Nightcall || Closed

Crowley leaned back in his chair, hand wrapped one of the few things that could bring him to an end; a permanent, complete end. The thing was merely an antique to anyone else, thought it did look like it had been well taken care of. It was polished and bright and the barrel looked freshly cleaned of gunpowder--no jamming or any hiccups in this gun's future. With a sick sort of grin, he tilted his head to the side and looked down the barrel and sights out of curiosity; it was still straight, time and misuse hadn't worn it or bent it. With a satisfied sort of sigh, he placed the gun in an ornate lockbox, dark eyes tracing the devil's trap roughly etched into the wooden handle. In Crowley's opinion, the workmanship was lacking a bit and could have been done a bit more neatly and precise, but he supposed the purpose of the gun was to not be beautiful. This gun served one purpose and one purpose only; to kill anything, human or not, that was at the other end of the barrel.

He nodded once before closing the box and locking it with the only key out there for it. The renowned crossroad demon was pleased with himself. Not only had he fooled Talbot into giving him the gun in one last ditch effort to try and save herself, he now had one of a few weapons that could actually do him any harm. As far as he was concerned, he was the slickest son of a gun out there, but he knew that keeping such an artifact safe from sticky hands or some lower-ranked, hot-shot demon may prove tricky.

Shoving the key in one pocket and the lockbox into his desk, he locked that up as well, placing that key right with the other. No one would dare be brave enough to try to steal the keys from his coat pocket, not unless they valued very important parts of their body. With a satisfied little chuckle and a nod of his head, he considered his work done and stood from his desk, making his way over to an assortment of ornamental liquor bottles and choosing the Scotch. Such a deal calls for a celebration, he thought to himself as he poured himself a healthy portion of the amber liquid. Yes, he was more than pleased with himself for the moment.

---

This is not some impenetrable fortress, Norah told herself as she poured over a site plan of a rather large, stately mansion in upstate New York, this is just a wealthy bastard's gated home. Her light eyes traced a path it had seemingly done countless times before and she blinked hard, a slender, yet scarred hand coming to rest on her forehead before she pinched the bridge of her nose.

Yes, and now that wealthy bastard is a crossroads demon who has a gaggle of other demons at his beck-and-call. Probably the most indomitable security system you've run into, she told herself with a heavy sigh. The odds were staring her right in the face; black lines on white paper that detailed the layout of the mansion and yard. She'd conned the prints from the builder with her charm and that was probably the easiest part of this whole "mission" she could think of. While she did fancy herself a bit of a cat burglar, as she could maneuver herself in and out of tight spots and steal things without tripping systems or garnering unwanted attention, this had her feeling like she was stuck out in the deep end with a few feet of water over her head. Norah was firstly a hunter, one Samuel Colt would have been proud of, and exorcising demons was easy. But a whole mansion of them? With a crossroad demon to boot? She knew she could do it if the pieces of their plan fell into place, but she wasn't sure how much blood would be spilt in the process.

She opened her eyes to zero in on a bottle of Jim Beam on the dresser, knowing she was saving it for tonight, but she was feeling incredibly tempted to take a shot to at least try and ease the worry in her mind. She stood from the table she had laid the plans out on and walked over to the window of the hotel room she was in, drawing the curtain back just enough to scan the parking lot. She dropped the curtain back in place before shucking off her black leather jacket and tossing it onto the bed she had claimed for herself. "Meara," she began softly, turning to face the rest of the room for a moment, "when did they say they'd be here?" She pushed her hair back out of her face, threading her fingers through the golden blonde strands, before settling back down into her chair. She was getting antsy and anxious, because beyond the fact this could determine the fate of someone's life, she had a family heirloom caught in the middle of all of it.

Laying on her bed, Meara threw a small soft stress-ball into the air and caught it, playing the game of catch with herself for the good majority of the time Norah looked over the building plans. She enjoyed tranquility and silence; which is very different from the hunting life she lives, so she enjoys occasionally to just relax. Lifting her head up to look at Norah, she paused before looking at the bedside clock.

"Well, they said 6:30, which was.... One minute and thirty three seconds ago, so they should be arriving soon."

