"I love my brothers' kids. It's funny--as
an uncle, you become so protective of them." -Liam Hemsworth
<< Sammy Becomes A Protector >>
2006
Dakota giggled as she saw her dad come out of the apartment building dressed as a sheriff. They were in Hibbing, Minnesota, on a case.
Dean gave his daughter a wink as he passed her, briefly tickling her sides to her shriek with laughter. Sam chuckled as he ruffled her hair.
Dakota, only being five, had to sit in the Impala while they questioned people. Bobby was too busy to take her, so she was with the boys on the case. She mainly would help Sam on research, which she would just play with his hair as he read the books to her.
She still struggled with reading, having never gone to school. Dean taught her in his spare time, working on reading, writing, and spelling. Sam handled the math and anything else Dean didn't understand.
<><><><>
Dakota was asleep in Sam's lap, as him and Dean were discussing the case in a bar. Nobody seemed to question the five year old's presence. Dean was throwing darts while occasionally glancing at his daughter.
"So, the local police have now ruled out foul play." Sam informed his brother, adjusting Dakota in his lap. "Apparently there were signs of a struggle."
"They could be right--could just be a kidnapping." Dean admitted. "Maybe this isn't our kind of gig."
"Yeah, maybe not." Sam relented, before pausing. "Except for this. Dad marked the area, Dean, 'possible hunting grounds of a Phantom Attacker'." He quoted.
"Why would he even do that?" Dean questioned, placing a hand on Dakota's head and brushing her hair back as he took a drink of his beer.
"Well, he found a lot of local folklore about a dark figure that comes out at night, grabs people, then vanishes." Sam answered. He passed Dakota off to Dean, the child grumbled angrily at being disturbed. "He found this, too."
Dean hushed his daughter, rubbing her back soothingly.
"This county has more missing persons per capita than anywhere else in the state." Sam continued, Dean hummed as he thought about it.
"That is weird." Dean agreed before going back to his dart game. Dakota still placed on his hip, her head tucked into his neck.
"Yeah. And that is irresponsible." Sam pointed out, gesturing to Dakota. "Give her to me."
Dean sighed, pressing a kiss to Dakota's temple before handing her off to Sam.
"Don't Phantom Attackers usually snatch people from their beds?" Dean asked, as Dakota grunted and dug her face into the crook of Sam's neck roughly. "Jenkins was taken from a parking lot."
"Well, there are all kinds--Springheeled Jacks, Phantom Gassers. They take people anywhere, anytime. Look, I don't know if this is our kind of gig, either."
"Yeah, you're right." Dean said, walking back to the table. "We should ask around more tomorrow."
"Right. I saw a motel about five miles back." Sam informed, taking out money to pay for the beers.
"Whoa, whoa. Easy. Let's have another round." Dean tried to persuade.
"Dean. Daughter." Sam spoke brokenly, bringing Dakota closer to him. "We should get an early start anyway."
"She's asleep." Dean attempted. "You really know how to have fun, don't you, grandma?"
"Daddy." Dakota murmured in her sleep quietly, bringing herself closer to Sam for warmth.
Dean instantly melted at that. "All right." He threw his last dart. "I'll meet you two outside. I got to take a leak."
Sam scoffed out a laugh as he adjusted Dakota on his hip. He struggled to hold all of the research and his niece, but he managed.
A motorcycle revving woke Dakota up, she sprung away from Sam in fear. He scrambled to hold on to her so she didn't fall, upon seeing her predicament--she threw her arms around Sam's head tightly.
"It's okay, Kota." He cooed, prying her arms away from his head.
"Where's daddy?" She questioned groggily.
"He's inside, he had to go potty." Sam answered in a soft voice, he bounced Dakota on his hip.
"Monster?" Dakota then asked, her head tilted to the side as she pointed to Sam's research.
"We're not sure yet." He replied, tickling her stomach and making an exaggerated laughing sound.
He stopped when the sounds of chains dragging echoed around them. Sam slowed to a stop, pulling Dakota closer to him, and looked around them. He placed John's journal along with a few other papers on the trunk of the Impala.
He lowered Dakota to the ground, giving her a look as he pressed a finger to his lips. Dakota nodded and wrapped her arms around Sam's leg, he pulled out a flashlight to help him see.
Sam nudged Dakota further behind him as he crouched down. He looked underneath the car parked next to them, his breathing stuttered. A cat suddenly hissed at them and swatted it's paw toward the two.
Sam yelped and fell backwards, Dakota gripped onto him--scared by the sudden change of events. Sam laughed at himself, shaking his head as he pushed himself to a standing position. Dakota giggled too, but she wasn't exactly sure why they were laughing.
Dakota walked close to Sam, her small hand gripped his large one tightly. She screamed when someone grabbed Sam's leg, pulling him underneath the car and promptly knocking him out.
"Daddy!" She cried out as a large figure crawled out from under the car. She took off running toward the bar, calling out for her dad.
The figure easily caught up with her, knocking her out and tossing her in the back of their van with Sam.
<><><><>
Dean walked out of the bar, whistling a random tune to himself. He casually glanced around the parking lot, but slowed when he spotted the cat that scared Sam. He shook his head at the cat and continued onward.
His brow furrowed when he noticed the journal sitting on the trunk. He picked it up and immediately searched the car, his heart clenching when he didn't spot either of the Winchesters.
He opened the driver door to make sure he didn't miss them. Dean leaned in the car, climbing halfway over the front seat to scan the back for his daughter.
"Dakota? Baby?"
He climbed back out of the car and looked back toward the bar. His chest began to rise and fall quickly as panic seized him.
A bunch of people stumbled out of the bar, all talking quietly to themselves.
