Prim had barely finished her sentence when the phone dropped from Peeta's hand.
Katniss collapsed near The Hob.
He'd heard more than enough.
In a matter of seconds, his boots were laced and he was rushing out the front door, shoving his arms into the sleeves of his jacket. Maura and Prim waited anxiously on their front porch. The elder Everdeen clutched her medicine bag to her chest like a lifeline. The younger wrung her hands for warmth and chewed nervously on her bottom lip. Apparently, no one bothered to call Haymitch, who was usually completely drunk by this time of night.
The biting night air stung their cheeks like tiny pin pricks. Parts of the path to town were dimly illuminated by streetlamps and other parts were completely dark. But they could walk this familiar road with their eyes shut, and any uneasiness about what could lurk in each stretch of darkness was swallowed by fears of what could have happened to Katniss.
Peeta's mind raced with the troubling news set to Prim's voice.
Katniss collapsed near The Hob.
Why did she collapse? She was in good health, despite the wear and tear the Games inflicted on her body. He needed more information. He needed to strategize. If there was one valuable thing he learned from the Games it was how to strategize with meager resources and minimal information.
"What exactly did the caller say?"
Prim recounted the story, starting with the ringing phone that she'd run downstairs to answer and the man's voice on the other end saying that the "victor girl" had passed out behind The Hob.
"Did he say anything else? Anything at all?"
Prim gnawed on her lip as she considered Peeta's questions. "Oh! He said Greasy Sae told him to call."
Maura huffed a short sigh of relief, her breath forming a cloud in the night air. Greasy Sae was as much a fixture in District 12 as the woods that surrounded the district. The older woman from the Seam was a good soul, barely more than five-feet tall with a haggard exterior. She was known to be a tough bargainer at The Hob, and her hearty bowls of stew usually included meat from game Katniss killed.
To watch Katniss and Greasy Sae interact was fascinating. After years of bartering game for bowls of stew and supplies, the two could communicate with very few words. But, they also shared an unspoken camaraderie and mutual respect. On the evening after Katniss was reaped, Greasy Sae stopped by the Everdeen household with two bowls of stew and a few supplies donated by other traders in The Hob who had been moved by Katniss's sacrifice to save her sister. Greasy Sae sat on the tattered couch with Maura while she held a handkerchief to her eyes, her shoulders heaving with each sob. Greasy Sae never spoke, and a few minutes later, she stood and quietly exited the house.
Maura needed to see Katniss for herself, but she felt relieved knowing that Greasy Sae was there.
But there was no relief for Peeta. His mind raced with unanswered questions.
Why was she behind The Hob this late at night? Why was she alone? Where the hell was Gale? Didn't he have the decency to at least walk her back to Victor's Village since he kept her out so late? What happened to her? Was it Snow? Dear God, please don't let it be Snow.
If Snow harmed her, I'll kill him myself.
As they neared town, Peeta communicated his strategy. Maura would perform a cursory check to gauge Katniss's condition. Depending on the severity, they would either take her to Hazelle Hawthorne's house nearby so Maura could administer immediate medical attention, or they would bring her back to Victor's Village. Prim would talk to Greasy Sae to get more information about what happened and what Katniss had been doing before she collapsed. That information could be useful in treating her. Peeta would carry her.
"The most important thing once we know that she is okay is to get her out of public view," Peeta said. "She's a recent victor, so she's got the nation's attention. Word will spread fast about whatever happened tonight, and we'll need to shield her as soon as possible."
Their anticipation rose as they neared the old ramshackle warehouse; they began to jog toward the crowd that formed an arc at the often-deserted southern exit of The Hob.
"Everybody stay back please, stay back." They could hear the Peacekeeper Darius's voice as Peeta pushed through the thick crowd, Maura and Prim in tow.
Darius, a younger Peacekeeper, was well liked in District 12, unlike the Head Peacekeeper Cray who had a penchant for Seam prostitutes.
Peeta emerged at the center of the arc first, and his mouth dropped open in disbelief. She lay prone on a patch of grass only a few inches from the concrete, her legs and arms spread-eagle. But that wasn't what shocked him – or Maura or Prim as they emerged through the crowd. Gale was lying face down on top of Katniss, his body partially covering hers. The distinct smell of alcohol radiated from where they lay.
