Chapter 13

Peeta got up to shut the door because the strong winds were blowing rain into the sod house. But what he saw when he stood in the doorway unnerved him. In the far distance was a long funnel-shaped cloud that skimmed the ground. It was moving away from them in an easterly direction. But of course winds were known to shift course. The twisted cloud could very well turn back and head straight toward them.

Quickly he turned to see if Katniss had noticed it. But she was busy cleaning up from breakfast. The thought came to him to keep the news from her. Why should the both of them worry?

He returned to the table. They sat with a single candle burning between them. There wasn't anything that needed to be done inside the station, and after the earlier events of the morning, he found himself self-conscious around her. She seemed to be as shy as he, hardly meeting his eyes.

He'd thought about was had occurred while outside feeding the horses and realized that despite their kisses, Katniss hadn't said she'd marry him. She'd simply consented to allow him to kiss her. Unless the answer was in her kisses … In any case they had more to talk about.

He was racking his brain trying to think of a way to start that conversation when Katniss interrupted his thoughts.

"Where do you think Jackson got all that whiskey?" Her eyes settled on the empty bottles she had lined up against the wall.

Peeta frowned. It was a good question. "Well, he didn't purchase it at our trading post. Someone must have been bringing the liquor to him. Or maybe he was buying it off travelers headed west." Most travelers had a bottle or two packed away in their wagon for medicinal purposes. In case of injury, it was the only way to ease pain.

"But he shouldn't have been drinking on the job any way," he added.

A loud screeching noise sounded. Katniss' eyes grew big.

"It's probably the wind," Peeta said, although he worried that the strange cloud had turned and was headed back their way. It would be just his luck to finally win Katniss' affections and then have disaster strike.

Still he got up from the table and pushed the door open slightly to peer out. There was no sign of the twister, although the winds were strong. Yet the squealing of the horses was even louder than the cries of the wind. Looking toward their pen, he saw that part of that roof had blown off.

"I'm going to check on the horses." If anything happened to their mounts, he and Katniss would be stuck at the station even longer. "Stay inside. I'll be right back."

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Katniss sat inside the house thinking that she should leave tomorrow by herself for Hawthorne Station. The idea that her relatives could be seriously ill weighted on her mind. She suspected Peeta would disagree and he had good reason - it wouldn't be safe for a lone woman to travel across the Plains.

But she still had Vick's clothes. If she put them on, she could disguise her appearance. It had worked before.

She waited for Peeta to return. After a while she got bored and went to open the door to see what was taking him so long. The wind pushed at the door forcing her to throw her body weight backwards to stop it from flying open completely.

Surveying the area, she gasped when she saw Peeta lying face down on the ground, near to where Jackson's body had been the previous day.

She let go of the door handle completely, not caring if the wind broke it off its hinges, and ran to him. Light rain pelted her, along with bits of dried grass that had been torn from the prairie. She knelt next to him. His eyes were closed, but there was blood on the side of his face. It looked to be coming from a cut on his forehead. Near to his head lay a broken bottle, one left behind by Jackson.

She leaned in close to his ear and shouted so he could hear her over the wind. "Peeta, are you all right?"

He groaned, opening his eyes and twisting his head toward her.

"I need to get you inside." Already her dress was damp. Peeta's clothing was wet.

He mumbled something she couldn't make out.

"What?" she shouted.

She put her ear close to his mouth as he repeated, "I twisted my ankle. I'm not sure if I can walk."

His ankle? But it was his head that was bleeding.

"You can lean on me," she said.

She rolled him onto his back and then put her hand behind his head to help him to a sitting position. His eyes were unfocused, and she made him sit still until they seemed less clouded over.

The cut on his forehead continued to bleed, but she had to get him inside before she could take care of it. She was able to get him standing, but he groaned every time his left foot hit the ground.

She helped him inside and to the bed.

Peeta grimaced as he sat on its edge. Katniss left Peeta for a moment to pick up one of Jackson's shirts that lay folded on the ground. She tore off a sleeve, folded it, and pressed it into this hand.

"Hold this to your head to stop the bleeding."

He lay back onto the bed. Katniss fiddled with his double-knotted laces, and then removed both boots. She pulled off his socks next, and then carefully touched his left ankle to see if the bones were out of place.

