Chapter 69: Interrogation

Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Ministry of Magic, London, United Kingdom.

May 31, 1991

Sirius looked on as the interrogation of John Dawlish, former Auror, went into its third hour of Dawlish's second day in custody. The man hadn't told them the names of his accomplices yet and Sirius saw absolutely no sign that the man would do so anytime soon. Dawlish knew their tricks. He had worked with the men and women who were trying to break him down and get him to confess to planning the murder of Lord Malfoy, Lord Black, Lady Black, Mr. Black, and Ms. Black. The most that they had gotten out of the man was that he had killed them, and he wasn't sorry for it in the slightest.

Too many witnesses placed Dawlish at the scene of the crime as having started the attack. Dawlish had not bothered to deny it. Had relished in describing how he had fired the first shot at Lord Malfoy. Sirius didn't doubt that Dawlish's true target had been Lord Malfoy. It had been Dawlish who had once harmed Draco during an Auror raid of Malfoy Manor. Abraxas Malfoy had reacted to the harming of his grandson with a ruthless efficiency that was still admired and feared in the halls of the ministry of magic to this very day some four years later. Even the formidable Amelia Bones, Head of the DMLE had been forced to accede to the will of Lord Malfoy and fire Dawlish. But Lord Malfoy had not stopped there. It had not been enough for Lord Malfoy that John Dawlish merely be released from employment in Law Enforcement. No. He ensured that Dawlish would never be hired for security either. All of the skills that Dawlish had cultivated, all of that training would be wasted. Dawlish was qualified for nothing else and had no other job prospects to fall back on. He was ruined.

Sirius could understand John Dawlish's hatred of the man who had ruined him, even if Sirius applauded Lord Malfoy and felt Dawlish had deserved what he had gotten. Sirius had comforted Narcissa when she had fretted and worried over Draco in the weeks after the Auror attack. Draco still, four years later, flinched slightly when he saw the scarlet robes of those that worked in the Auror department. Sirius wished now that Abraxas Malfoy had gutted John Dawlish. Maybe if the man had done that, then he would be there today as would Sirius's Grandparents and his Great-aunt.

He hadn't though, and they were gone because this man went on a power trip and decided that he could be above the law and kill whomever he pleased. That was Sirius's reality now.

"He won't break," his Uncle, Cygnus Black, said even as he handed Sirius a cup of coffee.

Sirius nodded his thanks as he accepted the cup. "No, he won't," he agreed. "Bones is a fool to think that these methods will work. And I cannot go in because I'm not an Auror and even if I was, I'd be too close to the issue."

Cygnus nodded. "Procedure," he said simply. "They wouldn't be able to count his confession if you were the one to gain it," he said. "At least, if it was just you that got it," he added.

Sirius turned his gaze to him. "What do you mean?"

Cygnus motioned toward the interrogation, the easy frustration on the faces of the Auror's who were trying their turn at breaking Dawlish. "This isn't working and those idiots there are pathetic at this," he said. "You had more of a mask when you were eight and Bellatrix was annoying you at Narcissa's piano recital," he said with some fondness in his voice despite the serious nature of their conversation. "If this is what the Auror department has to offer up then it is abysmal."

Sirius frowned at that but didn't verbalize any disagreement. It was sloppy work that the two Auror's were doing in there. Though he wished to believe it was because they were luring Dawlish into a false sense of superiority, Sirius didn't really believe that was the case. He did think his uncle was correct, these two Auror's just didn't have what it took to gain a full confession from a seasoned Auror like John Dawlish.

"Edwina offered up the register," Cygnus added after a few more moments of silence. "Even if Dawlish doesn't talk, we'll find them. According to the witnesses who have given their statements, the guests were already in Estelle's and had arisen from a table to approach our family. The hoods of their cloaks obscured their faces when they approached the table."

"Someone must have seen them without their hoods up before they attacked. Anyone recognize their faces?" Sirius questioned, falling back into habits from his days as an Auror. He had been one of the best in the department, though judging by the two in the interrogation room he rather thought that he would have been a better Auror than them when he was still out of his mind fresh from years of unjust imprisonment in Azkaban.

