“Fly us out of here,” she commanded. “Wait, where’s Beauty?”
Sabrina once again scanned the crowd but for only a moment, as she was soon airborne. Puck had her by the waist and the two were flying skyward, narrowly dodging the spears and arrows flung at them from below.
“Do you see her?” Sabrina said. “We can’t leave her.”
“There!” Puck shouted, pointing toward the castle gate. Beauty and the Beast were arguing and Beast had his wife’s arm clenched tight in his hairy claw. She was sobbing.
“How could you turn your back on us?” the Beast said.
“Please come with me! I’m begging you! The Master lied to you. He lied to all of us.”
Sabrina frowned but knew she had to do something. “Set us down, Puck.”
“Um, isn’t your sister about to—”
“Just do it.”
When they hit the ground, Sabrina stepped between Beauty and the Beast.
“Listen, pal, she loves you. Despite your stupid furry face and the fangs and the crappy attitude and the fact that you might be evil, she loves you and she’s trying to save you. Since you’re not listening, I’m going to lay this out for you. You have thirty seconds to decide.”
Stunned, the Beast could do nothing but listen.
“We didn’t lose this castle. We gave it away. And now, Baba Yaga, the Wicked Queen, and Morgan are outside reproducing the magic spell that put a barrier on this little town. Except we’re putting the barrier over this fortress, locking up as many of the Hand as we can. So you can stay if you want, but if you think it stunk to be trapped in a little town before, wait until you face eternity in a castle infested with trolls, goblins, witches, and monsters—and no indoor plumbing.”
The Beast reeled.
“Twenty seconds,” Sabrina said.
“Please, James,” Beauty begged.
Suddenly, Mr. Canis appeared near the drawbridge. “Sabrina! You have to get out of there now!”
“You’re supposed to be with the children,” Sabrina said, startled not only by his presence but by the panic in his voice.
The Beast turned toward his cohorts. “It’s a trap! Everyone, out of the castle, now!”
“Puck! Get Sabrina out of there!” Canis shouted.
Before Sabrina could say anything, Puck had her and Beauty in his arms and they were flying over the wall. They landed with the waiting army.
“Cast the spell now!” Mr. Canis shouted. “They know the plan.”
“What are you doing?” Robin Hood demanded.
“We’re putting the Hand in time-out,” Daphne said, and Morgan began to read from the magic spell. The words were ancient and not in English, but Morgan handled them with ease. Bunny Lancaster tossed a handful of stones into the air and they stayed suspended before her eyes. She moved them around, as if working some elaborate puzzle only she could understand, switching their places, tilting them, and flipping them over. Baba Yaga raised her hands and squatted down like an angry monkey. She shrieked and bellowed as if demanding the spell to work. All the while, members of the Hand spilled out of the gates.
The Beast was first, then the Swan Brothers, Shere Khan, and the entire nation of Lilliputians. The glass cat, Bungle, and Humpty Dumpty were next, followed by a couple of trolls and goblins. Then Mowgli, Baloo, and Jack Pumpkinhead.
The sky began to lighten, and above the castle Sabrina could see the beginnings of a concrete dome. It looked as if it were being assembled, stone by stone, by an invisible workforce. The faster Morgan read, and the more the Wicked Queen adjusted her rocks, the faster the dome materialized. Nearly a dozen more members of the Hand were able to escape, but soon the last rock was in place. There was a loud booming noise much like the echo of a heavy door shutting and then the stones were gone.
The next person to cross the drawbridge was the Ice Queen, but she tumbled backward halfway across. She stood up and placed a hand out, pushing, but it was clear there was something blocking her way. The Ice Queen raged and blasted it with hail, but her magic had no effect whatsoever.
“What have you done?” the glass cat asked.
“I think they call this winning a battle,” Henry said, beaming with pride at his daughters.
Nottingham was one of those who had escaped. He pushed through the crowd and confronted the mayor. “What are you doing with these traitors?”
“They saved me,” Heart said. She seemed confused and disoriented.
“Saved you?” Nottingham bellowed.
Uncle Jake stood between them. “Relax, Sheriff, the lady is injured.”
“You have betrayed me!” Nottingham shouted at her.
“I have not!” the queen roared back. She hardly needed her megaphone. “The Grimms saved my life against my will!”
“What kind of fool do you take me for?” Nottingham said. He reached into his long leather jacket and removed his deadly dagger.
“So, what do we do with them?” Arthur said, raising his sword to Nottingham’s chin.