1.19 Provenance

The camera pans over an creepy, old painting of a family - mother, young girl, father looking disapproving at the girl, and two boys. Mark is putting up the painting on their mantle. Mark and Ann bought it at auction. She can't believe they bought it, because she's thinking it's kinda creepy. Mark flirts; Ann flirts back. She heads upstairs while he locks up. The father in the picture moves, watching them. Something is moving up the stairs to where the wife is waiting; her bedside candle blows out. Moments later, the husband arrives to find his wife in a pool of blood; her throat slit. He's horrified, and falls out of bed. Looking up, the same entity kills him.

Dean is putting Brandy's number in his cell phone when Sam calls him over. Sam found a new case, but Dean's thinking of taking a little shore leave. He's told her he's a talent scout for a new reality TV show and she has a friend for Sam too. Sam says no thanks, he can get his own dates, but Dean says he doesn't. Dean doesn't explain, so Sam explains about the case. A newspaper article said Mark and Ann Telesca of New Paltz, New York were found with their throats slit in a locked house, with no murder weapon, and no prints. Dean doesn't think it's their case, but Sam points out Dad's journal has research for a series of murders over a number of decades in the same area with the same M.O. Dean agrees it's worth looking into in the morning and promptly goes back to Brandy and her friend.

Dean is in the Impala snoozing after his late night when Sam returns from checking out the Telesca home. Sam beeps the horn, waking him. Laughing, Sam joins Dean and tells him what he's checked. Sam says he's swept the house with EMF and last night while Dean was 'out', Sam checked out the history of the house - it's clean. Nothing strange about the Telescas either. The problem could be a cursed object, but he can't tell because the house contents have been removed.

Dean and Sam turn up at the auction house, where the owner Daniel Blake tries to get them to leave. Dean claims they have an invite, so Daniel Blake leaves to check. They continue to check out contents of the Telescas, until Sarah Blake shows up, asking an art question. Sam answers, and they connect. Sam asks about the estate, and she feels it's grisly to sell the Telescas' things this soon. Sam asks to see the provenances, but Daniel comes back and asks this to leave because they aren't on the guest list. They do so, although Sarah thought her dad rude.

Dean and Sam walk up to their hotel room. Dean asks about the art, and Sam tells him he had an art history course in order to meet girls. They walk in and find the room is pretty retro disco fantasy. Discussing the provenances and how they show the history of the auctioned articles, Sam suggests Dean pick her up. Dean suggests Sam talk to Sarah because she was checking Sam out. Sam thinks that would just be using Sarah, but Dean tells him to 'take one for the team'.

They are a bit awkward with each other, neither having been on a date in a while, but it's obvious they like each other. The wine list is handed to Sam, who is uncomfortable with it. Sarah eases things by ordering a beer, and so does Sam. Over dinner, they talk a bit about their past. Sarah reveals she hasn't been on a date since her mother died unexpectedly a year ago. However, Sam is evasive about his past.

Sarah gets Sam copies of the provenances of the items of the Telesca house. Dean can't understand why Sarah just handed them over, wondering if Sam did anything for them. Dean offers to stick around after the case, because Sam is into Sarah. Sam finds a connection with the Telescas and the earlier murders in Dad's journal, calling Dean to come over and see. All the victims had owned the portrait of Isaiah Merchant's family painted in 1910. The brothers agree it must be cursed or haunted.

After dark, Sam and Dean return to the auction house. Scaling the fence, fixing the alarm, picking the lock, and searching the auction house were all done quickly and efficiently, speaking of years of breaking and entering. Cutting the painting out of its frame and taking it to an unknown location, the boys burn the painting. Inside the auction house, the painting regenerates into its frame as it is burned.

The next day, Dean pretends that he has dropped his wallet at the auction house, purely to get Sam to see Sarah again. Dean and Sam are nosing around when Sarah appears. Sam makes an excuse that they're leaving town and have come to say goodbye, but Dean refutes that, claiming they'll stick around another day or so. Dean pulls out his elusive wallet, ostensibly to give Sam the $20 he owes him, and goes out, leaving Sam and Sarah alone. Sarah says she enjoyed their date and hoping for another one, but Sam says they really are taking off. Then Sam spots the supposedly destroyed painting. He's shocked, and asks Sarah more about the picture. She tells him they sold it to the Telescas the night they were murdered. He tells her not to sell it. She wonders if he wants it, but no. He's got to leave, he'll call her. He'll see her later, and runs out.

Back in the Impala, Sam tells Dean about the picture. They have to figure another way to get rid of it. Sam recalls it's the painting's subjects that haunts them and they agree they have to find out about the family portrayed in it in order to destroy it.

At a local secondhand bookstore, the proprietor digs up information on the Merchant family for the boys. Isaiah Merchant was accused of killing his wife, two sons, and adopted daughter Melanie before turning the razor on himself in April 1912. It seems he had a harsh temperament and there were whispers the wife was going to take the kids and leave. The entire family was cremated. The proprietor also has a picture of the family, which Sam asks for a copy of.

Sarah is angry with her father because he has sold the painting against her wishes. He tells her for that kind of money he doesn't care.

