Wow, I really got a response to that chapter. I know, I'm cruel to have killed Alisa. Unfortunately, it had to be done to further the story along. I hope you enjoy this next chapter.

Cindy.

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John paced nervously, his eyes constantly flicking toward the doorway of the waiting room. They had been waiting over three hours now without even one of the promised updates on Sam's progress. John figured this could only mean that things were worse off for Sam than the doctor had thought. He noted the lost looks on his older son's faces and swallowed back the lump that had formed in his throat. His thoughts went back to the Chambers' and his knees went weak with the what ifs that that scene had stirred up in his brain.

What if Dr. Heely walked into their waiting room and gave them the same news the Chambers family had received? What if the last thing John had really said to Sam was that he thought he was inconsiderate? Sam had been avoiding John the past several days, ever since that night. John mentally kicked himself for not seeking his youngest out to apologize, but apologizing just wasn't the John Winchester way now was it, John thought ruefully.

John neared a small, metal trashcan and kicked out in anger, sending the trashcan flying into the far wall. Daniel and Dean were startled out of their own thoughts at the loud crash and peered at their father warily.

"Where the hell is that doctor!? John shouted, rubbing his hands through his hair. "What the hell is taking so damned long!?"

Dean rose and walked to where John stood and grasped his arm. He pulled him around until the two men faced each other.

"Dad, I'm sure everything is okay. I mean…no news is good news right?" Dean said, his own worry showing clearly in the lines on his face.

"The doctor said one to three hours and it's past that now. And no one has come to tell us anything. I just…with everything that's happened…I…all I can picture in my head is the Chambers'. That could be us…"

"Dad…stop. Usually it's you trying to calm me down, but…I just feel that he's okay. Maybe things are worse than we hoped, but I feel that Sam'll be fine," Dean said as he squeezed John's arm slightly.

"I hope you're right Dean. We fought so hard to not lose him last year, I just don't know what I'll do if we lose him now…"

"We're not losing him Dad. Sam's a fighter. He won't leave us…he's to damned stubborn…just like you old man," Daniel said as he rose and joined his family.

John chuckled at that and nodded. "Yeah, that's one thing he and I have in common."

"Oh, you and Sam are more alike than either of you will ever admit to Dad," Dean quipped.

A noise at the door brought the three hunters attention quickly to the harried looking man who stood there. Dr. Heely looked exhausted as he glanced at the three men. He was still dressed in his scrubs and John shuddered when he spotted blood on one sleeve. Sam's blood. It was Dean who broke through the silence and spoke up.

"Dr. Heely…how is my brother? Is he okay?"

"Why don't we take a seat gentlemen," the doctor said tiredly.

Father and son's glanced warily at each other before each took a seat. Dr. Heely sat opposite the three men and sighed before beginning.

"First of all, Sam is alive. We had some rough moments, but he's quite the fighter. He's holding his own right now."

"Sam's always been a fighter doc," Dean said with admiration in his voice.

"So…what happened? Why did it take so long for his surgery?" John asked impatiently.

"Well, when we opened Sam up, we quickly discovered a few serious problems. Sam's abdomen was full of blood. The knife had nicked a blood vessel and Sam was slowly bleeding out. We had to pull the knife out before we could repair the vessel, but the knife had also perforated the intestines. We had to get another surgeon in so one could fix the blood vessel and one could repair the intestines," the doctor explained wearily.

"How much blood did Sam lose?" Daniel asked, his heart hammering in his chest.

"We had to give him three units to replace what he had lost," the doctor replied.

The three hunters gasped and Dean felt thankful he was sitting, because if he weren't he probably would have fallen.

"So…we clamped off the blood vessel and suctioned the blood from Sam's abdomen. We removed the knife, careful not to do any further damage. Dr. Ang repaired the blood vessel while I repaired the intestines. Sam…uh…" the doctor trailed off and rubbed a tired hand over his face.

"Sam what?" John queried uneasily.

"As I said, Sam lost a lot of blood. Sam's heart stopped at one point. He…he was down for over four minutes before we could get it started again."

The three hunters paled and Daniel stood, his hand over his mouth as he walked a few feet away. Tears fell silently from his eyes as he listened when Dean spoke.

"His heart wasn't beating for over four minutes? Is he…will he be okay?"

"There shouldn't be any brain damage, but we will need to keep a very close eye on him," the doctor replied.

"Is he breathing on his own?" John asked as he watched Dean walk to Daniel and drape an arm across his big brother's shoulders.

"He is. He'll have an oxygen mask on to make sure he's getting an adequate supply. He'll be put in the ICU so his heart can be monitored closely. We also need to keep a close eye out for infection. With an intestinal evisceration, infection is always a big worry," Dr. Heely explained.

"When can we see him?" Dean asked.

"He's still in recovery. I'll send a nurse to take you to him when he's been settled in the ICU. You'll be able to stay with him as long as you're quiet and don't get in the way."

"We'll behave. We're not leaving Sam," Daniel said softly.

"Hey doc? Can you tell us what happened with Alisa Chambers? We saw her family and …well…" Dean queried.

"I really shouldn't say anything and I most certainly don't want anything said to Sam," the doctor said.

"We won't say anything," John replied.

The doctor seemed to consider the request for a moment, then nodded before he spoke.

"Ms. Chambers came in with severe head trauma. Now I didn't treat her, but I know that she had a fractured skull. A CT scan showed that she had a bleed in her brain. From what I understand, she arrested on the operating table and they were unable to revive her," the doctor explained sadly.

