Chapter 9

While we were walking to the clinic Lynn linked her arms with Tris and I and smirked over at us. "We were going to go out after we get squared away and stop by the tattoo parlor. Do you guys want to go?"

Everyone but will agreed. He was going to try and find Chris to hang out.

When we got to the clinic we were greeted by Lauren and several nurses but also Four and Eric.

Lauren was looking at them with a frown but then turned back to us and explained what was going on.

"They liked the idea you had and are going to be sending all the other initiates in over the next few days per the orders of all Leaders. Since it was your idea though, you guys go first. Talia, Logan and Clary they want you to go first."

We all nod but she looks over to me worried "Talia I am going in with Clary. I am sorry there aren't any other girl instructors or leaders to go with you."

I shrugged not really worried since after what I had revealed at the table I knew something like this would happen. "It's fine, not like I have anything to worry about and I don't have anything to hide. I trust my leaders and instructors too so isn't a problem."

Just by Eric's glare and Four's smirk I guess who would be going with me and I felt conflicted. On one hand I had liked him being close. On the other hand though I hated not being able to control my body when he was around and that went against my whole hiding my nature and emotions thing that I strived but mostly failed for.

A pretty blonde nurse with a pixie haircut named Shonda took me into a room with Four following close behind me. Eric had almost stepped in front of me and I saw his muscles working again as if to restrain himself.

When we go in Shonda began with drawing blood, testing reflexes, eyes, hearing, vision and several routine items. We talked about my nutrition and exercise but then she did the scan and when that came up she made me go into another room for a deeper scan.

As we walked by I saw Eric and he was glaring as we walked from the deeper scanner as if he wanted to know what was going on right then.

I had to describe the abuse and in detail. Four and Shonda were livid when they saw the extent of the injuries and I knew there were things I had to leave out. The experiments were not things that they needed to know about and I didn't really want to talk about them.

The file was getting larger but finally Shonda had the final question on the abuse. "Was there any sexual abuse?" She asked softly with her eyes closed as if she dreaded the answer.

I shook my head and was secretly thankful they hadn't gone that far. "No he never went there with me and then when I started to develop when I was ten, I was temporarily allowed to start staying with other families. Logan's family took me in but I was still forced to have visits either in headquarters or sometimes for dinners. When I was 14 they finally emancipated me as much as they could and I was allowed to live somewhere else. He still accosted me in the headquarters and a few times at school, the last time a year ago when he stabbed me and I bleed out but was able to put him out of commision and it was the last time they made me go see him."

She looked relieved about there being no sexual abuse but still very upset about the fact that he had still been able to continue his attacks before there was any help provided to me.

She finished out those questions and moved on. "Are you sexually active?"

I blushed as I shrugged then thought of Eric and shook my head. "No, I have never had intercourse or oral sex before. I was on a birth control just because it helped regulate me and because it was pragmatic to just go ahead and be on one."

Shonda smiled at me when I said pragmatic and I smirked at her. I had already figured out that she was a former Erudite.

"That's fine. I will set up a shot for you that will help with the hormone levels again. You won't have to get another one for six months."

Shonda sighed and looked over the chart, her forehead furrowed. "Well I am going to recommend we administer a blanket nano-serum to resolve any hairline fractures that remain. I will consult with the on call doctor in the MedCenter to confirm that but I am sure we will go with nanites in some way. It will help with the muscle repair around the internal scarring and will just strengthen everything bone wise. Talia, we might have to have injections and several sets of them, but we will see what they say."

"Your iron levels need some serious help so shots every few months for that will be needed and we are going to put you on a prescribed iron pill and calcium supplement for now. You will have to come in once a week to get all your levels tested and we can go from there each week. I am just going to go get everything together."

I nodded to her as Shonda rolled over to put my file on the desk on the opposite wall then got up to get everything set up and to contact Erudite for what they needed to do.

Four walked closer after Shonda left and ran a hand through his hair. He leaned against the bed but was still giving me my space. He looked like he was about to start speaking but the door opened. I looked up, almost expecting Shonda but it was Eric storming in with his jaw clenched.

