Dean dropped the blind and pressed his tightly clenched fists firmly against the wall. He could feel his rage rapidly intensifying and it was all he could do to prevent himself from running out there and killing each and every one of them right then and there.

And he was going to start with Robin.

'I'm gonna kill that fucking bastard! Sometime tonight. He's fucking dead!'

But he knew that he had to control his temper and think rationally; if he acted out of impulse or anger, he would just make the situation worse. There was no way he could take down five guys at the same time. His only chance would be to separate them. He'd be able to handle two of them at a time: preferably Robin and Andy first. And, once he got to Sammy, they'd be able to deal with the other three together. So he tried to settle himself down by taking slow, deep breaths before he gently lifted the blind and peered outside to check on what was happening.

Everyone was still standing on the deck. Nothing had changed. Marty and Eric were holding Sammy while Rick held the knife to his cheek. Robin was staring out across the yard; no doubt waiting for Dean to materialize from the shadows.

Only that wasn't going to happen.

This had to be a ruse, a ploy designed to trick him into revealing himself. They couldn't possibly know he was here. There was no way they could know. He had been extremely careful as he followed Nancy, almost losing sight of her a few times after they had turned off the main highway and taken the county road toward Grand Lake. There was no way she had known he was following her, even if the Impala was as easy to spot on the highway as Santa Claus's sleigh. Very few people used their rear-view mirrors the way they should and Dean doubted Nancy was an exception. And how many people actually paid attention to the cars that were driving behind them?

No, they didn't know he was here. They were only guessing. Because they knew he would show up sooner or later. Only they didn't know when. So they had set up this little melodrama to goad him into showing himself once he did arrive. Because they wanted to take away his biggest advantage, they wanted to eliminate the element of surprise. Only he wasn't going to play their little game. No matter what they threatened to do. Because they had no real intention of following through.

'And there's no god, spirit, demon or devil – real or otherwise – that'll be able to save them if they do.'

So Dean bided his time, continuing to watch them through the blinds without moving a muscle. For a few minutes no one on the deck moved either. Then Robin slowly wandered over to Sam, pushing Rick to the side as he stood close to Sam and spoke menacingly to him. Dean couldn't hear what he was saying but Robin's dissatisfaction was more than evident in his demeanor. As Dean watched despondently, Robin struck Sam one again in the stomach.

'I hope you know payback is a real bitch, Leavey.'

As Sam buckled forward, held firmly by Marty and Eric, Robin turned and trudged to the end of the deck. He took another extensive look around the yard, before he slammed his fist into the railing and spun around to face Sam once again.

"Where the fuck is your brother?" he screamed at Sam.

But Sam just gritted his teeth and stared back at him defiantly. "He's not coming. You've wasted your time, you bunch of assholes!"

"Shut the fuck up," warned Rick as he stepped close to Sam and whacked him across the face.

'That little bastard is so fucking gonna pay for that.'

"This is your last chance Winchester," yelled Robin across the yard. "If you don't show now, your little brother has had it!"

Dean closed his eyes and swore, 'I'm sorry, Sammy, but I will get them for everything they've done to you. You just have to hold on a little bit longer.'

Still, Dean didn't budge. There was no way he was going to play this game. Not on Robin's terms. It had to be a scam. Robin wasn't that stupid. He had to know that the more he hurt Sam, the more livid Dean would be. And the more livid Dean was, the thinner the ice got underneath Robin's feet.

And he had to know that Dean was going to hold him personally responsible for every little thing that happened to Sam. After all, he'd already warned him. He'd told him that he would go completely off the deep end if anything happened to his little brother. So there'd be no more hiding behind Andy or anyone else for that matter. He'd have to deal directly with Dean; something he'd managed to avoid up until now.

But now, he couldn't escape. Because with every punch, jab or similar injustice they aimed at his brother, more of Dean's self-control slipped away and disappeared forever. And, if they kept it up, he'd have no mercy left in his soul. Because nobody got away with hurting Sammy. Nobody.

When no result came from his ultimatum, Robin ordered Marty and Eric to take Sam back inside. Dean watched as Rick marched over to Robin and started arguing with him. Robin responded to his brother's contentions by pushing him toward the house, and proclaiming loudly, "You'll get your chance later!"

After everyone else went back inside, Robin stood on the deck for a few minutes, breathing heavily. Dean was ready to go after him right then but, as he put his hand on the door handle to open it, Andy stepped onto the deck.

'Bingo.'

