There was a rule for the inmates, don't use the stairs for personal exercise routines. Luckily with it being under staffed at the prison and inmates milling about outside of their cells, Seth could get in a few pull up reps for the day. With Roman's bulk, the smaller man couldn't be seen exercising on the stairs.
"One eighty, woo, a new record I think." Seth boasted as he dropped down.
Roman smirked, looking over his shoulder at his smaller friend. "One eighty, I could beat you in that." He then looked around. "Seen Ambrose around anywhere?"
"Not since he went to go hustle the chesters for their canteen." Seth came to stand next to Roman, draping his towel over his shoulders. "I think he's up on the second tier."
This prison didn't segregate inmates who had sexual convictions away from the main population. And it allowed the more aggressive inmates, like Dean Ambrose, to serve justice for the families that had to deal with these convicts. Also it just gave Dean the sheer joy of hurting someone. Much like a bully taking a school kid's lunch money, Canteen allowed for more comfortable living amongst the inmates.
"There you are." Seth said seeing Dean leave a cell that belonged to one of the aforementioned Chesters. "Find everything you need?"
Holding up the plastic bag full of small chips and snacks, he smiled with a sinister menace that even had Seth guessing his sanity. "Yep, got everything I'll need to hold me over until next Canteen."
Such was life in a prison setting like this. The weak were the prey and Dean Ambrose was the monster that fed off of them.
"I'm guessing you didn't get the money you needed to get put on your books?" Roman asked.
"What do you think? I ain't got anyone to support me behind here. Mother's probably off somewhere stoned out of her mind, wasting her money on Meth or whatever." Dean grumbled the last part as he headed back towards his cell. "I don't have a Mommy that will pay for my food."
Roman and Seth glanced at each other. They came from good families, or at least had mothers that paid for their canteen or anything else they would need in a place full of prison issued attire. Dean didn't have that sort of luxury, and while trying to share the wealth with his cellmate and partner, Seth knew Dean had something to resent him with.
"Just drop it." Roman said. "No need to have a grouchy ass like him for the day. I'm heading back to my cell."
"Reigns, Rollins, Ambrose…" A CO said approaching Dean's and Seth's cell.
Roman stopped short of his own cell, glancing back at the guard with narrowed eyes. It was Superman himself standing there with a baton and can of mace attached to the belt all the guards wore.
"Well look who has decided to grace up with his presence." Dean said exited his cell. "John Fucking Cena," though he didn't finish the cruel remark that was on the tip of his tongue, Dean crossed his arm. "What can we do for you today?"
Neither three men liked Cena all too much. A former Marine turned corrections officer, Cena lived by a code of ethics, worse than the man that ran the prison. Coming from up North in Massachusetts, coming from money and privilege, anyone who lived better off than Dean was always a target for his wrath. Cena was also the officer that Dean assaulted, resulting a stay in the Hole.
"Warden wants to see you three in his office right now."
"What does the Principle want?" Dean asked.
"Don't know, but he wants all three of you in there."
There was an intense stare off between the CO and the inmate. Neither liked the other, it was that blatantly clear to anyone on the range, in that cell block actually.
"Fine, escort us." Dean finally said, nodding his head.
"Gotta cuff you for the walk."
Roman looked over at Dean, knowing that everything about Cena really ticked the other guy off. Sure enough, Dean's jaw was clinched tight, the muscles in his face straining against his skin. Always the angriest of the three, Dean was not going to back down.
"I'm not getting younger, Ambrose."
"You're getting uglier, Superman."
"Want a write up?"
"Want a nose job?"
"Want to go back to the hole?"
Not on his life he would want that. Growling dangerously, Dean balled up his fists and narrowed his eyes.
"Give me my goddamn bracelets, Superman." He finally said, presenting his hands towards the CO.
"Thought so." Cena smirked as he reached for a set of cuffs on his belt.
Two other COs came forward to handcuff Roman and Seth, those two were more than willing to stay in line, when they needed to at least. The three fell in line, other inmates yelling obscenities out at the COs as they led the three men out of the cell block.
"Heard anything about the Mexican Mafia?" Cena asked Dean.
Inmates had to walk against the wall, never crossing the red line that was painted on the floor. It was to keep order in the prison. Not that it helped assaults on officers from now and then. And in these moments of one officer to one inmate when they could get crucial information about the gangs and their illegal activities going on in the prison.
"I haven't heard anything, Superman." Dean said coolly, not even trying to look at Cena's military buzz cut head.
Even though Cena was more muscular than someone like Roman Reigns, he was built like a road block. Smug son of a bitch that he was, he and Dean were always on edge around each other. Mainly because Cena saw himself as superior to someone like Ambrose, at least that's what a lot of people claimed.
"I'm quite sure you have."
Dean opted to keep his mouth shut. When Cena didn't get anything out of Dean, he adverted his gaze back to Rollins.
"What about you, Rollins. Don't you have a little bit of Spanish in your blood?" Cena asked.
Another moment of silence from the dark haired man.
"How about you, Reigns. I hear the Samoan Syndicate is working with the Spanish Mafia on the streets, what's not so say you're in their pocket here in my prison?" A low rumble came from Roman's chest, but his face was tight and eyes focused on the back of Seth's head. There was no way he was going to get baited by a punk ass CO like Cena.
"I will find out the answers, whether you help me or not. And if you're in anyway involved with the Mafia I will see to it that your ass stays in the Hole for the longest amount of time permissable for a prisoner.
The Warden looked up from his paperwork. There wasn't enough time in the day to get this crap under control. But controlling a prison, keeping it in order and under a tight watch on the outside was hard enough. But the dealings inside was enough to make a man go crazy.
