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Chapter List
- 5
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Julia ran, fleeing from Lucius and his betrayal. She ran without purpose, needing only to put distance between herself and the man who had just ruined her life. She knew she had hurt him, what she had told him had been designed to hurt, just as he had hurt her, and at the moment she couldn’t think straight enough to know or care whether what he had done had been done on purpose.
She stopped several roads away from the Ministry of Magic and pulled a tissue from her handbag, rapidly wiping the tears that were flowing freely down her face, even now worried about how she must appear to the few people who were walking down the road. Calmer now, she realised that while she didn’t want to go back there she needed to go home . . . no . . . go back to Malfoy Manor. She could no longer call the place home, not now that Lucius had left her for someone else, someone so much younger.
But as much as she didn’t want to return to the manor, didn’t want to see the place she would never again be able to call home, she knew she needed to get her belongings together. She had asked Lucius for an hour, the amount of time he had given her to end her old life and she knew he would grant her that much but not a minute longer. If she was still there once the hour was up she would have to face him and his new young bride and that she couldn’t cope with — not now . . . maybe not ever.
She started to walk again, looking for a suitable place to Apparate. Time was counting down and she needed to get packed and get out.

Ginny was glad when Draco grabbed Lucius to stop him pursuing Julia. She could understand how he was feeling but she had more sympathy for the hurt woman. She knew Julia was feeling betrayed at what Lucius had done, even if he did have no choice, but his attempts to keep her living with him had been nothing but unthinking selfishness on his part, regardless of how much he loved her.
But he had at least given Julia an hour and Ginny was determined to make sure she made the time count. As upset as she was, Julia probably wasn’t thinking clearly but just wanted to be away from her ex-husband and his new, trashy young wife, and whether she meant to or not she would be wasting time.
Ginny had headed off in the same direction in which Julia had run but soon realised that trying to find her was pointless. She didn’t know where Julia had run to, but if she wanted to salvage anything of her old life to take with her she would need to go back home. Ginny ducked into the nearest alleyway and Apparated to Malfoy Manor.
She knocked on the door, her body twitching impatiently as she waited for a house-elf to answer. She was sure Julia would have come back here, needing to collect her personal belongings and get out before Lucius arrived back from the Ministry of Magic.
Thinking of Julia hurriedly packing up made Ginny wonder where she was going to go. From what the woman had told her in the conversations they’d had over the previous two years, she had been living with a boyfriend for years before her marriage to Lucius. It was unlikely that door would still be open to her after all this time. As far as Ginny was aware Julia had never spoken to her ex once she had moved in with Lucius. But did she have anywhere else to go?
Her Muggle parents lived abroad and it was possible that Julia would stay with them, but Ginny thought that was unlikely. Even putting aside the difficulties that getting to work would entail, she knew Julia was proud and probably wouldn’t want to admit to her parents what a mess her life was. Instead, she would try to make her own way, but then where would she live?
A house-elf opened the door and looked at Ginny with interest.
‘Is Julia here, Moki?’ Ginny asked.
The house-elf nodded. Ginny thought he looked a little worried. ‘Mistress Julia is here. However, she is most upset and does not wish to be disturbed.’
Ginny sighed as she entered the house. ‘I’m sure she’s extremely upset. The Ministry of Magic has just ended Lucius and Julia’s marriage without bothering to discover whether it was what they wanted. It’s important that she gets packed up and leaves within the next forty-five minutes, Moki. I’ve come to help her. Please tell me where she is.’
Moki looked worriedly at Ginny as if deciding whether telling the woman where Julia was would be disobeying a direct order, something he wasn’t allowed to do with his family.
Exasperated at waiting and aware that time was ticking away, Ginny said, ‘It’s all right, Moki, you won’t be disobeying if you tell me where she is. I’m Draco’s fiancée, so almost family anyway, and it’s important that I help her or she won’t leave before Lucius gets back to the house.’
The house-elf nodded. ‘I understand that, Mistress Ginny, but Master Lucius won’t want Mistress Julia to leave,’ he said quietly.
