Katniss and the boys tramped down the slope, the snow already compacted by the many trips they'd already made over the same ground. As she walked, her eyes surveyed the area. All the trees remained upright, however a large limb, with many long branches jutting out from it was lying next to one of the fir trees. Could that be what Teagan meant?
She raised her hand to point. "Is Peeta under that tree limb?"
"Yeah." Teagan sounded as if he was forcing himself not to cry.
As they got closer and she didn't hear anything, Katniss wondered if he'd been hit on the head.
No, no, no.
The memory of her father's unexpected death flashed through her mind. Happy and healthy, and gone in an instant in a workplace accident.
Instinctively her hands flew to her midsection. She rubbed it like it was a lucky talisman.
Please make your Daddy all right.
She reached the limb and lifted a couple of branches to get a look underneath. The limb was lying close to Peeta's side. He was pinned by its branches, his body pushed down a few inches into the soft snow.
If he'd been struck by that limb…
"Peeta, are you okay?"
"Been better." The branches covering his face muffled his voice, but at the sound of it her panic ebbed.
He must be okay if he can talk.
"Are the boys okay?"
"They're right here. They're fine.
But how was she going to set him free?
Katniss walked over to the end of the limb and tried to drag it off him, but it was far too heavy. Besides she wasn't supposed to be lifting, not in her condition. Another thought came to mind.
"We're going to pull up the branches so you can roll out from underneath them."
"Excellent."
Katniss showed each child where to stand and put a couple of small branches in their hands. Then she knelt down in the snow and reached underneath a few of the biggest branches.
"Lift when I say three and hold it." She didn't expect a six-year-old and a three-year-old to have much strength, but she didn't know what else to do.
"One, two, three."
The boys made exaggerated sounds as if they were characters in a cartoon. It would have amused her, if Peeta hadn't groaned.
"I can't roll. My body has embedded itself in the snow."
Can't roll or is he injured? The groan didn't bode well.
"Okay, change of plans then," Katniss said. "You can stop now kids." Katniss gently set the branches back down. "Do you have a knife or something in the car that I can use to cut you free?"
"Only the plastic knife I cut the sandwiches with."
Katniss reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone. She dialed 911. Nothing. She turned it off and shoved it back into her pocket.
"I'll break off the branches with my hands then."
It was easier said than done. The kids weren't any help and Katniss' gloved hands quickly grew tired as she bent a single branch back and forth multiple times until it broke.
Still she persevered. First she uncovered Peeta's face. Evergreen needles were stuck in his hair and beard. A cursory look showed that it was undamaged, not even a scratch.
The boys, who had lost interest in her rescue attempt, were throwing snowballs at each other. But they came closer when their uncle's face was exposed.
"Are you alive Uncle Peeta?" Taiden asked.
"I am sport."
"Maybe you boys could help by pulling the needles out of your uncle's hair and beard," Katniss suggested.
Meanwhile she continued to work to free his upper body. If she could uncover it, maybe he could sit up and slide his legs out from underneath the remaining branches.
"How did it happen, Peeta?"
"It was the strangest thing. I was standing here and I heard a crack and…" His voice trailed off, as his face turned pink. There was a rustle underneath the branches, and then the sound of a zipper.
Katniss cheeks grew warm. "Everything okay?"
"The crown jewels are still intact."
Taiden's eyes grew big. "You have jewels Uncle Peeta? Are they in your pocket?"
"We'll talk about that later," Peeta said, a small smile appearing on his lips. He caught Katniss' eyes. "No damage done."
"Good." Her eyes flitted away from Peeta's.
How in the heck did we get into a conversation about jewels? And why do I care that everything is fine?
"Let's see if we can't get your uncle out of here, boys." Katniss' voice turned serious. She was on the edge of hysteria already – laughing about the Mellark crown jewels might cause her to go into a full-blown crying jag.
"Do you think you'll be able to walk to the car?"
"I think so. My legs feel fine."
