Olivia stirred as she began to wake up and smelled food. Her stomach grumbled and she slid out of bed, her throat raw and her eyes stinging. The door was ajar and she opened it slowly. Sam had his back to her as he slid the eggs onto a plate. He turned around and set it on the counter and he saw Olivia.
"Morning." He said.
Olivia nodded and walked out. She slid onto the stool and awkwardly looked down at the stone. The kiss crossed her mind and then the aftermath, she'd broken down in front of him, let him see her weakness. Sam slid a plate in front of her and took a stool next to her. He picked up a fork and started eating the eggs and toast. He glanced over at Olivia who was still looking at her plate.
"You should eat; we got a long day ahead of us." Sam said
Olivia picked up the fork automatically and began to eat.
"What's going to happen?" She asked taking a bite out of her toast.
"We're getting out of the city today." Sam said, "They're still searching the river but soon they'll be moving into the suburbs and docks. We'll leave in twenty minutes."
Olivia hadn't expected such a short amount of time, it didn't leave much room for planning.
Twenty minutes later Sam had given her his coat, disguising her shape and he jammed a baseball cap and sunglasses on. He hadn't shaved in a few days it seemed since a layer of scruff covered his jaw line. He slid his gun into his holster and Olivia knew his hand would be on it for as long as it was needed. His phone beeped and he pulled it out.
"Alright, let's go." He said taking her by the shoulder and keeping her in front of him as he walked her outside the apartment. While the inside of the apartment could belong to any moderate industrial building the outside of it was a complete wreck. The abandoned building was bare but there were gaping holes in the walls and parked in the center was a delivery truck. Two men in plaid shirts and jeans were in the front, looking like any worker, delivering for the day.
"We get in the back." Sam said moving her along. One of the men hopped out and lifted up the door in the back.
"Could have given us some warning Winchester." He muttered as Sam told Olivia to climb up.
"I didn't have much warning either." Sam said back. "And don't question me soldier." He climbed up behind Olivia and slid the door back down with a bang. There was a small click and Sam held a small flashlight in his hand. The contents of the back of the truck were cardboard boxes, all of them too small of either of them. Sam moved one of them aside and slid the metal panel to the side. There was a false space that spanned with width of the truck but wasn't very wide.
"Get in." Sam gestured to her. Olivia felt herself clam up at the thought of going into that small space with him.
"Olivia, get in." He said again impatiently. Olivia took a breath to try and calm herself, she could feel the panic rising again, two of them in such a short space of time. Sam moved forward and tilted her face up, his pupils were small in the light of the flashlight making his eyes look a very light green.
"You will be fine." He said and the way he said it made Olivia feel like she had no choice but to be fine. She climbed into the space that must have been no more than two feet across and moved as he climbed in next to her, moving the box back into place and sliding the panel closed. He reached past her to knock hard on the wall and the truck began to move.
Olivia felt the bumps as they moved and each jostle seemed to move her closer to Sam. The shadows from the flashlight moved different parts of his face in and out of sight. He reached a hand out over her shoulder and braced himself so he wouldn't crush her.
"Do they happen often?" He asked abruptly. Olivia, who had been trying hard to keep herself as far away from him as she could looked up.
"What?" She asked,
"Your anxiety, the panic attacks, do they happen often? Do you need medicine for them?"
A bump jolted Olivia so that she was almost chest to chest with him, she slid back as fast as she could but she answered,
"It depends on the day and what happens. Sometimes I'm okay, others I need to be alone and I have pills and they worked at first, but they haven't helped and my doctor said he couldn't give me anything stronger."
There was a few more moments of silence only broken by the sound of traffic around them.
"I'm sorry." Sam said his gaze somewhere above her head.
Olivia didn't answer him, she knew that he knew why she was like this and how he was partly to blame, so she refused to give him any sort of reassurance. The box felt very small and Sam seemed to take over every space, surrounding her with his frame, his smell that reminded her of the woods and rain, and his eyes that refused to meet hers. There was a long silence that only stopped when the truck stopped.
Olivia opened her mouth to speak but Sam put his hand over her mouth putting his own finger to his lips. She could hear the faint sound of people outside.
