The Gentle Maiden and Five Lustful Brothers-Chapter 169: She’s off the rails

Violet was unhinged, and not in the deranged emotional way she was before. No, she was more calculating and organized with her plotting.

She wasn’t the same as she was two days ago. Something happened to Violet, and something changed her.

Yeah, she’s changed a lot since losing Odette, but this is on a whole different level.

While Violet was distracted, Ash shot his brothers a knowing look. They all understood what he meant. He wanted to talk, privately.

Violet acted like she didn’t notice their shift, but she did.

This was the moment Violet first questioned if she could trust her own.

Ash was worried, her shift was too fast too sudden, too clean.

He got a clear look at his wife, and she had changed so much since last night.

She looked up to him and smiled.

But it was all wrong. It stretched too wide, and her teeth had sharpened, her fangs were longer. Her eyes flashed between round and slitted pupils.

Who was this woman?

"I am your wife." She spoke, sounding normal again. He didn’t used to be bothered by her knowing his thoughts, but now it left this feeling of exposure and vulnerability, and he didn’t like it.

Knowing how her ability works, he focused his feelings on how he loved her, kept his thoughts on Odette coming home and hating wolves.

Which seemed to pacify her, for now.

The crowd cheered and hollered for Violet’s proposal. They seemed enchanted by her, thrilled by the words she spoke. They saw her as a beacon of strength and power. They felt a new connection to her. Drawn to her, the need to follow her.

And so did the creature.

The monster she made was getting restless, Violet could feel it. She couldn’t explain how, but she knew.

"I have a creature to feed." She said loudly.

"Who would volunteer to help?" She smiled wickedly.

Violet sent a vampire to kidnap a human that was wondering the streets, any human, she wasn’t afraid of upsetting the mortals anymore, not when she planned to end as many as she could.

She tilted her head up to Ash and pushed her lips, asking for a kiss. Ash bent over and obliged, his growing fear for her only made him treasure her affectionate moments all the more.

While Violet was busy, Ash took this chance to talk privately with his family.

Heading to the war tent to meet with them and discuss Violet’s recent change.

When Ash entered the war tent, he saw everyone sitting around the table talking about Violet’s plan.

"She can’t be serious. And since when can she even make vampires, let alone Turned?" Asked Gabriel.

"I don’t know but that thing freaked me out." Said Oliver, talking about the turned.

"Honestly, I don’t know which looked scarier, Violet or the thing she dragged with her." Rosa added.

"She’s off the rails. I don’t know what to do." Ash’s usual cold and indifferent tone was replaced by something desperate and dire.

"She can’t create an army of the Turned." Lilith looked afraid. Afraid in a way none of them had ever seen.

But that’s because Lilith recognized that energy, she knew that aura. Her memory was foggy when she tried to recollect it, but she knew it, and it put fear in her bones.

Vlad remembered this feeling, the feeling he got when he was near that thing. It made his insides turn upside down and twist into knots. He was also locked out of the memory. He couldn’t place what he recognized about seeing it, but it was right there, he was on the cusp but couldn’t break free of the clouds blurring the memory.

"What’s with those faces?" Jeremy asked, he knew they were hiding something, and now wasn’t the time for secrets.

"I know that aura from somewhere, and it’s not Violet’s. It’s something far more sinister. Something that makes even me afraid." Lilith confessed "But I can’t seem to remember from where or who, it’s like a fog is sitting right over the memory. But I feel it in my bones, and my instincts never lie." 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"It’s similar for me, especially with the beast, it’s like I have this fear of them. One that’s too strong for an enemy I’ve never faced." Vlad admitted to his family, stacking on Lilith, his mother, had to say.

"We need to unlock those memories." Ash had no patience at this point, he needed answers, and he needed them yesterday.

"Yeah, but how? We don’t have a witch; in case you forgot. She abandoned us." Jeremy said bitterly.

"They’re following the will of the goddess, the very one that blessed us with Odette. Shouldn’t we follow their lead on this?" Oliver chimed in, making a valid point.

"I can’t just leave my daughter to suffer, I have to know she’s okay. I need to see her. You can’t expect me to just give up fighting to get her back?" Ash had a bit of anger sitting below the surface of his words.

Everyone looked around at each other before settling their eyes on Ash.

"I don’t know Ash, the goddess, herself, even said Odette’s where she should be right now and she has someone to protect her, she’s not alone." Rosa was using reason to try and get Ash on their side.

They wanted to pull out, work with the witches and find a way to unlock these memories.

"No, I won’t leave my wife to do this alone. You guys can abandon her, us, but I won’t." Ash wasn’t budging. He spoke with a finality that left no room for questioning or negotiating.

"Are you willing to step down? If you follow Violet, you are choosing family over duty." Vlad wouldn’t let his people struggle if he could help it.

They weren’t giving up, they were just going to try and go about it in a different way.

"Yes, I would step away, temporarily, leaving someone of MY choosing to steward the throne while I take back our princess, my daughter." Ash wasn’t concerned, he knew his brothers didn’t want the throne, they wanted to keep living their lives free of the burden of governing an entire species.

"Who would be your choice." Vlad asked.

"I would need time to think. And I need to talk to Violet about it." Ash wouldn’t make such an important decision without her. He remembered how he felt when she made the decision to bind their daughter without him.

"Don’t take too long." Vlad said.

"I’ll be back; there’s someone I need to speak with. They might have some answers." Lilith said interrupting their conversation.

"Who?" the group asked in almost perfect unison.

"Not who. But what."

They exchanged baffled looks.

"I need to speak with the Leviathan."