Legalities, as always Sam and Dean and all things Supernatural do not belong to me. They are the property of the CW and Kripke Enterprises. I wish they would share, but I don't think that is going to happen so I guess I will simply play in their sandbox for a bit.
Rating MA: For language and injured Dean and Sam throughout the storyline, they will also be M/M pairing although they are not brothers in this story. Pairings won't happen till later chapters, so be sure to review the warnings before reading.
If you don't like this type of thing, then don't read this story I am sure there are ones that would be more pleasing to you.
Author's Note: This story will follow Sam and Dean they continue their lives and try to deal with the challenges of their own pasts and tragic past of a child named Adam Milligan. This ride will get bumpy before it gets smooth, so be prepared.
IF YOU READ MY OTHER STORIES AND DO NOT READ NON-RELATED SAM/DEAN SLASH - PLEASE DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER - You have been warned!
***The next chapter contains non-consensual sex M/M and may be a trigger to some people. Please do not read further if this is painful for you or you don't read these types of stories! Again - Do Not Read If You Are Easily Offended!***
Previous Chapter
The hired car felt empty, even though the two large men in the back seat filled up the space. Sam suspected that it was a direct reflection of how quickly they'd both fallen in love with the child. Some old rock music was playing softly in the background, Dean was studying a brief about a new drug to combat some tumor disease. Sam glanced over at him and found that he couldn't pull his gaze away from the beautiful lines of the doctor's face. The angles were near perfection and the slight scruff simply added to the rugged good looks of Dean Winchester.
Without looking up. "What?"
Sam dropped his gaze, slightly embarrassed that he'd been caught staring at the other man. He fiddled with his briefcase and shook his head. "Nothing."
Dean's green gaze shifted to the lawyer. He could see some of the insecurities that had plagued Sam as a younger man in the way he wrung his hands and lowered his gaze. "Sammy?" He asked quietly. When Sam didn't immediately answer him, Dean shut the binder and reached over. The strong lean fingers were chilly as Dean wrapped his hands around them. "What's going on with you today?"
Before Sam was able to answer the car pulled up outside of their terminal at LAX. They were so involved in themselves that they missed the small blue sedan that pulled up next to them, paused for a moment and then sped off. Sam wanted to have this conversation, but he didn't really understand what was bothering him, so how could he express that to the man he loved. Instead he reached over and squeezed Dean's knee lovingly. "It's nothing…I'm fine." He grabbed the handle of the door and shoved it open.
"You're sure?" Dean questioned as he climbed out of the other side of the car.
"Yup." Came the quick response.
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Seattle was under an umbrella of clouds and it was cold by comparison to Los Angeles. Dean watched as Sam smiled and crawled into the limo sent by his firm's client. The lawyer waived and disappeared into the distance in the black car. Sam hadn't said more than a few words since they'd left the airport and Dean was a little worried. He wasn't sure what was driving the melancholy mood of the other man. Mostly because it wasn't a normal way for Sam to react. The man was always happy. But something over the past few weeks had been driving him crazy and he wasn't talking to Dean…and that was driving him crazy.
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Sam shook his head as the Federal Bureau of Investigation building came into view. The tall brick walls lined with razor wire and the cameras pointed into every crevice. The process of getting trough security was quicker than he'd anticipated, but waiting for Agent Richardson took a lot longer than he'd thought it would. When the man finally made an appearance, Sam was ready to kick his ass. He'd already lied to Dean about this meeting and he'd convinced himself it was for the good of the nation.
"Sam, thank you for coming to Seattle." The agent reached out and shook Sam's hand.
"I didn't have much of a choice." Sam didn't want Dean involved and this was the only way to ensure that didn't happen. He'd been the one that saw Brandon, not Dean. So that meant that he was on the man's radar now just as much as Dean was…so he could be the bait.
"My office is this way. We can talk in there."
Sam shook his head and followed the man. The offices were simple and sparsely furnished. This was a place that was all about results and work. And Sam should know, he'd seen his fair share of serious businesses. He should have known the US government would take the cake on that one.
A half an hour later and Sam was ready to pack Dean and Adam into a padded room and keep them there until Brandon could be apprehended. The man was a vicious character that fixated on Dean and anyone surrounding him. Richardson figured that the only reason the man hadn't gone after Anna was because of Sam. He knew that Dean and Sam were involved and that it would be far more devastating to destroy that than to take away Dean's sister.
