Halleluja! Sorry I didn't post sooner, but the site was being all funky! I've kept you waiting long enough, so...
Audrey
When you're dreaming with a broken heart
Then waking up is the hardest part
You roll outta bed and down on your knees
And for a moment you can hardly breathe
Wondering was she really here?
Is she standing in my room?
No she's not, 'cause she's gone, gone, gone, gone, gone...
-Dreaming With a Broken Heart, John Meyer
Dean didn't know what he was waiting for. Actually, he did- whatever sickening sounds a baby makes when it's dropped head first. He cringed, but no crying or thumping ensued. Dean looked up and saw, miraculously, Sam, holding her carefully in his arms.
Dean stood up, jaw dropped. How did Sam get there so fast? What was that? Thirty seconds? "Sam?" He questioned, muttering 'Christo' (just in case) but Sam just looked up in amazement and confusion.
"I acted fast, I guess." He shrugged. "All I thought about was..." Sam hesitated for a moment. "I don't know. After losing- losing Jess. I-I didn't want to lose Audie, too." His voice had gone from a normal volume to a whisper as he completed his sentence. "What happened? All I saw was Audrey falling, and then... I caught her, I guess. All the sudden she was just in my arms."
Audrey began squirming uncomfortably, the happiness of the safety of her father's arms waning with hunger.
Sam recognized the cry, dismissing the eccentric incident for the moment and handing the girl to Dean, who watched closely as his brother prepared the bottle. Audrey whimpered softly and Dean looked down at his niece. He'd never seen her up close before, but now he noticed the likeness she had to her mother and father. She had light blonde hair, just like Jessica, and Sammy's chocolate brown eyes, no doubt sharing his brother's quality to melt Dean's hard outer core with a properly placed puppy-eyed stare.
"Here..." Sam brought the bottle over to Audrey, yawning as he took her into his arms. "I'm sorry, honey." He whispered. "I know, it's cold..." Sam and Jess had been feeding her warm milk all of her short life. But, he realized, everything was changing now.
Sam could barely keep his eyes open. Going from alternating who gets up to help Audrey to doing it single-handedly for a week was taking it's toll on him, not to mention the dreams. They were almost always bad. Some nights he would relive Jess pinned to the roof, bloody and burning. Others he would have a memory or a flashback, only to wake up and realize it was all a dream. Either way, Sam knew how much he needed rest, despite the bad mood he would most likely be in when he woke up.
"Sam?" Dean began as Sam fed Audrey the cold milk. "I can do that, you know, while you get some sleep." Sam nodded, gratefully handing the feeding girl to his brother.
"Just, hold it at an angle like this." Sam tweaked Dean's position. "And hold her a little tighter. Don't let her fall." He pulled Audrey closer.
"I don't want to hurt her." Dean muttered, the latest event replaying in his head. They didn't need another close call like that.
"Don't worry," Sam replied, but Dean looked scared to pull her in and the father worried she would roll out of his hands. "On second thought, maybe I should just-"
"No." Dean was determined, sinking onto the bed slowly. "I got this."
Sam nodded reluctantly, kissed Audrey on the forehead, and collapsed onto his own bed, where he instantly slipped into an exhausted unconsciousness.
When Audrey was done with the bottle, Dean set her down in the homemade crib. He grabbed a beer and tensed at the sound of police cars outside. Peeking out of the curtained window, he was relieved to see they had stopped across the street. Then, an ambulance pulled up and a stretcher was unloaded.
"Crap," Dean muttered, grabbing his jacket and setting down his drink. After writing a quick note to Sam, he crossed the busy street and into the parking lot of an insurance company- Logan & Logan.
He stood next to another onlooker, the blue and red lights reflecting on his face. "What's going on?" He asked the man. The stranger pushed up his glasses nervously, glancing at the younger man. "I dunno. Some freak accident." Dean nodded and dug through his jacket until he found an ID.
"Agent Helsing." He introduced as he ducked under the police tape. "What happened?" The officer looked up. "What's the FBI care about a simple accident?"
"Nothing, sir, just in the area." The man motion for Dean to follow as they walked through the ajar door. "Was he a, uh, Logan?"
"Yep, Steven Logan Jr."
"And what happened?" Dean asked upon viewing the scene. It was an office room- but there was ice everywhere. Dean looked down and found his shoe in a bloody puddle. Wearing a face of disgust, he stepped back a few steps.
"The evidence points to... hail."
"Hail?" Dean asked. He looked up. Yeah, there's a roof.
"Yes. Hail. He was hit many times by hail the size of baseballs. Especially in the neck and temple."
