Diving into the Past
**Genine Diggory**
"That rules out the Rowle. Next, we should move to-" A knock at the door cuts me off as I take Thorfinn Rowle's photo off the board. Looking through the window on the door, I spot a kid barely out of Hogwarts. Amos gives the nod from the seat behind his desk.
"Detective and Chief Diggory? There's an owl for you," the boy speaks through a yawn.
"Just slide it through the mail slot next time," Amos grumbles as he hops off his chair, and I get back to rearranging the murder board.
The desk sits in the middle of a hexagon of windows, looking over the Ministry of Magic's lobby. A small seating area fills the rest of the space. Filling cabinets and shelves piled with case files and nicknacks hide behind the murder board. Widows looking out at the empty Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures line the remaining walls. If it wasn't for the fact that the murder board wouldn't have fit in my office, I would have wanted us to work there. The windows are lovely and all; I just prefer not feeling like I'm in a fish tank.
"It's from the Arthur," Amos says absently; a chuckle escapes his lips after dismissing the boy, "They had to drag Cedric and the twins off their brooms."
"I just, I just feel bad about leaving them with the Weasleys so often recently," I sigh as the chair squeaks under his weight.
"Hey," he tosses the note to the table and comes to my side, "I do too. I don't like not spending our time with them before they go off to Hogwarts. It's all the more reason to catch the killer as quickly as possible. And it's not like they're miserable over there," he speaks softly as his hand caresses my cheek.
His words remind me of Leanne's reaction to Arthur. The last time I tried asking her about it, she shrugged it off. "You're right. Let's move to the next suspect. Have you gotten Catlyn's Alibi?"
"Uh, let's see here." returning to his desk, he shuffles through a mess of papers until he finds the one he's looking for, "Catlyn admits to going on a walk alone at the time of the first incident."
"At night?" I know some like that sort of thing, but an almost 12-year-old girl in the middle of the city?
"Agreed, weird. For the next three, Ollivander states he imposed a curfew, and both agree she was at home reading, making potions, or in bed."
"Anyone else?" I ask, plopping down into a visitor's chair.
"Their House-elf, Cimsy, also corroborates this. Keep in mind that although Ollivander is the owner of record, Catlyn is the one who purchased them from Hogwarts," Amos answers. Given their treatment of them, it's safe to assume they're considered a part of the family. It adds to the picture of Catlyn, but many treat House-elves well in public and harshly behind closed doors.
"What about the Half-Troll murder?" I say absently while my brain works to solve the puzzle of Catlyn.
"Both Caltyn and Ollivander were picking up a friend of hers, Zechariah Morisan, from the docks. They passed by the crime scene on their way back. Officers on the scene confirm seeing the group, and Durmstrang also confirms the pickup. She has no alibi for the Werewolf murder."
At the mention of Zechariah Morisan, my eyes swing up to his photo under suspects. A suave smile greets me as cocky lives in his eyes. The Morisans are a very interconnected family across Europe. They deal in everything from Dark Magic to politics.
A unique aspect of the Morisans is that most aren't related by blood. Most are orphans adopted into the family. Despite this, they are still blood purists. These orphans undergo a rite of passage they call the Blood Purification. That's their story, anyway.
The current heads of the family are Lilith and Gorgan. Mr. Morisan acts as a delegate from Ireland while operating a smuggling ring, while Mrs. Morisan is suspected of running the extortion side of their operation. The family holds such a firm grip on the criminal underworld that an entire task force is dedicated to bringing them down.
"So the only alibis she has are her Father, her House-elf, the son of Death Eaters, and a school for Dark Wizards? We definitely need to bring her in for questioning," I sum up, moving to bring Catlyn and Zechariah up to the top of the suspects.
"I already filled out the paperwork. What did you find about her past?" Amos asks, handing me a copy of the approval to bring her in.
"Catlyn Ollivander, female, 4' 7", adopted August 7th, 1985, age on record is 11 but no birth record to confirm. The first records I found were her admittance to St. Mungos in July 1985. Before that, there was no birth record, no birth parents listed, no evidence of being in an Orphanage, nothing.
"Why was she admitted?" Amos asks, now sitting up.
"I can tell that it was serious from the length she stayed. They wouldn't give most of the information. The only thing they gave me are heavily redacted doctor notes. The notes consisted of the long-term effects of whatever she was afflicted with. Stunted growth, inability to produce sound, and constant 24-hour pain variable in intensity. This pain can be equivalent to the Cruciatus Curse." Silence falls over the room as the weight of the information.
"After that?" Amos breaks the silence.
The roots of empathy dig further and further into Amos' face as I continue, "although it was redacted, we can infer that Ollivander was present when she was at St. Mungos. It was only a few days after that Ollivander filed adoption papers. After her stay at St. Mungo's, records show her testifying at a trial. Her testimony lasted for five days."
Deep thought distracts him at the mention of a trial, "Seven years ago… I sat in on most of the large ones at that time. Oh, Merlin, the trial of the Lich still haunts me. I don't recall seeing her ever testify at any of them."
"You wouldn't have. It was a closed testimony, and the records are sealed. The last important thing to note is a report from Hogwarts. The report details Catlyn attempting the killing curse. Charges were never brought because it was against a Troll in the defence of her and others."
"She's our Daughter's friend?" Amos exclaims, having difficulty digesting all of the information.
"Did you look into the angle that she's a young Vampire feeding?" I ask after giving a look of solidarity.
"We can rule out that these are Vampire prey. Draven confirmed no blood was missing from them, and there were no teeth marks. She's not getting blood from the Ministry, so there would be many more victims if she is a Half-Vampire. That's if Half-Vampires need blood. Half-Vampires are rare; it's hard to find solid facts about their abilities and needs. I looked into if Half-Vampire's eyes glow. They do, but only when they're feeding, and there are no reports of them being able to do what Catlyn can."
Fatigue plagues Amos' face at the topic, matching the knots forming in my gut. Is she a victim or villain? What Death Eater did this all to her? What did they do in the first place? Where are her birth parents? Is she a Half-Vampire?
"Let's switch topics. I think we both have had enough of looking into suspects."
Relief floods Amos' face, "agreed."
Feeling antsy, I begin to pace as my brain switches topics. "Still no word on any Half-breed communities?"
"None. I'm starting to wonder if we're going down the wrong path," Amos admits, spinning to stare out at the lobby.
"It can't be a coincidence that every victim is a ghost. There has to be a connection. How are they hiding from us?" Silence answers my question as an idea pops in, "how do Wizards hide from Muggles?"
"Magic," Amos answers simply, confused at the question.
"I mean where. If you had to make a new Wizard settlement inside of London, where would you make it?"
"I'd start in an area with a few abandoned buildings, conceal them, and slowly acquire the whole street." Still not knowing where I'm going with this, his eyebrows furrow while he turns back around, "but we already checked; there have been no areas with new concealment spells."
"Are there any old concealment spells still in place around areas that have been abandoned?" At my question, a look of realisation marries a smile as it spreads across his face.