Chapter 15: Dine and spy
For the next week after Tris' mission, Tobias and she stayed holed up in his apartment. It surprised him to see how quickly she healed, but according to her she had been injured worse and her body already knew the drill. Tobias didn't want to think of past missions gone wrong and her being injured so he quickly changed the subject.
He decided to give her the full wife deluxe treatment. Since they didn't go out, he either ordered them food or tried to cook himself, he massaged her or prepared relaxing baths, which he often joined. He pampered her as if she was a princess.
Sitting in their living room, watching a comedy, Tris relaxes for the first time in years. She never felt so good in her entire life. She is at ease and genuinely happy. She and Tobias didn't have sexual intercourse, minding her injuries, but they got closer. They talked a lot more and both opened up. Together they established a workout schedule for him to learn a few moves to be able to defend himself.
"You okay?" Tobias asks her.
"Yeah. Why do you ask?" she asks him looking up. She is tugged under his arm resting comfortably against his firm body. Tobias smiles lovingly at her before he answers.
"I've been talking to you and you haven't even paid any attention," he says with a chuckle.
"Uh, sorry. I was thinking about something," she sheepishly says holding his gaze.
"Thinking of what?" he asks curiously.
"That it's been too long since I got to get dirty with my husband," she says with a smirk.
"Oh, my. What a dirty mind my dear wife has," he says with a laugh, but her comment sure triggered an erection.
"Yeah. So, what did you ask me?"
"I wanted to know what you'd like for dinner?" he asks and kisses her nose gently. Tris smiles at the sweet gesture and thinks of what she would like to eat.
"How about some burgers and fries?" she replies.
"Really?"
"Yeah. Haven't had those in a while. But how about we go out? We've been holed up here for too long," she adds. Tobias would have preferred to stay inside, but if she wants to go out he couldn't deny her that.
Within twenty minutes they were dressed and ready to go. Tobias boldly grabs her hand in his, something he doesn't usually do with girlfriends. He isn't too affectionate in public and hates hand holding, but Tris is different. Not only are they expected to hold hands, since they are married, but he wants to. He loves holding Tris, even if it's just her hand. They decided to not walk too far and Tobias shows her his favorite old-fashioned diner.
Upon entering Tobias greets Margaret, the old waitress, with a smile and Tris feels a warmth spread in her chest. She knows Tobias isn't a bad person, but he is always so reserved when interacting with others that this simple exchange of words and pleasantries shows her a new side of him.
They sit down and wait for Margaret to come wait on them. It doesn't take her long and she stands in front of their table with a big smile on her face.
"My, my, Toby. I've never seen you bring a girl here, let alone such a pretty one," Margaret compliments making Tris blush a little and Tobias beam.
"Margaret," Tobias says standing up. "Let me introduce you to Tris Eaton, my wife," he says with a huge smile and Margaret's mouth falls open.
"Your wife?" she asks shocked, looking from the tall man standing next to her to the petite blonde sitting still in the booth. "Congratulations, boy. You chose a beautiful girl. And you, Tris is it?" she asks and Tris nods. "I hope you make a decent man out of this one. He is a good one, a bit dumb, but that ain't his fault. He's a man after all," Margaret says and Tris laughs. Even Tobias joins in and nods his head. He feels happy, like really, really happy. It is true. He never brought any girls here. Then again, none of the women he dated before would have accepted dining in a street diner.
"Nice to meet you, Margaret," Tris says politely and stretches out her hand to shake. The two women exchange a few anecdotes before Margaret finally takes their order. With a huge smile the waitress enters the small kitchen and helps their chef prepare the meal for their favorite customer and his wife.
"It seems like Margaret likes you," Tobias says as he sits down, but this time next to her.
"Well, I like her too. She is very nice, Toby," she says and grins up at him.
"Oh, no. Not you too," he whines.
"Come on, it's cute," she says and kisses his cheek.
