Maddison Winchester: Journal 1 {Supernatural}

18 Something Wicked: Part 2

Sam had been sitting on his computer while Dean and I watched wrestling.

"Well, you were right. It wasn't very easy to find, but you were right. Shtriga is a kind of witch. They're Albanian, but legends about them trace back to Ancient Rome. They feed off spiritus vitae," Sam said.

"Spiri-what?" Dean asked.

"Vitae. It's Latin, translates to 'breath of life.' Kinda like your life force or essence," Sam explained.

"Didn't the doctor say the kids' bodies were wearing out?" Dean asked.

"It's a thought. Ya know, she takes your vitality, maybe your immunity goes to hell, pneumonia takes hold." Sam shrugged. "Anyway, shtrigas can feed off anyone, but they prefer—"

"Children." Dean nodded.

"Yeah. Probably because they have a stronger life force. And get this. shtrigas are... 'invulnerable to all weapons devised by God and man,'" Sam read.

Dean shook his head. "No, that's not right. She's vulnerable when she feeds."

"What?" Sam asked.

"If you catch her when she's eating, you can blast her with consecrated wrought-iron... uh... buck shots or rounds, I think," Dean said.

"How do you know that?" Sam asked.

"Dad told me. I remember," Dean answered bluntly.

"Oh. Huh." Sam shook his head. "So uh, anything else Dad might have mentioned?"

"Nope, that's it," Dean said.

Sam kept staring at Dean.

"What?" Dean asked.

"Nothing..." Sam shrugged. "Okay. So, assuming we can kill it when it eats, we still gotta find the thing first, which ain't gonna be a cakewalk. Shtrigas take on a human disguise when they're not hunting."

"What kinda human disguise?" Dean asked.

"Historically, something innocuous. Could be anything, but it's usually a feeble old woman, which might be how the witches as old crones legend got started," Sam said.

Dean got up and grabbed a map off of the table. "Hang on."

"What?" Sam asked.

"Check this out. I marked down all the addresses of the victims. Now, these are the houses that have been hit so far, and..." Dean pointed to the map. "Dead center?"

Sam nodded. "The hospital."

"The hospital. Now when we were there, I saw a patient, an old woman," Dean explained.

"An old person, huh?" Sam asked.

Dean nodded. "Yeah."

"In a hospital? Whew." Sam shook his head. "Better call the Coast Guard."

Dean gave Sam a dirty look. "Well, listen, smart-ass, she had an inverted cross hanging on her wall."

Sam gave Dean a serious look. "All right, let's take a look."

"I'm going," I announced.

Dean grabbed my jacket. "Yup, I want you close."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

We snuck through the hospital, knowing it was way too late for visiting hours, and tried to stay out of sight. We reached the end of one of the hallways when Sam and Dean quickly turned around and stopped moving.