Chapter 7 - Big Wheels Keep On Turning

Eric

There is silence around the table after Kat finishes telling us her story but inside my head is a cacophony of noise.

I'm not sure what to think or feel about what she just told me because I feel so much all at once that it's hard to break it all down. My reaching for her hand happened without any thought and before I could take it back her hand seemed to fuse to mine. I just hadn't been able to take sitting there beside her and watching her reliving that nightmare. And I could just tell that was exactly what was going on. It wasn't just her telling the memory to us but in her head, she was reliving it.

Seeing that scar so close to her heart is leaving me trembling with the need to strip her bare and make sure myself that she's fine. That some screw up of a patrolman didn't take her from me. Or maybe it's just a primal need in me that will only be sated by physically taking her and making her mine.

I settle for tightening the hold I have on her hand and internally breath another sigh of relief that she still hasn't pulled her hand back yet. In fact, she just smiles at me and gives me a gentle squeeze back.

No, it isn't something I would ever have done before and I'm not sure when it comes down to it how I really feel about it when all is said and done, but for now it felt...right. So I reached out. But isn't that what she's doing by sharing this with us right now?

Maybe she's needing the gesture just as much as I do to ground me again, but for her, it was for reassurance, because she takes a deep breath before breaking the silence.

"It serves a reminder to me of many things, but one of them is that I'm stronger than I look. That when it came down to it, a little girl from Abnegation survived something that by all accounts I shouldn't have. I have to think there was a reason for that, something bigger at work. This is why I said I was probably making it sound worse than it was. I lived when it could have gone so differently. This scar reminds me that pain can be overcome and that I can handle more than I would have thought before."

"After being released my parents were granted permission from the faction elders to allow me to take the harder pain medications if I needed, but I refused them. At first, the only reason for this was out of fear. I was afraid of being out of control of my body and taking anything that caused that was out of the question for me. When I was still in the hospital the nurses kept pushing meds through the IV for me no matter how much I objected. I guess they thought it was the Abnegation in me but honestly, it was just the fact that I couldn't stand what they made me feel like. Unfocused and out of control. Unaware of what might be going on around me and unable to help if something were to happen. To me, that was and is far more painful than the actual pain itself."

Amid the pride I felt in her as she described taking something traumatic and damaging and turning it into strength and what fuels her, I also had a growing concern at the things she was hinting at but not outright saying. It wasn't lost on me that she said there were many reasons she won't take pain medications.

As soon as she started to speak again I absently let my thumb move in circles on the top of her hand. By the end, and even though I was pretty sure what the answer is going to be, I finally had to speak up. I needed her to say the words and I have a very strong feeling she needs to say them out loud just as much.

I just hope I can hold my shit together when she does.

"What was the other reason you refused the pain medications, Kat." I'm pretty sure there is a menacing edge to the words because I can't hold in all the rage I'm feeling at even having to ask this question.

This shit never should have happened to her but what else is new when it comes to factionless and Abnegation? I was trying not to let my own prejudice against both of those parties interfere in me trying to find out more about Kat and her life, what drives her, but I can't help it.

Not when that hits so fucking close to home for me and especially when I can see the weight of guilt she is carrying that she shouldn't. Where were the people in her life to help her through all of this? Like those parents she speaks so fondly of.

Do they know what she's doing to herself?

"Punishment." The words I expected come and with them a completely unexpected feeling inside of me. "It was my punishment for not being more aware. For allowing it to happen and finally for changing the course of our cities path because of one foolish and careless action."

That emotion I wasn't expecting makes me choke a little on the words of objection I try to get out and I'm thankful that Zach and Chase trying to speak up at the same time mask mine, mask the pain that rips through me at the thought of this girl going through life constantly punishing herself like she is.

She shakes her head and holds up her free hand to stop us from objecting. There is a new look in her eyes as her chin raises just a little bit. The defeat, guilt, and pain is still there in her eyes but so is something else.

Defiance and fight.

"You can try and tell me it wasn't my fault, and yes, logically I know it wasn't entirely my fault. But there is still blame that I can and will take responsibility for. I knew better and still broke the rules, plain and simple. And even though I was barely ten years old, I knew enough by working with the factionless to know there was a real danger from them. I ignored that and because of that, it gave those that wanted that vote to go their way an opportunity to exploit. They manipulated the situation and used a man's desire to protect his children, and children like me, from being caught in the crossfire again. So trust me, I know full well that there are others that have much more of the blame than I do. But that doesn't help me when I can still clearly see, in my mind, my father that day I woke up in the hospital bed with him sitting beside me. He didn't say a word of blame to me but I saw how disappointed he was. I saw how worried and heavy the decision weighed on him. I also saw that every time I winced in pain or the nurses had to change my bandage, he became firmer in his resolve."

