it was sad to think that her friend lena would not be there to welcome her. the fairies had returned the house-keeper to the pond from which patton burgess had lured her years ago. lena had not seemed eager to go back, but then the last time kendra had seen her, lena had tried to pull her into the pond. even so, kendra felt determined to find a way to free her friend from her watery prison. she remained79 convinced that, deep down, lena preferred life as a mortalto life as a naiad.

vanessa brought the damaged sports car to a stop in front of the house. grandma sorenson started walking from the front porch to the driveway. kendra climbed out and pulled the seat forward to release seth from his confinement.

he scrambled out, then paused to stretch.

i'm so relieved to see you're all right, grandma said, giving kendra a hug.

except my legs are numb, seth groaned, rubbing his calves.

he means we're happy to see you, too, kendra apologized.

grandma embraced seth, who seemed a little reluctant.

look at you, she said. you've grown a mile.

dale skidded to a stop on the four-wheeler, leapt off, and helped vanessa take the suitcases out of the trunk. seth hurried over to help. kendra reached into the backseat and retrieved the duffel bags.

looks like you took quite a hit, grandma said, surveying the gash in the roof of the otherwise streamlined vehicle.

she still handled surprisingly well, vanessa said, picking up seth's suitcase. seth reached for it.

we'll cover any costs for repairs, grandma said.

vanessa shook her head. i spend a fortune on insurance.

let them foot the bill. she rewarded seth's persistence by relinquishing his suitcase.

together they walked to the front door and entered the house. grandpa sat in a wheelchair in the entry hall. his left80 leg was in a cast that went from his toes to the top of hisshin. a second cast covered his right arm from wrist to shoulder. fading bruises marked his face, yellowish and gray splotches. but he was grinning.

a pair of men flanked grandpa. one was a hulking

polynesian with a broad nose and cheerful eyes. his tank top revealed massive, sloping shoulders. a thorny green tattoo wreathed his thick upper arm. the other man was an older fellow a few inches shorter than kendra, thin and wiry. his head was bald except for a gray tuft in the middle and a fringe around the sides. he wore several trinkets around his neck, affixed to leather cords or dull chains. he also wore a couple of braided bracelets and a wooden ring. none of it looked valuable. the pinky finger was missing from his left hand, as was part of the ring finger.

welcome back, grandpa cried, beaming. it's so good to see you. kendra wondered if he was trying to compensate for his injured appearance with exuberance. kendra,

seth, i would like you to meet tanugatoa dufu. grandpa gestured at the polynesian man with his unbroken arm.

everyone calls me tanu, he said. he was soft-spoken, with a deep voice and clear enunciation. his playful eyes and mild voice went a long way toward offsetting his otherwise intimidating appearance.

and this is coulter dixon, a name kendra has heard before, grandpa said.

coulter regarded them with a measuring gaze. any friend of stan's is a friend of mine, he said, sounding less than sincere.81 nice to meet you, kendra said.any friend of grandpa's... seth added.

dale and vanessa collected the bags kendra and seth were holding and started up the stairs.

and of course the two of you have met vanessa

santoro, grandpa said. tanu, coulter, and vanessa have joined us here at fablehaven to help with the workload. as you can see, i took a tumble last week, so their assistance has become even more valuable in recent days.

what happened? seth asked.

we'll reserve that discussion, and many others, for tomorrow. midnight is long gone. you've had an eventful day. your room is ready and waiting. get some sleep, and we'll make sense of the situation in the morning.

i want to know what bit me, seth said.

tomorrow, grandpa promised.

i don't think i could sleep now, kendra said.

you may surprise yourself, grandma said from behind, ushering kendra and seth toward the stairs.

morning will come soon enough, grandpa said. as

kendra started up the stairs, tanu wheeled grandpa in the direction of the study.

kendra ran her hand along the smooth finish of the banister.

she had seen this house in ruins after seth had foolishly opened the attic window on midsummer eve. and she had seen it restored after an army of brownies had repaired it overnight, making unpredictable improvements in much of the furniture. as kendra entered the attic playroom, it felt familiar and safe, in spite of the night when she and her82 brother were pinned inside a circle of salt by ferociousinvaders.

