A/N: I know, I know, I haven't updated in months but I've been kinda swamped with work and lack of inspiration. This was originally intended to be longer, but since it ended up quite a lengthy chapter anyway and people wanted an update, I decided to split it. Hope you like it. :)
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Chapter 61 – Loophole
Gabriel Taylor stepped out of the lift on level nine of the Ministry of Magic, and headed towards the staircase that would take him down to level ten, readjusting his hold on the file of papers in his arms. It had taken all of his charm and skill, as well as a considerable amount of bribery, to pull together the paperwork he had clutched to his chest, and he wasn't about let it go now.
He reached the polished oak door and pushed it open with his shoulder, ignoring the Aurors and other Ministry officials bustling past, shouting news and orders to each other. The room he'd entered was usually used as an office for one of the secretaries of the Wizengamot, but he'd slipped the wizard at the Help Desk a few galleons and received the key in return.
Now he strode over to the desk, placed the folder carefully down on it and turned to look at the room's only other occupant. He was sitting warily in one of the plush chairs in front of the desk and eyeing Gabriel with distinct unease. Gabriel looked back with a carefully polite expression, though he cringed internally at the state of the man.
The robes he wore were spattered with mud and something darker, which Gabriel very much suspected was blood – the man had just come from a battle after all – but that wasn't what made Gabriel hesitate before holding out his hand. It was the fact that under all the muck, the robes were still shabby – patched and frayed, the kind of clothes that any wizard with an ounce of self respect would have thrown in the fire years ago. Running his gaze over the man's face, Gabriel saw that the robes' owner wasn't in much better condition himself – light brown eyes watched him shrewdly from a scarred face, topped by greying hair that he supposed must once have been sandy brown in colour.
"Gabriel Taylor," he said briskly, as the man rose to shake the proffered hand. "And you must be Remus Lupin."
Lupin nodded, sitting back in his chair as Gabriel sank into the one on the other side of the desk and opened the folder.
"Well you know why you're here-" Gabriel began, pulling out papers and spreading them on the desk before him. "-and so I'm sure you'll appreciate-" He stopped, looking up at Lupin in surprise. "What was that?"
"I said, 'no, I don't'," repeated Lupin, in the same soft voice he'd used before. "I don't know why I'm here. I was helping get the wounded to Saint Mungo's when I received an urgent message from the Ministry demanding my immediate presence; it offered no explanation for the summons, and I really don't see what can be so important. People are in dire need of medical attention and you've pulled me in here to look at…paperwork?" Lupin's light brown eyes were angry now, and Gabriel made a slight reassessment of the man; after all, if her was friends with her…
"I'm really very sorry for interruption," he said carefully, resting his elbows on the dark mahogany desk and placing his hands together. "But my client was painfully clear on the matter. It is of the utmost importance that this paperwork is dealt with now."
"Your client?" asked Lupin, confusion breaking through his irritation.
"Yes, a friend of yours, I believe," replied Gabriel, picking up a sheet of parchment and reading the name aloud, not that he needed the thick black letters to remind him – this was one client he'd never forget. "Miss Katherine Arcadia Riddle."
"You're Katherine's lawyer?" asked Lupin, raising his eyebrows in surprise. He shook his head, and smiled wanly. "How much did you get for it?"
"Get for what?" asked Gabriel, momentarily disconcerted by the odd question.
"Your soul," said Lupin grimly, relaxing back into his chair. "Is the going rate still thirty pieces of silver?"
"Oh yes, very amusing," said Gabriel, with an insincere smile. "And no, Mr Lupin, these days thirty pieces of silver would not get you much more than preliminary consultation with me, let alone my soul, as you put it. But I am at a loss, I was given to understand that you and my client were friends?"
Lupin shrugged, rubbing a tired hand over his face. "We are, but that doesn't change the fact that anyone who could even think about defending her now has got to be a complete bastard." He peered at Gabriel from between dirty fingers and smiled sourly. "I would say 'no offence meant', but I wouldn't mean it. Besides, you and I both know it's why she picked you."
Gabriel smiled thinly, and examined Lupin over steepled fingers. "I think there has been a slight misunderstanding, Mr Lupin. I am not here to defend Miss Riddle – indeed, she fully intends to plead guilty, so there would be very little point – I am here to represent you." He paused to watch this sink in, and then gave a brisk little smile and waved a hand. "In a manner of speaking, at least."
He had Lupin's full attention now, and he sat up a little straighter, selecting a few pages from the various piles before him and placing them in front of Lupin. He saw the light brown eyes skim over the writing and look up again in confusion.
"14 Beaumont Street, Wimbledon; 56 North Avenue, Redland; 7a Faraday Street, Romford – what on earth has this got to do with Katherine?" asked Lupin blankly.
