Chapter 2

Katniss Everdeen, who would no longer become Peeta's stepsister, but proposed to become his stepmother, was easily the most attractive woman he'd ever seen.

The petite beauty was trembling in front of them, but her sorrowful mien only highlighted her good looks. Her gray eyes shone brightly as she wiped away the tears that fell down her cheeks. Her dark hair was coming out of the loose plait that hung over her shoulder. It was all Peeta could do to keep from reaching out to stroke the end of the braid, to feel that silky hair between his fingers.

Was Katniss serious about marrying his father? Would his dad take her up on her offer?

He hoped not because for the first time since he'd lost his leg, Peeta felt a desire to aim higher than a future of sleeping on a lonely cot in the bakery office.

He exchanged a quick glance with his brother. Rye's mouth hung open. He appeared dumbfounded, seemingly astonished by Katniss' words.

Her younger, blonde-haired sister burst into loud sobs jolting Peeta from his thoughts.

Reacting immediately, his father threw his arms around the distraught girl. "There, there," he murmured.

Prim was taller and bigger-boned than Katniss. She buried her head into his father's chest and wept.

The stationmaster came up to the group. "The conductor needs to know what you want us to do with the lady's remains."

At his blunt words, Prim let out a sharp cry. Katniss blinked several times and went paper white.

Henry frowned, and turned to Rye. "Go get our cart from the shed."

His brother bolted off.

Henry unwrapped himself from Prim. Still clutching the flowers in one hand, he spoke to Katniss. "I'll take care of this. Stay here with my son Peeta."

Not knowing what to say to the distraught sisters, Peeta pointed to a nearby bench so they could at least sit.

Katniss sat down next to Prim. Prim leaned into Katniss' shoulder and continued to cry, while Katniss stroked at the back of her hair. Peeta sat on the other side of the younger girl. Turning his body slightly, to give the sisters a semblance of privacy, his eyes followed his father and the stationmaster as they set off walking toward the baggage car at the rear of the train.

Prim continued to whimper for a while, but eventually she stopped. She pulled her face from Katniss' shoulder and wiped at her eyes, before looking around. "This station looks new, not like the one at home."

Relieved to talk about anything other than the situation at hand, Peeta turned his body toward them, "it is new."

"How could Twelve afford a new station?" Katniss asked.

"The Capitol paid for it. It came out of what was left of the War Reparations Fund."

Katniss shook her head. "But the war ended twenty-five years ago. Why would they give your district money now?"

"Rebels buried land mines deep along the tracks in front of the station during the war and in the confusion afterwards the mines were forgotten. Three years ago, heavy rains washed them close to the surface. They went off one morning when the train pulled in."

Both sisters' gasped.

"Was anyone hurt?" Prim asked.

It suddenly dawned on Peeta that this line of conversation had been a mistake because now he was going to have to pass along more disturbing news to the grieving sisters. But maybe they already knew. Maybe his father had written to their mother about it. At any rate they'd find out sooner or later.

"Ten people died, including my mother and oldest brother."

"Oh no," Prim said.

"I'm so sorry," Katniss murmured. "How awful for you." The look on her face was one of compassion and Peeta marveled at how quick she was to comfort him when she was hurting herself.

He kicked himself for not offering the sisters his condolences for their loss when they sat down. It would have been the polite thing to do. But he'd been astounded by her offer to marry his father and mesmerized by her appearance. He hadn't been thinking clearly at all.

"Thanks," he mumbled. "It was awful. They're planning to put a memorial stone out in front of the station one of these days to remember everyone by."

As if anyone in Twelve needed a marker to remember the tragedy. Peeta thought about it every time he attached and removed his prosthesis. He tapped his hand nervously on the place where his stump connected to his false limb. He wasn't ready to tell Katniss and Prim about that particular piece of collateral damage.

The two sisters fell silent and Peeta wished he had kept his mouth shut. What must they be thinking of him talking about his family's loss when their mother had just died? He didn't know what to say now. He rubbed at the back of his neck.

Fortunately Rye returned with the cart pulling it up to the bench where they sat. "Where's Dad?"