"Does he regret it, his decision? Did you ever talk to him about all of this?" There is no malice in my tone, just honest curiosity.

The conflict in me is raging and I know it isn't going to quiet easily. There are questions that are begging to be answered but the only way to do that is to get as much information as I can, then take the time to think about this shit.

My instincts are telling me that this is all genuine. That her story, the emotions she's showing us, it's all true.

But it all seems….too coincidental.

How close in tone her story is when compared to the three of us sitting around the table. Paranoia and wariness for anyone from her old faction are ingrained deep within me. but I want it to be true.

As fucked up as that sounds, I do.

Maybe it is true, or the truth as she sees it. Can it be that what she believes is actually the skewed view of a young girl warped by her parents and faction?

It is possible, but once again my instincts are telling me that isn't Kat. She doesn't seem the type to blindly follow along with something without questioning the hell out of it. Even if that was questioning her parents.

"I think he found a way to live in peace with that decision." She answers with a tilt of her head. "He would be the first to admit he is a flawed man that tries to make the best choices he can in life and for his faction. I think that at the time he felt with every fiber of his being that it was the right decision. Not just for us but for the faction and the factionless. I once had this long discussion with him when I was younger about what our faction does for the city. It was after a bad day at school and being taunted for the millionth time and I was just done with everything. I asked why was it okay for us to have to work so hard for people that didn't want to even try and work for themselves?" She paused and gave a wry smile without really looking at any of us before she continued on.

"I was being a complete brat and he was so patient with me, so understanding. He said that there are cases of factionless that won't try and help themselves but that could be found even with people still in factions. Laziness and entitlement is a universal trait and isn't reserved for those less fortunate. Abnegation wasn't formed for those people though. The founders formed the faction to serve in the roles that others couldn't or wouldn't. To serve the city with the knowledge that they would never be thanked and mostly taken for granted, but would still do it with just as much commitment as any other faction. He also pointed out that Abnegation isn't the only faction that has roles in our city that are looked down upon by the other factions but without what Dauntless, Abnegation or Amity do, where would our city be?"

She sighs and shrugs then looks back at me. "So, he might have regrets now but if he does then I'm sure he does what he's always tried to teach me to do. Own my mistakes and learn from them but don't let it hold me back from trying to always reach for a better tomorrow. To start each day as a new opportunity to do better than I did the day before."

For the first time since I took her hand in mine, she pulled hers away. She reached out for her cup of coffee and used both of her hands to hold it then got a faraway look in her eyes as if she was caught up in personal reflections.

Zach, seeing this offered to refresh our cups of coffee and did the job of redirecting the conversation away from all the heaviness. He coaxed her to take a bit more food and we all relaxed back into eating and talking, but not about anything serious.

It didn't escape my notice or pleasure that even though she moved her hand from mine on her knee, mine remained in place there and she didn't object one bit. Just touching her calmed my anger but it didn't stop the wheels in my mind from spinning.

There's so much that I was trying to process and decipher from what she told me but one thing was for sure. For too long those wheels in my mind have been stuck at one line of thinking.

That isn't how I was brought up to be. They taught me to question everything and get my own answers but at some point, I stopped and just started taking my orders as facts.

That stops now.

"So, is there anything you didn't train in?" Zach asks while laughing.

The conversation became much more pleasant as we finished up eating at a leisurely pace. It drifted to her training this morning after Chase asked how it had gone. I threw out there how she took me down and from there it spiraled into them asking her for that story. She had them in fits of laughter afterward.

After some prodding by Chase, she started to give us a list of things she has or tried to teach herself over the years. It was fairly long.

Kat blushes red in embarrassment. "Of course there is!" She exclaims and throws her hands up into the air to emphasize the point. "That list is mostly things I learned about in books but haven't actually gotten to practice. The rest was me adapting or coming up with it and while I did get to try out some things with my friends, that was more goofing off than anything since none of them had any more idea if it would or wouldn't work than I did. The biggest things I couldn't train in has been weapons."

