Caught by surprise, Sam felt his jaw drop – and the girl shove his shoulder back into place.
Once the agony subsided and he could actually see straight again, Sam realized Kelly was still talking, and Tommy was placing his arm in a sling. "You need to keep that arm in the sling for a week or two. I'll give you some instructions on exercises you can do after that to strengthen your shoulder back up." She glanced outside. "Your car's here. You go in there," she gestured at the second closed door, "and get cleaned up. I'll have Tommy bring you some breakfast and whatever you need from your car. I have some four-legged patients waiting for me."
She turned and headed for the door with Tommy on her heels. Sam's head was spinning, partly from pain, but also with the knowledge that this girl knew they were hunters. What else did she know?
"Are you a hunter?" Sam blurted out.
Ok – so not what I wanted to ask.
With her hand on the knob, she paused, head bowed slightly. "Not anymore," she said softly, her voice full of sadness. Then she turned back to him. "Whatever you do – don't leave this room." And then she was gone.
******
Sam stared at the closed door. Not anymore? Don't leave the room? He needed more info. Something wasn't right here. Every instinct he had was starting to scream at him. He rose slowly and went to sit on the edge of Dean's bed. The color was coming back into his brother's face – he looked much better than when they had rolled him in here.
"Who shot you, Dude?" Sam whispered, as he tucked an edge of the blanket around his brother a bit more tightly.
Dean was breathing easily and looked like he was simply sleeping. Sam sighed with relief and decided maybe this would be a good time to clean up. His face, neck and shirt were covered in blood. He opened the door the girl had gestured at to find a bathroom complete with shower.
He hesitated, not wanting to let Dean out of his sight. He didn't want his brother to wake up alone. In the end, he left the bathroom door open.
He was gently washing the blood from his face at the sink when Tommy reappeared, staggering under the weight of Sam's backpack, Dean's duffel, and a small paper sack. He let the bags drop to the floor next to the counter in the room and placed the sack on top of the counter. He then proceeded to rummage around in Sam's pack and then carried a complete set of clothing over to him.
Sam took them from the boy, curious that he had picked out his favorite shirt and jeans. Coincidence? He knew they had been near the bottom of his backpack. Something about this kid was bugging the crap out of him.
The boy made no move to leave. He simple stood, staring at the floor, nervously shifting from foot to foot.
After awhile, when the kid seemed no closer to revealing what was bothering him, Sam touched Tommy's shoulder gently and waited until he looked up at him.
"What is it? Is there something you want to tell me?"
The kid actually looked like he was going to cry. There was an odd mix of fear, sorrow, and anger in his eyes. He suddenly turned and bolted for the door. Just as he started to open it, he stopped and turned back toward Sam.
"It's not safe for you here." The boy jerked the door open and was gone.
Sam stood there in shock.
He had heard the boy clearly. In his head. Tommy's mouth had not moved.
Who are these people?
********
After a quick shower, Sam struggled to get his arm back into the sling and then awkwardly scooted the recliner closer to Dean's bed so he could watch him better. The small sack turned out to hold two scrambled egg sandwiches. He only managed to eat one.
He glanced up at the wall clock. 10 am. He was so tired. Just a few minutes. I'll rest for just a few minutes. Have to stay sharp and alert for danger.
*******
"Sam?"
Sam woke with a start and jerked upright, only to be overcome with stabbing pain in both his injured shoulder and his head. He fell back against the recliner.
"Take it easy! It's ok." Kelly was speaking in hushed tones.
"How's Dean?" He glanced over at his brother, angry with himself that he hadn't heard Kelly come in.
"He's ok. He's stable. He should wake up soon. That Nukey just about killed him. Had to give him a 3rd unit of blood - wiped out my supply." She started rearranging Dean's blankets and checking the various tubes she had connected to him.
"What about the gunshot wound?"
"I don't think the bullet didn't hit anything major. If we can prevent infection, and keep him still for a few days, he'll be fine."
He looked up at the clock. 3 pm. He cursed himself mentally for sleeping.
Sam sighed; time to get answers. "How do you know my name?"
She stopped fussing with things and straightened up. She stared out the window for a moment, as if trying to decide what to say.
"I have a confession to make," she said softly. "I didn't just happen by this morning. I was looking for you. I knew you were going to be there. I'm sorry I wasn't there sooner. I had a mare I had to caesarian or I would have been there to help."
Sam's eyebrows went up. "But how… "
"Who do you think told Bobby about the Nukey?"
"You know Bobby Singer?"
Dumb question.
She actually smiled. "Most of my life. He told me you were the ones that would be coming."
Now he was thoroughly confused. Why would Tommy warn him about danger if they were among friends? Why hadn't Bobby mentioned Kelly?
"So, Tommy…" He hesitated. Maybe he shouldn't mention that Tommy had spoken to him…well, telepathically for lack of a better word.
Fortunately, he didn't have to shift gears. She guessed his question wrong.
"He's my brother. I have another brother around here too, but he's not nearly as easy to get along with!" She laughed nervously. "Well, I need to go finish up some things. I'll be back in a bit to check on you. And we need to talk about how we're going to finish up this hunt. That thing is still out there." She was quiet a moment, looking at him as if sizing him up; as if she were trying to come to some decision about him.
"Again, sorry I didn't get there sooner." That poker face façade was back. Sam would swear there were two different Kellys here.
"It's not your fault. Don't worry about it." He wanted – needed - to know so much more, but she was clearly done talking for the moment.
*******
"Sam?"
