Nemit sits at the polished kitchen table next to a chattering Melmar while Ms. Abernathy dances around in search of spices, cooking some sort of rich stew on the high-tech stove, filling the kitchen with a warm, comforting aroma. Since Haymitch came back from the Games and his mother and her have come to very good terms with each other, the family has somewhat adopted Nemit. She stays over at the house every night and Melmar is basically obsessed with her.
Early this morning, Haymitch left for the Victory Tour, promising Nemit that he would be back for she knows it. They had exchanged a hasty, lingering kiss in front of the camera, Haymitch secretly patting her stomach and winking, and then he was off. It's only been a few hours since he left but Nemit already misses him terribly. She doesn't want to lose him again.
She listens to the sound of Melmar's voice and Ms. Abernathy's tuneful humming, trying to ignore her pounding headache, contemplating whether to reveal the secret. She sits hunched in her chair, elbows on the edge of the table, rubbing her sore temple. Would Ms. Abernathy get mad at her? Would she go back to treating her like before?
'What's wrong, dear?' She asks kindly, seeing the anxious look on Nemit's face.
Nemit takes a deep breath.
'It's nothing…'
Ms. Abernathy stares at her pointedly.
'Young lady, don't you hide secrets from me!' The resemblance to what would probably be Nemit's mother is uncanny.
'Promise you won't get mad?'
'I promise.' She answers solemnly.
'Alright then…' Nemit begins, preparing herself for the story.
'Mel! Upstairs!' Ms. Abernathy says firmly to her son, pointing towards the door.
'Awwww!' He groans, dragging himself from the room.
'Alright Nemit.' She says once they were alone. 'What's this all about? I've noticed you've been acting strange for about a week now. Are you sick?'
'No.' Sighs Nemit. She might as well just say it straight out. 'I'm pregnant.'
Ms. Abernathy, who is in the middle of stirring her stew, stops dead in her tracks, the ladle dangling in mid air.
'Oh.' She says in a strange voice.
She turns around, bearing pursed lips and a completely unreadable expression. What is it that Nemit sees in those eyes identical to Haymitch's? Is it shock? Anger? Sadness? She just can't tell... Nemit can feel herself blushing, the redness in her cheeks burning. She looks down at her feet in embarrassment.
Then, Ms. Abernathy does something completely unexpected. She walks over to Nemit, who is now standing, and embraces her tightly with warm, open arms. They hug like mother and daughter, a certain emotional connection coming between them.
'I'm here for you.' She whispers in Nemit's ear.
At that exact moment, there is a tremendous pounding on the front door, and both Ms. Abernathy and Nemit jump apart at the sound.
'I'll get it…' A sniffling Ms. Abernathy begins walking towards the door, wiping her eyes of tears.
But before she has even gotten out of the kitchen, there is a thunderous bang followed by the sound of heavy, hurried footsteps and many crashing noises, like braking glass.
'What the hell is going on..?' Ms. Abernathy mutters to herself as she goes to find the cause of all the commotion. People, who have clearly forced entry upon house, are beginning to shout aggressively in loud, carrying voices.
Nemit stands rooted to the spot, unsure of what to do. Something is obviously wrong… She listens to the sound of multiple pounding footsteps form the floor above, waiting for Ms. Abernathy to come back. All of a sudden she hears a screech unlike any other coming from the upstairs. Nemit's head snaps up to the ceiling in alarm. Is someone hurting Ms. Abernathy? She has no idea; all she registers is that she needs to get help, and fast.
'PLEASE! NO! STOP! STOP!'
There's no time to get help elsewhere, from outside of the Victor's Village. Nemit bolts through the house in a panicked state, trying to navigate her way to the stairs, bumping into much furniture on the way. The terrified scream is getting louder. She takes the stairs two at a time and is now able to hear a distressed child crying out in pain. Oh no…Melmar!
Nemit rushes down the hall, her brow sweating and a fresh wave of horror washing over her. She is now looking down upon the nearly dead, crippled body of a small blond boy twitching uncontrollably. Melmar is spewing blood, his clothes drenched in sticky red, while his smashed glasses are lying on the ground. Bruises cover his frail body as he twitches uncontrollably. Immediately, Nemit shakily drops down to her knees, hardly believing her eyes, not knowing what to do. All she can register is shock. This cannot be happening.
'Melmar!' She whispers desperately, laying a hand on his blood soaked chest. 'Mel! Can you hear me? Who did this to you?'
Melmar, who is incapable of responding, has the question answered for him by Ms. Abernathy and several strapping young people in white uniforms. Peacekeepers. But they are not the District Twelve kind. These Peacekeepers are brutal looking, with expressions of steel plastered across their faces. Most definitely they are from the Capitol.
'MY BABY!' Screams Ms. Abernathy, who has a throbbing black eye. She rushes to her son as Nemit stares in disbelief at the intruders.
'What do you want?' She whispers in terror, trying to hold her balance on what all of a sudden seems to be a very unstable floor.
They say nothing, instead though, about two of them drag a sobbing Ms. Abernathy by the hair towards a room down the hall and slam the door shut. Nemit can hear shrieks of pain issuing from the room.
Should she run? Try to help Ms. Abernathy? Attend to Melmar? Nemit has no idea. But before she can make up her terrified mind, a very brutal, broad shouldered man steps up to her and begins to wantonly lick his lips. He grins maliciously, bearing incredibly yellow teeth.
'Hey there, precious. Are you ready to have some fun?' He speaks in a cruel, rough voice.
Nemit merely gulps. Even though she is fast, it would be unwise to flee or even fight back. There are still about seven other Peacekeepers surrounding her and they are all armed to the teeth with expensive, deadly looking weapons. But why are they here? What have we done wrong? Thinks Nemit.
The man grabs her wrist forcefully with thick fingers and pulls her towards him. She quivers, feeling his hot, foul smelling breath against her quivering neck.
'C'mere princess…' And still keeping a firm grasp on her, he drags Nemit into a bedroom, throws her vehemently to the ground, and slams the door shut.
Throughout all this horror, Nemit can still hear the sound of Ms. Abernathy's agonizing scream echoing through the entire house, blocking out her own as well as the man's laughter.
She barely realizes what is going on. He strips off her clothes and everything is a blur. Is he done? Has he finished violating her? Make it stop.
There is intense, fiery pain in every place imaginable. Her body is raw and bruised. She is soon lying in a pool of her own blood. She receives a blow to the head. The world is slipping away, faster and faster. Something heavy hits her back multiple times and she can distinctly hear the crackle of a bone. She shuts her eyes and can barely feel anything anymore. She is spinning, round and round she goes. She barely registers shouting voices; they sound far, far away as if coming from inside a tunnel. Finally, somebody turns her body over and vigorously kicks her stomach. No! Stop! Stop! She can taste bile rising in her throat.
And then… there is nothing.