A/N: To everyone reading this chapter, I just wanna say THANK YOU for sticking with the story! Thank you for all the follows and faves, you have NO IDEA how much this means to me! And I know things are not looking so good for Malec right now, but trust me, the journey they're going through, IT WILL BE WORTH IT IN THE END!

Chapter 7: No Hope for the Wicked

Valentine's Shadowhunters were packing. Jace didn't understand why though – they'd just arrived a day ago. Why were they moving again?

He stepped in front of Valentine just as he finished a phone call.

"Where are we going?" Jace asked looking Valentine right in the eye.

"Our plans just accelerated," Valentine said and tried to step away, but Jace didn't let him. He blocked Valentine firmly with his arm and looked at him with what he hoped to be an intimidating look.

"What plans? You've gotta start telling me things. I'm not going to follow you around blindly forever. Where are we going and why? I want answers," He demanded.

It had only been three days, but he was so tired of Valentine hiding everything from him. He thought his father would start sharing things with him at this point, since he wanted him on his side. Jace felt useless and completely disposable. He hated feeling that way, especially around his father – for whom he still had some hope.

"Well…" Valentine said as he looked up at something behind Jace and smiled. "This might just be your lucky day, Jonathan."

Jace turned around confused and what he saw nearly made him faint. Alec approached them escorted by three of Valentine's shadowhunters, two on his sides and one behind him. He didn't seem hurt, which was a relief, but Jace's gut still twitched in despair.

"Alec?" He asked in complete shock.

"Jace!" He saw a smile light up on Alec's face as he ran to his parabatai and squeezed him into a hug. Jace's state of shock didn't allow him to hug back. After a few seconds, Jace finally recovered some of his senses and pushed Alec away.

"What are you doing here?" he asked fearfully.

"I got your text," Alec said too calmly for Jace's taste.

"My text? I didn't send you any texts." Jace shook his head.

"Yeah, I figured that out." Alec took a step back and looked away to observe the shadowhunters around them.

Jace glared at Valentine, who was watching them as someone would watch an interesting play.

"Alec, that text was a trap," he said turning back to Alec.

"Yeah, I know." Alec didn't show the slightest sign of surprise which made Jace panic even more.

"Wait, you knew it was a trap and you just walked into it anyway?" He couldn't believe this. Surely Alec wouldn't do something so stupid… It couldn't be. But his guilty face said otherwise. "What the hell were you thinking!?" he lashed out.

"I… wanted to see you," Alec said awkwardly. Clearly he wasn't expecting Jace to react that way.

Oh, God…. Please, tell me this is just a nightmare. Jace wasn't expecting this behaviour from his parabatai. He couldn't breathe for a couple of seconds and closed his eyes to avoid facing Alec's guilty look. He couldn't believe this was happening. Alec just made things easier for Valentine. Jace felt like the floor was slowly disappearing from under his feet.

"Dammit, Alec! You really should have stayed put!" That was all he could say. He finally faced Alec, but couldn't read him properly. His parabatai looked confused and… maybe a bit disappointed too.

"Why? I don't get it." Then turning to Valentine he added "What do you want from me? Don't you have enough shadowhunters to fight for you? You can't make me do that."

Valentine stepped forward between them and faced Alec. Everyone could feel the tension forming between them.

"Yes, I do have enough shadowhunters for now," Valentine said. "That's not why I need you. In fact, I don't need you at all. But you're going to help me get what I want."

"And that would be…" Alec said uninterested.

"Magnus Bane." Valentine stuck those words on Alec like sticking a knife right in his heart.

It took a few seconds for those words to sink in. By the look on Alec's face it was clear that this possibility haven't even crossed his mind.

"What?" he asked unbelieving and felt his body freeze.

"He wants to kill Magnus, Alec," Jace said as calmly as possible. He wouldn't allow Valentine to make this harder than it already was.

"And you will help me lure him out," Valentine added with a satisfied smile that made Jace want to break his face.

Alec switched looks between Valentine and Alec, like he was waiting for one of them to say it was all a lie. He desperately needed this to be a lie. He stared at Jace for reassurance, but all he could see in his brother's eyes was fear and pity. Alec understood why Jace was so angry at him showing up and understood that his parabatai couldn't help him out this time.

Alec tried to think of something useful. He couldn't just let Valentine succeed at this. He wouldn't put Magnus in danger. He couldn't let his nightmare come true.

"Umm… and you think he's gonna come rescue me because… because… why exactly?" he asked Valentine.

"I know he'd shown some clear signs of affection for you at your own wedding. Do you deny that?" Valentine watched Alec intensely.

"What, that?" Alec saw an opportunity there. "Oh no, come on… You think that meant something?" He tried to sound as convincing as he could, but Jace's desperate expression wasn't helping him, so he forced himself to face Valentine.

