Waiting, Supernatural, NC-17, Broken!Verse
Fandom: Supernatural
Title: Waiting
Characters/Pairings: Sam/Dean, John, Ellen, Bobby, Caleb, Pastor Jim, Jo, Ash, OMC, OFC
Rating: NC-17 (for thematic reasons)
Word Count: 3213
Summary: Broken!Verse, chapter 43 ( Click here for Index of all chapters)
Summary: Gabe and Caleb explore the feelings between them, Sam gets very angry and everyone is left waiting for what happens next.
A/Ns and Warnings: Very dark. Includes memory of torture and rape and very dark violence.
Sam woke as Jim settled Dean into bed, rolling over to look up at them in confusion. “Is everything okay?”
Jim shook his head and knelt to pull Dean’s shoes off. Sam sat up, reaching for Dean, frowning at his slack, expressionless face. “Lay down, Dean.” Jim said and Dean did, laying down and letting Jim pull the blanket up over him.
“Pastor Jim?”
Jim nodded and gestured Sam across the room. Sam hobbled over, glancing back at Dean. “What happened?”
“I’m not completely sure, Sam. I think…God, Sam I think he saw…something. Jo was…” Jim exhaled slowly.
“Are you telling me he saw the DVDs?”
“A split second of one. Jo must have been looking for something to watch. He came down stairs. He caused some damage, then your father grabbed him and he went down.”
Sam turned to look at Dean. “What do you mean?”
Jim sighed. “By the time I got to the bottom of the stairs, your father was huddled over him. I didn’t see anything. And everyone was coming in.”
“So Gorlian is here?”
Jim nodded. “Your father is out there with him.”
“Of course he is.” Sam pulled a hand through his hair. “Okay. Leave Dean to me. I’m sure you have other things to take care of…”
“Sam, I’m not sure you’re ready-“
“No offense Pastor Jim, but right now, I think Dean’s had enough of everyone.” Sam gestured to the door. “I’ll call you if I need you.”
When the door was closed behind him, Sam moved slowly over to look down at his brother. Dean’s face was blank, staring…”Oh, Dean.” Sam sank onto his good knee and reached for his face. “I’m here, Dean. You’re safe, and I’ll be here. Right here.”
Dean blinked, his fingers closing around Sam’s hand when he put it in Dean’s, but there was no recognition, no sign that Dean was there at all. “I’m so sorry Dean. So sorry.”
The room was silent, but not entirely uncomfortable. Gabe stood at the window, staring out into the dark. Caleb sat on the bed. There was a lot still unsaid between them. Gabe sighed and Caleb turned to look at him.
“We don’t have to do anything, Gabe. I mean…you’re young…and I’m…and…hell, I don’t even know what I’m saying.”
Gabe moved so he was leaning on the wall, looking at Caleb. “I’ve never considered…I mean…there was the brief infatuation I had with Sam when I was younger…but I knew he wasn’t into me…and I didn’t think I was…you know…”
Caleb smiled and nodded. “My first experience…I was younger than you. It wasn’t…He was older. He was…forceful.” Caleb looked down, looked away. “I’ve never told anyone. I was fifteen. In juvenile detention. He was…17.”
Gabe felt his heart start to race. “Caleb…you don’t have to…”
Caleb shook his head. “I liked the way he made me feel Gabe…but it scared me…I was used to being on my own, I was used to fighting for everything. And with him…I didn’t have to…I could just…let him make the decisions….let him…tell me what to do.”
Gabe stood slowly, that rush flooding him…an understanding dawning. “You liked it.” He stepped closer. “You liked the fear too…liked that he knew how to push you…” Suddenly he was in front of Caleb, his hand sliding around the back of his neck. “You like this.” He angled Caleb’s head back so that he was looking up at him.
Slowly, Caleb nodded. Gabe’s breathing picked up as he stepped in a little closer, leaning forward. “Do you want this, Caleb?”
Caleb’s eyes fluttered closed and he nodded tightly. Gabe’s lips brushed lightly over Caleb’s and Caleb’s opened in response. “Say it.” Gabe whispered.
“Yes…Gabe…yes, I want this.”
