The Invisible Spy (The Forgotten Five, Book 2) - Softcover

McMann, Lisa

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0593325443 ISBN 13: 9780593325445

Verlag: Penguin Young Readers Group, 2023

Inhaltsangabe

X-Men meets Spy Kids in this sequel to the instant New York Times bestseller Map of Flames. Here’s the thrilling second installment in The Forgotten Five middle-grade fantasy/adventure series from the author of The Unwanteds—now in paperback!

The forgotten five have made it to Estero to search for their missing supernatural criminal parents. With the help of their new allies, Lada and The Librarian, they’ve managed to find Birdie and Brix’s mother, Elena, and free her from captivity in the presidential palace. Now the president’s henchmen are searching everywhere for the children who broke out Elena, driving the group into hiding in the ancient underground tunnels beneath the city.
 
Meanwhile, President Fuerte is making headlines for his nighttime flights to other countries accompanied by an invisible man. But why would the president who outlawed supernaturals be working with the people he supposedly hates? And could it be that some of the five’s own parents are helping him?
 
The fantasy adventure that began with the New York Times and Indie bestseller Map of Flames continues as the five join the fight against the oppression of supernaturals in Estero, face off against an unexpected enemy, and undertake a new mission that will put all of their abilities—and their loyalties—to the test.

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Lisa McMann is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of dozens of books, including the first book in The Forgotten Five series, Map of Flames; The Unwanteds series; the Wake trilogy; and Clarice the Brave. She is married to fellow writer Matt McMann, and they have two adult children—their son is artist Kilian McMann, and their daughter is actor Kennedy McMann. Lisa spends most of her time in Arizona, California, and Vancouver, British Columbia, and loves to cook, read, and watch reality TV. You can visit Lisa at lisamcmann.com and follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok @lisa_mcmann.
 

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An Angry Man

President Daniel Fuerte sat at his cluttered desk in the presidential office on the top floor of the Magdalia Palace. The morning sunshine reflected off the gold frame of a recently stolen painting on the wall. The glare gave him a mild headache after the long night. His face was haggard and his jaw unshaven, but his shiny black hair edged with gray at his temples appeared freshly groomed. He’d dozed on the plane ride back from Estero’s neighboring country, but he hadn’t slept enough, and he was ready to retire to his room for a few hours. When his desk phone rang, he sighed and picked it up. “Fuerte.”

A panicked voice greeted him. “Dad, I’m down in the dungeon. There’s been a break-­in overnight.”

“What?” Fuerte’s eyes widened. His daughter, Sabine, ran his secret Supernatural Locator and Recruitment Operation in the palace control room. She also managed the guards—­and their captive, Elena Golden.

“The place is trashed, and they took Elena.”

“What? No. She’s gone?” Fuerte leaned back in his leather-­and-­mahogany chair, his jaw clenching and unclenching. He pumped his fist against his forehead a couple times, then slammed it on the desk. “How?” he demanded. “We’ve got guards everywhere! There’s an iron fence surrounding us, for crying out loud!” He muttered some unsavory words under his breath.

“Security and staff are being questioned,” Sabine went on. “After Elena was freed, they locked the on-­duty officer inside the cell. He says it was done by . . . children. And something about a pig?

I’m waiting to hear more about that.”

Fuerte’s face darkened. “Didn’t you take care of those two kids the other night?”

Sabine hesitated. “Well, we tried. But the operation was interrupted in the wheat tunnel, and . . . we lost them. We thought we scared them off for good. Nobody knew they were capable of this.”

“I knew.” The president shook his head in disgust. “Find out if those two were working alone or if they had help. And figure out who they are and where they came from. Maybe we can . . .” He didn’t finish the thought. “Never mind. I’ll be right there.” He set the phone down hard in its cradle and muttered an oath, then pressed both palms on the desk and stood up. He chugged the dregs of his coffee and grimaced at its lukewarm temperature. Then he grabbed his suit jacket and started for the elevator, slipping it on as he stepped inside. He straightened and tightened his necktie as the elevator descended.

