Caught Between A Rock And A Hard Place.
Summary. . . . . . . After John refuses a hunt he has been asked to do, a fellow hunter takes drastic measures to ensure his participation.
Disclaimer. . . . . . Still only playing in Kripkies sandbox.
A.N. . . . . . . Sorry about the wait, as always I hope the content makes up for it, and that you enjoy the read. Thanks to Darksupernatural for going over this for me, and reassuring a nervous Peanut that it was okay.
"John?"
John wasn't sure what first roused him, but he came back to awareness to an overload of senses. He could feel the aches and pains his body was screaming out at him; could feel the slow yet steady tickle of something wet trailing down his face. He could smell the gunpowder, and dust, and burning that permeated the air making breathing hard to do. He could hear the creak of boards groaning as their supports were devoured by the fire that John could also hear burning away. Yet he was almost sure that there was something else, that he was missing something. There! There it was again. A tapping on his face, a tapping that was becoming urgent.
"John? John? Come on man!"
John startled and groaned as he heard his voice being called. Fervently he tried to will his eyes to open, but found no matter how hard he tried they were unwilling to do so. He lifted heavy limbs in an effort to clear away what was preventing him from doing so, rubbing tiredly at the grime and blood caught in his sockets when he finally got his hands to cooperate; all the while listening to the steady stream of encouragement from the man beside him. Something about the tone of the voice speaking to him setting his nerves on edge.
Finally, with great effort he managed to force one eye open halfway, his stomach rolling in protest as images blurred and danced before him. Clamping his lid tightly back shut, John took deep breaths in an effort to ease his stomach, groaning again as new agony spiked from his back, before he tried again to open his eyes this time succeeding in opening both. He waited for the blurriness to abate and the room to stop spinning, not trusting to move or utter a word until they did so. When both had passed he slowly turned his head and looked at the other person in the room for the first time.
"Joshua?"
"Well it's about time. Come on man we need to go, there's cops and stuff on the way."
"Joshua? What are you doing here? Where am I? Why am I on the floor? What's burning? Why do I feel funny?"
Joshua had feared this as soon as he had spotted the head wound, had feared the confusion and the questions. He wanted to take time and ease john away, to answer his questions, to reassure him, but their time was limited they had to get moving or risk having to explain everything to the police.
"John, I'll explain later. Right now we gotta blow. Do you think you can stand?"
John huffed out a breath at Joshua's question, stubbornly offering out his hand for a boost at the same time. One slight raise though had him regretting his stubbornness as pain radiated and rippled throughout his back, bringing tears to the normally toughened hunters eyes and having him panting in exhaustion.
"Just leave me here to rest a while, come get me later, I'll be okay." He ground out through gritted teeth, allowing his eyes to close once more and unconsciousness begin to take hold.
"I can't do that soldier!" Joshua shouted out. "Get your ass off that floor and lets move it. Now!" Reaching out he pulled the still complaining John to his feet, stopping for a few seconds, once he had, to allow him to get his bearings and quell the sloshing in his stomach before dragging him as quickly as his loose limbs would carry him out the back door.
John paused as his feet touched the grassy lawn, a niggling feeling like an itch he couldn't scratch teasing the back of his mind. "Joshua, why am I here?" He asked knowing instinctively he was missing something again.
"Not now John, when we're safely away I'll fill you in."
But the feeling had taken hold now, clearing a path through the cotton wool that seemed to envelope his mind. Refusing to take another step, John pushed himself to remember, the sounds and smells of waking up letting themselves be known again, forcing a memory to resurface."Somebody tried to kill me! But why Josh?"
Hearing the sounds of the approaching fire trucks, Joshua tried again to get John to move. All his words, all his efforts though were in vain as John's famous stubborn streak surfaced and he planted his feet down in defiance.
"Why can't I remember? Someone tried to kill me, why can't I remember why?" He rubbed at the gash on his head, relishing the pain as it cleared yet more of the confusion blocking his mind away. Joshua knew the moment John remembered, watched as his features contorted from muddled to maddened. "Sammy!" Turning worried yet furious eyes Joshua's way he asked. "Where's Sammy? Is he still in there? I gotta get to him." He took faltering steps back the way he had been dragged, desperate now to get back inside and rescue his baby. Joshua though had other ideas, his arm encircling John's and stopping him. "Dammit Josh let me go, Sammy's in there!"
