PROLOGUE

The phone began to ring as Hermione was helping Adam to tie his shoes. She quickly finished the knot, and handed him a banana, before heading to the foyer room to pick it up.

'That better be gone by the time I'm back,' she said sternly, casting him a glance over her shoulder. She pushed open the door that led to the foyer, and instantly, the volume of the phone's ringing multiplied. She hurriedly crossed over to the wickerwork table it rested on and picked up the receiver.

'Hello,' she said, her voice a little impatient.

There was a brief silence. The line crackled.

'Hello,' she said, again, beginning to lose her temper. She was sure Adam was simply staring at his banana, and she was determined to get something into his stomach before he went to school- which was in five minutes, she realized, glancing down at her watch.

'Is anybody there?' I have better things to do with my time. She waited for a second, and then let out an impatient huff, and was about to hang up when someone spoke.

'Hello,' said the voice. It was deep and gravelly. 'Is Draco Malfoy there?'

Hermione frowned. 'No,' she said, 'This is his wife speaking. Can I take a message?'

There was another pause, and a little snort of laughter. Hermione felt her temper rising again. She heard a little crash from the kitchen, followed by the sound of something spilling. Covering the mouthpiece with her hand, she yelled out, 'Adam, what are you doing?' before quickly transferring her attention back to the phone.

'Look, I don't have much time,' she said, shortly. 'So if you could just give me a message-'

'His wife, huh?' said the man at the other end. 'So you must be Hermione.'

Hermione's heart quickened. How does he know my name?

'Who is this?" she asked, speaking carefully. Another little thud from the kitchen.

'My name's Joe Arbuckle.'

'I don't think I know you.'

'Your husband does.' said Joe, with another stacatto laugh. 'Why don't you ask him?'

Hermione frowned. Her nerve ends were tingling lightly, as though warning her of some kind of danger.

'I'm sorry,' she said, quickly. 'I'll ask Draco to call you back when he gets home. Thank you, bye.'

'Hang on, one second!' Joe snapped, as she made to hang up. Hermione paused. 'What?'

'How's Adam?' he asked.

Hermione nearly dropped the receiver. Her heart began to pound even quicker, and she could hear the dull thudding in her ears.

'I'm sorry, what was that?"

'I asked, how's Adam?'

Suddenly, she was accutely conscious of Adam in the kitchen, could hear him chewing ruminatively on his banana, hear the dull thuds as he swung his legs against the kitchen cabinet. She bit her lip and struggled to keep the tremble from her voice.

'H-How do you know my son's name?' she asked, in a strangled voice. 'Who are you?'

Joe merely laughed, and hung up.

Hermione stood still for a few minutes, clutching the receiver so tightly her knuckles turned white. It was eight thirty in the morning, and the sun was already high in the sky, but she felt a chill creep over her face. She replaced the reciever, and then walked slowly and thoughtfully to the kitchen. Her own footsteps seems to echoe ominously around the house.

'Finished your breakfast?' she asked, as she entered the kitchen. Adam sat at the table, a banana peel on the surface next to his elbows. A glass of milk lay on the floor, shattered in three or four pieces.

'I dropped the tumbler,' he said, ruefully. 'I'm sorry, Mum.'

'That's alright, honey,' Hermione said, automatically. She chewed thoughtfully on her bottom lip. 'Adam, go put your coat on. Mum's dropping you to playschool today.'

Adam jumped and frowned. 'You never drop me to school,' he said, in a faintly accusing voice.

'Well, I'm going to now. Go up and get your coat while I get my purse.'

Adam raced up the stairs, while Hermione followed him a little more slowly. She pushed open her bedroom door, and breathed in the stale, stagnant air. The room had not been slept in last night. Draco was out of town on business, and she had slept with Adam the last night. She suddenly found herself wishing that Draco was here, and then wondering whether that would simply make things worse.

She crossed over to her wardrobe, and pulled out a black jacket, that she wrapped around her white tee shirt and jeans. Then, she pulled open a drawer at the back, and hesitated for a moment, before pulling out a gun. It was sharp and metallic, gleaming coolly in the pale morning light. Hermione tested its weight in her hands, before slipping it into her handbag along with her wand.

She reappeared in the kitchen, to find Adam, with his hair neatly brushed, his bright red jacket on, and his little knapsack slung over his shoulders. 'Ready, Mum?' he asked.

'Come on, honey.'

As she slid into the driver's seat of the car, Hermione found herself looking around, anxiously. The cottage was surrounded by dark, shady trees, the type Draco liked so much, and it suddenly struck her that anybody could be peering at them through those leafy branches. She heard the car door slam as Adam slipped into the seat beside her, and then started the engine, still looking around carefully.

'Mum, you're supposed to watch the road, while driving.'

'Of course I am, sweety. I just thought I saw a- a squirrel.' She pulled the car out of the garage, and then said, 'Adam, do me a favor and look around, will you. If you see any branches moving, or anything out of the ordinary, just tell me. It- it could be that squirrel again.'

'Okay,' said Adam, promptly, and he turned around in his seat and pressed his nose against the window. Hermione concentrated on pulling the car out onto the driveway, and then easing past the small rickety gate, that she had painted red. As they crossed it, she said, 'Well?'

