His eyes twinkled. "Maybe that's it. Even us peace-loving ones."
"When did you…uh, when did…?" I stammered, not knowing how to ask him about his feelings. I wasn't even sure what they were, but I had hoped they matched mine.
He scooted closer so that there was no space in between us. "When did I fall in love with you?"
I took a breath and stared into his eyes, nodding.
He took my hand. "It happened slowly, and I tried to fight it, so I'm not sure when exactly. But if you don't want to fight it, then neither do I. I watched you struggle with it too. Somehow it seems meant to be."
"That's true," I whispered. "It's not like anyone is trying to stop us. It's so weird, because those vampires used to be so protective of me. Now I've been left on my own, falling in love with a werewolf, and not one of them has made one attempt to—"
He leaned in and kissed me on my lips. My eyes widened in surprise, but then I grabbed him and returned the kiss with months of pent up energy, frustration, and repressed love. I didn't care how wrong it was; it was so wrong that it was right. I thought of my vampire parents and all of their betrayal. I kissed him more deeply.
When we finally pulled away, Mr. Foley gave me a dazed look. "Wow. That's all I can say."
I smiled, the scent of his love wrapping around me. I gave him another equally passionate kiss. Then the scene faded as more memories of our time together flooded my mind. We had spent the following six months hiding our love so that he wouldn't get in trouble for dating a student, even though I wasn't technically his student.
The secrecy had made our relationship all the more exciting. We'd had fun together, sneaking looks and kisses every chance that we got. He always made a point to stay away from me for a couple days before and after the full moon. He said that being in love changed his body chemistry and could possibly cause him to change a day or two early or late. He didn't want to take any chances.
Spending five full days away from him each month was torture. The first time, Amanda had been out of town with her dad's future wife, shopping in New York for wedding attire. That's when Hailey had first approached me. I'd been sitting outside, in the snow, watching everyone throw snowballs at each other.
"Do you mind if I sit?" she asked, looking nervous.
I looked her over, surprised to see no animosity. I couldn't smell any danger, so I motioned for her to sit.
"So, about Tanner…."
"I don't want to talk about him," I snapped.
"He told me everything."
My eyes narrowed. "What do you mean by everything?"
She sighed. "He turned me, Alexis. Right before he disappeared."
"He told you about me?" I demanded. How dare he?
She nodded. "Kayla's been helping me out since he's been gone. But their house just burned down—they think it was werewolves—so they're leaving town. I don't know if you want to…that is, if you…."
I looked at her, surprised at her insecurity. I listened for a heartbeat and realized that she really had none. She had to be telling the truth.
She made doe eyes at me, reminding me of Natalie. "I didn't want to ask you. You have every right to hate me. I've been nothing but horrible to you for our whole lives. But if you'd give me a chance, I promise you won't regret it."
"This better not be some kind of trick. I don't know if he told you that I'm a special type of vampire. I have extra powers that the others don't." I cracked my knuckles, which caused her to jump in surprise.
"I know. Believe me. I know. But I was hoping that we could try to be friends, or at least allies. It's better to hunt with someone else and we're both alone in—"
"Why is it so important to go hunting with someone?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.
She looked around and whispered, "The werewolves."
"What about them?"
"They're growing in numbers," she said, still whispering. "They're everywhere now. I know that your lover boy has his group of good ones, but there are a ton more dangerous ones. We're pretty safe in town, surrounded by people and near the good were—"
"Wait a minute. My lover boy? How do you know about…? Well, you tell me who he is, since you know so much."
"I've been watching you closely. You guys are tough to track, so you're hiding your relationship well. Nobody else suspects anything. Believe me, I'm in everyone's business and now that I can read minds, I would totally know if anyone else knew."
I glared at her. "If I agree to be friends and hunt with you, do you swear that you won't harm me?"
Her eyes widened and then she nodded yes. "Totally."
