A/N: Thanks for the review, Cruelest Sea, since I can't PM you! Thanks also to the review for Betwixt :)
Alright, folks, time for Dean to FINALLY get in touch with Sam.
The first thing Sam noticed as his eyes blearily tried to blink open was the brightness. The second immediate sensation was pain. The hunter groaned, then flinched when something close to him moved.
"Sammy. Welcome back."
Sam jolted, instinctively trying to move away; it was no use, he was bound to that damn chair again, the zip-ties pulled even tighter than before so that he could barely feel his hands. Glaring against the lantern shining in his eyes, the hunter snapped,
"It's Sam."
It was starting to come back to him… he and Cas had tried to make a stand. He must have passed out. Cas?!
Sam's eyes darted around the barn, feeling both relief and sorrow to find Cas still with him, tied up as well. It took the hunter a second to figure out how exactly Cole had restrained the angel, but just listening to his friend wheeze for air in exhaustion renewed Sam's fury.
"What did you do?" he snarled, jerking at his bonds. "You son of a bitch!"
Cole raised his eyebrows, then glanced back at Cas, sitting back against the beam he'd previously been tied to. The angel didn't say anything, just flicked his gaze dully from their captor back to Sam. Every time his arms started to sag, his breathing hitched and faded.
"Oh, that?" Cole asked, getting to his feet and walking back over to Cas, who pulled away with a glower. Cole looked back to Sam and shrugged. "Officially, of course, we never did this to any prisoners we interrogated. Off the record? I can tell you, 100% guaranteed, eventually he'll stop breathing completely. You boys should have stayed put like I told you to, Sam."
Sam yanked against the zip-ties with all his strength, teeth gritted as the plastic cut into his wrists and held. "Just let him go!" he demanded. "He's sick. And I'm the only one you need to get you to Dean."
"See, I'd like to believe that, Sammy," Cole assured him as he strode over and pointed Cas's angel blade at the bound hunter. Sam leaned away from him as the soldier went on, "But so far you haven't done me any good on your own."
He lowered the blade to Sam's cheek and slashed quickly across. Though Sam fought the urge to make a sound, he couldn't hold back the grunt of pain. Cole didn't seem interested in torturing him more, though, peering intently at the scratch he'd made and then shrugging again.
"So I guess it's just this guy, huh?"
Sam started to frown in confusion before the implication struck him harder than Cole's hammer had. Oh shit… So Cole knew. Licking dry lips, the hunter murmured,
"Cole, listen to me. Cas… me… we're not the bad guys."
"Of course that's what you would say," Cole retorted with a light smirk. He wiped the angel blade off and set it down carefully on the table next to the other torture instruments, gleaming in the lantern light. "But you expect me to believe some 'angel' would be looking out for Dean Winchester? Nah. Sorry, boys, but if you were telling the truth about monsters, it looks like I've got two of them right here. And the third… well, he'll be here."
"Cole, you don't understand! Dean is not a monster!"
"He murdered an innocent man! In cold blood, you understand that, Sammy? My father was a good man, and your brother cut him down!"
"Listen," Sam tried again, earnest and desperate as his eyes briefly flicked to Cas and then back to Cole. "I don't know what happened. Okay? I wasn't there-"
"I don't need you to tell me what happened, because I was there," Cole interrupted, fists clenching.
"-but I know my brother. I know him. And Dean wouldn't have come anywhere near your dad unless he knew that he was a monster. I don't know how he knew, I don't know what your dad was, I only know that Dean did the right thing, and probably saved your life."
"Did the right thing?"
This time, the interruption came with a chilly tone, a coldness that sent a shudder down Sam's spine. The hunter swallowed, wary gaze latched onto Cole now as the soldier closed the distance and leaned over Sam with death in his eyes.
"The right thing," Cole repeated softly. "Hmm. So you're saying, if you'd been there, you wouldn't have stopped him? Wouldn't have even tried."
Sam took a deep breath. He knew where this was going, the dangerous road the conversation was going down, but what was he supposed to say? Cole was hardly likely to listen, either way. Lying would be equal to betraying his brother. When the hunter didn't reply, Cole's hand lashed out and grabbed Sam around the throat.
"Well, Sammy?"
"Cole, stop this," Cas snapped from behind them as Sam choked and gasped for oxygen. The pressure on his windpipe eased only slightly, enough for him to answer,
"If he was a monster… then yes… I would have… killed him."