Dean grimaced. "Okay, thank you, officer." Shoving his hands in his pockets to avoid the winter wind, Dean passed the medics and headed outside. It wasn't cold out, just windy, but the air threatened to turn icy any day now. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky and as Dean reached the ambulance, he'd lost all suspicions that there was anything "normal" about Logan's death.
He walked back out and under the tape, and across to the motel. "What's going on?" Sam asked nervously from the bed when Dean opened the creaking door.
"Don't worry, I'll tell you tomorrow." Sam nodded, checked the time, and sunk back into the thin sheets as Audrey slept on beside him.
..ooOOoo..
"Jess!" Sam called to remind his wife who's turn it was, before realizing she wasn't next to him anymore. He groggily sat up at the sound of his daughter's cries. Holding Audrey in his arms, he looked through the curtains at the empty parking spot in front of their room. It was light out. Sam had slept all the way through the night, and Dean must be out doing who-knows-what.
Just as the little girl began to calm down, Sam heard the familiar rumble as Dean pulled back into the motel.
"Hey," Sam greeted as his older brother entered the room. He raised his eyebrows at the bags in Dean's arms. "Where you been?"
Setting the plastic shopping bags on the floor, the hunter began to explain. "I went out for research."
He sighed and elaborated at the sight of his brother's confused face. "At that Joe Shmo insurance place across the street? Get this: Death by hale. Inside! And it's only November! Anyway, I looked into that," He slapped a pile of papers on the table as he talked. "And... I picked up some provisions."
Sam stood up and passed Audrey to her uncle as he crouched in front of the mountain of items.
"Diapers... Milk... Baby food... A carrier, nice!" He sifted through the items. "And a stuffed puppy?" Sam held up the floppy eared thing to face his brother, who shrugged.
"Kids love toys! And don't give me that look!" He added at the sight on his little brother's face. "Dead salesmen aren't the only thing I researched." He grinned as Sam pegged the Beagle at him. "I named him Zeppy!" Sam rolled his eyes, taking the toy and handing it to Audrey, who grabbed it eagerly with a look of glee in her eyes.
Dean took out the carrier and set it on the bed. It was time his little brother got out of this stuffy room. "Want some fresh air?" He suggested.
Ten minutes later, the brothers were almost ready to disembark. Sam was on the bed with a smiling Audrey, putting on her miniature velcro shoes. Dean popped his head in the open door. "I got it ready," He said, pointing towards the car and the new carrier attached to the backseat. Sam nodded, pulling the little girl onto his hip.
God, she was growing fast. Almost six and a half months any day now. Sam would have to check a calendar, though. He hadn't been keeping track of time well lately. A combination of Audrey and nightmares called for many sleepless nights, followed by long days of doing nothing but entertaining her. Then Dean arrived and lifted the weight off of his brother, for which Sam was extremely grateful. But in his gut he knew raising Audrey was more important than finding whatever killed Jess. Maybe when she was older, just maybe. A pang of sorrow struck the new father when he realized his baby girl would have to grow up without a mother- just like him. But he could tell her stories... If he could help it, Audrey would never forget her mom.
..ooOOoo..
"Hey!" Jessica poked her head out of the bedroom.
"Hi, honey." Sam set down his books and greeted her with a kiss. "What's for dinner?" Jessica rocked back onto her heels. "Um... I-I didn't make dinner." Sam looked disappointed, tired and hungry after a long day at school. "But, I did make reservations." Sam raised his eyebrows in surprise and suspicion but his wife just smiled back.
"I've got to change." She said, gesturing towards the bedroom. Sam nodded happily. "What time's the reservation for?"
"Six thirty!" She called as she shut the door. Sam grabbed a nice, clean shirt from the laundry room and switched into it. As he grabbed a jacket and keys, he heard the click of the bedroom door.
"You read-" Sam called, stopping abruptly when he turned to face her. "You look beautiful." He whispered. Jessica was wearing a little black dress, her hair tied back in an elegant pony that fell gracefully down her back.
"Well, thank you." Jess smoothed her dress, smiling and putting her arm through Sam's. "What's this for anyway?" He asked.
Jessica broke eye contact. "N...nothing." Sam grinned even wider. Jess always was a horrible lier.
..ooOOoo..
"Sam. Sam!" Sam jumped, startled. "Are you two coming?" He looked up at his brother, who was waiting in the doorway.
"Oh, y-yeah." Sam took Audrey in his arms and followed his brother to the car, where he had hooked the carrier into the backseat. Audrey was sound asleep as Sam placed her in the seat and buckled her in.
Sam ducked into the front seat and shut the door gently as Dean turned the key. Loud Metallica blasted through the Impala and Dean fumbled with the controls- but it was too late; the damage had been done. Sam got out quickly and unbuckled Audrey, who was now very much awake and wailing like a banshee.
