Alec never left Magnus's side, and the nurse barely did either, for those first few hours. Alec was glad that his boyfriend finally got to rest, and was a little annoyed that the nurse kept on poking and prodding at him, worried she would wake him up.

The nurse suddenly stiffened, then looked to Alec with a worried look.

"Mr. Lightwood… could you tell me exactly what happened to Mr. Bane?"

Alec just looked at her. "I don't want to talk about it, but… what do you need to know?"

"Was he raped?" she whispered.

Alec breathed in. "You can tell?"

"There is tearing, blood, and traces of semen. He'll need stitches."

Alec let his breath out and wiped a hand over his face. "Yeah, it was… it was bad." He didn't want to think about it.. Why was this woman making him think about it?

"I'm sorry," she said. "I'm sorry you had to go through that."

"Don't. Just don't. Take care of him and leave."

She pursed her lips, stitched him up, and complied.

Magnus was laying on his back when he finally woke up hours later. He opened his eyes slowly and let out a small noise Alec couldn't describe. He was out of his chair immediately, touching Magnus's arm.

He flinched away violently.

"Magnus," Alec said softly. "Magnus, it's just me."

But he must have been delirious, Alec thought, because he recoiled from Alec's hand.

"Leave me alone. Go away."

"Magnus, what's wrong?"

"Everything is wrong, Alec!" and Alec knew that Magnus was not, in fact, delirious. "I don't want you here. I said leave me alone."

"Why? Where is this coming from? We're out of there! We got free, you should be happy."

"Happy? Happy that I was tortured and raped? Or happy that you picked Jace over me?"

Magnus might as well have slapped him. "Magnus, you know I couldn't have just let Jace walk into Valentine's trap-"

"But you did! Eventually you did, you just waited until I was at my weakest before you did anything."

The guilt weighed on Alec's shoulders. This was all because of him. He might as well have tortured Magnus himself.

Letting Jace track him could have ended with Jace being killed in the battle, but Magnus was right. He should have had faith that Jace could handle himself and done something sooner.

"Magnus, Jace is my parabatai." He was trying to explain himself.

"And I was your boyfriend."

"...Was?"

"If you don't leave in the next five seconds I will scream and have you dragged out of here."

There was a lump in Alec's throat as he nodded and left the room for the first time since they got there.

Magnus didn't want him anymore, and he was right to feel that way. Would they ever get past this? He didn't know.

He was on his way to his room when he ran right into Jace.

"There you are," he said. "I was just about to come see you and Magnus. How is he?"

Alec sighed and shook his head. "He hates me. He should. I picked you over him, and he won't even let me be in the same room as him now."

Jace shifted his feet and crossed his arms. "Why didn't you let me track you sooner? I could have helped you, both of you."

"I thought I was protecting you and Clary. You could have died in that battle and if you did, that would be on me too."

Jace nodded, then smiled. "Killed Valentine, though."

Alec let himself smile a little, too. "Yeah, nice work. You should be proud. You saved a lot of people."

"Hey, when was the last time you slept?"

"I don't know. A day before we were captured, maybe? I should probably get a few hours in."

"Do you want me to go talk to Magnus?"

"God, no. If he won't even look at me, I don't know what he would do around you."

"Good point. Get some sleep." He patted Alec on the shoulder and went in his own direction. Alec went to his room.

As he closed his eyes, he wondered again if Magnus would ever forgive him.

Patrick couldn't believe what was happening. This wasn't how things were supposed to go, they were supposed to win, damn it. Now Valentine was dead and there was no one to lead the Circle.

Unless he stepped up before someone else did.

He drove across state after state without rest. He had to get to the hideout, it was the only place he would be safe from those damn Shadowhunters. The younger Warlock he and Valentine had in their custody for months was the one who put the wards up around the lair. No one would find him there.

He underestimated Isabelle Lightwood.

There was no one at the lair when he arrived, which was understandable as their leader had just been killed and there was no order. He would have to fix that.

He didn't know what to do with himself. Without Valentine telling him what to do and with his new toys having been rescued….

The first thing he decided to do was sleep.

Which turned out to be a mistake because it meant letting his guard down. He didn't think anyone would find him there, but he was wrong.

He woke to a sharp pain across his chest and sat up with a cry in his throat.

"I heard you like whips," said a female voice. It was that Lightwood girl.

He stood up from the bed to face her. This would be easy.

"How did you find me?" he asked.

"A little Warlock told me. You know, the one you abused for months. He led me here, and took down the wards for me."

That little bitch.

"I suppose you're here because you want revenge?"

