I know things have been moving a bit slow, but they'll start to pick up a bit in this chapter. Enjoy!

A Mother's Love

Sam kept a steady pace behind his brother as they made their way through the thick Pennsylvania woods. He'd been a little worried they wouldn't be able to find their way to the Eagan cabin, but judging from the well-worn path they had found, the Winchesters were far from the only people to have visited the infamous site.

"How much further?" Sam panted. He was having a bit of a hard time keeping up with Dean. It's not that he was out of shape; far from it. It had more to do with the heavy pack he wore on his back, the bulging duffle bag that was slung over his shoulder, and the two shovels he was carrying.

"Shouldn't be too much further." Dean called back.

"Why do we need all this stuff, anyway?" Sam griped.

"Be prepared, Sammy. Be prepared." Dean answered in a sing-song voice.

Sam paused for a moment and readjusted the duffle bag to sit a bit higher on his shoulder. "Dude, how 'bout a hand here?"

Dean kept walking. He raised his right hand and waved the handwritten map the waitress at the diner had drawn for them . "No can do, Sammy. I'm the navigator, you're the mule." He laughed at his own cleverness. "Come on, Jackass!"

"Come on, man. I'm injured!" Sam aimed a guilt-trip arrow at his brother. Bringing up the gash he'd received from the Hook Man was a bit unfair, but so was making Sam carry all the gear.

Dean finally turned around, his eyebrow cocked. "That little scratch? You've got to be kidding?"

"Fine. Never mind." Sam fired arrow number two by making a big scene of fiddling with all of their equipment and scratching at the nearly-healed wound on his arm.

Dean sighed and walked back to pick up the shovel and bag that Sam had accidentally "dropped". Bullseye! Sam bit the inside of his cheeks to keep from smiling. Relieved of half his burden, Sam was ready to tackle the rest of the trail.

If only his inner burden was as easy to reconcile. He kept flashing back to Jenna's tear-stained face as she sought an absolution Sam could not give. He'd felt a strong connection to the little girl. Although she'd saved her brother's life, Sam still saw the guilt in her eyes from not being able to prevent her mother from attacking Stevie; a guilt Sam was all-too familiar with. By failing to save his girlfriend, Sam had forfeited not only her life, but the life they would've shared together.

Jessica had always wanted a whole slew of children. With her blonde hair and blue eyes, Jenna resembled the children that Sam and Jessica had dreamed of raising one day. Sam pushed the image away, swallowing the lump that had risen in his throat. He vowed to check up on Jenna before they left town, if only to ensure his own peace of mind.

Sam and Dean walked in silence for another half hour before Dean slowed to a stop. In the middle of a large clearing stood a dilapidated log cabin covered in graffiti. Veiled in shadows, even the sunlight seemed afraid to touch the dark structure.

"I think we've found it." Dean stated the obvious. He dropped his gear and walked towards the house. He took a peak inside the open doorway. "I'm gonna take a quick look inside."

Sam let his eyes wander, looking for signs of Hannah's grave. "Okay." he answered distractedly. He dropped his gear next to Dean's and began a perimeter sweep of the area.

The Eagan cabin was apparently quite the local hangout, judging from the amount of debris that littered the area. Sam stepped over an empty Doritos bag and continued to look for anything that might resemble a grave marker. After his second lap yielded no result, Sam headed to the cabin.

Ducking his head to enter through the low doorway, Sam nearly ran into Dean, who was just on his way out.

"Anything?" Dean carefully stepped down over the broken wooden step that led to the forest floor.

Sam shook his head. "You find anything in there?"

"Oh yeah. Julie loves Joey, we can give some chic named Nancy a call for a good time, and the Titans, which I'm assuming is the local football team, are number one." Dean laid a hand one of the support beams and leaned in close to read the tiny words written on the wood. "I stand corrected. Julie loves Joey forever."

"And judging from the amount of beer cans outside, apparently Trinity's beer of choice is Bud Light." Sam kicked an empty beer can that lay in his path.

Dean made a face. "There's no accounting for taste."

Sam checked his watch. They still had a few hours of daylight left; plenty of time, provided they could find the gravesite amongst the dozen or so acres the Eagans had owned. After a brief discussion, Dean went off to check the outskirts of the clearing while Sam began a more thorough search near the cabin.

Half an hour later the hunters had uncovered several abandoned fire pits and a few pet grave markers, but had found no trace of Hannah Eagan's grave. Frustrated, Sam kicked a stone at a large tree.

"Anything?" Sam called over to Dean.

Dean's head was down, his green eyes scanning the moss covered ground. "Yeah, Sam. I found it a while ago. I'm just having so much fun out here with the mosquitoes I figured I'd keep it to myself." He took an angry swipe at the swarm of bugs hovering around his head and glared at Sam.

"Ease up on the gel and maybe they'd leave you alone." Sam shot back.

