35 - The Storm
BPOV
The two weeks following Carlisle's birthday passed by quickly. Edward had changed his hours at the clinic to accommodate our new schedule. Instead of taking Thursday mornings off, he was working from eight to two on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. He then picked up Charlie and brought him home. Tuesdays and Thursdays he was there from eight to four. It actually worked out pretty well.
I had ordered several study books from Amazon and had them delivered two days later. When I called Dr. Stalworth, she had suggested that I take the psychology specific GRE. To my surprise, I wasn't bored at all. I joined an online group of people also preparing for the exam and we discussed and tested each other. We also vented and griped . . . a lot.
"You wanna go to the music festival in PA this weekend?" Edward asked one morning as he shoved a piece of toast in his mouth. "Ithsuppothda be nith."
I lifted my head from the newspaper and glared at him.
"Thorry," he said, taking a sip of coffee before grinning. "Is this better?"
"I have a hard enough time teaching our son manners, I shouldn't have to teach his father too," I grumbled.
He frowned. "Why are you so grumpy this morning? Did I not pay enough attention to you last night?" he asked wiggling his eyebrows.
I bit my lip, trying not to smile. "I just need more coffee," I murmured, hiding behind my mug.
"Uh huh," he snickered. "I said it's supposed to be nice. Like almost sixty, nice. And they'll be bands playing all day."
"Yeah, that sounds like fun," I nodded. "Charlie will like the music too."
"Speaking of the little monkey. . . Charlie? Where are you?"
"I'm right here," Charlie announced coming into the room wearing a pair of pajama shorts and a shirt that was too small.
"What are you wearing, buddy?" Edward snorted.
Charlie looked himself up and down. "Cwose," he said matter-of-factly.
"Um. . ." Edward stood up. "It's a little too cold for those clothes, little man. Let's go change."
"But dis is my favrite," I heard Charlie protest as Edward led him down the hallway.
When they returned, Charlie was dressed in a much more appropriate jeans and a sweatshirt and Edward was wearing his scrubs. I licked my lips and looked him up and down.
It's not like I didn't see him in his scrubs practically every day, but Goddamn he looked good in them.
He caught me ogling and smirked. I stood up and helped Charlie into his boots and coat.
"Work hard at school, baby," I said, kissing his cheek.
"Okay, mommy."
I stood up only to find Edward at my back. "You want me to work hard today too, mommy?" he whispered hotly in my ear.
"I thought you always worked hard," I teased.
He kissed my neck and I felt him twitching against my ass. "I told you, I think about you and get hard. I can't help it." I could barely hear him he was talking so low.
"You're gonna give someone the wrong impression." I turned in his arms and let him wrap his arms around me.
"Am I giving you the wrong impression?"
I giggled. "No, you're definitely giving me the right impression."
Edward chuckled and pressed his lips against mine. "We'll be home around three." Then he adjusted himself before stepping back.
XXXXXX
Saturday morning, we woke to Charlie lying perpendicular in our bed. His head was resting against my arm and his feet at Edward's chest.
Edward groaned when Charlie kicked him. He'd actually been much better and was only climbing into our bed about half the time. We usually didn't even notice him come in, he just showed up.
Edward opened his eyes tiredly. He reached his hand out and pressed his thumb against my lower lip. "Good Morning," he rasped.
I kissed his thumb. "Good morning to you. Is that a small child between us or are you just happy to see me?"
Edward started laughing, which made me laugh. "So funny," he snorted. "I'm always happy to see you, smart ass."
I rolled off my side of the bed, he rolled off his and we left Charlie snoring in the middle.
"Let's go have a coffee date," he whispered taking my hand and dragging me to the kitchen.
I giggled. Edward was being playful. I liked playful Edward.
We ate breakfast, Charlie joining us about twenty minutes later and then made our way to Port Angeles. Edward was right, it really was turning out to be a gorgeous day. There were going to be lots and lots of people out.
