The Chamber [Sequel to Silence]

1

 I grunted as I swung the axe at the tree, panting. Antonia grinned as I wiped sweat from my brow.

 “Having trouble there, Arrian?”

 “Don’t push it,” I growled, preparing to swing again. Antonia lifted her axe easily and made a dent in the tree. I paused again, finally giving in and taking off my shirt. It was too hot to be working, and I always struggled under the sun. I burned easily too, and I could already feel my back tingling with sunburn.

 “Why don’t you just go home for a while? It’s not like you have to work.”

 “I think Grandmother might have something to say about that, don’t you?”

  As a Victor of the Games, I wasn’t obliged to work. I certainly didn’t need to, with the amount of money I had. But Grandmother insisted it wasn’t about money. It was about contributing to the community. Antonia, the winner of the previous year’s Games, was fresh from the arena and full of energy. She’d been one of the crazy ones that volunteers, and also happened to be my oldest friend. I’d mentored her and spent three agonizing weeks watching her battle with the other tributes. She won eventually, though it was a close final showdown. Now, at the age of seventeen, she excelled in work and was loved by everyone in the District.

 “One more swing should do it,” Antonia said, focusing hard as she swung. The tree wobbled slightly as she made a clean slice through the bark, before toppling over with a satisfying thud. Antonia grinned and leaned against her axe proudly.

 “Who’d have thought it? A girl being a better lumberjack than the famous Arrian,” she teased, pushing me lightly. I frowned. She was a piece of work sometimes. I guess I was a bit of a pushover at the best of times, but Antonia knew how to get under my skin. A lifetime of friendship tends to have that effect.

 “Don’t go all moody on me, Ari,” she said affectionately, grabbing my hand, which I quickly snatched away. Lately she’d been stretching our friendship to the limits, always wanting something more. I wasn’t sure exactly what she felt for me, but it wasn’t as simple as friendship.

 “Oh come on,” she moaned, as we began to walk back to the village “Don’t be a bore. Hold my hand!”

 “I have a girlfriend,” I mumbled, knowing she didn’t believe me. Why should she? Whenever she asked who it was, I couldn’t answer her.

 “Yeah, whatever. If you don’t like me, all you have to do is say,” she said, looking at me with her wide blue eyes.

 “I thought I already made that clear,” I said. It came out as an insult rather than a statement. Antonia looked slightly hurt.

 “Alright then. That’s fine by me,” she said, sticking her nose in the air, but I’d already seen the tears stinging her eyes. I sighed, and put an arm round her, hoping she wouldn’t get the wrong idea.

 “Tonia,” I said, resting my head against hers as we walked “You know I love you. I wish I could tell you about my girlfriend, but I can’t.”

 “Yeah, because she doesn’t exist.”

 “Don’t be like that. Why would I lie to you?”

 “I don’t know. Why would you?”

 She stepped away from me and stared me in the eye, her youthful face crumpling as she tried not to cry. I reached out to touch her arm, but she shoved me hard.

 “Talk to me when you’ve grown up and decided your feelings,” she hissed, storming through the trees. I almost called out to her, but I thought it seemed useless. With a sigh, I lugged my axe back home.

 Grandmother sat on her rocking chair on the veranda, knitting a blue scarf. I could hear the clicking of her needles in synch with the tapping of her foot on the wooden decking, a habit she’d had for so long, there was no way of breaking it. She looked up at me, taking in my burned back and calloused fingers from the day of labour. Rather than being sympathetic, she nodded in approval, rising from her seat.

 “That’s what I like to see. You must have worked hard today,” she said with a smile “Come inside, I’ll see about a remedy for your back.”

 Our house in the Victor’s Village was lovely, in my opinion. With our trade being lumber, it had been set out like a wooden cabin, but larger. Inside, potted plants and cushioned benches scattered our living room. Grandmother went into the medicine cupboard, a small room filled with jars of useful herbs and plants. She didn’t know much about medicine, but she kept a store anyway, knowing that I was the sort boy who needed all the care I could get. I was always clumsy, and not for the first time, I found Grandmother tending to my sore fingers and throbbing back.

 “Stay still!” she scolded as she touched the tender skin on my back. The concoction she had applied soothed it immediately, and I relaxed.

 “There, that’s better, isn’t it? Now are you going to tell me what’s wrong?”

 I frowned. How did she know I was upset?

 “I just know,” she said, answering my unspoken question, “Plus, I just saw Antonia. She came home crying. Have you two argued?”

 I nodded with a sigh “She wants…she wants to be more than friends. I think. And she doesn’t believe that I’m with…she can’t know. It would get us all killed.”

 Grandmother handed me a clean shirt as she nodded.

 “Yes, I can see how this could be difficult. Are you meeting her? Tonight?”

 “Hopefully. It’s not easy for her to get here, or for me to get out. I’ve taken a night job at the train station loading cargo. It’s the only way, and I won’t have much time.”

 Grandmother nodded and produced a wad of enveloped from her cardigan pocket “There are a few letters here. I don’t suppose you could pass them on?”

 “Of course,” I said, taking them and putting them in my pocket for safe keeping.

 “I’m going to the market now, I expect dinner to be ready when I return.”

 “Yes, Grandmother.”

 Evening drew in, and I set off to the train station for work. It had been a month since I last saw my girlfriend, and I missed her terribly. The station was loud and busy, and I found it easy to slip into District 12’s carriage where I knew she would be. Amongst the coal, I found her. The light to my darkness.

 “Pandora…”