A/N: Sorry it took so long to get this chpter posted. I had to clean up after IKE. I hope you still are enjoying the story. I foresee one more chapter. Thanks to all who have read my story. D
Chapter 7
Just as Bobby had said. The Impala pulled up to the cabin within a half hour. Truth be told, forty six minutes. Not that anyone was counting. Well, yeah. Two people. A father and a brother. Both waiting for the first sight of a missing son/brother. The last time they saw him, he was bloody and bruised. John and Sam stood on the porch as the Impala pulled up next to the Chevelle. They were waiting inside until they heard the growl of the muscle car coming up the lane. Now they stood on the porch as Bobby pulled up and killed the engine. Bobby gave a light grin toward the two Winchesters before he turned to the middle one, slumped against the door. Bobby softly touched Dean's shoulder. Dean moaned under the touch.
"We're here, son." Bobby said as he again touched his shoulder. Dean rolled his head toward the voice in the car. His eyes were still closed. "Dean?"
This time, Dean opened his eyes to see the older man sitting in the driver seat of his car. "Bobby?" He looked around. Confusion began to dance around in his head. "Where are we?"
"Some place safe." Bobby said before exited the car.
John and Sam had moved over to Dean's side of the car. John opened the door slowly not to startle his son. Dean turned his head toward the opened door to see his father kneeling at the opening. "Dad?" He said even more confused than before.
"Yeah, son. It's me. Come on let's get you inside." John reached to help Dean out of the car. Dean was leaning heavy on his father. The trip from the hospital was exhausting for Dean. Sam moved over to the other side of Dean to help. The moment Sam touched his brother; Dean whimpered and coward away. Sam froze. He looked at his father. John can see the hunt on Sam's face. "I got him." With that, John and Dean continued toward the cabin. John could feel the weakness in his son as they walked closer to the door.
Dean's head hung low as they walked. He eyed the salt line in the doorway of the cabin. He suddenly stopped. "Sammy!?" He called out. Almost like he was afraid. John and Sam knew the tone in Dean's voice. His job was to take care of his little brother and when Sammy wasn't around, Dean panics.
Sam had been following his father and brother. He was hoping that his help might be needed. When he heard his brother's call, Sam rushed to Dean's side. "I'm right here, Dean." This time when Sam placed his hands on his brother, Dean didn't pull away. Instead, Dean almost fell into Sam's embrace causing him to hit the door jam. In doing that, Sam's foot also hit the salt line causing a break in it.
No one saw the slight grin on Dean's face. Father and brother helped the wound son into the cabin and to the cot. Soon they had him laying down with Sam taking a chair and setting it next to the cot so he could stand watch over his brother.
John stood back to watch his son. Bobby came in the cabin following the Winchesters. He stopped briefly at the door. Bobby saw the broken salt line and repaired it before walking inside and closing the door. Dean cracked his eyes open to see what Bobby had done. Anger rose in him. He knew that man will be trouble. He closed his eyes once more.
"We shouldn't try to get to my place for a few days. Give Dean time to get his strength back." Bobby said as he also watched the brothers. John nods in agreement. Bobby placed a hand on John's shoulder. "Why don't you help me get some things in from the car." John nodded again and both walked outside. Bobby stopped at the truck of the Impala. He turned to look in the direction for the cabin than back at John. "John. Something doesn't feel right."
"What do you mean?" John questioned his friend.
"I don't know." Ever since we left the hospital, I've had this gut feeling that we were being watched." Bobby tried to explain as he looked quickly.
John also moved his eyes around their surroundings. "Do you think you were followed here?"
Bobby turned his eyes toward his friend. "Not that kind of followed." John immediately understood what Bobby was saying. Bobby bopped the truck to expose the interior of Dean's disturbed little world. John stared, knowing that his own world is just as deranged as his son's. Bobby moved a bag and John saw something beneath it. The Colt. "John?" Bobby was holding a bag to hand to him. John took the bag and also the Colt. Bobby was so into getting the bags that he didn't notice the Colt till John had it in his hand. "Is that was I think it is?"
