Summary: Two brothers, one haunted blues club, and a ghost who refuses to play nice. The Winchester boys are in for one long night.

Rating: PG-13 to be safe. There's some violence and some language.

Spoilers: Mild spoilers for season one may be mentioned but nothing too revealing.

Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own Supernatural or any of its characters.

A/N: There is a small mention of my previous story "Blood in, Blood Out" but you don't have to read that story in order to understand this one. Also while Philadelphia is a true place there is no Sapphire Room located there.

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CHAPTER ONE

July 13, 1947 – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

"Now, now, Bernie," Lucky Montgomery said as he grinned at the crumbled form of Bernie Fontaine who was cowering at his feet, "There's no need for all this." The man had his hands twisting together, pleading with the looming figure above him. But no amount of pleading could sway Lucky from the mission at hand.

Lucky Montgomery was not a man to be messed with. Even though he was a short, stocky man who hid his balding head under his trademark brown fedora, he still possessed an intimidating presence that forced even the toughest men, in the shadiest parts of Philadelphia to take a step back when meeting him. It may have had something to do with the entourage of gun wielding gangsters that flanked him wherever he went. Or it could be that his reputation of having a short temper and enjoying bloodshed far exceeded him. Bernie Fontaine however was in a category all by himself. While on the surface he was a well-dressed businessman who could charm any woman he came in contact with, in back alleys, such as the one he was currently weeping in, he was nothing more than a rat. A man who had a weakness for loose women, cheap liquor, and most of all gambling, which is how him and Lucky had managed to cross paths.

"Please," Bernie wheezed, "I'll get you the money."

"You said that last week Bernie," Lucky said as he took a puff of the cigar that he had been gesturing with, "and the week before that. And the week before that," he cracked a half smile and glanced at the two men who were standing behind Bernie, arms crossed. At seeing Lucky's smile they both cracked smiles of there own as if he had subconsciously ordered them to laugh at the comment when clearly he was the only one who had found it amusing. "But still," Lucky continued, extending his hand so that Bernie could see it, "what's there?" Bernie shook his head as he gapped at Lucky's empty palm. "What's in my hand, Bern?" Lucky yelled at him.

Bernie flinched. "Nothin'." He whispered.

"What?" Lucky cupped his ear with the same empty hand and leaned in towards Bernie as if straining to hear.

"Nothin'." Bernie said a little louder, staring down at the hard pavement that was biting into his knees.

"That's right." Lucky whispered as he nodded his head, his eyes staring thoughtfully at the brick wall next to him. "You know what that means?"

Bernie whipped his head from the wall to Lucky's face before shaking his head, "You ain't gettin' my club." Lucky shook his head in the same fashion that a parent would if they were scolding a disobedient child. He then turned his back on Bernie and rocked back on forth on the balls of his feet.

"We made a deal Bernie." He said as he raised the cigar to his lips, "Either the money," he glanced over his shoulder at Bernie's face which was seething with anger, "or the club. You made your choice."

"You ain't gettin' my club!" Bernie shouted and jumped to his feet, intending on charging Lucky but was met instead with the two lackeys wrapping their hands around his arms and holding him steady.

Lucky turned, a look of amusement on his face. "Yes, I am." He replied matter-of-factly.

"Over my dead body." Bernie replied through clenched teeth.

"That can be arranged." Lucky said as he whipped out a pistol from his waistband and before Bernie even had a chance to gasp the gun was fired at his head. Bernie's head snapped back and his body collided with the pavement loudly as the two lackeys dropped their hold on his arms. Lucky laughed as the blood began to pool around Bernie's body, a stunned look frozen on his face. Lucky crouched down and stared into Bernie's lifeless eyes, "It's mine now, Bern."

Lucky Montgomery was not a man to be messed with.

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Present Day

Dean slapped the newspaper onto the table as he slid into the booth across from Sam. Sam, who had been thoroughly enjoying his scrambled eggs and bacon, glared at his brother who was happily grinning back at him.

"You almost spilled my coffee." Sam complained.

Dean waved him off and pointed at the paper, "I found our next job."

Sam glanced down at the article that Dean had circled. It was a tiny blurb on the fifth page of the Arts & Entertainment section of the paper. The headline read 'Historic Sapphire Room Slated for Demolition'. Sam scanned the article. There didn't appear to be anything remotely out of the ordinary in regards to the article aside from the fact that it was in a Michigan newspaper and The Sapphire Room was located in Philadelphia. It was far out of the realm of local news and Sam wondered what was so significant about The Sapphire Room that would make its impending demolition news in Michigan.

Sam looked over at his brother who was too busy flagging down the waitress to notice that Sam had finished reading the article. The waitress sauntered over and smiled warmly at the men before her.

