More. || Eric Coulter

Twenty one.

Warning: language and violence/abuse

Finding the box was a major success. It is supposedly a message from the ancestors but opening it was another challenge they had to face now. All Eric knew was that Divergents would be the key to access this box but everything else remained unknown to him; it was a mystery even to Janine. Eric couldn't help but imagine if Vinnie would've been able to open it and if they would've used her if she were still alive. The thought alone made him cringe. Somehow, when he thought about other people being sacrificed for the process, it didn't bother him as - to him - it was just Divergents and it conflicted him that he couldn't think about his former friend like that. Maybe that was the reason why. No, it was exactly the reason why. It was his connection to her, their friendship, the fact that he knew her better and knew of her devotion to the faction. And the most important reason - which he couldn't admit to himself fully - was the deeper feelings he had had for her. Fortunately, the work kept his mind busy but it did nothing to make his feelings disappear; not even gradually.

Weeks have passed. Janine tried one subject after the other but no one succeeded in opening the mysterious device and the frustration grew drastically. More Divergents needed to be found, Janine decided.
"Janine, may I speak freely?" Max requested as they watched another body being dragged out of the testing chamber. Janine gave permission. "You still have someone else to test with. I'm sorry but I'd rather try it out with her before we have to endure another dangerous mission. We can't afford to lose more people considering the rising dissatisfaction amongst our people."
Janine glanced over her shoulder and eyed the leader, weighing out their options after what he suggested. "You do have a point there, Max, but I'd rather see what the rest has to offer. Maybe we'll finally find Tris before we sacrifice the most valuable one. I trust your abilities to plan out the next moves without as many casualties."
Max and Eric exchanged glances. Max knew exactly what Janine was talking about but the man next to him felt irritated and baffled by their conversation. Too many vague points were made but he couldn't be bothered for too long as the Dauntless already made their way out of the building and back to the facion.

Thanks to Vinnie's last radio call, they had their suspicions that Tris - and very likely Four as well - was a refugee in the Amity faction but they couldn't prove their theory until they went looking for themselves. It was also a perfect chance to locate more outlaws.
It surprised them all when they found out that - not only Tris - but Tris' brother, Four's father and even Peter were there, posing a greater treasure than they had expected. The anger amongst the leaders though was immeasurable after three of them escaped but the fact that they were able to detain Peter, someone who showed the most promise and loyalty during initiation, had shown light on their situation.

For Eric, the days seemed to pass rather uneventfully, consisting of detaining outlaws and bringing them to the Erudite headquarters while Peter successfully landed a job there, being in charge of security and intelligence. For a while, the tasks have successfully kept Eric busy and distracted, exhausting him and making sure that he would do nothing but work and sleep. But recently, he noticed the lack of challenges which in turn made him focus on things he had forgotten about.
One evening, he returned to Vinnie's apartment, still untouched ever since her death with the exception of having taken care of the mess he left behind that day the letter arrived. He looked around after he entered. It still felt surreal to him, the fact that she wasn't just away on a mission not processing fully. He instinctively took a deep breath, closing his eyes as he appreciated the smell that was still lingering around, even if it was just a trace now, then trudged towards her bedroom where he knew that it would hold the most memories. Sorrow filled him when he sat down on her bed, just trying to find the tranquility that Vinnie was always able to provide but now couldn't.
He missed her. Deeply.
He mindlessly glanced around the room, taking in the details he had never noticed before. But then he abruptly stopped.
It was her night stand. Not like he had left it the last time. The stack of papers was still on there but with them were a few sheets of crumbled paper. He couldn't recall having left anything of that sort there.
Cautiously, as if it might be a bomb, he grabbed the sheets, no examination needed since he recognized the first couple of words immediately.
His muscles tensed from one second to another, his heart rate starting to pick up speed and his mind on alert.
Someone must have put this there intentionally. In his head he quickly analyzed all possibilities as to whom it was or simply knew about the letter but before his mind could settle on one person, he got interrupted and whirled around once he had heard some shuffling at the bedroom door.