Strings Attached

Chapter 64

He stands in the doorway, a gun in his hand. Its cocked, but it's not aimed at anything but the floor. Castiel tries to take a step back, but he's already pressed against the wall. He keeps a nervous eye on the unfamiliar intruder, wishing he had an escape. He's all too familiar with this trapped feeling, but this is different, worse.

"Hendrickson?" Dean says in both shock and confusion as he watches the man.

The man grins, an evil grin that doesn't show any kindness. "Dean Winchester. It's been a while, huh?"

"Years," Dean replies, his eyes wary. "What are you doing here?"

"Looking for you guys," the man, Hendrickson, answers lazily, pacing slowly in a way that conveys confidence and control, not nervousness.

"Who are you?" Michael asks. There's no surprise that it's him; if anyone would step up to the plate in a situation as dangerous as this, it would be Michael.

"I'm a lot of people," Hendrickson replies. "I'm a friend, I'm an enemy. I'm a cop, and I'm a killer." And apparently a total cliché.

"What are you talking about?" Michael demands.

"Well, I suppose I should explain," he agrees. "You all know me, whether you realize it or not, and I definitely know you. I've been around since before your folks died. Well, of course I have been. I'm the one who killed 'em.

"Oh, don't give me that look, Dean! You should have known. I mean, your daddy met me just a week after your mom died. And who else was around when he kicked the bucket? The robber? I'm gonna let you in on a secret. That robber didn't have a gun. And isn't it convenient that no one else lived to tell what happened?"

"You son of a bitch," Dean growls. "I'll kill you. I swear to god, I will kill you. I don't care what it takes."

"Dean, you're not the one with the gun," Castiel hisses.

"Thank you, Castiel," Hendrickson replies in an overly friendly tone.

"How do you know my name?" Castiel asks, his voice shaking despite his best efforts to keep it strong. He sounds weak. He is weak. Right now, he doesn't care about that. There are much more pressing matters at hand.

"Oh, I know all about you, Castiel," Hendrickson replies. "See, I like you. I have since I held your mother under that water eleven years ago and felt as the life left her. You were always my favorite. No offense intended to the rest of you, of course, but Castiel is just... Special.

"Maybe it's because when I look at you, I see a younger me. I have since I got to know you — from a distance, of course. Everyone here had some sort of reaction to hearing that poor Becky drowned. Chuck became a published author — your mom always loved those books of his. And, if you're wondering, Dad's on a little vacation right now, courtesy of a little false tip I gave him about where to find me. Michael became a nerd — or more of a nerd than he was. Lucifer became... him. I don't think anyone can explain you, Lucifer. Gabriel's the class clown, which I'm thinking was probably to balance out the pain of losing your mom. Then it just became who you were.

"And then Castiel, the only other person old enough to process what happened. This is when I decided I liked you — and I don't like a lot of people. See, when you found out your mom was dead, you went into hibernation. You stopped talking to everyone. Not only that; you stopped liking everyone. And that is exactly what I was hoping for."

Every bone in his body tells him not to say anything. This man is clearly insane, and he knows that he shouldn't be talking to anyone this crazy, that he shouldn't be listening to anyone this crazy. But curiosity gets the better of him.