Tales from the Hood (25 page)

Hatter leaped to his feet and rushed out of the room. Bluebeard, however, stood beaming proudly at the Grimms. Robin Hood and Little John pushed through the crowd to them. Their long faces spoke a thousand words of remorse. Granny thanked them for trying then moved to the front of the court where Mr. Canis was being dragged away by a dozen soldiers.

“Old friend!” she said.

“Old friend,” Canis said, his features now almost completely those of the Wolf’s.

“We’ll work on another way,” Granny said. “There’s no reason to worry.”

Canis shook his head. “It’s over, Relda Grimm. It is how I want it.”

He turned and allowed the guards to lead him out of the courtroom.

Daphne hugged her grandmother and wept into the old woman’s dress. Tears were rolling down Granny’s face as well. Even Uncle Jake was shaken and pale. Puck, however, was furious.

“I’m going to rescue him!” he shouted angrily. His wings sprang from his back and his eyes turned coal black. He snatched his sword from his waist and flew toward the door that Canis had been led through, but Granny pulled him back by his foot.

“No, Puck!”

“He needs our help, old lady!” Puck shouted.

“No! Not here. Not this way. If you go after him they will arrest you next. Stay with us, Puck. I can’t bear to lose another member of my family.”

“What now?” Sabrina asked her grandmother. For the first time since she had met the old woman, her granny was speechless. She seemed dumbstruck by something at the far end of the room. Sabrina followed her gaze and saw the man in the black cloak staring back at them. Bluebeard joined him and shook his hand, as did Heart and Nottingham. And then something so much more shocking occurred than even Canis’s death sentence. The man reached up and removed his hood, revealing his identity. The man in the cloak was Prince William Charming.

Snow White saw the unveiling as well. Her already pale complexion grew whiter. She bit her lower lip and a tear rolled down her cheek. She turned to Granny Relda. “I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I can’t be here.”

Snow turned and ran out of the room. Charming watched her go, but then turned back to his new friends. Sabrina glared at the man like he was mold on the bottom of a toilet. She had never trusted Charming, but she had secretly hoped that Daphne was right about him. The little girl always believed he was a hero waiting for an opportunity. Even though he had come to the family’s aid occasionally, Sabrina had continued to have her doubts. It had never felt so miserable to be so right.

n the day the Big Bad Wolf was sentenced to die, it rained. Buckets of water spilled from dull, black clouds and flooded the streets. The town’s sewer system backed up and the water that didn’t make it to the nearby river flowed through the tiny hamlet without restraint.

Granny Relda wrapped herself in a rain jacket. Uncle Jake stood beside her holding an umbrella over her head. Sabrina recognized it as the same umbrella Mr. Canis had held over her the day she and Daphne arrived in Ferryport Landing. At first the children were told they had to stay home. Then Granny seemed to realize they’d sneak out anyway, and so she agreed to let them come along to say good-bye, but they were not to watch the execution. Sabrina knew it might be the last chance she had to apologize to the man who had been her family’s protector for almost two decades. She wanted to tell him how wrong she had been about him. He had never deserved her distrust.

The family drove to Main Street in their old jalopy. Sabrina sat remembering the times she had had with Canis. For the first time, the chaos and noise of the car went unnoticed.

They parked on a side street and walked up the block. In the center of Main Street, a large platform had been constructed. It had two levels. One was wide and close to the ground, the second was at the top of a tower, high above the other. A wooden beam held a noose above the second platform. A huge crowd had already gathered. Sabrina and her family moved to the front. Along the way, Everafters shouted angry comments and filthy words at them: The Grimms were a blight and a menace. They were disgusting and filthy humans. They were inferior and stupid and the cause of everyone’s suffering.

Bluebeard, Nottingham, Mayor Heart, and Charming appeared on the first platform. The crowd cheered their arrival and Heart waved like she was in a beauty pageant.

“We’ve waited a long time for this, haven’t we?” she shouted into her megaphone. Many in the crowd roared back at her. Most wore the mark of the Scarlet Hand. Heart raised her hand for their attention, then turned her gaze on the family. “But trust me, people. Today is just the beginning. Bring out the Wolf!”

The crowd cheered and broke into a chant of “Bring out the Wolf!”

Half a dozen card soldiers appeared with Canis in their midst. He towered over them, but they had swords, and Canis did not look as if he was going to put up a fight. The guards pushed him up to the second tower and the Ace of Spades wrapped a noose around his thick, hairy neck.

“I’d like to speak to my friend,” Granny said. She pushed her way to the tower and climbed the stairs.

“You’ll be up there yourself, soon!” someone shouted from the crowd.

Sabrina watched her grandmother talk to Canis. She couldn’t hear what she was saying, but it was obvious to her that Granny was begging him to break free and escape. He shook his head and spoke to her softly.

“What is she doing?” a voice said from behind them. Sabrina turned and found Snow White.

“I think she’s trying to convince him to make a run for it and kill anyone who gets in his way,” Uncle Jake said.

“He doesn’t seem to be listening,” Snow said.

“That’s because he’s smart,” another voice said. This one belonged to Bluebeard, who was standing uncomfortably close to the beautiful teacher. “Personally, I think he’s welcoming the opportunity to end his suffering. He’s committed so many atrocities. It must be hard on his soul.”

“You would know,” Snow said.

Bluebeard’s face turned crimson, but he calmed himself and even laughed. “Indeed.”

