Chapter thirty-five
We seemed to simultaneously gaze towards the maze. Newts left hand was waving about his face, as he bit his fingernails. "Well, maybe they're just having some fun," chuck suggested. Though the kid was trying to cheer him up, he went about it all wrong. The maze was not somewhere you had fun. Newts glare had said enough, and if his eyes could shoot knives, well we should be saying goodbye to chuck. (Sorry not sorry)
I wanted to comfort Newt, but my throat was strained as no words arose. "Then why don't we send someone after them?" Thomas suggested. Newt seemed to shrivel. His hand grasped mine, where I was sitting to his right. Eyes wide, his cheeks seemed to sink in, and pure terror displayed his face as his fingers dug into my hand. I ignored the pain, and was focused on him. He only breathed out a, "no,"
Soon we were back to the schedule. Walk around, check the doors, visit the girl, walk around, check the doors. Soon enough, dinner rolled in, and frypan cooked a grand meal, and with gesturing on my part, I was able to convince him and Newt, to allow me to help. After I was finishing the last few gladers, specifically the runners who had just returned, I hazily watched Newt run from door to door.
I began to walk towards him, while he was waiting alone by the doors, when Thomas rose, walking along side me. Chuck followed, seemingly always lost without Thomas. Newt wrung his hands through his hair, waiting by the west door. "Where are they?" Newt asked, his voice intertwining with worry.
"Why don't we send out a search party?" Thomas suggested again.
"Bloody he-" Newt started before stopping himself; he closed his eyes for a second and took a deep breath. "We can't. Okay? Don't say it again. One hundred percent against the rules. Especially with the buggin' Doors about to close."
"But why?" Thomas persisted, "Won't the Grievers get them if they stay out there? Shouldn't we do something?"
Newt turned on him, his face flushed red, his eyes flamed with fury.
"Shut your hole, Greenie!" he yelled. "Not a bloody week you've been here! You think I wouldn't risk my life in a second to save those lugs?"
Surprised and frightful from his outburst, I stumbled back. Newt reached towards me keeping my balance.
"No ... I ... Sorry. I didn't mean ..." Thomas sputtered.
Newt's face softened. "You don't get it yet, Tommy. Going out there at night is beggin' for death. We'd just be throwin' more lives away. If those shanks don't make it back ..." He paused, seeming hesitant to say what everyone was thinking. "Both of 'em swore an oath, just like I did. Like we all did. You, too, when you go to your first Gathering and get chosen by a Keeper. Never go out at night. No matter what. Never,"
"Newt won't say it," the chuck said, head hanging low, "so I will. If they're not back, it means they're dead. Minho's too smart to get lost. Impossible. They're dead."
So he rose, and trudged to the homestead, saying no more. "The shank's right," Newt said solemnly. "That's why we can't go out. We can't afford to make things bloody worse than they already are."
I squeezed newts hand, which had found itself once again intertwined with mine. "The doors close in 2 minutes," he said, and a wave of anguish passed over us. It was as official as a death sentence, and not going out there to find them felt like we were banishing them. Newt rose, unconsciously dragging me to the homestead. I gently pulled my hand away, slightly lagging behind. We'd made it pretty far, and I was 15 feet behind Newt as we neared the homestead.
"They got him!" I heard, but it was just a whisper in the wind. "Newt! Joanie!"
I heard that. This time, it was Thomas. I turned back, and sprinted towards the doors, leaving Newt behind. "They're coming! I can see 'em!" He yelled. I made it to the doors, and could see their figures hobbling about. Something was wrong, and if they didn't hurry, they would be dead. Thomas was a few feet ahead of me, and Newt, a few behind.
"This is why!"
It took me a while to realize that the hoarse voice was mine. "Joannah! You can talk!" Newt exclaimed, still darting towards us. "This is why!"
His gaze shifted up, and I turned around to see what he was watching, "don't do it tommy! Don't you bloody do it!" Newt yelled. Thomas was about to sprint into the maze, so I took my chance. "This is why!"
"This is not your fault!" He screamed, but I shook my head. "I know! But this is," I shouted, then followed Thomas into the maze.
The walls compressed our bodies, squishing them. With a pop, we made it to the other side, and I found myself facing the maze once more. And this time, there was no way back.
A gooey silence hung from the air, for everyone was in shock. Darkness had come, making the walls towering totems, and looked as if they were about to fall and crush us. Echoes of the doors shutting still wrung through the air, a faint whisper.
Sounds to my left told me to return to my senses. Alby was sprawled on the floor, tattered and bruised. And Minho, standing up wobbly, looked at Thomas and I in shock. He was cut and bruised, and in the pale light, looked like the haunted version of the Minho I knew.
"Greenie," Minho said, "if you think that was brave comin' out here, listen up. You're the shuckiest shuck-faced shuck there ever was. You're as good as dead, just like us," he paused, then looked at me with a sad, yet angry expression, " Joannah, I expected more of you. You have Gladers out there that care about you, and Gladers in here. You've just sentenced yourself to death," he said, turning angry once more.
"We couldn't just sit there and leave you guys out here," I said, rolling my eyes. If possible, Minho paler more, "you're talking..."
