First of all, I want to send a huge thank you to this entire community. You truly are the most wonderful readers a writer could ask for and I'm so grateful for all of your messages of love and support! I was even inspired to write, so enjoy this next one!
Secondly, pertaining to this chapter, I know there are still lots of questions to be answered and this one doesn't help any. The next few chapters will hopefully wrap up quite a bit of the story and will answer some of your eager questions.
Thank you again! I couldn't think of leaving yall for too long. Still job-hunting, still depressed, but I'm doing better each day! ❤❤❤
There was a knock at the door and Snow sighed as he dropped the document he was reading.
"Enter." The President leaned back in his chair, surprised to see the General standing there.
"General Mellark. Come in."
"Sorry for the interruption, Mr. President."
"Not at all. I trust you are feeling better?"
"Yes sir. Almost good as new. These are just for show," he flashed a weak smile as he held the crutches up.
"Well I'm glad you're here. I wanted to inform you I made a decision this morning. As of two hours ago, you are First General of Panem." Peeta's eyes widened.
"Sir?"
"It was admirable, the way you fought the rebels to defend your wife. I only wish the Mockingjay was with them so you could have killed her."
"Right… the Mockingjay…" he trailed off, looking uncomfortable. Snow's brow raised.
"We have spies moving toward District 13 as we speak, to inform us of her whereabouts. When the time comes, we will launch an attack. I expect you to be the one to take care of it."
"Of course, sir. Keep me informed. I was, uh, actually coming to ask for your assistance with something." Snow waited, and Peeta's eyes darted around the room. Calm down, Mellark. Don't give him any reason to suspect anything is out of the ordinary.
He had talked it over with Rosalie that morning. He'd decided that he couldn't risk using the idea of visiting her family, as Snow knew very well that Rosalie came from 12. So anything Peeta told him would be a lie.
"We can't give him any reason to suspect us," he had said quietly, the sound of the shower running drowning out his words. "If we tell him we are visiting your family, he'll know we are lying and trying to escape. Where can we go that won't seem suspicious?" She drew 1 and 3 in his palm and he shook his head.
"We can't go to 13 yet. It's much too far and we don't know who here is on our side. We need to get away from the Capitol first, and try to get a message to the Mockingjay." He still had a hard time using her actual name. It bothered him that he still couldn't really remember anything about her. What if Rosalie was wrong? What if she wasn't the girl he was in love with?
Peeta rubbed his head and winced. The pain had been getting worse all day and he squeezed his eyes shut.
"Peter? Are you alright?"
"Fine sir. Just a headache. No doubt it's from those damn rebels knocking me out."
"You should be resting. What is it you wanted to ask of me?"
"Some of my soldiers have reported unrest around District 2. I was hoping to visit the training camps to ensure there is no trouble or rebellious activity."
"Very well. You leave in the morning."
"Thank you sir. I was also hoping Lavinia could accompany me." Snow looked surprised and Peeta bit his lip.
"We are getting so close… in the pregnancy, sir, and after what happened, I just don't want to let her out of my sight. If anything else should happen to her… I don't know what I'd do." Snow crossed his arms. Interesting. Mellark had gone from wanting nothing to do with the girl to expressing his devotion. Well, at least she wasn't able to speak. And he had plenty of spies who could follow him around in 2.
"Permission granted, General. You both leave on the first train."
"Thank you, President Snow. I know Lavinia will be relieved. She was uneasy about me leaving again."
"Of course. Since you will already be in 2, there is something I want you to do for me."
"Of course, sir."
"There have been reported sightings of rebel refugee camps appearing on the borders. District 3, especially, after the bombing." Bombing? What bombing? Peeta tried not to look too surprised.
"Yes sir."
"I want you to take your soldiers, find these camps, and destroy them. Examples must be made, and I want the country to see what rebellion means."
"Sir… there will undoubtedly be women and children in those camps. Surely-"
"You were given these orders before the rebel attack, General Mellark. If they choose to support the wrong side, they are considered traitors. I want you to kill them all." Peeta swallowed thickly. Had he murdered children in the past? What kind of monster was he, really? Since he couldn't remember much, he wondered what atrocities he had committed. Perhaps Rosalie would be able to tell him. Perhaps he would find someone else in 2 he could trust.
"Understood sir," he said flatly. Snow nodded and watched the General hobble out of the room. He pressed a button on the desk and snapped at his secretary.
"Egeria, get Antonius in here."
Peeta was almost out the door when he noticed Snow's daughter hurrying toward him.
"M-Miss Snow! How are you today?" Aurelia wondered if he even remembered her name. He had been hijacked so many times now, were there any memories left in his mind?
