Supernatural fic - Stranger Than Fiction (Chapter 2/3)
Title: Stranger than Fiction
Author: ficlover
Characters: Winchesters, OCs, no romantic pairing
Rating: PG-13 (for a tiny bit of language)
Spoilers: The first few eps of Season 4 if anything
Status: This is COMPLETE! I will post the chapters regularly.
Warnings: Lots of OCs, but used in a way to discuss the Winchesters. There is a brief mention of a past John/OFC and Dean/OFC, but you'd have to look hard to have it mean anything.
Summary: Sam and Dean head to Virginia on a case and get more than they bargained for and Sam realizes that what they do for a living does matter after all.
Chapter 1
Dolores watched as the boys came downstairs and headed out to their car. They carried themselves in that old familiar way and there were very few words traded. This was it. She prepared every time, but every time she felt the cold fist of panic grip her.
She picked up the phone and did her part by making the phone calls she had been making for years. She knew Veronica would head over soon so they could keep each other company in their fears while waiting for the sound of the front door opening to signify all was well. Then the phone calls would begin anew.
**************************
Veronica hung up and frowned. She hated nights like this.
She glanced over at the card on the mantle and smiled. She had to remember it would be okay if she believed it would. It always was.
She grabbed a deck of cards and made sure she had her overnight bag before walking out the door to head for a rousing slumber party with Dolores.
If they were lucky, they’d get some sleep. But they never did before so she doubted anything would change now.
She thought back on her run-in with Sam and Dean at Clyde's. She could have sworn Sam held onto her a moment more than he would have to if she was a complete stranger to him. Then again, Sam had always worn his heart on his sleeve. She knew she meant a lot to him at one point in his life. She knew they weren't supposed to act like they noticed when one of the Winchesters slipped up, but it made her feel good to know she'd meant enough to not be forgotten, even if they made so certain the townsfolk believed otherwise.
Dean, though... She was pretty sure he recognized her stern glare for what it was. She should have known he'd pick up one of the naked women magazines at Clyde's. She'd caught him in that same store more than once trying to get a peek. And just like before, she'd clear her throat, give him a glare and watch as he put it down, embarrassed.
It was history repeating itself. She didn't know if that was confirmation that their relationship was special enough to remain the same or if it was just the fact that Dean had never really grown up and was still a big child satisfying his basic pleasures.
She laughed as she headed out the door. If she were a gambling woman, she'd bet on the latter.
***********************
Mark kissed his wife goodbye and headed for Clyde’s. He wondered how they’d gotten messed up in this crazy game, but figured it was fate and chose not to question it.
He greeted Clyde at the store and took the package which was prepared for him every time. Clyde never had kept him waiting. The sun was setting already and tonight Clyde would close early as he did every time.
Mark walked out the door and turned back to Clyde. “Don’t forget to disarm the alarm system, Clyde.”
Clyde grinned. “I always do.”
***********************
Henry glanced up as Mark walked into the police station.
“You’re late.”
“I’m not late.”
Henry looked outside. “It’s dark. You know when they’re in town we don’t go out after dark.”
“They’re in Stranberg, remember?”
“T’ain’t no reason to be careless.”
“Hey, I did my job. You just do yours. Did you call Wade?”
“Yes, I called Wade. I told him I had some guys up his way and to steer clear. He’ll call if something happens that I need to handle.”
Mark pulled out the junk food and the beer from the package he’d gotten at Clyde’s and then pulled out some cards from his pocket. “You think it’s going to be a long night?”
“It’s never easy to tell with them…”
The men sat up and waited, not really into the poker game at all, hoping Stranberg Chief of Police Wade Randall never had cause to pick up the phone.
**************************
Clyde awoke with a start. It took him a moment to realize something had crashed in the store below his apartment. That was never a good sign.
He slowly moved downstairs and opened the door slightly. As he feared, someone was getting into the liquor. He had hoped nobody would show up, but if they needed the liquor, it must be bad enough to call Nancy and Zeke.
He went upstairs and dialed the familiar number.
******************************
Dr. Zeke Harper groaned as the phone rang. He nudged Nancy, his nurse and wife of 25 years.
“Probably Clyde. Best get things ready.”
Nancy scrambled into something to wear while Zeke answered the phone. “Clyde?”
He listened for a bit and sighed. “Thanks, Clyde. I'll let you know if we have to postpone. What? Oh yeah, Nancy was going to make that chicken dip of hers.”
Zeke laughed and then sobered at Nancy’s glare.
“Now Clyde, that only happened once and it was bad mayonnaise in egg salad. There’s no mayo in the chicken dip.”
