—ALWAYS TRUST YOUR HUNCH—
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"Finally." Alec sighed, liking the fact we were away from prying eyes. He looked at me and smiled brightly, a warm dusting of pink found its way onto his face.
"Hmm...for what?" I asked, playing dumb as my husband wrapped his arms around my waist and brought me closer to him. I could feel his breath fanning my face, and it was comforting.
"You're a Lightwood now." I groaned but chuckled.
"Please say i won't have to dress like Maryse." I joked, and Alec chuckled ducking his head slighlty as he did.
"Hopefully not."
"Hopeful much?" I scoffed, and Alec looked at me weirdly. "Right...i know that didn't make sense but to be fair i did just marry the-" I found out i was cut off by Alec's lips connecting with mine. Melting into the kiss, i smiled and leaned against him slightly.
"Well done, Alec. You did the right thing. For us. This family. And you." Maryse congratulated as she and Robert walked closer. She then looked to me and smiled a bit brighter, gripping my shoulders before running her hands down my arms to hold my hands. "We welcome you to this family with open arms, Verena."
"Yes, well done, you two. The love you two hold remind me much of the love we had at your age." Robert said, giving Alec a short hug. I chuckled and grinned. This was what parents should act like. Not like Jocelyn did or even Dad.
"I'm looking forward to the days and years to come." I said politely. Maryse gushed at us once more before her and Robert walked away. "I should probably change. I bet something will happen with this whole Camille business. And i want in with it." I told Alec, who smiled and nodded, interlocking our hands together as he lead me away to our room.
"I'll wait here." He said, raising a brow as he placed himself on the bed.
"Wanting a show are you?" I scoffed, placing a hand on my hip. He smirked at me and i saw where he was going with this. "Alexander!" We ended up laughing together after a moment of seriousness. I just breathed out a laugh as i got ready to change. "Be a doll and un-button me?"
"Sure." Alec said as he raised a brow - again - and smirked. He came over to me and began un-buttoning my dress, leaning his head into the crook of my neck and placing a soft kiss to it. I smiled and couldn't help but lean into him.
"Thanks, love." I whispered, holding the dress up with my hand as i walked to the wardrobe, picking out a blue denim skirt, a grey shirt and black boots. I smiled at him and let my grip on the dress go, the lovely peach pink dress fell to the floor in a heap and i carefully stepped out of the circle that was made around me. I headed to the bathroom and, as i did, i could feel Alec's gaze on me.
"Don't be a tease!" He called out, and i barked a laugh.
"Says you! With your white tux and sexy ass!" I bit back, hearing my husband roar with laughter. I loved it when we had moments like these. Carefree. Able to have banter with each other. It was soothing. "We should probably thank Lydia." I called to him, and i heard him sightly hum.
"Didn't you already?" I heard him ask.
"Yeah, but we should do it together, too. To show that we really mean it."
"You said, and i quote, "stole my man back. Sorry not sorry". Why are you thanking her?"
"For not being your taste in women. Duh." I said, rolling my eyes. I changed into the clothes and ran a hand through my hair, notching up my lipstick before leaving the bathroom. I smirked at Alec, and we left the room.
"You owe me a chocolate milkshake." I said to Alec as we walked towards Lydia's office.
"What for?" He asked, and i shrugged. I didn't really have a reason for telling him that he owed me a milkshake.
We walked into the office, smiles on our faces which disappeared immediately as i saw her. On the floor.
"Oh, god!" I cried, kneeling besides the unconscious girl. I felt for a pulse, and luckily there was one. Alec knelt beside me and activated her healing rune. "Go get help, darling." I softly said, and Alec left in a hurry. "Hey, Lyds. You're fine. You ain't dead."
"Hodge..." She whispered before falling unconscious again.
"Goddammit." I growled. I knew i should've trusted my gut.
~
Lydia was put into the infirmary, and Alec and i solemnly made our way to the monitor. I felt incredibly bad. Had Clary and Jace not taken the Cup in the first place, would the situation be any better? Would Lydia be in that bed, a raging headache on its way from the blow?
"How's Lydia?" Clary asked, as if that woman meant anything to her.
