Chapter 236 More Victims

Chapter 236 More Victims
Chapter 236

RAVENNA

I stared at Torren, certain I'd misheard him.

Then I laughed—a sharp, disbelieving sound that echoed in the small workspace.

"You're joking," I said, shaking my head. "You have to be joking about what you just told me."

Torren's expression remained grave, no hint of humour in his eyes.

"I'm dead serious," he replied.

He walked to a drawer on the far side of the room and pulled out an old leather-bound book.

The pages were yellowed with age, the spine cracked from years of use.

He flipped through several pages before stopping and pointing to a specific passage.

"Read this," he said, his finger marking the spot.

I leaned in, my eyes scanning the ancient text.

My stomach dropped as I read the words clearly.

"This is so bad," I whispered, my hands trembling. "I can't even picture having another mate aside from Darius. It's impossible."

Torren's jaw tightened. "And it's not possible to sever the bond or reject whoever you get mated to. You either accept him, or both you and your previous mate die."

The words hit me like a physical blow.

I stepped back, my chest constricting. "This is ridiculous. It doesn't make any sense."

"It's the only book I've found on this though," Torren said carefully.

He paused, then added, "I stole this book the day I went to the Council to give them your weekly performance report."

My eyes widened. "You stole it?"

Torren nodded. "I saw it hidden in a locked case on a high shelf. It was clearly meant to be kept secret—top tier information that only the Council was supposed to have access to."

He touched the book's cover gently. "Everything written here should be believable because of where I found it. After the last MoonWolf carrier was killed, all history about the bloodline was documented and then hidden away by the Council."

His voice grew quieter. "They had people spread false information so no one could have access to the original truth except them. If this book was hidden so carefully, then it documents everything they studied from the MoonWolf carriers."

I collapsed my face into my hands, willing myself to breathe.

This was worse than all the news I'd been hearing lately.

This wasn't funny at all.

I could literally wake up one day and my entire life would change—another man I didn't love getting mated to me, bearing his children, having a family with him alongside Darius, possibly living together.

The thought made me want to vomit.

"Don't bother too much about it," Torren said, though his voice lacked conviction. "It may or may not happen to you."

I nodded, but I couldn't keep my mind from spiralling.

Torren cleared his throat. "How has your wolf been these past few days? I need you to tell me how you've been feeling, and what Moonlight has been saying about everything."

I pulled a chair over and sat down heavily.

My body ached from the constant tension, from fighting my own wolf.

"When that woman attacked me and slapped me," I began, my voice shaking, "when I told her to calm down because her child would be found... Moonlight told me to let her kill the woman."

Torren's expression darkened, but he didn't interrupt.

"She said I should kill everyone there," I continued. "I refused. I told her it wasn't the right course of action. But Moonlight insisted she could take down every single one of those protesters even without the moon in sight."

I was quiet for a moment, remembering the bloodlust that had flooded through me.

"That's been Moonlight's response to everything since the protest started," I admitted. "Kill them. Destroy them. Make them pay."

Torren was silent for a long moment.

Then he said, "I'm glad you were able to control your instinct and not allow Moonlight to take over. But you need more practice."

He stood and moved to his workbench. "If Moonlight truly believes she could take down all of them without moon power, then she's stronger than we initially thought. Much stronger."

He began mixing something in a small vial. "I'm going to give you a couple of tonics. You must take them before you practice your control and instinct work."

I nodded numbly. "Alright."

I left with the guards a few minutes later, the vials tucked safely in my pocket.



Two days passed.

The protest hadn't dwindled at all—if anything, it had gotten worse.

More people, signs and hatred.

We had no peace of mind—just constant shouting, placards waving, accusations screaming.

I was in my room, exhausted from another brutal training session, when someone knocked on my door.

I opened it to see Sam standing there.

She squealed and immediately pulled me into a tight hug. "I'm so happy to see you!"

Then she pulled back and studied my face, her expression shifting to concern. "But you look like shit."

I managed a weak laugh. "I just finished practicing. I always end up thrashing with my wolf during training. That's why I look like this."

Sam nodded sympathetically and pulled me back into my room, closing the door behind us.

"How are you?" she asked, sitting on my bed. "And I mean really. How are you holding up?"

I sank into the chair by my desk. "Not fine. Honestly, I'm not fine at all."

Sam reached over and squeezed my hand. "I'm sorry. I wish I could help more."

"Where's Dorian?" I asked, desperate to change the subject.

"He left to go see Darius," Sam replied. "To help him with whatever he needs help with. Apparently, Darius has been swamped with pack duties."

