A/N: Chapter 7! Enjoy!

Chapter 7

We come out into what looks like a high street. People fill the area, dirty and smelling.

'Okay. Try to blend in.' Brenda says before walking off.

Looking around I notice a man sitting at a fire. I recognise him. Walking closer he looks up at me and I gasp, suddenly remembering where I recognise him from.

'Excuse me.' I say, getting closer. He looks up at me with a small smile.

'What do you need?' He says. I shake my head.

'Oh, no, I don't need anything. I think I have something that belongs to you.' He furrows his brow as I reach into my bag. I rummage around until I find what I am looking for. A small digital camera. He gasps as I hold it out to him.

'I found it in a car. It still works. That's how I knew it was yours.' He takes it with shaking hands before flicking it on. Tears instantly form in his eyes.

'Thank you,' he whispers. 'Guys come here,' he calls into the tent behind him. 3 adults walk out and I gasp as I recognise them as the children from the photos. 'Look what this nice girl brought us.'

'Is that what I think it is?' The eldest asks. The father nods, before turning to me.

'I can't thank you enough.' He says. 'What can give you in return?' I shake my head before pausing.

'You could tell me whether you have seen a man come through here? With 7 kids about my age? 6 guys and a girl?' He shakes his head slightly.

'I don't know I'm afraid, we've been inside most of today.' I nod my head.

'Thanks anyway.' I smile and begin to turn away.

'But,' He calls out, 'If I see them, where should I tell them you will be?' I look over to Brenda who is standing in front of a large building with a sign saying 'ZONE A' on it.

'In there, I guess,' pointing at it.

'You don't wanna go in there,' he whispers, 'Bad things happen in there.' I smile sadly.

'I'm not sure I have a choice. If you see them…' I trail off.

'I'll tell them, you and your friend are in there.' I smile.

'Thank you.' Walking away from the family, I feel a small weight lifted off my shoulder. They made it. They are still together. Still alive. I reach Brenda, and we walk towards the building.

'Are you sure this is the place?' I whisper as we pass several scantily dressed woman.

'You here for the party?' One of the women say, coming up behind us.

'No. We're looking for Marcus. This is his place, isn't it?' Brenda says to the woman.

'This is my place.' A man walks up to us, dressed in velvet. He's definitely on something. His blue eyes are drooping and encircled by dark eyeliner.

'Are you Marcus?' I ask, really hoping that this was not our only chance of finding the Right Arm.

'Marcus doesn't live here anymore.' He says airily.

'Do you know where we can find him?' I ask, trying to sound strong.

'Sure, sure. He's over in Zone B.' He says gesturing to the left.

'Okay. What's Zone B?' I ask quickly. I really want to find this Marcus guy and find the others.

'It's where they burn the bodies.' The woman whispers tracing her fingers over my shoulder.

'Okay,' I say, trying to work out what to do next. 'Look, has anyone else been by here... looking for him? Group of guys around our age? They had a girl with them.' If we can find the others, we can find Jorge. Maybe he has another plan.

'You know...' He says, using that airy tone of voice again. 'I think they might be inside. Here. Drink this.' He takes a bottle of slightly yellow liquid and holds it out to me.

'What is it?' Brenda asks.

'The price of admission.' He says, with a laugh. 'Drink it!' I grab the bottle with a huff and take a swig. The liquid burns my throat and makes me gasp for air.

'Your turn.' He says looking to Brenda. She too takes it, and takes a sip.

'All right. You two, enjoy the party.' He says, putting his arms round our shoulders and pushing us through a curtain. Loud music blasted my ears as we entered. Why would the others be in here? It doesn't make any sense. The music soon started to become all echoey. I blink a couple of times, but my vision is starting to blur.

'Maybe we should split up. See if we can find the others.' Brenda's voice barely reaches my ears as I watch the party goers move round the room so smoothly, like a dance. I start to smile. 'Hey.' Brenda's hand touches my shoulder. 'Don't drink anything else.' I nod before walking into the part a bit more. I move through people dancing. Several hands touch my waist and my shoulders, but I ignore them. There was something I was supposed to do. Something… Walking over to a crowd cheering, I see a crank chained up in the middle of the room. A man with a gun is circling it, laughing. Just as he pulls the trigger, I look away.

