Sam, Dean and Susana parked and opened the trunk. Dean pulled out three tasers.
"What do you have those amped up to?" Sam asked.
"A hundred thousand volts," Dean replied.
"Damn."
"Yeah, I want this raw head extra frickin' crispy. And remember, you only get one shot with these things. So make it count."
They moved down the basement stairs with guns and flashlights.
A noise caught their attention and they moved towards a cupboard.
"On three," Dean whispered. "One. Two. Three."
Dean swung the door open, revealing a young boy and girl crouched inside, covering their ears.
"Is it still here?" Sam whispered and the kids nodded.
Dean looked at the boy. "Okay. Grab your sister's hand, come on, we gotta get you out of here. Let's go, let's go." They moved towards the stairs. "All right, go!"
Sam started to take the kids upstairs, but a hand grabbed his legs, knocking him back down. The children screamed and ran to the top of the stairs.
"Sam!" Dean and Susana called.
Dean shot his taser and missed. "Sam, Susie, get 'em outta here!"
Sam threw his taser to Dean. "Here take this!"
Sam and Susana ran up the stairs and moved the children out of sight.
Dean moved around the basement on high alert, shining his flashlight into corners. "Come on!"
A ragged, hairy creature leapt up and shoved Dean backwards. Dean lost his weapons and flashlight as he fell. He glanced around, scrambled across puddles of water to grab the taser and pressed it on the creature as it moved towards him, electrocuting him. Electricity moved from the creature through the water and to Dean. The two shook and twitched. The creature fell, and Dean lost consciousness.
Sam and Susana ran down the stairs and saw Dean in the corner, unmoving. "Dean!" They ran over and half lifted Dean, holding his face. "Dean, hey. Hey."
HOSPITAL
Sam stood at the desk with a receptionist. Susana stood behind, gripping a tissue tightly.
"Sir, I'm so sorry to ask," the receptionist said. "There doesn't seem to be any insurance on file."
"Right. Uh, okay." He pulled a card from his wallet and handed it to the receptionist.
The receptionist glanced at the card. "Okay, Mr. Burkovitz."
Sam and Susana saw two cops waiting and walked over.
"Look, we can finish this up later," one of the cops said.
Sam shook his head. "No, no, it's okay. We were just taking a shortcut through the neighborhood. And, um, the windows were rolled down, and we heard some screaming when we drove past the house, and we stopped. Ran in."
"And you found the kids in the basement?"
"Well, thank God you did."
Sam and Susana noticed a doctor walking towards them and glanced at the cops. "Excuse me."
"Sure. Thanks for your help."
"Hey, doc. Is he..." Susana was cut off.
"He's resting."
"He? And?"
"The electrocution triggered a heart attack. Pretty massive, I'm afraid. His heart... it's damaged."
"How damaged?" Sam questioned.
"We've done all we can. We can try and keep him comfortable at this point. But, I'd given him a couple weeks, at most, maybe a month."
"No, no. There's, there's... gotta be something you can do, some kind of treatment."
"We can't work miracles. I really am sorry."
Sam walked away, an upset look on his face. Susana's grip on her tissue tightened and she tried blinking away the tears.
They made their way to Dean's room.
Dean was watching TV as Sam entered. "Have you ever actually watched daytime TV? It's horrible."
Sam shook his head and sighed. "Susie and I talked to your doctor."
"That fabric softener teddy bear. Oh, I'm gonna hunt that little bitch down."
"Dean."
Dean looked up and clicked the TV off. "Yeah. All right, well, looks like you're gonna leave town without me."
Susana frowned. "What are you talking about? Sam and I aren't gonna leave you here."
Dean's tone turned serious. "Hey, you better take care of that car. Or, I swear, I'll haunt your ass."
"I don't think that's funny," Sam retorted. "And I don't think Susie does either."
"Oh, come on, it's a little funny." Dean paused a moment. "Look, Sammy, what can I say, man, it's a dangerous gig. I drew the short straw. That's it, end of story."
"Don't talk like that, all right? We still have options."
"What options? Yeah, burial or cremation. And I know it's not easy. But I'm gonna die. And you two can't stop it."
"Watch me," Sam and Susana challenged.
---
Sam and Susana made their way back to the motel room and started researching.
He dialed a number. "This is John Winchester. I can't be reached. If this is an emergency, call my son, Dean. 866-907-3235. He can help."
