Hello guys! I am going to make this as brief as I possibly can while still answering reviews-I'm skipping the recap this time. Okay, I'm an hour and fourteen mintues late when I'm writing this-sorry. Also, if anybody noticed that I spelled the apology chapter name wrong... I was in a rush.

So, reviews!

Sabrina Grimm-your request is my command. Also, congratulations on being my first reviewer!

Sistersgrimmfan-I know, and seriously, thank you for alerting me, I didn't notice. But it's all fixed up now and hopefully a lot easier to read. I'm glad, I tried to make this one pretty long too. And I'm glad you liked the previous chapter.

M-I'm glad, I really like writing long chapters too, especially since I'm not even halfway through the first book and I have nine left to go through! I am really glad you liked it so much! Puckabrina is everything. I know, Puck's just super protective in my mind. I'm trying my best to keep on writing. You live on a farm? I admit I'm jealous. And you have a rabbit! And a dog. A farm, a rabbit and a dog, I'm really jealous now.

Emily-I like the name Hunter for a dog, it's cute. And that's a lot of ducks, not that I would be complaining if they were mine; ducks are adorable! Thank you.

Zay Zay-I was screaming myself when I accomplished that feat. Yeah... you totally don't scream normally(wink). The good news, you won't be needing that kill-princess-books-rule-if-she-doesn't-update knife anytime use so getting one for regular use would be good. I'm sorry about your Audrey. And I'm jealous of you owning a bunny and don't worry about being judged, my dog was named because he was a stray and a surprise-see it like this BOO twice-I actually didn't know that Michael Buckley wrote any new books, hmm. I've read N.E.R.D.S, which is a GREAT series(Not as good as SG but still), and Sisters Grimm from him. Nothing else. It's alright, we've all been woeful because we didn't own the SG at one point or another. I'm glad you liked it, I wish I got SG as a reading assignment, I know that's definitely happened to me before with my favorite books...like SG. So it's not only me that's been swamped? Man am I glad. We had a couple of tests this week and it was a nightmare. I'm really sorry I'm late, by the way.

ONTO THE CHAPTER! Hope you like it.

Oh, and I don't own the Sisters Grimm. Michael Buckley does. In fact, I don't own anything.

"Great deduction, Sherlock." Puck said boredly.

Sabrina growled threateningly.

"Enough, lieblings, continue, Jacob."

Mrs. Grimm and Mr. Canis were pulling a prank on them. It explained why Mrs. Grimm talked to the house and served her crazy food and why Mr. Canis said so little and acted so weird. They were trying to make the girls look stupid, which made Sabrina furious.

"They didn't need to try to make you look stupid, Grimm, your clothes were enough for that."

Sabrina glowered at him.

And worse, the joke didn't seem to end. They spent the rest of the day traipsing over the field for more "clues," until Mrs. Grimm looked at her wristwatch and said they'd better get home for dinner.

"God, you're really very dense, Grimmazoid."

"Do. You. Want. To. Die!?"

At the house, Mrs. Grimm prepared a huge plate of meatballs for the girls, complete with purple gravy, the recipe for which she claimed she'd gotten from a Tibetan monk. Too hungry to resist, Sabrina cut a meatball in half to make sure there weren't any poison pills inside and, finding none, took a bite.

"What if she'd used arsenic or something?" Jake asked reasonably.

"Thanks, Jacob." Relda said drolly.

"I'm just saying from 'brina's point of view, Mom."

It tasted like pizza. She devoured the plateful and was working on seconds when Mrs. Grimm joined them, placing a weathered old book on the table.

"So, we've got a mystery on our hands, lieblings. We should do some research. A good detective always does her research. Let's see. Giants. What do we know about them? Oh, here's one, 'The Tailor and the Giant,'" she said as she flipped through the pages.

"Always a good read that one. If it's a bit strange." Daphne said idly.

"You're a very strange human being, Daph."

"OK, you've had your fun," Sabrina said fiercely. "Don't you think we're a little old to fall for your joke?"

"If it had been a joke I would've fallen for it." Daphne giggled a little.

