Chapter 2

Alec stormed into his father's office. He was all wet and his breathing was still ragged from running, but he didn't care. He had run all the way from the docks to see his father and notify him of what had happened. The pirates had taken his brother and they had to act quickly. Alec knew that every second that passed was a second in which his brother's life was in danger.

"They took him, father!" He exclaimed. "The pirates took Jace!"

Robert looked up from the map he was analyzing. Alec knew that the Clave was already organizing some sort of counterattack expedition. They were going to hunt down whoever had attacked the city—that was how the Clave worked.

"What are you talking about? And, why are you all wet? Didn't I specifically ask you to fight just inside the mansion to protect your family? What were you doing? Taking a night swim?" Robert asked.

Alec tried hard not to roll his eyes. "I saw them, father. The pirates took Jace as a hostage. Valentine has Jace."

"Valentine Morgenstern is dead, Alec." His father said. Alec noticed how his father's face changed just with the mention of Valentine's name.

"No, he's not. I saw his ship, father."

"You saw his ship?" Robert asked doubtfully.

"Yes, tonight's attack was Valentine's work. I'm sure of it." Alec said, but his father didn't seem to believe him, or be interested in what he was saying for that matter. He was already refocusing his attention on the map spread out on his desk.

"Alec, I think you're confused."

"I'm not!" Alec exclaimed, losing his patience. He had been expecting his father to go all ballistic when he heard the news that the pirates, that Valentine's men of all people, had kidnapped his son. "I'm telling you! Those pirates took Jace!"

"How are you so sure?"

"Because I saw them! I already told you that. Aren't you listening to me?"

"Those pirates didn't take anybody." Robert said. "I'm sure you're just confused. As I already said, Valentine Morgenstern is dead, and Jace is probably just gathering the remaining members of the Guard. It's his job after all. We had a lot of casualties tonight."

"For heaven's sake, father! I'm not confused! I saw them! Why don't you want to believe me? They have Jace! We must do something! I don't know...alert the Guard, send some vessels, offer some rescue...gold, jewels."

"Alec, enough!" Robert snapped. "Go get some rest. I think the battle has worn you out. I will tell Jace to go to your room to see you as soon as he gets back.

Alec shouted in exasperation. He couldn't believe his own ears. His father was being either naive or stupid. Valentine had Jace and when he realized that Alec hadn't lied, it might be a little too late for his brother.

"Alec…" Robert said, pointing to the door.

"You're going to regret this." Alec stated, rolling his eyes, and just as he had entered, he stormed out of his useless-father's office, making sure to slam the door on his way out as a way to emphasize his anger.

"Is it true?" A voice asked.

"Jesus, Iz! You scared me!" Alec said. Apparently his sister had been eavesdropping the whole conversation because she had a look of concern on her face.

"Tell me, Alec, is it true?" She asked again. "Did you really see those pirates taking Jace?"

Alec nodded and Izzy covered her mouth with her hands as if to stifle a cry of anguish.

"What are you doing here, anyway? I asked you all to stay hidden until I personally let you out.

"You know mother, she grew impatient, but we're all fine. Max's sleeping in my room and mom went to hers to rest too. But tell me, was it really Valentine? Does that mean all the legends are true?"

"I don't know about the legends," Alec admitted, "but I know what I saw, Iz. It was a black ship with blue sails, it was the Blue Danube. It was Valentine. I'm sure of that."

"And, what are we going to do?"

"We?" Alec questioned. "No, Iz. There's no we in this situation. You are going to stay here to take care of Max and our mother."

"And you?" Izzy asked.

"I'm going to find our brother and bring him back." Alec said determined. He wasn't going to let a bunch of pirates to murder his brother for no reason.

"But how?"

"I'm going to ask for some help."

"Help...from whom? Father doesn't believe you and-"

"Don't worry about that, okay?" Alec interrupted her. "I already have a plan. You just stay safe, okay? Take care of Max and our mother, ask Simon to stay here in the house if you must. I'll be fine."

"Where are you going?"

"I already told you, to get Jace back."

Izzy immediately hugged him. "Please be careful."

"I will." Alec said, hugging her back. "And, Iz? If father asks about me, just tell him that I'm doing what he was supposed to be doing."

o-o-o-o-o

Magnus was in his cell just waiting for the guards to come back for him. About an hour ago, as soon as the sun had started to peek over the horizon, they had taken Hodge to some other cell. To relocate him, they had said, but Magnus was almost certain that his relocation would be six feet underground. He had heard the other guard saying that the prisoner was about to complete his sentence, and Magnus knew what that really meant: death. It was the punishment that most people lucked up there had to meet sooner or later.

He was sitting against the wall with his hat over his eyes, trying not to think too much about his impending fate, when he heard some footsteps echoing in the hallway.

"I would like to have one last decent meal before you kill me. I want a steak, medium rare—and rum. A bottle of rum." He said, without taking his hat from his eyes.

"I'm not here to kill you." A voice said.

Magnus immediately uncovered his eyes. The person standing there was not the one he had been expecting at all. "Well, well, well...look who's finally paying me a visit. Do you like what I got for saving your sorry ass?" He asked.

