Finished Finally on 12 July 2008

Thank you so much to Chasidern, who's awesome banner haunted my signature block throughout the story posting.



A family's sins follow in death, and a horrifying murder throws the Winchesters into the middle of a hunt where the spirits are restless, the victims are dying, and the vengeance is brewing. Now all they have to do is just make it out alive.

Disclaimer: The boys will never be mine, and you should all be grateful. I would never let them out of my closet...so this is just for fun.

Warnings: There might be some swearing, nothing too bad, will try to keep it audience friendly. But what can I say? Got a bad mouth myself. There's also no need for spoiler alerts, I don't think I've mentioned anything. Will warn you if I do. This is set some time in season three, but there are no mentions...hmmmm...

Author's Note: After much gentle encouraging by my very much respected friend and fellow writer Jules, I'm posting my newest chapter story. I cannot promise frequent updates, as this story has grown legs and run away from me, but I have a lot of it written and know where I want to go with it, so they won't be too far apart. I hope you all enjoy.

And thank you to Jules again for the beta job. I think I could get used to the second pair of eyes and may just keep you around yet. *wink wink*

She did such an outstanding job, any mistakes left over are my own.

Enjoy!



Chapter 1 - Sangre

“What are we even doing here?” Mandy asked, trying to keep her voice steady as she wrapped her arms around herself.

“Come on baby, don’t you want to see if they exist?”

“Don’t ‘baby’ me. We all know they don’t exist. You know those stories aren’t even real,” she scoffed. “Just a bunch of stupid kids sitting around making up a bunch of stupid stories about a bunch of stupid ghosts.”

Jesse wrapped a broad arm around his girlfriend’s shoulders, laughing as he felt another chill ripple through her small frame. “They aren’t real, huh? Well, then, why are you scared?”

“I’m not scared, I’m cold. It’s like thirty degrees out here.”

“Sure thing, sweetheart. Add about twenty more degrees onto your estimate, and the fact that you’re wearing three layers; it’s not that cold.” Jesse cocked an eyebrow, laughing when Mandy simply answered with a roll of her vivid green eyes.

“Shut up, jerk, it’s not funny. We’re going to miss the kick off to our own party.” With an exasperated sigh, she flipped a lock of her bright auburn hair over her shoulder. Two of her best friends were throwing a birthday bash for the two of them, something they had done for the past three years. It was one of the many things she shared with the love of her life; their birthdays were only a week apart.

This year’s present was a ski trip, and their own private log cabin, paid for by the couple’s parents, a celebration fit for any new adult. She was after all eighteen now, old enough to be staying a weekend on her own, old enough to look forward to college in a few months.

“No, we won’t. This won’t take long.” Jesse ignored his own long blonde hair, leaving it to hang over his deep blue eyes. Unconsciously he burrowed deeper into his own letterman’s jacket, hating to admit it but his girlfriend was right. During the course of their discussion, the temperature had dropped dramatically and the wind had picked up considerably. They had both left their heavier ski jackets in the car, not wanting to break them out just yet, settling for being clad in their lighter layers.

They wound their way around the small path, the heavy thicket on either side grabbing at their clothing. With another frustrated sigh, Mandy jerked her arm free, wincing as she heard the material tear.

“Damnit Jesse, let’s just go.”

They had been about twenty minutes into their hour-long drive when Jesse had suddenly pulled off to the side of the road. There was an old abandoned cabin about half a mile into the woods, and he had always wanted to check it out. Come on, it’ll be fun, he had argued when Mandy had protested. The fact that it was dark out did little to dissuade the swim team captain, but for safety he had tucked his newest toy into the back of his jeans – a small snug .45, a very “adult” present from his father.

He actually hoped that something would try to attack them; he was itching to pull the pistol out and test his marksmanship. He’d be Mandy’s hero for the rest of their lives. Jesse’s chest swelled with excitement at the thought of taking some big bad bear down, and he could hear the tales being told at graduation. That is, after they dedicate it to me, he mused silently. Hell, maybe he’d even end up on CNN.

His chest quickly deflated as they rounded their last corner, and the house came into sight. Stories and the imagination did not do this place justice. It sat about two stories high, and beckoned visitors with its large, rotted wrap-around porch. Nothing was left of the windows but large gaping holes, and a huge chunk of the roof was missing, creating an illusion that even the house was screaming. Two cars sat rusting in the elements, their body styles dating them back to the early fifties. The driver’s side door was open in the farthest car, almost as if someone had forgotten to close it.

“This place must have been so beautiful at one point,” Mandy breathed, her statement breaking the reverie Jesse had found himself in. Her next statement had his chest swelling once more. “I don’t like this. Jesse, please, let’s just go back to the car.”

“Oh, come on, honey, just a quick look around. Then we’ll go, I promise. Until then, I’ll protect you.” He pulled her close, and they both fell into step as they neared the decrepit house. Deciding he would cut their adventure shorter than originally planned, Jesse cast a quick, concerned glance at his girlfriend. It bothered him that she didn’t have a snappy comeback. He decided not to rib her about how scared she was until they were safely on the road once more.

Or, judging by the look on her face, he might not tease her at all. The way things were going, it would take a miracle for him to even get some action this weekend. He would be lucky if she didn’t spend the rest of the weekend making him look like the ass he was beginning to feel like.

They reached the bottom of the porch, and Jesse reached for Mandy’s hand.

“Do we really have to go in there?” she asked, her voice low.

“In and out. Promise.”

Mandy squeezed his fingers in response as her breath quickened. She didn’t care if he made fun of her later, or called her out on her earlier skepticism: she was scared out of her ever-loving mind.

They picked their way up the stairs, avoiding the large gaping holes and missing planks. The wood creaked beneath their combined weight, announcing their presence to whoever might be listening. The thought momentarily stopped Jesse, and damn if he wasn’t creeping himself out. Missing his slight pause, Mandy pushed forward, her own curiosity driving her across the ancient porch.

“Do you hear that?” she whispered as they neared the door.

“I don’t hear anything.”

“Exactly. It is dead silent here; you can’t even hear the wind.” They both strained, listening for even the smallest hint of life besides themselves. A large curtain billowed out from a nearby window, the yellowed lace fluttering violently before settling back in a twisted lump, the action startling the young couple. Their eyes met and they laughed nervously, gripping each other’s hand tighter.

“Wait a second. Jesse, if there’s no wind, how did that just happen?”

“Maybe the house is just blocking the wind from us, but there’s an open window on the other side.” It seemed logical enough.

Mandy studied the dead tree near the corner of the house; its gnarled branches were disturbingly still. “Can we just go already?” Her own curiosity was wiped out now, replaced by a sudden feeling of alarm. The feeling of being watched was too strong to ignore.

“We’re here; we might as well go inside at least. We’ll just take a quick peek, and then we’ll go, I promise.”

They nudged the front door open, and stepped into the foyer. A large chandelier was the first thing to catch their eyes, long clear crystals hung from delicate golden chains. The faded red carpet that ran from wall to wall sponged beneath their feet, and each step disturbed a molded dust.

Mandy glanced from the carpet to the faded green walls, then back up to the chandelier. “Jesse…do you notice anything weird?”

“Yeah,” Jesse nodded. “Why is the chandelier so clean while the rest of the house is falling apart?”

“My mommy likes it to be pretty. Everything has to be pretty for Mommy.”

Mandy let out a shriek as the small child’s voice echoed around them. She stumbled, twisting in Jesse’s arms as he struggled to keep her from falling.

“What the hell was that?” Jesse stammered.

“Let’s leave now, please Jesse, let’s go, please,” Mandy begged.

“Okay, okay, we’ll go.” They turned towards the door, stopped short by the small figure standing between them and freedom. Her long black hair hung in clumps down the front of her tattered dress, dull in comparison to dark eyes that glittered above hollowed cheeks.

The couple was struck speechless as the child continued. “Daddy will be mad that we’re awake, but we must find the doll. The doll is what keeps Mommy happy.” As she spoke her already ashen skin began to darken, and a large chunk of her scalp slid to the floor with a wet smack.

Mandy screamed again, pushed off of Jesse and ran for the door. Jesse was close behind, grunting with pain as he tripped over a rise in the carpet and landed hard on his knees. He scrambled to his feet, and rushed outside.

Jesse had made it to the tree line before he realized he could no longer see Mandy. In fact, he hadn’t even seen her running across the clearing, and he had only been a few feet behind her.

“Mandy!” he screamed, but his desperate call was swallowed by the dark tree line, disappearing unanswered.

A long, drawn-out scream came from the house. “Mandy!” he cried again, rushing back towards the house. He burst through the front door, completely unprepared for the weight that slammed into him and sent him to the ground.

Mandy straddled his hips, a large knife gleaming in her hands as she raised it above her head. “You selfish bastard!” she screamed. “You think you can just get away with this? I did everything you ever asked of me, and look what happened!! You won’t kill me again!!”

Jesse fought to recover from the unexpected attack, struggling to draw in a breath after it had been ripped from his lungs. He raised his arms to defend himself, and the knife plunged deeply into his palm. He let out a scream of pain as she stabbed again, this time cleanly slicing through his ring finger, leaving it hanging by a chunk of skin.

Angrily she swiped his hand aside, and thrust the knife into his chest. His second scream caught in his throat, the vocalized air unable to reach his gaping mouth before the flow of blood.

Bright red blood bubbled from his lips, mixing with the dark crimson the spewed from his chest with each arc of the knife. She continued to force the knife into his chest, stomach, and shoulders, not caring that he had stopped breathing after the fifth strike, that his heart had stopped after the seventh.

The son of a bitch needed to die.





“I already talked to my lawyer.” Mandy crossed her arms over her chest, refusing to tell the story again. She had already told the stone-faced old crow about a dozen times, and he wasn't making any real progress. He was a vulture with a news crew in his face, and he was using her as a stepping stone to a greater career she was sure.

“I know, and I apologize. But as Mr. Eppy’s aid, I’ve been sent down here to do a follow up and to catch any information he might have missed. Plus, it's all part of being the guy's lackey.”

Mandy leaned forward in her chair, placing her arms on the table. The ice-cold handcuffs dug into her wrists, reminding her why she was there. The man seemed friendly enough; his eyes were genuine and full of concern. It helped that he only appeared just few years older than her, maybe twenty-three or twenty-four, unlike her dinosaur of a lawyer.

She really didn’t want to relive this nightmare, but her parents had warned her against withholding any information from her legal counsel. In fact, her lawyer was the only one she was allowed to talk to about exactly what had happened that night.

The media, the town, and Jesse’s family, were crying for the death sentence. Mandy’s eyes filled with tears as she thought about how warm and friendly her town had once been, how loved she had once felt. Now they were just one big bloodthirsty mob looking to string her up. Even her so-called friends were hanging supportive death sentence posters around town.