The man, who is not Marcus, is stood beside me laughing. 'That was fun!' He shouts. I back away, feeling funny. 'What?' He shouts after me. I turn around and come face to face with Brenda.

'Brenda?' I ask, giggling slightly at the sound of my voice.

'They're not here.' She whispers.

'Who aren't?' I say back, trying to string a though together.

'Your friends. Jorge. Newt.' Newt. I feel like I should feel something about not being able to find Newt, but all I can feel is relaxed.

'Okay, well... should we keep looking?' I ask. A pair of hands work their way round my waist, and start to sway me.

'Why? We couldn't find the Right Arm anyway. Not without Marcus. Your friends are gone. It's over. It's just us now. Just try and relax. Let go.' She says. I don't really take much of it in. The feeling of the person behind me, makes me smile. Pressed up against my back.

'How?' I ask quietly.

'Like this.' The voice behind me whispers. I start to feel feather kisses on my neck. I bend it so that the mouth has better access. I watch as Brenda melts away into an array of colours. I turn round to see the mouth kissing me, but step back.

'What?' the mouth says.

'You're the wrong mouth.' I say, patting it and walking away. Colours and sounds barrage my ears. I clench my hands as I make my way through the crowd. Not Marcus stands in front of me laughing.

'Kira?' A voice echoes my name. I turn away from the man, and see Jak, with the flare. I scramble back away from him screaming. I bump into someone else and turn to apologise, but its Thomas. Dark, purple veins are protruding from his skin.

'No! No!' I feel myself shouting. In the distance by the door, I see one more thing that floors me. Newt. Bleeding. A bullet wound on his forehead leaks blood down his face and into his mouth. But he's still smiling. Blood stains his teeth and gums before he slumps to the floor. I scream, so loudly, I'm sure my own ears are bleeding. Falling to my knees, the dizziness takes over and I fall to the floor.


'Kira,' I open my eyes with a jolt, to see Newt leaning over me. 'Hey, you're okay.' He says with a smile. Sitting up quickly I throw my arms around his neck. I wince a little as my shoulder protests but not enough to stop me from holding on for dear life.

'Oh my god,' I whisper. Feeling his arms wrap round my waist, makes me so happy that tears leak down the side of my cheeks. Pulling back I stare at his face, running my fingers over his forehead and down his cheeks.

Brushing the tears of my face with his thumb he says, 'Hey. What's brought this on?'

'I saw you die.' I whisper. He stares at me for a moment before Minho appears over his shoulder.

'Welcome back, you ugly shank.' He teases. I smirk back before my attention is drawn to the man strapped to a chair in the middle of the room. His left eye is swollen and his lip is bleeding but other than that he seems in pretty good condition.

'I suggest that you talk! You son of a bitch!' Jorge punches "not" Marcus, I'm presuming as encouragement. I jump up and walk over to them.

'Damn it!' "Not" Marcus exclaims. I should probably stop calling him "not" Marcus. He obviously is Marcus. Dickhead. 'I'm sorry... you're going to have to leave my house.' He says snarkily. I'm pretty sure he is still drunk, or high, or whatever that drink does to you.

'Looks like you've been having fun.' Thomas comments dryly as I walk past him. Subconsciously rubbing at my neck, I see Brenda smirk in the corner.

'Listen. I don't enjoy hurting you. Okay? Where is the Right Arm, Marcus?' Jorge asks again. 'I know you know where they're hiding. So you tell me, and I'll make you a deal.'

'Or you don't tell him, and he'll make you dead.' I quip, getting annoyed with this jackass. He narrows his eyes at me. I cock my eyebrow showing him I'm not intimidated.

'I made my own deal. You're the one who taught me, never miss an opportunity.' He says to Jorge, pulling his eyes from me.

'What's he talking about?' Newt asks, looking at Jorge.

'I'm talking about supply and demand. WICKED wants all the Immunes they can get. I help provide that for them. So I lure the kids in... they get drunk, they have a good time,' His eyes flick to me when he says this. 'And then, later, WICKED comes in... they separate the wheat from the chaff.' I grimace and look away from the sickening grin spreading on his face.

'I changed my mind, hermano. I do enjoy hurting you.' Jorge kicks Marcus in the chest, sending his chair rocking backwards and landing hard on the floor. 'Talk! Talk!'

