Despite the severity of the situation, Sam couldn't help but be reminded of a bad porno he'd once watched that involved a cave similar to this one. The movie had forever ruined the image of Snow White for the younger hunter. From then on out, he'd learned not to allow Dean to order movies from pay-per-view.
Pushing aside the image of Snow and her dwarves, Sam, bent nearly in half to squeeze through the opening. He worked hard to tune out the sounds of the struggle that was taking place in the woods behind him. He had a job to do and that job was currently screaming his tiny little lungs out.
For Sam the upset infant was both a blessing and a curse. He was thankful that Oscar still had the strength to kick up such a fuss, but he also found himself wishing that the babe would quiet. He had no desire to make themselves a larger target than they already were. Sam had a feeling that Annie would not be happy he was stealing her dinner.
As he began to leave the daylight behind, a putrid smell began to assault his senses. The deeper he went the worse the odor. A combination of rotting meat and animal musk, the scent was doing it's best to make him gag.
The darkness grew deeper, leaving Sam with no choice but to reach a hand out to trail down the damp, stone wall. Suppressing a shudder, he tried not to notice the grooves that marked the rock, long, deep gouges that ran the length of the wall. He didn't even want to think that Dean was in danger of being torn apart by the same nails that had made those grooves.
Unable to shove the image away, the urge to gag wasn't just an urge anymore. Sam dropped to his knees and retched, the picture of Dean caught in the mercy of a creature that could claw through rock leaving him weak with guilt and fear. Despite the fact that his older brother would have kicked his ass if he'd gone after the hunter rather than baby Oscar, Sam still felt like a failure.
Kneeling on the cold, damp rock, Sam swiped a hand across his mouth and ignored the tightness in his chest. He had a job to do, and the sooner he got it done, the quicker he could head for Dean. Determined not to let the only family he had left to die on him, Sam gained his feet and hurried the best he could down the dank, dark, passageway.
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Dean's strike was hard, fast and accurate, and it was the last thing he managed to do before passing out. Near as he could figure he'd lain bleeding on the forest floor for close to fifteen minutes. Considering just how vulnerable he'd been he was lucky as hell to have even woken up. He had no doubt that the blow he struck had done little permanent damage. Most likely all it had done was frighten the damn thing away.
The Black Annis, though powerful and deadly, was so used to dealing with defenseless children and babies that Dean's simple act of defiance had done enough to scare it off. It was a good thing, because that one blow had taken every last ounce of Dean's strength.
He lay on his back in the quickly darkening forest, his right arm stretched up behind his head. He'd yet to assess his injuries for the simple reason that he knew it was bad, maybe even beyond bad. He couldn't delay much longer, every moment he remained lying on the ground left Sam and Oscar in even greater danger.
Certain it was one of the hardest things he'd ever done, Dean drew his arm down to lie across his chest. The scream of pain that broke from him, despite his intentions, shattered the surrounding silence. He lay taking several deep breaths until he finally managed to deal with the sheer agony.
Once the pain became a bearable throb that echoed his heartbeat, he knew he could no longer delay in gaining his feet. As he sat up, using his left arm, he considered cutting away his heavy denim jacket to determine his injuries. At last, he decided to let it go for now, near as he could tell, he wasn't bleeding profusely, the nature of the puncture wounds ensured that. So, really he was better off not knowing.
It seemed to take him an inordinate amount of time to get to his feet. Once up, he wavered for a few moments before some deep breathing once again managed to force the pain to a more endurable level.
First, he knew he needed to immobilize his arm. He regretted it as it was his right arm that was injured, but even the slightest of movements proved to be too much. With his left hand, Dean unbuckled his belt and pulled it out of the loops of his jeans. It wouldn't be perfect, his arm would still swing too freely, but at least it would allow him to concentrate on finding Sam.
As he fashioned a loop out of the leather, he re-directed his attention from the pain he was causing himself to the forest around him. The last sight he'd seen of his brother had been a glimpse of Sam headed into the cave. Dean carefully dropped the loop around his neck and slipped his right arm through.