Gabe’s heart was thundering in his chest as he pressed in for more, lips parting to let his tongue sweep across Caleb’s lips. It was nothing like kissing a girl…it was…harder…it was different. “I’ve never…” Gabe whispered.
Caleb nodded, and licked his lips. “It’s okay. We’ll take it slow.”
“John?”
John took a deep breath and stood. The shed doors were closed behind him and he was only gathering his strength before going inside. “Bobby. I was just coming in.”
“Michael?”
“I drugged him. He’s not giving us any answers, at least not tonight.”
“Ellen said you’d hurt him.”
John nodded. “He needed to know we would.”
“You okay?”
John shook his head. “No. No Bobby, I am decidedly not okay.” He took a few steps away from the shed and clapped Bobby on the shoulder. “But in the morning, I think things will be better.”
“The house is quiet. Everyone’s gone to bed.”
John nodded. “Someone should stand watch.”
“I will. You go on.”
Allen settled onto the couch with Gabe’s laptop, looking up briefly as John came in, but he didn’t stop, so Allen turned his attention instead to one of the two secure servers his son would have uploaded the information on to. Somewhere in all of this, there were answers.
The sheer volume of data was overwhelming, everything from client lists to tax returns, shipping invoices and tracking documents and personnel data. He followed the tracks Sam made as he’d dug, smiling when he realized Sam had replicated the information, more than once. “Smart boy.”
Allen took a swipe through the data, and started partitioning it off into sections that would be easier to manage. He figured he wasn’t anywhere near ready to sleep, and if there was anything to be found buried in this mess, finding it sooner was better than later.
Ellen listened as the shower turned off, as John opened the bathroom door, paused to check on Sam and Dean, then finally turned to his own door. He sighed loudly as he saw her sitting on his bed. “I’m tired, Ellen.”
“I know. I just…I don’t want to be alone.”
John nodded absently. “You have Jo.”
“Not what I meant.” She slid off the bed. “We don’t…I mean…I just want…I need to feel something, John. Just…hold me, okay?”
John’s eyes closed and he nodded, coming toward her. His big hand stroked over her cheek. “It’s going to be okay, Ellen.”
She slid into bed first and he came behind her, spooning around her and holding her close. “I’m sorry I never told you.” John said softly once he had his arms around her.
“I’m not.” Ellen responded. “Bill wouldn’t have wanted me to know.”
“But Bill isn’t here, and you had a right.”
“Maybe.” She held his hands up close to her chest and closed her eyes. There was an ache inside her she had thought she’d laid to rest with her husband…an ache that drove her from the bed where her daughter slept and into the arms of the man who had taken her husband from her. But she couldn’t hold it against John, not when Michael was right there.
Not when Michael had threatened to do to Jo what he’d done to Dean. Not when Michael had been responsible for what she’d seen….for what those boys, and countless others had been through.
Behind her she could hear John’s breathing deepen, could feel him shift into sleep. All around them the house was quiet. Too quiet. It made her feel like they were holding their breath. Waiting.
The sun was starting to creep up over the trees. Sam watched from the end of the second bed, glancing back to where Dean lay and sighing deeply. He hadn’t moved, hadn’t even closed his eyes. He just lay there like the dead.
Sam shook off that thought. It was shock. Dean was just in shock. He would be fine. Sam had to believe that.
It was too much. Too many people. Too much stimulus. He needed to get Dean away. Just the two of them. Sam sighed. His father would never agree.
At this point even Pastor Jim wasn’t going to be much help. Sam shifted on the bed, so that he could watch Dean. It was bad this time, Sam could tell. Dean had hit the wall a few times since Sam had found him, but it had only ever taken some gentleness and soft words to draw him out.
Now, there wasn’t any indication that Dean even heard him. Sam sighed again and moved to stand up. He should have burned the damn DVDs…should have locked them away. Should never have left them for someone to find.
And Jo…Jo should have been in bed…should have been…And maybe she was just a kid, but she should have known better than to go nosing around someone’s things. Sam grabbed for his crutches and headed for the door. Maybe he shouldn’t have anything to do with Michael Harvelle, but he had a few choice words for his neice.
He opened the door and froze. Gabe and Caleb were headed for the stairs and they stopped. Jo was just coming out of the bathroom.
