Watch and Learn, Supernatural, NC-17, Broken!Verse
Fandom: Supernatural
Title: Watch and Learn
Characters/Pairings: Sam/Dean, John, Ellen, Bobby, Caleb, Pastor Jim, OMC
Rating: NC-17 (for thematic reasons)
Word Count: 3663
Summary: A sequel to Anything which was a Christmas request from nanakomatsu, Nothing, Something, To Be Good, Broken, To Be Strong, Nothing, No One, Alone, Yours, Mine, Better, Choice, Gathering, Betrayal, Taken, Remember, Training, Conflagration, Setting Up, Surviving, Pretending, Rescue, Revelations, Reconciliation, Waking Up, Guilt, Working On It, Effort, The Need to Talk, Please, Family, Wrong, Right There, A Plan and Dean and Sam and Dad
Summary: Gabe and Caleb get ready to take on the monster, Sam and Dean and Dad get a little help and a present of sorts...one that will change everything.
A/Ns and Warnings: Very dark. Includes memory of torture and rape and very dark violence.
Dean was asleep, finally. They only managed to get him as far as the sofa, wrapped in blankets, his hand still holding Sam’s. The fire burned low, casting low light over Sam’s face as he stared into it. John raised his head looking around them. It had to be after midnight.
His arms and back ached with the effort it had taken to get Dean up the hill and into the house. It was nothing compared to the pain in his heart from watching him fall apart like he had.
“You should go to bed.” Sam said into the silence and John jumped. He sighed and turned his head to look at John. “It’s going to be bad for a while. We’re going to need to take turns sleeping.”
John nodded. He was right. “Sam…”
Sam shook his head. “It’s okay, Dad.” He sounded so tired, so drained. “I’ve got him for now. Go, sleep.”
Sam watched him leave and sighed again, his thumb caressing over the back of Dean’s hand. He leaned back against the couch, his head against Dean’s thigh. The last hours had been trying…between his brother and his father, Sam felt like he’d been dragged through broken glass.
Seeing Dean like that…watching him fall apart…it reminded Sam of how much Dean needed him in the beginning…only somewhere inside him, Dean knew. Sam could tell that.
“Sam.”
He shifted to look up at Dean. His eyes were open and locked on Sam’s. “Yeah, Dean. I’m here.”
He nodded. “Am I?”
Sam smiled vaguely and nodded. “Yeah, Dean.”
“Okay.”
Sam reached up to brush a hand over Dean’s face. “Sleep Dean. It’s okay. I’m here. Dad’s here. You’re safe.”
“My head hurts.”
Sam imagined it probably did. There had been hours of tears and sobbing and that was after the rain and cold. “I can get you something.” He saw the fear in his brother’s eyes, even though it passed quickly. “Just in there. I’ll talk to you the whole time.”
Dean nodded wide eyed and Sam worked at getting himself upright. He’d been on the floor for hours and his body ached. He reached for his crutches. “Okay, Dean. I’m just going to step into the kitchen. There’s aspirin in the cupboard.” He got to the doorway. “I’ll be right back, okay? Just listen to my voice.” Sam kept talking, as he reached for the bottle of aspirin and tucked a bottle of water from the counter into the waistband of his sweats before hobbling back.
“See, Dean? I came right back.” Sam lowered himself back down to the floor and opened the aspirin. “Two for now, okay? You can have more later if you need.”
“Thank you.” Dean said softly after he’d taken the pills and handed the water back. Sam caressed his face and leaned in to kiss him, just on the forehead.
“Love you, Dean. Love you so damn much.”
Allen Barris was not an easy man to ruffle, he was known for his patience, his cool head. His head wasn’t cool as his plane touched down in Austin. It was nearly noon. Nearly noon, and his son was on his way into the devil’s den, he knew it. Even though Ellen said they weren’t going in until the next morning. He knew Gabe.
He had his cell phone open and dialing before he was even off the plane, shouldering his bag and moving as quickly as he could through the throngs of people. “Damn it Gabe, answer your fucking phone.”
He made a face and headed for the parking garage. He didn’t have time to mess with a rental. He was going to have to steal something. He dialed a different number and this time someone answered. “Talk to me Ellen.”
“Gabe and Caleb are almost ready.” Ellen sounded defeated, tired.
“I’m on the ground. Buy me some time.”
“I’ve argued myself hoarse, Allen. He won’t hear reason.”
“Is he there?”
“Yeah, but he won’t talk to you.”
“I thought they weren’t going in until tomorrow.”
“Gorlian’s got a flight plan filed for tonight.”
“Shit.” He found a car that was fast enough and easy to get into. “Tell me he’s prepared at least. Tell me he knows what he’s doing? Tell me he’s okay.”
Ellen took a deep breath. “I-as long as Gorlian isn’t already on to us…he’s as ready as he can be.”
“Armed?”
“Two obvious pieces they’ll find when they search him. A hypodermic hidden in a pen.”
