Chapter 17: In Too Deep

Haymitch Abernathy

My heart slams in my chest as I double check to make sure that I'm concealed up in my tree. The Careers have somehow already found their way to the forest. They must be starting their hunt. Looking for the weakest of us to kill off first to appeal to the Capitol.

I can tell by the amount of noise that they're making that they aren't too far away from where I am. Maybe a little less than a 100 meters. Not close enough to see me but close enough that, with enough light, I would be able to see them.

The voices get louder and I can just make out the outline of their shadows. They've come to a stop at the small group of trees across from mine and one voice raises above them all.

"Well, well, well," the voice sneers. It's a girl's, and oddly familiar. "What do we have here?" I freeze. The voice is Shimmer's, the sadistic girl from District 1. I remember when I had fought with her at training. She's probably the most ruthless out of all the Careers. Honestly, she's so cruel I almost don't believe how anyone could ever want her to win. Her only saving grace—probably the reason the Capitol loves her—is that she plays the sexy angle at any point she can. She laughs again, this time louder, and my stomach drops. Can she see me?

But it turns out I didn't have to worry. Because I can hear another Career, Velvet I think, answer here. "A scared little boy." A small part of me relaxes. I'm definitely not what others would consider a scared little boy. The rest of me is still locked into place, trying to figure out my next move.

"Look at him shaking." Another of them says mockingly. The group laughs and I feel instantly worried about whomever they have found. That little boy is as good as dead now. I try to tell myself that it doesn't matter. That I don't care. It's part of the game after all and I can't go around trying to save anyone. It's my life or theirs. And I have to get back home.

Still, my thoughts don't help to cover the fact that I'm rigid with anticipation, my hands trembling as I grab hard at the branches above me, ensuring I won't fall and reveal my location. My breath quickens at the thought of having to watch another child be killed because of these Games but I force myself to keep quiet. I'm covered by enough trees that any cameras nearby shouldn't be able to pick up on the slight shaking. I'm grateful. I can't afford to show even a shred of weakness.

"Come on," it's Shimmer again, the malice in her voice barely hidden. "Aren't you going to speak? Are you that dumb? I wouldn't be surprised. Even the dumbest of you outer district scum should know not to linger around at night." My blood boils and I have to bite my tongue to keep myself from speaking. Out of anger, irritation, and fear. I'll admit that there's a little of that too. The Careers go around thinking that they are so much better than us. Just because they lick the feet of the Capitol.

She speaks again. "Should I cut him with my axe?" she asks her allies. "That'll get a word out of him." Her next words are for their latest victim. "Speak. Or you'll die right here and now. And I won't make it fast."

"Come on, Shimmer." It's another Career but I'm not quite sure who it is. Maybe one of the boys from Four. "Why do you get all the kills? You took most of the Cornucpoia ones too. You'd better save some for the rest of us too."

Now I actually want to yell. They talk about kills like a child talks about candy. Like it's harmless, and fun. I don't know if I would have actually spoken, because hearing the voice of their victim leaves me speechless.

"Please," a fragile, weak voice says. "Please don't kill me."

I freeze. Their victim is Jack.

Maysilee Donner

William and I offer to take first watch for the first night of our Games. Mazie, who is understandably exhausted, goes to sleep immediately. Miller, after making sure that we have the weapons to defend ourselves, sleeps beside her, a hand on his knife. The protectiveness of this makes me miss my twin, who has always been the most delicate out of the both of us.

Ana vehemently refuses to sleep for a good ten minutes. She says she doesn't want anything to happen to us and since she is the eldest and has her knives, she can defend us better. I know she feels bad about giving Leila the fruit that killed her. It wasn't her fault, none of us would have ever known, but she must feel horrible regardless.

She relents afterwards, after noticing the way William's hands are trembling and how my eyes are glossed over with tears. Me and William sit against a tree, guarding our group in silence. I don't think I could bear seeing William's face. He treated Leila almost like a little sister. It seems like hours until we can hear our three remaining allies start to snore. The moment they do, William and I are entangled together, hugging, comforting one another, and just grieving together. As one.

William's hands shake as they run through my hair. "She was so little."

"I know," I whisper, pulling him close and wrapping my arms around him, trying to stop my shivering. "I know."

"Remember our first morning at the Capitol?" His voice is uneven. "She had hot chocolate and was going crazy about it. My sisters would have done the same."