Meara liked to be accurate; she could spot a missing item from a room in an instant, and had a superb memory. Placing the ball on the bed and standing up, she walked over to the plans and stood beside Norah - scrutinizing the blueprints. Tracing a slender finger against the paper, in almost a path-like movement, she paused on a certain spot. Frowning, she tilted her head before turning to her computer.

Typing in something into the search engine, she scrolled through before clicking her fingers at the screen. "Bingo, I think I've sussed it out.. There's a tunnel that leads into the grounds, pass the gate that is marked on the blueprints. I've seen the co-ordinates before; it's over an old sewer system, which isn't the most nicest thing; but it could get us into the grounds undetected."

---

Dean pulled up and parked his beloved Impala into an available space in the parking lot, switching off the engine. "So, Sammy; do you think after this is done we can get some food? I mean, there's a diner just opposite here, and I could smell the pie from the car."

"Is food all you care about?! We've got more important matters, Dean... The Colt? Crowley? Ring a bell?" Rolling his eyes, Sam climbed out and Dean did the same.

"Hey, I'm just thinking that I can't do this on an empty stomach; sue me for not wanting my stomach to growl during this heist!" Dean shook his head, and locked the Impala, before walking into the motel. They said they were the first room by the stairs on the second floor, and that's where Dean and Sam went. Knocking on the door, Sam flicked Dean's head, and gained a scowl from his brother.. "Be careful, or I'll call you Sammy in-front of them."

[Aaaand Crowley is in his study, sipping his Scotch, and chuckling to himself about how brilliant he is. ]

---

Norah shot a glance over at Meara, raising a brow when she mentioned the time. Maybe they should eat before they thought about nabbing the Colt. After all, it could be their last meal, for all they knew.

"I should expect two men not to be punctual though, shouldn't I?" She murmured to her hunting partner with a crooked grin and a twinkle in her eyes. Pulling her hair over her shoulder, she studied the layout once more, knowing that once she got into the house, she'd more than likely be blindly searching each room for the Colt until she found it. At least she should have the layout memorized. Her fingertips toyed with the ends of her hair as she glanced over the prints. Her eyes snapped to Meara as she clicked her fingers, brows lifting slightly at the new discovery. Norah's nose wrinkled slightly at the mention of the sewer.

"Ugh. I know we've probably been through worse, but...just...ugh," she said, shaking her head with disdain. "But that's smart thinking, its fenced off and there's no doubt in my mind someone like Crowley won't risk not having eyes on the perimeter at all times. Unless...he has people watching the tunnel." This was going to be even less of a cakewalk now, but at least they'd get onto the grounds without sounding alarms by climbing fences. She just hoped they didn't bring the stench with them. Just as she was about to say something else, a knocking at the door caught her attention and she stood. Walking over to the door, she shot a knowing glance over her shoulder to Meara before undoing the chain on the door and opening the door just wide enough to see who was on the other side.

Her black kohl-rimmed eyes regarding the brothers careful, expression stolid as her eyes darted carefully between the two men. Once she deemed them to be who they were expecting, her nearly cold expression broke into a wide, Cheshire cat grin. She knew she had to put on the charm, to let these two know she wasn't frightened by what was facing her, and to hopefully butter them up to the proposition she had for them."The Winchesters, I'm guessing," she said softly before opening the door a bit wider and taking a step back. "C'mon in and we can talk business." She nodded her head toward the interior of the room, shooting the shorter of the two--Dean, if the descriptions of him she'd heard had been accurate--a quick wink and a smirk before stepping away from the door and making her way over to the prints. She deducted from asking around the brothers that Dean would be easy for her to win over as long as she batted her eyes and licked her lips in his direction. Sam, however, would need for both Meara and herself to prove they had intellect, cunningness, and a plan. Shooting Meara a look, she silently told the other woman it was time to put their game faces on.

Meara couldn't help but smile at Norah's response. They had been through much worse; a little stench and dirt shouldn't bother them... Well, it didn't bother Meara; but she couldn't say the same for her hunting companion. Her gaze lifted from the computer to the door, studying the two men from a distance. From the description Meara received, they fit the bill of Sam and Dean Winchester. Minimizing the tab and opening up the email she received, she checked it again just to make sure.

