Chapter Six — Enemies in the Shadows
Training entered its second day, and the atmosphere in the center had changed. The tributes were no longer just nervous—they were studying one another. Calculating. Measuring strengths and weaknesses the way predators assess prey.
Hayley felt eyes on her the moment she stepped inside.
Silas walked between her and Jordan. “Today is the day alliances start forming,” he warned. “It’s also the day people start targeting the easy kills.”
Jordan stiffened. “We’re not easy.”
“No,” Silas said. “But they don’t know that yet.”
The first threat appeared at the spear-throwing station.
A tall girl from District Two—muscular, cold-eyed—stepped directly into Hayley’s path. Her hair was braided tightly against her skull, and she moved with a casual confidence that spoke of years of training.
“You’re the Embers,” she said flatly. “Hayley Woods and Jordan Chase.”
Jordan moved subtly closer to Hayley. “Something you need?”
The girl smirked. “Yeah. To see what the Capitol is obsessed with.” She looked Hayley up and down. “Cute. But cuteness doesn’t keep you alive.”
Hayley’s jaw tightened. “Neither does arrogance.”
A few tributes nearby paused to watch.
The girl stepped forward, her voice dropping. “In the arena, I’m coming for both of you. And I hope you run, because it’s more fun when they run.”
Hayley didn’t flinch—even though her heart hammered.
Silas placed a hand on her shoulder. “District Two thrives on intimidation. Don’t give her what she wants.”
The girl left with a cold laugh.
Jordan leaned in, whispering, “I don’t like her.”
“Good,” Hayley murmured. “You’re not supposed to.”
But the District Two girl wasn’t the only threat.
They soon noticed a pair from District Nine—a boy with a scar across his jaw and a younger girl who carried herself like she’d grown up fighting wolves. They whispered constantly, eyes darting toward Hayley and Jordan.
“Why are we such a big target?” Jordan whispered.
Hayley swallowed. “Because the Capitol made us one.”
And because the moment the arena opened…
Every tribute would want the glory of destroying the pair the whole Capitol adored.
Chapter Seven — The Training Center Secrets
By the third day, Hayley began noticing things she hadn’t before—small, strange details that didn’t belong in the perfect Capitol facility.
Flickering lights in the far corners of the training center. Peacekeepers whispering urgently into earpieces. Rooms roped off that weren’t roped off the day before.
Something was happening.
Something the Capitol didn’t want them to see.
While Jordan practiced balance on moving platforms, Hayley drifted toward a storage hallway, pretending to stretch. As she moved deeper, she caught two Peacekeepers whispering harshly.
“I told you—they brought in the new arena tech this morning. It’s unstable.”
“They want instability. It’s the Fiftieth. They want spectacle.”
“Spectacle means casualties before it even begins.”
Hayley’s blood ran cold.
Before she could move, Silas appeared at her side, gripping her arm firmly.
“What did you hear?” he asked quietly.
Hayley glanced toward the hallway. “Something about new arena tech… and instability.”
Silas cursed under his breath. It was the first time she’d heard fear in his voice.
“I hoped they wouldn’t do it this year.”
“Do what?” she whispered.
But Silas only shook his head. “Don’t wander alone again. The Capitol is watching. And not all dangers come from other tributes.”
Hayley nodded, though her pulse raced.
The more she saw, the less the Trials felt like a game…
And the more they felt like a trap.
Later that day, Jordan joined her near the survival station.
“You okay?” he asked.
She hesitated. “Not really.”
“Want to tell me why?”
She shook her head. “Not until I understand it myself.”
He nodded with quiet understanding. Then, after a moment, he said softly, “If anything feels wrong… you stay with me. Promise?”
Hayley met his eyes. Serious. Steady. Trusting.
“I promise,” she whispered.
Chapter Eight — Sparks Between Them
The night before evaluations, tension hung heavy in their suite. Silas stood by the holographic fireplace, hands clasped behind him.
“Tomorrow, you perform your best skill for the Gamemakers,” he explained. “They score you from one to twelve. That score can save you—or get you killed.”
Jordan leaned forward. “But we don’t show everything. Right?”
“Right,” Silas said. “But you show something. Enough to keep sponsors interested.”
Hayley exhaled slowly. “I’m not great at anything.”
Silas looked at her sharply. “You are.”36Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDeuqpiCB2T
Then he pointed toward her chest. “Your strength is here. You’re strategic. You think before you move. That’s rare.”
Jordan smiled at her. “He’s right.”
She felt warmth rise in her chest. “And what about you?”
Jordan shrugged. “Camouflage. Survival skills. Maybe knives. I’m not bad with those.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Not bad? You hit the target every time.”
He grinned. “Maybe I was showing off.”
“Who for?”
He didn’t answer.
He didn’t need to.
Later, after Silas had gone to speak with Cressida, Hayley and Jordan sat on the balcony outside their rooms. Capitol lights glowed like stars below them, but the night air felt colder than District Eleven-Delta ever did.
Jordan leaned his arms on the railing. “Do you ever think about what happens if one of us makes it home?”
Hayley’s chest tightened. “I try not to.”
“Why?”
“Because I don’t want to imagine going home without you.”
Jordan turned to her slowly. “Hayley…”
She looked at him—really looked—and the warmth from earlier pooled into something deeper. Something she didn’t want to admit. Something dangerous.
“We should sleep,” she whispered.
But Jordan stepped closer.
“Hayley,” he said softly, “no matter what the Capitol wants… I’m on your side. Always.”
Her breath caught.
“Jordan…”
Before she could say more, a loud knock echoed from the main room.
Silas’s voice followed: “Lights out. You two need rest.”
Jordan gave her one last look—soft, heartbreaking—before heading inside.
Hayley stayed on the balcony a moment longer, gripping the railing, trying to steady her breath.
Because she knew exactly what she felt now.
And she knew the arena would try to destroy it.
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and then Add to home screen.