Nancy stomped out to the living room.
“Thanks, Clyde… Bye.”
Zeke walked out and put his hands on Nancy’s shoulders. “It was kinda funny, you know. They ended up having to stick around for a few days more that time.”
Nancy rolled her eyes and pulled her graying blonde hair back in a ponytail. “Who’d have thought a little guy like that could eat so much?”
Zeke shook his head, thinking of their own sons. He had to admit, his sons had never put food away like that. With the size of Sam now, the food must have done him some good, though.
He kept his pajamas on, but donned a robe. He pulled his glasses out of the pocket of his jacket on the back of the door and tugged them on. He looked toward the kitchen, wondering how long the dinner would have to be postponed. He ran his fingers through his thick brown hair and glanced in the mirror.
He looked tired. The hair at his temples was completely gray and the mustache he’d grown after he married Nancy was more gray than brown now.
Nancy walked up behind him and looked at his reflection. “Still as handsome as the day we met.”
He turned and kissed the tip of her nose. “I thought you were their mom.”
She sighed, thinking back to the night she’d almost died. She still wasn’t sure what had come at her. She could have sworn it was her brother who shared the apartment with her, but he had never been violent with her before.
She remembered waking up to the sound of a cannon. It turned out someone or something had kicked in her door.
She knew she’d been picked up by the neck and thrown across the room. She could still swear her brother, or whoever it was, said something about how it was good to be “out.”
The thing with her brother’s face covered her mouth and wielded a large hunting knife as she screamed. A joke was made about the fact she was a virgin. Suddenly another man had burst into her room screaming about how her brother couldn't have her blood.
The man began chanting something and she swore her brother's eyes were solid black before he dropped her and attacked the strange man. She let the darkness at the edge of her vision overtake her.
The next thing she knew, she was lying on a couch at Zeke’s. He was tending to her while the man sat nearby, holding an infant and the hand of a small boy. He mumbled apologies and Zeke said something about a prowler and how her brother tried to save her, but didn't make it. When she tried to explain what had happened, he'd shushed her and told her it was the concussion talking.
The little family left once they knew she’d be okay and she’d stayed with Zeke for awhile. A year later, she went to get her nursing degree and a year after that, she became Zeke’s wife. It was only then he'd told her she hadn't imagined that night's events.
She had seen the family again, of course, but never in the best circumstances. She’d stitched up the boys and the father more times than she could count. One time she dug a bullet out of the calf of the youngest, who couldn’t have been more than 14, when Zeke was out of town. He hadn’t been able to get back in time and she was terrified she wouldn't be able to handle it.
She pretended not to hear as the father, John, screamed at the oldest boy in the next room. She was grateful the boy she was working on had passed out from the pain.
“What were you thinking? You don’t ever take him with you on a hunt without me!”
“It was an accident! I gave him the gun to protect himself. I didn’t expect him to drop it.”
“He could have been killed! You took him with you. It’s dangerous!”
“I didn’t have a choice, Dad!”
“You always have a choice!”
“What was I supposed to do? Leave him with you?”
“You should have woken me up and let me deal with it, Dean!”
“Sam was safer with me, anyway! And you’re too drunk most of the time to hold a gun straight-“
The sound of the slap was deafening.
The silence that followed was even louder.
She went back to work, knowing she couldn’t call Henry and, if she did, he’d tell her to leave it alone. Everyone knew the family was strong, but this was a rough time and she wasn’t about to judge. She had watched John with his boys a few times. He loved them quite a bit and she knew in her gut he would never beat them. That slap spoke more of a father who was terrified, who faced the reality every day that he could lose the most important people in his life.
Her thoughts were interrupted as Dean walked into the room and looked down at Sam. Dean’s cheek bore the red mark of the hit and Nancy tried not to notice the tears shimmering in his eyes as he stroked his baby brother’s hair. “Is he…?”
She nodded, finally confident in her skills. “He’s going to be fine.” She saw the tension fade from his face.
When he’d brought Sam in, he had him cradled in his arms as Sam bit into his shoulder to stop the screams from the pain. Dean had babbled about how it only hurt so much because Sam had never been shot before. Nancy was alarmed when Dean told his younger brother “You get used to it.”
Now Dean held Sam’s hand and seemed to pray for a moment. When the inner door opened, though, he bolted from the small home-based doctor’s office.
John had walked out and reached for Dean, who eluded him. “Dean, please…”
Dean kept going and John took his turn sitting next to Sam’s side. He didn’t say a word the whole night and quietly took his son back to the boarding house the next morning once the fear of infection had passed.
