"Have a nice life – whatever's left of it."

"Dad's gone now. He wants us to pick up where he left off. So what do you say we kill some evil sons of bitches and we raise a little hell?"

My, this voiceover intro is turning into a right mish-mash blend of quotes! And…clearly I lied when I said I wasn't going to keep commenting on it.

Then.

Our boys encountered and crossed swords with a con artist by the name of Bela Talbot, who makes an extremely lucrative living stealing and selling supernatural artefacts. The mutual loathing was instant, and cemented the moment Bela shot Sam in the shoulder.

Sam ranted at Dean for acting as if he couldn't care less about the fact that he's going to die, while Sam was busting his ass trying to find a way to save him. In response, Dean told Sam, again, how tired he is.

Dean: "It's like there's a light at the end of the tunnel."
Sam: "It's hellfire, Dean."

And that exchange kind of summed up both of their attitudes in a nutshell.

"You're my big brother. There's nothing I wouldn't do for you. And I don't care what it takes, I'm going to get you out of this," Sam vowed. In an attempt to fulfil that promise, he visited a crossroads himself, summoning the Crossroads Demon and threatening her with the rebooted Colt. This proved less than successful, as the demon informed Sam that someone else, someone she refused to identify, held the contract for Dean's deal. Crushed, Sam shot her in the head, and that was the end of her.

Now.

A young woman we will later learn goes by the name of Sheila is out for a jog along the seafront. She stops for a drink at a handy water fountain, looks up, and sees a ghost ship drifting past. It is so blatantly a ghost ship it's almost funny, and very cool – very Pirates of the Caribbean. Also, very nifty special effects. The ghost ship disappears and Sheila is perplexed, but shrugs it off and continues her run.

Later, Sheila is in the shower, and the camera spends quite a while enjoying the view before a dark shadow passes by in the background. Sheila doesn't notice. Behind her, the shadowy figure of a man stands outside the shower cubicle looking in, pressing a hand against the frosted glass, whereupon water kind of gushes from his fingertips to streak down the glass. It's very creepy. The sound of ghostly chuckling fills the air, and Sheila does notice that, sticks her head out of the cubicle to take a look, but sees nothing, of course. Showering resumes. But then the spirit grabs her from behind and starts slamming her against the walls of the shower cubicle. It's very disturbing: a woman alone being attacked in this way, in the shower of all places. Sheila slams against the glass wall one last time, then slowly slides down it, dead, her hand dragging across the glass just as the ghost's did a moment earlier.

Titles. Six episodes in – much as I like the new title card, I miss the fiery one from last season! I loved that explosion of flame.

Impala. Road. Night. Apparently, our boys do all their serious talking – and arguing – in the car these days. It's the one place they can't escape from one another, I suppose. Motels are too easy to bolt out of when the going gets tough.

This is the second episode in a row where the ongoing stuff has been tacked onto the beginning and end of the episode, rather than being worked into the main body of the story. I'm not sure if I like this as a regular trend or not, because on the one hand it feels very real, that they'd put all their personal stuff to one side while working a job, but on the other hands it smacks of slightly lazier writing than we're used to on this show, after two seasons spent carefully weaving such development into the ongoing story-of-the-week.

"So, I've been waiting since Maple Springs," Dean announces, apparently out of the blue. "You got something to tell me?"

Sam looks surprised at the non-sequiteur, and acts innocent. "It's not your birthday," he offers, then gives up and says he has no idea what his brother is talking about. He looks and sounds like he genuinely has no idea what Dean could be referring to, so either he thought he'd covered his tracks well enough not to raise Dean's suspicions and therefore honestly doesn't realise what Dean is asking – unlikely, given the reference to Maple Springs – or he's very good at playing dumb and getting better at lying to his brother.

Dean is not amused by the attempt at levity. "There's a bullet missing from the Colt," he grimly states, eyes firmly fixed on the road ahead. "You want to tell me how that happened? I know it wasn't me, so unless you were shooting at some incredibly evil cans…"

Yeah, it figures that he'd notice the missing bullet and work out what Sam had done. Dean's a weapons man, and they're in the habit of keeping tabs on the bullets in that thing. We still don't know the details of its restored function to know whether the amount of bullets remains relevant or limited in any way, but I think Dean would notice anyway. It's an interesting ploy that he's waited to see what Sam would do, and presumably done a good job of lulling his brother into a false sense of security, before challenging him on this. I can't help but think that John would have just gone ballistic on the spot the moment he noticed the missing bullet, and Dean's measured approach makes quite a contrast. He has ongoing concern about Sam and Sam's judgement to temper his reactions and encourage him to tread carefully.

Sam clearly had absolutely no intention of ever telling Dean about his confrontation with the Crossroads Demon; even now Dean has to almost drag the information out of him. He tries to keep up the pretence at ignorance for a moment longer, but there's no getting out of this one.

"You went after it, didn't you?" Dean seethes. "The Crossroads Demon, after I told you not to!" Sam gives up and admits that he did, unrepentant. "You could have gotten yourself killed!" Dean rages, absolutely furious. Dean doesn't get angry all that often, not really – or never used to, anyway. But he's been angry more often this season than in the first two put together, it seems.

Sam points out that he didn't get himself killed. Dean is not mollified. "And you shot her," he realises.
"She was a smartass," is all Sam has to say on that subject, shrugging it off as if all he did was swat a fly.

And that's pretty much the exact attitude that's got Dean so worried this season, that kind of cavalier disregard of the meaning and consequences of his actions, because it's not like Sam. There is no mention here, though, of the fact that the demon was possessing an innocent human girl at the time Sam shot her – not from either of them. Partly, I think, the killing of demons has by necessity to become routine this season, rather than the enormous deal it has previously been, and therefore acceptance that some humans will have to be sacrificed for the cause is also necessary. Mostly, though, in this instance, I think it's just a place neither one is willing to go, that subject with all its connotations. Of course, viewers know that Sam is more troubled by the consequences of his actions than he's letting Dean see, because he's trying not to burden his brother, but Dean doesn't know that, so the blasé game face Sam is presenting to his brother only serves to make Dean all the more concerned. It's quite the vicious circle of miscommunication they have going on.

Dean seethes a moment longer, just a moment, but then he has to ask. "So what, does that mean I'm out of my deal?"

Oh, Dean. He had to ask. He hasn't been allowing himself even the tiniest grain of hope, and then here it is anyway – shot down in flames immediately.

"Don't you think I might have mentioned that little fact, Dean?" Sam points out, almost amused, although it really isn't funny, not in the slightest. Sam's got his own version of that emotional stonewalling that Dean tends toward.

Sam continues that no, Dean isn't out of his deal, because someone else holds the contract. Dean wants to know who that person is – it's his life and his soul on the line, after all. He knew the Crossroads Demon, knew what to expect from her, but now she's gone and he finds out his debt is owed to someone new, a completely unknown quantity. That must be unsettling. Sam can only mumble that the demon wouldn't say. At least he's being honest about the encounter now that it's out in the open, however much he must have hoped that Dean would never find out.

Dean glances at him, shakes his head, and fumes silently a little more. He is really, really furious about this. I can't remember when we've ever seen him this angry, and it's almost worse that he isn't yelling and blustering like he has in recent episodes when he was trying to drum his point into Sam's head. He's very calm and very controlled, has bided his time and thought hard about this before bringing it up. He's just absolutely furious.

"Well, we should find out who," Dean sarcastically remarks. "Course, our best lead would be the Crossroads Demon…oh, wait a moment."
"That's not funny," Sam mutters.
"No, it's not," Dean wholeheartedly agrees. "It was a stupid frigging risk, and you shouldn't have done it."
"Shouldn't have done it?" Sam can't believe what he's hearing. "Look, Dean, no matter what you do, I'm going to try and save you. And I'm sure as hell not going to apologise for it, all right?"



This argument has become very familiar this season: Sam wants to find a way to save Dean, no matter what, and Dean wants him to just drop it and accept the inevitable; Dean won't take any chances with Sam's restored life, Sam doesn't care. They're becoming entrenched in their respective corners, reaching that stage where they could just about hold the argument in their sleep they know it so well, covering the same ground over and over until the words almost lose their meaning. Sam is absolutely unrepentant about going after the Crossroads Demon, in spite of all Dean's anger and bluster – he feels it was worth trying, and refuses to back down. Shouting at him only puts his back up and makes him dig his heels in harder, that much is well established. Dean doesn't want to hear his brother's argument, and, having stated his own position, has nothing more to say. They both descend into sullen, mulish silence.

