PUBLISHER’S NOTE: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been applied for and may be obtained from the Library of Congress.
ISBN 978-1-4197-2011-6
eISBN 978-1-68335-259-4
Text copyright © 2009, 2018 Michael Buckley Illustrations copyright © 2009 Peter Ferguson Book design by Siobhán Gallagher
Originally published in hardcover in 2009 by Amulet Books, an imprint of ABRAMS. This edition published in 2018 by Amulet Paperbacks, an imprint of ABRAMS. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical, electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher.
Amulet Books and Amulet Paperbacks are registered trademarks of Harry N. Abrams, Inc.
Amulet Books are available at special discounts when purchased in quantity for premiums and promotions as well as fundraising or educational use. Special editions can also be created to specification. For details, contact
[email protected] or the address below.
ABRAMS The Art of Books
195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007
abramsbooks.com
For my brother, Edwin
You?! You’re the Master? You’re the leader of the Scarlet Hand?” Sabrina cried.
“Yes,” he replied calmly.
She stood aghast, shocked by the betrayal. Disgust, rage, and terror filled her head and heart, sending confusing signals to every part of her body. One moment she wanted to run—to put as much distance between herself and the villain as possible. The next, she wanted to grab him by the collar and shake him until he explained himself and his deception.
“But you—” Daphne started, trembling.
“But I was your friend?” he asked. “Is that what you were going to say?”
“I trusted you,” Daphne said.
“We all trusted you!” Sabrina spat.
He shook his head as if he couldn’t believe their foolishness.
“I’m afraid you’ve made a terrible mistake.”
1
Six Days Earlier
Sabrina Grimm’s life was a collection of peculiar, almost unbelievable events. But, sitting in her grandmother’s living room with three massive brown bears had to be the most peculiar of all.
The bears in question had arrived with a blond, curly-haired woman. She was a beauty, with a big smile, dimples in both cheeks, and a dainty nose sprinkled with freckles. Her name was Goldilocks. Yes, the Goldilocks, but all grown up and overflowing with nervous energy. She kept rushing around the living room rearranging things. She moved lamps and rugs, switched furniture around, and even rehung family portraits on different walls. When she moved something, she would step back and study it, mutter something incomprehensible to herself, and then move it again. Once she finally liked where it landed, she would beam with pride and say, “Just right.”
Sabrina watched Goldilocks from a love seat across the room. Her little sister, Daphne, sat next to her, chewing on her palm—a quirky habit she slipped into when she was very excited or happy. At their feet sat the Grimm family’s two-hundred-pound Great Dane, Elvis. He turned his big head back and forth from Sabrina and Daphne to the bears and Goldilocks. Every few seconds he let out a soft, confused whine. Sabrina understood how he felt.
“Just another day in Ferryport Landing, Elvis,” she muttered, then turned to her sister. “How long are we going to wait?”
Daphne shrugged. “Granny said she’d come downstairs to get us as soon as she could. Maybe we should offer them something to eat, to be polite.”
“Like what? A trout?”
Goldilocks grunted and huffed, and the bears responded with a series of short grunts. They seemed to be talking with one another, but Sabrina couldn’t understand any of it. When they finished up their odd chat, Goldilocks told Sabrina that the biggest of the bears would love a cup of Earl Grey tea, very hot. The second biggest would prefer iced tea. The littlest would like some chocolate milk, if it wasn’t too much trouble.
Sabrina was bewildered. Growing up in New York City, she had witnessed people speaking to animals on more than one occasion. Once, on the subway, she’d overheard a heated discussion between a man and a one-eyed mutt about Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo. But, in Ferryport Landing, animals talked back.
“We’ll be right back,” Daphne promised, pulling her sister into the kitchen with Elvis in tow. There, they found a little girl in red pajamas huddled in a corner. Her sad, shy face was framed with amber curls that tumbled across her shoulders. Sabrina immediately wished she had stayed in the living room with the bears. Only yesterday, Red Riding Hood had been a deranged maniac. Now that she was supposedly cured, Granny had invited her to live with them. Sabrina wondered if she’d ever get used to seeing Red’s face.
