TOBIAS

I fling the door open and hold it as Zeke huffs past, waving my hand at the suddenly anxious woman behind the reception counter to indicate that he's with me.

"Zeke! Where've you been?" I ask, flustered, torn between anger and relief. "Do you know what ti—?"

"Dude, don't even start with me. You've seen that truck. First, we had a flat tire, which took a ridiculous amount of time to fix. Then there were all the roads that weren't passable for one reason or another, and we had to find another way. What the heck does the government spend their money on?!" he interrupts with an impassioned tirade, which he must have been saving for awhile.

He's standing there staring at me, tired, red eyes wide, with large black bags under both arms, and the only thing I can think to do is throw my arm around him.

"It's good to see you, Zeke!" I say, shaking my head and exhaling, all the anger instantly dissipating. "I just hope you made notes on the map so we don't get lost on the way back. Sounds like we'll need it," I tease with a grin.

"Yah, whatever. Just hold the door for Christina. She's bringing up the rear," Zeke says, dropping the bags on the floor and stomping his feet to stretch out his stiffened legs.

I reach for the door and swing it open just in time for Christina to walk through. She doesn't even say hello, she just drops her bag at my feet, squirming, and says, "Point me to the bathroom. Seriously. Right now. Zeke wouldn't stop for anything there at the end!"

I point to a door next to the reception counter, and Christina dashes off without another word. I mouth a "Thank you" to Zeke, who waves it away, and am just about to release the door when Caleb walks in. I'm momentarily stunned into silence and Zeke diverts his eyes.

I raise my eyebrows at him and point at Caleb, incredulous. "Come on, Zeke, I know you can take him. How'd he get in the truck?"

Caleb frowns and shifts from one foot to the other. He's about to open his mouth when Zeke shoots him a look that says "Not now!" So Caleb shuts his mouth and stares at the floor, arms crossed over his chest.

I walk over to Zeke and say, "What were you thinking? I can't take any risks, here. And I don't want him getting in the way or slowing us down."

Christina jogs back over to us and grabs her bag. "What'd I miss?" she asks cheerfully. Then she takes a look around our little circle and registers Zeke's down-turned eyes, my frustrated stance, and Caleb's stand-offish expression. She rolls her eyes.

I glance around the atrium, pick up one of Zeke's bags, and nod at them to follow me to the elevator, which I figure they'll appreciate using. We don't speak again until we're all safely inside and the doors have closed behind us.

"Listen, Four," Zeke starts off, huffing, "he was there when I went to see Cara—and by the way, she definitely had the goods—but he insisted on coming along. And we really could use the extra manpower, anyway—."

I look sideways at him, raise my eyebrows, again, and say sarcastically, "That's a loose definition of the word 'manpower.'"

"I can operate the explosive devices," Caleb blurts out from behind us, unable to keep quiet any longer. I turn around to look at him.

He shoves his hands in his pockets and looks directly at me, his hair flopped over his forehead and his mouth set in a stubborn line. "If you remember, Matthew taught me how to do it. I memorized every detail, and I'll have no trouble quickly assembling the materials Zeke was able to get. I know what I'm doing, and I can help. You need my help."

I impatiently shift the strap of the bag from one shoulder to the other and am about to contradict him when he keeps going. "Besides, she's my sister. I owe it to her to be here. It was my fault that she—," he chokes up pitifully, and I feel remorse for the way I've treated him begin to creep in, softening my coarse edges.

I put a hand on his shoulder and say firmly, "Caleb, it wasn't your fault. She chose to take your place, because she wanted to. Because she loved you and—," I pause and swallow, looking down at my feet, "and she forgave you. So it's time to forgive yourself. You can come." I stare at him with steady eyes long enough to see the defiance ebb and then look away, letting my hand drop awkwardly.

"Well good," Christina says from behind us. "Because I was afraid I was here with a bunch of little girls who didn't know whether to fight or hug instead of with some Dauntless about to get a job done!"

"I'm not Dauntless," Caleb retorts, crossing his arms, again.

"Technically, none of us are," Zeke mutters. "But we'll get you an honorary tattoo just for fun when this is over," he says to Caleb with a smirk.

The elevator stops on the third floor, and we all pile out. Christina and Caleb start down the hall, and I call out, "Room 317," and toss the key at her.

Zeke turns to look at me and nudges me in the arm. "Yah, so he definitely promised to let me blow up some stuff when we get home. Couldn't turn that down. Wouldn't have let him come otherwise," he grins. I shove Zeke down the hall and can't help laughing.

