The healer [Maze runner Newt x OC]

Chapter three

"Thomas!" Grace and the others turned sharply, their momentum halting as they spotted Janson standing calmly behind them. Thomas, frustration boiling over, threw the keycard to the ground and charged toward Janson, gripping the gun tightly. "Open this door, Janson!"

Minho quickly picked up the keycard and tried again. Every swipe was met with a sharp denial beep. "Damn it, come on!"

"You really don't want me to open that door," Janson said smoothly, his voice maddeningly calm, his smirk faint but deliberate.

"Open the damn door!" Thomas snapped, his voice cracking with rage.

"Listen to me," Janson said, taking a small step forward, hands slightly raised in a mock gesture of peace. "I'm trying to save your lives. The Maze was one thing, but out in the Scorch, you wouldn't last a single day. If the elements don't kill you, the Cranks will."

Grace felt Newt's hand tighten around her arm as he pulled her subtly behind him. She glanced at him, his jaw tight, his posture protective. She reached up to place a reassuring hand over his, silently grounding him.

"Thomas, you have to believe me," Janson continued, his tone deceptively kind. "I only want what's best for you."

"Yeah? Let me guess." Thomas's voice was sharp with disdain. "WICKED is good?"

"You're not getting through that door, Thomas," Janson said, his smirk widening just as the door emitted a faint buzz and slid open. Behind it stood Aris and Winston.

"Hey, guys," Aris said with a smirk of his own, gesturing for them to hurry through.

For a second, the group stood frozen, staring in disbelief before bolting through the open doorway. "Thomas! Come on! Let's go!" Grace's voice cut through the chaos as she waved him toward the opening.

"Shut the main vault door!" Janson barked from the other side. Grace turned to see Thomas hesitate, looking back. Her heart pounded as she yelled again, "Thomas, run!"

At the last moment, Thomas slid on his side under the closing door, barely making it through. Grace let out a shaky breath as Newt steadied her, his hand brushing hers. "You okay?" he asked, his voice soft but urgent.

"I'm fine," she replied, her eyes scanning his face for any sign of pain. "Are you?"

"I've been worse," he muttered with a faint smile before releasing her and stepping forward.

"Come on, move!" Aris shouted, leading them deeper into the maze of corridors.

Outside, the storm raged, sand and debris whipping through the air as the group stumbled into the open. "Stay low! Stay low!" Thomas shouted over the howling wind.

"Here, down here!" Teresa's voice rose above the storm as she crouched next to the entrance of a crumbling structure. The others followed, one by one, sliding down the sand.

Grace slipped on the loose ground, the storm's force unbalancing her. Before she could fall, Newt was there, his hands catching her waist and pulling her upright. "Got you," he said, holding her steady as her hands instinctively gripped his forearms.

"Thanks," she murmured, her heart racing.

"You alright?"

"Yeah," she said, nodding as she searched his expression. "You?"

"Always," he replied lightly, though his grip lingered for a moment longer before he let go.

Once inside, Thomas called out, "We have to keep moving!" He took a step forward, but Teresa stopped him.

"No. Thomas, stop!" she demanded, her voice rising. "Tell me what's going on."

The rest of the group turned to Thomas, their faces a mix of confusion and apprehension. Grace instinctively moved closer to Newt, her shoulder brushing his as they waited for an explanation.

Thomas hesitated, his jaw tightening. Finally, he sighed, his voice low but steady. "It's WICKED. They lied to us. We never escaped."

"What?" Teresa's voice cracked slightly, disbelief flashing in her eyes.

Thomas's gaze dropped to the ground briefly before landing on Aris. "Me and Aris... we found bodies. Too many to count."

"Wait—what do you mean? Dead bodies?" Minho asked, his brows furrowed. Grace exchanged a worried glance with Newt, her stomach twisting.

"No," Thomas said grimly, shaking his head. "They weren't dead. But they weren't alive either." He gestured to his face, his voice faltering as he explained. "They had them strung up. Tubes coming out of them. They were being drained."

The words hung in the air, heavy with dread. Grace shivered, the horrifying image vivid in her mind.

"There's something inside of us that WICKED wants," Thomas continued. "Something in our blood." His voice hardened as he looked at the group. "So we have to get as far away from them as possible." Grace's eyes widened, her eyes being drawn to the spot where her own blood had been taken a day before.

Newt nodded, his breathing still labored from the sprint. "Okay. So, what's the plan?"

Thomas didn't respond immediately, his silence drawing frustrated stares. Newt stepped closer, his voice firmer now. "You do have a plan, right?"

"Yeah," Thomas admitted hesitantly. "I don't know."

Newt's eyes widened, his voice cracking as frustration and fear seeped through. "Well, we followed you out here, Thomas... and now you're saying you've got no idea where we're going, or what we're doing?"

"Wait." Aris's voice interrupted the mounting tension. He looked up, recalling something. "Janson said something about people hiding in the mountains. A resistance or an army."

"The Right Arm," Thomas said, nodding as if the memory clicked into place. He turned back to the group, his voice resolute. "If they're really against WICKED, maybe they can help us."

"People. In the mountains. Mountain people. That's your plan?" Newt's tone was incredulous, his brows lifting in disbelief.

"It's the only chance we have," Thomas replied firmly.

Before anyone could argue further, Winston knelt down, pointing at the ground. "Hey, guys. Check this out."

"What is it?" Grace asked, stepping closer.

"Minho, give me a light!" Winston called. The flashlight beam revealed a trail of footprints leading deeper inside.

"Someone's been down here," Grace murmured, her voice uneasy.

"Come on," Minho said, shining the light ahead. He motioned for Newt and Grace to help him as he pried open a large, rusted door. With a groan, the metal gave way, revealing the shadowy interior.

"Looks like people lived here," Frypan observed, holding up a dusty lamp. Grace knelt beside a shelf of medical supplies, inspecting the abandoned space.

"Where are they now?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Newt was too good looking for just one gif in this chapter, so there's two in this one! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and if you did, please leave a vote, comment and add this book to your reading list!

-X Violet's-library