'Okay! Jesus! But I'm not making any promises.' Minho and Jorge lift Marcus back up.

'These guys like to move around. They have an outpost in the mountains. But it's a long way away. You got half of WICKED on your ass. You're never gonna make it.' He grins, but so does Jorge.

'Not on foot. Where's Bertha?'

Bertha? Who, the fuck, is Bertha?


This, the fuck, is Bertha. A huge light blue truck, with horns on the front. It's a bit of a squeeze with 10 of us trying to fit in but we got there. Newt is up front with Jorge, Minho, Thomas and I and behind them, and Jak, Fry, Teresa, Brenda and Aris are on bench seats at the very back. I grin as we glide down the road in Bertha, taking in the scenery. Mountains rising high above our heads, and caverns going down so deep we can't see the bottom. Newt is grinning from ear to ear, with the window pulled down and the wind in his hair; I've not seen him look that happy in a long time. I smile softly at him, which he notices and gives me a grin back. If he is pissed about the zip line, he's pushing it back until we are alone, and knowing Newt, he's pissed. I rest my head back against the seat, listening to the rumbling of the engine and the quiet chit chat from around the car. I stretch my shoulder and wince as it twinges in pain.

'Are you alright?' Thomas whispers from next to me. I nod, stay silent. Hopefully they have a doctor with the Right Arm. Someone that can look at my wounds and Brenda's leg. Wounds. I hadn't even realised that I've been shot twice in a week. Fucking hell. The car is slowing now.

'What's going on?' I ask.

'The roads jammed with cars.' Newt says as we all get out of the truck.

'Well, I guess we're on foot.' Jorge says moving forwards. I take my guns from my pocket. I picked up a second from the tall guy in the warehouse. Forgot I had it. The group moves forward through the cars. I stay where I am, by Bertha.

'Maybe we should wait.' I say. 'This could be a tr…' A bullet narrowly missed Thomas.

'Get down! Take cover!' Jorge shouts. I sink down behind Bertha and keep watch behind me, with the rear view.

'Hey, is everyone okay out there?' Thomas shouts.

'We're fine.' Teresa shouts back.

'Anyone know where those bloody shots came from?' Newt's accented voice calls from behind another car. I grin.

'Everybody! Get set to sprint back to the truck!' Jorge voice calls out from the car nearest to me. I notice two females walking round the other side of the truck with guns. Keeping quiet, I sprint after them, taking cover behind cars so the others in the mountains don't see me.

'And hold your ears!' Jorge's voice sounds again.

A few seconds later. 'Drop it. Now! I said drop it!' I smirk at Jorge's face. Letting them get the group together before I move in.

'On your feet. Let's go. Let's go! Move!' The dark haired girl shouts. 'Back up!' She says again. Stepping out behind them, I cock my guns. 'You back up,' I say. The girls slowly turn around.

'Don't do anything stupid. We have people up there that will shoot you in a second.' The blond haired girl says. I narrow my eyes.

'How quick can they react? Faster than me? I could take the two of you out before they even think about pulling the trigger. Put down your weapons.' They do as I ask. 'Take off the scarves.' Again they do as I ask. Catching Aris' eye, I motion for him to come here. They look far too well kept to have been out here long.

'You recognise them? From the facility?' I ask as Aris moves closer. As soon as Aris sees their faces, he lights up.

'Oh, my God. Harriet?' Thought so. I grin a little.

'Aris?' The dark haired girl says back. He runs up and hugs her. 'My God. What the hell are you doing here?'

'Sonya.' Aris says, moving over to the blond. I put the safety back on my weapons and put them away.

'Aris, you're lucky we didn't shoot your dumb ass. You all right, man?' Sonya says, gripping Aris tightly.

'How...?' He laughs.

'What's happening?' Minho says, thoroughly confused.

'They were in the maze together. Right?' Aris grins and nods. 'Sorry for pointing my guns at you.' I chuckle. Harriet laughs.

'Yeah, us too. We're clear, guys! Come on out!' She whistles as voices come from all around us.

'Copy that! We're clear!'

'Stand down!' Figures on the top of the mountains appear. I laugh at the sheer number of them.

'My God, you're alive.' Sonya says to Aris grabbing his face.


Sonya and Harriet lead us through the cars to a large tunnel, with several camouflage trucks at the end.

