(Disclaimer: Don't own anything. Story is mine)

Battle Weary.

Chapter Fourteen.

Gus had come in and removed the needles from both Dean and Jay's arms and she'd rolled over and gone to sleep but not before Dean had insisted she drink some juice. She'd agreed, as long as there was alcohol mixed in with it. He'd laughed, fixed it for her and then left her to rest.

Gus had wanted to test Dean's healing but he'd refused, saying he'd promised Jay she could stab him before anyone else had a go. He'd grinned at them and walked out of the cabin, saying he wanted to be left alone for a bit.

He made his way carefully to the burnt out car, making sure Sam and Gus didn't see where he was going. It was Zeke's car and it was here for a reason. How it had got here was a freakin' mystery…as was this whole damn thing. The more they learned the more confusing it got. And Jay knew something too…something she wasn't telling him. He shook his head, focus on the car. He inspected it carefully…shit, what a waste of a beautiful car. A '69 Camaro. Whoever had done this would surely go to Hell…he laughed softly, he guessed that's exactly where they were. Assholes.

He carefully popped the trunk and searched it. He found a hidden compartment in the side panel, a small array of powerful weapons inside. He took out a Sig-Saur 9mm, smiled, checked the breach, jacked a bullet into the chamber and put it at the small of his back. He found Zeke's sword as well, he took that too, he'd give it Jay when she woke.

He brushed the soot from his hands and went to the glove-box. Nothing. He was sure the cops would have cleaned out what they could. He checked all the panels and didn't find anything. He lifted the burnt remains of the carpets and found a photo wedged in a crack of the floor. He looked at it and smiled. It was singed around the edges but intact. He put it in his pocket. He stood and looked at the car…guns, sword, photo….no, there was more. He just had to find it.

------------

His eyes fluttered open. He tried not to groan, he couldn't let them know what he was doing. If they even got an inkling as to what was at play here…it would have all been for nothing. And he was running out of time…well not him. Dean. And therefore Jay and Sam. He'd put his faith in three people he didn't know…his faith and his sister. If anything happened to her…oh there would be hell to pay. He laughed at that. Hell. Fucking hell. He laughed again. Or should that be ..fucking Hell. He laughed all the more. Was it all going to Hell in a hand basket? He snorted, tears rolling down his blood-covered cheeks.

The guard looked over at the man hanging from the wall. Laughing. The guard smiled to himself, maybe the man was finally starting to break; his mind starting to unravel. Once the insanity set in, and it was only a matter of time, then things would really get interesting.

Zeke tried to settle himself but the more he tried the more he laughed. He knew he wasn't losing it, far from it but once he 'got the giggles' as Jay referred to it, he'd always found it difficult to stop. God he missed her. God. God wasn't in this place. He was sure She, yes She; Jay always said if you believed in God… well it had to be a woman. If God were a man, she'd said, there'd be beer bottles strewn all over the world, dirty underwear hanging from the stars and instead of there being a sun, it'd be a pair of tits and the moon would be an arse crack, 'mooning' all that looked at it. He bellowed his laughter. She had such a charming way of putting things. He laughed again, he was sure she was driving Dean, Sam and Gus crazy. Pissing them off no end. He'd warned John about her and John had just laughed and said it would be payback for what his sons did to him.

He noticed the guard go into the small room opposite him, he waited til the door shut and closed his eyes. He guessed he had maybe three minutes. He concentrated hard, one part of his mind ticking off the time as the other part, the part no-one but John knew about, did what it was designed to do. He concentrated on the cabin….it slowly came into focus….he looked around, smiled when he saw his sister asleep, but he wasn't looking for her this time…he searched….there he was. Fucking arseholes! His car! But there was Dean…he concentrated, he saw Dean cock his head and turn around…'No, back to the car, Dean'. Dean turned back to the car and studied it before slowly lying down and pushing himself underneath it. Zeke smiled and broke contact.