House. Clutching a photograph of the late, lamented Sheila, the dead woman's rich old aunt protests that she already went over all this with the other detectives. Dean awkwardly dissembles that they are with the sheriff's department, rather than the police department, and Sam nods along in agreement, deploying his sincerest eyes. They're wearing suits again, looking so smart. They've been getting a lot of wear out of their more formal gear of late.

Sam tries to get back to the questioning, addressing the old lady as Mrs Case. She promptly interrupts that it's Ms Case, practically purring at him and very obviously checking him out. She's got to be in her 60s, if not 70. Sam twitches and shuffles a bit, exchanging baffled side eyes with an amused Dean, then confirms with her that she was the one who found her niece's body. She explains that she came home and found Sheila dead in the shower. The coroner has given drowning as the cause of death. "Now, you tell me – how can someone drown in a shower?" she bemusedly protests.

Sam asks about Sheila's behaviour in the days leading up to her death, and Ms Case starts to get suspicious about the line of questioning. "Wait a minute – you're working with Alex, aren't you?" she declares.

The boys look at one another in surprise and confusion, and then Dean decides to go with the flow and tells her that yes, they are. She's delighted, since this Alex has been such a comfort to her, and puzzles that she thought the case was solved. Sam stutters that no, it isn't solved yet, and draws her attention back to her niece. Ms Case recalls that Sheila mentioned something quite strange before she died, and tells the tale of the disappearing boat Sheila saw while out jogging.

"You think it could be a ghost ship?" she asks, all seriousness. The boys flick astonished side eyes at one another, unused to such frank and open discussion of the supernatural with random witnesses that they interview. "Alex thinks it could be a ghost ship," Ms Case confides.

Sam stutters again that it could indeed be a ghost ship, while Dean happily leaves him to flounder, and Ms Case purrs that he must let her know if there's anything else she can do for him, reaching out to stroke his hand. Sam is disturbed, as well he should be, and Dean highly amused.



Seafront. The boys pedeconference back to the car. Last week, the opening argument translated into tension that simmered throughout the episode. This time around the blowout seems to have cleared the air, as they seem perfectly at ease with one another.

"What a crazy old broad," Dean opines of Ms Case.
"Why, because she believes in ghosts?" Sam shrugs.
Dean laughs. "Look at you, sticking up for your girlfriend, you cougar-hound."
"Bite me," Sam easily tosses back at him.
"Not if she bites you first," Dean cheerfully retorts. Hee. I like them relaxed with one another.

Dean wonders if this 'Alex' means they have another player in town. Maybe, maybe not, Sam hedges. Either way, it doesn't change their job. Reasonably enough, given the evidence, they are thinking ghost ship. Sam exposits that this isn't the first time, either – every 37 years, like clockwork, there are reports of a mysterious vanishing three-mast clipper ship out in the bay, accompanied by a rash of weirdo dry-land drownings. This is the first this year, which means the spirit is just getting started. Dean prods Sam to recite the lore, of which there is plenty – ghost ships have been sighted all over the world, and almost all of them are death omens.

This scene is lovely because of the relaxed, easy interaction between the brothers, but it's actually pretty clumsy exposition of the case to have Dean asking such obvious questions and Sam basically talking him through it step-by-step. The impression given is that Dean has taken no interest whatsoever in the preparatory work on this case, simply acted as chauffeur without paying any actual attention to where they were going or why. It certainly seems clear that it was Sam who found and researched the case, but they usually at least talk about the basic details while en route.

"So, what happens? You see the ship and then a few hours later you pucker up and kiss your ass goodbye?" Dean concludes. Sam agrees that that's about the size of it. Next step is to ID the boat, which Dean is assuming should be simple. "Shouldn't be too hard, I mean, how many three-mast clipper ships have wrecked off the coast?" Sam laughs and announces that he's checked and found over 150.

Dean: "Wow."
Sam: "Yeah."
Dean: "Crap."
Sam: "Mm-hmm."
Hee.

The boys reach the spot where they left the car…only to find it no longer there. Deep, deep consternation ensues.

"Where's my car?" Dean wants to know, eyes widening, panic levels very slowly rising. Sam incredulously asks if he fed the meter. Exasperated, Dean tells him that of course he fed the meter, and then he explodes. "Somebody stole my car!"



Sam mildly tells him to calm down, but Dean's having none of it, ranting himself into near hysterics. Dean always was prone to exaggerated reactions, and he does love that car. Sam's busy peering up and down the street as if he expects to see the car randomly hiding behind a fire hydrant, or something, but then belatedly notices that his brother is hyperventilating and hurries over to haul him upright and offer soothing reassurances. Overreaction maybe, but fun.

"A '67 Impala? Was that yours?" Bela Talbot wanders up to them, all wide-eyed innocence to accompany her taunts. "I'm sorry, I had that car towed. It was in a tow away-zone."
"No, it wasn't!" Dean indignantly rants.
"It was when I'd finished with it," she smoothly smiles.

Dean demands to know what she's even doing there. A little yachting, she shrugs. Sam narrows his eyes, realising that this is the Alex that Ms Case mentioned. Bela asserts that Gert is a dear old friend. Dean wants to know what her angle is, but she coolly insists that there is no angle.

"There's a lot of lovely old women like Gert up and down the eastern seaboard. I sell them charms, perform séances so they can commune with their dead cats," she nonchalantly explains.

Sounds a bit small scale for Bela, cased on our limited acquaintance with her, but then again, the really big, lucrative jobs can't be all that common, so the smaller scale con-jobs like this would presumably be her bread-and-butter while scouting for something bigger and better.

"And let me guess: none of it's real," Dean snorts.
"The comfort I provide them is very real," Bela insists.
"How do you sleep at night?" Sam wants to know, disgusted.
"On silk sheets, rolling naked in money," Bela retorts. Dean raises an eyebrow, looking intrigued by the mental picture this conjures. "Really, Sam," Bela tuts. "I'd expect the attitude from him, but you?"
"You shot me!" Sam's indignation knows no bounds.
"I barely grazed you," Bela shrugs, as if that makes it all right. Sam seethes. She looks at Dean. "Cute, but a bit of a drama queen, yeah?"

Dean gets back to the point: that Bela knows what's going on around here with the ghost ship. She admits it, and is annoyed that they told Gert that the case isn't solved yet. Dean points out that the case isn't solved, but Bela snips that Gert didn't know that. "Now the old bag's stopped payment and she's demanding some real answers."

Um – didn't the brothers only just come from Gert's house? How has Bela had time to find out about what they told her, never mind exact revenge in the form of getting the Impala towed? I'm going to assume that she simply saw and recognised the car, and acted out of spite and practicality, not wanting the boys underfoot while she wheeled her deals or whatever. But how she knows what they said to Gert mere minutes ago is beyond me, unless Gert got on the phone the second the boys left, and Bela being close by already was merely a massive coincidence.

The boys have no answer to Bela's complaints, being in this for the saving of lives rather than for financial gain. Bela tells them to stay out of her way before they cause any more trouble, at which they both bristle since from their point of view she's the one getting in the way and causing trouble, and then reminds them that they should get to the car before the authorities find the arsenal in the trunk. More bristling. She's such a cold, calculating bitch, and the boys just have no idea how to respond to her, both of them being fairly straightforward, down-to-earth guys.

"Can I shoot her?" Dean wants to know, glaring after Bela's disappearing back.
Sam grits his teeth. "Not in public."
Hee.



House. Some random guy is cleaning his teeth and washing his face ready for bed when a dark figure passes in front of the camera. Seeing the movement in the corner of his eye, he looks up and calls out, but decides he must have been imagining it, and returns to his ablutions. He is surprised to turn around and see that the bath is running – you'd think he'd have heard the water running before now since it is almost full. It looks like seawater running from the tap, rather than bathwater. He turns the taps off and pulls the plug, but the water level remains unchanged. The man is peering into the murky water in confusion when a hand darts out of the water and grabs him by the throat. His eyes start bugging right out of his head as he chokes, which is nice and grisly.