“Are they gone yet?” Red whispered.
“No,” Daphne said. “But they’re friends, Red. You don’t have to hide.”
Red didn’t look convinced. She tried to squeeze deeper into the corner.
Daphne went to work preparing the drinks while Sabrina spied on their guests through the crack in the kitchen door. Goldilocks continued to rush around the living room reorganizing everything. The bears sat listlessly on the couch. If it wasn’t so strange, it might have been boring.
“Goldilocks is giving me a headache,” Sabrina admitted. “Why can’t she sit still?”
“Don’t spy,” Daphne scolded. “It’s rude.”
“Aren’t you curious about her? Dad was in love with her before he met Mom.” Sabrina studied the woman. Goldilocks was very pretty, and she seemed nice enough. But she was also exhausting. She couldn’t relax. Plus, she was no Veronica Grimm. Sabrina’s mom was a knockout.
“Love is weird,” Daphne said with a hint of authority.
Sabrina laughed. “And you’re an expert? You’re only—” She stopped herself when she spotted her sister’s scowl. Sabrina was already treading on thin ice with Daphne. “Yeah, you’re right. Love is weird.”
“Red, won’t you please join us?” Daphne asked kindly, when the drinks were ready.
Red shook her head vigorously, staring down at the floor.
The sisters carried the tray of drinks into the living room.
“This is a bad idea,” Goldilocks fretted. She sat on the ottoman, only to jump up again, rush across the room, and move a vase an inch to the left. “I shouldn’t have come here. Your father is not going to be happy.”
“He’ll understand. We’ve tried everything we can think of to wake them up. You’re our last hope,” Sabrina said, nearly panicked that the woman might change her mind.
Goldilocks went to work rearranging the books in the family’s massive bookshelves.
“I tried to respect his wishes. I moved to New York City and lived there for a long time. I had a nice little apartment in the East Village. Even when I heard he and Veronica moved to Manhattan, I never went to see him. I avoided the fairy kingdom in Central Park in case he ever went there. It was my way of showing that I was sorry for what happened to his dad, and now, here I am, breaking my promise to stay out of his life. When he opens his eyes and sees me standing over him, he’s going to be furious. And your mother! She’s going to think I’m a . . . a harlot!”
“What’s harlot mean?” Daphne asked.
“A harlot is—” Sabrina started.
“I asked Goldilocks, not you,” Daphne snapped.
Sabrina’s face flushed at the sharp tone.
It stung that Daphne wanted as little to do with her as possible.
“A harlot is a woman with a bad reputation. A harlot is a woman who kisses another woman’s husband,” Goldilocks explained, then turned to Momma Bear. “What do you think I should do?”
Momma Bear shrugged.
“A lot of help you are!” Goldilocks scolded, then turned back to Daphne. “What is keeping your grandmother?”
“Same old Goldie,” a voice sang from across the room. Sabrina turned to find Uncle Jake, wearing his trench coat with hundreds of extra pockets sewn into it and a huge smile. “Just as impatient as I remember. You should see her in a drive-thru restaurant, girls. Fast food isn’t fast enough for her.”
Goldilocks frowned and moved a paperweight from the coffee table to the bureau. “Jake Grimm! Don’t tease me. I’m a nervous wreck.”
“Then let’s get this show on the road,” he said, gesturing toward the stairs. “We’re all ready.”
Goldilocks bit her lower lip and followed Jake, the bears and Sabrina and Daphne close behind. Unfortunately, the girls found themselves downwind of the bears’ special brand of funk.
Granny Relda was waiting at the top of the stairs. She was a stout woman with wrinkles lining her face. She wore a bright white dress and a matching hat with a sunflower appliqué in its center. She grinned and embraced Goldilocks as if she were one of her own children.
