You say you don't know, you tell me don't lie.

You work at a smile and you go for a ride

Bad Day by Powter

The car ride back to the motel is just a series of vague memories for Castiel.

He remembered Rina getting him in the car and every time they had hit a bump his head hurt excruciatingly. He remembered Rina checking him into the motel giving him his own room as promised. He most definitely remembered

her stitching up the bite on his shoulder and the cut on his head and other shoulder. Fortunately she had an extensive medical kit contained within a large tool box that included a local anesthetic. After stitching him up, she'd given him a pair of sweatpants and T-shirt that he wasn't quite sure where she'd gotten from. She then sent him off to the shower to get cleaned up only to have to rescue him a short while later, because he'd turned the water on too hot, overheated and fainted in the shower, bumping his head once again.

True to her word she woke him up about every two hours but never once asked him to tell his name, which was probably a very good thing. Because he was so tired and groggy he could barely remember what day it was let alone his alias. He vaguely remembered some of his dreams throughout the night, a few nightmares but mostly odd ones about potato chips and the Slurpie machine.

Morning finally rolled around, and Castiel woke to a splitting headache and a taste in his mouth that made him wonder if something crawled in and died during the night. He looked around to realize he was alone in the room, Rina having disappeared at some point, maybe finally deciding he didn't need to be woken up anymore. As he glanced around the small room, he tried to get his bearings. Other than the bed, there was a small desk with a chair, a tiny bathroom, and a night stand next to the bed. He noticed his angel blade sitting on it along with a note. Picking up the note he saw loopy feminine writing that must have been Rina's:

"Gone to get breakfast. Be back in a bit. Here's your angel blade just in case anyone tries to seduce you and stab you will I'm gone :)"

Cas groaned. He had kind of been hoping that that part of the conversation had stayed inside his mind instead of coming out his mouth, but it seems his addled brain had let whatever he was thinking slip through. He hoped he hadn't said anything else compromising.

Gingerly he tried standing. He felt a bit dizzy but not too bad. Hopefully the head injury wasn't anything too serious. Looking around the room he tried to find his things, until he remembered that his duffel bag and everything it had contained most likely had been burned in the fire. He wasn't even sure he should go back to the gas station to find out if it had survived since the police most likely wanted to ask him some questions that he wasn't sure how to answer. He did find his pants though, which still had his cell phone and his wallet. Or technically it was Jimmy's wallet, but it had been in his pocket for so long that he kind of thought of it as his. Though he had added his own fake ID to it. The only other items in his possession was the little bit of cash he had on hand and the FBI ID badge Dean had given him so long ago. It was depressing to think he was back to where he had been when he first fell, although at least he now had a cell phone.

He flipped open the cell phone. It only contained 3 contact numbers. Dean, Sam, and his boss's cell. He ignored the 7 missed calls from Nora. For a brief moment his finger hovered over Dean's name. But he hesitated. What would he say? What help could Dean even offer? It wasn't like he would invite him back into the bunker. Castiel knew he wasn't welcome there. He would just be a liability.

He sat back down just for a moment, trying to get his thoughts together. He was pretty sure he wanted to get out of here, but he felt bad about leaving Rina without any explanation. She had been very nice about getting him fixed up. However, he had learned to be cautious around those who were suddenly there to help him out. Although the need for help had only come after she had lead a group of angry vampires to his place of employment. But still he had learned to be cautious, especially around strange women who were nice to him. He slowly got up off the bed again so as not to get dizzy. He was just looking for his shoes when he heard the click of the key card in the door. It opened to the sight of Rina with 2 cups of coffee and a plate with a bunch of random pastries.

"Good news, the motel has a continental breakfast. Didn't know what you like, so I kind of brought a sampling of everything." She looked up at him and smirked. "Wow, you give 'bed head' a whole new meaning."

Castiel self-consciously tried to comb his hair down with his fingers.

"Oh don't fix it on my account. It's definitely not a bad look." She gave him a grin as she handed him one of the cups of coffee and a few packets of sugar and creamer. Castiel found himself blushing, which only made her grin wider.