Taking a deep breath, she recounted all she could remember. She had decided to leave out the little girl, remembering how her lawyer had told her they were already past the insanity plea.

“And what made you run?” the man softly interrupted.

“What?”

“Well, you both were alright with being in that house up until the point where you said you were freaked. What scared you?”

Mandy rolled her eyes. “You’ll just think I’m insane.”

“Try me.”

Catching his eyes and reading the steady look in their depths, Mandy wasn’t sure why, but she figured he might just believe her. Plus she decided she couldn’t deny this man anything, there was something about him that reached out and safely drew her in.

“There was a little girl. She had long black hair, and we could just tell she was dead, ya know? Like some freaky ghost or something. Well, when she just appeared behind us, I freaked out and ran as fast as I could. I thought Jesse was right behind me, so I started running across the field. I got about halfway across, and I sort of blacked out. When I came to, I was…oh God…” Mandy began to gag, but waived off the offered garbage can from the lawyer’s aid.

“That’s been happening a lot lately.”

The man nodded in sympathy, and placed the small can back on the floor. His compassionate hazel eyes returned to hers, and she couldn’t break the contact, sinking into that splash of color in the otherwise devoid room.

“Anyway, I was sitting over my boyfriend, and his blood was everywhere. He was dead, oh God he was dead. I don’t remember what happened, but I swear to God I didn’t kill him. Please, you have to believe me. I loved Jesse with everything I had.” She began to cry when she realized she was rambling, her chest heaving with pain. The aid sat quietly, waiting until she could pull herself together. Maybe she wasn’t as numb as she thought she was.

“I’m sorry,” Mandy said through a humorless smile, wiping a hand across her eyes. “The story isn’t getting any easier to tell.”

“I don’t think it ever will. Is there anything else you remember? Anything at all?”

Mandy thought for a moment, blinking in surprise when a memory resurfaced. Why hadn’t she remembered it before now?

“Yeah, the little girl. She was talking about everything being pretty for Mommy, and Daddy being mad but she needed to find a doll.”

The aide’s face scrunched in confusion, but he seemed to make a mental note of it. “Thank you Mandy, we’ll be in touch with you again soon. Hang in there, okay? We’re going to figure this out.”

Hopelessness flooded her once more. The guy didn’t believe her; he wasn’t going to be able to help her. “Thank you so much Sam. I hope you and Mr. Eppy have everything you need now.”



“She’s pretty much screwed,” Sam said as he dropped into the passenger seat of the Impala, his fingers already reaching to loosen the constricting tie and the buttoned collar.

“Yeah, you can’t really provide a good defense when you’re covered in the victim’s blood and a knife is found with your finger prints all over it. She say anything about the ghost?”

“Not the ghost I thought she was going to talk about. She said there was a little girl. The Emerson’s daughter, maybe?”

“Could be,” Dean said, pulling out of the lot and heading for their motel. “But she didn’t see Daddy dearest at all?”

“She didn’t mention it.”

“Well, that’s a first.”





With love,
Kris

*sangre - blood

Ooh, and I'm the first.

Aww, thanks hon - you can keep me around if you want - *wink, wink*

Wow - poor Mandy - she really lost it big time, didn't she? And what a gruesume end for Jesse. And what's with creepy ghost girl with the pop-top head?

Ahh, Sammy - no one can resist those eyes. :wub: Of course Mandy would want to tell him everything. Hope there is something the boys can do.

Wonderful start, hon. Looking forward to more. :cheer

*hugs*

Jules :hug

Great start Kris. Poor Mandy is pretty much screwed isn't she? Don't think the brothers can really convince anyone that she was possessed by a ghost and forced to kill her boyfriend. Wonder what the significance of the clean chandelier and the doll are? Looking forward to finding out.

Great start Kris, awesome to have you back on the threads with another story, you have been sorely missed! :cheer

Silly Jesse, he should have not taken Mandy to that house, especially as she so didn't want to go there and it certainly did end the way he hoped! :(

What the hell happened to Mandy, did the spirit of Daddy dearest take her over and get her to kill Jesse as she certainly wasn't in her right mind when she killed him, or was it the mum or the little girl or am I totally off course here - probably, knowing me! :rolleyes:

Just knew it was Sam questioning Mandy and who better to get information out of her! :) Interesting that both boys were surprised that it was a little girl Mandy saw and not her father so this can't have been the first incident! :huh:

Already addicted to this story! :)

Sarah

Woot! New chapter story by you! :cheer :woohoo *Gets comfy* And why does no one ever listen to Dean's advice?

Okay, and if you feel like you're being watched-you probably are. Thought of this saying-might not be correct-Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you :lol:

Um-remind me again not to make you mad...you don't need your gun, you are quite good with a knife. And-finger sliced through-ick! :drink

Aww, poor Mandy. Um-I have to.

Or the revised version:

"Well you came and you stabbed me makin'
me bleed all over the floor, oh Mandy
we just went to look at a haunted cabin
and you killed me dead, oh Mandy... :lmao

Aww, of course Sam can get her to talk. Ah, and the boys are on the case. Hope they can help her somehow. Great start! Love this already. Take it easy, and I bet now I've got Barry Manilow stuck in your head, lol. I did go on Youtube to find a video with Mandy to torture you with, and found a cool Sims version but it's so sad, so I'm skipping it :) Hope you have a good weekend! :wave

Alisa (if you really want I can make a video of me singing that verse, but I warn you you will be covering your ears, lol) :rotfl

GAhhhh Thanks so much Alisa now i will have that song in my head all day. THUD *Bangs head on table* and the image of the last time Windy sang it LOL.

AHhhhhh so you thought you would slip this under the radar. NOT SO. BEEEP Story by Kris

ZOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM !!!!!

READS


OOOO great start, poor Mandy little bit of a bad black out there and Jesse well man you got what you came for and a little bit more.

Seee how sympathetic i can be???

Bounces Loving it Kris MORE


Steffs

:skip YEYEYEYYE Kris is back with another awesome jamed packed story....so cant wait to see where this one is going....no pressure though, take your time
:lol:

Oh :D thank you for the mouthwatering, salivating, hyperventilating, let ur imagination run wild picture you left me as an ecourager to post. Lets just say that the pic plus your follow up post with POKE have left some us, as in me and Julie, running certain images in our minds.... :lol: we are big on imagination..


:) kay back to hitting the books, i mean literally smashing then against the wall cause if I have to read one more journal article am going to go bezark, crazy, one short fry of a happy meal.

Hehe, you're busy poking everyone but you haven't updated in like three days! :rotfl Just kidding, but to armor you for the week ahead-snagged a couple pics from a very cool site called Supernatural Media.

Dean contemplating how he's going to make you feel good when you get home from work everyday this week, so by the weekend you'll be ready to post again:


Dean thinking it's time for a car ride-but wondering what you're doing in the back seat of the Impala without him ;)


There, now you should be good to go for a week. :D Cya! :wave

OMG thank you Alisa! I giggled with your caption for the second picture...but I still have my mouse pad haha so I'm thinking me + Dean + the Impala = no coming out for a while.

Unfortunately, after I had posted this, I found out I wasn't going to have a weekend at the end of this week. No rest for the weary I suppose. :) Long hours and cold days are probably going to wear me out, and I'm wrestling with this story. No excuses from me, I swear, haha but Jules is being an awesome help with this. I have this thing all outlined to where I want it to go, and its not going that way so I have to tweak it a bit before I'm happy with chapter 2. I may get a post up this weekend, but I won't make any promises.

Appreciate all of the support you guys have already given this, considering the minimal amount of Winchester seasoning, haha. Love you all!

Kris

No worries Kris, any update from you is worth waiting for, and it's only been a few days since you last posted! :)

Hope the long hours and cold days don't wear you out too much, just imagine you are in the impala with Dean (doubt if you'll even need to turn on the heating!) :D

Sarah

*ahem* see YOU need to come back and update ASAP. I just started reading thisd becuase its 1am and I cant sleep :lol: I love it so far, you seem like a very talente writer! seriously one of the best iv seen. Im interested in mandys characters thats for sure, and im about to have fits wanting to know whats up wirth the creepy gghost girl as well. She has an obsession with pretty things huh? *cocks eyebrow and grins* yeah i so wnana see where this is going. Wub this! please get back here :wub:

first of all
“My mommy likes it to be pretty. Everything has to be pretty for Mommy.”

eeeep creepy


you need to tell someone when yo do a new story
I loved it
I could picture the whole thing
it was awesome
I hope you update soon
cause am in love with it already
:cheer

*huffs* Amanda!!! 8chases her witha broom* I though this was an update. But noooo it wsa just you reviewing. Lol..its ok I still wub ya :wub: Catchme21 pretty please update soon :cheer

creepy. what is going on?

What a chilling start, I'm already hooked.
Take your time Kristen, I can wait :)

All right, here we go. I may have a bit of an update...dun dun DUN!! I had to take off for a couple weeks to teach a class, but I'm back and probably will be up all night surfin' the boards haha.

But first, short replies and the update.

\m/ ( ^.^ ) \m/

Jules ~ Yes! Of course you were the first. *wink* Of course I'll keep you around. Of course I have a lot of work for you coming up cuz I do believe I have had an epiphany. I love how even us Dean girls can be swept away with a simple look from Sam. I wouldn't turn that down. I am really glad you're enjoying, and I am super excited that you're helping me enhance and improve on something I'm coming to enjoy again. Loves!!

dwfan85 ~ Poor boys, if they did try to convince someone that Mandy was possessed they'd be locked up quicker than you can say "give me back my shoe laces". But maybe they can pull through like they have so many times before and save the innocent. I'm glad you noticed the chandelier, I didn't want to say anything but hang onto that idea...I'm so glad you're enjoying and I hope I've snagged you for the trip!

Sarah ~ As I have sorely missed you guys! And yes, Jesse was silly but he was a teen for crying out loud and we all know how they can be haha... o.O And don't consider yourself too off course, considering I haven't opened a full map for you yet you're doing pretty good!! And as of right now, they've only had reports of the dad. Suddenly the daughter shows up and there's a death? *gasp* Stay tuned hun!!

Alisa ~ Yes, I have not been trained in the ways of knife fighting but I am getting better with my rifle. And I may have taken a few hints from Lorrie so I believe more gore is in order. Are we not her followers? Lol...anywho I love all of your quotes and your singing haha. And you even wrote me a song! w00t w00t! And yes, I sent Sam in. I do believe when that boy turns on the eyes he could get Chuck Norries to back down. *okay corney joke but I'm a bit out of my element* I hope you continue to enjoy!

