Coercion

Coffeemaniac

Rated T for violence, language and suggestive situations. Possible trigger warning but probably nothing to worry about. No slash.

Reviews are welcome. Feed the writer.

Season 3: Dean is scheduled for hell. Sam's powers haven't developed.

Setting: Ranch Head, Wyoming (near the center of the Devil's Gate built by Samuel Colt)

A/N: This is the last chapter. Thank you to all those who stayed. Thank you for the reviews, the favorites and the follows. Many of you were kind, and extremely generous with your time. I hope to hear if you liked the conclusion or not.

Without readers, a writer is an island.

Part 8

Dean knew Sam would escape towards the woods. He never questioned his decision to go that way. If Sam ran out the front, he would still have headed in the direction of the trees, depending on them for cover. Going any other way was too risky.

The bitter cold made it hard to move fast. Dean missed his knit cap. He felt like his lungs were freezing over with every breath. He hoped Sam had grabbed a jacket before escaping.

He started calling for him as soon as he entered the trees. If Sam heard his voice then he'd know it was safe to stop running. Dean followed the best he could, looking for signs of his brother's path. Some broken branches and crushed leaves provided a few clues but Dean wasn't a back woods tracker. He used common sense and experience to search, but he wasn't confident.

If Sam had tried to create some kind of false trail then Dean would have to guess directions.

"Sammy," he yelled out but there was no answering call.

He came across a small hut, probably used by a hunter or some nature hippie. As he drew close to it, he saw the break on the cheap hasp and the door was slightly off its hinges. The trespasser had to be Sam.

Dean walked up slowly, calling out and hoping to get a response. Imagining getting tackled by his over sized brother, he approached the door and stood to one side. If Sam had managed to get a weapon, he might easily start firing through the wood. He reached out with one hand and knocked.

"Sam, it's me," he said, not sure if he should feel stupid about talking to an empty building or smart for being cautious.

No response came from the building. Confident now that Sam would answer if he could, Dean kicked open the door and barged inside. He found an empty square with thin walls, no built in floor; nothing but a bed, a chair and an iron stove.

Disappointed, he searched for any clue that would point out which direction Sam went. He supposed a note was too much to ask for.

He stopped, checking himself before he lost focus. A homeless or lost person could easily have stumbled onto the cabin. It didn't have to be Sam.

But, he knew it was. He just knew it. Maybe because the door had been replaced, or the person hadn't attempted an attention-grabbing fire, but whatever it was, Dean's instincts told him that Sam had broken into the tiny hut.

Certain now that he was heading in the right direction, Dean burst out of the cabin. He didn't bother to fix the door. The pressure of time crushed in on him. If night arrived before he found his brother, they would find a corpse. No one could survive a night in this cold without proper gear.

"Sam," he called. "Sammy!"

The phone in his pocket buzzed.

"Bobby," he said.

"Did you find him?"

"Not yet."

"We need to find him right away. The mayor says that Sam is out there with no coat or shoes."

"Son of a bitch," Dean said.

"I'm heading out too. Just keep tracking like I taught you. We'll find him."

"Don't trust the mayor."

"Him and the deputy are locked up in that cage in the cellar. They don't like sharing space with that poor girl the demons killed, but I figure it serves them right."

"Hell, yeah," Dean said. "What about Ava?" He had been scanning the tree line while they talked looking for some sign of Sam. He thought he spotted the right direction.

"She didn't survive the exorcism."

Distracted, Dean said, "I think he's heading towards the river."

"That'd make sense. It'll lead to people."

Dean disconnected. He followed a clumsy trail with lots of clues and figured Sam must be disoriented from the cold. As the sound of the water grew louder, he scanned the current carefully. People tended to live upstream. It was a throwback to the early settlers and Sam would know that.

The trees grew sparse as he reached the creek bed. The ground was hard but not solid near the water and Dean could see the heavy indents from boots. He knew that Sam didn't have boots on but maybe someone had seen him. He called out again, scared that Sam might have fallen in. The water was deep with a fast current and so cold that it would steal a man's life in moments.

"Dean," Sam's voice called out.

Dean looked up to find him standing a hundred feet upstream, leaning casually against a tree. Sam waved. Dean's legs weakened with relief. He took a slow breath then jogged up the embankment to his brother.

"Hey," Sam said when Dean drew close enough.

Fear quickly swallowed Dean's momentary euphoria. Pale white skin with bright pink cheeks and hollowed eyes greeted him. Sam was shaking so hard, the bark on the tree trembled under his hand. But, he was smiling and that scared Dean more than anything.

"What are you doing out here?" Dean said.

"I had to get to the river." His voice shook and the words drawled out slowly.

Sam's gaze wandered but there didn't seem to be any focus. His eyes looked bland as if he wasn't thinking at all.

