Say Goodbye (Sacramento Series, The Book 3)

Liza’s new fear of heights was put to the test an hour later when they arrived at the Eden coordinates derived from Daniel Park’s cell phone. There was no place to land, so they were lowered by a pulley to an area just big enough for two, maybe three SUVs.

She and Tom looked up at the cave entrance. There was a short walk up a steep trail and they set off right away. Molina quickly caught up.

Molina had explained that she was there for the Eden rescue and had only recused herself from the DJ Belmont part of the investigation. When Tom had asked her what she would have done if DJ had still been threatening them when she arrived, she’d merely shrugged.

Tom had grinned. His boss was far more flexible than most people gave her credit for.

The three of them were the first wave of the Eden rescue, Tom carrying bags of food and water that Molina had brought, hoping the offer of sustenance would ease their way in. Mercy and Gideon were on their way. Amos would be arriving a few hours after that.

They’d anticipated resistance, but they hadn’t anticipated a man guarding the cave entrance with a shotgun and a darkly forbidding expression.

“Hello,” Liza called. “I’m a medic.” She no longer wore Sunnyside Oaks’s scrubs, as they’d been soiled by mud and blood—both Kowalski’s and Belmont’s. Luckily one of the helicopter pilots had had a pair of sweats in his duffel, and she’d changed while they’d been in the air. It was a good thing she was tall. The sweats were baggy, but she’d only had to roll up the sleeves. Far better than walking up to the Eden compound covered in blood. “Do you have need of emergency services?”

They’d agreed that Liza should be the first to speak, as the community had been brainwashed to distrust the government.

“No,” the man said. “Take your helicopter and go.”

But a scream met their ears.

“Hayley,” Tom murmured. “Call her Magdalena.” To the man he said, “Please lower your weapon. We’re a rescue party.”

“We don’t need to be rescued,” the man bit out. “Go away or I will shoot your heads off. You’re trespassing.”

Technically, the man was trespassing, but Liza wasn’t going to escalate things by pointing that out. She took a step closer, her hands up in surrender. “My name is Liza. I was sent by your healer, Sister Coleen. I work at the hospital where Pastor has been recuperating. She was busy caring for Pastor, but asked me to come and help. She’s worried about the young woman who’s about to give birth. Magdalena.”

The man hesitated. “Sister Coleen sent you?”

“She did. She was afraid the baby would be born breech and that she wouldn’t be able to get back in time for the birth.”

“Who are they?”

“Tara is my assistant,” Liza said, pointing to Molina. They’d agreed that this would be a less precarious mission if Tom and Molina didn’t scare them by identifying as FBI right away. “And Tom is here with food and water. Sister Coleen also said you were low on supplies.”

The man looked torn. “Can you prove what you say?”

Liza smiled at him. “Sister Coleen thought you might say that. Can I show you a photo of us together?” She took Tom’s phone from her pocket and the man eyed it suspiciously. “Here we are, just this morning.”

She showed him the photo that she’d taken at Brooklyn’s request—bless her—and had accessed from her e-mail using Tom’s phone. Molina had assured her that Brooklyn was well after the raid, which had soothed her mind enough to focus on this next task.

The man frowned at the photo. “Pastor looks awful.”

“He was hurt badly. But his recovery was going well when I left today.” Which was true. Pastor’s recovery hadn’t tanked until DJ had killed him.

“Who’s the bald kid?” he asked gruffly.

“That’s my patient. She’s got a kind of cancer.” Another scream echoed through the caves. “May I please come in? Magdalena sounds like she needs assistance.”

The man made his reluctance clear, but he lowered the shotgun and stepped back so that they could enter. “You have to leave after.”

“Of course.” Liza couldn’t help but stare as they were led through the compound. “These caves are beautiful.”

“They’re cold and wet,” the man grumbled. “Some of our people are sick.”

“I’d be happy to help them as well,” Liza told him. “I didn’t get your name, sir.”

“Brother Joshua.”

Liza recognized his name. Joshua was Amos’s guess for who would take Ephraim’s place.

Joshua continued to look uncomfortable. The people they passed met them with shock and downright animosity. But they also watched Tom with interest, whispering that he carried two big bags filled with food.

Liza just smiled and waved, making sure the first-aid kit she’d taken from the helicopter was prominently displayed. The red cross was a symbol most people recognized. Even those who’d been hiding for thirty years.

