Light rain fell relentlessly as Dean stood, his arms folded across his chest, at the east end of the bridge. An occasional flash of lightning brightened the day, but only temporarily. Sam stood nearby, his hands in his pockets, tossing his rapidly dampening hair from his eyes once in a while, and shooting a sideways glance towards his brother every so often. Dean stood there, stoic, the rain caught in his hair and lashes, and running down his face in small rivulets.
"Are we sure we're in the right place, Dean?" Sam asked quietly, and received a nod in answer.
There were a few seconds of silence between them, and then Dean spoke softly. "Make sure you..." Dean started, but Sam stopped him.
"Don't worry. I'll take care of her." Sam looked up as a red El Camino pulled in near the west side of the bridge, then came to stand beside Dean. The Winchester brothers, shoulder to shoulder, an intimidating sight to any normal man - but Gordon Walker was far from normal.
"Hello, Dean. Sam. I'm glad you showed up. Now we can end this and move on." Gordon walked to the passenger side of the car, opening the door and pulling Devon out, her arms still bound behind her. "Everybody just move nice and slow, and nobody will get hurt. Except those that have to. All right?" He walked Devon to the end of the bridge, his gun to her head, as he spoke loudly enough for his words to carry across the distance between them and the Winchesters.
"Please - don't do this," Devon said quietly to Walker as he pulled her towards the bridge.
"I'm doing what I have to, Devon. I'm saving you, too, you know - whether you know it or not," Gordon answered, stopping at the west end of the bridge. "Sam, you walk over here, and Devon will walk to Dean. And don't try anything - I will shoot her. You know me."
"Are we gonna talk all day, or are we gonna do this?" Dean yelled sarcastically, and Gordon shoved Devon onto the bridge, holding his pistol on her as she took the first reluctant steps towards the other side of the bridge. Sam glanced one last time at Dean before moving forward, his hands held out to his sides.
They walked slowly, Devon limping slightly, keeping her eyes on Sam's face. As they drew closer, he stared intently at her, then flicked his eyes to the side. Her eyes widened a little, but she showed no reaction, moving slowly closer to the point where they would pass each other.
As Devon and Sam moved side by side, a shout rang out. "Walker!" Gordon's attention moved for a split second to Jack Monroe, who stepped out from under the bridge, his gun aimed at Walker's chest. Sam grabbed Devon, and with two quick steps, took them both up and over the bridge rail into the shallow waters of Willow Creek below. Gordon fired, but Jack's diversion had given them just enough time to dive off of the structure. Jack answered Gordon's fire, missing as the enraged man hit the ground, then rolled back to his feet, cursing loudly. Dean fired off several quick rounds, then sprinted onto the bridge as Walker scrambled for his car.
"Gordon!" Dean bellowed as he ran, his lip curled in rage, firing off a couple more shots as he ran towards the west end of the bridge. Jack was at the top now, he and Gordon aiming at each other as Walker backed slowly to his El Camino, hand reaching for the door handle.
"Hold it right there, asshole!" Nicole stood off to Walker's other side now, her rifle on her shoulder. "Drop the gun. Now!" Her green eyes were cold as he met her merciless stare.
"Okay, okay. Take it easy, girl," he said, his voice quiet, soothing. "Let's not do something we'll all regret here, okay? Just take it easy."
"You heard her, drop the gun, Gordon." Dean was on the road now, and stalking determinedly towards him. Gordon slowly lowered the gun to his side, and Dean trained his Colt right between Walker's eyes. "Drop it. To the ground. Nicole, go check on Sam and Devon." She nodded, leaving Gordon in their gun sights, turning to run back down to the creek, where Sam was helping Devon out of the water.
Gordon bent slowly towards the ground, his eyes on Dean. Then his arm snapped upwards, a shot echoed in the air, and Jack hit the ground. Dean took a dive, firing as Gordon's arm came around to shoot at him, but Walker managed to get inside his car. Dean fired from the ground as the El Camino sent a spray of mud and grass from its spinning tires, then fishtailed a little as it hit the pavement and sped away.
"Jack!" Devon's voice was frightened as she ran up, hitting her knees next to Jack. "Jack, can you hear me?" she choked out, looking up at Nicole as she ran to her side. "Nicole, he's bleeding so much," she whispered, her hands on the big man's chest, trying to staunch the flow of blood.
"Sam, you okay?" Dean asked, waiting only for his brother's quick nod. "I'll get the car. Help them."
Sam quickly pulled off his outer shirt, balling it up and handing it to Devon. "Keep the pressure on it, we'll look at it closer when we get him to Nicole's." She held the wet shirt over Jack's wound and pushed as hard as she could, worried at his lack of response. As Dean came lurching to a stop nearby, she stood up, bending to keep the pressure on, while Sam and Dean hefted the big man up between them. Finally a moan escaped Jack's lips as they moved him towards the car, and Devon breathed a little easier.
Nicole scooted into the middle of the front seat between the Winchesters as Devon kept watch over Jack in the back. He made a sad attempt at a smile, his face white, whispering, "I'll be fine."
"You'd better be. What the hell are you doing here, anyway? Damn it, Jack."
