Chapter Four
It was almost easy to forget what happened last night. With Jocelyn home that morning and Clary successfully grounded by the woman, no talk of Pandemonium occurred. As far as Jocelyn knew, neither girl went to the club last night—and as far as Yu was concerned, they never would again.
It made it a lot easier to focus on talking to her parents instead. With Clary on lockdown and Jocelyn's presence keeping them quiet, Yu could forget she ever saw Jace and his friends.
She'd been lucky to catch her parents today. Izumo had a very noticeable sunburn over her cheeks, while Erkan appeared to have forgotten to shave over the past few days. Yu figured they'd had a big day and that they'd need to leave soon for Nine and Dede's house, which meant it'd probably be a short call.
A call was a call, though. After the week Yu'd had, she was glad to hear from her parents again.
"Have you been having fun?" Izumo asked. Despite the lagging video quality of the call, Yu could still see the big smile on her mother's face as she sat in the study with Erkan.
Yu nodded. "Lots," she said. "Elmo's been good, too."
Erkan leaned closer to the camera, a stern expression on his face. "Is my little Elmo being spoiled enough?"
"Of course not," she scoffed. Horror crossed Erkan's features. It soon vanished as he let out a quiet chuckle.
"We have so many photos to show you when we get back," Izumo continued. "Little Ayla is so beautiful. You'd love her!"
"I think Naz would get upset if I took her sister's attention," Yu laughed. There was also the whole issue of Yu panicking whenever someone put a baby in her hands, but she'd rather not rain on her mother's parade today. "Is Pembe doing okay?"
"Strong as ever." Erkan rubbed his arm almost grimly. Yu could only imagine what her aunt had done to warrant a reaction like that from the big man. "She was hoping you'd be coming, but she understood why you couldn't come."
"Sorry about that…"
"Don't be sorry, honey. You can visit next time—Nine's already saved a seat specially for you at the table!"
The phone began to ring on the other side of the house. Clary was quick to announce that she would handle it, which left Yu breathing out a sigh of relief. She wanted just a few more seconds with her parents.
"I hope I can go with you guys next time," Yu said. She rubbed the back of her neck, ashamed of her refusal to leave solid ground.. "We'll work on the flying thing as soon as you come back."
"Absolutely!" Erkan nodded gleefully at the idea. He looked as though he was about to add onto the suggestion, probably already coming up with schemes to combat Yu's phobia, but a shout from Clary all the way across the apartment was enough to drag Yu's attention away from her parents.
She hurriedly said goodbye to them, curious as to why Clary would be yelling out to Simon when he wasn't even there, and shut the laptop clumsily. Part of her expected to see a surprise visit from Simon when she left the bedroom, while another part of her decided right then and there that Clary was still just on the phone—probably to Simon. Yu peeked around the door, and sure enough Clary was right across the living room and on her own.
Clary was leaning against the wall with the apartment's phone propped under her ear. She glanced once at Yu, mouthing Simon's name to her, and Yu gave her a thumbs up as she moved for the kitchen. From the sounds of the phone call, Clary was telling Simon about the aftermath of their arrival home; Clary seemed to skirt over the fact that she'd been grounded, which Yu snorted at as she pulled a box of juice from the fridge.
Her conversation with Simon didn't last for long, Clary hanging up with a smirk at what was probably Simon reacting badly to her sass. The two always loved to riff off each other—like siblings, Yu thought. As soon as the phone was out of her hand, though, Clary's face fell.
"Think Mom would let me leave for band practice?" she asked. Yu let out a short hiss. She shook her head and sipped at her juice. "No hope?"
"A little. But not enough to convince Jocelyn Fray to let you leave," Yu decided. "We might have to give it a miss today. Could be her Mom Senses tingling."
Clary rolled her eyes. She draped herself over the couch lazily, groaning. "Mom's are defective," she argued. "They tingle twenty-four-seven and nothing ever happens."
"Maybe that's what she wants you to think." Yu crept over to the couch, peeking over the edge with a sly grin. "Maybe she's leading a double life of fighting maternal crimes, being the vigilante mom we all need yet do not deserve."
Clary swatted her in the face with a cushion. "That's dumb, and you're dumb for suggesting it."
The door clicked open behind her. Yu whirled on her heel to greet Jocelyn, but stopped short when she spotted someone else come through instead. She hasn't seen Luke since the welcome home party the Frays had held for her, but he looks just the same as the last time they'd been in the same room.
