A/N: Thank you all so much! I am so glad you're enjoying this fic and I love reading all of your reviews. Thank you! I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 12: Burning Down the House

He left her alone after that. He went to take care of the body and probably find his brothers but Darcy was glad for the space to actually think. Sampson had told her to find her people. Camila would likely tell her to enjoy life while she had it, which was part of the problem in Darcy's mind. How long would she have it? What if she pissed one of them off? Would they kill her? She was pretty capable of pushing buttons, even when she didn't try and she liked living. She wasn't doing much with her life right now, sure, but there were things she wanted to see, wanted to experience. She couldn't do that if she was dead on account of her runaway mouth.

Dwayne though…made an excellent and unfortunate point, whether or not he intended to. They could have hurt her ages ago. She spends enough time fending them off but they always let her set the bar. They pushed but they backed off when she demanded. Dwayne gave her a front-row seat at just how dangerous they could be. That was only one of them. The group was likely exponentially more so and yet…before the other night, she had never really felt threatened. Yes, every instinct told her to run, that she was prey in front of a predator, but instead, they had teased and encouraged her and kissed her. Hell, if they wanted to kill her, David could have done it when she hit him across the head with a bat. Which, now knowing what he was, probably wasn't her best idea. Whatever. She didn't regret it. From what she's seen, they all needed to have some sense knocked into them.

She sighed. She thought she dealt with this crisis after the pregnancy scare which, ha ha, joke's on her. She could have been saved a lot of fucking grief if they told her from the start. Then again, the hunter did. So maybe this was on her a bit. Barely. Damn it.

It wasn't like she was going to miss much. Darcy had decided ages ago she didn't want children, not with the genes she carries. She wouldn't subject any kid to her family trauma, intentional or not. So dating a vampire, or four, would effectively solve that problem.

She snorts to herself. Her mother would be scandalized. Not even about the vampire thing, but the fact that Darcy was dating four men. They'd claim she was doing it for attention. To spite them, and tarnish the family more than she already did just by existing. They wouldn't even consider the fact that the men actually wanted Darcy, just as she is.

And that was the actual terrifying part if she's honest. They want her. They have from the beginning and there have been no attempts to curtail her viciousness. The boys encourage it. They like seeing the damage Darcy can do and while she knows, she knows, she shouldn't act out or want to seek retribution for stupid shit, she can't help but feel justified at the way they offer to help. Warmth blooms in her chest at the way they grin and suggest she could do more. God, the things she could get away with if she had them on her side.

Maybe that's enough. Maybe, if she is going to die at the hands of a vampire of all things, she'll at least get the chance to feel wanted for once. That could be enough, right?

She was left alone for the rest of the night.

Darcy went through the motions, setting up the store in the morning. When Camila showed up, it took her about ten minutes before she asked Darcy.

"What's wrong, mija?" Camila asked.

"I think I might be making a bad decision but I'm not sure I want to stop."

"What kind of bad decision?"

"One with serious consequences."

Camila looked concerned at that. "What do you mean?"

"You remember the boys you met the other night?"

"Si."

"I'm not sure I can trust that…they have my best interests at heart."

Camila sighed and turned towards her. She grabbed one of Darcy's hands and held it. "Darcy, mija. Do you enjoy spending your time with them?"

"Yeah."

"Have they given you any sign they're gonna hurt you?"

Darcy was slow to admit it. "No."

"Then this fear, the one you have? Is it truly from here," she tapped Darcy's chest. "Or here?" She tapped her forehead this time. "Whose voice is it that tells you this, hm? Does it sound like you or somebody who doesn't want you to have nice things?"

Darcy frowned at that. That was…insightful. Darcy hasn't considered the fact that her fear could be laced with whatever remnants of trauma her parents had subjected her to. Of course the only people who wanted her were monsters. Wasn't she told often enough that she was one? Dwayne had been right that they could have hurt her if they wanted to but they didn't. They just kept trying to ply her with affection. Affection that Darcy had learned from supposedly good and decent people came at a price. It always did.

The question was, what was this going to cost her?

Darcy left in the afternoon. Camila promised her that she would take care of the store and Darcy found herself a ride to the bluffs. Well, she stole a bike but she'd return it. Or not. If it was important to them they'd have locked it up.

It was easier to go down the stairs during the day when she could actually see where she was stepping and what to avoid. They creaked a little ominously but she still grit her teeth and went, carefully carting her cargo. The cave was surprisingly well lit considering it was a literal hole in the wall. It was eerily empty, or maybe that was because she knew they were hiding somewhere in here. Was it safe to wake up a sleeping vampire or was it like sleepwalkers where you just had to wait them out naturally?

Playing it safe, she made herself comfortable and waited. Well, she planned as she waited and if she doused a trail of gasoline around the cave, that was her secret. Not that it was that much of a secret and she moved the couch closer to the entrance so she could actually breathe.

David is the first one out. He pauses as he sees her, lounging back and smoking. She knows she looks like she doesn't have a care in the world, even if her heart is beating overtime. She's careful where she flicks the ashes though. No use starting something if she doesn't need to.

"Darcy."

"David."

"How long you been here?"

"Long enough."

He glanced around the place but only smirked in response. "I can see that." He moved closer, slowly, considering what she knew they were capable of. "You came back."

"I came to talk."

"So talk."

