Everglow ➳ F. ODAIR

Chapter Sixteen

The snowfall begins to worsen as Ebony continues to trek through the wooded land. She can barely muster enough warmth for herself, while a gust of wind blows past her stronger than the last. It's too cold, and she is starving. The protein bar did little to nothing thanks to Atlanta's sneak attack, since Ebony used up all the energy it had to offer.

What doesn't help either is thinking back to her first night alone. Although Ebony had long since gotten used to the silence between her and Samuel, the silence of that night was different. It felt lonely.

The icing on the cake was when the faces of the fallen tributes appeared in the night sky. Starting with the tribute Ebony didn't bother to know, the fallen three were shown. When Atlanta's smirking face appeared, Ebony let out a low chuckle, feeling better about getting her revenge.

By the time Samuel's face was plastered on the screen, silent tears were trickling down the girl's cheeks. While she never got to fully know him, Ebony felt a connection to the tribute. The last true interaction they shared was over a protein bar. The same snack that gave her enough energy to kill Atlanta. But Ebony can't dwell on the past, not if she wants to get out of this alive.

Trekking through the forest, Ebony's vision begins to blur in and out. Leaning up against a nearby tree for stability, she spots the cornucopia up ahead. As a smile appears on her face, the girl rushes toward it. Before she can move too far, however, her foot gets caught on something, causing her to fall onto her face.

Turning around to face the trap, her eyes widen in shock at the sight of a dead body. It's Fletcher, one of the career tributes from District Four. His eyes are glossed over, while a thin layer of snow piles onto his hair. A small net sits next to him with Ebony's foot trapped in it.

An airy gasp escapes from Ebony. How long has he been dead? All she can do is urgently untangle her foot from the net so that she can get to the supplies she needs desperately before Slate or the other careers find her.

Once freeing herself, she starts to make her way to the inside of the cornucopia. The sound of a cannon fills the area, but Ebony ignores it and focuses on her new task. She does her best to decipher the crates to find what is food and what is not food. Upon seeing more protein bars, she takes handfuls to place in her backpack, not bothering to count how many she has already. She can deal with it later.

"Put those back, One. Now." a harsh voice freezes Ebony in her tracks. The young girl slowly turns to face the girl from District Eight, Woveena. She holds a spear in her hands, aiming it directly at Ebony's face.

"And what if I don't want to?" the girl sarcastically wonders, grabbing her whip and preparing for a fight. Snarling in anger, Woveena yanks her arm back, before throwing the spear toward the girl. At the last second, Ebony slides out of the way, causing the weapon to puncture a nearby wall.

Hurling the whip forward, the young girl wraps it around Woveena's neck, which immediately begins choking her. As the older tribute claws at her throat, Ebony tightens the weapon's grip, causing it to nearly slice through Woveena's skin. The older tribute's nails scratch at her throat, as she attempts to free herself from the whip to no avail. In one final gasp of air, Ebony ends the older tribute's misery by slicing through her throat.

Silence is all that is left for Ebony, as she attempts to catch her breath. Turning back to the supplies, she snatches a blanket and a few other items that can help her survive the next few days. Right after zipping up her backpack, the girl moves to run out of the cornucopia but quickly stops in her tracks at the sight before her.

"There you are." Slate snidely remarks. His sword points towards her, as Ronan and Alexandra do the same with their respective weapons. "I was wondering where you were, sis."