I glance up at Tobias for a fraction of a second before moving my eyes back toward Edward. Unfortunately, we've known for quite some time that Molly and Drew had an accomplice inside a faction but it wasn't until very recently that we learned that the coconspirator is actually from inside Dauntless, which is very disconcerting for all of us. Although we have a few suspects, it's irritating that we don't know the person's identity yet. Maybe Edward's identification will point our investigation in the right direction.
"What do you mean we have a leak?" Tobias asks, acting like this is the first we've heard of such a thing. I have to give him props. My husband is a very good actor. "Who is it?" I hold my breath, anticipating his answer. This has been a long time coming.
"I don't actually have a name for you," he says somewhat apologetically. I blow the breath out and hang my head, frustrated. Did we really leave Peanut to come all this way for information we already know?
"You dragged Tris away from our daughter and me from a critical situation at Dauntless for an I don't know?" Tobias sarcastically asks.
"I'm sorry," Edward says. "I didn't mean to mislead you. I've never actually seen the person Molly is working with. I wish I did that way I could give you a name."
"So what do you know, Edward?" I ask. I'm anxious to get this over with and get home to Peanut in time to feed her.
"When Molly is on the phone, she's extremely careful not to use the other person's name," he says. "Well careful may be too nice of a way to put it, paranoid is more like it. She sees spies everywhere she looks." He rolls his eyes but his comment reminds me of the update Shauna gave us this morning. Josh and Matt think that she's on to them. That could be true or maybe she's just being extraordinarily cautious in her movements, which is not good for us. "She talks to them on her phone every day, sometimes twice a day, and meets with them at least twice a week."
"I have to ask, where did you get your phone?" Tobias asks, totally changing the subject. We've wondered about this since we saw Molly talking on a phone at the park during initiation. "Factionless aren't supposed to have access to them."
"My father gave me mine," he says, sounding a bit melancholy. "He slips me extra food and clothing also from time to time. I may have accepted my fate but it's still a difficult life."
"Do you know where Molly got her phone?" I ask.
"I don't but I imagine her friend gave it to her," he says.
"How long has Molly been talking to this person?" Tobias asks.
"I first noticed her on the phone with someone just days after she and Drew showed up at the hotel after they washed out of Dauntless," he says.
"The hotel?" Tobias asks just before I can do the same.
"Oh, it's just what a lot of us ex-Dauntless members call home," he says. "I guess we have the tendency to stick together. Like I said, this life isn't easy, and it takes a toll on a person's psyche. Being with like-minded people helps. I chose to become factionless instead of letting Eric kick me out anyway because of some perceived weakness and that has made it easier for me. As for Molly, Drew, and the redhead they each blame the two of you in one way or another for their circumstances. I don't think they'll ever accept it.
"Molly and Drew are both convinced that the two of you somehow cheated during the simulations and that, Tris, you slept with Four to get the ranking you did." I sigh. Not this accusation again. "She tells anyone who will listen that she had proof but no one would do anything about it."
"Yeah, we know," I say. I can see this shocks him. "It doesn't matter that it's not true, she's convinced herself it is."
"Well, she is certifiable," he says. "I thought she was crazy when she first showed up at the hotel but you should have seen her after Peter died. Good riddance! She absolutely lost it. She wants your head on a platter, Tris. Our leaders wanted to kick her out because of her irrational behavior."
"Wait, you have leaders?" Tobias asks. Edward looks like he's just said too much.
"Every part of society, whether it's recognized by the city or not, needs authority figures," he says. "We have leaders, laws, and consequences just like the factions do. In fact, your mom was one of our leaders, Four. I think that even though she had passed away her influence is what allowed Molly to stay after Peter's death. Her opinion held a lot of weight and for some unknown reason, your mother liked Molly." I always knew that Evelyn was certifiable. "And speaking of your mother, Molly also holds you both accountable for taking her away from us, as well."
"What?" I blurt out. "Evelyn died during childbirth. How is that our fault? We didn't want her to die. She was Four's mother." I may not have liked the woman but I would have gladly put up with her shit to save him the pain of her leaving him for the second time.
"Molly's unstable," he says. "If she gets a paper cut, she blames you. As for the redhead, she says she was unfairly kicked out of Dauntless because she had an affair with Four." He scoffs at the notion, which surprises me some. Noticing my reaction he says, "I've seen the way he looks at you, Tris. There's no way he'd cheat. She must be delusional."
"She is. She was kicked out of Dauntless because she's not the right kind of person we want in the faction. Plus she fabricated photos of her and me in compromising positions. I won't tolerate someone messing with my marriage," Tobias gruffly says. He puts his arm around me and kisses my temple. "We appreciate the information, Edward, but we already knew almost everything you have told us so far."