Sam fought tears. "Hey, Dad. It's Sam. Uh... You probably won't even get this, but, uh... it's Dean. He's sick, and uh... the doctors say there's nothing they can do. Um... but, uh, they don't know the things we know, right? So, don't worry, 'cause I'm uh... gonna do whatever it takes to get him better. All right... just wanted you to know."
Sam hung up, tossed his phone on the bed and sat there silently. The was a knock on the door and he looked up quickly, tears in his eyes. Susana opened it to find Dean leaning against the jam, looking terrible.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Sam and Susana asked.
"I checked myself out," Dean replied.
"What, are you crazy?" Sam said.
Dean entered the room, leaning on everything within reach. "Well, I'm not gonna die in a hospital where the nurses aren't even hot." He shrugged.
Sam huffed a laugh and shut the door. "You know, this whole I-laugh-in-the-face-of-death thing? It's crap. I can see right through it."
"Yeah, whatever, dude. Have you two even slept? You look worse than me."
Sam and Susana helped Dean to a chair. "We've been scouring the Internet for the last three days. Calling every contact in Dad's journal."
"For what?"
"For a way to help you," Susana explained. "One of Dad and John's friends, Joshua, he called us back. Told me about a guy in Nebraska. A specialist."
"You two aren't gonna let me die in peace, are you?" Dean asked.
"We're not gonna let you die, period. We're going."
---
Sam drove them to Nebraska and they drove along a rutted gravel road towards a large white circus tent set up in a field.
People made their way towards the tent on the muddy ground, many on walking frames or helped by others.
Sam got out and ran around to help Dean who opened his door and looked around. There was a sign next to the tent that read 'The Church of Roy LeGrange. Faith Healer. Witness The Miracle.'
Dean grimaced and started pulling himself from the car and Sam tried to help. "I got ya."
"I got it," Dean replied angrily, pushing Sam away. "Man, you are a lying bastard. Thought you said we were going to see a doctor."
"I believe I said specialist. Look, Dean, this guy's supposed to be the real deal."
"You really brought me here to see a man who heals people from a friggin' tent?"
An elderly woman with an umbrella passed by. "Reverend LeGrange is a great man."
"Yeah, that's nice."
They walked past an angry man remonstrating with a cop. "I have a right to protest. This man is a fraud. And he's milking all these people out of their hard-earned money."
"Sir, this is a place of worship," the sheriff said. "Let's go. Move it." They walked away.
"I take it he's not part of the flock," Susana noted.
"But when people see something they can't explain, there's controversy," Sam explained.
Dean frowned. "I mean, come on, Sam, a faith healer?"
"Maybe it's time to have a little faith, Dean."
"You know what I've got faith in? Reality. Knowing what's really going on."
"How can you be a skeptic? With the things we see everyday?"
"Exactly. We see them, we know they're real."
Susana tilted her head slightly. "But if you know evil's out there, how can you not believe good's out there, too?"
Dean met her eyes. "Because I've seen what evil does to good people."
A young woman overheard them. "Maybe God works in mysterious ways."
Dean checked her out and smiled. "Maybe he does. I think you just turned me around on the subject."
"Yeah, I'm sure."
Dean held out his hand. "I'm Dean. This is Sam. That's Susana."
The young woman took Dean's hand. "Layla. So, if you're not a believer, then why are you here?"
"Well, apparently my brother and friend here believe enough for the three of us."
An older woman approached them and put her arm around Layla. "Come on, Layla. It's about to start."
The women smiled at the trio and moved inside the tent.
Dean looked after Layla. "Well, I bet you she can work in some mysterious ways."
Susana rolled her eyes, letting out a sigh.
Sam, Dean and Susana entered the tent. The sign at the entrance read 'Welcome All Faiths. True Believers Revival.'
Susana stared at the small stage which had a lectern with candles on it.
Dean looked around and tilted his head to the corner. "Yeah, peace, love, and trust all over."
Sam and Susana followed his gaze to a security camera. Dean started to take a seat, but Sam put an arm around him and moved him toward the front.
"Come on," Sam said.
"Don't!" Dean cried. "What are you doing? Let's sit here."
"We're sitting up front."
"What? Why?"
Sam moved his brother up the aisle while Susana followed. "Come on."
Dean growled. "Oh, come on, Sam."
"You all right?"
"This is ridiculous," Dean muttered, slapping Sam's hands away. "I'm good, dude, get off me."
Sam let go and pointed to three empty seats behind Layla and her mother. "Perfect."
