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

by Stacy Claflin

  "Was it good?" Mr. Foley asked.

  "I was thirstier than I realized. Thank you."

  "Does this mean that you accept my apology?"

  "Definitely," I said, looking at him, trying to figure out why he would go to all the trouble. It wasn't as though blood was something that everyone kept lying around. He had to have gotten it before the meeting. I looked back up at him curiously.

  Our gazes locked and I couldn't let go. I stared into his eyes from across the room and felt an attraction. I couldn't believe that I had felt that and I looked down at the papers, wanting to smack myself. What a fool I was. He was a teacher, not only that, but a werewolf teacher. He was a werewolf leader and I was a vampire leader.

  How could I be such an idiot? Aside from that, I was madly in love with Cliff. Right? Not that he had even made one attempt to find me. He hadn't called, emailed, or anything. He knew where to find me—if he had wanted to. Obviously, he didn't. That had to be why I had let myself feel that momentary attraction to Mr. Foley. That and the blood which he had been nice enough to give me. It had to be the blood.

  I looked back up at his desk. He smiled at me. If I'd had the ability to blush, my face would have been on fire. He probably would have laughed at me if he had known what I had felt moments before. What was wrong with me?

  Eight

  "Have you been avoiding me?"

  I slammed my locker shut, and turned around to see Amanda staring at me without her glasses on.

  "Did you get contacts already? You look fabulous."

  She smiled. "Do you really think so? Everyone has—" her face clouded over "—don't try to change the subject with me. You've been avoiding me. Why? What's going on? What happened the other night?"

  I sighed. I was still feeling on edge about my interaction with Mr. Foley. I couldn't shake the feeling of being the world's biggest idiot.

  "Are you okay?" she asked.

  "Not really," I said, vowing to keep my feelings to myself.

  "Is it really a memory loss?"

  "Yes. I can't remember anything from Thanksgiving. I don't remember shopping or anything. Then I blocked out my family's trip to the tree farm too."

  "What's the deal with all your forgetting? I've never actually met anyone with real amnesia before. My mom always says that it's fake, like something people say to get out of going to jail for committing a crime. Like in Breaking Bad. Do you watch that? Walt faked amnesia to hide his drug making."

  "I'm not a criminal! I really can't remember a lot of stuff. Trust me. I would love nothing more than to figure out what I keep blocking out. Do you have any idea how much it sucks to keep waking up, having no memory of a couple hours or a day, or even more? I can't even begin to explain the frustration. I want to talk to my parents about it, I have to hide it and pretend that everything's okay, because otherwise they're going to ship me off to the mental hospital. No pressure. One slip up and I could find myself wearing a special jacket that I won't be able to get out of."

  She sighed. "I know you're not one to lie. It's frustrating for me too. I mean, really, Lex. You just left me at the mall with your car. The whole way home, I was like, so totally worried about you. I didn't know where you were or how you were going to get home. I know you said you'd take a taxi, but still. Then I was freaking out about your parents being awake when I dropped your car off. I didn't know what I would say. They would have been pissed that I was dropping your car off without you. No offense, but your mom's scary when she's mad."

  I laughed.

  She glared at me.

  "I agree—she is. Sorry for laughing, though. I'm not laughing about what you went through. I'm really sorry about that, Amanda. I'm sure I had a good reason, at least I hope so. I must have felt bad about doing that to you. Maybe I felt the memory lapse coming on and didn't want you to witness it. I wish I had an answer."

  Amanda shrugged her shoulders. "I know you can't do anything about it now. Let's get some lunch. I'm starving."

  "To the cafeteria. So, when did you start watching Breaking Bad? I thought you said you'd never watch it."

  "Mark talked me into it. I told him if he'd watch Pretty Little Liars with me that I'd watch Breaking with him."

  I laughed. "I believe that."

  "We were both surprised that we liked each other's show," she said, and then giggled. "You shoulda seen him when we were watching PLL. He was dying to know who A is."