'Back it up, Joe!' Sonya yells.

'Back it up!'

'We're taking them to base.' Harriet tells some guys standing by the trucks.

'Wait, so, how did you guys get here?' Aris asks, still in awe that they are alive.

'The Right Arm got us out.' Harriet explains.

'Wait. The Right Arm? Do you know where they are?' Thomas questions. I laugh. They group looks at me.

'They are the Right Arm, idiot. Well part of it anyway.' I grin at Harriet and Sonya, who smirk back.

'Hop in.' Harriet says, opening the door to one of the trucks.

Whilst we drove to meet up with the rest of the Right Arm, Harriet interrogates me for answers.

'How did you know Aris would recognise us?' I grinned.

'You and Sonya look far to preened to have been out here for that long.' I laugh at their faces. 'Aris was at the facility for a week when we got there; if anyone was going to recognise you, it would be him.'

'But how did you know we were in the maze together?'

'I didn't at first. I just thought he would recognise you. Then when I saw the way you looked at each other, I realised it was the same way we look at our Gladers. Like family.' Harriet and Sonya grin.

'Where did you learn to shoot?' She asks. My breath hitches at this question. They both look at me.

'WICKED trained me, before putting me in the maze.' They both look at me in shock.

'Wait! You're Kira?' I look up in shock.

'How do you know who I am?' The girls grin at each other.

'Are you kidding? You are all the Doc talks about.' Sonya says. I look over at Newt, who's sat behind me. He looks just as confused as suppose I do. 'Oh my god. They're gonna love this.'

'Does this doctor know who I am? Who I was, I mean.' I ask Sonya.

'I dunno.' She answers earnestly, 'I'll guess you'll just have to ask her yourself.' I sigh and rest my head against the side, trying to process that information.

'So how much do you remember from before? How do you remember?' Harriet asks.

'Umm. Well, I was stung by a Griever in the maze. I don't know whether you had Grievers. Big half metal, half organic spider things. Haunted the maze.' Aris, Sonya and Harriet all nod.

'Yeah we had em'. We just called em' the Stingers. Seemed apt after Kelly got stung. How did you survive it? We never had anyone survive.' Aris asks.

'Well, Teresa had come up into the maze about a week earlier. When she came up she had these syringes in her pockets, full of blue liquid. Turns out, they prevent the changing.'

'Huh, we called it the changing too.' Aris comments. 'So you survived the changing, then what?'

'Well during that, I remembered a couple of things. I guess it punched a hole in the cage WICKED put around our memories. Ever since, I've been remembering things. Has that been happening to you too?' I ask Thomas. He nods.

'Yeah, I've remembered a couple of things. Not as many as you though.'

'Yeah but most the stuff I remember is training. Stupid stuff. Nothing that actually matters.' I sigh staring at my lap. Newt takes my hand and squeezes it.

'So you don't remember anything about your life from before? Before WICKED.' Harriet inquires.

I nod my head. 'I remembered one thing. It came back during the changing. My mother.' Harriet and Sonya gasp. 'I only remember the night WICKED came to get me, but she was there.' My eyes fill with tears.

'What happened to her?' Aris asks quietly.

'Aris,' snaps Sonya. I smile, it's like a mother berating a child.

'It's okay. She died. WICKED killed her. Right in front of me. That's what I remembered.' Newt rests to forehead on my shoulder. I lean against his head, trying to push back the tears. A couple escape and I quickly brush them away.

'So how long were you in the maze for?' Sonya asks.

'4 years, give or take.' I answer quickly grateful for the change of subject.

'4 years? We were only in there for 3. Rachel and Kelly were in there the longest. They were there for 3 years and 6 months.' Aris says. I cock my brow.

'What both of them?'

Harriet nods. 'Yeah, they started off our maze. Who started yours?'

'Kira did.' Newt answers for me. The girls gape.

'What? On your own?' I nod.

'Guess that's why they trained me, I suppose.'

'Wow, I mean you could tell you were the leader of sorts but I never imagined…wow.' I nod.

'We're here,' a male voice from the front calls out.

I look out the window to see a camp. Tents and boxes, and people. But less than I was expecting. We jump out of the car meeting back up with the others from the other car.

'They've been planning this for over a year now. This is all for us.' Harriet grins as she walks into camp.