Flat cardboard boxes were tucked under his arms, waiting for somewhere to be set down in the brownstone. Yu lifted her drink in acknowledgement to the man, and he nodded silently back to her. Clary was the one who tried to fill the silence, the most surprised at Luke's presence in the apartment.
Once he set down the boxes in the kitchen, Clary said, "Hey Un— Uh, Luke."
At least she was getting better with her recoveries. Yu sipped at her juice some more as Luke groaned and stretched in the doorway. "Your mother's out parking the truck," he told Clary, already anticipating the question from the redhead. "Why doesn't the elevator work here?"
Before Clary could recite her usual spiel about it having character, Yu snorted, "Because the landlord's cheap."
He chuckled, nodding in agreement.
"What's with the boxes?" Clary asked. Luke looked down at them and shrugged.
"Your mother said she wants to pack away from things. Stuff lying about that she has no use for," he explained. He turned on his heel to wander further into the kitchen. He disappeared as he ducked down to reach into the cupboard under the sink, the obvious sounds of a search coming from within. "Here it is!" he muttered to himself, and when he stood back up he added out loud, "You have anything you want stored away?"
Clary shook her head. She rolled off of the couch and peeked over the bench at his hands, curious as to what he'd found. She really didn't need to do it, as Luke waltzed out of the kitchen with the orange tape dispenser held firmly in his hand.
"Did she look… angry?" Clary added.
He shrugged again. Luke didn't offer much in the way of words on that particular subject, leaving Clary to look extra worried once the footsteps that undoubtedly belonged to Jocelyn echoed outside the front door. Yet when the very woman Clary was worried about facing walked through that door, she looked anything but angry. In fact, Yu would go so far as to say that Jocelyn looked rather relieved at the sight of the boxes.
Jocelyn picked one up and popped it open with a smile. She began fastening the lid as she said a hello to the two girls. Yu watched her carefully, as did Clary, and soon it became apparent that not everything was sunshine and rainbows for Jocelyn—not with those dark bags under her eyes or the way her eyes were glossed over with sleep that never got a chance to take over. Clary was the most cautious Yu had even seen her when she crept towards her mother.
"What's with the boxes?" she asked hesitantly. Jocelyn glanced at her once, almost reluctant to say anything, and moved on to the next box. Maybe Jocelyn was still upset with Clary's outing last night? Or was it something else that was bothering her? Clary tired again, "Are you still angry with me?"
Jocelyn let out a heavy sigh. She shook her head and popped open the second box, folding its edges neatly together. "I'm not angry, Clary," she said softly. "I've just had a lot on my mind since last night."
Luke, helpful as ever, picked up a box and cleared his throat expectantly at the woman. He moved over to Yu's side, beckoning for her to follow. Yu quietly did so, stopping by the far wall so the two Frays could have whatever talk was meant to happen just now. From this distance it was easy to see the similarities in how Jocelyn and Clary handled the situation. Both kept their heads and shoulders level, but their brows furrowed into almost identical expressions that betrayed their anxiety over the topic.
When the news of Clary going to Luke's farmhouse for the rest of the summer came to light, all hell broke loose. Yu could only watch in horror as she begged and pleaded with her mother to stay at the brownstone instead, bringing up her art classes and the party Simon had wanted to hold once school drew closer. As soon as Jocelyn dismissed the classes and pushed Clary into further panic, Yu realised this was going to be an uphill battle for the teen.
Clary begged Luke to help convince Jocelyn to let her stay in Brooklyn, but Luke just shook his head and told her to listen to her mother. Clary looked hopeless then, her gaze falling to Yu—her last resort. Unfortunately, there wasn't a lot Yu could do but lessen the blow this dealt to Clary's summer plans.
"Will I be coming as well?" Yu asked Jocelyn. Before Clary could even think to use Yu as a means to stay home, Jocelyn coughed nervously.
"Yes, until your parents come back," she said. "Luke will drive you home the night before and keep an eye on you. Does that sound alright?"
Both Luke and Yu looked at each other in surprise. Clearly this was the first time he was hearing the news as well. "Sure," Yu said slowly. "Do you have a spare bedroom?"
"Two," Luke said. "Why?"
Yu looked to Clary then, an apologetic smile on her face. "I can't do much to help with the art classes, but we can see if Simon can stay over and have a small get together with the three of us. I'll bunk on the floor or something while you two take the bed."
