Chapter 36

"I know you're in there...Make it easy on yourself and c'mon out...The others are taking care of the guy you were with." a hard male voice called to Sam as he rattled the door again. "You're trapped in there you know..."

Before Sam could think of anything to do a shotgun blast ripped through the door blasting away the lock and allowing the guy on the other side to kick it the rest of the way open. He kicked the chair out of the way and stepped into the middle of the room looking for Sam. Since he wasn't in direct sight of the door it took the man longer to find him.

"There you are." he grinned evilly and raised the shotgun to his shoulder aiming it at Sam.

'Shoot!' a voice that sounded like Dean's screamed in Sam's head making him pull the trigger and firing at the stranger. His hand was shaking so bad he missed and the bullet hit the wall behind the guy. Sam continued to pull the trigger faster causing the guy to jump back toward the doorway, but not before one bullet grazed his arm making him grunt in pain.

"Guess you can't shoot straight, but you did draw first blood..." he laughed angrily. "Now it's my..." Before he could finish his sentence a funny look appeared on his face and he suddenly fell forward unconscious. He was concentrating so hard on Sam that he didn't see Shadow coming up behind him until it was too late. Shadow slammed him in the back of his head with the butt of his gun, knocking him out.

"Kid, don't shoot." Shadow called cautiously before stepping on into the room and looking around trying to spot Sam. He saw Sam wedged in the corner with his gun still pointing his way. "Easy now, don't wanna shoot the good guys here." Shadow moved slowly to Sam and gently pried the gun from his hands stuffing it into his jeans. He crouched down to Sam's level and spoke softly, "It's okay...No one's going to hurt you...You're safe...We took care of them."

"The kid okay?" Storm asked from behind him looking down at the guy splayed out on the floor.

"Maybe. C'mon Sam, let's get out of here okay?" he asked him taking his arm and pulling him to his feet. His body felt like a rag dolls, loose and limp and unable to stand on its own. Shadow got a firm grip on his body and moved him around the guy lying on the floor. Sam's legs wobbled and barely held him up as Shadow drug him away.

Sam didn't show any resistance as he was led from the building and quickly stowed in the truck. Shadow and Storm talked for a moment before Shadow joined him and stared the truck so he could pull around the building and get back on the road. He headed back toward the main road deciding to drive a few more hours before finding a place to stop. He wanted to put some distance between them and the gas station. He looked over at Sam and saw he was clutching his body, curled in on himself and staring off in the distance with glazed, unfocused eyes.

Storm stayed behind long enough to make sure the others knew better than to get cops involved since they took their driver's licenses so they knew who they were and how to find them. All five were wounded and needed medical attention, so he left one vehicle running so they could get help. Storm was going to meet up with them when he was sure there wasn't going to be any problems.

spn

"We're going to stop early today. Everyone needs to unwind and rest." Shadow told Sam who hadn't moved since he got him in the car. He had hoped to get to New Mexico today, but that wasn't going to happen now. "You wanna talk about what happened?"

Sam didn't answer him or even acknowledge that he heard him. He continued to stare blankly out the window lost in his own world. He knew Sam must be trying to process what had happened to him and how close he came to dying. He knew Sam had no experience with this type of situation and felt sorry for the kid. Deciding they were far enough away now, he started looking for a place to stop.

"That's alright kid; if you do I'm here." Shadow said checking out the next several exits for a place to stop. He found one and pulled off the main road and followed the signs to a motel. Once he stopped, he send a text to Storm to let him know where they were and he would get them a room and for him to pick up some food before he joined them. "I'll be right back; I'm going to get us a room. I'll be able to see you so you'll be okay." He gave Sam one more look before getting out and going into the office. It wasn't long before he emerged and got back in the car so he could move it around to the back of the motel. He had gotten two rooms with an adjoining door on the bottom floor. Before getting out again, he sent a text to Storm letting him know the room number and location. He wanted to stay off the highways and away from people for awhile to let things settle down. He didn't want Sam's face out there anymore than it had to be. He got out and unlocked the door to check it out before grabbing bags from the trunk and taking them inside.

spn

"Sam, we need to get out now." Shadow coaxed gently as he leaned into the car and took Sam's arm watching to see if he got the message. When Sam didn't move, Shadow tapped him on his cold cheek and leaned into his line of sight. "You with me kid?" he asked snapping his fingers and giving his shoulder a shake.

Sam's glazed eyes turned slightly toward him as he tried to focus on the face in front of him. He moved in jerky motions turning enough to get his feet out and worked hard on standing up. Hands grabbed him and heaved him upward from the seat, being sure he didn't hit his head. Once Sam was steady on his feet, Shadow steered him slowly toward the open door. He sat him on the bed and looked at his pale, damp face.

"Hey, think you can take a shower 'fore food gets here? Maybe get some of that dirt off you?"

