Chapter 3

Dean and Nitro made their way toward a staircase that led to the second level. They walked cautiously, testing each step before putting their full weight on them. When they made it to the top, Dean motioned for Nitro to hang back incase of any stragglers that might be around. With the silence of a spirit, Dean stopped at a closed door and eased it open seeing a king size bed sitting against one wall and a dim light on the nightstand casting the room in deep shadows. He made his way to the bed and saw two mounds in the bed. The one on his side was a large male and the person he wanted to question. The other was a female from the long shapely legs and a little bottom exposed. After sitting his pack down and removing a roll of duct tape, Dean pulled enough off to cover the man's mouth. He pulled the covers down before slapping the tape over the man's mouth and punching him hard in the stomach, taking his breath away. The woman sensed struggling and rolled over to see Dean attacking the guy. She rolled off the bed and came up with a gun that she pointed at Dean. Before he could react, Nitro was beside the naked woman grabbing her hand and arm that was holding the gun and breaking her wrist before delivering a hard, effective punch to the face knocking her out cold.

"Do your thing One." she said while kneeling by the woman and using zip ties to bind her and stuffing a tank top into her mouth. She had no problems taking out a woman if she endangered any of her team and she did not pull her punches for females.

"Ok Standler, I'm going to inject you with a little something we brewed up that's going to make you tell me everything I want to know." Dean told the man wiggling around on the bed as he zip tied his hands in front of him. Dean removed a small black case from his pack and took out a syringe with a bluish colored liquid in it. He removed the cap and tapped it once before squeezing a thin stream out. Turning to the wide eyed man, Dean quickly jabbed the needle into his neck and emptied its contents into the leader of the gang. The man bucked a couple of times and tried to scream into the duct tape and pull on the ties binding him, but it did no good. After a couple of minutes, Standler calmed and seemed to go into a semi-trance state, his face pinched in pain.

"Now, what's your name?" Dean asked after he ripped the tape from the man's mouth.

"Matthew Standler." he answered in a pained voice without hesitation.

"What do you do?"

"Leader of the Propios del Diablo." he groaned.

"What illegal dealings are your gang into?"

"Drugs, guns, extortion, human trafficking, prostitution." he groaned twitching in pain. "What did you do to me?" he cried out panting hard. "You're gonna die for this." he hissed clenching his jaw tightly.

"The more you fight it the worse the pain will be. That's the beauty of the drug, the more you try not to talk, the stronger the pain gets. I'm looking for this guy, have you seen him?" Dean asked holding up a picture that Bobby gave him of Sam taken about eight months ago. When he first looked at the picture he couldn't believe the snot nosed kid he had left behind looked like this now. He had gotten tall and his hair had gotten longer but he still had that sour, angry look on his face that he remembered so well after their Mom died. Dean wondered if that bitchy pouting frown was a permanent fixture on his face.

"Yes."

"Where is he?"

"Stupid asshole was a snitch for the cops, so we had to get rid of him." he spat in anger.

"Did you kill him?" Dean asked in a very dangerous voice that would of made the guy's heart stop beating if he hadn't been drugged. Standler didn't know how close to dying he was if the answer was yes.

"No, he was sent to my partner in Mexico to be made an example of."

"Is he still alive?"

"As of two days ago yes."

"What about this man?" he asked showing a picture of his father.

"Shit's father, came looking for the snitch. He got too nosey so we let the Mexicans take him out. They're good at those kind of things and don't leave a trace."

Dean sucked in a sharp breath as a rage rushed through him now that it was confirmed his father was dead. He clenched his hands into tight fists trying to control the need to end this man for what he had done. He drew in a couple of deep breaths before continuing to interrogate the man. One thing he knew if the cops didn't take this guy down, he would be back and see that it was done. He knew now was not the time to mourn his loss. He needed to find his brother and bring him home, and then he would allow himself to mourn.

"Does George Benson work for you?"

"Yes."

"How?"

"We move drug through the moving company, hide it among the loads to distribute it."

"Do you have a safe here?"