"That's a bad idea, Sam. Bobby's here. We should go see him instead."

"Sure…I'm supposed to get to the river though. I think she's trying to kill me but I don't if I can stop myself." He pointed towards the water but his hand was shaking violently.

"Why not?" Dean was worried before it didn't come close to the cold terror snaking up his spine now.

Sam shook his head. "I'm not supposed to talk about it."

"Well, you did what she said, right? We don't need to get any closer."

Dean dragged off his sweatshirt, exhaling when the icy air swept through him. He handed it to Sam who took it but didn't put it on.

"It's really cold," Sam said. "I don't remember being this cold. Well, maybe when we slept in the car that winter in Oregon, maybe then."

"Yeah, probably." Dean nodded towards the sweatshirt. "You can wear that."

Sam rolled his eyes. "It's yours."

"Yeah, but, I'm not cold and you are. Go ahead and put it on."

Sam nodded as he slipped it over his head.

"We should head back to the house," Dean said.

Blinking rapidly, Sam straightened up but kept one hand on the tree. He seemed to struggle as he pushed more words over his darkened lips.

"I don't like it there. She's always trying to touch me." Sam shuffled a few steps away. No longer looking in Dean's direction, he whispered, "She has black eyes now."

Dean felt his muscles stiffen, anger almost canceling his fear. Sam could handle an aggressive woman but, imprisoned and abused, he shouldn't have had to deal with that too.

"Okay, look," Dean said. "The demons are back in hell, Duke Davis is dead, and you're safe with me so let's just get some place warm."

"Eddie is dead too, but I didn't do it."

Dean studied Sam. He figured he could manhandle him into the right direction, but if he balked, it would be a problem. His giant brother wasn't going to be moved if he didn't want to be. But, with the cold cutting through Dean and the obvious signs of hypothermia in Sam, they didn't have time to waste.

"That's it," Dean said. "Snap out of it. Take a breath and get your brain in gear, Sam. We're walking out of here right now."

Sam scowled. "Ok, but why are you yelling at me?"

Sam started walking again, heading away from the river. He stumbled, crashing hard to his knees.

Dean dropped down next to him. He grabbed his shoulder physically turning Sam to face him.

"What?" He said as he looked into Sam's eyes.

He stared back and Dean saw the clarity in his gaze.

"Drugs," Sam said. "Devil's Breath."

The moment passed quickly and the blankness returned. Sam leaned into Dean who wrapped his arms around him. As they huddled there with Sam's trembling body pressing into him for warmth, Dean hoped Ava went to hell with the demon who possessed her.

SUPERNATURAL SUPERNATURAL SUPERNATURAL

As Sam and Dean reached the hunter's cabin, Bobby rounded the side of the building. He rushed towards them.

"You two are going to freeze to death," he said.

"Sam, go in the cabin and lay down on the cot," Dean said.

Sam walked away from them, stiffly, like a robot and Dean sighed. He heard the cabin door creak open and knew that his brother was following directions.

"What was that?" Bobby said.

"They doped him up with Devil's Breath. He just does whatever I tell him."

Bobby's eyes narrowed.

"It's kept him on his feet and got him this far," Dean said, defensively. "That bitch, Ava, ordered him to go to the river. I caught him before he went for a swim."

Bobby scowled and shook his head. "Devil's Breath, huh? That'll make him all kinds of suggestible. There's some that think it can zombify people, at least temporarily."

"Well, he's not a zombie but we do need to warm him up."

"I already started a fire in the stove. It's toasty in there and I brought some blankets down from the house."

When they walked in the cabin, they found the boots that Sam had been wearing on the floor by the cot. Sam was sitting there, shivering, with the blankets pulled up to his chin.

"My brain won't work," Sam said.

"Let it rest," Dean said. "Lay down, close your eyes and sleep."

Sam blinked a couple of times before he followed the order. After a few minutes his breathing evened and his arms grew slack.

While Bobby watched over Sam, Dean borrowed his coat and trudged up to the house to check on Brian Myers and Marco Rivera. He made his way through the kitchen to the basement door then down the steps. He was surprised to find it all painted and carpeted. The cage sat in the middle of a finished room with couches and an entertainment center pushed up against the walls to make room for it.

Cheap posters framed in plastic frames decorated the space. Some photographs of Eddie and Ava, and other people that Dean didn't recognize were hung too.

Apparently the basement used to be a second living room until they decided to kidnap a college student. Now it just smelled like death and sweat with no remnant of the original intent.

Inside the cage, Brian and Marco sat on a bench. They faced opposite directions and were seated as far apart as they could get. On the other side of the cage, the body of a young woman lay crumpled. A blanket was draped over her but Dean could see enough to know that her head was nearly backward. Her eyes were open and her tongue protruded between her lips.

