A Grimm Warning (The Land of Stories, #3)(38)

Rook shook his head. “I don’t want to be a bad influence, especially to an up-and-coming fairy. It could get us both into a lot of trouble.”

Alex was appreciative of this but was even more curious about what he was getting at. “Then tonight I’ll just be Alex,” she said. “What’s on your mind?”

Rook laughed at her and caved in. “All right, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He chuckled. “I was just going to suggest that if you’re curious about Little Bo Peep’s intentions, we could sneak onto her farm and have a look around. I know right where it is—it’s on the southeast side of the Red Riding Hood Kingdom, not too far from our farm. Her farmhands sold my father some sheep once.”

Alex’s conscience instantly shot down the idea. As a respected fairy, it would be extremely irresponsible and childish of her to spy on Little Bo Peep. She would never want to do anything that could potentially jeopardize her reputation. But the answer she gave Rook took them both by surprise.

“Let’s do it!”

Rook was shocked. He had been half kidding but the excitement in Alex’s eyes was contagious. “Are you sure you’re up for it? I’m not pressuring you, am I?”

In truth, the only thing pressuring Alex was Alex herself. It felt like ages since she’d experienced a true adventure. She craved the fear of getting caught and missed the thrill of being chased.

“Let’s ride Cornelius,” Alex said. “It’ll take us a quarter of the time to get there.”

She confidently turned around and headed back to the field. Rook froze for a moment before catching up with her—he liked her more and more with every moment they spent together. When they returned to the field Alex whistled for Cornelius and he appeared shortly after.

“Good evening, Cornelius,” Alex said. “Rook and I are going to the Red Riding Hood Kingdom to spy on someone. Care to join us in a little mischief tonight?”

Cornelius was just as surprised as Rook had been. He had never seen this side of Alex before, but he liked it. He nodded his huge head as if to say, “I thought you’d never ask.”

Alex and Rook climbed astride the unicorn and the three took off toward the Red Riding Hood Kingdom. By the time they reached the kingdom’s partially built wall, the sun had set and the moon was aglow in a twinkly night sky. All the stonemasons had gone home for the night, so Alex and Rook didn’t have to worry about being seen entering the kingdom.

Rook jumped off Cornelius’s back and began climbing the unfinished wall. “It’s a little tricky but I think you’ll manage in that dress of yours,” Rook called down to Alex.

Alex didn’t even bother trying to climb it. She removed her wand from the pocket of her dress and pointed it directly at the wall. A doorway appeared immediately and Alex effortlessly walked through it and into the kingdom.

“Oh, now you’re just showing off,” Rook said to her, and climbed down to meet her.

Cornelius tried to walk through the doorway but couldn’t fit.

“Stay on the other side of the wall, Cornelius,” Alex said. “We’ll be back soon.”

The unicorn slumped. He was disappointed he wasn’t going with them but patiently waited as Alex requested. Rook took Alex by the hand and led her through the grassy hills of the Bo Peep Farms. It was the first time a boy had ever held her hand. She felt like her heart was doing cartwheels into her stomach.

About a mile past the wall, the rooftops of Little Bo Peep’s quaint farm came into view in the distance. It was an adorable place and reminded Alex of a play set she and her brother had when they were toddlers. The barn was big and painted bright red with white trim. The farmhouse was wooden and small, the perfect size for one person, and had a wraparound porch. A metal windmill stood between the buildings, slowly turning in the night breeze.

Huge stacks of hay were scattered across the land and there were fluffy black and white sheep as far as the eye could see. It was like the farm was covered in little walking clouds.

When they got closer to the farm Rook pulled Alex behind a haystack to hide from a group of farmhands they saw ahead. The farmhands were collecting their tools and putting them away in the barn. They had finished their work for the day and were preparing to go home.

The front door of the farmhouse suddenly burst open and Little Bo Peep stepped onto the porch. She had taken her bonnet off for the evening and her dark hair was up in a tight bun. She wore a long blue cloak over her yellow ruffled dress and held her staff in one hand and a lantern in the other. Her pale skin glowed in the moonlight.

At first Little Bo appeared to be in a hurry, but she stayed on the porch once she realized the farmhands were still there.

“Good night, Miss Peep!” the farmhands called to her.

“Good night, gentlemen, thank you for all your hard work today!” Little Bo said back. “See you in the morning.”

The farmhands tipped their hats to her and all climbed into the same wagon and drove off into the night. Little Bo smiled and waved to them, but once they were out of sight her smile faded into a somber expression. She did a full circle around the porch, scanning the farm to make absolutely certain that she was alone.

Once she was sure that every farmhand had left, Little Bo hurried down the steps of the porch and headed straight to the barn. She pulled open the heavy red doors and shut them behind her. Alex and Rook heard a scrape as Little Bo locked them from the inside.