"We need to search your truck." And Olivia felt a leap of hope but there was a small pressure over her heart. She looked down and gave a small whimper through his hand when she saw the gun in his hand. If she moved, even made a sound, he would shoot and she knew that if she looked him in the eyes right now she would see the same dead look he would get in his eyes.
There was a bang as the back opened and the truck shifted as someone climbed in. Boxes were moved to the side but no one thought to check the walls.
"All clear!" Came the call a few moments later and the truck roared back to life. It was a few more seconds before Olivia felt the pressure disappear from over her heart and she gave a small sob as Sam removed his hand and stowed away the gun but then in the small space she pushed him hard against his chest.
"You didn't have to do that." She said furious
"Oh, Liv I did because I've learned I can't trust you." Sam said smirking a little. Olivia knew he was pleased that everything had gone to plan.
"Am I going to be stuck in here with you until we get North?" Olivia snapped.
"Fortunately no, we've got a drop off point." Sam said, He shined the flashlight over his watch,
"We should be there in a few minutes." He said, "So until we get there, I'm going to explain some rules." He made her look at him,
"First of all, you go nowhere without me, second you do everything I say when I say it, third don't talk to anyone and I mean anyone. I don't care if the old lady on the street is asking for directions, you keep walking with me and don't even look at her. You got it?"
Olivia could have spit in his face at that moment but the ghost of the gun over her heart made her nod her head.
"That's a good girl." He said smiling. His hand moved to her waist.
"Please, don't touch me." Olivia said.
He smirked but removed his hand. Olivia swore he could hear her heart racing, she could.
The truck stopped and Sam slid the panel back and climbed out. Olivia followed and once again she was in front of him. The door opened and the cloudy daylight hit her eyes. The men took her arms as she went down as she saw they were in an old abandoned reservoir.
"See you around soldiers." Sam said saluting the drivers. They saluted back and got in and drove away. Sam made her walk around the corner in front of him,
"There she is." He said and Olivia could tell he was smiling.
Parked by the building was a gleaming 1967 Chevy Impala. Sam opened the door as she got in.
"Hold out your hands." He said. Olivia held them out and he slapped one of her wrists in handcuffs, threaded the chain through the door handle and then cuffed her other hand.
"Just in case you get ideas." He winked and shut the door.
He got in on the other side and put the keys in the ignition. The engine purred to life.
"I'll pick the music if you don't mind." He said grinning as he pulled the impala onto the road.
xXx
Elizabeth and Dean were with a quickly assembled squad around a map of the city.
"If they made it out of the river alive, they wouldn't go far in case of injury." Dean said circling a group of buildings on one side of the bank.
"These are empty apartment buildings that we can search without a warrant. The other side is warehouses that we can't search until we have the approval from the company that owns them. That could be another hour to get a hold of them so we have to move quickly."
"Half of you will go with me, the other half of you will go with Harvelle." Elizabeth said standing up.
They began to fan out and Elizabeth tapped one soldier on the shoulder.
"What's your name?" She asked
"Lieutenant Lafitte ma'am." The soldier drawled with a deep south accent his blue eyes piercing into hers.
"Okay, you'll be my right hand for this mission."
"Yes ma'am." He said again his voice soft but respectful.
Elizabeth looked over at Dean with his group and nodded.
"Alright fall out."
xXx
They drove for a few hours; Olivia stared out the window and might have dozed for a few minutes before Sam pulled into a tiny gas station. They were in the middle of nowhere and the trees seemed to be growing denser.
Sam turned off the engine and put the gas pump in. Olivia watched him from the mirror as he leaned against the side of the car, his arms folded across his chest and his face to the sun that was shining above them. He looked calm and even a little less threatening. Olivia knew she was analyzing him again, the way she had back in prison.
He opened the door and uncuffed her.
"Don't get any ideas, I've got to go in and pay, you can use the bathroom, don't think about running."
She knew he had probably picked this place for the unlikely hood of her even being able to find a way to escape. There was only one worker in there and Sam would probably shoot him if Olivia tried to talk to him. She used the bathroom and still looked around at the windowless bathroom. There was nothing. Sam was waiting for her outside of the bathroom with a grocery bag in his hand. She nodded at the man behind the counter, trying to have him somehow see the pleading look in his eyes but he merely nodded back and they left.
