Chain of Iron

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Lucie Herondale tossed and turned in her bed that night, unable to sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, all she could see in her mind was Jesse smiling at her as he had when they had been sitting on the bench in the gardens. It was the day after Lucie's birthday party and she had not seen Jesse all day as he had been out with Thomas and Christopher. He spent quite a lot of time at their houses and Lucie figured it was to make up for all of the lost years he did not get to spend with his cousins. She was glad that he got to at least spend time with them now.

James had told Lucie and Cordelia that he had told their father about his and Cordelia's fake marriage and she had been surprised. James was quite a private person and Lucie had not thought that he would tell their parents. Of course, their father had understood, just as Lucie suspected he would. Their father had always supported her and James no matter what they did and Lucie had always been very grateful for it. Growing up, James had gravitated more to their mother, but Lucie had always gone to their father. He was the biggest supporter of her passion for writing and always encouraged her to keep writing her novel The Beautiful Cordelia. Lucie knew that she had certainly gotten lucky in the parents department.

She sighed and got out of her bed, feeling restless. She supposed that she could keep writing the newest chapter in her novel but for once, Lucie did not feel like writing. She paced around her room for a few moments and then decided to look through the dresses Matthew had gotten her for her birthday. Lucie opened the trunk and pulled out a beautiful pale blue gown and sighed in adoration. Next, was a pink one with gold trimming and Lucie held it up to herself in the mirror. Matthew sure did have a great sense of fashion; he and Anna often went shopping with one another.

After busying herself with the dresses for awhile, Lucie decided to go for a walk in the gardens of the Institute. She silently walked through the corridors, careful not to wake anyone, and then she reached the doors to the gardens. Lucie walked out into the chilly London night and could not help but think back to her party. It was odd how a place could hold such a different feeling during the day than it did at night. The gardens were much less welcoming at this time of night but Lucie knew them like the back of her hand. She had spent much time chasing James around the gardens in the summers when they had been young.

"Lucie?"

Lucie whirled around, startled by the voice. Jesse was sitting behind her on one of the benches; he was dressed in his night clothes and was holding a copy of Great Expectations in his hand. Lucie's heart stuttered at the sight of him and now thanked the Angel that she had decided to go for a walk. He had such an unearthly type of beauty to him and it was very exaggerated under the moonlight.

"Jesse." Lucie spoke finally. "I see you cannot sleep either."

He broke out into a small smile. "I cannot. I came out here quite sometime ago."

"How was your visit with Aunt Cecily and Uncle Gabriel today?" Lucie asked curiously.

Yesterday, at Lucie's party, Aunt Cecily had invited Jesse over for dinner at their house and Lucie knew that he had been quite nervous.

"It was really good." Jesse smiled. "Aunt Cecily kept making me laugh and Uncle Gabriel told me stories of my mother when they had been young."

It made Lucie happy that Uncle Gabriel had spoken freely about Jesse's mother even though they no longer had a relationship. Lucie had always thought that it was a shame that Tatiana refused to speak to her brothers; she could not imagine her ever cutting off James like that, no matter what he did.

"Anna is also a delight to be around." Jesse continued, smiling at the thought of his cousin. "She has a certain way of making one feel quite welcomed, wouldn't you say?"

Lucie nodded, smiling. "She has always had that quality about her."

"I admire the way Aunt Cecily and Uncle Gabriel support her lifestyle and do not shame or shun her for being who she is." Jesse commented. "That is very rare to find in the kind of society that we live in."

Lucie could not help but agree. In many other families, parents would disown their child if they acted and dressed like Anna; it would bring shame on their families. Aunt Cecily and Uncle Gabriel, although, had always accepted their daughter for who she was. Members of the Clave often whispered about Anna and her family but Lucie's Aunt and Uncle never allowed those people to bother them.

"Would you like to walk around the gardens with me?" Lucie asked.

Jesse nodded and then fell in step with Lucie. He was quite a bit taller than her and she sometimes still was not used to Jesse actually being alive. Lucie also did not know how she had brought him back and if she would be able to bring something else back to life as well. She did not wish to try; she wanted to forget all about her power and pray that the Clave would never find out about it.

"Did you enjoy your birthday party yesterday afternoon?" Jesse started.

She smiled and looked down at her hand; the ring he had gotten her was sparkling around her finger. "Very much. It was one of the best parties I have had in a long time and surely one that I will remember."

"I am glad." He smiled.

Lucie then hesitated. "Does it upset you that you have not seen your mother or Grace yet?"

Jesse's smile faded and he shrugged slightly. "Not really. For some reason, it feels nice to have a life away from them for awhile. All I ever knew was a life where only they could see me and it is refreshing to not be confined to only their presence. Although, part of me does wish that I could have attended Grace's wedding."

Lucie frowned. "I'm sorry that you could not. She would have made a scene and the Clave would have then taken an interest in you and they would hold you prisoner."

"I understand." Jesse sounded calm. "I am very grateful towards you and your family for keeping me safe from the Clave."

"Of course, Jesse." Lucie smiled up at him. "My mother and father would have never turned you away. They are quite fond of you now."

He looked amused. "Are they really?"

Lucie nodded, grinning. "My mother says that you are one of the sweetest boys she has met and my father thinks the same. Although, I suppose they see how good of friends you and I are and which also gets you extra points."

Jesse laughed as they were approaching what Lucie knew to be a dead end of the garden. As they rounded the corner, Lucie stopped dead in her tracks. There was a man standing there, an odd sense of familiarity to him - as if she had seen him before. His face looked ageless and he had brown hair and stormy grey eyes. Eyes that violently reminded Lucie of her mother's and that was when she realized who the man was.

"Belial." Lucie said, stunned. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see your brother, but I suppose you will do." Belial then turned and ran his eyes up and down Jesse. "Jesse Blackthorn; I must say I am shocked to be seeing you."

"How do you know who I am?" Jesse demanded but Belial did not reply and only grinned at him dangerously.

"How are you here? You are unable to walk this Earth." Lucie spoke fiercely.

"I am afraid that I am tethered to someone on this Earth, my dear granddaughter." Belial kept grinning. "It is a stupendous amount of luck that I have had to run into you both here."

"We need to go." Jesse whispered hastily.

Lucie went to move her feet, but found that they were compelled to where she stood. As were Jesse's as she watched him trying to move unsuccessfully. Belial, standing in front of them, laughed.

"I would not even bother trying to escape." He told them, looking amused.

Panic arose within Lucie but she willed herself to calm down. The moment one panicked in a trying time was the moment that they were defeated; her father had always said that.

"What do you want with us?" She demanded.

"I warned your brother of what would happen if he did not join me." Belial's grey eyes were brewing with something dangerous. "And now he must face the consequences of his actions."

There was a blinding white light and then everything around Lucie went black.