"You look like you've been making snow angels," Grandma said.
When he reached the covered porch, Seth flapped his arms and stamped his boots, shedding clumps of snow. "Verl was guarding me, so I got the ball a lot," Seth said. "Verl isn't much of a tackier, but Newel hits hard. He made me fumble twice."
"You shouldn't roughhouse with satyrs," Grandma chided.
"The snow breaks the falls, and the jacket cushions everything," Seth assured her. "Doren and I were up 49-35."
Grandma helped him brush himself off. As Seth entered the house, he removed his boots and jacket. He heard the front door open and raced to the entry hall.
Kendra and Warren were coming through the door. A red seam slanted across Kendra's cheek--evidence that she had dozed in the car. Eyes teary, Seth ran to her and gave her a big hug.
"Whoa," Kendra said, hugging him in return, taken aback by the enthusiastic affection.
"I'm so glad you're all right," Seth said, blinking away the embarrassing tears. "We buried you."
"I heard. Feels weird to know I have my own tombstone."
"I'd keep it in my room if it was mine," Seth said.
"Maybe make it my headboard. Can you picture it? 'Here lies Seth Sorenson.'"
"I hear you guys have a stingbulb copy of Maddox," Kendra said, changing the subject.
"Yeah, he quit talking once we found him out. Vanessa says if we let him out of the Quiet Box, he'll die pretty quickly. His kind don't last long."
"How weird is that? Vanessa out of the Quiet Box!"
"She helped us find you," Seth said. "She used her powers to get info that somebody would help you escape last night. That was why everybody was patrolling the streets all night."
"Wait a minute," Kendra said. "Vanessa gave them the tip I'd be escaping? Who told her?"
"She won't say much. She would only reveal that the person who supplied the information was quietly on our side and had to remain unknown. All we know for sure is that Vanessa traveled into a sleeper somewhere and got the info. Must have been somebody who knew you'd be getting that knapsack."
"Trask found me. I didn't know him, so I was freaked. Warren said they weren't sure exactly where I was being held."
"Vanessa claimed not to know the precise location," Seth explained. "She knew Torina was in Monmouth, and she had a tip that a traitor was going to help you escape. She wouldn't share who supplied the tip. Can I check out your knapsack?"
"How much do you know about the knapsack?"
"Quite a bit. Your escape was all we could talk about this morning!"
Kendra took the knapsack off her shoulder.
"You fit in there with an old guy?" Seth asked.
"Cody is actually thirty-two. But he looks at least seventy. Torina drained away his youth. She's a lectoblix. I think he wants some revenge. He stayed behind with Trask." She opened the main flap of the knapsack and Seth peeked inside.
"No way! How do you always end up with the coolest stuff? This would be the ultimate emergency kit!"
"I'm surprised that anyone would part with such a valuable object," Coulter said, coming up behind them. "The art of creating extra-dimensional storage has been lost. The knapsack is a rare and valuable item. Somebody went well out of their way to free you."
"Hi, Coulter," Kendra said.
He hugged her. "We'll have to examine all the contents, just in case your unknown benefactor had a secret motive of smuggling unwanted guests into Fablehaven. You don't know who gave it to you, correct?"
"No idea."
Grandma, Grandpa, Dale, and Tanu had held back while Kendra spoke with Seth, but now they swarmed in, welcoming her and expressing their relief at her safe return. Seth backed away, waiting for the flood of good wishes to abate.
Grandma ushered Kendra to the kitchen, offering her a variety of food choices. All Kendra wanted was hot chocolate, so Dale placed a pan of milk on the stove.
"What are we going to do with Vanessa?" Kendra asked, now seated at the table.
"Don't get me started," Grandma griped. "I'm sure she had reasons of her own for helping us. That woman cannot be trusted. She has lied to us so sincerely and betrayed us so deeply that I can't believe Stan is permitting her any degree of freedom. She should go right back into the Quiet Box."
"She protected us from the impostor to her extreme disadvantage," Grandpa reminded his wife. "And she helped us recover Kendra. If we're careful, we may be able to use her."
"She's already concealing information from us," Grandma said. "Who knows who she spoke with while in that trance of hers, or what she may have revealed? Go ahead, Stan, keep using her. Boys love to play with fire. Just don't come crying when you get burned. We'll see who ends up using who."
"Vanessa has good reason for hating the Sphinx," Warren observed.
"How convenient for her," Grandma replied.
"I have some important information," Kendra announced, staring at her hands. "Stuff I didn't want to say in front of Trask or Dougan or Elise. Stuff I didn't want to discuss over the phone."
"You were holding out on me?" Warren said. "That was a long, boring drive!"
"I thought I should wait until we were all together at
Fablehaven," Kendra apologized. "I met with the Sphinx. He has the artifact from Brazil. It's called the Oculus."
Grandpa winced. "I was afraid the presence of the Maddox stingbulb meant the Society had already captured the artifact."
"Are they able to use it?" Coulter asked tentatively.
"I don't think so," Kendra said. "They made me try."
Grandpa banged a fist down on the counter, his face reddening. "The Oculus is the most dangerous of all the artifacts," he growled. "What do you mean, they made you try it?"
"They forced me to put my hand on it," Kendra said. "At first I could see in all directions, like I had extra eyes. Then it was like I had eyes all over the room, showing me dozens of perspectives at once. Then I had eyes all over the house, then the town, then the world."
"What did you see?" Seth asked eagerly.
"Everything and nothing," Kendra said, her voice haunted. "It was too much. I couldn't really focus on anything. I forgot where I was, who I was."
"How did the vision end?" Grandma asked.
"I couldn't think clearly enough to take my hand off the crystal," Kendra explained. "I saw into the place where the Fairy Queen lives. I managed to focus on her. She commanded me to take my hand off the Oculus. With her help, I escaped."