~Sara~

She was so busted.

Praying that maybe she could get out of this one thanks to her disguise, Sara turned around to face the owner of that voice and tried to act natural.

"No," Sara chuckled nervously, "no, you don't even know me." She started rambling on and on, and it didn't stop there. "And why are you up? You got shot—"

He nodded before she finished. "Yah, and I'm perfectly fine. They fixed me up for whatever reason," he replied with a sly smile, so Sara didn't know how to act with him. Whether he somehow could read her mind or not, he added, "And you're wrong. I do know you, so you better not do anything with that bloody knife."

She shook her head stubbornly. "I met you like—what—three days ago?"

Newt bowed his head, but Sara caught a glimpse of a small smile beginning to form. "That's funny. I'm supposed to be the one with the memory loss. As far as I know, we go years back, but I only fully remember you from like ten or eleven months ago," he said, in mock wonder.

"Newt..." she began, embarrassed, admitting her farce. She quickly dropped the knife, letting it clatter to the floor. Then she unwrapped the suffocating clothing from her face, letting her braids cascade down her shoulders. She guiltily looked back up at him.

"Welcome back, love," he said, raising his eyebrows, and giving her a half-smile.

At least it looked like he wasn't mad; Sara didn't think she would've had the mental capacity to deal with an angry Newt in these circumstances. 

However, reflecting on the reality of the situation, she couldn't understand herself. She was literally contemplating death, holding a knife against her skin, and Newt was listening to her saying all those things.

Is that what it felt like to have the Flare?

Sara felt like part of her sanity broke off at that moment, the beginning traces of madness disembodied right before her eyes. Like some foreign influence took the controls in her brain and altered her decent perception of life. That was significantly saying something, because it was clear as day that no one thought dearly of life at the moment.

"So... you heard everything." She bit her lip, bowing her head like a child who'd just been caught stealing.

"I did..." he said softly, his tone notoriously sad. "Please tell me you actually weren't gonna do anything to yourself."

Sara huffed, getting irritated once again, pointing an accusing finger at him. "You're one to talk."

She didn't expect him to swat her hand away. "Yes, I am one to talk," he snapped, raising his hand on which the band concealed his wrist. "Been there, done that. Trust me, this doesn't do any good thing for you. And you know what's worse?" he asked, beginning to tear up, "you were the reason I began to heal. Please don't fall into the same trap I fell into. Please."

Sara began crying, hiding her face in her hands. "I didn't mean to, I'm sorry. And I'm sorry you had to find out it was me the whole time."

He nodded, averting his gaze to the ground. "But... I already knew it was you even before the Crank party."

Alarmed, Sara snapped her eyes back at him. "And you didn't say anything?"

He only shrugged.

Sara suddenly realized Rachel was awkwardly standing behind her, listening to the whole thing.

When she looked back at her, Rachel pursed her lips and took a step forward. "I... I told him not to say anything for your safety. I found out he knew when he contacted me during the party. But Janson might already know we're here anyway," she admitted.

Sara scoffed, then turned back to Newt. "How did you know?"

"Love, you're great at many things, but acting isn't one of them," he told her, giving her a soft smile before sticking his hand into his pocket and pulling out a shiny silver thing. "Here. I slipped it out of your wrist while we danced. Smart of you not to drink that stuff, by the way. The smell was strong on your clothes. Luckily I had my scarf with me to do the same."

That explained so much, so much. He didn't hesitate one bit when he took that shot for her. And now she felt like an idiot since Rachel and Newt knew about it, and here she was, making a complete fool of herself.

Newt handed her the metal wristband back, and Sara took it, staring at it with disgust. "I'm sorry... for what you heard, and... well, everything." She raised her shoulders helplessly, only wishing to disappear.

"Me too," Rachel butted in, referring to Sara. "At least the others have no idea, so don't worry," she said before dismissing herself, leaving Newt and Sara alone.

