"Are we really reading another chapter?" Sophia asked as they carried out sleeping bags to throw into the tent. Sophia shivered with the thought of listening to another story, but her brother and his friend seemed adamant that they continue with the story.

"Sophia if you don't want to listen to the story, why don't you stay inside and have a tea party with your stuffed animals," her brother Zach teased, making Tyler laugh.

"No, I want to stay out here tonight. I was just hoping we could do something else. That book is freaky," she spoke softly. Both boys looked at each, feeling the same, but they weren't going to be the first to admit how much the book scared them.

With a belly full of hot dogs and beans, the kids settled into their tent as the sun slid down behind the trees. Their parents laughter could still be heard from the house, the lights from the TV flashing through the window. But none of that mattered now. Nothing mattered but the book in Zach's hand, and the pounding of each of their hearts as they watched him slowly open it.

"What are we...um...what's this chapter about?" Tyler stuttered, as Sophia held her stuffed zebra to her chest.

"This one is about the hookman," Zach said as he stared down at the book. "Are you ready?"

Both taking a breath, Sophia and Tyler nodded. With the lantern beside him, Zach started reading.

The ground was soft as Ryan's truck drove through the forest. Tree branches reached out, scraping both sides of the truck, like eerie fingers reaching for help. You held on tightly to the handle of the door as Ryan continued down the pitted road. Night had fallen, casting creepy shadows throughout, and you were starting to wonder why you were out here in the middle of the forest. With a man you hardly even knew.

"Sam, have you heard from Y/N?" Dean bellowed through the bunker, his boots pounding on the tile as he searched through the large building, trying to find his brother. He was worried, scared, and he hated that feeling. But he had a feeling something wasn't right, and his feelings usually were right. "Sam!" He bellowed, frustration making his mood on edge.

"Dean, I'm in here. Give me a minute!" Sam yelled from the bathroom.

Not wanting to waste another second, Dean sighed, kicked the wall with his boot before turning and resting against his, crossing his arms. Seconds ticked by, and he was about ready to barge in on Sam when finally his brother came out. His hair was still sopping wet, his shirt plastered to his skin. "What couldn't wait until I was out of the shower?" He asked, towel drying his hair.

"Have you heard from Y/N?" Dean asked, carefully pronouncing each word in annoyance. His entire body was on edge, every little thing annoying him more than it should have.

"Not since Monday," Sam answered, scrunching up his nose as he thought. "But why the big deal? She's been gone like this before."

"Not when everything's been so weird," Dean argued. "These past few weeks haven't been normal, and you know that. She usually calls to check in by now, and I haven't heard anything."

"So call her," Sam suggested.

"No shit, you think I haven't already thought of that," Dean muttered. "I've tried. Multiple times and it just goes to voicemail."

"Damn it," Sam sighed. "That's not like her."

"That's what I've been saying!" Dean yelled at his brother. "Now, I'll go get baby packed, you trace her phone."

Before Sam could even answer, Dean was bounding down the hall, no doubt already planning how he could save the damsel in distress. And if Y/N ever heard those words muttered about her, she would kill him.

"Ryan, what are we doing out here?" You asked, trying to figure things out as he continued to head farther into the forest.

"Honey, I thought you knew what we're going to be doing out here," he teased, winking at you before turning his attention back to the road. "Just right around this bend and we'll be there."

Keeping your gaze forward, Y/N watched as he rounded a set of trees, the riverbank coming into view. A bridge was off to the side, and you knew to some it was probably a romantic, secluded place to be alone. But to you, it was creepy, with it's dark shadows. The wind made the trees dance, whistling against Ryan's truck. Something scurried into the bushes, and you wanted nothing more than to turn around and leave this place in the dust.

Truthfully, you had no idea how you were even out here to begin with. You really didn't know this Ryan, even though it felt like you should. It felt like there was an invisible force pushing you towards him, and towards an inevitable end, and you hated that feeling more than anything. "Ryan, listen. I think you're a great man and all, but I think we need to go back," you started to say, but before you could say anything else, Ryan was on you. One hand wrapped around your neck, the other sliding under your shirt as he crushed his lips to yours.

Fighting to get away, the sound of metal against metal had both of you pausing. "What was that?" Ryan asked, pulling away from you.

"Maybe you should go check?" You suggested.

"It's probably the wind moving the branches," he insisted. "Now back to more important things."

"Ryan, stop!" You tried to say but he had pulled you under him, his body pressed against yours, his hands roaming your skin as you tried to fight him off.

"What the hell is she doing in Iowa?" Dean muttered as he sped down the highway. "She was supposed to having a girl's weekend with Jody and Donna."

"I don't know," Sam sighed, realizing that maybe his brother and friend were right. Maybe there was something more going on with these hunts than he originally thought. But how would they ever figure it out. There's been no clues that they've noticed so far. Nothing that put all of these hunts together. "But her phone was on the move, so I guess that's good news, even if she isn't answering it."

His jaw clenched, Dean continued to drive, trying to figure out why this little town sounded so familiar. "Hey Sam, have we been to this town before?"

"I don't remember," Sam muttered, searching through his father's journal, trying to dredge up memories. "Oh wait, we have! This was where we hunted the hookman!"

"Maybe you'll run into that college girl again," Dean teased, even though there wasn't much heat behind it.

It was a couple of hours later Dean passed the welcome sign, city lights in front of him. Without looking, Dean reached out, smacking Sam, waking him up. "We're here. I need to know where to turn next."

Sam pulled out his laptop as Dean parked in front of a coffee shop, using their free internet to search for Y/N's whereabouts. "Dean, this doesn't make any sense. Her phone's stopped, and it's showing her off in the middle of nowhere. By the river. Wait, it looks like we actually past her, a couple of miles back!"