here's your things, dale said, indicating the bags beside the beds. welcome back.

sweet dreams, vanessa said, exiting the room with

dale.

can i offer you anything? grandma asked. some warm milk?

sure, seth said. thanks.

dale will bring it up momentarily, grandma said. she gave each of them a hug. i'm so glad you arrived safely.

have pleasant dreams. we'll catch up properly in the morning.

she left the room.

seth dug into his suitcase. can you keep a secret? he asked.

kendra crouched to unzip her duffel bag. yes, but you can't, so i'm sure you'd tell me either way.

he pulled a jumbo pack of size c batteries from his suitcase.

i'm going to leave here a millionaire.

where'd you get those?

i picked them up a long time ago, seth said. just in case.

you think you're going to sell them to the satyrs?

so they can watch tv.

kendra shook her head. the satyrs they had met in the woods after stealing soup from the ogress had promised seth gold if he would bring them batteries for their portable television.

i'm not sure i would trust newel and doren to pay up.83 that's why all payments have to be made in advance,seth said, replacing the batteries in his suitcase and taking out the oversized t-shirt and shorts that he used as pajamas.

we've already talked about it.

when?

last summer, while you were sleeping forever after the fairies kissed you-during one of those rare moments when somebody wasn't scolding me. i'll be in the bathroom. he headed out the door and down the stairs.

kendra took advantage of the opportunity to change into her nightclothes. not long after she changed, there came a soft knock at the door. come in, she said. dale entered with two mugs of warm milk on a tray. he left the drinks on the nightstand.

pulling back her sheets, kendra climbed into bed and began sipping at her milk. seth came into the room, picked up his mug, and chugged the contents. wiping his mouth on his arm, he walked over to the window. there's lots of fairies out tonight.

i bet they'll be happy to see you again, kendra said.

seth had started a feud with the fairies during their previous visit after he had captured one and inadvertently turned her into an imp.

they forgave me, he said. we're friends now. he switched off the light and jumped into bed.

kendra finished her milk and placed the empty mug on the nightstand. you're not going to do anything stupid this time, are you, she said.

i've learned my lesson.84 because it sounds like something bad is going on,kendra said. they don't need you making it worse.

i'll be the perfect grandchild.

once you get your gold from the satyrs, kendra said.

yeah, after that.

she lay back, letting her head sink into the feathery pillow, and stared up at the sharp angles of the attic ceiling.

what would grandpa and grandma tell them in the morning?

why had errol taken such an interest in them? why had he ambushed them? what had bitten seth? what about

vanessa, tanu, and coulter? what were their stories? where had they come from? how long would they stay? why replace lena with three people? wasn't fablehaven supposed to be a big secret? even though it was late and she felt drowsy, her mind was too full of questions for sleep to find her quickly.

the next morning, kendra awoke with seth shaking her shoulder. come on, he said, hushed and excited. it's time for answers.

kendra sat up. she blinked several times. she wanted answers too. but why not sleep in a little first? it was this way every christmas-seth awakening the whole house at the crack of dawn, anxious and impatient. she swung her legs out of bed, grabbed her duffel bag, and walked down the stairs to the bathroom to freshen up.

when kendra finally descended the stairs to the entry hall, she found vanessa carrying a tray laden with steaming85 scrambled eggs and dark toast. once again, vanessa wasdressed in a stylish outfit and her makeup was applied with subtle artistry. she looked too sophisticated to be holding a tray of food like a maid. your grandparents want you to join them in the study for a private breakfast, vanessa said.

kendra followed vanessa into the study. another tray with drinks, jam, and butter was already on the desk.

grandpa sat in his wheelchair, grandma sat in the chair behind the desk, and seth sat in one of the oversized armchairs in front of the desk. an empty plate rested on his lap.

kendra noticed a cot in the corner where grandpa now apparently slept.

