A/N - Fair warning, this chapter contains adult themes. You know the drill.

I'd seen my brother in fights before, I'd seen him also fight back against Marcus on more than one occasion but I'd never been witness to Eric in a fight, I've heard stories, sure. But nothing could prepare me for what was currently going down between Eric and Four, after the first hit was released, the next by my brother then Eric literally picked him up like a sack of potatoes and threw him to the ground and the rest was history.

I'd called out for help from my spot on the exam table and Thomas came barreling into the room after hearing the commotion, he locked eyes with me as if to say 'What I'm the actual fuck is going on' when I had no words he disappeared, presumably to make a call for help because there was no way Thomas was getting in the middle since he wasn't as big as the other two so there was no way he'd have a chance at stopping it.

"Eric. Toby. Enough. Stop." I yell out as I remove the blanket from around me as I get up from the table, I feel a little light headed and it takes me a couple seconds to adjust, panic sets in as they're both bleeding but I can see who is worse off. My brother is struggling against Eric as he tries throwing him aside but it merely jostles him. All of a sudden the room is bursting at the seems with people as they scramble to unlock the two, Eric currently had Four in a headlock under his arm as Four kept elbowing backwards in the ribs.

They're finally separated, Harrison Jeremy and a couple others were hauling Eric away from him with a few nameless faces pulling Four up to his feet. Just when I think it's finally over Four spits a glob of blood into Eric's face and it takes everything in the men around him to hold him back.

"Get him the fuck out of here." Harrison yells out to the men pulling my brother towards the door, I don't miss Four's look of disapproval in my direction as he gets pulled from the room and the door swings closed with a loud thud. I let out an audible sigh and run a hand through my damp hair in frustration, I turn and look to Eric who was being made to sit as Harrison comes over to me with a worried expression. "You okay?".

I wasn't but I nod anyway as he pats a hand on my shoulder, I turn to Eric and the sight makes my stomach twist. He has multiple welts on his face, along with a scratch here and there but what stands out the most is his knuckles. Bruised and covered in my brother's blood and I'm conflicted. Of course I care about Four, he is my brother and I don't exactly know their history but I know that they have never gotten along but I'm also mad. "I'll be right back." I tell him and Eric just waves me off before I make my way out to the hall to a pacing Four, looking furious as ever.

"What the hell was that?" I ask him as I bite at the inside of my cheek, he stops and runs his hands through his short hair in what looks like frustration.

"You shouldn't be around him, he's dangerous, Allie."

"That's not for you to decide Toby." I want to fold, everything in me is telling me to back down and just accept what he's telling me but I can't. Not now.

"I left it for you to decide and look what happened, every time you're here and every time you're around him bad things happen."

"None of what has happened to me had anything to do with him, I knew the risks coming here and it's not like I had a choice."

I watch as he begins pacing before he stops and steps close to me with his hands on my shoulders, his green eyes boring into mine. "You could have said no, you could have persisted. I'm placing a request to have you sent back to Erudite." He says the last part as he takes a step back, his mind already decided.

I shake my head angrily, "No you won't, and I'm begging you not to. After all these years of not seeing you or hearing from you, you don't get to decide what I can and can't do and the company I keep is none of your business."

"Yeah well Eric.." he pauses as he looks towards the door I just walked out of as he contemplates his next words, "-you're too young and too good for him, look what he's capable of. Maybe he isn't the best company to keep."

The anger I feel is white hot as it runs through my veins, before I can say anything though Tris is running down the hallway, "Four!". He looks over and is immediately enveloped by her as her worried hands wander over the bruises on his face.

I take the opportunity to take my leave and I head back towards the infirmary, not before Four calls my name and he has the audacity to grip my forearm to stop me from leaving. "You're making a big mistake".

"No," I shake my head at him before pulling my arm free from his hold, "For once in my life, I'm making the right one." With that, I give him one last look before turning on my heel as I leave him in the hallway with Tris, if anyone can talk sense into him, it'll be her although I doubt she'd be on my side with this but I don't care enough to stick around.

A half hour later I find myself back in Eric's apartment, the last place I thought I'd be. He refused to let Thomas look at him, he insisted he was fine and apart from the bruises and small cuts, he did look fine so no one fought him on it but I insisted to at least let me help clean him up but he let me shower first which I was grateful for. The chill in my body had dissipated, all my clothes were still at Christina's so I was left with what he had leant me which consisted of a pair of boxers and a plain black shirt that he loaned me which made me feel like I was swimming in it. But at least it was better than my damp clothing.

