Okay, so after the long, long gap, I am finally back. Thanks to everyone for waiting patiently and the continuous support and best wishes. It means everything to me. My updates will not be exactly very frequent, because I have to continuourefine and work on even the hazy plotline had thought of in the begin, because now, it seems stupid and improbable. Anyway, I'll be updating as frequently as possible, and let's hope that's more than once in a month. ;)

To Meyers1020, lament not, it seems you were were lucky that you read this story just now. Thanks for reviewing and following. Same thanks to everyone else; over 44000 reads and 393 reviews are more than I could hope for! You're the best!

Enjoy!


When I open my eyes, sunlight filters through the grimy windows and a pile of ashes remain in the place where the fire once burnt. And the place beside me where Tobias had been sleeping is empty, again.

Good, I tell myself, or try to. I don't think I can face him now. A strange bitterness fills me now as I think of him, so unlike the sweet feeling of home and safety that I have come to associate with him. The dull ache though, which always comes whenever I think of him, lingers, somehow even more pronounced than before.

I decide that I am in need of a shower; the grime and sweat from running from the Erudite cover my body, and I don't smell very well. With this thought in mind, I stand up, immediately feeling my arms ache from excess of lactic acid. My hair is sticky, falling in limp strands around my face. Running my fingers through the strands, I wander down the hallways towards the bathroom. As expected, there are other women standing before the sink, half-naked, washing themselves. I wash my hair thoroughly under the faucet, but as I do so, I face a problem. I don't have Susan or any other person from Abnegation to preserve my modesty while I wash. These women in factionless are immune to the taboo of nakedness due to the lack of resources and standards, but I still cannot bring myself to undress in public.

Someone taps me on the shoulder. I turn around to find Myra. She carries two towels. Her clothes have been already rejected, and she stands unabashedly in a thin and worn petticoat that is practically worth nothing. I feel my cheeks heat and turn my face slightly to hide just how embarrassed I am.

"Hey." She smiles a little, not noticing my discomfort. "Come for a wash? You can go ahead. You turned up before me anyway."

"Uh, I —" I hesitate, unable to articulate my problems. Myra blinks at me for a few moments, before realizing what the problem is.

"Oh, right," she says, her eyes widening. "You are shy, aren't you? Guess it comes even more with being a stiff." She hands me one of her towels. "Tell you what, you go ahead, I will hold this towel like a screen so they won't see you. That okay?"

I nod and mumble thanks before shedding my clothes as Myra's towel guards me from the other women's sight. The water is cold, unsurprisingly, but I let the shivers that it causes on my skin make me even more acutely aware of the cleansing process.

"They – they had proper washing facilities back in Erudite," Myra says softly from the other side of the towel. "I mean, I know it sounds stupid but, well, I miss home."

"How is this life treating you?" I can't help ask. I gaze at a crack on the thinly plastered wall as I dry myself with my towel.

"Oh, it's much better than Dauntless," Myra replies. "At least I don't have to worry about fights every morning, and getting cut. They are all very accepting… It's good to talk to people of my old faction. But still, I just –" she trails off, and I can hear the wistful note in her voice.

"Edward told me about your decision."

"He is sweet," I can hear the sad smile in Myra's tone. "He had always wanted to join Dauntless, ever since I knew him. He'd read up all the books we had on the faction in our library, and he was always practicing – running, exercising, fighting. It was really good of him to leave for me. He had a good future in store for him there."

"You said you'd explain Edward's behavior," I say as I step out, fully dressed once more. I found myself a pair of black trousers and a Candor white shirt. They aren't in the best condition, but at least I smell alright now. I hadn't anticipated Edward's behavior to be as hostile as we saw, almost as much as last time, not after the last conversation we'd had at Dauntless.

"Oh, yeah," Myra nods. "Just let me wash myself." She looks around cautiously. "He wouldn't like me to talk about this in public." Myra hands me the extra towel and moves to the sink. She leads me to an empty corner when she is done and dressed.