Nancy and Zeke had gotten used to patching up Sam and John. Dean usually didn’t need much attention.
Zeke had treated him once, though. Nancy was there, but had been banned from the room.
Zeke was thinking back on that same memory and remembered when Dean had blushed furiously as he asked him what was going on with his body.
Zeke told him to keep it in his pants, gave him some condoms and an antibiotic and sent the boy on his way.
Gunshots, stab wounds and gouges were what they treated most in the family. There had been a concussion once. That had been Sam again, though.
Zeke still remembered the night when John and Dean brought Sam in with one of his arms over each of their shoulders. The boy could barely walk and Zeke had helped the two keep watch over the boy all night.
At one point, Sam woke up and started gagging. Zeke was impressed how quick Dean pulled the wastebasket over to his brother. He rubbed his back and pressed his lips against Sam’s temple, whispering words of encouragement. “I’ve got ya, Sammy. Just let it go…”
Tonight, Zeke waited and hoped that nothing was ever going to be beyond his capabilities where they were concerned.
***************************
Henry hung up the phone for the second time in five minutes.
“Well?” Mark was anxious. When the phone rang the first time, they were nervous, but it was only Clyde. Before Henry could tell Mark what was going on, the phone rang again. This time it was Chief Randall and Mark could barely breathe.
Henry frowned. “Clyde said they came for the liquor.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah, and Wade said the three missing people? They showed up at the police station tonight. They’re dazed, but not seriously hurt. Wade said they were strung up in one of the caves. Apparently one of them… well, he said something about a creature trying to eat them. Wade’s attributing it to shock.”
“So… why do you look so worried?”
“They were covered in blood… and it wasn’t theirs…”
Henry picked up the phone again to make more phone calls. The traditional send off dinner might have to wait.
******************************
Zeke sent Nancy into the bedroom as he heard the door open. He was glad he remembered to unlock the door. Once he’d forgotten and had to replace a glass pane. Nancy had never let him live it down.
The dark figure slowly made his way toward the supply area of the doctor’s office. Zeke waited until the intruder was too far inside to make his way out before being caught and then turned on a light in the hallway. He made some noise to let the robber know he was coming.
As he thought, one of the boys was there and he was holding a gun on him as soon as he was in sight.
But this time there was no look of hard determination in the boy’s face. This time it wasn’t the same boy as usual.
This time it was Sam, and he was scared.
Zeke frowned. He and Nancy had never had much contact with Sam. When it came to John and Dean, they would dance the same dance. Zeke would confront the robber, get a gun pulled on him, he'd see a flicker of recognition in the robber's eyes and then they'd pretend to order him to help and he would.
Sam was always so out of it when he came in due to one thing or another. If Dean brought John in, he was alone. Sam would always be at the boarding house under the watchful eye of Delores. And John was always the one who brought Dean in for a stitch or two.
Zeke wondered if he and Nancy were in real danger this time, but figured he'd do his part of the same old dance and see if Sam would follow.
Zeke glanced at the bandages in Sam’s arms. “Problem, son?”
Sam shook his head and lowered the gun slightly. “My brother…”
“Okay, I’m a doctor. I can help.” With Sam's inexperience, he figured he'd better offer the help right away instead of make the boy ask. Dean would have known Zeke would help right away, even if he pretended he’d never laid eyes on him before.
“Nancy!”
He knew Sam was terrified because the boy quickly stuck the gun in the back of his jeans, despite knowing for sure he could trust them not to call the police. Something was forcing him to trust a stranger and Zeke took that as a bad sign. He followed Sam out to the car and helped pull Dean out. There was a lot of blood, more than he could imagine coming from one source, but he didn’t want to know any more detail than he had to.
Nancy was waiting for them when they returned. She’d cleared the way to the exam table and had a variety of instruments in place. She saw the shocked look on Sam’s face at how prepared they were. After all, it had only been a couple of minutes since he’d broken in.
Nancy tried to get Sam to go into the living room and sit, but it was no use. He wouldn’t leave his brother’s side.
Zeke was glad to see Dean wasn’t wearing the leather jacket. He’d tried to cut through that once to stitch up Dean’s back and had nearly lost his hand. The tee shirt had to go, though, and Zeke picked up the scissors.
Sam jumped up and leveled the gun at Zeke again. Nancy shrieked, completely caught off guard by Sam’s behavior and let it all slip.
“Sam Winchester, you put that gun down right now!”
Sam blinked and looked at her with confusion all over his face.
“You… know my name?”
“Of course I do, now stop being a jerk and let us work on Dean.”