'I didn't see a squirrel,' Adam said, turning around again, with his classic indifferent expression. 'But there was a man behind the wall in Mrs. Greene's garden.'

After dropping Adam to school, Hermione returned to the cottage with a feeling of trepidation. Suddenly, everything was was once familiar and comforting to her seemed steeped in danger. The red painted gate, with its colorful mailbox seemed to creak ominously as she pushed it open. She inspected the cobbled path that led to the porch for footsteps, but found none. The porch itself, with its brick facade, and bright Chinese lanterns was empty.

She sat down on a chair in the garden, still thinking about what Adam had said. A man behind the wall in Mrs. Greene's garden. Mrs. Greene was their neighbour, a elderly lady with bright red hair, and a large family of cats. The wall separating their gardens was low, and lined with ivy. She cast it a nervous glance as she sat, but there was not a soul in sight.

She had asked Adam what the man looked like, what he had been doing. He had been remarkably nonchalant.

'He had a brown beard,' he said, casually. 'I think he was looking at you, Mum. Maybe he knew you?'

Maybe he didn't. Hermione grasped her handbag, with her wand and the gun she had concealed in it, and walked around their garden to the wall. Mrs. Greene was sitting on a wickerwork chair in the sun on her lawn. Mr. Tibbles and Fluffy, the prime members of her cat family, were reposed elegantly beside her. Two gray kittens frolicked about nearby.

'Hello, Mrs. Malfoy,' she called out, cheerfully. 'Lovely morning, isn't it?'

'It's wonderful,' Hermione agreed. Her eyes scanned the wall. No hand-prints, no marks. 'How have you been?'

'Charming, of course. Tibble's cut his ear on a thornbush yesterday, so I had to patch it up for him. I saw you driving Adam to school today.'

'Oh, were you out?' asked Hermione hopefully. There was a chance, she supposed, that Adam had seen Mrs. Greene, and confused her for a man with a brown beard. She quashed this ridiculous thought the moment it entered her mind.

'Oh, no,' said Mrs. Greene, shaking her head. Her bright red hair flopped messily over her shoulders. 'I was in my bedroom, upstairs, watching out the window.'

Hermione felt her heart quicken again. She laughed nervously. 'It's strange,' she said. 'Adam thought he saw a man in your garden today. With a brown beard. He seemed quite certain of it.'

'Oh, that was just the TV repair man,' said Mrs. Greene, and Hermione felt a rush of relief, until she continued, 'It's so strange, he came knocking on my door, quite early in the morning. I hadn't called anyone, but apparently the TV company had sent him for a check up of some sort. He even asked to use my phone. Fluffy bit him, you know.'

He even asked to use my phone. Hermione felt another wave of nervousness. She leaned forward and cupped her chin in her hands.

'Talking about phones,' she said, 'Ours is acting up, as usual. Would you happen to have the number of the phone company?.'

'Of course I do, dear,' said Mrs. Greene. 'Come right in and I'll give it to you.'

Hermione went past her gate, and entered Mrs. Greene's garden. 'Do you mind if I make a quick call while you look for the number?' she asked, with a hopeful smile. 'I've been trying to call Draco since last night, but-'

'Of course you can,' said Mrs. Greene, and Hermione's smile widened. 'What are neighbour's for, after all. Come inside.'

She led her into the house, dark and somewhat dingy, with a strong smell of cats and overboiled stew. She pointed out the phone, that was on a round table in the alcove. 'Go right ahead and call your husband. I'll just go get the number of the company.'

Hermione waited till Mrs. Greene had gone upstairs, before picking up the reciever. Her fingers trembled as she punched the redial button. There was a slight buzzing, and then the line began to ring.

At the same time, she heard a faint ringing from her cottage, across the wall. She felt her tongue cleave itself to the roof of her mouth. The ringing continued, and then there was a beep.

'Hi, you've reached Draco and Hermione. Please leave a message after the tone.'

There was a beep. Hermione hung up.

Sirius sat alone, in his darkened office, a lantern set on the desk in front of him. He was smoking a cigarette, ashing every now and then into a ceramic tray that he had found at a Tibetan market. The file that was propped up in front of him was heavy and full of pages, but he was perusing them with utmost attention. Every now and then, he underlined a phrase or sentence with a thick pencil.

He inhaled deeply, and then looked up at the ceiling of his office. An unsettling sense of nervousness was beginning to quash him. He was just about to turn his attention back to the file, when he heard a light tapping on his window. Looking up, he saw a snowy white owl pecking reproachfully at the glass.

'Oh, hullo, Hedwig,' he said, getting up and undoing the catch. The owl flew in and settled on his desk. 'Letter from Harry?'

He carefully untied it, before giving the owl a few treats. She sat obstinately on his desk, obviously waiting for a reply. Sirius unscrolled the letter, and glanced through it.

Then, he grabbed a parchment from his desk, and a large plume and scrawled a few words.

Of course I will. Just send me the address, will you?

He tied it to Hedwig's leg, and watched her fly off into the darkness, until she was a mere speck in the sky. A small smile alighted on his face.