"Shit," he whispered at the flare of pain. Satisfied at last that the makeshift sling was as good as he could make it he found his bearings. He was pretty sure he was only about fifteen minutes west of the cave. Forcing his battered body to move, Dean headed out his eyes scanning the ground for the flare gun he'd dropped during his encounter.
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The closer Sam moved toward the heart of the cave the greater the odor grew. Left with little other option than to continue forward, he did his dead level best to breathe through his mouth. He'd been moving forward in complete darkness for awhile now. He'd left his flashlight off, figuring it would be better not to announce his presence just in case the hag was somewhere behind or before him. Drawn on by the baby's now dwindling cries, the youngest Winchester at last stumbled out of the passageway and into a larger cavern. Here Oscar's cries were overwhelming, proving to Sam that he'd finally reached the babe. Able at last to stand upright, but unable to see anything, Sam trailed his fingers along the wall.
As much as Sam wanted to run to Oscar's side, he instead put his back to the wall and waited. He employed every one of his senses to determine if he and the babe were alone. At last, unable to sense anything, Sam pulled out a flashlight and lit up the darkness. What he found was really not surprising given the little he'd read about the Black Annis. Like the tunnel, the cave seemed to have been carved out of the bedrock. Gouges, most likely made from Annie's fingernails lined every surface in the room. It was obvious that this area had been created rather than a natural formation. The ground was littered with a spongy layer of both organic and man-made debris.
Moldering leaves, branches, bark, and even dried scrub, were mixed in with an assortment of clothing, possessions and bones. He wasn't surprised to find that shoes, some so tiny that Sam was flooded with pity, made up the majority of the rubbish. After all, with their synthetic materials and rubber soles they would have resisted decaying. Scraps of cloth, even the occasional toy or stuffed animal were mixed in with the lot, proving to Sam that the Annis was a scavenger along with being a killer.
Sam grimaced as he played his light over what looked like a tiny human skull. Though, he was no expert it looked as if she hadn't only targeted babies. None of the bones appeared to have belonged to adults, but he did find a femur that looked as if it might have come from a young boy or girl. He found himself wondering just how many children had 'disappeared' only to die horrible deaths in this hole.
Hard as it was, Sam pulled his gaze from the ground and examined the cave. The diameter of the opening was only maybe fifteen feet wide. Not quite a perfect circle, but damn near close from what Sam could tell, the room was easily seven feet high. Along one side of the space there was a wooden platform made up of what looked like old fencing. On top of the platform was some sort of nest. The bed was made out of strips of what looked like leather. Bile rose in the back of Sam's throat at the sight, there was no doubt in his mind that the strips came not from animal hides but from her victims.
Sam's investigation of the room was quickly brought to a halt at the sound of Oscar's cries. Early at the first appearance of light, Oscar's sobs had abruptly cut off, almost as if the baby were startled to have finally grabbed someone's attention. However, Sam's perusal of the lair, apparently had taken a bit too long as the baby had resumed crying, his yells now taking on epic proportions. Sam had no trouble following the sound to where Oscar lay.
The Black Annis had tucked the infant into a small, square, depression that was carved out of the otherwise rounded walls. Sam knelt at the cut-out and shined his light into the space. The bright light was enough to startle the little one into quietness once more. Big round eyes, stared solemnly back at Sam. Puffy from the constant crying, dirty beyond belief, the small babe nevertheless looked to be okay. Sam said a prayer of thanks and gingerly picked the little one up.
The baby's slight weight surprised Sam, he'd never held a baby that was this young and for some reason he'd expected the tiny creature to have more substance. Careful to support the head, he knew that much at least, Sam drew the babe to his chest. Oscar's icy cold skin, and slightly blue tinged lips worried Sam that time was critical. Without every releasing his hold on the infant, he set down his flashlight and shrugged out of the sweatshirt he'd been wearing. He was suddenly grateful that Dean had insisted he bundle up as Sam then shrugged out of his flannel shirt. Clad in only a tee-shirt, he shuddered at the cold. He could only imagine how much worse the baby was feeling seeing as he was wet with what was probably his own urine and god knows what else.
