If Fire Caught

Chapter 28: Katniss

"Katniss," I hear Prim say as she shakes my shoulder. "Please wake up." I open my eyes and see her smiling beside me.

"What are you smiling about?" I ask her. "Need I remind you that we are in the middle of a war?"

"You'd be smiling too if you knew what I did," she says.

"What are you talking about?" I ask her.

"Gale got him back, along with the others," she says.

"Who?" I ask her.

"Peeta," she says. "Who do you think I was talking about?"

"He's here?" I ask her. She nods. "Why wasn't I told? I wanted to go too." I try to stand but I feel groggy.

"You were too close to the mission," she says. "With your connection to Peeta, your emotions would have compromised the mission. They drugged both you and Finnick so you two wouldn't fight to go too. And trust me, he's just as angry as you."

"Can I go see him?" I as her and she nods.

"He's in the higher levels," she says smiling. "In the clinic near the hovercraft bunker." I hug her and kiss her forehead before I start running through the halls to the clinic. I push open the doors to a gruesome sight. Johanna Mason fights off doctors who try to treat her and I see the deep wounds on her shaved scalp. I see Finnick holding tight to a small redhead covered in nothing but a sheet who clutches tightly to his neck. I see Gale and walk to him.

"Where is he?" I ask him. "Where is Peeta, Gale?"

"The doctors are looking at him," he says. "He was knocked out by the same gas we used on the guards." I wrap my arms around him.

"Thank you," I say as I pull away and try to go to the examination room, but Gale grabs my arm.

"I have to warn you," he says. "he's in really bad shape. I don't even want to know how he got some of those wounds."

"I don't care," I say. "I need to see him right now." He releases my hand and I push through the door. Peeta's sitting up on a table and there are two doctors just finishing examining him and dressing some of his wounds. His back is turned to me so he can't see me.

"Peeta?" I whisper as I begin to walk towards him, going to stand in front of him. His head snaps around and his eyes train me, watching my every movement. "It's really you. I've missed you so mu-" I'm cut off as he leaps forward and pins me to the ground, his hands cutting off my air as he clutches my throat. I scratch at his hands with my tattered nails that are practically nonexistent considering I keep biting them.

Suddenly he lets go and falls on top of me. I push him off and he falls on his back, unconscious. I look up to see Boggs standing there with one of the standard issue clubs the higher officers in Thirteen carry. I look over to Peeta and notice how right Gale was.

Peeta is covered cuts, scraps, burns, bruises, oh so many injuries. There are huge, dark circles under his eyes. Not to mention what ever just made him strangle me.

I gently lift his head and bring it to my lap and begin to stroke his blonde curls, still matted with his dried blood.

"Oh Peeta," I cry, my voice hoarse and cracking with pain from the bruises left by his fingers. "What has he done to you?" I gently kiss his lips and forehead, my tears staining his face.

"I'll go get a medic for you Ms. Mellark," Boggs says before glancing at Peeta, "And maybe a hospital cell for your husband."

"Thank you," I say and clutch my throat in pain. He nods and leaves. I like him. He's the only one who was born in Thirteen that actually calls me the name I took that night before the Quell. I look back to Peeta and touch my forehead to his. I hear footsteps approach me and I look up to see Haymitch and Gale standing there. I feel tears start to sting my eyes again as I look up at them.

"He attacked me," I say. "He tried to kill me. What did Snow do to him? He's not my Peeta anymore. Why did he try to kill me?"

"The doctors found a large amount tracker jacker venom in his system," Haymitch says. "As you know, it causes powerful hallucinations. The doctors' best guess is that over the near two months he was prisoner, the was given does of the stuff and shown things that caused him to believe you are a threat. They're already doing research on it. Plutarch said its a new kind of torture Snow was developing called hijack. And I'm sorry to say, as of right now, there's no cure Sweetheart."

"What are they going to do to him?" I ask.

"They are going to start trying treatments as soon as they can and have him locked in a secure room where he can be monitored and can't get to you while he's like this," Gale says. "Haymitch is going to take you to your mother while your mother fits you with a cold collar to reduce the swelling."

"What about Peeta?" I ask.

"I'll stay with him and make sure they don't do anything to him that is not completely necessary and try to arrange for you to see him as soon as we have him in something to keep him from hurting you," he promises. I nod and gently kiss Peeta's forehead.

"I love you," I whisper. "I'm going to get the real you out of there. I promise." I get up and walk over to Haymitch, who wraps an arm around me and leads me out of the room. I look up at him to see him frowning.

"We are going to get him back," I say. "Aren't we?" He looks down at me with sadness in his eyes.

"I don't know Sweetheart," he says. "I just don't know."