Peeta's POV
Eating breakfast is tense-nearly everyone in the restaurant is frazzled. I realize as I'm drinking my coffee and observing the other Capital citizens that the rebellion shook them harder than I thought. They're probably expecting the worst with these riots, which is why they all are nearly shaking in their seats. I've had multiple people drop by my table and ask me if I've heard anything about the abduction of the two government officials.
I tell them no, of course. I also politely inform them that I would not be the first to know if there was any new information, and it was only this morning that everyone found out.
Katniss decided to stay in her room for the morning. After I eat, I decide to bring up a tray for her. I know she wants to go home now. The idea of the unrest wanting to turn her into a leader again overwhelmed her. For her sake, I hope Paylor won't make us help anymore.
I rap at her door a few times. She slowly opens it, and I find her in new clothes with her hair tied back, a few wisps of her bangs brushing against her eyebrows.
"Thought you might be hungry," I lift the tray up hopefully. She cracks a smile.
"Thank you."
Katniss eats her breakfast and then quickly calls her mother. Unfortunately, they haven't been able to meet since we arrived. Mrs. Everdeen has been attending to patients at the trauma center here ever since the first violent riots.
Afterwards, Katniss and I lay on the reclining chairs on her balcony, trying to decide what to do today since everything's been cancelled.
"I wish we could just pack up and leave," I shake my head, annoyed.
"Well, we're on lockdown here until Haymitch says otherwise," Katniss mutters, her eyes closed as she soaks up the sun shining on us. I peer down at the streets. Security officers thoroughly roam the city and hardly anyone is out and about today. I slide off of my chair and lean my back against the rail, gazing up at the sparkling white hotel jutting up into the sky.
"I think there's a roof," I say, instantly curious of what they might have up there. Katniss and I venture to the elevator and press the highest button available. Swiftly, we shoot up to the top level of Turtle Doves. As the elevator opens, we find two empty penthouses on either side of the large floor. A staircase at the end of the hallway leads outside. The wind violently whips our hair as we step out onto the wide landing.
Vibrant plants and trees planted in decorated pots surround us. A thin, long pool stretching from one side of the roof to the other sits to my right followed by a series of plush chairs. The place is deserted.
Katniss and I slip off our shoes and dunk our feet into the pool, for we have nothing else to do. I circle my ankles around in the water, and Katniss soon copies me.
"I should have taught you how to swim at the lake, then you wouldn't have had trouble in the quell," Katniss whispers suddenly.
The quell... swimming... I vaguely remember. The platform I had to stand on, water surrounding me, the single thought of protecting Katniss.
I never learned how to swim, but I got the hang of it fast when it came down to life or death in the arena.
"It's okay... the lake is in the woods past the fence, right?" I ask her.
"Uh huh. My dad took me there as a kid... it was my favorite place in Twelve," she shrugs.
"I wish I had hopped the fence and explored the woods once and while. I mean, luckily I didn't need to like you did, but I think I would have learned some more survival skills for the arena," I say.
The sun beats down on us at we talk, and I have an impulse to dive into the pool.
"You wanna swim now? It could be just like when you went to the lake," I smile. Katniss chuckles.
"We don't have swimwear, Peeta."
"We don't need to. We can just swim in our underwear," I raise an eyebrow mischievously. Katniss turns bright red, and regrettably I laugh at her discomfort.
"Come on, it'll be fun," I urge. Katniss bites at her lip.
"... Okay," she finally concludes. I slip off my shirt and unbuckle my pants, politely facing away from Katniss so she can do the same. I don't look at her until we've slipped under the water. To my surprise, she's wearing some strange lacy undergarments that appear Capital-made. She catches me staring and folds her arms protectively over her chest.
"Cinna made them," she says defensively.
"I'm not judging," I reply amusely, copying the circler motions Katniss is making with her limbs to keep herself upright.
"You wanna learn how to swim strokes?" She asks me. I nod. Katniss soon teaches me every stroke she remembers her father teaching her. I catch on fairly quick, and I find it's actually really fun. After a few hours in the pool, we find some towels to dry off and order food for a picnic.
As we eat, I realize how much I enjoy spending time with Katniss. She's quiet, yet her few words are always full of meaning. She actually laughs and smiles when she's not pondering over the recent horrors of the war or worrying about the unrest. I'm glad she's eased up towards me. It feels like how it used to be. We have a stronger friendship than I thought.