"No, but each person reported different details of the faces," Cygnus answered with a pointed look.

Sirius turned his gaze away from Dawlish to look fully at Cygnus. "Glamours, non-specific ones that would allow no one to be able to pick them out easily."

Cygnus nodded. "Yes, and the sort of level that Hit Wizards and Auror's use," he added with a nod toward Dawlish. "No guesses who taught them."

Sirius growled at that. "No, no guesses," he agreed.

They watched as the two Auror's continued their tactic, whatever that was, of gaining a confession from Dawlish. It would do no good, Sirius knew that. Their better chance lay with the registry of customers who were in Estelle's the day of the massacre. The silence between himself and his uncle was companionable and wasn't it odd that it had taken such horrible things to happen before he and Cygnus Black could find some common ground.

"You could always return home," Cygnus said referring to Blackmoor. Neither of them was stupid enough to say aloud within the Ministry of Magic that the family was staying at Blackmoor.

Sirius had already answered a few questions from Auror's about the whereabouts of his various family members. The whereabouts of Leonis and Harry were prevalent in the minds of the Auror's it seemed. It didn't surprise Sirius that they would wonder about the safety of 'the Boy Who Lived' since almost everyone in Wizarding Britain felt as if they were owed a piece of Harry. They were disgusting! However, he was surprised at the questions about Leonis. He couldn't understand what motivation lay behind their inquiry about his son.

He shook his head in the negative and glanced at Cygnus, meeting his uncle's eyes. "I would love to, but if I went home then I'd pace the floors wanting to be right back here," he admitted and ran a hand through his black curls.

Cygnus nodded his understanding. "The children are fine," he said. "We'd know if they weren't," he added to reassure Sirius.

Sirius was grateful for the reassurance. He agreed with Cygnus. The children were physically well and safe at Blackmoor. It was their emotional well-being that Sirius found himself worrying about. He had yet to inform Leonis that he would now be living with Sirius, though he suspected his firstborn already knew this. It still deserved a conversation.

"I think our best hope lays with the register," Sirius said as he turned his gaze back to the interrogation. He stared at the smug smirk on Dawlish's lips and frowned. "Had they ordered food or drinks?"

"Witnesses say that they had," Cygnus answered right away.

Sirius nodded thoughtfully and then he turned toward the door that would lead him away from the observation room. On the other side of the door stood two young Auror's. They blushed immediately upon seeing him. "I need to talk to Auror Shacklebolt," he informed them. "The sooner the better," he added.

"Mr. Black, Auror Shacklebolt told us to remain here to watch over you," one of the Auror's said.

Sirius smirked. "And you weren't supposed to tell me that," he informed the young idiot. Really what were they teaching these children? The Auror Academy must have some truly incompetent instructors nowadays. "Now, you," he said to the one who had been smart enough to keep his mouth shut. "You shall remain here with my uncle and me. While you," he said pointing to the idiot who had spoken to him. "Go tell Auror Shacklebolt that I request to speak with him."

The Auror glared at Sirius for a moment before he turned away, walking down the hall. Sirius nodded to the other Auror and then he stepped back into the room.

"What is this all about Sirius?" Cygnus asked. His expression showed mild amusement.

"You'll find out soon enough," Sirius promised. They were silent for a time, watching the interrogation against Dawlish, unsurprised when the Auror's in the interrogation room continued to get fed up with Dawlish's refusal to cooperate.

When at last Kingsley Shacklebolt entered the observation room, Sirius was pleasantly surprised to see him joined by his own old mentor Alastor Moody. Sirius gave the older battle-scarred man a welcoming smile. "Thank you Auror's Shacklebolt and Moody for taking the time to speak with me."

Shacklebolt's nod of respect was welcoming. Moody snorted. "I hear you were quite rude to some of the new brats," he informed Sirius.

"They need better training," Sirius drawled. "That brat told me the orders he had been given. You would have taken a pound of flesh from me for that," Sirius pointed out.

Moody chuckled. "So, I would have," he said with some fondness in his voice. "I don't know what's going on with the Auror Training these days, but whoever the instructors are, they are doing a piss poor job," the man said gruffly.

