Once Upon a Crime Read online

  “But—” Granny cried.

  Oberon interrupted. “I still have Puck and I can cut off his cure at any time.”

  “Is that a threat?” Granny cried.

  “It is what it is,” Oberon snarled. “Tonight your girls are going to say what I tell ‘em to say.”

  He spun around and marched through the chanting crowd. Oz gave them a pained smile and followed the fairy.

  “What are we going to do?” Hamstead asked.

  Granny shook her head. “I don’t know, Ernest. I just don’t know.”

  The celebration dragged on and on. The Everafters danced and drank. Momma poured glass after glass as quickly as she could. Sabrina noticed that like Mr. Hamstead, when Momma got excited she changed into her true form: an enormous black goose with a blue bonnet on her head. More than a few intoxicated guests ruffled her feathers, and she changed back and forth throughout the night.

  The girls were nearly as busy. Everyone wanted to shake the hands of Veronica’s girls. (Sabrina was sure someone was going to yank her arm off at any moment.) They all had stories, too. Each Everafter shared a tale about their mother and how she had inspired or helped them; each story broke Sabrina’s heart. As much as she wished it weren’t true, it grew more and more obvious that Veronica had been a part of the Everafter community of New York City. Every story chipped away at the symbol her mother had become to Sabrina, of average, everyday, normal life, free of chaos and lunacy. Each story felt like a thief that crept in to steal her hopes and dreams.

  And what to make of Oberon’s demands? Sabrina didn’t know much about the Everafters, but she knew she didn’t like Oberon. Judging from the crowd’s response to him earlier that evening, it seemed as if the Everafters shared her sentiment. Oberon was a jerkazoid, as Daphne would have said. But could he be telling the truth? Could her mother have actually supported him in his power grab? She couldn’t be sure because she had no idea who her mother was anymore. And even if Oberon was lying, what could Sabrina and Daphne do? He had Puck.

  While the girls were listening to praise from a woman who appeared to be wearing a dress made out of donkey skins, Oz came over and ushered the girls to a quiet corner. He looked even more nervous and fidgety than before. He pulled out his silver remote and pushed some buttons. The device let out a few loud squeals. Then Oz turned back to the girls, took Sabrina and Daphne by the hands, and looked deeply into their eyes.

  “Girls, your mother was one of the best friends I ever had, and it pains me to think that tonight Oberon will finally snuff out her legacy,” Oz said. “The king is a fraud. He’s lying to you. The last thing in the world Veronica Grimm would have wanted was for him to lead this community.”

  “What do you want us to do about it?” Sabrina asked. “You heard his threat. He’ll stop Cobweb from helping Puck.”

  Oz peered around the room, again.

  “Girls, just tell the truth. Tell the crowd you never knew your mother’s plans but you’re sure she would never have wanted Oberon to rule. It will destroy any support he has from the community. After that, I’ll create a diversion and in the chaos I’ll take you to Puck. Then you can head back to Ferryport Landing. Cobweb has told me the boy is out of the woods and can be moved.”

  “This sounds dangerous,” Sabrina said.

  “Good,” Daphne said, rubbing her hands together eagerly. The little girl was fearless.

  Oz smiled. “Veronica would be proud of you.” He said his good-byes and slunk back into the crowd.

  Soon, Everafters were pulling tables and chairs together, making one long banquet table and covering it with food, candles, and malted beverages. Puck’s brother, Mustardseed, appeared.

  “Puck is safe,” he said, confirming what Oz had already told them. He escorted the girls to seats at the head of the table. They sat down just as bowls of pasta with red sauce and plates of steaming meat were placed in front of them.

  “Is this all-you-can-eat?” Daphne cried. “I’m starving!”

  Mustardseed smiled and nodded. Canis, Granny Relda, and Hamstead found seats next to theirs.

  Bess, the beautiful blonde singer, took a seat next to Mr. Hamstead. On her other side was Tony Fats, who had already started eating. Bess glanced at Hamstead and smiled. He smiled back, but his already pink face flushed red and he turned away. The poor man was flustered.

  “What’s wrong with you?” Sabrina whispered into his ear. “Are you sick?”

  “She smiled at me,” Hamstead squeaked, nodding in the blonde beauty’s direction. “What’s she doing, now?”

