Skin (Supernatural Book 1)

Hunting and Hunted

3rd P.O.V

After this monumental failure, the siblings had gotten back to camp and Sam had decided to go lean against a tree stump and Ellie had joined him after a while. They both weren't able to sleep, so they just waited till sunrise.

The next morning, Dean explained everything to the two lasting survivors.

"I don't... I mean, these types of things, they aren't supposed to be real." Haley said.

"I wish I could tell you different." Dean admitted.

"How do we know it's not out there watching us?" Haley asked, looking at Dean.

"We don't." Dean replied. "But we're safe for now."

"How do you know about this stuff?" Haley asked.

"Kind of runs in the family." Dean answered with a small smile.

Sam and Ellie then immergés from where they were and joined the group.

"Hey." Ellie nodded at them.

"So we've got half a chance in the daylight." Sam said. "And I for one want to kill this evil son of a bitch."

"Well, hell, you know I'm in." Dean agreed.

"Makes three of us." Ellie said, raising her hand.

She then took the journal from Sam's hands and opened it to the Wendigo's page.

"'Wendigo' is a Cree Indian word. It means 'evil that devours'." She explained, pointing at the page, she was explaining what she knew to Haley and her brother.

"They're hundreds of years old. Each one was once a man. Sometimes an Indian, or other times a frontiersman or a miner or hunter." Dean placed his input.

"How's a man turn into one of those things?" Haley asked.

"Well, it's always the same. During some harsh winter a guy finds himself starving, cut off from supplies or help. Becomes a cannibal to survive, eating other members of his tribe or camp." Dean explained.

"Like the Donner Party." Haley's little brother said.

"That's right." Sam nodded.

"Cultures all over the world believe that eating human flesh gives a person certain abilities. Speed, strength, immortality." Ellie continued.

"If you eat enough of it, over years, you become this less than human thing. You're always hungry." Dean said.

"So if that's true, how can Tommy still be alive?" Haley asked.

Dean looked at Sam and Ellie for a moment before looking back at Haley.

"You're not gonna like it." He stated.

"Tell me." She demanded.

"More than anything, a wendigo knows how to last long winters without food. It hibernates for years at a time, but when it's awake it keeps its victims alive. It, uh, it stores them, so it can feed whenever it wants. If your brother's alive, it's keeping him somewhere dark, hidden, and safe. We gotta track it back there." Dean explained.

Ellie went over to her bag, she hadn't lost it since she had kept it on her. She couldn't afford to loose her pills. Even if there were only three left.

"And then how do we stop it?" Haley asked.

"Well, guns are useless, so are knives. Basically–"

"We gotta torch the sucker." Ellie said from behind Haley and her brother.

The two turned around and saw the girl with everything to make some Molotov cocktails. She was grinning. This would be fun.

They started walking through the forest, following the prints that the Wendigo had left for them. After a moment, Ellie thought it was way to easy. Something wasn't right and apparently, she wasn't the only one to think so.

"Dean." Sam called out.

He and Ellie had stopped next to a tree that had giant claw marks.

"What is it?" Dean asked as he joined them.

Ellie pointed around. Every tree had one of those claw marks.

"You know, I was thinking, those claw prints, so clear and distinct." Sam chuckled bitterly. "They were almost too easy to follow." He whispered out.

Suddenly growling sounded all around them. They made a circle and waited for it to either make a move or go away. It went away.

Then something dropped on Haley's shoulder. Blood. She raised her head and screamed as a body almost fell on top of her. She had to throw herself on the ground to avoid it.

Ellie stayed with Haley's little brother while Sam went for her and Dean for the body. It was Roy.

"You okay?" Sam asked Haley when she nodded he looked at Dean. "You got it?"

The growling started again and Dean looked up.

"His neck's broke." He said.

He then hastily stood up.

"Okay, run, run, run, run, go, go, go!" He ordered and they all started running.

As they ran, Haley's little brother fell and Sam hanged back to help him.

"Sam!" Ellie called out as she had also stopped.

The two boys started running again and they tried to get back to Dean and Haley. They heard a scream and sped up, but it was to late.

The Wendigo had gotten them.