[The Girl With the Dungeons and Dragons Tattoo]
Sam was on his cell phone. The wall behind him, which Francesca was looking at, was covered with research. "Yeah, I hear you. All right. Well, thanks for looking. Yep. Bye."
Sam hung up and turned to the hunters. "So, Nora didn't see any pattern to the dig sites either." Sam sat on the sofa next to Saoirse.
Dean frowned. "Yeah, 'cause they got nothing in common." He sat on the arm of the sofa. "And I got nothing from local lore 50 miles in every direction of all of them. I mean, it's like they're just... old dirt. What's Dick looking for?"
Dean took a drink from his flask and the light flickered. The brothers stood and took their guns from their jeans. Bobby appeared and they pointed their guns at him.
"Hey, hey, go easy, you idjits. Sorry for the jump scare," Bobby said.
Dean frowned. "So how does this work? I leave the cap off and you genie your way out?"
"I wish it were that easy. The thing-" Bobby flickered and vanished.
"Bobby?" Sam asked.
Bobby reappeared. "Damnit. It's hard to stay focused. I'm still kind of worn out."
Dean shrugged. "You've been pretty busy for a dead guy."
"All right. Listen. I-I don't know how long before my next ghost nap, so let's just skip to the skinny -- those numbers I gave you."
"The empty lot in Cheeseville?" Dean asked.
Bobby nodded. "Yeah, well, it ain't gonna be empty for long. I got a gander at Dick's big plan, right before he Lincolned me. They're breaking ground -- what month is this?"
"It's, uh, April," Francesca replied.
Bobby sighed. "Ground's broke."
Dean recalled what Frank had said. "They're surveying. They're getting ready to build something."
"Build what?" Dean asked.
"Exactly. What?"
"They're building as we're yammering," Bobby informed. "Check it out yourself. It's all right. I mean, you guys missed it because you've been kind of busy-" Sam opened the laptop, "-killing ghosts the past few days. But Dick is about to get into the Soylent Green business. That site'll show you they're building a biotech lab, right?"
Sam's laptop showed Geothrive's 'Standard plans for an efficient slaughterhouse'.
Bobby scoffed. "Biotech my ass. That sucker is a state-of-the-art slaughterhouse. And we're the beef."
Dean frowned. "Don't you think that's a little bold, even for Dick?"
"I bet you no one will even notice... 'cause first, he's gonna dumb us all down with Turducken-style munchies. Make us docile."
"It's in the meat," Francesca repeated. "We haven't been to Biggerson's since that entire fiasco."
Bobby turned to her. "Biggerson's? He's bought a list of joints ten pages long."
"Oh."
"Next, he's gonna cure us."
"Cure us of what?"
"All the biggies -- cancer, AIDS, heart disease. Let's just say they got an affinity for stem-cell research."
Dean took a quick moment to think. "The, uh, Leviathan real-estate mooks building that research center."
"Research for what?" Sam asked.
"They're not hunting anymore," Bobby replied. "They're engineering the perfect heard. Now, we've gone up against plenty liked to eat a few folk in the woods. This ain't that. This is about knocking us off the top of the food chain. This is about them Levis living here forever, one-percenter style, while we march our dopey, fat asses down to the shiny new death camps at every corner."
Sam's laptop beeped with an email. "I'm probably dead..." Francesca read. "Huh."
"It's an email..." Sam opened the email, "From Frank."
"Frank's alive?" Dean questioned.
Bobby frowned. "That jackass, always stealing my thunder."
Sam read the email. ""Sam, Frankie and Dean, if you're reading this, I'm dead... or worse. This email was sent because some prince is trying to hack into my hard drive right this second. So unless it's you, you got trouble." Um, okay. "My drive is full of compromising info. Your new aliases, hangouts, where you stored your car..."
"Baby?" Dean asked worriedly.
Sam glanced to his brother. "Even though he encrypted the crap out of his drive, he says we should assume that someone can hack into it eventually. He did put a tracking device into it." He clicked on a link and a 'Hard Driver Tracker' application appeared. "All right, let's see where Frank's drive is."
A box appeared on the screen saying that the drive was at Richard Roman Enterprises.
Francesca let out a groan. "Awesome. It's in the middle of the Death Star."
---
At Richard Roman Enterprises, the woman who had attempted to hack into Frank's hard drive pulled up for work on her yellow scooter. She removed her goggles and helmet before putting on headphones and playing a Katrina and the Waves song Walking on Sunshine. She walked towards the building.
As the song played, she entered and swiped her pass card. She walked bouncily across the foyer to the music's rhythm. Charlie was granted access by the security guard.