Clary's face fell, her attitude deflating with it. "But…"
"Maybe it'll help you too. You said you were stuck in a rut with what to draw. Maybe the farmhouse is what you need."
It was three against one. Even Clary seemed to recognise this once Yu's words sank in. She looked up at her mother with an almost helpless expression and backed down from her argument. "I'll go get some things," she said quietly. Clary barely looked at Yu or Luke as she disappeared into her room, leaving the door half-open behind her.
The silence that followed didn't last for long. Jocelyn immediately turned her attention to Luke, asking him politely, "Can you drop Yu to her house and come back? We'll finish packing by the time she walks back."
Well, it was a good way to save time on walking back and forth as well. And Luke probably had to put the boxes back in the truck once they were packed and waiting by the door. Yu nodded and looked up at Luke, who was already setting down the tape dispenser and nodding for her to follow.
Just as Luke and Yu were out the door, she remembered the canine responsibility she still had. "Can we bring Elmo with us?" she asked quickly. Luke gave her a thumbs up and a smile. "He'll probably love all the space and attention."
"Knowing my luck," Luke told her, "he'll just follow me everywhere."
She laughed at the mental image—Luke, disgruntled and exhausted, being chased at the heels by a very excitable border collie at every waking moment. It'd be just like how he was at home, hanging on Erkan's every action with his tongue wagging about.
The drive to her house took all of five minutes, and Yu waved goodbye to Luke with a grin as he backed out of her driveway. The truck disappeared around the corner, and Yu wasted no time retreating into her house and calling for Elmo.
The border collie followed her into her room with a needy whine. Elmo watched as she piled clothes into a duffel bag, soon followed by DVDs and books to read. Almost as an afterthought, Yu plucked the box that held her poloroid camera out of her closet and set it down next to her bag.
"Elmo!" she called again, trying to lead the dog towards the back door. Erkan always hung up Elmo's leash by the sliding door, hoping to contain Elmo within their backyard before he sprinted out the front door. Elmo groaned and basically rolled onto his back as Yu tried to attach the leash to his collar; after an almost tiring few minutes of struggling, he was ready for a walk to the brownstone.
"We're going to Luke's for a while," she cooed at him. Elmo whined out a half-bark, excited by the mention of Luke. Sometimes she swore he understood English. He followed her eagerly back to her room, waiting impatiently for her to shoulder her bag and grab her box. With only one hand free to hold Elmo's leash, Yu was ready to go back to the Frays' apartment.
Elmo practically pulled her out of the house, barely giving her time to shut the door behind her. He was just as eager to get to the brownstone as she was now, and all Yu could do was laugh as she led him along the sidewalk. He really must have been dying to go outside since the last trip. She did her best to take the shortest route, but every path took about the same amount of time to get to the Fray apartment. If she'd still had her bike and a front basket for the handlebars, maybe she would've been able to make do and give Elmo a proper run on the way.
Yu sighed as she turned the corner, shaking her head. Oh well. She'd probably still have to wait until her parents came back home to get a new one, or pray for a job that paid well enough for part-timers.
After she passed the first house she became aware of the footsteps behind her, jogging to keep up with her pace and catch up entirely. Yu listened for a second, hesitating to look over her shoulder with Elmo so eager to bolt down the street. She hoped whoever it was would just pass her by instead of staying behind her—people like that always made her feel like such a slowpoke whenever she was walking with Elmo. Neither scenario seemed to come true, though; instead she heard the footsteps slow until they were close behind her, a throat being cleared as loudly as possible to get her attention.
Yu groaned and came to a stop, holding tight to Elmo's leash as he began to tug at it insistently. She turned to face the stranger, ready to ask what they wanted, but stopped short once she recognised that stupidly pretty face and that stupidly smug grin.
"No," Yu hissed angrily. Jace nodded, brows raised and eyes wide.
"Yes," he declared. He glanced down at Elmo once and added, "Nice dog."
"What do you want?"
He put his hands up in an almost surrendering gesture, his posture relaxing almost immediately as he moved past her to pet Elmo.
"You ran off last night," he said. "I got the lecture of a lifetime when I got back."
"Boo-hoo." Yu put herself between Elmo and Jace, effectively dog-blocking the teen. "I had friends with me—what was I supposed to do?"
He shrugged. "Not run?" Before Yu could even bother to scoff at him, he pointed vaguely at the bag and box. "What's all this?"