Steffs ~ I'm with you, I'm still singing it quietly to myself. Haha glad to see you have your radar turned on tho! I never know where to pimp myself out, so I'm glad you found me. I love your lowered levels of sympathy! But I do believe I have been following your stories for quite some time now so I know how you are! Wouldn't change a thing haha! I'm glad you're enjoying, and I hope I'm dragging you along now. Muahahahahahahaa!!!

Alex ~ Thanks for the no pressure hun! Haha I know how it is when you're waiting and waiting and waiting for an update and one never comes (hinthint) but that's cool cuz we all can't live here 24/7 so I guess we're all busy one time or another haha. I hope not to leave you all hanging for too long periods of time tho. Slap me if I go overboard lol.

(hey no put the fist down)

And I know you ladies went straight to the gutter. Totally didn't mean for that to happen but it worked out haha. And did you say fries?? Mmmm...now I'm hungery...

*takes a moment to review in reverence the pictures left by Alisa*

.
.
.

Sparkle ~ o.O Really now? Yes ma'am! Well you're review has simply left me speechless...thank you! I like to think I have improved dramatically over the past year and a half (wow its been that long) so to hear you say that is a big cheer for me. Haha if you don't believe me, check out my first story (or don't and just believe it haha). Hopefully, if I don't my job right, you will never see the clues coming. I'm glad you've joined in and I hope you enjoy the rest of the story!!

Amanda ~ Hi hun! Haha I got your visit on MySpace, thank you! And you liked my little girl, huh? Too bad I can't actually add a voice to her on here, really get the chills going haha. And I'm sorry, like I told Steffs I never know where to pimp myself out at haha but I shall try to remember for the future. But hey! At least you made it now!! I have captured your attention and I have no intention of letting it go! Muahahahahahahahaha....

Sparkle ~ Haha you crack me up.

jinxed45 ~ Welcome! I hope you won't see whats going on until its too late and you're taken by surprise!

Oceane ~ Yes! I'm doing my job! I thought you guys might enjoy the beginning as much as I enjoyed writing it. It took me about a week to write that first part. I didn't know what I wanted the story to do yet or when I was going to bring the boys in, but I had fun just sitting down and pounding that first part out. Thanks for being so patient with me hun, I'll get there I promise haha. I hope you enjoy!

Okay guys, you have all blown me away with the initial reaction to this story. I haven't even started yet and I have people eager, willing and ready for whatever I throw out next. Thank you!

Okay, update coming up next. I have a bit of tweaking but it should be up within the hour.

Thanks again to Jules for an awesome beta job. I cannot keep my grubby little hands out of it and may have changed a bit after she had it. Any and all mistakes are mine in the end result.

Enjoy!



Chapter 2 - Mentiras

Dean sat hunched over the laptop, flipping between the different websites. A small black and white photo of a large family sat on the table next to him, their names scrawled in neat handwriting across the bottom. The only little girl in the picture matched Mandy’s description, and stood huddled next to the mother, her bright eyes turned shyly towards the camera.

“Ann Marie Emerson?” Sam read aloud, picking up the picture.

“The only girl in a family of seven boys. How much would that suck?”

“Couldn’t imagine. It’s tough enough having one brother.”

“Hey,” Dean protested. “I’m a Godsend of a brother.”

“Sure you are,” Sam mocked.

“So, this is the first appearance of the little girl?” Dean changed topics, not willing to get into it at the moment.

“Yeah, and it’s the first time anyone has been killed. Mostly Dad just shows up and scares the crap out of people, but they’re all lucky enough to escape with minor injuries. Ann Marie shows up, and someone dies.”

“Do you think the little girl possessed Mandy? Is that why she would have killed Jesse?” Dean guessed.

“Sounded creepy enough. And it wouldn’t be our first psychotic, murdering little girl. I guess we’ll have to keep digging into the family. We’ll have to see if we can get a list of their employees, and then track down their family members.”

Dean shuddered, cold lifeless eyes and a barber’s razor coming back to mind as he thought of their last massacring little girl. “I swear it’s never simple and easy. Just once, just once I would like to get in, get out, and move on, no shovels or paperwork required.”



Gnarled hands steadily refilled delicate, flowered coffee cups before the small hunched figure straightened. Silver hair was curled neatly around a deeply-lined face, but sharp honey-brown eyes slid up and down the boys, taking in every detail.

Dean instantly took a liking to this older woman, whose bright red nails were a shade lighter than her red lips and just a bit darker than her blouse. The sly smile spreading slowly across her face as she settled into a reclining chair confirmed she still had an eagerness for life and wasn’t letting her age slow her down.

“Yeah, I know of the Emerson family. My grandmother used to tend to their gardens, which I’m guessing that’s how you got my number.”

Dean nodded, taking a sip of the rich brown coffee. He savored the taste of the homemade brew, not caring how dainty the cup looked in his hand. “What can you tell us about them?” He leaned forward and snagged one of the cookies Rose had set out for them when they first arrived, swallowing it whole in two bites.

“There’s really not much to tell. They were pretty quiet, real churchgoers if ya know what I mean. Not to say that made them righteous by any means. They had their problems, but they seemed pretty normal.”

“Did your grandmother ever tell you about Evelyn Emerson?” Sam asked, leaning forward to also grab a cookie. The oatmeal raisin smell still lingered in the small, lace-covered house, and suggested these were freshly baked, too good a chance to pass up.

“Gram actually became pretty good friends with the missus. She would come out and weed the gardens, insisting that while they paid my gram to do it, she didn’t mind helpin’ out one bit. So they’d sit and chat while they went about their work, the normal carefree gossip that happens whenever you get two females together. However, Mr. Emerson caught wind of it and put a halt to it, but every once in a while the missus would sneak outside and help. ‘Twas a real shame what happened to her, she was a real nice lady, showed me how to bead and knit.”

The brothers shared a look before Sam asked, “What do you mean? What happened to her?”

“Well Mr. Emerson had his wife committed, of course. She stopped comin’ outside, and after a while no one saw hair or hide of her. That is, till one day she runs screamin’ into the center of town, right by the big statue of that feller and his horse, screamin’ about this doll. She was sayin’ something about how this doll had captured her soul and whatnot, and she needed it back. She spent a few days in Jackson Hill, I believe the place is called, as ordered by the judge. Then, about a week after she came back from her little vacation, the butler was found dead with her standing above him. She claims she didn’t remember what happened, and was declared legally insane."

Sam chewed thoughtfully on his lower lip as he noted the similarities to Mandy’s story.

“After that it was rumored that Mr. Emerson had her put away, locked her up tighter than a virgin at a brothel.”

Dean chuckled, emitting a quiet ‘right on’. Sam sent a glare his way, then turned back to Rose. “Go on.”

“Well, she spent about three years back in Jackson Hill. Mr. Emerson never did go up to visit, but every once in a blue moon he’d let them kids go see her. She had seven boys and one girl, though Mr. Emerson was caught on more than one occasion sayin’ that poor daughter of his was as crazy as her mama.”

“The girl died young, didn’t she?” Sam pried. The girl in the photograph hadn’t been that much younger than the ghost Mandy had described running into.

“Now patience, I’m gettin’ to that part,” Rose huffed at his interruption. “After three years, apparently the lovely Evelyn decided she couldn’t do it anymore. She had been hiding her pills over a period of weeks, buildin’ a collection. She swallowed them all one night, and just went to sleep.”

“Well, I guess that’s the way to go if you have to,” Dean trailed off, earning another glare from Sam.

“You would think, right?” Rose agreed. Sam just rolled his eyes, and gestured for Rose to continue. “Well, poor little Ann Marie and her mama were real close before it all went to hell. She used to come out and play on the swing set while my gram would work. Some say it was an accident, what happened to her, but we all know the truth. That poor little girl couldn’t live with out her mama, so she followed her into the light. She took the less gentle way though,” she winked at Dean before continuing. “She jumped off the roof of that nice house they had up there. Split her skull wide open, she did. Some say when the sun is in the right position, you can still see the blood stains on the tiles.”

The boys grimaced at the woman’s description and the added hand gestures.

“You boys sure someone wants to fix that place up and sell it?”

“Yes ma’am, why not?”

“They say it’s haunted. Boy, just a couple of weeks ago, some local girl goes nuts and kills her man. Funny thing is, it’s the same way their butler died.” Rose leaned in close, as if about to share some great secret in a crowded room. “I say the spirit of Evelyn took over that poor teen.”

“Surely you don’t believe in ghosts,” Sam insisted, a disbelieving grin on his face.

“You’d be stupid not to,” the elderly woman insisted.

With a smirk on his face, Dean echoed, “Yeah Sammy, you’d be stupid not to.”



They sat in the car following the strange interview, lost in their own private thoughts. Finally Dean shook himself and jammed the key into the ignition. “So, the mom goes nuts, kills herself. Then the daughter follows. That explains the daughter’s ghost, but Dad’s?”

“Guilt maybe? He did let his wife rot in the asylum, and because of that his ten-year-old daughter offs herself. Ghosts have stuck around for a lot less ya know,” Sam figured. “And what was up with the doll? A soul-stealing doll?”

“Not sure man, it was a crazy woman we’re talkin’ about. I say we find the girl’s bones and torch ‘em. Dad will be next, then if we have to we can find Mom before she has a chance to show up. They’re bound to be buried somewhat close to each other.”

“I’m not sure it’ll be that simple,” Sam said, reaching behind him for his bag.

“What do you mean?” Dean asked, shooting quick looks at his brother.

Finally finding what he was looking for, he brought the notebook forward and flipped through it. “Well, Mandy said Ann Marie was looking for a doll. Maybe there’s a doll somewhere, and that’s what the ghosts are after.”

“Alright Ghost Whisperer, you’re not gonna let them pass over in a blaze of salt and glory, are you? Have to do everything the peaceful way.”

Sam ignored the jab. “All I’m sayin’ is there could be a lot more to this than a couple of grave desecrations, and we have to make sure we cover our tracks. Couldn’t hurt to look into it is all.”

Dean sighed, bowing to the inevitable. “Alright, fine Sammy. We’ll do some recon work.”



“Can I help you gentlemen?”

“Well hello nurse,” Dean replied suggestively said before he could stop himself.

Sam cleared his throat and addressed the blushing girl, flashing his ID. “I’m Dr. O’Connors, and this is my associate Dr. Spielding. We’re from Crestview and we have an appointment with Dr. Eastern.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” the girl smiled sadly at Sam, though her eyes still on Dean. “Dr. Eastern is out of the office until the end of the month, family emergency. If you’d like to reschedule-”

“We would love to reschedule,” Dean cooed, and leaned forward to read her nametag while slowly tracing his finger over the counter. “Unfortunately, Nurse Parks, we’re working on a very big case, and the family has threatened to remove the patient from our care if we cannot discover a way to help her soon. Now this is not a patient that needs to be released just yet, and we were under the impression that Dr. Eastern had some files from his mentor of a similar case in 1962. If we could just take a look at those files, we’ll be on our way.”

