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“Just answer the question. Do I
look
like a man or a boy?”

She chuckled. “A man, Mr. Ego. You look like a man.”

Then he looked to me. “Iggy? What’s your vote?”

“Well, I’m kind of biased because you began your question with ‘what do the
girls
here think’. It’s a double standard. We say you’re a man, but you say we’re girls.”

They laughed, and he said, “I meant
women
. What do the
women
here think?”

I smiled at him. “I’m just teasing you, Devon. You look manly. But you should probably stop hitting on the employees or your ego might get dented some more.” He looked worried and we laughed again. I glanced around to see if Cael had come in.

Brian asked, “I wonder why the nurse told you she wasn’t allowed to carry on a personal conversation with you?”

“Pretty much no one talks to us except the lab technicians and scientists,” Brodie pointed out. “And that's only to tell us where to move and how they're going to attach the test equipment to us.”

“They’re not supposed to like us,” I explained. “They’re supposed to remain neutral and unaffected no matter what they see us go through.”

Pippa said, “The staff in Denver was like that, too.”

They all nodded. I teased, “I guess your incredible charm can’t tempt her away from the possibility of getting fired, Devon.”

Val grinned. “But I’m sure it was difficult for her to resist.”

Devon puffed up his chest. “I think I like the ladies at this table. I just may have to let you guys feed my ego more often.”

“Just not while I’m around.” Brian made a face like he was going to be sick.

“The only thing you need fed is your stomach,” Brodie told him.

Then Cael walked through the door, and it was all I could do not to run over to him. He searched for me and smiled when he saw me. Then he headed to the food bar. “Hey guys. I’m going to sit with Cael.”

Brodie waved a hand at me. “You don’t have to move. We can make room for him.” He looked at the others. “Can’t we?”

There was a chorus of agreement followed by a shuffling of chairs. Brodie grabbed an empty chair from a nearby table and placed it between me and Pippa. I wanted to talk to Cael alone in case he had any interesting news, but I couldn’t decline the offer.

“Thanks.” Maybe he wasn’t as bad as I’d thought.

When Cael sat down, he gave me a quick kiss. “Good morning.”

I tried not to blush, but I wasn’t used to showing affection in front of other people. “Did you just get done talking to Jensen?”

“Yeah.” He dug into his biscuits and gravy with fervor.

“What did you guys talk about?” I knew the others were listening, but Cael wouldn’t say anything that he didn’t want them to know.

“He gave me a tour of the labs and explained some of the things they do here.”

“He did?” Now I was really suspicious of Jensen. Never in a million years would I think he’d take a non-employee on a tour of the facility. Information was usually hoarded among the top scientists.

“Why did he do that?” Brian asked.

Cael shrugged. “He asked about what I did back in New York, we started discussing bioengineering, and then he offered to show me around.”

Val pointed her spoon toward him. “What do you know about bioengineering?”

“He’s a genius,” I told her in a tone that was annoyed, not boastful.

“Are you gonna, like, get a job here or something?” Brodie asked with a wry smile.

“Funny,” Cael replied. “It was really cool, though. The equipment here is top of the line. They’re very well-organized, and the database is –”

“Are you and Jensen best friends now?” I was irritated that he could be so excited about a facility designed to experiment on humans and animals.

His smile slipped. “It was just a tour, Iggy.”

“Well, damn,” Brodie interjected. “When do
we
get the tour? We’re only the subjects being tested around here.”

“I haven’t even been to a lab yet,” Val said.

I knew I needed to change the subject. I could discuss this with Cael later, but I didn’t want the others getting bent out of shape because he’d been given a personal tour. “Have any of you participated in a lab experiment yet?”

I was relieved as the conversation drifted toward what they’d all been through so far. Cael and I avoided looking at each other during the remainder of breakfast, and then the intercom voice ordered Wesley to report to Area 1 and Brodie to report to Area 2.

Brodie stood up. “The day begins! Off I go.” Then he started whistling the theme of the Seven Dwarfs.

We told him bye, and I followed Wesley’s movements, hoping he would at least glance at me before leaving. But the only look I received was an evil smile from Alex. It was another annoying first; Wes had never sat through a meal and not looked at me or smiled at me. Now I was really in a bad mood.

Cael asked me to go with him to his room, but as soon as we got there, another announcement required Pippa to go Lab 4, me to Lab 3, Ibram to Lab 2, and a girl named Krish to the nurses’ station. “Did you have something to tell me?” I asked him.

“Yeah, but it can wait.”

When I turned to leave, I spotted a laptop and several files on his desk. “What’s all that stuff?”

“It’s part of what I need to talk to you about.”

Now curiosity ate at me. The only way Cael would have gotten files is if Jensen had given them to him. But I didn’t have time to ask him to explain. “Okay. I’ll see you later.” But Cael grabbed my arm and pulled me around.

“Are you mad at me?”

I started to say one thing, but then I changed my mind. “I just don’t understand. But I know you’ll explain it when I get back, so I’ll just have to be patient.”

He tugged me close and kissed me. I expected it to be a quick kiss, but then I grabbed fistfuls of his scrub top and towed him even closer. Cael grabbed my hips and pulled me against him.

Someone cleared her throat in the doorway, and we parted. Pippa said, “Will I ever come in here and not find you two pawing at each other?” She giggled. “Are you coming, Iggy?”

“Yeah.” I joined her and waved goodbye to Cael.

“I’m nervous,” she told me as we walked side by side toward our destinations.

“Me, too.”

“I was hoping you’d tell me there was nothing to be worried about.”

“I’m the last person here who would tell you that.”

