Maverick tossed Noah up to make him smile and then set him down. Immediately his little road runner sped past his mothers' legs into the room. It sounded as if toys inside the room squealed with delight.
“Hear that?” She asked.
“Yeah,” he said.
“Okay, go in,” she said. Inside the room, they were greeted by a motion sensor jungle music and toy laughter. It played each time a person entered the door and could be turned off by a button next to the light switch.
Noah’s room was a toddler-sized Jurassic Park. Instead of scary dinosaurs with vicious teeth, these dinosaurs looked as if they stepped right out of a Disney fantasy. The Fletcher’s had adorned the wall with a hunter's treasure. Draped from one corner to the next was netting a hunter could use to catch the dinosaurs. Tied to the net were play tools for digging and excavating—also a backpack, map, and hunter's cap. A bed made from a smiling dinosaur face was low to the floor for Noah to climb on top of. A maze painted on the ceiling turned into a map of the hidden things to do in the room. The walls were covered in a tree forest with animals dancing around. A dinosaur as tall as him standing in a ball pit. He was crouched forward for Noah to playfully climb. There were three chests filled with toys. Blinking robotic animals were having their buttons pushed so they could animate and move around. Noah knew them all very well. He nodded his head with approval and clapped his hands. Delilah picked up the remote and turned on the television. The vintage show Barney came on, and Noah froze. He stood there watching the purple dinosaur sing to him. Noah clapped his hands in timing with the song instead of his animated friends.
Maverick imagined when Noah visited, he never left this room.
“I may be the smart one, but my dad is the artist. He did all of this when I was pregnant. He was so excited to have a grandson. My mom helped, but she’s more of a thinker like me. This is how my dad shows his love.”
“No wonder Noah is so happy to be here,” said Maverick.
“He is, isn’t he,” she smiled. “I should have brought him over here more. I’m always forcing my parents to come to my house as I play hostess to the town and the Montgomery’s. This is where I really feel at home.”
Maverick watched her for a moment, and she soon dropped her nostalgia. That cold touch of regret saddened her features.
“C’mon, we aren’t done. Let’s see my room, where we will be staying.”
“Noah, come,” Maverick extended his hand.
Noah looked up and then dismissed the request. He continued to play with his toys.
“He won’t come out unless you offer him food,” she chuckled. “We can leave him. He’ll be okay; it’s childproof, plus the reason for the motion sensor is to alert us when he leaves the room,” Delilah said.
“Oh, good idea. After you,” he said.
Delilah walked him to the room next door. He saw several things from her childhood: a globe, a telescope, ribbons, and awards from scholastic competitions. The queen size bed had a pink and yellow comforter with extra pillows. The bed had copper bedposts, and the walls were soft pink with a yellow stripe. It wasn’t as creative or loving as Noah’s room but preserved and unchanged.
“Who decorated here?” he asked.
“I did. I mean, I was a kid. So? I wanted everything in its place and my ribbons always-on display. I loved books, too.” She pointed to the wall shelves of books and then the chest full of books. “I was a reader and an astronomer. When Queen would sneak over, we’d go to the roof and look up at the stars, and I’d teach her constellations....”
“Wait? Roof? How?” he asked.
She smiled. “Oh, there’s a bonus room above the garage. I’ll take you to it. It’s like an attic room for storage now. The window opens. We could go out of it and sit on the roof. I’d get us snacks and teach her and Shelly many things.”
Maverick sat on her bed. It wasn’t as big as the other one, but he knew they’d fit nicely on the mattress together. She walked over and sat on his knee. She hugged his neck. “It feels different being here today.”
He rubbed her back.
“I needed something to remind me that my parents were the people I love. Not some evil conspirators. Thank you for bringing me here,” Delilah said.
“Your dad wasn’t part of any of it, Delilah,” Maverick assured her.
“How can you be so sure? He had to know... or suspect... I just don’t know what to believe anymore. So many people have lied to me.” Her cellphone rang in her pocket. She answered it with her back to him. “Hi Queen, yeah, he’s here. Wait? Why? Uhm, okay. Okay.”
Delilah put the call on speakerphone so he could hear it.
“Go ahead, Queen, we’re listening,” Delilah said.
“Good news and bad news,” Queen said. “First, the interview we did is already up, and it’s going viral.”
“Wow? That was only a few hours ago,” Delilah said.
“Fake news or real news everything uploads and spreads fast,” said Queen.
“That’s great! Right?” Maverick asked. “It’s what we wanted. Goodiva will read it. You exposed Jaxon Price's real identity. This means you can fight back and force her to get away from the psycho.”
“That’s not all,” Queen said. “Homeland Security is involved now. Jaxon Price has received clearance to leave the United States. He’s taking Goodiva with him.”
“Huh?” Delilah stood. “She wouldn’t leave the county with that man. What the hell is wrong with her? After what he did? He kidnapped her. What’s going on? Did you call her Queen? Did she call you?” Delilah asked. She paced with her hand to her brow. Maverick held the phone and watched with mounting concern. Her reaction was a bit overblown. She had already said that Goodiva was insistent that she was in love with the guy.
“This goes all the way into the government now,” Queen said.
“What about Armand? Did he flip?” Maverick asked.
“Like a pancake,” Queen said. “I can’t get into that over the phone. You’re at your parents' house, right?” Queen asked.
“Yes,” Maverick answered for Delilah.
“I’ll come over and—”
“Wait!” Delilah shouted. “Where is she going?”
“To Saudi Arabia. But don’t worry, Dee. We’re going to protect her. I’ll explain when I get there.” Queen said before she hung up. Noah left his room, and the laughter rang out before he ran into the room with his toys and went to his mother. She picked him up.
“NSB, NSA? Homeland Security? The royal family in Saudi? What is Goodiva mixed up in?” Delilah whispered. “She’s in real trouble this time. What we did when we covered up that accident with Jaxon Price has nothing to do with what is going on now. That man is twisting things to manipulate her.”
“You don’t think she’s smart enough to see through that? Maybe there is something else between them. Something we’re missing?” Maverick reasoned.
“Like what?” Delilah wept. “She’s never been smart enough to know danger. That’s why me and Queen always protected her. I protected her. And now she’s getting on a plane and going to God knows where. We need to go up to Mayfair and stop her,” Delilah said.