Carefully, Sam spread the flannel on the ground and laid Oscar in the middle. As soon as he set the baby down, the infant began once more to squall at the top of his lungs. Ignoring the racket, Sam quickly stripped the baby, grimacing at the diaper that was so full it nearly disintegrated at his touch. A quick peruse of the baby's body proved that hypothermia was their main concern. Other than the occasional bruise, the little one didn't appear to have suffered any major injuries. Sam wrapped him tight in his flannel shirt, he hoped the soft material would go a long way toward preserving what little body heat the baby had left.
As soon as Oscar was wrapped tight, Sam picked him back up, cradling him carefully in the crook of his left arm. The younger Winchester wasn't sure if it was the warmth of the flannel or the security of his arms that caused the baby to quiet, but he was grateful either way. There was little hope that he would be able to get the two of them out of the woods without confronting the crone, but he would rather it were on his terms. The baby's cries were nothing but a calling card to the evil creature that hunted them.
"Okay, Oscar, now we just have to find our way out of here and we're good to go," Sam assured the baby.
He was hesitant to use the passageway once more, simply because he didn't look forward to meeting Annie in the close confines. Bent over in half, with the baby tucked against his chest, Sam would have little room to maneuver. That left him searching for the back way out. Determined to keep the baby safe, Sam set about looking for the exit.
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Dean was tired, dead tired. He was following his tracks back toward the cave, the throbbing in his arm making it difficult to focus. He wasn't all that worried about stumbling over the Black Annis, after all, he was fairly certain that if he did encounter her he was pretty much a dead man anyway. He had no real weapon, though he had found his knife, and he was quickly nearing the end of his strength. It was a pretty sad set of affairs when sickly Sam was the sound one in this outfit, Dean thought, as he finally staggered out of the brush and found the entrance to the cave.
Staggering now from pain and blood loss, Dean dropped down behind a tree and set himself to playing watchdog. He'd decided against entering the cave for the simple reason that he was only going to do more harm than good. If Sam had yet to reach the baby, then Dean's pitiful attempt at rescuing the child would only add to the danger it was in. If Sam had managed to find the babe and was trying to get back out, Dean's interference would only add to the already huge burden his brother was dealing with.
The way he figured, it both options sucked, then again, sucky options seemed to be the norm for Dean. No matter how often he might wish otherwise, he often found himself caught between a rock and a hard place. To add to his burden, it was usually his baby brother playing at being the rock. This time was no different. Act and he put Sam in danger, don't act and Sam's still in danger, it was a no-win. Left with no good option, Dean decided to wait and watch.
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Bobby dashed up the sidewalk and rapped hard on the front door of the big old brick house. He'd been shocked as hell, when two hours ago, some woman named Floss Mabel had called claiming she knew the Winchesters. At first, Bobby worried that it was some type of trap. It was only after the woman explained just why she was calling that he'd had tossed aside his caution and had pointed the nose of his truck east. Trap or not there was no way he was gonna risk abandoning the boys to whatever creature they were hunting at the moment.
As he crossed the country, breaking the land speed record, Bobby tried time and again to reach the boys on their cells. Each time he'd ended up in voice mail hell. His final message to Dean had been to threaten him, with death by dismemberment, unless he returned the older hunter's call. That had been over an hour ago and still Bobby had heard nothing.
Growing impatient with waiting at the door while his boys were in trouble, Bobby lifted his hand intent on knocking again. Instead, the door was whipped open before he could make contact.
"Well, it damn well took you long enough."
Surprised by the words, and even more by the plump, seventy year old woman that uttered them, Bobby was caught momentarily speechless. Apparently, that wasn't something that often happened to the plump woman he now faced.
"Well, get the heck in here. We've got work to do." Giving him no chance answer, she reached out, grabbed his arm and tugged him through the door. Her grip was surprisingly strong for how tiny she was.
