Free Blood Oath by Christopher Farnsworth Page A

stationery and all the leftovers. They were responsible for everything from transferring prisoners to building security to searching cargo.
    The last job was the least glamorous, and it was the reason they were here tonight.
    They stood outside the giant metal shipping container, arms crossed, scowling, as Cade and Zach ducked under the crime-scene tape. The male agent moved to intercept them. Like his partner, he was dressed in a dark windbreaker with ICE stenciled in yellow on the back, and had a SIG Sauer P229 9mm in a holster on his hip. He looked like he wanted an excuse to shoot them right there.
    Cade either didn’t notice or didn’t care. “I’m Agent Cushing. This is Agent Lee,” he said, holding up the credentials he’d pulled from the glove box of the sedan. Zach fumbled in his pocket and came up with his own billfold, which somehow already had his photo above the phony name. It occurred to him that someone had been planning his transfer for a while.
    The male agent scanned their IDs, unimpressed.
    “Agent Cusick,” he said, and then tipped his head toward his partner. “That’s Hagan.”
    He had to raise his voice over the sound of the docks, which Zach was surprised to see were still busy, even this late at night. Cranes dipped down into giant tankers and freighters, and came out with containers that they stacked in big, rusting piles on the concrete docks. Semi trucks ground gears and waited in lines to pick up their shipments.
    The container they were here to see was cordoned off by the tape, and a wide space on every side. There was no one else nearby, and DHS had set up floodlights. It made the metal box look like it was on display.
    Cade looked at the container, its doors locked and sealed. He turned to Cusick.
    “Is there some reason you’re waiting to give me your report?” he asked.
    Cusick’s face curled into a snarl, but Hagan jumped in to answer before he could damage his career. Zach figured it was a pattern with the two of them.
    “The refrigeration on this unit apparently failed, and the smell attracted the attention of the inspectors,” she said. “They looked inside, called us. Then our boss got a call, and we were told to secure the scene and wait for you.”
    “Which we’ve been doing for seven hours and forty-nine minutes,” Cusick said, making a show of checking his watch. “Thanks so much for hurrying.”
    “You’re welcome,” Cade said. “Where’s the driver?”
    “Truckers here show up with their rigs and line up for cargo,” Hagan said. “We pulled him out of line and stuck him in the harbormaster’s office. He says he had no idea what was in the box.”
    “So what’s inside?” Zach asked.
    Cusick scowled. “You don’t know? Christ, that’s great.”
    “Open it, and we’ll see for ourselves,” Cade said.
    Cusick spun around, turning his back on Zach. “Hey, screw you, pal,” he said. “We’re not here to be your servants. I know you guys like to think we’re just rent-a-cops down at this level—”
    “Kirk,” Hagan said, a warning in her voice.
    “No, damn it, Ann, I’m sick of this shit—”
    Zach recognized the tone. It was the career government employee at the end of his patience. Fortunately, he had some experience with that.
    “Hey. Us too, buddy,” Zach said. “We’re all just doing what we’re told. The guys making the decisions are safe in their soft, warm beds.”
    Cusick snorted. That was progress.
    “None of us want to be here,” Zach said. “But if you just let us into the container, maybe we can get this done before daybreak, okay?”
    Cusick dialed back his anger. “Yeah,” he said. “Sorry. Been a long night.”
    “Nothing to apologize for,” Zach said. They walked over to the container. Cusick broke the evidence seals and unlocked the doors.
    Cusick looked back at Zach and Cade. “Might want to hold your breath now,” he said.
    Zach didn’t know what he meant by that. Then they swung open the doors, and the