Yelena takes a bite of her own cookie, and it tastes just like she remembers, sugar a faint burn at the back of her throat.

"That's good," she says. "I remember it was chaos, with so many people displaced, no one knowing how ownership worked when four billion people just came back to life. The motels and short-term rentals here were packed for months. Which brings me back around to my question - do you want to come with me on a road trip? Keep me from falling asleep and driving into a ditch."