Deadly Atmosphere | Aris Jones [3]

10 || The Heartbreaking Reality

Piper's POV

Thomas and Gally took Teresa to a separate place when we got back to our hideout. Beth had Aris by his arms, practically dragging him to the chair and pushing him to sit down. The rest of the girls were waiting for us when we got back. I stood with them as Beth took the bag off of Aris, revealing his face.

He inhaled, breathing a bit faster than usual, then relaxing in his chair some. He looked at us, then towards Beth, where his expression changed to shock. "Beth? You're alive?"

"Surprise," she replied, crossing her arms over her chest. "So, this is how we're gonna do this, stick. We're gonna ask you questions and you're gonna give us the answers that we need. If not, we'll take turns punching you in the face."

"We're not doing that," I told her firmly.

She turned my way, rolling her eyes. "You're no fun." The brunette sighed, then faced Aris once again. "Anyway, first question: Where's Lillie?"

Aris took some time to answer, fidgeting with his hands. "With the others in holding. Sublevel three."

"Is Minho there, too?" Harriet asked.

He nodded. "Yes."

"How many others are there?" Sonya was next to speak up.

"Twenty-eight," he answered.

Aurora pursed her lips, strolling around the table. "I'm sure Brenda and I can make that work."

"No." Aris paused, shaking his head. "The whole level's restricted. You need a thumbprint ID."

"Which is why you're coming with us, along with your new best friend, Teresa," Maeve retorted.

"Well, really all we need is a thumb..." Beth suggested, raising her eyebrows.

"Enough, Beth," I snapped.

"Look, you're still tagged," Aris pointed out. "The sensors will pick all of you up at the front door."

"We're aware of that," Maeve said. "But lucky for us, we have a Medic who can help solve that problem."

Gwyneth looked uneasy, but still ready to do what needed to be done. "Yeah, I can get those tags out."

The boy sighed, rubbing his head. "Fine. But first, I'd like to talk to Piper alone."

I felt all eyes turn on me as I took a deep breath. "Okay." So the others dispersed as they left the room, being alone with Aris for the first time in a while. "So..." I started, unsure as to what to say to him now that he was here in front of me.

"I've missed you," he admitted.

"I've missed you, too. Though, if I'm being honest, I've been scared of this reunion." I stayed quiet for a moment, then continued. "You joined WICKED's side. Why?"

He shifted in his chair before he explained it to me. "At first, I didn't want to be there. I wanted to go back to the Right Arm, where I was safe. Teresa spent a while trying to convince me what she did was the right thing, but telling me wasn't enough. So she showed me."

"Through Minho and Lillie and the other subjects there," I said.

He nodded. "I saw what they were doing and what they were seeing that worked and what didn't. So I began my research with Teresa, putting pieces together from the date we had in order to make new serums that would push us closer to a cure."

"But using the kids as lab rats? Aris, that's not the way to do it," I protested. "Don't you see that WICKED will do anything to find a cure for the Flare, even if that means kids or anyone else gets hurt or traumatized or even killed? We were put in a Maze, some of us longer than others, and looked at what happened to us."