When we get into the room, everyone starts digging through their respective bags, and I lay the plans out on the bed. Zeke lays four hand-held devices on the desk, and Caleb pulls various materials and wires from his bag, immediately pouring all his concentration into their assembly. Christina unloads what I assume to be bullet-proof vests from her bag, and I let out a pleased sigh. That wasn't something I'd thought to ask for, because we never had access to that kind of equipment before, but I'm glad we do, now.

Zeke walks over to the bed and stands next to me, examining the plans. He lets out a low whistle. "So, you know which way we're going to go in?"

I nod and trace the route with my finger.

"And I guess you've got that memorized so the rest of us don't have to shove more information into our exhausted and overloaded brains?" he asks hopefully, leaning forward and putting his hands on the bed.

I nod, again, and smile. I chew the inside of my cheek and run my eyes over the layout. I jab at the far corner with my finger. "This—this is her room," I say. "And this is where we'll have to use the explosive devices. There are thumbprint identification pads outside every secure door, but her wing is the most restricted. Probably everyone with access is going to be in that room already, so we won't be able to force someone to open it for us," I say, my arms crossed over my chest.

"We should place the explosives on the door's frame and not the security device, though," Caleb says, speaking up. "If we try to deactivate the security system, itself, everything will probably go into lock down," he says thoughtfully. "We're better off bypassing that altogether and just taking out the door. I'll make sure the explosion's contained."

I look over at him and nod, impressed. He smiles to himself and continues to work hastily but efficiently, fingers flying as he connects wires and sensors and explosive materials.

"Okay, so that's taken care of," I say, looking intently at the plans before pointing to another spot on the layout for Zeke. "Here. There's an internal security check-point before you enter her wing. I don't want to use explosives there because, as Caleb said, that would probably just shut the whole place down. But, I'm thinking we can gain access another way." I let my eyes drift to the devices on the desk and Zeke brings one over for closer inspection.

"This is really awesome, Four," he starts off, unable to contain himself as he turns it over in his hands. "This switch, here, operates almost like the safety on a gun. If it's off when you push this button," and he shows me a button on top of the device," electrical current runs through the barbs at the end, here, and you use it at close range. However—," he pauses, his excitement rising, "if you need something more long-range, flip the switch, and when you press the button it will shoot the electrified barbs at your target. Then it automatically reloads with an internal spring. Amazing," he says, shaking his head.

I nod, satisfied. "Great, well, there's one for each of us, so we should be well set. I don't expect these guards to have training that would prepare them for something like this. To them, this is probably just a relatively low-key security job, and we'll be taking them completely by surprise."

I exhale, and with it, all of my pent up tension. Before, I felt suffocated. Now, I can finally breathe, and I feel in control for the first time in hours. I am trained for this, and the confidence that comes with that knowledge makes me bold, and ready.

I pull on one of the bullet-proof vests Christina laid out and adjust the straps so that it's snug. "Well, as soon as you're ready, Caleb, we should get going. I don't want to take any chances and cut this too close. The experiment's supposed to take place this morning, and I don't know anything more specific than that."

Christina nods and straps on one of the vests, also, her face set and her eyes focused. Zeke does the same, then tosses the last one in Caleb's direction. As he's tightening his straps he looks up and says, "Hey, Four, can we have a minute? Outside?"

I shrug and follow him through the door out into the hall. "What's up Zeke? We don't have any time to waste, here. I—."

"I know that. Just hear me out for a second," he says seriously, reaching into the jacket he just pulled on over his vest. He removes a gun and holds it out for me, letting his hand hang in the air.

I lift my hands up and back away a step. "Zeke, I told you. No. This goes against what I'm trying to do, now. To resolve situations peacefully."

"That's just crap, Four," he says heatedly. "Listen. I believe in resolving things peacefully, too. Whenever possible. I'm a police officer, for God's sake. I prefer it! But there are times—." He sees me shake my head. "There are times when you have to take action for the right reasons. Like now."

He reaches over, puts it into my reluctant hand, and says, "You don't have to use it. But you need to be prepared. That's what any good officer, leader, or politician does. They prepare themselves to do their job well. So remember, this gun is not the problem. It's just a thing. The problem, is with the people who use it for the wrong reasons and in the wrong way. Got it?"

I nod and stare at the gun in my hand before tucking it into the back of my pants. "Got it," I say quietly.

"Good. Then what are we waiting for? Let's go get her," Zeke says, clapping me on the back.