UNDERCOVER

am is picking the lock. "Ahhh...isn't this a crime scene?" Sarah asks.

"You've already lied to the cops, what's another infraction." Dean says.

Once inside Sam lifts the painting down from the wall and they examine it. "Aren't you worried that it's...gonna kill us?" Sarah asks.

"Nah, it seems to do it's thing at night. I think we're all right in the daylight." Sam says.

Dean compares the picture in the book with the painting. "Sam, check it out. The razor, it's closed in this one but it's open in that one." He says.

"What are you guys looking for?" Sarah asks.

"Well if the spirits changing aspects of the painting maybe it's doing so for a reason." Dean says.

"Hey hey look at this. The painting in the painting." Sam says.

"Looks like a crypt, or a mausoleum or something." Dean looks around, grabs a thick glass ashtray and uses it as a magnifying glass. "Merchant."

[ ☼ ]

am, Dean and Sarah walk through the graves. "This is the third boneyard we've checked. I think this ghost is jerking us around." Dean says.

"So this is what you guys do for a living?" Sarah asks.

"Not exactly. We don't get paid." Sam says.

"Well, Mazel tov" Sarah says.

Dean spies the mausoleum. "Over there." He breaks the lock and they enter, pushing aside the cowbwebs. There is a number of name plates as well as four urns in front of little glass fronted boxes.

Sarah looks into one of the cases at a doll. "Okay, that right there is one of the creepiest things I've ever seen." She says.

"It was a...sort of tradition at the time. Whenever a child died sometimes they'd preserve the kids favorite toy in a glass case, put it next to the headstone or crypt." Sam says.

"Notice anything strange here?" Dean asks.

"Where do I start?" Sarah says.

Sam sniggers, looking at her. "No, look at the urns." Dean says.

"There are only four." Sam says.

"Yeah Mom and the three kids. Daddy dearest isn't here." Dean says.

"So where is he?"

utside of Office Buildings. Sam and Sarah sit on a small wall, waiting. "So what exactly is your brother doing in there?" Sarah asks.

"Searching county death certificates trying to find out what happened to Isaiah's body." Sam says.

"How'd he even get in the door?" Sarah asks.

"Lying and subterfuge mostly." Sam says.

Sarah looks closer. "You have a...uh...an eyelash on your right...no...uh..." She reaches, but has no idea where it is.

"Do you mind if I get it?" Sam asks, laughing.

"No." She says.

Sam reaches for it and holds it on his finger. "Okay, I got it. Make a wish." He says.

Laughing, Sarah does so, and blows it away. "Sam could I ask you something?" She asks.

"Yeah, sure."

"I don't mean to be forward, but a girl could wait forever. Is there something here, between us? Or am I delusional?" Sarah asks.

"You're not delusional." Sam says.

"But there's a but coming."

"But...I don't think this would be a good idea." Sam says.

"Can I ask why?"

"Cause I like you." Sam says.

"Wait. You lost me."

They both laugh. "Look, it's hard to explain. It's just when people are around me. I don't know, they get hurt." Sam says.

"What do you mean?" Sarah asks.

"I mean physically hurt. With what me and my brother do, it's...Sarah, I had a girlfriend. She died. I had feelings for someone else and now she's gone. And my Mom, she died too. I don't know, it's like, like I'm cursed or something. Like death just follows me around. Look, I'm not scared of much, but I'm scared if I let myself have feelings for anybody..." Sam says.

"You're scared they'd get hurt too. That's very sweet. And very archaic." Sarah says.

"Sorry?"

"Look I'm a big girl Sam, it's not your job to make decisions for me. There's always a chance of getting hurt." Sarah says.

"I'm not talking about a broken heart and a tub of Haagen Das. I'm talking about life and death." Sam says.

Sarah fidgets. "And tomorrow I could get hit by a bus, that's what life is. Look, I know losing somebody you love is terrible. Believe me, I know. But when you shut out pain, you shut out everything else too." She says.

"Sarah you don't understand, The pain that I went through...I can't go through it again. I can't." Sam says.

Dean suddenly appearing. "Am I interrupting something?" He asks.

"No." Sam says.

"No, not at all." Sarah says.

Dean looks between them. "Huh. Apparently." He says.

"So what'd you get?" Sam asks.

"Paydirt. Apparently the surviving relatives of the Merchant family were so ashamed of Isaiah that they didn't want him interred with the rest of the family. So, they gave him over to the county, the county gave him a pauper's funeral. Economy style. Turns out he wasn't cremated, he was buried in a pine box." Dean says.

"So there are bones to burn." Sam says.

"There are bones to burn." Dean says.

"Tell me you know where."

[ ☾]

ean and Sam dig, Sarah holds a flashlight. "You guys seem to be uncomfortably comfortable with this." Sarah says.

