Chapter 14

It wasn't very often that Sam Winchester was rendered speechless but as he stood there in the bitter cold with the biting winds whipping around his head and blowing his bangs into his eyes hard enough to make them start to tear, there was absolutely nothing at this very particular moment in time he could think of to say. Bobby, on the other hand, was not as stupefied as the younger brother had been and had no problem expressing his thoughts, especially when one look at Sam told him that he was unable to mutter a single sound.

"I think you better start spilling some guts boy before I pull you out of that truck and spill them all over the snow myself," the elder hunter grumbled, not out of anger but out of nothing less than sheer surprise.

"I think someone else already has dibs on my guts Bobby and the sooner we introduce her to Morton, Exxon and Zippo the better," Dean smirked as he spoke, yet the tone was a somber and serious one. "Besides, I'm feeling up for a road trip anyway."

"And how exactly is it that you are suddenly perky enough take a road trip with us without your internal organs being turned into soup?" Bobby had to ask considering it was the next obvious question burning a hole through not only his head but Sam's as well. As Dean was about to open his mouth to answer, a light bulb suddenly went off in Sam's head and as if someone had stuck a hot poker into the center of his back and gave it a sharp twist, he blurted out what he was sure the answer had to be because it was the only thing that made any kind of crazy sense.

"The key… it's the key, isn't it?"

With the slight cock of his head and subtle raising of his brows, Dean said nothing as he dangled the infernal metal object that it sickened him to touch but in all reality held his life in its unholy grasp from the keychain it was attached to and gently shook it before both men's eyes indicating to Sam that he was absolutely right. Not wanting to lose his grip on the only thing that kept him attached to his own personal dead zone, he quickly closed a fist back around it and held it tight in his palm as he relaxed back into the seat in the center of the truck's cab, closing his eyes and waiting patiently for both men to climb inside. When neither his brother nor his surrogate mentor made a move, he pried open one eye and glared at them both somewhat mischievously. "Well, are you coming or not? I wanna be chowing down on greasy fries and slamming shots at that strip club down the road tonight. You gonna grab a coat Sammy? It's kinda cold out here to be digging' up a corpse without one?"

"How'd you know Dean? How'd you know you wouldn't kill yourself by walking out that door with just that key in your hand?" Sam said without moving a muscle, the cold not seeming to even slightly bother him although he'd been standing in it for how long he didn't know just staring in disbelief at his brother sitting in the truck like a little kid waiting to head to Disney World on the annual family vacation. The air may have been cold but Sam's glare was definitely colder and one of the two gave Dean a sudden chill.

"I didn't, not for sure anyway," he stated back softly, knowing full well Sam's anger at Dean's kamikaze move was starting to rise. Needing to squash it before it started coming out directly at him, he continued before Sam could make any effort to speak. "I couldn't sit in that room for another minute waiting to become the main course on some angry dead chick's steak tartare buffet anymore. I had to try something, little brother. When you shoved that key into my hand the last time we tried making a run for it somehow it was like being back inside even though I hadn't made it back inside yet. I had a pretty good idea the key was part of the room and as long as I'm holding it I'm still connected to it but I didn't know for sure until just now when I tried it."

"Would it have killed you to let us in on your little secret first before you went raced all commando to the truck and nearly gave me a heart attack?" Bobby asked this time, his own annoyance clearly written across his face.

"Probably not, but would either one of you have even considered letting me try it?" Dean asked, knowing full well what the answer would be.

As expected, "NO," was spoken in unison by both men and at that moment they knew they'd been had by Dean. They both also knew that now that Dean was out of the room and inside the truck there was no way in hell they were getting him back out and back into that motel room until Jeannie was nothing but ash.

"Get your coat Sam… looks like we're in for a long afternoon," Bobby stated as he slumped is shoulders, too tired to argue anymore and in all reality wanting this over almost as much as Dean did so he could just stop killing himself with worry and get some much needed sleep.

"Want me to drive?" Dean offered, the adrenaline suddenly coursing through his veins giving him a burst of energy Sam hadn't seen in his brother for nearly two days now.

"NO!" was again bellowed out in unison by both men and Dean couldn't suppress a chuckle as Sam turned back to the room to not only get a coat but close and lock the door as Bobby disappeared behind the truck and started rummaging through the bed in search of something Dean had no idea what.

With a coat on his back and a pair of boots in his hands, Sam climbed into the truck first, shoving Dean hard to the side to make room for himself and nearly knocking him over before slamming the passenger's side door closed with a little more force than he may have intended to but at the moment really didn't care. Dropping the pair of heavy boots he carried into Dean's lap, he gave the harshest scowl he could to his brother as Dean tried correcting his comforter-clad body's position on the seat.

"Put those on… just in case," was all Sam would say and the tone it was said in told Dean not to say anything else until his little brother asked.

"Thanks, Sammy."

For what seemed like an eternity of silence they sat and waited as Bobby rifled through items in the back of the truck, a curse word leaking out every once in a while followed by a soft thud that made it clear that whatever the man was looking for, he just couldn't seem to find. Sam was about ready to get out to aid in the search when he heard a triumphant "Aha!" echo through the air then saw the older man rounding the back of the pickup with something in his hands. Within seconds, Bobby had taken his expected place behind the wheel but before he made any effort to start the engine, he turned in Dean's direction and gave the younger man a look that probably could have turned anyone to stone. No words were spoken by anyone in the cab as Bobby grabbed Dean's wrist in one hand while he started pulling the ends of the roll of duct tape he held in the other hand up with his teeth and once he had a good piece of the roll pulled apart, he looked Dean directly in the eye and gave him the simplest of orders.

"Open your hand boy," he commanded, turning Dean's wrist so that the appendage was palm up and without the slightest bit of protest, Dean did just as he was ordered to because he was honestly too tired to anything else but comply. With the key resting in Dean's hand, Bobby wrapped the end of the tape around the palm first, and then the entire hand in layer upon layer of thick, gray tape until the roll was nearly gone. With an interestingly satisfied look on the eldest hunter's face, he smiled wryly at both brothers before tossing the remaining cardboard behind the seat.

"Just makin' sure that key don't go anywhere. Ok boys, I think we're ready to go now."