Hey everyone! I hope ya'll had a lovely holiday weekend. I hope that you'll all enjoy this chapter before you start your work week. Special thanks to Lbug84 for all her help with beta-ing this chapter. You should all check out Unalaska/ Unangan her fics, if you haven't yet, they're awesome! Thanks to all my readers for their feedbag and I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this chapter. Please remember to review after you read! Thanks!

Katniss's pov

Warm kisses dotted my neck as I opened my eyes. Peeta had his body over mine his hips pressing my body into the mattress. I stretched out and felt him hard against my upper thighs.

"Someone's up early…" I said as my body rapidly woke up.

"I couldn't sleep any longer I need to be inside of you." He said. He bit my ear just hard enough for me to let out a moan. His warm hands travelled up my sides before diving under me to capture my breasts in his hands. He squeezed my nipples hard forcing my back to arch and our centers to align. I felt him pulling off my sleep shirt laying kisses on my back as he moved it upwards and over my head. His chest warmed my bare back. I wanted to relax into the blissful heaven of having him blanket me with his body. I brought my hands up behind me and ran my fingers through he's already sleep tousled locks. I pulled gently causing him to let out a moan of his own. The sound shot straight to my core and I arched up again feeling the heat of him through his shorts.

Peeta glided his hands from my breasts down my torso until he reached the patch of curls he knew so well. He pulled aside the lace and caressed me gently as he returned to kissing my neck.

"I need you. Please. Now." I said. My voice was a breathless mix of fatigue and arousal. He continued to toy with me.

"Please." I repeated, with a huskier voice.

"Are you sure?"

His voice in my ear was close to a purr. He didn't wait for my answer instead he took charge the way I love. He fitted himself against me and I cried out in contentment.

"Put your hands on the headboard." He said.

I complied immediately. I was too desperate for him to consider doing anything other then what he wanted. In this moment he controlled me like a puppet on a string. He was the only one who could make me dance like this. His hands brought me closer and pushed me away in equal stride when all I wanted was to move in reckless abandonment. I was close. So close. The rhythm had me on a high but would not let me fall over the edge. I opened my eyes to see that my knuckles had turned white from my grip on the headboard.

"I can't reach it." I said. The words were mixed in with my heavy breaths.

"Not yet." He said.

He brought his hands down to my hips and squeezed them. He felt impossibly close to me now as the intense pulsing moved me to an even higher rung of ecstasy. This new movement was its own form of torture. The pleasure was so intense that my heart threatened to give out but at the same time I never wanted it to end. Just as I was reaching the edge I felt Peeta pull me backwards and flip me onto my back. My head hit the pillow with a soft thud but I didn't have time to dwell on it. As soon as I was flat he descended on me, overwhelming me with everything he was. Face to face made everything so much stronger.

He had wrapped me around him so that I couldn't tell where one of us ended and the other began. I didn't need to either. This is how I loved my husband best. Completely and to the point where all I could see, feel, touch, and taste was him. I felt the shudder from deep inside of myself before it spread towards my spine and raced up my back. The current ran hard and fast through me. I registered Peeta's cry of ecstasy as the shocks carried into my arms and legs making me shake. His grip on me tightened as he buried himself hard into me, as though he were trying to join us permanently.

'I will never get enough of you. Not as long as I live." He said.

His breath blew the strands of hair from my shoulder as he spoke. I kissed the top of his head, letting myself breathe him in deep. In that moment I was relaxed. There were no outside threats. It was just us on our island made of sheets and feathers.

"I don't want you to leave me again." I said.

Peeta lifted up his head to look me in the eyes. He moved his hand up to caress the side of my face.

"I don't want to leave you. Not ever. But what choice do I have?" he said.

"Maybe Damien…" I knew the suggestion was a weak one even as I said it but a small part of me still hoped he'd go with it.

"You know it has to be me."

I had to look away from his eyes as I nodded in agreement.

"I want to come with you." I said.

"Kat-"

"I know it's a risk but it's worthwhile. You don't know how long you'll be gone. You don't even really know where to start."

"But Kat-"

"I can help. I'm not weak."

Peeta started laughing above me.

"I have never thought you're weak. You might be small but I think we both know weak is not something anyone in their right mind would dare call you."