Sabrina couldn’t stand to be near him any longer. She snatched her sister’s hand, and together they climbed the tower to Granny and Canis.

“Girls, it’s not safe,” the old woman said.

“I need to say good-bye,” Sabrina said.

“Me, too,” Daphne added.

“I have been very rude to you. I have never treated you with the respect you deserved,” Sabrina said to Canis, then she turned to her sister. “It’s a problem I have. I seem to treat everyone badly.”

“You are young, Sabrina Grimm,” Canis said. “Time will supply you with wisdom. I’m sorry I will not be around to see how you use it.”

Daphne clung to Canis and hugged him tightly. “Good-bye, Tobias Clay.”

Canis looked confused.

“That was your name, before. You were a man once, free of the monster,” Sabrina said.

Canis shook his head. “A man? Is that true? I don’t remember anything before the incident. Did I have a wife? Children? Who was I?”

“We don’t know,” Sabrina said.

Mr. Canis seemed shocked. “If only I had known this—”

“Get your children down, now!” Heart bellowed through her megaphone.

Granny said a final good-bye and ushered the girls down the steps. They were only halfway down when Heart began shouting again.

“Does the prisoner have any final words?”

Canis looked out at the crowd and laughed.

“What’s so funny, mongrel?” Heart shouted.

“Look at all the monsters,” he said.

Heart snarled and pulled a lever. The floor beneath Canis slid open and his body fell like a stone. Sabrina knew that looking would haunt her for the rest of her life, but she couldn’t help herself. But Canis was not swinging from the end of a rope. In fact, he had landed on his feet on the ground. The rope was sliced in two and a red-quilled arrow was buried in the ground behind the platform. The crowd gasped and turned their attention away from the gallows. There, standing across the street, was Robin Hood, no longer in his suit and tie, but in a green shirt and brown tights. He was holding a bow with a second arrow trained on Mayor Heart. Little John stood next to him with a long wooden staff. Will Scarlet, Friar Tuck, and the rest of the Merry Men stood behind them.

“We’re back,” Little John bellowed with a grin. “Did you miss us?”

Robin Hood waved to the crowd. “For those of you wondering, the Sherwood Group is officially closed for business. Don’t worry about us, we’ll find other jobs. You know what they say, ‘do what you love and the money will come.’ I look forward to robbing all of you in the very near future.”

“That guy is so cool,” Puck said.

Nottingham pulled his sword. “I’ll kill you, Robin. This time I’ll make sure of it.” He dashed into the crowd, pushing and shoving in his eagerness to get to Robin.

The Merry Men rushed into the crowd as well, turning it into an enormous mob. Everyone was fighting—members of the Scarlet Hand even fought one another. Uncle Jake pulled Briar to safety. Then he found Granny and the girls and did the same. Puck, however, flew over the crowd, smacking the tops of people’s heads with his wooden sword.

“We have to get out of here,” Uncle Jake said, reaching into his pockets to arm himself with magical items.

“What about Mr. Canis?” Daphne asked.

Sabrina could see the huge man tossing people aside and roaring. “I think he’s OK.”

“Are we all here?” Granny asked.

Sabrina scanned the crowd. “Where’s Ms. White?”

In the chaos it was obvious that even a trained self-defense teacher like Snow could be seriously injured. Sabrina shouted at Puck. “Hey, dirtface. Find Snow White!”

Puck nodded and zipped away. A moment later he was back. “I found her. She’s in trouble. Follow me!”

The family raced after the flying boy. He took them a block away and down an alley. There they found Ms. White being dragged away by Bluebeard.

“Leave her alone!” Daphne shouted as they approached.

Bluebeard sneered. “You people run along. Snow and I are going to have a little talk about manners.”

Snow punched him in the face and he fell backward, but he sprang back to his feet almost immediately. He wrapped his arm around her neck and pulled a dagger from his pocket. He ran the tip along Snow’s throat.

“Stand back, folks. Let’s not get excited. I’d hate for someone to lose their head,” Bluebeard said. “Snow and I need to come to an understanding. I am a patient man but my patience has worn thin. I asked you out for a date and you rejected me. Do you know how that hurts?”

“You disgust me!” Snow cried.

“See what I mean? That’s just rude. I’m a very nice man, a pure gentleman, who wanted to take you out for dinner, and this is how you treat me.”

Sabrina heard someone running toward them. She spun around to find Charming approaching from the main street.

“Billy!” Snow cried.

“Charming,” Bluebeard said. “Have they captured the Wolf yet?”

“No, not yet,” Charming said.

“I was just having a conversation with Snow about how to respect other people,” Bluebeard said.

“I see. How is it going?”

“Not well. I wanted to give your ex a chance to redeem herself. She’s no friend of the Hand, what with her relationship with these lousy Grimms. I had hoped that if she were to get involved with me, it might save her life when the Master rises.”

“It’s hopeless,” Charming said. “I’ve tried.”

“Billy, what are you saying?” Snow cried.

Charming approached them and stared Snow hard in the face. “You’ve got yourself into another situation, Snow.”

“William, you don’t mind if I have a little fun with her?” Bluebeard asked. “If you’re done with her like you say you are, then you won’t mind.”

Charming was still, then he nodded.

He turned to walk back to the riot, but in a flash there was a sword in his hand. He whipped around and plunged it into Bluebeard’s side. The villain collapsed with the blade still in him. Snow broke free of his grasp and stumbled away. Bluebeard reached out for her, but then his eyes closed and he was still.