Newt inspected her face a little more closely, frowning at a specific spot on the side of her forehead. "You're hurt," he said worriedly. She'd forgotten about the rough landing with the berg that day she flew with Rachel.

"Yeah, just... kinda tripped, that's all," said Sara. When he reached out to touch it, Sara softly swatted his hand away, and he retracted, awkwardly looking away from her.

Sara silently waited for him to begin a speech about how much of a liar she was, and how she'd broken his trust yet again.

But no.

Instead, he did something that was particularly such a Newt thing to do. Perhaps one of her favorite Newt things. Taking a step forward, he engulfed her in a comforting hug, one she didn't know she'd craved for so long. The shock made her take a while to process everything, but she finally gave in as well, letting her head rest on his chest.

"Look, Newt, I'm so s—"

He immediately whispered into her ear, "Stop. I understand, and I'm sorry you're seeing things the way I see them. I know that's not how you think of life; it's a terrible way actually. But I know you also had to listen to me talk like that again." He pulled back to stare at her apologetically.

Sara placed her hands on either side of his shoulders. "Yeah, I was surprised you guys didn't tell me about the tattoos—but what are we gonna do now?" She began to shake him by the shoulders in a panic, while he simply blinked back at her like an idiot. "Newt, I'm lost. I came out here to protect you guys, and I've ruined it. What do I do?"

"Kiss me," he whispered hoarsely.

"Huh?"

Couldn't have picked a better time now, could you?

Then he licked his lips and added, "Please."

Come on, she internally groaned. When would she stop finding his stupid brown eyes and that annoying look so compelling?

She stood on her tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his neck, and leaned in slowly. She pecked his lips once, then she retreated as she remembered Rebecca and Rachel's warning. WICKED could control Newt's brain, and if they saw stimulating brain activity, they'd know he was with her.

He gave her a hurt look as he tried pursuing her lips again. Sara avoided them several times, but the desire eventually caught up to her.

She captured his lips with hers, and feverishly kissed him. She could feel the creases on his forehead as he pressed it against hers, kissing back with just as much—if not more—rush than her. Their lips moved against each other, almost devouring the other, and he moved his hands along her sides.

On one end, Sara was glad Rebecca couldn't watch her right now, or surely, she'd complain about Newt getting so frisky with her. And to be fair, Sara would agree with her just this time.

She fell in love with a sweet boy who always thought things through. Someone whose sweetness could make honey taste bitter. An intelligent human being who always knew exactly what to say, how to say it, and when. His rationale was overwhelming. And seeing him now, so desperate and sensual, unlike anything she'd seen before, her thoughts put a tamper on her own guilty desires.

Inadvertently, a surge of abnormal fury overtook her, and the panic she felt only moments ago, refilled the vacant spot in her chest. Newt sensed her tension, and he tried to ease it by kissing even faster, getting touchier every time.

It didn't work. She simply couldn't take it anymore and furiously pushed him away as they were both left panting. But her exaggerated breathing wasn't exactly his presumably 'good' effect on her.

Then she did something... something that she... probably shouldn't have done; that she would definitely regret. Raising her right hand, she stretched out her palm and swung it over to strike Newt on the face.

She watched in horror as she realized what she'd done in a brief moment of blinded fury. Newt held his cheek, and her palm was itching from the sharp contact. His shocked expression said it all, but she was too prideful to admit it.

"Is that how it's gonna be?" she demanded. "Serious klunk is going on, and you think it's time to act like this?"

He scoffed. "What—?"

"Focus, Newt," she said, pointing to the side of her head. "And please, do me a favor and let me focus too," she finished as she angrily turned around to go to bed, even though she knew sleep wouldn't get to her easily.

❀❀❀

Sara had almost no energy left; her body was begging her for rest, but as predicted, she got none.

Most of the Gladers weren't talking because of exhaustion, but Newt and Sara were simply very distant from one another. She was sure his confusion matched hers; there wasn't any logical explanation for her wild behavior the night before. She knew she was angry at him but didn't know why exactly.