Peeta stood up quickly, eager to get away, worried that if he stayed any longer that he'd make an even bigger fool of himself. "He went off with the stationmaster to the rear of the train."

He looked to Katniss and Prim. "Wait here."

Peeta took hold of one handle of the cart and set off with Rye.

As soon as they were out of earshot of the Everdeens, Rye blurt out. "Holy hell. Do you think she's going to be our stepmother?"

Without waiting for Peeta to answer, Rye continued. "It's a damn shame if she marries Dad. He wouldn't have the first idea what to do with her. Boy, I wouldn't mind getting a crack at her though."

Bile rose in Peeta's throat at the thought of his brother and Katniss. "You've already marked all the girls in Twelve. Why don't you leave her alone? Her mother just died, for crying out loud."

Yet even as he said the words, Peeta worried that Rye would get his wish. If Katniss were like every other girl, she'd easily succumb to his brother's charms.

"What? Do you like her Peet?"

He did like her, but it was pointless. In his current situation, he had no chance of winning a girl like her.

"There he is," Peeta said, distracting his brother. He pointed toward one of the last cars on the train. His father had a clipboard in hand and was filling out some paperwork.

"It is quite unfortunate," the stationmaster was saying. "They wrapped her in a blanket, but with the heat, you'll likely want to bury her today."

"We'll see to it," Henry replied grimly. He turned to his sons. "Boys take Mrs. Everdeen to the graveyard. Tell Mr. Duggan to inter her immediately. And go the long way round the station. I don't want her daughters to see you carrying their mother off. I'll get their luggage back to the bakery."

"All right," Rye said.

Henry handed the bouquet of limp lilies to Peeta. "Ask him to place these flowers on the grave."

Peeta nodded in agreement.

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As soon as Peeta left, Prim turned to Katniss. "He seems kind of nervous."

"He probably is." Katniss guessed Peeta wasn't interested in having a stepmother his same age. But then she wasn't so keen on it either.

"Are you really going to marry Mr. Mellark?

"If he wants me."

Prim frowned.

After a long wait Henry Mellark returned, followed by a boy pulling a wagon that contained the large trunk containing all their worldly possessions.

"I've taken care of everything," he said. "Your mother will be buried this afternoon. Let me get you two home to the bakery."

Katniss suddenly remembered something. "Just a minute." She walked over to the wagon and opened the trunk, pulling out a cardboard box. She handed it to Henry. "Can you bury her with this?"

A curious look passed over Henry's face as he reached for it. "What's inside the box?"

"Our father's ashes."

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Henry, as he'd asked them to call him, took them back to the family's living quarters over the bakery. He'd showed them a small bedroom and told them to unpack their trunk.

They ate dinner with him and his sons, although only Rye and Peeta seemed to have any appetite. Katniss listened half-heartedly to the men's small talk around the table.

In the short time since they'd met, she agreed with her mother's thoughts about Henry Mellark. He was kind. If he wanted to marry her, she had no doubt he'd treat her decently. Not that she wanted a loveless match to a man old enough to be her father.

She wasn't sure what to think about his two sons though. Rye, the older one, had gotten upset when his father told him that he should stay home for the evening. He spent the remainder of the meal staring at her, as if he were sizing her up. It caused her to look away in discomfort.

Peeta, the younger son, who had been chatty enough at the station, seemed to have lost his tongue.

The Mellark's tomcat, which bore the girlish name of Buttercup, paced the room during the meal.

Afterwards, Prim had jumped off her chair to pick him up and cuddle him. She was immediately taken with the ugly creature with his mashed in nose and partial left ear.

"Was he in a fight?" Prim asked.

Henry shook his head. "We found him at the train station when we dug out…"

He didn't finish the sentence, instead his eyes filled with tears.

Katniss guessed it was after the explosion that killed part of his family. She looked to Peeta for confirmation. He nodded grimly.

Prim spent the evening playing with the cat, dragging a piece of string along the ground that the cat would pounce on, while Henry spoke about Lily when she was young. Katniss was astounded to learn that her mother used to take care of injured animals. It was as if Henry was describing another person altogether.

