Sacrifice

Chapter Fifty-Five

Present Day 

Neither of them said anything. The tension was so thick, Teresa and Claire probably could have reached out and touched it. Eventually Teresa was the one to break the silence. 

"You should eat something," she said, gesturing to the food on the table. "If there isn't anything you want I can have them bring up something else." 

Claire glanced at the food. The truth was that it all looked delicious, and she was hungry. But she couldn't make herself pick any of it up. 

"Claire, please, you need to eat something." 

Back in the holding cell, Teresa had been shocked by her friend's appearance. Claire had lost weight, more than was healthy. She had bags under her eyes from lack of sleep, and she had a very hollow look in her eyes. She didn't look anything like the kind and optimistic person Teresa had met in the Glade. 

Claire walked over to the table. She poured herself a glass of water and only ate a slice of bread in order to avoid talking to Teresa. She also felt frustrated that her new clothes didn't have any pockets, so she couldn't even try to sneak some of this food back to Minho and the other kids...if Minho was still okay. 

"Claire...please talk to me." 

After another long moment of silence, Claire couldn't take it anymore, she had to say something. 

"Why?" 

It was a short and simple question, but it carried so much meaning. 

"I..." 

"Why did you do it?" Claire said, tears threatening to fall down her face. She was finally asking the question she'd been wanting the answer to for months now. "I thought you were our friend." 

"I am." 

"It doesn't feel like it from where I'm standing." 

"I don't like any of this either," Teresa admitted, saying the words out loud for the first time. 

"If you don't like it then why don't you do something about it?" 

"Because what we're doing is working." 

"Bullshit." 

"It's true. Because of you and Minho we've never been this close to a cure." 

"And how long have you been trying to find that cure?" Claire asked. "How many kids have died? Teresa, I know you're not an evil person, so why are you doing this?" 

"You don't understand." 

"Oh, I see, I don't understand," Claire said. "I've only watched countless people, including my friends, die in front of me. I barely made it out of the Maze and Scorch alive, got captured and have been physically and mentally tortured for the past six months. So please, TELL ME HOW THE FUCK ANY OF THIS IS JUSTIFIED!" 

Because it's all I have left." Now Teresa was close to tears. "After everything that's been done, not finding a cure would..." 

"You didn't have to call them," Claire said, feeling her rage calm down a bit. "We all could have gone to the Safe Haven. We could have been happy." 

"I know, I think about it all the time. I imagine what that would have been like. Going to a nice little place where we could live peacefully, separate from the rest of the world." 

"Then why didn't we?" 

"Because it didn't feel right," Teresa answered. "Us getting to have a good life while millions of people were out there suffering. People like Winston."