Second Chance

A.N. Sorry for the delay in the update, guys. Sister had a baby, grandpa broke a rib…it's been a mess. So, I diligently paid extra care to this chapter to make up for my absence, so I hope it's to your liking.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Kripke and Schwann own it all. I just like using them as puppets in my own Masterpiece Theatre.

"Brooke!"

The sound of her name being called roused her from unconsciousness, and Brooke shifted from her prone position, wincing at the pain that shot through her head with each movement. Her wrist felt like it was on fire pinned underneath her body, and she groaned as she slowly attempted to pull it out from under her.

"Aunt Brooke!"

Jamie.

Brooke gritted her teeth against the pain that assaulted her body when she opened her eyes and rolled onto her side. It took her eyes a moment to adjust to the dim lighting, and she took the time to push herself into a sitting position. Clutching her wrist to her chest, she squinted into her surroundings, and nearly let out a sigh of relief.

Jamie was crouching down in front of her, his face streaked with dirt and tears. His pajamas were slightly ripped around the knees and elbows, and his bright blue eyes were looking at her in worry and fear. Behind him were the terrified children who had gone missing over the last few weeks.

Every one of them.

They looked at her in fear, each of them seeming to scoot slightly closer to her when they saw that she was awake and alert. They were filthy--covered in dirt and grime. Some had various cuts and bruises over their exposed skin, and their expressions of relief and fear were mixed with relief.

"Aunt Brooke, are you okay?"

Brooke looked over at Jamie, forcing a smile onto her face. "I'm fine, Jamie," she said softly, glancing at her surrounding to ensure they were alone. "Are you okay? You and the others?"

Jamie nodded, though his lip trembled slightly, and Brooke silently presided her godson for his bravery.

"Are you here to save us?" one of the children behind Jamie asked in a near-whisper.

Brooke scooted closer to them, wincing slightly, and nodded. "I'm going to try," she said reassuringly. "I promise, okay? I'm going to make sure that you guys get home. Alright?" They all nodded, relief flooding their features, and she silently prayed she could keep her word. "Okay. Do you know where we are? Where he took us?"

"He's a monster," one of the boys whispered quietly, his blue eyes wide in fear.

Brooke met his gaze, biting her lip as she nodded. "Yeah, he is," she said softly, shifting her feet underneath her. "But I promise you…" She looked around at each of their faces. "All of you…I will NOT…let him touch you. Okay? I promise that I'm going to get you out of here."

"Uncle Dean will come," Jamie said softly, almost under his breath, as he leaned in close to her. "He fights monsters. He'll save us."

Brooke turned her face away from her confident godson so he wouldn't see the worry of her expression.

How would Dean know where they were?

"How did it go wrong? I mean…you said it would be easy. You said it would work."

Dean had to close his eyes at the accusations he heard in Haley's voice. He had failed. He knew that. But when he heard it in his friend's voice, it only cut that much deeper.

"He knew about it all, Haley," Bobby said, shifting the icepack on the back of his head. "Somehow he knew we were lying in wait."

Haley leaned forward from her place on the couch, elbows on her knees, her tear-streaked face looked up at him. "How?"

"Because somehow he knew Sam and I were here, Haley," Dean finally said, glancing over from his place against the wall. "He knew we were here, and he knew that we'd set a trap like that. He knew distracting us with you would leave Jamie open."

"But he didn't count on Brooke," Peyton said, walking over to Nathan from the kitchen with a glass of water and a bottle of Advil. "That's why he took her, right? She fought him, and he was unprepared."

"We don't know that," Dean said.

Peyton's blue eyes narrowed at him. "Like hell we don't. He could have just killed her. Brooke fought like hell, and he knew he wouldn't be able to get out of there without everyone else ganging up on him."

