Not only had humans survived, they maintained a structured society too.

Atlas held up a commanding hand to quiet their protests. “I believe this is enough to process considering your current state.” He faced Romy. “You will all have questions, and tomorrow I will answer them as best as I am able. But right now you need medical attention. You need to see your friend and you need to care for yourselves. The rest can wait.”

First Romy trusted Atlas, and then she distrusted him, but now she was so confused she didn’t know what to think. Romy put a hand to her head. The fog from whatever they’d knocked her out with was still slowing her down.

“Rosemary?” A hand tilted her chin. “You need help. You all do. I promise, it will make sense in the end.”

She stared at him and hoped to hell he could see what she thought of that. Of him. Of him lying to her from the start.

His hand dropped to his side, but his gaze stayed where it was.

“Uh, Atlas,” Houston called in a low voice. “The time. . . .”

Atlas looked at a gadget on his wrist and cursed under his breath. “Do the honours, would you?”

The shorter, lanky man wasn’t given much of a choice as Atlas swept out of the room.

Houston looked from their group, to the door, and back, hovering in indecision. He held up one finger and wrenched open the door. “Just one sec,” he said, and scrambled after Atlas.

The four immediately turned to each other. Romy saw her own weary bafflement reflected in her friends’ expressions.

“But how did humankind survive?” Thrym asked, voice flat.

No one had an answer. He had all the answers.

Elara wrung her hands. “What other logical explanation is there? Why would he lie?”

“It just . . . can’t be true,” Phobos said.

Romy shook her head. She didn’t know what she believed. The man had given them three damn sentences and expected them to swallow his story without question. But for some reason, that was exactly why she wanted to believe him.

How had the supposed government created a subterfuge of this scale? The Retreat was 150 years ago!

And then Elara asked a question Romy hadn’t thought of. One that sent trickles of fear down her spine.

“If it’s a lie . . . what will the Mandate do if they find us?”

A light lit in her mind. That was why Atlas didn’t want them to say anything. But how would he explain their presence to all of the Earth humans outside? If the Mandate caught them. . . .

Well, Romy could only see two outcomes to that, and neither option—a memory wipe, or death—were good.

“If this government has kept this secret for over a century, I don’t think they’ll be happy to see us,” Phobos said, echoing Romy’s thoughts.