Bloodlines
Chapter 2
Sam was back at the computer in Hilly's office an hour later. He was going through emails hoping someone had gotten back to him. Not much luck so far. The tantalizing smell of grilling steak was wafting through the window. He was starving. He closed his computer and walked out in the backyard. The evening was warm, but pleasant. Arizona hadn't heated up to its summer furnace temperatures.
"Just in time, Sammy. The steaks are just about done, and I think the table's set." Dean grinned at him and handed him a beer. "You managed to miss all the hard work."
"My plan all along," Sam said sitting in the chair by the grill. He stretched his legs out, watching Dean prod the steaks. "This sure beats where we usually stay," he said, leaving an opening for Dean to tell him what was going on.
He couldn't fool Dean with that tactic. "Sure is, even though I am expected to cook." He threw the steaks on a plate and headed into the house, Sam followed him.
They sat down at the table and Hilly pulled the bottle of champagne out of the 'fridge. She poured them each a glass. "Dean you want to do the honors?"
Dean lifted his glass, "Family and friends." Hilly raised her glass. "Family and friends," Hilly said. Sam chimed in and they all drank. Dean drained his in one gulp and reached for the bottle. Hilly laughed. "Most people don't drink this stuff like that."
"Have to get my fair share," Dean said.
"Sure, fair. I buy it, you drink it."
"If it was the other way around it wouldn't be nearly this good," Dean said.
"So true."
Sam looked at the two of them, sitting comfortably at the table. He couldn't take it anymore. "So, how did you two meet?" He tried to sound casual, just barely interested.
Hilly laughed at him. "He's almost as subtle as you are."
"Taught him everything I know."
"Poor thing," Hilly turned to Sam. "It was awhile ago. I had just started at the paper and there were these rumors that the old hotel downtown was haunted. Well, being an alt newsweekly they decided someone should cover it. That someone being the newest member of the staff. The night after I started working on the story someone was killed in the hotel. The police had no clues, I had a great story started and in walks this guy." She pointed at Dean. "I was poking around the hotel, trying to find something out and he turns up and flashes a badge in my face. It says KCI, and he says he's the Kingman City Inspector or something, except the bottom of the badge says 'Kellogg's Crisp Inspector'."
"Most people don't look that close," Dean said defensively.
"Yeah, I think you said that then, too. So, he tries another tactic, claims he's undercover for some government agency and then I think a reporter for the Arizona Republic and then something else."
"She didn't believe me for some reason."
"I have more than two brain cells," she said with a smile. "We kind of started working together and one thing led to another. Stop making lewd faces, Dean. We figured it out, Dean did the spirit in, the owner of the hotel—Pete—pledged undying gratitude and free meals for life and after one last night he rides off into the sunset on his trusty steed."
Sam looked from Dean to Hilly, there was more he knew it. "And?"
"He came back through town a few months later. I had some leave coming and I came up with the idea for that series in there—the demon hunter one—and the paper paid for a little trip."
"Yep, nice hotels, good food, all paid for by someone else."
"Like you ever pay for anything," she said with a snort.
"I occasionally pay with money." Dean smirked, "Rarely, but I have been know to pull out money."
"Unlikely," she said.
The rest of the meal was companionable. Sam was surprised when Dean shared some of their latest hunts. After awhile he relaxed and was laughing and swapping stories, too. He thought it might have something to do with the mixture of champagne, beer and tequila. Sam was glad to see Dean relax, he knew his brother hadn't really had a chance to relax very often lately.
When dinner was over, they all moved into the living room. Dean grabbed everyone a beer and they sat on the floor, continuing the conversation they had been having.
"So you let her go hunting with you?"
"Not really hunting, we went to a few ghost towns and stuff and she wrote about them."
"We stopped by Stanford, too," Hilly said. Dean shot her a sharp look.
"You did not," Sam said.
"We so did, dude. Took pictures to prove it. You were on some stupid break, so you weren't there," Dean said
"No way."
