In which Sam gets shot.
He reacted on gut instinct. He was a father who aimed to protect his family, and this person he saw speaking with his daughter was a major threat to his family. In two quick strides, he had crossed the parking lot to where his daughter was standing and yanking her behind him by the arm, fixing the man in front of him with a level look. Grant Richardson just looked back at Sam, smirking at the younger man in something that could have been either amused or sinister-Sam couldn’t tell.
“Awww, calm down now, boy. We were just talkin’.”
“Dad, what’re you doing?”
It wasn’t insolent tone that most teenagers would use with their parents, mostly because Rachel knew that Sam wouldn’t panic like this for no good reason. Dean maybe, but not Sam. Sam tended to let her daughter take care of herself until there was a situation where he knew she couldn’t, and this definitely wasn’t one of them.
“Nothing with you is ever just talking,” Sam replied, keeping Rachel firmly in place behind him, making his body a barrier between her and whatever the hunter pull out and try to use. The last time he underestimated Grant, the son of a bitch tried to kill him, and would have if it hadn’t been for Dean. He wasn’t about to let him anywhere near his daughter. Over his dead body. “Stay away from my family.”
“Sammy, Sammy, Sammy. Still a little sore about the last time we saw each other?”
“You tried to kill me. So yeah, you could say I’m still a little ticked off.”
“What?”
Rachel’s disbelieving voice was in his ear, and Sam felt her push against his arm so that she could look at him. Sam just gave her a look saying that he would explain later. Right now, he just wanted to get them out of there in one piece. His head snapped around though, when he heard the sound of the safety of a gun being cocked back, and his eyes narrowed at Grant over the barrel of his glock.
“Told you nothing with you is ever just talking.”
“Unfortunately for me, darlin’, you daddy’s got me pretty well pegged. Unfortunately for you, you just happen to be his kid, which means you got his blood. Which means I now gotta kill you, your daddy, and your fellow half-breed of a brother.”
“Leave them alone, Grant,” Sam said coldly, taking on a persona that he hadn’t worn in years, so far from the kind and gentle father Rachel knew, but at the moment, he wasn’t worried about pretenses. Grant knew he was screwing with-Sam was the boy with demon blood. The one who used to be able to kill demons with his mind. He was now decades out of practice, but he was pretty sure he could call up the most basic of those abilities again if he wanted to, and they’d be more than adequate when it came to dealing with a human. Sam didn’t have a gun or a knife, but he had his mind and he would do whatever it took to protect his family. “Your beef is with me, not them.”
“I’m not riskin’ anythin’, Sam. They got your blood, which means they got the same thing you did. I’m not riskin’ one o’ them decidin’ it’s a good idea to start the end of the world again. Nothin’ personal, boy, just coverin’ all my bases.” He paused for a minute, before adjusting the aim of the gun so that it was going past Sam’s shoulder to where Rachel was sticking out behind him. “Now, if you’ll excuse me-I don’t exactly enjoy this work-”
BANG!
What happened next happened far too quickly, but Sam was acting before he could think. He lunged to push his daughter out of the way, his body jerking up when the bullet impacted in his stomach. After that-he wasn’t feeling much of anything. His whole body had gone numb, and he only knew he was falling to the ground because the pavement of the parking lot was suddenly getting a lot closer. The only thing he could feel was Rachel’s arms around his shoulders, supporting him so that he was still in somewhat of a sitting position.
“Dad? Dad!”
“Pity,” Grant said as he started to make his way closer, cocking the safety on his gun again. “I was gonna have you watch her die, but apparently we can’t always get what we want. This’ll just hafta do.”
He was aiming the gun again, over his shoulder at his daughter, and even through the haze of his injury he there was the gut instinct to protect his family. Sam scrambled, clawing for something, anything to protect her. His head screamed as he tried to access abilities he hadn’t used in years, but if he could just focus and pull something out of the box.
It took a moment but right before he could pull the trigger, Grant was blown back into his truck, cracking his head against the metal exterior and dropping to the ground, unconscious. Threat averted, Sam slumped back into his daughter’s arms again, exhausted.
“Dad? Dad, don’t fall asleep. You have to stay awake, okay? You have to stay awake till the paramedics get here.”
He felt something move against him, and he looked down, seeing a hand, his daughter’s hand, covered in blood. “Rach? Did he get you?” The thought didn’t even occur to him that it could be his own.
“No, Daddy-” Her voice broke and he felt her tears against the side of his neck as she moved closer, burying her face in his shoulder. “-I’m fine. You’re gonna be fine too.”
Sam knew he wasn’t going to be fine. In fact, he was far from fine, but that was okay. It was okay because he knew that she was safe, and that was all that mattered. He let a hand rest against the side of her head lightly, his eyes starting to droop closed.
“Good,” he mumbled, and he started to feel his clothes moving as though someone was shaking him.
