To: The Shadowhunters of the New York Institute
From: Magnus Bane, High Warlock of Brooklyn
Young Nephilim,
Your angelic minds are probably twisting and turning, trying to come up with possibilities as to why the High Warlock of Brooklyn is sending you a letter. The contents of this letter concern Miss Eliza S. Morgenstern, or as you know her: Eliza Starkweather.
Mr. Wayland, I realize that our dear Eliza has written you her own letter, detailing the course of her actions and her deceits. And this, my young Shadowhunters is why I write to you.
I have been alive over four hundred years. I have loved many a people, from vampires to werewolves. I once found myself caring for a young Shadowhunter boy in London who fancied himself cursed a few hundred years ago. But I do not believe I have ever cared for someone the way I do my dear Eliza. I know what you all must be thinking, and I can assure you to the highest degree that I do not see myself in love with Eliza Morgenstern. I care for her the way one cares for a younger sister, or nay I say, even a daughter.
If you have read her letter, then you know exactly what is going on. If you do not, I shall catch you up. Eliza has been lying for several months, claiming to be a young Shadowhunter by the name of Starkweather. You will soon find that this story is a lie. Eliza has lived with her monstrous progenitor, Valentine Morgenstern since the tragic fire. He sent her here to procure the Mortal Cup for him. Something she had no intention of ever doing. When Eliza came to me, she was in distress. She needed the Mortal Cup, but to hand it over to the Clave and to turn her father in and have him in the hands of justice for good. She only ever wanted him in the deepest cell that the Silent Brothers could provide.
That is not all I have to say. I know of the whispers that say Valentine Morgenstern has risen from the dead and he is alive and in New York. I have on good authority (by this, I mean Eliza) that these rumors are true. He has returned.
Eliza has information on the whereabouts of the Mortal Cup. She found her mother. She has information that she is not willing to hand over. But more importantly to her, she has people she is unwilling to hand over to Valentine. People she deeply cares about and she knows that he would hurt if it meant she told him what she knew of the Cup. And Eliza recognized that she would give him whatever he wanted if it meant keeping those people safe.
Those people are you, young Shadowhunters. Yes, I do mean you: Alexander Lightwood, Isabelle Lightwood, Clarissa Fray and especially you, Jace Wayland.
We did the only thing we could to keep her safe and to keep the four of you safe. I took her memories, I put a powerful block on her mind. As far as Eliza knows, the story she told you is true. She was raised as Eliza Starkweather in Alicante until this past April when her family perished unexpectedly in a house fire. She does not know her father is truly alive or even that he is her father, only that the demons whisper of his return. She does not harbor any information on the Mortal Cup. This also means that I had to take some of her better memories. Mr. Wayland, I believe you know what I'm talking about.
Heed my warning children of the Angel: The block on our dear Eliza's mind is an unusually powerful one. I had to take years and years of information and lock it away, creating an entirely new life. She must break it on her own. Eliza must come to the truth on her own. You are to, under no circumstances whatsoever, to try and unravel this block. Either I do it, or she does it.
I have one more thing to say and then this letter will be over. Eliza is one of the kindest and most selfless Shadowhunters I have ever encountered. Please keep this in mind when she awakens. She erased everything, she became an entirely different person because of the four of you. To keep you safe from her father. I cannot imagine she would have done so otherwise.
Eliza may be a liar, but she is a good person. She lied to do right by our world. I know for fact that she never meant to hurt any of you. Do not hold her lies against her. She loves all of you, more than you could ever imagine. She is good, through and through.
Magnus Bane, High Warlock of Brooklyn
The letter had just appeared in front of Alec in the training room. A wave of nausea had washed over him as his eyes swam over the pages. The warlock's handwriting was messy and hurried.
Alec wasn't quite sure what to do with the information. Jace was still out with the mundane girl.
He went to Izzy first. Let her eyes wander over the page, watching his baby sister's eyes widen at the revelation of their close friend. Together, they went to Hodge. Alec carefully handed him the letter.
Their tutor took several minutes to read the letter and then reread it.
"This is not good. Not good at all." Hodge murmured. He handed the letter back to Alec. "He will not be pleased at all. In a rage, I believe."
Alec raised his eyebrows. "Are you talking about Jace?" He asked. He didn't even want to imagine how his parabatai would react to the news.
Hodge looked at him, eyes wide. "Yes. Yes, of course." He mumbled. "Thank you, Alec. For bringing this to my attention. What do you believe we should do? Turn her to the Clave?"
