Well, looks like the playing with legos is going to have to wait...at least for the time being...
Hold on tight...the adventure has finally begun! Enjoy :)
Jenny was out of the shower, looking much more like her own self, making Dean feel relieved. She was standing behind Dean's chair, her tiny hand resting on his shoulder, while Sam shared his fear that the shape shifter might do something desperate now that he had been intercepted twice in getting a new victim. He and Dean discussed the possibility of going back to Telvista and try to catch him in case he tried to get someone else, but Jenny surprised them by interrupting.
"No, I don't think he'll go look for someone new," she mentioned quietly. "He's angry now…you…we…got in his way of getting a free skin…he's not gonna fold his hands and look for someone else." She paused and shivered. "We just made this a personal score to settle and he won't rest until he gets back at Sam."
Dean turned his head to look at her in slight confusion. "Why Sam? I was there too."
Jenny's gaze drifted to Sam. "Because he was the first one to interfere both times."
Sam stiffened up from his stance on the bed and looked at Dean who looked thoughtful.
"She's right, Sam," finally mentioned Dean softly as he avoided eye contact with Sam.
"Ok," Sam responded, not too worried. After all, this wasn't the first time he'd encountered one of these ugly bitches. He could handle this. He wondered why Dean looked so glum all of a sudden. He wasn't a two year old, for God's sake. "So now we know where he's gonna be…we use me as bait…that just makes it easier to catch him, right?"
Jenny cleared her throat and suddenly seemed interested in her socks.
Dean sighed. "Wrong, Sam."
"What do you mean wrong?" asked Sam in confusion. "You just said he was going to want to settle his score with me—"
"No, she said he was going to want to get back at you," Dean interrupted.
"Same thing—"
"No, Sam." Dean interrupted almost harshly once more. "There's a lot of ways of getting back. Sometimes hurting someone you care about is the best way of getting back."
Sam gulped and inhaled sharply. "So what you're saying is...his next victim could be—"
"Samantha," filled in Jenny quietly.
***
Dean, Sam, and Jenny made it to Samantha's house in record time. For the first time, Sam didn't tell Dean to slow down. If anything, he only urged him to push harder on the accelerator. As the Impala's breaks shrieked while Dean rapidly parked in front of Samantha's house, Sam and Jenny rushed out of the car toward the house, with Dean not far behind. All three of them equipped with silver knives carefully stowed inside their leather jackets, they inched toward the entrance carefully, straining their ear for any noise from the inside.
Perhaps it was good thing it was in the wee sma's of the morning. Any onlooker would have thought they looked like a team of badasses straight from a movie. What with their almost matching dark leather jackets and jeans, they made quite a sight. As the trio reached the door, Sam placed a finger in his mouth, in a shushing motion as he put his ear against the door, trying to catch any movement from the inside. There was no sense in waking up Samantha and raising bedlam until they were sure that the shape shifter had indeed made his way back to her home.
"Well?" prompted Dean in a fake stage whisper as he and Jenny looked fixedly at Sam's concentrating face.
"I think…I think I hear something," Sam responded. So softly, that Dean had to strain his ear to catch his response.
"You think he's in there?" asked Dean huskily as his hand made its way inside his jacket. He gripped the cold steel of his silver blade, ready for action.
"Someone's crying," Sam replied as he finally pinpointed the muffled noise from inside for what it was. He felt his stomach get in a knot as he realized they were too late. Knocking softly on the door, he almost fell forward as the door was opened all to soon, revealing a red nosed Samantha with tears streaming down her face. Welcoming the sight of the soft and gentle looking young man, she threw herself into his arms, much to the surprise of Dean and Jenny, to say nothing of Sam's.
"Oh Sam!" she gasped as she grasped the sides of Sam's jacket and hid her face in his chest.
Suddenly feeling like they had no business there, Dean and Jenny squirmed uncomfortably in their shoes, trying to figure out what was the best course of action to take from there.
