Augustine's Ring

Disclaimer: So okay I didn't do it so you can't blame me ... oh wait sorry umm yeah I don't own any of the Supernatural characters or the show and it's not my fault that the boys are temporarily MIA ... umm I didn't do it I swear!!

CHAPTER 10

Manor de Joi

Home of Dr Eugene Cross

Dresden Kansas

February 1878

Sam sat in the big chair by the fire and gazed morosely into the flames, his injuries already starting to heal once he was in a safe, clean, and comfortable environment, but his state of mind now was in question.

Sane and healthy when he was forced into the asylum, abused, and degraded beyond the endurance of any man, now he questioned his own sanity. He wanted to kill the three men who abused him so badly he could taste it. Taste their blood and life forces deep in his throat gagging him.

After a week of sleeping in a clean bed and being treated for his fever and injuries by Eugene he actually felt a lot better physically.

'Morning Samuel,' Eugene smiled as he strode into the living room, 'you are up early.'

'Yeah I – I guess.' Sam mumbled, 'good morning Eugene and Sam is fine.'

'Did you have more nightmares?' Eugene asked directly his smile fading around the edges.

Sam looked at him with sad and tired eyes, and nodded silently turning his attention to his flame watching. 'Same one.' He mumbled.

'Do you want to talk about it?' Eugene asked using his best neutral tone, 'anything we talk about is private and for no one else to hear.'

'I – I know and thanks Eugene,' Sam managed a weak smile glancing at the other man before turning his attention back to the fire, tears shining in his eyes, 'I – I miss Dean.'

'Do you want to contact him?'

'Thanks Eugene but ... he's not the Dean I miss.' Sam sighed 'I'm going to go and dress I might go for a walk.'

'Stay clear of the main streets if you do Samuel; remember that they are still searching for you.'

'Thanks Eugene for everything, I know how much this has cost you.'

'I will find employment elsewhere Samuel, aside from that I could not stand by any longer and watch them abuse you.'

Sam opened his mouth to reply but instead a hiss of pain escaped and he grabbed his head wrapping his long fingers in his now shorter and neater hair. 'Ah hurts ... my head.' He gasped blinking furiously he tried to push his way through the discomfort but he knew what was coming.

A familiar dark room filled his eyesight, the bookcase filled with books on anything metaphysical in front of him. A desk covered in papers and open books next to it yes he did know where he was.

He turned and saw the Dean of this time standing over the prone body of his younger brother, the other Samuel. Sam stared down at his historical counterpart, the same slightly older features, the fashionably styled hair everything about him was very familiar and at the sametime very alien to him.

He gasped and his own body rocked with the force of the blow as Dean beat his brother again. Using his cane he thrashed the younger man who lay curled on his side trying to protect his more vulnerable parts. Sam saw the ring glowing an unholy green with every strike until the cane snapped. Dean took a breath, staggered over to the desk, and pulled out a small handgun with a pearl handle. He aimed at his dying brother, a cold look on his face but it his eyes startled Sam in his voyeuristic role, the only witness to the carnage.

With glowing green eyes Dean looked down at Samuel whose life bled away in front of him, taking aim he shot him directly in the heart and then he sank to his knees next to Samuel's body. 'Good bye Samuel.' Dean whispered and then in an apparent trance like state he lifted the gun to his own temple and pulled the trigger. His lifeless body slumped forward lying over his brother. The green ring no longer glowed but instead looked just like any other costume jewellery, a ring with a dull stone.

Sam gasped and gripped Eugene's arms tightly to regain his sense of balance, 'I – I know what happened to the brothers when they supposedly disappeared.'

'What? How?' Eugene spat out his eyes wide with shock, 'Samuel what just happened here?'

Sam sniffed and wiped the small trickle of blood away from his upper lip, 'I ah have visions.'

'Excuse me?'

'I have visions, premonitions and they always come true, I saw the Dean from this time beating Samuel and then he got a gun from his desk, shot Samuel in the heart and then turned to gun on himself.'

'Do you know when this will happen?'

