A/N: Oh my god, I am horrible. Horrible. Horrible. Horrible. Just...ugh, don't judge me. Life got crazy. I dtill haven't seen Insurgent, I haven't even finished Divergent the book yet. Like...whut? Blame Doctor Who. Anyway, here is Chapter 9. *throws confetti* I knew I would finish it eventually. So terribly sorry about the wait. And, yeah, I jumped on the Chris/Four train for the moment. But don't worry! It'll change!
Chapter 9 (Tobias)
I awoke the next morning to a weak beam of orange light streaming in from a crack in the makeshift curtains which hung in my room. Our limbs were tangled together loosely over the ransacked sheets, the bare, chocolate, skin of Chris's back catching a few more errant sunbeams as she shifted in her sleep. I didn't want to wake her. The events of the night previous still throbbed like an open wound and the longer she was asleep, the longer I had to compose myself. I had too many thoughts in my head, too many fears of what may happen when we finally faced the inevitable. It was bound to happen. I knew I should plan for the next step.
Some time passes and soon, the alarm clock is going off rather loudly. I try to turn it off before it can completely disrupt Christina but it's no use. Her brown eyes flutter open and she's automatically staring at me like she's trying to figure out what happened the night before. The cogs click in her head for a few moments before they pause and fix into place and her face falls. I can see the tendril of fear unfurling inside of her and it shows plainly on every part of her until she is awkwardly untangling herself from me and positioning herself on the edge of the bed, her back hunched and facing me.
I sit up myself and brush my weathered fingers over her upper arm gently. Whether it's to ground me or comfort her, I can't tell. Her body slumps more and she is on the verge of saying something. I can hear it in her breathing and the way she fiddles with the hem of the sheets. She doesn't get very far as a sudden, insistent knocking sounds downstairs at the front door. I glance back at the clock with a frown. It's way before eight AM. Johanna shouldn't be here this early. No other citizen knew where I lived and I'd be damned if anyone else on the Council did either. This was my private place.
The knocking continued and with a groan, I slid out of bed and threw on some flannel pants. Before I headed down the stairs, I turned to look at Chris and smiled gently, reassuringly.
"Stay here. I'll bring up your clothes when I'm done okay?" She nods but doesn't look at me. "Hey," I say softly and bend to cup her cheek, turning her face so her gaze is on me. "I meant what I said before. You and I will be fine. I promise."
It seems to work because her eyes brighten a little and her lips curl upward in a tiny grin. I kiss her forehead before I'm out and heading down the stairs, the insistent knocking persisting. It's rather grating this early in the morning.
When I open the door, I'm not sure who I expect but I know for a fact it sure wasn't anyone who had the names Caleb and Prior but, it is exactly him and he barges in before I can deny him entrance. As if I needed a reason to dislike him any more than I already did.
"I didn't say you could come in," I snap as I shut the door with a forceful slam.
"I worked all night last night. I figured out a few of the pamphlets and thought I should come to you before you went to see the Council." Of course, he ignores me and my curtness. Christ, this boy.
"This really isn't a good time, Caleb."
"You really don't have a choice," his voice matches my annoyance.
It takes me a minute to recover. I wasn't expecting that and I have no choice but to motion him into the living room. He glances me over and I can tell he's trying to figure out why I am only half dressed. I usually never open myself up for that kind of open scrutiny. It's then his gaze falls on the pile of clothes strewn over the floor. His eyes flick between me and the mess a few times before I can see the rage building up in his body. Fuck.
"Caleb, this isn't-"
"What? What is it? You- you think I'm just a clueless monster, is that it? You fucked her, didn't you? Wait, no, don't answer that. I can answer it myself." There is a pause as he approaches the base of the stairs. "Christina?" He calls sweetly, like he isn't fuming and steam isn't coming from his ears.
Bless her, she either can't read the fury in his voice or she doesn't realise who it is and she pops her head from my room, obviously covering her state of undress. Goddamn it all.
"Tobias, did you-" And the penny drops as soon as her eyes fall on Caleb. "Caleb," she breathes, her eyes widening to the size of cup saucers. "What- what is going on?"
