(Hey guys! Hope you enjoy this next chapter! Sorry it took me so long to publish; been a super busy week for me. I will be writing one more chapter as a sort of epilogue. Thanks to everyone who has read and left kind comments. I never expected so many views :). I've enjoyed writing this very much.)

Dean

Dean closed his eyes, waiting for Max to sink his teeth into him. But, it never came. Instead, Dean heard a shot go off, and then heard a gasp coming from Max. Dean opened his eyes and looked back towards the door. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sammy standing there, Dad's extra .45 in his hand. Smoke was coming out of the barrel from the shot he'd just fired. They locked eyes and Dean smiled. He couldn't have been more proud of his little brother.

"NOOO!" The Alpha yelled in an outrage. Dean tried to move to his brother, but he couldn't. Max fell over on top of him, his dead body weight pinning Dean facedown in the cement. He tried to move him off of him, but he was too weak. He'd been seeing stars since he woke and his leg had lost a dangerous amount of blood. He vaguely heard his dad yell his name and then he was screaming for Sam. The next thing he heard made Dean sick to his stomach: a loud thud and then a shout from Sam. He could hear struggling and Dean knew he had to do something quick.

The thought of the Alpha hurting Sam sent Dean into overdrive. He used what little strength he had left mixed with a newfound adrenaline to shove Max off of him. For a moment, he lied there, breathless, until he saw the Alpha near the door, his hands around Sam's throat. Dean forced himself to his feet, but it was no use. His injured leg gave out on him in an instant. He slammed back down to the floor, nearing the verge of unconsciousness now.

"Saaaam," Dean choked out, now trying to crawl his way towards his brother. He could see Sam's face reddening as he ran out of air. Sam was going to die if he didn't get to him in the next minute or so. He was all the way across the room.

"Dean, hurry!" He heard his father yell and heard the rattle of chains as he aggressively tried to break free. Dean looked back to Sam and saw him turning blue, his face going slack. His eyes were shut now. No…

With all his might, Dean forced himself up. He screamed at the pain it caused him, but rushed forward as fast as he could, reaching for his knife in his pocket. He reached the Alpha, but he was ready for him. All he had to do was kick his foot out into Dean's leg to send him falling to the floor. Dean did the only thing he could and aimed the knife at the Alpha's leg, to avoid hitting Sam. He flung it as hard as he could and watched as it pierced the meatiest part of his thigh. He howled in pain and let go of Sam, grabbing at the knife. Dean looked at his brother who'd slid down the wall and was now clutching his throat, gasping for breath. He was alive. Dean sighed in relief.

All of a sudden, the Alpha was on top of him. He had the knife Dean threw at him in his hand and drove it down towards Dean's chest. He heard his father yell, and Dean managed to grab it just before he could finish the blow and fought against his weight for dear life. The both of them roared as they battled each other's strength. The only reason Dean was even able to fight against him was because he'd weakened him with the knife. The silver was moving through his body like poison. Dean wouldn't be alive otherwise.

Just as the tip of the knife poked Dean's chest, Sam suddenly appeared above them. Dean watched as he took a knife of his own and pierced the Alpha's chest. His eyes went wide and began flashing like the sheriff's as he stared in shock at the knife sticking out of his body. Blood began to trickle out of his lip and Dean knew it was over now. He used the last bit of fight in him to roll off Dean and claw Sam in the face. Sam went tumbling to the ground as the Alpha collapsed next to Dean, dead. They'd done it. They'd really done it.

Dean was up in an instant, crawling to Sam who was lying motionless on his stomach. Thankfully, he wasn't too far away this time and he'd reached him in just a few seconds. "Sammy…" Dean said, turning his little body over. He lifted his brother so he was sitting up straight and shook his shoulders lightly. "Hey Sammy, come on…you with me little brother?"

Sam's eyes opened then, and Dean smiled. His little body had taken a pretty bad beating, cuts and bruises on his face and arms and a large claw-mark on his cheek that was bleeding pretty good, but Sam was alive. They were all alive and that's all that mattered. They could recover from this as long as they had each other.

"Hey Sammy, you okay?" Dean asked softly, holding the sides of his head and brushing some hair out of his face.

Sam nodded slowly, holding onto Dean's forearms. He was still coming to and was struggling to catch his breath. "I'm…good…" he finally said.

Dean touched Sam's cheek gently and rested his forehead against Sam's for a quick moment. He'd been so afraid he was going to lose his little brother. "I thought I told you to run away."

Dean leaned back and saw a weak grin slowly spread on Sam's face. "Someone had to save your asses."

"Bitch," Dean said with a laugh.