The familiar, gravelly voice was music to Sam's ears.
"Hey, Dean," he said gently, as he leaned over him and put a hand on his shoulder, "How you feelin'?"
"Water?" Dean whispered.
"Oh, sure!" Sam grabbed a cup of water, dropped in the straw Tommy had left in the paper sack earlier, and then held it for Dean to drink.
Dean eyeballed Sam's face over the cup. Sam smiled to himself; ever the protective big brother. And Sam had to admit, right now he looked terrible. His nose, cheeks, eyes and part of his forehead were red and swollen. He had deep purple bruises around both eyes, and a split lip. A wide strip of white tape adorned the bridge of his nose.
"You look like you chased a parked car." Dean said as he finished. He sounded a bit stronger now.
Sam grinned at him. "Kinda what it felt like."
"What happened back there?"
"What do you remember?"
"Being a human bowling pin."
"Do you remember how you got shot?"
"Shot! I was shot?" Dean looked down at himself, trying to sit up, looking for the wound. Didn't take him long to find it. He couldn't suppress a groan as he fell back.
Sam put a hand on his shoulder. "Take it easy, dude! On top of that, the Nukey sucked enough out of you that you had to have 3 units of blood put back in. Just rest, okay?"
Dean laid there with his eyes closed. "So, where are we?"
"Um…"
"Spit it out, Sammy."
"An animal hospital. But don't worry. They're friends. I think."
"You think? An animal hospital? What kind of blood did they give me, Sam?"
Sam sighed, and then went over the events from the moment he'd heard the crash in the barn until Dean woke up. He also mentioned the uneasy feelings he'd had, even though they were apparently unfounded. The only thing he left out was Tommy speaking to him telepathically. He was beginning to think that had just been the workings of his exhausted brain at the time.
He had just finished his story and Dean was beginning to drift off again, when Sam heard angry voices outside. Going to look out the small window over the counter, he saw Kelly standing beside the Impala, which was parked next to a barn about 30 yards from where he stood. There seemed to be some disagreement going on between her and a tall young man. Early twenties, dark hair, otherwise appeared to be a male version of Kelly.
Must be the other brother.
Sam couldn't quite make out the words, just the sound of shouting. And they were both gesturing wildly. As Sam watched their body language and gesturing, two things became clear. One, the bulk of the discussion had to do with him and Dean. And two, Kelly was giving her brother a royal dressing down. After another 10 minutes, Kelly turned and stalked off toward the vet building, leaving her brother fuming and muttering.
Alarm bells were going off in Sam's gut again. Something here was definitely not right.
Sam turned from the window and was startled to find Tommy standing behind him.
Before he could react to the boy's presence, he spoke to him again.
"Please don't tell my brother I talked to you."
Okay, so he hadn't imagined that the kid had used telepathy on him earlier. He was doing it again. The words were shrouded in fear and desperation; the same emotions were reflected on Tommy's face.
"He doesn't know I can do this. He'd kill me if he found out I'm a... a freak." Tommy's eyes grew larger and he ducked his head, as if he'd said something wrong. The fear emanating from the kid changed from fear of being found out to fear – of Sam?
Sam had no idea why the kid should be afraid of him, unless… no way. Not possible. He shrugged off the thought.
"Listen, Tommy, I'm not gonna tell your brother, okay? And you don't need to be afraid of me. I won't hurt you. "He thought the words, rather than spoke them, as much to test the kid's abilities as to comfort the boy.
Tommy looked back up at him, relief washing away the fear. So he can hear thoughts, too. That explains how he and Kelly work so well together.
Tommy simply nodded and turned to go.
"Wait! I need to ask you something!"
"Not now – my sister is coming. I'm not supposed to be in here unless I have orders from her."
At the door, Tommy threw another thought at him. This one had a note of joy in it. "Thanks! I knew you'd understand since you're different like me!"
******
Sam was pacing the floor nervously an hour later when Dean woke up again.
Sam helped him with another cup of water.
"How you doin'?"
"I've had better days," Dean growled. He struggled to sit up against is pillows and Sam, with only one good arm, could offer only limited help.
"You feel like getting out of here?"
Crap. That sounded desperate.
Dean looked up at him curiously.
Of course, he would notice.
"What's wrong?"
Sam sighed. "Not sure. It's just – I've got a bad feeling about this. Something's not right. I just … let's just get out, okay?"
Dean was far from being healthy enough to travel, Sam knew that. But somehow, he was afraid if they didn't leave this place, they would end up in far worse shape.
Please, Dean, just trust me for once.
Dean looked at him with that head-slightly-cocked, probing-to-the-depths-of-your-soul gaze of his for a long moment.
"Okay, Sammy," he finally said softly. "Help me up and we'll hit the road."
Relief washed over him – too soon. The door opened and Kelly walked in, followed by the man she'd been arguing with.
"Oh, good! You're awake!" She went over and touched Dean's forehead with the back of her hand. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm good," Dean said cautiously, backing away from her just a bit.
Kelly straightened up. "I wanted you to meet my brothers." She pulled Tommy around in front of her. "This is Tommy, and…."
Before she could finish the introduction, he stepped up and offered Dean his hand. "So, this is the great Dean Winchester; the man who conquered Hell."
Does everyone know about that?
The words were friendly, belying the sardonic grin and cold eyes. "I'm Tony. Tony Wandell. Nice to finally meet you."
Wandell. Oh. My. God.
Sam felt realization hit him like a shock wave. His knees suddenly felt weak.