“Everything okay Sam?” Caleb asked as Sam stared at Jo.
Sam shook his head.
“Let us help?” Gabe asked, coming closer. Sam shook his head again.
“It’s her fault.” He knew that didn’t make any sense, but he shook with fury as he looked at her. This little slip of a girl. Her family…her father…her uncle…it all came down to them. “Dean’s gone…She took him from me.”
Jo stood staring at him, her eyes wide. She was frightened, but couldn’t seem to move away.
“Sam, it isn’t Jo’s fault.” Caleb said.
“Dean was better. Dean was coming back…then he saw…because she couldn’t mind her own business.” Sam hobbled a little closer. His eyes locked onto her face, but he wasn’t really seeing her. “Did you like what you saw? Huh? Are you a sick fuck like that sick uncle of yours? Does it run in the family?”
Jo flinched and Caleb tried to put himself between Sam and Jo, but Sam shoved him aside.
“Maybe you’re in on it? Maybe you’re the one we should have been hunting…maybe you’re the one we should be questioning?”
“Sam.”
There was a hand on his shoulder and he jerked away. Jo huddled into herself and backed up into the wall. “Tell me Jo…did you like it?”
“Samuel Winchester, stand down.”
Sam froze, staring at Jo and panting. His father’s voice was enough to stop him, but not the icy fury flowing through his veins. Ellen moved between them and covered Jo, moving her away and down the hall. Sam’s eyes followed until John cut him off. “I said stand down.”
Sam blinked, then looked at his father. “Fuck you.”
John’s hand descended fast, slapping across Sam’s face. “That little girl has nothing to do with this. And if you don’t want me to slap you again, you will take yourself back into your room right this minute.”
“Go ahead. Slap me. After what I’ve been through you can’t possibly do worse, Dad.”
“What the hell is wrong with you?”
Sam rolled his eyes and tried to move away, but his father’s hands closed around his arms. “What the hell do you think is wrong with me? Have you seen Dean, Dad?” He pulled until John released him. “Fuck. Fuck. He’s gone…he’s…I can’t reach him. He isn’t talking. He’s barely blinking….and you spent the night out there with that fucking bastard.”
“Sam.”
Sam shook his head. “No. No. I’m done, Dad. I’m done.”
“What does that mean?”
Sam stopped at the door to the bedroom. “I’m gonna take care of Dean, Dad. The way I should have from the beginning. You do what you have to.”
“What are you gonna do?”
Sam looked back at him. “Don’t worry about it. You do your thing. You…just leave us alone.”
Sam closed the door behind him, leaving John staring at it until someone cleared their throat. He looked up then, realizing for the first time that Gabe and Caleb were still standing there, and now Ash was at the top of the stairs.
“Yeah, this isn’t awkward.” Ash said, then pointed a thumb over his shoulder. “Breakfast?”
John closed his eyes and nodded. “You go on. I’ll be down in a minute.” He watched Gabe and Caleb follow Ash down the stairs and turned to Ellen and Jo. “I’m sorry. Sam…”
Ellen shook her head. “It’s okay, John. Jo’s okay. Aren’t you?”
Jo nodded, but she was shaking. “Yeah…he…he startled me.”
“He doesn’t think it’s your fault, honey.” John said. “He’s angry and hurting.”
Jo licked her lips. “But it is my fault…at least a little.”
Ellen stroked a hand over Jo’s hair. “No honey, it isn’t.”
“I should have put those away. They shouldn’t have been where you could find them.”
“I didn’t see…he was there…it had just come on.”
Ellen shook her head and turned her toward the stairs. “We know Jo. Let’s just go downstairs, have some breakfast.” She looked at John as she passed. “Then you and me will go home…okay?”
John nodded. It was time to break this party up. It was time to end it all.
He didn’t stop or look into the kitchen where most everyone was sitting down to breakfast. He let himself out onto the porch staring out at what was going to be a beautiful day. He glanced down the path toward the shed, where he could see Caleb heading with coffee for Bobby.
They were stuck and John was very well aware of it. If someone was still watching, John couldn’t leave. If someone was still watching they’d be coming for Michael eventually. He was half surprised they hadn’t already.