"Does this hurt?"

"A little." But from the look on his face Katniss could tell it was painful.

Already Peeta's ankle was swelling, but all the bones appeared to be in the proper position. Katniss sighed in relief. Peeta would have to keep off his feet, but she was glad it was only twisted and not broken.

"It's not a break," she said, looking straight at him.

His blue eyes stared back as if he were confused by her comment.

"What happened to you?" she asked.

"My foot got caught in the grass. I tripped and fell onto one of Jackson's bottles." He pulled back the cloth from his forehead. "Is my head still bleeding?'

"It's slowed. Let me get some water. I can clean up your face. It's covered in blood."

If he were any other patient, she'd offer to remove his wet clothing as well to make him more comfortable. But after kissing Peeta senseless earlier, she didn't feel comfortable stripping him to his drawers. Instead she covered him with a blanket and prayed his clothing dried quickly.

She sighed as she worked. It was clear she couldn't leave the station now. Not with Peeta injured.

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Katniss hummed as she worked. Peeta appreciated her cheerful attitude because he felt like a colossal fool. Why had he decided to check on the horses while the storm was raging?

In the moment it had seemed safe enough. The twister had clearly moved away or dissolved. And he'd been worried about the horses. There were four in the pen. Two of them belonged to him and his brother. They could hardly afford to buy two new ones, not now.

Peeta bit his lip from crying out as Katniss cleaned the wound on his head, picking out a sliver of broken glass.

"It could use a couple of stitches," she said. "But I doubt Jackson was enough of a seamstress to have a needle and thread handy."

So she wrapped a cloth tightly around his forehead to ensure that the bleeding stopped and the skin would heal closed.

"I'll make you some tea," she said, when she'd finished.

Feeling lightheaded, Peeta shut his eyes. Soon Katniss was shaking him awake. "I think you can sit up now. The bleeding seems to have stopped." She was retying his bandage.

Katniss helped Peeta get into a sitting position. She held the cup for him to drink.

"You're a good nurse," he said, after taking a sip. He wondered if there was anything Katniss couldn't do well. Wondered if she thought him a fool.

After he finished the tea, Katniss helped him to lie back down. He quickly dozed off. He didn't know how long he slept. He remembered waking up and falling asleep a few times. When he woke up the house was dark. Could it be night already? He lay on his back with an arm resting across his midsection. He put his hand up to run it along the sleeve of her garment.

Katniss. She was asleep next to him. Contented, he dozed off.

When he woke up again it was morning. The door was propped open and sunlight flooded into the house.

Peeta put his arm out to reach for Katniss, but she was gone. He slowly sat up, twisting his body so that his feet were on the floor. But as soon as he stood upright, he fell back to sit on the bed.

His left ankle hurt like hell. He couldn't put much weight on it yet. He had a vague memory of Katniss saying it wasn't broke. But maybe that was a dream. How was he supposed to get around?

He stood up again, careful to put his weight onto his right leg, and hobbled to the chair at the table, wincing the entire time. A plate of cornbread sat on it. He sat down and ate. Afterward, he got an idea. He stood up and reached for the back of the chair, leaning into it. He pulled it to his left side, and dragged it across the dirt floor using it as a crutch until he reached the open door of the house.

It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining. If Peeta hadn't seen yesterday's storm, witnessed its fury firsthand, he would never have believed it had occurred.

"Katniss, where are you?" he yelled, concerned because he couldn't see her anywhere near to the house or the horse pen.

For a brief moment Peeta wondered if she'd abandoned him and taken off for Hawthorne Station to help her sick relatives. He reminded himself yet again that she'd never actually said "yes" to his proposal. But regardless of her feelings for him, Peeta knew that Katniss would never leave him stranded at the relay station. She simply wasn't that type of person.

He dragged the chair outside the door and sat down on it. He might as well enjoy the day seeing as he was stuck here. Hopefully she'd appear soon.

"You must be feeling better."

Peeta blinked a few times, coming awake at the sound of Katniss' voice. He'd dozed off for a few minutes in the sun. She stood in front of him looking like a goddess of the Plains, a rifle in one hand and a dead rabbit in the other.

"You went hunting," he said dumbly. He should have thought of that.

"I wanted meat." She changed the subject. "What time do you think Sam will arrive?"

