Determinant: One choice will change everything

Chapter 35: Tris - Invasion

Chapter 35: Tris – Invasion

Cara suggests I try to sleep, but there's no way that's going to happen. All I can do is lie here, gritting my teeth against the pain while wondering what the others are doing right now. I hate not knowing if they're safe…or even still alive.

The only thing that comforts me is knowing how focused Marcus is on the mission. He can't complete it successfully without Tobias, which at least means my boyfriend is likely to survive. Assuming he's still my boyfriend.

It's difficult to decide how I feel about him right now. I'm not really mad – or at least not nearly as mad as Cara thinks I should be. I have almost no voice to answer her with, so she rants freely about how Tobias almost killed me and how he clearly can't control his anger and how I shouldn't trust him again. And objectively I have to admit she has some valid points.

But I also know he never meant to hurt me, and that he'll punish himself far more for his actions than anyone else ever could. Far more than I want.

Besides, I'm not exactly blameless in this, either. It was foolish to step into the middle of that fight – there's a reason none of the others did it. So, I find myself more frustrated than anything else. Frustrated, and worried, and unsure what will come next.

Eventually, Cara helps me get up so I can try walking. I've never been good at accepting assistance from others; it's part of the pride I struggle with. But I have no choice at the moment. I can barely stand even with help, let alone without it, so I let her wrap an arm around me and steady me as I take a few steps.

At first, it reminds me of how I felt during initiation, after my fight with Peter. But it quickly becomes obvious that this is much worse. The pain pierces my ribs more and more with each step, until it feels like someone has inserted a knife and is twisting it with each movement. And there seems to be a direct link between that point and my lungs, because the pain takes away my ability to breathe like nothing else ever has. Still, if there's one thing Dauntless taught me, it's that I'm stronger than the limits of my body. So, I push through the agony, finding a way to keep walking despite it.

The effort is exhausting. By the time I've hobbled around the room once, my eyelids are as heavy as the rest of my body, and I think I might finally be able to fall asleep despite everything. Cara helps me sink back to the floor, and I close my eyes gratefully.

I open them immediately when I hear voices. The sound is faint, but it's definitely there, and I turn to the door, seizing Cara's arm to get her attention. She stiffens, her eyes wide and fearful, but she doesn't lose her wits. Instead, she rises in silence, helping me to my feet again, and we move as quietly as possible to the back part of the room, where we're hidden by all the pipes and equipment.

She leans me against a large pipe so I'm facing towards the door, and she hands me my gun. I can barely stay upright, and it hurts to grip the weapon, but I do it anyway. I shift a little to the side so I can see the door through a small gap between the pipes, and I place my gun carefully into the opening. I should be able to shoot reasonably well from here if the need arises.

Beside me, I'm aware of Cara doing the same thing, but I keep my attention on the door. Belatedly, I realize we should have turned the lights off to hide our presence, but I suppose we can at least see to aim this way.

We don't wait long before the door opens and soldiers enter. My heart rate increases with each one I see, so it may be just as well that it's difficult to count them through my small viewing hole. I can make out six clearly, but there are definitely more than that. This is not good.

It gets worse when they start talking.

"This is where we stayed each night," Amar's voice sounds, betraying us to his captors. I shift very slightly, trying to catch sight of him through the soldiers. When I do, I wish I hadn't. His face is badly bruised, and his eyes are blank. Worse, as he turns, I see that the side of his head has been shaved and that some type of device is now attached there. With a twist of nausea, I remember him saying that the military inserts a probe directly into their prisoners' brains before questioning them. I didn't expect it to be so…big.