You Found Me |Sam Winchester| [2015 Wattys Winner]

9. War (Part 1)

9. War (Part 1)

Needless to say our numbers weren't too keen on conversation. They all kept to themselves mainly. I spent my time pacing in the beginning when Sam and Ellen left. There was so much they could find, and so much trouble they could get into. Who knew how many demons we were dealing with out there? One hundred? One thousand? What if they didn't find Jo and Rufus? Or what if they did and the two were dead?

I bit down on my thumbnail but didn't tear it off. It was a habit to it do when I was extremely stressed and worried.

"You need to settle down there, jitters."

I stopped my pacing to see Dean blocking my route. He held a gun in one hand. "You need a little more practice." He nodded to the weapon in his hand.

"With what?"

"The crash course wasn't enough. I practically did the work for you. I'll give you a proper lesson."

"Why are you being so nice to me?" I asked. "Really, I want to know, because from day one, you look at me like I'm some shady animal that'll bite your head off when the chance comes around."

"Just because Sam knows you doesn't mean anything. Time changes a lot of things, people included. And this isn't being nice; it's being tolerant." I rolled my eyes. "Come on, pixie."

I gritted my teeth at the stupid nickname.

Even with Dean demonstrating and giving me special attention, the time didn't go by any faster. My worry only increased. It didn't show until the time grew. My pulse thundered in my ears, my hands were tremoring violently. I had a hard time loading the shell in until Dean grabbed my wrist and pulled it down so that I could drop the shell.

"I know," he told me softly. "It's been a while. But they'll come back. You and I both know they will."

"You don't sound too sure," I whispered. "You must've used to say that all the time to yourself, that whoever disappeared would come back."

"It's almost a built-in catchphrase that comes with the job."

I jumped at the loud pounding on the door. The doorman opened it, and Ellen, looking frazzled, came in. Sam was nowhere to be found. Dean and I looked at each other before running to Ellen.

"Where's Sam?" we asked in unison. We looked at each other strangely.

Ellen only shook her head. She moved past us to sit down next to the non-pregnant young woman, who offered her a water bottle.

"They took him?" the pregnant lady panicked. "Demons took him? Oh my god. What if they're in here? The demons?"

"Could they get in?" the pastor asked.

"No," Dean answered. He grabbed the shotgun he'd had me practicing with and headed for the door. "Everybody sit tight. I got it—" His hand stopped on the doorknob. He looked back at all of us.

We reversed his decision. He came back towards the table, with all of us looking to him for guidance.

"Okay, we need to get a plan together," he instructed. "Tell me everything."

From the group, there wasn't much to tell aside from what we already knew. We were told some horror stories that left people pale, and one woman nearly faint, and the pregnant lady almost suffered a full blown panic attack. Her partner was still trying to calm her down. Even he couldn't help her.