Yu almost decided against telling him, but a big part of her wanted to see him try argue his way into making her stay in Brooklyn. "I'm leaving for a while," she said proudly. "My friend and her mother are going on a vacation, and I am to follow until my parents come home."
Jace barely even looked disappointed by the fact. If anything, he just looked contemplative as he nodded and stroked his chin. "Alright. I'll walk you there."
"You're not walking me to my friend's house. What if you harass her?"
"I'm not some pixie who enjoys pranks, Ayumu." Jace's brow quirked. Had she annoyed him? Yu's heart jumped for joy—she was getting to him! Maybe he'd leave her alone if she pushed his buttons some more. "Consider it a courtesy from your friendly neighbourhood Shadowhunter."
She scowled. As soon as she began to walk again, Elmo sprinted forward and yanked her forward. Yu's toes hooked around her ankle, the ground suddenly disappearing under one foot as she fell forward. The leash was still wrapped tightly around her wrist as she crashed to the ground, but thankfully Elmo didn't have enough strength to drag Yu along the pavement.
Jace stood right in front of her, a soft cackling coming from him as she groaned as loudly as possible. Yu pushed herself back to a sitting position and rubbed her face, praying her nose wasn't broken. As soon as she confirmed that everything was still intact, she glared up at the blonde.
"Carry my camera," she growled. "The minute we enter her street, you're gone."
He picked up the box without even a single complaint. "If it helps, she won't even see me in the first place." Jake pointed knowingly to his shoulder—Yu wasn't sure what was supposed to be there underneath his shirt, but she assumed it was something that made mundanes unaware of his existence.
She bit her tongue as the temptation to tell him that he wasn't as invisible as he thought rose in her chest. She stood back up and held Elmo's leash even tighter than before, and soon enough she was leading Jace in the direction of the brownstone.
It didn't take him long to try start up another conversation, once again complaining about the trouble he got into last night. She had to give him props for lasting until the next block, at least. The taller boy that had been with him—Alec, as Jace called him—had been in a panic over a mundane seeing them, which had led to Isabelle—apparently Alec's sister—going "full Maryse" on Jace.
(She pretended to know what he meant by that. It was probably a TV or book reference she'd have to look into while she was at Luke's.)
And then he turned his attention to her, suddenly interested in why she was staying with a friend.
"Parents are on vacation," she said simply.
"And you didn't go with them?" He raised a brow at her.
Yu couldn't help the annoyance that crept into her tone. "No. I don't like flying—is something wrong with that?"
Jace just smirked and let out a dubious sound, leaving the answer to himself. It only irked her more.
"Don't you have friends to bother?" she went on. Jace only nodded his head side to side, a half-hearted shrug accompanying it.
"I'm much more content with bothering you until the last minute," he decided.
They rounded another corner, the silence settling once again. Yu wished something would pull Jace's attention away from the whole issue—or, better yet, that Luke would decide walking was taking too long. She'd never been a fan of the truck, but if she saw it right now she'd consider it her saviour.
Instead of a truck, though, opportunity presented itself in a loud, shrill ring from her phone. Yu tightened her hold on Elmo's leash and dug around in the pocket of her jeans, pulling out the flip phone with a grunt. Simon's name flashed on the screen, a welcome distraction from the annoyance at her heels.
"Howdy, stranger," she greeted. Jace scrunched his face up at her, displeased by the exaggerated southern accent she donned.
"Is something going on?" Simon sounded panicked. "Clary just called saying she was going away for a while and then just hung up. Is she alright? What's happening?"
"Chill out," Yu sighed. "Her mom wanted some time away from Brooklyn. I managed to negotiate a visit from you and a party, so you're welcome."
"The party is the last thing on my mind right now. I hate to sound like a know-it-all, but Clary never backs down from an argument over the course of an hour!"
"It was three against one." She nodded for Jace to keep walking, but the blond just stayed put and continued to listen to her conversation. "It's only for the rest of the summer. Maybe a week or so less? Plus, the stress from last night probably convinced her she needed a break too."
Jace leaned closer, very interested in what Yu had just said. She cursed internally, glaring at him to back off and puffing out her chest as menacingly as possible. There went her plan of not saying Clary saw something last night as well.
"Well… Yeah, I guess she was pretty wound up about it still…" Simon heaved out a sigh. "Would I have time to visit and say goodbye at least?"
"Negative." Yu peeked up at the street sign closest to her. They were literally around the corner from the brownstone. "We're heading off as soon as I get back, and that's less time than you have to get here."
