Hey guys! I'm back again! I know last chapter was an awful place to leave you guys hanging, so I tried my best to get this chapter up and ready for you as quick as possible!
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own the Divergent series. If I did, I wouldn't be here writing for you guys right now.
Chapter 37
Tris' POV
The adrenaline rushes through my body as I sprint towards home. I can hear him behind me a little ways and speed up even more. After what seems like forever, I reach home. I yank open the door and quickly slam it behind me, locking it. I shakily take a few steps back and stare. This can't be happening. How did Eric even find me?!
I quickly snap back into action and run around the house, closing every curtain, every blind, and locking every possible door and window. I push a heavy wooden chair up against the front door and plan on putting more stuff in front of it, but I don't have enough time. He's already here.
"Oh, Beatricccccccccccccce. I know you're in thereeeeeeeee," he sings.
I shrill as I come to terms with the present. This is happening. This is real. Eric is here.
"You can either let me in and we'll do this the easy way, or I'll let myself in and we'll do this the hard way. You decide."
I obviously don't listen to him; instead, I think. Where do I go? What do I do?
I immediately think of the hallway panel, but then I realize that it takes too long to open and I can't take any chances. If he would see me, there would be nowhere for me to run to.
I hurriedly try to think of other secret places in my house, but nothing comes to mind. So what can I do?
Call 911. That's what you should do.
I put my hands in the pocket of my coat and curse as I realize it's up in my room. We don't have a home phone, so I can't use it.
My heart thumps faster and harder at the realization that the only way I can get to my phone is to be trapped in a room with a bed, an unlockable door, and no weapons...with Eric...alone.
I'm going to have to take that risk, though. What else can I do?
I quickly run to the kitchen and grab a knife. If nothing else, at least I'll have this. My hands shake as I grab it. I quickly take off my shoes and drop them there before running upstairs as quietly as possible. As I open my room door, I hear the front door open and the chair being scooted away. I only have about a minute to find my phone before he finds me.
I start searching. Why couldn't I have just put it in my pocket when I was done talking to Caleb instead of setting it someplace I don't remember?
I look for what seems like forever when I know that realistically, it was probably only 30 seconds. And then I see it.
Then, out of all the worst case scenarios I've thought of while I'm searching for my phone, the worst one happens.
As I'm reaching for my phone, a glass cup on my dresser falls and shatters. It feels as if time stops for a moment. But then it picks back up as his voice rings throughout the house.
"Oh, Beatrice! I heard that!"
I unlock my phone and do the only thing I have time for; I hit the record button on the camera, set it upright against my nightstand so it captures the door area, and pray that it will come in handy later. I lock my phone so Eric can't stop it from recording if he happens to notice it.
I start to hyperventilate as I look for a place to hide. I immediately think of my closet, but then remember that whenever people hide in closets in the movies they're always caught. And although they may not be real, it's still enough to get me searching for another place to hide.
A closet? C'mon, Tris. You should've known it would be too obvious.
In a split second, I dive into my bathroom and shut the door, locking it behind me. I stand against the opposite wall with my knife outstretched, mentally preparing myself for the future. I close my eyes and say a silent prayer. Hopefully if there's someone out there to hear it, they'll help me.
I hear my room door open and the only things I can hear right now are his footsteps crunching against the broken glass and my heartbeat in my ears.
"Beatricccccccce….come out, come out wherever you are…."
I hear my closet door open and let out a silent breath of fear as I realize he could've found me right then.
I take a moment to look around the bathroom. Surely there's something I could use in here to hurt him other than my knife. My eyes land on my straightener. It may not help at all, but it could at least make him trip up just enough for me to escape and get help.
I silently walk over and plug it in, turning it to the highest heat it can possibly go, and put it on turbo mode. I hear his footsteps coming towards the bathroom and pray one last time.
The doorknob jiggles quite roughly. I let out a sharp breath and start to encourage the straightener to heat up faster in my head.
"Beatrice, are you in there?" he asks before jiggling the doorknob again.
I start to silently cry out of fear.
Please, whoever can hear this, please help me. Please.
It's unsettlingly quiet for a few minutes. And then I hear the click of the door unlocking.
This will have to do. 400 degrees isn't bad.
I quickly unplug the straightener and before I can think anymore about it, I reach out and press the burning hot metal onto his flesh. As expected, he shouts in pain and is momentarily distracted. I drop the straightener and duck under his arm. I'm almost to my bedroom door when his hands wrap around my leg, causing me to trip and fall onto the broken glass. I let out a blood curdling scream as the glass sinks into my arms and stomach. I turn onto my back carefully, but quickly.
He leers over me. I hold out the knife in front of me. My hands are shaking in fear, but I burn with determination. I will get out of this. I have to.
"Doesn't feel so good, huh princess? Do you wanna know what you just did to me? You wanna know how this feels?"
At the same time he presses the metal onto my arm, I cut his hand. We both scream, but before I can get up again, he's yanked the knife from my grip, held it against my throat, and pinned me down. The blood from his hand drips off onto my shoulder. I feel a little better knowing that I was at least half successful in my attempts to defend myself against Eric this time around.
"I could end you right here, right now, princess. You know that right?"
My heart sinks as I realize that he's right. One slice with the knife he's holding, and I'm gone forever. But I don't let him see that it gets to me. I instead glare at him and squirm from underneath his hold on me. He laughs.
"It's useless to try and escape, Beatrice. We can play this game over and over and over again, but I will always win. Always."
I shiver at his voice. He smirks. "Now, what d'ya say you and me have a little...fun?"
I clench my jaw. I will not show that he is getting to me. Even if he kills me, I will not show any sign of pain or weakness. If I die, I want to go out without giving him the satisfaction he craves to see. I will not give him what he wants.
He chuckles. "So you're a fighter now, huh? We'll see how long it takes for that to change. I've always wanted to see you on your knees."
He grins and, while keeping the knife on my throat, lifts my shirt up with his teeth. I fight the urge not to cringe, but wiggle underneath him to try and pull my shirt back down.
He keeps pulling it higher and higher and I realize that the only foolproof way to make him stop is to scream.
So I do.
It only lasts for a few seconds before he stops and slaps his hand over my mouth. He makes a tutting noise.
"You're really not going to make this easy, are you?"
I glare at him even harder. I spit in the bloody hand covering my mouth. He yanks it off, disgusted, and I start to scream again. He slaps me hard enough that I know it will definitely leave a mark later, but it still doesn't shut me up. So now, instead of covering my mouth or slapping me, he stops me by pushing the knife harder into my throat and shoving his tongue in my mouth; it makes me want to puke.
I am able to shove his tongue out of my mouth after a bit, but I'm not able to stop the knife. And by the feel of it, it drew blood. I fight the urge to gag.
"Now, now, now...you can either keep doing this the hard way or we can do the easy way. The easy way will be much. Less. Painful."
With each accentuated word, he pushes the knife further in. I crane my neck farther back to try and relieve some of the pressure. It doesn't work; if anything, it makes it worse.
"So, which one will you choose, princess?" he asks menacingly.
And then I hear something. Of course, it could be all in my imagination and what I do next could make my situation so much worse, but hopefully it's not. Hopefully it's really what I hear, and the front door really did just open. Hopefully those really are footsteps coming up the stairs.
And hopefully, it's someone here to save me.
"Neither," I state stubbornly, bravely. I'm just thankful that Eric is too busy focusing all of his attention on torturing me to notice the footsteps that have just stopped outside the door.
"What did you just say to me?" he hisses.
"I. Said. Neither."
He growls. "The hard way it is," he says and pushes the knife roughly into my neck without being careful anymore. It hurts so much it brings tears to my eyes and I can't help but let out a small gasp of pain. I struggle to breathe fully with him partially blocking my airway.
"Now let's play, Beatrice," he says, a wild look in his eyes.
