Alec suggested I go wait with Jace, Clary and Isabelle, while he and Magnus took Lydia to the infirmary.
Jace had pulled me into a hug and muttered an "I'm really happy for you," in my ear. I really appreciated the fact that even though Jace's world was falling apart, he made the effort to let me know he was genuinely happy for me. I would have completely understood if he'd chosen to down right ignore me, but he'd done just the opposite and I vowed to myself that I would help him through his struggle.
Isabelle was seated at one of the computers, the rest of us gathered behind her, when Alec returned. He kissed the top of my head and rested a hand on my waist. It was less a public display of affection and more to calm himself.
"How's Lydia?" I asked.
"Better - Magnus is doing what he can to help her, but it's bad. My mother is still convinced it was you and the Cup is definitely missing," He informed us.
Jace inhaled deeply, "So is Hodge."
"Maybe he was attacked, too," Isabelle offered.
I thought on Lydia's first word for a second and frowned, "Maybe he's the one who attacked her."
Alec and Jace looked like they both agreed with me, but Isabelle wasn't convinced, "Hodge? No way. We've known him our entire lives. He would never do that to us." She was scanning through the security footage and brought it to a sudden stop when we saw Lydia's figure in frame. Isabelle let it play, and we saw a man grab hold of Lydia, hit her, then throw her into the table. He looked up and the shadows across his face fell away.
It was Hodge.
"I led him right to the Cup," Jace muttered.
"We treated him like family," Alec added angrily, "How could he do this to us?"
Isabelle's fingertips flew across the keyboard as she typed, changing the picture on the screen to footage of another camera - the one watching over my mother. Hodge slipped on a ring as he stood next to her floating body.
"What is that ring?" Clary asked.
"Looks like he's talking to someone," Isabelle half answered my sister's question.
"And I can bet who it is," Jace spat.
"Valentine," I finished.
We saw Hodge's punishment Circle rune glow bright red then fade. "Well, that explains how he deactivated the Punishment rune," Alec pointed out, "but it doesn't explain where he got the ring."
"You think someone smuggled it past the wards?" I looked up him.
"Maybe," Jace answered instead, "Hodge wasn't the only ex-Circle member around here." Jace looked at Alec who nodded.
Isabelle turned in her seat to face her two brothers, "Look, I know I don't always see eye to eye with my parents, but I know they're not traitors."
"Really?" Jace raised an eyebrow, "Isn't that what you just said about Hodge?" He jerked his head at the screen where we saw Hodge walking away, Mortal Cup in hand. "It'd have to be someone we trusted, but if there was an intruder inside the Institute, we would have found them by now," Jace continued at Isabelle's silence.
"What about the Forsaken attack?" Clary suggested.
"No," Alec shook his head, "We killed that thing, and I didn't see a ring."
Isabelle agreed, "He didn't have one during the autopsy, but maybe there's something in the footage." She clicked around and opened a new folder, pulling up a new file of footage. We watched the Forsaken attack and I winced when I saw Alec get hurt. As the Forsaken was lying dead on the floor, Hodge crouched next to it, but we couldn't see very much.
"Go to the other camera," Alec said. Isabelle switched over and we were suddenly watching from a different angle. I saw Hodge reach for the hand of the Forsaken and slide something off its mangled finger.
"There," Jace leaned closer and Isabelle zoomed in. Sure enough, it was a ring he'd taken.
"So, it wasn't a random attack," Clary said.
"He was just the delivery boy," Jace finished.
"If he gives that Cup to Valentine, he'll create an army of Shadowhunters," Alec frowned in frustration, "With that kind of power behind him, he'll kill thousands."
Isabelle nodded, "He'll kill thousands just creating the army. Most mundanes won't survive that."
"We won't let that happen - I'm gonna make sure of it," Jace's voice was dangerous as he took off, leaving the rest of us to look at each other in concern.
I knew exactly what he was about to do and Alec had the same idea, so we both raced up to the sleeping quarters, changed out of our wedding clothes and into something more mission worthy. We went straight to the training room where, of course, we found Jace.
He looked at us skeptically for a second, but we both nodded, letting him know that we were going with him, no questions asked, and he silently handed us weapons.
Suddenly Clary had joined us and was speaking, "Jace, what are you doing?"
Jace didn't even look up from sorting his weapons, "Every second we waste here, Hodge gets closer to Valentine."
"Hey, we're a team, all right?" Clary replied, "I know you're mad right now, but Hodge could be dangerous."
"Three of us, one of him. Check the math, but I'm pretty sure he's outnumbered," Jace shot back.
"What is with you?" Clary let out an annoyed sigh, "Would you just talk to me for a second?"
"Lydia, Hodge, all this," Jace waved his hands around with a glare, "is happening because I didn't stop Valentine."
Clary shook her head, "Jace, you cannot let emotions cloud your judgment. Your words, remember? When I first wanted to find my mom, I didn't care about anyone else."
"You're telling me," I snorted. Jace and Clary ignored me but I could see Alec biting back a grin.
Clary continued, "But you were the one that taught me that it's about a world that's bigger than us."
"That's why you need to wake her up," Jace answered, "She was his prisoner and his wife. If anyone can stop him, she can."
