Pit

Chapter 13

TOBIAS POV

The awkward is so thick in the room that it is almost palpable.

Marcus sits in a chair by the window, hyper-vigilant as he watches for any movement outside that may indicate a factionless siege. I was more concerned with Tris's well-being than his presence earlier tonight, but now that I can acknowledge that he is here, I am uneasy.

Susan is on the couch across from Tris, silently observing the fire. She was told multiple times by Caleb to return home and sleep off the stressful night, but she refused. Either she wants to look out for Tris or she is too frightened by this experience to sleep, I don't know.

Tris slumbers peacefully, completely unaware of this odd combination of people in one house. Lucky her.

Caleb has tension rolling off of him in steady waves. His shoulders are tightened, and he is pacing as he mulls something over in his mind. I watch the repetitive steps until my tolerance is low.

"Caleb?" I finally say, because the constant movement is irritating. "What's the problem?"

He sets his mouth in a line and beckons to me. "I want to talk to you," he tells me.

Perplexed by his request, I raise my eyebrows at him and follow him into the kitchen. The single lightbulb above the dinner table casts shadows on his face, making him look much more sinister than he actually is. Or maybe the lack of sleep is catching up with me.

"I specifically told my sister that if she was ever in trouble again, she could come hide with me," he states. "If she couldn't, I demanded that she stay out of sight and out of mind."

He shifts on his feet and twists his mouth angrily. "And then I pay attention to the news in the weeks after and find out that she is a fugitive with a tall, male accomplice. It took me all of seconds to figure out who she was helping. Of course, how could you resist getting her into some sort of trouble again?"

I level a glare at him. "I am already beating myself up about it, Caleb," I deadpan. "No need to pile on."

"Yes, there is," he insists. I have never seen this side reveal itself, where he is genuinely passionate about something. I certainly have never seen him passionate about Tris. He outright helped send her to her death a year ago, and now he is worried about her safety with me? It is a bit insulting.

He turns around for a moment, presumably so he won't have to face me. "I sent for you last year because she was on the verge of..." With a troubled breath, he continues, "It was a last resort. I didn't invite you so that you could be in her life again."

I cross my arms defensively. "It is not your business who she has a relationship with."

"I am her brother. Our parents are dead, and it is my responsibility to look out for her—"

The hypocrisy is so rampant in this conversation that I have to laugh. "Oh, you're her brother now?" I snap. "Were you her brother when you watched her thrash and scream under simulations, or when you helped Jeanine administer the death serum?"

He grits his teeth at the reminder and points at me. "I was a different person. And she forgave me for my mistakes," he declares hotly.

Mistakes. As if that word can fully capture what he did to his own sister. Tris may have found a way to mercifully forgive him, but I could never give him the benefit of the doubt. You don't change where your allegiances lie. It makes me wonder if he always believed in faction before blood.

If he was ever trustworthy, he certainly isn't now.

"On the other hand, you turned your back on her for almost a year. She was downright miserable, and what did you do about it? Nothing."