They followed Joshua through a maze of rooms, many partitioned off with curtains. Some were legit curtains and others were clotheslines with drying laundry.

The young woman screamed again and this time it was closer. Joshua pushed the curtain aside and three shocked pairs of eyes met theirs.

Hayley—Liza refused to call her Magdalena in her own mind—lay on a pallet on the floor, sobbing. Two women kneeled next to her. One was older and had a harsh face. The other was much younger and exuded an air of gentleness.

The older woman rose, shock quickly morphing to outrage. “What is the meaning of this?”

Liza met Hayley’s wide eyes and gave her a small wink.

“They were sent by Sister Coleen,” Joshua said. “Two healers, and the man carries food and water. You may return to your own quarters, Tamar.”

“No,” Hayley cried. “Tamar can stay. Make Rebecca go.”

The older woman’s face darkened. “You will be silent, Magdalena.”

Liza left the politics to Molina and Tom, dropping to her knees next to Hayley. “I’m Liza,” she said for everyone to hear, then lowered her voice. “Graham got through.”

Hayley grabbed her hand and squeezed so hard that Liza thought her bones would crack. “He’s in the box. Get him out. Please.”

The box. Liza knew what that was because Gideon had been put there for a whole week. It was where rule-breakers were confined and given only the most basic rations of food and water.

Liza looked up at Tom and he gave her a nod, his promise to take care of it.

“I want my brother here for my baby’s birth. Please,” Hayley begged.

“He stays in the box,” Rebecca declared. “Pastor can determine his fate when he returns.”

“That might be a while,” Liza commented. “He could be hospitalized for up to six weeks.”

A collective gasp rose from behind them and Liza realized that a crowd had gathered. Tamar dipped a cloth in a bowl of water and dabbed at Hayley’s forehead, leaning in to whisper in her ear something that Liza couldn’t hear.

Hayley nodded pitifully. “Thank you,” she whispered to the woman.

Tamar patted Liza’s shoulder. “I’ll be back later.”

Behind them, Molina and Tom were telling Joshua about the supplies they’d brought, so Liza leaned in close. “We’re here to get you out,” she whispered, then raised her voice. “I’d like to examine Magdalena. Can we give the patient some privacy?”

Tom and Molina instantly stepped from the room, as did everyone else except for Rebecca. Liza turned to her with a polite smile. “Are you a trained nurse, ma’am?”

“No. But I have children.”

“She’s barren,” Hayley spat. “Her children were birthed by other women. She wants to take my baby as soon as she’s born, and I won’t let her.”

Liza continued to smile even though she wanted to beat Rebecca to a bloody pulp. “There are so many supplies. Perhaps you can aid with distributing them.”

The woman shook her head. “I’m staying.”

Hayley screamed again with another contraction. When it was over, Liza pushed aside the curtain. “Tara, can you come back, please?”

Molina promptly returned. “Yes?”

“This woman is a danger to my patient. Can you remove her?”

Molina took the woman’s arm and forcibly removed her from the room. But Rebecca’s irate shouts grew abruptly quiet as the two headed for the entrance. Liza briefly wondered what Molina had said to shut her up.

Liza grinned. “Let’s have a baby, Hayley.”

Hayley’s eyes filled with new tears. “Say it again, please. My name.”

“Hayley,” Liza said gently and brushed Hayley’s damp hair from her face. “Now I’m going to have a look at your baby. We don’t have any equipment so I’m gonna have to go old school.”

“Have you delivered a baby before?” Hayley asked as she nervously watched Liza pull on a pair of gloves and sanitize her hands.

“I have. In a war zone, no less. A little village in Afghanistan.”

“You’re in the army?”

“I was until recently.”

“And the baby was okay?”

“Yes. The baby was breech and the mom was scared. Her husband saw us distributing food to the village and asked me to help. We had no medicine and no special equipment. The mother and baby were fine.”

“Who are you now?” Hayley whispered.

“Just a nursing assistant,” Liza told her, then leaned in again. “The other two are FBI. They’ve been looking for Eden for a very long time.”

“Thank God,” Hayley breathed. “Is Cameron okay?”

“Cameron is fine. Just worried about you. How far apart are your—”

Hayley screamed again, her stomach rippling from the contraction.

“That answers that question. Three minutes. Let me see how dilated you are. Oh!” she said a minute later. “I see the head. You’re about to meet your baby. I understand she’s a little girl?”