Mrs. Grimm looked up from her book in astonishment.

"You can't really think it was a giant!" Sabrina cried.

"I thought that was impossible!"

"Well, of course I do," the old woman replied without blinking.

"Granny, there's no such thing as giants," Daphne said between bites of meatball.

"Oh dear, I knew your father wanted to distance himself, but I never imagined he wouldn't have at least taught you the basics," the old woman said. "No wonder you two have been looking at me like I'm crazy."

"Henry." Veronica scoffed, Henry cringed.

"I'm sorry, I didn't want them getting involved for safety reasons."

"Great job, with that." Puck said snarkily.

"What are you talking about?" Sabrina cried.

"I'm talking about this," Mrs. Grimm said as she flipped the book to its first page.

"Grimms' Fairy Tales," Daphne read aloud.

"Literally us, now."

The old woman flipped to the next page. On it were portraits of two very ugly men.

Basil snorted, "Our ancestors?"

"Not particularly handsome men, Baz."

"Now I know where you got it, Grimm."

"I really hate you."

"Do you know who these men are?" she asked. The girls looked at the portraits but said nothing. They didn't look familiar to Sabrina. "These men were Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, also known as the Brothers Grimm. Wilhelm was your great-great-great-great grandfather," said the old woman as she pointed to the portrait of a thin man with a large nose, tiny eyes, and long hair.

"DUMBLEDORE!" Daphne hooted for evidently no reason.

Veronica laughed.

"Grimms' Fairy Tales! The fairy-tale guys?" Daphne cried.

"Yes, liebling, the fairy-tale guys. But there is nothing in this book that's a fairy tale. This is a history book. Every story is an account of something that really happened."

The girls looked at each other, unsure of what to say.

"How about? And the best of them all, Puck, is he in there?"

"I AM GOING TO KILL YOU!" Sabrina screeched, her knife appearing in her hand. Glaring at the boy.

"Jeez, relax, Grimm."

"Back when Jacob and Wilhelm were alive, fairy-tale creatures were still living among people," Mrs. Grimm continued. "You could still wake up and find a giant beanstalk on your farm or pixies in your barn or see a group of knights fight a dragon. But things were changing. For a long time, a tension had been building between humans and fairy-tale creatures. Everafters were being persecuted, even arrested or forced into hiding, just because they were different. Magic was banned and dragons were captured and caged. The brothers realized that the age of fairy tales might be coming to an end, so they set out to document as many stories as they could, for posterity's sake. Some of the things they wrote about in their book happened hundreds of years before they were born, while others Jacob and Wilhelm witnessed themselves. Naturally, as they collected these tales, they made a lot of friends of Everafters."

"If only most of those friendships had lasted." Sabrina said darkly.

"What's an Everafter?" Daphne asked.

"Alternate definition; Grimms."

"That's what fairy-tale creatures call themselves. After all, fairy-tale creature implies that they are all some sort of monster or animal. Many of them are human, or once were, before a spell changed them. They can be quite touchy about it.

"Ya think?"

"So, like generations of poor and persecuted before them, many Everafters decided to move to America. Back then so much of this country hadn't been settled that for a group of folks trying to keep a low profile it seemed like the ideal place to live and thrive. Wilhelm acted as their ambassador. He found ships and used his connections to buy five square miles on the Hudson River. The Everafters built this town on the land, more Everafters came here from all over the world, and for a long time everyone lived together in peace. But inevitably human beings started to move into Ferryport Landing, and soon the Everafters felt endangered again. Wilhelm tried to convince everyone that there was nothing to worry about, but a small and vocal group of rebels argued that it was just a matter of time before they would be persecuted again. They saw humanity as an infestation that needed to be rooted out at the source, and began tormenting the humans who had once been their friends."

"Do you think Mirror was masterminding it back then? Or that was just the revived Scarlet Hand?" Red wondered.

"I'm not sure… I don't know which of our ancestors really started utilizing Mirror."

"That's not nice," Daphne said.