Sam had nearly made his way to the southwest corner of the house when a flash of red caught his eye. Bending down, he brushed away the foliage to uncover a small wooden cross. Sam knelt on the ground and ran his hand across the face of the cross. A crooked red heart had been painted at the center, although time and the elements had stripped most of the paint away. Crudely etched above the heart were the words "Beloved Mother", with the word "Hannah" below it. A few specks of black paint remained on the words, but for the most part the wood was bare. Sam's fingers encountered a row of indented wood near the base of the cross. Squinting, he was barely able to read what had been scratched into the wood. "Love Michael".

Sam stood up and yelled for Dean to get the shovels. Moments later the eldest Winchester jogged over.

"You find some buried treasure, Sammy?" Dean grinned as he handed Sam a shovel.

"It's Sam, and yes, I found it." Sam grabbed the shovel a bit roughly. He took a step back to let Dean take a look at the handmade gravemarker. A gust of wind blew through the trees, whipping Sam's long hair around. As he brushed his bangs out of his eyes, he caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. Keeping his hand up to shield him from the sudden wind, Sam turned and scanned the area.

"What're you looking for?"

Sam turned back to Dean, who had apparently noticed Sam's puzzling reaction. Sam looked back to where he thought he'd seen something, but all he could see for what seemed like miles were trees.

"Must've been a squirrel." Sam shrugged. Or more likely, it was a piece of garbage sailing on the wind to pollute some other part of the forest.

Dean followed Sam's eyeline before giving his brother a shake of his head. "Whatever. Come on. Let's get this over with before I need a transfusion." Dean griped, slapping at another pesky mosquito.

Sam and Dean began to dig, the latter whistling as they made their way through the soil. Sam took off his jacket and tossed it to the side. His head snapped up as he recognized the tune Dean had been whistling.

"Is that Deep in the Hole?"

Dean stopped whistling long enough to flash Sam a goofy grin, then resumed the song.

"You are such a dork." Sam laughed. He'd just placed the shovel back in the soil when the hair on the back of his neck stood up. He snapped up to his full height and swiveled his head around. He had that ominous feeling they were being watched, but once again he saw no one. Not even a bird was there to keep them company. Even the bugs seemed to have abandoned them.

"Hey."

Sam jumped at Dean's voice. Still feeling as if they weren't alone, Sam barely paid him any mind and continued to survey the area.

"Did you hear anything?" Sam whispered.

"Only the sound of you not digging." Dean answered in the same hushed tones. Dean reached over and smacked Sam in the arm. "Hey! Playing crazy isn't going to get you out of digging." Dean said in his normal voice.

"Uh huh." Sam mumbled. He gave himself a shake. Maybe he was still on wendigo alert from their last trip into the woods. He did his best to ignore the eerie feeling and went back to digging.

Despite the hard, dry soil, the siblings made great progress. Dean's shovel hit a wooden surface after only going through about four feet of dirt.

"I win!" Dean tossed his shovel out of the hole and thrust a fist in the air. "It's all yours, Sammy."

"It's Sam." Sam tried to correct, but Dean had already scrambled out of the hole.

"Fine. It's all yours, Sam….my." Dean coughed the last syllable into his hand. Even the shovelful of dirt Sam tossed up at his knees couldn't dampen Dean's gleeful laughter.

The wooden coffin was uncovered in only a few minutes. Sam had reached down to pry open the lid when a loud noise stayed his hand.

"Please tell me you heard that." Sam backed up to get a better look at the cabin.

Dean was also looking at the rundown shack. "Uh huh. Could be a raccoon."

The words had barely left Dean's mouth when the sound of broken glass came from the cabin.

"Alright, you've had your fun. Show yourself!"

Neither brother dared to breathe. A chill went down Sam's spine. Both men were seasoned hunters. It would be nearly impossible for someone to sneak up on them without their knowledge.

Dean reached into one of the duffle bags and pulled out two shotguns. He tossed one down to Sam, then dropped the other bag into the hole.

"Finish up. I'm going to take a look around." Dean checked to make sure the rocksalt was loaded.

"Be careful." Sam said as Dean left his sight.

Sam moved the bag to the end of the coffin. He rubbed his hands up and down his arms a few times, then blew into his hands. The temperature had taken a sharp dip despite the warm sunshine. Strange sights and sounds coupled with a sudden chill in the air could only mean one thing. He had the sinking feeling Hannah Eagan was about to pay her houseguests a visit.

Sam pulled the salt and lighter fluid out of the duffle bag and placed them near the shotgun. He only hoped his could finish his task before something otherwordly decided to drop in.

Sam had just about managed to pry up one of the pine slabs when a shout from Dean made his heart skip a beat. Sam yelled his brother's name, but received no answer.

Shit.

Sam threw down the shovel and grabbed the shotgun. He clambered out of the grave and bolted towards the cabin. Sam's stomach clenched as he jumped over the broken steps. He ran inside just in time to see Dean sail through the air and slide bonelessly down the cabin wall.

Five chapters in, I think I'm about due for a mini-cliffie! Besides, it just wouldn't be a Supernatural story without Dean getting tossed into a wall. lol

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