"What I haven't told you is that she has a plan. Tris, she thinks you are living the life that was meant for her. She wants her friends and status back, and she wants you alone, miserable, and broken, which is how she views herself. I could be wrong but what I think it boils down to is Peter and the fact that she was in love with him. The way she views it is that if you hadn't cheated during initiation, you would have been made factionless and Peter would still be alive because he wouldn't have had a choice but to give up his strange obsession with you. Whatever you do, watch your back. She's going after your friends first. If I'm not mistaken, that part of her plan is already in motion." Oh, poor Harrison and Frankie, casualties of a delusional woman. "The second part of her plan is to eliminate your extended family." What? "She sees it as an eye for an eye. She has friends watching Erudite as well as Abnegation." My eyes fly to Tobias'. I had no idea that Caleb, Cara, Mom, and Dad were in danger, possibly Marcus, too, not that that matters to us. Then something hits me like a ton of bricks.
"Oh, my God!" My hand flies to my mouth. "She knows about Jeffrey and Laurel," I say mentioning Tobias' younger brother and sister who were both at Evelyn's funeral. Tobias stiffens beside me. I doubt he thought his brother and sister, who he really doesn't know very well would be in danger because of this strange situation.
"The final part of her plan is to eliminate your happy family," he says. "The psycho redhead thinks she can swoop in and take Four, leaving you all alone, Tris."
"My kids?" I barely choke out, trying to keep the terror I'm feeling out of my voice. I'm not sure I succeed.
"They've never mentioned hurting your kids," he says. "Although, they do talk about taking everything away from you. I'd keep them close just to be on the safe side until you have her in custody."
"Do you have any direct evidence of what she's planning?" Tobias asks.
"Evidence? No, I don't. I can't even tell you exactly what she has planned. I've told you what I know," he says. "I do have her cell phone number though. Maybe it could help you." He pulls a dilapidated phone out of his pocket and scrolls through his contacts then rattles off the number as Tobias enters it into his then puts it away.
"This helps a lot," Tobias says. He looks at Edward for a time, clearly mulling something over in his head. "Why are you telling us all this?" He obviously doesn't trust him.
"I have no grudge against either of you," he says with a shrug. "As a matter of fact, if it weren't for Tris I might not be here. The doctor in the infirmary told me if the knife had been pulled out like I wanted that more than likely I would have bled to death. I may have been an ass to Peter, but I don't think I deserved a butter knife to the eye."
"He didn't stab you because you were in the way of what he wanted?" I ask.
"I'm sure that was part of the reason," he says, blushing lightly. He stares off into the distance through the grating. "Let's just say that I used to be just as driven … some might call it ruthless… if not more so than Peter. I didn't take into consideration a person's feelings when I wanted something. Unfortunately, I stepped on the wrong bug along the way. I have regrets but if it didn't happen, I wouldn't have changed my life for the better." I know I must look confused because he laughs lightly. "I wasn't the nice guy I appeared to be, Tris. I played a stupid prank. It cost me an eye and my new faction. I think it was a hefty price to pay but it is what it is." He obviously doesn't want to elaborate for unknown reasons so I don't push it. I'll ask Tobias if he knows what he's talking about. When I look out of the car, I realize we are close to the ground again.
"Is there anything else you can think of?" Tobias asks. "What you think is a small, insignificant detail could blow the case wide open."
"You know, come to think of it, the redhead meets with someone a lot, too," he says. "I've never seen their face but I'm 75% sure it's a man from Abnegation." It's damn near impossible to mistake Abnegation for any other faction so 75% seems strange.
"75%?" Tobias asks, obviously thinking the same thing as me.
"I've only seen him in the dark in the factionless sector," he says. "He's dressed in dark gray, which as you know is a Dauntless color, too. But it's the way he carries himself that screams 'Stiff.' Sorry."
"What does he look like?" I ask, just knowing he's about to describe Marcus.
"Definitely older than her," he says, "but I've never gotten a good look at his face. Something about him seems familiar to me though but I don't know why." As the car is slowing he says, "One more thing. I always thought Molly was the queen of crazy until that psycho redheaded bitch showed up. There's something seriously wrong with her. I can't quite pinpoint what it is but ... I think she's the dangerous one. Molly's the type to tell you to your face that she's going to come after you so you're prepared when she makes her move but the redhead, she'll play nice to your face then when you're least expecting it, cut your heart out."
"She must not have shown us her true colors yet," I say to Tobias. I hate the bitch but the only crazy I've seen is her throwing herself at a married man. Whore!
"I'd watch your backs then," Edward says. He ducks down as the car comes to a stop.
"Thank you," I quietly say, not looking his way in case someone is watching us. "We appreciate the information. Watch yourself. Three people are dead and one is missing. We don't want you to be another casualty." Tobias and I get up and exit the gondola hand-in-hand.
"That was a lovely ride," Tobias says. "We need to take advantage of your wedding gift more often." I know this conversation is really for the sake of any eavesdroppers nearby but I'll take it. I once again wrap my arms around his and lay my head against his shoulder.
"I wish we could have stayed longer but Peanut will be hungry when we get home," I say. "How are we doing on time?" He pulls his phone out of his pocket and stares at the screen.
