The next day is Visiting Day and I'm not given much of an opportunity to contemplate what the Erudite would want with Dauntless. 

"Remember," Amar says, as he wakes us up for the day, "Some of your family members will be coming. Yes, this is a day of excitement for those of you. And yes, this is the only time of year you're ever allowed to see your family." He pauses to let this sink in, "But remember that here, at Dauntless, we believe in Faction before Blood. You are Dauntless now. Don't disgrace yourselves."

He surveys us all and we all nod. It's not as if my father and Clara will visit anyway. 

"Alright," says Amar, "Follow me." Amar leads us through some corridors and into the floor of the Pit, where a mass of adults in different colours are gathered. Most are dressed in black, as the Dauntless-born re-unite with their family, but I also see some people dressed in blue as well as black and white. I suppose there's been a lot of Erudite and Candor transfers over the years. 

As we head into the Pit, I see a tall man dressed in blue come forward and clasp Isaac's arm. Isaac smirks and the man leads him away. I note that his eyes are the same as Isaac's and I briefly recognise him from when the Erudite representatives paid my father a visits in the past. He wasn't lying then, when he said that his father was Carl Zylons. 

To the side, I see a crowd of Amity greet April. Two dads, and older girl, a baby, plus a blond-haired guy in a wheelchair have all come to pay her a visit. I smile, glad that she's happy. But then I feel a stab of envy as I watch her family all crowd round her to give her a hug. I briefly scan the crowd for my father and Clara but it's as I suspected; they didn't come. And why would they? I humiliated my father and upset my sister by choosing Dauntless. Coming to see me would mean lying to themselves about their feelings. And no Candor would do that. 

I knew what I was doing when I chose Dauntless, but it never hit me until now just how truly isolated I am from my family. I almost regret choosing Dauntless and not staying home instead, but I remind myself that it was literally a life-or-death choice. I sigh, and, feeling tears welling in my eyes, turn to leave the Pit. 

Suddenly, a hand reaches out and grabs my arm in an iron hold. I look up, hopefully, foolishly thinking that my father or Clara might have done the unexpected and come to visit. But my hopes are dashed when looking up, I see the all too familiar piercing blue eyes. It's Carl Zylons who's grabbed me. Like father. Like son. 

"You're Brooke Kang, I take it," he says, matter-of-factly. A statement not a question. I nod my head mutely, and he smirks. I'm startled to see that Isaac's smirk is mirrored on his face. "Isaac's been telling me all about you."

"Has he?" I ask, trying to sound casual, while attempting to extricate my arm from his. 

"Indeed," he says, coldly, his eyes raking me up and down. Apparently, he doesn't seem to find what he's searching for, and he frowns slightly. Then he releases me, and I almost lose my balance falling over backwards. "Well see you around, girl," he says, waving his hand and dismissing me, "I have some business to settle with Isaac." And he turns back to his son, who's been standing behind him and watching. 

I take a deep breath and do my best not to rush out of the hall. As I try to brush the tears that are threatening to fall out of my eyes, I accidently knock into Amy, who's accompanied by an Abnegation man. 

She glares at me, but the man, presumably her father, apologises. Everyone seems to have a family member who's come to visit. Except for me. I shove past them and head into the Cafeteria to get some lunch. 

Scanning the tables, which are packed full of Dauntless families eating together, I spot Edgar and make my way towards him. 

"Your dad didn't come?" he asks, as I sit down and begin to pile food onto my plate. I just shake my head, not trusting myself to speak. "Neither," he says sadly. There's a pause, before Edgar says again, "But your dad is the Candor representative. He was probably busy." 

He sounds like he's trying to console me. I frown at my plate, confused. Edgar's never tried to be nice to other people before. Perhaps being away from Isaac has made him a better person. 

I sigh and shake my head, "Let's be honest here Edgar. If he'd come, Clara might have thought that she could transfer too. He's teaching Clara a lesson. If you transfer, you get no family." 

Edgar frowns, "I hadn't thought of it like that." 

I flush, suddenly realising that dumb-Brooke would never have come to that assumption. But then I remember that it probably doesn't matter as Edgar is going to be cut anyway. I just shrug.  

There's another pause, before Edgar asks, "How old is your sister?" 

"Twelve," I reply, promptly. 

"So she's going to transfer in, what, four years?" He asks, "I wonder what she'll pick. Just imagine if she follows your example." I try to smile at him but I inwardly grimace. If this is Edgar's way of trying to comfort people, he's hopeless at it. He's probably trying to not to think of his own parents, who've failed to come. 