When we got there at ten, there was already a band playing. There were food vendors and tents selling everything from knick knacks and trinkets to instruments and their parts.
Edward and I walked hand in hand towards the main stage; with Charlie swinging on Edward's other side.
The festival was being held in a big empty lot next to the Harbor. There were plastic chairs set out everywhere but they were all filled so we just stood and watched. Edward held Charlie on his shoulders for a while and then let him down so he could dance.
I have always loved my son's definition of dance. He sort of looked like a windup toy that got stuck in circle mode as he swung himself around and around, flailing his arms and kicking his feet until he ended up falling down from being dizzy.
Edward picked him up by the arms and set him back down. "You okay, bud?"
Charlie nodded and then started doing it again.
We stayed and listened for a good while and then wandered around some more until we found a snack shack offering hot dogs and pretzels.
"I really need a new string for the piano," Edward said as we passed by the tent for Port Angeles Pianos.
"What's wrong with it?"
"I accidentally stretched the wire too tight when I was tuning it and it snapped."
I wrinkled my nose. "Shouldn't you let a professional do that?" I asked.
Edward put his arm around my shoulders. "I am a professional, baby."
"Yeah, a professional bullshitter," I joked.
Edward tried to look offended, but couldn't quite manage it. We entered the tent and I let my mind wander as Edward told the guy what he needed. While we waited for the guy to look something up Edward started flipping through a catalogue of pianos.
"I want to get one for our house when we move," he said longingly. "Not a big fancy one. Just something that I can keep working with Charlie on."
"Okay," I smiled appeasingly, not wanting to really think about leaving at the moment.
"I gotta go potty," Charlie said grabbing himself and jumping up and down.
I looked around. There were porta potties somewhere, but I didn't know exactly where and there weren't really any trees or bushes that we could hide behind.
"I gotta poop too," he added, putting his other hand on his butt.
"Fabulous," I groaned. "Edward?"
"What, baby," he asked not looking away from the catalogue he was looking through.
"Charlie has to go to the bathroom."
He tilted his head towards me, but his eyes were still planted firmly where they were. "Okay?"
"I'm going to take him to the pizza parlor."
"There's those rent-a-toilet things around here somewhere," he said, finally looking up and glancing around.
"Over that way," the sales guy said pointing off to the side.
"Can you wait two seconds and I'll come with you?"
I walked up behind him and put my hand on his arm. "I know that the catalogue is fascinating, Edward, but can I have you're undivided attention for like, one minute?"
The corners of his lips twitched and with his trademark crooked smile, he dramatically lifted his hands, turned to face me, and stared directly into my yes.
"Yes, baby, you can. What would you like to say?"
I giggled. "No, we can't wait, he has to go poo. I'm not going to let his tiny little butt sit on those nasty ass seats and I'm not going to hover him while he's taking a crap. I'm going to the pizza shop across the street. Is that okay with you?"
His smile faltered a little.
"We'll be gone less than ten minutes. Finish what you're doing, order the bit for the piano, and we'll meet you at the toy tent, okay?
"Bella. . ."
"I can't live my life like this, Edward. You are not my bodyguard and you should not have to escort us to the bathroom. We haven't seen or heard from James in a month. He probably just wanted to scare us."
I could see the indecision in his face, but finally he relented. I think the fact that Charlie's pee-pee dance was turning into a full on pee-pee, poo-poo fit was part of it.
"Fine, but keep your head up, your eyes open, and your phone in your hand."
"I will," I assured.
I turned and saw the look on Charlie's face. We weren't going to make it. I picked him and grunted.
"Geez, you're getting heavy," I laughed.
I ran, carrying him in my arms with my hands under his back and knees. I was afraid to put any pressure on his bladder or bowels at this point for fear of what might happen.
Bursting into the pizza shop, which was fairly busy, I ran to the counter.
"Bathroom?" I begged.
The guy rolling out dough laughed and pointed towards the back hallway. There was someone in there and I kept knocking and knocking until a very disgruntled old man came out.
