Jess had just been getting Lucas ready when she heard it. From upstairs
the crashing of the door swinging back on its hinges and hitting the
doorframe sounded like the crash of thunder down in their kitchen. For a
fleeting second Jess wondered if this was what Lilly Potter had felt like
just before the Dark Lord had come barreling into Harry's bedroom and done
her in with the killing curse. But she knew that David's wrath would be
far worse for her than Voldemort's was for Lilly. David wouldn't kill her
quite so quickly. He would be sure that she didn't die without some scars.
Moving as quickly as she could Jess gathered up the nappies and scooped
Lucas up in her free arm. Perhaps if she were holding him - their son,
after all - David would be more hesitant to hurt her.
No such luck. Seconds later David had thrown the door open. It had been locked, but no match for him. One well-placed kick had sent it booming against the wall of Lucas' bedroom and splinters of wood from the shattered frame flew out at Jess and Lucas, huddled underneath the picture window between the dresser and the crib.
His eyes were wild and if he had been a wild animal he would have been foaming at the mouth. He had lost all semblance of the man that she had married. He looked left, then right, and spotted them immediately. Jess was crouched down over Lucas, forming a sort of cocoon around him against his father. She was shaking so badly that she feared at one point she might drop him.
David crossed the room purposefully and she cried out when he took her by both arms and pulled her to her feet, removed Lucas with the tenderness of an angel from her arms, and placed him in the crib. He cried out loudly in protest, his only form of defense at sixteen months old. When he turned back to Jess, however, he was a madman once again.
Jess screamed and ducked underneath the arm he had stretched out to take hold of her. She ran as fast as her legs would carry her, but they had turned to jelly when he had burst through the door and didn't serve her well. She wasn't quick enough, and coupled with the fact that her hair hung down to the middle of her back and flew out behind her when she ran, she didn't get very far. David took hold of the blonde mane as Jess ran past and pulled her back by it, Jess screaming madly.
'Please let someone hear me. Please, Merlin, let someone hear me screaming,' Jess thought to herself as David pulled her close and then covered her mouth with his paw-like hand. She looked up into his eyes, begging him with tears and dilated pupils to stop. Just stop.
"You told the ministry. I know it was you, Jess. Don't give me any of your bullshit lies and just admit it."
Jess shook her head, her eyes becoming wide and squeezing tears out of their corners. She sobbed helplessly against his palm as her body went limp and she gave in to her fate. Of course it had been her. Who else could have known that David Cleaver had a veritable museum of the Dark Lord's personal artifacts in his basement?
Sinking to her knees, her arms held above her head at the wrist by David, Jess looked as though she were begging him to be merciful. But of course she wasn't. She knew no amount of begging could win her mercy from a merciless monster like David Cleaver. She sobbed as she realized that the bruises on her back hadn't even healed yet. She sobbed as she wondered how David had managed to escape ministry officials. She sobbed as she wondered where in bloody hell Albus Dumbledore was. The ministry had sent an owl to say that he was on his way to collect her and take her and Lucas back to Hogwarts as soon as they had gotten word that David had escaped.
And then, just as David had raised his free hand and was about to bring a mighty blow down upon Jess' left temple, she saw something. It was only a flash of red and gold, but she knew in an instant what it was. David must have seen it too, for he stopped in mid - blow and looked up toward the ceiling, following the blur with suddenly fearful eyes. Lucas had stopped screaming and was now laughing and pointing heavenward as Fawkes, a great and noble phoenix, landed atop his dresser mirror. Jess cast pleading eyes up at the bird, hoping with all the strength she had that Fawkes' arrival signaled Albus' as well. David, realizing that time was running out, turned his attention back to Jess, still kneeling on the floor in front of him.
"Did you send for Dumbledore? Is that why this infernal bird is here?" His voice was rising with each syllable, each word sounding more poisonous than the last. "Did you call that muggle loving old bastard to come and save you?" Crack The back of his hand came up hard making contact with Jess' left cheek. She cried out and flew backwards, her back hitting the dresser. She crumpled up there and lay perfectly still. The back of her head was screaming out in agony - it had hit a knob on one of the drawers just so that when she placed a hand there she felt an instant sting and when she drew her hand back she saw blood on her fingers. She pushed herself up with both hands with all her might, but once she got far enough off the floor that her face wasn't touching it any more, she felt dizzy and was forced to let herself fall back to it. She thought she might vomit and she suddenly felt terribly thirsty.
From the corner of her blurred vision she could see David's giant feet making quick advances on her but she hadn't the strength to do anything but lay back and close her eyes and welcome the end of her existence. And then it happened. She heard a voice - a very familiar voice - call out from the bedroom doorway, and it was enough to stop David dead in his tracks.
