Lucius flinched, visibly taken aback by her statement. He searched her face, returning her stare.
Hermione wasn't sure why, but she felt an uncomfortable presence in her mind, a disturbing feeling coursing through her brain, as flashes of memories came back to light.
Draco at Hogwarts just called her a mudblood; she was slapping Draco across the face; he sent a jinx that hit her teeth and they didn't stop growing; then at the Malfoy Manor Draco was refusing to identify Harry; she vividly saw his eyes when she was being tortured, those empty, broken eyes.
Then, the flashes of memories became more recent. Draco was facing her, worry laced in his voice, cleaning up her wound and making her drink potions; he was grabbing her, shaking her out of her nightmare. Finally, she saw her house, Draco gently pulling her closer.
Something was squirming in the back of her mind, feeling as if it was trying to escape, to come to light. Frightened, Hermione closed her eyes, looking away from Lucius. She realized all too late what he was doing.
"STOP!" she shouted, "You stay away from my memories." she bit out, panting slightly.
It was the first time someone had used Legilimency on her. Harry had told her just how extenuating it was, but after experiencing the feeling herself, she realized that was an understatement. She felt exposed, naked, her mind violated, but even more disturbing was that nagging feeling that something was trying desperately to surface in her mind.
"You…" Lucius said, his eyes fixed on Hermione's face.
There was no shadow of arrogance on his features, no trace of mockery in his voice. He looked as though he had seen something in Hermione's mind that rendered him speechless.
A loud cracking noise cut off Lucius' next words.
A group of people just Apparated near them. Lucius turned around to face them, covering Hermione slightly from view.
"Well, well, well. You've kept your word I see." A man said with an evident smirk in his voice.
Three others followed him closely. They were all wearing the same outfit as Lucius, except for the fact that their masks were intact.
"Get behind me and keep quiet." Lucius whispered under his breath to Hermione.
Hearing the urgency in his voice, she ignored her initial shock and retreated slightly more behind Lucius, instinctively clutching her wand tighter in her hand.
"Though, I do believe we were supposed to meet someplace else? And she," the man said gesturing with his head at Hermione's hiding form, "was supposed to be unarmed and subdued. Don't tell me a little girl managed to beat the great Lucius Malfoy. Just think of what a shame that would be." the masked man finished cruelly.
"Rest assured, McKinley, she poses no danger. I merely wanted to have a little chat with her before I brought her to the other place." Lucius drawled, apparently bored, but Hermione noticed his back tensing up.
She made a slight move, trying to step back from them, but in an instant felt her entire body freezing up. She was now unable to move or speak. With a look of horror, she noticed Lucius's wand-hand move ever so slightly. No one else saw anything. Lucius's wordless spellcasting went unnoticed by anyone else except for Hermione.
'Body-binding spell.' She thought desperately. 'And now he's going to hand me over to these guys. What the bloody hell am I going to do if they take me somewhere else and Harry and the others won't be able to find me?'
"What should we do about this one?" one of the three men asked in a gruff voice, pointing at Caleb's sobbing form.
"We don't need him anymore." said the man Lucius called McKinley, waving a hand dismissively. "He has served his purpose."
Hermione looked horrified as the Death Eater raised his wand, preparing to cast the curse. She fought desperately against Lucius' binding spell, but in vain. All she could do was stare hopelessly at the scene unfolding before her eyes.
Just then, a loud crack made everybody turn, everybody except Hermione of course. Someone else just Apparated not far from the small group. A shiver went through Hermione's body as she recognized the voice.