The busty nurse had giggled as her name had rolled off of Dean’s tongue, but her expression slowly darkened as he explained their dilemma. “I’m sorry; I can't give out those files without the written consent of the doctor.”

Dean pouted a bit, giving just the right amount of lip to seem genuine, and the nurse seemed to crumble a bit at this. The hunter thought he had it in the bag, but surprisingly the nurse gave herself a mental shake and stood strong. “I’m sorry, I simply can’t. If you would like, I can pull up Dr. Eastern’s book right now to reschedule you.”

“Look, Nurse Parks,” Dean began, lowering his voice with a gentle tone.

“Please, call me Lacey,” she returned, the wistful look reappearing the moment Dean had started talking.

“Well, sweetheart, surely you can understand where we’re coming from. It is a very time sensitive case, and I’m afraid by the time Dr. Eastern comes back from his leave, it would be too late. Now, we have been more than patient considering no one called us to inform us we’d been cancelled, and we’ve traveled for about three days to get here.”

“You think he’s a peach in the car for that long?” Sam asked, nodding towards his sibling.

“Look, I really don’t want to trouble you,” Dean said without a pause; he could address Sam later. “But we’re in a bit of a tight spot ourselves. Three days we could have been researching and running tests, figuring something else out, but instead we traveled up here in hopes of finding a cure for a very disturbed, but much loved young woman. Her family is desperate - please Lacey.”

Lacey’s eyes widened, and she nodded. Sam was pretty sure if Dean pressed the victim thing any farther the girl would be in tears.

“Do you have a phone number we can call him at?” Dean said, offering an out. He just hoped the girl didn’t take it.

“Well,” she said slowly, her resolve crumbling, “if Dr. Eastern had an appointment with you guys, I guess he meant to give you the files. He left strict instructions not to call him unless someone was dying, and I guess this wouldn’t qualify. As you guys understand I can get into a lot of trouble by doing this, so I would appreciate your discretion as well.”

Lacey nodded towards another one of the nurses. “I’m taking my break, I’ll be right back.”

The man eyed the two boys, and a huge grin lit up his face. “I’ll just bet you are honey,” he returned.

Nurse Lacey led them down a long, narrow hallway to an elevator, and while they waited for the doors to open Dean could feel the girl’s stare boring holes into his backside. Normally, he would be all over her to leave Sam to the research, but her looks were making his skin crawl. There was something about her that screamed ‘predator’, and even in this case he didn’t like being the prey. The occasional smacking noise she was making as she licked her lips certainly didn’t help matters either.

They crowded into the smaller than usual staff elevator, and Dean made sure to place Sam between himself and the nurse. She looked slightly disappointed as she pressed the button for the bottom floor, and Sam looked slightly more than amused.

The doors opened to reveal a similar hallway to the one they’d just left, but thanks to Nurse Helpful they found out they were actually under the ground floor. “This is where we keep all of our really old files, the dusty stuff that would kill with an inhale.” She laughed aloud at her own joke, receiving an unseen roll of the eyes from Dean and a quiet chuckle from Sam.

Taking a large loaded key ring out of her pocket, she unlocked the third door they came to. “Now,” she informed the boys as she turned on the lights, “I can’t let you guys stay down here for too long, so if you’d like to take a copy back with you, there’s a copier across the hallway. Unofficially, as in ‘the copy doesn’t exist’, of course.”

“Of course,” Sam repeated. No one had to know they were taking a copy, no one at all.

“So Crestview, huh?” Lacey said, sliding close to Dean. “I tried getting a job there once, but the standards were too high. They said I didn’t have enough,” her gaze slid up and down Dean’s torso, “experience.”

“Oh that’s a shame,” Dean laughed nervously, trying to back away. His retreat had no affect on the nurse, and she simply followed his movements.

Sam stifled a laugh from the corner. He’d already found the file surprisingly and was prying it apart for the copier, but couldn’t help stopping for a moment to enjoy the show.

“It was real nice up there though; the apple trees sure were pretty.”

Dean was about to nod when Sam spoke up. “Not sure the last time you were there, but we don’t have apple trees.”

Lacey nodded, her eyes glittering at her attempt for deceitful brilliance. “I know. Had to make sure you guys were cool.”

“After you’ve seen our IDs and are letting us make a copy of an unofficial ‘it never happened’ file?”

The nurse shrugged. “Or trying to make small talk, one of the two. Whichever.”

“Dr. O’Connors, you want to hurry up in there?” Dean said as the nurse moved forward again.



Sam leafed through part of the copied file, still chuckling. Dean was sprawled out on his bed, the other half of the file spread out around him.

“Shut up,” Dean snapped without looking up.

“Can’t help it man. For once I think she was more into you than the other way around. Didn’t miss her sneaking her hand near the front of your pants either.”

“I honestly think if you hadn’t been there, she would have tried to rape me.”

Sam was dramatically thoughtful for a moment, “Can you really rape the willing?”

Dean shrugged. “You got a point there. She was seriously creepy though, I don’t think I could have gone for that sort of freakiness, she looked like she was into bondage. But the next time a nurse tries to take me downstairs to let me ‘make copies’…”

Sam lost it at that point, and was left gasping for breath between bouts of laughter.

“All right wiseass, what have you found in Evelyn’s file so far?”

Sam wiped at his eyes and cleared his throat. “Not much so far. She talks a lot about this doll, but doesn’t really say anything useful about it. Says she has dreams, but doctor’s notes say she refused to talk about the dreams.”

“You must have the earlier notes, says here she dreamt the doll was trying to come back, to take what was left of her soul,” Dean finished. “You have the beginning of the file. What else does it say? She say anything about where she first encountered this doll?”

“Nope, she just slowly brings it into the picture like she's known about the thing forever,” Sam frowned. “Maybe we’re concentrating on the wrong thing here. Maybe we’re focusing too much on the doll.”

“Well that’s all we really have to go on right now. Plus I thought you were all about the doll.”

“Not necessarily, and I don’t know,” Sam argued. “It says here, on the guest list, that they had a nanny the kids were allowed to visit with, behind Dad’s back of course.” He sighed, and rubbed at his eyes before letting out a hefty yawn. “Looks like we have more work to do.”

“All right, give me the name of this nanny. You go and try talking to Mandy again, and maybe she’ll remember something else.”



Hope you guys enjoyed! Since I have time off now I will try to work on this over the next few days, and bring an update sooner than last time.

Loves!
Kris

“Surely you don’t believe in ghosts,” Sam insisted, a disbelieving grin on his face.

“You’d be stupid not to,” the elderly woman insisted.

With a smirk on his face, Dean echoed, “Yeah Sammy, you’d be stupid not to.”

ha
love it

yay an update
loved it
I like how you write it like a mystery
and not just one the boys being nabbed
although that is a good read too
cause yu have one bro worrying about the other bro
and it is angsty
and I said too much
but I reqally enjoy this
and I am just as confused as Sam and Dean lol as what is going on lol
but I understand
okay am now done talking
:lol:

Haha...I think I see a subliminal message in there. You want one of the boys vanishing huh?

:D

Ahhhh KRIS

THE WINCHESTER BOYS

In full investigative flow... doing what comes naturally

So funny Dean backing away from Nurse Preditor hehehehehe

AND

Sam enjoying every minute

Lets hope the research pays off

Loving it lots :wub:

Steffs

:cheer :cheer :cheer Yay Kris, you are back and have found time to update! :cheer :cheer :cheer What a great start to my weekend! :D

Great chapter, just loved Dean's reaction to Nurse Park, hysterical to find a girl even he thinks is just to predatory! :rotfl

So what is it with this doll, Evelyn seemed obsessed by it and Mandy said the little girl was looking for it, but they were both not the most sane of people - unless they really were and it was all something engineered by Mr Emerson :unsure: Never know with you if it's a clue or a red herring, and Sam is already thinking they are focussing on the doll too much! :unsure:

Interesting that both Evelyn and Ann Marie seemed to commit suicide, unless they were both pushed to it mentally and physically! :unsure: You have got my brain far too confused especially as it is Friday night and I've had a couple of glasses of wine! :drink Perhaps one more might make things clearer, or perhaps not! :thud

Hope the nanny is still alive and she can shed some more light on the matter! :) And why is Mr Emerson's spirit around too! :thud :unsure:

So looking forward to next update this story is awesome Kris! :)

Sarah

Great story can't wait for the update.

Terrific update Kristen :)
Dean didn't like the look he got from Nurse "predatory" Parks, too funny, lol :D
What's about the doll and the Emerson's family, so captivating and intriguing, I can't wait for more.

:lol: You have no idea how ahrd im laughing right now. I loved the nurse/copier scene. I agree woman was freakin creepy as hell!... I thought for a moment she was going to be evil or soemthing. But anyway I really enjoyed this! :clap great job describing things and you officially have me on the edge of my seat trying to figure this out. Pretty please update sooner, but I understand life cna get busy.

Update! :cheer *hoovers it all up.....again...*

I like Rose - she's my kind of old gal. And she did provide a lot of help to the boys with all the family information.

And I absolutely loved the scene between Nurse Parks and Dean - and of course, the bit back in the motel when Sam was having a chuckle at his brother's expense.

Ooh - hand down his pants? lucky girl.... *ahem*... as I was saying - um, what was I saying...?

Oh, yes, the pants - I mean Dean's crotch - I mean the story - great update hon.

Can't wait to see where this epiphany takes us. And I just know it's going to be a thrilling ride.

Jules

Hit me with a wet noodle-sorry it took so long to get here and review! On the plus side, the house will be done soon with brand new cabinets and sparkly new floors and no mold in sight-sigh. Only took a few months, lol. But ooh, at least I get to read a new update by you!

Wham, bam, thank you...er, never mind, lol :rotfl For some reason your stories bring out the pop culture references in me, lol. Dunno why.

Aww the poor woman. And eek, blood stains on tiles...you do paint a vivid picture. Heh, I like Rose. She believes in ghosts. Got the wrong one though.

Yep, listen to Sam. Maybe it is a possessed doll. Haven't they heard of Chucky? :lol2

Heh, this time it's Dean pouring on the charm. A little too well, it seems, lol. The nurse was clever though, but Sam must have really done his homework and saved Dean there. Ooh, mysterious nanny.

Good update! :clap I did enjoy it very much. Can't wait for the next one. At least Mandy won't be all over Sam the way the nurse was after Dean, lol. Take it easy :wave

Okay, so I couldn't wait to do this and am going to do it now. The only problem is I'm on lunch break and don't have that much time, so I will do personal thanks when I get the chance tonight.

