Losing Hope | {BOOK 4}

74| Hide-and-Seek

We were all standing by Sam and Dean's now-empty chairs. Zep was clinging to my arm and Maddie was clinging to Dean's. Castiel still stood behind the man, eyeing him warily like the rest of us.

"What you were told is basically true," the man, another Brit, explained. "We were keen on knowing about the three of you, seeing as you seem to be partially carrying on the Men of Letters' work here now that the American chapter is defunct."

The female Brit was getting up from the floor.

"So you sic your attack dog on us to what, say hi?" Dean growled.

"Well, part of our group suspect some kind of malfeasance amongst you American hunters. No argument- Lady Bevell went too far. I deeply apologize."

"Mm," Sam hummed, shaking his head incredulously.

"She'll face consequences in London," the Brit continued.

"I'll tell you what," I began, "why don't you take a walk, and she can face those consequences right here and now?"

"She's ours," he shook his head. "We'll take care of her. Now, I'm here to extend on olive branch. We want to work with you."

"Let me ask you a question, uh, Mick, is it?" Sam asked. "Why would we believe any of this?"

"Lads, ladies... if I wasn't sincere, if I meant you harm, there's a dozen ways I could've come in here and taken you all prisoner instead of being unarmed. Not to mention I powered down all the warding's in this shack so your attack dog could come in. I reckon you could finish me off without breaking a sweat. Am I right?"

"I don't sweat under any circumstances," Castiel replied.

"My number," Mick handed a card to the angel. "Take your time, cool down, just think it over. And what have you got to lose, except your worst nightmares?"

⁘

After a long bedtime that only dragged because neither Maddie nor Zep wanted me to leave them, I went to meet Dean in the kitchen. He held a towel of ice against his head and was drinking a beer at the table.

"Hey, stranger," I greeted him.

"Hey," he smiled at me. "How you feeling?"

"I'll live. What about you?"

"I'll live."

I smiled a little as he removed the ice from his head and moved it to press against my temple.

"Ah," I winced.

"Sorry," he mumbled apologetically. "So... your mom's back, huh?"

"Y-yeah... Amos, uh, said he wanted to give me something in return for helping him with Chuck."

"That weird?"

"Kind of," I shrugged. "She's been gone for over thirty years. I mean, how would you feel if you got your mom back?"

"It'd be weird."

"Exactly."

We fell into a comfortable silence and he got up to refresh the ice while I snagged a sip of his beer.

"What exactly happened out there, Ellie? You know, the... the sun went back to normal, and there was no way you could have survived the nuke, and we... I thought..."

"Hey, look at me," I said, grabbing his hand. "You'll never get rid of me that easily, okay? Nothing could stop me from coming back to you."

He shook his head, jaw set as he fought back tears.

"It's never going to stop, though," he pointed out, voice thick with emotion. "There's always going to be something we have to deal with."

"And we'll deal with it," I insisted. "Together."

Reaching up, I pulled his face toward mine, smashing our mouths together. We both melted into the kiss, ignoring the tears falling down both our faces as we held onto each other like our lives depended on it. It was needed on both ends, since he had thought I was dead and I had no idea what had happened to him when I got back. We had said goodbye, fully prepared to never see each other after I confronted Amos. We'd gotten another chance.

It felt like too soon when we separated for air, though Dean kept a firm grip on my hips, placing his forehead against mine while I kept my arms around his neck.

"I love you," he breathed. "So much."

"I love you, too," I whispered back.

⁘

JUNE 1985

"Ready or not, here I come."

I giggled in my hiding spot, listening to my dad move around the room above the shop. A second later, I heard the door slam as someone hurried into our living space.

"Em? What's wrong?" my dad's worried voice carried in to me.

"T-they're coming," my mom's voice responded, breathing labored.

"Em? Emilie?!"

Coming out of my hiding spot, I gasped as I saw my mother unconscious in my father's arms on the living room floor. Dad had his phone pressed to his ear and was speaking to someone who must have been the police based on what he was saying to the person on the other end.

"Mama?" I asked hesitantly.

My dad looked over at me with wide eyes, pulling the phone away from his ear slightly.

"Ellie Bear, go hide for a little while longer, okay?"

"But-" I tried to protest.

"Go hide and I'm going to come find you and continue our game," my dad continued. "Please, baby girl."

I swallowed, nodding my head a little and forcing myself to head back to my hiding spot. I could still hear my father speaking to the police on the phone and a moment later, the sound of sirens met my ears as an ambulance drove to the shop. Sitting down on the floor, I pulled my knees up to my chest, hugging them with my arms and burying my face in my knees as tears flowed down my face.

I didn't know what was happening, all I knew was that something was wrong with my mother and people were taking her away to rush her to the hospital. I listened to the official sounding people come and go, the sirens starting back up and growing fainter not long after. I didn't know how much time passed, falling asleep in the darkness of the closet while I waited for my dad to come find me and finish our game of hide-and-seek. I didn't wake back up, even when he came and carried me into my bedroom to sleep there for the night instead of the closet floor.