The door opened onto the main floor, and he headed for the door that led to the dungeon stairway. As he strode down the grand hall, lined with relics and priceless artifacts, he stopped short. A precious vase near the entrance to the dining room was missing. Had the intruders made off with that, too? Anger boiled up. But before he could process the implications of the theft, his cell phone rang. He pulled it from his pocket and studied the caller’s information with narrowed eyes. It was his journalist contact, Emil Blanco at Estero City News. Had he heard about the break-­in already? A mere two minutes after the president was informed? Whoever tipped off Emil would have to be fired immediately. He touched the screen to answer.

“Emil!” Fuerte exclaimed with fake enthusiasm. He wondered how much the journalist knew about the break-­in. “What’s making news today?”

“Supernatural people are, apparently. How are you, sir?”

“I’m fine.” He hesitated, and his thick eyebrows met in concern. “What do you mean, supernatural people are making news?”

“I’ve received a tip,” Emil said. “Apparently one of the supernatural criminals was picked up by the police about thirty minutes ago after being seen leaving the palace grounds. Are you aware of this?”

“I know nothing about it,” said Fuerte, trying to sound shocked. It was a blatant lie. Jack and Greta Stone had just left the palace after returning from the overnight mission. “Which one was it?”

“Jack Stone.”

The president closed his eyes briefly and let out a silent sigh. “Glad the police are keeping an eye out,” he said lightly. But he knew he’d have to make a call to get Jack out of hot water.

“Any idea why he’d be hanging around the palace?” Emil asked.

“No, but it sounds alarming,” said the president. “I have a meeting now, but let me know if you find out anything else.” He hung up the phone and dialed another number.

“Commander Collazo speaking.”

“It’s Daniel.”

“I know, sir,” she said.

“Listen. You’re going to release Jack Stone. The statute of limitations on his thefts fifteen years ago is almost up—­just a couple of weeks away. And you’ve got no evidence he’s done anything since then. Tell your department to let him go.”

Commander Collazo sighed. “Just because the statute of limitations has nearly been reached doesn’t mean my squad won’t pick up people like him. You tightened the laws on supernatural people to an unbearable level—­even for the ones who haven’t done anything wrong. Jack Stone loitering around the palace before daylight is a crime merely because he’s supernatural. You make the rules. I just enforce them.”

Fuerte pinched the bridge of his nose, as if that would ease his growing headache. But then his eyes flew open as an idea came to him. “All right, fair enough. Let Jack go. I’ll be making some changes to the law. Soon.”

“It’s not that easy,” the commander insisted. “The people of Estero will hear about this, and they’re not going to like it. You’ve spent years turning everyone against supernatural people. Now you’re changing your policy? It’s going to be tricky. You’ve . . . conditioned them to hate supers. And believe me, they do.”

“Don’t worry about it. Just do what I tell you, and we’ll get along, like always. You like our arrangement, don’t you, Commander?”

There was a long, heavy pause on the other end of the line.

“Commander Collazo?” the president prompted.

“Yes. All right,” she said with finality. “I’ll let him go.”

The phone beeped in the president’s ear. With a smug smile, he proceeded to the dungeon to see about the other mess.



A Moment of Calm

Cabot Stone sat on the floor near The Librarian’s biggest apartment window, using the early-­morning light seeping between the curtains to see as she paged through a book from one of the stacks. The others were still asleep, wrapped in The Librarian’s blankets or their own parachute ones, and using their backpacks as pillows. Elena Golden, enjoying her first night out of prison in three years, was curled up on the sofa with Brix. Birdie slept on the floor next to them.

The Librarian emerged from her bedroom, freshly dressed for the day in a casual khaki-­colored jumpsuit and white sneakers. She held a pair of binoculars. She went to the window near Cabot and smiled warmly in a silent greeting, then put the binoculars to her eyes and peered out.

“What are you looking for?” Cabot...

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Penguin Young Readers Group
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2023
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0593325443
• ISBN 13: 9780593325445
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 352
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: GPSR Kontakt; gpsr@libri.de; ; Europaallee 1; Bad Hersfeld; 36244; Deutschland