The mark knew before she did.
That was the thing Lyra was learning about it now. The way it moved ahead of her. The way it registered things before her brain caught up.
She had spent so long trying to manage it, keep it quiet, keep it from showing too much. Now it was open and honest and it was telling her things she didn't ask for.
Like the fact that whatever was moving toward them was not two hours away.
It was closer than that.
She didn't say it out loud yet. She needed to be sure. She needed one more minute with the feeling before she handed it to the room and watched everyone's face change.
She had been doing that a lot lately. Carrying things for one more minute before passing them.
Old habit.
They were in the middle of packing up when Caelum looked at her.
Just one look. He didn't ask anything. He already knew something was off. That twin thing working in both directions, all the time, like a thread strung tight between them.
