Cragbridge Hall, Volume 2: The Avatar Battle (16 page)

Everyone agreed.

“However,” Grandpa raised a hand in the air, “we cannot count on security to protect us. All of us must take great care.”

“But if I had to guess, some of us have to take more care than others,” Coach Horne said.

“Yes,” Coach Adonavich said. “He is most likely targeting those he knows have taken an active role in stopping him. Coach Horne and I—and all the Cragbridge family—are probably next on the list.”

• • •

It felt like ice had seeped into Abby’s chest. She was probably on the list.

Grandpa had sent her the file of the Council meeting. He encoded it several times of course, and she had to answer several security questions before she was able to watch it. But she knew Coach Adonavich was right. Abby probably was on the list. Whoever it was that had attacked Dr. Mackleprank and Ms. Entrese would likely come after her if she got involved. The thought was terrifying—having someone coming after her in the night. Abby didn’t know if she was going to be able to sleep ever again.

She continued to watch the video file. “With that said,” Coach Horne added, “he would likely only put us out for the night and steal our keys. Putting someone out for months was probably a special revenge just for Ms. Entrese for having worked for him and then betraying him.” Abby noticed the coach looked at Derick while he spoke. He was probably trying to soften the situation, soothe any fears.

“Yes,” Grandpa agreed. “And it is most likely that he will target myself and the two coaches. He does not know whether or not my son, his wife, or their children have keys.”

“That’s possible,” Mrs. Trinhouse said, “but the fact remains that if any of us have a key, he will want it. He only needs two more, so I wouldn’t say the rest of us are in the clear. If anyone knows we have a key, they may come for it. Which is all the more reason to keep each other’s identities secret.”

Grandpa looked around the room. “Hall security has been given every bit of what little information we could gather about the intruder and they are looking for him. They will also double their rounds, making special efforts in our halls. I did not give them your specific apartments to guard in order to keep our identities safe from anyone watching how we react to this intrusion. I have also scrambled all of the entrance codes to your rooms. I will add another layer of encryption after this meeting and you will need to devise a password which only you know and no one could ever guess. No cracking device like the one the burglar had—no matter how state-of-the-art—will be able to enter. We should all be safe now that we understand the threat. But I would suggest that ‘safe’ isn’t good enough.”

Grandpa flicked his fingers. A picture of a man with an old hairstyle, parted and bushy on the sides, with a ponytail in the back, appeared. He wore a waistcoat and a fluffy cravat. “This is Sir Edmund Burke, a member of the British Parliament in the mid-1700s. He is famous for a saying, a saying that I want you to remember very well from this moment on. I have stated over and over again that we should learn from history and not try to change it. Well, learn this lesson well. Burke taught, ‘The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.’” Grandpa paused. “I propose that we do more than nothing. I propose that we do everything we can to tie up any loose ends to this puzzle and find the person who attacked Mackleprank and Entrese.”

“But we don’t have any leads,” Coach Adonavich pointed out.

“True,” Grandpa admitted. “And so far, the only people I’m sure I don’t trust are the two in the cell. I’ll question them and send you all a video of the interview. It is the only place I know to start.”

Coach Horne raised his large arm. “May I suggest you use the Chair? We may get images for clues even if they won’t talk.”

“That is a fantastic idea,” Grandpa said.

“And I mean no disrespect,” Coach Horne looked at Mr. Trinhouse, “But to calm my suspicions, would the Trinhouses mind also sitting in the Chair and answering questions about that briefcase?”

“Not at all,” Mr. Trinhouse said. “It is wise to check every avenue for clues and we are happy to help.”

Mrs. Trinhouse nodded too, but slowly.

That sounded good. Though Abby liked Mrs. Trinhouse as a teacher, she had to admit something didn’t feel right about the situation. There were too many unanswered questions. But if either or both of the Trinhouses had helped the criminal, or somehow one of them was the criminal, they would not likely agree to sit in the Chair.

The Sherlock inside of Abby thought it all sounded like a good way to move ahead. But something bothered her. It was Ms. Entrese. Not just that she had been attacked, but the way that it had happened. Muns always went through so much trouble to make his revenge fitting. Either he had abandoned his habits or this didn’t seem to fit. Abby reviewed in her mind the details of Ms. Entrese’s involvement in their last adventure to double-check if there was anything Muns might have used in his revenge. Ms. Entrese had told Derick about Muns. She’d even brought Derick and Rafa’s avatars to the place Muns had been holding Grandpa hostage. They had used gorilla and rhino avatars to free him from watching his own children die on the
Titanic
. How did getting shot with a tranquilizer fit as revenge for that? The
Hindenburg
was like a
Titanic
in the sky. That fit, but the only thing it had to do with Ms. Entrese being tranquilized was that the intruders from the
Hindenburg
brought the briefcase into Cragbridge Hall. It just didn’t seem like Muns’s style. There was a clue there somewhere. Abby wasn’t sure what it was, but she was pretty sure it was there. If only she were more like Sherlock.

Then again, to figure out these clues, she might have to make it clear that she was involved, that she had ignored Muns’s warning. Abby remembered what Grandpa had quoted about evil winning when good people do nothing. He was right, but when Muns had threatened and then shown what he could plan and succeed in doing, it was hard to volunteer.

17

Tryout

Abby held her mom. She and her dad had met Abby in Ms. Entrese’s recovery room in the med center. Though they weren’t part of the Council, it seemed like they were up on most of the details. Maybe they had their own separate Council of the Keys.

Mom squeezed Abby. “I’m sorry you were the one who discovered Ms. Entrese. That must have been terrifying.”

Abby agreed, trying not to relive it in her mind.

