“Don’t worry,” Sabrina said, hurrying over. “You’re safe. The Black Knight is gone.”
“It’s you!” she said, her voice higher and more feminine than Sabrina had imagined. She turned to stare at the others until her eyes focused on Jake. She looked startled at first, but then smiled.
“You’ve come to take me back?” she said, as if in surrender.
Uncle Jake tried to talk but couldn’t. All he could do was shake his head.
“We’re not here to force you back to Ferryport Landing. We’re here to ask you to come back on your own,” Sabrina said.
“Who are you?” Goldilocks asked.
“My name is Sabrina Grimm and this is my sister, Daphne,” Sabrina said, motioning to the little girl.
“We’re Henry Grimm’s daughters,” Daphne added.
Goldilocks studied their faces. “I see a lot of him in you,” she told Daphne, then looked at Sabrina. “So he married that girl, huh? You look just like her.”
Sabrina nodded. “Her name is Veronica.”
“I know,” Goldilocks said as she got to her feet. She turned to Uncle Jake and gave him a hug. “It’s good to see you, Jakey.”
Uncle Jake nodded and smiled, then pointed at his throat.
“The knight tried to choke him to death,” Daphne explained.
“Goldie, you have to come back,” Sabrina said. “The town is a disaster and my dad—”
“Tell me he’s safe,” Goldilocks pleaded. Sabrina could see the woman still felt strongly for her father. She wasn’t sure how to react.
“He’s fine, but he needs you,” Daphne said. “He’s under a sleeping spell. We need someone to kiss him. We were told you were the only one who could do that.”
Goldilocks blushed. “A kiss from someone who truly loves him is all he needs. Can’t you get your mother to do this?”
Sabrina shook her head. “No, she’s asleep, too.”
“Never a dull moment in Ferryport Landing,” the blond beauty said. “How did this happen?”
“The Scarlet Hand did it,” Uncle Jake croaked.
“The Scarlet Who?” the blonde asked.
“They’re the bad guys,” Daphne said. “They kidnapped my parents almost two years ago. Now they are running the town. That creepy guy, the Black Knight, he was one of them.”
“He’s been chasing me for a month,” Goldilocks said. “If he is part of the group that kidnapped your parents, they probably don’t want anyone to wake them up. Whoever sent him will send others.”
“Come back and we’ll protect you,” Sabrina said.
Goldilocks looked into Sabrina’s face. “Come back to Ferryport Landing?”
Sabrina nodded hopefully.
Goldilocks shook her head. “I can’t do that. Terrible things occurred just to set me free. Your grandfather died because of it. Your grandmother doesn’t want to see me, and I’m sure Henry wouldn’t want to see me, either. He told me to leave him alone.”
“But we can’t wake him up without you,” Daphne begged. “Without you it’s impossible.”
Goldilocks turned to Uncle Jake. “If I went back, could you set me free again?”
Uncle Jake shook his head. Sabrina wasn’t surprised. After what had happened the first time he shut down the barrier, she doubted that her uncle would ever attempt it again. She wondered if he would even do it for Briar.
“Then no,” Goldilocks said. “I won’t go back. I’m sorry. I wish I could help. Don’t give up hope. You live in Ferryport Landing. Anything is possible there.” She turned and a moment later she was walking down the steps that led to the second level. Sabrina started to chase after her, but Uncle Jake snatched her arm and pulled her back. He shook his head. “Let her go,” he whispered painfully.
“We have to stop her. We can force her to go back with us,” Sabrina said.
“That’s not what we do,” Daphne said, softly. Sabrina noticed Daphne hadn’t looked at her since the Black Knight had been thrown from the building.
“But—”
Again, Uncle Jake shook his head. “We’ll find another way. It’s time to go home.”
abrina watched her uncle pack up the traveler’s chest. An hour later, the same rabbit and tortoise that delivered it came and picked it up. The rabbit hoisted it onto his partner’s shell and walked it over to the little truck. Moments later they were gone, along with the only hope the family had of ever seeing Goldilocks again.
“We could go back and change her mind,” Sabrina pleaded as the family watched the truck disappear down the road.