Sabrina looked at the weird smile on the man's face. He was enjoying this nightmare. He might have been good to her mother, but it seemed he couldn't care less if Veronica's family were blown to bits. Sabrina thought about how she so often found herself in these situations, the kind where people got hurt, and she wasn't going to take it anymore. Without even thinking it through, she lunged forward, snatched the sword from Sinbad's belt, and leveled it at his head.

"Take us back to the dock," she said calmly.

"You look so much like your mother right now," Sinbad said, shifting his eyes back and forth from her face to the sword pointed at his throat.

"I've had enough of this craziness. Turn the boat around and take us back to the dock. You're not going to get us killed, especially before I get to retire," she said.

"Child, we are in the middle of a fight. If we turn this boat, the pirates will fire on our port side and we'll surely go down," Sinbad explained.

"Sabrina, give him back the sword," Granny Relda demanded.

"NO! This is exactly what I'm talking about when I say I don't want to be a Grimm. Look at these maniacs. They're having fun. And you know why? Because they can't die unless someone tries really hard to kill them. This is just a stupid game to them. Well, I can die, Granny, and so can you and Daphne. So, Sinbad here is going to turn this boat around right now."

Daphne rushed to Sabrina's side and snatched the sword away. "You're being a jerkazoid!" she shouted.

"I'm trying to protect us. I'm trying to save us all!" Sabrina cried.

"So is he," Daphne said, pointing at Sinbad. "Those pirates fired on us first."

She handed Sinbad back his weapon.

"You're a spirited girl," Sinbad said to Sabrina. "If a bit odd-smelling."

Before Sabrina could argue with her sister, she heard a hollow horn blast and watched as the men adjusted the sail riggings and tied them down tight. The sails trapped the wind, and again the ferry raced across the water. Sabrina could hardly believe the power of the blustery winter air; the boat was cutting through the waves as if propelled by rockets.

Sinbad took out his binoculars again and peered through the lenses. "We're close enough to see the faces of the mongrels now." He handed the binoculars to Hamstead, who took a peek as well.

"Uh, those aren't pirates," Hamstead said. "They're wearing suits and ties."

Sabrina snatched the binoculars out of his hand and saw that Hamstead was right. The approaching boat wasn't a pirate ship at all but a yacht. Its passengers were wearing black tuxedos and seemed to be sipping cocktails between cannon shots.

"Is this a joke?" Sabrina said, yanking on Sinbad's sleeve.

"What do you mean?" the roguish sailor said.

"Those aren't pirates. They look like they work on Wall Street."

"What's the difference?" Bess asked.

Just then, the bridge above exploded. A cannonball had smacked into it, sending wood and glass in all directions. The two men steering the boat had jumped to safety at the last second.

Sinbad shouted to his men. "They're coming alongside! Let's show them what we're all about, praise be."

The men cheered, and when the "pirate" boat was close enough, Sinbad leapt onto it and started fighting a man wearing a three-piece suit who was brandishing a nasty-looking dagger. The two fought fiercely, their blades slashing through the air. Several of the pirates, who were also very well dressed, mimicked Sinbad's bravery and jumped from the yacht onto the ferryboat. Sinbad's crew charged them, and a savage battle began. In no time, the family found themselves in the midst of clanging blades and shooting sparks.

Mr. Canis snatched up Sabrina and Daphne, and led Granny and Moth through the melee, doing his best to avoid getting slashed himself. Puck's cocoon floated close behind, missing several near punctures. Hamstead and Bess followed, and together they all raced down a flight of steps that led into the boat's hull. Unfortunately, they were followed by an ugly brute with a wicked scar running from the tip of his right eye to the edge of his lip. He was dressed as well as the other pirates but his clothing didn't lend him any charm. He roared at the family, and Canis roared back. The pirate stood there for a moment, apparently trying to understand who or what Canis was, and then ran back up the steps.

"The rest of you stay down here and hide. I should go and see if I can be of some help," Mr. Canis said.

"Me, too," Hamstead added.

"Ernest, be careful," Bess said, squeezing his pink hand. In a flash, the two men were back up the steps and gone from view.

"You heard him, girls," Relda said. "Keep safe and keep moving."

They ran through the boat, looking for a safe nook to scurry into, but the boat was completely overrun by pirates. A wave of them stampeded down the steps and cornered the women.

"Hostages!" one of them exclaimed as he licked his blade.

The rest laughed.

"Take ' em to Silver," the first man shouted, and the pirates rushed at the women. Daphne kicked one in the shin and he fell to the floor in pain. Granny smacked another with her heavy handbag and split his lip open. Bess and Moth threw punches. Sabrina, on the other hand, was quickly grabbed around the neck, but she instinctively jammed her elbow into her attacker's belly. The rogue bent over as the wind flew out of him and he dropped his sword. Daphne snatched it off the floor and smacked him in the behind with the flat of the blade. It didn't do any permanent damage but from the groan the pirate uttered, it had obviously stung. Moth took a life preserver off the wall and brought it crashing down on the man's head. He fell to the floor unconscious.

Much to Sabrina's surprise, the pirates broke off their assault and backed away before rushing up the steps and disappearing.

"We make a pretty good team, don't we, ladies?" Bess crowed.

But they had only a minute to celebrate. The pirates returned with reinforcements. They managed to grab Sabrina, Daphne, and Moth, hauling the girls up onto the deck and then hoisting them over the side of the ship, where each landed unceremoniously on the deck of the yacht. Puck's cocoon, never far from Sabrina, floated after them. Seconds later all of the pirates were off the ferry and back on their own boat, which zipped across the river, leaving Sinbad, his crew, Granny Relda, Mr. Canis, Mr. Hamstead, and Bess far behind.

"The harbor belongs to Silver!" one of the pirates bellowed toward the ferry, causing all the rogues to cheer and raise their swords in the air. Many of them broke into song and danced little jigs. The girls didn't get to see much of this gloating. They were dragged roughly down a flight of steps toward the belly of the yacht.

"Get your hands off me, filth," Moth demanded. "I am a princess of the royal court."

"Listen, fairy," one of the pirates said in a thick English accent. "Get yourself through that door."

"And if I don't?" she said.

"Then you're going to miss the party," the other pirate said.

He opened the door and Sabrina gawked at what she saw inside. There were dozens of well-dressed men and women on a small dance floor in the center of the room. A disc jockey was spinning records and a glittery disco ball was flashing light around the room. Several of the dancers were gathered around a limbo pole near a banner that read HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO EVERYONE AT SILVER AND HAWKINS!

"What is this?" Sabrina asked.

"It's our firm's Christmas Party," the pirate replied.

"What?" the girls said in unison.

A tall gray-haired man hobbled over to them. He had a parrot on his shoulder and walked with a cane. He set down his drink and extended his hand to the captives, but none of them took it.

"So good of you to join us. I'm John Silver," he said.