Peeta did the calculations in his head. He wondered if the storm had delayed the mail. The twister was headed toward the east. He hoped the trading post hadn't been damaged.

"Before dark," he surmised.

The day was spent in a pleasant fashion. Peeta sat outside in the sunshine studying the clouds and taking the occasional nap, while Katniss sat at his feet weaving a crown made from strands of broken grass.

When the rabbit was cooked, she brought a plate with the meat on it outside for him to eat. She dragged the other chair from the house to join him. They ate with their fingers, together off the same plate, stripping the meat from the carcass, and then sucking the bones until they broke and the fatty marrow came out. Its spongy texture was rich and tangy.

All the time they ate, they laughed at the antics of the birds playing in the tall grasses.

Peeta couldn't remember ever being more relaxed and content. He wished he could freeze the moment and live in it forever.

When they were done, Katniss took the plate away to wash. She returned shortly to sit at his side.

"I've been thinking about what you said about getting married." A pink color crept into her cheeks.

He turned to stare at her, his heart pounding in anticipation of what she might say.

"I will marry you Peeta."

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She'd come to her decision last night as she lay next to Peeta hardly sleeping. Trying to stay awake so that she could shake him awake every few hours.

Her mother had warned her that head injuries required vigilance. She had emphasized the point by telling Katniss the story of a man who had slipped into a sleep that led to his death after being kicked by his horse. While Peeta's head injury was not as severe, it still involved a blow to his head, and his eyes had seemed unfocused when she'd found him.

She'd lost too much already, too many people that she loved. If she were to lose Peeta, she wouldn't have any kind of life. She'd shrivel up and die if all she had to look forward to was a future at Hawthorne Station.

She's already spent nearly a year mourning her loved ones. It was time to return to the land of the living. She wanted, no she needed, to feel alive again. And Peeta could do that for her, he'd already done it.

He reached for her hand after she spoke, and she leaned forward to kiss him when the blast of the Pony rider's horn sounded.

"It's Sam." Katniss said, pulling back after their lips had touched lightly. She sprang up from the chair. "I'll saddle the horse." She dashed off in the direction of the horses' pen.

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"What are you doing here?" Sam asked when he saw Peeta seated. "You look like you were in a fight." The boy got down from his horse and came closer.

"Yeah, a fight with a broken bottle. Unfortunately I lost."

"Did you get Katniss to Hawthorne Station already?"

Peeta shook his head. "No. Jackson's dead. Katniss and I found his body."

The youth's eyes grew big. "She's here with you then?"

"Yes, she's saddling your horse right now. Neither of us could leave because of the storm. Did you get it bad at the trading post?"

"Naw, the wind whipped up a bit but no damage."

"That's good," Peeta said. "Look Sam, you need to pass along the word that Jackson died to the relay managers and to Gale Hawthorne as well," Peeta explained. "Haymitch needs to get a replacement here fast because we can't stay here indefinitely to tend this station. Katniss wants to get to Hawthorne Station and I'm sure Rye is missing me."

As he spoke to Sam, the full impact of Katniss' words hit him. They would be wed. But when?

At that moment Katniss appeared, leading a saddled horse for Sam. The teen mounted the fresh horse, pulled it to the other horse's side and transferred the mail pouch.

"Tell Gale, I'll get there when I can," Katniss told Sam before he took off.

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Haymitch Abernathy rode up to the station the following morning while Katniss and Peeta were eating breakfast.

"Where in the hell are you Jackson?" he yelled.

"He mustn't know," Katniss said to Peeta. She stood in the open doorway and called to him. "Mr. Abernathy."

Haymitch's eyebrows rose. "What are you doing here? " He climbed down from his horse, tethering him, and walking toward the house holding two bottles of whiskey.

"Your relay manager died. Peeta and I found him dead three days ago."

"Are you joking?"

"I wouldn't joke about that."

Haymitch pushed past her and entered the soddy. "What is this? You and Peeta playing house?"

Katniss flushed at his lewd comment.

Peeta glared at the supervisor. "We've kept your relay station operating Haymitch." His voice was sharp, causing Katniss to give him a grateful look for his attempt to protect her reputation.