Sirius nodded his agreement. "Perhaps you should consider taking some time to fix that," he said pointedly to his old mentor. Sirius didn't think he was alone in the opinion that Alastor Moody was one of the greatest Auror's still living today. He wasn't battle-scarred because he was ill-trained for battle. He was battle-scarred because the man was brave enough to throw himself in front of others to protect them from the hexes and curses that bad Wizards and Witches chose to unleash. Moody was a gruff man but a good one. If anyone could fix the problems at the Auror Academy then it was Moody.

"I'll think about it," Moody said gruffly. His tone said that he had already been thinking about it. "Now, what do you need Black?"

Sirius glanced back at the interrogation room and then looked back to Moody and Shacklebolt. "We both know that Dawlish isn't going to talk, not this way. We also know that no one is going to let you have a go at Dawlish," he added looking pointedly at Moody. The powers that be within the Auror Department did not want to allow Alastor Moody to interrogate Dawlish, because no one was sure that Dawlish would come out of it unharmed. The last thing they wanted was for a charge of excessive force during the gaining of a confession to be thrown at the Auror Department. It could disavow any information that Dawlish would give, and Dawlish knew that.

Moody grunted his agreement. That alone told Sirius that Moody had already argued to be allowed to interrogate Dawlish and had been denied.

"So, what do you suggest?" Kingsley asked.

"Lady Burke offered up the register from Estelle's," Sirius said. "I think we need to look deeper. We know, thanks to the various witness testimony and the register itself what table John Dawlish and his companions sat at."

"Yes, but they were using glamour spells," Shacklebolt reminded him. "No two witnesses saw the same face except for Dawlish, who obviously wanted to be recognized."

Sirius nodded at that. "Yes, so we need another way of determining who was at that table with Dawlish," he said. "We need to know if they paid for their meal."

There was a moment of silence and then Moody barked out a laugh. "Oh, I have missed you brat," the older man said with a grin of delight. "Kingsley," he barked in the next instant but Shacklebolt was already headed to the door.

"I know, contact Lady Burke and determine if the dinners of table 9 had paid for their dinner before the attack," Kingsley murmured, his steps determined as he left the room.

"Well done," Moody said as he joined Sirius and Cygnus before the glass, his eyes narrowing in on Dawlish. "It does this old man proud to see that you haven't forgotten everything I taught you," he said.

Sirius chuckled. "I remember more of it than you would probably believe," he admitted. "Azkaban was hell, but it didn't erase all that I was an all that I had learned. Some things I retained on instinct. It was possibly what held me together while I was in there and shortly after. Later, things came back because I was dealing with my sons, my godson, and my little cousins."

At this Moody looked torn between surprise and amusement. Cygnus chuckled as though he were remembering a few of the more entertaining moments with the children of their house.

Sirius just smiled at Moody. "You'd be surprised what hellions Harry, Dudley, Draco, and Leo can be when they wish to be," he said.

Moody shook his head. "I can imagine it," he said. "I remember you and James. If those four are anything like you two," he trailed off for a moment. "Well there's the saying of what goes around comes around. You and James were hellions, you especially. It doesn't surprise me that you have double the trouble," he smirked.

Cygnus laughed at that. "Oh, he has more than double," he said easily. "He's Regent Black," he pointed out.

Moody nodded at that and went somber for a moment. "I'm sorry for your loss," he said to both men. "For Ms. Black especially," he added. "I dealt a bit with Ms. Black last year when the Crone's Council was organizing that thing about the Orphanage. They sent me to liaise with her to keep me out of trouble," he pointed out. "She was a tough woman," he said with a small smile.

Sirius blinked in surprise and glanced at Cygnus who looked intrigued. If Sirius didn't know any better, he would say that Moody had developed a soft spot in his armor for his aunt Cassiopeia.

"I'll be sure to pass on your sentiments to the family," Sirius told him. "Narcissa and Cassiopeia's other darlings especially. They'll appreciate a strong man who can appreciate a capable witch."

Moody smirked. "I'd appreciate the good will of Cassie's darlings. They are whispered about in society. I'm not dumb. I don't want to run afoul of those witches."