the study was an eye-catching room, full of odd knickknacks.

strange tribal masks lined a shelf, golfing trophies crowded another, a collection of fossils vied for attention on a third. half of a large geode glittered in a corner. plaques, certificates, and a framed display of medals and ribbons decorated a portion of one wall. the savage head of a boar hung mounted not far from the window. younger versions of

grandpa and grandma sorenson grinned from multiple pictures, some black and white, others in color. on the desk, inside a crystal sphere with a flat bottom, floated a fragile skull no bigger than kendra's thumb. she settled into the other leather armchair.

thank you, vanessa, grandma said.

vanessa nodded and exited.

we take turns cooking meals these days, grandma said, spooning eggs onto her plate. come dish up before it86 gets cold. nobody can match lena, but we try our best. evenstan was in the rotation before the accident.

even stan? grandpa blustered. have you forgotten : my lasagna? my omelets? my stuffed mushrooms?

i meant because you're so busy, grandma soothed. she raised a hand to partly hide her mouth, as if confiding a secret to her grandchildren. he's been a bit crabby since the accident.

grandpa was visibly biting his tongue, probably because another indignant outburst would only confirm grandma's words. under his bruises, his face was reddening. kendra scooped some eggs onto her plate while seth buttered a piece of toast.

what happened to you? kendra asked grandpa.

mom said you fell off the roof, seth said, but we weren't buying it.

that would take us into the middle of the story,

grandpa said, regaining his composure. better to start at the beginning.

you'll get to the part about what bit me? seth verified hopefully.

grandma nodded. but first a question for kendra. did

errol ever indicate that he knew anything about what transpired between you and the fairies?

yeah, kendra said, sitting back down and picking up a piece of toast. that was partly how he convinced me to trust him. he said that he knew i had been fairystruck, and offered the information as proof that he knew grandpa's87 friend coulter. she put some eggs onto her toast and took abite.

the imp, grandpa growled, drumming the fingers of his good hand on his cast. he shared a glance with

grandma.

what imp? seth asked.

the imp that put him in that wheelchair, grandma said.

i thought all the imps changed back into fairies,

kendra said.

apparently a few imps were not at the chapel when the empowered fairies were curing the others, grandpa said.

but we're getting ahead of ourselves. he stared at

grandma for a moment. we tell them, right?

she gave a single, small nod.

grandpa leaned forward in his wheelchair and lowered his voice. what we are about to tell you must not leave this room. you must not discuss it even with others we trust, like

dale, or vanessa, or tanu, or coulter. nobody should know that you know. or the danger will only increase. am i

understood?

kendra and seth both agreed.

grandpa eyed seth. i mean nobody, seth.

what? he said, squirming a little in his seat. i promise

i won't tell anyone.

see that you don't, grandpa admonished solemnly. i

am taking a risk allowing you to return to fablehaven after the harm you caused. i do it partly because i trust that you have learned a hard lesson about caution, and partly because88 it may be necessary for your protection. this is informationwe would prefer not to share with anyone, let alone children.

but your grandmother and i feel that you have become too deeply involved for us not to reveal the whole story. you have a right to understand the hazards you face.

kendra glanced at seth. he looked so excited that he could hardly contain himself. although she was also curious, she dreaded to hear the specifics of any threat so somber and secretive.

i have already related part of the story, grandma said.

last summer, in the attic, before we went to rescue your grandfather, i mentioned some reasons why fablehaven is different from most other magical preserves. i told you in case your grandpa and i perished and you survived.

fablehaven is one of five secret preserves, kendra said.

very good, kendra, grandpa said.

the five secret preserves each have a powerful item hidden on them, kendra continued. not many people know about the secret preserves.

very few indeed, grandma said. and none know the location of all five.

one probably does, grandpa corrected.

well, if he does, he has never let on, grandma replied.

i've wondered a lot about what you told us, kendra said. it seems really mysterious.

grandpa cleared his throat. he looked almost hesitant to speak. did errol ever allude to fablehaven as a secret preserve housing a special artifact?