Free Eighteen Summers by Jessie M Page A

Nico too...” Although I am sure Sofia can manage me well enough by herself, I feel safer when he is around.
    “ As you wish.” She leaves and returns a moment later with him. I look at him with an agonised passion. I feel such a strong bond forming with this man, this vampire.
    And then the real pain begins and my emotional feelings are no longer important. My physical agony consumes me. All of the air in my lungs leaves my body in a rush. I start to burn inside. The immortal fire begins conquering every cell in my body. I am aflame. The heat is raging, roaring around inside me like an inferno. I feel like I am going to die. I suppose I am in fact dying. The human part of me is. I grip their hands and dig my nails into them hard. I can see my whole body is glowing with an intense white tinge. I hear wild screaming. I know it's me but I can't stop it. Then my mind shuts down, and everything fades to a welcome thick black.
    I wake shakily, shivering. I feel something cool on my head. I open my eyes. Sofia is sponging me. She smiles widely when she sees I am awake.
    “There. That wasn't so bad, was it?” She asks with a wry expression.
    “ I just burned in the hottest fires of hell, but apart from that, it was great.”
    “ I know it is painful Cali. But what could I say?”
    “ Prepare yourself for the worst pain known to anyone, ever?”
    “ There was no need to alarm you any further. 'Tis done now, all is well.”
    “ My mistress changed quickly. That was a short three hours,” Nico announces with obvious pride and satisfaction.
    I turn to look at him with a flash of annoyance. I didn't realise I was being timed.
    “Thankfully I wasn't conscious for the last two hours and fifty minutes of the flaming inferno.” I add sarcastically.
    “ You are now fully turned. You look a little altered. Would you like to see?” He asks with an approving look.
    “ Please...”  Sofia hands me a small mirror and I peer into it cautiously, intrigued.
    Oh my God... This seriously cannot be me!
    My hair lies in beautiful soft even waves.  My face has more definition and higher cheekbones. My mouth is fuller. I have long sweeping eyelashes and beautifully arched brows. My skin is so clear and fresh it almost glows with health. I turn this way and that looking at the new me. I am certainly not disappointed. Dare I think that I am beautiful? Because I believe I am .
    “ Not much improvement then?” I joke with a straight face. Nico sighs.
    “ Cali... You are quite beautiful and you know it. Be proud of yourself for a short moment.”
    “ I shall draw your bath. We will wash away your remaining human scent and discuss your changes.” Sofia rises and goes into the bathroom.
    “ Nico, I need to talk to you. It's about My Lord.” I have to tell him, to confide in him.
    “ After you are dressed I will return and we can speak. I have some business I need to attend to.” He takes my hand and kisses it. My heart leaps into my mouth and I feel my eyes burn hot at the touch of his lips. He keeps his eyes deliberately averted from mine, staring downwards. “Until then.” And he leaves quickly.
    I lie still and wait for Sofia to call for me. But I can't help myself, my curiosity is aroused. I have a quick look under the covers at my body.  I lift the nightdress and run my hands over myself. My waist is slimmer and my breasts are amazingly larger. And my pubic hair has vanished. My breathing and heart beat are slow and steady. I feel so odd. But then again, everything has been odd lately. I am very much more aware of my body. But I don't yet know its limitations and abilities. It is all so exciting and thrilling, but also frightening and unnerving.
    I am a vampire, an undead, immortal, a bloodsucker.
    I laze in my bath being scrubbed and attended to, while Sofia tells me what to expect. There will be a blood craving for some time. This will be difficult for me to deal with, she says. I am not to go outside the house for this reason