‘No, he won’t,’ agreed Ginny. ‘But she has to leave, Moki. Lucius has a new wife now. The Ministry made him re-marry after annulling his marriage to Julia so he will be bringing his new wife to live here. Julia can’t stay at Malfoy Manor any longer, not now.’
The house-elf looked extremely upset at this news. ‘The Ministry has done a bad thing,’ he said.
Ginny nodded. ‘You’re right, Moki, the Ministry has done an exceptionally bad thing. But neither Lucius nor Julia will be helped by her staying here now and she has very little time to get her belongings together. She was only given an hour. So please, tell me where she is so I can help her.’
The house-elf nodded. ‘Mistress Julia is in her rooms in the east wing. Shall Moki show you the way?’
‘It’s all right, Moki, I know the way. You might want to see if any of her belongings are anywhere else in the house, as she’s not got much time left to get packed up.’
‘Moki will instruct the other house-elves to help with the packing,’ Moki said, sounding distinctly unhappy. ‘The house-elves like Mistress Julia and will miss her,’ he added mournfully.
‘I’m sure she’ll miss you too,’ Ginny said gently. ‘Now I’d better go. Time is flying away and standing here isn’t going to help Julia get packed in time.’
She headed for the stairs as Moki made his way back towards the kitchen.

Julia had thrown herself onto her bed, unable to stop the tears that were beginning to seem never-ending, the depression she had been trying to keep in check for so long finally overwhelming her. She knew this wasn’t the most productive use of the small amount of time she had left before Lucius came back, bringing the child with him, but as her entire desire was to curl up into a tiny ball and retreat to bed never to be seen again, it wasn’t exactly a surprise that she was having difficulty getting motivated.
She was having trouble coming to terms with the fact that Lucius had re-bonded so quickly. She didn’t blame him for doing so, although a small part of her wished he had given up his wand for her, she would certainly have done so for him if the situation had been reversed. But she knew that given his Death Eater past it would have been a particularly difficult thing for him to do even if he did love her, which, given what had happened at the Ministry of Magic, she was currently finding impossible to believe.
Even though the small voice in her brain kept telling her that Lucius had no choice and the Ministry had forced the re-bonding on him, most of her couldn’t believe he hadn’t willingly entered into the union with the pretty young girl who was now his wife.
How excited he must have been, she thought bitterly as she remembered the willowy young woman.
She bet Lucius couldn’t wait to get her into bed, so different from the way he had been with her during their first few months of marriage. She even began to wonder whether Lucius had purposely stopped her from getting pregnant to ensure that the annulment would occur, and whether he had known all along what the Ministry were going to do when he made Julia go there rather than going out and celebrating their anniversary.
That was why he had made her leave the office while he talked to the officials: if she had stayed he wouldn’t have been able to get re-bonded. She was sure even Lucius wouldn’t have the balls to do that while she was still in the room. But, trusting him, she had left him to fight for their marriage and instead, he had betrayed her and accepted the first young scrap of a thing to come along. How he must be laughing at her.
He had even had the gall to ask her to stay on at Malfoy Manor as if she was some sort of concubine, betting on her desire for him and the lack of anywhere else for her to go to make her agree to do as he wanted. More than anything that had probably been the cruellest thing he had done — telling her he wanted her to stay, that she could even still share his bed — although that had changed pretty quickly when she reminded him of the bimbo. Then she had been relegated back to the room she was currently in, the new woman no doubt taking her place in Lucius’ bed.
How could he even suggest it, or truly believe that she would do it? Did he really think so little of her that he honestly thought he was doing her a favour? Maybe she did have nowhere to go but sleeping on the street would be better than having to share a house with Lucius and his teenage bride.
As had already happened too many times since she looked at Crystal, a vision of the girl and Lucius engaged in acts that Julia had stupidly assumed only she would share with him had slid into her mind to torture her, as if everything else that had happened wasn’t enough to do that already. Had she not satisfied Lucius in their lovemaking? Had she been so bad in bed that he had done everything he possibly could to remove her as his wife?
As she thought about it further, she decided that he had probably never really cared about her at all, he had just pretended he did to make the two years easier for himself, in the same way that the sexy underwear had made the sex more bearable for him. She curled herself up tighter, the keening sobs coming again as she thought of how Lucius had tricked her, had played her for a fool and she had fallen for it hook, line, and sinker.
