"GUILTY!"
The angry man in the black robe shouted his verdict as the spectators erupted in noisy chatter. The room echoed with the sound of the judge pounding the wooden gavel on the bench.
"Order in the court!" he yelled as he jumped to his feet. "Order in the court!" An uneasy hush fell over the crowd in the courtroom, then the judge pointed at the defendant.
"You make me sick," the judge said through clenched teeth that revealed just how furious he really was. "Your acts of treason have put this whole nation at risk. Because of you, it will be a long time before we will once again feel safe in our beds. The public needed you and you could have done so much good, but you didn't, did you? All you thought about was yourself. You wanted to get rich and live life on your own terms and that choice is going to cost you dearly." The judge never took his eyes off the defendant as he sat back down. "Bailiff, lock up the prisoner and throw away the key. I don't want him to ever taste freedom again!" 
That's the way the trial of Dr. Burke Benedict had ended two years ago. That was when he was found guilty of selling secrets to the enemy. All the TV stations were at the courthouse in Washington, D.C. to hear the verdict. The nation stopped what it was doing just to watch him being led away in shame. Dr. Benedict's face made the front page of every major newspaper. He had been a powerful man at the Pentagon, the symbol of the military might of the United States. Now that he was on his way to prison, his job was vacant.
The Pentagon's walls are so strong that they will withstand most attacks. Bulletproof glass is used in all the windows and armed guards patrol the hallways. The decisions made there are guarded secrets, but secret or not, people know that what happens there will shape our planet. The men and women who work in that building are among the most powerful in the world. It was no secret that many men wanted the rank and power that came with Dr. Benedict's job.
Dr. Lucien Wiley was one of them. He stood about five feet, nine inches and was a little overweight. Now that he was fifty-two years old, it was a sure thing that his looks wouldn't change. He'd wanted to be thought of as tall, dark, and handsome, but his own mirror showed that he wasn't. He was sure he had to work twice as hard as everyone else to get the same things out of life. It wasn't fair, but each time he compared himself to others he became bitter inside.
Wiley had spent the better part of his working life as a scientist. While he wasn't all that good, he had made a name for himself in the field of military science. One thing was sure; his piercing green eyes never stopped looking for his next big break. Somehow, he had to feed the small voice inside his chest whose favorite food was power.
Wiley was known for getting the job done at all costs. When a secret Congressional subcommittee met, they were pleased with that fact. Wiley had kept a close friend out of trouble by hiding the facts of a court case and wiping the crime scene clean of fingerprints. As he had promised, Wiley came through and now it was time to pay up for services rendered.
The small group of congressmen was looking for a special person to fill Dr. Benedict's old job. They needed someone they could trust and one who wouldn't be swayed by a misplaced sense of right and wrong. So behind closed doors in a smoke-filled room, it was agreed; Dr. Lucien Wiley would get Dr. Benedict's old job. He would lead the mysterious unit called ASP, the Agency of Secret Projects, at the Pentagon.
Since his new staff didn't know anything about him-
| 