Morning. One Peter Warren, the distraught brother of victim number two, is being interviewed by a journalist…who just happens to be Bela, undercover, asking about the ship his brother saw before his death. The be-suited Winchester brothers come to his rescue, waving their fake police badges to send her on her way. She perks that she just has a few more questions, but Sam grimly insists that she's done, and she pouts but withdraws gracefully.

"Sorry you had to deal with that, they're like roaches," Dean pointedly and loudly tells the man for Bela's benefit. As she withdraws, they take Peter aside and ask about the ship his brother saw. He promptly launches into a remarkably detailed description, explaining that he saw it too, while night diving with his brother. Well, maybe – but I'll bet Sheila couldn't have given all that detail! It's a boy thing. Anyway, the fact that Peter saw the boat as well is cause for instant concern for our boys. However, of more immediate concern is the fact that Bela is talking to the real police and pointing in their direction. Their brief but thorny acquaintance with her really is based on mutual loathing and constant one-upmanship, all of which was initiated by her and seems to be her standard mode of operation. Sam spots her, clears his throat and nudges Dean as warning, and they make all the right noises to maintain their cover with Peter before making a sharp exit.

It's interesting to see the different way in which the cases are used to emphasise or otherwise the ongoing development each week. This is the second episode in a row where the boys have had to interview a grief-stricken witness who'd lost a brother, but whereas in Bedtime Stories the scenario was used to drive home a point about Dean's impending death and what it will mean for Sam, here there is no connection with their personal situation drawn at all.

Later. Lurking not far from Peter's house, the boys load up their shotguns with rock salt. Ah. It feels like a really long time since they deployed those salt guns – there's something wonderfully old school about this ghost story, although I can't help feeling that the pacing and editing is a little off all the way through, and the episode struggles to balance the humorous elements with maintaining tension.

"I see you got your car back," chirps Bela, wandering up behind them. Bela seems to treat everything as a game, whereas the boys take what they do deadly serious. She can afford to play games, of course – she cares about getting paid, not about lives, and she's got plenty of money already, so doesn't have much to lose. The trouble is that she expends a lot of energy on playing these games, and forces others to do likewise, when all of them presumably have better things to do.

"You really want to come near me when I've got a loaded gun in my hands?" Dean snarls.

Bela tuts at him to mind his blood pressure, and asks why they are even still here, since they have enough information to ID the boat. Sam grits that the guy saw the boat, which means he's going to die, which means they have to save him. It's clearly very galling having to explain something so basic to her, especially since she doesn't care in the slightest. "How sweet," she mocks. Sam rolls his eyes, while Dean snaps at her that this isn't funny. "He's cannon fodder," she drawls. "He can't be saved in time, and you know it."

Dean is shocked into silence for a moment, glancing at Sam, who shakes his head that it isn't worth debating the point in any depth. "Yeah, well, we have souls," Dean says, heading for the car. "So we're going to try."

"Yeah, well, I'm actually going to find the ship and put an end to this. But you have fun," Bela retorts. But that really doesn't sound like her MO, even if she is being paid to investigate Sheila's death. That's a clue, right there, that she's up to something. At this stage, I believe, she's just baiting them for the sake of it – she has no reason to seek them out here in this way. She's just annoyed about them interrupting her interview with the witness earlier and wants a little revenge, which translates into extreme and uncalled-for bitchiness. And it's possible she also wants to be sure of how they are playing this investigation, to know how much they are likely to get under her own feet.

The boys exchange disbelieving and angry glares again, united in their loathing of this woman.

"Hey, Bela," calls Dean, turning back to her, unable to just let it drop. "How'd you get like this, huh? What, did Daddy not give you enough hugs, or something?"
"I don't know," she shrugs, deadpan. "Your Daddy give you enough?"

Ouch. Kinda seems like he's struck something of a nerve there. It's clear that she became who she is for a reason. But she's struck an equally raw nerve in return, of course.

"Don't you dare look down your nose at me," she angrily continues. Yep: definitely stung a nerve. "You're no better than I am."
"We help people," Dean firmly points out. That's always been a source of comfort for him, the knowledge that no matter how screwed up his own life and family were, they were doing some good for other people.
"Come on, you do this out of vengeance and obsession," Bela scoffs. "You're a stone's throw from being a serial killer. Whereas I, on the other hand, I get paid to do a job and I do it. So, you tell me – which is healthier."

Serial killer? Ouch, that's really uncalled-for and inappropriate. And that speech just goes to show how little she knows the Winchester boys, really, because I wouldn't apply either of the descriptions she uses to their motivations for carrying on with the job this season. Vengeance and obsession might be in the mix, to a greater or lesser degree, but both of their motivations are a lot more complex than that.

"Bela, why don't you just leave?" Sam interjects, looking very tired of her game playing. "We've got work to do."
"Yeah, you're oh-for-two," she snorts. "Bang up job so far."

She walks away, leaving our boys disquieted. I think…I like the way that Bela shakes things up. She adds a lot of humour to the episodes she's in so far, although it's very early days for the character, and there seems to be a lot of room for fleshing her out and gaining deeper understanding of her background and motivations. I'm just not entirely convinced by the actress.

Later. Peter can be seen at a window in his house, pottering. The boys are sitting across the street in the Impala, lurking. Sam has brought research with him, in spite of the poor light, and is sifting through the information he has amassed on the Warren brothers. Dean asks if he's found anything interesting, but he hasn't – they were both university grads with no criminal record, and a few speeding tickets is the worst he can find. With a wry snort he adds that they inherited their father's real estate fortune six years ago. Dean asks how much. A hundred and twelve million, Sam replies, sharing a wry smile with his brother at the notion of such a nice life. They inherited a dangerous covert mission and itinerant lifestyle from their dad. Not really the same thing! Anyway, Sam can't find anything in the history of either brother to explain why the spirit targeted them – or Sheila, for that matter – and is puzzled. There's always something, he murmurs, puzzling over the scant evidence.

Sam's musings are interrupted by Peter, who has seen the Impala lurking outside his house – well, it isn't exactly a car designed for stealth – and comes over to his gate to yell across the street at them about stalking him. Realising that they've been made, the boys hop out of the car to attempt conciliation.

"You guys aren't cops, not dressed like that, not in that crappy car," Peter whines.
"Whoa, hey, no need to get nasty," Dean indignantly protests. Everyone's picking on the Impala today!

Sam deploys his most conciliatory manner to try to convince the man that they are undercover cops keeping an eye on him because they think he could be in danger, but he's not having any of it, shouting at them to stay away from him and dashing off to his own car.

"Hey, you moron, we're trying to help you!" Dean frustratedly bellows after him as he drives the short distance to the gate, which appears to be locked, still, so it isn't as if he can get very far. However, the car engine cuts out to prevent him even trying to get any further. There is no way that can be good, as Dean points out. Sam agrees and tells him to get the salt gun, so Dean dashes back to the car, while Sam hurriedly tries to get the gate open.

In his car, Peter is started by the appearance of the ghost in the passenger seat, a longhaired and bedraggled sailor-type. He starts rattling at the door, but it is locked, and then Sailor puts a hand on his face.

Dean gets the salt gun out of the Impala and hurries back across the road.

Sailor drops his hand once more as Peter starts spewing what I presume is seawater, gulping and choking, and desperately scrabbling for freedom. Sam makes it to the car just in time to see him collapse against the steering block. He drowned that fast? And Sam took that long to get through a gate he could have climbed over in about ten seconds flat?

Dean arrives a moment later, yells at Sam to get out of the way, and blasts the spirit through the car window, which shatters. The spirit vanishes at once. Oh, and in a nifty touch, the back of Peter's shirt looks like he caught a bit of the blast, as well. Dean unlocks the car doors, enabling Sam to reach in and feel for a pulse. He is dismayed to realise that the man is already dead, and Dean reacts angrily, but neither one of them stops to suggest that since the guy only just drowned a moment ago, CPR could very well get his heart going again and thus save his life. Maybe supernatural drowning works differently, or something, or maybe they just aren't familiar enough with the concept of resuscitating the dead by non-supernatural means!

Anyway, it's a death on their watch, right under their noses, and they'd react badly to that even in the best of circumstances. Bela's taunting earlier just makes it worse.

