"Let me guess. You're the anonymous caller?" Jace asked Tessa.
"I am. I couldn't think of any other way to get you guys to come down here without arousing suspicion. So calling in anonymously was the best I could come up with," Tessa closed the manhole cover with a grunt. "You saw what was down there, right? All those computers? And the major corporate websites?"
"Yeah. What was all that?" Alec stood next to her. She was so small and delicate, but her personality was commanding; she had a presence about her that Alec admired.
"That....is one of Valentine's many command stations that he'll use once he gets his hands on the CUP. Plug it in to one of the stations and he'll have access to anything he wants in the city." Tessa looked over her shoulder as she spoke. She seemed nervous about something.
Magnus gently touched her elbow. "Tess? What's wrong?"
Tessa pulled her hood back up over her face. "I've been being watched the past couple days. Valentine's men know I've been paying close attention to them lately. Unfortunately, I've fallen under their radar."
"We can protect you. Alec and Jace are fantastic cops. If I'm not dead yet, then that says a lot," Magnus pointed at the two detectives and nodded enthusiastically. "Trust me. These guys are the ones you want by your side during times like these."
"Why are you watching them anyway? What's your interest in Valentine?" Alec asked her.
Tessa craned her neck to look up at him. She hated feeling small. "I have a beef with Valentine. He has someone I love held captive. This was the easiest way I could think that could lead me to him."
Jace sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Come with us. We'll put 24 hour surveillance outside your house-"
"I'm homeless," Tessa almost whispered. "I'm homeless. I used to live in the Downworlder headquarters but the place was raided by Valentine's men the other night. I lost everything I had....which wasn't a whole lot."
Alec frowned and glanced at Magnus, who looked angry more than anything else. "I'll take you home with me. You'll be safe there. No one suspects a cop to live up in a crappy old loft."
"Beats living underground like ants," Tessa offered him a small smile. "I appreciate the offer but I don't want to risk getting you or your friends and family killed. I'll be fine on my own."
"Tess......don't do this. Come with us. We'll protect you from Valentine's men-" Magnus was cut off when Tessa embraced him in a tight hug. He sighed, hugging her back. "There's nothing I can do to change your mind?"
"You know there isn't. I have to find him, Magnus. He'd do the same for me," Tessa kissed his cheek. "Don't forget about the computers down there. There's more like that throughout the city but I don't know all the locations. And don't let Valentine get the CUP."
Before any of the men could get in another word, Tessa easily climbed the fire escape onto the roof of the building next to them, disappearing from their sight.
"Well then. She's certainly....something," Jace said. "Was she an ex lover of yours?"
"No. She's a very good friend of mine. I'd be dead long ago if it wasn't for her. She's like a little sister to me," Magnus cleared his throat. "Alrighty then. If we're done here, I'd like to return to the precinct. Or Alec's place. Anywhere but here, basically."
The drive back to the precinct felt long. All three men were quiet for the entire ride. The silence only grew increasingly awkward the longer they drove through traffic, the only source of noise being the honk of horns and people yelling at each other from across the street.
Alec finally spoke up. "I'm sorry for not telling you the truth about happened at the mayor's office."
Jace looked at him. "It's okay. I understand why you didn't say anything and I get it. You didn't want me to get in trouble with anyone. I should've been there for you, Alec. This isn't fair."
"Fair? What, you jealous I had a near death experience and you didn't?" Alec chuckled.
"No. I meant fair as in I should've been there to help you. Protect you. We're partners, Alec-"
"Look." Alec sighed. "It's fine. I've been taking beatings since we were in elementary school. I can handle a few cuts and bruises. Plus, you've been so attached with the little girl lately that it's understandable that you'd forget about me."
Jace scoffed. "That's what this is about? Clary? Seriously, Alec? Why are you dragging her into this?"
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe it's because you're turning into one of those boyfriends who's entire world revolves around their girlfriend! And they're forgetting about their family!"
"Oh yeah?! What about you and Magnus?!"
Magnus leaned forward from the backseat. "Alec and Magnus aren't together. Just so we're clear-"
"Shut up Magnus," Jace and Alec said at the same time, shutting him up immediately.
"Why are you so pressed about Clary? She's never bothered you before. Help me understand why you're so upset," Jace snapped. His face was starting to turn red. He was getting angry.
"I'm pressed because we barely spend time together anymore. You're always with Clary. Or if we are hanging out, you're texting Clary and not paying attention to what we're doing. I can't take it anymore!" Alec yelled. "I can't! You're going to have to do something, Jace. You know I don't have any friends. The only people I hang out with are you and the family. Magnus too. Even he's around more than you are and you're my brother."