Alec's bright blue eyes widened. "No. Angel no. She doesn't have anything they would want. Like the letter says, that information is gone. She's safe here. And if it's true, if Valentine is back, this is the only place Eliza is safe. I don't think the Clave would be too kind to her." Alec told his tutor.
Hodge nodded. "Of course. Thank you, Alec. Izzy, are you preparing dinner tonight?" Izzy said yes. "Good. Good. I think I may need a moment to myself. Please excuse yourselves."
Alec grabbed his sister by the wrist and led her from the library.
"Jace is gonna be so pissed." Izzy whispered to him.
Alec stopped, going stock still. Jace. He didn't even want to think about that at the moment.
She woke up in her bed. She didn't even remember going to sleep. Dull sunlight streamed through the window. It had to be late in the afternoon. Had she taken a nap?
She got up and got ready, showering and brushing her teeth.
She brushed her hair, leaving it wet down her shoulders and back. She changed into jeans and a light sweater, leaving her feet only in socks.
The knock on her door disturbed her. She padded over to the dark wooden door and swung it open. Jace stood in front of her, his tawny eyes heavy.
"Jace? You're back." She observed lightly.
She noticed a thick piece of paper stuck in his pocket but decided not to ask. If he wanted her to know, he'd tell her.
"I just came to check on you. To see how you were." He said thickly. She cocked an eyebrow inquisitively. "Before I left earlier, you seemed a little off. And I took a little longer than I thought I would."
She vaguely remembered speaking to him before he left with Clary to go to her apartment. She had felt unusually sluggish. "Oh. Yes. I think that all the running around the past few days had taken its toll on me. I feel quite a bit better now, thank you." There was an awkward silence between the two of them that felt heavy on her chest. "Well, I was just heading down to dinner if you'd like to walk with me." She suggested.
He nodded and waited for her to step out of her room, shutting the door softly. "Izzy's making some abomination of a soup. The smell suggests a scent of what Hell might smell like."
Her nose crinkled at the thought of Isabelle making a soup. "I hope it's ruined and we have to order in." She said quietly. Jace cracked a smile at her remark. "How did things go? Did you find anything else that could be helpful?"
Jace shrugged as a first response. "The hedge witch was hiding a Five-Dimensional Door in her apartment. And the men who killed my father are working for Valentine."
She stopped, her legs feeling as if they were filled with lead. Her mouth was open, her green eyes wide. "So, it's true? He's back? He's alive?" She whispered.
Jace bit down on his tongue. "So it seems." He told her. "I brought Clary and her mundane friend back to the Institute with me. The men were inquisitive about her, and not in a good way."
"And you've told Hodge? About the men killing your father?" She asked him. Her voice was as soft as the flap of a butterfly's wings.
He said no sharply. "Don't say anything to him about it, please." She said of course. "Hodge is in the library with Clary. He asked me to bring you to him."
They rounded the corner and arrived at the library. Hodge was standing, a large leather book in his hands. Clary was sitting on the couch.
"Oh, Eliza! Right on time." Hodge smiled at her tightly. Clary turning, giving her a softer smile. "How are you feeling? You've been asleep for quite a while."
Eliza let Jace trail behind her. "I feel fine, thank you." She sat down next to Clary. "Hi, Clary. How are you holding up? Jace filled me in a little, if that's alright with you."
Clary nodded, saying that was fine. "I've been better, I think."
Hodge cleared his throat. "There's something we need to discuss." He tapped his fingers on the binding of the book. "The Circle is rising once more. Jace has made that clear with the names he gave me earlier."
"You haven't said what the Circle is." Clary told him.
Hodge said no, he hadn't. And he began reading from the book. "I hereby render unconditional obedience to the Circle and its principles. I will be ready to risk my life at any time for the Circle, to preserve the purity of the bloodlines of Idris, and for the mortal world with whose safety we are charged."
Eliza tightened her jaw as Jace asked what Hodge had just read. "That," Hodge sighed, "was the oath of loyalty for the Circle of Raziel, formed twenty years ago."
Her mouth felt sour, as if she had eaten a rotten egg or drank soured milk. The Circle had killed her Uncle Henry. She could still remember his caramel colored eyes, crinkling around the edges as he chased her through the gardens of the Starkweather manor when she was much younger.
"So, the Circle is the Shadowhunter version of a fascist group." Clary observed.
