When she finds herself back in Sioux Falls on a job, a twist of fate puts Evelyn Marshall in the path of the Winchesters and Bobby Singer. With nowhere left to run, the dark secrets in her past and the creatures who've hunted her are about to catch...
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The bed in the spare room was just as uncomfortable as the cot, but at least I didn't immediately feel like a prisoner when I woke up.
No one had attempted to dress me, Castiel's coat had been employed as a blanket, and someone had brought my things to the room. The Winchesters must've grabbed them and my bike when they'd come back from the demon attack days ago. God, my bike. I hoped it was okay. The thing was elderly and rusted but it was mine and it was reliable. Besides, I would need it to move on now that the pack was off my tail.
I noticed that I wasn't alone and instinctively reached beneath the pillow for a weapon. There was nothing there and I felt even more naked without a means of protection. I clutched the coat protectively around myself while my eyes adjusted to the dim light.
"Castiel?" The tension left my body. "How long have you been standing there?"
"All night."
"I was out all night?" I swung my legs off the bed and tried to stand. It became immediately apparent that this was a bad idea when they gave out from under me, and I dropped to sit on the mattress. "I need to stop doing this."
"I assume that you don't mean standing?"
"Shifting," I corrected. "It's not as easy as it looks."
"I assure you that the sound of your bones snapping and the ruptures caused by your stretching muscles didn't give the impression that the transformation was simple."
My stomach lurched. I felt crappy enough without receiving a play-by-play of the torment that was my change between dog and woman. Castiel took a step towards me but I held up a hand to stop him. As much as I appreciated his healing magic and the fortune it'd saved me on a hospital bill, that didn't mean I needed his hands on me again. Besides, he couldn't do anything for nausea. It's not like it was a physical injury.
"I'm fine," I assured him. "Just tired."
"You slept deeply. And you made... strange faces while you did."
"I have a lot of nightmares." I shrugged it off. "Comes with the territory when you're a hunter."
Castiel drew in a deep breath. "There are untold horrors in the world. Hunters see more than most. I can believe that you are all tormented in ways that most humans can't ever truly understand."
"Do angels understand?"
"I don't sleep."
"Well, if you ever do, I recommend avoiding nightmares if you can. Try to dream happy thoughts."
"I'll keep that in mind."
Castiel gestured to the pile of clothes. Upon closer inspection, they weren't all mine. Perhaps Bobby did have a few of his wife's old things left over after all. That, or he just didn't want to dig around in my luggage. I appreciated the respect he'd afforded my privacy, but it wasn't necessary. My dirty secrets were all out in the open. It wasn't like he'd find anything else in there that'd scare the life out of him. Well, except for my underwear.