Dean's heart dropped when he heard Sam's news. It could mean the worst possible situation. That someone had dropped her body off to never be found. Or dumped her phone, and his only clue would be gone. "Damn it," he muttered, turning the Impala around, hoping that neither of his guesses were right. That Y/N was still okay. Because he would never be able to forgive himself if she wasn't.

Pushing Ryan away as hard as you could, you curled up against the window, breathing heavily. This isn't what you wanted. You wanted to be back in the bunker, with Dean. "Dean," you breathed out, realizing why this felt so wrong. You weren't supposed to be out in the middle of nowhere, with this strange man. You had no clue how you had come to be out here in the first place.

"You're cheating on me?" He asked, just as another loud scratch sounded on your side of the truck, shaking the vehicle as it went. "What the hell is that?" He asked, turning to get a glimpse out of the window. "Damn it, is someone messing with me?"

"Ryan, I don't think you should go out there," you whispered as the scratch stopped.

"I'll do whatever I want," he muttered, throwing the door open and stepping out. Reaching into your pocket, you pulled out your phone, frustrated when it refused to turn on.

"What the hell is going on?" You whispered, knowing that as a hunter you should go out and protect Ryan, even if he was being an asshole. But you couldn't force yourself to move, even when you heard footsteps on your side of the car. "Ryan, damn it! Get back in the truck!"

Before he could answer, the loud scratch came on his side of the truck, before Ryan let out a shrill scream. "No!" He squeaked, the truck shaking before everything stopped.

Shivering, you waited, hoping that Ryan would come back to the truck. Your side was locked, but you were scared if it wasn't Ryan, it could be whatever had taken him.

Trying to stay calm, you opened his glove box, looking for a weapon, when something thudded on the hood of the truck with enough force to dent the metal, forcing a scream from your lips. Finding nothing but old gum wrappers and parking tickets, you slammed the trunk box closed. Leaning forward, you felt the blood rushing from your face. Ryan lay there staring at you, his eyes blank. His head was separated from his body, his body laying towards the front of the hood.

"No," you whispered, pushing back against the seat, trying to get away from the grisly scene in front of you. Your heart pounding furiously, you froze when the familiar metal screeching was heard on the driver's side once more. The side that still had the door unlocked.

"I'm so sorry baby," Dean cooed to his car as he coaxed it down the pitted road. "Are you sure this is the way?"

"This is the only road to her location," Sam insisted. "I'm sorry Dean, but if you want to check out this lead, this is the way we need to go."

"I know," Dean grumbled, continuing to move forward, even though he wasn't sure he was ready to see what could be in front of him. What seemed like it took forever, but was only a couple of minutes later, Dean finally stopped the Impala. "We have to go the rest on foot. The pits in the road are too deep."

It didn't take long for them to gather up the items they would need. Without knowing what they would encounter, they grabbed a multitude of weapons. "Dean, I don't know what we're going to see when we get up here, but I need you to stay calm."

"Sam, this is Y/N that's in danger. I'll do whatever it takes to bring her back."

Lunging towards the door handle, trying to reach the lock as the scratching grew closer. Frantic, you felt your foot get stuck against the gear shift, and you lost precious seconds as you fought it. With your hand barely on the door, you felt it gave away underneath your fingers, being pulled away from the outside. "No," you cried, trying to pull back, away from the evil monster standing there. Wearing a wide, black brimmed hat, blood splattered black duster, and hook instead of a hand, he looked very much the creepy pirate.

Struggling to get away, you screamed when he reached in, grasping your hair and pulling you out. Fighting to get away, his evil laughter had you kicking backwards. Doing anything to get away. "You'll join that cheating man as well," he muttered, his hook moving forward to rest on your throat.

The feel of the cold metal against your skin had you freezing, your eyes wide as you tried to figure out a way out of this. Things weren't looking good. Sam and Dean had no idea where you were, and without a weapon, you were just another victim.

"Leave her alone!" Dean bellowed, his gun trained on the monster. Thanking whatever had brought Dean about, you stayed still.

Before the hookman could sink his hook into your skin, Dean squeezed the trigger, the bullet finding its way straight into the hookman's forehead.

The hook slid across your skin, slicing, but not deep enough to kill as he fell backwards, his eyes as glassy as Ryan's. Tottering where you stood, Dean raced over, catching you before you fell. "Well, that didn't work the last time we were here," he muttered, staring down at the lifeless body.

"That's because it's not the original hookman," Sam spoke up, coming around the side. "Dean, we killed the original, and this one messed up on a couple of things. First, the original hookman didn't decapitate his victim's. Second of all, the hook is on the wrong hand. This is some guy pretending to be him."

"I don't care who it was, it was creepy," you muttered, clinging tight to Dean.

"Y/N, how did you even get here to begin with?" Dean asked the million dollar question.

"I have no idea," you whispered. "I remember leaving the bunker to head to South Dakota, and then nothing until Ryan was driving us out here."

"Guys, I might have found something!" Sam called. With his arm still wrapped around you, you walked over to the truck, trying to keep your gaze away from Ryan's severed head. Sam stood there, holding up a small piece of paper, weathered. Glancing down, you saw your name on it, along with some sort of symbol. It was ripped on three sides, and you had no idea what it meant.

"Let's get out of here," Dean insisted, keeping you close to him, all three of you confused and worried. Leaving the bodies for the police to stumble upon someday.

"Zach, that was pretty scary," Sophia whispered, cuddled into her sleeping bag.

"Sure, it was scary. But why do the people always get away?" Tyler asked.

Turning to the next chapter, Zach smiled at his friend. "Well, you're in luck. Looks like next week's story is even scarier, and gory!"