"Well, this isn't exactly the first grave we've dug. Still think I'm a catch?" Sam says.

"Think I've got something." Dean cracks open the coffin lid to reveal a body. Dean pours the salt, Sam the kerosene. "You've been a real pain in the ass Isaiah. Good riddance." They all stand and watch it burn.

[ ☾]

he Impala pulls up, Sam opens the passenger door. "Keep the motor running." Sam says to Sarah.

"I thought the painting was harmless now?" She asks.

"Better to be safe than sorry." Sam says.

Sarah gets out of the car. "I'm coming with you." She says.

"You sure?" Sam asks.

Dean calls Sam back. "Hey! hey hey. I'll stay here, you go make your move." Sam sniggers and gets out of the car. "Sam. Sam!"

As Sarah and Sam move up the stairs Dean turns on the radio. A love ballad is heard. Grimacing, Sam turns around and gives Dean bitchface. Dean makes a 'what?' gesture, Sam motions him to cut off the music.

Sighing, Dean turns it off. Sam and Sarah move inside and stop in front of the painting, looking surprised.

"Ahhh, Sam? You're the expert on all this ghost stuff. Is the painting supposed to look like that? Where's the little girl?" Sarah asks.

"And the razor." Sam says.

They hear noises and laughter and look around in time to see the front door shutting on them. Dean runs up the stairs and starts shoving at the door. Inside Sam also runs to the door and yanks on it.

"Dean! That you?" Sam asks.

"Sammy, you all right?" Dean asks. Sam grabs out his phone and calls Dean. "Tell me you slammed the front door."

"No it wasn't me. I think it was the little girl." Sam says.

"Girl? What girl?" Dean asks.

"I think she's out of the painting, I think it's been her all along." Sam says.

"Wasn't the Dad looking down at her? Maybe he was trying to warn us." Dean says.

"Hey hey hey, let's recap later all right? Get us out of here." Sam says.

"Well I'm trying to pick the lock, the door won't budge." Dean says.

Sam sighs. "Well, knock it down." He says.

"Okay genius, let me just grab my battering ram." Dean says.

"Dean the damn thing is coming." Sam says.

"Well you're just gonna have to hold it off until I figure something out. Get some salt or iron." Dean says.

Sam grabs Sarah's hand. "Come on." He says. Sam rummages through the kitchen drawers, Sarah the lounge cupboards. "What kind of house doesn't have salt? Low-sodium freaks. Hey, did you find any iron?"

"No. What's it for?" Sarah asks.

"Iron repels evil spirits but it's gotta be pure. Hurry." Sam says. Into the phone. "Dean give me a sec, don't go anywhere."

Outside Dean leaves the front door and starts walking the front porch looking for entrances.

"Look in the chair. Sometimes the seats." Sam says. The lounge doors slam shut, wind blows papers everywhere. The girl appears, dragging her doll along the floor by one foot, a razor in her other hand.

"Sam?" Sarah calls. Sam backs up, keeping Sarah behind him.

The ghost comes closer, moving in an inhuman manner. "That is just so wrong." Sarah says. Sam backs into the fireside implements, grabs the poker and swings at the ghost. She disappears. "Iron?" Sarah asks.

"Yeah."

Dean talks to Sam in the phone. "Sammy, you okay?" He asks.

"Yeah, for now."

"How we gonna waste her?" Dean asks.

"I don't know, she was already cremated. There's nothing left to burn." Sam says.

"Then how's she still around?" Dean asks.

"There must be something else."

"Sam wait. We used to handle antique dolls at the auction." Sarah says.

"Well that's fascinating Sarah but is it important right now?" Sam asks.

"Well back then they use to make the dolls in the kids image, I mean everything, They would use the kid's real hair." Sarah says.

"Dean, Sarah said the doll might have the kid's real hair. Human remains, the Same as bones." Sam says

"The Mausoleum!" Sam and Dean yell at the same time.

Dean races the Impala toward the graveyard, driving through the locked gates.

Back at the house the wind rises again. Sam raises the poker. A heavy cupboard comes across the room, knocking him over and pinning him on the ground. Sarah runs to help, calling his name. She hears a noise and spins, coming face to face with the ghost.

Dean screeches the Impala to a halt and leaps out of the car, running into the mausoleum. He pounds at the glass container, then smashes at it with the butt of his gun but it doesn't break. He turns to run back to the car, gun in hand, then stops and looks down at it. "Come on Dean!"

Dean shoots the glass, lifting his other arm to protect his face. He uses the gun to knock out the rest of the glass until he can grab the doll.

Back at the house Sarah is thrown through the air by the ghost.

Dean grabs the doll, reaches for his lighter, it refuses to light. "Come on come on!" He yells.

Sarah pulls herself along the floor and pushes herself up against the wall, watching the ghost approach while raising the razor. Sam uses all his strength to push the cupboard slowly away from him.