Gathering whatever self wits Sam had left, he gently wrapped one arm around her sobbing form and caressed her light hair as he tried to soothe her fear. "Shh…" he shushed her. "It's ok…just tell me what happened. We can help."
Chocking back a sob, she poured out an incoherent jumble of an explanation. "You were right…he was here…and I didn't know…what…what to do…and then he took him, Sam! He took him and I didn't stop him…and…and it's all my fault! And …oh…my baby, my baby—"
Sam's eyes opened wide and he abruptly grabbed her by the shoulders to pull her apart to get a good look at her face. "He took Samuel?" Sam demanded, worry written all over his face.
"Yes!" She disengaged herself from his grasp and motioned toward the inside of the house, inviting them inside. "Sam, where do you think he could have taken him…I don't know what to do…I was going to call you, but I couldn't think straight somehow…"
"How long ago did he come here?" interjected Dean, in a business tone. He could feel the adrenaline pumping in his veins, and not having any emotions involved in this case, he felt better equipped to handle the chase than even Sam.
Samantha tilted her head as she tried to asses how long it had been. "I…I think it was about ten minutes ago…"
"And you just stood here all that time?" Dean asked in exasperation. "Why didn't you call Sam?" he demanded roughly. Really…he had no patience for incompetence…
"Dean," warned Jenny as she caught Samantha's look.
"Well, why didn't you?" insisted Dean. Samantha opened her mouth to respond, but Dean cut her off. "You know what, never mind…it doesn't matter anymore...we need to concentrate on finding his hide out…"
"He must be somewhere close in the neighborhood. It had to be a place he knew he would have little trouble carrying with the extra burden of his victim," Sam mentioned as he tried to get into the case, freeing his mind from emotions. He knew he had to keep a cool head in the matter if he was going to be any good to Samantha.
Samantha nodded briskly and suddenly noticed quiet Jenny for the first time. Wiping her eyes, she tried to smile at her in apology but failed miserably. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ignore you." She gulped back a sob. "You…you must be Dean's girl." She extended a hand to her in appreciation for caring enough to be there.
Jenny smiled softly at her and took the offered hand gently. "Guilty as charged," she joked lightly. "I'm Jenny. Samantha, right?" she asked, to which Samantha simply nodded.
Making their way toward the couch, they all sat down, with Dean and Sam firing questions at her, trying to determine if she could offer them any fresh information that could shed some light on the matter. Apparently, the shape shifter had made his way into the house noiselessly enough, since Samantha hadn't even realized anyone was in the house until Samuel's scream had wakened her up. Rushing to his room, she was in time to see "Jack" carry of her small child down the stairs at a surprising speed. Much to her guilt, he had managed to escape with her boy, and even though she had run after him into the street, somehow in between the darkness of the night, he had seemingly, if not magically, disappeared from view, leaving her in shock. Realizing he was nowhere to be seen, she had made her way back to the house, and had been desperately looking for the slip of paper where she had written down Sam's cell phone number when she had heard the knock on her door.
"Well, that's just peachy," Dean muttered, as he realized that he and Sam had pretty much nothing to go on.
Giving Dean a warning glance to shut up, Sam laid a soft hand on Samantha's arm and tried to reassure her. "Look, Dean and I are going to find the shape shifter and get Samuel back." He paused and looked at Jenny. "Jenny will stay with you just in case you need anything."
"Ok," was Samantha's sole response, as she tried to keep her emotions in check. She didn't even bother to suggest calling the police, since Sam had already explained earlier that the police would be of little service in cases like these.
As Dean and Sam made their way to the door, Sam looked back at Samantha and smiled at her encouragingly. Then he exited the door, closing it behind him.
***
"Any other ideas, genius?" Dean drawled out sarcastically, as he drove back to Samantha's place. It was now 5:00 a.m. and Dean was pissed off at the world in general.
Sam had suggested they search inside a drainage they had found about two blocks from her home, but not only had their search been unsuccessful, but Dean had managed to slip and had consequently gotten his clothes wet with a gooey green muddy kind of stuff. As Sam had put it, he smelt like he had just made his way out of a toilet.