“A hypo?” Allen got the car open and tucked the phone against his shoulder as he reached under the dash.
“Yeah. Part of his plan. We’re loading up. I have to go.”
“Ellen?”
“Yeah?”
“Take care of my boy.”
“I’ll try.”
Ellen hung up and scowled at Gabe and the hand he held out to her. On it there was a tiny tracker. “Your Daddy’s on his way.”
“Good. He’ll be helpful. Take the tracker.” Gabe’s voice was calm, mature. Ellen took the tracker and swallowed it and watched as Gabe pulled the hand held out of his jacket pocket. She had to admit, the boy looked good. The suit was impeccable. Deep navy blue over a pale blue shirt that made his eyes pop vivid and bright against his tanned face. He made a few adjustments and pinged each of the trackers before handing the device over to Gordon.
“Okay. I think we’re set. Caleb, you’re with me.”
Caleb looked up from his place next to Bobby, dropped his hand down off the collar and nodded. Gabe had dressed him in plain black, topped with the black collar. He followed Gabe to the car, the car he had gone to the airport that morning to rent, and couldn’t bring himself to look up at the others.
It was still amazing to him what the collar did. When Gabe first came to him, long before daylight, while the others stole what sleep they could, he hadn’t expected it. They talked about it, about what would be necessary, about how this would work and then Gabe had done it. Put it on him.
They both were still for a long moment. “Is it okay?” Gabe whispered, his hands already moving to unbuckle it, but Caleb had reached up, stopped him.
His voice didn’t seem to work at first. His head leaned slightly forward of its own accord and he felt his stomach clench up. “It’s…okay,” he’d said after a long pause, his hands running over it. “Leave it…for now.”
Yet when it came time to do it for real, Caleb almost couldn’t. Almost wouldn’t. But in the end, he’d dropped to one knee in the nearly empty motel room and let Gabe do it. Because it had to be him. Caleb had to let it put him in the right place, to put his head where it needed to be. Nothing could go wrong.
“You okay?” Gabe asked as they headed out and Caleb nodded. They’d agreed he would be silent, unless the situation warranted his speaking or yelling…or…Caleb turned away, looked out the window.
They traveled in silence until Gabe’s cell phone rang and he lifted it, checking the caller ID before flipping it open. “Megan, tell me something good.”
Caleb watched him, watched the tiny changes on his face. “Yes, I’m serious. Where are you?” Gabe nodded, steering the car with one hand and glancing aside at Caleb. “Right. How many?”
It was quiet in the car for a long minute, then Gabe nodded again. “Yeah, we’re all tagged…all but my father, but I left him one. You got the frequencies, right?” Gabe blew out a nervous breath. “Good luck.”
He closed the phone and smiled gamely at Caleb. “Who was that?”
“The Calvary.” Gabe responded. “Her name is Megan Fellows. She was my roommate’s sister. FBI.”
“They’re coming?”
Gabe nodded. “Oh, yeah. Apparently, the Gorlians have been under investigation before this for other issues. The higher ups have had their best and brightest going over our information since midnight and correlating it with their own. They’re coming. In force. Call Ellen or Bobby, let them know.”
Sam started and stretched when someone knocked on the front door, pulling himself up out of the chair and groaning as his back protested. He almost forgot the crutches and nearly fell on his face before he got himself straightened out and made it to the door. He peered out the window, because everyone who knew they were there were gone, but he smiled when he found a familiar face outside the door.
He pulled it open and hobbled out of the way to let the older man in. “Pastor Jim. I wasn’t expecting you.”
He stepped across the threshold and hugged Sam, then pulled the door shut. “Your father called me last night. Said you boys might need…someone.”
“I’m glad to see you.” He glanced over his shoulder, but so far Dean didn’t seem to be waking up. “Dean’s asleep, Dad’s upstairs. I think there’s still some coffee.”
Jim smiled. “Relax Sam.”
Sam nodded, suddenly self conscious. It wasn’t like they didn’t really need him. In fact, he had nearly called him when he’d first found Dean…when he first realized how bad it was. Obviously, Sam and his father were in way over their heads. “I take it Dad…told you?”
“He told me enough to get me to leave in the middle of the night and drive out here. Said it’d be best to get the rest from you two.”
“Dean…he needs…” Sam closed his eyes and shook his head. “Honestly, I don’t know anymore what he needs.”
Jim crossed his arms. Sam could feel his eyes, but there wasn’t pity or disgust in them like he’d gotten used to. “What about what you need, Sam?”
Just like that Sam’s throat closed off and words failed him. He shook his head, cleared his throat. “No…Dean…he…it was worse for him.”
“That doesn’t mean it wasn’t bad for you.” Jim said softly. “I have counseled victims of sexual violence before Sam. I didn’t come here just for Dean, okay? I want you to think about that. I came here for you…and your Daddy too.”
