xxxviii
( 𝗁𝖺𝗎𝗇𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗉𝖺𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 )
▬▬▬ THE THREE WENT TO THE AUCTION HOUSE, Dean leaps and easily scales the meters high metal gates and sprints into the mist.
"Come on!" Dean yells.
Sam and Elena follows.
Sam is wearing gloves and disarms the security alarm. "Go ahead."
Dean is also wearing gloves and picks the lock.
They shine their flashlights around inside, quickly searching for the painting. Dean spies it upstairs and they sprint up the spiral staircase. Holding his flashlight in his mouth, Dean flicks his switchblade and cuts the painting from its frame. They're in and out within a couple of minutes.
✫☆✫
The painting lies in the dirt, Sam is holding the flashlight as Dean readies the matches.
"Ugly ass thing. If you ask me we're doing the art world a favor." Dean remarks. He drops the match and the painting ignites. The painting goes up in flames.
✫☆✫
They all went back to the motel.
Dean rushes in from the bathroom, "We got a problem, I can't find my wallet."
Elena is packing her items, "How is that my problem?"
"Cause I think I dropped it in the warehouse last night."
Both and Elena and Sam looked at Dean with a stern face.
"You're kidding, right?" Sam asks.
"No. It's got my prints, my ID, well my fake ID anyway. We gotta get it before someone else finds it. Come on."
✫☆✫
Back at the auction house, Sam, Dean, and Elena hurry around, looking everywhere.
Elena gets frustrated "How do you lose your wallet, Dean?"
Dean throws his hands in the air and keeps looking.
Sarah walks in and sees them.
Sarah smiles. "Hey guys!"
They spin around trying to act cool.
"Sarah! Hey." Sam greeted.
"What are you doing here?"
"Oh, we are leaving town and, you know, we came to say goodbye."
Dean strolls over, "What are you talking about Sam? We're sticking around for at least another day or two."
Sam and Elena looked at Dean with a confused face.
Dean gets his wallet out of his pocket and looking meaningfully at Sam, "Oh, Sam. By the way. I'm gonna go ahead and give you that $20 I owe you."
Sam looks at him, disbelieving.
Dean holds out the cash, smiling. "There you go."
Sam snatches the cash from Dean, glaring at him.
Dean looked at Sarah. "Well I'll leave you two crazy kids alone, Elena and I are going somewhere right Lena?"
"Uh right." Elena replies.
They both leave quickly.
Sam looked at Sarah awkwardly. "So..."
"I had a good time last night."
"Yeah. I did too."
"Maybe we should do it again sometime."
"You know. I'd love to, I really would, but Dean, he was just screwing around. We really are taking off today."
"Oh. Oh. Ah that's too bad." Sarah smiles fades.
Sam sees the painting being carried past by. "Oh my god!"
Sarah jumps and turns to look. "What?"
"That painting looks so good!"
"If you can call that monstrosity good, then...yeah, I guess."
"So...what do you know about that painting?
"Not much just that it creeps me out. We sold it to the Telescas at a charity auction the night they were murdered."
Sam slightly raises his voice. "Yeah, and now you're just going to sell it again?"
"As much as my Dad wants to, no, I won't let him. I think it'd be in bad taste." Sarah says.
"Good. Yeah. You know what? Don't. Don't. Make sure you don't, okay?"
"Why? Don't tell me you're interested in that?" Sarah questioned.
Sam looked flustered and backs up. "No. No, God, no. Not in buying it, no. You know what, I got to go, I gotta take care of something. But umm, I will call you back...I will call you, I'll see you later."
"Wait, so you're not leaving tonight?"
"No, I guess not. I'll see you."
Sarah looks after him, confused. "Okay..."
✫☆✫
Everyone was back in the impala.
"I don't understand, Dean, we burned the damn thing!" Sam exclaimed.
"Yeah, thank you Captain Obvious. All right, we just need to figure out another way to get rid of it. Any ideas?"
"Well, it's a cursed painting so it wouldn't be easy to get rid of." Elena explains.
"Okay, alright. Well, um, in almost all the lore about haunted paintings it's always the painting's subject that haunts them."
"Yeah. So we just need to figure out everything there is to know about that creepy-ass family and that creepy-ass painting. What were their names again?"
✫☆✫
The three were at a book shop.
"You said the Isaiah Merchant family right?" The proprietor asked.