------------

Dean stood staring at the car. It was here. Whatever it was they needed, it was here. Just where the fuck was it?

'Dean'

He cocked his head and turned round, scanning the area around him. No one. Odd. He turned back to the car, smiled, lay down on his back and pushed himself underneath it.

------------

He was leaning back against the car when Jay found him. She sat down next to him and passed him a beer. He nodded and drank almost half of it. She didn't say anything, she could tell by the look on his face that he'd found what he was looking for. He reached into his pocket and passed her a photo. She took it and smiled. It was her and Zeke as kids. She must have been about four, Zeke seven. He had his arm protectively around her shoulders, both of them in the dull-grey uniforms the Nuns had insisted they wore at all times and they were grinning at each other.

"Your shoes are on the wrong feet"

She laughed "Yeah, always had trouble with that" he looked at her feet "Started to get it right when I was about sixteen" he turned his face to hers and she cracked up.

He smiled "Smart ass"

"Well?"

He sighed and drank again before passing her a small notebook "It's all in there"

"All of it?"

"Pretty much. I'm sure he and Dad left some of it out" he laughed "I guarantee they did, but yeah"

She went to open it and he put his hand over hers. She looked at him "What?"

"Don't be pissed at him"

Her stomach flipped "Why do I not like the sound of that?"

"Jay, you have to understand…" he sighed "I'm a big brother so I can see where he's coming from. He loves you like…like…"

"Like you love Sam"

He nodded "He didn't do any of this to be a hero…or to ..shit, I don't know. But he did it to protect you. To save you. He couldn't tell you because he knew you'd never let him do it. But don't be pissed at him. Promise me."

She eventually nodded. He took his hand off hers and let her read.

She closed the notebook slowly. He watched her, she hung her head and stared at the book, he couldn't see her face, he didn't need to, he saw all he needed when the first tear fell onto the cover. He put his arm across her shoulders and held her as she cried. He didn't say anything to her. There was nothing he could say to make it better. He understood her pain and he knew the last thing she needed was hollow words. He kissed the top of her head as her tears stained his shirt. He lifted her face and leaned down, brushing his lips across hers.

-----------

The torture had been especially harsh this time. Something was wrong. Something had happened that had pissed them off and they'd used him to vent their rage. The worst part was that it was done in total silence. They'd never said a thing, the more pain they inflicted, the more fiercely their red-eyes seemed to glow.. He had pretended to pass out and the torture had continued for another ten minutes before they tired of his lack of response. He waited til the last of them left the room before reaching out for his sister. He needed to make sure she was alright and he needed to make sure they'd found the notebook.

He concentrated on the cabin…found it….he saw Gus sharpening swords in the lounge and Sam reading his journal. Jay wasn't there. She must be up at the car. He concentrated on the car….found it. Aaah geez, no brother wants to see his sister doing that. He knew she wasn't a virgin but COME ON! Okay, okay…backtothecabin, backtothecabin, backtothecabin, fortheloveofgod! Backtothecabin!

Alright…hopefully not permanently scared by that….he looked at the two men on the lounge….time to have a chat with Sam. He went deep, he didn't have a lot of time and this part of his gift was especially exhausting. He focussed on Sam….

-----------

Sam was sitting on the lounge, Jay's journal on his lap, a beer in hand, trying to read the words in front of him as he tried not to think of the ticking hands of the clock speeding them towards dusk. Dean. He couldn't lose his brother. He was all he had left in the world, he couldn't think of not seeing that smart ass grin every day, not hearing his disgruntled mumblings when Sam insisted he …

"Sam…"

He looked up from the journal "Yeah, Gus?"

Gus looked up from the sword he'd been sharpening for well over an hour. The repetition of it, calming him "Huh?"

"What did you say?" asked Sam.

"Nothing, son. I didn't say anything" and he went back to his task.

Sam shook his head, looked back at the journal and tried to concentrate on the words in front of him.