Eliza said possibly. Hodge eyed her carefully, a little too intently for her liking. "The Circle of Raziel was a group of Shadowhunters, led by Valentine Morgenstern. Their objective was to rid the world of all the Downworlders."
Hodge said she was right. "Valentine sought to make the world more 'pure'. The Accords must be signed every fifteen years. Downworlders go to Idris to sign them. The Circle planned to ambush the Downworlders at the signing of the Accords and slaughter them all. They intended to win the war they were starting." Jace said that he wasn't aware of Valentine's fan club having an official name. "Yes. Most now do not. Almost everything that pertains to the Circle has been burned by the Clave. They are an embarrassment to the name of Shadowhunters. And I do hate to say that I helped write this oath and I was a member of the Circle." He looked at Clary. "As was your mother, among many others."
Clary jumped up from her seat. "She never would have joined a group like that!" She shouted at Hodge. "My mother would have never been a part of that hate group!"
"Yes, well, my mother never imagined her brother would join such a group, but he did." Eliza told Clary, her voice darkened. "And he died because of Valentine."
Hodge said Clary's mother would have and she had been a part of the Circle of Raziel. Clary's face was red with anger, asking why her mother would have had a reason to join the Circle. "Your mother was Valentine's wife."
The silence lasted more than a few moments. And then Clary shouted again. She swore that her mother didn't have an ex-husband, only her dead husband. And then she decided she wanted to hear no more.
"Clary, please sit down." Hodge said, his voice soft and full of kindness. Clary's mouth opened to speak but no words came out. "Your mother abandoned the Circle and Valentine's views. Several others did as well, Lucian Greymark being one of the first, you know him as your mother's friend Luke Garroway. Valentine felt betrayed by Lucian, who had been his best friend. And then Michael Wayland." He glanced at Jace. "But so many stayed behind. Pangborn and Blackwell. The Lightwoods."
Jace's tawny eyes widened. "Surely you don't mean…"
Hodge nodded solemnly. "Robert and Maryse, yes. Even I stayed loyal. We were afraid of what Valentine would do if we left. But after the Uprising, we stayed behind, and we cooperated with the Clave. We told them everything we knew, and they gave us clemency. The curse that binds me to the Institute, that was the Clave. Punishment for my alliance with Valentine and the Circle."
"Why weren't the Lightwoods punished?" Clary asked him.
"They were married, and they had a child, Alec. We were all banished here as punishment. And though the Lightwoods may go to our Glass City on official business and stay for short times, I will never again see Alicante."
At the mention of the Glass City, an image burst into Eliza's mind. The city of Alicante, nestled in a valley, divided by a river. Shimmers of golden buildings rang in her mind. She could almost feel her feet sinking into the evergreen grass of the garden behind her family home, her elder brother laughing behind her as he chased her. The spires of the city could be seen from their home.
"Sed lex dura lex." Jace mumbled: The Law is hard, but it is the Law.
Clary's eyes were watery. "Why didn't you say something before? About my mother?"
Hodge looked at her sadly. "You called her Jocelyn Fray. I knew her when she was Jocelyn Fairchild, wife of Valentine."
Clary and Jace looked at her. The look on Clary's face was stun; the look on Jace's was unreadable to her.
Eliza peered at her. "It's all right to be upset. Your world is turning upside down."
"I sent for the Silent Brothers this morning. And once the Clave finds out that Valentine has returned and once again seeks out the Mortal Cup, there will be ultimate chaos." Hodge reported to them.
"He's building an army." Eliza's voice was thin, like she almost didn't want to believe it. "Valentine. He's going to use the Cup to build an army of Shadowhunters loyal to him and only him."
The door to the library burst open and Izzy walked in, her inky black hair falling around her face in tendrils. She held a cooking spoon in her hands. "Dinner's ready!" Her dark brown eyes were wide. "Oh. Am I interrupting?" She asked.
Both Jace and Hodge went pale in the face. Eliza stood up, an uneasy look on her face. "Jace says you made soup. I'm sure it's going to be delicious." The lie rolled off her tongue easily, her voice kind and assuring.
Izzy smiled crookedly. "I'm sure it would have been. But I threw it out and ordered Chinese."
Jace was up immediately. "Absolutely famished. Great job, Iz. Is there mu shu pork? I love some mu shu pork."
Izzy said yes, it was in the kitchen.
"Did you happen to order wanton soup?" Eliza asked her.
Jace walked by Izzy, ruffling her hair. Hodge followed, patting her softly on the shoulder. Izzy rolled her eyes at them and looked back at Eliza. "With a healthy side of fried rice and orange chicken." Izzy reported.