"Rats."
"Amen to that. I'll make sure she calls you so you both stay sane." Simon thanked her, and then quickly wished her a safe trip. Yu thanked him back, and hung up with a deep sigh. "What's with the look?"
Jace didn't waste time getting to the point. "What did this friend of yours see last night?"
She loosened her hold on Elmo, letting him drag her along the pavement again. She didn't bother looking back at Jace as she said, "Not that it matters, but she's the reason I tackled you. She thought you were going to attack someone she saw you following."
"The Eidolon?"
"Sure. Whatever." When Jace was remarkably quiet for the seconds that followed, Yu's stomach began to lurch. Jace being quiet wasn't a good sign, if the past week was any indicator. "Don't say it."
"Change of plans," he said, ignoring her. Yu growled under her breath. "Hodge was willing to wait for you to come to the Institute, given you've provided enough for us to investigate without you for a while, but your friend? Yu, two mundanes with the Sight is a lot more uncommon than you think."
"Maybe you just don't know a lot of mundanes," she argued. As much as she hated to admit it, there was a bite to her tone. Yu just really didn't want to drag Clary into this, especially after the stress of leaving Brooklyn for the rest of the summer.
Jace shrugged. The duo turned the corner—Park Slope, thank goodness—as he went on, "You and your friend need to come to the Institute. Today."
"Why?" She stopped walking, instead turning on her heel to face him and get right in his personal space with a snarl. "Why is it so important that we go today?"
He stared back at her. The way his eyes shifted back and forth over her face, contemplating her question, made it seem almost like he wanted to know that answer as well. Was he just acting on a whim over this? If he was, Yu was going to be sure to leave him with a nice bruise as a farewell gift. Jace inhaled deeply through his nose, finally settling on an answer.
"Call it a hunch."
Her snarl faltered at his words. Surefire Jace, who was always so confident with his deductions until they were proven wrong, was just relying on a hunch. He never said he'd had a hunch about why Yu was so strong or why she saw the hellhound. He never said he'd had a hunch about her family being anything but mundane. He always said he knew, and he always had reasons why.
So why the hunch this time?
Yu sighed, her face falling as she took a step back. Maybe putting off all this Shadowhunter visiting would bite her in the behind if she kept it up. Maybe it was time to face the music. She'd just have to tell Jocelyn to wait a day, take Clary with her, and then pray everything would resolve itself within the day.
She turned back to Elmo—the border collie was looking up at her impatiently—and sighed again. "Fine. Just give me a few minutes to get her."
Jace nodded, looking surprisingly understanding. He didn't offer her much more than a genuine, "Thank you," as he followed her to the gate of the brownstone.
Luke's truck wasn't in the drive. Yu stared at the empty space with a frown—he would've been back by now, wouldn't he? She clicked open the gate and let Elmo go in before her, only to bump into the dog as she and Jace followed.
Elmo's fur was raised and his ears were bent back. He even let his leash go slack as Yu moved to see what was wrong, calling out to him softly. The border collie almost didn't seem to hear her. Instead, Elmo just crouched down low and began to growl at the front door.
"Moo?" Yu glanced between him and the door. "What's wrong, boy?"
As she knelt down beside her dog, hoping to get through to him, Jace set down her camera box and hastily reached for his back pocket. He was muttering under his breath, no longer looking the calm and collected smartass he usually presented himself as. As he was pulling a small box, no larger than her phone, from his back pocket, she heard him growl, "If that's what I think it is, so help me…"
A crash sounded from above, right from the window connected to Jocelyn's bedroom. Yu shrieked and pulled Elmo away as Jace leapt back outside the gate. Glass crashed to the ground alongside a few large clumps of grey flesh, exploding into flames that left nothing behind. From within the bedroom itself, a screech—nothing like anything Yu had ever heard before—rang out.
Demon. A demon was in the brownstone. It had to be.
Yu hastily dropped Elmo's leash and her bag, sprinting through the front door as Jace called out to her to stop. Like hell she would stop, not when a demon was possibly attacking her friend. She raced up the stairs as her heart beat wildly in her chest. As quickly as the commotion upstairs had started, all sounds from the apartment had stopped.
So when Yu flung open the front door, it was an immense relief that she didn't immediately happen upon Clary or Jocelyn. It had to mean they were okay, right? It had to mean that they were safe. But even with that weak attempt at reassurance, Yu still felt uneasy as she took a step inside.