"So long as you agree not to turn on me, I see no reason we can't try to be friends. It's not like I have any other vampires in the area. But seriously, don't try anything. If this turns out to be some kind of trick, you will regret it, Hailey."
"It's not a trick. Think about it. Have I done anything to you since you got back?"
"Not that I can remember, but I have been having memory lapses."
"All the more reason to have a vampire on your side."
A bunch of scenes of Hailey and me becoming friends flashed through my mind, mixed in with more memories of Mr. Foley and me becoming closer, sneaking around after school in coffee shops and other places out of town, sometimes hiding out in his condo. I also watched Amanda's makeover and her own relationship flourish.
I sat back and pulled my gaze away from Mr. Foley's—Toby's—eyes. How could I have gotten all of those memories back from just looking into his eyes? There must have been something special about him that helped to unlock my recent memories.
He smiled at me. "Did you remember anything? You looked so deep in thought. I know something was going on in that brilliant mind of yours."
"I think I remember everything now," I said, giving him a playful smile. "Well, everything that's happened since I got back to Delphic Cove."
Tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, he asked, "Everything?"
I grabbed his face and gave him a replay of our first kiss, complete with the same amount of passion and excitement. He returned the kiss. This time, however, we ended up on the ground and somehow rolled to the edge of the lake, barely missing the lapping of the waves.
We looked at each other and burst into laughter.
SIX
"Can you believe that we finally graduated?" Emma asked. We were in Hailey's room eating popcorn and ignoring a movie.
"I know. It's so weird," Amanda said. "We're not going back and we're like officially adults now. It's more than just telling our parents that we're adults. Now we really are."
"We're all going our separate ways after the summer," Emma said, and frowned.
"Don't go getting all mushy on me," Hailey said, scowling. "We'll be back here next summer, actually earlier, probably around the holidays. We'll have plenty of time to catch up and hang out. Plus we have the whole summer now. It's just beginning!"
"Yeah," Amanda agreed. "We'll all probably end up back here in Delphic Cove after college. We'll be in each other's weddings and have our kids in the same soccer teams. Then we'll watch them graduate together."
Hailey and I looked at each other, knowing that we wouldn't be having any weddings or kids in Delphic Cove.
"This is what I'm talking about!" Hailey said, glaring at Amanda. "This is exactly the conversation I don't want to have."
"What do you think, Alexis?" Emma asked. "You've been so quiet."
I shrugged my shoulders. "It is weird that we're adults now, but I'm more than ready for it. I'm tired of being told what to do and when to do it."
"And not to do it," Amanda said and giggled. Hailey and Emma joined in and I gave a weak attempt at a giggle.
"Why are you so quiet?" Emma asked. She looked at Amanda and Hailey. "And why don't you two seem bothered by how quiet she's being?" She looked at them suspiciously. She was the only one I hadn't told about my latest memory loss.
"Do I have to talk all the time?" I asked.
&nbs
p; "You don't have to—but usually you do," Emma said, looking at me suspiciously.
"I do?"
Her eyes widened. "Are you having another memory loss?"
I sighed. "I can't hide it from anyone. I just want to get back to living my life. I remember everything now, though."
"What the heck happened to you in Europe?" Emma asked. "You've been having these amnesia spells ever since you came back."
"You're asking me? I'm the one who can't remember anything."
"I seriously don't get it," she said. "I mean, really. If it was anyone else, I would totally think they were faking."
"Do you think that I want to wake up with no memory of the last year and a half?"
"You don't remember anything since before you left?" she asked, her face draining of color. "You don't even remember us making up?"
"Not when I woke up yesterday. I do now, though."
She swore. "Why do you keep forgetting everything? Why don't you hate Hailey and me?"
Hailey glared at Emma. "Thanks, biotch."
Emma narrowed her eyes at Hailey. "Well, don't you remember how we were acting before she left? Even after her abduction, we weren't being nice to her. If that's the last thing she remembers, she should totally hate us. Biotch."