One branch more and his chest was uncovered. She turned to Teagan. "I need your help."
Kneeling next to Peeta, she put her hands behind his back. With Teagan's help, they managed to push Peeta into an upright position, but not without him letting out a few groans.
"Do you want to sit here for a while and rest?"
"Nah, I want to get out of the snow and back to the car."
Katniss stood up, the kids doing likewise. Planting his arms at his side, Peeta shifted his body backwards and pulled his knees up from underneath the branches.
"I'm going to need your help to stand Katniss."
She got on one side of him and Teagan got on the other. With great effort he turned, twisted to his knees and leaned against Katniss as a crutch to stand.
Katniss held his arm as he trudged stiffly up the hill, the boys walking alongside.
"Get the inner tube, Teagan," Peeta said. "Help your brother, Taiden."
The boys rolled the inner tube across the highway as Katniss and Peeta crossed.
Peeta pulled out his car keys and handed them to Katniss. "Would you drive?"
She unlocked the passenger door and helped him inside, and then opened the back door and buckled up the kids as well.
Katniss put the inner tube into the back of the vehicle. She climbed into the driver's seat, and put on the safety belt.
"I'm taking you to an E.R. to get checked out, Peeta." His stiff walk and slow movements, made it clear he was in pain, even if he wasn't admitting to it.
"I'll be fine. I got the wind knocked out of me. I'll be back to my old self in a day or so."
Scowling, she turned the key in the ignition, her foot gently resting on the gas pedal. But instead of the gentle hum of the engine turning over, a click sounded.
Katniss turned the key again. Another click.
She looked to Peeta. "What's wrong?"
He frowned. "Sounds like the battery's dead." He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out his phone. He punched in a number.
Please work, please work, please work this time.
"There's no reception up here," he mumbled.
"Let me give it a try." She pulled out her phone, hoping for better luck this time. But it was useless.
"What's wrong?" Teagan asked. "Why aren't we going?"
Katniss turned around in the driver's seat. "The car isn't working right now."
"How are we going to get home then?" the child asked.
"I'll wait by the road and flag someone down for help, Teagan," Peeta said.
"You're in no shape to do that Peeta. If anyone's going to stand on the side of the road, it's me."
"No, Katniss." Peeta frowned. "It's too cold."
He was right about that. But worse she'd only seen one car drive down the highway in all the time they'd been there.
"Do you have anything we could use to make a sign to flag down a passing car?"
Peeta furrowed his brow. "I don't think so." He clenched his lips, and closed his eyes.
Katniss pulled the keys from the ignition and opened the door.
Peeta's eyes flew open. "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to look in the back of your car and see if I can find anything we can use to make a sign."
She opened the hatchback and pulled out the inner tube and ice chest. Next to it was a small first aid kit. Opening it, she found some aspirin, which she pulled out for Peeta, as well as a silver space blanket.
Maybe she could use the blanket to make a sign. The shiny silver color might capture a passing motorist's attention. But what could she use to write on it?
She poked her head into the car. "You don't happen to have a sharpie pen in your glove compartment, Peeta?"
"No, sorry. I left all my sharpies at home. Did you find something? I emptied the back out this morning so I could fit in the ice chest and inner tube."
"I was thinking we could drape the emergency blanket across the back of the car. I just need something we can use to write on it."
"Don't you have lipstick or something?" Peeta asked.
Does he think all women carry make-up on their person? I hardly wear it. Has he not even noticed?
"No, I left all my lipsticks at home."
"Use the peanut butter on that sandwich that Taiden refused to eat."
"Not my sandwich," Taiden whined. "I might get hungry."
"It's going for a good cause, bud. Write HELP, Katniss. I don't think there's enough peanut butter to write more than that."
She pulled the sandwich from the plastic container. Thank goodness Peeta had been so generous with the filling.
Unfolding the space blanket, she lay it onto the snowy ground, writing HELP in large letters.
