A/N- Okay, so I've been working on some other stories, but I'm back! I've been thinking of organizing myself into a posting schedule. Maybe if I update once a week on Sunday night? Is that okay? If I have a deadline, I'll be more likely to write. And then you guys will know when to expect a new chapter. Anyways, on to story! Thanks to everyone who's been keeping up! Enjoy!

Chapter 4: The Victim

Katniss

"So where are we going, exactly?" asked Johanna as she, Peeta, and I headed towards the elevators.

"I'm going to show you where one of the victims lives," Peeta replied as he pressed the bottom button. The doors opened and we stepped in as the elevator began to close and we descended towards the garage.

"Couldn't we just have looked that up?" Johanna rolled her eyes.

"No, there were no records of that person, but Peeta seems to know where her family lives," I explained.

"Lavinia lived alone with her brother, I think, but I heard that he died a couple years ago," Peeta added.

I studied the picture in the folder, and, as the elevator doors swooshed open, it came to me: I had seen this woman before. Her red hair, her mysterious gaze, her pale skin and sharp features….they were very similar to her brother's. He had been killed.

"Johanna, I think her brother's death was the case we couldn't solve, back when I worked with Gale," I told her as we stepped out to find to find our vehicles. Before Johanna, Gale had been my partner, but then he was reassigned to weapon design. It was while we were still engaged. It seemed lifetimes ago.

"No way, what are the odds?" Johanna exclaimed as she unlocked her car. Peeta was coincidentally parked beside hers, and he suggested that I go with him, so I accepted.

"Well, they're certainly not in their favor, that's for sure," Peeta noted as he opened his door. I stood in between their cars, thinking.

"Yes, but that's not all. Gale and I saw her. We saw the look on her face when her brother died. He was shot with a spear- a spear- right in front of our noses, but nobody saw where it came from. That's why it was such a mystery. It happened in plain sight, in the middle of the street, and nobody saw it. Surely someone would have seen a person walking around with a spear, but if they did, no one confessed. That's why Gale and I were shocked when we were allowed to keep our posts even after leaving that case unsolved; we searched for months and months, but to no avail," I confessed.

"Wait, so you're interrogated Lavinia on another case before?" Johanna asked, perplexed.

"That's the thing. We never saw or heard from her again, until now. After her brother died, she ran off," I told her.

"Well, I saw her buying bread the other day, and I even saw where she lived after she left," Peeta shrugged.

"I guess she either came back after getting her tongue cut off, or you're just plain brainless," Johanna said as she climbed in to her car. I glared at her in response. "I guess we'll find out after this," she added before closing the door and revving up her engine.

I then climbed into Peeta's passenger seat as he did the same and we drove away, Johanna following us. "So how is that you know where she lives?" I inquired as we left the garage.

"Um, I noticed that she was mute, and that I had never seen before, so I was just curious as to who she was, I guess. I was leaving my shift and heading towards the bar, and I saw her walking nearby, so I followed her. She lives in an abandoned building a couple blocks behind the bar. She's practically homeless. I don't know why anyone would want to bother her," he said, frowning.

I pursed my lips as he stopped at a red light. "This doesn't make any sense…it sounds to me like she's still running away from her predator…but why?" I wondered out loud.

Peeta shrugged, and then proceeded to drive as the light turned green. He then smirked and said, "So you never told me if you liked what I did to you earlier." His right hand slowly trailed down to my thigh, his fingers tentatively brushing up my skirt.

"Hands on the wheel," I reprimanded him as I slapped his hand away. The heat that had radiated from his palm was still lingering on my leg. At this rate, I would never be able to concentrate on my job.

"Fine, we're almost there anyway," he announced as he made a turn. Sure enough, before I knew it, we were parking in front of an abandoned building, just as he had described. Johanna parked right behind us.

"Let's do this," I said.

Peeta

We went inside the dilapidated building, as there was no door to even knock. "Hello? Is anyone here?" Johanna called out.

"Oh, now who's brainless; you're talking to a mute person," Katniss commented sarcastically. Johanna gave her the finger, and Katniss scowled in response.

It was then that we heard a whimper coming from somewhere within the building, and we instantly headed towards the sound. I ran behind Katniss and Johanna as they led me towards the far right-hand corner, where Lavinia was curled up in a ball, rocking back and forth. Her eyes were unfocused, and her expression was distraught. She appeared half-starved.