"Yeah, perfect," Dean replied sarcastically.
Sam moved in first. "You take the aisle. Susie, you take the middle."
He tried to help Dean sit and he raised a hand irritably.
A blind man wearing sunglasses was helped to the lectern by a woman. "Each morning, my wife, Sue Ann, reads me the news. Never seems good, does it?" The crowd agreed with Roy. "Seems like there's always someone committing some immoral, unspeakable act."
As Roy spoke, Sam and Susana saw a table on stage, filled with religious items. They noticed an old wooden cross that was topped by a smaller cross in a circle.
"But I say to you, God is watching," Roy said.
"Yes he is," the crowd murmured.
"God rewards the good, and He punishes the corrupt." The crowd nodded, cheered and murmured. "It is the Lord who does the healing here friends. The Lord who guides me in choosing who to heal by helping me see into people's hearts." The crowd continued murmuring.
Dean said quietly to Sam and Susana, "Yeah, and into their wallets."
"You think so, young man?" Roy asked and the crowd fell silent.
"Sorry."
"No, no. Don't be. Just watch what you say around a blind man, we've got real sharp ears." The crowd laughed. "What's your name, son?"
Dean cleared his throat, hesitating. "Dean."
"Dean. I want-I want you to come up here with me."
The crowd clapped. Layla and her mother didn't move. Sue Ann moved to center stage, smiling at Dean.
Dean shook his head. "No, it's okay."
"What are you doing?" Sam and Susana whispered.
"You've come here to be healed, haven't cha?"
Dean hesitated again. "Well, yeah, but ah..." the crowd clapped and made encouraging noises, "...maybe you should just pick someone else."
Sam and Susana looked at their brother/friend like he was insane and the crowd clapped loudly.
"Oh, no," Roy said. "I didn't pick you, Dean, the Lord did."
The crowd was getting more excited. "That's right! Yeah! Come on!"
"Get up there!" Sam cried excitedly.
Dean reluctantly rose. Sue Ann moved to assist and stood him next to Roy.
"You ready?" Roy asked.
"Look, no disrespect, but ahh, I'm not exactly a believer," Dean admitted.
Roy smiled. "You will be, son. You will be." He turned to the crowd. "Pray with me, friends."
The crowd lifted their arms and joined hands. Roy lifted his hands in the air, then placed one on Dean's shoulder, then one on the side of his head.
"All right now. All right now," Roy said to himself.
Dean's eyes glazed over. His knees weakened and he sank to his knees, Roy's hands still on his head.
"All right, now," Roy said again.
Dean wobbled, then fell back and slipped to the stage floor.
Sam and Susana jumped from their chairs and ran to the stage. "Dean!"
The crowd clapped excitedly.
Sam grabbed the front of Dean's hoodie. Dean's eyes burst open and he gasped. "Say something!"
Dean blinked groggily and looked up. Roy was standing above him, hands out from his sides, palms up, a happy expression on his face. Slightly behind Roy stood a tall man in a black suit with white hair, pale white, wrinkled skin. He stared at Dean, then turned and vanished. Dean watched him, shocked.
Sam and Susana took their brother/friend to the hospital to get him checked out.
"So, you really feel okay?" Sam asked.
Dean frowned. "I feel fine, Sam."
The doctor entered, reading paperwork. "Well, according to all your tests, there's nothing wrong with your heart. No sign there ever was. Not that a man your age should be having heart trouble, but, still it's strange; it does happen."
"What do you mean, strange?" Dean questioned.
"Well, just yesterday, a young guy like you, 27, athletic. Out of nowhere, heart attack."
"Thanks, doc."
The doctor said as she left, "No problem."
"That's odd," Dean said.
"Maybe it's a coincidence," Sam guessed. "People's hearts give out all the time."
"No, they don't."
"Look, Dean, do we really have to look this one in the mouth? Why can't we just be thankful that the guy saved your life and moved on?"
"Because I can't shake this feeling, that's why."
"What feeling?" Susana asked.
"When I was healed, I felt... wrong. Cold. And for a second, I saw someone. This old man. And, Sam, Susie, it was a spirit."
Sam looked at his brother a moment. "But if there was something there, Dean, Susie and I think I would've seen it, too. I mean, I've been seeing an awful lot of things lately. Susana seems to have something odd happening as well."
"Well, excuse me, psychic wonder," Dean said. "But you're just gonna need a little faith on this one. Sam, I've been hunting long enough to trust a feeling like this."