"Don't think too harshly of Edward," she murmurs. "He is grateful to you for saving him that night. And he thinks highly of the advice you gave him that morning, he told me. Just… appearances are important in factionless. Loyalty to their group is important here too, just like the factions. Edward couldn't get his desired position in Dauntless, so he is trying hard here. I daresay he enjoys it better here, since we are no longer under the pressure of getting cut and unnecessary competition. Don't hate him, Tris; he is only trying to make his mark in this world."

I nod in silence, not knowing what to say. "I want to talk to him alone. Could you arrange that?"

"I guess," Myra nods. "Does sometime in an hour work for you?"

"Alright," I agree. With nothing more seemingly to be said between us, I turn away with a nod.

"Tris?" I turn at Myra's call. "Do you – do you know if Peter is still here?" she asks.

"I –" I frown. "I don't know," I say slowly. "I haven't seen him… he should have left. He is scared of Edward anyway; he wasn't comfortable here."

"I hope he has," Myra says anxiously. "Edward hates him – very rightly too – and he has some anger issues. It would be better for all of us if he's left."

I smile a little to myself. The presence of both eyes and Myra have done a lot for Edward.

"Tris." I look up.

"Yes?"

Myra's expression is grave. "Not to sound rude or anything, but I'd suggest you leave as soon as possible," she says slowly. "Evelyn wants Four – Tobias, but she clearly doesn't like you. You – you're not welcome here."

I laugh a little, without humor. "Oh, trust me, I know that, Myra," I say with a bitter smirk. "I know that better than anyone."

-o0o-

I run into the person I wanted to see the least as I walk out of the bathroom.

"Beatrice," Evelyn smiles thinly at me.

"It's Tris," I say shortly.

"Tris," she amends. "Forgive me, I am not used to a person changing their skin so quickly."

She is trying to bait me. "I don't think you are in a position to comment on it," I say, controlling my anger with difficulty.

The lines on Evelyn's face contort, but only for a second; the next moment the blank, smooth mask is back. Around us, the factionless are moving around busily, going out, coming in. Some of them carry tins of paint and brushes.

"They keep watch on the entire city. Every faction," Evelyn says, looking at them. I notice how she abruptly changed the subject. "The ones with the paint – they're going to write a message to the other safe houses, on one of the billboards. Codes formed out of personal information—so-and-so's favorite color, someone else's childhood pet."

"Clever," I say with a forced smile.

"Isn't it?" Evelyn smiles, but there is something cold even in that. "It was my idea. Every faction imagines the factionless as a nonentity, but they disregard their potential in their own pride."

I take a deep breath. "That is true."

"But surely you know about all this?" She looks casual, nonchalant. She is anything but. "I hope I am not boring you with my old talk?"

It would be wise to turn away, to shrug it off with a noncommittal reply. I almost manage to do so, to end the conversation, but her words create a kind of pressure inside my mind, like she is squeezing my brain between her hands. She is rubbing her power in my face. I cannot ignore it any longer.

"Listen carefully," I say in a low voice. I check over her shoulder for Tobias, to make sure he isn't listening in, and then continue. "You may suddenly have gained a lot of information about me, but if you think that gives you some sort of leverage over me, you are mistaken. And I'm not stupid. I can see that you're trying to manipulate him and use him. But it won't work. Tobias is too clever for that. He knows you."

"No," Evelyn's dark eyes glint dangerously, but her expression is calm, almost serene. "What he does know is some story a silly girl has woven before him. And all too soon, he will come to his senses. If only you had heard what he had to say to me last night, or rather, what he couldn't say…" she trails off delicately, and it's almost as if she knows that I eavesdropped last night, and that she wanted me to, even.

"He doesn't –" I begin, but I don't know what I am about to say; the words seem to slip away, just like my wavering faith on Tobias. I want to believe that he would never betray my trust, but my confidence, already broken, keeps withering under Evelyn's relentless assault.

