Disclaimer: We've all got the point by now right? They aren't mine.
19. Company
"…You must be Alpha-Douche." Dean sneered.
"I heard you wanted to speak to me." Uley smirked and fuck did Dean ever want to wipe that smirk off his fucking face. This asshole attacked Leah. This asshole was gonna go against part of his pack – the part that sided with Leah and her brother anyway. And fuck did he want to know what the whole thing had been about. He had a good idea – obviously Leah's ex had a problem with her moving on to obviously bigger and better things.
Mr. Six-Minute-Miracle, he thought derisively.
"Yeah, I got a few choice words for ya." And Leah was growling and Embry was beside Sam and looking the opposite direction up the path and growling before Dean saw why. There were two more wolves that were emerging from the trees and headed their way. They looked like the ones that had followed their Alpha into the woods after the scene at the car earlier, but Dean couldn't be sure – it was hard to tell the wolves apart. One thing he was sure about was that if either of those two fuckers laid a paw on Leah or Embry, they were gonna know pain. Serious pain. A round in the ass from his .45 wouldn't kill them, but it would hurt like hell.
Leah was snapping her teeth at the guy, but he was coolly ignoring her as he advanced on the Winchesters. Sam made to pull his nine from his waist but Dean stopped him with a hand to the chest. "No Sammy. You keep those fuckers from jumping Embry." Because Embry, awesome as he was, was outnumbered against the newcomers that were growling at him.
Sam nodded, holding the gun in front of him as he turned to point it at the new wolves. "Back up." He threatened softly. "I won't tell you again." The wolves eyed the piece and the murderous look in Sam's eyes before backing up a couple of steps. Not far enough to make anyone comfortable, but back a few steps. They were still snarling though – one of them at least. The other seemed to be keeping a watchful eye on the whole thing. The snarling one looked like it was debating if it were fast enough to get to Sam before he could get a round off. Crazy bastard.
Uley smirked again. "You don't stand a chance. You should just leave town and don't look back."
"Why?" Dean demanded. "Do you honestly think I'm scared of you?"
"You would be if you were smart."
"Smart's never exactly been my strong suit." Dean grinned. "Besides… I've been up against things that would make you piss yourself in fear. You're nothing." He sneered.
"And you're not fit to lick her boot." He scowled at him, eyes black and hateful.
So it really is about Leah moving on. He mused.
"Never really had a foot kink." He snarked. "But hey… Whatever Leah wants." And he could feel her next to him. The heat pouring off her and the rumble that passed from her body to his as she growled at her alpha. And the Leah tendrils were trying to burn through him in an effort to wring Sam Uley's neck for hurting her in all the ways he's hurt her.
"Do you have a death wish or something pal?" Uley snarled.
"Let me tell you something you sorry sonofabitch." Dean said angrily, stepping forward so he was in the asshole's personal space. "You are the world's biggest fucking idiot for doing to her what you did. And if you ever lay a paw on her again, I will end you." And Dean didn't know why he was making those threats. It wasn't because he didn't mean them – he did – the thought of this piece of shit going after her made him see fucking red. It's just that he had no time left to follow through on his promise. Not for the first time he wished he hadn't met Leah so close to his expiration date. A week holed up in a two dollar hacienda on a Mexican beach with a bottle of tequila and Leah in a sarong sounded like the best damn vacation in the world. Too bad it would never happen…
"I'd like to see you try." Uley said menacingly.
"Don't push me asshole." Dean narrowed his eyes at him. "Now get the fuck out of my way. We have a blood trail to finish."
"I can help you out with that." Uley smiled and Dean ducked as dude's fist went flying for his face. Dean shot forward, catching the jerk in the stomach with his shoulder. Uley gave a satisfying oomph, before Dean found a sharp and painful elbow jabbed into his back. He was knocked to the ground and the asshole was on top of him, punching every part of him he could reach.
Dean had to give it to the prick... he was fast and he was swinging a fucking sledgehammer for a fist. Dean's ears were ringing and the edges of his vision were black and the only gratification he could find was that he was giving as good as he was getting. Uley was bigger and had the weight advantage, but there was something that he didn't have, and that was John Winchester's stubborn-assed, never-say-die attitude. It didn't matter how many times you hit a Winchester, they just kept fucking coming.
There was a lot of growling and yelling going on. Dean couldn't see through the fists of fury, but it sounded like Sammy was yelling at the wolves to stay back, and Leah was right there snarling at the pair of them as they rolled through the dirt, landing punches on each other. Dean managed to land a sweet right hook to douchebag's jaw, snapping his head back and allowing Dean a second to land a shot in his stomach before scampering to his feet. Uley jumped back on his feet as well, squaring off and circling each other looking for an opening. Dean spat out a wad of blood, ready for the next round when Uley stiffened and started to shake.