"So he's here? In Seattle?" Sam asked quietly. The only consolation about that was that the man wasn't anywhere near Adam…small miracles.
"We believe so, yes." Richardson stood up and grabbed an envelope off a bookcase. "We've been able to track his movements to the state line, but he was able to lose our tale in Kent, Washington. We haven't been able to locate him since Tuesday."
"Wonderful." Sam answered derisively. "So what's the plan?"
"We need to get him in a public place. So we would like to set up surveillance on a Ferry boat."
Sam interrupted quickly. "And I'm supposed to play the whole 'lets go see the sights' thing with Dean?"
The blonde man nodded. He folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the metal desk. "That would be the most controlled scenario."
Sam scrubbed his hand down his face and pulled in a steadying breath. "Is there a way to accomplish this without bringing Dean along?" He knew in his heart he wasn't going to get the answer he wanted, but he had to ask.
The agent shook his head. "I'm afraid not. Dean won't be the primary target yet. This guy missed his chance when Dr. Winchester survived the hospital bombing. He'll try a new tactic…we believe that tactic will be to go after you."
The acrid taste of bile rose up Sam's throat at the mere thought of lying to Dean. But he'd sworn that he'd do anything to protect the man, even if that meant putting himself between Dean and his past. It's not different from standing between Dean and the nightmares. He thought. "When is this all happening?"
"We've arranged for Dean's conference to end earlier than expected tomorrow. Since you're only in town for two days, we have to move quickly. So our thoughts are to put you two on that boat tomorrow afternoon."
Sam pulled in another deep breath and forced his stiff body into a standing position. He noticed that Richardson had a few framed articles hanging on his walls. "You're sure you can get him? If I do this, can you guarantee you get the bastard?"
A shadow shifted across the agent's features. "I can't guarantee anything, Mr. Wesson. But I can guarantee we'll try." He shifted and moved to pat Sam on the shoulder. "And I won't give up until that man is behind bars or buried."
Sam pulled out his cellphone and stared at the picture of Dean and Adam at the park earlier in the week. The sun was just starting to set behind the golden blonde of Dean's head. But it was the pure joy in both of their eyes that made up Sam's mind in an instant. "Okay."
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Chapter 20
Taken
Dean watched Sam leaning easily against the white metal railing of the ferryboat. His longer than necessary sable locks were blowing gently in the soft morning breeze as he smiled into the warm yellow sun. The broad shoulders were rigid though and it completely belied the easy posture he'd assumed as he waited for Dean to return. Adam was pressed against the tall man's long legs, his small arms wrapped around the rungs and a smile spreading over his radiant face. Dean wondered when the kid had smiled last. He knew from experience that the child would have days in his future when he couldn't smile and he loathed the coming of those days for the kid. No child deserved what had been done to Adam.
His own past was proof positive of that. Dean pulled in a deep breath, which was halted when something hard pressed painfully into his ribs. A voice that he never expected to hear again whispered in his ear, the hot breath brushing gently against the nape of his neck. "They really do make a cute little family, don't they?"
Brandon's voice was dripping with honey as he leaned closer and brushed his lips along Dean's skin. The prickle of gooseflesh following the slow advance of his tongue as it flicked out and licked along the length might have been the worst thing Dean had ever felt, it froze him in place. It was almost worse than being subjected to the attentions of his father…almost.
Dean spun around, his eyes wide and unsure. "Brandon." He whispered hoarsely. His heart nearly jumped into his throat he recognized the threat and how close it was to Sam and Adam.
The scars from the burns were a sallow yellow color and Brandon was far from the Adonis he'd been when they'd been together, but Brandon's eyes…his eyes were exactly how Dean remembered them. A muscle twitched in Dean's leg as he prepared to fight. "I wouldn't. Unless you want to see Sam and little Adam blown to smithereens." The breath hitched in Dean's throat and Brandon smiled ruthlessly. "Did you think I wouldn't be prepared? I know exactly how well trained both you and your little sex toy are." Dean winced at the reference to the love his life. Brandon leaned closer. "And I won't be taking any more chances of you escaping."
Fear and repulsion tripped through Dean as he looked at the masses of families on the deck of the boat. It wouldn't just be Sam and Adam that would pay; it would be all these innocent people too. "What do you want me to do?" He finally managed softly. "I want you, Dean. Always have. So you come with me now? And they get to live…all of them."