Sam shook his head and then leaned close to her. “Christo!”
She rolled her eyes. “Sit down, Sam!” She pointed to a chair. “And if I see that gun again, you’re going to have to find a damn good surgeon to take it out from where I’m gonna shove it.”
He immediately obeyed as a fleeting look of recognition crossed his face, and Zeke couldn’t help but laugh. “Welcome to my world, kid.”
Nancy walked over to check on Dean. “How bad is it?”
Zeke finished cutting through what was left of the shirt and moved the material aside. “Bad.”
Nancy gasped. There was no way a simple animal could have inflicted so much damage. His stomach was torn open and Sam stood up to see why she was so upset.
Nancy quickly pushed Sam back down in the chair. “No, Sam. You don’t want to see this, okay?”
She knew it was killing Sam not to be right by Dean's side. His labored breathing and the quick tapping of his foot warned her of an oncoming panic attack.
"Sam, I need you to breathe for me, okay? He's in good hands, but you can't help him if you're laid up, too. Just... breathe, Sam.
She went back to work, surprised Dean hadn’t been completely disemboweled.
Nancy glanced at Sam, making sure he hadn't seen the look of horror that must have passed over her face.
But she saw Sam was too busy concentrating on counting out loud to help him breathe normally.
Good boy...
Zeke calmly told Nancy what he needed and she provided it instantly. The damage was extensive and it wasn’t until Nancy felt the tap tap tapping on her shoe that she noticed there was blood coming from Dean’s head as well.
She got a washcloth and turned to Sam. “I need your help, Sam.”
When he practically ran up to help, she put a hand on his arm to calm him. “I need you to wet this and very gently use it to wash the blood from his head and face. Zeke and I already washed up so we’re fine by his belly, but until you get cleaned up, you stay away from it, okay?”
Sam nodded and took the cloth.
Zeke and Nancy continued to work, trying to ignore Sam’s pleas with his brother to not leave him alone.
**********************
Hours later, as the sun was coming up, Nancy picked up the phone for another round of updates and to verify dinner was postponed indefinitely. Zeke collapsed into a chair, grateful Clyde had gotten some sleep so he could take first watch once Nancy talked to him.
He glanced over at Sam. It had been a rough night for the boy. Dean’s head had been injured, but it was his neck wound that they’d missed. If they hadn’t acted quickly once Sam had cleaned the area, Dean would have bled to death.
“So… Sam… how’d this happen?”
Sam shrugged. “Bear.”
“Bear… okay, well tell me something… How did the bear get him?”
Sam mumbled something and Zeke leaned closer. “What’s that?”
Sam rubbed his hands over his face as if it were only weariness making his eyes tear up. “I said, it was my fault.”
“How do you figure?”
“I was…. cutting some supplies down and I wasn’t paying attention. It… it snuck up behind me and Dean… he just jumped it. I had the… um… the hunting knife. I was supposed to be taking care of it while Dean went to the car and got some other supplies, but… I didn’t pay attention. Dean was unarmed because he’d given his knife to me.”
Zeke wondered what weapon they were really using since Sam kept hesitating every time he said knife. By the charred sections on both mens’ clothing, he figured it was some sort of flamethrower. He was pretty sure the supplies were actually the people they’d saved that Henry told Nancy about on the first round of updates.
“You’re telling me he tried to hand to hand wrestle with a bear?... “
“Yeah.”
Zeke sighed. “He’s lucky. So are you.”
“I guess… Look, thanks for everything. I know you didn’t have to, since I broke in and all.”
“Door was unlocked anyway. And you know… it wasn’t your fault what happened to your brother. I have a feeling he cares an awful lot. In fact, I’m sure he wouldn’t hesitate to break into this office more than a few times to save your butt.”
Sam frowned. “Yeah, maybe…”
Nancy sat down next to Sam. “Alright, a friend of ours is coming over to watch your brother. We’re going to get some sleep.”
“I can’t… we have to get going and…”
Zeke shook his head. “Dean’s not going anywhere for awhile. He’s got a lot of healing to do.”
“You don’t understand… we can’t just… stay.”
Zeke shrugged. “You’re gonna have to, son.” Sam seemed resigned and Zeke leaned forward and tapped Sam’s knee. “Hey, go out in your car and bring that whiskey in. I could use some.”
Sam stood up. “Sure, I’ll be- uh… hey, how did you know that I had-“
Zeke waved him off. “Never you mind. Just get it.”
Sam left and Zeke smiled at Nancy. “I can’t believe he thought bandages and some liquor would do it. I guess it’s a good thing we were here.”
