Pregnant in the Games

Chapter 11: The Parachute

Chris killing that Tribute to save my life eliminated all suspicions. I'm aware that this alliance will have to break eventually. With any luck, that'll be three years from now. So I'm in it for the long hall. 

The first week of the Games was relatively uneventful. Beside that first day, there's been little deaths. We've only heard two other cannons in the first week. The count is down to 21 Tributes. I've been a little jumpy. A lack of deaths isn't necessarily a good thing. If people aren't dying, the viewers get bored. That's not something that can happen. The Gamemakers should've caused some sort of big, "natural" event by now to make things a little more exciting. I hope for my sake that there's some drama going on somewhere in this arena. If there's not, I could be crushed by a tree at any second. 

We've started to make a more permanent settlement. It's slow moving, but it's going to happen. We chose a nice circle of trees, all fairly close together, to make a big tree house. We've set up traps around the circle of trees so that no one can reach the tree house. We have yet to construct anything yet. Tetrick has chopped a little wood and hid it underground near our tree house. We're going to work little by little every day. Enough to get it done in a month, but little enough so that no one notices. Except for the audience in the Capitol, of course.

Things are,overall, going well. We have a consistent food supply. Tetrick and Chris are getting good at hunting. Talon was already pretty good at it. We're staying close enough to the lake and the stream that our water supply is consistent, too. Few other Tributes have crossed our path. Somewhere in the Arena, there's another water source, otherwise this place would be crowded with Tributes.

8 days after the start of the games, Chris and I were sitting together at the edge of the beach. Tetrick and Talon had gone off hunting. We stared at the Capitol. It was a tease to allow us to see that, really. So close, yet so far away.

 As we sat, I spotted a parachute floating down from the sky.

"Chris!" I yelled, nudging her with my elbow. "We're getting a parachute!"

It was the first sign of sponsors we've gotten since the beginning of the games. We both jumped up and waited impatiently for it to float to the ground. When we reached the parachute, I saw that it was simply a note tied to the end of the parachute. On the front, Talon's name was written down.

"It's for Talon," Chris said.

I had no reply. I was in shock. It was not that the note was for Talon, but it was the handwriting behind the name. I would recognize that handwriting anywhere.

"Oh my god," I whispered. "No way."

"What?" She asked.

I didn't reply. I just started to open the note.

"You can't open it! It's for Talon!"

"But it's from Luke! I know that handwriting," I replied.

"Luke? Is that your baby daddy?

I sighed. "Yes. Luke is my fiance."

Ignoring Chris' protests, I continued to open the note and read the letter.

Dear Talon,

Watch yourself. You're too cozy to Willow and I don't like it. Do you remember what I did to your mother? Do you remember that last conversation we had? I'm not afraid to end more lives, just as long as Willow remains to be mine. Also, I've made friends with your Head Gamekeeper, Atos, who holds your life in his hands.

-Luke

I read the  note three times before the words truly sunk in. 

The night before the Games, Talon told me that Luke snuck into his room and talked to him. Luke had threatened Talon and dropped hints that he was responsible for Talon's mother's death. I hadn't believed Talon when he told me this, and then I screamed at him. This note... It proves everything. Talon was never making things up. Luke killed Talon's mom.