“Yes. Jellybean.”

Liza grinned. “All right, then. On the next contraction, I want you to push.”

She moaned at the next contraction, but pushed like a champ. The contraction passed, and Hayley panted in silence, readying for the next.

The curtain parted and Tamar returned. “Everyone is getting food. They are so happy.”

“And Graham?” Hayley asked.

“The lady, Tara? She’s taking care of him. He’s dehydrated and hungry, but she said that Liza should stay here and that she would handle it.”

“Tamar, can you sit behind Hayley? Help her remember to breathe during the contractions.”

Fifteen minutes and five giant pushes later, Liza held a beautiful baby girl with a pair of very strong lungs. Liza had to do some deep breathing of her own, but her eyes still filled and tears still fell. “She’s perfect,” she said to Hayley. “Beautiful. Ten fingers and toes.”

“Let me help you wash her,” Tamar said. From a box she retrieved a clean towel and filled a bowl with water and cleaned the baby with such tenderness that Liza cried some more.

“You’re almost done,” Liza told Hayley as Tamar put the baby in her mother’s arms. “One more giant push.”

She was dealing with the placenta when the curtain was ripped aside. Liza smelled the boy before she saw him. “Holy God,” she coughed. “What did you fall into?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll stay over here,” the boy said, his voice squeaky high and raspy at the same time. “God, Hayley. You did it. You really did it. She’s okay?”

Hayley looked up from her baby and smiled. “She’s perfect.”

The boy grinned, his face dirty and tear-streaked. “Hey there, Zit.”

Hayley shot him a mock glare. “One more time, Graham, and I swear.”

“Do you have a name picked out?” Liza asked.

“I have one in mind,” Hayley said. “I want to check with Cameron first.”

Liza sat back on her heels. “You could have done this without me, Hayley. This was as simple a delivery as they come. But I need to get you out of here, so I’m going to tell them that you need a hospital, okay? For now, just lie here and relax. You earned it. And Uncle Graham, if you can wash up—I mean squeaky clean with soap and water—you can hold your niece.”

“He volunteered to empty the toilet pots,” Tamar said quietly. “He stunk so bad that the leaders didn’t bother him. That’s how he set up the computer.”

Liza looked over her shoulder at the empty doorway. Graham was gone, the curtain drawn. “Oh. Now I feel bad. I mean, he can’t come around the baby that dirty, but . . .”

“It’s okay,” Tamar said. “He’s a good boy, and smart. He knows about germs.” She hesitated. “Will you take everyone who wants to leave?”

“Transport is on its way,” Liza replied, and Tamar nodded but didn’t look as happy as Liza expected. “Do you want to leave?”

“Yes, but . . .”

Hayley looked up at Liza. “She doesn’t want to leave her son. Rebecca stole him. She stole Tamar’s baby. Don’t let Joshua tell you that it’s hers.”

Liza’s gaze shot to Tamar’s, horrified. “You have my promise.”

“Thank you,” Tamar whispered.

“What’s your real name, honey?”

“Tiffany.”

“You have my promise, Tiffany. We’ll make sure your baby is returned to you. The authorities will probably require a DNA test—that’s a blood test,” she added, not knowing how long the woman had been in Eden. “That’ll prove the baby is yours, but I know people who can make that happen.”

Tiffany wiped tears from her face. “Thank you. Is it really going to be six weeks before Pastor and Coleen come back?”

“At least,” Liza said grimly. “At the very minimum.”

Tiffany’s lips curved. “Are they in jail?”

Liza didn’t say a word and Tiffany’s eyes widened when the truth sank in. “Did you do it?”

Liza shook her head. “DJ.”

“And he’s in jail?” Tiffany pressed.

Liza shook her head.

The two younger women shared a knowing glance. “Good,” they said.

EDEN, CALIFORNIA

TUESDAY, MAY 30, 7:30 P.M.

Tom found Liza in Hayley’s room holding the baby an hour and a half later and his heart . . . hurt. Some of it was sad hurt, because he couldn’t help but think about what Tory would have looked like holding their baby. He didn’t think Liza would fault him for that.

But most of it was good hurt because she looked beautiful holding that tiny bundle. She was standing, rocking the baby while she hummed a lullaby off tune.

She looked up and her expression filled with concern. She walked over to him, and he could see that the baby was sound asleep. “You okay?”