His smile was calming and it soothed the storm that was brewing inside of me.

"So I can come with you."

"I didn't say that. You know I didn't."

I set my jaw and nodded.

"What about Hope? Are we taking her too?" he asked.

I felt him draw his fingers lightly over my forehead.

"Every night that I can I'm coming home to you." He said. Kissing my forehead to placate me.

"You'd better or I-" He silenced me with his mouth. After a minute I didn't feel the need to argue.

It's been three days. Three days. No messages. No calls. Nothing. I'm going to kill him. If he isn't already dead.

"Oh God." I said shoving my hands in my hair. This was ridiculous.

"I'm sure they're fine. Don't stress, Katniss." Annie says.

She only half means it. She's been pacing the room for the past hour. Prim sits next to me on the couch tearing sheets of paper quietly into smaller pieces of paper. Rue was the only one who was able to keep doing things as usual. She was sitting on the floor reading the news on the monitor. When the phone rang she was the closest and made a grab for it. I had already gotten onto my feet when she picked it up. My heart beat heavily in my chest like fists on a tribal drum.

"Hello?" She said into the phone. "Katniss, here it's Peeta."

"Finally." I said. My breathing escalated as both relief and apprehension coursed through me.

"Katniss?" Peeta's voice breathed into the phone.

"Peeta, are you okay? Where are you?" I said. I barely recognized the intensity of my voice. It was strained and high. I tried to calm myself the last thing I wanted was for him to worry about me.

"We're safe. We're, well we uh, well we're stranded."

"Stranded? How?" I asked.

I stood up from the couch and started to pace. I had never driven in America. Maybe Annie? The girls were all standing as well focusing on my call.

"We hit some bad weather and ended up totaling the car. We were close enough to the city to walk to the old house so we're staying here for the time being."

"You're in your apartment?" I asked. Some of the greatest and worst memories of my life took place in that house. It held a bittersweet appeal now. I didn't want Peeta there alone.

"We're coming to get you."

"Katniss-"

"No, we're coming. I'll take the van."

"You don't know how to drive."

"Annie does."

"Kat…"

"Besides auto pilot does the whole thing anyways-"

"What about Hope?" I went silent. I didn't have a ready response to that. I glanced up toward the stairs that lead up to our room, where she laid asleep.

As if hearing my internal debate, Prim answered,"I'll stay and watch her." She almost knocked me over to speak into the phone.

"Hear that?" I asked. I heard Peeta exhale loudly through the phone.

"Kat, I miss you too but I'm asking you to please stay home and stay safe. Please?" I could practically hear him rubbing his eyes with his hands.

"If I don't come get you how do you expect to be able to find Cato in time?"

"I-"

"We're coming. Sit tight, I love you." It physically hurt to hang up on him but nothing would have been gained if we kept talking.

"Annie-"

"Already got the keys." She said. Come into the main room carrying her shoes in one hand and her keys in the other.

"I'm coming too." Rue said.

"Be safe." Prim said hugging me quickly with one arm.

"We will." I said.

I ran up the stairs, through my bedroom and into the nursery where I saw Hope asleep in her crib. She was beautiful. I gave her one small kiss on her head before leaving the room. 'I'll be back soon' I silently promised her. Tearing myself away from her was difficult, but in order to keep us all safe, I knew I would have to.

Moving back to the bedroom, I reached for the safe we kept hidden under our bed and retrieved a .357 mag. I sat with my back to the bed as I slowly cocked the hammer back and forth and debated whether to bring it with me. It was better to be safe then sorry. I exhaled as I stood and strapped it to my right thigh.

The car ride was silent for the first hour or so of the drive. When we saw the distant signs for Washington County I began to think about all that had happened since I came to this country.

"Feels like yesterday, doesn't it?" Rue asked, breaking me from my trance. She had come over to sit beside me as I looked at the window.

"It does."

"You know it's funny."

"What?"

"Those first hours right when we got you back. You were passed out but Peeta, Thresh and I, we felt like we had it all figured out."

I smiled. I liked hearing these stories. "Look how well that turned out." I said.

She snorted and shook her head. " 'Member when we thought Thresh had gotten himself killed for Damien? Goodness, when I found out he was alive I almost strangled him myself for not going to the damn gatehouse."

