Her vision blurred and everything went silent for her for a few minutes until the noise came back and she can hear Johanna and Peeta trash talking the Peacekeepers while Annie is calling out her name while crying. She doesn't understand what's happening, why they're all acting so crazy but then something hit her on the back and it made it all clear for her. She's kneeling in front of Annie with her back turned to the others. Her brain realized that her body is in pain and it's getting harder for her to breathe.
"Stop!" Peeta screamed at the top of his lungs.
She heard a few more talking behind her and the hitting stopped. They must have left because Peeta finally went beside her and pulled her away from Annie who is shaking very badly.
"I fear I don't feel very well", she managed to say.
It's not polite to say that to other people but she's really out of it. She might pass out soon too.
"No shit. You're stupid, you know that? Why would you do that? Why would you…damn it, Trinket!" Johanna exclaimed.
Effie is not sure why the young girl is getting angry with her.
"Stop moving for a minute. Let me take a look at your back, okay?" the boy said tentatively and when she did not protest, he unzipped her dress to see her back already turning a horrid shade of purple. He sucked in a breath before zipping her back up, "It will get better. You just have to rest and let it heal, yeah?" he muttered and tried to sound cheerful but the fear in his voice betrayed him.
She wanted to say thanks but she's already drifting off. Exhaustion maybe?
Annie crawled to Effie's side once she's out and gently brushed the loose strand of her real hair and tucked it behind her ear. Her wig is crooked and her makeup is smudged. She couldn't understand why she would do that for her. She's Capitol after all and an escort. She's a nobody and it's not like they're close. Finnick is rather fond of Effie Trinket but the two of them? They never even talked to each other before.
Johanna shared the same sentiment. She thought of it as stupidity on Effie's part but it takes balls to take all that blows on her back. The Peacekeeper did not hold back. He did not consider that she's Capitol or a woman.
"Are you sure there's no broken bones? That could have broken her spine?" she finds herself asking.
Peeta sighed.
"Her back is badly bruised but no broken bones. I'm not sure if her bones are cracked though", he answered.
Seven's Victor scoffed and rubbed her face with her hands.
"What the hell is she thinking? She thought it's fun to play hero? It's going to be a pain if she became paralyzed, you know. I don't want to deal with that mess", she expressed.
Peeta knows better than to trust her words. He knows she's worried about the beating Effie took for Annie. It surprised all of them but he had always known she has a big heart and she cares for them, whether the others are not her Victors.
"She cares about us. That's what happened", he muttered.
…and that's Effie's biggest flaw, Johanna thought to herself.
In Thirteen, Haymitch thought he already knew what hell felt like but he was wrong. Being inside a locked room, deprived of alcohol and pumped with meds, that's hell, not to mention he's worried sick about Effie. No one has come to him to give any update whether they have already proceeded with the rescue mission to get the Victors and Effie out of the Capitol. His body won't stop shaking and he thought for a second that his heart will give in before they let him out of the rabbit hole they put him into.
Chaff had come in several times. He has no idea when. He lost track of time really. He tried asking him about the rescue mission but he said that they're still figuring out the exact location where Snow detained the Victors and Effie.
"You look like shit", Eleven's Victor mentioned once.
"You too, what's your excuse?" Haymitch asked.
He's badly craving for alcohol but the sooner he gets over it, the sooner they will let him out so he can help in finding the others.
"Trinket…she's strong, yeah? She's extremely stubborn. She will annoy the hell out of the Peacekeepers they will give up on her for sure", Chaff said.
Haymitch laughed which is the first one since he arrived in Thirteen. He can already imagine Effie staring down a Peacekeeper and bossing them around.
"Yeah, that woman is a pain the ass", he agreed.
Chaff held his hand and gave it a squeeze. He may not like his relationship with Effie but he understood the pain his friend is under at the moment. He's isolated, going through withdrawal and worried sick about his girl. That's hell in his opinion.
More days passed and finally, Haymitch was cleared to be released from the rehab facility. They prescribed him meds to help him with the shaking and since there's no alcohol in Thirteen, the doctors are not worried about him having a relapse.
When he learned that the rescue mission at the Capitol happened few days ago, his first stop was the clinic. He's not sure how he found his way there since he knows nothing of the place but he found the clinic nevertheless.
The first person he saw was Finnick cradling a distress Annie in his arms. A smile formed upon his lips. They found them. He entered the clinic right away and his eyes roamed around in search for Effie but he found Johanna instead. It took the girl a while to recognize him but when she did…
"You…" the girl ripped the needles on her arm and jumped out of bed and swing at his face that he fell onto the floor, "You fucking bastard!"
"Jo! Jo! Hey, that's Haymitch! It's Haymitch!" the boy got in between them to prevent the girl from killing Haymitch.
"Oh I know who he is", she snarled at Finnick before turning back at him. "You fucking left her there! You fucking left her…did you have fun, huh? Do you have any idea what they did to her? What they're going to do to her now that we're not there anymore to shield her?" she exclaimed.
