When We Burn~Finnick Odair {Book 2}

Chapter Twenty

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Katniss looked over at Autumn, watching her fidget with the ring around the chain on her neck. Katniss was curious. She had not yet seen this token and wondered if it was an engagement ring from Finnick. Had they truly gotten married in secret?

"What is that?" Katniss asked Autumn, taking the ring in her fingers and inspecting it. It was a thick silver band with a wave carved into it. It was very pretty, but not an engagement ring.

"A ring from Annie," Autumn replied, tucking the ring and the chain back under the collar of her suit. "She was the girl I volunteered for in my Games."

"I saw that when I was twelve," Katniss spoke, looking away from Autumn and back ahead. "I think that was very brave."

Autumn smiled at Katniss's use of the word 'think' instead of 'thought.' This meant Katniss still believed that Autumn is brave, which Autumn couldn't fathom.

But it was true. Katniss thought Autumn was the bravest person in this arena. She had saved Peeta, sacrificed herself when the cornucopia was spinning to help Katniss, and not to mention all of the trauma she deals with from her Games. Katniss knew everyone had trauma from their Games, but Autumn was considered insane to some people because of the nightmares she has at night.

"I want to put as much distance to the beach as possible. Frying is not how I intended to go," Johanna joked, earning a laugh from Autumn.

Katniss nodded, dragging the coil along from behind Autumn and Johanna. Autumn heard a clanking noise from behind her. Both she and Johanna turned to see that the coil was stuck and no longer unwinding.

Katniss yanked on it, once, twice, and the third time the coil snapped and came flying back at her. No, it didn't snap. It was cut.

Brutus and Enobaria came out form behind the trees and bushes, but they hadn't yet spotted the three girls.

Johanna took the butt of her ax and hit Katniss over the head with it, confusing and momentarily stunning Katniss.

Autumn took out one of her smaller knives and cut into Katniss's arm, taking the small tracker out and throwing it in the grass.

Katniss screamed out in pain. Johanna placed her hand over Katniss's mouth but it didn't completely muffle the screams.

Autumn fumbled with the clasp on the back of the necklace, finally getting it undone. Autumn took the necklace off of her and placed it around Katniss's neck, clasping it on.

Autumn wasn't sure why she did that. Maybe it was for good luck for Katniss. Maybe it was because Autumn was worried she would die in this arena. She wasn't sure. But she had done it.

Brutus and Enobaria had now spotted them and they were advancing. Johanna threw her ax at them with might, but it seemed like more of a distraction that anything else. Johanna snarled as she grabbed Autumn's arm, dragging her as they sprinted away from the two careers.

They ran as fast as they could up one of the dirt hills, jumping over boulders and just hoping to outrun Brutus and Enobaria.

"Autumn, where are you!" Autumn heard Finnick yelled from the direction they had just come. Did he think the screams were hers? Did he think she was dead? She wished more than anything that she could yell out to him.

Autumn glanced behind her and saw Brutus and Enobaria getting closer. Autumn looked around before jumping behind a large boulder as a way to conceal herself.

Autumn was unable to yelled at Johanna to stop running and hide without alerting Brutus and Enobaria where she was. So, she let Johanna go and hoped she would be okay.

Autumn took out two throwing knives, one for Brutus and one for Enobaria, and then she waited.

It didn't take long for them to run past her. To Autumn's delight, they stopped right next to her to catch their breath.

Autumn wasted no time to jump from behind the rock and up onto it to have an advantage from above. She jumped down, throwing one of the knives into Brutus's chest.

Enobaria watched him fall to the ground before she took of in a sprint, seemingly weaponless. Autumn didn't know where she was going nor did she care.

Autumn put away her other throwing knife, breaking into a sprint towards the lightning tree.

"Peeta!" Autumn heard Katniss scream after the canon for Brutus went off. She thought it was Peeta's canon.

Autumn knew she was close to the tree, so close. The thunder rumbled from above Autumn in the night sky, lightning flashing in the clouds.

Autumn broke through the bushes and came into the opening of the tree to see Katniss aiming her arrow at the sky, Finnick yelling at her to back away from the tree.

"Katniss get away from that tree!" Finnick yelled. The lightning came down, striking the tree.

"Finnick!" Autumn screamed. Finnick turned his head and looked at Autumn with a mixture of emotions. Love...fear...a goodbye.

The world seemed to explode around them. Autumn felt her body fly through the air, her back hitting a tree. Her body went numb and the only thing she could feel was the blood running out of the wounds in her stomach.

The only think she could think about was Finnick. Was he alive? Did he know she was alive? What happens now?

Autumn wasn't sure if it was a day or only a second until she saw a hovercraft fly above her, reaching down and grabbing her in its claw.

Fire exploded around Autumn. The red of her blood and the red of the flames seemed to blend together. They blended together so well that Autumn could no longer tell the difference. She may as well be a pile of ash, burned to the ground by the fire on her skin.

"We are simply ash," Autumn mumbled to herself. Autumn's eyes closed and her head fell to the side. She no longer could tell if she was dead or alive, but she didn't care.