"Edward," Charlie says, hands on his hips and his face about the sternest Edward's ever seen, "I have to go on record here saying I think this is a bad idea."
They received a call not long ago from Pete saying they could go back to Edward's house. But they've lingered at the hotel as Edward and Charlie run verbal rings around each other, having the same argument repeatedly.
"I hear you, Charlie. It's not the first time you've said that in the past hour," Edward replies.
"I'm serious, Edward. As a career police officer, I'm telling you this is not smart. You could seriously hamper Emmett and Pete's investigation. How would you feel if that happened?"
"I'd feel awful if that happened, Charlie," he says. "However, you heard Emmett. They haven't even been able to find Angela, much less talk to her. I think the odds are good she'll talk to me. After all, I'm what she wants, right? What if they're right and Angela's been spooked because of the way Bella disappeared? What if she's scared and avoiding the cops? I could offer her something they can't."
"And what's that, Edward? You?" Charlie asks. "Are you going to say you just realized how much you love her? Offer to marry her? Maybe just hop into bed with her?"
"What? Jesus, no, Charlie!" he exclaims, his face showing his distaste for those suggestions. "But I can lead her to believe that I think Bella's left me. That would reassure her, right? Maybe make her think that Esme's plan is on track?"
Charlie purses his lips as he considers this idea. "I suppose you might be able to get her to think that. Provided you can even connect with her. But what then?"
"I don't know, get her to tell me what she knows, I guess."
"But what does she know that we haven't already learned?" Rose asks. "We heard her conversation with Bella, we know everything she claims Esme did. What else is there?"
"Shit, I don't know, Rose," Edward says, frustrated. "There must be something."
"I suppose we could look for Angela's boyfriend," she suggests. "Supposedly he's the one who put the camera in your office, right? To get the fake video of you cheating?"
"That's what Angela claimed," Charlie concurs. "However, based on what Angela told Bella, he thought he was doing a friend a favor trying to catch an actual cheater. It didn't sound like he was in on the whole fake video set up."
"Damn it!" Edward says, kicking at the nearest chair.
"Although . . ." Charlie mutters lowly.
Edward's head whips up as he looks intently at his father-in-law. "What?" he asks. "What are you thinking?"
"I still think this is a bad idea," Charlie says, shaking his head.
"Yes, you've made that perfectly clear. But what were you just thinking?" Edward demands.
Charlie uses the side of his forefinger to stroke his mustache a few times as he eyes Edward.
"It might be nothing," he says finally.
"Or it might be something," Edward counters.
"Come on, Chief," Rose pleads with him.
With a heavy sigh, Charlie shares his thoughts.
"Angela said Esme brought this J person into the whole thing. She also said she met with J at some point so that she could get to know him a little in order to convince Bella he was a friend of hers."
"That's right," Rose affirms.
"Maybe she knows how to reach him," Charlie suggests.
Both Edward and Rose are surprised, not having considered they might be able to find the mystery man without Esme's help.
"Wow," Rose says. "Did she say she called him to set up that meeting? I can't remember."
"I'd have to review the recording to check," Charlie says. "The point is J had dealings with Esme outside of Angela. There's no telling what they talked about; what he knows. But, if we can talk to him, we might find out."
"That's right!" Rose exclaims, excited about the prospect of making progress in finding Bella.
"Now, hold on to your hat, Rose. It might lead to a big fat nothing. But it's probably worth a shot."
Edward has been standing silently, hands squeezed into fists, and his jaw clenched tight.
"I'm pretty sure I couldn't be in the same room with that piece of shit," he grits out.
"I understand, son," Charlie says gently. "Let's figure out how such a meeting might happen if we get that far. The first thing is to see if Angela can even help us get in touch with him. Do you think you might be able to do that?"
Edward closes his eyes and slowly lets out a breath. "Yeah. I can do that much."
"I still don't like the idea of you trying to meet Angela without Emmett or Pete being involved," Charlie repeats.
"Noted," Edward replies. "But I'm doing it whether you like it or not."
"Okay. Well, I might as well help you so this doesn't blow up in all of our faces. Let's talk about how this might go if you're lucky enough to even connect with Angela," Charlie says, taking a seat and pulling out a notebook.
Forty-five minutes later, Edward is seated at the desk in Rose's hotel room when he presses send on his cell phone. His bouncing knee is the only outward sign of any nervousness.