After my shower I had filled up the sink with warm soapy water and although Eric refused profusely that he was fine, I was having none of it. He was now sitting on the edge of the giant bathtub while I soaked a clothe in the water.

"I told you, it's not necessary." He tells me roughly and I have the urge to sigh at him so I just ignore him as I walk to him with the rag and pick up his hand and softly dab the cloth on his knuckles, he doesn't move or make a noise as I stand in front of him. I marvel at the size of his hand in mine, his hands look strong and powerful against my bony fingers.

"Why'd you do it?" When he stays silent, I look up at him and his eyebrows are pulled together like he's thinking about my question. "Why did you hit him?".

His shoulders square off with me and then he lets out a sigh, "It's not the first time he's come at me about you and it pissed me off."

I pause as I stare at him wide eyed, I should have known. "It's not?" When he shakes his head, this time I can't help the sigh from escaping. Once I'm finished with the first hand, I pick up the other.

"He's right." I can feel his eyes boring straight into the top of my head as I focus on his left hand, "I am dangerous. I should be telling you to run, go back Erudite. Live out your life, away from all this."

"Why don't you?" I look up and I'm taken back by the intense look he's giving me, I find myself holding my breath as I wait for him to answer, my heart pounding away inside my rib cage.

"I can't." He says after a beat too long, I take a moment to go back to the sink and rinse off the cloth before coming back to him. I swallow my nerves as I get close to him, standing between his parted legs. By this point, my stomach is twisting and turning, doing somersaults. Being this close to him again has hit me hard, more than I thought it would.

He stays silent as I use the cloth and dab and wipe off any excess blood, he doesn't even flinch when I get too close to the big welt on his cheek. He's eyeing me off, waiting for me to respond. I pause when both his hands grab my wrists, coaxing me forward as I bite my lip. I stare back into his steel grays, "Then don't", my voice is quiet in the expansive bathroom.

I'm pulled forward even more when he moves my hands to his shoulders, his own hands moving around me to pull my bare legs over his lap so I'm sitting on him on the edge of the bathtub. My breath is coming out ragged and uneven like this is the first time being this close to him, especially when his arms tighten around my waist as I'm pulled right against his chest.

All of a sudden his mouth is on mine and I'm immediately dragged back in, all hesitation completely vanishing as i move my mouth against his. His tongue vying for entry into my mouth and I let it, the feeling is euphoric as he fights for room in my mouth.

I circle my arms around his shoulders and he stands abruptly, his strong arms holding me up and against him as he walks me back through to his room, he only breaks the kiss when he drops me onto the bed and he pulls his shirt up and over his head.

All I can do is stare at him and follow every curve and dip of the defined muscles on his abdomen, committing each line to memory. He's over me in a matter of seconds, his hands pushing my thighs apart to make room for him. My hands find his hair and he seems more than okay with this as he not too gently moves his mouth back mine in a more heated passionate kiss and I'm swept into oblivion when his pant covered hips roll against right where I want him and I surprise myself when a moan escapes me into his mouth.

His hands move up my sides, taking my shirt with them and it's gone quicker than I put it on. He leans down, moving his skilled mouth from my lips down over my jaw and down over my collar bone until he's right where he wants to be. A shaky whimper slips out as his mouth takes in my left nipple, his tongue swirling over the soft tissue causing a shudder to run through me. The heat burning hot between my legs, I can see him smirking against my breast especially when his eyes look up to meet mine.

He releases that nipple and moves his mouth over my sternum, placing soft kisses there till he reaches the other nipple and my eyes slide shut when he continues that assault on the other breast and my hips involuntarily lift off the mattress to meet his.

He's deliberately taking his time as he works his mouth around the sensitive skin, my hands gripping into his hair which was slightly longer than the last time I'd seen him. After a while, I grow impatient and pull his head back up to catch his bottom lip between my teeth which earns me a low guttural growl from him, a sound which makes my toes curl and a shiver to course up and down my spine.

