When Darkness Calls

Chapter Fifteen

"Are you outta yer freakin mind, Dean?" Bobby asked for what must've been the tenth time in so many minutes. He leaned against the windowsill of Dean's hospital room, with arms crossed, staring incredulously at the oldest Winchester. "Can't let you do this, it's just plain buckets of crazy."

"Can't stop me. Bobby, it's the only way." Dean glanced briefly at Bobby, and then returned his attention to organizing the items he'd asked the old hunter to get for him, making sure he had everything he needed.

"There's got to be another way. There's always another way." Bobby pushed away from the windowsill and went to sat in a chair beside the bed. Leaning forward, he rested his arms on his knees, clasping his hands together. "Yer gonna get yourself killed, then what? Sam can't do this without you."

"My fault. Have to make it right." Dean carefully kept his gaze averted so as to not let Bobby know how badly he was hurting inside. The walls he'd built up over time, had taken a serious beating and were too fragile, and he feared the older man would see right through him.

"How's this your fault? Sam's alive because of you."

"If I hadn't killed Charlie in the first place, he wouldn't be back now all ubbered up on supernatural abilities."

"You couldn't have known that, Dean."

Dean stopped what he was doing, and angrily swiped his hand across the blanket, sending various talismans, charms, candles and other ritual items clattering to the floor. "Damn it, I lied to Sammy. And it's the only thing he's holding onto right now — so I'll do what I have to do."

Scrubbing his hand across his scruffy beard, the old hunter, nodded, conceding defeat. "So do you got a plan or is this straight outta the Winchester make-it-up-as-you-go-along handbook?"

"It's worked for us before."

"It's almost got you all killed before too, as I recall."

"I got a plan."

"Dean."

Dean could never lie to Bobby, for some reason the older man could always tell when he wasn't being entirely truthful. "All right, so I don't have a plan exactly."

"Then I'm comin' with you."

"No, you're not. You're staying here to watch out for Sammy." Dean slowly eased himself off the bed, drawing in a sharp intake of air when his throbbing foot touched the ground. "Sonuvabitch," he swore under his breath, knowing it didn't go unnoticed by Bobby.

"You do this alone, you're gonna be a sittin' duck. You can barely stand, much less run if need be."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence. Now can you help me get this stuff together so I can get this over with?"

The old hunter shook his head disapprovingly, grumbling under his breath, but nonetheless, he still stooped and gathered up all the things Dean had thrown on the floor in his anger. "Still don't like it."

"Yeah, I know. Neither do I.."

XxXxXxXxXxXxX

The bell of the service elevator dinged for the lowest level of the hospital, and a very shaky Dean wheeled the wheelchair out into the boiler room. God, if I never go on another elevator ride, it will still be too damn soon. Grabbing the salt he'd brought with him, Dean quickly poured a trail in front of the elevator door, found a study metal pole and wedged it between the doors so they wouldn't close, then pushed forward into the darkened lower level of the hospital.