"Couldn't let that asshole win, could we? Had to do something he didn't expect."
Jack's voice was labored, and Devon shook her head. "Stop talking. Just rest, we'll be at Nicole's soon." She glanced up, meeting Dean's eyes and holding his intense gaze for a moment before he looked back at the road.
"You okay, Dev?"
She nodded. "I'm okay."
"Sure?"
"Yeah. I'm fine."
He glanced back at her again, then resolutely stared at the road, his jaw working, and Nicole exchanged a somber look with Sam before letting his arm pull her close.
After getting Jack onto the bed in Nicole's guest room, Sam gently took Devon's shoulders and moved her away from the injured man. "Let me take care of this, okay? You go let Dean look you over." She looked up at him, reluctant, but he gave her a stern nod and said, "Devon. Go. Nicole will help me." Nicole gave her friend a quick wink and fleeting smile as she nodded towards the hall, and Devon slowly walked out to meet Dean, who was standing there waiting.
His hand rested lightly on the small of her back as he ushered her to the couch. She sat down, and Dean knelt on one knee in front of her, his hand under her chin as he tilted her head gently. "Looks like he busted you a good one." He stroked his thumb softly over the darkening bruise on Devon's jaw line. She nodded, not quite meeting his eyes, and he moved to touch her split and swollen lip. "Do you want some ice?" He looked at her until she finally raised her gaze to meet his, her hazel eyes shimmering with tears. "Come here," he whispered, and she let him gather her into his arms, holding her tight as her body shook with silent sobs. "Shhhh... Baby, it's okay," he murmured as her arms came around him, clutching him almost desperately. "I gotcha."
He was still holding her, though she had finally calmed down, when Nicole came out of the bedroom. "He's gonna be fine. Sam said it went straight through, we just had to clean him up. Sam's stitching right now. He'll be plenty sore, I imagine, but he'll be fine."
Devon looked up, pulling back from Dean a little to look at Nicole. "Thank God. If he would've died, on account of me..."
"Then it would have been on Walker's head, not yours. This was not your fault, Devon." Nicole stood staring at her friend intently until Devon finally nodded. She shivered in Dean's arms, and he drew back from her, brushing a strand of damp hair from her face.
"You should go take a hot shower, get some dry clothes on."
Devon sat up, looking up at him. "You look like you went in the creek, too."
"Yeah, next time somebody gets kidnapped, we should try for a sunny day." The corner of his mouth quirked into a half-smile, and he stood, offering his hand to help her up.
She looked up at him, squeezing his hand slightly as she spoke softly. "Thank you." Dean half-reached to touch her face again, but dropped his hand and nodded, then gestured towards Nicole.
"Go. Get cleaned up, I'll go to your place and grab some of your clothes." Devon let go of his hand and followed Nicole, throwing one more glance at him over her shoulder as she left. Dean ran his hand over his face and slowly blew out the breath he'd been holding, then pulled the keys from his pocket and headed for the door.
Dean slipped Devon's lock easily, walked in and closed it behind him, and headed for the shower, his bag over his shoulder. Might as well use it while he was here. He cleaned up, then rifled through Devon's drawers, grabbing what she needed, stopping his search when he opened a drawer containing items familiar to him.
There were a couple of his shirts, folded neatly, and even a pair of his boxers, a set of lock picks, his old pocket knife... several relatively unimportant things he had left the night he stormed out of her apartment - and her life. And she had kept all of it. He swallowed hard, running a hand through his tousled and still-damp hair, then pushed the drawer closed.
He quickly found the rest of the things Devon needed, then stood and left the apartment, heading back to Nicole's. Guilt was eating at him, and as usual, he was trying to ignore it. Why did she keep all that stuff? She had told him to leave and never come back. And he had taken her at her word, determined to make her come to him. She hadn't, and his pride hadn't let him go back. He sat in the car in Nicole's driveway, completely unsure of himself, reluctant to face her again.
He finally grabbed the bundle of her things and walked in, finding Sam and Nicole quietly talking in the living room. "How's he doing?"
Sam nodded, shrugging a little. "He'll be okay. He'll feel it for a while, but he'll be okay."
Dean nodded in answer, holding out the bundle of clothes towards Nicole. "She's in with Jack," Nicole said. "You could go in, see for yourself how he's doing. He might appreciate it, Dean." She smiled, and Dean tucked the bundle under his arm and walked down the hall.
Devon was sitting on the side of the bed next to Jack's good side, dressed in one of Nicole's robes, talking quietly to Jack. Dean stood there uncomfortably, unwilling to interrupt, and watched as Jack answered her, his voice low and weak. He reached a hand to Devon's face, his eyes focused on her, then slipped the hand behind her neck and pulled her down, his lips touching hers. Dean backed away, leaving silently, and headed back to the living room.
He walked to Nicole, handing her Devon's clothes, then turning and leaving the house without a word. Nicole looked at Sam in confusion as they heard the Impala's engine start, then leave the drive. She went to the window and watched as it went around the corner and out of sight. "What just happened?" she asked, and Sam raised an eyebrow, shaking his head and shrugging his shoulders.
"Not a clue."