Shadowstone Academy, Book 4: Final Stand by Hartzler Barbara

Author:Hartzler, Barbara
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Barbara Hartzler
Published: 2023-10-24T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

SOPHIE

THE MILITARY version of a cargo plane, or a troop plane, as they called it, wasn’t the most comfortable way to travel. But it was the most efficient way to fly from Switzerland to Morocco in the middle of the night.

And we didn’t have a second to lose if we wanted to save Genesis Academy from falling into the hands of the enemy.

The plane took off as the sun came up, and I leaned on Xander’s shoulder until I fell asleep.

Which was apparently a really bad idea.

Because as soon as I closed my eyes, images played behind my eyelids.

I was looking at the gates of Genesis Academy from the outside. A riot of protesters filled the street in front of the school, being held back by a police barricade.

Moroccan Gendarmerie officers, decked out in full SWAT-like gear, marched toward the academy, holding a perimeter of some kind. Except these dudes looked way more ripped than any Gendarmerie officers I’d seen before on the streets of Tangier.

The streets in front of the academy were in total chaos.

Bolts of lightning flashed across the sky as Friedrich Vanguard levitated above the crowd.

Speaking in Arabic, he said, “Fear not. I am here, faithful beloved, to take back this school from its captors. Leave this task to me, and your children will be safe.”

A roar erupted from the crowd as one word rattled around in my brain, the Arabic word I’d loosely translated in my mind as captors.

My Interpreter powers clicked into place and suddenly I knew my mistake. It wasn’t captors, but criminals, like in a violent, shooting kind of way.

Was he staging a coup by saving Genesis Academy from a fake school shooting?

Now that was too much.

Hot tears pricked my eyes, and I clenched my jaw to keep them at bay.

Wow, this guy would stoop incredibly low to get what he wanted.

And yet, what he wanted still eluded me.

I couldn’t understand the pathological narcissistic need to assert your will on other people, especially the world. But maybe it was a good thing I couldn’t comprehend crazy.

A few tears escaped, sliding down my cheeks.

Strong arms gripped my shoulders, shaking me awake.

“Sophie, are you okay? Sophie, wake up.” Xander’s plea was faint, like a fog rolling in.

But it was enough to rouse me from the horrible scene in front of me. Maybe a future I could possibly prevent.

I snapped my eyes open, darting my gaze all around me. I was still in the cargo plane, brilliant stripes of sun streaming through the handful of tiny windows, leaving this bare-bones plane still dim on the inside.

Xander’s strong hands landed on my shoulders, turning me until I faced him. “You had a vision, didn’t you?”

I gulped, glancing up at him. “It was Genesis Academy. Friedrich was there, trying to frame his whole invasion as some kind of police response to a school shooting.”

As I glanced down the line of seats, I saw Xander’s jaw fell open, then Bella’s and Patrick’s—one by one like a cascading row of dominoes.

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