"Alec does, and I'll leave it to him. All I have to do it get you to the Institute alive." She smirked at Patrick's disbelieving face.

"They sent a little girl to capture me?" he laughed.

"Yes."

Isabelle lifted her whip again, this time lashing it across Patrick's face, which only made him angrier as it swelled an bled. But he didn't have a weapon, to his disadvantage. He charged Isabelle, making to grab her throat.

She easily sidestepped him and brought the whip back down on his back. He growled in annoyance.

The next time she raised her weapon, Patrick was ready. He grabbed the whip before it could make contact with his skin. He pulled on the whip and Isabelle was forced onto her hands and knees. Patrick forcefully flipped her onto her back and wrapped his hands around her throat as he had tried to before. He squeezed as hard as he could and her face was turning blue before someone came to her aid.

Patrick was kicked in the side, so hard he was sure a rib was broken. He let go of Isabelle and fell half on top of her in pain.

"Are you alright, Isabelle?" It was that Warlock.

"I'm all right, Adrian." Her voice was sore and raspy, neck bruised. She pushed Patrick off of her.

Patrick tried to get up but with his injured side, he found it difficult. Before he could fully stand up, there were cuffs being placed around his wrists behind his back. He took his chance to headbutt Isabelle in the face as she stood behind him. She retaliated by giving him a matching bloody nose with her fist. He didn't fight back after that.

"Adrian, if you will."

The Warlock nodded and created a portal with a wave of his hands. Patrick could tell how weak the Warlock was by how dim it was.

Suddenly the three of them were back at the Institute, and Patrick felt the dread building inside him. He wondered where Isabelle's brother was. He knew he wouldn't be happy with him.

"Tell Alec we've got Patrick," Isabelle said to some Shadowhunter Patrick didn't know.

He was led through the Institute, through hall after hall, until they came to an elevator which they took to the lowest level where the holding cells were.

It was freezing cold.

Patrick was locked in the room. He sat on the cot and waited. And waited. He wondered how long Alec would take to show up for his revenge.

When he finally did, Patrick was almost glad. He was getting bored.

"Good to see you again, Alexander."

Alec went straight to business. "How do I remove the collar?"

Patrick let himself smile. "Oh, right. You need me. That must bother you."

"How do I remove it?"
"Only I can. You know that. But you also know that I would never do it willingly."

"Then I guess we'll have you do it unwillingly."

"It's not going to happen."

"Izzy."

Isabelle entered the room.

"Give me your whip."

She looked hesitant.

"If you give it to him," Patrick said to her, "you'll be making him into a monster. He'll be no better than I am."

She handed it to her brother. "Anyone is better than you."

"Take off your clothes," Alec demanded. Patrick knew what he was going. His Warlock had been undressed in the cold, so Patrick would be as well. He did as he was told.

Alec wasted no time. "I'm going to lash you until every inch of you is bleeding. Until even your mother wouldn't be able to recognize you. And when you beg me to stop, I won't. The only way you get out of this is if you agree to unlock the collar."

Patrick couldn't stop himself from shaking. He was scared. But he wasn't about to show it.

"Has he even forgiven you?" he asked. "Can he even stand to look at you, after what you did to him?"

"YOU did this to him, not me."

"I bet he doesn't see it that way. You could have saved him, and you didn't."

"Shut up."

"I don't see how you two are ever going to get past this, I really don't."

"I SAID SHUT UP!"

He lashed him once, then twice, then three times in succession. Patrick laughed through his pain.

"Does this make you feel better, Alexander?"

"Don't call me that."

It took fifteen more lashes before Patrick felt tears on his face.

"Look, Izzy, he's crying."

Despite his pain, Patrick said, "Well, it only took four before Magnus started."

Alec kicked his side over and over. If he thought he had a broken rib before, he knew he did now.

He coughed up blood.

"How does that taste?"

Patrick collapsed to the floor, gasping.

"Get up," Alec said.

Patrick didn't move.

"Get up!" He brought the whip up again.

"Stop! I'll unlock the collar."

"How do we do it? What do you need to open it?"

"Just my hand. My touch will be enough to unlock it."

"Just your hand?"

"Yes."

Without so much as a warning, Alec pulled out his blade and severed Patrick's right hand. He screamed and screamed and clutched his bleeding arm to his chest.

"Alec!"

"We just need his hand. And this works better, too, because I'm not about to let him in the same room as Magnus."

Alec was about to leave the room before Isabelle said, "Shouldn't we treat his wounds?"

"He never treated any on Magnus's."

And that was that.

The two of them left Patrick all alone, bleeding more than he ever had in his life, and he thought to himself that maybe it wasn't worth it.