Sam sighed. "Yeah, all right. So, what do you wanna do?"
"I want you to go check out the heart attack guy. I'm gonna visit the reverend. Susie?"
"I'll go with Sam."
"Okay."
---
Dean made his way to Roy LeGrange's and he motioned for him to sit on the couch. Sue Ann stood, filling two glasses.
"I feel great," Dean said. "Just trying to, you know, make sense of what happened."
"A miracle is what happened," Sue Ann told him. "Well, miracles come so often around Roy."
"When did they start? The miracles."
"Woke up one morning, stone blind," Roy explained. "Doctors figured out I had cancer. Told me I had maybe a month. So, uh, we prayed for a miracle. I was weak, but I told Sue Ann, 'You just keep right on praying.' I went into a coma. Doctors said I wouldn't wake up, but I did. And the cancer was gone." He took off his sunglasses, revealing white eyes. "If it wasn't for these eyes, no one would believe I'd ever had it."
"And suddenly you could heal people."
"I discovered it afterward, yes. God's blessed me in many ways."
"And his flock just swelled overnight," Sue Ann added. "And this is just the beginning."
"Can I ask you one last question?" Dean questioned.
"Of course you can," Roy answered.
"Why? Why me? Out of all the sick people, why save me?"
"Well, like I said before, the Lord guides me. I looked into your heart, and you just stood out from all the rest."
"It did. What did you see in my heart?"
"A young man with an important purpose. A job to do. And it isn't finished." Dean looked at him, slightly surprised.
SWIMMING LOCKER ROOM
"I'm telling you, he seemed healthy," the employee said. "Swam every day, didn't smoke. So, a heart attack just kind of seemed, well, bizarre."
"And you said he was running right before he collapsed?" Sam asked.
"Yeah, yeah, he was freaking out. He said that something was, uh, was after him."
"Did he say what?" Susana questioned.
"Well, thin air is what. I mean, it wasn't anything."
"All right, thanks," Sam said.
As Sam left, he noticed the clock on the wall wasn't working. "Hey, buddy? Your, uh, your clock's busted."
"Oh, yeah, we, uh, can't get it workin'," the man replied. "Just froze at 4:17."
Susana frowned. "Is that the same time Marshall died?"
"How'd you know?" the man asked, surprised.
ROY LEGRANGE'S PORCH STEPS
Dean was leaving. Layla and her mother were waiting to go in.
"Dean, hey," Layla greeted.
"Hey," Dean replied.
"How you feeling?"
"I feel good. Cured, I guess. What are you doing here?"
"You know, my mom, she wanted to talk to the reverend."
Sue Ann came onto the porch. "Layla?"
"Yes, I'm here again."
"Well, I'm sorry, but Roy is resting. He won't be seeing anyone else right now."
"Sue Ann, please," Mrs. Rourke begged. "This is our sixth time."
"Roy is well aware of Layla's situation. And he very much wants to help just as soon as the Lord allows. Have faith, Mrs. Rourke." She went inside.
Mrs. Rourke stared, then turned and looked at Dean before asking in a frustrated tone, "Why are you still even here? You got what you wanted."
Layla said, "Mom. Stop."
Mrs. Rourke glanced at her daughter. "No, Layla, this is too much. We've been to every single service. If Roy would stop choosing these strangers over you. Strangers who don't even believe. I just can't pray any harder."
"Layla, what's wrong?" Dean asked.
"I have this thing..." Layla began hesitatingly.
"It's a brain tumor," Mrs. Rourke interrupted. "It's inoperable. In six months, the doctors say..." Layla put a hand on her mom's shoulder, stopping her.
"I'm sorry," Dean apologized.
"It's okay," Layla replied.
Mrs. Rourke stared into her daughter's eyes and said slowly, "No. It isn't." She looked to Dean. "Why do you deserve to live more than my daughter?"
Mrs. Rourke walked away. Layla took a shaky breath and followed her down the stairs. Dean watched them go and turned to look back at Roy and Sue Ann's house.
---
Dean made his way back to the motel and entered. He threw his keys on the bed and started taking off his jacket. Sam was at his laptop and Susana sat nearby.
"What'd you two find out?" Dean asked.
"I'm sorry," Sam said quietly.
Dean threw his jacket on the bed and approached Sam and Susana as he questioned, "Sorry about what?"
"Marshall Hall died at 4:17," Susana stated.
"The exact time I was healed," Dean replied in a stunned tone.
