Balthazar stubbornly refused to say anything to Dean the next morning to answer any of his questions. Instead, the bastard just ordered Dean to help get his and Sammy's few belongings into Baby and and told him which direction to travel. Dean was seething with anger. If it wasn't for Sam, he would seriously consider shoving the irritating Englishman out into traffic while doing seventy. Still, whoever Balthazar was, he obviously had some skill. Even though he'd argued long and hard in favor of Dean actually abandoning his Baby (Dean made sure Balth knew exactly what he thought of that), Balthazar was able to get them safely out of town by traveling back roads Dean might not have even noticed on his own. Dean was pissed to be left in the dark on what, exactly, his brother had gotten into, but there didn't seem to be much he could do about it at the moment. He'd vetoed Balthazar being in the front seat of the beautiful car the asshole had wanted to leave behind. Beyond that, Dean largely had to be content with playing chauffeur. It was more than a little annoying. If it wasn't for Sam's obvious trust and the fact that both Sam and Balthazar were clearly on edge, Dean might have considered turning one of the strange man's blue eyes black.

Finally, Dean was well away from the town and his passengers seemed to relax a bit. Fine. "Ok," Dean called. "Start talking."

"Alright, I'll begin here." A crumpled sheet of paper was handed over the seat. "Have you seen these?"

Dean snatched the paper and glanced at it. It was a missing poster, featuring Sam's picture on one side and a police sketch on the other. The sketch bore a remarkable resemblance to Balthazar. According to the poster, Balthazar was wanted for questioning in connection with Sam's disappearance. "So you're the dickbag that everyone thinks is involved with Sam's disappearance," Dean announced, absently shoving the sketch into a pocket. "Not a surprise since I already heard about you. All that tells me, though, is that you dragged my brother into something he never should have been involved in."

"True enough," Balthazar confirmed. "However, that poster is more than a little misleading. Your brother, as you can see, is perfectly fine. I certainly didn't force him into anything."

"He's telling the truth," Sam added. "I'm here because of my own choices. No one held a gun to my head."

"From the way you were talking last night, you just missed having an actual gun to your head by the skin of your teeth," Dean pointed out.

"Yes, and the fact that it didn't happen is all thanks to Balthazar."

"Seems to me, your choice or not, he's still the reason you even came close," Dean countered. "Who the hell are you, Balthazar?"

A hand came over Dean's shoulder, fingers extended as though expecting a handshake. "Second Lieutenant Sebastian Balthazar, U.S. Army Intelligence, at your service."

Dean stared incredulously at the hand before awkwardly reaching up to shake it. "Since when do Brits join the U.S. Army?" he asked stupidly.

"Since I happened to hold dual citizenships and decided to sign up," the lieutenant explained. "My mum was American. At any rate, my mission had me undercover at your brother's school, working as a teacher's assistant for the archeology department."

"Archeology?" Dean echoed. "What, you're the English Indiana Jones? Because I swear, if you pull out a treasure map and tell me you're looking for the Arc of the Covenant…?"

"Dean," Sam warned, "do you want to hear this or not?"

Dean rolled his eyes. "Sorry. Continue."

"At any rate, I was there because the professor had made a discovery that was of great interest to military intelligence," Balthazar continued, undeterred. "It was a collection of artifacts that had been stolen by Vikings and hidden away for centuries. While I can't tell you exactly what it was…"

"I think maybe I know," Dean said slowly. His grip on Baby's wheel was white-knuckled. "Eggs, right?"

Stunned silence filled the car. "And what, exactly, would make you think that?" Balthazar asked carefully.

"Nuh uh, you first," Dean ordered. "Keep going. Sam was pre-law, not archeology, so how did he get roped into this?"

"Patience, young padawan," Balthazar intoned. "As you apparently know, the military had a rather pointed interest in those eggs. If the stories about them were true, they were the key to potential biological weapons of unparalleled power. Naturally, they wanted to get their hands on them, immediately. My job was to convince the professor to turn them over." He shrugged. "Unfortunately, she proved to be rather resistant to my charms."