"I don't remember why they didn't end up going to the gatehouse anyway."

"Cause Damien had decided he wasn't ready to live sober and gave his dealer the damn address."

I shook my head. Oh, Damien. It was coming back to me now.

"And the dealer told Cato and his guys right?"

"Yup. Probably found himself a gold mine, the jerk. There was enough drugs, booze, food and water to keep the boys stocked for almost a year." She said.

I tensed. "Rue?"

"Ya?"

"Where is the gatehouse?"

"Bought thirty or so minutes from here I guess. Why?"

"We need to make a pit stop."

"What, why?"

"I know where Cato is."

The stench is what hit me first when I pushed open the rusty door of the old gatehouse. The sound of glass bottles and crumpled papers being scraped against the floor as we weaved through the foyer sent a shiver through me. The crunching of garbage under my feet as I moved towards the main room reminded me of the music the homeless men used to make in the slums back home.

We fanned out, and I entered the main room first, while Annie and Rue quietly made their way towards the sitting rooms on either side of the entrance. Stepping toe to heel with my knees slightly bent, I took in the sight of discarded food wrappers on the floor. I knew he was close. I turned my body, so that the doorway I'd just passed through was at my left side, and took note of Annie and Rue's positions.

"Come to kill me, have you?" A voice said from behind me. A small crash sounded as his empty vodka bottle hit the floor and clamored at my feet.

I stiffened hearing Cato's voice. He was right behind me, and I could feel the air shift as he wobbled on unsteady legs. I turned my head towards the door catching Annie's eye in the foyer and mouthed the word "police." I hoped the dimly lit room concealed my call for help.

I shuddered as I felt his hand on my shoulder, but inhaled a breath of confidence as he spun me around. I looked into the eyes of the devil himself, red and fiery. He'd obviously kept in touch with his dealer. His hair was rumpled and his face was greasy from overdrinking and not enough bathing. He was a mess. Worse then Peeta when I first met him. Worse the Haymitch, even. Here stood a man with no options left. A man with nothing left to lose, the most dangerous kind of animal.

"Well shit, it's the slave," he said as his form grew uncomfortably close. The smell of alcohol on his breath turned my stomach. I swatted his hand from my shoulder, which only made him chuckle.

I watched the two of us as if I wasn't a part of the conversation. I could see myself standing before him strong, proud and whole so different from the first time we had seen each other. It was a complete reversal of roles. He was now the broken one with no other option than to submit to his fate. I guess life is funny that way.

"Come to bring me to heaven, angel? Or hell?" I felt his eyes comb slowly up and down my body.

The cool metal of the mag concealed against my thigh comforted me. I could finish this myself. Here and now. Glimmer would have her prize and Peeta would never have to live with the guilt of sentencing his brother. I was in the position to play judge, jury and executioner. The question was, did I find him guilty?

"Those places are reserved for people with souls."

He narrowed his eyes at me. His hand came up lightening fast and gripped my neck. I instinctively sucked in as much air as I could and brought my left hand up to his wrist. I walked backwards as he pushed me, and after only a few steps he slammed me against the wall and knocked the wind out of me. His right knee pressed against the wall between my thighs and held me in place.

His red eyes grew darker as he stared into mine and he hunched over me. His grip was tight around my neck, but I could still breathe. He leaned in and I turned my face away. He brought his nose to my jaw and dragged it up to my ear while he inhaled loudly. I locked eyes with Rue as she perched at the doorway. She raised her eyebrows to me. I shook my head at her slightly.

"You smell so fucking good."

"Yeah? You smell like shit."

He leaned back slightly and turned my face with his sticky hand so that I could look directly into his eyes.

"You still haven't learned your place."

"Fuck you."

"Not so quiet anymore, are you? My brother make you scream enough that you were finally able to find your mouth?"

"No. He had to show me where it was and how to use it. Repeatedly." I snapped then I traced my upper lip with the tip of my tongue.

His eyes widened as he watched my tongue. His gaze was filled rage and laced with desire. His lips turned up into a sneer. "I should've fucked you when I had the chance."

I laughed at that. Actually laughed. The noise seemed to have startled him.

"And what about that is so funny, slave?"