He then slams his mouth onto my own, much more hungry and needy than before. As our mouths work together, his hands are pulling my shorts down. I had nothing on under them as my underwear was soaked from the river, it gives him direct access as his hand moves up my thigh. Leaving static in its wake as moves it right where I want it, my back arching off the covers on his bed at the wanted feeling. He moves them skilfully inside me and I break off the contact of our lips to look up at him and I'm witness to a pleased and smug smirk curling his lips up, I would roll my eyes but my focus is on him and what he's doing.

I move my hands to his belt the best I can but it's hard from this angle, I get frustrated and push him from me which takes him completely by surprise. I don't waste any time as I unfasten the buckle and his pants, along with the remainder of his clothes and once they're thrown from the bed he leans up and pulls me atop of him with his hands firmly planted on my ass with my knees on the mattress on either side of him.

He moves my hair out of my face and over my shoulder before moving it back to my behind, "Are you sure you want to do this?" He asks lowly.

"Shut up!" He smirks at my response, I'm already positioned over him and all it takes is a swift movement of his hips and his hands pulling me down for me to be impaled on his length, the movement causing me to moan out loudly.

My hands shake as they find strength to grip his shoulders, he doesn't wait for me to adjust to the assault, he only moves me up to bring me straight back down, my nails drawing blood from where they're gripped at his skin.

It takes him a few more times of bringing me town to him before I start moving with him and he moves his head forward to my shoulder where he nips and bites down on the skin, I can feel myself already growing hot and tight around him as I rest the side of my head against him, breathing in his scent.

The pace is set quick and first but that isn't enough for him, he flips us over so fast that I don't get time to think as he pulls my legs up high around his waist as he hovers over me as his hips push me hard into the mattress as he holds my gaze.

"Eric," I moan loudly as his hips meet mine with such force that the bed hits the wall and a sheen of sweat breaks out over his body, continuing his quick and hard pace. It's now obvious that he missed me just as much as I missed him, as he continues burying himself inside me my eyes slide shut at just how good it felt.

He suddenly brings one of my legs up higher, almost to his shoulder and his thrusts only grow more intense. The new angle hitting me in just the right spot and he knows I'm not far off, "Look at me" he demands and as soon as I make eye contact my whole world explodes around him with a deep exhale of air but he doesn't stop. It only spurs him on, he leans down to capture my lips with my leg which was currently somewhere in the air and is pushed down with him only driving him to the hilt and I'm swirling into oblivion. His thrusts only grow more fierce along with his moaning into my mouth, I hold his face in my hands and he eventually shudders and shakes as he reaches his climax which only sends me over the edge again as he finds his release.

When he's finally done, he rolls onto his back and I'm left panting and aching all over. He pulls me into his side and I rest my head against his shoulder, I'm so spent and tired that as soon as I shut my eyes, everything starts to fade and I quite literally pass out from exhaustion.

I awaken with a fright when a loud bang echoes through the apartment and into the bedroom, I sit up in bed confused at my current surroundings until the memories from earlier come flooding back and my cheeks instantly heat up. Eric was no longer beside me but I could hear his muffled voice from down the hall.

I slowly got up, my whole body was aching but it was a welcome ache as I grasped the duvet from the bed and wrapped it around my unclothed body and headed out down the hallway. I come to an abrupt stop as I exit the hallway as I come face to face with Jeremy and Nathan standing in front of Eric who was now fully dressed, his hair had been cut and neatly styled to perfection as he laced up his boots.

"There she is!" Jeremy exclaims with a knowing smirk on his face with absolutely no tact at all as he takes in my current state of undress, only making me grip the duvet even tighter around me.

"Um, hi." I say nervously and Eric's head whips around so fast it was almost comical.

He finishes tying up the last boot and stands and Jeremy is still smirking from ear to ear, "No wonder you got pissy when I slammed the door".

Eric ignores him as he strides over to me in a couple big steps as he ushers me back down the hallway with Jeremy trailing behind, "Uh what're you doing?" I look wide eyed and as soon as we're in the room he quite literally slams the door in Jeremy's face and all we can hear is laughter on the other side. Eric stays silent for a moment with his hand still on my bicep as he listens to make sure Jeremy is gone, before he grabs the blanket from my hands and pulls it from me, leaving me in my birthday suit while he is fully clothed.

