Coming Home Ch. 22

Disclaimer: See chapter one

Previously: "No, I'll do it. Thanks for letting us know," John answered, knowing that he and Mary would break the news about Norman's death to the boys tomorrow. No way was he ruining a perfect evening by mentioning that monster's name. He felt sure that after all the fun they had had, his boys would be able to sleep nightmare free for once.

Waiting until the detective returned to his car and left, John walked back over to the Impala and opened the back door as Mary climbed out of the front passenger seat. Kneeling down, he reached in and lightly shook his youngest son's shoulder.

"Sammy, it's time to wake up son," he voiced softly as he carded his fingers through the soft chestnut colored locks that adorned the boy's head, before palming his cheek lightly.

"Dad?" Dean queried in a sleep inflected voice, the pre-teen a little disoriented from having slept too little over the past few nights.

"It's alright Champ. We're home now. We just need to get the two of you inside where you can rest better," John answered with a smile as Sammy turned his head into his touch and gave a soft snore.

"Okay Tiger, looks like I'm carrying you in this evening," John whispered in contentment as he gently slid one arm under Sammy's legs and the other behind his back. Tugging the small youngster across the seat, it still amazed him how his baby boy was so small compared to most children his age. Hefting the child up into his arms, he relished in doing such a simple task, something he thought he would never be able to again only just a few short weeks ago.

Taking Dean by the arm as he climbed a little unsteadily from the car, Mary gently tugged him too her in a one-armed hug. "How about escorting your mother inside," she stated lovingly, her heart blissfully content to walk beside her eldest, something she had longed to do with either of her boys since getting them back. She couldn't help but smile just knowing that the boys were becoming more secure with her and John, letting the guard down more often now…something that she prayed would continue even more so after the boys found out they no longer had to worry about Norman.

Maybe it was wrong on her part, but she was happy that someone had finally given the barbarian a taste of his own medicine, even though the beating had killed him. If anyone in the world deserved it, it was that monster for what he had done to her boys. Sure, she thought Norman had gotten off easy, that he should have had to spend the rest of his life behind bars, yearning for the freedom he would never have again. But this way, at least her boys didn't have to testify on the stand while Norman glared at them from the courtroom floor.

Climbing the few steps up onto the porch, John shifted Sammy so that the little boy was in an upright position with his head resting comfortably on his Daddy's shoulder. Reaching into the pocket of his well-worn jeans, he fished out the keys so that he could unlock the door.

Waiting for John to unlock the door, Mary quickly sidestepped around him and rushed up the stairs to turn down the blanket and comforter on the boys' bed. Their baths could definitely wait until morning seeing as how both boys were so tired.

Carrying Sammy up the stairs as Dean walked beside him, John took great satisfaction in the way Sammy's hand drifted up to play with the hair at the nape of his neck, even though the his baby boy was fast asleep.

Entering the room as Mary finished turning down the covers, John placed Sammy on the side closest to the wall and then leaned down to kiss him softly on the forehead. "Night, Squirt," he whispered softly as he moved out of the way so that Dean could climb into the bed beside his brother.

"Goodnight Ace," John stated as he reached down to brush his hand lightly through Dean's hair. He didn't think the kid would take too kindly to a kiss on the forehead just yet, but hopefully the small show of affection would let his eldest know that he was loved and treasured too.

"Night Dad," Dean returned with a yawn as he rolled over onto his side and wrapped an arm around Sammy's waist, fading off to sleep as he felt the feather-light touch of his mother's kiss upon his cheek.

~~Later the next morning~~

"So, you mean that we never have to worry about seeing that monster again, not even in court?" Dean asked, wanting to clarify what John was saying. "Norman is gone for good."

"Yes he is," John replied, without going into full detail about what happened. Detective Labinski told me that he died in the infirmary yesterday.

"What made him die?" Sammy asked innocently as he snuggled up next to Dean's side on the couch.

"Well, he kind of got into a fight with the other prisoners in the jail and they hurt him pretty badly," John admitted, not willing to lie to his youngest. Now that he and Mary finally had their trust, he wasn't about to abuse that trust.

"You mean they beat him to death," Dean clarified as he wrapped an arm around Sammy in comfort.

"Yeah," John answered with a wince as he gazed from Dean to his youngest. He wasn't too thrilled with the image that might create in Dean's mind, much less Sammy's.

"Then he got what he deserved," Dean voiced as a matter of fact. He couldn't find it in himself to feel sorry for the man after all the beatings that he and Sammy had been through because of the degenerate man.

"It's what they call karma," Mary voiced softly as she placed a hand on Dean's knee to calm the nervousness he was feeling, as was evident by the way his keg was bouncing.

"What's karma?" Sammy inquired as he looked up at Dean.

"It means that because Norman hurt you two boys, that it was his destiny for someone to hurt him," John answered, noticing that Dean was struggling to come up with an answer that Sammy would understand.

"Oh, okay" Sammy replied with a perplexed look on his face. "What is destiny?"

"What Joh..Dad… means, is that because Norman hurt us; he was supposed to get hurt in return. Karma doesn't allow grownup to hurt kids like us without paying for it big time," Dean answered in only the way that the pre-teen could.

"Oh, then I think I like Karma because Norman sure did hurt us bad," Sammy reasoned aloud. "Can we find something else to talk about? I don't wanna talk about him anymore."

"Sure Tiger, we can talk about anything you want to," John answered with a smile as he reached out to ruffle his youngest son's hair.

~~A few weeks later~~

"Ya know honey, I can't think of anything else I would rather do than sit here and swing with you on the porch while our boys are out playing in the yard," Mary informed her husband as she snuggled up to his broad muscular chest.

"Me either," John agreed, smiling as the sound of Sammy's giggles rang through the air as he pleaded for Dean to push him higher on the tire swing. "I can't think of any sound I would rather hear either than the sound of our two boys enjoying themselves."

"A sound I thought I'd never get to hear again only a month or so ago," Mary admitted, tears misting her deep blue eyes as she gazed out lovingly at the two of the three most important people in her life.

"I know what you mean," John voiced around the lump in his throat as he thought about how things could have turned out so differently if their boys hadn't escaped from Norman when they did. "But we've got them back now and that's all that matters.

"Yes it is," Mary agreed wholeheartedly, knowing that she would soon have to call a stop to her boys' fun since the sun was setting low in the western sky which meant that the mosquitoes would soon be biting.

As they continued to watch their boys intently, both John and Mary failed to notice the evanescent form that wandered among the deep dark shadows of the trees lining their property.

THE END I hope you enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing. I'm sorry that you had to deal with long waits between some of the chapters.

Author's Note: My plan is to do a Weechester story next since I am already a couple of chapters in with writing it, and then a story that takes place just after the fire that killed Jessica…well, that is if y'all still want to read my stories. THANKS TO ALL WHO TAKE THE TIME TO REVIEW CHAPTERS. It really is the only way we have of knowing whether or not you like what we write and if you want us to continue posting.