My sisters…my father…..gone. Years earlier, there was trouble in the district. Those who signed up for tesserae did not receive it, but they did have their names in the reaping pool multiple times. Peacekeepers were violent. Workers were not given what they deserved, so they went on strike and the businesses they worked for came into terrible condition, schools were closed, and many children had to get the hard, backbreaking jobs that adults refused to have. These children were the only ones keeping their families alive. Many children became injured doing their jobs, including myself. Nothing was right. Nearly everyone wanted to escape it, and about half of those people actually tried to run away.
My father and sisters were a part of that group.
It was his idea to run away. It was his idea to bring Maureen and Vera. It was his idea to leave my mother and I at home.
My father decided to escape right in the middle of the horrors, after one of Emilia's friends was beaten by the Peacekeepers. He wanted to move the whole family, but mother was firm in her beliefs that things would get better. She said leaving wasn't worth it when things may get better. And so, my father left his beloved wife after commanding me to take care of her. I promised I would, and then made him promise to take care of my sisters. He agreed, and I have kept my promise.
But he did not keep his.
Three days after the daring escape, Mother and I received news that they had been found by Peacekeepers. Father was killed on the spot, but my sisters were taken to separate districts. I suppose the Peace keepers assumed they would perish on their own, and for all I know, they have. Yet, sometimes I still wonder if they are out there….