The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner Book 2) (46)
CHAPTER
46
Thomas
couldn’t figure out what Teresa meant by her last statement. What had he done
to her? But his mind went numb as they walked and walked and walked, apparently
heading back to Group B’s camp. A steady climb uphill, the effort burning his legs.
A sheer cliff to their left kept them in the shade as they hiked, but everything
was still red and brown and hot. Dry. Dusty. The girls gave him a few sips of
water, but he was sure that every drop evaporated before it hit his stomach.
They
reached a large indentation in the east wall just as the noon sun broke out
overhead, a golden ball of fire bent on burning them to ashes. The shallow cave
went about forty feet into the mountain face; it was obvious that this was
their camp, and it looked like they’d been there for a day or two. Blankets strewn
about, the remains of a fire, some trash piled on the edge. Only three people
were there when they arrived—girls just like the others—which meant they’d felt
they needed almost everyone to kidnap Thomas.
With
the bows and arrows, the knives and machetes? It seemed almost silly. A few of
them would’ve done just as well.
Along
the way, Thomas had learned some things. The dark-skinned girl’s name was
Harriet, and the one who was always with her, with the reddish blond hair and
white, white skin, was named Sonya. Though he couldn’t tell for certain, he
guessed that those two had mostly been in charge until Teresa had arrived. They
acted with some authority, but always deferred to her in the end.
“Okay,”
Teresa said. “Let’s tie him to that ugly tree.” She pointed at the bone-white
skeleton of an oak, its roots still clinging to the rocky soil even though it
had to have been dead for years and years. “And we might as well feed him so he
doesn’t moan and groan all day and keep us awake.”
Laying
it on a little thick, isn’t she? Thomas thought. Whatever her true
intentions, her words had started to get a little ridiculous. And he couldn’t
deny it anymore—he was really starting to hate her, no matter what she’d said in
the beginning.
He
didn’t fight as they tied his torso to the trunk, leaving his hands free. Once
they had him good and secure they gave him a few granola bars and a bottle of
water. No one spoke to him or met his gaze. And strangely, if he wasn’t mistaken,
he noticed that everyone looked a little guilty. He started eating, and as he
did he carefully took in everything around him. His thoughts wandered all over
the place as the rest of them began settling in to sleep out the remaining
daylight. Something wasn’t right about all this.
Teresa’s
display certainly didn’t seem like an act. It never had. Was it possible that
she was doing the exact opposite of what she’d told him—making him think he
should trust her when her real plan had been and was to—
With
a jolt he remembered the tag outside her door back in the dorm. The Betrayer.
He’d completely forgotten about it until that moment. Things started to make
more sense.
WICKED
was the boss, here. They were the groups’ only hope of surviving. If they’d
really told her to kill him, would she do it? To save herself? And what was
that line she’d spit out about his having done something to her? Could they
even be manipulating her thoughts? Making her not like him anymore?
Then
there was his tattoo and the signs in the city. The tattoo had warned him; the
signs had told him he was the real leader. The label next to Teresa’s door had
been another warning.
Still—he
had no weapons and he was tied to a tree. Group B outnumbered him by more than
twenty and they all had weapons. Real easy.
Sighing,
he finished up his food and felt a little better physically. And though he
didn’t quite know how everything added up, he had a new confidence that he was
closer to understanding. And that he couldn’t quit.
Harriet
and Sonya had pallets laid out nearby; they kept sneaking looks at him as they
readied for sleep. Again Thomas noticed those odd expressions of shame or
guilt. He saw it as an opportunity to fight for his life with words.
“You
guys don’t really wanna kill me, do you?” He asked it in a tone that said he’d
caught them in a lie. “Have you ever even killed anyone before?”
Harriet
gave him a harsh glare, stopping just before she laid her head down on a wad of
blankets. She propped herself up on her elbow. “Based on what Teresa told us,
we escaped our Maze three days faster than your group did. Lost fewer people
and killed more Grievers to do it. I think knocking off one little insignificant
teenage boy won’t be too tough.”
“Think
of the guilt you’ll feel.” He could only hope the thought would dig at them.
“We’ll
get over it.” She stuck her tongue out at him—actually stuck her tongue
out!—then put her head down and closed her eyes.
Sonya
sat cross-legged, looking about as far from sleep as humanly possible. “We don’t
have a choice. WICKED said that was our only task. If we don’t do it, they
won’t let us in at the safe haven. We’ll die out here in the Scorch.”
Thomas
shrugged. “Hey, I understand. Sacrifice me to save yourselves. Very noble.”
She
stared at him for a long time; he had to fight not to drop his gaze. She
finally looked away and lay down with her back to him.
Teresa
walked over, her face twisted in annoyance. “What are you talking about?”
“Nothing,”
mumbled Harriet. “Tell him to shut up.”
“Shut
up,” Teresa said.
Thomas
huffed a sarcastic laugh. “What’re you gonna do, kill me if I don’t?”
She
didn’t say anything, just kept looking at him, her face blank.
“Why
do you hate me all of a sudden?” he asked. “What did I do to you?”
Sonya
and Harriet both had turned to listen, looking back and forth between Thomas
and Teresa.
“You
know what you did,” Teresa finally said. “So does everyone here—I told them all
about it. But even still, I wouldn’t have sunk to your level and tried to kill
you. We’re only doing that because we have no choice. Sorry. Life’s tough.”
Did
something just flash in her eyes? Thomas wondered. What was she trying to
tell him? “What are you talking about, sink to my level? I’d never kill
a friend to save my own butt. Never.”
“Me
neither. Which is why I’m glad we’re not friends.” She started to turn away.
“So
what’d I do to you?” Thomas asked quickly. “Sorry, I’m kind of havin’ a memory
lapse—ya know, we have those a lot around here. Remind me.”
She
twisted back around and glared at him with fiery eyes. “Don’t insult me. Don’t
you dare sit there and act like nothing happened. Now shut up or I’ll give you
another bruise on that pretty face of yours.”
She
stomped away, and Thomas kept silent. He shifted until he was somewhat comfortable,
his head leaning back on the dead wood of the tree. Everything about his
current situation stank, but he was determined to figure it out and survive.
Eventually
he slept.
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