"Jerk," Sam responded.

"I'm going to go get Dad," Dean said, already moving towards the Alpha's body. He had to have the key to the shackles. "You just sit here and catch your breath."

"Yeah, okay Dean…" Sam said compliantly.

It didn't take long for Dean to find the keys in the Alpha's pocket. He stood up slowly, feeling a wave of dizziness hit him when he got to his feet. He stood a moment, took a deep breath, and then began limping towards his father. Dean didn't know why he was so nervous to finally talk to his father. He didn't know what to expect, but he was sure he was going to get an ass chewing. Sam almost died, and that would've been on Dean. That was unacceptable and Dean knew that. He should get his ass chewed for that.

When Dean got to his dad, he found himself smiling sheepishly. "Hey, Dad…" he said, not knowing what else to say. It was like he hadn't seen him for years and was now running into him at an awkward family reunion.

Dean was expecting anger, but saw only sadness in his father's eyes. "Dean…you're beat to hell, son."

"I could say the same about you," Dean replied with a small laugh and reached up to undo the chains. He twisted until he heard a click and then the shackles came undone, releasing his father. Dean tried his best to catch him, but his leg buckled and the two of them collapsed to the floor on their knees. A sharp pain erupted through Dean's leg and he did his best to ignore it. He wanted to stay strong for his father.

When John grabbed Dean's face in his hands like Dean had done to Sam, he couldn't hide his surprise. His father never showed much sentiment, but Dean had never minded too much. That was just who he was. He seemed to really be taking in Dean for the first time. He rubbed Dean's bruised cheek softly. "Dean…I'm so sorry…you and Sam…you could've died…I thought…I thought…" he trailed off, unable to finish.

"It's okay, Dad," Dean told him. "We're fine. You're fine. We handled it." He smiled a little. "We learned from the best, you know."

Dean watched his father stare at him a moment before pulling him into a hug. Dean hesitated a moment before he, too, wrapped his arms around his father. His father held his head tightly with one arm as his other wrapped around his shoulders. He must've really thought they were going to die. This was so not like him at all.

"Hey, Dad," a tiny voice said from behind them. They both pulled out of the hug to see Sam standing above them, his lip quivering. He was about to break down. Sometimes Dean forgot how much of a kid Sam still was. He must've been scared out of his mind this whole time. He never showed it until now though, not once. The kid was tough as nails. He was definitely a Winchester.

"Come here, Sammy," John said and then the three of them just sat on the floor hugging each other. Dean held his crying brother and his father tightly to him. It was hitting him now. He'd almost lost the both of them today. He hoped nothing like this ever happened again. He was nothing without his family. They were the only thing that kept him going. He couldn't live without them.

After a long moment, the three of them collectively pulled out of the hug. One thing was evident. They were all ready to get the hell out of this place. "Do you think you can walk, Dad?" Dean asked.

"I don't know," John answered. "They've weakened me. I haven't eaten or drank much in days. What about you? You've been shot, Dean. You need to get that leg looked at."

"I'll be fine," Dean answered, waving off his concern. Truthfully, he hurt like hell and was on the verge of passing out. "Let's just get the hell out of here."

"As soon as we get back to the car, I'm stitching you up, Dean," John told him, finality in his voice. Dean knew there was no arguing with him.

"Yes sir," Dean said and together he and Sam hoisted their father up.

Together, they started walking towards the door very slowly. Dean's leg was screaming at him and his head was pounding out of his skull. He half slumped into his father and John held him close to him. Dean didn't know if he was helping his dad walk, or if his dad was helping him. They leaned on each other equally for support. Sam grunted from having to pull the majority of the weight.

Dean didn't realize just how weak his father was until now. It made sense though. . He hadn't been moving in a while and he'd been deprived of food, sleep, and water. His wrists were red from the shackles. He'd taken a hell of a beating. Sam was the best out of all of them, but Dean knew even he was hurting. They all deserved a vacation after this one, not like it'd ever happen.

"You boys and I are going to have to have a long talk when we get back," their father said as they walked, nearly breathless. There was the lecture Dean was waiting for. "Coming after me was stupid and reckless. And not even knowing what you were hunting? The both of you are lucky to be alive."

"We had no choice, Dad," Dean said simply. "You were just gone. We had to find you."

"Besides," Sam said. "We figured it out didn't we?"

"Yeah, you did," John said, trying to sound angry but Dean knew he didn't have the heart to be right now. "But, the next time you boys do something like this again, it won't be the monsters you gotta worry about ya hear me? I don't want you guys out by yourselves yet, not until you've practiced more. Especially you, Sam. I didn't even let Dean hunt until he was fourteen."