"Imagine that," Dean mumbled.

"Dean!" Sam snapped. Dean rolled his eyes.

"I reported my failure back to my superiors," Balthazar continued, still unfazed by Dean's reactions. "I expected I'd be ordered to try to pay her off." He paused. "The orders I actually received were unexpected."

"I'm thinking I can maybe guess what those orders were," Dean said quietly.

Balthazar sighed. "I protested, tried to offer alternatives, but in the end, I was overruled." He paused, his face twisted into a pained grimace. "My orders were to arrange for the deaths of the professor and all the students on her team."

Dean was sure he hadn't heard correctly. "Um, what? I guessed the professor, but all the students, too?"

"I am aware," Balthazar said. "It was, bar none, the toughest assignment I was ever given, but I carried it out. I traveled out to the site in secret and replaced the actual eggs with fakes. I also altered the site, making it appear to those who came later that the professor had faked her entire discovery, which would completely discredit her. I then arranged for the bus that was transporting the team of students to the site to have an unfortunate, fatal accident. A timed device I placed went off while they were traveling, ignited the gas tank, and caused the vehicle to explode." He looked down. "I'd like to believe that they all died instantly in that explosion. I'd like to be able to justify their deaths to myself. But I cannot do either of those things. Even though I was long gone by the time it happened, I can still see their faces in my mind. In the pictures they showed at the memorial service, they're all smiling and happy, excited about their discovery. But when I think of them? All I can picture is them screaming."

"Let me get this straight," Dean began. "You not only stole the eggs, you also destroyed the reputation of a college professor and flat-out murdered her and a bunch of her archeology students?!"

"Yes," Balthazar said simply.

"Trust me, I feel the same as you do about it, probably worse," Sam said. "Especially considering the fact that one of those students was my roommate. So you can stop looking for a place to pull over so you could beat the shit out of Balthazar," he called, seeing that Dean had slowed down. "He and I already discussed the issue."

"Indeed, and a painful discussion it was, but nothing I didn't deserve," Balthazar sighed. "Orders or not, I carried them out. I'll never forgive myself for what I've done, and I've done many things I'm not proud of. This was the worst of all, the murder of innocents. Sam had every right to respond precisely as he did. He didn't say anything to me that I wasn't already saying to myself." He took a deep breath and seemed to compose himself. "Meanwhile, what I had done earned me a valuable position doing incredibly important work," he continued after a moment. "It was the pinnacle of my career, the kind of position agents like me strive their entire lives to achieve. But after what I had done, I found the weight of guilt on my soul had reached a tipping point. I could no longer look at myself without turning away in shame. My conscience weighed on me until finally, I couldn't stand it anymore. I went AWOL." He chuckled. "I nearly got myself killed in the process, but I got away. I knew I'd be hunted, though, so I did the only thing I could think to do. I ran back to the last place on the planet anyone in Intelligence would ever think to look for me."

"Stanford," Dean growled. "You went right back to the school you'd just robbed of its reputation, staff, and students. I'll tell you this, Balthazar, you've got some balls."

"Naturally, we didn't know what he'd done," Sam explained. "As far as we knew, a tragic accident had happened and cost me my roommate, his professor, and the rest of his class. We made an impromptu memorial outside of the archeology department building, posters with their names, flowers, pictures, that sort of thing. I was there alone late in the evening, paying my respects, when Balthazar showed up. I had no idea who he was at the time. All I knew was that he was in bad shape. I had to help him."

"Your brother's a good man, Dean," Balthazar said quietly. "Too good, it seems. Even though he knew that helping me could put him in danger, he never hesitated."

"Thing is, I wasn't sure what to do," Sam continued. "Jess…" He paused, swallowing hard at the mention of his girlfriend's name. "She was in nursing. I took him to her, and she tried to help him as well as she could. It worked. The next day, he was pretty much out of the woods. He was well enough to get up and talk to me, so we did. He told me that I'd saved his life, and I deserved to know exactly what it was that I'd saved. That's when he told me the truth."

