The Hunger Games: Retold

Chapter 12

"Go on then, Lover Boy," Cato sneers. "See for yourself."

I turn quickly back the way we came. I'm in a panic of indecision. I have to get them out of that clearing, but I'm terrified to leave them there alone while I come back. Speed. Speed is all I have.

The girl is slumped where we left her, but surprisingly still pulling in gasping, ragged breaths. She's a mess and I can't believe she hasn't given up yet. I grip my knife and drop down next to her, ready to end it, but she stares up at me silently and I'm overwhelmed by the terror in her dark blue eyes. I can't bear it, I take her hand in mine and place my other hand on her forehead.

"I'm so sorry," I whisper. "I'm sorry this happened to you." Her chin starts trembling and I gather her onto my lap. "You don't need to worry now," I soothe her. "It's all okay now." I feel her fighting for each breath and I whisper nonsense, shushing and lulling her until her body goes slack and her head drops back. I bow my head, grit my teeth to squelch the fury that boils up at this ridiculous, pointless loss. I take a deep, shuddering breath, then, gently, I slip out from under her weight and sweep my hand one last time over her cheek. I sprint back the way I came.

They turn to face me as I come back into the clearing. Thankfully, nothing has changed. "Was she dead?" asks Cato.

"No. But she is now," I report, trying desperately to keep my gaze from Katniss' tree. The boom of the cannon confirms it and I try to look coldly efficient. "Ready to move on?" We take off at a run and I don't glance back, but my legs shake with relief as we go.

As the sun comes up we head deeper into the woods. Deciding two groups can cover more ground, Cato, Clove and Ailis split off while I stay with Marvel and Glimmer. I'm nervous having half the company out of my sight, but they head directly away from where we were and are making so much noise I don't worry too much that they will catch her unaware. Marvel stops us after about an hour and we rest and have some water and food.

Glimmer is watching me as I drink from my water bottle. "So how does a baker boy learn about tracking in the woods?" she asks.

I swallow slowly and return the bottle to my pack. "Well," I bluff, "I don't formally track. But, you know, I've had a crush on Katniss for quite a while. This is kind of embarrassing," I say sheepishly.

"You followed her?" she asks. And she doesn't look cruel or cold, she looks interested.

"Yeah," I admit. "At first I just wanted her to be safe, it seemed like a terrible idea for her to be out alone in the woods behind our district. But after a while, I got to like it. It was like our own time out there. I was too shy to talk to her in town, but I felt like I was protecting her out there in the woods." Am I doing it up too much? It's starting to sound a little creepy.

Glimmer smiles at me. "That's sweet," she says. "You must have really cared about her."

"Yeah," I agree. "I really did."

"Blech," Marvel gags. "Enough, you two are killing me. I have an idea."

Marvel goes on to explain about a snare he learned back home. It's basically rigging a net so when the prey trips a wire trigger, it swoops down to cover and immobilize them, at least long enough to catch up with them. He brought a net from the Cornucopia and we set to work rigging the trap. I try to make my part as obvious as I dare, but he goes over it with a fine eye and does a good job of making it invisible. I can only hope Katniss is as sharp-eyed as I think she is. Or, at the very least, far away from here.

We spend the rest of the day combing the woods. In the late afternoon I get nervous as Marvel picks up a trail and we follow it. It looks as though someone was dragging something, or was stumbling? The branches are cracked and small rocks are shoved around in a weird way that reminds me of something. And then it comes to me. The boy from 10, he has a bad leg. He must be hurt, or carrying something? The dragging look makes sense, but I don't say anything, happy to keep Glimmer and Marvel intent on following someone that isn't Katniss.