She pauses as if catching herself in a lie and smiles sheepishly while looking at my raised eyebrow before continuing on. "Okay, so I was able to find and work with a few weapons. Throwing knives were mainly what I worked with. Not only the ones that Lynn would bring with her for us to practice with but years ago I came by a few of them myself. Then there was when I was able to meet up with a few of my school mates that are from Amity. They were able to show me how to use an old school bow and arrow and then they showed me how to make one myself along with the arrows. That was more just for something to do. I don't expect it to be a real skill that I'm going to need here."

I shrug after sipping my coffee and swallowing, wondering why it was so fucking arousing listening to her talk about this shit. "I wouldn't say the bow and arrow part is something you're going to encounter, but learning to use it hits on the learning to aim and accuracy portion and that will definitely be a skill here."

Chase agrees with me with a nod of his head and adding his two cents, but with more excitement in his tone than my dry delivery. "And that's a skill that will constantly be practiced on even past your initiation. There's always some kind of training going on here but it's mostly self-driven. We expect our soldiers to keep on top of it themselves even when just working a compound job that doesn't have that in its duty description. You're already setting good habits for yourself."

"My friends said the same thing. Although Lynn was always bitching about dependents not being able to attend some of the training exercises that happen a few times a year. When I told her about being able to sneak into Amity and learning a few things there, she got jealous and mentioned that she wished Dauntless would hold the survival camps they used to have for dependents."

"Oh yeah," Zach says with a smile. "I think I've had a few people put in complaints about that over the years but it was cut out years before I even became a member."

"Why is that?"

"Why does anything around here get cut out or stopped?" I answer with a sneer of disgust on my lips. "Because we are told it isn't necessary and we don't have enough resources to be used on anything deemed unnecessary."

"Or maybe they just didn't want people running around Dauntless with bows and arrows after learning how to make them." Chase supplies lamely, trying to turn the mood back around before it takes a nosedive. "I could just see someone coming up with the brilliant idea to create their own version of the hunger games."

Kat loses it in laughter, all of us chuckling with her, before calming down and batting her eyes at Chase, a smirk on her lips. "Are you insinuating that because I share her name, that I would be the genius behind that ploy?"

He shrugs back, grinning. "I'm saying that from what you and your friends have shown so far, I wouldn't rule it out from the four of you."

She pretended to pout at this but ended up failing and laughing. What was interesting to watch was that there was something going on behind her eyes in the background. Like I could almost see the wheels in her mind turning over something she was considering and it made me wonder what the hell that could be and if I needed to worry that she just might try and start the hunger games in Dauntless.

She puts her cup down with her head tilted. "But seriously, bows aren't such a bad weapon to have handy if you think about it. With the right material and composition, maybe made out of a lightweight metal or something like that, it could be a serious weapon. The range could be amazing, and ease of use as well as transport could be tweaked and customized for each person. Depending on what kind of equipment is on site here, we might not even need to have it contracted to Erudite to be made. Which would be cost effective in the extreme. Then don't even get me started on the possibilities when it comes to the arrows! An arrow tip with some kind of explosive or incendiary." She stops and a small shudder runs down her back making her shake a little.

I shift uncomfortably and chuckle, deciding I've had enough torture for the morning. "Why don't' we save that little brainstorming session for another time. It's about time to head to the training room."

I'm already standing to gather the dishes as I say this. Chase helps me, keeping with the normal routine after Zach makes us all breakfast, while he himself goes over to the living room area with Kat.

They start to talk about the books while looking over the shelves and we set to getting the dishes and kitchen cleaned up.

"So how did that end up happening?" Chase asks and indicates to where Kat is with his head.

I shrug as I scrape plates then hand them to him to rinse and put in the dishwasher. "She needed breakfast and if I hadn't insisted she probably would have just kept training."

I can see him nodding slowly and with a small smirk on his lips. Then he turns and faces me fully. "Eric," He says my name in a quiet, serious tone. "Just be careful with her. I can already tell you there are going to be at least a few of the transfers that are going to be gunning for her and her sister because they will see them as easy targets to ensure their spots. Any excuse will be good enough for them but if they get wind that there might be some kind of special treatment going on they will use it to make her life hell in any ways that they can."

I scowl at the plate I'm scrubbing, taking out my anger and frustration on it instead of my friend. He's just speaking what we both know is true and something that has always bothered him even before cuts were a thing.

Truthfully, in the past, it didn't bother me as much as it did him. I just kind of accepted that this is how our faction is and stuck to worrying about the bigger problems we have. Now though, I see how just how bad it could be and it pisses me off that this is what Kat's going to face. It also pisses me off that even if I'm a leader, my hands are still tied when it comes to changing certain things.

