Silent Lucidity

LII

[Mother's Little Helper]

EXT. HOUSE

Milton, Illinois

A car pulled into the garage. Inside, a man was eating popcorn in front of a television as his wife walked in the door with a bundle of flowers in her hand and a bag of groceries. She set them down on the kitchen counter and sighed like she'd had a hard day.

"What's on the menu tonight?" the husband asked.

"Meatloaf," the wife replied.

"Really? Again?"

The wife said in a slightly annoyed tone, "I wish you wouldn't say that. You know how hard I work all day, and yet you criticize me."

The husband rolled his eyes as, behind him, the wife picked up a large candle holder. Without hesitation she smashed him in the face with it, twice.

The wife continued. "So, yes." Smash. "We're having meatloaf." Smash. With potatoes..." smash, "and broccoli..." smash, "...and lots of god things."

Blood splattered on the television. A note from a child on the fridge read 'Mrs. Young is the best.'

INT. BUNKER

Dean set a large, red book on the table and he started leafing through it.

Sam and Kennedy entered and said, "Hey."

Dean barely glanced up. "Hey."

"You catch any shut-eye last night?" Sam asked.

"Nope."

"Guess Kennedy or I are driving, then."

"Driving where?" Dean questioned.

"Caught wind of a case online," Kennedy said. "A 1st-grade teacher came home and killed her husband."

"Well, maybe she snapped. Ankle biters can do that to you."

"Dude, she pounded him, into ground chuck," Sam told him.

Dean was still reading the book, not really paying attention as he questioned, "So, what are you two thinking?"

"Best guess -- possession."

"Why don't you two go?" Dean suggested as he turned his back on Sam and Kennedy and walked to a file folder and started looking through it.

"Dean, look. Kennedy and I want to find Abaddon, too, but we've been coming though this stuff for days."

"Well, maybe we missed something."

"And maybe there are better ways to spend our time that just spin our-"

"Maybe I don't have time!"

"What's up with you?" Kennedy asked.

Dean pulled out a paper and read it silently. "Nothing."

Sam walked toward him. "Yeah? See, because ever since you killed Magnus, you've been acting... sort of... obsessed."

Dean finally turned to face Sam. "Well, maybe because I want to end all this. Maybe because if we find Abaddon, then Crowley ponies up the First Blade, and we kill her and him both. So what you call being "obsessed," I call doing my job."

"Okay, um... Kennedy and I get it, Dean. We're just checking in."

"I'm fine."

Sam nodded, looking unconvinced. "All right. Hit me up if you find anything."

Kennedy looked at him. "Goes for me as well."

Sam and Kennedy left the room. Dean closed his eyes, then opened them, and pulled a large bottle of whiskey from his bag. He took a long drink.