Lady Cordelia Blackthorne - Wealthy Socialite & Secret Criminal

“Darling, charity is such noble work - though I’ve always found that the most profitable ventures are the ones that benefit both the giver and the receiver, wouldn’t you agree?”

Background

Lady Cordelia Blackthorne is the epitome of wizarding high society - a woman whose family vault at Gringotts runs deeper than the mine shafts themselves. Born into old money, she has spent her adult life cultivating an image of philanthropic perfection while secretly operating one of the most lucrative illegal magical creature trading networks in Britain.

To the public eye, Cordelia is a pillar of the community who hosts lavish charity galas and sits on numerous boards dedicated to “improving the wizarding world.” Her genuine passion for magical creatures, however, has been twisted by greed into something far more sinister. She deals in rare and exotic magical beasts - not for harm, she tells herself, but to provide them to wealthy collectors who “appreciate their beauty” in private menageries. The fact that many of these creatures are endangered or protected by Ministry law is merely an inconvenience to be worked around.

Her criminal enterprise operates under the guise of legitimate charity work for magical creature welfare, but the true genius lies in her partnership with Cornelius Pemberton, Senior Ministry Treasurer. For the past five years, Cornelius has provided her with essential Ministry favors - permits for “creature relocations,” blind eyes turned to suspicious fund transfers, and advance warning of upcoming inspections. In return, Cordelia supplies him with untraceable Galleons to fuel his devastating gambling addiction at Griffin’s Gambit.

When Augustus Thornwick began investigating irregularities in the magical creature welfare fund allocations, both partners realized their entire operation was in jeopardy. Augustus’s incorruptible reputation meant he couldn’t be bought or intimidated, and his investigation threatened to expose five years of carefully orchestrated crimes.

Role in the Murder

Cordelia is the strategic accomplice who provided the perfect misdirection for Augustus’s murder. Her exclusive relationship with caterer Seraphina Moonwhisper gave her access to Augustus’s drink. She cast Arresto Incantum on a color-changing charm, then applied it to Augustus’s Firewhisky so that fifteen minutes later - long after she’d moved away from the drink - it would turn red and appear to be poisoned with Widow’s Bane.

This brilliant misdirection was designed to focus the initial investigation on poison rather than curses, buying precious time for the real murder method to go undetected. Meanwhile, Cornelius cast his own Arresto Incantum followed by the heart attack curse, timed to take effect at the same moment the drink changed color.

Gala Objectives

1. Ensure the Cover-Up Succeeds Monitor the investigation’s progress and subtly guide conversations toward the poison theory while steering attention away from curse-related evidence. Use her social influence to reinforce the narrative that Augustus was poisoned, not cursed.

2. Protect Cornelius from Suspicion Watch for signs that anyone suspects Cornelius’s involvement and be ready to provide him with alibis or redirect suspicion elsewhere. Their partnership depends on both of them remaining free.