Disclaimer: I still don't own Supernatural or its characters and am not making any money on this…I'm still just having fun!

Bait

Chapter 11 – Two Down

John heard the sound of the arrow and the groan as he got near the entrance to the cave. Not wanting to reveal the entrance, he cautiously peered through the brush. He saw the vampire clutch at the arrow in its chest and fall…John quickly pulled his machete and advanced on the vampire. Without hesitation, John beheaded the vampire and began looking for his other son.

He heard the sounds of struggle further up the hill. Grabbing his cross bow he started up the hill to help while keeping an eye open for others. If Sammy was correct, there should have been two vampires…one was gone, but he was betting the other was with Dean.

Meanwhile, Dean was facing the second vampire…his machete in hand, ready to put the monster out of its misery. He could feel the hatred boiling in his veins as he recognized the face as one of those that had held his brother down. "You bastard…I'm going to send you to hell!"

"You can try…but after I'm finished killing you, I'm going to bring back Kate's toy…you won't be able to stop me!" The vampire advanced, knocking the machete from Dean's hands, he threw Dean back into the tree.

Dean saw stars, but was not going to give up that easily. He charged the vampire, hitting it full force with his head into its stomach. He smiled as he heard the vampire groan. The vampire and Dean continued to roll on the ground, trading punches. Dean managed to break free and stood up looking for his machete. He saw it laying on a small outcropping of rock a short distance away. Running over and grabbing the weapon, he turned to finish the vampire off. But the vampire was quick, he charged at Dean once again, causing both of them to tumble from the edge and roll down the hill.

Dean tried to shield himself as he felt his body hitting the various rocks and brush on the way down. He grunted as his ribs came to rest against a large boulder. Shaking his head to clear it, Dean tried to stand once again. He saw the vampire coming at him with the machete…Dean threw his arms up in a protective gesture, waiting for the blow.

Suddenly he saw the vampire drop the machete and grab at its chest…a look of confusion spreading over its face. A moment later, the look was gone as its head was separated from its shoulders by a furious looking John Winchester. "No body hurts my boys you bastard!" John said as he cleaned the machete blade in the grass and returned it to its sheath at his side.

John sighed with relief when he saw the green eyes of his oldest son looking at him. When he saw Dean tumbling down the hill…his heart almost stopped beating. "Hey son…you ready to go check on Sammy?" John asked, concerned when he saw Dean holding his ribs as he stood on unsteady legs.

"Sure Dad…but how did you?" Dean turned to join his father as they started to slowly descend the rest of the way to the cave's entrance.

"Sammy…he noticed that two of the vampires were missing from his vision…somehow he knew they were close by." John shook his head in wonder, he knew his son had abilities, but seeing them in action was another thing.

"Yeah…he kind of has a knack for sensing when things are about to hit the fan…comes in handy sometimes!" Dean smiled as he replaced the machete his father had retrieved in his own sheath.

As both of the older hunters entered the cave, they looked at each other and smiled. They could see Sam lying on his side, facing the cave entrance holding the knife that John had left. He looked like he was ready to fight, except for the fact that his eyes were closed, his mouth slightly open in sleep.

Moving quietly so as not to wake the sleeping young man. They continued into the cave. However, Dean couldn't repress the groan as he slid to the ground next to his back pack. Sam's eyes snapped open and looked towards the sound, his hand tightening on the hilt of the blade.

"Whoa there Sammy…its just me and I don't need any more wounds tonight!" Dean said jokingly, watching as Sam's fever filled eyes tried to focus on him.

"What's wrong with you?" Sam asked anxiously, his mind was foggy, but he could tell that Dean was hurting.

"Nothing little brother…just a few bumps and bruises. Go back to sleep…it will be dawn in another hour and we have to get out of here!" Dean watched as Sam's eyes closed once more, his grip on the knife relaxing slightly.

"Here Dean…let me get you cleaned up!" John said in his commanding tone. He knew his oldest son would deny that he was hurt…but John knew better.

"Dad…I'm fine…ouch!" Dean complained as his father had lifted his shirt and began probing at his sore ribs.

"You're right…nothing broken. Now hold still while I wrap them for you…I can't carry both of you out of this place!" John continued to work on Dean, making sure that his son was ok. After he finished he ordered Dean to lay down next to Sam and get some sleep. He would pack them up and have them ready to leave by dawn.

A short time later, John sat next to the fire, heating up another can of soup. He knew they all had to eat before they left, especially Sam who from the looks of things, hadn't kept the last meal down. Staring into the flames, John tried to come up with a way to get his boys out of here. According to Sam and Dean there had been a total of seven vampires, eight now with Sheila. Luckily he had gotten rid of two of the bastards, but that left six of them between them and the safety of the truck.