After he'd finished telling them about Lily saving an ailing squirrel, he turned the conversation to her mother's health. Had she been ill recently?

Katniss told of her mother's cough but didn't tell him about Lily's terminal diagnosis. Didn't mention that her mother had deliberately used Henry to get her daughters to Twelve.

"Prim, would you carry Buttercup downstairs for me?" Henry asked. "We lock him up in the kitchen at night to keep away mice. Peeta show her where to put the cat."

As soon as they left, Henry turned to Katniss. "Look I understand you're suffering from a terrible shock. Believe me everyone in this house is quite familiar with loss. We've had enough of it over the last few years.

"I don't know what happens next but I don't want you thinking you need to marry an old man to make up for your mother's death. You're a lovely girl, but you're far too young for me. You'd be much happier settling down with someone closer to your own age, like my son Rye here."

Katniss noted that Rye gulped at his dad's comment.

"I can do my own courting Dad." Rye licked his lips and leered at Katniss, causing her to turn away in embarrassment.

"Is that what you're doing at the slag heap?" Henry asked.

He turned back to Katniss. "Do you have any family left in Twelve? I know your mother's family is gone, but perhaps on your father's side?"

"Not that I know about," Katniss said. Her father had never talked of his family and Katniss had assumed that everyone had died before her parents had relocated to District Two.

"Of course, you and your sister will stay with us then."

Before Katniss could clarify how long they could stay because surely he couldn't mean permanently, Prim had returned with Peeta.

"It's been a long day," Henry said. "Why don't you two turn in? I'll take you both to the cemetery tomorrow so you can pay your respects to your mother."

The sisters lay in bed talking and crying. Between tears, Katniss told her sister that Henry had refused her offer of marriage.

Prim smiled. "I like Peeta the best."

"You're too young," Katniss chided her.

"Not for me."

Katniss shook her head.

Prim soon fell asleep, but Katniss was awake a long time, a single thought racing through her mind. What are we going to do now?

In the middle of the night, she woke after hearing a man cry out as if he were in pain. She hoped it wasn't Henry. But who else could it be? She closed her eyes and concentrated on Prim's steady breath. It lulled her back to sleep.

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While Katniss and Prim slept, the Mellarks were up at dawn to begin the day's baking.

"How long are they going to be here Dad?" Rye asked.

Peeta tilted his head to hear his father's reply. He was curious as well. What would happen to Katniss and Prim?

"I don't know," Henry said. "But they'll stay with us for now. It's the right thing to do. They've suffered a terrible loss."

"You've suffered a loss too Dad," Peeta pointed out. His father had dark circles under his red-rimmed eyes. He had to be greatly disappointed that his fiancé had died before they'd even met up again. He'd been excited for months about her arrival.

"I hadn't seen Lily in more than twenty-five years. I'm very sad about her death, but what I lost is a fantasy compared to the loss those girls have experienced. Their mother is gone. You boys know how hard that is."

Rye turned to Peeta and rolled his eyes. Peeta scowled at his brother. Likely the sisters had a good relationship with their mother, not the bitter one he and Rye had had with their's.

In their shared bedroom the previous evening, Rye had repeated what their father had said to Katniss. "He's not going to marry her."

Peeta wasn't surprised.

"He suggested she marry me instead."

Peeta had snorted loudly, but his stomach had dropped. Was Rye telling the truth? Probably. If his father was promoting one of his sons as a husband for Katniss, Rye was certainly the better choice since he would inherit the bakery.

"I don't care much for brunettes," Rye mused. "But I wouldn't mind taking her to the slag heap. Her sister's a little too young yet for me."

"For crying out loud Rye." His brother disgusted him sometimes.

Katniss and Prim came downstairs to the bakery around ten. Both Everdeen sisters had blood-shot eyes and blotchy faces, likely from crying.

"How can we help?" Katniss asked Henry.

"Sit down and have some breakfast first," he answered. "Then we'll visit the cemetery."

He turned to Peeta. "Get these girls something to eat."