I sniff. "Oh, William. I'm going to miss her so much."

I didn't think it was possible for us to get any closer together but somehow I find myself staring at his stunning blond eyelashes. His voice drops and his lips graze my ears and I know his next words are only for me. "I hate it. All of it. The Capitol is so cruel."

I try to pull back but his arms have locked me in place. "William," my voice drops as low as his. "Don't say that. Please don't say that. They can punish us. Even out here."

His voice is cold. The sweet, kind boy I know and love has been hardened by the Capitol's cruelty. "I don't care, Maysilee. It doesn't matter anymore. We'll all be dead soon anyway."

"One of us might win," I say, my voice breaking. "Our families. They need us."

He freezes and I can feel his tears on my face. "I don't know what we're supposed to do, May."

"May," I repeat, the word coming out as a whisper. Something in me changes. "William, I'm scared."

He pulls back enough for me to see his face. His eyes sparkle and for a moment, he's the only thing I can think of. Not the Games, not my family, not even Leila. Just him.

And then he's kissing me. And we're falling back into the floor. My arms are around him and his arms are around me and we can't get enough of each other. We're whispering and crying and smiling and we're doing it all together. And everything feels like it's all right again.

Which is ironic. Because the exact opposite is true.

But for that short piece of time, we don't worry about that. We let ourselves be teenagers. And I can imagine a world without the Games. Where we're just two teens madly in love. Wanting to be with each other for every second of every day and spending it all intertwined and wrapped in each other's arms. I can imagine a world where I wouldn't have to worry about my kids dying before my eyes or seeing another bloody body. I can imagine a world of peace and freedom.

And it's amazing.

It seems like years before we break apart. Panting and wide-eyed but smiling and giddy at the same time. William caresses my face with his hands and there's nothing I want more than to go back to what we were doing just seconds earlier and leave all my troubles for another time.

But then I remember where we are and I can feel my cheeks flood with warmth. I look down, not believing what I just let myself do.

"May," William says softly. "May, what is it?"

I look up at him shyly. "I just had my first kiss. In front of all of Panem."

He smiles. "Me too."

"All of Panem!" I whisper-shout. "That means our families too. Everyone just saw us kiss."

His face is in front of mine again and his voice is soft and playful. "Does it matter?"

I feel oddly giddy and have to let myself laugh. "In the grand scheme of things, I guess not."

Then, we're kissing again. We're right up against each other and the only thing that breaks me away from him is the sound of a parachute landing beside us.

I eye it carefully, still wrapped in his arms. "What do you think it is?"

William shrugs. "I don't know. Did we need anything?"

Something comes to my mind. "You don't think we got sponsors because we were kissing right?"

He laughs. "That would be a useful bonus." His hand wraps around mine. "Maybe it's food. If everything here is poisonous we'll need more food."

And he's right. Inside that parachute is a loaf of bread that almost makes me cry. It's the same loaf of bread that we ate after we got reaped on the ride to the Capitol.

"Thank you Reynald," I whisper because I know that he is behind this gift. He must have seen me and William eating the entire loaf then and knew it would help us after Leila's death. Even though he's drunk, maybe he does care about us after all.

My hands play with the loaf and I glance over at our three sleeping allies. "Should we wake the others?"

William shakes his head and sets it down beside us. "Let them sleep. It'll be a nice surprise for them to wake up to."

I smile. He's always so thoughtful. "Okay." Then a thought occurs to me and I frown. "William?"

"Yeah?"

"Where do you think all the other tributes are?"

"Sleeping maybe. Hiding like we all are."

"And the Careers?"

He shivers. "Probably hunting someone right now."

"We haven't heard a cannon. Do you think they'll come in our direction?"

"We haven't heard them yet so I doubt it." He sighs and runs a hand through his hair. "I really hope they aren't killing someone right now."

"I guess we'll know in the morning."

He holds his hand out to me and I hold on tight. As we continue to guard our friends, I can't stop myself from looking over at him, wanting nothing more than to feel his lips on mine once again.

Haymitch Abernathy

For a moment, all I feel is pure terror. Then, the thoughts start.

How did Jack get caught? How can I save him? What am I going to do?

Shimmer scoffs. "Please don't kill me," she mocks, and then laughs. "This is the Hunger Games. What did you think we're going to do, invite you over for tea?"

