Chapter 25:

Avery was sitting in a room, all the Gladers around her sitting in a circle. Only the ones she really trusted were sitting next to her. Like Minho, Newt, Gally, and Thomas. They wanted to know everything. They wanted to know what had happened to her out in the Maze. Apparently she had been gone an hour.

"Okay, Avery start from the beginning. Take your time, if you don't want to talk, then don't. We understand." Minho told her. Avery nodded.

"I will talk. You need to know." Minho looked confused, so did Thomas and Newt.

"You can start anytime." Newt looked to her. Avery looked up and glanced at each one of the boys.

"Well, it started when I was just walking towards Deadheads. I wanted to go for a walk by myself, when I felt a tingle. It was weird. My feet just started moving me towards the door. Almost like I was under a spell." Avery said.

"Almost like someone was controlling you?" Thomas asked. Avery nodded.

"Exactly. Once I was outside in the Maze I started running. I kept running until My feet just stopped. Then for a few minutes I had control. That was until I was going to run back. Anyways, someone started talking to me. Then told me to look at the markings on the wall. When I did, I told them I didn't understand what I was looking at. They told me, I marked the days I was out in the Maze. I counted twenty six." Avery stopped talking when gasped filled the room.

"But how, you were only gone for a week?" Gally asked after everyone settled down.

"I don't know, they said they wiped everyone's minds. But I kept track. But that isn't the scary thing."

"Well, what else happened?" Minho nudged her to continue.

"The scary thing is what happened next. All the ivy was taken off the walls and threw on the ground. The person speaking to me told me to lift them up. I wouldn't. So they took control over me again and made me walk towards the pile. I was curious until I seen the hand. John's hand." Avery said, tears on the brink of streaming down her face.

"Avery you don't need to continue." Newt told her.

"Yes I do. If I don't they will probably wipe my mind. Then no one will know."

"Okay continue on."

"Well, some how I managed to break free from being controlled. So I turned away, but when I did that, John grabbed a hold of me." she looked at Minho. He grabbed her hand. "Yes he was dead and still is, but somehow they were able to use his body to try and kill me. It didn't work. When I got away I ran. I ran as fast as I could. By the time I got back here, in the Glade I was terrified. When Minho grabbed me, I was seeing John." Minho gripped her hand tighter. Tears were falling now. She couldn't stop them.

"Looks like W.I.C.K.E.D has a few tricks to pull on us. Was there any Grievers? Maybe you were stung?" a boy asked her. Minho stood up.

"No she wasn't stung I checked. Nothing. W.I.C.K.E.D messed with her mind. It's crazy. They think they can just shuck up our minds anytime they like, well I have something to say to their shuck faces.." Minho was cut off when Newt clamped his hand over his mouth.

"That's enough Minho. Take it easy." Minho nodded and sat back down. Newt also returned to his seat.

"That's wasn't the beginning though." Avery said after a few minutes of silence. Everyone looked at her.

"What?" Minho asked her, holding her hand again. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, it's not the first time W.I.C.K.E.D has messed with my head. It started a few weeks ago. During one of the times I was passed out. When I went in the Maze the next day, some lady started talking to me from the sky. She told me, that I had the resist the anger. W.I.C.K.E.D had injected me with something to make me angry at everything. To have all of you guys turn on me. This lady was nice though, She told me to tie myself to something, to kept the anger at bay." Avery explained.

"Avery why didn't you say anything sooner? We could have helped you?" Gally said placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. Avery shrugged it away.

"What is up with everyone?" She was practically yelling. Gally put his hands up in defense. Avery stood up. Everyone here gives sympathy when it isn't needed." Minho was staring in shock. Newt nudge him. Minho turned to look at the former runner.

"Remember when she told us W.I.C.K.E.D messed with her mind the first time. She tied herself to something, I bet that's you. GO and snap her out of it." newt pushed her forward knocking into Avery, and she lashed out. Minho didn't have time to think of a way to stopped her so he grabbed her and kissed her. She thrashed around at first, he knew she came back to him when she responded. It wasn't long before she started crying into his shoulder.

"I'm sorry. I am so sorry." She cried against his shoulder.

"It's okay." he calmed her. He looked around the room, everyone was staring at them. He looked at Newt, he shook his head telling him that Avery wouldn't be able to continue talking about what happened today. Newt got the message and soon everyone left the room. There was only two people standing in the middle of it. Avery and Minho.

"Minho, please make them stop." She said after a while. "Please. I hate it." she hugged him tighter.

"I know, I know." He breathed out. "I'll do whatever I can to stop them and protect you." but in truth he had no idea what to do.