I Know Places [Thomas The Maze Runner]

[17: The Aftermath]

"Get Alby inside," Elle said, catching her breath outside the Council room and sending Thomas and Jeff in first. Once she was sure Alby was safely inside, Elle ushered Newt in and followed him.

"Lock down the doors!" Thomas urged.

With Chuck's help, Elle shut the door and locked it. She knew the Griever wasn't far behind and waited for it to pounce. It sounded almost like a grumble, and Elle ushered Chuck away from the door. Everyone huddled in the middle of the Council room to add some distance between themselves and the door, which was the only thing keeping the Griever from them. Chuck jumped, flinching at the Griever's metallic limbs hitting the door. Elle's eyes narrowed, trying to locate exactly where the Griever was hitting and observing its strength.

"Here," Elle called, holding her arms out for Chuck. He raced towards her gratefully, letting Elle envelop him and hold on tight. He held onto her forearm with a racing heart, trying not to look as scared as he felt. Even though there wasn't much Elle could do, Chuck felt safe with her. "I'm not going to let go," she said.

"Promise?" Chuck whimpered.

She tightened her grip. "I promise," Elle swore. The Gladers waited with bated breath as the Griever banged on the door, looking for a way to knock it down. "Listen up everyone," Elle said quietly. Everyone complied, looking at the only girl in the Glade with wide eyes. "The door's probably too thick to break down," she stated. "It's going to have a better entry point from the--" Everyone screamed in surprise when the Griever jumped onto the roof of the Council room. "--roof." Elle sighed.

"It's on the roof?!" Winston exclaimed. The Gladers looked up at the ceiling.

"Stay back, guys," Newt ordered as the Griever scuttled around the roof. It groaned and clicked unhappily, looking for the weakest spot.

The Gladers all gathered in the middle of the Council room; everyone felt safer when they were close together. Elle felt a suffocating sense of unease and dread. Every time the Griever made the slightest sound or movement, she felt a jolt in her body, and her heart hammered with anxiety. She blinked when the Griever caused dust and debris to fall from the ceiling and into her eyes. The weight of impending doom was too heavy to bear by herself, but Elle had no choice.

She shook her head. "It's too heavy." Elle had noticed the way the barricade and roof of the Council room were starting to sag with the weight of the Griever. She felt several eyes on her as she spoke. "We need to get moving to the door quickly because the roof's probably going to--"

Before Elle could finish her sentence, one of the Griever's limbs broke through the roof and tore one of the structural beams from the ground. The Gladers yelled in surprise, backing away from the Griever as the roof crumbled. From the impact of the roof tumbling on top of them, the Gladers flew in every direction. Some of them were buried under the materials from the roof, and others were splayed on the floor to avoid it. The Gladers coughed and tried to get up.

"Is everyone all right?" Newt shouted, hoping anyone who needed help would identify themselves.

"Yeah, I'm okay," Jeff managed to get himself up.

"Help!" One of the boys called out. Everyone whipped their heads around, trying to find the boy who was shouting. Thomas, Newt, and Minho identified him and moved to grab his arm, but he disappeared through a hole in the wall before they could save him. The three boys yelped in surprise, scrambling backwards.

"Watch out!" Minho yanked Thomas back.

The Griever on the roof roared, sticking another one of its legs through the hole in the ceiling. "Hey, get away from there!" Thomas warned them.