Chapter 53 - Moving Day
Scabior didn't make it far on his wounded leg. The pain he felt when walking was a deep, piercing pain that stabbed him with every step he took. It would be another week before he was able to walk without limping, and a week after that before he was fully healed. But Scabior was glad to get out of bed after being laid up for so long. It felt good to be outside again. And although he expected Violet to insist that he return to bed, he was grateful when she decided to take his hand and walk with him instead.
Violet was going to try convincing him to go back to bed. But after hearing him recall the horrors of his past in vivid, gruesome detail, she decided that if would be better if he took a walk to clear his head after what they'd just discussed.
She didn't know how else to help him. She didn't know what to say that might make him feel better. She wanted to comfort him, but Scabior wasn't the type of man who liked being held while crying in someone's arms. He was strong, and preferred to battle his demons on his own.
On his own, but not completely alone. He wasn't against having someone with him when things got difficult, a silent but reassuring companion so he didn't feel forgotten, abandoned, and despised by all around him, as was often the case since he'd taken the position of head Snatcher. He let Violet stay with him, and in his heart he was grateful that she was there for him.
She was exactly what he needed. Her presence, her love for him, it was enough. No matter what happened to him, no matter what life threw at him, as long as she was there, as long as he could hear her voice, feel her lying next to him in bed, and look into her eyes each night before they fell asleep, he would be alright. As long as she loved him he would be fine, and she felt the same way about him.
Upon returning from his walk in the woods, Scabior decided that he was feeling well enough to move their camp to a new location. Some of his men questioned his decision, thinking that now wasn't the best time for them to leave.
They could see the way Scabior struggled to walk, the pained expression on his face as each step sent a fresh wave of pain surging through his muscles. Lucius Malfoy was against the idea of moving camp, and unlike Scabior's men he came forward to address the situation, voicing his concerns directly to the head Snatcher.
"We 'ave to leave," Scabior said, pausing briefly as he started coughing again. "It's a miracle tha bastard 'asn't come looking for us yet, an we can't push our luck by staying 'ere any longer. We need to leave before he returns."
Lucius knew there was no arguing with him once the Snatcher had made up his mind. "Fine then," he said. "I'll stay here until after the move. If everything goes well, I shall be leaving shortly afterwards since you are no longer in need of my services."
Scabior couldn't help but notice Lucius' stiff, dry tone when he spoke. He was thoroughly displeased with Scabior's course of action, but knew that there was nothing he could do to stop him or make him change his mind.
"No, you're not leaving yet," said Scabior. "Not before I give you something."
The blond aristocrat blinked his cold grey eyes in surprise. "And what would that be?"
"My thanks, of course. You've done a lot for me. An, like I said before, I am most appreciative of your 'elp, Lucius. This is the second time now tha you've saved my arse from dying. Without you I would 'ave died in a cell in Azkaban years ago, an now you've come through for me again. So I just wanted to thank you for all you've done for me."
"And you choose to reward my efforts by doing something that will risk the safety of your health and well being."
"Do you see tha I 'ave any other choice?" Scabior asked. "Every minute tha we stay 'ere puts them at risk. I can't let anything 'appen to them, an I can't let anything 'appen to Violet. 'Er 'ealth an safety mean more to me than my own. I'd rather go now an know tha she'll be safe than wonder if she'll be snatched the moment my back is turned."
"You could stay in my home until you are fully hScabior," Lucius suggested.
"Thank you, Lucius. But my place is out 'ere in the wilderness," said Scabior, politely declining Lucius' offer. "This is my 'ome. This is where I belong, an this is where I'm staying."
.oOo.
The Snatchers put away their tents and packed up their belongings. Violet and Ranca helped pack Scabior's things so the head Snatcher wouldn't have the extra work to do while he was still recovering from his injuries. Their assistance wasn't necessary, though, because everything they owned was put away with magic. But since they insisted on doing the work for him, Scabior let them do it while he stood back and watched everyone pack up their belongings.
While the others were putting everything away, Scabior sat down on a log in the corner of the campsite, and began finishing off the last of a bottle of firewhiskey. When he emptied the bottle, he muttered a brief incantation and tapped the bottle with his wand, causing it to glow with a faint blue light.
When everyone had finished putting everything away, Scabior called them to him and explained that they would be traveling to their destination by portkey.
"A portkey won't leave behind traces of magic for anyone to follow," Scabior told them. "Once the portkey is used the magic is gone. So even if anyone does turn up 'ere, they shouldn't be able to follow us."