"A true angel." Eliza sighed.
Izzy rolled her eyes again and the three girls set off to the kitchen.
The dining table was full of life. Alec and Izzy fighting over noodles, Jace sneaking bits of pork from Alec's plate as he argued with his sister, Hodge eating peacefully.
The two new additions, Eliza liked to watch them as she fed Church bits of her chicken. Simon stared intently at Isabelle, his eyes adoring. Clary tossed her noodles around on her plates.
"It's romantic, if you think about it." Isabelle sighed, a few tapioca pearls getting jammed in her straw. Simon sat straighter, asking what she was talking about. "Everything with Clary's mom and Valentine, of course." Her dark eyes got that dreamy look in them. "She was the first thing he went looking for when he came back. He obviously wants to patch things up."
Eliza stared at Izzy, an incredulous look on her face. Alec spoke before she got the chance to. He was always deadpan with his sister, never leaving much to the imagination with her. "Iz. I really doubt that he wants to patch things up with her. He sent a Ravener after her."
Jace agreed with him. "I would have sent flowers and candy, then an apology letter. And if that didn't work, then I'd send the demon in."
Eliza rolled her eyes at his statement. Of course Jace would say something so…Jace.
"Well, we don't know that he didn't send her all those things." Izzy stated.
Eliza put her fork down loudly. "You're being a little insensitive, Isabelle." Her green eyes were dark. "Clary's mother was just abducted by Valentine and you're making light of the situation by romanticizing it." Izzy clamped her mouth shut. "We also shouldn't give off false hope. Valentine Morgenstern is a terrible person. He brought tragedy and destruction on our world and he flooded the streets of the Glass City with blood. He is the reason my parents didn't want to be Shadowhunters any longer. But yes, let's imagine that he's sent Clary's mother flowers and candy and letters claiming apology and undying love."
Izzy looked away from the table entirely. Eliza's eyes were dark, and she looked down at her food.
"What sort of army would he be building?" Clary asked, breaking the tense silence.
When Eliza looked back up, her eyes were green again. "Children, most likely." Hodge answered. "The Cup would only turn mundane children into Shadowhunters. If used on adults, it wouldn't work, or they would die. And once the children are old enough, he would use them to attack the Clave and finish what he started fifteen years ago." Alec asked how Hodge knew that Valentine would do that. "That was his plan all along. That was his ideal force to defend the Shadow World."
Izzy's face went pale. "He wanted to kill children." Her voice was soft and quiet, like she wasn't sure of the gravity of the situation.
"A sacrifice he was more than willing to make. He would have sacrificed his own children, his own son, his own daughter, if he had to." Hodge said.
"Excuse me." Eliza called to Hodge. "He had children?"
Hodge's mouth puckered. "No. I'm being theoretical." He told her plainly. "According to Valentine, we had always made sure the world was safe for the mundanes and it was time for them to repay us. Even if it meant the sacrifice of their children."
Jace's face was flushed. Clary looked as if she were going to be sick.
"Valentine was nothing more than a man gone insane." Eliza spoke. "He sought to purify the world, but with slaughter."
Hodge's hands shook as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. "When Valentine's family home, the Fairchild manor, was destroyed, it burned to the ground. Everyone assumed the plausible: Valentine had burned and the Cup with him to escape the hands of the Clave. They found his bones in the ashes of the ruins." Hodge explained to them. "The Clave will want to find the Cup. They will most want to find it before Valentine does."
Jace pushed his food away and crossed his arms over the table. "Okay. First things first: we find Clary's mom. If we find her, we find the Cup."
Hodge said no immediately. "We are not going to the do anything. I'm going to write to the Clave and explain the situation. And you are going to do nothing. This matter shall be left to experienced and skilled Shadowhunters." Jace argued that he was experienced and skilled, so he should be doing something, anything. "Jace, you are a child." Hodge told him. "There is nothing you can do."
Alec agreed with Hodge. He had a sympathetic look for Jace as he looked at his parabatai. "Jace you're one of the best Shadowhunters of our age, maybe the best if Eliza will let you take the title. But Valentine is dangerous. He's good at what he does. He-."
Eliza cut into the conversation. "Valentine Morgenstern is one of the best Shadowhunters that has ever lived. My parents told me. My father said that Valentine had been charismatic and extremely skilled. It took an army of Shadowhunters and Downworlders to bring him to his knees. I wholeheartedly agree with Hodge on this. It's too dangerous for any of us to do anything about."