Impala. Road. Night. The radio loudly proclaims the latest weather report, forecasting severe storms, while the boys quietly seethe in their respective seats.

Dean eventually turns the radio off. "You want to say it, or should I?"
Sam is bemused. "What?"
"You can't save everybody, Sam," Dean tells his brother in his most reassuring tone.
Sam is even more bemused, not looking for reassurance of any kind. "Yeah, right, what – so you feel better now, or what?"
"No, not really," Dean sighs.
"Me neither," Sam mutters.

Eh, their heads are in such different places right now, for all that they've been so at ease with one another. Dean's hit the reset button, trying to pretend things are absolutely normal, that he can make everything better just by saying something comforting. It's always worked before – he's always been able to make Sam feel better, whether he believed his own words of reassurance or not. But Sam isn't in that space at all, not any more, isn't looking for any kind of consolation or absolution from anyone, least of all Dean, and isn't prepared to accept it when offered. Sam's grown a lot this season, and he's looking forward, not backward; he can't accept vague reassurances from Dean now when he's anticipating the devastating loss of his brother in just a few short months.

Dean starts to say something else, but Sam cuts across him. "Just lately I feel like I can't save anybody," he quietly says, and Dean has no answer to that. This conversation is so not about Peter Warren, but acknowledging that fact would take Dean way too far into territory he's determined to avoid at all costs. Uncomfortable silence resumes.



Day. Derelict house. Inside, Sam is reading up on shipwrecks, while Dean sharpens a knife, both of them just quietly getting on with what they are doing, very domestic. We need more domestic scenes, and longer. Heck, I'd watch an entire episode that revolved around their daily domestic routine!

There's a knock at the door, and both instantly go onto red alert, since no one should know they are here. Gun in hand, Dean goes to the door and carefully opens the peephole. It's Bela. Rolling his eyes, he glances back at Sam, who quietly hides the gun he's holding beneath the table, and then opens the door. The weary bitchface Sam pulls on seeing who's there is priceless. I really love how much they both hate her. They don't agree on much this season, but that's one thing they are absolutely united on.

"Dear God," Bela murmurs, appalled at the state of the place. "Are you actually squatting? Charming."

That's a good point – they usually spring for a motel. Money must be tight. I love Bela's reaction to the dump they are staying in. Whatever her background might have been like, her present living conditions are absolutely sumptuous, and everything she does is aimed toward maintaining that lifestyle. She is used to the finer things in life. But the boys aren't, and even if Sam did become accustomed to a more comfortable lifestyle during his time at Stanford, that must seem like another lifetime now. Neither even seems aware of the conditions they are living in here, they take the squalor so much for granted, and that's actually kinda sad.

Bela instantly starts rubbing salt into raw wounds by asking how things went last night with Peter. She already knows, it is clear, just wanted to see the looks on their faces.

"If you say 'I told you so', I swear to God I'll start swinging," Dean warns.
"Look, I think the three of us should have a heart-to-heart," Bela offers, conciliatory.
"That's assuming you have a heart," Dean retorts, prepared to trust her about as far as he can spit.

With the resigned air of a school mistress soothing naughty children, Bela says that she's sorry about what she said before, and comes bearing gifts. She's ID'd the ship, she begins, opening the portfolio she's brought. This is the point at which her game playing really steps up a notch. Before she was just baiting them for the sake of baiting them, because they'd outsmarted her the last time she met them and she lost out on a lucrative sale and it stung, and because she didn't want them getting in the way of the job she has planned here. Now, though, now that her work on this case has progressed, she is actively using them as part of her scheming, and that is the only reason she is here right now.

Later. Bela presents her research to the highly suspicious Winchesters. "In 1859 a sailor was accused of treason. He was tried aboard ship in a kangaroo court and hanged," she exposits. He was 37 at the time of his death, which would explain the 37-year cycle, Sam realises. "Aren't you a sharp tack?" Bela mocks, rifling through her papers to find a photo of the dead sailor. Of course, it is the spirit Dean and Sam saw last night, except that he was missing a hand when they saw him.

"The sailor was cremated, but not before they cut off his right hand to make a hand of glory," Bela explains.
"A hand of glory? Think I got one of those at the end of my Thai massage last week," Dean jokes.

Bela rolls her eyes in resigned amusement, while Sam instantly glides into lecture mode to explain that the right hand of a hanged man is a serious occult object, very powerful. I could say that this ties in with Dean acting clueless about the case earlier, except that this was an obvious joke. He does like to play dumb at times simply because Sam's reaction amuses him, though, and it doesn't always mean that he didn't already know whatever Sam then feels obliged to explain to him.

However much occult power it does or doesn't possess, the hand officially counts as remains, Dean notes: something for the spirit to cling to. Sam is still puzzled as to how the spirit is choosing its victims, but Bela doesn't care. "Find the hand, burn it, and stop the bloody thing," she advises.

"I don't get it. Why are you telling us all this?" Dean wants to know. And that's a very good question, since resolving a haunting is hardly her bag – performing séances for old ladies for pocket money is one thing, but even if Gert is paying her to solve Sheila's death, it still doesn't sit right, the notion of Bela actually working a standard hunting job. She isn't a hunter, and doesn't care in the slightest about saving lives, other than her own, of course. It's a red flag.



Bela sweetly announces that she knows where the hand is: "at the Sea Pines Museum, as a macabre bit of maritime history." But she needs help, she adds. Sam warily wonders what kind of help.

Later. "What is taking so long?" Bela calls upstairs. She's all dressed up to the nines in a dazzling evening gown and expensive jewellery, and looks very out of place in the derelict house our boys have commandeered for the duration. "Sam's already halfway there. With his date," she adds, smirking with glee at the thought.

"I'm so not okay with this!" Dean gruffly calls downstairs.
"What are you, a woman?" Bela mocks. "Come down already."

The James Bond theme plays as Dean slowly makes his way downstairs. Mwahahahahah, that's a fabulous touch. He's absolutely resplendent in a tuxedo, the glower simply adding to the general effect, and Bela actually sighs in delight at the sight of how good he looks. Dean misinterprets her reaction, though, deeply uncomfortable with the outfit. He flaps his arms a bit, like a penguin, adding to the impression that he's never worn a tux before – which, to be honest, it's more than likely that he hasn't. It's like his reaction to the blues brothers suit way back in Phantom Traveler all over again. He's got used to wearing suits since then, and no longer looks so uncomfortable in them, but the tux is taking him way, way outside of his comfort zone again.

"All right, get it out – I look ridiculous," Dean grumbles.
"Not exactly the word I'd use," Bela lightly remarks, still enjoying the view.
"What?" Dean's too busy being uncomfortable and suspicious to take in her meaning straight away.
"You know, when this is over, we should really have angry sex," Bela coolly says, deadpan. She really enjoys being able to keep him off balance, mostly because it gives her the upper hand, but partly I suspect because he looks so cute when agitated or uneasy.
Dean double, triple, quadruple takes, is flustered, and folds his arms across his chest in classic defensive posture. "Don't objectify me," he complains.

Hee. It's amusing because he's usually only too well aware of the effect he has on women, but he does also draw a very distinct line between women who are or aren't on the menu, and loathes Bela intensely. Plus, his discomposure with the tux is preoccupying him right now. On the way out, though, he smirks a little to himself, composure recovered.



Sea Pines Maritime Museum. A very swanky, elegant soiree is in process. Dean and Bela make their entrance, Bela handing over her official invitation at the door, while Dean looks around and tries to act nonchalant – we saw back in Provenance that he feels like a fish out of water in upper class society, and doesn't react well to the environment.

"Are you chewing gum?" hisses Bela, appalled. "Try to behave as if you've lived this life before," she instructs, as if talking to a four-year-old.

Ah, but the trouble with that is that he hasn't ever lived this life, kind of resents those that do, and so has no information on which to base such an act. Unruffled, he takes the gum out of his mouth and sticks it under the drinks fountain. Bela closes her eyes in dismay and tries to focus on the money she hopes to earn from this, then takes his arm as they head into the main hall.

