Chapter Twenty-Two

Jo was woken by the sound of muffled yelling. Rubbing her eyes blearily, she looked out the windshield and was surprised to see that it was dark outside. She must have slept longer than she expected.

Hearing more shouts, she looked around until she saw her mother standing a few feet away outside the door of a building. The older woman was on her cell phone, and she looked pissed. Jo pitied whoever was on the receiving end of her wrath.

Jo glanced at Dean. He was still asleep with his head resting on her shoulder, the same position that he was in before she had fallen asleep hours ago. She sighed as she listened to his haggard breaths and saw the pain lines on his face. Even in sleep, he couldn't catch a break.

She started to smooth his matted hair off of his face, but froze when she felt the heat emitting from him. Palming his forehead, she cursed under her breath when she felt how hot he was. He was burning up.

Looking up, she saw her mother was still on the phone. She rolled down the window and heard the end of her conversation.

"Goddamnit Ted, if you do not get your sorry ass here in the next twenty minutes I swear you will never set foot in my bar again." She slammed the phone shut and stomped back over to the truck.

At the mention of Ted, Jo glanced at the sign by the door of the building and groaned when she realized where they were.

"Why the hell are we here?" Jo asked angrily as her mother opened the door of the truck. "I thought we were going to Richard's."

"Richard's got pneumonia. He's been bed-ridden for a few days," Ellen replied, slamming the truck door closed. "He can't help us." Richard was a family friend and hunter-turned-doctor. He lived about an hour from the Roadhouse and had helped them on more than one occasion when an injured hunter had stumbled into the bar. He was a good man, always willing to help and never asking for compensation. Ted, on the other hand…

"But Ted, Mom. Really?"

"Do you know of any other doctor within the tri-state area that could help us right now? Cause if you do, by all means, speak up!" Jo was taken aback by the harsh tone in her mother's voice. She was really pissed about something.

"Alright, fine, we'll get Ted's help then." Jo looked around the parking lot, noting the lack of any other cars. "Where is he?"

"He's drunk, that's where he is!" Ellen exclaimed, exasperated. Ted was a doctor who frequented the Roadhouse despite the fact that he had no connections with the supernatural whatsoever. He just stumbled in one day, unconcerned with the group of people cleaning guns in the corner or with the conversations filled with strange words like 'wendingo' or 'demon', and ordered a drink. Ellen had no idea why he kept coming to the Roadhouse, since it was by no means the closest bar to him, but he had become a regular. As a result, there had been several times when an injured hunter had been carried into the bar while he was there. He always helped and he didn't ask prying questions, and on more than one occasion Ellen had called him for help whenever Richard was unavailable. He was a damn good doctor who had saved more than one hunter's life. He was also an alcoholic, narcissistic, womanizing douchebag.

"I called him about an hour ago when I heard Richard was sick. He said he'd meet us here and help us, but apparently he got sidetracked by the bar."

"No surprise there," Jo muttered.

"So now we can just sit here and pray he gets here before his professional partner shows up and starts wondering why Dean looks like he's been tortured."

Jo glanced at the clock. It was already three in the morning; the practice opened at eight. Meaning his supernatural-oblivious partner would probably be getting there at seven. Less than four hours for the doc to get here, for Dean's hand and fever to be taken care of, and for them to leave. Awesome.

Ellen glanced at Dean, noting how pale he was and how strained his breaths were. "How's he doing?" she asked, frowning when she noticed the beads of sweat that were on his forehead despite the fact that he still shivered occasionally.

"He's really hot. I think he's got a fever."

"Damn right…I'm hot." Ellen and Jo looked at him in surprise, not having realized he was awake. If he hadn't have spoken they would have thought he was still asleep, as his eyes were still closed and he hadn't moved an inch.

"Yeah, well, you're a little too hot right now for my taste," Jo teased.

"No such thing…as too…hot," Dean struggled to speak through pained breaths.

"You feel up to going inside?" Ellen asked.

"Where?" Dean cracked his eyes open to slits.

"We're at a doctor's office."

"No hospitals."

"It's not a hospital. It's a local doctor who's helped hunters before. It's safe, don't worry," Jo reassured him.

"'K. How's Sam?"

"We haven't heard anything from him yet. I wouldn't worry too much, though. Sam knows how to take care of himself," Ellen replied gently.

