Dealing with the Devil
Jace twisted around when he heard Isabelle's voice, and he saw her standing in the corner of the room, her face a mask of horror. When her gaze met his she cried his name, but Jace couldn't respond with his throat so raw. He leaned as far as he could off the table, but the chains that wrapped around his wrists and ankles constricted his movement, and he jerked back onto the stone slab. Above him, Valentine smirked and ran a hand over Jace's hair, stroking it in almost the same way as he might a pet dog. Jace shivered under his touch and tried to jerk out of his reach. Valentine laughed.
"I see you brought Isabelle," Valentine said casually to Jonathan, who gave him a smile in return. "You've come at just the right time too."
"Get out, Isabelle!" Jace groaned, arching his back in protest. "Just get out of here. Don't listen to him, whatever he says, don't listen."
"Jace," Valentine said calmly, giving him a patronizing look. "It is important that Isabelle be here, important she see exactly what is at stake. Don't frighten the poor girl away."
"Go to hell," Jace hissed, and then leaned back, keeping his gaze off Valentine.
Isabelle tried to rush forward, but Jonathan snatched her back, dragging her off her feet and holding her again him. She thrashed around his grasp, whipping her head back and forth and kicking her feet. Valentine watched her dispassionately and began to spin the stele in his hand, very much in the same way Jace liked to.
"What are you doing with him? He's your son!" Isabelle jerked harder against Jonathan than he expected and he stumbled back. "You monster!"
"She's rather feisty, isn't she?" Valentine asked. "Very passionate. That's good, Isabelle, very good. Passion like that, when put to a cause, will inspire people. That's what I need from you, Isabelle, to inspire people."
Isabelle squirmed a little more but her attention was quickly diverted to the rest of the room. She could see her brother through the bars of a cage, and her heart skipped a beat. She realized very quickly that all her friends were there, locked behind bars and watching her with wide eyes, and she went limp.
"What are you doing to them?" she murmured, her face blank with fear.
Valentine shrugged. "I need to keep them somewhere until you come to your decision."
"Me?" Isabelle rasped, and Jace jerked back to her.
"He's lying," Jace gagged. "He's going to kill us."
"Be quite, boy," Valentine said sharply. "Jace is delirious, Isabelle, hardly in a condition where you should listen to him. But, as you can see, I've kept them alive, unharmed, and waiting for you."
"What are you going to do to them?" she murmured, wishing more than ever that she had a weapon of some sort in her hands.
"I'm going to kill them," Valentine said at once, and lowered the stele over Jace's throat, "unless you agree to work for me."
"What kind of agreement is that?" she demanded. "I'll kill everyone you love unless you do what I say?"
"That's the option I'm giving you, Lightwood, and I suggest you take it. If not, it'll start now with Jace, and you can stay to watch. I don't like to use force with my shadowhunters, but I'm not left with many options."
Isabelle's eyes darted to Jace, who shook his head frantically, but Valentine swept his hand curtly across Jace's face, the resounding slap echoing in the room. While Jace weaved his head back and forth to regain some sort of sense, Isabelle had broken free of Jonathan's grasp and rushed to his side. Valentine held out an arm, the stele clearly pointed to Jace's throat. Frantic, Isabelle brushed her hands over his face.
"Jace," she said softly. "Jace open your eyes. Look at me."
"That won't do you as much good as you think," Valentine mused. "Jace is no shadowhunter, not anymore, and I don't think he ever was. I would put little faith in his ability to understand you."
"You raised him," ground out Isabelle. "He was your son for a while."
This seemed to annoy Valentine, who narrowed his eyes. "I kept him for only as long as I could bear. He was no son of mine."
"You traded him to the Edison Group," Isabelle snarled, and then Jace blinked and turned his face into her palm. "It's going to be okay, Jace. I promise, I'll make all this go away."
Jace's eyes widened and he shook his head, but Isabelle's eyes were set and hard, and he knew nothing he could say was going to help. Isabelle straightened up and stared across Jace's body at Valentine. He looked back at her with his face carefully blank, but his eyes glowing in anticipation of victory. Isabelle placed one hand lightly over Jace's heart.
"You can't kill my family or friends," she said firmly. "If any of them are harmed I'll never work for you. I'll make it my goal in life to see you destroyed."
"Such harsh words from one so young," Valentine murmured. "But very honorable, very passionate. You're a driven individual and I respect that, Isabelle." He raked his eyes over her. "I swear on the Angel that I won't kill your friends or family if you agree to serve me and my causes."
Jace was shaking vigorously on the table, but Isabelle wasn't paying him any attention. She thought that if she looked anywhere but at Valentine she might lose her nerve, so she kept her eyes on his. Behind her, Jonathan was smirking at Jace, trying not to laugh too loudly.
"Then what do you want me to do?" Isabelle said thickly.