  "Don't tell me! I'm still watching it on streaming. I'm only on the second season."

  "Who do you think—?"

  "Hi, Alexis," Mr. Foley said, walking by. "Thanks for all your help with the quizzes. It saves me a lot of time."

  "No problem," I said. "How's Parker?"

  "He's fine. I think he's enjoying the attention from the girls. They're all so worried about his eye."

  "Well, at least some good came of it."

  He winked at me. "See you tomorrow."

  Amanda turned to me and grabbed my hands, squealing. "Mr. Foley just winked at you!"

  I was so glad that I couldn't blush, because I was nearly dying of embarrassment. "It was nothing. Adults wink at kids all the time. Take your dad, for instance. He never stops winking at any of your friends. He's Mr. Wink." I was trying to get the attention off myself.

  "Yeah, but he's not Mr. Foley—the hot new teacher! Well, he's not new anymore, but everyone calls him that anyway. He winked at you! Ohmigosh!" She squeezed my hands again, eyes full of excitement. "You're so lucky!"

  "Don't let Mark hear you talk like that," I said, trying to change the subject.

  "I said you're the lucky one. Besides, if there was a lady teacher who was anywhere near Mr. Foley's level of hotness, then I wouldn't be mad at Mark for saying that his friend was lucky if she winked at him," she said, and started walking. "So, what's it like spending an entire hour with him alone every day?"

  "If I had a dollar for every time I got asked that, I'd be rich," I mumbled. "I grade papers—it's not exciting. Today his Wilderness Club was in there, so I was way at the back of the room. Actually it was exciting because two of them got into a fight."

  "Did he jump in and save the day?"

  "Can we talk about something else? When are you supposed to go to New York with your stepmom?"

  "Well, she's not my stepmom yet, but it sounds like I'll probably get to go a few times before the wedding!" Amanda went on about the wedding plans and I tried to pay attention, but I wasn't able to keep up with her enthusiasm, even with the blood that Mr. Foley had slipped me. I did feel a little extra energy, but given how depressed I was feeling to begin with, it would take a lot more than that to pull me out of it.

  No matter how hard I tried not to think about it, my mind kept wandering to the memory lapses. I was becoming obsessed with figuring out why I kept having them. Not only that, but why none of the vampires had even tried to find me even once. I was the lone vampire in Delphic Cove, and no one cared.

  "Are you listening to me?" Amanda asked, as we got in line for what looked like tacos.

  "You said something about photography," I said. "It's hard to keep up because you're talking so fast."

  "I guess you're right. I'm talking at hyper-speed. But, yeah, I was talking about photography. She hired one of New York's best photographers. She's taken pictures of lots of famous people's weddings! Isn't that cool?"

  I tuned out, listening for keywords in case she asked if I was listening again. She rattled on as we ate lunch, which was actually nice since I didn't feel like talking. I ate my tacos while thinking over every detail of my life for at least the hundredth time, hoping that I'd remember some small detail that I'd forgotten about that could lead me to the answers I was looking for.

  When I got to my next class, I was glad again for the distraction. I was getting tired of thinking about the vampires who clearly didn't care about me. After school, there was a huge football game that everyone was going to. The last thing I wanted was to be in the middle of a screaming crowd, so I mad
e my way to the parking lot as sneakily as I could.

  At home, my mom was making more Christmas cookies. Between the smell, the decorations, and the music playing, I couldn't stay in my funk any longer. I helped her with the cookies and then we looked on the computer at Christmas card designs to go with our family photo. I even helped her with dinner, which I almost never did.

  "This has been fun," she said, as she slid the pot roast into the oven. "I'm glad that you're feeling better. I hate the moods you've been fighting the last year or so. There's nothing worse than watching you and Natalie struggle. Have you been spending more time with your friends, like I suggested?"

  I nodded. "Amanda was telling me all about her dad's wedding today. She's going to be taking trips to New York and everything. It sounds like she's excited."