Dean sighed, running a hand down his ragged face. "Then why not kill her, Peyton? If he was so worried about not getting out--"

"Don't take that tone with me, Winchester," Peyton snapped, pointing an accusatory finger in his direction. "This is all your damn fault. You brought this demon crap and hunting and everything else into our lives. It was you, alright? So don't take that higher-than-thou attitude with me."

Dean glared at her fiercely, rising from his leaning position against the wall, and took a step towards her. He was intercepted quickly by Sam, who resting a strong hand against his shoulder.

"Dude, calm down."

"Calm down," Dean repeated, nearly spitting the phrase. "Right, sure, why not? You heard her, Sammy. This is all my fault, right, Peyton? If I had just stayed gone, Brooke and Jamie would both be alright? They'd both be here, safe and sound, and you all would be your joyous little group family again, huh? Is that what you're saying?"

Peyton merely crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at him.

"You've never been able to get off your high horse when it comes to me, Peyton. Not since day one. I've never been good enough for, or I've never taken good enough care of her. There's always been something that was used as a mark against me when it came to you. Brooke was always just better off when I wasn't around, right?" He glared at her. "What, now you don't have any witty comeback, Blondie? God dammit, I left to protect her!"

"Yeah. And look how well that plan worked out," she replied.

A sudden crash made everyone jump, and they turned to see Haley standing next to the couch now, the glass of water that had been brought for Nathan now laying in a pile of broken glass shards on the floor by the wall. Her brown eyes were alight with fury as she glared at them both, her hands clenched into fists at her sides. "Would you both just shut the hell up?" she screamed. "For God's sake, my son and my best friend are missing! And all the two of you can do is argue and bitch and moan about the past. Do either of you really think it was a secret that you hated each other? News flash: it wasn't! But you both were civil because you loved Brooke. And being the two most important people in her life, I can't believe that right now, when she needs you most, you're ripping each other's throats out! Now my son--MY son--is gone. And I am disgusted by the sight of you. Both of you." She turned to Dean, her angry gaze crumbling at the shame and sorrow she saw on his face, and she let out a broken sob. "Get him back, Dean…There has to be a way. A spell, an exorcism, some way to track it…you HAVE to bring him home."

Sam's head shot up as she spoke, his eyes going wide. "Tracking," he murmured, looking up when everyone glanced at him. "Was Brooke's cell phone in the closet?"

"No," Peyton said, shifting her feet. "Brooke always kept it on her. She lost it once and was really paranoid about doing it again."

"What are you thinking, boy?" Bobby asked, frowning as he looked up at him.

Sam raced over to the laptop that sat on the kitchen table. "GPS."

They were in some kind of cellar.

Brooke ran a hand through her hair as she leaned against one of the cement walls, closing her eyes against the panic that was welling in her chest.

There was no way out.

The wooden stairway across the room had led up to a door, but no matter how much body weight she threw against it, it wouldn't budge. The only two windows near the ceiling had been boarded over from the outside, leaving no chance for escape.

How the hell was she going to get these kids out of here before the demon came back?

She had checked her cell phone over an hour ago, and glancing at it again, she saw that there was still no signal. No chance of a text or phone call to help her out.

She winced against the pain in her wrist, gently rubbing the old rags she'd found in the corner to wrap it up with. The thought of how sanitary the dirty rag was had been pushed to the side of her mind. She knew that she had to be able to stand her own against that thing when it reared its head again. But as the fire burned its way up her arm and to her shoulder, she had to wonder just how well she'd do against him. She had no weapon. No holy water.

No chance.

"No, I can swear that I left in the restaurant, but I went back and it was gone."

Haley paced the living room as she watched Peyton talk into the phone, Sam at her side, eyes on the laptop screen as they tried to persuade the phone company to activate the GPS in Brooke's phone.

"What if he dumped it?" she asked quietly, looking at Dean from his place across the room.

"We have to take that risk, Hales," he said, meeting her worried gaze with his own. "Look…I'm sorry--"

She held up a hand, cutting him off. "Please don't apologize to me right now, Dean," she said. "Just bring him home first, okay? Bring him home, and then we'll talk."

