This is what I signed up for. Lab rat or assassin. The U.S. government wasted a lot, but I figured I was a new commodity. I didn’t know the half of it.

“So how many of us are there?” I was genuinely curious. How many had come before me? A hundred? Probably less than that. Maybe fifty.

“On our team? Three now. Me, Hailey and you.”

The door opened slowly, a young woman in a lab coat stood behind it. For a moment she just looked at me. I stared back.

She appeared to be four or five years older than me. Her arms made an X in front of her, holding a black leather folder to her chest. Brown hair, cut straight, emphasized the curve of her jaw and dark-framed glasses made her eyes look too big for her face. She crossed the distance between us.

“Speaking of which. That’s Hailey. Hailey, meet Billy the kid.”

“My name’s Roobios, Will Roobios.” I said, offering a hand.

Instead of taking it, she thrust the folder into it. “This is your paperwork. Please have it finished before you leave. There’s a pen inside.”