The hand on his throat disappeared as Cole whirled to face Cas next, storming over and giving him a hard prod with his boot.
"And you?" the soldier demanded. "How about you, 'angel'? What would you have done?"
Cas stared up at Cole, brow furrowing deeper. "The Winchesters are good men," he said simply. "I'm sorry for what was taken from you. I am not sorry for the fate you avoided thanks to Dean. I know what you want me to say… but I stand with them."
For a moment, Cole didn't say anything, just regarded the angel, then turned back to Sam. His expression was unreadable, but Sam's heart beat faster with unease. Finally, Cole nodded.
"Well, that does make this much easier. Thank you kindly."
So they had just sealed their fates, Sam thought as his stomach clenched. And now the Winchesters had—once again—taken Cas down with them. He wanted to speak up, to find a way to convince Cole to at least spare Cas, but then again he hadn't really expected the soldier would actually let them go after he'd found Dean. At least, Cole would have to be insane to let Sam Winchester live, should anything happen to his brother.
But before anything could be said, the uneasy silence was broken by a loud jingle, Sam's phone from the table where it had been set. In the split second of shock, Sam couldn't tell if he was more desperate for it to be Dean, or anyone in the world but his brother.
From the way Cole's eyes lit up, it was clear what he was hoping for. He strode over to the phone and picked it up, then frowned.
"Bruce Wayne," he read, turning to Sam. "Is that an alias for Dean?"
"No," Sam lied, even though his heart leaped. Dean hadn't run out on him after all… something must have happened to his cell, if he was using the backup. "A hunting buddy. That's his handle. He never gives out his real name."
Cole watched him, doubt and shrewdness in his penetrating gaze. After years upon years of conning his way through almost everything, though, Sam never let his poker face falter. Finally, the ringing fell silent, and Sam found himself hoping Dean would get pissed off and drop it.
"Well, let's see if this hunting buddy leaves a message," Cole replied evenly, holding the phone up, all but daring Sam to change his mind. The hunter didn't budge. The silence hung in the air, lingering like a stench, as the room stood still.
Even when a little tone informed him a voicemail had been received, Sam refused to let his expression show his anxiety.
"Hmm." Cole turned around grabbing Cas by the coat and jerking him forward. Sam's eyes widened in dismay as his friend was dragged towards him until they were only a few feet apart with Cas kneeling on the barn floor. The angel was obviously trying to hold as still as possible so that he wouldn't close off his own airway, but his expression was cautionary and reassuring.
Sam didn't shift in his seat until Cole grabbed the angel blade and merely held it loosely in his grip. The soldier watched Sam and held up the phone.
"So," he said conversationally. "If I play this voicemail, it's not going to be Dean."
"No."
Finally, the blade came to Cas's chest, point hovering over his heart. Sam's gut clenched.
"No!" he shouted, trying to fight free. "Cole, stop it!"
Cole shook his head. "Sammy… be smart. I'm about to find out anyway, so why don't you make things much easier for yourself, and for poor ol' Cas here, and tell me the truth. Is that Dean?"
Shit. Seeing that Cole had clearly called his bluff, Sam closed his eyes. He couldn't let Cole hurt Cas. Turning his head, the hunter sighed and muttered, "…Yes."
"Thank you."
The angel blade hadn't moved, when Sam chanced a glance back over. Cole was fiddling with the phone, giving Sam and Cas a moment to share a look between them; the hunter apologetic, the angel worried but understanding.
"Sammy," Dean's voice spoke out in the empty barn. "Hey, uh… look, don't be a little bitch, answer the phone. I, uh, finished the vamps off. And yes, everything's fine. And, um, I just…" There was a pause, then a sigh.
Sam's heart twisted a little more, hearing the guilt in Dean's voice, the same guilt that was driving the older hunter away. He thought Sam was just ignoring the call… did Dean think he was angry? Suddenly, the hunter was furious that Cole was listening to this private moment between brothers, when it was his fault Sam couldn't answer anyway.
"I just figured I'd give you a call," Dean finished. "You know, make sure you're not sitting up worrying like a little old maid. Guess you're not too bothered, though." Another pause, another sigh, then a curse. "I didn't mean- Damn it, Sam, just call me back, okay?"
The message ended, and Sam met Cas's eyes again. The angel's mouth twisted, obviously able to hear for himself how distant Dean sounded compared to his normal self. The moment was broken when Cole chuckled.
