Chapter 12: Awakenings

Eric POV

It's been eight days. The doctors thought Tris would wake up within the first 48 hours. Every day it's been the same. I spend every minute they allow me to at the hospital by her side. When I'm not here, I'm at Caleb's. Lots of other visitors come and go, all of our friends rotate in and out of the room. My parents have both visited and Max and Dana visit or call every day. The most frequent visitors have been the Prior's, Caleb and Four. Caleb and Four have been my complete support system throughout everything, I seriously don't know how I would be functioning without them.

Somehow, almost losing Tris awakened something in Four, as a result he quickly spilled his feelings to Rayne and to his relief found that she felt the same way he did. She has accompanied him on some of his hospital visits, and I can tell she and Tris will be fast friends.

The Prior's were able to be moved from their safe house due to a strange twist in events. The day after the shooting, the gunman went on trial under truth serum. He revealed a truly sick and twisted plot that surprised everyone. The gunman was hired by Marcus Eaton himself, and the targets were Four and Tris. The elaborate scheme was put into place, and the "death threats" for Marcus and the Prior's were all a ruse to get Four and Tris away from Dauntless for an extended period of time so that Marcus' murderous plan could be completed. It took six days to find Marcus, but once he was captured he was taken to Candor and is scheduled for a trial tomorrow. Four made a full statement against his father regarding the years of abuse he endured, and has been asked to testify under truth serum as well tomorrow. I plan on being there, both to support my friend as he faces his demons, and to see the man who is responsible for my wife's current state held accountable for all of his crimes.

There were plans to wean Tris off of the ventilator that's been in place since her surgery, but she'd been unconscious and mostly unresponsive for eight days. Until today. Earlier this morning Dr. Rivers noticed some distress with the breathing tube. It appeared Tris was starting to fight it, which is actually a very good sign. It may mean that not only can she breathe on her own, but she is also starting to wake up. Andrew, Natalie, Caleb, Four and I are surrounding my wife's bed as her medical team makes their first attempt to find out if Tris can breathe on her own. Yesterday, it was clearly established through testing that Tris had full brain activity, so the hope today is that she is not dependent on the ventilator.

"This is gonna work." Caleb says.

I'm trying to share in his positivity. He's been almost fucking Amity with his positive thoughts and cheerfulness. I love him as a brother, but I want to punch him sometimes.

"Ok, what we're going to do is simply turn the ventilator off. We will give Tris approximately 60 seconds to begin breathing without the use of the ventilator. If she is successful, we would take the breathing tube out completely and replace it with an oxygen cannula. Are you ready?" Dr. Rivers asks.

We all look at each other and nod. I finally answer yes.

I hear them switch the machine off, and immediately miss the gentle whirring sound of the ventilator. We are all quiet and still, there's a nervous energy that I can feel buzzing around us. I'm watching Tris's chest, looking for any indication that she's breathing.

"Her chest is moving." I whisper.

"She's breathing. Her oxygen level is a little low at the moment, but I feel comfortable removing the breathing tube. You all may want to step out of the room for this part, it isn't pleasant." The doctor warns.

We all file out of the room and into the hallway.

"This is good. This is progress." Caleb says.

"It truly is." Natalie replies with tears in her eyes. Andrew places an arm around her, in a show of affection that is highly unusual for Abnegation.

"Hey, man this is huge. This is what you wanted." Four says to me. I nod in agreement.

I didn't even realize I was crying until Natalie hands me a tissue. "Thanks." I mumble and she places her arms around me and gives me a hug, another shock coming from someone in Abnegation, but it's very welcomed.

"Next step is waking up." Caleb says with a smile.

"Ok, we've removed the breathing tube and we've switched Tris to the oxygen cannula. You can all go back in for a bit, but please revert back to the two visitor limit soon." Dr. Rivers says to us.

"Thank you doctor." Four replies as we all file back into the room.

Removing the breathing tube makes a huge difference in how she looks. It makes me think she really is coming out of this. The doctors and nurses have been great, and our families and friends too, but the fact of the matter is my wife is in a coma and was dependent on machines. This is the first peek of a light at the end of the tunnel.

"She looks so good." I say, realizing I'm thinking out loud.

"She really does. She looks more like our sweet girl." Natalie replies.

Eventually, everyone leaves for work and other activities and I'm left alone with Tris. It's always the late evenings that we have our best shot at being alone. That's when I tell her about what she's been missing. I fill her in on how everyone's day has gone, all of the gossip I hear from Christina and everything that's been going on at Dauntless in our absence. It's almost like we're at home winding down after one of our busy work days. Almost.