"Nothing now, Isabelle," Valentine shrugged, running a hand carelessly over Jace's hair. "For the present, enjoy your freedom and your family. As I progress farther along in my plan you may be needed more."
Isabelle's fingers constricted on Jace, but she kept her gaze steady. "Will you let them go?"
A small smile curved Valentine's face. "That, I cannot do. It is in the best interests of myself and my companions not to have, say, a rabid werewolf running around. So no, I will not be releasing them, but you will be more than welcome to come see them."
"But you will keep them down here?" Isabelle hissed, glancing over the walls and cages. "Are you going to take care of them? Will they be fed-"
"I'm not going to kill them," said Valentine with little patience. "I have said this already, and that is all I will say on the matter. They will not die, but neither will they be freed to do as they please."
Jace groaned, "He's lying."
"Have I not told you once to be quiet?" Valentine asked, twisting his fingers in the boy's hair painfully. "I have sworn not to kill you thanks to your sweet step sister, and that is all you have to worry about now."
"You not killing me?" he croaked. "I think I'll worry about what you might do to me because I'm not dead."
"Oh, Jace, you are so suspecting," laughed Valentine, but the smile never reached his eyes. Instead, he spun the knife about and laid it gently on Jace's inner arm. "Jonathan, please escort Isabelle to her living quarters."
"I want to stay with my brothers!" Isabelle cried in outrage when Jonathan took her arm. She saw the knife now, glinting rather dangerously. "What are you going to do with them? Put that knife away!"
Valentine simply turned the knife so the tip was facing Jace's arm. "I am not going to kill little Jace, I just want to understand him better. He's quite an anomaly, don't you think?"
"Leave him alone!" Isabelle snarled, and she swung her hand around to hit Jonathan. He caught her fist easily and bent it behind her back. Isabelle squirmed about again, trying to escape a grasp that was far too strong for her, but it was useless and Jonathan just laughed. "Why are you doing this? There's nothing wrong with Jace."
"Jace is unique and I am curious," Valentine said, and he pressed the tip of the blade into the tender skin in Jace's arm. Jace didn't betray any pain in his face, but Isabelle knew it had to have hurt. "He is like no other shadowhunter, and I know I am at least partially responsible for it. I want to know just what I have done."
"You didn't do anything," Isabelle said with a huff. "The Edison Group is responsible for what happened, you just paid them."
"I was the instigator in this, so I take responsibility," he sighed and sliced the blade upwards. Jace squirmed a little on the table but kept from crying out. "I am curious, to say the least."
"You're a monster," breathed Isabelle.
"Then you work for a monster," he replied evenly, though there was some amusement in his voice. "Does that mean that by association, you are a monster as well?"
"I would never hurt someone like you did," she said, wishing she had a knife.
"Liar," Valentine pronounced like a judge. "Jonathan, get her out of here."
Jonathan nodded and tugged her back toward the stairs. Her eyes met Jace's but they were blank with determination, and she didn't glean any hope from them. Lying on the table, Jace could hear Jonathan struggling with Isabelle all the way back up the stairs, and he loved her even more for it. The sound of her feet kicking the wall, and Jonathan breathing heavily with the strain of it all made him smile faintly.
"She's quite something, isn't she?" Valentine asked knowingly. "I'm impressed you managed to remain with their family for so long, considering what you are. The Lightwoods were always severe when it came to the blood of shadowhunters."
Jace pressed his lips together to cover the pain of the slice in his arm. "They thought I was as much a shadowhunter as you."
"They know better now," Valentine said stiffly, and he pressed down on Jace's arm, forcing the blood to dribble out. Jace flinched. "My, my, my this is interesting…"
Valentine stared hungrily at the blood that was pouring out of his arms, and then found a vial to fill it with. The blood was red as any other red, but Jace knew that Valentine had plans for the blood. There had to be something special about it, he could tell by the way Valentine eye's clung to it.
"What are you going to do now?" Jace rasped. "You swore to kill me, but not it seems you owe Isabelle my life. Do you still plan to kill me in front of Clary?"
"It does pose a conundrum, doesn't it?" Valentine mused. "I don't want a creature like you alive in my world, but I gave my word, so I must spare you." Valentine turned away and sloshed the blood around. "If I let you live, Jace, you will never be a shadowhunter again. I will keep you and Clary locked away forever, never allowed to see the world again. So, I suppose you must ask yourself, do you want to live like that?"
Jace closed his eyes, thinking of Clary. "Are you suggesting I kill myself?"
"It's your choice," Valentine shrugged. "If you think you can spend the rest of your life locked in a cell with only my daughter as your company, then I suppose you won't have to die."
"I'll outlive you," Jace hissed, and he turned to face Valentine. Their eyes met and Valentine narrowed his gaze. "You'll die, and I'll still have Clary, and we'll escape."