"Yep."
"I can prove it," Hilly said getting to her feet.
"Crap, now you've done it. Here comes the scrapbook. I'm salting and burning that thing next time."
"Ha ha," Hilly said sitting back down. She had a large scrapbook in her hands.
"Makes me gag every time you bring it out," Dean said. "I mean just look at it." Dean held it up, it was covered with frills and flowers and glitter. Dean sighed, "Dude, she thinks that's cute."
She laughed at him and opened the book. Sam noticed that she was very careful to skip the first ten or so pages. "Here." Sam looked down. There was Dean, a much younger Dean, smiling in front of Sam's dorm. "We took the picture to prove we were there. We were planning on stopping by again." The three of them sat together going through the book. For all his protests Dean seemed to be enjoying himself.
The alcohol and lack a sleep caught up with Sam about 9:30. He got unsteadily to his feet and headed towards the bedroom. He could hear Hilly and Dean laughing as he went to sleep.
The bedside clock said 3:15 when Sam woke up. The house was quiet. He got up, an idea had come to him in his sleep that he wanted to check out. He looked over at the other bed, he wasn't surprised to find it empty. The door to Hilly's bedroom was closed. Sam walked into the office and turned his computer on, then headed to the kitchen in search of a drink. The living room light was on. Dean was sitting on the couch looking at something.
"Hey," Sam said.
"Hey," Dean said. Sam saw him scrub a hand across his face. Sam stepped into the kitchen to give his brother a minute and grabbed a couple of sodas—he didn't think beer was a good idea. He walked back into the living room and dropped down beside Dean. He ignored the tear tracks on his brother's face. Dean still had the scrapbook.
"It's going to be ok, Dean." Sam said. "We'll figure this out."
"We always do."
"Yeah," Sam paused, he was about to wander out onto very unstable ground, but he wanted Dean to know. "Mary's going to come through this fine."
"How can you know that Sam? She's just a little kid."
Sam took a deep breath—don't let me screw this up, "Because she's a Winchester, Dean."
His brother looked up at him. "What?" He barely whispered.
"I'm right, aren't I? I saw it this afternoon." This was harder than he thought it would be. "Can you, will you, tell me about it?"
Dean noticed Sam's carefully chosen words. "The first part is pretty much how she told it. It was the second trip where it changes. I called her when I came back through town. She told me she had been unsure whether or not to call." He took a breath. "She hadn't told anyone who I was, you see. She told them she knew, but wouldn't give up my name. The adoption lawyers had been pressuring her, so when I called she just let it all out, she said she wasn't going to tell me even then, but I think it had been a bad day."
"Even then she wasn't going to tell you?"
"Some kind of honor, I think. She didn't want me to feel bad about it. She didn't. I told her I would stay until it was over, you know. It was only a couple of weeks at that point. I hung around a little longer. About a week after, Dad called and said he wanted me to go on this hunt he couldn't make, I didn't want to leave Hilly yet. It was kind of rough on both of us, so I took her along. Somewhere she came up with the idea for the series and convinced the paper to pay for it. We were together for about two months."
"Did you love her?"
Dean ran a hand through his hair. "Yes and no. Not romance, we had a good time together. The experience made us close, you know."
Dean flipped the scrapbook open. Sam looked down at the page Dean had opened to, Dean and Hilly smiling, obviously in a hospital. His brother was holding the baby. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"It's funny, but it's like this part of my life that only exists for three or four days a year, when I stop by. I know Hilly—and Mary—are out there, I just can't dwell on it."
"But Dean, why didn't you tell me?" Sam asked again. Silence. Dean had his head in his hands. "You thought I wouldn't understand."
Dean looked at him, "Most people don't, Sammy. They think you are an ogre for giving up your kid."
"Did Dad know?"
