Chapter 5
He turns, his face alight with joy and carelessness. He looks back at me while he's running, laughing freely, his eyes bright and glistening with hope. Each time I try to grab him he appears five steps further ahead. Like fog receding after rain on an icy day. He stops and turns to smile at me, he looks just like he used to. Healthy and innocent. This is the Finnick I try so desperately to remember, the evasive Finnick who only appears to me in dreams. When I reach out for him my hand hits a cool sheet of glass, keeping his sanctity locked away from me. "Is this heaven?" I ask. He throws his head back laughing, shaking his head. "Of course not silly, this is Hell. Isn't it obvious?" He says. That's when a cloud of capitol girls come up behind him, striping him of his shirt. Their hungry hands grabbing at him from every angle. He just stands, defenseless and hopeless. I'm pounding on the glass, it shatters into a million tiny shards. His hand just meets mine when I wake. I don't open my eyes, I desperately hold on to Finnick's face. Trying to re-capture every detail into my memory. "Momma!" Lucian's voice pierces Finnicks façade and he vanishes. Seeing his face was such a sweet sorrow. "What's wrong Lucian, love?" I ask. My voice vague, my mind in another place. "Auntie Katniss is here and she's crying and I'm scared." He says. "What? Where is she?" I say, pushing myself into a sitting position. "She's on the couch momma and she won't talk to me" Lucian says, his eyes wide with fear. I take his little hand in mine "Lucian it's fine, she probably just had a fight with uncle Peeta okay? Everything Is okay. Just go back into your room okay?" I say. He listens and once I hear his door shut I rush out to the living room. "Katniss!" I yell. She looks up bewildered and numb. I kneel down at her side "Katniss what's wrong?" She looks at me blankly. "They took him, again. They have him" She says, and in that instant I know who she means. "Peeta" I gasp, but she only nods. Tears silently trailing down her face. "Where's Haymitch?" I ask. The shock is clearly noticeable in my voice. "He's gone too, so is Johanna" She says. There's no tone to her voice, it's placid. "Katniss…" I say, slowly. Cautiously. I don't want to tell her about Gale. She turns and looks at me, blank faced "What?" She asks. "They have Gale…" I say, cringing as if I'm about to be hit. But she doesn't move, I can't even tell if she's breathing. "Katniss!" I yell, he skin turning purple. I shake her until she finally exhales, that's when she loses it. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN THEY TOOK GALE?" she screams. My breathing is quick and uneven. I can feel my heart beating a thousand times a minute. "HOW DID THEY EVEN FIND GALE? I HAVEN'T SPOKEN TO HIM IN YEARS!" she's yelling at the top of her lungs. I can see the room spinning. "Katniss… There's something I never told you…" I say hesitantly. She's furious but I can't tell if it's because of me or the Capitol rebels. "What?" She spits the word like it's venom on her tongue. "Gale and I…. Well we had something together, like you and Peeta" I say slowly. The lights are dim around the room, like an evening restaurant. She sighs "I knew that, Eli told me. But I didn't think they'd take him. He's not even a victor" she says, her voice sounds tired. "This is a message. They're trying to show us they still have control and that they can take what they want from us" I say hopelessly. "Katniss we have to get them back". She nods "I know. How though Annie? What if they hijack Peeta again? I don't think I'll be able to get him back this time" She says. Her body lurches forward in silent sobs. I close my eyes, not wanting to let the outside world in. When I open them, Katniss is crying into her arms. "We'll get them back and Peeta will be fine" I say. I can't tell if I'm trying to convince her or myself. I must be nodding my head like an idiot but I don't care. She sighs shakily "I'm so tired Annie" she says. Her bottom lip trembles and I know she's fighting back tears. I nod because I know how she feels. The weight of the atmosphere feels thirty tons heavier and I can't breathe. A swarm of black crowds the corner of my vision. Like static on a television screen. "Annie?" I can hear Katniss say, but her voice sounds miles away. I hear water lapping at the shore and Finnick's laughter and then nothing.