"Yes, behind the painting on the far wall."

"Open it." he ordered jerking the guy off the bed and propelling him to the painting. Dean removed the painting and pushed him closer to the safe.

Sandler used his thumb on a fingerprint pad and then punches in a ten digit number before clicking the handle open.

Dean looked inside and removed ledgers, bundles of money, flash drives, and a rubber banded roll of papers. He moved to the light to inspect the contents before calling out to the others.

"Three, second floor." he said into his mike.

"Copy." Trace answered.

Within minutes, Trace walked through the door, gun ready, just in case there was trouble.

"Copy the computer and see what's on these." Dean instructed holding out four flash drives and nodding to a desk that had a laptop sitting on top of it.

"On it." Trace said going to the desk and flipping on the reading lamp. He pulled out a portable hard drive and opened the laptop tapping a couple of keys. "Password?"

"Standler, password for your laptop."

"Kingpin78491." he replied through gritted teeth as sweat poured down his face.

"Got it." Trace said once the laptop was open. He plugged in a cable and began to type quickly on the laptop copying the hard drive. Once that was done, he started looking at the drives one by one. "Dude, there's two that's got blackmail material on it, one porn, and one accounting crap."

"Can you copy them?"

"Please!..." he scoffed quickly doing as asked, insulted to even be asked the question.

spn

Nitro stood by patiently watching the two work, Dean snapping shots of the ledger pages and Trace doing the computer work. She checked the time to see how long they had been in there and spoke softly.

"Fifteen minutes, better speed it up guys."

"Almost done." Trace acknowledged switching out drives.

"Standler, contact information for your partner in Mexico where is it?" Dean asked.

"My cell has phone number under Muenta, he's the cartel boss." he grunted trying to stop himself from talking but couldn't. Sweat glistened over his naked body that would not respond to his requests to move. "Address on my computer."

"Sit down." Dean commanded as he stowed the money in his pack and pulled out new zip ties. He used a knife to cut the ones on his wrist and pushed him hard over on his belly and jerked his hands behind him to zip tie them back, then bent a leg backwards to zip tie to the hands putting the man in an awkward, painful position. He stuffed a sock into the guy's mouth before delivering a swift kick to the ribs smirking when he heard ribs break. "That was for what you ordered done." he growled at the man screaming into the sock. "Did you copy his cell?"

"All done." Trace said tossing the cell back onto the desk.

"Let's get out of here." Dean told them leading them back downstairs.

"These people were locked up in a back bedroom." Shadow reported guiding five frightened women to the front of the building.

"Let the cops deal with them." Dean replied opening the closet door and helping the undercover agent up and out of the closet. He cut the ties allowing him his freedom then stepped back.

"Who the hell are you guys?" the guy growled at the four masked invaders. "Do you realize you've ruined nearly a year's worth of undercover on this gang?"

"There's enough information in here to take this gang down and these women need to be taken care of. Can you handle this?" Dean questioned holding out the ledger to the agent.

"How did you get this?" he asked taking the book and looking at the masked guy suspiciously.

"Standler gave it to me. The other gang members will be out for a couple more hours if you want to call in reinforcements and bring these guys down and clean up the streets. Don't disappoint me, from your file you're a good cop. I'd check out the pay offs in that ledger." Dean said before motioning for the others to follow him back out the door. "If you don't I will." he said before following the others into the night. The team disappeared into the blackness leaving a bewildered agent staring at the young women huddled together in a corner. He pulled out his cell and made a call as he glanced into the ledger at the data written down. The agent had no idea who these guys were, but one thing he knew was they were professionals of some kind and was glad they seemed to be on his side. He had no idea how they knew he was an undercover DEA agent since only a very few did. He had been handed enough evidence to take down this network and wasn't going to waste any time in getting it done.

spn

Lawrence was a hundred miles in their rearview mirror before Dean pulled over at a rest area for them to change clothes and grab something to drink and snack on. He had headed southwest to Interstate 335 that turned into Interstate 35 which was a straight shot south toward Mexico. It was still early in the morning and the sun had not yet come up so there were not many people out yet and on the road, meaning they had the restrooms to themselves.