"And that's when he punched me," Balthazar said. "No offense, Dean, but your brother appears to be larger and stronger than you are. After him, I'm not exactly concerned about whatever you might do to me."

"I'm ready to throw you out of this car and run you over," Dean growled. "You claim your conscience haunts you, so you brought in another innocent university student? How the hell could you bring my brother into this mess?"

"Because I had no where else to run, Sam had saved my life, and he deserved to know the truth," Balthazar replied. "Someone needed to know. I chose him." He shrugged. "I expected to get punched. I also fully expected him to turn me in, and was ready to face the consequences of my actions so long as Sam made sure the word was spread. But instead, after he hit me, he told me that he understood what it was I'd done and promised to help protect me. And for that?" He shook his head. "Your brother's act of kindness is considered an act of treason."

"How was it treason?" Dean exclaimed. "Yeah, he helped an asshole he knew was AWOL, but that isn't treason."

"No," Sam said quietly. "But helping hide what he brought with him when he went AWOL? That is absolutely treason."

Dean pulled over. He calmly put Baby in park and twisted in his seat to face a suddenly-quiet Balthazar. "What the hell did you do?"

"The eggs," Balthazar explained quietly. "Do you know what they are?"

"Dragon eggs," Dean said. "They told me there were five of them. Don't tell me there were actually six?"

That earned him a look through narrowed eyes. "How do you know anything about any of this?" Balthazar asked. "Who, exactly, is 'They?'"

"We're still talking about you right now," Dean insisted. "Answer the question before I tie you to my bumper and start dragging you down this highway."

"Back off, Dean," Sam snapped. "Balthazar risked everything, alright? Besides, it wasn't the egg he took, it was what came out of that egg."

Dean looked between his brother and the suddenly-silent man in the back seat. "Holy shit," he breathed. "Holy shit, you're the reason he was able to trick his way out, wasn't it? Because you helped him! You helped Gabriel escape! Where is he?"

Sam sputtered. "Dean, how in the hell do you know…?"

"Somewhere safe," Balthazar called over top of Sam, quieting the younger man. "Hidden away in an undisclosed location that will remain undisclosed for now. Considering the fact that everyone else outside of this car and the military who even knew he existed is now dead? I do believe that is the safest course of action all around." He grimaced and shook his head. "Everything, absolutely everything, about that entire project was wrong. Dragons were born to be the friends and saviors to humanity. They only want to help us, not fight. Those people tried to turn something that was born to help people into a killing machine. Gabriel has no interest in fighting and warfare. He wants nothing to do with a group of people who would kill innocent college kids just to hide the fact that he exists. I risked my life to get him out of that hellhole, and I continue to risk it with every passing day. For that reason, the real question for me right now is how, exactly, do you know about him?"

"Because Gabriel wasn't the last egg to hatch," Dean admitted.

Sam had gone pale. "How do you know so much about this?" He straightened, eyes bulging as he stared at his brother. "Wait, you thought that you were the reason Jess died. What the hell did you do?!"

"Same thing you did, Balthazar," Dean sighed. Pulling up his sleeve, he showed Castiel's brand to his astounded passengers. "I helped save a dragon, too. I thought, when I learned about Jess, that it was because of that. Instead, it looks like we're all wanted for treason now."

Balthazar swore creatively. "They actually went through with it," he snarled, punching the back of Dean's seat. "They hatched another egg!"

"They hatched three," Dean corrected. "We met one of them, and she's not a threat to anyone. All she wants is to be left alone to live out her life in as normal a way as she can. But the egg they hatched before her?" Dean shook his head. "That one is a problem."

"What of the last egg?" Balthazar demanded. "Where's the dragon you stole?"

"He actually stole me," Dean admitted, pulling back onto the road. "I probably would have taken off before much longer, but he got a little too much of my bad habits when he bonded with me. He got me on his back and flew off, right in front of their eyes."

