The Rise Of The Morningstar (Eng. Version)

Chapter 57 - Betrayals

Chapter 57 – Betrayals

The wind that should have chilled my skin felt numb against my body. The heat pulsed in my blood, flowing through my veins and seemed to keep the cold away. The snow-covered ground was slippery, frozen, and every hurried step away from the Accords Hall further unsettled my sense of balance. As if I had used up my last reserves to deliver the blow to Adam.

I skidded to a stop a few meters from a fountain. The outlines of the dark stone depicted the figures of angels and demons slaughtering each other. A sight that suddenly brought me back to reality, alcohol in my blood or not. A shiver ran down my spine and my feet staggered to the side, away from the fountain, my arms wrapped protectively around my middle.

"Clary." A wince ran through me. Due to the fear that Adam would follow me. It was actually pretty stupid to go out alone after he had been trying to lure me out of there anyway. But that wasn't Adam's voice that rang through the dead silent night. I slowly turned back toward the Accords Hall, squinting because the lanterns of witchlight were giving me a headache.

There he stood, a few meters from the closing wooden door of the hall. The golden blond hair disheveled, the night-black jacket crumpled, the golden eyes fixed on me. Worried, tense, knowing. He must have been watching me. Just like at the beginning of the evening when he had been able to tell Isabelle exactly how many glasses I had drunk. A weight fell from my heart.

"Jace." The fear, the anger, the sadness suddenly disappeared. Suddenly all I felt was enormous relief.

"Are you okay?" he asked, coming closer. His watchful eyes ran over my body, analyzing, as if he was looking for something without finding it.

I tried to smile, tried to nod, but already knew I was unconvincing; that my smile didn't reach my eyes. There are people who won't judge you for your pain. So I gave up. A brief shrug of my shoulders made Jace finally close the distance to me. He squirmed out of his jacket and slung it around my shoulders without asking any questions.

"You saw it?" A curt nod. I sighed to myself and closed my eyelids, only to find the world spinning faster around me. When Jace grabbed my arms to steady me, I didn't flinch. I leaned into his touch, and he let me.

"You were right," I said with difficulty. Every word was straining on my tongue. My sentences had turned into a slur. "With what you said about the alcohol." Isabelle and you were right about your warnings about Adam. But I couldn't get that out of my mouth.

"And if so," Jace whispered and shrugged indifferently. A soft smile crept onto his features as he watched me. "Then you simply had a bit too much to drink. The evening is not yet lost. You can still continue to enjoy yourself. I'm sure you'll have at least as much fun with Isabelle."

"I thought you were going to lecture me now," I admitted, rubbing my shaking fingers together in a poor attempt to warm them. I tilted my head back to meet Jace's eyes. There was a mixture of anger and sorrow in them.

Jace brushed a strand of hair from my face; put it behind my ear. The tips of his fingers brushed my cheek and remained there. "What happened shouldn't have unfolded that way. All I can say is ... you're better off now. Adam is an idiot."

"He is– was my friend," I choked out. "My only friend since ..." A silent sob shook my body, but the tears stayed away.

"You don't need him. You have Izzy." Jace paused and threw half a grin at me. I felt the tremble in his fingers, which were still feather-light against my face. No trembling from fear. Or tension. As if he pulled himself together; as if he was holding back. "You have me."

The urge to touch Jace was hard to contain. You have me. If I had been sober, I could have accurately interpreted how his words were meant. But in my condition, I could only guess. Just hoping for what my sober self never dared to hope for.