Chapter 96 Chapter Thirty Six: The Enemy’s Truth

Chapter 96 Chapter Thirty Six: The Enemy’s Truth
Sharon’s POV

Rage.

That was all I felt when the name Aemond sank into my ears.

It boiled inside me, hot and wild, cutting through the fear that had been holding me hostage since I woke up in this godforsaken place. I couldn’t believe it, it’s him. The man who had betrayed Morris, destroyed his life, and turned his heart to stone was standing right in front of me, breathing the same air I was.

I don’t know why I felt as much rage as I did. One would think I was the one he betrayed.

The fact that I am looking at the same man who made Morris who he is now cold, distant, broken.

My heart pounded against my chest as I looked up at him. He seemed almost amused by my silence, his scar catching the glow of the moon like a cruel reminder of his past sins.

“You,” I whispered, my voice trembling not from fear this time, but from fury. “You’re the monster who ruined him.”

Aemond’s smirk faded slightly. “Oh?”

“You heard me. You had no right to be bitter. You betrayed your own alpha, Aemond! You stole Celia from him, you broke his trust, and then you ran like a coward when you were caught!”

The air seemed to thicken around us. Aemond’s blue eyes darkened, a storm gathering behind them.

“You think you know what happened,” he said softly.

“I do,” I shot back, my voice cracking from the force of my own anger. “Celia was his mate. She was the Luna of the pack. You had no claim over her! You knew what you were doing and you did it anyway. Her death was your fault!”

The word death hung between us like smoke.

Aemond’s jaw clenched. He took a step toward me, slow and deliberate, his boots crunching against the forest floor. “Is that what they told you?” he asked, his voice calm—too calm.

I frowned. “What are you talking about?”

He tilted his head slightly, studying me as though I were a puzzle he couldn’t quite solve. “Those are the lies they fed you,” he murmured. “The lies Morris needed to believe. The lies that made him a hero and me a villain.”

“What lies?” I demanded, my heart hammering.

But he ignored the question entirely. His expression hardened again, and he jerked his head toward the camp. “Start walking,” he ordered.

“No.”

The word came out of me before I could stop it. My body trembled, but my voice was steady. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”

For a brief second, something flashed in his eyes, something close to admiration, but it vanished just as quickly.

He sighed, stepped forward, and without another word, swept me off my feet like I weighed nothing. I hit his shoulder with my fists, but he didn’t flinch. My protests were drowned out by the pounding of his boots and the rustle of trees.

By the time we reached the camp, my throat was hoarse from shouting.

The moment Aemond dropped me to the ground, the men started muttering among themselves, sneering and laughing. Their eyes were dark with something vile, and I felt sick under their gaze.

Aemond turned sharply, his icy stare silencing them all instantly. “Not. A. Word,” he said, his voice low but lethal.

The men immediately busied themselves with their tasks again. sharpening blades, tending to fires, anything to avoid his wrath.

Aemond knelt beside me, tying my wrists back with rough hands. The rope bit into my skin, and I winced. “You should’ve just walked,” he said quietly.

I glared up at him. “And miss hearing more of your twisted lies? Not a chance.”

He said nothing. He simply stood, looked down at me, and then announced to his men, “Send the message.”

One of the men nodded and ran off into the trees.

“What message?” I asked, panic creeping into my voice.

Aemond looked back at me with a hint of a smile. “We’re inviting your beloved alpha to come fetch you,” he said simply. “Alone.”

My stomach dropped. “What?”

He ignored me, continuing, “If he comes without his guards, without his weapons, we’ll let you go. That’s the deal.”

“No!” I cried, struggling against the ropes. “You’ll kill him! You’ll kill him, won’t you?”

Aemond crouched down again, his expression unreadable. “Get some rest,” he said coldly. “Tomorrow, the forest will see a reunion.”

That night, the forest seemed to press closer, heavy and suffocating. My mind raced endlessly, torn between fear and fury. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Morris. I saw his expression when he found out I was gone. I knew he would come for me. But if he did… he wouldn’t make it out alive.

I couldn’t let that happen.

Sometime near midnight, one of the men untied me roughly and dragged me up a steep, rocky path.

“What’s happening?” I asked but was left with no answer.

My legs shook from exhaustion, and the ropes burned against my wrists, but I didn’t fight. I knew it would only make it worse.

We entered a cave carved into the side of a hill. It was cold and damp, the air thick with the smell of stone and smoke.

Aemond was there, sitting by a small fire. The flickering light cast shadows across his scarred face, making him look even more fearsome. When the man dropped me on the ground, Aemond dismissed him with a nod.

And then, it was just the two of us.

The silence was unbearable. I sat there, my back pressed against the cave wall, staring at him. The fire crackled between us, and for a moment, I could almost believe he wasn’t the monster I thought he was. But then I remembered Celia, Morris, betrayal, death and that fragile thought shattered.

Finally, Aemond broke the silence.

“She wasn’t supposed to die,” he said quietly, his gaze fixed on the fire. “I loved her,” he continued, his voice low and heavy. “Celia. She wasn’t some prize to be won or Luna to be claimed. She was… light. And he dimmed it every day she was with him.”

“That’s not true,” I snapped, though a part of me wavered. “Morris loved her. Everyone knows that.”

He looked up at me then, and the sorrow in his eyes was real. Painfully real. “He loved the idea of her. The Luna, the symbol. But not her. Not the woman she was.”

“She came to me,” he said, his voice trembling slightly now. “She begged me to take her away. To help her escape that cage of royal duties and expectations. I tried to resist, gods know I did. But she was… irresistible.”

I shook my head, refusing to believe it. “You’re lying. Morris told me she left with you. That you—”

“That I betrayed him?” he cut in, his tone sharp. “Maybe I did. But not in the way he tells it. We fell in love, yes. He caught us, yes. He banished me and she decided to come with me. But did he tell you he had my family murdered out of rage?”

I stared at him, attempting to control my shock.

“Morris would never do that,” I said with certainty.

“You clearly don’t know your little beloved alpha. He knew he couldn’t banish my entire family, they were innocent of all crimes. They were law-abiding, peaceful. But he just couldn’t stand the sight of anything or anyone that would remind him of me. So he had them killed. And Celia? She wasn’t poisoned by me,” he said, his gaze burning into mine. “She was poisoned by them. The same people who serve Morris now. The same ones who smiled at her every day and called her Luna.”

A shiver crawled down my spine.

He leaned forward, his voice dropping to a whisper. “You think you’re safe in that palace, Sharon. But you’re not. You never were. And Morris… he doesn’t even realize who his real enemies are. But I do. I will burn that pack to the ground, even if it’s the last thing I do.”

The fire cracked loudly, serving as the only sound within the silent cave.

Aemond leaned back again, his face once more hidden in shadow. “Sleep,” he murmured. “You’ll need your strength for what comes next.”