Hodge beamed at her like she was his pride and joy. "And it isn't like you've done nothing. We wouldn't have this information without you, Jace. I shall write to the Clave tonight. They could have an army of Shadowhunters here by tomorrow night."
Jace mumbled that he didn't like this. He wanted to do more. Alec turned to him, blue eyes fiery. "You want to do more?" Alec echoed his words. "Shut up. That's more than enough."
"And what about my mom?" Clary's voice was fierce. "Valentine has her right now. She can't wait."
Eliza looked away from the table. Clary's mother couldn't wait. She remembered her mother whenever she got that faraway look in her eyes, remembering her younger brother. Eliza hated the story. The way her mother told it, Eliza could perfectly envision everything in her mind.
Henry Ravenscar had been impressionable and easily persuaded. His older sister Seraphina was quiet and reserved, everything he wasn't. Valentine approached Henry and asked for his membership to the Circle. Henry was in awe that Valentine had approached him, gone to him. All Henry had to do was say yes. And he did. To keep an eye on him, Seraphina had joined the Circle as well, dragging her husband in with her. Valentine's illusions and lies hadn't fooled them, but he had sucked Henry right in.
Before the Uprising, Seraphina had tried to get Henry to leave the Circle, but he wouldn't do it. So, Seraphina and Oskar left without him. Henry died during the Uprising, trying to defend Valentine as he ran away from the fight.
"We know where to look." Jace's voice cut through her thoughts.
"We do?" Hodge asked, interest piqued.
Jace nodded. "Everything we could want to possibly know is inside Clary's head. I say we give the Silent Brothers a call. They can retrieve Clary's memories."
Izzy's nose crinkled. "You hate them, Jace."
Eliza had never encountered a Silent Brother and she didn't think that she wanted to. Her brother had met one while in London, Brother Zachariah. He told her in his letters about how eerie he had felt around the Silent Brother. She wasn't sure she wanted to feel that way at all.
"I do not. They give me the creeps." Jace countered Izzy.
Clary asked who the Silent Brothers really were. "Our archivists." Hodge told her. His voice was tight and a little weary. "They Mark themselves with our most powerful runes. The runes do, in fact, warp their bodies. But the Silent Brothers have powerful minds."
"They poke through your mind, go through every thought you've ever had." Eliza said. "If my brother hadn't been so set on being the best warrior the Nephilim had ever seen, he would have been a Silent Brother. They enthralled him."
"Wait. You want to give me to a bunch of self-mutilating librarians, so they can go through my mind?" Clary asked.
Jace shrugged. "To help you. We need to know what you know. Even if you don't know you know it. Besides, you should want to know about who you really are." He looked pointedly at Eliza.
Clary looked meekly at him. "I don't know." She said quietly.
He said he'd go with her. "I think that's enough." Simon told Jace.
Alec's eyes slid over to Simon, looking as if he had just realized he was there.
Eliza stood up, everyone looking at her. "Are you alright?" Jace asked, beginning to stand. "You don't look well."
Her green eyes narrowed. "Because every girl wants to hear that, thank you." She snapped at him. She looked at Hodge, her eyes a little softer. "I'm going to go lie down." She turned to Izzy, a sweet look on her face. "Dinner was lovely, Isabelle. Thank you." Izzy nodded once, a half smile on her face.
Eliza excused herself from the table and left the room in a hurry. She hurried to her room, slamming the door behind her.
She sat down on her bed, her fingers tight around the blanket. She barely heard the door open and close.
"Liz, you okay?" Alec's voice was quiet, the way Church was when he snuck into her room to sleep at night.
She looked over at Alec. His black hair fell in his face slightly, but not enough to cover his bright blue eyes. Alec was a hairsbreadth taller than Jace, but a whole lot calmer.
Eliza smiled slightly. "I'm fine. Just tired." She lied. When had lying come so easily to her?
Alec frowned at her and sat down next to her. "Don't lie, Liz. What's going on?"
She pursed her lips and then sighed heavily. "Aren't you getting annoyed with the way Jace acts with Clary?" She asked. Alec looked at her with bewildered eyes. He stumbled over his words, never really getting them out. "Alec." She said softly. "I see what others don't sometimes. That means…I see the way you look at him. And I think it's the way that I look at him as well."
Alec said nothing, his lips in a hard line. She waited for him to speak and he never did.
