The Way Back

Chapter 10

TOBIAS POV

The Incendiaries drop me off at the opening of the wall, where Dauntless guards wait alert for my arrival. A car is parked and ready for me on the opposite side of the metal door that is ajar. It seems unnecessary because I am quite fine riding a train back.

Nevertheless, I walk through the fence to the car, stepping through tall, yellow grass that has overgrown. I hear the Incendiaries' truck drive away, and then the door is shut behind me once I sit in the passenger seat of the car.

"You really don't have to pick me up, you know," I tell Zeke, who sits in the driver's seat. "I can always take the train."

He glances sideways at me as he accelerates away from the fence. "It's kind of protocol to make sure the leader is taken care of," he reminds me. "Besides, what's wrong with me doing something nice for my sweetheart?"

I press my elbow into the car door, leaning my face into my hand. "God..." Zeke and his teasing.

"So, honey, how was it?" He is obviously referring to my visit to one of the bases of the Incendiaries, which is where I am coming home from.

Watching the buildings grow as we approach the city, I answer smoothly, "It was fine."

"Really?" he complains. "You go outside to some futuristic place, and all you have to tell me is that it's fine?"

"Okay, fine. It was...different." I try to come up with another word to describe the base I toured all day. "Or I guess 'new' is a better adjective," I amend.

There was so much technology that I was unfamiliar with at the base nearest to Chicago alone; it is not their most advanced, but it was enough to leave me amazed, starting with phones and ending with airplanes.

We desperately need to catch up.

That was one of the bribes that Commander Lee made: an upgrade. The tour he gave was more of a way of coercing me to hand over Dauntless troops to help out in the war. He has made many offers and combined them, including advancement in technology, resources to renovate the parts of the city that need it, and more. He wants to help us build an airport and connect with the outside world.

As a side note, he also added that he would use his men to spread my message about returning Tris home and aid me in any way he could to find her, although that is irrelevant. I would never throw Chicago in another war for selfish reasons; I would find a way around it.

Besides, we both want to find Tris. I for obvious reasons, and he because he wants to save any Divergents he can. The more people he can turn to his side instead of the Enslavers', the better. Apparently they have an obsession of salvaging rare Divergents because of their pure genetics and brainwashing them to join their fight. My goal is for Tris to never find out how they do so.

"Four?"

Snapping out of my stressful thoughts, I turn my head to look at Zeke, who drives us into the city with ease.

"Yes?" My voice is terse.

"You gonna tell me more?" he asks, dying of curiosity to know about the world beyond the wall.

"Tell you what," I say. "Let's talk about it over dinner. I'm pretty beat right now, and I have a lot to think about, so let's continue this conversation when I get some food and I'm less grumpy."

He agrees, knowing me well enough to know that it is better to leave me to myself for a while, although I do mention the airplanes and jets to get him excited. We drive back to Dauntless in silence from there on out, and I spend the time worrying about my indecisiveness about joining the war. All of the proposals that were made are very tempting, but I don't think it is enough for me to risk throwing us into yet another battle.