I brush that aside for now and answer him. "I'm just making sure she reaches her full potential here, and that's not against the rules. There is a precedent for it in the past." He shoots me a dubious look but doesn't voice an objection. "Besides," I follow it up with the second justification I have in waiting, even if it gets stuck in my throat before I finally get it out. "I already have orders."

I don't even get to finish telling him what those orders are before his eyes turn icy and he reaches out to grip the counter edge tightly, his knuckles turning white. "What kind of orders, Eric?"

I sigh and lean against the opposite counter then shrug. "Just to watch both the sisters for now. But I'm sure they don't want her, just her sister."

That's a lie. I have no clue which sister it is that had Jeanine so freaking excited she was actually emoting for once.

Chase snorts in disbelief and shakes his head at me. "Come on, Eric." He admonishes me quietly. "You really think they are going to take one sister and not the other?" He stops and looks down, frowning deeply. "Maybe it would be better to back off completely."

I know what he isn't saying but he's thinking just like I am. What I've been thinking since it all connected for me yesterday. That getting close to her, only to have to turn her over in the end, would be too dangerous and would only hurt us. He's also not saying that it wouldn't just be hurtful for us.

And he's completely fucking right, he just doesn't suspect what I do and have from the second she got here. Even if it turns out she isn't what I suspect she is, Jeanine isn't going to just let her walk free and clear. Not with how goddamn obsessed she is with anything and everything Prior and Eaton.

That was what had her salivating on that phone call with me and she will use any and every excuse possible to get her hands on her obsession.

Chase has already turned away, wiping down counters with a grim expression. I turn to finish the dishes and try to push down the rage but it's a losing battle. I slam the dishwasher closed after putting the last dish in and spin around to lean against a wall further into the kitchen where I can't be seen from the living room.

The questions and arguments are being waged in my mind again. Wondering what I'm going to do about this. The answer should be so fucking simple and before Kat crashed to the roof and my life, it was fucking simple.

I knew my duty and my role and I followed that through, no questions asked. But she did fall to that roof and as soon as she did, I woke up.

The dead husk of a man that I was before would have stepped aside and allowed it to happen but not now.

But this is a big fucking decision and with no small amount of risk.

I need time to think and plan. I should take that time and stay away from her, but I know even before I hear her laughter coming from the living room that isn't happening. I'm not going to be able to stay away. Just the sound of her in my apartment feels too right to put it to an end. But I know that for today at least, it does need to. We need to set out for the day.

The first day on the path to making sure Kat's here for good.

It didn't take all too long before I'm walking out of my apartment with Kat by my side. Chase and Zach already split off from us as soon as the door closed behind us. Now it's just me and her and I can't understand how something as simple as walking with her is already testing my willpower. At least I have enough to not put my hands on her like I did earlier on the way here. I got away with that because it was still early as hell and there weren't many people around. But now there are way too many people and being together is going to raise questions as it is.

I'm scowling hard and lost in thought, distracted enough that I don't notice how Kat drops back away from me at first. It doesn't take long for it to register and I whip my head around with a scowl to find her, then relax to see her still close but walking a bit behind me. Seeing her there sets me at ease but I can't relax when I see how off she looks right now. Something is up with her.

She looks, stiff and way too formal to be the same girl that was just laughing and joking with me inside my apartment. Her back is ramrod straight but her chin is lowered and the expression on her face can only be described as that of a kid in serious trouble and not being happy about it. She sees me studying her over my shoulder and looks around a little bit before the troubling expression falls from her face and she smiles and winks at me so quickly I would have missed it by blinking. Then she's right back to the way she was.

It hits me that this is an act. Kat instinctively knew that we needed to keep this under wraps and took it on herself to make sure us being seen together would look like she is in trouble for something.

I should be happy about that or at least pleased that I don't need to tell her our….association...needs to be kept a secret for now. I should be relieved that I don't have to worry about her getting all up in her feelings and being hurt that I can't act in public like I do in private. That would have been a nightmare that I wouldn't know how to handle at all.

I should feel all of that, but instead, something in me balks at it.

I don't like it. Not one fucking bit.

I hate that it makes me feel like she's ashamed to be seen with me even though I know that isn't the case.

I hate that she is walking behind me, cowing to anyone in the slightest, even if I know that it's an act.