  “She’s looking at you and smiling,” Daphne replied. “She thinks you’re foxy.”

  Hamstead’s pig snout sprang onto his face and he quickly covered it with his hand. “Get a hold of yourself, Hamstead,” he muttered to himself.

  Titania swept into the dining room. Mustardseed helped her to her chair at the far end of the table and then took a seat next to her. Even from that distance, Sabrina could see the angry scowl on Titania’s face. It was directed right at her and her family.

  Oz rushed in from one of the back rooms and over to Sabrina. “Everything is all set,” he whispered to her.

  “What’s the diversion?” Sabrina whispered to him, but before he could answer a chicken hopped into a nearby chair and flapped its wings furiously.

  “Where’s Oberon?” the chicken cackled as it slurped down some fat purple worms.

  “Patience, Billina,” Oz replied. “He’s on his way.”

  Just as the Wizard leaned down to whisper to Sabrina again, there was a loud scream. The door leading from the back hallway burst open and Moth rushed into the room. Her face was twisted and red from crying and her beautiful hair was flying in all directions. She fell to her knees in despair and beat the floor with her fists. “It’s Oberon! It’s the king!”

  Titania stood up so quickly she knocked over her heavy chair. “What is this nonsense?”

  “I found him in his office. He’s been poisoned. He’s dead!”

  “Impossible!” someone shouted.

  Titania rushed around the table and raced into the back hallway with Mustardseed close behind. The dinner guests jumped to their feet, knocking chairs and plates over in their excitement.

  “Is this the diversion you were talking about?” Sabrina shouted at Oz.

  The Wizard looked dumbstruck. “No! I have no idea what is going on!”

  Granny Relda grabbed the girls and quickly found her way to the back hall. Together, they pushed through the crowd of Everafters at the door to Oberon’s office. The sight inside made the blood freeze in Sabrina’s veins. The king was lying on the floor next to his desk, a shiny gold cup clutched in his hand. His face was contorted in agony, as if the last moments of his life had been excruciating torture.

  Titania threw herself on top of her husband and wailed with despair. She screamed as if it were she who had been fatally wounded. Mustardseed tried to help his mother up but she fought him off ferociously, and he backed away to let her grieve.

  “Who killed my husband?” Titania cried. Sabrina was too distracted to listen. For there on Oberon’s chest, in bright red paint, was a handprint. It was the mark of the Scarlet Hand.

  abrina had never seen anger in a person’s face like she saw in Titania’s. The queen’s rage seemed to pour out through her eyes and spill onto the crowd like acid. Everafters fell backward just to avoid her gaze.

  “One of you killed my husband!” Titania cried, rising to her feet with clenched fists. “Who is responsible? Who has blood on his hands? Will no one come forward? Then I’ll avenge my beloved by killing you all.” The queen’s body underwent a terrifying metamorphosis. Her already pale complexion turned bone white. Tar-black veins curled in all directions just underneath her skin, weaving along her arms, legs, and head. Her hands grew to three times their normal size, and long, jagged nails, several feet in length, shot out of the fingertips. Her hair blazed with actual flames, and long, blue cables of electric energy crackl
ed and popped in the air in front of her eyes. Her wings sprang out of her back and flapped so hard they seemed to shake the room. She rose above the crowd, opened her mouth, and sprayed the room with a fiery liquid. Anything it touched was quickly engulfed in flames and reduced to cinders.

  Everafters shrieked and stampeded toward the door, knocking the smallest in the crowd to the ground. Mr. Canis snatched the girls up, tucking them under his arms like footballs, and ran.

  “We have to get out of here,” Granny Relda shouted as she was shoved aside by Tony Fats and Bobby Screwball, who ploughed through the crowd, desperate to escape Titania’s wrath.

  “Wait,” Hamstead called to the old woman, turning and rushing back toward the queen.

  “Ernest, are you crazy?” Granny Relda called after him, but he didn’t stop.

  From Mr. Canis’s grasp, Sabrina looked back to see the portly man run to the side of the blonde singer he had sat next to at dinner. Bess had been knocked to the ground and was cowering before Titania’s murderous gaze. Her boyfriend, Tony Fats, had left her to die.