"Yeah. Sammy must have taken it at the hospital. I thought it was lost in the crash." John said. He would be mad at his youngest son antics but for some unknown reason, he couldn't be.
"That's everything." Bobby said as his closed the truck. Both men started to walk toward the cabin when they heard yelling from inside. "What the hell?" Bobby cried out as both John and he ran to the door.
Sam heard the movement behind him. He knew that noise was his father and family friend, Bobby. He also heard them walk out the door, something about getting some things from the car. The problem with Sam was, he was watching very intensely at his brother. The bruises on his face still were large and ugly. The sling that held Dean's left shoulder was hugged tightly against his body. Sam counted each time Dean's chest rise and fell. His eyes wondered over his brother's damaged body to return to his face again. Sam thought how pale his brother face was against the black and blue hues of the damage he did. Dean's long eyelashes stood out greatly against the colors. Sam closed his own eyes. 'I did this. I did this to his own brother.' He thought to himself.
It was then he heard the voice. A familiar voice but he couldn't place it. A voice speaking in Latin. Sam's years of training had him able to speak, read, and understand the language.
"Vos exertus neco him." Sam opened his eyes. Not moving a muscle, he scanned the interior of the cabin with his eyes. "Vos did is ut vestri own frater." The voice was familiar. His eyes stopped on his brother. Dean's eyes were closed, but his lips were moving. "Is diligo vos unconditionally quod is est quam vos restitui him." Dean's eyes snapped open. Before Sam knew it, Dean was off the cot and on top of Sam, knocking them both to the floor.
A/N: Translation from Latin
Vos exertus neco him: You tried to kill him
Vos did is ut vestri own frater: You did this to your own brother
Is diligo vos unconditionally quod is est quam vos restitui him: He loved you unconditionally and this is how you repay him
"Dean!" Sam tried to call out but the grip around his neck was starting to cut the path of air to his lungs. He knew that wasn't his brother. Some demon had Dean's body and using it to kill him. With one hand still around Sam's neck, Dean drew back with his right fist and laid it hard to Sam's face. Sam was struggling to free himself. He had to get away or he will die. Dean's hold around his neck lessens to where Sam was able to call out. "Help!"
With the call, Sam was able to kick Dean off of him. Dean rolled to one side as Sam rolled to the other. Sam rolled hard into the wall trying to get away from his brother. Dean was quick. Quicker than anything Sam had ever seen. Dean rolled and was on his feet in one flowing movement. An evil grin appeared on Dean's face. He stood there staring at the younger Winchester.
The pounding on the door startled them both. "Sam! Dean!" John's voice boomed through the wood. Sam couldn't move his eyes toward the door in fear of another attack from the thing inside his brother, but he could hear the force his father and Bobby were using in trying to get the door opened.
Outside Bobby stepped back as John continued to beat on the door. "The salt line." Bobby suddenly recalled. He repaired the salt line at the door. Now that thing is trapped inside with Sam.
"What the hell are you talking about?" John questioned his friend as he was still beating with all he had. John had turned slightly toward Bobby.
"The salt line was broken when you and Sam helped Dean in. It's trapped inside. It's trapped inside with Sam and Dean." Bobby was trying to explain.
John stopped beating on the door. A thought came to John. He leaned in close and yelled. "Sam! Dean! You have to brake the salt line. That thing can't get out."
Sam was still on the floor looking up at Dean who hadn't moved from the same spot he was at. "It's in Dean, Dad!" Dean starts to laugh. Sam focused more on Dean. "What do you want?" He asked.
Standing to his full height, Dean still glared at Sam. "What do I want? I want to see you dead. I want to see the great John Winchester dead." Gesturing with his hands, "I want to see the great Dean Winchester destroyed. What do you think would happen to him if he knew he killed his little brother?"