Haymitch looked around the soddy, his eyes resting on the bed in the corner. "Doesn't look like that's all that's going on here boy," he guffawed. He stopped to stare at Peeta's head. "Has the girl taken a swing at you?"

"My head was cut open with a broken bottle during the storm," Peeta stated firmly.

"Don't get yourself all worked up," Haymitch said, noticing the angry stares from both Katniss and Peeta.

"Seeing as Jackson has no need of this, I might as well drink up." He set one of the bottles down onto the table and held up the other bottle. "Care for a drink?"

When they both refused, he pulled out a pocket knife and uncorked the bottle, then held it to his mouth and took a long pull.

"I stopped by Hawthorne station the day before yesterday," he said looking toward Katniss. "Your cousin was asking if I'd seen you. He said you were due back soon."

"Are they still abed with sickness?"

"What sickness? Everyone's hale and hearty at that station. Your cousin was heading out to help a neighboring farmer with his harvest when I left. Trying to convince my Pony rider to leave the station and join in the work."

Blood rushed to Katniss' face as she considered Haymitch's words. No one was ill. She had rushed back for nothing. But as she thought over the past few days alone with Peeta, she realized they'd changed her life. She'd finally got to spend some time alone with him and as a result she'd come to a momentous decision. Everything had worked out. Still, she was going to have some strong words with Gale when she returned.

"You got anything to eat," Haymitch asked. "I'm hungry."

"How long will it take for you to find someone to take over this station?" Peeta asked, as Katniss rose to wash the bowl she'd finished eating from and put some corn porridge in it for Haymitch, who had already taken her chair.

"A few days," Haymitch said. "I've got just the man in mind for the job. But he's at Ft. Kearny. I'll have to bring him out here."

"Well, I hope your new man isn't like Jackson," Katniss said. "He wasn't doing his job at all." She stood near the table with her arms crossed in front of her.

Peeta motioned for her to take his seat, but she shook her head. Peeta's ankle was too weak yet to be putting his full weight down on it.

Haymitch set down his spoon and rubbed his hand along his chin. "Eli Mitchell may like to drink but he'll take this job. I heard from a stage driver yesterday that he's dead broke."

Katniss eyes widened at Haymitch's news. "Eli Mitchell," she repeated, glancing at Peeta whose face had gone pale.

"Look boy, I know you and your brother may not like him because he cleaned you out at cards, but he's not so bad," Haymitch said.

"Cleaned us out? What are you talking about?" Peeta asked.

Haymitch snorted. "It's the talk of Ft. Kearny. He said he got on the first stage out of Mellark Ranch cause he thought your brother was about to skin him alive."

"That's not what happened," Peeta said. "But you say he's dead broke now?"

"He lost it all in a poker game."

Peeta looked glum.

Haymitch finished up his stew and stood up. "I'll leave now for Ft. Kearny and get Mitchell. I'll be back in under a week."

"Just a minute." Peeta leaned forward across the table. "Katniss and I have been stuck here for three days already. This isn't our job. How about you stay here for a few days while I get her to Hawthorne Station where her cousin is waiting. I'll return and relieve you so you can head to Ft. Kearny and get your friend."

Katniss studied Peeta's face. She suspected he had some plan up his sleeve, but she wasn't sure what it could be.

Haymitch narrowed his eyes. "You're probably right. If you stay here together much longer, Gale Hawthorne will be showing up with a rifle and a preacher. Okay, I'll do it, but get back fast. I only got the one extra bottle and it's not nearly enough to last me."

"We can leave right now," Katniss said, surprised to be done with the station so quickly. "I'll saddle up the horses.

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Thirty minutes later, the couple was riding west. It was mid-morning. Peeta estimated they'd reach Boggs' station by late afternoon.

"He can't hire Eli Mitchell," Katniss said.

"I know. But hopefully if we tell the other station managers that Haymitch is looking for a replacement, someone will know of a local person that can take over."

Peeta shuddered thinking about what Rye would do when he heard that Eli had gotten off the stage at Ft. Kearny and gambled away all the money he'd been given. His brother would be furious.

But it would be worse if Eli learned that Delly and Rye were married. The man could bring charges against them. Bigamy was a crime. But more likely, from the little Peeta knew of Eli, the man would spend his life sponging off Rye, blackmailing him to keep his marriage with Delly a secret.