  “No!” Hamstead cried as he grabbed a heavy chair and used it to fend off Titania. The queen shrieked and ignited the chair with her fiery breath. If Hamstead was afraid, he didn’t show it. He tossed the flaming chair at the queen and then turned to help Bess to her feet. Together they raced out of the room just behind Canis and the Grimms.

  When the group reached the main room they paused, and Hamstead asked Bess, “Are you OK, ma’am?”

  “Ma’am is a name for old ladies,” she said as she tried to catch her breath. “You can call me Bess, cowboy.”

  Hamstead blushed.

  “We need to keep moving,” Mr. Canis said.

  “We can’t leave without Puck!” Daphne cried.

  Mr. Canis snarled and set the girls down. “Hamstead, take Mrs. Grimm and the girls to safety. I’ll join you once I find the boy.”

  “I’m coming with you,” Sabrina said.

  Canis shook his head.

  “It’s my fault Puck got hurt in the first place. He’s my responsibility,” Sabrina said, hoping that the old man could see she wasn’t asking for his permission.

  “Stay close,” he said, shoving back through the crowd.

  Sabrina followed at his heels, struggling against a tide of panicked Everafters. She craned her neck in hopes of spotting Cobweb, the fairy who was tending to Puck, but he was nowhere in sight. He and Puck had to be in one of the rooms that lined the back hall. Canis cleared a path through the main room to the hallway.

  “Maybe Puck’s in there,” Sabrina shouted to Canis over the melee, pointing to the first closed door. She rushed over and turned the knob, but it was locked tight.

  Canis turned the knob himself. It fell off in his powerful hand, and he pushed the door open. It was a broom closet filled with mops and bottles. Sabrina rushed across the hall to another door, also locked. Again Canis crushed the knob. They found Moth pacing a room in which sat what looked like a giant eggplant. It had deep purple skin with green veins running through it. Next to it was a small table covered in potions and powders. When she saw them, the fairy girl ran to the eggplant as if to protect it.

  “How dare you invade my room!” she cried.

  “Where’s Puck? We have to get out of here,” Sabrina said. Canis closed the door behind them. “Titania has gone crazy. She’s trying to kill everyone.”

  “Titania won’t hurt me.”

  Mr. Canis let out a loud growl. “Because I’ll get to you first!” he barked. “Where is the boy?”

  The fairy girl’s eyes grew wide with fear and she gestured at the eggplant. “He’s right there!”

  “That’s Puck?” Sabrina said, incredulously.

  “He’s in a cocoon stage as his wings heal,” Moth explained.

  Just then, something heavy slammed against the door, nearly knocking it off its hinges.

  “She’s coming,” Mr. Canis said.

  “How are we going to get out of here?” Sabrina cried.

  Mr. Canis searched the room for other exits but found none. He turned to Sabrina and for a moment she thought she saw worry in his face. Then, his body grew in size. His face seemed more wolflike, as if he were somewhere between the old man she knew and the wolf she feared. He stepped over to the far wall and pounded it with his enormous hand. It crumbled and a small hole appeared. He smashed the wall again, this time making the hole big enough to step through.

  “Girls, come with me,” he growled, and though Sabrina was afraid of his appearance, she was more afraid of the monster trying to get into the room. She raced over to the cocoon and snatched it in her arms. It was surprisingly light and had a horrible smell like moldy pickles.

  “Who are you, Everafter?” Moth shouted at Canis.

  “He’s the Big Bad Wolf,” Sabrina explained.

  “The murderer?” the fairy girl shrieked. “I’m not going anywhere with you!”

  Just then, the door to the room blew off its hinges. Titania appeared in the doorway, her mighty wings vibrating the air. She roared like a lion and shot a stream of fire right at them.

  “Suit yourself,” Sabrina said, tightening her grip on the cocoon. She turned and ran through the opening in the wall with Mr. Canis following close behind. Moments later, Moth came flying frantically after them, her pink insectlike wings keeping her aloft.

  They were back in the park where Daphne had first told the knock-knock joke that had revealed the Golden Egg. The restaurant had disappeared again. Sabrina had left her coat inside, and now she was freezing. She hurried alongside Canis, doing her best not to fall in the slippery snow, but it wasn’t easy. She turned her ankle and almost lost her hold on Puck’s cocoon. Moth landed in front of her and snatched the cocoon out of Sabrina’s hands. “You have no right to touch His Majesty’s healing vessel,” she said indignantly.

