CHAPTER SIX

Clary felt like she couldn't breathe. The cold air on her bare chest caused her nipples to bead up, so she quickly wrapped her arms around herself. Sebastian continued to lower himself down her body, taking her pants with him. If she weren't trying to keep her cool, she would be sobbing at that point, begging him to get off of her. Instead, she begged for death. She would have rather died than let Sebastian have his way with her.

She felt his finger tracing over the seam of her underwear. "You can't do this to me!" She exclaimed. "I'm your sister; you can't do this! Please, I'm not ready!"

She felt his hand stop in its track. "What do you mean you're not ready?" He asked her while she tried to push his hands away.

"I've never…" Clary whispered, unable to finish her sentence.

"Yes, you have, I know you have. Do not lie to me, Clary." Sebastian was very upset with her, although she knew that she was being honest.

"I'm not lying! Please, Sebastian, I'm not ready. Let me be ready, please. If you love me, you'll wait for me." Clary continued begging, hoping to strike any good nerve in Sebastian's body. It seemed to work, because he climbed off of her, allowing her to yank the comforter up and cover her almost nude body.

"Breakfast is ready. You will behave, or I will not restrain myself. Do you understand?" Sebastian told her. Clary nodded quickly, too afraid to speak. "Get dressed and meet me at the table." And with that, he left.

Clary allowed herself to calm down for a moment, but she knew that if she waited too long, then he may come back and not be as kind as he just was. Clary got herself dressed, took a deep breath, then opened her bedroom door. She saw Sebastian across the large room, sitting at the table with a book, a glass of juice, and a stick of pancakes. Clary took a deep breath and crossed the room, her eyes cast down on the floor. Upon arriving in the kitchen, she grabbed a glass and timidly poured herself some juice, then poured some fruit into a bowl and walked to the table. She couldn't bring herself to eat a pancake; she felt sick to her stomach, and the fruit alone may induce vomiting.

Clary wanted nothing more than to see Jace. Her heart yearned for him, but she was too afraid to speak, let alone ask to see her boyfriend.

As if Sebastian could read her mind, he cleared his throat. "Why don't you take Jace some breakfast?" He suggested.

Maybe he feels bad. Clary thought to herself. No, he isn't capable of that. She rebutted to herself. Despite that, the small girl hopped up on her feet and nodded, not able to bring herself to speak. Sebastian handed her the plate of pancakes and a bottle of water, then waved her off.

Clary's legs carried her out of the room as quickly as they could without breaking into a sprint. The door wasn't locked, so she pulled it open, revealing a bruised Jace with blood smeared across his face. A sob left her mouth.

"Clary!" Jace gasped, his body visibly relaxing. "Clary, baby, are you okay?" He asked as she approached him. The last time she saw him, Sebastian was kicking him relentlessly.

She dropped to her knees in front of him and placed the plate on the ground, followed by the bottle of water, then leaned against his chest, wrapping her arms as tightly as she could get them around his waist. Jace used his free arm to wrap around her shoulders and hold her close to him, allowing her to cry into his sweaty shirt.

"Are you okay?" Clary whimpered against his chest, repeating his question back to him. Obviously, she was okay. She was clean, she was fed, she was sleeping in a bed, where on the other hand, Jace had his own blood dried on his face and clothes and had been sleeping on the concrete alone.

"I'm fine, baby, I've just been so worried about you. He didn't tell me anything." Jace relayed to her. She could relax knowing that he was okay, but she was still unsettled.

Clary pulled back and looked into his eyes, then released him so she could gently rub her fingers over the bruises on his face. The tears brimmed in her eyes yet again, like they had at the sight of him. He looked so bad to her, which was something she would never say to him; his ego couldn't handle it.

"I don't want to be alone with him." Clary said softly, trying to silently indicate how scared she was to Jace.

"We're going to get out of here, okay? This isn't forever." Jace told her. His sweet words and calming voice were such a sweet gesture, but she knew that he couldn't promise anything to her, and she was beginning to believe that they wouldn't make it out of the house alive.

"Clarissa!" Sebastian called from the top of the stairs.

Clary jumped at the sound of his voice, then turned to look at Jace. "I love you. Please eat. And do what he wants." She told him, the leaned in to press a careful kiss to his busted lip, before standing up rushing out of the room.

Seeing Sebastian, now that she knew the damage he caused Jace, made her fume with anger. It took everything out of her to not shove into him and scream at him for being an awful person. Instead, she simply brushed past him and walked to her room.

Clary knew that Jace was just there as a tool to manipulate Clary. She began to ponder ways to get Jace out of the basement, and out of the house, even if she had to stay behind with Sebastian. She was prepared to die for Jace to live. Clary was at a point where she felt like death would have been better than Sebastian.

"What, Clary?" Sebastian asked from the other side of her door. "Do you want me to apologize for not knowing that you're a virgin?" He used the word like it was a curse.

"I just want to be alone." Clary replied loud enough for Sebastian to hear.

However, the door still opened. Clary sat up immediately, prepared to fight to keep her clothes on. Sebastian walked in and plopped onto the bed next to her. When Clary was younger, before she had Simon, she had wanted a brother. Now, the thought of having any relationship with Sebastian, her real brother, made her sick.

"I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable, sister." Sebastian said softly, letting his hand fall onto Clary's knee. "One day, you will be, and then I will treat you like my queen, just how I intend for you to be."

Clary scooted away from him, but his hand still gripped her knee. "I don't want to be your queen." Clary muttered, looking down in her lap. "I want to leave, and I want to marry Jace, and I want to have a long, happy life with him."

When Sebastian's grip tightened on her knee, she knew that she should have just kept her mouth shut. She turned to look at her brother through her curtain of red hair meekly, only to find him glaring at her with a harsh gaze.

"That is not an option for you, Clarissa. You will be my queen. If you so choose to have Jace around as a pet, I will allow it as long as you obey me, but you are mine." He retorted, then stood up and left her alone in the room.

Another few days passed of silence from Clary. She silently created the best plan to aid Jace's escape, using her free time to let her eyes wander around the house. She noticed that Sebastian carried a stele and a seraph blade, as well as a concealed dagger. Her original plan was to seduce her brother until she could get her hands on one of the weapons, but she realized that Sebastian was much stronger than her, so even if she did get ahead of his expectations, he could still overpower her before she got her a good grip on the weapon.

Another idea was for her to offer to prepare dinner and lace his food with something, but that would require too much time, and Clary was never left alone except when in her room. He may turn his back to her, but it wouldn't be enough privacy for her to rummage for any drugs. Shadowhunters didn't use drugs, anyways. Stupid thought, Clary.

While Clary spent most of her time thinking about Jace, she also let her mind wander towards her friends. Did Isabelle think that her and Jace ran off? Was anyone looking for them? How could she tell them that they weren't safe? Oh, and her mother. Her mother must be worried sick. She had held Clary when they got back to Alicante, begging her to never do that again. Yet, there Clary was, stuck in the same situation that she had just gotten out of. Alec. Alec would be pissed at Clary. Despite his attempts at getting along with her, he will always find a fault with her. She had already accepted that.

Wait. Clary perked up. Alec! A spark of hope lit in her chest. Alec and Jace were bonded, he was able to feel his physical pain. She hoped that Alec had felt the beating Jace received, no matter how awful the thought would have sounded out loud. Maybe that would clue their friends that they weren't safe.

With a new inspiration, Clary began to figure out a way she could communicate that she needed help to her friends.