Dean was leaning against the Impala sipping a soda waiting on the others to come out. He wanted to talk to them before they went any further. He watched his team head back toward him, seeming to know he wanted to talk.

"This is my fight not yours...So we can part ways here." Dean announced as the three others joined him by the car. "I only ask that you drop off Bobby's car to him for me. He lives in Sioux Falls, South Dakota."

"Are you kidding me? This is the most fun I've had since getting out!" Shadow insisted. "No way I'm letting you do this alone. You need backup. Besides, like we said a long time ago, we're family and family stands by each other. So no I'm not going anywhere but with you. Don't go trying to send us away Gunny when you know you need us."

"What he said." Trace said an insulted look on his face that he would even think that they wouldn't help.

"Looks like you're stuck with us, besides who else can guard your back like I can?" Nitro questioned with a shrug before turning to get in the Impala. "You coming Gunny?"

"Ok then." Dean said feeling gratitude toward his friends for their loyalty and willingness to help. "I figure we'll try to get through Oklahoma before stopping to regroup."

"We'll follow you." Trace said before heading for the other car.

Dean got into the Impala, wanting to put as many miles as he could between them and Lawrence before stopping to get gas and something to eat. He was already planning in his head knowing they would need to stop at least once and spend the night somewhere so they could rest, do research and work out a plan. He wanted to make it most of the way through Oklahoma before stopping if they could. This was going to be much trickier and dangerous to get into Mexico and find Sam and get out again without being caught by Mexican police or the cartel. The plan had to be a good one because he was not putting them in danger if he could help it.

spn

Even thought Dean knew he could drive further, he decided to stop in Ardmore, Oklahoma for the night. He signaled his intention and made sure the other car followed him onto the exit ramp. He headed right at the top of the ramp deciding on a motel a couple miles from the interstate figuring it would be cheaper and not as busy, plus there were a couple of decent restaurants within walking distance. Nitro stirred in the passenger seat when the motion of the car changed and yawned as she looked around to see where they were.

"I'll see if they have connecting rooms for us." she told Dean as he pulled into the motel parking lot and rolled to a stop at the office.

"Look in my bag, there's money you can use. I figured that ass hole should fund us." Dean told her.

"Alright." she agreed leaning over the seat to pull his pack onto the seat and open it. She found bundles of money and peeled three hundred from one bundle thinking that should more than cover the rooms. She got out and stopped by the other car to let them know what she was doing before continuing on to the office.

Nitro appeared twenty minutes later and motioned for them to follow her around the building to the rooms. She signaled them to park at the end in front of two rooms on the ground floor.

"Here you go boys, you got the one on the right." she told Trace and Shadow as they got out of the car. "There's a connecting door if you'll unlock it."

"Yes ma'am." Trace answered giving her a salute.

"Why don't one of you go grab us some food and we'll get started on research." Dean suggested opening the trunk and get out the two duffels and computer bag from the back.

"I'll do it, Trace's the geek." Shadow said.

"And proud of it." Trace insisted.

"Here." Nitro said holding out the change from paying for the room. "Get me a bacon double cheeseburger, steak fries and a piece of cheesecake."

"That sound good but make my pie apple or pecan." Dean added.

"Got it, I know what you want don't even bother." Shadow told Trace before he said anything. "I shall return."

"You just gotta love him. " Trace snickered. "I'll track that phone number and see what I get." Trace said opening the door to his room and going in.

Nitro already had the other room door opened and stood back to allow Dean entrance. She headed to the door between the rooms and unlocked her side before tapping on the door. She could hear the lock disengage from the other side and Trace opened the door.

"Let's set up in here." Dean decided pulling out his laptop. "I'll start trying to find all the information I can on this cartel boss."

"I'll hit up my contacts and see what I can come up with." Nitro said pulling out her cell and scrolling through her contacts. She headed into the guys room for some privacy while they worked on the laptops. She came back out twenty minutes later to see the guys were still on the laptops. Dean looked up at her and got up moving to her.

