Sacrifice

Chapter Forty-Eight

Present Day 

After climbing down the dark tunnel, Gally led Thomas and Newt into another one. This one was bigger, and they could now at least walk instead of crawl through it. As soon as they stepped onto the floor, Newt felt something wet leak into his shoes. 

"Ew, this is gross," he commented as he realized what he was stepping in was sewage water. 

Gally managed to find the switch that turned on all the tunnel's lights. The three of them kept moving, trying to ignore the gross water seeping into their shoes. 

"Hey, Gally, how'd you end up with a bloody Crank as a roommate?" Newt asked. 

"I actually owe that Crank my life," Gally explained. "When Lawrence and his people found me they could have sold me back to WCKD, traded my life for a few bottles of serum. Instead he offered me a place. Told me I had something worth living for." 

"What's that?" Thomas asked. 

Instead of answering the question, Gally shined his flashlight down another tunnel, one that didn't have any lights. It was also smaller and it looked like they would have to crawl through it. 

"Wait here," Gally said before crawling into the tunnel. 

"Do you really think we can trust him?" Thomas asked, turning to Newt. "I mean after everything he's done?" 

"What other options do we have?" Newt said. "I know this may be hard for you to believe, but there was a time when Gally was a true friend of mine. He help Claire during a time when it mattered most." 

"He hit her." 

"I know, and part of me is still pissed about it. But I also remember that it was an accident since he was aiming for Teresa. And right now, getting Claire away from WCKD is more important than old grudges." 

Thomas opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted by Gally's return. 

"It's clear," he said. 

Thomas turned back to Newt. "I hope you're right." 

**************** 

Seven Years Ago 

Claire and Newt walked together in silence, both of them doing their best to keep their heart rates under control. Sneaking around had always been a bit of a risk. Even if the adults did know what they were doing, it was nothing more than meeting up and chatting or playing games, all completely harmless. Tonight, however, was different. 

Tonight they were going to see Lizzy. 

Newt squeezed Claire's hand, glad she was with him. At first, he thought he could do this alone. But when he woke up this morning, he felt sick to his stomach. He barely touched his food and couldn't focus in any of his classes. When Claire offered to go with him, he initially wanted to say no. He didn't want to imagine what would happen if they were caught, but he also needed her. He trusted Claire more than anyone here. Group B was leaving tomorrow. This was Newt's last chance to say goodbye to his sister. 

They climbed through the vents, going down the path Thomas had mapped out. It would take them right to the storage closet right off of the big room where all the Group B girls slept. Teresa was also manipulating the security cameras, making sure they stayed off the paths Newt and Claire were taking in over to give them extra cover. 

Soon they reached the end of their path. The vent into the closet was a bit of a tight squeeze. But Claire and Newt were thankfully two small eleven-year-olds, so they were able to get through easy enough. As they crawled in, Newt's foot accidentally knocked over a broomstick.