"My dear girl," says Evelyn, "I am his family. I am permanent. You are only temporary."

Her words had hurt last time, but this time they hit me with double the force, sharp and stinging like a whiplash, and more so because a soft voice in my head whispers, What if she is right? I had thought Tobias believed me. What more can I do to convince him that I am telling the truth?

I don't even have the strength to make a sharp retort to her. My hands shaking, I slip past her and away. I don't even have to look to know the triumphant look she must be wearing.

I walk to the door of the safehouse looking at the lanes lined with filth. Everything suddenly feels so heavy to me. I want to go back to Dauntless, to my friends; I wish I had left last night. I want to leave now, but I am holding back only because of Tobias. I want us to go back together. But where do we stand now? After everything we have been through, has he joined with Evelyn again, already? I want a confrontation, to come clear of exactly what is going on here, but how do I tell him that I eavesdropped on a conversation I was very clearly not meant to hear, at least where Tobias is concerned?

"Tris?"

I jump, the voice hitting me like a live wire. God, there he is. And suddenly, I am not ready to face him at all. I turn reluctantly.

"Tobias." I can't quite meet his eyes. I don't want to see him right now. If only you had heard what he had to say to me, or rather, what he couldn't say… Except that I did, I did; how could he? "What do you want?"

Tobias looks concerned, worried even, perhaps, as he stares at me. Despite the cold ice clawing at my heart, the small patch of light in his dark blue iris draws me towards it.

"Are you okay?" he asks quietly. "I haven't seen you around in a while."

My head snaps up, my eyes clashing with his gaze. "Well, it must be because you are too busy with things here," I say bitterly. "I have been around all the time. But it's okay. I guess you have a lot in your hands."

"I –" Tobias frowns. "What are you trying to imply?"

I give him a small smile. "Nothing," I say coolly. "Now, if you could excuse me, I need to be somewhere."

Not giving him time to reply, I brush past him. But then his calloused hand is around my wrist, his strong grip stopping me mid-stride.

"What are you doing?" I hiss. "Let me go!"

"Why are you being like this?" Tobias scowls. "What is wrong?"

"What is wrong? Oh, nothing at all!" I seethe, my anger hurtling to the front. "Everything is fine in this little factionless heaven; everything is totally fine!"

I tug again, but this time, Tobias takes both my hands in his. He inhales deeply, as if trying to calm himself.

"Tris," he says quietly. "Please. Talk to me. What happened? Did I do something wrong?"

His sincere tone almost calms me down into talking to him, but his last sentence makes my patience snap in half.

"If you can't even figure out what you did, Tobias," I say equally quietly, my voice shaking, "Then there is no use telling you anyway." I jerk myself away from him again. This time, he doesn't stop me.

-o0o-

I sit down on the floor, my heart hammering. I hate fighting with Tobias; everything that happened in my last life – our constant bickering and lack of trust in each other after our arrival in Candor, and how things completely broke between us when Uriah died, rushes through my mind. Are we going down in that direction again?

Some of the factionless sit near me, passing around tins of food. One of them holds a tub of peanut butter out to me, and I mechanically put my fingers in the sticky mess and put some in my mouth. Suddenly, a shadow falls over me. I look up, startled, thinking it might be Tobias, but it's only Edward.

"Myra said you wanted to talk to me," he says. His tone is much gentler than our first conversation in the factionless.

"Yes," I say, getting up and dusting myself. "Could we go someplace private?"

Edward quirks his eyebrows at me. "If there is one thing that's hard to find here, it's privacy. But come along. I'm sure we'll get a spot."

We walk over to the very far, darkest corner of the safehouse, where Edward stops me, opening a storage cabinet. It is quite large, but the sight of the dark, closed space makes me uncomfortable. It brings memories of Tobias' fear landscape. Only, this isn't Tobias.

"I'm not sure this is a good idea –" I say.

"It will be fine," Edward says. "Trust me, I don't want to be shut up here with you any more than you. But we can't risk being seen close together. They don't use this cabinet anyway. We'll be safe here."