"Warden, the prisoners you requested." Cena said opening the door to the Warden's office.
Paul Levesque glanced up. "Bringing them in."
The three men known around the prison as The Shield walked in. In their denim jeans with the prison insignia on the right leg and blue shirts showing that they were definitely prison property. They were a far cry from Levesque's own suit he wore to work every day.
"You three can go." Paul said standing up from his desk.
"Sir?" Cena questioned, looking at the Warden.
"It's all right, John. They wouldn't dare do anything in here. Too many cameras are watching their every move." Paul motioned to the three cameras mounted on the wall.
"If you're sure. I'll be right outside." Giving Dean the stink eyes, Cena left, lightly closing the door behind him.
"Starting another fight, Ambrose?" Paul asked.
"Not really. He started it though."
"Look, I need you to do something for me." Paul cut to the chase as he leaned against his desk. "It's a sort of personal matter but it involves my family."
Roman could attest to that. He had a daughter of his own on the outside, who he only got to see once a month when his mother brought her to see him. Jocelyn was his angel, the reason why he lived each day.
"What's up?" Seth asked for the three of them.
"During one of my rounds in your cell block, I heard an inmate talk rather vulgar about my daughter, the oldest one that visits from time to time."
"He's a Chester, right?" Dean instantly grinned.
"That's about right. But he's here not as a child molester but for a different crime. From what I heard all allegations were thrown out during the trial itself." Paul sighed. "But he made a remark about seeing my daughter one day and even though I can't do a damn thing about it, I would like you three to take care of him. Kill him if you have to, I don't really care at this point. Do this for me, Dean, I'll make sure your books are covered for a year."
Tempting, really tempting in Dean's eyes. Money was money, and being paid to take out someone for the Warden was enough to get the convicted bank robber to do anything at the moment. Money wasn't an issue for Paul Levesque, he had plenty of it. He only had three daughters he would refuse to loose at this point.
"So how about it. Do this for me and I'll pay all three of you for Canteen for the coming year?"
"I'm in." Seth said, bouncing on his toes anxiously.
Dean and Seth then looked at Roman, who had a stoic expression on his face.
"I'll do it, only for the safety of a kid. That's the only reason why I will do this." Roman finally said.
"I thought so. I knew you three were the best kinds to do it." After giving them the information that they needed to find the man, Paul walked over to the door and opened it, revealing Cena still standing there. "Take them back to their cells. I got what I wanted out of them."
"Yes, sir. Come on, you three." Cena stepped to the side and motioned for The Shield to leave.
As they were heading back to the cell block, with other inmates being escorted from different facilities within the prison as well, the three kept their mouths shut tight. Which was hard for Dean at the moment, because Cena was drilling him for answers.
"So what did you tell the Warden, huh?" Cena nudged Dean in the back with his baton. "I thought you inmates had a code you live by."
Dean was up at the front of the line. One officer for one inmate, that was the rule when moving them. Lacking the use of his hands and arms because they were still in handcuffs, Dean remained silent. If he lashed out, it was his ass on the line. Getting his payment was the only thing he needed to keep his head in the game and not try to kick the living shit out of Cena.
"I'm talking to you, Ambrose." John nudged him again with his baton.
"Yeah, well, Superman, I'm not talking to you. Better get used to it." Dean responded, glancing at the man sideways.
Roman looked ahead of him at Dean. The tension could be cut with a knife at this point, which he feared would happen. Dean was famous for a short fuse, and knowing this was the longest he'd gone without punching or even attacking someone was proof enough. It just seemed like Cena had it out for them.
"How's your daughter, Reigns?" Cena looked back over his shoulder at the taller man.
Just stay focused, he kept reminding himself. Ignore him.
"Why aren't you three a talkative bunch right now? Any other time you're always scheming and plotting. But when you're with us, you're quiet. I don't understand you three. I don't really see why everyone in your cell block is so afraid of you." Cena continued to talk. That was probably because he wanted to hear his own voice.
By the time the three were released in their cell block, it was nearing chow time. Not only that but something else was on it's way.
"Expecting mail from your Mama?" Dean asked as he settled onto his bunk.
"Yeah, I guess." Seth laid back on his bunk while Dean flipped through the channels on their communal TV that was in the cell looking for something to pass the time.
"What, the ad leading you to no where?"
"It's been a month since that ad was put up. I figured I would have been mailed something from someone." Like a robot, Seth's dark eyes followed the crack that was on the ceiling above his head. "I guess I'm not that interesting for someone to write to."
"Man," Dean punched the underside of Seth's bunk, not even caring if his hand stung a bit. "Stop, just stop. Any broad who writes just has Daddy issues. You'll get someone who is whiny and clingy and you won't get your shit together long enough before she heads off to some other jack off."
"We've been here how long, Dean, three years each? Tell me something, who put that goddamn stick up your ass?" Seth's left hand gripped his pillow, his eyes glaring into the crack above him. "I'm just sick and tired, okay, of this day to day living in a prison. For at least five or ten minutes I want to escape this sell, see life outside of these prison walls. Is that so hard to ask for?"
And for once Dean didn't have a snarky comeback. He stayed quiet for a good while, eyes on the TV but not really paying attention.
"Just don't get wrapped up in a relationship, Seth." His tone was softer now, as if he was looking at a memory in that clouded head of his. "Finding a girlfriend while you're behind bars is not the best thing for you. Trust me, I had one myself and she just…" The chow bell rang, cutting into the conversation. "Come on, let's just get out of here and get something to eat. We need to go over strategy with what our assignment is."
I really hope I did this update well enough. What do you guys think. Any suggestions, please do speak up. Thanks.