"Sam…."

Sam looked up again "What Gus?"

Gus looked at Sam again "What, what?"

"You called my name"

Gus shook his head "No, I didn't" he looked at Sam "You alright….I mean…."

"You didn't say my name?"

Gus shook his head again "No, son. I didn't"

"Huh" said Sam. He took a long swig of beer and turned his attention to the journal.

"Sam, you're tired. Time for a short nap"

Sam closed the journal "I'm tired, Gus. I'm just gonna take a short nap" he got up and went to the bedroom, closing the door behind him. He lay down on his bed and was asleep before his head hit the pillow.

----------

Sam dreamed. It was a strange dream. He was sitting in a hard wooden chair, there was nothing around him, nothing but grey. A smoky haze seemed to hang over everything. He tried to peer into it but could see nothing, he looked behind him, more nothingness. It was like a void.

"It is a void, Sam"

He turned back "Zeke?"

Zeke smiled "Hi, Sam"

Sam shook his head "This is some weird-ass dream"

Zeke laughed softly "It's not really a dream Sam…although…it kinda is. This is as real as real gets. You and I are here but we're also…not"

"Jesus Christ, even in my dreams you speak in code"

Zeke laughed loudly "I see you've been reading my journal. Sorry about that" he shrugged "but you know how it works" Sam nodded "Alright, Sam. You need to listen. I don't have a lot of time and we need to discuss a few things"

"Shouldn't you be speaking with Jay?"

"Jay's…busy" he blinked rapidly.

"You alright, dude? I mean apart from being in Hell and all"

Zeke smiled "I've been better. Now listen. Dean fights this afternoon, dusk if I remember correctly. You need to be there with him. He won't want you to go and neither will Gus but you make sure you're there, this is especially important"

"Why? And …umm…after what my Dad did…aren't you….you know, pissed at us?"

Zeke smiled "Your Dad and I are sweet, Sam. He didn't betray me. Jay knows that now."

"But…the pact…"

"The pact was the correct one. Jay and Dean just hadn't figured everything out. My codes are a little …confusing"

"A little?" laughed Sam.

Zeke laughed "Okay, a lot. But all that's beside the point right now. You need to be there when Dean fights, you're NOT allowed to interfere. He has to fight them alone. Jay's given him enough blood to make sure he heals as fast as she does so that's good"

"Why is it so important that I'm there? I mean I was going no matter what anyone said …"

"Sam, you're going to have to do something that you won't want to. But you MUST do it"

"What?"

"Dean hasn't explained everything to you and I don't have a lot of time left. So listen carefully and no more questions. Dean was tricked into invoking some mojo that meant that his soul wasn't traded, yours was. He didn't realise, so don't be pissed at him. He has to win to save your soul but when he wins, he'll be bought here. With me. And before you say it, this had nothing to do with Jay or with me…this was all demon. You will NOT be able to get him back. There is only one way to make sure it doesn't go that way…"

"Tell me, whatever it is, I'll do it"

Zeke smiled "Your Dad said you two had a strong bond" he paused "you'll need it. Now listen…." he whispered quietly to Sam.

Sam looked up at him "No" he shook his head.

"You have no choice, Sam. It's the only way. I know you don't know me, so you have no reason to trust me. I get that. But you ask Jay to read the notebook it explains….well it explains some"

"There's no other way?"

"No, Sam"

Sam sighed "You know, your sister is a pain in the ass"

Zeke laughed "Yeah, I know. But she grows on you" he looked at Sam seriously "You do this Sam, you hear me? You do this" he paused "And tell Jay I know she didn't mean what she said…and tell her I love her" he reached a hand out to Sam….

----------

Sam's eyes snapped open. What the fuck was that? That was the strangest dream he'd ever had…oh, well maybe not the strangest but damn did it feel real. He sat up and felt something slip from his fingers, he reached down and picked it up. What the hell?

To be continued….