All the Careers join in her laughter and I find myself standing with all my stuff on my back. I take a deep breath. I have to try and save Jack. How could I live with myself if I didn't? All I have to do is imagine Hayden in his place and I'm ready to jump over ti him, trying to reach the scared little boy from District 7 before the Careers can end his life.

"Now," Shimmer says as I spot a branch thick enough to land on. "Who wants to do the honors?"

I take a flying leap and clear the 5 meter distance easily, although I land heavily on the branch, scraping my elbow. I hiss, examining it as I pull myself up on the branch, already looking for the next one. It isn't too bad, I can manage.

Jack's hair is visible from here and I can see his silhouette as he backs away. "Please, please. I promise you won't have to deal with me. I'll probably find some other way to die anyway. Why tire yourselves now?" He's smart, trying to outsmart them even though he must be scared witless.

The next jump is easier and I manage not to get any scrapes. I hear one of the girls from District 2 speak. "Can I kill him? You took mine at the Bloodbath."

"No way, Alana," the girl's district partner says. I think her name is Gloria. "I want to do it."

Jack backs up until he hits the trunk of the tree I'm in. I see a shallow cut on his cheek and clench my fists, removing my bag to get weapons to defend him.

The Careers continue to argue as I do my best to arm myself with knives without them hearing me. It's only now that I realize just how many weapons they have. Nearly every single Career has a bulging backpack on their back and at least two weapons each. My stomach drops, is this how I'll die?

For a second, I'm torn. There are so many Careers and I know that trying to fight them all would be a grave mistake. I can almost hear Hayden and Serena begging me not to do anything. But how could I leave Jack here to die? He's so young and if I play my cards right, maybe I can get us both out of harm's way alive. For now at least.

I stand ready to jump to the ground, wondering if every camera nearby is trained on me. Unless something worse is going on somewhere else, they must be. I silently hope no one notices how badly I'm shaking.

"You know what?" Shimmer twirls her axe in her hands. "This boy took my axe at training. I think I should get to kill him."

Jack's eyes dart desperately to the side, looking for an escape. "I said I was sorry!" he cries. "Please, don't."

She takes a step forward. "Maybe you should've thought of that before."

Before she can take another step towards him, I jump. I land in a crouch in front of Jack and straighten up, waving two of my knives in front of me. "Leave him alone!"

Jack gasps behind me. "Haymitch?" he whispers.

Shimmer groans. "Ugh, not you again."

I point a knife at her even though I have no idea how I'm going to kill her with all of her allies still around. "Yes, me. And don't you dare lay a hand on him."

She rolls her eyes. "Like some scum from District 12 could stop me." She looks over her shoulder and says, almost lazily. "Anyone want him?"

The two District 2 girls who had been arguing before, Alana and Gloria, eagerly step forward. "Jack," I hiss. "Run. Run now."

"No," I can hear the determination in his voice. "I'm not going to leave you."

I internally groan. "Jack, please. I can handle this. You got to go now, I'll join you." He can't stay. If he does, he'll be a distraction. Someone I have to protect while fighting for my life. "Go now!"

"No." His voice is firm. "I won't leave you."

I open my mouth to respond and almost miss the knife that comes for my face. I grab it out of the air in the nick of time, ignoring the way it digs into my palm and draws blood.

"Hey!" I grit my teeth. "Who threw that?"

One of the boys from District 4 holds up an impressive array of knives. "Watch it. There's more where that came from."

Shimmer swings her axe in my direction. "We only want the wimp. We don't need to deal with you now. You get 10 seconds to clear out."

I plant my feet into the ground. "Like you'd ever really let me go. I know you'll just wait to attack when my back's turned. I'm staying right here."

She shrugs. "I gave you a way out. Now, enough with all the chit chat, someone kill him!"

It's like her anger brought the rest of the Careers to life. Suddenly, a mob of teenagers are rushing at me, brandishing weapons. I push Jack out of the way as knives and arrows come flying at us. Most of them stick into the tree behind me but I curse as two knives stick into my thigh, knocking me to my knees.

I've only been distracted for about a second but it's enough time for two Careers, Alana and Velvet, to be in front of me, their weapons at the ready. My left leg is in agony and I'm surprised the pain doesn't bother me more. I force myself to my feet and Velvet attacks, his sword heading for my throat.

I duck and, while he yanks his sword from the tree, stick a knife into his ankle. He howls and goes down, leaving Alana to fight me. She swings her knife at me as I leap to my feet. The sharp blade catches my wrist, the same one that's still tinged with purple from earlier. I ignore the blood that spurts from it and swing my knife down and into her shoulder. I yank it out and her blood sprays my arm.