"No fair wolfing out man." Dean challenged him. If he wolfed out, he wouldn't think twice about drawing his piece. There was no way he was gonna get into a fist fight with a fucking anti-magnet-whatever.
But then all the other wolves stiffened, the hair on their hackles standing up as they all stared off into the trees to the west. They stood in a unified line, all their differences forgotten for now as the threat became known to the Winchester who had instinctually gravitated to each other's sides.
Two of them.
Two vampires were in the trees and coming right for them and fast. Sam grabbed his crossbow from his back and quickly loaded a quarrel into the bow and took aim. The composite shaft zipped through the trees and struck the larger of the two vamps square in the chest. Sam used to complain about their dad making him take archery instead of allowing him to play soccer, but Sam could take out Robin Hood, and today that was a better skill than bending it like Beckham.
The big vamp fell to his knees, skidding through the loam and undergrowth as he let out a terrible, pain-filled keening noise. The other vamp, shocked at his companion's sudden anguish, skidded to a stop and turned around and started running back the way he came. The wolves, who had been crouching on the trail readying for the impact of the incoming fuglies, suddenly took flight after the runaway leech. Uley started running too, making it several yards before he leapt into the air and phased back into the giant black wolf – shredded shorts raining down – and running after his pack mates and their quarry. The wolves ran past the downed vamp with hardly a second glance. They seemed to remember from the night before that the Winchester Magic Arrow heads took the bastards down and kept them down and that the poisoned one screaming on the ground wasn't going anywhere.
Leah was in the lead, and fuck was she fast! The five giant wolves streaked after the escaping bloodsucker, darting through the trees as the hunter's ran for the one that was screaming and trying to pull the arrow shaft out of his chest. Both brothers landed on the giant vamp, pinning him to the ground and Dean pulled a knife from his waist and held it to the fucker's throat.
"Don't you fucking move ugly." Dean growled.
"What did you do to me?" The vamp got out around his gasping moans.
"Nothing compared to what our buddies are doing to your friend." Sam hissed as the sounds of a fierce fight echoed its way towards them from further in the forest. The sound of it sent a jolt down Dean's spine, as there was a series of terrible screams followed by an abrupt stop.
"Sounds like the party's over." Dean grinned down on the vampire.
"Dylan?" The vamp questioned, face scrunched and pained and angry.
"Dead." Sam replied flatly.
"Where's Victoria!" Dean demanded, pushing his knife against the bloodsucker's Adam's apple to keep his attention when his eyes rolled back into his head.
"Don't… Don't know Victoria." He gasped.
"Yeah fuckin' right." Dean growled. "Then why are you here?"
"Riley sent us." He hissed through the pain. "…Said to spy on the Yellow-Eyes that want to take our territory."
"The Cullens?" Sam nudged him in the shoulder with his foot when his eyes rolled again.
"I don't know!" He said as forcefully as he could. "Just said the Yellow-Eyes. Gave us… the scent of their human pet… to find them… but told not to touch her." His head jerked to the side as he must have smelled the wolves coming back. He actually hissed at them, despite him not able to fight off a Chihuahua puppy at the moment, let alone a Quileute. The wolves returned the greeting with spine shivering growls.
"Tell us where Victoria is!" Dean yelled in the vamp's face.
"I don't know Victoria!" And Dean jumped off as the vamp let out a blood curdling scream when the crazy bastard wolf clamped down on his arm and tore into it, shaking his head back and forth violently like a dog with a rope bone. The leech tried to fight back, actually bringing a fist around and clubbing the wolf weakly on the head and having absolutely no effect. There was a sickening ripping and grinding sound as the crazy wolf actually bit through the entire arm and tore it off completely. He spit the arm out to the side and Sam jumped back 'cuz it looked like he actually spit it at him. But if this was the same wolf Sam fought last night and kicked into the rocks – well that guy had an axe to grind with Sammy and it was probably part of his intimidation process.
Fat chance asshole. Dean thought as Sam kicked the stray arm into the bushes and glared at the wolf.
Turning back to the leech, "How many of you are there?" Sam yelled into the vampire's face.
"I don't know!"
"How many!" Sam leaned on the protruding arrow shaft, earning another scream from the vampire.
"Twenty? Twenty-five? I don't know!"
Twenty-five? Fuck.
