Definitely A Hunter {2}

FORTY-ONE

Sam and Dean finally got Dakota into the Impala. It took both Winchesters promising that if it was Jack, then they wouldn't hurt him in anyway. 

Dakota didn't have a good feeling about this. 

It took about a day for them to reach Bismarck, North Dakota. They stopped at a motel to shower and put on their fed threads. Well, Dakota was dressed as an assistant. 

She still didn't think that FBI agents have assistants, but people continued to buy it. Why fix what's not broken?

Dakota pulls out a picture of Jack from her jacket pocket. It was a polaroid of the boy smiling, she'd taken if after they had gotten to know each other. 

"That's him." The victim's girlfriend confirmed. Dakota sighs sadly, giving her dad a heartbroken look. "He said his name was Jack, that he was a buyer."

"A buyer?" Sam questions, briefly patting Dakota's shoulder. The victim's girlfriend turns to face the Winchesters, gesturing towards the painting around the room. "Ah." 

"Some freaky stuff here." Dean points out, nudging Dakota discreetly. She glances up at him, noticing him staring at a painting with a disturbed expression. 

"Derek had quite the imagination." Derek's girlfriend reminices. "He hated that word." 

"What? 'Freaky'?" Sam asks, the other two Winchesters point out certain paintings to each other. 

"'Imagination'." Derek's girlfriend corrected. Dakota and Dean look over at her. "He liked to think of his art more as reportage." 

"Reportage?" Dakota presses while Dean rolls his eyes discreetly. 

"Reportage from where?" Sam jumps in. 

"From the places he'd visit." Derek's girlfriend answers. "Derek was a dreamwalker." 

Dakota goes back to scanning the painting along with her dad. Dean's lips are pressed together almost skeptically. Dakota notices something familiar, she nudges Dean and glances over her shoulder. Her and Dean carefully uncover the painting to scan it.

"Sammy?" Dakota mutters out, her voice loud enough for her uncle to hear. 

He looks over upon hearing his niece's voice. His expression changes quickly when he realizes the painting their looking at. 

The Winchesters exchange looks.

<><><><>

Sam decides to sit in the Impala researching Dreamwalkers as Dakota and Dean get coffee. Dakota rubs at her eyes harshly, not letting any tears escape. She turns away from her dad, but he knows that she's distraught.  

She follows Dean back to the Impala, tugging at her hair in stress. She grabs her coffee, letting the hot drink warm her freezing hands. 

Dakota slides into the backseat, forcing a smile toward her uncle. Sam immediately takes notice of her red eyes, but decides against saying anything. 

"Hey." Dean says toward Sam, handing him the remaining coffee.

"Thanks." Sam takes the drink. 

"Yeah." Dean brushes it off. 

"So the lore on dreamwalking is pretty inconsistent." Sam informs them. "Uh, there are stories about it across numerous Native Amer--"

"Sammy, are we going to talk about it?" Dakota cuts her uncle off. 

"What?" He asks her.

"The painting, you saw it, too." Dakota points out. 

"Yeah." He agrees with her. "And?"