Lucifer In Lace

Part 7 Baptism

The next morning Hanscum found Uriel in his cell, tied up in a knelling position, with the word "Lucifer" carved over his back. He was killed overnight, whilst Nick lay ailing in the next cell watched by Raphael. Attendance at Castiel's little church doubled by mid-morning, so many men crowded into the small room that Castiel was obliged to burn incense to cover the stench of their fear. The inmates no longer gathered around Nick, though Raphael still remained faithful. Warden Knight inspected the prison personally, flanked by guards as she proceeded through the halls. When she stepped into the packed worship room, she congratulated Castiel on the fine job he was doing amassing a following, a compliment which Castiel quietly accepted.

The remainder of the morning was spent dispensing bibles to his congregation. No one weeped for Uriel who had been a brutal enforcer with a foul reputation. The prison was a buzz with strange electricity and after lunch no one was very keen to take advantage of the sunny wintery afternoon. They sat, listless and staring, in the exercise yard. Only one man was bouncing a ball in the delapedated basketball court. Castiel walked up to Gadreel and greeted him with a shy smile.

"I have a request from Warden Knight, something she passed on when she toured the premises this morning," Castiel said, gesturing towards the many guards in their vicinity. "She suggested that whilst she had tripled the guards in the exercise yard, that we should have a friendly game to improve morale."

Gadreel looked at Castiel, his handsome face curious.

It was Mills who stepped up, handing her gun and cuffs to Hanscum. "I'm in. Guards versus prisoners."

Quickly, more prison staff stepped up behind Castiel. Azazel the new guy moved to Castiel's left, Bradbury the doctor (who had been eating a sandwich in the sun whilst taking a break from the post-mortem for Uriel) to Castiel's right, at their back was Lilith the new nurse and Gabriel the Psychologist.

Gadreel looked around, he wasn't friends with many in mates, being still relatively new. Out of the corner of his eye, Castiel saw Dean standing with his back against the chainlink fence, a smirk on his face and his ankles crossed as he watched the developing drama. Dean showed no inclination to join in the game. Given that the last time Castiel had attempted any sort of exercise in front of Dean, the inmate had humped him into the ground and almost got pepper sprayed as he was dragged off, Dean's disinterest was probably a good thing. Sam stepped up behind Gadreel, as did Cain. Kevin Tran went everywhere Sam did so he too joined Gadreel's side. To everyone's surprise, Marv, a long term serving fraudster put down his library book and waddled his way into Gadreel's team.

"I am ready Father Collins," Gadreel nodded and the game begun.

Mills was strategic and fearless, Azazel was good at sneaking in some utterly brutal fouls. Lilith was surprisingly agile and fast on her feet and Gabriel had ridiculously good three point aim. Bradbury was mostly under foot and several times hindered Castiel's progress. Whenever Castiel came into possession of the ball, he found himself at a disadvantage against the inordinately long reach of Sam Wesson and Kevin's clumsy but clever passing. He was soon appearing breathless and hot in the face, the winter sun starting to beat down on them. Everyone began to shed their clothing, the prisoners stripping out of their long sleeves and tying them around their waist. The guards began taking off their kevlar vests and soon Castiel shrugged out his too. Lighter but more susceptible to Cain's hard knocks and Marv's sharp elbows, Castiel stumbled near the goal post and watched as Gadreel bore down on him. One hand out to snatch the ball from his grasp, the other slicing down towards his throat. There was the glint of something in Gadreel's hand and Castiel turned sharply to present the side of his torso as a smaller target. Had he kept on his kevlar he might have copped less damage but the few seconds was enough to move his neck out of the way of the shiv.