He sighed, watching his breath plume on the air. They had one Gorlian. They had reason to believe another was dead. The feds were cleaning up the rest of the organization.
The door beside him opened and Allen stepped out, handing John a cup of coffee. “Thought you could use it.”
John smiled vaguely and nodded. “Thank you.”
“I also thought you might like an update.”
“On what?”
Allen sipped from his own cup and leaned against the railing. “Been up all night. Spent some of it digging through the information, some of it hacking the FBI.” John raised an eyebrow and Allen chuckled. “Gabe didn’t learn everything he knows from those hackers at that college he went to.” He sipped again. “Terrance Gorlian, aka Tyler Morven aka Timothy Mallard and half a dozen other aliases, is confirmed dead. He was found executed, a bullet in the back of the head at the Florida facility.”
“Did we do it?” John asked.
Allen shrugged. “Honestly? I don’t know. I don’t think so. That’s Gordon’s style. But Gordon was in Colorado.”
“Anything else?”
“Apparently, the FBI are preparing indictments against several government officials, including a four star general. It’s all over the news.”
John squinted at him. “The leak’s on their side. Probably Megan, Gabe’s friend. She was worried it would get covered up.”
“I don’t like the idea of the press getting in on this.”
Allen nodded. “Gabe removed all the references he could find that would lead them to you…or any of us.”
John nodded. He still didn’t like it. But he’d been learning to live with a lot of things he didn’t like. This was just one more. He sipped at his coffee and turned to watch Bobby coming up the path.
“Joe and Gordon are pulling back.”
“What about the other one? We’re still missing a Gorlian.” John said.
Allen shook his head. “I’m not sure he exists.”
“What?”
Allen shrugged and sipped at his coffee. “I can’t find any documents signed by him, can’t find any aliases that lead to an actual person. It’s like he’s a ghost.”
“What are you saying Allen?”
“We might just be in the clear, John. The government is in the process of seizing all the property owned by the Gorlians, their companies, their aliases. The organization is in shambles.”
“What about the box? Are you saying that no one is actually watching?”
“Gabe and Ash and I will make a sweep of the house and the woods. We may never know how the box got here.”
“Morning John, Allen.” Bobby stopped beside the stairs. “He’s not talking any time soon.”
“Didn’t expect he would.” John said. “I’m thinking we should just end it.”
He stared down at his coffee cup. Maybe Sam was right. Maybe it was time to just be done. To focus on getting life back to normal. Whatever the fuck that was.
“I think maybe you’re right.” A voice said behind them and they all turned, surprised to find Pastor Jim standing in the doorway.
“Jim?”
He crossed his arms and stepped out onto the porch. “You should finish it. Finish it and move on.” He squinted out at the sky. “I’m leaving. You and the boys are welcome to come see me. But I think you all need some time. I’m not actually helping anymore.”
Sam stood just inside the door to the bedroom, his back to the door. Dean lay still and quiet. Sam was terrified that Dean might never come back to the surface again. There was only so much trauma the human heart can handle before it’s broken beyond repair. “It’s going to be okay Dean. I promise. I’m going to make it all okay.”
He blew out a slow breath and looked around the room. His duffle bag sat on the floor by the small dresser. “Okay. I know what to do, Dean. I’m going to make it better.” He wasn’t thinking…not really…he was desperate. Nearly as desperate as he’d been when he’d cast that first spell.
But he wasn’t going to think about that right now. He had to think about Dean. Had to make it okay for Dean. Make it safe.
Sam made his way to the dresser and pulled the duffle from the floor. They didn’t have much, so packing wouldn’t take long. “We’ll just go away for a while, Dean. You and me. Okay?” He shoved clothes into the bag, then dragged the bag over toward the night stand. The med kit was still there and he rolled it up before shoving it into his bag. He stopped beside Dean, blinking at the tears.
Sam left the bag on the floor and crawled into bed behind his brother, pulling him close and holding him tight. “It’s okay Dean. I understand. I do. And I’m going to take care of you. You just…hang in there, okay? I’ll get us out of here and we’ll go somewhere safe. Somewhere nice. Would you like that Dean?”
Dean didn’t answer, didn’t move, just lay in his arms. Sam sniffed but couldn’t stop the tears. “Don’t leave me Dean…please don’t leave me.”