'No, no but soon...' Sam looked up at Eugene shock registering in his green eyes darkening them, 'Eugene if I can't get back to my time then – then the past Dean will beat me up and then kill me before himself. That means my family will change forever.'

'I am so sorry Samuel, I truly am.' Eugene said softly, 'I must admit though that I find your tale of the future disconcerting to say the least.'

'Eugene I am not lying, I am not insane, and I am not making it up.'

'I know Sam, we just have to work out a way of getting the Dean here to see the light and help us, not hinder us.'

'If he is anything like my Dean then we're in for a fight,' Sam smirked ruefully, 'he can be quite stubborn when he wants to be.'

'I seem to know someone else like that.' Eugene smiled as he stretched and went to ring the servant's bell, 'breakfast?'

'Thanks.'

'I think we might eat on the terrace it is a beautiful day.' Eugene said as he waited for Emiline his housekeeper to come bustling in.

'Morning young Sir,' Emiline smiled as she nodded her head to Eugene, 'and Mister Sam it is so good to see up and about.'

'Thanks Emiline.' Sam smiled warmly instantly liking the gentle woman with her chocolate coloured skin and deep brown eyes, she reminded him so much of Missouri.

'So what can I do for the two of you boys?'

'Em, could you have our breakfast served on the terrace, it is such a beautiful day.'

'Not a problem at all, do you have any requests Mister Sam?'

'Emiline whatever you decide will be fine but please don't go to any trouble some toast will be okay.'

'And coffee?'

'That is one thing I will never say no too, your coffee is fantastic.' The young man gave the housekeeper his warmest and brightest smile, 'I wish I could take it with me when I return home.'

'Oh, you're not staying here?'

'For a while, don't worry Emiline you're not going to get ride of me that easily.'

'Good to hear, and what about you young Sir?'

'Toast and jams will be fine, oh and some eggs I think.' Eugene smiled at the woman who practically raised him after the death of his mother when he was six months old.

'Yes Sir,' Emiline smiled and nodded at Sam, 'your breakfast will be ready in twenty minutes on the terrace. With a large pot of my coffee for you Mister Samuel.'

'Thanks Emiline.' Sam smiled sadly and turned to the fire to hide his sudden burgeoning tears.

'Samuel are you alright?' Eugene asked touching Sam lightly on the shoulder he noticed how the younger man flinched at the touch.

'Just so tired Eugene, tired of fighting, tired of hunting, tired of being screwed by whatever thinks it's in control of my so-called destiny. I'm tired of being scared and hurting so much, I'm just tired.' Sam said wincing with each admission, he couldn't talk to Dean like this and that saddened him even further. 'I don't want to be a victim anymore Eugene but every time I think of ... that place...' Sam's voice trailed off as the tears finally fell.

'Sam all of what you are feeling ... it's normal after what you have been subjected to ... most men wouldn't have survived.'

'So what you're saying Doc is that I am a glutton for punishment?' Sam quipped but the sadness in his eyes belied the good humour in his voice.

'Samuel I am here to talk anytime you need you know that don't you?'

'Yeah but please Eugene call me Sam, I am not Samuel.' Sam asked, 'hell I wouldn't even mind being called Sammy if it meant I could go home.' He thought.

'Sam?' Eugene asked frowning at the younger man's sudden silence and blank expression, silently he prayed that it wasn't the first sign of regression, of Sam sliding back into the horrors of the asylum and be trapped by memories.

'Huh?'

'Sam are you alright, you seemed to be ...'

'Oh sorry Eugene I was just thinking,' Sam said hating the tremor in his voice.

'Well how about some of Emiline's wonderful fresh-baked bread and jams?' Eugene grinned, 'we should really go to the terrace.'

'Yeah sure, thanks Dude.' Sam said although he still seemed distant and moving further away from Eugene's reality.

'Fine then come along,' Eugene took Sam's elbow and started to lead him through to the dining room and the terrace through the French doors. Sam lifted his head and stared around, he could taste the panic rising through him. He pulled out of Eugene's grip and backed away from him. Sam's face now devoid of any colour looked drawn and etched with pain.