"Hey, you guys been outside around here in like the last hour or so?" He asked a couple of bikers, the couple shook their heads and walked away.
Dean had begun to panic.
"Sam! Dakota!" He shouted, his eyes never staying in one place for long. He mumbled to himself under his breath. "Sammy! Kota, baby! Sam!"
Dean stopped hyperventilating when he saw the surveillance camera. He moved to the middle of the road, trying to see if maybe Sam was taking Dakota on a walk.
"Sam?" His voice cracked, his eyes scanned the road. "Kota?" He whimpered.
Dean had collected himself enough to get an hour of sleep, his immense worrying keeping him awake. When day first broke, he immediately found himself at the sheriff's department.
"What can I do for you, Officer Washington?" The sheriff questioned, looking over Dean's fake badge.
"I'm working a missing persons." Dean responded, keeping the distress out of his voice.
"I didn't know the Jenkins case was being covered by the state police." The sheriff drawled, Dean repressed the urge to roll his eyes, too overcome with concern.
"Uh, no, no." Dean dismissed. "It was someone else. Actually, it's my cousins. We were having a few last night at this bar down by the highway, he had his niece with him, and I haven't seen him since."
"Does your cousins have a drinking problem?" The sheriff asked.
"Sam?" Dean scoffed out a laugh. "Two beers, and he's doing karaoke. He wasn't drunk, especially not with the kid. They were taken." He insisted.
"Kid?" The sheriff asked, sounding more intrigued.
"Yes, Sam's niece. She's five. Her father...isn't--well, he's not in the picture." Dean decided on.
"You guys took a five year old to a bar?" The sheriff rose an eyebrow.
"Couldn't get a babysitter in time, Sam's her guardian."
The sheriff clicked her tongue, hesitantly buying the lie.
"All right. What're their names?"
"Winchester." Dean followed the sheriff to the computer. "Sam and Dakota Winchester."
"Like the rifle?"
"Like the rifle."
The sheriff searched for Sam first, easily being able to find Dakota through him.
"Samuel Winchester." She said when he popped up. "So you know that his brother, Dean Winchester, died in St. Louis."
Realization washed over Dean, momentarily being glad he settled on Dakota's dad 'not being in the picture' instead of saying anything else.
"And, uh, was suspected of murder."
Dean chuckled awkwardly. "Yeah, Dean. Kind of the black sheep of the family. Handsome, though."
The sheriff merely spared Dean a glance at his after-thought.
"Dakota Winchester. Oh, wow, her mother was absent after giving birth and her father, well, turned out to be the...black sheep."
Dean looked away from Dakota's file. Despite him being her father and in the picture, it still hurt to hear how people thought Dakota lived. Parentless.
"Well, neither Sam or Dakota are showing up in any current field reports." The sheriff informed.
"Oh, I already have a lead." Dean said. "I saw a surveillance camera out by the highway."
"Uh-huh." The sheriff hummed in agreement. "County traffic cam."
"Yeah, I'm thinking the camera picked up whatever took them." Dean explained, the sheriff's brow pinched and Dean caught his mistake. "Or whoever."
"Well, I have access to the traffic cam footage down at the county works department, but...well, in the meantime, let's do this the right way." The sheriff got up and went to a stack of papers.
Dean's posture sagged as he realized what she was doing.
"Why don't you fill out...a missing-persons report for them. And sit tight over here."
Dean took the clipboard that was practically forced into his hands.
"Officer, look, uh...they're family. And I kind of--I know of look out for him. I mean, the girl is practically my daughter. You got to let me go with you."
The sheriff gave him a tight-lipped sympathetic smile.
"I'm sorry. I can't do that." She apologized.
"Well, tell me something." Dean said. "Your county has its fair share of missing persons. Any of them come back?" He couldn't help but ask.
The sheriff gave him the same pressed-lipped smile and looked down.
"Sam's my responsibility, Dakota, too. And they're coming back." Dean promised, his head nodding along to his words. "I'm bringing them back."
<><><><><><><><><><><>
Sam sprung awake with a gasp, his eyes instantly scanned his surrounded. He noticed Dakota's small, curled up form in the corner of his cage.
Sam scrambled over his niece.
"Dakota? Kota?" Sam roused her, shaking her shoulder.
Dakota quickly woke, tears instantly filled her eyes when she didn't recognized her surroundings. Whimpers tore through her lips, she shrunk in on herself.
"Hey, hey, hey, it's okay. Kota, I'm here, it's okay." Sam cooed, running his fingers through her hair, he pulled the shaking girl into his lap.
"U-uncle Sammy?" Dakota questioned, pressing herself against Sam's chest. Her small fist gripped Sam's tee shirt.
"Yeah, I'm here, sweetheart." Sam assured. "I'm gonna try and find us away out, all right?"
Dakota whimpered and nodded her head softly. "Daddy?"
"He's looking for us." Sam said with certainty.
Sam cupped Dakota's cheek, brushing a thumb along her cheekbone before dropping his hand and standing.
He had to duck due to the small cage, he walked to the opposite side from Dakota. Wrapping his hands the horizontal bars and shaking the cage.
"Sammy! Look." Dakota pointed out, gesturing to the unconscious man in the cage near them.
<><><><>
Dean sat on a bench with his head in his hands, attempting to calm himself down. He was gone for like two minutes, and he managed to lose both his brother and his daughter.
"Greg." The sheriff greeted, walking toward him with papers in held in her hands.
Dean whipped around at the sound of his alias' name.
"I think we got something." She informed him, holding up the papers for him to see. Dean stood and grasped the papers. "These traffic cams take an image every three seconds as part of the Amber Alert program. These were all taken around the time that your cousins disappeared."
Dean flipped through the papers, not really seeing what it was.
