Chapter Ten.
There were no fireworks as the pendent came off in Dean's hand, no visible change in their surroundings, but something was different and the five people gathered instantly knew it, the barn falling strangely quiet, almost as if someone had hit the pause button.
Isaac froze instantly alerted by his mother's distress and Jed turned a bemused – and probably mildly concussed – head in the direction of the new centre of activity, which comprised Belle staggering weakly towards where Dean was crouched over Sam who was sat in the hay looking irritated.
"Ow!" he whined rubbing absently at his neck and glaring at his older brother "What the hell dude?!"
Dean blinked, beaten to his question by Belle whose face was a mask of horror as she stared dumbstruck at the events unfolding around her.
"Jacob?"
Sam, still glaring angrily at Dean glanced up at the sound of a different voice, his eyes widening as he took in the unfamiliar scene around him, the barn setting, the two men beyond him, the wild-haired woman gaping at him tears pooling her eyes obviously distraught about…something. On top of which, she seemed to think he was called Jacob.
"Err…" he faltered under her scrutiny, aware that everyone seemed to be waiting for him to say something. Eyes still focussed on the woman before him, he turned his head in Dean's direction, letting his eyes follow after an uncertain pause, "Dean? What's going on?" Abruptly he noticed something else, a frown of concern furrowing his brow, "What happened to your face?"
Instead of an answer, Dean let out a long sigh of relief, clapping his brother hard across the shoulders and grabbing up a handful of shirt in his hands as if afraid to let go. It did nothing to ease Sam – the real Sam's – confusion, nor did the screech of anguish from in front of them.
"No!"
It was shrill enough to rattle the rafters and in that instant the tableau suddenly broke into action once more, Isaac collecting up a piece of wood and knocking Jed Hamilton senseless with it and Belle reaching for the shotgun lying discarded in the straw at her feet.
Dean saw her lunge for it before Sam did, almost knocking his brother over as he dove forward to block her, grabbing it at the same moment her fingers clasped around it and pulling hard. She didn't give up easily though, and just as Dean was beginning to twist it from her grasp, Isaac waded in from behind, jabbing him across the side of the head with his impromptu club until he could no longer grapple with Belle.
"Dean!"
Sam's characteristic concern returned once more, he struggled to his feet as the blows rained down on his brother, not having the first clue as to what was going on, how they'd got there or who they were fighting but knowing he needed to put a stop to it.
Belle however managed to anticipate his movements and quickly she regained control of the shotgun she'd been grappling with Dean for. She angled it up just in time to stop Sam's fist from digging at Isaac in retribution, pulling back the hammer slowly, breath tearing from her throat.
"No Jacob," she hissed, her voice almost hoarse with emotion, "Don't you touch him."
Then she was marching towards him, turning the butt of the weapon up to catch him on the head, jostling him across the floor as he bent forwards in pain, trying to control the stars suddenly bursting in his vision.
"Isaac!" the command was barked and almost at once Sam felt more hands forcing him forwards, pushing, prodding, wrestling him back into a corner where the light dimmed and a door locked behind them firmly.
"Dean!" he called again, worried for both himself and his suddenly absent brother. There was no way Dean would let strangers force Sam anywhere at gunpoint unless he was too hurt to stop them. The thought reignited Sam's anger and he looked up through fuzzy vision, jaw clenching at the tall man standing before him wiping a bloody nose off on the back of his hand, "What did you do to him?"
"Your brother's fine child," Belle sang softly, gun still aimed at his chest, eyes floating around the room unable to focus, "He's right here, see."
She indicated Isaac, drawing a frown from Sam. They were insane. These people were insane. They'd already beaten Dean to within an inch of his life and now they had him locked in some sort of workshop at gunpoint – which was all the more frightening in that Sam's last memory was heading out across the car park towards the diner. What in the hell had happened since then? Why couldn't he remember it?
"Sam!" a voice called through the timber, hammering against the door. Dean. Sounding pissed, really pissed. That was always a good sign. Although obviously not for Belle.
"You were such a god boy," she murmured, drawing his attention once more, lifting the gun higher. Isaac moved on instinct, seemingly reading his mother's intentions. He came up quietly behind Sam, wrenching back his arms and digging a heel hard into the backs of his knees. Sam sank onto the floor with a thud, grimacing as Isaac pulled back his head using a handful of hair. Belle's aim followed them, expression still awash with emotion, "But you disobeyed me Jacob. I won't have my boys disobey me. I told you again and again that you needed to listen to your ma, that you couldn't leave us. Ever. But you wouldn't accept that. I had to punish you Jacob, I had to. But I got you back, and now I'm going to have to tell you again."