Now that he had the opportunity to ambush both Robin and Andy simultaneously, Dean just wanted to rush out there and attack them. But first he had to make sure that none of the other boys would be close enough to come to their aid until after he'd dealt with them. And he had to be sure that they'd taken Sammy somewhere far enough away from the back deck that they wouldn't be able to use him as leverage to divert him from his mission.

Dean strained to listen for any sounds coming from inside the house. He heard voices in the hallway but he couldn't make out who was talking or what was being said. The closed door muffled most of the conversation until he heard Sam state boldly, "Dean won't fall for this! He'll figure out what you're up to and he won't come."

Someone just outside the door replied, "Oh, he'll come all right. He's not gonna let anything happen to you."

"He doesn't even know where I am!" countered Sam hotheadedly.

"He's smart. He'll figure it out," the same person shot back angrily. "And until he gets here, you're waitin' upstairs. Where he can't get to you without going through us. Now, MOVE!"

Dean heard the undeniable sound of footsteps tramping up the stairs and he listened intently to determine exactly how many people were following his brother upstairs. He was pretty sure that he could make out four sets of footsteps but the sounds were so intermingled that it may only have been three. Either way, the odds were still in his favor; either all the other guys had accompanied Sam upstairs or only one of them had remained downstairs. And he was probably entertaining the girls.

So it was probably still two against one – Andy and Robin verses him. At worst it might be Andy, Robin and one other guy against him. That wasn't too bad. He could live with that, if that's how it turned out. Hell…the odds had probably been a lot worse last night when he'd faced off against the Aswang. And he'd survived that one.

Now all he had to do was lure Robin and Andy away from the house. He'd come back for Sammy after he'd deposed of the Grand Pooba and Barney Rubble.

Dean looked outside one more time; Robin and Andy were sitting in a couple of the chairs on the deck, engrossed in a conversation. They were probably plotting their revenge. The lights over the deck were still on, casting a dim glow over the entire back wall of the house. Dean knew that if he exited through the patio door, they would see him coming before he even got all the way out. He had to find another way out of the house.

Dean crossed the room and opened the door just enough to see into the hall. No one was around so he opened the door a bit more and glanced out into the hallway. The stairway was located directly in front of the bedroom; no wonder he'd heard them so clearly as they'd taken Sammy upstairs. The hallway continued off to the left and Dean could see a darkened room just past the staircase. Probably a bathroom.

With one more swift glance around the hallway, Dean left the bedroom and crept softly toward the darkened room. He entered the room unnoticed and silently closed the door behind him. Sure enough, he found himself in a small bathroom and, as he surveyed the room, he noticed a small window that was located on the side wall of the house.

'Perfect.'

It was just big enough for him to crawl through so he cautiously removed the screen, opened the window and glanced along the exterior wall, looking for any sign of a motion detector. But he didn't see anything so he carefully climbed through the window, jumped to the ground, and noiselessly walked to the back corner of the house. He looked around the side of the house and was pleased to see Robin and Andy still sitting on the deck.

Now he just had to get their attention.

He stepped away from the house and into the dim luminescence that the patio lights cast across the backyard.

"Hi Guys. Fancy meetin' you here."

Robin and Andy looked up. In a flash they were both on their feet, running down the deck toward him. But Dean had disappeared around the side of the house.

Robin and Andy ran to the corner of the house. They stopped and stared into the side yard. No one was there. They couldn't see him anywhere. He must have run to the front of the house. Robin hit Andy on the shoulder and told him to go back around the house and approach from the other side so they could cut him off from either direction.

Andy spun around and raced through the backyard, following Robin's instructions without question. Robin slowly inched along the side of the house, keeping a vigilant lookout for Dean. But nothing moved in the darkness and the night was quiet. As his apprehension diminished, Robin's confidence returned and he sprinted toward the front of the house, believing that to be where Dean had run.

But as Robin passed a medium-sized lilac bush, Dean emerged from the shadows and stood directly in front of him with a wicked smirk spread on his face.

"Hey Leavey. 'Bout fucking time you came out to play."

Robin took a couple of steps backward. This hadn't been the plan. Dean wasn't supposed to catch them off guard. And he certainly wasn't supposed to corner him all alone outside the house.

"What's the matter, Leavey? Don't tell me you weren't expecting me?" taunted Dean menacingly as he steadily advanced toward him. "Because you look like you've just seen a ghost."

"Go fuck yourself, Winchester," responded Robin defiantly as he retreating slowly, looking for a way to escape. But it was more than obvious that his defiance was only an act. He was scared shitless.

