The Transformed Box Set: Books 1, 2, 3, 3.5

by Stacy Claflin

  I wanted to tell him everything, but all I could say was, "Rekur is resting."

  Cliff looked thoroughly confused. "You're mad because that arrogant European is resting?"

  "You think he's arrogant?" I thought he'd had everyone fooled.

  "He tries to cover it up, but I can see right through him. He thinks he's God's gift to the world."

  I tried to agree with Cliff, but it was futile. "He's resting," I said, wanting to slap myself.

  "Were you looking for me?" Cliff asked.

  It was my turned to be confused. "No, I thought you were out running an errand. Why?"

  "Oh, right. You probably forgot that my room is down this hallway, you haven't been to my room since you were a child. This wing is so rarely used. It's nice to have the privacy at times, though it would be nice to be in a more central location."

  "This is your wing?" I asked. Suddenly, I knew how I was going to get back at Alrekur. Fueled by my bitterness and rage, rather than my passion for Cliff, I asked him, "Where's your room? I want to see it."

  He smiled lovingly and led me down the hallway, unaware of the violence simmering inside of me. He opened a door and we entered a room that was as big as mine. It was painted in various shades of brown and filled with elegant, luxurious furniture, including a massive bed, which was even larger than a king-sized bed.

  "You say this wing is pretty secluded?" I asked.

  "Very. The only ones who go this way are headed for the dungeon—and that doesn't happen often at all."

  I closed his door behind us.

  "Do you like my room?" he asked with a sweet smile.

  I couldn't look at him so kind and caring while I was filled with enough angst to murder. I looked at the other side of the room and said, "It's gorgeous."

  "It pales in comparison to you, though," he said, wrapping his arms around my waist. His touch started to soothe me, even through my clothes, but I didn't want to be calmed down.

  I turned around, grabbed his shoulders and threw him clear across the room. He landed on his bed and gave me a confused look, almost wounded. I moved quickly to his side and sat down next to him. "I didn't mean to startle you."

  He recovered quickly and smiled again. "It's okay. I should know to expect the unexpected when it comes to you." He looked too sexy sitting on the bed right next to me.

  I should have been thinking about my love and desire for him—but all I could see were images of Alrekur killing Tanner and running off with his dead body.

  "You don't want me to touch you?" he asked gently.

  "That's not it. Not at all." I still couldn't look at him. I knew that I shouldn't be in his room, at least not while I was feeling this way. My anger was pushing me to do the one thing that would make Alrekur pay for what he'd done. Something I should only do because of my love and devotion to Cliff.

  He put his hand on my arm. "What's bothering you, my princess?"

  My heart softened just a little and I closed my eyes and forced my lips onto his. I couldn't help but notice the lack of electricity, although I didn't let it bother me. Electricity meant nothing when it came from a murderous, controlling jerk. I pressed harder against Cliff's lips and he pulled me close, running his fingers down my back, giving me the chills.

  He opened his mouth a little and put his hands gently on my face.

  I pulled back and ripped his shirt off in one quick motion, throwing it to the ground. He looked shocked but I barely noticed because I couldn't take my eyes off of his perfectly defined torso. He grabbed me around my waist, pushing me off the bed. He rushed me to a large, soft sofa chair and pushed me down onto it, pressing his lips on mine.

  I breathed his scent in deeply, grabbed his hair and kissed him back with force. Sitting so close to him with his shirt off made me want him more than I ever had before. I forgot about everyone else except Cliff, and my desire for revenge was gone.

  He pulled me up again and I pushed myself against him with too much force. We flew across the room together and crashed into a shelf, smashing it and everything on it to pieces. He grabbed my hair and ran his hands through the length of it. He started kissing me along my neck, then biting into it.

  "This is the best blood that I've tasted," he whispered into my ear. He bit into it and then bit my neck again in several different places.

  "I told you there's nothing like the fresh stuff," I whispered into his ear and watched the goose bumps form on his neck. I let him drink a little more before I jumped to the ceiling and gave him a look daring him to join me.