He looks me up and down like I'm a meal and the burn in my cheeks returns, "As sexy as it is seeing you wrapped in my blanket, I much prefer this". He lifts me with little effort and the squeak catches in my throat as he throws me back on the bed, climbing over me with one of his knees between my legs, the stiffness of his pants rubbing at my thigh. "Good morning, officially" he says lowly as he leans down and captures my lips against his.

I wait till he pulls up and I take in a shakey breath, "Good morning" I chuckle lightly. "How long have I been asleep?".

He gives a light shrug, "A couple hours. I didn't want to wake you, you looked like you needed it."

"I did, thank you." I nod and rest a hand on the side of his face as he curls his arms under my shoulders and I wish in that moment that we could stay like this forever or at least the rest of the day. "Are you heading to the office?".

His eyebrows pull together and he nods, "I've got some work to do, yeah. But, since Max was willing to give you a break till later, I was thinking when I break for lunch you could come with me and I can show you The Hub."

"What's The Hub?" He leans down and places a chaste kiss against my lips before moving his mouth into the juncture of my jaw and I resist the urge to run my fingers through his hair.

"The Hub is the market, vendors from different factions sell stuff for points." He murmurs against my skin as he takes a nip at the skin and I'm suddenly growing warm all over.

"What do they-" I pause briefly when he slickly moves his hand between my thighs and his thumb circles around my exposed clit.

"What was that?" He asks with a knowing smirk.

"What-what do they sell there?" I breathe out. He presses his thumb firmly on the sensitive bud which makes my muscles and body twitch and shake.

"Basically everything", his teeth dig into my neck.

Just as I'm really getting into it there's banging on the door, "Come on Eric, we're going to be late."

Eric let's put a sigh and moves his hand and places a soft kiss to my lips, "I hate to admit it but he's right and I hate being late. I should be back by lunch."

Before he can fully pull away, I pull him back in for one more before letting him go. He pauses at the doorway as I haven't moved yet and there's a dark look in his eye, "Go. Before he comes back and opens the door and decides to join us."

He just smirks and with that he's gone, I wait till I hear the front door close and the apartment is empty before I decide I should probably shower for the second time this morning.

Eric returned promptly at 12pm on the dot, by that time I was able to grab my clothes from Christina's, ignoring the awkward looks I received as I walked the halls wearing a pair of Eric's boxers and shirt.

I'd changed into a flowy white dress that I had picked up in Erudite, I wasn't exactly one for dresses, I was more skirts or pants but I thought I'd go with something a little different and although it was still mostly cold these days, today the sun was shining through the open windows but I'd paired it with a navy blue cardigan. Erudite really took their color choice in clothing to heart so there wasn't much to pick from.

When Eric saw me, his eyes were as big as saucers but he didn't question my choice.

We'd made it to the hub and it was crawling with people, as for the vendors, Eric wasn't wrong when he said you could buy almost anything. Right from vegetables to live chickens, used appliances (where you could even trade in unwanted appliances for points), other food items, furniture and handmade jewelry.

"This place is insane" I tell him as my minds works in overdrive to take everything in, "How often does this happen?".

He places a hand possessively on my lower back as he guides me through the crowd, "Once a month, which is why it's a big deal when it's on."

"Wow, it's amazing." I stop walking when I spot something sparkling in the sunlight, it's nothing flashy but it's a freshly polished silver bracelet with a horse charm hanging off of it but this horse was different. I look up to the old Amity woman behind the table and pick up the bracelet, "What is this?".

"It's a unicorn, a mythical horse with a horn on its head, it's said that only the purest of hearts can tame a wild unicorn. Of course that's if you believe the myth to be true, some people claim there's one deep in the woods on the outskirts of Amity but no one has seen it."

Eric scoffs from behind me, earning him a light nudge from my elbow.

"How much is it?"

"65 points" My eyes bulge at the price tag, sure I've got points but not a great deal. I'm still an initiate and I haven't had time to do any other work outside of working for Jeanine and I was still learning, so even that price was too much for me.

Before I have a chance to put it back Eric pulls out his points card and taps it on the little machine, "Eric, no. It's fine, it's too much."

He ignores me and the lady behind the table is beaming that she'd made a sale today, "You want it, it's yours. I know initiates don't get paid well." I want to protest but he's already ushering me to move on, his fingers digging into my spine as I'm moved forward.