"I thought you wanted me dead." He stumbled over the words as the gun was pressed into him with bruising force.
A wicked laugh bubbled out of Brandon. "You know the old adage? If I can't have you, no one can? That's an option you know, killing you outright. But then I'd have to kill Sam and little Adam." He raised his hand to stop Dean's denial. "But since you survived, I suppose it's given me a new perspective on what I really want."
For a moment Dean felt like he was back in that apartment with his sadistic father. He didn't have a choice here. He couldn't risk Sam and he wouldn't risk Adam being seized by Brandon. So he did the one thing he could do, he nodded and allowed Brandon to guide him through the crowd toward the parking structure and the exit. No one paid an ounce of attention to the man in the business suit and the guy in a hoodie moving against the crowd toward the exit.
"Wise choice, Deano. But then again, you always did have a way of surviving. You're like a cockroach. I think that's what I'll call you…my little cock…roach." Brandon's words were lost on Dean as he tried desperately to see a way out of this. "And just in case you're thinking that you can take me out once we're away from the boat? Just remember that I know where you've been staying and I have taken certain precautions against their further survival if you piss me off." His voice dropped and venom dripped off his tongue as Brandon finished his threat.
Whatever Dean's mind had been about to conceive was washed away in a flood of second thoughts. "You forget, Dean. I know all your dirty little secrets." He leaned closer, his hand slipping up and under the back of Dean's shirt and sliding along the strong muscles of his lower back in way that left no question as to what he was referring to. "I know who you are." The calluses scraped along the sensitive flesh as Brandon's hand worked its way around to Dean's taunt abdomen and then slipped lower still. "I know what you are." And then he cupped the flaccid cock through the expensive dress pants. "Not happy to see me eh? Well, we'll just have to remedy that." He pulled his hand free and shoved the gun more forcefully into Dean's spine. "Keep moving, cockroach."
The doctor wanted to look over his shoulder so badly it was nearly killing him inside. If this was the last time he was going to see Sam, he wanted to remember him happily leaning against the railing with their son. But he didn't dare. Right now Brandon was fixated on him and if he turned he might shift that focus…and Dean couldn't have that. Hell, he wouldn't survive that. So he kept moving through the people, a false smile plastered on his face. There was a twinge of pain in his chest and he knew that his rapid heartbeat was taxing his still healing body.
"You killed all those people." He said in a low whispered voice. "Just to get to me."
Brandon pushed the gun to the left, forcing Dean in the opposite direction. "So."
That brought Dean to a halt. He took a chance and looked back at Brandon. "So? Really? What the hell happened to you?"
"I'm afraid that while I know exactly who you are…you've never known the real me, Dean." It wasn't arrogant or pompous the way Brandon said it. It was simple truth and Dean knew it. Again the scarred man leaned in and pressed his lips against Dean's. It wasn't soft or gentle, but an attack on the other man's mouth as Brandon reveled in the control he'd gained over his long lost love. He pulled away when Dean's lips never even twitched and then he frowned at the lack of response. "I remember you used to be so much better at that. Guess I'll have to remind you."
He pressed a switch, Dean hadn't even noticed the small device, and a small charge went off, smoke enveloped them and Dean's eyes flashed up to where Sam and Adam had been standing moments earlier. There was nothing there but a hole. His soul screamed in protest while his knees wobbled and he struggled to remain on his feet. Cries of pain and fear punctuation the air, one in particular stood out against the rest. Sam's name was frozen on his lips when he heard a familiar voice.
"Dean! Dean?!" Sam's cry was heartbreakingly close and yet so far away.
He's alive. Thank God he's alive. Dean thought silently. Almost as though Brandon could read his thoughts, the scarred man responded. "He may have survived that charge, but I guarantee he won't survive the one placed on the hull of this ship. Keep moving Dean. Or he dies." He leaned closer for effect. "And I won't stop with Sam. There's still Anna and sweet little Cassie…and let us not forget about Adam. I hear he's had it pretty rough so far."
A strangled sob froze in Dean's throat the mention of more innocent lives. His shoulders slumped in defeat and he nodded limply. "Please, Brandon. Leave them out of this…whatever this is? It's between you and me."
"Mmmm…I like it when you beg. Do it again." They were moving again and Dean found it nearly impossible to put one foot in front of the other. In the confusion of the small explosion, Brandon had been able to push him to an exit still attached to the shore.
