FADED ▷ Sam Winchester [2]

25 | WHO LET THE DOGS OUT?

My mind briefly flashes back to when I killed Ishim. I take a deep breath and push the memory aside. I don't need to think about that now.

"You ask me, a bear got him. Maybe a cougar. Found a fair amount of blood over here, and some there. But no body. Figure whatever did this dragged him off. So unless you guys are looking to make a federal case on some critters..."

"You said there was a survivor?" I ask the sheriff.

"Yeah, Gwen Hernandez, uh, but she's pretty shaken up. Saying all sorts of strange things."

"Like what?" Dean asks.

"Like that they were attacked by a wolf. An invisible wolf," the sheriff chuckles. My jaw clenches. "Girl says that it came out of nowhere and that it's coming after her next."

"Right," Dean says. "Sheriff, thank you." He nods and walks away.

"An invisible dog, huh?" Dean says quietly to me and Sam. "Sounds like a hellhound to me."

"Yeah," Sam agrees.

•••

"This is dumb. It's a dumb idea," Dean says as we get out of the car at Gwen's house.

"Listen, Gwen saw something kill her boyfriend, and she thinks it's coming for her next," Sam says. "We just gotta tell her—"

"Tell her what?" Dean asks. "No, seriously, Sam. What are you gonna say? "Hi, my name is Sam Winchester. This is my girlfriend Bailey and my much handsomer brother, Dean. We hunt monsters. Oh, and that guy you were banging, we're pretty sure he made a deal with a demon. So a Hellhound came and dragged his soul to Hell. But you, you're cool, and some there's nothing around for us to kill, peace out"."

I hit Dean in the shoulder. "Hey!" He exclaims, rubbing the spot where I hit.

"Oh, did that hurt?"

"Yeah!" He says.

"Good!" I snap.

"You guys done?" Sam asks. "Yeah, we don't say that Dean. We say something that'll give her peace. You know? Help her sleep at night."

"Oh so we lie?" Dean asks.

"Yeah. A lot," Sam says as he rings the doorbell.

The door opens a few inches, enough so we can see just a little bit of the girl standing on the other side. The chain lock is still in place though.

"Gwen Hernandez? Uh Agents Baker, Clapton, and Granger, FBI. May we come in?" Dean asks.

"I don't want any—"

"We just wanna talk," Sam says. "That's all. About Marcus." She doesn't say anything, she closes the door and unlocks it, letting us in.

As I walk in the door, I feel a chill rush up my spine. I furrow my eyebrows and turn around, alert. But I don't see anything.

I try to brush it off. I walk into the living room with the boys and take a seat.

"Gwen, we're here today because we know what you told the police," Sam says. "That you feel like something supernatural is after you. But we've concluded our investigation, and the thing that killed your boyfriend—"

"Was a bear," Dean finishes. Gwen looks like she's not buying it at all.

"Was a bear," Sam repeats. "Now, we've found it and put it down. So, you're no longer in any kind of danger, okay?"

"I don't– I know what I saw," she argues.

"Gwen, when you go through a traumatic event, sometimes your mind can make things up," Sam says. Honestly I've never wanted to hit him before, but I do right now more than ever.