Chapter 4

It took most of the next morning to search the perimeter of the lake for signs of the dwarf. The day was getting hot when Beldegard snuffled the ground under a pine tree and finally announced he’d found a few footprints belonging to the little man. Liam inspected the prints carefully and declared they were at least two weeks old.

“Now what?” Annie asked the bear prince after they’d all agreed that the dwarf must not have been near the lake for days.

“Now we go visit the old widow who gave me shelter each winter. She lives about an hour away.”

“Fine,” said Annie, “but don’t tell her who I am. People always act differently when they know.”

“Why do we need to visit her anyway?” asked Liam.

Beldegard grunted and swung his heavy head toward Liam. “Because she may have seen him and it’s as good a place to start as any.” As he turned away and began to amble through the forest, he muttered, “I hate it when people question everything I do, but that’s what I get for traveling with people like them.”

Liam’s brows drew together. “What do you mean, ‘people like them’?”

“Royalty!” the bear prince snapped. “You people are so demanding. If you weren’t royalty, you wouldn’t ask so many questions.”

Annie was already following Beldegard. Liam snorted as he stepped in line behind her and replied, “And if you explained yourself, we wouldn’t have to ask questions at all.”

Their progress was slow as they walked single file through the forest, but eventually Beldegard led them to a little-traveled trail. After that they were able to move faster and it wasn’t long before they entered a valley where the branches of the trees met overhead, and the air was cooler and sweeter smelling. The trail led them to a stream that wasn’t much bigger than a trickle, yet someone had built a bridge from one side to the other. Just beyond the stream, a small cottage nestled among the trees. With a thatched roof that resembled a saggy straw hat and two small arched windows on either side of the front door, Annie thought it looked like a friendly, if slightly dopey, face.

Beldegard perked up when they saw the stream. Annie and Liam had to hurry to keep up with him as he trotted across the bridge and up to the front door of the cottage. They watched as he raised his huge front paw and tapped the door. “Mother Hubbard! It’s me, Beldegard!” he called.

A moment later the door creaked open and a medium-size dog with curly brown fur bounded out of the cottage to bark and race around Beldegard, apparently not the least bit afraid. The bear prince stood stoically as the little creature jumped up to lick his face. When the dog ran back inside, Beldegard glanced at Annie and Liam. “The first time I knocked on this door it was winter. A mother and her two daughters were starving inside and that dog didn’t even have a bone to gnaw. I brought them some game to feed them, and gave them a few gold coins in the spring. For the past two years, I’ve spent my winters in this cottage. Come inside and I’ll introduce you.”

Annie looked around as she stepped over the threshold. The cottage was a simple structure with two rooms below and a loft above. A table was shoved up against one wall of the main room while another wall boasted a small fireplace. Brightly colored cushions decorated with needlepoint flowers covered the seats of three wooden chairs set beside the table, while plumper cushions with needlepoint sayings rested on a bench beside the fireplace. Dried herbs strung together in bundles hung from the ceiling and Annie could smell meat roasting in the other room. Although it didn’t appear to be a wealthy household, the cottage was cozy and inviting. The only thing that Annie thought was unusual was the mellow tune that declared the presence of a good kind of magic.

A gray-haired woman standing by the fireplace smiled and reached out her hand to Beldegard. She was a handsome woman with her hair pulled back from her face, showing off her high cheekbones and large, dark eyes. The bear prince padded toward her to bump her hand with his head. The woman’s smile broadened. When Liam coughed, she glanced toward her other new guests and raised a questioning eyebrow.

“These are my friends,” said Beldegard. “They’re helping me with a quest.”

“How nice,” said a voice, and Annie turned to see another woman whom she hadn’t really looked at yet. This woman had white hair and the pleasant round face of a sweet old grandmother. She was knitting in a rocking chair by the window while two orange-and-white kittens played by her feet.

Annie gasped and would have run from the cottage if Liam hadn’t been standing in the way. It was Granny Bentbone, the witch who had invited children into her gingerbread cottage only to fatten them up for dinner. Although Annie knew who she was, the old woman didn’t seem to recognize Annie. Granny Bentbone smiled and nodded, then went back to her knitting.

Annie swallowed hard. She had hoped that she’d never see Granny Bentbone again, and certainly wasn’t expecting to find her here. Annie’s heart was racing and her hands suddenly felt clammy. She tried to think about what she should do, until she realized that Mother Hubbard was talking again.

“… my cousin. Her house was destroyed in the storm we had a few days ago. I met her in the woods, and when she told me about her dilemma, I invited her to stay here with me. I’ve been so lonely ever since Snow White moved away and Rose Red started working at the Gasping Guppy Tavern.”

Granny Bentbone was her cousin? Beldegard had said that Mother Hubbard was nice. Yes, she had magic, or at least there was some in the cottage, but she must not use it for anything bad or the music wouldn’t sound so sweet. If she’d invited Granny Bentbone to live with her, she probably didn’t have any idea what her cousin was capable of doing. Annie wanted to tell Mother Hubbard, but what if the woman didn’t believe her? Not only did she not have any proof, Granny Bentbone didn’t look as if she could hurt a mosquito, let alone a child.