"I'll do whatever you want, Brandon. Just don't hurt my family." It came out as a broken whisper and so far removed from his normally self-assured tone that Dean didn't recognize his own voice. "Please." He whispered. Brandon spun Dean around with a grin and his hands were wrenched behind his back and zip tied together as he was shoved into the trunk of a waiting vehicle. He was forced to fold his long frame into the cramped space and stare up at a face he'd once loved…or thought he had.
"Prove it." Brandon sneered. In a last show of force, he again leaned down and claimed Dean's pliant lips in a brutal kiss. He tore at the flesh with his teeth, and the metallic taste of blood flooded his mouth. Somewhere deep inside Dean found the strength to kiss back and his stomach turned in revolting at the dead animated feel of the other man's lips. After what felt like a lifetime, Brandon pulled back and licked his lips as though he was trying to taste every aspect of Dean. "I knew you could do better." He said before slamming the butt of the pistol into Dean's head and sending the doctor into unconsciousness.
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Sam's head was spinning. He was holding Adam close to his chest, but he had yet to set eyes on Dean and he was beginning to think everything that had happened because of Sam's choice. Anger that he couldn't even begin to quantify built to an explosive level as his eyes landed on the federal agent making his way toward Sam. Adam was whimpering against his broad shoulder and he held the child gently in an effort not to stir up any old demons.
"Where the hell is Dean?" Sam hissed.
Richardson shook his head. "We're trying to locate him now. The bomb pulled my extra guys in and they're tying to move civilians out of the way."
It sure as hell wasn't what Sam wanted to hear. "You promised me! You said he'd be protected." He spun away from the agent and scanned the throngs of moving people for any sign of Dean. "I can't believe I trusted you." He hissed more softly when his visual search remained fruitless. "Dean…where are you?" He whispered.
Adam turned his enormous blue eyes on Sam and gently cupped his face between two small hands. He looked into blue-green eyes with an alarming amount of understanding. "Is Dean okay?"
Sam's face fell and he dropped slowly to one knee, settling Adam on it so he could talk to the child. "I honestly don't know, Adam. But I hope so."
The child's face scrunched together in determination. "We gotta find him, Sam. What if a bad man hurts him?"
The idea of Brandon even laying a single finger on Dean pulled the animalistic side of the generally calm lawyer clawing to the surface. A feral growl escaped from his lips and he frowned. Brandon was sadistic enough that Sam didn't want to know what he would do if he got his hands on Dean. The things he'd done to the people that disappointed him…it was the stuff nightmares are made of. And Dean didn't deserve that. He'd already lived through a nightmare that most people couldn't even fathom, let alone survive. "We'll find him, Adam. I promise."
He didn't know whether or not the little boy actually believed him, but he nodded and clambered to the ground before reaching up to take Sam's hand. His gentle nature was in question when he started picturing all the things he'd be happy to do in order to take out Brandon. Death was the least of the imaginative ends his mind created.
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The sluggish return of consciousness and the pain in his shoulders told Dean that he'd been left tied up and that it hadn't been a dream. Brandon had indeed returned and he'd come after Dean in a public place. Rummy thoughts worked their way back into his head and he moaned alerting his captor that he was awake.
He didn't know where he was as he finally managed to split his eyelids apart. But he knew that he didn't recognize it. Dean was seated, his arms pulled behind his back and secured around something hard and cold. The constant drip, drip, drip of water was the only sound he could make out. A blindfold had been secured around his eyes and then taped into place in order to keep him from pushing it off with his shoulder.
There was dull ache rattling around inside his head and the sharp painful thrum of his heart informed the doctor that he wasn't fairing as well as he'd like. Footsteps moving in his direction had Dean pulling at the restraints in a desperate bid to escape.
"You're going to pull that bum shoulder out of the socket if you don't settle down, lover." Brandon's words seeped into Dean's world like poison and he ground his teeth together in silent denial. The unwanted touch of the man's hand had him bunching his muscles and trying to move away. The laugh that followed his attempted rebuttal was cruel and nothing like the hearty laughter he remembered when he and Brandon had been together.
Strong fingers latched onto his chin and wrenched it around as a weight settled down onto his lap. The stench of wherever he was being kept invaded his nose and he coughed. Dean tried to buck his hips up and force the other man off, but suddenly it was all he could do to simply breath. Brandon had sealed his mouth over Dean's as he rutted against the bound man. The press of anxious flash against his stomach left nothing to the imagination.
