Chapter 259. A Strange Miracle

Aurora’s POV

The air felt heavy with anticipation, the kind that clings to your skin and holds your breath hostage in your lungs. I stood with my arms loosely folded across my chest, the toes of my sandals buried into the soft, cold sand as I watched Ashton. The orange-pink hues of the setting sun cast strange shadows across his face, highlighting the furrow in his brows, the clenched line of his jaw. But it was his hands that held my focus — the slow, steady glow gathering in his palms like stardust being coaxed to life.

I didn’t dare say anything, afraid that even the tiniest whisper would break his concentration. The others stood behind me — Maggie, trying to be patient but obviously fidgeting with anxiety, and Avery, her little hands trembling, eyes wide and glistening with unshed tears. She looked at the still body of the turtle lying on the sand like it was a fallen star she couldn’t reach.

Then Ashton whispered something — a low, melodic string of syl