Keys to the Demon Prison (Fablehaven #5)(31)

"Does this have anything to do with Seth?" Kendra asked Warren as they walked toward the house. "If they heard something bad, I'd rather hear it now."


"This isn't bad news," Warren said. "I think they need your help deciphering an inscription."


Kendra followed Warren into the house, up to her grandparents' room, and over to the bathroom closet. The heavy door to the secret side of the attic looked like it belonged on a bank vault. Warren spun the combination wheel, hauled the door open, and then pulled it shut behind them as Kendra started up the stairs.


Grandma, Grandpa, Coulter, and Tanu awaited Kendra. A workbench stretched along one wall; wooden cabinets lined the others. Unusual objects littered the room--tribal masks, a mannequin, a huge globe, a timeworn phonograph, a birdcage. Trunks, boxes, and other containers were stacked everywhere, accessible by narrow aisles.


Grandpa smiled at Kendra. They all smiled at her. They had all been smiling a lot since Obsidian Waste. Kendra appreciated their intentions, but the attention felt too much like pity, and only served to emphasize her loss.


"How are you today?" Grandpa asked.


"Is this an April Fool's joke?" Kendra asked. "If so, don't bother, Newel and Doren already reminded me about the holiday."


"We're not here to jest," Grandpa said. He glanced at Grandma. "However, it is peculiar that we'll be opening the capsule on April first."


"What capsule?" Kendra wondered.


"There are a few secret doors and compartments in this attic," Grandma explained. "One hidden door leads to a turret. Patton left a time capsule inside the turret, a secret passed down by previous caretakers."


"Does it have a timer?" Kendra asked. "If it's set to open today, maybe it is a joke!" Prank or not, she would love to hear from Patton. It was strange to have met him, to have worked alongside him to save Fablehaven, and to know he had passed away long before she was born.


"Patton didn't call it a time capsule," Grandpa said. "He called it his Doomsday Capsule. As caretaker of Fablehaven, I was left with instructions not to open it unless the end of the world appeared imminent."


"You never mentioned this before," Kendra said.


"It was meant to remain a secret," Grandpa replied. "But I think the time has come to crack it open. Your grandmother agrees. We've run out of leads. We desperately need whatever help we can get."


"What about Vanessa?" Kendra said. "She's still keeping secrets."


Grandpa sighed. "She has hinted that her big secret might be revealed soon. She insists it's in our best interest for her to keep silent about it a little longer."


Grandma scowled. "Whatever reasons she gives, I say she's holding out until she gets her freedom, trying to preserve leverage--assuming there was ever a real secret to begin with."


"She has steadily provided us with useful info," Tanu said.


"Useful but not vital," Coulter huffed.


Grandma took Kendra by the hand. "There are some characters on the outside of the canister that we cannot read. We believe they offer further instructions that may help us finalize our decision."


"You need me to translate," Kendra said. "Where is it?"


Coulter led them over to one of the many tall cabinets lining the walls, pulled open the doors, then stepped inside and opened the false back. "We normally keep this cabinet full of junk," Coulter said. "We recently cleaned it out, since we've been weighing whether to open the capsule."


Kendra passed through the cabinet and down three steps into the cramped, round room of the turret. A steel cylinder rested in the center of the floor, almost as tall as her waist. To Kendra, the writing engraved in the sides of the container looked like English.


Coulter, Grandpa, and Grandma filed into the room, filling the available space around the capsule. Warren and Tanu watched from the cabinet. "Can you read it?" Grandpa asked.


"Open only in a time of utmost crisis pertaining to Zzyzx and the end of the world." Kendra read. "The key to the capsule must be turned by one who shares my bloodline, and an umite candle must be burning in the room, or else the capsule will destroy itself."


"Anything else?" Grandpa asked.


"That's all I see," Kendra replied, inspecting the capsule from all directions. She ran a hand along the curved metal surface, feeling the grooves of the writing below her fingers.


"We didn't know about the candle," Grandma said. "That could have ended badly."


"Nor did we know that whoever turned the key had to be related to Patton," Grandpa said.


"Pays to read the instructions," Coulter grumbled.


"You have the key?" Kendra asked.


Grandpa held up a long, black key with elaborate teeth. "Your grandmother will have to do the honors."


"Or Warren," Grandma added.


"I'll fetch a candle," Coulter offered, exiting the turret.


"Where's Dale?" Kendra asked.