"This isn't really what I'm looking for." Dean said.
"Just wait, wait." She told him, gesturing for him to flip the page. "Next one."
She pointed to the picture of a old RV.
"This one was taken right after Sam and Dakota left the bar. Look at the back end of that thing." Dean glanced up at her questioningly. "Now look at the plates.
"The plates look new. It was probably stolen." Dean noted.
"So whoever's driving that rust bucket must be involved."
A all black van drove past them, the engine made a loud, grinding noise as it passed. Dean followed the van with his eyes.
"You hear that engine?" Dean asked the sheriff.
She nodded. "Yeah."
"Like a whining growl, isn't it?"
"Sure." The sheriff shrugged in confusion.
Dean watched the van leave the area.
"I'll be damned." He murmured.
<><><><>
Dakota cowered in the corner, her arms wrapped around herself. Sam gripped the top of the cage, swinging himself until his feet made contact with the wall. He grunted with the effort of holding himself up.
After a couple more times of slamming his feet against the wall, Sam collapsed to the ground. He scooted back until he made contact with the opposite wall, Dakota instantly cuddled into his side.
Jenkins started to groan as he pushed himself up. Sam and Dakota's heads whipped toward the sound.
"You're alive?" Sam asked, as he nudged Dakota behind him. "Are you okay?"
"Does it look like I'm doing okay?" Jenkins sneered at the Winchester.
"He was just asking." Dakota defended her uncle in a weak voice.
Jenkins' face softened at the sight of Dakota cowering into Sam's side.
"Where are we?" Sam questioned.
"I don't know." Jenkins answered, his eyes squinting at the dull light. "Country, I think. Smells like the country."
"You're Alvin Jenkins, aren't you?" Sam wanted to make sure.
Jenkins nodded. "Yeah."
Sam chuckled to himself, Dakota smiled lightly at her uncle. Not really understanding why he was laughing.
"Wow." He sighed. "I was looking for you."
"Oh, yeah?"
"Yeah."
"Well, no offense," Jenkins scoffed, "but this is a piss-poor rescue."
"Well, my brother's out there right now, too." Sam glanced back at Dakota. "He's looking for us, so..."
"So, he's not gonna find us." Jenkins stated. "We're in the middle of nowhere, waiting for them to come back and do God knows what to us."
Dakota whimpered quietly, burying her face in Sam's side.
"What are they? Have you seen them?" Sam questioned, his arm wrapped tightly around his frightened niece.
"What are you talking about?" Jenkins asked.
"What do they look like?" Sam reiterated.
A loud clanging sound rang out. Jenkins moved to the back corner, Sam pushed Dakota back.
"See for yourself." Jenkins said quietly.
Two people hobbled in with hoods pulled over their heads. They wore ponchos, like it was raining outside. Jenkins crowded the front wall again, causing the two people to slam at metal bar against the wall.
Dakota whimpered again, her hand reaching out and grasping Sam's arm tightly. Jenkins moved away from the wall.
A loud buzzing sound filled the air as they opened the door to Jenkins cage.
"Leave me alone! Don't touch me!" Jenkins panicked. "You leave me alone!"
The people ignored the man, setting a plate of food on the cage floor and shutting the door again. Jenkins attacked the plate, he started eating the food quickly with his hands.
The two figures noticed the Winchesters around their front wall, so they bashed the metal piped against the cage.
Dakota cried out as her and Sam scrambled away from the wall. The figures chuckled at Dakota's scared sound.
Sam watched them use the power box that powered the two cages. One figure pulled out a key and shut the box's door. The second figured followed the first out.
"I'll be damned." Sam said, watching the two leave. "They're just people."
"Yeah. What did you expect?" Jenkins questioned.
"Daddy says people are crazy." Dakota whispered to Sam, he nodded his head in agreement. "I'm hungry, uncle Sammy."
"I know, sweetheart." Sam soothed, he turned to Jenkins. "How often do they feed you?"
"Once a day." Jenkins shrugged. He gestured toward the power box that one of the people used. "They use that thing over there to open the gates."
"And that's the only time you see them?" Sam asked, pulling Dakota into his lap.
"So far, but I'm waiting." Jenkins answered.
"Waiting for what?" Dakota looked over at Sam's shoulder at Jenkins, her voice slightly muffled by Sam's shirt.
"Ned beatty time, sweet cheeks." Jenkins told Dakota.
Sam stared at Jenkins with an dead face, almost glaring at him for calling Dakota 'sweet cheeks'. He didn't like it.
"I think that's the least of your worries right now." The older Winchester said.
"Oh, yeah?" Jenkins scoffed.
"Yeah." Sam nodded, looking toward the ceiling.
"What do you think they want?"
"Friends." Dakota answered Jenkins, her small shoulders raised in a shrug.
"Depends on who they are." Sam voiced, Dakota slid from his lap as he stood. He reached outside their cage and grasped a metallic cord.
"They're bunch of psycho hillbilly rednecks, if you ask me, looking for love in all the wrong places." Jenkins drawled sarcastically.
Dakota's face scrunched up in confusion. "What do you mean? Sammy, what does he mean?"
Sam threw a glare over his shoulder at Jenkins.
"Nothing, Kota-bear." Sam cooed, giving her a smile. He pulled out a nickname Dean gave her when she was born. He wanted to calm her.
He could tell by looking at her that she was panicking. Any five year old would be having a meltdown in this situation, Dakota was trying to distract herself.
"Sammy?"
"Yes?" Sam grunted as he tugged on the cord.
"Do you think daddy is looking for us?"
"She's not yours?" Jenkins broke in.
"She's my niece." Sam answered Jenkins, his tone obvious, like it was common knowledge. "He's comin', Kota, don't worry."