"Yeah. So, I put together a list of everyone's Roy's healed, six people over the past year, and I cross-checked them with the local obits. Every time someone was healed, someone else died. And each time, the victim died of the same symptom LeGrange was healing at the time."
"Someone's healed of cancer, someone else dies of cancer?"
"Somehow. LeGrange... he's trading a life for another."
"Wait, wait, wait. So Marshall Hall died to save me? Wow."
Sam looked at him, upset. "Dean, the guy probably would've died anyway. And someone else would've been healed."
"You should've never brought me here."
"Dean, I was just trying to save your life."
"But, Sam, some guy is dead now because of me."
"I didn't know."
"The thing I don't understand is how Roy is doing it? How's he trading a life for a life?"
"Oh, he's not doing it. Something else is doing it for him."
"What do you mean?" Sam and Susana asked.
"The old man I saw on stage." He paused a moment. "I didn't want to believe it, but deep down I knew."
"You knew what? What are you talking about?" Sam questioned.
"There's only one thing that can give and take life like that." Sam looked at Dean, confused while Susana frowned. "We're dealing with a reaper."
"You really think it's THE Grim Reaper? Like, angel of death, collect your soul, the whole deal?"
Susana shook her head. "No. It's not the Grim Reaper. A reaper. There's reaper law in every culture on earth, going by at least a hundred different names."
"But you said you saw a dude in a suit."
Dean frowned. "What, you think he shoulda been working the whole black robe thing?... You said it yourself that the clock stopped right? Reapers stop time. And you can only see 'em when they're coming at you which is why I could see it and you and Susie couldn't."
"Maybe."
"There's nothing else it could be. The only question is how Roy is controlling the damn thing."
"That cross," Susana realized.
"What?"
"There was this cross, Sam and I noticed it in the church and we knew I had seen it before." She looked through some papers and snorted, holding the card up to Dean. "Here."
Dean leaned into the card and said, "A tarot?"
"It makes sense," Sam said. "A tarot dates back to the early Christian era right, when some priests were still using magic? And a few of them veered into the dark stuff? Necromancy and how to push death away, how to cause it?"
Dean frowned. "So Roy's using black magic to bind the reaper?"
"If he is, he's riding the whirlwind. It's like petting a dog leash on a great white."
Dean rose to put his cup in the sink and leaned against it. "Okay, then we stop Roy."
"How?"
"You know how."
"Wait, what the hell are you talking about, Dean, we can't kill Roy."
"Sam, the guy's playing God, he's deciding who lives and dies. That's a monster in my book."
"No. We're not going to kill a human being, Dean. We do that and we're no better than he is."
"Okay, we can't kill Roy, we can't kill death. Any lightbulbs going off, college boy?"
"Okay. Uh... If Roy's using some kind of black spell on the reaper, we gotta... figure out what it is. And how to break it."
The trio drove back to the tent.
The Impala bounced down the badly graveled and potholed road, passing a sign that said Service Today. They parked and exited.
"If Roy's using a spell, there might be a spell book," Sam said.
"See if you and Susie can find it." Dean looked at his watch. "Hurry up too, the service starts in 15 minutes. I'll try to stall Roy."
The protestor held out a leaflet to Dean. "Roy LeGrange is a fraud. He's no healer."
Dean took the leaflet. "Amen, brother."
"You keep up the good work," Sam and Susana told him.
"Thank you," the protestor replied.
Sam and Susana made their way to Roy's house. They watched as Roy came down the stairs, assisted by Sue Ann on one arm, a dark-haired man on the other.
Sam and Susana climbed in a window and started searching the house. They looked on the bookshelves and pulled out the one book without dust on the shelf in front of it. It was the Encyclopedia of British History. He flipped through it, found nothing, and realized there was another, smaller book, hidden on the bookshelf behind the larger one. Inside was a picture of a skeleton reaper, and on another page the wooden cross they saw earlier in the tent. The one that died for Dean was an openly gay teacher, the woman jogging an abortion rights advocate. They found a fourth clipping about Wright, the man handing out leaflets at the front of the tent.
CHURCH TENT
Dean was walking slowly up the side aisle.
His phone rang and he answered. "What have you two got?"
Sam spoke. "Roy's choosing victims he sees as immoral. And I think I know who's next on his list. Remember that protestor?"
"What, the guy in the parking lot?"
"Yeah. Yeah, Susie and I'll find him. But you can't let Roy heal anyone, all right?"