But he told you he loved you, the tiny part of her brain that was still trying to think rationally pointed out. He only told you that for the first time this morning, when he gave you the ring. And he said it again and again at the Ministry.
But Julia shook away the voice, not wanting to hear, not wanting to think about the beautiful ring Lucius had given her and she had thrown back at him in anger. She wouldn’t want to keep it anyway. It meant nothing now. It would have been a painful reminder of just how much she had lost.
Julia heard a noise outside the bedroom door and panicked, her heart thumping hard in her chest, worried that Lucius had come home. She checked her watch. There was still just over thirty minutes before she had to leave, so if it was him he had welched on their agreement. Still unable to move from the bed she watched as the door slowly opened, ready to hurl abuse at the man she had been so desperate to share her life with. She sagged, tears falling like rain once more, as Ginny, not Lucius entered the bedroom.
Ginny sped up when she heard the sobs turn into something far more grief-stricken, feeling the need to comfort the woman whose life had just fallen apart. She couldn’t even begin to imagine how she would feel if something similar had happened to her and Draco. She was just glad that her fiancé had informed the Ministry they were in the midst of planning their wedding and managed to get them both removed from the eligibility list otherwise things could have been very different.
Poor Julia had already been torn away from one lover into a marriage that should have been blissful . . . had been blissful, until the stupid Ministry of Magic had stepped in to ruin it. Through the drawing room she went, not bothering to knock on the door, sure from the noise Julia was making that she wouldn’t even hear it.
Ginny entered the bedroom and rushed towards the bed, pulling the stricken woman into her arms and cradling her gently, willing her to stop crying. She was very conscious of the time ticking away, but until she got Julia to calm down she could do nothing to help her pack. Fortunately, being held and talked to seemed to do the trick, and after only a few more minutes Julia was finally able to talk.
‘You’ve got fifteen minutes left,’ Ginny said seriously. ‘What do you need me to do? The house-elves are packing up anything outside of this room, so we just have to do this.’
With difficulty, Julia pulled herself off the bed and made her way to the closet, opening it to reveal her old school trunk. She used her wand to move it to the centre of the room.
‘I guess we put stuff in here,’ she said morosely. She looked around appraisingly.
Her initial intention had been to take only those things she had brought with her, leaving everything that had been provided by Lucius, thereby making sure she had nothing he could use as leverage against her later. But it wasn’t long before she realised that after two years there was very little left of her previous life. Everything she owned, even down to the clothes she stood up in, had been bought since becoming Lucius’ wife.
She pulled open a drawer and looked at the sets of underwear it contained. For a moment her heart hurt, a twinge of pain as she thought of how she had dressed in it for Lucius and of his apparent appreciation. She sighed. Maybe she didn’t want to be reminded of what they had done together but in reality she had no choice but to take it. It was the only underwear she owned. Using her wand to move the lingerie to the trunk she watched as various other items joined it, moved by Ginny, who was packing everything she could see.
Ten minutes later the trunk was full and Ginny and Julia were once again sitting on the bed, Ginny stroking the older woman’s hand soothingly.
‘Where are you going to go?’ Ginny asked. She sounded concerned.
Julia shrugged. ‘I haven’t really had time to think about that. I suppose I shall have to find a hotel until I can find a place to live.’
‘Come and stay with us,’ Ginny suggested. Julia opened her mouth to respond, but before she could say anything Ginny added, ‘You know we’ve got a spare room, so we can put you up for a while. It’ll be much better than staying in some dodgy hotel . . . and I know Draco won’t mind.’
Julia shook her head. ‘I need to get away. I don’t want Lucius deciding he needs to see me.’
‘We won’t tell him you’re staying,’ Ginny assured her. ‘If he asks we’ll tell him we’ve no idea where you’ve gone.’
Julia looked gratefully at Ginny and a small smile, the first in ages, came to her lips as she quietly said, ‘Thank you.’