"I guess I'll allow it this one time, you know, since you're not feeling well and all," he says teasingly and kisses the tip of her nose.
"Do you realize that we behave like teenagers on a date?" she asks with a chuckle.
"Well, we're not teens anymore, but we are on a date, my dear wifey," he keeps teasing.
"Are you expecting some dessert later tonight, too?" she teases back.
"Well, duh," he replies grinning. He can't remember the last time he had this much fun on a date. Damn. His dad is a Cupid after all. He joked about his dad's Inhuman power to be matchmaking, but he never dreamt it could actually be true. This woman, who he so rejected and despised at first turns out to be perfect. She is funny, witty, beautiful, smart, badass, kind, loving and a real bomb in bed. But more importantly she treats him like her equal and doesn't accept anything less for herself than being his equal in return.
"I guess I can arrange that. Mom and dad are out and we can sneak into my room and make out. If you behave I'll even let you touch one boob through my shirt, you know, so that you can get a feel," she jokes and Tobias bursts out laughing.
"Here you go, kids," Margaret says as she puts down a large plate with burgers and offers them each a soda. The two thank the waitress and dig in.
They talk about small things, not wanting to discuss important or sensitive issues in a public place, but then Tris spots two men sitting in a booth on the other side of the diner. She points them out to Tobias.
"Do you think they are after us?" he asks a little uneasy.
"No. You said you wanted to understand my job better. Let's try something out," she says with a smile. "Observe the two men and tell me what you think: how old they are, what jobs they have, just something you observe about them."
Tobias nods and watches the two men. They don't seem anything out of the ordinary, your average Joes sitting in a diner, enjoying a late supper. He really doesn't know what he could say about them by just looking. But then he sees something shiny on the left wrist of one of them. A gold watch. He can't really tell what kind of watch, but it looks expensive, more expensive than someone dressed like that could afford. His attire is simple and worn, an old jeans jacket, his shoes are a bit muddy, which isn't odd, since it rained earlier that day. Tobias guesses the man is in his early fifties, but he can't be sure with the bushy grayish beard and the large old-fashioned spectacles. The other man is definitely younger. By the rigid way he sits and looking at the door it seems like he is waiting for someone to come in and join them. Tobias doesn't have a chance to observe further because his wife pulls his face closer to hers and presses her lips to his. He quickly forgets about the two men and enjoys the intimate kiss he shares with Tris. When they part he smiles goofily at her.
"Public displays of affection make by-standers uncomfortable and force them subconsciously to look away from you," she whispers against his lips, her eyes trained on his. To anyone this looks like two lovers sharing a moment, but Tris is a trained spy who knows how to avert unwanted attention from herself.
"Huh?" Tobias asks confused.
"I need you to pretend kissing my neck so that I can tell you what is going on," she says. He quickly obliges, not really caring about what she has to say, but happy he has her permission to nibble on her. The moment his lips touch her silky smooth skin a shiver runs down her spine, but she keeps it together. She ignores his sweet touch and resumes explaining. "The two men are most likely father and son, judging by the similarities of their facial features. The younger one is a defense lawyer. His suit is not of the highest quality but it is well taken care of. He doesn't look like the type of lawyer who works for a big law firm. He is either independent or works for a starter-up firm. The older man, presumably his father, is an ex-cop. Have you seen his gold watch?" Tris asks and Tobias nods. "When a cop retires it is customary to gift him with a golden watch. It's not something that happens everywhere, but it's the most likely scenario. The older man can't be older than 55 and by the looks of it he is still fit. He was most likely retired because of an injury. But I guess he couldn't stay away from putting the bad guys behind bars and became a PI."
"Really?" Tobias asks surprised and lifts his head to look into her eyes.
"Yes. We will do this exercise as often as we can. It will help you develop observational skills," Tris says smiling.
"If you say so," he says and resumes nibbling.
"Now, now, Mr. Eaton, behave," she warns playfully.