Quickly, I scan the room for a way to get the conversation away from my family. 

"Looks like their families didn't come either," I say, nodding at Cassie and Phoebe, who I see are eating on the the other side of the Cafeteria. 

"Yeah," Edgar says, and then bites his lip. And I suddenly remember that it's common knowledge that it's him, Cassie and Phoebe who are near the bottom of the ranks. 

I wince, and then spot something else to talk about. "I think this cake is like a Dauntless speciality," I say, prodding it with my fork, "Did we have something like that at home?"

Edgar smirks, "Ice-cream."

And we spend the next few minutes reminiscing about Candor ice-cream. Eventually, we are joined by Isaac, who decides to remind us about our own families by spitefully bragging about how wonderful his dad is. 

It's almost a relief, when later that evening, we are called into our dorm to be shown the rankings. 

"Listen up, everyone," says Amar, "I'm about to reveal the rankings for the end of stage one. Remember, if you are ranked in the last four places, that does not necessarily mean you'll be cut as it all depends on how the Dauntless did. Stage Two is ranked more heavily that stage one, so your rank can change in the next stage, but the lower you are ranked, the harder it will be to get to the top. Is that clear?" 

His eyes rake ours, settling on Plato for a few seconds who gives him a subtle nod. I quickly glance at Isaac to see if he noticed the silent brief conversation, but his gaze is fixed eagerly on the board beside Amar. "Ok," Amar continues," I'm putting you out of your misery now. Here are your rankings." And he steps to the side so we can see the list of names on the board. 

1. Isaac  

No surprise there. 

2. Jo 

3. Brooke

I had been aiming for an average score, but with Isaac's training and needing to fit in with him and Edgar, that had been impossible. Still, at least I'm not first. 

4. Plato

Even though, admittedly, my first thought is about my score, I'm glad that he's fourth. It's not a major give away of his Divergence, meaning that he does have a chance of surviving. After all, no one Abnegation would beat up other people. But my eyes brush past his name, immediately searching for hers...

5. Dex

...and there she is. Fifth. I feel an inward sigh of relief as I realise that she won't be cut. I quickly scan the list of names. 

6. Sam

7. Amy

8. Cassie

9. Phoebe

10. Edgar

Edgar never really stood a chance. I glance at him and see that he's staring at the board in shock, as if seeing his place written down makes it so much worse. Standing next to him is Isaac, with a satisfied smirk on his face. A strangled sound comes from Edgar's throat and he sprints out of the room, the rest of us staring after him. 

The others begin to chat amongst themselves, with Cassie and Phoebe hugging the others and Plato consoling Amy, who's clearly worried that she might be cut too. 

Suddenly, Isaac grabs me by the arm, "I want to see you in the Pit in an hour's time. I'll be at the bar." I nod, stunned, and he walks off quickly. Confused, I make my way into the Cafeteria to get food. It feels heavy in my throat as I eat it, as anxiety over what Isaac has to say overcomes me. 

Finally, after an hour of worry creeps by, I make my way into the Pit and spot Isaac at the bar. He has an untouched drink on the table in front of him. 

He nods at me as I sit down. His blue eyes survey me for a moment before he smirks and says, "We shouldn't be overheard over here. Particularly with the loud music. And with Edgar finally out the way, I can tell you."

"Tell me what?" I ask, confused, but my heart begins to beat faster. I can't help but feel scared when I'm alone with him. 

"I've had a mission ever since I entered Dauntless," he begins, "My sole aim is to become a Dauntless leader." He pauses, his eyes staring into mine, as if to let that information sink in. And I suddenly remember that he believes he hasn't told me yet. How could he after being that drunk?

 I pretend to widen my eyes and then smile falsely, "Well you've always been the best of us. I doubt any of the others have the guts to be a Dauntless leader like you."

His eyes narrow thoughtfully and then he says, "Precisely." He pauses as a barman brings me a drink even though I didn't ask for it. Isaac pushes it towards me and drums his fingers on the table. Then he says suddenly, "But I also need to become a Dauntless leader to eradicate all of the Divergents in Dauntless."

I can't speak. I'm in shock. He's here to kill Divergents. People like me?

Isaac's mouth twists into a smile, "Starting with out fellow Initiates."

My heart quickens even more as he begins to lean in towards me. Does he know who-what-I am?

Is this why Erudite wants to control Dauntless-to remove all Divergents? 

 I already feel on edge, but Isaac's next words are enough to send shivers down my spine.

"And you Brookie," he says, using Edgar's nickname for me, "Are going to help me."