"What were your orders!" And Sam was getting a little on the scary side as his face twisted and darkened.
"Find the Yellow-Eyes! Watch them."
"Did you know about the wolves?" Dean demanded.
"No! We weren't told about them." He grunted out, holding his still attached hand to his stump of an arm. There was no real purpose to doing that, it wasn't as if he could bleed out and he was in more pain from the dead-man's blood than the missing arm. But Dean supposed it was just a human trait that he'd carried into his new state.
"Who turned you?"
"I don't know."
"How long have you been this way?"
"Six months? Seven? I don't know!"
"What are your plans for the Cullens?"
"Fuck you!"
And then there were wolves clamping down on every part of him and he was screaming as their teeth dug into him.
"What are your plans for the Cullens!" Sam repeated.
"Fuck you!" He screamed, howling in pain as the wolves started shaking their heads back and forth. "I'll tell you nothing!" He hissed, venom and fury and acid coating every word.
"Then you're of no use to us." Sam said calmly.
Uley let go of where he was biting down on a leg, stood on the vamp's chest, knocking against the quarrel still lodged there, and bit down on the bloodsucker's face. Uley's entire body was shaking back and forth as he ripped into the vamp, screams and growls filling the air as Sam and Dean stood back out of the way of the wolves. It was actually pretty frightening to watch the wolves tear into him like that. There were too many thoughts jumping to the forefront of Dean's mind involving Hellhounds and laughing demons.
The screams stopped abruptly when Uley managed to rip the jaw right off the guy. They were just muted garbles and wet choking noises as the pack continued ripping the guy apart and Alpha-douche went for his throat. There were no more noises from the vamp when Uley's teeth cut through the spinal cord and the leech was dead.
Then the wolves started running all over the place, bringing pieces of vampire back in their teeth and making a pile of parts in the woods off from the trail. Apparently the Quileute's knew the drill about burning the body because other wolves were dragging dead branches in from the surrounding woods.
Dean had to admit they were a well trained unit. They worked together no matter what their differences were with each other. All the drama and anger from earlier had no hold over them when they had a job to do. The wolves were an efficient and deadly enemy to have, and Dean didn't want to be on the receiving end of a full out wolf attack. Although, watching them rip apart that vampire had unsettled something deep within him, and echoes of howls and dark, dog-like shapes were skating on his periphery. Images of what his near future held for him if they didn't find a way to find and kill Lilith before he was the Hellhounds' new chew toy.
But Dean didn't have the luxury of falling apart here. There was Sam to consider and there was no way he was gonna let Sammy see him break. And there was no way he was gonna quake like a child in front of the wolfpack because they triggered images he'd rather not entertain. So the hunters didn't waste any time in helping in the grisly task of gathering scattered appendages, and then lighting the match. Soon, there was a raging fire going on and thick purple smoke wafting up in the darkening sky. Dean hoped that there wasn't anyone around to come investigate. The last thing he wanted was to meet up with Chief Charlie Swan again.
The hunter's and their wolf escort made it back to the clearing after the sun had already gone down – just the two wolves, the other's had stayed behind to guard the pyre and keep an eye out for any more leeches. Alpha-douche seemed to give Dean a look that said 'we can pick this up later,' which suited Dean just fine because his jaw and ribs were fucking killing him.
They had stopped to patch up Sam's arm a couple hundred yards into the woods, and for him to put on his scent amulet. The wolves shook their heads when they asked if they could smell the blood on Dean anymore, but as Sam still had oozing cuts, he was in the greater danger of attack from the Cullens.
They needn't have worried really. The only vampires in the clearing were Carlisle and Esme.
"What happened? We saw the smoke." Carlisle stepped forward towards them as they approached. Dean instinctually backed up a step but Sam actually took a step closer to the lead vampire.
"We were attacked by two vampires." Sam said.
"Oh my dear! Are you okay?" Esme stepped forward to touch his arm but pulled back last second like she did earlier.
Sam actually patter her arm – patted her freaking arm! and said "We're fine Esme. The wolves were there and the vampires were taken care of."
Carlisle winced at the thought of the violence that had happened on the mountain trail. "Victoria was sending spies to watch us?"
"That's the thing." Sam frowned. "He said he didn't know a Victoria. He was given orders by some Riley guy."
"But he also said that Riley gave them Bella's scent to help track you down." Dean cut in. That part was really bugging him.
Carlisle crossed his arms and pinched his chin in thought. "There was a strange vampire that was in Bella's house a few weeks ago."
Dean and Sam both gave him a wide-eyed stare.
