Defy The Alpha(s)-Chapter 808: Destroy The Palace Again

Asher focused on teaching her to steady her emotions, block out distractions, and maintain perfect control. Although he did not pull the stunt from earlier again, Violet found herself far more conscious of his instructions and sensitive to every correction he gave.

Asher Nightingale Nightshade might be sweet with her, but when it came to training, he was scary as hell. It was almost as if he became a completely different person. If it were not for the small moments in between when he softened slightly, Violet might have believed she was dealing with a stranger entirely. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

They trained until noon, until her muscles ached and her magical reserves were pushed to a limit she had never reached before.

And for the first time, Violet realized her power was not the dangerous part, losing control of it was.

Exhausted, she began to trudge back toward their quarters, but Griffin, out of nowhere, carried her into his arms. Violet nearly screamed. That had been sudden.

"You don’t need to." She wriggled in his arms. Wasn’t the whole point of the training to return to the palace looking badass?

Apparently, that didn’t matter to her mates.

"Baby Violet," Roman teased, pinching her cheeks. Unsurprisingly, her cheek was soft, still possessing a bit of her baby fat.

So adorable.

Violet playfully glowered at him. Nonetheless, she leaned further into Griffin and took a deep breath. That familiar warm blend of sun-soaked woods and deep amber, brightened by fresh citrus and spice, filtered into her nose.

Violet breathed it in deeper, filling her lungs with it until Thalia expressed her own satisfaction with a low growl that reverberated through Griffin.

Griffin halted immediately.

Those beautiful warm eyes fell down on her, then narrowed, and finally darkened.

Violet saw the moment his wolf flashed through his eyes, and Thalia perked up inside of her, eager to meet her mate.

"Okay..." Roman, who had stopped walking as well, patted Griffin on the back. "Unless we all agree to outdoor sex to assist Violet in her training, I’d say we make a move."

That roused Griffin from whatever trance he and Violet had been caught in. Their faces were so close they could kiss right now.

"Yeah, that was a close one," Alaric pointed out, scratching the back of his nape, redness spreading up his neck. He had felt it through the bond, and right now all the blood in his body had rushed to a certain area.

A blush crept up Violet’s cheeks and she cleared her throat.

"Maybe I should walk instead."

The instant Violet tried to move, Griffin growled a warning.

His eyes were glowing.

It was his wolf.

She couldn’t get off. His wolf needed this.

So she relaxed back into his embrace.

Even with his eyes still glowing, Griffin walked on, showing he was still in control. Although his beast was trying to tear through.

Mine.

It roared in his head.

Ours.

Griffin roared back mentally.

If the beast was going to be an insufferable bastard, then it needed to remember that.

No one noticed Asher falling behind them, quietly watching their backs. He understood the joke well enough, but he couldn’t feel it the way they did. It was small moments like this that reminded him he was still standing outside the bond they all shared.

Together they entered the palace. Except the moment they stepped through the entrance, all eyes turned to them.

It felt exactly like those cinematic scenes in movies where the main character and her crew walk in with that effortless, badass energy. Everything plays out in slow motion while everyone else just stares, unable to look away.

Except this time it was Violet and her four mates. And true to the movies, no one could take their eyes off them. After all, it wasn’t every day someone was mated to four different males.

They continued walking with that same haughty air until Violet suddenly asked, "Urm... guys, what’s going on?"

She could feel the sudden swagger in Griffin’s step even while he carried her.

And she had just witnessed Roman run a hand through his hair and fluff it slightly.

A Fae nearby nearly fainted.

Alaric casually tugged at his jacket with a cool, practiced motion, as though he had been born for dramatic entrances.

As for Asher, he had that tall, dark, and dangerously handsome look going on. The kind that said I will destroy you with a single smoldering glance.

Violet felt like she had stepped into a movie. And somehow she had ended up playing the—unfortunate—rescued damsel.

Roman whispered so quietly it could have been mistaken for breathing.

"Don’t worry. Just go with the flow."

Apart from the slight crease that briefly appeared between her brows, Violet didn’t respond. Instead, she slipped into the role perfectly.

She began batting those long lashes at anyone who dared look their way, then leaned comfortably against Griffin’s broad chest as if to say yes, this is exactly where I belong. Comfy as a pillow.