Haymitch pushed himself up and wiped the blood from his cut lip before frowning.
"What the hell are you talking about? Where's Trinket?" he asked.
She should be there somewhere. Maybe they moved her to another clinic?
"Where's Trinket? Where else? In the fucking prison! You left her there! Your soldiers ignored her even when I yelled at them to take her", Johanna answered.
It felt like his lungs are closing in. What is she talking about? They told him they will get Effie out. They made a deal. He made the demand and they agreed.
"No. That's not true. She's on the list. I made sure she's there before they shipped me to rehab", he argued.
Johanna laughed at him and her laugh is very cruel.
"She's right fucking there beside me! She told them who she is. She even begged your soldiers to take her. You know what they said to her? You're not a Victor. You're not on the list. There goes your fucking list, old man", she spat.
That's not right. She's on the list. She had to be on the list. He was shaking his head when they felt another's presence in the room.
"I didn't know", it was Katniss who is looking very pale right now, "…when they asked me who I wanted to be rescued, I didn't know Effie was in prison. I didn't put her in the list. I didn't know", the girl muttered.
All Haymitch can do is stare at the girl in disbelief. Finnick is speechless too and all they can hear is Johanna's hysterical laugh.
"Your bird is really something. So much for being a freaking symbol of the revolution…don't let Peeta see you, birdie. You're dead if he finds out you left Trinket to be ripped apart in that shithole. He's going to fucking kill you", Johanna said before walking back to her bed and sticking back the needles into her arm.
Even Annie shot a glare to Katniss before covering herself up with the blanket and got lost within herself again. Finnick walked past Katniss and Haymitch knew the boy is controlling his temper too. The girl must have not told him they asked her for a list. It's so like Katniss to act without bothering to ask anyone.
"Haymitch…" Katniss tried but he's also on the edge and without alcohol, it's hard to keep it together.
"Don't. Not now…I need some air, if this place got one", he cut her off and stormed away from the clinic.
FEW DAYS AGO
The Peacekeepers tried everything to make them talk but Johanna and Peeta can take a beating like no other. They did their best to spare Annie from any of it and it's usually Effie who takes the heat away from the girl. They've whipped her too for intervening when they're beating up Peeta. Her wig is already gone. Her makeup is gone. Her fake nails got torn off with some of her real ones too. She knows she looks incredibly horrible right now, her mother will be appalled. Sometimes she thinks about her family but she did not dare venturing too far because it's not productive. She has to be present for the kids.
They made her prepped the two Victors sometimes when they forced them for propos and interviews to lie to the Capitol citizens. They threatened to kill Annie if Johanna and Peeta wouldn't cooperate and play along.
Propos are the easy part. This particular day is a hard one. The Peacekeepers are running out of patience with them and when they're pissed, they're very violent. They're grilling Peeta again and forcing him to spill something he has no knowledge of. No matter how many times he says he does not know anything, they just don't believe him. They already know they will get nothing out of Johanna but they still beat her for the heck of it.
"Tell us where is District Thirteen!" the Peacekeeper yelled.
That's another discovery for them. They did not know Thirteen existed aside from Johanna who was actually a part of the rebellion.
"I don't know!" Peeta answered.
He's getting fed up from being asked that every single time.
The Peacekeeper snarled at him and then turned at her. She's expecting the baton or the whip but that did not happen. The man raised his foot and stepped on her right ankle with force, everyone heard the cracking. Someone screamed…it must have been her because her throat is burning. There were other screams too but the pain made it impossible for her to care.
"I told you I don't know anything! Why won't you believe me? Stop hurting her!" Peeta exclaimed. She is hyperventilating.
"Dayfall is going to be pissed you broke the bitch's ankle", another Peacekeeper said to another.
Dayfall…she forced her brain to think where she heard that name before. It helped with diverting her attention from the pain she's feeling. Dayfall…Graham Dayfall…the guy from Snow's secret team.
They left after that and did not come back for a little while. Maybe they're giving her enough time to recover from her broken ankle. When they returned, they took Johanna and she's been gone for hours. She's bald when they returned her. The girl laughed it off. They tortured her with hydro electrocution but that did not seem to break the girl's spirit. She's truly a tough one. They moved to Peeta next and he started fading away each time they returned him. They're doing something with the boy and they're powerless to stop it.
One night…or is it daylight? She's not sure. Something exploded. Chaos broke and fires were shot. Soldiers stormed the prison but it's not the Peacekeepers. Her eyes lit up and woke up the others.
"Cavalry is already here", she said in glee.
They opened their cell and picked up Peeta and Annie first before going for Johanna, but then it became clear to Effie they're not taking her with them.
"Wait. I'm Effie Trinket. I'm Twelve's escort! Please!" she begged and that's so hard to swallow because not once, she begged for the Peacekeepers.
Johanna protested and thrashed when they picked her up the ground when she refused to leave her there. You're not on the list, they said. That hurts more than the blows she received so far but she felt relieved. At least, the kids are now safe. It does not matter if she's going to die now. They're safe. The children always come first.