Chapter 8

Hermione was furious that he should take her for a common strumpet! Even pregnant! She responded in low threatening tones. "Go away you vile man. I wasn't watching you, I was watching the window behind you. I'm expecting my husband, Severus Snape. Perhaps you've heard of him. Former Death Eater. If he sees you near me he'll gut you for fish bait." She had expected to frighten him, instead he got a grin and a crazed look in his eyes.

"You're Snape's woman? Then the brat in your belly is his too. Well! Such an honor Mrs. Snape, or are you really just his bit of fluff then?" He grabbed her arm and spoke quietly as not to disturb the other patrons. "In that case I insist that you join me." He had a butcher knife to her belly under his sleeve and began to pull her up from the table. "Don't make a sound or your brat won't live to see it's father."

Hermione kept calm and hatched a plan. "Let me get my bag. You don't want it left behind do you?" She picked it up and some of the contents fell out. She managed to get her arm away long enough to repack it. He was impatient and grabbed her arm again. "Move."

Kozlok pulled her to the door and no one seemed to notice. Once outside he hurried her along several streets to Knockturn Alley. Just before they turned into the lane she spotted Neville Longbottom. He nodded to her in greeting and was surprised that she didn't stop to talk, but rushed on by. He was a bit put out, but Neville always thought the best of people and assumed she was late for an appointment. Still, it was odd that she would go down to that horrid place. And who was that with her?"

oopOqoo

"Harry! Harry come back!" Lisa had finally located the assistant director of the MLE. He was trying to be unobtrusive as he searched for the man they were looking for. Little did he know he was so far off it was ridiculous. "Harry!"

He heard her and stopped, his face going white as a sheet. "What are you doing here?! I told you both to go home! Where's Hermione?"

Lisa stopped to take her breath, "She's at The Leakey Cauldron. We spotted him there! We have to go back and help her."

Harry cast his patronis to find Greystone and told him to get help. He then grabbed Lisa's hand and began to run. Greystone met him at the door and they barged in. Hermione was not to be found.

Lisa was on the verge of panic. "I told her just to watch him and wait for us. Where could she be?"

Harry went to the bar and spoke with the waitress. "Do you remember a pregnant lady at that booth?" She looked up and was starstruck by Harry for a moment. "Quickly! Do you remember her?" Jolted out of her stupor she said yes, she remembered the nice lady and thought it odd that she had left with that pig of a man. "Which way did they go? Did you see or hear anything?" The foolish woman insisted that she ran a decent place and it was none of her business what people did after they left her establishment.

This was a five-alarm fire and he needed everyone he could get, and he'd better tell Severus. Greystone had summoned several others and they gathered outside in the street. Severus came as soon as he got Harry's patronis. His eyes were on fire as he looked at Harry. "Mr. Potter you will find my wife and daughter or you will not survive the day." Harry knew he was joking… well maybe.

Harry addressed the crowd of aurors, "Alright! Many of you know Hermione Snape from the war and the office. For those of you who don't, we are looking for a pregnant woman, late twenties, brown hair, brown eyes, last seen wearing blue jeans and a green maternity top, white sandals, scar on her left arm says mudblood." He stopped a moment for effect.

"Some scum has taken one of our own boys, let's go get her back!"

Harry knew this could be a trap. They received lots of letters threatening the traitor and Death Eater. Seemed like someone from both sides always wanted Severus dead. Harry caught up to him as he kneeled in the street examining something. "Severus. Has it occurred to you that Hermione is in danger because of you? Because someone wants to lure you down the wrong dark alley?"

"Don't be stupid Potter, Of course I know this is my fault. And when I catch the bastard you'd better stay out of the way. There won't even be a wet spot left."

"So my instinct to stick to you like glue is a good one. Maybe you should sit this one out. I can't ensure your safety." He was being totally ignored. "You wouldn't get to kill him anyway Snape. We need this one alive. He knows things we want to know." Harry pulled on Severus' sleeve and spun him around. "I'm not kidding Snape. We need him alive, understand?"

Severus scoffed "If you think I'm going to leave her safety to you and that group of dunderheads you're dumber than I thought." Severus nearly sprinted down the lane. Harry hadn't searched this part of town yet and he was going too fast. "Slow down Snape! Do you even know where you're going. You can bet he knows we're after him. He could be hiding anywhere."

"Potter when you're looking for a rat, you don't go to a well-kept part of town. You go where the rats are. And all our rats are in Knockturn Alley. Why the ministry hasn't burned the place to the ground by now I'll never know." Severus stopped and turned vicious, "You don't have to come if you're scared Potter. But if you do come, stop whining and do something useful."

Harry was going to mention he had faced just as many evil bastards in his career as Severus had, but it would do no good. Severus was in search and destroy mode and wouldn't give up until there was blood on the sidewalk. It would be best to let Severus be his sniffer dog and then step in when it counted. Harry sent a message to Greystone to join him, as they crept up to Knockturn Alley. If Severus was right, backup would be a good thing right about now.

What Harry didn't know was that Severus was following a trail of little white pills. Calcium pills. Hermione had a whole bottle of them on her always, after Severus had nagged her about taking them. The clever woman had known he would spot them and not be far behind.

oopOqoo

Kozlok pushed Hermione into a dirty one room shack. "Is this where you have been living for the past two years? So much for Voldemort's promises of glory and riches."

"Shut it bitch. You don't know anything." He was circling her like a shark.

The fool had taken her bag, assuming her wand was in it. Hermione always kept it in her sleeve as Severus did. He was a two-bit thug and if she could just distract him this would all be over with. "I know what I see. Why are you still doing this? He's not coming back this time. Don't you know it's over? Time to move on."

"Move on? Oh but I've just stolen the golden goose. You, slut, are going to give me a ticket out of this hell hole. You see, you, are not so important to the people I know, but your husband is. If I can deliver him into their hands, like a sheep for slaughter, I can write my own ticket. Now if you're a good little slut, I won't have to hurt you…too much. Get on the bed." He came very close to her and grabbed her breast.

He expected her to be frightened and compliant. So when she grabbed his shirt and kneed his groin, he fell to the ground wondering what happened. "You may have worked for that noseless bastard, but I helped kill him." Hermione pulled her wand from her sleeve and pointed. "Petrificus Totalis!"

The sound of clapping came from behind her. "Well done Hermione. Very well done." She turned to see three men she didn't know and raised her wand again. Unfortunately he was quicker and her wand flew to his hand. The next thing she knew she was bound with rope and sitting in a chair. Her eyes flashing daggers.