"He's like the sun, isn't he?" She spoke again. "He's bright, he's always bright. But if you get too close, if you try to look at him too closely, he burns you. I feel as if I've done something to lose him, but maybe I never really had him."
He nodded solemnly. "It's how I felt when you got here." He admitted quietly. Her green eyes widened as she took in what he said. He stood up. "I won't tell if you won't." He said to her.
She mimed locking her lips and throwing away the key. "Alec, there's something else." She said before he left.
He paused. "What is it?"
"I want him dead. Valentine. He ruined so many lives and he's the reason my family is gone. I want to kill him."
Alec's face softened. "No one would blame you if you did."
She shook her head ruefully. "Yes, I think so. There are so many more people who he's hurt more than me. Someone who he's really done wrong, someone who he's destroyed from the inside out, they should be the one to kill him."
"They may not have the guts. What if you do? What if you have it in you?"
Her jaw set and her eyes darkened. "Then I suppose I'll take the honors and do right by the world."
Alec said nothing before he left the room.
Jace's hands were soft as they ran through her hair. The colors of the flowers in the greenhouse seemed brighter than ever, more alive than ever.
"What are you thinking?" His voice was like a melody that washed over her, drowning her.
She looked up at him, her head in his lap. Her pink lips spread into a wide smile. "Just that I love you." His tawny eyes flickered. But he didn't say it back. "Jace?" She whispered.
He was looking away from her, out of the greenhouse to the stairs. He stood up, leaving her in the floor and ran out of the greenhouse.
"Jace!" Eliza called, rushing to her feet. She ran out of the greenhouse, her fingers brushing against the morning glories.
Her pale hair blew softly behind her as she walked through the desolate halls of the Institute. Melancholy music filled the hallways.
The music room.
She could recognize Jace's pensive piano playing anywhere. She rushed to the music room. The curtains flew in the wind, billowing around the room like ghosts.
"Jace?" She whispered as she stepped into the room.
The man at the piano stood up. He was tall and broad-shouldered; his hair was a pale shimmer in the moonlight. His eyes gleamed darkly.
"Eliza, I've been waiting for you." She realized when he spoke that it was not Jace at all.
The man was much older than Jace, more muscular. "Who are you?" She asked quietly.
A boy stepped from the shadows. His hair pale and his eyes dark. "Father, she doesn't remember us." His voice was anything but kind. There was a hollowness to him, a void empty of emotion.
The man stepped towards her and she stumbled backwards. "Where's Jace? What have you done with him?"
The man chuckled deeply. "The boy is fine. You should be more concerned about yourself, seeing as how you've made a terrible mistake."
Her head swam in a sea of confusion. What the hell was going on? "Who are you? Tell me who you are, or I'll scream."
The boy laughed and suddenly, he was behind her. His hands were gripping her shoulders. "Oh, my little sister. You'll scream, but no one will hear you." The grin on his face was malicious.
This was not her brother. Not her Jonathan. Her Jonathan was sweet and mild-tempered, with beautiful brown curls of hair that reached his shoulders and the same caramel eyes as their uncle.
"You aren't my brother. You aren't Jonathan." She whispered, trying to step away from him but he held her in place firmly.
He grinned madly at her. "Yes, I am. Soon enough, you'll remember. You'll remember the truth and what you've done."
The man stood in front of them. His dark gaze stared right into her. "My dear Eliza, you have no idea what you've done." He murmured to her. "The mess you've created. The pain you've caused. But soon, you will know, and you will pay for your betrayal. And I believe I'll start with those friends of yours. The Lightwood children, perhaps?"
She shook her head furiously, her hair whipping around her face. "No. No, please don't hurt them. Please don't hurt anyone." She begged. "I'll do anything, I swear. My family has money, plenty of money. You can have it, all of it. Please just don't hurt my friends."
He smacked her, the force sending her backwards as the boy let her go. She fell against the hard floor, clutching her face. "I don't want your pretend money, you stupid girl. I want payment for your betrayal and if it comes at the lives of your little friends, then so be it. Even if it means hurting Jace."
Jace. Where was Jace?
"Where is he? What have you done with him?" She was on her feet in an instant.
His maniacal laughter filled the room, resonating off the walls. It filled her with a cold, made her legs feel like stone. Frozen with fear.
"He'll never forgive you, Eliza. None of them will. In saving them, you lost them. Now, say goodbye."
Her scream cut through the room.
"Liz! Liz, wake up!"
Her eyes shot open. Alec was leaning over her, his hands on her shoulders firmly. "Get off!" She shouted, shoving him back.