She grinned. “I guess it is.”
TBC...
Author: ficlover
Characters: Winchesters, OCs, no romantic pairing
Rating: PG-13 (for a tiny bit of language)
Spoilers: The first few eps of Season 4 if anything
Status: This is COMPLETE! I will post the chapters regularly.
Warnings: Lots of OCs, but used in a way to discuss the Winchesters. There is a brief mention of a past John/OFC and Dean/OFC, but you'd have to look hard to have it mean anything.
Summary: Sam and Dean head to Virginia on a case and get more than they bargained for and Sam realizes that what they do for a living does matter after all.
Chapter 1
Dolores watched as the boys came downstairs and headed out to their car. They carried themselves in that old familiar way and there were very few words traded. This was it. She prepared every time, but every time she felt the cold fist of panic grip her.
She picked up the phone and did her part by making the phone calls she had been making for years. She knew Veronica would head over soon so they could keep each other company in their fears while waiting for the sound of the front door opening to signify all was well. Then the phone calls would begin anew.
**************************
Veronica hung up and frowned. She hated nights like this.
She glanced over at the card on the mantle and smiled. She had to remember it would be okay if she believed it would. It always was.
She grabbed a deck of cards and made sure she had her overnight bag before walking out the door to head for a rousing slumber party with Dolores.
If they were lucky, they’d get some sleep. But they never did before so she doubted anything would change now.
She thought back on her run-in with Sam and Dean at Clyde's. She could have sworn Sam held onto her a moment more than he would have to if she was a complete stranger to him. Then again, Sam had always worn his heart on his sleeve. She knew she meant a lot to him at one point in his life. She knew they weren't supposed to act like they noticed when one of the Winchesters slipped up, but it made her feel good to know she'd meant enough to not be forgotten, even if they made so certain the townsfolk believed otherwise.
Dean, though... She was pretty sure he recognized her stern glare for what it was. She should have known he'd pick up one of the naked women magazines at Clyde's. She'd caught him in that same store more than once trying to get a peek. And just like before, she'd clear her throat, give him a glare and watch as he put it down, embarrassed.
It was history repeating itself. She didn't know if that was confirmation that their relationship was special enough to remain the same or if it was just the fact that Dean had never really grown up and was still a big child satisfying his basic pleasures.
She laughed as she headed out the door. If she were a gambling woman, she'd bet on the latter.
***********************
Mark kissed his wife goodbye and headed for Clyde’s. He wondered how they’d gotten messed up in this crazy game, but figured it was fate and chose not to question it.
He greeted Clyde at the store and took the package which was prepared for him every time. Clyde never had kept him waiting. The sun was setting already and tonight Clyde would close early as he did every time.
Mark walked out the door and turned back to Clyde. “Don’t forget to disarm the alarm system, Clyde.”
Clyde grinned. “I always do.”
***********************
Henry glanced up as Mark walked into the police station.
“You’re late.”
“I’m not late.”
Henry looked outside. “It’s dark. You know when they’re in town we don’t go out after dark.”
“They’re in Stranberg, remember?”
“T’ain’t no reason to be careless.”
“Hey, I did my job. You just do yours. Did you call Wade?”
“Yes, I called Wade. I told him I had some guys up his way and to steer clear. He’ll call if something happens that I need to handle.”
Mark pulled out the junk food and the beer from the package he’d gotten at Clyde’s and then pulled out some cards from his pocket. “You think it’s going to be a long night?”
“It’s never easy to tell with them…”
The men sat up and waited, not really into the poker game at all, hoping Stranberg Chief of Police Wade Randall never had cause to pick up the phone.
**************************
Clyde awoke with a start. It took him a moment to realize something had crashed in the store below his apartment. That was never a good sign.
He slowly moved downstairs and opened the door slightly. As he feared, someone was getting into the liquor. He had hoped nobody would show up, but if they needed the liquor, it must be bad enough to call Nancy and Zeke.
He went upstairs and dialed the familiar number.
******************************
Dr. Zeke Harper groaned as the phone rang. He nudged Nancy, his nurse and wife of 25 years.
“Probably Clyde. Best get things ready.”
Nancy scrambled into something to wear while Zeke answered the phone. “Clyde?”
He listened for a bit and sighed. “Thanks, Clyde. I'll let you know if we have to postpone. What? Oh yeah, Nancy was going to make that chicken dip of hers.”
Zeke laughed and then sobered at Nancy’s glare.
“Now Clyde, that only happened once and it was bad mayonnaise in egg salad. There’s no mayo in the chicken dip.”
Nancy stomped out to the living room.
