They Don't Own Me

Chapter 42

"So is mine."

A gunshot suddenly went off, startling the people. Michelle's eyes flew to Mary who staggered and looked down at herself.

"Mary?" Vince said, also realizing what had happened. "Mary? Mary!"

He continued to shout her name, eventually breaking free to run to her. Michelle elbowed the guard behind her, running to the woman's side as well. Vince helped Mary to the ground before she could fully collapse. Anger filled Michelle as she saw the light leaving Mary's eyes. She turned toward the man behind Ava, who held a gun in his hand. She growled lowly before standing and starting toward him. A guard quickly stepped forward to hold her back.

"Since when did you ever care about us! Blood is all you people care about!" she shouted. "Not the number of lives you waste trying to find a cure that doesn't exist! Not the number of families you've torn apart and left to suffer! You tore my family apart just like you took theirs!" She motioned to the Gladers, who watched her fearfully. "They lost someone who was shot and killed by your hands and you don't even care!"

The man had the nerve to chuckle.

"You think that's what she died from?" he said mockingly. "Oh you all are poorly mistaken. We found her back at our base after your escape. We patched her up like new and put her through the experimentation process, just like we would have done originally. I'm almost glad you didn't see her; it was painful. She died shortly after the ninth session."

Rage filled Michelle's veins at his words. She punched the guard in the face but before she could move a step further, another gunshot went off. Michelle gasped and fell to her knees.

"No!" she heard the Gladers gasp. She could even hear Vince let out another painful cry.

Another shot sounded and Michelle grunted when she felt the bullet enter her body by her heart. She grasped the wound as she fell, not taking her eyes off of Ava and the man. Her breaths were becoming shorter and she was starting to lose a grip on life.

"Come on, Janson," Ava said. "Load them up. Let's go. All these people. Get rid of them."

Just as a guard went to grab Thomas's arm, the boy elbowed him in the face, knocking him down. Thomas ripped the bomb Jorge had made out of his coat, holding it in front of him.

"Get back!" he shouted. "Everyone stand back!"

Janson immediately ran forward, ordering his men to hold their fire. He tried to get Thomas to put the bomb down but the Glader only shouted louder for them to let everyone go.

"You know I can't do that!" Ava said.

"Thomas, please stop," Teresa begged. "I made a deal with them. They promised we'd be safe. All of us."

"And I'm supposed to trust you now?"

"It's true," Ava replied. "It was her only condition." Thomas shouted at her to shut up. "Everything can go back to the way it was." The boy looked down at Michelle, who was breathing heavily but kept her eyes on him. He could tell just by looking at her that she had accepted her fate and was ready to finally reunite with her brothers.  "Thomas, do you really want all of them to die?"

"Listen to her, Thomas," Janson said. "Think about what you're doing."

Minho suddenly stepped forward, standing close to where Michelle's body was on the ground. He glanced down at her before looking at Ava, Janson and Teresa. Newt and Frypan joined them not a moment later.

"We're with you, Thomas," Newt said.

"Don't," Ava begged.

"Do it, Thomas," Minho said.

"We're ready."

Just by listening to their voice, Thomas knew that his friends were with him. He knew what they were thinking too. Their hearts were broken about the news of Ivy's death. Now, they were each willing to die, not only to escape WCKD once and for all, but to reunite with all of their friends.

"We're not going back there," Thomas told Ava. He held up the detonator. "It's the only way."

Just before Thomas set off the bomb, a horn went off. Everyone turned around to see a large truck barreling toward them. Through the window, they could faintly see Jorge. The man drove the truck through the camp, eventually crashing into a helicopter. The machinery fell over, sending debris everywhere. And that was when the chaos really started and everything seemed to become a blur.

People were running as fast as they could away from the WCKD guards, as well as taking a few out. Explosions and gunfire were going off, further proof of the fight that was happening.

Minho managed to grab a gun and began firing at the WCKD agents, covering his friends while they got to safety. As he went to reload his weapon, a guard shot him with one of the stun blasts. Minho cried out in pain and collapsed to the ground. The Gladers tried to go after him, but they were forced to hide to avoid being fired upon. Thomas sprinted into the open, shouting his friend's name as he tried to get Minho back. The others chased after him to stop him and Jorge was eventually the one to grab the young man from going any further into danger. The group fell back to safety as the WCKD soldiers retreated to their Berg, the doors closing with Ava, Janson, Teresa, and some of their friends inside.

The Berg lifted into the air, disappearing from view in the night sky and carrying its captives with it.

~

Hours later, the encampment was almost dead silent. No one spoke, for there were no words to say. The dead were lined up and covered, the numbers too great to count. Vince had to wipe a tear away as he covered Michelle's body. The Gladers sat on crates, unable to force themselves to help.

"What do we do now?" Frypan muttered, but his words were heard by those around him.

"Well, we pick up what's left of us," Vince sighed. "We stick to the plan. We get you kids to the safe haven. Then we start over, I guess."

Thomas shook his head and stood up, throwing a bag over his shoulder.

"I'm not going with you," he said.

"What?"

"I made a promise to Minho. I wouldn't leave him behind. I have to go after him."

"Hey, kid, look around you. All right? WCKD just kicked our *ss. You think about where you're headed."

"I'm not asking anyone to come with me."

"Thomas, listen to me," Newt said. "I've known Minho for... well, as long as I can remember. So if there was any way that we could help him, trust me, I would be up there standing next to you. This, what you're talking about, is impossible."

"More like suicide," Jorge said, stepping closer to them.

"Maybe," Thomas agreed. "But I know what I'm supposed to do now." He grabbed a gun from behind him. "It's not just about Minho. It's about all of us. It's about everyone WCKD's ever taken, everyone they will take. They'll never stop. They'll never stop so I'm gonna stop them. I'm gonna kill Ava Paige."

"I have to admit," Harriet said, "I'd like some revenge."

"Well, that's a good speech kid," Vince said. "So what's your plan?"