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"You damned lot! If you dare cause trouble, I'll deal with you myself!"
Moody bellowed at the group of Death Eaters.
They groaned, collapsing to the ground, their bodies wracked by the powerful electric current.
"Alright, let's go," Moody muttered irritably.
Lucius remained unusually tense. Since entering the high-security wing, he had pulled a black hood over his head, letting its shadow completely obscure his face.
He couldn't afford to be recognized.
He once shared a good relationship with these Death Eaters.
Now, he had betrayed Voldemort, playing a role in their downfall.
If these prisoners ever found out…
Moody, eager to be done with this detested company, led Ethan and the others down the dim corridor to a dungeon in the prison's deepest recesses.
"This is Bellatrix Lestrange's cell—" he began.
Before he could finish, a pale, gaunt face suddenly emerged from behind the iron bars.
"Wonderful… Wonderful… You're all coming…"
The woman's voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper, yet dripping with a mad delight.
She looked utterly ruined—long years in Azkaban had hollowed her cheeks, sapped the color from her skin, and turned her once-lustrous black hair into a tangled, brittle mess.
Yet even in her ruin, traces of her former beauty lingered—her strong jaw, high cheekbones, and long lashes.
Then her sunken eyes fixed on Dumbledore.
"Dumbledore," she breathed. A beat passed.
Then her expression shifted, excitement flashing across her gaunt face.
"The Dark Lord—he's back, isn't he?" she gasped, her voice rising with frantic hope.
"He defeated you! He put you in Azkaban! He's coming to save me, isn't he? Because I—"
Her breath hitched, her hands tightening around the bars—"I am his most loyal servant!"
Her wild shrieks echoed down the stone corridor.
Dumbledore exchanged a glance with Moody, who sighed, his expression dark with disdain.
"She's completely mad," he muttered.
Bellatrix Lestrange had always been Voldemort's most fanatical follower.
After his mysterious disappearance, she and her husband Rodolphus, his brother Rabastan, and Barty Crouch Jr. had kidnapped Alice and Frank Longbottom—two of Moody's closest friends.
They tortured the Aurors for hours, using the Cruciatus Curse in a desperate attempt to extract information about Voldemort's whereabouts.
But the Longbottoms had revealed nothing—until they were driven to madness.
For that crime, the Ministry had sentenced Bellatrix and her accomplices to life in Azkaban.
Moody despised all Death Eaters, but the ones who had destroyed Alice and Frank were the ones he hated most.
If it were up to him, Bellatrix would rot in this cell until she died.
But then, a thought struck him.
A slow, wicked grin crept across his scarred face as he crouched down, locking eyes with the crazed woman.
"Bella," he murmured, "you've had no news from the outside, have you? No idea what's been happening?"
She stared at him, chest heaving.
"Let me tell you something."
Moody leaned in, voice dropping to a taunting whisper.
"Your master… isn't dead."
For a split second, Bellatrix froze.
Then, her face twisted with unhinged delight.
"I knew it," she whispered. Her lips trembled, curling into an ecstatic smile.
"I knew it! I knew it!"
She let out a breathless, giddy laugh, eyes wild with fervor.
Moody only watched, his smirk fading into something colder.
"Master is not dead! I can feel it—the Mark on my arm was still burning just days ago! I knew it! I knew it!"
Bella muttered feverishly, her body trembling with excitement.
Moody sneered. "You won't be so happy for long, Bella. Thanks to a little tip from one of your fellow Death Eaters, your scattered forces have been completely wiped out. And soon enough, they'll be right here beside you, rotting away in these cells."
Bella's elation wavered.
"And your so-called great master?" Moody continued, his voice dripping with cruel amusement.
"He's barely clinging to life, hiding like a wounded rat. The Ministry will find him soon enough. And when they do—" Moody leaned closer, his scarred face twisting into a grin—"I'll hang him with my own hands."
Bella's face drained of color. She stared at him, eyes wide with horror.
"What… what are you saying?" she stammered.
"Impossible! My great master—"
But then, as if forcing the fear from her mind, her expression contorted with rage.
"You're talking nonsense!" she shrieked, her voice cracking.
With a sudden, violent fury, she hurled herself against the iron bars, making them rattle under the force of her thin but frenzied body.
"You're lying!" she howled.
"The Dark Lord is powerful! He would never—!"
Moody remained calm, a smirk tugging at his lips.
"This is the truth, Bella." His voice was almost taunting now.
"And if you don't believe me…" Moody's grip tightened on Lucius' hood.
Before Lucius could react, Moody yanked it back, exposing his pale, drawn face to Bella in an instant.
Lucius flinched, instinctively raising his hands to shield himself.
But it was too late.
Bella froze. For a split second, she was silent, her wide eyes locked onto his face.
Then, her expression twisted into something monstrous.
"You filthy traitor!" she screeched, her voice echoing down the stone corridor.
Her glare burned with pure hatred, her eyes wild, her entire body shaking with fury.
Lucius turned away, unable to meet her gaze.
"I'll kill you! I'll kill you!"
Bella raged, forcing her arms through the bars, clawing at the air as if she could tear Lucius apart with her bare hands.
"You spineless worm! He trusted you! And you—!"
CRACK!
Moody's cane struck hard against Bella's outstretched arm.
She let out a sharp gasp, recoiling in pain, but the fire in her eyes did not dim.
"It's not over yet, Bella," Moody said coolly, lowering his wand.
"We know Voldemort's little secret."
Bella's breath hitched.
Moody crouched slightly, lowering his voice to a slow, deliberate whisper.
"The reason your master didn't die… is because he made a Horcrux."
Bella's eyes widened, but she said nothing.
"Oh yes," Moody continued, his tone taunting.
"And do you know what's even more interesting? He entrusted you with one of them. You hid it away, didn't you? Locked it up nice and safe in your family's vault at Gringotts."
Bella's body went rigid. A flicker of panic flashed across her face.
How did they know?
That was impossible. No one else knew.
Not even the other Death Eaters. It was her task. Her burden.
And now—
She clenched her teeth. Her breathing grew ragged, her fists curling into trembling claws.
She understood what this meant. If they took her to Gringotts… if they got their hands on the Horcrux…
She had failed.
Her master would never forgive her.
A terrible resolve flickered in her wild eyes.
Before anyone could react, she threw herself forward—
—and with all the strength she had left, she slammed her head against the thick iron bars.