"You picked the wrong girl to play with," another voice says before hitting Eric in the head with what looks like a pan. The pressure of the knife is immediately released and Eric collapses on top of me. I gasp hungrily for the air I lost ans cough madly as I try to push Eric off of me. I gag several times and start to sob as the realization of what just happened hits me. Eric suddenly moves on his own and I'm afraid that he actually isn't knocked out and start to freak out again. But then I see that Eric is still, in fact, unconscious as the person who saved me drags him off of me and drops him to the side.
I blink hurriedly to try and get the tears away for a moment so I can see their face. It works, surprisingly, and I see the person plain and clear.
"Four," I gasp out.
He carefully drops beside me and pulls my shirt back down over my stomach. His eyes are worried, concerned, sad, angry. I see tears in his eyes as well.
"The police will be here any minute, okay?"
I reach up towards Tobias' face. He leans down and I cup his cheeks. I smile at him and let out another sob.
"I didn't think anybody was going to come," I whisper.
He smiles back, tears still in his eyes. "I'll always come, no matter what," he whispers back.
I laugh for no apparent reason. All I know is that even though the circumstances aren't the greatest, I'm beyond happy that I can see and hold his face again.
"I'm so happy you came," I whisper.
He leans down and puts his forehead against mine. Our tears mix. I've never seen Tobias cry; I never thought I would love to see that day. But I guess I was wrong. All that needs to happen to make him cry is put his girlfriend in a life-or-death situation. No big deal.
He pulls back a moment later and moves closer to me on the floor. I remember the shards of glass on the floor and urgently rasp out, "Be careful! There's glass!"
He laughs through his tears. "I love you. I love you. I love you, I love you, I love you."
I'm not sure what's so funny, but I smile anyways at his words.
After a few more moments, I suddenly remember that I was recording this whole thing. I let go of the grip I have on his face and point to my nightstand from a few feet away.
"My phone," I just manage to get out. It's not that the knife went in incredibly deep and I'm unable to speak, but it put me into a state of shock. I can barely register anything that's just happened. It just doesn't seem real.
Tobias quickly stands up and grabs my phone. He squats back down and hands it to me. I try to unlock it to stop recording, but my fingers are too shaky to hit the keys correctly. I push it into his hands.
"3, 6, 8, 7."
He gets what I'm trying to tell him and immediately unlocks it. He then hands it to me again. I push the stop button and let out another sob as I see the length. From the time I started recording to the time I stopped was 18 minutes. Only 18 minutes. It felt like hours that I had to endure this. Hours and hours and hours. Then come to find out that it was only 18 minutes.
But then I realize that if Tobias hadn't heard me, it could've been hours that I would have had to endure that.
"Thank you," I whisper to him.
I hear sirens and know that the police are almost here.
"You don't need to thank me. Now, do you think you can stand up?"
I nod. "He didn't hurt me that badly."
He rolls his eyes but chooses not to say anything. He extends his hand and I grab it with the hand that doesn't have small pieces of glass wedged into it. He gently pulls me up. As soon as I'm up, I start to shake all over. He supports my weight as he leads me over to my bed. He sits us both down on the edge and I immediately hide my face in his neck. One arm goes around my lower back and his other hand rests on my knee. I close my eyes. Maybe if I can pretend none of this happened and just focus on him, all of this will go away for a little bit.
I suddenly hear the sirens stop and realize that they're here. The front door opens and we hear a shout.
"CPD! Show yourselves!"
Tobias shouts for me. "We're up here! It's safe for now!"
Footsteps hurry up the stairs and I hear the door being opened. I don't take my face out of his neck; I don't want to face this yet.
"Is this the offender?" I hear a female ask.
"Yes," Tobias answers.
"And this is the victim?"
I feel eyes on me and turn more into Tobias.
"Yes," he answers for me again.
"And I take it you're the 911 caller?" the woman asks.
"Yes," he says once more.
"Sawman, Drake, get this guy into the car and take him down to the station. Make sure the paramedics get here, and when they do, send them up to this room; I don't think this one is moving anytime soon."
"Yes ma'am," two men, which I can only assume are the so called Sawman and Drake, say.
My room door opens again a moment later and I hear people walking out.
"Hey sweetheart, what's your name?"
I know she's talking to me, and usually I would be offended by someone calling me sweetheart, but I can hear her southern accent and know that it wasn't aimed specifically towards me.
Tobias's thumb rubs small circles on my hip, gently coaxing me to answer her.
"Tris," I say softly into Tobias's neck after a minute silence.
"Well, Tris, my name's Lexie. It's very nice to meet you. Can I see your pretty eyes for a moment?"
I shake my head, tears leaking out. Tobias' hand squeezes my knee.
"Aw, c'mon sweetheart. I ain't gonna hurt ya. I promise I don't bite," she tries again.
Tobias' voice quietly whispers into my ear. "It's okay, Tris. She's here to help, okay? I'll still be here."
I bite my lip and slowly turn my head towards the voice. I'm immediately taken aback by how beautiful Lexie is. Her curly blonde hair frames her face perfectly, her hazel eyes seem to sparkle with unknown strength, her cheekbones are high and prominent, and her lips are curled into a small, perfect smile. This girl shouldn't be in the police force; she looks much too gentle for that. She looks like she should be back down in Texas wearing boots and a cowboy hat, going horseback riding and rounding up cattle with the sheep dog; even her name suggests that idea. I immediately feel like I can trust her.
"Look at them eyes; now ain't they the most precious things you've ever seen?"
I flick my eyes back and forth between her and different parts of my room.
"Hey, can I tell you something sweetheart?"
I slowly nod.
"That guy ain't gon' hurt you anymore."
"How can you be so sure?" I finally speak up.
"I'll make it my personal goal to make sure he ends up behind bars. But in order to do that, I'm gonna need you to answer some questions for me, okay sweetheart?"
I contemplate the meaningfulness behind her words. I eventually decide that she's being serious and telling the truth, and I decide to trust her and do what she asks.
"Okay," I say shakily.
"Don't worry hun, I'm not going to push you into anything you don't want to answer yet; I just need to know the basics, okay? But if there are any questions you don't feel comfortable answering or feel they don't relate to the current situation, you can simply say 'unrelated' or 'I'm not comfortable with this question', and I'll move on."
I nod.
"One more thing before we start; try not to use your voice that much. I'd rather you whisper until the paramedics come get a look at you and that throat of yours. Also, I can write what you say if you aren't okay with this, but would you be alright if I recorded this conversation?"
I think for a moment then nod again. She's just doing her job. I trust her. It will probably make things easier on her part.
She flashes me a small grin and pulls out a small recorder from her pocket. She clicks the red button on top and I know she's started recording. She holds the recorder up farther towards me. I'm guessing that she's only doing this so it can hear my whispers.
"We'll start with the easy questions, okay? Let's dive into the yes or no category. That sound good to you?"
And once again, I nod.
"Wonderful." She smiles softly at me before her face turns serious. "The offender found unconscious in your room caused the injuries inflicted on you now, yes or no?"
"Yes," I whisper.
"Breaking and entering: did he or did he not commit this crime?"
"He did," I whisper. This isn't so bad.
"Would you say he's done enough to you to be charged with assault?"
"Yes," I whisper without hesitation.
"What was the offender's name?"
"Eric Powell."
"Now, we're gonna move on to some of the more difficult questions, okay sweetheart? Are you going to be alright with that or do we need to wait for a guardian to show up?"
I shake my head. "I'm alright. I'll do whatever it takes to get him in jail."
She smiles again. "I'm sure you will."
"Wait - but I still need to call Tori and tell her what's happened," I quickly say.
"And who is Tori?"
"She's my guardian. I was actually going to the school to go tell her something, and that's where I ran into...well, him."
She slowly nods. "And why would Tori be at the school at this time of day?"
"She's a teacher; they had a meeting tonight until seven o'clock."
