Just a heads up, there is a small time jump between chapters seven and eight.


Chapter 8 Love Is Not Everything

Jace's POV

One problem with the clave is that it had fallen behind with the rapid pace of the technological world of mundanes. Hence why Nephilim used horses in Idris for travel, why the buildings were less modern, and why they used swords, knives and all other weapons except guns. The clave saw tradition and culture as important; which might have been part of the reason why the clave had been so slow in in-cooperating women into the shadowhunter ranks.

It was nice and all, having some of that old cultural feel, but it really became a bitch when one was trying to figure out how someone else could be spying on a particular institute! That was Jace's problem at the moment: How is Sebastian watching us without us noticing.

If the institute had those nifty, mundane, security cameras, Jace could just go into a secret room behind a wall and see all the cameras posted around the institute and be able to point to one and say "there he is". However, that was not the case. Jace had been working on this problem for two days. For two days he had been without Clary. For two days he had buried himself in is work, not even Alec could pull him out of his lulled state of mind.

Jace had set up a huge, detailed map of the institute on a table in the library. He also had maps of the surrounding buildings, inside and out, which included a coffee shop, another church, a few boutiques, and of course, the towering business executive buildings that filled Manhattan. All of which contained a possible line of sight inside the institute, that is if one was a Nephilim or possibly a downworlder. Yet, there was no evidence that Sebastian had ever used these to spy on Jace and the others.

"Are you still looking at those things?" Isabelle walked through the library doors and somehow managed to gracefully fall onto a nearby couch, stretched her legs out, and propped her elbow up on the arm of the couch to rest her head in her hand she looked at Jace expectantly. "Have you even slept since your little spat with Clary?"

Jace did not answer. Technically, he had slept, sort of. He had managed to get an hour of sleep before the nightmares came and he had woken in cold sweats. So now he only let himself dose off every now and then, never for more than an hour, setting an alarm on his cell phone to make sure he always woke up.

Isabelle sighed. "You know, maybe if you got some sleep, you might realize something obvious you missed on those maps." Isabelle said in a matter-o-fact tone; Jace looked up and glared at her through half closed eyes. "Oh don't even try it, you're ready to pass out on that table and in your current condition, you look like a cocaine addict who didn't get his fix. Stop it." Isabelle scolded. Jace still did not comment, he really was not in the mood to banter with Izzy. "Look, I get it. This thing with Sebastian is important to you and dealing with your relationship with Clary is putting an extra strain on you that you really don't need. How about I take over for a few hours and you can get some shut eye?" Isabelle's tone and demeanor had changed immensely, she looked true to her word and just a little concerned, Jace noted.

"Fine, but I'm sleeping on the couch. And you're entitled to wake me if you figure anything out." Jace said. Isabelle got off the couch and walked over to the maps while Jace crashed on to the couch. He did not even have a second to decide whether to dose or actually sleep before his eyes shut.

Simon's POV

Simon had thought about returning to the Dumort to assist Lily in finding the information on Camille. But he had not. It was not his problem anymore, besides Raphael had probably landed in Paris by now if not sooner.

However Jacob was a problem. If Jacob had been telling the truth, then Camille was in New York now and Simon had not missed the irony on this one. Raphael was in Paris and Camille was in New York, both hoping to kill the other, so much for that. But Jacob could tell Camille what Simon had done, how Simon had given information to Raphael, how Simon had betrayed Camille.

Simon's thoughts were interrupted when he heard a knock on the door. He had been in his room, messing with his electric guitar with the amp all the way up, but it did not matter, he could still hear the knock on the door and hear the quick breathes of someone who had ran all the way to his house. Simon set the guitar down on its stand and walked briskly down the stairs and pulled open the front door to reveal a very tired and panting Clary.

"Camille is on her way to kill Raphael," Clary said, her cheeks were red from running and she had Simon's letters crumpled in her hand.