"I don't know man…maybe we should grab something to eat at Samantha's real fast before we start looking again."
Keeping his eyes fixed on the road, Dean cleared his throat before remarking quietly, "How do you think she's gonna take it when he don't come back with the kid?"
Sam squared his jaw stubbornly. "We'll worry about that bend in the road when we get to it."
***
"What do you mean you didn't find him?" Samantha demanded as Sam tried to explain.
Holding out his hands as he tried to soothe her while explaining that they weren't giving up or anything, Sam explained that they had just stopped a moment to grab a quick bite to eat before they went out to keep searching. They needed some grub in their stomach to keep up their strength and to help them focus. Sam made his explanation so detailed and earnest and calming, that it's quite probable that Samantha would have calmed down. Unfortunately, however, Dean made the big mistake of opening his mouth and saying something…well…Dean-like.
"Hey, it's ok…we got it covered, sister," he put in breezily as he winked at her playfully.
Now it Dean's defense, he had only meant to lighten the mood. But to a distraught mother whose just had her child nabbed by some sort of freak that isn't even human, Dean's attempt at light humor not only seemed ill timed, but flippant.
"You think you're cute, don't you?" Samantha asked him in a dangerously sweet voice, which made Jenny lift her eyebrows and take a step back.
Nice going, Dean… Sam thought to himself as he rolled his eyes.
Dean looked at her in askance. He had the sneaking suspicion that that hadn't meant as a compliment. "Uh…" he stuttered, but Samantha lost it and before he could even blink, she had shoved him toward the wall. "Whoa…" Dean called out in surprise, his hands outstretched, hesitant to touch her.
"You think this is a game?!" she fumed at him as she grabbed the lapels of his shirt and shook him as much as her smaller frame was able to move Dean's heavy frame.
Dean simply glared stupidly at her, his tongue suddenly dry. It was one thing to shove his kid brother away, but he couldn't help but hesitate about shoving away a girl. Not that he was afraid of hurting her exactly. He knew his own strength and he was sure he could carefully move her away without any harm to either side. But one look at Sam's adamant face made him think twice about it. He had a feeling that if he so much as placed a finger on this pretty girl, Sam wouldn't think twice about pounding him. And it didn't take a genius to realize from the look on Jenny's face that she too was probably on Samantha's side for this round.
"My kid is God knows where…God knows if he's hurt or not…and you're cracking jokes!?" she screamed as she slammed him against the wall once more, making Dean blink in surprise and almost grimace.
"Look…" Dean finally responded, his voice so soft and gentle, that even Jenny was surprised. "I swear I didn't mean to make fun…I was just trying to make you feel better, all right? God knows I'm not going to rest until we find that kid, or my name isn't Dean Winchester."
***
"Girl's got spunk," was Dean's sole observation as he, Jenny, and Sam found there way out on the road again, the search for Samuel, starting once more. Samantha had wanted to come along, but Jenny had pointed out that it was better for her to stay in case Samuel came back. Not that she believed that for a moment, but she couldn't think of any other way of keeping her home, knowing full well that an emotional and inexperienced mother in the area of hunting could get in the way.
Sam smiled a bemused smile. He couldn't help it, since it reminded him of that time long ago, when he had made Dean the exact same observation about Jenny. "She holds her own pretty well," was Sam's sole response.
"Dean…wait…there's an opening right over there…maybe we should check it out…"Jenny suddenly suggested as she pointed toward a drainage system that they had just passed.
Looking in his rear view mirror, Dean braked and swerved to the sidewalk as he nodded in acknowledgment to Jenny's suggestion. So far, it was the only other place that seemed logical to look in. Turning of the engine, Dean opened both his door and moved over to the back seat where Jenny had sat and opened her door as well, closing it behind her. As they grabbed a pair of flashlights and an extra silver blade for each one, they stowed it carefully in their boots, and started heading back toward the tunnel on the ground. Dean and Sam both knelt to remove the lid, and Dean looked in slight disgust at the damp metal stairway that led to the bottom of it.