"No he's not John! And neither is Caleb."
"He's not? How do you know? Do you have my son? Where's Sammy? Sammy?" John shouted out his son's name, going to do so again only for Joshua's hand to clamp down like a vice over his mouth.
"For God's sake John, do you really want to get caught? How will that help Sam? I don't have Sam but I know he's not in there." He paused for a minute before adding ominously. "Think about it John, if Evan wanted you dead, he wouldn't mess around, you would be! This has turned into a game for him now, with Sam the dangled carrot."
"I have to get my son back! I promised Dean I would."
"And we will John, but we need to leave now!" John could hear the sirens now, taking one last look at the house he pushed off the door frame and stumbled after the other hunter.
Once back at Joshua's truck John asked. "Why are you here? How did you know Sam and Caleb weren't there?"
"Caleb told me where he was going like he always does when we're not hunting together. I got worried when he missed check in time and didn't answer his phone, so I came out here to check things out, never have trusted Evan, scum of the earth if you ask me. I saw Evan leaving earlier so I took a look inside, the house was clear but there were still some of his thing there, so I waited for him to return so I could follow him again. I was doing just that when I spotted the Impala at the Denny's and turned back. I turned into the street as the house went boom, figured you'd be inside so came to check."
"Why didn't you stay with Evan? Why didn't you get my boy back? I would have been okay!"
"Yeah, okay and in jail!"
"But Sam would have been safe. That's all that matters!"
"Safe and fatherless. Do you think he'd want that? Anyway once I've checked you over and your up to it, we'll go and get him and Caleb, together."
"And how do you suppose we do that? We have no idea where they are!"
"I have Evan's license plate number." At John's look that spoke of stupidity on Joshua's part, the younger hunter added. "I've also planted a tracking device on it."
John smiled for the first time then, maybe this was the stroke of luck he had been needing. Looking at Joshua h spoke. "Forget the checking, let's go get my boy."
Caleb paced the small basement in an effort to clear away the cobwebs from his still befuddled mind, and to chase away the exhaustion that threatened to take him down. He glanced over at Sam, the small child sleeping peacefully for now curled up as small as possible on his side, his thumb tucked securely in his mouth seeking comfort, something Caleb had not seen him do for the longest time. Turning his eyes away again, he went over the plan he had formulated, a plan he knew that had holes in it the size of the Grand Canyon, but it was the best he could come up with.
He stopped pacing as he heard Evan's footsteps on the floorboards above his head. Rushing over to Sam, Caleb woke him up and waited for him to clear his sleepy eyes before whispering. "Remember what you have to do Sam? No matter what you see or hear, you run as fast as you can and you don't look back. Find a phone and do as I told you." As Sam's eyes watered at the thought of leaving Caleb, the older man added. "You want to see Dean again don't ya. Then run Sam. Now pretend like your asleep again and wait for me to yell, got it?"
Caleb marvelled at the bravery of the youngster as Sam settled on the cot once more, managing to curb his sobs into minute tremors that to the unknowing eye were barely visible. He stroked Sam's curls and took one last look at the boy before turning back to the door and waiting. So consumed in his plan now, he didn't notice Sam drift off to sleep once again, didn't notice him begin to shift and squirm, didn't hear the murmured cries above the sound of Evan's approach.
He stood protectively in front of Sam as Evan pushed the door open, he feet planted and his shoulders squared ready to make his move, only to stop as Sam chose that moment to sit bolt upright, screaming, his eyes open yet unseeing. Caleb could only watch as recognition registered in Evan's eyes.
"You gotta be kidding me! The mighty John Winchester's son is a God damn freak? He had a nightmare when I first took him, but I didn't pay any attention to it." He raised his gun and pointed it Sam's way. "Maybe I should have done. This has turned out to be an even easier hunt then than I thought."
Caleb struck as Evan's finger twitched on the trigger. The stillness of the air being broken by the sound of a gunshot.
Quickly followed by another.
A.N. . . . . . . Thanks for reading, catch you soon, Peanut x