Reluctantly, I follow Edward into the dusty cabinet, pushing away moldy blankets to make space. Edward was right, the space is big enough to hold both of us; but our knees knock together. Edward shuts the door after me, leaving only a chink of light streaming inside.

"So, what do you want?" Edward asks. "I can guess it's serious."

"Yeah," I fold my hands on my knee. "I – I believe you're trying to get close to Evelyn, to rise in the ranks of the factionless."

In the near-complete darkness, I see Edward's expression turn frosty. "What if I am?" he says coldly. "It's none of your business."

"I know," I say quickly. "It's not. But I need your help."

Edward looks at me suspiciously. "What does that have to do with this?"

"I – can I trust you?" I say warily.

"I don't know, can you, Tris?" Edward replies slowly. "It depends on whose side you're on."

I purse my lips. "I am on no one's side, Edward. I just want to stop the death of innocent people."

"I –" Edward appears at a loss about what to say.

"Do you remember the things I told you before you left?"

Edward nods. "Yeah, about the possibility of the factionless rebelling, and how it will lead to unnecessary violence, right?"

"Yes." I press my thumbs together. "How much of that plan has taken place yet?"

Edward looks down. "I am not supposed to tell you this, but then, I guess, Evelyn is telling all that to Tobias anyway." I notice how he keeps calling him 'Tobias', and not 'Four', just like the other factionless when they have to talk to him or about him. "Evelyn was preparing us all – having the other safehouses work together as much as possible – for the aftermath of the Erudite attack on Abnegation. The government would fall with that, and Jeanine Matthews would be the only remaining hurdle towards establishing a factionless administration. But then you and Tobias stopped the attack, and all of Abnegation survived. But we are waiting, because sooner or later, the clash of Erudite with the other factions will allow us a chance."

I nod. "Do you want this to happen?"

"You have seen how we live," Edward says. "You have seen the superiority of the factions. The faction system is not perfect." His voice rose as he went on. "The Dauntless are ruthless and cruel. The Candor, can you believe they stand for the truth, after – after that scum?" He spits the last word out and I know that he is talking about Peter. "The Amity are cowards hiding under the cover of peace. The Abnegation aren't true – we know what Eaton did to his wife and son. And," he sighs, "even the Erudite aren't perfect. That's why I left. This system – kicking people out thinking they aren't enough, seriously, it's never going to work."

I lower my head. "I know."

"Yeah?" Edward seems surprised at my answer. "Then why –"

"Because I think Evelyn's is not the right method. The faction system is bound to go down with time; there is no need for bloodshed. Evelyn wants power, Edward, that is why she is heading this way. I have a good idea what things will be like – it will not be pretty. I don't think you want your family to die, do you?"

"I – they are not my family anymore. My faction – the factionless are my family," Edward says, but I can hear the confidence in his voice falter.

"Listen, Edward. All I want is to stop Evelyn's attack when it happens, just like I wanted to stop the attack on Abnegation. I have no problem with your ambition of rising in the factionless ranks. I want you to do that. All I want you to do is keep an eye out, and as soon as you know when the siege is going to happen, tell me. Okay?"

"What will you do then?" Edward says suspiciously.

"Try to negotiate. I don't want a fight, I told you," I reply, a little impatient.

"Alright, I –" Edward begins, then abruptly stops. I open my mouth to ask him the reason, but then I, too, hear what he has heard. Quiet, but distinct sound of footsteps making their way towards our hiding spot. Instinctively, we shift deeper into the cabinet, but there isn't much space to hide.

A shadow falls over the door of the cabinet, cutting off the stream of light coming in. And then the panes swing open, and I find myself face to face with those dark blue eyes again. The lack of light hides the patch of light blue, rendering both his eyes dark, almost like Evelyn's.

Tobias' face undergoes a rapid change of expressions – starting from utter shock to confusion to anger and something darker, finally reaching frosty blankness. His hands shake a little, and he turns on his heels and strides away, leaving both Edward and me sitting, stunned.

