Penelope shrugged. "Yes, obviously!"

"I didn't realize." I exchanged another puzzled glance with Solomon. Why didn't this crucial piece of information ever come up in our many discussions? I didn't recall seeing anything about Rob's relationship with Penelope, not in Solomon’s or my research, and I felt sure it should have come up before now. If we missed this vital information, what else did we miss? It was a worrying thought and one I didn't look forward to addressing with Solomon.

Penelope looked at Delgado, then at Solomon before she said, "Juliet, can I speak to you privately for a moment?"

"Sure," Juliet replied, turning away from us, her features pinched despite the happy attitude she put on for Robbie’s sake. "Come to the kitchen."

Penelope followed Juliet, casting a backwards glance at us. She didn't look happy and I wished I could have been a fly on the wall to hear the discussion they were about to have. Solomon made a slight motion with his head as I caught his eye: follow them. Now that Rob was preoccupied with his son, I slipped out of the room, treading softly as I made my way along the hall to the kitchen.

"...not a good idea," I heard Penelope saying.

"I know. I agree. I'm not comfortable with Robbie staying overnight either, and I'm so sorry that it's messing with your social life..."

"Silly," cut in Penelope. "Don't you dare worry about my social life! You know I'm here for you. We all agreed that Robbie shouldn't stay over again until this thing with you gets all sorted out."

"I hope it's over soon. He'll only be here a couple hours; and I promise, Rob and I will not let him out of our sight. Please, Penelope, Rob will be so disappointed he can’t spend some time with Robbie. Me too."

"Sorry, but no. I just can't leave my son here, not with all those people in the house. It's just too crazy. What if those people have guns, and Robbie gets hurt? Your PI isn't that good. She didn't even know I'm Robbie's mom. What else has she missed? Look, don't answer that. It's not my business. Just think of him, Juliet, not yourself."

At the insult, I stuck my tongue out in the direction of the kitchen. It wasn't mature, no, but it was unseen and felt good, all the same.

"You're right. I'm being selfish. It's not Robbie's problem that I'm stuck in the house."

"Rob isn't stuck here," replied Penelope. "Perhaps Rob could take Robbie out? That would be okay with me. C'mon. You know you don't want them to miss out on their time together just because you're under house arrest."

Juliet sighed. "You’re right; Rob and Robbie shouldn't lose out because of me."

"Tell them that you suggested it. You'll be okay here with your PI girl and those big guys. They'll keep you safe and you don't have to worry about Rob or Robbie."

"Yeah." Juliet's voice sounded heavy and disappointed.

I backed away as footsteps headed for the kitchen door. Moments later, I slipped into the living room. I had barely enough time to lounge against the wall as if I'd only gotten up to stretch when Juliet and Penelope returned.

"Change of plan," said Juliet, with a smile that stopped far short of her eyes. "It's such a sunny day outside, why don't you take Robbie to the park, honey?"

Rob glanced up from the homework he previously enthused over. "Are you sure?"

"One hundred percent. It'll be so much nicer than staying in with our guests," she said, giving us a pointed glance. Rob swallowed and nodded, getting the gist instantly.

"I would like to stretch my legs," he said. "Why don't you go put on your sneakers, champ? Let’s go to the park."

"Are you coming too, Juliet?" Robbie asked.

Juliet shook her head quickly. "Not today. I have some things to do here with our guests."

Robbie darted across the floor and dropped onto his butt, pulling his sneakers on quickly as he glanced up at us. "Hi," he said, before turning to his father. "Can we get ice cream too, Dad?"

"Sure."

"I'll see you later," said Penelope, dropping a kiss on Juliet's cheek. "Bye, Lexi! Bye, guys!" She waved, smiling brilliantly as she moved towards the door with Robbie in tow. Rob gave Juliet a brief hug, whispered something in her ear, to which she nodded, and grabbed his jacket, following Robbie out the door.

Crossing to the window, I watched them climb into Penelope's car and take off.

"Is the park close?" I asked, wondering which one they planned to visit.

"End of the street. Robbie loves going there."

"It's nice of Penelope to give them a ride," I said, watching for Juliet's reaction. What did she think of her fiancé climbing into the car with his ex and son, as though they were still a family? As if Juliet weren't already feeling like a prisoner in her own home. I don't know what I expected, but it wasn't the simple shrug she gave me.

"I guess she's heading past the park," said Juliet. "She always helps out."

"How come you didn't tell me Penelope is Robbie's mom?" I asked.

"I'm sure I did. Didn't I? I don't know. I guess it slipped my mind. I've not been thinking properly lately with everything else going on."

"It doesn't matter."

"Let's go through the security system," suggested Solomon, rising and indicating Delgado should do the same.

"Shouldn't we wait for Rob?" asked Juliet.

"I'd have liked to, but we can run through it with you now and with Rob later," said Delgado. "I can come back when you're both free if you have company later."

"No, there will be just us. We've decided that Robbie shouldn't stay over until the person who broke in is found. Besides, we haven't invited any guests." Juliet trailed off, her voice sounding utterly despondent. I wondered how it felt knowing that all your friends thought you purposely alienated them. It was something to take up later, and once again, I didn't relish piling on more agony. She seemed perplexed enough when I informed her of her former friends' comments.

"Take us through it," said Solomon, inclining his head to indicate that Delgado should lead the way.

"We've placed alarms on all of the downstairs doors and windows," Delgado began, pointing to the living room window before moving into the hallway. "They're very discreet and no one will notice them. As far as your stalker will know, nothing will appear to have been changed with your home security system."

"What if they saw you here?" I asked. "Penelope saw you."

"Look at the back of my jacket." Delgado turned around. Bodyguard was written in bold letters across the back. "That's my cover. I arrived in my own car and if your stalker is watching, and if it's this Penelope chick, she'll assume you were considering a little extra protection," he said, adding, “at least, that’s what we’re guessing.” Juliet nodded, but didn't look very reassured.

"Won't it look strange when you leave?" she asked.

"We have to assume, if they are watching, and they see me leave and not return, it should be enough to convince them you've decided not to proceed with more protective services. Meanwhile, we'll be here, all the time, watching and listening."

"To everything?" asked Juliet, frowning.

Solomon shook his head. "No, as a general rule, we switch audio off so we aren't eavesdropping on any of your private conversations. If there's something you need us to listen to, you can simply signal beforehand. We'll work out a gesture you can make that we'll pick up."