Basilisk Eyes

Chapter 151: Perfodi petram

"It's okay, Septima!" Harry called out as he struggled with the cloak and finally pulled it off his head. "I'm still here. Just covered by the cloak."

He pushed his glasses back up on his nose. There was a hiccup, then a sputter, and then the small group of wixen erupted into a giddy laughter that echoed off the cavern walls.

"Did it work?" Harry asked as he gasped for breath. He untangled the cloak from his limbs and stood up. "The vessel is gone? The cloak still works, right?"

"Yes! The vessel is gone!"

"We thought you vanished, but it was just the cloak!"

"It seems to still work!"

Their laughter bounced around them and then faded away.

"How will we know it was returned to the right place?" Harry asked.

"When it is restored, the one who took it will start to fade," Mr. Khan said grimly as his voice was projected against the wall where McCarthy was tied. "Ah, yes. He's starting to go."

The bound man struggled against the gritty surface of the cavern and uttered a strangled moan.

"Where is he going?"

"Wait! What about justice? He needs to pay for his crimes."

"A far worse fate than a cell in Azkaban awaits him."

At this, McCarthy let out an anguished cry.

"Don't you need him to prove that it wasn't you who attacked the Center?"

"I hope my memories will be sufficient. And there's nothing I can do at this point." Mr. Khan sounded exhausted. "Can we find Aminah now?"

"We're just going to let him go?" Septima asked. "We don't even know why he wanted to hurt us."

"He wasn't trying to hurt you or even the Center. You all were just in his way. He wanted to hurt me; ruin me in every conceivable way."

"But if he just disappears, how can you prove your innocence?" Healer Jordan asserted again.

"That's right, Javad!" McCarthy's raspy gasp divagated from his corner of the cavern. "You think you've won again, but is I who has triumphed! You'll be the one rotting in an Azkaban cell. As you should be... overreaching Paki! You never knew when to stop. Never knew your place. You're everything that is wrong with this world. And I did it. I made you do the most unforgivable thing—you blinded your own daughter. I'll get your lands yet. Just you see. This isn't over. Ha! And everyone believed you did it... because you're just a filthy towel-wearing terrorist!"

"I will not give you the satisfaction of going to your eternal retribution thinking that you had the upper hand. You did not. Yes, Aminah has suffered this year because of you and no less for thinking that it was I who did it to her. But once I'm free of you, I'll be able to reverse the curse that robbed her of her sight. I did it to protect her from you!" Mr. Khan said with raw defiance.

"No! You lie! No! I had you under the Imperius Curse! It's not possible!"

"It was hard; the effort of it nearly killed me, but I was able to break through enough at times... when it mattered most... to protect my family and other innocents."

"I curse you, Javad."

"Yet, you only cursed yourself, in the end," Mr. Khan sighed. "What a waste. And for what? Petty jealousy? Greed? I still don't understand why you needed to grind me underfoot. You who had every privilege handed to you on a silver platter!"

"No! You're lying! It can't be! It's my right! My birthright! You are nothing! I'm the one who deserves... " The echo of McCarthy's tormented cry faded from the room and everyone was silent. All Harry could hear was the gentle lapping of water against the sides of the pool.