The Wide-Awake Princess by E. D. Baker Read Free Book Online Page A

glanced from his sister to Annie and Granny Bentbone before turning his face away.
    “I’ve invited them to stay here with me,” said Granny Bentbone.
    Annie watched the old woman pick up a big bowl of rabbit stew. She was carrying it to the table when she staggered and nearly fell. “Fluffy!” she said, wagging her finger at the rat. “You have to stay out of my way. I’m too old for such shenanigans.”
    “Maybe he needs to go out,” said Annie. “Our dogs at home like a little exercise before they go to bed.”
    “What a good idea!” said Granny Bentbone. “Come along, Fluffy. A little fresh air will do us both good.”
    Annie waited until the old woman had shooed her “dog” outside, then she sprang to her feet and ran to the wall. She was curious about the candy hearts; reading them might be a good way to learn about Granny Bent-bone. The first few weren’t much help.
    Remember to feed Fluffy!
If you are hungry—eat!
You sit on the white pot.
You cook with the black pot.
    If children come to the cottage, invite them in.
Do not let adults in!
    “That’s odd,” Annie said to herself. “Is she afraid of something?” The next heart was a reminder that the dog was named Fluffy. The note after that made Annie feel as if a cold finger were tracing her spine.
    When children come to the cottage,
lock them in the cages at night.
    “And this woman does what these things say? That’s horrible!” It took Annie only a moment to peel the candy heart off the wall and stuff it into her pocket. Hearing Granny Bentbone at the door talking to Fluffy, she knew that she didn’t have long to read, and there were still dozens of candy hearts on the wall.
    A heart on a door leading off from the kitchen simply read
Cages
. The next heart was bigger than the rest, as if it was more important.
    Look in the room marked “cages.”
If there is a child in there–feed it.
    You want it to be fat.
If it is fat, cook it.
    Annie shuddered and glanced at the children sitting at the table. The food piled on the plates in front of them suddenly had a new and horrible significance. She broke her fingernail peeling the big heart off the wall and crushed it into dust once it was in her pocket. The door was already opening when she peeled off one last candy heart.
    Find recipes for children in the big
blue book in the cupboard.
    Annie shoved the candy heart into her pocket even as she hurried back to her seat. She broke it with her thumbnail and crumbled it while Granny Bentbone came back into the house alone.
    Clara stopped licking the icing off a piece of cake long enough to ask, “Where’s Fluffy?”
    “Who?” asked Granny Bentbone. She stared at the children, puzzled. “What are you doing here? Do I know you?”
    “It’s us, Granny Bentbone,” said Annie as she got to her feet. “Charlie and Tomas and Clara. You said we should go to bed in the loft upstairs, remember? We were just waiting to say good night.”
    “Oh, yes. I remember now. Good night, children.”
    “But…,” said Clara.
    “Good night, Granny,” said Annie as she pulled the children from their seats. When Clara tried to protest, Annie shushed her, saying, “If you go to bed now, I’ll tell you a story.”
    Tomas saw the look on Annie’s face. “Let’s go, Clara,” he said, and helped Annie get his little sister up the ladder.
    Annie had brought a candle from the table, and after closing the trapdoor, she used the candle’s light to find her way around the loft. There were no beds, nor had she really expected to find any, but there were baskets of well-worn clothes and a few old toys.
    “Where are we going to sleep?” asked Clara, scrubbing at her sleepy eyes with her knuckles. “I want to go see Granny Bentbone.”
    “You’ll see her in the morning,” said Annie. “Granny Bentbone is going to bed now, too.”
    While the children watched, Annie moved the baskets out of the way. Taking clothes from the baskets, she spread them on the floor