Page 52 of Dead Wrong

The boy scowled back at me, baring a row of fangs. “Just wait till I get better at it! Papa says that I fidget too much, but soon I’ll be able to disappear like that—” he snapped his fingers, the scowl morphing into a grin. “And you’ll never find me!”

The thought made my heart flutter in a weird rhythm. “But you won’t actually leave, right, Azzy? When you're older, I mean. You’re not going to disappear on me, are you?”

I’d never considered it before. Azzy and I had been the best of friends since I collided with him in the hallway at the age of five. His father worked in the kitchens, so Azzy and I had spent many an afternoon hiding in the cabinets and scrounging for apple peels or the rare pastry. I couldn’t imagine my life without him.

Azzy’s smile faded a bit, the pointed ears on top of his head drooping as he looked away. “I don’t know, Tobi. Papa told me that we’ll stay as long as the madame is pleased with us.”

“Then I’ll make sure she never sends you away,” I assured him, reaching out and taking Azzy’s hand in mine. “That way, we can play together forever!”

“But I’m clumsy,” the boy replied. “And I’m no good at the house chores. Papa told Mr. Chatterly about the madame being upset because I broke her favorite teacup. I didn’t mean to—I was trying to help. Mr. Chatterly spelled it back together, but the madame said that his ‘primitive magic’ ruined the taste of the tea.”

“Mother can be harsh sometimes,” I said, giving his hand a squeeze. “But that’s only because she wants us to be our best. I’m sure you won’t break another cup.”

The boy nodded solemnly, his ear remaining deflated atop his head. I couldn’t bear to see my only friend so upset.

“I found you,” I told him, releasing my grip on his hand. “So, now it’s my turn to hide. Close your eyes! No peeking!”

That was enough to perk Azzy up, and he covered his violet eyes, beginning to count softly under his breath. I took off like a bolt, running down the hall and diving around corners, trying to put as much distance as I could between me and the other boy. All of my best hiding places had been exhausted by this point in our game, so I had to think quickly or be caught out in the open. Ducking under one of the maids as she dusted a framed painting in the hall, I slid through the next door—one of the many guest rooms—and dove under the ornately carved bedframe. The plush rug underneath cushioned the sound of my shuffling as I crawled deeper, slowing my breath as best I could.

Lurking in the shadows, I waited for Azzy to find me.

When the door of the bedroom opened a few minutes later, I sucked in a breath but quickly realized that it was not my friend in search of me but two other figures, shutting the door gently behind them.

“—out of your mind, Balthus? Where would you have us go? Back to the slums in the Magi City?”

“There are places outside of the city, Andres. Places where we Unseen can walk in the daylight and not be ridiculed. Where you could raise your younglings to aspire to be more than just servants?—”

“Quiet!” hissed the other voice. “Don’t let anyone hear you spouting off such nonsense. It’ll get you locked up or worse. Then what would happen to little Azzy? Think of your son, Balthus.”

“I am thinking of him,” Balthus spat back. “What kind of life will he have if we stay here?”

“A good life,” the other Unseen said. There was a twinge of sadness in his voice, as if he didn’t fully believe his own words. “The best he could wish for. Please, Balthus, don’t let your head get filled with these crazy ideas. It can only lead to trouble.”

There was a pause and the wet sound of a kiss between the two. “I care for you, Andres. Really, I do. But I can’t just stand by and watch our lives wither in the darkness. I’m tired of hiding away.”

“You speak these grandiose plans,” Andres replies with a sigh. “But don’t you see? It’s Azrael who will end up paying for your carelessness. Worry about him and leave all this foolishness behind. Now, come. The madame will be expecting her afternoon tea.”

The door opened and shut, a quiet settling back over the room.

I’d never heard the servants speak that way before. In fact, I tried to remember the last time I’d heard Azzy’s father say more than two words. Balthus was the head chef at our chateau, in charge of our meals and the goings on of the kitchen. Azzy had been trying to learn under him since he was old enough to hold a knife but had a proclivity for unintentionally setting things ablaze.

I lay still, mulling over the conversation in my head. Did Balthus really want to leave the chateau? Wasn’t he happy here? I’d only ever seen him smile when I was nearby. He’d worked here longer than I’d been alive, according to Mother. Even when he was carrying Azzy, he took only a few weeks off after delivering, then was right back in the kitchen.

If he left, would he take Azzy with him? Suddenly, it wasn’t just Mother that I needed to convince to let my friend stay, but Balthus as well. Digging myself out from under the bed, I moved for the door, but it swung open before I could reach for it.

A hand reached out, bopping me on the end of the nose.

Azzy beamed at me, his snaggletooth fang protruding over his bottom lip. “Found you! Wow, Tobi, you’re really bad at this game.”

“I am not!” I retorted, retreating further into the guest room and away from the purple-haired boy. “I was in a really good hiding space, but I had to get up because—” I stopped, not wanting to bring up Azzy’s father in case he’d go searching for him. It was better to keep him here, at least until I could figure out what to do next. “Never mind. I’m it, so I guess I’ll count again.”

I’d keep him distracted until I figured out what I could do to fix the whole Balthus situation. There must be something.

“Before you do,” Azzy said, following me across the ornate rug. He kept a distance from me, twiddling his thumbs together as he stared down at the floor. “I wanted to ask you something, Tobi.”

The weird fluttery feeling in my stomach that usually preceded my conversations with Azzy intensified to the point where I thought it might lift me off the ground.

“Yes?”

---