Dean's lighter finally catches and he holds it under the dolls hair. It begins to smoke and then to burn.

The Ghost raises the razor, preparing to strike. "No!" Sam dives for Sarah pulling her out of the way just as the ghost is about to bring the razor down.

At the same moment the ghost rears back, burning up. As she burns her figure reappears back in the painting. Sam and Sarah lay on the floor together, looking around, then at each other.

Dean looks at the burnt doll on the floor of the mausoleum, then pulls out his phone. Sam answers. "Sam you good?" Dean asks.

"Not bad." Sam leans back against the wall next to Sarah, both looking exhausted.

[ ☼ ]

ean approaches where Sam and Sarah stand watching the painting be crated up. Dean holds up papers "This was archived in the county records. The Merchant's adopted daughter Melanie. Know why she was up for adoption? Cause her real family was murdered in their beds." He says.

"She killed them?" Sarah asks.

"Yeah. Who'd suspect her? Sweet little girl. So then she kills Isaiah and his family, the old man takes the blame. His spirit's been trying to warn people ever since." Dean says.

A worker at the Auction House comes up to Sarah. "So where's this one go?" He asks.

"Take it out back and burn it." She says. Everyone stops and looks at her. "I'm serious guys. Thanks."

"So why'd the girl do it?" Dean asks his brother.

"Killing others? Killing herself? Some people are just born tortured. So when they die, their spirits are just as dark." Sam says.

"Maybe. I don't really care. It's over, we move on." Dean says.

"I guess this means you're leaving." Sarah says.

Dean looks from Sam to Sarah. Sam stares at Dean until he gets it. "I'll go wait in the car. See you Sarah." Dean says. Dean stands awkwardly for a second, then nods and walks away. "I'm the one that burned the doll, destroyed the spirit, but don't thank me or anything." He mumbles.

"There are a million thing I wanna say to you but for the life of me I can't think of one." Sarah says.

"Yeah, I'll miss you too." Sam says and smiles.

"You know there's a lesson in all of this. " Sarah says.

"What's that?"

"We all got through this in one piece. I didn't get hurt." She says.

Sam laughs. "Yeah I'm glad for that." He says.

"So, maybe you're not cursed. Maybe...maybe you'll come back and see me." Sarah says.

"I will."

Outside, Dean is leaning against the car. He watches Sarah letting Sam out and closing the door. Shaking his head, he turns to get into the car. Inside, Sarah leans against the door, thinking.

There is a knock. She opens the door and Sam is there. She smiles and he steps in and kisses her. Dean hears the knock and turns around to see Sam kiss Sarah. "That's my boy." Dean gets into the car.

ater at the Motel, Dean and Sam are packing their things. Sam looks sad. "What's wrong now?" Dean asks.

"I don't know, man." Sam says. "When I kissed Sarah, it felt good. Really good."

Dean rolled his eyes and faced his brother. "But..."

"I couldn't help but think about Elena the whole time. About how much I wanted to kiss her." Sam says.

"Dude," Dean starts. "You're never supposed to think about another girl while kissing an extremely hot one, might I add."

Sam sighs. "I just wish she hadn't left."

Dean was about to say something when his phone starts ringing in his pocket. Unknown ID. "Hello?" He answers.

"Dean, I need to talk to you." A familiar voice says on the phone.

Dean is now on alert. "Elena? What's wrong?" He asks. Sam runs up to his brother.

"I know I sent Sam the letter, but I felt like I should tell you over the phone." She says.

"What is it?" Dean asks. "Are you okay?"

Sam tries to grab the phone. "Dean, what's she saying?"

"How is Sam? Is he okay?" Elena asks.

"Yeah he's fine." Dean says. "Are you coming back or what?"

Elena sighs into the phone. "I remembered who I am, well, part of it. It's best if I stay away. I can't tell you everything, but I need you to take care of Sam."

"You're joking right?" Dean tries to laugh it off.

"Promise me something, Dean." Elena says.

Dean looks over at Sam. "Yeah."

"Don't come looking for me. You or Sam." She says.

"You know we can't do that." Dean says. "And why trust me not to?"

"Because even though Sam denies it, you have morals." Elena says.

"Alright, I promise."

"Tell Sam to take care and...just tell him, okay?" She says.

"Elena..."

"Bye Dean." Elena says then hangs up. She leans against the payphone, tears gathering in her eyes.

Dean moves the phone away from his ear. "Elena?" He asks. He hangs up the phone, then looks at Sam.

"What'd she say?" Sam asks.

"She's gone." Dean says.

Sam sits down on the bed. "Really?"

"And she told me to promise not to go looking for her." Dean says.

"Well," Sam gets up. "I'm going to find her."

Dean walks over to his brother. "She said no."

"To you." Sam pointed out. "I don't care, we're going to find her."