"Why don't you observe some more while I inspect this spot right here?" he asks before attaching his lips to a sensitive spot beneath her ear. Tris barely holds a moan in when she pushes him lightly away. He pouts adorably and Tris giggles.
"Later," she promises and he nods grinning.
They eat their dinner, chit-chatting and deciding to go to work the next day. As far as everyone knew, the newlyweds just took off for a few days to finally enjoy their missed honeymoon. But it was important to get back to work. Tobias was working on an important project and Tris needed to find out who was behind the abduction. And then there was the matter of Grant Ward. Was he aware of the fact that Tris is Inhuman? During his torture/interrogation he didn't seem to have an idea about that. But who's to say he didn't fake it. After all, he is a trained spy and whether or not you liked it he was good, very good.
Perhaps, that's a clue. She knew Ward. He was a few years older than her and during her time at the Academy he was often praised by her professors. Sometimes they used successful missions of the ex-SHIELD agent to exemplify what to do and how to proceed in certain situations. He sometimes even stopped by as a guest lecturer and Tris remembered vividly how impressed she was. Sure he was eye-candy, but she really loved learning all about his missions. He was the poster boy for virtue and loyalty. Little did she know that his loyalties lied with the enemy.
Tobias noticed Tris zoning out but let her be. He paid for their meal and gently helped her out of the booth. It was only when Margaret went to hug Tris that the younger woman snapped out of her daydream and acknowledged where she was and with whom she was with.
Tris said goodbye to the friendly waitress and allowed Tobias to hold her hand while walking home. She couldn't shake the feeling that she was missing something. She decided to talk to Tobias about this and hopefully he, as an outsider and non-spy, could at least be curious enough about details she might be missing.
Back at the apartment, Tobias poured both of them a glass a scotch. Tris told him she had something important to talk about and requested the beverage. He joins her on the couch and shifts his body so that he faces hers.
"Grant Ward was a SHIELD agent," she starts saying and Tobias's eyes widen. He knew that. But he wonders why she would bring up the man who tortured her. "As a recruit I learned many things about past missions. Some of the most successful missions in recent years were those of Ward. He was an excellent spy, a lethal soldier and a mastermind when it came to deceiving." She stops and allows Tobias to acknowledge the information. When he nods, she continues. "I admired him greatly. Every time he came to the Academy it was like a rock star just visited campus. I'm not gonna lie to you. Grant Ward is a handsome man. But believe it or not I didn't care. Not really. I was fascinated by him. Or the image I had in my mind. He never once treated anyone as if we were vermin like other senior agents did nor did he fraternize with us. He was all business and I admired that. He was the poster boy for perfect spy. If you wanted to be someone within the agency you took his example. I did too. I always hoped I would work with the great man himself, but it never happened."
Tobias listens to her, drinking his scotch, pouring some more as she continues her story. He is confused about how he should feel. Tris just said she admired the man who tortured her. While she said not in a romantic way but rather professional, he still couldn't shake the feeling there was more to the story.
"His S.O., supervising officer," she adds when he raises an eyebrow, "John Garrett, was Hydra. Not from the beginning, but he was recruited when he was at his most vulnerable and SHIELD let him down. Since that day Garrett plotted his revenge and recruited for Hydra some of the best spies we had. I was so obsessed with Ward and his missions I tried copying him. You could say I was a groupie," she says with a chuckle, trying to play down the whole thing. "During my first few missions I met a guy, Peter Hayes. He was a year older than I was. We got along like cats and dogs but eventually during a mission we hooked up. It was a life and death kind of situation and we both thought that we would surely die. So, we fucked. I repeated to myself over and over again that this was just sex, nothing serious. But it wasn't. We developed feelings for one another and started a relationship. Having a romantic relationship in the workplace is difficult as it is, but we are spies. We could never really have a relationship. Not those of us who went on black ops, anyway. Peter and I had lots of things in common. One of them our admiration for Ward. But soon I felt like Peter worshipped the man beyond the reasonable and healthy. When I pointed it out he became aggressive at first," she says and Tobias's expression changes to deadly in a split second. He clenches his fist so hard that the glass he was holding is shattering, cutting his hand.