  He smiled before jumping up and clinging to the ceiling, pinning me in place. He drank some of my blood from my neck and then when he stopped, I threw him down onto the floor and rushed him across the room again and we landed back on the bed. I bit into his neck, closed my eyes and drank his cool blood.

  I let go of all inhibition.

  TWENTY NINE

  I woke up feeling a breeze. Without opening my eyes, I pulled one of the blankets up to my chin. I breathed in deeply and the blanket smelled like Cliff. I opened my eyes wide and saw Cliff lying next to me, sleeping beautifully.

  Everything came flooding back to me.

  Guilt washed over me. I had used my true love to get back at Alrekur. We had decided to wait until we were married. We had wanted it to be special, but I had cheapened the whole thing and I couldn't take it back.

  I looked back over at Cliff, gorgeous and sleeping so peacefully.

  Remorse ate at me. I had betrayed him. I was no different than my parents, or even his.

  He stirred and I ran from the bed, grabbing my clothes and putting them on silently and at lightning speed. I ran to my room, ignoring everyone in my path. I locked my door and climbed into bed, pulling the covers over my head.

  Who was I turning into? I didn't like this person. I wanted to hide from myself, but I knew that wasn't possible. Cliff and I had the best thing going, and part of what had made that so special was the fact that we had been waiting until after our wedding. It had actually helped to keep the passion going strong. I knew how much I'd wanted him, but that he was also worth the wait.

  At first, it had been all his idea because of the way that he had been raised. But then I discovered that it really added a special element to our relationship. It had stood out between the two relationships: Tanner and I had made out a lot, but Cliff and I, for a while anyway, barely even kissed.

  Then I had to go and ruin it. I had used the one that I loved. I'd used him. The guilt was overwhelming. How could I have done this to him? Yes, he'd gone along with me, but he hadn't known my motives—that I had been driven by my hatred of Alrekur.

  I pulled the pillow over my head to hide further from the world. Tears started flowing until at long last, I fell asleep.

  When I woke up, I didn't feel any better. The guilt came flooding back. I couldn't pull myself out of bed. I stayed there for a long time. I didn't eat or do anything. I was prepared for another hibernation. I didn't want to face anyone, much less myself. The last thing that I wanted was to catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror.

  I thought that I deserved to be with Alrekur, since he was such a cruel and selfish person. Tanner was dead because of me. I had tried to cut him off romantically, but I'd been too selfish to give him the space that I should have. I'd still wanted him in a way, and because of that, I'd hurt him—that's why he'd acted the way that he did, getting together with Hailey and Emma. I'd had it coming. If I wouldn't have been so selfish, he'd probably still be alive. He'd probably still hate me, but at least he'd be alive. It was all my fault.

  New tears poured down my face. He'd died twice at the hands of evil vampires because of me. If I could ever find him, I would bring him back. But how likely was that, really? If Alrekur had hidden Tanner's body like he said he was going to, it would take a thousand years to find him. I threw my face into the pillow and sobbed heart-wrenching tears until my body hurt.

  I lay in bed silently, begging for a sleep that wouldn't come.
I wanted to hide from all the pain, to disappear. If I were lucky, maybe Alrekur would kill me, too.

  At one point, there was a knock on my door. I ignored it.

  "Princess, your parents haven't seen you in a while. Are you okay?" asked a voice from the other side.

  "I'm fine!" I lied.

  "Will you come to dinner?"

  "No, I'm going to rest."

  More time passed. I tossed and turned, still unable to sleep. My only company was my regret. Not even Cliff or Alrekur had called for me. I had never felt more alone. I swore to myself that if I ever pulled through this, I would take control of my emotions and stop acting selfishly. That's what brought the most pain—to myself and to those that I loved.

  The room grew dark as the sun disappeared and then it got light again. I could hear many voices in the hallways; the castle was bustling. Yet I was still able to wallow in my misery, alone.