"That is enough, David." The owner of the voice did not sound angry or vengeful. Nor had he raised his voice at all. Rather he sounded sad and almost disappointed in the scene he saw before him. "It's over."
Jess saw another pair of feet come to meet David's. She heard some more muffled talking. And then, just before she felt everything fade to black and her consciousness slip mercifully away, she felt the sensation of someone strong and who smelled like cinnamon pick her up and carry her from the room.
No such luck. Seconds later David had thrown the door open. It had been locked, but no match for him. One well-placed kick had sent it booming against the wall of Lucas' bedroom and splinters of wood from the shattered frame flew out at Jess and Lucas, huddled underneath the picture window between the dresser and the crib.
His eyes were wild and if he had been a wild animal he would have been foaming at the mouth. He had lost all semblance of the man that she had married. He looked left, then right, and spotted them immediately. Jess was crouched down over Lucas, forming a sort of cocoon around him against his father. She was shaking so badly that she feared at one point she might drop him.
David crossed the room purposefully and she cried out when he took her by both arms and pulled her to her feet, removed Lucas with the tenderness of an angel from her arms, and placed him in the crib. He cried out loudly in protest, his only form of defense at sixteen months old. When he turned back to Jess, however, he was a madman once again.
Jess screamed and ducked underneath the arm he had stretched out to take hold of her. She ran as fast as her legs would carry her, but they had turned to jelly when he had burst through the door and didn't serve her well. She wasn't quick enough, and coupled with the fact that her hair hung down to the middle of her back and flew out behind her when she ran, she didn't get very far. David took hold of the blonde mane as Jess ran past and pulled her back by it, Jess screaming madly.
'Please let someone hear me. Please, Merlin, let someone hear me screaming,' Jess thought to herself as David pulled her close and then covered her mouth with his paw-like hand. She looked up into his eyes, begging him with tears and dilated pupils to stop. Just stop.
"You told the ministry. I know it was you, Jess. Don't give me any of your bullshit lies and just admit it."
Jess shook her head, her eyes becoming wide and squeezing tears out of their corners. She sobbed helplessly against his palm as her body went limp and she gave in to her fate. Of course it had been her. Who else could have known that David Cleaver had a veritable museum of the Dark Lord's personal artifacts in his basement?
Sinking to her knees, her arms held above her head at the wrist by David, Jess looked as though she were begging him to be merciful. But of course she wasn't. She knew no amount of begging could win her mercy from a merciless monster like David Cleaver. She sobbed as she realized that the bruises on her back hadn't even healed yet. She sobbed as she wondered how David had managed to escape ministry officials. She sobbed as she wondered where in bloody hell Albus Dumbledore was. The ministry had sent an owl to say that he was on his way to collect her and take her and Lucas back to Hogwarts as soon as they had gotten word that David had escaped.
And then, just as David had raised his free hand and was about to bring a mighty blow down upon Jess' left temple, she saw something. It was only a flash of red and gold, but she knew in an instant what it was. David must have seen it too, for he stopped in mid - blow and looked up toward the ceiling, following the blur with suddenly fearful eyes. Lucas had stopped screaming and was now laughing and pointing heavenward as Fawkes, a great and noble phoenix, landed atop his dresser mirror. Jess cast pleading eyes up at the bird, hoping with all the strength she had that Fawkes' arrival signaled Albus' as well. David, realizing that time was running out, turned his attention back to Jess, still kneeling on the floor in front of him.
"Did you send for Dumbledore? Is that why this infernal bird is here?" His voice was rising with each syllable, each word sounding more poisonous than the last. "Did you call that muggle loving old bastard to come and save you?" Crack The back of his hand came up hard making contact with Jess' left cheek. She cried out and flew backwards, her back hitting the dresser. She crumpled up there and lay perfectly still. The back of her head was screaming out in agony - it had hit a knob on one of the drawers just so that when she placed a hand there she felt an instant sting and when she drew her hand back she saw blood on her fingers. She pushed herself up with both hands with all her might, but once she got far enough off the floor that her face wasn't touching it any more, she felt dizzy and was forced to let herself fall back to it. She thought she might vomit and she suddenly felt terribly thirsty.
From the corner of her blurred vision she could see David's giant feet making quick advances on her but she hadn't the strength to do anything but lay back and close her eyes and welcome the end of her existence. And then it happened. She heard a voice - a very familiar voice - call out from the bedroom doorway, and it was enough to stop David dead in his tracks.
"That is enough, David." The owner of the voice did not sound angry or vengeful. Nor had he raised his voice at all. Rather he sounded sad and almost disappointed in the scene he saw before him. "It's over."
Jess saw another pair of feet come to meet David's. She heard some more muffled talking. And then, just before she felt everything fade to black and her consciousness slip mercifully away, she felt the sensation of someone strong and who smelled like cinnamon pick her up and carry her from the room.