Tonight, as I'm holding her hand and telling her about the training class and filling her in on the initiates progress report that Shauna shared with me, I feel a squeeze.

"Tris, can you hear me? Can you squeeze my hand again?" I get another squeeze, a little stronger this time.

"Holy shit." I press the call button and ask for a nurse immediately.

"Baby, I'm here. Can you do that again?" I get another brief squeeze.

"Hi Eric, what's going on?" A nurse that is always with Tris each shift she works named Phyllis asks.

"She's squeezing my hand. Watch. Tris honey, can you show Phyllis what you can do?" I feel her squeeze.

"Honey, I'm going to let your hand go so Phyllis can feel. You're going to love her, she's been your nurse everyday." I remove my hand from Tris's and Phyllis takes her hand.

"Tris love, can you squeeze my hand?" She asks and I can see Tris' hand move. Phyllis looks at me with a huge smile. "Tris, I'm going to let your hand go so you can have your husbands again. I'm going to page Dr. Rivers." She then turns her attention to me as she's walking out the door "Keep talking to her."

"Baby, you're doing so well. You keep squeezing me ok? As hard as you want. I love you so much." I say as she squeezes my hand harder. I can see her eyes moving rapidly under her eyelids. "Tris I'd love to see your beautiful eyes again. If you feel like opening them I'm right here." She squeezes my hand and I can see her eyelids moving.

"Eric, I understand Tris is responsive. Mind if I take a look?" Dr. Rivers asks as he enters the room. I drop her hand and he picks it up. "Hi Tris, this is Dr. Rivers, do you remember me?" She squeezes and he nods at me. "Tris you're doing great. Do you feel like opening your eyes?" We can both definitely see fluttering and movement behind her eyelids, and her lips begin to twitch. "That's great Tris, keep trying." He turns his attention to me. "There's a chance when her eyes first open that she won't be aware of her surroundings. Don't be alarmed. You can talk to her too, it'll help." I nod my head and take her other hand.

"Tris I'm right here. We want to see you so bad. Please open those beautiful eyes. I love you." She squeezes my hand and purses her lips in an O shape. Then suddenly her eyes flutter open. Her eyes dart all around the room as if she's scared. "Baby it's ok, I'm right here." She tries to focus her eyes and finally a look of realization comes over her.

"Eric." She rasps.

"Hey my love. I've missed you so much." I reply, and I can feel the tears falling.

"Thirsty." She whispers.

"Tris, we're going to bring you some sponges to wet your mouth. I'm Dr. Rivers and I sure am glad to finally meet you."

"Hi." She replies looking at him. She then looks at me. "I love you." She whispers in her raspy voice.

"I love you too, so much." I reply, kissing her forehead.

"Don't cry." She whispers.

"Baby these are happy tears, I promise you that." She raises her hand to try to wipe my face.

"Well hello there Tris. I'm Phyllis, one of your nurses. I'm so happy to see you. I have some ice water but we have to try the sponges first. I'm going to let your sweet husband do the honors." She hands me a cup of ice water with some sticks soaking inside. At the end of each stick, there is a small sponge. I put one on Tris's lips and she quickly drinks. "That's right, you're doing great. We just need to make sure you can swallow well." Phyllis replies with a smile.

"Throat sore." She rasps out.

"Tris, your throat is sore because earlier today we removed a breathing tube. It should start to feel better soon. Are you in pain anywhere else?" Dr. Rivers asks.

"Side hurts little." She whispers.

"That's to be expected, you had a major injury on that side. Do you need more pain medicine?" He asks.

"No. What happened?" She whispers.

"I'm going to give you the medical side of things, and the rest can be filled in by your husband, ok?" He replies and Tris nods. "Do you remember being hurt?"

She nods. "Someone shot me. Anyone else hurt?" She asks looking at me.

"Everyone else is fine." I reply.

"Tris, when you were shot the bullet entered on your left side. The trajectory caused some damage to your large intestine, ovary, Fallopian tube and eventually the bullet settled in your left lung. We performed surgery and removed the bullet, repaired your lung and large intestine and unfortunately we had to remove the damaged ovary and Fallopian tube."

Tris looks panicked. "Will we have babies?" She whispers.