Dean closed his eyes again, but didn't answer. Jo guessed he was fighting down the worry he had for his brother and the misplaced guilt he had for leaving him. Jo decided that was not what he needed to focus on at the moment.

"Come on, let's get inside and out of this cold," Jo carefully helped Dean slide out of the truck. He let out a whimper when his injured leg bumped against the door, but Jo didn't comment on it. She knew the last thing Dean wanted was them motherhenning over him more than they already were. He leaned heavily against her, unable to put any weight at all on his left leg. Jo frowned at that. The bullet-wound was obviously hurting him more than it had before.

Together they struggled to the door of Ted's practice, Jo practically carrying Dean. They got to the door just as Ellen finished picking the lock. Jo slowly guided Dean towards one of the examination rooms and carefully helped him lay down on the bed. He let out a hiss when his flayed back came into contact with the new surface, then relaxed and closed his eyes.

Jo immediately rolled up the leg of his pants until she could remove the bandages. She took in a sharp breath when she saw the red, puffy skin surrounding the pus-filled hole. It was much worse than it had been when they last checked it. No wonder he had a fever. She gestured quickly to her mom, not wanting to worry Dean with this new predicament until it was necessary.

Ellen glanced at the wound and immediately began digging around the room for Ted's medical supplies. When she didn't find any, she left to search the rest of the office. She was just coming back into the room with antibiotics and rubbing alcohol in hand when they heard the front door open.

"Why the hell is my freakin' door open?!" a man bellowed down the hall. Ted had arrived.

Jo immediately went to pacify him. "It's ok, Ted, it's just us."

At the sight of Jo, the anger left Ted's face only to be replaced by a cheeky grin.

"Well, that's ok then. Who could object to having a pretty woman in front of them?" He stepped closer to Jo, eyeing her up and down. Jo was suddenly very glad she was still wearing Sam's baggy shirt instead of her more form-fitting tank top.

"He's in here," Jo turned to lead him towards Dean and jumped when a hand slapped her butt. She spun around, grabbing Ted's wrist and twisting, wiping the smug smile off his face.

"Do NOT touch me again," she warned before releasing him. The only reason she didn't knock him unconscious right then and there was that they needed him to help Dean. God, she hated Ted.

"Oh, the kitty's got claws," Ted said as he followed her down the hall, rubbing his wrist. Jo gritted her teeth, deciding to ignore the comment.

Ellen was in the middle of cleaning the pus from the bullet wound when they walked in. Dean had his eyes closed, but his shallow breathing and the way his face twitched when Ellen touched the wound betrayed his wakeful state.

"Damn, he looks like shit," Ted whistled as he entered the room. "You on the other hand…" He gave Ellen an appreciative stare.

"It's about time you got here," Ellen retorted shortly.

"Sorry, I had to get myself ready for work," he replied, the shit-eating grin back in place.

"With a bottle of Jack?"

"Actually with a few glasses of smooth brandy. It really hits the spot."

Ellen looked at him in disgust. "You better not be too drunk to work."

"Oh, honey, you'd be surprised at what I can do after a few drinks." Three sets of eyes glared at him for the attempted innuendo.

"Just do your job," Ellen sighed.

"Oh, yes, my job. You see, the thing about jobs is, I usually get paid for them. Otherwise it's just volunteer work, and I just don't have time…"

"I'll give you free drinks for a year."

"Let's get to work."

Ted began washing his hands in the sink in the corner. "What's the damage?"

"Fever, infected gun-shot wound, several stab wounds, couple broken ribs, broken arm, punctured hand, chemical burns, multiple slashes, and flayed back," Jo listed Dean's injuries.

"And he's had a seizure and been in shock since we've been with him," Ellen added.

"Is he epileptic?" Ted asked, taking Dean's pulse.

"No," Dean answered quietly.

"How long was the seizure?"

"Just a few minutes. It wasn't long. But he was shocked severely with a shock collar."

Ted nodded, taking in the information. "Any allergies?"

"No," Dean answered again.

"What have you given him?"

"Just some over-the-counter pain meds, some IV fluids, and about a pint of blood."