"I'm sorry," I apologized as I pushed past him and into the bathroom.
We made it with no time to spare. I breathed out a sigh of relief and turned to lock the door as he relieved himself.
Crisis averted.
We both cleaned our hands and strolled out of the bathroom and into the main parlor at a much more leisurely and comfortable pace. I avoided eye contact with the old guy who we had interrupted, who was sitting in one of the booths we passed.
"Okay, you ready to go find Daddy?" I asked smiling down at him.
"Uh huh. Daddy said he gonna buy me a toy," he chirped.
"Did he?"
Charlie nodded, the cheeky little grin on his face spreading from ear to ear.
I scoffed at my son. You'd think he wasn't just completely overwhelmed by toys after the Christmas he just had. But I had faith that Edward would keep it to one of those dime-store trinkets; a plastic kazoo or something.
We reached the first tent and I was distracted by a gorgeous little crystal music box.
I stopped to pick it up and look at it. Charlie was wiggling, yanking and pulling on my hand. Finally he freed himself from my grip.
"Don't go anywhere, baby," I warned, glancing at him sternly.
I examined the little box carefully. It was so delicate. Nothing too fancy, but you could see the gears inside and etched on the top were two interlocking hearts.
I smiled when I wound it up and it played I Will Always Love You; the song from the Bodyguard.
Cheesy!
I set the box back down.
"Okay, let's go." I reached my hand out, but Charlie didn't grab it. I looked down. He wasn't standing where I had told him to stay.
I looked to my other side. No Charlie. My heart stopped. Once it painfully restarted, it was beating so hard I could feel it in my ears. My stomach dropped.
"Charlie?" I called.
The woman in the tent looked at me with a concerned expression.
"Did you see where my little boy went?" I asked, my tongue feeling dry and suddenly too big for my mouth.
"No, I'm sorry," she shook her head.
"Fuck," I whimpered.
"Charlie?" I yelled. "Charlie."
People were looking at me as my panic took over. "Charlie?" There was nothing slow about the progression. My whole body felt like it was about to explode.
I ran a few tents up and then doubled back to make sure that he wasn't really just standing on the outside of the tent. If he was just hiding, we were going to have a serious talk.
Oh God, oh God, oh God.
I started to feel numb. I couldn't feel anything but my heart which continued to thunder against my chest and my stomach, which was about to expel everything I had consumed in the last twenty-four hours.
Maybe he went back to the pizza shop.
I was really torn. I wanted to go back to see if he was there, but I was afraid to leave the spot where I had last seen him. I approached the girl at the music box tent.
"If he comes back here will you make sure he doesn't leave?" I begged frantically.
"Sure," she nodded. The look on her face was so sympathetic. I didn't want to look at it.
There's no reason to be sympathetic, there's no reason. He's fine. He's just wandered off. I'm gonna feel like a complete idiot when he shows up at my side.
My legs felt like lead as I tried to run back to the pizza shop. It was like one of those horror movies where you're running towards something and the path keeps getting longer and longer, taking you further and further away.
I wanted to cry, but I couldn't. I needed to find my baby. There were too many people. He was probably scared and crying and wondering where I was and why I wasn't finding him.
I searched the pizza shop high and low, asking everyone in there if they had seen a lost little boy. I searched the bathroom and asked the staff to check the kitchen to see if maybe he had snuck back there.
With no luck, I exited the shop. It had been well over ten minutes. Edward was probably having a heart attack.
Edward! Edward will know what to do.
I pulled my phone from my purse. My hands were shaking so hard I kept pressing the wrong buttons. Finally I managed to get to Edward's name and hit call.
"Bella? Where the fuck are you? You scared the shit out of me," he said, obviously upset. "That was way more than ten minutes."
"E. . . Edward. I can't find Charlie."
"What do you mean you can't find Charlie?"
"I. . . I can't find him. We were on our way to the toy tent and I stopped to look at something and he just disappeared."