"Alright…alright, thank you so much," Peyton said, striding over to stand next to Sam as she shut off the phone. "It's on."

Sam's fingers flew across the keys as everyone else in the house raced to his side, their eyes glued to the loading screen. He pointed to the blinking spot in the center of the screen. "Right there. Where is that?"

Nathan leaned down, staring intently at the screen. "Clarkson and Spherion…that's the old mill." He straightened, glancing at the three hunters. "It's been abandoned for the last two years. There was some kind of accident or something and they shut it down."

"Let's go then," Dean said, shrugging into his leather jacket and picking up his shot gun.

"Hold on now," Bobby cautioned, motioning to Dean to put down the gun. "We can't go racing in there half-cocked. He caught us off guard once, Dean. We need to have a plan."

"Like hell, Bobby," Dean shouted, pointing towards the door. "We know where they are, we've got to get over there before it takes off or starts killing." He tried to ignore the way Haley and Nathan flinched at his mention of the killings, and kept his gaze on the older man. "Bobby…I can't lose her again. I can't lose either of them."

Bobby's grizzled face softened at the despair in his surrogate son's voice, and he nodded slowly, meeting his gaze. "Alright. I understand, Dean. But we can't just race in there, gun a-blazing. We need to come up with some kind of strategy. The three of us--"

"Six," Peyton chimed in, crossing her arms.

"No way," Dean said, shaking his head.

"Look, there's now way we're letting you guys go by yourselves," the blonde said, laughing. "This is Brooke and Jamie we're talking about here. We're in this together, Dean, whether you like it or not."

"Where you go, we go," Nathan added, wrapping his arm around Haley's waist as she nodded.

"Six against one are better odds, Dean," Haley said quietly, jutting out her chin defiantly when he opened his mouth to argue. "Don't argue, alright? You've never won before, you're not going to win now, so why waste the time and energy? It's no use."

Sam looked over at him, fighting against the smile that wanted to spread across his face at the tone of Haley's voice. "They've got a point, Dean," he said, shrugging. "This thing is smart. I'm not betting it would expect ALL of us to come in fighting."

Dean glared at his younger brother, but one more glance at Haley James Scott's stubborn face and the looks of determination on Nathan and Peyton's, he knew that it was a lost cause to argue. "Fine," he said, looking at the three of them. "None of you moves an inch without one of us, you got it?" They nodded, and he met Haley's eyes. He saw the fear and panic clouding them, but also saw that the determination and the courage far overshadowed the other emotion warring within them. And he knew there was no going back now.

The sound of the lock turning in the door made the children jump, and Brooke scooted closer to them at the sound of it opening. "It's okay, guys, it's okay," she said to them softly, positioning herself in front of them as she heard the heavy footsteps on the stairs. She swallowed the fear in her throat when the demon rounded the staircase, his black eyes glistening against the light streaming from the lone bulb on the ceiling. A patronizing smile was his face as he caught sight of her blocking the children, and he chuckled deep in his chest. "Sleeping Beauty awakens,' he said, taking a step towards her.

Brooke gritted her teeth as she pushed herself to her feet, her eyes never leaving the dark orbs in the face of the so-called human in front of her. She kept her hands at her sides, ignoring the searing pain that spread through her whole arm, and straightened her shoulders.

"So brave," he commented, walking closer until he stood two feet away from her. She could see the whites of his teeth flash in the light as he grinned. "I find myself liking you more and more, Miss Davis."

She glared at him. "Feelings not mutual," she said through gritted teeth.

His laughter echoed off the walls, and he shook his head in amusement. He looked at her, holding his arms out at his sides. "Do you like my home? My little brood?" he asked, glancing at the huddle of children behind her. They whimpered and clutched to each other when his eyes found them, and he grinned again.