"How's the head?"

"It feels much better. I was actually just going to leave." He stood to go but was immediately hit with another dizzy spell. A hand on the wall was the only thing that kept him upright.

"Uh huh." Setting the pastries down, she gently pushed him back down to the bed. She carefully began checking out his many injuries. The pen light came out again and the first aid kit was opened so bandages could be replaced. As she did so, Castiel felt a calm feeling settle in his chest, and it was only after a few moments that he noticed she was quietly humming to herself as she worked. It wasn't a tune he recognized, and it wasn't a calming lullaby either. It had an upbeat, steady rhythm. Not something meant to soothe but rather probably just a tune she had stuck in her head. And suddenly he realized that's why it was calming him. People with ulterior motives tended to have to think about everything they were doing so as not to let anything slip through. But someone who had nothing to hide would just be themselves, not worrying about what they revealed. Which seemed odd since she had admitted she wasn't using her real name.

"Everything looks ok." She grabbed a cheese Danish off the plate and sat down next to him on the bed. "You should probably not be left alone until 24 hours have passed, just to make sure there isn't any lasting damage. Do you have a friend or relative I could take you to?"

Castiel fidgeted with his coffee. "That's not necessary. I can find my own way. Thank you for your help, though. I really appreciate it."

"No problem," she shrugged, "but I'm not letting you go until I'm entirely sure that you're ok or at least with someone else who will make sure you're ok."

Castiel grabbed a blueberry muffin off the plate and tried to look as though he was busy eating. Much too busy to answer questions.

But Rina was nothing if not persistent. After a few moments of pointedly staring at him, and Castiel doing his best to pretend he didn't notice, she leaned into his space. "Well?"

"Well, what?"

She leveled a look at him. "Do you have someone like that?"

"Like what?"

The look deepened. "Someone who will make sure you're ok."

It was a simple question. One that shouldn't be causing the lump in his throat that he had to swallow around. You can't stay.

"No," he finally answered, his gaze dropping down to his bare feet, "I don't have anyone like that anymore." He glanced back up at her, expecting to see pity, but instead he just saw concern mixed with a bit of anger. Not anger directed at Castiel though, so he wasn't quite sure where it was coming from.

"Well I really can't leave you alone now. Maybe I can take you somewhere? How about I take you back to your place and I can just call you throughout the day and make sure you're okay?"

Castiel began peeling the paper off of his blueberry muffin. "It's really okay." he insisted. "I feel fine."

She gave him another dubious look. "I'm having a hard time believing that, what with you almost collapsing earlier. Just let me drive you home. I promise not to stalk you or anything."

"No, it's fine." He was aware he was repeating himself but he wasn't quite sure what he was going to do since he didn't have a home to be driven to.

Rina gave an exasperated sigh. "Just tell me where you live. You must have somewhere to go. It's not like you were living in the back of that gas station."

Castiel suddenly became very interested in eating his muffin again.

"Wait ... were you living in the back of that gas station?"

"No!" Castiel protested a bit too quickly.

"You were! You were living in the back of a gas station. Well I'm definitely not leaving you alone now."

"It's not that big of a deal." Castiel protested.

"It is a dig deal. It's a monumentally huge deal. I burnt down your home." Rina seemed quite distressed at this realization. "Who was the irresponsible person who let you be out on your own?"

Castiel felt mildly insulted, she was acting like he was incapable of taking care of himself. "I've been doing fine on my own. And I will continue to be fine. I don't need anyone to take care of me."

Rina had the decency to realize her mistake. She took a breath and calmed down. "I'm sorry. I just meant that there ought to be someone helping you out. Making sure you at least have somewhere to live."

Castiel didn't want to have this conversation anymore. He did know that one of the aspects of society was that if you cared for someone you looked out for them and made sure they were ok. You helped them when they needed help. You didn't kick them out if they had nowhere else to go.

Rina placed a hand on his shoulder. "Please let me get you breakfast and find you somewhere to stay."