"Yes Tris, you still have your right ovary and Fallopian tube. Everything else is intact. During the surgery you received multiple blood transfusions. You lost a significant amount of blood and your body went through a major trauma. You are a lucky woman, Tris. A lot of people wouldn't survive what you just did."

"How long have I been here?" She rasps.

"Eight days." He answers. Her eyes widen.

"Is there anything you need Tris?" Phyllis asks.

"Hungry." She says.

"We will get you something to eat. It's going to be soft foods at first ok? We need to make sure you can tolerate food before getting you back into a normal diet. Any special requests?"

"Ice cream." She whispers.

"We can certainly do that." Phyllis answers. "What flavor? We have the usual vanilla, chocolate and strawberry."

"Chocolate." She replies and smiles.

"You got it, I'll be right back."

"Tris, I'm just going to examine you quickly, ok?" Dr. Rivers asks and she nods. She looks over at me and smiles.

"Hey Eric, just wanted to stop in to see if you needed anything before... Holy shit you're awake!" Four exclaims.

"Hi" she smiles.

"And talking. Oh my god. You're back. We've missed you." He replies.

"Ok Tris, you're looking great. It looks like Phyllis has brought your ice cream back. I'll be in to check on you again soon." Dr. Rivers says. "Do you have any questions?" We all answer no and he leaves the room.

"When? How?" Four asks me while grabbing Tris' free hand.

"Literally within the past 30 minutes or so. It's amazing." I reply.

"Ice cream." Tris whispers.

"Yes, baby, I'm sorry. I'm working on it." I open the container and begin feeding spoonfuls to her.

"I've literally never been so fucking happy to see someone in my life Tris. You scared the hell out of us. I'm so glad you're ok." Four says.

"I'm ok." She whispers. "What happened?"

"Before I explain, Four do you mind calling Caleb and the Prior's?" I ask

"On it." He kisses Tris on the forehead and steps into the hall to make his calls.

"I love you so much. Was so afraid I'd never see you." She whispers tears in her eyes.

I bend down and kiss her cheeks, nose, forehead then lips. "No crying. You're here. You were never going to leave me. I love you." She puts her hand on my cheek and I lean into it. "Tris, I know you want to know what happened, and I don't want to keep anything from you. I just want to be sure you're prepared to hear everything. Your family is fine, your friends are all fine, but hearing everything that's transpired since the shooting may be overwhelming. Are you sure you're ready to hear it?" I ask.

She nods her head indicating yes.

"They put the gunman on trial at Candor, and under truth serum he admitted he'd been hired by Marcus Eaton to kill Four and you. Marcus cooked this elaborate scheme up under the ruse of he and your parents receiving death threats. The gunman was factionless, and Marcus provided him clothing and access to the council building. The gunman was found guilty and executed for his crime. Marcus fled, but was captured two days ago and is scheduled to go on trial under truth serum tomorrow. Also, Four made a complete report about Marcus' abuse. He wanted to be sure that Marcus answered for all of his crimes. Four is scheduled to testify under truth serum tomorrow too."

I can see several emotions on her face, but she steels herself before speaking again.

"Are my parents ok? Caleb?" She asks.

"Yes, they're fine. No one else was hurt during the shooting. Are you ok?" I ask.

"Glad it's almost over. Happy to be alive."

"Me too. You have no idea." I reply, kissing her hand.

"Caleb and your parents have been informed and they are over the moon. They've decided to wait until morning to see you, since we are technically here past visiting hours. I also called Chris, Zeke and Uri. Oh and Max ofcourse. Everyone is so happy." Four says, then he looks at me. "Oh and Caleb says dinner is in the oven on warm."

"Caleb feeds you?" Tris asks.

"Yeah, I've been staying with him ever since you were brought here, Four stays there sometime too. They don't allow anyone to sleep in the ICU rooms. Your brother has been great, Tris. Four too. They've taken really good care of me. All of our friends have been in to visit, your parents have been here every day. You even got my parents speaking to me again, they've visited several times." I say.

Tris smiles wide. "That's great. So glad to hear everyone's getting along." She replies.

"You do amazing things Mrs. Coulter." I reply with a smile.

"Tired. Don't want you to go." She replies.

"I'll stay until you fall asleep babe. Get some rest. I love you."

"I love you too." She replies to me. "Four thank you for being here and taking care of him."

"No thanks needed. Get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow." He replies. "Eric, try to get some sleep bud, I think I'm going to head to Caleb's for a bit. Goodnight to you both."