"What is going on?" He roars. "What is going on? Why don't you come down here and I'll tell you what's going on. Come on. Don't be shy."
I can feel fear rising in my chest as I watch him closely. I don't think I've ever seen him this angry and it's probably a good thing, too. I curse myself for not having a suitable weapon to detain him with in case he gets out of control. I'll just have to take a hands on approach if I needed to. I have a feeling that's how it'll all end.
It takes Chris a few minutes to come down the stairs and when she does, she's wearing one of my t-shirts and a pair of sweatpants. She looks scared too as she edges pass Caleb to stand beside me. I take her hand, twining our fingers together and squeezing ever so gently.
After a long moment of silence, she finally speaks, her voice cautious and soft. "Caleb, why don't you calm down?"
A breath of a pause and a switch is thrown. In two long strides, he approaches the pile of clothes we threw in the corner the night before and he picks up a handful of them before he stalks back in front of us. He throws the clothes at us, my pants hitting me in the face but I take it. I won't lash out at him. Not yet. Christina is shaking beside me as she catches her thrown underwear with a shamed look spread plainly on her face.
"Calm down? I don't think you understand the weight of your actions right now. I will not and cannot calm down. You know- you know, I thought-" He is struggling from completely losing control. I can see it in his eyes. They tear up with hot, angry tears, a few slide down unwarranted onto his cheeks.
"You- you two were supposed to be her friends. Her friends. Does that mean nothing to you? Noting at all?"
"Caleb," Christina tries again but is promptly cut off.
"Don't you dare 'Caleb' me. She may be dead, I get that, but, she was your friend." He turns sharply to face me. "Do you think if you died, she'd go and fuck Peter after two years? Or Uriah?" When I don't answer, he continues. "Exactly. Exactly. You two-" He takes a few deep breaths to calm himself as best as he can. When he speaks again, his voice is a low, dangerous whisper. "I will find Judith Reyes on my own. I no longer require your help and you two will no longer seek me out. Johanna could be planning on murdering the entire Council, it still doesn't mean I'll help you."
He turns to leave, his hands clenched tightly at his side. We both remain silent as we watch him. He has the door open when he turns to face us again. Christina has tears welling in her eyes and I can tell she is trying her hardest to not let them fall.
"I hope you two fucking rot in hell." He slams the door behind him so hard, a picture falls from my wall.
That went well.
When Christina and I walk into the conference room at eight o'clock, I know we look like hell. I feel like hell. I'm not so sure about her. She looks okay on the outside, but, I'm dreading what she may be thinking and feeling on the inside. Whatever it is, it can't be good. After Caleb's outburst, I can't imagine what she is thinking is anything good. I know my thoughts aren't good. I'm nervous. If he lets anything slip...I can't think about that. My status as leader of this council won't change because I slept with Christina. We made it a point to promise that it would never happen again and it wouldn't.
Johanna's eyes are on me as soon as we walk in. She is sitting by Conrad and I have to keep myself from reacting. Conrad is important to whatever is going on in the former Amity sector. If Caleb wasn't going to help us anymore, so be it. I wasn't stupid. I could do this on my own.
When I finally compose myself, I clear my throat and turn my attention to the other members of the Council.
"Where are with the Candor sector? How are the people? Have there been any problems?"
And that's how the entire morning goes. Asking questions. Fielding problems. It's a well oiled machine that I wish would just stop. It was too much to ask, though. Stopping meant conceding something was wrong and to be honest, I didn't want Johanna and Conrad to know. This investigation would play like it was supposed to save for the hiccup Christina and I encountered earlier.
By the time lunch rolls around, my suit sleeves are pushed up over my elbows, my jacket draped over one of the many office chairs lined around the big oak table in the middle of the room. A few of our members ate food from the cafeteria in little Styrofoam containers with plastic forks.
"About Caleb Prior."
"What about him?" Christina pipes up. "He isn't doing anything wrong. There is nothing in the rules and laws that prevents him from going to other sectors of the city. If there were, we would be no better than Jeanine or the previous system. Wouldn't you agree?"