"Mind if I borrow your cell?" he asked politely.

"No problem." she said handing it over. "If you had your own you wouldn't need to bum one."

"I'm gonna step outside for some air." he told them snagging a room key before stepping from the room and ignoring her jab. He headed toward a small area that had a few picnic tables placed under some shade trees and sat down at one of them. Dean dialed the number he had memorized and listened to it ring at the other end. This was not a call he wanted to make, but he had told the older man he would stay in touch.

"H'llo, Singer Salvage." a familiar gruff voice answered.

"Bobby, its Dean." he said in a small voice.

"Dean, son are you ok?" Bobby asked hearing the strain in Dean's voice. When he didn't answer he continued. "What is it? Did you find them?"

"Dad's dead." he finally got out trying to hold back any emotion out of his voice. He had to think of his little brother and getting him out alive.

"Balls!" Bobby spat angrily. "I was afraid of that when I couldn't get in touch with him. What about Sam?"

"He was alive three days ago. We're going after him and bringing him back." Dean stated his voice getting stronger and more serious.

"Where is he? Dean what are you going to do? You said 'we'; does that mean you at least have help?"

"I'll let you know when I've found him." Dean replied not giving anything away. "I'm not alone."

"Dean ya listen to me son, don't go doin' somethin' stupid, ya hear me?"

"Wouldn't think of it. I know what has to be done. I'll be in touch." Dean said, a hidden meaning luring behind those words.

"Dean!...Dean?..." Bobby called only to get a dial tone. "Damn fool idjit!" Bobby whispered hanging up his phone and sighing with worry. He was sure someone was going to pay dearly for what had happened to Dean's family. Bobby shuttered to think what he was capable of, but at least he wasn't alone and if they were anyway as commanding as Dean, he was in good company.

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A knock sounded on the door thirty minutes later and Dean let Shadow in with their food. They put aside their work to eat, none having much small talk while they ate. Tension hung in the air, each understanding how urgent their mission was and knowing they needed to act fast with a plan. None knew how long Sam had or what was being done to him. Dean's blood ran cold if he let his mind go there, knowing how cruel and evil a human could be toward another human being. It could be even worse if the victims were weaker and smaller and someone wanted to act superior and controlling over them. He worked hard on keeping his mind away from those thoughts as everyone finished up and tossed their trash so they could get down to business.

"From what I can find on this Muenta bastard portrays him as a very dangerous and ruthless man. He's feared by the locals who he uses as slaves to harvest his drug crops. He's got a compound near a village called San Carlos. It's about seventy-five miles inland from the Gulf. The quickest and probably easiest way in is by boat. If we can land at some isolated port, we can make our way inland to the compound, size it up and stage the rescue of not only Sam but anyone else held against their will and get out."

"I can help with that." Nitro nodded already thinking along the same lines and planned ahead. "I know someone with a fishing boat that knows the waters and will take us in."

"He trustworthy?" Dean questioned.

"Yes she is." Nitro insisted. "She wouldn't last long if she wasn't. She owes me and knows better than to try and cross me."

"Did you make a deal?"

"Of course, she's expecting us at Port Isabel harbor in a day. Don't worry, they'll be no questions asked about anything. She knows how to keep her mouth shut too."

"Ok, that's taken care of; Trace you think maybe you could get some satellite photos of the place?"

"On it." Trace replied pulling his laptop to him and typing quickly on the keyboard.

"What do we have in the way of weapons?"

"Pretty good and I can probably find someone in the area to get more if needed." Shadow said.

"There are always the weapons at the compound. You know they've got to have plenty to keep the locals under their control and protect that place." Nitro added.

"Good thinking." Shadow nodded to her giving her a wink.