She lay the top of the silver blanket partly across the floor of the back of the car and then put the inner tube and ice chest on top of it, but not before taking out the food. She might as well bring it into the front seat so she could get at it more easily if anyone got hungry.
Carefully, she put the back door down on it. The HELP sign hung down across the bumper of the vehicle.
Katniss got back into the driver's seat, setting the remaining food on the dashboard above the steering wheel. "It's all done."
Peeta was looking through the vehicle's manual he must have pulled from the open glove box. "There's got to be something in here about dead batteries."
She handed him the aspirin packet. He opened it, and swallowed it down.
Katniss hoped they wouldn't have to wait long for help. Looking behind her she saw that Taiden had fallen asleep.
Teagan looked pensive. "My Mama is supposed to pick me up tomorrow. We'll be home by then, won't we?"
"Of course we will." Katniss kept her voice even, but she was nervous, too. She didn't like the idea of Uncle Haymitch worrying about them. Hopefully he'd call the authorities when they didn't return. Then, at least, someone might come looking for them.
But how will they even know where to look?
The sun had warmed the car's interior, but as it started to set, the temperature grew cooler inside. And not a single car had passed in all that time.
"I'm taking the sign down. We need to use it for a blanket."
She brought the space blanket inside. It was cold to the touch. Katniss draped it over herself, hoping to warm it up for the boys.
Taiden had awoke while she was outside. He was crying. "I'm hungry. I want to go home now."
"Have some Krumkake," Peeta said. A momentary grimace appeared on his face as he stretched out his arm to reach for the container.
Has he hurt his ribs?
"That's a good idea. Why don't we all eat something," Katniss said. "We'll probably feel better."
She offered some food to Peeta but he refused, offering it to her instead, telling her she needed to eat it keep her strength up. In normal circumstances she would have disagreed with him, but the occasional kick in her belly reminded her that she had someone else to consider. So she shared the remainder of the potato chips with the boys, who also split the remainder of the peanut butter sandwich between them.
"I'm cold," Teagan said, when he was done eating.
"Put the space blanket over you and your brother." Katniss handed it over to Teagan. The child had climbed out of his booster seat and was sitting in the middle of the backseat near to his brother.
"Can we lick off the peanut butter?" Teagan asked.
"Just a couple of licks. We might need to put up the sign when the sun comes up."
She tried to sound cheerful, but she was finding it difficult considering the circumstance. How were they going to survive a night in the car in freezing temperatures?
"Do the seats go down?" Katniss turned to Peeta.
His eyes were closed as if he was dozing. She tapped him on the shoulder. "Peeta, do the seats in your car go down?"
He startled awake. "Yeah."
"Maybe we should put them down and we could all huddle together to keep warm."
Before he could respond, a loud pounding sounded on the side window, causing her heart to race. Both boys yelped.
Turning her head she saw a bright light pointed at her. Peeta put his hand on her right shoulder as she opened the car door. The figure stepped back.
A tall man in a yellow parka held a flashlight upward, illuminating his face. It was the man she waved at earlier that morning; she recognized him immediately. He was tall, with sea green eyes and a face that a movie star would envy.
"Are you in trouble? Has your car broken down?"
The cold caused her teeth to chatter. "Y..y..yes. It won't start."
He pointed the flashlight to the interior of the car. "How many are inside?"
"Four," Peeta said, leaning across the console.
"I'm want to go," Taiden whined. "Can you take us home?"
The man smiled. "It's too cold and dark right now for me to check out your car. Besides my wife's been expecting me home for hours. I'll take you to my cabin. It's just up the road. You can spend the night there with us, and we'll see about getting your car started in the morning."
Katniss turned her head to look at Peeta, seeing the relief in his eyes. He nodded.
"That would be great, thanks," she told the man.
"Okay then. I'm Finnick Odair, by the way." He put out his hand.
Katniss took hold of it. "I'm Katniss." She turned and pointed toward the others. "That's Peeta and Teagan and Taiden."
"Nice to make your acquaintance." He eyed the booster seats "It's not too far to drive, we probably don't need to mess with those kids' seats."