Sam crinkled his nose and looked away, just to see his father at the bottom of the stairs. Sam ran a hand over his face. He was so tired and he just wanted it all to be over. He glanced over his shoulder at Dean.
He was awake, Sam realized with a start. He moved to go to him, but his father cut him off. “I’ve got him. You go get some sleep.”
“Dad, he needs me.”
“Yes, Sam he does. He needs you to not fall apart because you haven’t slept. He needs you to go sleep.”
If he was stronger, more awake, he might fight, but his father was right. “For a few hours. He needs to eat.”
“I’ve been a father a long time, Sam, I think I can manage.”
John sighed and turned to Dean, meeting his dark, guarded eyes with a soft smile before crossing to him and sinking slowly to one knee. “Hey.”
Dean’s hand fumbled up out of the blankets and ghosted over his father’s face. “You’re real,” he breathed, his eyes closing.
“Yeah Dean, I’m real.”
“You’re here.” Dean’s jaw clenched tight, his face screwing up like he was in pain, then slowly released until he looked almost peaceful. He grabbed his father’s hand and pressed it to his chest, over his heart. “Hurts.”
John wasn’t sure how he meant the word, but left his hand there against Dean’s chest, feeling the beating of his heart. “How can I make it better, Dean?”
“Dean.” The pained look was back. “Dean.”
John nodded, then pressed a kiss to Dean’s forehead. “My Dean…my son Dean. Let me help you?” Dean struggled to sit up, so John peeled back one of the blankets and helped him right himself. Dean looked down at himself and cringed.
“Naked.”
“Yes, Dean. It’s okay.”
Dean shook his head. “No. Dirty. Dirty. Can’t be dirty.”
“Okay, calm down. I can take you up to the bathroom, help you clean up.”
“No. Don’t want you to see.”
“Dean.” John trying hard not to get frustrated. “I’ve already seen-“
Dean shook his head again, vehemently. “No. No. Dirty. Bad.”
“John? Maybe I could help?”
He looked up at his friend, then back at Dean. “Would that be okay, Dean? If Pastor Jim helped?”
Dean eyed Jim up and down. “I remember you.”
Jim smiled softly. “I’m glad Dean. Will you let me help you?”
“I can do it.” Dean said petulantly.
“Okay, how about if I keep you company then?”
Dean scowled at him and stood, using his father’s shoulder for leverage and holding the blanket tight around his naked body. He moved slowly to the stairs, then stopped and looked at Jim. “I’ll take that as an invitation.” Jim said, smiling at Dean.
He followed him up the stairs, careful not to touch him and let him move at his own pace. At the bathroom door he paused, letting Dean decide whether or not he was going inside. When Dean stopped and looked at the shower, Jim moved carefully past him and started the water. He held out his hands for the blanket, averting his eyes carefully as Dean let him take the blanket and stepped into the tub.
Dean pulled the curtain closed, then peeked around it. “Thank you.”
“Anytime Son. I’m here to help.”
“This is it.” Gabe cracked his neck. “You ready?”
Caleb nodded, fingering the collar one last time. “Yeah, let’s get it done.”
They turned into the driveway and drove to the gate. A guard stepped out of the shack and approached. Gabe put the window down and produced a plain white business card with simple black lettering that said, “Master Maxwell James” and a phone number.
“May I help you, sir?”
Gabe bit down on his fear and leveled a glare at the man. “Maxwell James to see Mr. Marvin Gorlian, please.”
The man took the card. “I’ll see if Mr. Gorlian is available. Please wait here.” He was gone a few minutes and Gabe’s stomach twisted a little more with each minute. The guard smiled brightly and returned the card. “Mr. Gorlian is in a meeting at the moment, but if you are willing to wait a few minutes, he will see you.”
“I’ve come a long way to see him. A few more minutes won’t matter.”
The guard nodded and bent down to point. “When the gates open, take the right road, follow it to the visitor parking lot. Tell reception that you’ve been cleared to the 9th floor. You and your companion will be escorted to a room where you will be searched for weapons and recording devices, then you will be escorted to his office to wait.”
The gates opened and Gabe drove them through. He tried not to panic as the gates swung shut again. He was still in control. Everything was fine. Everything was fine.
The cabin was quiet. John was alone. Sam was asleep, Dean and Jim were upstairs, done in the shower, but not coming down any time soon. He’d called Jim in the middle of the night, in desperation. He hadn’t known what else to do. He didn’t know how to make things better anymore.
Sighing, John got up from the kitchen table to pace, then let himself out onto the porch. The sun was shining for the first time in days. If he wasn’t worn so thin, it might have offered him hope.
He sighed and stretched, then his eyes fell on a box that hadn’t been there before. Plain brown and taped shut, with “Winchester” written in black marker across the top. John circled it warily, then squatted next to it. He looked up and around, scanning the driveway, Jim’s truck, the trees. There was no one in sight.
