Chapter Text
November
As the train jolts to a stop, you shush the baby at your breast, hoping that it won’t jostle him awake. You’re glad to finally be back in Boston, and in only a matter of days you, Adam, and William, will be on a ship heading back to London. Two sets of blue eyes are waiting on the platform– searching the crowds amidst the smog from the train. You gesture to Claire to look out the window and watch as elation fills her, catching a tear falling down her cheek as she lays eyes on her family.
There is a hesitation for a moment before the two of you move from your seats.
The fire not only claimed the lives of the brothers that night, but also some of the new servants who were still unfamiliar with the layout of the manor. No one was entirely sure how many lives the fire claimed; all of the bodies were too damaged and disfigured by the fire for anyone to be able to tell one from the other.
You and Claire had been confined to the same boarding house that Adam had escaped to for several weeks while Bobby tried to salvage keepsakes from the Manor, and Mr. Finch sorted through John’s will, determining what was to be done with the Winchester Estate. You’d always known that the family were wealthy, but you hadn’t ever fully comprehended exactly how much money they had. John had made plans to ensure that you and Claire and your children were to be taken care of if something had ever happened to the brothers. However, you doubt that he’d expected for his sons to die the way they did.
You and Claire both only wanted one thing: to be reunited with your families. No one in town seemed to mourn the loss of the Winchesters, but there was gossip that made its way through as you and Claire kept up appearances of the heartbroken widows. There was no funeral to speak of, only two caskets filled with charred remains and the conflicted feeling of anguish and joy, knowing that now you and Claire could move on with your lives.
It took over a month to settle everything. While John had made contingencies for the brothers’ demises, you expect that he never imagined that they would die together, or within only a few months of his own untimely death. Adam could, according to Mr. Finch, lay claim to the Winchester fortune because John had left documentation that Adam was his bastard, but Adam declined, opting to let you and Claire split the money instead. With the estate finally settled, you were free to leave Kansas. Claire had written to her father, and the four of you made your way towards Boston.
You had barely made it out of Kansas when you’d gone into labor. William James Winchester came into the world screaming. A wave of emotions flowed through you as the wailing infant was placed in your arms, tears pressing against your eyes, and you let out a choked laugh as you realized that you’d finally fulfilled the Winchester's plan for you - a legitimate male heir. Dark chocolate eyes and tufts of dark brown hair answered the question that had been in the back of your mind ever since Adam informed you that the baby couldn’t be Sam’s. And though you hated to admit it, you were happy knowing that the father wasn’t your husband or his brother, but their father.
It took longer to recover from the birth than you’d expected, and the mental and physical exhaustion of being held prisoner by the Winchesters and your escape had finally caught up with you and Claire, as well. The decision was made to halt your journey until the end of October, giving you and Claire more time to recover before continuing on to Boston.
As Claire’s eyes lock with her father’s and brother’s, a smile that you haven’t seen in ages grows across her face. You know that she hadn’t explained everything that had happened during the year she’d been gone in her letter, unwilling to let them bear the burden or guilt of knowing that they easily could’ve spared her the trauma. You’d written a similar letter to your family, though you wonder if they would believe the half-truths that you spun. You aren’t even sure you care.
You had early on in your captivity come to terms with the fact that while your parents hadn’t–at least you hoped–known what plans the Winchesters had for you, they had still abandoned you. Part of you wonders exactly what John had said to your father to make him agree to allow you to marry a complete and total stranger. You suspect that he’d offered to pay off their debts, after all that’s why you were at court that evening–to find a prospective husband who could help your family with their debts.
Tears fill your eyes as you watch Claire reunite with her family. Captain Novak’s lip quivers as she shows off baby Amelia, pressing a kiss to Claire’s forehead as she wraps her arms around him. You and Adam stay back, giving the family time to themselves, before Claire calls you over. There’s a flush on Jack’s cheeks as his eyes meet yours, and part of you wants to assure him that you understand that what happened between you was not his fault, but John’s.
You spend the next few days helping Claire get reacquainted with her family, assuring her that you and she are bonded for life, and that once the children get older, you can visit each other and, when the time comes, explain their parentage. The two of you promise to write at least once a week, and you tell her that no matter what, she’ll always be your sister.
Tears are aplenty as you arrive at the docks. With The Perdition no longer making transatlantic voyages, Adam books you on The Wayward, a much faster ship not much bigger than the Novak's, and promises you will be home in less than a week. When you arrived in Boston, the three of you didn’t have much more in the way of luggage than the clothes on your back, but as you board, you need two extra deckhands to help bring everything to your staterooms.
With a tear-filled final hug, and a last look at Amelia, you and Claire reiterate your promise to see each other again as you're told you must start boarding. You push William’s pram up the walkway, Adam’s arm linked around yours to keep you steady as you say goodbye to America and the horrors that it brought you.
Before stepping onto the deck of the ship, you turn around a final time so that you can give Claire another wave, but instead of finding her, your eyes land on a pair of green ones. You lose your footing, nearly falling off the ramp and into the water, with only Adam’s arms keeping you from doing so.
“Y/N!” he exclaims as he pulls you back to your feet, face filled with concern.
“I saw–”
Your breath hitches, heart pounding in your chest. It isn’t possible. He is dead. Buried. There is no way he could’ve survived the fire. And if he had somehow managed to, why would he wait months to come find you and your son? You look back out onto the dock. Maybe your eyes are playing tricks on you. You can’t go back, not when you are so close to escaping for good.
For a moment, you convince yourself that it was nothing–an illusion–but as you start to turn, he’s there, watching from only a few yards from where Claire is standing. His eyes lock on yours as terror fills you, and you want to scream a warning to Claire. How doesn’t she see him? How can’t Adam? Before you can make any decision, Dean gives you a sad smile and a small nod before disappearing into the crowd.
“What, Kitten?” Adam turns you to face him. “What did you see?”
When you look out onto the dock, Dean has disappeared. The Novaks give another wave, and you decide that what you saw wasn’t him, but a figment of your imagination.
“Nothing,” you shake your head. “I’m just– I’m tired, and ready to go home.”
Adam links his arm in yours and presses a kiss onto your forehead as he leads you up the ramp once again. Stepping onto The Wayward, you decide to leave all memories of the Winchesters behind you, instead, focusing on your new life with Adam and William, and being reunited with your family.
But as you settle into your room that night with Adam, those green eyes still haunt you. You’re mine, sweetheart, echoes in your ear when you finally drift off to sleep.