“It’s good to see you, Goldie,” she said in her light German accent. Granny had grown up in Berlin and moved to America when she married the girls’ late grandfather, Basil.
Goldilocks smiled and nearly cried at the same time. “It’s been a long time, Mrs. Grimm.”
“Who is Mrs. Grimm? Call me Relda, honey,” she said, then turned to Sabrina. “Where is our friend Red?”
“Being weird in the kitchen.”
“Red!” the old woman called out, and a few moments later the little girl appeared at the bottom of the steps.
“Are you coming?” the old woman asked.
Red shook her head. “This is your family. I don’t belong.”
Granny gestured for her to join them. “Come along, liebling.”
Reluctantly, Red climbed the stairs, and Granny led everyone into a spare bedroom furnished with a mirror and a queen-size bed. Lying comfortably on the mattress were Sabrina and Daphne’s parents, Henry and Veronica Grimm. Both were deeply asleep, enchanted by a spell that would not allow them to wake up. Granny Relda took Henry’s hand.
Goldie looked like she was about to faint. She leaned against the bedroom wall for support. “Relda, I—”
Granny Relda waved her off. “There’s nothing to apologize for. What happened to Basil was not your fault. It wasn’t anyone’s fault.”
Sabrina watched Uncle Jake’s gaze drift to the floor. She wondered if he would ever forgive himself for his part in Basil’s death.
“I appreciate your kindness, but I’m not sure Henry feels the same way,” Goldie said. “How long have they been like this?”
“They were kidnapped two years ago,” Daphne explained. “We only got them back a few months ago. So far as we know, they’ve been like this the whole time.”
“Did you try Prince Charming?” Goldilocks said. “He has a knack for waking up people with a kiss.”
“The women he wakes up tend to fall in love with him, too,” Granny said. “It might be coincidence, but we’d rather not chance it.”
“We don’t want William Charming for a stepfather,” Sabrina grumbled.
Uncle Jake crossed the room to Poppa Bear and patted his furry arm affectionately. “Good to see you again, old man. Your boy is getting big.”
“You know the bears?” Goldilocks asked.
Uncle Jake nodded. “Oh, yes. Let’s just say Poppa and Baby helped me retrieve a phantom scroll from a Romanian constable a few years back.”
“Retrieve or steal, Jacob?” Goldilocks asked, raising her eyebrows.
Momma Bear growled. Sabrina didn’t need to speak bear to hear her disapproval.
“To-may-toe, to-mah-toe,” her uncle replied with a wink. “Goldie, we understand you and the bears have given up a lot in returning to Ferryport Landing. You’re trapped here again, and we are very grateful for that sacrifice.”
Poppa Bear gave a long bark.
“He says it was time to reunite his family,” Goldilocks translated. “Momma Bear was the only one in the town when the barrier went up. They agreed it was best for Baby to live a life of freedom, but they’ve been apart too long. He says it’s better to be trapped together than to be apart for another day.”
“I don’t mean to be rude,” Sabrina interrupted. “But we’ve been waiting a long time for this to happen. Could we all catch up after we wake up Mom and Dad?”
“Of course,” Goldilocks said. “So, Jake, you’re the expert on magic. Do I just kiss Henry, and he’ll wake up?”
“That’s the word on the street,” Uncle Jake said. “Briar Rose was under a similar spell, and she says there’s no special trick to it. Just pucker up and lay one on him.”
“Briar Rose said ‘pucker up and lay one on him’?” Goldilocks asked.
“I’m paraphrasing,” Uncle Jake said.
“This all depends on whether you still love my son,” Granny said.
Goldie looked down at Henry and gave his hand a squeeze. “What about Veronica? I’m not going to be any help to her.”
“Dad will take over once he’s awake,” Daphne reassured her.
Just then, the reflection in the mirror shimmered and shook. Its surface rippled like a bubbling brook, and when it finally calmed, an intimidating face materialized.
