Part 2

Dean pulled off his tie and tossed it rather unceremoniously on a nearby chair, Sam sinking down on the couch with a heavy sigh.

The trip to Kim’s work had left them both uneasy. Lucas Rogers had been helpful enough; confirming, at least in part, that a couple people on the list along with Ballard held policies there. But it had been Kim’s quick disappearance after their arrival that had worried them. That, coupled with Sam witnessing her pulling something from her desk beforehand, had brought both men’s defenses up in the worst way.

Sam pushed a hand back through his hair as Dean headed for the small table. “That was a little helpful. At least we know Kim had a work related tie to some of the victims.”

“That doesn’t explain the others though,” Dean muttered. He reached for the pile of papers on the table, pulling out Urd’s list. “You heard Rogers, one or two of them had polices there. That doesn’t clear the others on the list.”

Sam loosened his tie, shrugging out of his jacket. “The woman is using the Fates to murder people. I’m sure her reasons are her own.”

With a shake of his head, Dean tossed the list of names back on the table before taking a seat. “Where is Urd anyway?”

“She said she was going to find her sisters while we questioned Kim’s employer,” Sam replied, putting his feet up. “Didn’t say exactly why.”

Dean stretched and leaned back in his chair. “I say we order a pizza and figure out our next move.”

Sam nodded at the idea and settled back against the couch. He wasn’t really sure what their next step was since they seemed to have hit yet another dead end on Kim’s connection to the bulk of her victims. If anything, their next step would more than likely be to do more digging.

Dean pushed himself up from his seat, feeling his neck pop as he reached for his phone. “Pizza it is then.”

Sam relaxed and stretched out on the couch, glancing briefly toward the window at the sudden sound of wings against the glass.

With as close to the woods as this motel was, the sound of wings outside wasn’t that odd. In their time here, both men had seen their fair share of birds hanging around the parking lot. A few had even struck the various windows around the place, either because they couldn’t see the glass or the reflections had played tricks with their eyes. It wasn’t until the doorknob jiggled that either man realized it hadn’t been simply a normal bird at the glass.

Urd pushed the door open and quickly stepped in, giving both men an odd look as she shut it behind her. She looked a little winded pushing her hair from her face and moving further into the room. Her eyes moved from one man to the other then back while she regained some semblance of composure. “Good you’re both here.”

“We were just about to order a pizza and figure out our next move,” Dean commented, holding his phone up. “Care to join us?”

Urd’s brow knit as she shook her head. “Um, thanks but not really hungry right now.”

Dean watched her cautiously for a moment before glancing toward his brother.

Sam sat forward on the couch, resting his elbows on his knees before he got to his feet. “Did you find your sisters?”

“Oh yeah. Nice family reunion.” Urd reached into her pocket and fished out the photo she had been carrying, tossing it on the table. “We’ve got a problem.”

The uneasy feeling that had gnawed at both men was suddenly replaced by a sense of dread. It flashed across their faces at the sight of the paper in the woman’s hands and clouded their expressions as they stared at the glossy image laid out on the table. The way that emotion reflected in their eyes when they looked her way made the goddess pause.

“You can’t be serious,” Sam mumbled, staring at the photograph.

“Welcome to the hit list, boys,” Urd said evenly.

Dean picked the photo up to get a better look, smirking as he flipped it around to the pair. “At least she got my good side.”

An unamused look washed over Sam’s face, shooting a glare toward the older man. “Dean.”

“This is one time you don’t want your good side in a picture,” Urd commented evenly.

Sam shook his head and his attention turned to the woman standing with them. “That explains where Kim disappeared to.”

“Yeah. She was putting out a hit on us.” Dean tossed the picture back on the table and crossed his arms over his chest. “We weren’t even there two minutes and she vanished.”

Urd grabbed one of the chairs and had a seat, sighing as she rested her arm on the table. “She summoned us at the grain elevator. We were only a couple buildings away when she put this hit out.”

