Unfortunately, life didn't get any calmer around the boarding house. Stefan was spending even more time with Caroline as he was serving as her escort for Miss Mystic Falls so he hadn't been around much. And for some reason, John Gilbert had convinced the sheriff that he and Damon should team up to hunt down the vampire responsible for the deaths and blood bank robberies. Lucy found the irony amusing even if they did wonder what the ass was up to.

Then the Gilbert in question showed up at their house. Lucy was the one to answer the door. She sighed and wrinkled her nose in disgust. "I finally get one of you to quit coming around and now there's another."

He lifted his brows and looked her over. "Is Damon here?"

"Come in, I guess." She stepped back so he could enter and shut the door behind him. By the time she turned around, Damon was in the hallway.

He held out an arm and she moved to his side where he held her to him. "What do you want, John?"

"You haven't been answering my calls."

"Most people would take that as a hint," Lucy said with an arched brow.

John frowned and narrowed his gaze. "You know what I don't understand here is you. Damon I get. Stefan I get. But you're human. You saw him kill me and you didn't run screaming? Something's off about you."

"And?" He acted like he was telling her something she didn't already know. She'd always been a little weird, a little odd, and she quite enjoyed it.

He shook his head and put his attention back on Damon. "Is she compelled?"

"I'm on vervain, dick," she answered for herself. "Besides, Damon wouldn't do that."

Damon shrugged. "What do you want, John? We both know we aren't going vampire hunting."

"Fair enough," John said with a nod. "The original Johnathan Gilbert had an invention that worked against vampires. It was believed lost in the church fire. Now that we know the vampires survived, we believe the device is retrievable."

"If it wasn't destroyed when we burnt the others," Damon corrected.

"True, but we have reason to believe it survived. We want you to collect it for us."

Lucy took a step away from Damon. "You keep saying we. Who's we?"

"Let's just call us a group of like-minded individuals."

This guy was such a smug bastard. She couldn't stand him. Maybe she just had a natural aversion to all things Gilbert.

"What do you need me for? You know where the tomb is. Go digging yourself."

"Johnathan was friendly with a woman that turned out to be a vampire. Her name was Pearl. Sound familiar?"

Damon immediately pulled Lucy back into his side at the mention of the other woman's name. "We're done here."

John tilted his head. "Excuse me?"

Damon left Lucy's side to head for the door. "I only played along with your blackmail scheme because I curious what you were up to. I'm over it."

"I'll tell everyone on the council what you are," John said just before Damon could open the door. "And I'll tell them your little girlfriend here knows everything."

The vampire's jaw tightened as he clenched his teeth. He stepped toward the other man, every movement marking him a predator. He was furious. "Go ahead. Tell them. I'll kill every last one of them and everyone they might have told of our existence. Then I'll sever your hand, take off your ring and kill you too. Do you understand?"

Rather than answering, John stared him down for a moment then moved past him and out the door without saying a word. Damon tracked his every move.

"That was a bit dramatic don't you think?" Lucy asked after she heard John's car pull away.

Damon turned to her, his brows lifted in surprise. "He'll leave us the fuck alone now. What about it was too dramatic exactly?"

"The whole severing his hand thing." She shrugged one shoulder. "Wouldn't it just be simpler for me to kill him?"

"Kitten, I don't know how to break this to you but you don't exactly strike fear into the hearts of men. I needed a threat that might actually deter him."

"I'm offended."

***

The Miss Mystic Falls pageant was about the last place on Earth either Damon or Lucy wanted to be. But Caroline had begged Lucy until she relented. She'd then informed Damon if she had to go, so did he.

Stefan had just left them to take his spot to wait for Caroline when they bumped into Anna. "In the running for Miss Mystic Falls?" Damon asked.

Lucy sipped her drink as she ran her gaze between the two of them. Some conversations she just preferred to stay out of.

