A/N: Thank you all so much! I'm so glad you're enjoying this fic. I hope you like this chapter. Please let me know what you think!
Chapter 10: Cruel Summer
She was browsing through a magazine when she heard him.
"How's my favourite employee?"
"Still your only employee," she called out before glancing up at him. Sampson looked like he just walked out of Woodstock but what surprised Darcy was the figure beside him. She was an older woman, her short hair slightly curled and styled.
"What's cracking, Darce?"
"Same shit, different day," she folded up the magazine and tossed it on the counter. "How are you?"
"We're bad, Darce but we got good vibes."
She had no idea what that meant but nodded. It couldn't have been that bad if he mentioned good vibes. "Alright."
"You remember me saying I was gonna hire someone new?" he asked. "You can start going around like the stone fox you are."
The woman next to him gave him an unimpressed look at that. "Is that how you treat all your employees?"
He winked at her. "It's copacetic." He looked back at Darcy. "Darce, this is Camila. She's gonna be helping out."
Darcy stood up and held out her hand. "Darcy. Nice to meet you."
"Camila Johnson. It's a pleasure," she said with a soft smile.
"Well," Sampson clapped his hands together. "It's sound as a pound. I'll let you get acquainted. Darce, you're a brick house! Don't forget it," he pointed at her before looking at Camila. "Cams, baby, don't steal anything."
"I have enough junk in my home," she said.
He just laughed and left. "Check ya later!"
Darcy watched him leave before turning to look at the older woman in front of her. "He's always like that," she said dryly.
"I know. I've known Sampson since he first came here." She smiled again at Darcy. "I hope you don't mind that he gave me this job."
Darcy shrugged. "I don't mind. He said it wasn't cutting my pay." Darcy looked around before she moved the chair she had been sitting on towards Camila. "Here, sit."
"Thank you." Camila came around the counter and sat down. The woman glanced up at her hair. "You're the young woman I heard about, aren't you?"
Darcy leaned against the counter and crossed her arms over her chest. "Depends on what you heard."
"Well, that there was a young woman who took a bat and tried to start a fight with a gang of bikers on the boardwalk."
Darcy's eyebrows rose. "Word really got around."
"It was quite the sight I heard."
Darcy scowled. "They deserved it. Fucking assholes," she paused as she realized what she said. "Sorry. My mouth tends to run away from me."
Camila smiled. "I am old enough, my dear, to have heard worse. I've said worse," she admitted. That startled a laugh out of Darcy. "What?" Camila asked, feigning ignorance. "Are we old people supposed to pretend we weren't young?"
It made Darcy laugh louder. "Okay, good point. Sorry," she gave a wave.
"Now, mija, what did those boys do to deserve it?"
"Hurt a friend. They're not going to do it again. Not if they want to see me again."
Camila's eyes seemed to light up. "Oh? How many are suitors?"
Darcy rolled her eyes. "All of them." She paused for a moment, realizing what she said before watching Camila for her reaction.
The older woman glanced down at Darcy's outfit. She was wearing high-waisted shorts again and a t-shirt with School House Rock on it. Camila nodded. "There is no shame in being widely admired. You're a beautiful woman. Enjoy the courting. Life will bring you challenges soon enough like it did me and Ernesto."
There was something odd about her tone. "Are you two...still together?"
Camila gave her a small, sad smile. "No, mija, but I visit him every other day. Take care of him."
That was clearly a touchy subject. "Well," Darcy clapped her hands together. "Why don't I show you the process here? Or at least what I do. Sampson didn't really give a straight layout of the way he wanted things to run."
Camila sighed. "Now that does not surprise me. What's first?"
It took about an hour after sundown before any of the boys showed up. Darcy was hopped up on the counter laughing as Camila told her a story about how she and Ernesto met years ago.
"He says to me: Si besarte fuera pecado, caminaría feliz por el infierno (If kissing you were a sin, I'd happily walk through hell) and I told him, we're already in hell so he might as well hurry up."
Darcy cracked up laughing.
"Well, that just might be my new favourite sound. What do you think, Marko?"
Darcy sighed and turned to look at Paul entering the store. Marko was coming in behind. "Who invited you?"
Paul held his hands against his chest and pretended to stumble back. "She wounds!
"Not deep enough if you're still standing," she said dryly. She glanced back at Camila behind the counter. "These are two of them."
"Who's this?" Paul leaned forward on the counter to grin at Camila. "Is this the spot to collect beautiful women?"