"We should get home just in the nick of time," he says. "Will called." He plays the message back and sighs, frustrated. "There's still no sign of Tori."
"How far can a person get in four-and-a-half minutes?" I ask as we arrive at the train tracks.
"What?" he asks, looking down at me with furrowed brows.
"Am I boring you, baby?" I tease as I go up on my tiptoes and kiss his cheek.
"Sorry," he sighs. "I guess I was thinking about what we learned from Edward and wondering where Tori could be. What did you ask?"
"How far do you think a person can get in four-and-a-half minutes? That's how long the cameras were off, so how far can a person get in that time?"
"I guess it depends on what time of day it is and where you are at the time," he says. "I wish we could figure out where she went missing from."
"Do you think the control room could track her movements from earlier in the day?" I ask.
"Yeah," he says with a sigh. "It seems like we just keep piling more and more on them, though, and I just wonder how effective their work is right now."
"I understand what you're saying," I say. "What can we do to help?"
"I really wish I knew, love," he says. "This entire situation is a hell of a mess. Everyone in the control room is working extra shifts. I now have the entire technical staff working on the surveillance footage, too. I don't know what else to do."
"What about setting up a temporary command center in the conference room and bringing in more guards off the fence?" I ask. "I noticed that before you brought all the programmers into the control room that it was getting crowded. I can't imagine what it's like now."
"That's a really good idea," he says. "It will at least give everyone space to work. I'll talk about it with Zeke and the others when we get back to Dauntless." When I see the train in the distance, I sigh. "Not looking forward to going home?"
"Going home? Definitely. I miss Peanut terribly," I say, readying myself to jump on the moving train. "Getting on the train? Not really. I'm a little sore now."
"I'm sorry, love. If I could get you home on time another way, I would," he says.
"I know," I say. I kiss his cheek then take off running when the engine reaches us. Getting on the train is easier the second time around. After I catch my breath I slide down the wall opposite the open door and sit next to Tobias.
"Do you believe what he said?" he asks. I take his hand in mine and study the lines and callouses on his palm and fingertips.
"I don't know," I finally say. "He didn't really tell us much. We already knew Molly was working with someone from Dauntless, although it was horrifying to hear that she might target more of our friends and our family. We have to warn everyone. I couldn't live with myself if anything happened to someone I love because of me."
"It wouldn't be our fault," he says. "It would be Molly's."
"Let's just pick her up and drag her ass to Candor and interrogate her," I say. "I want to know who's helping her, and I want to know now." He drapes his arm across my shoulder and pulls me toward him then runs his fingers through my hair.
"We'll figure all this out. I promise but you know that we don't have anything concrete to accuse her of and after Marcus being able to lie under truth serum, we can't go to Jack Kang without corroborating evidence."
"I know you're right. I'm just stressed," I say, staring out the train door at the passing scenery. "Who do you think the bitch is meeting with? That's something else we need to keep tabs on."
"I have to say, I thought he was going to describe my father there for a minute," he says.
"I did, too," I say.
"It would make sense," he says. "I always wondered how she knew my name. If he has something to do with setting her loose on us, I don't know what I'll do, Tris. I can't take much more from him."
"I don't know what I would do either," I say. "He already tried to take me away from you forever. If he's behind her antics, he's trying to break us up. Am I really that horrible of a daughter-in-law?"
"I know why he doesn't like you very much," he says. "You don't back down from him. If he gets in your face, you stand your ground and give him hell right back. He's not used to that. I love that about you. He doesn't. It undermines his control. It took me meeting you to stand up to my father. He doesn't like me defying his wishes."
"He hasn't been in contact for a while," I say.
"He dropped by my office shortly after Peanut was born wanting to see her but I told him no," he says, watching me out of the corner of his eye. I think he's weary of my reaction.
"You could have told me," I say.
"I didn't want to upset you."
"I don't want him upsetting you, Tobias," I say. "You can always tell me anything. I'm sorry if I come across as bitchy or whiny at times. I don't mean too."
"You bitchy? Never," he says with a twinkle in his eyes.
"You're lucky I don't have PMS, mister, or I might have thrown you from the train."
"I know all about you and hormones," he says. "If we could find a way to bottle them, we would have a weapon of mass destruction."
"I love you, too," I say, rolling my eyes at him. He gently grasps my chin between his thumb and fingers and turns it toward him. He presses his lips to mine and kisses me softly for a time before he coaxes them apart with his tongue then makes love to my mouth. "Mmm."
"God, I love you," he says, his lips still on mine. I glance toward the door and see that we're close to Dauntless.
"I love you, Tobias Eaton," I say. "We better get ready to jump. We're near the compound." He gets up then pulls me to my feet then immediately lifts me up into his arms.
"Ready to see our daughter, Mrs. Eaton?" I nod. I know I saw her just a short time ago but I miss her so much. He gives me a quick peck on the mouth then tightens his grip on me as he takes a couple steps back. "Let's get home, love."