Brian stood up when he saw Dean. Blood still clung to his skin and he looked unsteady on his feet. The mayor didn't move. He sat facing away with his head cupped between his hands.

"Let us out of here," Brian said.

"I'm going to. You, anyway. "

"The mayor is no threat anymore. Look at him."

"This is what's going to happen. You're going to drive to town and get my car. You're going to bring it back here. After that, we're leaving, and you can do what you want."

"Drive us back and get your own car. You don't need me."

"I'm not leaving my brother out here."

Dean knew the deputy's anemic argument was just for show. He'd do what Dean wanted because Duke was dead and the mayor was useless. Someone had to take charge of the town.

"Duke said there might be a spell that would protect the town. Is there?" Brian said.

"Not exactly. But, it'll stop the monsters from being drawn here."

"Will you still do it? Perform the spell?"

"Bring my car back. Spotless. No scratches. Duke told me he had body work done after you bastards crashed into it. Bring her back…mint…and we'll do the spell."

Brian nodded, sighing softly at the assurance.

"That thing…that demon that…took me over…is it gone?"

"Bobby sent it back to hell. You're safe from it."

As Dean unlocked the cage, the deputy glanced towards the mayor who still sat silently on the bench. Then he looked towards the dead girl.

"I'll contact her family," Brian said. "She'll get a decent burial."

Dean believed him.

As Brian drove away, Dean hoped he was well enough to get back to town, retrieve "Baby" and return. The kid had been through a lot, including possession and a head injury.

Dean walked back to the cabin thinking it was possible that Brian would bring back reinforcements. Mark Lancaster and a few others on the force might be willing to try and coerce he, Bobby and Sam into hunting for them again. But, he doubted it. Their plan had fallen apart, Duke was dead and Marco Rivera was nearly catatonic.

Early evening brought colder temperatures and Dean was relieved when he entered the warmth of the hunter's cabin. The heat from the wood stove welcomed him. So did seeing his brother awake and sitting up on the cot. Bobby had pulled the chair over and was sitting near him.

"Hey, look at you…well, you look like crap but your eyes are open," Dean said.

Sam gave a weak scoff. "Yeah, I probably look better than I feel."

"I hope not," Dean said.

"How's the mayor and that deputy?" Bobby said.

"Rivera's in shock. His sister turning into a demon then dying might have pushed him over the edge."

"I thought I'd be able to save Kristen Navarro," Sam said. His words were thick with guilt and sadness.

"Demons, Sam," Dean said, hoping his brother understood that they can't save everyone.

"Now what?" Bobby said.

"I have Brian driving back to town and getting my car," Dean said. "Once Sam is road-worthy, we'll get out of here."

"We have to do the spell," Sam said.

"We don't owe these people anything," Dean said.

"We kind of do. We let the gate get opened and we never looked back. We have to reverse that, Dean."

"He's right," Bobby said. "We'll do the spell, hang around for a few days to clean up the mess, and then we'll leave."

Monsters are like cockroaches, Dean thought. Out loud, he said, "We'll do the spell and they'll come burrowing out of the woodwork."

"Probably," Bobby said. "Won't hurt to let Sam get some rest either."

"I'm fine," Sam said. "Just point me in the direction of a sandwich and I'm good to go."

"About that," Dean said. He pulled two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches out of one of the pockets in Bobby's jacket. He pulled a can of soda out of the other. "Sorry, no beer."

"You might get that 'best brother' mug yet," Sam said.

He took the sandwiches and soda from Dean, taking half of the first one in a single bite.

"There better not be peanut butter in my coat," Bobby said but he was smiling.

Dean shrugged without commenting. He was watching Sam eat, and enjoying the relief of having him close and safe.

SUPERNATURAL SUPERNATURAL SUPERNATURAL

A few days later, Sam, Dean and Bobby sat around a small table inside Millie's Diner. After Bobby cast the spell to make the land normal again, they had stayed around to deal with any lingering monsters. A couple of beheadings, and one dramatic torching of a ruguaru, and the town grew quiet for forty eight hours. Dean declared it monster-free, and Bobby and Sam agreed with him.

After they paid the check at the restaurant, they split up in the parking lot. Bobby wished them luck before driving out, heading for his house in South Dakota.

Dean slid behind the wheel of the Impala still feeling the thrill of having both his car and brother back in one place.

"Where to next?" Sam said.

"Florida. Or Arizona. Someplace warm."

"We have to figure out how to get you out of the demon deal."

"I don't want to think about that right now."

"Dean, we lost a lot of time here."

"You want to talk about being kidnapped and all that quality interaction with Ava and the rest?"

Sam scoffed. "No."

"Well, I don't want to talk about my deal. So, let's not do either."

Dean started the engine. He wanted to get on the road, breathe free and not worry about his dwindling days on earth. Putting Ranch Head behind them was the only thing that mattered.