Stopping had never been part of the action plan. Steal the jeep, get clear of the motel, drive to the sanctuary some strange woman in South Dakota might provide and wait out whatever demonic joke was in play this time? Sure. Easy. But stopping seemed an unnecessary risk and it made Sam nervous. Hell, if he was honest with himself, it scared the crap out of him. So many unseen factors had thrown spanners into the works over the past 24 hours and he was starting to really worry.

He was a worrier anyhow. Always had been. Ever since he had been old enough to string a sentence together, it had been one anxious question after another. His father had grown tired of his second guessing - when he had been around long enough to grow frustrated with it - and Dean had been left the task of reassuring his analytical younger brother. And Dean's strategies had adapted over time; quickly learning that 'don't worry' would never reassure Sam, he found alternative ways to offer a similar platitude. Until Sam had found the journal and learned the truth. Then no end of simple assurances would ever be enough - and more truth, albeit relayed as gently as possible, had been the only way to silence Sam's worries, even though Dean knew that they also generated many more.

Of late, Dean used a brief word or a quick warning glare to silence his brother's active mind and Sam had been happy to trust in his older brother's experience. But ever since trading his soul to save Sam, even his protective older brother seemed infuriated with his latest worries. Until Sam had finally cracked and poured out his heart. No more frustration with Dean's bravado, no more angry shouting at a brother who seemed determined to face his fate alone, he had laid all his cards on the table and begged him to just be the older brother he had always looked up to. And he had broken through the barrier Dean had erected between them since the Devil's Gate had opened.

Sam stroked his fingers over the soft beige leather of the steering wheel and let his thoughts rest on that warm afternoon when he had been shown how to dismantle and reassemble the Impala's engine. His hands had trembled throughout the whole procedure; partly from his nervousness with so much as touching his brother's pride and joy but also from the emotions he could barely keep at bay. There they were, two brothers sharing a beer and fixing the car. It was a few hours of peaceful perfection and Sam clung to it like a lifeline.

Clearing his throat and blinking away tears, Sam sat up straight and peered around into the dark landscape. Glancing into the rear of the jeep, he saw Morgan was still sound asleep and curled around her threadbare rabbit. Frowning in concern, Sam reached into his jacket and sought his cellphone. Seeing the lack of signal, he groaned in dismay but then remembered Lena's idea and quickly grabbed the radio handset that was clipped to the dash.

"Dean? Bobby? You there?"

Static was the only reply.

"Guys? Dean? Come on. You okay?" Sam urged, closing his eyes as he released the transmit button and listened for a response.

"You're supposed to say 'over', sasquatch. Over."

"Dean!" Sam sighed in relief and a wide smile lightened his face. "How you doin', man? You got the car? You on the way?" He released the button and waited, then suddenly groaning and lifting the handset quickly back up to his mouth. "Over."

"Mission accomplished. We're en route to Auntie Em's. Where you at? Over."

"Just crossed the border. Not far from Em's, I think." Sam sighed, "But we keep having to make pee stops. Over."

"Haha! You got a weak bladder there, Sammy? Over."

"No!" Sam retorted indignantly, "It's Lena. Over."

"Aw, give her a break, dude. She's pregnant! Geez! So much for you being the more sensitive one." Dean laughed merrily, "Over."

Sam glared in annoyance at the radio and shook his head. "Whatever. Did you run into any trouble? Over."

"Nah."There was a pause. "Piece of cake."

Sam heard something more in his brother's voice and dwelled on it for a moment, unsure if this was one of those times when Dean was holding something back for Sam's benefit. Movement amid the bushes beside him then made Sam jump a little and he spun to see Lena grinning an apology as she headed back to the jeep. "I guess we'll see you at Em's."

"Yup. Hey, Sammy, what's your handle?"

"My what?" Sam frowned, aware of Lena opening the wide tailgate door and reaching inside the trunk area of the big vehicle.

"Your handle."

"Your handle." Lena called out from the rear of the jeep. "You know, your call-sign."

"Oh." Sam sighed and shook his head, lifting the radio to his mouth. "Just call me Sam, Dean."

"Aw, come on, Sammy! It'll make it more fun. I'll be Echo 7."

"What?" Sam groaned in dismay and then heard Lena chuckling as she closed the trunk door and hurried round to the passenger side.

Lena opened the door and leaned inside, reaching out her hand towards Sam. She grinned up at him as she took the radio and pulled it closer. "Echo 3 to Echo 7. Han, old buddy, d'you read me?"

"Yay! Haha! Loud and clear, kid!" Dean laughed in delight over the radio, "So, we got ourselves another geek, huh?"

Sam frowned in confusion and shrugged his shoulders, at a loss as to what they were talking about.

Lena chuckled merrily, "Absolutely. And Empire is without a doubt my favorite."

"With all this damned snow, it seemed appropriate." Dean's voice was smiling happily, "Besides it being the best, as you say. How you doing?"

"We're fine." Lena offered, her smile fading a little as she glanced towards her daughter. "How about you and the old man?"

Sam could imagine Bobby's reaction and smiled in delight.

"Haha! Wrinkly old Kenobi or small green Jedi Master. I can't decide."

Lena laughed and handed the radio back to Sam, moving back to check on her daughter.

"Call me a wookie and I'll kick your ass."Sam offered lightly.

"Yay, Sammy! Now you're getting it!"

"Yeah. Well, we'd best be making a move now."

"Roger that. We'll meet you at Echo Base."

Sam shook his head and laughed gently. "Yeah, whatever. Be safe. Or should I say 'may the force be with you'?"