"I agree, but fear can make people do terrible things. Wilhelm tried everything he could but the rebels' popularity and numbers were growing…

"Were they considered the Scarlet Hand? They probably weren't were they…"

...It wasn't long before a plan was discovered by Wilhelm to conquer Cold Spring—the next town over—and make it part of Ferryport's territory. Desperate to prevent what would surely be an all-out war between Everafters and humans, Wilhelm went to the most powerful witch in town, Baba Yaga. Together they cast a spell on the town, preventing any of the Everafters from leaving."

"Die Barriere." The barrier.

"And then what?" Daphne asked. Sabrina watched her sister's widening eyes. She seemed to believe every word the old woman had said, and even if she didn't really, the little girl was happy enough here to want to believe.

"I really did believe her, though." Daphne objected.

"All I'm saying, is that you were a tad naive."

"A tad, Grimm?"

"Shut up."

"Then the problems really began … especially for Wilhelm," the old woman said.

"You see, to get Baba Yaga to cast such a powerful spell, Wilhelm had to sacrifice something of his own. Magic always has a price and what the old witch wanted was what Wilhelm had taken from the Everafters—his freedom. It's a price that hangs over our family to this day. A Grimm must stay in Ferryport Landing, just like the Everafters, as long as the spell is intact. It's the reason I couldn't come to the orphanage and get you myself."

"That would've been bizarre to see you outside of Ferryport, I have to say."

"Isn't there something that could break the spell?" said Daphne.

"Death, literally. Literally, death."

"Want to repeat it again?" Red teased warmly.

"Yes, there is," Mrs. Grimm said as she shifted in her chair. "The spell will be broken when the last member of this family is dead. When there are no more Grimms, the Everafters will be free."

"What a bummer," Sabrina said.

Veronica choked out a laugh.

"It would be if Grimm was the last one to go." Puck pointed out, causing Sabrina to roll her eyes at him.

"Indeed," Mrs. Grimm said, ignoring Sabrina's sarcasm. "But we make the best of it, and so do most of the Everafters.

"Operative word; most."

They keep a low profile, buying homes and starting businesses. Some have families and have even given up their magical powers and possessions in hopes of living more normal lives. And, with a couple of exceptions, things have been pretty peaceful in Ferryport Landing between humans and Everafters. But just a look through Jacob and Wilhelm's book, and the books of Hans Christian Andersen, Andrew Lang, Lewis Carroll, Jonathan Swift, and countless other chroniclers of Everafters shows you how fragile the peace is, and that trouble could be right around the corner. So, like Wilhelm, we have the responsibility of keeping this pot from boiling over. We watch the town, investigate anything strange or criminal, and document what we see, so that when we are gone our children will know what we went through. Think of us as detectives. Someday I will pass all of this on to you, as your Opa Basil passed it on to me when he died. It is your destiny. We are Grimms and this is what we do."

"I swear, that should be your motto." Puck snorted.

"It literally is, fairy boy."

"But why didn't you pass it on to Dad?" Daphne wondered.

"Because your father is an idiot." Jake paused and said.

"Your grandfather lost his life because of our responsibilities," the old woman said as she lowered her eyes.

Jake and Red winced simultaneously.

"Henry wanted something else for his children, so when your mother became pregnant with you, Sabrina, they left Ferryport Landing. He wanted to protect you and give you normal lives. Even if it meant telling you I was dead."

"That was a genius move right there." Puck said sarcastically.

Veronica muttered something that sounded like, "I fell in love with an idiot."

"Don't talk about my mom and dad like you knew them!" Sabrina shouted. The rage inside her was bubbling over. "I've sat here and listened to your silly story, but you're not going to tell a fairy tale about my parents."

Sabrina was biting back laughter, but after a moment, burst out laughing. "I...was...so...stupid!"

The old woman was startled and tried to stammer out an answer, but Sabrina wouldn't let her. She had Mrs. Grimm on the ropes and she wasn't going to let her up.

"You're really starting to sound like a sixties' sleuth." Daphne giggled.

"I know." Sabrina chuckled.

"You are not our grandmother!" the girl raged. "Our grandmother died before we were born! My dad told us so."

Veronica's glare could've burnt a normal person to ashes. Her husband was the tiniest more resilient. But only by a tiny bit.

