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XXXIX. Phone Call
"How are you?"
Marlene gulps and looks away from me, sighing. She'd woken up on the fifteenth day after the Games and for the three days she'd spent in hospital, conscious, she'd undergone surgery for her leg and had constant checkups. She'd refused to utter a single word to anyone. Unfortunately, I hadn't managed to convince Doctor Reys with the issue we'd raised up a few days ago. While the doctors did give Marlene plastic surgery, it wasn't too noticeable and was nowhere near as prominent as they'd previously hoped for.
The day she'd woken up was the day she had to attend the recaps of her Games. Thankfully, she didn't have to speak, aside from the typical, "Nice to see you, Caesar" and "I'm good, how about you?"
She played the same character as she did for her first interview with her Victor's interview earlier tonight, without much guidance from myself and Joseph. Those words were quite literally the only words I'd heard her utter since the Games.
We sit on the couch in the living room, and when I look at her, I finally notice her and who she's grown to become. She's been a more reserved character, and she seems to keep to herself more so than previously, and it scares me. What happened to the outgoing Marlene? Many victors come out broken, but just how broken is Marlene?
She picks at the golden necklace - I'm surprised it hasn't shattered from the events in the arena. "I can't believe I did that," she says, her voice cracking. Whether it's from her lack of communication or her bottled up emotions, I'm not entirely sure, but it doesn't take a genius to figure out how guilty she feels. "I-I didn't mean to, Finnick."
"You didn't mean to do what, Marlene?"
"The girl," she replies. "From Eleven, I mean. When I woke up, I didn't remember anything that happened after I left Thomas, and then… and then, the replays rolled on screen and I just..." Marlene squeezes her eyes shut, as if she's in excruciating pain and grits her teeth. "I just remembered. Everything came rushing back, I also kind of can't remember what I did either - I can't remember why; it's just a blur. I can't believe I did that," she repeats, shaking her head.
"It was your bloodlust," I say, squeezing her shoulder softly. "Or you were just so driven by your vengeance."
"He must be so disappointed in me," she speaks, her tone barely above a whisper and sighs, wistfully. "He hates me now."
Turning the TV off, I turn to her. "Why would Maxwell hate you? He'd be proud of you."
"I'm not talking about Maxwell."
"Ethan?" I guess, watching as she plays with the ring on her necklace - a ring, which I've never noticed before.
She nods and says, "We're supposed to get married next year but I wouldn't be surprised if he calls it off. I'm sick."
"No, you're not," I argue, shaking my head. "You're not sick, and if he calls the wedding off, I don't care if he's a stranger or not, I'll be there to kick his arse."
Marlene finally manages to crack a smile, even if it is the smallest I've seen on someone. After a moment's hesitation, she leans in to hug me, surprisingly me greatly. "Thank you so much, Finnick," she says. "Just… thank you."
"You're welcome," I reply, feeling much like an older brother, despite how she's several months older than me. Pulling away from her after a few moments, I say, "That goes back to my first question: How are you?"
"Physically?"
"Both."
"Fine," she says. "I mean, I'd prefer being able to walk properly without pain, but I'll have to make progress."
"It's funny." Marlene sends me a funny look and I continue on, correcting myself. "Sorry, I'm not talking about you. I was just thinking that if the Capital can treat your condition in no time and if they can bring people back to life, then why didn't they treat Chaff's arm? They just amputated it off, right?"
Marlene's jaw drops and she stares at me bug-eyed. "They can bring people back to life?" she repeats, and only now do I realise what I've said. Oops, I think. Well, the doctor didn't keep his part of the deal, so I won't either.
"Ah, crap," I curse. "Don't tell anyone I told you that. I'm not even supposed to know."
She nods, curtly, probably wondering if the Capital nurses and surgeons had ever thought about bringing tributes back to life - or a certain tribute, rather. I know this because I've been contemplating this for the past few days. Maybe the fallen tributes' bodies were hidden in some storage room and were used as lab rats.
"Chaff lost his arm during the Games - the final bloodbath," Marlene says. "I remember watching replays. Some kid used an axe and managed to tear a lot of ligaments or something. When the nurses asked him about his arm, he refused to accept the fake arm they offered."
"How do you know this?"
"I don't know where you've been the past few years, Odair, but I'm pretty sneaky when I want to be."
The phone rings and as walk across the room to retrieve it, I grin at Marlene. "I know."
"Finn, are you okay?" The unmistakable voice of Annie Cresta comes through the phone's speakers, sending my heart racing and my mind into an overdrive.
