Salvation - Dean Winchester

Chapter Forty

Those boys' eyes eagerly took in the sight of the underground bunker. A simple cot, a metal desk next to it, a couch next to that. Folders and books hazily thrown and about and messily organized on a small bookshelf. Symbols and sigils written everywhere and the floor engulfed in one big devils trap. Metal scraping vibrated heavily across the walls, almost painful to their ears.

"Bobby, is this—" Sam started first, his hand touching one of the metal walls.

"Solid iron. Completely coated in salt. One hundred perfect ghost-proof." Bobby couldn't help the smile of pride when he finished, Ivanna joining in as she looked at the boys' impressed faces.

"You built a panic room?" Sam asked, an elation of sorts building up in his voice.

"I had a weekend off." Bobby shrugged nonchalantly. Ivanna and Sam laughed silently at his behavior.

"Bobby." Dean spoke seriously, catching their attention.

"What?" Bobby turned his attention to him. Naturally, Dean had pulled down one of the guns from the weapon rack he had on the wall.

"You're awesome." A grin slowly crawled on his face as he gave him high praise. Dean chuckles as he takes in the expanse of the room, only to stop at a certain sight. "Oh."

On the wall behind Bobby was a black and white photo of a blonde beach model. Ivanna rolled her eyes and stepped forward, clapping Dean on the back harshly.

"Come on, we got work to do."

****

She'd put Dean to work on filling clear shells with salt, creating more bullets for them. Sam had immediately sat next to him, offering to help. Ivanna suspected he didn't want to reach the many texts Bobby had given him. So, he sealed the case once Dean was done stuffing them.

Ivanna had taken to rifling through the texts with Bobby, helping him find the specific page so he could show the boys. The air had turned almost silent, void of their voices, but it was comfortable. Well, until Dean spoke.

"See, this is why I can't get behind God." Ivanna immediately sighed, closing her eyes and pressing her face into the book.

"What are you talking about?" Sam asked.

"If he does exist, fine. Bad crap happens to good people. That's how it is." He paused, turning to look at Ivanna over his shoulder. Seeing her hidden form, not jumping up to deny him, urged him to continue. "There's no rhyme or reason—just random, horrible, evil—I get it, okay. I can roll with that. But if he is out there, what wrong with him?"

Ivanna slowly lowered the book from her face and she pondered his words. She had opened up her mouth to add her thoughts, only Dean hadn't run out of his,

"Where the hell is he while all these decent people are getting torn to shreds? You know, why doesn't he help?" He threw a clear unfilled round on the table in agitation. Sam had looked to Ivanna then to Bobby for help.

"I ain't touching this one with a ten-foot pole." Bobby denied quickly, going back to scribbling notes on his paper. All eyes turned to Ivy then. She sighed as she placed her opened book on the couch, holding her place.

"I believe everything has to have a balance. And there's power out there that we don't understand, and that's okay."

"So-so, because Tim gets a big promotion, Sally gets to be possessed by a demon?"

"That's much too black and white, Dean. God created Hell for a reason. He wanted a balance of good and evil, but he also gave people free will. The scales are always gonna be tipping back and forth on that line."