Brandon pressed his thumb into the soft flesh behind his victim's jaw and grinned as it opened easily. He pulled back long enough to say one thing. "If you bite me, Dean. I swear to you that I will peel the flesh from Sammy's bones and I'll make you watch." He leaned forward, his words striking deep into the heart of Dean's fear. "You've read my file…you know I'll do it. And if I have to remove your eyelids…you will watch him suffer as I rape him again…and again…and again." He finished in a heated whisper and had the distinct pleasure of knowing he'd been heard when all movement beneath him ceased and there was wheezing intake of breath.
"I knew you were smart, Dean." And then he attacked Dean's lips again, biting and pulling at the tender flesh as his hands pushed beneath the thin dress shift covering the other man's chest. He thrust his tongue inside and licked along the inside of his captive's mouth, but he wasn't impressed with the dead response. He sat back again and huffed with irritation. "You're trying my patience here Dean." With that declaration he slid back and pushed himself to his feet.
In the next moment Dean was being bodily hauled to his own feet. His shoulders were screaming in pain as they were maintained in the unnatural position. "Is another demonstration in order? I can arrange for that if you like."
"I can't exactly see it even if you do." Dean bit out.
"Is that the problem? You're angry because I blindfolded you?" Brandon chuckled and leaned close. "You used to beg for it. Do you remember? When you used to beg me to blindfold you and bend you over that little table outside our tent. Oh god Dean…you were the best I'd ever had. The way you'd tense right before you came, taking every inch of my cock." His fingers strayed from Dean's face and dropped along his chest and then he ripped the shirt apart revealing the long scar that ran the length of Dean's sternum. He leaned forward and nipped along the other man's collarbone, before finally digging his teeth into the tender flesh.
Dean whimpered as blood ran from the crescent shaped mark. Four more times Brandon marked his captive's flesh with his own teeth, like he was claiming Dean as his own…which in way, he was. "You were always mine, Dean. Always."
He was trying to ignore the phantom fears that Brandon was dredging up as he slid his fingers over the long scar on the doctor's chest. Dean started in surprise when he felt the warm wet heat of the other man's tongue drag along the raised flesh before he sank to his knees in front of Dean. There was nowhere for Dean to escape, Brandon had made sure of that.
Every time he tried to send his mind away from what he was enduring, Brandon would do something to pull him back to his present circumstances. Some time into it, he must have gotten angry again because the next thing Dean knew a meaty fist collided with his temple and his awareness dimmed considerably. His knees started to buckle and he wasn't able to take advantage when he felt his arms released and tossed forward across a table.
The results were instantaneous, the knowledge of what was coming and Dean fought with everything he had in him. Which wasn't much at this point. "No! Brandon, please don't do this…please...oh god, please don't." He begged as old wounds were torn open and laid bare whether he willed it or not.
Dean was thrown back in time when Brandon tore the shirt from his back, digging his fingernails into the tender flash before leaning over his restrained victim. "You asked for this Dean. You're every bit the fucking whore your father raised you to be. Just remember that you deserve this…" A knife slid between the waistband of his dress pants and the black leather belt encircling his lean hips and with quick twist of the wrist Brandon made short work of the remaining barriers. The comforting pressure around his waist was relieved as the belt was severed with the sharp blade.
A broken sob worked its way out of Dean's chest as he thought of Sam. He'd given every part of himself to the amazing boy he'd met in the library all those years ago…he had nothing left for anyone else. But he hoped in the lighter parts of his soul that Sam would find someone else. His heart was too big to shrivel and die of loneliness. He wouldn't hold Sam to any of the oaths they'd sworn to one another…not after this. Even if by some miraculous way he survived…he would let Sam go. He couldn't subject the man he loved to this type of darkness. A cold stillness settled into his heart and Dean tried to shut it all down when all of the things he'd done as a boy came flooding back and stole what little control Dean had gained.
Part of him was glad that the sour cloth had blinded him. His elbows were digging into the solid table and splinters were working their way into his flesh at an agonizingly slow pace. Dean didn't want to have any more senses associated with this violent act than was necessary. Cold air drifted over his skin and he realized that while he'd been elsewhere his pants had been removed. They were now pooled around his ankles, just as they had been that day in his father's apartment. "Please don't…" He whispered when he felt Brandon's fingers trail along his exposed flesh. "Please."
