Disclaimer: I do not own the fandoms written about below. They belong to their respective owners. Please do not sue me, thanks.
Summary: Frustrated with his lack of knowledge about his birth, Sam Oliver decides to embark on a mission to find the truth. This search takes him to a very bad place. Crossover.
A/N: This is my first fan fiction. I welcome all criticism, even flames.
Chapter 1: The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil
Sam Oliver was exhausted. He had worked a double that day and had gotten very little sleep the night before. It was hard to sleep though, when so much passed through his mind constantly. It had only been a month since his father had died and a cruel and disgusting possibility had been presented to him. There was a chance that the devil was his true father, that the Dark Prince had sired him for some unknown reason. Still, this was only a possibility and therein laid the crux of his problem.
He had just gotten dressed in his sleep wear after a quick shower, intending to go straight to bed. Something kept him from rest though, some intangible ghost of worry haunting his tired mind. Walking past the bed, he sat down at his desk, logging on to the computer. Sam thought back to the time his dad first told him of the deal his parents made with the devil, how their doctor was made to lie to them. His dad called him Dr. Burke, a name which had meant little to Sam at the time. Now, it could be the key to unraveling the secrets kept about his birth.
His mother had been written off weeks ago as a source of information; she refused to discuss the subject whatsoever. On top of that, she had been acting a little cold and distanced towards him since that fateful night. No, he had to look elsewhere for the knowledge he sought, something which he had decided he needed to do on his own. Sock and Ben were great friends, incredible even, but this was his issue and his alone.
A peek at his birth certificate had confirmed that his doctor was a man named Michael Burke. The name of the hospital and the town it was in were illegible due to the worn nature of the paper, but it did show him that it was in West Virginia. He typed in his search parameters to track this doctor down online, hoping that there was some information about the man on the internet. His search yielded a whole slew of unrelated links and a few slight leads. With just a sliver of hope in his heart, he clicked on the first of these links.
The alarm clock came alive, breaking him from his slumber. He shot up in shock, clueless to his location. It took a few seconds for him to realize that he had fallen asleep at his desk, searching well into the night for clues to his past. His search had given him nothing more than an address, not even a phone number. It was in a town called Ashfield in West Virginia; apparently the good doctor had retired from practicing medicine but not from life. He was going to go there and talk to this man, to see if he had anything to tell him about the circumstances of his birth. It didn't seem like there was much more that he could do. Now all he had to do was get the time off from work to go on this trip.
Sam stood up from his computer chair and stretched his aching bones, feeling his vertebrae pop and crack as he did so. It was time to start his day. Fortunately, he didn't have to go into work for another four hours, giving him time to relax a little beforehand. It was nice to have some time off from his other job, the bad one that he had been drafted into by Satan. He did like some aspects of the job, like helping people and feeling responsible, but it came with so much danger and darkness that it sometimes overwhelmed him. But he had his friends to assist him and his beautiful girlfriend, so it was manageable. Still, it was very nice to have the time off, especially considering that he didn't get paid for it.
He exited his room and padded down the hall to the living room, seeing both Ben and Sock sitting on the couch, eating cereal. "Morning," he said with as much energy as he could muster together.
"Morning yourself," replied Sock, "You look like crap by the way."
"Thanks. Nice to hear that."
"He does have a point, Sam. You look like you didn't get any sleep last night," said Ben, between mouthfuls of cereal.
"I got some sleep," he said defensively. "I was just looking something up online and it took awhile is all."
"What, like porn?" asked Sock, looking a little interested.
"Not porn you perv. I was looking up the address of my parents' doctor." With that, he walked into the kitchenette, intending on getting something to eat.
This got the full attention of both Sock and Ben. "What are you going to do with that," asked Ben, a concerned look on his face.
"I want to know what happened, how it all went down. I'm tired of not knowing the truth about it." He didn't look to see their reactions to this, concentrating on fixing himself a bowl of cereal.