"Your dad lied to you, liebling. Henry tried to run from his destiny. He didn't want this life for you, but it is your destiny as well. Your being here is evidence enough that it is impossible to escape. You will see the truth soon enough, and when you do we will prepare you for what lies ahead."

"My father never told a lie in his life," Sabrina cried.

Sabrina wasn't the only one either holding in or just outright laughing at this point. Henry, never tell a lie? HA!

The old woman laughed as she got up from the table. "It sounds like he hid more from you than the family history. I'm sure you need some time to let this sink in, and I have some things I need from upstairs. We're going to the hospital to see the poor farmer who owned that house. He might be able to tell us more about what he saw."

"Am I coming up y…"

"YES!" Sabrina yelled over Puck's repeated question.

She left the room and went up the stairs, where the girls could hear the jangling of keys and knew she was opening her secret room.

"That woman is a lunatic," Sabrina whispered.

"She is not!" Daphne cried. "What's a lunatic?"

"Crazy person." Sabrina said automatically.

"A crazy person. She thinks people live in the woods, she's nailed all the windows shut, she talks to the house, and now she thinks fairy tales and giants are real. We can't stay here."

"Crazy as if Peter Pan existed." Jake said purposefully.

"JAKE!"

"What if I don't want to go?"

"You don't get a say. Mom and Dad put me in charge when they weren't around, and you have to do what I tell you to do."

"You're not the boss of me." Daphne crossed her arms in front of her chest and huffed indignantly.

"We're out of here as soon as I see a chance," Sabrina declared.

"Actually, it's a pretty good thing I did… well, actually. No, cause then we could have just driven away." Sabrina reasoned, seemingly to herself.

"What?" Henry asked blankly.

"You'll see."

After dinner, they were off to the hospital, with Mr. Canis driving again. Asking the old woman questions was pointless, as the car was as loud as ever. Once they had arrived at the hospital and Mr. Canis had turned off the engine, Mrs. Grimm said to the children, "OK, let's review what we know so far, so we don't get confused. It's important for detectives to review their clues."

"Also important not to get beat up by a group of thugs." Daphne commented.

Her grandmother and Sabrina snorted; Mr. Canis cracked a smile.

"What?" Veronica asked incredulously.

The previous night was catching up with Sabrina. She was so tired she didn't even have the energy to argue.

"You? Not have the energy to argue?"

"Puck, I am warning you."

"First, a farmhouse was destroyed by what appears to have been a giant's foot. A footprint surrounded the destruction," Mrs. Grimm continued. "Second, a giant beanstalk leaf was found at the scene, a definitive sign of a giant. And it has been touched by a giant."

"How do you know that?" Sabrina asked.

"Because Elvis smelled its scent on the leaf."

"How does Elvis know what a giant smells like?"

"How does Elvis know half the things he knows? He's practically human."

"Because," Mrs. Grimm said, pulling the brown fabric out of her handbag that she had held under the dog's nose that morning, "he smelled this. It's cloth from a giant's trousers. Take a sniff."

Sabrina and Daphne wrinkled their noses at exactly the same moment at the memory of the less than pleasant smell.

Daphne smelled the piece of cloth and looked as if she might be sick. "E-gad!"

"Everything has its own particular scent, but giants are really stinky," the old woman explained.

"Puck's is stupidity."

"Yours is idiocy."

"Everybody and everything they touch will stink like them, too. I knew Elvis's nose would help us find a clue."

"This is nonsense," Sabrina said with equal amounts of scorn and exhaustion.

"My entire life is nonsensical," Sabrina said warmly.

Mrs. Grimm ignored Sabrina's protests. "Of course, there's also the lens cap from a video camera we found on the hill overlooking the farm. My guess is the criminal wanted to videotape the giant when he arrived. And lastly, Mayor Charming showed up and he's …"

"Is Mayor Charming Prince Charming?" Daphne asked.

Mr. Canis made a huffing noise, and Daphne snorted.

"Why, yes, liebling."

The little girl squealed in delight. "We met a celebrity!"

