It was a cool Saturday evening when Damon dropped Lucy at the Grill to have an early dinner with Caroline. They were just finishing up when Damon shuffled in and made his way to the bar where a red head immediately started hitting on him. Lucy frowned as she took him in. Something was wrong. It went beyond him not coming over to greet them. It was in the way he held himself, the look on his face. Something had happened since he dropped her off a couple of hours ago. Leave it to Damon to get into trouble in that short period of time.
Lucy tapped the table as she thought. "I'll meet you at the car, Care. I need to talk to Damon for a moment."
"Sure, no problem," the bubbly blonde answered and Lucy couldn't help the smile that curled her lips in response to the girl's normal demeanor.
Lucy walked over to Damon and rested her elbow on his shoulder. "Hey, Salvatore. What's up? You good?"
He barely glanced at her, simply grunting in answer. She scowled in response. This was so out of character for him. At least when it came to her.
Before she could drag him off and make him talk to her, the woman that had been talking to him piped up. "Who's this? Girlfriend?" Her gaze flitted over Lucy before arching a brow in dismissal.
"No," Damon said with a huff of a laugh before he drained the rest of his drink. "This is just Lucy."
And damn, that hurt but she clenched her teeth and did her best to keep her face neutral. "Well, just Lucy, we were kind of in the middle of something," the other woman said.
Damon licked his lips. "Yeah, I'll see you later, Luce." Again, he barely glanced at her as his dismissed her.
Lucy said nothing as she stepped away and went outside to find her ride. She slipped into Caroline's car. Once Lucy buckled in, she turned her head to stare out the passenger window so her friend wouldn't see any stray tears that might fall. They were halfway to the boarding house before Caroline spoke. "Are you okay, Lucy?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." She wasn't sure how believable her answer was as her voice was rough with emotion. When they reached the house, they both got out. "I'm going for a walk. I'll be in later."
"Okay. Be careful," Caroline instructed before heading inside to see Stefan.
Lucy wrapped her arms around her middle as she tromped across the grounds and into the trees. She just needed some time to herself. Some time to remind herself that Damon made her no promises and they were friends, nothing more. He was obviously in a pissy mood and taking it out on her as he was prone to do when his brother wasn't around to be the target. It wasn't his fault she caught some pesky feelings along the way and took it personally. She sighed and swiped the tears from her cheeks. Stupid.
After ten minutes or so, she turned to head back to the house only to find an unfamiliar man blocking her path. Before she could react, four more figures surrounded her. Lucy held her hands out to the side. She could fight but not five on one. Especially because she was fairly certain they were vampires. She opened her mouth to scream for Stefan when something hit her on the head and everything went black in a rush of pain.
***
Damon felt bad for dismissing Lucy as he had, but his ego was hurting after finding Pearl and Anna in his house. They wanted him to spy on the council for them. When he refused, Pearl shoved her thumbs in his eyes just to remind him how much older she was. He'd apologize to Lucy later when he could manage to talk to her without being an asshole.
Right now, he needed a pretty woman to fawn over him for a few hours with no strings attached and no expectations other than great sex. The red head fit the bill perfectly even if he'd already forgotten her name. They stumbled in the door of the boarding house. His lips found hers as he lifted her. Her legs wrapped around his waist and he carried her over to press her back against the wall.
She moaned and he resisted the urge to tell her to shut up so Lucy didn't hear. God, he so did not want to be thinking about Lucy right now. That would only lead to trouble. He made a concentrated effort to think only of the woman currently clinging to him like a human fungus.
"Mrs. Donovan?" Caroline's voice cut through the lust induced haze.
Damon jerked his head to focus on his brother's girlfriend while he lowered the woman to the floor. She ran her hands over her dress, smoothing out the wrinkles and gave Caroline a tight smile. "Caroline. How lovely to see you."
Stefan's mouth was a flat line as he looked between Damon and his guest. "You weren't answering your phone."
Damon's lips twitched in annoyance. "I was busy."
"I see that. I suppose this means that Lucy isn't with you?"
He straightened trying not to panic at the question. "I thought she came home with Caroline."
