The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner Book 2) (65)
CHAPTER
65
He
sat straight up, covered in sweat. Even before he could fully compute his
surroundings, before all the information traveled through the nerve wires and cognitive
functions of his brain, he knew that everything was wrong. That everything had
been taken from him all over again.
He
lay on the ground, alone, in a room. The walls, the ceiling, the floor—everything
was white. The floor beneath him was spongy, hard and smooth but with enough
give to be comfortable. He looked at the walls—they were padded, with large
buttoned indentations across them, about four feet apart. Bright light shone
down from a rectangle in the ceiling, too high for him to reach. The place had
a clean smell to it, like ammonia and soap. Thomas looked down to see that even
his clothes had no color: a T-shirt, cotton pants, socks.
A
brown desk sat about a dozen feet in front of him. It was the only thing in the
entire room that wasn’t white. Old and battered and scratched, it had a bare
wooden chair pushed into the sitting well on the other side. Behind that was
the door, padded like the walls.
Thomas
felt a strange calm. Instinct told him he should be on his feet, screaming for
help. He should be banging on the door. But he knew that door wouldn’t open. He
knew no one would listen.
He
was in the Box all over again, should’ve known better than to get his hopes up.
I’m
not going to panic,
he told himself. It had to be another phase of the Trials, and this time he’d
fight to change things—to end it all. It was strange, but just knowing he had a
plan, that he’d do whatever it took to find freedom, caused a surprising calm
to pass over him.
Teresa?
he
called out. He knew that at this point she and Aris were his only hope for
communication with the outside. Can you hear me? Aris? You there?
No
one responded. Not Teresa. Not Aris. Not … Brenda.
But
that had only been a dream. It had to have been. Brenda couldn’t be working
with WICKED, couldn’t be speaking in his mind.
Teresa?
he
said again, throwing hard mental effort into it. Aris?
Nothing.
He
stood and walked over to the desk, but two feet in front of it he ran into an
invisible wall. A barrier, just like back in the dormitory.
Thomas
didn’t let the panic rise. Didn’t let fear overcome him. He took a deep breath,
walked back toward the corner of the room, then sat down and leaned into it.
Closed his eyes and relaxed.
Waited.
Fell asleep.
Tom?
Tom!
He
didn’t know how many times she said it before he finally responded. Teresa? He
woke with a jolt, looked around and remembered the white room. Where
are you?
They
put us in another dormitory after the Berg landed. We’ve been here a few days,
just sitting around doing nothing. Tom, what happened to you?
Teresa
was worried—scared, even. That much he knew for sure. As for himself, he mostly
felt confused. A few days? What—
They
took you away as soon the Berg landed. They keep telling us it was too
late—that the Flare is too rooted in you. They said you’ve gotten crazy and
violent.
Thomas
tried to hold it together, tried not to think about how WICKED could wipe
memories.
Teresa
… it’s just another part of the Trials. They’ve got me locked up in this white
room.
But
… you’ve been there for days? How many?
Tom,
it’s been almost a week.
Thomas
couldn’t respond. Almost wanted to pretend he hadn’t heard what Teresa had just
said. The fear he’d been holding back began to slowly seep into his chest.
Could he trust her? She’d lied to him so much already. And how did he even know
this was really her? It was high time to cut off ties with Teresa.
Tom?
Teresa
called to him again. What’s going on here? I’m really confused.
Thomas
felt a rush of emotion, a burning inside him that almost brought tears to his
eyes. He had once considered Teresa his best friend. But it could never be like
that again. Now all he felt when he thought of her was anger.
Tom!
Why aren’t you—
Teresa,
listen to me.
Hello?
That’s what I’m trying to—
No,
just … listen. Don’t say anything else, okay? Just listen to me.
She
paused. Okay. A quiet, scared voice in his mind.
Thomas
couldn’t control it anymore. Rage pulsed inside of him. Luckily, he only had to
think the words, because he could never have spoken them aloud.
Teresa.
Go away.
Tom—
No.
Don’t say another word. Just … leave me alone. And you can tell WICKED that I’m
done playing their games. Tell them I’m done!
She
waited a few seconds before responding. Okay. Another pause. Okay.
Then I just have one thing left to say to you.
Thomas
sighed. I can’t wait.
She
didn’t say it right away, and he would’ve thought she’d left him except that he
still felt her presence. Finally, she spoke again.
Tom?
What?
WICKED
is good.
And
then she was gone.
EPILOGUE
WICKED
Memorandum, Date 232.2.13, Time 21:13
TO:
My Associates
FROM:
Ava Paige, Chancellor
RE:
SCORCH TRIALS, Groups A and B
This
is not a time to let emotions interfere with the task at hand. Yes, some events
have gone in a direction we didn’t foresee. Not all is ideal—things have gone
wrong—but we’ve made tremendous progress and have collected many of the needed
patterns. I feel a great amount of hope.
I
expect all of us to maintain our professional demeanor and remember our
purpose. The lives of so many people rest in the hands of so few. This is why
it’s an especially important time for vigilance and focus.
The
days to come are fundamental to this study, and I have every confidence that
when we restore their memories, every one of our subjects will be ready for
what we plan to ask of them. We still have the Candidates we need. The final
pieces will be found and put into place.
The
future of the human race outweighs all. Every death and every sacrifice are
well worth the ultimate outcome. The end of this monumental effort is coming,
and I believe that the process will work. That we’ll have our patterns. That
we’ll have our blueprint. That we’ll have our cure.
The
Psychs are deliberating even now. When they say the time is right, we’ll remove
the Swipe and tell our remaining subjects if they are—or are not—immune to the
Flare.
That’s
all for now.
END OF BOOK TWO
0 comments:
Post a Comment