The Infernal Devices Reimagined

The Sting of Betrayal

Baroness Camille Belcourt was definitely a beautiful woman. Her long blond hair had been spun from gold and fell in cascades around her shoulders. She had clear, milky white skin and luminous green eyes that regarded them with interest. She held an oil lamp in her right hand that did a poor job of illuminating the entire room.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of having not one but two of the Nephilim trespass in my home?" Her voice betrayed no hint of malice or sympathy.

"Excuse us, Your Ladyship, but we had a  few questions to ask of you, and the four men outside your house didn't seem to keen on us being here," Mr. Herondale explained.

"Two Nephilim have broken into my home and now want to have a cup of tea with me. What an interesting night this is shaping up to be."

Tessa tried to make the situation seem less antagonistic, "Once again, we're terribly sorry-"

"Oh no, don't be. I would love to have a cup of tea with you two. I happen to know a few things I that the Nephilim may be interested in. In fact..." Lady Belcourt placed her lamp down, rang a dainty bell, and suddenly a sickly looking man was groveling at her feet, "Archer, could you bring us some tea?"

Archer quickly got to his feet and dashed out of the room. Lady Belcourt gestured toward her sofas. "Come, sit down."

Tessa felt a bit unnerved and looked to Mr. Herondale for reassurance, but he looked as perturbed as she felt. Nevertheless, the two did as they were asked.

"So, what can I do for the Enclave?" Lady Belcourt asked.

"Nothing much. We just want a few questions answered. Or, more specifically, we would like to know more about an apparent feud between you and Mr. de Quincey," said Mr. Herondale. A cloud passed over Baroness Belcourt's expression.

"Alexi de Quincey is a man that, once upon a time, I considered a friend. However, recent actions he has taken have made me reassess our relationship."

"So what precisely did he-"

"He had my werewolf lover, Ralf Scott, killed. That is all." Baroness Belcourt replied sharply. The entire room went silent for a moment. During that time, Baroness Belcourt's manservant brought them tea. Tessa was certain that she wouldn't have the stomach to even touch the drink.

"So what was it- what was it that you wanted to tell the Nephilim about?" Tessa finally asked. She had hoped to sound more confident, but were voice was barely audible.

"De Quincey may appear to be a well-behaved, Accords abiding vampire, but take heed. Every month, he holds balls at his home where he makes a show of killing mundanes by draining their blood."

"That's in direct violation of the Accords!" Mr. Herondale exclaimed, "For how long had this been happening?"

"For as long as de Quincey has been the leader of the London clan, I'd reckon."

Mr. Herondale stood up. "We must stop this immediately."

"The stars smile upon you tonight, young Nephilim. One such ball is in progress as we speak. I was invited, but I decided not to go due to my grudge against de Quincey."

"That's perfect! Ms. Gr- Lovelace and I can raid de Quincey's home and-"

"Forgive me for saying this, Mr. Herondale, but that is perhaps the worst plan you've ever concocted," Tessa said abruptly.

"Pardon me?"

"Firstly, despite how good a fighter you may be, the measly army of you and I cannot fight an entire ballroom's worth of people. Second of all, if we raid the ball without any substantial evidence of wrongdoing, de Quincey could easily plead not guilty. I could go on, Mr. Herondale. Do you want me to?"

Mr. Herondale gritted his teeth. "Well alright, Ms. Lovelace, master tactician. Do you have any alternative solutions?"

"In fact, I do," Tessa replied nonchalantly, "I could disguise myself as Baroness Belcourt and attend the ball. There, when I see the mundane being killed, I could Change into someone like Mrs. Branwell and arrest everyone at the party. If I face any resistance, you and a larger group of Nephilim can come storm the party."

"I don't like this idea," said Mr. Herondale. Tessa raised her eyebrows, "It puts you in far too much danger."

"Besides, how do you plan of disguising yourself. Downworlders can see through glamours," Baroness Belcourt added.

Tessa stood up and shed the skin of Jessamine Lovelace. As her body returned to its original state, Baroness Belcourt stared up at Tessa with amazement.

"Theresa Gray, the shapeshifter," she muttered in awe.

Tessa placed her chin in her hands, deep in thought. "Baroness Belcourt, is there any way for Mr. Herondale to come along with me?"

"Well, you could say that he's your human subjugate," Baroness Belcourt supplied, gesturing toward the man who brought them tea, "Though the timeline may seem a bit off, I am an old vampire. De Quincey would know better than question me and my powers."

"That only leaves a problem of reinforcements-"

There was a loud knock on the door. "Camille! Oh, dear Camille. Why haven't you come to my ball? It simply isn't the same without you!"

Baroness Belcourt sent one of her subjugated to deal with de Quincey. She looked to Tessa with an expression that said, you are ready either now or never. Sighing, Tessa followed Baroness Belcourt to her bedroom.

Changing into a vampire was much different from being Ms. Lovelace. As her hair turned golden and her features more acute, Tessa felt her heart stop beating. Tessa watched with numb horror as the blood stop pumping through her body, turning her skin as white as a sheet of paper. In a bout of near hysteria, Tessa clutched her heart and took shallow breaths, willing it to beat.

"There is no use in doing that, Ms. Gray. Your body no longer requires oxygen," said Baroness Belcourt, "Now straighten up, and stiffen that upper lip of yours. I will not have you disgrace me at the ball."

Tessa numbly nodded and walked out of the room.

The moment her eyes settled on the fair mane of Alexi de Quincey, a white-hot shock of fury coursed through her veins. Tessa struggled to keep Baroness Belcourt anger under wraps as she greeted de Quincey with a smile.

"Ah, Camille. You look wonderful on this beautiful night. I am so glad that you haven't let the murder of that disgusting mutt ruin our friendship," de Quincey said jovially.

Tessa forced a smile on her face. "Of course, my old friend. Forgive me, I wasn't thinking properly at the time."

"Have you dealt with your Nephilim intruders? I'm terribly sorry that the guards I had provided for you turned out to be so utterly incompetent."

The guards you placed outside my home to stop me from telling anyone your little secret, you mean. The voice of Baroness Belcourt grumbled.

"You'll be happy to know that I have, indeed dealt with them," Tessa pointed at Mr. Herondale with a wave of her hand, "I quickly disposed of the girl, but I thought that getting rid of the boy would be such a waste."

"I can see why you would think that. He's very beautiful." de Quincey held out his arm for Tessa to take, "Shall we?"

Tessa accepted his arm. "We shall."