"It's nice to see you, General Mellark. How are you feeling?"
"I'm well, Miss Snow, thank you for asking."
"And your wife?"
"She's improving. It's quite an adjustment but we are… coping." Aurelia nodded and glanced upstairs.
"Were you having a meeting with Daddy?"
"Indeed, I was. He is sending me to District 2, and Lavinia is allowed to accompany me. We will be checking on the training camps near the mountain."
"I see. Well I'd like to see her again, when you return. Please tell her she's welcome to come by anytime."
"I will, thank you Miss Snow."
"Aurelia, please, General." Peeta nodded. Aurelia. He knew that.
No he hadn't. Ugh, he was a mess. Why couldn't he remember anything?
Because he'd had so much poison pumped into his system that he should have been dead. Why wasn't he dead?
"Until next time then, Aurelia." Peeta reached for her hand and Aurelia looked surprised when he pressed his lips to her skin. She watched him hobble down the drive and sighed deeply. She'd been hoping to speak to the General's wife and reveal to her what all she knew. She was certain that the poor woman would be interested in what Aurelia had to say.
Well, perhaps the General would be too? She bit her lip and watched his retreating back. Her father trusted him. Probably because he was more Capitol machine than anything else now. The meeting she had attended had horrified her. She wanted to make things right but if the General was loyal to her father, she couldn't involve him. Not yet anyway.
But her orders had been to get Lavinia to attend a meeting. Rosalie, she corrected herself in her mind. Her father had stripped the woman of her identity completely. He'd murdered her husband, taken her identity and now her freedom to speak. Aurelia was angry for the young woman. Just because she was from the districts didn't give her father the right to take such liberties with peoples' lives.
"I'll just wait until they return to the Capitol," she muttered to herself, turning on her heel. She nearly smacked into the Minister's chest and she reared back.
"Minister Antonius."
"Miss Aurelia. Terribly sorry, are you alright?"
"Fine. Are you here to speak to Daddy?"
"Actually I was hoping to catch General Mellark before he leaves the Capitol." She waved toward the door.
"You just missed him."
"Damn. Did he say where he was going?"
"I think Daddy has given some orders," she shrugged nonchalantly. Antonius cursed under his breath and fled up the stairs without another word to Aurelia. She rolled her eyes and shook her head as she made her way to her room. She hated the Minister of Defense. Her grandfather had trusted him, as her father seemed to do, but Aurelia had heard her mother and father talking about how the Minister was digging his own grave. She hoped he dug it quickly. The man gave her the creeps.
"Sir, what makes you think that Mellark will follow your orders?"
"If he doesn't, there are plenty of Loyalist soldiers who will inform us. However, I have confidence that he will carry out the orders. I have contacted the Head Peacekeeper in 2, to inform him that Mellark is coming and to keep an eye on him. It seems that the man remembers Mellark from his training."
"Who is it? Who is Head Peacekeeper now?"
"Commander Rossex. He was recently promoted, after Thread's death. He seemed quite… eager to see Mellark again."
"Should we worry, President Snow? What if he seeks vengeance on Mellark?"
"Let Mellark take care of him then. I promoted him to First General, so he may deal with anyone who tries to give him a problem. Rossex asked why Mellark's memory is gone so I told him he suffered a blow to the head and can't remember anything."
"Very good, sir." Snow tilted his head.
"I must admit, Antonius, I disagree with the amount of times it has been done but hijacking the boy was a good idea afterall."
"Your father disagreed, sir. When I told him of the plan, he insisted we find another way to bring him to our side."
"My father was a fool."
"Which is why I gave the orders for it to be done anyway," Antonius shrugged. "Duartyr reported that Mellark was strong but susceptible to the tracker-jacker venom. He had no idea what exactly we were doing to Mellark but he guessed."
"Duartyr knew about the experiments?"
"Not really. Yes, he suspected that something else was going on. After all, hijacking will supposedly kill the victim after some time. The amount we have used on him thus far should have made his heart stop ages ago. It's the other experiments that have saved him."
"And my father? Did he know of the procedures as well?"
"Oh, I thought it best to keep silent about it… after all, the old man was worried about an ancient curse. I think his mental state was slightly off," he chuckled. Snow looked somber as he tapped his fingers together.
"On that, we disagree Antonius. My father may have been an old fool but he was very cunning and aware of nearly every tradition and legend in Panem. He studied cultural differences when he was young, you know. At first people thought he was so eager to learn about the districts because he wanted to relate to them. Wanted to understand them. But people don't realize that Corialianus Snow was born during the Dark Days, when the country was at war. Neighbor against neighbor, mother against son. It was when he was four years old that the Hunger Games were created. He barely understood it."