Darcy narrowed her eyes, already irritated. She was beginning to regret this already. "Don't fucking rush me," she said, pointing her fingers holding the cigarette at him.

He grinned in response. "Missed that."

"You'll miss more than that if you keep pissing me off," she took another drag of her cigarette. "How does this work?"

"What work?"

"This…club you have. There a leader or it's an 'all for one, one for all' mess?"

He looked at her carefully before he pulled out a pack of smokes of his own. She watched as he pulled one out and lit it. Man liked to live dangerously, she guessed. Or he was overconfident. She wished she didn't find it stupidly attractive but nobody ever accused her of being particularly stable and healthy.

He was still wearing the same outfit she had seen him in days ago. Her nose scrunched up. How often did they wash? Oh god. She slept with him. She'd be lucky if she made it out of this without a UTI at this rate. If she survived at all. She didn't remember him smelling bad though.

"Remember my father?"

Darcy scowled in response. "The asshole who burnt your hands."

"Not a father in the traditional sense," he said after taking a drag. "He's the leader. Just likes to hide and play human, pulling strings from the shadows." He looked at her carefully, suddenly far more serious than she ever remembers seeing him. "Don't fuck with him, Darcy. He will kill you."

"Okay," she said. The warning does more to reassure her of their intentions than the continuous promises that she was safe with them.

There was laughter echoing from where David had appeared from. It was only seconds before the other three came crashing into the main foyer where Darcy and David were.

"Darcy!"

"Babe!"

They come racing forward. Paul plopped down on the couch next to her while Marko and Dwayne moved to stand next to David.

"You feel better?" Paul asked.

"Not entirely," she said. "I came to talk."

"You planning another murder, sweet thing?" Paul threw his arm over the back of the couch. "Can I come this time?"

She could hear the others sigh.

"Not the time," Dwayne said.

"Read the room," Marko added. "Her next murder might have been us. But hey, good news is you definitely would have been there for that one." He sounds highly amused and she barely realizes Paul moved before she sees them play fighting around the cave.

"Boys." They're instantly standing next to David as soon as he says that. Interesting. That answered her question about the hierarchy in the cave. Or part of it, at least. "What do you want to talk about, Darcy?" She watched as he ground out the butt of his cigarette on his thigh. Not really an ideal place, in her opinion, but it made sense. They knew she laced the space with gasoline but the smell might have been too strong for them to guess where exactly it was. Not like the cave was completely dry in the first place. It was a fire hazard all on its own. Still, good to know.

"How do I know you won't kill me?" Her cigarette should be put out, but right now it's the perfect size to flick in their direction if she wanted to.

"We won't," she heard from them. It echoed around her, like multiple promises she can't be assured they'll keep.

"'Sides," Paul grinned at her. "You're the one who's been violent with us, babe. You've had just as many chances to murder one of us."

She blinked before slowly smiling. He was right. She wasn't some helpless victim. Darcy wouldn't hesitate to stab someone if she had to. Or set them on fire. Proven by her setup this evening. She glanced at the butt of her cigarette before flicking it toward them. Darcy grinned widely as they scrambled away from it. The remains of the cigarette had burnt out though and it was an empty threat. "I guess I can work with that."

The men seemed to perk up with those words.

"On my terms," she stated.

"Of course," David said with a smirk. They looked as if they'd gotten exactly what they wanted and maybe they did. That doesn't mean that Darcy hasn't either. Everyone can be a winner as long as she's running the show.

"Can we…" Marko spoke up. "Take this elsewhere? Clean out the gasoline so that we don't end up on fire next time Paul knocks over one of the barrels?"

"Hey!"

"I could eat," Darcy added. She hadn't eaten for most of the day. The weight of the decision to actually let them in ate at her instead.

"Paul," David calls out. "Take Darcy to eat."

He laughed as he got up. "Come on, sweetness. I get you all to myself."

"And what will the rest of you do?" she asked, looking them over.

"Clean," Marko admits. "You keep him out and we might actually get the gasoline out without the whole place going up."

She grinned at them. "Good luck."

Paul doesn't lead her toward the boardwalk. Instead, he drives them to the same taco truck she had walked to with David. It wasn't far from her motel.

"Here babe," he handed her money. "Order what you want. I'll hang back. I think I still smell like gas."

"Impressive considering I didn't pour any into your sleeping area."

He grinned at her. "You couldn't find it, could you?"

"Didn't look." She walked away and went to order. At least she didn't have to worry about what he wanted.

Darcy looked back as she waited for her order. Paul was sitting on his bike, tapping out a beat that only he seemed to hear. He likely wasn't lighting up because he thought he was covered in gasoline. Maybe she should have looked. It could have been hilarious. But then with the amount they smoke, she could have killed them…and she wasn't ashamed to admit that she didn't actually want them dead. She just wanted to stay alive herself.

When she walked back over to him, box of tacos in her hand, he leaned forward and kissed her. She closed her eyes, leaning into it slightly.

"Well?" Paul asked once they broke apart. "Do I smell?"

"Like death."

"Come on, Darce…let me shower at your place."

She stared at him, unimpressed. "Are you just trying to get into my pants?"

"Always. You think they'll fit?"

She laughed, not expecting that answer. "We'll have to see. Come on. You can shower while I eat." She climbed on the back. "Don't make me drop my food.

He winked. "I'll go slow."

[tbc]