Part 10
It had taken two days of observation before Fiona felt comfortable leaving. She had given Dean detailed instructions for the care of his brother and her private number so she could sneak them into the clinic before they left town. His test results would be back within a couple of weeks.
She left reluctantly. Squeezing Sam's hand. He'd squeezed back and she'd been surprised, more of a reaction than she'd been expecting. She had wanted to feel angry or disgruntled when Dean offered to pay her, but couldn't muster up anything other than regret.
From what little Jo had told her, Dean didn't pay for much. She supposed it could have been taken as a compliment.
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It's been four days since Jo arrived and now she's leaving. Holding back tears as she silently packs up her things. Loathing to leave them alone in the silence of this awful motel room. She hopes they'll talk after she's gone. But God knows what there was to say. She sure as hell didn't know. She wasn't one for chick flicks either.
"I'm going now." She whispers to Dean. Sam is asleep again, or pretending to sleep. One or the other.
He's sitting on his bed cleaning his gun again. Damn thing must be worn to a nub at this stage. He nods his head and says nothing.
She crouches by Sam's bed and lowers her mouth to his ear. Dean looks up, curious.
"You need to talk, you come to me." She tells him. Hoping he's awake to hear it.
She walks to Dean then, and says nothing but squeezes his shoulder once and walks away.
"Jo."
She turns at the door. He's not looking at her, his gun the most fascinating thing he's ever seen.
"There's nothing I can do to thank you enough for this...Ever. "
She swallows the lump in her throat.
"No need." She murmurs as she closes the door.
At a rest stop five miles out of town she pulls over and weeps for a long time. Then calls her mom. Its been over a week since Ellen has heard from her baby and she sighs with relief when she sees Jo's number.
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It's been five days since Sam got out of bed and started doing things for himself again, and he still won't talk beyond monosyllabic replies to direct questions. He won't let Dean out of his sight and follows him everywhere like a sad, silent ghost. Dean knows he should engage him more. Try and make him talk about it, but he can't bring himself to rattle those chains. Sam's in enough pain already.
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It's been three weeks since Bobby Singer has heard from his boys, and he's starting to get worried. He starts calling around. Just to make sure they haven't been ganked by some pissed of hunter.
He heads over to the roadhouse to talk to Ellen.
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Jim Farley had heard a lot of tales over the past couple of weeks concerning a certain Steve Wandell. A good man by all accounts, a family man, and an even better hunter. Always ready to help out, even if it was just a place to stay or some research to be done. He had a lot of friends in the hunting community.
Now he was dead. Murdered by one Sam Winchester.
Jim hadn't met the man but he'd heard the rumours. In fact he realised that he'd heard the rumours a day or two before the man actually died. That's what gave him pause.
Or at least that was one thing.
Secondly , there was the insistence by Ellen Harville that Sam Winchester couldn't have had anything to do with it.
"Utter Bullshit." She'd called it. "Gentle as a lamb that boy. Hardly able to slap a gnat. It's a wonder he ever ended up in the life."
He'd trust Ellen Harville with his life, had on several occasions. He'd trust her as a judge of character too. After all, hadn't she warned him about Gordon Walker and his crazy friends, and helped him dodge that bullet?
The third thing was that once, in his youth, he had been helped out on a hunt by John Winchester.
He'd been 16. He, Uncle Dennis and Dad had been hunting a Wendigo when they'd got separated in the Blue Ridge Mountains. He'd gotten lost. Disobeyed Dad and left camp when he thought he'd heard the beast. He'd known it was stupid. But he wanted so badly to kill the thing. To do good for once.
By the time he came to, he was already bound by the wrists and underground. His father and uncle had called in backup.
It had been John Winchester who found him. Who freed him while the others had taken care of the creature. It had been Winchester who had taken his shaking hand and walked with him through the dark network of caves. Step by tiny step, keeping him calm with stories about his own boys. Brave, well behaved Dean and rebellious Sammy who, according to John. "Would have pulled exactly the dumbass move you did, but sooner."
When they got back to camp, it had been John Winchester who had wrestled Jim's father to the ground when the belt had come off to punish his son's foolishness.
No one had ever stood up for him before.
