Witch's Canyon Read Free

how much she wanted to tell two strangers who had just come at her out of the woods. “This used to be my husband’s favorite spot,” she said. Apparently, the Winchester brothers looked trustworthy. She waved a hand toward the view, which had mostly disappeared into darkness. The shadowy bulk of a condor passed, black slipping through the indigo sky, silent as oil through water. “He loved it here, and we used to come here to . . . well, never mind.” A slight redden-ing of her cheeks told Sam all he needed to know about what they did in this secluded spot. “Anyway, when Ross died, I scattered his ashes from here—did you know they want you to pay to do that? Now I Witch’s
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    come here on his birthday. This is the second one since he passed, and I—” Her breath caught and she shook her head, casting her gaze toward the ground.
    “We’re sorry for your loss,” Dean said.
    Sam had been worried—you never really knew what might come out of Dean’s mouth, and he might as easily have told her that they were undercover park rangers, out to bust people who illicitly scattered ashes.
    “Thank you.”
    “I’m Dean,” his brother went on. No last name, but at least he didn’t lie or use an alias, which was rare for him. Maybe the fact that she was a widow had given Dean hope. Not for a relationship, Dean didn’t tend to do those, but at least for a fl ing. “This is my brother Sam. Little brother,” he added.
    “I’m Juliet,” the woman said. She dabbed at her cheeks and nose with the tissue and offered a tentative smile. “Juliet Monroe.”
    “Pleased to meet you, Juliet,” Sam said.
    “We’re on our way to Cedar Wells,” Dean said.
    “Do you live in the area?”
    Juliet nodded. “Not far from there, really. We have a little ranch, just outside of town. Or I do, I guess. It was really Ross’s dream, but I bought into it too. It’s so beautiful around here. I was always a city girl, but Ross convinced me that it was a good move for us.
    Now I’m trying to sell the place—it’s too lonely out there by myself—but I’m not getting a lot of offers.” She tried on a surer smile, and it looked like it be-12 SUPERNATURAL
    longed on her face, brightening her eyes, swelling her cheeks. “You guys wouldn’t be in the market, would you? I’ll throw in the livestock for free.”
    “Us?” Dean tossed a private smirk at Sam. “No, no, we’re kind of . . . we’re on the road. A lot.”
    “I didn’t really think you were the types,” she said.
    “A ranch can really tie you down.”
    “I’m sure,” Sam said. “Anyway, we’d better get back on the road, before all the good hotel rooms in Cedar Wells are taken.”
    Juliet laughed at that.
    “What?” Sam asked.
    “It’s just . . . good hotel rooms in Cedar Wells is a funny concept. Kind of like saying you want to rustle up some good road kill before dinner.”
    “Not the most happening burg?” Dean asked.
    “Not even close. Unless your idea of happening is Friday night bingo at the church and the occasional loose bull on Main Street.”
    “By which you mean a real bull,” Sam guessed.
    “And not the kind of loose bull you fi nd around politicians and actors.”
    “Or actors who become politicians,” Juliet said.
    “But yes, the bull around here is the real kind, so watch where you step when you go looking for those hotel rooms.”
    “Is there anyplace to stay in town?” Dean asked.
    “Sure,” Juliet replied. “It was just your choice of adjectives I was commenting on. There’s the Bide-A-Wee Motel—”
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    “Sounds adorable,” Sam said.
    “Some of the roaches there are bigger than my cattle,” she said. “Or that’s what I’ve heard.”
    “Anyplace else?”
    “I’d probably stay at the Trail’s End, if I had to stay somewhere.”
    “Trail’s End. We’ll look for it.”
    “You can’t miss it,” she assured them. “You can’t miss anything in Cedar Wells, unless you blink.