I give a quick thank you to the lady and look up to Eric who just shrugs like it was no big deal, I undo the clasp and place it around my wrist. He notices me fumbling to do up the clasp so he stops to come stand in front and smacks my hand away so he can do it for me, I bite back a smile when he fastens it and he does something that takes me completely by surprise. He kisses the top of my head and I'm left speechless as he takes my hand in his to pull me through the crowd, I would never peg him to be so open in a big crowd of people.

We continued our walk through the stalls and different tables. Eric had placed a couple orders for some more furniture for his apartment and office to be ready by the next market day.

"Incoming." Eric abruptly stops but he keeps hold of my hand, squeezing it a little too tightly in his rough palm and walking right towards us is Eric's mother. Her pristine navy blue suit dress, standing out in the crowd.

"Hello Mrs Coulter" I greet her since Eric stays silent beside me, his shoulders squared off like he's ready for a fight.

"Allie Eaton, what a pleasure to see you again." Something sounded off by the way she said my name, kind of like a forced politeness which was much different than the first time I'd met the woman. "Hello, my son."

"Mother." Is all Eric manages and the tension between them is so thick, you could cut it with a knife.

"Allie dear, do you mind if I have a word with my son?".

"Uh," I look at Eric who is giving me a hard look. I struggle to determine whether he wants me to stay or not but when I look at Eric's mother she's looking at me expectantly. "Yeah sure."

He gives my hand a squeeze before he releases it and he's being dragged aside by Mrs Coulter, I decide to wander over to have a look at some scarves but really I stay just within eyesight so I can spy on them. I wish I knew what they were saying because Eric's whole demeanor shifts, with his shoulders tense as he crosses his arms over in front of himself as he stares daggers at her while she talks. Whatever she is saying to him has him completely on edge and I wonder if he'll tell me about it once she leaves.

When she looks over to me I quickly turn and head further into the stall and as I turn I'm met with a familiar face surrounded by long golden curls, "Angel? What're you doing here?".

She smiles at me but it doesn't quite meet her eyes, "Hey Allie".

Her voice sounded off so I stepped closer to her but she took a step back, "Are you okay? What's wrong?".

She shifts from foot to foot before her gaze moves over my shoulder, "I'm really sorry about this."

"Sorry about wha-" I don't get to finish what I was saying as I turn to look where she was looking and I'm struck upside the head making my legs buckle from underneath me, stars dance in front of my vision as the hooded man picks me up and I'm hauled over his shoulder.

The blow wasn't enough to knock me out but it did disorient me, my body feels limp and weak as I'm carried around the side of the makeshift tent. I lift my head to see Eric still distracted talking to his mother, I move my lips to call his name but no sound comes out. Panic sets in as he still hasn't realized I'm not where I once was, the man carrying me moves with ease and he obviously hasn't realized I'm not knocked out.

I gather what strength I can muster, trying desperately to piece my thoughts together before I yell out at the top of my lungs "ERIC".

I watch helplessly as he swiftly turns and we make eye contact, the guy carrying me swears under his breath as he starts running. I watch as Eric shoves past his mother and he's running after us.

"Open the fucking door, he's coming." The guy carrying me yells and I suddenly start getting movement in my body as my mind plays catch up so I start thrashing in the guy's arms.

"Let me go" I hit the man in the back a few times but it did nothing to slow him, my breath was stuck in my throat as my efforts were useless and white hot panicked tears escape me. Eric is still behind us but I know he won't make it in time, whoever has grabbed me had a head start. And I'm suddenly thrown into the back seat of a truck, the hooded man goes to slide in next to me but I kick out my legs and kick him right where I know it'll hurt. He stumbles back holding his crotch as he curses over and over.

I take that as an opportunity to try and scramble out of the open door towards Eric who is quickly approaching, holding his gun in one hand and his phone in the other, hopefully calling for backup. I go to crawl out of the door when all of a sudden I feel a sharp prick in the back of my thigh and my vision starts to blur almost instantly and the fight that had just returned starts to vanish, the last few seconds happen in a haze as a gun shot rings out through the air and the hooded man stumbles back, someone then leans over me to shut the door and the last thing I see as we drive off is Eric standing over the guy he shot staring back at the truck cursing and then everything fades to black.