"Yeah! Hahaha! You, too, man! Over and out."

Sam laughed gently and placed the handset back into it's cradle. Turning in his seat, he watched Lena checking on Morgan and his smile faded. "How's she doing?"

Lena shrugged and gave a weary sigh. Throwing a blanket over Morgan, she leaned down to place a kiss on her cheek and then retreated from the car. She walked back to the front passenger door and clambered up inside beside Sam.

Watching her in concern for a moment, Sam then took a deep breath and started up the engine. "Oh. I figured out to work the Sat Nav." He offered, flipping up the small plasma screen that was nestled in the top of the dash.

"Oh?" Lena leaned closer to look at the map that was displayed.

"Yeah. This car is so awesome." Sam enthused, easing the Land Rover back out onto the dark road.

Lena gave a small nod of agreement and scrolled through the directions Sam had found. "But I know a short-cut." She sat back up straight and peered out into the night. "It's not on the map but I know it well. It'll be quicker and we need to get Morgan to Em's as fast as we can."

"Oh. Yeah. Okay."

Hearing the dismay in his voice and eager to lighten the mood, Lena smiled up at him. "So. You're not a fan?"

Sam glanced at her and frowned slightly. "Oh. Star Wars? I've seen it." He shrugged, "It's cool."

"But Dean's more the movie geek, huh?"

"Yeah." Sam smiled thinly, "I always had my nose in some book or other."

"Books are cool. What d'you read?"

Sam gave a small laugh and another shrug. "You know … stuff."

"Ah." Lena nodded, "Weird stuff."

"Helpful stuff." Sam corrected merrily, glancing quickly at her. "But mostly weird, yeah."

"Hence you knew all that Latin and the crazy symbols you drew."

"Yeah."

Lena considered this for a moment and then smiled up at him. "The brains of the outfit, huh?"

Sam laughed in delight and shook his head quickly. "But don't ever let Dean hear you say that!"

"Sure." Lena chuckled, "And this is really what you do? Chase all this crazy stuff and rescue people?"

"Mostly."

"Don't you ever get tired of it? I mean, don't you want to settle down some day?" Lena frowned, watching Sam's reaction and regretting being so inquisitive as she saw the sorrow that flashed across his features for a moment. "I'm sorry."

Silence fell around them like a heavy blanket and Lena sighed in dismay. Lost for words, she peered out into the darkness and watched the occasional tree or fence suddenly blink into view as the headlights caught their shape.

Glad to hear Dean's enjoyment of the animated conversation he had just had - most of which sounded like nonsense - Bobby was now concerned as he watched the younger man out of the corner of his eye. Looking over at him quickly, Bobby's worry grew; Dean was slouched in the seat and resting his head against the window, his chest heaving with quick breaths.

"Dean?" Bobby reached out and nudged Dean's arm, a little more roughly than he had intended.

"Wha - ?" Dean was startled awake and sat quickly upright, his eyes darting around the cab in fright.

"Hey, easy." Bobby soothed, patting Dean's shoulder lightly. "Just wanted to make sure you're okay."

Dean frowned at Bobby in momentary confusion and then suddenly groaned, flopping back against the seat and wincing at the movement. "Jeez … give me a heart attack, why don't you."

"Sorry."

Yawning wearily, Dean adjusted his position in the seat and cursed under his breath. Reaching down towards his hastily duct-tape-bound thigh, he rested his hand there for a moment and hung his head.

"Y'okay?"

"No."

Bobby was stunned by the honesty in Dean's quiet reply and his throat tightened.

Taking a deep breath and looking up through the windshield, Dean peered out at the empty interstate. "Where are we?"

"Almost at the border." Bobby replied, "Not far now."

"Good." Dean nodded, "Man, I'm thirsty!"

"There's water in the duffel." Bobby offered quickly, pointing to the bag at Dean's feet.

Carefully leaning forward, his face tight with pain, Dean opened the bag and reached inside. "Holy water?" He enquired, holding up the flask.

"It's still water." Bobby shrugged.

Dean smiled and unscrewed the lid to take a long gulp. He licked his lips and rested the flask on the seat beside him. "Better save some in case we need it, huh?"

"We can make more." Bobby shrugged.

Dean nodded and took a few more mouthfuls before then closing the flask. He rested back and shuddered a little. "You mind the heating up a little?"

"Sure." Bobby agreed, forcing a smile as he saw the sweat that glistened on Dean's face and his chest began to ache with increasing worry.

Reaching towards the controls and adjusting the temperature, Dean suddenly smiled as a familiar song started playing on the local radio station that had been quietly rumbling in the background. He turned up the volume and relaxed back, smiling fondly.

"Mmm." Bobby mumbled in approval. "I can remember when this was first released. Man, that was a good summer." He glanced at Dean, expecting a cheeky remark about his age and saw that Dean was nodding off to sleep once more.

Dean let the gentle melody fill his thoughts and closed his eyes. He then frowned as static interference interrupted the song and he sighed in annoyance. Opening his eyes and turning to Bobby, he then felt the truck shudder beneath them.

"What the - ?" Bobby stared at the console dials before him as the lights flickered and the engine spluttered ominously. Then, as quickly as it had started, the interference passed and the electrics returned to normal.

Dean watched Bobby glance warily at him and his heart was thudding against the base of his throat. "Bobby? Please tell me that didn't just happen."

Bobby looked back out at the road with equal dread and tightened his grip on the steering wheel. "Oh, crap …"

- tbc -