The Hadley Academy for the Improbably Gifted

by Conor Grennan

  Asha was walking slowly around the stone ring. She stopped where a doorway had once been. “It was an outpost for the academy, right? But why would they need one this far out?”

  “We couldn’t figure that out at first either,” Blue offered. “Until Rufus suggested that it was probably used as the shelter for the first engineers at Hadley, the ones doing the most radical experiments. Then we discovered this.”

  They followed Rufus past the ruin to the clump of trees near the edge of the water. In the middle of a small clearing, two pine trees grew a few feet apart like lanky identical twins. A door hung from ancient iron hinges on one of the trees, swaying and creaking slightly in the breeze but never closing. The elements had polished and petrified the wood. It felt like bone. Was it possible that the door could have stood here for so long?

  Voss gave it a gentle push. It groaned as it swung into the frame created by the two trees and suddenly magnetized shut, a metal plate on the side of the door locking closed with a matching metal plate attached to the other tree.

  “It’s a portal, isn’t it?” Freddy asked, amazed. “What’s it doing out here?”

  “Our technology is advanced now, but back then, it must have been downright dangerous,” Rufus said. “Think about how much energy it takes to run the portals—that entire power grid Voss shut down. They would have needed to generate a tremendous amount of energy to power this one.” He gestured at the waterfall, which was pounding the pool below with thousands of gallons of water per minute and creating a dense mist.

  Claire held out her hands to feel the spray. “Hydroelectric energy.”

  “Exactly,” Rufus said. “And out here they could experiment far from the main grounds. No passersby would get blown to bits if something went wrong.”

  Asha brushed her hand against the smooth door. “Can it be fixed?”

  “It doesn’t need to be fixed. It never stopped working.” Rufus patted the door.

  “Where’s it go to?” Voss asked.

  “We have no idea,” Rufus said. “There aren’t any records of it; it’s just here. All we know is that it’s built by the Grays. We can’t be sure it even functions like a normal portal. And we couldn’t exactly test it, not knowing if we would come back.”

  “Wherever it goes,” Superior Blue said. “It’s a one-way trip off Elk Island. The waterfall only provides enough power for an exit. It doesn’t produce enough energy for reentry.”

  “How do we get back?” Jack asked. “Vladimir destroyed the power grid.”

  “There’s only one way,” Blue said slowly. “It’s dangerous, and we hoped to never have to use it. But we have no choice now; the world needs Hadley more than ever. And we need our operatives if we’re going to have any chance at fighting back.” Blue pointed at their wrists. “I’ve sent the mission details to your bands.”

  “And whatever you find on the other side of that portal, remember one thing,” Rufus urged. “Your greatest strengths are not your individual spades. Your greatest strength is your team. That’s how you’ll survive: sticking together.”

  Jack stared at the ancient door that hung between the trees. The very first portal. And the last exit off Elk Island and away from the Hadley Academy for the Improbably Gifted.

  Jack walked to the door and took the handle. It hummed with energy. Behind him he felt the rest of Thirteen line up: Asha, Freddy, Voss, and Claire.

  “All right, Jack.” Freddy punched him on the shoulder. “Let’s go see what’s out there.”

  Jack pulled the handle. Cool air rushed out.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  These are some people I would like to thank for making this book a real thing:

  My agent, Trena Keating, of Union Literary, told me I needed to start writing fiction. She and her team read draft after draft and kept me going in the right direction.

  My editors Laura Helweg and Ami McConnell (with help from Danielle!) had an incredible vision for this story. “Get out your pixie dust,” they said. I tried to do that. The Tommy Nelson and the whole HarperCollins Christian teams have been committed and enthusiastic throughout this process.

  My friend Charlie Agulla was along for this whole ride, brainstorming for hours on mind-bending concepts. Kim Mathew and Issy Kwei encouraged me in early drafts, asking the perfect questions that helped shape the final draft.

  Our friend and fellow writer Cindy Halsted was the spiritual jet engine behind this book. I’ve never known a more dedicated encourager. The Lord used her in ways that continue to boggle the mind.

  There are many, many more friends and family who never let me give up, who were there to love and support me through the highs and lows of the writing process. There are far too many to thank, but I bet they know who they are.

  And of course, my family:

  Finn (Systemic) and Lucy (Kinetic) were tremendous brainstormers about the Hadley universe. They talked about it around the breakfast table and dinner table and everywhere in between. I always had them in mind when I wrote.

  Finally, and most importantly, Lizzie (Theoric). My wife read every word, from the earliest ideas to the last polished draft. She is my first reader and greatest editor. She helped me understand how Claire and Asha felt, how the island smelled, how the food tasted. Most importantly, she protected me. The skin of a writer must be thick, but the heart has to remain vulnerable. Without her there is no Hadley Academy. She’s the reason this universe exists.

  CONOR GRENNAN

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Conor Grennan is an author and a crime fighter. He used to live in Kathmandu, Nepal, where he rescued trafficked children and reunited them with their families in remote mountain villages. He wrote a book about those adventures called Little Princes: One Man’s Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal, which was a New York Times bestseller.

  Conor spent his middle school and high school years in Jersey City, New Jersey, just like Jack Carlson. As a thirteen year old, Conor survived his rough neighborhood by dreaming of summer getaways on Monhegan Island, an island off the Maine coast and the model for Elk Island, home of the Hadley Academy. Today, Conor serves as the Dean of Students at the NYU Stern School of Business. He lives in New Canaan, Connecticut, with his wife, Liz; his children, Finn and Lucy; and their dog, Beasley, in a very ordinary and not-at-all-secret suburban neighborhood. Team Grennan still visits Monhegan Island every summer, hiking through the tall pine forests and helping each other discover gifts they never knew they had.