She screams in anger and backs away, clutching her shoulder. "I didn't think someone from 12 could fight like that."

"I didn't think you guys were so arrogant," I retaliate. "But hey, life is full of surprises."

Something, or rather someone, yanks my feet from underneath me and I go sprawling. I jump back up and sure enough, Velvet is in front of me again, this time joined by one of his District 4 allies. They both swing swords at me and I barely get out of the way in time. Spinning away, I manage to get another knife into the District 4 boy's back. He yells.

For a moment, I feel victorious but it only takes seconds for another Career to take his place. The fact that I'm heavily outnumbered begins to truly sink in and I start to back away, intending to grab Jack and run. I hear someone rush at me from behind and whip around, ignoring the flash of pain in my thigh. Taking a page from Velvet's book, I swing my leg and the girl from District 4 hits the ground hard. She lies there motionless but I don't hear a cannon. She's only knocked out.

I'm about to look for Jack when Alana, who I had almost forgotten about in the chaos, tackles me. My leg gives out and I hit the ground for what's probably the third time in the past five minutes. All the blood oozing from my leg can't be good news. I clamp a hand over the wound and Alana takes advantage of my distraction to pin me down, a knife to my throat.

"Haymitch!"

The scream is so full of terror and pain that without even realizing it, I've thrown Alana off me and am looking for the source of the cry. I spot Jack cornered by Shimmer, Gloria, and Chase. "Jack!" I lunge forward, pulling a knife from my bag, when Alana wrenches my hands behind me back.

"Let me go!" I shout as she pushes me into the ground and yanks my arms as hard as she can. I hear my shoulder grind against its socket and instantly feel lightheaded. My hand twists in her grasp and, with much pain on my part, get my knife through her palm. I try not to gag at the noise of the blade going through her bone.

I push her off me and take a step in Jack's direction, only to have her throw me against a tree. My skull cracks hard against the trunk and I stumble as the world spins around me.

When I look up, her knife has cut my arm and is now at my throat.

"Ready to say goodbye?" she asks, the coldness of the voice almost makes me shiver. "Any last words?"

I open my mouth to reply, probably with a snarky comeback, when a ear-piercing screams hits my ears. I know it's Jack just by the sound of it. From where I'm trapped, I have the perfect view of him struggling as Shimmer pushes him against a tree, much like I am now.

The knife I used to cut Alana before is still in my hand. "Let me go," I say as dangerously as I can, hoping she won't notice the way my voice shakes.

She laughs and the knife pierces my skin. I can feel a bead of blood well up where she's cut me. "Likely chance."

Jack cries out again, this time my name, and I look up and into his eyes, just in time to see Shimmer's axe cut through his chest.

For a moment, I swear I stop breathing. Then, his body hits the floor and he looks so much like my little brother that I freak.

I scream and struggle against Alana, who starts to cackle. "What's wrong? Did you like the little boy?"

My breath comes in short gasps and I'm sure my eyes are so wide I must look crazy. Before I've even realized what's happened, my arm swings up and the next moment, Alana has fallen against me, her throat cut wide open by my knife. My knees almost give out when her blood sprays against my face.

Gloria cries out for her district partner and starts towards me but a hand holds her back. The boy from her district says, "Wait. He's stronger than we thought."

I push Alana off me, my hands shaking. But then again, my whole body is shaking so it's not like anyone will care. Shimmer, who had been heading towards me with her bloodied axe, pauses as Alana's cannon goes off. She probably didn't think I'd kill one oh her allies and, if I'm being honest, I don't know how I did it either. The rest of the eight Careers are all watching from a distance. They must be scared of me. After all, I did just kill one of them. Although I don't know why they aren't all trying to ambush me. Sure, some of them are injured but they must know that I'd never survive an attack from all of them together. Maybe they simply don't want to tire themselves out.

I hear Jack gurgle something and Shimmer, being the only one still near him, tells him to be quiet and kicks him in the stomach. That does it.

I wrench myself towards her, shaking and shouting, and somehow manage to tackle the leader of the Careers to the ground. It doesn't last long, because all she has to do is punch me in the face and I catch sight of my hands drenched in blood. I freeze for just a moment but it's enough time for her to hit me in the head so hard that I sink into the ground, moaning.

