Ignite The Flame Within | Cato Hadley X Male Reader | Vol. 2

27 ~ Set Free

Beetie has already used half of the coil on the tree before he stops. "Typically a lighting strike contains five billion joules of energy," He informs while wrapping the coil around another portion to hold it in place. "We don't want to be anywhere in the vicinity when this hits. You two girls go together now," He says while bringing the coil to Katniss and Johanna.  "Take this. Unspool it carefully. Make sure the entire coil is in the water. Do you understand?" Johanna nods while looking between him and Katniss. "Then head to the tree at the two o'clock sector. We'll meet you there."

Peeta says beside them,  "I'm gonna with them as a guard."

"No, no, no, no," Beetie shoots back at him, "You're staying here to protect me and the tree."

I look to Beetie, and can't help but feel like something was off. Why was he so insistent on sending Katniss off with Johanna and Johanna alone? I knew she was safe with her, but it didn't help that I think Beetie was planning something bigger than this. It felt like he was already one step ahead.

"No," Peeta protests, "I need to go with her."

"There are two careers out there. I need two guards," He adds in.

Peeta looks between all of us, turning back to Beetie quickly, "Finnick would be able to protect you just fine on his own. And even then you still have Cato and Y/n."

"Yeah, why can't they all stay with you, and Peeta and I can take the coil?" Katniss speaks up. Beetie looks to Johanna and Finnick, giving me a weird feeling. Katniss then makes eye contact with me, and she points me out. "And if not Peeta then why can't I go with Y/n?"

Beetie lets out a short sigh, so momentary you could barely catch it. "You all agreed to keep me alive till midnight, correct?" He says while stepping close to Katniss.

'Yes, but why can't I go with her?" I ask while stepping in. Beetie turns to me quickly. He had an answer to everything, so of course he had an answer for this.

"I need you and Finnick for something else, which is why I need Peeta and Cato here to protect me," Beattie's words cause an instant reaction from Cato, who snaps out of the daze he is in to push forward.

"No!" Hee exclaims while stepping close to Beetie. "He's not going anywhere in the arena without me."

"It's his plan. We all agreed to it," Johanna cuts in an attempt to break the tension.

"Is there a problem here?" Finnick questions while looking up and down very quickly. Cato's breaths were heavy, but he knew better than to challenge Finnick because even if Cato was confident he'd win, it wouldn't be a fight without severe injury. He turns to me, face tight.

"Excellent question," Beetie mutters.

I turn to Katniss, who is already looking at me. Her lips tremble slightly before she answers. "No, there's no problem." She then walks up to Peeta and lays her lips on his, pulling back before leaving with the words, "I'll see you at midnight."

Johanna calls for Katniss to hurry up, and the two soon disappear into the jungle ahead of us. I'm now left with Cato standing right next to me, but that doesn't last long. Beetie thinks to himself for a moment before telling me that I had to go with Finnick into another part of the jungle.

"Why?" I ask.

He shakes his head at all the questions. "I need you two to scope out the other side of the area, like a first line of defense. Make sure nobody is up here and if they are, lure them back to the beach somehow," He orders while gently tapping Finnick's shoulder.

The taller blond man pulls his trident from the ground with his usual cocky grin before stepping over to me. "Alright ally, let's go," he says while moving past Cato and I.