For a quick moment he thought about asking Katniss to run away with him. They could get her things from Hawthorne Station and just keep riding west. Find a preacher to marry them, and then locate a town to settle where he could open a bakery. They could go all the way to Oregon, maybe even California. It wasn't his responsibility to be solving everyone's problems.

He sighed. He'd run away when he was young and learned his lesson. It was far better to face up to things. But still it was a nice daydream.

They were riding along quietly when Katniss spoke. "Peeta, I don't want to stay at my cousin's house any longer. Can we just get my things? I'll go back with you. I'd like to be married as soon as we can."

Peeta was surprised at her request. When she'd agreed to marry him, he'd assumed it wouldn't be immediately. He thought they might set a date a little off in the future, time enough for him to ready his house for her.

At present, it had less furnishings than Jackson's relay station. All he had to offer her was a bed. He didn't even have a stove to heat the dwelling. It hadn't been necessary because the weather was warm. But he'd surely need one before the winter arrived.

"Don't you want a wedding party with your family? A fine dinner and a wedding cake?" He could certainly provide a meal and a cake for her.

"We'll never be able to get both our families together to do things properly. They live too far apart and neither can leave their home stations."

"You're right about that," Peeta acknowledged. The responsibility to keep the Pony Express stations manned made it impossible for everyone to be in the same place.

"And after what Haymitch said about no one being sick, well I don't think I can stand to stay there."

"Is it that bad?" Peeta asked, curious at her reasoning.

"It is, but that's not the only reason." She slowed her horse and turned to face him. "I don't want to be parted from you. I don't want to sleep alone."

"All right." A nervous tremble went through him at her words because he felt exactly the same. He and Katniss had been sharing a bed for the past few days. They'd kept things chaste, although it hadn't been easy. But Peeta didn't think either of them could continue to hold back much longer if they continued to slumber together.

His brother hadn't cared, but Peeta preferred to be wed to Katniss if they were to be together as man and wife. Although they hadn't talked about it, he suspected Katniss might feel the same.

"I guess that besides looking for a replacement for Jackson, we should ask around about a preacher too, then."

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The more Katniss thought about it, the angrier she got. Why had Gale requested her to return to Hawthorne Station if no one was ill? To act as an unpaid servant for his wife and child?

She had no desire to live there any longer. She was engaged to be married. There was no reason that she should postpone her wedding day. She glanced at Peeta who rode slightly ahead of her and sighed.

She'd spent the last three days alone with him. Surely she knew him fairly well now. Knew that he liked his tea without sugar, that he double-knotted his shoelaces, that he liked to sleep with his arm thrown around her waist.

Her cheeks burned as she thought about their sleeping arrangements. Yes, she wanted to marry him immediately. She wasn't waiting any longer.

They arrived at Boggs' Station in the late afternoon.

"We can water the horses here," Peeta said. "But we probably shouldn't stay too long. We can spend the night at the next station."

Katniss remembered the old man and woman that ran it. They'd been so friendly to her when she'd passed through before.

"All right."

The entire Boggs' family was working outside when they arrived. Mr. Boggs was in the garden with his son, while his wife was doing the laundry with her two daughters.

They all turned to look as Katniss and Peeta rode up.

"Jacob," Peeta called, as he climbed down from his horse. "It's Peeta Mellark."

"Peeta," the man said. He wiped his brow and walked over to the couple. "What are you doing here? Were you injured?" He pointed to the bandage wrapped around Peeta's head.

Peeta's hand went up to his forehead. "Oh this? It's a casualty of the storm," he replied. "We're heading for Hawthorne Station. I was escorting Katniss back home when we discovered Jackson, the fellow at the swing station east of here had died. We were stuck there a few days until Haymitch Abernathy showed up this morning to tend the station."

"He needs a replacement," Katniss broke in. "Do you know of anyone who'd like the job?"

Boggs exchanged a glance with his wife who had left her washtub to join them. He shook his head. "No, I don't."

Katniss' face fell.

"I'm sure he'll find someone soon," Boggs said. "I'm glad to see you're all right though," he looked at Katniss. "You had me worried when you came through with the mail pouch."

"I was fine," she said. "The run went fine."

"Look, why don't you come in and have something to eat," Mrs. Boggs suggested.