"Thanks?" Magnus said. "Listen, guys. If I wanted drama, I would've called a taxi and listened to my driver complain about how his wife cooks the same meal every night. I just wanted to go back to Alec's. Not get a literal backseat show to your drama fest."
Alec gripped the wheel, knuckles turning white. "We have to go back to the precinct. A report needs to be written up about the underground computers. Unless you're too busy with Clarissa to even bother with the report?"
"Oh definitely. Much too busy. Clary consumes my very essence, Alec. I can't breathe without her. You're just fucking jealous because you don't have anyone to care about or love the way Clary and I do!"
Alec slammed on the brakes, causing Jace to fly forward and choke himself with his seatbelt. "Get out."
Jace glared at him. "Excuse me?!"
"You heard me. Get the fuck out of the car."
"You're making me walk?! Seriously?!"
Alec reached over and opened Jace's door with a hand. "God gave you two perfectly good legs. Use them."
Jace snorted but obliged. "Stop acting like such a child, Alec. I didn't mean what I said-"
"Yes you did. Otherwise you wouldn't have said it."
Magnus turned to look out the back window as Alec sped away, leaving Jace in a literal cloud of dust. "Trouble in paradise?"
Alec grumbled something unintelligible under his breath. "I'm just pissed that he's putting some girl over the needs of his family."
"The needs of his family or just your needs?"
Alec looked up into the rearview mirror and saw Magnus was smiling at him. "I'm not answering that."
"I don't expect you to. I already know the answer," Magnus took off his seatbelt and crawled up into the passenger seat, much to Alec's distaste of breaking the seatbelt rule. "Ah. There we go. Where are we headed now?"
Alec checked his phone. There was a text from his father, saying he and Jace had to return to the precinct for a meeting. "Looks like we're heading back to the station. There's a meeting my dad wants us to attend."
It had begun to rain when they returned. Jace still hadn't shown up and a twinge of guilt stabbed Alec in the stomach when he saw that Jace's desk was empty.
"He'll come striding in soon, Alec. Don't worry about him. What's this meeting about? Workplace safety? Harassment in the office? If so, I'd like to make a complaint about the lady at the front desk. She keeps pinching my butt cheek whenever I walk by."
Just as Magnus said, Jace came walking in. He was soaking wet from the downpour outside. His blonde hair dropped down in his eyes and onto his white shirt as he walked towards his desk.
Robert noticed this and came over to where his sons sat in silence. "What happened to you? You're dripping everywhere on the floor."
"Walked back to the precinct. Had a few errands to run so I told Alec to go on ahead without me. Didn't think the rain would come on so fast like that."
Alec had his elbows resting on his knees when Jace straight up lied to their father's face, not believing what his ears were hearing. Jace never lied. At least not like this. He lied back in middle school about one of his friends decided to get Alec in trouble and put half a cigarette in Alec's room. Jace took the heat for that and was grounded for three months after that.
"Yeah. It happened pretty fast, huh? That's New York for you," Robert peered out the window and sighed. "You boys know why I called you back here, right?"
"For a meeting," Alec said. "What's it for?"
Robert huffed. "Agent Branwell will fill you in on the details. It's all hands on deck for this one, kiddos. She means business."
Robert led them into the conference room which was so full that most of the officers had to stand out in the hall and listen to the meeting that way. Even the archives guy Simon was there. He waved cheerily at Alec when he saw the three men come in. Alec nodded his head.
"Thank you everyone for taking the time out of your busy schedules to be here today. I realize that many of the officers here are out on duty so please fill them in on the details accordingly when they return from their shift," Lydia stood at the front of the room, arms crossed over her chest as she spoke. "As you're well aware, Valentine is slowly making his way out of the woodworks again. We have two of your precinct's finest detectives on the case, Detective Lightwood and Wayland. Also their consultant Magnus Bane as well. Any questions so far?"
No said anything. Lydia continued.
"These detectives have gathered very little evidence thus far and as they run around the city playing cops and robbers, Valentine gets one step closer to what he wants. The CUP."
Alec made a move to protest but Magnus grabbed his arm to stop him. Jace just glared at them both, not saying a word.
"Therefore the FBI are taking full responsibility of the case. All evidence and reports are to be handed in before the end of the day. Any unfinished reports are to be completed and turned in along with anything else that's of importance to the case. Any questions?"