"Whoever was behind her death will suffer for it," Cygnus said. "Cassie's girls won't have it any other way. They want justice."

"Vengeance," Sirius corrected. "They want the perpetrators to suffer horrifically for taking her life."

Moody waved a hand. "Justice and vengeance are going to be one and the same in this tale, lad," he told Sirius. "Don't think otherwise."

There was a promise in Moody's tone of voice that put him at ease. It almost felt like old times with Moody's calm and assured presence at his side. He could almost believe that the nightmare of James' death and his own time spent in Azkaban had never happened. Almost, but Sirius was not the delusional type. All of those bad things had happened and there was no turning back the clock.

Sirius lost track of time as they remained. He took delight in hearing Moody critique the poor interrogation techniques of the Auror's interrogating Dawlish. He added his own sickles ever now and then earning amused laughter from both Cygnus and Moody. He was glad for the good company, even as Sirius fought the overwhelming desire to rush forth and investigate the case himself. He couldn't. He wasn't an Auror and even if he were, they'd be idiots to let him near this case. He had to wait.

He hated waiting.

He wasn't sure how much time had elapsed before Kingsley Shacklebolt returned to the room. He looked right at Moody and smirked. "We've got them," he said with a smile.

"Already?" Sirius asked surprised.

Kingsley nodded to Sirius. "Lord Crabbe paid for the meal," he informed them.

Sirius froze at the mention of Lord Crabbe. The man was his brother-in-law to his grandfather, Pollux Black. He was the brother of Sirius's grandmother, Irma Black nee Crabbe. "Crabbe?" he asked to be sure.

Cygnus cursed under his breath. "Mother refused to leave her townhouse after she learned of father's death," he said after a few moments. "I thought she was in deep mourning and I chose to assist Andromeda and Narcissa with their children," he said simply, clearly dismayed that the Crabbe's had a hand in the death of his father, his aunt, Lord and Lady Black as well as Lord Malfoy.

"I went personally with five Auror's to pay a visit to Lord Crabbe," Shacklebolt informed them. "When confronted with our suspicions about his involvement in the murders, Lord Crabbe and his heir Victor attacked. We were able to subdue them, and we have them in our custody now."

Sirius shook his head at that. "But why?" he asked. "Why would they do this?"

"The heir, Victor, started ranting about how your family slighted theirs," Shacklebolt explained. "He stated loud and proud how the Black family slighted House Crabbe by your Grandfather taking Meliora Burke as his mistress."

Cygnus sighed. "Mother hated Meliora," he admitted. "She felt an intense hatred for father for making Meliora his very public mistress. She thought he should have paid her the respect of discretion, but father loved Meliora and didn't wish to hide from the world that they loved one another."

"That could make a woman embittered," Moody agreed. Then he turned to Shacklebolt. "So, what's the plan?"

"The Heir is talking but Lord Crabbe isn't," he said. "We have them in separate rooms, and we are interrogating them now," he said. "Because we have a Lord in custody the Chief of the Wizengamot will be informed."

Sirius almost growled at the thought of Dumbledore coming down there. He didn't want to deal with Dumbledore. He had been putting the man off for years, but he knew he couldn't for much longer. The day of reckoning was coming, sooner than he wished.

"We don't have to inform the Chief of the Wizengamot immediately," Moody said smoothly. "In fact, the procedure says that we only have to inform him if we intend to hold him. For now, we are just asking his Lordship some questions."

Shacklebolt smirked. "Yes, but you are a fool if you think that an owl isn't already winging its way to Hogwarts Castle," he said.

Moody nodded thoughtfully. "We'll need to dangle something before Dumbledore that he wants more," he said and then he looked pointedly at Sirius.

Sirius nodded. He didn't even hesitate. He didn't want to talk with Dumbledore. Yet if doing so would buy these Auror's time so that they could do their job and help his family have their vengeance, then it would all be worth it. It looked like that day of reckoning might just be upon him after all.


Thank you readers. Real life has made my updates sporadic and I'm not sure that will change anytime soon.

Next Chapter: Day of Reckoning - in which Sirius finally sits down with Albus Dumbledore for a long talk.