Disclaimer: I still don't own Supernatural or its characters. I and am not making any money on this…I'm just having fun!

Travelers Beware

Chapter 7 – Strange Lights

Sam moved slowly, concentrating on placing one foot in front of the other. He had been walking for what seemed like hours when he saw it again. A light in the distance, just at the top of the rise was calling to him. Sam looked at the stream and then the light. "It could be a cabin; I've come quite a ways." Sam muttered. His mind made up, Sam started to climb the hill, and he just hoped that whoever was home had a phone.

Sam continued up the side of the mountain, stopping every so often to leave a mark on a tree or rock. "Come on Dean…a blind man could follow my trail!" Sam muttered. He shivered as he pulled his coat closer, he was so tired all he wanted to do was sleep, as he fell to the forest floor he heard his father's voice.

"If you stop, you'll die Sam; cold is the hunter's worst enemy. It sneaks up on you and can sap your energy. As long as you keep moving, you can beat it."

"I'm trying Dad…" Sam said as he stood once more and started up the side of the mountain. The light seemed to be getting closer, but it was hard to tell. Sam had lost all sense of direction; his focus was on reaching the light. With light came safety and warmth and maybe even Dean. "Dean would follow the light; he'd look for me there." Sam reasoned, his voice a welcome sound against the oppressive darkness that surrounded him.

As Sam walked, he continued to try to figure out what was going on. The pieces just wouldn't fit. If it had been a real werewolf, he'd be dead. Not that he wasn't thankful that he hadn't been last night's dinner; but Sam knew that this hadn't felt right from the beginning. The victims had all lost massive amounts of blood and had shown signs of being attacked by an animal. All the victims had been lost in the woods for a week or longer before they were found and apparently, at least one person had escaped.

He wished that he had been able to talk to Dean's new friend Rusty. Sam laughed again as he pictured Dean sitting with a crusty old man in the bar while he was having dinner with a pretty young woman. "Well, I guess there is a God after all.." Sam chuckled. "So, if you're there, I could use a little help here." Sam shook his head; he definitely was beginning to lose it. It was getting harder and harder to concentrate.

Just as Sam was about to give up and try to make camp for the night, he saw what looked like a cabin on the top of the next ridge. There was a light in the window which probably meant that someone was there. "Finally, something is going right." Sam shook his head as he headed for the cabin. It was all Sam could do to put one foot in front of the other. His world had shrunk down to getting to the cabin and getting warm.

Finally after another hour of trudging uphill, Sam was standing on the porch of the cabin. He looked cautiously into the window, but couldn't make out anyone inside. He knocked on the door. "Hello, is anybody here?" Sam was amazed at how weak his voice sounded. Sam fell against the wall as another wave of dizziness hit him. He knew that inside he could be warm and protected from the elements…out here he would soon die of exposure or worse.

Sam reached for the door knob and was amazed that it was not locked. But then, it wasn't that unusual. The person who lived here probably didn't get many visitors. Sam turned the knob and entered the cabin. "Hello…hey, I didn't mean to break in…is anyone here?"

There still was no answer as Sam entered the central great room of the cabin. He could see the fire blazing in the fireplace and headed for it like a moth to a flame. He fell to his knees and held his shaking hands towards the fire. Sam leaned back against the chair that was near the fireplace, too exhausted to move from the warmth of the fire. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes, finally letting his body claim the sleep that it had been screaming for. As Sam slept, he never heard the door open…he never saw the man standing in front of him shaking his head as if trying to figure out a puzzle and he never heard the ringing of his cell phone.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Dean moved as quickly as his tired body would let him towards the area that Rusty had indicated. He couldn't believe that Sam had been missing for almost 24 hours now. The only thing that he held onto was that Rusty had made it. If that old coot could survive, he knew that Sam would find a way until he could get to him.

As the sun began to set, Dean sighed with relief as he saw the cabin come into view. He smiled as he saw the signs of a fire in the chimney…that meant that Rusty was home. As Dean approached the front door, he saw the end of a shot gun sticking out from the window of the cabin. "State your business or I'll blow your fckin' head off!"

Dean raised his hands and backed up slightly. "Rusty, it's me…Dean…remember the bar?" Dean waited for what seemed an eternity before he saw the door open and Rusty step through with the shot gun resting on his elbow. "Dean? What the hell are you doing here boy…I could have shot you!"

Dean moved forward, wrinkling his nose at the strong smell of whiskey as he approached the man. "I need your help Rusty…" Dean started to move forward slowly, making sure not to make any sudden moves. He didn't need to deal with being shot by a drunken old coot.

"Didn't I tell you to stay away from here? Fool kids, no one believes me. I told you about the lights and the wolf, but did you listen to old Rusty…no, you have to go and see for yourself didn't you?" Rusty backed into the cabin and left the door open. He moved towards the kitchen table and grabbed the half empty bottle of whiskey from the table. "Well, I'm going to show them…I'm not crazy. I'm going to get a picture of that son of a bitch and put it on the front page…then we'll see who's crazy 'round here."

Dean shook his head. Rusty was in no condition to go tracking in the woods. "Do you have a phone that I can borrow Rusty…I need to get some help to find my brother."

"Hah, you mean the local yokels; they couldn't find their ass with both hands. Why they only found those other poor fools after they were long dead…and with my help of course. No one knows these woods as well as I do. Been huntin' in them since I was a youngster." Rusty took a long drink from the bottle before offering it to Dean.

Dean sat down and took the bottle, taking a quick drink he handed it back to the old man. "Rusty, we have to find Sam before it's too late. Now can you tell me where you were attacked? Maybe I can start there."

"I can do better than that boy…I can show you." Rusty stood and moved quickly about the cabin. Dean watched as the man packed a backpack with supplies, including medical supplies. He turned to look at Dean and then quickly pulled out some ham from the fridge and some bread from the cupboard. "You look like you haven't eaten…can't have you passing out on me boy…you make yourself a couple of sandwiches and relax while I finish getting things ready."

Dean quickly made a couple of sandwiches; including one for Rusty…he figured the man should have something besides liquor in his belly. As he began to eat, he pulled out his cell phone and smiled as he saw that he had reception. He quickly dialed Sam's number and sighed as the call went through…but a moment later his elation fell when he heard Sam's voicemail message pick up. "Hey, Rusty…you think we can pick it up a bit?" Dean said as he rose and place the phone back in his coat pocket. If Sam wasn't answering his phone, that could only mean trouble.

TBC

Raven524: Ok, bet you all thought I forgot about this story, but I didn't. So, we still have Sam lost and Dean trying to find him. But at least I've given Dean some help…Rusty is on the job! Hope you all are still enjoying the story…don't forget to push the little button and drop me a line!