Standing in the Storm

04. Phantom Traveler

As the door opened, Dean awoke and slipped a hand under his pillow for a weapon. He glanced at Tasie to see her fast asleep, Ethan in her arms, and angled his body in front of hers.

He turned to see Sam entering, followed by Levi, carrying coffee and pastries.

"Morning, sunshine," Sam greeted, kicking at Tasie's bed, causing her to wake with a grumble.

"What time is it?" Dean asked groggily.

"Uh, it's about 4:45."

"In the morning?"

"Yep."

Tasie yawned and sat up as she rubbed her eyes and asked, "Sammy, you get any sleep?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah, I grabbed a couple hours."

"Liar," Dean said. "'Cause I was up at three, Levi was rocking Ethan, and you were watching a George Foreman informercial."

"Hey, what can I say? It's riveting TV."

"When was the last time you got a good night's sleep?"

Sam shrugged. "I don't know, a little while, I guess. It's not a big deal."

"Yeah, it is."

"Look, I appreciate your concern-"

"Oh, I'm not concerned about you. It's your job to keep my ass and Tasie and her family's alive, so we need you sharp."

Tasie turned to Sam. "Be honest, are you still having nightmares about Jess?"

Sam crossed the room, sat on the other bed, handed a coffee to Dean and Tasie. "Yeah. But it's not just her. It's everything. I just forgot, you know? This job. Man, it gets to you."

"You can't let it," Dean told him. "You can't bring it home like that."

"So, what? All this it... never keeps you two up at night?"

Levi raised a brow. "Never? You're never afraid?"

"No, not really."

Sam reached under Dean's pillow to pull out a large hunting knife and held it up as evidence.

Dean took the knife back. "That's not fear. That is precaution."

"All right, whatever. I'm too tired to argue."

Dean's phone rang and he answered. "Hello?"

"Dean, it's uh, it's Jerry Panowski. You and your dad helped me out a couple years back."

"Oh, right, yeah. Up in Kittanning, Pennsylvania, the poltergeist thing. It's not back, is it?"

"No. No. Thank God, no. But it's something else, and... uh, I think it could be a lot worse."

"What is it?"

"Can we talk in person?"

Dean eyed Sam, Levi and Tasie and they eyed him back.

---

The Impala drove down the road and eventually, they reached the hangar.

Jerry greeted the siblings and Levi. "Thanks for making the trip so quick. I ought to be doing you guys a favor, not the other way around. Dean and your dad really helped me out."

"Yeah, he told me," Sam said with a nod. "It was a poltergeist?"

"Poltergeist? Man, I loved that movie," a man stated.

Levi chuckled at the man's comment.

"Hey, nobody's talking to you. Keep walking," Jerry told him. "Damn right it was a poltergeist, practically tore our house apart. Tell you something. If it wasn't for you and your dad, I probably wouldn't be alive. Your dad said you two were off at college. Is that right?"