Chapter 30

Audrey walked into the Department of Magical Law Enforcement with her head held high but secretly her insides were squirming. Tom had accompanied her all the way to the Ministry's entrance before he apparated to work himself. Audrey could still smell him on her from the long embrace she received when he said goodbye. Likely, he had held her so long for the sake of embarrassing Mark who had also accompanied them with his sister. The four of them apparated to the Ministry together, Tom being the only one who didn't actually work there.

Her heels clicked with every step as she followed Druella through the corridor. As they walked through the building, she talked about where each department was located and the names of all the heads of each one. Audrey was positive she would not remember any of them.

When they finally arrived at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, their boss was waiting for them in front of his office door. The name Odis Robertson was engraved into the large, dark wood door. Mr. Robertson stood a head taller than his nameplate. His face was set in a serious expression but his eyes were kind. A large bushy moustache covered his top lip. He was dressed like every other man in the building; button down shirt with a vest and black trousers. But his robes were a rich burgundy instead of black. Audrey assumed this indicated a higher status.

"Good morning, Mr. Robertson." Druella said in a cheery voice that Audrey had never heard from her. Audrey had to fight the urge to laugh. "This is Audrey Row, she'll be filling the second secretary position."

"Excellent!" he responded with just as much cheer and swung out his hand to shake Audrey's. She wiped the sweat off her palms before taking it.

"Nice to meet you, sir." she croaked as he trapped her hand in his incredibly strong grip.

"Lovely to meet you, as well. Fresh from Hogwarts?" he said, looking her up and down to examine her youth.

"Yes, sir." Audrey nodded, feeling a bit violated.

"Ms. Rosier will show you what to do." he smiled and patted her on the shoulder, "Carry on!" he barked and slapped her on the shoulder one last time. As he turned to leave them he began yelling orders at a small, bespectacled intern walking by. She supposed it was mandatory for the head of law enforcement to be that intense.

Audrey was grateful for her lunch break after her first morning as the secretary to the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Druella had been training her all morning and while the job itself wasn't too difficult to grasp, Audrey found herself wanting to strangle Druella to death already.

"She's a nightmare." Audrey said to Claire and Vicky through gritted teeth. Though Audrey had kindly invited her, Druella declined to lunch with the three of them.

"Why is he friends with her?" Vicky asked, referring to Tom.

"They're not really friends. I don't know." Audrey said awkwardly.

"Are you sure nothing is going on between them?" Claire asked, biting her lip.

"Yes, I'm sure." she lied. The truth was, she constantly worried about what was going on between Druella and Tom. Now that she was living in the house she would have 24 hour access to Tom and seducing him would be so much easier.

"I can't believe you're all living under the same roof." Vicky shook her head in disbelief. "Keep an eye on her."

"I will." Audrey assured the both of them. It felt so good to catch up with her friends. She hadn't seen them in weeks and they had barely exchanged letters.

"You should come over to my house this weekend and we can take you shopping for your birthday party." Claire clapped excitedly, her blonde head bobbing.

"Sure." said Audrey automatically, then she remembered, "Just let me check with Tom first."

Vicky and Claire gave each other a look.

"I mean, he might have something planned." Audrey said defensively.

"Ever since you moved in with him we never see you," Vicky complained, "and he's not even your husband. He can't tell you what to do."

Audrey's stomach dropped. Vicky was wrong about that. Tom could absolutely tell her what to do.

"It's not like that." Audrey said, desperately wanting the subject to change, "He just has a lot planned and I want to check with him."

"Well," Claire said, "He did invite us to your birthday party so, I guess he isn't so bad."

"He's wonderful." Audrey tried to assure them, "You'd love him if you knew him like I do."

Vicky laughed, "Know him like you do? Biblically?"

Claire choked on her sandwich and Audrey thumped her on the back.

"Ha ha." Audrey said sarcastically and Vicky laughed even harder.

After Claire had stopped coughing she said, "If my boyfriend looked like Tom Riddle I'd do whatever he said too." She and Vicky erupted into fits of laughter.

Audrey blushed.

The rest of the conversation revolved around Vicky's upcoming summer vacation with her family and Claire's sister starting Hogwarts next year.

The lunch was short and after only 30 minutes, it was back to work.

"Enjoy your little girl chat?" Druella said condescendingly with one eyebrow raised. Audrey ignored her and began filing all the acquisitions Mr. Robertson still had to look over.