I look around and spot one of the dark passageways that sees very little use and head there, stopping just inside to wait for her. There is enough light to just see by and I watch her squinting as she enters behind me then stops when she sees I'm standing there waiting.

"Is something wrong?" She asks softly while coming closer.

"I'm going to ask you something, but I don't want you to get upset. Just answer me honestly. Alright?"

She nods but then answers me slowly. "Okay."

"Are you ashamed to be seen with me?" I snip the words out and grit my teeth.

She inhales in shock and frowns at me then shakes her head, leaning in closer. "No. I thought….I thought you wouldn't want to be seen with...well, with the stiff."

I narrow my eyes and breath through my nostrils. "You're not a stiff though."

"You may not see me that way but everyone else will."

"I don't give a shit what anyone else sees or thinks." I retort just as firmly as she did to me, then take a calming breath as I see her looking down with a frown. I reach out a hand and use a finger to lift her chin, smiling wanly at her. "I get what you were trying to do, Kat. It's probably the smart thing to do but that doesn't make it the right thing to do."

"What do you mean?" Her forehead crinkles a little along with her nose scrunching up.

Fuck. What do I mean?

I know what I want, but how do I tell her that without sounding like an idiot?

"You shouldn't be made to walk behind anyone, Kat. You're Dauntless and don't bow down just because someone has a title. Show how strong you are by keeping that back straight and chin up."

"I don't want to come off as being disrespectful or arrogant, Sir."

"So don't get all mouthy or start arguing," I reply with a smirk and move my finger to tap the tip of her nose playfully. "Got it?"

She giggles softly and nods. "Yes, sir."

"Good girl," I reply, the words coming before I can stop them. I bite my lower lip a little and look behind her to the hallway and motion her to start walking again. "Let's get going again but remember, your place is at my side."

She looks up at me when I step closer to move to the hallway again, a curious expression on her face before she moves in sync with me. As we walk she keeps pace with me, our strides matching each other even with the height difference.

I watch her from the corner of my eye and see that she's following my instructions perfectly but added her own touches. Her back is ramrod straight and her chin is lifted, but her arms are behind her back and clasped together. Her lips are pursed together tightly and in a recalcitrant expression, and her lashes are lowered so that it looks like she is looking down.

She looks for all the world like a student headed for the principal's office who isn't a bit sorry they got caught out and I realize that it's kind of fucking perfect. It meets her need to make sure she is being respectful enough but not like she's a teacher's pet. Better yet, it meets my need to have her by my side.

Anyone passing would look at the scowl and the way my chest is puffing out and think that the new initiate just seriously fucked up and pissed me off. They won't and can't know that what I'm really feeling is desire, pride and the seed of longing that is growing way too quickly for the day when I can have her by my side openly.

Weapons are first up for the day. This is us easing the transfers into things around here.

I look forward to working with weapons in general and I've always found it slightly amusing to see the transfers bumble their way through the experience of holding guns for the first time. Today I genuinely look forward to it with anticipation rather than a dull amusement.

At breakfast, Kat had literally bounced in her seat when she found out that's what we would be doing today. Her energy levels shot up and she was practically buzzing with excitement and impatience to get started. That was before we even finished breakfast and I looked forward to seeing what would happen when she got the damn thing in her hands.

I'm not disappointed when it happens.

Pleasure, respect and barely contained excitement glitters behind her expressive eyes after Four shoves the gun into her hands when he gets to her in line. She stands beside her sister on the roof where we have a set up of targets for the higher power weapons, like the rifles being used today.

The sun is shining brightly overhead and the wind whips around us, making it necessary at times for Four to raise his voice so he can be heard. I watch Kat and her sister as he drones on loudly about the importance of proper gun maintenance and our expectations regarding being able to use our weapons.

The differences between the two girls as they hold their first weapon are too obvious for anyone to miss.

Kat is easier to read than her sister but even I can see how uncomfortable she is with the rifle. If I had to guess, by the way Tris bites her lip and hefts the weight of it, she is trying to justify its use against the years of conditioning against it from her previous life.

Meanwhile, Kat has an open look of eagerness paired with measured caution. Knowing Kat the little that I do it's like I know that right now the wheels in her mind are already spinning as she shoulders her weapon and moves to the targets on Four's order.

The others scramble to do the same and I begin my own walk down the line as they each begin attempting to fire and hit the paper targets they have each been assigned. I keep near her area, so I see that she's taking forever to do anything. To one side of Kat is her sister while the dickhead Peter took the spot on the other side. Those two are already firing while Kat is raising her weapon, sighting it, then lowering it again slowly.