‘You do know Lucius didn’t do this on purpose, don’t you?’ Ginny asked as she led Julia out of the door. ‘I know you’re probably thinking he betrayed you, and I don’t blame you for that — I’d be thinking the same if Draco had done this to me. But I know Lucius loves you and he would never let you go unless he had absolutely no choice.’
‘I wish I could believe that,’ Julia said sadly. ‘But it’s so hard to accept right now.’
‘I know,’ Ginny said sympathetically. They had reached the top of the stairs. ‘Are you going to say goodbye to the house-elves before you go? They’re quite upset that you’re leaving. Merlin only knows what they’ll think of Crystal.’
Julia gave a small bitter laugh. ‘I don’t know what to think of Crystal.’
Ginny nodded in agreement. ‘She’s definitely different, that’s for sure. Poor Lucius. I think he’s going to have his work cut out with her.’
‘Perhaps he’ll get on better with her,’ Julia said quietly, another vision of the couple forcing its way into her mind. She firmly pushed it back out again. ‘He didn’t want to be with me at first.’
‘That was just him trying to overcome his prejudice,’ Ginny reminded her. They had reached the kitchen now. ‘He was telling Draco all about how wonderful you were long before he even admitted he was interested. You could pick it up in the way he talked about you. By the time we met you we already knew he was in love with you.’
‘After that party was the first time we made love without it being just about the contract,’ Julia said. She smiled in remembrance. ‘That was the night I moved into Lucius’ bedroom.’ Her smile disappeared as she thought about the man she loved sharing his bed with someone else . . . someone not her.
She tried to smile while she talked to the house-elves, thanking them for everything they had done while she had lived at the manor and for packing the rest of her belongings. Moki sent a couple of them off to bring down her trunk and then it was time to go, she knew if she stayed even for another couple of minutes she ran the risk of bumping into Lucius. The hour was up and the marriage was over. It was time for Julia to leave Malfoy Manor.

Julia stayed with Ginny and Draco for just over a fortnight while she looked for somewhere to live, finally finding and renting a small flat in London just off Diagon Alley, not far from St Mungo’s. She had returned to working full time at the hospital after explaining to her boss about her separation from Lucius, and at her request she had been placed in an office away from the public area of the building, ensuring that if Lucius came looking for her he was unlikely to find her.
But Lucius hadn’t come looking. The day after she left the manor he had asked Draco if he knew where Julia had gone, but his son had feigned ignorance and it appeared Lucius had believed him and had little or no interest in tracking her down. After a couple of months passed Julia began to relax slightly, no longer petrified that she would run into her ex-husband, although the depression hadn’t left.
While Julia didn’t believe that Lucius hadn’t settled into his relationship with Crystal, knowing that if nothing else he would have had to consummate the union and try regularly for a baby, she had at least finally came to realise that he hadn’t ended their relationship on purpose and she no longer believed he had sabotaged their chances of having a child. Deep inside she knew that was still her fault.
Several discussions with Draco and Ginny, both while she was staying with them and after her move, had allowed her to see the truth of what the Ministry of Magic had done and why Lucius had asked her to stay with him at the manor. But it didn’t help. Julia was already missing Lucius when she had thought him the villain of the piece, and that just increased once she stopped blaming him for what had happened.
But she was forthright in her explanation when Draco asked her why she hadn’t stayed, knowing that his father would have been happy to keep her by his side regardless of his current circumstances. Julia explained about her own first days of marriage to Lucius, when he had been forever leaving her to go about his business, conducting his extra-marital activities quite openly and with no regard for her happiness.
While she might not have been pleased about Crystal taking over her husband, Julia didn’t want to give Lucius the excuse to treat the young woman the same way he had treated her, and even more openly. Their relationship was over and both she and Lucius had to get used to the fact that he was married to someone else; the quicker they could do that, the better it would be for everyone.

Ginny smiled and waved as she saw Julia waiting for her outside Quality Quidditch Supplies. She hugged the older woman tightly and then the couple headed down the street towards the cafe they regularly used. The two women tried to get together at least once a month as they enjoyed each other’s company and Ginny, in particular, was especially careful to keep in touch with Julia as she was aware her circle of friends wasn’t very large.