"Well," Edward whistled softly. "That did not go well."

"I can't believe this," I murmur. I shudder at what it must have looked like to Tobias – Edward and I sitting so close to each other in this small, dark space, the door closed, our knees touching. But he can't possibly think that low of me…?

"I must talk to him." I stand up and look at Edward. "Remember what I said, please. Any news, please inform me." At his nod, I run the way Tobias had taken.

It takes me some time to find him, by which time he is opening the front door of the safehouse.

"Tobias!" I call. "Tobias, wait!" But he ignores me, walking away outside. I catch the door just before it can slam on my face, and hurry outside without bothering to close it behind me.

"Tobias!" I am gasping a little now. It's not like I am not fit, I have done plenty of running before; it's just that Tobias is fitter, and his long strides are equal to two of mine. My emotions also keep hindering me. "Tobias, listen to me!"

He finally stops, turning towards me. I skid to a stop. His face is expressionless. His eyes seem frozen.

"Please leave me alone, Tris," he says quietly. This is bad. Quiet is bad when it comes to Tobias.

"Listen to me, please," I insist.

"What do you want?" The way he throws my own words at me makes me flinch.

"I want to explain," I plead.

"You weren't ready to hear me out, were you? You wouldn't even tell me anything! And now when you want to explain, I have to listen to you?" He frowns at me.

"I, well I –"

"You have been acting so strangely since we came here." Tobias scowls. "You won't talk to me. Do you even trust me anymore?"

Just when I was about to apologize.

"Well, what more could I have done?" I ask with raised eyebrows. "I stayed with you, just to be with you, when everyone else left. I have been there for you all this time and – and what do you do in return? Why, Tobias? Why should I trust you?"

Tobias staggers back as if physically hit, his face turning pale. He turns away from me, pacing a few steps. When he turns back, his cheeks are splotchy. I can't remember ever seeing his face change color before. No, I have. I pale at the memory.

"I – I have no idea what mistake I made in staying in factionless for one more day. I did not want to stray out at night when we could be easily ambushed. I didn't really think it would be anything for you to lose your trust in me." He sighs bitterly. "Sometimes," he says quietly, "it isn't easy to be with you, Tris."

His words, reaching my ears for the second time, hit me like a slap. Something inside me seems to crack. I know it's not. I have known it for a long time.

"I –" I take in a rasping breath, ignoring the burning sensation in the corners of my eyes. "I am sorry about what happened now. I was only planning with Edward, nothing more." I clench my hands into fists. "But you want to know why I can't trust you now, Tobias?" My voice starts to rise. "It is because you told your mother about my secret! I trusted you. If I'd wanted to, I could have lied to you when you found me out that night, but I didn't because I knew I could trust you. I believed in you. How could you –"

Tobias' face is suddenly chalk white. His eyes are wide and terrified. "Tris – no – listen to me –"

"No, you listen, Tobias," I go on, my anger in charge. "You know what? I'm tired of being stuck here, with nothing to do. Your mother hates me, you know that! We are wasting time here."

"Tris, wait, it wasn't –" Tobias tries again, looking panicked and frustrated.

I shake my head. "I'm leaving, Four. You can come back whenever you want. I'm going back to Dauntless." I take a few steps back from him, and start running. Behind me, I can here Tobias following, and I run even faster. My chest feels like it is being pressed tighter and tighter.

"Tris! Wait, Tris!" But I don't. The thin lanes in the factionless sector are numerous and twisted, and all too soon, Tobias' calls have faded away. I gasp for breath as I stop, bending and gripping my knees. I am already regretting my impulsive exit. I was stupid; I let my emotions get better of me. Tobias obviously had something to say; I should have heard him out. I look back at the way I had come, lined with garbage, with rats and cockroaches scuttling around, and flies buzzing. I feel cold, and not because of the temperature. Should I go back to Tobias? We should have solved this problem like adults instead of exchanging sharp words and me running off. I bit my lips, staring at the thin, serpentine lanes. Is he still waiting out there, or has he already gone inside to Evelyn? The ache in my heart for Tobias grows, but my pride prevents me from going back. We will get this cleared in Dauntless, I convince myself. If anything, it might induce him to return to Dauntless sooner. I do not wish to return to factionless and Evelyn's gloating face. With these thoughts, I start to make my way for the tracks.

