A/N: Yes, I know it's been more than a month since Chapter 19, and yes, I am extremely sorry, especially considering all of the beautiful reviews I've gotten, but I can explain. About three weeks ago, my computer completely died on me and I lost EVERYTHING- meaning, Broken Promises as well as every other story I've ever written, because I never back up. Well, lesson learned and now I just got permission to borrow someone else's computer to write on, so I'm so sorry but yeah, that is what happened.

Thanks to everyone who's reviewed and who has been waiting for this chapter. I'll try to make it really good for you xx

Chapter 20

Previously:

Once I am safely seated on a thick tree branch a good fifteen feet off the ground, I throw the rope carefully back to the boys, who are preoccupied with something behind them. I start to tell them off for not paying attention when I too here the shouts and notice the strangely bright light reflecting off of the tree branch. The Peacekeepers seem to have found as at last.

Gale is the first to react.

His hands, shaking ever so slightly, push the rope into Vick's immobile ones.

"Go!" he says, his voice hoarse with stress and fear. "Before they catch us! Hurry!"

His eyes swivel to mine, wild and wide. "And you, Posy! Get out of that tree and RUN! I've already lost enough to the damn Capitol. I'm not losing my family too."

Normally, I would have been able to climb down with little trouble, but shock has made my legs go numb and I practically fall out of the tree, landing fortunately in Steph's strong arms. Meanwhile, Stella and Brady work to hoist Vick over the side of the fence, and it isn't long until he's in the tree as well, shimmying down clumsily before coming to rest beside me. Wasting no time, Stella pushes the pair of us into the bushes nearby, well out of sight of anyone over the fence.

The lights get closer and closer with every passing moment, and before I have time to think, the light is so close that I can see the two faces illuminated in the flickering. One of them, I can't place, but the other, I know as well as anything.

Thread.

His lips curled into a teasing smirk, looking just like he did all those nights before, when I was practically his slave, unable to find a way out. When-if- we ever get out of this place, I hope I'll never have to think about that man ever again.

Meanwhile, Gale's noticed the unpleasant company closing in behind us and spins around, taking a small carving knife out of the frayed pocket of his shirt. Both Vick and I stand, terrified, as the two bigger men corner him, guns raised and pointed straight at his heaving chest.

Gale seems to have gone mad, his own mouth twisted just as dangerously as Thread's. "Oh, so this is how you want it to end, eh? You're gonna kill me now? Leave me to bleed like a fucking animal, begging for mercy?" His eyes shine with an unnamed emotion that scares me even from where I sit, crouched in the bushes. Vick grabs for my hand and squeezes hard.

Our older brother's face suddenly contorts. Any trace of the laughing, twisting rabid man he was is long gone, replaced with a fierce determination that's always been in him, no matter how he tried to hide it.

"Well, not this time, Thread. You took me once without a fight, but the past has taught me not to make the same mistakes."

And with that, Gale has launched himself at the other Peacekeeper, moving with such surprising speed that the other man has no time to react. Within moments, the first Peacekeeper is lying stone cold on the ground in a pool of his own blood, and Gale is gripping the large gun in his hand, aiming it with slight difficulty at Thread's head.

At first, the Head Peacekeeper allows the slightest flash of fear mingled with confusion to cross his features, but it is quickly replaced with that smirk that I loathe so much. Even then, it takes me a moment to figure out why.

Gale has never handled a Peacekeeper gun, or any kind of gun for that matter, before. He doesn't know how to shoot it, and Thread knows this.

The only one who is unaware is Gale himself, who handles the weapon with such confidence it's almost like he's the Peacekeeper. Thread allows a small laugh to bubble in the back of his throat.

"Do it, then," he says, teasingly dropping his gun and raising his hands above his head, the smile never leaving his face. "Kill me. It's what I deserve, right?"

Gale sneers, raising the gun still higher. "No. You deserve much, much worse than that. But, sadly for me, I have somewhere to be, so we'll have to settle for a quick and hopefully painful death.

The motion it takes for Gale to pull the trigger is slow, but the results are instant. Instead of Thread, it's Gale who is blown backward by the force of the gunshot, falling back, motionless, into the grass. I try to scream, but no sound comes out.

Thread just laughs, a crazy, maniac sound that echoes hauntingly in my ears. "Someone should have told you how to shoot a gun before you try to kill me with one." He picks up Gale's knife, laying forgotten in the grass, and walks slowly towards my brother like a wolf closing in for the kill.

Gale's breathing is shallow, and I can see the blood pouring from a gaping hole in his upper left shoulder, close to his collarbone. There's no doubt he's still alive, but when Thread's done, he won't be.

I don't know what it is that causes me to act. Maybe it's the fact that I've already lost so very many people in my life. Maybe it's all of the pent-up anger and bitterness towards the Capitol, and especially toward this man, that I've never been able to act on. Either way, I know that I'm done with letting them toy with me any longer. I'm not a part of their Games, and I'm not letting Thread hurt anyone I love, ever again.

I am fearless.

It takes a small struggle to get past Stella and the others, who have formed a sort of protective barrier keeping us in the shadows. Brady puts out an arm to stop me, but I merely pass him the baby, now awake and crying slightly from the loud gunshot, and push around, taking swift and steady steps towards the tree we used to climb over the fence. This is a battle I have to fight myself.

Taking as little time as possible while keeping one eye locked keenly on the two shadows in the grass, I grip the tree's rough bark and begin to climb until I reach a sturdy branch. From my position, I have a good view of Thread advancing on Gale, who lays, wide-eyed and pale, on the ground.

And then I shout, as loud as I can, Thread's name. I hope that all of District Twelve, maybe all of Panem, could hear me, could see what I am about to do next.

Thread turns around slightly at the sound of my voice, his smile growing larger as the hand holding the knife drops to dangle at his side. The sickeningly sweet voice I've grown used to in the months since I've known him is soft, but still reaches my ears.

"Ahh, there you are, my sweet. Come to see me finish off your brother? Or are you hoping that maybe, if you beg loud enough, I'll spare him for you? You should know by now that I'm not a forgiving person."

I can only hope that my voice is steady when I say, "Neither am I."

It only takes one swift throw, my aim as good as I could have ever hoped, to hit Thread with a piece of the broken glass lining the top of the fence. He screams in agony as the shard pierces his eye, clawing at his face, trying to stop the object from protruding further. With one small hop, I'm over the fence. This time it's me walking slowly and teasingly towards the man who used to invoke so much terror in me.

"For the record, my sweet, I don't think I forgive you," I drawl, a victorious smile fighting its way to my lips as I swing the butt of his gun into his head, knocking him from consciousness.

A/N: So here it is! Posy has finally stood up for herself! Anyway, I hope this chapter was everything and more, because soon *sniff sniff* this story is going to have to come to its inevitable end. Yes, I know, it is very sad, but following some of your reviews, I have decided to write a sequel after a short break to give myself some time to come up with more ideas. It's been a beautiful journey and- well, I'll do all of this stuff after the epilogue, which I've decided to do for the next chapter.

Until then, don't forget to keep reviewing!