Sabrina let out a loud chuckle. "The first, and last, time you would ever call Charming a celebrity."

Mrs. Grimm chuckled, and then broke into a full laugh when she noticed the scowl on Mr. Canis's face.

"Stupid Charming."

"Old friend, you have a serious problem."

"As I was saying, Mayor Charming showed up and tried to get us to give up our investigation," Mrs. Grimm continued. "If this were just an accident, he wouldn't have bothered to come by and check on it.

"When he first arrived, he was angry that someone he called the Three hadn't done a good job cleaning up the place," Daphne offered.

"Oh, I forgot about the three."

"The Three isn't a person, they're a coven of witches; Glinda the Good Witch of the North, Morgan Le Fay, and the gingerbread house witch, Frau Pfefferkuchenhaus. They work for the mayor. He calls them magical advisors, but they really just sweep whatever trouble there is under the carpet."

"Hold on, let's analyze the three for a moment. Glinda was part of the Scarlet Hand, Morgan… Well, Morgan just rocks. And Frau was on our side. Now the coven is made up of Daphne, Baba Yaga, and Morgan. I think the new lineup is far stranger." Sabrina pointed out.

"I thought you said that Everafters gave up their magic," Sabrina said, hoping she had caught the old woman in a lie.

"I was so sure it was a lie."

"No, I said some of them did, and in most cases, it was voluntary. I'm sure there's plenty of stuff hidden away in closets and attics all over Ferryport Landing," Mrs. Grimm replied. "Including, apparently, a magic bean I wasn't aware even existed. Let's go inside."

"Stupid Mirror."

Ferryport Landing Memorial Hospital was tiny, at least small compared to the giant skyscraper hospitals Sabrina was familiar with within New York City.

"You really did compare everything to New York." Red said quietly.

"A flaw, Scarlet."

It had only two floors and no ambulances in front of the emergency room door. They left Mr. Canis in the car and, as they headed inside, passed a short, squat man and his two huge companions waiting by the hospital door.

"What were their names? Tony? Maybe?" Daphne tried to recall.

"Bobby? Wait, I think I'm thinking of those guards of Faerie… we'll see." Sabrina replied.

They were impeccably dressed in expensive suits, perfectly tailored to fit their extreme frames. The short man stared at Sabrina, sending a flash of heat to her face.

We look like idiots, Sabrina thought as she tried to tug her high-water pants down a little.

"You always look like an idiot, Grimm."

"You always are an idiot."

Inside, doctors and nurses rushed around the brightly lit hallways. The place smelled of cleaner and antiseptic, which tickled Sabrina's nose. The three Grimms managed to maneuver through the chaos and approach the information desk, where a portly receptionist sat talking on the phone. He had a large, round face and a toothy grin, and when he saw them, he put the phone to his chest and smiled.

"Can I help you ladies?"

"We're here to see Thomas Applebee. He was in an accident recently," Mrs. Grimm said.

"Oh, yes, the man whose house blew up. He's in room 222," the receptionist replied. "Popular fellow, he just had three people up to see him."

"Ooh! This is getting juicy!" Puck said sarcastically.

Mrs. Grimm cocked an eyebrow. "Indeed? Well, is there somewhere I should sign in?"

The receptionist handed the old woman a clipboard. Before she handed it back, she quickly pointed out three names on the list to the girls: a Mr. William Charming, a Mr. Seven, and a Ms. Glinda North had signed in ten minutes ago.

"Those…" weeze. "Were…." Weeze. "Really…" weeze. "Their…" weeze. "Human names?" Jake was laughing so hard his ribs hurt.

"Girls, we have to hurry."

They rushed down a hallway, through two double doors, and made a left, stopping at an elevator. Mrs. Grimm pushed the Up button several times.

"Why are we rushing?" Sabrina asked.

"Because Charming is here to erase the farmer's memory!" the old woman said as the elevator doors slid open and they stepped inside. They got out on the second floor, found room 222, and rushed inside.

"222 times 3 is 666." Red said idly.