"Like you needed to remind her! Seriously, Emma."
"You don't have to remind me of that stuff," I said. "It's still fresh on my mind. It feels like last month."
Emma giggled and covered her mouth. "Sorry, I shouldn't laugh. I just remember how funny I thought it was back then. I still can't believe you passed out." She quickly added, "I feel bad about that now."
"Look. I don't hate you guys. We're cool, okay? I'm getting really tired of talking about it."
"Are we still going to the party tonight?" Emma asked.
"Shh!" Hailey hissed. "My parents are awake."
"You still have to sneak around?" Emma asked, laughing. "My parents let me do whatever I want now, as long as it doesn't inconvenience them."
"You know my parents," Hailey said, rolling her eyes. "They want to suck the fun out of my life for as long as they can."
"What are we going to do until then?" Emma asked.
"We can watch another movie or go soak in the hot tub. You did bring your suits, right?"
"Yeah," Emma and Amanda said.
"I didn't," I said. "Sorry, I didn't know."
"You always bring one here! Oh, I forgot. I guess you could wear one of mine."
I made a face. I didn't like the idea of sharing a swimsuit.
"It's clean!" Hailey exclaimed. "You could always wear underwear if you're that worried about it."
"Whatever," I said, shrugging. "I could always run home and grab one. I love that new one I wore to the graduation party."
"I don't care," Hailey said, looking as though she was trying to hide being upset. She folded her arms across her chest and that's when I saw that she was wearing Tanner's ring, the one that allowed him to walk around in the daylight.
"Hailey, why don't you walk me to the door?"
"Sure," she said.
When we were out of the earshot of the others, I brought up the ring. "How did you get it?"
She sighed. "He gave it to me, if that's what you're wondering. He was going to let me borrow it and then he forgot that he had it off and went into the sun. He discovered that he didn't even need it."
"He didn't need the ring?" I exclaimed. How was that possible? Could it be because I had had turned him into a vampire with my royal blood which had my sun blessing? No, that didn't make any sense. I had been stripped of the blessing when I had turned him.
Hailey shook her head. "He didn't know why he didn't need it, but he let me keep the ring."
I nodded deep in thought. "That's great," I said. "I'll see you in a few."
I decided to literally run home. It would be faster than driving. I made sure to take my purse because going through walls hadn't worked so well for me the last time.
"What are you doing home so soon?" my mom asked when I got inside.
"I forgot my swimsuit."
"You must really be spending the night at Hailey's. You guys practically live in her hot tub."
"Of course I'm really spending the night there. That's what I told you."
I walked up to my room and nearly died of heart failure when I opened the door, even though both my heart and I were already dead.
"What are you doing here?" I demanded.
Clara was sitting at my desk, playing a game on my laptop. "It's nice to see you too," she said with half a grin.
"How'd you get past my password?"
She grinned.
"Don't get me wrong. I can't tell you how happy I am to see you! But you scared the crap out of me, and you have no idea what I've been through lately!"
She broke into a full smile and gave me a hug, which I returned enthusiastically.
"Where have you been?" I asked, sitting on my bed. "Where's everyone else? I went to sleep at the castle a year and a half ago and woke up here yesterday with no memory of the time in between."
"I've been kept in the dark myself," she said. "I didn't know where you were and I don't know anything about where Cliff, Brooke, or your parents were either. My dad told me there's some kind of upheaval at the castle and to let it be for a while. I figured it would be years before I got to see you again. He doesn't want us getting involved."
"How did you know to come here to find me then?" I asked.
"Gessilyn called me and told me about your visit. I came as fast as I could. There—"
"Are you back in England? What about William? Did that work out?"
"I convinced him to go to school over there. It's been going great with him." She smiled.
"Does he know about you being a vampire?"
"I haven't told him yet. He's been talking about marriage, so I'm going to have to tell him before too long. What's with all the questions about me? What's been going on with you?"