He already called his unit at the hospital to ask if Angela was working today. The nurse who answered his call, a friendly and efficient young man named Greg, informed him that she was not. Since the staff who Edward worked most closely with were aware of why he had taken several days off, he wasn't surprised when Greg inquired about Bella. After Greg's sincere expression of concern and encouragement, he went on to mention that Angela had called off for the past few days and wasn't scheduled to work again until later in the week.
Edward is hoping that wherever Angela may be, she will pick up his call like she has the last few times he rang to ask if she'd heard from Bella. He realizes, though, that they last spoke a couple of days ago and she may be too spooked by Bella's disappearance to answer.
The phone rings a fifth time. Then a sixth. He's waiting for the call to roll over to voicemail when a timid-sounding Angela says hello.
"Angela?" he replies. "Hi, this is Edward."
He hears her clear her throat, but her voice is still rough.
"Edward?" she replies hesitantly. "Hey, um, what's up? Any news on Bella?"
"Yeah," he huffs out a laugh. "Well, about that, I wanted to apologize for calling you so much the past few days. I was pretty frantic trying to find her."
"Don't worry. I completely understand. I'm sorry I missed some of your calls, it's been crazy busy at work, and when I get home, I've just crashed. I've been really worried about Bella. You, too."
She's so full of shit, Edward can't help but roll his eyes. He knows she hasn't been at work for days and he damn well knows she's not worried about Bella. He decides that if he can get her to buy what he's selling during this little chat, he should consider going into acting.
"As it turns out," he continues, "I shouldn't have been so worried."
"Why do you say that?" she sounds genuinely interested.
"I don't even know how to say this, Angela. I guess Bella's not the woman I thought she was. I found out that she was cheating on me."
He hears Angela gasp. "No! Edward, I don't believe it. Bella would never cheat on you. Why do you think that?"
He realizes that, of the two of them, Angela is the one who should go into acting. If he didn't know better, he would believe her shock and denial.
"I got an email from her," he says, sticking to the scenario he, Charlie, and Rose settled on. He pauses, waiting to see if she'll buy it.
"An email?" she sounds puzzled. "What did it say?"
"It said that she had been unhappy for a while. It was tough for me to believe, you know. I didn't have a clue she felt that way."
"Oh, Edward! I'm so sorry. I had no idea!" She's all false sympathy now.
"Neither did I, Angela. Neither did I." He hopes that he sounds choked up. He wants her to believe he's struggling with sharing the news. "Anyway, she went on to confess she had been involved with someone and that she decided to take off with him."
"No!" Angela exclaims.
"Apparently, yes. Actually, that brings me to my call, I'm trying to figure out who this guy might be. I mean, if she wants to leave, I can't force her to stay. I just need some closure, you know?"
"I totally get that, Edward. How awful for you. I'm just so sorry. Can I do anything to help?"
"Well, I was wondering if we might be able to get some coffee or something? I think it might help me to talk it through with someone else who knew Bella – or thought they knew her – as well as I did. Maybe we can commiserate together."
"Oh, of course. I'll do anything I can to help you, Edward. I just can't imagine how hard this must be. If I can help you work through this, you know I will." He thinks she sounds earnest, but, then again, it could just be eagerness on her part. Maybe she thinks this is the start of the plan where she earns his love. He takes a deep breath, so his anger isn't evident in his tone.
"That'd be great, Angela. Could we meet in about an hour? I'm guessing you're off today since I was able to reach you. We could meet at the coffee shop on the corner down from the hospital? Would that be convenient?"
"Actually, if I prefer to avoid the hospital area on my days off. I spend so much time there already, you know? But there's a shop in my neighborhood. Or you could come to my place?" she asks hopefully.
Edward glances at Charlie, the offer of meeting at her place catching him off guard. Charlie, who's been listening in on the call, shakes his head 'no,' and Edward realizes her apartment wouldn't work with the plan they've created.
"The shop near your place, is that The Better Bean? I've been meaning to give them a try."
"Yes, that's the one," she's fast to cover the disappointment in her voice. "They've got great coffee. Sure, I'll meet you there in about an hour."
"Thank you, Angela. I really appreciate it."
"Anytime, Edward."
"Okay. See you soon."
"Bye, Edward."
He disconnects the call and looks at Rose and Charlie.
"She took the bait," he says.