“Yeah. I was just thinking that if we ever have kids, they’ll never sing in a choir.”

She chuckled. “We don’t have the best musical genes, do we?”

He relaxed then, her simple acceptance that they’d have a family a balm to his soul.

“Of course,” she added, “if we adopt kids, we could get the next Beyoncé. They’d make us a mint and we could retire young. Or we could just adopt normal kids and make them happy.”

She’d chosen her words with such care, and he loved her for it. Yes, they’d try for kids biologically. And if they were successful, that would be great. But even if they were, there were kids out there who needed a home, and they’d provide that, too.

“How’s Hayley?” he asked. The girl was curled up on the pallet, her head in Tamar’s lap while Tamar knitted what looked like a baby blanket. “Is she all right?”

“Asleep,” Liza murmured. “She was really far along by the time we got here, so Jellybean came fast.”

Tom brushed his finger over the baby’s soft cheek. “Hi, Jellybean. It’s gonna be okay.”

Liza frowned at him. “Are your hands clean?”

“Like I’d touch a baby with dirty hands,” he scoffed. “I just washed them with soap and hot water. I had to after helping Graham get clean. Oh my God.” He shuddered.

“I know. But you know why he did it, right?”

Tom nodded, still touched by the boy’s love for his sister. “Yes. He really is a kid genius. He set up the dish and the solar panels and hooked it all up to the computer. The solar panels are trash because of Joshua, but at least Graham got out that one message.”

“He’s a hero.” She met his eyes. “You want to hold her?”

Tom nodded, his eyes burning when she put the baby in his arms. “You’re a lucky little girl, Jellybean. Your parents love you. Your daddy cannot wait to meet you.”

The baby yawned, looking too damn cute.

Liza sighed. “Will you bring charges against Hayley and Graham’s mom?”

“I don’t know. Molina is making notes of all the infractions. Which reminds me of why I’m here. Gideon and Mercy arrived, along with several agents. Things are getting tense. Rebecca was yelling that Molina is denying her rights.”

“Molina can charge her with kidnapping. She stole Tamar’s baby.”

Tom was floored. “What the hell is wrong with these people?”

“I wish I knew.”

“Well, at least Joshua isn’t carrying his shotgun anymore,” Tom said. “I convinced him to put it away. It was confiscated by the ATF agent who arrived in the second wave.”

“That’s good. Oh, and Tamar is really Tiffany and I promised her that she could leave and we’d take her baby and pending DNA testing she’d get him back.”

“I’ll make sure Molina knows.”

“Thank you. Did you say there was hot water?”

“Yes. We’ve had two helicopter drops—both included tanks of water and a gas-powered water heater. Does Jellybean need a bath? We’re going to need baby seats, too, for the transport vehicles.” The logistics of this transport were daunting. “Oh, I also need you to come with me. There are a number of people who need medical attention.”

“Why didn’t you say that right off?”

“Because you were holding the baby and my brain circuits fried.”

She patted his cheek gently, then turned to Tiffany. “I’m going to take the baby with me,” she said. “Can you stay with Hayley in case she wakes up? Until Rebecca is confined, I don’t want to leave Jellybean here, and I don’t want Hayley thinking the baby’s been stolen.”

They heard the shouting as they drew close to the entrance. Tom gave the baby to Liza and rushed to help. As expected, Joshua was in Gideon’s face, calling him a liar and a fraud, sent by the government to take away their First, Second, and Fourth Amendment rights. Molina stood next to Gideon and there were four federal agents behind her.

Mercy stood to the side, looking anxious. She’d known that coming back here would resurrect a lot of bad ghosts, but she’d done it anyway because she’d wanted to help.

Graham sidled up to Liza. “I’m clean. And sanitized. Can I hold my niece now?”

Tom rejoined them, watching the gathered crowd from the sidelines as Liza put the baby in Graham’s arms. The boy began to cry, the sight sweet and at stark odds with the angry Joshua.

Gideon remained calm, ignoring Joshua’s rant and talking to the members of Eden who stood silently gawking at him. “If you want to leave, we will transport you. My sister Mercy and I came back to let you know that there is life after Eden. We will help you find a place to live and integrate back into the community at whatever level you wish. If you’ve suffered at the hands of a husband or as an apprentice like we did, there are resources to help.”

That seemed to strike a chord. Many of the members nodded and whispered to each other.

