CHAPTER ONE

"Okay, I think I found a way we can bypass that construction just east of here." Sam says, and Nyx sighs as she looks down at her phone again.

Elena keeps calling, but she doesn't want to keep talking about what her sister's doing and what's going on over there. Elena's looking for Stefan, but Nyx thinks that she should just let him go. He's with Klaus and even if she finds him, there's no way that he's going to be who he was before they left.

"We might even make Pennsylvania faster than we thought." Sam continues, and Nyx looks back at him.

"What?" She asks, and he looks at her.

"You know you have to talk to her." He says as he glances down at her lit phone screen, and she sighs. "You're still thinking about Stefan, aren't you?"

"He's in this mess because he saved Damon, who only needed to be saved because he was hurt trying to save me." She says. "Now, he's doing God knows what and..." She sighs as she pushes her hair back.

"It's not your fault, Nyx. Stefan and Damon both made their own decisions." He tells her, and she looks at the map in front of him.

"So, Pennsylvania?"

"Yeah." Dean interrupts their conversation as he walks back over to them. "We're not going to Pennsylvania."

"Wait. What?" Sam asks as they both look at his brother.

"I just got a call from an old friend. Her father was killed last night. She thinks it might be our kind of thing." He says.

"What?"

"Yeah. Believe me, she never would've called — never — if she didn't need us." He says as he gets into the car.

Nyx climbs in the backseat as her phone starts vibrating again, and she looks at the caller ID. It's Caroline calling this time. She simply watches it ring as Sam gets into​ the car. Dean turns the key in the ignition, and they start arguing, but Nyx isn't really listening.

"Nycole, can you believe this?" Sam asks as he looks at her.

"Huh?" She looks up at him from her phone.

"You didn't hear a thing we just said, did you?" Dean asks as he looks at her in the rearview mirror.

"Am I supposed to listen every time you two argue?" She asks.

"Dean dated this girl for a few weeks and he told her our family secret. I dated Jessica for a year and a half and I didn't tell her anything about what we do." Sam says.

"Okay." She mumbles as she looks back at her phone. It's ringing again.

"Nycole..."

"Yeah, Dean's a dick. I know." She says, and they stop trying to talk to her.

The hunters eventually get to Missouri and they walk into the place that runs the local paper. A woman's talking to two men, though it looks like they're arguing. She turns away from them and stops when she sees the three hunters standing there.

Correction, she stops when she sees—

"Dean." The woman says.

"Hey, Cassie." He greets, and they just look at each other for a few seconds.

Nyx takes a deep breath as she looks at the floor, thinking that this couldn't possibly feel any more awkward. Sam clears his throat, glancing at the teenager beside him.

"This is my brother, Sam. And our friend, Nycole." Dean tells her after hearing his brother. "I'm sorry about your dad."

"Yeah." Cassie nods. "Me too."

They all go to her house, and she starts telling them what happened. Again, Nyx isn't really listening to any of it, but she doesn't mean any offense by it. Her head's still not entirely out of Mystic Falls. Or it's still not entirely off of their recent events.

—

"Accidents happen, Cassie. That's what they are: accidents." A man's saying as the three hunters walk over to him and Cassie.

She and the hunters are all on the same stretch of road that her dad died on. They found a third car this morning with another body inside, and the mayor's telling them to report that they're all just freak accidents.

"Did the cops check for denting on Jimmy's car?" Dean asks. "To see if it was pushed?"

"Who's this?" The man asks Cassie.

"Dean and Sam Winchester — family friends. And their friend, Nycole." She tells him. "This is Mayor Harold Todd."

"There's one set of tracks. One. Doesn't point to foul play." The mayor says.

"Mayor, the police and town officials take their cues from you. If you're indifferent about—"

"Indifferent?" He cuts her off.

"Would you close the road if the victims were white?" She questions, and Nyx raises her eyebrows as she looks between the two of them.

Her father was​ black, as were the two men from the other two "accidents".

"You're suggesting I'm racist, Cassie?" The mayor questions. "I'm the last person you should talk to like that."

"Why is that?" She asks.

"Why don't you ask your mother?"

"I knew the old mayor from my hometown." Nyx says suddenly, and they all look at her. "I loved​ him, but he was a dick who liked to talk down on people too." She turns around and starts walking​ away from them.

