Panting, Sam ran through the forest, his flashlight directed at the footprints on the ground. It was the first time since their arrival in this area that he was grateful for all the snow … without it he would have no idea where Tom had run to. He called his name over and over again, but never got a response. He also called for Jade, but she too kept quiet … or hadn't heard him. Or couldn't …
A shiver ran down Sam's spine when he thought about what Lilly Pendegrast could have done to Jade by now. Could one spirit harm another? Could they hurt each other? Kill each other? That question never really had come up before and he felt sick with worry just thinking about it.
Pain was shooting through his leg with every step he took, his ribs screamed in protest at the movement and his headache had returned with a throbbing ache, but he hardly felt any of this. He didn't care about his own well-being at the moment … he knew that Dean would chew his ass for this when he found out, but at the moment all he could think of was getting Jade safely back to the house. And Tom of course. And if possible, himself as well.
Suddenly he heard a scream ahead of him. It was cut short after only a moment and Sam stilled, trying to hear anything else. When he couldn't, he started running again and a few minutes later he saw Tom, pinned to a tree, Lilly standing directly in front of him with her hands around his throat. The skin of his face had turned to a deep red as he was struggling to get in air.
Jade was standing a few feet away, screaming furiously at Lilly, but apparently she was unable to do anything to help her fiancé.
Sam reacted immediately.
"Hey!" He shouted and raised the shotgun.
When Lilly turned to him, he fired. His shot was a direct hit and with an angry scream, the spirit disappeared. Not being held up by Lilly's ghostly arms any longer, Tom sagged to the ground.
"Tom, are you all right?" As fast as possible Sam limped to the other man. Now that he knew Jade was safe, he became painfully aware of his hurting body and he could practically feel all strength rushing out of him.
But he knew he couldn't give in to that now. Not yet at least. Lilly could return any moment and he needed to get them all back to the house.
"Can you walk?" Sam asked, kneeling next to Tom.
"Sam? Wh-what was that?" Tom stuttered, still gasping for air.
"I'll explain later. Now get up, we need to get back to the house. Where's your amulet?" Sam asked while searching the ground around them with his flashlight.
"Amulet? What … that thing Mrs. Beauchamp gave me? I took it off in the car, I … I guess it must still be there." Tom said, his voice still quavering. He stared at Sam with wide terrified eyes, his mind trying to grasp what just had happened.
"You took it off? You …" Sam bit down any remark that was on his lips and just let out an exasperated sigh. He couldn't really blame Tom. He didn't know anything about ghosts and other evil creatures. But sometimes he could kick people in the head for their stupidity. Did they really think they were given protection amulets for no reason?
"Let's just get …" Sam never got to finish his sentence as he suddenly felt something pull him back. A second later his head slammed into the nearest tree and he found himself face to face with the ghost of Lilly Pendegrast.
She had come back a lot faster than he had expected.
Sam cursed when he saw his shotgun lying on the ground next to Tom; he really shouldn't have let go of it. He could already hear Dean lecturing him about it when he'd find out.
"Tom! Shotgun!" Sam choked out, his voice barely audible as Lilly had now started strangling him with her ice-cold hands. He felt shivers run through his spine from the cold while he was trying to gasp for breath. He could hear Jade calling his name somewhere in the background. She sounded even more scared than before.
A loud blast shattered through the night. Tom had grabbed the gun and had fired a shot at Lilly … missing her by several feet. Sam would have cursed loudly if he had been able to, because now the gun needed to be reloaded first before Tom could use it again, the rounds were in Sam's jacket and Lilly's attention had turned back to Tom. She let go of Sam and with an evil grin she walked up to Tom who backed away from her, pointing the shotgun at her and pulling the trigger again and again … without result.
"Tom! Back to the house, now!" Sam yelled and was proud that his voice was louder than a whisper again. He got back to his feet, heavily leaning on the tree next to him as his leg threatened to give in under him as an excruciating pain shot through it.
Tom looked up at him for a moment, then back to the ghostly figure in front of him. With a devastated cry he threw the shotgun at the ghost, turned around and ran back to the house … or at least what he hoped was the direction to the house.
"Tom, no! Get back here, you can't leave him alone! Tom!" Jade screamed, furious that the man she loved was capable of just running away, leaving Sam, who had saved him and was now kneeling on the snow covered ground again, behind. "TOM!"