"You don't know?" asked Gabriel in genuine surprise; Katherine had said Lupin was her oldest friend, but from what he could make out, the man didn't seem to know very much about her.
"No, I bloody don't," snapped Lupin, anger returning as he looked down at the papers again. "I've never even heard of most of these towns - South Ockendon, Tiptree, Elham Valley– wait, Elham Valley?" He glanced up, frowning now. "12 Claringdon Road. That's Katherine's old house."
"They're all hers, actually," said Gabriel, casting a quick glance at his watch and smiling briefly.
"Katherine owns eight houses?" asked Lupin, one eyebrow quirked in an expression that seemed torn between disbelief and amusement.
"My client has, over the course of her life, acquired a number of properties, yes," said Gabriel carefully.
"When you say acquired," began Lupin, and Gabriel held up a hand to stop him.
"My client has assured me that there is nothing to link these properties to anything untoward, her ownership of them aside. That goes for everything detailed here, in fact," he added, waving a hand at the desk of papers. "She intends to keep all less reputable assets in her own name, but the rest you can do with as you wish." Gabriel smiled, resting folded arms on the desk and looking expectantly at Lupin, who stared back blankly.
"As I wish?" asked Lupin, brow creased in confusion. "I'm sorry, what's it got to do with me?"
"They're yours," said Gabriel simply, pulling another document from the folder before him. "Or they will be, as soon as you sign this."
"Katherine's giving me eight houses," said Lupin blankly as Gabriel slid the document towards him.
"Well, not all eight," said Gabriel, selecting another sheet of paper and skimming through it. "The one in Wimbledon she's giving to a Mrs Ophelia Corbelle née Lloyd."
"Right," said Lupin, and it seemed to Gabriel that he sounded a little odd. "Just the seven houses, then."
"Yes," said Gabriel slowly, leaning back into the plush leather upholstery of his chair and considering Lupin. "And the rest."
Lupin, who'd been resting his head in his hands, looked up sharply. "The rest?"
"My client has a number of assets – I haven't been able to get a full a valuation of everything yet, but from what I've been told, they should fetch a considerable sum. And of course, there's the money from her bank accounts, which currently stands at-" Gabriel hesitated, sifting through a few papers as Lupin sat staring at him in bewilderment.
"Bank accounts? She's got more than one?" Lupin asked, then shook his head and laughed dryly. "What am I saying, of course she's got more than one. I don't suppose she's bothered to pay her taxes, either, has she?"
Gabriel eyed Lupin curiously, then returned to searching through the papers. "I don't believe the residents of Azkaban are required to pay taxes, actually," he observed, eyes coming to rest on the figure he'd been searching for. "Two and half."
"Two and a half?" repeated Lupin, confused. "She's only got two and half thousand galleons left?"
"Sorry?" asked Gabriel, momentarily baffled.
"From her inheritance – her parents left her all their money when they died," prompted Lupin.
Gabriel tilted his head slightly, giving Lupin a curious look. "I am aware of that, Mr Lupin, but I think you may have misunderstood me. Allow me to clarify – Miss Riddle's funds currently amount to roughly two and half million galleons."
Lupin was silent for a long moment, face frozen in an expression of mild bemusement, then he shook his head, a slight laugh in his voice. "Katherine doesn't have that sort of money."
"She bought you a flat in Mayfair when she was eighteen," said Gabriel, brushing an imaginary piece of lint off his crisp robes.
"Yeah, but that was her inheritance money," said Lupin, pushing a frustrated hand through grey streaked hair. "Like I said, she got money when her parents died – they left her everything, but there's no way they had that much. And I know her job paid well, but she was only there for three years, and that's…that's just ridiculous."
Gabriel was quiet for a moment, surveying Lupin with shrew grey eyes. "As I understand it, my client's, shall we say 'extracurricular activities', attracted a certain kind of generosity from a certain kind of people." Gabriel smiled at Lupin's nonplussed expression, and explained: "All political movements have supporters, and sometimes those supporters who cannot only show their endorsement publicly, wish to help in other ways."
"People gave her money?" asked Lupin, catching on. "Why?"
"Well as I said-"
"No, I mean why her," cut in Lupin. "Why not donate straight to Voldemort?"
Gabriel arched an eyebrow, shuffling papers absently. "Because bank transfers can be traced, Mr Lupin. The Ministry may have had Miss Riddle under surveillance but they had no proof of any wrong doing. Besides, as I understand it, she was only one of the recipients of these…donations."
"There were others?" asked Lupin, rubbing a hand over his sweat marked brow. He paused, directing a sharp look at Gabriel. "Lucius Malfoy wouldn't be one these recipients would he?"
"I'm afraid my client didn't mention names."
"No, I don't suppose she would have," muttered Lupin. "Loyal in all the wrong ways, that woman. But look, the Ministry seized all her assets when she went to Azkaban – I know because Mad-Eye asked me if I knew what she'd done with all her money. She'd cleared it all out a week before she was arrested and they couldn't find where it'd gone."