John weighed the options, and then picked it up. It wasn’t heavy and the contents rattled. Scowling, John carried it inside to the kitchen table. Everyone who knew they were there were in the house, or in Austin, getting ready to go after Gorlian. It didn’t make any sense. He chewed on his lower lip for a minute, then pulled his pocket knife out to open the box.
Inside were stacks of CDs…he pulled one out and looked at it. DVD, he realized as he opened the case. Unmarked, untitled…except for a tiny number on the front cover.
“Dad?”
He looked up at Sam in the doorway. “You’re supposed to be asleep.”
Sam made a face. “Dreams. Couldn’t sleep. What’s that?”
John shrugged. “I don’t know. It was on the porch.” He put the DVD back in the box. “One way to find out though.”
He carried the box into the living room and put it on the coffee table before turning on the television and DVD player. Sam settled into the chair as John put the one with the #1 on the cover into the player and turned it on.
The screen was black. John turned the volume up. There were strange sounds, whimpers maybe. Then Dean’s voice poured out of the speakers, screaming Sam’s name over and over.
Sam sat staring, shaking. Just as John moved to mute it, the sound stopped. A few seconds later a voice took it’s place.
“Now that I have your attention. I have a message for you, John Winchester. There are 25 DVDs in all. Somewhere in them is an important bit you may wish to relay to your team…before they get in over their heads. Watch them, see how powerful I really am. Understand what I have done…as long as you stay in that house I will leave you and your boys alone. As soon as you leave they belong to me. Get some popcorn and get comfortable. Your feature presentation will start soon.”
“Dad?”
John was breathing heavily. The screen lightened and the picture focused on a motel room door, then panned left. His truck filled the screen and the sound of a scuffle, then Dean pressed against the side of the truck, a man in the bed holding his head, two others holding his hands…a fourth pressed in tight behind him.
“D-Dennis.” Sam breathed.
John paused the DVD and dug out his phone. “Come on Ellen, answer.”
Caleb fell into step two paces behind and to the left of Gabe as they got out of the car. He kept his head down, his hands holding the slick black folder that held Gabe’s information…and tried to watch their flanks. Gabe was nervous, he could tell, but doing a pretty damn good job of hiding it. He strode with confidence to the receptionist.
“Hello. Maxwell James to see Mr. Gorlian. The guard at the gate said to tell you we are cleared to the 9th floor.”
She smiled at him. “One moment, Mr. James. I’ll call upstairs.” She picked up her phone and spoke quietly for a moment before turning back to Gabe. “Someone will be down shortly. Please have a seat.”
“Thank you.” Gabe went to sit on one of the low couches and Caleb, after only the slightest hesitation, knelt on the floor beside him. Gabe’s hand came down on Caleb’s shoulder, half possessive, half calming gesture.
Ellen watched the rental car disappear into the compound and shook her head. She didn’t like this, and she wasn’t sure why. Part of it was Gabe. He was too young…too fragile…part of it was Michael. She didn’t know him well, but she knew Bill had been afraid of him that last year.
Anything that Bill was afraid of deserved to be treated with caution.
She jumped as her phone rang and half expected it to be Allen. It was John. She frowned as she answered. “John?”
“Ellen, you have to abort.”
“What?”
“You can’t send them in there. He knows.”
“What are you talking about?”
John exhaled loudly. “Somebody was here, left a box. It’s full of DVDs. He knows you guys are coming.”
Ellen felt the color drain from her face. “Gabe and Caleb are already inside.”
Every instinct in him told him to run. Take his boys and run. But the voice said he had to stay. Stay and watch. Watch and learn.
He pressed play again and watched as they fought…as Dean struggled drunkenly…the camera zoomed in and John could see the drugged daze in Dean’s eyes. Dean yelled and a rough voice said, “Go head, bring daddy out here to watch me fuck you. Bet he’d like that wouldn’t he?”
John sank onto the couch then as he watched Dean’s eyes shut and the fight leave his body. They pulled him into a van and the camera followed. He was unconscious as the stripped him…as each of them took a turn at him. When he started to rouse, they injected him with some drug and just kept at him.
“Dad…please…stop.” Sam’s voice was strained and John looked at him, staring for a long moment before his request registered and he stopped the playback. Sam’s eyes rolled closed. “Sick fuck. Sick fuck.” Sam leaned forward, holding his stomach.
John shook his head. “We have to…Gabe’s already gone in…he and Caleb…they’re inside. We have to find whatever it is.”
Sam looked up. Of course, he was right. They had to watch. Or…someone did. “Let me.” Sam said, breathlessly. “You don’t need to see…”
John shook his head. “Not alone. You’ve been through enough.”
There were footsteps on the stairs and both of them looked up. Jim looked back, then at the television. “Is everything okay?”
“I think I’m going to be sick.” John muttered, racing for the bathroom.
Sam forced his eyes away from the screen, not even realizing he’d looked back. It was blank at the moment. “No, Pastor Jim. It may never be okay.”