Peeta had just pulled a tray of hot cheese buns from the oven. He picked up the two biggest ones and set them on plates. He put the plates down onto the large worktable in the center of the room. Then he pulled two high stools in front of them.

"Thank you," The grateful smile Katniss gave him warmed Peeta's heart, making him hope she'd forgotten about what a fool he'd been the previous day.

"Would you like some tea with your cheese bun?" he asked.

The two sisters nodded.

Peeta set the kettle onto the stove.

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Later when they'd finished eating, Henry left the shop with Katniss and Prim.

"The undertaker buried your mother, and ..er.. father yesterday," he said. "I thought you'd like to see the spot where they lay."

There was no marker in place, but the outline of fresh dirt topped with the bouquet of pink lilies made it clear where her parents rested.

"I'll have a stone placed on it," Henry said.

"You don't have to do that." Katniss was surprised at his generosity.

But Henry had already wandered off to another section of the large field that was dotted with dandelion puffs-balls before Katniss could finish speaking.

Seeing the freshly turned soil caused Prim to cry some more. When she'd stopped she whispered, "Do you think we should hold a ceremony to remember her?"

"A memorial service?" Katniss shook her head. "There's no one to attend but us and him." She pointed her chin in the direction in which Henry had walked off. "We can say our good-byes now."

"What are we going to do Katniss?"

"I'll figure something out, Little Duck. I don't want us to impose on Henry any longer than we have to."

"He seems very nice."

"He is." Guilt swept over Katniss about what her mother had done to trick him into saving them. It was wrong and the sooner they could move out of the Mellark household, the better Katniss would feel.

After saying their good-byes to both parents, the sisters located Henry in another part of the cemetery. He was standing around a section with stone markers that read "Mellark."

"My wife and oldest son," Henry murmured, pointing to their graves. "Let's go," he said suddenly, pressing his hands to his temple. "My head is aching badly."

They walked back in silence. As they got nearer to town Katniss spoke. "We appreciate your hospitality Henry, but we're not your responsibility. Do you know of any businesses that might be hiring?"

Henry rubbed his hand against his temple. "Offhand, no. Your mother and I had thought you'd help out in the bakery when you got here. But if you're looking to earn wages…." His voice trailed off. "Remind me, what were you doing in Two for work again?"

"I helped my mother with her healing tea business. I gathered the plants and kept the account books."

"Ah, that's right, your mother mentioned it in her first letter to me. Unfortunately Twelve forbids the manufacturing and sale of medicinals by individuals; I suppose it's because the medicine factory here has taken control of that market and doesn't want competition. But you could pay them a visit. They might be hiring."

"Thank you. I'll check it out."

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Peeta worked in the back of the bakery, while Rye was at the front counter. Flirtatious banter flew back and forth between his brother and a customer, a woman who had recently gotten engaged to the grocer's son. Peeta wondered if she was one of Rye's former conquests. His brother was lucky nothing had happened to complicate his life so far because sometimes spreading seed could yield a harvest.

The back door opened and his father came in alone.

"Where are Katniss and Prim?" Peeta asked.

"I told them to take a walk and explore Twelve. I think Katniss planned to visit the medicine factory. I must say I like her. She seems very determined to take care of her sister and not be a burden. She's already out looking for work. I'm sure we can keep them busy here at the bakery until she can find a job."

Peeta paused. The sisters were in a difficult position. It might be a long while until Katniss found employment. There weren't many job opportunities in Twelve. It was something he knew only too well. If only there was something he could do to make things easier for them.

Katniss and Prim arrived back at the bakery two hours later. Peeta and Rye were done baking for the day. They were cleaning up. Their father was in the small office working on the books.

"Can we help you?" Katniss asked.

Henry poked his head out from the tiny office. "Come in here Katniss. You said you had experience with business accounts. I'd like to ask you a few questions."

"What is he doing?" Rye mouthed to Peeta.

Peeta shook his head. He guessed his father was trying to keep Katniss busy. Peeta handed a broom to Prim.

Work at the bakery was easier with more available hands. Henry showed Katniss how to do the books, a task he'd taken over after his wife's death.