“WHO INVADES MY SANCTUARY?” it bellowed. Red yelped and tried to run, but Daphne held her hand tightly and promised that she was safe. Still, the girl shuddered with fear as she stared at the strange face floating in the glass.
“It’s us, Mirror,” Granny said. “No enemies here.”
Mirror’s features and voice brightened. “Am I missing something, Grimms?”
“Goldilocks has come back to smooch my dad,” Daphne explained. “We think it will wake him up! Isn’t that great news?”
“Great news, indeed.” Mirror smiled. “Hello, Ms. G. It’s nice to see your face in person again. We’ve been following your travels.”
Goldilocks returned the smile. “It’s good to see you, too, Mirror. Still looking great, I see.”
Mirror smiled. “I owe it all to Pilates and vitamin C.”
“Again, people, can we please get on with this?” Sabrina begged. All of this chitchat was excruciating. Her parents’ curse had to be broken, immediately. She had waited so long for this moment. There had been many days when she had given up hope, convinced that her parents would sleep for all eternity. But, now, finally, her family would be reunited. Things would go back to normal. She was tired of waiting.
“OK, here goes,” Goldilocks said. She tucked a curl behind her ear and leaned in close to Henry.
A loud fart from across the room stopped her in her tracks. Everyone turned in the direction of the horrible noise—and smell—to find Puck standing in the doorway. He was a shaggy-haired boy who, like Red, had been adopted by Granny Relda. Though he looked twelve, he was actually somewhere around four thousand years old. He wore pajamas and a long sleeping cap that dragged on the floor. He scratched his backside with a wooden sword and scowled.
“Can’t a person get any sleep around here? I woke up because it sounded like there was a pack of bears running through the house, and look! There is! Are they moving in, too? Old lady, you’ve never met anyone you didn’t hand a set of keys,” Puck ranted. “I mean, after all, we’ve got a murderous lunatic who only wears one color.”
“I’m sorry,” Red Riding Hood squeaked.
Then Puck turned to Daphne. “A little monkey who eats us out of house and home.”
“Hey!” Daphne protested.
Puck continued, turning to Sabrina. “And then there’s this one.
A girl so ugly that everyone stares and points at her. So why not some bears, too? Maybe we could invite a couple of giants while we’re at it, or a bunch of those idiot Munchkins from across town. Why, you could even turn this place into a bed-and-breakfast for every Everafter who’s down on their luck!”
“Well, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.” Uncle Jake chuckled.
“Puck, you’re being rude,” Granny said. “We’re sorry we woke you, but Goldilocks has returned to help us wake up Henry and Veronica.”
“Who?” the boy said.
“My parents, you moron!” Sabrina growled. “She’s going to kiss my dad and break the magic spell. What did you think we’ve been trying to do for the past few months?!”
“Wait, these two are under a magic spell?” the boy asked. “I just thought they were really lazy. You can’t expect me to know every little detail about what happens in this house.”
He farted again, and this one was so loud that Elvis jumped and yelped in fear.
“Goldie, please, just kiss my dad already!” Sabrina begged.
Goldilocks nodded and leaned in once more. She hovered over Henry, her face just inches from his, and whispered something Sabrina couldn’t hear. Then, she pressed her lips to his and closed her eyes.
Her kiss was gentle and a little longer than Sabrina would have liked. When she pulled away, Goldilocks’s face was bright red. She looked as if she had been caught doing something illicit, but her expression was nothing compared to Uncle Jake’s and Granny Relda’s. They both looked utterly defeated.
“What? What’s wrong?” Sabrina asked.
“It should have worked already,” her uncle said.
“Try again,” Granny urged.
Goldilocks squirmed. The first kiss had clearly been hard for her, and a second might break her heart. But, she kissed him again, anyway. Like the first kiss, this one seemed to have no effect on Henry’s sleep.
“Perhaps Goldie isn’t in love with Henry anymore,” Mirror said. “It has been fifteen years since they were a couple. Sometimes, feelings fade.”