She wasn't acting like herself. Sara didn't think she'd ever treat him like that in her rational state of mind. The Flare was the only explanation that came to mind.

That fast, though?

They continued to make their way North, just as everyone was instructed, but Sara was on the brink of desperation. Where was that 'Safe Haven' —did it even exist or was WICKED playing another sick joke? They wouldn't send them out to the Scorch for nothing either; everything they did had a purpose. Probably a ridiculously distorted one, but they always had a reason behind things.

Thomas and Brenda were a different story. From what Sara picked up from their apologetic conversation was that Thomas refused to continue kissing her at the Crank party, for the same reason Sara thought Newt didn't want to get close with her at the time. Thomas told Brenda she could never be Teresa.

Shucking Teresa.

So that only meant Thomas hadn't been able to forget about her.

As if her thoughts magically conjured her worst nightmare, between the distance of the mountains and the Gladers, a girl suddenly appeared from the very bottom into their visible field. She was walking toward the group with an accelerated pace. There was a long wood shaft in her hand that had a sharp blade tied to one end.

And speak of the devil...

Thomas went pale. Sara knew he planned to approach her first; he couldn't, however, because she was followed by another large group of girls. And Sara immediately recognized everyone from Group B.

They all had various kinds of weapons just like Teresa, and she kept approaching them with surprising speed, pointing her spear at them, looking ready to stab anyone who dared to move.

The group of girls stopped a few feet in front and tried surrounding the crowd of guys, including the three girls with them. They all pointed whatever weapon they owned toward the group, glaring them down from head to toe.

"What the shuck, Teresa?" Minho demanded. "Outta way to treat your old buddies."

"Shut up," she said firmly, no anger lacing her voice, which made it all the creepier.

"Excuse me?" Minho's voice raised in pitch. But her only response was to stand in front of Thomas and turn her spear around to strike him on the side of the head with the butt of that spear. Thomas cried out in pain as he held the side of his face, staring back at Teresa with appalling hurt.

"Seriously?" Newt stepped forward, asking angrily. Again, the response was a retaliation against Thomas. This time, the pain caused him to crouch to the floor.

Sara took a furious step forward to intervene, but someone gripped her wrist with force, making her retract herself.

Rachel stared at her intently as she whispered, "Don't even think about it."

Sara forced her arm away from Rachel's grasp, but Rachel forced her back so vehemently that Sara had to bite her lip to keep her big mouth shut and her anxious body in place.

"Teresa..." Thomas gasped for breath. "Why...?"

Instead of giving an explanation like a normal person, she struck him again like the psychopath she always was.

If she thought she was gonna try and impress everyone just like she tried to do back in the Glade, somebody had to put her back in her place.

"Thomas, just shut up," Sara said out of pure irritation.

The girls immediately whipped their heads toward her. Teresa slowly approached Sara, pointing her weapon at her. "Who are you?"

Sara smirked as she pulled out two knives, and her friends followed her actions with weapons of their own. For a moment, Sara thought they'd caught the girls off-guard.

Harriet scoffed. "Something tells me you peeps don't have the guts to use those. Tell you what, drop them and we won't hurt you. 'Cause unlike you guys, we won't hesitate to sink these things into your chests."

Sara noticed Newt giving his sister a questioning look. Lizzy stared back at him but showed no signs of recognition nor regret as she pointed her spear at him. Sara could see a flash of hurt cross his eyes, and it made her even angrier.

"We'd do it too," said Minho casually.

"Yeah?" the Asian girl, whom Sara remembered as Yuna, stood face to face with him. "Then shoot us. I wanna see that."

Sara could see Minho's fierce expression falter, like it was something he was totally unprepared for, and quite honestly, none of them were either.

But Minho scoffed, "What do you think you're gonna do with that spear against this?" he sneered and cocked his gun.

