Disclaimer: I still don't own Supernatural or its characters. I and am not making any money on this…I'm just having fun filling in the time until September!

Ghost Hollow

Chapter 2 – Pre-Dawn Ride

Dean looked once again at his brother's profile as he drove them back to the motel. Sam had been quiet and almost withdrawn ever since they had left the forest. "You know Sam, we can't save everyone." Dean tried, figuring that Sam was upset because the boy had died before they could help him.

Sam blinked "What did you say Dean?"

"I said, it's too bad that the kid died, but we can't save everyone Sam. Besides, the locals are calling this an accidental drowning and I hate to admit it, but I'm thinking they may be right. There was no sign of anything Supernatural. The kid was probably pulling a prank on his girlfriend and slipped and fell into the river."

Sam shook his head. "I don't think so Dean, I felt something there and…" Sam paused, as he rubbed the sudden ache in his temple as he tried to remember something, something important.

"What Sam…spit it out already!" Dean was growing impatient.

Sam just shrugged. "I can't explain it Dean, I just don't think that Brett died by accidental drowning…I'm going to do some more research once we get back to the room."

Sam sighed and closing his eyes, rested his head on the seat. He couldn't explain why, but he felt that he was missing something important…something else happened that he had to tell Dean about, but each time he tried to bring the memory to the surface, the pain in his head increased. Realizing that he wasn't going to be able to get past the pain in his head, Sam decided to just let it drop for now. Maybe something would show up when he started to do the research.

Dean reached over and gently shook Sam's shoulder. "Come on sleepy head, we're home and I refuse to carry you to your bed." Dean had watched the pain etched on his brother's face as they finished the drive back to the hotel. If he hadn't known better, he would have thought that Sam was having one of his visions. He watched as Sam reached up to rub his temple again before exiting the car.

"Sammy, does your head hurt?"

"Ahmmm…it started when we left the forest. But I think it's just a headache Dean…I'll be fine once I get some sleep." Sam headed for the bed farthest from the door and plopped down, closing his eyes before his head even hit the pillow.

Dean quietly removed his brother's shoes and pulled the blanket up over his sleeping brother as he got ready to get some sleep as well. He hoped that Sam would be able to sleep through the night…his brother rarely got a full nights sleep, but maybe just this once. Dean sighed as he placed his favorite knife under the pillow and drifted off to sleep.

Sam jerked awake and sat up in the bed, his body coated in sweat from his latest nightmare. He had dreamt that he was back at the river, only this time when they rolled over the body in the water, it was his brother's face staring back up at him. Shaking his head, Sam headed for the bathroom to take a shower. He knew he wouldn't be sleeping anymore this night.

Sam came out feeling a little better after he finished his shower. It was only 4:30 in the morning but he decided that he would go for breakfast and have it waiting for Dean when he woke up. Pulling his jacket on, he quickly wrote a note to Dean to let him know where he was going and then walked out into the early pre-dawn light. Sam got out onto the highway, but instead of heading for the restaurant, he turned to head towards the place where they had been last night. It only took him a short time to reach the bridge. The adjacent woods were covered in a thick ground fog, floating between the trees like a river of smoke.

Sam once again pulled his collar up as he shivered from a sudden chill. He wasn't sure why, but he began to walk into the forest following a path that looked like it had been traveled by many people before him. Sam actually was enjoying the peaceful silence of the pre-dawn light filtering through the trees and mixing with the ground fog. After a few moments, he came to an area of the woods that looked like an old river bed long dried up and gone. The trees over head bent towards each other forming an almost impenetrable canopy and blocking out the light.

Sam smiled as he continued on into the hollow, he couldn't help thinking that this location would make a great backdrop for a horror film. After he got about half way through the hollow, Sam paused as he heard a sound approaching him from the other end. He narrowed his gaze, trying to see the figure approaching him in the fog…he could have sworn it looked like…but it couldn't be.

Sam stepped back as a large black horse reared and pawed the air in the space where Sam had just stood. On the back of the horse was the most beautiful woman that Sam had ever seen. Her long black ringlets framing the porcelain skin of her face. Sam threw an arm up in front of him to ward off the horses hoofs as it continued to paw the air. "Whoa boy, Whoa!" Sam called, hoping that the woman wouldn't be thrown.

Suddenly, Sam heard sobbing coming from the woman on the horse. Sam watched as the horse began to calm down and turned to head back into the forest. "Wait…who are you?" Sam called after the retreating back of the woman. But the only response he got was more sobbing being carried by the wind along with the words "No more, Please!".

