Chapter 1
"Argh!"
Clary slams the door shut, causing the decorations on her bedroom walls to jump. Her grip tightens as she stares down at the screen of her phone. Every single call for the past twenty minutes has ended with her being sent straight to voicemail.
Voicemail.
Her and Simon are childhood best friends, they were bound to have fights every now and then. But never one like this.
"The person you tried to call is unavail-"
Small pieces of glass sprinkle the floor as her phone collides with the wall. Cursing, Clary moves to collect the remaining pieces of her phone when a knock sounds on her door. She bites back urge to yell at whoever is behind that door to "go the hell away!"
But they don't deserve her anger.
Only one person does, and she's in another realm.
She clears her throat and straightens her appearance before saying, "Come in."
The door opens and Isabelle steps through. Her gaze immediately drops to the shattered mess behind Clary, and her eyes soften. "I can come back later if you want?"
"No," she says. "What is it you needed?"
She waits a few moments before nodding to herself. "We're transferring Valentine to Idris tonight. Can I assume you'll want to be part of the mission?"
"Actually, I don't" She looks taken aback at Clary's answer. "I have to go sort all this out with Simon."
She grabs Clary's hands and looks her in the eyes. "I know it's none of my business, but after what you guys just went through, maybe you should give Simon some time."
"No. I can't let him think that what happened at the Seelie Court is how I really feel."
"Clary, Seelie magic may trick you, but it never lies. And I know it's confusing," she says. "But you can have feelings for two people at the same time. It doesn't make you a bad person."
"I have to at least try, Izzy."
Izzy nods in understanding and gives her hand a reassuring squeeze before turning towards the door to leave. "Well, if you change your mind, just send me a text."
"Simon. It's me."
The sound of her knocking reverberates through the large metal sliding doors of the boat warehouse.
"If you're not going to answer my phone calls, the least you can do is talk to me." A heartbeat passes as she waits, listening on the other side for any sign of the vampire.
One.
Two.
Three. A lock moving out of place sets her heart pumping, and by the time the door slides open, its racing. Racing so fast she might be on the verge of a heart attack as she looks at a haggard Simon. Looking as bad as she feels.
Without a word, he turns on his heels and heads back in, leaving Clary to close the door.
"I want you to know that… I am so sorry. The Seelie Court. None of that means anything." He's looking at the wall behind her and at the floor and at the canoes hanging all around them, anywhere but at her. His knuckles are pronounced, white as he clenches his fists.
"You don't have to do this, Fray."
She ignores him and pushes on, needing to finally speak the words she's been holding on the tip of her tongue, leaving a bad taste. He needs to hear this. He needs to understand. "Your life was at risk. I had to kiss Jace. There was no other choice."
He whirls around to face Clary, startling her. And seeing the pain that laces his eyes. It hurts her more than anything. "The Seelie Queen made you reveal who you desired the most. And it wasn't me," he says. "It was Jace."
"The Seelies." Clary takes a step towards him, reaching for his arm. "They thrive on getting inside your head."
"Stop!" He yells, replacing the distance between them. "Look me in the eye and tell me you don't have feelings for him."
The anger in his eyes burns through her. It's as if every bone in her body has been cemented in place, and one small move will mean the end. The only thing that seems to still work are her eyes as tears slowly begin to trail down her cheeks. And when he sees that she's not going to answer, a muscle in his jaw tics.
"Kissing you," he says, his voice lethally calm. "Trying to be anything more than your friend, hoping you felt the same way I have for years … It was a mistake."
He brushes past her with the inhuman speed all vampires inherit. And as the sliding door is yanked open with so much force the walls shake, she falls to her knees. Her arms wrap around her middle and presses her forehead against the cold concrete floor of the warehouse. And she lets everything out, not holding back a single tear.
By the time the well of tears dries up, Clary's phone buzzes. She digs in her back pocket for it, wiping away the dampness of her cheeks.
Izzy: Last chance to change your mind. Meet in COM.
Never has she felt this alone before. Simon was the last thread of her old life she was clinging so hard to keep. And maybe that was part of the problem.
She has one final choice to make: dwell on her feelings or get revenge on the one constant cause of all her problems.
Head spinning, she gets to her feet and swallows back the remaining tears. Clutching her phone in her fist, she responds to Izzy.
Clary: Count me in.
Footsteps echo off the stone walls leading up to the Institute's holding cell.
Izzy and Clary join the rest of the transfer team on the outside of the cell. Her eyes immediately meet the man sitting in the center, rune engraved shackles already clamped around his wrists and ankles. He tilts his head, a smile pulling at the corner of his lips.
Jace steps away from Valentine and shock flashes across his face when he spots me Izzy evidently hadn't told him she was going to be here. She's relieved at that for he would have tried to talk to her if he knew beforehand, and she can't handle that now. Revenge is the only thing holding her together now.
"Let's get this over with," says Izzy.
Jace gives the men beside him a small nod and they move quickly. They grab underneath Valentines arms and haul him into the hallway, towards where Alec and Magnus await. And all the while, Valentine never breaks eye contact with Clary. She doesn't either. She lets him see that all his planning and scheming has led him to this point.
That the mighty Valentine Morgenstern has fallen.
"Valentine Morgenstern, by order of the Clave, you are hereby remanded to the Clave in Idris," proclaims Alec. On cue, Magnus opens a portal beside him. The tingling sensation of magic buzzes through the air, skating over my skin.
"At least in Alicante, the air won't reek of Downworlders." He says the last part at magnus, his lips curling in disgust.
Alec's eyes darken. "Get him out of here."
Izzy and Jace lead the way, stepping through the portal. A couple more Shadowhunters fall in line behind them. Clary gives Valentine a not so gentle shove between his shoulder blades. "Move."
"I meant it when I said we would be together again," he says, walking beside her. "I know you will choose the right thing."
"And what, the right thing being you?"
"You are capable of so much more, Clarissa. You'll soon realize that. The Clave will too. And once that happens, they will try to use you, turn you into a weapon."
"Like what you tried to do?" She arches an eyebrow.
He opens his mouth to speak when a hand lands on his shoulder, an identical one on hers. They both turn to see a young Shadowhunter stand behind them, his eyes hard. But that isn't what has Clary's heart stopping. It's the silver lining his eyes, fear swirling in the caramel pool of his eyes.
Something is wrong.
Then it's too late and their stepping through the portal.