"She did," the girl answered. "When we got here she said she wanted to go for a walk so I came in without her."
"I went out looking for her after half an hour. There was no sign of her." Stefan's voice was heavy with worry.
Damon pushed the woman off him and stepped toward his brother. "What do you mean there was no sign of her? She has to be somewhere, Stefan."
When the woman tried to get his attention again, he scowled at her. "Listen, Kathy, something's come up. Caroline will take you home."
She shoved at him. "The name's Kelly, asshole."
Damon ignored her and shifted his gaze to the blonde. "Run her home and come right back. Stay in the house. Stefan and I are going to look again."
Caroline nodded and grabbed Kelly's arm to pull her out the door.
"You go East, I'll go West," Damon instructed his brother and raced out the door without waiting for a response.
When he came up empty, he raked his hands through his hair as he thought. Where the hell could she be? She was one of the most capable humans he knew when it came to defending herself. He couldn't believe someone could take her without there being some sign of a struggle. A sudden thought occurred to him and a tendril of unease crawled up his spine and a sick feeling settled in his stomach. Pearl.
He raced to the house she'd said they were staying in and pounded on the door. "Pearl, open up."
A dark-haired vampire opened the door. He seemed familiar and Damon wondered if Pearl had gathered her minions from back in the day. Anna wasn't the only one that had escaped being trapped in the tomb. "Sorry, Pearl's not here right now."
Damon clenched his teeth and a muscle in his jaw twitched. "I'm looking for someone. I thought Pearl might have seen her."
"Richard," the vampire called over his shoulder. Another vampire stepped out of the kitchen, Lucy in his grip. One arm banded across her chest to hold her to him and the other hand wrapped around her throat. Her gaze instantly locked on Damon's. The plea in her eyes hit him like a punch to the gut.
He surged forward only to come up against an invisible wall. He slapped his hands against the doorframe and hissed. "I will fucking kill you."
"Now, now. Pearl just wants to make sure you do what you're supposed to. Miss Gibbons?"
A human with dark curly hair and a bite on her neck stepped into view. "Yes, Fredrick?"
"Never let this bad man in." The vampire smirked at Damon's obvious distress.
How the hell was he supposed to rescue her if he couldn't enter the house? "If you hurt her, you will die." It was an empty threat at the moment and he knew it but what else was he to do? His stomach churned with nerves. If something happened to her he'd go insane. He needed Stefan.
"You know, I'm just famished. I believe it's time for dinner." Fredrick slammed the door on Damon's outraged scream.
He raced home and grabbed Stefan's arms to make sure he had his full attention. "They have her."
"Who does?" Stefan asked with wide eyes.
"Pearl and Anna and I don't know how many others. There's at least two more. Probably more than that. We can't get in the house. The owner's still alive. We have to save her, Stefan." Damon's words came out in a rush but Stefan understood him just the same.
"Calm down, Damon. We need to think," Stefan said.
"I could go in after her," Caroline suggested.
"Absolutely not." Stefan shut that down immediately and Damon agreed. If Caroline went in they'd simply have two humans to rescue instead of one.
"I have an idea," the younger Salvatore said, "but you're not going to like it."
***
Lucy kept drifting in and out of consciousness and it was screwing with her ability to keep track of time. She could have been strung up in the basement of this house for hours or days. They'd stripped her down to her undergarments their intention to give the better access to feed. When the first vampire had bitten her only to get a mouthful of vervain tainted blood, he spat it on the floor. Then he'd smacked her across the face. Pain radiated from her cheekbone and she had a moment to wonder if it was broken before more blows came to her face and body.
When they grew bored of using her as a pinata, they moved on to knives and cigarettes, cutting and burning her flesh. She wasn't entirely clear on the purpose of torturing other than to make certain Damon fell in line. From what she could gather, they were going to have their fun for a few days then return her home. Or maybe they'd keep her long enough that they could drink from her and drain her dry. They'd told her both were possibilities.
She flexed her hands, the pins and needles sensation from her wrists being tied together felt like little fires under her skin. Then they'd strung her up in the basement. Her shoulders ached and burned deep in the muscle. The pain unlike anything she'd felt before and nothing she ever cared to repeat. Gods, she was a mess.