"Nycole—" Sam starts.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." She mumbles.

Later that day, the hunters are back in their motel room, and the boys are getting ready to go out and talk to some men that they think can give them more background on the town's history. The two are both dressed in suits, much to Dean's annoyance.

"I'll say this for her." Sam says as Nyx walks out of the bathroom. "She's fearless." He's talking about Cassie.

"Mhm." Dean agrees.

"Bet she kicked your ass a couple times."

Nycole sits on one of the beds to put her shoes back on. "Hey, could you toss me my phone please?" She asks Dean and then checks her messages once he gives it to her.

"What's interesting is you guys never really look at each other at the same time." Sam continues. "You look at her when she's not looking. She checks you out when you look away."

"Why are you watching your brother so closely?" Nyx mumbles as she walks up between them to look in the mirror.

"It's just an interesting observation in a, you know, observationally interesting way." He says as she picks up her vervain necklace from the dresser. The boys are both tying their ties and fixing their shirts as she looks down at the small silver locket.

"You think we might have some more pressing issues here?" Dean asks, and she takes a deep breath as she actually puts the necklace back on.

"Hey, if I'm hitting a nerve—"

"Oh, let's go." Dean cuts him off and then walks away from them.

"Are you okay?" Sam asks as he looks down at Nyx. "You seem a little off lately."

She's looking in the mirror fixing a piece of her hair. She curled it and two of the strands got tangled up next to her face.

"Is there a reason I shouldn't be?" She asks as she looks up at him.

"Nyx, come on. You haven't​ been yourself since we left Mystic Falls." He says.

"I'm fine, Sam." She says as she walks over to the bed. "My only problem right now is that I'm wearing heels." She grabs her phone and walks out of the room.

The boys are going to be pretending to be insurance agents to see what they can find out from specific people in town. Nyx, on the other hand, plans to talk to some of the locals and see what old stories she can dig up. The hair and heels are half to help her and half just because she felt like dressing up a little today.

She gets to a bar not far from the motel, and a guy walks over to her just as she sits at the counter. "What are you drinking, sweetheart?" He asks.

"Just water." She says, and he looks surprised. "I have to keep a clear head if I'm going to get the information I'm looking for."

"And what information might that be?"

"See, I work for a newspaper, and I'm on assignment for an article." She lies. "You wouldn't happen to be from around here, would you?" She asks, and he nods.

"I am. And I must say, we don't get a lot of new faces in town." He says.

"What do you say? You think you can help out the new girl?" She asks as she smiles flirtatiously.

"Why don't we get some food, and I'll see what I can do." He says, and​ she nods.

The two go to a table, and she has to ask a few different questions to get to what she's looking for. He's an attractive guy, but he's not the brightest bulb in the box.

"There are some old stories from back in the sixties. There was a string of deaths out on that highway where the accidents keep happening now. It was always black men then too." He tells her.

"How'd they die?" Nyx asks.

"People say it was someone in a big, black truck. But nobody knew who was actually in it."

"So, no one was ever arrested for the murders?" She asks, and he shakes his head.

"Honestly, they probably didn't​ really even look for the guy. It was a different time, not everyone was considered so equal in town back then... If you know what I mean." He says, and she nods.

"Yeah. Unfortunately, I do." She says. "Does anyone seem to think the murders then are connected to what's happening now?"

"That was over forty years ago." He says, his brow furrowed. "I kinda doubt it."

"Right. Listen, I gotta go. I have a story to work on." She says, pulling her wallet out of her pocket.

"No, no, it's on me." He says, and she looks back at him. "And, uh... If you think of any more questions, you give me a call." He writes down his number on a napkin and hands it to her.

"You got it." She smiles as she folds the napkin.

She slides it into her back pocket with her wallet and then leaves the bar. She heads back to the motel to see what Dean and Sam came up with.

Sam's the only one in the room when she walks. "So, what'd you find?" He asks as he stands up from the small table. She tells him everything the guy told her, and he nods. "Yeah, that's pretty much what we got today too."

"Where's Dean?" She asks.

"He went to talk to Cassie. See if there's anything else she can tell us." He says, and she nods.

"Who's turn is it to take the floor?" She asks as she walks into the bathroom to grab the hair tie that she left in there earlier.