Darcy smacked him on the back of the head. He winced and pulled back instantly, looking at her with a slightly wounded expression. Marko busted up laughing. "Knock it off." She pointed at the two of them. "This is Camila. She's a friend."
Paul held his hands up in surrender. "Sorry babe."
"Mmhmm," she twisted her lips, looking unimpressed. "What are you doing here?"
"Only here for one thing," Paul said, leaning in for a kiss. "Some sugar from you."
She was tempted to shove his face to the side simply for the comment. It was just his personality though. Darcy was learning that fast. She tilted her face up. Paul grabbed the sides of her face and kissed her hard. Unlike their last kiss, there was nothing slow or soft about it. His lips moved against hers, tongue pushing in and deepening the kiss. She grabbed the front of his shirt, pulling him in and she felt him grin against her lips. He broke the kiss, pressing his lips against her cheek before suddenly licking her.
"UGH!" She shoved him back. He started laughing, pushing at Marko who was grinning back. She scrubbed at her face with her hand.
"Paul," David's voice cut through the laughter. "That how you treat our girl?"
"You lick me again and I'll cut off your tongue," Darcy snarled, pointing at him.
"But then we really wouldn't have any fun," Paul grinned at her.
"I have three others," she said dryly. All of their eyes seemed to light up at that and she quickly realized her mistake. It was the first time she actually said something possessive when it came to them.
"You do," David said, striding forward. She still had her back mainly to the store since Camila had been facing it. David titled her back. She clung to his arm in surprise, fearing that she was going to fall. He held her up though as he bent down to kiss her. It felt similar to being dipped during a dance. There was no hesitation. David kissed her deeply as if he was trying to burn the feeling of his lips on hers. The mixture of the kiss and hanging off the edge of the counter left her dizzy when he finally moved her to sit back up.
"Now that was a kiss."
Darcy looked back at Camila. Admittedly, she had forgotten about the woman slightly. "Sorry 'bout that."
"What's there to be sorry for?" The woman waved her off. "You're young. Have fun. Now, are you going to introduce me to your young men?"
Darcy was tempted not to, but David once again took action before she made any decision. He reached over and offered his hand to Camila. "David," he introduced himself. "That's Paul and Marko," he motioned to each of them.
"Camila," she said, giving her hand over.
Darcy rolled her eyes as David leaned down and brushed his lips over the older woman's knuckles. "I said she was a friend, not my mother."
"You should be so lucky," Camila quipped back.
"I would," Darcy said dryly. "It'd be a vast improvement." It was interesting to note that the boys didn't look too surprised at the comment but Camila's expression was a little concerned. "Camila is my new coworker," Darcy told them. "I expect that she'll be around for a long while and nothing will change that." Her tone got harder as she spoke, thinking about Clark.
"I'm sure she'll live a long and happy life," David said, looking back at the others.
"It's a curse," Camila agreed with a nod.
"A curse?" Darcy turned to see Paul standing straighter. "What curse?"
"Figure of speech," Marko said, patting his shoulder. "Don't worry."
Paul shrugged him off. "You don't know that. Curses can be real things." He looked over at Camila. "Is it a real one? Who cursed you?" He stepped back. "Is it contagious?"
Darcy burst out laughing. "Contagious?"
Marko waved his fingers at Paul. "Cursed to grow old!"
"Shut up!" Paul swiped at him.
David gave Darcy a pointed, slightly exasperated look that said 'you see what we have to deal with?'
"You honestly believe in curses?" Darcy asked Paul.
"You don't know what's out there," the man in question said, pointing at her.
"It's the curse of old age," Camila said. "Nothing else."
He looked at her cautiously. "You sure?"
"Quite sure, lindo. I'm more likely to be of the giving and not the receiving end of curses. I'll tell you about it sometime."
Marko and Darcy both started laughing again. It was the fear in his expression that set her off. Out of everyone she's ever known, she didn't expect any of these bikers to be scared of a curse.
"So babe," Marko called out. "You done working yet?"
"Yeah, we wanna take you out, girl." Paul seemed to get over his fear as he moved back toward her.
Darcy looked back at the clock. "What time is it?"
"Time for us to go, mija. You need to enjoy your nights and this old lady needs to go to bed."
"You're not old, Camila," Darcy said. She turned on the counter, lifting her legs over the cash register so that she was fully facing the boys. David moved forward and she hopped down before he could make any attempt to help. "You got years ahead."
"Ah, you would not say that if you were my age."
Darcy turned to look at the boys. "Get out while we close. I'll find you later."
"At the boardwalk." David didn't say it like it was a question, but Darcy answered it anyway.
