A/N: This story picks up toward the end of Ep 2.19 Folsom Prison Blues, but goes AU from there. Dialogue from the episode is in bold. I don't own anything, just playing in the Supernatural sandbox.

—-

Chapter 1

—-

Letting themselves get arrested and thrown in jail, just to help an old Marine buddy of Dad's was beyond stupid. And that's even before taking into account the Feds showing up so quickly to wreak havoc and make things worse. If they ever got out of this Sam was going to kill his brother.

"Dean. This is, without a doubt, the dumbest, craziest thing we've ever done. And that's in a long, storied career of dumb and crazy."

"Calm down. It's all part of the plan." Sam just stared at Dean, who smirked confidently back at him.

"Oh really? So Henriksen showing up was part of the plan?"

"Yeah, that guy moves a little faster than I thought." Dean paused briefly, eyes darting away, but quickly covered his concern and pasted a cocky smile back on. "Look, all we gotta do is find this ghost, put the sucker down... then grab ourselves a couple of teardrop tattoos."

"That's not funny. Dean, what about this escape plan? It –"

"It's 100 percent sure. I wouldn't have gone if it wasn't." Dean was kind of offended that Sam didn't trust him on this. He might be reckless with his own life, but never with Sam's, and he should know that!

Their first day in prison passed somewhat uneventfully…if you didn't count Dean ending up in solitary - complete with a visit from the ghost who killed another inmate. Sam was extremely relieved to find Dean in the exercise yard the next morning, almost as relieved as he was annoyed by how unmoved he seemed to be by his ordeal. Trying to focus on the hunt, he tamped down on the anger flooding his system. He knew he wasn't angry at Dean, not really. No, he was terrified for him. Henriksen here meant if they messed up in any way Dean would be headed to Milwaukee to be tried and likely convicted for murders he did not commit but could not prove himself innocent of. Sam would be damned before he lost his brother, and he knew he had to keep them to plan in order to make sure the worst didn't happen.

It took another fight for Dean (this time as a diversion for Sam as he accessed the old cell block and burned the remaining blood of the guy they thought was the killer ghost) and a trip to the infirmary to figure out it was actually a former nurse doing the killing. Armed with the information they needed to put her spirit to rest, they prepared to make their escape as planned. Deacon pulled them out of the yard in handcuffs and into a deserted bathroom. He quickly uncuffed them and then shared the information their lawyer had found on where to find the nurse's remains.

"All right, then, let's get you the hell out of here." Deacon said, removing a vent cover on the bathroom wall.

"Don't worry, Deacon. We'll get rid of this thing." Dean said confidently.

"Good, 'cause I want it out of my prison. Boys, uh... I can't thank you enough for this. I know it was asking a lot but you still came through. Your daddy ... raised you right."

"Well, we owed you." Sam responded, echoing Dean's earlier words to him.

"Yeah." Deacon smiled and hugged both boys. "Hope to see you again, huh? Just ... not in here, okay?"

Sam smirked at that. "Yeah, we'll do our best."

Heading for the vent, Dean turned back with a grin to Deacon. "Oh... Where do you want it?"

Deacon was confused. "What?" Seeing Dean's smile grow, he realized exactly what he meant, and smiled back ruefully, pointing to his cheek. "Yeah, um… Um... Make it look real, son."

Dean knocked Deacon out with a single punch, and then led the way into the vent. He was barely in though before he heard Sam cry out. The vent was too narrow for him to turn, or even easily back up, so he paused, trying to hear what was going on behind him. A loud cry of "Go Dean!" propelled him reluctantly forward. He was beyond frustrated that he couldn't help Sam, but knew if he too was caught, not only would they probably be screwed six ways to Sunday, but the ghost would continue to haunt the prison and kill prisoners…which now at least for the immediate future apparently would continue to include Sam. "I'll get you out Sammy." he whispered, even as he scrambled madly to get out and to his car before the guards discovered where he had gone. Thankfully, the vent dumped him out almost directly next to the Impala, and he's in the car and peeling down the road just as the alarms begin sounding throughout the prison yard. Finally pulling off in a hidden copse of trees to figure out directions to the cemetery, he banged on the steering wheel in frustration. Sam had been reluctant to do this job from the get-go, and now he was trapped…and if he knew Henriksen, was about to be bait and leverage. He hoped Deacon escaped suspicion, because he was going to need his help to get his brother back. However, one task at a time…first he needed to rid the prison of a bitchy dead nurse.

—-

Sam banged his head back against the wall in frustration. They had both been so close to freedom…but just as he was climbing into the vent someone had grabbed his ankle and pulled him back out. Before he could see what was happening, a gun barrel to the temple had rendered him unconscious. He had woken in solitary and chains…it seemed a bit of overkill, but apparently Henriksen was beyond pissed and he was the scapegoat for that anger.

Trying to see anything through the slit in the door, the only thing Sam could determine was he was most likely in the old wing that had just been reopened, because he seemed to be completely alone in this cell block. Settling back against the wall, his handcuffs rubbed painfully - he kept forgetting they were there until inadvertently moving and being brought up short - he softly knocked his head back against the wall again.

"Our escape plan is 100% sure." he spoke mockingly into the silence. "Damn it Dean!" You better at least snuff that ghost, so I only have one enemy to fight! Even as he thought it, Sam had total confidence that the ghost would be vanquished, which calmed him considerably. Assuming of course Dean hadn't been captured himself as he was escaping. No one had been by since he had regained consciousness in this cell, so he couldn't even ask.

Assuming Dean did make it to freedom, Sam knew he would already be scheming a way to get him out of there…which actually worried him more than his current situation. While he certainly did not want to remain in jail, he knew Dean and the lengths he would go to for him. He knew if necessary Dean would trade his own life for Sam's, and that terrified him. Realizing his breathing had sped up, Sam tried to focus on calming his heart and mind, reminding himself that they had an ally in Deacon, and possibly in their lawyer as well. He didn't need to go to worst case scenario thoughts just yet. Trying to get as comfortable as one can in a cold, empty concrete cell in handcuffs and ankle cuffs, Sam resigned himself to wait until an opportunity for escape or rescue presented itself.