Back at the door, Sam has just arrived – with Gert. So much for that 'halfway there already' thing Bela tried on Dean. Gert crows that this'll get tongue wagging. "Eh, my Adonis?" Heh. Yeah, I'd imagine her showing up on the arm of a man young enough to be her grandson would turn a few heads! I doubt the gossip will be quite as flattering as she seems to anticipate, though. Looking mighty fine in his tux, Sam reminds her that they're on business, but she coos that sometimes business can be pleasure. Dean's not the only one who has cause for complaint about being objectified! Sam leads his 'date' into the hall, stiff and uncomfortable, what with her being all hands and all, pulls away to stop her rubbing his back, but tries to be polite as he excuses himself for a moment and hurries away.

Sam finds Dean and Bela at the bar, and demands to know just how long they expect him to entertain his date. As long as it takes, Bela coolly replies, while Dean reminds his brother that this is an uncrashable party, so they need Gert and her invitations.

Of course, they could just come back some time when there isn't a fancy party going on, like…overnight. They're pretty good at avoiding security devices these days. You'd think breaking and entering would be easier than this, from their point of view!

Sam pretty much makes that point. "We can crash anything, Dean."
"Yeah," Dean agrees, finding Sam's predicament highly entertaining and well worth the admission price of having to wear a tux and hob-nob with the toffs. "But this is easier, and it's a lot more entertaining."
"You know there are limits to what I'll do, right?" Sam drawls, amused in spite of himself.
"Oh, he's playing hard to get. That's cute," Dean teases in an aside to Bela. "I want all the details in the morning," he adds to Sam as he passes Bela a glass of champagne and the two of them head off to mingle amid the throng.

Heh. It is, after all, the older sibling's right and duty to torture the younger sibling wherever possible. Bela has no idea how fortunate she is – very few people ever get to witness the Sam'n'Dean show from the inside like this. They are very much a closed circle, as a rule.

Left alone, a disgruntled Sam pulls at his jacket, looking almost as uncomfortable with the outfit as Dean was. Two champagne flutes float into shot just in front of him. Hee. Gert's so much shorter than him it's funny. He takes one of the glasses as she happily proposes a toast 'to us', and downs the entire glass in one go. Hee. Fortification. Bless.

Dean and Bela drift out into a hallway, and take note of the security guards loitering around the place trying to look menacing and business-like.

"Private security?" Bela wonders.
"I don't think so," Dean observes, proving his on-the-job value, despite all her disparagement. "Look at the way they're standing. They're pros. Probably state troopers moonlighting."
"Posted at every door, too," Bela notes.

Dean agrees that they aren't going to be able to just waltz upstairs, and Bela asks what he suggests. Put on the spot, he fails to come up with anything, protesting that he's thinking. "Don't strain yourself," Bela drawls. "Interesting how the legend is so much more than the man."

Oi! No dissing Dean. Interesting how he seems to have gained so much notoriety among people he's never even heard of, though. Although, having said that, it's been established that every word that comes out of Bela's mouth must be taken with an industrial sized bag of salt!

Bela puts Dean down a lot – and Sam, too, now that she's met and interacted with him a little. She's still smarting from their last encounter, no doubt, but it seems that belittling rivals and opponents is very much her MO. She's deliberately putting them off balance with her mockery and insults, finding vulnerable spots to hit in order to keep them at arm's length and give herself the upper hand in any and every situation. It's a power struggle, in which she has the advantage over Dean because her air of sophistication automatically puts him on the back foot; she sees him as little more than a bit of rough, and makes damn sure he knows it. Her attitude is geared toward making him feel inferior, and he's already got an inferiority complex, spent half his life fearing that even his best wouldn't ever really be good enough. But where with a lot of people he might take their disparaging words to heart, with Bela he resents it and fights back, whether he half-believes she's right or not.

Between Bela and Gert we've got two outsiders in this episode taking the boys at face value and not caring about anything beyond what they can see on the surface.

Bristling at the implied insult, Dean snaps that if she's got any bright ideas, he's all ears. Bela promptly swoons in his arms. With every eye in the room, including the security guards, now trained on them, Dean very smoothly plays along, anxiously asking if she's all right. He glances up at a nearby waiter to announce that his 'wife' has a severe shellfish allergy and ask if there is any crab in the tray of vol-au-vents the man is holding. The waiter assures him that there isn't, so Dean being Dean promptly samples one and pronounces them excellent, by the way, before one of the security guards wanders over to ask what the trouble is. Since Dean's on the floor with an apparently unconscious woman in his arms, I'd say the trouble was pretty obvious, but the man clearly wasn't employed for his brains.

"Uh, champagne. My wife, she's a lightweight when it comes to the sauce." Dean takes the opportunity for a little dig at Bela. "Is there somewhere I can lie her down till she gets her sea legs back?"

For all Bela's derision, he's doing an excellent job of maintaining a cover he finds difficult, and thinking on his toes.



The guard glances at the stairs, reaches a decision, and tells Dean to follow him. Dean hands Bela's purse to the man and gathers Bela herself into his arms. "Come on, you lush." Heh. I do like about Bela that she gives Dean the opportunity to really get his snark on.

Upstairs, Dean unceremoniously dumps Bela onto a plush leather sofa in what looks like some kind of study. "You think she's a pain in the ass now, try living with her," he snarks to the guard as he sees the man out of the room. Behind him, Bela opens her eyes and bristles.

Turning around to see Bela sitting up looking pleased with herself, Dean hisses at her to give him a little heads up with the plan next time. "I didn't want you thinking. You're not very good at that," Bela rather unkindly retorts.

Stung, Dean seethes, but can't come up with any appropriate response.

"Oh, look at that. Searching for a witty rejoinder?" Bela sneers.
"Screw you," Dean snaps at length.
"Very Oscar Wilde," she mocks.

As Dean heads to the door once again, Bela announces that the hand is in room 235, in a locked glass case with an alarm. "I'm sure that won't be a problem?"

Dean growls his impotent exasperation and gets the hell out of the room.

Downstairs, Sam is still entertaining Gert. They are dancing, Sam kind of shuffling around uncomfortably, while Gert wraps her arms around him and gazes adoringly up at his face, which is about two feet above her own, what with her being a midget and him a giant.

"Where's Alex and your friend?" she wonders. "They're missing a great party."
"I'm sure they're entertaining themselves," Sam replies, which is hilarious because he knows they've gone after the hand, but can't tell her that, and of course she takes it another way entirely.
"Ooh, naughty," Gert approvingly croons. "Then I guess we'll just have to entertain ourselves, then."

Her hands move lower and Sam's eyes go wide when she grabs his backside. He agreed to escort the old lady for the evening in the interests of gaining entrance to this event, but getting groped wasn't part of the deal. He tries to politely disentangle himself, but Gert is having none of it, settling in for a cuddly slow dance. Sam checks his watch with something like desperation as she remarks that his shyness reminds her of her late husband, then jumps out of his skin as her hands land on his ass again, and tries to prise her off him once more. "You're just firm all over," the overly amorous old bat approvingly tells him, refusing to be budged. Sam is not amused, twitches, and wonders how much longer this ordeal is going to last. It's funny, because, Gert aside, this is the kind of life he once aspired to, but right now I think he'd happily swap it for a spirit or monster to battle with!



Sam's little sub-plot with old Gert is entertaining, albeit a bit cringe-inducing – and this is the point at which the joke starts to wear more than a little thin – but feels more than a bit thrown in simply for the sake of giving Sam something to do while Dean works with Bela. Or maybe because the writers have suddenly realised that Jared Padalecki is actually pretty good at comedy! He's certainly having a lot more comic scenes in this season than any other. Either way, the third wheel issue does tend to be one of the downsides of introducing recurring characters into a show that is well established as revolving around two characters only, especially when a fairly straightforward plot doesn't actually call for that many sub-strands to keep them all gainfully occupied.

Upstairs, Dean has located the hand of glory in its display case. It's kind of gross. Also, remarkably well preserved, considering. He sets to work disabling the alarm. For all Bela's mockery and ridicule, he is very good at what he does, and has no trouble whatsoever. Also, with the bowtie and all, he looks very Bond while working. It's a very pretty close-up.



In the study, Bela is idly pottering around, waiting, and stops to examine a little ship in a bottle on the desk. Then there's a knock at the door.

"Sir? Ma'am?" calls the diligent security guard. "Everything all right?"

