I explain to Georgie, “The Inquisition did create a task force to hunt for the lost exiles, but they haven’t continued to hunt down the Makers. The descendants of the task force were horrified by their ancestors’ actions, and they made it their mission to bring back what had been taken away. They became stewards, seeking out and preserving the memory of the Makers while emulating their values. That’s the group my family are a part of.” While the people in that photo may have a tenuous connection to the long defunct Inquisition, they are something entirely different. And certainly not interested in or capable of abducting anyone.

… right?

“But you never told any of this to Master Loew when he tried to recruit you?” Georgie asks.

As much as I want to tell her the whole truth, I know I can’t tell her the real reason I came here. So I spin a version where my family worked to get me recruited specifically because they knew I was at risk from whoever was abducting Sires and that I had to hide who they were because I knew the association with the Inquisitors would make me unwelcome.

And she seems to accept it all as if she has no reason to doubt me.

“More recently, with the realization that Maker culture had survived and was still thriving, the Families began to search for them again, but with the goal of reunification, not destruction. The Makers only think that the Inquisitors are still after them because they’re stuck in the past,” I continue.

“But what about, like, Naiot?” Georgie asks. “Who were the prophets fleeing from if not the Inquisitors?”

That’s a good question. One I want to know the answer to as well. But it can’t have anything to do with the Families.

“I don’t know, but whoever it is, it’s probably the same people who have Hypatia. My family could never have taken her. They’re good people, not kidnappers.” I meet Georgie’s eyes, and I’m practically begging. “You have to believe me.”

“I do believe you,” she says, and my shoulders and heart both relax. “Can you ask your mother about it?”

“I need to,” I reply. There’s a lot I need to ask her about. Including any new information they have about Ozymandias Tech. It must be them who are really behind all of this. They got their hooks into Izzy, and now they have Hypatia, and the Makers will never suspect them because they’re too busy fixating on the wrong people.

I need to help redirect them.

“What do you know about Nora Montaigne and Ozymandias Tech?” I ask Georgie.

“That’s the company that makes clean-energy private jets and does all that controversial genetic testing, right?”

I nod.