As we neared the nurses’ station, Krish was behind the desk getting a set of vital signs taken. Ibram was headed toward the labs, and he fell into line with us. He said, “This ought to be fun.”

Lab 4 was the first door on the right, and before Pippa went inside, I said something Wesley used to tell me to psych myself up for the test: “Let’s play ball.”

She gave me a brief wave and walked through the open door. In front of my own door, I told Ibram, “See ya later.” He nodded gravely, his posture rigid, before moving on to the next lab.

I found myself standing in a dark antechamber with two techs and a bunch of computers and equipment. There was a big window, and I could see through it to the lab room, which was about three times the size of my bedroom. On the opposite wall was a large, two-way mirror and a steel door. I couldn’t see through the window, but I figured somebody was watching me from the other side.

“Pull up your shirt,” the male tech ordered. I hesitated, but then I saw a small box hooked on a Velcro belt, and I realized he wanted to strap it around my waist. I pulled my green scrub top half way up and let him hook it and the necessary wires to my chest, my back, and my temples while the female tech typed quickly onto a keyboard near a row of computer screens.

She told her partner, “I’m not picking up Lead 3.” The man removed and re-stuck the pad to my right temple. She gave him a thumb’s up. “Okay. We’re good to go.”

“Step into the room,” he told me.

It was just like Atlanta years ago. I’d done this a million times, but my heart pounded as I walked into the lab. The walls were white, the ceiling high, the floor made of white tile. Tile made it easier to clean up the blood. It was very bright, and I squinted until my eyes adjusted. Then I glanced from one two-way mirror to the other, awaiting instructions and squeezing my hands repeatedly into fists.

I jumped when Jensen’s voice came over the intercom. “Good morning, Ignacia. You’re heart rate indicates you are nervous, but I promise this is an easy test. It won’t take long.”

I didn’t believe Jensen any further than I could throw him. I glared at the mirror as if I could actually see him standing there with his half smile and starched, white lab coat.

“Here’s how this test works: We will release a variety of birds into the room from that small vent in the center of the wall above the big mirror. All you have to do is paralyze the birds as fast as possible. I don’t want you to kill them or harm them, just make them stop flying and let them drop to the ground. When you have paralyzed them all, you are free to go for the day.” He paused. “Do you have any questions?”

I did, but not ones that he was likely to answer. “No.”

“Okay. Then the test begins…now.”

The vent opened, and birds poured into the room like bees at a hive. Wings fluttered, colors flitted, and it was difficult to pinpoint each bird in order to paralyze it. I only needed a split second for my power to affect them, but my eyes had to track each bird quickly while other birds flew across my vision, distracting me.

Jensen once told me I could affect the somatic motor neurons separately from the autonomic ones, which meant muscles such as the heart and diaphragm would continue to work even though muscles under voluntary control would not. A bright blue bird caught my attention, and it dropped onto its side, unmoving except for its chest. Several bright Cardinals were easier to track, so I brought them down next. My eyes locked on a small, brown bird, but then it crossed paths with a gray Cockatiel and my concentration broke. Some of them landed on the floor, but not long enough for me to paralyze. Because there were no perches, there was nowhere for them to land, and they became blurs of colors above my head. Singling out certain colors and tracking them had me spinning in circles, and my nervousness turned to frustration as the minutes ticked by.

One bird perched in the vent, and I got it next. Three birds were on the floor, and they all fell over at the same time, which surprised me. I thought I’d looked only at the closest one, but with my single thought, all of them froze simultaneously. It distracted me, and I looked at the trio with consideration before continuing on. Maybe instead of focusing so intently on an individual bird, I could concentrate on sending my power through all the birds I could visualize in the same moment. After all, I only had to see it to affect it. If that worked, then the sooner I could be done so I could get back to Cael and what he wanted to tell me.

With this theory in mind, I prevented myself from focusing on one bird and let my eyes see them as a split second snapshot of all birds. And when a dozen birds dropped to the floor at one time, I was pleased with myself for improving upon my technique. In less than thirty seconds, I had finished my task and stood staring at the mirror.

“Can I go now?”

Jensen’s voice replied, “There are more than a hundred birds in there, Iggy. Could you help clean up first?”

“How am I supposed to do that?”

“Miss Bennefield,” came another male voice. “Please don’t pull on the wires.”

At least the technician wasn’t referring to me as Subject Fourteen like in Atlanta. I was surprised to hear someone other than Jensen used my name, but then that thought slipped to the back of my mind as I put my arms at my side.

“I never had to clean up the lab before,” I complained.

“This isn’t Atlanta, Iggy. I need you to clean up. We don’t have time to waste.”

I squatted down and started pushing the birds into a central pile, cringing every time I touched one. While it would take a longer time than using my foot, I didn’t want to hurt them.

“Why don’t you just let them fly and guide them back into the vent?” Jensen suggested.

“I can’t do that,” I snapped. “I can’t control the direction they fly.” Had he lost his mind?

“You can control muscle, and muscle controls the wings. So of course you can make them fly back into the vent.”

I tapped my foot impatiently. Why hadn’t I thought of that before? I stepped back into the farthest corner so I could see all of the birds at once. Then I thought to release them, and as soon as they twitched or fluttered, I mentally commanded them back into the vent. The room was cleared in fifteen seconds, and I stood there feeling somewhat stunned at myself.

Before I even had a chance to gather my thoughts and speak, Jensen said, “Thank you, Iggy. You may go now.”

I hurried into the antechamber and lifted up my shirt. The techs removed the straps and wires, and then I headed back to Cael’s room. I wondered if Pippa and Ibram had finished their tests and were already roaming around.