“And if we don’t want to leave?” Joshua demanded.

“Do you really want to stay?” Gideon countered. “You don’t have fresh water or food. You don’t have sanitary toilet facilities or real medical help. Sister Coleen did her best, but many of you need trained doctors, not merely a person who wants to be helpful but gets all of her medical know-how from books and the computer.”

“When is she coming back?” Joshua demanded.

Tom thought they should tell the truth, but Molina had been afraid of a riot. Apparently, she had changed her mind. Probably because of the agents standing behind her.

“She’s not,” Molina said, and the murmurs grew to irate cries.

“You’ve arrested her?” Joshua shouted, and the tension ratcheted up tenfold.

Many of these people had been brainwashed as to the evils of the government for thirty years. Tom marveled that Amos had adjusted so well.

“No,” Molina said, holding up a hand for order. “She was killed by DJ Belmont.”

“That’s a lie!” Joshua cried. “Why would he do that?”

Mercy stepped forward, her face drawn and pale. “Probably because Coleen found out about me. That I survived. That DJ lied when he said I’d died trying to escape. He shot my mother in cold blood. She did die. But he was interrupted when he was trying to kill me.”

“That. Is. A. Lie,” Joshua repeated.

“Listen to it with your own ears,” Molina said. She produced a cell phone and one of the agents hooked it up to a speaker. “The hospital where Pastor was staying provided computer devices to all the patients and their families. They can be used as cameras and tape recorders. We think Coleen was recording Mr. Belmont in an attempt to prove to Pastor what she’d learned. She was suffocated and there were bruises around her neck where Mr. Belmont grabbed her locket chain and twisted.”

Tom noticed several women in the gathered crowd put their hands to their throats, their expressions indicating that they had also been controlled by their locket chain.

Molina tapped her phone and DJ’s voice could be heard.

“Where is he?”

“Back in the solarium after his nap,” Coleen replied.

“What did he do while he was there?”

“He met a little girl earlier, and they chatted. He wanted to feel the sun on his face, so I took him back and left him with his nurse. I wanted to talk to you.”

“What did they chat about? And who’s with him now?”

“They chatted about all kinds of things. His kids, you know, his real kids. Bo and Bernie.”

“That doesn’t hurt me like you think it does,” DJ said. “I never wanted to be his kid.”

That drew a gasp from the crowd.

“How did they get that tape?” Liza asked Tom in a whisper.

“Someone in billing finally clicked on the link in my e-mail. I got into the security network and downloaded this file while Croft and I were driving to you. Sunnyside uploaded everything the patients and families did on the devices.”

Coleen went on to accuse DJ of deceit when it came to Mercy. Tom watched the crowd as DJ admitted it all. This was making a difference. And then . . .

“Are you going to tell Pastor?” DJ asked.

“If I were going to tell him, I’d have done it already.”

“What are you doing, Sister Coleen?” he asked, his voice suddenly louder.

“Nothing.” Coleen’s voice was hoarse, like she couldn’t breathe. “Just filling in the blanks. You’re hurting me, DJ.”

The recording abruptly ended and the crowd was absolutely silent. Even Joshua had ceased his ranting.

“Sister Coleen was found a few hours later, dead in her bed,” Molina said.

Joshua stepped back, shaken. “No. That’s a fake. Like the moon landing.” He spun around and addressed the membership. “Don’t listen to her. She’s lying. She probably has Sister Coleen in a cell somewhere.” Then he spied Graham holding the baby and started for him, a foul look on his face. “Don’t you touch my wife’s baby.”

Graham’s eyes widened and he turned, showing Joshua his back and protecting the baby with his own body. He didn’t have to.

Tom stepped in front of Graham, never so glad to be six-six with heavy muscle. Joshua wasn’t a small man, but he had to look way up.

“You will not put your hands on him,” Tom said quietly. “Or the baby. Or her mother.”

Fear crossed the man’s eyes and he turned to the crowd. “This is how it starts. They come in and tell us what to do. How to live. How to worship. Pastor will fix this when he comes back.”

Molina cleared her throat. “Pastor is also dead. DJ killed him, too.”

A collective wail rose from the group, many of the members falling to their knees in grief.

“Why?” Joshua demanded. “Why would Brother DJ kill Pastor? That makes no sense.”

“Agent Hunter?” Molina said. “Please tell them why.”