Gabriel allowed himself a slight smile, and inclined his head in a nod. "That is because she knew that as soon as she was charged with anything the Ministry would take control of everything she owned, and she was somewhat reluctant to let that happen. As such, by the time Miss Riddle was arrested, the only assets which I am given to understand could be attributed to her, amounted a Gringotts account, containing thirty four galleons, five sickles and two knuts, a bedsit in Basildon and a year long subscription to the Daily Prophet."
"And yet you say she's got two million galleons sitting in a bank account that no one knows about?"
"Multiple bank accounts, Mr Lupin," corrected Gabriel, gently. "You see, Miss Riddle did not like her name very much, and rarely used it. The estate which Miss Riddle wishes to entail to you comes courtesy of a Miss Bane, a Miss Babel and a Miss Moony, amongst others."
"Miss-" began Lupin, a peculiar expression gracing his face, then he shook his head. "Right, but the Ministry – if you're doing this in Katherine's name, they have to realise that all this stuff her property, right?"
"They do," agreed Gabriel, narrowing his slate coloured eyes and folding his hands on the desk in front of him. "Which is why I need a signature now, Mr Lupin, before she is charged."
"But she's already charged!" insisted Lupin, pushing a frustrated hand through grey streaked hair. "You don't have to re-charge someone when they're recaptured – you just send them back to prison."
"In normal circumstances, yes," said Gabriel carefully. "But you see, your friend Miss Riddle really is very clever."
"She found a loophole, did she?" asked Lupin, arching an eyebrow in a way that made it clear that this news did not come as a surprise to him. "Well come on then, what is it?"
"She died, Mr Lupin," said Gabriel simply. "And as the law currently stands, if someone dies and is subsequently resurrected, their criminal record is wiped clean. The record of previous crimes is kept, of course, but they cannot be held accountable for them. The legislation was originally put in place to cover humans who were made into vampires and such, as it was decided that undergoing a transformation that effectively killed the victim, meant that whatever rose up was a new life, as it were, and entitled to a fresh start. I do not suppose that the Wizengamot that sanctioned the law ever expected it to be used by someone such as your friend, but the wording is just vague enough that it can be."
"But Katherine didn't actually die," said Lupin incredulously, staring at Gabriel in outright disbelief.
"Oh but she did, Mr Lupin. You yourself identified the body, as did the Minister of Magic, the arresting Auror and no less than three independent healers. She was dead, Mr Lupin - the Dementors were sure of that, and they are not easy creatures to fool."
"Yes, but she did faked it, didn't she?" demanded Lupin, looking at Gabriel for support, but he only shrugged.
"If she did, she did it very well."
"Yeah well, like you said, she's clever," said Lupin, although it didn't sound much like a compliment to Gabriel. He was silent for a moment, and when he met Gabriel's gaze again, his eyes were accusing. "How long has she been planning this? I mean she must have known about this loophole before she went to Azkaban, right? That's why she did it, isn't it? To get immunity, start over? I mean, I know she's going back to prison now, but that's only because she's admitting to crimes, right? If she didn't, I'm betting there wouldn't be a lot of evidence to make any charge stick."
"No, there isn't," said Gabriel, not quite managing to keep the disappointment out of his voice. He'd spent a good quarter of an hour trying to persuade Katherine to let him defend her, but she'd only laughed and doubled his fee. "But like I said, she's pleading guilty – said it was the only way."
"The only way to what?"
"I don't know," shrugged Gabriel, doubting it would be entirely prudently to express his reservations over his client's sanity. He cast an anxious glance at his watch. "We really are running out of time, Mr Lupin."
"I don't care. I don't want it."
Gabriel stared at him in outright disbelief. "Excuse me?"
"I don't want her money. I'm not a charity case," said Lupin stiffly through gritted teeth.
"Maybe not," said Gabriel, his pale eyes narrowed as he watched Lupin. "But neither are you a wealthy man, Mr Lupin. You are, as I understand it, an unemployed forty year old werewolf who is currently living off the wages of his twenty five year old wife, and if you don't agree to sign these-" Gabriel indicated the papers before him "-within the next fifteen minutes, then I can assure you that you will always be so." He leant forward, resting his elbows on the desk and gazing at Lupin with dark grey eyes. "With respect, Mr Lupin, you cannot afford to refuse my client's offer."
"You can't make me sign," said Lupin stubbornly, crossing his arms over his chest and scowling at Gabriel, who sighed impatiently.
"No, Mr Lupin, I cannot, but if you do not sign, then no one will get anything."
"What?" asked Lupin, suddenly confused again. "What do you mean 'no one'?"