Title: Watch and Learn
Characters/Pairings: Sam/Dean, John, Ellen, Bobby, Caleb, Pastor Jim, OMC
Rating: NC-17 (for thematic reasons)
Word Count: 3663
Summary: A sequel to Anything which was a Christmas request from nanakomatsu, Nothing, Something, To Be Good, Broken, To Be Strong, Nothing, No One, Alone, Yours, Mine, Better, Choice, Gathering, Betrayal, Taken, Remember, Training, Conflagration, Setting Up, Surviving, Pretending, Rescue, Revelations, Reconciliation, Waking Up, Guilt, Working On It, Effort, The Need to Talk, Please, Family, Wrong, Right There, A Plan and Dean and Sam and Dad
Summary: Gabe and Caleb get ready to take on the monster, Sam and Dean and Dad get a little help and a present of sorts...one that will change everything.
A/Ns and Warnings: Very dark. Includes memory of torture and rape and very dark violence.
Dean was asleep, finally. They only managed to get him as far as the sofa, wrapped in blankets, his hand still holding Sam’s. The fire burned low, casting low light over Sam’s face as he stared into it. John raised his head looking around them. It had to be after midnight.
His arms and back ached with the effort it had taken to get Dean up the hill and into the house. It was nothing compared to the pain in his heart from watching him fall apart like he had.
“You should go to bed.” Sam said into the silence and John jumped. He sighed and turned his head to look at John. “It’s going to be bad for a while. We’re going to need to take turns sleeping.”
John nodded. He was right. “Sam…”
Sam shook his head. “It’s okay, Dad.” He sounded so tired, so drained. “I’ve got him for now. Go, sleep.”
Sam watched him leave and sighed again, his thumb caressing over the back of Dean’s hand. He leaned back against the couch, his head against Dean’s thigh. The last hours had been trying…between his brother and his father, Sam felt like he’d been dragged through broken glass.
Seeing Dean like that…watching him fall apart…it reminded Sam of how much Dean needed him in the beginning…only somewhere inside him, Dean knew. Sam could tell that.
“Sam.”
He shifted to look up at Dean. His eyes were open and locked on Sam’s. “Yeah, Dean. I’m here.”
He nodded. “Am I?”
Sam smiled vaguely and nodded. “Yeah, Dean.”
“Okay.”
Sam reached up to brush a hand over Dean’s face. “Sleep Dean. It’s okay. I’m here. Dad’s here. You’re safe.”
“My head hurts.”
Sam imagined it probably did. There had been hours of tears and sobbing and that was after the rain and cold. “I can get you something.” He saw the fear in his brother’s eyes, even though it passed quickly. “Just in there. I’ll talk to you the whole time.”
Dean nodded wide eyed and Sam worked at getting himself upright. He’d been on the floor for hours and his body ached. He reached for his crutches. “Okay, Dean. I’m just going to step into the kitchen. There’s aspirin in the cupboard.” He got to the doorway. “I’ll be right back, okay? Just listen to my voice.” Sam kept talking, as he reached for the bottle of aspirin and tucked a bottle of water from the counter into the waistband of his sweats before hobbling back.
“See, Dean? I came right back.” Sam lowered himself back down to the floor and opened the aspirin. “Two for now, okay? You can have more later if you need.”
“Thank you.” Dean said softly after he’d taken the pills and handed the water back. Sam caressed his face and leaned in to kiss him, just on the forehead.
“Love you, Dean. Love you so damn much.”
Allen Barris was not an easy man to ruffle, he was known for his patience, his cool head. His head wasn’t cool as his plane touched down in Austin. It was nearly noon. Nearly noon, and his son was on his way into the devil’s den, he knew it. Even though Ellen said they weren’t going in until the next morning. He knew Gabe.
He had his cell phone open and dialing before he was even off the plane, shouldering his bag and moving as quickly as he could through the throngs of people. “Damn it Gabe, answer your fucking phone.”
He made a face and headed for the parking garage. He didn’t have time to mess with a rental. He was going to have to steal something. He dialed a different number and this time someone answered. “Talk to me Ellen.”
“Gabe and Caleb are almost ready.” Ellen sounded defeated, tired.
“I’m on the ground. Buy me some time.”
“I’ve argued myself hoarse, Allen. He won’t hear reason.”
“Is he there?”
“Yeah, but he won’t talk to you.”
“I thought they weren’t going in until tomorrow.”
“Gorlian’s got a flight plan filed for tonight.”
“Shit.” He found a car that was fast enough and easy to get into. “Tell me he’s prepared at least. Tell me he knows what he’s doing? Tell me he’s okay.”
Ellen took a deep breath. “I-as long as Gorlian isn’t already on to us…he’s as ready as he can be.”
“Armed?”
“Two obvious pieces they’ll find when they search him. A hypodermic hidden in a pen.”