Sam continued to stare into the forest where the horse and woman had disappeared. He didn't know how long he stood there, but he came out of his daze at the insistent ringing coming from his pocket. Sam grabbed his cell phone and answered as he noticed the caller id of his brother flashing on the display. "Hello?"

"Sammy, where the hell are you!" Dean demanded on the other end.

"Ah…Dean?" Sam was confused, he was standing in the middle of a forest and he had no recollection on how he got there. What the hell was going on?

"Sammy, if you don't tell me where you are this minute, I'm going to kick your ass…its almost 6:00 a.m. and according to your note you went for breakfast at around 4:30 this morning…please don't tell me you had an accident in my car…" Sam stopped listening as his brother continued to rant on the other end of the phone. The truth was, he wanted to tell Dean where he was, he wanted to ask him to help him figure out what had happed over the last couple of hours. But the harder he tried to say something, the more pain he felt growing inside his head.

Gritting his teeth against the pain, he did the only thing he could do. He hung up the phone and headed back towards the car. He had to get back to the hotel…back to Dean. He would know what to do, Dean always knew what to do.

It only took Sam 20 minutes to reach the car, during the walk back he had ignored the repeated ringing of the cell phone in his pocket. He knew that Dean had to be beside himself with worry, but Sam couldn't seem to make himself answer the call. Sam paused as he slid into the driver's seat of the Impala. His head was pounding and he wasn't sure he could drive. Sam felt for the cell phone in his pocket, intending to call Dean…but once again, the pain began to increase in his head, causing him to feel sick to his stomach.

Sam realized that the only solution was for him to drive himself back to the motel and hope that his head didn't explode before he got there. Gritting his teeth, Sam put the car in gear and headed back to the motel. He never looked back at the forest and never saw the sad face of the woman watching the car disappear. She looked down at the horse and then began to sob again as she slowly dissolved, the morning sun burning her and the fog away.

Dean continued to pace around the room like a caged tiger. He threw the phone onto the bed as he reached his brother's voicemail for the 20th time. How dare his brother hang up on him…he better have a good reason for taking off with the car and disappearing on him. Dean remembered the sense of panic when he woke and found his brother gone. But he had calmed down when he saw the note that Sam left. Smiling at his brother's chicken scratch writing, Dean decided to take a long shower and relax.

But when over an hour passed with no sign of his brother, Dean began to worry. He knew that the restaurant was only 10 minutes away by car. He could have walked there, had breakfast and been back in the time it was taking his younger brother to get breakfast. Finally, after 90 minutes had passed, Dean decided to call his brother to find out what was going on. Now his brother wasn't answering him. He should have never taken his eyes off Sam. He knew that he was acting weird last night…well weirder than usual. Something was going on with his brother and he intended to find out what it was before this went any farther.

Dean jumped to get the door as he heard the familiar rumble of his beloved car. Opening the door, Dean headed towards the car, intending to give Sam a piece of his mind and maybe his foot depending on the answers he got. Grabbing the door handle, he yanked the door open and gasped as his brother's body fell from the car onto the pavement. "Sammy!" Dean yelled as he bent down to check on his brother. He grimaced at the cut that appeared on Sam's forehead where he must have hit the pavement. The gash looked deep and would probably need a couple of stitches. "Damn it Sammy…what the hell happened to you!" Dean said as he carefully pulled his brother up and placed him over his shoulders in a fireman's carry.

Dean gently placed Sam on the bed and ran to the bathroom to get a washcloth and their first aid kit. As he was placing the bandage on the wound on Sam's head, he smiled as Sam groaned and slowly opened his eyes. "Hold still Sammy, let me finish getting this bandage in place…sorry bro' but I had to give you a few stitches. How's the head?"

"Hurts!" Sam mumbled as he closed his eyes against the pain.

"I bet it does, but before I can give you something, I need to see your eyes Sam…you may have a on open them up for me!" Dean smiled as he saw his brother comply, blinking against the light in the room. At least the pupils were equal and reactive to light. Dean helped Sam sit up against the head board and gave him some aspirin with a bottle of water.

"So, Sammy…care to tell me where you have been for the past couple of hours?" Dean watched as Sam swallowed and grimaced in pain.

"I went somewhere? Dean, I…I…I just woke up, I haven't gone anywhere!"

TBC

Raven524: Ok, so here is chapter 2, Sammy's confused and Dean is worried…but then that's not unusual is it? Thanks for those who are reviewing…the site is giving me problems with receiving and replying to reviews (sigh)…so if I haven't gotten back to you, please accept my heartfelt thanks! Please continue to let me know what you think…it fuels my typing fingers as they pause over the keys, waiting for the next chapter to appear.