All of the sudden, my vision blurred and I started hyperventilating. It hurt to breathe and I pulled the phone away from my ear, turned abruptly, and vomited into the alley behind me. I gasped for air and I could hear Edward's voice coming from the speaker. I put it back up to my ear, but couldn't talk.
"Bella, baby, you need to calm down," he said unconvincingly.
"I can't," I cried. "I. . . I . . . looked away for less than a minute. I do . . . don't understand where he could have gone."
"Are you sure he didn't go back into the pizza shop?"
"I looked. I've looked everywhere."
"Obviously not everywhere or you would have found him!" Edward snapped.
My lip quivered harder and the tears that I had managed to hold back escaped and flowed down my cheeks in steady streams. I choked back a sob, feeling the burn of bile rising back up my throat again as I looked at all the people walking around.
I knew that he didn't mean to yell at me. He was panicking just like I was.
"Shit, baby, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap. Where are you? I'm coming to get you. We'll find him, I promise."
I went to lean against the brick wall of the pizza shop, but was violently yanked backwards. I not only felt a pop, but heard it as well and the pain was excruciating. An arm encircled my waist and another around my neck as I was pulled into the shadow of the dark alleyway.
I tried to scream, but I couldn't. There was something covering my mouth and I started to get dizzy. I couldn't keep my eyes open and my body felt heavy and useless. My fingers stopped working, my cell phone dropped to the ground.
I couldn't think about anything other than my baby, who was lost in the crowd somewhere. Every other thought I should have had was fading quickly.
"Come on, baby girl. Just give in," I heard in my ear.
And then everything went black.
XXXXX
EPOV
"Bella? Hey, are you still there?"
Nothing. I could still hear the music and what sounded like the rustling of clothes so I knew her phone was still on, but she wasn't answering me.
"Bella?" I shouted.
Nothing.
There was a loud crash and then I heard a voice. I couldn't make it out, but I knew one thing for sure. It wasn't Bella's. Then the line disconnected.
I tried calling her back, but her phone just rang and rang. On the third try, it went straight to voicemail.
"Fuck!" I yelled, making a few people around me turn to look. Several parents who were standing with their open-mouthed children were giving me dirty looks.
I had no idea what to do. Charlie was lost in the crowd somewhere; Bella was freaking out and was no longer answering her cell phone.
I stared at my phone for a minute.
What the fuck do I do?
I scrolled through, finding the Chief's cell number quickly and hitting call.
"Hello?" he answered.
"Chief?" I asked, my voice breaking a little.
"Yeah, what's up, Edward?"
"I have a problem." I had no idea what I sounded like due to the whooshing in my ears, but it must not have been good.
"What kind of problem," he rushed out, obviously picking up on my imminent panic.
"I can't find Bella and Charlie"
"What do you mean you can't find them?"
"We're at the music festival. Bella took Charlie to the bathroom and we were supposed to meet at the toy tent and she never showed. I called her and she said that she lost him. Now I can't get a hold of her either."
I had no idea how it all came out because somewhere in the middle of my explanation, my heart landed in my throat. Something was wrong.
"She lost him? Did she find him?"
"I don't know," I yelled. "She's not answering her phone anymore."
"Well track it."
"Track it?"
"She has the 'Mobile Me' application doesn't she?"
Shit, she does.
"I'm heading over there just in case, but track her phone. If she doesn't have Charlie, find the security tent and they'll radio all their guys to be on the lookout."
I got into the location app and typed in Bella's login and password. A few seconds later a google map of Port Angeles popped up showing me where her phone was. It wasn't moving.
God, please let her have found him.
I zoomed in and found that her signal was coming from an alleyway just across the street from the lot where the festival was, next to the pizza shop they had gone to go to the bathroom. I made my way through the sea of people, pushing them out of the way rudely. I didn't care. I just needed to know that everything was okay.
When the crowd started thinning a little, I broke out into a run. My heart was hammering in my chest. The closer I got, the worse the feeling of dread.
I got to the alleyway and looked down into it.