John lowered his head, grief washing over him for the girl who Sam cared for so much. He grieved for her family who would never hear her laugh or see her smile again. No parent should ever have to bury their child. John could not explain it, but he had a strong feeling that Alisa had tried to help Sam and had been hurt in her attempt. If that was the case, John owed her and her family more than they could ever know. He vowed that he would make sure that whomever did this to Sam and Alisa would pay with their life. John could not bring Alisa back to her family, but he could bring them justice. John glanced up when Dr. Heely spoke again.

"Just so you know, Sam is going to be pretty much out of it for awhile. I need him to get as much rest as possible. His injuries are life threatening and the less stress he's under, the better. He's being given strong pain medication which will keep him heavily sedated."

"How long will he need to be sedated?" Daniel asked, uneasy with his baby brother basically being held in a drug induced stupor.

"For as long as it takes to get him in the clear. He'll have moments of wakefulness, but he'll be confused and muddled. I want to reiterate that under no circumstances is he to be told about Ms. Chambers. Not until all danger has passed," the doctor stated firmly.

"What if he asks about her? I mean…he will ask about her doc. I don't like lying to my brother," Dean said.

"If you want your brother to pull through this, you will do just that. I can't emphasize enough how close you all came to losing him tonight. He's not out of the woods yet and any stress could cause him further damage," Dr. Heely lectured.

"We will not tell him about Alisa until you say it's okay. We'll do everything in our power to make sure he gets better. Right Dean?" John said firmly.

"Yes sir. I understand," Dean answered.

"Well, good then. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go check on my patient. It shouldn't be too much longer before you can sit with him," the doctor said with a tired smile.

"Thank you Dr. Heely. We can't thank you enough for what you've done for our Sammy," John said as he shook the doctors hand.

"It's my pleasure Mr. Winchester. I just hope they find the monster who did this and make him pay," the doctor replied.

"Oh…he'll pay for what he's done,' Daniel said through clenched teeth.

The doctor nodded then left the waiting room and walked off down the hallway, leaving the Winchester men to their own devices.

John headed for the door, stopping when his oldest son called after him.

"Where are you going Dad?" Daniel asked.

"I need to make some phone calls," John answered shortly. "We need to find the bastard who did this and we're going to need help."

With that, John left his two oldest sons to wait on their own.

John returned a half hour later with three more coffee's and a bag of doughnuts. The three ate in silence and once the food was gone, John spoke up.

"Bobby's on his way. He should get here…" John glanced at his watch noting it was well after midnight, then spoke again. "About midday tomorrow."

"Is he the only one coming?" Daniel queried.

John shook his head slowly. "Caleb and Joshua are about eight hours out. They should be here by ten."

"We aren't taking any chances on this one are we?" Dean queried softly.

"Not on your life. This guy, whomever he is, picked the wrong boy to screw with. He'd better hope the cops find him before we do 'cause he's not getting out of this alive if we find him first," John shot venomously.

Daniel and Dean nodded in agreement and the three men fell silent once again. Movement at the door pulled them from their musings and they turned their heads to acknowledge the petite nurse who stood with a warm smile on her face. The nurse stepped into the room and was immediately dwarfed when the three tall men stood. She looked up and squared her shoulders.

"Mr. Winchester?" the nurse queried.

"I'm John Winchester," John answered gruffly.

"My name is Madeline. I am your son's nurse for the night. I'm here to take you to him," the nurse said. "Please follow me."

The men followed the small brunette and boarded an elevator and were soon stepping out onto the fourth floor. Madeline led them down a long hall until they came to the ICU doors. They went through the doors and were led to Sam's private ICU room. Madeline paused at the door and turned to the Winchester men.

"I'm sure Dr. Heely explained to you that Sam is sedated and probably won't be awake for some time. He has an oxygen mask and is hooked up to several monitors. Don't get overwhelmed by everything. I'll explain anything you need me to," Madeline explained.

The three men nodded in response and waited for the nurse to lead them to Sam. Madeline slid the glass door open and allowed the men to file into the room. She shuffled around the hunters when they halted, their shocked eyes locked on the pale boy who lay on the bed.

Sam lay perfectly still, the gentle rise and fall of his chest his only movement. There were several wires running from under his hospital gown to the machines that stood next to his bed. Two IV lines ran into his hand, one delivering fluids and the other delivering pain medications and antibiotics. A blood pressure cuff was attached to his arm to measure his BP at regular intervals. An oxygen mask covered his nose and mouth. His head was turned slightly toward the door and the three men could plainly see the dark circles under his eyes.

Madeline stepped to Sam's bedside and gently adjusted his pillows. She smiled up at the hesitant men.

"You can come closer. I know he looks quite ill but I can tell he's a strong young man. He's going to pull through this and I promise I will take great care of him," Madeline said softly.

The hunters stepped up to the bed and gazed down at the unconscious teen. Tears welled in the three sets of eyes as they took in the sight of their youngest looking so helpless. John reached out and took Sam's limp hand into his, then looked up to the nurse.

"Thank you,' he whispered hoarsly.

Madeline made her way to the door and turned, sending one last look back at the heartbreaking scene. She smiled as she watched the three men encircle her young patient protectively. She could feel the love pouring from the men in waves and prayed that this story would have a happy ending.

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So, Sam is still alive...very critical, but alive. The family has been reunited, even though Sam is completely out of it. Please let me know how that chapter went. I'll post another one later to make up for killing Sam's sweet Alisa

Cindy.