Charlie swiped her pass card in the elevator and pressed a button for the fourth floor. She looked around to see that no one was watching and started dancing vigorously as the chorus played.
When the elevator reached her floor, she composed herself and walked out. She turned off the music and removed her headphones as she walked to her desk. She smiled at her figurines and pulled up a website for 'The US Conservatives -- Keep America Strong' and transferred $10,000 from their account to 'Animal Lovers and Lovers of the Planet.'
"How'd it go last night?" a co-worker asked. "Charlie, it's a moral imperative you let me live vicariously through you."
Charlie smiled. "Pictures or it didn't happen, right?" She handed her co-worker her phone.
Her computer screen showed that the $10,000 to the 'Animal Lovers' donations page had transferred.
"You hooked up at a charity benefit?"
Charlie shrugged. "If you can't score at a reproductive rights function, then you simply cannot score."
"Wait. Is that legal?"
"We were two consenting adults."
The co-worker rolled his chair to get a closer look at Charlie's computer screen. "No. That. Why do you insist on breaking the law on company property."
"Mmm, faster Internet connection here," Charlie replied.
"Oh, well, if Pete finds out, he's gonna fire you... or get you arrested."
"Teddy Bear Pete? Please. You know I've been doing this for like a month. I can cover my tracks, Harry. Trust me."
"Charlie!" Pete called.
Charlie and Harry stood up to look over the cubicle divider at Pete. "My office. Now."
"I love you," Harry said.
Charlie smiled. "I know."
Charlie walked into Pete's office and was greeted by Dick Roman. "Charlie Bradbury? Dick. Sit."
Dick Roman stared at her. "Charlie, I've been running for, well, feels like since before the dawn of man. Always had a vision. I'm close to realizing that dream. I don't want to brag, but the world is my dinner plate. And I don't want anything to jeopardize that -- definitely not the actions of one tiny, little person."
"Sir, sir, I can fix this. Please -- please don't fire me," Charlie begged.
Dick looked at Pete. "What's she talking about?"
Pete frowned. "I-I-"
"Is that about those Super PACs? Cause that was adorable. Tell me, how does a high school dropout become one of the brightest minds at Roman Inc.?"
Charlie took a quick moment to think. "Um... Honestly... Historically, I've had this problem with -- with authority -- no offense -- so I realized the only way to get away with being me was to be as indispensable as possible. Sorry."
"You're kind of completing me right now, Charlie. You have that spark, that thing that makes humans so special. Not everyone has it, you know. Those people -- they can be replaced. But people like you... are impossible to copy."
"C-copy?"
"Take the compliment," Dick said, picking up a hard drive. "This one belonged to Frank Devereaux. Thought he could bring down the whole company. He was wrong. Let's keep him wrong. It's encrypted," he gave her the hard drive, "or whatever you crazy kids say these days. Break it open and bring it to me."
Charlie nodded. "Yeah, I'm on it. And -- and thank you."
"You're welcome. You have three days or you're fired. Good talk." He left the office.
"Is this real life?"
Pete stared at her with an open mouth.
Charlie walked past Harry's desk and held up the hard drive. "Dick Roman gave me an assignment."
"Is that... good?" Harry asked in confusion.
"It means the Eye of Sauron is on me."
"Well, if you need anything, I'll be back in the Shire."
Charlie plugged in the hard drive and looked at her Hermione figurine. "All right, H. It's just you and me now."
She dragged the 'external volume' icon on her screen across to a box that sad 'Drop hard drive here to decrypt' and typed rapidly. A message telling her 'Logon: error. Access denied' appeared. She typed more and got the same 'access denied' message several times.
Her screen read games, referring to models, simulations, and games which had tactical and strategic applications.
An electronic voice said, "How about a nice game of chess?"
More games appeared and Charlie frowned. "Wait a second. Seriously? 'Wargames'?"
She typed in 'Joshua' to log on. The screen read, 'Greetings Professor Falken'. Charlie smiled. "Shall we play a game, bitches?" She turned to her Hermione figurine. "That was hardly the Chamber of Secrets, right?" She mock-fistbumped the Hermione figurine. "Booyah."
The computer screen flickered and the electronic voice asked, "Shall -- we -- play -- a -- game?"
A system alert appeared on the screen: Nice Try Zero Charisma.
Frank's voice came through. "Nice try, Zero Charisma."
Charlie sighed and looked back at the Hermione figurine. "And back to square one."
"Let's see where Frank's drive is," Sam voiced.
---
Back in the cabin, Sam's laptop showed that Frank's hard drive was at Richard Roman Enterprises.
Francesca groaned and let out a frustrated sigh. "Awesome. It's in the middle of the Death Star. Well, Chicago, here we come." She stood.
