Ties that Blind Chapter 20 – Old Wounds
"We'll see Sammy…We'll see." Virgil said as he advanced towards Sam once again.
Dean walked into the small second hand book store. He smiled as he saw the old books that were lying on shelves and tables. "Sam would love this place." Dean thought to himself as he moved towards the back of the store. He had left Ellen in the car as he didn't want to scare the kid. Besides, he had to make sure that Clinton wasn't carrying any extra passengers.
As he came to the end of the book cases, he noticed a small boy sitting on the floor, a large book on his lap as he glanced nervously at Dean. Dean smiled and moved slowly towards the boy. "Hello Clinton, I'm Dean."
"Hi…ah…what's the secret word?" Clinton said softly, the fear in his eyes almost painful to see.
Dean stopped and winked "Zeplin Rules" Dean almost fell over as the small boy launched himself at him. He pulled the small boy into his arms and gently patted him on the back as he felt the boys shoulders shudder. "Good boy Clinton. How about we get out of here?"
Clinton merely nodded as he hid his face in Dean's shoulder. Dean sighed as he began to walk from the store. He paused outside the door and placed the small boy on the ground. Clinton was small for his age with blonde hair and the bluest eyes that Dean had ever seen. "So Clinton, can I ask you a quick question before we get in the car?
"Sure."
"Have you ever heard the word 'Cristo' before?" Dean watched closely and smiled when Clinton just shook his head.
"Good, then let's get into the car. Ellen is looking forward to meeting you." Dean took Clinton's small hand in his own and walked towards the Impala.
"Dean is that your car?" Clinton asked in an awed voice.
"Yes, she's all mine…do you like her?"
"Cool!" was all Clinton said as he waited for Dean to open the back door and let Dean help him climb into the back seat. The car was huge on the inside and Clinton couldn't resist bouncing on the seat a few times. "Really cool car Dean!" Clinton giggled as Dean shook his head. He remembered Sammy doing the same thing when he was about that age. His father was always threatening to tape him to the seat.
Dean climbed into the driver's seat and turned to Clinton. "Clinton, I want you to meet my friend Ellen."
Clinton looked shyly at Ellen. "Hi."
"Well hello yourself Clinton!" Ellen said as she smiled at the child. He was so young, too young to have been touched by the evil that she knew existed in the world.
"Dean…are we going to help Sam now?" Clinton asked quietly.
"I'm going to the house that you told me about Clinton, but I need you to stay in the car with Ellen." Dean replied starting the car and pulling out into traffic.
"But I want to help…I told Sam I would help him!" Clinton said forcefully.
Dean smiled. The boy had spunk. "Look Clinton, I'm just going to see what is going on. I need you and Ellen to help me by keeping sharp eyes on the house. Do you still have Sam's phone?"
"Yes Dean."
"Ok, if you see anything bad happen, I want you to dial 911. You are my back up Clinton; I'm counting on you to watch my back while I look for Sam. Can you do that?" Dean grinned as he saw the smile light up the young boy's face.
"I can do that Dean!"
Ellen smiled as she watched Dean handle the young boy. If things had been different, he would have made a wonderful father. She saw the ease that Dean had connecting with Clinton. She hadn't seen this side of Dean before and realized that Dean Winchester had a lot more going on under his cocky exterior. "Dean, do you think that Sam will still be there?" Ellen asked quietly.
Dean looked back at Clinton who was busy checking out the various screen savers on Sam's phone. "I hope so…he's way past due for his pain medications Ellen…God only knows what that bastard is doing to him." Dean said quietly.
"I know Dean, but we'll find him. Sam is strong, look how he helped Clinton get free. We won't stop until we find him." Ellen reached over and gave Dean's arm a quick squeeze.
Dean pulled over about a block down the street from the house. "Ok Clinton, I need you to listen to Ellen. I'll be right back ok?"
"You'll come back won't you Dean?" Clinton said in a small voice.
"I'll be back…don't worry. Now you listen to Ellen and do exactly what she says. I won't be long, promise." Dean sighed; he hoped that he could keep this promise.
ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Sam had lost track of time. Of course, when you couldn't see light, time itself lost meaning. He was exhausted, his body hurt and he could tell that he had the beginning of a fever. Virgil had left him alone, untied and huddled in a corner of the room. Sam could feel the bruises on his face and ribs where Virgil had hit him. He had tried to fight back, and even managed to connect a few times, but Virgil just laughed as he landed another punch on Sam's weakened body.
Sam thought about what Virgil had said. He wondered if his father could be brought back. If he could, Sam could make Dean happy again and he would no longer be a threat to either his father or his brother. Dean could move on with his life and his father, well he could never picture him not hunting. But at least he and Dean would be together again.
As Sam's fever climbed, he felt himself falling into an uneasy sleep. It would be so easy to just let the demon have what he wanted. Maybe then Sam could get some rest…he was just so tired.
As if on queue, Sam heard the door open and the footsteps that could only mean rest time was over. He groaned as he pushed himself to his feet and turned towards the source of the noise. "Let me guess, it's past check out time already?" Sam said in a whisper.
"Still defiant I see. Well no matter. The one thing that I have is time Sam. Your brother will never find you here. But if he does, I'll kill him. Either way, you will agree to serve my father before we are through." Virgil watched as Sam swayed on his feet. It had been over 24 hours and the kid was still able to stand.
"If Dean gets here…you'll be the one who dies." Sam replied, trying to keep on his feet.
Suddenly Sam felt himself thrown against the wall. His back screamed in agony from the last time he had been thrown. But Sam refused to give the demon the satisfaction of showing how much it hurt. "You know, it must really make you feel big, shoving a blind man around...such a big man. Your father must be real proud of you!"
Virgil laughed. "Actually, my father is proud of me. He is letting me deal with you personally. It's a lot more than your own father gave you…wasn't he the one who told you he was sorry he had brought you along on the hunt? It's really gotta hurt to know he couldn't trust you. Such a disappointment, of course you didn't love him, not really. All you did was argue with him, even just before he died."
Sam blinked as each word hit him like a blow. How could the demon know…all of sudden it made sense. If the demon had his father, which meant he had all his father's memories. Sam shook his head as the demon's voice started to sound like his father's voice. "I don't want to fight any more Sam…we're always just butting heads. Can we just not fight?"
"Stop!" Sam yelled as he struggled against the demon holding him to the wall. "I won't listen to this any more. My father loved me and he knew that I loved him. You'll never convince me otherwise!"
"I could let you talk to your father Sam…would you like that? A little father and son chat to clear the air? All you have to do is agree to serve my father. You can have whatever you want Sam."
"NO!" Sam yelled as he pushed against the demon with his mind. He allowed the anguish and hate to fill him as he felt the pressure that was holding him against the wall leave. He heard a loud crash and the demon curse. Not waiting to see what had happened, Sam felt his way along the wall towards where he had heard the door. Just as he hand touched the handle, he felt himself yanked up and slammed once again.
"Nice Sam…too bad you haven't learned how to properly use your powers. Otherwise you might have had a chance." Virgil let Sam fall to the ground as he grabbed Sam by the collar and dragged him along the floor. Sam tried to twist from the demons' grasp, but the demon was too strong. "So you want to play Sam…I've got just the game for you."
Sam cried in paid as his hands were pulled roughly in front of him and tied tightly. He felt himself being lifted, his hands suspended over his head so that his toes were barely touching the ground. The pain in his burned arms increased as he hung, his head falling to his chest as he grit his teeth against the pain. He jumped as he felt a blade skimming over his chest. His shirt was cut from his body.
"Here's the way the game is played Sammy…you get to guess what I'm going to do to you by the sound. Are you ready?" Virgil grinned as he unwound the bull whip and cracked it in the air close to Sam's ear.
Sam flinched but wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing how much the noise was affecting him. "Take your best shot Virgil…but you'll never get me to serve you or your father…you will have to kill me."
"Ok, Sam…I can do that, but it will be slow and painful." Virgil snapped the whip and listened as Sam screamed. "Yes, it's going to be very slow and very painful Sam."
TBC
Raven524: Well, Sam's really got problems now. Will he be able to last until Dean finds him? Or will he give in…I'm on to the next chapter to find out! Don't forget the little button…the alerts are slow, but they are getting through!