Standing up, she walked over to Norah and flicked her gaze between the two, seemingly looking for something. "Yep, seems to be them; judging by the fact he's around 6'4'' and you're approximately 6'1'', I'd say that you're Sam and you're Dean." With a smile, she turned around before walking over to retrieve her ball from the bed. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she squeezed the soft ball in her hand a few times before passing it from hand to hand quickly.

The dark haired female didn't show her nerves, because she had strategies to hide them... Such as squeezing a ball, counting up to ten in her head over and over, and tapping her fingers. Looking over at the boys, she fixed her eyes on Dean as he was, clearly, checking Norah out. Letting out a sigh, she shook her head.

"Hey, dude." When Dean didn't look, Meara simply threw the ball and hit him in the shoulder. "There's a task at hand.."

---

To say Dean wasn't watching Norah as she walked away was an understatement. A smirk was etched onto his face, it wasn't often he met hunters who were this attractive. He felt something hit his arm, as he looked down and saw a ball. Raising a brow and looking at the other female, he picked up the ball. He simply glared before throwing the ball back when she wasn't looking, but when she caught it without batting an eye in his direction, his brow raised higher. Sam, simply, chuckled; which gained him a glare from Dean.

"So, I'm taking an educated guess that you're Norah?" He asked to the other, watching her walk over to something on the table. "I was told by Marie that-"

"Meara." Sam corrected, as Dean rolled his eyes slightly.

"Right, okay - Meara told us that you had a proposition to talk about., but she kept it brief and with little information... So what are we facing here? Werewolf? Ghost? Vampire?"

Norah moved with a cat-like poise to her spot just on the other side of the table, her loose crimson tank top fluttering slightly as she walked. She was built of slender muscles, soft enough to be considered feminine, but strong enough where she had to be. She fought things that were built, created, and made to be ten times stronger than she was, so she had to be prepared. Various shaped scars littered her arms, some fresher than others, some deeper, some jagged, and some smooth. It was clear she'd been at the hunting game for quite a while. She set her smoky blue gaze on Dean, taking him in as he walked into the room before shooting a humored look over to Meara as she hit his arm with her ball.

"Let's play nice, Meara," she chastised her friend softly, with enough jest in her tone to let the other woman know she was joking. She glanced over to Sam for a moment, taking in the man for a moment before her sights went right back to Dean. Pulling her long hair over one shoulder, she rested her fingertips against the table top, the sly grin on her features never leaving as he spoke. When he deducted that she was Norah, her grin grew to a fully-blown smile for a moment.

"The one and only," she replied with a nod. The smile fell right back into a grin after a few moments, eyes unabashedly raking over what she could see of him. She could definitely see how women got caught up in him. He wasn't unfortunate looking in the least. Probably the most attractive man she'd laid eyes on in weeks. Norah gave herself a mental shaking and got her mind back into the right place. She'd play into making him think she was just like any other woman who made eyes at him. Norah had a job to do and playing Dean was part of being sure she got what she wanted in the end. As he continued to speak, she narrowed her eyes slightly in thought, tilting her head to the side a bit.

"A demon," she told him bluntly, " a crossroads demon...with a whole bunch of other demons at his beck-and-call, but ending him is not what's at the center of this proposition." She paused for a moment, drawing in a deep breath of air. "An ex...cohort of ours told us about your deal and about how you're living on borrowed time," she continued, expression growing truthfully saddened as her eyes remained locked on Dean's. She felt like getting angry about Bela, since they had parted on less-than-amicable terms, but knew there was a time and place for her anger and now was not it. "That same ex-cohort let it slip that she gave the gun she stole from you to this crossroads demon. We want to help you get it back."

Dean listened to Norah, smirking slightly. However, his signature smirk wavered slightly when she said 'crossroads demon', and completely dropped at the end. He let out a small nervous laugh, looking at Meara. "She's joking, right? If a demon - no, a crossroads demon has the gun I'm thinking of, there's no way to defeat them! Plus, it's a suicide mission!"