As Bobby was pulled through the entry and into the kitchen, he noticed another woman standing near the countertop. Dressed in a pair of black slacks, sneakers, with a tee shirt tucked snugly into the waistband of her pants, she appeared to be filling a backpack. As they finally came to a stop, Bobby had the sudden urge to sprinkle holy water on both ladies just to make sure this wasn't a trap.
"Now, what do we need to bring?" the plump woman asked as she released his arm and moved toward the taller woman.
Bobby shook his head and finally gave into the urge to scratch his head in confusion. Whipping off his hat, he ran his hands through his iron-grey hair. "I'm sorry, I'm not quite followin'. You called me to tell me the boys needed help. Where the hell are they and who're you?"
The older woman spoke at last, her whiskey rough voice rang with impatience. "The men left here over two hours ago. We have not heard from them since. It's obvious they are in trouble."
Bobby nodded, his own feeling of unease growing. "Okay, I get that they might be in trouble, but, I'm gonna need a bit more to go on. On the phone you said, that Sammy insisted you call me?" Earlier Bobby had been surprised by the older woman's words. It just wasn't like the brothers not to call in person if they needed help.
The tiny woman flushed, but before she could say anything more the taller woman spoke. "To put it succinctly, the boys were helping us out. They ended up with a lead and took off after it. The problem is Sam is very sick, and Dean's pretty run down. It's been a rough week. Just before they left Sam, gave us your number in case..."
Here the woman's voice trailed off and her eyes clouded with worry. Bobby understood immediately. So, Sam had insisted he be called in for cleanup in case things got messy had he. "Damn stubborn kids. They should have called me themselves if they needed a hand."
Floss, practically danced toward the back door. "Please, can't we play twenty questions in the car? We need to go track them down."
"Well, hold on a minute there. Wherever it is I'm going, you two ladies can just forget about going with me. Whatever these boys got tangled with you can believe that's not something you wanna come up against." Bobby had not intention of allowing the two women before him to go after the Winchesters no matter how much they wanted. The last thing he needed was a couple old ladies tagging along.
"Peg, and I are going. You're going to need our help to find them."
Bobby drew a breath, intent on arguing, when Peg spoke up. "They're chasing down something called a Black Annis. Can you really help them?"
"Shit," Bobby exclaimed before he could stop himself. He'd heard of the creature years ago but had never actually gone up against one. The hag's main diet did go quite a ways to explaining why the boys rushed headlong into the fight when they clearly weren't up for it. "There was a victim?"
Floss nodded, her tiny hands fluttering. "Yes, two actually. One had already been found, but the other, well the boys thought there was a chance that the baby was still alive."
Bobby nodded, really there wasn't anything else to say. Neither Winchester would ever consider abandoning a child to die, not if there was the smallest chance of preventing it. Already mentally preparing the list of supplies he'd need, Bobby headed for the front door, calling over his shoulder, "Just give me their location and I'll head out now."
"No."
"No."
The two simultaneous 'no's' had Bobby turning on a dime to face the woman. "What?"
Floss cleared her throat, seeming slightly intimidated by Bobby's near lethal voice. "We won't tell you unless you take us with you."
"You'll damn well tell me what I need to know and you'll do it now. Those boys are my family, I won't let them be hurt."
Peg's belligerent stance eased slightly at Bobby's words. "Mr. Singer, we don't want them hurt anymore than you do. We've become very fond of them, but, they're out there, possibly hurt and they may just have an infant with them. Now call me a crazy old lady if you want, but that seems like more than one man can handle."
Bobby dropped his head and blew out a breath in frustration. Finally, he looked up and shook his head in frustration. "Fine, but you two will stay in the truck. I won't have it any other way."
The older hunter didn't miss the look that passed between the women. Why was it he got the feeling he was being played. Unable to do much about it at for the time being, Bobby headed for the truck. His bad feeling had just gone from mild alarm to a screaming, ear-splitting siren.