Her life before marriage to Lucius had apparently revolved completely around her boyfriend, and Lucius hadn’t been eager to share his wife with others, either. And Ginny knew Julia had a tendency to bury herself in her work as a coping mechanism, not confiding in anyone unless she was pushed.
Although she seemed to have recovered from the shock of the abrupt ending of her marriage well enough, Ginny was aware that Julia had done nothing to make her life more comfortable and even though it had been almost a year since she and Lucius had split she had made no attempt to have another relationship.
While Ginny knew that being in a relationship didn’t necessarily mean a better life, she was worried that her friend was missing out on the benefits a boyfriend could bring — no one could base their life entirely on work and claim to be happy. She had tried to gently suggest several times that Julia should start dating, even if only to take her mind off her ex-husband, but all such conversations had been shut down dead. It was a shame because Ginny knew of at least three men who would have been more than happy to take Julia out for the evening, if only she would give them a chance.
She had wondered a couple of times whether Julia was waiting for Lucius, aware that once the two years was up he would be getting an annulment of his current union with the loathsome Crystal, but from conversations they’d had that didn’t seem to be the case. As far as Julia was concerned her relationship with Lucius had ended forever and she had no intention of attempting to revisit it when his current marriage ended.
Ginny wasn’t entirely sure she was being truthful as, on occasion, when she was caught off-guard, Julia’s face would take on either that look of misery that Ginny remembered so well from the early days of the split or a wistful look that she was sure signified Julia was thinking about Lucius.
‘Have you taken my advice and got laid yet?’ Ginny asked with a grin after the waitress had taken their order and they were waiting for their food to arrive.
Julia shook her head primly. ‘No, I told you I’m not interested in some tawdry relationship. I’m perfectly all right as I am, thank you.’
‘Bollocks are you,’ Ginny retorted. ‘You and Lucius were at it like rabbits.’ She laughed loudly as Julia looked set to disagree indignantly. ‘Don’t tell me you weren’t, Julia, because everyone knows you were, so I don’t believe you’re happy doing without. It’s been over ten months now. Time you got back out and on the horse again . . . metaphorically speaking.’ She winked at her friend.
‘I really am okay,’ Julia insisted. She waited while the waitress, who had returned with a tray, put the teapot, milk and cups on the table, then left again. She opened the lid of the teapot and began to stir the contents with a teaspoon. ‘After the relationship with Lucius ended I didn’t want to do or think about anything that reminded me of him. Sex is one of those things. I’m better off without it.’ She pulled the teaspoon from the pot and put the lid back on.
‘That’s bollocks, too,’ Ginny said. ‘I think a decent shag would sort you out. Stop you moping around.’
‘I am not moping around,’ Julia said, bristling at the criticism.
‘Of course you are, and it’s not good enough. You really need to take control of your life and go out there and get laid. It’ll do you the world of good.’
‘I told you, I don’t want to get laid. I’m just not that interested in sex anymore.’
‘That’s because you haven’t done it for so long,’ Ginny pointed out. ‘Once you start doing it again you’ll be right back in the game.’
Julia shook her head, disagreeing with her friend as Ginny poured the tea for them both. She poured milk into the brown liquid and stirred it with her teaspoon once again.
‘I told you, I’m not—’
‘Do you think Lucius has given up having sex?’ Ginny asked bluntly.
Julia looked at her friend in surprise. Normally she didn’t mention Lucius unless Julia brought him up.
‘I don’t really care what he’s getting up to with that bimbo,’ she retorted, trying not to sound bitter although she was aware she wasn’t succeeding.
‘Oh, he’s not fucking her,’ Ginny said, her face showing distaste. ‘He has no interest in Chandelier at all. It’s you he wants to get all hot and heavy with, Julia.’
‘And I told you I’ve got no interest in doing that while he’s married to someone else,’ Julia said tartly. ‘I explained why in the past and have no intention of doing so again.’
She wished her heart hadn’t just started beating faster and her stomach done a little flip when Ginny told her Lucius still wanted her. It was pathetic that she still felt that way about him when they could never be a couple again. Even if this marriage was unsuccessful and Lucius got another annulment, the Ministry would just pair him with someone else, again and again, until finally, he got one of them pregnant. There was no future for her with Lucius and it was pointless wishing or pretending it could be any other way.
