The 'Wolves Are Circlin'
"So, let me get this straight," I bit out, not believing my ears. Bela had followed me – followed me – to and from my meeting, and after about ten minutes of annoying the hell out of me dropped her bombshell. "You want to steal the Colt, not to gank the bitch but to trade for your soul? Jesus!" I was so glad I'd sent Adam off for a little R&R. That way, he won't get the idea that it's okay to kill humans.
"Men! Your solution is always ganking someone. Have you no finesse?" I laughed. "What is do damn funny?"
"Never, ever, say gank in any form again, sweetheart. It don't suit you."
She sighed and pursed her lips at me. "I don't even know why the hell I'm wasting my time with you."
I sighed, remember why I was putting up with this shit and why I wasn't going to kill her. Probably. "Because you're scared and your time's running out."
"And am I supposed to believe you care?"
"You should. Because I do. When I don't want to strangle you myself."
"Why?"
"I sold my soul too. To save my brother's life."
"And you lost him anyway? That... that's horrible. I made my deal to save myself. The worst part of it is… the worst bloody part is that I had no idea what I was doing. And it doesn't matter. Doesn't matter that I was young and scared out of my mind. Doesn't matter that I had no clue what I was trading away. I've spent six years trying to get out of this deal. And, like you said, time is running out. The Colt is my last bloody card and I can't afford to bulox it up."
"The safest course of action is to kill the bitch. Think about this… once she knows you have the Colt, she can just take it from you if she wants it bad enough. Why would she make a deal?"
"How long do you have, Dean?"
Oh, there's a question I had no plausible answer to. I shrugged. "I made my deal a year ago."
"I have two months, Dean. Two months. You won't know what that's like for another nine years. I lay awake at night hearing the hounds now. Like they can't wait to tear me apart. I haven't slept in so long…"
She started shaking and before I knew I was going to do it, I was holding her. Trying to sooth her the way my father had soothed me whenever I got like this. She was terrified and I was even more terrified for her. "That gives us two months to get the colt and kill Lilith."
Which is how I ended up breaking into Bobby's house and stealing the Colt. I knew the combination to his safe, so I didn't even have to crack it. I felt shitty for doing it, but I couldn't let Bela go to Hell. She was annoying, superior and probably had done a dozen things to deserve it since she'd sold her soul. But I'd been there and I couldn't just sit by and watch her go because she'd made a stupid deal when she was a kid who had no clue what she was doing. If she went, then it should be because she'd earned her seat in the hand basket. Not because some demon tricked a scared kid whose only crime was having a sick fuck for a father. Dad would understand if I could explain it to him, but I couldn't. And that's why I felt like shit. If he needed this damn thing, it wouldn't be here when he came looking for it.
"You remember the date of your deal?"
Bela looked up at me from where she sat, reverently running her long elegant fingers along the surface of the Colt. And, no I did not just think of her fingers as long and elegant. I closed my eyes and rubbed them with my fingers. I must really need to get laid. "What? Why?"
"We need to backtrack, try to figure out what omens manifest around her. Then we can use that to figure out where the bitch is. Then we kill her and you can spend the next fifty years trying to figure out how to thank me."
She narrowed her eyes at me. "Awfully sure of yourself, aren't you?"
"Nah. I just specialize in desperate."
"That so?"
"You're lookin' at the king of Hail Marys. In fact, I'm pretty sure that you're gonna try to steal the Colt from me and make your own play."
She stiffened a little. "And why's that?"
"Because you don't trust me. You've spent your entire life not trusting anyone but yourself. Hell, if our situations were reversed it's what I would do. I mean, trust someone I don't know with my life? With keeping me out of Hell? I'd actually understand if you did. But it won't save your life."
"And you will?" Her lip was trembling.
"I'm the only thing that might. I can't guarantee you it's gonna work. But it's not like you got a whole lot of moves left. And I can teach you how to stay safe until Lilith's dead."
"Stay locked up in a little room with hellhounds howling outside the door? No, that's not me."
I nodded and somehow that made me like her more. She had grit. "Yeah. I figured. But as a temporary measure, in case I need a few more days? It might be necessary."
"You'd be risking your life. And if you died…"
"I know." I went to the bathroom and when I came back, Bela was gone. The Colt was still there, sitting on the table next to a note with a date. I smiled to myself. It was a start.
"About three years ago I was raped."