Lilly had quickened her pace to go after Tom, but suddenly she stopped, froze in her movements before her head slowly turned towards Jade. Her face changed into a malicious grin as she eyed the other woman intently for a moment. Her evil grin widened even more, and a second later she was next to Sam again, grabbing him by his arms and throwing him several feet through the air.
Sam hit the ground before he even realized what had happened. He hit his head hard on the frozen ground and his vision swam, black spots appearing before his eyes. For a long moment he couldn't breathe, as the impact had pressed all air out of his lungs and his hurting ribs hindered him to take in any new air. He struggled for air, but each intake sent a stabbing pain through his chest.
He was almost relieved when he felt himself lifted again in the air, for that took the pressure of his ribs and he was finally able to breathe again. The relief only lasted a short moment though as the next second he found himself pinned against a tree again, with Lilly's hands around his throat.
"Let him go, you freaking bitch!" Jade screamed, and several more curses slipped past her lips that she hadn't even known she knew. She tried desperately to get the angry spirit away from Sam, but she couldn't get a grip on Lilly … as with everything else her hands slipped right through the ghostly figure.
Sam heard Jade screams, but couldn't see her. Lilly's angry face was all he saw in front of him, his vision only disturbed by black spots appearing in front of his eyes. His fingers were clasped around Lilly's hands that still squeezed his throat. He didn't know for how long he hadn't been able to breath, but he knew that he wouldn't last much longer. When the world started to spin, he knew he had lost.
XXXXXX
With all his might Dean thrust the shovel in the ground … and finally, finally he felt it hitting on wood. He had found the coffin.
"About time." He mumbled.
Sighing in relief, he wiped some sweat from his brow. Who would have thought that it was possible to sweat in this cold? As soon as Sam was better, he would make him dig out every grave for the next year. Not that any of this really was his brother's fault, but someone had to pay for the fact that Dean had just spent hours digging up a grave in frozen earth. And little brothers always were the perfect target for payback.
He threw the shovel up on the ground and climbed out of the grave. Smiling he grabbed the canister with gasoline, the salt and the matches … now came the fun part of this whole digging business.
"Rest in peace, Lilly Pendegrast. Wherever you might end up after this." He grinned and poured the gasoline and salt over the bones, and with an even wider grin, the match followed a moment later. Satisfied, he watched the bones go up in flames. This was the perfect salt and burn – except for the frozen ground, of course, he had been able to dig undisturbed by any humans or spirits. Why couldn't their job be this easy more often?
He watched the bones burn, and when he was convinced nothing was left, he began filling the grave. When he was done, he collected his stuff and flipped out his cell phone. He had promised Sam he'd call him as soon as he was done, and Dean always held his promises … at least the ones made to his little brother.
He let the phone ring until the voicemail was heard … of course, Sam was already sleeping. Shaking his head, Dean decided to try one more time. If Sam didn't wake up from that, then so be it.
A moment later he heard Sam's voicemail again and flipped the phone shut. Smiling, he imagined Sam lying in his warm bed, sleeping peacefully.
Only that Sam never really slept peacefully … never had and probably never would, especially not after having watched the woman he loved dying, pinned to the ceiling, with a slashed stomach and flames erupting around her, burning everything and everyone that came in its path.
Dean's smile faded and he quickly threw everything in the back of the Impala. Then he jumped behind the steering wheel and started the engine. If Sam was sleeping, he was about to have nightmares, and Dean wanted to be there as fast as he could to wake him up from them … to keep his little brother safe from anything that might scare him.
XXXXXXX
"No, please, let him go. Please." Jade begged. With horror she had watched how Sam had stopped struggling and now his arms hung motionless by his sides. Lilly's hands were still grasped around his throat; Sam's lips had turned blue and she knew that if she didn't get him free any moment now, he would die.
He would die!
"Please, he has nothing to do with this. He is not a part of this family. Please, you can have me, but please, please let him go!" She had sagged down on her knees as she begged for Sam's life. She couldn't lose him. Not Sam, not like this.
Tears were rolling down her cheeks and she was just about to go on with her pleas, when a terrifying scream escaped Lilly's mouth. With fury in her eyes she glared around her, her eyes locking with Jade's for a long moment, before she threw Sam through the air again.