"And what was so important that you couldn't wait until Tori got home to tell?"
I shake my head. "Unrelated." I feel the questioning stare of Tobias as I answer.
"I can call her if you want," Tobias suggests.
I shake my head. "No. Please stay."
He doesn't move. I don't think he wants to leave me alone either.
Lexie stays true to her word and moves on to the next question. "Were you getting to the school by foot when you were on your way?"
"Yes. I was running in order to try and warm myself up." That's partially true, anyways.
"You said you ran into the offender. Could you please explain more?"
"Well, I wasn't paying attention to where I was going while I was running and ran into someone. I had stopped and turned around to see who I had knocked over. I saw it was a man, but I didn't know who it was until I started to pick up the papers he dropped and looked up at his face."
"Did the offender say anything to you during this time?"
I gulp. Tobias can feel my hesitation and moves his hand from my knee to my hand. I grip onto it with all I've got.
"Yes."
"Can you repeat to me what he said?"
I take a deep breath. "First he asked me what the matter was, and did I really think I'd never see him again? I guess I must have looked surprised because next he asked why I looked so shocked and that I should've known better than to think that I could get away from him, basically," I whisper extremely soft.
"Is that all?" she prods.
I shake my head. I feel Tobias's grip on my hand get tighter.
"What else did he say?"
"After all that, his eyes turned cold, and he told me that if I was going to run, I had better do it now," I finish.
"And did you?"
"Yes."
"Do you two have any prior...complications? History, maybe?"
I swallow hard. "Y-yes."
"Perhaps you can tell me more?"
"J-just give me a few minutes."
She nods. "Take as long as you need sweetheart. How about this? While you take the time to gather yourself, I'll call your guardian to inform her of what's happened and send the paramedics in to fix you up."
I shakily breathe in and out. "Okay."
She smiles at me, slightly calming me down. "Now I'm going to pause this recording, but before I do is there anything else you want to add on?"
I shake my head. "No."
"Alright. We will continue this afterwards, okay?"
I nod. She clicks a button and I assume it has stopped for now.
"You're doing wonderful, okay sweetheart? You're such a strong girl. You're handling this very well."
I blush but don't say anything. Little does she know that it will take its toll on me tonight and every night for a long time through nightmares. I'm numb right now, but I know I won't be when it fully settles in.
"Now, can I get Tori's contact information?" Lexie asks gently, interrupting my thoughts.
I give her the phone number. "Her full name is Victoria Black, in case you needed to know that."
"I did, actually. It makes things much more professional. Look at you; you're already one step ahead of me."
She chuckles as she realizes I'm not going to jump on her praise. She leaves the room and I listen as her footsteps retreat back downstairs. As soon as she's gone, I let out a sob. Tobias's arms immediately go around me and bring me partially into his chest. I only let myself cry for a couple minutes.
I pull back from his chest slightly afterwards. His hold on me loosens. I rub under my eyes and on my cheeks to get the tears off.
"Do I look like I've been crying?" I ask after a couple of minutes.
"Hmm." He leans in close, narrowing his eyes like he's inspecting my face. A smile tugs at the corner of his mouth.
"No, Tris," he says. A more serious look replaces his smile as he adds, "You look tough as nails."
I manage to crack a tiny smile. He does the same before speaking up again.
"So, just so I can be civil when the paramedics look you over, where are you hurt? I'm afraid I'll lose my cool if I don't have an idea of what I should be expecting to see," he says next.
"Ummm….yeah….I-I guess so…." I trail off.
"Tris? Are you okay with me asking?"
I slowly nod. "Yeah….yeah, I am."
"Are you sure?"
I nod again and begin to tell him. "The most painful and obvious one is on my neck. I kind of fell on top of the glass too, so my stomach, arms, and one of my hands have some shards in them."
As if on cue, he immediately looks at my hands. His eyes go wide and surprised. I'm guessing he's wondering why he didn't see the shards before.
"He also burned me on the arm and slapped me. But that's about it."
"You need to stop saying 'that's about it' if you don't want to be questioned more about it," he replies.
"No, really, that's it. Other than those things and scaring the absolute shit out of me, that's it."
He sighs and gently brings me into his side again. I close my eyes and rest my head in his neck again, desperate for a moment of peace.
"I'm sorry," he speaks in a hushed tone.
"For what? You have nothing to be sorry for!" I say, confused.
"Yes, I do. I'm sorry for what I said back a few nights ago. If I hadn't let my emotions get the best of me, none of this would've happe-"
"Stop, Tobias. This would've happened sometime. He was waiting for me to be alone. You wouldn't have been able to stop this. Postpone it, maybe, but not stop it. Don't blame this on yourself, okay?"
"I still need to apologize for the things I said-"
"But not now," I finish for him, taking my head out of its comfortable place in the crook of his neck and looking up at him.
"Tris-"
"Listen, I know we need to talk about it, and we will. But...just not right now. Please. Just help me get through this first, and then we can talk," I try to reason with him.
He stares at me for a while, then comes to a conclusion. "Okay. I can do that."
I sigh in relief. He kisses my forehead then surprises me by laying back on the bed.
"Come here," he mumbles and gestures up to me. I slowly and carefully lower myself next to him, making sure not to disturb any of my cuts or bruises. I do so successfully and lay my head down on his outstretched arm. His other arm comes around and rests gently on my hip, enclosing me between them.
I close my eyes allow myself to rest for a few minutes. I immediately jump up after when I hear the door open. I wince as a throb goes through my stomach. I see that it's Lexie and sigh in relief, letting my heart rate go back down. I know I'm just being paranoid when I realize who I was expecting to walk through that door.
He's gone. The police have him. He's not here.
"Sorry sweetheart, I didn't mean to scare you. But I've got Tori on the phone, and she wants to speak to you."
Of course she does.
"Okay," I whisper.
Lexie takes a few, slow, steps towards me.
"I'll go ahead and send the medics up," she says as she hands me the phone.
"Hey Tori," I whisper, trying for both of our sakes to sound okay.
"Oh my God, Bea!" I can tell that she's in tears. "I'm so sorry for leaving you alone! If I would've known-"
"If you would've known, nothing. Listen, I've already had this talk with Four, but I'll tell you this too: even if you would've known, you couldn't have prevented this from happening. It would've happened eventually. So don't blame yourself."
"It's just natural, Bea. I'm sorry. Are you okay?!"
"I'm okay, Tori. Four saved me before Eric could hurt me too bad." So far I'm doing good. I'm playing it off as not a big deal, and even though I can sense Tobias's questioning stare, I keep it up.
"Listen, this meeting is almost over. I can't get out of it."
"You can't get out of it? Why not?" I ask, slightly panicked.
I can hear her scoff. "Jeanine won't let me."
"Even after you told her what happened?"
"Yes. Even after. I wasn't really supposed to take this phone call either, but once I saw it was the police department I knew something was up. Lucky for me, I have an amazing boss who understands why I had to take the phone call, and I won't get fired for it this time," she says sarcastically.
"But you can't leave?"
"Not unless you want to move again after I get fired."
I sigh. "Why does that not surprise me? Jeanine's a bitch." I truly mean that this time. Tori is keeping my mind off of things, and however little it may be, it's helping.
"You know, I never thought that I would actually be agreeing with you on this out loud, but I totally agree."
I crack a small smile. "So how close is it to being over?"
"About 50 more minutes. Maybe even 40, if I'm lucky."
"Okay. I'll see you then."
"Are you sure you're okay?" she asks, worry slipping into her tone again.
"I'm okay, Tori. But when you get here I do need to talk to you about something."
"Okay. I promise I'll leave as soon as I can, Bea."
The door opens again and I see the paramedics and Lexie walk back through.
"Okay, I need to go. I love you, Tori."
"I love you too, Bea."