On the bed was Thomas Applebee, a graying old man with his left arm in a sling and his right leg encased in plaster and held above the bed by a pulley system. Sabrina winced at how painful it looked and thought the poor man was lucky to be asleep. Standing over him were Mayor Charming, Mr. Seven (still wearing his insulting hat), and a rather chubby woman wearing a diamond tiara and a silver-and-gold dress.

"Glinda North?" Veronica chuckled a bit.

The woman was slowly emptying a bag of pink dust onto the sleeping patient. When she saw Mrs. Grimm, she dumped the contents all over the man and shoved the bag into her purse.

"Glinda, you've erased his memory," Mrs. Grimm cried. "I thought you were supposed to be a good witch."

"Yeah… that was a lie."

The witch's face flushed red. She lowered her head and quickly made her way to the door.

"We all have to pay our bills, Relda," Glinda said as she walked out.

"I don't." Basil said with a yawn.

"Save your indignation," Charming added as he and Mr. Seven followed. "This is part of my job."

"Erasing people's memories? I don't think that's in the job description." Henry remarked.

Mrs. Grimm looked discouraged. "He'll never be able to tell us anything," she said loudly, as if for the benefit of the three people who had just left. "And without an eyewitness account, we're never going to get to the bottom of this."

"Great misdirection, old lady."

"Oh shut up, fairy boy."

After several seconds, she poked her head out of the room.

"They're gone."

"What are we doing here?" Sabrina asked. She didn't feel comfortable waiting around in the hospital room of a man she didn't even know. Especially after people had been dumping what looked like the contents of a vacuum cleaner bag all over him.

"A v… I miss forgetful dust." Red said thoughtfully.

"We still have it for emergencies, liebling." Relda told the younger girl.

"So little nowadays, though."

"We're waiting."

"For who?" Daphne asked, but no sooner had she said it than a thin, frail woman with gray-streaked black hair entered the room. When she saw Mrs. Grimm and the girls, she got a worried look on her face.

"Mrs. Applebee, I'm Relda Grimm and these are my granddaughters, Sabrina and Daphne. We heard about the accident. Are you OK?" Mrs. Grimm said.

"Oh, I'm fine. Thank you for asking. Do you know my husband?"

"This is so boring!" Puck yelled.

"Well, fairy, we are here because of you! In case you've forgotten!" Sabrina snapped.

"Yeah, I'm going to reveal all your dark secrets, Grimm."

"You are literally revealing BOTH of our darkest secrets!"

Puck paused, "Yeah, okay, good point."

"Whaaaaat?" Daphne inquired.

"Nevermind, Marshmallow."

"Oh, no, we're just concerned citizens and neighbors. I happen to do a little detective work from time to time and I was thinking I might be able to help. How is your husband?"

Mrs. Applebee gazed down at the broken man and smiled sadly. "To be honest, I'm a little worried about him. He was raving earlier. The doctors gave him a sedative to calm him down … Wait a minute, he's waking up," she said as he began to stir. He opened his eyes and looked at the three strangers in his room.

"Thomas, how are you feeling?" Mrs. Applebee asked as she sat next to his bed and rubbed his hand.

"Raving?" Veronica asked curiously.

"Thomas?" Puck asked condescendingly.

"Yeah, cause Puck is sooo much better." Sabrina replied.

"Debra, who are these people?" the farmer asked his wife.

"They're with the police," Mrs. Applebee replied.

Mrs. Grimm stepped forward. "Not the police, dear. I'm a detective … of sorts. Mr. Applebee, my name is Relda Grimm, and these are my granddaughters. I'm very glad to see you weren't too badly injured, considering …"

"You three are detectives?" Mr. Applebee looked from Mrs. Grimm to the children, eyeing them suspiciously.

"Grouchy old codger." Mr. Canis muttered, eliciting laughter.

"Yes," Mrs. Grimm said, causing Daphne to practically swell with pride.

"Well, I think a crime has been committed, Mrs. Grimm," Mr. Applebee said.

"You do?"

"They should arrest whoever dressed your granddaughters this morning."

Puck guffawed. "Grimm's face is a crime in and of itself." Pause. "Wait, forget I said that."

"Why, Puck?" Daphne inquired with faux innocence.