Nothing.
"Bella?" I yelled. "Charlie?"
I closed my eyes and listened hard.
Nothing.
I searched around and my racing heart nearly flew out of my chest. Bella's phone was lying on the ground.
Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit.
I picked it up and looked around.
Maybe it just fell out of her pocket.
Yeah, right, fucker! You shouldn't have let them go by themselves. You knew something like this would happen.
Security tent. I need to get to the security tent. I have no idea where the security tent is.
I pulled up a photo of Bella and Charlie on my phone.
"Have you seen this woman and child?" I asked the first few people that walked by me.
Each one shook their head and smiled apologetically.
When I got to the first tent, I asked where the security tent was and they pointed me towards the other end of the lot.
Fuck!
I kept to the edge of the festival so that I could move easier, but there were just so many people. Twice I thought that maybe I had found Bella and grabbed these poor women. I apologized profusely and moved on. When I got there, a security officer eyeballed me.
"What can I do for you?" he asked.
I held up my phone. "I. . . I need to find my fiancée and son. They disappeared."
"They. . . disappeared?"
I nodded and swallowed. "My fiancée took our son to the bathroom. She called me half hour ago and said that she'd lost him; that he'd wandered away. Now I can't find her either."
"Does she have a cell phone?" he asked looking closely at the picture.
"I tracked it. It was on the ground. . . . In the alleyway back there." I pointed back towards where I had found the phone.
I was vibrating. Literally, my whole body was bouncing and numb. This was not good. There was a heavy feeling in the pit of my stomach and it slowly began churning.
"Please," I begged.
"How old is your son?"
"Three and a half."
"Your fiancée?"
"Twenty-three."
"What are their names?"
"Charlie Cullen, Charles Anthony, and Bella. . . um, uh. . I mean Isabella Swan," I stuttered. I was trying to get him accurate information, but my mind was all jumbled up.
His eyes narrowed. "Isabella Swan? As in Chief Swan's kid?"
"Yes," I nearly shouted.
I should have mentioned that five minutes ago.
"I already called him, he's on his way, but he told me to come here and have you guys radio around to find them."
"Okay," he nodded.
I watched as he grabbed a walkie talkie.
"Attention all PA music festival security. We are looking for a missing mother and child. Mother is Isabella Swan, goes by the name of Bella daughter of Forks Police Chief Charles Swan. Twenty-three years old. Five foot. . .
"Four," I supplied. "About one fifteen, one twenty."
"Five four, about one hundred fifteen to one hundred twenty pounds. Long brown hair and. . . ." he looked at the picture. "Brown eyes."
I nodded when he looked at me for confirmation. "Also looking for a Charles Anthony Cullen, goes by the name of Charlie. Three and half years old. Brownish-red hair, and green eyes. They may or not be together. Ms. Swan reported that the child wandered off about thirty minutes ago. Please report back to security station when found."
He said when, not if. That's a good sign, right?
"Okay," he said putting the walkie back down. "I have twenty guys looking for them. If they're here, we'll find them." He handed me back my cell phone.
"Thanks," I said pretending not to hear the "if" in his sentence.
I waited approximately five minutes before I had to move. "I gotta go look for them," I said agitatedly.
"Give me your number. I'll call as soon as we get word."
I gave him my number and then took off towards the car. Maybe she was there.
On the way, I called Chief Swan.
"Did you find them?" he asked the second he picked up the phone.
"Not yet, Chief. I'm still looking. I found Bella's phone in the alleyway across the street."
"An alleyway? What would she have been doing in an alley?"
"I don't know," I nearly cried. "I went to the security. They're looking for them. I'm headed to the car to see if they are there."
"I'll be there in ten minutes. Meet me back at the security tent."
I picked up my pace, but it was pointless. They weren't at the car.
I took a huge frustrated breath and checked my phone to see if I had missed any calls, which I hadn't. I started back towards security going around the opposite side of the lot. It felt like every child I passed could be mine. Every woman with dark hair, was Bella. But every time I looked harder, I was wrong.
