2015

“Where is she?”

My voice is cold, my eyes narrowed as I corner the man against the wall who had called me with the news. I watch as he cowers in front of me, looking like a grown man about to shit himself.

“She’s back here, boss,” My second in command, Ash, speaks up from behind me. I turn over my shoulder and nod, straightening my tie. “Take me to her,” I order.

While he leads me through the crowded club, my crowded club, my mind can’t help but race.

Three years. Three. Long. Years.

When I got the call that someone matching the description from a person I knew three years ago showed up asking for me…I knew it was you.

I don’t know what to expect from this. I’m not sure why you came back. I’m not sure if you’ve changed. I’ve changed, but that’s a given. After my father was assassinated when I was 20, all the training I’d been through had to come in handy pretty quickly.

I didn’t have a choice. I never had a choice. But, I have to say, I’m damn good at it.

There’s not much time left for me to think as Ash stops in front of the door to my private office, turning to face me. “Who is she, anyways?” He asks curiously. “No concern to you,” I respond without missing a beat.

I inhale, standing up a little taller instinctively. I don’t allow myself to think too much harder before I open the door and step inside, my gaze instantly falling on you.

And it’s like I feel 18-year-old Harry fighting to resurface.