Sam could say anything. He could see the hatred in the thing's eyes. "You're the thing that followed Dean out of the fog." Dean's face went expressionless. "We trapped you at the church."
"Not all things are as they seemed." The grin returned. His eyes drifted toward the door. Quietness filled the cabin. The calm before the storm as one would say.
The sudden crashing noise of the front window being shattered by a shotgun blast was the storm. Bobby was standing there with the gun still aimed at an unseen enemy. John was climbing in through the window. He knew as he was moving through the opening, the salt line was being broken. John didn't care. He had to get to his sons.
"How sweet. A father and son reunion." Dean's voice spoke. And with the same speed that enabled him to overcome Sam, Dean was heading toward John as he was almost through the window. John wasn't ready for the attack. Dean grabbed John's arm and about thrown him across the room. Dean was up and over the sill and running into the neighboring woods.
Bobby stood and watch. Unable to fire a shot at the young man. He aimed the shotgun at Dean as he went by, but didn't pull the trigger.
John and Sam met in the middle of the floor after crawling toward each other. "You ok, Sammy?" John asked of his youngest son.
"Yeah, Dad." Sam starts to get up with John help. "We have to go after him."
"Woe there, Tiger." John had a hold of Sam's arm. "Let's check you over first."
"No, Dad. That thing is inside Dean. We have to help him." Sam pleaded with his father.
Bobby had come through the door to kneel next to the two Winchesters. The unseeing force denying access was gone. Bobby figured that once the entity was able to leave the interior of the cabin. "We don't even know how to stop it, Sam." He added looking at the the two of them.
"Bobby's right, Sammy." John agreed. He turned to face the older man. "What now?" He asked.
"I'm thinking this thing is ain't like other demons we've met. It doesn't seem as strong. I think it's an imp. A type of demon that serves another." Bobby begins to explain.
John quickly adds. "Its Master." Bobby nodded to agree with John's comment. "And the only way to destroy it is to destroy its Master." The two older hunters stared at each other in understanding the task now ahead of them.
Sam was only thinking about his brother. He had to some how save him. He heard his father and Bobby talking about this imp and how to destroy it but Sam was caring about that. His eyes were straying out the door and broken window in hopes to see his brother in the darkness of the woods outside.
John and Bobby helped Sam to the table. Sam blindly took a seat. John was still checking over his youngest son as he talked. "How are we going to find its Master?" He asked of Bobby.
"Well, from what I have read on imps, they get some of their powers from their masters. That means its master has to be near. That thing couldn't have locked the door on us, John." Bobby said. He set the shotgun down on the table near to Sam. Sam's eyes wondered over to it.
John had finished checking over Sam and settles in the chair near to his son. As he set down, he pulled the Colt that was in back of his pants out and set it on the table next to the shotgun. Sam looked at it than his father. He was now waiting for his father to ask about the gun, but he never did. John was in hunter's mode and trying to think of how to save his oldest.
"You think its Master is nearby?" John asked of Bobby.
"He or she has to be." Bobby started to say. "And I'm guessing, the imp has gone to met him." The three of them looked out the window in unison.
The conversation continued but Sam stopped listening. He looked down at his hands which were still bandaged. One hand moved up to his throat. The image of his brother's fingers wrapped around his neck came to mind. 'That wasn't Dean.' He thought to himself. Sam stood. He noticed he was unnoticed by the others in the cabin. He slowly moved toward the door stopping briefly at the sink.
"Sam? You all right?" John had looked up long enough to see his son moving around the cabin.
"Yeah." Sam tried to keep his voice as calm as possible, but inside he could feel himself falling apart. The need to find Dean was growing stronger. "Just getting myself something to drink. My throat's dry." Sam never looked toward his father and family friend. He knew if he did, they would know what he had planned. The other hunters returned to the conversation. Sam looked at the door. He turned his head to see his father and turned back to the door. In one quick movement, Sam's long legs propelled him through the door and into the wood with the shouts from his father and Bobby.