She hangs up and I stretch the phone out towards Lexie. She takes it and flashes that perfect smile at me again. She slowly and gently sets her hand on my shoulder.
"These guys are going to start patching you up, okay?"
I nod.
"Now, what hurts the most right now?"
"My throat," I whisper.
As soon as I speak, a girl turns to the bag they brought up with them and grabs out a whole bunch of items. She hands them to the man next to her and he flashes a small smile at me. I force myself to send a small smile back, but I'm actually extremely uncomfortable with this man. I'm sure it has nothing to do with who he is as a person, because I'm sure he's great; the ring on his finger proves so. Plus, he's a paramedic for a living. He seems sincere enough with his smile and tone as he asks me to lay back. What screams Eric about that?
I shake my head of its ridiculous thoughts and do what he asks. I feel their fingers on my neck along with lots of cream and bandages.
"Well, lucky for you, the knife didn't go deep enough into your neck to need more advanced procedures done at the hospital. However, that doesn't mean it won't hurt for a while. I suggest wearing protective clothing around it like scarves, large sweatshirts, or turtle necks and using your voice as little as possible so as not to jar the healing process until it starts to feel a little better. But if you do plan on using your voice soon, at least wait until tomorrow when it's stopped bleeding," the man says to me as they work.
Within a few minutes, they're done with my neck and Lexie speaks to me again.
"What next, sweetheart?"
I swallow and point to my stomach and the glass in the floor. "My stomach, and my arms, and my hand. I fell onto the glass over there and I can feel the shards in my skin."
"Alright," she says, and the man and woman immediately get to work again.
"Which hand has the glass in it, sweetheart?" the woman asks me. I hold out my left hand in response. I stare up at the ceiling as they pull the shards from my hand and arms and bandage them up.
And I swear I'm perfectly fine. I'm fine laying here while they do their work. I'm completely fine….until my shirt starts to rise.
My heart rate picks up and fear grasps me. I sit up like a flash and yank my shirt back down. My mind pictures Eric reaching for me, and when a pair of unfamiliar hands reach for me I freak out even more and scream while scooting back on the bed.
"Ma'am, calm down. We're here to help."
The hands reach again and I start to sob as I scream again.
"No! Stop!" I scream.
"It's okay, ma'am. It's okay."
I'm sobbing full force now as memories of Eric rush through my mind at unreal speeds.
A pair of familiar arms wrap around me gently from behind and I bask in the feeling of safety. I immediately turn and crawl into a ball, shoving myself inside the warm embrace of their arms. They flex as they hold me, and their hands gently rub up and down, trying to calm me.
"Truman, cut it out! Don't you see what's going on here?!" I faintly hear a voice yell above my sobs.
"I'm not su-"
"The girl was almost just killed and raped by a man! If she screams when you touch her, or come close to touching her, stop and think! Go back downstairs and tell all of the boys they better not come up here unless they absolutely need to. Thank you for your help, but you freaked the poor girl out. Let this be a lesson to you for future attempted murder/rape victims. Now, go on!"
Footsteps retreat and I hear the room door open and shut. It's quiet after that, and other than my sobs and quiet whispers that I hear in my ear, I feel as if I can finally start to calm down.
"Shhh...it's okay, Tris. It's okay. I've got you. You're safe. It's over, Eric's gone. You're safe now," Tobias whispers just loud enough for me to hear.
It takes a while longer, but I eventually stop crying. It takes a few minutes after that for Tobias to coax me out of my place in his arms. Eventually he does.
I turn myself to face Lexie and one paramedic. I'm guessing the one that's missing was the man Lexie was yelling at earlier when I was having a mental breakdown. I blush, embarrassed.
"Okay sweetheart, I got rid of Truman, the other medic. Would it be alright with you now if it was just Abigail here who cleaned up your stomach?"
I slowly nod. "I'm sorry," I whisper.
Lexie an Abigail smile at me. "You have absolutely nothing to be sorry for. In fact, I'm sorry for not thinking about your situation and how stupid it would be to bring another man into your personal space so quickly. How you just reacted is completely natural. Although, usually when that happens...nevermind," Lexie says.
I'm confused by her statement at the end, but know she isn't going to delve into that by the look on her face, so I let it go.
"Do you want me to start cleaning up your stomach yet, or would you like me to wait a little longer?" Abigail asks, a knowing look on her face. Her eyes shine with admiration and longing. I'm confused by this, but nod anyways.
I crawl off of Tobias's lap, but stay close to him as I lay down. He grabs my right hand in between both of his and brings it to his lips before resting them on his chest. I can feel his steady heartbeat underneath my fingertips and it immediately calms me even more.
I find myself staring into his eyes as Abigail works on bandaging up my stomach. He stares back, comforting me immensely.
Soon enough, Abigail tells me I can sit back up.
"Now, I need you to lift your shirt up for me so I can wrap this around your stomach. We don't want the cuts getting infected."
"Okay," I whisper and start to lift it up.
She stops me. "Here's the tricky part; I need you to lift your hands up while I do this. So you have two options here: a, you take your shirt off completely, or b, you have someone else lift it up for you."
I frown. I don't want to take my shirt off. It'd make me feel too exposed, too embarrassed. But that only leaves me with one other option.
I slowly, cheeks burning, turn my head to look at Tobias. I run my lip through my teeth nervously, contemplating how I should ask him.
Luckily, I don't have to, and he understands exactly why I'm looking at him. He nods at me and kisses my forehead.
"I take it we have it figured out then?" Abigail asks.
I nod and, with cheeks still red, slowly raise my arms up. I feel Tobias's careful fingers lift my shirt up and goosebumps raise across my skin.
I feel more exposed than ever. At least when Eric did this, it was only him that was staring at my imperfections, not three other people. At least I knew that only one person had seen me that exposed before.
Then I realize how ridiculous I'm being. These people aren't staring; they're helping me heal. They're not here to judge. Eric was so much more cruel; they are gentle.
I take a deep breath and put all those thoughts into the back of my mind. I put them into a box and toss the key away.
I keep quiet and calm for the rest of the time.
"Is there anything else I should know about?" Abigail asks after my stomach has been wrapped and my shirt has been put back down.
"Yes, but it's just a little burn. On my arm. It's nothing much."
"Well, I think I better take a look at it anyways," she says and smiles.
I hold out my arm and she tuts as she looks at it. "This looks awfully close to a second degree burn, young lady. You know what that means?"
I bite my lip, nervous. "What?"
"It means that it isn't 'just a little burn'," she says, a twinkle in her eye.
I find myself cracking a smile. "Sorry."
She smiles and shakes her head at me, putting some gauze and special cream on my arm.
"Mind telling me how you got this?" she asks.
"Umm...the straightener," I whisper and nod with my head over to where it lies on the floor. She nods and continues on.
"Now, about that face of yours…" she mumbles. I frown and even though I know I'm not pretty, it still hurt. I don't realize that she was talking about the cheek where Eric slapped me until her hand gently grabs it. It sends stinging across my entire cheek and I flinch away.
She sighs. "I'm afraid there's nothing I can do about that. Just apply ice whenever you can; that will help the swelling go down. Other than that, I think you're good to go. Unless there's something else…?"
I think for a moment then shake my head. I'm already feeling much better to be completely honest. "No. there's nothing else."
She smiles at me again. "Okay, then I will be on my way."
Lexie speaks up for the first time in a while. "Thanks so much Abigail. Tell Truman I'm sorry for snapping."
"I will," she says. She packs up her stuff and grabs the handles of the bag. She turns to leave, but before she does she turns to me one last time. "You're one of the strongest girls I've met. There's something about you that tells me you're gonna get through this, so just keep hanging on, okay?"
I bite my lip and look down. "Okay," I whisper.
Her footsteps retreat back out into the hall and fade away. I face Lexie.
"Are you ready, sweetheart?" she asks.