"Jace, listen to me-" Jace cut Clary off.
"You can do this," He said with a pointed look.
"Maybe I can - but it's not about me, it's you I'm worried about. You cannot let Valentine's evil poison you!" My sister argued.
"He's my father," Jace said coldly.
"Actually," Clary countered, "He's our father."
Jace shook his head bitterly, "You don't get it." He walked past her and she looked to Alec and I desperately. We looked at each other before hurrying after Jace.
"Jace," Alec called, "How are we gonna find Hodge? He didn't leave anything we can track."
"There's more than one way to track," Jace replied, taking out his phone and walking ahead of us. Alec looked down at me with a frown but I just shrugged and continued after Jace. "The pack is tracking him," Jace informed us after he hung up.
We met up with the werewolves not too far from Jade Wolf and they led us to a small gathering of bridges and underpasses. We split up, and just as I doubled back, I saw Jace and Hodge fighting.
Hodge tried to shove Jace into the pillar wall, but Jace ran up the side of it and back flipped over the top of him.
"How could you?" Jace growled,
Hodge was panting, "It was the only way to earn my freedom. I'd been caged long enough."
"Caged?" Jace repeated incredulously, "You were our teacher - we treated you like family. We loved you!"
"Family?" Hodge shouted, "Family? The Lightwoods cut a deal, Jace, to have me punished for crimes that they themselves committed. Don't you see? I was their prisoner! And besides let's be real for a moment," He chuckled, "You can't win - I taught you everything you know."
Hodge closed his hands around his chakrams while Jace pulled out a double-ended seraph blade, "Not everything, Hodge."
Hodge looked somewhat surprised at the weapon in Jace's hand, but lunged forwards nevertheless. Jace was quick; landing hit after hit on Hodge. He knocked one of the chakrams out of Hodge's hand before Hodge kicked Jace's double blade to the side, loosing his second chakram in the process.
The two men started a full-fledged fistfight without a second glance at the abandoned weapons. Jace was clearly the superior of the two; knocking Hodge backwards, blow after blow. Hodge managed to grab one of his circular blades again, bringing it up just in time to block Jace's newly found seraph blade as it was coming down. The clash of the weapons rang out, echoing under the bridges and it made me wonder why Alec hadn't heard it and come back yet. Then it occurred to me that he could be watching, just as I was, waiting on standby if needed.
Jace kicked Hodge, hard in the chest, sending him down to the ground. Hodge raised his arm to take a swing with his chakram, but Jace was lightening fast. Swinging his seraph blade down, he sliced cleanly through Hodge's outstretched wrist, and I watched with wide eyes as the dismembered hand went flying.
Hodge screamed in agony and I saw Jace raise his blade, ready to deliver the fatal blow. I sprinted towards him and knocked him down, but he kicked me straight off him. He sent me back into the pillar and I groaned, holding my shoulder - which now felt broken.
Jace didn't make it very far as no sooner had he kicked me off, did Alec have him successfully pinned down.
"It's over!" Alec commanded.
"It's not over," Jace struggled, "He's a traitor. He deserves to pay!"
"You nearly killed him!" Alec argued.
"Maybe I should've killed him! He sided with Valentine, Alec. The Clave let him go once before and look where that got us," He was still fighting against Alec's iron grip.
Alec looked down at him, jaw tight, hard voice, "What are you gonna do? You're gonna kill every ex-Circle member, even our parents?"
"Robert and Maryse aren't my parents," Jace spat.
Alec shook his head, "You said it yourself - they raised you. Not Valentine. They are your parents! Just calm down!" He let go of his younger parabatai and made his way to me. "Are you okay?" He asked, helping me up. I nodded, but winced, sucking in a sharp breath when he inspected my shoulder. "All right, it's dislocated," He said, "Where's you're stele?"
"Back... pocket," I grimaced as I tried to move my arm to get it. Alec reached down into the back pocket of my shorts and retrieved my stele, tracing my healing rune. I felt the bones crack back into place and moved my arm in circles, loosening it back up. "Thanks," I nodded.
We joined Luke who was crouched down next to Hodge. "There's a dungeon in Idris with your name on it," He said flatly. Luke dug around for his phone and wandered a couple of steps away, presumably to let the rest of his pack know that we have Hodge.
Alec and I waited for Luke to finish the call before joining him, leaving Jace with Hodge.
"How's Hodge doing?" Luke asked, looking back.
"He'll live," I muttered.
"It's Jace I'm worried about," Alec said, "Valentine really messed with his head."
"What, at Renwick's?" Luke frowned and Alec and I both nodded.
"He went through a lot recently," Alec replied, "I thought we had settled it, but something's killing him inside and I don't know what it is."
Luke nodded, "This is all too familiar. I saw a similar thing with Valentine eighteen years ago."
"Jace isn't Valentine," Alec and I said firmly at the same time.
"Not yet but we've gotta keep an eye on him," Luke agreed, turning around to walk back to Jace and Hodge, "Where'd they go?"
I whipped around and my stomach dropped. Jace and Hodge were gone.
-
Season one is almost over!!! One more chapter for this book... thoughts on a sequel??
NOS x