"Yeah, that's right." Sam answers.
Dean approaches, smiling and flicking through an old book with pictures of guns. Elena doesn't look impressed.
"I don't him to leave the books alone but he wouldn't listen." Elena says.
The proprietor lays a huge book of newspaper clippings on the table. "I dug up every scrap of local history I could find. So are you guys crime buffs?"
"Kinda. Yeah. Why do you ask?" Dean asked.
"Well..."
The proprietor holds up a newspaper article. The lead story on the front page is "New Titanic Sinks, 1304 People Go To Watery Graves: Only 866 saved from 2,170 Aboard Liner Which Collides With Iceberg. Disaster Proves To Be the Greatest in Marine History of the World." He points at a side article. It reads 'Father Slaughters Family, Kills Himself'.
"Yes. Yeah, that sounds about right."
"The whole family was killed?" Elena asked.
"It seems this Isaiah, he slits his kids' throats, then his wife, then himself. Now he was a barber by trade. Used a straight razor."
"Why'd he do it?" Sam asks.
"Let's look." The proprietor begins reading. "People who knew him describe Isaiah as having a stern and harsh temperament. Controlled his family with an iron fist. Wife, uh, two sons, adopted daughter...." He skims on.
"Yeah yeah yeah...'There were whispers that the wife was gonna take the kids and leave.' Which of course you know in that day and age, um ....so instead, old man Isaiah...well he gave them all a shave." The proprietor draws his hand across his throat with appropriate noises, laughing. Dean joins in but stops when Sam gives him a face.
"Does it say what happened to the bodies?" Dean asked.
"Just that they were all cremated."
"Anything else?"
"Yeah. Actually, I found a picture of the family. It's right here... somewhere. Here it is."
It's the picture of the painting.
"Hey, could we get a copy of this please?" Elena asks.
"Sure."
✫☆✫
Back at the motel room, the three sit at the table.
"How are we going to get rid of the painting again?" Elena asks.
"I think we should burn the house then call it a day." Dean suggested.
"No!" Sam exclaimed.
"Alright then, what is your plan?"
"I don't know but we have to investigate more, I feel like something is missing."
Dean gives Sam a blank look. He rises and moves across to the bed, throwing himself onto his back and crossing his arms.
"Which is a good thing cause you can get some more time to crush on your girlfriend." Dean mutters.
"Dude. Enough already."
"What?"
"What? Ever since we got here, you have been trying to pimp me out to Sarah. Just back off, all right?"
"Well, you like her don't you?"
Sam raises his arms and eyes to the ceiling.
"Alright, you like her, she likes you, you're both consenting adults..."
Sam gets frustrated and raises his voice, "What's the point, Dean? We'll just leave. We always leave."
Elena sits quietly hearing them talk.
"Well, I'm not talking about marriage, Sam."
"You know, I don't get it. What do you care if I hook up?"
"Cause then maybe you wouldn't be so cranky all the time." Dean sneers.
Sam stares at him, then huffs out a breath and looks away.
Dean sits up on the bed. "You know, seriously Sam, this isn't about just hooking up, okay? I mean, I think that this Sarah girl could be good for you."
Sam sighs and scratches his head. Dean watches closely.
"And... I don't mean any disrespect but I'm sure this is about Jessica, right? Now I don't know what it's like to lose somebody like that.... but... I would think that she would want you to be happy." Dean softly says.
Sam is quiet and listening now, tears in his eyes. Elena puts her hand on his shoulder and pats it.
"God forbid have fun once in a while. Wouldn't she?"
"Yeah, I know she would." Sam mumbles. He gives a half-smile, then sighs heavily. "Yeah, you're right. Part of this is about Jessica. But not the main part."
"What's it about?" Dean asks.
Sam refuses to answer.
"Yeah all right." Dean lies back again and crosses his arms. "Well, we still gotta see that painting, which means you still gotta call Sarah, so..."
Sam picks up the phone, clearing his throat. Dean shakes his head and closes his eyes, settling in.
"Sarah, hey, it's Sam." Sam pauses. "Hey, hi" he pauses again. "Good. Good, yeah. Umm. What about you?"
Dean opens one eye slightly, watching his brother.
Sam repeats himself. "Yeah good, good, really good
Dean whispers across the room. "Smooth..."
