Brothers by Blood (Alec Lightwood twin)

Chapter 87

ALEC'S POV

Clary, Jace, and I were talking to Inquisitor Herondale about what we had discovered. Between who Jonathan Morgenstern was, the fact that Jonathan had murdered the location of the Mortal Mirror, and that Sebastian Verlac.
"Have you notified the Verlac family yet?" Inquisitor Herondale asked.
"The Penhallow daughter, Aline, will deliver the message in person, Madame Inquisitor." I told her.
"Defiling the body of a fallen soldier and turning it into a booby trap is sadly par for the course for Valentine, isn't it?" Inquisitor Herondale said, more of a statement than a question.
"The possessing demon wouldn't have done this its own. The trap could only have been set using the Mortal Cup to command it." I stated.
"So he had it all along." Inquisitor Herondale confirmed. I nodded.
"And our intel shows he's also in possession of the Mortal Sword." I added.
"Do you have any good news for me today Mr. Lightwood?" She asked, her tone sounding as if she was tired of bad news, which was probably true.
"Valentine and Jonathan believe that the New York Institute is in possession of the Mortal Mirror. They won't leave the city without it." I told her.
"Thank the Angel that at least he wasn't able to find that." She replied.
"We were." I said simply. I looked up at Clary. "Clary." I said, moving to the side so the Inquisitor could see her properly.
"My connection with the Angel led us to it. It's in Idris. The mirror is Lake Lyn." Clary told her. The Inquisitor looked at her with shock.
"That's the very same water that Raziel first rose from. Who else knows about this?" She asked.
"Unfortunately, the number of people we can trust is getting smaller by the day. We thought it best to tell you first. We'd like to officially request soldiers from the Guard to be placed in the surrounding woods around the lake. It may only be a matter of time before Valentine realizes he's been had." Jace stated.
"I'll speak to Consul Malachi about deployment at once. Good hunting." She said, complimenting us.
"So what do we do now? There's only nine million people in the metro area. How hard could it be to find two?" Clary said pessimistically.
"The job is too big to go alone. We need to ask for help." I said.
"From who, Alec?" Jace asked.
"From everyone." I said. I know it's a long shot, but Valentine is a threat to us all, and I just hope the Downworlders understand that. I just hope they'll agree.
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Clary asked.
"I'm happy to take suggestions if anyone has a better one." I said. Both Clary and Jace sighed but said nothing. I knew then that there was nothing either of them could come up with.

*Later*

BEN'S POV

Alec, Isabelle, Jace, Clary and I walked into the room where the meeting would be held to see the Seelie Queen in her child form, Magnus, Raphael, and Luke surrounding a table, and two Seelie knights standing close to the door.
"Where, oh where is Simon?" The Seelie Queen asked curiously.
"Your Highness. What an unpleasant surprise." Clary snapped, a displeased look on her face. I bit the inside of my lip in an attempt to hold back laughter. I knew that this shouldn't be funny, and we should be respectful, but I agreed with her.
"I'm sure she didn't mean to-" Alec began, but Jace cut him off.
"No offense, Alec, but I agree with Clary. Your Majesty is this another one of your little games?" Jace asked, his tone slightly snappy.
"The Institute called an emergency meeting of the Downworld Council. I speak on behalf of the Downworld." The Queen said lightly.
"Magnus, is this true?" Alec asked. Magnus just rolled his eyes and refused to make eye contact with Alec.
"Henceforth, when you need anything from the Downworld, you shall address me, Mr. Lightwood. Such is the nature of our new agreement." She said, her voice light but serious.
"Your Highness, Valentine believes the Institute has the Mortal Mirror; and he's not going to leave the city without it. I would like the Downworld's help in locating him." Alec requested.
"In order to capture him so that he might escape once again?" The Seelie Queen asked, her face calm. I knew this was a jab though.
"In order to execute him so this threat may finally end." Alec said.
"Why should we believe you?" The Seelie Queen asked.
"I understand why you might doubt my intentions after what happened with the Soul Sword, and for that I am sorry. But I founded this council to make things more transparent between the Downworld and the Clave." Alec said, apologizing for his mistake.
"And how has that been going?" The Seelie Queen asked.
"It's been a bit of a work in progress." Alec replied. I bit the inside of my lips in an attempt to contain laughter that I knew would come out. The Seelie Queen stood up.
"For far too long, the Downworld has depended on the Clave and your Institute to protect us from men like Valentine. It's time we learnt our lesson and started fighting for ourselves." The Seelie Queen announced.
"We can't do this alone. Valentine is a threat to all of us." Alec said, his tone borderline pleading.
"The answer, Shadowhunters is no. Come along." The Seelie Queen said to the Downworld representatives. Magnus and both the Seelie knights followed the Queen out, however, Luke and Raphael stayed on. The five of us – Alec, Izzy, Jace, Clary, and I – watched as one of our best chances to catch Valentine and Jonathan walked out the door.