'You guys are lucky you found us when you did. We're moving out at first light.' Sonya says, before asking, 'Where's Vince?' to some guy.

'Somewhere over there, I think.' He replies.

'Who's Vince?' I ask.

'He's the one who decides if you get to stay.' Harriet says with another grin.

'I thought the Right Arm was supposed to be an army.' Minho comments, looking round at the smaller group of people than we were expecting.

'Yeah, we were. This is all that's left of us. Lot of good people died getting us this far.' A tall guy with a beard walks up to us. I assume this is Vince. 'Who are they?' He asks Harriet.

'They're Immunes.' She says confidently. 'Caught 'em coming up the mountain.'

'Did you check 'em?' He asks, obviously not trusting us.

'I know this guy, Aris. I trust him.' She points to Aris who is standing behind me.

'Well, I don't. Check 'em.' He orders a guard next to us.

'Hey, boss...' he says staring at Brenda. I spin around, just in time to see her collapse to the ground.

'Brenda! Brenda!' Jorge yells, running up to her.

'What's going on?' Vince asks Harriet. She shrugs her shoulders. Shit. The bite. I forgot all about it.

'Look, I should probably tell you…' I start.

'Brenda! Brenda. Brenda, talk to me.' Jorge cries.

'I'm sorry. I'm sorry.' She groans

'What's going on with her?' Vince kneels down beside them.

'Look, I should have said before…' Everyone ignores me again.

'I don't know. Brenda, are you all right? Brenda? Talk to me.'

'What the hell?' Vince spots the shirt around her ankle and moves it out of the way. The prominent bite mark causes him to jump back and pull his gun. 'Shit! Crank! We got a Crank!' Vince shouts, pointing his gun at her. I jump in front of the gun.

'No! No! Wait, wait!' I scream holding up my hands. 'Listen, okay? This just happened, okay? She's not dangerous yet.' I say trying to get them to see.

'You shouldn't have brought her here!' Vince cries as Jorge shouts behind me struggling against the guys that pulled him back.

'I know.' I say.

'We let Cranks in here now, the safe haven doesn't last a week! Step back!' He commands me.

'I understand, okay? I understand. Just listen. Please. Please, okay? I told her that you could help. Okay? No. There's got to be something you can do.' I beg.

'Yeah, there is.' Vince relents. I take a deep breath until I hear the cock of his gun. 'I can put her out of her misery.' Without thinking I disarm him. Several other guns cock around me.

'Shit. Look, I'm sorry. Okay. You can have your gun back.' I say, passing it back to him. He snatches it back, staring at me. 'But I won't let you kill her. You'll have to kill me first.'

Vince shrugs, and points his gun at me.

'No! No!' Newt shouts behind me.

'Vince, that's enough! Let her go. Let her go!' A woman's voice calls out from behind Vince. A short lady with long brown hair comes forward. I stare at her. I know her face. Where do I know her face from?

'She's infected, Doc. There's nothing we can do for her.' Vince says, but I can barely hear him. I continue to stare at the woman.

'No, but they can. Hello, Kira. Hello Thomas.'

'What? You know us?' Thomas' voice calls from behind me. The doctor comes to stand in front of me. 'Yes I know you. Both of you. Interesting. It makes sense they'd put you in the maze Thomas. Though I must admit... I was worried they'd kill you after what you did.' She smiles at me before walking over to Thomas. I can hardly breathe. I know her face. Where do I know her face from?

'What I did?' Thomas says.

'The first time we spoke, you said you couldn't take it anymore... watching your friends die, one by one. The last time we spoke... you gave me the coordinates of every WICKED compound, trial and lab.' That I caught. I tuned to look at Thomas.

'You did that?' I whisper.

'He was our source.' Vince says, shock evident.

'We couldn't have pulled all this off without him. Take her to the tent. Get these guys some warm clothes.' A man helps Jorge lift Brenda into a tent. I continue to stare at her. She walks up to me with a smile. 'You recognise me yet?'

'I know you.' I state. 'But I can't find you.' My eyes fill with tears again. Scanning my eyes across her face, i memorise every detail before shutting my eyes. Suddenly a name pops into my head and I open my eyes to stare at the woman. 'Mary.' She smiles a broad smile.

'Keep going. You're almost there.' I close my eyes again and begin to search my memories anything connected to this woman.

