I hope you guys have enjoyed these past couple of chapters. I wanted to get some background info on some of the new characters before I get back to the suspenseful stuff.

I'm really surprised with how much feedback I've gotten on the story and it's exceeding my expectations. I do this almost every chapter, but thank you guys so much for the reviews. They really are appreciated a lot. :)

We leave for the Capitol in a week. I'm regretting the trip already. I have tried to convince Peeta that we stay home, but he said that there's no guarantee we'll be safe here. I feel like we're in the Games again- on our way to certain death. I've been having nightmares every night since Paylor's phone call and Peeta has been having more tracker jacker attacks than ever before. The nightmare or reality (I still haven't figured out what it was) with Snow only intensified everything. It's amazing Peeta and I can sleep at night.

One thing that I'm happy about is Salama and Jake's new home. After discussing their situation with Peeta, my mother had overheard our conversation. She volunteered to adopt them (which means I have a new sister and brother) Then Peeta decided that they could live in his house in the Victor's Village since we live in my house. I haven't seen my mother so happy in years. She enjoys taking care of Jake and Salama and I'm glad that she does. I know that they are also thankful for having a parent figure in their lives again.

I'm in my office, working on some paperwork, which I hate doing, when Julie knocks on my door.

"Katniss, how's the work progressing?" she asks.

"I'm almost finished." I reply.

"Good, I would like to discuss something with you."

"Sure," I reply as I put my pen down.

"You requested to take next weekend off, right?"

"Yes, I did. Peeta and I have an event to attend."

"I know. I will be there too." She pauses, expecting me to be surprised.

"Oh, really?" I don't think she's convinced. I never was a good liar.

"Yes. I was a lieutenant in the war. My father was a Peacekeeper from the Capitol. My mother was the mayor of District 4 before I was born. They fell in love, got married, and had seven children. I always hated the Capitol, but I never hated my parents. Maybe my anger was directed at them in my youth, but I never blamed them for the Games and such."

"I don't think I have to explain my part in the war. Apparently everyone knows about the Mockingjay. They're even teaching about the Rebellion to the kids in schools now."

"But living through it and learning about it are two very different things, Katniss. You and I know that. I was a lieutenant in one of the squads that had a key role in the bombing of District 2. I didn't like the idea of innocent civilians being killed, but I had to follow orders. Soldier Hawthorne was always hotheaded when it came to the war. He was bent on revenge, but what he did that day was extreme, even for him."

Gale. He just keeps coming up in conversation and my thoughts lately, isn't he?

"I know. I can't tell how many times he used to complain about the Capitol when we were younger, but he wasn't that hotheaded."
"That's right, you knew Gale. You both grew up in 12. He was your cousin, right?" The look on her face tells me that she never believed it.

"Best friend, actually."

"Maybe more than that at some point."

"Maybe, but it doesn't matter now because I'm with Peeta. Besides, I haven't seen Gale since the war. I had invited him to the wedding, but he never showed."

"He's probably still sore with a broken heart."

"It's been 4 years, he has moved on."

"I'm not sure. I didn't know much about him anyway. He'll probably be at the celebration, you know."

"With an entourage of good-looking girls at his side."

We both laugh at the idea, picturing Gale with a bunch of females flocking to his side. I have to admit that I find it hilarious and Julie agrees.

"Anyway, how is Peeta doing?"

"He's been at a stable point for a while. He hasn't shown any signs of improvement, but he hasn't gotten any worse either"

"Still, he doesn't look too well. I hope the doctors find a cure for it."

"I'm sure that if they were even trying to find a cure that we would know."

"True, but they were able to prevent most of the cancer cases in Panem. Even though they haven't found a cure, it's very rare that someone will be diagnosed with any form of cancer these days. Peeta and Jake are the only ones living in District 12 who are dealing with it."

This statement only makes me more angry at Snow for supposedly making Peeta get leukemia. He's still trying to break me and mess with my emotions. "Is there a way that someone could give someone the cancer?"

"Well, I'm not sure. I know that cancer isn't contagious like the flu or the common cold. The only way that someone could contract it is if the cancerous cells were injected into their bloodstream. I don't know too much else about it. It's a complicated process. The Capitol used it many years ago to infect traitors and such. To give them a slow death. It took two to four years for the symptoms to really kick in, then eventually the victims died." Julie just shakes her head.

"That's horrible."

"I wouldn't be surprised if that's how Peeta contracted it." She looks at the clock on the wall and starts to get up, "I'm sorry, but I have a meeting to attend. I have to get as much work in before I, well we leave. Have a good day."

"You too and I guess I'll see you at the Capitol in a week."

As I put the pieces together in my head, Julie's statement seems to have truth to it, especially the part about the length of time it takes for symptoms to appear. What if the Capitol used more than just tracker jacker venom on Peeta while he was being held captive? The startling reality is that I'm almost completely sure that it's true.