"Do you think it's Crowley?" Sam said to Dean more than anyone, and at the mention of his name Dean groaned loudly.

"Oh, great. Great! Crowley has the Colt! What else is gonna' happen?" Dean was over-dramatic, as always, and looked at Norah. "Please tell me you don't plan on going to get it back.."

"We'll have your help though, so it's all good." Meara commented, as Dean's jaw dropped slightly. He was about to make a witty comment, but then Sam stepped in.

"Sorry for Dean; he's not the best with shock.. Do you have a plan at least to get it back?"

"Sam, you're not serious, we can't-"

"Dean; if it's the Colt, and Crowley has it... That could be the end. That's the only thing that could kill him, and others like him - it's dangerous in his hands."

Dean paused before letting out a huge sigh, shaking his head. "Alright, alright... We'll help, but only if you give us a good plan, a way in and a way out.." With his mood slightly calmer, Dean blinked rapidly a few times.

"You remind me of a piece of pie... Hard on the outside, but a real softie' inside; but there's a chance of a sour filling" Meara commented, before pulling up the image of the blueprints.

Norah blew out a heavy sigh at Dean's reaction, lowering herself into the chair behind her and crossing her legs. As he spoke, she merely looked up at him with a stolid expression, bordering on turning sour. The more he freaked out, the more she realized how her sources had been right; he really did fly off the handle at the drop of a pin and maybe her initial plan of charming him to agree wasn't going to work. She closed her eyes and let her head fall back against the top of the chair, shaking her head slowly as she tried her hardest to mask her distaste for what he was saying. A grin threatened to curl her lips and a chuckle just barely reverberated in her throat at Meara's comment. She pointed a finger at the woman, not bothering to look over at her or move as she spoke.

"Don't mention pie. I'm hungry," she murmured hoarsely before picking her head up from the back of chair as her eyes found Dean once more. She stared at him for a few long moments, eyes darting over to Sam to see him looking over at her expectantly. Slowly, she stood from her chair, spinning the large prints on the table and sliding them toward the brothers.

"You may not know too much about Meara and I, so I'm going to let your temperament slide this once," she told Dean in a low growl of a voice, quite unlike the flirty tone she had taken with him early. "You want something that one of the big bad have got? You're looking at pretty much the only two hunters who know how to steal from those who can hear you or your thoughts from a mile away." Her jaw clenched for a moment, her hard, icy eyes darting between both of his. "We're telling you we're willing to risk our necks to get you something back that could potentially save you, so how about shutting up and giving us a shot?"

She drew in a deep breath of air, staring him down darkly for a few moments before she plopped back into her chair. A short hum left her before she glanced over at Meara, tempted to tell them exactly who she was and why the Colt meant so much to her, but decided against it. "Fill them in on our plans, Meara. I need a moment to cool down," she murmured, lifting a hand to pinch the bridge of her nose as she closed her eyes once more.

Meara looked over at Norah, with a sympathetic smile. The other didn't like when people where drama queens; and Dean fit that bill perfectly. Shaking her head, she waved them over to her computer. However, when Dean came near, she put her hand in front of him - almost in a 'stop' motion. "I don't want attitude. This is my chill zone; alright?" Typing some things into the computer, she turned the screen around and showed the two.

"Right, so these are the blueprints of the house this bugger is staying at. The only entrance seems to be the gates from the blueprints; but upon further inspection..." Pulling up a separate tab, she pointed at the screen. "It used to be a sewage system back in the 1800s; and, while the waste doesn't go there anymore, it is apparently still an open tunnel, and it leads right into the back garden."

Leaning back, Meara placed her hands behind her head, and looked over at them. "Plan A is you three going through the tunnels and me keeping a lookout; there's a building overlooking the house - I can be your eyes in the sky. Plan B is me and Norah bat our eyelids, blow a few kisses, and then you come out with guns blazing."

"Is there a plan C?"

"Plan C is where we wing it." Meara replied to Sam, before she yawned and stood up. Walking up to Dean, she poked his chest. "Listen, I don't freak out in front of Norah when something shocks me - even if I am screaming inside. So please; just keep in mind that we are doing this for your benefit."