She was trying to be kind but Castiel had already decided to not accept anymore of her help.

"I promise I'm fine. And you are already got me breakfast." Indicating the muffin he was still holding in his hand.

She narrowed her eyes. "You tell me you're fine one more time and I'm going to beat you with that muffin."

"I ... wait, what?" Castiel was saved from puzzling out this odd threat by a knock at the motel room door. They both jumped at the sound.

"You order room service or something?" Rina asked. He shock his head. "Well this can't be good at all then. Stay there." She indicated for him to stay on the bed as she quietly crept over to the window and peeked through the curtains. "Crap. Pretty sure those two are police."

"What would they want?"

"Oh probably just investigating the little case of arson from last night; no big deal I'm sure."

Castiel wasn't sure if she was being sarcastic. "Actually arson is quite a serious crime."

"Thank you for that. I wouldn't have known otherwise." He was pretty sure that she was being sarcastic that time. "The question is, are they looking for just one of us or both?"

A more insistent knock came along with the shouted, "Open up ma'am, police."

"Well that answers our question. Go hide in bathroom," she ordered. "And don't forget your coffee cup." Castiel grabbed his cup of coffee and headed to the small bathroom. Rina had grabbed his shoes and clothes and tossed them in after him. "Stay put, I'll attempt to get rid of them. Somehow." She left the door slightly ajar behind her so he could still hear what was going on.

"Good morning gentlemen what can I do for you?"

"Ma'am, I'm Detective Wilson, and this is Detective Petersons. We are looking for someone. Have you seen this man?" They must've been holding a picture.

"No sorry haven't seen him." Rina replied, in what Castiel was beginning to recognize as her most charming tone.

"Really?" Detective Wilson was not charmed. "He was reported seen at this motel. In fact he was reportedly seen being checked into this room by you."

"I'm not that kind of girl."

A second voice joins in, probably belonging to Detective Petersons. "This man is wanted for questioning in a case of arson and homicides last night at the Gas n' Sip near here. As well as several accidents that happened on the road resulting in even more deaths."

"That sounds serious."

"Which car is yours ma'am?" Petersons asked.

Rina let out an exasperated sigh. "Alright, let me level with you guys. I'm Special Agent Clark with the Denver office. I've been on the trail of a gang suspected of a series of murders and disappearances starting in Colorado and leading to this area. Unfortunately, they tracked me to the Gas n' Sip last night where they ambushed me. Mr. Smith was there, as you know, and I had to take him with me for his own protection. I was hoping not to have to get you guys involved because it is a delicate situation."

This was surprisingly close to the truth. Except for the part where she wasn't FBI and the gang was a bunch of vampires.

"Do you have some ID to back up this story?" Petersons asked, doubt clearly evident in his voice.

"Sure thing, come on in and I'll grab it. Steve are you decent?"

Castiel came out of the bathroom to see the two detectives stepping into the room. Rina was following behind them, pulling out her FBI badge for inspection.

"Steve Smith?" Castiel recognized the voice as Detective Petersons. A man of average height with sandy brown hair.

"Yes, I am Steve Smith." Petersons exchanged a look with his partner Wilson, a taller man with light blond hair.

"Mr. Smith could you please tell us what happened last night at the Gas n' Sip on Main St.?"

Castiel kept himself from glancing over at Rina, whom he could see out of the corner of his eye leaning against the wall.

"It was just before closing time when Agent Clark came into the store for some items."

"Did you notice anyone following her at the time?" Wilson asked.

"No, it was only when two pickup trucks pulled up and a group of very angry and malevolent people attacked the store that I realized there was danger. One of them shot out the front door with a shot gun."

The detectives nodded at that. It was easy to tell the story truthfully. "Did you know that Agent Clark was FBI?" Petersons asked.

"No, in fact I didn't even know her name until after the danger was passed."

"Then why go with her? Did you go willingly?" Petersons' suspicion of Rina was evident.