"No."
"We'll pick you up then," David said. "Find something to eat."
"Fine, it'll be about half an hour. Go."
"Come on boys."
David led the way out, pausing momentarily to nod toward Camila. Marko and Paul both moved forward to kiss Darcy's cheeks.
She shoved them towards the door. "Out!"
It didn't take long to go over the closing procedure. It was simply making sure the cash was put in the safe, checking the donation box and locking the doors. Camila agreed to come by tomorrow so that they could organize what times Camila would come in. Darcy didn't mind the company and Sampson promised that her hours wouldn't be cut. They needed to figure out how that would work.
There was the rumble of motorcycles outside as they turned off the lights.
"Your boys are here for you," Camila said.
"They can wait." Darcy locked the back and then led Camila to the front. "Might do them some good."
Camila laughed.
Darcy opened the door and saw all three of them waiting outside of the store on their bikes. "Well, at least you're on time," she said dryly. She ushered Camila out and locked the door behind them. She looked back at the older woman. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"Enjoy." Camila winked at her and walked away.
Darcy turned to face the boys. She cocked a hip and rested her hand on it. "Well?"
"Come on, Darcy," David called out. "Let's go for a ride."
"Where?" It wasn't that she was completely opposed to the idea, but they had a tendency to hang out at the boardwalk and that wasn't her idea of a good time.
They all laughed and Darcy narrowed her eyes at the sound. "Stop being dicks and answer the question."
"We'll take you to our place," Marko called out.
"Yeah, babe. Come see where we hang." That cracked Paul up before he even completely finished saying it. David smirked as Marko laughed.
Darcy considered it. If they wanted to kill her, they had plenty of opportunities to do so already.
"Darcy."
She glared over at David, unimpressed at his command. "You said there'd be food."
"We'll get you something to eat," Marko said. "Just come on."
It was a difficult thing to be faced with their attention. She had kissed all of them. Hell, she slept with two of them, but they were still here. Still waiting. She moved before she could convince herself not to.
"Fine." She moved forward, ignoring the cheers of two of them. They didn't show any preference for who she should sit with so she chose Paul. She had yet to ride with him. She slung a leg over the seat, found the foot holds and shifted forward.
David revved his engine.
"Hold tight babe!" Paul called out. She shimmied forward, wrapped her arms around his waist and pushed her face into his back, trying to keep his hair out of her mouth. They took off.
Paul was a maniac. He whooped and hollered as they drove. Darcy caught sight of pedestrians moving out of the way until she felt her body lift off of the seat when the men drove off of some stairs. She was going to kill them if she survived this.
Her ass was definitely bruised from the way they landed. They were saved from her cursing as she hid her face again in Paul's back, this time to avoid the sand they were kicking up.
It felt like ages before they finally stopped. Darcy didn't move right away, uncertain if her body would even let her after that.
She finally looked up and instantly hit Paul as hard as she could in the shoulder.
"Hey!"
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" she snarled. She got off the motorcycle, ignoring the slight way her legs were shaking. "You don't just decide to leap off of fucking stairs without warning the passenger! What if I wasn't holding on tight enough?"
"I would have caught you!" he protested.
"You're lucky it's only my ass that's bruised!" she hissed.
He grinned at her. "Want me to kiss it better?"
Her eyes narrowed. She was stopped from lunging forward to shove him off of his own bike as an arm draped itself over her shoulders. She looked over at David.
"Come on, Darcy."
She finally looked around and realized they had taken her to a cliff. She dug in her heels and started moving back. "Oh hell no. I refuse to die by fake suicide."
They all turned to look at her. "What?"
"We're not going to kill you, Darcy."
"Especially not by a cliff," Paul said before grunting. She caught sight of Marko elbowing him in the stomach.
"Our place is down there." David pointed to the edge and now that it was pointed out to her, she could see the stairs. She also saw the sign warning them of the danger.
"Yeah, there's no way I'm going down there." She tried to pull back. David tightened his grip on her shoulders. She tried to shrug him off. "Let go. I'm going home."
David moved to stand in front of her. He bent down slightly, meeting her eyes. "Darcy." His voice sounded like it echoed slightly, merging with the sound of the waves crashing against the cliff. "It's safe, isn't it Darcy?"
She felt herself shake her head but she couldn't look away from his eyes. Why couldn't she look away?
"You're with us, Darcy. It's safe."
