Free Hero Unit by JC Bybee Page A

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him that a woman a third of his size was more than his equal. Ace
nodded. She knew that Bulldog was tough enough to spar with her
without undue risk of injury. She would just have to be
careful.
    They went to the training room and after a
quick warm up went at it. Bulldog was a dirty fighter, but Ace was
prepared for that. Her years in the military had taught her to be
just as dirty. Even with his tricks Bulldog wouldn’t have been much
of a challenge for her. He wasn’t nearly as strong as Tomahawk, but
he was unrelenting.
    Ace wasn’t sure how long they’d been working
out when the Captain showed up and said, “Bulldog, we need you
upstairs. Your team just got a call.”
    The huge Exceptional nodded and left. Still
feeling too pent up Ace went to her heavy bag. Again it was a
special piece that Einstein had come up with. She had no idea what
it was made out of, but it absorbed a good portion of her force
when she hit it, so it lasted fairly well, even when she was worked
up; this was only her second one that month.
    As she worked she realized the Captain was
still there. “You need me for something Captain?” she asked, not
letting up on her workout.
    “We might have some answers, but it’s going
to take time to figure things out. I’m going to need you to escort
Ms. Carpenter as she goes and questions people,” replied.
    She didn’t like the sound of that at all.
“She was put in my house so I could keep an eye on her in the
safest place in the city. Wouldn’t it be better to bring the people
here?”
    “We can’t afford to. There is a high level of
paranoia in the Exceptionals community. The Regs are all nervous,
tense. Some jackass over at the Times got wind of the HSO angle and
printed a BS story. If we start bringing them in word will spread
and so will the paranoia. We have to go to them. I don’t like it
any more than you do. It puts you and her in a dangerous position,
but we have to get this information,” he said. Ace could see the
frustration on his face.
    “When do we start?” she asked.
    “On your way home. There are a few that live
close to you. Ms. Carpenter has picked who she will speak with
first,” the Captain said.
    Ace nodded and kept at the bag. It baffled
people that she worked out as often and as hard as she did. “You
have powers, why do you need to work out?” they always asked. She
didn’t have a good explanation for it. Her body and mind needed it,
so she did it. It was just another thing that people, Exceptionals
and normals, couldn't understand about her.
    After another hour of training Ace showered
and went back to her desk. Emily was waiting for her. “Feel
better?” she asked as Ace sat down.
    “Not really, but I don’t think there’s much
that will help right now,” Ace replied as she glanced at her still
empty inbox.
    Nothing short of the end of the HSO.
    “If you're feeling up to it the Captain and
Torment have given us leave to start early with our questioning,”
Emily said. “There are quite a few names. We’ve divided them up
between the three of us.”
    Ace agreed to leave, just to get out of the
tension in the office. She wasn’t sure how some of the others were
able to handle it so calmly. She and Emily went to the parking
garage where Ace’s truck was parked. It gave her a perverse sense
of pleasure to drive a huge vehicle like her truck. It was heavily
modified and given as much security as her house, again thanks to
the Eastern European League.
    The first address that Emily read off was
just down the street from Ace’s home. It was a nice house with a
well-manicured lawn. It screamed suburban security and
prosperity.
    They went to the door side-by-side. Ace was
in her uniform and Emily was sporting a badge that identified her
as a NDPD consultant. They only waited a few minutes after ringing
the bell before a woman answered the door.
    “Yes?” she asked. Her voice was the type that
made you feel warm inside. She had the kind of build