Because I Love You

Two More Minutes

"No..." Magnus whispered down the phone, he had it pinned back to his ear and could hear everything. Suddenly there was a clatter and the sound of weapons being drawn.
"Demons! Everybody into position!" Called an unfamiliar voice. "Isabelle! You and Jace get Alec out of here!"
"I'm not leaving here without a fight!" Jace yelled back.
"You've fought enough! Get your brother out of here!"
"I'm not..."
"Just do it Jace!" Isabelle yelled. "Now hel..." The line suddenly went dead.
"Alec? Anyone? Hello?" Magnus asked.
"Dada!" Ally shouted as she reached for the phone again. Magnus hung up and put the phone down. "Dada?" Ally asked.
"I don't know sweet girl. I really don't know." Magnus carried Ally out of her nursery and into the living room where he sat her in her high chair and got her something to eat. He was trying to act as if nothing were wrong, mostly for Ally's sake. Ally picked at her food when Magnus gave it to her, she barely took a mouthful. Magnus knew that she was upset and that she knew something was wrong. He just didn't know how to explain it to her. He didn't really know himself what was going on.

That night, Magnus paced restlessly around the apartment with Ally in his arms. She was fast asleep but Magnus could tell that she was having a bad dream though nothing he did soothed her. He talked quietly to her, sang to her, played with her hair, but nothing helped. If anything, she got more distressed. Magnus hated feeling like that there was nothing that he could do. His heart sank as the belief that Ally loved Alec more than him set in. He tried to be a good dad to her. Alec constantly reassured him that she loved him but now that Alec wasn't there he wasn't so sure. Carefully, he set her down in her crib and softly kissed her cheek. He knew she wouldn't sleep long by herself but he'd rather she slept in her own crib than with someone she hated. He put her bear beside her and then left the room. It felt too quiet without Alec there and Magnus felt lonely.

Ally didn't sleep for more than an hour by herself and when Magnus picked her up again she clung onto him so he couldn't put her down again. Magnus decided it was time for him to sit down as the lack of sleep and lack of food started to take it's toll on him. Ally kept quiet as she knew that Magnus was exhausted. She couldn't stop her eyes from drifting to the front door every now and again, expecting Alec to come home at any time. Magnus didn't have the heart to tell her that her daddy may not be coming back.

Miles away, Alec lay limply in Jace's arms, completely oblivious to everything going on around him. His heart was racing but he was extremely weak. More than anything he wanted to open his eyes and know what was happening but there was nothing he could do about it. All he could do was lay in Jace's arms and think about Magnus and Ally back home. He knew they would be worrying terribly and he wished that he could call them and tell them that everything was okay. Even though he wasn't overly sure that it would be.
"Mmmm..." Alec mumbled as he tried his hardest to speak.
"It's okay Alec, we'll get you somewhere safe. We'll get you home." Came Jace's reassuring voice. What felt like a hand appeared on Alec's forehead.
"He's cold... Jace I'm worried... He's lost a lot of blood and he's still losing it, if we don't help him soon then he'll die." Alec knew it was Isabelle who was talking. He was terrified about dying, especially since he'd be leaving Magnus and Ally alone and god only knew how Jace and Isabelle would react.
"There's no-where we can stop right now. The demons are too close." Jace responded calmly which Alec knew was a struggle for him.
"Jace we..." Isabelle began before Jace cut her off.
"We can't stop! We can't fight that many demons and try to save Alec's life! We have to keep going for a little longer!" Alec hated that he was putting his family in danger. It was his own fault that he got hurt and he knew it. "Alec you hang in there. I know you can hear me. Just hold on for as long as you can. We'll get you somewhere safe, I swear it." Alec noticed how he didn't swear it on the angel.
"Mmmmm..." Alec forced out to let them know he was still with them. It was all he could do in the state he was in.

Five minutes later they were still running and Alec was still bouncing uncomfortably along in Jace's strong arms. His condition wasn't improving and he was getting worse by the minute.
"Alec?" Isabelle asked him. "You... Us?" He didn't hear the rest of what she said and he didn't have the strength to reply. He was trying his hardest to hold on and not give up, but as his warm blood flowed in a steady stream through the open wound he found himself getting weaker. He knew that soon it would be too late for him to be saved. "Jace, we have to stop. Right now!" Isabelle shouted. For a brief moment Jace slowed down, and then he sped up again.
"Two more minutes. I know where we are, there's a house. Only small, but abandoned. It'll be better if we take him there."
"He won't make it for two more minutes!"
"Yes he will." Alec wanted to speak out and say that he didn't think he'd be able to hold on for much longer but no sound passed his lips. "I know he's with us because he's keeping his head held up against my chest. If he'd gone he couldn't do that. He's holding on. He can hold on until we get there."

Alec was hanging on by a thread when he vaguely heard Jace say that the house was in sight. His breaths were slow and he couldn't feel the pain of the wound anymore. He couldn't do it. He couldn't hold on anymore. After a couple of final slow, ragged breaths, Alec stopped breathing. His head dropped away from Jace's chest and the last thing he heard, was Isabelle screaming his name.