"You're pathetic. After everything, that's what you're upset about? That?"

"And what else is there to be upset about ?" He asked. I wondered if he was actually serious.

"You're right. It is what it is, dead mother, messy divorce, broken reputation, deserted mistress, no friends to lean on-Ah!" He pulled me from the wall and slammed me back again. Through gritted teeth I continued. "It's a good thing you didn't have a dog. Probably would have gotten hit by a car." I slowly reached for my mag with my right hand, while keeping my eyes locked on his.

"It must feel good." He said.

"What?"

"Kicking a man while he's down."

"It probably would but I don't see any men here."

"No men?" he questioned. He slid his knee up the wall and pressed against my center. He smiled as I frowned and squirmed uncomfortably at the sensation. "What's to stop me from taking you? Right here. Right now."

I'm not sure exactly where the sudden wave of hatred came from. Or why my instincts compelled me to do it. But I slid my jaw from side to side and worked up enough saliva to spit squarely in his face.

"Bitch!" Fury flamed in his eyes and he tightened his grip on my neck. I brought my knee up hard forcing him to double over.

"Ah-ah-ah," I said as I slid my mag up between us, pressed the barrel to his head, and pulled back on the hammer. The cocking sound was satisfying. I watched as realization flash in his eyes.

He smiled slowly at me as he straightened. I pressed the barrel into his skin, and forced him away from my body. He walked backwards with his hands raised to his chest in surrender. I kept my gun aimed at him as the back of his knees hit a couch and he sat down. I rubbed at my neck with my free hand.

The creature in front of me had lived a life of sin and crime since he was old enough to make his own decisions. He had abused me, molested me but he hadn't broken me, not even close. I have his brother to thank for that. By that logic I should find him guilty but as I looked down at him pitifully curled up on a moth eaten couch something else played through me. Mercy.

"Quite a place you got yourself here." I said kicking aside an old beer can. He snorted.

"Keeps me warm in the winter." He said grabbing an errant bottle and lifting it to his mouth.

"You sure that's not the booze?" He looked at me over the mouth of the bottle. He brushed the crumbs off his shirt and brought it up by the hem and wiped my saliva from his face. He adjusted the shirt, pulling it over his belly then he dug around in the pocket for something. When he found it he let out a wheezy laugh and kissed his fist.

"You look good." He said.

"I know."

"What I wouldn't give to wipe that smirk off your face."

"Lucky for me you've got nothing left to give."

"How about information?"

"It's always worth a shot." I said with raised eyebrows.

He threw something into his mouth and brought the bottle up to swig it down. He made a smacking noise of satisfaction when he was done.

"Alright, you ready for this?" He asked. I nodded. I had to admit I was curious.

"I'm going to get the last laugh."

"And why do you think that?"

"Because I know how to save your precious Hope... Haven." I didn't like that. How the hell did he find out my daughters name? "I even know how to make the Panem government crumble from the inside out. Save your precious slaves and your rotting mother." I stiffened and narrowed my eyes at him.

"So how does that give you the last laugh?"

"Because all the information dies with me." He said with a smile.

"Really? Cause I've got a dozen cops on their way that would bet you they could get you to squeal like the pig you are."

"Ooh, I see I've hit a sore spot. Sadly no, they won't be able to make me talk."

"Why so confident?" I asked.

"Cause even the cops can't torture a corpse." He reached down on the floor with his arm and threw a small orange bottle at me. He coughed lightly as I caught it in with my free hand. I read the label. Potassium Cyanide.

"They say you only need one but I figured, why not double the dose?"

"Suicide. So clever."

He shrugged from the couch and smiled. "By the way…" he said as his eyes drooped closed.

"Yes?"

"Ha, ha, ha…" His head went limp. I swallowed hard and waited. I stood there for a long time. His chest didn't rise. I walked slowly over to the couch and touched his boot with the barrel of my gun. I moved toward his head and pressed to fingers to his gullet. Not even a flutter of a pulse. I kept my gun trained at his body as I walked backwards out of the room.

I grabbed the door handle and closed it quietly behind me. The outside air was clean. I took a deep breathe and shut my eyes. When I opened them I aimed my foot at the door and kicked it with all the power of my emotions behind it. The bastard was right.

He'd taken the last laugh.

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