Daughter of the Games (Sequel to Pregnant in the Games)

Chapter 26: Negotiation

Raven's POV:

I walked down the street in District 1, a small slip of paper in my hand. It was a beautiful morning, with bustling streets and a bright sky. The train trip here was long and tedious. The Capitol didn't send the usual luxurious train. I guess that happens when you sabotage their precious games. Suddenly you have to ride in a supply train. My neck will be sore for days.

Finally, I came across the address on the paper. The house was very rickety, a perfect hiding place. It was tall, yet very skinny. The white paint chipped off to reveal the wood underneath. The windows were boarded up. I would've thought it was abandoned had I not known better.

I walked up to the door and knocked quietly. A moment later, the door opened, revealing a man I've been dying to meet.

"Talon," I smiled and nodded politely.

"Raven. Nice to finally meet face to face. Come in, quickly, before anyone notices."

I stepped inside. When Talon closed the door behind me, all became significantly darker. The only light in the room was the candlelight. Not a single beam of light shined in through the windows. They were boarded up very thoroughly. The bottom floor was a single room, containing one small couch and a little kitchen in the counter. The floors were creaky and made of wood. A staircase in the back right corner led to the top floor. I watched as two young teens made their way down. One was a young boy, strikingly similar to Chris, with blue hair. His hair had grown since the dye job, revealing the dark brown hair at his roots. The other teenager was a girl with short black hair. She also had grown in roots. Her hair would've been blonde before she dyed it.

"Raven. Hi," said the boy. "I'm Cane, Crystal's younger brother."

"And I'm Drea. My parents are Rayne and Gale," the girl said, reaching for Cane's hand.

"Nice to meet both of you." I had heard about both of them during the time I spent with Chris. She spoke very softly of them. Back in District 13, I've been spending time with Rayne and Gale. I'm excited to return their daughter back to them, once all of this is said and done.

"Where are Katniss and Peeta?" I asked.

"Katniss is still sleeping. Peeta is staying with her," Talon replied. "She's had a rough time. We've all experienced loss since Luke took Panem, but especially her. She hates seeing Panem go back to what it was. And Peeta rarely leaves her side."

I nodded and gazed at the stairs for a moment, imagining my fearless leader curled up in her bed.

"Tell us good news. We never saw Ivan on the TV screen after that kiss," Cane pleaded.

I smiled. "It's good news. The technology worked flawlessly. Ivan is now invisible and untraceable by the Gamemakers. Luke contacted me almost immediately to request that we meet. They must've realized what was going on and cut Ivan's footage. Luke wouldn't have wanted to show that he let the pill through."

Cane smiled widely and looked to Drea. "I told you a forcefield would work."

"I didn't say that the forcefield wouldn't work," Drea defended. "I said that administrating the forcefield through a pill was unpracticle. But you did it. I'm proud of you." She kissed his cheek.

"So now what do we do?" Talon asked.

"We request that he build an Ivan mutt for the purpose of the Games. A Ni, too. They'll look exactly like themselves. That way, when the tributes die, they're actually still alive. It's how we get them out. It won't cause any public stir, and they get to live."