Dean hung up and moved further towards the front of the tent.
Sam and Susana were searching the parking.
"Layla," Roy called. "Layla Rourke. Come up here child."
The crowd burst into applause. Layla, stunned, looked around and rose to hug her mom.
"Mom," Layla said. "Thank you."
"I love you, child," Mrs. Rourke replied.
Dean watched them hug and muttered, "Oh, man."
As Layla passed him, Dean grabbed her arm. "Layla, listen to me. You can't go up there."
"Why not?" Layla asked. "We've waited for months!"
"You can't let Roy heal you."
"I don't understand, Roy healed you, didn't he? Why can't you let him try?"
"'Cause if you do, something bad is going to happen. I can't explain. I just need you to believe me."
Dean and Layla stared at each other.
Sue Ann stood waiting and held out her hand. "Layla."
"Please," Dean begged.
Layla stared at the hand Sue Ann was offering, then turned back and stared at her mother, who was standing and ringing her hands. Layla looked at Dean and shook her head. "I'm sorry."
"Layla. Layla!"
Sue Ann smiled and put her arm around Layla to take her to the stage. "Dear child!" The crowd happily clapped.
As they reached the stage, Sue Ann softly said, "You deserve this."
Roy took Layla's hand. "I knew the Lord was planning. I knew it was just a matter of time."
Dean, frustrated, moved to stand near Mrs. Rourke. She was crying and covering her face with her hands.
PARKING LOT
Sam and Susana continued to watch.
Wright ran around a car as the reaper slowly followed. "Help!"
Sam and Susana turned, searching for where the voice came from.
CHURCH TENT
"Pray with me friends," Roy said, glancing to Layla. "I hope you're ready."
Layla smiled. "I am."
PARKING LOT
"Help! Help me please!" Wright yelled.
Sam and Susana found Wright and looked around wildly. "Where is he!"
Wright grabbed Sam and Susana's shoulders and pointed. "Right there!"
Sam and Susana grabbed Wright and pulled him away. "Fine, come on."
CHURCH TENT
Roy was about to lay his hands on Layla, who looked enraptured.
Dean yelled, "Fire! Hurry, tent's on fire!"
Layla opened her eyes and looked towards the crowd. Everyone started to rise and evacuated.
Mrs. Rourke moved towards the stage. "No! No, please. Please don't stop. Reverend, please, please! Please don't stop, please!"
Dean watched helplessly.
"Friends, if you'd all just leave the tent in an orderly fashion... and we'll figure out what's going on out there and we'll come back," Roy instructed.
Dean pulled out his phone and spoke. "I did it, I stopped Roy."
PARKING LOT
Sam held his phone to his ear and Wright looked around.
"David, I think it's okay," Sam said.
David looked around at Sam and Susana, nodded, and turned back to see the reaper in front of him. "No!"
Sam spoke into the phone. "Dean, it didn't work. The reaper's still coming!"
CHURCH TENT
"I'm telling you, I'm telling you it didn't work. Roy must not be the one controlling this thing."
"Then who the hell is?" Dean asked, noticing Sue Ann who was behind the stage, facing the corner and reciting. "Sue Ann."
Dean stalked up to her and spun her around. Sue Ann gasped and stopped reciting, reaching down to hold a cross on a chain around her neck. It was the same wooden cross Sam and Susana had seen earlier.
PARKING LOT
The reaper was holding his hand to Wright's face. Suddenly, he stopped, looking confused, and rose.
CHURCH TENT
Sue Ann stared at Dean and tucked the cross inside her blouse. "Help! Help me!"
Dean backed away, nodding and staring at Sue Ann like he shouldn't have expected anything better. Two cops grabbed him roughly and pulled him away.
PARKING LOT
The reaper stared at Wright lying on the ground gasping for breath, then turned away and vanished.
Sam and Susana moved to help Wright. "I got you. I got you."
"Thank God," Wright said.
CHURCH TENT ENTRANCE
Two cops manhandled Dean through the entry. He shook them off as soon as they were outside.
Sue Ann followed close behind. "I just don't understand. After everything we've done for you. After Roy healed you. I'm just very, very disappointed, Dean." Dean stared at Sue Ann, saying nothing. "You can let him go. I'm not gonna press charges. The Lord will deal with him as he sees fit."
Sue Ann left and the cops turned to Dean.
The first cop said, "We catch you round here again son, we'll put the fear of God in you, understand?"
