Down the Rabbit Hole

Day of Recovery Part 2

Dean woke with a start as his phone went off. He scrambled on the bedside table for it as it continued to vibrate.
"Hey." Sam answered.
"Anything from marathon man?" Dean asked as he rubbed his eyes blearily.
"Not exactly, he hung himself in his cell before I could get to him."
"Yikes."
"But he was definitely involved, I just got the scoop from his assistant."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. Let's just say the stuff his patient was confessing to, I'd have murdered him too."
"So root canal and Russian roulette both of them, it's like they were cursed right? I mean, people are just compelled to puke the truth all over them?"
"Oh, getting hit with the ugly truth, you go postal? I'd call that a curse. Do me a favour, I'm going to the morgue to check out the body, why don't you take the dentists office, see what you can see?"
"Yeah, no problem." Dean hung up. He glanced down and smiled to himself, Lacey was curled up beside him. He gently nudged her awake.
"Lace, we gotta get going." Lacey groaned and buried her head into his chest.
"Do we have to?" She asked, her voice muffled. Dean chuckled.
"Sorry sweetheart." He kissed her on top of the head and got up to get dressed.

Lacey stood outside the dentists office waiting for Dean, kicking her heel against the brick wall impatiently. A few minutes later the yellow tape was lifted and Dean stepped out.
"Any luck?" Lacey asked as she straightened up and followed him to the car.
"Yeah, think I got a lead." Dean told her as they climbed into the Impala. They headed across town to a place called Harry's House of Horns. Dean parked the car up front and was about to get out when Lacey put a hand on his arm to stop him.
"What's up?" He asked, turning to face her. She bit her lip and looked down at her hands.
"I...I know now isn't the greatest time, what with Sam and the case and everything... but seeing as we're, you know, giving everything another go...and I don't want to put a damper on things..."
"Lace." Dean interrupted. "Just spit it out." Lacey hesitated for a moment before continuing.
"If we're starting over... are we free to do that? Are we both unattached, except when it comes to each other?" She looked at Dean hesitantly. Dean gave her a small smile and cupped her cheek in his hand.
"I know things didn't go as planned before, but this time is going to be different. I just need to make one phone call, straighten everything out and that's it, me and you are free to do whatever we like." Lacey smiled back at him and he wrapped her in a hug.

Dean was showing the guy in Harry's house of Horns pictures of the last two suicide.
"Jane and Dr Conley. I heard, awful. What do I have to do with it?" He asked as he put down the photos.
"Honestly? You're the only thing they have in common. Did they say anything to you before they uh..."
"Sorry, no really." The guy shrugged.
"Right, ah, I was just fishing. Thanks." Dean picked up the photographs and turned to leave.
"Hey, by they way, how about my horn?" The guy called after him.
"Sorry? Dean asked, confused.
"Stolen horn?"
"Right. Yeah...we're working on it."
"Well I hope so. Things one in a billion." Dean stopped in his tracks.
"What makes it one in a billion again?"
"It's a museum piece, and near as anybody can tell, about a thousand years old." He held up a photograph of his own.
"Where's it from?" Dean asked.
"No one knows."
"When did it get swiped?"
"About two weeks ago. Same day Jane died." Dean stared at him, his mind racing.

They headed back to the motel, Dean knew he had seen something like this in the research he had been doing earlier.
"There it is!" He turned Sam's laptop around to show Lacey. On the screen was a picture of a horn entitled; Gabriel's Horn of Truth. Lacey leant forward and read the paragraph underneath.
"Okay, that sounds like our guy, what now?"
"Now we call in the big guns." Dean drained his glass of whiskey then shut his eyes.
"Castiel? Hello? Possible loose nuke down here. Angelic weapon, kind of your department. You hear that Cas?" There was silence.
"Hello Dean." They both turned around to find Cas standing behind them. "Lacey." She smiled and nodded at him.
"Are you kidding me?" Dean asked, getting to his feet. "I have been on red alert about Sam, and you come for some stupid horn?!" He raged.
"You asked me to be here, and I came." Cas noted.
"I...I've been asking you to be her for days, you dick!" Cas sighed.
"Dean." Lacey put a hand on his arm.
"I didn't come about Sam because I have nothing to offer about Sam."
"Well, that's great, because for all we know, he's just gift wrap for Lucifer."
"No, he's...he's not Lucifer." Cas picked up Deans glass and poured him another drink.
"And how do you know that?" Dean asked.
"If Lucifer escaped the cage, we'd feel it." Cas explained.
"What is wrong with him?" Dean asked, he sounded tired.
"I don't know, Dean. I'm sorry." Dean glared at him.
"What happened to you Cas? You used to be human, or at least like one."
"I'm at war." Cas explained. "Certain...regrettable things are now required of me." Dean sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
"And Gabriels Horn of Truth? That's a real thing?"
"You've seen it?" Cas asked.
"We think it's in town. Something's forcing people.." Dean began before there was a flutter of wings and Cas disappeared. "Oh, well, you're welcome!" Dean fumed. He swigged back the rest of his drink and banged the glass down on the night stand. Cas appeared behind them again.
"It isn't the Horn of Truth." Lacey jumped and turned around. She raised an eyebrow at him.
"We need to get you one of those little bells, like a cat has." Cas looked hat her confused.
"Why do cats have bells?" Lacey shrugged.
"I don't know, why do they have hats? Beats the hell out of me." Dean rolled his eyes and changed the subject back to the matter at hand.
"It's not the Horn? What are you talking about? You were gone for like two seconds! Where did you look?"
"Everywhere."
"Right well, nice seeing you anyway." Dean grumbled.
"Dean."
"What?" Dean snapped.
"About your brother... I don't know what's wrong with him, but I do want to help. I'll make enquiries." Cas said before disappearing again.
"Yeah, thanks." Dean muttered after him.