"Okay," Charlie says. "I got a message from Pete, and he was able to send me what I asked for before they left to meet with Esme. Let's check out of here and get back to your place. I'll need to use the printer at the house before your meeting with Angela."
An hour later finds Edward sitting in The Better Bean waiting for Angela. Rose and Charlie are there as well, situated out of the way where Angela hopefully won't notice them. Though they've never met her, Angela has certainly seen pictures of them both, and they don't want to risk her recognizing them before it's time.
There's a lot of seating available given it's mid-day on a weekday. Edward's found a pair of overstuffed armchairs along the wall that are a bit removed from other nearby seating. It should give him just enough privacy for this little tete-a-tete.
He's sitting facing the door and working hard to rein in his emotions while he waits for Angela to arrive. He's nervous that she won't come, but also uncertain about how he'll react when he sees her in person. He wants to ring her neck; to yell and rail at her for how she contributed to this fucked up situation and the danger that Bella now faces. But Charlie's coaching is fresh in his mind. If they don't want to spook her, if they have any hope at all of getting Angela to help them, he has to contain his fury.
In his mind, he conjures up the image of Rose just before they left his house. She'd given him a pep talk about how he could successfully pull this off; then narrowed her eyes and pointed a manicured finger at his face saying "don't fuck it up." The wink she threw him took the sting out of the remark, but the truth of it remained. He had to do everything in his power not to fuck up this opportunity. They might not get another.
He's brought out of his thoughts as the door chime indicates another customer entering the shop. He looks up to see Angela coming through the entrance. She's dressed up, wearing a long flowy skirt with a feminine blouse. Her make-up, while skillfully applied, is too heavy and her dark hair has been painstakingly curled into a waterfall of ringlets tumbling past her shoulders. She certainly doesn't look like this when she's in scrubs at the hospital, but he's never seen her put this much effort into her appearance when she was going out to meet her boyfriend. The realization reinforces the craziness that is this situation, and he takes a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself.
Angela spots Edward right away and walks toward him. He's disgusted by the extra sway in her hips that she's never displayed for him before. He sends up a silent prayer for strength before standing to greet her.
"Hi, Angela," he says, giving her a pained smile. At least that's not a pretense.
"Oh, Edward!" she replies, coming over and sweeping him into an embrace. "I just can't believe Bella's done this you." She presses her cheek to his then steps back, grasping his upper arms as she looks up at him intently. "You must be devastated! I can't imagine feeling the need to be with someone else when you're at home! I know you've simply been devoted to Bella. This level of deceit…well…let me just say that I'm here for you. Anything you need to help you through this awful time, I will be there, anyway I can."
She's practically gushing, and he just wants her hands off him. To talk about Bella's deceit when he's fully aware of her own involvement in the debacle makes his stomach turn. He takes a deep breath, however, and steps back, effectively breaking her hold on him. He'll have a chance to cut her down to size in a few moments. He just needs to reel her in a bit more first.
"Thanks for agreeing to meet me. Can I get you a coffee?"
"No, no, don't worry about that. I'm here for you, Edward."
He gives her a small nod and motions to the other chair. "Have a seat," he says.
They both sit, and Angela takes a moment to set down her purse and cross her legs, leaning slightly forward to give Edward her undivided attention. She reaches over and puts her hand on Edward's forearm.
"How can I help, Edward?" she asks, earnestly.
He uses the pretense of rubbing his palms up and down his thighs to again break the unwanted contact.
"Well, like I said, I'm finding it difficult to digest all of this. It just doesn't seem real, you know? I thought Bella and I were solid. I thought we were going to be one of the few who made it." He huffs. "Clearly I was mistaken."
"Edward, let me say that I'm shocked as well! I had no idea that she was involved with anyone else. When it came to men, all she ever did was talk about how great you were and how she hit the jackpot when she married you. She must be an excellent liar to fool all of us."
He grinds his teeth to keep from lashing out at her in response to the bullshit she's spewing.
"There's no doubt that I've been greatly misled," he says honestly. "So, you have no idea who this guy might be? I just wondered, since you two were so close and girl talk and all that . . ." He lets the sentence linger.
"Like I said, Edward, I have absolutely no idea. I mean, if I did know she was stepping out on you, I certainly would have given her a piece of my mind and tried to convince her to get her head on straight!"
He gives her a small smile as he turns cold eyes on her. "Would you?"