"Okay."
Katniss unlocked the back door for the boys. Both scampered out.
Taiden immediately grabbed Finnick's hand. "We made a sign out of peanut butter."
Finnick's eyebrows rose. "Well, that's certainly creative."
"Do you know Santa Claus?" the boy continued. "He lives at the North Pole."
In a short time, they were seated in his warm vehicle. Katniss sat in the back with the children, while Peeta rode up front with Finnick.
As they rode a few miles to his house, Finnick explained that he and his wife Annie were wintering in a nearby cabin that they'd borrowed from a friend. "I'm a writer so the solitude suits me. I went for a long drive today to work out a plot twist and I was on my way back home when I noticed your car. I passed it this morning and I thought it was strange that it was still parked there."
Finnick appeared interested, when Peeta explained what had happened to him, prior to the car not starting. "A tree limb snapped off and fell on you? Sounds like something I'd put in a story to rescue a sagging plot."
Katniss had pictured a tiny cabin, but it was a large log house. Lights shone out the big front windows showing off the covered porch.
As soon as the car pulled up, the front door opened and a tall, thin woman with wavy brown hair came out. Her eyes grew big when she saw that her husband had brought guests, but she quickly smiled at them, her eyes going soft as she took in Teagan and Taiden.
"Come inside where its warm," she urged them.
Peeta held the handrail carefully as he walked stiffly up the stairs, while the boys flew up running for the door. Katniss walked behind Peeta wondering at his injury.
They entered a cozy room with wooden beams overhead, shiny wood floors below, and leather chairs and a leather couch all facing a stone fireplace in which a fire burned. A tree decorated with a string of popcorn and red and green ribbons stood in one corner.
"Take a seat Peeta," Finnick advised him. "Do you need an ice pack or anything?"
"No, I've been sitting in a refrigerator for hours. I'd rather thaw out."
Finnick introduced everyone to Annie and explained to his wife how he'd found the family stranded in a disabled car not too far from the cabin.
A dog barked and everyone turned toward the sound.
"Puppies," Taiden shrieked. He rushed over to a nest of blankets set along the wall near the fireplace, followed quickly by his brother. Atop it lay a golden retriever on her side, nursing her welps.
"How many did Goldie have?" Finnick asked his wife.
She frowned. "Six."
Finnick turned to Katniss and Peeta to explain. "Goldie's a purebred show dog. We've mated her once before, but Goldie found her own boyfriend this time, a mutt that lives in our neighborhood.
"Would you folks be interested in a puppy?"
Teagan turned his head. "Can I get one Uncle Peeta?"
Peeta chuckled. "You'll have to ask your Mom about that."
"You all must be hungry," Annie interrupted. "I made a big pot of clam chowder, and we have leftovers from yesterday's dinner."
"My wife made far too much holiday food for me to eat if I want to keep my girlish figure," Finnick joked, rubbing his hand across his flat stomach.
Katniss smiled gratefully. "Yes, thank you. We're hungry."
At least I am.
Annie pointed down a hallway. "There's a bathroom in that direction if you want to wash up first. And you can hang your coats on the hooks by the door."
Katniss unbuttoned her borrowed coat, put it over her arm and then walked over to the boys who were kneeling in front of the nursing dog and removed their jackets and hats, as well. Next she came to Peeta who was telling Finnick about his bakery in Dandelion.
Peeta unzipped his coat and Katniss helped him to take it off because he was having difficulty.
It must be his ribs.
"You've got that down to a science," Annie said. She eyed Katniss' belly. "Looks like you don't have much longer."
"Three and half months more. And once I hand this stuff up, I'm off to use your bathroom."
After using the facilities, Katniss found Annie in the kitchen re-heating food for dinner. "By any chance, do you have an operating telephone? Neither of our cell phones work up here and I wanted to let my uncle know we won't be back tonight."
Annie opened a drawer under the counter. "Use this. It's a satellite phone."