I nodded, feeling a pang in my chest. "That's good. I miss him too. It's been so long since I saw him. He's so busy taking on the role of Alpha now."

Sam laughed softly. "He'll be fine. Darius is strong. He can handle it."



During evening dinner, the door to the dining room suddenly opened.

Darius and Dorian walked in.

My heart leapt.

I jumped up from my chair and ran to meet him.

Darius laughed and scooped me up into his arms, kissing me deeply.

He didn't care that my father was sitting right there at the table watching us.

"I've missed you so fucking much," he murmured against my lips.

"I've missed you too," I replied, my hands fisting in his shirt. "I was even thinking about you today."

Darius grinned, his eyes sparkling with mischief. "No wonder I was feeling uneasy all day. You were disturbing me with your thoughts."

I laughed, genuine joy flooding through me for the first time in days.

We walked to the table together, his arm still wrapped around my waist.

Darius greeted my father politely. "Good evening."

My father glared at him. "How dare you kiss my daughter in front of me like that?"

Darius had the grace to look sheepish. "I apologize. I'll leave your daughter alone for you to marry off to someone else."

My father's expression darkened. "Get out of my house."

Darius nodded seriously. "Okay then."

He turned to leave, and my heart dropped.

But then my father burst out laughing. "Come sit your ass down, boy. I'm not actually sending you away."

Darius grinned and returned to the table, pulling out a chair beside me.

Theodore joined us moments later, and we all began eating.

Theodore's expression was grave as he spoke. "The kidnapping situation at the academy has escalated horrifyingly."

Everyone stopped eating, attention focused on him.

"Five more students have gone missing," Theodore continued, his voice tight. "And each package that arrives is more gruesome than the last."

He paused, his jaw clenching. "Ears. Toes. Teeth. Eyes."

Sam made a small sound of distress.

"The families are destroyed," Theodore said quietly. "Their grief is transforming into rage. And they need a target."

He looked at me. "You're that target, Ravenna."

I shook my head, trying to swallow past the lump in my throat. "They'll survive. We'll find who's doing this."

But even as I said it, I didn't believe it.



A message arrived that night.

The Council was summoning me for questioning again.

Theodore discovered the following morning that the parents of the missing children had formed a coalition.

They'd hired lawyers and were demanding action from the Supernatural Council.

That's why I was being summoned.

This time, I wouldn't go alone.

Darius insisted on coming. So did Dorian, Sam, my father, Torren, Theodore, and some of our pack elders.

We arrived at the Council chamber the following afternoon.

The place was packed—grieving families filled the gallery, media representatives lined the walls, pack leaders and their representatives crowded the seats.

The atmosphere was hostile. Violent.

I could feel the hatred radiating from every direction.

One Councilman stood, his voice booming across the chamber. "Miss Ravenna. Fifteen students have been kidnapped and tortured since your bloodline was revealed to the supernatural community."

He paused, his eyes boring into mine. "Coincidence?"

My throat was tight, my voice barely working. "I had nothing to do with—"

"But they're suffering because of you!" a woman screamed from the gallery.

I turned to see a mother, her face twisted with grief and rage, standing and pointing at me.

"My son is being butchered because you exist!" she shrieked.

The chamber erupted.

Darius stood beside me, his voice passionate as he defended me. "Ravenna has done nothing wrong! She's being used as a scapegoat for crimes she didn't commit!"

But his voice was drowned out by the shouting.

Torren stood as well, his hands raised. "I have evidence that Ravenna isn't responsible! There's a larger conspiracy at work here!"

He presented documents, testimony, proof that the kidnappings were coordinated by someone with resources and planning.

But the Council didn't want evidence.

They wanted a scapegoat.

One elder stood, his face red. "I demand she be imprisoned for the safety of everyone!"

Another called out, "Banishment is the only solution!"

A third voice rose above the rest. "Execution! It's the only way to ensure no more children die!"

The room erupted into complete chaos—shouting, accusations, threats flying from every direction.

I sat silently in my chair, tears streaming down my face.

Every word against me felt justified.

Because they were right.

I was causing this.

Not directly though, I hadn't kidnapped anyone, hadn't hurt anyone but my existence was the catalyst.

Children were being tortured because of what I was.

Families were being destroyed because I breathed.

The head Councilman finally slammed his gavel down repeatedly, the sound echoing like gunshots.

"Order! ORDER!"

The chamber slowly quieted.

The head Councilman stood, his expression grave. "This Council will convene a formal tribunal to address these charges."

He looked directly at me. "Ravenna, you are officially charged with endangering the supernatural community through reckless existence."

The words hung in the air, damning and final.

"The trial begins in one week.”