It seemed what Shadow was saying finally got through to Sam as he shifted his eyes to look down at his dirt streaked clothes and filthy hands that he was clenching tightly in his lap. He opened his mouth enough to use his tongue to wet his lips before nodding yes and pushed his body from the bed to stand unsteadily for a moment before shuffling toward the door of the bathroom.

"I'll get you some clean clothes." Shadow told him stepping to Sam's duffle and opened it to find clean sweats, briefs and tee shirt. He reached in and put them on the counter. "I'll just be in the other room if you need anything." he said before pulling the door almost closed to give him privacy but still be able to hear him. He figured this was progress at least, knowing Sam was still in shock. He hoped a hot shower and some food would help snap him out of the fugue state he was in.

spn

Sam stood by the sink knowing he was alone now as Shadow pulled the door almost shut. He dropped to the commode and rested his elbows on his knees so he could hold his face in his hands. His body began to tremble uncontrollably as his breathing quickened and he let all the pent up anguish and stress he had been holding in. His fingers felt like icicles against his cheeks and shivers ran up and down his spine. His sobs could just be heard in the main room and Shadow looked toward the door feeling bad for Sam. He didn't get up to check on him knowing Sam needed space at the moment. He needed to deal with what happened in his own way so he could get past it.

All Sam could see in his mind was the gun being pointed at his face and all he could think was he let Dean down. Sam thought he was better prepared to defend himself, but when it came down to actually doing it he sucked. His mind went blank; he couldn't remember anything Dean told him and then when he did finally fire he couldn't hit the guy. If it hadn't been for Shadow, he would be lying in that abandoned gas station face down on the floor dead. Tears wet his eyes and began to run down his face leaving tracks through the dirt on his cheeks. Sam sat there not moving until his shakes slowly subsided and he thought he could stand long enough to shower.

He stripped off his jacket and shirts before standing to get his jeans, socks and briefs off. Once he had the water running, he adjusted it as hot as he could stand before stepping under the spray. He sucked in a sharp breath as the hot spray hit is cold body making him shiver for a moment as he adjusted to it. The coldness had seeped into his very bones and he didn't know if he would ever feel warm again. He leaned against the wall of the shower and wished Dean was here. He could use a brotherly hug about now but knew that was not going to happen. He knew that Shadow was more than willing to sub for Dean, but it wasn't the same. They didn't have that bond that he had with Dean.

The water soaked his hair and made it hang in clumps around his face as he let the spray beat on his head hoping to ease the ache behind his eyes. He stood there for a couple of minutes before fumbling with the little bottle of shampoo to get it open. Sam washed his hair, rubbing the suds through it and trying not to think of random spiders that could have hitched a ride. He held his breath as the hot water rinsed away the suds, washing away the dirt and grim from it. After tearing open the soap, he scrubbed his body good and rinsed before shutting off the water and reaching for a towel to dry with. It seemed he had rinsed all the tension from his body and he felt weak and lightheaded as he stepped from the shower. Sam put on his clothes and towel dried his hair before running his fingers through it to comb it. He stepped out of the bathroom to see Storm and Shadow at the table with bags of food and drinks sitting on it.

"We've got food, c'mon you need to eat." Shadow told him as he pulled food from a bag. "But first I need to take one more photo for Gunny. I don't like it, but he needs it."

Sam looked at him puzzled, but didn't say anything. He stood there not sure what to do. All memories of the talk about that seemed to have vanished from his thoughts.

"Remember, his Dad is setting a trap to catch his cousin's killer." Shadow told him getting up and moving a chair to where it was against one of the walls so it couldn't be determined where he was. "All you gotta do is sit here with your hands behind your back and...This over your mouth." Shadow continued pulling a roll of duct tape from one of his duffels and tearing a strip off.

"We have to make it look real so look upset and scared." Storm told him as Sam dropped into the chair and put his hands behind his back. He didn't have to pretend to be upset and scared because he was; his eyes were red rimmed and he was pale looking.

"Now hold still, but wet your lips so the tape doesn't stick. I'm not going to press hard but at the ends to hold it in place." Shadow said watching Sam do as he was told, but saw a look in his eyes that screamed his fear. He placed the tape over Sam's mouth and made sure it looked good before stepping back and picking up his cell to take the photos. He checked the four he took to be sure they were useable before sending them to Gunny. He saw the haunted look in Sam's eyes and knew he wasn't pretending. "Done, you can take it off. Got you a grilled chicken sandwich, hope that's okay."

"Not hungry." Sam mumbled quietly not looking at Shadow as he eased the tape off and wadded it up.

"Not gonna fly kid, you need to eat." Storm told him pushing the sandwich toward him and sitting a drink beside it.

"Gunny would want you to take care of yourself." Shadow said softly. He looked at his cell that was lying by his place when it started ringing and picked it up. "Hello...Yeah no problem..." he said and handed the cell to Sam who looked at it for a moment before taking it.

A/N: Had hoped for 300 reviews before I posted this, but it was close. Thank you to all for reading my story. Reviews are great. NC