"Sam, I don't know. Didn't your dad say that it would be bad if you learned the truth?" asked Sock, his voice thick with trepidation.
"It's already bad, Sock. At least this way, I know why." Sam turned back to his food plunking a spoon into the bowl and grabbing it. He walked back into the living room, sitting down next to them on the couch.
"Sock's got a point, Sam. It could be very bad. What if the truth is more than you can handle. I mean you've been dealing with issues that we, as humans, understand very little about." Ben highlighted his point with a thrust of his spoon in Sam's direction.
"What could be worse than finding out my father's the devil? And that's something I've already braced myself for."
"So where does this guy live, anyway?" asked Sock around a mouthful of half-chewed Fruit Loops.
"Somewhere in West Virginia," he replied, just before taking a bite of food himself.
"Dude, Sammy that's all the way across the freakin' country. We can't all take the time off from work to go there, even if the thought of a road trip sounds really cool." Sock took another bite of cereal when he was done.
This was the part he was really dreading, telling them this. "Not 'we' Sock. I'm going alone on this one." Sam braced himself for the fallout to come at this statement.
"That is the dumbest fucking thing I have ever heard come from your mouth, Sam," said Sock, looking shockingly pissed.
The expression on Ben's face didn't look that much better. He seemed close to yelling from what Sam could tell. "Sock's right. I can't believe you're considering this. Why don't you want us to go?"
Oh the dreaded explanation, at last. "It's hard to explain, he said," drawing his words out in the hope that it would somehow give them more value. "This is just something that I have to do on my own. Please, just understand that." Well, here goes, he thought, awaiting their response.
"Sammy, it could be dangerous. You need us to watch your back," said Sock, his look of anger turning into one of concern. It was terrible to see that look on his friend's face, especially considering that it was due to him, but he couldn't let himself be weak on this matter.
"That's no explanation. You're gonna have to do a whole hell of a lot better than that, to convince us," stated Ben, a look of clear challenge on his face.
"Listen. This is a personal matter. I can't give you anything better than that, I'm sorry," he replied, feeling more tired than he did when he first woke up.
"What's the matter, Sam? Don't you trust us?" asked Sock, his voice raising a couple of decibels.
"It's not that I don't trust you, not at all. Because I do trust you, both of you. But I need to do this alone. I need you to trust me." There, he thought, I officially deserve to go to hell now.
It was awhile before one of them responded to what he had said. It was Ben who first spoke. "I sure hope you know what you're doing, Sam."
He looked down into his bowl of -now soggy- cereal, contemplating his plan. "Yeah, Ben," he said quietly, "me too."
It was bright and hot out when he got to the Work Bench, the Sun spreading its merciless light across the parking lot. The three of them were walking into work together on this day, all bearing the same shift. No one spoke to one another, there had been a steady silence going on within the trio since the conversation that morning. It was awkward and heavy, a thoroughly uncomfortable experience as far as Sam was concerned. Ben and Sock kept sneaking glances at him when they thought he wasn't looking, worry weighing down on their expressions each time.
Once inside, they proceeded to drag their feet all the way until they actually got to the point of having to do work. Ted was MIA at the moment, a fact that could change at any minute. The man was sneaky and had a predilection toward catching his employees by surprise, a trait that annoyed Sam to no end. He didn't hold a candle to the devil in that arena though, that was for certain. He shook his thoughts away, bracing himself for the conversation that was to come. He had to tell Andi his intention to travel clear across the country to look up a doctor who he had never really met before (if you don't count being birthed by the man as having met him, that is). This could get ugly, he thought grimly.
He could see her on the far side of the aisle he was in, pricing items. Sam began his walk over to her, wishing for the best but expecting the worst. She noticed him approaching after he got about halfway there, smiling beautifully at him. In that instant, he felt his resolve weaken a little. How could he leave her abruptly like this with the barest of explanations, even if it was only for a couple weeks? Noticing his somber expression, the smile faded from her face a little and he felt a little like a bastard for it.