"How do you know of all of this, Mr. President? He never spoke of any of this to me."
"Why would he," Snow snorted. "You're not a Snow, Minister. You're not privy to those secrets. The Snows have eons of secrets hidden away."
"But you haven't been in power for that long."
"Doesn't mean we weren't around," he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. "My point, Minister, is that I too believe in prophecies and legends. And District 12, especially, is known for the dark magic it hides. Witches live there. Or lived, I should say. Who knows if that old woman really was a witch but her predictions came true, didn't they? Which is why we won't KILL Mellark. We will continue to use him. As long as we make sure he doesn't remember anything from his previous life, he will do what we need him to do."
"But you said we won't administer any more venom on him-"
"And we won't," Snow rolled his eyes. "We can't risk any more. We can, however, continue the procedures and see if we can't turn him into even more of a weapon."
"The doctors reported the last injection gave him strength to throw three soldiers into the wall. They were killed on impact. His strength is becoming unprecedented."
"Imagine, then, what he could do to the little District 12 brat he loved so much. He'll snap her neck before she has a chance to speak his name. Can the effects be reversed?"
"Not that we know of, but that doesn't mean it can't happen. These practices are highly secretive and very, very old."
"It doesn't surprise me that this was created during the Dark Days. Creating weapons to wipe out armies is a brilliant idea. He can still be harmed though, is that correct?"
"He isn't invincible, sir. You know that he nearly died from the lashing in 12. He had almost a hundred lashes on his back. No normal soldier could survive that. It's the chemicals in his bloodstream that saved him. But if he gets shot in battle or something, yes, he can die."
"And Mellark is the only person to have this many injections of serum?"
"As far as we know, no one had this much, even during the Dark Days. Of course, our scientists have been practicing in secret for many, many years. They hid after the Treaty of Treason and continued to work on it. They gave Mellark his first injection upon his arrival in 2. Switching it with tracker-jacker venom every so often kept him from becoming unstoppable. The tracker-jacker venom is what distorts his memories. Our research tells us that the serum only affects physical strength. Having them both inside him, however, seems to have had an interesting effect. It seems that the serum has counteracted the venom." Snow's eyes narrowed.
"I beg your pardon?"
"I have just come from Professor Olecto's laboratory, and he informed me that the serum may be restoring some of Mellark's memories. That's why I insisted we administer another dose of venom after the girl tried to tell him who he was. I asked the Professor if it was wise to continue administering the venom in tiny increments, just to keep him paranoid and his memories at bay, and he agreed with me. It's why I was hoping to catch Mellark before he leaves the Capitol."
"I said no more venom and I meant it," Snow growled. "I spoke to the doctors and they said any more may cause him to go into cardiac arrest. We don't want that, especially when he will be the one to murder the Mockingjay for us."
"President Snow, you are not in danger," Antonius said impatiently. "The old woman was a hag and her predictions were a hoax. You can kill him today and nothing will happen to you." Snow jumped to his feet and placed his palms on the desk.
"Kill him then and bring down plagues upon you and your family. She said the boy was not to leave the district until his 16th birthday and when the soldiers attempted to bring the child back to the Capitol, they all mysteriously died. When they kidnapped him and his brother before his 16th birthday, they barely made it over the border before they collapsed. The soldiers in District 10 drove the wagon and then they died. The soldiers in District 9 took over, and then THEY died. It took a week to get to District 2. And every pair of soldiers who took control of the wagon died. Until they reached District 2. And the soldiers who started driving at the border…. They survived. Do you want to know why, Antonius?" Antonius shook his head, looking incredulous but Snow slapped his hands down.
"Because he turned 16 as he passed into District 2! And the soldiers lived! There was some sort of protection spell or curse or something keeping him in District 12! And my father was worried. Even though the woman GAVE him to us, my father knew something was not right. I hope we managed to murder every last of Mellark's family when we bombed the district. I don't want to think about his mother alive somewhere."
"Sir… with all due respect, this all sounds insane. And I will prove it to you. I will follow him to 2. And I will kill him there."
"We still need him! Wait for him to kill the Mockingjay… then whoever kills him after, may the curse fall on them." Antonius rubbed his face and shook his head.
"At least allow me to administer one final dosage of venom before he leaves. He may start to remember more while away from the Capitol."
"No. More. Venom," Snow growled. "We can still use him. And if I hear of you disobeying me, YOU will be locked in a cell with live tracker-jackers. I doubt very much that you will survive like Mellark did." A flash of fear appeared on Antonius's face so instead of speaking, he bowed low and hurried out of the office.
"Superstitious fools," he muttered as he passed Egeria's desk. She stiffened but didn't look up. The president's door remained closed so she went about her work as usual.
