[Day 4 — Eastern Road — 9:00 AM]
The presence was still there.
Kira no longer needed [Predator's Sense] active to know it. After twenty-four hours of tracking it passively, her brain had memorized the pattern… the way the forest to the east sounded different when someone was there versus when it was empty.
Constant distance. A hundred meters, more or less. Neither closer nor farther since yesterday.
"Still following," she confirmed when Alex asked at dawn.
"Same position?"
"Same distance. Changed angle during the night… it was northeast, now it's directly east." Kira kept walking. "Circling us slowly. No hurry."
"Do you think it's a threat?"
"If it wanted to attack, it would have chosen last night's camp. More darkness, more advantage." Kira assessed. "Not a threat yet. But it's not a coincidence either."
---
[10:30 AM — Rest stop]
The team gathered around Maya's 2-B bags.
The conversation everyone had been avoiding.