"Sometimes you have to wear uncomfortable heels to fit in," Anna said with a tight smile. "You know I remember this event from 1864. I was supposed to be in it before everything went to shit."

Damon hummed and lifted his glass in a little toast. "Nostalgia's a bitch."

"If you're just going to be an ass, could you move along? Thanks."

He was obviously irritated with the other vampire. Lucy tilted her head in the girl's direction. They had a purpose here beyond cheering for her blonde bestie. He rolled his eyes and turned toward Anna. "John Gilbert is after an invention that Johnathan Sr. Sr. had. He thinks your mom stole it."

"And I care why?"

"Because whatever it is, I don't want him to have it."

Anna licked her lips. "I could ask my mom but why should I? You've made it clear you don't trust us."

"There's a good reason for that," Lucy said, her voice softer than usual. Damon wrapped an arm around her and pulled her into his side as if he could protect her from the memories that way. "I know you said you didn't have anything to do with it, but they were still your people."

The vampire looked away unwilling to meet Lucy's gaze. "Yeah." In a blink she disappeared into the crowd.

"You okay?" Damon tightened his hold.

Lucy nodded. "I'm fine, Day. Just don't like being reminded is all."

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Neither do I."

They found an out of the way spot to watch the proceedings. Damon kept her tucked into his side the entire time with his arm around her and his hand resting on her hip. They didn't talk until the dancing began.

He leaned down, his lips brushing her ear as he spoke. "This dance is all about the intimacy of the near touch."

She hummed in agreement before laying her hand on top of the one on her hip. "I think the near touch is overrated." She didn't look at him, simply reaching over and plucking his glass from his hand to drain the rest of his drink with a little smirk.

The silence between them stretched until he released her so they could clap at the end of the dance. "You're nothing but trouble, Ms. Williams," he said in a low tone.

"You love it."

***

Long after Caroline had been announced as the winner, Damon and Lucy made their way home. She carried her shoes in her hand and wore his jacket over her dress. His tie hung loose and he'd undone the top couple of buttons on his shirt. He clung tightly to Lucy's free hand and led her to the front door.

Before they reached it, Anna stepped out of the shadows.

Damon pulled Lucy back and positioned himself so he was in front of her but he kept hold of her hand. "I'm flattered, but this is borderline stalking."

"We're here to talk," Anna said and her mother emerged from the shadow near the door.

Creepy ass vampires. Couldn't they just stand around and wait without lurking.

Damon squeezed Lucy's hand. "It's been a long day. Can we do this later?"

"Annabelle says you're looking for something I took from Johnathan Gilbert," Pearl said. Her gaze darted to Lucy and back again.

The elder vampire made Lucy far more uncomfortable than Anna did. There was something about the woman that just didn't sit right with the human. When Damon told her that Pearl was Katherine's best friend that explained a lot. They'd have to share some personality traits to be that close.

Damon moved so Lucy was more hidden from the other vampires. "I'm listening but let's make this quick."

Pearl brought over a small bag and handed it to him. He released Lucy's hand so he could open it. She pressed both hands to his back and leaned into him as she took deep breaths. She hated this. This unease made her feel weak but she was okay with letting Damon be her strength for a moment.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Johnathan Gilbert loved his inventions. He told me about a device that could detect vampires. I thought that was what I was stealing. I realized my mistake when his device pointed at me and they dragged me to the church."

"Okay. So what is this?"

"I don't know," Pearl said. "But it's yours now."

Lucy didn't trust it. Apparently, Damon didn't either. "What's the catch?"

"No catch. We want to stay here. We can't do that if we're being hunted."

Damon didn't respond, but he reached back so Lucy could take his hand again.

"Consider it an apology. We want to make amends," Pearl said. She sounded sincere but who knew?

Damon didn't say anything as he led her toward the door. Lucy looked back over her shoulder to find the other vampires watching them. "Thank you."

Just because she didn't trust them was no reason to forget her manners.