"This time...There will be no mercy." Dean said in a voice stone cold and deadly. No one had any doubts about what he meant and didn't say anything to him. They would follow him to the ends of the Earth and would do whatever was needed. None of them had any qualms in obeying their leader, even if he really wasn't that now.

spn

Two cars left early before most traffic was on the road and were heading south toward the tip of Texas to Port Isabel. Dawn was still a couple of hours away, but Dean couldn't sleep and decided to get on the road early. He was going to push it as much as he could to get there as soon as possible. Soft music was playing on the radio in the Impala as Dean concentrated on the darkness ahead of him as his headlights cut through the eerie blackness. The others were use to the weird hours and didn't complain about being on the road this early. Nitro hummed quietly to the music as her nibble fingers spun a small, sharp knife by feel alone and years of experience. She was never one to sit idle and had to be doing something to keep busy. The only time she was still was when she was asleep, but even then she was restless. Nitro could tell Dean was in one of his moods and would be until this mission was over, no matter how it turned out. She feared Dean blamed himself for whatever happened to his brother. She just hoped that the outcome was a good one or she had a deep down feeling that Dean wouldn't survive it. If his brother didn't make it, neither would Dean.

The only stops that were made by the two cars as they continued their southward journey were for gas and takeout. The sun moved across the sky in a slow steady pace, disappearing at times behind large grey clouds that were scattered in the blue sky. The air cooled with the threat of rain, but they were lucky and none had fallen during their journey. The sun was beginning to set as Dean pulled into Port Isabel following the signs to the harbor and Nitro's directions to the slip where her friend's boat was. They parked in a small lot and got out breathing in the salty air and stretching their long frames trying to get the knots out.

"You guys wait here." Nitro told them before heading down a small pier and stopping at an average size boat named Flame. From her looks, they could tell the owner took good care of it. They could hear her call out and watched when a few minutes later a female came out of the lower cabin onto the deck. Nitro stepped onto the deck and they bumped fists in greeting. After a couple of minutes she waved them to the boat.

"Guys this is Red, she's going to help us." Nitro told them. "That's One, Three and Four and I'm Two. The less you know the better."

"H'llo gentlemen." Red said with a nod gauging each one of them and zeroing in on One as the leader. She never offered her hand to them, nor did they to her.

"Thanks for helping us." Dean said taking in the dark red headed, blue eyed, decent looking woman who looked to be in her early thirties. She was smaller framed than Nitro, but seemed just as confident and strong and mysterious.

"If you'll get your gear we'll get under way." she told them moving around the deck to check things out. "You'll have to help me with the boat since I don't have a first mate."

"I have some knowledge." Shadow replied before stepping back from the boat.

"Is there a place we can leave out vehicles that will be safe?" Dean asked her.

"Pull them around to the side of that hanger and leave them. They'll be safe there. No one would dare mess with them."

"Get everything we need from the cars and get it on board." Dean ordered the others. He unlocked the Impala trunk and let Nitro get everything before moving it to where Red suggested. He waited until Trace had the Chevy parked beside him before getting out and joining him in the walk back to the boat.

"Hope no one gets seasick." she commented to them as they gathered on the deck. "One of you cast off that back line and we'll head out. Shouldn't have any problems making it to a small village I use as base tonight. Weather should hold out for the trip down."

"Think we can rent a vehicle from someone there?" Dean asked as she started the motor and made ready to ease from the dock. He listened to the steady growl of the boat's engine as she pushed the throttle forward picking up speed.

"I think that can be arranged."

"Will we have any problems with Coast Guard or cops?" Trace asked.

"As long as you've got your passports we should be good. They know I'm a charter fishing boat and take out clients all the time. I've never had any problems with them."

"Everyone good with fake ones?"

"Yep."

"Always."

"Yes."

"Let's get these bags stowed out of sight to be on the safe side." Dean told them picking up two bags and taking them below deck. He didn't want to try and explain the weapons and explosives they were carrying to the cops if they were to be stopped.

The others followed his lead and did the same. They hid their bags in several compartments out of sight of anyone checking out the cabin.

"One, we need to pay Red two thousand up front and I told her she'd get another two when we returned."

"Fine by me." Dean said getting a bag back out and pulling money from it and handing that to her.

