Goldi doesn’t make it any easier. She’s so nervous the chatter never stops. Daphne thinks she’s doing it to fill the awkward moments (of which there are plenty). She also has this annoying habit of adjusting everyone’s clothes all the time.
I don’t feel right shifting our attention from Granny Relda to Uncle Jake, especially now that we have found her, but Uncle Jake needs us too. I pray he isn’t as bad as they say he is, but I have to wonder: If someone I loved was killed, wouldn’t I want revenge—especially when it seemed like there would never be any justice? If someone murdered Daphne, wouldn’t I want to hunt them down and end them?
Well, on that bright and cheery note, I have to go. They’re calling for me. I’ll write more when I can. I have a feeling that I’m going to be spending a lot of time with this journal now that I’m grounded.
With the magic mirror strapped securely onto Poppa Bear’s back, the rest of the bears, the Grimms, Puck, Canis, and Pinocchio marched through the forest, led by Goldilocks and Beauty.
“Grendel was as ugly as I remember,” Beauty said as she kicked a clump of leaves off her high-heeled shoe. Her sweater dress was awfully thin for a chilly hike through the woods, but she never complained. “You have no idea what it was like coming over here on Wilhelm’s boat with him. All that grunting and groaning. I was sure at any moment the chains they used to keep him below deck would snap and he’d eat us all whole. Plus, with all those monsters and Jabberwockies running around—ugh. The only way you’ll get me on a ship now is if it’s a cruise to the Bahamas.”
“Why did Wilhelm bring so many of these creepy weirdos to America?” Sabrina asked.
“Wilhelm believed everybody had some goodness in them—even creepy weirdos,” Mr. Canis said, as he struggled along with his cane. Henry had begged him to stay inside the mirror with Red and baby Basil, but the old man had flatly refused. “He took a chance on me and I will always be grateful. Look at some of the people that we now call friends—Morgan le Fay, Baba Yaga—”
“Baba Yaga is hardly a friend,” Sabrina interrupted.
“The fact that she’s not trying to eat us makes her as close to a friend as we may ever get.” Henry laughed.
Goldi giggled. “In my book that’s personal growth. Henry, do you remember the time we snuck out in the middle of the night and ran into her? We were up on the cliffs and she came along in that creepy house and we . . .” Goldi’s voice tapered off when Veronica flashed her an irritated glance.
Sabrina’s father deftly changed the subject. “You kids might someday think of Grendel as an ally. You might even decide he’s ready to be free from the Hall of Wonders.”
“Or the barrier?” Daphne said. “I mean, if they all have the potential for goodness, why not let them out?”
A pause both big and awkward fell on the group, stealing the air until Pinocchio spoke.
“That’s an excellent question. How can you say Wilhelm believed in the goodness of Everafters when he locked an entire town inside a cage?”
“He had to do something drastic,” Henry said. “Everafters were threatening to invade the next town and no one would listen to reason.”
“So I’ve heard. Still, with his barrier he punished everyone for the crimes of a few, and even more have stumbled into this town, not realizing they would be imprisoned here for eternity. Take me for instance. I wasn’t even here when the troubles started for Wilhelm, but like so many others, I’m trapped in this roach motel.”
Henry opened his mouth to say something, but Pinocchio cut him off.
“Even your friends can’t escape the cruelty of this jailhouse you call a town. Look at Canis, who has clearly reformed. The Wicked Queen has proved herself to be somewhat trustworthy. Why, we’re walking with Beauty, who, from what I understand, recently counted herself amongst the Scarlet Hand. The goodness that Wilhelm claimed to believe in is easy to see in their faces, and yet, they find no reward. They will never leave this town . . . or should I say prison. But that’s not right, either. In prison the inmates sometimes get time off for good behavior. This place is something far worse.”
Sabrina couldn’t stand Pinocchio, but she had to admit he had made a powerful argument. There had been many nights since arriving in Ferryport Landing when she had lain awake trying to understand Wilhelm’s intentions. On one hand, the barrier kept evil people safely away from an unsuspecting world. On the other, it imprisoned some genuinely wonderful people. Was the barrier fair? Was Wilhelm’s magic wall solving problems or causing them in the first place? She looked to her father for an answer and saw he was equally perplexed. She suspected that he too had spent his fair share of nights trying to unravel the puzzle that was Ferryport Landing.
“So where are we going, anyway?” Puck asked as he flew above them. “I’ve scouted ahead and there’s no sign of any camp.”
“You wouldn’t see it,” Beauty explained. “The castle is invisible.”