Chapter 8 Stolen Seat

Aurora's POV

The moment the maid whispered that the Alpha had summoned me to the dining hall, I felt a chill trace down my spine.

It wasn't the time. Alexander never called for me this early. Still, I fixed my posture, smoothed the skirt of my gown, and walked toward the dining room with the calm dignity expected of a Luna.

Until I stepped past the double doors.

And saw it.

My chair. Moved.

It took a moment for my eyes to fully process the absurdity. The servants had rearranged the seating. Where once I had always sat, to Alexander's right, the Luna's rightful place... there was now a different presence.

Nova.

She was sitting on my chair.

The Luna's chair-ornate, carved with the crest of my family and the golden sun symbol passed down through generations of Lunas. Its legs were polished ivory with filigree gilded in pure gold. It wasn't just a chair, it was a declaration of my station.

And there she sat, legs crossed delicately, her hands folded in her lap like she had earned it.

A low, burning rage stirred in my chest. I walked forward, each step deliberate, and stopped just before her, my shadow casting long over the table.

"Excuse me," I said, my voice cold but composed. "You are sitting in my chair."

Nova looked up, feigning surprise. Her lips parted with the faintest gasp, as though I had just slapped her.

"Oh," she said with a smile that was more sugar than sincerity, "but... it's just a chair, isn't it?" Her voice trembled with forced innocence. "All the chairs are the same, really."

"They are not," I said flatly.

Mary, Tanya, and Josie stood behind me stiffly, their faces tight, clearly suppressing their own reactions. Everyone in the room knew that wasn't true. The Luna's seat was unmistakable-and sacred.

"But this one was empty," Nova added, glancing over at Alexander like a frightened little girl seeking protection.

"Ms. Wilder," I repeated firmly, "move."

"But this was the chair I want to sit on... and the alpha made it clear that I can sit here because it was the closest chair to him." She said, as if the left side won't be on the same distance.

And to think that Alexander allowed her to sit there all while knowing it belonged to me... how dare he?

"I do not need to repeat myself, I hate that." My smile dropped and I was like an empty shell now.

"Move."

Before she could respond, a sharp voice cut through the air like a whip.

"Enough."

I froze.

Alexander stood at the head of the table, his eyes fixed on me-hard, cold, and commanding.

"Sit on my left, Aurora," he barked. "Stop causing a scene."

The room went deathly quiet. Even the servants stilled mid-motion.

A deep silence stretched between us, the kind that split seconds into years. The kind that made your ears ring from the weight of humiliation.

"Of course," I said, through clenched teeth.

And then, with fury coursing through my veins, I stormed across the room. My heels struck the marble floor with heavy, sharp thuds-clack, clack, clack-a rhythm of indignation. I yanked the chair to his left and dropped myself into it, back stiff as a rod.

I didn't speak. I didn't look at either of them.

I simply stared at my silverware. The knife gleamed beneath the chandelier light, catching my gaze with an almost poetic cruelty.

I wrapped my fingers around it.

Not to use it. Not yet.

But just to hold something sharp.

Food was served. Platters passed. Trays lowered. Dishes of steaming meat, roasted vegetables, and freshly baked bread landed before me like offerings.

I had no appetite.

Every chew, every sip they took from their goblets felt like a performance. And I-the Luna-was the unwilling audience to their twisted charade.

Nova leaned toward Alexander like a vine, brushing his shoulder lightly, whispering something with that breathy, naive tone that made my skin crawl. He laughed. Genuinely.

I forced myself to look forward, refusing to witness their closeness.

But then, Alexander cleared his throat.

His voice, as usual, dragged attention like a magnet. "I heard about the incident in the garden," he began.

I blinked, slowly turning my head.

"Nova told me," he said, sipping his wine, "that you refused her kindness. That you... accused her of trying to hurt you."

My grip on the knife tightened.

"She startled me," I said simply. "And I bled."

"It was an accident," Nova interrupted gently, her tone dripping with soft sincerity. "I only wanted to surprise her. I didn't mean to scare you, Luna."

She looked at me like a scolded child, eyes large and tearful. "I even offered her my handkerchief, but she looked at me like I was... poison."

Because you are.

Alexander sighed, setting down his goblet. "Nova's been through a lot, Aurora. She's fragile. She's an omega. Show her compassion."

My eyes narrowed. "Is that what you want me to do? Show compassion to the woman who took my place beside you?"

"You know that the only thing I hate the most is being robbed of what is rightfully mine." I reminded him in case he forgot.

His jaw clenched. "Don't twist this."

I wanted to scream. I wanted to stand and throw the cutlery, the plates, the porcelain-everything-across the room and watch it all shatter like the pieces of my dignity.

But I didn't.

Because Lunas don't scream.

Lunas endure.

"I see," I said instead, voice icy.

Nova sniffled beside him. "I only want peace between us, Luna. I truly do."

I turned to her with a smile that could curdle wine.

"Then you should've stayed far away from my throne."

My chair grated through the floor as I stood up.

"I have just lost my appetite. Thank you so much for inviting me over for dinner." I whispered.

I stared at Alexander and then to Nova whose eyes were wide as a prey.

"But I would appreciate it even more if you will not invite me further in a dinner where I will only be treated as a mere audience to your public display of affection. I have better things to do."

I stared at the two of them down.

"I do not want to be bothered in any of my errands soon enough and I trust that none of you will call me or what. I will take my leave now."

I did not look at them further and immediately went out of the room. I despise them.