The Lions & the Lamb

The wind shifted directions and her scent was carried to the vampires. The vampire with the bronze hair hissed and took a quick step back. A low growl came from his lips. His golden eyes darkened with desire. The oldest looking of the four reached a hand out and grabbed the bronze haired one by the arm, grasping him tightly. His handsome face held a worried frown that was directed to the bronze haired one. The other two vampires, also male, crouched low and talked in such low whispers, human ears would never catch what they were saying. All four vampires stood in the shadows watching the girl; she completely unaware of their presence.

The girl was pretty with long brown hair and eyes. Her pale skin seemed out of place considering she lived in Phoenix. She waited on the sidewalk, under the street lamp. Her mother was on her way to pick her up, and the girl kept looking at her watch, rolling her eyes because her mother was once again late. The girl wore a blue Death Cab for Cutie t-shirt, and a pair of khaki shorts. The day had been a scorcher, but the night was cooling off quickly. The vampires watched as she shivered in the cool night air. The girl couldn't of been much older than 17.

The biggest of the vampires, heavily muscled, with dark curly hair finally whispered to the other three. "If she's really the one it's now or never." He cracked his knuckles and stood up from his crouched position. The tall, lean vampire with honey blond hair whispered back. "I agree."

The oldest vampire, devastatingly handsome with blond hair, released his grip on the younger one. "You ready?" Doubt and worry tinged the tones of his voice. The one with the bonze hair just nodded. The oldest, clearly the leader took a step forward, followed by another step. Soon he was no longer hidden by the shadows of the building, and he slowly casually walked towards the girl.

The girl's heart rate jumped briefly, but settled back down when she first saw the man walking towards her. She reminded herself that she was in a relatively safe neighborhood, and that the man was probably just out for a stroll. It was only 10:30, not overly late. But as the man came closer, it was obvious he was focused on her. There was something predatory about him. He seemed strong, lithe, and intense. His golden eyes, focused clearly on the girl, bore through her. She shivered and she pulled in a sharp gasp as she saw three other men appear from the shadows. Their footsteps made minimal noise, and in fact she could barely hear them at all, as they came closer.

I have to run. Her feet didn't move. A wave of calm came over her, slowing down her heartbeat, pushing the rising adrenaline back down. She managed to take a step back. The leader stopped before her. His hand rose in front of him as if trying to pacify a startled horse. He directed a smile towards the girl. It was a kind smile, but to the girl it looked like a predatory smile. She took another step back. Another wave of calm flushed through her, making her feel slightly lightheaded. She struggled to take another step back, and almost screamed when she bumped into someone. She turned her head and was stunned when she saw one of the other men standing behind her. Seconds before she bumped into him, he had been standing forty feet away with the other two. Now he was behind her. Another wave of dizzying calm hit her, and she stumbled. The tall honey blond vampire she had backed into reached out and gently grabbed her arms. About to let out a scream, his hand clamped over her mouth, and he silenced her. The hand over her mouth was ice cold. The vampire pulled the girl against his body still holding her up with his arm wrapped around her waist. The leader winced. The other two vampires joined the leader. Concern was apparent in the muscled one's handsome face, but the other vampire's face only expressed desire.

"We'll never hurt you." The blond leaned in and whispered in her ear. Another wave of calm hit her. "We're here to protect you, but we need you to come with us indefinitely." Her eyes were wide in fear, and she trembled in his arms, despite the calm emotions he sent towards her. The muscled vampire took off at a run towards a Volvo SUV that was parked down the road. He jumped in, started it, and with tires squealing came to a halt in front of them. The girl froze. Fear still winning over the waves of calm that kept coming over her. Her gaze fell on the vampire with desire darkening his eyes and she lost it. A shriek was muffled by the hand that still covered her mouth. She bit down as hard as she could on the hand and kicked at his shins. She squirmed and tried with all her strength to escape his arm that held her close.

It was hopeless, she didn't stand a chance. The blond that held her pulled her into the backseat of the SUV. With ease, he sat her down in the middle. He held her arms up, trying to hold onto her firmly without bruising her. The bronze haired one entered from the other side and buckled her in. He sat down next to her, and closed the door. The blond sat on the other side closing the door. The leader sat in the driver seat, and the muscled one took the passenger seat. Another wave of calm flowed through her. They began to drive away. Bach's Cello Suite #1 was playing quietly in the background.

The bronze haired one with desire in his eyes turned to the girl. His voice was beautiful, almost musical, the voice of an angel coming from a demon. "We won't hurt you. We only want to protect you. That's Carlisle," he pointed to the leader, "and that's Emmett and Jasper," he pointed to the muscled one and the honey blond one respectively, "and well, I'm Edward."

Gang Bangers, Serial Killers and Human Trafficking

Bella POV

"What's your name?" I eyed Edward up and down, trying to decide whether he was a serial killer, a rapist, a gang banger or an escapee from an insane asylum. Edward's eyes were black, and his hair was a bronzy shade of brown. It was unruly and looked as though he had been running his fingers though it. He was well dressed in expensive jeans and a simple green button up shirt. He looked to be about 17, but for some reason he seemed older.