Peeta's entire strategy stalled as he stared dejectedly at his wife. She was drunk. She'd put herself in a compromising situation. With another man. In public. Peeta stood immobilized, a familiar constricting pain in his chest.
Maura lowered beside Katniss and Gale, checking their pulses and crawling around them to lift their eyelids and examine their pupils.
"What happened tonight?" Maura said, glancing over her shoulder at Darius and Greasy Sae. Just then, Gale's mother and brother parted the crowd and rushed over, gasping at the sight and smell before them.
"I had to get Posy and Vick situated before we could leave. What on earth happened?" Hazelle Hawthorne said, clutching her son Rory's wrist for support.
"Bottom line, Katniss and Gale and some other miners were having drinks at Ripper's," Darius said. "Gale was becoming belligerent; he'd probably had too much to drink. Katniss stood up to leave, and stumbled out the back door of The Hob. Gale got up a minute later and followed her. By that time, I'm told that a few people were already coming to get Sae because they saw Katniss collapse. By the time Sae got out here, Gale had also passed out, on top of her."
Hazelle's shoulders slumped. Gale's father, who died in the same mining accident as Katniss's father, had been a good man, but he'd been far too fond of alcoholic drink. At least Emory Hawthorne's problems were kept behind closed doors. Gale's public display was far worse.
Other voices came from the front row of the crowd.
"I saw her come stumbling out The Hob. She passed out right there," said a short, pudgy guy from the Seam who pointed to the spot where Katniss lay. "Good thing she wasn't on the concrete. She could've hit her head."
"Yeah," said another Seam man, slightly taller with rosy cheeks and a pot-belly. "And her friend stumbled out a minute later and fell on top of her."
Darius looked between Hazelle and Peeta. "We didn't want to move either of them until Maura arrived, just in case there were other injuries. Especially with Katniss being a victor. As a Peacekeeper, I'd hate to do anything to make either of their conditions worse," he lowered his voice, "even if this just seems to be a case of public drunkenness."
Maura stood and nodded discreetly, confirming Darius's assessment. "They're fine. It's as Darius said."
The two men from the Seam were close enough to hear them, and they started to joke with one another.
"I guess you can go all the way to the Capitol, but you can't take the Seam out of a person," the pot-bellied man laughed heartily. "Yeah," the pudgy man cackled. "Maybe she wasn't star-crossed after all. Maybe she was just drunk!"
Greasy Sae stepped closer, scolding the two men who immediately stopped their banter.
Embarrassment covered Maura, Prim and Hazelle's faces. Rory lowered his eyes.
But Peeta was now livid. He had half a mind to turn and walk away, to leave her lying on the cold ground. But he wouldn't do that to Maura and Prim. So a new strategy was suddenly in effect – remove himself from public view before he lost his composure.
"Darius, please clear this crowd," Peeta said tightly. The Peacekeeper began dismissing the onlookers.
"Mrs. Hawthorne, Rory. Can you pull Gale off of Katniss and carry him home, please?"
Greasy Sae drafted the two Seam guys to help Hazelle and Rory lift Gale, and the four of them carried him further into the Seam toward Hazelle's house.
Then, Peeta rolled Katniss onto her back and scooped her in his arms. He began the walk back to Victor's Village. Maura and Prim ducked their heads as they followed him through the still dispersing crowd.
They were halfway to Victor's Village when Maura broke the silence. "Thank you, Peeta," she said quietly. It was an apology.
"No problem." He refused to look at Katniss who dangled in his arms, his anger escalating with each step. By the time they reached Victor's Village, he was sure his blood was at a steady boil.
"Prim, please open the door to your house."
Prim stared at Peeta in confusion. "Mom said she checked out okay. Aren't you taking her home?"
"No. I'm not," Peeta said tersely. "I don't want Katniss in our home in this condition. She'll have to stay at your house or with Haymitch." There was an authority in his tone that made Maura and Prim refuse to question him.
So he laid Katniss on the living room couch in Maura's house. Then, he walked out the front door, his fists clenched at his side.
A/N: Thank you to everyone who has viewed, reviewed, favorited, and followed this story. I am having fun writing it, and I definitely have a plot in mind with some surprises in store. I'll try to let the story unfold as quickly as possible. Reviews are welcome. Happy reading!