“Screw the code!” Conner yelled, and the room went silent. “The code is there to ensure peace and prosperity for the fairy-tale world and soon there may not be a fairy-tale world left! If we want to win this war we will have to fight fire with fire, and Xanthous, no one has more fire than you—and no one can stir the waves better than Skylene—and no one can sting like Tangerina. We’re going to have to use every resource possible.”
The fairies were morally opposed to the idea with every fiber of their beings, but Conner was right. As long as they were using their magic for the greater good, they had no choice. Alex folded her hands together and looked at the floor as she thought more about what needed to be done.
“All right, I think I have a plan. Everyone listen closely,” she said, and gained the room’s undivided attention. “We don’t know where or how the Grande Armée will strike first—we have to assume it could be anywhere. I want all the kings and queens to write to their commanding officers at once and tell them to split their armies in half. Half of each army will stay in its respective kingdom so nothing is left unguarded. The other halves will go into hiding—I don’t care where they go as long as they stay out of sight—they are not to come out of hiding until they see my signal.”
“But why split up the armies?” Xanthous asked.
“That way no kingdom is left unguarded, in case it’s attacked,” Alex explained. “And if a kingdom is attacked, its entire army won’t be lost.”
Alex turned to face the fairies. “I want you to be with the soldiers guarding the kingdoms,” she said. “Rosette will go to the Corner Kingdom, Skylene to the Northern, Xanthous to the Charming, Tangerina to the Eastern, and Violetta and Coral to the Bo Peep Republic. Mother Goose and Emerelda will stay in the Fairy Kingdom and look after the Fairy Godmother.”
Alex turned back to address the entire room for the conclusion of her plan. “My brother and I will personally go to the troblins and elves and plead with them to join our side. As soon as we recruit the elves and troblins, I’ll signal all the remaining armies, the ones at home and the ones in hiding, and lead them in a strike against the Grande Armée.”
Everyone carefully went over this plan in their heads. It may not have been a perfect strategy, but it was the only strategy they had.
“What’s going to happen to us?” Cinderella asked. “Do we go home to our kingdoms or do we stay at the Fairy Palace?”
“Neither,” Conner said, and stood by his sister. “If the Armée finds you, they’ll kill you—they have a history of killing royal families and aristocrats—to them, death is the only surrender. We have to keep you moving at all times so they can never find you. I would suggest we put you all on a flying ship like the Granny but if the Armée saw that in the sky they would freak out and definitely shoot you down.”
“Then what can we place them on that’s both secretive and continuously moving?” Alex asked.
Her words rang a bell. Conner knew he had heard of something recently that met this description; he just had to think. He thought back to the very beginning of this whole ordeal, when he was standing in the cemetery listening to the Brothers Grimm stories, and the answer came to him. The Brothers Grimm hadn’t just provided a warning, they had also provided a plan.
“I’ve got it!” Conner said. “We’ll put them on an enchanted path just like in the story ‘The Secret Castle’! The path could weave through the kingdoms like a snake, never traveling in the same direction twice and never leaving a trail behind it!”
“That’s brilliant!” Alex said. “And the only people who will be able to find it are the people who know about it! As long as the Armée never knows about the path, they’ll never find it.”
Conner stepped closer to Alex and whispered something in her ear so only she could hear. “Do you think you can create the path, Alex?” He didn’t want to fill the room with hope if Alex wasn’t capable of the enchantment.
Alex took a deep breath. “Yes,” she said. “I know I can.” She looked up to the top of the stairs where the others sat. “Red, we can use the carriages you arrived in. They were very plain and didn’t bear any symbols of royalty.”
Red grunted. “Don’t remind me.”
Alex eyed the official robes, crowns, and jewels all the kings and queens wore. “We should also strip you down so you look less official,” she said. “You can’t wear any jewelry or be followed by guards or do anything that would make you appear royal.”
“But surely we can’t go on this path unprotected,” Snow White said.
“We’ll need some form of protection,” Sleeping Beauty said. “Even if the path is as disguised as we are.”
Alex looked to the sky to think about this. A big smile grew on her face for the first time all day. “I know the perfect people,” Alex said. They were flying right above her. Everyone looked to the sky to see what Alex was smiling about.
