“Can we go to the puzzle?” Noel asked.
“What’s that?” Sasha asked.
“It’s a labyrinth. The castle has a maze too, but Noel doesn’t like that as much. He became separated from Mum and Dad one time, and it took a while to find him,” Max said.
“What is the difference between the two?” Sasha asked, not knowing what either item was but not wanting to appear stupid. Soon, Max would wonder why she didn’t understand things most humans took for granted. So far, with the help of Justine, The Smart Computer, she’d muddled her way through most subjects.
“A maze is a lot of plants that grow together. There are paths with some dead-ends. The object isto find your way to the center of the maze. They build a labyrinth in the same manner, but the plants are usually ankle-height and there are no dead-ends. They’re a popular meditation tool since it is very restful to walk around one.”
Sasha enjoyed exploring and walking the labyrinth with Noel and Max. She was sorry when it was time for them to go home, but Noel was visibly drooping. He’d undoubtedly sleep well tonight. Max picked up his brother and carried Noel on his shoulders back to the car. Noel fell asleep during the drive home.
“Thank you for taking us out,” Sasha said. “I enjoyed it immensely.”
“I wish we could fly,”Sasha’s dragon said.“It’s a beautiful night.”
The second her dragon suggested a flight, Sasha felt twitchy in her skin. They were used to flying whenever they felt like it, and this enforced separation from her other self seemed unnecessarily restrictive even if it was for their safety.
“We’ll see,”Sasha said.“We must act with caution. You’ve seen what they do to their people with the weapons they call guns.”
Her dragon snorted.“Justine, The Smart Computer, told us those are fictional games we were watching.”
“We will ask her more about actual wars tomorrow,”Sasha said.“To gain a balanced opinion.”
“Very well.”
On arrival home, Max carried Noel inside and up to his bedroom. His phone rang, and he pulled it from his pocket to scowl at the screen. “I have to take this,” he said, his voice holding impatience. “Hello.”
“No problem. I’ll get Noel ready for bed,” Sasha said, having heard the arrogant voice at the other end of the conversation.
“I wonder who that was?”her dragon asked, thankfully distracted from a night flight.
“Hang on, boss. Let me get my notes.”
Max left the bedroom, and Sasha listened for as long as she could. Thankfully, a dragon’s hearing was excellent.“He sounds like a nasty man.”
“Bruceous’s cousin,”her dragon agreed.
Sasha helped Noel to change into pajamas, and he was so tired, he fell asleep straightaway. Sasha walked down to the kitchen to make a cup of hot chocolate—a new favorite—and Max appeared as she pulled a mug from the cupboard.
“Is Noel okay?”
“He’s asleep,” she said. “We tired him out.”
“I was hoping to have a few days at home, but I need to take care of several interviews and write a story about the dragon people saw two weeks ago. Then, I have to head back to Edinburgh because my boss has a new story for me that requires my presence at the office. In these days of digital, I don’t understand why he can’t do this online.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Sasha said. “I’m here, and Noel and I are perfectly happy.”
“But my grandmother argues I’m always working and therefore I can’t look after Noel properly. Having to return to Edinburgh all the time is proving her point.”
“Have you talked to your boss?”
“He told me he understood and working from home wouldn’t be a problem when I attended the job interview. He seems to have done a three-sixty.”
“How did you get the job?”
“I applied after I saw it in the local paper.”
Sasha stilled, a thought occurring. Several times during outings with Noel, she’d sensed someone watching them. Even tonight, although that could’ve been the woman, Jennifer. “Does your boss know your grandmother or your grandfather?”