“Thanks, Clyde… Bye.”
Zeke walked out and put his hands on Nancy’s shoulders. “It was kinda funny, you know. They ended up having to stick around for a few days more that time.”
Nancy rolled her eyes and pulled her graying blonde hair back in a ponytail. “Who’d have thought a little guy like that could eat so much?”
Zeke shook his head, thinking of their own sons. He had to admit, his sons had never put food away like that. With the size of Sam now, the food must have done him some good, though.
He kept his pajamas on, but donned a robe. He pulled his glasses out of the pocket of his jacket on the back of the door and tugged them on. He looked toward the kitchen, wondering how long the dinner would have to be postponed. He ran his fingers through his thick brown hair and glanced in the mirror.
He looked tired. The hair at his temples was completely gray and the mustache he’d grown after he married Nancy was more gray than brown now.
Nancy walked up behind him and looked at his reflection. “Still as handsome as the day we met.”
He turned and kissed the tip of her nose. “I thought you were their mom.”
She sighed, thinking back to the night she’d almost died. She still wasn’t sure what had come at her. She could have sworn it was her brother who shared the apartment with her, but he had never been violent with her before.
She remembered waking up to the sound of a cannon. It turned out someone or something had kicked in her door.
She knew she’d been picked up by the neck and thrown across the room. She could still swear her brother, or whoever it was, said something about how it was good to be “out.”
The thing with her brother’s face covered her mouth and wielded a large hunting knife as she screamed. A joke was made about the fact she was a virgin. Suddenly another man had burst into her room screaming about how her brother couldn't have her blood.
The man began chanting something and she swore her brother's eyes were solid black before he dropped her and attacked the strange man. She let the darkness at the edge of her vision overtake her.
The next thing she knew, she was lying on a couch at Zeke’s. He was tending to her while the man sat nearby, holding an infant and the hand of a small boy. He mumbled apologies and Zeke said something about a prowler and how her brother tried to save her, but didn't make it. When she tried to explain what had happened, he'd shushed her and told her it was the concussion talking.
The little family left once they knew she’d be okay and she’d stayed with Zeke for awhile. A year later, she went to get her nursing degree and a year after that, she became Zeke’s wife. It was only then he'd told her she hadn't imagined that night's events.
She had seen the family again, of course, but never in the best circumstances. She’d stitched up the boys and the father more times than she could count. One time she dug a bullet out of the calf of the youngest, who couldn’t have been more than 14, when Zeke was out of town. He hadn’t been able to get back in time and she was terrified she wouldn't be able to handle it.
She pretended not to hear as the father, John, screamed at the oldest boy in the next room. She was grateful the boy she was working on had passed out from the pain.
“What were you thinking? You don’t ever take him with you on a hunt without me!”
“It was an accident! I gave him the gun to protect himself. I didn’t expect him to drop it.”
“He could have been killed! You took him with you. It’s dangerous!”
“I didn’t have a choice, Dad!”
“You always have a choice!”
“What was I supposed to do? Leave him with you?”
“You should have woken me up and let me deal with it, Dean!”
“Sam was safer with me, anyway! And you’re too drunk most of the time to hold a gun straight-“
The sound of the slap was deafening.
The silence that followed was even louder.
She went back to work, knowing she couldn’t call Henry and, if she did, he’d tell her to leave it alone. Everyone knew the family was strong, but this was a rough time and she wasn’t about to judge. She had watched John with his boys a few times. He loved them quite a bit and she knew in her gut he would never beat them. That slap spoke more of a father who was terrified, who faced the reality every day that he could lose the most important people in his life.
Her thoughts were interrupted as Dean walked into the room and looked down at Sam. Dean’s cheek bore the red mark of the hit and Nancy tried not to notice the tears shimmering in his eyes as he stroked his baby brother’s hair. “Is he…?”
She nodded, finally confident in her skills. “He’s going to be fine.” She saw the tension fade from his face.
When he’d brought Sam in, he had him cradled in his arms as Sam bit into his shoulder to stop the screams from the pain. Dean had babbled about how it only hurt so much because Sam had never been shot before. Nancy was alarmed when Dean told his younger brother “You get used to it.”
Now Dean held Sam’s hand and seemed to pray for a moment. When the inner door opened, though, he bolted from the small home-based doctor’s office.
John had walked out and reached for Dean, who eluded him. “Dean, please…”
Dean kept going and John took his turn sitting next to Sam’s side. He didn’t say a word the whole night and quietly took his son back to the boarding house the next morning once the fear of infection had passed.
