"Just once," Mira said again, quieter this time, as if repeating it too loudly might summon it back. "I told myself I was dreaming. I still want to believe that."
Gad didn't let go of her hand. "You're not dreaming."
"I know." She exhaled, unsteady. "I just wanted to be wrong."
Bellan, still nearby with the parchment now folded carefully into his satchel, looked between them with the same grim focus he'd worn since translating the true chamber's inscriptions. "We need to treat this seriously, starting now. Not after Corwin and Fenna return with more information. Now."
"Agreed," Gad said. "But quietly. The outpost doesn't need panic on top of everything else it's already recovering from."
Rennick, who'd stayed close through the entire exchange, folded his arms. "That's not sustainable