Shimmer and the other Careers immediately leave, either deciding that I'm too much of a threat to fight or believing that I'm so injured that I'll just die right here and now. I don't know which one I want them to believe.

My head spins and I'm so dizzy that it takes Jack's weak voice calling my name to make me remember what just happened.

I somehow manage to stand and walk over to him. He's on the ground, soaked in blood. There's so much blood that I know he'll be dead soon and that there's nothing I can do about it. But the sight of him just laying there helplessly has me on my knees beside him, stroking his cheek.

"Hey," I whisper. My voice cracks. But I'm not crying. I have to try and stay strong. I can't be weak now.

"Haymitch," his voice is so frail that I hardly hear it. "Thanks," he wheezes. "For trying to help me."

I take a deep breath. "Sure," I croak. "Any time."

I can't help but think that it's my brother dying beside me. I grab a hold of his hand, trying to be of comfort in any way that I can.

His eyes fill with tears that I think are equally from pain and the realization that he's going to die soon. And in that moment, I wish I could destroy the Capitol, especially President Snow.

"Me and Rowan promised each other we'd try to win."

I still don't know how Rowan died and can only hope Jack didn't have to see it. "I'm sorry."

"You could win," he says, and there's some strength behind those words. "I think you could do it."

"Okay," I say, because what else can I say?

He smiles softly. "Promise?"

I think about my promise to my family and to Serena. There are so many people who want me to come home. "Promise."

"Can you do me a favour?"

"Anything."

"Reach into my pocket. There's something there."

I do as he says and try to get my hand into Jack's blood-slicked pocket. Eventually, I pull something out and hold it in front of his face. He smiles. "My big brother gave me that. Just before he went into his Games."

I take a closer look at the thing in my hand. It's a wooden toy, obviously carved to look like two boys, one older and one younger, holding hands. It's very well done as well. "It's beautiful." I know that District 7 only has three current victors, and all of them are way too old to have been in the Games when Jack was alive. His brother must be dead. This poor boy really has nothing left. "I'm sorry about your brother."

His hand reaches up to wrap around the toy and I let him take it from my grasp. The wood is soon covered in Jack's blood. He smiles sadly again and his eyes start to glaze . "I miss him so much. Do you think I'll see him again?"

I know that he's in the space between life or death so I see no harm in agreeing with him, even if I don't know the answer. "Of course, you will. He's right there, just waiting to see you again."

There it is again, that sweet, boyish smile. His harsh, desperate breathing from before has faded into nearly nothing and his eyes have completely glazed over. His hand, still clutching what must have been his token, drops to his side and he stills.

"Goodbye Jack," I choke as his cannon goes off. "I'll miss you."

He seems even younger in death. I can feel the tears threatening to start but I force them back, instead wrapping Jack's cold little fingers around his precious token and setting his hands over his bloodied chest. One look at his ruffled hair almost breaks me and I set about combing it with my fingers, the same way I did for Hayden back at home.

I'm suddenly aware of a camera focused on me. It only takes me glancing around to find one in a tree, blinking away at me, ready to capture my weakness. I give it my best cold-blooded stare. Because I'm furious. Furious that the Capitol has taken away this little boy's life, not to mention countless others, all for something that happened decades before we were born. Furious that Snow wants this to happen. Furious that the Capitol thinks the only thing that the districts are good for is giving up their children for their annual entertainment. That and supplying their never-ending supply of food and resources, so no one living in the Capitol has to lift a finger to get what they want.

Some sort of animal gives a shriek and I look up to see a hovercraft above me, waiting to collect Jack's lifeless body. For a moment, I'm tempted to stay where I am. Maybe they'll bring me too. But I shake my head at that. They'd probably just get some mutt to chase me away, and I've promised far too many people that I'd win to be killed by a mutt.

I almost can't bear leaving Jack all alone here. He didn't get anything from the Cornucopia and the Careers took Alana's stuff so all I have to do is wipe my bloody knives on the ground and stick them in my pack, which has remained mostly unharmed. For now, I'm not shaking or crying or screaming. Instead, there's some odd sense of numbness setting in around me. The world seems hazy and I can't pick out any details as I take one last look and Jack and stumble away.

I'm still oddly numb as I walk. I just walk under the probably fake night sky, not even knowing what I'm doing. I guess looking for a new spot to stay in.