Dakota nodded, accepting his answer and moving to the back corner. She sat with her knees pulled up to her chest.
"She asked about her dad. What about her mom?" Jenkins whispered toward Sam, Dakota either didn't hear him or she didn't want to respond.
"Doesn't matter." Sam responded.
"She dead?"
"Doesn't matter." Sam hissed. It wasn't Jenkins business, but Sam knew he was trying to distract himself.
<><><><>
"Okay." The sheriff started, glancing briefly at Dean. "The next traffic cam is 50 miles from here, and your pickup didn't pass that one, so..."
"So they must have pulled off somewhere." Dean finished. "I don't see any other roads here."
"A lot of these backwoods properties have their own private roads." The sheriff responded.
"Great." Dean sighed.
The sheriff's computer beeped, a background check on Dean's badge number being finished. She sees that the badge number was reported stolen.
"So, Gregory..." The sheriff drawled.
"Yeah." Dean whipped around to face the sheriff, picking up on her suspicious tone.
"I ran you badge number." The sheriff said, her eyes on the road and her tone very tense. "It's routine when we're working a case with state police, for accounting purposes and what have you. And, uh, they just got back to me."
The sheriff pulled over on the side of the road. Dean's whole posture was stiff as he kept his eyes on the sheriff.
"It says here your badge was stolen. And there's a picture of you." The sheriff spun the computer for Dean to see.
There was a picture of a heavy set African American man. Dean gulped and tried to pull a smile.
"I, uh, lost some weight." Dean tried. "And I got that Michael Jackson skin disease."
The sheriff sighed and closed her eyes briefly.
"Okay, would you step out of the car, please?"
Dean groaned softly in annoyance.
"Look, look." Dean stopped her. "You want to arrest me, that's fine. I'll cooperate, I swear. But first, please, let me find Sam and Dakota."
"I don't even know who you are or if these Sam and Dakota people are missing." The sheriff argued.
"Look into my eyes and tell me if I'm lying about this." Dean challenged. His eyes held both fear and concern.
"Identity theft? You're impersonating an officer."
Dean sighed shortly. "Here's the thing, when we were young, I pretty much pulled Sam from a fire. And ever since then, I've felt responsible from him-- you know, like it's my job to keep him safe. And Dakota, I--I rai--helped raise Dakota."
Dean corrected himself cautiously. He didn't help raise Dakota. She's his daughter, if anything, people helped him raise her.
"I'm just afraid if we don't find them fast...please. They're my family. Dakota's five."
"I'm sorry." The sheriff apologized. "You've given me no choice. I have to take you in."
Dean pleaded silently with her, his eyes watered. She shook her head before her eyes fell onto a picture she had pinned to her sun-visor.
She exhaled sharply, closing her eyes.
"After we find Sam and Dakota Winchester."
Relief filled Dean's face entirely.
<><><><>
"What's your name again?" Jenkins asked as Sam continued to pull on the thick metallic wire coming from the ceiling.
Dakota was curled up in the corner, her knees up against her chest and her chin placed on her knee. Her eyes watched her uncle carefully. Her expression almost protective over Sam as she flicked her gaze to Jenkins.
"It' Sam." The older Winchester responded distractedly. His voice muffled as he grunted with the effort of pulling the wire.
"Why don't you give it up, Sammy? There's no way out." Jenkins informed, sitting in a similar position to Dakota.
Sam grunts again, irritation filled his face. "Don't...call me...Sammy!" He was finally able to pull the cord free.
He coughed as a bunch of dirt and dust was flung into his face.
"What is it?" Jenkins asked.
"Sammy?" Dakota voiced her concern.
Sam held up a small metal bracket in his hand, confusion covered his expression.
"Oh, thank God--a bracket." Jenkins drawled sarcastically. "Now we got them, huh?"
The next thing they knew Jenkins cage door opened. Dakota and Sam exchanged a quick glance, as the older Winchester pressed himself against the wall. He tried to get Jenkins to stay in the cage.
"I think you should get back in there." Sam said cautiously, he looked around with suspicion.
"What?" Jenkins questioned in confusion, not understanding Sam's logic.
"This isn't right." Sam noticed. Dakota pushed up and cuddled into Sam's side.
"Don't you want to get out of here? Get your niece out of here?" Jenkins asked the Winchester, gesturing toward the frightened girl curled up in his side.
"Yeah, of course I do, but that was too easy." Sam informed.
"I'm gonna get out of here." Jenkins assured, holding up his hands. "I'm gonna send help, okay?"
"No." Sam ordered. "I'm serious. Jenkins, this might be a trap."
"Bye, Sammy." Jenkins waved, he rushed out of the barn.
"Jenkins!" Sam called after him.
"Sammy, what's happening?" Dakota panicked, not liking Sam's tone.
"It's okay, Kota. We're gonna be okay." Sam cooed softly, sitting down and pulling Dakota onto his lap.
Jenkins cage door swung shut and latched once more. Sam cursed quietly and pulled Dakota closer to him. She dug her face into his chest and cried, Sam ran his fingers through her tangled hair soothingly.
"It's okay." He repeated gently.
After several minutes of Sam consoling his distraught niece, she quieted.
Until, a loud piercing scream filled the air. They both instantly knew that it was Jenkins, that he had been trapped and killed.
Dakota sobbed into her uncle's chest, wanting nothing but her father to come rescue them.
In the morning, Dean the sheriff got coffee to discuss the case. Dean hadn't slept at all, it was obvious on his face. His hair was messed up and sticking up in different directions. There was dark rings under his eyes.
"Okay, officer." Dean said, stressed. "Look, I don't mean to press my luck."
"Your luck is so pressed." The sheriff cut in.