Hot breath wafted across his face as ruined skin touched pale smooth skin. "But I want to." And with that he broke Dean.
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Sam paced the penthouse hotel room in long fluid strides. He couldn't sit down. He couldn't concentrate on anything except what might be happening to Dean. The FBI had found the digital camera footage and they'd seen Brandon knock Dean unconscious and twist his body into the trunk of a nondescript car. There hadn't been a license plate or any other identifying marks that would help the authorities locate the Camry.
His gaze lifted to the small boy sleeping in the too large king sized bed. Sam's heart seized so painfully that he dropped to his knees and clenched his hands to his chest in an unconscious effort to control it. His eyes burned with unshed tears and he slipped all the way to the floor as the weight of today settled fully on his shoulders. He'd done this. He'd put Dean in danger because he'd thought he was protecting him. How could I have been so stupid? I should have known that they couldn't protect you. I'm so sorry Dean…oh God…I'm so sorry. The words were torn from somewhere deep within his broken heart and he was helpless to halt the flow of salty tears.
Sam didn't know how long he sat there allowing the failure and heartbreak to wash over him before he was again aware of the room. It wasn't the numb feeling in his legs, or the lack of feeling in his arms that pulled him back. It was the tentative touch on his face and the questioning blue eyes of a child. "Sammy?"
Hearing Adam call him by Dean's nickname nearly undid the control he'd managed. Sam didn't know how the child knew the name. He guessed that Adam must have heard Dean call him that. He swallowed his fear and disappointment before gathering the child into a hug. Rather than pulling away as would be his right, Adam snuggled closer wrapping his short arms around Sam's neck in innocent acceptance. "Are you okay?" He asked after a moment.
Sam pulled away long enough to look down and then he did the only thing he could. He answered honestly. "No, Adam. I'm not okay."
His luminous blue eyes widened in concern. "Dean will be okay, Sam. He's strong." This small child looked at Sam with more understanding and empathy than he had any right to understand at his young age. "Like me." Adam added softly.
Sam swallowed his surprise. "What do you mean?"
The blonde head tilted to the side and Adam's face pinched in sadness. "The bad man…the bad man has Dean?"
Jesus. How can you know that kid? Sam thought silently. "I don't know. Maybe."
A pounding on the door interrupted them and Sam unfolded his long limbs and hauled himself and Adam to his feet. The child remained firmly encased in his arms as he shuffled to the door, looking through the peephole and then gritting his teeth in preparation.
He unlocked the numerous locks and pulled the door open. Anna, Castiel, and Cassie were all standing in the hallway. "Anna? What're you doing here?"
"Dean asked us to come. He said he wanted to spend some time with all of us together." She saw the discomfort on Sam's face and she rushed forward. "Don't worry, we're not staying in the same room or anything. We got the room down the hall."
Castiel stepped into the room and waited for Anna to follow before closing the door behind them. He'd noticed the man in the suit at the end of the hallway near the elevator. There was more going on here than Dean's sister was aware of. But he wasn't going to out the man in front of her. Not until he had a chance to talk to Sam. Alone.
Anna's brown eyes flickered around the room and she frowned. "Where's Dean?"
Adam remained silent, but he looked back at Sam with wide eyes. Sam pulled his lower lip between his teeth and turned toward the large sitting room. "He should be back any moment. His meeting went late."
Castiel's head tilted to the side when he saw the pain on Sam's face. "Hey honey? Why don't we go get settled in and we'll meet Dean and Sam for breakfast?"
Anna's grin returned full force and she nodded. "I'm beat anyway." She reached over and took the sleeping baby from her husband. "Tell Dean we're here and we expect an amazing breakfast."
Cas's blue eyes smashed into and held Sam's gaze as he started to follow his wife out. "I'll call you to confirm, Sam." His deep voice sent a tremble of fear racing through Sam. He wasn't ready to tell anyone about Dean yet. That would make this whole thing real and he wasn't sure his heart could handle it…not yet.
It took an hour to get Adam back to sleep. He'd rented 'Inside Out' on the pay per view channel to help with that. Sam was currently sitting on the floor at the foot of the bed with his trembling fingers wrapped in one of Dean's t-shirts. He'd known how much he loved the man, but he hadn't entertained the thought of losing him until now. When Dean had been at his most vulnerable they'd been in a hospital and even when he'd been sent home, Sam had known that the ER was only a phone call away.