Finally, I stop when my legs begin to ache and barely manage to get myself up into a tree. I have no idea where I am and when I turn around to look for the hovercraft, I realize it must have gone a long time ago, taking Jack with it.

It's with that realization that I start to shake. And of course, once I start, there's no stopping. I'm in some weird limbo between numbness and panic and can't decide which one is worse. I shiver violently and I realize later that I'm gasping for air. Then silent tears are running down my face and I can only hope that there are no cameras that have a perfect view of me right now. Because after seeing me break down like this, I don't think anyone in the Capitol with a working brain would sponsor me. But honestly I could care less.

For the next few hours, or however long it is, I'm shaking and breaking down completely, the Games finally having caught up with me. I don't know how I fall asleep but eventually I do, my sleep tainted with visions of blood and death.

Maysilee Donner

Mazie gasps in awe when she sees the loaf of bread William and I had received the night before. Miller explains that it's a fancy bread they make in District 9, only enjoyed by commoners on very special occasions. Because of this, the five of us devour the loaf for breakfast, knowing that we have enough food in our packs and that we should be well fed for today. There's a sense of foreboding in the air, knowing we all survived the first day but have many more days ahead of us amkes us want to enjoy the little things while we still can.

I can't help but blush every time William meets my eyes. He seems to be having the same problem as we both do everything in our power to look in opposite directions. The knowledge of just what happened yesterday is pretty overwhelming. Although I'd like nothing more than to have his lips on mine again, I know we can't afford to be distracted, no matter how good that distraction may feel.

The mood isn't entirely happy though. We all try not to look at the boot that had arrived in the parachute for Leila, minutes after her death. I guess the Reynald and the District 9 and 10 mentors had arranged the parachute before they died, because why else would they send something we have no use for now. The sight of it makes my heart twinge with sadness and I can't help but think of the sweet, green-eyes girl who was far too innocent to be in these Games.

"So, what's the plan for today?" William asks as we finish up the bread. It truly is delicious and something I would happily eat everyday if I could.

"I guess just stay away from the Careers," I say. "And maybe try to find some water."

"Everything here must be poisoned," Ana says. "We can't risk it." I know she still feels bad about not noticing the fruit Leila wanted would kill her. "We'll have to rely on our packs. And whatever our mentors send us."

"That makes sense," Mazie says. "I guess we could just stay here for now then. We won't run into anyone that way."

Everyone agrees with this idea.

"But we should keep walking," Ana says. "We're trying to get up the mountain. We'll have more cover that way."

William agrees. "Good point. We'll just take care not to run into anyone."

So we pack up, ultimately deciding to leave Leila's boot where we are, are head farther up the mountain. I guess I'm the only one who still thinks there's something odd about it so I leave it. I must be being paranoid.

To pass the time, we share stories back from our districts and talk about everything we miss back home. I learn that Ana is an orphan, abandoned at birth because her parents either couldn't afford to keep her or because they just didn't want her. We all offer our condolences but she shrugs them off, stating that she couldn't care less and that she's sure they would have been awful parents anyway. It's an odd thing to think but I shrug it off.

Miller and Mazie reveal that their mom died giving birth to their little sister and that the three of them are raised by their dad and uncle. Their dad, wrecked by the loss of his wife, sometimes shuts himself away in his room and doesn't come out for weeks. Other times, he's abusive and mean. Their uncle, who was their mom's brother, is kind and gentle. Mazie shows us her token, a yellow hair ribbon that belonged to their mother and I can't help but feel a pang of emotion. We've all suffered too much in this world.

William surprises me by opening up about his brother Rye, who he refused to talk about to anyone except me before, and how his family has never been the same since. I can't help but feel a little guilty. Out of everyone here, perhaps I've had the best life leading up to these Games. But we're all hear together so I guess there's that.

In an effort to lighten up the mood, we all start talking about our favourite things from our District. A lot of things get mentioned. Special traditions, foods, and places make the top list. I find myself wishing that we got to learn more about the other districts at school. Mazie talks in great detail about a meadow covered in flowers behind their house that I would have loved to see.

We're all still talking happily when Miller, who has been the quietest of us all so far, suddenly freezes and brings his arm out, stopping us all in our tracks. "Did anyone here that?"

I frown as we all fall silent, straining for any noise. "Hear what?"

"I heard something. Like a branch snapping. And footsteps."

We all listen for a couple more minutes, the relaxed mood from before turning more panicked and on edge.