Back at the motel Sam points out that in a picture of the painting in an old book, Isaiah is staring straight ahead, and in the painting, he is looking down to the right. Dean thinks Isaiah Merchant is trapped in the painting and is coming out to continue killing people at night. Dean points out they need to see the painting again to see if anything else has changed, which should give Sam more time with Sarah. Sam tells Dean to get off his case about Sarah, and quit pimping him out to her. Dean just wants Sam to hook up to not be cranky, but it isn't just for that - she could be good for Sam. Dean points out that it's about Jessica, and she'd want Sam to be happy and have fun. Sam admits some of it is about her, but refuses to elaborate. He calls Sarah, tells her he and his brother might want to buy it, to see if they can view the painting again, only to find it has been sold to a friend of Sarah's named Evelyn. Sam demands the new owners address.

Evelyn is sitting by a fire, with the painting hanging close by. Isaiah turns his head. Evelyn hears a noise, and looks up, horrified. The boys arrive after Sarah, who starts asking questions. Dean picks the lock, and they rush in to find Evelyn with her throat sliced. Isaiah has moved from looking at Melanie to looking straight ahead.

The boys return to the motel room, leaving Sarah to lie to the police she was there alone. She storms into the motel room demanding answers, which Sam gives. The painting is haunted. She insists on coming with them to stop it, but Sam doesn't want her to get hurt. She's scared, but she's not going to run and hide because she helped sell the painting and feels responsible for its owners deaths, so she's going. Dean's impressed, telling Sam, 'Marry that girl.'

Back at Evelyn's house after picking the lock they examine the painting. Sarah worries it will kill them, but Sam thinks they're all right in the daylight. Dean notices the open razor, and Sam notices the painting in the painting there is now a mausoleum with the name Merchant on it.

The three of them track down the mausoleum in the third graveyard they visit, while Sam and Sarah talk. Dean cuts open the lock, and they step into where all of the family cremated remains are housed. Along one wall is the family's ashes in individual urns placed on the shelf in front of glass cases. Sarah thinks the creepiest thing she's ever seen is the doll by Melanie's ashes; Sam explains it was a tradition for a kid's favorite toy to be preserved in a glass case. However, Isaiah Merchant is not interred there.

Sam and Sarah wait outside while Dean goes to find out what happened to Isaiah's remains by searching the county death certificates. The pair discuss their feelings for one another, and Sam explains he's cursed or something, because anyone around him dies. He doesn't want to get close to Sarah in case she gets hurt or worse. Sarah says she's willing to take the risk. Sam tells her it's not a broken heart, but life and death. She responds by saying if he shuts out pain, you shut out everything else too, but he can't go through that pain again. Just then, Dean reappears, interrupting. It seems Isaiah's family were so disgraced by his actions he was buried in a pauper's grave by the county in a pine box, not cremated with his wife and kids. Dean also knows where the bones are so they can burn them.

It's night and the guys dig up Isaiah. Sarah is surprised how used to it they both are, and Sam teases if she thinks he's still a catch. They burn the bones.

The boys decide it's best to bury the painting as well, so they drive to Evelyn's house to pick it up. Sarah decides to go with Sam, so Dean urges Sam to make his 'move'. While they are heading to the house, Dean turns on a love ballad. Sam turns back, incredulous, and motions for him to stop it. Dean turns it off, and Sam and Sarah go inside. They are surprised that the little girl is missing, as well as the razor. Laughter, and then the front door slams shut - Sam and Sarah get trapped inside Evelyn's house. Sam calls Dean, explaining he thinks the little girl in the painting was the killer all along and she's after them. Dean can't pick the lock to get inside. Sam and Sarah need salt or iron, but Sam can't find any salt. They search frantically for some pure iron, while Dean rams the door a couple of times before searching for another way in. Melanie shows up, with her doll and the razor. Sam steps in front of Sarah to protect her, and they back up. He ends up backing up against the fireplace poker, and grabs it to swing at Melanie. She dissipates in the pure iron. Sam and Dean try to figure out how to dispel her, and Sarah tells Sam antique dolls would use the kid's real hair. Dean returns to the mausoleum to burn the antique doll which bears some of Melanie Merchant's hair. A heavy writing desk pins Sam, while the ghost goes after Sarah. Meanwhile Dean first tries to hit the glass with his fist and then the gun butt, before finally realizing he could shoot it. It takes a few tries, but he finally lights the real hair. Sam leaps across Sarah to protect her, just as the spirit goes up in flames. Dean calls, making sure Sam is good, to which he answers, 'Not bad'.

Dean arrives with more papers back at the Auction House. It seems the little girl killed her first family, which is why she was adopted. Then she kills the Merchants. Sarah tells the workers crating up the painting to take it out back to burn it. Sam thinks the girl was just born tortured, but Dean doesn't care. He just wants to move on, heading for the car muttering under his breath that he saved her by destroying the spirit. Sam and Sarah are glad to be alive and in one piece, and Sarah hopes he'll come back to see her.

Sarah lets Sam out, turning around after the door is closed feeling let down. There's a knocking at the door, for Sam returns and thoroughly kisses Sarah. Dean is watching and smiles, saying 'That's my boy', before getting in the car and leaving them together.