"So, ah, so listen. Me and my brother and Elena were...uh...thinking that maybe we'd like to come back in and look at the painting again. I ..."
Dean once more shakes his head and closes his eyes.
"I think maybe we are interested in buying it." Sam pauses. "What!?"
At Sam's tone Dean and Elena snaps to attention.
Sam stands up. "Who'd you sell it to?"
Dean rises up, listening closely.
"Sarah I need an address right now."
✫☆✫
The impala roars up and the boys along with Elena jump out. Sarah appears from the car waiting in the driveway of a mansion.
"Sam what's happening?"
Sam runs past Sarah. "I told you, you shouldn't have come."
Dean and Elena join Sam and they run up the stairs to the front porch. Dean starts banging on the door.
"Hello, anyone home?" Dean says.
"You said Evelyn might be in danger, what sort of danger?" Sam asks.
"I can't knock this sucker down. I got to pick it." Dean explains.
Dean starts to pick the lock as Sam bangs on the windows, which are covered with metal security bars.
"What are you guys, burglars?" Sarah questioned.
"No, they are art dealers with a mind of a burglar." Elena says.
"I wish it was that simple. Look you really should wait in the car. It's for your own good." Sam suggested.
Dean gets the door open, Sam and Elena quickly follows him inside.
"The hell I will. Evelyn's a friend." Sarah insisted. She runs in after them.
"Evelyn?"
"Evelyn." Dean yells.
They all enter the lounge, Evelyn sits half turned away from them. The painting has changed, Isaiah now looks at his daughter rather than straight ahead.
"Evelyn? It's Sarah Blake...Are you all right?" Sarah reaches to touch Evelyn's shoulder.
"Sarah don't. Sarah!" Sam yells.
Evelyns's head tips back, exposing her slashed throat. Sarah screams.
"Oh my God. Oh my God!"
Sam puts his arm around her and shepherds her out of the room. Everyone in the room looked frightened.
✫☆✫
At the motel, Dean sits at the bar with the laptop, Sam paces. There is a knock on the door. Sam opens it and Sarah storms past him.
"Hey. You all right?"
"No, actually, I just lied to the cops and told them I went to Evelyn's, alone, and found her like that."
Dean smirks while Sam looks relieved.
"Thank you."
"Don't thank me, I'm about to call them right back if you don't tell me what the hell's going on. Who's killing these people?"
Sam looks at Dean, who raises his eyebrows.
"What."
"What?"
"It's not 'who'. It's 'what' is killing those people." Sam says.
Sarah looks at Sam like he's insane.
Sam sighs, "Sarah, you saw that painting move."
"No...no I was...I was seeing things. It's impossible."
"Yeah well, welcome to our world." Dean says.
"Sarah, I know this sounds crazy...but we think that that painting is haunted."
Sarah sniggers but with tears in her eyes. "You're joking."
She looks from one to the other of them. They all just stare at her.
"You're not joking. God, the guys I go out with."
"Tell me about it." Elena mumbles.
"Sarah, think about it. Evelyn, the Telesca's, they both had the painting. And there have been others before that. Wherever this thing goes people die. And we're just trying to stop it. And that's the truth." Sam explains.
Sarah takes a deep breath. "Then I guess you'd better show me. I'm coming with you."
"What? No. Sarah no, you should just go home. This stuff can get dangerous and I don't want you to get hurt."
"Look, you guys are probably crazy, but if you're right about this? Well me and my Dad sold that painting that might have got these people killed. Look I'm not saying I'm not scared because I am scared as hell but I'm not going to run and hide either."
Sarah strides to the door and turns back to everyone. "So are we going or what?" She walks out.
"Sam?"
Sam looks across to where Dean is sitting. Dean points out the door after Sarah.
"Marry that girl."
✫☆✫
Everyone went back to the mansion, Sam is picking the lock.
"isn't this a crime scene?" Sarah asked, unsurely.
"You've already lied to the cops." Elena says.
Once inside Sam lifts the painting down from the wall and they examine it.
"Aren't you worried that it's gonna kill us?"
"Nah, it seems to do its thing at night. I think we're all right in the daylight." Sam says.
Dean compares the picture in the book with the painting. "Guys, check it out. The razor, it's closed in this one but it's open in that one."
"What are you guys looking for?"
"Well if the spirit's changing aspects of the painting then it's doing so for a reason."
"Hey hey look at this. The painting in the painting."