Bobby shook his head. "No, wait, boys, Frankie, you can't just break in. They know your mugs. What if we mailed in the flask? Then I could ghost through the joint. I mean, it's not like Dick can kill me twice. What, you got a better plan? Come on. Just because I'm dead doesn't mean I don't know how to do my damn job."
Sam frowned. "Bobby, that's Dick's office."
Dean glanced at Sam and turned to Bobby. "I think what Sam's trying to say, is what happens if you run into Dick and, you know... go vengeful? You know it's not something you can just shake off."
Bobby looked between them. "Come on. Give me some credit. What, I'm supposed to just ride the pine?"
"Sorry, Bobby," Sam apologized, shutting his laptop and walking off. Dean and Francesca followed.
---
Back at Richard Roman Enterprises, Charlie was asleep at her desk.
Harry asked, "Did you go home last night?" Charlie shook her head. "I'll get us some coffee. I assume you want some crack in yours."
"Yes, please." Charlie replied.
Her screen was still running through the decryption process. There was a beep and she looked up to see that it said 'Access granted!' "Finally."
Frank's folders appeared on the screen and Charlie frowned. "Who is this d-bag?" She noticed a folder labeled 'Richard Roman Enterprises'.
Charlie shook her head. "Don't do it. Roman said to bring it right to him." She looked at the Hermione figurine. "You're right, H. You're always right." She opened the folder. "What the frak's a Leviathan?"
Frank's voice spoke. "The thing to know about Leviathan is these monsters are as old as time, and strong as all get-out. Sodium borate -- commonly known as Borax. Decapitation... Splash them liberally. Repeat... is the key. Then put that head in a box. These are the Superman of monsters. But don't use... from the black hole of Purgatory. Send it to the moon if you can. They die. They can shapeshift... They don't die easy. Take your face, your memory -- the works. The top boss is Mr. Dick Roman. He runs the show." Charlie hit a button and shook her head before hitting another button. "Cut one, you see black goo. We're through the looking glass. Blood is black, and black is blood. Don't turn your back. Get out of the building. Get out of the county."
Charlie hit a button and all the open documents closed. She got up and looked in Pete's office to find it empty.
"How goes it?" Harry asked, handing Charlie a cup of coffee.
Charlie sighed. "Pretty sure I spent the last 24 hours hacking into a loony bin. Where's Pete?"
"Uh, probably snuck down to the garage for a smoky treat."
---
Charlie made her way back to her apartment and took a bag from a cupboard and started packing. She paused, feeling like someone was there, and looked around. She shook her head and continued packing and her phone rang. "Hey, Pete, sorry I left without telling you. No, I just wasn't... feeling well. It's a... lady thing. I will be in first thing. Got to go -- cramps."
Charlie looked at the Star Wars figurines on a shelf and noticed the head of the Darth Vader figurine moving. Charlie rushed to the door and Dean slammed the door shut.
Francesca stood next to Dean and offered a light smile. "It's all right. We're not gonna hurt you."
Charlie glared. "Get away from me you..." she picked up a plastic sword, "...shapeshifter!"
"Look, we're not shapeshifters," Sam said.
Francesca tried to grab the sword and was slashed at, and the sword broke. "¡Guau!! Look, we're not Leviathans, okay? You want us to prove it? You know what Borax does to 'em?"
(Whoa!)
Charlie nodded, staring at Francesca. "Yeah."
"Sam? Dean?"
The brothers held out their hands and Francesca poured Borax over both of them and poured some over her own before holding up her hand to show Charlie. "Your turn."
Francesca gave Charlie the Borax and she splashed some over one hand. The brunette gave a nod. "Good." She took back the Borax.
"Who the hell are you guys?" Charlie asked.
"We know a little somethin' about a lotta stuff."
A commercial played on the TV. "America -- a nation of greatness... a nation of hardworking individuals. And, rest assured, no one works harder for you than Sucrocorp. Here at Sucrocorp, your well-being is our number one priority. Sucrocorp -- eat well, live well."
The three hunters sat in Charlie's living room as she tried to make sense of the situation. "So you're saying you guys are monster hunters. So, there are other monsters? Stop. Never mind. Just shh. Okay, I get how you tracked the drive -- straight GPS -- but it's still at then office. How did you find me?"
Sam cleared his throat and opened his laptop. He showed Charlie video footage of herself and Charlie frowned. "Aw! Son of a gun jacked my webcam?!"
Dean replied, "Welcome to Frank."
"It's creepy, but I'll give it to him. So you're telling me everything he had on his drive is true."
Dean nodded. "That and more."
Francesca frowned. "Hang on. How long did it take you to crack into Frank's drive?"
