Rise of the Evening Star

Incredible, Vanessa said.

What do we do? Seth asked.

For starters, Grandma said crossly, you are officially grounded.206Betrayal

Chapter Ten

Kendra sat on the love seat beside Seth, resting her elbow on the arm of the couch and her chin on her hand. Ever since Hugo had rescued Seth earlier in the day, an uncomfortable new tension had filled the house. Grandpa had been poring over books and making phone calls.

Vanessa and Coulter came and went several times, often accompanied by Hugo. There were many hushed conversations behind closed doors. Now it was getting late, but

Grandma had informed everyone they had to meet about something that could not wait until morning. Which could not be a good sign.

Kendra’s chief consolation was that she was not Seth.

Wandering off into the woods without permission had almost gotten him killed. The thought of what had almost207 happened had terrified everyone, and he was getting an earfulas a result. Undoubtedly he would hear plenty more about it in the impending meeting.

Seated in a chair beside Seth, Tanu was showing him potions, explaining what they did and how he marked the bottles to distinguish them from each other. Only Tanu, who had returned not long ago from an all-day excursion, had refrained from reprimanding Seth. Instead, the Samoan seemed intent on distracting him from his misery.

This one is for an emergency, Tanu was saying. It’s an enlarger, doubles my height, makes me big enough to wrestle an ogre. The ingredients for enlargers are extremely hard to come by. I’ve only got one dose, and once I use it, I don’t expect to own another. Shrinking is easier. Each of these little vials carries a dose that makes me eight times shorter. I

end up just under ten inches tall. Not so helpful in a brawl, but not bad for sneaking around.

Coulter and Vanessa sat on opposite ends of an antique sofa. Dale was perched on a stool he had brought in from another room. Grandma wheeled in Grandpa and took a seat in the last armchair.

Grandpa cleared his throat. Tanu fell silent, returning his potions to his pouch. Getting to the point, we probably have a traitor among us, so I thought we should talk this through.

Nobody spoke. Kendra made brief eye contact with

Vanessa, then with Coulter, then with Tanu. Ruth and I are fairly certain how Olloch got onto the property, Grandpa continued. Somebody signed him in on the register within208 the past two days. He probably waltzed right through thefront gate. And he didn’t come alone.

What’s the register? Kendra asked.

The register is a book that controls access to

Fablehaven, Grandma said. When you come to visit, we write your name in the register, and that action disarms on your behalf the spells guarding the gate. Unless they were signed in on the register, it would be effectively impossible for anyone to get past the fence.

Somebody signed in Olloch? Dale asked.

Between now and two evenings ago, the last time we checked the register, someone signed in Christopher Vogel and Guest, Grandma said. We blotted out the names, but the damage has been done. Christopher Vogel, whoever that is, came onto the property and turned Olloch loose.

Therefore we must assume we have two enemies out there, Grandpa said, motioning toward the window. And one in here.

Could somebody from outside have gotten to the register?

Dale asked.

The register was hidden in our room, Grandma said.

Only Stan and I knew where it was. Or so we thought. Now we’ve moved it. But coming into the house unnoticed after we shut it down for the night is almost as difficult as getting through the gates. Let alone writing in the register right under our noses.

Whoever wrote in the register is more than likely the same person who released the drumants, Grandpa said. Is209 it possible that somebody outside this room accessed ourbedrooms twice? Yes. Probable? No.

Can we trace the handwriting? Coulter asked.

Grandma shook her head. They used a stencil.

Apparently they weren’t in a rush.

Perhaps all of us should leave, Tanu suggested. The evidence is too glaring to ignore. Kendra and Seth are above suspicion, as are Ruth and Stan. Maybe the rest of us should depart.

The thought crossed my mind, Grandpa said. But now that we have two foes on the preserve, it is hardly a good time to send away our protectors, even if one is probably a traitor. At least until we can summon replacements.

I am stuck in this chair, and the children are young and untrained. The situation is maddening. As I consider each of you individually, you seem above suspicion. Yet someone wrote in the register, and since you all appear equally innocent, you consequently appear equally guilty.

I hope we find another explanation, Grandma said.

For the moment, we must acknowledge the likelihood that one of us is a master deceiver working for our adversaries.

It gets worse, Grandpa said. The phone lines are down again. We’ve been trying to summon aid via Vanessa’s cell phone, but our chief contact has not been answering.

We will keep calling, but none of this bodes well.

The other immediate problem is Olloch himself,

Grandma said. As he gorges himself on whatever edible matter he can find, he will continue to gain both size and

Power. He quit trying to enter the yard hours ago, which210 means he realizes that if he gets big enough, he could gainsufficient power to overthrow the treaty, access the house, and claim his prize.

Like how Bahumat almost overthrew the preserve last year, Kendra said.

Yes, Grandpa said. Olloch could conceivably muster sufficient power to plunge Fablehaven into lawless chaos.

Kendra glanced at Seth, sitting silently. She had rarely seen him so quiet and contrite. It looked like he wanted to melt away into the love seat and vanish.

What can we do? Tanu asked.

Olloch the Glutton will not stop until he has devoured and digested Seth, Grandpa said. Slaying Olloch is well beyond our power. We have an ally who suggested there might be a way to subdue the demon, but we have not been able to reach him. The glutton has already reached a size that will allow him to ingest just about whatever he chooses, and his appetite will not abate. We cannot sit idly by. Our peril is literally growing by the minute.

We must assume our benefactor is on the move,

Grandma said. He is a heavily desired target of the Society.

We’ll keep trying to telephone him, and assume that he’ll make himself available as soon as he can. Otherwise, we’re just not sure how to find him. He moves too frequently.

How long before Olloch becomes strong enough to countermand the treaty? Vanessa asked.

Grandpa shrugged. With the kind of game he can find inside Fablehaven, magical and nonmagical, it is a worst-case scenario. He’ll grow much faster than he would out in211 the normal world. He must have had help getting to his currentsize, probably from that Christopher Vogel character.