I reach for Tobias's hand and grab it. He squeezes my hand and I squeeze back. I take a deep breath and exhale. Then I nod.
She pulls the recorder from her pocket and pushes the red button down again.
"So, let's start again, shall we? Now, do you and the offender have any past history before today?"
I take a deep breath again and squeeze Tobias's hand for courage. "Yes."
That's it. I told Lexie everything: the rape, the bullying, the beating up, the threats, and the attack that just happened today. I have tears streaming down my cheeks still from the aftermath. I'm in Tobias's lap now; I moved almost right after I told her about the rape. His arms are wrapped tightly around me, grounding me to the world.
Lexie lays her hand on my shoulder, and I lift my head up to look at her. She gives me a small, sad smile.
"You are a very brave girl. You should be proud of yourself for handling it so well."
I shake my head. "I wasn't brave. I could've...I could've not ran from him. I could've st-stabbed him. I could've tried harder to get away from him."
She sighs and I see her look at Tobias.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of this," he says, although I'm not entirely sure what he's referring to.
Suddenly the door bursts open and I find myself jumping, turning, and hiding in Tobias' chest.
"Bea!" Tori's voice yells. Tobias's grip on me loosens as he realizes that Tori will probably want to run her hands all over me, real worried-mother like.
I climb off his lap reluctantly and as soon as I do, her arms go around me and hug me tightly.
"Oh my God! Thank goodness you're alright!" she exclaims, pulling back and, like I predicted, running her fingers across my face, my arms, my neck, checking for any injuries that the paramedics may not have already taken care of.
"What happened!?" she exclaims again. Without meaning to, I shake my head and feel tears run down my cheeks again.
"No, I can't...not again," I whisper to her, begging her to understand.
She looks confused.
Tobias clears his throat and stands up. "Hey Tori…."
She looks to him, and he nods his head over to where Lexie is standing.
"Oh! Right! I'm so sorry! How rude of me!"
Tori rushes over to Lexie and shakes her hand.
"Victoria Black," she says, formerly introducing herself.
"Alexis Hart. Although you can just call me Lexie," she says, grinning at her.
"Well, you can call me Tori. Thank you so much for saving my goddaughter. I don't know what I would have done without you," Tori says, tears in her eyes.
"You're quite welcome Tori, but it's not me you should be thanking. I wasn't the one to save your goddaughter," she states matter-of-factly.
"But...who did?"
I finally look over to Tobias, along with Lexie. He's scratching the back of his neck with a slight tinge of red on his cheeks.
"This young man here did," Lexie finishes.
It takes a moment for Tori to react, but when she does she runs over to him and gathers him up into her arms. His cheeks go even more red as he awkwardly wraps his arms around her too.
When she finally pulls back, she puts her hands on either side of his face. "Thank you so much, Four. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I don't know how I- we-" She gestures to me. "-will ever be able to repay you.
"You don't have to," he says, looking to me and smiling. "I'd do it again any day."
Now it's my turn to blush. I look down at the bed beneath me.
"Still, if there's anything you ever need, anything at all, let me know and I'll see what I can do," Tori says gratefully.
Lexie clears her throat. "I take it you know this handsome fellow?" she asks.
Tori nods. "He's her boyfriend," she states.
"Well that makes much more sense," Lexie says. "If they weren't a couple yet, I was predicting they would be soon."
I feel my cheeks grow dark again, and I see that Tobias's do too. It makes me smile a bit.
I look back up as Lexie starts to speak again. "Tris, I know we just got done with the questions, and I promise you we are done, but I need to ask if there's anything else I should know about."
I'm about to say no when I remember that I recorded the whole thing.
"Actually, yes," I shakily say and stand up from the bed. Tobias immediately moves over to me, probably for support if I need it. Fortunately for me, I don't need his help this time around, and I can walk to my dresser and back without shaking.
"I-I set up a video camera right after I broke the glass. I was going to call 911, but I knew I didn't have the time so I did what I could and hoped it would come in handy later," I sheepishly say.
Lexie grins at me. "You have no idea how much this will help, sweetheart. This will definitely make the case much easier to present."
"I kind of hoped it would; although, I wasn't sure if I was going to be alive to see if it would help in the end or not," I admit.
Tobias sits down beside me as I go to my photo/video library. I pull the video up, but don't push play yet.
"It's right here."
Lexie and Tori both gather around me and I shakily hit the play button. I turn the volume all the way up. I sigh in relief when I see that I had positioned the camera perfectly. They should be able to see everything from this angle.
I hear a door shut in the video and know that it was me shutting the door to the bathroom. I watch as Eric walks into my room and crosses out of sight to where the bathroom door should be. I hear him speaking, telling me to come out, come out wherever I am. Shivers run through my body at the sound of his voice again, but I can't seem to move my eyes from the screen.
I hear Eric yelp and see myself run towards the exit. Eric crosses back into screen and grabs my leg, causing me to fall onto the glass. I hear myself scream and tears run down my face as I relive this experience.
"I-I can't watch this again," I whisper almost inaudible, but I still can't move my eyes. They're glued to the screen. Tobias seems to have been the only one to have heard me, and his hand comes up and covers my eyes. I sigh in relief as the video of me and Eric disappears from view. I can still hear, but this I can deal with.
I close my eyes and carefully move my head to his shoulder now that my eyes aren't stuck to the screen. I'm able to keep my eyes shut as his hand moves off of them. It moves to my hair instead, comfortingly combing through it with his fingers.
As the video progresses on, I constantly hear Tori gasp and feel Tobias tense. Both of them suck in a breath when they hear Eric tell me that he could end me right there, right then; it makes me shiver too.
After that, my hands start to shake and I know I'm probably doing a poor job at holding the phone. I feel a cool pair of soft hands take it from me a few moments later, which can only be Lexie's. I let my hands drop. Tobias wraps his arms around me and slowly brings me back into his lap. I curl myself into the smallest form I can achieve and press myself into his chest, trying to disappear. His chin sets on top of my head and he starts to stroke my hair and back with the hand that isn't occupied. I take deep breaths in of his scent.
I am able to tune out the video until I hear a comforting voice. The bad part is over. I can just make out Tobias telling me he loves me over and over again after I warned him about the glass. I hear myself asking him to get my phone and telling him the passcode. And then it's silent; it's over.
Lexie speaks up first. "This is irrefutable evidence, sweetheart. Great job. Not many people can think that quickly when they're in danger. Would you mind if I took this down to my computer in the squad car and uploaded it?"
Not trusting my voice, I shake my head.
"I'll be right back, sweetheart."
I hear her leave and as soon as she does, I feel another hand on my back - Tori's.
I take a deep breath and force myself to lean back. I feel so weak; I need to be stronger.
Tobias meets my eyes with a concerned look. I close my eyes and take another deep breath, trying to get rid of my emotions.
I open my eyes as I feel myself start to numb. Tobias looks extremely worried and frantic now.
"No. No you don't. Don't shut down. You can't do this to yourself," he quickly says to me.
"What is she doing, Four?" Tori asks worriedly.
"She's locking up all of her emotions. She's done this before. It's scary seeing her like that," he tells her.
His hand raises to my cheek that's not swollen and begs me with his eyes not to do it, but I'm already slipping away.
Tori moves over and she stares at me too. I see her eyes go worried like Tobias's..
"Do something, Four!"
"What do I do?!" he asks.
"I don't know! Make her feel something!"
I can hear them, but strangely their words go in one ear and out the other. They sound gurgly.
And then, there are lips on mine. I don't kiss back at first, but slowly, very slowly, I begin to feel warmth flow through me and I kiss him back. The lips pull back and I find myself staring into his worried eyes.
"What was that for?" I ask him.
He and Tori both sigh in what seems to be relief.
"Don't you dare shut down. That will only make things worse in the end, okay?" Tobias says to me.
"But-"
"No but's, missy. You will not close off your thoughts and emotions. You hear me?" Tori says.