"Shut up."

"Thomas, stop it! I think they look adorable," Mrs. Applebee cried. "I'm sorry, he's been a grouch since we got here. He doesn't like hospitals."

"Join the club, buddy."

Sabrina looked down at her goofy outfit and seethed with anger. Who would buy a girl who was almost twelve a shirt with a monkey on it?

"A colorblind (were?)man."

"Well, what can I do for you, Mrs. Grimm?" Mr. Applebee grunted.

"Do you remember anything about the accident?" the old woman said.

"What accident?" the farmer asked.

"He didn't remember it at all?" Jake exclaimed.

"Well, the Three fixed his house."

"And I wiped the wife's memory."

Mrs. Grimm frowned.

"What accident!" Mrs. Applebee exclaimed. "Thomas, the house has been destroyed and I found you lying in the yard."

"I don't know what you're talking about. There's nothing wrong with the house," Mr. Applebee argued.

"What Mrs. Applebee must have thought."

"Oh, dear, the painkillers are really doing a number on you," Mrs. Applebee said, shifting anxiously in her seat. The farmer returned his wife's stare with an innocent look.

"That, apparently."

"Mrs. Grimm, I don't think my husband is up to discussing the case right now," his wife said.

"I understand. Perhaps you might have a moment to spare us, then?"

"Of course." Mrs. Applebee gestured for them to follow her into the hallway.

"So sorry to trouble you," Mrs. Grimm said to the farmer as they walked toward the door. "I do hope you feel better soon, Mr. Applebee."

Daphne stopped and turned to the injured man. "I like my outfit," she said and stuck her tongue out.

"Very mature, Daphne." Red laughed.

"I was literally seven."

Mr. Applebee stuck his tongue out, too, and the little girl stomped out of the room.

"He's acting very odd right now," Mrs. Applebee said when they were in the hallway. "I'm considering taking him out of this hospital."

"And take him where? The multitude of other hospitals in Ferryport?"

"Oh, I'm sure he's in good hands. So, you said he was raving about something," Mrs. Grimm prompted.

"Oh, it's silly. He swore he'd seen a giant."

"He saw?"

"Of course, otherwise Charming mightn't have erased his memory."

"Oh, well, wouldn't that be a sight." Mrs. Grimm chuckled.

"Yes, yes it would."

"But I have a different theory about what happened," Mrs. Applebee explained. "There was a British man out to the farm several times, asking us if we would rent the place to him for a couple of nights. He said he needed the field for a special event, but only for a couple of days. At first he was very friendly, but when Thomas refused he got quite nasty."

"Giants...camera...oh." Veronica's eyes widened.

"Has he come back?" Mrs. Grimm asked.

"Well, that's just it. A week later he did come back and apologized for being so rude. He said he wanted to make it up to us so he booked us into a fancy hotel in New York City, all expenses paid, and tickets to a Broadway show. We hadn't had a vacation in years—farming is a tough business—so I accepted."

"I sense fishiness." Red sang.

"How nice. Did you enjoy your vacation?"

"Not at all. When I got there I found that the hotel didn't have any record of our reservation and the tickets to the show were counterfeit," Mrs. Applebee said angrily.

"I knew it."

"You say you found out. Didn't your husband go with you?" Mrs. Grimm said.

"Oh, no, Thomas doesn't care for the city much," Mrs. Applebee sighed, tears forming in her eyes. "I took my sister. We had to use our own money for a hotel and the only place with a room was infested with bedbugs."

"How dreadful," Mrs. Grimm sympathized. "Mrs. Applebee, this man's name didn't happen to be Charming, did it?"

"Oh no, it was Englishman," the woman replied, sniffing.

"Eng...Englishman?"

"What did this Mr. Englishman look like?"

"I'm sorry, I never saw him. Thomas had all the dealings with him."

"One last question, Mrs. Applebee. I'm sure you want to get back to your husband. Do either of you own a video camera?" Mrs. Grimm took a clean handkerchief out of her handbag and offered it to the woman. Sabrina noticed that a soft, pink powder fell from the handkerchief as the woman wiped her eyes.