"No," retorted Dean. "Fuckin' myself is all that much fun. But I'll tell you what would be fun." He paused to let the stark reality of the situation sink in as he continued his unwavering progression toward Robin. "Tearing you apart…piece…by piece. Now…that would be fun."

Robin turned to run but Dean grabbed ahold of his shirt collar. Dean rotated him around and shoved him against the house. He thrust his forearm into Robin's neck, effectively pinning him in place.

Dean loomed dangerously close to Robin's face as he spoke through gritted teeth. "This," he said as he slammed his fist into Robin's torso, "Is for thinking you could use Sam to get back at me."

The force of the blow caused Robin to lurch forward, but he was held in place by Dean's arm.

"And this," added Dean, striking Robin violently in the ribcage, "Is for forgetting to tell your brother to back off."

Robin contorted sideways as a result of the blows to his body. Dean lifted his arm and let him fall to the ground. Robin attempted to scramble away, but Dean buried his foot in the small of his back. As he ground his foot heavily into Robin's back, he menaced, "Get up you little weasel. I'm not done with you yet."

But Robin only tried harder to scramble away. Dean placed his foot on Robin's side and pushed him over. As Robin lay face-up on the ground, Dean straddled him. He seized his shirt collar once again and yanked him off the ground. Robin grabbed hold of Dean's wrists as he stood precariously in front of him on wobbly feet.

Dean pulled him closer and spat angrily in his face, "What's the matter, Leavey? Too scared to fight back?"

Robin's eyes were bulging and his carotid artery pulsed rapidly in his neck. Dean almost felt sorry for him. It just wasn't right to beat up someone who couldn't – or wouldn't - defend himself. And Robin had shown his true colors – yellow. Lily-livered yellow. All the way through. It was almost enough to make Dean back down.

Except for one thing. His little army of thugs that was just waiting to do his bidding. And that little army was holding Sammy hostage. So Dean shoved his empathy for Robin into the deepest pocket of his soul, where, hopefully, it would get lost amongst all the other terrible secrets he kept hidden there.

Dean heard a noise behind him. He spun around just in time to see Andy lunge forward to tackle him. Dean jerked sideways, pulling Robin over with him. Andy flew past them, almost slamming into the house. He quickly regained his footing and once again advanced toward Dean. Dean twisted Robin around and secured him in a headlock. Then he cautiously walked backwards to lure Andy out of the shadows. As he walked further into the yard, Dean was careful to keep Robin positioned directly between himself and Andy.

The arrival of his best friend bolstered Robin's confidence. He seized Dean's arm with both hands, locked his legs in place and quickly leaned forward, trying to throw Dean over his shoulder.

Only this tactic had been tried on Dean a million times before and he immediately recognized what Robin was doing. He released his hold on Robin's neck, causing Robin to lurch downward. Dean planted his knee in the middle of Robin's ass and pushed him towards Andy. He landed in an unceremonious heap at Andy's feet.

Dean took a few more steps backward and readied himself for the inevitable attack. But he just couldn't resist further antagonizing Andy.

"Nice of you to join us, Warner."

Andy dashed around Robin and threw himself at Dean. Dean easily stepped out of the way, grabbing Andy's arm as he dove past. Andy jerked to a halt and turned toward Dean, only to find himself on the receiving end of a powerful uppercut to his jaw. Andy reeled backwards and, from the corner of his eye, Dean saw Robin coming up behind him. He quickly threw his elbow backwards, whacking Robin squarely in the chest. Without turning around, he hooked his leg around Robin's and knocked him to the ground.

Andy was once again progressing toward him, his fists raised to shoulder level. He lashed out with his right hand, aiming at Dean's head. Dean blocked the punch with his left arm, swinging it upwards and knocking Andy's arm out of the way. The movement exposed Andy's face and Dean carried through with a right hook, delivering a commanding blow to his opponent's cheek.

Andy's head jerked violently sideways. But he didn't lose his focus. He swung his right fist again, barely missing Dean's head. Dean countered with a swift left jab aimed at the side of Andy's head. Andy lurched backwards and Dean's punch only connected with thin air.

Having missed his target,the momentum of his body lunging sideways pushed him off-balance.Dean suddenly felt his head begin to spin. Everything became blurry. He shook his head and blinked. But he couldn't clear his head. He squinted his eyes, trying to maintain a proper fix on his adversaries. But he could feel his body weakening. His arms became too heavy to hold up. His legs felt like dead weights, anchoring him to the ground.

As the realization of what was happening dawned on him, Dean felt a sharp blow hit him sharply in the temple. He crumbled to the ground and succumbed to the darkness.