By the time I got there, Chief Swan was standing with four other guys, all in uniform. They were regular PAPD officers.
He looked up as I approached. His expression was a mixture of worry and anger.
"Nothing?"
"No. I didn't see them," I said quietly.
"What time exactly did they disappear?"
I scrolled through my phone. "Bella last called me at one twenty-three. Charlie had been gone for only a couple of minutes. The call lasted less than five minutes and then she just stopped talking."
"She hung up?" one of the officers asked.
"Um, no. I think she was talking to someone. I heard someone else."
"What were they doing by themselves, Edward?" Chief Swan yelled. "You swore to me you wouldn't let them go anywhere by themselves."
"She was going to the bathroom," I defended weakly. "There were people everywhere."
"That's no excuse."
"I thought they'd be okay."
"Well obviously you were wrong," he said, his voice hard and accusing.
"Alright, you two can hash this out later," one of the other officers said loudly. I looked at him and realized that he was the Port Angeles Chief of Police."
"Charlie, we're going to find them. It's barely been an hour. They are probably in one of the tents or the surrounding shops," he said firmly.
"No," I groaned. "No, she wouldn't just be wandering around if she'd found him. She'd come find me or leave a note on the car."
Chief Swan looked at me and then at the PA chief. "I am worried that this might not be a coincidence, Rick." He frowned.
Chief Rick nodded. "You think it has to do with James Hunter?"
I jumped. "Of course it does. If that fucker has laid one finger on them. . ."
"Edward, you're not helping," Bella's dad growled effectively shutting me up and dismissing me.
He was obviously angry with me. Of course he was. I had done the one thing that I had sworn I wouldn't do. I let her and Charlie out of my sight. And now they were missing.
I pinched the bridge of my nose. My head felt like it was going to explode.
"I've put out an Amber alert for Charlie," Chief Rick said, glancing over at me. "We're trying to find out the last known vehicle James Hunter had registered in Massachusetts. I've got a road block set up heading out of Port Angeles in both directions."
It was like watching a movie. I listened as all of the law enforcement made a game plan to completely cover the festival grounds and surrounding streets. People were gathering around, watching, whispering, wondering.
I wanted to scream at them to mind their own fucking business; to stop staring and go help find my wife and baby. And that's exactly what she was, I didn't need some fucking piece of paper to tell me.
"Edward?"
"Huh?"
I looked up and saw Chief Swan staring at me. He put his hand on my shoulder. "I need you here, Edward. I need you alert and in control. Please, please don't lose it." His voice was slightly shaky.
I tried to swallow, but my mouth was completely dry. "I'm sorry," I whispered. "I . . . I. . ."
"Don't apologize. Not now."
"Okay," I said numbly.
"But when we find them; when we bring them home, you and I are going to have some words. How the fuck could you let them go?" he mumbled.
If he had said it at any other time I probably would have argued that he knew how stubborn Bella was and I certainly would have been intimidated by his words. But at this moment, I could do nothing but nod.
"Now, let's go find our kids."
XXXXXXXX
It had been two hours. No, not two hours; two hours, seven minutes and about thirty-six seconds, since I had last talked to Bella. We had scoured the music festival. We had searched the surrounding businesses top to bottom. We had checked every car, knocked on the doors of every nearby apartment.
And still there was no sign of them. With every second that ticked by a piece of my heart was stripped away like string cheese. This is what all my fucking around had done. Funny how when you're young, you never really think about how what you do will affect your future. Or maybe you just don't care. But when that past comes back to bite you in the ass, then you care. I never considered that I was actually hurting anyone. And even if I had, I don't know that I would have cared.
Chief Swan and I were sitting at the station, waiting. He was on the phone with Jake.
"There's nothing, Jake; not yet. No. There's no point right now, just stay home. Absolutely not! Tell him there's nothing he can do. I know that, but right now he needs to back off. Fine. I'll deal with it when the time comes. I'll call you as soon as we hear anything. Okay. Yeah, thanks. Bye."