‘Perhaps you should reconsider. I know he would be more than happy to—’
‘I said no,’ Julia said sharply, her cheeks flushed with anger. ‘It’s not going to happen, Ginny, so stop talking about it.’
She took a sip of her tea, refusing to say anything further. Ginny took a sip of her tea, too, debating what to say.
‘Well, if you’re not interested in Lucius, what about one of Draco’s mates? Greg Goyle’s a nice guy and he’s improved considerably since school. He’s a bit thick but he knows how to treat a lady well, and I hear he’s very well endowed. And he’s definitely interested. He wanted to know everything about you after you met him that time at the Quidditch.’ Ginny grinned salaciously.
Julia pictured the hulking man for a moment, then shook her head again. ‘I told you, I’m not interested,’ she said with a sigh. ‘And I’m definitely not interested in someone young enough to be my son. I don’t have Lucius’ morals, thank you very much.’
‘I’m not talking about you marrying him, just having a bit of fun for once in your life. Anyway, you know Lucius didn’t choose to marry Chandelier. She was just the one the Ministry of Magic picked out. There’s absolutely no point in getting annoyed with him over her . . . unless you’re still angry with him for not giving up his wand.’
‘I never expected him to give up his wand,’ Julia replied quickly. ‘I know he could never do that. It was just a shock that she was so young . . . and so bloody pretty.’
‘Don’t forget thick as two short planks,’ Ginny added with a wicked grin. ‘She might sparkle, but Chandelier definitely doesn’t shine . . . the lights are on but there’s no one home.’
‘I’m sure she’s a nice enough girl really, though. Perhaps Lucius ought to try and make a go of things with her. They make a good-looking couple,’ Julia said resignedly.
‘No she isn’t, she’s a complete bitch,’ Ginny retorted. ‘And she’s a gold-digger. She’s only interested in Lucius’ money. It’s obscene the amount she spends on clothes.’
For a second a vision of Crystal bent over Lucius’ desk while he spanked her as he had done with Julia so long ago slid unwanted into Julia’s mind. She frowned, shook her head, and took another sip of her tea, trying to clear the thought. Ginny had just told her Lucius had no interest in Crystal and surely that extended to his games as well. But of course, just because Lucius told Draco and Ginny he wasn’t interested it didn’t mean he wasn’t. It just meant he was keeping it well hidden.
The waitress appeared again, this time with their food. Ginny gazed happily at her full plate. ‘Ah, lovely . . . a full cooked breakfast. I love having this as it always reminds me of being back at the Burrow. Mum was never happy unless we all ate our own body weight in food at every meal.’ She looked at the jacket potato with cheese that Julia had ordered. There was also a limp lettuce leaf, a slice of cucumber, and a quarter of a tomato that looked like it had seen better days. ‘Is that going to be enough for you?’ she asked doubtfully.
Julia nodded as she cut into the potato to release the heat. ‘Yes, this will be fine. I don’t tend to eat much at lunchtime. I usually have something more substantial for dinner.’
‘Lucius wants to take you out for dinner,’ Ginny ventured quietly after a few minutes of eating. She saw the look her friend gave her and said, ‘Don’t get upset with me, Julia, I’m just saying. He really wants to see you . . . and he wants to make it up to you for not getting to celebrate your anniversary. He was going to take you to the Black Dragon that day.’
Julia sighed again. ‘Can we not talk about Lucius anymore, please? I’m trying to forget he even exists, remember?’
‘I know, and I really think that’s a big mistake,’ Ginny said honestly. ‘I know you still love him—’
‘Oh, for god’s sake, Ginny, shut up!’ Julia cried out in frustration, dropping her knife and fork onto her plate. ‘Talking about him still hurts, even now, so please . . . .’ She picked up her cutlery and began to eat once more, a fierce look on her face.
‘I’m sorry, Julia,’ Ginny said a few minutes later once the silence between them had become unbearable. ‘I forget how you’re feeling because you always seem so together as if it doesn’t bother you.’