I know she isn't afraid of the gun but I can't for the life of me figure out what she's doing.

"Is there a problem over here, initiate?" I ask her dryly but with a hint of that same tone from earlier in the training room.

Anyone listening in will probably hear menace behind that and the words but I know by the flash in her eyes that Kat's recognizes the difference in my tone and expression as I speak to her.

She shakes her head and looks over her shoulder at me. "Sir, no sir." She replies full of respect and I see a few heads turn towards us before snapping back at my glare for them. "I'm just trying to adjust the gun and the stance we were shown to one that will work better for my weight and height. Then I was trying to do a few muscle memory exercises to get my body used to that position."

A small smirk crosses my lips and I nod approvingly with a grunt. She takes that as a signal to continue and raises her rifle again while I watch closely and with narrowed eyes.

It looks good until I notice that she has it cradled too high. I step forward, wrap my arms around her and the gun and then bring it down more into her shoulder, away from the collarbone.

"It'll come back hard on the recoil and the collarbone would take the brunt of the force. Try to make sure to secure it into the crook of your shoulder with as little contact to the collarbone as possible." My words come out gruffly after I feel jolts once her skin came into contact with mine. I try to make up for that with being formal in their wording, hoping the rush of desire I'm feeling doesn't show through.

I let my arms drop back reluctantly. I would have liked to have kept my arms there while she took her first shot but I knew she wouldn't have appreciated it no matter how it would have looked. Her first shot will be done on her own but I can at least stay close and soak in this experience with her.

I loom behind her, the edges of my open vest grazing against her back I am so close. I can feel eyes burning into me and a smirk crosses my lips, knowing that Four is the source as he glares at the two of us.

"Now fire," I hiss in her ear as I lean in closer. I'm not afraid that I'll throw her off, somehow I know that my presence will push her instead of unsettling her.

"Yes, sir," She replies then sights her target, takes a slow deep breath and releases just as slowly while squeezing the trigger.

Her shot lands two inches to the left of the center target. A damn good first shot so it takes me by surprise when I hear a muttered curse and look at her profile to see her lips thinned in anger and her scowling down at the target.

It makes me want to laugh at how angry she is at herself for not getting the bullseye. I watch her as she makes adjustments and continues to berate herself under her breath, holding in my need to reassure her it was a damn good shot and that not even I got the bullseye right out of the gate. My silence and her own recriminations serve to drive her to do better and I can't fault her for that.

It takes the smallest of changes that she makes after each shot but by the sixth shot, she reached the center of the target and just centimeters shy of the bullseye.

She might not be pleased as hell with that but I am and I momentarily forget myself as I let my hand drop to the small of her back to show my approval. She stiffens just slightly but it's enough to make me realize what I did and pull my hand away quickly.

"Nice shot." I drawl as I move away and down the line again.

I bark orders as I go but keep an eye on her station and hear when Peter can't resist taking the opportunity to taunt her now that I'm not there.

"Looks like the stiff has decided to use that pathetic excuse of a body to get her way." He drawls with a nasty smirk on his face.

Just the sound of his voice is like nails on a chalkboard to me but the words set my anger and nerves on a fine edge.

Kat doesn't respond or even act like she heard them. She glances at his target and lets her eyes linger for a long pointed minute before her eyes move slowly back to her own. A smirk tilts her lips as she raises her gun and begins to do an advanced tactic of rapid-fire without using the actual rapid fire setting on the gun. She fires as quickly as she possibly can, shot after shot with minimal pausing in between, just enough to make sure her aim and stance are being maintained.

Her shots continue to hit in the center of the target area and her smile starts to grow as she fires. And I don't even try to stop the amused smirk from crossing mine. She didn't respond verbally but she was responding in an even more effective manner.

Peter called her skill into question and her response was to use that skill to prove his words as lies. For a Candor, that is the worst rebuff she could have given.

Watching the exchange does lessen the smirk on my face when I recall Chase's words. I know that as training goes on and the more Kat proves she isn't nearly as weak as they all think she is, that the danger is just going to increase.

I know I'm going to need to keep a close eye on him and have a plan ready to make sure he keeps in line. For now, I keep my distance for the remainder of the morning and count down the minutes until lunch.

As the group breaks for lunch, I motion my head for her to stay behind.

Plans for Peter can wait. I have more pressing plans to see to.