The Preacher
Disclaimer: Don't own them, more's the pity.
Once again I would like to thank sjd for lending me her ears when I needed to have a rant and for looking over this for me.
Thank you to all of you who have put this story on alert and a special thank you to those of you who have dropped me a review, I love hearing from you.
Chapter Ten
Rooted to the spot as grief overwhelmed him Sam didn't hear Bobby and Kelvin scramble through the hole, he could do no more than simply stare at his brother's face; watch as the skin became even paler, as the blue took over the pink of his lips.
"Sam I need to get to him." Bobby's frantic shout went unanswered so he grabbed a hold of Sam's shoulders and roughly pulled him out of the way before checking for himself that there was no pulse then he quickly lay Dean flat on the floor before beginning chest compressions alternated by mouth to mouth, still nothing, still Dean remained lifeless.
"Bobby let me." Kelvin placed a hand on Bobby's shoulder not having been able to miss the shaking of the man's hands.
"I can do…" Bobby began but lowering his head he nodded his consent for Kelvin to take over and quickly scrubbed the wetness from his face.
Sam and Bobby knelt side by side, both silent, lost in their own thoughts as they watched Kelvin try to restore life to the young man who meant the world to both of them, both not daring to let their minds believe that he would be anything but successful but both knowing deep down that that was a very real possibility.
Neither knew exactly how long Dean had been here but both knew roughly how long a person could survive with such little air as this prison had and what the chances of survival were, therefore increasing their fear a thousand fold.
Kelvin continued to carry out CPR on the unconscious hunter, he wouldn't let himself think of him as anything other than unconscious, the alternative being unacceptable even to him even though this was the first time he'd come into contact with Dean Winchester he'd heard enough stories about him to have the utmost respect for the kid and he'd be damned if he didn't fight with everything he had in him to make sure he got out of these damn woods alive so he continued on his quest, aware of the two men watching his every move, the anxiety rolling off of them and building an almost unbearable tension in the room making it hard for him to breathe himself let alone Dean.
Checking for a pulse for what felt like the fiftieth time but was in fact only the third Kelvin frowned as he concentrated, hardly daring to believe it was true, then raising his head to look at the two other occupants of the confined space spoke the words that would give them hope.
"I got a pulse, it's weak at best but it's there."
Sam scooted forward and placed shaking fingers to his brother's neck, his body sagging with relief as he too felt the barely there pulse.
"We need to get him outta here, out of these woods and to a hospital, I can see a lot of injuries and it's my bet that there's plenty more I can't see." Kelvin moved to Dean's feet as he spoke and waited for one of the two men to take position at Dean's head and shoulders before lifting him.
"I'll help carry him Sam, you lead the way, keep yer eyes open fer any trouble, we should be okay but you can never be too careful." Bobby instructed.
Without a word Sam made his way to the opening, scrambled out and waited for the two hunters carrying his brother. He took a hold of Dean's feet to allow Kelvin to climb out before relinquishing his hold and moving to stand close to the hole in the wall guided his brother's upper body out, taking the full weight until Bobby had managed to get himself clear before once again entrusting his brother to the older hunter's safe hands.
The journey through the woods was quick, easy and uneventful; the early morning light only just filtering through the thick covering of leaves the densely planted trees created.
As they neared the spot where they'd had the encounter with the creature Bobby and Kelvin shared a glance, both ready to spring into action at a moments notice and both thankful that when they reached the patch of land they'd trapped it in the only visible sign that anything had even been there was a blue tinge on the grass.
After what seemed like a lifetime to Sam the three hunters and their precious cargo finally stepped out of the woods and were within a few steps of their respective vehicles.
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With a still unmoving Dean safely lying on the backseat of the Impala and Sam watching over him and holding him tight to make sure he didn't roll off the seat and crash to the floor of the car Bobby dived into the driver's seat whilst tossing the keys to his truck to a bemused looking Kelvin, shouting an instruction as he moved.
"Bring the truck back to my place, we'll meet you there." Without waiting for a response Bobby pressed his foot on the accelerator and sped off along the road, a deep sigh escaping him as he glanced in the rear view mirror to see the bemused and rapidly diminishing figure of Kelvin still standing in the middle of the deserted road.
"How much further Bobby?" Sam asked after what to him felt like hours on the road.
"Nearly there Sam. How's he doin?"
"I don't know, he hasn't moved, not even a flicker; his pulse is still weak, too weak." Sam added almost to himself before continuing "He will be okay though won't he Bobby, I mean, I know he stopped breathing but Kelvin got him back pretty quick so he should be okay right?" Sam's voice was hoarse and little more than a whisper as he fought to control the fear that was threatening to engulf him.