Title: Waiting
Characters/Pairings: Sam/Dean, John, Ellen, Bobby, Caleb, Pastor Jim, Jo, Ash, OMC, OFC
Rating: NC-17 (for thematic reasons)
Word Count: 3213
Summary: Broken!Verse, chapter 43 ( Click here for Index of all chapters)
Summary: Gabe and Caleb explore the feelings between them, Sam gets very angry and everyone is left waiting for what happens next.
A/Ns and Warnings: Very dark. Includes memory of torture and rape and very dark violence.
Sam woke as Jim settled Dean into bed, rolling over to look up at them in confusion. “Is everything okay?”
Jim shook his head and knelt to pull Dean’s shoes off. Sam sat up, reaching for Dean, frowning at his slack, expressionless face. “Lay down, Dean.” Jim said and Dean did, laying down and letting Jim pull the blanket up over him.
“Pastor Jim?”
Jim nodded and gestured Sam across the room. Sam hobbled over, glancing back at Dean. “What happened?”
“I’m not completely sure, Sam. I think…God, Sam I think he saw…something. Jo was…” Jim exhaled slowly.
“Are you telling me he saw the DVDs?”
“A split second of one. Jo must have been looking for something to watch. He came down stairs. He caused some damage, then your father grabbed him and he went down.”
Sam turned to look at Dean. “What do you mean?”
Jim sighed. “By the time I got to the bottom of the stairs, your father was huddled over him. I didn’t see anything. And everyone was coming in.”
“So Gorlian is here?”
Jim nodded. “Your father is out there with him.”
“Of course he is.” Sam pulled a hand through his hair. “Okay. Leave Dean to me. I’m sure you have other things to take care of…”
“Sam, I’m not sure you’re ready-“
“No offense Pastor Jim, but right now, I think Dean’s had enough of everyone.” Sam gestured to the door. “I’ll call you if I need you.”
When the door was closed behind him, Sam moved slowly over to look down at his brother. Dean’s face was blank, staring…”Oh, Dean.” Sam sank onto his good knee and reached for his face. “I’m here, Dean. You’re safe, and I’ll be here. Right here.”
Dean blinked, his fingers closing around Sam’s hand when he put it in Dean’s, but there was no recognition, no sign that Dean was there at all. “I’m so sorry Dean. So sorry.”
The room was silent, but not entirely uncomfortable. Gabe stood at the window, staring out into the dark. Caleb sat on the bed. There was a lot still unsaid between them. Gabe sighed and Caleb turned to look at him.
“We don’t have to do anything, Gabe. I mean…you’re young…and I’m…and…hell, I don’t even know what I’m saying.”
Gabe moved so he was leaning on the wall, looking at Caleb. “I’ve never considered…I mean…there was the brief infatuation I had with Sam when I was younger…but I knew he wasn’t into me…and I didn’t think I was…you know…”
Caleb smiled and nodded. “My first experience…I was younger than you. It wasn’t…He was older. He was…forceful.” Caleb looked down, looked away. “I’ve never told anyone. I was fifteen. In juvenile detention. He was…17.”
Gabe felt his heart start to race. “Caleb…you don’t have to…”
Caleb shook his head. “I liked the way he made me feel Gabe…but it scared me…I was used to being on my own, I was used to fighting for everything. And with him…I didn’t have to…I could just…let him make the decisions….let him…tell me what to do.”
Gabe stood slowly, that rush flooding him…an understanding dawning. “You liked it.” He stepped closer. “You liked the fear too…liked that he knew how to push you…” Suddenly he was in front of Caleb, his hand sliding around the back of his neck. “You like this.” He angled Caleb’s head back so that he was looking up at him.
Slowly, Caleb nodded. Gabe’s breathing picked up as he stepped in a little closer, leaning forward. “Do you want this, Caleb?”
Caleb’s eyes fluttered closed and he nodded tightly. Gabe’s lips brushed lightly over Caleb’s and Caleb’s opened in response. “Say it.” Gabe whispered.
“Yes…Gabe…yes, I want this.”
Gabe’s heart was thundering in his chest as he pressed in for more, lips parting to let his tongue sweep across Caleb’s lips. It was nothing like kissing a girl…it was…harder…it was different. “I’ve never…” Gabe whispered.