When I start to come to again, everything immediately hurts and my head feels like it has literally detached itself from my body, the headache is undeniably present as I blink awake. I sit up slowly, ignoring the pain as I look around at my surroundings. The room is dark and cold and I'm covered in dirty old grey looking blankets, there is a hole in the wall almost from floor to ceiling which is facing out towards the city.

I slowly get up, bumping into a side table in the process as I steady myself and head towards the large opening in the wall and look out. I am several stories above the ground and there is a chill that is swirling through the night air as light flecks of snow start to fall from the sky.

I shake off the thought of trying to escape out the opening, even if I were to start climbing down, there was a good chance I would fall to my death.

I head over to the only other option and it's the closed door on the other side of the room but as I try and open it, it doesn't budge which means they've locked me in. I immediately start banging on the door, "Let me out of here" I yell through the door but no one comes to open it.

I don't know how long I sit there for but I sit on the floor beside the bed with my knees brought up to my chest as my fingers trace the outline of the unicorn charm on my bracelet as my mind wandered back to Eric and that last look he gave me before I'd passed out, the look of hopelessness and panic and the thought alone is enough to make my eyes sting.

I'm broken out of my thoughts when the door starts to unlock, I curl in on myself trying to make myself seem a lot smaller than I am as I hide myself in the shadows of the poorly lit room. I look up when the door opens and in walks Angel, looking sheepish and guilty.

"Get out" I tell her as I stand on shaky legs, "Go, I don't want to talk to you."

"Allie, let me explain. Please." I shake my head at her with so many emotions swirling inside and so many questions but I can't even begin to put it all together.

"You were never from Amity, were you?", she shakes her head guiltily and I resume my spot on the floor, "Just go Angel".

"I'm sorry I lied to you Allie, but I was just doing what I was told. I was looking out for you but when Jeanine sent you off to Dauntless, it was getting harder to do that." When I don't respond, she lets out a sigh and leaves without saying another word. I had a moment of guilt when she left, the door locking behind her, but that moment disappeared when I realized she was just pretending to be my friend to get close to me, which I'm still trying to wrap my head around the reasoning behind it.

After a few more minutes goes by, the door opens again and this time I stand as a big burly man with a large beard walks in with the sides of his head shaved and his hair is braided back behind his head, it's more than obvious that I've landed myself with the factionless. His clothes are dirty and worn and the smell of smoke wafts into the room.

"She wants to see you!" He gestures to the open door and there are two men outside holding guns, I want to resist and fight my way out but I know my efforts will be fruitless so I nod. I walk out from the room, the big guy behind me and one guy with the gun walks in front while the other trails behind us. We make our way down a very questionable steel staircase which opens out to a massive room full to the brim of factionless which hits me by surprise, I'd never seen so many of them congregated in the one place before.

As we walk through the crowd, it parts like the sea and suddenly I am what everyone is looking at and it makes me feel uneasy as all eyes are on me and whispers sound out through the sea of factionless.

We come to a stop at the back and one of the guys with the gun knocks on the door and after a few agonizing seconds it opens and out walks a woman I have never met before, she's kind of tall but with well kept beautiful brunette hair. I stay perfectly still and silent as I watch her as she walks towards me with her hands curled behind her back.

"It's nice to finally meet you, you must have so many questions." As soon as she speaks the crowd behind me goes silent, at least now we know who is in charge of the factionless.

"One mainly, who are you?".

A smirk curls at the corner of her lips and my mouth runs dry, something about the way she is looking at me is telling.

"My name is Evelyn. And you," she steps towards me and rests a hand on the side of my face, "You're my daughter."

I instinctively take a step back and away as I swallow down a thick lump that has formed in my throat, my mouth all of a sudden feeling very dry.

"It's nice to finally have both my children beside me under the one roof."

I'm shocked into silence as my brother steps out from beside her but that's not what catches my eye, it's the other person standing to the left of him. Her thick rimmed glasses pushed high up on her face, her ashen blonde hair pulled back and neatly styled in a bun and her navy blue dress suit, pressed and pristine which is a standout to the worn fabrics of the factionless.

"Mrs Coulter?" I stutter out as I'm frozen in place.

A/N - As promised, here is the next chapter. I was going to wait till tomorrow but thought I'd post now, this chapter is kind of lining things up and I'd like to hear your thoughts on the connection with Eric's mother being there. Hrmm lol. Also, reviews make the world go round. Enjoy, much love SJ xo