"Looks like a crypt, or a mausoleum or something." Elena exams.
Dean looks around, grabs a thick glass ashtray and uses it as a magnifying glass. He the name on the Mausoleum. "Merchant."
✫☆✫
The four are walking and looking around every grave.
"This is the third boneyard we've checked. I think this ghost is jerking us around." Dean says.
"So this is what you guys do for a living? Finding ghosts." Sarah looked at Sam with a craze eyes thinking they were just those people that are weird
"Not exactly. We don't get paid." Sam remarks.
Dean spies the mausoleum. "Over there." He breaks the lock and they enter, pushing aside the cobwebs. There is a number of nameplates as well as four urns in front of little glass-fronted boxes. Sarah looks into one of the cases at a doll.
"Okay, that right there is the creepiest things I've ever seen." Sarah claims.
"It was sort of tradition at the time. Whenever a child died sometimes they'd preserve the kid's favorite toy in a glass case, put it next to the headstone or crypt." Elena explains.
"Notice anything strange here?"
"Where do I start?" Sarah inquires.
Sam looks at Sarah.
"No, that's not what I mean. Look at the urns." Dean explains.
"Yeah. There are only four."
"Yeah, Mom and the three kids. Daddy dearest isn't here."
"So where is he?"
✫☆✫
Sam and Sarah sit on a small wall, waiting outside of an office building.
"So what exactly is your brother and Elena doing in there?"
"Searching county death certificates trying to find out what happened to Isaiah's body."
"How'd they even get in the door?"
"Lying and subterfuge mostly." Sam answers.
"You have an uh you have an eyelash on your right no uh you know what" Sarah reaches, but has no idea where it is.
Sam laughs. "Do you mind if I get it?"
"No."
Sam reaches for it and holds it on his finger.
"Okay, I got it. Make a wish."
Sarah laughs and blows it away.
Dean suddenly appears with Elena. "Are we interrupting something?"
"No." Sam answers.
"Not at all."
Dean looks between them, "Huh. Apparently."
"So, what'd you guys get?"
"Paydirt. Apparently, the surviving relatives of the Merchant family were so ashamed of Isaiah that they didn't want him interred with the rest of the family. So, they handed him over to the county, the county gave him a pauper's funeral. Economy style. Turns out he wasn't cremated; he was buried in a pine box."
"So there are bones to burn." Sam says.
"There are bones to burn." Dean confidently says.
"Tell me you know where."
✫☆✫
Everyone is at a graveyard. Dean, Sam, and Elena dig; Sarah holds a flashlight. Sam crawls out of the grave to stand next to Sarah.
"You guys seem to be uncomfortably comfortable with this." Sarah says as she breaks the silence.
"Well, this isn't exactly the first grave we've dug. Still think I'm a catch?" Sam playfully asks.
Sarah laughs.
Dean taps his shovel on something hard. "Think I've got something." He cracks open the coffin lid to reveal a body.
Dean pours the salt, Sam the kerosene. Sarah and Elena watches.
Dean strikes a match. "You've been a real pain in the ass Isaiah. Good riddance." He tosses the match in.
They all stand and watch it burn.
✫☆✫
The impala pulls up at the mansion. Sam opens the passenger door.
"Keep the motor running."
"I thought the painting was harmless now?" Sarah questioned.
"Better safe than sorry. We're gonna bury the sucker." Sam says.
Sarah gets out of the car decisively. "I'm gonna with you."
"You sure?"
"Yeah."
Dean calls Sam back. "Hey! hey hey. I'll stay here, you go make your move."
Sam scoffs and gets out of the car.
"Sam. I'm serious!"
Sam and Sarah move inside and stop in front of the painting, looking surprised. "Sam? You're the expert on all this ghost stuff. Is that painting supposed to look like that? Where's the little girl?"
"And the razor." Sam adds.
They hear noises and laughter and look around in time to see the front door shutting on them.
Dean and Elena run up the stairs and starts shoving at the door. Inside Sam also runs to the door and yanks on it.
"Dean? Elena? Hey! Is that you guys?"
Sam pulls out his phone and calls Dean.
Dean answers. "Tell me you slammed the front door."
"Nope, it wasn't me. I think it was the little girl."
"Girl? What girl?"
"Yeah, she's out of the painting. I think it might've been her all along."
"Wasn't the Dad looking down at her? Maybe he was trying to warn us."