"I guess she hasn't found her love for my music yet." Dean grumbled as he watched his brother rock the girl into calmness again. Sam chuckled, handing the stuffed animal to her to keep her entertained. Audrey smiled, clutching the toy close and stuffing it's head in her mouth.
Dean watched in disgust while Sam looked amused. "Oh, yeah, that's classy."
Sam gently pulled the girl's hands down. "It's just a stage, Dean." He said softly.
Dean rolled his eyes and turned back to the front seat. "Whatever. Where are we headed." Sam thought for a moment. He hadn't though about that. He and Jess had loved walking Audrey around town. "The park?"
Dean shrugged, turning around as he backed up. "Why not?"
..ooOOoo..
The instant the Impala rumbled to a halt facing the green grass and laughing children of Grangeville Park and Recreational Center, Sam knew they'd chosen the right place. Dean had "borrowed" a stroller, which he was now placing a giggling Audrey into as Sam surveyed the area.
"What do you think?" Dean asked. Sam didn't answer, just gazed off into the distance, his hand shielding his eyes from the sun.
"Sam?" Dean followed his brother's line of sight to the playground and frowned. He watched with Sam as a husband and wife held their son's hand as he slid down the slide. The two year old clapped with his smiling parents, who were proudly grinning from ear to ear.
"Sam, stop it. You don't need to be thinking about those things right now." Dean admonished gently. Sam nodded and grabbed the stroller's handlebars, but as he started walking, Dean noticed the tense way he moved and how tight his grip was on the stroller- his knuckles white against his California-tan skin.
..ooOOoo..
"So?" Sam asked, sipping his wine. "Are you ever going to tell me why I deserve such a special dinner on a school night?" Jessica smiled again, shaking her head.
"No?" The head waiter came over and whisked away their empty desert plates setting down the check.
Jess reached for it before he did, slipping her credit card into the pouch and closing it again, giving Sam a look daring him to look at the prices. "You have to guess!" She teased.
Sam thought for a moment. "Well, let's see... Does this have to do with why you are drinking apple juice in a wine glass?" Jess nodded vigorously.
"And our dinner you ordered for us of baby back ribs, baby carrots, and ba- oh my god." Sam looked at her in shock. "You mean-"
She nodded happily. "Yes!" Sam shot up and so did she, hugging him as he swept her off her feet in front of everyone in the whole restaurant. At this moment, Sam didn't care who saw him or what they thought. He'd just done the hunter impossible- he was starting a family.
..ooOOoo..
"Woah!" Sam ducked as a football whistled past his head and a boy went running after it. The wind had picked up as the threesome began walking on a nearby path and it was getting harder and harder to push the stroller against the strong breeze.
"So about the insurance guy..." Sam questioned, looking over at Dean.
"Oh, yeah." Dean reported what he'd seen. "And when I checked out the body? It was disgusting. I figured only a witch would make it hail inside, but I didn't find any hexbags. There sure was a lot of blood, though,"
Sam shrugged. "I gotta know what happened." Dean nodded. "Figured. One piece of hail had lodged itself in his eye. Right in his eye. Another hit his head- and stuck there it was so sharp. And, uh, a bunch of knife-shaped ones pierced through his chest, which is pretty much torn to shreds. Of course all the ice is melted, but you get the idea." Sam nodded, squinting against the harsh winds. Unnaturally harsh.
Sam glanced around to see if anyone else had noticed the heavy wind and his heart stopped at the funnel heading right towards the park.
"Son of a..." Dean looked at the tornado and froze, but when a woman nearby screamed, he sprang into action. "Take Audrey!" He called over the roaring wind and commotion suddenly surrounding them. He pointed towards the library across the street. "That's probably our best bet!" He yelled. Sam nodded and unhooked the confused baby from her stroller, pulling her close and running across the street, Dean flanking him on his right.
Cars raced around them and people were running around in a mad dash, attempting to escape the sudden tornado. Sam's hair whipped in his face and Audrey was crying loudly, somehow managing to hold onto Zeppy.
"It's okay..." Sam muttered to her, though it made no difference. This was not okay. He pulled her tight and made sure Dean was close as they sprinted across the emptying streets.
"Faster!" Dean screamed as he looked back at the approaching twister. A nearby tree was uprooted and went flying through the air. Dean raced after his brother as they reached the double doors of the library. Suddenly, a giant cracking noise boomed from his right and Dean turned to see a giant branch heading straight for him. He had no time to move before the blast of impact struck him and blackness filled his vision. Dean's eyes rolled back and he crumpled lifelessly to the steps.
Dun dun dun! Oh, the suspense! The drama! The mystery! That's all for now, folks, but if you liked- feel free to tell me. I'll try to post next week if the site feels like cooperating...