Not real.

Chapter Thirty Two: The Offer

*Nadia*
I walk home slowly. Trying to avoid the stack of envelopes that are in my mail box. All of them telling me how in debt I am, and how I must pay the bank back. But I can't. I have no money left. I am barely affording my mortgage.
So I skip the trip to my mailbox entirely and enter my small house. After long days at the hospital it's nice to be home. I slump into a soft chair in my living room and lean back. It's warm in my house due to the fact that I left the fire burning all day. Warm and cozy and I could just drift off to...
Nae c'mon! You gotta have some fun at some point! Please...for me?"
His deep blue eyes with long dark lashes put me in a trance and I tell him I will.
"Fine Beck. Only one night though." He leans forward and kisses me, smiling.
"You won't regret it."
How wrong I was.
"See? I told you, you wouldn't regret it." He says softly, brushing a piece of hair out of my face as I examine the ring on my finger. Fireflies glow all around us. It's beautiful. I smile and caress his face,"I love you." He smiles and bites his lip before kissing me for the millionth time that day.
"I love you t-" His face contorts with pain. Beck collapses on the ground and starts seizing.
"Beck? Beck! Beck what's wrong? Beck! What's going on? What's happening!?" I see myself frantically trying to stop his convulsions. Then there are voices on the phone. 911. And then there are sirens and the sounds of a hospital.
"Your fiancée has stage three brain cancer. I'm afraid he's only got two more months. I'm sorry."
Two months of being married to the love of my life. And then he was taken from me. Along with all my financial support. I was left with nothing. Nothing but his ring, and the memory of his deep, stormy, mischievous blue eyes.
My eyes flutter open, tears staining my cheeks from the memory. Cancer can't be afforded by anyone. Even someone like me. With a decent job and decent pay. The debt that consumes me, I will never be able to repay in a lifetime. Yet I would go through it all again for him.
   Beck's memory was the thing that kept me going to medical school. I didn't want any other woman to go through what I did. I guess that's why I helped Katniss.
   I sigh and get up off my chair to fix myself a drink. Golden brown liquid pours into a clear glass. The whiskey burns it's way down my throat and clouds my thoughts. The constant image of Beck blurs and fades from
my mind. I can feel the alcohol relaxing my body and a stupid smile curves my lips upwards.
   I stumble, my drink spilling on my blue nurse scrubs, back over to my chair. I take another long drink and giggle to myself as the spicy liquid soothes my tense mind. This is my only escape from reality.
   My mind slowly starts to grow darker. I fall out of my chair and lie on the ground loosing consciousness. The last thing I see before I black out, is my hand lying next to the glass that lies on the ground. The dim evening light reflects off of it. And as my eyes close another pale hand picks it up off of the floor.

When I awaken I'm in my bed. My head throbs and the sunlight that shines through my window nearly blinds me. The hair that matts and frizzes on the sides of my pillow looks greasy from what I can see. I try to feel my head for bruises but my wrist is tied to the bed post. So is the other one. My head shoots up and I find that my waist is tied and both my ankles.
"The hell??" I whisper.
"Sorry..." I young girl, barely over 17 comes out from the bathroom.
"But this is how it had to be. Couldn't have you running away." She smiles apologetically.
"Who the hell are you?" I ask in a croaky voice.
"Oh! Right. I'm Clarise Snow. You've probably heard of my grandfather." She throws a dirty blonde lock of hair over her shoulder and plays with her long sophisticated fingernails.
"You? Are Snow's granddaughter?"
"Yes, do you recognize me?" She smiles.
"No, but I'm starting to understand why he drank straight poison."
She glares at me through slitted eyes.
"Nadia. I did not come here to make cutting remarks and they don't become you. Actually I came here to make you an offer."
I roll my eyes and try to release myself from the restraints.
"Like I'd actually take anything from you. In fact you, are my enemy. I plan on reporting you." She laughs and sits on the edge of my bed, watching me struggle.
"Except you won't because if you do I'll kill Katniss, and Peeta. I've always felt that Delly should suffer. It'd be so entertaining to watch someone so joyful turn into someone so dark, don't you think?" I stop struggling and glare at her. She smiles at my anger and continues.
"So, I have decided to give you a...large sum of money if you'll do a job for me." She plays with her fingernails again and waits for an answer.
"Do I have a choice?"
"Oh of course. You take my deal, your friends are safe, you are out of debt. And my mission is almost complete. But if you don't..." She clicks her tongue and looks at me sympathetically,"If you don't, I'll kill your friends and make your life a living hell. So it's your choice."
I wish I had more alcohol. I must be dreaming. This can't be happening. A selfish part of me likes the idea of taking the deal and getting out of debt. But something tells me her mission is to hurt Katniss. I couldn't even dream of being an accomplice in hurting her. But if I don't take the deal, this psycho will hurt her anyways. I have no way out.
"What do you need?" I sigh, and immediately hate myself.
Clarise giggles and claps her hands together.
"Oh! This is the fun part! Nadia, Nadia I want you to...Seduce a certain someone. You see by doing this, it's the first step to breaking my enemy."
Fear runs down my spine and turns my blood cold.
"No...you can't, you don't mean-"
"Yes, Nadia. I mean Gale."