Not wanting to assure Sam that Dean would be fine, because Bobby really didn't know if he would be but he did know that this was going to be a hard and difficult battle for all of them and not wanting to frighten Sam any more than he already was Bobby evaded giving a direct answer.
"Soon as we get him back we'll take a good look at him, clean him up and take it from there."
"So you don't think he'll be okay?" Having known Bobby for most of his life Sam was easily able to recognise Bobby's diversionary tactic and although he loved the man for it he wouldn't be put off. "You don't think he's gonna make it do you?" Sam's voice rose as his fear of the unthinkable tightened its hold on him.
"I didn't say that Sam." Bobby snapped and immediately felt guilty so softening his voice a little he tried to ease the kid's fears "Neither of us can possibly know exactly how he's doin till we get him home and take a look, but what I can promise you Sam is that I will move heaven an earth to make sure that brother a yours comes back from this."
Fighting back tears Sam choked out a "Thanks Bobby" past the ever growing lump in his throat.
Pressing his foot harder on the gas Bobby willed the car to go even faster, he was already breaking every motoring law ever passed but still the journey seemed to be taking forever.
Both hunters were silent for a while, Sam watched over his brother, afraid that if he took his eyes off him then Dean would disappear altogether and Bobby concentrated on driving, mentally ticking off the medical equipment they'd need once they reached his place and hoping that he'd have everything even whilst knowing that his first aid supplies were always kept well stocked, after all he thought, in their line of work you never knew when they'd be needed at short notice.
"Dean, Dean can you hear me?" Sam's excited/scared/desperate/hopeful voice filled the interior of the car.
"Sam?" Bobby glanced over his shoulder.
"He moved Bobby, he squeezed my hand, his eyes flickered open." Sam excitedly explained before once again returning his full attention to his brother, silently begging for more.
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Slowly, very slowly a familiar and comforting aroma penetrated his senses quickly followed by the sound of voices echoing around him. He knew he knew who the voices belonged to but for the life of him he couldn't place them.
Concentrating hard Dean was able to close his fingers around the warm object gripping his hand and fought against the glue sealing his eyes shut.
A face peering down at him brought recent events crashing into his marshmallow filled brain as the preacher's smirk filled his line of vision before he willingly gave up the fight and sank back into the comforting dark oblivion, a tremor rippling through his battered body as the thought 'It's not over' flittered through his mind.
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Bobby was clambering out of the impala even before it came to a standstill and pulled open the rear door ready to help Sam slide Dean out of the back seat after which the two hunters quickly and carefully carried the dead weight of their injured family into the house and up the stairs where they deposited him on the bed which was always Dean's whenever the boys stayed over at Bobby's for one reason or another.
Bobby ran downstairs to retrieve the first aid kit and to fetch a bowl of warm water and some wash cloths whilst Sam carefully and tenderly began the arduous task of removing his brother's blood soaked, mud stained clothing, all the time whispering words of encouragement in the hope that Dean would hear him and respond in some way, to Sam it didn't matter how small just as long as he got something, but Dean remained deathly still and silent.
Once Dean was down to his boxers both Sam and Bobby could only stare in horror and disbelief at the injuries littering Dean's entire body, from the cuts and bruises to his legs, up to the purple of the bruises on his abdomen and chest, the cuts to his arms, the bare, still seeping flesh where every single finger nail from one hand had been viciously torn away to the blotchy red and swollen obviously broken other hand. The cuts and bruises to Dean's face were familiar to the two hunters by now, having seen them immediately they were able to after leaving the cave but combined with the rest of the injuries they painted a picture of someone who had been beaten and tortured beyond all imaginable boundaries.
"Sam, we should take a look at his back, think you can lift him?" Bobby whispered as his heart shattered for all the pain and suffering Dean had obviously endured.
Unable to find his voice and with hands trembling and eyes full of unshed tears Sam leaned over his brother and very carefully, very gently rolled him toward himself until he had his arms around the broad shoulders and was hugging the most important person in his life, Bobby's gasp only leading him to tighten his hold.
"Okay Sam, you can let him down now." Bobby watched as Sam reluctantly released his hold before raising dread filled eyes to meet his, the question reflected in them clear.
"Several seeping welts, swelling and bruising." Further words unnecessary Bobby strode to the bowl of water and after dipping a wash cloth into the warm water he began tenderly cleaning the blood and dirt from Dean's torso and choked back the sob which threatened to break out when he saw Sam follow suit and begin to clean his brother's face.