Katniss instantly leaned in towards her, checking her as if she were a patient. I then recalled that her sister Prim was training to be a medic. Perhaps Katniss had picked up on some of that. "I'm not sure if she's very stable, but she definitely needs to see a doctor," Katniss finally decided. Lavinia seemed not to have heard her.

"Here, let's see if she can recognize me," I suggested as I bent down and tried to hold eye contact with her. "Uh, hello there, I'm the guy that works at the bakery…Peeta, remember? It was a few weeks ago," I said lamely.

Lavinia finally looked up and retained my gaze. Her lips twitched, and I could have sworn it was a hint of a smile. "I think she does recognize you," Johanna said, surprised. I turned towards Katniss, and she took out a piece of paper and a pencil.

"We're going to ask you a few questions, and we want you to write down the answers if you can, please. It's very important to us," Katniss instructed. Lavinia took the items, and, somehow seemed to understand, since she nodded.

"All right, we'll be quick, I promise, and then we'll take you to a hospital," she continued.

"Do know who did this to you?" Johanna asked.

Lavinia nodded and scrawled, "The Avox," in response.

"Yes, we know that, but do you know where this person is, or what he or she looks like?"Katniss pressed.

Lavinia shuddered and wobbled her lip. "It's okay, we'll keep you safe," I assured her, taking her hand and smiling reassuringly.

She smiled weakly and I released her hand so she could write. It was a single word: "Coin."

I frowned, and then looked up at Katniss and Johanna in confusion as they exchanged fearful glances. "Director Coin, from the CIA?" Johanna asked Lavinia, who nodded, her dark eyes wide with sheer terror.

"That's impossible," Katniss whispered.

"We'll see about that," Johanna decided as she called an ambulance.

"I still can't believe it's Director Coin," Katniss mumbled to herself when we watched Lavinia being taken away to a hospital.

"She may be wrong. That's why we're going to investigate. Lavinia is under our protection now. We'll keep interrogating her as soon as she recuperates," Johanna replies.

"Well, I better be heading back to the bakery; I have a lot of work to do. Good luck with your case, and please keep me posted. I want to make sure that Lavinia is all right," I requested.

"I'll see you tonight," Katniss affirmed.

"Bye, baker boy," Johanna smirked. I rolled my eyes and headed towards my car, Katniss leaving back to the agency with Johanna.

I was tending to a customer when I heard the ding of the doorbell that signified a new person coming into the shop. I tilted my head up and grinned. It was Katniss.

I bid goodbye to the customer as Katniss approached me. She winked at me provocatively as the door shut behind her. "You about done there?" she asked as she leaned over the counter, offering me a generous view of her cleavage.

I raised an eyebrow. "Somebody's horny," I joked.

"It's been a long, long day, Peeta. Johanna and I kept trying to contact Director Coin, but we had to set up an appointment. It was ridiculous. She wouldn't even spare us a five-minute phone-call," she grumbled.

"Well, I can spare you that and more," I said, winking.

"That reminds me. What happened to your wife?" she asked. "Is she gone already?"

I sighed. "Yes, she left this afternoon with all of her things while I was with you. She took all of her things. I don't even know how she managed it in such a short amount of time," I marveled.

"Maybe someone helped her," she suggested.

"Yeah, probably," I shrugged as I wiped the counter. A sense of déjà vu overfilled me as I recalled our last reunion at the bakery. It had been the night that Delly had discovered my infidelity.

Katniss walked around the counter and wrapped her arms around me from behind. "What's wrong?" she whispered in my ear, her hands tracing my down my torso.

"Nothing, I just finished up here," I said as I tossed the rag away just as she began to nibble on my ear. I wondered if she had ever done this particular gesture with Gale. I winced at the thought. She stopped.

"Tell me what's wrong," she insisted as I turned to face her.

"Katniss, I know we've been doing this for a few months now, and it's been great. You're fun, and adventurous, and sexy…" I trailed off.

"Yes, and…?" she asked skeptically.

"Well…I know you used to love Gale before," I began. "But when I was with Delly, well…it was fine and cute, I guess, but it was nothing compared to being with you, because I didn't love her," I confessed.

Katniss frowned. "So you're saying that I'm just messing with your feelings," she stated flatly.

"No, no, that's not it at all!" I argued. "I'm saying that you must have made love to Gale, but you never have with me, because you never say you love me," I protested.