The wind blows on my face as I reach the tracks, and I think back to the last time I'd left factionless – with Tobias, to leave for Candor. I remember the doubts I'd had then about Tobias' intentions, about his resolutions to reach Candor and how he had so resolutely kept me out of his plans with Evelyn. I remember the time he went to forge a formal alliance with the factionless; he had not asked for my opinion at any point of time, and he had been so defensive of his mother, simply because they had a common enemy in Marcus. Mistakes, all mistakes. Are we going the same way this time as well? Has everything I told Tobias fallen short to Evelyn's manipulation?

The train arrives with a loud rumble and I steady myself, jogging alongside it and then pulling myself up into a compartment. Factionless passes by before my eyes as I stand at the door. Tobias is there. Guilt presses at my heart despite my anger and sense of betrayal. I should not have left him. Perhaps a proper conversation would have cleared everything; perhaps I could bring him away form Evelyn's clutches. But running away from him, I have achieved nothing; I feel like I have failed, failed Tobias. With some poor consolations to myself, I turn away from the door with a sigh. And freeze.

My eyes meet with six other pairs on the far end of the compartment. The eyebrows above one of them – dark and glinting even in the darkness – are pierced with metal rings. All six soldiers are dressed in black with blue bands on their arms.

It's Eric. And Dauntless soldiers allegiant to Erudite.

Shock renders my mind blank for a second. Of all people to meet… My luck could not have been worse.

Eric and his companions stare at me for a second, and at that moment it seems as if all of us are measuring each other. And then we all move. In the blink of an eye, all of them draw out their guns. I pull out the one I have been carrying from Erudite, and duck as the first shot rings out.

"No, you idiots!" Eric yells. "We need her alive! Be careful."

The limited space gives me a huge disadvantage as I get less space to dodge the bullets, but it also means that Eric and his companions will have to be more careful if they do not wish to kill me outright. Taking a deep breath, I roll on the floor, firing a couple of quick shots at the soldiers, a few hit them, but not, I see, fatally.

The train's movement makes it more difficult to fight than on level ground. The shots rain from the five guns, some missing me only narrowly, and I struggle to retaliate. Eric, I notice between shots, is standing back, watching the show.

Gradually, it becomes more and more difficult for me to dodge the bullets. I throw myself to the floor to avoid another shot, just as searing pain lights up on my right leg. I bite down on my lip, drawing blood as I try to muffle my scream. The floor of the train swims a full circle in my eyes.

Wincing, I raise myself on my elbows, my fingers shaking around my gun. The soldiers have stopped shooting, looking at me warily. One of them is around my age, another even younger. Eric's boots click against the floor as he takes a step towards me.

"So, Tris Prior," he says with a smug smile. "Fancy seeing you here."

His words make something shift inside me. My heart thuds loudly as the thought of the events that will follow this hit me full force.

He will take me to Erudite.

Jeanine will complete her tests on me.

She will develop a serum for the Divergent.

She will know the truth about myself, and will probably lock me up in Erudite to slowly extract information about the future.

This is desperate. Everything ends now. Tobias will not be able to save me again. The searing pain in my leg seems to agree with that. All over. Everything washed away.

Unless I act.

Until now, I had not wished to fatally hurt any of the soldiers, despite myself, but I can't do this anymore. Gritting my teeth, I look into Eric's eyes, then at the other soldiers, and start firing.

I don't know how many shots I fire, but I just go on, my body shaking under the assault of the recoil, raised on one leg. I know that I must look wild and crazed, because I am not thinking; it's only my survival instinct working now.

