Like Ashes We Fall

Chapter Twelve

Minho and I broke into a light jog, shoulder to shoulder, to catch up with the others. It reminded me of the Maze, and I felt an unexpected dash of longing for the place. As awful as it had been.

Newt turned around at our approach. "Well, how bloody nice of you to join us." He pointed to a dark smudge on the landscape up ahead. "We're thinking bunker down there for the night."

"To hide from any trailing WCKD guards they might have sent," Frypan said.

"Sounds good," I answered when Minho didn't. Newt caught his friend's lack of an answer and slid his gaze to me, confused. I gave a subtle shake of my head. Newt nodded slowly and turned back around.

We neared the dark smudge which turned out to be a massive gathering of ruddy brown and black rocks. As a group, we stared into one of the shallow caves.

Frypan broke the silence. "I hate to be a downer guys but if I recall, this looks exactly like a place the Cranks would hide in."

"Yeah," Newt echoed. He glanced skyward. "But it's the only cover around for miles."

Thomas scanned the empty desert around us. "I don't think the Cranks would wander this far out. They don't like the sun or heat. They stay in the cities, remember? Come on." He started forward.

Frypan followed, muttering under his breath. Maybe a prayer. I didn't know. Thomas followed, then Newt. I felt a nudge on my side and looked at Minho. "After you," he said. The first words he'd spoken for the better part of an hour.

I started forward, dipping my head and stepping into the gloom. To my relief, I saw the cave didn't go very far back. In fact, Thomas was already propped up against the back wall, legs stretched out in front of him.

Frypan had sprawled out on the sandy ground. "Man, this is about to be the best sleep of my life."

I sat down next to Newt, tucking my legs under me. I shrugged off my jacket and bunched it up against the rough wall to lean my head against. Between the warm air and the adrenaline finally wearing off, exhaustion set in. I let my eyes slip shut.

Frypan started snoring. I could only assume Thomas was asleep too. Newt spoke, his voice a whisper. "Are they asleep?"

A beat of silence. Then Minho's reply. "Yeah, I think so."

Newt shifted against the wall. "How do you feel? Everything has been a mess since we tried to rescue you. I can't imagine-"

"I don't want to talk about it, Newt." Minho's voice wasn't unkind but it was hard.

Newt exhaled through his nose. Then, in a quiet voice. "I really thought we'd lost you, man. I thought I'd never see your ugly face again."

"Come on, I'm much harder to get rid of than that." The reply lacked his usual sarcastic tone but it was like he was trying. Trying to find some semblance of normalcy, maybe for Newt's sake.

Newt must have sensed it or heard it in his voice. He snorted. "Guess I should have known."

They lapsed into silence and I couldn't stay awake any longer. Sleep pulled me into oblivion.

I woke pressed against Minho's side. His head was tilted back against the wall, eyes shut. His right arm was draped across my shoulders loosely. I blinked a few times to wake myself and then gazed across the small space.

The sun had risen, washing the cave in a grey light. At some point during the night, Frypan had flopped onto his stomach, closer to Thomas. Thomas had his jacket yanked over his head, probably in an attempt to dull the sound of Fry's snoring. Newt was still sitting up, arms crossed over his chest and head lolling to the side.

I sat up and carefully extracted myself from Minho's hold. I walked to the mouth of the cave and stood, staring at the desert in the weak morning light. I stretched, trying to work the cramps out of my muscles. In the distance the city loomed, a splash of grey against the amber colored sand.

The others rose one by one, silently shrugging on jacket and and rubbing the sleep from their eyes. Then we set out across the last part of the the Scorch.

As we drew nearer the outskirts of the city, I could make out people among the wrecked buildings. Ruins and iron skeletons of skyscrapers reached for the sky. Dirty rags swayed in the wind. The road was a mess of rubble and concrete chunks.

But there were so many people.

We entered the crowd, letting the current pull us along until we reached the front. The noise was deafening here, people screaming and hoisting signs towards the sky. In front of us, a massive wall loomed not unlike the ones in the Maze. The doors remained tightly sealed and people shoved and prodded in front of barriers, raising their fists at the wall.

"Guys, I've got a bad feeling about this." Frypan shouted over the din of the crowd.

Me too, I thought, turning to Minho. He was staring at the walls, eyes shadowed. I knew what he was thinking. WCKD was in there. Safe and sound.

The crowd grew angier, surging around us like a frothing river. "I think we should go!" Newt yelled.

I was about to agree with him when there was a groan of metal from the walls in front of us. The crowd froze, falling silent around us. I slowly turned to face the walls again. From the top, two massive mounted guns emerged.

"Oh fuck," Minho said.

"Run," I slid backward a step. "Run!"

The guns fired into the crowd. The concrete exploded, pieces flying. Someone screamed. Fire clawed at the air, searing my skin. The people panicked, turning around now and trampling one another. A hysterical woman shoved between Minho and I, sending me stumbling backward.

"Ari!" But his cry was swallowed by the crowd. Another shot struck close to me, sending me careening into someone else. I righted myself, feeling a stinging sensation as dust and dirt trained on my face. I had to get out of here before I got shot or trampled.

I spun around but before I could take another step, strong arms wrapped around my torso and hoisted me off the ground. A bag slammed over my head and the world went dark.