"A day or so," Charlie replied.
Sam looked at her, impressed. "Is there anything you can't hack into?"
"Not yet."
"How about Dick Roman's email?"
"Why would I... Oh. He's one of them."
Francesca shook her head. "Uh, no. He's their leader."
"So what's the endgame -- steal our resources, make us some slaves?"
"Planet-wide value meal," Dean said. "We're the meat."
"You can't be... serious." Charlie scoffed, realizing he was right. "Okay. All right. Let's do this. What am I looking for?" She opened her laptop.
Francesca sat on the floor. "Well, for starters, uh, anything about archaeological dig sites."
"Like Indiana Jones stuff?"
"Sort of. All we know is that Dick has been digging all over the world, and we really need to know what he's looking for."
Charlie sighed. "You know, I was having a really good week. I met someone, downloaded the new Robyn album. Everything was coming up for me. Oh, crap."
Sam looked at her sympathetically. "Look, we get it sucks."
"No, not that. This. Dick's email isn't on the company server. It's on a private one, in his office."
"Meaning?" Dean asked.
"Can't get in unless you have his phone or you're at his desk."
Francesca raised a brow. "So you're saying that if we get into Dick's office, we can hack into his email?"
"You can't. Only some like... But I sure as hell ain't doing it. I am doing my job and... What are the chances I see everything on the drive and Dick lets me live anyway?"
"I think you know," Sam said.
"So I erase the drive first, protect me and all of you. Then I go back to my old life, right?" She noticed Francesca's look. "What?"
Francesca shook her head. "Sorry, but it ain't that easy. You're on Dick's radar, which means your old life is gone."
"I'm gonna die. I should have taken that job at Google."
"Look, Charlie, it's okay if you can't do it," Sam told her gently. "I mean, you didn't volunteer for this."
"Totally. Exactly. But now I volunteer."
"What?"
"I got to go back in anyways to wipe Frank's drive. Might as well break into Dick's office, too."
"Are you sure?" Francesca asked.
"No. But these things are gonna eat everyone I know. What kind of douchebag stands by that? However, I have never broken into anything in real life before, so... plan?"
"You got a Bluetooth?" Dean wondered.
"Yeah."
The trio joined Charlie at the table. "Security system -- can you get into that?"
"I can reroute any surveillance cameras we need."
Francesca nodded once. "Okay. That's a good start."
Bobby watched the four of them as they came up with a plan.
"Do you have a key card to get into the building?" Sam questioned.
"Uh, yeah," Charlie replied. "I can't duplicate it, but I can make a fake backing, so that..."
That night, after their plan was set, they made their way to Richard Roman Enterprises. A black van was parked outside, containing Sam and Francesca.
Dean soon joined and asked, "How's it going?"
Sam spoke. "Great, since she set this all up. Um, look." He used Charlie's laptop to show his brother and friend the security footage. "See this? I can put each camera on a pre-recorded loop. Once I do that, she'll have 15 minutes."
"15 minutes ain't a lot of time."
Francesca shook her head. "No. And she said if it took longer to hack his desktop, then she deserves to get eaten."
"I like her."
"I do too."
The security footage showed Charlie standing outside the building. Dean looked closer. "Wait. Is that... Son of a bitch."
"What?" Francesca and Sam asked.
"Look at her bag."
Sam noticed Dean's flask in a side pocket. "Bobby. Wait. Y-you think he, uh-"
"Hitched a ride after we told him to cool his jets? Yeah. What the hell's he thinking?"
"He's not. So what do we do -- call this whole thing off?"
"We've only got one shot at this," Francesca reminded them.
Charlie stood outside the building and looked at it nervously. She started singing Walking on Sunshine.
Francesca picked up the phone and said, "Charlie, it's Frankie. Are you singing?"
"I sing when I'm nervous," Charlie replied. "Don't judge me."
"Judgment-free zone. Listen, do me a solid and check the side pocket of your bag."
"Oh. Thank you." She took a drink from the flask. "Mmm. Good idea."
"Yeah, sure thing. Look, that's kind of, a, uh, family heirloom. It's a good luck charm, okay? So don't lose it."
"Copy that. Okay." Charlie nodded. "Let's do this." She stayed where she was.
"Um, Charlie? Charlie?"
"I'm having a hard time moving."
"You got this," Francesca reassured.
"Uh, I'm not -- I'm not a spy. No, I can't do it. I can't do it. I can't."
Sam took the phone from Francesca. "Charlie, it's Sam."
"I'm sorry, Sam. I'm sorry. I-I just-"
"It's okay. Uh, listen, w-who's your favorite Harry Potter character?"
