Author's Note

Why hello, you've made it to the end of this story. The first chapter of the next book, The ABC's of Gods & Monsters should be up right now. Thank you to Epically-Me for her review. Thanks to the Guest reviewers, who've got their answers to their questions a couple chapters back. Thank you to Sandninjabunny for their review. Thanks to EcoSeeker and her obsession to Pretty Little Liars so I could have something to take my mind off this story. Also, thank you to all the nameless readers who've stuck with me through this crazy whirlwind of an update schedule and the summer that was total agnoy. See you guys next time!

The ABC's of Perfect Mistakes

Chapter Twenty-Six: Z is for Zingaro

Parker didn't have time to turn before the first shot rang out. Instead, Jak tackled her to the ground as the bullet pinged off the side of the Hellcat. Jak rolled off her and pulled out his gun, Parker heard the unlocking of a dozen or more guns. There were screams all around her and the pounding of feet as she got to her feet, but before she could grab her weapons someone grabbed her from behind. She gasped as a stinging pain slipped under her fifth rib. She whipped her head back feeling a crack when her skull connected with someone's nose. Hot blood ran down her back as she fell to her knees and held her side, her fingers brushing against the handle of something -not a dagger or a knife.

"Everyone stop!" A voice rang out above the chaos, above the few gunshots and the screaming. Ashelin stood atop the transporter, on either side of her were two Krimzon Guards and behind her was Torn watching her back as more guards came around the side of the Hellcat. "Let Jak go!" Ashelin ordered.

"But-"

"You heard her!" Parker barked. "Let Jak go!" She got up and took out her gun with her left hand.

"This creature is a danger to us all!" A man shouted. "Count Veger has demanded for his arrest!"

"I make the laws here." Ashelin shouted back. "Now, release Jak, or face a fate worse than death!"

The men looked to each other before they parted slowly. The sea of angry people opened around Jak and Daxter. Parker stepped forward as Jak stepped away from the people, he glanced back at Parker. While Daxter seemed unharmed and whole, Jak was bleeding from his forehead. Parker could see his eye starting to bruise as he limped out of the mass of citizens. He spit a blood on to the sidewalk as he passed the group's leader, a short man who held his gun trained on Jak's head. Parker was sure he was going to snap or kill the man, but he kept walking, his eyes on the ground before they looked to her. Something flashed through his eyes before he looked at someone behind her. She had a feeling the man who attacked her was sitting on the ground, bleeding from his face with a bloody hand.

"Get outof the way!" Someone shouted, Parker glanced to the crowd on her left as Lena and Tess broke through the crowd. Lena ran right to Parker and grabbed her wrist. "Are you okay?"

"I've had better end results to a mission." Parker muttered. "What's all this nonsense about Count Veger?"

"He's been trying to get Jak arrested." Lena said looking to Jak. "It's only a matter of time before he's arrested and is charged."

"Charged for what?" Parker snapped. "He hasn't done anything wrong."

Lena scoffed. "Don't play stupid, you know how this works. Veger's the most popular guy on the concil, sooner or later, he'll get enough votes and it'll be all over for Jak."

"Then he just needs someone to stand beside him." Parker said stepping away from her friend, she walked carefully over to Jak, making sure everyone was watching her. She held her side as she walked, her wound ached and she could still feel the plastic object inside of her with every laboured breath. She stopped at Tess and took her hand, giving it as squeeze before looking to Jak with a smile. "C'mon Trouble Makers," She held out her hand to him, opening her palm wide, hoping he didn't see the blood or the tremble in her hand. He knew her better than that, she knew that he could see that she was scared; scared of what she'd never tell him but for now, all the town people needed to know was that she was on Jak's side.

She plead for Jak to take her hand, to understand that she was on his side no matter his feelings for her, may they be an innocent love or murderous blood lust; she'd stand with him until the end. It took a second before Jak chuckled. "Who are you calling trouble?" He said shoving his gun back into his holster. "If I remember correctly, I wasn't the one who fell through the floor." He stepped up to her and clasped her hand. "Where would you be without me?"

"Hey!" Daxter shouted. "I helped! This team of Jak and Parker couldn't stand without Orange Lightning! Za-za-zing!"