"This," Yuna said, and she swerved her spear, knocking Minho's gun out of his hands before jabbing the point of the spear right into his shoulder. He cried out, clutching his shoulder and backing away as a growing patch of blood started soaking his shirt.

"The shuck!" Minho was so angry. "I'm gonna whack your klunk head and see if your freaking memories return—shuck!" He crumpled over, clutching his wounded shoulder once again.

These girls were completely out of it, and there was no doubt they could kill the whole group if they wanted to. And they knew the Gladers wouldn't charge against them; they weren't being controlled to hurt anyone at the moment like a bunch of psychotic teenagers.

This made Sara wonder about Thomas's tattoo on the back of his neck. It said these girls were supposed to kill him.

"You," said Teresa, pointing at Thomas. "Come with us and no one else gets hurt."

Before Thomas could respond, two girls approached him and slipped an old sack over his head, making him lay on the floor to wrap his entire body in that thing.

Teresa only stared at him indifferently.

The girls tied him up with rope, which meant they planned to drag him wherever they were taking him, and this was when Thomas started pleading with her. "Teresa, please, don't do this!"

Then she turned around to face him and leaned down to send a full blow to his stomach, making him double over in pain.

Since Thomas didn't understand that everything coming from his mouth ended up with girls harming him, the girls threatened to start shooting the rest as a catalyst to make him shut up.

Fortunately, it worked. The girls surpassed them in number, and in a matter of minutes, they were able to strip the Gladers from any sort of defense. WICKED was on their side, and with no one else to back the Gladers up, it was over.

For the next few hours, the group was forced to continue their journey, heading North while the girls dragged Thomas elsewhere.

Sara looked over at Brenda, and she seemed apprehensive. Sara didn't know if it was simple preoccupation for Thomas, or that she finally discovered what kind of girl Thomas had preferred instead of her.

"So where to, huh? That it? We're just gonna let a bunch of girls kick our butt just like that?" Minho snapped. He hadn't been in the best mood ever since Yuna stabbed him in the shoulder, and it didn't improve even after Clint and Jeff tried their best to help him.

"You wanted them to kill Thomas, or any of us?" Newt retorted.

The Gladers were still a huge group, their supplies were running dangerously low, and they had absolutely no idea when they were supposed to reach that Safe Haven.

All the same, they made their way through the desert until nighttime arrived. Still, no sign of Thomas or the girls.

They stopped to eat what was left and slept for at least a couple hours since everyone was on the brink of giving up at that point.

Newt tried to approach Sara, but she was too exhausted and embarrassed about earlier that she simply strayed a bit farther away from the group. He decided to stop trying to pursue her, but Sara could feel his lingering gaze on her the entire time.

Sara drifted off into a deep sleep, almost as if her body had shut down completely, and against her own will. And finally, as the last straw on the smoothie of misfortunes, the dreams began.

Just like Rachel had mentioned, it was the four of them. Aris, Rachel, Thomas, and Teresa. They were the chosen ones. The ones that helped Ava Paige replace all the WICKED faculty who got infected with the Flare. Thomas and Rachel were forced to do it, but she couldn't say the same about the other two.

The scene switched once more. Screens from a WICKED database played out before Sara's eyes. Archives ready to unveil the darkest secret that could have existed. Perhaps Rebecca would have something exquisite to share this time.

But it wasn't what she hoped.

Various subject files flashed before her eyes. Each one revealing their picture, made-up names, their age, their Maze type, and subject number.

Among them were friends, acquaintances, even some she didn't ever get to meet. The girls too. Alby was there as well.

There was a huge red 'X' painted over their pictures. The paint hadn't even dried yet and had a sticky consistency as she passed a finger over it—was it... blood?

A hand landed on her shoulder, then she turned around and was almost excited for a moment, before she realized that something was terribly wrong.

It was Newt. His eyes... they were hollow and dark.

Tear streaks covered his face, which once used to be so angelical and radiant. He lifted a shaky finger and pointed to his right. Sara's eyes followed it only to be faced once again with the files of each one of the victims of the whole crusade.