"Damn it," he curses, the pain rushing through his hand and arm. He watches as blood starts trickling down onto the sofa. Tris immediately springs up and pulls him with her. They hurry into the kitchen where she tends to his wound, muttering how incredibly stupid he is. She manages to pull out all the shards when Tobias starts walking toward the bathroom.
"Where you going?" she asks confused.
"Bathroom. First-aid kit," is all he is saying.
"You don't need that. Come here," she says and beckons him with her finger. He returns to her side curious to see what she had in mind. "Give me your hand," she says holding her open palms for him to lay his hand in. He does so and the moment his hand touches hers a bright light appears. When it subsides, Tobias looks down at his hand that was now completely healed.
"How?" he asks inspecting his hand.
"I used my healing powers to heal you," she says with a warm smile.
"Doesn't that drain your energy?" he asks concerned.
"Relax, it's just a small wound," she answers with a chuckle. She takes his now healed hand and leads him to their bedroom. Without waiting for him to change she gets out of her clothes and into her PJ's. Tobias soon follows suit and gets into bed next to his wife.
"What happened next?" Tobias asks apprehensive, not wanting to hear that yet another man hurt his Tris. What? His Tris?
"I assume you mean Peter and me," she says and he nods, pushing the earlier thought deep down to listen to the rest of her story. "We didn't fight, not with fists I mean. We had an argument. He left and it took us a while to reconcile. When we did we both avoided talking about Ward. We both figured it wasn't worth fighting for. We had a good thing going. At least that's what I thought. After Hydra was revealed I learned he was an agent for them all along. He deceived me and I didn't know what hurt more. Me being so stupid and not see his lies or me being so stupid and falling for him," she confesses. "Yes, Tobias. I loved him. Even when Uriah and all the others told me he was most likely Hydra I refused believing it. I couldn't believe that I was so wrong about him. Sure we had ups and downs, but that wouldn't mean he was deceitful. It was Peter himself who confessed the truth. I went undercover to spy on Hydra, as you already know. It was there where I saw Peter again. He was the one who ratted me out and then…" she stops talking looking away.
Tobias watches her carefully scared of hearing what that bastard did to her. Did he abuse her? Was it that? He read about reactions of rape victims, feeling guilty despite being innocent. Did that low-life rape her?
"He tortured me. I could take the pain but he made me watch silly little movies with the two of us when I thought we were happy. He told me everything. How he lied to me. How he fucked other women. How he only tolerated me because Garrett needed intel on my missions. How he only wanted to rape my ass and make me drink his piss. He tortured me for three days before Uriah and a tact team came to rescue me. That's when he and I were exposed to the Terrigen Mist and changed into what we are today."
Tris let's all that information sink in. Tobias leans back against the headboard. He keeps thinking of what she told him. She deliberately didn't tell him all the gruesome things that Peter guy did to her. He felt relieve that he didn't rape her. Although, he wasn't sure the rest wasn't as bad or worse. He suddenly felt an urge. An urge to kill this person, skin him alive and drink his blood. Ew. He started to disgust himself. That wasn't him. He never had such thoughts even about people he really disliked. Was it because of her? Did she mean so much to him already that he considered killing?
"What happened to Peter?" he finally asks, curious to find out what happened to her torturer.
"I don't know. By the time SHIELD returned to the facility where I was held, Hydra had destroyed it. As far as I know Peter could be sipping Mai Tai on a beach or be six feet under. I don't know. I don't care." Tobias watches her carefully. No, she was lying. He might not be a badass spy like her but he could tell she was lying. She did care. Question was: what about? Revenge? Or perhaps did she still have feelings for him?