  There was another knock at the door.

  "Alexis, are you in there?" asked Cliff.

  I didn't say anything.

  "I think we need to talk."

  I pulled the covers over my head and waited for him to leave. After a couple minutes of silence, I felt something brush against my hand, which was still holding onto the outside of the blanket. I peeked out of the cover and saw Cliff standing next to my bed. What was the use of locks on the door in a castle full of vampires who could go through walls? I brought the covers over my eyes. Maybe he would go away.

  He stroked the top of my head. "Are you okay?"

  I couldn't face him; his kindness was going to kill me. If I was lucky.

  He kissed the top of my head, held my hand and said, "I'm really sorry that you're feeling bad. Let's talk about this."

  I shook my head. "There's nothing to talk about."

  He pulled the covers down below my face and looked in my eyes. "The fact that you're hiding tells me that there's plenty to talk about. Have you been here since you left my room?"

  I closed my eyes and pulled the blankets up.

  He grabbed them and threw them off of me. "You're still wearing the same clothes? Have you been in this bed for two days?" he exclaimed.

  I sat up. "Does it matter?"

  "Of course it matters! You matter. Why are you hiding?"

  I looked down.

  He sighed. "I thought you might be embarrassed or afraid things had changed, so I was trying to give you the space that I thought you needed. What's really going on here?"

  "I took advantage of you!"

  He smiled. "Don't you realize that I'm a very strong vampire? I could have, at any moment, pushed you away. I could've said that we needed to keep our agreement to preserve our relationship. I do regret that we didn't wait, my princess. But, I don't regret you. We can still make the decision to stay pure from this moment forward."

  I shook my head. "It's not like that," I said. I didn't want to admit what my true motives had been.

  He took my chin in his hand. "Alexis, our love for each other is real. Nothing can change that. We're destined to rule the kingdom for many centuries together."

  Tears streamed down my face. "I wanted to be able to keep you. I only want you."

  He wiped my tears away. "I know you do. I have no doubt about that."

  "You don't understand."

  "Help me understand."

  "I can't. I wish I could, but I can't."

  "Why not?"

  "He's—" I stopped myself before saying that Alrekur was resting. "I can't tell you. I've been mind controlled."

  "What? How? That's not possible, royals can't—"

  "We can when dealing with a much stronger vampire."

  "There's no vampire stronger than a royal one. What are you talking about, Alexis?"

  I threw myself into his chest and started sobbing. He wrapped his arms around me and stroked my hair as my body shook uncontrollably. "Whatever's wrong, I want you to know that I'm not going to abandon you again. I'm here for you."

  Someone started banging on my door. "Open this door!" Francine shouted. "I have a master key to this wing!"

  I sighed as I heard a key slide into the lock and twist around.

  Francine came into my room. She looked at me in disgust. "Of course I would find you two in here together. You just want to defile my son."

  Had I been in a different mood, I would've gladly told her that I'd already defiled him.

  "Mother!" Cliff exclaimed. "Do not speak to my fiancee that way!"

  "Do you have a reason for being in here?" I asked. "Because you're not welcome."

  "Trust me; this is the last place that I want to be. But your parents have a huge announcement to make now that all the leaders have arrived. Everyone is required in the southeast banquet hall in one hour. You really should freshen up." She said, scowling at me and then she turned to Cliff. "I don't know how you can stand to even look at her like this, much less hold her."

  "Mother, you can leave now. If you can't speak nicely to the woman that I love, then you may not speak to either of us at all."

  Her mouth gaped open. "You will not talk to me like that, son."

  "Then you will not talk to her like that!"

  Francine stormed out of the room, slamming the door.

  "I have no idea how you ended up so wonderful with her for a mother," I muttered.

  He kissed my nose. "She wasn't always like that. Or else I'm only now seeing it. I'll let you get ready, my princess. Would you like me to escort you to the banquet hall in an hour?"

