“That was a close one,” Puck laughed but stopped when both Sabrina and Briar flashed him an angry look. “What? It was funny.”
Suddenly, like water flowing from a broken dam, a herd of stray dogs poured out of every alley and doorway. There were rottweilers, German shepherds, Doberman pinschers, pit bulls, wolfhounds, beagles, poodles, golden retrievers, Shih Tzus, West Highland white terriers, and dozens more in hot pursuit. They barked and snapped at the black-clad rider’s feet, causing him to swerve all over the road.
“She’s called some friends,” Sabrina said.
“She can talk to animals?” Puck said. “That rules.”
The dogs gave the rider as much trouble as they could, but his bike was faster than all of them. Soon, they were left behind, causing traffic to back up all over Paris. Luckily, Uncle Jake and Daphne’s cab was undeterred and their driver raced on, steering the car into a circular street called Place Charles de Gaulle. At its center was an elegant arch decorated with statues and finely carved reliefs. Cars whipped around the circle from all directions. Without any traffic lights or signs, the circle was pure chaos, and there were several times Sabrina was sure her family would die in a head-on collision. But the driver was quick, and he steered the car out of traffic at the last possible second and darted down a tree-lined road bordering a park.
“Where do you think she’s going?” Sabrina wondered aloud.
“Exactly where I’d go,” Briar said, pointing at the approaching metal tower rising like a giant on the Parisian horizon—the Eiffel Tower. The tower was an incredible work of engineering made from huge steel girders and stood more than a thousand feet tall. It was quite a bit bigger than Sabrina had imagined, and she suddenly felt envious of her sister for seeing it in person without her.
Sabrina watched Uncle Jake and Daphne’s cab come to a stop. They paid the driver and leaped out just in time to watch Goldilocks dashing toward the entrance to the tower.
“Why would she go up there?” Briar said. “There’s no way off that thing once she gets to the top.”
“She’s probably going to pull the talking animal stunt again. When we tracked her down in Venice, she had a bunch of pigeons fly her to safety. I bet she wants motorcycle boy to follow her up there so she can do the same thing. It would be a great way to lose him.”
“Except I doubt it will work. The wind has to be crazy powerful up there,” Puck said. “I don’t think my wings could take it. I doubt a bird could do it, either.”
Sabrina gasped. “So there’s no way off that thing if he catches her?”
Puck shook his head. “Not unless your uncle and sister can rescue her from that lunatic.”
“Speak of the devil,” Briar said as they watched the deadly motorcyclist skid to a stop nearby. He leaped off his bike and pulled a silver dagger from his boot; then he raced through the entrance to the tower. Sabrina saw Daphne pointing at the motorcycle. Without a word, she dashed through the entrance to the tower. Uncle Jake tossed the entrance fee to a clerk, and he and Daphne hurried into an elevator, just as it was about to shut. Sabrina scanned the tightly packed crowd around them. The man in black wasn’t there, but neither was Goldilocks. She imagined the poor woman, standing at the top, backing away from the dark rider with his deadly blade. She tried to force the vision out of her head. They would get there in time. They had to.
They reached the first of the tower’s three platforms and tumbled out of the elevator. Daphne pointed at a sign leading to the elevator that would take them to the next level. She and Uncle Jake pushed through the crowd and made their way onto the next elevator. Soon, they were rising even higher above the Paris skyline.
The second level was much higher, and a few people lost their hats in the strong wind. Puck had been right. Nature’s forces were brutal at that height, and it wasn’t even the top of the tower.
“Look!” Puck cried as the mirror’s reflection showed the murderous motorcyclist entering the final elevator. Sabrina could almost hear the chaos when he pulled out his dagger and demanded that everyone get off. People nearly trampled one another to get away from the mad man. She watched him push a button and the doors closed, just as her sister and uncle approached. The two Grimms could only stare as the elevator rose to the top of the tower where Goldilocks had fled.
Sabrina watched the rising elevator. It disappeared from view for several moments. The ascent to the top would take a long time. By the time it came back down, who knew what the villain might have accomplished. It wasn’t fair! Somebody had to stop him.
“There will be another one,” Briar said to Sabrina. “Don’t worry.”
But she was wrong. Suddenly, the elevator came crashing down from above. People were screaming and smoke filled the air.