I stare at both of them for a while then sigh. "Fine."
The door opens, and Lexie suddenly walks back in holding my phone.
"That was quick," I say, slightly shocked.
She grins. "It wasn't a long upload, and the computer took it with no problems. But don't delete it yet; just in case the system would, for some reason, get rid of it, I may need it again."
I nod and take my phone back. I hand it to Tobias, who hands it to Tori, who then sets it on my bed.
"Okay, we're almost done here folks. Since you were a witness-" She points to Tobias. "I need your statement and I'll have to ask you some questions too. Now, if I remember correctly, Tris here needs to talk to Tori about something quite important, so would it be okay if we went into another room to do this?"
I don't want to be without him. No. Not at all. After all, I just got him back. But much to my dismay, he nods and starts to move me out of his lap. I throw my arms around him, not cooperating. I'm afraid that if he leaves, he'll never come back.
"Tori, could you show me another room we can be in?" Lexie asks.
I hear the bed creak as she gets up. "Of course."
The door shuts a moment later and Tobias's arms slip around me.
"Hey, it's okay," he whispers.
I shake my head. "No," I mumble.
His arms wrap around me tighter. "It'll only take a little bit. Just a few minutes. You can do that. We lasted three days without speaking; I know you can do this."
I take a deep breath. "But I don't want to."
"You have to. Before you know it, you'll have told Tori whatever you need to tell her, I'll be back, and this will be over."
I sigh. "I shouldn't have told her everything."
"Tris, don't do this."
"Don't do what?"
"Wish for the easy way out. Sometimes life gets hard, but you have to keep pushing through it, okay?" I don't say anything. After a few moments, he speaks up again. "You don't know how proud I am of you for telling Lexie everything. You have no idea how strong you are."
I shake my head. "No, I'm weak. I couldn't get Eric off of me, and I didn't even fight back when he got me the first time."
"Tris!" he barks, surprising me and making me pull back.
"I swear, if you say that you're weak one more time, I will arrange some punishments."
I raise an eyebrow. "Punishments?"
"Yes. Punishments."
"...Like?"
"Like...Christina doing your makeup and forcing you into heels, Uriah talking in your ear all day long, and Tori forcing you to eat three times as much of what you already do."
I scowl at him. "But what if I'm telling the truth?"
"You're not. You are incredibly strong, and you have no idea how much it bugs me that you don't see that."
I roll my eyes. His hands land on either side of my cheek, but the hand on the one with the swolleness barely brushes it. It surprises me, how gentle his hands can be.
"I'm being serious, Tris. You did fight back, but he had a knife; you did what you could do, and it was probably a lot knowing you."
I shake my head and start to protest but he cuts me off.
"We all saw that video of today, Tris. You were incredibly brave and used your mind to create a plan when you only had a split second to make a decision. It's really amazing, actually," he tells me.
I frown. "What is?"
"Most people can't think straight when put into danger. They make dumb decisions and their instincts lead them to feel like they aren't awake, like they're just in a dream. They shut down. For you, it's different. Fear doesn't shut you down; it wakes you up. I've seen it. It's fascinating."
I stare at him. "I still could've-"
"No, you couldn't have. Whatever you're about to say, you couldn't have. You did everything and more that you could. You have to take into account that you're human, Tris."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that it's alright to be scared when you're put into a dangerous situation. You have to realize that during this time your body reacts and causes you to think in a different way than you normally would. It's not your fault that afterwards, if you make it out alive, a bunch of other ideas come popping into your head that you swear could have worked. But most of the time, they wouldn't have worked anyways."
"Why not?"
"Because when your body reacts, your fight-or-flight instincts come in and they cause you to think and act on impulse. A lot of times, you think more intelligently then because of the rush of adrenaline. You act on what sounds like it will work, and you go from there. Your brain automatically eliminates several ideas that you may be thinking now because it knows that it's too planned; you have to be ready to change in a moment's notice. That's what I mean."
I let it all sink in for a minute, then open my mouth to speak. "How do you know so much about this?"
"Marcus."
"I'm sorry," I automatically apologize.
"You have no reason to apologize. Just because he's a bad part of my past doesn't mean that I can't handle hearing his name or talking about him."
I slowly nod.
"I know because on the days where the beatings were bad, I experimented. Some days I was able to turn off my fight-or-flight instincts and use my regular ones. It almost never worked that way."
I exhale loudly. "But-"
"But nothing. You're one of the strongest people on this planet."
I blush and he smiles. "No, I'm not."
He kisses my forehead. "We could argue about this, but you will never change my mind about it."
I sigh. "Fine."
The door opens and I hear footsteps come back in.
"Are you ready, Four?" Lexie asks him.
He nods, and this time I let him get up. He kisses my forehead once before walking to the door with Lexie and shutting it behind them.
"So what do you need to tell me?" Tori asks.
I take a deep breath and turn to her. "I need you to promise me something first."
"Sure, anything!" she says sincerely.
"You need to promise that you keep your mind open. I know it's been drilled into your head differently, and mine too, but you have to believe me."
She looks skeptical. "I promise...now spill."
"Caleb's alive."
She stares at me with no expression change for several minutes.
"Tris…."
"Just….listen, okay?"
"Tris, sweetie, I think this got to your head too much. Are you feeling sick at all?" she asks and reaches over to press the back of her hand to my forehead. I pull back before she can.
"I know it seems impossible, but I promise it's not."
"Beatrice, it is impossible."
"That's what I thought too," I reply. "At least until I talked to him."
Her eyes grow wide. "You what?!"
"I talked to him. On the phone. I've talked to him twice now."
She sputters for several minutes. "But-but…"
"I know. Trust me, I know. And I would love to be able to tell you more, but I think that I should only tell you the basics today, and wait for Caleb to tell you the details tomorrow."
She looks at me with disbelief. "Beatrice, honey…"
"Tori, listen to me!" I snap. She looks shocked that I did that. It's the first time I've used my voice that loudly since the paramedics told me not to. My neck throbs where it's cut, but I ignore it. I lower my voice back down to a whisper. "He was in the Witness Protection Program. He saw something he shouldn't have and reported it to the police. It turns out that he messed with the wrong group of guys and they went after him."
I feel myself getting choked up and can barely get the next sentence out.
"That wreck, Tori..." I take a deep breath. "...that wreck wasn't an accident."
She jerks back and her face goes pale. "Please tell me this is some sick joke."
"No, it's not," I whisper.
She stares for a long time again. While she does, I stand up and go to my bookshelves. I grab the dustiest one on the shelf and open it to the page I kept the letter in. I take the letter out, blow the dust off of it, and head back over to Tori.
"He wrote this for me the day of the wreck-before it happened. It doesn't explain everything since he didn't know that the wreck was going to happen, but it should explain a few other things."
I carefully hand her the letter. Her shaky hand reaches out to grasp it and she opens it.
"This is his handwriting," she absentmindedly says to me.
"I know," I say. "Now read it."
She nods and her eyes start to move back and forth on the lines of the paper. Her face gets paler by the minute, and at the end she looks the way I did after I talked to Caleb for the first time.
Her eyes come up over the letter and catch mine. "I-I don't believe it…."
"I know it's hard to. Even I am having a hard time believing it and I found out about this three days ago."
"Three days!? Why didn't you tell me before now?!"
I laugh nervously. "Well...here's another big shocker coming your way…"
She raised an eyebrow. "What?" she asks slowly and suspiciously.
I take a deep breath. "He's coming home."
Her eyes widen to the size of saucers. "What?"
"Shh! Keep your voice down!" I whisper/yell. "Yes, he's coming home."
She gasps and is barely able to keep a hold of herself. "How do you know?!"
I wince. "I talked to him after school."
"Where the hell is he?!" she asks next.
"He's not anywhere close to here."
"Then where is he?!" she yells again.