"Well," he said to no one in particular. "I was right. Figured big brother would call eventually. Okay, Sammy, it's showtime."
"What?" Sam snapped, trying to sit up straighter. He glared at Cole as the soldier set the phone on the arm of the chair Sam was tied to.
"You're going to call him back," Cole explained, digging in his pocket for a piece of paper. "And you're going to have him meet you at the address written here."
"If you think he's just gonna-"
"And you're not going to breathe a word about me," Cole cut him off. "You're a pretty smooth liar, Sammy. So you're gonna lie. And you're gonna pray that he believes you when you act like everything's cool and you're not in any trouble, because if I even think that you're trying to warn him…"
He didn't finish. The blade pressing ever closer to Cas's heart said it all.
With that kind of leverage, Sam could only lower his eyes in defeat, jaw tightening. He glanced at the paper Cole set in his lap—an address in La Crosse, Kansas. The hunter wasn't sure if that was where they were being held, or a separate location that Cole had picked out beforehand. The idea of being forced to lead Dean straight into a trap made him furious, but Cas was in even more immediate trouble.
Besides… Cole didn't know the Winchesters as well as he might think.
The barn fell silent as Cole pushed the button to call Dean and switched the phone to speaker, then stepped behind Cas. He grabbed the twine looping the angel's throat and pulled it snug.
Sam swallowed as the phone rang, waiting. His eyes latched onto Cas; the angel met his gaze, expression mirroring Sam's own worry, but the hunter was equally anxious about the way Cas was obviously struggling for every inhalation. Cole's grip allowed the angel little room to breathe, and the blade pressing against his chest left him an inch from execution.
The line clicked, to Sam's relief and dismay.
"So, what, you're ignoring my calls now?" Dean snapped instead of hello, though Sam read the worry between the lines.
He winced, trying not to imagine his brother sitting there alone with the belief that Sam could ever give up on him.
Still, with Cas's life at stake, Sam's only choice was to play along.
"No, sorry, man. I missed it. Chill out."
"Chill out?" Dean repeated, irritated voice filling the barn. "You're the one who's all 'don't forget to call me every single damn night', and then you can't even bother to answer?"
"Hey!" Sam snapped, glaring at the phone. "You went off and left me in this stupid, funky town!" I'm being forced to call you.
To his credit, Dean never missed a beat, not even a second of hesitation to hint that a distress signal had been sent. In the same irritated voice, he growled,
"Yeah, I heard you the first hundred times you whined about it, Sam! News flash: I'm not deaf!" I hear you.
"Well, if you're done playing cowboy," Sam retorted in character, "come meet me."
"Fine. Where are you?"
Sam snorted. "Poughkeepsie," he drawled, heavy on the sarcasm, hoping Dean would just accept the message as a warning not to come, to just hit the road and keep running… to stay far away from Sam.
More importantly, to stay far away from Cole.
Drop everything and run.
As expected, though, Dean was having none of it: "Sam, would you stop being an idiot?" No.
The hunter sighed, wary of Cole's shrewd eyes on him, mindful to continue sounding like two brothers having a squabble rather than passing coded messages back and forth.
"Sorry," he muttered. He glanced at the paper Cole had set before him. Quickly, he read off the address, eyes drifting to Cas. He hesitated, but Cole had never said he wasn't allowed to mention the angel, and Dean needed to know. "Me and Cas already finished up anyway. Figured we'd hit up a bar nearby."
"Cas?" Dean repeated, genuine surprise coloring his tone. "What, Cas is there? Hey, Cas."
Immediately, Cole pulled at the twine wrapped around Cas's neck to choke off any chance of response. The angel blade pressed in more insistently, enough that Cas released a soft, strangled moan of pain. With a glare, Cole shook his head at Sam with a clear warning.
Sam got the message. Glaring back at Cole, he nevertheless kept his voice casual as he passed along another distress call right under the soldier's nose: "He's in the restroom." Cas is sick.
"Oh, well, whatever," Dean rejoined, equally even. Though he sounded utterly unconcerned, Sam knew he'd understood the message when he added, "Anyway… spill. Scale of one to ten, how hot are the chicks there?" How sick?
"I don't know… nine? Ten? You'd love it." Very.
"Yeah? How many numbers did you get?" How many bad guys?
"Just one, believe it or not," Sam answered with a shrug. But Cole was more than enough of a threat, just by himself.