"Hi Sam, what's wrong?" she asked.
"Hi Andi, you look gorgeous today," he said, trying to grease the wheels a little.
"Thank you, Sam. Now, please answer my question." Apparently all the grease in the world wasn't going to make this go any easier. She waited patiently for him to respond.
"We need to talk. I have something I need to tell you."
"Okay, what is it?" she asked, concern and curiosity warring for control of her features.
"Not here. Let's go somewhere a little more private. It's kinda important." He gestured for her to follow him to the break room. Together, they walked in silence, making him think back to his friends and the silence that had befallen them after he had this same conversation with them hours ago. He really didn't want that to happen with his girlfriend, the thought alone made him feel lonely and isolated. He really hoped that she would be understanding, he wasn't really sure what he would do if she wasn't. Sam pushed those thoughts aside, holding the door open to allow her in ahead of him.
The break room was empty at the moment, something he was eternally grateful for. They couldn't have this conversation with other people around. They had too many sensitive things to say, for others to listen in on. It was bad enough that he was going to have to lie to her about some of it, seeing as how he decided not to tell her about the devil possibly being his father. It was going to be tricky as it was, without eavesdroppers. Although the only one he was really worried about was Sock. It would be just like him to listen in on his private talks with his girlfriend, after all. They both sat down at a table, facing each other.
"What's going on, Sam, please tell me?" She looked at him, an unreadable expression painting her face.
"Andi, you know how my dad died?" At the nod of her head, he continued. "Well, he left behind a lot of unanswered questions about the particulars of the deal he made with the devil. There are a few things that I need to clear up, things related to my birth. You see, I found the address of the doctor who my parents were seeing at the time and I feel I need to go talk to this man and I couldn't find a phone number for him listed anywhere, so I need to go see him in person." There, the brunt of it was out in the open.
"Well, you should go talk to him then. Where does he live?"
"Well, that's the thing Andi, what I really needed to talk to you about. You see, he lives in West Virginia." Sam had to resist closing his eyes, in preparation for her response.
"Wow, Sam, you want to go clear across the country and talk to same stranger about a few questions you have?" Andi didn't seem angry, nor did she seem happy about this. It was hard to tell if that was a good thing or a bad thing though.
"When you put it that way, I admit that it sounds dumb, but I can't help but feel that I need to go do this. But I don't think I would go if you don't want me to." He had laid it all out on the table; now it was Andi's turn to lay it all out in return.
"Sam, if this is something that you feel you must do, then I won't stand in your way. Just promise me that you won't do anything stupid while you're gone, okay?"
Relief poured into him like a breaking dam, he had permission from the one person he really felt he needed permission from. "I make no promises on that one," he said with a stupid grin on his face, clearly telling her he was just kidding.
She laughed in response to this, saying, "at least call me to check in every night. Got it?"
"Yes ma'am," he replied, leaning in to kiss her.
It felt like a huge burden had been lifted from him, now that he had gotten that out of the way. Now, he only needed to get the time off from work.
Speaking to Ted about getting time off went much easier than he expected. Apparently his boss could tell how important this was to him. He had looked Sam in the eye, and with greater intuition than Sam had ever credited him, had realized that he needed this. It didn't hurt that he hadn't taken a whole lot of time off in the past couple of years either. It wasn't that Sam was such a dedicated worker, as it was that he never had a lot of reasons to take so much time off before.
After work, he bought a road map and a gas can, before going home. He left in a week and he had many preparations to make. He was beginning to get a little excited at the prospect of leaving. Finally, he felt he was making great strides in learning the truth, and he felt very good about that. His thoughts briefly turned to the devil; he wondered at the possibility that Satan would try to put a stop to his plan. He had no doubts that the devil knew exactly what he was up to, but somehow he didn't think that it would be an issue.