Ana pulls a knife from her pack but leaves it at her side. "I don't hear anything. Maybe you're just nervous."

Mazie's face has whitened. "He has great instincts. He's never wrong about this sort of stuff." I find myself desperately hoping that she's wrong.

"We should pick up the pace," William suggests, and I can see the anxiety on his face. "Nothing good can happen if we're being followed." He turns back to the mountain, which we've almost reached the base of. "Come on."

The four of us have just turned around when I hear something whistle behind me. Without thinking, I grab Mazie and William, who are the closest to me and yank us to the ground, yelling, "Watch out!"

I see Ana duck beside us but Miller cries out in surprise. I look up as he stumbles and see a long dagger lodged into his pack.

"Miller!" Mazie fights my grasp and rushes to help her brother up. He quickly insists that he's fine, just startled.

"Who's there?" William shouts into the trees. "Show yourself!"

I find that my darts and blowgun have sprung into my hands, ready to strike an opponent. I wonder who it is and find myself hoping that it isn't the Careers.

The four teens who step out from the trees aren't the Careers, but seem terrifying in their own right.

Two older boys from district 3 and 5 carry a sword and daggers respectively. The remaining girl from District 6, who's about my age, carries a bow while the last girl, who's from District 7 and taller than Ana, wields a silver axe. A shiver runs up my spine as the five of us back away.

"I remember them from Training," William murmurs in my ear. "I thought it was weird that they sat together, instead of with their district's. They all got pretty decent training scores as well."

It's just like William, I think. To have remembered such small facts that would come in handy later. Ana holds up one of her many knives. "What do you want with us?"

The boy from 5, who I guess is the leader of the group, laughs. "You could've joined us," he says to Ana. "But we figured that if the Careers rejected you, we wouldn't have a use for you either." Ana flushes but glares silently.

The girl from Seven grins maniacally. "As to why we're here. You guys may have a lot of members, but it's pretty easy to tell that you aren't skilled. We're here to kill you, of course."

William, our negotiator, holds up his hands. "We are stronger than we seem and don't want to fight. Leave us alone and you'll find yourself unharmed."

The first one is an obvious lie. I think. It's true that we can all, with the exception of Mazie who's arm is still bandaged, wield a weapon. However, I doubt we are as skilled as these four. The second is truer. We will gain nothing by engaging in a fight with them. Not that they'd care.

The four of them laugh and rush towards us. I barely have time to shove Mazie out of the way before an arrow sticks into the ground behind us.

Ana takes on the boy from 5, their weapons being the closest to matching. Miller and the boy from 3 charge at each other, Miler's shorter knives clashing with the boy's long sword. Mazie backs away, knowing that even without her injury, she wouldn't last a moment in a fight.

William and I end up back to back against the two girls. I fumble with my darts, not wanting to use them unless I have to, knowing that wasting them would be fatal, especially since the darts themselves won't kill, just injure. The girl from 7 throws her axe at us and it just barely misses my head, going to fly into the tree behind us. I notice that the tree is covered in pink, most likely poisonous, fruit.

As she retrieves her axe, her ally keeps us busy by shooting an arrow at our heads. I jump back and without letting myself overthink it, send a dart at her arm. She shrieks and leaps back, clutching the injured arm to her chest but I know that I haven't really injured her. Beside me, William is fighting the girl from 7, trying to defend himself with a knife.

The girl from 6, despite her injury, sends an arrow at Ana, who has to leap aside. Leila's fear-stricken face as she realized the fruit she had was poisonous suddenly comes to my mind. Then, Iris's words at the Justice Building: Just Improvise. I grab one of the deadly fruits from the tree which the axe had flown into and without getting juice on my hands, dip the tips of my darts into the poisoned liquid. Poisoned darts.

I spin around to call for William but I hear another call instead.

Miller is backing away quickly, his knife on the floor behind the boy from 3. He's weaponless. A sense of horror goes through me and I'm about to aim a dart at the boy to protect my ally when I hear Mazie shout. She runs up to Miller, ignoring the boy from 3, and tosses him a knife. He gives her such an affectionate smile , even in a battle, that makes me miss Maylene with a passion. The wistful smile that comes to my mouth is quickly replaced by a gape of pure terror when the boy from 3 sneaks up behind Mazie and swings his sword through her neck, decapitating her with one blow.

Miller screams.