"Uh, Dean was on the floor last night, so it's you now." He says, and she sighs.

"Great." She mumbles as she checks her phone.

"Anything else from Mystic Falls?" He asks, and she shakes her head.

"Stefan's still missing, but other than that, everything seems to have gone back to normal." She tells him. "Well, for now anyway. Nothing seems to stay normal in Mystic Falls for long anymore."

"Are you sure you're alright?" He asks, and she looks at him as she sets her phone down in front of the mirror.

"I try not to let things get to me. I guess sometimes it's easier said than done. But I'm okay, I promise." She says as she glances at him. "Dying... And then burying Jenna and John on the same day was a lot. I'll be alright eventually, Sam. I always am."

"Your strength is definitely something to admire." He says, and she scoffs.

"Strength? Half the time I can't even believe that this is my life." She tells him. "That's called denial."

She then walks over to the nightstand between the two beds and pulls her wallet out of her pocket. She sets it down and Sam walks up behind her.

"What's this?" He asks, and she turns around as he stands up straight. "A phone number?"

"Oh, it's from the guy who told me about the murders in the sixties." She says as she tries to take it from him. "He said it's for if I have any other questions."

"Right. I'm sure it is." He says sarcastically as he holds it over his head so she can't reach it.

"It is."

"Then why do you want it back so badly?" He questions, and she stops trying to get it from him.

"Okay. So, maybe he was a little cute." She says, and he laughs. "My last relationship was almost a year ago, and it didn't end so well. And this whole back and forth thing with your brother, which I will admit is mostly my fault... Anyway, I think I deserve one decent meal with someone of the opposite sex who isn't one of my friends​ or family members."

"I'll kick this guy's ass if he tries anything with you." He says, and she laughs as she looks up at him.

"My hero." She says sarcastically. "It doesn't matter, I'm not gonna call him."

"Why not?" He asks, and she doesn't say anything. "Because of Dean?"

She shrugs. "It's not totally crazy...is it?" She asks, and he shakes his head.

"No." He says. "But I think you should call this guy anyway." He says as he hands the napkin back to her.

"Yeah, because the phone number on a bar napkin is so classy." She says as she sets it on the nightstand by her wallet.

"It couldn't​ hurt." He says.

"Is there a reason you're pushing it?" She asks, confused. "Is there something that I should know?"

He shakes his head after a moment of hesitation. "No."

They do a little more research on the town, and then Nyx looks at the time as she yawns. "Alright, it's after eleven-thirty, I'm going to bed." She says and then lays down on Dean's bed to go to sleep. "When he gets back, tell him that we can stop the whole trading-turns thing with the beds." She tells Sam, and he sighs as he looks at her.

He feels bad as he watches her for a second; she's cuddled up in her blanket as she slowly starts to drift off. He knows that she and his brother like to flirt with each other, and that they've even kissed once or twice, but he doesn't know how serious either of their feelings can get. And he has no idea that they've slept together before.

Now, he can see just how much Nycole really cares for Dean. And he knows that her saying that they can go back to sharing a bed means that she doesn't want as much distance between them as they've been maintaining. And the problem with that is, Sam doesn't think that his brother plans on coming back from Cassie's tonight.

—

Nyx wakes up the next morning and sits up on her bed. She yawns as she takes her hair out of its messy ponytail and runs her fingers through it, shaking it out. All of her hair settles on one side as she pulls her knees up and rests her head on her crossed arms over them. She silently watches Sam as he moves around the room.

"Hey, you gotta get up." He tells her, and she sighs. "We have work to do."

"What happened?" She asks, still groggy.

"The mayor's dead. They found his body on the same stretch of road that the others died on." He says, and her eyebrows furrow.

"Really?" She asks. "That doesn't fit the pattern." She says, and he shrugs.

"Hurry up, we gotta go." He says, and she gets up off of the bed.

"What did Dean say?"

Nycole walks over to her duffle to get her bag that she keeps all of her toiletries in. She's been taking it into the bathroom with her so that she can take her prenatal vitamins without the boys seeing them. She knows that she needs to tell them, and she plans to talk to Dean soon, but she's still working on wrapping her own mind around... Well, everything.

