The Hanging Tree. *ON HOLD*

Chapter Seventeen ~ Rylee

Chapter Seventeen ~ Rylee 

‘You don’t get to make the decisions.’ Atlas sneered as I told the pair of them where we were going to go.

‘Excuse me 12 year old, but whom here has more experience? Who here has already had a run in with Laguna and her gang? Oh that’s right. Me. So excuse you, but I think I do get to make the decisions.’ I said, starting to get thoroughly fed up with Atlas’ hostile, grumpy mood and sarcastic comments throughout the entire time I was speaking.

‘Excuse me miss “I know everything and I’m better than everyone” but who here has weapons, that they can actually use? Who here actually paid attention to the training? Who here actually scouted out for the best place to hide? Who here managed to keep not only one person alive but two?’ Atlas replied back scornfully. I spun around, my hand reaching into my waistband to get my knife but Atlas was quicker. Before I knew it I had a blade pressed against my neck, pushing harder and harder.

‘Get of me you little-’ but before I could finish Willow came between us, and hit Atlas’ hand hard enough for him to drop the knife, but not hard enough for it to press more into my neck.

‘Give it up you two! Stop arguing! We’re allies now! So just stop!’ Willow shouted her arms thrown up in anger.

‘Wasn’t my choice to be stuck with that little-’ I lunged towards him my arms outstretched and knocked him to the ground, my fingers clutching his neck.

‘PRIM! WHAT THE HELL?’ I heard Willow scream. Beneath my fingers Atlas was turning purple and his eyes were wide in fright. I blinked, once, twice, and then my heart started beating and guilt ploughed into me. I rolled of Atlas and sat on the grass panting a little, wondering why on earth my temper had just snapped and I had lashed out so suddenly and so harshly.

‘I- I didn’t- I don’t-’ I stammered trying to find the right words to justify my actions and apologise at the same time. Willow had rushed over to Atlas and was holding his head asking if he was alright, while he looked at me completely bewildered, not at all like his usual angry stare, and something else that made something inside of me recoil. He was frightened. Frightened of me, of what I could do to him.

‘I’m sorry, I swear I didn’t mean to.’ I started.

‘Save it!’ Willow snapped. ‘I don’t want to hear your excuses! You don’t just go around strangling people!’ She was on the verge of angry tears and as she finished speaking it dawned on her that, actually, in here you did go around strangling people, if it meant you could survive. Willow turned towards the general direction of the hanging tree and I knew what she was thinking. I had seen the same person, a girl no older than 14 with bruises decorating her neck, obviously inflicted with human hands.

‘I told you we shouldn’t have trusted her.’ Atlas murmured, but he seemed much more reserved and his cockiness melted away and you could actually see a 12 year old, with messy dark brown hair and a gentle olive skinned face but hard eyes that had been battered and bruised throughout life. I looked down at my lap and took a shaky breath and willed myself not to cry and spoke.

‘I’m sorry, so sorry! I don’t know what came over me, I’m really sorry Atlas. I get that you won’t forgive me, hell I don’t forgive me, but I’m sorry. I’m angry at the world and I just want to die because it’s so much easier than living but I can’t because then no one will look after my brother.’ I said as a voice at the back of my mind was telling me how idiotic I was being by opening up to two kids who may use my vulnerability to their advantage. ‘But now my brother is nowhere to be found and I’m all alone and I can’t stand it but I’m forced to because I don’t have a choice.’ I let out a deep breath and looked up to see Willow and Atlas staring at me intently. Willow’s eyes had softened but she still looked wary, and to my great surprise Atlas was looking at me with such a strong gaze that it made me look away, but not before I realised why he was looking at me like that. He recognised this behaviour; he had seen it multiple times. He knew exactly what it was like to look and feel desperate, frantic, terrified. Suicidal.

‘Prim-’ but before he could say another word we heard voices and I looked at the pair of kids who suddenly turned alert. Willow whipped out her knife but I shook my head, frantically trying to get her to put it away. I thanked god as she lowered it back into its pouch. I gestured silently towards the bushes and allowed the two a sceptical glance before signalling more wildly that they should get in the bushes and hide. Strangely enough they obeyed, Atlas allowing Willow to pass in front of him and then sneaking in beside her. I cast a quick glance backwards, and saw the first shadows of people appear on the trees and quickly concealed myself in the bushes keeping my gaze fixed on the woods. A few minutes’ later people came creeping out and I instantly recognised Laguna’s bright red hair but it took me a little longer to place Rylee, the boy from district 4. My eyebrows creased in confusion at this rather odd pairing and I glanced to the side, trying not to rustle any leaves and saw Atlas look equally confused. I looked back to Laguna and Rylee and saw them striding towards our hiding place, but I was positive they hadn’t seen us as otherwise they would probably make a bee-line straight towards the bushes but they didn’t, which made me come to the conclusion that we were well enough hidden. They seemed to be having a heated argument but I wasn’t sure if it was an argument just yet.

‘-stop questioning everything Rylee!’ Laguna’s annoyed voice drifted towards us and I pressed my body against the ground and trying not to make a sound, knowing that if I could hear her she could most probably hear me.

‘I’m not questioning everything Laguna, I’m just questioning what the hell I’m doing here with you!’ Rylee answered back, which was a stupidly brave thing to do.

‘Because it’s so much easier for people to pick us of when we’re together as a huge group, idiot,’ She rolled her eyes and I could just about make out the writing that was etched across her shoe, ‘CG&co’ CB standing for Capitol Gamemakers. She kept coming closer but thankfully showed no sign of knowing where we were.

‘Don’t call me that.’ Rylee said threatening, his voice turning low and angry all of a sudden.

‘Jeez chill,’ Laguna said, noticing the change of tone, ‘it’s not like you’ll be alive to care at the end of the week.’ And then she let out a loud cackle that chilled my blood.

‘Shut up. Shut up, shut up.’ Rylee kept repeating over and over, his younger features scrunched up and his hands flew to his ears and he started screaming, ‘shut up’ and he just wouldn’t stop. Laguna looked totally alarmed, and she started telling him to stop yelling but he wouldn’t, so she tried yanking his hands away from his ears but he was too strong. She just kept yanking and pulling and her screams mixed with his screams and then suddenly something was really off. The screams were muffled and the feet had stopped shuffling around so much. I looked up a bit and saw Rylee shoving a knife into Laguna’s leg. She was so shocked she didn’t say a word as cruel malice lit up Rylee’s eyes and he kept digging it into her muscle and he just wouldn’t stop. A scream started from somewhere and Rylee’s head spun towards me. Without realising it I had jumped up and thrown the knife that was hanging from my waistband. We both watched the knife and everything seemed to go in slow motion and for a second my thoughts flew to the possibility that it wouldn’t hit and I would die without properly saying goodbye to my brother.

And then I realised that I was the one screaming.

A/N

omg.

this is an awful chapter I’m so sorry! I just cannot write anymore! I try to, I swear I try, but I lay my hands on the keyboard and I have nothing. I can type nothing. I literally forced myself to write this chapter, so I may be taking a break to try and get my writing juices flowing because I just cannot write anymore, so I’m really sorry, I’m going to be the awful writer I am and not update for a while until I can finally get some more ideas.

I hope you guys understand, and thank you so much for getting me to 3,000 reads. I cannot believe 3,000 people have read this so wow and thank you! You guys are the best fans ever!

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~BurntBreadCiara