  “Fine! Keep the stinky thing!” Sabrina said as she scanned the area. Where could they hide?

  Suddenly Titania appeared behind them, as if out of thin air. She soared overhead, preparing to strike.

  Mr. Canis rushed over to one of the lamps that lined the park paths and pulled it out of its concrete mooring. There were several loud pops as the electrical wires inside were ripped apart. Canis swung the lamp like a bat right at the queen and hit her hard. She was hurled into the pavement with enough impact to create a smoking crater. Canis stood over the hole, waiting for Titania to crawl out.

  Granny, Daphne, Hamstead, and his new friend Bess appeared nearby and rushed to join Sabrina. Granny looked worried. “We should go,” she said.

  “Haven’t I been saying that all day?” Sabrina cried.

  No sooner were the words out of her mouth than Titania rose out of the crater and screamed like a banshee.

  “Any suggestions?” Canis asked.

  Sabrina turned to Moth. “What should we do? She’s going to kill us all.”

  “She won’t kill me,” the fairy said. “I’m a princess.”

  Sabrina scowled. If they survived, she needed to remember to introduce Moth to her fist. Just then, Mustardseed and his fairies appeared in the sky and surrounded Titania. They threw long, thick ropes around the queen, binding her as she fought and screamed. Mustardseed’s men dragged her toward the spot where the Golden Egg had been and disappeared once again into the invisible restaurant.

  Mustardseed landed next to Granny. “You must leave here,” he said. “I will take my brother.”

  “Forget it,” Sabrina said. “Puck stays with us.”

  “I’m not arguing with you, child,” Mustardseed said angrily.

  “Then don’t. I’m not letting him anywhere near your mother,” Sabrina said.

  “I’m confused,” Granny said to Sabrina. “You’re talking as if Puck is with us.”

  “He is,” Sabrina said, pointing at the cocoon Moth was holding.

  “This is Puck?” Daphne said, placing her hand on the cocoon’s skin. A sticky trail of goo clung to her fingers when she
pulled it off. “Oh yeah, this is Puck all right.”

  “Mustardseed, as Puck’s fiancée I will look after the crown prince,” Moth said.

  “Fiancée?” everyone cried.

  Mustardseed thought about this for a long moment, seeming to weigh his options, then nodded reluctantly. “You may take him,” he said to Granny, “if you take Moth, too, and keep them both safe. But do not take Puck from the city.”

  “Sorry, buddy. We’re out of here now!” Sabrina cried.

  “Do not leave the city!” Mustardseed roared.

  Granny Relda nodded. “We’ll stay.”

  The fairy looked relieved. “I must go to my mother,” he said, and he turned and flew back toward the restaurant, disappearing in a blink.

  Granny took the opportunity to usher everyone out of the park. When they were several blocks away, she stopped to catch her breath.

  “We should go back to the car and drive away from here as soon as possible,” Sabrina said, shivering. “We have Puck. There’s no reason to stay. If we stick around, someone is going to get hurt.”

  Mr. Canis removed his suit jacket and wrapped it around Sabrina to keep her warm. Daphne, who was also without a coat, squirmed inside, too, wrapping her arms around her sister.

  “I agree with the girl,” Canis said.

  “We can’t go! This is a mystery,” Daphne said. “They might need our help solving it.”

  “Another good reason to leave!” Sabrina said.

  “Daphne’s right,” Granny said. “We’ll check into a hotel. We all saw the mark on Oberon’s chest. The Scarlet Hand is behind his murder.”

  Before Sabrina could argue, Tony Fats buzzed the group and landed next to Bess.

  “I’m glad you got out OK, Bess,” he said.

  “No thanks to you,” she replied. Then she sighed, turned to Mr. Hamstead, leaned in close, and kissed him on the cheek.

  “Thanks, cowboy,” she said. “What do they call you?”

  “My name’s Ernest,” Hamstead said, as he turned pink.

  Tony Fats grumbled, snatched his girlfriend by the wrist, and dragged her back down the street as Hamstead looked on wistfully.