"What can I get ya?" She asked.

"Just a cup of coffee for me, sweetheart." Dean grinned back. The waitress smiled flirtatiously as a blush began to rise in her cheeks. She scribbled the order on her notepad and then turned towards Sam. Sam shook his head.

"Nothing for me, thanks." He smiled.

The waitress smiled at both of them again and then went off to fetch Dean's coffee.

Once the waitress was gone Sam picked up the newspaper and tossed it at Dean. "I don't get it." Sam said as Dean clumsily caught the paper and frowned at it, "How is a demolition of some old blues club a job?"

"It's The Sapphire Room." Dean said but Sam just stared at him blankly and shrugged his shoulders. "The Sapphire Room?" Dean said again waiting for Sam's reaction but again Sam just shrugged his shoulders. Dean exhaled, "It's like the Alcatraz of blues clubs. There are hundreds of stories about hauntings and ghostly encounters there." Dean smirked, "But I guess that's not something you would learn in Stanford. Huh, college boy?"

"That's what you're going off of? An urban legend?" Sam laughed.

Dean nodded, "We've gone off less."

Sam stared at him for a minute before cracking a sideways smile.

"So instead of going with Shane to follow up a lead on a witch, we're going to take a look at a club which may or may not be haunted and is going to be torn down anyway." Sam nodded, "Yeah that makes sense." He said sarcastically.

Dean sighed. He knew Sam was going to bring that up. A week after the job with the Asinaedo Shane had gotten a call from one of her contacts in Georgia about a series of mysterious disappearances and deaths in a small town outside of Atlanta. The contact had managed to connect all the victims to a woman who was known locally for her interest in the occult and black magic. Sam had insisted that he and Dean go with Shane but she had refused. Dean wasn't sure why she wanted to go by herself but he figured that if she really was as much like him as she had demonstrated in the past few days then he had a pretty good idea as to why she wanted to go alone. She felt the need to prove herself and having her two older, male cousins tag along would be detrimental to that. Sam, however, didn't see it that way.

"Sam," Dean sighed, "We've been over this."

"It just doesn't make any sense," Sam said leaning forward, "You come get me from college so that we can find Dad and put this family back together. Then we find out we have a cousin, who's after the same thing that we are, and we just let her go. Just like that."

By Sam's expression Dean could tell that he had been thinking about this issue for awhile. Dean had too but he'd never let Sam know that. He hadn't wanted Shane to leave because in the back of his mind he feared what might happen if she needed back up and they weren't there. He knew she'd been hunting for awhile and was quite experienced but she wasn't as trained as his father, him and Sam and Dean would never forgive himself if something were to happen to her. But, Winchesters were stubborn and Dean knew that first hand.

"Sometimes when people have their minds set on leaving, you just gotta let them go." Dean raised an eyebrow. "You should know that better than anybody." He knew that making the connection between Shane's departure and Sam's leaving for Stanford was probably a low blow but it was the only way he knew to guilt trip Sam enough so that he would drop the issue. His attempt at logically explaining Shane's need for independence had failed.

"You know what Dean?" Dean could see that he had struck a nerve with Sam. He never liked to play Devil's advocate with him but sometimes his emotions overcame him. "You sit here and complain about how I left. About how I abandoned you because I'm the heartless bastard who needed to feel normal for once in his life. To not be a soldier for once in my life but," Sam shrugged, "Dad left too. And now, so did Shane. So why do you defend them and their reasons for leaving but you constantly play the victim with me?"

"Play the victim?" Dean was angry at the insinuation but he kept his voice at a sharp whisper to avoid the stares that would result if his anger boiled over, "Dad left so that he could find the demon that killed mom. Shane left because she had a job to do. You left because you wanted to get away from me and our family. And even though I was hurt that you left, I never tried to stop you!"

Dean quickly bit his tongue as he saw the waitress approach. She placed the coffee in front of him and Dean shot her a forced but warm smile. He looked at the coffee and realized he no longer had any desire to drink it. He knew that Sam was watching him but he refused to say anything further, fearing that'd he only regret it later.

"Dean," Sam started but his words were cut short by Dean's sudden rise from the table. Dean wasn't sure whether Sam had intended to prolong the fight or end it, either way he had no intention of listening. "Dean," Sam called again as his brother brushed past him, "Where are you going?"

"Philly." Dean muttered as he pushed open the door to the diner and headed out into the midday sun.