"Yes," Jacob urged. "I can water your horses."

"I'll help you," Peeta said.

"Are you hurt?" Boggs asked when he saw Peeta's limp.

"I twisted my ankle in the storm."

"I have just the thing that may help."

Katniss followed the woman and her children inside the soddie where Mrs. Boggs served her tea, and biscuits with plum preserves.

"Call me Sarah," she insisted. "It's nice to see another woman. We don't get many visitors. And tell me about that Pony ride. It must have been exciting."

While Peeta and Jacob tended the horses, Katniss provided a brief description of her stint as a rider. But afterwards she made a point of telling Sarah about her engagement to Peeta, partly because she hoped the woman might know of a preacher in the area, but also because she didn't want Sarah to think less of her for spending the last three days and nights alone with Peeta at the relay station.

"I don't know of any preachers around these parts," Sarah said. "A circuit preacher came through last year, but I don't know where he is now. If you're set on marrying though, maybe you should go to Ft. Kearny. Surely there must be someone there who can perform a wedding."

Katniss thanked her. She had an awful premonition that now that she'd finally agreed to marry Peeta it would be near impossible to make it happen.

When the men got back to the house, Peeta was leaning on a wooden stick.

"It used to belong to my father," Jacob said, when he saw Katniss staring.

After Peeta finished his tea, the couple left, heading west for the next swing station.

"You seem in a good spirits," Peeta commented.

"I am." It was funny how her conversation with Sarah had invigorated her.

The sun was setting when they came upon the final swing station.

"I hope they're still awake," Peeta said.

They rode up close to the house before dismounting.

"Ephraim, Sae," Peeta called. No one came out so Peeta limped to the door with his cane, banging on it, while Katniss watched their horses.

It was a few minutes before Ephraim opened the door.

Katniss wasn't near enough to hear what the man said, but he sounded irritated. His wife soon joined him. She was straightening her dress and Katniss suddenly wondered if the couple had already retired for the night.

After some conversation, Peeta and Ephraim walked back to her.

"Your fella and I will take care of the horses, why don't you go inside. My wife can give you some dinner."

A meal and some friendly conversation followed between the four of them. Neither Sae nor Ephraim couldn't think of anyone who'd be interested in taking over Jackson's job as station manager. And neither knew of a preacher living in the area.

As it grew late, Sae suggested that everyone turn in.

"You'll have to bunk out in the shelter, old man," she said to Ephraim, winking. "This girl here will bed with me. These two are not married yet."

Katniss cheeks burned at her words, wondering what the couple would think if they knew she and Peeta had been bunking together for days now.

She glanced at Peeta, who seemed to be taking the comment in stride. He stood up. "Thanks for the meal Sae. Goodnight Katniss," he said kissing her cheek, before turning and following Ephraim outside.

They got onto the road early the next morning after Katniss changed the bandage around Peeta's head with a fresh cloth Sae provided.

Sae had made griddlecakes for them and they sat in like lead in Katniss' belly. The closer she got to Hawthorne Station, the more agitated she grew. She'd only been gone from her cousin's house for a little over a week, yet it seemed as if so much had happened since then.

She mentally prepared herself for an argument with Gale and Madge. She wasn't sure how they'd react when they heard that Peeta had proposed marriage and she'd accepted. Both had been so set on matching her up with Darius. At the very least, she suspected they wouldn't be happy when she told them she was going to pack up and leave immediately.

"Peeta, I should warn you that my cousin and his wife may try to stop me from going back with you."

He caught her eye. "Trust me, we can handle them. We'll do it together."

When she and Peeta rode up to Hawthorne Station and climbed down from their horses, Gale rushed over to them.

"It's about time you got back Catnip. Sam said you were delayed at one of the swing stations."

"I was." Her voice was calm on the outside, although she was seething internally.

Gale turned to survey Peeta as he stood leaning on the cane Boggs loaned him, a bandage wrapped round his head. "Well it looks like my cousin can defend herself pretty well," he smirked. "But I wouldn't be much of a man if I didn't defend her honor."

In one swift movement Gale pulled back his arm and punched Peeta in the jaw.

Author's Note: Summer storms on the Plains are not unusual. Tornado season in Nebraska peaks in June, but twisters can occur anytime between March and October.