Regardless, tonight he had to make peace with his friends, who had secured alternate transportation for their ride home. That had left him feeling a little hurt; was his decision to go alone really that bad? Oh well, he was fairly confident that they would come around in time. He just had to make them see that this decision was not made lightly and that he had given it serious thought. Well, that could work on Ben, but Sock was unpredictable. There was no telling what he would do to stop Sam, if it came down to it. He just needed to be cautious about this and not let his guard down.
Sam eventually pulled into the parking garage, parking his car in his spot. Being in the garage made him think of Tony and the time when he still lived here, as well. Maybe he could talk to him, see what he thought of it all. Having thought it, Sam decided that it was a good idea and resolved to speak with him as soon as possible. With that, he took his keys out of the ignition and got out of the car.
In the apartment, Sock and Ben were playing video games, a bowl of popcorn sitting on the coffee table in front of them. They barely looked over at him before turning back to their game. He waited for one of them to say something to him, anything, but they didn't utter a single word in his direction.
"Come on, guys," he said, "don't you think you're overreacting a little?" Sam looked at them expectantly.
"No, Sam," replied Sock, "You wanna go on this super cool, possibly dangerous, mission all alone. This could be the coolest thing we ever do and you wanna fly solo?" He said all this without once looking away from the game. "What are we not good enough for you, anymore?"
"No Sock, that isn't it at all. It's very personal for me and I just need to do this by myself." Sam walked over to the fridge, pulling a beer out for himself.
"Yeah, you keep saying that, Sam, but it isn't a reason," added Ben, dealing himself into the conversation. "It's like the exact opposite of a reason."
"You tell him, Benji," said Sock, still not looking up from the game.
Sam exhaled sharply, shaking his head in frustration. "Look, I appreciate what you guys are saying, that you're looking out for me. But, this is my deal and I gotta do this alone. I've already made my decision, I'm gonna do this."
He got no response to this.
Sam had been waiting as patiently as he could all week long, but it wasn't easy. The closer he got to his leave date, the harder it got to concentrate. All he could think about was his impending mission. He was just days away from learning the truth, he just knew it. There was a lot that needed to be done first, before he left. His car needed to be taken into the mechanic, he needed to map out his route, and get his provisions together. All that and work kept him pretty busy, which he needed so desperately to be busy, or he would have gone mad.
Eventually, the big day came and his girlfriend and his friends were there to see him off. Sock and Ben had gotten over their issues with him going out alone, but only reluctantly. His talk with Tony went well and he came away from it with some good road trip tips. The Prius was in good shape and loaded down with his supplies.
They were all standing around his car in the parking garage of his apartment building. Sock, Ben, and Andi were giving him a little send off. "Thanks guys," he said, "I'll only be gone for a couple weeks."
"We know, Sam, we just want you to stay safe," said Ben. "Watch your back, okay?"
"I will, I promise. Now I gotta get going, guys. I'll call you tonight." He shook hands with them, before turning to Andi. He smiled at her and pulled her into his arms. "I love you, Andi. I will definitely make sure to call you constantly." With that, he kissed her deeply and passionately. They broke apart and he looked her in the eyes, his hands gripping her forearms lightly.
"Love you, too. And you better call me, mister. I swear, I will hunt you down if you don't." she leaned forward and kissed him again.
"Have no worries, any of you. I promise I'll stay in touch. I swear. Now, I gotta get going if I wanna make decent distance today." He let go of Andi and waved goodbye to everyone.
"Bye, Sam. We'll miss you." This was from Sock, who had stayed uncharacteristically silent throughout the farewells.
"Yeah, I'll miss you, too." Sam opened his car door and got in. He waved one last goodbye to them and drove off to his destination.
The trip Eastward had ended up taking a total of over four days to get to Ashton. It had been a hard drive, with very little rest. He stayed on the road as much as possible, trying to make good time. He slept for four hour periods in his car at rest areas, along the way. He learned that, while the prius was good at conserving gas, it wasn't very comfortable to go on a road trip in. The cramped confines of the car were beginning to take their toll on him. His body was so sore, he didn't think he would ever be able to relax again.
