Mia's POV (Girl)

I looked towards Marcus. No worse for the stroke he had reportedly suffered. I suppose I could thank the Eruidite doctors for that. He caught me staring and smirked. I tried to calm my heart rate, I had faced worse than Marcus in my first few weeks at Dauntless, but the panic bubbling up in me was overwhelming.

Damn Eric's psycho girlfriend. Had she caught me staring at him, was this revenge? Or was she simply trying to get rid of me? My mind was going a million miles an hour, to bad the rest of me wasn't moving at all. In fact I was frozen.

Frozen as Marcus stood up.

Frozen as he walked over to me.

Frozen as the arm pulled back and he back-handed me across my cheek.

"You think you could leave me girl?" He spat down at me. The loathing burning in his eyes. "First that ungrateful son of mine, then you? No one wanted you, I took you in and this is the thanks I get."

He grabbed my arm pulling me to my feet, so he didn't have to bend down to punch me. Fuck, was this it? Was this how I died?

Another blow to my stomach punctuated the vicious words that never ceased. My mind drifted to Dauntless, where I thought I had found my home. True I had kept myself distant from the other initiates, but I didn't want to lose any other friends when we could still so easily be made factionless.

My mind drifted to Eric, who I thought had been looking out for me. Had he set this up? Was I too much trouble to have around? Or was he not aware how mad Katie was? Shit. Which was it? Betrayal or was he at risk?

The thought jogged me awake. For the first time in my life I pushed back. I shoved Marcus back and swung wildly at him, it wasn't a good hit. Barely a glancing blow, but it threw him off balance enough so I could stagger towards the door slamming it behind me.

Only to see Katie sitting by the front door, my only exit. She smiled at me, an unconcerned, pretty smile. She stood up, taking my arm with a grip that surprised me.

"Oh, don't worry. There's no rush. We have plenty of time for you two to catch up." Her voice was light, her 'shall I put the kettle on for a cup of tea' voice. She pushed me back through the door to Marcus.

I had seen an angry Marcus before, I had seen a vicious and spiteful Marcus before. I had never seen this. Volcanic, enraged, incandescent.

I blocked his first hit. In no doubt he might actually try to kill me now, the punches were coming thick and fast, me blocking as many as I could. Then I hit back.

For the second time in one evening I caught him unawares. This time it was a proper hit, I heard the crunch of his nose. His language changing from threats to expletives. I pushed him away and he fell into a chair, clutching his face. I made for the door again, running through, hoping to catch Katie by surprise.

No such luck. She was stood ready for me this time. I threw a punch at her, which she blocked effortlessly. Grabbing my arm and twisting my body into an arm lock.

My body twisted down, face towards the floor, hand pointing to the sky. I flexed my arm experimentally, only to me met with shooting pains. "We're done when I say we're done." Her voice harder than earlier. The her spite now starting to shine through.

She dragged me back towards the door towards Marcus. Fuck. When would we be done? When they carried my body out in a box?

The door slammed behind me again. All pretence that this was a family visit gone. Marcus, blood dripping slowly from his nose walking towards me.

This time I threw the first punch. And the second. And the third. He hit the ground. My Dauntless training had made my strikes effective. I backed towards the door. How to get past Katie?

Seconds passed, but I still had no idea how to get out of the house. Katie was stronger than she looked, and non-Dauntless appearance aside, was obviously a much better fighter than anything I had faced so far.

Could I wait her out? They obviously expected me back at Dauntless. As long as Marcus didn't kill me, she would have to take me back?

Think about Marcus, I looked at the figure on the floor infront of me, he started to move. "Don't even think about it." My voice growled out. A confidence I didn't feel.

Marcus stilled, and I tried to cover my surprise. I wiped off my knuckles on the corner of my t-shirt. They weren't in too bad a state considering I usually wrapped my hands when throwing punches as my hands weren't properly toughened yet.

My wandering mind surprised me. Usually with Marcus in the room, he was all I focused on. I took a seat, feeling my ribs, all intact. My eyes still on Marcus. Un-moving, but definitely awake.

I sat, calming my heart-rate, trying to plan for what Katie would do next. Preparing myself.

In the end it was an anti-climax. I sat on the sofa for about half an hour, until the door opened.

"Oh goodness." Katie's awful polite voice cut through the silence as the door opened. "Did you trip?" she asked lightly pulling Marcus up off the floor. "Well we must be getting back now. Dauntless will send out a patrol if we aren't back soon."

Who on earth did she think she was fooling with that act? Bloody viper of a woman. "Come Mia." She led me out of the house without a backward glance.

Out of the earshot of any Abnigation her voice moved back to the businesslike Dauntless tone, no spite or menace. No indication of what had transpired. "We'll catch the next train. Are you ok to run." So she was aware of the battering I had sustained. Crazy bitch.

I nodded. I wouldn't speak to her. And I certainly wouldn't show her weakness.

Running alongside the train, my ribs felt like knives were being thrust in them. I ignored the pain, not making a sound. Not making any sound as we traveled back to the Dauntless compound in silence.

A/N:
Thank you to those of you who have read/reviewed or favourited this story, comments do keep authors going! DauntlessBoy and Unicorns268 this chapter is for you.

Charlatan