He disconnected the call and set his phone on the desk.
I was tired of fucking waiting. I wanted to do something. "I'm going to get some air," I mumbled.
He waved me off without looking up. Instead he was watching the television. By watching, I mean, staring at the news ticker that was scrolling across the bottom of the screen with Charlie and Bella's descriptions and last known locations.
I had called my family. Carlisle was in surgery and promised to get there as soon as possible. I wasn't able to reach mom. Alice and Jasper were in Seattle and were driving back and Rose was violently ill. She told Emmett to come, but I told him to stay. He needed to be with his wife. I swore I'd call him the moment there was any news.
The day had started to cool significantly and I couldn't help but wonder if Charlie was out in it. He wasn't dressed for cooler weather. The nights were always below freezing.
I sat down on the steps and covered my face with my hands. I had never felt so helpless in my entire life. My world was crashing down around me and I had no idea if I was going to come out of the rubble intact. This was my fault. I had no idea what I had done, but it didn't matter. James Hunter wanted revenge. And he was taking it out on the ones I loved the most.
My mind swirled with theories. Regardless of what Tanya had said, the two of them had a relationship of some sort. Was he angry that I had treated her so badly? Angry that I tossed her? I couldn't imagine that. If he loved her, he would have been thrilled that I dumped her so he could have her to himself. Maybe she turned him away because of me. But then, the condom in our bedroom showed that he had been with Cammy. I couldn't imagine that he would be pissed off at me for treating Tanya badly and then turn around and cheat on her. That didn't make sense.
Cammy. Cammy. How the hell did she play into all of this? How long had he followed me?
Did the two of them bond over mutual hatred and decide that fucking with me and Bella would be fun? Destroying our things and having sex in our bed?
I couldn't do it anymore. I stood up and walked briskly to my car throwing myself into the driver's seat. I was about two blocks from the station when I looked in my rear view mirror and nearly crashed the car. Charlie's car seat sat empty. It shouldn't have been empty. This morning he had been in it, singing his ABCs and the Bumble Bee song while Bella showed him the hand gestures. He laughed; he giggled. He made his mother giggle.
Bella.
I really fucking need her. I needed her to tell me that everything would be alright; that Charlie was safe and that they had simply lost track of time.
Fat fucking chance.
I drove around, trying not to count the seconds as they ticked by. I scanned every face that was walking down the sidewalk and looked down every side street.
When my phone rang, I startled and accidentally knocked it to the ground. I had to pull over to pick it up.
"Hello," I answered anxiously.
"Edward, you need to come down to the station," Chief Swan's voice came through the receiver. I couldn't tell by his tone what was going on.
"Why?" I asked hesitantly.
"Charlie was just brought in."
"What?" I barked. Relief flooded through my system and I blew out an almost painful breath.
"He's okay?" I choked.
"Yes, son, it appears as though he is."
"Thank God," I whispered.
Closing my eyes I asked the next question. "What about Bella?"
I heard him breathing heavily and my heart sank. "Not yet. They weren't together."
They weren't together. They weren't together. Fuck. Why weren't they together?
"Wh. . . Wh . . . . who found him?"
"Edward, just get over here."
His tone left no room for argument.
"I'm on my way. Five minutes."
I wanted to be elated. I was elated. My son was safe and in a few minutes he would be in my arms, but. . .
But where is Bella?
I pulled into the parking lot of the station and bolted to the front door. Stepping into the hallway, I could hear the commotion inside and then I heard the voice that made my blood freeze.
"I'm not talking to any of you. Let me talk to Edward!" I heard her scream.
I walked to the door so that I could see in, but she couldn't see me.
"Ma'am, please calm down," one of the officers standing next to her said as he reached out to her.
"If you touch me again I'm going to press charges," she threatened.
"You can't talk to Edward right now, Tanya," Chief Swan told her.
"Why not?"
"Because he's not here."
