Slezzy was in that hospital elevator.
He had just pressed the number four button on a control panel.
The last words exchanged with Sanches were in his mind.
"Good luck with your tedious work... See you around..."
"I'm sure of it!"
When the elevator doors opened, Slezzy set out to search for room number eighty—two.
Upon arriving at the door of that room, he was able to observe Agent Sanches once again, lying in that same bed and under medical care. At that time, his body was already clean of all the blood marks. The parts pierced by the shots were already incredibly healed. Even so, he was still unconscious.
On his feet, Lieutenant Jan was watching him.
— It is likely that he still needs to undergo another surgery — commented the doctor who carried a form in his arms. — You can feel this guy's a strong man! It is unusual for someone to resist this type of perforation for so long, even losing almost all the blood from his body.
The doctor said goodbye. Then he walked to the exit of the room, saying:
— Um! Looks like you have a visitor!
Slezzy entered the room just as the doctor abandoned her. He approached the bed from the right side.
— Do not worry, he is recovering quickly... — Said the Lieutenant with an optimistic tone. — In a matter of two or three months, I am sure he will be able to work with us again. For the least I know of our partner, I'm sure he'd freak out if he couldn't work because of those injuries anymore. Ah... Sanches...
Slezzy smiled at me.
— You know what? The first days of work at the NCC are unforgettable. When I was a totally underrated recruit, Agent Sanches was... one of the only ones in that institution who cared about making sure all rookies felt comfortable and confident for their future jobs on the streets. Fighting the bandits and mobsters of this city has never been an easy task, even!
— "Recruit?" Wait... how did you become Agent Sanches' superior?
Jan laughed.
— Like you, he always questioned and beat head—on with the orders imposed by the NCC. Everyone saw this man as a true "vigilante". But, it was expected that his brave times were about to end. One day, he received a statement from the board: a notice of removal.
— What happened after that?
— He stayed a little over a year away, returning only at the end of last year. — The Lieutenant laughed. — But to think about it, it was a good time to rest. He had been working for over eight years without even taking one of his vacations. I'm sure he was the agent who sacrificed the most to this day for the lives of this town. Um... I'll never forget that.
— That's why he has the respect of all the superiors of the NCC, right?
— Exactly.
The two of them looked at that agent again.
— Anyway. To tell you the truth, I called you here to deal with other matters. — Jan fixed his gaze on the young man.
— What?
Jan walked to the glass door that was part of that room, which also connected the room to a balcony with a view to some of the city's buildings. He opened it right away.
Slezzy walked to the balcony surrounded by a glass shield.
Slezzy and the Lieutenant were watching the big buildings. The Sam Brothers were following him.
— I heard you met Yuki!
— Han? Of course!
— He's in charge of the FMA's intelligence department. Since the last two years after your entry, we have always taken into account all your assumptions and ideas. Yesterday, with the help of the videotapes of some secret cameras of the Central Bank, we detected a kind of gray object being introduced in the bag of the Crow during the robbery. After our investigation, we concluded that this object was not registered in the name of any of the clients who owned private safes... it was as if they already knew where it was hidden.
— Um?
— Hey, all this is confidential! — Jan turned to Slezzy this time, taking him seriously — According to some samples from intelligence studies, the object was circular and had some unidentified details. He also formed a moon figure in its center...
The Sam Brothers' eyes widened after that speech. Slezzy realized it with a quick glance.
The Lieutenant went on:
— The question is... we still don't know what this is really and who it belonged to, although only the richest in the city were able to store their belongings and valuables in the coffers of that bank. Another factor that Yuki pointed out seems to be decisive in the case: The hostages and the other bandits who escaped through the main exit carried firearms and bags of money... this means that... as much as Crow and the other two who fled through the buildings stole about a million dollars, that was not the priority of the robbery. So the hostages and the other robbers who died that day... were just a simple distraction...
— Are you saying that... the real purpose of all that scheme was to take an object... circular and grey? — asked Slezzy, sarcastically.
— Apparently yes! It's a real mystery.
Jan supported his arms on the bars that delimited the balcony.
— Lieutenant, why are you telling me all this?
The Lieutenant ignored that question for long seconds. The sound of the winds and the medical device inside the room dominated the environment.
— Slezzy, I want you to know that... at least for now... you are one of the high hopes among all the soldiers and agents of the military institutions.
— Han?
— Hey, don't you see? After this robbery, in theory... the criminals of this city must be thinking that now they have us on the palms of their hands! The number of young people who enter daily into this miserable life... is only rising! Because of all this... we have to gather as many forces as possible so that we can fight all the "heads" of the mafias, when the right time comes.
— The right time?
— Crow, while not the greatest leader among the mafias at this time, has declared war on our city on behalf of all of them with this bloody assault. The day the city will stop to watch the confrontation between the military and all the mafias is closer than you think. Until then, we will have to face some small "setbacks". But when that day comes, I want you to know that agents like you and Sanches... will really make a difference on our side.
Slezzy was paralyzed by those words.
— Agent Sanches didn't pick you for nothing. I'm sure he had a very good reason that day to get you out of your unhappy office as secretary. But since he's disabled at the moment, as is young Clay, let's just say... we don't have agents with a lot of experience left to take to the streets right now. Many are sidelined by trauma or simply resigned out of fear after the big heist. So I need you to return to the NCC next Monday. I want you to work the streets next to me.
— WHAT? — Slezzy was frightened by the proposal.