Caleb nodded, and licked his lips. “It’s okay. We’ll take it slow.”
“John?”
John took a deep breath and stood. The shed doors were closed behind him and he was only gathering his strength before going inside. “Bobby. I was just coming in.”
“Michael?”
“I drugged him. He’s not giving us any answers, at least not tonight.”
“Ellen said you’d hurt him.”
John nodded. “He needed to know we would.”
“You okay?”
John shook his head. “No. No Bobby, I am decidedly not okay.” He took a few steps away from the shed and clapped Bobby on the shoulder. “But in the morning, I think things will be better.”
“The house is quiet. Everyone’s gone to bed.”
John nodded. “Someone should stand watch.”
“I will. You go on.”
Allen settled onto the couch with Gabe’s laptop, looking up briefly as John came in, but he didn’t stop, so Allen turned his attention instead to one of the two secure servers his son would have uploaded the information on to. Somewhere in all of this, there were answers.
The sheer volume of data was overwhelming, everything from client lists to tax returns, shipping invoices and tracking documents and personnel data. He followed the tracks Sam made as he’d dug, smiling when he realized Sam had replicated the information, more than once. “Smart boy.”
Allen took a swipe through the data, and started partitioning it off into sections that would be easier to manage. He figured he wasn’t anywhere near ready to sleep, and if there was anything to be found buried in this mess, finding it sooner was better than later.
Ellen listened as the shower turned off, as John opened the bathroom door, paused to check on Sam and Dean, then finally turned to his own door. He sighed loudly as he saw her sitting on his bed. “I’m tired, Ellen.”
“I know. I just…I don’t want to be alone.”
John nodded absently. “You have Jo.”
“Not what I meant.” She slid off the bed. “We don’t…I mean…I just want…I need to feel something, John. Just…hold me, okay?”
John’s eyes closed and he nodded, coming toward her. His big hand stroked over her cheek. “It’s going to be okay, Ellen.”
She slid into bed first and he came behind her, spooning around her and holding her close. “I’m sorry I never told you.” John said softly once he had his arms around her.
“I’m not.” Ellen responded. “Bill wouldn’t have wanted me to know.”
“But Bill isn’t here, and you had a right.”
“Maybe.” She held his hands up close to her chest and closed her eyes. There was an ache inside her she had thought she’d laid to rest with her husband…an ache that drove her from the bed where her daughter slept and into the arms of the man who had taken her husband from her. But she couldn’t hold it against John, not when Michael was right there.
Not when Michael had threatened to do to Jo what he’d done to Dean. Not when Michael had been responsible for what she’d seen….for what those boys, and countless others had been through.
Behind her she could hear John’s breathing deepen, could feel him shift into sleep. All around them the house was quiet. Too quiet. It made her feel like they were holding their breath. Waiting.
The sun was starting to creep up over the trees. Sam watched from the end of the second bed, glancing back to where Dean lay and sighing deeply. He hadn’t moved, hadn’t even closed his eyes. He just lay there like the dead.
Sam shook off that thought. It was shock. Dean was just in shock. He would be fine. Sam had to believe that.
It was too much. Too many people. Too much stimulus. He needed to get Dean away. Just the two of them. Sam sighed. His father would never agree.
At this point even Pastor Jim wasn’t going to be much help. Sam shifted on the bed, so that he could watch Dean. It was bad this time, Sam could tell. Dean had hit the wall a few times since Sam had found him, but it had only ever taken some gentleness and soft words to draw him out.
Now, there wasn’t any indication that Dean even heard him. Sam sighed again and moved to stand up. He should have burned the damn DVDs…should have locked them away. Should never have left them for someone to find.
And Jo…Jo should have been in bed…should have been…And maybe she was just a kid, but she should have known better than to go nosing around someone’s things. Sam grabbed for his crutches and headed for the door. Maybe he shouldn’t have anything to do with Michael Harvelle, but he had a few choice words for his neice.
He opened the door and froze. Gabe and Caleb were headed for the stairs and they stopped. Jo was just coming out of the bathroom.
“Everything okay Sam?” Caleb asked as Sam stared at Jo.