"You know," Druella began talking again as if she hadn't been blatantly ignored, "I can't believe Tom didn't tell you I had moved in. I guess he doesn't really value your opinion."

"Or it was so insignificant he forgot." Audrey retorted. Hanging around Tom was making her much better at witty comebacks.

Druella glared at her but changed the subject. "Make sure you're always smiling at Robertson, he likes that. And flirt a little too."

"Do I have to?" Audrey sighed. She did not want to have to flirt with Mr. Robertson. He was a middle aged man with a combover; not exactly Audrey's type.

"If you want to get on his good side and actually get information out of him, yes. Tom won't be pleased to find he placed you here for nothing."

Audrey felt Tom would be more displeased if he found out Audrey was flirting with other men.

"We are going to have to buy you some new clothes." Druella said, frowning. "You look like a little farm girl."

Audrey couldn't understand Druella's critique of her outfit. She was pretty much dressed like all the other women in the office; a nice long dress with standard robes over top. But she supposed that Druella was aiming for something a tad bit sexier.

"Tom likes the way I dress." Audrey said.

Druella laughed, "Sweetheart, what Tom likes you in is irrelevant. He is far more concerned with the information we can get for him. That's why he picked me to train you."

Druella walked over to the large cabinet on the right side of the office. She pulled the drawer out and used her wand to find what she was looking for "Accio Azkaban prisoner file A."

A massive bundle of documents came out and landed on Mr. Robertson's desk with a thud.

"This is what you'll be looking through when he's not around. He's got all the Azkaban prisoners listed in that cabinet. This is just one of the files." she opened up the documents for Audrey to see.

"What on earth does he need this for?" Audrey said. She scanned the documents. They contained information about each prisoner: crimes, sentences, age, height, weight, and even immediate family members.

"Crimes against muggles, blackmail material, anything you think might be useful. Robertson just leaves this stuff lying around because he trusts us. Besides, who would really want this information in the first place?" Druella gathered the files back together and put them back where she found them.

"He'll be back from lunch soon. Don't let him catch you snooping around where he hasn't asked you to." she warned.

Audrey had not been anticipating this part of the job. She was supposed to sneak around behind the back of a high ranking official. She was an awful liar and Merlin knows she wouldn't survive Azkaban.

"So, do you think you can do that?" Druella asked.

"I guess so." Audrey replied.

"You should be honoured Tom is trusting you with this responsibility." Druella said when she saw the worried look on Audrey's face. "He hasn't pulled you into the inner circle yet, but after this, he will."

Audrey felt conflicted. She had wanted to be part of the inner circle at first but lately the thought made her uncomfortable. The expectation of her to do well was overwhelming and with his current unpredictable demeanor, spending even more time with Tom was not something she was looking forward to.

The Whining Fiddle was a fairly respectable establishment in Diagon Alley. It pulled a younger crowd of 20-somethings who enjoyed unwinding after a long day at work. Tom had never been here before but his followers had mentioned it in the past.

He had no idea what time Katherine would arrive but as soon as he finished work, he headed over to pub. This would hopefully, be quick and painless.

He scanned the room. The place was full and loud for happy hour. How anyone could have a good time in here, Tom could not understand. He would much rather be at home in his study, alone.

Just when he began to think she wasn't here yet, he spotted her at a booth by herself in the far left corner. She was sitting at the hardwood table with a colourful drink in her hand, legs crossed. Tom made a beeline for her and slid into the booth.

"Fancy meeting you here." he joked and she almost spilled her drink in surprise.

"I wasn't sure you were coming." she said after she gained some composure. "The young ones tend to chicken out." she smirked.

"I'm mature for my age." Tom replied.

"How old are you?" she asked, looking him up and down.

"Eighteen."

She laughed "Oh my, so young. I'm old in comparison."

"So do you do this often then?" Tom said.

She looked surprised, "Prey on innocent young boys? No." she took a sip of her drink, "But I've never seen a face as handsome as yours." she put the glass down.

Tom hid his amusement when she called him innocent. Steering the conversation where he wanted it, he said, "Your house must be full of dark objects."

"Both my husband and I are collectors. But he's never around." she rolled her eyes.

"Married to his work?" Tom inquired.

"I swear he loves his job more than he loves me." she scowled.

"Perhaps you need a companion." Tom suggested.

"I've had many companions, Tom." she said in a bored voice, "But I'm a collector. I like to collect things."

