Jocelyn suddenly threw a round object, and Clary quickly shut her eyes as a blinding flash erupted.
The vampires' eyes were fully adjusted to the dark, so the flashbang hit them hard, temporarily blinding most of them, including Valentine.
Then, Jocelyn pulled out two guns and started firing wildly in one direction, clearing a path for Clary.
Clary gritted her teeth and bolted.
"Stop them!"
With her physical abilities now rivaling an Olympic champion, Clary dashed through the escape route Jocelyn had created in no time.
But Jocelyn wasn't so lucky. The vampires who weren't blinded by the flashbang surrounded her. Even as a seasoned vampire hunter, she couldn't hold off so many at once.
Clary glanced back and saw Jocelyn pinned beneath a pile of vampires.
"Mom!"
"Run, don't look back! Keep running!"
Even as the vampires restrained her, Jocelyn shouted for Clary to keep going.
Unfortunately, Valentine's vision recovered quickly. Massive bat wings sprouted from his back, and in a blink, he was in front of Clary.
"You think you can escape?"
Clary felt despair wash over her. Her only option now was to transform into her angelic form and fight Valentine. But she knew she'd likely lose. Even though her angelic powers countered vampires, Clary had no combat experience, while Valentine was a duke-level vampire who'd lived for millennia—roughly equivalent to a six-winged angel.
Pulling out her Smith & Wesson M629, Clary hesitated, torn between fighting Valentine or following her mother's plea to end her own life.
Valentine didn't seem fazed by the gun.
"I suggest you come with me quietly. It'll hurt less."
Just then, the roar of an engine echoed in the distance.
Valentine, hovering in the air, spotted a blue motorcycle speeding toward them.
"Where did that bike come from? Didn't I order the roads sealed?"
The rider suddenly pulled out a massive axe and hurled it from two or three kilometers away.
Valentine sneered. "Tossing an axe from that far? Is this a joke?"
But the next second, a wave of dread hit him—the kind of instinctual fear that only comes with the threat of death. He reflexively used a lifesaving spell, bursting into a swarm of bats.
A golden axe sliced through the air like a bolt of lightning, obliterating most of the bats in an instant. The sonic boom from the axe's supersonic speed followed a moment later.
The surviving bats regrouped on the ground, reforming into Valentine. His face was filled with disbelief—he'd nearly been obliterated by a flying axe.
An axe thrown from kilometers away almost took out a duke-level vampire. What kind of monstrous strength was this? In his thousands of years, Valentine had never seen anything so terrifying.
Not daring to stick around, Valentine used a large truck blocking the road as cover, grabbed Clary, and ran.
"Get out of my way!"
To save himself, Valentine didn't care about his own minions. He kicked aside the vampires holding Jocelyn, grabbed her too, and fled.
"Crowlia, can you go any faster?"
"Sorry, Roy, this is my top speed."
"Fine, I'll chase him myself!"
Roy transformed into his angelic form, grabbed something from the back of the bike, and his eight radiant wings propelled him forward like a jet engine.
Valentine was fast, but Roy was faster. Comparing their flight speeds was like comparing a commercial airliner to a supersonic fighter jet—there was no contest. In seconds, Roy caught up to Valentine.
Startled, Valentine realized he couldn't outrun Roy. He landed, clutching both women.
"You—stay back, or I'll kill them!"
Valentine gripped Jocelyn and Clary's throats, trying to intimidate Roy.
"Roy!"
Clary's face lit up with joy, ignoring the hand around her neck. To her, Roy could save her no matter what.
Jocelyn looked at her daughter in shock. "Is that Roy Black? An eight-winged angel?"
In Heaven, the four twelve-winged archangels were the pinnacle, so an eight-winged angel like Roy was no small figure.
"I've got a hostage too. Want to see?"
Roy tossed Abigail, wrapped tightly in cursed chains like a mummy, onto the ground.
Valentine glanced at her, seeing she'd been tortured beyond recognition. Though he didn't know why a vampire and a werewolf were father and daughter, Roy had interrogated Abigail and decided to bring her along. It paid off.
"You bastard! What did you do to Abigail?"
Roy shrugged. "Just roughed her up a bit. Compared to the humans she's tortured to death, this is nothing, right?"
Valentine glared, grinding his teeth. "I'll trade hostages, but one for one! The girl for Abigail!" He pointed at Clary.
Roy hadn't expected Valentine to actually negotiate. Did this vampire really care for the werewolf? That was… unusual.
"Fine. On three, you release Clary, and I'll release the werewolf."
Roy unbound the cursed chains and held Abigail.
"Father, I've failed you!" Abigail said the moment she was freed.
"It's okay, Abigail. This enemy is beyond you."
Even Valentine, a duke-level vampire, was no match for Roy. He'd only felt this kind of overwhelming presence once before—from a third-generation vampire, his sire.
Roy wasn't interested in their family drama. "Three, two, one—throw!"
Roy hurled Abigail, and Valentine kept his word, tossing Clary. The exchange went smoothly.
