"Be careful, Dean," Sam said to his brother. "He's in bad enough shape as it is."
"We don't have time to be gentle, Sam. We don't want to be here when it gets dark." Dean's voice became strained as he heaved once again on the pry bar.
Plastic and metal groaned as it began to give way. Nick moaned as pressure momentarily increased but otherwise he showed no signs of coming around. With one last heave, Dean used the last of his strength to force the car up and away. Sam caught hold of Nick and pulled.
Sam nearly fell on his butt in the snow, Nick came out so easily. Dean extracted the crowbar and turned toward his brother. "Now what, Dr. Kildare?"
"Check the car to see if anything useful survived then help me get him to the car," Sam instructed. He had Nick sprawled on the snow while he examined the older man's leg. Luckily Sam was wearing a scarf. He used it as a tourniquet. The wound on Nick's leg was below the knee. A long gash to the bone in places that had begun to bleed again with the jostling they'd subjected him to. Sam was surprised at how heavy the smaller man actually was. He was obviously in very good shape and had a high muscle mass.
Dean returned with a beat up brown leather bag, and a canvas bag thrown over his right shoulder. His face carefully neutral, Dean got hold of Nick's legs.
"I don't think it's broken but be careful just in case," Sam warned. Their charge was still very unconscious but moans and groans slipped out as the Winchester brothers carried him to Dean's black Impala.
"Yes, mother," Dean growled. It was one thing to get slimmed by a ghost or other supernatural creature. It was quite another to get another human's blood all over his hands. It kind of grossed the elder Winchester out, especially when it was cold and sticky. If Dean had been alone hunting the creatures in this area, he may not have stopped to check the car. But then, knowing what he knew, he probably would have.
As carefully as the two men could manage, they put Nick in the backseat of the car. Sam slid in beside him to do what he could. Dean dropped Nick's bag into the trunk and pulled a blanket out.
"Here," Dean said, offering it to his brother before getting behind the wheel and starting up the car. "Where to?"
"The motel I guess. Unless you want to try to find a hospital, he needs a blood transfusion," Sam said from the back seat. Before Dean could respond the car slid sideways sending Sam slamming against the back of the driver's seat. "Whoa!"
Dean grunted as he fought the steering wheel to get control. Sam braced himself between the front and back seat, trying to keep Nick from sliding around too much.
After several breathless moments, the elder Winchester managed to wrench the black Impala back onto the road without damaging it. "Sorry about that," Dean threw over his shoulder.
"Are we going to make it back to the motel?" Sam asked. Dark clouds had rolled in and snow had begun to fall with abandon. The road ahead was beginning to disappear. If it wasn't for the trees lining it, Dean couldn't have distinguished it from its surroundings. Visibility was quickly reducing to zero.
"Maybe," was the only response Dean could think of giving. While he concentrated on keeping the car on the road, his mind sorted through the various structures in the area for one that would keep them all safe and preferably warm. The man in the back seat wasn't going to survive much longer in his wet clothes. The heat from the car was melting the blood staining his pants and shirt. This had all been a really bad idea. Dean hated snow. Now he remembered why.
"Maybe isn't good enough, Dean." Sam tried to keep the irritation out of his voice. He knew his brother was doing his best. However, Dean was not the one trying to hold this man's leg together and keep him from haemorrhaging.
"I'm working on it," Dean hissed back. The car slid sideways again causing Sam to brace himself again. Dean had to fight the steering wheel again. "Damn it!"
"Dean?" Sam was watching the trees move closer and closer to the side of the car. He trusted his older brother implicitly but needed to something, anything. He was suddenly feeling nervous. As Dean said, they didn't have time for this. All ready the world was becoming perceptively darker. The sun had begun its descent behind the tree tops.
"I know!" Dean shot back. At the last moment, he pulled the car out of its skit and managed to wrestle it back onto the road. "We're going to have to find shelter for the night until this blows over."
"Any suggestions?" Sam didn't relish the idea but with the survival kits in the car they wouldn't starve or freeze.
"Yeah, I think so. Hold on, this may be a little tense," Dean tossed over his shoulder.
Half an hour later, the black Impala pulled up to an abandoned farmhouse. The house's exterior was weathered wood and rock. Most of the windows appeared to be intact and the stone chimney was reasonably whole. Dean pulled the car into a dilapidated out building. He left it running with Sam and Nick inside while he checked out the house.
"Where are we?" Nick managed. He'd come around a few moments ago and had taken this long to get enough energy to ask the question.
"We couldn't make it back to town. The roads are too bad," Sam replied. He was relieved to see his charge awake. Anxiously, he glanced out the back window toward the house worried about his brother.
"Water?" Nick's mouth felt like the Sahara desert. He knew he was dehydrated and hoped desperately that these two had some form of liquid.
"Yeah, definitely." Sam reached under the passenger seat and produced a water bottle. He had to shuffle up a bit but he got up to Nick's head. Sam used one hand to prop his head up while the other brought the bottle to Nick's lips. It killed the fiercely independent ex Seal to be helped by a stranger but the water was most welcome. Nick drank nearly half of it before his stomach heaved and he had to stop.
"Thank you," Nick said, his voice sounding stronger.
"We're at an old farm house. Dean's inside starting a fire and making sure it's secure," Sam explained.
In the window above his head, Nick could see the sky between two of the boards. It was almost dark. "We need to get inside," he rasped. Fear spiked through his system. This was not good.