"Magnus Bane… he doesn't care about me. It's all just a big game for him." He emphasized his word with a careless shrug. "Everyone knows he's a big drama queen, he just loves to show up where he doesn't belong and make a scene." Despite saying those words Alec knew they weren't true. This was definitely not just a game for Magnus, Alec knew by remembering the way he kissed him. "Your plan is not going to work. He won't risk his life for me," He added and stared back at Valentine.

But as Alec said that, another memory from before the wedding hit him. Remembering Magnus's words after he got injured by the Foresaken attack to the Institute – If anything were to happen to you… and that beautiful face full of concern made Alec lose his breath.

No. Please, Magnus just don't. He prayed silently as Valentine took a step forward to him.

"Not even you believe that, son," He said that in a nice-try-but-you-can't-fool-me way.

Realizing that they were losing the battle, Jace walked to Valentine determined to save his best friend.

"Look, I know things are not exactly fine between us and I can work on that. Just please, let Alec go." Jace still had hope for his father. He didn't want to give up on him, he wanted this relationship to work. Valentine did raise him after all. Maybe they were supposed to be together, work together. Maybe Jace could show Valentine that he didn't have to go through with this senseless war. He wanted him to be a better man, someone he could proudly call his father. He was placing all his faith in him as he tried to persuade him to free Alec.

Valentine looked slightly interested in what Jace had to say, which gave him a bit more courage.

"I will do whatever you want," he continued. "You want me to fight by your side against the Clave? I will do that. I will help you destroy them without questioning you, I promise. I will do anything. Just don't hurt Alec. I'm begging you, father. Just let him go," He said desperately.

He meant every word. He would do anything for Alec – even sell his soul to the Devil if he had to. This was the first time Jace called Valentine his father and he hoped it would touch him enough to honor his wish. Jace hoped it would make him realize how much he's counting on him, how much he wants to believe in him. All Jace could do now was hope for the best.

Both Valentine and Alec rested their eyes on him for a long time before anyone spoke again. Alec was surprised by Jace's declaration. He was grateful for his words, he knew he meant them, because he would have done the same thing for Jace. But he also felt a hint of guilt on his shoulders; he didn't want his parabatai to turn into something he's not because of him. He hated how this situation was going. He looked at Valentine nervously.

"I'm impressed, Jonathan," Valentine said finally. "I am truly touched by your love for your parabatai." He was genuinely surprised by it, actually. "But I can't allow you or anyone else to ruin my plans." He shook his head.

"Even if Magnus did come here, don't think he and the entire New York Institute will come without a plan! I guarantee you they will find a way to end you." Jace wasn't going to just give up like that.

"I'm sure they would. If only they had the time to plan it," Valentine said and took something out of his pocket as he took a step to Alec, who was paying attention to Jace and didn't see him point a syringe filled with a dark liquid towards him. By the time he and Jace realized what he was doing it was too late.

It happened so fast. One second Valentine was just responding to Jace and the next he was sticking the syringe in Alec's neck. Alec had no time to react. Valentine injected the liquid into his neck before Jace could jump there.

"NO!" Jace yelled and ran to Alec just in time to catch him. Jace laid him on the floor, knelt down next to him and gently held his face. Alec was unconscious.
"Alec… Alec, wake up." Jace called him repeatedly, but it was pointless.
"What did you do to him?!" he yelled at Valentine at the top of his lungs. His words echoed through the almost empty warehouse. He hated Valentine so much in this moment like he never hated anyone before. And he didn't even realize that tears were falling down his cheek.

"A little demon blood," Valentine said so casually as if Jace asked him what time it was. "He's not dead, don't worry. At least not yet. It wasn't a pure sample of demon blood. So it will react slowly. Now, I have an antidote." As he said that he took out a glass tube containing a brown liquid from his jacket. "I will give him this, if you get me Magnus Bane. But you should hurry, I don't think he will make it for more than 24 hours… And that's my best guess," he said and put the antidote back in his pocket.

"What!? You guess!?" Jace asked wrathfully.

"Well, I never tested this on a shadowhunter before, so I can't really be sure."

"You're sick!" Jace said still holding onto Alec. Tears didn't stop falling from his eyes. "You don't care about anyone. Not even your own son. You deserve to go to hell!"

He finally understood. Valentine was a psychopath. He didn't care about people at all. He could poison you as easily as calling you his son. And if he could do this to his own son, if he could betray and hurt him like that then Jace didn't even want to imagine what he could do to others. There was no hope for him. He saw that clearly now.

"I wouldn't waste any more time if I were you. Go. Hurry. And don't come back without the warlock."

Jace was panting. He looked up at Valentine heartbroken. He laid down Alec's head on the floor and kissed his forehead. I'm coming back for you, brother, he thought and stood up. He gave Valentine one final glare before running out of the warehouse.

A/N: Thanks for reading! :D Hope you're enjoying the story so far. Reviews are always welcome! ^.^