Dean just nodded, looking over his shoulder at Norah with a sympathetic smile, before looking at Sam. After they spoke to each other in confidence for a minute, Sam spoke to the two girls. "We'll do it."

Norah brushed her hair back from her face, listening to Meara give the brothers a synopsis of their plan as she stared down at the paper plans before her. Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, she breathed slowly out of her nose, willing herself to calm down. Part of her snapping was her anger at Bela Talbot for getting them into this mess in the first place. If she'd never thought she'd be so slick as to weasel out of a deal and steal the Colt, none of them would be in this position. Of course, she prized a cool and calm demeanor, one that heard all the facts before getting angry or testy.

She cracked her knuckles and rolled her wrists, grinning to herself as she heard Meara ream Dean for freaking out. Thank you, Meara, she thought to herself. Her eyes slipped up to stare at Dean and Sam's backs, brow furrowing slightly as Dean shot her a look over his back. When they finally came to an agreement and Sam voiced that opinion to the two of them. She wasn't about to tell them her own plan: if worse came to worse, she'd go in herself and tell them to tuck tail and run. After all, it was far easier for one person to sneak around than it was for a group of four. If she got herself into any sort of sticky situations, she could figure her way out of them without having to worry about keeping three others safe.

The blonde shot a thankful look over at Meara, offering her a small genuine smile as she stood from her chair and stepped over to the Winchesters. Her gaze met Sam's first and she nodded her head once to him in appreciation before turning her gaze to Dean. She gave Dean one of those sly grins once more, stopping just in front of him. She glanced over his features, head tilting to the side once more. "I guess both of us could use a lesson in patience," she told him softly. She wasn't about to say she was sorry, because she honestly wasn't, but she'd at least try to work with him. "Let's make an arrangement; I'll promise I'll try not to get mad at you, if you don't lose your cool until after you've heard all the facts," she said, extending a hand for him to shake.

"Alright; sounds like a deal." Dean shook Norah's hand, with a small smile on his face. "So, when do we start?"



Everyone was in position. Sam and Dean took the sewers, and with the brief before hand, were pretty sure they could distract some of the demons while Norah sneaked past. Meara managed to climb up onto a tree; settling on a branch that was sturdy enough to support her weight. When she says she will be the eyes in the sky, she always goes through with it.

"Right, so when your earpiece buzzes twice, that's me saying the coast is not clear and you should scram." Pressing a hand on her earpiece, she whispered the message - hoping they were still in the sewers.

"Gotcha'." Sam replied, in front of the others. Dean was at the back, all the equipment on his back.

"Why did I have to carry all this?" He grumbled to himself, trudging through the sewers in order to get to the house.

Meara looked at her watch. 00:04. Five minutes for them to get in, ten minutes maximum for the Colt to be retrieved, and then leave by twenty past. Piece of cake. That was until she fell from the branch, losing her balance. Her leg crunched under her, as she cursed. Luckily she could manage pain better than most people; but it still hurt.

Hearing footsteps in the distance, Meara panicked. Managing to pull herself behind a bush, she tried to steady her breaths. All she had was holy-water; the rest of her equipment being up on the tree.

Crowley was settled on a comfy leather chair in front of the fire, swirling a tumbler of amber liquid around as he felt relaxed for the first time in quite a while. He was living a comfortable life as this book publisher or whatever his meat suit was and he was relishing the luxuries that came from being ridiculously wealthy. All the black suits he could want, all the liquor he could want and a lavish home that provided him and his newly acquired antique gun with much appreciated protection. He downed his glass and stood, stepping over to the large windows that overlooked the yard. It was night, but the ground were fully lit by large flood lights. Not to mention, he had his cronies patrolling the perimeters. His dark eyes roamed the threshold of where light hit as a smug grin curled his lips. It was a short lived expression as he noticed movement just about out of sight to his left. At that very moment, the doors to his study swung open and two of his lackeys marched in.

"We've caught movement out in the yard," one of them told him and he glanced between the two of them.

"Bring whoever is here to me alive, now," he told them, managing to keep his calm but putting enough threat in his tone to let them know he meant hell if whoever was daring to try and break in escaped. His hand instinctive went for his pocket, making sure both of those keys were safely tucked away.