So he couldn't believe it. No son of John Winchester, rebel or not, would have killed a good man. Although God knows, life will make you do things you never thought you would.
So, he thought, there must be another explanation, and if those idiots at the roadhouse weren't so blinded by rage and grief and the desire for revenge they might see it too.
So he'd taken an interest when he'd heard talk of the Winchester's car being seen near Canton. He thought he'd check it out before any of Steve's friends did.
That was how he found himself loitering in the parking lot outside the free clinic
He'd gone in for a clap test here once. He knew he was stupid, and he knew he was fucked up and yet he consistently made the same choices that would lead him back to free clinics and pissed of public health nurses with their warnings about HIV and Hepatitis.
Yeah yeah...He thought. I know I've been lucky. But hey, somethings gonna take me down one day.
In his heart he wasn't sure if he cared.
Dad would have cared. Not about the risk of disease, about Jim's manner of acquiring them. About his mortal soul.
Dad had nearly killed him when he'd found out about Jim's penchant for men. Nearly beaten him to death.
After that Jim had kind of kept it discreet. And the less people knew the more weird shit he found himself getting into. Dangerous shit. Meeting up with strangers from craigslist, orgies, hookers, sometimes all three. Not that he couldn't handle himself.
So he's standing there by the entrance smoking, and eyeing the Winchester's car.
The door opens and the older one stalks out like a pissed off panther, glancing around in paranoia. He moves around the car and opens the passenger door, offers a hand, and a skinny arm grips his as a tall figure exits the vehicle. A curtain of floppy air hiding his eyes.
He walks close to his brother, not an inch of air between them. The older one Dean keeps slowing his pace so the kid can be his shadow. As they get closer Jim starts feeling uneasy. Then he sees why.
Jim's jaw nearly hits the ground.
It's the Same kid.
The cocksure rent boy from the Motel a couple of weeks ago.
The one he'd nearly...
Oh Mother of Jesus! He quickly averts his eyes and hides behind the magazine he's holding.
They pass right by him , he follows them in.
He's surprised they don't realise they're being tracked, two hunters of their reputation. They're off their game that's for sure. To his surprise they seem to be heading for the same office he went to for his clap test.
They are apprehended by a young, female doctor in the hallway and he walks right past them and sits down in the waiting room. He can head them though the doorway.
" Ah... Glad I caught you." She says hurriedly. "Don't worry about the paper work I'll take you now." She tells them. She sounds worried. The three of them walk past him and disappear into the small office. Dean has his arm tight around the kid's Sam's shaking shoulders.
"How come they've just arrived and get to go in before us folks!" Complains a woman in the corner.
Jim stares at the office door, wishing he could hear what was going on.
The same kid. right down to the clothes and the hair and the mole on his cheek.
Goddamn! He wonders for a moment about fate. What were the odds of two hunters hooking up without knowing it? Two hunters and a bunch of butch dudes they met online. he corrects himself.
They're only in there a couple of minutes and he very nearly gets caught staring.
They look relived. That's good.
They're talking quietly. The girl gives the young one a gentle pat on the arm and he jumps like she's slapped him. She pretends not to notice.
The older one hugs her. She looks like she's going to cry. She goes back to the office.
All the while he's staring, unaware that the kid has spotted him.
He briefly makes eye contact. The boy's whole body shudders. His eyes widen in shock. He looks away and grips Dean's arm. Dean wants to know what wrong and Jim braces himself. But Sam doesn't say anything. Just tugs on his brother's sleeve like a child who wants to leave.
They do.
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Jim sits in his car and chain smokes, trying to still his shaking hands.
Sam had been shaking too. He hadn't been nervous the other night that was for damn sure. He'd been sure of himself, cocky, arrogant and there had been something horribly knowing and predatory in the kid's eyes. That was why he'd left.
Not so now. Not at all. The thought hits him light lightening .
Not the same kid.
Either Sam Winchester has an evil twin or... Or... Oh God.
Possessed. He Should have seen it. That night Jim had seen something he didn't like about him, about the whole situation, and left him alone with those... His brain wants to say "perverts" But in his heart he knows he's just as bad as them. Worse. Especially now.