The night was yielding an almost full moon, giving light to the forest and the small cabin nestled within it. Normally abandoned, it would have been a shock to anyone close by that there was smoke coming out of the chimney; however the area had long been forgotten as more resorts had cropped up offering more amenities than a rustic vacation. A sleek black car was mostly hidden from view by an old tarp found in the lean to that had once served as a shed as well as a few well placed branches to keep the chrome from becoming a beacon in the night. Inside, the early winter chill was warded off by the fire that had taken over the fireplace giving off a warm glow throughout the room as it did its job effortlessly.
John stood and watched the limbs sway gently back and forth in the path of the slight wind that blew along its own way, making way for the colder weather in its wake. He knew that they were going to have to stay in one spot for awhile and take precautions that no one and nothing could track them; the news reports had already made the national syndicates limiting his options in keeping his brothers with him. Knowing that Dean had already checked the cabinets and pantry finding several cans of fruits and vegetables which gave them a head start in the provisions department made him feel a lot better about the situation but they were still planning on getting an early start in the morning to see if they could trap a couple of animals for dinner, even if it meant that Sammy was going to face his aversion in killing Bambi. He didn't know how long they were going to have to stay there, but there was no way he was going to let his baby brother get sicker under his care.
"John, Sammy finally fell asleep. Did he say anything to you earlier?" Dean asked quietly, hoping that their little brother had opened up even if it meant he hadn't been conscious to witness it.
Shaking his head John continued to look out the window before turning back towards his little brother. "No – nothing. I don't know what's going on with him, but I'm hoping we can figure it out before…"
Dean didn't need John to fill in the blank; he already knew and even agreed. Their little brother had been slowly withdrawing into himself ever since they left Lawrence. Neither one of them had actually noticed it at first, not with him making an effort to stay close to the eldest brother that first night, but afterwards it was like someone had slowly turned a dimmer switch in Sammy to where now he would barely acknowledge their existence. At this rate they were worried that their baby brother would completely drift off and they wouldn't be able to bring him back.
"He did eat, right?" John asked, suddenly remembering the earlier lunch that had sat untouched by the youngest member of their group. Worried, he was about to rush into the other room to rouse the boy when he felt a strong hand on his arm.
Looking into John's eyes, Dean stated firmly. "Leave him alone. I made sure he took a couple bites of beef jerky and some M&M's, he's not going to starve – not yet anyway." Seeing his older brother slowly sag in relief, he tried to smile. "Hey, think of it this way – with him being so tired, he won't be able to leave us in the middle of the night."
At first all John could do was stare until he realized what Dean was trying to do. "Yeah, you're right. Of course it's no big deal to me 'cause I'm still in pretty decent shape, I can catch up to him, but you – well, let's just say that's an area of concern."
Dean gave a snort of laughter before he jumped on John and tried to bring the bigger boy down to the ground. It took a few minutes before they realized they weren't alone and the sight of their little brother scared them both. The younger boy was sweating profusely and his eyes were wide and wild giving him a crazed look that belied his true state of confusion. As both of them rushed to his side, Sammy suddenly felt frustrated that he couldn't tell them what was wrong, that Caleb was in trouble and needed help – now!
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Jim had no idea what to think anymore. He and Bobby had been trying to find the Winchester boys for almost a week, but there were no leads to go off of – even the friends he had in shady places couldn't pick up the trail which really made the man worry that it was already too late. To make matters worse though, Caleb had jumped off the radar the day before and it didn't set right with him at all.
"You need to quit thinking so loud, it's not helping the situation any." Bobby said as he started on his second cup of coffee. As he looked at the man in front of him he wondered not for the first time what had made the man do it – then again it wasn't really any of his business. "So, why did you leave the church Jim?" he blurted out, biting his tongue in the effort to take back the question. Damn it!
Sighing, Jim knew that this conversation was well overdue, but in all honesty he never thought it would have been Bobby to ask – that would have been more Max's area of inquiry. "Several reasons really. Why, you writing a book?" he asked sourly. Seeing the slightly shocked look on his friend's face he knew where the question really came from and he could have kicked himself for being so idiotic – his friends had never second guessed his decision, always sensing that his reasons were his own and he'd share when he was ready. "I guess I got tired of not being able to help those who really needed it because of all the red tape I was tied up in."
Bobby thought about that for a minute before he nodded and asked, "Anything particular?"
