Chapter 29

Hand in hand, Jace and Clary walk down the steps to get off the enormous plane. He slightly tugs her hand in the direction he wants them to go in, which happens to be a sleek black car with windows so tinted, no one would be able to see anything or anyone inside it. Clary lets him direct her to the car without a word, and slides in when he opens the door for her. They drive off in complete silence, but it isn't an awkward silence. Clary twiddles her fingers again, trying to shake the nervousness out, but is failing.

She looks over at Jace, who at the moment is, again, on the phone with whomever Alec is. Jace is whispering things to him, things that Clary determines the call is for his company. She looks down again at her fingers that are still wrestling each other. She sees a tan hand set itself on the top of both of her hands and looks up. Jace gives her a reassuring smile, and she manages to smile back, but it is strained.

He turns to put his attention into his phone call, not letting go of her hand. She leans her head on the window, closes her eyes, and takes a deep breath. You can do this. Be strong.

Never give up on something you want. You can do anything, Clare-Bear. Her mothers voice suddenly comes in her mind. She squeezes her eyes shut tighter. These words were the words her mother always told her when Clary was stressed over something. Except this isn't a test I'm afraid of failing, or a painting I can't get quite right. This is about you, mama. I'm scared of losing you! She thinks to herself.

She notices that the car has gotten quiet again, and feels a hand on her cheek. Jace has gotten closer to her and was moving his thumb back and forth under the hollow of her eye, swiping a tear away. Clary looks deep in his eyes; gold to green. He opens his mouth to say something when his phone starts vibrating again. He looks at her intently for a second longer, then answers his phone. She wonders what he was about to say, but instead Clary rests her forehead back on the window. This time, instead of closing her eyes, she looks out. They were already in New York City. She isn't sure where the location she was suppose to be going to retrieve her mother from her God-awful ex-boyfriend, but she gets a really weird feeling that the car is headed in the wrong direction. She turns to ask Jace if they are going the right way, and if not, where they were going, but he was still on the phone.

Jace continues to talk business on his cell phone for about half an hour. Not know where they are going, and her previous nervousness added in, she starts wiggling around, unable to sit still. Jace turns to look at her incredulously, but shrugs off her strange behavior and carries on with his conversation. She notices the car slowing down, so she looks out the window to see why. They were in front of a hotel, but she knows it is not the hotel that holds her mother captive. Suddenly, her phone starts vibrating wildly in her back pocket, startling her from her thoughts. She awkwardly pulls her cell from her back pocket. The number of which she gets a text message is an unknown one. She looks up at Jace; he hasn't noticed her even move. She glances back down at her phone.

I know you're here.

I know you brought him.

If you bring him to get your mother, he and your mother will both die.

Your choice.

New location. A place called The Institute. Be there tonight at 8. Do not be late.

I suggest you keep quiet about it.

Clary restrains herself from gasping and letting a cry out. She glances back at Jace, who is still oblivious to her. She tries to act casual, as if nothing has happened.

"That is fine. Thank you. Uh-huh, goodbye." She hears Jace hanging up the phone.

"Why are we here?" She asks, shocking herself being able to keep her voice steady, trying to sound casual.

"I figured we could unpack our bags and get some rest and get rid of some jet lag before we run off to danger," he tells her.

She is about to argue with him, but realizes there is nothing she can do anyhow. Sebastian wants her there at eight o'clock tonight at a different location, so there really is no reason of her wishing him to go save her mother now instead of waiting until later.

He raises his eyebrows at her, obviously expecting an argument. "Okay?" He asks.

"Okay." She agrees mumbling. His eyebrows remain raised, obviously still waiting for her to make an outburst, but Clary keeps her mouth shut in attempt to keeping her secret.


Once in the hotel room, Clary goes straight to the bed and falls on it with a heavy sigh. She looks over at Jace smirking at her.

"Well, if I had known that's what you wanted to do, I would have been quicker getting up here," he says with a bright smile.

"Ha-ha-ha very funny, Jace." She rolls her eyes and attempts to not smile at him.

He scrunches his face up, faking being wounded. "You mean, you DON'T want this? Come on, Red, I've heard the moans myself," he smirks, "you enjoy all of this," he says with his hands pointing to his body. This, of course, breaks Clary out of her refusal to smile.

"There it is," Jace says softly.

"What?" Clary asks him.

"That beautiful smile of yours."

"Does that work on all your girlfriends?" She asks.

"What?"

"Your cheesy-ness."

He opens his mouth wide, to say something, but instead lets out a roaring laugh. Clary temporarily forgets all the drama that is her reality, and laughs with Jace.

"That, that is why I love you." Jace states and brings her into a hug. She hugs him back, of course, and tells him she loves him too.

After they calm their laughing, Clary looks over on the nightstand at the clock.

6:59pm. Wow, already? Where has the day gone? She asks herself. Though it has been a rather long day... Could be the time change, too. She convinces herself that that is the reason, but it doesn't ease her mind. She feels Jace rolling off the bed.

"I'm going to take a shower real quick, then we will go."

She raises an eyebrow at him. "You want to get clean before saving my mother?" She teases. He shrugs with a smile and goes to the bathroom to do so. She hears the water come on and she rises to her feet.

This is my chance. He'll never let me leave alone if I don't go while he's in there. She thinks to herself. She runs out the door, gets inside an elevator, and waits impatiently for it to get to the main floor. She scurries out the main entrance and whistles for a taxi, something she had never done before, but realizes she must have done a good job, for she got a taxi to stop for her on her first try.

"Do you know where a place called 'The Institute' is?" She asks the driver after pulling the door shut.

"Yeah, but it'll cost you. It's on the other side of the city." He says with a cigar in his mouth. The driver is a scruffy looking man, needing a shave and wearing worn out clothes.

"That's fine. I'll be able to pay you." She promises him. He nods and steps on the accelerator. She lies her back on the seat and lets out a breath. She then digs in her back pocket for her phone, and swears to herself when she feels it is not there.


Jace turns off the water and steps out of the shower. He dries off and wraps the towel around his lower half as he opens the bathroom door. Noting that Clary has been very quiet, he assumes she has fallen asleep. He walks out to see that she isn't there.

"Clary?" He calls, but gets no answer. He looks around for any sight of red, but gets none. He sees her phone and walks over to the bed to pick it up.
He hates invading her privacy, but he cannot help but looking through it. He reads through the messages from the unknown number and his eyes widen. Looking at the top of her phone, he notes the time is now 7:28 pm.

"Shit." He swears while dressing quickly and running out the door.


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