---

Norah was never more thankful for knee-high boots in her life as they as quietly as possible sloshed though the abandoned sewers. She had a black bandana tied around the lower portion of her face for now, wanting to try and keep whatever stale fumes were wafting around the sewers at a minimum. Her hair had been tied back and she swapped her light jeans and tank top for black clothes; knowing it was easier to stealthily move around in darker colors. She followed closely behind Sam, hand instinctively checking to be sure her pistol was in her back holster ever so often. She could feel the bowie knife she kept on her and the sheath it was in pressing against the side of her calf; Norah never went anywhere without it.

At Dean's comment, she glanced over her shoulder at him. "Well...if it's any consolation, you're the prettiest pack mule I've ever seen," she told him softly, before shooting him a wink. As she turned to face Sam's back once more, she swallowed hard. Something hadn't felt quite right about this from the get-go, but she had just chalked it up to working with two other people who, even though they agreed, didn't seem like they fully trusted the plan either. Off in the distance, she could see a ladder that Norah knew led to the surface and into the back garden.

The woman was halfway tempted to tell the brothers to wait outside and that she could handle all the stealing, but she figured they wouldn't be too keen on the idea. They had agreed to be a full part of the plan, unless any one of their multiple plans failed to work. As they stopped just below the ladder, Norah stopped and was thankful when the movement ceased in the tunnel so that she could listen in to sounds on the surface. For a few moments, there was silence and she let out a breath of relief, one that quickly seized in her chest once she heard the sound of multiple sets of pounding footsteps. She sent a frantic look between both of them, eyes wide and glistening in the dark, as she strained her ears to listen for any indication as to why there was suddenly heavy movement above them.

Meara managed to take the earpiece off before she was found, and pressed the button triggering four buzzes to the other ones. Before they left, Meara took Norah aside and explained that anything more that two buzzes meant trouble; she just hoped the other remembered.

"Well, lookie' what we have here..." A female voice cooed, as Meara felt herself being lifted up by an invisible force; and two people came into view. Their eyes were both pure black; and, judging by the tense feeling in her throat, they were planning on killing her. However, just as Meara felt her vision going dark - they stopped. "Lucky for you, he wants you alive... For now." The force dropped Meara, as she cringed at the pain in her leg at the force. The other, a man, grabbed her arm with a painful strength and pulled her along - Meara unwillingly limping alongside.

When their ear-pieces buzzed, Sam and Dean shared a look, before both looking back up. Something was going on up there; muffled words were exchanged, before a shrill scream. Their eyes widened as it sounded vaguely familiar, but they didn't want to think it was Meara.

"Watch your tongue, or I'll rip it out before we get there... He said he wanted you alive; but said nothing about your tongue."

Two large thuds were heard, and then a pause. "What are you, a rabbit? Stop stomping on the ground, it's irritating." Meara just prayed that they understood that it was a signal for them to run; in the form of thuds instead of two buzzes.

To say that Crowley was angry was an understatement. He'd just gotten the Colt and it didn't take a genius to realize that whoever they had spotted out on the grounds was after it. He was seeing red, in a sense, and he was going to be sure whoever was behind the seemingly failed attempted at stealing the Colt would pay dearly. Unless this was all some sort of ruse to get him distracted, in which he'd just have to weasel the information out of whoever his demons had caught. He leaned back against the desk in his study, shooting a glance to the drawer the Colt was in for a brief moment, as if he were making sure the damned thing hadn't sprouted legs and wandered off on his own. He crossed his arms over his chest, as he kept his eyes on the door to his study, preparing himself for whoever he'd have to threaten information out of.

---

When Norah heard the four rapid buzzes in her headset, her stomach dropped like a stone. She drew in a deep breath of air, staring helplessly up at the latch that lead to the surface above their heads. This couldn't possibly be happening, normally their plans went off without a single hitch. The duo were good at what they did and left nothing to chance. Her hands clenched into fists at her sides as she heard a helpless scream, jaw tensing and heart pumping hard in her chest. It wasn't until she heard two loud thumps above their heads that she knew what she had to do. It wasn't like she wanted to do it, but both Norah and Meara had agreed that if it ever came to it, one would not sacrifice themselves to save the other. No use in walking straight into what could potentially be death.