"Stop! Stop, please!" The youthful voice makes me snap out of my unthinking, single-minded massacring. Bile rises in my throat as I see what I have done – three of the soldiers lie dead on the floor, riddled with bullet holes, in a pool of blood. The young man my age is bleeding from his soldier. It was the young girl soldier who had screamed, who is now cowering at one corner. Eric, too, is surprisingly unharmed, slinking against the wall as far as possible from me; the sight of him makes me want to start shooting again.

"Don't – no more," the girl whimpers. I look at Eric. He looks shocked and horrified, but also satisfied in a strange way, as if I have passed a test. He nods at me, agreeing with the girl, and raises both his hands a little in a surrendering gesture.

"Don't – don't you dare take a step towards me," I warn. "Any of you. Or I'll shoot." I don't know if I have any bullets left in my gun, though. The adrenaline has faded from my blood leaving only exhaustion – both emotional, from my argument with Tobias (it feels strange and dreamlike, like a fading nightmare; I half-convince myself that all this will go away when I wake up), and physical. This is the second time I have been shot in this life, and the pain is just as bad as the last time, if not more. A layer of sweat lines my forehead.

I drag myself to the door to support myself up using the handle. My progress is slow, and I can feel the three pairs on eyes on me. Suddenly, I see a quick movement in my peripheral vision, and turn in time to see the young man lunging at me.

My grip on my gun is not strong enough; it skitters away from me as the heavy body collides against mine, his leg hitting my gun wound wrenching a scream out of me. We lurch towards the door, our arms tangled in struggle.

"L-let go!" I scream, trying hard to keep myself inside the train.

"No!" he grunts, and to my horror, brings up his gun. Desperately, I punch him in the abdomen, causing him to gasp. I follow up with a hit to his solar plexus, which leaves him reeling. As he rushes at me again, I press my lips together and throw all my weight on my uninjured leg, swerving out of his way. I look on in horror as he screams, tries to control his balance but fails, and is hurled out of the train. His body bounces against the concrete, around five feet down at the moment, and disappears.

I am dazed as I slowly turn from the disaster that just took place before me. The next thing is see is the barrel of a gun. Eric smirks at me as he slowly curls his fingers around my throat.

"Now, now, Tris," he says lazily, as if he wasn't just slumped against the wall, terrified of my shooting. "We wouldn't want any more nuisance from you today, would we?"

He drags me by the throat towards the door, until I can feel the wind on my back and through my hair.

"What – what are you –" I gasp, "– doing h-here?"

"We came to take a look at Dauntless," Eric says with a smirk. "See what you've been doing. You all destroyed the security cameras, you naughty girl! Increasing our work like that." He makes a tsking noise. "But fancy seeing you midway through the route. What have you been doing in the factionless, Prior?"

"N-none of your business," I manage.

"Wrong answer," he says, his eyes glinting maliciously, and thrusts me out of the train. My feet kick the air helplessly, my right leg burning with dizzying pain.

"Won't you tell me, little Stiff?" Eric coos. "Or out and down you go."

"P-please," I gasp. I hate begging to him, but I am desperate.

"Oh well," he sighs with a wicked smirk. "That does sound nice, you begging. Jeanine will get it out of you with the truth serum anyway."

He pulls me back, and as soon as my feet touch the ground, my fist shoots out to hit Eric heavily on the chest.

"Hey!" he gasps, staggering back, his chokehold around me loosening. But I realize my mistake far too late. My feet are just on the edge of the compartment and with the train's next lurch, I lose my footing. My wounded leg is not good enough to save me.

"NO!" I claw at the handle but fail to grab it. The last thing I see before my body hits the concrete is the young girl's face staring at me fearfully from inside the train.

Crash.

My body hits the concrete and bounces and rolls over from the momentum.

Snap.

Again. Twice.

Crack.

My head hits the concrete with an audible crack, and the world goes dark.