"Uh, Hermione."
"Hermione. Well, all right, did Hermione run when Sirius Black was in trouble or when Voldemort attacked Hogwarts?"
"Seriously?" Dean scoffed.
"Shut up."
"No, of course not," Charlie replied.
"What did she do?" Francesca questioned.
"She kicked ass. She actually saves Harry in practically every book. And then she ends up with the wrong-"
"Focus, Charlie. Okay, so she kicked ass, right? So, then, what are you gonna do?"
Charlie smiled. "I'm gonna kick it in the ass."
"Good girl," Sam said.
Dean looked between Sam and Francesca. "Oh, you go, dumble-dorks."
Francesca smiled teasingly as she patted his cheek. "You love it, dumble-dork."
Charlie entered the building and walked past a security guard. As soon as her picture came up, she entered the elevator, swiped her pass, and hit the button for level four.
The hunters watched her closely.
Charlie walked into the elevator and got off at level four.
Sam hit a button on the laptop to the footage of the empty elevator would play on a 15 minute loop.
Charlie got back into the elevator, took the strip from her security pass, and put in onto another pass she was wearing and hit the button for level 11. She rode up in the elevator. "I'm in. I've always wanted to say that."
"You're on the clock," Francesca reminded her. "Move."
Bobby rode up with Charlie. She got off on the 11th floor and flattened herself behind a wall, seeing a security guard. "Hey, there's a big-ass guard up here, blocking the door. What do I do?"
"Just wait him out," Dean instructed.
Charlie glanced to see the security guard sit down and open a magazine. "He's not going anywhere."
"Okay, uh, you work there everyday. Do you know the guy?"
"I guess. I mean, I've seen him. I've never talked to him."
"Okay, when you've seen him, does he look at you, or does he just kind of slide his eyes by?"
"Um... eye contact? I don't know. He always kind of smiles a bit. I don't really-"
"Good," Dean interrupted. "What you're gonna do is you're gonna walk right up to him and you're gonna flirt your way past."
"I can't," Charlie replied. "He's not my type."
"You're gonna have to play through that."
"As in he's not a girl."
"Oh, oh. Pretend he has boobs."
Francesca stared at her fiancé in disbelief.
"Worse," Charlie said.
"Well, I don't know. Um... Do you have any tattoos? Give him a little sneak peek there. All tattoos are sexy."
"Mine is Princess Leia in a slave bikini straddling a 20-sided die." Dean looked to Sam and Francesca. "I was drunk. It was Comic-Con."
"We've all been there. Okay, I'm gonna walk you through this."
Charlie took a deep breath and walked into the room with the security guard.
"Start with a smile."
Charlie pasted on a large, fixed smile.
"Charlie, relax. You just got home and Scarlett Johansson's waiting for you."
Charlie's smile became natural and she made a pleased sound. The security guard stood up as Charlie approached. "Can I help you, miss?"
"Hey..." Charlie read his name tag, "...Bill." She held up her ID card. "Charlie from I.T."
"Oh. Burning the midnight oil, huh?"
"Just like you -- I mean, when you're not at the gym. What, do you work out with all your free time?"
"I try to get to the gym at least three days a week. Just trying to get back to my fighting weight, you know?"
Dean continued coaching. "It shows. You look amazing." Sam and Francesca looked at him.
"It shows. You look amazing," Charlie repeated.
Dean hissed to the other two, "This never happened." He spoke to Charlie. "Do you ever do anything else with your free time, like take a girl out for a drink?"
"You do anything else with your free time, like-" Sam started laughing as Charlie repeated Dean's words, "-take a girl out for a drink?"
"Stop laughing, Sammy."
"Stop laughing, Sammy. Um... Y-you don't know that bar -- Stop Laughing Sammy?" Sam stifled his laughter with his hand and Francesca frowned at him, warning him to keep quiet. "That place is bringing sexy back. Which is easy..."
"Stop talking, Charlie!" Dean said loudly.
"...'cause they kept the receipt. Stop talking, Charlie. Right. So, um, y-you were saying about going out." Charlie started playing with her hair. "Drinks?"
Bill hesitated slightly. "Um... Yeah, yeah. That'd be great."
"Cool. Pencil that in. Hey can I ask you a favor? The ladies' room downstairs is nasty. Can I use the exec washroom to powder my nose?"
"Yeah, yeah. Why not? Um, it's right down the hall. It's the first door on the right."
Charlie smiled and winked at Bill. She walked past the ladies' room and muttered, "I feel dirty."
"You and me both, sister," Dean said.
Francesca shuddered. "We'll never speak of this again, right?"
He nodded. "Right."
"The eagle is landing. Going radio silent," Charlie told them.
