Granny pulled the little girl away with considerable effort.
"I assume you all are from Ferryport Landing. We don't get to meet too many of our neighbors from the north," Oz said, quickly turning to Sabrina. "And I know you. You're Sabrina. I haven't seen you in years. Your mother used to bring you by the store all the time. I remember once we put you on Santa's lap to get a picture and you wet your pants. Santa was furious. Oh, your mother was so embarrassed, but I found it very funny."
Liar!
Sabrina thought, blushing. She was tired of the game the
Everafters were playing with her. "My mother never worked in a store."
"Oh no, I work in a store, Macy's Department Store, actually. Your mother and I were great friends. She visited me there often." Oz turned to Daphne. "And you must be Daphne. I held you when you were no bigger than a snow pea. You both look so much like her. You are going to break a lot of hearts when you are older."
Daphne looked as if she was going to hug the Wizard again.
"Are we prisoners?" Granny Relda asked, gesturing toward the door.
Oz frowned. "The king would probably call you guests."
Guests who aren't allowed to leave this room," Hamstead said. "Why?"
"I'm afraid I'm in the dark as well," Oz said. "Unfortunately, I'm the guy they call when they want something organized. They rarely tell me what it's for. But I promise that all of our questions will be answered soon. Right now, everyone is waiting for you."
He led the reluctant family down the hallway and back into the restaurant. Every seat was taken. It was one of the most unusual groups of people Sabrina had ever seen. There were pirates, dwarfs, goblins, talking animals, even an enormous man-size bug wearing glasses. A sultry blonde singer whose act brought catcalls and laughter from the audience had joined the yellow-eyed piano player. She wore a shimmering sequined dress and long, white gloves, and prowled around the room flirting with the male patrons. She flashed each a warm smile.
"She's beautiful," Hamstead said as he stared at the woman, dazzled.
"And off limits, if you know what's good for you," Oz said. "Her name is Bess. She's Tony Fats's girlfriend."
Just then, Oberon and Titania entered the room. Mustardseed, Cobweb, Moth, and the group of leather-jacketed fairies the family had met earlier followed in behind them. Their arrival brought forth a chorus of boos and jeers from the crowd, forcing the singer and the piano player to stop their lively performance.
"You've made us wait, Oberon!" an ogre shouted from his seat. "I've shared the same air with a Houyhnhnm for too long!"
A horse at the back of the room booed the ogre and spit at him.
"Why have you brought us here?" a chicken squawked from her seat. "I came all the way from Harlem."
"Friends, I have a present for you!" Oberon shouted as he moved through the crowd. "Christmastime comes to the Everafters."
The group exploded with anger. Many rose to their feet, shouting angry words about "dirty fairy tricks" and "not being fooled again." Oberon seemed unconcerned and just flashed the girls a grin. He rushed over to them, grabbed each roughly by the arm, and dragged them onto the stage at the back of the room.
"What's the big idea?" Sabrina said, trying to pull away from his powerful grip.
Oberon ignored her and turned to the crowd. "Silence!" he shouted. "Don't you want your present?"
Everyone sat back down.
"Yahoo no want present from fairy," yelled an incredibly hairy man.
"Is that so? You don't want the children of Veronica Grimm?" Oberon cried.
The crowd instantly hushed. They sat motionless, watchful and suspicious. Sabrina looked over at her sister and her heart began to race.
I knew it, she thought.
They hate us here just like they do back in Ferryport Landing. They're going to kill us.
Chapter 3
Sabrina took a deep breath and calmed herself. She had to be smart. She needed a plan to get herself and her sister out of danger. As she ran through the countless escapes they had made over the year and a half they were stuck in the foster care system, an answer popped into her head. "Daphne, do you remember Mr. Drisko?" she said. Daphne nodded.