Love at Sea (Finnick Odair)

Chapter 34

"You got hurt," Peeta sniffled, his voice thick with emotion.

"Ah," Taiya groaned as she attempted to draw in a breath. "I'm going to kill Gale."

"He's gone to get a doctor for you," Peeta replied, trying to offer some reassurance.

"Still gonna kill him... Oh god, that really hurts," she let out a small scream, the pain evident in her voice.

"Here," Peeta said, popping open a vial. "Morphling," he explained as he administered it to her.

"Where's Finnick?" Taiya inquired, puzzled by his absence. She couldn't comprehend why he wasn't by her side.

Cressida hadn't had a chance to share Tigris' advice about keeping Finnick's current situation from Taiya, so Peeta hesitated, looking at Katniss for an assist.

Katniss, her bottom lip quivering, as she stared at them. She let out a shaky breath as she turned to look at Pollux, who was weeping for his fallen brother.

"I made it up..." she confessed. "All of it. There is no special mission from Coin, there's only my plan. Everyone that's dead, is dead because of me. I lied."

"Duh," Taiya croaked out, her head lolling to the side as the morphling took effect. "I lied for you too," she gasped, struggling to breathe. "I told Jackson I was meant to help you find your way through the mansion. I'm not going in there... Everyone knew. You're a really bad liar," she scrunched her face up in pain.

"Soldier's from 13..."

"Everyone knew," Taiya drawled out, interrupting her.

"I never meant for this to happen," Katniss tried to suppress her sob, overcome with guilt. "I failed. I... I killed them. I... I might have killed Finnick. I'm so sorry Taiya. I'm so sorry Pollux. I'm sorry."

Peeta was distracted now, he wasn't watching Taiya, he was looking at Katniss. He hadn't noticed the girl next to him freeze up.

"Glimmer. Marvel. Clove. Wiress. Rue. What do all those deaths mean? They mean that our lives were never ours. There was no real life because we didn't have any choice. Our lives belong to Snow and our deaths do too. Look, if you kill him Katniss, if you end all of this, all those deaths, they mean something. Cinna. Boggs. Castor. Jackson. They chose this. They chose you."

"Finnick?" a terrified whisper escaped from beside him.

"No, no, no, no," Peeta instantly spun back to Taiya, realising what she must be thinking. "No. He's not dead," he insisted, gripping Taiya's face gently.

"Where..." she began, her voice trailing off. She couldn't finish her sentence.

"He got away. He ran back into the tunnels so we could use the holo to set off an explosion and get rid of the mutts. He'll be fine."

"I want Finnick," Taiya started to panic, her breathing quickening. Her single-functioning lung struggled to keep up.

"Taiya?" Peeta's eyes widened in alarm when she didn't respond. "No, no, no, no, no, wake up! Wake up! Katniss!"

The basement door burst open, and Gale was hauling a struggling doctor inside.

"I won't aid rebels!" the man protested defiantly.

"You willing to die for that sentiment?" Gale snapped, pushing the man into the centre of the room and aiming his gun at him.

"I'm not afraid of you rebels."

"Fix her, or the next shot goes in you," Gale advanced on the man, his tone steely.

The doctor glanced over at the wounded girl before laughing cynically. "Are you serious? Ambersnow? Taiya Ambersnow. Your tribute, Tigris? You never learn, do you?" he cast a derisive glance at the Capitolite lurking at the top of the stairs. "You always were the weak one in your family," he sneered.