Adam stared at me, clearly unsure of how to react. Maybe I shouldn't have said it so bluntly, but none of Dad's lesson's included how to tactfully tell your kid brother you were sexually assaulted. Plus I was as close to drunk as I could get without slurring. The more I had to drink, the blunter I got. Usually I was a fun drunk, but today I was morose. Must be channeling Sammy. Or it could be because Bela had less than a month left and I still hadn't been able to locate Lilith. "Man… I… I'm sorry."
I shrugged and looked away. "It was painful and bloody and utterly fucked. About a year ago… some even worse shit happened and… I lost my family. So now I go to a survivor's group and I guess I'm learnin' how to deal. I been… I been to Hell and back over the past few years. And I got nothin' left anymore but the fight to keep me goin'. Until you. It's like havin' a brother, you know? Somebody to look out for. I didn't know how much I needed that until I didn't have it anymore."
"Yeah, but who looks out for you?"
Kid never reminded me more of Sammy than he did at that moment. I stared at him for a few seconds. Because that used to be Dad's job. Now Dad didn't even know who the fuck I was, would never know who the fuck I was. Not ever. I tried to laugh, but it came out sounding broken and strangled and I hated myself for sounding like that but I couldn't help it. "According to Cas, God's got that job now." That was cold comfort, because I didn't want a God who didn't give a shit about me until he needed a favor. I wanted my father.
"I'm sorry Dean. You know you can count on me, right? I mean, I'm not that good at this hunting shit yet, but I got your back. You know that, right? Cause… you're like the big brother I never had. Sam's cool and all, but… the guy never saved my ass from things that keep trying to eat me or gut me or impale me on things, you know? Doesn't make sure I eat or make me check in or that I got spending money."
I wanted to say something, something funny to break the heavy mood, but my throat was closed up and I felt like I'd shatter if I moved a muscle. Just break apart along the million or so cracks running through my soul. I closed my eyes and willed myself to stay still. I couldn't afford to break. Dad wasn't here to put me back together and I was pretty sure Adam didn't know how even if I was willing to let him try. So the key was to not break. Just keep myself together with hunting, whiskey and taking care of Adam. After a few seconds of silence that seemed to go on for days, I finally opened my eyes and nodded. "Yeah. I know. Get to bed, kid. We're headin' out early."
"I can't find her. I'm so sorry." I sat on the couch in Bela's suit. Had to say, this was a hell of a lot better than the hotels Winchesters usually frequented.
"It's not… it's not your fault. I know you tried." She was curled up against the arm of the couch, her feet underneath her, looking so small and helpless.
I slid the Colt across the coffee table to her and she clutched it with shaking fingers. She had days left… fucking days. She looked like hell and I could tell that she hadn't slept in a very long time. "You can try your play."
"Thought you said it wouldn't work."
"I don't think it will. But it's a Hail Mary, right?"
She leaned forward and picked it up, her free hand over her mouth, and nodded as tears slipped from her eyes. I put my hand over the one holding the Colt and squeezed gently. "Tell me what happened to you. Why you go to those meetings."
I told her everything, staring down at the empty space between us while I did. I even told her about NotSam. I waited silently for her to react once I'd finished. I was better at telling people, not that I was ever going to make it a habit to just walk up to strangers and start spilling my guts, but it didn't leave me feeling empty and hollowed out anymore. Until now. I just didn't understand why I cared so much about what this woman thought of me.
"I'm sorry that happened to you." I looked up and met her tear filled eyes. I wasn't sure if she was crying for me or herself or both. Wasn't even sure if it mattered much. "You're a good man, Dean. You deserved better than that."
"Yeah, well," I said with a shrug, trying to avoid crying myself. "That's life, right?"
"Yeah. But you got past it. You're still here, still swinging. That's all that counts, right?"
I shrugged. "I hope so. And don't think that just because I gave you the gun that I'm giving up on you. 'Cause I haven't." I couldn't.
She leaned forward and kissed me. I pulled away, shocked. Her eyes widened at my reaction. "I'm sorry."
"No. It's just… I haven't… not since I was…"
"If you don't want to, I'd understand."
And how the hell had we started discussing comfort sex? "I do," I said, sounding surprised even to myself. Because, I'd just been considering strangling her again a couple weeks ago and I hadn't so much as kissed a woman in three years. "I just want you to know it's been a really long time for me. And I can't guarantee that I won't freak or something."
She let out a nervous little laugh. "Okay."
We kissed again, deeper this time.
I woke up to Bela slipping out of bed. "I've got to put out feelers, see if Lilith is interested in a deal."
