17. The Reunion (Part 3)

"What'd she do now?" is the first thing that comes out of Dean's mouth when he sees Sam carrying me back to the Cassity porch.

"Nothing," Sam responds. "She's just...I think she's in shock. Max? Max, are you listening?"

I nod mutely.

"I'm gonna set you down now, okay?"

I nod again, and Sam puts me down on my feet.

"What happened?" Dean moves on.

"The hound got Margot," Sam explains. "She and Noah decided it was smart to hunt something they can't understand in the middle of the night. We got separated-that should be enough."

"Head inside for a sec, Sam, I've got her."

I flinch as Sam grips my shoulder, squeezing gently, before heading inside.

"Max?" I look at Dean. It's weird that he used my nickname. "Whoa, okay, we need to relax the death grip." I let him pry my weapon out of my hand. "Do you need to stay out here?"

My blue eyes widen. "Stay out here and wait for a hound to come knocking at the door and kill me?" I shake my head. "Uh-uh, I need to go inside."

"Okay, okay," he says gently. "But, seriously...are you gonna be okay?"

"Let's see how the rest of the night goes, then I'll tell you." Numbly, I head inside, with Dean right behind me. We meet Sam in the hallway before we enter the living room to find Noah, Cindy, and Alice Cassity all with upset expressions.

"What was that thing?" Noah demands.

"It was a Hellhound," Dean tells him. "See, when you sell your soul to a demon, they're the ones that come and rip it out of you."

"Demon?" Alice repeats.

"Crowley. Poncey guy, about yea big"-as an accurate measurement, he places his hand on top of my head-"mountain of dicks. We know he was here ten years ago, making dreams come true. Now, if you didn't sign, great. That freak out there won't touch you. But if you did, I need to know, and I need to know now. So, hands up."

"So, wait," Noah cuts in. "T-the British guy was a demon, and now there's a Hellhound after us? A-are you insane?"

"They're obviously insane," Cindy says.

"Oh, like you have a right to say anything about us," I snap through a hoarse tone. "And don't play dumb."

"Yeah. I'm not playing. I didn't sell my damn soul."

"Well, somebody did, and the sooner that idiot owns up, the sooner the rest of you can go." I cross my arms, feeling myself return to some normalcy.

Alice and Cindy look around. I sigh through my nose. Stubborn women.

"All right, seal 'em in," Dean declares.

"Yeah," Sam agrees.

"What?!" Alice panics.

"Look, I'm gonna spread goofer dust around the doors, the windows. That will keep the Hellhound out...for a while."

"What is that-how long?" Noah is back to blurting out questions.

"Long enough for me to stab it in its throat," Dean tells him.

Noah sighs. "No way. No way. You can't do this. You can't-"

"Yes, I can. You want to know why? Because it's what I do. And, buddy, I'm the best. See, I gut Old Yeller out there, and maybe-just maybe-you walk away. I don't-you're meat. So, sit down"-I wince as Dean threatens Noah with a gun-"shut up. And put these on." He's got a pair of handcuffs in his other hand.

We have three pairs, one for each Cassity. Dean makes a short trip to the Impala to come back with some black goofer dust. I watch with interest as he makes a thick line of it.

"I don't...Who are you people?" Alice whispers.

"We're here to help," Sam assures her.

"Like you helped Margie?" Noah snaps.

At this I narrow my eyes. "Look, old timer-"

"Not now, Tasha," Sam cuts me off. I bite down on my tongue. "When the Hellhound gets close, you might start seeing things, hearing things. It's gonna feel like you took the brown acid, and it's trying to kill you. The handcuffs are so you won't hurt yourselves."

"And when one of you starts bugging out, we'll know who's on tap to be puppy chow," Dean adds on.

I step over the goofer dust line as to not take away its power. I'm leaning against the hallway, waiting to listen for our next move. But how come I can see the hound and I'm not seeing or hearing things like they're supposed to? I bite my lower lip. Something's wrong with me. I shouldn't be seeing Hellhounds. I need to tell the Winchesters.

"So...what's our play?" Sam asks as he comes behind his brother.

"Well, you camp here, figure out who whored their soul," Dean says as he stands up. "I'm gonna go scout the grounds-see if I can't gank Huckleberry Hound before he makes his next move."

"Wait, you're not going alone, Dean. I'm gonna come with you."

"Wrong."

"Uh, they're on lockdown, and you need backup."