Sam shook his head.
“Let us help?” Gabe asked, coming closer. Sam shook his head again.
“It’s her fault.” He knew that didn’t make any sense, but he shook with fury as he looked at her. This little slip of a girl. Her family…her father…her uncle…it all came down to them. “Dean’s gone…She took him from me.”
Jo stood staring at him, her eyes wide. She was frightened, but couldn’t seem to move away.
“Sam, it isn’t Jo’s fault.” Caleb said.
“Dean was better. Dean was coming back…then he saw…because she couldn’t mind her own business.” Sam hobbled a little closer. His eyes locked onto her face, but he wasn’t really seeing her. “Did you like what you saw? Huh? Are you a sick fuck like that sick uncle of yours? Does it run in the family?”
Jo flinched and Caleb tried to put himself between Sam and Jo, but Sam shoved him aside.
“Maybe you’re in on it? Maybe you’re the one we should have been hunting…maybe you’re the one we should be questioning?”
“Sam.”
There was a hand on his shoulder and he jerked away. Jo huddled into herself and backed up into the wall. “Tell me Jo…did you like it?”
“Samuel Winchester, stand down.”
Sam froze, staring at Jo and panting. His father’s voice was enough to stop him, but not the icy fury flowing through his veins. Ellen moved between them and covered Jo, moving her away and down the hall. Sam’s eyes followed until John cut him off. “I said stand down.”
Sam blinked, then looked at his father. “Fuck you.”
John’s hand descended fast, slapping across Sam’s face. “That little girl has nothing to do with this. And if you don’t want me to slap you again, you will take yourself back into your room right this minute.”
“Go ahead. Slap me. After what I’ve been through you can’t possibly do worse, Dad.”
“What the hell is wrong with you?”
Sam rolled his eyes and tried to move away, but his father’s hands closed around his arms. “What the hell do you think is wrong with me? Have you seen Dean, Dad?” He pulled until John released him. “Fuck. Fuck. He’s gone…he’s…I can’t reach him. He isn’t talking. He’s barely blinking….and you spent the night out there with that fucking bastard.”
“Sam.”
Sam shook his head. “No. No. I’m done, Dad. I’m done.”
“What does that mean?”
Sam stopped at the door to the bedroom. “I’m gonna take care of Dean, Dad. The way I should have from the beginning. You do what you have to.”
“What are you gonna do?”
Sam looked back at him. “Don’t worry about it. You do your thing. You…just leave us alone.”
Sam closed the door behind him, leaving John staring at it until someone cleared their throat. He looked up then, realizing for the first time that Gabe and Caleb were still standing there, and now Ash was at the top of the stairs.
“Yeah, this isn’t awkward.” Ash said, then pointed a thumb over his shoulder. “Breakfast?”
John closed his eyes and nodded. “You go on. I’ll be down in a minute.” He watched Gabe and Caleb follow Ash down the stairs and turned to Ellen and Jo. “I’m sorry. Sam…”
Ellen shook her head. “It’s okay, John. Jo’s okay. Aren’t you?”
Jo nodded, but she was shaking. “Yeah…he…he startled me.”
“He doesn’t think it’s your fault, honey.” John said. “He’s angry and hurting.”
Jo licked her lips. “But it is my fault…at least a little.”
Ellen stroked a hand over Jo’s hair. “No honey, it isn’t.”
“I should have put those away. They shouldn’t have been where you could find them.”
“I didn’t see…he was there…it had just come on.”
Ellen shook her head and turned her toward the stairs. “We know Jo. Let’s just go downstairs, have some breakfast.” She looked at John as she passed. “Then you and me will go home…okay?”
John nodded. It was time to break this party up. It was time to end it all.
He didn’t stop or look into the kitchen where most everyone was sitting down to breakfast. He let himself out onto the porch staring out at what was going to be a beautiful day. He glanced down the path toward the shed, where he could see Caleb heading with coffee for Bobby.
They were stuck and John was very well aware of it. If someone was still watching, John couldn’t leave. If someone was still watching they’d be coming for Michael eventually. He was half surprised they hadn’t already.
He sighed, watching his breath plume on the air. They had one Gorlian. They had reason to believe another was dead. The feds were cleaning up the rest of the organization.
