Title: Mile Marker
Warnings: none
Author's Notes: DISCLAIMERS... The characters don't belong to me and neither do the actors, but I sure as hell wish they did.

CHAPTER ONE

It's two o'clock in the morning and it's Dean's turn to drive. The music is turned down, so Sam can get some sleep, but not so low so that Dean can't hear his Lynard Skynyrd. He thumps his fingers lightly on the steering wheel along to the beat as he drives towards nowhere in particular. He glances down at the fuel gauge and takes a mental note that they will need to get gas at the next station that comes along. Then, he looks over at his brother as a grunt escapes from Sam's lips, his face contorted in pain or anguish. He hates to do it, but he knows he has to wake him up and reaches out to do so.

Luckily, or maybe not, Sam wakes himself up from this dream. His eyes shifts uneasily from one side of the car to the other. It is pitch black outside the car and he surmises that it must be the middle of the night because the highway is deserted.

"You all right?" Dean asks knowing full well he isn't but hoping they wouldn't have to talk about it. Sam doesn't realize how hard it is for Dean to put on a brave face for his little brother.

"Where are we?" A tinge of panic enveloping the words.

"Uh, a couple miles past Odessa, Nebraska."

"What mile are we on?"

Dean takes his eyes off the road to give his brother a weird look, raises his eyebrows and says, "I don't know."

"Dean, I need to know what mile we're on," Sam implores with his eyes fixed on the road. Suddenly he spots a mile marker. His arm swings out and hits Dean's chest, "Stop!"

Her breathing is erratic as she runs through the woods and her feet barely touch the dew stamped ground below. The creature, or whatever it is, follows behind her, close enough to keep her adrenaline up, but far enough behind to give her the impression that she has a chance to get away. Tears stream down her face and mingle with the dirt as she takes another hurried glance behind her. Suddenly her foot catches a raised tree root and she stumbles. A garbled scream escapes from her lips as she hits the forest's floor. Grasping at the ground, she slips and slides on the damp grass and mud, but is finally able to lift herself back up and continues to run.

Tree branches whip around her head like spiny fingers, slashing at her face and arms. She looks ahead and sees the moonlight reflect on something. A guardrail. Of course, the highway cuts through this area. Charged with a fresh burst of adrenaline, she throws herself through the tree line and into the road.

A figure runs out from the wooded area next to the road. Her foot catches in a depression in the ground and she falls hard. Taking a hurried glance behind her, she lifts herself off of the ground and runs full force into the road.

Dean grips the wheel and swerves to avoid hitting her. The Impala spins around and screeches to a halt facing the opposite direction. Throwing the door open, Sam runs toward the figure. He reaches her just in time to catch her as she collapses into a heap of relief from total exhaustion.

"Dean! Gun!" Still shell-shocked from the near accident, Dean hears his brother yell in the distance. His hunter's instincts kick in and he reaches over to grab the gun from the glove compartment.

Rushing out of the car, he sees Sam kneeling on the ground cradling a bloodied woman in his arms, protecting her from the creature looming over them. It was at least seven feet tall and its tattered clothing, covered in blood and dirt, barely covered its sickly green, decomposing flesh.

Aiming the gun, Dean takes a shot at the creature. It lets out a guttural cry as the bullet pierces its left arm. Grasping its injured limb, it flees into the wood from where it came. Dean begins to pursue.

"Dean, wait, don't!" Sam yells as he gets back on his feet. "We'll deal with it later. Right now we need to get her to the hospital." Hugging the woman's body to him closely, her limbs hanging like a ragdoll and her chest struggling to rise with each breath, he makes his way back to the car.

Dean takes another look into the woods and turns to follow Sam, trying to make sense of what just happened.