A dark living room. My mother is dead on the floor. Why am I here? What does this have to do with Mary? I look around the room, I focus in on the photographs. There's me, and my mum, ad a tall, dark haired man who I assume is my dad. I smile. We look so happy. Moving on to the next ones. More of me. As a baby. As a toddler. My eyes lock on the final picture on the mantelpiece. Me, Mum, Dad, and Mary. Her arms are wrapped around my mother. I notice some similarities between the two of them. Same hair colour, same face and eye shape. Could she be…?

I open my eyes feeling wet, hot tears streaming down my face.

'Mary.' I whisper. 'You knew my mother. You look so much like her. Are you her sister?' Mary's eyes fill with tears and she pulls me into a hug.

'They wouldn't let me see you, once they brought you into WICKED. Said I was too close.' She says before pulling back. 'I never forgot you. Every day I would think about you, and what they were doing to you.' Her thumbs brush away my tears. 'Don't cry, buttercup.' She whispers.

'Don't cry, buttercup. It's only a papercut.'

'But it hurts mummy. Will you sing?'

'Of course my love.

Dancing bears, painted wings

Things I almost remember

And a song someone sings

Once upon a December

Someone holds me safe and warm

Horses prance through a silver storm

Figures dancing gracefully

Across my memory

Far away, long ago

Glowing dim as an ember

Things my heart used to know

Once upon a December

Someone holds me safe and warm

Horses prance through a silver storm

Figures dancing gracefully

Across my memory

Far away, long ago

Glowing dim as an ember

Things my heart used to know

Things it yearns to remember

And a song someone sings

Once upon a December

'Is that better, buttercup?'

'Thank you mummy.'

'I think I need to sit down.' I whisper. She nods before saying, 'Thomas, come on. I need to get some blood from you.'

Leading me into the medical tent, Mary sits me down on one of the beds. I rest my arms on my knees trying to catch my breath. 'Can you get Newt?' I whisper, and Thomas nods before telling Mary he will come back.

'Are you okay?' Mary asks quietly. I shake my head, then pause, then nod my head, then pause again and shake it again. Mary laughs softly. 'That's understandable. I imagine you're remembering quite a lot in a short space of time. That must be quite daunting.' I shake my head.

'I remembered the words.' I say.

'The words? To what.' Mary furrows her brows. I start humming Once Upon A December and a smile lights up onto her face.

'I always remembered the tune, even in the maze, but never the words.' I smile up at her. The tent flap opens and Thomas and Newt file in. Thomas goes back to Mary whilst Newt settles in next to me. Gripping my hand he asks, 'What's going on?'

'She's my aunt.' I say simply motioning to Mary. 'My mum's sister.' Before Newt can respond, Brenda's breathing becomes faster and shorter. Standing up fast, I move over to her side and grip her hand.

'We made it, Brenda.' I whisper to her. 'You just need to hold on.' I raise my eyes to stare at Jorge, though his eyes remain locked on Brenda.

'In the beginning, we were lost.' Mary begins after taking some blood from Thomas. We all turn to look at her. 'All we knew for sure...was that the younger you were, the stronger your chances.' I furrow my brows.

'You worked for WICKED?' Thomas asks. She pauses, turns away and nods solemnly.

'Long time ago. You know, at first, we had the best intentions. Find a cure, save the world. It was clear you kids were the key, because you were immune. But why? Eventually, we found an answer. An enzyme produced by the brains of the immune. Once separated from the bloodstream... it can serve as a powerful agent to slow the spread of the virus.' I look down at Brenda, realising what she is saying.

'So, you found a cure?' Thomas says brightly.

'Not exactly. The enzyme can't be manufactured, only harvested from the immune. The young. Of course, that didn't stop WICKED. If they had their way... they'd sacrifice an entire generation. All for this.' She held up a syringe of blue liquid. 'A gift of biology. Of evolution. But one not meant for all of us.' She kneels down by Brenda and injects it straight into the vein on her arm.

'How long will that give her?' I ask, looking at Mary.

Mary sighs. 'It's different for everyone. A few months maybe. But that's the catch, isn't it? She'll always need more.' I look at Brenda before standing up and walking to the back of the tent.

