Santana wasn't far behind Kurt when he found the ladder. She heard his sigh of relief and knew he had found a way back to the surface. But she also noticed something the boy hadn't seen. Movement in the corner of her eye told her Karofsky was down here with them. He hadn't made a move toward either of them, so Santana doubted that he'd been tracking them down here. He probably got here the same way she did. Divine intervention from the Gamemakers trying to make things a little more exciting. Santana knew she had never been a match for Karofsky. Even if she snuck away now and let him take out Kurt, she'd still die when she inevitably faced him. The only one left who might possibly stand a chance against Karofsky was Blaine. But only if he still had something worth fighting for. Santana knew all too well the feeling of losing someone she loved more than her own life. If Karofsky attacked Kurt right now, Blaine wouldn't want to live without him. And Karofsky would win the Games. Santana decided it didn't matter if she lost as long as that ape didn't win. So she made a life or death decision and hissed Kurt's name.

Kurt jumped at the sound of his name. The female tribute from 1 was halfway down the corridor. Kurt's feet were on the bottom rung of the ladder that would hopefully take him back to the surface. Back to Blaine. He tensed, waiting for the girl to attack him. Instead she gestured wildly for him to move toward her, pointing down the opposite hallway with a panicked look on her face. Kurt looked to where she had pointed and froze. Karofsky was down here. Kurt quickly moved toward the girl and out of Karofsky's line of sight. His heart was pounding. He was so close to making it back to the surface, but he'd never be able to outrun the larger boy. The girl, Santana he thought her name was, pressed her finger to her lips telling him to keep quiet. She pointed to herself, then down the far hallway. Kurt shook his head, not knowing what she was trying to tell him.

“I'm going to run that way. You stay hidden here. I'll draw him away.” Santana whispered impatiently. Kurt stared at her with a puzzled look on his face. Why would she try to help him? This could be some elaborate trick so they could follow him back to Blaine.

Santana knew Kurt had no reason to trust her. In the Games it was stupid to trust someone whose survival depending on everyone else's death. She took Brittany's letter out of her pocket. Unfolding it, she kept the page from her girlfriend and handed Kurt the other 2 pages.

“Read this and you'll understand. Good luck.” She kissed Kurt on the cheek and headed back down the corridor quickly before she lost her nerve. Santana made sure her footsteps echoed loudly and sure enough she heard Karofsky start to chase after her. Santana reached the top of the ladder just as Karofsky had started to climb. Kurt crouched down in his hiding spot, holding his hand over his mouth and nose to muffle the sounds of his breathing. He remained motionless for several minutes after Karofsky had climbed up after Santana. He couldn't be sure they weren't working together to trick him into leading them to Blaine. Finally, after almost half an hour without any sounds of movement, Kurt let himself relax. He was still holding the paper Santana had shoved into his hand. As curious as he was to find out what was written, Kurt knew he didn't have any time to waste. He needed to find Blaine. Kurt folded and pocketed the letter before starting the climb to the surface.

Burt was at a complete loss. He was sure the Gamemakers were just as stunned as he was. No one was surprised that Blaine had been the star of the Games ever since the reaping. They had all accepted his pledge to get Kurt home no matter the cost. But no one could have anticipated how the Games had progressed this year. Burt wasn't terribly shocked when Blaine and Sam had let one another go after their escape from the cornucopia. Clearly Blaine had felt some obligation to the other boy and they'd called a temporary truce. While it wasn't typical, it certainly wasn't unheard of for tributes to align themselves against the career pack. After that, Blaine was engrossed in his search for Kurt, which was to be expected. Somehow the events of last few hours had completely changed the Games. It was like the other tributes were just as invested in Blaine's mission as the audience was. Sam simply accepted his death with the proclamation that Kurt was the only one who deserved to win the Games. And now Santana had willingly drawn a competitor away from Kurt based on a chance shared connection between her and Blaine. Burt had underestimated the boy's ability to get into people's hearts. Right now though he was worried about Blaine. The boy hadn't moved since Kurt had fallen through the floor. Burt's heart went out to the boy for the trauma he knew came from having to take a life. Another social media poll had just been announced in the Capitol, but Burt wasn't paying attention. He only hoped that whatever traps or tricks the audience threw at the arena now would be targeted toward the boy from 1. Burt knew it was only a matter of time before Kurt or Blaine would have to face the hulking boy.