Disclaimer: I still don't own Supernatural or its characters. I and am not making any money on this…I'm just having fun!

Broken

Chapter 2 – Urgent Business

Dean looked thoughtfully at the doorway that his brother had just disappeared through. As he replayed his conversation with his father in his mind, he knew that Sam had heard and that he had come away with the wrong impression. "Damn it Sammy" Dean sighed to himself as he finished getting dressed. He could tell that this was going to be a long morning.

Sam let the water run over his body, wincing as some of the cuts and wounds protested. He really couldn't blame Dean for not wanting him on a hunt. Sam knew that in his current condition, he would get Dean killed. Dean would be concentrating on him and not on the job at hand; he also understood that they were the closest help for Joshua. But it still hurt to hear his brother say it out loud. He was useless…"I told you that you would eventually belong to my father…your family doesn't need you anymore."

"NO!" Sam slammed his fist against the tile, shaking his head. He wouldn't listen, demon's lie…but then Dean's words came back "he's pretty messed up right now. I don't think he can hunt yet." If Sam couldn't hunt, how long before his brother and father left him behind; How long before Sam would be alone? How long before the demon came looking for him again?

Sam jumped as he heard a knock on the door. "Samuel Winchester, you need to get yourself out of that shower. I've got breakfast ready…now don't you dawdle boy or I'll have to come in after you!"

"I'm coming Missouri!" Sam yelled back, turning off the shower.

Missouri shook her head on the other side of the door. She had felt Sam's despair in the kitchen. She knew that Sam tended to feel things more deeply than his father or brother. He internalized his feelings and let them churn. If they didn't intercede soon, Sam would have himself convinced that the demon was right and she shivered at the consequences for this family if that ever happened. Down deep inside, Missouri knew that Sam would never turn evil, he had too much good inside him for that…he would sacrifice himself before turning and that she couldn't allow.

Missouri headed back to the kitchen and patted Dean on the shoulder. "He'll be here shortly…guess he didn't want me to dry him off."

Dean laughed. "You wouldn't!"

Missouri looked at Dean and winked. "Ok, maybe you would…but you gotta know that would traumatize my little brother for the rest of his life."

Nick entered to the sound of soft laughter in the kitchen. "I'm sorry I slept so long…I guess I was a little more tired than I thought. Thanks for the bed Missouri."

"Don't you worry about it boy. Now sit yourself down and help yourself to some breakfast."

A few moments later Sam walked slowly into the room. He smiled at the relaxed atmosphere in Missouri's kitchen. He took a seat, groaning slightly…it was time for his pain medication but Sam didn't want it. He hated the way it made him feel. He'd rather have the pain.

Dean noticed his brother's pain and immediately stood to get Sam's medication. "You need to eat something and then take your pills Sam."

"Dean, I'm fine…when are you leaving?" Sam tried to change the subject.

Dean shook his head. "No way Sam, you aren't going to try to tell me that you aren't in pain. I can see it in your face bro'…you need to take the medication so that your body can heal."

"Dean, I don't want the damn pills…I just want you to leave me alone!" Sam stood and started to leave the kitchen.

"Samuel Winchester you sit your butt down right this minute!" Missouri ordered.

Sam sat down again, but refused to look at anyone. "Now, we are all going to eat this breakfast that I spent the past hour fixing. Dean, fill a plate for your brother and then you can tell us what your Daddy wanted."

Dean looked at Sam, worried by his brother's sudden silence. "Sam?"

But Sam continued to stare at the table, his hands clasped tightly in his lap. He would not let them see the sudden fear that Missouri's command brought to him. He had to get this crippling fear under control. "I'm fine Dean" Sam finally managed in a hushed voice.

Dean shook his head as he got a plate of food and cup of coffee for Sam. He placed in front of his brother and couldn't help but place a hand on Sam's shoulder. He could feel the tension in his little brother's body. But he also knew that Sam hated to be the center of attention, so he quickly took his seat and filled Missouri and Nick in on what his father had told him.

"So an old family friend may be in trouble and your Dad wants you to just pick up and leave Sam?" Nick asked, not understanding the way the Winchester family dynamics worked.

"Yeah, that about sums it up…but he's right. It's only 6 hours away. I could be there in back in less than a day…" Dean looked at Sam who had been quiet up until now.