"Punish him like last time ma," Isaac whispered from above, a giggle of delight catching in his throat. Sam swallowed, nervously. What the hell?
"Bad children need to be punished,"
She lifted the gun a final time and Sam shut his eyes tight. Surely he wasn't going to die at the hands of some lunatic in a barn with Dean just outside and without a clue as to what was happening? He couldn't. She took her final aim. He just couldn't…
He didn't.
As Belle's finger brushed against the trigger, the door burst abruptly off its hinges shattering inwards in a tornado of wooden fragments. Dean was stood in its midst, a gun raised at his side. He took his aim in a fraction of the time it had taken Belle, pausing just momentarily before firing, determination and vengeance flashing through his eyes. The round clipped Belle's arm in an explosion of sound, flesh and blood, spinning her roughly on her heel and depositing her to the floor.
"Ma!"
Isaac stood shell-shocked, the colour draining from him although his grip on Sam's arms and hair didn't weaken, in fact the opposite as Isaac's face tightened in fury and he yanked Sam's head back further. Dean stayed eerily calm.
"Let him go," came the command, solid and unwavering. Isaac didn't seem to take the hint.
"Filthy pig scum," he spat, tears now falling freely down his face, bottom lip quivering like a little boy. Dean didn't move, and then suddenly Isaac was shoving Sam out of the way, diving for Belle's gun and turning it roundly on the man he still firmly believed was F.B.I.
Sam felt his stomach lurch in horror,
"Dean!"
But when the round went off, it was Isaac that dropped to the floor, blood pumping through his fingers as he clutched at his stomach. His was fatal and they all knew it. The rifle slid from his grasp as both hands met at his middle, trying desperately to staunch the flow. His knees were the next thing to go, dropping him onto the ground where he began a slow and painful crawl towards his mother.
"Ma…" he whispered, sobbing against the pain, "Ma."
Dean watched, expressionless as Isaac's fingers curled around hers, collapsing beside her, his darkening eyes taking in hers, still awake and alert, but not quite in the same realm of reality that the rest of them were. She tugged her grasp away absently, turning towards Sam with tears in her eyes. She only had one son on her mind.
"Jacob?"
Isaac's sobbing came out harder, turning into gasps for breath as he started to slip to into the gloom of his impending death. Belle neither noticed nor cared.
"Jacob. "
It was a plea and not one that filled Sam with any comfort. Quickly, he scooted backwards across the floor, hauled to his feet by Dean who then positioned himself in front of his younger brother to block the haunted gaze of the older woman. Eventually she dropped her head into bloody hands and started to cry as beside her Isaac took his last breath.
They watched for close to a minute, neither able to look away until finally Dean broke his gaze from the unsettling scene.
"You ok?" he asked gruffly, his words betraying his concern. Sam nodded, slowly,
"Yeah," he replied, not sounding utterly convinced and more worried about the wealth of bruises that dotted Dean's face than anything, "You?"
"Yeah," and he was. Now. He blew out a long breath, throwing the gun down onto the floor distastefully. It had been Belle's after all, "Been a long couple of days though."
Behind them, Jed Hamilton let out a groan from where he was half-buried in the straw, unconsciousness releasing him back out into the world again and no doubt screaming painfully as it did. Dean turned towards the old timer with a half-smile, watching as his groggy rescuer clamped a hand to his spinning head.
If ever the expression all's well that ends well could be personified – then that moment was it.
"Dean?"
He turned towards his younger brother instantly as Sam's confused tones filtered through Jed's incoherent grumbling.
"Yeah?"
He knew Sam had a lot of questions, which was only understandable after what he'd just witnessed, but provided he asked them one at a time and used that famous brain of his, Dean was fairly sure he'd be able to fill in the gaps for him. Sam was nothing if not the logical one.
"What just happened?"
Right.
He sighed heavily, moving a hand to scratch at the back of his head.
This was going to take a lot longer than he'd anticipated.
So, that was the big showdown. Hope it did all it said on the tin (maybe a little bit more – I dunno!)
One more (and obviously the explanation!) to go now…
And much love to my faithful reviewers who can hang up their reviewing fingers soon. We're nearly at the end now!