Bulletproof Heart | A Draco Malfoy Fanfiction | Sequel to Desolation Row

Chapter 23

I was still recovering from the brutal murder of my father. I wasn't sure I could take much more of being stuck down here, never knowing if or when we were getting out. No words came out when I tried to talk to Draco, so instead we sat huddled together in a corner, Draco holding my broken pieces together. Light flooded the cellar as the door opened and Elisa's mother stepped into the chill. I had to try to stop my jaw dropping. Why was she here?
"Elisa Christine Stevenson, get here now."
Silence fell over us all, no one knowing what to do. Elisa was staring down her mother as she passed the twins to me and Draco.
"What?" she spat, having no time for her mother. Understandably so.
Lolita began to berate her daughter, belittling her for the way she spoke to Voldemort in the meetings she had been having with him. If I was perfectly honest, I didn't think Voldemort deserved to be treated with even a shred of decency so the most Elisa was giving him was impressive to me. But then Elisa exploded.
"You're ignoring your own grandchildren as they screamed and cried because they're frightened out of their little minds!" she bellowed and I rocked Joshua softly in my arms. "And then, and then, you allow my father to murder your best friend's husband, his own best friend!"
She didn't need to fight for me.
"El, I-I-"
"Stay out of it, Ophelia," snapped Elisa and I took in a deep breath. I knew she hadn't meant to snap at me but I also knew she wasn't afraid to say something more if I continued interfering. This was her fight, regardless of what it was about.
Elisa raged on, bringing up our fathers' old school friends before bringing up their children but Lolita simply took a step towards her and slapped her. A collective intake of breath could be heard around the room as Elisa fell to the floor and simply stared at her mother, her innocent, terrified expression childlike and utterly heart-breaking. And then Lolita left, as if nothing had happened. I felt myself breathe out in relief as she shut the cellar door as I was immediately by Elisa's side, Draco right behind me but Elisa didn't want us there. She begged for us to leave her alone, her voice shaking and terrified. We obliged.

"Ophelia, Draco, I-I'm so sorry," Elisa began, coming over to us to apologise for what had happened a few hours ago.
I shook my head. "I-it's okay, we kn-kno-know you di-didn't me-me-me-mean it, El."
We smiled at each other as Elisa rested her head against my shoulder. This war was going to tear us all apart from the inside out.

-

Even though a week had passed since my father had been murdered, I could still hear him screaming in my head. I wasn't sure if that would ever change. Draco and Elisa had been trying their hardest to comfort me but I was struggling to keep my mind off of what I had heard. In an attempt to think about literally anything else I had been offering to hold the twins, to help in any way I could with them, just so that I had something else to focus on. I hadn't been awake when it had happened but I had arisen at the clambering of people around the dungeon. Evangeline had tried to run with Joshua and Juliet. When I had asked Draco what was going on he told me he had spoken to Elisa the night before and she had gone to talk to Evangeline. We assumed she was telling her to do this.
"Where do you think you're going, Little Stevenson? Bellatrix taunted Evangeline as I could imagine they had her cornered. Think you can run from us? And what's this?"
"I'm going I'm going back. I need the hospital," Evangeline said, her voice wavering as Juliet whimpered.
We were all listening to what was going on upstairs, the look on Elisa's face making me think that she was already blaming herself.
"Did wittle sister tell you to wun?" Bellatrix teased patronisingly again and I heard Evangeline reply in the negative before the Death Eater continued, this time her speech directed at Greyback. "Greyback, take the children back to the Stevenson girl in the cellar. You can have your fun with them after I'm done with this one,"
I glanced at Draco and Elisa as the door opened and Greyback placed Juliet and Joshua in Elisa's arms, both of who were grizzling in the Death Eater's arms. They immediately calmed down when they were in their mother's arms but we heard Evangeline scream in the distance.
"Take me," Elisa pleaded. "It was my idea. Please don't hurt them. They had nothing to do with it,"
"You always were a fool, Stevenson," Greyback mused, lifting a hand to stroke Elisa's cheek and it took everything in me not to hurl myself at him. "Thinking you can outsmart us. I think I'll do you next."
"Torture me, kill me! Don't hurt them! It was my idea!" Elisa begged, her voice cracking and wavering as Greyback watched her.
"Oh no, this is more fun," he grinned before slamming the door shut and disappearing upstairs, straight into the midst of Evangeline's screams.