I find myself grinning goofily and leaning against the wall. "Annie," I reply, ignoring Marlene's suggestive smirk. "What's up?"
"When are you coming home?"
"I'll be back tomorrow."
"You're okay though, right?" Her voice cracks halfway through the question and a sob erupts from the other side of the line. She sounds a little nasally, like she usually does when the spring allergies have caught up with her. She's crying.
"Hey, I'm fine. Annie, what's wrong?"
"I… Rhea- she…" she manages to stutter, and I hear Mags offering her sympathetic and comforting condolences as she drags a sobbing Annie away from the phone.
"Finnick." Doctor Audrye takes over the phone and speaks over the commotion in the background. Her usually soothing voice is now tense. "There's been an incident."
My fist subconsciously clenches around the phone tighter and all sorts of ideas whirl around in my mind. Evidently, this incident is nothing good and has inflicted pain - especially for Annie, and I can only imagine that Rhea's just as bad. I mentally prepare myself for the worst as I utter out the next question through gritted teeth. "What happened?"
She's silent for a while - seconds or minutes, I'm not sure. I can feel the rapid beat of my heart growing faster and faster, as my palms grow sweaty from the imminent announcement. What could Snow have done? Maybe there was a public flogging in the centre of District Four - it's not common but it's not rare either. Public floggings are often reserved for traitors in our Districts, much like the Avoxes in the Capital. There are two rules in our District, which concern flogging - credits go to the Peacekeepers. Every single person in District Four must gather around to watch the flogging - not matter how old or young, and if anyone utters a single sound, they're brought up to be whipped as well.
The last time I'd witnessed a public flogging, I was with Annie, Oliver and his younger sister. Rhea had gone out with several other friends. That day, seven people were called up and chained to metal bars. They were whipped across their bodies, faces, arms and legs before they were untied. At that point, three were dead and the other four were in serious conditions. While Oliver had covered his younger sister's eyes, Annie was too stubborn to be called a coward of sorts since a few of her classmates were around and she was too prideful. But the moment the crowd had dispersed and we went back home, she'd started crying and said, "They didn't deserve that."
My one and only theory or assumption is that Snow had ordered his minion Peacekeepers to flog either Rhea or Marlene's father or Marlene's fiancé. Whichever it was, I honestly hope that it's Marlene's father who's the victim. I'd seen the man around, drunken like Haymitch Abernathy but much more violent and demanding. It's a surprise that Marlene even had enough money to pay for her training, though that's not so much of an issue anymore.
There was this one day where I'd seen Marlene being dragged out of the Training Centre in District Four by her father, who was pinching her ear. "Ow, let go of me!" she'd yelled, swatting his hand away. The father and daughter duo had had a full-blown debate where he'd argue that she should've been saving money to purchase alcohol for him rather than wasting it on training.
Ever since then, I'd never really been a big fan of his.
Ethan, on the other hand, I didn't care so much as an individual but I did care for Marlene. And of course, if my little sister was involved, any man who even bothered to touch her was going to die.
"Rhea's dead," Audrye says slowly, as if she's contemplating whether she's worded the two words correctly.
With a shaky breath, I stumble back and drop the phone like it's been covered with poison - Snow's poison. As much as I wish it isn't true, I don't need to think twice to believe Audrye. I should've anticipated this.
Marlene bends down and brings the phone up to my ear, looking at me cautiously. "Hello?" she speaks into the phone. "Yeah, sure."
She clicks the speaker button and places it on the desk in front of us. "Tell me you're kidding," I say, collapsing back onto the couch and pulling at my hair. "Audrye, tell me you're lying. Tell me this is a dream, please. Please tell me this isn't real."
"You know I can't, Finnick."
Launching the phone across the room, I watch as it shatters against the wall opposite me and a static sound echoes around. My mind seems to be in the midst of a turbulent storm of emotions: anger, anguish, guilt, bitterness and hatred, and the numbness takes over, as I flip tables and couches, and throwing punches at the wall, wishing that my trident was embedded in Snow's chest a long time ago.
In that moment, I make a promise to myself that no matter how long or hard it's going to take to bring Snow down, I'll do so, even if it means dragging in my fellow mentors and friends into the situation. I'll do it for Maya, for mum, for dad, for Maxwell and for Rhea.
A/N: Wow, this is one really crap chapter - sorry for that. My mind's on autopilot right now, and I can't seem to make this any better than it is now. It'll get better next chapter.