Clary POV
All night, I dream of Jace kissing my lips, over and over again, like he did the night before. They are not the kind of dreams Aline would approve of, but then again, if I have Jace on my side, it does not matter. He can fire her with a snap of his fingers, and I will make sure she knows that.
Morning came, and Aline, as usual, woke me up at the crack of dawn. "Wake up, Clarissa," she says, her voice carrying the usual venom it does. I fight the urge to roll my eyes and say something snarky. I will not let Jace change me. Just because he has taken an interest in me—an interest I quite enjoy—doesn't mean I should change how I treat my employer. Although Jace is my employer, she is like the head of my staff, which is like an employer, and therefore, I must respect her, no matter how much it pains me (and it does).
I make my bed and wake up Brooklyn, since it's also time for her to do the small chores she is assigned. "But Mommy," she pouts, "I don't want to work."
I sigh. I know it is hard for her to get up and realize that her life hasn't changed at all, that even though Jace has taken a liking in us, she still has to do her work. "Darling, you have to. We're still under Aline's supervision."
Brooklyn sighs. "Okay."
We part ways when I reach the kitchen. I help cook, and she does the dishes. I watch her from the corner of my eye. We aren't allowed to speak to each other when we're on kitchen duty, which makes me kind of sad. She's so young, and her only friends are her mother and her mother's best friend. I shake my head and continue to chop some fresh tomato.
Aline walks inside the kitchen, and the usual happy chatter, which most definitely includes gossip, stops suddenly. She takes short strides, as if she does not want to reach her destination, but she is presumably under orders, so she finally stands in front of me, and I realize that it's me she's supposed to address.
"Aline," I say, my voice flat.
"Clarissa," she replies, bitterness filling her voice. "Prince Jace asked me to give you this." She is holding out a cream-colored envelope with the royal stamp on it. Sure enough, the words Clarissa Fray are written on the back, in a very cursive, formal font.
My hands are shaking as I open the letter.
Dear Clarissa,
I request your presence at the gardens near the stables in one hour.
Jace.
A grin slowly transforms my face. "Thank you, Aline. I believe I've been dismissed." I hand her over the letter so she can read it.
Her face turns serious, her mouth forming a thin line. "Very well. You've been dismissed. But as soon as you're done with your"—she made a face—"meeting, I want you back here." Then she walks away, composing her face.
Brooklyn walks over to me, even though she isn't supposed to. No one spares a glance her way, though, which is the silent code for I won't tell a soul.
"Mommy," she says, looking up at me with her big eyes. "What did she want?"
I smile at her. "Jace wants me to go see him."
"Can I come?"
"No," I say, and shake my head sadly. But as I look around, I realize I can't leave her here, where Kaelie can take out her anger on Brooklyn. "Come on, I'm gonna take you with Izzy."
We exit the kitchen and make our way through the halls of the palace. It's a big castle, but Izzy's working place/room is very near the kitchen, so we get there once we pass two long, narrow hallways. Some workers who know we are in kitchen duty today give us weird looks, but some of them have heard the rumors of Jace and I, so they don't come up and ask question.
