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Sabrina instinctively stepped between her sister and the stranger. She'd read
The Arabian Nights recently, researching ji
"Is that so?" Moth said angrily to Sinbad. "Well, what are you going to do about it?'
The sailor's men pulled nasty-looking daggers out of their coats.
"No fairies on the ferry," Sinbad said. "Oberon may have been able to force us to pay his lousy taxes, but he's dead. I'm not about to let some other fairy come in and take our hard-earned money."
"We're not fairies," Daphne said. "We're detectives and we're trying to find the person who killed Oberon."
Sinbad cocked an eyebrow. "Praise be! Can it be you? Can it be that I am in the presence of Veronica Grimm's children?"
Daphne nodded, and the men put their daggers away.
"I am honored to meet you," Sinbad said. "It was a dark day in my heart when your mother vanished. What brings you here?"
"The fairy who killed King Oberon is on the boat that just left," Gra
Sinbad looked at his men and then looked back at the group. "I may be of some assistance," he said and led everyone to the next docking station. He took out a key, unlocked a huge door, and slid it open. Behind it was a second ferryboat.
"You've got your own boat?" Hamstead asked.
"I'am the harbormaster for the Staten Island Ferry," Sinbad said proudly. He helped them onboard, then led them up a flight of steps to the bridge. He started the boat's engine as his men untied its mooring lines from the dock. When the boat was free, the men shouted up to their captain, and he pulled down a lever, easing the ferry away from the dock with expert care. In no time they were cruising away from Manhattan in pursuit of Cobweb.
"Chasing a murderer… is this not dangerous work for young girls?" Sinbad asked.
"We're Grimms, this is what we do," Daphne said.
Sinbad laughed. "Your mother used to say the same thing whenever I had to help her out of one of her many close calls. Not that I minded. I have to admit, I myself was much smitten with her."
"You had a crush on our mother?" Daphne asked.
"I'd hardly call it a crush. I was head over heals, to be honest. Veronica was quite a woman and I've known a great many in my day. She was brilliant and strong, if a bit stubborn."
"Sounds like someone I know," Gra
"I asked her to run away with me nearly a thousand times, but she always rebuffed me. She said she had eyes for only one man. I suppose it was your father she spoke of. The fates were smiling on him the day he met her."
Sabrina was livid. Hearing him talk about her mother this way was infuriating. Sinbad noticed and smiled.
"Little one, allow a man to dream. Your mother never took my advances seriously. Most of the time she was too busy with her big plan to fix our community to even notice I was flirting."
One of Sinbad's crew raced to the bridge. He looked nervous and sweaty. "My lord, we have a big problem."
"What is it?"
"Pirates!"
"Again!" Sinbad scowled. "It is the third time this week!"
"Pirates? What pirates?" Sabrina cried, but Sinbad rushed out onto the deck with his man. The Grimms and their friends dashed after him and found the entire crew standing on one side of the boat peering at something through binoculars.
Sabrina snatched a pair of binoculars from the nearest sailor and sca
"You've got to be kidding me," Sabrina said, handing the binoculars to her grandmother.
Just then, an enormous explosion could be heard coming from the pirate boat. A moment later something big crashed into the water not far from the ferry.
"They dare fire on me? Sinbad? Master of the sea? Turn this ship toward them and see how brave they are with our cutlasses at their throats," the captain cried. His men cheered and several raced to the helm. The ferry made an abrupt turn and headed straight for the approaching pirates.
"Turn this ship around!" Mr. Canis cried. "We're after a killer. We have no interest in your petty turf war!"
"You have nothing to fear, my large friend, praise be. I am Sinbad and I have faced these foul vermin before. Of course, maybe we should arm you. Men, hand out some steel!"
The men shoved large swords into everyone's hands.
"What are we supposed to do with these?" Sabrina asked, alarmed.
"They're quite useful for killing pirates," Sinbad said as he hurried back to the bridge.
"I don't think I'm allowed to kill pirates!" Daphne called after him. She looked up at Gra
The old woman shook her head, collected the children's swords, and handed them to one of Sinbad's men.
Another of the crew rushed toward them with life jackets.
"What do we need these for?" Hamstead asked as there was another loud splash off the side of the boat.
"In case we have to jump," the man replied.
"Why would we have to jump?"
"If the boat were about to blow up," the sailor said as if he were talking about something as ordinary as gardening or making toast.
Hamstead cringed and turned to Sabrina. "Pigs don't swim," he whispered nervously.
There was an enormous crash, and the cabin wall they were standing next to exploded, sending wood and glass everywhere. Sabrina tumbled to the floor.
"We've taken a hit!" Sinbad shouted. "It's time to show those devils what kind of men we are! Let's do this old school, shall we?"
The crew roared in approval. One of Sinbad's men rushed to a panel on the wall. Inside was a red button, which he pounded hard with his fist. He turned to the passengers with a wide smile. There was an odd mechanical grinding and then the sound of rockets firing. Suddenly, the top of the ferry flew off and crashed into the water. A hole opened up in the deck and a long wooden pole soared skyward. Farther down the deck, an identical pole was rising, and when both had extended as far as they could, huge rolls of fabric unfurled from the top. The fabric squares had ropes attached to their corners. It quickly dawned on Sabrina that they were sails, and the crew went about tying them into position. The cold winter wind heaved against the boat and Sabrina felt it pick up speed.
Sinbad's voice rose above the noise, saying, "Stand clear for artillery upload."
Suddenly more slots opened along both sides of the boat and out poked heavy black ca
"We have to get off this thing!" Sabrina cried. She grabbed her sister and grandmother and raced to the edge of the boat, looking back to make sure Puck's cocoon and the rest of her group were safely behind her. Then she turned and peered into the black water below and realized how very cold it would be-the freezing temperature would mean almost certain death. They were trapped onboard, and worse, the crew of the ferry seemed to be loving the situation. When a ca
"Ladies, would you like to set off the return volley?" Sinbad asked, suddenly appearing before them, sword gleaming at his side. He was holding a flaming torch, which he offered to them.