The sixth swan was finally returning to the Fairy Palace; it landed in the hall. All the monarchs and fairies were stunned to see Jack and Goldilocks climb off the swan’s back. Alex had secretly sent one of the swans to find her fugitive friends.
“You invited them?” Red yelled from the top of the stairs.
“Yes, I figured it wouldn’t hurt having a few friends around,” Alex said. “But now we have the perfect assignment for them.”
They waved uncomfortably at the royals in the hall. Less than a year ago the kings and queens had agreed to clear them of all their crimes as a way of thanking them for helping to defeat the Enchantress—and since then, despite the gesture, Jack and Goldilocks had already committed multiple crimes in all their kingdoms.
“Hello, everyone,” Jack said. “What’s the occasion?”
“We got your letter, Alex,” Goldilocks said. “We figured it had been sent to us by mistake, but the swan was very persuasive.” She and Jack held up their arms and showed the bite marks they had endured trying to avoid the trip.
Alex and Conner quickly told them about the Grande Armée and their plans to conquer the fairy-tale world. Jack and Goldilocks knew much more than they expected—word of the Grande Armée was spreading through the kingdoms.
“Many of the criminals we know have already joined them,” Jack said. “The Armée is growing by the minute.”
“Jack, Goldilocks, I need a big favor,” Alex said. “We’re sending the kings and queens away so the Armée can never find them. I’m going to ask that you go with them and protect them just as you protected my brother and me during our quest to stop the Enchantress.”
Jack and Goldilocks looked at each other—it was a big favor. The kings and queens began mumbling their objections to one another. How were a couple of crooks supposed to protect them?
Red whistled from the top of the stairs to get the room’s attention. “I know what you’re thinking because there isn’t a negative thought I haven’t had myself about these two,” Red declared. “But I can assure you there is no one in the world Goldilocks can’t take on with her sword, or that Jack can’t face with an axe at his side. We wouldn’t have survived our trip around the kingdoms if they hadn’t been there. You’ll be well protected under their care.”
Jack, Goldilocks, and the twins did a double take. They couldn’t believe Red was defending them to all these people.
“Thank you, Red,” Goldilocks said. “I would have never expected praise from you.”
“Oh, I forgot to tell you, Goldie,” Red said excitedly. “I have a new nemesis now! So you’re off the hook!”
Red gave Goldilocks a thumbs-up. Little Bo rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.
“Very well,” Cinderella said, and held Princess Hope a little tighter than before. “If you trust them, I suppose they’re the best people for the job.”
“Then it’s decided,” Emerelda declared. “Now we mustn’t waste another minute. Let’s get the kings and queens to safety.”
The fairies magically transformed the royals’ regal wardrobes into simple, common clothing. They were provided with parchment and scrolls and wrote to their commanding officers to inform them to split the armies as Alex had instructed. All the fairies, except Emerelda and Mother Goose, took the letters and disappeared into thin air, traveling to the kingdoms they had been assigned.
As they did this, Conner climbed to the top of the stairs to speak with Bree and Emmerich. “I want you guys to go with the kings and queens on the secret path,” he said. “I would never forgive myself if anything happened to you. You’ll be safe if you’re with Jack and Goldilocks, I promise.”
Bree and Emmerich both nodded, wide-eyed. The events of the past twenty-four hours had caused their heads to spin so fast they couldn’t think straight. They would have agreed to anything.
“Certainly,” Emmerich said.
“Sounds good,” Bree said.
Conner smiled and then faced Red. “I want you and Froggy to go as well so Bree and Emmerich have someone they know with them,” he said. “Besides, I know Alex and I will feel better knowing all our friends are safe.”
“What?” Red asked sharply. “You want me stuck in a traveling party with that Peep woman?”
“I’m really sorry you lost your throne, Red,” Conner said. “But if the Armée finds you, they won’t care that you used to be queen. I know you love necklaces, but I don’t think wearing a guillotine will be a good look for you.”
“Fine,” Red agreed. “But if we get captured I’m volunteering Little Bo for target practice.”
Once all the monarchs had been disguised, everyone left the hall, following Alex outside to the front steps of the Fairy Palace. Three carriages were lined up in front of the Fairy Palace with two horses each.