  "That's good. She's had a rough year too. I have to run to the store, can you keep an eye on the food while I'm gone?"

  "Sure. I'll do my homework here in the kitchen."

  "Thanks, Lex!" She kissed my forehead, grabbed her purse, and hurried out the door. I pulled out my Advanced Trig book and got to work, getting up to stir food on the stove every so often. My so-called vampire friends kept trying to pop into my mind, but I pushed them away. I was tired of thinking about them, especially when they weren't thinking about me.

  The next few days went by in a blur as I actively fought my depression and my thoughts. I didn't want to be mopey anymore and I was tired of wasting away. The blood-spiked drinks that Mr. Foley gave me—every day—seemed to help with that.

  On Thursday, he dropped a bag of cookies on my desk along with an already opened soda can, most likely laced with blood, and asked me what I knew about the pack changes.

  I handed him back the cookies and said, "Only what was talked about at the meeting earlier this week."

  "So you haven't heard anything else?"

  "Where would I hear anything else about your Wilderness Club?"

  A smile spread across his face. I couldn't help noticing how handsome he was when he smiled. He could easily give the vampires a run for their money. "Yeah, the club," he said. "Your club hasn't filled you in on anything, has it?"

  I raised an eyebrow. "I'm not sure where I fit in with the club these days. I don't seem to have my membership card anymore."

  His eyes widened and his smile disappeared. "What do you mean?"

  Looking down, I considered how much to tell him. I took a sip of the root beer and slowly set it down. "Things have changed. That's why I'm back here, in Delphic Cove, I mean. I hadn't been planning on returning, at least not permanently."

  "What do you mean? Is everything—?"

  "There is something I do know about your pack though," I said, changing the subject. "I have reason to believe that Wes is working with the vamp—I mean, my club members—who are working to overthrow the throne."

  His heart began to race loudly. "What do you mean? How do know that?"

  "As you know, my parents are the king and queen. I discovered that their second-in-command couple is working against them. The wife, Francine, is running that show and I've overheard her talking to Wes."

  "Are you sure it's Wes from my pack?"

  I nodded. "It's definitely him."

  "He has anger issues, sure, but he's stayed with our pack even with all of the shuffling that's going around."

  "Francine probably ordered him to stay. She's threatening his family, so he does whatever she says."

  He sat down in the nearest seat and put his head in his hands. "It all makes sense now. There were questions that I had, and now everything fits. You have to be telling the truth. I'm one of the key leaders in the peace movement. Of course the Montgomery's would want to infiltrate my pack. Wes would be the obvious one to pick since he's so full of angst. He could be, and probably was, easily swayed to their side."

  He sat in silence, obviously taking it all in. I took another drink and then got back to grading the tests in front of me.

  "Is there anything else you know?" he asked, startling me. I'd gotten so involved with the grading that I'd forgotten he was sitting so close.

  "I don't know a lot. Despite my being the Sonnast, no one really tells me anything. It could be why I'm back here."

  He gave me a questioning look. "Could be?"

  I sighed. I didn't care about trying to keep any secrets from the castle. If they weren't going to let me know what was going, then I was going to talk to the only other supernatural that I knew. "I can't remember most of the last nine months before I came back here. I don't even know how I got here."

  "You don't…? They—why, I mean, I don't understand. Why?"

  "Your guess is as good as mine. I started digging around, figured out what Francine was up to, but no one wanted to believe me. Alrekur was the one who would listen. He dug up some—"

  "Alrekur? You don't mean Alrekur Vidarsson, do you?"

  "You know about the Fyrsturae?"

  "Of course. Every werewolf is taught about vampires from a young age. How could you discuss anything with Alrekur? He's been dead for a thousand years."

  "Well, he's back, and my parents are trying to bring back the entire group. The plan is for them to take back the castle and rule it again."

  "So the king and queen want to step down from the throne?"

  "They've been there for over eight hundred years. I think anyone would be ready for a break."