"Do you really think so?" Valentine's gaze was steady. "Do you think Jonathan will allow that to happen when he inherits my place? He will lead the Clave after me, and I would be remiss if he let you live at all. Jonathan doesn't like you all that much, Jace."
"No kidding?" he asked with a weak laugh.
"Perhaps he will allow you to continue on as I will, locked away with my daughter, but I don't think he will." Valentine crossed the room to a work table that was covered in strange instruments. "So, again, it comes back to you, Jace. Do you want to live the rest of your life in this cellar, never allowed to hold a stele again, never allowed to bear the runes of the nephilim? You would be no better than the rest of the animals I'll keep down here. Your…friends." The sneer in Valentine's voice gave Jace a very good idea of the look on Valentine's face.
"We're not animals," came a growl from the wall.
Jace glared at Derek, but Valentine seemed interested in the werewolf. He placed down the vial of Jace's blood and strolled over to the cage where Derek was sitting. He leaned in so that he and Derek's eyes were level. "You don't think you're an animal?"
"I'm sitting here talking to you now, aren't I?" Derek answered, using force to keep his voice even.
Valentine didn't miss the control he had to exert. "Yes, but when the moon rises, will you go mad and run wild in the night? Will you sprout fur and fangs and claws and maul anyone who draws too near?" His grey eyes flicked over Derek, who shuddered with suppressed rage. "Will you temperament get the better of you?"
"For you, Valentine, it might," answered Derek.
"Then you are an animal," reasoned Valentine. "You see, I am very angry with Jace, furious, you might even say. I am ashamed that Jace is what he is, and that he paraded around for the last seventeen years of his life pretending to be a shadowhunter. He had lied not just to his family, but to his himself. There would be no bigger pleasure for me than to cut him open, bit by bit, and then kill him when I've finished with him." Here, Valentine looked over his shoulder and smiled at Jace, who returned his smile with a frown. Valentine was disappointed to note that there was no fear in his gaze. "I am livid, a veritable madman with this knowledge, but I have not killed him. I believe that this control is what separates me from you, from all animals. I can control myself, you, Derek, cannot."
"If you're right, why haven't I shifted and lunged at you?" challenged Derek. He inched forward, smiling like an angel. "Why am I calmly sitting here, having this intelligent conversation with you?"
"It's an effort for you, Derek, this I can see," said Valentine carelessly. "You must exert all the force you can, and even now, you are shaking. I think that given half a chance you will lose yourself."
"I think if you give me the chance I will," answered Derek, and then laughed.
A frown creased Valentine's face and he slashed the blade across the bar of the cage. "Laugh as you like, wolf, no one will hear you." He stormed back to his work table, grounding something down into powder and mixing it with the blood he'd taken.
Jace shot a look at Derek, who stared back at him blankly. He swallowed back a groan and tried to speak as softly as possible. "Don't provoke him."
Derek's face remained unchanged, but Jace saw his head list just a little, his ear turned toward Jace. Rolling his eyes, Derek smiled carelessly and leaned back on his hands. He tried to look unconcerned, but across from him was Chloe, and she watching him with wide eyes. When he met her gaze, Chloe scowled and gave her head a little shake.
"Stop it, Derek," she whispered, and then glanced quickly to where Valentine was working away. "He doesn't have to spare us."
As much as he wanted to seem indifferent to Chloe's words, he knew he couldn't. He'd promised her too many times that he wouldn't leave her, and that he'd try to protect her. If Valentine decided he wanted Derek dead, he'd be doing a poor job of defending Chloe. With a pronounced sigh, he nodded at Chloe and bowed his head. Chloe tried to smile, but she couldn't.
"Thank you," she breathed.
Chloe watched Derek relax back into the darkness and returned her focus to Valentine. She watched the way his back moved as he worked, and she wondered what had made the lines of his shoulder so straight and taken the curve out of his spine. He looked like a soldier, tirelessly toiling away over a spat of blood, and she shivered, reminded of the doctors from the Edison Group.
She ran over the exchanges between Valentine and Jace, trying to glean some information about their past. She knew Jace had been raised by Valentine, and that the past hadn't been as happy a childhood as it could have been, but she just didn't know what had made Jace's face so hard and his eyes to bright. Chloe suspected that something in Jace and Valentine's shared past might be key to escaping from Valentine, if not stopping his madness. She wondered just what secret was kept between them.
"Well, children, I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave you," Valentine pronounced after a few more minutes. "I have some duties to attend to, and none of them involve this place. Come, Jace, let me help you off the table."
Valentine was suddenly beside Jace, undoing the chains and pulling him up. Jace swayed as his head swam, but forced himself to stand up straight. He wasn't going to be weak before Valentine, as he walked him back to his cell. Valentine threw the cage door open and shoved Jace back in, with a groan, before standing and brushing the dirt off his suit. He looked down at Jace, enjoying the look of him through the bars.