"What does that mean?" Tom asked bashfully.

"You'd be a lovely addition to my collection." she said and Tom felt her leg rub against his under the table.

"Mrs. Archer…I-"

"Oh hush, don't pretend like you didn't know why I invited you here, sweetheart." she said with a hungry look in her eyes. Tom blinked at her use of the nickname he had for Audrey. Is this what he sounded like to Audrey?

"Sorry," he apologized, "I'm just caught off guard. I've never had a woman like you approach me before."

"Well, get used to it. We'll have fun." she smiled and held his hand from across the table, "Don't worry, I'll tell you what to do."

Audrey lay in bed staring at the ceiling. It was one in the morning and she couldn't sleep. She was contemplating whether she should even try to fall asleep because Tom wasn't home yet and as soon as he arrived he'd wake her up anyway.

Having the bed to herself for a couple of hours was marvellous but she couldn't help but wonder what on earth Tom was doing out so late. Especially when Borgin and Burke's closed at 8. She knew he wasn't just any old assistant but to have him working this late was unreasonable and honestly unbelievable. Something else was going on and she knew it. Mid-thought, the bedroom door creaked open and Tom walked in. Audrey was surprised, she hadn't even heard the front door close.

Tom stripped down to nothing and got into the bed within two minutes of arriving.

For a moment Audrey believed he had fallen asleep. Minutes went by and he wasn't stirring. She thought maybe he was so exhausted from work that he had just collapsed.

"Audrey." he said suddenly, scaring her.

"Yes." she croaked back. Her heart was racing. Her stomach muscles clenched, bracing herself for his touch.

He rolled over and pulled her up against his body. "Why aren't you asleep?"

"I couldn't sleep." she said nervously. Her head was resting on his collarbone and with a sickening feeling in her chest, she realized he smelled like perfume.

"Let me tire you out then." he said and Audrey could hear the playfulness in his voice.

She expected him to get on top of her but instead he stayed right where he was; laying on his side and facing her. His hand rubbed her thigh and then wedged its way in-between their bodies.

Submitting to him, she scooted up to give his hand better access and caught a whiff of that sweet smelling perfume again. It was an expensive, high-class smell. Something her mother would wear.

Audrey winced as he pushed two of his fingers into her. His mouth was on her neck now and he nipped and sucked at the skin, causing goosebumps to erupt all over her chest. He bit a particularly sensitive piece of flesh that sent a shockwave of pleasure down her body, making her clench around his fingers.

"You like it when I bite you?" he teased, without stopping the slow rhythm of his fingers inside of her.

"Yes." Audrey moaned and automatically felt guilt for feeling any pleasure from this man who had probably been out with another woman that night. Though she wondered, if he had already slept with someone else, why was he so keen on having her? Audrey attempted to think of another explanation for the perfume but his hands (one in her hair and one deep inside of her) were too distracting.

"I've been thinking about you all night. Couldn't wait to get home to you." he said and he pulled his fingers out of her. Audrey immediately missed the sensation. He wrapped his hand around her panties and pushed them down so they dangled around one ankle.

"Where were you?" she dared to ask.

He lifted one of her legs and placed it on top of his. "Working." he replied plainly and gave no further explanation. Audrey didn't have the courage to push the subject.

His erection was pressed in-between her legs and he pushed forward so that he rubbed against her. She shuddered and gripped his shoulder for support.

With a firm grip on her leg, he pressed his hips up and slid inside of her like he belonged there. He moaned before pressing his lips to hers and sliding his tongue into her mouth. Her nails dug into his shoulder as he began to thrust. His kisses turned desperate and his thrusts became harder, faster.

The summer air had the room warm to begin with but now it was heating up like a sauna. He was sweating all over her and she knew she was sweating too but she couldn't tell which bodily fluids belonged to who.

She had been half way to orgasm before he had even gone inside her so it wouldn't be long until she came now. She looked into his eyes and as if he knew she was about to reach her peak, he stopped.

"Come here." he said out of breath and rolled over onto his back, taking her with him. Staying inside her, he adjusted their bodies so that she was on top of him; a position they had never explored before.

"How do I- oh…" she began to ask what she was supposed to do but he was already thrusting up into her while pushing her down onto him and the sensation was delicious. She put her hands on his chest for support. "Don't stop." she begged. She was getting close again.

He was smiling up at her, revelling in her pleasure. He kept a steady, determined rhythm so that every movement brought her closer to orgasm.

