Chapter 22: Consequences
Jacq made his way back into the restaurant and as he was sitting back at the table, Parisa's father sauntered up to him.
"Where's my daughter?" He asked nonchalantly.
"I have no idea. She never showed so I assumed you let her out of the engagement." Jacq replied without batting a lash.
"No, the driver said that he dropped her off here promptly at seven."
"Sorry, old man, she never made it inside." He said as he shrugged his shoulders innocently.
"That's strange. I'll be right back." Mr. Sauniere excused himself much to Jacq's dismay.
"But what about dinner?" It was a desperate attempt and completely ignored by the older gentleman.
He made his way to the entrance and out the door to his awaiting car.
"Jeffrey," he commanded his driver's attention. "When did you drop my daughter off and was it here. Tell me truth as I cannot find her."
"It was here sir. Just before seven." The driver replied.
"Did she go inside?"
"Yes sir." The driver answered apprehensively while observing his employer's reaction.
"As you were." François directed him and moved away back towards the restaurant when he noticed the alleyway connected to the side of it. As he approached the mouth of the alley, he noticed what appeared to be hand sticking out of a pile of trash. I'll just satisfy my curiosity and then go back to join Jacq, he bargained subconsciously. Unfortunately, wait lay in the mound of garbage would prevent him from ever joining his companion…again.
His mind was racing as he pulled back the fiery red hair. Just don't let it be her; he chanted silently to himself, I'll give anything so long as it's not her. With his hand shaking, he stroked back the hair and gasped in horror.
"No, no it can't be." He exclaimed with a primal cry that brought people running to see what the commotion was. A crowd of onlooker gathered, women whimpered in shock and buried their faces in their dates shoulders while others ran to get help. But he just sat there on the cold hard concrete, rocking the lifeless girl back and forth as tears streamed down his face. He had not just lost a daughter but a destiny to boot and someone was going to pay. In the height of his own grief, Francois Sauniere never saw the smug face of his dinner guest looking at him briefly before disappearing into the night.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
"Good evening to you too, Minister. At least for now." Draco couldn't pass up the opportunity to antagonize one of his former tormentors caught in a vulnerable place.
"Get out of here Malfoy." Arthur commanded but was then struck dumb by the sight of Hermione stepping out of his shadow.
"Hermione, it's not what it looks like." Ron bounded towards him causing Draco to pull his wand.
"Hold it right there." He warned the overzealous red head. "Seems the tables have turned now, doesn't it Minister?"
"Hermione dear, it's just us. You we wouldn't harm you." Molly reasoned and extended her arms. "You're like a part of the family."
"Sorry but not anymore, Molly. But then you should already know that or has your husband not told you the whole story?" Hermione shot her boss a quizzical glance and from the expression on his face, it told her that he hadn't.
"Now, now….this is all just a misunderstanding and that's what we were here to fix but…" Molly started to explain but it was Ginny who cut her off this time.
"Mistake? After what she's done and you think that this is our mistake?" She whined.
"Bloody hell Gin, give it a rest. She has nothing to do with this." Ron snapped back realizing that his only hope for a way out was standing before him. "We are here to take her back to the aurors and turn her in."
"You what?" Ginny cried in disbelief.
"Where's Flint and Parisa?" Draco questioned to no one in particular.
Silence ensued as Ginny came to understand that no one in this room was on her side.
"Ginny." Molly begged but it was no use, her daughter would rather go to Azkaban than to admit any wrongdoing. "Ron?"
"Tell them Ginny, its over." Ron coaxed her.
"That's what you think." She replied and a smirk began to form devilishly.
"What the hell does that mean?" Hermione looked at Draco wondering what to do next.
"Take her with us." Draco pointed for Hermione to grab a hold of her but she just stood firmly planted in the same spot as an owl flew through the door and caught her eye. "What the…."
The owl flew directly to Arthur and nipped at his hand until he removed the parchment from its leg. Slowly he unfolded the paper and turned to the rest of the group with color draining further from his already pale face. "It can't be," he whispered as the note fell to the ground.
Hermione leaned down, picked up the parchment, read it and then turned her gaze to Draco before saying, "It says that Ginny's body has been discovered behind a restaurant in Paris."
"What?" several of the group repeated at once.
"NO!" Ginny screamed and then collapsed onto the floor while a series of loud pops erupted from the hallway.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Flint was standing outside the Owl Emporium where he had purchased five small owls in which he sent owls to Jacq, Parisa, Draco, the Daily Prophet and Dumbledore. The last three may have seemed counterproductive to the average normal person but they were leverage for him. One must always have a backup plan when dealing with men like Jacq and even more so when dealing with women like Parisa.
The notes were simple and to the point…just enough to ensure that he was taken seriously.
The read…
Jacq,
I have your package secured and hidden. Meet me at Gringotts at 8 am sharp.
M.
Parisa's was less discrete…
Miss Sauniere,
I have Ginny and your future. Meet me in Knockturn Alley at midnight. I'll find you.
Flint
The notes to Draco, the Daily Prophet and Dumbledore were to make sure that no danger came to him…
To Whom It May Concern,
I have information pertaining to illegal activities with an usually private organization. If you're interested, please send a reply owl with contact information immediately.
A concerned citizen
Pleased with end results, Marcus set the owls off to the individual destinations and settled in to await the replies. About an hour into his wait, Marcus picked up the latest edition of the Daily Prophet and was startled by the bold face headline:
Only Daughter of the Minister of Magic Found Murdered in Paris
He read and reread the headline at least ten times before the reality set in. The message to Parisa had been a very unwise decision and could prove to bring a lot of unwanted attention to him by some extremely unfriendly adversaries. But wait; perhaps there was a way to get that message back. However, if there was a way it would be a very dangerous one but a necessary one nonetheless.
Almost as an afterthought, he considered what it was going to be like to break this news to Ginny. How do you tell someone that they will never again truly be themselves?
Author's Notes:
Sorry it's been taking me so long to get the chapters up but life's been hectic as school draws to a close….the next chapter will be up it Friday and from that point, the chapter updates will come on Sundays and Wednesday or Thursday.
Welcome to the new readers: thatonechic, prin69, and Gentileschi.
Thanks to the returning readers: kat6528, HarryPotterLover24, Blood-Red-Pen-Tip, sugar n spice 522 and slyswn28.
Kat…I know these chapters are shorter but I did that so I could update more often and now I like the to post updates on the different situations then post but that will get better and more frequent now.
Harry…well, the Weasley's and Hermione and Draco and the others have found her but Parisa and the Priory have not…yet…the question now isn't can they reverse the spell w/o Parisa (or rather Ginny's body) being there but what do they do now that she's dead…I love a good plot twist…
That…thanks and just wait…the showdown is coming in the next two chapters…
Sugar…thanks and I'm still waiting for your updates but I understand time constraints.
Prin69…omg…you actually reviewed after each chapter…not a lot of people actually do that so I am very impressed too…and I am of the firm belief that no matter how old you get…we all still tell Mom or Dad on the other siblings…
Sly…you are too kind but just wait to see how death changes everything…even for Flamel…but don't forget…there is a prophecy at work…hahahaha…I love the plot bunny.
Gentile…thanks and I hope this does do well in the contest but if it doesn't…I have another idea for a d/hr story when this is complete…did anyone see the movie "Saw"…just twisted enough to give me an idea…hint, hint….
And as always…special thanks to Dracolov for sponsoring the contest although I think that I forgot to send her out an email on the last chapter….oh well, I'm only human…don't forget to review and always…if you're a d/hr lover…don't forget to check out Dangerous Liaisons now that the new nominees are out….