"Better." Alec asnwered, grabbing my hand and rubbing soothing circles into it. "Magnus is doing what he can to help her, but it's bad. And the Cup is definitely missing." The thing the Shadowhunters had been hunting for, for our entire lives, was now gone.
And there's a possibility it could end up in Valentine's hands. And i'm not sure if we could save our world, or the mundane's world, if he does receive it.
"So is Hodge." Jace added, and i frowned. I should have said something about Hodge earlier. That i didn't trust him, so that he probably could've had an eye kept on him. What a way to ruin a lovely day.
"Maybe he was attacked, too." Izzy suggested. I took one look at her, and by her posture, i knew she could not believe that the man burdened with having to stay locked inside the Insitute, could betray us. But it is easy to betray those of which aren't on your side, isn't it? Everyone believes they're doing the right thing...even when they're not.
Izzy then opened the security videos of the study, but she didn't play them yet.
"Maybe he's the one who attacked her." Clary suggested and i nodded.
"I agree with Clary." I voiced, and then i saw the doubts in Jace's and Izzy's eyes. The one where they began to believe us, but they couldn't quite.
"Hodge?" Izzy proclaimed. "No way. We've known him our entire lives. he would never do that to us." Izzy fast-forwards the video, and let it play once it gets to the point where Lydia was attacked. We watched in anticipation, and our faces depleted as we saw who the assailant was. Hodge. Fucking Hodge.
"I led him right to the Cup." Jace said, beating himself up internally.
"We treated him like family. How could he do this to us?" Alec questioned and i scoffed.
"His own need for power or escape from this place?" I suggested, but everyone gave me a look. "What? It's obvious!" Izzy sighed, not disagreeing with me, as she opened another security video of the infirmary, just after the attack. "What the fu-" I cut myself off as i watched Hodge put on a ring and twist it.
"That's how. What is that ring?" Clary asked.
"Looks like he's talking to someone." Izzy said, squinting slightly as we watched Hodge talk to thin air. We continued watching the video and saw Hodge hold up the Cup.
"And i can bet who it is." Jace growled (almost).
"Valentine." I sighed after Clary confirmed the thoughts of Jace Wayland.
"Well, that explains how he deactivated the Punishment rune, but it doesn't explain where he got the ring." Alec told us as he let go of my hand, instead, snaking his arm around my waist to keep me close to him. Proctive husband mode....activated. I rolled my eyes at my own thoughts.
"You think someone smuggled it past the wards?"
"Maybe." Jace shrugged to Clary. "Hodge wasn't the only ex-Circle member around here."
"Look, I know i don't always see eye to eye with my parents, but i know they're not traitors." Izzy scoffed, and Jace glared.
"Really?" He scoffed. "Isn't that what you just said about Hodge? It'd have to be someone we trusted, but if there was an intruder inside the Institute, we would have found them by now."
"What about..." I sucked in a breath as i began to suggest the idea i had. The Forsaken attack would've been perfect.
"What about what, Rena?" Alec asked, looking at me with soft eyes. I grimaced as i let the words out.
"What about the Forsaken attack?" I felt Alec tense and i winced. "Sorry for the reminder." I muttered, and he just held me tighter. By his distanced gaze, i knew he was seeing stuff inside his mind. Reliving memories he wished to forget.
"No. We killed that thing and i didn't see a ring." He firmly said after a little while.
"He didn't have one during the autopsy, but maybe there's something in the footage." Izzy suggested, and she began rifling through the footage to the day of the attack.
"Go to the other camera." Alec ordered, and i felt him tense more as the image of my wings ripped off, the pool of blood that began gathering etc showed.
"There." Jace pointed, and we saw Hodge take the ring off the dead Forsaken.
"So, it wasn't a random attack." Clary said, coming to the conclusion we know knew.
"He was just the delivery boy."
"If he gives that Cup to Valentine, he'll create an army of Shadowhunters. With that kind of power behind him, he'll kill thousands." Alec told us, and i frowned.
"He'll kill thousands just creating the army. Most mundanes won't survive that." Izzy pointed out and i frowned.
"We won't let that happen."
"I'm gonna make sure of it." Jace snarled as he walked away.
Hey!
Long time no see...aha.
How was it?