Page 46 of To Cage a Wild Bird (Divided Fates #1)

It didn’t take Vale long to convince the warden.

Before lights out, Vale led August and me out onto the hunting grounds while the rest of the inmates were herded back to their

cellblocks.

The sun had long since sunk beyond the horizon, leaving the grounds blanketed in darkness and starlight. I looked over my

shoulder at every sound, even though I knew no one had followed us—it had been weeks since I’d been outside without the immediate

threat of being killed.

I realized, for the first time, that the forest was beautiful.

Concrete, glass, and metal had been my day-to-day view in Dividium for as long as I could remember. Now I found myself inhaling

lungfuls of crisp air and marveling at how the moonlight played over the needles of the towering pines.

We quickly reached the break between the graves and followed the makeshift path deeper into the trees.

“We want to get as far from Endlock as possible before we dig down,” Vale whispered. “Less risk of someone stumbling across

the entrance that way.”

The crematorium had only been broken for a week, and nearly a hundred inmates had been buried on the grounds in that time.

My stomach churned at the number. So much life, gone .

The deeper we got into the forest, the more scattered the graves seemed and the more difficult it became to keep track of

where we thought the tunnel was.

Eventually, we stopped near the base of an ancient oak, August gasping for air, worn down from the long hike and his injury.

“Gus, it’s fine. Just stand watch,” Vale said, hands raised in a placating gesture. The moon cast a dim glow over where we

stood, and a cool breeze rustled the leaves. Autumn was creeping up on us with each passing day.

August arched a brow. “You think I’m useless.”

“No, that’s not it,” Vale replied. “But if we don’t give that ankle a rest, you’re not going to be able to make it very far

once we get out of here. You know Raven and I can dig faster right now. We need someone watching our backs.”

August glared at him before finally giving a consenting nod. He limped over to a nearby pine and leaned against it, rustling

the boughs as he slid down the trunk to sit on the ground.

“But what about the features? Won’t the engineers know if we don’t test them?” I asked.

“After,” Vale said. “If we test them first, you won’t have the strength to help dig.”

I swallowed at his words, my feet rooted to the spot.

“Come on, then,” Vale called over to me. “We have a tunnel to explore.”

A small smile curved my lips at his words.

We were going to escape, and the pain from the wristband would only be temporary.

I lifted my spade as Vale clicked on a flashlight, and my eyes caught on a spot of red.

“Wait,” I hissed, dropping my shovel.

Vale was at my side in an instant, hand on my arm, while August’s gaze snapped to my face.

“What is it?” Vale asked.

I shook my head, staring at the bloodred berries that had caught my attention. Clusters of the berries hung from a thorny

bush—a variety of bush I’d only seen in two other places on the hunting grounds.

August followed my gaze. “It’s like those thickets that are outside the entrances to the Blood Tree tunnel,” he whispered.

“You don’t think?”

“No,” I whispered. “It couldn’t be that easy.”

But could it? The guards from the prison before would’ve wanted some kind of landmark near the tunnels’ entrances, something to easily identify them in an emergency.

Vale stepped into the thicket and crouched down, running his hand along the ground and brushing away dead leaves and old,

dried berries. He felt around for several moments to no avail, and my face fell.

I tried for a small smile. “It’s all right. It was worth a—”

The flashlight slipped from Vale’s hand, hitting the ground, but instead of the thump I’d expected from an object hitting

hardpacked dirt, there was the clang of metal on metal.

I rushed into the thicket, leaning down next to Vale.

August hobbled over to us. “Is that what I think it is?” He voiced the question I hadn’t dared ask.

Vale didn’t answer. Instead, he felt around the flashlight until he found the edges of a large square, about two feet wide.

He pulled on it, straining until finally there was a popping sound, and the square came free, sending Vale stumbling backward.

A cloud of dust rose from the ground, dancing in the glow of the flashlight, and when it cleared, I clapped a hand over my

mouth.

August and Vale exchanged a glance and laughed.

The entrance to the tunnels.

“It can’t have been opened for decades,” I mused, staring into the hole. It was pitch-black.

Vale stepped forward with his flashlight and shone it into the space. “There’s an old ladder,” he confirmed, passing me the

flashlight. He grabbed the ladder, leaning his weight onto it and shaking. “I think it’ll hold.”

I grinned. “What are you waiting for, then?”