"I tried to help…" the man said, "I'm sorry you're here."

The guy looked uncomfortable and genuinely sorry, that much Magnus could give him, but the fact still remained—he was trapped in there because of him.

"Well, I'm not forgiving you anytime soon. To what do I owe this pleasure? Are you here to thank me? Or, are you here to see my execution?"

The man immediately shook his head. "No, I'm...I-I...I need your help."

That certainly took Magnus by surprise. "I don't see how I can be of any help, since I'm behind these bars and you're free, but by all means, tell me. What can I do for you? I can't promise anything, but I'll do what I can."

"Is Valentine Morgenstern alive?" The man asked. "You are a pirate, you must know. Is he still alive?"

Magnus stared at him. "Why do you want to know if he's alive?"

"The attack last night was his doing, I saw his ship."

"My ship." Magnus said absentmindedly.

"What?"

"Nothing...you say you saw the Blue Danube?"

"Yes, I saw it. It was a black ship with blue sails. Tell me...is he alive or not?"

Magnus had the right answer to that question, but he didn't want to say it out loud yet. First he wanted to know why this boy was so interested in Valentine. "I don't know, I mean, if you saw his ship, that's a huge possibility, but who knows."

"Please." The man begged. "You have to help me."

"Why?" Magnus asked intrigued.

"Because he took my brother!"

Magnus stared at the boy again. He was really desperate for help and the fact that Valentine had taken someone hostage was unusual, unusual enough to pique Magnus's interest.

"Tell me, was your brother in some sort of alliance with pirates?" Magnus asked.

"What? Of course not!" The man said it as if that statement had been offensive. "He is a respected man, Commander of the Guard and-"

"Wait a minute." Magnus interrupted him. "The Commander of the Guard? Are you telling me that the filthy brat who put me in here after I saved your life is your brother? The Inquisitor's son?"

The man nodded.

"Are you Robert Lightwood's son too?" Magnus asked quite surprised. He hadn't seen that one coming.

"Alec Lightwood." The man said.

"But, how?" Magnus questioned. "You two look nothing alike." The Commander had blond hair, while this Alec guy had dark hair and the most beautiful pair of eyes that Magnus had even seen.

"He's my adoptive brother." Alec explained. "My family took him in when his father died."

Magnus analyzed that new information for a moment. If Valentine had attacked the city to kidnap a boy, then that only meant that Magnus's theory was right and that the old pirate had finally figured out a way to break the curse that had been threatening his life for years, but he had been stupid enough to kidnap the wrong son. Magnus was sure that Valentine had mistaken the new Commander as Robert's son too. It was well-known in the pirate world that the Inquisitor had had two sons, but the second one was only a kid, so the existence of a third Lightwood was something that Magnus was almost certain Valentine hadn't put into the equation.

"So, you're the eldest one?" Magnus asked, just to be sure. He was putting all the pieces together in his head.

Alec nodded.

"Why aren't you the Commander then?"

"I turned down the position." Alec said, without explaining any further.

Magnus took a couple of seconds to think. There was a plan already taking shape in the back of his mind. If he somehow managed to get out of prison and get his hands on that text he once had read about the Angel, then-

"Do you know where I can find him?"

That question snapped Magnus out of his thoughts.

"Come again?"

"Valentine." Alec said. "Do you know where I can find him?"

"Look, Alexander…"

"Why are you calling me like that?"

"Didn't you say that was your name?" Magnus asked confused.

"I said Alec, not-"

"Isn't Alec short for Alexander?"

Alec nodded.

"Then, as I was saying, Alexander...don't you think that if anyone knew where to find Valentine, the Clave would have already found him?" Magnus asked. "He's the most wanted pirate in all Seven Seas."

Alec seemed kind of surprised with that statement. "But there must be rumors, right? Like those of him being alive. Other pirates...people like you must have heard them."

Magnus nodded. Of course there were rumors and Magnus was sure that most of them were true.

"Do you know where to find him?" Alec insisted. The boy was quite persistent and Magnus liked that.

"Maybe...I don't know. I can't remember." He said, but it wasn't true. Of course he knew where to find him. He had been chasing that bastard since he had stolen his ship all those years ago. For too long, Magnus had been unable to do anything against him. Valentine was an intelligent man and seemed to be ahead of everyone. Now, however, the winds seemed to be changing.

"I can get you out of here." Alec said.

"What?" Magnus asked quite surprised.

"If you help me find Valentine and save my brother, I can give you your freedom."

Magnus pretended to ponder the idea for a minute. He already had the answer, of course he was going to agree to this guy's plan. He finally had something that Valentine didn't have, and maybe if he played his cards well, he could not only get his ship back, but get to keep that valuable treasure as well. It was risky, but it could work. Besides, anything was better than dying.

"Are you willing to release a pirate just to save your brother?"

Alec nodded with determination.

"And, how are you planning on doing that? It's not like the guards go around leaving spare keys so that you can release the prisoners."

"Never underestimate me." Alec said with a smile. Magnus noticed that he was holding a set of keys. "I sneaked into my father's office and got these. So, what do you say...do we have a deal?" He said, extending his hand toward Magnus.