He hit the wall with a thud and stared back at her. "You were screaming bloody murder." He told her.
Her chest heaved as she sat up. She ran her hands through her hair, which was sticky and wet with sweat. She looked at Alec, her hands shaking. "It was a bad dream. I'm sorry I shoved you."
He shook his head and said it was no big deal. "What was it? Your dream. It helps to talk about them."
He sat down on the bed next to her. "I'm not going to bother you with my nightmares, Alec." She told him. "I'll be fine."
But she wanted to tell him. Or tell someone, at least. Someone had to know.
"When I was younger, I used to have really bad night terrors. I never talked about them because I didn't want anyone to know. My mom made me talk about them because it got so bad at night, I was scaring Izzy. It helped and eventually, they went away."
She bit down on her lip. "That's very kind of you to offer a listening ear, Alec. But it was just a bad dream." She replaced her weary expression with a thankful smile. "Where's Jace?"
Alec frowned at her. "The Bone City. With Clary. They left a little after five this morning." She asked what time it was, throwing the blanket off her body. "Almost seven. Will you make breakfast before Izzy wakes up and takes the task herself? I'd enjoy something edible for my first meal of the day." He cracked a dry smile at her.
She smiled at him back. "One day, Isabelle is going to poison all of you if you keep insulting her cooking skills. She may not be the best, but at least she tries." Alec gave her a withering look. "Let me shower. I'm feeling pancakes." She folded.
Alec gave her a grateful look and left her room.
She got ready quickly, showering and brushing her teeth. She dressed herself in jeans and a white v-neck tee shirt and only socks on her feet. She looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair fell down her shoulders in soft waves. She frowned and twisted it into two braids.
She made her way to the kitchen. Church was lying in front of the fridge, staring at her. Waiting for his own breakfast.
"Spoiled little beast." She mumbled. She got the cat food from the pantry and poured some in his food bowl and then refilled his water bowl. He seemed to glare at her. "I'll give you some sausage and bacon once it's cooked." She told him.
He meowed in response and went to eating his food. She shook her head and went to work. She gathered all the ingredients and set them on the counter, turning the stove on after. She grabbed four pans and put them on the burners. Two for pancakes, one for the meat and one for eggs.
"Don't cook. We're going out for breakfast." Alec appeared in the kitchen. She looked back at him, eyes narrow. "Jace called. Said to meet him at Taki's."
She groaned loudly. Alec helped her put the things away and turn the stove off. Church pawed at her ankles. "Another time, little beast. I'll make you a marvelous meal another time." She bent down and scratched the top of his head. "I suppose I'll need shoes. Give me a few minutes and maybe go wake Isabelle."
Alec's mouth tightened, and he left her. She went back to her room and changed into darker jeans and her boots. She grabbed her stele from her desk and shoved it in her pocket.
She met Alec at the front door of the Institute. "Where's Izzy?" She asked.
He shrugged. "The mundane is with her. She said they'd meet us there."
They met Jace and Clary at Taki's. The two were waiting outside on them. "You called right on time. Liz was about to make breakfast." Alec told Jace.
"Probably would have been better than whatever they serve here." Eliza muttered.
Jace cracked a grin at her. "Is it the food or the waitress?" He asked her.
"That faerie whore-." She stopped herself. "I don't like her attitude." She refrained from saying something much worse.
Jace rolled his eyes. "Let's go inside. I'm dying for mouse tails."
Clary's green eyes widened. He said he was kidding and they went inside. Eliza caught the way Clary stared at Clancy as they walked by him to go inside. She nudged Eliza with her elbow.
"Who was that?" She whispered.
Eliza glanced down at her. "Clancy. He's kind of like a bodyguard. Keeps out people who shouldn't come in." They followed Jace to a booth and sat down.
"He's a demon, though." Clary whispered loudly.
The couple at the table next to them turned to look at them. Jace said no sharply. Alec and Jace sat on one side of the booth and Eliza and Clary on the other. "Clancy's an ifrit. A warlock without magic." Jace explained.
Alec began looking at his menu and Clary picked hers up in suit. "Don't even look at the faerie food." Eliza told her. "It makes you a bit…wild." Her eyes glinted darkly. Jace asked for coffee in a loud voice, interrupting Alec's crazy story about something they had done before Eliza arrived in May. "The human food is on the back." She told Clary quietly.
Isabelle arrived, Simon at her side. She suggested the apricot and plum smoothie to Clary. "Well, neither of us are going to sit with the boys." Izzy sighed.
