I'll Never Leave

Chapter 4

Tobias

I sit with my head in my hands waiting for Natalie to wake up. How do you tell your twelve-year-old daughter that her mother left in the middle of the night to protect her? I don't want her to think of her mother like I think of mine.

My relationship with my mother has gotten better but not the best. I forgave her for running and leaving me with my abusive father. Tris left to protect us. I just wish she would have let us figure out a different way.

"She left, didn't she?" I hear a small voice croak from the doorway. I look up and see Natalie standing there with tears in her eyes. She walks over and sits down in my lap.

"You need to understand she left not because she doesn't want to be here. It hurt her so much to leave but she left because she felt like she needed to protect you."

"Yeah." She nodded. "I heard the conversation the other night."

"She'll be back soon." I promise. "I'm going to bring her back and once she comes back she won't have to leave again."

"Why'd she have to leave?" She asks, her tears are gone and she's curious. I sigh, I don't know how to explain it to her.

"See Tris is Divergent. When the faction's were a thing it was dangerous, they were said to be dangerous for thinking differently. Jeanine Matthews sought out to have all the Divergents killed. Tris and I tried to defy Jeanine but she caught us. She sent me to be the subject for her new simulation that worked against Divergents. Tris found me and saved me.

"Only a few months later she saw that there was life outside the wall. She convinced me and our friends to go with her to see what was going on and after we got there we learned that they weren't as nice as they said they were." I cringe at the memory. "They took Tris as their plan and tested on her and beat her for her divergence as you know. Anyway we got her back and now they're looking for her again. She left because if she hadn't left and they found her then they would not only take her but you and me. And if they find you and me they might also hurt us. That's why she couldn't tell us where she was going and she left late last night because she knew I would stop her if she left in the morning."

"Why couldn't we go with her?"

"Because if we went with her and they found her they would find us too. It's much easier to notice that three people are missing more than it is to notice one." She nods and gives me a big hug.

"Natalie, you have to understand that I might have to drop you off at your grandparent's house for a little while."

"You're leaving too?" There are tears in her eyes. I pull her closer.

"No I'm not, but to bring Tris home I need to find out who's doing this and stop it and staying with your grandparents is going to be safer for you."

"You're worried you're gonna turn into him." She says looking me right in the eyes. I want to shake my head but I don't know.

"Not really, I don't know what I would do with myself if I laid a finger on you or Tris. But the fear is still there. And you going to your parent's has to do with that and other things. I am going to try to get your mom back but with that there might be more bombs and I don't want you to on the other end of that." She nods and hugs me tighter.

"I don't want to go away." She says with tears in her eyes.

"I'm gonna try to think of some other options, I don't want you to go away either."

I move her off of me and get up.

"She left you a note." I grab it off the table and give it to her. She opens it and reads through it slowly.