I still don't own the Mortal Instruments. Shocking, I know.

"Jesus, Clary!" a familiar male voice exclaimed as its owner looked at the gun in her hand.

"Jordan?" she breathed before losing it. "What the hell were you thinking!?"

"What was I thinking?" he yelled back. "You're the one pointing a gun at me!"

She lowered the gun and set on the counter. "You could have been Sebastian for I all I know. Next time you knock try something along the lines of 'Hey, Clary. It's Jordan. Not some psycho here to abduct you. Please let me in.' What are you doing here anyway?"

"Jace got held up at his office so he asked me to come check on you. But it looks like you've got yourself handled," he said with a small smile.

Clary smiled sadly at him. "Looks can be deceiving, Jordan," she said as she sat on the couch and buried her face in her hands.

"I understand this is rough for you Clarissa, but-"

Clary looked up and narrowed her eyes at him. "No, Jordan. You don't understand. Nobody does. You don't know what it's like to have loved someone so much and to have given them everything only for them to destroy you and your life. I have no control over anything anymore. Any control I think I have is just an illusion. The truth is, everything I do revolves around Sebastian. I mean, look at me. I have lost all freedom. I'm hiding out in an apartment that's not even mine. And the second Sebastian finds out I'm here, I'll be forced to hide out somewhere else. On top of all this bullshit, I'm putting other people in danger too. My mom, my friends, Jace. Do you know what that feels like? Knowing that other people, people you care about, are being harmed because of you? Let me tell you, Jordan, it's a shitty feeling."

He stared at her for a few seconds, a sympathetic expression on his face. "I think I have a temporary solution to your problems." Clary gave him a questioning look as he disappeared into Jace's kitchen. He returned carrying a bottle of tequila, shot glasses, and limes. "You are going to drown your sorrows in booze," he said with a grin.

Jace sat at his desk, staring blankly at the folders and files scattered across it. Finding concrete evidence against Verlac had proven to be more difficult than he expected. There was so much he knew that wouldn't hold up in court. He glanced at the clock. He should have been home hours ago. But he was stuck here. He wasn't alone. Alec, Izzy, and Magnus had all volunteered to help him. But he was still far away from the one person he wanted to be with at the moment.

"Jace," Izzy sighed. "We all should go home. Call it a day."

Jace shook his head. The idea sounded nice, but he couldn't. "You guys are free to go. I can't leave yet. I am going to put all my effort into this case. I can't afford to even risk losing it."

The thought of losing the case disgusted Jace. If Verlac go to walk free, he didn't think he'd be able to live with himself. After all he had done to Clary. Not to mention Magnus and Jocelyn. But Clary deserved it the least. She was sweet and innocent and beautiful. Jace just couldn't comprehend how anybody could lay a hand on her. Sebastian never deserved her. The bastard didn't even deserve to be alive, but unfortunately he was. Jace was just going to make sure Verlac wished he were dead.

Alec put a hand on Jace's shoulder, startling him out of his thoughts. "Go home, Jace. Get some rest. I'll do some work at home, but you need to be with Clary right now."

Jace sighed and put his head on his desk. "Alright."

Clary didn't know how many shots she had taken, but she did she wasn't anywhere close to stopping. Jordan, who looked impressed, watched as she downed shot after shot. She eventually tossed the shot glass aside and looked at Jordan with bloodshot eyes. "No more shots. Just give me the bottle. It's a go big or go home situation and I have no intentions of going home," she slurred.

Jordan had a mental debate. Getting her that drunk probably wouldn't be such a good idea. On the other hand, she needed it. He gave in and passed her the bottle. She smiled broadly at him.

"Thanks, JoJo. You're the best!" she giggled.

He raised an eyebrow at her. "JoJo?"

"Hey! No raising eyebrows around me. You know I can't do that!" She took a gulp of the tequila and scrunched her face. "This is disgusting."

Jordan let out a small laugh. "Then stop drinking it."

She shook her head. "No way, Jose."

Jordan was about to reply when Jace's voice rang out. "I'm back!"

Clary's face lit up and she jumped off the couch. "Jacey!"

Jace entered the room and glared at Jordan. "Is she drunk?" Jordan didn't reply. "I appreciate you looking after her, but please get out. Right now."

Jordan quickly left after muttering a short apology. Jace approached Clary and took the bottle out of her hands. "Hey!" she pouted. "That's mine."

Jace couldn't help but smile at her. "Clary, I think you've had enough."

Jace was cleaning up the living room when Clary suddenly got up and bolted to the bathroom. He followed her to find her emptying the contents of her stomach into the toilet. "You really shouldn't drink that much," he said as he held her hair back for her.

She glared at him and rested her head against the porcelain. "But it makes me feel better, Jace. It makes me forget about how fucked up everything is."

He sat on the floor next to her and pulled her into his embrace. He stroked her hair comfortingly and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. "I'm so sorry, Clary. But things will get better. I promise. I'm not going to let you down."

The truth was, he couldn't blame her for getting wasted. That didn't mean he liked it, though. He also knew it had been Jordan's idea. It was stupid of him to do. What if something happened. Clary wasn't capable of taking care of herself in her current state. Still, nothing did happen, so he knew he would forgive Jordan.

He looked at Clary again. she had her eyes closed and was on the brink of sleep. She looked so peaceful. Like she didn't have worry in the world. He wished it was that way. He wished she didn't have to worry about Sebastian. He wished she could live her life carefree. He wished he could take all her pain away and he planned on making that wish come true. All he had to do was win the case.

A loud bang sounded from the front door and Jace quickly stood up. Peering outside of the bathroom, he saw two large men enter the apartment. He cursed under his breath and looked at Clary, who was still too drunk to completely comprehend.

"Clary, we gotta get out of here. Come on."

He helped her off the floor and glanced out of the room again. He could hear the men rummaging around in the living room. Dragging Clary with him, he rushed into his bedroom. He ran over to the window and forced it open, looking down the fire escape. He looked at Clary.

"I am going to help you out of the window and down the fire escape. The second your feet touch the ground, I need you to run. I don't care where. Just run. Understand?"

She nodded and he helped her climb out the window. With an arm wrapped around her, he lead her down the metal stairs. She stopped leaning on him so much as she started to realize what was happening. She climbed down the ladder at the end on her own and jumped down to the ground. She looked at him, fear evident in her eyes as he began to climb back up.

"Jace?" she whispered. He turned back and looked at her. "Be careful."

Clary followed Jace's instructions and ran with no destination in mind. The fear and adrenaline running through her veins sobered her up. She ran under streetlights and past abandoned buildings. While running past an alley, she felt strong arms reach out and grab her from behind.

She let out a scream and a hand quickly covered her mouth. "Now, now, dear Clarissa. There's no need to scream," Sebastain whispered into her ear.

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