"Your hair." She says to me.

"Yeah, I need a haircut, some gel and a shave." I chuckle. She pats the spot next to our hands. I quirk my eyebrow at her.

"I wanna feel your hair." She explains. I lay my head down in the spot she was patting and she starts to run her fingers through my messy curls.

"I missed you so much." I say to her.

"Me too. I like your beard. It's sexy." She replies sleepily. I chuckle.

"I may have to skip that shave then." I reply. I hear a soft "Mmmhmmm" from Tris.

We both must have fallen asleep because I'm awoken by a light tap on my shoulder. I blink my eyes open and see Nurse Phyllis.

"I hated to wake you, but it's time for shift change and I know they won't be pleased that I let you stay so late." She whispers. She helps move Tris' hand from my hair and thankfully she doesn't wake up.

"Thank you for letting me stay. I'll be back tomorrow, are you working?"

"Yes, same shift. Goodnight Eric."

"Goodnight."

When I get to Caleb's apartment, I find Four crashed out on the couch. I can honestly say that any residual jealousy or worries I had in regards to him were completely washed away by this experience. He's been a great friend to me, and all of our bullshit fighting and competitiveness is done. Our personalities are quite similar, and we now realize that we severely misjudged each other from pretty much the moment we met over three years ago.

I grab my dinner from the oven and turn it off. Caleb has been great in his attempts to keep me fed, although I haven't been doing much eating or sleeping lately. After the great night I've had, I find that I'm both hungry and tired. I quickly eat my dinner, take a short shower and go to bed. For the first time all week, sleep comes easily.

I wake up early, the sun barely peeking on the horizon. I decide to head to the hospital to spend as much time with Tris as I can before the trial starts. Once I'm in the living room, I see Four lacing up his boots.

"I was just about to wake you. Jack called, the trial is being moved up. They found escape plans in Marcus' cell during a sweep. They're starting the trial at 8:00." Four says.

"Does Caleb know?" I ask.

"Yes, he went to pick up his parents and get them to the hospital. Natalie plans on staying there with Tris as long as you need." He replies. "Eat. Get some coffee. Come on." He gestures towards the kitchen where he's made oatmeal and a pot of coffee.

We eat, get on the train and arrive at Candor with 20 minutes to spare. We immediately are led to Jack Kang's office.

"Good morning gentlemen, thank you again for meeting here with such short notice. We felt it was imperative to complete Marcus's trial given the escape plans that were found in his possession. How is Tris?"

"She's awake and alert. She's doing really well." I reply.

"That's excellent news. Four, if you're ready we can start with your testimony. Please, follow me gentlemen." Jack says.

We're led into the main conference room in Candor where they hold the largest trials. "Damn. I was hoping that there wouldn't be so many people here." Four sighs.

"You've got this. You've waited almost 22 years to bring that bastard down. He deserves to have the entire city know how despicable he is." I reply.

I take a seat in the front row while Jack leads Four to a stage area. I look around and see Max and Will sitting next to Will's sister Cara from Erudite, Johanna Reyes and several other Amity representatives with her, along with mostly everyone from the Abnegation council. I hear the sound of chains and see Marcus being escorted to the room, heavily shackled and guarded with armed Dauntless soldiers. He is then chained to a table and chair in the prisoner holding area. He glares at me.

Caleb and Andrew soon sit next to me.

"Sorry for being late, I lost track of time with Tris. It was great to see her." Caleb says.

"How is she this morning?" I ask.

"She's great. She's already been eating and drinking this morning. They even let her take a shower, which you'd think was the highlight of her day based on how excited she was. Other than a little muscle soreness, she's not showing any ill effects from the injury or being in bed for so long. They also plan on moving her from ICU to one of the normal rooms. She tried, very hard I might add, to convince the doctors to allow her to come here. I had to appease her by allowing her to watch the trial on the live stream from my tablet." Andrew replies with a smile, shaking his head.

"Oh wow, that's great progress. I can imagine she's already giving them hell. She's watching? I hope this isn't too much for her." I reply.

"She insisted, and mother is there with her. Christina and Uriah were there too, and planning on staying." Caleb replies.

Jack Kang begins speaking. "Good morning. Today you will witness the trial of Marcus Eaton. Mr. Eaton has been accused of murder for hire, attempted murder, and of assault and battery of a minor child. We will begin today's proceedings with our first witness." Four is shown to a chair in the middle of the stage, Marcus watches his son with a look of disgust. We watch as they inject the serum into Four's neck. After several seconds, his expression changes.