"Right." Dean agreed for arguments sake. "I was wondering...why are you helping me out, anyway? Why don't you just lock me up."
"My brother Riley disappeared three years ago--a lot like Sam and Dakota. We searched for him, but...nothing." She explained sadly. "I know what's like to feel responsible for someone and for them...come on. Let's keep at it."
Dean watched the sheriff walk around the car and get in without another word. He thought through her story for a couple seconds, he couldn't help but feel like was going to happen to Sam and Dakota.
<><><><>
"Pull over. Pull over here." Dean ordered the sheriff, spotting a dirt road off to the side.
The sheriff did what he said and pulled off onto the road before stopping. The car wasn't to a complete stop before Dean got out, he just couldn't help himself. The sheriff scrambled after him.
"This is the first turnoff I've seen so far." Dean said, he peered through the tunnel of trees.
"You stay here. I'll check it out." The sheriff informed.
"No way." Dean argued.
The sheriff stopped walking, turning to face Dean.
"You're a civilian--and a felon, I think." The sheriff stated. "I'm not taking you with me."
"You're not going without me." Dean said, shaking his head.
The sheriff sighed. "All right. You promise you won't get involved? You'll let me handle it?"
"Yeah, I promise." Dean shrugged.
The sheriff held out her hand. "Shake on it."
Dean smirked and grabbed the sheriff's hand, but she slapped a handcuff around his wrist. Dean's smirk dropped as the sheriff dragged him to the police car.
"Oh, come on." He complained.
She ignored him and placed the other handcuff around the door handle on the driver's side.
"This is ridiculous." Dean rattled the cuff. "Kathleen, I really think you're gonna need my help."
"I'll manage." Kathleen locked the car as she walked down the path.
Dean groaned and tugged at the cuff, it simply pulled but never budged.
"I got to start carrying paper clips." Dean sighed. "Oh! Dakota's bobby pins!" Dean muttered to himself, digging into his pockets.
He scraped the bottom of his pockets. Dean silently pleaded with God that Dakota stashed her hairpins in Dean's jacket.
"No." He whined when he found nothing. He leaned his head back before he set his eyes on the car's antenna.
He shuffled over, pulling harshly at the cuff to get distance. Dean strained to reach for the antenna, but before he could. He heard an old engine groaning as it went.
"Son of a bitch." He cursed as his eyes widened, he pulled harder against the cuff. He groaned in pain as he tried to stretch enough to grasp it.
He finally reached it enough to unscrew it. He dropped it on the ground, silently cursing himself as he reached for it.
He scrambled to unlock his cuff, listening carefully at the footsteps approaching.
He finally unlocked both cuffs and darted into the trees. Two guys rounded the car, shoving at each other in excitement.
"I've never seen him so angry before." One guy spoke lowly toward the other.
"Never been followed by the police before." The second guy muttered. "Never took a kid this young before, or at all."
<><><><>
Dakota was placed between Sam's legs as leaned against Sam's chest, snoring lightly as she slept. Her hands were fisted into her uncle's shirt. Sam hummed quietly as he rubbed her back gently. He occasionally would brush her hair away from her face.
Sam brushed his thumb against Dakota's cheekbone as she whined lightly. His eyes darted over to the woman that was now waking up.
"You all right?" He asked her softly, adjusting his grip on Dakota. He noticed the woman rubbing the back of her head.
"Are you Sam Winchester?" She asked, Sam's eyes narrowed and he tightened his arms around his niece. "Aren't you?" She pressed.
"Yeah." He sighed.
"Your, uh...your cousin's looking for you." She told him. "Where's Dakota? Is she with you?" She couldn't see Dakota, Sam's legs were bent and pulled up.
"Thank God." He chuckled, he lowered his leg slightly for the woman to see Dakota's sleeping face. "She's right here. Where is he?"
"Oh, he, uh...I cuffed him to my car." She informed.
The two adults tensed as the door opened, they could hear heavy boots approaching. Sam shuffled slightly to see if he could find anything. Dakota grunted.
"Sam?" Dean's voice whispered as he noticed his brother in a cage. He rushed over to Sam and Dakota's cell, and rapped his fingers through the grated side. "Are you hurt?" He questioned.
Dakota whimpered quietly as she woke, she pushed herself further into Sam's chest.
"Kota." Her name fell from Dean's lip quietly, pure relief in his voice.
"Hey, sweetheart, look who's here." Sam said softly, he rubbed Dakota's back.
She looked up at him and blinked.
"Sammy?" She mumbled.
"Good morning, baby." Dean cooed, he crouched down by the cage.
Kathleen watched the exchange carefully.
"Daddy!" Dakota exclaimed, her voice still quiet as she remember where she was.
Dakota stood and pressed herself against the cage wall, reaching her small hand through one of the openings.
Dean grasped her hand gently, pressing a soft kiss to the back of it. "Are you okay, baby? Hurt?"
"No, I'm okay." She assured, a grin plastered on her lips. He noticed a tiny cut on her forehead.
"What's that? What happened? Is it still bleeding?" Dean panicked, Sam breathed out a chuckle.
"It's okay, daddy." Dakota giggled gently, she missed her dad.
Dean nodded, a grin fell on his lips.
"Damn, it's good to see you two." He said.
"How did you get out of the cuffs?" Kathleen blurted.
Dean whipped around, his eyes flicked around her cage. "I know a trick or two." He smiled cheekily. "All right. Oh. These locks look like they're gonna be a bitch."
"There's some kind of automatic control right there." Sam pointed over to the panel.
"Have you seen them?" Dean questioned Sam.
"Yeah." His brother nodded. "Dude, they're just people."
"And they jumped you?" Dean rose an eyebrow. Sam rolled his eyes. "Must be getting a little rusty there, kiddo. What do they want?"
