"It's over, Jack," Sabrina said.
"It's not over until I say it is," Jack raged. "I'm going to be famous again, but for another reason. Tonight, the Everafters of Ferryport Landing are going to find they are suddenly free from the spell that has kept them in this mercilessly boring town for two centuries. With your grandmum now dead, the spell turns to the last living Grimm. Some might be patient enough to wait for you two to die of old age, but I am not. This ends tonight."
Chapter 11
ack rushed forward and violently shoved Sabrina to the ground. Daphne lunged at him, but she received the same treatment. Sabrina had dropped Excalibur in the fall and Jack quickly picked it up, admiring its blade for a moment and then readying himself to bring it down on Sabrina's head.
"They're going to have a parade in my honor for this," the young man said with a sick smile.
Suddenly, a loud, wheezing honk filled the night. Jack spun around. In the giant's breast pocket, a wonderful thing appeared: Two headlights blinked to life. An engine roared, backfired violently, and then, with a squeal of tires, the family car ripped through the pocket and sped along the giant's body. At the wheel was Mr. Canis and, next to him, Granny Relda, safe and sound. The car soared over the giant's gelatinous belly, down his leg, and hit his huge kneecap, sending the car sailing into the air. It landed several yards away from Jack and the girls and skidded to a stop. The engine puttered out, the lights went dim, and the car doors opened. Granny Relda stepped out with a very concerned face.
"Jack, what is the meaning of this?" she asked.
The young man pulled the mason jar of beans out of his jacket and held it up.
"It's about this, old woman. It's about capturing my rightful place in the spotlight," Jack said.
"Those days are over," Mr. Canis said, as he stepped out of the car.
"Maybe for you, traitor," Jack snarled. "But I've got bigger plans than selling shoes and measuring hemlines. These beans are going to make me a hero again. But for that to happen, some things have to change around here."
"What are you suggesting?" Granny Relda asked.
"The Grimms have to die."
"You know I won't allow that, Jack," Mr. Canis said.
"I've been killing giants since I was a lad. I suspect I won't have too much trouble with an old mutt like you."
Mr. Canis looked over to Granny Relda. Something passed between them—a sort of question and answer that only the two of them shared. Granny Relda nodded in approval and Mr. Canis took off his hat.
"If you want to sic your dog on me, Grimm, then do it. But I'll have my destiny either way," Jack said, putting the jar of beans back into his jacket and swinging Excalibur around menacingly. "I've been waiting for this for a very long time."
Mr. Canis smiled in a way Sabrina could only describe as eager. Once again, she was sure he was doomed. The old man had managed to take out three overweight goons, but could he handle a lightning-fast slayer of giants carrying a sword that killed anything it touched?
Jack charged wildly, screaming into the air, but before he could even swing the deadly sword, a change came over Mr. Canis. His shirt ripped off his chest as his body doubled in size. His feet snapped and stretched as they transformed into paws. Hair sprang from every inch of skin, fangs crept down over his lips, his nose extended out, replaced by a snarling snout, and the tops of his ears twisted into points and raised to the top of his head. But most disturbing were his eyes, as they changed into an achingly bright blue color. The same color Canis's eyes were in the picture Sabrina had found of her family. The transformation was complete. Mr. Canis had turned into a wolf the size of a rhinoceros.
"Bring it on, little man," the Wolf snarled, as it jumped up on its back legs. Sabrina could hear a hint of Mr. Canis's voice in the Wolf's growl, but the way he said the words held nothing of her grandmother's feeble old friend's calm. The Wolf's voice was full of viciousness.
The Wolf charged at Jack and sent him hurtling backward into a tree, giving the young man no time to recover as the Wolf savagely sunk its teeth into Jack's right arm. Jack screamed in agony. With the Wolf on top of him, he couldn't swing the deadly sword. The best he could do was hit the beast on the head with Excalibur's handle. The Wolf backed away, slightly dazed, and then licked its lips.
"Bad news for you, Jack," the Wolf barked. "I know your taste now, and I like it."
In the commotion, Granny held out her arms for the girls and they ran to her side.
"Everything will be fine," Granny consoled them.
"You didn't tell us Mr. Canis was one of them," Sabrina said.
"Oh, didn't I? Yes, Mr. Canis is the Big Bad Wolf," Granny said as she kept her eyes on the fight.
"The Big Bad Wolf?" the girls cried.
The Wolf lunged at Jack, ripping his chest with its razor-sharp claws. Jack swung back and punched the beast in the