"Let me know. If she's willing to met with you, maybe we can still go with Plan A if we have enough warning."
"Yeah. Okay. I'll… I'll come back in a couple of days. When it's almost over." She was getting dressed like she was trying to break some sort of record.
"Bela-"
"Don't, okay? I know you're just trying to give me hope and I adore you for it, but I… I have to be a realist about this." She leaned over and kissed me.
"Okay. I'm still not giving up. I'm taking Adam out for training this afternoon, so I'll be out in the middle of nowhere. If you can't get me on my phone, leave a message. Okay?"
"Yeah, okay." She opened the door and stood there looking back at me. She looked so damn scared, and I can't say that I blamed her. "I slept last night. First time in so bloody long." Then she was gone.
"So how's the replacement brother workin' out for you, Dean-o?"
"You… what the fuck are you doin' here?"
"Trying to figure out what's so special about you. I think I was supposed to believe that it was just some sort of last ditch effort to save the seal, but I'm starting to suspect there might be a lot more to it than that. What, with all the effort they were puttin' into hidin' you from me and all."
"Seal? What seal?"
"Oh… they didn't tell you? You broke the first one boy. The minute you got off that rack and started carvin' up souls for Alistair like a good little boy… that was the first step to raising Lucifer. We're at the end of times, Dean, and you got the ball a-rollin'. That's why Castiel came for yah. But he was about ten years too late. Angels. Bunch of incompetent assholes, you ask me. I created a plan that spanned decades, generations. Hell, it was such a good plan, I could just drop out for years at a time, see the world, destroy people just for the hell of it and come back to find everything chug chugging right along just like clockwork. And what were they doin'? Standin' around holdin' their dicks. And that's just the ones that can find 'em without a flashlight, a road map and GPS. And when they finally get involved? An entire decade too late." I shook my head in mock sadness. "It almost makes me feel bad. Like taking candy from a bunch of mentally challenged babies."
"You're lyin'!"
"I don't have to. The truth is so much more painful. Maybe it's a good thing your Daddy doesn't know you from a hole in the ground. Think of how ashamed he'd be of his good little soldier if he knew you ended the world. All that time he was worried about Sam when it was really you."
Dean stared at me, his eyes filled with hatred and self-loathing. Then he cocked his head, his expression becoming calculating as he looked around the empyt white room we were in. Kid did that a lot. Could be in the middle of the most delicious torment and suddenly his brain would switch on and he'd start putting things together. The more time I spent studying this boy, the more I realized just how much he'd been underestimated. By me, by everybody. That kind of underestimation could ruin plans. Even mine. "You can't touch me, can you?"
I blinked at him. "Whatever would give you that impression?"
"You're just standin' there, flappin' your gums. If you thought I was a threat and you could kill me, you would have. So tell me, is it the angels? Or did Dad do that ritual again? Cause, he might not remember me, but I'm still his goddamn son. Right?"
"You know, my girl got out when we opened up the Hell's Gate. You remember her, doncha? I believe you called her NotSam. I could send her on by and see if Adam can succeed where his brother failed. How long has it been since anybody's tapped that, Dean?"
"You send that bitch anywhere near Adam, and I swear…"
I chuckled. So predictable. He was more worried about Adam than himself. "Know what I think, Dean-o? I think you protest too much. I think the idea of a little rough handling after your time on the rack gets your engine all revved up."
"I think you need killin' and I'm just the sonovabitch to do it."
I laughed, finally tiring of my little game. Time for a new one. "Sorry, kid. You're old man already beat you to it."
"He did? He figured out how to kill a demon? Then how…?"
"This place is called limbo. Sort of like a waiting room for the nearly departed. I don't think I'm gettin' any further, though. Lots of demons and angels roamin' around this joint and gettin' more crowded by the day so I figure this is what happens to a soul when it dies… just gets stuck here. I mean, a soul is energy and energy can't be destroyed, just converted. I just have to consol myself with emotionally torturing any humans that happen across my little piece of nothingness. Didn't expect to see you, though. You're about to find out if you really escaped the pull of Hell forever. You're dyin' Dean-o. Out there in the middle of nowhere, nothin' between you and dead again but a wet behind the ears kid and the 'wolves are circlin' boy."
"Adam." His eyes widened as he remembered the predicament he was in just before ending up here.
