Thanks for the reviews on that last chapter guys! =) I really appreciate it, they definitely motivate me to write and update more often!

This is also the last chapter of this story, there is a sequel I'm working on titled 'Always Chasing Safety' but it might not be out for a few days cause I have a busy weekend ahead of me. Hopefully this chapter creates enough suspense and questions to get you interested in the next story!

With great effort I forced myself out of the front door of Bobby's house that had been uncomfortably silent for the last hour since everyone had left. I spent the last fifty-two minutes composing myself and gathering my few things together in the guest room I'd been sharing with Sam. Now I had the duffle bag slung over my shoulder and my car keys in my hand.

I trudged my way solemnly to my car that I hadn't driven in weeks. There hadn't been a point with all the angel transportation or Dean driving the Impala. I opened the trunk and tossed my bag in there and made sure I had everything before getting into the driver's seat. Before I really hit the road I stopped for gas and grabbed myself a bottle of Mountain Dew. I wasn't looking forward to this ten hour trip.

To avoid being left with just my thoughts, I plugged my iPod into the stereo of my car and flipped around for something calming. I landed on a song by Rebelution and a slight smile crossed my lips as it began to play. Dean would have hated this song, which only made me turn it up. Tapping my fingers to the music as I made my way down the road, I pulled my aviators on and cleared my head.

I didn't make it to the house until a little after ten at night. All the cars were in the driveway so I assumed no one was out on a hunt. I parked and was so relieved when I was able to finally get out of the car and stretch my legs. They had been cramping up for the last couple hours and my ass felt numb.

I knocked hard on the front door but didn't have to wait long before Beth flung the door wide open and dragged me inside.

"We figured you'd be here around now, we've got some dinner warmed up for you. I know how much you love fettuccini, so you've got a huge plate waiting for you in the kitchen," Beth told me, wasting no time in dragging me over to the kitchen.

A chorus of greetings met my ears the moment I entered. Surrounding the table was the entire gang. Lily was sitting in Vick's lap and Megan was sitting across the table with Matt. Beers were scattered around the table and sure enough there was a spot set up for me with a plate of food just like Beth had told me. I couldn't help but realize how much I'd missed being here with all of them. Sam and Dean were always hunting some big monster and things sometimes got pretty tense with them. But here, they never dealt with the apocalypse or any of that. It was always a fun, carefree atmosphere.

"Look who finally decided to show up!" Vick called out to me.

"Sit down, eat! I'm sure you drove straight here," Megan told me, getting up and ushering me into the chair. "We've been waiting for you to finally get here."

"You guys didn't have to do this for me!" I told them, picking up the fork before Megan started feeding me herself.

The dinner was delicious and I don't think I could have inhaled it any faster. My stomach was full and finally content. We decided to spend the rest of the night throwing back a few beers and catching up, but slowly, one by one, everyone headed off for bed the later it got. Eventually it was just Beth and I sitting in the kitchen, sipping on the last of our beers.

"So they just told you to come here instead of help them?" Beth asked, summing up what I'd just finished telling her.

I nodded my head. "Yup," I told her. "Just like that. Now I'm going to blame myself if anything bad happens. I should have been there, they need me."

Beth shot me an apologetic look from across the table. "They will be fine, Cal."

"They haven't called me yet. I can't imagine that they're still working the case. So now I'm wondering if this was some scheme to get rid of me," I said bitterly. Deep down I knew that wasn't really true.

"Then why don't you go call them?"

I sat there for a moment, contemplating the idea. They should be finished with the hunt now, and if they didn't answer then I was pretty sure it gave me enough right to make my way immediately to Oregon and find them.

"I think I will," I said finally.

The two of us quickly downed the rest of our drinks and tidied up the kitchen a bit. Beth said she was heading off to sleep and that I could just crash on my old bed when I decided to sleep. I told her goodnight and then headed outside and pulled my cell phone from my pocket. Quickly I dialed Dean's phone from speed dial, not really wanting to talk to Sam. Admittedly I felt a little guilty for the way I'd acted, but it had hurt to be left out of that hunt just like that.

The phone kept on ringing for awhile and I got nervous, wondering if anyone was even going to answer before it hit voicemail. Thankfully after quite a few rings, the phone was answered.

"Hey Cali," Dean's voice greeted not all too enthusiastic.

"How'd everything go?" I asked a little hesitantly.

I heard Dean sigh on the other end of the phone.

"Well the phoenix ash worked like a charm. Thing is…turns out Crowley isn't dead."

Sitting there for a moment, I let that soak in.

"I thought Cas burned his bones?"

"Dammit, he can make a mistake!" Dean growled.

I frowned at his tone. "What crawled up your ass?"

"Nothing," Dean responded a little too quickly.

I narrowed my eyes even though he couldn't see me doing so. Something was up. "So why don't you guys tell me where to meet up and I can help you track Crowley down?"

His response came too quickly again. "No, stay there."

"Now I can't help but think you're not telling me something, Dean," I said, getting a little irritated.

"You're just safer where you're at," he told me gruffly. "For everyone's sakes, just stay put."

"There's more to it than that, isn't there?" I pried.

There was a silence on the other end of the line and that confirmed my suspicions.

"Just tell me and I promise I'll stay put," I begged, wondering how bad it could be.

"I'll explain later. Just make sure you have some salt near you for the next few days. And that demon knife you always carry around. Is the house devil trapped?" Dean asked in a serious voice which only started to worry me.

"Yes, why?"

"Don't leave the house until I call you again and tell you to come back, got it?" he said sternly.

"You're freaking me out a bit, Dean," I admitted.

"Good," was all he said before hanging up on me.

Annoyed, I hung up my phone and stuffed it back into my pocket. Deciding I should at least heed his warnings, I headed around to the front of the house and over to my car. Opening up the trunk, I dug around through the bags in the back until I found the one I wanted. I slung it over my shoulder and made my way back up to the front door, occasionally looking over my shoulder. The silence was beginning to make me nervous after that phone call. I didn't know what to expect and I really hoped I wasn't putting anyone in danger here.

I made my way into the kitchen and opened one of the top cabinets that I knew was always stocked full with giant containers of salt. I grabbed one and began salting different entry points of the house, including all the windows. Beth at one point woke up to use the bathroom and saw what I was doing. Without a word she grabbed a container herself and started helping me. The process ended up taking about an hour and a half but I felt a little better afterwards. Mildly satisfied, I found the knife in my bag that was known to drop demons like flies and headed into the room I shared with Beth, finally crawling into bed. I kept the knife under my pillow within easy reach if anything were to get past our defenses in the middle of the night.

As much as I wanted to fall asleep, I couldn't. I hated not knowing what to expect. What was worse was, this was all I could do until Dean called me again, whenever that would be. I didn't have a clue what was going on, or what I might be in danger from.

I did know one thing—there was nothing I could do. So I laid there in bed, eyes wide open and my fingers gently tracing the hilt of my knife, until the sun rose.