Eliza rolled her eyes and got up. "Move over." She told Alec. He scooted closer to Jace and she sat next to him. "What are you getting?" She asked him.
He shrugged, immersing himself in the menu again. Izzy smelled faintly of vanilla. "Well, did you figure anything out?" Izzy asked, opening her menu. "Tell me you found something interesting."
"Yeah." Jace told her. He looked over at Eliza. "There's a block on Clary's mind. We got a name. Magnus Bane. Sound familiar to you?" There was a knowing glint in his eyes. Alec hit Jace lightly with his menu and told him to speak discreetly.
"As in, my Magnus?" She asked him. He nodded, smiling tightly.
She vaguely remembered telling them that Magnus had gotten her away from some werewolves one night and that he took an interest in her. "Unless there's another one."
"Your Magnus? What does that mean?" Clary asked her.
Eliza flipped absentmindedly through her menu. Once she was finished, she looked at Clary. "Magnus Bane, the High Warlock of Brooklyn. Mine, as in I know him relatively well. He's my best friend." She explained.
Their waitress finally arrived. Eliza sucked on her teeth, refraining from saying something nasty to the fey girl in front of them.
She didn't like Kaelie, not in the least. And Kaelie didn't like her either. Her blue eyes narrowed as they skirted over Eliza, but she gave Jace a glittering smile. "You guys know what you want?" She asked sweetly.
Jace grinned back at her. Eliza felt like she was going to be sick. "The usual for me." Alec said he'd also get his usual and Eliza said the same thing. Izzy ordered a smoothie, Simon a coffee and Clary asked for a coffee with coconut pancakes.
"What is she?" Clary asked them.
"A faerie. A slutty one, but a faerie." Eliza said, her voice as sharp as one of her throwing knives. Alec whistled lowly.
"Definitely part fey." Jace agreed.
"But she has nixie eyes." Izzy cut in.
Jace nudged at Alec. "Can I get out for a second?" He asked. Eliza stood up, a dangerous look on her face. Alec was scowling as Jace walked past them. The two of them sat back down, Eliza's eyes trained on her menu.
Eliza let herself glance back at Jace. He had his arm around Kaelie, the fey girl snuggled close to him.
"He shouldn't tease her like that." Isabelle said in a soft voice.
Jace's gaze caught Eliza's and she whipped back around. "You don't think he likes her?" Eliza asked quietly.
Izzy gave her a sympathetic look. "No. She's a Downworlder."
Clary said she was confused and Izzy launched into an explanation about Downworlders to her. At the end, Clary had a hard look on her face. "So, they're good enough to be of service to you, but once they've served a purpose, they aren't good enough to be people in your eyes?" Clary asked.
"They're fine. They're just different from people." Alec said to her.
Jace slid back into the booth, saddling himself next to Eliza. His golden blond curls were tousled and there was a lipstick mark on his cheek.
Kaelie arrived moments later with their food. She distributed it and left, winking at Jace.
Clary dug into her pancakes and Jace began picking at his fries.
"Speaking of Downworlders…" Isabelle dug around in her pockets and produced a piece of paper. "Look."
Jace took the paper. "Oh. An invite to a party in Brooklyn. Where'd you get this from, Isabelle?" She told him she got it from a kelpie at Pandemonium.
Eliza snatched the piece of paper from Jace. Her eyes scanned over it. It was in fact an invitation to a party in Brooklyn. Magnus' party.
"Well?" Jace asked her.
She crumpled the paper and handed it back to him without looking at him. "It's Magnus' handwriting."
Alec groaned. "So, we're going." He said.
Jace shrugged. "It'd be interesting, to say the least. Besides, why is the High Warlock of Brooklyn's name inside Clary's head?" He looked at Eliza. The lipstick stain on his cheek was burned inside her mind. "Is everything okay, Liz?"
"I'm going to be sick." She murmured. "Please let me out of the booth."
Jace stood up and let her pass. She covered her mouth and started walking.
"What's wrong with her?" She heard him ask.
"You're being stupid, Jace. You know exactly what's wrong with her and maybe if you'd stop flirting with our waitress, Eliza might talk to you about what's going on with her." Alec's voice was venomous.
"What exactly is going on with her, Alec? What do you know that I don't?" Jace bit back.
"Ask her yourself, jackass." Alec replied easily. "She's in love with you. She'll tell you whatever you want to know if you ask nice enough."
She bit down on her lip and walked out of the diner.