03| negotiations
"Dot," Clary breathes out, her face stricken in fear as she held on to her necklace, "Dot!"
Before any of us can ask what was happening, Clary ran off to an alley that leads up back to the Pandemonium.
"Clary!" Jace called, picking up his speed to catch up to the redhead, "Clary, stop! Where are you going?"
"Two men, Circle members – the same ones who came to my house, who took my mom." Clary explains, her voice shaking, looking at us in fear, "They have Dot. They're gonna hurt her o-or kill her. We have to stop them!"
"What the hell," I muttered, pulling out my shotgun as we all rushed after her inside.
My fingers latched tightly around the trigger, our footsteps slowing down, keeping an eye out to any possible intruders as we walked inside, only to find the Pandemonium completely abandoned.
"No," Clary said, "She was just trying to help me. Now, she's gone."
I lowered my gun, sympathy and worry pouring over me as I look into her tear-stricken face, walking over her and Simon, who was holding her shoulders in support.
"Clary, I'm sorry." I told her, but she only shook her head.
"You don't understand," She says, her voice slightly raising in frustration, "Dot's like my big sister."
Alec steps up, "It's not safe here. We have to go back to the Institute right now."
Clary opened her mouth to protest but I quickly cut-in, shooting her an apologetic smile before speaking, "Alec is right. If you say that Dot's been taken by the Circle members, there is a high chance some of them are still wandering around here."
She looked at me in disbelief, "So, what now? Valentine has my mom and Dot, and we're just gonna give up?"
"Clary," I frowned, guilt crossing my features, stepping in front of her as I try to contain her "That's not what I meant –"
"What about my memories? They can't just be gone?"
Jace tilted his head, "There is another option." He says carefully, chuckling as Alec, Isabelle and I quickly pointed a finger at him to shoot his idea down.
"I'm not afraid of the Silent Brothers." He said smugly, before turning to Clary who looked equally confused as Simon.
"Who are the Silent Brothers?" She asked.
"They're Shadowhunters with superior powers." Jace started.
"Who possess the ability to recover memories." Isabelle continued.
Alec narrowed his eyes, shrugging non-chalantly, adding, "A process that can also kill you, so there's that."
Simon turned to me, "Your husband's bedside manner is abysmal." He commented, making me grimace as I threw Alec a glance.
"He's just being –" I paused, clicking my tongue as I racked my mind of the proper word, "Being realistic. Clary could really get killed."
"We've broken at least 18 Clave rules and now you want to go to the City of Bones?" Alec says, a hard look on his face as he stared at Jace, "There's no way. I won't allow it."
"This isn't our choice to make," Jace cuts in, "This is Clary's decision."
"You can't ask her to do this." Isabelle shook her head firmly, "She doesn't know what she's facing. She's not prepared."
"If anyone can tell me another way to recover my memories and still get the answers I need, I'm listening." Clary spoke, giving each one of us a hard look.
I crossed my arms, exchanging glances with Alec, Isabelle and Jace. When none of us peeped a word, Clary nodded.
"That settles it."
Jace smiles at Clary and then at us, "See? I told you she's one of us."
I sigh through my nose, giving Alec a flat look as I hoisted my gun back to its holster attached on my back.
"This is really a bad idea." I told him.
Alec nodded, the look on his face saying he completely agrees with me. He placed a hand on a small of my back, causing for me to quietly took a sharp intake of breath, his fingers leaving a tingling feeling as they rested on my bare skin.
"Let's get this over with." He muttered, pushing me forward to follow Jace and Clary. I turned to him, hearing the loud pound of my heart against my chest. I stared up at him, studying his expression, only to swallow the nervousness I'm feeling when I didn't see anything.
I let out a shaky breath, "Okay."
-
"Yeah, this place isn't creepy." Simon said as soon as we stepped out of his van, looking around, "Not at all."
Isabelle caught my eye, chuckling as she turned to Simon "Don't tell me you're afraid."
"Are you kidding me? I was born afraid..." He scoffs, his expression dropping into a frown, "Which sounded a lot better in my head."
I whipped my head towards him, smiling in amusement, "How did that sounded a lot better in your head?"
Simon shook his head, "Don't know either." He says, making Isabelle and I chuckle.
"Let's check it out." Alec cuts in, walking down on the path of the City of Bones.
I glanced at Clary who looked a bit hesitant, before following right after Alec. The rest of them soon followed, with Jace surprisingly falling into step beside me. Because a few days back, the Jace I knew wouldn't fall into step beside me – he'd rather be elsewhere than be beside with the girl who took his parabatai's freedom. I pursed my lips, running my fingers through my hair as nervousness and anxiety starts to hit me, my free hand falling into the strap of my holster, keeping a tight grip on it.
I glanced at Jace, clearing my throat, "Are you really gonna let Clary do this?"
"Your mother hen instincts isn't really gonna get us what we want right now either," Jace shrugged, a teasing tone on his voice.
I stop, giving him a flat look, "She doesn't know what she's getting herself into. She doesn't understand how the Silent Brothers – or our world in general, works."
"Then, we'll help her know and understand." Jace shrugged.