"Any takers?" asked Dean he put his hand on his hips.
Looking at Dean mischievously, Jenny responded sweetly, "Ladies first."
Sam's head tilted back as he let out a load laugh, making Dean glare at him. "Fine," he grated in annoyance at Jenny. "I'll go in first," and so saying he started making his way down carefully in the narrow tunnel.
As Jenny looked down at his frame which slowly made it's way down in the cramped spot, Sam looked at Jenny and opened his mouth abruptly.
"So," he started. "You didn't do anything," Sam pointed out in obvious surprise.
Jenny's gaze went to Sam with a huge question mark on her face which made it clear she didn't know what he was talking about. "Huh?"
"Back at Samantha's house," he added for clarification. "You didn't do anything when Samantha got a little out off control back there."
"Oh that," Jenny responded quietly. "The girl was punching his lights out. Now if she'd been trying to get into his pants, that'd be a different matter."
Sam chuckled. She does have a point... "Still, I kept expecting you to step in and try to calm her down or something. She was hysterical," Sam added.
"Dean's a big boy, Sammy," Jenny replied dryly. "He can take care of himself."
Sam tilted his head and nodded. "True."
"Besides, just between the two of us, I think Dean had it coming to him," she added abruptly lowering her voice as she rolled her eyes. "I mean, her kid's been taken by some freaky creature and Dean picks that moment to start cracking jokes?" Jenny shook her head and laughed as she remembered Samantha's furious look at Dean's calm. If it wasn't because of the emotional tension of the moment, it would have been downright hilarious. "Big no no, Sam."
Sam joined Jenny's light laugh which was interrupted abruptly by Dean's pissed off voice from below.
"SAM! You don't get your ass down here right now, I'm gonna go right up again and shove you off!" he threatened, as his voice echoed all the way up to both Sam's and Jenny's ears.
"He would too," Jenny assured Sam as her eyes danced with mischief.
Sam rolled his eyes. He hated it when Dean got bossy. "Coming, mother," Sam called out as he too slowly made his way down.
***
"Man, this place gives me the chills," Jenny observed in a hushed tone and she and the two Winchesters made their way along the damp and slippery tunnel. Dean was leading the way, followed closely by Jenny, with Sam leading the rear.
"It's freaking disgusting, that's what it is," Dean responded as he wiped his forehead with his arm from perspiration. It was hot and stuffy inside, making Dean regret he hadn't taken off his jacket and left it in the Impala.
"Oh, that too," Jenny agreed readily.
"Shit," Dean let out as he stopped in place. Kneeling down, he flipped over a piece of human ear and skin that lay on the floor.
"Yuck," Jenny whispered as she looked at it with something akin to wonder. It was almost transparent, and blood was strewn all over the spot.
"Well, we're on the right track all right," Dean huffed as he got back up on his feet. "Thank goodness we're getting somewhere in this goose chase."
Sam said nothing, too intent worrying about how Samantha was doing back home. He could only imagine her fear and he swore that her trust in him would not be in vain. Don't worry Samantha…I'll find him…if it's the last thing I do… He squared his jaw and gripped the flashlight tighter, and he felt his muscles tense as an unfamiliar sensation swept throughout his body. It was a sort of adrenaline rush, like the ones that Dean always got when they were on a job, but Sam had never experienced one to this degree, and he realized with surprise that it was a powerful sensation, making him feel like he could undertake anything and gain victory over it.
They made their way quietly through the tunnel, until it came to an end, where it forked into two tunnels, each with an unseeingly long end. Flashing his flashlight into both tunnels, Dean pursed his lips as he tried to decide how they should take it from there. Before he could open his mouth, however, Sam surprised both him and Jenny by taking the situation into his own hands, instead of laying back and letting Dean run things like he usually did.