"Why, of course! You don't deserve to be treated that way, and you're my friend, too! If I'd known, I would have insisted that Bella come clean with you. If she were to decide that she didn't want to be with you anymore – which I can't imagine – she should be ethical enough to tell you straight out and deal with that, instead of just cheating on you!"
"You're right. People should have the courage to behave ethically."
"Yes!" she agrees emphatically.
"I'm glad we're on the same page regarding that, Angela, because I really do need your help."
"Anything, Edward."
"I'm trying to figure out who this guy is that Bella is with."
"Oh, well, I'm sure I have no idea. Like I said, I'm as shocked as you are to find out that she was cheating."
"The whole situation is rather shocking, that's for sure," Edward says, taking a deep breath to keep his temper in check.
"Besides, does it really matter who he is? I don't want to be indelicate here, but if she's decided to leave, that's all that really matters, isn't it?"
Edward runs his hand through his hair in frustration. It's killing him to hear her talk about Bella like this, but he needs her help. He needs to find out if she can help before he pulls out the big guns.
"I hear you," he says. "And if she doesn't want to be with me anymore, I'm not going to force her to stay. In fact, I'd like to get this resolved as quickly as possible. That's why I'm trying to find out who this guy is. If we know that, maybe we can find him and Bella. You see, I need to be in touch with her in order to move through divorce proceedings as quickly as possible. If we both sign off on it, we can put this behind us quickly. But, if she just disappears, well, that's a different story. I have to file papers and wait a year before anything begins to get settled."
"Oh, I see." If circumstances were different, Edward would laugh at the disappointment in her voice.
"I have this picture I'd like you to look at." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out the printed image. It's a frame from the video the sex trafficking unit found online. Bella's not shown, but it gives a clear view of the man and the woman who were in the video. It's a bit grainy, but otherwise a solid image. Charlie did a great job convincing Pete that he wanted it to share with some of his contacts to widen the circle of people working on the search. And Charlie will do that. If they happen to have another use for the photo, what's the big deal?
"A picture?" Her confusion and growing concern are clear.
"Yes, we believe this is the guy she's with. Does he look familiar to you at all?" He turns the picture toward her, but she doesn't even look at it.
"Where did you get a picture of them?"
"Well, as you can see," he raises his eyebrows and nods at the picture, "Bella's not in the photo."
Slowly she lowers her eyes to look at the image. He watches her intently, not wanting to miss any part of her reaction. He notices when her shoulders relax, and she lets out a breath.
"Oh, I've never seen this man before in my life," she says, and the honest note in her voice makes him inclined to believe her.
"What about the woman?"
"The wo –" her eyes shift to the female in the photo, and he catches the sudden quirk of her eyebrows, the small, silent gasp as her lips part. She quickly clears her throat to cover her hesitation. "The woman? Gosh, no, Edward, I don't recognize her either."
"Damn it! I was really hoping you might be able to help find out who one of them are."
"I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I can't."
"Well, it was worth a shot. Say, Angela, since we're here, I'd like to introduce you to some people who are part of my extended family." He turns toward the back of the shop and gives Charlie a nod. At this signal, both Rose and Charlie rise and quickly make their way to Edward and Angela. Charlie grabs two straight-back chairs as he passes a nearby table and positions them facing Angela.
Charlie sits down with the full authority of a career law enforcement officer, while Rose pulls out all the stops, spotlighting her model mannerisms by gracefully sitting and dramatically sweeping her long hair over her shoulder. She's clearly making the point that there's one beautiful woman here, and it's not Angela.
"Angela, I don't think you've ever met Bella's father, Charlie Swan," Edward indicates Charlie who reaches his hand toward Angela. She's shocked by this unexpected appearance and automatically shakes his hand.
"And this is Bella's best friend, Rosalie Hale." He nods at Rose, but she doesn't move to shake Angela's hand. Instead, she gives her a disdainful look, carefully eyeing her up and down before speaking.
"I'm Bella's real best friend," she says, snidely.
"Oh, I'm pleased to meet you both," Angela says with a tremulous smile. She's hesitant, but polite, obviously unaware of the full scope of disaster that is about to befall her.
"So," Edward begins, "I'm glad we identified some common ground regarding the principle of acting ethically." Angela turns away from Rose's glare, only to be pinned by Edward's cold stare. He's leaning forward in his chair, elbows on his knees as he speaks. "Let me start by coming clean with you and admitting that I haven't been totally honest about why I wanted to meet today."
