"Didn't Isaac tell them to go for me?" 

We're alone in the simulation room. Amar deliberately called my name last, and the Dauntless leaders left immediately after my simulation, while Amar made me stay, on the pretext of wanting to talk about the simulation with me. 

The simulation was centipedes. Lots of them crawling all over me. I let myself panic for a few minutes and then calmed myself down to get out of the simulation. Just like we'd practiced. They hadn't even noticed that I was a Divergent. I'm safe. 

Amar shrugs, "He couldn't. There's only a couple of Dauntless leaders who work for the Erudite. If he'd told them to take you, it would have messed up everything." He sighs and slumps down in his chair, head in his hands, "Brooke, they took everyone."

"Everyone?" I repeat. 

"All the other Divergents." He says despondently. 

"Even April?" I ask. The words just come out of my mouth before I can stop them, and the moment I've said it, I realise how silly it sounds. 

He looks at me tiredly, stress lines clear on his face, despite him being so young, "Yes Brooke. 'Everyone' includes Dex." He's snappish, but I can't blame him. Anyone would be cross in this situation. 

I nod vaguely, already picturing them dragging her off, screaming and shouting. My vision begins to blur. Poor April. She never deserved any of this. 

Amar groans, "I'm the worst Dauntless Instructor ever." 

"No you're not." I say to him angrily, "We can still fix this Amar. We have to."

"How?" he asks bleakly. It strikes me as odd that our positions have been reversed. I'm the one taking charge here, despite the fact that Amar, my instructor, should be the one commanding me. 

"Where did they go?" I ask, a plan forming in my head. 

Amar points vaguely, "Out the back door. It's white, just like the wall, so you can't really see it-"

I cut him off, "No Amar. I mean, where were they taking them? They must have talked to one another? Mentioned a place?"

Amar frowns in thought, "The supply room."

"Right," I say, "And where is that exactly?"

"It's right next to the Pit," He begins, and then his eyes widen as he realises what I'm about to do and he says, "Wait, Brooke, you can't go there."

"Why not?" I ask, crossing my arms, "You told me I had to protect April. This is me protecting her."

"I said within reason!" He protests, "Look, the place will probably be heavily guarded-"

"Then I'll catch them by surprise-"

"And locked." He finished. 

I raise an eyebrow, "How do you know that?"

Amar stares at the floor, his voice almost a whisper, "There was someone like me last year. That's where they took him. I tried to save him but I couldn't. I failed."

I put a hand on his shoulder, and crouch on the floor so that his eyes meet mine. "Well this year we'll succeed." I say confidently, "Nothing beats a well-made plan." I pause, considering, "It's locked you say?" He nods once. "Then I'll just have to steal the keys off them once I've knocked them out."

Amar shakes his head in thought, "No, there's no need for that."

"What then?" I ask. 

"There's a room where they keep all the keys," he says, "You'll have to go and get a set there."

I raise an eyebrow, impressed, "You really did your research last year, didn't you?"

Amar doesn't reply and scowls at the floor. Then he says, "I'm coming with you."

I stare at him, before I mutter, "Hypocrite." 

Amar ignores me, "It'll be safer for you if I come," he says. There's a pause and then he adds, more quietly, "And I need to make amends. I couldn't save the Divergent last year. But I can at least try and save them this time." 

"That's the spirit," I say. I stand up and motion towards the back door, "Gentlemen first."

"Brooke-" Amar says abruptly. 

"What now?" I ask, folding my arms again, "We haven't got much time."

"I thought you said you wanted a well-made plan." 

I sigh and run my hands through my hair, "Well I can't think straight when she's-I mean-when they're in danger." I glance at him, "But fine. What do you want to do?"

"You get the keys," he says. 

"On my own?" I interrupt, "I thought you wanted to come with me."

"I do," he says, "But it'll look odd if a Dauntless instructor is snooping around. You're just an initiate. You're insignificant-"

"Harsh," I cut in. 

He glares at me, "You know what I mean. They won't notice you. It'll be easier for you to get the keys."

I nod, "Point made. So what will you do?"

"I will meet you at the supply room, and we'll knock out the guards. Together." He adds, sending me a look. 

I roll my eyes, "Unlike some, I don't have a death wish."

"I wonder sometimes." He says, and then he's looks at me levelly and continues, "Once we've knocked them out, I'll leave immediately and head to my office. That way, we won't be seen heading back together. You, on the other hand, will have the trickier job. You'll need to let the Divergents out and then return the keys immediately." He glances at me, "You got that, Brooke? No checking to see if they're ok or anything. The longer you stay in that area the more at risk you are. Understand?"

"Loud and clear, Amar," I smirk, "I know I may look it, but I'm not a complete idiot."

He sighs, "The key room isn't far from the supply room. Once you've returned them, head straight to my office. That way I'll know the plan has worked. But if you're any longer than five minutes, I'll worry."

I nod, "So I'm getting the keys, freeing the Divergents, returning the keys and heading to your office. Simple."

He frowns, "Don't say that. You'll jinx it."

I raise an eyebrow, "Didn't take Dauntless to be a superstitious lot, but you're right Amar. We can't expect this plan to work perfectly. Plans never do. But we'll have to deal with that when we come to it."

He eyes me and says, "You know, Brooke, you'd make a brilliant military commander."

