Chapter Text
Sam Winchester was not the kind of beta to let himself get intimidated by something going bump in the night. His father had made sure he knew how to defend himself. So, when he heard something like an intruder, he grabbed the baseball bat he and Jess always left by the bedroom door and ventured out to the front room. He could hear the stranger in the kitchen and see the faint glow from the refrigerator light, but he didn't go toward it. He was between the intruder and the exit now. Let the fight come to him. He caught the scent of alpha in the air. Great. Just what I need. Still, he wasn't intimidated. As he waited, eyes adjusting to the dark, he caught more familiar scents: beer, leather, motor oil, gun oil...
Shit. This could be serious.
...aftershave, the brand Dean used, actually... pie. Oh hell.
Then it hit him: his brother's body weight threw him back and he tripped over the coffee table. His training took over and he fought back, but not whole-heartedly.
"Hey, easy there, tiger."
After gasping in a breath, he choked out, "Dean? You scared the crap out of me."
By this time, his brother was pinning him to the floor. Dean laughed. "That's because you're out of practice." He renewed the struggle and threw Sam off. "Never could beat me, could you, Sammy?"
"What are you doing here? Besides stealing beer from my fridge?"
Dean hauled Sam up by his wrist. "I need your help, little brother."
"With what?"
The light came on, and there was Jess in the archway to the hall. "Sam? What's going on?"
Dean smiled at her. "Hey, there. Jessica, isn't it?"
"Yes..."
"I'm Dean. Sam's brother. He talks about you all the time."
"What?" Sam protested. "We don't talk, Dean. I never told you about her."
"Shut up, Sammy."
"Um, well, not that it's not nice to finally meet you," said Jess, "but it's the middle of the night."
"Yeah. Sorry about that. Sam, I gotta talk to you. Family stuff."
"Anything you have to say to me, you can say in front of Jess." Sam stood his ground and folded his arms stubbornly.
Dean shrugged. "Okay. It's about Dad. He found a lead on that cold case last week. I haven't heard from him for a few days. We need to check it out."
"Cold case?" asked Jess. "This is about your dad's police work?"
Dammit, Dean. "You know what, maybe we should talk privately." Sam went to Jess and kissed her. "We'll take it outside so we don't keep you awake."
She looked uncertain, but she agreed.
"That's a hot little beta you got there," Dean said when they got outside. "You told her dad's a cop?"
"It's simpler. What do you really want?"
"What I said. Dad got a lead, then he fell off the grid. I'm worried. Let's find him."
"You don't need me to do that. You're a good tracker."
"And what if he's being held by a gang of thugs? Think I still won't need backup? You may be a beta, but you're still a Winchester."
Sam bristled. He hated it when Dean brought up his societal status. "I have a life here, Dean. I have an important meeting in a few days."
"Then we work quick. I'll bring you back in time."
"You say that..."
"Sam."
Sam halted his agitated pacing and looked at his brother in the wan rays of the porch light.
"I'm really worried about him. This is about... you know. That bastard alpha."
He didn't need to be more specific. Dean was talking about the alpha that had broken into the Winchesters' family home when Sam was a baby. The alpha had attempted to kidnap him and set his nursery on fire. Sam had no memory of the incident, but he knew every detail of the story. They had never been able to find a trace of the alpha since that night. Because his mother, sweet omega Mary Winchester, had died in the fire, it had become the family's obsession to find the perpetrator. Their father, John, had become a private detective to use the skills he picked up along the way and to put food on the table. They had never been rich, but they got by.
With a sigh, Sam said, "Let me pack a bag."
"Atta boy."
He explained to Jess that he would be back in time for his interview, that this was an important family matter, that he loved her and he'd keep in touch. All of this while he packed. Then he gave her a kiss, headed back outside, and tossed his bag in the back of the Impala that had belonged to their father as long as Sam could remember.
"What's Dad driving these days?"
"A pickup. Less conspicuous."
"And he's letting you drive the Impala around?"
"Gave it to me. Put it in my name and everything."
"Seriously? Wow. Congrats."
"I know, right?" Dean grinned and turned the key. The car purred to life. "Helps that I maintain her myself."
"Can't argue. She sounds great."
"Yeah, she does." Dean stroked the dashboard.
"You sure you two don't want to be alone?"
Dean just laughed. "There's a map in the glove box with our route planned out. Navigate for me."
Sam wasn't sure whether to be annoyed or happy. Navigation had always been Dean's job when they drove across country. It was a promotion in a way. But it was also getting bossed around. This trip is going to suck. Even if we find Dad... that will probably suck too. Sam hadn't seen his father in two years, and he wasn't looking forward to it.