"What? Edward, what's going on? I don't understand," she replies.
"Let me clarify. It is true I've discovered Bella was –" he swallows, "that she was with another man. However, what I didn't tell you is that I know all the circumstances about how that came to be." He pauses, trying to gauge her reaction, but her eyes show nothing but confusion.
"Specifically, I know of your involvement, Angela."
"My what? Edward, that's crazy. How . . . why . . . I mean, I wouldn't ever . . ."
"I know how you encouraged Bella to think I was having an affair," he continues. "I know you helped get a video made in my office that made it look as if I was with another woman. You even went so far as to plant illegal spying devices in my home. I know you suggested she get payback and have revenge sex instead of talking to me about it. And, finally, I know you introduced her to the asshole she spent the night with."
He hasn't taken his eyes off her face as he's revealed the extent of his knowledge and he sees the moment the penny drops for her. He keeps speaking, though.
"I know Esme was blackmailing Bella to get her to leave me. And I know Esme led you to believe there would be a future for you and me after this was all settled."
"Edward, that's ridiculous! Why would you think I would do all those things?" she insists.
He can't believe she's trying to play this off, but that's okay. He, Charlie, and Rose discussed all the ways this conversation might go and he will take pleasure in blowing up her innocent act.
"Why? Because you admitted all of it. Bella met with you after her one-night fling, didn't she?"
"Um . . . I . . ." Angela stutters.
Rose can't keep silent any longer. "She recorded your conversation, you bitch. Everything you talked about. We've heard it all. And so have the police."
"Rose," Charlie gives her a warning look. She huffs and rolls her eyes.
Angela has gone pale, her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water.
"So, here's what you don't know, Angela," Edward continues. "Bella has gone missing. As in, she hasn't left me by choice. As in, she's been kidnapped. And her very life is in danger. We think you might be able to help find her."
"Me? How on earth could I help find her?"
"Well, Angela," Charlie speaks to her for the first time, "from a law enforcement perspective – oh, wait. You do know I know I'm a police officer, don't you? Chief of Police in Forks where Bella grew up, and personal friends with the Seattle Chief of Police."
Angela swallows hard and slumps against the back of her chair.
"Anyway, from a law enforcement perspective, you've been involved in at least a couple of serious crimes from assisting in breaking and entering Edward's office to unlawful spying by planting a bug at his house. You're clearly rather motivated to achieve your goal of having Edward all to yourself. It isn't much of a leap to suppose you could be involved in Bella's disappearance."
"But I . . . I mean I never . . . I don't know where Bella is. Honestly, I have no idea."
"If that's true, I'm sure the detectives on the case will be able to determine that. But it will be up to them to thoroughly investigate the situation; to thoroughly investigate you," Charlie says calmly.
"Here's what we need from you, Angela," Edward continues. "We need to find this asshole, J. We need to speak to him."
"J?" Angela's flustered and it shows.
"Cut the bullshit, Nurse Ratched," Rose hisses, leaning forward to invade Angela's personal space. "We know you helped set up this whole horrid scenario and now Bella's in danger. Drop the act and tell us what you know."
"Rose," Charlie admonishes her again.
"What?" Rose replies. "Like we have to be nice to her?"
Charlie takes a deep breath before speaking. "Here's the thing, Angela. We can help each other."
"How?" Angela asks.
"Well, you've committed some pretty serious crimes against Edward and Bella. He can choose whether or not to press charges. Therefore, if you're helpful to us, we – or Edward, specifically - can be helpful to you."
Angela takes a moment to consider things before speaking.
"All right, look," she replies, all pretense gone, "this isn't how things were supposed go. Bella was supposed to leave, but only after telling you she wanted a divorce, Edward. I'm clueless about this whole mystery disappearance thing. I don't know if Esme arranged for that or anything, but I know nothing about it."
"Man, you're quick to throw your buddy under the bus there, Nurse Nutjob," Rose comments.
"Not helping, Rosalie," Edward murmurs.
Charlie narrows his eyes as he assesses Angela briefly before speaking.
"Okay, let's go with that for the moment," he says. "Maybe you can help us with something else. The man in the photo, is that this J fella?"
"What? No," she responds without even pausing. "That's definitely not J."
"How about the woman? Is she familiar to you?"