The world faded around her. David's eyes felt like they were burning into hers and she felt Paul and Marko step up against each side. She was nearly boxed in by them. Someone's arm was around her waist. She felt another hand on the back of her neck. She felt herself sway slightly. The grip on her tightened. Darcy felt her legs give out from under her but she didn't fall. Was someone saying her name?
"There, see? You made it."
Everything came into focus and she stumbled automatically at the rush of noise. There were lips on her neck and someone's hand was under her shirt. She blinked, totally confused. She shoved them back and stepped away. They were at the bottom of the stairs. The waves were crashing against the rocks behind her and the mouth of the cave was ahead, looming ominously behind the men.
"How the fuck did I get here?"
"Hungry Darcy?" David asked, ignoring her question. He turned and walked into the mouth of the cave.
"Come on, babe!" Paul grabbed her hand, pulling her towards it. She tried to dig in her heels.
"You're avoiding the fucking question," she snapped. She pulled her hand out of his grasp and stepped back. Darcy looked around. The stairs were behind her, waves crashing against the rocks next to them. This wasn't right. Still, there was no way she'd even make it to the steps before one of them grabbed her if she decided to run. They liked her enough so far. She had to use that to her advantage. They already said they wouldn't kill her.
She moved forward.
The cave was lit by fire in empty barrels. At least, she hoped they were empty. David sat in a wheelchair while Marko seemed to run around with a torch ensuring the place was lit. Paul was next to her grinning.
"What d'you think?"
She looked around. There was a Jim Morrison poster on the wall, a bed that looked as though it hadn't been made since Kennedy was in office and a broken fountain in the middle of the whole thing. "It's a cave."
They all looked at her.
"It's not just a cave," David said, looking over at her while he smoked. God, she'd kill for one right now. "It used to be a hotel until the fault opened up and swallowed it whole–"
"It's a cave," she interrupted him. "Having a fountain that doesn't work doesn't change that." She crossed her arms over her chest. Her legs were freezing now. "You could have at least warned me to put on pants."
"And miss the view?" Marko leered at her with a wink.
She stared back at him, unimpressed.
Marko moved forward and pulled her close to him. "Don't worry, babe. We'll warm you up." She shoved him back.
"And you guys said shit about my motel? At least I'm not homeless." Technically.
"What?" Paul jumped up onto the edge of the fountain. "Sit down, babe. Let me show you why this is better than your dump."
"And freeze my ass off? No thanks."
David motioned for her to join him on the wheelchair. She ignored it. She also wasn't going near that bed. It was probably filled with dust mites and mould. There was a broken front desk in one corner, to match the fountain, and a couch covered in lace. She took her chances with the couch.
Darcy shoved off the lace, just in case, before she sat down. "Well?"
Paul took the opportunity to jump in, showcasing different parts of the motel like he was Vanna White. It was impressive the place hadn't caught on fire yet from the sheer amount of candles they had, the barrels of fire and the lace and drapery that was everywhere. It looked like an 80s music video. She half expected Meatloaf to appear promising he'd do anything for love but he won't do that.
Darcy was pretty sure the couch she was sitting on was on a slant. The whole place stunk, not just of salt water, but of mould, dust and something that smelled green. It was the only way she could describe it. It was almost enough to turn her stomach. Almost. Apparently, even the potential of being murdered in a cave wasn't enough to stop her stomach from growling.
They all seemed to notice too.
"Hungry, Darcy?"
"No shit." There was no point in being embarrassed. It wasn't like she could hide it or even wanted to.
"What do you want?" David's voice seemed to echo in the cave.
"A bacon cheeseburger." She might as well enjoy it. Darcy hasn't had a good burger in ages since she's stayed clear of the Boardwalk. "And fries."
"Paul, get the food."
The blond looked as though he was going to protest for a moment before he left at David's order.
"Cigarette?" David offered. She considered it but seeing as he made no motion to move from across the room, Darcy wasn't inclined to move.
"I'm good." She wasn't, but she wouldn't admit that.
"Marko, music." The other man in question pulled out a boombox from somewhere in the cave. There was no plug running from it…which struck Darcy.
"Do you guys really live here?"
"It has everything we need," David said. "You don't like our home, Darcy?"
She looked around again. There was clearly no electricity since they relied on enough fire hazards to give the whole fire department a hard-on for light and batteries for music. Something didn't sit right. They didn't have a fridge or even a cooler? What man on earth didn't have something to hold his food whenever he was hungry and groups of boys were always hungry.
Darcy tried to find some sign that actually showed a group of men lived here. Aside from the cigarette ashes everywhere or terrible decor. There were also no dishes. Not a single cup or spoon in sight. It clicked. There was no garbage anywhere. They could have burnt it, but that would leave a smell. The only thing coming from the barrels was the smell of burning wood and kerosene.