Clary rushed to Roy, clinging to him, her eyes fixed on her mother, still in Valentine's grasp. "Roy, you have to save my mom!"
"Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to her."
Though Valentine had his daughter back, his situation hadn't improved. With Roy's speed, escape was impossible, even with Jocelyn as a hostage. That's why Roy had agreed to the trade—he knew Valentine couldn't get away.
"Angel, don't follow me, or I'll kill this woman!"
Roy smirked. "Oh, really? Kill Ms. Fray, and where will you find the Holy Grail?"
"How do you—" Valentine stopped himself, staring at Roy in shock. The Holy Grail was a closely guarded secret within the Elder Council, known only to the top ranks. His face darkened as he realized there was a traitor in their midst.
It wasn't surprising. If Hodge Starkweather could betray the Shadowhunters, why couldn't a vampire betray the Elder Council? The Council was already in decline, and not all vampires believed in the legend of Jesus' holy blood.
"Here's the deal," Roy said with unshakable authority. "Let Ms. Fray go, and I'll let you and your daughter walk away."
Valentine hesitated. "You'll keep your word?"
Between reviving the Elder Council and saving his own life, Valentine chose survival. If he died here, the Council's revival would be impossible anyway.
"You don't have a choice but to trust me."
Under Roy's commanding presence, Valentine relented. "Fine! I'll release Jocelyn Fray, but you'd better keep your promise!"
Carefully, Valentine let go of Jocelyn, then transformed into a swarm of bats, wrapping Abigail in them as he fled.
True to his word, Roy didn't pursue. Partly because he was honorable, but also because he planned to dismantle the Elder Council and the Dark Web entirely. While Abigail was in his custody, Roy hadn't been idle.
"Mom!" Clary ran to Jocelyn. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I won't die that easily," Jocelyn said weakly. She'd taken a beating from the vampires and was already injured, so her frail state was no surprise.
"Mom, let me heal you!"
Clary raised her hand, ready to use her newly awakened powers, but Jocelyn's expression changed when she saw the white glow. "Wait! You've already awakened?"
Clary frowned, confused by her mother's reaction. "Yeah, Roy helped me awaken."
Jocelyn glanced at Roy, then grabbed Clary's hand. "Clary, you cannot let anyone know about your special bloodline. Absolutely not!"
"Why? Isn't being a half-angel part of our family's heritage?"
"No questions! Just don't let anyone know!"
"But Roy already knows!"
"He's an angel, so it's fine."
Roy sensed something deeper. "Ms. Fray, is Clary's bloodline more than just angelic?"
Jocelyn sighed heavily. "Yes. To be honest, Clary is the 'Holy Grail'—a descendant of Jesus. Her veins carry his holy blood."
Roy hadn't expected the Holy Grail to be a person, not a literal cup. No wonder Lucifer had said Clary's constitution was special.
"How is that possible?" Clary asked, stunned.
Jocelyn stroked her daughter's head. "Your father was a descendant of Jesus. This unique bloodline manifests every few generations in his family, and you're the one it chose. After your father died, I took you into hiding to keep you safe. But the Elder Council tracked me down. They didn't know the Holy Grail was a person, not a cup, so I diverted their attention to protect you. But when Valentine tried to use you to threaten me, he nearly stumbled onto your true identity."
If both Jocelyn and Clary had been captured, torture might have triggered Clary's angelic transformation, exposing her bloodline even to someone as dense as Valentine.
"Mr. Black, I'm begging you—protect Clary. Don't let the Elder Council get her. If they do, it could spell disaster for humanity!"
Roy wanted to tell Jocelyn that even if the Elder Council got Jesus' holy blood and transformed the vampires, it wouldn't be a civilization-ending catastrophe. Could they really rival the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse? But seeing Jocelyn's grave expression, he held back.
"I'll keep Clary safe," he promised.
His words carried a hint of ambiguity, and Clary's cheeks flushed as she caught it. The atmosphere grew a little awkward.
Just then, the blue motorcycle rolled up, driverless. "Roy, is the fight over?"
Jocelyn jumped at the talking bike, but Clary wasn't fazed—she'd already seen a talking sports car.
"Not yet. We still have some vampires to deal with," Roy said.
Clary remembered something. "Roy, there's Hodge Starkweather! That traitor sold us out to the vampires for money!"
"What?" Roy's anger flared. He activated his Hellhound Ring. Hodge, a trained but ordinary human, couldn't have gotten far on foot. The hellhound's phantom quickly locked onto him.
"Wait here. I'll bring him back."
Roy didn't bother maintaining his angelic form to save energy. Instead, he hopped on Crowlia. The hellhound's phantom wasn't fast, and angelic flight would be overkill.
Ten minutes later, Roy returned, dragging a bruised and battered Hodge Starkweather.
"Here he is. Do what you want with him."
Clary, seething, kicked Hodge hard. "You filthy traitor!"
"Stop! I messed up, please spare me!" Hodge pleaded.
Clary Fray (Snow White Edition)