"Um, no, I don't think so." Her answer is not nearly as definitive as her reply about the man.
"I'm calling bullshit, Angela!" Edward says, more harshly than he's ever spoken. "I watched you when you first looked at her. I think you do know her. Tell us what you know," he demands.
Angela looks at each of them apprehensively, her gaze landing on Charlie last. He's leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed.
"Trust me, Angela," he begins, "if it's found out later that you knew something about this woman and you didn't tell us, it won't be good for you. You don't want to add obstruction of justice to your list of crimes."
His implied threat hangs in the air as Angela's expression becomes tense with worry.
"My list of crimes? Jesus, this is not what was supposed to happen." Her hand goes up to her shoulder, sliding through the ends of her hair where she starts nervously twisting it between her fingers. "Look, I'm not sure about the woman. The image isn't really clear, but it's possible it could be J's girlfriend."
Charlie, Edward, and Rose glance at each other in surprise. They had entertained the idea that J could be involved, but a girlfriend is a new player they hadn't been aware of until now.
"J's girlfriend?" Charlie leans forward with interest. "But the man's not J?" He can't help but probe that angle one more time.
"No, that's definitely not J. That guy's much bigger and doesn't look anything like him," she explains.
"How do you know J's girlfriend?" Charlie asks.
"I met with J once. Briefly. Just so we could get to know one another a little bit. I was supposed to make Bella believe he was a friend of mine, so we had to get our stories straight. He brought his girlfriend to the meeting."
"And you believe this might be her in the photo?" Charlie seeks confirmation.
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's her."
"Why would J bring his girlfriend to meet with you when you were setting up a situation where he would be sleeping with someone else? Did she know what was going on?" Rose asks harshly.
"Oh, yeah," Angela replies, letting out a derisive laugh. "She knew what was going on. I think she got off on it, actually. She and J are the ones that made the sex tape in Edward's office."
That little tidbit momentarily stuns them.
Charlie shakes his head. "So, our friend J has made two sex tapes that we know of. Sounds like he's a bit of an exhibitionist."
"Oh, I don't know about that," Angela offers. "Esme said he's an actor trying to get a break and I think that's probably true. I guess it took some convincing to get him to accept Esme's offer. The girlfriend said a few things when we met that made me think she was reassuring him. I got the feeling that, of the two of them, she's the real kinky one."
"Do you know how to reach J or the girlfriend?" Charlie asks. "It would be very helpful if we could meet with them."
Angela goes quiet for a moment and starts biting her thumbnail nervously.
"I don't know anything else about the girlfriend. But if I help you reach J, I won't be in any trouble? I mean, you won't press any charges?" she asks, looking at Edward.
Charlie is the one who replies. "If you help us, we'll help you."
"All right. I called him to set up that one meeting we had. I don't know if the number is still good, but I can try."
"Good. Let's do that," Charlie says.
"But, what do I say? I mean, I'm pretty sure he never expected to hear from me again."
"You don't think he'd meet you if you simply said you had something important you needed to talk about?" Edward asks.
Angela rolls her eyes. "Given that he was a little skittish about the whole thing, I don't think so. Oh! Can't I just tell him we're trying to connect with Bella and wondered if he could help?"
"No," Charlie says. "First, if he's involved with Bella's disappearance, he'll know that's a lie, and it might endanger her further. Second, you don't have any reason to believe he'd stay in touch with Bella, so I don't think he'd buy that. I think the best option would be trying to get him to meet you for some other reason, keep Bella out of it until we see him in person."
"Well, you both had dealings with Esme, right?" Edward asks. "Maybe he'd meet you if you said you were worried about her reporting you guys to the cops or something. He's probably interested in avoiding jail, just like you, right, Ang?"
Charlie nods. "Yes, I think you're onto something there, Edward. If he's involved in Bella's disappearance, or if Esme is, and he's helping her, he'll want to find out what your concern is."
"But what if he's not involved?" Rose asks. "Will he be interested in meeting with Angela if he just walked away after his night with Bella?" She pauses a moment. "Sorry, Edward," she gives him an apologetic look for mentioning that night, but he just gives her a resigned nod.
Charlie makes a suggestion. "If nothing else works, Angela, you could tell him Esme plans to report him to the police for prostitution. You could offer to help him if he meets with you. That should get his attention."
"Is that true?" Angela asks. "Could he be arrested for that?"