"So you're the one who stole those," Simon said absentmindedly. "What were you doing with Raphael the other night? Wait, never mind, I probably don't want to know." Clary pushed Simon out of the way and stepped through the door into the foyer.

"That's beside the point, Simon."

"Okay, what's the point?"

Clary sighed, "The point is Camille is here to kill Raphael." Clary shoved the letters at Simon, "and you knew about it!" Clary said, her voice was rising and Simon could not tell if she was angry or upset, probably both.

"Yes. But I did give that information to Raphael, which apparently he never got to read because you stole it and now he's in Paris." Clary stared at him blankly. "You didn't know that?" Simon asked; his voice was soft and just a little squeaky.

"He's in Paris? Why the fuck is he there, Camille is here!" Clary yelled, again Simon could not tell if she was angry or upset.

"I figured he had told you." Simon said meekly, he looked down at the floor, hiding his emotions from her.

"No he didn't. And I finally worked up the courage to confront you about this," she waved the letters in his face, "apparently it's too late." Clary finished. She had her hands on her hips and her green eyes felt like a stake piercing Simon's soul.

"Look, Clary I'm sorry. I figured Raphael would have told you, but this is all kind of your fault." Simon said the last words so soft he was surprised Clary could hear him.

"My fault? Mine? And how the fuck do you figure that, Simon?" Simon flinched at her words and Clary calmed herself slightly.

"Well, you are the one who stole the papers which were meant for Raphael." Simon said; he felt like a two year old who had been caught drawing on the walls. Clary did not reply, her face paled and her eyes darkened.

"You're right," If Simon had been human he would have asked for her to speak up. "It is my fault." Simon saw Clary's lower lip quiver and her eyes smart.

"Look, you didn't realize what was going on, but everything's going to be alright. Technically, Raphael is safe 'cause he's in Paris." Simon said, trying to cheer Clary up. "Please don't cry," Simon begged.

"I'm not going to cry!" But Clary's voice cracked as she said the words. "I should- I should go now, I'm sorry Simon." Clary said, her voice was soft and her words sounded almost hollow, like she was reading from a text book. "I really am sorry."

"You were worried about Raphael." Simon said; Clary flinched at the words and looked down at her hands.

"A little," Clary admitted softly.

"Are you dating him?"

"I'm not sure," Clary admitted.

"What about Jace?" Simon instantly regretted the question. He did not have a direct view of Clary's face but he could see her body tense and her lips press into a tight line.

"Jace is a dick. He's been ignoring everyone, focusing on Sebastian for the past few days." Clary answered; obviously she did not want to talk about Jace.

"Okay then," Simon was not really sure what to say next. He had accepted that he and Clary would never be together quite some time ago, but talking about other guys with her was still awkward. "Well if you had to choose one of them, which one would it be?"

Clary looked up at him and raised her eyebrows, "Seriously?" She asked; Simon shrugged. "They both have their ups and downs," Clary sighed and turned back towards the door.

"Clary look, I know it's your life and all but just remember something," Clary turned back towards Simon, her hand on the doorknob ready to bolt if needed. "Love isn't everything." Simon stated; Clary raised her eyebrow at him. "What I mean is, think about being with each guy would mean. Jace is Nephilim, sure he can be an ass and has his moments, but all couples have their problems, what makes them last is that they can work the problems out." Simon said, trying to clarify.

"Okay, since you're the oh-so-sudden-and-insightful expert on dating advice, what do you have to say about Raphael?" Clary asked; there were hints of suspicion and mockery in her voice.

"With Raphael you can be with him forever, literally. But remember what you're giving up." Simon said the last phrase quietly. He did not need to explain the last bit. Simon had been turned into a vampire unwillingly, he had no choice, but Clary did, she still does.

"Simon I know," Clary started, but Simon cut her off.

