in every direction They emptied puzzle pieces everywhere and sent an army of Slinkys slinking across the floor Sabrina struggled to grab the leash but every time she got close to freeing herself the dog took a wild turn and sent her skidding She slid into a pile of what felt like sticky leaves Some clung to her arms and legs and one glued itself to her forehead
Turn on the lights Daphne shouted When the lights finally came on Elvis stopped stood over Sabrina and barked The girl sat up and then looked down at herself She was covered in sticky glue mousetraps each of which had a tiny little man no more than a couple of inches high stuck fast in the glue Hey let me go one of them shouted What’s the big idea another cried Lilliputians I knew it Granny Relda said then spotted Sabrina’s predicament and laughed When Sabrina scowled at her she tried to stop but couldn’t Oh liebling she giggled Who’s the sick psychopath who came up with this idea one of the Lilliputians shouted indignantly we’ll have you free in no time Granny leaned down to him and smiled Don’t worry with a little vegetable oil But I’m afraid you’re under arrest Sheriff Hamstead said as he stepped out from behind a rack of doll clothes His puffy pink face beamed proudly as he tugged his trousers up over his massive belly The Lilliputians groaned and complained as the sheriff went to work yanking the sticky traps off Sabrina’s clothes you in a court of law You have the right to remain silent Anything you say can and will be used against Ouch said Sabrina as the sheriff tugged a glue trap from her forehead I’m not talking copper one of the Lilliputians snapped And I’m suing you for wrongful arrest Wrongful arrest Sheriff Hamstead exclaimed Unfortunately when the portly policeman got angry or excited the magical disguise he used to hide who he really was stopped working Now his nose vanished and was replaced by a runny pink snout Two hairy pig ears popped out of the top of his head and a series of snorts squeals and huffs came out of his mouth Hamstead had nearly completed the change when the security guard from the next store over wandered into the chaos What’s going on in here the guard asked with a tough authoritative voice He was a tall husky man with a military-style haircut but when he saw the pig in a police uniform hovering over a dozen tiny men in glue traps he nearly fainted Oh dear We forgot some of the shops have their own security guards Granny Relda said softly as she reached into her handbag and approached the stunned man Granny no Sabrina begged I don’t have a choice Sabrina It doesn’t hurt him Granny explained then blew some soft pink dust into the guard’s face His eyes glazed over as the old woman told him he’d had another ordinary night at work and nothing unusual had occurred The security guard nodded in agreement
Another night at work he mumbled falling under the forgetful dust’s magic Sabrina scowled She hated when magic was the quick fix to a problem especially when the problem involved humans The glue traps were a brilliant idea Sheriff Hamstead said as he drove the family home in his squad car Granny sat in the front enjoying his praise while Sabrina and Daphne were in the back jockeying with Elvis for seat space The Lilliputians were locked in the glove compartment and whenever their complaining got too loud Hamstead smacked the top of the dashboard with his hand and yelled Pipe down I’m glad we could be of some help Granny Relda replied Gepetto is such a nice old man It broke my heart to hear he was being robbed and with Christmas only two weeks away The holidays are difficult for him he misses his boy Hamstead said It’s hard to believe that in two hundred years no one has heard a peep from Pinocchio Wilhelm’s journals claim he refused to get on the boat Granny replied Oh he got on Hamstead said But as soon as we were out of the marina he jumped overboard and swam for shore By the time his father found out we were too far out to sea to turn back I suppose if I had been swallowed by a shark I wouldn’t be too eager to go back to sea either I thought it was a whale Daphne said No hon that was the movie Granny replied Sabrina had heard her grandmother explain the difference a hundred times So much of what the girls thought they knew from seeing all those cartoons was wrong Well I’m glad to get this case off my plate the sheriff said The mayor’s been cutting budgets left and right these days and I just didn’t have the manpower or money to catch the little thieves myself Or to make sure the security guard was off duty so we didn’t have to mess with his brain Sabrina grumbled Sabrina Sheriff the Grimms are always at your disposal Granny Relda said ignoring I appreciate that Relda and I wish I could give you the credit for the arrest but if Mayor Charming found out we’ve been working together my backside would be one of those footballs in Gepetto’s store Hamstead said It’s our little secret Granny Relda said with a wink How is Canis Granny’s smile faded and she shifted uncomfortably in her seat Both Sabrina and Daphne noticed the change and wondered what their grandmother would say about her old friend He’s doing just fine Sabrina couldn’t believe it In the short time she had known the old woman Granny