Francesca replied, "Let us know when you're out."
Sam glanced at the other two hunters. "So, guess we just wait?"
"Yeah."
Charlie put on gloves and sat at Dick Roman's desk. She plugged in a thumb drive and ran a password generator. "Your password is 'winning' with two 1's? Ew!"
As they waited, Sam and Francesca filled jars with Power Clean while Dean watched the security footage.
Bill walked to Dick Roman's office and tried to open the door, but it was locked. He used his key to open it and it was empty. Bill was about to leave and saw Charlie's bag on Dick's desk. He walked to the desk as Charlie came out of an adjoining room, wiping her hands on her clothes.
Francesca let out a sigh.
"Hey, you!" Charlie said cheerily.
"What are you doing in here?" Bill asked.
"You said first door on the left, right?" Charlie questioned, standing between Bill and Dick Roman's computer.
"No, I said first door on the right."
"Oh! Silly me. I am always forgetting things. Do you know what else I forgot to do?"
Charlie picked up a pen from the desk and noticed, in the window, that her filed download progress was at 93%. "Give you my phone number." She took Bill's hand to write down her number.
"Uh, we really shouldn't be in here. Mr. Roman doesn't like people in his office."
"I'm sure. Have you seen his bathroom?" She put the pen back on the desk and pulled her thumb drive from the computer, as it was at 100%. "Got to go. Call me."
In the van, Dean was waiting impatiently. "Well, this is awesome."
"Awesome," Francesca repeated. "That's one way to put it."
Sam and Francesca were still filling jars with Power Clean. Dean continued watching the security cam.
Dean frowned. "You know, what? New plan. From now on, we just stay in the van and send in the 90-pound girl."
"Dean, every chopper on earth knows our face. How many do you think are in that building? We wouldn't make it past the lobby."
Sam rolled his chair over to his brother who said, "Yeah, we get it. Doesn't mean we have to be happy about sending Veronica freaking Mars in there."
"She'll be fine... or we'll go in."
Dean gave a nod. "And get as far as we can. Damn right."
Charlie made her way back to her desk and plugged the thumb drive into her computer and took another drink from the flask. She started transferring the contents of the thumb drive to a WiFi IP address. "Hey, guys."
"Hey," Dean and Francesca greeted.
"Sending you all the flagged files now," Charlie informed.
"Charlie, you are a genius!" Sam exclaimed.
"I know. It's a problem."
A door opened and Pete entered. "Damnit," Charlie muttered. "Hey, Pete! Guess we're both on a deadline, huh?"
"How's it going?" Pete asked.
"Good, good. I'll give you a full progress report in a few hours."
"Great. Hit that deadline, right?" He reached out to squeeze Charlie's arm. "Well, holler if you need anything."
Pete left and Charlie asked, "Hey, guys, you still there?"
"Yeah. What the hell was that?" Dean asked.
"Oh, just my manager, the monster."
"Leave," Francesca ordered.
"I can't. I got to act normal. I told him I was working. Let's just finish this." She opened a number of Dick Roman's emails concerning a package leaving Iran and the suspension of the digs. "Are you seeing this?"
"It looks like Dick stopped digging days ago."
"Why?" Charlie wondered.
Dean shrugged. "Guess he found what he was looking for. Can you check?"
Charlie nodded. "Way ahead of you. Looking at travel reports, expenses... Here we go. Something in his suitcase left Iran last week. Spent the last 72 hours in armored cars and private planes. Whatever it is, it's coming here for Dick tonight. So, w-what the hell is it?"
Dean shook his head. "I don't know. Whatever it is, he wants it bad, which means we got to grab it, end of story."
"Well, it's landing at a private airport near here -- crap -- right about now."
"What's the exact landing time?" Francesca asked.
"42 minutes. Can you make it?"
Sam looked at Richard Roman Enterprises and Downey Airport on an online map.
"We can try," Dean replied. "Uh, all right, Charlie, one more favor, and then get the hell out of there."
---
The three hunters made their way to the airport while Charlie stalled.
Dean turned to Francesca. "Sam and I will go get the suitcase. Guard the car?"
Francesca nodded. "Be careful, Dee. They've got your mugs."
"We'll be careful."
---
Back at Richard Roman Enterprises, Charlie removed the thumb drive from her computer. She got up to leave and gasped, as Dick Roman was standing in front of her. "Hey, Charlie. I was hoping I'd find you here."
The plane landed and a pilot picked it up. A baggage handler, pulling a cart full of suitcases, almost ran into the Leviathan standing near the plane.
"Hey," the Leviathan said.
"Sorry," the baggage handler apologized.
"Watch it."