"Yeah, okay, Dad," Dean said. He wanted to argue, to tell his dad that he was clearly ready, but he kept his mouth shut. Whatever his father said, went. Besides, he was too tired to argue anyways. All he wanted was an ice cold beer and a nap at this point.

"You're welcome by the way," Sam said, causing Dean to have to hide a smile. Sometimes, Sam's defiance and attitude towards his father pissed him off to no end, but sometimes Sam was exactly right to do it. This was one of those times.

Their dad, of course, ignored Sam's comment. They were pretty much at the door right by the Alpha's body, when John stopped suddenly. "Sam, hand me your pistol," he commanded.

Sam looked at him confused for a moment before reaching behind his back and pulling Dean's pistol out of his jeans. "Here's Dean's," he said and then handed him a magazine with it. When Dean looked over at him, he grinned. "Picked it up on the way in after I finished off the wolf I injured."

Dean grinned back at his brother. That kid was something else. The two of them watched as John walked towards the Alpha's bodies. Dean knew what he was about to do and told Sam to look away. Fortunately, Sam listened without argument and the two of them looked at the cement floor as John emptied his rounds into the werewolf's body. Dean knew the Alpha must've really struck a nerve with his father. He'd always told him and Sam that they were only to do what was necessary to get the job done, nothing more, nothing less. He never believed in sheer brutality, never condoned it.

"That's for my boys you sonofabitch," Dean heard his father say. Dean couldn't lie and say that it didn't make him feel good.

Dean was about to say something when they heard footsteps coming from the other side of the door. Both Sam and Dad already had their pistols raised and at the ready. Dean held onto his other knife in his pocket. He knew it wouldn't do much good, but he didn't have a choice at the moment. Their father moved in front of the both of them, ready to shoot whatever came running through that door.

However, what came through that door was no monster at all. It was Bobby Singer, accompanied by Caleb and Pastor Jim. John and Sam both sighed and lowered their weapons instantly. Dean nearly laughed at their expressions as the three of them looked from the Dean, Sam, and John to the bodies, and then finally back to them. All of them came in guns blazing, ready to kill whatever got in their way.

"Guess we missed the party," Bobby said finally, lowering his weapon.

"Ya think?" Dean replied sarcastically.

"You called Bobby?" John asked. Dean could hear the irritation in his voice. He could be so damn stubborn.

"We didn't have much of a choice, Dad," Dean said, sounding a little annoyed himself.

"Good to see you too, John," Bobby responded, his voice clipped. "Didn't I tell you boys to wait?"

Dean looked over at his brother and then the both of them grinned sheepishly at their Uncle Bobby. "Sorry, Bobby. Musta misheard. Bad connection ya know?"

"Right," Bobby said. "Well, you boys get back to the car. The three of us will take care of this mess."

"Bobby," John said, clearing his throat. "Dean's been shot. Think you can stitch him up? You've always been better at that sort of stuff."

"Holy hell boys," Bobby said, seeming to really take in Sam and Dean for the first time. "Of course, I'll stitch him up John, and then I'll clean Sam and you up to. I'll go with you to the car right now. Caleb and Jim can clean this up themselves for now."

"Yeah, we got this. Y'all get goin," Caleb said, already moving towards Max's body. "Good to see you guys by the way. It's been a while."

"Yeah, it has," John replied. "Good to see you too, Caleb."

"We can all catch up later," Paster Jim responded. "For now, let's get those boys patched up and get out of this place before the cops get here."

Dean got a little woozy then and nearly fell over. John was at his side in an instant, holding his back steady so he wouldn't fall. "You okay, son?"

"Yeah…" Dean replied tiredly, rubbing his temple. His head was killing him. Sooner or later, he would pass out. "Yeah…I'm good.…"

Bobby suddenly appeared at Dean's other side. "Here John, I've got him," he said, taking one of Dean's arms and wrapping it around his shoulder. He wrapped his other arm around Dean's waist and hoisted him up so that Dean wouldn't have to use much weight on his feet. Dean sighed gratefully. He could go for some morphine right about now.

John was a little reluctant before finally letting Dean go. "Thanks Bobby," Dean said, but he knew he was forcing himself to say it. When Dad was mad at someone, he stayed mad. He was the worst when it came to forgiveness.

"Don't mention it," Bobby responded. "Sam, you think you can help your daddy out of here?"

Dean glanced over and saw Sam smiling. He'd really missed Bobby; they both had. "Yeah, Uncle Bobby. I've got him."

"Alright then, let's get the hell out of here," Bobby responded.

And that's exactly what they did.