Suddenly, I remember strange, yet beautiful details about her. Things I once forgot but now come to my memory, and I'm happy to have them back. Her favorite color, her favorite foods, how she enjoys sunsets almost as much as I do, and how she could spend an entire day in the woods, thinking, hunting, and exploring without ever getting bored. No wonder I was in love with her all these years.
We stay on the roof the entire day, and it's only until we finally wander back down to our hotel rooms that we see the intense burns we've received from the sun.
"These are pretty bad," Katniss pulls down the collar of my shirt, half laughing and wincing at the sight of my bright red skin.
"Maybe the bathrooms have some healing balm stored away?" I suggest. We enter Katniss's room and she heads to the bathroom to rummage through the cabinets. I wait in the living room until I hear some odd noises coming from the hall. I edge along to the bathroom.
"Katniss?"
Katniss cracks open the door, her face white. Something's wrong.
"Peeta, I think you should go," she tells me, her voice breathy and speaking very fast. My eyebrows furrow.
"What, why?"
"Peeta," she shakes her head, confusion and fear in her silver eyes.
"Are you okay?" I ask her, my mind racing over the events of the day. Did I make her upset somehow?
"Did you take medication today?" She demands. I rub my forehead-this question is kind of getting irritating.
"Yes, Katniss, I take it everyday. I'm much better, though-"
She widens the door, and I find a woman lying motionless in the marble tub. Thick black tape is strapped across her mouth and her arms are tied. In dark red liquid, the words Long Live The Mockingjay read across her forehead. I feel terribly sick. I try to swallow down the bile, but it forces its way up. I cross Katniss and turn into the sink to puke.
"Peeta! Peeta, are you okay?" Katniss rushes to me. It's pathetic how sensitive I've become, it's not as if I haven't seen a dead person or blood before. I take in deep breaths, forcing myself to remain steady and to not black out into a series of flashbacks. It a shouldn't happen-that's why I take medicine-but I still worry about it around Katniss. I don't want to scare her.
"I'm good, sorry," I mumble, wiping my mouth with a washcloth. In stunned silence, we both sneak a glance at the lady.
"Where did she come from?" I ask aghast as we stare dumbfounded at the body. I'm not sure if she's dead... but she doesn't look good. Katniss shakes her head.
"I don't know. I have no idea why she's here," she replies quietly. Someone must have snuck her into Katniss's room while we were gone... someone who had a key. Then it dawns on me.
"Katniss, this is one of the officials who was kidnapped. The one who spoke about you during the meeting," I grab her arm. Her eyes widen in shock. This isn't good-we could get in big trouble. How will we explain that somebody snuck this body into Katniss's room?
"Maybe she's not dead. Let's see if we can wake her," Katniss tells me, her voice slightly shaking. she reaches out and touches the woman's shoulder, nudging her. Slowly, the woman's eyes open, and she verges on hysterics the moment she realizes she's in a bathtub with her mouth taped and her limbs tied up.
"Hey, it's okay. You're okay," I try to calm her. She jerks uncontrollably, but Katniss and I hold her firmly.
"Look, we're gonna take off the tape so you can talk, alright?" Katniss says, reaching up to the woman's face. As carefully as she can, Katniss removes it.
"What's going on? Who are you people?" She shouts in a worried tone, still squirming.
"We don't know how you got here, but you're in a hotel bathroom. I'm Peeta, this is Katniss-you might remember us," I try to explain as Katniss unties her. We help her out of the tub and try to wipe off the blood on her forehead. She bruised badly, and there's a cut on her forehead. Katniss goes to the kitchen and applies some ice to her injuries.
"I don't know what's going on," the woman shakes her head, lost for further words. We give her a glass of water and lead her to the sofa.
"I'm sorry, but I'm terribly confused I-" her voice cracks mid-sentence. She trembles as she drains her glass.
How is it she remembers nothing?
"Look, you were kidnapped. Do you remember any faces, names, or conversations?" I ask her desperately. She stares blankly at the two of us, her sharp-eyes no longer piercing but drooping and disturbed. I wonder if she even recalls who we are, there's no telling how truly brainwashed she is.
"He wants the Mockingjay to join him. The Mockingjay will grant them bloodshed," she abruptly whispers, her eyes drilling into Katniss. Katniss swallows, her lower lip trembling slightly. I grip her hand tightly.
"Who?" I turn to the lady. She shakes her head.
"I'm not sure. There was no face..."
No face. I repeat in my head.
"Um, ma'am, you rest here. We are going to notify the officials that you're here and safe," I decide after a moment of confusion. Haymitch is going to need to know about this.