"Hey, that's my boy," Dean snickered as Cole shifted in impatience. "What did you guys go all the way out to La Crosse for, anyway?"
He'd opened the door for Sam to insert any one of a hundred code words, for just about any kind of monster the hunters had ever come across. Sam could only shake his head, though, watching Cole with narrowed eyes as he said,
"No real reason. Just… something to do." Not a monster—which only left human.
At this point, though, Cole had twisted the twine another turn so that Cas's face was quickly turning a grotesque shade of purple, beaded in sweat as he weakly shifted in the soldier's grip. Sam's jaw clenched at the cruelty but he kept his voice even, still putting on a show.
"Anyway, I should go. Gotta be Cas's wingman." Hang up. He's threatening Cas.
"Fine. I'll meet you in… five, six hours. Sorry, Sammy, La Crosse is nowhere close to me. Tell Cas I said hey and I'll see him soon. And you… stay out of trouble." I'm coming, Sammy. Hang in there.
"Yep. Bye."
The line went dead with a click and Cole released Cas. The angel immediately gasped for air, his tight wheezes shifting into alarmingly violent coughs that only made him wheeze harder. Sam watched in horror as a trickle of blood dripped from the corner of his friend's mouth.
It struck him then that if Cas's grace was no longer strong enough to heal him, he might well crack some ribs of his own from these coughing fits.
"Cas!" he couldn't help but shout. "Cas!"
"Alright, buddy," Cole said, guiding the slipping angel down to the floor on his side. Even with the extra slack, Cas couldn't seem to catch his breath fully, and when the coughing finally stopped, the angel's eyelids were drooping with exhaustion.
"Cole, please, just let him go," Sam pleaded. He was more than willing to swallow his pride and resort to begging, if it would save Cas's life.
The soldier merely shrugged. "No can do, Sammy," he replied, before turning his attention back to the angel. "But tell you what, Cas. Sammy did real good on the phone, so I'm gonna let you lay down for a bit, alright? Give your arms a break. Can't have you dying too fast on me, 'cause I might still need you."
Jerking against his bonds despite the agony it caused his battered body, Sam snapped, "Just untie him, you son of a bitch! Look at him, he's not going anywhere!"
Straightening, Cole stepped over to the little table and leaned against it, arms crossed with blade still in hand. "Yeah," he drawled, shooting Sam a knowing look. "That's what I thought last time. So you can both stay right where you are. We've got some time to kill."
Sam's heart sank, familiar with what happened when their enemies got bored. His thoughts must have shown on his face, because Cole gave him another look and snorted.
"Relax, Sammy. Don't give me a reason to hurt you, and I won't have to."
The hunter's glare didn't relent; not while his best friend was lying there, dying on the floor right in front of him, one slow, sick moment at a time. Not while he could still hear Cas laboring for breath. Not while his own broken bones and wrecked legs were screaming for relief.
Not while he knew Cole would kill them in the end, anyway.
So even if torture wasn't on the table… it certainly didn't make Cole a hero.
Not willing to speak up in case it brought more trouble down on Cas, Sam bit his tongue. Dean had received the message, and was no more than four hours away if he had said five or six. They would just have to hold on, wait for their chance, and be ready to take it.
SPN SPN SPN
Dean's cell phone rested on the passenger seat—Sam's seat—where it had been tossed. Though the clock on the dash read 2:00 AM, and though he'd been fighting vampires all day, the hunter was fully awake and on alert. The steering wheel creaked slightly under his too tight grip, his laser-intense glare focused on the road ahead.
This was his fault. This was all his fault. He'd left Sam, gone off the grid, hadn't even considered that his baby brother might get into serious trouble. But he had, and Dean hadn't been there to help him. Dean, who had vowed from the age of four to never let his brother down, had done just that in the very worst possible way.
How could this have even happened? Dean didn't know how anything short of a monster had managed to get the drop on Sammy and Cas.
He didn't know what Cas could possibly be sick with, or if perhaps Sam had just picked the closest code he could for some other situation they'd never needed to communicate before.
He didn't know how much it must have taken to subdue an angel, sick or not, and the best hunter around—or what condition Dean would find them in.
What he did know, what this enemy would know soon, was that every single mark he found on either of them was going to be returned in full.
What he did know was that whatever trap he was walking into wouldn't be enough to stop him. And taking his brother and his best friend was the last mistake this man would ever make.