  I nodded. "I think their announcement is going to answer a lot of your questions."

  "What do you mean?" he asked, looking deep into my eyes. "Wait a minute." He pulled my hair back behind my shoulder. "Your mark—it reappeared! How did that happen? What's going on? Your parents promised us that they wouldn't lift the hiding spell from it until our wedding."

  I looked down. "It came back on its own when we were in Europe."

  "Have you been hiding it all of this time?" he asked, eyes blazing.

  "My parents wouldn't let me tell anyone. I'm sorry!" Tears began streaming down my face again.

  His face softened. "I'm sorry for getting angry. We really do have a lot to discuss. You get ready, my love, and I'll be back in just under an hour." He kissed my hand and disappeared from my room.

  Somehow, I managed to get ready and look like a princess instead of a depressed teenager.

  When Cliff came back, he let out a low whistle. "You get better looking every time I see you."

  We walked in together, arm in arm. The large banquet hall was buzzing with conversation from all of the world's vampire leaders. I looked around in awe; I'd never seen so much beauty in one room. Many greeted us, and we were pulled in different directions.

  My parents called for everyone to take their seats and everyone sat down in the rows of seats. My parents motioned for me and we stood on a small platform in the front of the room. Cliff, his parents, Alrekur, Darek, and Raine sat in the front row with some others that I didn't recognize. I could see on Francine's face that she was angry about not knowing what the announcement would be. She was going to be a lot angrier after she found out.

  I made eye contact with Cliff. I love you. I only want you. Don't forget that.

  He smiled at me and turned to talk to someone behind him who had just tapped his shoulder. I said a silent prayer that he would still love me despite the prophecy that was about to be revealed to everyone. I was so nervous about how he was going to react that my mouth and throat went dry.

  My father called for everyone's attention again and they gave it to him. "Thank you all for traveling here. I know that for many, it was a sacrifice. We do appreciate your dedication to us and to the kingdom. It's good to see you all. For those of you who weren't able to make it to the battle against the Moretti's, I want to introduce you to our long-lost daughter, Marguerite Alexis Westerfield. As you all know, the Moretti's tried to have her murdered when she was three. Three years later, we were informed that s
he had not been killed, but was actually hidden amongst the humans. She was raised as one, without the knowledge of being a vampire. We kept her with them for her safety. We couldn't be happier to have her back with us now."

  A hush came over the crowd.

  "We made the decision to keep her with the humans while we searched for the Moretti's. We sent trusted servants to keep watch over her. Word leaked out that she was alive when she began her transition not too long ago because many could sense her presence. The Moretti's went after her and she, with the help of some of you, defeated them. After that, we were finally reunited after too many years of separation. She returned to her human family for a short time and then about a month ago, we brought her to Europe with us. We shared with her what we're about to share with you. We have exciting news that will change our world for the better."

  Chatter ran through the crowd. Cliff made eye contact with me; he looked concerned.

  I love you, only you. I only want you. I hoped that he would believe me after the announcement.

  My father put his hands up to regain everyone's attention. "As you know, the queen and I have been traveling through Europe for many years. We've been on a mission that up until now has needed to be kept secret due to an ancient curse placed upon the first line. The curse has been lifted and now we are excited to share the news with all of you, and to enlist your help. My queen, would you like to reveal our news?"

  My mother's eyes sparkled. "Thank you, I would. Fellow leaders, we are excited to announce that we are in the process of awakening all of the members of the Fyrsturae and bringing them to their rightful place of leadership in our kingdom."

  The crowd began talking was so loudly that I wanted to cover my ears. There wasn't a calm face to be seen. I looked at Francine, who appeared ready to break into battle right then.

  My father held up his hands. "Please. Hear the rest of what we have to say."

  When the room was quiet again, my mother continued to speak. "We have finally recovered Alrekur Vidarsson, after centuries of searching. He was well hidden and only our daughter, the Sonnast, was able to remove the stake from his heart."