Alec raised a hand. "On who's authority? You can't just come in here and take over like you own the place. We have rights-"
"The government has issued that the FBI take over the case and close it as efficiently and effectively as possible. I realize that the case given to you and your partner, but we simply cannot deny the fact that we aren't getting results as quickly as we'd like."
Alec scowled. "So you're just taking over? As simple as that?"
Lydia stared at him, hard and cold. "As simple as that. Meeting adjourned. Back to your stations, ladies and gentlemen."
The room was abuzz with chatter as everyone put their chairs away and went back out to their stations. The only people who remained in the conference room were Alec, Magnus and Jace. Jace had no real reason to stay behind other than to talk tonalec privately which Alec didn't feel like doing. He was busy speaking with Lydia.
"Agent Branwell. May I have a moment of your time?" He whispered.
Lydia nodded. "Of course. What can I do for you, detective?"
Alec rubbed his neck. "I'm sorry if I came across as rude earlier. I just wasn't too pleased with the fact my first case as detective was taken from me."
Lydia shook her head. "I understand. I'd be pissed too if someone came along and took my case from me. I get it. But that's not why you wanted to talk to me, is it?"
"Well no. I did want to apologize. But I also wanted to ask you if there's anything my partners and I can help you with."
Lydia cocked her head. "Actually....there may be something you guys can help with. One of our contacts said that Valentine's right hand man was meeting with someone tomorrow afternoon. We need someone to go undercover and listen in on the conversation."
"Like disguises? False names? Backstory? That kind of undercover?" Magnus chimed in.
"I wouldn't go that far. We'll plant a highly sensitive mirophone on you and you'll try to get as close as possible to the scene of the meeting. It's simple."
Alec nodded. "We'll do it."
Magnus looked at him. "We will?"
"Of course we will. We're too involved in this case to just give up now. I want to be involved in this as much as possible. Think you can make it happen?" He asked Lydia.
Lydia shrugged. "I'll see if I can pull a few strings. But for now, that's all I want you to do. Recon. Nothing more. Do anything stupid and I'll have your badges revoked."
Alec nodded. "Understood. Thank you so, Agent Branwell."
Jace didn't like this idea at all. After Lydia left the room, he approached Alec and gripped his brother's arm gently. "Alec. About earlier. I'm s-"
"Don't touch me. Okay? Just...just stay away from me. I have a job to do right now. I'll act childish with you later on."
Jace was speechless as he stared at Alec, stunned.
**********
"My painting arrived! My good fucking lord, it's huge. It looked much smaller on my phone...."
Magnus and Alec were standing in front of a seven foot long, five foot high painting of what Clary claimed to be her setting for her story. Idris looked very beautiful in her head. Ocean waves crashing against a hillside, a valley of trees leading to a small town that looked like 18th century London and the sun and the moon on opposite sides of the sky.
"Wow. Clary really outdid herself this time. It's huge," Alec felt the painting with a finger. "It's beautiful. I never imagined such a simple place like this could be so breathtaking."
"Much of life's beauties are simple things. Flowers, for example. Small little things that bloom in many colors and shapes and sizes. It's just that you have to look at what's in front of you if you want to see the beauty of it."
Alec looked at Magnus; the other man was looking at him with sparkling eyes. "Are you hinting at something?"
"Nope. Not me. I'm not subtly calling you beautiful at all."
Alec chuckled. "Are you always this cryptic?"
"Me? No. I'm not being cryptic. I was being coy," he grinned at Alec as he ran a hand over the painting. "Can you believe I spend a shit ton of money on this thing? How drunk was I-ow!" He gripped his finger and sucked on the skin. "I cut myself on something sharp!"
"Something sharp? It's a painting. What could be sharp on it?" Alec slowly moved a hand over the painting and felt around for the foreign object that sliced Magnus' finger open. "There's something here. Blended in with the trees. Hand me a knife, would you?"
Magnus went into the kitchen and grabbed a knife. "What is it? It's got to be sharp if it cut me."
"I guess we'll find out once I pry it off...." Alec stuck the knife underneath the object and it came off with the slightest of ease. "It looks like some kind of microchip or something."
Magnus picked it up between his fingers. "Tiny little thing. Wonder what it is?"
You don't see art. You feel it
Alec's mouth dropped open as Catarina's voice echoed in his head. "Holy fuck. Magnus-Magnus! Be careful with that!"
"Uh, why? Do you know what it is or something?"
Alec took the chip in his hand and nodded. "I do. It's the CUP, Magnus. We found the fucking CUP."