Katniss gaped at me. "Peeta, Gale was an idiot! You can't possibly compare my relationship with him to what I have with you! It wasn't bad, but he never made me the feel the way you do," she exclaimed passionately, her gray eyes storming.

I closed the distance between us. "Prove it," I growled.

Katniss

I accepted his challenge without question. I reached up towards him, my mouth meeting his as I wrapped my hands around his neck. Even kissing Peeta was more significant than being with Gale. Everything ignited within me, the juxtaposition of the roughness and softness of his lips against mine turning into a fiery contradiction. He tightened his arms around my waist, his tongue poisoning my throat and his teeth sweetly torturing my bottom lip. No, kissing Peeta was never a disappointment; it was never an ordinary act. He surrendered his soul to me when he did so.

When we finally came up for air, I could see the blue fire burning in his eyes, and I knew that they matched the palpable intensity in mine. Wordlessly, I grasped at the bottom edge of his shirt, not caring that we were still behind counter of the bakery; it was closed. He helped me pull it over his head, and my hands instantly dipped down to his sharply sculpted waist, desperately unbuttoning his cotton prison. He did the same to me, our clothes landing on a heap on the floor as we lay on top of them. I grinded my hips against his as I pinned him down, leaving marks on his throat as he unhitched my bra, his short nails scratching my back.

His coarse hands clasped my bare breasts and pinched the tips, twirling them in between his fingertips as I moaned in response. I bit my lip rousingly and caught his crooked smile as I pulled down his boxers, descending my body with them until they came off and revealed his stunning erection. I came back up to meet him in the eye as I enveloped my fingers around him; soaking in his reaction as his jaw twitched and his eyes glazed in ecstasy. His forefingers hooked themselves my panties, swiftly removing them before I could even feel it. We were sitting halfway up now, and my core was treacherously close to his rigidness. I teased his tip with my pinky, and then proceeded to rub the rest of his length until I reached his sac. I smirked at him before returning to his lips as I squeezing him, hard.

He nearly convulsed as he mumbled and groaned incomprehensively; I knew this was his weak spot. He flipped us over, his figure dominating over me before he descended inside me. I took in a breath, sighing as his lips assaulted mine again while he thrust away steadily. Stars and sparks flashed before my eyes as he increased his speed, his feather-light touch tickling the underside of my thighs while he held my hips firmly with his other hand. I trailed my hands unto the defined ridges of his chest and abdomen; we had each other memorized. I arched my body upwards as his tongue lapped at my neck and chest, making a path towards my peaks, taking each one in. His mouth was blissfully wet and hot on me, the hinting of a beard on his jowl scraping my skin like sandpaper.

The hearth within my core began to burn as the sweat distilled from our pores. I could feel him filling me as he dug deeper and deeper. My walls began to tighten around him as he continued to fondle my body with his hands; his fingertips stroking light patterns on my skin, making me shiver. He began to twitch as he dug his head in the crook of my shoulder, and I knew that he was close. I held on to his strong shoulders as we climaxed together, and, in that moment, the sky was so close I could touch it. Warm fluids mixed in between us, and, as he turned to me again, I noted the glistening droplets dripping down his face and tinier ones gathering on his philtrum.

He grinned at me triumphantly as he pulled out, and I lovingly swept away the damp curls from his forehead. Oh, how I regretted my first intentions with him. But I couldn't tell him that. I couldn't admit to him that I had only been seeking vengeance from Gale's infidelities in the beginning. I had been wrong, and I had fallen in love without intending to get back up. Peeta had that dark, perverse side I craved, but also that sweet side I didn't know I needed. I would never make love to another man again; it wouldn't be the same. I had wanted to forget Gale by using Peeta without expecting me to turn into love's victim. I had fallen into my own trap, while still struggling to escape my husband's snare.

Waking up beside Gale all of this time had been torture; I could barely breathe the same air as him anymore. But now, seeing Peeta laying beside me on his kitchen floor, I couldn't help but laugh. Peeta noticed my reaction and chuckled. He bent his head towards me and scattered kisses all over my face, the ambrosia peppered with I-love-you's.

But how could I possibly compare Gale with Peeta? Being with Gale had always lacked passion; it had been much like doing nothing. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me," I whispered to Peeta as our eyes locked, my fingers caressing his hair as his arms wrapped protectively around me. His azure gaze was an ocean caught in the middle of the storm.

"You love me, real or not real?" he finally asked.

And I said, "Real."

To be continued…