Thank you so much to everyone who has read, reviewed, and encouraged.

Thank you so very much to Jules...she is the greatest cohort and sweetest critic I could ever hope for. She has this amazing talent for filling in my holes and rearranging the words to say what I had actually wanted them to say but couldn't make them work...*inhales* She also did a fast turn around for this update today, so Jules, you get two gold stars! Also, because I can't stop fiddling (dagnabit) any mistakes left over are my own.

~~~SN~~~

Chapter 3...Traición

Sam sat patiently in the bright gray room, the fingers on one hand tapping the edge of the table and the other drumming a rhythmic beat with a pen.

A large door opened behind him, bringing a splash of color to the otherwise dull room. Mandy was escorted in by two guards, cuffed at the wrists and ankles, her bright orange jumpsuit swishing as she walked.

“As always, a pleasure guys,” she said, nodding to the guards after she was seated across from Sam. Her wrists were left handcuff free this time, but her situation wasn’t improving much beyond that.

“Behave,” one of them replied with a grunt, and then turned to Sam. “She’s been getting restless. Holler if you need help.”

Sam turned with a disappointed frown, slightly taken back with her change in attitude. “Fighting isn’t going to help-”

“Cut the bullshit, Sam. I know you’re not my lawyer’s aid.”

Sam stuttered for a moment, but before he could recover she waved him off.

“I talked to my lawyer. He can’t even afford the extra help. He warned me not to talk to you and to let him know the next time you came around, he thinks you’re some sort of nut job with a taste for drama.”

“Look, Mandy, I can explain-”

“What I want to know is,” she interrupted again, “are you just some psycho who gets off on this? Do you enjoy visiting prisoners, pretending you can help, and then offering no help whatsoever? Cuz I gotta tell you man, there’s a lot better ways to get your jollies out there.”

Sam sighed, and stopped for a moment, re-collecting his thoughts. “You’re right, I’m not your lawyer’s aid,” he approached carefully.

“Then who are you?” Mandy leaned back, crossing her arms over her chest and frowing with a defensive scowl.

“I’m a type of private investigator. My brother and I, we travel around, uh, hunting.”

“Hunting? Like deer?”

Sam shook his head as his lips curled in a small smile. “No, not exactly.”

“I don’t get it.” Another sigh came from the imprisoned girl, this time tinged with exasperation.

“Look, you said you saw a little girl in the house, right?”

Mandy nodded, wringing her hands in front of her.

“My brother and I think that’s the spirit of Ann Marie Emerson, a little girl who killed herself in that house in the sixties.”

“A spirit? As in, like, a ghost?” Then, she did something that surprised them both. She nodded. “I figured.”

“You did?”

“Well, yeah. I mean, I’ve always had a very open mind about that type of stuff.” She remembered ribbing Jesse, calling him out on his belief that the house had been haunted. Maybe, if she had managed to convince him she had been scared out of her ever-loving mind, and that she had actually believed in that stuff, they would have just left that place alone. Maybe… Shaking her head, she banished her self-destructive thoughts. “And seeing that little girl proved it. How did she kill herself? Was it a violent death involving her head?”

“Uh, jumped from the third floor. Split her head open, why?”

“Because I watched her head fall apart. It was really gross.”

“Now I have a question for you.”

“Shoot.”

“Why did you agree to meet with me again if you knew I wasn’t an aid?”

“Well, my lawyer is a crotchety old grouch. He doesn’t listen to a thing I say, and is trying really hard to get me the easiest sentence. He’s not even going to attempt to free me, just trying to lessen the blow, thinks I’m guilty. You? I didn’t know who you were, but you really seem like you want to help.”

“And we’re going to do what we can.”

“So if you find out who the ghost is, then what?”

“Well, we’ll put her to rest and the haunting should be over.”

“Will that help me out any?”

Sam frowned, and then shook his head. “I’m sorry, Mandy, but I don’t know how this would help your case. The best we can figure is one of the ghosts possessed you, and used you to kill your boyfriend.”

Mandy’s eyes filled with tears and her fists clenched, bleaching her knuckles. “So you’re saying, just because some freakin’ ghost has issues, I have to rot here? Or worse?”

“I’m sorry. We’ll do everything we can, but I want to prepare you now. You still need to have hope, just don’t depend on it too much.”

She nodded, and wiped her eyes. “Well at least you’re being honest with me. So, Sam, what are you doing here?”

“Well, I need to know how much you remember, exactly.” He slowly removed a tape recorder from his jacket pocket, and laid it on the center of the table between them. “Start from the beginning.”

“Can we skip over some parts that I’ve already told you?”

Sam nodded in understanding. “Sure.”

“Okay, so we opened the door and the first thing we saw was that stupid chandelier…”



“I don’t think it was a little girl. I’ve been having dreams of that night ever since, and every time I remember just a little bit more. I remember feeling insanely scared after watching that little girl’s scalp fall apart. I ran for outside, hit the bottom step, and blacked out. The rest you know about of course. The only thing that’s different is I sense strong feelings of anger, hate, jealousy, and guilt between the blackout and coming to. Like a bad case of PMS. The little girl, she seemed sad when we ran into her. I think it was a very adult, female ghost who possessed me, if you know what I mean.”

“No, why do you say that?”

“I also felt horny as hell.”

Dean smiled as he tried to picture Sam’s face when the girl had revealed that gem, and fast-forwarded a bit through the tape.

“I know this is tough Mandy, but do you remember anything else about the murder?”

“Oh God.” Dean heard a slight pause, a hiccup, and a sniffle. “I…she…well, we were screaming.”

“Do you remember what?”

“Something about, “You can’t get away with this, and, um, you won’t kill me again.”

Deciding he didn’t hear anything he hadn’t already heard in the past five replays, Dean clicked the tape recorder off and dropped it onto the table. So they had another player in the mix, a ghost that wasn’t the dad and wasn’t the little girl. Things were starting to feel a little crowded, and the hunter wondered how much digging they were going to have to actually do.

“Find anything on the nanny?” Sam asked as he came out of the bathroom. A towel was draped around his shoulders, and a toothbrush protruded from his mouth.

“No. She was an illegal immigrant, and was paid under the table. No one had a real address for her, just the first name of Moña.”

“Which we already knew,” Sam sighed, feeling the drain of yet another long drawn-out case. He pulled the brush from his mouth and twirled it between his fingers in a distracted gesture. “So there’s no way to track her down. Do you think Rose would know any more?”

“She might. We never did ask her about the nanny, and she might not have thought to tell us.”

“Well, Rose certainly took a liking to you. You call her.”

“Ah, you’re just jealous,” Dean teased as he flipped open his phone.



“Ah yes, I know all about Moña,” Rose answered, her voice sounding superior even over the phone. Dean could picture her surrounded by her lace doilies and her delicate tea sets, sitting ramrod straight on an over-stuffed flower-covered couch.

“Did you know her personally?” Dean asked, smiling as she huffed.

”Lord child, everyone knew everyone personally back then. It’s a wonder anyone even knows how to talk any more with all the gadgetry they have now.”

“What can you tell me about her relationship with the family? Especially the parents?”

“Screw her ‘relations’, that girl created straight up drama for that poor family. She was great taking care of them kids, was even my babysitter here and there, but she caused horrible problems between the mister and the missus. Some say she was the beginnin’ of the end.”

Dean cocked an eyebrow, earning a curious glance from Sam. “What do you mean by that?”

“It’s a good thing you’re cute, ‘cause you sure need a lot spelled out for you.”

Dean rolled his eyes and dropped his head as he continued to listen.

“It was purely rumored, and as you know the rumors fly in such a small town, but it was rumored that the mister and the señorita were having a little love affair and the missus found out. That’s about the same time the missus ends up going insane, and the mister has her committed. A little while after both the poor wife and daughter are dead, the nanny is found dead herself. They called it a ‘suspicious suicide’, but everyone knows that poor girl was murdered.”

“And the cops never went any farther than their suicide ruling?”

“Naw, ‘course not. The family was well off, one of the ‘royals’ of this town. I’m sure Mr. Emerson paid off the right people, had who he needed in his greedy little pocket. I don’t care how flexible you are, you can’t shoot yourself between the shoulder blades, then tie up the gun in a plastic baggie and throw it in a river five miles away.”



“So the question is, is it the nanny hell bent on revenge for her murder or the mother pissed over being committed?” Sam pondered, going over the notes for the various sessions held with Mrs. Emerson. “What Mandy said could be true for either of them.”

“So we just find where both of them are buried, then we salt and burn them. Problems over, case solved.”

“Hopefully it’ll be that easy.”

“What do you mean?” Dean asked, absently twirling the silver band on his finger as he half-heartedly watched a muted news report on TV. Something about a squirrel being caught in someone's stove pipe.

“I don’t know. I just…I’ve been reading over the notes from Mrs. Emerson’s therapy sessions. She keeps talking about this doll…what if we’re focusing on the drama of the family too much when we should be looking for this doll?”

“Why would we look for a doll?” Dean argued, perplexed. Who cared about the ramblings of a crazy woman and her doll?

“Why wouldn’t we? It could be some sort of soul sucking medium – it would explain the mom’s delirium.”

“Or it could just be the ramblings of a depressed and psychotically broken woman,” Dean tried. Sam’s eyes narrowed and his mouth twitched into a frown.

“You’re gonna make us figure this out, aren’t you?” Dean groaned.

“We have to. If there really is a doll out there, we need to find it and destroy it.”

“I was afraid you’d say that.”



“We’re going to figure this out,” Rachel said softly, her long fingers curling around Jace’s bicep as she walked beside him.

“I just can’t wrap my mind around it.” The couple walked in silence for a bit, stumbling as they picked their way through the mist. “She didn’t do it. Mandy doesn’t have a mean bone in her body.”

Rachel caught herself as she stumbled again, cursing the hidden roots on the forest floor. “Of course not,” she bit back. She actually couldn’t have cared less. That was all Jace could ever talk about, his darling loveable do-no-wrong sister. She herself had been in love with the boy since she could remember, but all he had cared about was taking care of his needy snot-nosed little sister.

In some horrible way, maybe one day insuring her ticket to hell for having this thought, but she was relieved the girl was in prison. It was a terrible tragedy that her boyfriend was dead, but now that Mandy was out of the way, Rachel could concentrate on comforting a grieving brother. A very hot, grieving brother.

“Are you sure we should have come out here when it was this dark?” she complained, hugging Jace even tighter.

“Well, we could have come out with daylight to spare if someone hadn’t taken three hours to get ready,” he lightly scolded. They continued through the forest, Jace setting a determined stride and dragging a pouting Rachel behind. She stumbled again, cursing the thick mist that wrapped around their feet. How cliché was that? No moon…creepy mist…haunted house…Rachel had seen this movie one too many times. What was next? She wouldn’t have been surprised if a figure in a white sheet came at them next.

A tense silence settled over the feuding couple as they picked their way along the steep forest path. Every reason for being mad disappeared the moment the house came into view, and Rachel practically jumped onto Jace in sudden fear.

Yellow police tape fluttered sharply in the biting wind, reminding them of what had happened with a sobering stab of grief. They slowed as they reached the center of the clearing, and Rachel watched quietly as her companion spun in a slow circle.

Letting his eyes slowly close, Jace let his imagination run free. He could almost hear the screams of his sister, could feel her fear and her panic. It echoed off of the trees like a bad sense of déjà vu, amplified by the murky darkness. Rachel nudged him, and he snapped his eyes open to find her offering up her flashlight.

“We should get in there and get out, before we’re missed back at home.”

Jace nodded, wrapped a heavy hand around the cylinder handle of the small Maglite, and pushed forward. He had promised his parents he wouldn’t seek answers on his own, but he wasn’t ready to let them know he’d reneged on their deal just yet.

They ducked and crawled, bypassing the tape criss-crossing the door. Once inside, they didn’t have to look far for the scene of the crime. Blood stained the thick carpet, and the acidic smell of copper mixing with the moldy dust had them both coughing and gagging.

“Oh…my…God…” Rachel breathed. Her hand flew to the base of her neck; her shaking fingers fiddling with the small silver cross her parents had given her. The Power of Christ compels you.

Jace was more convinced than ever that Mandy could never have done this. Blood was everywhere. A large crusted pool sat in the center of the foyer; small dots confected the walls and even the large crystal chandelier held evidence of the brutal murder that had taken place.

As jealous as Rachel was of the young girl, even she had a hard time believing Mandy was that violent.

“It’s all the way up there,” she commented, raising her own flashlight to follow the gruesome trail. Silence answered, immediately causing her to spin around. “Jace?” There was no sign of him anywhere. “Jace?” she repeated, a bit more panicked.

“It’s all my fault, I did this,” a deep voice echoed around her, coming from nowhere and everywhere all at once.

“This isn’t funny Jace!” she practically screamed, pride be damned. “How dare you goof off at a time like this!” She didn't care if he was just playing a joke, she whimpered as she felt an ice-cold finger trail its way up her spine.

“They’re gone, and I can never bring them back.” The voice came from behind her, the statement spoken so closely she could feel the disturbance of hot air on the back of her neck. She spun, preparing to bring down her attacker with her flashlight.

“Damnit Jace! This is no time for games!” He towered over her, looking intimidating in the darkness of the house, and Rachel swallowed nervously. “Jace?”

His face crumpled, and he cocked his head to the side. “Do you hear that?” he asked softly.

“What? Jace! Come on, let’s just go, please?” she begged, backing for the doorway. "This stopped being funny five minutes ago."

His face fell even further, and he slowly followed her. “Even now they look for it; they cry for it, my children. It is my fault, and I can never save them.”

“God, you’re such a jerk!” She was steaming now; no man was worth this bullshit.

“I can never leave.” Jace’s voice hissed, dropped three octaves, no longer sounding human.

“Y-you’re not Ja-ace,” Rachel stammered out. She brought her flashlight up, aiming it directly in his face. “You’re not Jace!” she repeated. Where his bright green irises used to be, vacant white orbs stared back at her, through her. His mournful expression curled upwards slowly, hardening into a murderous sneer.

“You have done some very bad things,” he said, his voice returning to a more normal tone while still sounding cold and unfamiliar. Rachel stumbled backward, tripping over the curled carpet and sending her panicked form plunging to the ground. From her position on the floor, she stared up at him, begging and pleading – her panicked words tumbling over themselves in her haste to get them out. She didn’t care if she was crying, begging for her life like a baby. She didn’t care if she was tearing up her newest manicure as she tried to claw her numb body towards the door, couldn't feel the thick grimy blood as it seeped into her jeans.

“You did this! You! I told you to leave once, and you wouldn’t. Now I’m going to make you!” he screamed, producing a long carving knife suddenly from somewhere behind him.

Time froze, she froze, momentarily hypnotized by the flash of the steel blade. He pounced on top of her, screaming obscenities as he plunged the knife down again and again. Rachel tried to scream, but blood welled in her throat, poured into her lungs, oh God she was drowning. Her body jerked to the side, and his knife hit home in the center of her throat. He ripped it free, grinning in satisfaction as it released a crimson flood. She tried to inhale, but the oxygen was lost through the gash in her throat, producing a flow of frothing pink bubbles.

She choked, coughed once, release a gurgling cry, and then fell silent. Her head slowly rolled slightly to the side, leaving her sightless eyes to fixate on the chandelier. Standing to admire his handiwork, Jace wiped a slow finger across his cheek, leaving a dirty trail of blood in its wake. He popped the finger in his mouth, tasting the sweet nectar that held her essence, her life.

With one last salute, Jace slowly sagged to the ground. He sat for a moment, and then gradually, groggily, his head came up and he stared blearily around him at the ruined house. “Rachel?”

His blurry eyes focused on the girl who, just a moment ago, had been standing right in front of him. His gaze fell to the knife gripped limply in his hands, the handle slick with blood. Her blood.

A raw and animalistic scream ripped through the forest, going unheard and unanswered.