His cell phone rang and he reached for it more out of habit than anything else. But his heart skipped several beats when Dean's number popped up. Sam scrambled to his feet and rushed into the bathroom, turning on the water to mask his conversation. "Dean? Dean, where are you?" He demanded breathlessly.
"Sam…Smmy?" It was Dean's voice but it was slurred and tinged with something that Sam didn't like. It sounded broken. The way Dean sounded after a particularly vivid nightmare. The phone went silent for a moment and Sam panicked.
"Dean? Babe, talk to me. Where are you?" He kept pleading until a guttural laughter stopped him.
"Sammy…Dean's got his mouth full at the moment." Brandon groaned in pleasure just to drive the point home and Sam felt bile race up his throat at the picture it painted. His gut twisted as a very real pain sent him to his knees.
"Let him go or I swear—"
"What? What is a scumbag lawyer gonna do against an ex-special ops guy? Tsk, tsk, tsk, Sam. He's mine. He always was. Be grateful that I let you have him as long as you did." And with that the line went dead.
"Brandon?! Brandon!" Sam sank back onto his heels, his breathing coming in rapid little pants. He swallowed the revulsion of knowing that that sick sadistic son of a bitch had Dean. Oh god…Dean. His almond shaped eyes lifted to the darkened room and his breathing hitched. "I'm going to kill you." It was said in a whisper, but the intension was so sincere that Sam could feel it all the way to the depths of his soul.
In his heart he was a pacifist. Sam preferred to deal with problems by talking them through. That was why he'd become a lawyer and not a cop. But for Dean? The things he was willing to do or kill? It scared the shit out of him. He pulled himself to his feet and slowly pushed the door open, his eyes landing on the sleeping child and the brightly colored cartoon playing on the big screen tv. Sam cradled the cell phone to his chest and a plan formulated inside his shattered mind. Castiel. The man had known that something was wrong.
He dialed the number and waited for the answer. "Sam? What's going on?" Castiel's voice wasn't tired. It was like he'd been waiting for Sam's call.
"It's Dean." He managed in a choked whisper. His eyes flickered about the room and Sam found that just containing both the rage and the fear was taking everything he had.
"Tell me what I can do."
Twenty minutes later Sam hung up and he forced himself to breathe. He wasn't going to get any sleep, not tonight. So he put on a pot of coffee and sank into one of the chairs in the makeshift kitchen. He'd thought that Dean was crazy for spending what the penthouse cost when they'd checked in. The love of his life had explained that he'd grown up in fleabag motels and now that he had a choice? He'd rather spend the money and stay somewhere near the heavens. It hadn't made much sense to Sam, but if it made Dean happy? He was fine with it. He spent the next ten minutes on the phone with Richardson explaining their plan and the phone call he'd received from Brandon. The agent was understandably upset about the call and the fact that Sam wanted to exclude all of the law enforcement except Richardson himself.
After explaining the necessity of keeping this plan known to as few people as possible, the agent had finally agreed to an 'off the books' operation. But he held the right to call in backup if it went off the rails. Sam had reluctantly agreed. His gaze slid over to the digital clock on the microwave and he sighed when it read two-thirty. Three hours…Sam had to wait three hours before they could put this plan into motion. His heart was broken for Dean. The man had spent his life trying to undo the spineless attacks of his father. Even now, Sam knew that there were days when Dean couldn't escape the nightmare of his upbringing.
It was on those days that Sam reminded him how much he loved him. He'd hold the smaller man as he shook through the nightmares, his jade colored eyes haunted and dead. It wasn't until sanity returned that Sam was able to pull away and look into those beloved eyes again. Over the last several years the need to reassure Dean had diminished to almost nothing. But after this? Sam was pretty sure they'd be back to square one. The square where he had to convince Dean that he loved him and that he didn't care what he'd done to survive. Because he didn't care. The only thing that mattered to Sam Wesson, was that Dean did survive.
TBC…
Author's Note: This was a very rough one for Dean and I know that isn't what everyone wanted to have happen. But Dean will need where this chapter is taking him to come out in one piece. So if you're wiling, please leave a review. If you hated it, please move along. Thank you in advance for the support through this difficult chapter.