“I’m sure there are no snipers—” Granny started, but the little monster raced off before she could finish.
Sabrina and her sister followed the old woman down Main Street. It was particularly lonely that day. Many of the little shops that lined the street were shuttered and closed. The sidewalks were empty and the roadway clear of cars. The town’s one and only traffic light had burned out. As far as Sabrina knew, Ferryport Landing had never been a bustling center of commerce, but there had been a time not so long ago when its little stores were filled with customers. Now most were abandoned. Signs hung in windows declaring EMERGENCY LIQUIDATIONS and AFTER 150 YEARS IN BUSINESS WE’RE CLOSING OUR DOORS. Those that weren’t shut had a much more ominous sign in their windows: a bloodred handprint, the mark of the Scarlet Hand. One now hung on the door of Old King Cole’s Restaurant.
“Looks like they got to him, too,” Sabrina said, pointing out the sign.
“We’re running out of places to eat in this town,” Daphne grumbled. Normally, Daphne’s single-minded obsession with eating would have made Sabrina smile, but the little girl was making a troubling point. The town was closing its doors to humans and any Everafters who didn’t join the Scarlet Hand.
Eventually the family stopped outside of a small office building with huge picture windows and a manicured lawn.
“What are we doing here?” Sabrina asked. “I thought we were going to the jail.”
“I don’t think visiting the jail is a good use of our time,” Granny said. “Nottingham has been most uncooperative. We haven’t seen Mr. Canis in a month, and it doesn’t look like things are going to change. I’ve decided to hire someone who can help us.”
“We’re going to meet an Everafter, aren’t we?” Sabrina said, looking at her sister. She knew that Daphne usually couldn’t resist meeting fairy-tale characters. She was known to squeal with delight and bite her hand when in the presence of one. “I guess it won’t be such a big deal now that you’re a grown-up.”
“No big deal at all,” Daphne said, quite seriously.
When their security guard returned and informed them that they were safe from snipers, the group went inside and climbed the stairs to the third floor of the building. There they found a single door with a sign next to it that read THE SHERWOOD GROUP: ATTORNEYS AT LAW. Sabrina scanned her memory for the name Sherwood, but nothing came to mind.
Granny opened the door to the office and ushered the girls inside. There they found themselves in the middle of a chaotic battle. Sabrina saw a number of men wearing business suits, but they were acting far from professional. They were swordfighting, arm-wrestling, drinking beer from tall ceramic cups, and singing a rambling English tune as loudly as possible. The lyrics seemed to be about fighting or stealing or combinations of both, and once one song was finished the men immediately broke into another.
“Hello?” Granny Relda called out, but the men didn’t seem to notice her. They kept up with their violent games, laughing at the top of their lungs. They seemed to be having a lot of fun, despite the fact that two of the men were standing on top of a desk, swords in hand, slashing at one another. Each was an expert swordsman, and not a single blow found its mark. What was strangest about the two men was that each was laughing and complimenting the other on their deadly assaults.
“I should get you out of here,” the family’s bodyguard squeaked. “These men are barbarians.”
“We’ll be fine,” Granny assured the creature. “I’m told that this is how they behave all the time. We’re perfectly safe.”
Just then, a potted fern flew past them and smashed against a wall. There was a loud cheer that suddenly died when the men noticed how close they had come to harming the family.
“Gentlemen! We have clients,” a huge man with a dark, untamed beard shouted. He must have been more than six-anda-half-feet tall with a chest as wide as a car bumper and hands as big as basketballs. His eyes were deep-set and fierce, giving him a wild expression that was offset by his wide, beaming smile. “Welcome to the Sherwood Group!”
“Welcome!” the men shouted in unison as they held up their pints of beer.
“I have an appointment with Robin Hood,” Granny said.
“Robin Hood!” the girls cried. Sabrina glanced at her sister, waiting for the little girl to squeal with happiness, but Daphne caught her looking.
“No big deal, huh?” Sabrina asked.
Daphne shook her head, though it was obvious she was struggling to hold in her excitement.