Chapter Four
Charlie
I hadn't heard anything from Renee for a couple of weeks and planned on ringing her when my shift finished to see how Bella was. I wanted to ask her to send me more photo's and to tell her I was working extra shifts so I could get a few days off to visit, see my little girl. Mum had gone silent on the subject of Renee for which I was thankful, it made my life so much easier especially as I had to visit frequently to help my dad who was sick. I wondered what would happen if he died. Mum wasn't getting any younger and sometimes her memory seemed to be going, luckily they had money put by so she would be looked after.
"Charlie, you've got a call. I think its Renee and she sounds in a state."
I picked up the phone fearing the worst, had Bella been taken ill?
"Renee?"
"Where is she?"
"Who?"
"Isabella, she's gone."
"Gone where Renee? Calm down and tell me what's happened."
"I left her at the nursery while I went to work and my friend picked here up as usual. She put her down for a nap and when she went back into the bedroom Bella was gone. Did you take her?"
"Renee you just rang me here in Forks."
"Oh right. What do I do Charlie?"
"Ring the local police. How long has she been missing?"
"Not long, my friend rang me straight away. About half an hour I guess, I came straight over."
"Ring the police now and give them my number too."
As soon as she rang off I went in to speak to the Chief who gave me as much time as I needed and I went home to pack some stuff and pick up the emergency money I kept stashed away under a loose floorboard in the kitchen. When my phone rang I answered praying it would be good news.
"Is that Officer Charlie Swan?"
"Yes. Have you found my daughter?"
"No I'm afraid not. I spoke to your Chief and I understand you're on your way here?"
"Yes. I'm on the next flight."
"I'll have someone pick you up at the airport. Your ex-wife has a policewoman with her and the doctor has given her a sedative."
"Thanks. Do you have any idea what's happened?"
"Not so far, the friend says she put your daughter down for a nap and when she went back to check on her the window was wide open and your daughter missing. We're canvassing the area and have the dogs out looking for any scent."
I flew down to Phoenix praying that by the time I landed there would be news of my daughter being found safe and well. As soon as we hit the ground I was up, ready to get the hell out and didn't even bother with my case, just left it for now and went through to find the cops waiting for me. As soon a I saw the uniforms I went over but by their faces I could tell there was no news and I guessed that was better than bad news.
"Officer Swan?"
"Yeah"
"We'll take you to the station and fill you in as we go."
They explained exactly what had happened, the same story I'd heard over the phone and no one had seen anything on the street.
"The dogs are on the job now but so far with no success."
"Have there been any similar crimes round here?"
"No, nothing. We're at a loss for now."
At the station I was given coffee and spoke to the detective in charge of the case but there didn't seem to be any progress.
"Can I just ask you one thing Charlie?"
We'd got to the stage of first names quickly once he knew who I was,
"Sure."
"Is there any possibility that your ex-wife might have arranged this or harmed your daughter?"
My cop radar was pinging loudly,
"No why?"
"It's just that she seemed a little confused and she rang you first."
"I told her to ring you guys straight away, she's a little vague some times but she would never hurt Bella"
"How long have you been divorced?"
"Eight months."
"And your daughter is seventeen months old so you broke up shortly after she was born?"
"Yes. We had problems. She and my mother didn't get on and Renee wanted to move away from Forks."
"But you didn't?"
"No, I had a job and a house I was buying. Renee decided she wouldn't live in Forks after Bella was born. She just left and served me with divorce papers."
"But she got custody?"
"She's Bella's mother and she loves her."
"Was there any hint of another man?"
"No."
"OK. I'll take you over there now. Maybe you might find out something we missed."
He drove me to the house which was a run down bungalow with peeling paint and a broken screen door, I was horrified that my daughter had been here at all. A young woman opened the door at our knock looking bored,
"Miss Williams, this is your friends ex husband. Can we come in?"
She shrugged and held the door open for us. Inside it was apparent that no one ever cleared up, there were dirty mugs piled on the counter top along with plates and take out cartons. We walked through into the grubby but less cluttered living area where Renee sat on the threadbare couch looking up and recognising me with apparent relief.
"Charlie, thank God you're here."
She fell into my arms and I held her, still unable to believe she would leave our daughter here.
"Renee, you let our daughter come into this?"
She looked around with drug dulled eyes,
"It was only for an hour. I got some extra work occasionally and Cat used to pick up Isabella. She'd done it before."
"So what happened this time?"
"I don't know, Cat rang me at work to tell me Isabella was gone and I came straight here."
She lowered her voice,
"I think it was Helen."
"Helen? You think my mother snatched Bella? Are you crazy?"
She shook her head stubbornly then we heard a commotion outside, a woman ran in looking as if she belonged here,
"That kid got snatched? I told you not to have her again. Now we've got the cops all over us."
I stayed in Phoenix for a month but there were no leads, Bella had disappeared and there were no clues as to her whereabouts, she had vanished into thin air. Renee spiralled down into depression blaming herself for taking the extra hours and by the time I left she'd been admitted to a psych ward for help, still maintaining my mother had kidnapped Bella. The police had to check out the accusation but soon realized it was a non starter. Within months my dad was dead and mum followed him soon after, both heartbroken at the loss of their only grandchild. I shut Bella's bedroom door and left it just as it was, framing the last photograph I had of her and keeping it on my bedside cabinet while a copy travelled with me in my wallet. The only proof my little girl had ever existed. My work became my life and I moved up the ladder to Chief of Police in Forks but spent every vacation in Phoenix looking for my little girl and visiting Renee who was now working again part time unable to cope with more. Every time I visited her we went through the same performance. She would ask me if I'd found Bella then blame herself before insisting my mother had arranged it all. The woman Cat who had been looking after Bella when she went missing was murdered in a store hold up a couple of months after Bella was taken and her house mate died of a drugs overdose within weeks of her. The house had been taken apart by the crime scene boys to no avail, all they found was crystal meth and traces of cocaine which led to a theory that Bella's kidnap had been drug related but no information was forthcoming even in the ever leaking drugs underworld.