"Jace," I sighed in frustration, trying my best to keep my voice low so that the others wouldn't hear, "This is too much of a risk! We are risking a life – her life."
Jace clicked his tongue as he stared at me, sighing.
"Amaris – this was her choice." He replied, our eyes dropping on his hand reaching out towards me. He quickly cleared his throat, pulling his hand back, "She knows what she's about to get right now. Stop worrying, okay? We got this."
"Hey," Alec steps in beside me, staring at Jace, "Amaris has the right to worry. If something goes wrong, if something happens to her, that's on us. You know that, don't you?"
"Yeah," Jace looked away, "And you know exactly what'd happen if Valentine gets the Cup before we do."
"She's lost everything, Alec," Jace lowered his voice, slightly making me feel guilty for not seeing why he's really doing this, "I know exactly what that feels like."
Jace tilted his head, looking between Alec and I, "And what's your problem with her anyway? Your family always used to welcome strays."
Alec rolled his eyes, "You were never a stray."
"And I don't have a problem with her here – I'm just merely looking out for her." I added.
Jace nodded, "The point is, nothing's changed." He says, "We're in this fight together. There's just one more of us."
I rolled my eyes, raising my hands in surrender as I walked away from the two of them and sticked beside my parabatai, making a face at her.
"I think your friend is whipped." I commented, making her chuckle as she wrapped her arms around my shoulder, nudging me with her hips.
"'Your' friend? Not ours? Jace is your best friend too." Isabelle pointed out.
"That doesn't feel like it," I pointed at her, "Well, based on few months back." I shrugged. Isabelle's gave me a sympathetic smile, and squeezed my shoulder for comfort.
"He's gonna get over it." She assures me, turning our head as Clary and Simon walks over to us. My parabatai grinned, linking her arms with Simon as they followed Jace and Clary further into the City of Bones.
"What?" I asked, shifting on my feet when I noticed Alec staring. He shrugged, falling into step beside me as we trailed behind the others.
Alec shook his head, eyeing me, "Don't you feel cold in that –" He shrugged his shoulders, his hand gesturing to my choice of clothing.
I narrowed my eyes at him, "Are you being one of those husbands telling their wives to cover up and dress appropriately?"
Alec stares at me, his lips curling up into a small smirk as he caught the teasing tone in my voice.
"Probably." He sighs, "But that's really your choice in the end. And you really dress up nice, anyway."
"Is that a compliment?" I smiled, halting in my step to fully face him.
"Don't tell Izzy." Alec replied, causing for me to laugh. He narrowed his eyes at me, and I pursed my lips, making a gesture of zipping my mouth.
"Your secret's safe with me." I whispered, making him smile.
Our conversation came to an end when we all stopped in front of the entrance. Clary faced us, with a look of determination plastered on her face.
"I can do this," Clary says.
"Yeah, you can." Simon agrees in support, "You're Clary freakin' Fray. You can do anything."
"All right, hold up." Jace quickly placed a hand infront of Simon and Clary, stopping them from walking further towards the entrance.
"Surprise, surprise." Simon chuckles sarcastically, "No mundanes allowed, just like in the training room, right? Wrong! I've seen every horror movie ever and the funny best friend who gets left behind... dead man."
"You're not that funny," Jace deadpans, stepping aside and gesturing Simon to go, "But by all means, go ahead."
Simon looks at us and starts to walk over, halting when I spoke in a rush, holding up a finger as if to prove a point, "Of course, the minute you enter, you'll die."
"Problem is, now I don't trust you –" Simon replies, stuttering when I raised a brow at him, "Not-not you, Amaris. Jace. I don't trust Jace. Yeah, the problem is I don't trust Jace."
"He's not lying." Alec says, backing up Jace.
"Now," Isabelle added with a smile, "He was before."
"The rune energy in the City of Bones will kill any mundane who dares to enter, so please..." Alec gestures, leaving Simon speechless.
Isabelle sighs, walking over to Simon, "The Brothers creep me out. I'll mind the mundane."
"Your sacrifice is noted, Izzy." Jace says, and walked towards the entrance.
"Talk about sacrifice," Simon faces Clary in distress, "I'm missing a financial analysis class."
Alec wildly throws his hand, looking a bit fed up at Simon's endless comments and talking, "I can't be here anymore, so, Jace, Amaris and I are gonna mind the perimeter."
"Me?" I asked with wide eyes.
"Do you want to be left alone here?" Alec raised a brow, making me swallow my disagreement and smiled at him.
"No. Come on, let's go." I said, pulling him away.
-
"So, is cracking someone's mind open supposed to take this long?" Simon asked, his hands up over the fire at the entrance, "Maybe we, or... you should go check?"
"Jace has it covered." Alec said simply, his arms crossed while leaning on a wall. I sigh, resting my cheeks against the metal surface of my shoutgun, holding it in an upright position.
Isabelle chuckles, "Take my word for it. The Silent Brothers are quite unpleasant."
"That's not helping – not all." Simon's gaze fell down on the fire, his expression slowly dropping in worry, "What if Clary can't handle the Brothers –"
"You literally just told her that she can handle everything earlier, Simon." I drawled, cutting him off.