"Do you? With Jace you can have a semi normal life, marriage, family, kids, you two can grow old together, fight demons together, I guess that last one would be normal for Nephilim, and you won't have to watch your friends grow old and die while you never change." Simon's voice had risen slightly at that last part, and he did his best to hide his emotions, but Clary could see right through his façade.

"Is that what it's all about? You don't want to leave your friends behind?" Clary asked.

"Of course I don't want that, if I had it my way, I would still be your geeky, mundane friend." Simon said. "I'm not trying to hurt you Clary; I just want you to realize what you would be giving up if you chose Raphael." Simon said; he looked down at the ground, avoiding Clary's gaze.

"I know and I'm not sure that I'm willing to give that up yet," Clary said, Simon refused to look up at her; he heard the door open as she exited the building and he heard her walk down the stairs and out into the midafternoon day.

Clary's POV

Clary was upset with herself for steeling the information from Raphael, but perhaps in the long run it had been a good thing. Clary had the last letter that Camille had sent Simon tucked away in her jacket pocket. Clary knew where Camille had planned to meet Simon and Jacob, who supposedly were supposed to get Raphael to be there as well. But Raphael would not be there, Jacob probably would be and Clary had no clue if Simon was planning on being there tonight or not.

But she would be there.

Jace's POV

"Hey sleepy head, you're finally up." Isabelle exclaimed; she did not even bother to look away from the map that she had been staring at for the past half hour. Isabelle, like Jace, had not been able to figure out anything from the maps. Jace had heard Alec come in a few times to help, but he always got frustrated which in turn had frustrated Isabelle so she always ended up kicking him out.

"Did you find anything?" Jace asked; he ran his fingers through his tanged hair and yawned.

"Nope, hence, why I never woke you up." Isabelle said curtly. Jace looked at her, eyes boring into hers, but of course, Isabelle was the one person who would never back down. She looked up at him, and shrugged. "Although I have a theory," Isabelle started.

"Go on."

"Look it's a theory and I'm really hoping it's not true, okay?" Isabelle said, Jace nodded for her to continue, "So Sebastian is technically a Nephilim, a demented, sadistic Nephilim, but a Nephilim none the less." Isabelle paused, taking a deep breath before continuing. "So you know how all Nephilim have access to the institute as long as they are here to serve Raziel right?" Isabelle asked.

"Yes, but Sebastian has no desire to serve anyone."

"Correct, but what if he had a second motive, and he was putting that one first in his mind as a means to gain access to the institute?"

"Like what?" Jace rolled his eyes.

"Like refuge." Isabelle stated; Jace could feel the blood drain from his face. Refuge for stray or endangered Nephilim was one of the reasons institutes had been built after all. "Think about it, Valentine had nothing to do with New York, besides Clary's mother that is. But Valentine would not have had any places in the City, at least, not close enough for Sebastian to spy on us from. So Sebastian could use the institute as refuge, he has nowhere else to go in the city." Isabelle finished; Jace felt like he had just aged twenty years.

"But he has others with him, we saw the pictures. Are you saying Sebastian has been hiding a group of rebel Nephilim in our own home?"

"He wouldn't have to, he could just be using the refuge reason as a way to get in, it doesn't necessarily mean he's staying here 24/7, that'd be too much of a risk."

"Sebastian likes taking risks," Jace retorted.

"I know."

Clary's POV

Clary had spent her time in a small café located next to the park where Camille was supposed to show. Camille had never seen Clary before, but that did not mean she did not know what Clary looked like. Word had spread quickly of Clary and Raphael working together, so as far as Clary knew, Camille had a pretty good picture of Clary in her mind.

But that was not enough for Clary to back down. If Raphael was not here to handle Camille, well, someone had to be, and Clary had personally volunteered herself, not that the other vampires of the Dumort knew about it.

The sun had set about an hour ago and the staff had begun to clean the coffee machines and the other tables. Clary stayed where she was, the meeting was not until ten o'clock and the café would be closed by then. However, wandering around in a dark, deserted park did not suit Clary so she would stay at the café as long as she could. All she had to do was wait.