Realistically she knew she couldn't have been here that long. Damon knew where she was. The brothers would come to save her. Wouldn't they? She wished she had a phone to call Elijah. He'd rescue her and do it with a flair. He was going to be pissed when he heard about this one. She hoped he didn't try to get her to move in with him. That was his usual response to her being hurt.
Hot tears rolled down her cheeks. She wanted her family. Her friends. She was scared and alone and she just wanted to go home.
***
Stefan was right. Damon didn't like his idea at all. The three of them were wandering the halls of the high school looking for the history teacher after Stefan called and asked to meet him there.
"What is this about?" Alaric asked as he sat on the corner of his desk.
"We need your help, Mr. Saltzman. Someone took Lucy," Caroline all but begged.
His gaze moved between the three of them. "And what does that have to do with me?"
"Stefan and Damon can't get in the house. I'd go but they won't let me."
"All the other reasons why that would be a horrible idea aside, Lucy would kill us if you got hurt," Damon said.
"This isn't my problem. I can't help you," Alaric said as he stood. "Good luck."
"The woman in charge can help you find Isobel," Damon said and Stefan shot him an irritated look.
"You're lying."
"Okay, I'm lying. I mean, I don't know. It's possible she knows, I'm not sure. Just help us save Lucy. She didn't do anything to deserve this. She's innocent. Human." Damon hated to beg but for Lucy he'd do anything.
Alaric huffed a laugh. "Innocent? Didn't she threaten to shoot me?"
"She's always threatening to shoot people. Don't take it personal," Stefan said.
When the teacher said nothing else, Damon sighed. "Let's go. We'll figure something out."
"Wait," Alaric stopped them at the door. "I'll help."
He dug in his bag and pulled out a length of rolled up fabric. He unfurled it on his desk to show a variety of weapons. Damon whistled through his teeth. "Impressive. Teacher by day. Vampire hunter by night."
"I have you to thank for that." Alaric crossed his arms over his chest. "What's the plan?"
"You get us in and we'll handle the rest," Stefan said as he fingered one of the stakes.
"That doesn't sound like much of a plan, Stefan," Caroline told him.
He laid an arm across her shoulders and pulled her into his side to press a kiss to her head. "It'll be fine, sweetheart. Trust me."
***
It was Damon that found Lucy, stripped down and hanging by her wrists. The tangy aroma of blood flooded his senses as he stepped into the room. His chest grew tight as he looked her over. Rivulets of blood ran over raw, bruised skin. Crimson splashes colored the floor beneath her. Her head hung forward. Limp. What had they done to her? For a moment, just a moment, he feared she was dead. Then his ear picked up the comforting sound of her heartbeat.
He pushed the hair from her face and lifted her head. Bruises adorned the skin of her face and throat. He swallowed down his anger. He could get his revenge in a moment. Right now, he needed to take care of her. Wrapping an arm around her waist, he lifted her to take the pressure off the ropes so he could release her from their hold.
She fell limply into his arms and he lowered them both to the floor. He bit into his wrist and held it to her lips. Blood tinted her mouth red, but she swallowed none of it. "Come on, baby, you've got to drink." He shook her slightly but there was no change. A tear ran down his face as he traced a thumb over her cheek trying to get her to wake. This was all his fault.
"Damon," Stefan hissed from the doorway.
The elder brother jerked his head up with a frown.
Stefan's gaze moved between his brother and the girl in his arms. "You have to get her out of here."
Damon bit his wrist and tried to get her to drink again. Nothing. A hand fell on his shoulder as Stefan attempted to get his attention but Damon shrugged it off.
"We don't have time for this, Damon. Take her to the car. Caroline's waiting."
More tears ran but he sniffed and laid her on the floor so he could take off his shirt. He slid it over her head so she would be covered then scooped her into his arms. He ran out the basement door and across the field to where they'd left the car.
Caroline saw them approaching and hopped out of the car. She leaned the seat up so Damon could lay Lucy in the back. "Take care of her," he instructed the blonde then raced back to the house to have a talk with the vampires that had mistreated his human.