A/N Eek I don't even know what I am doing with this right now...
I am not Veronica Roth (like you didn't already know that), and never will be.
Beatrice/Tris P.O.V.
Marcus stands outside the front door of his house with fake tears rolling down his face. Anger boils inside of me, but I remember to be polite, like always. "Sorry for your loss." I say with fake sympathy.
Tobias is sitting up in my room, probably studying the book Caleb gave him so he would still be on our level when it comes to school. We do not want him to be uneducated just because he has to hide from his father and the outside world.
I walk into the silent house where about ten people already stand in the living room around a plain wooden coffin with the lid closed. I stand near the front with my parents and Caleb. A few sniffles can be heard around us, but vaguely. Although funerals for people you do not know are boring, Abnegation are the worst because you cannot talk about the person, and very few people are actually sad because it is too self-indulgent to talk about yourself.
After about an hour, my legs are jelly, and many people are making their way out the door. Because Dad is close to Marcus, we decide to stay to give him support. Even if he is a monster, it would be terrible to lose a wife and have your son disappear all in the same day. I quietly ask Mama if I can go to the bathroom, just it is just an excuse to sit down. I am back within a minute, and nearly everyone is gone. I recognize a few of the people who are still here because they, along with Dad and Marcus, are council members and some of the most important men of the city. Marcus stays quietly in a chair beside the coffin, silent tears running down his face.
I am unsure of how long we have been at Marcus's house by the time we leave, but I think it may have been two hours. I can only make this guess because the sun was just beginning to set when we came in the house, and now it is completely dark.
I wake up to Mama knocking on my door. Tobias is groggily sitting up on my bed while I lay on the floor, desperately wishing for it to be Saturday so I can sleep in for a few extra minutes. To my immense displeasure, I realize it is Sunday, and I have already gotten to sleep about thirty extra minutes. I have to get up so we can attend the Abnegation church services. Tobias and I stayed up last night since he was asking about Marcus's actions at the funeral. He wanted to know if Marcus seemed to feel guilty, which I replied he did not.
I sit up, and Tobias climbs stiffly off my bed. I walk to my closet and grab the newest of my dresses, which is hard to decipher since they all look the same, and head to the bathroom to take a shower and get ready. The bathroom door is closed, so I knock, and Caleb answers, informing me he is nearly finished. When Caleb walks out of the bathroom less then a minute later, Mama and Dad walk down the hall, so I ask them if they need to use the bathroom before I do. They say they do not, so I go in and shower quickly, brush my hair, and brush my teeth. I walk out of the bathroom refreshed and clean in my best dress. The smell of an Abnegation breakfast wafts up the stairs and into the hallway.
I sit down at the table between Caleb and Tobias and eat my breakfast quickly, since we are running late. The eggs, biscuit, and gravy are soon gone from everyone's plate.
"Tobias, will you prepare some lunch for us before we get home?" Mama asks politely.
"Yes, of course." Tobias replies.
When we walk in the door, Tobias is setting the table, so we disperse to the bathrooms to wash our hands.
"This is delicious, Tobias." I whisper halfway through the meal.
"Thank you. Marcus made me do the cooking while Mom was... tied up. I had to make it perfectly. I guess he did help me with something." Tobias says with a hint of a sad smile.
I smile a little back, then continue on with my delectable meal. Mama and Dad are the only ones speaking, since the children are not allowed to speak about their day until after supper. Nothing interesting is being spoken about, just small comments about the service. When we finish with our simple meal, Caleb and Tobias work with me to carry the dishes into the kitchen, and Tobias pack up the leftover baked chicken that he somehow seems to have cooked flavor into. He must have somehow gotten some seasoning, but we do not have any⏤ that I know of. I pack the potato soup and Caleb takes care of the dishes. We work quickly and efficiently while Mama and Dad move around chairs and the table so there is no trace Tobias ate with us.
There is nothing to do but chores at this time of day, but all the chores are done, so Mama tells us we can go to our rooms. Tobias and I go upstairs and talk until it is time for dinner to be prepared.
Three days later
I sit in the silent living room knitting more onto my afghan when a loud pounding cuts the silence. Tobias sits in the living room with us, so he quickly jumps up and darts into the kitchen where he crawls into a cabinet. Mama gets out of her rocking chair where she knits scarves for the factionless. As soon as the door creaks its "hello" to us, Marcus appears with a furious look on his face that is red from the anger.
"I DEMAND TO SEE MY SON!" Marcus bursts when the door shuts.
"You are not doing to find him here." Mama answers politely.
"The Blacks informed me they saw MY son in through the windows of your houses." Marcus replies angrily.
"Well they must have been mistaken because our windows are always closed. As are the Blacks' as I understand from the times I frequently walk past their home." Mama replies, still calm, but I can hear the anger bubbling beneath the surface of her voice.
Marcus's face softens. I guess now that he has heard reasoning from my mother, he understands where he went wrong with his approach of us. "Oh, well I am sorry. I am just so worried about him." Marcus says with fake sweetness dripping from his voice.
Caleb walks into the living room after Marcus goes silent. He was in the shower, so he probably did not hear Marcus yelling. "Tobias, you can use the ⏤" He sees Marcus and his sentence trails off.
"YOU DO HAVE MY SON!" Marcus yells, the anger taking over yet again.
Caleb's face goes white when Marcus yells. Marcus storms into the living room where I have been quietly sitting and demands to see Tobias. He turns his head erratically, and his eyes land on me after a few seconds. He narrows his eyes and stalks over to where I sit. Marcus gets in my face. His breath is hot and smells of something foul. Something I have never before smelled, and something I hope to never smell again.
"I know you know where my son is." He says calmly and quietly. I wish Dad were here to help, but he had last-minute plans with his coworker, Jonah. "Tell me where my son is." Marcus demands.
"I do not know where he is." I peep.
"I know you do." Marcus says before grabbing the front on my dress and throwing me on the floor. I roll over so I can see his face, but that was a bad move as he stomps his foot on my face, most likely breaking my nose.
"No!" I hear Mama yell from the kitchen. She must be helping out Tobias.
Marcus rolls me back over with his foot then he pulls my dress up so my back is bare. I hear leather scrape against denim. He must be taking his belt off. He is going to beat me. The thought terrifies me just as it crosses my mind.
A/N Wow, this was going to be another filler chapter and it was soooooo boring then the twist that randomly came to me. I could have left you without a cliffhanger or with less of one, but why would I do that?
-T