So Much for No Strings Attached

Chapter 49 Deserters and Investigators

 

‘Could I get my job back with this?’ asked Smith.

 

Jamieson tried, ‘you could try. You were after all a victim but they could equally claim that you Imperised yourself to escape justice.’

 

‘Is that possible?’ asked Smith surprised.

 

The question reminded Jamieson how young the boy was. Jason Smith was only nineteen meaning that he would have only have been five years old when the war ended. Too young to know how many Death Eaters escaped justice by Imperising themselves and claiming none of their actions were their own. Unable to sort out victim from perpetrator especially with the huge pay offs that many Death Eaters used to escape justice.

 

‘Yes,’ Jamieson said grimly. ‘Many did so at the end of the war in order to escape justice and even if they did I wouldn’t. You got the apprenticeship because your Uncle made it impossible for them to choose anyone else. If you really want to get ahead in life you have to make your own opportunities.

 

‘I’m not talking about not using your family and friends to get interviews as that is just networking but you should not force them to take you on. Otherwise your colleagues will always detest you for cheating. Do what you want to do not what your Uncle wants you to do.’

 

Smith blinked, ‘is that why they hate me?’

 

‘Yes,’ Jamieson said sharply. ‘And every mistake you made was weighed against you as reasons you should not work there. People will be a lot kinder to you if you actually have to work to achieve your goals.’

 

‘I’ll think about it,’ Smith said.

 

Jamieson nodded, ‘see that you do. Can you give me a list of all of those that you came into contact yesterday?’

 

‘Yes, sir,’ Jason said quickly. ‘Naturally there was all those at the Healing practice, Healer Whitehead’s patients, my mum and dad, and well I’m not sure of everyone at the café.’

 

‘You went out for lunch yesterday, then?’ asked Jamieson.

 

‘Yes, sir,’ agreed Smith.

 

‘Is this a common place for you to eat?’ asked Jamieson.

 

‘Yes, sir,’ agreed Smith once more.

 

Jamieson thought out of everywhere that the boy had been yesterday then it was the café that he was most likely to have been targeted especially if he had been surveyed for a while which was more than a little possible. A public place where it would be impossible to identify who was there or if there was anyone watching him. It was what Jamieson would have done if he were the thief.

 

‘Did you notice anyone watching you?’ asked Jamieson.

 

‘No,’ replied Smith.

 

‘Okay, what was the café’s name?’ asked Jamieson.

 

‘Whispering Cakes,’ replied Smith.

 

Jamieson knew of it as a nice little café in Diagon Alley and it was where his investigations would begin. See if there were any surveillance spells anywhere in the area which would be a huge boon as he would be able to see if anyone matched the cloaked figure in Whitehead's surveillance spell. And if there were not if the staff could remember anyone suspicious there.

 

‘Thank you Mr Smith,’ Jamieson said. ‘Floo me if you remember anything else.’

 

Smith left his office and Jamieson did the same planning to go get lunch at the Ministry canteen before going to Whispering Cakes to continue his investigation as it was lunch time. Already Jamieson could tell this would not be as easy a case as he had first thought. Jamieson knew that this would be the case soon as he realised that line theft was involved.