"Oh. That was pretty good." Henry said approvingly.

"No, we don't. Mr. Applebee is a little tight with the money, if you know what I mean." Suddenly, Sabrina noticed a change in the woman's face. It seemed to wipe itself of all emotion and her eyes drifted into a blank stare.

"I've never liked that blasted dust."

"I'm sorry, have we met?" Mrs. Applebee asked, her voice distant.

"No," Mrs. Grimm replied. "But I hear you had a wonderful time in New York City."

"What about the sister?" Sabrina wondered.

"Charming had that taken care of; erased her memory after we had dealt with the giants."

"OK," Mrs. Applebee said. Then she turned and went into her husband's room without saying good-bye.

Mrs. Grimm pulled her notebook out of her handbag and jotted down some notes. "So, the plot thickens," she said with a wide smile. "We can definitely say there was a giant, now."

"I thought you were a nut."

"There's no such thing as giants!" Sabrina said, a bit louder than she meant to. The declaration echoed down the hospital hallway.

"We know." Veronica answered her daughter's previous statement with a smile.

"Sabrina!" Daphne shouted.

"You heard the woman," Sabrina said in a much lower tone. "This Mr. Englishman wanted to rent their farm for some special event. When the farmer wouldn't agree, he lost his temper and blew the place up. Charming is probably trying to cover this up because he's in on it."

"Know what's hilarious? That would be exactly what happened if Everafters didn't exist."

"Then I doubt we'd be investigating in the first place."

"Sabrina, I'm proud of you," Mrs. Grimm said as she led them into the elevator. "You have incredible skills of deduction. You looked at the clues and chose the most likely path to solve the crime. You're going to make a great detective. But how do you explain the footprint?"

"Stumped, Grimm?"

"Die, fairy."

"Listen, I don't know where you live, but my sister and I are here on Earth where things can easily be explained without having to consider giants. Maybe whatever Englishman used to blow up the house caused the ground to sink."

"Planet Everafters/Fairytales are real."

"Brilliant, but there's a loose end in your theory. When someone blows something up, usually pieces fly everywhere. This house looked like it had been squashed from above," Mrs. Grimm pointed out. The elevator stopped and the Grimms stepped into the busy emergency room lobby.

"Here it comes." Sabrina murmured.

"The house was stomped on," Daphne said.

"That's my theory," the old woman said as they left the hospital. "And I know who is responsible."

"Probably should have told you, in hindsight. Considering what happens because I didn't."

"Very true, Granny." Daphne agreed.

"Jake? Read faster."

"Who is it?" Daphne squealed.

"I think you'll enjoy it more if it's a surprise."

"Well, hello, ladies," a voice said as three men emerged from the deep shadows that lined the pathway to the parking lot.

"I hate where this is going." Henry said immediately.

"Stop interrupting." Puck told him firmly.

They were the same men in suits who had been staring at them when they entered the hospital. The small, dumpy one held an iron bar that he kept smacking into his gloved hand. The men on either side of him stood like huge, muscle-bound bookends to their much shorter leader.

"I love that description." Red giggled.

"Good evening, gentlemen," Mrs. Grimm said calmly, despite the fact that one glance told Sabrina the men were trouble.

"Thanks for the obvious." Puck said absentmindedly.

"We hear you've been asking some questions about a certain piece of property," the dumpy leader said. Sabrina saw that his nose had been broken in three places. She could tell he wasn't a man to mess with.

"Aw, thanks 'brina."

Sabrina laughed.

"Then you've heard correctly, young man," Mrs. Grimm said as she placed herself squarely between the girls and the thugs. Daphne grabbed her sister's hand and squeezed tightly, but Sabrina hardly noticed. She was too awestruck by the old woman's courage.

No one dared interrupt the hurried reading of Jake.

"Well, if you know what's good for you, then you'll just forget about the whole thing," the leader said with a wicked grin that revealed the absence of a front tooth.

"If I knew what was good for me, I wouldn't be in this line of work," Mrs. Grimm replied. "Now, if you'd be so kind to let us pass, I really must get my granddaughters out of the cold air."