He reaches for the door, but before he can touch the handle it opens and Bela pops her head out with a big, embarrassed smile, the picture of coitus interruptus: hair dishevelled, dress half off, clutching at the material to protect her modesty. She thinks fast, you have to give her that.

"Feeling better, I see," the guard dryly observes.

Bela acts flustered and perkily admits that she's better now, yes. The guard wonders if she's done with the room… "Well, not exactly," she hints, still making with the giddy frivolity. "Could we have a few more minutes?"

The guard shuffles uncomfortably for a moment, then gives in and says yes. She's a moneyed guest, after all, and he's just a hired monkey. As he turns away and the door closes after him, he hears Bela laughing amorously, to seal her ruse, and rolls his eyes at the antics of the wealthy. It comes as something of a surprise to him, therefore, when he promptly runs into Dean at the top of the stairs.

"Nature called," Dean dissembles. "Thanks for looking after my wife."
"Oh, she's being looked after, all right," the guard slyly replies, highly amused now, leaving Dean rather nonplussed.

Dean returns to the study to find Bela fixing her dress, and raises an eyebrow. "Any trouble?"
"Nothing I couldn't handle," she purrs. "The hand?"

He pulls the hand out of an inside pocket, mission accomplished without a hitch in sight, and Bela's eyes light up.

"May I?" She holds out a hand to take it.
"No," Dean immediately tells her, wrapping the hand in his handkerchief.
"It might be more inconspicuous in my purse," Bela points out.
"Nice try," Dean grimly retorts.
"Just trying to be helpful," Bela dryly attempts.
"Oh, sweetheart. I don't need your kind of help," Dean drawls, still not prepared to trust her any further than he can spit, and rightly so.

Downstairs, Sam is still trapped on the dance floor with Gert, who is almost asleep in his arms, clutching her empty champagne flute.

"Man, this is one long song," Sam mutters, practically comatose himself.
"I hope it never ends!" Gert sighs into his chest.

Gert rouses to ask how the investigation is going, and Sam rather curtly mutters that these things take time. She comments on how people are talking about the deaths of the Warren brothers, and wonders if it is connected to Sheila's. Sam admits that yes, they think it is. Talking business he can do, especially if it stops her groping him.

"I think they had it coming, you know," the rather tipsy Gert announces. "In a biblical sort of way."

Sam wonders what she means. Gert glances around to check that no one is listening, and then lowers her voice to hiss that surely he must know about their father. He doesn't. Gert grins like a cat that just spotted unguarded cream, and says she'll whisper it to him. Of course, what with her being a midget and him a giant, this is easier said than done. Practically on tiptoe, she grabs his head and drags his ear down level with her mouth to whisper the rumour that the old man didn't die of natural causes, that his sons did it, although nothing was ever proved.

Very uncomfortable – both with having his head bent at such an angle, and at having her lips pressed against his ear – and having heard everything he needs to hear about the rumour, Sam hastily extricates himself from the old lady's inappropriately intimate clutches and asks if Sheila had any connection to the Warren brothers, or some kind of tragedy in her life. There was no connection to the brothers that Gert knows of, but there was a tragedy – as a teenager she flipped her car, and her cousin was killed. Hearing this, all kinds of cogs start turning in Sam's head.

Dean and Bela return just then to rescue Sam. Gert giggles to Bela that she's having a delightful time. "He wants me!" she faux-whispers, and Dean's eyebrows just about hit the ceiling. Ammunition for life. Bela decides that she'd better get Gert into a cold shower, and I have to give it to her – it might be an act, but she really is good with the old woman. You can see why the Gerts of the world would be so willing to pay good money for her time and attention. She ushers Gert away, calling back that she'll see the boys at the cemetery. Well, that was very not covert – half the room should have heard and now be wondering why anyone would be going to a cemetery at that time of night.

Left alone, Dean glances into his inside pocket to check he still has the handkerchief package in it, because he doesn't trust Bela, and then turns to Sam. "You stink like sex," he announces, deadpan. Yep: ammunition for life.

Outside. The boys return to the Impala. In something of a turnaround, it is Sam who can't get the bowtie off quickly enough. "You got it, right?" he implores. "Tell me I didn't get groped all night by Mrs Haversham for nothing."

The quote means nothing to Dean, but he assures his brother that he has the hand, pulling the handkerchief out of his pocket. His expression changes immediately, however, as he feels the shape of the object inside. Sam begins to get worried. Instead of the hand, it is the little ship in a bottle Bela was admiring earlier that Dean pulls out of the handkerchief. Consternation abounds. "I'm gonna kill her," Dean grits.

Yeah, that's a very big and definite point to Bela in the ongoing game of one-upmanship, especially since Dean suspected she'd try something of the kind and was on alert for it. No wonder he's so furious!

Bela's car. Looking very pleased with herself, Bela opens her purse to reveal many, many wads of banknotes, $10,000 each, according to the label. That was quick. Her work here is complete. She takes a moment to flick through the cash and fan herself with it, because money is the altar at which she worships. But then thunder crashes, and she looks up to see the ghost ship before her.

"Oh no," she understates, sounding as if seeing the death omen is tiresome, rather than a reason to panic. This chick is very controlled, and apparently doesn't like to let her guard down even when alone. Or maybe the actress just doesn't have the greatest range, which is what I tend to suspect. But it's still too early to really tell.

Squat. Dean glares at the ship in a bottle. "You know what, you're right," he tells his brother. "I'm not going to kill her. I think slow torture's the way to go." Sam tries telling him to relax, but relaxation is a complete stranger to Dean right now. "I can't believe she got another one over on us!" he rants.

Sam glances up from the book he's leafing through – after all, the case isn't over, so he's still working. "You," he corrects. Startled out of his rage, Dean turns and asks what he means. "I mean, she got one over on you, not us," he mildly explains, completely dissociating himself from the whole debacle, since he was busy sacrificing himself to Gert's roaming hands while Dean was having his pocket picked. Dean stares at him in disbelief. Sam shrugs apologetically. It's very funny.

"Thank you. Sam. Very helpful!" Dean fumes when he finally regains command of his tongue.

There's a knock at the door, and Bela's frantic voice calls for them to open up. Startled, Dean rushes to the door, with Sam hot on his heels. Once opened, the doorway frames the boys nicely, and man, Sam's giving her his very best Death Eyes ever. Seriously – if looks could kill, she'd be smouldering on the floor already. He might feel free to rag on Dean himself, being the little brother, but no one else has the right, clearly. "Just let me explain," Bela pleads.

Inside. Sitting at the table with Dean hovering at her shoulder in highly intimidating fashion, Bela explains that she sold the hand – had a buyer lined up as soon as she knew it existed. I'm still a little unclear on the chain of events from Bela's point of view – how long she'd been in town before running into the boys, and whether she was there running her little scams before finding out about the hand of glory, or if the rumour of a hand of glory was her reason for coming here in the first place. Was she serious about the little scams she runs, or was that just a cover story to fool the boys? Because she's a master con artist, because lying is pretty much what she does for a living and she plays so many angles, and because the episode doesn't come from her point of view, it's not really possible to work her out completely.

Behind her back, a furious Dean mimes shooting at her head, just to make himself feel better. He's been angry a lot in this episode. All that repressed emotion has to come out somewhere, and Bela makes a good target for it, since she's offended his pride in just about every way possible.



"So the whole reason for us going to the charity ball was…?" Sam prompts.
"I needed a cover," Bela confesses, humble, and honest enough about her manipulations now that her life is on the line. "You were convenient."

Sam suggests that she just go and buy the hand back, but she admits that it's halfway across the ocean already – no way she could get it back in time. To her credit, she can see the irony in the situation, and manages a wry smile at her own predicament. In time for what, Dean wants to know, and when she doesn't answer, Sam asks what's going on with her. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

Ah, it's an old metaphor, but on this show one that often rings true.

"I saw the ship," Bela fearfully admits, eyes cast down.

The boys stiffen, startled expressions hardening into something like indignation and outrage. "Wow, I knew you were an immoral, thieving, con-artist bitch, but just when I thought my opinion of you couldn't get any lower," Dean disbelieves.

Bela doesn't know what he's talking about, so Sam explains that they figured out the spirit's motive. To be honest, I suspect that Sam did all the figuring out himself, since Gert gave him the clue, and Dean was no doubt too busy ranting about Bela's sticky fingers to be of much help. I like that he so automatically shares the credit, though – especially after being so quick to dissociate himself from any blame!