Dean glanced toward the photo once more before he stalked off across the living room.

Urd remained silent as the older man walked the length of the room. The news hadn’t helped the situation at all, a fact she knew well enough. He was probably running through options just as she had done and coming up with very few answers. The way he paced the floor was proof of that.

“So what she pulled out of her desk was what she needed to summon you three,” Sam mumbled.

Her eyes shifted from Dean to Sam for the briefest moment, taking an even breath. “You saw her grab something?”

Sam nodded as he crossed his arms over his chest. “From her desk before she took off. Not sure what it was though.”

“Well, that explains why my sisters and I can’t find the book that bitch uses. She’s carrying it with her,” Urd commented.

Dean let out a frustrated huff and stopped his pacing, turning to the pair at the table. “So not only do we have to deal with freeing you, we now have a deadline?”

Urd shook her head, slowly getting to her feet. “Not exactly.”

The brothers exchanged a quizzical glance as Urd stood and picked the photo up.

“She wants us to get rid of the two agents snooping too much.” She looked at the picture for a moment before a smile pulled at her lips. “Agents May and Mercury respectively.” Her eyes shifted from the image as she tossed the thin rectangle at Dean’s chest. “She didn’t say Dean and Sam Winchester.”

A stunned silence hung in the air as both men stared at the blonde in disbelief.

“So while we have a picture to go by, the names are wrong making her “order” worthless.” Urd brushed her hands off with a less than enthusiastic shrug. “Call it a loophole.”

Confusion was still on Dean’s face, leveling a finger at the goddess. “But you could just go right after us.”

“You’re helping us, Dean. There is no reason to kill you and, honestly, I don’t want to.” Urd turned to look at both men as she spoke, resting her hands on her hips. “It doesn’t make sense to kill you. You may be a thorn in her side but not in ours.”

Sam glanced toward the photo in Dean’s hand before he turned his attention to Urd. “She’s going to want a body though.”

“Yes she is,” Urd nodded, pursing her lips as she rocked on her heels. “So my sisters and I are going to keep up appearances and kill you both. In a manner of speaking.”

“Oh this sounds interesting,” Dean muttered.

Urd shot him an annoyed look before continuing. “Your FBI names are her target and she’ll get suspicious if you’re still wandering around town when we were supposed to have killed you. So we’re going to fake your deaths.”

The two said nothing but it was obvious they were considering her plan by their expressions.

“I have Verdandi and Skuld thinking up accidents. We’d still have some details to work out but faking your deaths would get Kim’s attention off you,” she explained.

Dean held up a hand as his expression darkened. “Hold on a minute.”

“What?” She turned to the man innocently, a hand on her hip. She had been rather nonchalant with the way she described her idea; acting as if it was just another normal part of being a Fate. It was now the same tone she took addressing Dean. “What has your boxers in a twist about all this?”

“You have Verdandi and Skuld coming up with ways to fake our deaths?” Dean approached the young woman calmly, looking her in the eyes. “Is that really a good idea?”

“Would you rather deal with the alternative?” she questioned.

“No.” Dean snapped. “But Verdandi?”

The young woman shook her head with a huff. “Yeah. And?”

Dean’s meeting with the dark-haired goddess was still fresh in his mind. Her parting words to him still buzzed around his brain along with the not so subtle way she had explained their roles as more threat than anything. It wasn’t the most comforting thing in the world to know that same woman was now coming up with ways to fake his death.

“She does know it’s a fake death, right?” he questioned.

“No, Dean. Before I left I gave them orders to come up with an accident that would make your head pop off,” Urd answered sarcastically. She crossed her arms over her chest with a huff. “She knows not to kill you. Both of them know.”

His eyes narrowed and he stared her down for a moment before turning toward the couch. “I still don’t like how this sounds.”

“Don’t worry. You’ve got fate on your side,” Urd said evenly. She glanced toward Sam, giving a little shrug. “Literally.”