Christina's words silence the Council. I'm not even sure who spoke. I'm assuming it was Conrad but I can't be too sure.
"What he's doing is tampering in our records, our private stores of information." It's Johanna who speaks then and if I had any doubt about her involvement in what's going on, it was quickly squashed by those words.
"The private stores of information, as you call it, should be available to all citizens not just you and your sector, Johanna."
"What we are doing-"
"What you are doing is withholding vital information that could be used and practiced in all of the sectors." Christina is staring me as I continue talking. Should I play my cards this quickly? Yes, I think so. "Who is Judith Reyes?"
The air in the conference room seems to vanish and a few members, Susan Black included, tug at the collars of their shirts. Pressed and dressed and sweating bullets. That was unexpected. My gaze falls on each one of the members and every single one of them look guilty. Their faces were pale, their eyes glazed and shifting. Back in Dauntless, when I was working in intelligence, I got really good at reading people. Some of it came from Abnegation and the putting of others before oneself but mostly, my investigations were done based on gut instinct and the ability to figure people out. This was no exception.
Johanna and Conrad exchange nervous glances. Mostly, the nerves come from Conrad. Johanna, on the other hand, is fuming. I could see it in her eyes and the way her jaw clenched and unclenched. It all happened in a split second. Blink and you'd miss it. My brown eyes land on Christina who looks like she's seen a ghost.
"Judith Reyes is a private citizen, Four."
I bristle. "Judith Reyes is being hidden from the governing body of this state. If we were to look in the birth records, would there be a certificate with her name on it?" When she doesn't answer, I continue. "What are you using her for?"
"Judith is a very sick woman. We are currently hoping to make her better."
"Are you testing on her?"
Christina is getting paler by the second. I notice a minute shake of her head when my gaze happens upon her again but I don't stop. I am angry. First Caleb and now this?
Johanna's gaze catches mine and there is steel in her brown eyes. "Yes."
I shoot another gaze to Christina then my eyes lock back on Johanna. "Candor, is she telling the truth?"
The use of her old nickname snaps her to attention and she answers with a shaky, "Yes."
"What kind of tests?"
"That's none of your business," Johanna says as she stands. "This meeting is adjourned. We will meet here at eight o'clock tomorrow to resume our visitations."
The rest of the members begin gathering their things, stuffing papers and books and pens into rook sacks and briefcases.
"Wait," I demand as I stand to address them. Johanna hasn't had the ability to leave yet but I can see her approaching the door. "From now on, per my order, the sectors are no longer to be called sectors. They are to be called cities. Also, the publication of pamphlets or anything similar is to be done through Susan Black. Susan, you are relieved of your previous post. We will find someone to take your place soon. You are all dismissed."
The wide eyes of the Council stare at me for a brief moment before they're all shoving things in bags and throwing away trash and hurrying out the door. Johanna is last to leave and when she does, she is glaring at me, eyes obsidian with anger and then she is gone, leaving Chris and I alone in the room.
I collapse back in my chair and press my fingers to my eyelids until I see stars.
"That was stupid," Chris says after a few moments. She approaches me with pursed lips and a mirthless expression. "Very stupid." She walks behind me and slender hands are suddenly working my tense shoulders. I was not expecting that but as she continues, I lean into her touch.
"What else was I supposed to do?"
"Gee, I dunno, play dumb for a while? Like it would've killed you."
"It probably would've," I murmur through a smirk.
"Ha. Ha," she teases as she continues her massage. Maybe what happened last night hadn't damaged us so badly after all. "At least you had sense to keep her from publishing anything else. I will arrange a transport to go and pick up the printing press this afternoon."
"Do it quickly. I want everything locked down and confiscated and brought here. To a secure room, mind you. One Johanna can't get to."
Her hands slide off my shoulders and she bends to press a kiss to the top of my head. "On it, Four," she whispers and before I can protest, she is gone, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
Maybe moving on wasn't such a bad thing, despite Caleb's outburst. Maybe it is exactly what I needed.
