When We Fall~Finnick Odair {Book 3}

Chapter Eight

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It had been a week since Autumn had told the Districts that she and the rest of the victors were being held captive in Snow's Mansion. And Finnick had been an even bigger wreck since then.

He had not left his room. Katniss had made sure servants in District Thirteen were giving him food and water, but he didn't eat or drink any of it.

Katniss walked into his room to drag him out of bed. He had scruff on his chin and his hair was growing longer and had been growing out for the past two months since he arrived in District Thirteen.

"Finnick," Katniss greeted him at his door. In his hands, he was staring down at a picture of Autumn.

After the arena blew up, a few soldiers from District Thirteen went to District Four and grabbed what they could from Finnick and Autumn's house, including a few pictures.

He looked up from the picture to Katniss, his face looking as solemn as usual. And it would only get worse.

"There's another video coming in," Katniss told him. "It's live."

Finnick stood up, abruptly, leaving the picture and necklace behind in his bed. He follows Katniss out of the room and to the production room with the large screen.

"I have to warn you," Katniss spoke with her hand on the door handle to the production room. "I have no idea what this video will show."

"I don't care," Finnick told her. She nodded, opening the door.

The video had already begun when they walked into the room. President Snow was on the screen, standing in front of a chair with a monitor next to it. The monitor showed a person's heart vitals and brain waves, although the lines were flat due to no one being hooked up to the machine.

"I heard about that machine," someone in the room whispered to another. "It creates memories in your mind. It gives you fake visions."

Finnick and Katniss walked closer to the screen, standing next to Beetee who was also watching the live video.

"Hello District Thirteen," President Snow smiled into the camera, his hands held behind his back. "As you and the rest of the country know, I have the three victors by the names of Peeta Mellark, Johanna Mason, and Autumn Reeves in my custody." Finnick snarled as he heard Snow say Autumn's name. "Now, because of your little rebel, Autumn, there have been even more protests in the Districts along with District Four loosing faith in the Capital completely. This is chaos. And chaos must be destroyed. You are all probably wondering what has become of Autumn since her outburst on live camera a week ago." Snow smiled, slyly. He looked like a snake. "Well...bring her in!"

President Snow yelled this out of the room. A moment later, you could hear the door of the room open and close behind the camera.

Snow stepped to the side when Peacekeepers walked into the shot, dragging a body along the ground with them. At first, no one in the production room recognized the body until the Peacekeepers dropped the person down on the floor.

The person's head rolled to the side, facing the camera. And that's when Finnick recognized that it was Autumn.

Finnick let out a small gasp. He couldn't believe how different she looked within a week. She was extremely thin, her cheeks looking hallowed. Her hair was knotted and her cheeks and lips lost their rosy color.

Autumn struggled to put her arms under her, getting to her hands and knees. When she did, she spat blood out of her mouth before looking up at President Snow in disgust.

"Ms. Reeves has gotten barley any food or water for the past seven days," Snow smiled at the camera. "She has been put in solitary away from her victor friends and she has been getting beatings around the clock."

Finnick let out a silent sob, seeing how broken his love had become. He couldn't believe she was still alive.

Snow nodded at a Peacekeeper, a sparkle gleaming in the old man's eyes.

Two Peacekeepers walked up to Autumn and picked her up by her arms. Her head fell to the side and her eyes closed as she didn't even have the energy to keep her neck engaged. One of the Peacekeepers grabbed a fist full of her hair and yanked her head back up. She opened her eyes again, staring into the camera. She knew Finnick was watching.

"Do you have anything you'd like to say to District Thirteen, Autumn?" President Snow asked.

She glanced at him before looking back at the camera, a small smirk playing on her lips.

"I hope you're a cool as everyone thinks you are, Katniss," Autumn spoke. "And Peeta is okay." The emotions in Autumn's eyes changed and she seemed to look only at Finnick. "And so am I."

"Not for long," one of the Peacekeepers spoke.

The two Peacekeepers dragged Autumn backwards and sat her down in the chair behind them, locking her wrists and ankles in with metal clamps.

A doctor walked into the camera view and stuck a needle in her wrist, injecting a yellow liquid into her blood stream. It was tracker jacker venom. They hooked her up to the monitor, the heartbeat line beginning to beep. And then they flipped a switch and it all turned on.

Autumn's eyes rolled back into her head as she closed them, almost like she fell asleep. The screams that came out of her mouth, though, suggested that she was definitely not asleep.

"Finnick! Finnick!" Autumn screamed, the yells roaring up her throat. Finnick stared at the screen in horror, feeling helpless. President Snow smiled from his place next to Autumn. He looked at the camera and walked forward.

"This is what we do to rebels," Snow smiled once again. Autumn screamed Finnick's name once more from behind him. Snow creased his eyebrows together in curiosity. "Are you watching, Mr. Odair?" He asked. And then the camera went black.