Squeezing her eyes shut for a moment, every fiber of her being screaming at her, before opening them and dividing a hard, cold stare between the brothers. "Its over. We need to leave," she told them in an equally cool tone before stepping around them and starting back out the tunnel the way they came. She sounded and acted heartless and she supposed she was in a way; but knowing when to back out if the other was caught was something they had discussed many times. Guilt was slowly building in her chest, gripping at her lungs and heart with every beat and step she took that lead her further away from Meara. The demon had mentioned keeping her alive. Norah was hedging her bets on the demon keeping her alive long enough for her to come up with a plan to save Meara; she just needed to regroup and come at this from a completely different angle.

Meara was led into the large house by the forceful grip on her arm tugging her along; too overwhelmed by the pain to notice anything that could help her escape, or let the others get in. Chewing the inside of her cheek in order to stop crying out from the agony her leg gave her, Meara noticed a large set of doors and being thrown inside.

Falling to the floor, she sucked in a breath of agony before trying to get back up - but was denied by the hand keeping her head to the ground. "This is the pathetic thing we found.. Human, and oh so stupid for venturing in on her own."

She managed to turn her head to the side; and caught a glimpse of someone at a desk. Black suit, glass of what she guessed was scotch in his hand, and a glare on his face... Was this Crowley?

---

Dean and Sam stayed silent for the most of the journey; knowing best not to upset Norah by saying something wrong. Dean could see the guilt in her eyes; and he knew it was Meara screaming... He guessed they had a deal about not saving each other if it meant death... Which he and Sam had to begin with; but look where it had them now.

"I'm sorry, Norah.. We'll figure something out, we will get Meara back."

"Crowley likes to get information; he won't quit until he has all the details... Judging by the bond you two shared, I know that Meara is strong - which gives us time for a secure plan." Dean said, placing a supportive hand on Norah's back. "Like Sammy said - we will get Meara back."

With a sympathetic small smile, Dean opened the door to his Impala for her - ready to make the undoubtedly awkward journey back.

Crowley twirled what little bit of scotch was left in his tumbler as the doors to his study flew open. He raised a brow at the woman that stumbled in between his demons. Studying her with dark eyes, there was no doubt in his mind she was working with others. As one of the demons spoke, his eyes slipped to them for a moment, giving them a nod.

"Stand guard outside the door and let me know if anyone else is found," he told them brusquely and the two demons left the room, closing it behind them.

He turned his eyes back to the woman in the room with him, downing the rest of his scotch and setting his glass down with a resounding snap on his desk. Slowly, he stalked over to her, almost unblinking eyes set directly on her until he stopped just in front of her.

"I'm going to assume you are here because you thought yourself clever enough to steal the Colt from me," he told her, his dark eyes narrowing slightly as he regarded her. Slowly, he began to pace a small circle around her, taking her in. "So, I'm going to give you a chance to remain alive...for the time being," he said, hands clasped calmly behind his back, despite the murderous look in his eyes. "Give me straight answers, did you come alone and are they still here?" He stopped in front of her, brow pulled low and jaw set. It was clear he was mad, but he was doing what he could to keep calm.

---

Norah felt numb as she forced herself to walk back to the Impala, like she had been momentarily stunned and was cognitively having to force each appendage to move forward. She knew Meara could handle her own; hell, she wouldn't be surprised if she found a way out for herself. But the heavy fact she had looming over her was that Crowley was no joke and had plenty of lower-ranked demons working for him. It would take a lot for her to manage to get out. Norah knew the brothers were trying to talk to her, but she had her eyes set ahead. Her expression was emotionless, but she was screaming on the inside.