"Are you going to come?" he asked with a devilish glint in his eyes.

"Yes." she whimpered.

"Shall I stop?" he smirked.

"No, please." she cried and then she climaxed all over him. He hissed in delight and began pounding hard into her to reach his own orgasm. Her name barely escaped his lips as he came undone beneath her.

Hands slipping down his slick chest, she hoisted herself up and off of him, thanking the lord that didn't last very long. The familiar feeling of guilt washed over her again and Audrey held back tears. She ought to be ashamed of herself for actually enjoying this. Especially when he came home covered in the scent of another woman.

"Wow." he smiled and scooped her into his chest with one arm. Audrey felt sick to her stomach with worry. The sweet scent had been replaced with the smell of sex and sweat. But she had definitely smelled it before.

Tom squeezed her and kissed her forehead before saying "Goodnight, sweetheart." and falling asleep. But Audrey stayed awake. She couldn't sleep before he came in and she still couldn't sleep now. Everything was too uncomfortable. The air was sticky, her dressing gown was wet with sweat and Merlin knows what else, and the dreaded feeling in the pit of her stomach just would not go away.

Tom walked around the living room of the Archer's mansion, eyeing the vast collection of antiques and ancient dark objects. Such a collection must have cost them a fortune. Tom vaguely wondered what Mr. Archer did for a living. But that wasn't relevant right now. It was his wife he was after. And he better act quickly before the old man came back from his trip.

"See anything you like?" Katherine said as she waltzed into the living room, two glasses of red wine in her hands. She handed one to Tom who accepted it even though he had no intention on drinking.

"This." he pointed to a photo of Katherine, her husband and an old woman holding an ornate tiara. "Who is that?"

"Oh that is Margaret Belford, last of the descendants of Ravenclaw. She passed away quite recently actually." she pointed to the tiara in the picture, "That is a replica of Ravenclaw's famous diadem. My husband helped open up a museum in Scotland and that was part of the grand opening. Have you heard of the diadem?"

"Of course. I know all about the Hogwarts founders. The true diadem is still lost, isn't it?"

"Yes, yes. No one knows where it is. Tragic. Rumour was that it was last with Ravenclaw's daughter in Albania."

"I've heard that rumour as well." Tom said. Of course he had heard more than just a rumour. This only confirmed what The Grey Lady had told him before. Perhaps it was time to take a trip to Albania.

"You know a lot for someone so young." she said, taking a sip of her wine. Her red lipstick left a stain on the glass.

"Unlike my schoolmates, I spent my time reading, studying, and researching. Not drinking and fooling around with girls." Tom said.

A spark lit up in Katherine's eyes, "I'll admit I did a bit of research on you before you came over." she started, "Graduated top of your class, Head Boy, special awards…very impressive."

Tom chuckled, "What can I say? I'm an overachiever."

"Or naturally gifted." she said. Her eyes were locked on his and she was getting closer to him. "I wonder what else you're good at." Her hand lay delicately on his chest and her face was just inches from his.

Tom licked his lips. He didn't want to kiss her any more than he wanted to kiss a Dementor but if her aunt really had a connection to Hufflepuff, he needed to get on her good side. Unlike Druella, rejecting her wasn't an option. Over the years Tom had observed that women came in two categories. There were women who like men to take charge and women who like men they can control. The way to get Druella on his team was to do the opposite; play hard to get, make her beg. But with Katherine, that tactic wouldn't work. Katherine wanted a play thing, a boy she could wrap around her finger. And that is exactly what Tom would pretend to be. That way he could figure out the inner workings of this family and see exactly what hidden treasures they had.

Katherine put her hands in his hair and pressed her lips against his. Her breath smelled like wine and the rest of her smelled like expensive perfume. He kissed her back, though reluctantly, and rubbed her back with one hand and her hip with the other. If he closed his eyes and thought about Hufflepuff's Cup it was usually more bearable. It was important to remember why he was here and why he was doing this. But the more he tried to think of the Cup and his horcruxes, the more Audrey drifted into his mind.

Every time he was with Katherine, afterwards, all he could think about was Audrey. Whenever Katherine would press her body against his or kiss him or touch him, he couldn't help but think that Audrey's body fit against his perfectly or how just Audrey's kiss could turn him on and that Audrey's touch was much softer.

