SOJOURNER (III): tmr gally

25: I should have doubted

Leo 25

We trudge through the early morning sun, ignoring all the heat. The sweating is awful, but if I take off my jacket then my skin will blister in the heat. I had to leave the sleeping bag behind when I fled, so it won't provide any coverage in the light. My cheeks are already bright red.

"How is everybody, anyway?" Sheil asks. It's getting late enough for us, so we should be camping out soon. He wants to get at least another hour in of walking though. For the most part, we've been silent this whole time, with the exception of Lott's muttering.

"Good," I tell them, remembering the group. "When I left, there were sixteen alive."

"Sixteen?" Sheil asks, from slightly in front of me. "That's so few."

I nod. Beside me, Lott pulls out a flask and drinks from it. He offers me a nasty glare, which causes me to speed up until I am next to Sheil.

"What about the boys?" I ask.

"Fifteen," he answers. "Though, that's because one of your friends converted over."

"Who's alive?" I ask, since I need to know.

"Minho," Sheil offers. "Fry, Newt-"

I can't help but exhale when I hear Newt's name. That was all I needed to know. He's made it this far. I will see him soon. Honestly, I couldn't bare showing up to Group A without him there. I don't know what I would do.

"Clint?" I ask, jumping back in.

"He's fine," Sheil tells me, though he shudders. "Bit off his rocker though. Can't think too clearly."

It's because Jeff is dead. The thought lowers my heart to my feet. The Grievers got him. I choose not to think about all of that though. Memories of Jeff burn my chest. Remembering how we got here is no easy task. Life here is no better than life in the Maze. It's just different.

"How much further up is it?" I ask.

Sheil casts a glance back to Lott. His face is hollow, and almost seems to be falling off his skull. When he sees my eyes, Lott takes another swig from his canteen, almost chipping a tooth in the process.

"Not far," Sheil bites his lip, turning his head too quickly away from me. Something is up.

I want to give them the opportunity to clarify themselves, so I continue. "What errand was Jay running?"

Lott chuckles behind me. I turn to face him. He is staring at the palms of his hands, shaking his head back and forth.

"Just grabbing supplies for the group," Sheil tells me, racing through the words. He still won't look at me. "There was a building a bit of a ways back with supplies. He figured we needed more."

That building collapsed. Michelle mentioned that she saw it. We all heard the rubble hitting the ground. For some reason, Sheil doesn't want me to know. He looks around the corners, as if he is unsure where we are going next.

They have no idea where our group is, and from what I know of Sheil, he isn't hiding that from me out of pride.

I start running, moving forward as fast as I can. My bag slows me down, but I won't leave the medical supplies behind. Of course, the sedative is on me, which I could use against them, but it's in my backpack. Besides, if I got one of them, I doubt the other one would let me. I'd be tied up before I'd get anywhere.