The scenery rolled by without much attention being paid to it from him; his mind was completely on his goal. What was this Dr. Burke going to be like? Would he welcome him in, or slam the door shut in his face. Sam wouldn't entirely blame him if he did, the devil tended to have that effect on people. But he couldn't let himself walk away empty-handed, he was going way too far to allow that to happen. He needed a plan, but couldn't think of anything beyond knocking on the guy's door and introducing himself.
After his long exhausting drive, he finally rolled into the town of Ashfield. It was a little bigger than he was expecting. In his mind's eye, it was going to be a sleepy little hamlet. There would be one bar in town and a smattering of little houses, with a few businesses slipped in here and there. In reality, it was a bustling city, with (according to the city limits sign) over eighty-thousand residents. He should've put more time into looking up the directions to the doctor's house, but there was nothing to do about it now.
It was after eight pm when he got into town and he didn't feel up to trolling the streets of some city he had never been to before. Sam decided that he would get a motel room for the night and tackle the search in the morning. So with that, he kept his eyes peeled for a motel to stop at. It would be nice, he decided, to be able to sleep in an actual bed and take a shower before he went to talk to this guy.
Sam pulled into the first motel he came across. It was one-story and L-shaped, with the office located in the shorter wing. While it didn't look like much, it didn't look like one of those pay-by-the-hour shit holes he had seen every time he went to Tacoma. After checking in and getting his key, he pulled in front of his room and grabbed his luggage.
The room was bare, with just a few boring pictures on the wall. The bed was neat and its bedding folded crisply over it. The carpet was threadbare and stained by something in places that he didn't want to dwell too deeply on. Other than that, it looked very inviting. He spared one more glance at the bed that was calling out to him and went straight to the bathroom. Stripping off his clothes, he stepped inside the shower and turned the water on.
He stayed under the spray of the shower head for what seemed like forever, letting the hot water wash away the days of being on the road. His muscles still ached from being stuffed into the cramped space of the car, but he did feel much better, regardless. He allowed himself another five minutes before he got out.
After toweling off, he wrapped it around his waist and left the bathroom. Sam grabbed his pajama pants from his bag and slipped them on. He picked up the list of takeout numbers from the nightstand and ordered a pizza. When he hung up, he called Andi and the guys and checked in. He stayed up long enough to eat dinner and then turned in for the night.
The next morning, he got dressed and found a nearby diner to have breakfast. He decided that he would try to get some directions from the locals within. If that didn't pan out, he would have to resort to the local library, which wouldn't be all that bad but he just wanted to get the information and move on. His patience had begun to wear very thin, considering that he was here now and just wanted to get this over with.
The diner was packed with what could only be described as the usuals. A wretched hive of scum and villainy, he thought. Old and crinkled faces stared back at him dispassionately, faces worn by time and labor. These were the people industry was based off of, these lost souls. Sam shook these indulgent thoughts aside and took a seat at the bar. The waitress, a frumpy misshaped woman in her middle ages with wiry red hair, took his order with the amount of interest typically reserved for work at the DMV. Now that the thought had entered his mind, he was struck by how much she resembled Gladys.
As he ate his pancakes, he managed to get the directions to Dr. Burke's address from one of the more friendly locals. He paid his check, tipping the waitress, and said his goodbyes. The sky was overcast and an unnatural chill had settled down over the area. He was glad that he had thought to take his jacket with him. It looked like rain was a very real possibility; it was only a matter of time before it started to fall.
It appeared that the address was located somewhere in the hills just outside the city limits. He followed the directions he had been given to the best of his abilities, but it still took a few hours to find the place. On top of that, it turned out that no one was home. Frustrated, he left with the intention of returning later. At least, he knew where to go now. All he had to do was find something to occupy his time until then.