"I'll pretend I didn't hear that," Simon shakes his head, "S-so, Clary and the Brothers. W-what does that –"
"It literally never stops talking." Alec said in annoyance, giving Simon a hard look, making the mundane swallow in fear.
"Alec," I laugh, nudging him beside me, "It – is a he, and stop scaring him."
"Do I look I care?" Isabelle and I rolled our eyes at Alec's dramatic actions.
"Is he always so charming?" Simon scoffed, making me smile apologetically at him.
"First borns," Isabelle shrugs, "Heavy is the head that wears the crown."
Simon lowers his head, "Mmm. I feel his pain. Only son. Mother wants me to be a CPA."
Isabelle hums in response, talking small steps towards the mundane, "And you? What do you want?"
"Me?" I almost laugh at Simon's bewildered expression, his gaze shifting between Isabelle, Alec and I, looking extremely awkward, "Uh, w-well, I'm in a band."
Alec snorts, but quickly covered it with a cough after I shot him a look. Isabelle threw us a glance, her eyes widening in warning, before turning to Simon, flashing her bright smile.
"Yeah? What type of music?" She hold up her finger, "Let me guess. Indie rock?"
Simon chuckles nervously, "Yeah."
"Got anything on your phone?" Isabelle asked. Simon nodded, his grin widening.
"I do. We recorded our last set. We killed. It's..." He trailed off, and pointed his thumb back at where we left the van, "I left my phone in the van."
"Let's go get it." Isabelle decided, Simon agreeing as the both of them starts to head back towards the van.
Alec straightened up beside me, "Where is it going?"
My parabatai smiled, her hand gripping Simon's jacket, gently pushing him to walk, "We'll be right back."
"And by back, you mean..." I trailed, pursing my lips to hide a smile. Alec's brow raised, realizing what I had just meant.
"What?" Isabelle shrugs a bit, "He passes the time."
Simon looked at us in disbelief, "I can hear you guys, you know?"
-
"What happened?" My brows furrowed the minute Jace and Clary walked out, the latter looking frantic as tears continue to stream down on her face. Alec straightened beside me, his expression turning hard.
"What did you find out?" Alec questioned. Clary shifted on her fit, looking as uncomfortable as she was as she and Jace exhanged glances.
"Jace," I warned when they remained quiet for a moment. He swallowed, throwing another worried glance at the ginger beside him.
"Valentine is her father."
"What?" I breathed out, eyes wide as I stared back at the pair, a nervous chuckle escaped me. Of all the things we could find out tonight - this was definitely what not I had expected. I threw a look at Jace, who looks way too calm for this.
"Wait a minute, you're telling me this girl shows up out of nowhere and she's Valentine's daughter?" Alec snapped, his glare intensifying as he took a step closer to them, "Did it occur to you that she might be a spy? This might be part of her plan?"
"That's enough, Alec." Jace whispered, and stood in front of Clary.
"Do you think I planned for my mom to get kidnapped? Or-or for Dot to be taken? Or to have a giant sword dangle over my head and find out that my father is one of the most dangerous people in the world? Really?" Clary's lips trembled, her eyes darting between the three of us, "Where's Simon?"
Isabelle ran over beside me, "I told him to stay in the van. I've searched everywhere."
Clary's eyes widen, "He's gone?"
Isabelle huffed out a breath, a flash of worry crossed her expression as she shook her head, "I can't find him."
"You were supposed to protect him!" Clary snapped, pushing past us, "Simon!"
"Ugh" Jace groaned, shaking his head and followed after Clary, "These mundanes are killing me."
Isabelle gave me an apologetic look, linking her hands through mine as we rushed towards the van, Clary calling out Simon's name, "Simon? Simon!"
"Is that the mundanes name?" I immediately turned on my heel as a deep, unfamiliar voice fills my ears, my hands quickly leveling the gun to my eyesight and pointed it at the intruder. Simon hangs upside down, his leg being held by a lady wearing a red dress. There was a two man on either side of her. The younger man bared his fangs at us.
Vampires.
"I'm afraid Simon is coming with us." The younger man said, stepping in front while the other one - taller, and who looked more serious and quiet remained behind, observing the scene.
"No, no, no!" Clary screamed, "He's not part of this!"
"And it'll be my pleasure to kill you unless you return him," Jace replies, stepping forward and pushing Clary behind him.
Alec held his hand out, his gaze not leaving the vampires above us, his other hand gently holding my gun down, "Careful," He said, "We'd be violating the Accords."
"I'm afraid your sidechick is right," The taller vampire smiled smugly, his fangs coming into sight as he look down at us, "The Night Children have broken no laws. We're negotiating."
"What kind of negotiation?" I snapped. His eyes darted to me and then my gun, his lips twitching as he crossed his arms. I felt Alec tensed beside me, taking a further step forward in front of me.
"The mundane, unharmed - in exchange for the Mortal Cup." He said, as the woman next to him and Simon disappeared, "And the clock is ticking. Tick-tock, people."