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Chapter 16

Sneak Peek:

Magnus turned and Alec’s breath caught because somehow—foolishly—he had not expected the warlock to be so… ripped.

He was in a state of half-undress, his jacket and shirt discarded carefully upon the bed. A looser blouse was held in one hand and Alec watched as he pulled it on. Looking at him, at his muscular arms and his defined abs, Alec suddenly felt self-conscious about his own body, adjusting his flannel shirt to cover himself more.

“Alexander,” Magnus greeted, and the elongated version of his name sounded good coming from his lips. His voice was tainted however, dull somehow, and he kept his eyes low. “I’m afraid you’ve caught me at a bad time.”

“Are you okay?” asked Alec.

The warlock glanced away briefly, adjusting the ruffled neck of his shirt and crossing his arms over his chest, as if to hold himself together. “We found Ragnor.”

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Chapter 14

Sneak Peek:

The warlock fell limp with a soft moan, the azure mist fading from his fingers, and Alec slid a hand around to cradle the back of his head, letting Magnus rest back against his leg.

“Hey,” Alec muttered, his eyes on Magnus as Clary and Alaric were fussing over Luke. “Are you okay?”

Magnus reached a hand back, gently clasped Alec’s upper arm. His eyes opened, his breaths coming unsteady, but his gaze was focused on Alec’s face. “Yeah,” he mumbled and Alec rested a hand over the back of the warlock’s own, holding his touch against his arm. “Are you…?”

“Yeah,” Alec replied quickly for fear that Magnus would worry. “Yeah, I’m fine.”

Magnus hummed his appreciation and Alec helped him to sit up when he attempted it alone, his hand pressing to Magnus’s back, feeling his spine jutting out against his palm and almost shocking back from its prominence. The warlock’s slender frame fit against him almost too well. Alec had the sudden and fierce urge to keep him here forever.

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Chapter 15

Sneak Peek:

“I tried to push him away,” said Magnus as way of excuse or explanation, “but he’s… he’s stubborn and I couldn’t lie to him when he asked if I felt something and…” He trails because Luke wasn’t his father, but he was practically pouring his heart out. “I’ve grown weary of solitude.”

Luke was quiet a moment and Magnus finished wrapping his wounds as he awaited judgement. “Be careful with him,” he said finally, unusually soft, and Magnus blinked hard at receiving such permission. “He’s young and inexperienced. He has a good heart… but I know you do too.”

Magnus shook his head. “You don’t know that,” he protested quietly, stepping back from the bed and raking a hand into his hair, half-turning away. “Neither does Alec.”

“Then let him figure it out.” Luke shifted a little more upright, hid a wince behind a sigh. “Magnus, I know we’re not close and usually I would have no right to tell you what to do, but Alec is like a son to me. I’ll protect him and Clary above anything else.”

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Chapter 9

Sneak Peek:

“When I found your mom after so much searching, I wanted to tell her to give you back… I knew she had taken you, because the Lightwoods were looking for you and they weren’t being shy about it. They wanted you back in their world, their family, and I knew they would do anything to make that happen.”

Alec stared at the floor, hating the feeling of inadequacy filling his chest. What Maryse had said about Jocelyn’s photo album had sparked a worry in Alec and Luke’s words now were only feeding into it.

Jocelyn never wanted him. She always wanted to get rid of him, and only kept him because of some spur-of-the-moment promise to his birth mother.

“But then I saw how she cared for you,” continued Luke and Alec’s heart clenched. “I saw her like… like I’d never seen her before. She was a mother, and Clary wasn’t her only child.”

He turned to Alec.

“I looked at you, just three or four years old, and it wasn’t Maryse or Robert I saw. It was Jocelyn, your mom, and I realised that she would never willingly give you up because you’re her son.”

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Chapter 10

Sneak Peek:

“… I’m sorry we didn’t find you sooner.” Isabelle shifted her weight between her feet. “All these years living in a lie your mother told you…. were you happy?”

Alec considered that a moment. “Will you be upset with me if I say yes?”

“That’s what I want,” admitted Isabelle. “I want you to be happy… I always did. I spent so much time worrying about you because our mom…” She trailed.

“Tell me,” prompted Alec.

Shaking her head, Isabelle breathed out shakily. “My entire life, she regretted giving you away. She always worried that… that Jocelyn wouldn’t raise you right, that she wouldn’t be a mother to you, maybe that she would treat you differently because you weren’t hers.”

“She never did,” said Alec with a soft shake of his head. “She loved Clary and I just the same… I never knew I wasn’t hers.”

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Chapter 13

Sneak Peek:

“Do you know other autistic people?” Alec asked, leaning back against the wall to watch Magnus at work, finding something soothing in the sounds of him dicing up some kind of herb.

“I make it my business to know as much as possible about the world and the people who inhabit it,” said Magnus simply, not looking up from his busy hands. “I get to spend so much time on this earth… It’s best to properly understand those I choose to keep company with.”

Appreciation tugged at the corner of Alec’s mouth. “I’m flattered.”

Magnus half looked his way, the slightest pinch to his brow, but it eased quickly. Alec hoped that the warlock understood his sincerity.

He thought a moment, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’d like to understand you too.”

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Chapter Three

Sneak Peek:

“You’re a shadowhunter, Alec. Your father was the greatest threat the downworld has ever seen… Things will be expected of you.”

“I’m not about to become a soldier for people I know next to nothing about,” said Alec, taking a breath because Magnus kept side-tracking him and he would be frustrated for an age if he didn’t at least try. “I’m not a shadowhunter. I’m just me… and, unless there’s some rule about warlocks and…” he stifled a sigh, resigned him to it “… mundanes mixing, then I was wondering if you… if you wanted to go out some time?”

Magnus froze. He overcame it quick enough by finishing his drink, but Alec noted the stiff body language. He saw the warlock’s throat convulse from here.

“Alec,” he muttered, rising from his chair and approaching slowly, using his hands as he talked. “I’m… immortal.”

Alec blinked hard. “Oh…” he said, considered that. “Okay. Does that rule you out from dating or…?”

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Chapter 11

Sneak Peek:

Maryse shook her head. “Alec, I’m afraid you don’t understand. Isabelle is responsible for you and if anything were to happen—”

“If anything happens, it will be due to decisions that I made,” said Alec firmly, having had just about enough of these people and their values. “I don’t need a babysitter and I won’t have someone else punished for my actions. If you want someone to reprimand, try it on me.”

The group was staring at him. Isabelle’s jaw trembles minutely. A pang of regret pricked Alec’s stomach because he hadn’t intended to make things difficult for her. Regardless of whether or not they had been raised together, Alec protected his sisters, his family, above all else and it pained him to consider that he may have hurt her.

To his surprise, Maryse had a gleam in her eyes, a sense of pride.

“A Lightwood through and through.”

Maryse turned at the voice—as did the others—and Alec laid eyes on his birth father for the first time.

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