He looked over at Four standing near me and almost looked murderous. "What the fuck is taking so long?" He growled.

Four stiffened and his own jaw clenched along with his fists. "She just got fucking done Eric and Shonda is going to get her shots and other medicines ready."

Eric walked closer to me and I already felt the warmth coming from him. His eyes passed over me like he was confirming for himself that I was ok. "Well I am here now, so get the fuck out and go deal with her friends. They are pestering the shit out of me about it taking so long."

Four shook his head with a glare at Eric. "I got this, go back out there with them yourself."

Eric quirked an eyebrow and huffed "You forget who has authority here. That wasn't a request Four"

Eric had snarled that last part and let me know that Four was a name he found ridiculous and it wasn't his real name. Considering we are allowed to change our name I didn't find it a big deal.

They stared at each other before Four looked over to me with worry and I smiled at him and let him know with my eyes it would be ok. With a final glare at Eric he nodded to me and his forehead crinkled. "I'll be right outside the door waiting with the others. Yell if you need me."

Four slammed the door when he left and Eric looked back at it smirking. He glanced at me one more time as if he just needed to know I wouldn't disappear then looked for something and saw the file on the desk Shonda put it on. He glared at it and then stalked over and plopped down before he started going through it.

I saw his muscles in his shoulders tense the moment he turned the first page. The tension and anger I felt coming from him was palpable and with every page it got worse. He had propped an arm up on the table and was using one hand to pull at the short hair at the top and sides of his head as he read the file, scowling.

I didn't want to think about what he was thinking as he read over everything or that I might see pity in his eyes when he turned around. Possibly even look at me like I was broken and damaged. So I looked over him and soaked his presence in.

Eric was ridiculously hot and was extremely well built even for a Dauntless. I could almost imagine that he would spend every spare second working out or had changed his hair from the last time I saw him when the leaders were brought down. It had been shaved on the sides and long and styled down the middle. His hair was still dark blonde with just a slight curl to it. He now had the sides grown out slightly and the top was cut shorter. But he styled the top of the short hair and it still managed to look a bit tousled and sexy as hell. He had black gauges in his ears and two dermal piercings above his eye. I had to smile because I planned on getting dermals just not above my eye.

His leadership tattoos trailed down his jaw into his black t-shirt and it made me wonder what other tattoos he had besides those and the maze and symbol tatts on his forearms. His entire body oozed a confidence, power and danger that was both frightening and mouthwatering. I found myself trying to imagine what he would look like under that damn sleeveless black vest and tight black v neck t-shirt. Not to mention those pants and the thighs that I bet rippled when he moved.

I frowned when my thought went that way because this was all so fucking foreign to me. I don't think of men like that or at all.

The stool creaked and I snapped my eyes to the door but I knew he caught me looking. He didn't say anything and I was thankful as fuck for that. We already had some strange attraction going on and we didn't need to add any more fuel to that fire. By my openly just showing how much I wanted him right then it would be just pouring gasoline on the fire inside us when we needed water.

Shonda came in and frowned over at Eric as he read my file. I could tell she was worried about if I was comfortable with it so I smiled and nodded slightly.

She gave a small nod and sighed with the tray and bottles she had for me.

"Alright Talia, here is the birth control we talked about. I was able to pull the hormonal adjustment dosage you were on before so it won't be any new adjustment for you. Since you haven't had intercourse before of any kind we don't need to test for any STD's. But if you do have sex remember you will need to still protect against those."

I swallowed and blushed but nodded and prayed Eric was too absorbed in the file to catch that. One look at him though and I knew he had caught it all. At first he looked surprised but that quickly changed to him being extremely fucking pleased if you went by the biggest damn grin on his face.

Apparently he didn't smile often judging by Shonda shuddering. With me it just added fuel and sent shivers of delight through me.

Shonda was thankfully unaware of either of our reactions or the sexual tension as she moved my hair to give me the injection. "It's going to hurt a bit"

After that I scoffed with a smile. "That didn't hurt Shonda."

