As the Crow Falls | ✔

Chapter Fifteen

The ball ended long after midnight. Isaiah stood his duty at the doors to thank departing guests, until the only ones who remained were those who would not leave while he was still in attendance. His mother came to find him at his post.

"Oh darling, you look exhausted," she clucked. It took all the willpower in Isaiah's possession not to flinch as her hand touched his shoulder. "I can take over now. You may leave."

It was not an act of kindness. It was also an order. She had seen his deteriorating smile with those who pushed his boundaries, and was taking over to maintain the image of Calisian royalty that she did not want him sullying. Isaiah retreated in a haze of mixed guilt and relief that tangled in his chest and whetted all his emotions to cutting edges. This was overstimulation more than anything, but that would not stop it from tempting tears until he'd slept.

Silence descended as he finally shut the door of his room behind him. He locked it, too. His mother hated that unless she was locking it herself from the outside, but he was past caring; if she wanted to speak with him yet tonight, she would not like the conversation anyway. Just that thought was enough to choke him up again. He wanted something warm to hug. That sent him to Pekea's cage, to find the front of it hanging askew. Unable to open the door, she had instead deconstructed the fittings holding the cage's sides together. It was a weak point Isaiah had warned his mother about when she gave him the cage, but that had thus far never been tested by a temperamental, too-smart dragon with a dislike of confinement and being withheld from her job.

It was also at least partially his fault. He had trained her this way: to not simply accept confinement, but to evaluate the situation, determine if confinement was an acceptable state of affairs, and react accordingly. It was the kind of training that had made him choose a small, smart dragon over a larger, dumber dog as a service animal to begin with. Pekea had gotten herself out of locked rooms, luggage that she'd fallen asleep in for too long, and at least one kidnapping situation. She'd learned that Isaiah's mother shutting her in her crate was never a good thing, and that he himself often didn't do it voluntarily. If he was willing when he did it, she would not break out, but he'd been anything but willing today.

Isaiah slumped to the ground with his face in his hands. And so she'd gotten out, and in his nervousness and distraction this morning, he had not locked her exit door. His window too was open. He could feel the draft from here. He was almost certain he'd closed it this morning, but he couldn't be sure of that, if he'd forgotten Pekea's door. And even if he'd just forgotten to latch it, she was strong enough to shove it open on her own.

She'd had free run of the palace during the ball, and he did not know how long ago she'd escaped.

If she had caused trouble, his mother would kill him. But that was not even the worst of it. This was the one night he had not wanted Pekea to get up to mischief. The one marriage-associated event better left alone than spoiled. And she had likely spoiled it anyway. He would not know the extent of the damage until he found it—or her—but with the circumstances of her escape and her cage in this state, its existence was as good as guaranteed. She would have come to find him, assured herself that he was fine, and then taken out her frustrations in the way he admittedly encouraged in most circumstances.

"Pekea, come."

Something rustled in the corner. Isaiah lifted his head, then got up and moved towards the sound's origin. Pekea had fallen silent again. She was hiding from him in the way she did when she had been naughty and was also feeling cantankerous. She stayed motionless as Isaiah encroached on the corner, feeling each hiding spot as he went. His hand brushed warm peach fuzz. Pekea exploded from hiding before he could snatch her. Her claws hit the floor and bolted through the exit hatch he had again forgotten to close. Isaiah was desperately tempted to just go to bed and let her sulk elsewhere. But she often hid like this when she'd stolen something, and if that was the case, he had to find out what before his mother did.