  Mr. Foley shook his head. "This adds a whole new dimension to everything. But back to Francine Montgomery. Why would she want to work with werewolves?"

  "I imagine that they, the non-peaceful ones, seem like the best candidates for wanting to take down the throne. Vampires are so loyal to their leaders that it would be too much work for her to round up enough willing to fight against my parents."

  He ran his hands through his hair. I watched as each strand flipped back into place. It looked so soft; I wanted to run my own hands through it. I shook my head. What was wrong with me?

  "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

  "Nothing. I'm fine."

  "Do you think it's possible that your parents would want to work with the peaceful packs? Obviously, there's still more sorting to do. I've got to find a way to remove Wes from the pack without him flipping out."

  "I'm sure that with a war brewing, my parents would be willing to take any help they can get. But I won't be much help since I can't talk to anyone."

  "They can't leave you alone forever," he said, looking like he was deep in thought. He stood up, dropping the bag of cookies that I'd given back to him. "I need to figure some things out. You okay with the tests?"

  "Of course," I said, watching him step over the cookies. He went to his desk and immediately began writing furiously.

  I hoped that with the packs changing around, and with Wes getting kicked out of his, that might be enough to push the war to start sooner. My parents would have to bring me back to the castle. They would need me, the Sonnast, to help win the war. They would need all of the Fyrsturae.

  Nine

  That night, as I lay in bed trying to sleep, I followed my evening ritual of trying to figure out the mystery behind my memory. Only this time, my mind kept wandering to Mr. Foley instead. His handsome face and soft-looking hair wouldn't leave my thoughts. The more that I tried to shove him away, the more he continued to show back up.

  I rolled over and pulled my pillow over my head with such force that I couldn't breathe, not that I needed to, and it didn't help get my mind off him. Why was he invading my thoughts? It wasn't as though he had any interest in me. Sure, he was giving me blood-laced drinks, but that was probably because he felt bad for me wasting away, and maybe also because of my role in the vampire kingdom.

  The next day would show if that was true. Since I had told him that I had no contact with any vampires, he may have decided that I wasn't as useful as he had hoped. I had no more power to get into the castle and talk to the king and queen than he did.

  Mr. Foley definitely wasn't thi
nking any of those silly thoughts about me. I mostly got typical teacher looks from him: either concerned about the dark circles under my eyes or impressed with my knowledge. Though he shouldn't have been impressed; he knew exactly why I was so much smarter than the other students.

  Not that it mattered. He would lose all respect for me if he knew that I was lying awake thinking about him like some star struck fool. Not only was he a teacher, but he was a werewolf. Also, I had enough guys to worry about without adding him to the mix. I had the engagement blessing with Cliff, wherever he was, not that he cared about me anymore. His lack of trying to find me proved that much. I didn't know why I was so worried about him anyway. I had to accept the fact that we were over, and that it was time for me to move on.

  Then there was Tanner: staked and hidden somewhere by Alrekur. I would probably never see him again. It was my fault—if I hadn't gotten him involved with the vampires in the first place, then he would just be a normal, happy human living his life. Instead, now he was a vampire, a dead vampire, at that. He could probably have been brought back to life, having been turned with royal blood. The fact that Alrekur had gone to so much trouble to hide his body proved that much.

  I rolled over again, keeping the pillow over my head. With the two guys that I loved out of the picture, it was no wonder that I was thinking about the only guy who was paying any attention to me. Sure, I was still popular, but I had been so depressed after coming back that I had pushed nearly everyone away. Most everyone left me alone. At least I had that much going for me. I didn't need any other guys to think about.

  At some point, I must have finally fallen asleep because soon I found myself hitting snooze. I groaned, tired, and not wanting to get up. If I was taking better care of myself and getting blood on a regular basis, sleep wouldn't have been an issue. I would only need a few hours of sleep each night, but not meeting my blood needs drained me, making me weak. Not that I needed to be strong. I wasn't preparing for battle and the two guys I cared about were out of my life. One dead, the other may as well have been.