Ellen Schreiber, Przeczytaj
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Ellen Schreiber
Royal Blood
A Vampire Kisses Novel
CONTENTS
1 Special Delivery
2 Backto School Blues
3 NightCalls
4 MonsterHigh
5 Risk
6 A Walk in the Park
7 Sightings
8 Atomic Spies
9 Inthe Dark
10 TheInvitation
11 Dress Code
12 RoyalBlood
13 GraveyardGlam
14 Mini - Mansion
15 Is There a Butler in the House?
16 Meet the Parents
17 Wedding White
18 Cocktail Party
19 Bombshell
20 Torrid Tombstones
21 News Travels Fast
22 Rumor Starter
23 The English Inquisition
24 Voices from Beyond
25 Ghastly Interview
26 Plan B
27 Naper Paper
28 Head of the Class
29 Auction
30 The Highest Bidder
31 The Good Deed
32 Home
1
T
he letter arrived mysteriously. I imagined the deliverer was an enigmatic figure masked in a
centuries-old black hooded cloak, slipping undetected through the darkness past the Mansion's
wrought-iron gate. He may have approached the Sterlings ' haunted-looking house in a hearse. Or
perhaps he'd flown over the menacing fence in the form of a bat.
By nightfall, the Mansion's mailbox was usually as I hollow as an empty coffin, sitting lonely at the
bottom of Benson Hill, at the end of a long and windy driveway. So the letter would go unnoticed for
several hours as I was stolen away in Alexander's attic room, pressed against my vampire boyfriend's
deathly pale, but full of life, lips.
Several weeks had passed since Alexander and I had returned from our adventure in Hipsterville ,
and though Alexander hadn't bitten me, he did make this mortal feel a part of the Underworld. During
that time, we began to experience the vampire life without distractions. There was no school to interrupt
my daytime sleep, no Trevor Mitchell to be a thorn in my side, and no Dullsville High students to ridicule
my dark attire. There were no teen vampires lurking in the cemetery, disrupting Alexander's and my
Stardust dates. No threat of a preteen Nosferatu attempting to turn my younger brother and his
nerd-mate immortal. Free of the feuding Maxwells , Alexander and I were now able to unite our mortal
and immortal worlds as one.
I was also beginning to do something I'd never had the opportunity to do before-make the Mansion
my home. And why shouldn't I? On a dare, in my youth, I'd snuck into it by squeezing through the
abandoned estate's broken basement window. Now, invited, I could confidently walk right up its
splintered stone path and through its creaky unlocked front door.
I had never been so happy in my life.
I transformed the Mansion into Alexander's and my private vampire castle. I felt like a medieval queen
and Alexander was my handsome king. Instead of spending the rest of summer break in my tiny
bedroom, I suddenly had full reign over a palatial estate. I replaced Alexander's torn and aged bedroom
curtain with a brand-new black lace one. I added some candelabras I'd found at a rummage sale to the
ones his grandmother had brought fromRomania . I placed black roses in pewter vases and
lavender-scented votives and rose petals on all the empty antique end tables.
Jameson, Alexander's butler, didn't seem to mind. In Tact, he even appeared to delight in a woman's
(or, in my case, teen girl's touch around the barren estate.
It even seemed like the Mansion itself was amused by my presence. The floors appeared to give an
extra squeak when I ran over them, as if the uneven boards were greeting my stay. The wind sounded
louder than I'd remembered as it whistled through the cracked windowpanes. The creaking in the
foundation warmly echoed off the hollow wails at a higher volume than it had before.
The massive house glistened with candles and cobwebs,
During the day I nestled in Alexander's corpse-cold arms, cuddling in his coffin. At night we cranked
Rob Zombie and had midnight showings of
Fright Night.
Alexander gave me the next best thing to a sparkling diamond ring-a dresser drawer. His dresser was
as ancient as Dracula himself, A family-owned chipped oak bureau with glass knobs held his clothes in
five three-foot-long drawers. Alexander emptied the middle one for me, to be filled with anything I liked.
One of the glass handles had broken and he replaced it with a wooden raven. There was even a lock on
the dresser. At first I thought it was a facade, but on closer inspection it was revealed to be real Whereas
everything in my bedroom-clothes, magazines, hair products-was cast about in an unorganized mess, my
drawer at the Mansion was in perfect order. Alexander brought out the best in me. It held a pair of
socks, my Emily the Strange hoodie , a few T-shirts, and a bat-shaped sachet. I often felt jealous of the
accessories I left there, which got to call the Mansion their home, while I returned to my house
onDullsville Drive .