"I went with her because it was obvious those people were after her and that we both needed to get to safety. She didn't seem to mean me any harm either. And there were not many other options at the time. I don't have a vehicle and she did."

"Why not just call the police?"

"There wasn't an opportunity." Though now that Castiel thought about it he could have called while they were up on the roof. It just hadn't occurred to him.

"And after the attack was over. You choose to come here to her hotel room instead of to the police station, or a hospital?" Petersons indicated the bandage that was peeking out from under the collar of his t-shirt.

"I had a concussion; I wasn't very lucid. And this isn't Agent Clark's room. It's mine; she slept next door." This comment earned him a scowl from Petersons.

Rina had been letting the detectives question him without interrupting up to this point. But she now pushed herself off the wall and came to stand by the bed. "I brought Mr. Smith here because he is in protective custody. He is a witness in this case now."

"He couldn't be in protective custody at a hospital?"

Rina scowled at Petersons. "I'm allowed to make judgment calls as they are necessary. That's why I get to be a special agent."

"Well special agent," Petersons scowled back, "how 'bout we contact your supervisor and see if we can't get this whole mess cleared up?"

Rina snorted. "I doubt you'll be able to get a hold of him. I'm part of a group that is tasked to deal with the more unusual cases. As such, my superiors are in DC. And before you ask to speak to the agent in charge in Denver, there isn't one cause I'm the agent in charge for the Southwest region."

"Aren't you a little young to be a Special Agent in Charge?"

"Excuse me?" Rina was tall for a woman but she pulled herself up into an intimidating stance that made her seem to tower over even the taller Wilson. "Did you just question if I'm old enough to be doing something? What are we in an episode of Phineas and Ferb?"

Even Castiel took a slight step back to avoid the rage flowing off the woman.

"We didn't mean any offence," Wilson started.

"No offence huh? So you just thought you could come in here, mess up the case I've been working on night and day for the past two months, question MY witness, and then suggest that I'm not even old enough to do my job?!"

"No, not at all." Wilson was trying to be placating but Rina was having none of that.

"It's because I'm a girl isn't it? Huh? If I was one of the good old boys this wouldn't even be an issue. Would it?!"

Wilson and Petersons had backed up against a wall at this point and were actually cowering. Castiel was reminded of the phrase 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.' Except in this case it was 'Hell hath no fury like a woman whose abilities and age have been called into question.'

"We really didn't mean to offend you." Petersons managed to collect himself long enough to take back control of the situation. "We are just trying to do our job. As are you I'm sure. So why don't we all just go down to the station and we can figure this out, okay?"

"Fine." Rina spat at him. "But he's to stay with me at all times," She shot a finger at Castiel who jumped a bit, "Got it?"

"Yes, yes, no problem."

"Grab your stuff, Steve. And I'm taking my own car." Rina snarled at the two detectives.

"Absolutely, no problem."

"Don't forget your coffee, Steve." Rina snapped shut the first aid kit, grabbed her own coffee and marched out the door. "I do not have time for this crap today." He heard her mutter as she left.

Castiel glanced at the two detectives who were trying to pull themselves together after the verbal lashing. He quickly grabbed his coffee and few possessions out of the bathroom and rushed after his ride.

Once he was in the Jeep Rina practically tore out of the parking lot. It wasn't until they were a safe distance from the hotel that he saw her visibly relax and replace the scowl on her face with a grin. "I can't believe that worked."

They took the on-ramp for the highway, but it wasn't until Castiel noticed that they were heading south that he realized they were not going to the police station. "Um, where are we going?"

"I told you I was going to take you somewhere safe. I'm not leaving you homeless."

Castiel scowled.

"Don't worry," Rina said when she saw him scowling. "I'll call Wilson later and explain I was suddenly called away on very important business. It'll give me time to patch up the holes in my cover story."

That wasn't what had Castiel worried though. He was worried because once again he was just blindly following this person he barely knew. And the most worrying part was that he didn't feel like he should be worrying about it. It was as if he knew without a doubt that he could trust Rina. Which probably made him a bigger fool than he had previously thought he was.