Unable to do anything, Jade watched as Sam hit the ground. She couldn't remember ever having felt more scared than at this moment … except maybe when she had seen him unconscious in the burning car. Ignoring Lilly's screams, Jade crawled to Sam who lay on his back, not moving, not making any attempt to get up. His eyes were closed.
God, please, don't let him be dead.
When she had finally reached him, she noticed with relief that he was breathing. His chest was moving up and down with every breath he was taking and right now it was the most wonderful thing Jade had ever seen. She wanted to take his hand, let him know she was here, with him … but of course she couldn't. She still was a damn ghost and she couldn't touch anything. So instead she bent down to him and whispered in his ear.
"I'm here, Sam. You're going to be okay. Just please, please wake up." She swallowed when he didn't react to her words. "Just open your eyes, plea…"
An even louder and more terrifying scream from Lilly made Jade look up at the spirit … just in time to see her ghostly figure erupt in flames and then disappear.
And suddenly she was all alone in the forest with Sam … there were no sounds around her except Sam's breathing. She swallowed and closed her eyes as the darkness and quiet surrounding her threatened to overwhelm her. She usually wasn't afraid of the dark, never had been and never thought she would be … but that had been before she knew about ghosts and demons and wendigos and all the other creatures Sam had told her about.
The dark really was something to be afraid of and she was more afraid now than ever.
But there was still Sam … he needed her help. And to help him she had to stay strong. Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes again and looked at Sam.
"Sam, you have to wake up. You have to wake up because it's too cold to just lie around in the snow. You're going to freeze and I can't … I can't help you. I can't get you out of here, so you have to do it yourself." She looked at the still form of Sam, willing him to at least open his eyes. "Sam, please, wake up."
And finally, after a long moment, Sam slowly opened his eyes. He blinked a few times and looked at Jade in confusion. "What …"
He didn't have to finish his question as the memory came back to him instantly. He groaned as he became aware of his hurting body … he didn't think there was a part on him that wasn't in some kind of pain. And he was freezing, god he was freezing. "Cold …" He choked out and wondered why it was so hard to say even this one word.
Jade let out a relieved laugh at seeing Sam awake … but her joy didn't last long as he didn't look like he was going to stay conscious for very long. She frantically looked around, hoping that maybe Tom would return. Or that Dean had come back and was already looking for his brother.
She didn't see either of them, but her eyes spotted a small metallic device in the snow, only a few feet away. Sam's cell phone … he must have lost it when Lilly had thrown him through the air.
She looked back down at Sam who had started shivering and looked even paler than before. And his eyes were closed again.
"No, no! You have to stay awake, Sam. You hear me? You have to stay awake and tell Dean and let him know where you are." Without thinking about it, her hand grabbed Sam's shoulder … going right through it.
"Damn it!" She shouted in frustration. She flinched when she saw Sam's shivering increase at the cold contact, but at least he was looking at her again. "Sam, that's your cell phone over there. You think you can reach it? Then you can call Dean and tell him where you are. He's gonna come and get you out of here."
The despair was clearly audible in Jade's voice. She wished she could do anything else than just talk to Sam. She wanted to touch him, get him somewhere where he would be safe. Where he wouldn't die from hypothermia faster than his injuries would kill him.
"Dean …" Sam blinked a few times and finally turned his head slowly in the direction of the phone lying in the snow.
Jade could have screamed with relief when Sam finally responded to her words. "Try to get the phone, Sam. Then you can talk to your brother."
Sam's arm slowly moved to where his phone was lying. Using all his strength left, he tried to reach it, but it wasn't enough. He only managed to lift his arm a few centimeters, before it fell back on the ground. "I … can't."
"Yes, you can. Just stretch your arm, maybe you can reach it. It's so near." Jade tried to coax him. He couldn't give up. She wouldn't let him.
Sam did as he was told, but he couldn't grasp it. Only a few millimeters were missing. "I'm sorry."
"Come on, Sam. You have to get it. You have to tell Dean where you are." Jade's despair grew when she saw Sam slowly slipping back into unconsciousness. "You're gonna freeze to death here!"
Sam's eyelids fluttered open again and with dazed eyes he looked at Jade. Their eyes locked and she thought she would drown in his hazel eyes … just like she had when she had seen him for the first time. The memory suddenly felt so strong, so real as if it had just happened yesterday.