Nancy and Zeke had gotten used to patching up Sam and John. Dean usually didn’t need much attention.
Zeke had treated him once, though. Nancy was there, but had been banned from the room.
Zeke was thinking back on that same memory and remembered when Dean had blushed furiously as he asked him what was going on with his body.
Zeke told him to keep it in his pants, gave him some condoms and an antibiotic and sent the boy on his way.
Gunshots, stab wounds and gouges were what they treated most in the family. There had been a concussion once. That had been Sam again, though.
Zeke still remembered the night when John and Dean brought Sam in with one of his arms over each of their shoulders. The boy could barely walk and Zeke had helped the two keep watch over the boy all night.
At one point, Sam woke up and started gagging. Zeke was impressed how quick Dean pulled the wastebasket over to his brother. He rubbed his back and pressed his lips against Sam’s temple, whispering words of encouragement. “I’ve got ya, Sammy. Just let it go…”
Tonight, Zeke waited and hoped that nothing was ever going to be beyond his capabilities where they were concerned.
***************************
Henry hung up the phone for the second time in five minutes.
“Well?” Mark was anxious. When the phone rang the first time, they were nervous, but it was only Clyde. Before Henry could tell Mark what was going on, the phone rang again. This time it was Chief Randall and Mark could barely breathe.
Henry frowned. “Clyde said they came for the liquor.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah, and Wade said the three missing people? They showed up at the police station tonight. They’re dazed, but not seriously hurt. Wade said they were strung up in one of the caves. Apparently one of them… well, he said something about a creature trying to eat them. Wade’s attributing it to shock.”
“So… why do you look so worried?”
“They were covered in blood… and it wasn’t theirs…”
Henry picked up the phone again to make more phone calls. The traditional send off dinner might have to wait.
******************************
Zeke sent Nancy into the bedroom as he heard the door open. He was glad he remembered to unlock the door. Once he’d forgotten and had to replace a glass pane. Nancy had never let him live it down.
The dark figure slowly made his way toward the supply area of the doctor’s office. Zeke waited until the intruder was too far inside to make his way out before being caught and then turned on a light in the hallway. He made some noise to let the robber know he was coming.
As he thought, one of the boys was there and he was holding a gun on him as soon as he was in sight.
But this time there was no look of hard determination in the boy’s face. This time it wasn’t the same boy as usual.
This time it was Sam, and he was scared.
Zeke frowned. He and Nancy had never had much contact with Sam. When it came to John and Dean, they would dance the same dance. Zeke would confront the robber, get a gun pulled on him, he'd see a flicker of recognition in the robber's eyes and then they'd pretend to order him to help and he would.
Sam was always so out of it when he came in due to one thing or another. If Dean brought John in, he was alone. Sam would always be at the boarding house under the watchful eye of Delores. And John was always the one who brought Dean in for a stitch or two.
Zeke wondered if he and Nancy were in real danger this time, but figured he'd do his part of the same old dance and see if Sam would follow.
Zeke glanced at the bandages in Sam’s arms. “Problem, son?”
Sam shook his head and lowered the gun slightly. “My brother…”
“Okay, I’m a doctor. I can help.” With Sam's inexperience, he figured he'd better offer the help right away instead of make the boy ask. Dean would have known Zeke would help right away, even if he pretended he’d never laid eyes on him before.
“Nancy!”
He knew Sam was terrified because the boy quickly stuck the gun in the back of his jeans, despite knowing for sure he could trust them not to call the police. Something was forcing him to trust a stranger and Zeke took that as a bad sign. He followed Sam out to the car and helped pull Dean out. There was a lot of blood, more than he could imagine coming from one source, but he didn’t want to know any more detail than he had to.
Nancy was waiting for them when they returned. She’d cleared the way to the exam table and had a variety of instruments in place. She saw the shocked look on Sam’s face at how prepared they were. After all, it had only been a couple of minutes since he’d broken in.
Nancy tried to get Sam to go into the living room and sit, but it was no use. He wouldn’t leave his brother’s side.
Zeke was glad to see Dean wasn’t wearing the leather jacket. He’d tried to cut through that once to stitch up Dean’s back and had nearly lost his hand. The tee shirt had to go, though, and Zeke picked up the scissors.
Sam jumped up and leveled the gun at Zeke again. Nancy shrieked, completely caught off guard by Sam’s behavior and let it all slip.
“Sam Winchester, you put that gun down right now!”
Sam blinked and looked at her with confusion all over his face.
“You… know my name?”
“Of course I do, now stop being a jerk and let us work on Dean.”
Sam shook his head and then leaned close to her. “Christo!”