"Wait. You're not freaked out by him discussing marriage? You must really be in love!"
"I really am!" she said, lying down on the bed. She looked up at me. "I just hope that he doesn't freak out when he finds out the truth. Things are so perfect with him. I want it to last forever."
I leaned back too. "Maybe it can."
"Don't get my hopes up. He's even more amazing than his namesake. I've all but forgotten about the first William."
"When did you move back to England? What do you know about what's happened with me?"
"I stayed for a while after you left. Your human parents were kicking themselves for letting you go and I was having a blast with William. Amanda and I had a lot of fun going on double dates. She and Mark make such an adorable couple. Right before the end of last summer, orders were sent from the castle for me to return to England. I knew nothing about how you were doing. You never bothered to contact me." She glared at me.
"If you talked to Gessilyn, then you know that I've had my memory wiped. I don't know what's going on, but everyone says that I've had several memory losses. I only remember about a month after I left with my real parents. Yet I spent another nine months there."
She rolled onto her side and looked directly at me. "What do you remember?"
"What do you know?" I asked, turning to look at her.
"Don't answer my question with a question. I know how much you hate that. Besides, I already told you that I don't know anything; no one ever told me."
I took a deep breath. "My parents found Alrekur's body and I pulled the stake out of his chest."
Her eyes became as wide as my bed. "Alrekur's alive? Why…how…what…I don't understand."
"They plan to awaken all of the Fyrsturae, and they have to do it in their birth order."
"How are they ever going to find all of their bodies? Nobody has any clue where any of them are."
"It took them seventeen years to find Alrekur. But he killed Halldor and Dagur, so he knows where they're buried."
I sighed again. "My parents aren't vampires. They're actually Frey and Bryna, the parents of Ida—"
"The eighth Fyrsturae," Clara whispered. "This is huge! It's bigger than huge! How many vampires know about this?"
"They brought every world leader to the castle and made an announcement, asking for their help."
"The leaders must be keeping this to themselves," she whispered. "At least the ones in England. My parents don't know about this. Even though they're off the throne, they keep up with what's going on. I can't believe this!"
"There's more," I said.
"What?" she demanded.
I pulled my hair away from my neck and showed her my mark.
"It's showing! How did that happen?"
"After I pulled the stake out of Alrekur, it reappeared. Do you know the true meaning of my mark?"
"That you'll be the strongest and most powerful vampire alive," she said, rolling her eyes. "Well, unless the Fyrsturae are stronger than you."
"No. The real meaning of the mark."
"What 'real' meaning? What are you talking about?"
"You're in the first line! You have to know! Your dad was supposed to be on the throne. How can you not know?"
"Just tell me!"
"It means that I'm actually destined to marry Alrekur, not Cliff."
"What?" she exclaimed, standing up. "What?"
"Yeah, it's known by the entire first line. At least that's what I was told. There's a curse, though. Anyone in the first line to tell the real meaning of the mark to anyone not in the line will die a horrible death."
"That's why my father never said anything to us," Clara said. "He couldn't tell my mother, a common vampire. If he couldn't tell her, he wouldn't tell us. He doesn't keep secrets from her. Wait! If your parents are Ida's parents…does that make you a Fyrsturae?"
I nodded.
Her eyes widened again and she sat back down. "This is so epic. I don't even know what to say. You don't know where Cliff is? Are you really planning on marrying Alrekur? Is he as hot as everyone has always claimed?"
I laughed at her last question. "It's true, as far as looks go, he's in a class of his own. I don't want anything to do with that pompous jerk though, as gorgeous as he is. Alrekur killed Tanner and hid his body because I had feelings for him. He never figured out that I love Cliff though. My parents had ordered me to keep up the engagement with Cliff until they announced their plans to the leaders. Alrekur thought that I was only pretending to be in love with Cliff."
The Transformed Box Set: Books 1, 2, 3, 3.5 Page 73