Tom raised his voice. “Because he wanted Pastor’s money. Pastor’s bank account had fifty million dollars in it.”

Once again there was silence, broken by muted weeping. Joshua laughed harshly. “Fifty million dollars? You are insane. Look at us. We don’t have anything.”

“How much did you donate to Eden when you joined?” Tom asked Joshua.

Joshua frowned. “We sold our home and donated the profits. It was about three hundred thousand dollars.”

Tom pointed at another man about Joshua’s age. “And you, sir?”

“Four hundred thousand,” the man said, clearly troubled.

Tom pointed to various members, and after five people, the total was already over two million dollars. “He invested well and supplemented with sales of the drugs you grew and harvested.”

One of the men shook his head. “We never sold drugs.”

“Tell them to look in the cave room where the tools and schoolbooks were stored,” Graham said. “There’s a box marked Smithy Tools. It’s filled with cocaine and pot. Full disclosure,” he added, “I took a brick of the coke to try to blackmail Brother DJ into letting my sister go to the hospital. Like Pastor was able to. The coke is hidden under a rock near the computer. The package is unopened.” He pointed a finger at Joshua. “And before you can claim I smuggled it, remember that Isaac, the head of our household, thoroughly searched us. Those drugs belong to DJ.”

A man stepped forward. “I’ll check. One of your policemen may come with me.”

Tom exhaled slowly. He’d thought they’d ask who killed DJ and he wasn’t sure how to answer that. He’d had to surrender his weapon and badge to Molina on the way to the caves. It was standard procedure when one fired their service weapon. He’d probably have to undergo counseling before he was reinstated.

Molina clapped her hands to regain the group’s attention. “While they are checking Graham’s claim, we can transport anyone who wants to go now. If you’d like to talk to Gideon and Mercy first, they will be here. Amos Terrill will also be here in a few hours.”

A middle-aged woman stepped forward. “Amos is all right? And Abigail? I’ve been so worried. She’s my daughter’s best friend.”

“They are very much all right,” Molina said kindly. “Amos realizes that many of you may want more proof, and he will tell you what he saw that drove him to run from Eden. If you’d like to leave, the first transport will depart in two hours. I’ll stay here to answer any questions.”

“And if we choose to stay?” Joshua asked, still belligerent.

“I can’t make you come with us,” she said, “unless you’re suspected of a crime. Like kidnapping or child endangerment.”

Joshua’s jaw tightened. “And for those of us who are innocent of wrongdoing?”

“I can’t make you come with us, but you can’t stay here. This is private property.”

Two hours later, the first transport departed, Tiffany and her little boy on board, and there wasn’t an empty seat.

And, after Amos arrived and talked to the remaining members, the next transport was also filled.

Finally, an ambulance arrived with two paramedics. Hayley and her baby were loaded in with Graham riding in the back with them.

Tom waved as they drove away, headed to Sacramento, where Hayley would be checked out at UC Davis. Arm tightly around Liza’s waist, Tom turned to Gideon, Mercy, and Amos, who’d stayed to help the members understand the new world.

“We did it,” Tom said, feeling both satisfied and oddly unsettled. “We found them.”

“You found them,” Mercy corrected with a smile. “You and Liza. Thank you.”

Amos nodded. “Yes. Thank you both. For me and for Abigail and every person who felt trapped and too afraid to escape.”

Tom didn’t want the gratitude. He was doing his job. He knew Liza felt the same way.

“Did you notice that no one asked about DJ?” Liza asked, redirecting the conversation. “I think everyone knew that he was capable of everything we told them.”

“I agree,” Mercy said. “And I for one am not sorry at all. Pastor, Ephraim, and DJ are all gone. We can live our lives and not worry that they’re coming to kill us.”

Amos put his arm around Mercy’s shoulders. “Abigail never has to worry about what happens when she turns twelve. You all have done a good thing. I’m proud of you.”

“It feels . . . unfinished,” Tom murmured. “I mean, there’s still the fifty million to figure out, but over a hundred people have to start new lives.”

Amos sighed. “They’ll have to learn technology and how to function in a real community. They’ll have to unlearn all the fiction they’ve been taught as fact. Some of them might even choose to continue living in isolation, but they’ll still need support. Land and supplies. Medical care and guidance on how to rebuild legally. It’s not going to be easy.”

Gideon nodded. “The hard work has just begun.”