Page 31 (1/2)

What do you do if you’re attacked by two people at once? I follow thecorridor and into an office The walls are ned my school

A woman sits behind a metal desk I stare at her face The same face dominates the Erudite library; it is plastered across every article Erudite releases How long have I hated that face? I don’t remember

"Sit," Jeanine says Her voice sounds faray eyes focus on ain I have definitely heard her voice before

I heard it in the hallway, talking to Eric, before I got attacked I heard her ents And once before--I heard it…

"It was your voice in the simulation," I say "The aptitude test, I er Tori and ent Sitting right in front of reatest achievement as a scientist," she replies "I looked up your test results, Beatrice Apparently there was a problem with your test It was never recorded, and your results had to be reported manually Did you know that?"

"No"

"Did you know that you’re one of two people ever to get an Abnegation result and switch to Dauntless?"

"No," I say, biting back enuine and es at the thought of hiht now I don’t care how unique he is He called me pathetic

"What made you choose Dauntless?" she asks

"What does this have to do with anything?" I try to softento repri out ht?" I pause "Come to think of it, why am I in your office in the first place? Aren’t you supposed to be i?"

Maybe that will take her down a few pegs

Her mouth pinches for a second "I will leave the repri back in her chair

I set my hands on the back of the chair I refused to sit in and clench ers Behind her is athat overlooks the city The train takes a lazy turn in the distance

"As to the reason for your presence here…a quality ofyour records, I saw that there was another error with another one of your siain, it failed to be recorded Did you know that?"

"How did you access my records? Only the Dauntless have access to those"

"Because Erudite developed the si with the Dauntless, Beatrice" She tilts her head and smiles at y If it fails while you are around, I have to ensure that it does not continue to do so, you understand?"

I understand only one thing: She is lying to y--she suspects that so is aith my test results Just like the Dauntless leaders, she is sniffing around for the Divergent And if my mother wants Caleb to research the simulation serum, it is probably because Jeanine developed it

But what is so threatening about my ability to manipulate the simulations? Why would it matter to the representative of the Erudite, of all people?

I can’t answer either question But the look she gives ’s eyes in the aptitude test--a vicious, predatory stare She wants to rip me to pieces I can’t lie down in sub too

I feel my pulse in my throat

"I don’t kno they work," I say, "but the liquid I was injected with made me sick to my stomach Maybe my simulation administrator was distracted because he orried I would throw up, and he forgot to record it I got sick after the aptitude test too"

"Do you habitually have a sensitive stoe She taps her trilass desk

"Ever since I was young," I reply as smoothly as I can I release the chair back and sidestep it to sit down I can’t see within me

"You have been extremely successful with the simulations," she says "To what do you attribute the ease hich you co into her eyes The other factions see the Dauntless a certain way Brash, aggressive, impulsive Cocky I should be what she expects I sot"

I lean forward, balancing o further with this to

"You want to knohy I chose Dauntless?" I ask "It’s because I was bored" Further, further Lies require coooder and I wanted out"

"So you don’tscolded for looking in thetold to shut up at the dinner table?" I shake my head "No I don’t miss them They’re not my family anymore"

The lie burns hting I picturebehindas she trims my hair, and I want to scream rather than insult her like this

"Can I take that to mean…" Jeanine purses her lips and pauses for a few seconds before finishing "…that you agree with the reports that have been released about the political leaders of this city?"

The reports that labeldictators? The reports that carry subtle threats and hint at revolution? Theythat she is the one who released thele her

I smile

"Wholeheartedly," I say

One of Jeanine’s lackeys, a lasses, drives me back to the Dauntless compound in a sleek silver car, the likes of which I have never seen before The engine is almost silent When I ask the man about it, he tells thy explanation of how the panels on the roof convert sunlight into energy I stop listening after sixty seconds and stare out the

I don’t knohat they’ll do to ineover the chaslass building above the Dauntless co forwithout thanking the driver Eric’s fingers squeeze so hard I know I’ll have bruises

He stands between me and the door that leads inside He starts to crack his knuckles Other than that, he is completely still

I shudder involuntarily

The faint pop of his knuckle-cracking is all I hear apart frorow faster by the second When he is finished, Eric laces his fingers together in front of him

"Welcome back, Tris"