Chapter 11 - Scheming Wretch

𝐀𝐔𝐑𝐎𝐑𝐀

I kept my eyes on the food, arranging the roasted vegetables beside the eggs with careful precision. Cheese growled low from his spot by the hearth, but I placed a hand on his head to quiet him.

Sonya circled the kitchen island, her fingers trailing along the counter as she examined my work—there was a purple tint to some of them. My eyes narrowed. "You always were good at pretending to be useful. Pretending to be sweet. Pretending Father loved you." She picked up a piece of bacon I'd just crisped and bit into it, chewing slowly. "But we both know the truth, don't we?"

I said nothing, just moved to the stove to check on the hash browns.

"Silent as ever," she continued, moving closer. "The poor mute girl, so tragic, so helpless. Except you're not helpless, are you? You're a thief. A liar. A manipulative little—"

Her arms wrapped around me from behind, pulling me against her in a mockery of an embrace. I stiffened, my knife pausing mid-cut, but I didn't pull away. I couldn't afford to react, not when the Lycans could walk in at any moment and see me defending myself against their precious victim.

"Do you know what's funny?" Sonya whispered against my ear, her breath warm and sickly sweet. "Caspian became Alpha. He got everything—the pack, the power, the title. And what did I get?" Her grip tightened, her nails digging into my arms through the thin fabric of my uniform. "Nothing. I got to watch him parade around like he earned it, like he didn't need me to put him there."

I kept my breathing steady, my hands moving mechanically as I transferred food to serving platters.

"But you know what?" Her voice dropped lower, intimate and poisonous. "I don't need him anymore. I have something better now. Four somethings, actually." She laughed softly, the sound making my skin crawl. "Alpha Cyrus is hot, don't you think? All that red-eyed intensity, the way he looks at me like I'm the only thing in the room. And Alpha Rafayel—he's sweet, almost gentle when he wants to be. I haven't decided which one I'll choose yet."

My hands stilled for just a second before I forced them to keep moving. She noticed, of course she did, and I could feel her smile against my temple.

"Within a few months, one of them will be mine," she continued, her voice taking on a dreamy quality that made my stomach turn. "I'll be the mistress of this estate, the Luna, claimed by a son of Lycaon himself. Can you imagine? A demigod who can bring any ordinary Alpha to his knees with just a look." Her fingers traced up my arm, almost affectionate. "And you'll still be here, scrubbing floors and emptying chamber pots until they rip that Core out of your chest and toss what's left of you in a ditch."

She released me suddenly, stepping back with a satisfied sigh. "I'll be pulling all the strings, Aurora. Riches, power, a husband who worships me—everything I deserve. Everything you tried to steal from me."

I turned back to the stove, cracking more eggs into the pan with steady hands. She wanted a reaction, wanted me to lash out or break down so she could run crying to her new protectors. But I had lived with Sonya long enough to know her patterns, her plays, the way she twisted every situation to her advantage.

And in that moment, listening to her gloat about choosing between Cyrus and Rafayel like they were prizes to be won, I realized just how much she had played Reuben and Caspian. 

Betrayed her only remaining family and mate for another set of dicks. 

Yet who was I to judge when I had fallen for Reuben hook, line and sinker. 

Sonya's footsteps stopped. The silence stretched long enough that I thought she might actually leave, but then I heard her move closer again, her breathing sharper now, irritated.

"You're ignoring me," she said, her voice tight with barely contained anger. "You think if you just keep your head down and cook pretty meals, they'll forget what you are? You think food will soften their hearts?"

I kept my focus on the eggs, flipping them with practiced precision.

"Answer me," she hissed, grabbing my shoulder and spinning me around to face her. "Oh wait, you can't, can you? Poor little mute Aurora." Her eyes gleamed with malice. "You know what I think? I think you're faking that too. I think you could scream if you wanted to, but you won't because this act gets you more sympathy."

I met her gaze steadily, my expression blank, and I saw the exact moment her control snapped.

Her foot came down hard on Cheese's front leg.

The sound of bone cracking was sickening, followed immediately by Cheese's agonized howl. He lunged instinctively, teeth sinking into Sonya's calf, and she screamed—high-pitched and piercing, the kind of scream designed to bring people running.

I dropped to my knees beside Cheese, my hands hovering over his injured leg as he released Sonya and whimpered, trying to crawl toward me. Blood dripped from his mouth where he'd bitten her, and guilt flashed through me even though I knew it wasn't his fault.

Sonya shrieked, stumbling backward against the counter. 

The kitchen door slammed open and all four Lycans burst in, their eyes already glowing with power. Kaleb's violet gaze found Sonya first, taking in the blood streaming down her leg, then snapped to me kneeling on the floor with Cheese.

"It bit me!" Sonya sobbed, clutching at Cyrus as he moved to steady her. "I just came to check on breakfast and it—" She thrust her bleeding leg forward. 

"That's not—" I started to sign, but Rafayel was already moving toward Cheese, his golden eyes fixed on the wolf with clear intent.

I threw myself between them, my arms spread wide in a protective stance even though I knew it was useless. Cheese whined behind me, his injured leg held awkwardly off the ground.

"The wolf attacked her unprovoked," Zayne said, his voice cold and analytical as he examined the scene. 

"No," I tried to sign frantically, pointing at Cheese's broken leg, then at Sonya, but my hands were shaking too badly to form the shapes properly.

Sonya tried to speak but, her voice breaking on a sob. 

Cyrus's eyes were completely crimson now, fixed on me with an intensity that made my skin prickle. "You really think we wouldn't notice? That we'd let you keep a weapon in our house?"

"The wolf has to be put down," Kaleb said flatly. "It's a danger."