Being with Katherine just made him miss Audrey much more fiercely. He missed her scent, her smile, her laugh. And every night, he'd come home and show Audrey how much he missed her. He hated working late and he hated coming over to this whore's house for a glimmer of a chance at getting his next horcrux. It was frankly, exhausting. So, when the weekend finally came and it was time to go home, Tom was grateful.

He arrived home on Friday night just in time for dinner.

"Audrey?" he called and his voice echoed throughout the foyer.

Avery, Lestrange, Mulciber, Nott, and both Rosiers all apparated into the hall immediately.

Tom dryly looked at them all one by one. "None of you are Audrey."

"I believe she's making dinner, my Lord." Avery said.

"Audrey!" Tom bellowed and his voice echoed through the house this time. Audrey came scurrying out of the kitchen, her apron crooked to the side.

"I have something on the stove." she explained and pointed towards the kitchen doors.

Instead of walking towards her, he apparated to her side and pushed her back through the swinging doors.

She gasped in surprise, "What is it?" she said, concern filling her voice.

"I've had the worst week." he groaned into her hair. Holding her from behind, he kissed her neck softly. "I just want to hold you."

She laughed and reached up behind her to touch his face. "You're very sweet."

"Is that tomato soup I smell?" he grinned and made a beeline for the stove. He could use some hot, relaxing soup.

"Yes it is." she smiled and removed the pot from the hot stove. Tom was surprised to see her in such a good mood today. Usually when he got home she didn't seem happy at all, but today was different.

"You know that's my favourite, right?" he said, grabbing her waist and bending down to kiss her. She felt like heaven. After touching a woman he couldn't stand all week, he needed Audrey's loving embrace.

"You know you're my favourite, right?" she said back to him playfully.

"Ms. Row are you flirting with me?" he said, genuinely surprised.

She blushed a deep red. "Um…yes?" she giggled.

"Why are you acting like this?" he inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm just…" she paused, "happy you're home so early." she looked down at her feet, "You've been out after midnight every day this week. I'm just happy that you've come home to me."

"I'll always come home to you, sweetheart." he said and pushed her chin up so that their eyes were forced to meet.

"Also," she started timidly, "My mum wrote to me."

"What did she say?"

She looked down, "She misses me but she wishes us the best. She's invited us for dinner on my birthday."

Tom softened his eyes and said gently, "That's wonderful."

"Really?" she looked surprised.

"I'm glad to see you in a good mood again." he said sincerely. This was a rare occasion but Tom was genuinely glad to see her alight again.

Bowing her head, she mumbled an 'alright' in his chest and he squeezed her affectionately.

"How's work?" he said, quickly changing the subject.

"It's alright. Druella is a nightmare." she scoffed, "It's lovely to see my friends again though."

"I'll talk to Druella…again." he said in an exhausted voice. "She's a bitch by nature."

Audrey laughed and then wriggled out of his arms so she could start serving dinner. She sighed happily and marched into the dining room, bowls of soup floating behind her.

Everyone was already seated around the table when they walked in. All of them were chatting like a big happy family. Tom and Audrey walked in like mother and father to their rowdy children. Nott and Avery were teasing Mulciber about something while Lestrange exclaimed loudly at the sight of food coming into the room. The two Rosiers were speaking intently to each other. Druella's brow was furrowed and Mark looked stern.

The soup bowls and various appetizers landed gently as he sat down at the head of the table. When Audrey sat next to him he nudged her and whispered.

"I've been wondering something."

She leaned over to hear him better.

"Why would you name one child Mark and the other one Druella?"

Audrey snorted and nearly dropped her spoon on the floor.

"Seems a bit odd don't you think?" Tom laughed. "Doesn't match at all."

Audrey was laughing behind her hand, her cheeks flushed with red.

"What was their mother thinking?" Tom added.

"Oh, hush." Audrey slapped him on the arm playfully. Then she seemed to have realized what she'd done and apologized profusely.

"I think it's broken" he said, rubbing his arm, feigning pain. Mulciber watched the whole interaction through narrowed, disapproving eyes.

Tom took a sip of his soup and felt the warm liquid travel down his throat. It was perfection. This was what home felt like. Dinners like these made him feel comfortable in this cold, impersonal mansion. Though not as comforting as Hogwarts was, he was beginning to feel the warmth of being home again. These people, sitting around his table, were like family. He looked over at Audrey, who was slowly drinking her own bowl of soup, and imagined the day she would become his real family. She could make him this soup for the rest of her life, if he wanted. That would make him happy.