"You need to go Dean and you know it. I'll take a look at Dad's file while you're getting packed." Sam looked at Nick "I know it's a lot to ask, but I'd feel better knowing someone was watching Dean's back…"

"Don't say another word, Sam…sounds like this might be right down my alley. If it is a spirit that needs to cross over, maybe I can help it so that Dean can get back sooner than later."

"No offense Nick, but I don't need a damn babysitter…I've hunted on my own before." Dean glared at Sam.

"Boy watch your mouth! I happen to think that your brother is making perfect sense. You know that hunting alone is always more dangerous than with backup. Why that's probably why Joshua is in trouble right now. Besides, your brother doesn't need to worry about you…he's got enough on his plate as it is right now!" Missouri said as she stood facing Dean, but seeing the stricken look on his face softened her tone. "Dean honey, your brother will be just fine with me."

Dean sighed, he knew that they were right. But he didn't like leaving Sam alone when he knew his brother needed him. "Fine, I'll get my stuff…Nick if you're coming, be ready to leave in 30 minutes. The sooner we find out what happened to Joshua, the sooner we can be back." Dean looked at Sam. "And I will be back little brother, you can bank on it!"

Sam rose quietly from his chair and headed out to the Impala. He needed his laptop if he was going to begin doing the research that Dean would need. At least he could do that much for his brother. As Sam slowly walked back into the house, Missouri met him at the door. "You could have asked one of us to get that for you Sam…you know, there is nothing wrong with needing a little help once in a while…it doesn't make you weak."

"I only went to the car Missouri." Sam sighed, realizing that the short walk had exhausted him. But he wasn't going to let it show, he wasn't in the mood for an 'I told you so' from Missouri.

Sam felt a sharp crack on his rear end as he passed by Missouri. "What?"

"I told you so!" Missouri said as she left Sam standing in the living room, chagrinned. He had forgotten for a moment where he was.

Sam quickly found the file that his father had sent to him. There were a number of newspaper articles from the last five years. Each article described the mysterious disappearance of various men. All of the men had last been seen in the Honky Tonk Bar and Grill. The bartender remembered that each of them had left alone around midnight. The next morning, their car or truck was found on a deserted road outside town. The doors were open, but there was no sign of foul play. It looked like the men had walked away. An extensive search of the fields in the area had not shown any clues. The disappearances always happened around the same time of the year, the month of September with a total of three men missing each year. Sam felt a shiver as he realized that Joshua disappeared around the same time of the month as the other men which left 2 more to go if the pattern stayed true.

Sam jumped as he felt a hand on his shoulder. "You sure you're ok with this Sam…I mean, maybe Dad can find someone else…"

"Dean, I'll be fine…besides it looks like Joshua may have gotten into more than he bargained for. I need to do more research, but it looks like you're the one who needs to be careful." Sam quickly filled Dean in on what he had read so far.

Dean shook his head. "Oh my god, Sam, I don't think I can do this one!"

"Dean what's wrong?" Sam asked concerned.

"Dude, I can't be found in a bar named 'Honky Tonk'! I mean, that's just not cool."

Sam slapped Dean on the shoulder. "You jackass!"

Dean smiled. "That's Mr. Jackass to you!" Dean ducked another swat from Sam as he grabbed his bag and called for Nick up the stairs. As he turned to leave Dean looked once more at his brother. "You know this is only temporary right? No one rides shotgun but you Sammy."

Sam smiled as he watched his brother and Nick drive away. He hoped Dean was right, because seeing someone else sitting beside his brother just didn't feel right. Turning back to the computer, Sam decided he could dig a little further. Maybe he could find something out before his brother reached his destination. He wasn't totally useless.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Joshua groaned as he opened his eyes. Not that it did him any good. It was pitch black where he was lying and it was damp. Joshua shivered trying to remember how he got here. But his mind was too foggy. As he reached into his pocket and pulled out his flashlight. He turned on the light, but wished that he hadn't. A number of human skulls were looking back at him.

TBC

Raven524: Sorry for the delay guys, but I've been battling the flu bug for the past two days. So much for the flu shot (I guess it worked, I got it). Anyway, poor Sam has been left behind to try to get himself back together while Dean and Nick are off to find out what happened to Joshua. Of course, we know it's never good when our boys split up don't we? Don't forget to push the little button and drop me a line!