End of a Beginning (Book 4)

Chapter Four - Beating the Odds

Over the span of two weeks, I only find two familiar names. One of someone who participated in the games with Holden and I and survived and the other belonged to a family that were displaced like the Marrens. Every step I take, the more frustrated I get. We're just wasting time and energy. We never stop in the towns, just quickly scan the plaque and head out again and then walk to the next one. It's a daily struggle and it's extremely tiresome on our bodies and minds. I've been mentally torturing myself every time we get a dead end and Derek uses his mental power just to navigate the surroundings.

When Derek points that we're near the border with Wallho, my heart starts beating a little faster. Home. It's been a while since we've been in the province and even longer since I've seen my family. But this is the best for them. They don't need a monster in the house. Up ahead we see a small town near the edge of our province. It's extremely poor looking but quiet and right now, Derek and I need quiet. We ignore the plaque when we see a crowd in the center of town screaming and shouting. I turn to Derek and wonder what all the fuss is about. When we reach them, I gasp as I realize that this is the footage of the spring games. I grab Derek's hand before I do anything stupid and drag him away from the screens. When we are out of the limits of town, Derek stops me and makes me let go of his hand for my grip was too strong. "We need to go back," he says. "We need rest." I turn to look at him and I see all the light that was in him is almost gone. "Please." My cheeks burn. I've been too distracted lately to give Derek any focus. I didn't even notice how miserable he's become.

But my skin crawls as I can still hear the men and women cheer for the games. Don't they realize how terrible they are? But I eventually realize that Derek and I need to recuperate our bodies. Nodding, we head back to the town and I try my best to shut out the noise of the crowd. Derek leads me to a pub, where he immediately goes up to the lone worker to ask him for a place to stay. Derek once explained that a lot of pub owners were also inn keepers and if not, they always kept a room or two for patrons to sleep off their drunkenness. Giving him a bit of our dwindling finances, the man points in the back and then turns back around to watch the games.

Once we close the door to the very small room, Derek drops his things and turns to me. "The games are late this year." It now dawns on me. The spring games are always aired in mid-June and then the autumn games premiere in December. But now it's mid-August. It's never late. Ever. Not knowing what to say, I drop my things and run to the small bathroom. I quickly throw cold water over my face to try to calm down. Since starting this self-mission, I haven't felt like myself and its starting to get to me and to Derek. I know he can sense how I feel but neither one of us know how to remedy it. The cure is either death or forgiveness – whichever comes first.

When I get out of the bathroom, Derek is lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling. He sits up immediately. "Ask me one thing and I'll answer truthfully," I say as I cross my arms. He's confused by this but also intrigued. He's usually the one to say the statement. Derek swings his legs over the side of the bed and gestures for me to join him. Instead of sitting beside him, I go and stand across from him and lean against the wall.

Sighing, "Tell me about your visions."

Not expecting this, I choke out, "That's not a question."

"Can you tell me about your visions?"

I scoff but it is a question. Looking at the ground, "They started right before the games. I'd simply be doing something and magically a scene from the future would come to mind. Most don't make any sense until I've experienced it."

"Can I get an example?"

My cheeks burn. Most of them have involved Derek. Almost all of them... "I knew we were going to Bok before you'd even asked me." Derek furrows his eyebrows but doesn't say anything. "I knew I was going to be in the final challenge in the last games." I pause before I say the next part, "Most of haven't come true yet though."