"I'll take the right one and you and Jenny take the left one," Sam said in a quiet yet firm tone. "First one to find anything, holler." Then passing past Jenny's small frame and Dean's he inhaled trying to fit through the limited room. "Excuse me," he apologized as he almost squashed Jenny in the process.
Jenny simply shrugged. "You're good," she assured him.
Dean hesitated slightly, despite the energy behind Sam's movements. "You sure about this, Sam? We could all go together one end then go back and check out the other one—"
"And take twice as long," Sam interrupted. He shook his head, his mind already made up. "No, Dean, we need to split up. We'll cover more ground that way." He stopped as he felt his heart grow cold at the thought that the more time they stood there chatting, the less likely it was to find small Samuel unhurt. "The more time we loose, the less of a chance we got to find him alive, Dean," Sam added softly.
Not choosing to respond, Dean shifted uncomfortably in his shoes and simply nodded.
***
It had been about seven minutes since the Winchesters had split ways in the tunnel, and Dean and Jenny had been uncommonly quiet, both intent on trying to catch any kind of noise that could indicate if they were any closer to finding the shape shifter than they had been a while ago. They had found more residues of skin tissue along the way, making them confident of the fact that they were indeed on the right tract, and they wondered how Sam was coming along on his side of the tunnel. Suddenly, they came to the end of their tunnel, leading them into a wide open space that seemed almost like a room.
"Dean, what the—" started Jenny, but Dean hushed her harshly with a single movement by pulling her to her knees, still staying at the entrance of the room, not moving from their spot.
"Don't talk unless you have to," warned Dean in a hushed whisper in her ear, as he turned off his flashlight and pulled out his blade and shifted it to his right hand, his muscles tense, ready for action.
Jenny mirrored his move by taking her blade out ready for use as well, her eyes opening wide as she spotted a familiar face barely a few feet ahead. "Dean—" she started, but he cut her off once more.
"I know," he whispered back tensely, still in his haunches, not moving an inch, his gaze locked on the tiny form of a very pale and frightened Samuel who was tied to a beam in the furthest end of the room. "I know," he repeated softly.
Realizing he wasn't planning on doing anything about their discovery, Jenny suddenly felt her blood boil at Dean's almost disinterested stance.
"What the hell are you waiting for?!" Jenny finally asked in annoyance. "He's right there!"
Not moving a muscle, his eyes still glued straight ahead of him, Dean took a few seconds to respond. "We're not moving in until it's absolutely necessary," he replied flatly in a "don't mess with me" tone.
"Have you lost your marbles?" Jenny demanded. She moved to slip past him to reach Samuel who was know sniveling pitiably, the sound making her heart break, but Dean coolly flattened her against the wall, pinning her with a single movement, yet doing it so smoothly, he didn't hurt her.
"Don't piss me off, Jennifer," Dean said smoothly enough in a stern tone that he had never used before with Jenny. He sounded so dead serious, that Jenny looked at him in askance. "I said we're staying put, and we're doing just that until I say otherwise."
Gulping back her surprise, she looked dumbfounded at Dean. "Dean?" she ventured to ask once more.
Taking one quick glance across the room to make sure no one else had arrived yet, he finally explained to the question in Jenny's eyes. "See that other entrance on the right side of the room?" he asked as quietly as possible as he jerked his chin toward the direction he was talking about.
Jenny nodded.
"Now that's either another entrance from above, or it could be where Sam's tunnel ends. Either way, we have to stay put until we make sure no one else is going to pop in uninvited." He gave another quick glance around the room to make sure nothing had changed then added, "Besides, this isn't our fight. We're only here to back up Sam."
"What do you mean?" Jenny mouthed back at him.
"I mean Sam's gotta prove to both himself and Samantha that he can pull his own weight around," Dean almost growled. "Sam needs to rescue Samuel, not us. We're only here in case that son of a bitch gets out of hand."
Dean's just laying back, letting Sam have the glory?? Wow...he must really want to get Sam laid! lol
Hope you are liking it so far...keep your fingers crossed...we don't want Sammy boy getting there too late!