It's only been four days since she was sacrificed.

"I haven't told him yet." Sam says as he walks into the bathroom.

Nyx looks around the room then, but there's no sign of him. It's just them in here. "Well, where is he?" She asks, and Sam sighs as he looks over at her. She pauses for a moment as it clicks why he's looking at her like that. "He never came back last night."

"No, Nyx. He didn't." He tells her.

She nods slowly, putting the pieces together. "That's why you kept saying that I should call the guy from the bar... Because Dean stayed over at Cassie's last night." She says, and he shrugs.

"Yeah, he did." He reluctantly tells her, and he can see the hurt on her face. "I think it'll be good for you to meet someone new. Go out on one date or two." He says. "You deserve a day off after everything you've been through."

"Maybe." She mutters, but he knows that dating anyone else is the last thing on her mind.

They both finish getting ready — Sam rushing her a little — and then they head out to the stretch of road where all of the deaths keep happening.

"He's with us." Sam says as Dean walks up.

Nyx walks away from the boys to talk to another police officer, and Dean looks at her as his brother fills him in on everything that he's missed. Her hair's in a ponytail again and it still has yesterday's​ curls. She's wearing blue jeans and a sweater that she obviously stole from Sam, which they fought over this morning while she was trying to find something to wear. He finally caved when all she could find that was clean was a white tank top to wear under it. They all really need to do laundry.

After they get all of the information that they can from there, Sam and Nyx go to the courthouse to find some answers about anything. He calls his brother to tell him what they found, but Nyx's​ thoughts travel back to her conversation with Sam this morning.

No way in hell is she actually calling bar guy. She knows that he could never compare to Dean, but apparently Dean didn't feel the same way about Cassie.

They get back to the motel later, and Nyx takes a shower. She walks out of the bathroom a little while later and glances over at Sam. "Hey, can you give me my hair tie please?" She asks.

Sam picks it up and shoots it across the room at her. It hits the side of her face, and she looks at him, annoyed. "Ouch!" She yells, and he starts laughing.

"I'm so sorry." He says.

"Yeah, I can tell by how hysterical you think it is." She says as she picks up a pillow and throws it at him. It bounces off of his head and messes up his hair, which makes her smile. "Now, that was funny." She laughs as she picks the hair tie up off the floor and then puts her hair into a loose ponytail.

"What's this?" Dean asks from where he's sitting on his bed as Nyx turns to the mirror.

"I don't know. What is it?" Sam asks as he looks over at his brother.

"It looks like someone's phone number on a bar napkin." He says, and she freezes. She had completely forgotten that she left that right there last night. "When did you go to a bar?" He asks the younger boy.

"Um... I didn't." He says, and Dean looks over at Nyx.

"Oh, uh... That's from yesterday. I went to get some information about the town's history, and a guy there was telling me about it. He said to call him if I had any more questions." She tells him as she looks at his reflection in the mirror. "I told him that I was a reporter."

"Well, that sure was nice of him." He says sarcastically as he looks at the napkin, obviously bothered by the phone number. "So, you gonna call him?" He asks, trying not to seem hurt by the new information.

She turns around to face him. "Sam thinks I should." She says, and he looks back at her. "Maybe I will... Once we finish up with this job."

He just nods.

"Is something wrong?" She asks, and he shakes his head.

"What would be wrong?"

"I don't know. You tell me."

"After what you said—" He clears his throat, changing his mind, and shakes his head again as he turns away from her. "Nothing's wrong."

"What I said when?" She questions.

"Nothing. Forget about it."

"Okay. You know what, I think I am gonna call him." She says, and he turns to face her again.

"Well, uh... Good for you." He says, his eyes on her and he looks angry.

She scoffs. "You know, you have no right to be mad if I decide to go on a date."

"Oh, I don't?" He questions, and she shakes her head.

"No, you don't." She tells him. "You have no more right than Sam does."

"Sam? That's your comparison​?" He questions, and she nods.

"Yeah, it is. Because you and I are nothing more than friends." She says. "I mean, that is why you didn't come back here last night, right? Because we are just friends, and you and Cassie are..."

He doesn't say anything and he looks away from her again.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." She nods, and his phone starts ringing. "And I bet that's your girlfriend now." She grabs her shoes and walks out of the room.