"I don't know." Sam shrugged.
"They let Jenkins go, daddy." Dakota pitched in, Dean glanced at his daughter before at Kathleen. He noticed the sheriff's eyes narrow in on Dakota.
"But I think that was just some kind of trap." Sam added, pulling Dakota onto his lap. "Doesn't make any sense to me." He sighed.
Dakota looked up at her uncle before placing her forehead against Sam's cheek, trying to comfort him.
"Well, that's the point." Dean said, still trying to work through the panel. "You know, with our--" He cut a glance at Kathleen. "--our usual playmates, there's rules, there's patterns. But with people...they're just crazy."
"I told you, Sammy! I told you." Dakota gloated, kissing Sam cheek before giggling.
Dean and Sam couldn't help but grin at the sound.
"See anything else out there?" Sam questioned.
"Uh, he has about a dozen junked cars hidden out back." Dean replied. "I'm thinking when they take someone, they take their car."
"Did you see a black mustang out there, about 10 years old?" Kathleen asked, her eyes wide as she looked at Dean.
"Yeah, actually, I did." Dean nodded. "Your brother's?" He questioned when he noticed her face fall. "I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry." A small voice apologized, they both look over to see Dakota's small face peering through one of the openings.
Dean's face softened at his daughter. Kathleen forced a small smile in Dakota's direction.
"Let's get you out of here, then we'll take care of those bastards." Dean said. "This takes a key. Key?"
"I don't know." Sam shrugged. Dakota copied her uncle's motion.
"All right. I better go find it." Dean told them.
"Hey." Sam stopped him. "Be careful."
"Please, daddy." Dakota added.
"Yeah." Dean nodded at his brother. "I will, baby. Don't worry. Stay with Sam."
"I can't go anywhere." Dakota told him.
Dean gave his daughter a wink before leaving. Dakota sank back into Sam's chest.
"He told me that your his cousins." Kathleen made conversation. Dakota and Sam exchanged a look. "Is...is he Dean?"
"Uh, no?" Sam answered, ending it like a question.
"Dakota calls him daddy." Kathleen argued.
"He raised her, he's like her dad." Sam went with it. Dakota chose very wisely not to talk.
<><><><>
Dean walked through the barn with his flashlight. His mind was on his daughter, his heart hurt as he thought about how scared she must've been.
"Yikes." Dean said as he spotted random things in jars, he tapped the side of the glass.
He kept walking until he noticed pictures of dead people hung up on the wall. He picked up the picture of two guys posing with a dead Jenkins.
"Well, I'll say it again--demons, I get. People are crazy." He mumbled to himself.
He saw some stairs, so he walked up them quickly and quietly.
He heard music playing quietly. He saw someone in the kitchen, causing him to creep faster through the hall.
His head his something dangling from the ceiling, it rattled quickly. He quickly grabbed it to stop the sound. He took a closer look.
"What..." He let go when he realized it was different bones of a human.
He picked up a board with a spike shoved through it. He moved toward the kitchen quietly. He spotted a box with some bolts and a couple sets of keys.
He looked into the kitchen, but moved away when the man turned around. He quickly grabbed the key, luckily it was labeled. He then grabbed a jar and held it up to his face to see it.
His eyebrows rose up when he noticed they were human teeth. A floorboard creaking behind him startled him.
He slowly placed the jar down and gripped the board in his hand. He went to hit the person but stopped cold when he saw it was just a little girl. She flinched away.
The dad in him acted up, so he slowly moved toward the girl and made shushing noises gently.
"It's okay. I'm not gonna hurt you." He promised her.
She pulled out a knife. "I know." She said before lunging at him.
The girl stabbed the knife into his jacket, trapping him against the wall.
"Daddy! Daddy!" The girl screamed. "Daddy!"
Dean quickly pulled the knife out as someone walked out into the room.
"Daddy!" The girl yelled again.
Someone grabbed him from behind as the guy in front of him charged. Dean kicked his feet out, slamming them into the guy in front of him. The man holding Dean punched his side, before throwing him into the wall in front of them.
The guy grabbed Dean's jacket, and threw him over the couch. Dean crashed into the wall but sprang back up. The man held the back of Dean's jacket, but Dean whipped around and punched him.
The other guy tried to tackle Dean, but he grabbed him and threw him into the wall. Both guys crept up to Dean, but Dean kicked a box toward one of them.
The other lunged at Dean, but the Winchester punched him across the jaw. One guy tackled him from the side, slamming Dean into the wall. The hunter fell to the ground, but scrambled up.
"I'm gonna kick your ass first." Dean said, pointing to the guy on the left before moving to the right. "And then yours.
But the man from the kitchen walked up behind Dean and slammed something into the back of Dean's head. The Winchester quickly fell unconscious.
<><><><>
Dean woke slowly. The first thing he noticed was that he was tied to a chair.
"Come on." One of the guys said, bending over toward their father. "Let us hunt him."
"Yeah, this one's a fighter. Sure would be fun to hunt." The other one pitched in.
The father laughed, showing Dean his nasty teeth.
"Oh, you got to be kidding me." Dean sighed. "That's what this is about--you yahoos hunt people?"
"You ever killed before?" The father asked, leaning in toward Dean.
"What?" Dean then breathed out a sarcastic chuckle. "Well, that depends on what you mean."
"I've hunted all my life." The father explained. "Just like my father, his before him. I've hunted deer and bear. I even got a cougar once. Huh, boys?"
Dean's eyes fluttered as his head pounded.
"But the best hunt...is human." The father informed. "Oh, there's nothing like it. Holding their life in your hands...seeing the fear in their eyes just before they go dark makes you feel powerful alive."
"You're a sick puppy." Dean said, raising his brows.