She thought back on every instance she spent with these men. The disappearance of Frankie after partying with them. The way they were never around during the day but always seemed to know where she was. At least at night when she was in town. They rarely ate unless she pointed it out. And that stupid mother fucker who claimed to be a hunter only to be gone after she told David. "Shit." Her ears were ringing. The hair on the back of her neck and goosebumps prickled on her arms. Darcy's lips felt numb.
"What's wrong, babe?" Marko appeared in front of her. That was another thing. How fast they seemed to move or drive. They didn't give a shit about the danger they put anyone else in. They encouraged her violence. She cracked David over the head with a baseball bat and he didn't even stumble. She went along with things even when she didn't want to, not at first. Like being in this stupid cave.
"Darcy?"
"You mother fuckers," she looked up at Marko. She had felt like prey when she first met them. Now she knew why.
"What?" Marko actually looked concerned.
"What's wrong Darcy?" David's voice echoed through the cave as he moved closer to them. He was out of the wheelchair in a flash.
She jumped up, shoving Marko out of her face before she hopped the couch. Thank god she hadn't worn a dress. "Get the fuck away from me."
She calculated her options before she moved for the closest barrel. The torch they had used to light it was still sticking out. She grabbed it, ignoring the heat on her hands.
"Darcy!"
She turned and pointed it at them, trying to keep them in her sight. What else was a lie? "Were you going to tell me you're vampires?"
Both the men stopped. She saw Marko turn to David, whose eyes never left hers. David moved closer and she adjusted her grip on the burning stick.
"I doubt you can brush off fire. Tell me the fucking truth."
"We told you you're safe," he said.
"Bullshit. I'm food."
"Darcy..." the air shifted slightly and she felt herself sway. The heat of the torch kept her aware enough that she bit on the inside of her cheek.
"Stop fucking doing that!" She snarled. David was somehow closer. She swiped the air in front of her with the torch while trying to move sideways, closer to the exit. Darcy didn't expect to survive. It would be her fucking luck that she finally got some peace only to get eaten by vampires. She sure as hell wasn't going out alone though. If they wanted to eat her, she was going to make them work for it.
"You're not food," Marko called out. "Not you."
"Because I'm so special," she replied dryly. "If I'm not food, let me go."
"Darcy," David drew her attention back to him. Not that it ever left. She wasn't about to let this asshole get closer. "Put it down before it burns you."
"Get fucked."
"You want the truth?" David's face shifted, changing into something with ridges and fangs. His eyes were yellow.
Darcy felt her heart leap in her chest. It was one thing to know it, but to have it visually confirmed was a whole other level. Gods, she didn't keep the best company but this was the first time she actually hung out with murderers. She was getting to like them too.
"Darcy wait," Marko moved closer, both hands held at shoulder level, casting a glare at David whose face shifted back into human. "We weren't lying when we said you were safe with us."
"I don't give a shit. Let me go."
"Babes! I got–" They all turned to see Paul walking into the cave. He stopped at the sight of them. "Damn, who pissed you off, babe?"
"You did!" She snarled. He looked stunned.
"I just…what?"
"All of you vampiric assholes!"
"I was gone for ten minutes!" Paul looked at the other two. "Okay, night's over I guess. Come on, babe. I got your food. Want me to walk you home?"
"No."
Paul shrugged. "Alright, but it's not exactly easy to get up those stairs."
David moved slightly closer and Darcy swung out, nearly catching his face with the torch. She should have stepped into the swing more. He backed up though.
"Should just leave her," Paul called out from where he was still standing holding the paper bag. "Let our girl think."
"I'm not yours," she snarled. She was tired of being claimed over and over.
"Alright. You sure you don't want me to take you home? I'll swear on, well, not my soul, don't have one…do I?" Paul shook his head, pulling himself out of the thought. "I promise on every single pretty thing I own, babe. You'll get home safe."
"No promises on staying safe though, huh?"
"I mean, I can wait if you want to burn David's face off. Food's getting cold though." Paul shrugged like he honestly did not care which way she chose. David on the other hand was nearly snarling.
"Go Darcy," Marko said, moving in front of David. "It's okay."
"The fuck it is." She took his advice though. One vampire would be easier than three. She moved slowly but Marko and David didn't move. Instead, they almost looked like they were arguing even though she couldn't hear them.
Darcy didn't care. She was getting the fuck out of there.
[tbc]