Peeta burst into the house and looked around.
"Ros...Lavinia," he caught himself and cleared his throat. "Darling, are you home?" Rosalie came out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on a towel.
"Pack your things, dearest. We leave for District 2 in the morning." Her eyes widened.
"I think I would like to shower. Care to join me?" She followed him down the hall to the bathroom and watched as he bent over to turn the shower on. He gestured for her to sit on the toilet lid and he knelt in front of her, with some difficulty.
"I don't think he suspects anything. But I might be in a little bit of trouble when we arrive in 2." She frowned.
"He's ordered me to raid refugee camps. To kill everyone inside." Her eyes widened again and she went pale, clutching her stomach as if she was going to be sick.
"Hey, I promise that you'll be safe. I will get you to 13, if that's where you want to go. But we have to be careful about it. He promoted me to First General of Panem, which means we will have a bit more freedom to move around the country. But I know he is going to have people following me. So we need to be careful. Assume that our lodgings will still be bugged. That we will have people watching us. I make you this promise, though, Rosalie, you won't give birth in the Capitol." Her eyes teared up and she squeezed his hand.
"Let's pack our things, then. Anything you need to keep with you. We're not planning to come back here." Rosalie nodded and stood. Peeta waited a few minutes more, before he turned the water off. He went into the bedroom and set the crutches against the door. He set his bag on the bed and started to throw some clothes in. He didn't think he had any special belongings. Not here, anyway. He hoped, when they finally made it to 13, he would meet someone who would. Rosalie had managed to explain to him that his family was still alive and most likely in 13 as well. It hurt Peeta to admit that he didn't remember his family either. He hoped it would all come back when he saw them again.
And Katniss. His stomach twisted uncomfortably when he thought of her name, mainly because his memory of her was still not returning. He heard Rosalie coming up behind him, and she held what looked to be a photo to her chest. She handed it to him and he took it with a puzzled frown. Rosalie was wearing a wedding dress and a lovely smile, clutching the arm of a red-haired Peacekeeper. Peeta knew his face. Darius, Rosalie had told him. Her real husband.
And beside them… a slender girl with olive skin and dark hair that was wrapped around her head. At first, Peeta thought nothing of the girl. There was nothing special about her, really. Not very big… or pretty.
But as he looked closer, her eyes were the first thing to catch his attention. They weren't grey, as he originally thought, but actual rays of silver, like the moonlight through his window. Her lips were turned up into a smile and Peeta had the impression that she didn't smile much. But she looked quite happy in this photo. She was about the same height as Rosalie was, and looked much too skinny but then again, so did Rosalie. He looked up from the picture and mouthed Katniss's name. She nodded and gave him a sad smile before turning back to her packing. He wanted to ask her how she had gotten this, how did she have it here with her, but as it was pretty wrinkled, he guessed she had been hiding it. He turned back to his bag, still staring at the girl. His wife.
"Katniss," he whispered, trailing a finger over the photograph.
She was beautiful, he decided. His hand clapped to his forehead as he was overcome with pictures, only half formed and flashing across his mind. They were all from his perspective and she was in every single one. He watched her sleep, a worried crease between her eyes. He saw a younger girl crouching beside an apple tree. He saw his own hands holding out a cake, her eyes welling up with tears. He saw her kneeling in front of a fire, holding a piece of bread toward him. He saw her on her knees between his legs and he shivered, knowing what must have transpired that night. He saw her standing beside a table, clinging to his hand, tears streaming down her cheeks. He saw her underneath him, her face flushed and lovely as she tossed her head back and mouthed his name.
Rosalie's hand on his arm made the memories cease altogether and he gasped as his eyes shot open. Her grey eyes were wide with concern and he shook his head, holding his hand to his heart.
"M'fine." She blinked and tilted her head.
"Um, I'll be right back." He hurried to the bathroom, holding the picture close to his heart and he shut the door behind him.
He leaned against the sink and stared down at the picture. Rosalie was right. Peeta felt stirrings, ok, no, it was more like intense waves of emotion when he looked at her face. He wanted all of his memories to return. He wanted to remember every moment he'd had with her. Small flashes just weren't enough; he wanted the whole thing. He wanted to look into her eyes and hear her speak his name. Would it ever happen again? Would she accept him with open arms with so much time spent apart? He bit his lip and lowered his head.
He would find her again. He had a feeling he had made this resolution before. He would do whatever he could to help her win this war, and he would never leave her side again.
He glanced into the mirror and was surprised to see how flushed his face was. He splashed some water into his face, dried off with a towel, and stuffed the photo in his pocket, ready to be on his way back to her.