Pulling out his cell phone, he checked it again…still no reception. Up in these mountains cell phones were a crap shoot at best. Heading back to town also wasn't an option…it was too far. No, they would have to travel as far as they could during the daylight and probably hole up for one more night before they would be able to reach the truck. He couldn't chance moving Sam at night…he would be too hard to protect out in the open and obviously he wasn't in any kind of shape to protect himself.

Walking over to Dean, he gently touched his son's shoulder "Dean come on…we need to get going."

Dean woke up instantly looking over at the sleeping figure of Sam. "Sure Dad…but how are we going to get him out of here?" Dean didn't think Sam was up for the long hike out of here.

"Get your brother up and ready to go…there is soup over there for both of you…I want to see it gone when I get back. Don't worry Dean…I think I have a way to get him out of here." John stood and grabbed the camping axe from his pack. "I mean it Dean…both of you better eat and be ready to go by the time I get back!"

Dean watched as his father left the cave. He groaned a little as his ribs reminded him that he was not a hundred percent either. Pushing the pain to the back of his mind, he reached over and frowned as he felt the fever in Sam's skin. Fever meant infection…damn; he would have to check all the wounds again.

Deciding to let Sam sleep a little longer, Dean went to his pack and gathered what he needed. He packed away everything else so that all that was left was the first aid kit, the soup mug for Sammy and the bed rolls. He had downed his soup in no time, glad that his father had thought to have it ready for him…his stomach was growling when he woke up.

"Dean…what time is it?" Sam whispered, opening his eyes and quickly shutting them again against the pain in his body. He could feel the bites throbbing, especially the one in his shoulder.

"Hey sleepy head…its just about time for us to get going. I need to remove your shirt so that I can check your wounds ok? Dean gently held Sam up while he tried to pull the shirt over his brother's head. He didn't miss the slight flinch when he pulled the shirt up. Damn that bitch…she was going to pay!

"Ok Sam, now lean forward a little, I need to look at the ones on your back first." Dean made quick work of the wounds on Sam's back. They still looked painful, but none appeared to be infected. "They are looking pretty good there Sam…too bad though…I don't think any of them will leave you with a cool scar."

Dean helped Sam lay back down and started to look at the wounds on his brother's chest. He heard Sam whimper slightly when he removed the bandage from the wound on his shoulder. As he suspected, it was infected and it looked like somehow Sam had pulled a few stitches. "Sorry Sam but this is going to hurt a little…I have to get this cleaned up."

Dean moved as quickly as he could, trying to minimize the pain. He could feel Sam tremble under his hands as he finished. "That's it Sammy…all done. I need you take these pills and eat some of this soup then we can start getting you out of here."

Sam took the pills and downed them with the water that Dean provided. He watched as Dean went back to pack the first aid kit and returned with a sling. "We need you to stop using that shoulder Sam…if you keep pulling the stitches, it will keep getting infected. But first, let's get your coat on." Dean helped Sam with the coat and gently placed his brother's wounded arm into the sling. Helping his brother up, he helped him sit by the cave wall. "Here, start eating this while I finish packing" As Dean turned, he saw his father re-enter the cave.

"Good boys! We are almost ready…Dean grab your back pack and the bed rolls and come outside with me for a minute. "Sam…you just rest there and finish that soup…the mug had better be empty when I return!"

Sam smiled as he responded "Yes Sir!"

Dean followed his father outside and smiled as he saw the frame his father had built. Using the bed rolls, Dean and his father quickly finished making the travois that they would use to carry Sam. "Ok Dean, one of us pulls Sam…the other takes point. I don't think we need to worry, but we can't chance being attached out in the open. Now go get your brother and let's get out of here!"

Sam blinked rapidly as his eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight that was filtering down through the trees…as his eyes focused, he saw the contraption that Dean and his father had built. "Dad…I don't need that…I can walk!" Sam complained

"Sam, I'm not arguing with you over this. Dean and I can't be slowed down by you…we need to get as far as we can today during the daylight…now get over here so we can secure you and get moving…we are already burning daylight" John wasn't in the mood to deal with his son's injured pride.

"Come on Sammy…you heard heap big Indian Chief…the sooner you lay down, the sooner we can leave!" Dean helped Sam lay down on the travois. "Besides, you've often called him a horse's ass…now let him be one!" Dean said quietly in Sam's ear. He smiled as he heard Sam laugh softly.

Taking his position in the lead, Dean began to head towards the truck and the vampire's nest…he just hoped they could stay out of their way until Sammy was safe…then he would return to kick some vampire ass!

ooooooooo

Kate watched as the hated sun rose over the trees. Looking at the others in the room Kate grimaced…two of her pack had not returned from the hunt. "Get some rest…tonight we will find Sam Winchester and make him pay dearly for what he has cost us!"

Kate knew that somehow Sam Winchester was responsible for the two missing vampires. Of course, this meant that she now knew which direction to head…she would follow the scent of the missing members of her pack…right to the prize!

TBC

Raven524: As promised, here is the next installment. I really appreciate all of you who are taking time to send in your reviews…just keep them coming!