She was carrying so many books through the narrow corridors of the university's library that she couldn't see anything in front of her. She didn't need to; she knew exactly where she needed to go.
What she hadn't expected though was that she wasn't the only one carrying too many books around. And just a few feet before she had reached her desk where even more books were waiting for her, she hurtled into someone … she tried to keep her balance and keep the books from falling down, but she didn't manage either and a moment later found herself sitting on the floor, surrounded by books and a young man with long, dark brown hair and the most intense hazel brown eyes she had ever seen sitting across from her on the floor.
They were both stunned for a second before they jumped up at the same time and started collecting the other's books … which resulted in their heads banging together loudly.
"Ouch!" They called out in unison and then. "I'm sorry."
They both paused and looked at each other startled, then started laughing at the same time. Jade immediately felt attracted to his laughter which sounded so honest and light and was probably the most beautiful laughter she had ever heard. And looking at him she felt like she would drown in his eyes.
"I'm Sam." He said, holding out his hand for her to take.
"I'm …""Sam." A familiar voice interrupted her and she turned around to see her sister standing in front of her, smiling at them. "Great, you already met. I guess than I don't need to introduce you two anymore."
From that moment on Jade had ignored the way Sam's eyes looked or the way his laughter sounded. She tried her best not to notice how the sound of his voice made her feel all warm inside, no matter what he said. It was easier to not have a real conversation with him, just bickering with him all the time, always disagreeing with everything he said. And he was going along right there with her. That's how they had started the world's longest discussion in the world, starting on the way from the library to a nearby café and lasting for the next one and a half years.
She had ignored his eyes since then but she couldn't anymore.
"Please don't die here, Sam." She whispered. She kept watching him, afraid to take her eyes off him and she noticed how his eyes wandered from hers to the night sky and a moment later a small smile appeared on his lips.
"Beautiful." He mumbled, almost inaudible.
"What?" Jade forced herself to look up herself … and then immediately knew what he had meant.
It had started snowing again and when she looked up, she saw the snowflakes falling down on them from the dark night sky … quiet and peacefully. It was one of the most beautiful sights she had ever seen … almost. She looked down at Sam again and met his eyes looking at her.
And again she thought she would drown in them.
"Sam …" The words caught in her mouth when she saw Sam's eyelids falling close again. "No, Sam, no, you have to stay awake."
He didn't hear her anymore.
"No, Sam! Sam, wake up! Wake up!" She screamed at him.
The despair threatened to overwhelm her. There was no way Dean would find him here in time when he didn't know where Sam had gone to. And she didn't think Tom would return or even be able to find his way back here. He just wasn't good with orientation.
She wished, prayed that there was some way she could contact Dean, tell him where his brother was. She reached for the phone, but her hand went right through it. "DAMN IT!" She screamed frustrated.
She needed to get back to the house and find a way to contact Dean, to let him know what had happened. But she didn't know how. He hadn't even seen her standing next to the breakfast table when he had shared some of his deepest fears and secrets with her grandmother. He couldn't see her, no one could, except Sam.
And Sam was going to die. And she could do nothing else but stand by and watch him die.
"No. No, no, no, this is not happening." She whispered. She watched Sam's shivering body, his closed eyes, his pale face and his lips, already turning blue again. "No …"
"I'm sure she will wake up soon. She is just not … not ready yet."
Her grandmother's words rang in her ears. If she ever had been ready, she was now. If she could return to her body and wake up then … then she could notify Dean. She could tell him what happened, where Sam was and he would save him.
But what if she couldn't remember anything?
Then Sam would be alone.
"I hate being alone."
She shook her head. She couldn't stay with him this time. If she did, he would die.
She had to take the risk. There was nothing she could do for him here.
She clenched her hands into fists, and with all her might, she concentrated on her body lying in the hospital a few miles away. She concentrated as hard as she could while at the same time she felt torn apart because she was trying to leave Sam … to leave him behind, all alone. And then she felt something pulling her away … a familiar feeling, the same feeling she had had when she had seen Sam in the burning car, unable to reach him. It felt like her soul was ripped from her, but before she could do anything to stop it, she had the feeling of falling and everything around her turned dark.
And she couldn't hear Sam's breathing anymore.
TBC
A.N.: Thank you to HardyGurl94 for beta reading this chapter :) And thank you all for reading and reviewing. It means the world to me, you guys are great :)