"Well, as important as you seem to be to my client, you are not her only concern. You see, it's all a bit complicated." Gabriel passed a well manicured hand over his glossy hair and eyed the papers wearily. "It's taken a lot of work just to get all these in order, and it would take time that we simply do not have to suitably divide up the estate between my client's various beneficiaries, and have them all sign a separate agreement, so you see-"
"She wants me to do it," said Lupin quietly. "I take possession of everything, and then it's divided it up later."
"That is correct," nodded Gabriel, glad that he'd caught on so quickly. "I have here a letter detailing the division of assets. I will of course handle the paperwork, but you must sign now."
"She did this on purpose, didn't she?" demanded Lupin, glaring at him now. "She knew I wouldn't take anything from her so she decided to guilt me into it. Surely it would have been easier to hand it all over to Faye or someone? How much longer is it going to take you to rush this exchange through because of my condition?"
"Why don't you let me worry about that, Mr Lupin? Besides, my client tells me you are the only one of her friends whom even the Minister of Magic himself could positively deny has any links with Death Eater activities."
"Scrimgeour? I wasn't aware that he-"
"Rufus Scrimgeour is dead," cut in Gabriel. "His body was found on the battle field two hours ago. A temporary Minister has been elected in the meantime – a friend of yours, according to my client - a Mr Kingsley Shacklebolt."
"Kingsley's Minister?" asked Lupin incredulously, sinking into his seat as he registered this new information.
"For the time being at least. If he shows good leadership skills, it may be made permanent. My client seemed to think he was a good choice, though I can't say I know much about him myself."
"He is a good choice," said Lupin, pushing a tired hand through his already messy hair. "He's got a hell of job ahead of him though."
"Indeed, but if we might get back to the matter at hand…?"
Lupin scowled down at the document in front of him, then looked up at Gabriel again, a calculating look in his eyes.
"Why didn't she sort this out before today? She knew there was going to be a battle - why leave it till now?"
"From what she said to me, I gather that she expected to die today, and of course if she had, her estate would have been divided according to her Last Will and Testament. As things stand, she's still alive and is currently sitting in a holding room waiting to be formally charged. As soon as that happens you lose everything, do you understand? There will be an investigation – everything will be so tied up in red tape that even if she dies in forty years time, you'll be unlikely to get even half of her estate."
"But surely they'll investigate even if I do sign everything over," said Lupin, a trace of worry in his voice, and Gabriel allowed himself a real smile this time.
"They can try, Mr Lupin," he said softly. "But as you said, Miss Riddle didn't hire me for my charming personality."
Lupin looked as though he agreed with that, at least, but even as he eyed the quill that sat to his left he still looked wary.
"Is there a problem?" asked Gabriel, watching him closely. They were running out of time, and if Lupin didn't sign before Katherine was charged, there was no hope of ever getting the other half of the exorbitant fee she'd promised him.
"Are you going to see Katherine again?" asked Lupin quietly, eyeing papers covering the table darkly. He raised his head, meeting Gabriel's steady gaze with hard eyes.
"Yes. She wanted to be told how things went," said Gabriel, uncertain where Lupin was going with this.
"So you can pass a message on from me?" Lupin asked, reaching for the quill and gazing at it thoughtfully.
"Certainly," agreed Gabriel quickly, smoothly pulling the required documents from the folder and sliding them across the desk to Lupin.
"Right. Now, I want you to tell her this – and mind you use my exact words: tell her that I think James was absolutely right about her," said Lupin, glancing through the papers he'd been handed. "She is every bit the manipulative, deceitful bitch he always said she was." Gabriel watched curiously as Lupin signed the forms with a flourish and gave them back to him.
"Is that all?" he asked, hesitating as Lupin pushed his chair back and stood up. "That's what you want me to tell her?"
"What else is there to say?" asked Lupin, frowning a little, seeming genuinely bemused.
"Well she has just given you rather a vast sum of money-"
"You think I should say thank you?" asked Lupin, smiling oddly at him. "What on earth would be the point of that?"
"It's what people tend to do," observed Gabriel, gathering up the papers carefully. "It's generally considered good practice."
"You think I need to tell Katherine that I'm grateful?" Lupin laughed, shaking his head and brushing greying hair from his forehead. "That woman has known me since I was five years old. There is nothing I can tell her about me that she doesn't already know."
Lupin turned to leave, but Gabriel hurriedly pulled a thick envelope from his folder and called him back. "Here – she wants you to have this."
"What is it?" asked Lupin, taking the envelope uncertainly.
"It's a copy of her Last Will and Testament, along with a letter. I think it explains things somewhat."
Lupin laughed dryly, and cocked an eyebrow at him. "Explain things? Katherine? That'll be the day."
Gabriel smiled tightly, and shrugged. "Well I must be getting on. Goodbye Mr Lupin, I'll be in touch."
Lupin nodded, and tucked the letter inside his robes. "Goodbye Mr Taylor."
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