A/N: This chapter's been fighting me tooth and nail, so I hope the finished product is ok. I eventually decided to let it be so I could get the next chapter up more quickly

Before: Sam tossed the bag into the trunk of the Impala and paused. What to do with the demon? He didn't want to exorcise her, in case his lead was wrong, but he couldn't leave her here to be rescued either. Seeing no other choice, he grabbed another length of rope from the Impala and went back inside. He had to take her with him.

Before he was halfway to the door, a gunshot broke through the night, and Sam fell to the ground, a searing pain in his left arm. The demon's friends had found them sooner than expected.

Chapter Fourteen

Sam rolled back to take cover behind the Impala, gripping the bullet wound. Peeking over the hood of the car, he saw a large man coming at him holding a shotgun.

How many freaking grunts did these demons employ? Sam thought in exasperation. He ducked down as the man raised the shotgun and fired. The bullet embedded itself in a tree high above Sam's head. Acting quickly, Sam stood up and tackled the man while he was trying to reload. He swiftly knocked the emptied gun away and pulled the guy into a modified choke hold. Sam wrapped his legs around the man, trying to compensate for his injured arm. The man grunted and kicked, but Sam's grip didn't loosen. He absently noted the bandage he could feel on the man's left arm. It seems as though Sam wasn't the only injured one.

"Where are they?" Sam demanded.

The man didn't answer. He flailed his arms, trying to loosen Sam's hold, but to no avail.

Sam tightened his grip. "Where are the hunters?" Sam knew he couldn't keep this hold for much longer, not with his weakened arm. He swiftly drew his knife out and held it to the man's neck. "I said, where are they?"

"In a barn u-up on the m-mountain. On the r-road that goes by the l-lake. Please don't k-kill me!" the man whimpered, going slack when he felt the blade at his throat.

Sam released him roughly. "Get out of here. If you value your life, do not come back, and do not tell anyone about this." He raised the knife for emphasis.

The man turned and ran, not looking back. Judging by how quickly the man gave up, Sam figured he wouldn't have to worry about him anymore.

Luckily, the man had told him what he needed to know. One of the locations Sam had researched was off the road that led by the lake. He knew where Dean and Jo were.

Sam walked back to the trunk of the Impala and pulled out the first-aid kit. Luckily the bullet had only grazed him. The wound wouldn't even needed stitches, although it hurt like hell. Sam quickly cleaned and bandaged it.

Walking confidently back into the cabin, Sam smiled at the demon. She glared back, much quieter than she had been before.

"I suppose you heard all that?" Sam inquired.

"Alvin's a moron. But don't worry, we've got other helpers. Don't forget Ryan's still out there," Rachel snapped back. "It won't be long before she sends more help."

"I'm sorry to say you don't have that long." Now that he knew where the hunters were, he had no more need of her. Sam quickly recited the exorcism spell, feeling an odd sense of satisfaction as he watched the plume of smoke melt into the ground.

Sam was almost out of the door when he heard a moan from behind him. Turning, he was surprised to see that the woman tied to the chair was still alive. Sam had thought Rachel's meatsuit was dead. Rushing over to her, he untied her bonds and she slumped against him, groaning.

"Are you ok?" Sam asked worriedly. If he had known Rachel was possessing a living person, he wouldn't have been so brutal with the knife. The woman's arms were laced with salted cuts.

"Can you hear me?" Sam put his hand behind her head, supporting it. The woman's eyes flicked open, pain written across her face. "Are you ok?"

The woman moaned again, and her eyes rolled back into her head. She was alive, but unconscious.

Shit. Sam needed to help her, especially since this was partly his fault, but he didn't have time for this. He needed to find his brother and Jo. Goddamn Winchester luck had to make everything difficult.

Picking up the unconscious woman, he carried her out to the Impala, laying her down gently in the backseat.

Climbing behind the wheel, Sam fired up the engine. He carefully navigated the muscle car back to the highway. The road from the cabin was covered in fresh snow, forcing Sam to drive slowly and cautiously. Thankfully, the highway was clear, allowing him to gun it. He slid once or twice on black ice, but managed to stay in control. Sam was glad Dean had taken so much time and care in teaching him to drive on ice. Though Dean insisted he did it because he didn't want his "bull-brained brother" to crash his baby, Sam knew that Dean wanted him to be safe. Now that skill was coming into use as he rushed to save this woman and then his brother.

If he remembered correctly, the nearest hospital was nearly an hour away. He didn't have time to take her there. He needed to find Dean! Seeing no other option, he navigated the car to the local police station. They should be able to help her better than he could at the moment.

Putting the car in park, he picked up the injured woman and carried her to the front of the police station. One of the officers inside saw him through the glass door and ran outside to meet him.

"What happened?" the officer demanded.

"I don't know, I found her like this. I didn't know where the hospital was, so I brought her here," Sam lied, feigning distress. "My phone died, so I couldn't call anyone," he added, trying to make his story more believable.

"It's ok, we've got her now." The police officer took the unconscious woman from Sam's arms. Sam didn't miss the double-take the officer gave him or the look of recognition that flashed across his face. Sam was afraid this might happen. As soon as the woman was safely out of his grasp, Sam turned to leave.

"Where are you going? We need to ask you some questions," the officer called after him.

"I, uh, I left my brother alone. I need to go back and make sure he's alright," Sam replied quickly, still headed towards the car.

"Hey, stop! You can't leave yet!"

Sam ignored him and walked faster. He heard the officer curse followed by the sound of a door opening. Looking over his shoulder, he could see the officer yelling at his colleagues inside, gesturing towards him frantically. The other officers reacted immediatley, running outside.

By that time Sam was already in the Impala, starting to back out. He could hear the officer's shouts of "Stop!" and "You're under arrest!" through the busted window as he swerved back onto the highway.

This was freaking great. He was afraid someone might have recognized him or the car since that old maid had called about him earlier. Now he was probably the prime suspect in not just one, but two beatings.

Sam put these thoughts aside as he sped down the highway, concentrating instead on finding Dean and Jo. He was forced to slow when he exited the highway. The road that led past the lake and then farther up the mountain was still covered in snow. Sam could faintly see faint tire tracks from the grunt's car, giving him more confidence that he was going the right way.

After about five minutes of cautious driving, Sam started to get impatient. He cursed the snow for making him waste more time in finding his brother and friend. Sam continued forward, tapping his fingers impatiently on the steering wheel. Suddenly, he noticed an imprint on the smooth snow in front of him. Tire tracks. They looked fresher than the tracks from the grunt's car. Looking closer, Sam noticed there was something odd about the tracks. In between the two sets of tires was a smooth line, as though something had been drug behind the car. Sam had a strange feeling that these odd tracks had something to do with the missing hunters.

Praying that he was right, Sam steered the Impala off the road, following the tracks into a break in the trees. He stopped when he saw the outline of a car in the distance. Killing the engine, he silently got out and snuck slowly towards the other vehicle, taking cover in the trees off to the side. He could faintly hear voices, but he was still too far away to make them out. Sam snuck around to the side of the figures, being careful to stay hidden. For the first time, Sam got a clear view of who these people were and what was happening. There were three figures, standing by the edge of a cliff overlooking the lake.

Sam's stomach plummeted as he took in the situation. Before he could react, one of the figures was roughly picked up and thrown off the cliff, landing in the icy waters below with a loud splash.