“A hypo?” Allen got the car open and tucked the phone against his shoulder as he reached under the dash.
“Yeah. Part of his plan. We’re loading up. I have to go.”
“Ellen?”
“Yeah?”
“Take care of my boy.”
“I’ll try.”
Ellen hung up and scowled at Gabe and the hand he held out to her. On it there was a tiny tracker. “Your Daddy’s on his way.”
“Good. He’ll be helpful. Take the tracker.” Gabe’s voice was calm, mature. Ellen took the tracker and swallowed it and watched as Gabe pulled the hand held out of his jacket pocket. She had to admit, the boy looked good. The suit was impeccable. Deep navy blue over a pale blue shirt that made his eyes pop vivid and bright against his tanned face. He made a few adjustments and pinged each of the trackers before handing the device over to Gordon.
“Okay. I think we’re set. Caleb, you’re with me.”
Caleb looked up from his place next to Bobby, dropped his hand down off the collar and nodded. Gabe had dressed him in plain black, topped with the black collar. He followed Gabe to the car, the car he had gone to the airport that morning to rent, and couldn’t bring himself to look up at the others.
It was still amazing to him what the collar did. When Gabe first came to him, long before daylight, while the others stole what sleep they could, he hadn’t expected it. They talked about it, about what would be necessary, about how this would work and then Gabe had done it. Put it on him.
They both were still for a long moment. “Is it okay?” Gabe whispered, his hands already moving to unbuckle it, but Caleb had reached up, stopped him.
His voice didn’t seem to work at first. His head leaned slightly forward of its own accord and he felt his stomach clench up. “It’s…okay,” he’d said after a long pause, his hands running over it. “Leave it…for now.”
Yet when it came time to do it for real, Caleb almost couldn’t. Almost wouldn’t. But in the end, he’d dropped to one knee in the nearly empty motel room and let Gabe do it. Because it had to be him. Caleb had to let it put him in the right place, to put his head where it needed to be. Nothing could go wrong.
“You okay?” Gabe asked as they headed out and Caleb nodded. They’d agreed he would be silent, unless the situation warranted his speaking or yelling…or…Caleb turned away, looked out the window.
They traveled in silence until Gabe’s cell phone rang and he lifted it, checking the caller ID before flipping it open. “Megan, tell me something good.”
Caleb watched him, watched the tiny changes on his face. “Yes, I’m serious. Where are you?” Gabe nodded, steering the car with one hand and glancing aside at Caleb. “Right. How many?”
It was quiet in the car for a long minute, then Gabe nodded again. “Yeah, we’re all tagged…all but my father, but I left him one. You got the frequencies, right?” Gabe blew out a nervous breath. “Good luck.”
He closed the phone and smiled gamely at Caleb. “Who was that?”
“The Calvary.” Gabe responded. “Her name is Megan Fellows. She was my roommate’s sister. FBI.”
“They’re coming?”
Gabe nodded. “Oh, yeah. Apparently, the Gorlians have been under investigation before this for other issues. The higher ups have had their best and brightest going over our information since midnight and correlating it with their own. They’re coming. In force. Call Ellen or Bobby, let them know.”
Sam started and stretched when someone knocked on the front door, pulling himself up out of the chair and groaning as his back protested. He almost forgot the crutches and nearly fell on his face before he got himself straightened out and made it to the door. He peered out the window, because everyone who knew they were there were gone, but he smiled when he found a familiar face outside the door.
He pulled it open and hobbled out of the way to let the older man in. “Pastor Jim. I wasn’t expecting you.”
He stepped across the threshold and hugged Sam, then pulled the door shut. “Your father called me last night. Said you boys might need…someone.”
“I’m glad to see you.” He glanced over his shoulder, but so far Dean didn’t seem to be waking up. “Dean’s asleep, Dad’s upstairs. I think there’s still some coffee.”
Jim smiled. “Relax Sam.”
Sam nodded, suddenly self conscious. It wasn’t like they didn’t really need him. In fact, he had nearly called him when he’d first found Dean…when he first realized how bad it was. Obviously, Sam and his father were in way over their heads. “I take it Dad…told you?”
“He told me enough to get me to leave in the middle of the night and drive out here. Said it’d be best to get the rest from you two.”
“Dean…he needs…” Sam closed his eyes and shook his head. “Honestly, I don’t know anymore what he needs.”
Jim crossed his arms. Sam could feel his eyes, but there wasn’t pity or disgust in them like he’d gotten used to. “What about what you need, Sam?”
Just like that Sam’s throat closed off and words failed him. He shook his head, cleared his throat. “No…Dean…he…it was worse for him.”
“That doesn’t mean it wasn’t bad for you.” Jim said softly. “I have counseled victims of sexual violence before Sam. I didn’t come here just for Dean, okay? I want you to think about that. I came here for you…and your Daddy too.”