“Do you plan to stay the night?” Mother Hubbard asked Beldegard.

“We don’t have time,” said Beldegard. “I came to ask if you’d seen the dwarf I was hunting. You know—the one who turned me into a bear.”

“Do I know you?” Granny Bentbone asked.

Annie turned back to the old woman and gulped. Granny Bentbone was staring at her, tapping her chin with one finger. She no longer looked quite so pleasant or friendly.

“I don’t think so,” said Annie. She’d been disguised as a boy and calling herself Charlie when she met the old woman before. Too bad she was dressed as a boy again.

“No, I’ve never seen your dwarf,” Mother Hubbard told Beldegard. Her smile faded as she faced the bear prince and Annie thought she saw the first sign of uncertainty in the woman’s eyes. Mother Hubbard took a step back, bumping into the dog, who was sitting behind her. His body was perfectly still, although it had been quivering with excitement just moments before. His ears were back now too, and he was staring at Beldegard as if he were seeing the bear prince for the first time.

“You look so familiar…,” Granny Bentbone said to Annie, leaning forward in the rocker.

During their last encounter, she’d learned that the old woman had a terrible memory, but now and then she could remember things very clearly. If Granny Bentbone remembered that Annie had destroyed her house, no one would believe it was because she’d been trying to force Annie into the room where she locked children in cages.

Everyone turned to the dog when he began to growl. His ears were pinned back and his fur was bristling when he took a tentative step toward Beldegard.

Mother Hubbard scowled, then turned suddenly and took a step toward the bench. Annie was surprised when the woman picked up one of the cushions, plumped it with her hands, and set it back down.

What an odd thing to do, thought Annie, unless…

Annie glanced at the cushion. PEACE, HARMONY, HAPPINESS read the needlepoint decoration. So that’s it! Annie thought, noticing that the tune that she’d heard when she entered the cottage had faded. The cushion itself must have been the source of the magic, ensuring that anyone who entered the cottage would be peaceful and happy. Just like the music, the magic was fading because Annie was there. It was time for her to leave.

“I think I’ll wait outside,” she said as she scurried around Liam and out the door.

Annie had just crossed the threshold when she heard the sound of running feet and caught a glimpse of a figure darting into the underbrush at the edge of the woods. Branches shook wildly, then stopped suddenly as if the runner had decided to hide instead of run. Curious, Annie walked to the grass that the figure had crossed and bent down to see if he had left footprints. She saw two distinct ones; the tracks were about the size of Annie’s own feet, and led back to the cottage. Still bent over, Annie followed them. Whoever had made the tracks had been standing at the window and could have witnessed everything that went on inside.

“Annie!” Liam called as he stepped out of the cottage. “We’re going into the village.”

“Shh!” she said, gesturing for him to come closer.

“Mother Hubbard remembered something. It seems Rose Red told her that someone came into the Gasping Guppy asking about the dwarf,” said Beldegard as he followed Liam out the door. “She suggested we go talk to Rosey.”

“Would you please be quiet?” Annie whispered. “Someone has been spying on us and is hiding in those bushes.” When she pointed at the underbrush, she could have sworn she saw them quiver.

Liam nodded. Pointing at himself, he gestured at a spot on the other side of the underbrush. When Annie nodded back, he slipped away, walking so quietly that she couldn’t hear him.

“I think I’ll go look for some berries,” Beldegard announced in a loud voice, shambling around the shrubs from the other direction.

Annie was watching the shrubs, waiting for one of her companions to do something, when the branches thrashed and a slim person in the clothes of a stable boy burst free. In a flash, Annie darted after the fleeing figure and threw herself onto his back, knocking him to the ground.

“Ow! Get off me!” the figure cried. Startled, Annie grabbed his shoulder and flipped him over, only to see her sister, Gwendolyn, glaring up at her.

“What are you doing here?” Annie demanded.

“Let me up and I’ll tell you,” Gwendolyn said, tucking her hair back in the boy’s cap she was wearing.

“Oh, for…,” Annie muttered as she got to her feet, and thrust out her hand to help her sister up. “How long have you been following us?” she asked, annoyed.

Gwendolyn stood and brushed off her clothes. “Since just after you left. I crossed the drawbridge the moment you entered the forest.”

“But I saw you on the parapet waving that stupid handkerchief at Beldegard!” said Annie.

“That was one of my ladies-in-waiting. I’d already changed my clothes and was waiting until you couldn’t see me. I’m surprised it took you so long to notice that I was following you. I expected you to spot me long before this. Beldegard!” she called as the bear prince emerged from the underbrush covered in bits of twigs and leaves. “Here I am, my love! I’ve come to join you on your quest!”

“I should make you go home,” Annie grumbled.

“But you won’t—not by myself,” Gwendolyn told her. “You knew I wanted to come with you! Now you can’t do anything about it. I’m going, no matter what you say.”