"Man, it smells foul down here," Bess said.
"I believe that is the girl," Canis said.
"Uh, hello? I'm standing right here!" Sabrina said.
Before long, their eyes adjusted, and Mr. Hamstead was leading them along a damp concrete passageway lined with huge pipes and electrical wiring. Every once in a while they would pass under a dingy, flickering lightbulb, which helped them see a few feet ahead.
"We are close," Canis said, sniffing the air. "I smell them."
The tunnel opened into a huge station with an arched ceiling held up by elegant columns and cut through with skylights that allowed rays of light to shine down on the gold-tiled walls and floor. The room looked like the lost tomb of a pharaoh. At the center was a single train track, where a lone subway car was parked. Sabrina had been in many subway stations in New York City, but this one, by far, was the most beautiful.
"Hello?" Granny shouted out. Her voice bounced off the walls and echoed back. "Is anyone here?"
"They have obviously abandoned this station," Moth said.
Something flickered in the corner of Sabrina's vision. She spun quickly and thought she saw movement in the shadows along the far wall. She turned to Mr. Canis, whose senses were much more acute than hers. He held his finger to his lips to let her know he had seen something, too, and to be quiet.
"What are we waiting for?" Moth continued as she headed for the train car. "We should take their train and search the tunnels ourselves."
Before she could step into the car, the station erupted with movement as five tiny men bore down on them, flipping and jumping, shouting and screaming. They stopped just short of the group, surrounding them like tiny ninjas from a martial arts film.
The door to the subway car opened and a sixth little man with a long, white beard stepped out and eyed the group angrily through round glasses. He wore a blue uniform jacket with a patch that said MTA. Sabrina knew what the letters stood for--
Metropolitan Transportation Authority. The little man worked for the subway.
"You're trespassing in the domain of the six dwarfs," he said, signaling to the others to close in on the group. "Invaders get a beating."
Sabrina watched as one of the little men slipped a set of brass knuckles on his hand.
Granny stepped forward. "We're not here to invade your territory."
A second dwarf clenched his fists. He had greasy little half spectacles on his nose. "These are our tunnels," he said. "We'll fight every one of you, chickadee!"
Mr. Canis growled. Sabrina could see he was losing his patience, again.
"We're looking for someone and we were told you could help," Sabrina said quickly. "A fairy flew down here last night. We think he's hiding in the tunnels."
"A fairy!" cried the dwarfs in horror. "No fairies in the subway! Your kind isn't welcome here."
"We're not fairies," Daphne said. "Well, except for her," she added, pointing at Moth. "We're detectives."
Suddenly, the white-bearded leader of the group cried out. "My oh my, it's you! It's Veronica's girls."
The little men immediately lowered their fists and smiled. They crowded around Sabrina and Daphne, offering up praise for their mother.
"Veronica was a gem."
"A real inspiration!"
"We loved her."
"What charisma!"
The men smiled and introduced themselves. Each had a different story about Sabrina and Daphne's mother. They all seemed to idolize her and regretted the day she had disappeared. The day of the "big speech," they added. It was clear they thought the speech would have changed their lives.
When it grew quiet again, the leader, who called himself Mr. One, spoke. "What are you doing down here?" he asked.
"We're looking for Cobweb," Daphne replied.
"Just like your mother," Mr. One said with a chuckle. "Veronica was always taking on other people's troubles. She wanted to help, even when it put her in some sticky situations. Your mother introduced me to my wife. Anything we can do to help you would be an honor."
"Can you help us search for Cobweb? We think he went underground in these tunnels," Hamstead said.
"Nobody knows these tunnels better than you do," Bess added, and the dwarfs puffed up with pride at her compliment.
"What do you say, boys?" Mr. One asked his companions. "Up for a fairy hunt?" He pronounced the word fairy as one might the word rat.
It was clear that dwarfs and fairies weren't fond of each other.
"Can we keep the train windows open?" Mr. Two asked, pointing his thumb at Sabrina. "Someone's a little funky."