Having cleaned the blood and grime from Dean's body and checked his pulse rate, which to their relief was now a little stronger Sam began to bandage the wounds which didn't need stitching whilst Bobby threaded a needle and prepared himself to stitch those that did.
The sound of the front door bursting open followed by running footsteps clambering up the stairs heralded the arrival of Kelvin who burst into the bedroom come hospital room.
Standing in the doorway, his unbelieving eyes taking in the scene before him Kelvin's temper got the better of him "What the hell d'you think you're doin? Moving towards the bed he gasped at the sight of the still unconscious young hunters abused body. "You can't take care of this, he needs to go to the hospital, you don't know what…"
"We can't take him to no hospital, we have to do what we can for him here, now you can either help or turn tail an get yer ass outta here." Bobby glared at the hunter glaring back at him.
A groan from the prostrate form of Dean brought three pairs of eyes to settle on him before, in a flurry of activity they were all standing over him, Sam falling to his knees, whispering words of encouragement.
Eyes fluttering open Dean caught flashes of blue, ice cold blue eyes peering down at him and tried to scoot backwards, away from the hate filled gaze, his breath hitching and a gasp forcing it's out of his mouth as a crescendo of white hot tearing agony blazed it's way through his body, his nerve endings seemingly on fire, a stuttered plea issued through sore, cracked lips.
"Wh wh wha y'wa wan fr from m me?"
"Dean, it's okay, it's me, Sam, you're safe now, the preacher's gone, he can't hurt you anymore." Sam leaned closer to his brother.
"N no, Smy's g g gone, w w went w w with h h him, h h hates m m me. W went w w with y you." Dean's eyes moved until he was looking directly at Sam but instead of seeing his brother the face that stared back at him was that of the preacher.
"Dea…" Sam began but was interrupted by Bobby placing strong hands on his shoulders and manoeuvring him away. "No, Bobby…"
"Look Sam, look at yer brother, he's not seein you." Bobby forced Sam to really look at his sweat soaked broken brother. "He jus needs some time, he's confused, give him some breathin space." Bobby gently pushed Sam behind him and took up his place beside Dean.
"Dean, it's me, Bobby."
"Bo Bobby, I l lost h him, l lost s sammy."
"You didn't lose him son."
"P preacher t took h him, h hates m me, m mom n d dad, I l let em all d down." Dean's eyes slid closed on the last word.
"Dean." Sam rushed forward, roughly pushing Bobby to the side. "Dean."
Heart aching for his two fellow hunters Kelvin moved to stand beside Bobby "Bobby please, we have to get him some proper help." He pleaded.
"I called a contact of mine, lives in the next town over, he's on his way, used to be a doctor till he got caught up in huntin, he knows his stuff, he's gonna take a look at Dean." Bobby's voice was flat, emotionless as all the fight drained from his body leaving him wanting to do nothing more than bury himself in a bottle of bourbon, anything to escape the helplessness and guilt he felt at having to watch the two boys he considered family suffer the consequences of a hunt he and John Winchester should have put to rest many years ago, when Sam and Dean were little more than babies.
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Following the doctor's visit Bobby and Kelvin took shifts in watching over Dean, Sam reluctantly staying out of sight should his brother wake. The doctor's words giving all of them hope that Dean would recover physically fairly quickly, psychologically would probably take a little longer and would require patience and understanding from all of them, something Sam found frustrating, he just wanted to go to Dean, make him listen to him, make him realise that he was safe now, that he hadn't let anyone down, that nobody hated him. A part of Sam was also mad as hell and although he knew it was wrong to feel this way about his brother, especially right now, he couldn't help it because once again Dean was beating himself up about something he thought he should've done to protect his little brother when in reality there was nothing he could've done any differently, the preacher had used his powers and no one, not Sam, not Dean, not anyone could've done anything differently; but there was Dean, upstairs, his body broken and his mind, whenever he regained consciousness for any length of time, torturing him with thoughts being a failure for not protecting his brother, for letting down his parents.
Sam slammed a clenched fist onto the hard wood surface of Bobby's kitchen table, his empty coffee mug jumping and skittering toward the edge before it crashed to the stone floor where it shattered into what looked like a thousand pieces.
"Why the hell don't you ever listen to anything anyone tells you you stupid stubborn jerk." Sam raised his eyes upwards as he growled the words through clenched teeth.
"Sam?"
Sam spun around to see Bobby standing in the doorway.