She jumped a bit as she felt a hand at her back, eyes snapping up to meet Dean's. She regarded him carefully for a few moments, before forcing herself to nod a few times and slipping into the car. Once she had settled into the back seat, she breathed out a heavy sigh, closing her eyes as she pulled the bandana off of her face. "You don't have to help me get her back. I can manage on my own if you two have someplace you needed to be," she told the two of them, turning away from them as she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and bit it hard. She just couldn't help but feel like she was just leaving Meara to her death. She was determined to not let the brothers know how much this was bothering her, but Meara was a friend, first and foremost. Despite herself, she could feel tears prickling at her eyes and her throat tightening as she looked anywhere but at Sam or Dean.

Meara managed to stumble back onto her feet, trying her best to keep the majority of her body pressure on her left foot rather than her right. Watching with timid eyes Crowley advance towards her, she gulped down her nerves when he started to circle her and talk. Should she lie? No, he's a crossroads demon; Meara was pretty sure he could taste the hesitation in her voice if she lied.

Sucking in a breath, she paused before exhaling for a moment. "I gave them an alert to leave before being caught..." Meara said in a small voice, eyes drifting down slightly to focus on the ground. "If they took my advice or not, I can't say... But they took the underground route."

Biting her lip, she couldn't help but feel on edge as he circled her - like a vulture eyeing up their prey. Looking back up, she caught his eyes for a moment; and she was pretty sure he could see her fear... Heck, he could probably even smell it.

---

"Well, I'm personally going to help; my calendar is pretty much free all this week." Dean said from the drivers seat, tapping his fingers on the wheel melodically in time with the radio. "We agreed to help you steal the Colt... Sure, saving Meara from Crowley wasn't on the list, we haven't got the Colt yet - so we'll do all we can."

"Dean's right."

"You're actually agreeing with me for once... Rare." Dean mumbled the last part, before looking up in the rear-view mirror at Norah.. She was looking out the window, and Dean knew she was fighting back tears. "It's hard losing someone; but all hope is not gone, Norah. We've got a few friends who would kill to see Crowley dead; so we'll call them in. We gotta' stick together; for Meara's sake."

Turning his attention back to the road, he looked over at Sam with regret in his eyes, before he sped off into the distance.

Crowley's eyes narrowed slightly when she admitted she had alerted whoever else she was with to run. There was a good chance they hadn't taken her advise and just as he was about to call the demons back into the room, she mentioned something about an underground route. He regarded her even more careful after this admission, having never heard of an "underground route" on the premises. He kept an eye on her and walked over to the study doors, pulling one open just slightly as he never took his eyes off of Meara.

"There could be others on the grounds. Send a few of you to look for them, especially for an underground passage of sorts," he barked and closed the door before a reply could be given. Crowley turned his attention fully back to the petite little thing in front of him, wondering what gave her the gall to thing she could actually steal from him. Strength in numbers, he supposed.

"You don't take much intimidating to get information out of," he told her as he walked around to take stand in front of her once more. He could see that she was uncomfortable, an injury, he surmised from the way she was holding her weight to one side. "I'm not sure if I like that or think it...boring." He gave her a careful look once more, eyes staring into hers as if he could see her intentions through them. "If those you were with have gone, what're the chances do you think they'll be back for you...and the Colt?" He questioned.

---

Norah felt a bit better knowing Sam and Dean were going to help her, but she couldn't help but to feel like their plan would fall through once more. She already felt guilty enough, if anyone else got hurt, captured, or killed, she wouldn't ever be able to forgive herself. With a heavy sigh, she brushed a hand over her hair and kept her gaze out the window, thinking through all of things that could have gone wrong. They had only just started their heist, there was no way they could have been detected that early, right?

"Something must've happened. Either she was spotted or...something," she said finally, shaking her head a bit as she finally felt strong enough to look over at the brothers. "We normally most fast and stealthily enough that no one even gets a suspicion something's afoot until we've got what we've wanted and we're on our way out." Another sigh escaped her as she brought a hand to her mouth, staring out the window once more.

"No doubt Crowley will know we're coming now. It'll be ten times harder to even pretend like we're stepping foot onto that property," she continued, knowing Meara's situation was looking more dire by the minute. "We're probably going to have to approach this a completely different way." Stealth would only get them but so far and that wasn't going to be into that mansion. No, Norah figured they would have to hope Meara wasn't giving Crowley descriptions of the three of them, because they would have to find a way in more brash; being welcomed in.