"We give him a weapon." The father said, standing from his chair. "We give him a fighting chance. It's kind of like...our tradition, passed down father to son. Of course, only one or two a year. Never enough to bring the law down. We never been that sloppy." He ranted.
"Yeah, well, don't sell yourself short. You're plenty sloppy." Dean promised.
The father bent down to lean in Dean's face. "So what, you with that pretty cop? Are you a cop?"
"If I tell you...you promise not to make me into an ashtray?" Dean asked.
The father leaned back and looked over to his son, who lunged forward and backhanded Dean.
"Only reason I don't let my boys take you right here and now is that there's something I need to know." The father told Dean, walking around him.
"Yeah, how about it's not nice to marry your sister?" Dean drawled sarcastically.
The father went to the fireplace and pulled out a white-hot metal poker.
"Tell me...any of the cops gonna come looking for you?"
"Oh, eat me." Dean hissed out. "No, no, no, wait--you actually might."
The second brother reached out and roughly grabbed Dean's head. He grabbed the Winchester's hairline and pulled back, making Dean's eyes widen. The father placed the hot poker near Dean's eye, his eyes involuntarily watered.
"You think this is funny?" The father sneered. "You brought this down on my family."
"Yeah, well, you took mine." Dean muttered to himself.
"All right. You want to play games?" The father stated. "We'll play some games."
Dean stayed silent.
"Looks like we're gonna have a hunt tonight after all, boys." The father laughed. "And you get to pick the animal. The boy, the kid, or the cop."
"You're sick." Dean snapped, angry that the man not only added Sam to the list, but thought adding Dakota was decently acceptable.
The father brandished the poker threateningly.
"Okay, wait, wait, wait." Dean panicked. "Look, nobody's coming for me, all right? It's just us."
"If you don't choose, I will." The father threatened, placing the poker on Dean's shoulder. The Winchester groaned in pain.
"Oh! Oh, you son of a bitch!" Dean shouted.
He held it by Dean's eye again, his green orbs once again glossed over.
"Next time, I'll take an eye." The father hissed.
"All right, the guy, the guy! Take the guy!" Dean said.
He knew Sam had a better chance at surviving than Kathleen. He didn't even want to think about them hunting Dakota.
"Lee..." The father looked over to the brother not holding Dean. "Go do it." He handed Lee the key that was on a necklace around his neck.
"Don't let him out, though." The father grabbed Lee's wrist. "Shoot him in the cage."
"What?" Dean panicked. "I thought you said you were gonna hunt him. You were gonna give him a chance."
"Lee!" The father called, keeping eye contact with Dean. "When you're done with the boy, shoot the kid and the bitch, too. We got to clean this mess up. Before any more cops come running out here."
Dean started to hyperventilate. He tugged at his restraints.
<><><><>
"Sammy." Dakota panicked when she heard the door open. She tightened her grip around her uncle.
"Shh, shh." Sam tried to calm her, he noticed Lee at the control panel.
Sam ushered Dakota into the back corner of the cage, the farthest from the door. He positioned himself in front of her.
"What are you doing?" Sam asked Lee.
Sam and Dakota's cell door unlocked. Dakota whimpered and dug her face in Sam's back.
Sam glanced down and saw the metal bracket he pulled from the ceiling.
"Hey!" Kathleen shouted. Sam threw the bracket at the same time the gun went off.
Dakota sobbed against her uncle's shirt, wishing her dad was there to save her.
<><><><>
"If you hurt my brother or my daughter, I'll kill you. I swear." Dean threatened, his eyes positioned on the door Lee left through. "I'll kill you all. I will kill you all!"
"Lee!" The father shouted, walking over toward the basement door.
<><><><>
Dakota bawled as Sam tackled Lee to the ground, the two fighting over the gun.
"Daddy!" Dakota cried out. "Daddy!"
Sam punched Lee across the face. He clocked him a few more times, before standing and trying to cock the gun. He realized the gun was jammed.
"Damn!" Sam hissed. He waited a few more seconds to see if Lee got up, when he stayed down Sam rushed to Dakota.
"Lee!" He heared someone yell. Sam picked up his crying niece, and held her tightly to him as he went to unlock Kathleen's cage.
"Dakota, we're gonna play hide-and-go-seek, okay?" Sam asked Dakota.
"No." She sobbed in response. "I want daddy."
"I know, sweetheart, I know. We'll find him. But, we have to hide from the bad people, all right?" Sam said soothingly.
He found a good spot for Dakota to lay low in. He placed his finger up to his mouth.
"You have to stay very quiet, you can't make any noise, okay?
"O-okay." She sniffled. "Will you stay with me?"
"I can't, babe, I have to stop the bad people." Sam brushed her hair away from her tear stained face.
Dakota whimpered but nodded her head. Sam winked at her before disappearing in the shadows.
"Lee! Where are you?" Dakota heard being screamed. "Damn it, Judd. Get the lights!"
Dakota assumed they found Lee stuck in her cage.
"Must've blown a fuse." Judd responded.
Dakota jumped when she heard gunshots go off, she covered her mouth with both hands, crying silently. She pleaded with God that Sam would be okay.
"You stupid bitch." She heard someone sneer near her. Dakota peaked out and saw one of the guys holding a gun to Kathleen.
"Hey ugly!" She shouted, a second later Sam's yell sounded.
"Hey!"
Sam ducked as Judd whipped around with the gun raised. Judd fired and shot his father in the chest.
Sam lunged at Judd, grabbing the gun and elbowing him in the face. He whipped Judd across the face a couple of times with the butt of the gun. Judd fell unconscious.
"Kota, you can come out now." Sam said, panting. Dakota scurried from her hiding spot and crashed into Sam's side.