Everyone freezes and turns to where Mazie's headless body is crumpling to the floor, her blood splattering over her brother's face. My heart drops and I hear William cry out behind me as her cannon goes off. And Miller doesn't stop screaming. He's flailing around, shouting his sister's name. The boy from 3 looks taken aback, almost confused.

Either taking pity on Miller now that he's acting like a lunatic, or maybe even thinking that he's dangerous, the boy starts to back away when the girl from 7 shouts. "Just kill him!"

He raises his sword and when Miller sees his sister's blood still on it, he howls and drops to the floor, tugging at Mazie's lifeless hand, telling her to run before the monsters get her. Tears make their way up my throat and I almost don't hear William shout. "Maysilee, duck!"

I do and a knife goes flying far above my head. The boy from 3 doesn't notice, still intent on killing Miller, and the knife sticks into his back. He spins around and a second one hits him in the heart. His cannons sounds seconds after he hits the ground.

I scramble to my feet and look behind me. Sure enough, Ana's two knives are gone from her hands. I guess they're in the boy's body now. Something about that makes me feel nauseous but I know she was only protecting our ally. I turn to William, meaning to asses our team and thank him for the heads-up. He gives me a devastated look, not noticing that the girl from 7 has her axe raised sky high, ready to drive it into his back.

A panic like no other seizes me. "William!" I shriek. And without thinking about it, without worrying that my darts are truly deadly now, without even thinking about the fact that I'm about to kill someone, I aim and fire a dart into the girl's neck.

She screeches in pain, her eyes bulging. And it's almost as if she's eaten the fruit that I've injected into her bloodstream. Blood spurts from her mouth and she gives one small cough before collapsing to the ground. All I can do is stare at the girl whom I've just killed.

William's hand touches my shoulder as the cannon goes off, bringing me out of my shock. I spin around, looking for the boy from 5 and the girl from 6. William shakes his head. "They left as soon as you killed the girl. I guess we're stronger than they'd thought."

The word "killed" makes my legs shake and almost give out. I can hear William beside me but I can't make out what he's saying. As though from a distance, I see Ana walk over to Miller, coaxing him to stand. He won't stop screaming, as though he's in terrible pain. The sound of it threatens to shatter my skull. It's the sound of heart-breaking grief and terror, something I hope I never experience.

I start when William's lips graze over mine. Only then do I realize that I actually have fallen to the floor and that he's helping me up. "Maysilee," he says softly.

"I'm okay," I whisper shakily because how bad can my pain be to Miller's?

We head closer, careful to avoid all the bodies, and look at Ana, who's frowning.

"He won't stop," she says. "I don't get it. What happened to him?"

"His sister just died, Ana," William leans down beside Miller. "In front of him and in the most gruesome way possible. He must be in shock."

I lean down beside William but look at Mazie's body instead. I can't help but realize that our group is being killed off rather quickly. Tears are streaming down my face but I ignore them, untying Mazie's hair ribbon from her head, playing with it in my hands. I have the urge to braid her curly, red hair and sing to her, but I know we have to clear out. And take care of Miller.

He's still screaming, even though his voice is growing hoarse. His eyes are squeezed shut and he's trembling on the ground. I've seen this happen in Games before, where tributes go crazy. It's a rare occurrence and I desperately hope that that isn't what happened to Miller.

I touch his shoulder. "Miller." He doesn't respond. So I do the next thing that comes to mind. I place his dead sister's hair ribbon in his hand. He freezes and examines the ribbon. Instead of going back to pieces, he smiles softly and starts mumbling about meadows, uncles, and family.

We try to engage him for 5 minutes until we see the hovercrafts above us. When Miller sees it, he shrieks but follows us in standing and gathering our things. I take one last look at Mazie's body before we turn away. Soon enough, Miller's mumbling is back and his eyes have glazed over completely.

Ana shoulders a pack and says, "We have to do something."

William shakes his head sadly and confirms what I feared. "There's no point. He's cracked."

I'm so sorry it took me literally a month to update this. I was just really busy and I feel super bad about it. I'll try to get the next one out in a few days to make up for it. This chapter reached just over 8K words, which really shocked me. Hopefully the length makes up for the time it took to get it out there. In case anyone is confused as to what time frame this chapter takes place in, up to Jack's death is day 1 at night and the last part with Mazie's death happens during the morning of day 2. The next chapter will be the rest of day 2 and day 3. Stay tuned!