~~~SN~~~

Thanks for playing in my fun house. See you guys in a couple of hours. :D

EEEEEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek


KRIS :o



Actually :D I loved it!

House of Fun is right hehehehe

Darn stupid kids going into a haunted house don't they watch all those slasher movies GAHHHHHhhhhhhh.

You Know I kept expecting Sam and Dean to appear and save the day

BUT

NOoooooooooooooooo Kris Went the whole nine yards LOL

MORE

Steffs

Aww, hon - I was happy to do it for you. And there wasn't that much to tweak - just a word here, a comma there. Easy stuff.

Pink frothy bubbles - ewwwwwww!

Fun House? Man - *cuddles Dean tightly while walking through* - this is getting way more than creepy - this has crashed through the dividing wall into downright scary. And I have a feeling (no, not inside information...*bats innocent puppy dog eyes*) that it's going to get even more scary before we're through.

The doll - Sam keeps coming back to that doll. Wonder if he's onto something, or if it's going to throw him off the track by keeping him distracted.

And now there is Mandy's brother out there in a hell of a mess because he just made mincemeat of his bitchy girlfriend. The plot thickens.

dun, dun, dunnnnnn *cue scary music*

Rose is certainly helping the guys with their background research - good to see.

Hope they find those bones fast, before someone else is possessed by the ghosts - as there seems to be more than one at work out there. Jace was definitely not possessed by a horny female ghost.

*sits back with fluffy slippers, hot chocolate, kitchen knife, salt, bible and cat to eagerly await the next chapter*

Jules

Who possessed Jace this time.
Dean and Sam're going to have their hands full of ghosts to stop.
Terrific chapter Kristen, can't wait for more :)

Great update Kris! :)

For some reason even unknown to me I think it was Mr Emerson who Jace was possessed by, probably totally wrong though! Guess I just latched on to the deep voice and the words! :huh: Whoever he was possessed by was fond of blades, and bitchy as Rachel was, she didn't deserve to die like that!

Jace too, didn't deserve to be possessed - their poor parents, both siblings having murdered their partners, but not being in control when they did it! :o

Sam seems to think the doll is significant and it may well be. Also wondering about the chandelier as Mandy mentioned it when speaking to Sam and it was the last thing Rachel's now unseeing eyes latched on to :huh: Probably barking up the wrong tree there too! :rolleyes: With you I never know Kris! :lol:

Rose seems to have been a help to them so far, let's hope she can continue to give them useful information! Even the nanny could be involved - is that fact that the nanny had a Spanish name and the title of this fic is also Spanish significant! :unsure:

Will just go and have a glass of wine now to calm my over taxed brain! :drink

Sarah

hmmmm getting good! :evil I say its the nanny, in the library with the wrench :lol: please update soon. Damm that little girl, kill her ass already

:blink:

I'm sorry guys, I forgot to come back and do the little reply thingy.

Oh here you guys are, being all nice and leaving me reviews...and then I don't even reply.

Oh sheesh.

/facepalm

Okay, better late then never, right?

. . . *cricket cricket* . . . *cricket cricket* . . .

Guys?

Hahaha...(good heavens I'm in a weird mood).

Amanda ~ Haha glad you appreciate the story haha. There are so many ones about the boys being nabbed/hurt/sick/dying that you get lost in the jungle lol. It's been really fun with this one, I get to come up with this twisted plot that my muse adds to as I go, and hopefully you guys will never see it coming. Hopefully I manage to finish this out strong, and that you continue to enjoy. Thanks for leaving me a review hun, and I hope you enjoy what I have coming up!!

Steffs ~ Ah Steffs! How's school going? Lol ready to toss some kids out the window yet? Anywho, I do love them in investigation mode. Of course, getting attacked and almost killed by several times by creepy fog is cool too haha. And you know the boys, they have a knack for getting in trouble before they ever fully figure things out. But that wouldn't happen in our world, would it? Pssht! Of course it would! I'm really glad you're enjoying, and I hope you continue to. Thank you for the cookie as always!!

Sarah ~ I can always tell it's your post by the pom-poms haha! I'm so glad this little gorefest was the perfect start to your weekend, those are the best kinds! And doll? What doll? There's a doll? Hmmm...that's weird. Ah, now I see, there's wine involved. Hun, did you bring enough for the whole class?? I hope you're not drinking too heavily the next update I bring, I don't want to confuse you more than you already are! o.O :D I tell you what tho, I confused myself while I was writing it, so if you need anything clarified, don't be afraid to ask haha...I have a feeling I may need to explain some things to everyone...thank you for the review!!

jensenlover5816 ~ I'm glad you're enjoying it, and looking forward to an update to boot! I haven't turned you away yet...that tends to happen... o.O Thanks for the love!

Oceane ~ You always do manage to put a little grin on my face! :D I'm glad you enjoyed the nurse, she was fun to play with. And I suppose she was manifested by myself and quite a few of the Dean girls on here. I know each and every one of us would be doing the same haha. As for the Emerson family, they're about to get a whole lot more confusing. I think I need to ship them off to the Jerry Springer show...

Sparkle ~ As long as you weren't drinking/eating while you were laughing, I'm cool with that! Too many times am I eating while reading and usually end up choking. As for the nurse, you know she's a fangirl. Or how one of us would react if a hottie came in and we had to take him to the basement to make copies...I'm glad you're enjoying the mystery, its been fun to piece together! I hope you enjoy the next update, it shouldn't be too much longer!

