A gasp parts the man’s lips. His hands tremble at his sides.
“Honey, what’s wrong?” The woman next to him takes hold of his wrist, giving it a light squeeze. It’s enough to comfort him, to bring him out of his own head and into the present. I don’t have to be afraid anymore. If not many in the world would understand, certainly his wife could.
“Another flashback,” he whispers, offering a weary smile.
His wife closes her eyes, bows her head. “Last week. Same thing.”
“Do you think they’ll ever stop?” he asks. “The nightmares?”
“It’s been thirty years, sweetheart. If the Academy hasn’t left us yet, I doubt it ever will.”
“But it was necessary, wasn’t it? What we went through?”
“Of course,” his wife returns, her expression grave. “Only the strongest…”
“Only the strongest,” he echoes. He reaches over and takes her into his arms. Hugs her with everything he has.
A knock interrupts their embrace. A man in black leans into the room. “They’re ready for you, Mr. President.”
YOU ARE READING
The Academy
Teen FictionFor decades the Collective have lived among us, infusing their alien DNA into our own, creating children with supernatural abilities. At sixteen these children are stolen away to the brutal proving grounds known as The Academy, where the weak perish...