‘Well, it does,’ Julia admitted. ‘I’m sorry I shouted at you, Ginny. You just touched a raw nerve.’ She looked at her friend, then gave her a small grin. ‘I can’t believe I missed out on dinner at the Black Dragon.’
‘He’ll still—’ Ginny began to say then shut up as she saw the frown cross Julia’s face. She raised her hands. ‘Sorry.’
‘So who’s he doing it with?’ Julia asked several minutes later, once the food had been eaten and she was sipping her second cup of tea.
‘Who’s doing what with whom?’ Ginny asked, looking confused.
‘Lucius. You said he’s still having sex but he’s not doing it with Crystal, so who’s he doing it with?’ Julia tried to sound less interested than she actually was.
Ginny shrugged. ‘He’s getting it from a whole range of unsuitable sources, as far as I know. He can be quite the slut when he wants to be.’ She saw Julia frown and continued, ‘Do you remember all the hoo-hah there was about him when he divorced Narcissa?’
Julia nodded. ‘I remember it being in the papers but I didn’t really read about it at the time. To be honest, I wasn’t all that interested in what some perverted Death Eater was up to.’
Ginny looked surprised. ‘Blimey, you must be about the only person I know who wasn’t interested. That happened at the end of the last year I was at school. I wasn’t with Draco then — we really didn’t get on at all well at school — but I remember reading all about Lucius and his shocking lifestyle.’
‘Yeah, but that was just to sell a few papers and based on the bitterness of a scorned wife, wasn’t it?’ Julia said sceptically. ‘I mean, I know he can be a bit kinky.’ She broke off for a moment as Ginny raised her eyebrows. Julia shrugged. ‘But what bloke isn’t, given the chance?’
Ginny smiled. ‘I’d love to know what your idea of kinky is after two years with Lucius. Anyway, all that stuff in the papers wasn’t just talk. Draco told me all about it after we got together. Apparently, Lucius used to like frequenting some very particular types of clubs . . . but being the arrogant bastard he is, he used to take it home with him rather than leave it there. I don’t think Narcissa minded what he did when he kept it out of the manor; they didn’t really have that much in the way of a relationship after Draco was born. But once Lucius started flaunting what he was up to at home she finally snapped.
‘She tried to drag his name through the mud in hopes it might finally make him see some sense about what his debauchery was doing to the family . . . but this is Lucius we’re talking about, and you know he always does just exactly what he wants, regardless of the consequences. In any event, the publicity just brought him to the attention of a whole new group of women who were happy to become involved in his games, so he continued until he married you.’
‘I don’t think he stopped then,’ Julia said, ‘at least not at the beginning. He used to be out every night and would never tell me what he was doing although he made it patently clear without actually specifying that it was sexual. I just assumed he had a mistress.’
‘Not one,’ Ginny said. ‘Several. And since you went away he’s taken up with that scene again . . . in a big way. I’m not sure Chandelier cares much, although when she’s in the mood she does go all out to try to seduce him. I’ve seen her in action and I can tell you it’s not pretty. But he’s really not interested — unless he’s tying her up and ball-gagging her late at night when no one can see them.’ She grimaced at the thought. ‘Anyway, Draco and I were hoping you might be able to talk some sense into him.’
Julia gave a brittle laugh. ‘Yeah, right. I’ve no idea what makes you think that. Even if I were willing to talk to him — which I’m not, by the way — Lucius wouldn’t listen to me. As you said, he always goes his own sweet way and nothing I could say would stop him.’
Ginny looked surprised. ‘Julia, I don’t think you realise just what sort of hold you have over Lucius, do you? He would do anything you asked him to do, just as long as there was a chance of him spending some time with you. And if you and he . . . .’ Julia shook her head and Ginny stopped talking.
‘It’s not going to happen, Ginny, I’m sorry. It’s not my fault Lucius has chosen to go off the rails again. Obviously, he’s addicted to that sort of thing and can’t keep away from it. I’m happy with where I’ve got to and I can’t jeopardise that by seeing Lucius now . . . please, tell me you understand?’
Ginny looked at her friend appraisingly for a moment and nodded, although she didn’t look very impressed. ‘You have to do what makes you happy,’ she said finally.
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