Dangerous Allies // Cato Hadley

Part 19: You and Me

"Cato." Both tributes turned towards Clove's excited voice. Eve assumed it was excitement. She hadn't heard anything like it from her before. "Do you know what this means?"

Eve knew what was going to happen. Cato was finally going to complete his promise. She shifted on her feet as she waited for them to turn on her.

Clove's sharp eyes met Eve's and a sinister smile crossed her freckled face.

"You should be thanking me, really." Clove said as she pulled back her arm. "I'm letting you see yours parents again."

"No!" Cato's voice cut through the thick air.

Whether Clove didn't hear or didn't care was unclear. The only thing Eve knew was that a knife was soaring towards her face.

She dove to the side as a searing pain hit her ear.

Her hand slapped against her bleeding ear, feeling the warm liquid drip down her palm.

Cato's shadow sent her into darkness and she knew it was over.

She squeezed her eyes shut and waited. But when his finishing blow didn't come she looked up at the tight muscles on his back.

Everything about him looked tense as he faced Clove.  "Hold on."

"What's the problem?" Clove laughed. "We can kill her and win this thing."

"No, we can't." His once full voice sounded shaky as he looked over his shoulder at Eve.

His eyes. They were wide with panic as he looked to the blood covering the side of her face.

"We don't need her anymore!" Clove hissed. "Kill her!"

He whipped around to his district partner. "I need her!"

The look on Clove's face almost made Eve feel sorry. Clove was surprised by the words that left Cato's mouth. Sure she had seen the two together, but she also saw him with Glimmer. He didn't care about her, so why was this girl different?

And why wasn't she different?

The hurt on her face morphed quickly to rage. "Fine."

The knives that were once aimed at Eve turned to Cato, but his large body dodged them like they were nothing.

He grabbed her hand and squeezed, breaking it with ease.

She cried out and in one last ditch attempt for self preservation she lashed out, scrapping her final knife over Cato's bicep.

He stumbled backwards with a grunt, holding his bleeding appendage.

Clove's bloody knife flashed in the sun as she held it in her unbroken hand, ready to finally kill the man who betrayed not only his district, but her as well.

"No!" The scream ripped through Eve's throat as her body moved on its own to throw her spear.

Clove cried out as her hand was pinned to the tree behind her.

Unbothered by the wide gash in his arm, Cato slashed his sword across Clove's throat.

Blood flowed like a waterfall from the slit, spilling down her neck and onto her shirt.