"Shhhh Tori!" I whisper/yell again. "You can't yell anymore! And I can't tell you where he is! I'm the only one who can legally know!"
She takes a deep breath and composes herself. "Alright. I can stop yelling. I still think this is a dream, but I can do that." She takes another breath. "When?" she asks.
I bite my lip and run it through my teeth.
"Beatrice…? When is he coming home?" she asks both suspiciously and nervously.
I take a deep breath of my own. "Tomorrow."
She comes close to falling off the edge of the bed. She manages to steady herself at last minute before whipping her head back to me.
"He's what?"
I wince. "He's coming back home tomorrow from where the Witness Protection Program located him."
She shakes her head. "I don't know why I'm taking this so seriously. I mean, it's just a dream, right?"
I bite my lip again and stay quiet while she talks herself into the idea that Caleb is alive.
"Punch me, Beatrice."
I do so without hesitation. She winces and pulls back her arm.
"This isn't a dream…." she finally says a little while later.
"No," I sigh. "It isn't."
She's quiet for about 5 minutes this time. I leave her be; I know I was the same way when I found out.
"I...I just don't know how…." she finally says.
I sigh. "I'll let Caleb explain that to you when he gets here tomorrow. It's a long story."
She sighs. "Please tell me you're not messing with me."
I shake my head. "I'm not. This letter is what I went to go get in Haviland three nights ago. I talked to Caleb for the first time that night too. My mind got pretty messed up, and it took forever to take the news in. So I completely understand if it will take a while for you too; although, you only have so long before he comes home."
"Why didn't you tell me three nights ago then? Why only just now?"
I sigh. "I couldn't. You have no idea how much I wanted to shake you when I got back that night and scream that he was alive, but I couldn't. You weren't direct blood. I was the only one who could know about his location and situation. I was only allowed to tell you one day before he came home, which was originally planned for later in the week."
"So why is he coming home now? What made them change their mind?"
I blush. "Nothing."
She raises her eyebrow. "Bea?"
"It's nothing. It's not important now, anyways."
"Tell me."
I shake my head.
"Tell me now," she says kind of scary.
I sigh. "He's coming to help me and Four patch things up. Well...they're pretty much fixed now, but they weren't earlier when I was talking to him."
"So that's why you've been acting weird lately," she says, hurt. "I should've seen it. Why didn't you tell me?"
I shrug. "I didn't want to bother you. I also knew that you would try to push Four and I together and that it would just make things worse."
She sighs and brushes my hair back behind my ear. "Beatrice, honey, don't ever keep something from me because you don't want to 'bother' me. And if you do tell me, and I want to act on it, all you need to do is tell me not to do it, and I won't. If it makes you that uncomfortable, I would let you handle it, okay?"
I blush again and nod. "Okay."
"So…..you told him about Four, did you?" she asks curiously.
However, I'm not able to answer that question because the door opens and Tobias walks through with Lexie right behind him.
"Tell who about me?"
And for the third time, I blush. "Nothing," I whisper extremely soft.
He sits beside me. "I should've known I was the important subject that you couldn't wait to tell Tori about," he jokingly says.
I elbow him softly while keeping in mind his comment about my jabs a few days ago. "Not everything has to be about you, you know."
He chuckles and kisses the top of my head. He turns to the side and I wrap my arms around his waist, grateful to have him back next to me. One of his arms wrap around my back while the other rests on my hip. He leans down and whispers into my ear.
"See? I told you it would only be a little bit before I was back."
I nod. "You were right," I whisper back.
"I always am."
I sigh. "Why do you always have to ruin these moments?"
He cracks a smile. "I wouldn't call it 'ruining'. A better word for it would be 'enhancing'."
I smile and roll my eyes. He pecks my forehead.
"Okay, Tris. We're finished, but I feel like I am obligated to tell you this," Lexie interrupts.
I turn my head and meet her eyes. My stomach drops with anxiety. What happened? Why is she so solemn all of a sudden?
I nod, signaling for her to go on. She sighs and begins to speak. "Okay, I'll start with the good news. Good news is that with this current case here, we should have enough evidence to prosecute him against breaking and entering, assault, attempted murder, and quite possibly attempted rape, depending on how the prosecutors look at it. Most likely, you will not have to come to court and give a testimony. The video you had and the statement I got from you should be enough of a testimony on your end."
A bit of relief floods through me.
"However, for the previous case of rape and assault, it's likely that you will have to take it to court. There is only a couple circumstances that could occur that could keep the case from being brought to the jury."
I release the breath I've been holding. "Is there anything else I can do to help seal the first case? I mean, what are the circumstances that would have to fall?"
"Unfortunately, you've done all you can do as for right now. What we would be looking at right now as far as exceptions from court would be a series of events. To start, we would be looking for the offender admitting to your claims and pleading guilty. If that were to happen, we would take a statement from him. We would ask for clear evidence that this did indeed occur, and from there we would come back to you. If, and only if, your stories were to match up perfectly, you both provided clear-cut evidence, and all the people in charge of the case decided unanimously in favor of you, would this case not be taken to court. It's still a long process, but not as long as court. It's much more based off of freak events occurring than it is evidence and statements. This is much less thorough, and although it may seem like the better option, not very people have surpassed court this way; most of the time the offender is not willing to give themselves up like that. I'm not saying it can't happen, but it's very unlikely that it will. Unless one of these freak occurrences happen, I would plan on going to court for it."
I have to close my eyes to stop the dizziness I feel. I just got done revealing all my secrets to Lexie, she, unknowingly, just told Tori what I've been keeping from both her and my parents since I was 14, and now she's telling me I have to tell a whole courtroom full of people?
I take several deep breaths and move my hands to grip Tobias's arms. I would take his hands, but I want them to keep holding me.
"Is-is that all I can do? Just wait? Can't I do something to not take it to court?"
Lexie sighs. "Sweetheart, I wish I would say yes. I believe you wholeheartedly, I do, but I'm not sure if it will be that easy to convince the prosecutors. The only other thing you can do at this point to completely rule out the possibility of court is to drop the charges of the rape entirely. I wouldn't recommend it though; you have a pretty strong case going on for you. And with a present-day charge including assault, breaking and entering, attempted murder, and maybe attempted rape, you definitely have an advantage in court already."
I perk up at the 'dropping the charges' option. Maybe I could do it. Besides, I've lived with that for three years and not once have I thought about charging him with rape or assault. It would definitely be the easiest option, but would it be the coward's way out? Would it be something I'd regret later?
I move my head back and look into Tobias's eyes, pleading with him to tell me what to do and what to say.
"Tris," he sighs. He leans his forehead against mine, looking into my eyes up close. He whispers, "I can't tell you what to do. This is your decision. I'll support you no matter what you decide to do."
I close my eyes and let a few tears escape. "I don't want to seem cowardly."
"And you won't; everyone in this room believes you and knows how strong you must be in order to have faced that. Besides, you'll be making a brave decision either way. In one way you tell your secrets to a whole room of people, but the other way you choose to face those fears on your own."
Tears continue to dribble down my cheeks through my closed eyelids. "I'm supposed to be making the uncowardly decision here. I'm Dauntless, I should know the right decision. So why am I having so much trouble deciding?"
"Because you're not just Dauntless, Tris; you're Dauntless, and Erudite, and Abnegation. You're all three of them. That means you'll make the decision that is both the smartest and bravest for you, and then you'll try to minimize the number of people you include in it as much as you can. That's the beauty of being someone like you; the way your brain works benefits you in more ways than one."
I stay quiet for several minutes, contemplating my decision. Then I finally come to a conclusion.
I pull back from Tobias's forehead, release his arms from my grip, and wipe my tears off. I turn my head to Lexie again, and for the first time since I was told not to, speak. I speak more confidently than I thought I would have, considering what I'm doing.
"I'm not going to drop the charges."