Jules ~ Aha! That's who the nurse was! I blame her on all of our conversations and the cookies you send me constantly. She was a manifestation of my own inner fangirl! *gasp* Thank you again so much for being my second pair of eyes, and I hope you enjoy where this is going. You'll never see it coming! *wink*

Alisa ~ So, how's the house going? I think you came on the other night just as I lost my internet, so I didn't get a chance to ask you! Is it all pieced together yet? Got pictures? Lmao when you quoted that first line I realized I'd forgotten to take a self note out of there. Crap! See, you can have eagle eyes like Jules (the grammar nazi) and still manage to screw it up by messing with things afterward. *sigh* Oh well. I'm glad you enjoy my imagery tho, it is fun to describe the scenes playing out in my head. Should I be worried that those scenes are playing out in my head? Kind of makes you wonder what in the world is up with my thought patterns haha! Thank you for the support and I hope you enjoy! :D


Like they say, don't mess with a writer, they maime, kill, and torture people for fun.


I hope you all are enjoying (even those that don't review, thanks for taggin along!) and the next update should be coming fairly soon. I've been wrestling with it, but I think I'm getting a handle on it so maybe soon. I do have to drive home this weekend so it won't be the next few days as I'll be in a car...talking to myself...

Loves!
Kris

Okay guys, update time!! I applaud you all for staying with me, its been a bit unactionless as we develop and twist the story. Never fear, its coming.

Muahahahahahahaha!!

Steffs ~ Yeeeeeeeeees! My fun house full of upsidedown mirrors and tables glued to the ceilings. Occasionally the severed body part comes flying out at you, but other than that the place is relatively harmless. And what fun is baiting the trap if not to sit back and watch it go off? Lol...thanks for the review!!

Jules ~ I love how you go through and edit the updates, but you'll come on here and enjoy the chapter like any other reader. *grin* That's professionalism right there haha. I'm so glad you're feelin' how scary I'm goin' for....its tough to scare someone with words lol. I could add a lot of sound effects I guess...thank you again hun! You're awesome!!

Oceane ~ Hmmmm...that's part of the fun! Haha...its almost like possession roulette...I'm glad you're enjoying tho, and as always thank you for the support! You rock!!

Sarah ~ Now why in the world would you never know with me? Psssht...its not like I have anything to hide...or twist...or maim...lol...you may have latched onto something with the Spanish...and maybe even the chandalier...but at the same time...I do like my surprises...so you'll just have to wait and hang on! Lol...thanks again for the multi-colored love!!

Sparkle ~ Lmao I love your 'Clue' reference!! I'm glad you're continuing to enjoy, however, I don't think you should hate the little girl just yet...I mean...she is just a poor confused little kid looking for her doll...thank you so much for the review!!

Update coming up next.

Thanks again to Jules for filling in the holes and inputting the correct words. I can't stop picking so any mistakes left over were made afterward and are my own.

Enjoy!!

~~~SN~~~

Chapter 4 - Trastornadas

The bed squeaked beneath him as his whole body spasmed, the damaged rusted springs were clearly straining to hold the weight of the boy’s muscular physique. His arms were secured across his chest, and his bare feet hung off the end of the stained mattress.

A single tear worked its way down his damp face, mixing with the horror-induced sweat that seeped from his pores. Large pupils that consumed his cloudy moss-green irises stared blankly at a water-damaged ceiling, and his lips were moving soundlessly. Periodically his head would jerk to the side, and a scream would build in his throat. The drugs coursing through his system would then react, stifling the scream until it was wrenched from his bloodless lips as a mere whimper.

“How long has he been like this?”

The psychologist spared his companion a sidelong glance, before clearing his throat and pulling at his tie. “Since we brought him in. The night of the incident he was taken to the ER, borderline out of control.”

The doctor waited patiently while the man made a few strokes in his notebook before continuing. “He was screaming about being possessed, and even attacked a nurse when he tried to remove him from the victim’s side.”

Dean cringed at the hard, clinical tone in the doctor’s voice. “When was the victim pronounced?”

“En route she flat-lined, and she was declared dead soon after arrival. He actually stabbed her right through the neck, so I’m amazed she made it that far.”

“You said he was screaming about being possessed?”

The doctor once again cleared his throat, this time pushing the thick black glasses back up the bridge of his nose. His thinning black hair was worn long, peppered with strands of gray and silver. One side was parted over, giving the appearance of a really bad comb-over. He stood a good foot shorter than Dean, and was practically on the tips of his toes as he peered through the barred glass at his patient.

Unfortunately the bird’s eye view Dean was currently enjoying also gave him a good vantage point to observe the clumps of dandruff clinging to the greasy roots, the smaller flakes scattered down the oily tresses, and the small piles interwoven in the threads of the guy’s lab coat, which was two sizes too big. Gagging slightly, the hunter forced himself to concentrate on what the high-pitched voice was saying.

“…no control over his actions, doesn’t even remember carving his girl up. Real shame, she was a nice one too.”

“Did he reveal anything else about being possessed?” Sam had come up from the side, trailed by a second doctor who had taken him to the morgue to check out the victim’s body. The second doctor simply smiled at Sam and continued down the hallway, his job as escort complete. Dr. McNasty turned and grinned at Sam, revealing nicotine-stained teeth and a sickening case of halitosis. Dean made gagging gestures behind the doc’s back and Sam found himself nodding, his lips pressed together to stifle the grin that threatened to break out over his brother’s antics.

The doctor took the nod as an encouragement and relished the attention he seemed to be getting. “Yes, he said something about feeling like he couldn’t let ‘her’ go, couldn’t let ‘her’ leave. Of course, these were the ramblings of a half-crazed, heavily-drugged man, nothing you officers should take into account.”

“Of course, we just have to rule out foul play,” Dean said carefully, not wanting the doctor to latch onto their fascination with Jace’s possession. “We need to make sure there wasn’t a third party.”

The doctor nodded. “Those two were definitely alone in that house. Unfortunately, you guys are looking at the worst case of Post-Traumatic Stress I’ve ever seen, so I don’t think you’re going to get a statement out of this guy. If this level of catatonia continues, we may get to try out the new electroconvulsive therapy kit we got for Christmas!” His laughter was too loud for the quiet hallway, the short bursts of snorting broken by the high-pitched giggling. His ill-timed mirth was unshared by the disgusted Winchesters.

“Well, we thank you for your time,” Dean interrupted, unable to stand the man’s presence any longer, “and if we have any further questions we’ll be in touch.”

.:.SN.:.

“The dad?” Dean asked as soon as they were clear of the hospital. They had been informed on the way out that Jace would soon be moved to a more secure facility, one that could handle his…situation. “I was wondering when he was going to make an appearance.”

“Yeah, has to be him. Man, you should have seen the body.” Sam’s tone was somber; too many victims seen in his young life had jaded him too much to be in awe.

“That’s okay; I got a good enough description from Dr. Gross to paint my own picture.”

Sam dropped his head, scrubbed his palms against his face and groaned. “Our list of graves to dig is getting longer.”

“Ah Sammy boy, I think you could use the exercise.”

“Screw you Pudgy,” Sam threw back. “I’m not the one getting a gut.”

“It’s not a gut; it doesn’t even resemble a gut. This,” Dean stated, patting the flat planes of his stomach, “is not a gut.”

“Whatever,” Sam scoffed. “That’s an impressive jiggle you got going there. It’s almost like watching an old Jell-O Jiggler commercial.”

“I don’t ‘jiggle’.” Dean looked incredulous, which morphed into insulted, and slid rapidly toward unsure.

Sam laughed as Dean patted his stomach again, and then began to poke and pinch at it, studying the results.

.:.SN.:.

Half an hour later, Dean was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest and one leg curled back, boot planted firmly against the clean whitewashed plaster. Business suits filed past him, some holding cell phones, others talking into the blinking headsets planted in their ears. Their polished leather shoes and thick-soled alligator boots clicked as the heels met the buffed tile floor of the county courthouse.

They looked like lemmings, Dean thought, and almost laughed out loud. Mindless lemmings with bags full of laptops and legal pads, habitually following each other around a gray world, he mused silently. These people had no idea what really happened when they shut the lights off at night. Half the stuff he faced weekly would probably scare them all to death.

He could easily picture Sam making his way with this crowd, arguing into a cell phone, a pissy look on his face. Thank God his awesome older brother had saved him from this black and white nightmare of a life. A small twinge of guilt bit through Dean’s chest. Not only had he saved his little brother, but he had probably condemned him as well, he thought sadly.

A familiar shadow rounded the corner near the door of the public records office, just to his right. “Find ‘em?”

Sam frowned, holding up a sheet of paper. “They were all cremated. The mom was buried separate from the family plot, but still cremated.” Sam shrugged and began to walk towards the door.

“I really hate this part of the job. So what do you suggest?” Dean pushed off of the wall and lengthened his stride to catch up with Sam.

“We have to find out what’s keeping them here. There’s got to be some sort of remains.”

“How are we supposed to find that out? God knows if some sicko kept all of their teeth, or some family member kept hair in a scrapbook.”

“That would suck,” Sam replied, letting out a small chuckle. “There is one possibility I’ve been thinking about.”

“That can’t be good.” Dean fiddled with the keys to the Impala, missing Sam’s glare.

“I was thinking of the doll.”

“You mean, the doll that the mom was going on about?” Dean asked, snapping his head up to stare disbelievingly at his sibling. “You think someone may have kept remains from all of the family members and made a doll out of it?” Dean’s face scrunched in disgust. “Hair of mom, teeth of kid, that kind of deal?”

“It could be that, like what we faced in New York. However, Mom was ranting and raving about her soul, and soul stealing isn’t a stretch,” Sam argued, once again bringing it up. Dean dropped into the driver’s seat, forcing Sam to follow suit into the passenger side. “If you have someone with a motive and the know-how, it doesn’t take a lot to fashion a medium to steal souls. A doll would be perfect.”

“Who would have a motive though?” Dean wondered, finally deciding to head down this road. “And all of the souls?”

“Well, I would go with the nanny.”

.:.SN.:.

The quiet, repetitive sound of water hitting porcelain soon had Dean sinking deeper into the lumpy mattress of his bed, the remote to the television held loosely in his hand. They had decided to call it quits for the night, and pick up the search for the nanny in the morning. In the meantime, the local police force was surrounding the old Emerson house, so they knew no one was going to get killed in the near future.

Sam exited the small bathroom in a cloud of steam, water still dripping from his hair. “You falling asleep on me?”

Dean nodded lazily, not bothering to move any other body part.

“We’re going to be busy tomorrow so you might want to crash now-” Sam jerked slightly in surprise as a short burst of pounding rattled the cheap motel room door.

“What the hell?” Dean demanded quietly as he rose and moved towards the door, grabbing his .45 as he passed by the table it rested on.

He peered back at Sam as he tucked the weapon in the waistband of his jeans, and after receiving a nod confirming backup, he cautiously opened the door. A young man stood a few feet away from the door, his face blackened by the surrounding shadows, his hunched shoulders bowing his posture.

“Sorry man, we didn’t order any food,” Dean said slowly, not liking the vibes that were radiating from their visitor. He placed his boot at the bottom of the door to prop it open, and kept his right hand propped against the doorjamb. The other hand he held behind the door, hiding it from view.

“Sam and Dean Winchester?” a deep voice resonated from the shadow, the head dropping even lower. Dean could swear the figure was vibrating, almost shaking.

“Can I help you?” he returned, losing all patience and not liking the fact that this man knew who they were. His left hand slid down the back of the door and rounded smoothly behind his back, bringing his palm into contact with the cold metal of the Ruger in his waistband.

“I just need to know something, and then I’ll be on my way. What the hell do you want with my family?”

~

Reclining back into his position on the bed, Dean was a visible wall between their visitor and Sam. An even clearer warning was the pistol resting in his lap. Sam sat near the bathroom in one of the rickety motel chairs, one that groaned with each movement and tilted slightly to one side. Their late night visitor sat in the other chair, near the door. Dean recognized it as a defensive posture on the young man’s part, one of easy escape.

“So who are you?” Sam asked, breaking the short but tense standoff.

“My name is Chad. Evelyn Emerson was my grandmother.”

Sam’s eyes widened slightly. The family resemblance was recognizable now; Chad’s wide jawbone and deep-set dark eyes were mirrored in every boy’s face in the small Emerson family photo they had found.

“Paul Emerson was my dad; he was the second youngest boy.”

“How much family history do you know, Chad?” Dean asked, wondering if they had just found a solution to all of their problems.

“What I do know is pretty messed up, and I’m not even sure it’s real. My father was a dentist, a very serious demeanor but with a small town attitude. Some of the things he used to talk about made him sound like a complete nut job, but he was totally serious. That’s the thing that scares me the most.” Chad sighed, rubbed his eyes and groaned. “You two being here makes it that much worse.”

Sam sat forward, releasing another groaning protest from the chair as the cheap wood crackled and leaned. “What do you mean?”

“Well, I’ve heard about what you two do, who you are.”

The hunters shared an uneasy look, and then turned back to Chad. Feeling the heat, Chad answered in full.

“Well, last year, when you guys were in Richardson you met an old high school friend of mine, Harry Spangler.”

Dean’s brow creased into a puzzled frown, but Sam jumped on the name. “The co-creator for hellhoundslair.com? You’re kidding.”

“Yeah,” Chad nodded. “I know the guy. We went to school together for a short time, and we’ve sort of kept in touch since then. He’s kind of a big geek and he lets Ed run all over him, but all in all he’s a good guy. Well, when he told me a pair of real ghost busters showed up and saved his life, I didn’t believe him. Then, when Rose called me telling me two guys by the name of Sam and Dean were investigating the house, your names clicked. I called Harry and he confirmed it. Even told me one was impossibly tall and the other had a cocky attitude.”

Dean grinned. “Glad we could leave a lasting impression.”

Chad smiled back. “So it was too big of a coincidence. Harry also told me you guys saved their lives from an actual ‘blood-thirsty ghost’.”

“Guess you could say that, yeah.” Sam ran his hand lightly across his throat as he remembered being half-strangled by the axe-wielding tulpa.

Chad’s smile dropped, and his fingers began picking at a loose thread on his sleeve. “When I put two and two together, I could only guess why you guys were here. I mean, I have a bit of an open mind but the whole ghost thing is still hard to buy.”

“So we don’t have to pull any wool over your eyes, great,” Dean said, glad for that little break. Too many times they’d had to skate around the truth and blindfold witnesses; here they could get what they needed with little effort.

“Just tell me what you’re actually doing here and I’ll help the best that I can.”

“You know about the two murders in your grandparents’ house, right?” Sam started slowly.

“Oh God, yeah?” Chad swallowed thickly, his eyes widening as realizations dawned.

“We think your grandparents had something to do with that.”

“I know my family had its share of issues,” Chad defended almost angrily, his loyalty to the Emerson blood running heavily in his veins, “but they weren’t murdering psychopaths.”

“Sometimes, when people die, their perception of the truth gets twisted and they turn into something they’re not,” Sam stated simply.

Chad blinked at Sam. “You’re like that chick on Ghost Whisperer, aren’t you? You have the whole ‘not everyone has a white light’ theory.”

“I told you!” Dean said, pointing his finger at his younger sibling.

Sam glared at Dean, before turning back to Chad. “We think your family members have been possessing anyone who enters the house, forcing them to kill.”

Chad abruptly stood, his hands fisting nervously at his sides as he began pacing the short length of the room. “So what are we supposed to do now? My family is already dead, you can’t kill something that’s already dead.”

Dean scoffed, but gestured for Sam to continue.

“Chad, we’re not going to spend a whole bunch of time explaining the mysteries of the universe. We just need to know if your grandmother kept, and possibly passed down, a doll at some point.”

Appearing slightly taken aback, the young Emerson took his time answering. “A doll?”

Dean rolled his eyes. “Yes, a doll. Not in the style of the blonde with the beach house, more like a porcelain, haunts-your-dreams kind of doll. May have even been hand-made.”

Chad nodded after a few more moments. “I think my dad told me that his nanny used to make dolls, and sell them on the side. He really didn’t tell me about any being kept within the family though.”

“Would we be able to talk to him now?” Sam prodded.

Chad shook his head sadly. “My dad passed on about five years ago, heart attack. But I’m not sure he would have known then, he pretty much told me everything he knew. My grandfather was a stubborn bastard, and kept his kids pretty ignorant. If there was a…doll…then my dad probably had no idea of it.”

“Where is the nanny now?” Dean asked, suddenly remembering their missing piece.

Chad’s pacing stopped, and wearily he returned to his seat by the door. “Not sure. After my grandfather died, she pretty much disappeared. She was an illegal immigrant here, so it’s not surprising that she hasn’t been heard from since. I know she was an older woman, so I highly doubt she’s even still around.”

“Well that pretty much screws us over,” Dean admitted with a weary sigh. Man this was getting old; for once they needed a break.

“So you guys need to find this doll and that will stop my family? I don’t understand.”

“Chad, you seem like a smart kid,” Dean started, all traces of patience gone. “See if you can stay with me, okay?”

“Dean,” Sam chided.

“We think this doll,” Dean continued, “may contain the spirits of your grandparents, their daughter Ann Marie, and whoever else the nanny chose to shove in there.”

“Right now its all just theories, but we believe if we find this doll and burn it, it will put your whole family to rest,” Sam finished.

“And that will stop them from killing?” Chad questioned, doubt and disbelief still heavy in his voice.

“We hope so,” Sam grunted quietly. He shared Dean’s dislike of the feeling that they were heading into this hunt almost blind, and hoped they figured it all out before someone else ended up getting killed.

“You hope so?” Chad almost demanded, standing again. “I thought you guys were super….Ghostbusters….or something.”

“Are you serious?” Dean asked.

“Look,” Sam interrupted, trying to act as a buffer between his impatient sibling and their incredulous visitor. “We’ve been grasping at straws since the very beginning, not that your family has helped very much. We do what we can with what we have, and most of the time we stop what needs to be stopped. Now, tonight, we’re going to need your help.”

“You got a plan, Sammy?” Dean inquired, quirking an eyebrow.

“There’s a slim chance it’s going to work.”

“Ah, but that’s my favorite kind.”