I smirk and motion towards the door again, "Lead the way, soldier."

He frowns, "But I'm still in charge for now Initiate." 

I ignore him, "Come on. We've got a Divergent to save." He walks towards the door and follow behind him. 

Just as his hand touches the handle, I hear him add, "I think you mean Divergents. Plural." 

"Of course." I add, and he opens the door. 

We head through some corridors before Amar points in the direction of the 'key room', as he's dubbed it, and we split up. It's surprisingly quiet-with most Dauntless probably either in the Cafeteria or the Pit. 

I turn right and head down a dimly lit corridor. Halfway down, a spot a blue door. It has no sign to show that it's for keys, but it's exactly like Amar described-dark blue with a small window at the top and a strangely rusty handle. It would be hard to miss if you didn't know what to look out for. 

I listen to see if I can hear anyone inside, and then, standing on tiptoe, crane my neck to see through the small window. Nobody appears to be inside. I grab the handle and pray that this door isn't locked because I haven't got a back-up plan if it is. Thankfully, it isn't and the door opens, but it makes a loud creaking sound as it does so, sending shivers down my spine. I wince and furtively look around, hoping there's no one in the corridor to see, but, like before, it's deserted. 

I creep inside as silently as I can, and my mouth almost falls open. This room is a disorganised mess. Cardboard boxes with post-it notes on them are everywhere. They're literally fit into every small spaces that the leaders can cram them into, and some of the boxes are overflowing, with keys on the floor beside them. Trust the Dauntless not to keep things neat. 

I carefully make my way across the room, attempting to avoid as many keys as I can, and I peer at the post-it notes. Even the handwriting scribbled onto them is messy. I circulate the room, squinting at the notes marked for 'training room' or 'control room', until finally I come to 'supply room'. I gasp and thrust my hand into the box, grabbing a couple of keys. 

Then I turn and race out the room, almost slamming the door behind me in my haste. I force myself to walk normally, even though my heart is pounding with fear for the other Divergents. It's afternoon already, and neither Amar nor I know what time they'll be thrown into the Pit. After one final corridor, I reach the supply room. 

Amar was right. It is heavily guarded. There are at least five soldiers standing in front of the room. And each of them is holding a gun. I doubt they even know what they're guarding. The Dauntless leaders wouldn't have risked telling them. They're probably just following orders. A couple of them even look bored-after all, it's been hours since they got the first Divergent-Lyra. 

I scan the darkness for Amar and spot a slight movement as he raises his hand to signal to me. He's at a corridor opposite to mine, both of which meet at this room. This is good. It means we can attack at two different angles. 

I glance at the guards. They're eyes are trained on the wall between our corridors in front of them for some reason. If it stays that way, we should be able to approach unnoticed. 

I hold up one of the keys I took, being careful that I don't attract the attention of the guards, and Amar nods briefly. I place the key back in my pocket, and watch as Amar begins to stealthily make his way towards the guards. I swallow hard as I realise that this is the defining moment. It's time for us to knock out the guards without getting hurt ourselves. Somehow. 

Amar sends me an irritated look and I realise that I've just been standing still. He glares at me. The message is clear: What are you doing? Move! 

I gulp and hurriedly nod my head. This is for April. I picture her scared inside that box. She needs my help more than ever now. I need to help her. The thought is so ironic that it makes me smile. April has never needed anyone's help, and yet here I am, doing just that. 

Amar glares at me again, and I realise that I've been standing still again without realising it. He motions and I almost hear his voice in his head: Hello? Are you going to help me? This was your plan, after all! 

I just nod back, considering that I don't know how to motion 'Sorry, I was daydreaming.'  I make my way towards the soldiers and Amar seems visibly relieved. 

When we're within a meter away from the first one on either side, Amar mouths 'Now!'  And, as a knee jerk reaction, I swing my arm and knock the guard right on the back of the head. With luck, it should make him unconscious. The guard begins to pitch forward and, in my panic, I throw myself onto the next one, knowing that when the first guard collapses on the floor, the rest of the guards will be onto us. 

Unfortunately though, I'm not fast enough. The second guard yanks me just as I punch her right in the face and she trains her gun on me. But then, to my relief, her eyes suddenly roll to the top of her head, and she pitches forward. I quickly sidestep so she falls straight onto the floor. Behind her is Amar, his hand still raised from stunning her. 

He raises an eyebrow at me. 

"You're better at this than I am!" I hiss. 

"Evidently," he smirks. Then he stares at the bodies on the floor and frowns, "They should be out for about an hour. Release the Divergents and-"

"Return the keys and meet you at your office," I reply, "You don't have to tell me twice." 

Amar nods, "See you in five minutes." And he slips back into the shadows. 

"What was that about not jinxing it?" I mutter. I grab the key into my pocket and fix it into the lock. Thankfully, it fits perfectly, and I breathe a sigh of relief as I manage to open the door. 

The moment I do, however, I'm given the shock of my life. April-or rather, Dex-stands there, fists raised ready to attack me, and defiance shining in her beautiful brown eyes. Her hair, as always, is messy and unruly. 

She's no longer April, but Dex. The Amity girl I've always known is gone. Standing before me now is a Dauntless soldier. A Dauntless soldier ready to fight. 

Her mouth falls open and I'm pleased to see that, for once, I've shocked her. 

I smirk, "Hello Dex."