Sam crinkled his nose and looked away, just to see his father at the bottom of the stairs. Sam ran a hand over his face. He was so tired and he just wanted it all to be over. He glanced over his shoulder at Dean.
He was awake, Sam realized with a start. He moved to go to him, but his father cut him off. “I’ve got him. You go get some sleep.”
“Dad, he needs me.”
“Yes, Sam he does. He needs you to not fall apart because you haven’t slept. He needs you to go sleep.”
If he was stronger, more awake, he might fight, but his father was right. “For a few hours. He needs to eat.”
“I’ve been a father a long time, Sam, I think I can manage.”
John sighed and turned to Dean, meeting his dark, guarded eyes with a soft smile before crossing to him and sinking slowly to one knee. “Hey.”
Dean’s hand fumbled up out of the blankets and ghosted over his father’s face. “You’re real,” he breathed, his eyes closing.
“Yeah Dean, I’m real.”
“You’re here.” Dean’s jaw clenched tight, his face screwing up like he was in pain, then slowly released until he looked almost peaceful. He grabbed his father’s hand and pressed it to his chest, over his heart. “Hurts.”
John wasn’t sure how he meant the word, but left his hand there against Dean’s chest, feeling the beating of his heart. “How can I make it better, Dean?”
“Dean.” The pained look was back. “Dean.”
John nodded, then pressed a kiss to Dean’s forehead. “My Dean…my son Dean. Let me help you?” Dean struggled to sit up, so John peeled back one of the blankets and helped him right himself. Dean looked down at himself and cringed.
“Naked.”
“Yes, Dean. It’s okay.”
Dean shook his head. “No. Dirty. Dirty. Can’t be dirty.”
“Okay, calm down. I can take you up to the bathroom, help you clean up.”
“No. Don’t want you to see.”
“Dean.” John trying hard not to get frustrated. “I’ve already seen-“
Dean shook his head again, vehemently. “No. No. Dirty. Bad.”
“John? Maybe I could help?”
He looked up at his friend, then back at Dean. “Would that be okay, Dean? If Pastor Jim helped?”
Dean eyed Jim up and down. “I remember you.”
Jim smiled softly. “I’m glad Dean. Will you let me help you?”
“I can do it.” Dean said petulantly.
“Okay, how about if I keep you company then?”
Dean scowled at him and stood, using his father’s shoulder for leverage and holding the blanket tight around his naked body. He moved slowly to the stairs, then stopped and looked at Jim. “I’ll take that as an invitation.” Jim said, smiling at Dean.
He followed him up the stairs, careful not to touch him and let him move at his own pace. At the bathroom door he paused, letting Dean decide whether or not he was going inside. When Dean stopped and looked at the shower, Jim moved carefully past him and started the water. He held out his hands for the blanket, averting his eyes carefully as Dean let him take the blanket and stepped into the tub.
Dean pulled the curtain closed, then peeked around it. “Thank you.”
“Anytime Son. I’m here to help.”
“This is it.” Gabe cracked his neck. “You ready?”
Caleb nodded, fingering the collar one last time. “Yeah, let’s get it done.”
They turned into the driveway and drove to the gate. A guard stepped out of the shack and approached. Gabe put the window down and produced a plain white business card with simple black lettering that said, “Master Maxwell James” and a phone number.
“May I help you, sir?”
Gabe bit down on his fear and leveled a glare at the man. “Maxwell James to see Mr. Marvin Gorlian, please.”
The man took the card. “I’ll see if Mr. Gorlian is available. Please wait here.” He was gone a few minutes and Gabe’s stomach twisted a little more with each minute. The guard smiled brightly and returned the card. “Mr. Gorlian is in a meeting at the moment, but if you are willing to wait a few minutes, he will see you.”
“I’ve come a long way to see him. A few more minutes won’t matter.”
The guard nodded and bent down to point. “When the gates open, take the right road, follow it to the visitor parking lot. Tell reception that you’ve been cleared to the 9th floor. You and your companion will be escorted to a room where you will be searched for weapons and recording devices, then you will be escorted to his office to wait.”
The gates opened and Gabe drove them through. He tried not to panic as the gates swung shut again. He was still in control. Everything was fine. Everything was fine.
The cabin was quiet. John was alone. Sam was asleep, Dean and Jim were upstairs, done in the shower, but not coming down any time soon. He’d called Jim in the middle of the night, in desperation. He hadn’t known what else to do. He didn’t know how to make things better anymore.
Sighing, John got up from the kitchen table to pace, then let himself out onto the porch. The sun was shining for the first time in days. If he wasn’t worn so thin, it might have offered him hope.
He sighed and stretched, then his eyes fell on a box that hadn’t been there before. Plain brown and taped shut, with “Winchester” written in black marker across the top. John circled it warily, then squatted next to it. He looked up and around, scanning the driveway, Jim’s truck, the trees. There was no one in sight.