~~~SN~~~

awesome update loved it
update soon
Sam looking at Dean's stomach lmao

:cheer Sammy's got a plan!

Well, you know for a moment there, when I read the start of the chapter, I had a bad moment... I completely forgot about Jace being possessed and I actually thought the bloke on the bed was Sam... :thud *slaps self in the head*..keep up, Jules...

Anyway, grossed out at the dandruff and the oily hair, chuckled at Dean's antics behind the doc's back. And I adored the whole "Screw you, Pudgy" bit and Dean doing the pinch test to see if he was.... :lmao

It - or rather Sam - keeps coming back to the doll... And now we have Chad Emerson shedding a tiny bit more light on the story. That was a bit of a worry at first that he knew who the boys were straight off - don't blame Dean for having his hand on the gun...(is that a gun in your pocket? oh, it is....)

Methinks things are about to get freaky....Chuckie-style, or perhaps Chinga....(X-Files and Stephen King fans will get the reference)

This is awesome, Kris. Can't wait to see what's in store for us next.

Have installed new seatbelts on the home office chair, just in case....

Jules

WHAT !!!!!!!


DEAN PUDGY

*Rushes to investigate.* *Strips Dean....Looks and feels.*


Nah! Perfect condition ! *Sighs*

You had me and Dean worried there Kris.


So the plot thickens. Emerson Jr doesn't seem to have shed much light except to confirm the presence of the creepy assed Doll.

I think Sam has had a thing against dolls since that Hotel that he and Dean stayed in and were taken for antiquers.

SO WHAT NOW???


WAITS for next AWESOME installment

Steffs

:cheer :cheer :cheer Since you like the pompoms so much Kris! :cheer :cheer :cheer Great update hon, but leave it on a cliffie! :evil Just don't go on exercises or manoeuvres or anything that will delay the next update! :P

What a gross description of that Drs hair, made me delay my dinner! :rotfl Can just imagine Dean gagging behind his back at Sam! :lol:

So we have possibly evil nanny making dolls and stealing souls, she sounds the perfect person to take care of children - not! :rolleyes: *reaches for glass of wine* And has she really disappeared off the face of the earth or is she around somewhere and has activated the doll or something! :unsure: Or is this doll some weird Spanish hoodoo thing or something :huh: *takes another gulp of wine as an excuse for silly off the wall comment*! :drink

Interesting that Chad Emerson has sought the boys out, and love that he knew Harry from hellhouselair.com! :) Inspired touch there hon! :D

But what is Sam's plan with a slim chance of working! :huh:

Think I may be needing to contact Jules to find out where she got the seatbelt for her chair, don't want to have any nasty accidents when reading the next exciting fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants installment! :supes Seeing as I already have a split lip from opening my car door into my face! :rolleyes:

Sarah :wave

That was great Kristen :)
Sam is wrong :angry: Dean's stomach is flat :)
Paul Emerson showed up and confirmed that the doll existed.
They only have to find it and burn it, why I think it won't be that easy <_<
Can't wait for more :)