The headache assaulted him with such a force that it took his breath away, he felt himself being dragged towards the bathing room once again. His breathing hitched in his throat as the terror and fear took control of his chest and lungs. Refusing them access to the fresh air.

'Samuel?' Eugene called to him but didn't move, instead he watched with concern as Sam relived a painful memory.

'No please, no more!' Sam begged as he crashed into a high backed chair and the dining room, pain flared through his back but he kept moving he had to get away, 'no, no, no.'

'Samuel it's alright, you're safe here no one can hurt you.'

'You, you were there...' Sam started to hyperventilate while remembering being trapped in that canvas sling and lowered into the bath filled with ice and water. The face above him, the one doing it to him stood in front of him. 'No, please why are you doing this?'

'Samuel please it's all over you're not in the asylum anymore.' Eugene could feel his patience waning as he tried to calm the young man down, perhaps he was hasty in his rescue attempt.

'No, you – you were in it with Elias,' Sam's hyperventilating worsened until he fought for each breath. 'Stay away from me.'

'Samuel you are going to have to calm down or you will have heart failure.'

'Stop ... where ... you ... are.' Sam held out a shaking hand when he saw Eugene move closer, his knees started to buckle as his oxygen starved lungs started to close down. Robbing his body of the precious life giving intake.

'Sam?' Eugene watched as Sam's eyes rolled backwards and he collapsed to the floor no longer breathing. 'Samuel?' He dropped to his knees and stared at the lifeless young man lying in front of him, 'damn it all Samuel you cannot die.' Eugene cried out. Just then, Sam's body jerked violently as he gasped in desperation for air.

'Samuel please breath,' he massaged the paralysed chest muscles in an attempt to help his patient breath. Sam's eyes slitted open a fraction and he stared unseeingly at Eugene's face as he fought to regain control of his sporadic breathing.

'Eugene?' Sam blinked to clear his eyes, his voice sounded rough and barely audible.

'You gave me a fright Samuel,' Eugene grinned, 'please no more of these panics I don't think my heart will take it.'

'Where's Dean?' Sam asked confusion showing on his youthful face.

'He is not here Samuel; don't you remember we had to rescue you from Daimonledge?'

'No, no Dean is in the motel room ... where? Oh fuck.' Sam sighed as the realisation hit him, 'it wasn't a dream was it?'

'No I am afraid not Samuel,' Eugene said standing he held his hand out to Sam, 'do you think you can stand?'

Sam nodded and slowly climbed to his feet using Eugene's offered hand to stabilise himself. Bashing on the front door startled both men and Sam cringed feeling himself start to panic again.

'Sh Samuel it's alright, Emiline will answer the door,' Eugene counselled the younger man.

'Where is he?' Dean's crisp authoritative sounding voice carried through the quiet house.

'I'm sorry sir but who are you looking for?' Emiline blinked at the rudeness of the man towering over her in the doorway.

'My brother where is he?'

'I have no idea who you are or who your brother is, I must ask you to leave Sir.'

'I am Dean Winchester and I know for a fact that your employer has been harbouring my brother Samuel here.' Dean pushed past the woman and strode into the foyer swinging his cane menacingly.

'I am sorry Sir but I must ask you to leave.' Emiline stood her ground refusing to be intimidated by this man.

'Samuel come here now.' Dean bellowed. 'Now Samuel.'

In the dining room, Eugene watched as Sam regressed further into his catatonic state that just a few minutes ago Eugene had managed to pull him back from. Trembling Sam backed away from the door and from Eugene until he hit the wall hard, sliding down the panelling he pulled his knees up close and pushed himself into a corner. Trying to make himself as small as possible, 'where's Deanie? I want Deanie.' He wept in a singsong voice of a small child. 'I wanna go home to my Deanie.'

'Damn it.' Eugene cussed aloud striding out of the room he shut the double doors behind him, hating to leave Sam alone but he had to get rid of the older brother.

TBC