"No one was harmed," the Doc waved them down. "He was in the house though, and had stolen a blouse of Bella's. That must be what they had to give these ones tonight her scent."
"But who are these guys, and why don't they know Victoria? Or do they not work for her?" Sam questioned.
"I think that they are Victoria's creation…" the Doc said thoughtfully. "I think she is keeping herself from the Newborns so that she can hide from Alice's visions."
"How would she know how to hide from Alice?" Sam asked, a touch of irritation in his voice at the talk of the pixie vamp.
"When we first met Victoria last year, she was travelling with two males. One was her mate."
"The one Edward killed." Sam stated.
"Yes. The other was more friendly towards us. He tried to warn us about James and Victoria, and then left them. He went to see our friends in Denali, who live like us and this vampire – Laurent – he wanted to learn more about our lifestyle. He must have learned a lot about our family from the Denali's, but he was still speaking with Victoria and must have passed on information to her."
"Where's this Laurent now?" Dean questioned.
Carlisle nodded towards Embry and Leah, "They killed him in the Spring." Embry gave them all a wolfy grin before giving them a smart-assed bow.
What do ya want? A round of applause? Dean thought snidely.
"So how does Victoria get around Alice's visions?" Sam asked, ready to squirrel away information like he always did.
"For obvious reasons, Alice can't keep an eye out for everything. She can focus in on specific threats, and the decisions of certain people. If Victoria is hiding her decisions – say… passing information onto this Riley, for him to give the orders, then Alice doesn't know to watch for him. And having never met him, she couldn't watch for him anyway."
"Alice can only watch for people she knows?" Sam said interestedly. Dean had to admit, it was nice to know that Alice wouldn't try to start seeing Caleb or Bobby or any of their other friends.
"They are easiest for her. It is very rare for her to have visions of people she doesn't know."
"But it does happen though." Sam stated.
"Yes. It is how she found Jasper… and us. And she had a vision of Victoria and James coming here. There have been a few more instances, but in seventy years, she's only had several of these types of visions."
Dean shuddered and not entirely from the cold. Although, it was freaking freezing out here now. He tried to bury himself deeper into his coat, but it wasn't as warm as his leather jacket, and he shivered again. The loss of movement was gonna kill him and he wondered how much longer he had to stay here making chit-chat with the vampies before they could leave for the car and to find a motel. He wanted a shower and a bed in the worst way. He glanced briefly at Leah, speculating on the likeliness of needing two motel rooms for the night. He figured his odds were pretty good.
"Hey Sammy? Can we get this show on the road? It's freezing out here." He glanced off towards the mountains, but it was too dark to see if the freak storm Alice had predicted had hit the peak yet.
"Yes, of course." Esme agreed. "You must find it cold out here and should get some rest." She looked shyly at Sam before adding, "We would be most honored if you came with us, but we completely understand if you don't want to."
"Thanks Esme…" Dean started, about to top it off with an, but I don't freakin' think so, when Sam interrupted him.
"That would be very generous of you Esme. Thank you."
What?! No fucking way!
"We'll meet you there." Sam smiled at her, ignoring the low snarls coming from Leah and Embry.
"Sam, can I talk to you?" Dean growled.
"Something bothering you, Dean?" Sam raised an eyebrow at him.
"Yeah. Sleep-overs at vampire nests don't actually sound like the best plan to me." And the wolves were growling their similar opinion.
"Well that's okay. You go into town and I'll go with the Cullens." Sam shrugged at him as if daring him to slug him, which Dean really wanted to do right now. Bad.
"Sam." Dean growled, not in the mood for this stubborn, hug-all-the-monsters bullshit of Sammy's right now.
"It's okay Dean. I'll catch a ride to the fight with the Cullens in the morning and we'll meet you here. I really want to keep talking to Carlisle and Esme… Besides, I promised Carlisle earlier that I'd tell him about Demi-Gods." And the pair of vampires seemed to swell with pride at Sam's tolerance of them.
"I can't believe you're fucking doing this to me." Dean snarled. Because of course he wasn't about to let his baby brother wander into blood-sucker central without him. He had to watch his kid brother's back, even if said kid brother was being the biggest moron on the planet right now.
Dean glared at the Cullens, and uttered a low threat. "If anyone comes near me, I've still got dead-man's blood on all my knives."
"You have our word on your guaranteed safety in our home." Carlisle nodded.
Dean gave a mutinous glare at Sam's self-satisfied smirk.
You and I are gonna have a talk.
A/N: Merry Christmas to you all, and if you don't celebrate the holiday, then take care and be safe and see you in the New Year.