Sam recuffed her in the car, his hand lingering on the inside of her wrist that fit easily in his hand.
"I got us some lunch." He said opening the bag and putting a granola bar, a bag of chips and a bottle of water on her lap. She looked down at the food, she wasn't one to dislike food especially after what she had survived on for months as a POW she just didn't have an appetite right now but Sam took it wrong.
"Sorry, it was the best they had." He said "I'll get you something better when we stop for the night."
"It's fine." Olivia said taking a swig of the water.
"Are you not going to talk to me at all?" Sam said as they got back on highway.
"Last time I checked, that was how you got into people's heads." Olivia said,
"That's also how I generally communicate with people." Sam said, "Not everything that comes out of my mouth is to hurt something."
Olivia turned her head back to the window, the chains of her handcuffs rattling against the door.
"Alright then." Sam said turning the radio on.
Olivia stubbornly refused to talk to him until the sun began setting and he pulled into a motel.
"Alright wait here." Sam said, getting out.
In a few minutes, he was back and he unlocked the door to their room. It was small, dingy and smelled strongly of smoke and bleach. There was only one bed. Olivia noticed and looked at Sam who gave a shrug, but she could see he was fighting a smile.
"Stay on your side." She snapped.
"Fine." He said and tossed his bag on the bed. He toed his shoes off and sat down with a sigh.
"If you behave I won't handcuff you for now." He said. Olivia looked down at her wrists, feelings the ghosts of the cuffs. She nodded and Sam reached for the phone.
"How do you feel about pizza?"
Later, after the pizza was eaten and the TV was showing some old sitcom that had Sam watching and Olivia half watching, half dozing. Sam laughed at some joke and it suddenly occurred to Olivia how often did he get to watch TV growing up?
"When was the last time you did something like this?" Olivia asked, "Watch TV and eat pizza?"
"It's been a while." Sam said, and Olivia saw him, a little boy with Dean and his sister huddled in some living room, enjoying the small treat that their parents had given them. It made her sad. There he was again, making her care. She kicked off her shoes and settled under the covers. In a few minutes Sam flicked off the TV and the lights. Olivia felt something cold brush her foot and there was the click of those damn cuffs around her wrist and the headboard.
"How am I supposed to sleep." She said annoyed as she made it rattle with frustration.
Sam put his arm under hers so it was elevated slightly, taking the pressure off. However that meant he had to move closer so that he was almost spooning her.
"Just relax." Sam said amused. Olivia stayed as stiff as a board, he was too close and that made thoughts and memories come to her mind that made her not relax at all. Then Sam put his hand on her back and began to rub slow circles on the middle of her back. It felt good and she couldn't find it in herself to stop him. He moved closer so he was flush up against her back and she could feel his breath tickling her hair.
"I'm not going to sleep if you keep doing that." Olivia said her voice sounding a little strained.
"I'd hope so." Sam said and she could hear the grin in his voice. His lips pressed against the back of her neck and she gave a small gasp and then he bit down. That was when a small moan slipped out of her mouth that left the room dead silent and her dying of mortification.
"You, liked that." Sam said after a pause clearing his throat.
"No I didn't, so stop that." Olivia said shoving him away as best as she could. He chuckled and she wished she could slap him, however, she wasn't sure what he would do if she did.
"I liked that sound." Sam said, Olivia felt him tug on the back of her collar, exposing the top of her spine.
"Sam." Olivia began and he bit down again. Olivia bit her lip against the sensation of pain that for some reason felt good. Sam moved his hand to her shoulder so she was lying on her back so he could look her in the face.
"Sam what?" He said dipping his head down to her neck and Olivia felt him give another nip and her breath was coming faster. She gave a tug at the cuffs but they were solid. It didn't help that the way he kept moving steadily up to her chin until he hovered above her lips. He was teasing her and Olivia really didn't want to be teased. Really.
"I think about that night every day." Sam continued, his lips just centimeters from hers. "Say the word, and we'll finish what we started."
