Chapter 2
Sam cursed under his breath. He thought he'd gotten a bigger head start than this…
His brother stomped toward him, his face etched with fury.
"Dean…," Sam began, but he was cut off when his brother grabbed him by the jacket and slammed him back into the wall. The air was painfully knocked from his lungs.
"Lucifer?!" Dean seethed, eyes flashing dangerously. "Freaking Lucifer?! THAT'S YOUR PLAN?!"
"Dean, listen!" Sam shouted, but his brother wasn't having any of it. He was pinning him to the wall with inhuman strength.
"You lie to me, banish Cas, sneak out of the bunker, steal my car…"
"I know, and I'm sorry," Sam insisted, then frowned. "How did you even find me?"
"You've been acting squirrely ever since Metatron let slip the Prince of Dickless over here…"
"That hurts my feelings, Dean," Lucifer remarked innocently.
"…could remove the Mark. And then after weeks of coming up with jack, suddenly I find your little angel flusher glyph, Cas is blown to God knows where, and you're just gone. I put two and two together." Dean jerked his head at Crowley, who waited at the foot of the stairs, watching everything intently. "Called in a favor for a lift."
"Look, I'm sorry about Cas," Sam pressed, truly meaning it. "But if I hadn't sent him away, he could have warned you and beaten me here…"
"Heaven's closed, Sam!" Dean yelled. "You had no idea where he could've ended up!"
"This is the only way…"
"This is not an option!"
"The Mark is eating you alive, Dean!" Sam snapped, trying to shove his brother off of him. "You think I don't notice the puking up blood? The nightmares? How you walk around like you're about to snap at any second?"
"I'm handling it!"
"YOU'RE DYING!" Sam roared, his voice cracking. He fought the angry tears building behind his eyes. He just wanted this to be over. He just wanted his brother to be all right.
Dean let go of him and took a step back. His anger melted, and Sam could see the pure fear hidden beneath it. This was Dean's darkest nightmare, Sam coming back to Lucifer. He knew that, and he was sorry, so sorry. But they had no other choice.
"You know I'd rather die than see you taken again," Dean said hoarsely.
Sam nodded. "I know."
"My life isn't worth letting this son of a bitch off the leash," Dean growled, shooting a glare at the fallen angel.
"I'm not gonna do anything, honest," Lucifer quipped, crossing his heart. "Swear to Daddy."
"You shut up!" Dean snapped. Lucifer raised his hands in mock surrender.
"Dean, I get it," Sam said, taking a step toward his brother. "I do. I don't want to do this, either. But you can't take anymore. I can see it. Let's just finally get rid of the Mark and we can figure the rest out later! I can't… I can't…"
But he couldn't get the words out anymore. I can't lose you.
Dean rubbed a shaky hand over his eyes. He looked tired. So tired. Something about him was crumbling away before Sam's eyes. Was it… resolve?
Dean glanced back at Crowley, who gave the smallest shake of his head. Something like understanding passed between them, but Sam didn't know what it could be about.
Sam's older brother looked back at him then, his exhaustion bone-deep. Utter defeat weighed on Dean's shoulders like a yoke.
"Fine," Dean whispered. "If this is the way it has to be…"
Sam let out a breath. He couldn't believe Dean would ever agree to let him do this. That's why he'd snuck out of the bunker in the first place…
Sam turned toward Lucifer, who leered with victory just behind the metal gate. He gathered his courage, preparing himself to say yes…
"But not you, Sammy."
Both Sam and Lucifer turned, surprised.
Dean's green eyes flashed, then he faced the darkness inside the Cage.
"MICHAEL!" Dean bellowed. "GET OUT HERE, YOU SON OF A BITCH!"