“No! Wake up! Daddy, please, you have to wake up-”
The last thing he was sure he felt was the feeling of a strong hand grabbing his shoulder, and then there was nothing but black.
“Awww, calm down now, boy. We were just talkin’.”
“Dad, what’re you doing?”
It wasn’t insolent tone that most teenagers would use with their parents, mostly because Rachel knew that Sam wouldn’t panic like this for no good reason. Dean maybe, but not Sam. Sam tended to let her daughter take care of herself until there was a situation where he knew she couldn’t, and this definitely wasn’t one of them.
“Nothing with you is ever just talking,” Sam replied, keeping Rachel firmly in place behind him, making his body a barrier between her and whatever the hunter pull out and try to use. The last time he underestimated Grant, the son of a bitch tried to kill him, and would have if it hadn’t been for Dean. He wasn’t about to let him anywhere near his daughter. Over his dead body. “Stay away from my family.”
“Sammy, Sammy, Sammy. Still a little sore about the last time we saw each other?”
“You tried to kill me. So yeah, you could say I’m still a little ticked off.”
“What?”
Rachel’s disbelieving voice was in his ear, and Sam felt her push against his arm so that she could look at him. Sam just gave her a look saying that he would explain later. Right now, he just wanted to get them out of there in one piece. His head snapped around though, when he heard the sound of the safety of a gun being cocked back, and his eyes narrowed at Grant over the barrel of his glock.
“Told you nothing with you is ever just talking.”
“Unfortunately for me, darlin’, you daddy’s got me pretty well pegged. Unfortunately for you, you just happen to be his kid, which means you got his blood. Which means I now gotta kill you, your daddy, and your fellow half-breed of a brother.”
“Leave them alone, Grant,” Sam said coldly, taking on a persona that he hadn’t worn in years, so far from the kind and gentle father Rachel knew, but at the moment, he wasn’t worried about pretenses. Grant knew he was screwing with-Sam was the boy with demon blood. The one who used to be able to kill demons with his mind. He was now decades out of practice, but he was pretty sure he could call up the most basic of those abilities again if he wanted to, and they’d be more than adequate when it came to dealing with a human. Sam didn’t have a gun or a knife, but he had his mind and he would do whatever it took to protect his family. “Your beef is with me, not them.”
“I’m not riskin’ anythin’, Sam. They got your blood, which means they got the same thing you did. I’m not riskin’ one o’ them decidin’ it’s a good idea to start the end of the world again. Nothin’ personal, boy, just coverin’ all my bases.” He paused for a minute, before adjusting the aim of the gun so that it was going past Sam’s shoulder to where Rachel was sticking out behind him. “Now, if you’ll excuse me-I don’t exactly enjoy this work-”
BANG!
What happened next happened far too quickly, but Sam was acting before he could think. He lunged to push his daughter out of the way, his body jerking up when the bullet impacted in his stomach. After that-he wasn’t feeling much of anything. His whole body had gone numb, and he only knew he was falling to the ground because the pavement of the parking lot was suddenly getting a lot closer. The only thing he could feel was Rachel’s arms around his shoulders, supporting him so that he was still in somewhat of a sitting position.
“Dad? Dad!”
“Pity,” Grant said as he started to make his way closer, cocking the safety on his gun again. “I was gonna have you watch her die, but apparently we can’t always get what we want. This’ll just hafta do.”
He was aiming the gun again, over his shoulder at his daughter, and even through the haze of his injury he there was the gut instinct to protect his family. Sam scrambled, clawing for something, anything to protect her. His head screamed as he tried to access abilities he hadn’t used in years, but if he could just focus and pull something out of the box.
It took a moment but right before he could pull the trigger, Grant was blown back into his truck, cracking his head against the metal exterior and dropping to the ground, unconscious. Threat averted, Sam slumped back into his daughter’s arms again, exhausted.
“Dad? Dad, don’t fall asleep. You have to stay awake, okay? You have to stay awake till the paramedics get here.”
He felt something move against him, and he looked down, seeing a hand, his daughter’s hand, covered in blood. “Rach? Did he get you?” The thought didn’t even occur to him that it could be his own.
“No, Daddy-” Her voice broke and he felt her tears against the side of his neck as she moved closer, burying her face in his shoulder. “-I’m fine. You’re gonna be fine too.”
Sam knew he wasn’t going to be fine. In fact, he was far from fine, but that was okay. It was okay because he knew that she was safe, and that was all that mattered. He let a hand rest against the side of her head lightly, his eyes starting to droop closed.
“Good,” he mumbled, and he started to feel his clothes moving as though someone was shaking him.
“No! Wake up! Daddy, please, you have to wake up-”
The last thing he was sure he felt was the feeling of a strong hand grabbing his shoulder, and then there was nothing but black.