Entrusted [1]《SHADOWHUNTERS》

Chapter Twenty-Three

Andina felt like she was underwater; everything she heard was muffled and every conversation she had she was numb to. Shadowhunters were running around HQ for different tasks, some spoke of demons that needed hunting and others of wedding plans that needed planned. It only added to the low buzz of noise that she was having trouble interpreting.

Her face was blank, a representation of how she felt inside. When there were a thousand questions bouncing around in her skull that all confused her to no end, she did the one thing she knew how to do best.

She shut off.

Up in her room were three things that she knew would aid her process: a joint, a bottle of cheap vodka she had been milking since she was sixteen, and a tiny bag of pills that were bright green and had glitter on them–something she had found after a Downworlder rave some time in the past three months.

While she opted for the mary jane and the alcohol before she had gone downstairs for the day, she kept the small baggie in the pocket of her jeans. She wasn't planning on taking them, but if she needed to numb herself more, they were there.

Isabelle walked past, something Andy barely noticed until the younger girl snapped her fingers in Andy's face. "Right?" Iz asked, making Andy's eyes go wide as she hadn't realized Iz was even speaking to her before.

"Uh, right," she muttered, her expression settling into a stone wall once more.

Isabelle's brow creased as she examined her best friend. She hoped Iz hadn't noticed the flush on her cheeks or the redness in her eyes. "What's up with you?"

Andina was prepared to deflect the question, but her brother shoving into her shoulder with full force stopped that from happening. Andy didn't even bicker at him for doing so, she just watched as Jace shook his head lightly at Izzy.

"How are we supposed to get any work done with all this going on?" He complained, making his way into the room and weaving around busy Nephilim.

Izzy sighed, walking behind him. Andy decided to follow, though she was really just hovering over them like a ghost. "We haven't had a wedding here in years. People are allowed to be excited."

He didn't slow. "We need to be focused. Have you narrowed down the list of warlocks more powerful than Magnus Bane?"

Andy looked up and saw the large screen on the wall in front of them, blinking rapidly to try and read it with her blurring vision. Izzy pulled up a folder, old pictures showing up inside. "I've narrowed it down to 20, but it's gonna be hard figuring out which one put the spell on Jocelyn.

Jocelyn. My mother. Andy shook the thought away quickly. "I don't care how tough it is, we've gotta find him," Jace snapped. He lowered his voice, analyzing the faces in front of them. "Back at Renwick's, I let Valentine go. I won't make that mistake again."

"He kinda had a knife to your throat," Andy mumbled, walking up in between the two take a closer look. 

Jace cast her a glance but she didn't return it. He sighed and went back to explaining his plan of action. "We've got to wake up Jocelyn and see if she heard anything about his plans."

Isabelle completely ignored everything Jace just said. "Have either of you spoken to Alec?" She sounded like a mother who knew her kid didn't do his studies before she had even asked.

"Busy," Jace quipped. "Wedding plans and all. And I don't need to talk to anyone. Let's just stick to the mission, okay?" With that, he turned on his heels and stomped off.

Isabelle groaned, turning to face Andina. Her eyebrows were pinched up in concern. "I can't handle both of you being mad at me," she whined.

Andy let out a deep sigh. "Not mad at you, Izzy," she muttered dismissively before leaving the raven haired girl at the computer. Mad at myself, she thought. I could have killed Valentine last night. Jace at least took the move to. I just froze up.