"Yes sir, fear of God," Dean replied. "Got it."
The cops gave him one last push.
He turned to find Layla waiting for him. "Layla?"
"Why would you do that, Dean?" Layla asked. "And it could have been my only chance."
"He's not a healer."
"He healed you."
"I know it doesn't seem fair, and I wish I could explain. But Roy is not the answer, I'm sorry."
Layla shook her head sadly. "Goodbye, Dean."
She walked away. Dean raised his eyes to the sky and turned to watch her.
Layla turned back. "I wish you luck. I really do."
Dean's voice cracked. "Same to you." Layla turned to walk away again as Dean said under his breath, "You deserve it a lot more than me."
Layla walked past where her mother was talking to Roy and Sue Ann.
"Private session tonight, no interruptions," Roy said. "I give you my word, I'll heal your daughter."
Dean walked past behind them to where Sam and Susana were waiting and he overheard.
"Thank you, reverend," Mrs. Rourke replied. "God bless you."
---
The trio made their way back to the motel.
Sam sat on the bed. "So Roy really believes."
"I don't think has any idea what his wife's doing," Dean replied.
"Well, Sam and I found this," Susana said as she handed the little book to Dean. "Hidden in their library. It's ancient. Written by a priest who went dark side. There's a binding spell in here for trapping a reaper."
"Must be a hell of a spell."
"Yeah. You gotta build a black alter with seriously dark stuff. Bones, human blood. To cross a line like that, a preacher's wife. Black magic. Murder. Evil."
"Desperate. Her husband was dying, she didn't have anything to save him. She was using the binding spell to keep the reaper away from Roy."
"Cheating death, literally," Sam said.
Dean frowned. "Yeah, but Roy's alive, so why's she still using the spell?"
"Right. To force the reaper to kill people she thinks are immortal."
"May God save us from half the people who think they're doing God's work."
"We gotta break that binding spell, Dean."
Dean looked at the picture of the cross. "You know Sue Ann had a coptic cross like this. When she dropped it, the reaper backed off."
"So you think we gotta find the cross or destroy the alter?" Susana asked.
"Maybe both. Whatever we do, better do it soon or he's healing Layla tonight."
---
The trio made their way to the church tent parking lot that night and rolled in without lights and stopped.
"That's Layla's car," Sam noted. "She's already here."
Dean nodded sadly. "Yeah."
"Dean..."
Before Sam could say anything else, Dean said, "You know, if Roy woulda picked Layla instead of me, she'd be here right now. And if she's not healed tonight, she's gonna die in a coupla months."
"What's happening to her is horrible. But what are you gonna do? Let somebody else save her? You said it yourself, Dean, you can't play God."
"Yeah, but it's not fair."
Sam shook his head. "No, it's not."
Dean sat without speaking, then got out of the car and Sam and Susana followed. They approached the tent and peeked inside. Roy was speaking to a small group of the faithful, including Layla and her mother.
"Gather round, please, everyone, gather round," Roy instructed. "Come in closer, come on up."
"Where's Sue Ann?" Dean asked.
"House," Sam and Susana replied.
The three moved to the house and Dean said, "Go find Sue Ann, I'll catch up."
Sam and Susana, as they were being pushed away, asked, "What are you gonna...?"
Dean spied the two cops from earlier coming down the stairs and called out, "Hey!"
The cops looked over and Dean taunted, "You gonna put that fear of God in me?"
The cops dropped their coffees and ran at Dean, who took off.
As soon as they were gone, Sam and Susana ran up the stairs and checked around the house. It was dark. They turned back, confused, then spotted light emerging from the cracks of the outside basement entrance.
Dean silently crept up beside a camper van. The cops were on the other side with flashlights.
"You see him?" cop one asked.
"Nah," cop two replied.
---
Sam and Susana moved towards the basement entrance, opened the doors, and slipped inside.
---
Dean slowly rose next to the passenger window of the camper van, looking behind him. A large dog jumped at the window, barking wildly and he leapt back. On the other side of the van, the cops shined their lights underneath, then in at the dog who was still barking.
"Psycho mutt," cop one said.
The cops moved on and Dean, who had climbed to the roof, looked over. He looked around and laid on the roof a moment.
Sam and Susana moved quietly through the basement to a candlelit alter littered with parts of dead animals, blood, horns, etc. There was a photo in the middle of Dean, taken from the security camera the first time he was in the tent, before he was healed. His face had been crossed out with what looked to be blood.
