*Note: I did research for this chapter, but never came up with a solid answer for my question. I don't want to spoil it, but you'll know it when you read it. I said, "the heck with it. It's fiction and I want to do it." It's a bit outside the box, but I rarely stay inside. Enjoy!
Perry and Della Mason had been married for eighteen years. They had six children. Four girls and twin boys, and the couple worked together. Everyone always said they were the perfect couple and that nothing could tear them apart. Lately, though, things had slowly started to change. It started with the little things. It usually does.
"Perry, I'm going to go make dinner for the kids and I'll be back. It'll probably be two hours," Della told her husband at four-thirty in the afternoon.
"You don't have to come back. In fact, take the rest of the night off. Spend it with the kids."
"Very funny," Della said thinking he was joking.
"No, I'm serious," he said, "you've been working hard. Take a break."
"You think that being at home with six teenagers is a break?"
"The boys are twelve."
Della glared at him, "what's going on?"
"Nothing, I just think you should stay home. It'll be almost seven by then. What's the point?"
"Perry, you're never close to being done at seven."
"Della, I'm not asking you as your husband anymore. I'm telling you as your boss to take the night off."
"Well, as your wife, I'm telling you to not bother to come home," Della stormed out of the office.
Perry sighed and smacked himself in the head, "idiot. You weren't supposed to say that." He had decided to call it a night at around six-thirty. On the way home, he picked up some roses for his wife. When he entered the back door in the kitchen, Perry saw his two eldest sitting at the counter while the others occupied the table. "Where's your mother?" he asked softly.
"Trying to sneak in?" Maureen asked with a smile.
"She told you?"
"No, but it didn't take much to figure out she's mad at you," Violet said.
"She kept saying something along the lines of, 'he's such an idiot. Who does he think he is?' But the real clue was when she said, 'damn you, Perry Mason,'" Vivian explained.
"Don't say damn," Perry said gently.
"Are you really in a position to lecture me right now?"
Perry saw something in the sink. It was a meat grinder, "what on Earth?" he picked it up and noticed fabric in it.
"That's the tie you like so much and mom hates," Maggie said.
"Yeah, that was another clue," Max added.
Della walked into the kitchen, "shouldn't you be at work?"
"No," he said, "I came home early to ask my wonderful wife to forgive me for acting like an idiot."
"Go on," Della said as she folded her arms across her chest.
"Look, I didn't mean to order you," he said, "I just thought you might enjoy having a night with the kids and there was really nothing left to do at the office. I should have just said that." He walked over to her and held out the roses.
Della accepted the flowers, "thank you," she said, "apology accepted."
"About my tie..."
"Don't even think about..."
"I was just going to say, I had it coming." Della kissed her husband and went to put the flowers in a vase. Perry sighed with relief. His kids laughed. "What's so funny?" he asked them.
"Here you are, over six feet tall," Vivian stated, "you're like three times mom's size, and you're scared to death of her."
The kids all kept laughing, "boys, if I were you, I wouldn't laugh. This is your future."
The boys stopped and stared at their father, "we could just not get married," Vinny said.
Max shrugged, "sounds good to me," and they started laughing again. The kids had all decided to go outside for a little while. They heard a weird cry. "What was that?" Maggie asked.
"I don't know," Maureen said. She walked over to the bushes and that's when she saw it, "you guys are never going to believe this."
"What?" Vivian asked.
"Don't make any sudden moves," Maureen said as she lifted the creature up.
"Is that a baby lion?" Violet asked.
"Looks like it," Maureen said. "There's two more."
Vivian and Maggie picked up the other two. "This one's hurt," Vivian said when she noticed a thorn in the cub's paw.
Max went inside to tell his parents. "Mom, dad, there are three lion cubs in the backyard."
"That's nice, son..." Perry started, "lion cubs?!"
"Don't move too fast," Max said.
The girls brought them into the house. "What are you girls doing holding them?" Della asked with worry.
"Relax, they're just scared," Maureen said.
"I'll call the zoo and see if somehow they're missing cubs," Perry said.
"This one's hurt," Vivian said. She placed the cub on the kitchen table, much to Della's dismay. The fifteen-year-old was attentive to the frightened creature and was able to distract her enough to take the thorn out. The cub gave Vivian a kiss.
"I'll call animal control when your father gets off the phone," Della said.
"No, you can't," Maggie said.
"What do you suppose we do?" Della asked, "let them stay here?" She noticed the looks on her children's faces, "oh, you have got to be kidding me?"
"They're just babies," Violet said.
"Yeah, they're practically harmless," Maureen said.
"And how would you know?" Della asked.
"We saw it on the animal channel," Vivian said.
"Plus, we learned it in school," Violet added.
Perry walked back over, "nope, no zoos are missing these cubs."
"Maybe if we looked around where we found them, we could find a clue about where they came from?" Maureen said.
"They need a place to sleep," Max said.
"Well, the zoos said they'll take them," Perry said.
"No, here, tonight," Vinny said.
"I'm sorry, what?"
"Mom said they could."
"Actually, I said you have got to be kidding."
Violet had gone outside and returned without being noticed. "This was on a crate I found in the woods," she said as she handed the label to her father.
"You went out to investigate on your own? What if a bigger lion is out there?" Perry asked.
"Dad, you do stupid stuff all the time."
"Perry," Della looked at the label, "that says Tanzania on it. These cubs didn't come from a zoo. They came from the wild."
"I'll call Paul and see what he can dig up." When he was done, he returned to his family. "Took a minute to convince him I was telling the truth."
"What did he say?"
"He's going to look into it and call customs to see if any wild aminals have entered the country recently. I also called the zoo back. They're sending over a vet they use to check them out."
"I wish we could keep them," Violet said.
"Of course you do," Perry remarked.
