I toss the transmitter case on the sofa, walk over to Eve and try to hug her, but she pushes me away. "What were you thinking, Noah?" She rises from the chair and glares at me with her hazel eyes set in a stern gaze, dialed in on me like I've committed an unspeakable crime. "You could have asked me, and maybe you could have convinced me to go with you, especially after last night."

"But you didn't want to remember. You said—"

"I know what I said, Noah." My name twists on her tongue, a stabbing knife directed at me, an accusation. "I said it because I wanted us to fall for each other, not based on who we were, but on who we are. Right now."

My reply stutters from my lips. "I did... fall for you... based on who you are." I step around the chair and stretch for her hand, clutch it in mine. "Last night should have shown you that. To me, it felt like we were on the cusp of rediscovering everything, and I just wanted to know, wanted to remember. I wanted to know more about you, more about me, and about us."

Her hard eyes turn soft, but she pulls her hand away. "Do you think I don't want to know too? I do, but it scares me. What if who we were changes things?"

"How?"

"I don't know."

I sigh and reach for her again, but she backs away. "Eve, I'm sorry for not waking you, but I was afraid you wouldn't want me to go. Eventually, Abraham was going to impress it upon Jinx to compel us to retrieve the transmitters, anyway. It's part of his grand scheme to replenish the Earth. He wouldn't stand by, up there in the ark, and not try to further his plan."

Eve's lips turn sour. Her eyes cut away and then glance back at me. She gnaws on her bottom lip, and finally, she exhales. "Okay, I get it. I understand why you did it, but you should have asked me."

"I won't do anything like that again. I won't. If I know you're against something, I won't do it unless we both agree."

The hard edge that had renewed in her eyes melts away.

"Are we good?"

She rolls her eyes. "Maybe?" Her hand gestures to the computer monitor. It's ultra thin and transparent, like the screens in the habitat's bridge. The information she's pulled up turns the glass into a translucent image with clear borders around the outer frame. "What about the files that are marked restricted? Why would Abraham block us from reading what they have to say?"

"To protect you," Jinx says. He had been listening the entire time. Of course he had. "Abraham has laid out strict rules governing the survival of humanity and the rebirth of a new Earth. He forbids any information that would convince you to act in any way that's noncompliant to the future of all life on this planet."

I glance at the transmitter case on the sofa, then at Eve, and finally at the computer screen. "Give us some privacy, Jinx."

"As you wish."

I wait a few seconds, swallowing the tension in my throat. I draw close to Eve and touch the side of her face. Her eyes shift, tracing mine tenderly as we allow what's transpired this morning to fade into the background noise.

"I'm sorry, Eve." I cup her cheeks in my hands, cradling the most precious thing I know, the most important thing known to exist in my world. My wife. I don't remember what our lives were like before the flood, but I've learned I'll do anything for her. Even scuttle the past like a ship on angry seas. I look at the transmitter case. "I'll destroy them. If you don't want to remember, I'll get rid of our past for good. We'll never know what happened before the global ocean."

Eve reaches up and cups the outside of my hands in hers. "Not yet. We'll talk about it more and when we've come to an agreement, when we agree on what to do with the transmitters, then we'll do it, only then." She nods. "What about the restricted files?" Her gaze points to the screen behind me.

I turn, and with her urging, I sit at the computer, searching for someway to access it.

"It's touchscreen and voice activated," Eve says, resting her hand on my shoulder.

My finger skims over the translucent screen. The rows of information—restricted access files—scroll up and down at the softest touch. The files have names like: Reseeding Timeline, Reseeding Violations, Reseeding Authorizations, and one called, Summary of a Vile Planet. Among other files of lesser interest.

"What do you make of this?" I ask Eve.

"Obviously, something went wrong. The names of the files suggest it and what we've encountered outside the habitat confirms it, but what went wrong and why, that's the question."

"The extent of what went wrong concerns me. The why bothers me too. But the who, that frightens me because it makes me wonder if it was a mistake or on purpose."

I scroll to the file titled Reseeding Authorizations. With my fingertip, I tap to open it, but a tab pops up, telling me it's restricted. I knew that would happen, but I had to see it for myself. I touch the tab and a blank caption appears with a blinking cursor line.

"It wants a password," Eve says. "But I've tried several and none work. I thought of things relating to the space ark, the habitat, and the new Earth. Nothing worked. We don't even know how many letters or numbers or symbols the code might contain."

I wag my head and sigh.

After a few moments of indecision—out loud—I spell out Abraham's name and wait. The restricted tab appears again. That didn't work. Truth is, we could spend the rest of our lives together and never guess the right password.

"Sorry to intrude," Jinx says. "But Abraham restricted those files for your own good. Besides, I have a message to relay from him. It's rather urgent. Would you like to hear it?"

"Yes," Eve and I say, our gazes locked on each other with anticipation.

"Right away," Jinx replies.

A radio transmission plays over the ceiling speakers. "Noah. Eve. This is Abraham."

Our eyes dart around the room, eventually staring off into space as if imagining his face as he talks.

"I must warn you," he says. "I need you to pack your bags again and flee the habitat. Someone is coming for you. His name is Cain. He and his brother helped me prepare the ark when the waters were rising on Earth, but he had some twisted ideas for the reseeding. Cain killed his brother in cold blood and he turned on me. He's the reason the Earth is now a vile planet."

"He's behind it all, and he's coming for you the same way he came for the others. He wants to kill you. There's a reason. And it's best you didn't know. The best thing for you now is to run. Take the drone with you. Take the transmitters. I've wired them to work without the pressure helmets. Just place them in your ears when you're ready, and Jinx can activate your memories. Then you'll know everything. And I mean everything. Even the information in the restricted files."

There's a pause and a crinkle of static. "The drone's battery will last for three days. Jinx can protect you and restore your memories, but when his power runs out, you'll be on your own. You should have reached your destination by then. Jinx can show you the way. Just don't let that murderer, Cain..." he says the name with bitter disdain, "... don't let him catch you, because if he does, he will kill you both with the cruelest pleasure and in most painful way imaginable."