Magnus looked up at him. This boy was actually more handsome than he remembered and apparently pretty smart too. "We'll need a ship."

"I already have a plan for that."

Magnus smiled.

"So?" Alec asked again.

Magnus took Alec's hand. "We have a deal." He said, trying to put aside the strange feeling that the simple handshake between them had caused him. "Now, get me out of here, pretty boy!"

o-o-o-o-o

Magnus and Alec somehow managed to reach the port safe and sound. The guards had noticed Magnus's absence a couple of minutes after they had escaped and had sent groups of men to look for him throughout the city. They were heavily armed, so reaching the docks had been quite the adventure. They had barely made it out alive.

"Stop smiling like a fool, we almost died there." Magnus said, but Alec couldn't help himself. Adrenaline was coursing through his veins and it was intoxicating.

"We're alive and that's what counts."

"If you say so...now, would you mind telling me, how do you expect us to escape from the city? I'm afraid that daddy Lightwood won't be very happy to hear that his son helped a pirate escape from prison. Those guards saw you."

"I don't care what my father thinks." Alec said. He still was a bit resentful because of their last encounter. "And I know the guards saw me, but don't worry, they won't be a problem for much longer." He said, looking at the bay.

Alec hadn't shared his plan with the pirate yet, but he was certain that it was going to work. He had thought about it even before heading down to the dungeons to ask for his help. He knew that the Clave was going to send a couple of ships to try to capture the pirates who had attacked the city, so his plan was to get one of those ships. How? He wasn't quite sure yet, he was still working on that, but he would find a way...he knew it.

"So?" Magnus inquired.

"We're going to get a ship." Alec said simply.

"That much I figured out myself, or else, why would we be here? The question is, how? Are you going to ask your daddy to lend us one from his fleet?"

Alec rolled his eyes. "Of course not, you're a pirate, right? We're going to do what pirates do, we are going to steal one."

Magnus smiled. "I like the sound of that."

"I knew you'd like it. Now, for the stealing part, I'm kind of going to need your help. I don't know how to do it. I've never stolen anything in my life before and-"

"You stole your father's keys."

"I didn't steal them, I just took them without him noticing, but I'm planning on returning them someday, so technically it's not stealing." Alec said. That was what he had been telling himself since he had done it.

"And the ship?" Magnus asked. Alec could tell that he was trying not to laugh. "Are you planning on returning it too?"

Alec thought about it for some seconds. "A part of me would want that, but no. I'm well aware that I'm going on this rescue mission with a pirate and I promised you your freedom, so if we manage to come back alive, the ship will be yours. After all, you're a captain, aren't you? And what's a captain without a ship?"

Magnus just smiled at that.

"Now, how would you steal that ship?" Alec asked.

"Which one?" Magnus asked, now focusing his attention on the set of ships anchored at the docks.

"That one." Alec pointed to the largest ship anchored in the main dock. It was the fastest ship the Clave had under their possession. He knew it was no match for the Blue Danube, but it was the best they could get. "That's our fastest ship...the Avenger."

"Well, that's an appropriate name." Magnus said.

Alec frowned—to say that he found this man cryptic was an understatement.

"I mean that I like it, Alexander. Now, before we try to steal one of your daddy's boats, I mean, ships, I have to ask you something, are you sure you want to do this? There's no turning back after this. You're going to officially be a fugitive. Not only did you help a man out of prison, but you're about to steal a ship with the same man and escape with him...is this what you really want?"

Alec didn't hesitate and nodded. He knew that if he thought too much about it, he would regret it eventually. He had to think of his brother and only him. He knew that Jace would have done the same for Alec if the roles had been inverted.

"Okay, then." Magnus said. "This is what we're going to do." He said, sharing his plan with Alec.

It was quite simple. They were going to hide near the cargo section, wait for the right moment and then take control of the ship. The crew was not there yet, it was clear that they were just loading the ship with provisions and getting it ready for a long trip. So if things went wrong, they would only have to kill a couple of soldiers—no more than five—and for some reason that was a relief for Alec. He didn't want to become someone he was not.

"You do know how to shoot, right?" Magnus asked, handing Alec one of his pistols.

"Yes, I don't like it that much, but I know how to do it."

"Don't worry, I don't like guns either, but we have to be prepared, if things go wrong, we-"

"Everything is going to be fine." Alec said, trying to convince himself too. "It has to be."

"Alright, then let's do it." Magnus said, walking towards the ship already.

"Magnus, wait!" Alec whispered.

"What!?"

"Thank you." Alec said simply. He knew that maybe this wasn't the right time, but he wanted to say it anyway.

Magnus rolled his eyes in a very dramatic way. "Thank me when we have successfully stolen the ship, sweetheart. Now move, we have to be quick, I don't want us to die so soon. That would be a shame."

"Why?" Alec couldn't help asking.

"Why? Because look at us, we're the perfect duo, Alexander. We make a very decent pirate team."

"I'm not a-"

"I know, darling, but you're about to become one." Magnus said, winking at him and heading for the ship.

"No, I'm not." Alec muttered to himself, but he didn't sound convinced even to his own ears.