Sam crouched down and placed a hand on Dakota's shoulder. "When I tell you to hide and stay quiet, I expect you to do that. Kota, you could've gotten hurt, he could've really hurt you."
"I-I'm sorry, uncle Sammy, he was gonna kill Kathleen." Dakota said. "I couldn't let her die. Promise you won't tell daddy?"
Sam sighed heavily. "Next time you do exactly what Dean and I tell you to do, okay? If we say hide and be quiet, you hide and stay silent."
"I promise." Dakota swore. She nodded and pressed a hand to Sam's cheek. "Let's go find Daddy."
"First, we have to deal with these two jokers." Sam ruffled Dakota hair. He dragged Judd to one of the cages and locked him inside.
He went back to where Kathleen and Dakota were watching the father. Dakota was peeking out from behind Kathleen's legs.
"Sammy!" She called when she saw her uncle walk in.
"I'll watch this one. You take her and go ahead." Kathleen said.
Sam watched Kathleen carefully, he knew that these people killed her brother.
"Go ahead." Kathleen repeated.
"C'mon, sweetheart." Sam walked around the father and held his hand out.
Dakota darted over and practically launched herself at Sam. He picked her up and held her on his hip. She buried her face in the crook of his neck.
Dakota flinched when a gun went off. Sam held her tightly.
"Dean?" He asked when they reached the house.
"Sammy? Dakota?" Dean responded. Dakota pushed against Sam's arms, wanting her father. A fresh set of tears lined her eyes.
"Daddy!" She called, Sam struggled to hold on to her.
Dean, now free from the chair, rounded the corner. He rushed to his brother and daughter, carefully taking Dakota from Sam's arms.
One of Dean's shoulders were dislocated, and he could hardly move it. But he held Dakota to the best of his ability.
"Hey, baby. You okay? You hurt?" Dean questioned, hugging his daughter to him tightly.
Dakota sobbed into Dean's shirt, her arms wrapped around his neck tightly.
"I-I was so scared." Dakota cried.
"I know, baby, I know. It's okay now, I'm here. I'm here." Dean promised, rocking her slightly and rubbing her back.
"Dean." Sam patted his brother's shoulder, gesturing to the door.
"Let's go." Dean agreed.
They walked out of the house at the same time Kathleen walked out of the barn. They ran toward her, Dean tightened his arms around Dakota.
"She okay?" Kathleen asked when the four met each other.
"Yeah, she's just scared." Dean whispered, rubbing his hand up and down Dakota's back, he could feel her shaking.
"Yeah, I bet." Kathleen sighed. "Where's the girl?"
"Locked in the closet. What about the dad?" Dean replied with, Dakota rubbed her forehead against his neck as she tried to hide her face more.
"Shot, trying to escape." Kathleen answered.
Dean stared at her for a few seconds, before he and Sam exchanged a glance. Neither of them believed her, but they understood.
Dean nodded his head and adjusted his grip on Dakota. He bent his head and pressed a kiss to her forehead.
"I love you, baby." He mumbled to her.
"I love you, too, daddy."
<><><><>
"I think the car's at the police station." Dean told Sam, Dakota tightened her arms around Dean's shoulders. She hasn't said a word since he picked her up.
"Backup unit en route to your location." Kathleen's radio crackled, she held it up to her ear. "So...state police and the FBI are gonna be here within the hour. They're gonna want to talk to you."
The Winchesters all panicked, Dakota even let out a slight whimper. Dean placed a hand on the back of her head, messing with her blonde locks.
"I suggest that you're all long gone by then." Kathleen drawled, noticing their reaction.
"Thanks." Dean said, Sam nodded along. "Listen, I don't mean to press our luck here, but we're kind of in the middle of nowhere. And we've got a terrified five year old. Think we could catch a ride?"
"Start walking." Kathleen responded. "Duck if you see a squad car."
"Sounds great to me. Thanks." Sam replied.
He started to walk away, but Dean stayed put.
"Listen, uh...sorry about your brother." He apologized.
"Thank you." Kathleen forced a smile. "It was really hard not knowing what happened to him. I thought it would be easier once I knew the truth. But...it isn't really."
Sam and Dean exchanged a look, both nodding their heads slightly.
"Anyway, you should go. Get her out of here." Kathleen cleared her throat.
The Winchesters turned to leave, Dean nuzzled his head against Dakota's and sighed heavily. All he felt was relief at finding her and Sam.
He adjusted her to his good arm, his bad shoulder throbbed painfully.
"Don't ever do that again." Dean said.
"Do what?" Sam questioned.
"Go missing like that. Either of you."
"You were worried about me." Sam grinned. Sam knew Dean was worried about Dakota, he always was.
"All I'm saying--you vanish like that again, I'm not gonna look for you."
"Sure you will." Sam chuckled.
"You will." Dakota mumbled, finally speaking. She nestled into Dean's jacket.
"I'm not. I won't." Dean argued.
"So, you got sidelined by a 13-year-old girl, huh?" Sam asked.
"Aw, shut up. I'm a dad, I can't hit a kid."
"Just saying, you're getting rusty there, kiddo." Sam teased.
"Shut up." Dean chuckled.
Sam laughed, Dakota smiled lightly.
"Dakota's the lucky one here." Sam stated.
"How so?" Dean asked, if anything Dakota was the unlucky one.
"She doesn't have to walk all the way to the station."
Dean laughed and hiked Dakota up further.
"No, she's just spoiled." Dean responded.
Dean kissed Dakota's head. She snuggled closer to him.
Hey guys! Sorry I've been MIA, it's finals week for college. I just finished all of my exams. My first ever exams for college. It was hectic.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It took me probably two weeks to write, finding very little time whenever I could.
Love, Kaz.