"I'll be back soon," he said with a smile at his stepson. "We're not through, you and I."
"That's just what I wanted to hear," muttered Jace as he rolled onto his back and examined in his cut arm. "You gonna bring me a band aid?"
"Fix it yourself," Valentine snapped, and then he swept out of the room, the torches flickering around him.
There was a moment of silence and then a snarl from Derek. "We can't stay here."
"No kidding?" Tori said loudly. "I thought it might be nice to just stay down here a while. Very relaxing in the dark, gives you time to think."
"You're not helping," hissed Derek, but he didn't have the heart to put any real anger in it.
"Well, stating the obvious isn't going to get us anywhere, is it?" shot back Tori, but she didn't seem to have the heart either. Her eyes met Derek's, though, and she sighed and squirmed to get more comfortable. "So we have to find a way out of here, that much is obvious. I mean, we can't just sit here and wait for Valentine to kill us."
"He's not going to kill us," Jace said, trying to reasonable, but the sarcasm in his voice defeated it. "You heard him, he'll just lock us up down here and never let us out again. That way, no one will ever have to know that he lied and kept a few Downworlders alive."
"Try not to be too cheerful over there, Jace, it might go to your head," Simon said with a smirk, and even though they were all trapped in a nightmare, even though they were all fearing for their lives, they all laughed. It echoed around them and for one moment, the terror and anger that was crushing them down was lifted.
"I'll do my best, but in the meantime, do we have any way of getting out of here?" Jace asked once the laughter died down. "Is there anyone we can send a message to, Magnus?"
"I've seen to it." Magnus, who was bent over due to his height, was watching Jace with unchanging eyes. "Someone sent a message, and Isabelle provided the perfect distraction for Valentine so that I was able to answer it. Help may be coming."
Jace blinked once, but he didn't miss the shadow that passed over Magnus's eyes. "Who's coming?"
Magnus gave his head a little shake to keep the hair from his eyes, never letting his gaze slip. "Well, I received a message from Luke, and I let him in on the situation."
"Luke?" Jace's head darted up, narrowly missing another painful bump. "Luke sent a message to you?"
"Nothing too serious," Magnus replied casually. "He was just curious as to our whereabouts."
"You mean Clary was," Jace breathed, moving forward until he was pressing against the bars of his cell. "Clary told Luke we left, and now she knows Valentine caught us. Let me guess, you asked them to come help us?"
"Jace-"
"Be quiet, Alec!" he hissed back, not once turning away from Magnus. "You did, didn't you? You told them where we were, and who was holding us prisoner, and you think they're going to come rescue us. Or you hoped?" Jace was shaking.
"We can't stay down here, Jace," Magnus growled. "What good are we doing if we're locked in the basement? We need to warn the Clave."
"Clary can't come here!" Jace snarled. "Valentine wants her too much."
"She has to, Jace," Magnus snapped back. "Who else would come to help? Clary is the only shadowhunter out there who is capable of helping us fight. What would you have had me do? Lie and say we're coming home soon?"
"She'll come charging in here looking for me!"
"Well, good!" Magnus threw his hands in the air. "Maybe that way, something will get done about it. You know, you're so adamant about protecting the girl, keeping her from getting hurt, that you don't realize how strong she actually is. Did you ever think that maybe, just maybe, Clary can handle a fight? You're not the only one here with a gift, Jace!"
Jace narrowed his eyes in dislike. "I guess I'm the only one here with a brain though."
"Oh, stop it, both of you!" It was Chloe, and she sounded more tired than anything. "You're both acting like idiots. Jace, Magnus had no other choice but to tell Luke what had happened, and you know it. I'm sure Luke loves Clary as much as you, so he's not just going to let he go barging in. Clary is safe no matter where she goes because she has Luke, and a girl whose half demon. You just need to calm down."
Jace felt a tremor rake his body. "I don't want her hurt."
"What makes you think she's going to get hurt?" Chloe looked pointedly at his arm. "And if she does, we can fix her up. I bet Tori could heal your arm if you just stick it out of the cage."
Jace looked skeptical. "Can't say I believe that."
"Oh, just give me your arm," muttered Tori.
Jace managed to wriggle his arm out of the cage and before Tori, who looked it over once and pursed her lips in thought. She murmured a few unintelligible words and Jace felt his arm glow with warmth. When he looked at his arm, the wound was gone, leaving nothing by a flat sheet of skin. He rubbed it once and then cleared his throat.
"Thanks, Tori."
"Any time, sweetheart," she replied with a fake smile.
"See," Chloe said faint smile. "All we need to do is slow down and think. I bet that's what Clary and Luke and Rae are doing right now. I bet anything they already have a great plan of how they're going to rescue us. It'll be fine."
