"He's not dead!" I shrieked.

"Bella–"

"Don't talk to me!" I yelled. As if I wanted to talk to my husband at a time like this.

He'd gone to kill that stupid half-blood, but had only succeeded in killing its parents. He couldn't be dead. Just disappeared, that's all.

He would be back.

I stared wildly at the three men sitting around me: my husband, looking nervous and apparently concerned for my well-being; his brother Rabastan, taller, heavier, and obviously only worried because his guarantee of power was supposedly 'dead'; and Barty Crouch, Jr., nearly as upset as I was.

He wanted revenge, so I focused mainly on him.

"We have to do something," I declared.

He nodded. My husband looked at me lovingly (as if I wanted his love), and I knew he would perform any task I asked of him. His brother was angry and stupid enough to do anything for me as well.

"What should we do?" Rabastan asked, his eyes narrowing. He wanted the power now. But he knew he couldn't beat me, so he contained himself.

"Do you know why the Dark Lord attacked the half-blood in the first place?" I asked. Perhaps the Dark Lord hadn't confined as much to them as he had to me.

Crouch did, as did my husband. Rabastan snarled, "No, I don't."

"There was a prophecy that one of the children born at the end of July would be the one to vanquish him – as if anyone could defeat him – so he tried to eliminate the one that was a half-blood. For some reason he thought it would be more of a threat than the pureblood."

"Why?"

"Do you think I can possibly understand the mind of the Dark Lord? He had his reasons, I'm sure."

"So what are you planning on doing?"

"We kill the other child, the pureblood, who is also the son of two Aurors. One is quite high-ranking, I believe."

"Do you think they could possibly know where the Dark Lord is?"

"Of course I don't." I fingered my wand as I added, "But there is a lot to be said for torturing information out of someone."

"Nonexistent information?"

My grin became maniacal. "Even better."

OooOooOooO

"Not even any magical protection," Rabastan scoffed as we concealed ourselves in front of the purebloods' house. "No wonder the Dark Lord thought the half-blood was more of a threat. At least its family thought to have a secret-keeper."

I was less quick to judge. "There has to be a reason… If the boy were here, you'd think they would have something to protect it."

"You're right, dear–"

All rational thoughts flew from my mind as I heard his term of endearment. I gripped my wand tightly, but only glared at him.

Once he looked sufficiently frightened that I might curse him, I commanded, "Follow me."

The three followed me to the door.

"Are they asleep? And how do we know this is the right address?"

"This address came from the Dark Lord's own information. If you want to question his word, you should just leave." I fingered my wand again as I said it.

He looked at my hands, instantly nervous. "If the Dark Lord said it, it must be true."

I nodded at him, and then turned to the door.

"Rodolphus," I demanded.

"Yes, de–Bella?" he asked softly, his voice fumbling over the kind words I knew he wanted to say.

I gave him another warning glare before I ordered, "Put an anti-Apparation spell on the house. We wouldn't want them to escape."

"Of course," he agreed, finishing only seconds later.

Perfect.

"You're ready," I stated and then – not bothering to look around or wait for verbal assent – blasted open the door, announcing our entrance.

We walked through the house, separated but all searching for the same thing. I heard blasts, shatters, and laughs as the three men accompanying me destroyed all the blood traitors' precious belongings.

I reached the stairs first and ran up. A jet of green light came from the left. It missed, of course, and I turned to see the man standing there. I put my wand at the ready.

"Ah, the famous Auror," I breathed as the duel began. He might have been highly trained, but he wasn't taught by the Dark Lord as I had been.

Jet after jet of light flew from our wands. "Where's your wife?" I asked.

He didn't answer, but paused for a moment as his eyes gravitated downward. "Don't worry," I said sweetly, "they play with their food, but I won't let them eat it."

Fear crept into his eyes as I disarmed him, wanting him to be helpless for a moment before I tortured him. "Disarmed so easily? You barely put up a fight."

My husband appeared behind me. I barely glanced at him. "They know not to kill her?"

"They won't disobey your instructions," he confirmed.

"Find the child and kill it," I ordered flatly, staring at the man starting to get up, his eyes desperate. I blasted him off his feet as my husband retreated.

"Where's the Dark Lord?" I asked, not fully believing that these blood traitors would know better than I, his most loyal servant, where he was located.

"Dead," he said with finality, his eyes glinting with pride.

"No he's not!" I shrieked. He leapt for his wand, but I cursed him first.

It was as if I could feel the power of the Cruciatus Curse flowing through my body, collecting all my hatred and anger and containing it into one single spell.

His screams became louder and louder, and I could feel the spell continuing, pulsing from my body.

They were my waves of pleasure that caused him so much pain. I laughed; it was music to my ears.

The woman's screams, caused by Crouch or Rabastan, came from downstairs, mingling with her husband's in the sweetest, most perfect song.

"Where is he?" I shrieked above the din. I stopped the curse for a moment, feeling undeniable disappointment as the power stopped flowing.

"Dead!" he said weakly, his eyes still defiant.

I screeched again, and cast the curse again.

As the volume of his screams surpassed mine, I began to laugh once more.

Surely nothing could have been better than seeing the man's defiance turn into pain as he writhed on the floor. What he had said was the ultimate betrayal, and he had to suffer for it.

And suffer he did.

For the first time, I heard words in his scream: "Alice!" he was calling desperately for the woman whose own yells were becoming fainter as she was pulled deeper and deeper into the curse, never to return.

I felt my face twist into a sneer.

"Don't let them kill her," I told my husband, who I knew was standing behind me. "It's too kind. Make his wife suffer for her whole life because of what he said."

"Of course. I'll tell Crouch," he said, and I heard his footsteps retreat out of the room.

"Hurry!" I called after him. "She must be close now."

Her husband hardly lasted longer. His screams stopped and his eyes were blank, the only indication of his pain the continual writhing of his body.

I savoured the last sweet moments of the torture as his body slowed and his eyes closed. I lifted the curse, stopping the pleasure. I was almost tempted to curse him until he died, but that would have been merciful. He deserved to suffer all his life for lying and betraying the Dark Lord.

I spoke to the man behind me, "Is his wife dead?"

"Crouch stopped in time, Bella."

"The child wasn't here, was it?"

"No, and I found this note." He handed it to me softly, knowing I was in a very volatile mood.

I scanned the parchment. "It's staying with the grandmother who has a secret-keeper?"

"Yes, I'm sorry, d–"

At his words, I sent a jet of green light above the blood traitor's still body, blasting out the window and part of the wall in anger.

Damn him for loving me. I wanted him to hate me as I hated him.

I looked at him, wanting nothing more than to curse him as well.

Instead, I just said, "We shouldn't leave Rabastan and Crouch by themselves with her. She doesn't need to be raped, too."

I swept down the stairs, but when I entered the room, Crouch and Rabastan weren't alone.

There were Aurors in there as well–about ten of them. Before I could think or comprehend, my wand flew from my hand.

I knew that there was nothing I could do to avoid capture and being sent to Azkaban.

But for once it didn't matter.

It didn't matter because he wasn't dead, and he would find me. I was the one who tried to find him, and in turn he would someday rescue me.

It wasn't over; it was just the beginning.

He will save me.