I even managed to bake at the Mansion. I prepared ghost-shaped cookies, cupcakes with witch hats,
and chocolate Rice Krispie treats. With my new independence I found a side of me that I didn't know
existed.
My parents were pleased, too, as long as I returned home for dinner and didn't stay out after
midnight. My spirits were high, and they were content that I wasn't hiding under the covers all summer
long.
Alexander seemed happier, too-and inspired. When we weren’t roaming the cemetery at night, he
painted landscapes and portraits of me. He began to churn out one beauty after another. Many of them
were upbeat pictures of places around town we'd visited. The golf course, Dullsville High, Oakley Park ,
Hatsy's Diner, the swings at Evans Park , and the historic library. These paintings were bright and vivid
and sweet and reflected his fondness for the town. I knew he had truly found his home here.
But unbeknownst to Alexander and me, all that was about to be changed by the letter that awaited
him under the glow of the Mansion's lights
.
Alexander took my hand in his as we left the Mansion and strolled down its drive. When we reached
the gate, he drew me close.
"These last few weeks have been great. This is how it should always be. Just you and me."
"For eternity?"I asked and stared up at him.
His hair hung sexily over his soulful eyes. There was a contentment I hadn't seen in Alexander. He
gave me a long, breathtaking, weak-knee-making kiss. When we finally broke apart, something alongside
the mailbox caught a reflection from the streetlight. The mailbox flag was sticking up.
"Funny. Does the mailman deliver your post at night? I thought only I knew your true identity."
Alexander appeared puzzled, too.
"Jameson is diligent about bringing the mail in as soon as it arrives."
"Well, that couldn't have been later than noon," I said. "Maybe they made a special delivery."
"I'll get it later," Alexander resolved with a shrug andput his arm around my shoulder. "I'll walk you
home first."
"Forget that," I said before he could lead me away. "Maybe it's an invite to a party. Or notification
that you won a trip to London ."
"Or it could be a batch of coupons for pizza."
I glared up at him.
"Well, we'll never know unless you open it," I said coyly.
Alexander paused. Then he reluctantly leaned against i lie rickety box. He reached his pale fingers out
to open the lid when we were struck with a few drops of rain.
"That's funny. It's not supposed to rain until tomorrow," I said.
Alexander drew back the metal door. "Be my guest."
I stared into the rusty mailbox, which was as dark as any tomb.
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Ellen Schreiber
Royal Blood
A Vampire Kisses Novel
CONTENTS
1 Special Delivery
2 Backto School Blues
3 NightCalls
4 MonsterHigh
5 Risk
6 A Walk in the Park
7 Sightings
8 Atomic Spies
9 Inthe Dark
10 TheInvitation
11 Dress Code
12 RoyalBlood
13 GraveyardGlam
14 Mini - Mansion
15 Is There a Butler in the House?
16 Meet the Parents
17 Wedding White
18 Cocktail Party
19 Bombshell
20 Torrid Tombstones
21 News Travels Fast
22 Rumor Starter
23 The English Inquisition
24 Voices from Beyond
25 Ghastly Interview
26 Plan B
27 Naper Paper
28 Head of the Class
29 Auction
30 The Highest Bidder
31 The Good Deed
32 Home
1
T
he letter arrived mysteriously. I imagined the deliverer was an enigmatic figure masked in a
centuries-old black hooded cloak, slipping undetected through the darkness past the Mansion's
wrought-iron gate. He may have approached the Sterlings ' haunted-looking house in a hearse. Or
perhaps he'd flown over the menacing fence in the form of a bat.
By nightfall, the Mansion's mailbox was usually as I hollow as an empty coffin, sitting lonely at the
bottom of Benson Hill, at the end of a long and windy driveway. So the letter would go unnoticed for
several hours as I was stolen away in Alexander's attic room, pressed against my vampire boyfriend's
deathly pale, but full of life, lips.
Several weeks had passed since Alexander and I had returned from our adventure in Hipsterville ,
and though Alexander hadn't bitten me, he did make this mortal feel a part of the Underworld. During
that time, we began to experience the vampire life without distractions. There was no school to interrupt
my daytime sleep, no Trevor Mitchell to be a thorn in my side, and no Dullsville High students to ridicule
my dark attire. There were no teen vampires lurking in the cemetery, disrupting Alexander's and my
Stardust dates. No threat of a preteen Nosferatu attempting to turn my younger brother and his
nerd-mate immortal. Free of the feuding Maxwells , Alexander and I were now able to unite our mortal
and immortal worlds as one.