"Please state your name for the record." Jack says.

"Tobias Eaton, I prefer to be called Four."

"Four, what is your faction of birth?"

"Abnegation."

"What is your current faction?"

"Dauntless."

"What is your relationship with Marcus Eaton?"

"Relationship?" He scoffs "that man is nothing to me. By your law he's listed as my father."

"Have there been any incidents of abuse of any type between Marcus Eaton and yourself?"

"Yes."

"Please explain."

Four shifts uncomfortably and is sweating.

"Four, resisting the serum will cause pain." Jack warns. Four glances over to where Marcus is being held and then to where Caleb and I are sitting.

"He started beating me when my mother died, I was 9 years old. His favorite was to use his belt and whip my back, legs and buttocks. He'd also use his hands to slap or punch me, and he'd sometimes choke me until I passed out. He'd often lock me in a closet, sometimes for days, without food or water. I'd often have to sit in my own waste."

There are audible gasps and cries from many of the spectators. Jack holds his hand up in an effort to quiet the crowd and Four seems to be willing himself not to break down.

"How long did this abuse go on?"

"Until I was 18 and left Abnegation." The crowd gasps and murmurs.

"Quiet please!" Jack shouts. "Are you aware of anyone else Marcus has abused or assaulted?"

"Yes, Evelyn Johnson Eaton and Tris Coulter."

"What is your relationship with Evelyn Johnson Eaton?"

"She was my mother."

"And your relationship with Tris Coulter?"

"She's a fellow Dauntless leader and also my best friend."

"Did you witness the abuse of your mother?"

"I remember seeing him slap her, but mostly it was what I heard. He'd lock me in the closet when they fought."

"Did you witness the abuse of Tris Coulter?"

"No. He attacked her in the hallway here at a previous leadership meeting. She told us about the abuse after it happened, and she had visible bruises. Her brother Caleb found Marcus being rough with her."

"What prompted the alleged abuse of Tris Coulter at Marcus Eaton's hand?"

"He was angry that she stood up to him, she insinuated in front of other people that he had been abusive to me."

"Did Tris Coulter know of the alleged abuse?"

"Yes, I had taken her through my fear landscape during Dauntless initiation. Marcus shows up as my biggest fear and it's because of the abuse. She and I have also had several conversations about it."

"Were you aware of any plans that Marcus Eaton had to hurt Tris Coulter or you?"

"No. I only heard of his plans after the trial of the gunman."

"You brought up the gunman, were you present when the shooting occurred?"

"Yes."

"Can you tell us what happened?"

"We were at the leadership meeting in Abnegation. Tris and I had been tasked with personally guarding Marcus Eaton and Andrew Prior due to both men receiving death threats. During the lunch break, we were eating together in the dining hall. I was sitting at a table beside Natalie Prior, and on her other side was Andrew Prior. Tris and Eric Coulter were sitting across from us, and next to Marcus Eaton. During the meal, a man stood up and started walking towards our table, shooting. Eric and I shielded the Prior's and Tris shielded Marcus, we moved everyone under the table. Some of the guards came in and tackled the gunman to the ground, and Eric and I went towards the gunman to disarm and neutralize the threat."

"Was anyone injured during this incident?"

"Yes, Tris was shot. We didn't know it at first, but there was a woman whose robes were soaked with blood screaming for Eric. We ran towards the woman and found Tris on the ground, bleeding from a gunshot wound."

"Four, this is a question we ask everyone. What is your biggest regret?"

He's starting to struggle again for an answer, his face a mask of pain. He finally whispers "Tris." I sit forward in my chair, trying to hear what he's saying.

"I'm sorry Four, you'll need to speak up and stop fighting the serum."

He looks over to where Andrew, Caleb and I are sitting. "My biggest regret is misleading Tris. I wanted to love her the way she deserved and I didn't. I refused to let her go because even though I didn't want a relationship with her, I also didn't want anyone else to have her. She was comfortable, and I used her. She's never been more than a friend to me, I lied to her and told her otherwise. I prevented her from being with someone that I knew she loved."

"Thank you for your honesty." Jack replies and the crowd repeats it.

Four gets up and quickly walks off the stage.

"We will take a brief recess and then continue with testimony. Please reconvene in 20 minutes." Jack announced to the crowd.

