Rodolphus looked at the four bottles on the table, his gaze passing over each before he looked away. "So-you've already chosen the stand-ins?"
"I have. The twin brothers in cell three. Ever since they arrived, they've believed the Dark Lord would come back to rescue them. They carve a countdown into the wall every day. Just tell them tonight is the Ministry of Magic's crackdown on the Death Eaters, and we need two champions willing to sacrifice themselves. They won't ask a single question-they'll only see it as a chance to serve the Dark Lord, the final test of their loyalty."
Bella stood and went to the window, pulling the curtain open another finger's width. Fog was advancing toward the island's outer walls, swallowing every landmark on the distant sea into a gray-white backdrop. She watched for a while, then drew the curtain shut and turned toward the door.
"I'll go talk to them. Stay here and watch the things on the table. We'll divide them up when I get back."
Rodolphus remained seated and nodded, watching her cross the corridor and turn toward cell three.
When Bella pushed open the door to cell three, both men inside looked up at once.
The cell was small, with two bunks against opposite walls and only enough floor space between them for one person to turn around. The man on the left was so thin that his cheekbones jutted out and his eyes were sunken, but those eyes suddenly lit up when Bella entered, as though someone had tossed a match into a pile of ashes. The man on the right was slightly younger, with an old horizontal scar across his forehead, its end disappearing into his hairline. His gaze was more guarded than the other man's, lingering on Bella's shoulder for