River Thomas never thought she'd be dragged into a world with supernatural beings, because to her, those things were make believe. That was, at least, until her best friend was killed by a ghost. The only family she ever cared about was dead. Sure, she had her parents, but they were never on the best of terms. So she was determined to find out more on the monsters that had killed her best friend. River dives into a whole world of creatures that roam the night. Ghouls, vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters and the like. She learns how to fight them off, and even keeps a journal filled with everything she has learned. While hunting down a rougarou in Carthage, Missouri, River meets Sam and Dean Winchester, a pair of quarreling brothers. The three Hunters put their heads together to figure out what to do about the monster; both Sam and River insist there is a way to save him, while Dean wants to defy them both. That case was not the last time that River saw the brothers, for Fate threw them together to save Dean's life.