Out of the corner of his eye, John saw Sam disappear through the doorway. "Sam!" John's hand grabbed the Colt and he was in pursuit after his youngest son. John stopped in the clearing where the cars were parked. He looked around. Sam was gone. Bobby, with the shotgun in hand, came up behind him. "Damn that boy." John couldn't hit his anger this time.
"John. He's only worried about his brother." Bobby tried to calm his friend down.
"Worried? The damn boy is going to get himself killed, Bobby!" John began to yell. "That thing is trying to kill him and now he's out there with it."
"Don't yell at me!" Bobby has learned to hold his own with the elder Winchester.
John realized he was yelling. And yelling at the wrong person. "I'm sorry." Bobby nodded. He knew John was only worried as he was. "Now what?"
"We get a few things and follow them." Bobby said. With that, the two of them moved to gather up the things they thought they may need and started to track the boys. As they were walking into the woods, Bobby added. "It seems lately all we've been doing is hunting down our boys."
John laughed as he walked. "Ours? When did we become a couple?"
"You knew what I mean." Bobby tried to correct the slip of the tongue.
They were soon on Sam's trail. The boy didn't even try to hide it. Dean's was another problem. It was as though he disappeared. Sam was running blindly and John could tell the boy was running on emotions. He wasn't thinking out his movements.
When Sam hit the woods, nothing else mattered. Not the shouts from behind him, not the pain that was throbbing from his hands. Nothing. He had to find Dean. His brother needed him. Sam was running but not knowing where he was going. He only slowed his pace to catch his breath. Sam looked around trying to see any sign of the direction Dean might have taken. Nothing. That's when it started. The whispers. Almost like the woods themselves were coming alive. "Sit Mei. Sit Mei. Sit Mei." It continued to repeat.
Sam started to hate hearing those words. He stopped and spun around in a circle. "HE IS NOT YOURS!" He yelled at the top of his lung. "LET MY BROTHER GO!" Yelling didn't help Sam but it did make him feel better. His eyes quickly moved to the right as he thought he saw movement. It was Dean. He was grinning at Sam before he turned and ran off. Sam was soon following him.
Limbs from the trees were turning on Sam. Reaching and grabbing in a mystic way. Sam found himself trying to fight off the attack as he was also trying to follow the path of his brother. Than out of nowhere, a large branch came up and hit Sam in the mid section. Sam dropped hard to the ground. The blow knocked air from his lungs. Sam looked up to a now appearing shadow over him. It was Dean. Dean was holding a large branch in his hands and he was grinning down at his little brother.
"Miss me, little Brother?" The darkness dripped from Dean's voice. The branch came from another blow. Sam raised his arm to block it. The pain was great. Dean was holding nothing back. "What's the matter, Sammy? Ain't ya glad to see me?" Again another blow, this time to his legs. And then to his side and again to his legs. The blows were coming faster. Sam lost count on how many times Dean hit him. "And here I am so glad to see you, little Brother." A final blow landed on the side of Sam's head. Throwing he sprawled on the ground. Sam was out cold.
The thing inside Dean looked down at his work. The corner of his lip curled up. As he raised the branch for the final blow, Dean heard the voices coming from the thickness of the woods. He dropped the weapon his used on Sam and melted back into the shadows.
John and Bobby were following Sam, which was easy. The boy left a trail a child could follow. "This way, John!" Bobby called out as he leads the way. Bobby rounded a tree only to be met by a hard blow to the back of his head. Bobby crumbles to the ground. Dean moves back into the shadows to wait once more.
John was following his friend's call. He neared a clearing only to stop suddenly. Laying in front of him was Bobby. John quickly stepped back and changed from hunter to hunted. His eyes scanned the surroundings. Once he knew there was no near threats, John moved in close to check his friend. Bobby was breathing. A large knock was starting to form on the back of his head. John was sure Bobby was alive but unconscious. Movement from the other end of a small clear before him catches John's eye. It was Dean.
