Page 56 of To Cage a Wild Bird (Divided Fates #1)

He was silent, his eyes remaining straight ahead as we reached the steps that led to the basement.

My breaths started to come in short spurts, and I gripped the railing to keep myself from falling. If I stayed where I was,

I could pretend that Jed was okay—that Vale wasn’t bringing me to see his lifeless body. But if I walked any farther, if I

took another step closer to the infirmary, I’d have to come to terms with the truth.

I didn’t think I could face it.

“Raven?” Vale turned to look at me, his face tight with worry. He glanced around before placing a hand on my lower back to steady me. “What’s wrong?”

“He’s dead, isn’t he?” I choked out, trembling.

Vale’s brow wrinkled, but then his eyes widened in understanding. “No. Council above, no, he’s alive,” he whispered, moving

his hands to my shoulders.

“He’s alive,” I breathed, letting out a hysterical trill of laughter. “He’s alive.”

I closed my eyes, taking deep breaths to steady myself. But then I blinked. “If he’s alive, where are we going?”

“To the infirmary. He sprained his wrist. Dr. Row stepped out for a meeting with Larch about a sickness that’s circulating,

and I double-checked that the camera in the infirmary is off, so you can visit Jed.”

I nodded, regaining my composure. I could deal with a sprain. A sprain wouldn’t keep Jed from making the journey to the North

Settlement—the journey that we would figure out how to make.

Vale reached out as if to take my hand, but I pushed past him, running down the stairs and through the basement corridor.

“Jed!” I cried out as soon as I opened the door to the infirmary. I rushed for him, throwing my arms around his neck. “I was

so worried.”

“I knew you would be. But I’m okay. I made it.” He hugged me back fiercely, careful of his wrapped wrist.

“What happened?” I asked, reluctantly letting him go and scanning him for any other injury.

“Had a hunter on my tail,” Jed explained, grimacing. “I used the first set of tunnels Vale and Gus showed us, but I fell off

the ladder on my way down. Runs in the family, I guess.”

I rolled my eyes, finally able to breathe again now that Jed was in front of me, well enough to make a joke.

Jed sobered. “If I’d known being in danger would be the thing to wake you up, I’d have pissed Larch off days ago.”

“That’s not funny,” I said, looking away.

“Neither is dying before we can get out of here,” Jed whispered.

I nodded, looking at my feet. “You’re right.

Gus isn’t here to help us get into the settlement.

” My throat tightened painfully, and I swallowed against the lump that had appeared there.

“But he would want us to keep trying. We have to get ourselves in. I promised him I would protect Momo, and I need you to help me.”

Jed placed his good hand on my shoulder. “I will. What do we have to do next to get ready to leave?”

“Kit is being reassigned to the workshop tomorrow. I told them I needed a replacement for Gus.” Vale’s voice cracked at the

end, and he looked away, clearing his throat. “If you’re up for it, Raven, I’ll sneak you and Kit into my room during your

shift in the workshop so Kit can disable the wristband tracking—she said something about reverse engineering them, too, so

if any of the guards aren’t affected by the ironroot, they won’t be able to shoot at any of you.”

Yara’s words flowed through my mind. If Gus had trusted Vale to help us, then I could, too. I could work with him if it meant

getting out of Endlock.

“Okay,” I said. “I’ll be there.”

A label on one of the medication bottles on the counter caught my eye, and I crossed the room, picking it up and turning it

over in my hand.

Antibiotics.

Aggie had told me that one of the things that separated the North Settlement from Dividium was its lack of technology and

medical advancements.

People died of conditions they never would’ve succumbed to if they’d resided within the city and could have afforded medical

care—conditions many Lower Sector citizens also didn’t survive due to the treatments being too expensive.

“I don’t need those,” Jed called out to me. “Nothing broke my skin. Dr. Row said I’d be fine.”

“They’re not for you,” I murmured, turning on my heel, intentionally looking Vale in the eye for the first time in days.

He met my stare, arching a brow, but then understanding filled his molten eyes. “You want to bring them to the North Settlement.”

Jed nodded, catching on. “Because Gus’s not with us anymore. We have to find another way to convince them to let us all in.”

I hummed. “Will it be enough?”

Vale rubbed the back of his neck. “If we bring a pretty good stockpile. Medication, supplies, and medical textbooks.”

“I’m guessing Endlock has some kind of back stock?” Jed asked, the paper on the examination table crinkling as he shifted.

Vale nodded thoughtfully. “Dr. Row does keep a significant inventory. She likes to stay prepared.”

I frowned. “Will anyone notice if you take them, Vale?”

Vale grimaced. “Dr. Row would be suspicious of me coming and going. I could reassign you to the medical stockroom if you’re

up for it, Jed.”

I had to bite my tongue to keep from arguing as Jed nodded. He was more than capable of the job. And it was his decision.

“How long do we have until the new features are live on the wristbands during the hunts?” I asked. Jed was right. Seeing him

alive had woken me back up, and we had no more time to waste.

Vale frowned. “A little more than a week, I’d guess. If we’re lucky.”

“Let’s give ourselves five days, then, to be safe,” I said, my gaze hovering between Jed and Vale.

“Five days,” Vale confirmed.

“We’ll trust you,” Jed murmured, looking at Vale. “But if you lie to my sister again, you’ll find out there’s more than one

Thorne sibling that should scare you.”

My eyes widened, and I bit my lip to keep from smiling. Vale, on the other hand, was deadly serious as he met Jed’s eyes and

inclined his head. “You have my word.”

The doorknob rattled, and we fell silent as Dr. Row entered the room, her eyes flitting between us.

“You two wait in the hall while I finish up with my patient,” she told Vale and me. “Then Vale can escort Jed back to his

cell.”

Jed nodded at me, and I followed Vale into the corridor.

“And you still want me to go with you?” he asked quietly once the door had shut behind us, his warm eyes pinned on mine, full of an emotion I couldn’t read.

“I need time, Vale,” I whispered. “To figure out how I feel. But I don’t need time to know that if Gus trusted you to help

us, not to betray us, then I can trust you, too.”

Vale gave me a sad smile and leaned against the wall. “Take all the time you need, Little Bird.”