"Is that your big, master plan?" she asked, taking a step back towards the children so they would quiet. The last thing she wanted was for the bastard to think he was still in control. "Brainwash them with fear and terror until they hang on to you every word?" When the demon just smiled more, she scoffed, shaking her head. "Do you really think that's going to work?"

"Fear changes people," he stated simply, grinning.

"Why them?" she asked, taking a defiant step towards him. "Why take these children?"

He shrugged, crossing his arms as he leaned against the wall. "Cream of the crop. When you're creating an army, the last thing you want are runts, Brooke. They just slow you down. You need the best. The top dogs. The ones with the most potential."

She arched her eyebrow as he spoke. "Is that why you took me?"

He laughed again, darkly, and met her gaze. "Oh, Brooke. You're potential far overpowers any that they might possess. When I finally met you--finally took you in--I knew you were the one."

Brooke frowned. "The one what?"

His smile slowly crept further across his face, and he took a long stride towards her. "Every child needs a mother."

Brooke's eyes widened at his revelation, and the repulse she felt turning in her stomach nearly did her in.

"Think about it, Brooke," the demon continued, motioning with his hands to their surroundings. "Don't you see? You're fighting for the wrong side. You can't actually believe that you'll win this battle. That you hunters and your toys and comrades can overpower us."

Brooke gritted her teeth, nodding. "Oh, I believe it," she said fiercely, steeling her shoulders against his gaze. "I believe it, because of them." She looked behind her, gesturing dramatically at the children cowering at her back. "I believe it because they are the reason we will. They have been trapped here under you, terrified and starving and tired…and yet they haven't given in to you. Don't YOU see? WE are stronger than any of you know. WE can survive ANYTHING that you bastards throw at us. And whenever one of us falls, more of us will rise up to meet you. And it's YOU who are going to lose. And if you don't see that, then I guess you're a dumber jack ass than I thought."

She gasped as she was suddenly lifted off her feet, and her hands reached up to claw that the iron grip that tightened around her throat. She stared down at the emotionless black eyes that glared at her, and she heard the children behind them scream and scatter backwards.

"Aunt Brooke!" she heard Jamie yell at her side, and she panicked, eyes darting to shoot him a warning glance.

"Jamie, no!" she rasped out, then gasped when the demon's fingers tightened around her windpipe.

"Yes, Jamie, no," he mocked through gritted teeth. "Wouldn't want you to miss me squeeze the life out of your brave, foolish aunt, now would we?" He pulled Brooke in close, meeting her eyes with his dark ones, and he sneered in her face. "In the end…you will lose, Brooke Davis. I only regret that you won't be there to see it happen."

Brooke closed her eyes, still clawing at the iron-clad grip crushing her throat, and said a silent prayer for the children she was about to break her promise to, and a silent goodbye to those she was leaving behind.

A crash from upstairs made the demon drop her suddenly, and she fell to the ground, coughing and gasping for air. She fell back slightly as Jamie launched himself into her arms, and she clutched him tightly to her chest, scooting them both backwards until she sat directly in front of the terrified children. She glared up at the monster before them, watching as he tilted his head to the side, listening for any other signs of an intruder. He chuckled suddenly, shaking his head at the ceiling.

"Oh, you humans," he murmured, smiling in amusement. "When will you ever learn?" He chuckled again, dropping his gaze to Brooke's, and he grinned. "We'll have to reschedule this for later, Sweet Cheeks. I've got a couple of idiotic hunters to take care of." He laughed, shooting her a quick wink, and suddenly raced of the stairs, latching the door behind him.

Brooke let out the terrified breath that she hadn't even realized she'd been holding, and let her gaze drift upwards to the ceiling. "Dean," she whispered, closing her eyes as she clutched Jamie even closer.

God, please let us survive this…

….Another cliffhanger. I'm sorry! I couldn't help it!

Well…actually I could…but where's the fun in that?

I'm half-way done with the next chapter, so let me know what you think and I'll try to get it up as soon as I can!

Until next time, my dahlinks!!!