"You did this," Newt whispered accusingly. "Why?"

"No," she argued. "I—it wasn't my fault—I... I tried," her voice cracked.

"Tried?" he mocked her. "You refused to help them. You killed them. Your bloody promises don't mean anything."

"I didn't—"

"The past doesn't forgive," he cut her off. "You've betrayed everyone for years, and it's time for you to pay. To make up for all the lives you took." He grimaced, staring at his lost friends' files with longing misery.

Sara's breathing accelerated, the horror of it all completely overtaking her as she tried to back away. But she didn't get very far until she bumped into Newt again, as if he could teleport.

When she turned around to look back where he originally stood, she saw no one, then turned back only to feel him grasp her arm with unbelievable force.

"I'm here, love. Won't you kill me too?" he sneered as his eyes turned completely black.

"I'm here, love," she heard Newt whisper in a low voice as she popped her eyes open.

He gripped her by the shoulders as she realized that she was shaking, completely overwhelmed by that nightmare. She was surprised she didn't end up screaming, but the sensation in her chest was much worse. She was so disturbed. It was enough to send her shivering with terror as Newt searched her eyes for any responsive signs.

"I killed them. Let me go..." she muttered at him absentmindedly, before swatting his hand away. "Don't touch me."

"Stop, Sara. Just talk to me," he said, extremely worried.

She laughed humorlessly. "Why, so you can blame me for all the people we've lost? I didn't ask you to rub it in my face. Go away, Newt. I'm done."

He nodded understandingly. "Nightmare, huh? It's not real. And you can't give up. I won't bloody let you. We've come this far, and so many others died so that we could get to this point. We have to make it count."

"Count? For what—to get tricked? Killed? What more?" she asked bitterly. "I don't even know why I came here to play this stupid 'Elizabeth' act." Sara stood to try to walk away from him, only to run into Rachel. "What do you want?"

She had a straight face, but there was an obvious apprehensive look lurking underneath that façade. "It's time to show you something."

What now?

Newt didn't really sit well with that either. "Rachel, I don't think—"

"I know what I'm doing," she interrupted him, her eyes tearing up. "Go back with the others, Newt. Things are totally fine, I promise."

Talk about the most unconvincing statement of all time.

No one could just make a promise like that anymore. Or any promise at all. Sara knew that firsthand. She felt like her entire body was giving up, like the whole world was falling apart, and like she was the one trying to hold it together with her bare hands. As if that were even possible.

How stupid she was to think she could. It was so hard to confess, so hard to look at all the pain surrounding them and knowing that it was all—her—fault.

Newt refused to leave her side, so Rachel begrudgingly let him come along.

They walked in silence past the Gladers, and walked a long way toward the nearest mountain.

There was a large boulder blocking half the entrance, enough to let them squeeze through the opposite aperture, to stand behind and observe ahead, deeper into the cave.

Sara could hear voices in there. Familiar ones. They neared the entrance, and the three of them moved behind the colossal rock to be faced with an unexpected scene.

It was Thomas, Teresa, and Aris. Sara didn't even know Aris was missing from the group. And what were they doing with Thomas there?

Aris's demeanor was the next abnormal thing she noticed; it was sinister and non-friendly. And Teresa was... mocking Thomas, which Sara was certain was quite unnerving for him.

She turned over to Rachel for answers, but Rachel looked ahead with a hard stare, and new tears formed in her eyes. Sara looked forward again to see why Rachel was so upset, and she saw it.

It was Aris. He and Teresa were exchanging saliva. Gross male lips against gross female lips. They were kissing. Kissing.

It was tearing Rachel apart, matching exactly what Sara saw on Thomas's face as he ripped his gaze away from the two traitors. He refused to watch, but Rachel didn't tear her eyes away from them. That was another reason why Sara learned to respect her. Rachel never shied away from accepting the reality of certain things, but she was hurting badly.