"He was one of the people who thought I was an ogre," Dean paused, Sam could hear the catch in his brother's voice. "It was coming up on her first birthday and I told Dad I wanted to swing through Kingman. Dad wanted to go on this hunt, but Hilly had called and said we—she and I—had been invited to the birthday party and, I kind of wanted to see Hilly again, and so I told Dad. It was a mistake."
"He didn't understand?"
"He was furious. He couldn't believe I hadn't told him, he couldn't believe I would let 'one of us' be raised by someone else. He said we couldn't protect her if she wasn't with us. It went on and on. I got a little upset. Actually I was pissed as hell. I didn't expect him to react that way" Dean was looking at the picture again.
"You did what was best, what was right, Dean."
Dean looked up at him. "You think so?" Unsure.
It broke Sam's heart to see his brother like this, thinking somehow Sam wouldn't understand, wouldn't back him up. "Yes. You wanted her to be safe, to have a normal life, the life we didn't get. Even if you had married Hilly, Mary's life wouldn't have been safe. It would have been our life, Dad and you and Hilly with a baby on the hunt. No, Dean, you gave her the greatest gift you could. You gave her a normal, happy, safe life." Dean's eyes were very bright.
"I did ask her, you know."
"To marry you?"
"Yep. She laughed at me," Dean smiled. "Nicely, but definitely laughed at me. She said people like us don't mix well over the long term in that kind of relationship. She was right, but I wanted to offer, to be a little…"
"Honorable? Noble?"
"Those were her words too, she called me Galahad for awhile. Actually two freaking months. Dude, it nearly drove me nuts." Dean laughed a little tremulously. "I come back, if I can, once a year for her birthday. Mary doesn't know who I am, of course, that's for later. When she's older." He paused again. "We named her. Hilly said she wanted to pick a first name, I got middle. Hilly's mother's name was Mary. She liked it was mom's name, too. I chose Samantha." He smiled at Sam.
"Thanks." Sam nudged him with his shoulder. "But Dean…"
"I wanted to tell you Sam, right when it happened. I tried to call you…"
"I didn't answer, did I?"
"Nope."
"It's why you came by Stanford."
"Yep. You weren't there. Hilly was disappointed, she wanted to meet you," Dean said. Sam could hear, unspoken, that his brother had been disappointed, too. "I thought you two would like each other. She's actually like you in a lot of ways. She's educated, tough, funny," Dean grinned maliciously at Sam. "She has really girly tendencies and she always wants to either talk or hug. She's even tried holding my hand!"
"Jerk."
"Bitch."
They sat together quietly for a minute. Dean leaned against Sam a little. "I almost told you after I was electrocuted. I'd called her to let her know what had happened…"
"You called her from the hospital?"
"Yep. I thought she deserved to know. She said she was coming out. I told her no, she said yes and it got a bit loud. She hung up on me. I was worried that she would show up at the hospital and have a little unplanned surprise party for you. I called her again from the motel room after you went to sleep to tell her you were taking me to a specialist," He paused and laughed.
"What?"
"The bitch was already halfway across New Mexico! She agreed to turn around and wait and see what the specialist said, but I kept an eye out for her the whole time!" He was laughing, the tension dissipating.
"It would have been a bit of a surprise."
"I'm actually surprised she has let you off this easily. She has been bugging me to tell you for years. Did you tell him Dean, did you tell him Dean, did you tell him Dean. Drives me nuts, every time she calls."
"Every time, dude?" Sam said with a raise of the eyebrows.
"We talk now and then," Dean said with a shrug. "She helps, sometimes, when I can't talk with you."
"Can't or won't?"
"Cute. Very cute, Sammy." Dean yawned and wiped his eyes. "I think the chick flick is about over. Can't keep my eyes open anymore." Sam sensed his brother's need to have the conversation over, he knew it had taken a lot for his brother to confess.
"Yeah, I was going to do some research, but I think I'll just sit here a minute, then crash, too. I can't really remember what I was going to do, anyway."
Dean smiled in understanding. "Thanks, Sammy."
Sam smiled at him and watched as he disappeared down the dark hall.
TBC