Anyway, Sam shows Bela an old photo of the ship's captain, the one who hung their 'ghost boy'. They were brothers. "Very Cain and Abel."

The outrage that both Winchester brothers feel at the concept of such brother killing, after everything they've been through together, is written all over their faces. Sam explains that the spirit is going after a very specific kind of target – people who've spilled their own family's blood, such as Sheila, who killed her cousin in a car accident, and the Warren brothers, who murdered their father for the inheritance. And now Bela. Sam's lip curls in disgust as he relates all this, and it is clear that both he and Dean immediately assume the worst about whatever happened in Bela's past to cause the spirit to target her.

"My God," Bela murmurs, stricken, looking as if someone just punched her in the gut. Whatever in her past this relates to, it is clearly a painful memory.

Dean asks who it was she killed – daddy or little sis, maybe. All her usual defences and posturing have been stripped away as she weakly protests that it's none of his business. Dean is willing to accept that answer. "Have a nice life – whatever's left of it."

They're so pissed off with her, raw with their own issues, and outraged at the origin of the ghost, that neither is prepared to give her the benefit of any doubt, despite the fact that they both know very well from the Bloody Mary case – and numerous others – that ghosts don't see any shades of grey. Even in this case, the death of Sheila's cousin was an accident, not murder. The spirit latches onto any feelings of guilt regarding the death of a family member, whatever the truth of the matter. And their own tragic family circumstances demonstrate further just how many shades of grey can exist behind feelings of responsibility for someone's death. After all, Dean feels guilty about John's death because his father sacrificed his life for him, and Sam's death because he felt he'd failed in his duty to protect his brother. Sam felt guilty about Jessica's death because he hadn't warned her about his dreams and the supernatural dangers of the world. If he can't get Dean out of the crossroads deal and his brother dies, Sam will carry the guilt of it for the rest of his life. Yet neither one was actually responsible for those deaths in any way. When it came down to it, Sam refused to shoot his father even to destroy the Yellow-Eyed Demon, and Dean would have rather put the gun to his own head than kill his brother, even when Sam was possessed and actively torturing him. Family is sacrosanct to the Winchesters, and their personal circumstances are definitely colouring their reactions to this vague revelation about Bela's past.



Bela rallies, protesting that they can't just leave her here, but Dean takes a hard line and starts packing up ready to go, not prepared to even discuss the matter any more. He hated her already, and this new revelation about her murky past, however vague it is, only cements that opinion further. Sam looks less certain, more troubled, but clearly agrees with his brother's general stance on this matter. Bela pleads that she needs their help.

"Our help? How could a couple of serial killers possibly help you?" Dean retorts. Ouch, yeah, that one definitely struck a raw nerve.
"Okay, that was a bit harsh, I admit it, but it doesn't warrant a death sentence," Bela frantically protests.
"That's not why you're going to die," Sam quietly tells her. His expression and tone harden. "What did you do, Bela?"
"You wouldn't understand," retorts Bela, game face back firmly in place now that she doesn't see any help forthcoming – girl's got her pride, after all. "No one did."

I like that Bela doesn't crumble, that she isn't prepared to spill her deepest and darkest secrets to virtual strangers, even to save her own life. That tells us something about her. It would be so easy for the show to take that line, and spin a quick, simple sob story in hopes of gaining viewer sympathy, but it's far stronger and braver characterisation to leave her backstory so murky. This is not a woman at ease with reliance on anyone. As I said earlier, I'm not sure I'm entirely convinced by the actress, and as for Bela herself there hasn't been enough of the real her to capture my heart, not yet. But there are encouraging signs. She's all about the game face, playing the role she's chosen for herself, self-interest all the way – look out for number one and don't care about anyone or anything else. But here we have our first hint at a chink in the armour, so who knows what the future will hold; this is only her second episode, after all. I always find it much easier to really care about a character once I feel I understand what makes them tick.

Bela looks at the boys. They look back at her, implacable. "Never mind," she bitterly decides. "I'll just do what I've always done – I'll deal with it myself."

And again, that statement right there tells us a lot about her, and how she became who she is. She clearly feels that it isn't safe to rely on anyone, has been let down badly in the past and doesn't want to get burned again. Coming here and asking for help from these two guys that she barely knows and who she knows despise her intensely…it's a big thing for her, born of desperation, but clearly her deep-seated belief that she can't rely on anyone but herself has just been confirmed. Of course, she brought it on herself by the way she has treated them – vicious circle.

Is it just me, or does it feel as if this episode is more about getting to know Bela than it is the Winchester brothers?

"You do realise you just sold the only thing that could save your life," Dean points out, which could be interpreted as the moment he starts to relent ever so slightly. Boy does have a conscience, after all.
"I'm aware," Bela wearily agrees.
"Well…" Sam heaves a big sigh, and makes a decision. He said earlier that lately he feels he can't save anyone – he desperately needs to feel he has the ability save someone, even if it's Bela, needs that boost to his flagging confidence. He isn't going to get it from Dean, who doesn't want him to keep trying. "Maybe not the only thing."

Cemetery. There's a lovely full moon. Hey, it was full moon in the last episode, as well, and that was meant to be the last full moon of the cycle. Does that mean it is a whole month later? I'm sure Dean wouldn't have sat on his anger about the Colt and the Crossroads Demon that long! It's just another continuity and production blip that we aren't meant to notice. They should know by now – fans notice everything!

Kneeling over a grave, Sam prepares a little summoning ritual. Dean lounges against a headstone nearby, salt gun casually resting against his shoulder, while Bela waits anxiously alongside him.

"Do you really think this is going to work?" Bela nervously asks.
"Almost definitely not," Dean pessimistically assures her.

I love that our boys have come through for her in spite of having those dark suspicions about her murky past and every reason to loathe her utterly. I would say I hope she's taken note of their generosity, but I doubt it would mean much to her – certainly wouldn't impress her or inspire her to change her ways. She already had them pegged as the type who want to do the right thing and can therefore be exploited by those more unscrupulous than them, such as herself. Saving her life in spite of everything will only have added to that impression she has of them. But from their point of view, if you're one of the good guys, you just don't get to draw lines between who is or isn't worthy of being saved – a distinction Dean never really remembers to apply to himself.

A sudden storm whips up, and it starts to absolutely pour with rain. I think that's meant to be caused by the angry spirit, but hey – it was forecast! Getting very wet very quickly, they all huddle into their coats, and Dean goes onto alert and calls to Sam to hurry the ritual along. Sam starts Latinating – oh, and he's reading from John's journal. We don't see that so often these days. Dean and Bela keep a wary watch for vengeful spirits.

Man, it's a hell of a storm. The special effects guys must have had a blast with the rain and wind machines, and I'll bet the actors were uncomfortable filming, they're so completely drenched.

Then the spirit manifests right behind Dean, so that although Bela shouts a warning, there's no way he can turn and get a shot off before the thing tosses him. Dean goes flying through the air, headfirst into a random monument nearby. Ouch. Dean does always get tossed; it's good to see that some things never change! The gun goes off as he hits and falls, which means he'd have to reload before he could shoot the spirit, I'm guessing…although that was only one shot and there should be two barrels, right? Guns aren't my thing. Whatever. Dean's down and disarmed, and Sam has to keep going with the ritual, which means Bela is now unprotected. The spirit lays a hand on her face, and she starts to choke, spewing up water a la Peter Warren earlier

Sam continues to recite Latin, while Dean clambers back to his feet and hurries over to Bela, but completely fails to retrieve and reload his shotgun, which would probably be slightly more useful. Bela seems to be taking a lot longer to drown than Peter Warren did, which is lucky for her, really. Finally, Sam completes his recitation and ritual, and looks up, expectantly. The storm dies down and the rain stops, which has to be a good sign. The spirit turns – to reveal his brother the ship's captain standing behind him, looking distraught.

"You hanged me!" the sailor brother accuses.
"I'm sorry," the captain tremulously offers.
"Your own brother!" Sailor rages.
"I'm so sorry," Captain repeats.