I was also beginning to do something I'd never had the opportunity to do before-make the Mansion
my home. And why shouldn't I? On a dare, in my youth, I'd snuck into it by squeezing through the
abandoned estate's broken basement window. Now, invited, I could confidently walk right up its
splintered stone path and through its creaky unlocked front door.
I had never been so happy in my life.
I transformed the Mansion into Alexander's and my private vampire castle. I felt like a medieval queen
and Alexander was my handsome king. Instead of spending the rest of summer break in my tiny
bedroom, I suddenly had full reign over a palatial estate. I replaced Alexander's torn and aged bedroom
curtain with a brand-new black lace one. I added some candelabras I'd found at a rummage sale to the
ones his grandmother had brought fromRomania . I placed black roses in pewter vases and
lavender-scented votives and rose petals on all the empty antique end tables.
Jameson, Alexander's butler, didn't seem to mind. In Tact, he even appeared to delight in a woman's
(or, in my case, teen girl's touch around the barren estate.
It even seemed like the Mansion itself was amused by my presence. The floors appeared to give an
extra squeak when I ran over them, as if the uneven boards were greeting my stay. The wind sounded
louder than I'd remembered as it whistled through the cracked windowpanes. The creaking in the
foundation warmly echoed off the hollow wails at a higher volume than it had before.
The massive house glistened with candles and cobwebs,
During the day I nestled in Alexander's corpse-cold arms, cuddling in his coffin. At night we cranked
Rob Zombie and had midnight showings of
Fright Night.
Alexander gave me the next best thing to a sparkling diamond ring-a dresser drawer. His dresser was
as ancient as Dracula himself, A family-owned chipped oak bureau with glass knobs held his clothes in
five three-foot-long drawers. Alexander emptied the middle one for me, to be filled with anything I liked.
One of the glass handles had broken and he replaced it with a wooden raven. There was even a lock on
the dresser. At first I thought it was a facade, but on closer inspection it was revealed to be real Whereas
everything in my bedroom-clothes, magazines, hair products-was cast about in an unorganized mess, my
drawer at the Mansion was in perfect order. Alexander brought out the best in me. It held a pair of
socks, my Emily the Strange hoodie , a few T-shirts, and a bat-shaped sachet. I often felt jealous of the
accessories I left there, which got to call the Mansion their home, while I returned to my house
onDullsville Drive .
I even managed to bake at the Mansion. I prepared ghost-shaped cookies, cupcakes with witch hats,
and chocolate Rice Krispie treats. With my new independence I found a side of me that I didn't know
existed.
My parents were pleased, too, as long as I returned home for dinner and didn't stay out after
midnight. My spirits were high, and they were content that I wasn't hiding under the covers all summer
long.
Alexander seemed happier, too-and inspired. When we weren’t roaming the cemetery at night, he
painted landscapes and portraits of me. He began to churn out one beauty after another. Many of them
were upbeat pictures of places around town we'd visited. The golf course, Dullsville High, Oakley Park ,
Hatsy's Diner, the swings at Evans Park , and the historic library. These paintings were bright and vivid
and sweet and reflected his fondness for the town. I knew he had truly found his home here.
But unbeknownst to Alexander and me, all that was about to be changed by the letter that awaited
him under the glow of the Mansion's lights
.
Alexander took my hand in his as we left the Mansion and strolled down its drive. When we reached
the gate, he drew me close.
"These last few weeks have been great. This is how it should always be. Just you and me."
"For eternity?"I asked and stared up at him.
His hair hung sexily over his soulful eyes. There was a contentment I hadn't seen in Alexander. He
gave me a long, breathtaking, weak-knee-making kiss. When we finally broke apart, something alongside
the mailbox caught a reflection from the streetlight. The mailbox flag was sticking up.
"Funny. Does the mailman deliver your post at night? I thought only I knew your true identity."
Alexander appeared puzzled, too.
"Jameson is diligent about bringing the mail in as soon as it arrives."
"Well, that couldn't have been later than noon," I said. "Maybe they made a special delivery."
"I'll get it later," Alexander resolved with a shrug andput his arm around my shoulder. "I'll walk you
home first."
"Forget that," I said before he could lead me away. "Maybe it's an invite to a party. Or notification
that you won a trip to London ."
"Or it could be a batch of coupons for pizza."
I glared up at him.
"Well, we'll never know unless you open it," I said coyly.
Alexander paused. Then he reluctantly leaned against i lie rickety box. He reached his pale fingers out
to open the lid when we were struck with a few drops of rain.
"That's funny. It's not supposed to rain until tomorrow," I said.
Alexander drew back the metal door. "Be my guest."
I stared into the rusty mailbox, which was as dark as any tomb.
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