"Hey hey hey, let's recap later all right? Just get us out of here."
"Well I'm trying to pick the lock, the door won't budge."
"Well, knock it down."
"Okay genius, let me just grab my battering ram."
"Dean, the damn thing is coming."
"Well you're just gonna have to hold it off until I figure something out. Get some salt or iron."
Sam hangs up and grabs Sarah's hand, "Come on."
Sam rummages through the kitchen drawers, Sarah the lounge cupboards.
"What kind of house doesn't have salt? Low-sodium freaks. Hey, d'you find any iron?"
"No. What's it for?"
"Iron repels evil spirits but it's gotta be pure. Hurry."
The lounge doors slam shut, wind blows papers everywhere. The girl appears, dragging her doll along the floor by one foot, a razor in her other hand.
"Sam?"
Sam backs up, keeping Sarah behind him. The ghost comes closer, moving in an inhuman manner.
"That is just so wrong." Sarah says.
Sam backs into the fireside implements, grabs the poker. The girl's face shivers and she roars. Sam swings at the ghost. She disappears.
"Iron?"
"Yeah. But the thing is how are we gonna waste her?"
"Sam wait. We used to handle antique dolls at the auction. "
"Well that's fascinating Sarah but is it important right now?" Sam questioned.
"Well back then they use to make the dolls in the kids image, I mean everything, they would use the kid's real hair." Sarah answers.
Sam came into realization. "The Mausoleum!"
Later, Sam raises the poker. A heavy cupboard comes across the room, knocking him over and pinning him on the ground. Sarah runs to help, calling his name. She hears a noise and spins, coming face to face with the ghost.
✫☆✫
Dean screeches the impala to a halt and leaps out of the car, running into the mausoleum, Elena follows behind. Dean pounds at the glass container then smashes at it with the butt of his gun but it doesn't break. He turns to run back to the car, gun in hand then stops and looks down at it.
Dean grimaces in realization that he could shoot with the gun, "Come on Dean!" He shoots the glass, lifting his other arm to protect his face then uses the gun to knock out the rest of the glass until he can grab the doll.
Dean grabs the doll then throws it at Elena, she reaches for Dean's lighter then it lights up.
✫☆✫
The ghost raises the razor, preparing to strike.
"No!" Sam yelled. He dives for Sarah pulling her out of the way just as the ghost is about to bring the razor down. At the same moment, the ghost rears back, burning up. As she burns her figure reappears back in the painting.
Sam and Sarah lay on the floor together, looking around, then at each other.
✫☆✫
Dean and Elena look at the burnt doll on the floor of the mausoleum, then Dean pulls out his phone to call Sam.
Sam answers.
"Sam, you good?"
"Not bad."
✫☆✫
Dean and Elena approaches where Sam and Sarah stand watching the painting be crated up.
Dean holds up some papers. "This was archived in the county records. The Merchant's adopted daughter Melanie. Know why she was up for adoption? 'Cause her real family was murdered in their beds."
Sarah's eyes went wide. "She killed them?"
"Yeah. Who'd suspect her? Sweet little girl. So then she kills Isaiah and his family. The old man takes the blame. His spirit's been trying to warn people ever since."
"So where's this one go?" A worker says to Sarah.
"Take it out back and burn it."
Everyone stops and looks at her.
"I'm serious guys. Thanks."
"Killing others? Killing herself? Some people are just born tortured. So when they die, their spirits are just as dark." Sam says.
"Maybe. I don't really care. It's over, we move on."
"So... I guess this means you're leaving."
Dean and Elena look at Sam to Sarah. Sam stares at both of them until they get it.
"We'll go wait in the car. See you Sarah."
Dean stands awkwardly for a second, looking at Sam, then nods and walks away with Elena.
Dean is leaning against the car. He watches Sarah letting Sam out and closing the door. Shaking his head, he turns to get into the car.
Inside, Sarah leans against the door, thinking, looking sad. There is a knock. She opens the door and Sam is there. She smiles and he steps in and kisses her.
Dean hears the knock and turns around to see Sam kiss Sarah. He glanced back at Elena who was looking the opposite direction then turns his attention to his brother.
Dean smiles. "That's my boy."
Dean gets into the car. Sam and Sarah continue kissing in the doorway.
𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘦 𝘰𝘧 1𝘹19, 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