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After 8 hours, three failed attempts at conversation and two pit stops the Winchester boys finally arrived in Philadelphia. Dean pulled the Impala into the first motel he saw and cut the engine. The area around the motel and the motel itself appeared to be pretty rundown but Dean was too tired to care. Besides that, it was late and finding a decent motel in this part of Philadelphia, at a reasonable price, at this hour was next to impossible, so this place would have to suffice.

"Be back." He muttered to Sam as he slipped out of the Impala and headed towards the main office.

Sam was half asleep but was aware of Dean's absence. He opened his eyes and surveyed his surroundings. The place was definitely not intended for vacationers. Nothing about the small motel appeared to scream 'Welcome to Philly' unless you took into account the three scantily clad females smiling and waving at Sam from their place in the small alley next to the motel. Great place Dean, Sam thought to himself just as his brother reappeared next to the car.

"C'mon Sleeping Beauty," Dean called, "Rise and shine." He grabbed his bag out of the back and started heading towards their assigned room. Sam grabbed his bag and followed him. As Dean unlocked the door Sam glanced over and saw an older black male, seated on a chair outside the motel room door next to theirs. The man was watching them intently and smiled happily when he caught Sam's eye.

"Evening fellas." He nodded. Before Sam even had a chance to respond, the mans' attention had returned to staring off into the distance.

Sam paused outside the motel room door for a second watching the man. When the man made no further attempt at conversation Sam paid it no attention and followed Dean into the motel room. Dean had already dropped his bag at the foot of the bed and plopped down, the remote clutched in his hand.

"Listen Dean," Sam said as he sat down at on the other bed, "I know you're mad but-"

"I'm not mad." Dean cut him off. He really wasn't even though he knew his voice wasn't letting that on. After an 8 hour drive it was hard for him to hold onto his anger, especially when it was Sam who he was supposed to be angry with. He was actually more hurt than anything else but his voice wasn't letting that on either.

"Dean."

"Listen," Dean said with exasperation, "I'm not mad. If you're still determined to have a 'chick flick moment' after the jobs done, then I'm all for it. But right now, let's just drop it and focus on what we're here for."

Sam shook his head. "Whatever man," He got to his feet and headed to the door, "I'm getting some air."

Outside Sam was greeted again but the same old man. "So what brings you boys to town?" The man asked his eyes still staring off towards something in the distance.

"Um," Sam jammed his hands into his pockets and walked towards the man, leaning against the building once he was close enough, "business."

The man nodded and extended his hand, "Name's James, by the way."

Sam took his hand and gave it a hearty shake, "Sam."

"And the other fella you came with?" James asked nodding towards Sam's motel room. Sam paused for a second, wondering if he should answer. After all, he didn't know this man and trust had never been one of Sam's strong suites. He knew too much about the world to trust everyone he encountered. Sam gave the man a once over before cautiously answering.

"That's my brother, Dean." The man nodded, his line of questioning ending there. "So," Sam said in an attempt to continue the casual conversation. "you lived here long, James?"

"In Philly?" he asked, only casting Sam a sideways glance, "My whole life."

Sam nodded, deciding that he could try to milk this guy for information. The sooner they finished this "job" the sooner they could join Shane in Georgia and handle a real situation and then begin the process of finding their father and repairing this broken family.

"So you know about The Sapphire Room?" Sam asked casually and was surprised when the man turned in his chair and looked up at Sam.

"What do you know about The Sapphire Room?"

"Not much but I was thinking, you've lived here you're whole life, maybe you could tell me about it?" Sam attempted to smile but the expression on James' face forced his smile to melt.

"Is that your business here, Sam?" James' asked in a stiff tone of voice.

"Uh," Sam hesitated. He didn't like the way James sounded but something inside of him refused to back down. "Yes. We're attempting to postpone the demolition." Sam lied.

"Stay away from that place." James ordered.

"Why?" Sam asked, taking a step closer to James.

"Bad things happen there." James' voice was shaking as he said it.

"Like what?" Sam's eyes narrowed as he crouched down so that he was eye level with James. Sam heard the motel room door behind him close. He turned slightly and saw Dean standing outside the door, a questioning look on his face. Sam nodded, inviting Dean to move closer and then turned back to James who was tight lipped.

James looked from the young man couched before him to the one approaching him. He opened his mouth to say something but clamped it shut suddenly. "Just stay away from that place." He commanded as he rose from the chair. He pushed the door to his motel room open and glanced back at the two brothers, "Hear me youngbloods. Stay…away…from…The Sapphire Room." And then he disappeared into the room, slamming the door behind him.

Sam looked back at his brother. Both of their faces were fixed with a look of confusion.

"You sure know how to make friends, don't you Sammy boy?" Dean laughed as he clasped a hand down on Sam's shoulder. "Welcome to the City of Brotherly Love." He smirked.

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TBC…

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