♘ Be Brave ♘

LXVIII

I wake up gasping for air, and sweat drips down my face. "Well done, Four." I glance at Rachel and see the look of pity in her eyes. "I don't need your sympathy," I snarl. "What was my time?"

She scrolls down the computer screen. "Twenty-nine minutes and forty-three seconds." Not bad, I think. That should be enough to throw the leaders off my trail. "Fine." I get off the chair and walk to the door without looking back, but she stops me before I can get out.

"Four? I'm... I'm sorry." I glare at her. "I told you. I don't need your sympathy." Who does she think she is? Just because she's friends with my so-called father doesn't mean she gets to stick her nose into my business. I shrug her hand off and leave without another word.

As I walk by Cassandra on my way out, I squeeze her hand and whisper, "Meet me at the Pit later." She nods and gives me a kiss on the cheek. I find a spot in one of the tables at the center of the room, and grab a slice of cake from the counter.

About half an hour later, Cassandra sits down beside me, and I give her a hug. "How was it?" She shrugs. "Okay. I just wanted to get out so I could come see you." She grabs the fork and starts eating my dessert. "Wait..." I pretend to examine her face. Confused, she stops mid-bite.

"What?" I try to keep from laughing. "You have icing all over your face." Her eyes widen. "Where?" Smiling, I pull her towards me. "Here." I kiss her, no longer caring about who might see us. When we pull away, she sighs. "Is the icing gone?" I smirk. "I think so." She reaches out to touch my cheek.

"You better check again to make sure." She inches closer, and I oblige. "Well, well, well. Isn't this just the cutest thing?" I break the kiss and realize Eric is standing behind us. "What do you want?" He takes a seat next to Cassandra. She shrinks back, and I hold her close to me.

"Oh, nothing really. Just wanted to offer my condolences." I frown. "What the heck are you talking about?" Eric raises an eyebrow. "Cassandra didn't tell you?" He reaches over and grabs what's left of the cake. "It's Dave's death anniversary today." Dave. David. Cassandra's brother. Cassandra makes a strangled sound.

"I'll be right back." Eric frowns. "Something wrong, darling? Don't tell me you're feeling suicidal too!" Cassandra gasps and runs out of the Pit. I grab Eric by the shirt and ram my fist into his face.

"Don't you dare speak to her ever again, do you understand?" He grins. "Certainly, your majesty." Blood pours down his cheek, but he just wipes it away. "Tell me, almighty Four... is it true that your daddy beat you?" I glare at him. "Is that why you transferred? Because rumor has it he used to make you go days without eating. That's why you left, isn't it. Because you're a coward."

I let go of all the anger I'd been holding in since the day I met him and hit him for all I'm worth. "I'm not the one ganging up on innocent people, am I? And just let me get one thing straight... I will never be afraid of you. I will kill you if you don't leave all of us alone." I spit at him and go after Cassandra.

I finally find her looking over the chasm, and she clings to my shirt as soon as she sees me. "I'm so sorry, Cassie." Her muffled cries fill the silence, and I hold her against me.

"He used to call me that," she mumbles. "I miss him so much. I thought maybe, just maybe, I'd feel closer to him by transferring to Dauntless. Maybe I could find out what really happened to him by coming here. But I'm no better off than I was at Amity. And Eric..."

She shakes her head. "How did... how did he know about your brother?" She winces. "It's a long story." I tuck her hair behind her ear. "Want to tell me about it?" She lets go of me and sinks to the ground, hugging her knees to her chest. "I have another sibling. Amanda, two years older than me." She looks away. "We were best friends. She kept my secrets and I kept hers. When she turned sixteen, she told me that she'd started dating someone about my age. I asked her who it was, and she said that I'd find out soon enough. She asked me not to tell anyone, and I swore I wouldn't." She closes her eyes.

"True to her word, she brought him home a few weeks before her Ceremony. Even though they were angry at first because she'd been dating behind their backs, my mom quickly came to like her boyfriend." I nod. "Eric." She glances at me.

"Yes. He was always polite when other people were in the room, and he acted like he was madly in love with Amanda." She laughs. "They had no idea how far from the truth that was. David was dead by then, and Amanda must have told him. One day, I left school early, because I wasn't feeling that well, and my mom was away, working. Amanda was still in class. I was home alone, basically. And... he followed me."

My fists clench. I didn't like where this was going. "He snuck in right after I went inside the house, and locked the door. I asked him what he was doing there, since my sister wasn't home yet. And he said... he said..."

I move closer to her and kiss her on the cheek. "Oh, Four, he..." She pauses, and starts sobbing. "Shh. It's okay. I'm here. You're okay." I hold her until she calms down, and kiss her neck. "He said that he'd heard that I was sick... and that he knew how to make me feel better. He cornered me and..." I take her hand. "Did he touch you?" Cassandra looks away.

"Tell me. Did he touch you?" I turn her toward me and force her to make eye contact. "No," she whispers. "He didn't." I let myself relax. Son of a... "But my sister did come in later and saw us like that... and she believed Eric's story. He said I'd been harassing him for days, and that I lured him inside." She shrugs.

"Amanda was so fond of him she chose to think that the whole thing had been my fault. She never spoke to me again, and I haven't seen her since. I didn't want to tell you about this because I was afraid you'd react just like my sister."

I kiss her forehead. "I believe you, Cassandra. I love you, and I always will. No matter what."