Saints or Sinners | {BOOK 3}

18| Kevin Tran's in Advanced Placement

I got up, stopping Dean before he could continue yelling at Cass. Together, the angel and I started cleaning the game off the floor. Then, Cass suddenly stopped, looking up at me.

"What?" I asked him.

"Sam. He's talking to angels."

"Go."

Cass disappeared with a flap of his wings and Dean and I hurried out the door, abandoning the spilled game. We moved quietly, so as not to disturb the conversation going on inside the room. Dean grabbed one of the knives out of his pocket and cut his hand, working to draw a banishing sigil on the wall outside the room.

Cass was rambling about getting another light so the angels could pull his finger again.

"You're insane," the female said.

"Hey," Dean got their attention once he'd finished. "Head's up, sunshine."

He put his hand on the sigil and a white light flashed as the angels vanished.

"All angels back to their corners. We got three, four hours tops," I said.

Sam pointed at the angel blade in Meg's hand.

"Meg, where did you get that?"

"A lot of angels died this year," she shrugged.

"What's happening?!" a young boy I hadn't noticed shouted from his perch on the bed. "What's happening?!"

"What is that?" Dean pointed at him.

"It's, uh... Kevin Tran," Sam said. "He's, uh, in advanced placement."

⁘

"So, Kevin, you can, uh, read the chicken scratch on the God rock, huh?" Dean asked him.

"Uh, I..." Kevin stammered.

"That is back in one piece, I see," Dean gestured to the tablet in Kevin's hand. "And you're saying that there's some sort of 'How to punch Dick' recipe in there somewhere?"

I rolled my eyes, as Kevin continued to look confused.

"I- I don't know what you're saying," he replied, "but it seems kind of like an 'in case of emergency' note. What did they mean by 'prophet'?"

"Oh no," I groaned, looking to Sam. "Really?"

"Yeah. Yeah, that's what the angel said," Sam informed us.

"I don't want to be a prophet," Kevin said.

"No," Dean agreed. "You don't at all."

"Guys, we've got to start running and hiding," Meg cut in. "Or do you want to tangle with those wing nuts twice?"

"I'm sorry. Did you say 'we'?" Dean growled.

"I'm on the angel's radar now," the demon pointed out. "You think I don't need a little safety in numbers?"

"Alright, we'll go to Rufus' cabin. Kid can do his book report there."

⁘

Turned out, Kevin was missing and it had gone federal, so we were officially kidnappers. I was up front with Sam and Dean while Meg and Kevin sat in the back. Kevin had been sleeping, and jerked awake with a start.

"Oh, God," he said.

"What?" Meg asked.

"Nothing. Nothing. Just... my life... my future..." Meg's phone started ringing, "... my girlfriend... my mom's car..."

"Yeah. Yeah, Castiel," Meg answered her phone. "It's me."

"Cass? Where? Where is he?" I asked her.

"Shut up," she snapped. "No. No, Cass. You talk... Perth?"

"Perth?" Dean repeated. "As in Australia?"

"What dogs?" Meg asked, then addressed us. "He says he's surrounded by unhappy dogs."

She listened to Cass speak for a few moments.

"Oh, okay. He's at a dog track in Perth... Yeah, they're unhappy 'cause the rabbit's fake. Listen, we're on highway 94, north of St. Cloud, Minnesota, just passing mile marker 79."

There was the sound of wings as Cass materialized in the backseat between her and Kevin.

"Aah!" Kevin screamed.

"Kevin, this is Castiel," Meg introduced the angel.

"You're one of the angels?" Kevin asked.

"Boop," Castiel said, touching a finger to Kevin's nose, then turned to Meg. "Meg, are you hurt?"

"Shut up," she growled.

"Cass, what happened back there?" I asked. "Who were those guys?"

"They're from the Garrison- my old Garrison," Cass explained. "Looks like Hester's taken over. We were assigned to watch the earth. Often, it was boring. The wars were very boring, and the sex- you know, the repetition. Anyway, I was, uh... I was their captain. Isn't that strange?"

"So, why are they pissed at us now?" Sam inquired.

"You know, those racing dogs were absolutely miserable," Cass informed Meg. "They can only think in ovals."

"Cass, don't make me pull this car over!" Dean snapped. "Why are the angels after us?"

"Are you angry? Why are you angry?"

"No, I-I'm... Please, can we just stay on target?"

"There is no reason for anger. They're only following protocol. If the Word of God is revealed, a keeper of the Word will awaken, like this," Cass touched Kevin's nose again, "hot potato right here."

Kevin slapped Cass's hand away.

"Please, stop that," he requested.

"Anyway, Garrison code dictates you take the keeper to the desert to learn the Word away from men."

"What kind of sense does that make?" Dean asked. "He has to tell us so that we can use it."

"That's God and his shiny red apples," Cass shrugged.

"I can't live in the desert," Kevin whined. "I-I'm applying to Princeton!"

"Okay, you know what? Screw the Garrison. We need the tablet to end Sick Roman's 'Soylent Us' crap."

"If you want the Word, you'll have to duck Hester and her soldiers."

"Yeah, you're in our corner, right, Cass?" Sam asked.

"No, I don't fight anymore. I watch the bees."

When we got to Rufus' cabin, Sam and Cass worked to draw sigils on the walls so Hester and her goons couldn't track us down. Dean took Kevin downstairs to work on reading the tablet. Meg watched while I raided the groceries we'd picked up to make something for dinner. When they finished their art project, Sam sat down near Cass on the floor.

"You seem troubled," Cass informed him. "Of course, that's a primary aspect of your personality, so I sometimes ignore it."

"Okay. Um... right now I'm just wondering about you," Sam said.

"What about me? You're worried about the burden I lifted from you."

"I think I was done for. Do you see Lucifer?"

"I did at first. But that was... It was a projection of yours, I think, sort of an aftertaste. Now, I see... well, everything."

I glanced over at them from the kitchen. Meg was also still watching them.

"It's funny. I was- I was done for, too," Cass continued.

I watched as Meg left the cabin, but didn't try and stop her.

"The weight of all my mistakes, all those lives and souls lost, I... I couldn't take it, either. I was... I was lost until I took on your pain. It's strange to think that that helped, but-"

"I know you never did anything but try to help," Sam interrupted. "I realize that, Cass, and I'm grateful. We're all grateful. And we're gonna help you get better, okay? No matter what it takes."

"What do you mean 'better'?"