The rabbit and the tortoise didn’t budge.
“I guess you probably have other deliveries to make,” Uncle Jake continued.
“Listen, pal. Let’s not beat around the bush. It’s customary to tip for a delivery, especially a backbreaking shipment like this. We brought this thing all the way from the truck and we got it here fast. I could have had my partner deliver it but you wouldn’t have gotten it until next year. You know how long a tortoise takes to deliver a package?”
“Long time, pal,” the tortoise said.
“Real long time. That kind of express service deserves a little tip, don’t you think? I mean, I got a big family. Really, I’m talking big. So how about throwing me a couple extra bills?”
“Of course,” Uncle Jake said, digging in his pockets. He pulled out a wadded five-dollar bill and stuffed it into the rabbit’s shirt pocket. Then he took the chest off the tortoise’s back.
“Thanks, pal. Oh, there’s one more thing,” the rabbit said as he took off his ball cap. There he had hidden a long brass key, which he handed to Uncle Jake. “Have a nice day and remember to use THD. We get it there at any speed you need.” The rabbit turned, snatched the back legs of the tortoise like he was a wheelbarrow, and headed back to their truck.
“What’s this?” Granny asked.
“You’ll see,” Uncle Jake said. “Get dressed and meet me in the Mirror’s room.” When they joined him ten minutes later they found him standing in front of the chest. “So, girls, remember when we started looking for Goldilocks and I suggested we send her a letter?”
The girls nodded.
“Well, I realized early on that we weren’t going to be able to do that,” Uncle Jake said. “Goldilocks keeps moving from one place to the next, faster than we could ever get a letter to her. So, I called a few friends for some help and they sent me this.”
“What is it?” Sabrina asked.
“It’s a traveler’s chest,” Uncle Jake said.
“A traveler’s what?” Sabrina asked.
“Where did you get this?” Granny Relda asked as she looked at the chest. “Your father used to talk about these, but I always thought he was pulling my leg.”
“The Andersen triplets loaned it to us. It’s going to help us find Goldilocks,” Uncle Jake said. “At least that’s what they told me it will do.”
Sabrina examined the chest. “How does it work?”
Uncle Jake took the brass key and opened the lock on the front of the chest. He lifted the lid, but the box was completely empty.
“An old empty chest is going to help us find Goldilocks?” Daphne asked.
“Oops,” Uncle Jake said as he closed the lid. “I forgot to tell it where I wanted to go.”
“I’m confused,” Daphne said.
“All you have to do is tell the chest where you want to travel. Watch!” Uncle Jake said. “Chest, I’m traveling to the Hotel Cipriani at Guidecca 10 in Venice, Italy.”
Sabrina and Daphne stared at their uncle, then looked at each other.
“I think he’s finally lost it,” Daphne said.
“It was bound to happen,” Sabrina added.
“Ha! You want to see?” Jake cried. He turned the key in the lock and lifted the lid. Instead of an empty box, Sabrina saw a spiral staircase and immediately felt the familiar tingle of an enchanted item.
“Daphne first,” Uncle Jake said as he helped the girl onto the staircase. Daphne looked up at Granny Relda as if she were unsure of what to do, but Granny’s nod gave her permission to go. Sabrina went next, followed by Uncle Jake.
“Mom, want to come along?”
Sabrina could see her grandmother’s nervous face over the edge of the chest. “No, one of us has to stay here,” the old lady said. “Besides, I’m going to bake some muffins and take them to Robin and Little John.”
“Be careful,” Uncle Jake said.
Granny promised she would, then backed out of view.
Sabrina examined the inside of the chest. The light was dim and grew dimmer as they descended. When they found themselves in pure darkness, Uncle Jake took a small red amulet from one of his jacket pockets. He whispered something into it, and it lit up their path. They continued down, step after step, until Sabrina was convinced there was no bottom. She was about to suggest they turn back when she heard her sister bang into something. From her groan, it sounded as if it was something quite hard.
“Could someone have warned me there would be a door down here?” Daphne complained.
“Sorry,” Uncle Jake said. “You can open it, but don’t step out until you’ve looked both ways. These traveler’s chests have a tendency to be imprecise, and that door is leading into the real world. Anything could be on the other side.”
Daphne opened the door and looked to her left, then her right. “Looks all clear!” she said, stepping through the opening. A moment later, Sabrina heard a huge splash and Daphne’s cries for help.
Several men in white pants and shirts were standing in long, thin boats they maneuvered down the waterway using tall poles. One used his pole to nudge Daphne to the side of the canal, where Uncle Jake fished her out.
When she was safely back on land, she reached into her pocket for her dictionary, but the book was waterlogged and ruined. Her face crinkled up in frustration, and she tossed it into a nearby trash can. “What does imprecise mean?” Daphne snapped.
“It means not exact,” Sabrina said.
Daphne scowled.
“You should have asked before,” Sabrina said.
Daphne scowled harder, then emptied the water from her shoes.
“Welcome to Venice, girls,” Uncle Jake said.
Sabrina studied her surroundings. Scarecrow had been correct. There weren’t streets in Venice, at least not in the part of the city where they were. Instead, the neighborhoods seemed to be connected by an elaborate canal system lined by narrow sidewalks. The elegant hotels, office buildings, and apartments on either side of the canals were built high so that doorways never touched the water. Boats of various shapes and sizes sailed by: some were taxis, and others were for tourists to take on romantic rides through the majestic arches and bridges of Venice. As a native New Yorker, Sabrina was rarely impressed with anything outside of the Big Apple. After all, once a person had seen the Statue of Liberty or had one of Nathan’s hot dogs at Coney Island, there was little reason to see the rest of the world. But she had to admit Venice was awe-inspiring.
“So, where’s Goldilocks?” Sabrina said, pulling her attention away from the amazing scenery and back to the group. She noticed her uncle seemed to be hypnotized by something. He was looking up at the third floor of a hotel across the canal.
“There,” he said, pointing at a beautiful woman standing on the balcony. She had tight blond curls, a sun-kissed tan, and a warm smile. She, too, was gazing out at the amazing city.
Sabrina was overwhelmed, unsure of whether to laugh or cry. For months she and Daphne had thought their parents abandoned them, only to find out they had been kidnapped. Rescuing them had provided little comfort since they were both victims of a magical spell. Now that obstacle was almost hurdled, too. Hope, wonder, and joy were building in her heart, threatening to explode like a shaken bottle of soda pop. The feelings were mirrored in the faces of her family as well. Daphne, despite being soaked, was grinning ear to ear. Uncle Jake’s fatigue seemed to melt away as he waved for the girls to follow him.
They crossed a bridge to get to the hotel and rushed into the busy lobby. The Hotel Cipriani was even more impressive than the Scarecrow had led them to believe. The floors were made from priceless marble. Opulent arches framed the doors and beautiful sculptures decorated the lobby. The ceiling hung so high above them, Sabrina wondered if clouds ever drifted into the hotel. Dozens of bellhops rushed to and fro, carrying expensive luggage and helping guests to their rooms. Unfortunately, the group’s arrival did not go unnoticed and a chubby, gray-haired man in a black suit approached them. His face was full of disapproval. Sabrina realized how odd they looked for such an elegant place, her sister dripping wet and her uncle in his wrinkled blue jeans and bizarre overcoat.