Jinxed - An Alec Lightwood LS

Chapter 9: Adamas Stone

Ethel's talk with Aldertree was sort of illuminating. She learnt quite a bit about the Shadow World, the Circle, Downworlders, and so on. However, a voice in the back of her mind told her not to drop her guard off too quickly. So, while she looked through the Gray Book (not truly focusing all that much until she found a particularly interesting one), Ethel decided to use her enhanced hearing. It was only about half-an-hour later when she heard something interesting. And, with a 'vinocular' rune from the Gray Book, she was also able to check out the file displayed by Aldertree's tablet that was on his hands. 

Quickly, she pulled out her phone, and found Alec's contact. After tapping on it, she began to write a message. 'Hey, this is Ethel. The newbie part-Seelie Shadowhunter. I've just heard that a warlock named Dorothea Rollins has kidnapped Clary. I'm pretty sure this Dorothea was on one of the cages at Valentine's ship. Thought you should know.' And then she pressed sent. Nearly immediately, she received a call from the same contact. So, walking further away from Aldertree's view, Ethel kept her eye out on him and answered. "Hello?"

"Explain the text. How do you know all of this?" Alec's demanding voice rang through the phone and into her ear, sensing shivers to her spine.

"Well, I overheard Aldertree talk to Jocelyn Fairchild. She claims that Clary snuck out of the Institute, and went to the Brooklyn Academy of Art, I believe? Anyways, she and Detective Garroway tried to convince into coming back. That's where she was then taken from. Through a portal. Aldertree doesn't seem to want to help much."

Seemingly ignoring the comments on their new Head of the Institute, Alec continued to question the situation. As far as he knew, the warlock was deceased. "And how do you know its Dorothea? She's dead."

Furrowing her eyebrows, Ethel just shrugged. "I don't know about dead, although I hear resurrection seems to be Valentine's thing. Our it could have been someone glamourized to look like her. Anyhow, I caught a glimpse at the file in his hands, with her name and picture. And Jocelyn called her 'Dot', or something, which I guess is a nickname. She looks a lot healthier on the picture than she did on the boat, but I'm pretty sure its she same person."

"It's glamour. But yes, that could be a possibility." Alec corrected part of her statement before making further inquiries about it. "What do you mean by healthier?"

"Well, I did tell the Clave that Downworlders had like, black veins and looked very pale, due to experimentation Valentine was doing on them. And they were in cages too." She told him, recalling all her interrogation on her experience under Valentine's captivity. "How do you know this chick? How did she supposedly die?"

He let out a breath, deeply believing Ethel's word, due to her Seelie blood. So, in his mind, she had to be telling the truth, or have heard wrong. Either way, it did seem plausible. "She's a friend of Jocelyn, and consequently Clary. Valentine's men killed her a few weeks back. But, you're right. They never did find a body. And if she's being experimented on, it would explain her compliance. Did you find anything else?"

Thinking back to a certain Shadowhunter's ushered conversation with a certain werewolf, Ethel nodded. Then, remembering that he could not see her, she spoke up. "I think Jocelyn wants your help in finding Clary. Something about an adam-something stone that can make your paraba-whatever tracking better. I don't know. She was talking about it with Luke. But it sounded like she didn't want Aldertree to know." Ethel knew she had to start learning how to pronounce all the new terms she was learning, or else other people might not be able to understand her. Fortunately, that was not the current case. He understood her just fine. 

Alec wasn't all that happy with that last piece of information. He wanted nothing to do with Jocelyn Fairchild. "I don't trust her. She tried to kill Jace. Why would she help?"