Newt and Sara shared a look, and she took a moment to reflect on how Rachel and Aris ended up. She didn't want Newt and herself to end up like that, which encouraged her to make a mental note to apologize for the night before.

Sara had no words for what she'd just witnessed, though. After Aris and Teresa's conversation, which made absolutely no sense, they forced Thomas into a huge chamber that appeared out of nowhere.

Sara didn't know if she simply hadn't seen it, or if it actually appeared, but it was now there like a hologram derived from a nightmare. 

Thomas was in trouble. 

Without hesitation, Sara tried to jump over the boulder to stop them, but Rachel pulled her back with an insane amount of force.

"No," she warned, with the most intimidating and serious tone Sara had ever heard coming from Rachel.

How can she tolerate this?

Sara looked at her as if she had lost her mind, but Rachel only relaid to her that it was the way things had to be. They couldn't do anything about it.

"We're going back. Now," Rachel whispered.

After a series of protests, the three of them swiftly shuffled out of there before the traitors noticed they'd intruded. As soon as they were at a safe distance, the questions started pouring, but Rachel answered none.

Sara suddenly stopped, and Newt did the same once he realized Sara wasn't at their pace anymore. Without realizing either of them had stopped, Rachel continued walking.

"Sara, come on," said Newt, gesturing to her.

"I'm not leaving Thomas with those two." She stubbornly shook her head.

Newt lowered his eyebrows. "You heard Rachel. That'll be worse. And Thomas is gonna be fine; you don't have to bloody worry about him all the time."

"What a great time to be jealous," Sara scowled at him, and he just pursed his lips and sighed as he shot her an annoyed look.

Rachel stopped and turned around. "I think neither of you have the freaking right to talk about jealousy," she muttered, her voice laced with hurt. Newt and Sara shared a look and guiltily bowed their heads.

Briefly after, nonetheless, Sara raised her head and began to head back to the cave. "I can't leave Thomas there," she said as she headed in the other direction.

"No!" Rachel and Newt screamed, but eventually ended up running back behind her.

But when they entered the cave, Thomas was gone, and the traitors were fast asleep.

The three decided to settle in a remote corner of the cave for the night, and if it weren't for Rachel's exhaustion and Newt's worsening limp, they would be heading right back.

❀❀❀

The next morning, they received a wristband message from Jorge, saying that the group had to keep moving without them to try and find the Safe Haven, since they only had a day left.

WICKED even put limits to the time they had to be able to reach some sort of safe site. The Gladers and girls had to earn their right to survive; that was how Sara saw it when put in simpler terms. And WICKED had earned the right to get destroyed. Sara didn't know when the time would come, but she couldn't wait.

Yet she was too tired to pay much attention to the rest of Jorge's message, so she went back to sleep.

That was until she was hastily woken up by Rachel. "Sara!" she finally screamed at her.

"Huh, what?" Sara sat up and rubbed her eyes. Newt followed, and he looked more exhausted than she felt herself, even though Sara was sure he fell asleep way before she did the night before. Rachel probably didn't even sleep at all; the reasons were obvious.

"Come on, you sticks. Get up, they're gone!" Rachel shouted.

"Who's gone, the Gladers?" asked Newt as they got ready to head out.

"No, Thomas and... them two," she replied, significantly irritated at that point.

Sara panicked as she surveyed the cave, confirming Rachel's words. They followed the path to go back to the last camping site, and then headed North from there. It was even more time-consuming, but it was worth it more than getting lost in the Scorch.

After at least an hour of walking, they spotted the other three several yards ahead of them.

They spent the rest of the time walking in silence, no one really in the mood for talking. Following Thomas and the traitors and keeping a safe distance, Sara hoped they would eventually meet with the others.

And finally, they did. 

Sara spotted the large group of Gladers making their way toward a series of mountains through one way, and then she could even catch a glimpse of the group of girls making their way to the same mountains from the other direction.