Jace's POV

"We may have a lead on Sebastian," Jace said as he burst through the kitchen doors. He had spent the last five minutes running around the institute looking for Myrse until he had stumbled across Alec who had informed Jace that Myrse was ordering take out for dinner.

Myrse put down the phone and Jace could hear the guy on the other line mumble something about not getting paid enough to put up with indecisive customers and hang up.

"Well?" Myrse looked at Jace in question.

"We think he may be in the institute." Jace said, Myrse raised her eyebrow and gave Jace an are-you-on-drugs look. "No I'm not high, but we think Sebastian may be seeking refuge in the institute as a way to spy on us, that's how he was able to attack the werewolves so quickly." Jace explained; Myrse's brow creased in worry.

"That is possible." She muttered, more to herself than to Jace.

"Where's Clary?" Jace asked, a sudden desperation filled his thoughts. What if Clary's in danger? What if Sebastian has her?

"Out again, my best guess would be with Simon." Myrse responded; she was only half paying attention to the growing, frantic look on Jace's face.

"Are you sure?" Isabelle asked.

"Mostly. Clary doesn't seem to want much to do with us lately." Myrse said, giving Jace an accusing look.

"She's probably with her bloodsucker boyfriend," Jace muttered, although Myrse was too busy to notice. Isabelle glanced at Jace and raised her eyebrows, but Jace shrugged her concerned look off. "I guess we'll have to find her, and fast."

Clary's POV

It was nine fifty five and Clary had positioned herself in a cluster of low branch trees that she hoped hid her from view. The most difficult thing about finding the spot was that she had no idea what direction Camille would come from. Or Jacob for that matter, or Simon; either of those two would give away her position as well.

Clary did not dare look at her phone to figure out the time, the glow from the screen could give her away. So she ended up peeking through the branches every thirty seconds, her anxiety sky rocketing.

Then she saw a faint silhouette in the faded glow of a street lamp. The shape gracefully walked across the park, and took a seat on a bench that was about twenty feet from Clary. Great, if it's a vampire, they can probably hear me breathing, Clary thought sullenly. But the figure made no movement that gave any indication that it knew Clary was there. Human?

Clary needed to know for sure, the figure was tall; she had noticed that when it had walked in front of her, but it was also slender; however, Clary doubted it was female. So maybe it's Jacob. Clary crept forward, doing her best to avoid the dead leaves, which to Clary's surprise, she managed quite well. Maybe I have been learning some things from the others, Clary thought, trying to keep her mind on the task at hand.

The figure turned his head to the side, Clary was sure it was male now, and Clary froze. Out of her peripheral vision she could see another figure approaching the one on the bench, this one was female. Clary was more exposed than she had been behind the trees but neither figure saw her.

"Archer, is anyone here?" the female voice was soft and commanding at the same time, it had to be Camille.

"No ma'am." Archer replied. Clary was trying to remember something. Something that Raphael had said to her once, about vampire having some kind of human servant. What were they called? Clary could not recall the name but she figured that was what Archer was, a human servant.

"Good, and Jacob has been summoned?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"The daylighter?"

"Yes, ma'am," Clary could not figure out how the guy did not get tired of listening to her demands and still have the same respectful tone. Clary focused her attention on the problem at hand: there were two of them, and a third to come, maybe four. Thank God Raphael is not here, Clary thought. Clary guessed she had maybe five minutes before Jacob showed up, so she would have to act fast.

Clary continued moving to her left making her way so that she was positioned behind the bench and behind Archer, who was sitting on the bench, and Camille who was standing maybe five feet in front of Archer. It was a painfully slow process, trying to be quiet so they could not hear her. Twice, Clary stumbled and Camille turned around, searching for the source of the noise. Lucky for Clary, Camille did not see her.