It didn’t help that the palace was buzzing with activities with the whole re-construction going on in the palace. Some Fae hovered effortlessly several feet above the ground, working.

Broken pillars floated upright as runes stitched the fractures back together. Shards of marble drifted through the air like obedient birds returning to their nest. It was a delicate process that required focus — until Violet and her mates stepped in. And that was when eveything went wrong.

One Fae hovering near the ceiling lost concentration and the chunk of marble he had been guiding dropped two inches.

A second Fae gasped.

"Hold the line!"

But it was too late with half the Fae distracted.

The sudden shift disrupted the magical alignment holding the broken column together and the pieces slid apart.

As the column lurched sideways, the Fae holding the lower half panicked and shoved more magic into the spell. Which was exactly the wrong thing to do.

The lower half shot upward like it had been fired from a cannon. Three hovering Fae scattered as it soared past them and slammed into a floating ring of marble tiles being guided into place along the ceiling.

The tiles exploded outward and one of them struck another worker in the shoulder.

"Ow!"

The Fae’s spell flickered and which meant the decorative archway he had been repairing suddenly lost its support. The archway snagged.

A wave of magic rippled through the room as several Fae scrambled to catch it. Unfortunately their spells collided and the archway spun.

A stunned silence filled the hall as a massive marble arch slowly rotated in midair like a confused carousel.

Roman blinked.

"I think we just broke something."

Nearby, a group of Fae repairing a crystal chandelier had turned to stare at the commotion. Which meant the chandelier was no longer being stabilized.

It began drifting sideways and directly into a cluster of floating wall fragments. The fragments shattered. Like a domino effect, it was one destruction onto the other.

Alaric stared at the scene, dumbfounded.

"Why does this feel like our fault?"

Violet quickly told Griffin, "Quick. Let’s get out of here."

Like that, they took off while the Fae workers tried to stabilize the whole thing.

Behind them someone finally shouted the obvious.

"STOP STARING AT THE PRINCESS AND FIX THE CEILING!"

Yep, it was definitely their fault.

Griffin still carried Violet in his arms while Roman and Alaric hurried beside them, and even Asher picked up his pace behind them. The moment they slipped inside their room, Asher shut the door behind them.

For a heartbeat, there was silence. Then they all burst into laughter.

Violet dropped her face into her hands, laughing so hard her shoulders shook.

"Oh my gods," she gasped between breaths. "My mother is going to kill me."

Roman wiped at the corner of his eye dramatically. "Hey, that’s not our fault," he said, straightening his shirt. "We’re just damn irresistible."

Griffin snorted. "Tell that to the royal purse. Half the palace just collapsed again because you couldn’t stop preening."

"Excuse you," Roman said indignantly. "I was not preening. I was enhancing the moment."

That only made Alaric laugh harder. And then, a different sound joined them.

It was Asher laughing. Not the small amused huff they sometimes got from him.

No. He was actually laughing hard enough that tears slipped from the corners of his eyes.

The room went quiet as everyone stared at him.

Asher eventually noticed the attention and cleared his throat, wiping at his eyes.

"What?" He gave them pointed looks.

No one said anything but the look they all shared spoke volumes. It was good to see Asher like this. Relaxed and happy.

Violet smiled before clapping her hands once.

"Alright," she announced. "I’m going to bathe."

Roman’s mouth opened immediately but Violet pointed a finger at him.

"Not happening, Roman."

He closed his mouth with a grin. "As you wish, my lady."

Violet shook her head, then hurried into the bathroom before he came up with another antics.

Steam quickly filled the room as she washed away the sweat and grime from training. The hot water helped her relax and by the time she finished, she felt normal again.

As she stepped out, toweling her hair, her stomach growled loudly. Violet grimaced. She was so hungry she could eat an entire cow.

She walked back into the room, fully intending to demand food from the guys.

But the words died in her throat because someone else was standing there.

Lila.

Violet’s steps faltered.

Lila’s expression was hard to read.

"The queen wishes to see you," she said.

Then her gaze shifted to the others.

"All of you."

"Shit," Violet muttered.

They were in real trouble this time.