"It's possible. From what we know, he did agree to have sex for money. That is the definition of prostitution. Esme can be charged as well since she solicited him to do it and was the one who paid him," Charlie answers.
"Okay, we're wasting time," Edward says. "Let's call this asshole."
"What? You mean right now? Here?" Angela looks a bit panicked.
Edward leans forward and speaks with barely contained rage. "Listen, we aren't kidding when we say that Bella's life is in danger. Yes, damn it, we want you to call him right now, right here!"
Angela shies away from his harsh tone. "Okay, okay," she says. "I'll call and we'll see if he picks up. What do you want me to say, exactly?"
"Play it off as you're wondering if he'll meet. Tell him the truth, that Bella met with you after her time with him and you want to talk to him. See if he buys that," Charlie advises her. "If he doesn't, tell him you think Esme is going to try to hang some criminal activity on both of you, so you want to meet to see if you can work together to prevent that."
Angela swallows hard. "All right. I'll see if I can reach him." She fishes her phone out of her purse and starts scrolling through it. "This might take a minute. It's not like I saved his contact info; I need to find it in my call log."
"Here it is," she says a moment later.
"Let me see that number," Charlie directs her.
She gives him a puzzled look, but turns the phone display toward him. He quickly jots down the number in his pocket notebook.
"Okay, go ahead," he says.
Angela pushes the send button and puts the phone to her ear. They all wait anxiously.
After several rings, Angela turns to speak to Edward. "I don't think he's going to ans-"
"'Ello!" She's interrupted by a greeting so loud that Edward can hear it.
"Oh, uh, hello," she replies. "Is this J?"
"Who wants to know?"
"Um, well this is Angela. We met a few weeks ago. I'm Bella's friend."
At the term 'friend,' Rose snorts. "As if!" she mutters.
"Angela?" There's a pause. "Yeah, I remember you."
"Oh, well, that's good, I guess," she says.
"Why the hell are you calling me? I did my part in this shitty show, and all I want to do is put it behind me. I've got no business with you."
"Oh, wow." Angela is taken back by the bitterness in his tone.
"Wow? That's all you've got? Listen, I don't know you from Eve except that you claimed to be Bella's friend. But then you helped set her up for this crap. You didn't see her after that bitch, Esme, confronted her at the motel. No decent person would ever want to see a friend like that. I'm sorry I was ever part of this fucking charade."
"Yeah, I deserve that. I wasn't a friend to Bella, and I realize that. But, listen, I was just really hoping we could meet and talk for a few minutes."
He laughs humorlessly. "Why the fuck would you need to meet with me? I'm telling you, I'm gonna fly this coop as soon as I get a few things in order. I don't need you slowing me down."
It's clear to Angela he's not going to accept an invitation to meet.
"Actually, that's why I wanted to meet. Esme's acting . . . strangely. She's said some things and, well, I think she might try to get us in trouble with the cops. I think she must really be off her rocker."
"You're just realizing that now? Angie, anyone who would devise a plan like she did most definitely has some rats in the attic!"
"That's true enough. So, do you have some time that we could meet later today? I'm a bit freaked out and thought if we could talk it through, we'd know if there was anything serious to worry about."
"Angela, all you're doing is convincing me that I need to high-tail it out of here even faster than I was planning to –"
"No!" she says hurriedly. She glances at Charlie and Edward a bit panicked. "I mean, if you're going to leave town, I understand, but could we talk before you do? Just a few minutes?"
J lets out a breath. "She's really got you spooked, eh?"
"Yes, she does."
"Alrighty then. I'm going to take care of some business, but I'll text you an address where we can meet later today. Probably around three, but my text will confirm the time, okay?"
"Okay."
She can hear him let out a heavy sigh. "Don't worry. Esme's a fruitcake, but she wants to keep everything nice and quiet. She's unlikely to cause trouble. We'll talk over whatever's got you so edgy this afternoon."
"Thanks, J. I appreciate it."
He disconnects the call without saying goodbye and Angela puts down her phone.
"He's going to text me telling me where I can meet him later today. Probably around three, he said, but his text will say for sure."
"Good work, Angela," Charlie says.
"He says he's getting ready to leave town," she says.
"Fucker will, if he knows what's good for him," Edward mutters.
"Well, we'll figure out a way to keep tabs on him," Charlie says. "We need to bring Emmett and Pete up to speed on things." He gives Edward a pointed look.