He also showed Prim how to help customers at the front counter and ring up sales on the bakery's ancient cash register, another job his late wife had done.

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"I like it here," Prim told Katniss one morning as they dressed in their bedroom. They'd been living with the Mellarks for almost two weeks.

"You know we can't stay," Katniss reminded her.

"But everyone is nice, and it smells so good here. And they have a cat."

Katniss scowled.

But she could think of no other alternative at present. She'd asked about employment at every business in town, but no one was hiring.

And the manager of the coalmine had turned her away flat, stating that pretty, young women like her were only a distraction to the male miners. "You'll just go off down a tunnel to sneak kisses."

Incensed at his assumption, she'd stormed off. But she was secretly relieved to be turned down for that job. Her father had worked in the mines for a short time before the start of the war and he'd called the work loathsome.

Her only hope was the medicine factory. The foreman had said he might be hiring in a few weeks. Katniss was appreciative to Henry for continuing to house and feed her and her sister. In fact, he treated them as if they were family. Of course they were helping out in the bakery to earn their keep. But the price of the three train tickets niggled at the back of her mind. They had been costly.

During the second week in September, Katniss enrolled Prim in school. Afterwards she paid a quick visit to the medicine factory to talk with the foreman again.

"We've had a some unexpected expenses recently. No new hires until next spring."

Katniss walked back to the bakery in despair. Henry found her crying over the books.

"Take a break dear. Grief is awful. It can sneak up on you…"

"It's not that," she sobbed. "We can't stay here. We're taking advantage of you."

Henry poked his head out to call to Peeta. "Get those loaves out of the oven for me."

He shut the office door. "You and Prim are helping us. I'm the one taking advantage of you because I'm not paying you and your sister a salary."

"I do your books, Henry. I know you can't afford to pay us. Besides you're providing us with a place to live and feeding us too. I just wish we ..."

Henry interrupted her. "Don't fret, we're happy to have you here. And there's an idea I've been mulling. But I'll have to have to talk it over with my son Rye first."

Rye. Katniss' thoughts flew ahead. What would he possibly have to talk over with Rye?

She thought of the comment Henry had made that first evening they'd arrived, telling Rye that he should be thinking about taking a wife.

Did Henry want her to marry Rye? Was that why he'd trained her to keep the bakery's accounts?

Her stomach dropped. She didn't want to marry Rye Mellark. He was a brazen womanizer. He flirted with every woman that entered the bakeshop. He disappeared after dinner every evening, like a tomcat on the prowl. It would be like marrying Cato. She'd never be able to trust him.

"All right." Katniss wiped at her cheeks with her hands. She had to think of some other solution to their dilemma.

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Thump. Thump. Thump. Someone pounded at the shop door.

Dinner had ended, and Katniss and Prim washed dishes at the kitchen sink.

Henry shuffled a deck of cards at the dining table, while Peeta teased Buttercup with a piece of string.

Rye had gone out to "visit a friend."

Thump. Thump. Thump. The pounding continued.

"Get the door Peeta," Henry called.

Peeta dropped the string, letting the cat drag it around the room. He went downstairs to the front door of the shop. Two blurred figured showed through the frosted-glass inset in the door. He flipped on the light switch in the entry, unlocked the door, and pulled it open.

Brendan Cartwright, the shoemaker, and Delly, his only living child and the heir to his business, stood on the doorstep.

Brendan's jaw was clenched, his hand was holding so tightly to Delly's forearm that it would likely leave fingerprints. "I want to speak with Rye."

Peeta looked to his childhood friend. She avoided his eyes.

His stomach sank. Judging from Delly's demeanor this didn't bode well.

"He's not here sir."

"Who's there Peeta?" his father called down from the top of the stairs.

Peeta turned toward the staircase and yelled. "It's Mr. Cartwright."

His father hurried down and came up beside him.

"What's going on Brendan?"

"I want to speak to your son Rye." Brendan's voice seethed with anger.

"He went out. What's all this about?"

"Rye has disgraced my daughter. She's having a baby."

Holy hell, Peeta thought. This changes everything. Maybe, just maybe, he would have a shot at a future after all.