"All these years I've worked with that man and had no idea what he put Tobias through. Marcus was more than a coworker, he was a friend of mine and he shared meals with my family. I'm disgusted by what I just heard." Andrew says, clearly upset.

"Four was in my initiation class, and no one knew why he was so closed off. I've known him for almost three years, and in that time the only person he truly opened up to was Tris. He's extremely good at hiding his emotions." I reply.

"Does my daughter know about what he said was his biggest regret?" Andrew asks.

"She and Four came to a mutual conclusion regarding their relationship, and its demise. What Four said is likely something they have talked about between themselves already privately, but it might upset her that it got brought out in public."

Andrew nods. "I can imagine. She's fortunate to have you."

"It's truly the other way around." I reply, Andrew smiles.

Four walks over to where we are sitting. "Hey." He says.

"You did really well son. We're all proud of you." Andrew says.

"I agree, it takes a lot of courage to do what you just did." I reply.

"It was hard, but it also needed to come out. I hate that bastard. I'm sorry about you all having to hear that last thing about Tris."

"Tobias, you are a fine young man. You and Beatrice were young, and both being raised in Abnegation gave you common ground to begin a friendship. You have nothing to apologize to us for." Andrew replies.

"Your relationship with my sister obviously didn't work out and wasn't meant to. I will say, I'm not pleased to hear that you lied to and used her, but it's not my place to judge you. Whatever transpired between the two of you is not our concern, and if Beatrice has found it in her heart to forgive you, why shouldn't we?" Caleb replies.

"Um, yeah, what they said." I reply with a small smile.

"Well at least you finally know I'm not trying to steal your wife." He says with a nervous chuckle.

"Good to know." I reply with a smile. "You did good today, really. Don't worry about the small stuff. Tris might not be happy that your relationship issues came out in public, but what you said is something she's known and accepted already. Like Caleb said, that's between you and her."

Jack calls the room to order. "Testimony will continue." They do not move Marcus from where he's chained, instead they administer the truth serum where he's currently sitting.

"Please state your name for the record."

"Marcus Eaton."

"What is your faction of birth?"

"Abnegation."

"What is your current faction?"

"Abnegation."

"Marcus, did you willingly assault your son, Tobias Eaton?"

Marcus is fighting the serum, and struggling mightily.

"I will give you the same warning. Fighting the serum will cause extreme pain."

"Yes." The crowd breaks into loud gasps and noises.

"Order!" Jack yells and the crowd silences.

"Marcus, did you willingly assault your wife, Evelyn Eaton?"

The pain and struggle on his is face is evident. "Yes."

"Marcus, did you conspire to have Tobias Eaton and Tris Coulter murdered?"

"Yes." The crowd breaks into loud shouts, including from Caleb, Four and me.

"Quiet!" Jack yells again. "Any more outbursts and we will close this trial to the public."

"Marcus, what did you do to conspire to have Tobias and Tris murdered?"

"I met a factionless man who desperately wanted to live in a faction. I offered to smuggle him into Abnegation and integrate him into our community in exchange for him killing my worthless son and that tramp he was having relations with. I created death threats against myself and Andrew Prior and asked Dauntless to provide security and guarding. I specifically requested my son and Beatrice as personal guards. I got the man into our council building during the leadership meeting, and provided him with the weapon and a description of his targets." He says angrily.

"Why would you want your own son and his friend dead?"

"They knew too much. If they started talking, I'd lose everything I worked so hard for."

"Marcus, what is your biggest regret?"

"Fathering that worthless, traitorous boy." He spits staring directly at Four with anger and disgust written across his face. The crowd erupts in shouts and we have to physically restrain Four from attacking Marcus. Once order is restored, Jack continues.

"Marcus Eaton, you are guilty of the crimes of murder for hire, attempted murder and assault of a minor child. The faction leaders will discuss the proper sentence for your crimes. We will return a sentence before the end of the business day tomorrow. Everyone is dismissed."

"You know what this means, right?" I ask Four.

Four nods, but doesn't speak.

"What does it mean?" Caleb asks.

"All of the leaders will have to vote to either execute him, or wipe his memory with memory serum and make him factionless. If execution is chosen, which given his crimes I believe it likely will be, Dauntless carries it out." Andrew replies.

"All five Dauntless leaders get a gun and pull the trigger at the same time. Only one is loaded." I reply.

Realization passes across Caleb's features. Four will not only have to cast a vote for his father's fate, he may also be the one who ends his life.