"Yes I am, it was just... I don't know," I said. "Okay then, since we don't have time to waste, I'll ignore my shock. But what good are you guys with us," now he rolled his eyes, "whatever guys, break the number one rule, kill yourself. Whatever,"
I could feel the tension lurking in from above, "you're welcome. We were just trying to help," Thomas spat. Minho bitterly laughed, kneeling next to Alby. The boy was on the edge of death. "What happened?" I asked, I wasn't best friends with Alby, but he was still a friend. "Don't wanna talk about it," Minho muttered, while check for Alby's pulse. "Let's just say the Grievers can play dead really well,"
"So he was ... bitten? Stung, whatever? Is he going through the Changing?" Thomas asked, and cringed, guessing that my own brother might've looked like Alby, but thanking, he didn't go crazy like Ben. "You've got a lot to learn" was all Minho would say.
But it soon dawned on me, "is he going to die?" I asked. Alby didn't get the serum, and who knows what will happen. "Since we didn't make it back before sunset, probably. Could be dead in an hour-I don't know how long it takes if you don't get the Serum. Course, we'll be dead, too, so don't get all weepy for him. Yep, we'll all be nice and dead soon." Minho blatantly stated, as if he was telling me how his day went.
"We're really going to die?" I asked, and though I've faced a Griever, I really didn't want to again. "You're telling me we have no chance?" Thomas asked, disbelief settling.
"None,"
I was getting annoyed by Minho's negativity, and by Thomas's next statement, he was too. "Oh, come on-there has to be something we can do. How many Grievers'll come at us?" He said, and we seemingly peered into the he maze, expecting a Griever to come barreling towards us. "I don't know,"
"But what about Ben? And gally, the others who've been stung and survived?" I asked, trying to rack my brain for ideas, anything I noticed when I first personally met a Griever. "Didn't you hear me? They made it back before sunset, you dong. Made it back and got the Serum. All of them." He said, annoyance now obviously lacing his voice.
"But I thought the Grievers only came out at night," Thomas stated, and Minho sighed. "Then you were wrong shank," he said, so I further explained. "The always come out at night, but that doesn't mean they don't come out during the day," I said, trying my best not to remember when I found that out myself.
"Has anyone ever been caught outside the walls at night and lived through it?"
"Never."
"How many have died, then?"
I answered for minho, who was in a silent gaze, "At least twelve. Haven't you been to the graveyard?"
"Yeah." Was all he said, probably revisiting the memory of the graves cracking under us. "Well, those are just the ones we found. There are more whose bodies never showed up." Minho started. "Adam..." I whispered, earning a cringe from Minho. "That freaking graveyard's back in the woods for a reason. Nothing kills happy time more than being reminded of your slaughtered friends every day." He solemnly replied.
We seemed to stand in silence, as if we were giving our regards to our fallen friends. I looked once more to Alby, our leader looked like a shriveled raisin, that's been squished, thrown, chewed, and microwaved.
"Grab those smelly suckers. We gotta carry him over to the Door. Give 'em one body that's easy to find in the morning."
My jaw ached from its wide open position. Horror sent chills up my arms, the goosebumps knocking me out of my numb state. "How can this be happening!" Thomas yelled, to honestly no one in particular. "Quit your crying. You should've followed the rules and stayed inside. Now come on, grab his legs, Joanie, help with his arms,"
But I just sat down, and shook my head. "Seriously? Come on Joannah," Minho pleaded, but I shook my head once more. "No,"
A scowl plastered his face, not caring to hide it. I kept my face blank, an emotional canvas for the future horrors to paint upon. They dragged him away, it wasn't that far. I tuned out to their thoughts and focused on a plan.
Maybe, I could climb the vines, chill ok the top. But that wouldn't work because I'd have no where to run. Perhaps the Grievers won't venture so close to the doors, but I saw one through the window. The window! I could somehow contact Newt that way! They could build a ladder! We would climb to the top, and use the ladder to get down.
I shot up, sprinting to the arguing boys, "we can climb them. We can climb the vines," I panted, pleased with my idea. "I swear, joannah, you must think we're a bunch of idiots. You really think we've never had the ingenious thought of climbing the freaking walls?"
The retort hurt me more than it should have. My hope was placed by despair, and my eyes most probably brimmed with tears. Minho immediately realized what he had said, but Thomas started talking first. "
"Shes just trying to help, man. Why don't you quit moping at every word We say and talk to us?" Thomas defended, and if we were to all start fighting eachother, and not the Grievers, we'd all be in even deeper trouble. As if reading my thoughts, minho jumped up, grabbing thomas by the shirt. "You don't understand, shuck-face! You don't know anything, and you're just making it worse by trying to have hope! We're dead, you hear me? Dead!"
I stood frozen, a sudden fear of Minho creeping inside of me. Minho was my best friend, but I hadn't realized how powerful he actually is. Not that he would, but he could actually quite literally destroy me.
His face softened, and he realized what he'd done. His strong stature shrank. "Ah, man, oh man," Minho whispered, creeping into a compressed figure. All y fear of him dissipated, as I wrapped an arm around my distressed friend. "I've never been this scared before, dude. Not like this."
Thomas opened his mouth, hopefully to say words of encouragement, when it happened.
The sound I've dreaded since I could remember.
Whrrrrr click click Whrrrrrr
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: Truyen247.Pro