The man inside was exactly what she’d have expected of a man in Brother Andrew’s profession. He had long, straw-colored hair and a ragged beard. There were deep pockets of exhaustion under his brown eyes, and well-creased smile lines around his lips. He wore a simple black suit with no tie. Everything about the way he looked and the way he dressed spoke of quiet devotion and humble service. Here, finally, was a man of God: not a pressed, preening dandy like the pastor at her father’s church. Not a “hip” young pretender like the Baptist Minister who’d given a speech on “inclusion” at her school last year. Here was a real, road-weary man of the Lord.

“I know how you must feel right now, Sasha,” he said. “You’re relieved. You never thought you’d make it this far. You didn’t know if you’d have the courage to take the final leap of faith. But you have now, child, and your soul is secure.”

Sasha melted. The knot of anxiety that been twisting in her guts suddenly untied itself. Her eyesight blurred, and she realized that she’d started to cry. It was all she could do to look over to Brother Andrew and whisper, “Thank you.”

Together, they drove to a little white-walled suburban house, maybe five miles away from the only home she’d ever known. The car stopped, but Brother Andrew gestured for her to stay in the vehicle while he stepped out and knocked on the door. Another man, shorter and balding, stepped out. They both hustled back to the car, their eyes darting left and right. As soon as they made it inside, the car sped off fast enough that the acceleration pushed Sasha back in her seat.

The new man sat across from her in the autonomous car’s second row of bench-seats. He was older, in his fifties if he hadn’t taken any JuvEn treatments. He had tired eyes with deep bags beneath them. While Brother Andrew radiated calm self-satisfaction, this man seemed nervous and a little frantic. He clutched a small briefcase with white-knuckled hands. Sasha smiled in an unconscious attempt to calm him. He smiled back. Brother Andrew spoke.

“Ms. Marion, this is Brother Brian. He’s going to disable your deck. It’s the only way we can get you across the border to our people in the Christian States.”

Brother Andrew smiled and put a hand on Brother Brian’s shoulder. The other man took this cue to open up his suitcase. He started to assemble something small, silver, and intricate. Brother Andrew kept speaking.