All Nightmare Long Chapter Three
Chapter Three
Sam threw Dean the keys as they walked through the door to the bar. The interior was well lit with subdued, designer lamps. There were pool tables off to one side, and booths and tables in the main bar area.
Dean headed straight for the bar, his eyes on the menu above the shelved liquor.
"The bar manager will be right out to help you" a young fellow told them as he wiped down the large mirrors and gave them a smile.
A side door opened, and the manager walked over to serve them.
She was a tall, very attractive woman; her long, red hair swirled over her shoulders and curled around her more than ample bust line.
She smiled at the two men, but as she looked them up and down, taking in the suits, her smile faded from her full, pink lips.
Dean was used to that reaction whenever they dressed as Feds, he gave her one of his best grins, his eyes glinting in the over head lights, his dimples deep and framing his parted lips.
The girl frowned.
She looked up at Sam and her frown deepened. "How may I help you gentlemen?" she asked in a quiet voice, folding her arms across her very large chest.
"Well, we were just after a meal and maybe a beer" Dean turned his smile up a notch.
"What do you recommend, there...Ali, is it?" he asked, trying to decipher her badge as half her arm covered it.
"It's Alison. Special board is up there" she pointed above her head. "Can you guys drink on duty?"
Sam leaned on the bar. "Well, Alison, we're not actually on duty, right now. And one beer won't hurt"
She didn't seem convinced, her face still creased in a frown. "What brings you men here?"
Dean tipped his head. "Here, as in your bar? Or here, as in this town?"
She shrugged. "Last time the law walked in here they had bad news. So, I'm sorry if I seem a little edgy, but I just, you know, I guess, bad memories and all that"
"Do you mind me asking what happened?" Dean turned his smile down, now, putting on a sympathetic face.
Alison's frown changed to a mask of sorrow as the memory darkened her eyes. "My brother was killed in an accident. Two detectives came in; all suited up like you two, to deliver the news. So, like I said, bad memories and all"
"Well, me and Sam, here, we're FBI, not detectives, and we're here about a meal and a beer. And that's all. Well, maybe a smile from about the prettiest bar manager I think I've ever seen"
Despite her sad memories Alison felt her cheeks warm up and her mouth involuntarily lift at the sides.
This man was very charming.
And very, very handsome.
"That's so much better. So how about a couple of burgers and a beer each for me and my partner?"
Alison nodded, her smile a little broader now. "Sure. Grab a booth; I'll bring it all over to you"
"Did you check out the rack?" Dean gave Sam a grin as they settled into a booth in the far corner.
"Couldn't really miss them, Dean. She's very well endowed"
Dean winked. "Killer rack. Just the way I like 'em"
"We're on a case"
"I can look, can't I?'
"Size of those things, I don't think you have a choice" Sam smiled back and opened his computer up. "So, research. Let's start with the lake"
"Not the bedroom girl?" Dean looked up as Alison approached with their beers, giving her a warm smile and thanking her as he accepted the glasses. He watched her walk away, leaning out of the booth to track her back to the bar as she sashayed her more generous rear end, her jeans tight. "The bigger the cushion….." he murmured.
"What?" Sam looked up from the lap top.
"What?" Dean looked back at his brother. "Oh, the girl. Bedroom drowner. Why don't you start with the girl?"
"Well, I think I got a link already." He turned the laptop so they could both see it at the same time. "See here? There was a near drowning last month during a school camp. Kids snuck out and went swimming after lights out, and one got into trouble. Penny, our bedroom drowning vic, was one of the swimmers"
"Yeah? So we got what, a vengeful spirit? Easy"
Sam pulled the computer back around. "Boy didn't die, Dean. He's in a coma at the local hospital"
Dean took a sip of his beer. "So we got what, another kid stuck in a coma, taking spectral walks out and killing his class mates? We've had this before. Fun times"
Sam frowned as he read further. "Well, yeah, I guess you're right. Sounds pretty clear cut. Oh, wait. The girl that died? Penny? The coma boy had a crush on her. He didn't have a grudge against her or anything"
The both fell silent as Alison brought their food over. "Can I get you another beer?" she asked Dean, and this time her smile seemed more relaxed.
Dean smiled back at her. "Thanks, yeah, that'd be great"
He waited until she brought his new drink over and left before he turned back to his brother. "So, if he was Mr. Unrequited, why is he killing her?"
"Maybe he's not the one. Says here they were horsing around and Daniel, the boy in the coma, got pushed under. His feet tangled in some lake weed and he drowned. Took them fifteen minutes to get his heart re started, and he suffered massive brain damage. Basically, he's a cabbage. His parents are holding hope that he'll wake up even though doctors have declared him pretty much brain dead"
"Who else could it be?" Dean bit into his burger, his face, for a moment, a picture of pure rapture as he savored his favorite food.
"Dunno. His parents, maybe? Trying to get revenge? Look, I'm not saying he's not the one, but it may not be so clear cut. The guy basically died at the lake, his body is being kept alive by machines. Why wait a month before taking retribution?"
Dean shrugged. "Guess we talk to parents. The girl's and the boy's. My money's on the boy, though. You know how spirits get things mixed up. If he thinks they hurt him, or his girl's looking elsewhere, he could be taking things into his own hands."
"Yeah. I guess. We gotta be sure, though"
"Yeah, I know. We don't want to go dragging a sixteen year old coma victim boy outside and torching him if we ain't sure"
Sam looked at this brother, his brow raised. "You're just on fire today, aren't you?"
Dean waggled his eyebrows back, his grin wide.
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