Jak rolled his eyes. "Where you be without us?"

"I can think of several horrible out-" A gunshot rang out, Parker saw the pain in Jak's face and felt it in her own hand. The sudden burn that came with a gunshot wound, she couldn't help it but she let go.

Jak flexed his fingers, even though he was sure every bone and muscle was broken, Slim assured him that his hand was fine. The bullet was merely a flesh wound, grazing the spot between his thumb and wrist. Jak glanced to the door, Lena leaned against the frame of it and watching Slim work.

"How's the patient?"

Slim snorted. "She's fine. It was just a shiv, it didn't hit any important organs or anything."

"I wasn't talking about Parker," Lena snapped shoving Slim. "I know she's fine, I was talking about Jak, the one who took a freaking bullet to the hand."

"I'm fine." Jak answered before Slim could say anything.

"Good," Lena said turning Slim's chair around so she could lean on the front of it. "Because I've got something you want and I intend to get paid for it." She held out a small bag made of leather and off white string. "The stone you asked me to drill for you. It's a pearl, a raw thing in these parts, but I did as you asked."

Jak opened the small bag and emptied it into his palm but nothing came out, he frowned. "Where is it?"

"Already in the possession of the receiver." Lena yawned.

"Who'd you give it to?"

"Oh I think you can figure that one out on your own. Oh, speaking of which," Lena said going into her pocket and held out a green amulet on a gold chain. "Can you bring this to her, she broke it, again, during the fight in New Town." She got up and headed for the door, she stopped and glanced back at Jak. "I know that Am has already dismissed you but I'm not giving up, I'm a stubborn bitch."

Jak smirked. "Thanks Lena."

Sometime after Lena had left and the time between Slim's discharging assessment, Jak found his way into Parker's room; again. He panicked when he didn't see her in the bed that the nurses said she'd be in but wasn't surprised to find her in the bed near the window. She was sleeping, her hand resting on piece of paper. He leaned over her body and pulled it from her fingers.

He was stunned to find himself staring back at him, in a grainy black and white photo stood him in his darker alter ego. He was attacking a Krimzon Guard, Dark Eco sparking all around them. The next photo was of him talking to Krew, Jak remembered this moment. He was escorting Krew's boys through the sewers, on the other side of the photo was Jak handing over money bags to Krew. Jak sat at the edge of the bed and ran his fingers through his hair, not only did these pictures make him look like he helped Krew betray the city, they made him look like a dangerous monster. The bottom picture was of him and Parker, the picture was taken out of context and it made him look like the bad guy. It had to be after he rescued Parker from Erol, her head was tipped back and there was blood coming from her mouth. The headline read: This is our Saviour? It went on to talk about possible punishments for him, hanging, execution by shooting, exiled to someplace called the Wasteland, electrocution and the list went on.

He crumbled the newspaper into a ball and threw it across the room, missing the trash can by a couple of feet. He came back to help the city and they were ready to kill him for stopping Metal Kor, sure he sided with Krew in some situations but everyone made mistakes; he wasn't perfect nor should he be punished for not being perfect.

An explosion outside of the window made Jak jump, pull out his gun and scan the outside area. Everything was silent for a minute or so before he heard it, a crack of shattering glass. He ran to the window and looked up, in the sky the pulsing with purple light. It raced faster and faster as the sky lit up like a purple night-light, the purple stopped pulsing and he heard Parker gasp. She sat up quickly, holding her chest.

"The shield..." She whispered.

Outside, the sky came crashing down. Chunks of purple falling from above. Mercifully they weren't sharp, they broke apart when they hit the ground breaking into a fine dust that shimmered away. Jak turned to Parker. She was leaning across her bed to get a better look, her face was dark with fear as she stared outside. The purple sky gave way to the beautiful starry night, the moon shone in a crescent and the stars never seemed brighter. The Day Star blinked in and out of sight as the sky fell, but there was no way it'd disappear.

"I was wrong..." She whispered.

"What?" Jak asked looking to her.

"This is where everything ends." She said looking up to the sky.

"Heroes aren't always the ones who win. They're the ones who lose, sometimes. But they keep fighting, the keep coming back. They don't give up. That's what makes them a hero." City of Heavenly Fire © Cassandra Clare, 2014.