John weighed the options, and then picked it up. It wasn’t heavy and the contents rattled. Scowling, John carried it inside to the kitchen table. Everyone who knew they were there were in the house, or in Austin, getting ready to go after Gorlian. It didn’t make any sense. He chewed on his lower lip for a minute, then pulled his pocket knife out to open the box.
Inside were stacks of CDs…he pulled one out and looked at it. DVD, he realized as he opened the case. Unmarked, untitled…except for a tiny number on the front cover.
“Dad?”
He looked up at Sam in the doorway. “You’re supposed to be asleep.”
Sam made a face. “Dreams. Couldn’t sleep. What’s that?”
John shrugged. “I don’t know. It was on the porch.” He put the DVD back in the box. “One way to find out though.”
He carried the box into the living room and put it on the coffee table before turning on the television and DVD player. Sam settled into the chair as John put the one with the #1 on the cover into the player and turned it on.
The screen was black. John turned the volume up. There were strange sounds, whimpers maybe. Then Dean’s voice poured out of the speakers, screaming Sam’s name over and over.
Sam sat staring, shaking. Just as John moved to mute it, the sound stopped. A few seconds later a voice took it’s place.
“Now that I have your attention. I have a message for you, John Winchester. There are 25 DVDs in all. Somewhere in them is an important bit you may wish to relay to your team…before they get in over their heads. Watch them, see how powerful I really am. Understand what I have done…as long as you stay in that house I will leave you and your boys alone. As soon as you leave they belong to me. Get some popcorn and get comfortable. Your feature presentation will start soon.”
“Dad?”
John was breathing heavily. The screen lightened and the picture focused on a motel room door, then panned left. His truck filled the screen and the sound of a scuffle, then Dean pressed against the side of the truck, a man in the bed holding his head, two others holding his hands…a fourth pressed in tight behind him.
“D-Dennis.” Sam breathed.
John paused the DVD and dug out his phone. “Come on Ellen, answer.”
Caleb fell into step two paces behind and to the left of Gabe as they got out of the car. He kept his head down, his hands holding the slick black folder that held Gabe’s information…and tried to watch their flanks. Gabe was nervous, he could tell, but doing a pretty damn good job of hiding it. He strode with confidence to the receptionist.
“Hello. Maxwell James to see Mr. Gorlian. The guard at the gate said to tell you we are cleared to the 9th floor.”
She smiled at him. “One moment, Mr. James. I’ll call upstairs.” She picked up her phone and spoke quietly for a moment before turning back to Gabe. “Someone will be down shortly. Please have a seat.”
“Thank you.” Gabe went to sit on one of the low couches and Caleb, after only the slightest hesitation, knelt on the floor beside him. Gabe’s hand came down on Caleb’s shoulder, half possessive, half calming gesture.
Ellen watched the rental car disappear into the compound and shook her head. She didn’t like this, and she wasn’t sure why. Part of it was Gabe. He was too young…too fragile…part of it was Michael. She didn’t know him well, but she knew Bill had been afraid of him that last year.
Anything that Bill was afraid of deserved to be treated with caution.
She jumped as her phone rang and half expected it to be Allen. It was John. She frowned as she answered. “John?”
“Ellen, you have to abort.”
“What?”
“You can’t send them in there. He knows.”
“What are you talking about?”
John exhaled loudly. “Somebody was here, left a box. It’s full of DVDs. He knows you guys are coming.”
Ellen felt the color drain from her face. “Gabe and Caleb are already inside.”
Every instinct in him told him to run. Take his boys and run. But the voice said he had to stay. Stay and watch. Watch and learn.
He pressed play again and watched as they fought…as Dean struggled drunkenly…the camera zoomed in and John could see the drugged daze in Dean’s eyes. Dean yelled and a rough voice said, “Go head, bring daddy out here to watch me fuck you. Bet he’d like that wouldn’t he?”
John sank onto the couch then as he watched Dean’s eyes shut and the fight leave his body. They pulled him into a van and the camera followed. He was unconscious as the stripped him…as each of them took a turn at him. When he started to rouse, they injected him with some drug and just kept at him.
“Dad…please…stop.” Sam’s voice was strained and John looked at him, staring for a long moment before his request registered and he stopped the playback. Sam’s eyes rolled closed. “Sick fuck. Sick fuck.” Sam leaned forward, holding his stomach.
John shook his head. “We have to…Gabe’s already gone in…he and Caleb…they’re inside. We have to find whatever it is.”
Sam looked up. Of course, he was right. They had to watch. Or…someone did. “Let me.” Sam said, breathlessly. “You don’t need to see…”
John shook his head. “Not alone. You’ve been through enough.”
There were footsteps on the stairs and both of them looked up. Jim looked back, then at the television. “Is everything okay?”
“I think I’m going to be sick.” John muttered, racing for the bathroom.
Sam forced his eyes away from the screen, not even realizing he’d looked back. It was blank at the moment. “No, Pastor Jim. It may never be okay.”