Free Son of Cerberus (The Unusual Operations Division Book 2) by Jacob Hammes Page A

to ogle. They were relics of the past, wrought in times of war and made for destruction, yet no one had ever gone crazy around them. It made him think of the Relic that had given them so much trouble just a few months ago.
    Women and men, some with dogs and some without ran down the paths along the river. There was even a family here and there enjoying the warm sun with Frisbees or soft squishy footballs. He couldn’t help wanting to get out and join them along the banks of the slowly moving waterway. His only stipulation was that he needed a beer and a cigar in order to have his own fun.
    Within minutes they were parked and headed up the long hallway toward the infectious disease corridor in the hospital. The brown tile walls made Henry feel uneasy—he had seen his fair share of men and women pass away in the drably colored hospitals of old. He wondered for a brief moment if they were ever going to get around to updating the place.
    “We’re here to see a young girl.” Stephen flashed his federal identification to the man behind the reception desk. Henry had already headed down to the basement to meet with a man who might have a lead-lined box. “She was brought in from a yacht in Jersey this morning. We’re pretty sure she’s being held in the—”
    “Yeah, I know the one,” the fairly large man said, cutting Stephen off. What little remained of his red hair was in the shape of a horseshoe around the top of his balding head. His red nose and greasy complexion told Henry that he most likely had a problem with alcohol. “Brought her in this morning off that crazy ship in Jersey and now she’s in the I.D.W.”
    Stephen looked sideways at Cynthia.
    “Infectious Disease Ward; I.D.W.,” the fat man clarified. Stephen noticed his nametag said ‘Ashley’.
    “It’s a family name,” Ashley said, noting how long Stephen had taken to look at the tag. “I go by Ash though; makes me sound badass. Anyway, you guys have been cleared to see her, apparently. You’re going to need some masks though, and you can’t touch her.”
    “Sounds good,” Stephen answered. “Where do we sign in?”
    “Us, too.” Stephen and Cynthia had been oblivious to the fact that two sinister looking individuals had snuck up behind them. One was a rather ugly woman with huge pouty lips. Her stringy hair was black and thin and she hid her wrinkles with a pound of makeup. Stephen could feel the cigarette smell burning his nostrils as she approached. She wore large dark sunglasses which hid most of her age, but Stephen could tell that she had to have lived a hard fifty years, at least.
    The man, on the other hand, seemed very young to be hanging out with such a woman in any capacity. He had blond hair and blue eyes, a chiseled jaw, and a cleft chin. His swagger told Stephen he was a hefty man built from solid muscle, but he could still grow with age. They both wore black collared shirts and slacks.
    Cynthia spied the outline of a pistol beneath the man’s arm, despite his obvious effort to conceal it.
    “And who are you?” Ashley, the man, asked the two newcomers.
    “Detectives from the local department,” the man answered. “My name is Detective Barnes, and this is my partner Detective Federeau. We were told that you would be expecting us.”
    Stephen felt awkward for a moment, wondering whether or not the man and woman would ask about the two fakers. Though he and Cynthia were federal agents, it was strictly forbidden for them to use UOD identifiers. The team worked on real-life issues, but the government was none too fond of letting the public know that they were in constant danger.
    It would take a few phone calls to ensure the two UOD agents were real federal agents.
    “You guys don’t know each other?” Ashley eyed each of the groups suspiciously. It made Stephen’s heart raise up into his stomach.
    “Nope,” the male detective said, looking down his nose at Cynthia. “Looks like these guys are feds, though. We check down,