"As you know the Catholic church has a committee to decide if an exorcism should be done and another to validate reports of miracles. Do you know how many exorcisms are allowed, or how many miracles are validated? Not near enough." Jim said heavily. He had always prayed that he'd be allowed to forget, but the memories seemed to get more vivid with age. "A grandfather came to me one day insisting that his granddaughter was possessed and was in need of help. At first I was skeptical, after all it could have just been a case of a spoiled child acting out – only it wasn't. Little Maria had every sign of a demonic possession but when the Vatican investigated, they insisted that there was nothing they could do. A small child was dying, but they refused to help saying that if news got out that they were going to perform such an archaic ritual, the church would have a black eye and that was something they couldn't allow."
"Why do I have the feeling that you didn't accept that?" Bobby asked, now more than just a little interested. He and the others had had their suspicions, but this was something that they hadn't really thought about.
Nodding, Jim took another sip of coffee before beginning again. "The grandfather begged me to help her and I couldn't say no. I did the exorcism, even taking the time to do it carefully in hopes of keeping her alive, but it had been too long and her poor body couldn't handle any more – she died in her grandfather's arms. Then she woke up."
Bobby sat stunned and stared at his friend; sure he was imagining what was said.
"There was a light that surrounded her and a voice that seemed to vibrate every cell in my body that said, 'It is not your time little one. Awaken so you may continue your purpose for your Father.' Bobby, she had been dead for fifteen minutes, her grandfather wouldn't let anyone close to her to try and bring her back. When she woke up she smiled and said that she hadn't been scared because Jesus stayed with her the whole time."
"Ok, I'm hearing a pretty good story for why you should stay in the church, not why you should leave it." Bobby said wryly, trying to figure out where this story was really taking them.
Smiling slightly, Jim sighed. "Yeah, you'd think that wouldn't you? You would think that the Vatican would report this to every news agency in the world, right? They didn't. They claimed that I overstepped my boundaries, and that I should think about going on a sabbatical to renew my faith in the church's decisions – that they knew best in this sort of thing. To make matters worse, they claimed that the whole situation was a farce, a trick to make them look bad and that there had been no possession and no intervention, thereby no miracle. How was I supposed to stay after that? How could they help people when they don't even believe in what they are helping deliver the people from? I realized that it was time for me to take my knowledge, my talents, and really do something to fight the evil in the world. That's why I left."
Bobby didn't know what to say. They had known something extreme had to have happened for their friend to leave his service to God. Suddenly it occurred to him – Jim hadn't left his service to God, he had just taken it to the trenched full time. Smiling he looked at the former priest, "Good, they didn't deserve your stubborn ass."
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The pain that was shooting fireworks off in his skull actually helped to bring Caleb around to the land of the living, not that he really wanted to though since he had no idea what happened or where he was. The last thing he remembered was trying to outrun the car that had been following him and thinking that he had done a pretty good job of kicking up the dust so he could double back to the road – obviously that hadn't worked out as well as he thought it would.
Looking around he found himself in a room that looked oddly familiar and he wondered what the hell was going on. As he slowly got out of the bed he noticed the smells and sounds coming from another part of the house. Not sure he really wanted to know the answer to what his brain was asking, he continued out the door, through the hallway and into the open space which housed the kitchen, dining area and living room. The sunlight was bright for any normal day, but with his headache it was completely blinding.
"Oh my… here dear, let me get these shades for you."
With the light suddenly dimmed, Caleb was able to get his breathing under control and look up and around the room again before his gaze settled upon the smaller figure in front of him. Shocked, he could only stand and stare before he found his voice and croaked, "Gramma?"
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It had been a quiet night - the moon playing in the trees, the animals nestled in their homes. However there was an unnatural sound within the wooded area the sound of an engine idling with an accompanying sound of wheels as they continued to spin freely in the air. The vehicle that both the engine and tires belonged to was resting on its roof at the bottom of an embankment not visible from the small dirt road, its lone occupant unconscious and bleeding; oblivious of the danger he was in.
A woman's body might not have been its first choice, but it still accomplished what needed to be done. Her orders had been simple, get rid of the hunter – eventually. Right now though, she was having a blast watching the human squirm helplessly inside his own mind. Sure, she didn't put him there, but it was a sure sign that her job was made easier as the man's body was slowly shutting down. Too bad she wouldn't be able to get any information from him.
Sighing, she bent down and reached into his pocket for his wallet, looking through it a moment before removing the cash and credit cards that were in it. "Caleb, Caleb, Caleb… what am I going to do with you?" she asked smiling at the thought of the things she could have done before he died. Tossing his ID to the side of the truck she smiled once more before she turned and walked away. "Guess I'll have to find little Sammy another way."