"No, I don't."

"Um, yeah you do," I voice. "I'm with Sam on this."

"No, I need you to be safe, Sam, okay?" Dean completely ignores me. "That's what I need. I need you here to make sure nothing happens to Max, either, because there's no way she's partnering with me."

My mind has the thought of I can handle myself just fine, but it never comes out of my mouth. Truth is, though I can (for some reason) see a Hellhound, I've seen what it can do. Margot's body in the clearing flashes to mind. That would easily be me if I'm here on my own to play warden with the Cassitys. Damn you, Dean. He needs backup, but he makes a valid point of needing Sam here to watch over me on top of stay out of trouble.

"What?" Sam hisses. "What am I-when are we ever safe?"

"This is different."

"How?"

"Because of the three trials crap-God's little obstacle course. We've been down roads like this before, man-with Yellow-Eyes, Lucifer, Dick friggin' Roman. We know where this ends-one of us dies...Or worse."

But what's worse than death?

Wait, I know the answer to that: living. I would know, and I'll bet the Winchesters sometimes think that too.

"So, what-you just up and decided it's gonna be you?" Sam snaps.

"I'm a grunt, Sam. You're not. You've always been the brains of this operation."

"Dean-"

"And you told me yourself that you see a way out. You see a light at the end of this ugly-ass tunnel. I don't. But I tell you what I do know-it's that I'm gonna die with a gun in my hand. 'Cause that's what I have waiting for me-that's all I have waiting for me. I want you to get out, I want Max out of this too. I want you to have a life-become a Man of Letters, whatever. You, with a wife and kids-and-and-and grandkids, living till you're fat and bald and chugging Viagra-that is my perfect ending, and it's the only one I'm gonna get.

"So I'm gonna do these trials. I'm gonna do them alone-end of story. You're staying here with Max. I'm going out there. If landshark comes knocking, you call me. If you try to follow me, I'm gonna put a bullet in your damn leg. Don't think you don't get the same warning, Maxipad. You may be a woman, but that doesn't mean a thing right now."

Dean begins to walk away, but he stops quickly to backtrack. "You're gonna need these." I feel the familiar texture of my shank in one hand, and a gun in the other. "You do whatever he tells you to. Got it?"

I can only nod in silence.

I watch Sam's expression as his older brother storms out of the house. I run a hand through my blonde locks. "Are you guys always like this?" I ask timidly.

Sam sighs. "Unfortunately, yes. We're like this way more than I'd like us to be."

"Would he really do it, Sam? Shoot us in the leg?"

"I wouldn't put it past him, Max. I hate to say it, but you need to hang back here with me."

"I think at this point, we can all wholeheartedly agree that I should be back at the bunker than be here." I hug myself. "So...this Hellhound. We didn't sell our souls, so, how are we going to see it?"

"Here." Sam hands me a pair of glasses as he puts on a pair himself. "Dean got a hold of a few and dowsed them in holy oil. If a Hellhound comes around, we'll be able to see it."

I slip on the glasses though I don't really need them. I should tell him now. One of them has to know, at least. But is now a proper time?

Sam and I both step back into the living room, with all three remaining Cassitys chained. I stand just near the goofer dust line while Sam heads to watch through a window.

"You sold your soul," Cindy accuses Noah. "Admit it."

"Why the hell would you think that?" he asks.

"'Cause you're a walking corpse, and you're married to a centerfold. I did the math."

"She likes money, and I'm rich. Do it again. You sing like crap, so explain the music career."

"Hello-auto-tune!"

"All right," I groan loudly. "That's enough."

"Oh, is it, four-eyes? Is it enough?"

"You know what, Cindy?" I mess with my gun. "You've got nowhere to run, you're a sitting duck. I can easily-"

"Natasha," Sam scolds me warningly.

"You wouldn't have the guts to do it anyway," Cindy scoffs.

I laugh. "That's what everyone always says before they die."

"Seriously, who the hell are you guys? Did nobody do background checks on you?!"

I smirk. Scaring Cindy Cassity is the most fun I've had in a long time.

"I don't know why you even think one of us made a deal," Noah says quietly.

"Because you struck oil where there was no oil," Sam explains. "That didn't seem weird to you?"

"Margie," Alice murmurs. "Margie used to say that-that if we were rich, we'd all be happy."

Noah scoffs. "Right. We're the damn Waltons."

This is going to be a long lockdown.