"So, can I go home now?" Angela asks.
"Sure," Rose says, standing and sliding her purse strap over her shoulder. "Lead the way."
"What?" Angela asks.
"I'm your new best friend," Rose explains, wearing a bright, fake smile. "Well, not really your friend, but about as much of a friend as you've been to Bella. You don't really think we'll let you out of our sight, do you? No, I'm your shadow until we meet with J later."
"Um, I really don't think I feel comfortable with that," Angela says, trying to sound firm.
"Um, I'm really positive I don't give a shit about how you feel," Rose replies in a snarky tone.
"Angela, do you understand that we believe Bella's life is in danger?" Edward hisses, leaning toward her. "How do you think she's feeling right now? Do you think she's comfortable? Jesus Christ, I want to throttle you right now!"
"All right, everyone take a breath and settle down," Charlie says, taking charge of the situation. He stares at Edward until he moves back in his chair and does, indeed, take a breath. Then he turns to Rose, and, with the tip of his head, directs her to sit. After a moment, Rose rolls her eyes and complies.
"Now, Angela," Charlie begins, "I think you understand our deep worry for Bella and her safety. We appreciate the help you've given us here, but we really can't risk anything delaying our search. We'd appreciate it if you'd let Rose stay with you until J contacts you. Once we know where he's willing to meet, we'll work out how that will happen."
"Of course, I understand that you're concerned for Bella, but she – " here she gives a harsh nod toward Rose "she makes me very uncomfortable."
"Aw, Rose is mostly bluster," Charlie says in a conciliatory tone. "Of course, if you'd rather not, we can ask the case detectives to meet us here. We'll fill them in on everything, and they can send a patrol car to sit on the curb at your house with a uniformed officer outside your door. Now, if your neighborhood is like most, I'm sure your neighbors would very much want to know what all the fuss is about that brought the cops to your house."
Charlie's bluffing. Even if they did get beat cops to babysit Angela, they would be discreet about it. They don't know if J knows where Angela lives, but, on the off chance that he does, they don't want to tip him off that the cops are involved.
Angela buys it though. "No! I don't want my neighbors asking why the police are at my place. One of them knows my parents and would call them!"
"Okay, then Rose will just mosey along with you. She'll be on her best behavior, won't you Rose?" he gives Rose a pointed look. When she doesn't reply immediately, he raises an eyebrow.
"Yes, fine," Rose replies. "I'll be a perfect little angel." She even draws an imaginary halo over her head.
"Good, glad that's settled," Charlie says. "You let us know as soon as you get that text from J. Edward and I will be taking care of a few things."
"Will do," Rose says, rising again from her seat. "Come on, Angie, let's go bond."
Angela rises, throwing a glance at Edward before turning and leaving with Rose.
"Edward, I'll call Emmett and fill him in. He and Pete need to be involved when we connect with J. If that really is his girlfriend in that video, he's our best bet to find Bella."
"Of course," Edward says, wearily. "I'm not trying to by-pass them. I just had to do something, you know? And I can't believe that his girlfriend might be with Bella right now. J could lead us straight to her!"
"You're right. That was a huge break for us. However, if the girlfriend's involved, then he probably is too. We need to walk a fine line here so we don't risk further endangering Bella."
"I know. I'll drive us back to the house. You can call Emmett on the way."
Whoa. . . What? Angie . . . girl . . . get over yourself! (Rose seems to be handling that!) And there's a girlfriend?! What do you think about J? Next installment up soon . . . I super-duper promise!
Hey, are you going to the TwiFic Meet Up in Atlanta? This will be my first time attending and I can't wait! It's happening June 29 - July 1. Great chance to meet writers and other readers. (I'm told when you go, you find your tribe!) Register by May 25 to avoid a late fee. Check out the TFMU Twi Fic Meet Up Facebook group.
Thanks to everyone who has helped me as prereaders, betas and cheerleaders (often all three at once). You all have my sincere gratitude: Owlsarebirdstoo, Ana Rodfranco, SunflowerFran, Tiffany L Cullen. Oh, and Beegurl13 made me this awesome banner. You can see it on my Facebook page, Amy Gold (Amethyst Gold).
Standard Disclaimer: Twilight belongs to Stephenie Meyer. I don't own any publicly recognizable entities herein. No copyright infringement is intended.