Chapter 276: Not an exaggeration.
It took a while to calm everyone down. Sienna finally faced the king and queen, her voice was cracked by now. She lowered the folder, her hands trembling. The crowd was quiet, every eye fixed on her.
’These are only the first pages," she said, her voice sharp but low. "There are one hundred and eighty names in this folder. Children beaten, mocked, broken. Victims of Danny and his group over a period of thirteen years. Many were forced to drop out. Many silenced. In some cases, when the parents tried to fight, they lost jobs or houses. They were beaten up or threatened. They were silenced."
Gasps rippled through the crowd. The queen’s hand was on her mouth, her eyes wide with horror. The king’s jaw was tight, his knuckles white against the chair.
"How did this incidents not to make it to the headmaster?" The king asked. "How did they stay totally buried? Didn’t any incident make it to BeastNet? How did I not know about these matters?"
Secretary Mika bowed respectfully, "Fear, Your Highness. Danny didn’t target anyone out in the open. He and his friends picked isolated corners, acted in the dark and picked weak students. They didn’t target strong beast men. The human girls he preyed on were scholarship students from poor families.
The head of the discipline board only kept these records for blackmail purposes. We can guess from this that he was being paid off by the Risser’s. He was the only one that handled most of these incidents in person and he buried them."
The queen leaned forward. "So, Danny committed a crime and informed the head of the discipline board who would clean up after him before the news was leaked."
A male teacher rose eagerly. "Yes, your Highness, that is exactly what happened. I handled some of those transfers and I can testify that the expulsions were handled by Mr. Costner."
Another teacher rose and added, "All we were required to was turn in academic records of the students who were leaving the school. Mr. Costner did not allow us to ask unnecessary questions."
The headmaster also rose to defend himself. "The school discipline board is an independent organization in the school. To ensure neutrality, it was decided when the academy was started that the headmaster does not get involved unless a student or the head of the discipline board makes an in person request.
This was to prevent parents from bribing the headmaster into taking sides. In fact, the members of the discipline board are changed every year to maintain fairness. Only the head remains the same. Nobody has ever made a request in all the incidents Lady Sienna read out.
When I conduct inspections, everyone smiles and gives positive reports. If I had known that I had a predator on school grounds, I would have expelled him immediately and notified the enforcers and fox lord. For crying out loud, I have a thirteen year old human daughter who attends the academy! I am also a parent. Would I put my own daughter in a dangerous environment if I knew what was going on?"
Sienna’s fury ignited anew. She turned toward the headmaster and teachers and the parents of the bullies. "It was your duty to know. You spend time with these students and I refuse to believe that you don’t see their pain and fear. You don’t notice when they change. You don’t check on them when they are expelled or suddenly transferred.
You all knew Danny Risser was a bully. Even if you didn’t know he was a predator, you knew he was a bad seed. If you were scared of his grandfather, then the least you could have done was kept a closer eye on him and shared your discoveries or worries with the fox lord. The academy is in this city, so my husband and I have authority over it.
We met some of you here on the day we took a tour of the academy. The queen was with us. Any of you teachers could have pulled one of us aside, slipped us a paper or done something to let us know that we should look out for Danny Risser.
Instead, you weighed the circumstances and decided which way to go on who has more power. My husband is the Lord of one tribe and I am human, while the Prime Envoy is an envoy of the whole kingdom, of all tribes. You figured he had more power so you closed your eyes and ears when he targeted my brother and cousins."
The Prime Envoy sputtered, his belly shaking. "Exaggerations! Lies! Children quarrel, they exaggerate. Teenagers engage in sexual relations---"
Sienna cut him off, her voice like a blade. "Exaggerations? Tell that to Sophia Ward who became a mother to a baby panda at the age of sixteen! Like me, her child was born with the ability to change into its full form from day one. If we do a DNA test on the child, I am sure it will come back a perfect match to Danny." She threw the folder on the ground. "Timothy has done a great job in such a short time. He found the hospital records very quickly and included them."
Shock rose like steam from a pipe. Whispers traveled faster than sound. Questions were asked, answers were not given. Nobody could have fathomed that things would get this far.
Timothy pitched in from the back, where he was typing seriously into a notebook. "I am still receiving information on the victims as you speak, Lady Sienna. Sophia Ward run away from home when she was found to be pregnant. She now works as a nail technician in Houndfang city to support herself and the child."
Sienna growled. "Your grandson ruined many children’s lives. Do you think that if we track them down and make them stand here, they will agree that it was exaggeration? Did Sophia want to give up her dream of aircraft pilot to be a teenage mother decorating people’s nails to put food on her table?"
People bristled. Some trembled with rage. Mrs. Miller clutched grandma Jess’s sleeve, her eyes wide with tears.
"One hundred eighty nine names. And you dare call it an exaggeration?" Sienna growled.
The Prime Envoy faltered, his new bravado cracking. Sweat dripped down his neck, his eyes darting to the queen and king.
"This is not just about bullying or corruption." Sienna declared. "This is about rot. How can an empire turn its back on its weakest children? Are human girls really beast meat?"
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