The Life of A Victor || Finnick Odair

CHAPTER 60

"I bet lots of them did. I just hope Angel won't do something stupid. Everyone thinks we're dead, even them." Melo pointed out, voicing Dove's worries, which all of them had been thinking for a while.

"Melo, Finnick, Johanna, Peeta, Katniss, and me. Six loses in one day. They're going to do something stupid. Ron, Angel, and mum for sure will. We can just pray they don't go into actual battle," Dove muttered, tightening her grip on Finnick's hand.

"Why don't we start by ruling out possibilities," Finnick proposed, looking at Katniss and Jackson. He seemed to be the only one to be paying attention to what was happening outside their little group. "The street is not a possibility."

"The rooftops are just as bad as the street," said Leeg 1.

"We still might have a chance to withdraw, go back the way we came," added Holmes. "But that would mean a failed mission."

"It was never intended for all of us to go forward. You just had the misfortune to be with me." Katniss told them, although that made Johanna chuckle.

"Please, you really are brainless. You know, wherever you go, we go with you. This is a family, brainless. Get used to it." Johanna declared, pointing to the four of them, and eventually adding Peeta, who moved slightly closer to Dove on the sofa. She gave him a comforting smile, which he reciprocated.

"And that's a moot point. We're with you now," added Jackson. "So, we can't stay put. We can't move up. We can't move laterally. I think that just leaves one option."

"Underground," Gale pointed out, knowing what she would say perfectly.

The Holo could also show the subterranean just as street-level pods. Just as the map showed the underground, the street plan got changed with an absolute mess of tunnels. Although there seemed not to be as many pods as outside.

"OK, then. Let's make it look like we've never been here," Katniss said. They did all they could to erase their trace, except the front door, which had no fixing. At least they could lock a second bolt, so it wouldn't open immediately on contact.

When there was nothing left to do, Peeta refused to move, planting himself on the sofa. "I'm not going. I'll either disclose your position or hurt someone."

"Snow's people will find you," Finnick tried to reason with him.

"Then leave me a pill. I'll only take it if I have to," replied Peeta.

"That's not an option. Come along," Jackson ordered.

"Or you'll what? Shoot me?" asked Peeta, which caused Johanna to snicker.

"This is like 'you'll kill me if I kill myself?'. It's too funny." She muttered, which made Melo look at her, amused.

"We'll knock you out and drag you with us," intervened Holmes, trying to ignore Johanna's comment. "Which will both slow us down and endanger us."

"Stop being noble! I don't care if I die!" Peeta turned to Katniss, with a voice that was almost pleading. "Katniss, please. Don't you see, I want to be out of this?"

"We're wasting time. Are you coming voluntarily or do we knock you out?" Katniss answered after a few seconds of thinking.

Peeta sighed, burying his face in his hands. "Peeta. Let's make a promise, shall we?" Dove said softly, crouching down in front of him. "When Snow's dead, and only when he's dead, if you still want to die, I'll kill you myself. Berries, trident, sword, bow, knife . . . You name it. But if you don't want to die, or you don't even know exactly what to do, promise to keep living. You can trust me. I tried to kill myself, and weeks later I lived the best day of my life. That can happen to you, too. What we're going through right now sucks. It's horrible. And, sometimes, I also think about ending it all. But you have to remember this is just a prolonged bad moment in your life. Once this shitty chapter of our lives is over, better things will come."