She rolled her eyes. “Sit down, Sam!” She pointed to a chair. “And if I see that gun again, you’re going to have to find a damn good surgeon to take it out from where I’m gonna shove it.”
He immediately obeyed as a fleeting look of recognition crossed his face, and Zeke couldn’t help but laugh. “Welcome to my world, kid.”
Nancy walked over to check on Dean. “How bad is it?”
Zeke finished cutting through what was left of the shirt and moved the material aside. “Bad.”
Nancy gasped. There was no way a simple animal could have inflicted so much damage. His stomach was torn open and Sam stood up to see why she was so upset.
Nancy quickly pushed Sam back down in the chair. “No, Sam. You don’t want to see this, okay?”
She knew it was killing Sam not to be right by Dean's side. His labored breathing and the quick tapping of his foot warned her of an oncoming panic attack.
"Sam, I need you to breathe for me, okay? He's in good hands, but you can't help him if you're laid up, too. Just... breathe, Sam.
She went back to work, surprised Dean hadn’t been completely disemboweled.
Nancy glanced at Sam, making sure he hadn't seen the look of horror that must have passed over her face.
But she saw Sam was too busy concentrating on counting out loud to help him breathe normally.
Good boy...
Zeke calmly told Nancy what he needed and she provided it instantly. The damage was extensive and it wasn’t until Nancy felt the tap tap tapping on her shoe that she noticed there was blood coming from Dean’s head as well.
She got a washcloth and turned to Sam. “I need your help, Sam.”
When he practically ran up to help, she put a hand on his arm to calm him. “I need you to wet this and very gently use it to wash the blood from his head and face. Zeke and I already washed up so we’re fine by his belly, but until you get cleaned up, you stay away from it, okay?”
Sam nodded and took the cloth.
Zeke and Nancy continued to work, trying to ignore Sam’s pleas with his brother to not leave him alone.
**********************
Hours later, as the sun was coming up, Nancy picked up the phone for another round of updates and to verify dinner was postponed indefinitely. Zeke collapsed into a chair, grateful Clyde had gotten some sleep so he could take first watch once Nancy talked to him.
He glanced over at Sam. It had been a rough night for the boy. Dean’s head had been injured, but it was his neck wound that they’d missed. If they hadn’t acted quickly once Sam had cleaned the area, Dean would have bled to death.
“So… Sam… how’d this happen?”
Sam shrugged. “Bear.”
“Bear… okay, well tell me something… How did the bear get him?”
Sam mumbled something and Zeke leaned closer. “What’s that?”
Sam rubbed his hands over his face as if it were only weariness making his eyes tear up. “I said, it was my fault.”
“How do you figure?”
“I was…. cutting some supplies down and I wasn’t paying attention. It… it snuck up behind me and Dean… he just jumped it. I had the… um… the hunting knife. I was supposed to be taking care of it while Dean went to the car and got some other supplies, but… I didn’t pay attention. Dean was unarmed because he’d given his knife to me.”
Zeke wondered what weapon they were really using since Sam kept hesitating every time he said knife. By the charred sections on both mens’ clothing, he figured it was some sort of flamethrower. He was pretty sure the supplies were actually the people they’d saved that Henry told Nancy about on the first round of updates.
“You’re telling me he tried to hand to hand wrestle with a bear?... “
“Yeah.”
Zeke sighed. “He’s lucky. So are you.”
“I guess… Look, thanks for everything. I know you didn’t have to, since I broke in and all.”
“Door was unlocked anyway. And you know… it wasn’t your fault what happened to your brother. I have a feeling he cares an awful lot. In fact, I’m sure he wouldn’t hesitate to break into this office more than a few times to save your butt.”
Sam frowned. “Yeah, maybe…”
Nancy sat down next to Sam. “Alright, a friend of ours is coming over to watch your brother. We’re going to get some sleep.”
“I can’t… we have to get going and…”
Zeke shook his head. “Dean’s not going anywhere for awhile. He’s got a lot of healing to do.”
“You don’t understand… we can’t just… stay.”
Zeke shrugged. “You’re gonna have to, son.” Sam seemed resigned and Zeke leaned forward and tapped Sam’s knee. “Hey, go out in your car and bring that whiskey in. I could use some.”
Sam stood up. “Sure, I’ll be- uh… hey, how did you know that I had-“
Zeke waved him off. “Never you mind. Just get it.”
Sam left and Zeke smiled at Nancy. “I can’t believe he thought bandages and some liquor would do it. I guess it’s a good thing we were here.”
She grinned. “I guess it is.”
TBC...