Ted nodded again. "Alright, I'm going to need you ladies to get me some things." He continued on, describing what he supplies he needed and where to get them. Ellen and Jo sprang into action, rushing to do as he said. Jo was in the middle of hunting down some gauze when she heard Dean scream. She immediately dropped what she was doing and ran back to the room.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Jo yelled at the doctor.

"Relax, I just set his arm."

"Without any pain meds?"

"This isn't a hospital, sweetcheeks. I'm not bursting with pain meds."

"Jo, it's ok…ah, son of a bitch..." Dean moaned out, curling himself around his arm. "I'm ok…" He didn't look ok, with his eyes squeezed shut in pain and his irregular breaths. Jo knew from personal experience that having a bone set hurt like a bitch. And that was with pain medication.

"But you do have them, right?" Jo asked a little desperately. Dean had been in pain long enough.

"I do, but I don't think it's a good idea to give him what I have until he's more stable. That is, unless you want to screw up his immune system even more," he added with a warning tone, stopping Jo from protesting. "Now go get cleaned up. Can't have you helping if you're covered if grime. No matter how hot it makes you look." He winked seductively at her.

"How about you think with your upstairs brain for a change?" Jo asked in exasperation as she walked over to the sink.

"I can't help how being around a pretty girl affects me."

Jo was trying very hard to keep herself from knocking him to the ground when she heard Ted grunt in pain. When she turned around, she saw that Dean had beaten her to the punch. Literally. Ted was doubled over on the ground, clutching his crotch.

"Don't talk to her like that, asshat," Dean spat at him.

Ted groaned again as Ellen walked back into the room. She glanced down at the moaning doctor and sighed. "What happened?"

"I'm getting treated by a douchebag, that's what," Dean replied angrily. He was shaking as he tried to keep himself in a position where he could watch Ted on the ground.

"I'm TREATING a douchebag," Ted growled back. He rolled to his feet and stormed towards the door, albeit a little tenderly. "I'm not getting paid enough to put up with this," he hollered as he left the room.

Ellen sighed again, then put down her supplies and headed after him.

"Thanks, Dean," Jo said when her mom had left.

"Why are we even putting up with this jerk? We don't need his help that badly."

"If you ever want your hand to heal, we do."

"I should've punched him harder," Dean groaned as he rolled back onto his back. The spout of adrenaline he had gotten at Ted's words was wearing off and exhaustion was setting back in.

"I appreciate you protecting me, but we need his help. Can you at least try to behave yourself?" Jo asked a little resentfully. She hated having to work with Ted as much as Dean did. "When he's done treating you, then you can kick his ass straight to hell. Deal?" Dean nodded disgruntledly.

After a few minutes, Ellen came back to the room followed by a sullen Ted. It had taken the promise of two years of free drinks plus a table reserved in his name every night to convince him to come back. Ted and Dean glared at each other, but neither of them said anything as Ted got to work.

Two and a half hours later, and Dean was looking better than he had since the rescue. His wounds were bandaged and cleaned, the infection was clearing, his hand was stitched up, his arm was in a brace, and his ribs were wrapped. He had regained a little color and the fever had gone down, though he was still weak. Dean had cheered up considerably since Sam had called and informed them that he was ok and had hot-wired a car to get him to the Roadhouse. He should be there in a few hours. Things were finally looking up.

Jo helped Dean limp back to the truck just as the sun peeked out over the horizon. "I'll be right back. There's something I want to say to Ted," she said once Dean was situated. She walked back over to where Ted was handing her mom a bag of medicine for Dean.

"Thanks for your help, Ted," Ellen said as she took the bag.

"Thanks for the free drinks," Ted replied with a smirk. "It was a pleasure doing business with you. Well, kindof." He shook Ellen's hand. Ted turned to Jo, a wry grin on his face as he offered her his hand. "And it's always a pleasure doing business with you, Jo."

Jo forced a smile as she shook his hand. As soon as he let go, she swung her fist up and gave him a strong uppercut to the jaw. He immediately collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

"Pleasure doing business with you too, Ted." She turned around and walked smugly back to the truck. She could see Dean smirking at her through the windshield.

"Feel better?" Dean asked as she climbed in beside him.

"Hell yeah. You?"

Dean grinned. "Hell yeah."

A/N: Thanks again to everyone who has reviewed, followed, and/or favorited this story! I really appreciate it! There should only be one more chapter after this