Chapter 2 here we go!

My skin is as white as the snow. I'm sitting down now, my legs and arms limp. "Beatrice?" Tris' voice lingers in my ear. Every time you feel me breathe, you breathe. Focus on that. I pretend she is there, like she was in my simulation, calming me. I close my eyes briefly and see the girl staring at me with confusion. "You're name is Beatrice?" My jaw is clenched and shock is in my eyes.

She furrows her brow. "What, is that a hard one?"

My jaw drops and I give out a harsh laugh and rub my forehead. "You gotta be kidding me."

"Um no. That's my name, Mr. Eaton. Can't change it even if I wanted to. What's it to you? Why do you look scared?" She ties the scarf around her neck and try to keep her arms covered by the excess wool.

"I'm not scared. . . I had a friend who had that name. She died. I'm sorry."

Her face changes to sympathy and she places her tiny hand on my arm. It's small and cold. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."

I shake my head. "No, it isn't your fault. It's actually kind of ironic. You remind me of her."

She gives a grin and she has a small gap between her front teeth. "Was she an orphan too?"

I clear my throat. "Not at first but, eventually, yes. She died in the war." I smile down at the girl. "May I ask how old you are?"

She frowns. "Last time I remembered my age, I was turning seven. But I think that was a couple years ago. Before my momma died... So maybe I'm nine; No, ten." She grins and shrugs. "Let's go with that." Her cheeks are red from the cold and her dimples appear every time she talks. At least that's a difference between her and Tris.

"Do you have any family?" I ask.

"Nope. I didn't have a sibling. Never knew my daddy. His name was Daniel, I think. Momma was the only one, but she got sick and died. I live on my own." Her eyes look behind me for a moment and then return to my face.

I swallow hard. "Beatrice. Where do you live?"

Her eyes are bright. She holds out her hand. "Let me show you!"

I take her hand gently and allow her to lead me down the street and under a small awning. There's a large box made out of cardboard. Inside the box sits a small cup and a dirty stuffed bear. She drops her head. "I had a blanket, but it got stolen from that man."

"But you got it back. Why did you give it to that boy?" My hand squeezes hers without thinking.

She shrugged again. "He's just a baby. He needs it more than me." She looks back at her box. "It's not much, but it's better than nothing."

I clench my teeth and pull out my portable phone. There were telephones in the factions, but only council members had them. Now, anyone can have one that's portable to contact people whenever. I'm still not used to always having it in my pocket, but it's an easy device that I get the hang of thanks to my quick learning with computers. I dial the office.

"Good morning, this is Rebecca, who can I wire you to?"

"Rebecca, this is Tobias. I won't be able to make it into work this morning." I rub my closed eyes.

"Oh thank God. I was getting a bit worried. Is everything all right?"

"Yes, yes. I just need to take a day off." I rub my lips together, waiting for her response.

"Good for you. You deserve it. You haven't taken a single day off since I've started working here. It's my fifth year, Tobias."

I laugh. "Yes, well it seems I do deserve to use my vacation time, though I was hoping to save it up and carry it over to eventually get a year off."

"Yeah, yeah. Go have a relaxing day. I'll have a pot of coffee waiting for you Monday morning. Enjoy your long weekend."

"Thank you, Rebecca." And I hang up the phone. I check my emotions and turn back around. Beatrice had crawled in her box and was braiding a strand of her hair. I smiled and looked down at her. "Can I ask you a question?"

She looked up, her thin fingers still working. "Shoot, Toby."

I laugh a little. "It's Tobias."

"Right. Tobias. So what do you wanna know?"

I cross my arms. "Who taught you to punch like that?"

"My momma did. She said she used to be a warrior when there were factions. She was in Dauntless."

My eyes widen with interest. "What was her name?"

The girl smiled. "Lauren. Her name was Lauren."

My eyebrows shoot up. "Lauren? As in dark-haired, many piercings Lauren?"

Beatrice nodded. Now that she confirms it, I see a lot of Lauren in her. Her eyes are the same shade of blue and though her hair is blonde unlike her mother's, Beatrice has the same thick, wavy hair. My thoughts go in a million directions. When did Lauren become a part of the factionless? After the factionless stormed Erudite? Why didn't I know?

"Beatrice, I knew you're mother. I was from Dauntless too."

Her eyes were bright. "Really? Was she brave?"

I give her a sad smile and instinctively stroke her hair. "Very."

She closes her eyes. "Were you friends?" I nod and she gives me a cheeky smile in return."

I swallow down a lump before I ask the question that really has been on my mind when she said Lauren was her mother. "Did she ever say you were named after someone she knew?"

Beatrice takes a moment to think. Recognition flickers over her eyes. "Yeah, she did. She said the woman who saved the city was named Beatrice. Momma knew her in Dauntless. She always said 'She was the first jumper'." She pauses. "Was that your friend?"

I close my eyes and smile, shaking my head a little. "Yes. That was her."