CH 7: POV ERIC

While Peter and I talked in my office yesterday I pretty much completely changed my plan. This plan is so much better. This plan, like the other one should get her interested in me. It however won't get Four and her to separate, like my first plan. I won't come into play until about an hour after the initiates get it started. It's been about 30 minutes now. Tris should be unconscious and Peter should be in the 'transporting Tris' process.

This ... process is tricky and needs to be really precise. Things could go terribly wrong. Or they could go perfect. Or as close to perfect as this plan could get.

POV TRIS

I wake up disoriented. The roots of my hair are a tiny bit sore from the thrusting up of my head when my capture got the cloth around my mouth. There is no cloth on my eyes so I can see, or not. It's pitch black, but I can tell we're outside. I can ever so faintly see the pinpricks of lights above me: stars. I hear mumbling abruptly stop.

"I guess you woke up. Finally Stiff. I thought you died already." This voice is obviously Peter's. And I don't like the way he added already on the end of the sentence...

"Get her up." I guess there's someone else here. I feel large sturdy hands grip under my arms, pulling me up. If I'm not mistaken, I think they belong to Al. Why would he take part in this, whatever this is.

"Walk." Peter demands. "And don't try to go anywhere, that'll only make it worse for you."

I look around, but I can't even see the compound from here, much less people. There's no point in screaming.

After a few minutes of walking I finally see something ahead of us. The train tracks.

POV PETER

I see the train tracks ahead. I hope Eric is on time. I came up with the plan but there are so many things that could go wrong...

Within minutes we are standing several feet from the train tracks. The rope is there curled in a ring like I told Al to set it up. I nod to Al and he walks up from behind and grabs Tris, so she is unable to move. I now see the fear registering in her eyes, and she should be scared, I'm about to tie her up next to train track.

I begin wrapping her in the rope. First her legs, then ankles, then wrists and her stomach, connecting her arms to her body. She tries to struggle so I punch her and she falls over.

POV TRIS

This is so bad, so much worse than when Eric harassed me in the hallway. I'm crumpled to the ground, his punch hurting just as much as it did during the first stage of initiation. I try to scream, even if no one can hear me it's worth a shot. Through my kicking and and screaming they grab my legs and arms and hoist me onto the tracks. Using the last several feet of rope they secure me onto the tracks looping the rope throat the rods of the tracks. I am now shaking with fear.

The sound of the train whistle blasts through the night. I start to struggle, trying come up with how to get myself out of the rope that binds me to my death. The train will be on me in 20 seconds at the most. I see a figure sprinting towards me from 50 yards away. As he gets closer I see that it's Eric.

He's yards away now and I see him wield a knife, a small pocket knife. With the train now 10 seconds away, Eric bends down and starts hacking at the rope, with seconds to spare he cuts me free and pulls me out of the way.

The train is here and I am right in front of it. Eric manages to pull me away before my body gets hit, but not before my leg gets hit. A terrible smacking sound and a terrible pain erupt. My leg is whipped around to me, it's obvious to tell that its broken, very badly. It will be bruised and cut and broken. Rocks shower us, hitting us everywhere, but it's nothing compared to the fiery hell burning in my leg. But I'm alive, thanks to Eric.

POV TOBIAS[earlier in the day]

I feel bad, from earlier, from beating Tris in the fights, but she fought well. I had to fight several of the other initiates, none of whom beat me. No one can beat me. After the fights were over I went over to Zeke's apartment. We hang out and watch TV for a couple hours. He doesn't have any food in his apartment so we went into the cafeteria for dinner.

I see Tris and force myself to not stare at her. At the end of the line there was one of the people in my initiate class, Darius, serving cake. He was best friends with Eric. I didn't take a piece. I look back to the the long line and see both Tris and her friend take a piece of cake. I don't like that, I can't explain it- everyone else takes the cake- but something seems off about it. An hour or so later when Zeke and I return to his apartment, we hear yelling and commotion outside the apartment, it sounds like a ton of people in some kind of a panic. I tell Zeke I will go out to see what all the noise is about.

I can see Tris. In Eric's arms. Around her all the girl initiates start to cry and all the boys look utterly shocked. I get closer and can see more details, I can see Tris is unconscious. I am able to hear some of their conversation. "Peter", and "Train." "Go.. infirmary! Now!". The last bit was said by Christina.

Now I start running towards them. Within seconds I can see Tris's mangled leg.