August cleared his throat, nodding to his ankle. “I think I’ll wait up here. It was a long walk.”

“No hero shit, okay?” Vale told him. “If you hear someone coming, put the lid back on and hide.”

“No hero shit,” August repeated, lifting his palms.

We turned back to the entrance and lowered ourselves in. Vale led the way, flashlight in hand. As I followed, my foot caught, and I stumbled. Vale’s hand found my hip to steady me, his fingers pressing into my skin. My breath hitched.

“Are you all right?” he asked, close and concerned. The moonlight from the pit’s opening illuminated his eyes enough that

I could see my shaky expression in their reflection.

I swallowed, my voice caught in my throat. I needed to get a grip.

“Fine,” I managed to reply, gulping. My foot hit the ground, and I turned, taking in the space in the glow of Vale’s flashlight.

The cavern was a near replica of the space below the first tunnel entrance I’d seen, complete with emergency supplies, but

I noted a thicker coat of dust and cobwebs.

The air was heavy with the scent of damp soil.

Vale rotated to face north, the direction of the fence. And the settlement. On that side of the cavern, the wall gave way

to an even deeper darkness.

The tunnel.

“Are you ready?” he asked, sliding his hand down my arm to intertwine our fingers. He squeezed my hand.

I nodded, not trusting myself to answer.

We stepped into the tunnel, Vale tugging me after him, his flashlight hardly penetrating the darkness more than a few feet

in front of us.

The tunnel was practically identical to the other one I’d been in—earthen walls and packed dirt floors. Once in a while, we’d

pass an abandoned rifle or a crumpled wrapper from a ration bar, relics from a time long since past.

A clump of dirt fell from above, and I jumped, picturing the tunnel collapsing on top of us.

“Can I ask you something?” I began, eager to shift the focus away from darker thoughts.

“Anything.”

I watched the side of his face as we continued walking. “I’ve heard that the North Settlement isn’t a fan of outsiders. They’re

only expecting Jed, Kit, and me. How do you know they’ll let the rest of our group in?”

Vale gave me a sad smile. “First, you have to know that we’ve been fed lies about the North Settlement our entire lives.

The Council puts Dividium on a pedestal.

They want us to think that they’ve learned from our past mistakes and formulated the best possible way to live.

But they don’t want us to know that the people in the settlements live peacefully.

They don’t want us to know that a successful society could exist without something like Endlock. ”

“How do you know that’s true?” I asked, narrowing my eyes. Surely, Aggie would’ve told me if the North Settlement was some

utopian society.

“Some of my... sources have been in communication with the North Settlement,” Vale said.

My mouth dropped open. “Why? What do they talk about?”

“The Council wants the North Settlement to grant them access to visit. I don’t know the specifics of why, but I’d imagine

they only have an interest in something if they think it will make them credits,” Vale said.

I believed him. If the North Settlement agreed to a visit from the Council, I had a feeling they’d come to regret it.

“And I can’t guarantee the North Settlement will let us in,” Vale continued. “But there are no other options. If they hesitate

to accept us, we’ll offer to help wherever possible. We can help with manual labor or with specialty services. August’s a

doctor. Kit’s an engineer. Yara was an agriculturist. You’re already part of the deal, but even if you weren’t, your combat

skills are an asset. We have a lot to offer if they don’t want to take us in out of the kindness of their hearts.”

He was right. It wasn’t like we could go back to the city. And attempting to live on our own, out on the Wastes, would be

a death sentence. The North Settlement was the only option.

From what Aggie had told me before I left Dividium, the North Settlement did lack access to certain resources and having people around with August’s and Kit’s experience might be enough for them to

take in the rest of us.

Vale stopped suddenly, passing me his flashlight and disentangling our hands to reach into his pocket and pull out his tablet. He touched the screen, and it lit up. He scanned it.

“You’ll need to stay here,” Vale whispered, finally looking at me again.

“What?” I shuddered, thinking of being alone in the oppressive dark.

Vale reached up, brushing a strand of hair behind my ear. “We’re only a few steps from being directly beneath the fence. If

your wristband passes over the perimeter, an alarm will sound inside the prison. You’ll be caught. My wristband doesn’t have

that feature, and I need to make sure the tunnel really will get us to the other side of the fence. Make sure there’s an exit

on the other end.”

He was right. There was no other choice.

I swallowed, rolling my shoulders back, forcing a tight smile to my lips. “Of course.”