The baggage handler put a blue case on the ground and moments later, the Leviathan picked up the case and shook the pilots' hands.
The Leviathan left the airport and climbed into a waiting black car and drove off. Sam and Dean stood next to the open trunk of their car.
"So now what?" Sam asked.
The Leviathan brought the case to Dick Roman's office. "I've been looking for this for a very, very long time."
The Leviathan opened the case. Inside was a bottle of Power Clean hooked up to a bomb.
"Now who could have done that?" Dick wondered.
The bomb ticked and went off.
42 Minutes Earlier
"A courier's set to pick it up," Charlie informed.
"What's the exact landing time?" Francesca asked.
"42 minutes. Can you make it?"
"We can try," Dean replied. "Uh, all right. Charlie, one more favor, and then get the hell out of there."
"What do you need?"
"More time," Francesca said.
"Then let's get you some," Charlie stated, typing an email to Dick Roman from the travel department. "Travel department's emailing Dick. Suitcase still en route, but diverted by weather and will be 30 minutes late." She stood and looked around the office. "I'll finish mopping you guys off the drive and get the hell out of Dodge."
"Call us when you're clear," Dean instructed.
"Text you from the border, bro."
---
They made their way to the airport. Before Dean got out, he said, "Guard the car? Sam and I will get the suitcase."
"Be careful, Dee. They've got your mugs."
"We'll be careful."
Sam and Dean left the van.
A suitcase slid along the ground and one of the pilots picked it up. A baggage handler, pulling a cart full of suitcases, almost ran into a Leviathan standing near the plane. "Hey."
"Sorry," the baggage handler apologized.
"Watch it."
The baggage handler, Sam, put a blue case on the ground.
Sam nearly ran into a Leviathan as he pulled a cart full of suitcases.
"Hey," the Leviathan said.
Sam crouched down, hiding his face, and pulled a gray suitcase from the plane. "Sorry."
"Watch it."
Sam took a blue case from the baggage cart and put it on the ground and put the gray case on the baggage cart.
The Leviathan picked up the blue case. Sam took the gray case from the baggage cart and walked away with it. He was soon joined by Dean.
---
Inside Richard Roman Enterprises, Charlie removed the thumb drive from her computer. She got up to leave and gasped to see Dick Roman standing behind her desk.
"Hey, Charlie. I was hoping I'd find you here."
"Um, hey, Mr. Roman," Charlie greeted nervously.
"Please. Dick."
Pete walked up and Dick turned to him. "Pete, we're good here. Why don't you go grab a bite?"
After Pete left, Dick said, "Show me what you found."
At the airport, Sam and Dean stood next to the open trunk of their car. Francesca stepped out and stood next to them. "So what now?"
Dean met her eyes. "See what we've won." He opened the gray case and saw something wrapped in cloth. He uncovered the object.
Francesca moved next to Dean. "Did we just... steal a hunk of red clay? Is that what Dick was hiding?"
Dean glanced at her. "That's a good question. Questions. Why don't we answer that a few thousand miles away from here, though? Now where is Charlie?"
---
At Richard Roman Enterprises, Charlie's phone rang. She looked at it, but didn't answer.
"So there's nothing about my company?" Dick asked.
Charlie shook her head and Dick continued, "Ah. How about a Sam or a Dean? Or a Frankie?"
"I'm sorry, who?" Charlie questioned, playing dumb.
"Sam and Dean Winchester. Frankie Rivera Give a little peek, would you?"
Charlie searched for 'Sam + Dean + Winchester' and 'Frankie + Rivera' and Bobby stood, unseen, behind Dick.
"Dick Roman," Bobby said. "Come on. The girl's right there. Worry about her."
Dick frowned. "Is it me, or did it just drop ten degrees in here?"
Charlie nodded. "It is a bit nippy, yeah."
"I'll have maintenance check the AC. I can't have you cold, now, can I?"
Bobby glared. "You miserable... Damnit, Bobby, come on."
'No Results Found' flashed on Charlie's screen. "Nothing about those Winchesters or Rivera."
"If items were deleted from the drive, would you be able to tell?" Dick wondered.
"Not if they were deleted properly."
"Well, they're crafty. Have all the data sent to me."
"Of course."
"So, really, how did you do it?"
Charlie hid a wave of panic. "Uh, do what?"
"You broke the unbreakable. What's the thought process? Walk me through it, and ixnay the jargon."
"Um... nothing's unbreakable, really. Nothing's safe if you poke at it long enough."
"Nothing's safe. I like that. But that isn't what I'm asking, Charlie. Your spark -- it's one in a million. Believe me, but when you got it, you invent guns and iPads and viruses, and, holy crap, you can be crafty. What is that, Charlie?"
