They followed Gordon to his car. He pulled out his arsenal.
Gordon glanced between them. "Sam and Dean Winchester. Adeline and Eva Steele. I can't believe it. You know I met your old man and Adeline's husband once? Hell of a couple guys. Great hunters. I heard they passed. I'm sorry. It's big shoes. But from what I hear, you guys fill 'em. Great trackers, good in a tight spot-"
"You seem to know a lot about our family and Adeline's husband," Dean noted.
"Word travels fast. You know how hunters talk."
"No, we don't, actually," Adeline deadpanned.
"I guess there's a lot your dad or Kyle never told you, huh?"
"So, um, those two vampires, they were yours, huh?" Sam asked.
"Yep. Been here two weeks."
"Did you check out that Barker Farm?" Dean questioned.
"It's a bust. Just a bunch of hippie freaks. Though they could kill you with that patchouli smell alone."
"Where's the nest, then?" Adeline demanded, moving Eva to her other hip.
"I've got this one covered. Look, don't get me wrong. It's a real pleasure meetin' you fellas, kid and lady. But I've been on this thing over a year. I killed a fang back in Austin, tracked the nest all the way up here. I'll finish it."
"We could help," Dean offered.
"Thanks, but I'm kind of a go-it-alone type of guy."
"Come on, man, I've been itching for a hunt."
"Sorry. But hey, I hear there's a Chupacabra two states over. You go ahead and knock yourselves out." He got in his car. It was real good meeting you, though. I'll buy you a drink on the flip side." He drove off.
Adeline stared after the car. "There's something about him I don't trust."
"Adeline, I'm sure it'll be fine," Dean reassured.
"Because you said that, it won't."
---
Later that night, the brothers made their way to the mill and saw Gordon pinned under an electrical saw, close to being decapitated. Adeline went to the motel with Eva, deciding to meet up with the brothers later.
Sam pulled Gordon to safety. Dean attacked the vampire, getting him pinned under the electrical saw. He lowered the saw, decapitating the vampire.
"So uh, I guess I gotta buy you that drink," Gordon said.
Sam stared at his brother, stunned.
---
They made their way to a bar. Adeline walked up with Eva, frowning at Gordon.
Gordon, Dean, Sam and Adeline were sitting around a table. Eva was in a high chair. A waitress brought them another round and Dean reached for his wallet.
"No, no, I got it," Gordon told them.
"Come on," Dean argued.
"I insist." He looked to the waitress. "Thank you, sweetie." He raised his glass. "Another one bites the dust."
"That's right."
Dean and Gordon drank a toast, Sam and Adeline sat back with their arms folded.
"Dean." Gordon laughed. "You gave that big-ass fang one hell of a haircut, my friend."
"Thank you," Dean replied.
"That was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful."
"Yep. You all right, Sammy?"
"I'm fine," Sam and Adeline said.
"Well, lighten up a little, Sammy, Adie," Gordon told them.
"They're the only ones that get to call me that," Sam replied.
Adeline frowned. "Don't call me that."
Gordon looked surprised at them before saying, "Okay. No offense meant. Just celebrating a little. Job well done."
Sam offered a tight smile. "Right. Well, decapitations aren't my idea of a good time, I guess."
Adeline unbuckled her daughter. "Nor mine."
Gordon looked between them. "Oh, come on, man, missy, it's not like it was human. You've gotta have a little more fun with your job."
Dean smiled. "See? That's what I've been trying to tell them. You two could learn a thing or two from this guy."
Adeline pursed her lips and stood. "I have to get Eva to bed." She pulled her daughter out. "Come on, sweet girl. Bedtime."
Sam stood as well. "Yeah, I bet I could. Look, I'm not gonna bring you guys down. We're just gonna go back to the motel."
"You sure?" Dean asked.
"Yeah."
"Sammy? Remind me to beat that buzzkill out of you later. Adeline, try to relax. Sleep well, Eva." He tossed Sam the keys.
Gordon frowned. "Something I said?"
"No, no, they just get that way sometimes. Tell you what. Match you quarters for the next round."
---
Sam and Adeline returned to the motel room and Sam dropped the keys on a hook.
---
In the bar, Dean and Gordon were still talking. "...So. I pick up this crossbow. And I hit that ugly sucker with a silver-tipped arrow right in his heart. Sammy's waiting in the car, and uh, me and my dad take the thing into the woods, burn it to a crisp. I'm sitting there and looking into the fire, and I'm thinking to myself, I'm 16 years old. Most kids my age are worried about pimples, prom dates. I'm seeing things that they'll never even know. Never even dream of. So right then, I just sort of-"
"Embraced the life?" Gordon finished.
"Yeah."
"Yeah."
"Yeah. How'd you get started?"
"First time I saw a vampire, I was barely 18. Home alone with my sister. I hear the window break in her room. I grab my dad's gun, run in, try to get it off her. Too late. So I shoot the damn thing. Which of course is about as useful as snapping it with a rubber band. It rushes me, picks me up, flings me across the room, knocks me out cold. When I wake up, the vampire's gone, my sister's gone."
"And then?".
"Then... try explaining that one to your family. So I left home. And then bummed around looking for information: how you track 'em, how you kill 'em. And I found that fang -- it was my first kill."
"Sorry about your sister."
"Yeah. She was beautiful. A lot like your friend. I can still see her, you know? The way she was. But hey, that was a long time ago. I mean, your dad. It's gotta be rough."