Sam spared one last look at the house. It was large, but not too expansive. The place was in need of some repair by the look of things. Paint was peeling in places and some of it's old-fashioned shutters were hanging precariously at varying angles from their hinges. The roof sagged inward in places, giving it the appearance of destitution. He turned away and walked back to his car. His mind working on how he would spend his time until he returned, he got in and drove away.
He ended up watching a movie, although he found it difficult to concentrate on it with all that was going through his mind. Much of the day had already gone by and the Sun was beginning to sink in the West. The sky was beginning to get darker, not much just yet, but it was getting there. Sam returned to Dr. Burke's house, after giving a call to everyone back home.
This time, there was a pickup truck parked in the driveway and there were lights on inside. Finally, he could talk to this man and maybe get some much needed answers. He got out of his car in time for the rain to make it's appearance. He was struck by how intense it was. In Seattle and the surrounding areas, they got a lot of rain, but it was always this light miserable drizzle that lasted for days. Apparently, here it just exploded downwards and immediately drenched everything it hit. Sam pulled his jacket tighter around himself and rushed up to the doorstep. In spite of his speed, he was still soaked by the time he got under the eaves. The cold had gotten that much worse because of the rain and he was beginning to shiver. He reached up and pushed the doorbell, the chime ringing out inside the house. Footsteps could be heard heading in the direction of the front door.
The door opened and an old man with a slight build peered out at him, suspicion steeped in his very stance. "Can I help you?" he asked dourly.
"Uh, yes sir. I'm here to ask you about a couple who were your patients a little over twenty years ago. My parents went to you for awhile back then. You were their doctor." Sam tried to keep the nervousness out of his voice, uncertain of how successful he was.
"I was a lot of peoples' doctor back then, you're going to have to refresh my memory, son."
"Well, you would remember my parents because of the circumstances behind them." Here it was, the moment of truth. "They were the Oliver's."
The man, while standoffish before, looked downright hostile now. "Get off my property, now," he growled, moving to shut the door.
Sam put his hand out and stopped it from closing. "Please, sir. I need to know the truth about what happened back then. I know it's not pleasant to discuss, but I don't know where else to turn. Please, just share what you know."
Dr. Burke lost some of his hostility and stopped trying to force the door shut. "You're asking me to make a tall order there, Sam."
"You know my name?" he asked, wondering about the implications of that.
"Of course I do, son. I was the one who caught you from your mother's womb. I will always remember that night. A terrible fog had come in on the lake there and you could hardly see in it at all." He looked speculative about that for a moment, before recovering. "Well, you might as well come inside if we're going to discuss this. This rain is murder." With that, he turned aside and allowed Sam entrance.
The house was delightfully warm and dry. The chairs looked comfortable and inviting, he just wanted to sit down in one and relax. Dr. Burke even had a fire going, casting a wonderful glow over everything. He proceeded to shed his jacket, hanging it on the coat rack by the door.
"Well," said Dr. Burke, "let me get a good look at you." He took a hold of Sam's face with both hands and began to inspect him. Sam was just dumbstruck by his actions and did nothing in response. Dr. Burke felt his lymph nodes and checked his pulse. "Say ahh," he said.
"Ahh," said Sam, figuring that it was for the best to just go along with it. Dr. Burke stared into his mouth, seeming pleased with what he saw there.
"You seem to be in good health, Sam," he said and began walking away. "You want some coffee?"
"Thank you, and yes please." Sam took the opportunity to have a look around the room.
"Feel free to have a seat," called out Dr. Burke from the kitchen.
"Thank you," he said, but didn't yet take him up on his offer. As much as he wanted to sit down, he was full of too much nervous energy.
"Do you like cream and sugar in your coffee?"
"Yes, thank you," he said, inspecting a picture on the wall. It was a group photo of three men posing in front of a building. The man on the left was definitely a much younger Dr. Burke, the man on the right was young looking and unfamiliar, but the man in the middle… Sam got such a chill when he settled his gaze on the man. The devil was looking directly at the camera –and consequently Sam –a shark-tooth grin plastered across his face; his suit was impeccable as ever. There was a caption below the picture, it read: Mike B., Jerry B., and Mike K. –the doctors are in!