John was now running after the thing that had his eldest son's body. Dean remained just ahead of him. John could hear the laughter spilling from Dean's lips as he taunted John in his pursuit. John only moved his eyes from the back of his son for a brief moment, but when he looked back. Dean was gone. John stopped suddenly in his tracks. He looked around but there was no sign of Dean. There was no sign of anyone.
Out of nowhere, a voice spoke out to John from behind. "Whom will you choose?" Dean's voice was not his own. John slowly turned around to face Dean with an unconscious Sam draped in his arms. John could see a knife in Dean's hand. A knife that was now pressed tight against Sam's throat. "Your precious Sammy or soldier boy?"
Dean's smile made John sick at his stomach. John moved the shotgun he had been carrying to his left hand. With his right, he pulled the Colt from his belt and aimed it at his son.
Dean laughed. "I guess Sammy wins." John stood there with the Colt aimed at Dean's heart. "What's wrong, Daddy? Can't you do it?" The thing again taunted John. The knife in Dean's twisted slightly, drawing blood from Sam's neck. "Don't you want to save Sammy?"
"Let my boys go." John said with the force of a man facing Lucifer himself.
"Boys? Don't you mean boy. Sammy here." Dean looks down at the still form of Sam. Dean tone changed to anger. "You always cared more for Sammy. 'Dean, watch out for your brother. Watch out for Sammy.' Ain't that what you always say to me?"
John saw the anger in Dean's eyes. The words ringing true in his own ears. John still didn't falter. John could see Sam was slowly coming around. Slight movement under Dean's hold told him that. When Sam's eyes slowly opened with confusion of what was going on, John called out to him. "Sammy? You all right, son?"
Sam's eyes moved from Dean to his father and back to Dean. He could feel the blade against his throat. The wetness that was starting it slow track down his neck. The word "Dad." Softly came to his lips.
Dean repositioned himself with a tightly grip on Sam. "Guess who decided to join us, Daddy?"
"Let him go." John spoke to the thing in his son again.
"Or what? You'll kill me. Your Own Son. You never cared about me like you did Sammy. You always loved him more. Poor little Sammy." Dean was now yelling his words. "He left us. I stayed with you, but that still wasn't good enough for you. Was it, Daddy?" The knife moved slightly causing a whimper from Sam's lips.
Bobby slowly woke from the unwanted slumber he was in. His head hurt like a son of a bitch. He rolled to his knees, gathered the shotgun that he had been carrying, and slowly got to his shaking legs. He stood still for a while, trying to get his bearings. Bobby slowly started to walk off in a direction he thought he should go. Soon he came up behind John holding the Colt on his eldest son. Bobby froze. Sam was limp in Dean's arms. A blade was up against Sam's throat. Sam's eyes were wide and fear danced in them.
"John. No." Bobby said more to himself.
"Don't. Please." John's composure started changing. The Colt that was once steady in his hand slowly became heavy. A tear appeared in the corner of his eye. John couldn't choose. He couldn't choose one son over the other. He saw a lot of his late wife in his eldest. He saw a lot of her good nature in Sammy.
"Choose, Johnny Boy." Dean said with that sickening grin on his face. "Choose who will live."
If John pulls the trigger, he will kill his son. He doesn't, his other son will die. He couldn't choose between them. They are his boys.
"If you did it, it won't kill the imp." Bobby said came from behind him. "You'll only kill Dean."
A voice softly spoke to John. 'The only way to stop it is to kill its master' the priest had told John. Bobby was right. The only way to kill the imp was to kill its Master.
"What's the matter, Johnny Boy? Can't choose." Dean tightened his grip on the knife and on Sam. "Here, I'll help you." The knife starts to make it track across Sam's throat.
At the moment, John was no longer weakened by what was in front of him. The Colt rose and the trigger was pulled back. The single bullet left the chamber. It flew out of the barrel to its mark. The imp in Dean smiled. He had done what was asked of him. He destroyed the Winchesters. His Master was served.
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