"C'mon kid, you wanna get us some coffee, course, you're gonna need another mug." Bobby's eyes moved to the mess on the floor.
"Sorry, I'll clean it up." Sam moved to fetch a brush but was stopped by the older hunter.
"Leave it Sam, jus sit down will yer."
Evading meeting the older mans gaze Sam sat heavily on the chair, his thoughts a mixture of worry and anger which in turn led to guilt, guilt that he should be feeling anything other than concern for Dean.
"I know this is hard on yer Sam, but we all gotta be strong right now, we gotta be there for Dean cuz when he wakes he's gonna need us, probly moren he's ever needed us before and before you say it, I know what he's bin through, I know how he was when he got outta the pit but this time it seems, from what he says and what you've told me, that everythin he's ever done his whole life has been turned on it's ass, hell if that bastard brought your mom and dad into it then you know as well as I do how hard that'll hit him, specially if, as you say, they did nothin moren condemn him for just about every step he's ever taken." Bobby took a long gulp of the hot black coffee in front of him whilst he waited for his words to register with the young hunter sitting across the table from him.
"I know what you're saying is right Bobby, I do but I just, god I just wanna shake some sense into him, I mean, after everything I said to him just a few days ago and he promised, he promised that he'd try and now look at him." Sam's eyes met Bobby's as he finished speaking.
"Sam, what you have to understand is that he can't turn it off at the flick of a switch, his whole life from the age of four when your mom was taken he's had it drilled into him that it's his job to watch out for you, protect you, keep you safe."
"I know that Bobby, hell I lived it, from as far back as I can remember until I went to college and then after Jess died he picked up right where he left off and yeah, I admit, I was a mess for a while there and I needed him like you wouldn't believe and he was always there for me and he'll never know how much I appreciate him for what he did for me, how much I love him for helping me to get through it when all I really wanted to do was find the bastard who'd taken her from me and have my revenge, I didn't even care if I died trying, but Dean did, he refused to ever give up on me, even when I pushed him away he always came back for more, but he won't allow me to do the same for him and I'm just frightened that one day he's gonna go too far and then I'll lose him altogether, he'll never be able to come back." Sam's emotions were in overdrive as he spoke.
"Like I said son, it's gonna take time."
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Bobby and Kelvin continued to watch over Dean in shifts with Sam sitting on the top stair just outside the room, his relief heartfelt as his brother's bouts of consciousness became more and more frequent and lucid.
Eight days after arriving at Bobby's Dean was able to remain conscious for practically the whole day, his injuries, with the exception of his still painful ribs, plaster encased broken hand and bandaged fingers were almost healed, the bruises faded to a mottled yellow and the broken skin successfully sewn together.
The problem Bobby and Kelvin had now was keeping the stubborn young man in bed, Dean was restless, edgy and his temper short and most worryingly of all for the two men was his absolute refusal to discuss anything, anything at all about Sam or the hunt, he simply pressed his mouth closed and gazed out of the window whenever the subject was broached.
Sam, his earlier anger abated was now anxious to visit his brother, talk to him, see for himself that Dean was really on the mend but all he could do was peer into the darkened room when he knew Dean would be sleeping, that small action only going a tiny way to reassure him that his brother was out of danger. As for Dean's psychological health, according to Bobby, Dean was coping well and recognized that he was suffering from some kind of hallucinations whenever he thought he saw the preacher, having been reassured by both Bobby and Kelvin that the preacher was no more, that they'd watched with their own eyes as he was dragged kicking and screaming into the pits of hell.
Bobby had promised Sam that the next thing he was going to tackle was Dean's refusal to speak about Sam, or any of his family for that matter, he vowed that although it'd be difficult considering how Dean emotionally shut himself off whenever the subject was raised that he would not give up and Sam knew that Bobby was as good as his word and although it was the hardest thing he'd ever had to do he stuck to the plan, the plan that said he'd remain out of Dean's sight until Bobby had paved the way for them to meet.
Sam kept himself busy during the long days by doing odd jobs around the salvage yard for Bobby and had just stepped onto the porch after having been inside to bid farewell to Kelvin who was now on his way upstairs to say goodbye to Dean when he noticed that a stack of gas canisters had toppled over, some sitting far too close for comfort to a still smouldering trash can Bobby had used to burn some rubbish in earlier.
Sam jogged across the yard and had barely removed the last canister when Kelvin's horror laden voice rang out, the sound filtering through the open windows to reach Sam's ears.
"No Dean" quickly followed by "I need help up here, NOW."
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T.B.C.
Thanks for reading.