A/N:-
A couple of people have reviewed and expressed strong opinions about Sophie, so before you read this chapter I would just like to address the situation that she is in and hope it clears things up a bit.
Riley has been Sophie's father figure for most of her life, and so as far as she is concerned his behaviour is completely normal. He has effectively been grooming her.
Also as far as Bella is concerned, yes it may seem like she has been stupid, but please understand that until very recently she had no clue what a monster Riley is, and quite frequently you will find that parents are unfortunately unaware of what their child is going through.
Anyway I've banged on enough now, so please enjoy the chapter.
xoxo
Chapter 23
BPOV
We were all having a perfectly good time at the reunion. Sophie was never too far from my thoughts, my fingers frequently itched to grab my phone and call Carlisle and Esme to check on her, but every time my hand was just about to close around it, Edward gently touched my shoulder and implored me to relax.
It was both delightful and surprising to see how much everyone had changed over the years and how some it appeared were still stuck in high school and still just as fake. Several people just started chatting away to me as if we had been best friends in high school.
Jessica Stanley had somehow managed to marry some fortune 500 guy from New York, who was on the wrong side of 40. Although rumour has it according to Lauren Mallory that she was hooking up with much more attractive younger brother every time he was out of town on "business".
Speaking of Lauren Mallory, she was still single, she informed us, her eyes flickering towards Edward as she said that she was just waiting for the right guy to come along and sweep her off her feet and until that time came she was free as a bird to do what she wanted. In other words she was still offering it up on a plate to any guy who would have her.
Tyler Crowley had returned to Forks after completely his degree and become an art teacher. In his few years as a teacher he had risen through the ranks and had become the deputy head teacher in September. He had yet to marry, but it seemed as though he was still carrying a torch for Lauren Mallory from the way his eyes were never far away from where she was standing.
Ben and Angela were still very much together, and had been married for the last seven years. Angela informed me that they had two beautiful children, twins, called Elizabeth and Michael who were both five years old, and that she was expecting her third child, who would be a boy, and was due in April. They were settled in Seattle, Angela working as a paediatrician and Ben as a freelance photographer; he had had several successful shows at galleries all over Seattle, and his last one had sparked interest from many big galleries all over America and even a few in England.
But it was Mike Newton who turned out to be the biggest surprise; he had come out of the closet during his last year of college and had been happily married to a banker for the last four years, and they were now looking to expand their family through adoption. If you had asked me in high school who would be most likely to be gay, Mike Newton would have been at the very bottom of my list, given how many girls he tried to hit on. Hmmm actually thinking about it that should have been the biggest clue.
I was quite curious as to where Jacob Black was. Hopefully if he did turn up he would have enough sense to stay away from Edward. Despite the fact that he had helped me all those years ago, the pain and disgust at Jake's actions was still just as fresh with Edward as if it had been yesterday.
We had all been mingling with our former friends and foes for about an hour when my phone started to chime in my bag.
"Bella," came Carlisle's anxious voice on the other end of the phone. My heart felt like it had dropped to the pit of my stomach. I already knew what he was about to say just from the sound of his voice. "It's Sophie, she's gone," and there it was, confirmation that my worries earlier that night were completely justified.
I dropped the phone next to me. My whole world was crumbling. My daughter was gone. He couldn't get her the legal way so he had kidnapped her. Tears fell thick and fast from my eyes and I felt like the worst mother on earth.
EPOV
I picked the phone up off the ground from next to Bella who had literally just gone to pieces in front of my very eyes. One thing was for certain; whatever she had just been told wasn't good news.
"Hello," I spoke uncertainly into the phone.
"Edward," my father Carlisle said. "Sophie's gone. She left a note in her room saying I've gone to be with my real daddy. Her bedroom window was left wide open. We've called the police and we're all on our way to meet you at the reunion. We should be there in 5 minutes."
As I heard what Carlisle was saying, my grip on the phone grew tighter and tighter and my blood started to boil. That fucker had my daughter, and she still thought of him as her dad. That thought alone broke my heart. I thought we had been bonding. She called ME dad. To think that that was a ruse and she hadn't truly meant it. I didn't know whether to throw the phone at the wall in anger or cry.
"Okay dad," I said in a shaky voice. "We'll be waiting for you."
I ended to the call with my dad and as I began to inform everyone about what had happened, the music in the room stopped; it seemed as though Bella's breakdown hadn't gone unnoticed, and as a result everyone in the room heard what I said next.
"Sophie's gone. That fucker Riley has her. And worst of all, it looks as though she left of her own free will," I told my family, my voice cracking as I spoke, which was soon followed by several loud gasps.
I bent down to take care of Bella, who had fallen to her knees sometime in the last few minutes, and reassure her that everything would be alright, even though I didn't quite believe the words myself. I enveloped her in my arms and blocked out all the noise around me.
"Hey Edward, Bella," I heard a voice say, breaking through the silent bubble that Bella and I had created.
I looked up and saw the last person I wanted to see.
A/N:-
So who is the mystery person?
I would very much like to know who you think has just turned up. Let me know in a review please.
All reviewers will get a sneaky peak at the next chapter, which is from the mystery persons pov.
As always any and all feedback is very much appreciated.
xoxo