"Yeah. Yeah, you know. He was just one of those guys. Took some terrible beatings, just kept coming. So you're always thinking to yourself, he's indestructible. He'll always be around, nothing can kill my dad. Then just like that," he snapped, "he's gone. I can't talk about this to Sammy and Seri. You know, I gotta keep my game face on." He cleared his throat. "But uh, the truth is I'm not handling it very well. I feel like I have this-"
"Hole inside you? And it just gets bigger and bigger and darker and darker? Good. You can use it. Keeps you hungry. Trust me. There's plenty out there needs killing, and this'll help you do it. Dean, it's not a crime to need your job."
MOTEL
As Adeline tucked her daughter in, she said, "Sam, I think you should call Ellen. There's something about Gordon that concerns me."
"Good idea." He pulled out his phone and dialed a number. "Hey, Ellen, uh, Sam Winchester."
"Sam, it's good to hear from you. You boys and girls are okay, aren't you?"
"Yeah. Yeah, everything's fine. Got a question."
"Yeah, shoot."
"You ever run across a guy named Gordon Walker?"
"Yeah, I know Gordon."
"And?"
"Well, he's a real good hunter. Why are you asking, sweetie?"
"Well, we ran into him on a job and we're kinda working with him, I guess."
"Don't do that, Sam."
"I-I thought you said he was a good hunter."
"Yeah, and Hannibal Lecter's a good psychiatrist. Look, he is dangerous to everyone and everything around him. If he's working on a job, you boys and girls just let him handle it and you move on."
"Ellen-"
"No, Sam? You just listen to what I'm telling you, okay?"
"Okay." He hung up.
"What?" Adeline asked.
"Gordon's trouble. You were right."
"Now we have to persuade your brother."
"Yeah."
BAR
"Know why I love this life?" Gordon asked.
"Hmm?" Dean hummed.
"It's all black and white. There's no maybe. You find the bad thing, kill it. See, most people spend their lives in shades of gray. Is this right? Is that wrong? Not us."
"Not sure Sammy or Adeline would agree with you, but uh..."
"Doesn't seem your brother or girl are much like us." Dean stared at him, startled. "I'm not saying he's wrong. Just different. But you and me? We were born to do this. It's in our blood."
MOTEL PARKING LOT
Sam bought two sodas from a vending machine and started walking back to the room. He paused, hearing something, cautiously opened the door, and looked around. He got inside and leaned against the door, relieved. His eyes widened, seeing Adeline passed out on the floor. A dark figure jumped him from behind. He knocked his first attacker down, then the second. The first attacker rose up behind him and slammed a heavy telephone into the back of his head, knocking him out.
The truck crossed a bridge.
Sam and Adeline were both bound to a chair and gagged, sacks over their heads. They were pulled off by the bartender. He showed fangs and advanced on Sam and Adeline, who struggled.
A woman, Lenore, appeared in the doorway. "Wait! Step back, Eli."
Eli pulled back, his fangs retracting. The woman walked over and pulled off Sam and Saoirse's gags. "My name's Lenore, I'm not going to hurt you two. We just need to talk."
"Talk?" Sam repeated. "Yeah, okay, but we might have a tough time paying attention to much besides Eli's teeth or how he's eyeing my friend like food."
"He won't hurt you two either, you both have my word."
"Your word, Oh yeah, great, thanks. Listen lady, no offense, but you're not the first vampire we've met."
"We're not like the others. We don't kill humans, and we don't drink their blood. We haven't for a long time."
Adeline narrowed her eyes. "What is this, some kind of joke? You left my infant daughter alone!"
"Notice you're both still alive. She'll be fine."
Sam frowned. "Okay, uh, correct me if I'm wrong here, but shouldn't you be starving to death?"
"We've found other ways. Cattle blood."
"You're telling us you're responsible for all the-"
"It's not ideal, in fact, it's disgusting. But it allows us to get by."
Adeline raised a brow. "Okay, um, why?"
"Survival. No deaths, no missing locals, no reason for people like you two to come looking for people like us. We blend in. Our kind is practically extinct. Turns out we weren't quite as high up on the food chain as we imagined."
"Why are we explaining ourselves to these killers?" Eli asked.
"Eli!"
"We choke on cow's blood so that none of them suffer. Tonight, they murdered Conrad and they celebrated."
"Eli, that's enough," Lenore warned.
"Yeah, Eli, that's enough," Sam and Adeline repeated.
"What's done is done. We're leaving this town tonight."
"Then why did you bring us here? Why are you even talking to us?"
"Believe me, I'd rather not. But I know your kind. Once you have the scent, you'll keep tracking us, it doesn't matter where we go. Hunters will find us."
"So you're asking us not to follow you."
"We have a right to live, we're not hurting anyone."
Adeline's eyes narrowed once again. "Right. You keep saying that, but give me and him one good reason why we should believe you."
"Fine. You know what I'm going to do? I'm going to let you two go." They looked at her, startled. "Take them back. Not a mark on them."
Two vampires led Sam and Adeline back to the truck, their heads covered in the sacks again. They drove off.
MOTEL
Dean and Gordon sat at the table, discussing strategy over a map. Eva was still asleep.
"This is the best pattern I can establish," Gordon said. "It's sketchy at best."
"Looks like it's coming from this side of town," Dean noted. "Which means the nest would be around here someplace, right?"
"Yep, that's what I'm thinking. Problem is, there's 35, 40 farms out there. I've searched about half of them already, but nothing yet. They're covering their tracks real good."
"Then I guess we'll just have to search the other half." Dean looked at his watch. "What time is it? Where are Sam and Adeline?"
"Car's parked outside. Probably went for a walk. Seem like the take a walk types."
"Yeah, they are, but..."
The door opened and Sam and Adeline entered. They shot Dean a look.
"Where you two been?" Dean asked. "You left Eva alone."
"Not by choice," Adeline snapped.
"Can we talk to you alone?" Sam questioned.
Dean turned to Gordon. "You mind chillin' out for a couple
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