'Okay. Let's go outside. Let them rest.' I hear Mary say. 'Let's go. She'll be fine.' Shuffling feet, I'm assuming belonging to Jorge leave the tent. 'Kira,' I turn to look at Mary. She nods at my shoulders. I give her a small smile and walk towards her. Sitting down on one of the beds, I strip off my jacket and shirt, which are both stained with dry blood. I hear a sharp intake of breath from behind me and turn to see Thomas and Newt whispering in the far corner. I turn back to Mary, who is looking at my shoulder in anger.

'They're not that bad.' I say to her to get her attention. She humphs dismissively and begins to remove the makeshift bandages on my shoulder and the WICKED owned one on my arm.

'These should have been changed days ago.' She grumbles. 'You're lucky you don't have an infection!'

'Sorry,' I reply snarkily. 'Been a bit busy over the last few days.' She looks up and glares at me, before it dissolves into a small smile.

'You remind me so much of your mum.' She whispers. This catches my attention.

'Really? How?'

'Your sass for one.' She grins. 'Your accent for another.' I raise an eyebrow. 'Your mum and dad moved to England quite soon after they got married. You came along a couple of years later and they moved back when you were four. Anna always loved the English accent, she was a bit on an Anglophile if I'm honest.' I grinned thinking of Newt. She would have loved him then. 'She was thrilled but thoroughly confused when you started talking and it came out with an English accent. Your dad was convinced it was because that's the accent you had heard most in the womb, but I dunno.' I giggle at that. Mary grabs a wet cloth and begins washing my arm and shoulder. 'You've pulled these stitches.' She comments poking at my arm a bit. I roll my eyes, but wince as she pokes a bit harder as punishment. I mockingly glare up at her. After a minute or so of silence, I turn again to see if Thomas and Newt are still here. Thomas has lain down on one of the beds, whilst Newt is leaning on the one of the poles keeping an eye on me. I grin and beckon him over. He walks over and places himself on the other side of the bed from me.

'You okay?' I ask. He shakes his head looking at my shoulder.

'What happened there?'

'The WICKED gunmen in the warehouse. One of them clipped me.'

'That's not a clip.' He says quickly. 'He got ya, there.' I look at him and narrow my eyes slightly.

'You're pissed, aren't you?' He looked down at his legs and then at Mary.

'I just need to stitch these and then I'll be out of your hair.' She says quickly, reaching for a needle and beginning to sterilise it. He nods and looks back at his legs. I hang my head and sigh. I knew this was coming.

'You ready?' Mary says, making me look at her. I nod. 'I don't have anything to numb it so it's gonna hurt.' I smile a bit.

'I can handle it.' Mary takes a breath and pierces my skin. My body tenses up at the pain and a small groan escapes my mouth. Newt shuffles closer to me and takes my hand. I lean my head on his shoulder and close my eyes. Breathing deeply, I squeeze Newt's hand as Mary shifts the needle in and out of my skin. After a few minutes she pulls away and instructs Newt to move to my other side. I keep my eyes closed as my head begins to spin. Newt's hand grabs my other hand and I lean my head back onto his shoulder. It takes about 20 minutes for Mary to finish stitching me up and wrapping up my wounds. I lay back onto the bed and wait for my head to stop spinning.

'Give her this, when she sits up.' Mary says. I feel her hand touch my shoulder. 'You know she can't come with us, right?' I open my eyes and see her staring at Brenda. I nod gently and close my eyes again.

There is only a few more chapters guys! :(

BookNerd011504: Your welcome! The relationships between the characters are my favourite thing to write, but i do have a soft spot for Brenda. I find her spunky and just cool! When she walks through the cranks, back in Jorge's warehouse, it is honestly one of the best scenes. Of course she would be thinking about Newt. They haven't been separated since they met! (apart from Kira's night in the maze) I think they are just on each others minds all the time. xx

Spoonie: I cracked up reading your review. I hope you have recovered from the trip. :) I suppose next time you will pack even more books! It's so surreal when people tell me that they are waiting for me to update because it's exactly what i do with fanfics I'm reading. It's strange to think that for you and for everyone reading this story, i'm the person that they are eager to see a update from. WEIRD! But lovely at the same time! xx

As I wrote in the response to Spoonie's review, I am awed by the response I have got on this fanfic and am so grateful that you take the time out of your day to read and enjoy my work. So thank you so much, it means a lot.

As always,

Have a great week,

Zoe xx