Chapter 23
Eric's Death
The Dauntless all stand round me in a semicircle. I sit in the center in the interrogation chair. I can feel the moisture of sweat on my forehead. I keep my head down, trying to hide the fear in my eyes, and look up at Four. I don't want these people to think that I'm scared, even though I am. I want to be remembered as brave, even when staring death in the face, but I guess now when they think of me, they will think only of murderer. I guess I'm okay with that, I smile at the thought.
"Would you like me to tell you your crimes?" says Tori. "Or would you like to list them yourself?"
I lift my head and scan the crowd until I find the face I want, Tris. I fold my hands gingerly over my stomach, still staring at her.
"I want her to list them. Since she's the one who stabbed me, clearly she is familiar with them." I say.
"Leave her out of this," says Four.
"Why? Because your doing her? Oh wait, I forgot. Stiffs don't do that sort of thing. They just tie each other's shoes and cut each other's hair." Hey if I'm gonna die, I might as well have some fun, right?
I look back at Four, his expression hasn't changed, but I know that hurt him. I smile.
"I want her to list them." I repeat.
"You conspired with Erudite. You are responsible for the deaths of hundreds of Abnegation. You betrayed Dauntless. You shot a child in the head. You are a ridiculous plaything of Jeanine Matthews." she says.
As she's listing off my "crimes against humanity", my smile fades.
"Do I deserve to die?" I ask.
Four tries to answer, but Tris beats him to the punch.
"Yes." she replied coldly.
"Fair enough." I say. "But do you have the right to decide that, Beatrice Prior? Like you decide the fate of that other boy-what was his name? Will?" she tenses up at his name. My smile returns.
"You have committed every crime that warrants execution among the Dauntless." says Four. "We have the right to execute you, under the laws of Dauntless."
I watch as he strips the three guns at my feet of their bullets, puts one bullet in the gun, and shuffle them. I lose track of which gun is which. He hands one gun to Tori and the other to Harrison.
"Wait," I say. "I have a request."
"We don't take requests from criminals," says Tori. She sounds tired and bored, can't wait to get this over with, I guess.
"I am a leader of Dauntless and all I want is for Four to be the one who fires that bullet." I say.
"Why?" He demands.
"so you can live with the guilt of knowing that you usurped me and then shot me in the head." I say. A lie, my dying wish, is to see him break. To see them all break.
"There won't be any guilt," says Four.
"Then you won't have a problem doing it." I smile again as he puts one of the bullets on the floor into the first chamber of his gun.
"Tell me," I say quietly. "because I've always wondered. Is it your daddy who shows up in every fear landscape you've ever gone through?"
He doesn't answer.
"You don't like that question?" I ask. "What, afraid the Dauntless are going to change their minds about you? Realize that even though you've only got four fears, you're still a coward?"
I straiten up in my chair, feeling satisfied with my last words, and place my hands on the armrests, inviting death.
Four holds out the gun and I stare first at the barrel of it, then at Four.
"Eric," he says, "Be brave."
See you in Hell, Four.