Olivia saw that they were on the same cliff they had been at three years ago. She could jump. What would the consequences be though?
"Stop please." Olivia finally said after a moment of them hovering on the edge. She feared his anger and for a moment she felt like he was going to give in to it. She saw his hand tighten around the sheets next to her head and his eyes burned in the dark. Olivia could see how it would go, he would kiss her hard and he would know she would like it and he take more noise from her. However he moved and flopped down on the bed beside her. The knot in Olivia's stomach didn't go away, in fact she felt completely wired. Sam moved so his back was to her and it was a long time before either of them fell asleep.
xXx
"We got the permission." Dean said through the radio to Elizabeth.
"Alright, we'll head on over. Our area is clear." Elizabeth radioed back. She and her squad began to cross the bridge to the set of abandoned warehouses. Dean was standing in front with his own group.
"They're big, we should search together and take them one at a time." Dean said.
"Let's set up parameters though." Elizabeth said looking at the row of boats that lined the docks. She turned to Lafitte.
"You and nine others set up a parameters, question anyone who walks by and do not let anyone get on the boats."
"Yes ma'am." He said and he left.
Elizabeth turned to Dean,
"Alright, let's go."
The warehouses were old, many of them had busted glass and abandoned machinery, while others were newer and were full of boxes that had to be searched by sections. It was grueling work and both her and Dean were running on so little sleep and both worried. This led to a strained silence as they searched. There was a smaller warehouse tucked in the corner and Elizabeth noticed something.
"You smell that?" She asked Dean. Dean sniffed the air, taking in the salt of the docks and oil from the boats.
"Cigarettes," He said. It was a new smell, contrasting the abandoned section. It was faint and Elizabeth searched the ground. There was a butt of a cigarette a few feet away. She bent down and picked it up. It was still faintly warm.
They both looked at the warehouse and Elizabeth slowly got her gun out. She, Dean and five others walked quietly towards the door. Dean slid the rusty door open as quietly as he possibly could. They filed in, checking corners. Unlike many of the warehouses this one was bare. There was however a door at the far end that looked far newer than anything else. Elizabeth caught Dean's eye and motioned towards it. He nodded and they began to creep up. Slowly Elizabeth reached for the handle, Dean watching her back. It was locked.
"Stand back." Dean said quietly and he kicked it hard. The door slammed open. As soon as it was open, they were in the room, guns out ready for any sign of resistance. However it was empty. What they saw was a small apartment. The small bubble of hope that had risen in Elizabeth's chest burst and suddenly it felt like too much.
They began to search the rooms but Elizabeth already knew they weren't here. The bedroom door was ajar and she opened it automatically, crouched low and checking behind the door. It was empty and the bed pristine. Feeling very tired placed her head against the wall and tapped her forehead against it. Everything was going wrong and she was doing her job right but it wasn't getting them anywhere. She didn't even know if Sam and Olivia had gotten here. Dean came in and saw her.
"Hey." He said turning her around. He pulled her against him so she was leaning on his shoulder.
"I sent everyone out, it's okay." Dean said
Elizabeth breathed unevenly. She straightened up and then slid down the wall so she was sitting on the ground.
"What have we missed?" She asked running her hand through her ponytail.
"We haven't." Dean said crouching down so he was at her level.
"He wouldn't just jump off with her if he didn't think they'd survive. This is the closest thing we've gotten to potential shelter for them and there isn't anything here! We don't even know if they've been here!"
Elizabeth got up and walked over to the bed. There had to be something, a flat pillow or maybe some residue of makeup. She would be careful until forensics got in. She moved the pillow to the side and she gave a sharp gasp. An angel necklace glinted up at her. It was distinctly Olivia's. She must have hid it from Sam and known they would search. If anything it showed she was alive. Dean walked over and he recognized it as well, they looked at each other grinning. There was hope.
At that moment the radio beeped.
"Captain Harvelle?" It was Ellen.
"Yes?" Dean said holding up the radio still grinning, "We have great news on our end." He added.
"I wish I could saw the same, but we just got the news that Raphael died on the operating table. The president is dead."