"He's shaking his head," Seth relayed. "He's pantomiming a ball. Now he's shielding his eyes. I think he means he can't go out in the sunlight. Yep, he heard me, he's giving a thumbs-up."
"Tomorrow evening, then," Grandpa said.
"Thumbs-up."
"Try to think of a way to prove we can trust you."
"He's tapping a finger to the side of his head, like he'll think about it. Now he's walking away."
Grandpa closed the door. "I can't foresee a way to prove he's the same Coulter we love and trust. He could have all of Coulter's knowledge yet still be a threat."
"Why can't he come into the house on his own?" Dale asked.
"I think he could if we left the door open," Tanu said. "He's insubstantial right now. Not immaterial enough to pass through a door, but he can't open one on his own."
"How do we confirm he's on our side?" Seth asked.
"Your grandfather may be right," Grandma said. "I'm not sure there's a way."
"The situation is dire enough that if he would let me go with him, I would simply take the risk," Grandpa said. "But I'll not let Seth do it."
"I'll take the risk," Seth said. "I'm not afraid."
"Why is he insisting Seth comes?" Dale asked.
"Only Seth can see him," Tanu said.
"Of course," Grandpa said. "No wonder he was adamant that we couldn't come without Seth. I was too busy trying to find a deeper purpose in it."
"Still," Grandma said, "he was hesitant to allow others to join Seth. Why could it be that only Seth can see him?"
Nobody ventured a guess.
"You're sure you aren't making fools of us ?" Grandma asked Seth again, studying him shrewdly.
"I promise," Seth said.
"This isn't a trick to get out of the house and into the woods?" Grandma pressed.
"Trust me, if all I wanted was to get into the woods, I'd already be there. I swear I would never make up a story like this. And I have no idea why only I can see him."
"I believe you, Seth," Grandpa said. "But I don't like any of this. I wonder if our shadowy Coulter could reveal himself to more of us if he wanted? Could he be choosing to let only Seth see him? We need to do all we can to make sense of this. Unanswerable questions are piling up. I propose we speak with Vanessa again. If she can be of any service, now is the time to call upon her. Perhaps in her work for our enemies she has witnessed something like this shadowman phenomenon."
"She's not a cure-all," Grandma said. "Odds are all she'll be able to do is imitate the same guesses we're making."
"Our guesses aren't adding up to much," Grandpa said. "Time could be running out. We should at least check."
"I'll go in the box, if it will speed things up," Dale volunteered. "Long as you let me out."
"She'll be going back inside," Grandma promised.
Grandma got her crossbow and Grandpa grabbed a flashlight. Tanu went to retrieve his handcuffs but returned empty-handed. "Anybody seen my handcuffs? All I can find are the keys."
"Did you ever take them off of her?" Grandma asked. Something about the way she asked the question hinted that she already knew the answer.
They descended the steps to the basement. When they reached the Quiet Box, Dale opened the door and stepped inside. Grandma closed the door, the Quiet Box rotated, and when she opened it, Vanessa stood there with her wrists cuffed together.
"Thanks for leaving me shackled," she said, stepping out of the box. "As if I didn't already feel like part of a cheap magic act. What's the latest?"
"Coulter is in some sort of darkened, shadowy state," Grandpa said. "He can't speak. He seems to want to share information with us, but we don't know if we can trust him."
"Neither do I," Vanessa said. "Have you any guesses how the plague originated?"
"Do you?" Grandma responded, her tone accusatory.
"I've had some time to mull it over. What have you come up with?"
"Honestly, we can't fathom how it could have originated here," Grandpa said. "Bahumat is imprisoned, Olloch is frozen, the other major demons are bound by the treaty. We can't think of any being at Fablehaven with the ability to initiate something like this."
As he spoke, a smile appeared on Vanessa's lips, gradually widening. "And the obvious conclusion hasn't occurred to any of you?"
"That it came from outside of Fablehaven?" Grandma guessed.
"Not necessarily," Vanessa said. "I have a different possibility in mind. But I don't want to go back into the box."
"There is no way for you to undo the connection you forged when you bit us?" Grandpa asked.
"I could lie and say there was," Vanessa said. "You know the link is permanent. I would be happy to take an oath never to use those connections again."
"We know what your word is worth," Grandpa said.
"Considering that the Sphinx is now more my enemy than yours, you can rely on me much more than you know. I'm enough of an opportunist to recognize when the time has come to trade sides."
"And to recognize when you can commit a large enough betrayal for the Sphinx to welcome you back," Grandma said. "Or perhaps the Sphinx really is on our side, and whoever employs you would be glad for your return as soon as you manage to slip away."
"Makes it complicated," Vanessa admitted.
"Vanessa," Grandpa said, "if you don't help us rescue Fablehaven, you might be stuck in that box for the rest of eternity."
"No prison lasts forever," Vanessa said. "Besides, as blind as you seem, sooner or later you'll arrive at the same conclusion I did."
"Let's make it sooner," Grandpa said, raising his voice for the first time. "I'm on the verge of deciding the Quiet Box is too good for you. I could arrange a stay in the Hall of Dread. Your ability to haunt our sleep wouldn't remain a concern for long."
Vanessa paled.
Seth did not know too much about the Hall of Dread. He knew it was on the other side of the dungeon behind a bloodred door, and that the prisoners there required no food. Apparently Vanessa knew more details than he did.
"I'll tell you," Vanessa relented. "Granted, I'd rather go to the Hall of Dread than give away the key knowledge that might buy my freedom. But this is not that information. Nor does it get you much closer to comprehending how the plague began, although it sheds some light on whom to blame. Are you sure the Sphinx took the previous occupant of the Quiet Box off the preserve with him?"