Chapter 235 The Protest

Chapter 235 The Protest
Chapter 235

RAVENNA

I shook my head violently and dropped the letter back onto the desk.

My hands were trembling, but I forced my voice to stay steady. "This is not on me. You need to go find whoever is actually responsible for this."

I turned to leave, my legs shaky beneath me.

But I stopped at the door and looked back at the principal, anger burning through the fear.

"Don't call me here for this kind of matter again," I said, my voice hard. "Unless it's regarding an update on my suspension, don't waste my time."

I left before she could respond, my body visibly shaking with anger and fear.

How dare she accuse me of the disappearance of students who went missing under her watch? Under her protection?

This was her academy. Her responsibility.

And yet she was blaming me.

My footsteps echoed in the empty corridor as I made my way toward the exit, my vision blurred with unshed tears.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't notice someone calling my name until they were right in front of me.

"Ravenna!"

I turned to see Dorian and Sam rushing toward me.

Sam's face lit up when she saw me, and she immediately pulled me into a tight hug.

"How are you?" she asked, her voice muffled against my shoulder. "And how's Darius? We haven't seen him in days."

I managed a weak smile, hugging her back. "I'm fine. Darius is fine too. We've just been... dealing with things."

Dorian stepped closer, his expression serious. "Any update on your suspension status?"

I shook my head. "Nothing yet."

The weight of that truth settled heavily between us.

"I need to get back home," I said, pulling away from Sam gently. "There's something important I need to handle."

Sam's face fell. "I wanted to visit you, but we're on heavy curfew and lockdown now. Everyone's terrified."

Her voice dropped to a whisper. "Students keep disappearing, Raven. I don't want to be next."

The fear in her eyes made my chest ache.

I looked at Dorian. "You could use Darius as leverage to get out of the academy. He's Alpha heir. They'd have to let you leave if he requested it."

Dorian shook his head, frustration clear on his face. "Darius hasn't been taking my calls for days. I've tried reaching him multiple times."

"That's because we were out of pack territory these last few days," I explained. "He wasn't able to use his phone. But try him again now. He should answer."

Dorian nodded slowly. "I will."

I hugged them both quickly. "Take care of yourselves. Please."

"You too," Sam whispered.



I got back to the pack and immediately went to find my father.

He was in his office, going over some paperwork, but he looked up the moment I entered.

One look at my face and he was on his feet. "What happened?"

I narrated the entire episode—the principal calling me in, the severed ear, the note blaming me, the accusation.

By the time I finished, my father was furious.

His hands clenched into fists on his desk, his jaw tight. "That bastard. How dare she accuse you of something happening under her own roof?"

He stood abruptly. "I'm going to confront her right now."

I grabbed his arm, stopping him. "Don't bother with her. She's not worth your time or attention."

My father looked at me, conflict warring in his expression.

Finally, he sat back down, but the anger didn't leave his face. "This isn't right, Ravenna. None of this is right."

"I know," I said quietly.



I woke the next morning to noises outside the house.

Loud voices, shouting and the sound of footsteps on gravel.

I rubbed my eyes groggily and pulled on a t-shirt before stepping out of my room.

A maid passed me in the hallway, moving quickly.

I grabbed her hand. "What's going on?"

The maid's eyes were wide with fear. "There's some kind of protest happening outside. Your father is trying to chase them away, but it's just getting worse. It's getting hot out there."

"Thank you," I said, releasing her.

A protest?

I decided to check it out for myself.

When I stepped into the sitting room, Theodore was already at the window.

He saw me and immediately held up a hand. "Wait. Observe what's going on from here first."

I moved to the window and leaned forward.

Outside, there were about a dozen women with signs, shouting and demanding answers.

"FIND OUR CHILDREN!"

"WHERE ARE THE MISSING STUDENTS?"

"ANSWERS NOW!"

I turned to Theodore, confusion mixing with dread. "This is weird. Why would they come here to do this?"

Theodore shook his head. "I wish I knew. But I don't."



By evening, the crowd had grown to fifty people.

More noise, shouts and placards.

My father tried to pull me away from the window. "Ignore them. They'll leave eventually."

But I couldn't ignore them.

I stood there, watching as more and more people arrived.

By the next morning, there were hundreds: Students. Parents. Community members.

The signs they carried made my stomach turn:

"WITCH!"

"MURDERER!"

"LEAVE BEFORE MORE DIE!"

"MOONWOLF = DEATH!"

The pack guards had formed a barrier around the house, but the crowd was aggressive, angry, grieving.

They pressed against the line of guards, shouting accusations.

I was standing at the window, watching in horror, when someone threw a rock.

The window shattered.

Glass exploded inward, spraying across my feet.

I screamed and stumbled backward.

My father rushed in immediately, his face pale. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," I managed, though my hands were shaking violently.

He grabbed my arm. "Come. We're getting you away from the windows."

He escorted me to my room, but the protesters followed our movements.

They rounded the packhouse, surrounding it completely, their chanting growing louder.

"MURDERER! MURDERER! MURDERER!"

The sound echoed through the walls, relentless and terrifying.

The protest died down slightly by afternoon.

I needed to get to Torren's workplace—he'd sent word that he needed me urgently.

I told my father, and he immediately insisted guards accompany me.

"You're not going anywhere alone," he said firmly.

We left through the back door, trying to avoid the main crowd.

But someone spotted me.

"That's the witch!" a voice screamed.

Suddenly, dozens of people were rushing toward us.

The guards at the front of the house immediately formed a protective formation, trying to keep the crowd from breaking through.

But someone managed to slip past.

A woman—middle-aged, her face twisted with grief and rage.

She grabbed my shoulders before the guards could stop her.

"My daughter," she sobbed. "My daughter Ella was kidnapped because of you!"

I tried to stay calm, to not let my fear show. "She'll be fine. We'll find her—"

The woman's expression shifted from grief to fury.

"Are you really telling me that?" she screamed.

Then she slapped me hard across the face.

My head snapped to the side, pain exploding across my cheek.

The woman shook me violently. "My baby is being tortured because of YOU!"

The guards finally got hold of her, dragging her away.

But her words echoed in my mind as I stumbled toward Torren's workplace.

I burst through the door and shut it behind me, my chest heaving.

Torren looked up from his workbench. "Are you alright?"

"No," I gasped. "Moonlight feels like she should tear them apart. It's so hard controlling her in the face of danger."

My hands were shaking, my wolf clawing at the inside of my mind, demanding I fight back.

"The hatred is palpable," I continued, my voice breaking. "It's suffocating."

Torren moved closer, his expression concerned. "You need to stay strong. Don't let them see you break."

But I was crumbling inside because they were right.

These kidnappings were because of me.

Innocent children were suffering because I existed.

Torren sighed heavily. "I found something serious about your wolf. But I don't think now is the best time to tell you."

I looked at him sharply, desperate for any distraction from the chaos outside. "Tell me now."

Torren hesitated, then nodded. "I just discovered that the carrier of a MoonWolf has the ability to be mated to multiple mates."

I scoffed, certain I'd misheard. "I'm confused. What do you mean?"

Torren's expression was grave. "The Moon Goddess could decide one day that you need another mate. And she could mate you to someone else whilst you're still mated to Darius."