"Bella." I muttered.

"Just Bella?" A wry grin lit up his face. He was gorgeous, extremely gorgeous. I looked over at Jasper sitting on my other side. He seemed tall and lean. He had a charismatic presence about it, almost like an old southern charm. He as well looked to be about 17, and was extraordinarily good looking. He had longer honey blond hair and golden eyes. Jasper was looking down and smiling at me. Like Edward he was dressed in expensive designer clothes typical of upper class American teens and twenty-something's. They didn't look like gang bangers. I remembered that we were sitting in a Volvo. Nope, definitely not gang bangers.

"Isabella Swan. I go by Bella." I glanced back at Edward, and saw that he was watching me, a perplexed look on his face.

"How old are you Bella?" Edward kept his gaze steady on my face, but Emmett sitting in the front, turned around in his seat and eyed me up and down, with a large smile that lit up his face. A low growl escaped Edward's lips which confused me. I decided I might as well answer. "I'm 16."

Again I began to wonder what these men wanted with me, which caused my terrible fear to take over again. I was trembling so badly I held my hands between my thighs so they wouldn't see. They wouldn't be kidnapping me for ransom money. My father was a small town Chief of Police and was definitely not rich. Neither my mother nor her boyfriend Phil had excess money either. Besides, these four men didn't seem to need the money anyway. I remembered a news show I watched on human trafficking a few weeks ago and I started having mental images of these men beating me and raping me, and then sending me off to some God forsaken country to be a sex slave. Tears started to form in my eyes, and my heart was beating rapidly. Finally, I couldn't take it anymore and I whimpered, "If you're going to kill me, please just do it already!"

By this point we were on a deserted patch of highway. Carlisle pulled the vehicle over and put it in park. This only frightened me more, when another blasted wave of calm came over me. I started to wonder if they drugged me.

"Bella, I swear on my life we will not hurt you." All four men turned and looked at me, but it was Carlisle who spoke. He seemed sincere, which made me wonder what kind of sick mind games they were playing. Edward grabbed my left hand and held it in his own cold hand, softly stroking the inside of my palm. He was trying to soothe me, but it only made me nervous. Edward spoke next. "Bella, there are people after you. We can't tell you more than that right now, but we came to protect you from them. We will not hurt you in any way. We are taking you home with us, and you're going to be staying with our family for awhile so we can protect you and figure out what has to be done from there."

"Why?" I still trembled, but the tears were being held at bay.

Jasper, Emmett and Edward looked at Carlisle in unison. Carlisle shook his head and spoke again. "We can't go into those details yet Bella, but I give you my word we will explain everything as soon as possible."

I sighed and nodded my head. Carlisle turned around and put the Volvo back onto the road. Everybody remained silent, and it wasn't until an hour later that I realized Edward still had my hand in his, and was still softly stroking my palm.

Rain and Smiles

Carlisle's POV

I drove all night praying The Weather Network would be right about the clouds and the rain they had forecasted. I wasn't quite ready to scare poor Bella any further by having to explain that she was stuck in an enclosed space with four sparkly vampires. I looked in the rearview mirror and saw Bella's head resting softly on Edward's shoulder. The night's events finally exhausted her enough, and with the help of Jasper's waves of calm she had finally fallen asleep around 4 in the morning. Emmett was sitting next to me reading a Sports Illustrated, Jasper was looking out the window and Edward was watching the girl sleep and caressing her hand.

Edward saw me looking at him in the rearview mirror, and he shrugged. I noticed his eyes were still black and I was worried. We had all hunted before taking the girl, since we knew we'd be in an enclosed space with her. Edward's reaction to her was not normal that first time the wind brought us her scent. He reacted like he hadn't hunted in weeks. I actually grabbed on to him expecting him to attack her. I've never before doubted Edward's control.

"I'm alright Carlisle. It's just very," Edward whispered, "strange."

"Strange?"

"I can't read her thoughts. I don't know what she's thinking." Edward glanced down at Bella, once again looking perplexed.

"Hmm." I contemplated that and wondered if it was connected to what Alice saw in her vision.

"It's not just that though Carlisle." This time Edward looked pained. "I've never, in all my existence wanted a human's blood so badly. It scares me. She smells like heaven and hell. Carlisle," Edward looked me in the eyes, "have you ever encountered someone like that in all your years?"

"No. I'm sorry Edward." What else could I say?

Edward sighed and went back to watching the girl sleep. I focused my eyes the road ahead, and sighed. Bella was so young and frightened, I believed what we were doing was right, but I regretting having to put her through all this. If only we knew more, but Alice's visions were only so detailed.

The sun started to rise to the east, fortunately clouds covered the sky. Small raindrops were hitting the windshield, so I set the wipers on low. The I-5 was quiet, not as much traffic as usual, which was nice.

Again I looked into the rearview mirror. The girl was pretty. She had long lashes that rested against the soft white skin of her cheeks as she slept. Her lips looked soft, and she probably had a great smile. Now all we have to do is get her to smile.