Mira’s POV

I woke before dawn.

Not from nightmares or anxiety, just awake, clear-headed, and ready.

I stepped outside barefoot, the cool, wet grass between my toes. The sanctuary lay quiet, broken only by the wind in the branches and birds testing their voices.

At the eastern fence, I watched the sky shift.

Dark to gray. Gray to pink. Pink to gold.

No urgency. No dread.

Just light arriving.

For the first time in years, maybe ever, I felt still inside.

I walked the grounds alone, following ...