Lucius couldn't help but chuckle at the thought of Scabior using an empty bottle of booze to make a portkey.
"Everyone ready?" Scabior asked.
There were murmurs and nods from everyone around him.
"Alright then. You all know wha to do. So grab on an let's be on our way."
.oOo.
The new location Scabior took them too was in a low valley on a mountainside. There were only a few areas of level ground suitable for setting up camp, with several trees and bushes covering the surrounding hillside. A small stream trickled downhill with clusters of blackberry and mint growing near the water's edge, and the air around the stream smelled strongly of mint.
As they arrived at their destination, the jolt of hitting the ground as they landed sent a fresh wave of pain surging through Scabior's injured leg. The head Snatcher felt his knees buckle and he fell forward, landing atop poor little Jeremy and flattening the young wizard.
"Master, are you alright?" Ranca asked, stooping to help his master up.
Scabior shoved Ranca aside, trying his best to maintain his dignity. He struggled for a moment before finally managing to push himself off Jeremy and back onto his feet, his legs trembling ever so slightly as he stood up.
The head Snatcher dusted himself off and smoothed out his jacket. His injured leg was throbbing with horrible pain, but he kept his head down and tried not to show that he was in pain.
"Well? Wha are you all standing around for?" Scabior spat. "You want to get camp set up before nightfall, don't you? Or per'aps you fancy the thought of sleeping on the rocks instead?"
The Snatchers could see that their leader was in no mood to be questioned about his health, so they kept their heads down, their mouths shut, and began clearing away the rocks and fallen branches in the surrounding area so they could make camp. Meanwhile Scabior limped downhill towards the stream, telling them that he was going to scout around a bit.
Lucius and Violet exchanged worried glances as Scabior limped down the slope and off into the bushes.
"Stay here," Violet told Lucius. "I'll go check on him."
.oOo.
Scabior knew exactly where he was going as he made his way downhill, clinging to the jutting rocks and the sides of trees to avoid slipping and falling.
He made his way down to the stream that flowed through the snow covered hillside. Since it was now late February, there were snowdrops poking through the frozen earth, dottng the area in beautiful shades of green and white. He'd been here before, and was pleased to see that everything still looked as beautiful as it did the last time he was here.
As he was sitting down on some smooth, dry rocks at the water's edge, he noticed a slight dampness seeping through the material on his right leg. He cursed under his breath and unbuckled his studded belt, then carefully slid his tight pants down his legs.
He was bleeding. The wound in his right thigh had reopened during his fall, and was now staining the bandages with bright red splotches.
Still swearing as he grit his teeth against the pain in his thigh, Scabior unwound the soiled bandages and tossed them in the stream where they were carried away with the current. He didn't know that Violet was watching him from a distance.
Scabior tried using a healing spell on the gash in his leg. Lucius told him that wouldn't work, because only the healing charm Bellatrix made would work due to the nature of the poison and the cursed blade she stabbed him with. But Scabior wanted to try anyway, and found that his magic had no effect on his wound.
Furious with himself and the situation he was in, Scabior picked up a rock and hurled it at a small sapling. His aim was good, and the sapling was snapped clean in two. He wanted to scream. He wanted to break something to vent his anger and frustration. He was so sick of this, of Bellatrix always being there and making his life into a living hell. He'd kill her himself if he could. But the Dark Lord wouldn't be very happy with him if he found out that Scabior had murdered one of his Death Eaters.
As Violet watched him pick up another rock and throw it into the stream with a resounding splash, a strange feeling arose in her that she had never felt before. She was angry, more so than she had ever been before. Bellatrix hurt Scabior. She had murdered his entire family and tried to kill him as well. And when Violet's love for Scabior mingled with her growing hatred of Bellatrix, it began to take her mind down a dark path it had never been down before.
Scabior suddenly cried out in pain. He held his leg, and drops of blood fell into the stream, swirling beneath him like crimson ribbons on the surface of the water. He quickly conjured a roll of bandages, wrapped them around his leg, and applied pressure to the wound to stop the bleeding.
That was when Violet decided to find Bellatrix. She would hunt her down if she had to. And when she found her, she was going to kill her. Bellatrix Lestrange had hurt Scabior for the last time. This was where it ended.
Fortunately for Scabior he was able to stop the bleeding within a couple of seconds. He wrapped a second layer of bandages around his leg so he wouldn't bleed through them so easily if his wound reopened again, used a charm to clean the blood off his pants, hoisted his trousers and prepared to head back to camp, completely unaware of the murderous plans now fermenting in Violet's mind.