King Chance, Queen Cinderella, and Princess Hope climbed into the first carriage with Queen Sleeping Beauty and King Chase. Queen Snow White and King Chandler joined Queen Rapunzel and Sir William in the second carriage. Froggy, Red, Emmerich, and Bree boarded the third carriage, and to Red’s dismay, were joined by Queen Little Bo Peep.
“Will someone please put me back inside the wolf’s stomach?” Red agonized.
“This is going to be a long trip.” Little Bo sighed and shook her head.
Bree stepped outside the carriage before the door was shut and gave Conner a massive hug. “Please stay safe,” she said.
The gesture made Conner turn bright pink. “Don’t worry about me,” he said. “I’m used to being in danger.”
Conner shut the carriage door behind her with a tap for good luck. Cinderella poked her head out of the first carriage to get Conner’s attention.
“I was just wondering if you’ve heard from my stepmother and stepsisters,” she asked. “Are they all right in the Otherworld?”
“Oh yeah,” Conner said. “The last time I talked to them Lady Iris and Rosemary had opened a diner and Petunia was working at an animal hospital. They seemed very happy.”
Hearing this made Cinderella very happy, too. Conner was glad he could provide her with a bit of joy before she departed on the secret path.
Jack and Goldilocks mounted the horses attached to the first carriage so they could keep watch as they traveled. Emerelda bewitched the carriages to drive themselves while Alex stood in front of the first carriage, ready to create her biggest enchantment yet.
“Okay,” Alex whispered to herself. “Here I go.”
Alex visualized the path as clearly as she could. She imagined it snaking through the kingdoms, never giving any indication of where it was headed and leaving no trace of where it had been. She touched the ground with the tip of her wand and a shimmering golden path appeared on the ground ahead of her. It was less than a quarter mile long and disappeared at both ends.
Jack and Goldilocks held the reins of the horses and the parade of carriages took off down the secret path. Alex joined Emerelda, Mother Goose, and her brother on the front steps and they waved the travelers off until the golden path and the carriages snaked out of sight.
Emerelda placed a hand on Alex’s shoulder. “Your grandmother would be very proud of you.”
“I know,” Alex said sadly. She just wished she could have been there to see it.
Emerelda, Mother Goose, and Conner went back into the Fairy Palace. Alex was just about to turn and go with them when she saw someone she had completely forgotten about for the past few hours.
“Rook!” Alex said. He was peeking out from behind one of Rosette’s magically enlarged roses.
“Alex, are you coming inside?” Conner asked.
“Yes, I’ll be there in a minute,” she said, and ran into the gardens to see Rook. She pulled him behind a giant patch of tulips and threw her arms around his neck.
“Sorry to intrude again, I just haven’t seen you in a while and was worried. What were all those carriages for—” Rook said, but his cheerful expression quickly faded once he saw the seriousness in her eyes. “Alex, what’s wrong?”
“Everything,” she said, and fought back tears. She had held it together very well today, but Rook was the only person she didn’t feel like she had to be brave in front of. “My grandmother is sick and there’s an army that’s invaded and trying to take over the world!”
“What?” Rook said. “What do you mean there’s an army—”
Alex grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer to look directly in his eyes. “You and your dad have to get as far away from here as possible,” she said. “You have to leave before you get hurt!”
“I hope this isn’t your way of letting me down gently,” Rook said, trying to make her laugh.
“I’m serious, Rook,” Alex said. “Please, you have to go! I couldn’t live with myself if anything happened to you! Promise me you’ll get out of here!”
“All right, all right. I promise to get my dad and we’ll leave.”
Alex sighed and looked to the ground. “Good,” she said. “I have to get back to the palace now; there are so many things we still need to plan.”
Rook looked at her with the saddest eyes Alex had ever seen. “But when will I see you again?”
“I don’t know. I’ll find you once all of this is over and done with. Now please go so I don’t worry about you on top of it all.”
Rook nodded. He kissed her on the cheek and then headed home.
Sitting behind the tulips, it was the first time Alex had been out of sight all day. She kneeled on the ground, closed her eyes, and just breathed. She had put on a good show for the fairies and the royals and her brother, but after seeing Rook, all the emotion built up inside her young body suddenly surged through her.
“Just breathe, Alex, just breathe,” she said to herself. “You can handle this, you can handle this.”
She stayed behind the tulips until she felt the fear fade from her eyes and her brave face returned.