Sue Ann, from behind Sam and Susana, said, "I gave your brother, her friend, life and I can take it away."
Sam and Susana were furious. They toppled over the table the alter was on, then ran at Sue Ann, but she was already up the stairs. She closed the hatches and secured it with a beam. Sam stretched to push against them and kept trying.
"Sam, Susana, can't you see?" Sue Ann said. "The Lord chose me to reward the just and punish the wicked. And your brother, her friend, is wicked and he deserves to die just as Layla deserves to live. It is God's will." Sam and Susana continued to survey the room. "Goodbye, Sam. Goodbye, Susana."
Sam pulled a block of wood out from the wall and smashed out a small boarded up window.
Dean was heading towards the tent when some lights went out. He stopped, looking behind him, and watched the line of lights lighting the path go out one by one. Dean turned back to see the reaper walking towards him.
The reaper placed his hands on the sides of Dean's head and he convulsed once.
---
Inside the church, Layla was sinking to her knees. Outside, Dean was doing the same. His eyes glazed over.
Sue Ann, still outside the tent, was reciting, holding up the cross. Sam and Susana appeared, she grabbed it and threw it aside, breaking a glass bottle of blood.
The reaper stopped what he was doing and looked up. Dean fell to the ground, gasping.
---
In the tent, Roy raised his hand from Layla's head, confused. "I don't understand..."
"I don't... feel any different...?" Layla said.
Sue Ann fell to her knees beside the blood. "My God, what have you done!"
"He's not your God," Sam retorted.
Layla looked up at Roy, confused. "Reverend?"
"Sue Ann?" Roy called.
Outside, Sue Ann looked up and saw the reaper. He smiled at her. Terrified, she rose and turned to run. The reaper was there. He placed his hand on her head, her eyes glazed over and she fell to her knees. After a moment, still smiling, he allowed her to slip to the ground where she convulsed once, twice, and died. The reaper watched, looking satisfied.
Sam and Susana left her lying there and went to look for Dean.
Dean made his way back to the Impala just as Sam and Susana approached.
"You okay?" Sam and Susana asked.
Dean shook his head as he said, "Hell of a week."
"Yeah... All right, come on," Sam said. "We should get going."
They entered the car and made their way back to the motel room.
Dean sat on the bed, staring at nothing.
Sam and Susana watched their brother/friend before they asked, "What is it?"
"Nothing," Dean replied.
Sam and Susana waited a few seconds and repeated in a more gentle tone, "What is it?"
"We did the right thing here didn't we?" Dean questioned.
"Of course we did."
"Doesn't feel like it."
A knock at the door stopped them.
"I got it," Sam told his brother.
He opened the door as Dean and Susana turned to look. It was Layla.
"Hey, Layla," Sam greeted. "Come on in."
"Hey," Layla said, entering and Dean quickly rose.
"How did you now we were here?" Dean asked.
"Sam... called. He and Susana said you... wanted to say goodbye?"
Dean glanced at Sam and Susana, who was at the door, looking sheepish.
"I'm gonna... grab a soda," Sam said, pulling Susana's arm. They left, and Sam closed the door behind them.
"So, uh," Layla began, "where are you going?"
"Don't know yet," Dean answered. "Our work kind of takes us all over."
Layla watched Dean in silence for a moment. "You know... I went back to see Roy."
Dean nodded. "What happened?"
Layla sat on one of the beds. "Nothing. He laid his hands on my forehead but nothing happened."
Dean sat beside her. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry it didn't work."
"And Sue Ann. She's dead you know? Stroke."
"Yeah I heard. Roy's a good man. He doesn't deserve what's happened." He looked at her. "Must be rough. To believe in something so much, and have it disappoint you."
Layla smiled. "You wanna hear something weird?" Dean turned to look at her. "I'm okay. Really. I guess if you're gonna have faith... you can't just have it when the miracles happen. You have to have it when they don't."
"So what now?"
Layla smiled softly. "God works in mysterious ways." She pressed her hand softly on the side of Dean's face, staring at him. "Goodbye, Dean."
She rose and moved towards the door. Dean closed his eyes a second, remaining still.
Dean rose and turned to face Layla. "Well..." He cleared his throat as Layla turned back to face him. "I'm not much of the praying type... but... I'm gonna pray for you."
Layla's eyes shined with unshed tears. "Well... There's a miracle right there." She turned and left the room. Dean stood staring at the door.