Victor and the other leaders of Cincinnati split up the groups of who would go where and do what. I was obviously going to be with Tris. I won't let her out of my sight ever again. Not that I would deny her independence, but never in an instance where life and death were real possibilities would I ever let her go at it alone. Never again.

Tris indicated that Nita was looking for where the Death Serum was. Since Tris knew about where Nita was headed Victor and the other Dauntless would go after Nita while Tris and I went to the Old City Hall, where the actual serums were located. Natalie and Harmony were set out to gather any remaining survivors and bring them here. That seemed to be the safest place at the moment as no one from Nita's team had tried to infiltrate it yet. We could only hope that because this train station was so far removed from the rest of the city that they would overlook it as a possible faction location.

After a while a table was set up with munitions and weapons of all calibers. Tris and I were gathering weapons and stuffing them into our pockets when Tris turned towards me, "Tobias?"

Her eyes were wild, she looked scared. Tris was hardly ever scared, so I stopped loading my gun and put it down on the counter, grabbing her hands, bringing them to my lips and kissing her knuckles, "Yes?"

"If Nita…" she starts then stops.

I could see the lump in her throat and the wet look in her eyes. I pulled her to me so her head was tucked under my neck. I whispered into her hair, "Nita won't do anything and nothing will happen to either of us. I won't let that happen."

Tris looked up at me with all the love that was always there and smiled before she nodded her head and turned away to finish loading her own weapon. I couldn't help but want to touch her. It had been so long. I found my eyes start to water even thinking about it. I wonder now whose ashes I scattered if Tris was right here in front of me. Flesh and bone. Her hair had grown back to its long length. It wasn't quite as long as when we first met, but it wasn't the short pixy cut it was when she died. I liked this style better. I wanted to run my hands through it, knot it up in my fist and pull her head back towards me so I can steal a kiss.

"Tobias?" I heard my mother call, "Can I speak with you…privately, please?"

"Just a moment," I turned to Tris, kissed her forehead and walked towards my mother who was wringing her hands. It was a nervous habit she had when there was something unsavory she wanted to discuss. "What is it?"

"Please don't go," she asked.

"Mom, please. You came here to help these people, now you don't want us to help?" I asked her incredulously.

"We are helping! We warned them. It's up to them to do something about it!" Evelyn snapped. This wasn't like her and it definitely wasn't what we talked about on the drive down here.

"What's really wrong?" I asked her and saw her gaze land on Tris. I turned to look at Tris who was busy talking with Natalie. "Is it Tris?"

"Of course it is! How do we know she's just not telling you that she's here to help us? How do I know she's not just going to turn on you and kill you? I can't know that, and I can't let you leave with her."

"Mom.."

"Don't Mom, me. That's it Tobias. I won't have it. I was forced away from you once, I won't be again," she threatened and it was then that I noticed the misting in her eyes.

I let out a huff of breath from my nose and pulled her into me for a hug. She started to cry on my shoulder as she whispered that she loved me and didn't want me to get hurt and how she couldn't bear for anything to happen to me.

"Mom, listen. If I really thought Tris would hurt me, do you really think I would go with her?"

"You don't know that you wouldn't, son. You've been grieving for years over her. I know you loved her…"

"I do love her."

"I know," she waved her hands to dismiss the reply, "but she may be a totally different person. Damaged even."

"And what about when I thought I was damaged. Tris stood by me. She made me feel whole again. She loved me regardless that I wasn't really Divergent and she was. She didn't care. She loved me for me."

If only I could get my mother to see Tris as the person I saw her as. A strong, beautiful, brave girl who was willing to sacrifice, and did, herself for those she loved. How could she not want this for me? Tris was the best thing that ever happened in my life. She made me feel accepted and that I didn't need to hide from my fears anymore. She made me feel whole. Tris gave me the courage to face my fears, to face my father, and to take a position that would help people. I credited all my success to her.

"Please don't do this Tobias," my mother looked up at me with tears in her eyes, "Please don't go."

I shook my head, I couldn't let her make me stay just to make herself feel better. That's when I remembered the medical facility, the same facility that Tris described and the room that she was held in. That was the same room that my mother was in when I found her. "You knew didn't you?"

The change in subjects confused her, "Knew what?"

"You knew she wasn't dead, didn't you?" I accused her. I knew she was looking at a chart of some sort before she threw into the flames before I could see them.

Her silence was her answer. I shook my head and walked away.

"Tobias!" Evelyn shouted.

"No!" I turned towards her in anger, pointing my finger at her. "You knew! You knew this whole time and you didn't tell me!"

"I was trying to protect you!" she yelled back, tears streaming down her face.

"Protect me from what? Finding her again? Reuniting? I knew you never liked us together, but that isn't your choice to make!"

"Tobias, please," she begged.

"No. I won't let you beg me to stay. I'm going with Tris. We're going to end this now. And then we are going to get in the car and head back to Chicago, together. When we get back, I think it would be wise to find a place of your own."

I didn't even hear her reply, I only heard her sobs as Tris ran up to me.

"What's wrong?" Tris asked.

"It's nothing to concern yourself over. Let's just go so we can get back to Chicago. I'm tired of this place already."

She didn't say anything more. Tris simply took my hand, nodded her head and walked with me out of the door.

Tris's plan was that Victor and his men were going to head to the Health Depot that Christopher told Nita about. We hoped she would be there and Victor could put an end to this once and for all. Tris and I were out to the Old City Hall where the serums were actually kept. Tris did get a lot of pushback on that plan, claiming they didn't want outsiders to know where their serums were located, but we made the point that Tris had survived the death serum once before, she was the only logical choice. I took one last look at my mother who was sitting apart from the group staring off into space before I turned my back, grabbed Tris's hand and walked out of the building.