"Thanks." Nitro replied taking the money. "There's bunks if you guys wanna try and nap." she said before heading back up to join Red in the wheelhouse.

"Did that coming down, I'll go get a rod set up to at least look like we're fishing." Trace shrugged following her back up.

"Well I could use a short one." Shadow yawned heading through a small arch to see bunks on either side of the room. He plopped down on one with a grunt and cleared his mind so he could sleep.

"Guess I could do with a little rest." Dean agreed sitting on the bunk across from him not sure he could but was going to try. This was similar to a number of missions they had been on, so it wasn't anything new to the team except this time there was family involved. It seemed none had lost any of their skills since getting out and fell right back into the groove of it all with no hesitation. He knew he could count on his team to back his play no matter what. They trusted him with their lives and he did the same.

spn

"How ya been?" Nitro asked her friend as she settled beside her.

"Pretty busy with the charters and all."

"Here's the first payment." she said laying the money on the dash.

"Thanks." she said picking it up and stuffing it in a pocket. "So are those the guys you served with?"

"Yes, they're my team and became my family."

"I'm glad you have found that Sister." she said softly.

"I want to thank you personally for your help."

"No need, I owe you much more."

"That was a life time ago."

"I take it they don't know about your past?"

"No and that's how it should be."

"They won't hear anything from me."

"Thank you." Nitro said gratefully. "You are a good friend."

"Hey are we far enough out to cast a line?" Trace called from the deck below.

"Looks like someone's making it look real." Red chuckled watching Trace study the reel and look around him for bait. He seemed sort of lost with the whole fishing thing.

spn

Dean could feel the motion of the boat change and opened his eyes, coming awake almost instantly. He sat up and looked to the other bunk to see Shadow still sacked out. He got up and made his way to the main part of the cabin stopping at a storage area to snag his bag. He quickly changed into all black and stored his other clothes back in the bag before going to the fridge to see what was available to quench his thirst. Dean snagged a Gatorade and started up the steps to the deck of the boat. Soft laughter had him looking around to see Trace reeling in a line and Nitro sitting on a bench nearby chatting with him.

"Hey One, wanna show Three how to catch a fish?" she giggled turning back to Trace. "He's doesn't seem to have the knack."

"I know how to fish thank you." Trace complained. "I can't help it they don't want to bite right now."

"Where are we?" Dean asked looking out at the darkness surrounding the boat and the lights reflecting off the water.

"Red said she'll be pulling into the village in another twenty minutes. We had to float around out here to make it look good."

"Good, Three go get Four up and get ready." Dean instructed him.

"On it One." Trace replied reeling in his line and putting the rod away before heading below.

"Look, that's where we're going." Nitro pointed out at the lights off in the distance. "I'll go change and bring up your things."

"Thanks." he told her. Dean could sense she was concerned about him and knew she wouldn't say anything unless she felt the need.

Dean followed her gaze and saw the lights and could feel the boat speed slightly increase as it headed for them. He could feel his body tensing as the anticipation of the hunt was starting to take hold. He didn't know what they were going to find once they got there, but Dean was preparing himself for the worse. He set his jaw and pinched his lips together in a thin, tight line as he watched them get closer to the lights. He could hear the movement around him, but didn't acknowledge any of them as he concentrated on the steps of their plan. Find the compound, case the place, wait for the right time, breach, get Sammy out of there, exact his revenge, get back to the boat and head back to Texas. Sounded easy, but there were so many ways it could go wrong and he knew it. He hoped to find his younger brother alive, but with what he read about this cartel boss...He knew it would be slim to none. He pushed all his emotions and doubts back into the corner of his mind knowing now was not the time for them. He had to have a clear, level head to lead his team and look out for them. Them volunteering to help him showed how loyal they were and he was damn sure going to get them out of this in one piece.

A/N: Thank you all for giving this story a chance and I'm glad you are enjoying the longer chapters. Thank you to any guest who left reviews and I could not personally thank. It's about to heat up, I hope you are ready. I do like reviews, especially for this story, so if you have decided to read it and have a moment please leave me one. NC