Balthazar actually laughed, clapping his hands together in delight. "Good for him! Bravo on a job well done. I can completely understand why he did what he did. But you?" He pointed at Dean, his expression disapproving. "You do not appear at all to be the type of bloke who would be selected for a program as sensitive as this one. I bested you quite handily, while you barely put up a fight! I understand there's a genetic component, and that component can be a bit dear. But surely there were others that had it. Whatever made them decide to choose you to become bonded with a dragon?"

Dean scowled. "It was kind of an emergency situation," he grumbled. "Believe me when I tell you that I was absolutely not what they wanted. At all. But in my defense, I didn't even know what I was getting into. The only reason I did it was to try to save my friend."

"Aaaah," Balthazar breathed, sitting back in the seat. "I do believe I understand. You reached out for your friend, likely at the urging of the project directors, and were able to form a bond with your dragon." He snorted. "They're such a charming lot, aren't they, the directors? Tell me, is that bitch Naomi Tapping still head researcher?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Dean growled. "She experimented on Cass, and he's still traumatized by it. As to why they chose me, it was because I was the only real friend Jimmy Novak, the guy who became Castiel, had."

"So along with the genetic component, which they would have known because you're in the military, you were also the only one who could reach him," Balthazar guessed. "I can understand that."

"I can't," Sam retorted. "Look, Dean, I think I made it pretty damned clear what I thought about you the last time we spoke. Balthazar was part of that project because he was a poster boy for Army Intelligence. He was disciplined, driven, loyal… the complete opposite of you."

"I deserve that," Dean sighed.

"My point is, why would they pick you for this?" Sam asked. "My understanding is that the genetic component isn't that rare, right? So why you? I don't know about your friend Jimmy, but you're…?"

"Because the one they actually wanted died, my friend, shot himself and basically ended up brain dead. I was literally all they had left," Dean explained. "Let me start from the beginning."

Dean told his passengers the story of how Jimmy Novak had become Castiel. He told them about the plan to replace him with Ketch, Dr. Tapping's hormone, and how Cass had finally tricked everyone, running away with Dean. He explained how they'd met Raphael and what they'd learned, leading up to Castiel's illness. They both listened attentively, not interrupting at all until Dean had brought them up to date. Sam sat stiffly in his seat, lips pressed tightly together and face pale. Balthazar was quiet. After a moment, Dean glanced back at him. "You bonded with Gabriel, didn't you?" he asked the lieutenant. "That's why you're so desperate to save him."

Balthazar nodded. He pulled the neckline of his shirt down, displaying the mark of a hand on his chest briefly before quickly covering it back up. "I understand perfectly the bond you have with your Castiel," he said. "I'm also very concerned about this sickness he's got. Being out in the cold should not bother a dragon. They do not typically get sick. There's something more happening here. Are you absolutely certain that Tapping didn't give him any of that synthetic hormone of hers?"

"I'm not," Dean admitted. "I suppose she could have injected him while we were asleep or something, or maybe slipped something in his food. Do you think that caused it?"

"Maybe," Balthazar mused. "Dragons have a strong bond with their bondmates. An attempt to break their bond through hormones could actually kill them."

"That's what Raphael said," Dean agreed. "I know how strong that bond is. When they tried to trick Cass and make him believe I was afraid of him and didn't want to be bonded? He passed right out."

"Hardly unexpected, especially early in the lifetime of the bond." Balthazar rubbed at his face with one hand. "I'm worried. A dragon needs his bondmate. Something's wrong. You need to get back to him as soon as you can, and you need to stay with him."

Dean urged Baby on to greater speed, but his eyes strayed to the rearview mirror and Balthazar. "What about Gabriel? If a dragon needs his bondmate, won't he need you?"

"Don't worry about Gabriel," Balthazar said quickly. "Like I said, he's safe. It's Castiel we need to focus on right now."

Dean goosed the accelerator a bit more. Suddenly, he wanted nothing more than to get back to Castiel.