Dad paced the tile floor of the room. “This is insane. I’m still trying to figure it out—and figure out what to do next.”

The door slid open and Derick and Grandpa stepped into the room. It had been announced that the school was finished with its routine safety check and would continue in another half an hour, all classes on a shortened schedule. Security had finished their rounds, but they found no one. The man must have fled to some unknown corner of campus. He couldn’t possibly have escaped from the entire school. But for now they had determined the school was safe.

“I must admit,” Grandpa said, walking with his cane in hand, “I’m full of both regrets and confidence. Part of me regrets getting you and Derick involved in this at all, Abby. As you have heard—and seen the evidence—we are in the middle of a very dangerous game. Perhaps Muns is right and you should no longer be involved.” His face was stern, his wrinkles deep. “But the other part of me realizes that you are very capable of making very important contributions. In fact, just as last semester, you may prove to be entirely invaluable. You two have surprised even me with how resourceful and fearless you can be.”

Surprised him? They had exceeded the expectations of a genius? That felt good. Yet Abby also felt the danger. A mix of pride and horror rolled through her insides.

“Should they sleep in our apartment?” Mom asked. “Or should we all move away from the school?”

“No,” Grandpa said. “The school is the safest place for us, even with this incident. Outside these walls, Muns would do nothing but attack—and attack quickly. I’m not sure you would be any safer outside. I believe we are safe where we are. Do you trust me on that?”

Dad nodded. Mom looked grave.

Grandpa turned to Abby and Derick. “If you still choose to help, I need you to keep your eyes open; watch out for anything suspicious or unusual. You never know what may be the clue that leads to a resolution of this mess. Let me or Hall security know as soon as you can. The security is already on the lookout and there aren’t that many places to hide. Chances are that we will have caught our person of interest in no time. But when there is as much on the line as there is with us, it never hurts to be extremely careful.” He shifted his cane from one hand to the other. “Therefore, I am removing all restrictions from you two at Cragbridge Hall. I expect you to act like adults, so I will give you all the same privileges as adults. You can leave your room and your dorms at any time of day or night, especially if you suspect someone is coming after you. You also have to be available to go to the basement at any time. I would urge you, however, to live life normally until the situation calls for it. Do not make exceptions unless and until you find an exception necessary.”

No restrictions. Abby was being treated like an adult.

The twins both nodded and thanked their grandfather. Mom was about to object, but Grandpa gestured to let him continue.

“I have also cloaked your rings’ tracking system. I don’t want teachers—or anyone else who may hack the system—being able find you two. If by chance anyone has bad intentions, as Mr. Hendricks did last semester, having your rings cloaked will prevent them from finding you. If they somehow find you anyway, and you are kidnapped or lost, I will remove the cloak and find you myself. I will do the same for Rafa and Carol. You can fill them in about the attacks, but not about those on the Council of the Keys—understood?”

Abby and Derick both nodded again.

• • •

Derick’s mind whirled. Why did Muns even have to exist? Without him, Derick would be able to focus on school and friends and not have to worry about people sneaking into history to change it, messing up the balance of time, and destroying the world. That was a lot for any seventh grader to worry about. He wondered if he was safe walking around school. After what happened last night, he wasn’t sure. But he did try to take Grandpa’s message to heart.

The only thing he knew to do was to try to find the answer to the question Abby had asked. But his sphere was still empty. He had just tried again, hoping that somehow it would be different this time. He was about start in on some homework—another round of Portuguese vocab—when a message came from Rafa:

Derick, the guys said that it’s a possibility for you to come avatar with our club, but they want to meet you first before anything becomes official, kind of like a tryout. We are meeting in fifteen minutes. Can you make it?

Avatar club. Oh, he wished he had time to focus on that. He wished Muns hadn’t struck, that he didn’t have to find the answer to Abby’s question, that he didn’t have to figure out what to do with a newly blank sphere—it all felt more important than him getting into a club . . . even the avatar club.

Then again, if he suddenly changed what he was likely to do before, someone might notice. They might realize that he was siding against Muns and that might bring more trouble. Besides, he might get a little help with his Portuguese vocab hanging around Rafa.

He walked down the hall toward the avatar labs. He had made it through his shortened classes for the day. Zoology had been a little strange. Dr. Mackleprank taught as usual, but Derick thought that it seemed he had a lot on his mind. If he hadn’t known, though, Derick never would have guessed that Dr. Mackleprank had been drugged and burglarized the night before.

The avatar club would be good, give him something other than Muns to think about.

Rafa met him at the door to the avatar lab. “Glad you could make it.” Derick wanted to update him on everything that had happened, but that would have to wait. “Nervous?”

“Um . . . no,” he lied. “Well, sorta.”

“No worries. Just give it your best shot.” Rafa led the way down the hall and into one of the small labs. “We decided it would be easier if we all met together as avatars and not in person. They know I recommended you, but they don’t know who you are. If we only meet as avatars and things don’t work out, no one feels awkward.” Rafa handed him a set of sensors.

“Makes sense.” Derick threaded on his black straps with sensors attached. “Should I grab a particular animal?”
Please don’t say giraffe. Please don’t say giraffe.
Derick had practiced in the lanky animal for a short time again that day and, though he’d improved a little, he knew he wasn’t going to impress anyone.

“A gorilla.”

Yes!

“And bring it to the field, room 1—the biggest one. We need the space. I’ll turn on the audio system so everyone can hear each other.”

“All right,” Derick said, excited to step into anything but a giraffe. “Let’s do it.” He usually felt rather confident about his abilities, but he had to admit he was a little nervous. Being invited to hang out with the elite group of avatar controllers in an elite school could be a little intimidating. He heard the door click as Rafa left.