Sea of Flames | f. odair

CHAPTER 18 | THE SILENCE

Cassia kept her knife close by when they saw the woods in the distance. From the height they were at, it was clear the woods were manmade. No regular woods were as bunched the way they were, nor were regular woods as clean-cut. Every tree was shaped to rugged perfection, no leaf out of place. A shiver went down her spine; not because of the irregularity, but because she knew about the creatures that lurked within the woods—of the boy with the holes in his body, bleeding from the wounds of his empty eye sockets, his gaunt mouth curved downward in a ghoulish cry for help that would never arrive.

That evening, they made camp near a fallen tree. The trunk was massive, standing a good five heads above her own shoulders. It provided decent enough protection. Cassia didn't like not being able to see behind her, but she figured if someone were to climb up the other side of the trunk, she would hear them.

They didn't make a fire. It was a little chilly, but manageable. She remembered watching glimpses of Games in the past that had some tributes freezing to death. Eventually, Gamemakers found that the idea didn't help. Couldn't put on a show if everyone was freezing to death.

The next day went the same. No tribute encounters, not even a whisper of someone nearby or a canon booming. There was the possibility that the Careers changed route. She could run into Griffin at any moment, or Lark. Never in her life did she imagine she would be trying to avoid boys. At home, she never had a boyfriend or a boy that was interested in her. She had the passing looks of admiration at her physical beauty, and even that wasn't much, but no one ever made the effort to know her. Many boys and girls from school liked Evelin. She was the prettier twin, the more feminine, kinder and gentler Sommers girl. Cassia didn't mind, she was too busy worrying about the next meal, what the weather would be like and how that would effect the outcome of supper. She didn't need the company of another to keep her happy, she had Evelin and her father.

They had made it to a conglomerate of rocks deep in the woods. It was late afternoon and Cassia had just finished hunting. She sat on the ground skinning a rabbit. Her finger was still no better and she had an inkling that it would never be the same, if she were to make it out of the arena. And if the Games were to last longer than a week more, it would have to be amputated. Not because of the weird angle it was bent at, but because there might be internal bleeding. Which she only knew about because she had seen someone in a past Games die from it after hitting their head very hard against some rocks. They woke up dead the next morning next to their cold fire cinders.

Azalea sparked up a fire. "I never met my mother," she said lowly, randomly, causing Cassia to stop what she was doing and look up at her. "My father said she had big brown eyes and a birthmark on her cheek. And her hair was always in these long coils that resembled ribbons."

Cassia swallowed thickly. She didn't understand what Azalea was doing and the itch of awkwardness made her fidget with her knife blade. She couldn't help but reply to the girl, as if playing along would pull sympathy from the audience. "My mother died giving birth to my sister and I. There's a photograph of her on the kitchen sink. I look just like her, too. My father said her entire family had dark hair and tan skin. He said people would call them 'Crows' because of how different they looked compared to the fair-haired people of Four." Cassia's eyes fell to the bracelet on her wrist; blue string and a thin, golden chain intertwined. It wasn't as clean as when her father had given it to her.

Azalea pulled a necklace made of silver from under her jacket and shirt, a small white stone pendant dangling from it. "This was hers."

Cassia didn't muster up a smile. Instead, she reached over and hugged her.

"Attention, attention tributes," Claudius Templesmith's voice suddenly boomed throughout the arena. Azalea winced. Both girls released each other. "There will be a Feast in two hours containing what each of you desperately need. May the odds be ever in your favor."