The door beside him opened and Allen stepped out, handing John a cup of coffee. “Thought you could use it.”
John smiled vaguely and nodded. “Thank you.”
“I also thought you might like an update.”
“On what?”
Allen sipped from his own cup and leaned against the railing. “Been up all night. Spent some of it digging through the information, some of it hacking the FBI.” John raised an eyebrow and Allen chuckled. “Gabe didn’t learn everything he knows from those hackers at that college he went to.” He sipped again. “Terrance Gorlian, aka Tyler Morven aka Timothy Mallard and half a dozen other aliases, is confirmed dead. He was found executed, a bullet in the back of the head at the Florida facility.”
“Did we do it?” John asked.
Allen shrugged. “Honestly? I don’t know. I don’t think so. That’s Gordon’s style. But Gordon was in Colorado.”
“Anything else?”
“Apparently, the FBI are preparing indictments against several government officials, including a four star general. It’s all over the news.”
John squinted at him. “The leak’s on their side. Probably Megan, Gabe’s friend. She was worried it would get covered up.”
“I don’t like the idea of the press getting in on this.”
Allen nodded. “Gabe removed all the references he could find that would lead them to you…or any of us.”
John nodded. He still didn’t like it. But he’d been learning to live with a lot of things he didn’t like. This was just one more. He sipped at his coffee and turned to watch Bobby coming up the path.
“Joe and Gordon are pulling back.”
“What about the other one? We’re still missing a Gorlian.” John said.
Allen shook his head. “I’m not sure he exists.”
“What?”
Allen shrugged and sipped at his coffee. “I can’t find any documents signed by him, can’t find any aliases that lead to an actual person. It’s like he’s a ghost.”
“What are you saying Allen?”
“We might just be in the clear, John. The government is in the process of seizing all the property owned by the Gorlians, their companies, their aliases. The organization is in shambles.”
“What about the box? Are you saying that no one is actually watching?”
“Gabe and Ash and I will make a sweep of the house and the woods. We may never know how the box got here.”
“Morning John, Allen.” Bobby stopped beside the stairs. “He’s not talking any time soon.”
“Didn’t expect he would.” John said. “I’m thinking we should just end it.”
He stared down at his coffee cup. Maybe Sam was right. Maybe it was time to just be done. To focus on getting life back to normal. Whatever the fuck that was.
“I think maybe you’re right.” A voice said behind them and they all turned, surprised to find Pastor Jim standing in the doorway.
“Jim?”
He crossed his arms and stepped out onto the porch. “You should finish it. Finish it and move on.” He squinted out at the sky. “I’m leaving. You and the boys are welcome to come see me. But I think you all need some time. I’m not actually helping anymore.”
Sam stood just inside the door to the bedroom, his back to the door. Dean lay still and quiet. Sam was terrified that Dean might never come back to the surface again. There was only so much trauma the human heart can handle before it’s broken beyond repair. “It’s going to be okay Dean. I promise. I’m going to make it all okay.”
He blew out a slow breath and looked around the room. His duffle bag sat on the floor by the small dresser. “Okay. I know what to do, Dean. I’m going to make it better.” He wasn’t thinking…not really…he was desperate. Nearly as desperate as he’d been when he’d cast that first spell.
But he wasn’t going to think about that right now. He had to think about Dean. Had to make it okay for Dean. Make it safe.
Sam made his way to the dresser and pulled the duffle from the floor. They didn’t have much, so packing wouldn’t take long. “We’ll just go away for a while, Dean. You and me. Okay?” He shoved clothes into the bag, then dragged the bag over toward the night stand. The med kit was still there and he rolled it up before shoving it into his bag. He stopped beside Dean, blinking at the tears.
Sam left the bag on the floor and crawled into bed behind his brother, pulling him close and holding him tight. “It’s okay Dean. I understand. I do. And I’m going to take care of you. You just…hang in there, okay? I’ll get us out of here and we’ll go somewhere safe. Somewhere nice. Would you like that Dean?”
Dean didn’t answer, didn’t move, just lay in his arms. Sam sniffed but couldn’t stop the tears. “Don’t leave me Dean…please don’t leave me.”