The Hunger Games - Surviving The Storm - book 3

Chapter 12

We sat in silence until my time piece hit the top of the next hour. Finally a avox joined our side with a paper and handed it off to Jackson before she left. Jackson read the letter and then looked at me before he rose to his feet.

"We have some business to do with my brother dearest." Jackson said as he pulled me gently to my feet.

"What business?" I asked him curiously?

Jackson held me around my waist and smiled. "We are going to get out of the deal I made with my brother."

I looked at him with a terrified expression.

"Please don't argue with him you will make him mad." I pleaded.

He moved his hands to my shoulders. "He can't hold me accountable for keeping our agreements if he punishes us for a crime we will be executed publically and he will have to express why he did it and show the playback."

"Playback?" I asked curiously.

"A play back is a series of recordings. In order to be commited of a crime those playbacks have to have proof. In the Capitol nothing is private. This is so any crimes committed can be proven and the executions will be accurate." He finished.

"But thats no privacy at all-"

He held up his finger and silenced me before he spoke again. "They recordings are only ever looked at when a crime has been reported. Even still each tape is made up of a certain sector so certain area's are going to be more safer for us when it comes to our conversations. Apart from that any area's brought up in the crime report and those relevant will be looked at, anything else is left alone and filed."

That made sense about why Finnick was uptight about our love looking real. If someone suspected they would bring out the tapes and they would find out that it had all been a sham and then somehow the illeagal selling of me would be found out making Finnick eligible for the death penalty.

"So we can explain to him what? That we want to call off the deal because of what? You made a deal and shook on it." I explained.

"I told him that if Tierney survived then we would birth him a boy. I remember my words because I chose them carefully." He said happily.

I nodded my head. "Are you sure that is exactly what you said." I asked him.

He nodded his head.

After a few minutes of conversation I was finally persuaded enough by my husband to go and confront Finnick. Tonight things are going to be fixed and we will never have to give him our first born son.

It was a shocker to Finnick when we appeared. We went to his office and we sat and talked. First talked about how our marriage was going, how the pregancy was going and then we finally moved onto the main subject of our visit, Tierney.

Finnick was shocked to find out that Tierney had died. Other than the expression of his suprise he didn't seem the slightest bit bothered by this news. This meant only one thing to me, he didn't take into account that Jackson left a large loop hole in their deal.

"We have a breach in our contract Finnick." I said interrupting Jackson's long intro into the point.

Both men went silent and Finnick turned to look at me. I was caught off gaurd by the look he gave me. He looked flustered and angry. I gulped nervously and took a deep breath before I rose to my feet.

"That day you shook hands and made the deal my husband left a loophole." I turned and held out my hand towards my husband. "Tell him Jackson." I said.

Jackson nodded his head. "I said if Tierney survived then we would birth you a boy"

Finnick clasped his hands together and rested them on the desk that sat between us. "Yes and I let her live."

Jackson slowly shook his head. "If Tierney survives. Tierney died because of what you did to her."

Finnick sat back in his chair and crossed his leg. "The girl could have lived it isn't my problem."

I was enranged. "It is your fault! She was already dead when you released her. I am a healer I know when a person is past the point of being healed. I did EVERYTHING in my power and even brought in the best healers in the Capitol but they said the same thing, her chances of survival are slimmer than her being chosen again as a Tribute."

Tierney of course was a citizen of the Capitol and citizens never had to worry about being a Tribute in the Hunger Games. This meant the obvious she was not going to survive.

Finnick stared in disbelief that he the President of all of Panem had been outsmarted. After several minutes of silence he spoke.

"A deal is a deal, you have 10 years-"

"-The Deal Is Void!" I shrieked. "If you try and break from this I will go through the necessary arrangements to have you held accountable for your misgivings." I threatened.

Jackson grabbed my hand and squeezed it tightly. I knew this movement all to well from conversations with Finnick during dinner engagements and meetings before Tierney. Whenever I was close to crossing a line Jackson would grab my hand.

When it came to punishment the President had no say so over it. He was only in charge of creating the system and shadowing those that ran it. A entire different panel executed the charges and punishment and even oversee's it. If a accusation was made against the President it would be looked at carefully. If the accusation was prooven falsefied the accuser will be sentenced the same punishment the accused would have recieved if it was true.

This was the only area in which the President wasn't safe. Any crime he committed had to be served equally as if he was a original citizen. For the crimes he committed, selling a girl through a black market, breaking the rules and saving my life when I was murdered in the games, torturing an innocent girl and murdering her, he might as well kill himself.

"Well we certainly don't need to go to extremes now do we." Finnick said gently. "The deal is off and you may leave." He finished.

I nodded my head and Jackson and I left the room. We made it to the front door before I realized I had lost my mocking jay pin that my mother gave me. I told Jackson I would be right back and then headed back carefully retracing my steps to try and find it.

Down the hall about 10 paces from the doorway I saw the familiar glint. As I bent down to pick it up I heard some voices discussing things. The first was unfamiliar but the second was clearly the voice of Finnick. I ignored the first bit because it was just him going on about where he stood in his power. As I was fastening my pin back in its place I froze when I heard my name.

"That girl is a spark to dry grass, the fire hasn't damaged anything yet but it needs to be controlled at all times or put out." Finnick spoke.

So Finnick wanted me dead and this time he sounded serious. I was a threat to his power and his life. I had all that I needed to have him sentenced to death and he knew if he wasn't careful I could set it all in motion.

"If it is at all suspicious the tapes will be pulled and everything will be revealed." The unknown voice spoke.

"That is for certain. We will put her out after I get my son. When she dies my brothers sonless marriage will mean they no longer keep me afloat on my Presidency. I need that son to keep me ruling." Finnick replied.

I gasped and then turned quickly and made my way quietly out to the car that was taking us back to the manor. The entire drive I was quiet. As we got back to our home it was 9 at night. Of course 8 at night was the standard time for those in the Capitol to sleep. On average a Capitol dweller got 12 hours of sleep, from 8 pm to 8 am. This was only because they believed that sleep kept you youthful.

The moment we entered the house we headed to the bedroom where we got dressed for bed and laid down. After a few moments of silence in the dark Jackson spoke.

"What happened when you went back for your pin?" He asked me.

I was uncertain about whether or not I wanted to tell Jackson about what I heard. But we were married, we were one. Anything and everything should be told. Jackson was my husband and he deserved to know.

"I overheard your brother talking to a man. Jackson your brother is planning to murder me." I whispered to him in the dark. "After he gets his son from me that's when he plans to do it."

Jackson buried his face into my hair and held me tighter. "That can be several years we don't even know whether or not its a boy or a girl."

"Exactly..." I whispered.

I could died after my baby is born, a year from now maybe three years from now. The thing is no one would know until I knew what I was happening. This was one thing I had avoided for the longest time and it was the only weapon I had against Finnick now. If he couldn't be certain about whether or not I was having a boy then maybe I could interrupt him and his plans to assassinate me.