Thank you all for the follows, favourites and reviews. This is the last chapter, so thank you for sticking with me!
"Bones, sinking like stones,
All that we've fought for."
Don't Panic, Coldplay.
Sam's boots slid against the wet ground; the rain had been falling for the past twenty minutes, but it hardly mattered now. He could see the road. He could see Bobby's truck, and, with an odd sense of familiarity, the Impala. He jogged out from the woods, gravel crunching underfoot. The others followed suit. He turned to Bobby, taking a moment to catch his breath before speaking, "We can tip off the cops."
Bobby stared at him for a minute, his breaths coming in pants. "I'll call 'em, say a bunch of yahoos are shootin' each other up here."
"Good idea." Sam let out a shuddering sigh.
Dean nodded. "Okay... Sam, are you sure they're not gonna be a problem? Can the cops actually handle this?"
"Yeah. They can handle it." Sam put the Glock into the waistband of his jeans. "Alik? Be careful."
Alik waved on hand noncomittaly, but nodded, heading off down the road on foot.
"You sure that's a good idea?" Dean's gaze followed Alik, then turned back to Sam. He wasn't sure about any of this.
"What? Leaving him alive? Yeah, besides, he's human. We don't kill people, remember?" Sam was pulling open the passenger door, the creaking filled the small parking area. He landed on the bench seat with no amount of grace and let out a noisy breath, dragging his legs in after him. He felt chilled and achy down to his very skeleton.
Dean hopped in the driver's side, started the car and nodded. "So what, that's it? These guys kidnap you, and you wanna let the cops handle it?"
"What else are we supposed to do, Dean?" Sam's voice rose and he put his arms up before letting his hands drop to his thighs. He winced. "Sorry."
Dean shrugged. "Okay..." He pulled out of the parking space and onto the road. The car drove smoothly over the pavement. They passed Alik, who only glanced at them for a moment before refocusing his attention on the road. "Don't disappear like that again though, Sam... seriously." Dean stated, looking at his brother for a moment.
Sam's expression softened. They had already lost their father in the past year, he didn't know if either of them would be able to move on from each other's death. "I thought you weren't going to look for me this time," Sam said with the slightest of smirks.
"Shut up, Sam." Dean said, managing to keep a straight face, though his eyes sparkled as he smacked Sam's shoulder with his free hand.
"Guess this proves it," Sam began, "You do care." His face lit up with a grin.
"Don't make me pull over and push you right back out."
Sam laughed and shook his head, looking down at his hands. They were still caked in dried blood, the skin on his wrists red and scabbing over. He needed to take a shower, but the thought of it was tiring. Maybe he would sleep first.
"Seriously though, you okay?" Dean spared a glance at Sam.
"Yeah, I'm good."
Dean nodded, guiding the car around a particularly windy part of the road that let out on 14. He stopped at the stop sign and let out a breath. He hadn't been certain what to expect, but he'd feared the worst.
"...Are you?" Sam frowned in concern.
"Hm? Yeah... I'm fine."
"Can we get something to eat?" Sam paused, "Just not barbecue." Too soon? He put on an innocent smile.
Dean laughed. "Sure. Think we passed something-the Greenside Cafe-on the way up."
"Great. Hey, Dean..." Sam frowned and glanced out the window, "How much of it do you think they were awake for?" He swallowed, but it felt like he had swallowed air.
Dean shrugged. "I dunno... Not much." He hoped.
"Yeah..." The younger watched darkened trees as they passed through the mountains.
They continued on their route away from the mountain, leaving it to darkness. Red, white, and blue lights came around the bend ahead; Bobby's "Back-up." The police cars raced by, heading in the direction they'd just come from.
Thank you all! Your interest meant the world to me. God bless and gramercy!