She gave a shake of her head and a chuckle as she started with the other injections. "This is for your iron levels, any leftover anemia you had for that last major blood loss and head wound will be rectified. I know you said you started to make yourself iron rich foods like rare beef and then liver." Shonda shuddered at that causing me to smile and chuckle. "The beef is fine and the kitchen will handle that for you when you go into the line, but we don't really have liver here…thank gods" She muttered the last part and I grinned.

"It grows on you, as long as you put lots of onions, gravy and ketchup on it." I shrug with a smile still on my lips. "That's fine when I get housing I can make my own again."

My eyes meet Eric and he is smiling and almost laughing along with me. I am getting this feeling I am seeing sides of Eric that aren't shown much. I had already seen one side of him when he took Jeanine and the others down. Maybe that was why I was feeling part of the way I did. I frowned at that thought and promised I would digest all of this later.

Shonda gives me a few more shots and one in the arm for b-12.

When Shonda picks up the last two needles she frowns. "Talia...I am sorry. We have to go into the bone and this will be the first of shots. We will do a scan at the end of the week and go from there but hopefully this will help."

I had already stood with a sigh and took off my tank top. She looked at my pants and I nodded as I slipped my boots off then my pants. I saw her lips thin in anger at the burns along my thighs and abdomen along with the what seemed like millions of other little scars that covered my body.

"Back or front first?" I ask softly and Shonda looks me over.

"Your abdomen is worse, so we will do back first." She says with an apology in her voice and eyes.

I swallow and nod then hop up onto the bed. I hear the stool creak and Eric starts coming closer to me. I don't see pity though. I see pride and admiration along with a command in his eyes. He doesn't want me to show it hurts. I feel my heart stutter at that.

He helps me to turn over, his hands gentle but the touch electrifying. His hands are rough and calloused and just feel right. I feel bursts of electricity as he brushes my hair from my back and neck to move it out of the way.

I expected him to move away but instead he puts his hand over my wrist where it lays next to my face and starts to trace slow soothing circles on the skin. It is almost feather light and it only adds to the desire I am feeling for him.

"I am sorry, the needle for this is really long and it has to go into the bone Talia." Shonda says quietly and worried about the pain she is about to inflict.

I give a small smile and let humor fill my voice. "It isn't the size of the needle Shonda…"

They both chuckle but Eric's hand squeezes mine just as I tense and Shonda starts the injections. She has to inject along the scalp, neck, spine, back, hips, knees, legs and feet. I feel like I am going to bite through my lip I am clamping down so hard, but I don't make a sound. I have to lay there for a few minutes before I need to flip over.

Eric again helps me to turn over and holds my eyes with his as Shonda starts again. She was right, it is much worse in the front. I start biting my lip again but Eric uses his thumb and finger to stop me. He keeps his thumb there though as he lightly strokes my lower lip.

Our eyes never waver and I see something changing for both of us. The desire is there but now there is something else. Something I can't begin to fathom.

"You're doing good Lia." His voice is gruff and full of desire and pride.

My stomach flips and I know my eyes flash with pleasure at the nickname he has given me. I also know I will never allow anyone else to call me that either. I smile at him, my secret smile that only Logan has ever seen, with the one dimple in the right corner of my mouth showing. Eric's breath hitches and one hand moves to tangle in my hair. His breathing and heart beat becomes in sync with mine…or mine his.

As one hand moved to my hair, the hand that was stroking my lower lip stills. His thumb still on my lips and I press a soft kiss to the pad of his thumb. He smiles at me tenderly as his eyes close and he lets out the barest whisper of sigh. When his eyes open again they are blue and he strokes my cheek before stroking my lip again.

It was as if the world stopped and it was just us for those minutes. I felt no pain during that last part. I was consumed with Eric.

The world starts spinning again as Shonda finally finishes and Eric gives my lips one last tender stroke before he pushes away, grabs my file and storms out.

Shonda doesn't say anything about what happened between Eric and I but I can tell she is worried. She gives me a few mild pain injections and helps me dress before giving me my vitamin prescription and breakdowns as well as the pills she wants me to take for iron. Between the pain, the pain medication and my encounter with Eric I feel almost in a daze.

The scars in some of the areas are much lighter and that is something that makes me feel a bit better.