Dances with Shadows
Prologue
About a year ago.
The young woman's heart hammered painfully in her chest as she stared out at the street below. He was there again. Standing motionless on the pavement two houses down. Shrouded in shadow and menace. She knew that he could not possibly see her watching him from the darkened room, but she stepped back out of his line of sight anyway, irrationally trying her best to breathe silently. The room was dim and still except for the low hum of the fan, the cool air drying the sweat on her skin and blowing strands of her long black hair across her face, offering at least some relief from the stifling hot Australian summer evening.
He knew. That was the only possible explanation. He had found her somehow. And now she would have to run. Her mission was compromised. She had sent a message to London two days ago, but had so far not had a response.
She glanced fearfully at the small white house a short distance down the road, gently nestled among sub-tropical trees and tall slender palms. They weren't home, thank the gods. They had gone away to visit friends. Her mind raced, replaying the events of the last few days.
Her sister had appeared at her front door three nights ago, fear and panic marring her otherwise pretty face. She had been momentarily paralysed at the sight of her sibling after all this time. Irrationally, her first distracted thought had been "She's so thin. The Ministry is working her too hard."
"What the hell are you doing here?" she finally asked, shocked. She grabbed her sister and pulled her into the house. "How did you find me?"
Her sister gazed at her. "Did you really think I wouldn't, Padma?" she whispered. "We're magical twins, remember? I will always be able to find you."
"Why are you here?" she repeated. Her sister's terrified eyes had sent ripples of fear down her spine. "What's going on?"
"I need your help," her sister said softly. "They're closing in and I don't have much time."
Padma's breathing had hitched in her chest as she watched her sister lift a black velvet pouch from her pocket and hold it out to her.
Her head was pounding and she battled to make sense of the situation. "Please Parvi, you're scaring me. Please tell me what's going on."
Parvati Patil blinked back the tears that had filled her eyes. She reached over and placed the pouch in her sister's hand.
"They were following me," she choked out. "I'm so sorry if I've put you in danger." She closed both of her trembling hands around her sister's hand. "Keep this safe. I thought that if I didn't use magic they wouldn't be able to track me. I thought I would be able to get it to Harry." she swallowed. "I was wrong."
Padma stared. "What? What are you talking about?" she gazed at the pouch. "Why would you need to get this to Harry?"
Her sister suddenly reached for her and hugged her fiercely. Then she stepped away.
"I'm so sorry, Padi. I have to go before I lead them here. Get that to Harry. It will lead him to something he is looking for. You must put it in his hands. Don't use magic - they will find you. And don't trust anyone else. You mustn't let anyone else get hold of it. It's important." She glanced fearfully out of the window into the twilight. "I have to go. I will always love you."
Padma had no time to do anything but stare as her sister turned and slipped out of the house into the night.
She would never see her again.
The loud barking of her neighbour's large German shepherd brought her back to the present moment with a jolt. Her eyes widened in terror as she saw that the man was now standing directly across the road. She broke into a hot-cold sweat as he slowly stepped from the pavement and walked across the road, walking directly towards her house.
She gasped, paralysed. Her mind screamed at her to Go! Go! Go! But her legs refused to obey. She heard his footsteps on the front path. With a supreme effort of will she finally moved. As if in slow motion she took the stairs two at a time and ran out of her kitchen into the backyard as she heard the bombarda shatter her front door. Feeling as though she was wading through syrup, she made her way across the back garden, only dimly aware that he had followed her out into the night. She stumbled on the uneven grass and for a nightmarish moment she was certain that he would reach her. But incredibly she regained her balance and ran around the side of her house, across the front lawn and into the street.
Her own breathing was deafening in her ears as she sprinted towards the small white house. She paused at the front gate only for a moment, her breath ragged, cursing the fact that she had left her wand in her bedroom, paused just a second, long enough to slip her arm through the slats of the little gate and drop a small package into a large plant pot crowded with exotically colourful flowers before continuing on her way past the house and into the night.
She offered a silent prayer of thanks as she heard that his footsteps did not slow as he ran past the small white house. The pouch was safe. For now.
She ran until her chest burned and her legs could no longer carry her.