Maybe this could actually work out. Sara didn't want to be that same foolish, naïve girl she used to be, but she was willing to accept if WICKED decided to actually help them. That was her ignorant side speaking for itself. Deep down, however, she didn't see any refuge place, or anything that remotely looked like a place where they could live virus-free.

The three of them arrived when both groups had already met and stopped to wait for the rest of them. Thomas and the other two arrived shortly before Sara, Newt, and Rachel did, only to receive scornful looks from the boys.

But when they saw Newt, Minho and several other Gladers rushed forward to tackle him in a hug. After releasing him, they simply nodded at the incognito duo, Sara and Rachel.

And the disagreements began.

"What the shuck, Thomas?" Minho butted in as usual. "She wasn't forced to lie just because they said they'd kill you. She's stupid. WICKED's obviously not gonna kill you; they need you."

"Yeah, but they could've tricked her too," argued Thomas.

Minho scoffed. "Right, poor Aris and Teresa," he said with mock sympathy. "I never liked them," he added with disgust. Then Sara noticed when Minho stole a worried glance over at Rachel, who was simply sulking as she stood next to Sara.

Frypan chimed in. "Doesn't matter. We still have to find that Safe Haven or whatever."

Newt then asked, "Why were the girls tryin' to kill us?"

Minho replied with a bored look. "That Harriet girl said WICKED wouldn't let them get to the Safe Haven alive if they didn't do that. It doesn't matter anymore since we're all trying to get there anyway."

"Isn't that Aris and Teresa's excuse? These girls only tried to save their own skin," said Sara, back at it with the whispering.

Everyone gave her a strange look, but Minho had an answer. "The girls didn't even know. Aris and Teresa were working on their own. Honestly, I'm only getting bad vibes from this, and I don't care what their lame excuse is. I don't like 'em, and I never will."

Minho then glared at Aris, who was engaged in a conversation with a few of the girls from Group B. Aris somehow sensed the piercing stare and returned an un-friendly gesture. And poor Rachel was way too immersed in thought to even notice them.

"Guys!" Sara heard Winston shout in the distance, and several of them were surrounding him from where he stood.

Like a pack of wolves, they rushed over to see what the commotion was all about. Minho cupped his hands and asked everyone to move out of the way for the rest of them to see.

And what Sara saw made all the illusory suggestions she'd given herself earlier come crashing to the ground.

There, in the middle of the circle of people, stood a lonely orange flag with black print on it that read 'Safe Haven.'

That's it?

Sara began to breathe heavily, and Rachel approached her, whispering in her ear, "Just calm down. You'll need to for what's coming next." She gave Sara a worried look.

But Sara had enough. WICKED had other plans, and she'd been suspicious of it but never really saw it coming. She was done.

"Shuck it!" Sara screamed out loud, capturing everyone's attention. She climbed on top of a large rock, and quite literally ripped the annoying fabric from around her head and face, earning simultaneous gasps from everybody.

Sara pulled up her sleeve and contacted the last person she ever wanted to see on earth.

With an angry look as she maintained firm eye-contact with everyone her eyes could scan, she brought her wrist over her mouth and shouted into the device, "Janson! We need to talk right now!"

Newt's eyes went wide and his mouth lay wide open, staring at her in disbelief while Rachel took her disguise off too.

"What the heck are you doing?!" she shouted at Sara.

Everyone's eyes were on Rachel next, and Minho seemed the most surprised of all, followed by Aris.

But Sara was blinded by despair, her last bit of hope shattering into thousands of pieces. "No more trials, no more lies. Let's talk business, shall we?" Her voice cracked as tears formed in her eyes. Then, she broke communication.

"Sara, what the actual shuck?" Minho scowled at her.

Everyone pathetically stared at the sky, anticipating whether a berg was gonna show up out of nowhere, to end what was left of the groups.

"What the shuck..." Minho whispered as he repeatedly shook his head.

I don't know, was the only response in Sara's head. I don't know.