"Thank-you," Katniss said. She carried the phone back toward the hallway outside the bathroom for privacy and dialed her uncle's number. It was nearly 7 p.m. He must be concerned.
But it wasn't Uncle Haymitch that answered. It was Prim.
"Where are you Katniss? I spent all day driving across the state to surprise you and Uncle Haymitch. And now I find out you're pregnant. Why didn't you tell me?"
Katniss gulped. She wasn't ready for this conversation right now. "Please tell Uncle Haymitch that Peeta's car battery died. We're spending the night at the house of the man who rescued us. We'll be home tomorrow."
She didn't wait for Prim to ask any more questions; she ended the call.
Crap. Crap. Crap.
She should have told Prim she was pregnant. But her sister always made her feel stupid. Unmarried and expecting at forty, with only a part-time, temporary job. Prim would have a field day.
Katniss carried the phone into the kitchen and placed it back in the drawer. The others were already seated at the dining table adjacent to the open kitchen.
"Were you able to make your call?" Annie asked.
"Yes, thank you. My uncle was expecting us back today. I didn't want him to worry."
She sat down at the only empty chair, the one next to Peeta.
"I made you a special herbal tea," Annie said. "It should warm you up after being outside all day."
"It's great Katniss, you should try it," Peeta said, holding up his mug.
It must be good. His cheeks are already rosy.
"Peeta, your tea is a hot toddie," Annie said. "I can't give alcohol to a pregnant woman."
Peeta took another sip. "No wonder its goes down so smoothly."
Finnick and Annie kept the conversation lively, talking about their home on the coast and their dog and their son, who'd recently graduated from college and had taken a job on the other side of the country. Katniss suspected they were eager to see new faces after spending the last month holed up in the woods.
As they spoke, Katniss tried to guess at their ages. They didn't look much older than Peeta and her. Still they must be since they had a twenty-two year old son.
"Do you know what you're having?" Annie asked Katniss pointing at her belly.
"A girl," Katniss said.
"First one on my side in three generations," Peeta bragged.
Annie grinned. "How exciting. Have you figured out a name yet?"
We haven't even discussed it.
"I'm leaving that to Katniss," Peeta said, turning to give her a shy smile. After accepting Annie's offer of a second hot toddie the look of pain had disappeared from his face.
"Well you have a lovely family, you're very lucky," Annie said.
"Thank-you." Peeta set his spoon down and reached for Katniss' hand under the table, squeezing it.
She turned to give him a smile, feeling slightly uncomfortable about the way Peeta was misleading their hosts to make them think that they were all one big happy family.
But he hasn't exactly lied.
"Are you sure you don't want a puppy to make it complete?" Finnick's joke interrupted Katniss' internal battle.
Peeta chuckled and shook his head.
"Will you look at that?" Annie said pointing to Taiden.
The three-year-old had laid his head on the table and fallen asleep.
Annie stood up. "I have just the bed for him. A giant pillow."
Finnick frowned. "You're not serious Annie."
"Well, why not? Goldie never used it."
Finnick looked to Katniss and Peeta. "My wife bought a big, round dog bed for Goldie to sleep on while we were here. Unfortunately she prefers the leather couch." He waved his spoon toward the sofa facing the fireplace. "We're going to have to buy my friend a new couch after this visit. Goldie's already left some scratches on it."
"Here, I'll show you," Annie said, ignoring her husband. Katniss stood up and followed Annie into a bedroom across the hall from the bathroom. A double bed with a brass headboard and two nightstands dominated the room, but in the corner was a large plush, circular pillow that must have been four feet across at it's widest part.
"Don't you think it would make a fine bed?" Annie asked.
It did look cozy, and very clean too.
"I swear to you that Goldie never used it, even once. She just sniffed at it and walked away."
"I believe you," Katniss said.
Teagan came into the room. "Can I sleep on it too?"
Annie nodded. "I think both boys would fit nicely."
She turned to Katniss and smiled. "Then you and your husband can have the bed to yourselves."