Lexie smiles softly at me. "I was kinda hoping you'd say that." She looks at her watch and her walkie-talkie radio beeps as voices come in, asking for her presence at various locations. "I've got to go, folks. My time is up. I'll leave you to it, and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to call."
"Thank you, Lexie," I speak again.
She walks over to me and picks up my hand. She squeezes it once before letting go. "No, thank you for showing me courage. You're a really special girl, you know that?" I blush. "I promise you'll get through this; hell, anyone who even slightly resembled your personality would have no problem getting through this. I know you can." She looks to Tobias and Tori before looking back to me again. "And you've got three people who are going to love and support you throughout every step of the way."
I frown. I almost correct her to say two people, not three, but there's something in her eyes that stops me; there's something that makes me realize that she said that on purpose. Of course she would; she's not the type of person to make silly mistakes like that. But then...why did she say three?
Unless….
No. She couldn't possibly know...unless she was a part of it?
No. There's no way.
But then….what else could she have possibly meant?
I look at Tobias and Tori to make sure I didn't hear wrong, but I know I didn't when I see that they're confused too.
Lexie stands up and walks to the door. But before she walks through it, she turns and her eyes drill straight into mine.
"By the way Tris, have you ever seen Australia at this time of year? It's really beautiful. You should check it out sometime."
My eyes widen and my jaw drops. She knows. She's a part of it.
She smiles, then turns her eyes off of me and to Tobias and Tori instead, who I'm sure are even more confused. "Have a good night, guys."
Her footsteps echo against the wood downstairs as she walks across it and to the police car outside. Even after I hear her drive away, I'm still in shock. Is that why I subconsciously knew I could trust her? Because my instincts knew that she played a role in keeping my brother safe?
"What was that all about, Tris?" Tobias asks confusedly.
"Yes, I think we'd all like to know the answer to that question. Why did she all of a sudden bring up Australia?"
I force my mouth to close and form words. "I-it's nothing. Don't worry about it. I'll tell you guys later."
Everyone stays silent for a few minutes. All of a sudden, I have doubt and fear run across my mind.
"Guys?" I whisper.
"Yes?" Tori asks at the same time Tobias hums.
My lip wobbles and my voice shakes. "Did I make the right decision?" I ask and struggle not to cry.
"Oh honey," Tori says, and Tobias brings me back into his chest. "You did the right thing. You're choosing to not let him walk all over you anymore. We're proud of you for that, Bea. Although I'm a bit disappointed you never felt like you could tell me what he did….I'm glad you're choosing to face it."
I take several deep breaths. "I think I want to get out of here for a while."
"Are you sure that's a good id-" Tori starts to ask.
"I need to get away from here," I plead. They both look at me skeptically. "Please. I don't care what it is: a walk, a drive around the city, a get together with our friends, I don't care. I just need to do something."
They both stay quiet for a while, thinking it over.
"Tris-" Tobias says, giving me a look that deflated all hope in me.
"Let her."
His head whips to Tori, who is too busy looking at me to notice. Her eyes are sad but gentle.
"I thought you said that-"
"I know what I said, Four. But now I'm saying take her. In fact, I'll take it one step further; if you don't take her to meet up with the gang, or whatever she wants to do, I will not allow you to stay here for the next few nights."
"But I never asked-"
"But it was an understood concept that you would be staying."
I flick my eyes back and forth between the two. Tobias looks helpless while Tori stands confident. They're both trying to protect me in their own way, so I don't interrupt. Finally, Tobias sighs and looks at me. I bite my lip and look to him pleadingly.
"Fine. I'll take her."
I smile immediately and for the first time since I saw Eric tonight, I feel happy.
"Thank you, thank you, thank y-"
"But..." Tobias adds on. I feel my smile drop as I wait. "Only if you promise you won't leave my sight and that you'll be careful." He looks at me accusingly. My smile comes back and I throw my arms around his neck.
"I promise I will. Thank you."
"So….what do you want to do?" Tori asks.
"I want to go for a walk first. Then maybe if I'm still feeling up to it later we can do something else."
He pulls me back from his arms. He studies me for a few moments, cracks a smile, and kisses my temple.
"Okay, but you better bundle up. It's getting cold outside."
"Well, I need to wear a scarf anyways. And a coat to cover my stomach and arms. And gloves to cover my hands up. Oh! And I should probably-"
"The longer you continue, the shorter this walk will be," Tobias interrupts.
I nod and stand up off of the bed. Tori stands next to me.
"I'll make sure she dresses properly. Go on downstairs now, Four."
He smiles and shakes his head before walking out of my room. His footsteps echo downstairs.
"Okay, do you have any turtlenecks?" Tori asks.
I stick out my tongue and pretend to gag. "Why do I need to wear one?"
"You need to protect your neck."
"I'll just wear a sca-"
"No, a scarf won't cut it. Now, do you have any turtlenecks?" she asks again.
"I just have one, but I really don't want to-"
"No buts. You wear the turtleneck or you don't go."
I sigh. "Fine."
This continues until she has me in a long sleeved turtleneck, jeans (instead of sweats), a short pair of boots (instead of sneakers), a beanie that covers my ears completely, a lightweight jacket, gloves, and a scarf.
"Okay, I think this will do Tori," I say, rolling my eyes.
She rolls her eyes back. "I'm just trying to protect you."
I sigh. "I know. I'm sorry. Thank you." I wrap my arms around her and squeeze. "I love you. I know I kind of suck at showing it sometimes, but I really am thankful for you and everything you do for me. Thank you for letting me go and forget what happened for a couple hours. I need this."
"I know you do, honey. But I still think you're crazy."
I step back. "For what?"
"For lots of things. For keeping what Eric did to you a secret, for already going out after you've just faced a life-or-death situation, for falling in love so quickly-"
"Tori-" I start to interrupt. But she rushes on, obviously not wanting to focus on the last thing she listed.
"-and for believing Caleb is alive."
"He is alive, Tori."
"Yes, I know, but I don't think I will really, truly believe that until I see him tomorrow. Or until I hear the story."
I nod. "I understand."
She kisses my forehead. "Now go. Before it gets dark out."
I nod again and walk to the door. I turn around. "Are you coming?"
She shakes her head. "No. I think I'm going to stay in your room for a while."
I frown, confused, but keep going downstairs anyways. I barely reach the bottom of the stairs when Tobias is there, looking overly worried.
"Are you sure you want to go?" he asks.
"I'm fine, Tobias," I say quietly, so as not to reveal his name to Tori.
He sighs. "I'm sorry I'm being overprotective. You obviously can take care of yourself."
I smile and run my fingers down his cheek. "Maybe so, but I do feel a whole lot better with you around."
He chuckles and kisses my temple. He holds out his arm to me.
"Shall we, my lady?"
I giggle and tuck my arm around his, already starting to forget. "We shall."
I know that it's a bit odd that Tris would suddenly be wanting to go outside and away from home, but I couldn't really see her character sitting around at home, pitying herself. I feel like she would want to get out of the place that everything happened in and focus on something else. It's not like her to open up that much about something and to keep letting her emotions fly without her locking them up for a while would be even more odd I feel like. I hope I'm making sense….if not, I'm sorry and I hope that you understand why I wrote the last part the way I did.
Anyways, it's almost Christmas! Yay! I hope you're all as excited as I am about the holiday season! I'm looking forward to a break from school for a while! Hopefully I'll be able to write more then as well!
Thank you so much for all of you amazing support! Some of your reviews this chapter almost brought me to tears! You guys are too sweet! I couldn't have asked for a better group of readers/supporters!
Do you think we can reach the big 6-0-0 this time around in reviews? I bet we can! Do you also think we can reach 325 favorites and 375 follows? I also bet we can!;D
Until next time!
(P.S. I hope that Tris and Tobias making up pleased your exasperated need for Fourtris!:D)