"Um-"
"'Cause I can feed every fact in your brain to someone else, they still wouldn't be able to be you."
Charlie shrugged. "I guess you can't clone me."
"Don't think that doesn't piss me off."
Dick's phone rang and he answered. "Yes. Fantastic. Bring it up to my office. I'll be right up there." He hung up. "I think we're onto something here. Stay here, will you? I'll be back in two shakes."
Charlie grabbed a bag and hurried down the stairs.
In Dick's office, the case was opened and the bomb went off in his face.
Charlie ran for the front door in the lobby. She reached the doors to find them locked. Pete and Dick soon appeared. While Bobby went for Dick, Pete went for Charlie.
"Hold on there, Charlie," Pete said.
Bobby shoved Pete, who crashed into Charlie, and knocked her into a pillar, then to the ground. Bobby pushed Dick into a cabinet. Charlie laid on the floor, holding her arm and groaning. Sam, Dean and Francesca crashed through the glass doors. The security guard from the foyer approached.
"Dean, Frankie, he's one of them!" Charlie cried.
Dean and Francesca tossed Borax onto Pete and brown smoke rose from his face. Sam started punching the security guard. Pete continued sizzling and screaming. Sam picked up Charlie.
"That would explain it," Dick said. "You're hanging with the wrong crowd, kiddo."
Dick Roman started forward as the hunters moved towards the door. Bobby appeared in front of Dick Roman. "Not so fast, Dick."
Bobby shoved Dick down hard. Dick flew through the air into a large display picture of the Richard Roman Enterprises building and fell to the ground. The three hunters watched as Bobby flickered, reappeared, and looked back at them before disappearing again.
Dick growled and sat up. "All right, enough! Show yourself. Let's do this like real monsters." He tried to get up, but was shoved back down. "Ha, ha, ha! You got to do that again. That tickled."
"Dean, Frankie, come on. Come on!" Sam cried, still carrying Charlie.
Dean and Francesca left the building.
In the car, Dean drove, Sam was passenger, and Charlie and Francesca were in back.
Dean glanced back at the hacker. "Charlie, talk to us. You okay?"
"No," Charlie replied. "Why didn't you kill him?"
Francesca let out a sigh. "'Cause we don't have a way yet. But we will."
"The really evil ones always need a special sword. Oh, okay. I'm gonna pass out now."
She fell asleep as Bobby appeared in the back.
They took Charlie to a bus terminal the next day.
A man entered the terminal and held the door open for Charlie, Sam, Dean and Francesca, who were walking out. Charlie had gotten a sling for her arm.
"Thank you," Charlie said.
"Thanks," Dean stated.
Charlie turned to Francesca. "I left your dumb flask on the back seat, by the way. Worst good luck charm ever."
Dean handed Charlie her bag as Francesca said quietly, "I'm really sorry."
"Thanks. It's okay, Frankie."
Sam gave her a small smile. "So listen, um, we can't thank you enough."
"Actually, you can. Never contact me again, like, ever. Deal?" Charlie held out her hand and Sam shook it.
"Deal."
Charlie shook Francesca's hand. "You're kinda awesome."
Francesca smiled. "So are you."
Charlie then shook hands with Dean and he said, "Keep your head down out there, okay?"
She looked between them. "This ain't the first time I've disappeared. You think my name is really Charlie Bradbury? Please. So, good luck saving the world." She raised her hand in a Vulcan salute. "Peace out, bitches."
Charlie handed her bag to the bus driver to stow. "Thanks a lot."
Dean said, "She's kind of like the little sister I never wanted."
Francesca smiled. "I like her."
"We got to talk," Sam said as they started walking.
Dean glanced at Sam. "What, you mean before we got back to the car and the flask?"
"Exactly. So, what the hell happened back in the lobby?"
"Man, if I had a free shot, I'd have bitch-slapped the hell out of Dick."
"Yeah, but, I mean-" he stopped and turned to face Dean, "-Charlie got her freaking arm broken."
Francesca shook her head. "He didn't mean to do it."
"Maybe not. He's not in control, not about Dick. That was vengeful spirit crap."
Dean nodded. "I know. But it's still Bobby."
"Yeah, Dean, I know."
Sam sighed. "But if he really goes there, he won't be anymore, and then we won't be able to pull him back. And then what are we supposed to do?"
Francesca looked between the brothers. "Well, our first priority is that hunk of clay."
Dean pointed to Francesca. "I know. She's right. Look, let's just figure out what the thing we stole is, and then we'll figure out what the hell to do with Bobby."
Dean raised his eyebrows at Sam and walked off, Francesca following. Sam followed moments later.