Clary made a lunge towards Archer, wrapped one arm around his neck to hold him in place and swung the other arm with the stake towards his neck. If he was human, or close to it, the blow should kill him. But Clary had not been prepared for his strength, he was stronger than any human Clary had known and managed to stand up, pulling Clary with him. She could hear cursing from Archer and Camille. But Clary held on. She had managed to graze his neck near the carotid artery and now she swung her arm again, this time aiming to strike home.

Clary heard a muffled cry as the stake sliced through skin and blood poured from the wound. Archer's body collapsed and Clary heard a yelp of panic from Camille. Perhaps the guy had meant something to her? Clary did not bother questioning it, she had no time.

Quickly Clary moved towards Camille, lunged, and dived at her, but Camille was quicker. Clary missed her mark but managed to grab Camille's ankle dragging her to the ground, hopefully giving Clary the time she needed.

Clary had to crawl a few feet so she could get in range of Camille's heart. Her hands were sticky with blood but she managed to hold the stake in one hand and used all the force she could muster to pin Camille in place. She raised the stake, Camille's green eyes went wide with fear, and Clary brought the stake down… only to get knocked to the side.

Clary rolled for a few feet, the stake flew out of her hand. Clary froze for a second, desperately gasping for breath; every part of her body was sore. Clary looked up and she could see Jacob headed towards her, his face was a mask of hate and rage and Clary had nothing to defend herself with.

Then something, someone, rammed into Jacob and now it was Jacob's turn to look around widely, searching for his attacker. Clary wasted no time; her eyes scanned the ground searching for the stake, there: about fifteen feet in front of her she saw it. She ran for it, grabbed it, and targeted Camille who seemed just as enraged as Jacob, but Camille also looked ready to make a run for it. So Clary ran at her while Camille was distracted by her indecisiveness.

"Clary!" Clary could hear Simon's voice; he was probably just calling out to her so she would realize that Jacob's attacker was on her side. Clary reached Camille in what felt like less than a second, Camille clenched her hand in a fist and pulled it back, ready to swing. Clary dove for her waist and Camille swung too high and missed; Clary tackled Camille to the ground again.

Clary could hear Simon and Jacob yelling and cursing at each other a few yards away; she heard someone cry out but Clary could not be sure who; she was too focused on driving the stake through Camille's heart.

As soon as the stake pierced Camille's skin and drove down through her heart, Clary felt a wave of exhaustion roll over her. No not now! Clary's subconscious practically yelled at her. Jacob is still here.

Clary got to her feet and turned just in time to see Jacob running at her. Clary could not see Simon but she did not have time to think about that now, Clary rolled to her right, she did not even know she could do it, instinct perhaps, and successfully dodged Jacob. But that was not enough. Jacob halted with inhuman speed and turned in Clary's direction, he was moving slower now, calculating her next move.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Clary registered that if Jacob was attacking her now, that meant that Simon was either injured or worse. Clary watched Jacob and he watched her, each trying to predict the other's move. Clary reached for a weapon, but she had none, she had left the stake in Camille's heart, why did I do such a stupid thing? Clary thought desperately.

Jacob was in between Clary and the stake, no doubt on purpose. Clary wanted to sprint over to Simon, call a time out or something, like they do at sporting events, but that was not an option here. It was either attack or be attacked.

Jacob lunged to Clary's left, too quick for Clary to see and he knocked her to the ground, her head hit the frozen earth, threatening to knock her unconscious. Clary struggle against Jacob as she saw a flashed of white: fangs.

Then Jacob froze, and with him it was like time froze. Everything was silent and all Clary could see was the soft glow of the seraph blade that had torn through Jacob's heart. Blood seeped from the wound and fell onto Clary; she could not register the situation. It could not be Simon, Simon was- was, where was Simon? Oh god! Clary wanted to cry, she needed to get to Simon. But Clary could not get herself to move, because as Jacob's body fell to the side beside her, Clary could see his murderer, her savior.

Sebastian.