Furious, Sailor charges into Captain, and they both kind of…explode into water. It's a long, drawn-out effect, and looks really awesome. So, the spirits cancel one another out, I guess, and are both destroyed. There are plenty of precedents for that on this show. Kind of a bummer for the captain brother, really, since he was presumably enjoying a spot of nice eternal rest before being dragged back to face the music.

Anyway, it's all over, bar the drying off. Dean realises that he's still got his arm around Bela, and reacts, and Sam breathes a sigh of relief that he has managed to save a life today.

Bless him, Sam is so desperate to exert a bit of power over his circumstances, to feel that he's in control of something, anything, in his life. Of course, the irony is that he is completely rejecting the enormous power and control that was intended for him by the Yellow-Eyed Demon and that Ruby seems to believe could still be his, and instead seeking to go it alone. He wants to achieve his goals as a human, on his own terms, not as an evil demon puppet. But it's such a hard road, all alone with his burdens. It would be so easy for him, in his despair, to reach out for that demonic power, if all other avenues remain closed to him.

When you think about it, Sam must be feeling horribly dis-empowered by the events of his life. The Yellow-Eyed Demon chose him in his infancy for reasons unknown and manipulated much of the course of his entire life. John, we know, was an autocratic and dictatorial parent. Even the restored life Sam is now living was Dean's choice, not his own. And he was desperate for control over his own life even when it was just John's authoritarian parenting he was rebelling against, never mind everything else that's happened since.

Squat. The brothers Winchester are packing up, ready to get out of town, when Bela wanders in unannounced.

"You boys should learn to lock your doors. Anyone could just barge in," she remarks, cool, calm and collected once again, now that it's all over. The door was locked every other time she visited, though.
"Anyone just did," Sam retorts, asking if she's come to say goodbye, or thank you.

"I've come to settle affairs," Bela replies, opening her purse and taking out two wads of cash, one for Sam and one for Dean. "Giving the spirit what he wanted, his own brother – very clever, Sam. So here: it's ten thousand. That should cover it." The brothers look at the money, then at Bela, startled. "I don't like being in anyone's debt," she explains, and I believe that, absolutely.

It probably says a lot about Bela's values compared to the boys that she could put a price like that on the act of saving her life when they'd have settled for a sincere thank you. Ten grand? Cheap at half the price; both of theirs cost a hell of a lot more. But putting things on a business footing clears the slate. She likes to go it alone, so having a debt like that hanging over her head wouldn't sit well.

"So ponying up ten grand is easier for you than a simple thank you?" Dean disbelieves, chuckling. "You're so damaged."
Bela smiles widely. "Takes one to know one," she lightly retorts. Dean lifts an eyebrow, but makes no reply. He can't deny it.



Bela might not have completely won me over yet, but the snark between her and Dean is always fun, and Sam's joining in, too, now that he and Bela have actually interacted. The absolute loathing makes for good entertainment, so there's a strong element of humour with Bela that we don't get with Ruby.

Bela sees herself back out, and the brothers are left to gape at the money. Since they're squatting this week, I'm going to guess it'll come in handy.

"She got style, you've got to give her that," Sam snorts.
"I s'pose." Dean's more interested in the cash.
"You know, Dean, we don't know where this money's been," Sam warns.
Dean beams, snatching Sam's out of his hand. "No, but I know where it's going!"

Impala. Road. Night. Sam studies a map by torchlight. "Seriously? Atlantic City?" he sniffs.

Dean waxes lyrical about the gambling that's to be had in Atlantic City, then pauses, steels his nerve, and comes out with something he wants, maybe needs, to say. It kind of reminds me of that little scene at the end of Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things – for Dean, broaching a painful subject is something that has to come in his own time and space and on his own terms, something that he has to prepare himself for. "Hey listen, I've been doing some thinking. Um. I want you to know I understand why you did it. I understand why you went after the Crossroads Demon."

Sam huffs and glues his eyes to the map. He's way past wanting to talk about any of this – talking doesn't get them anywhere lately.

"Situation was reversed," Dean continues. "I guess I'd have done the same thing. I mean, I'm not blind. I see what you're going through with this whole deal: me going away, and all that. But you're going to be okay."
Sam snorts his disbelief. "You think so?" he grits.
"Yeah, you'll keep hunting," suggests Dean, his tone lightening. "You'll live your life. You're stronger than me – you are. You are, you'll get over it. But I want you to know I'm sorry. I'm sorry for putting you through all this, I am."

Just…damn. He's brushing it off now, making light of what's going to happen, making it all about Sam and not about him. This is Dean hitting the default button and building walls. He's been butting heads with Sam for a few episodes now, dictatorial, playing the John card for all he's worth, but that isn't who he really is, and it was never going to work; Sam reacts against authoritarianism and always has. And Dean just can't keep it up, can't deal with Sam being so miserable and angry. Making Sam feel better is what he does, what he's been doing for most of his life, so he's reaching out here in an attempt to do just that, in exactly the same way that he tried to put on a brave face for Sam after his terminal diagnosis in Faith.

The trouble is that there isn't a great deal Dean can do or say to make Sam feel better right now. He can't take the deal back and he can't apologise for it, doesn't – or won't – regret it in the slightest. He absolutely believes that this is the best possible outcome of an impossible scenario, that Sam is better equipped to carry on alone than he is. Trying to get Sam to accept the inevitable and stop fighting it is just about the only weapon he's got in his comfort arsenal right now, but it just isn't going to work. That he's trying to comfort Sam again tells its own story, though. It's Dean resetting back to his default, to the role in which he feels most comfortable, and it's also another stage in his journey toward impending death, trying to ease the way for those who'll be left behind. Having tried being obnoxious and dogmatic to make Sam stop looking for a solution, now he's attempting conciliation to make his brother accept the inevitable.

The worst part is that Dean really, honestly believes what he's saying, believes Sam will be able to just pick himself up and carry on when it's all over. He has to believe it, for his own sake. He's built this immense, impenetrable wall of denial around what's going to happen, right down to euphemising it as 'going away', not allowing himself to look at the destination. But Sam's not playing the game with him.

"You know what, Dean? Go screw yourself," Sam angrily snaps, and Dean is startled. "I don't want an apology from you! And by the way, I'm a big boy now. I can take care of myself."
"Oh, well excuse me," Dean grumbles, his well-meaning but misguided attempt to meet his brother halfway thrown back into his face.
"So would you please quit worrying about me – I mean that's the whole problem in the first place. I don't want you to worry about me, Dean," Sam rages. "I want you to worry about you. I want you to give a crap that you're dying!"

Poor Sam. And the awful thing is that there is still very good reason for Dean to worry about him, but Sam is way past clinging to his brother as his only hope of salvation, can see very clearly how damaging that has been in the past – for them both, in some ways, but Dean especially. It's why he's been trying so hard to be more self-sufficient this season, it's why if Dean dies the guilt will tear Sam apart, and it's a contributing factor to his increasing determination to find a solution.

But Dean just smiles to himself as if he isn't even listening, shuts him down completely – he'll talk about how this is affecting Sam, but what it means for him is off the menu. Talking about that means facing up to it, and he's refusing to go there. If he admits, even to himself, that he's terrified, if he admits that he doesn't want to die, it's a short step to sounding as if he regrets what he did, and he can't regret Sam's life, no matter what. And it would also put enormous pressure on Sam to follow through on his promise to find a solution, which Dean doesn't want because he's so afraid of getting Sam killed again. Plus, if he admits that he's afraid, saying the words out loud makes them real, and it would force him to really stare that terror in the face, for too many months to contemplate before the end finally comes.

"So, that's it?" Sam disbelieves. "Nothing else to say from you?"
"I think maybe I'll play craps," Dean announces, as if the entire conversation never took place.

Sam despairs. The sheer scale of the denial there is absolutely breathtaking. Terrifying. And Sam just has no idea what he's supposed to do now or where to turn for help.

So, Sam's got demons telling him his brother isn't worth fighting for, and he's got Dean himself telling him that he isn't worth fighting for. All he's got to hold onto is his own determination, which is leading him down some very dark roads indeed. This is going to get so much uglier before it gets any better.

Episode six. As things stand, we could get a total of twelve for the season before production has to shut down, unless a solution to the WGA strike is achieved. Whether or not we get any kind of resolution to the season – well, we'll just have to keep our fingers crossed and hope.


November 2007

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