"He called himself Jerry," said Dr. Burke, startling Sam. He was holding two steaming mugs in his hands. "We met in '77 at a medical conference in Vegas, he had two gorgeous women in his arms and he looked like sin incarnate." He handed Sam one of the mugs and sat down.
"Thank you," said Sam, finally taking a seat of his own.
"He was charming and charismatic, I took to him immediately," he continued, lost in his own memories. "He offered to take me out on the town and introduce me to some of the private poker games they had going on. Oh, he had all the connections; he knew everyone. I'm talking about big high rollers, the movers and shakers of Vegas. Looking back on it, it was how I got into debt to begin with.
"I should have ended it there, but I didn't. Our friendship continued on over the years after that, much to my regret. He introduced me to Dr. Kaufman, who would end up playing a part in your birth; he's the other man in that picture. He was a strange character, that one –always walking around like he had something else entirely to do.
"Anyway, it all came to a head when I got visited by thugs in my own practice. You see, Sam, by that point I had racked up over thirty-thousand dollars of debt from my times with 'Jerry' in Vegas. We went there a total of three times when we were friends, as I recall." Dr. Burke stopped here to take a sip of his coffee.
Sam, who had sat listening to this story, with completely undivided attention took his own sip and asked, "What happened next?"
"Well, they gave me forty-eight hours to get them their money or bad things would happen. Needless to say, I was scared shitless. These men looked very serious and I knew that they would follow up on their threats. That was when 'He' stepped into the picture. To make a long story short, he impressed upon me his true identity to the point that I had no choice but to believe. I was desperate; I didn't know what else to do. He literally made me an offer I couldn't refuse, so I took it."
"Sir, is there anything more? My parents told me that the Devil had you tell them that they couldn't have children when they could." Here, Dr. Burke looked extremely uncomfortable. "Wait," said Sam, "is that not right?"
"Oh, I am sorry Sam, but I cannot tell you about that, I'm not allowed to. 'He' forbade it explicitly." Dr. Burke shielded himself behind his coffee by taking a sip.
"Oh no. Please tell me something; I traveled all the way across the country to talk to you. You can't leave me hanging here; I need to know the truth." Sam set his cup down on the coffee table and focused his look on the other man, trying with all his might to will him to break this silence.
"I'll tell you what I can, but it won't be a whole lot though. I'm sorry, but that's the best that I can give you."
"Whatever you can tell me, I don't want to go home empty-handed," said Sam, eagerness etched into his features.
"As I mentioned to you earlier, I was there when you were born. A thick fog had settled in over the lake, completely blanketing the whole town."
Sam broke in here. "Wait, you mentioned the lake before, but I haven't seen any lakes around here." Confusion laced his words, as he spoke.
"Oh no. That wasn't here. That was in… What hospital was that? Brookhaven, I think. But that was over in Silent Hill."
"Silent Hill?" he asked, mostly to prompt him to continue.
"It's about an hour's drive from here. Anyway, you should try Dr. Kaufman. He was there and watched in on the procedure. Would've tried to do the delivery himself, if your parents weren't so insistent on me doing it. Afterward, he had the nurse cart you out to another room. Your parents followed him. That was the last time I ever saw you until now." Dr. burke took another drink of his coffee, letting silence fill in the room.
"Do you know if Dr. Kaufman is still practicing there?" he asked, desperate for some avenue to continue his search.
"Oh, I think so. I haven't spoken to him in many years. You should try there, though. I don't have any contact info for him."
"Thank you, sir. I'll try there." With that, Sam stood up.
"You're welcome, Sam. But just be careful; you're dredging up some dangerous things that have been buried for years."
"I know, but I must do this. I will do what I need to, to get this information."