"And I'm sure those 'wolves can smell your blood by now. Drawing them to the both of you like a magnet. Man, you gotta be the world's worst big bro. You just got another little brother killed. Sad really. Think Daddy'll actually seal a deal this time? Doubt Sammy'll figure out what he's up to, or try to stop him even if he does. Sam never understood John the way you did. Never appreciated him as much."
"Oh, God."
"Little late for prayin', dontcha think? Like that Jackass ever gave a shit about you anyway."
Dean glared at me. "Say what you will about me, but you're already dead, you stupid bastard. You lose."
"Do I? Oh, I wouldn't be so sure about that if I were you. My plan is still very much alive and kickin'."
"Every wonder why?"
"What?"
"If somethin's too good to be true, it usually is."
I blinked at him, because truthfully I'd thought of that before. Things just kept falling into my lap. I know I'm good at what I do, but sometimes it felt a little… too convenient. I huffed out a breath. "I'm just killin' time 'till Papa springs me. Then I'm gonna finish off everyone you ever knew. Except Daddy Dearest. Gonna leave him broken and alone with a gun in his mouth. You know what happens to suicides, right Dean-o?"
Something akin to fear was back in his eyes. "He can do that? Bring you back?"
"Oh yeah. Takes hella juice though. Won't be able to do it 'till he gets sprung and takes his true vessel. And you won't believe who that is." I laughed at the thought… too bad Dean wasn't going to live to see it.
"Dad!"
"Adam? Are you… are you okay?"
"No… I mean, yeah… it's… Dad there's somethin' you need to know. But you have to promise not to yell. You can yell at me later, but right now, you have to listen."
"Adam, explain yourself right the fuck now!"
I sighed. So much for Dad not yelling. "Three months ago, I was almost killed. It was ghouls. They said you killed their father, and they were after revenge. This guy saved me, said he was a hunter. You should have seen him, Dad! He didn't have anything to cut their heads off with, but he blew the brains out of one, and basically beat them out of the other with the butt of his rifle. I asked him to take me with him, teach me the ropes. He didn't want to, said you'd skin him alive if anything happened to me."
"Sounds like he knew what the hell he was talkin' about."
"I talked him into it anyway, as long as you didn't find out. But something happened-"
"Are you hurt? Did that stupid son of a bitch get you hurt?" Dad sounded pissed, his voice a deep, rumbling growl that sent shivers through me. No wonder Dean was scared of him.
"No… it's not me. He… fuck, Dad. It was my fault. It was coming after me and I wasn't fast enough and all of a sudden he was right there in front of me. I killed it, though. I did. But he… Dad you gotta come. I managed to get him to a nearby cabin, but he's too heavy for me to get him to the car, and I don't have what I need to help him. He's bad. Has a fever. Keeps babbling crazy shit. He needs more water, and antibiotics. Probably needs an IV."
"What's this son of a bitch's name?"
"Dean. Dean Wesson." There was dead silence on the other end for a second and I was terrified that the line had gone dead. "Dad?"
"'M here… this guy 'bout six feet of solid muscle with short dark blond hair and green eyes?"
"Yeah."
"Shit! Where are you, son?" Dad was suddenly calm, and I was thankful that someone was, because I was an inch away from full on panic mode.
"I'm just outside of Tulsa. Hold on, let me get the coordinates…" I found the notes that Dean'd made me take, and rattled then off to my father.
"I'm about one, one and a half hours away from there. Sit tight. Make a salt circle, sit with your back to somethin' solid facin' the door and whatever the fuck'll kill the bastards you're after in your hand. Read me?"
"Yes sir."
"What is it, boy? What's out there?"
"Werewolves." I heard a muttered curse over the phone line. "He said the tracks were made by at least three of them and that he never saw them hunt in a pack, said we needed help. We were leavin' when we got blindsided by one."
"Son, stay calm. Stay alert. Sam and I are on the way."
A/N: Just in case you read through that and got lost... I chanced POV three times. The majority was Dean, then Azazel (cause I miss the evil bastard) and finally Adam. And what the heck is wrong with this site? Keeps screwing up my formating.
Thanks, ShortLILPunk! I 'm glad you enjoyed the previous chapter. Hope you like this one too.
I'm glad you enjoyed Dean pairing up with his other little brother, Haylia Jones. Hoped you liked both Adam and Bela even more here. Dean thinking of Rosemary's Baby at that moment just seemed so… Dean.
Glad you liked it, Dean'sCastiel.
Happy to hear that you enjoyed my little additions and alterations, rog457. There's much more to come and the reunion happens next chapter.
Angie