"But he's coming back here, right? I mean, he has to come back because I found Charlie and brought him here."
She had found Charlie? Accidentally? I almost had to laugh.
"Miss Denali," I heard Detective Laurent start.
I'd heard all I needed to hear. "It's fine, I'll talk to her," I growled pushing my way forward.
Her eyes lit up when she saw me. "Oh, thank God, Edward. Please tell these assholes that I did not steal your child."
I lifted my eyebrows and scoffed. "Why? Why would I tell them that?"
She looked at me incredulously. "Are you kidding me? Why would I steal him? I found him, completely alone, wandering away from the music festival. It's obvious his mother either lost him or abandoned him."
I held back the fury that wanted to rip its way from my chest.
"Oh, you just found him? Well isn't that real fucking convenient?"
"I did!" she said, looking at me pleadingly. "Edward, please. You know I'd never do anything to hurt you. I found him. I knew who he was and I wanted to find you. I knew you'd be worried."
"And it took you two and half hours to turn him in?"
"We were looking for you at the festival."
"Bullshit," I yelled. "There was security all over that place looking for him, if he was there, we would have found him."
She frowned and looked frustrated.
"I don't know why nobody found us, but we were there and we were looking for you and then we walked down the street looking for you in the shops."
"Why didn't you take him to the security booth? It didn't cross your mind that if he was missing that we would have reported it?"
"I. . . I . . ."
I raised my eyebrows at her.
"You what?"
"I didn't think of that, okay? I was trying to help. I was trying to bring him back to you."
"Where's Bella?" I asked quietly.
Tanya laughed. "Why are you asking me?"
"Because, I don't buy for a motherfucking minute that you don't know. What did James do with her?"
"James? James who?"
"Tanya?" I warned.
She let out a loud gasp. "James Hunter? You think James Hunter had something to do with this?" Her voice was innocent, but I knew better.
I clenched my jaw.
"Oh, Edward, I'm so sorry. He's psychotic." There was a hint of amusement in her voice that made me want to rip her head off. "Do you really suspect he took her?"
"Where is she, Tanya?" I yelled.
"I don't know," she screamed back. "I don't know where she is. God! You can at least say thank you. I didn't have to bring your little bastard back to you."
White noise. That is what filled my rage-addled mind as I flew across the room. Her body slammed against the wall, my hand at her throat.
"Edward!" Chief Swan barked. His voice was fuzzy though and I couldn't see anything but the wide blue eyes of the woman in front of me. I always thought that the phrase 'seeing red' was a myth. It's not.
I felt hands on my shoulders; on my arms, but I held my grip. Tanya was gasping and choking dramatically, but I knew my own strength. I wasn't putting nearly the pressure on her that I wanted to.
"If he does anything to Bella. ANYTHING. I will make sure you spend the rest of your life paying for it," I snarled before letting her go and letting myself be dragged backwards and forced into a chair. Chief Swan sat down next to me, gripping my shoulder.
Tanya grabbed at her throat.
"Why didn't you care this much about me?" she screeched, tears starting to form in her eyes. "I did nothing but love you for years and it was always her! It should have been me. Charlie should be my baby, not hers. She doesn't deserve him, she doesn't deserve you!"
"And who does, Tanya? You?" I laughed angrily. There was nothing funny about this situation though.
"Yes, me! We were always supposed to be together. You were supposed to get it all out of your system. Sow your wild oats or whatever the fuck it is and then settle down with me. Not her. This. . ." she said widening her arms. "This was to show you how much I love you and make you realize how much you need and love me. I am the one who brought your son back to you. She abandoned him. She let herself get taken by that sick fuck! I hope you never get her back."
I'm not sure who moved first, but both Bella's dad and I were on our feet. Almost the entire Port Angeles police force was practically on top of us.
"That's enough!" Detective Laurent bellowed. "Get her out of here."
"Wait, where is she going?" I asked. "You're not going to let her go are you?"
"Sit down, Mr. Cullen," he ordered.
"I don't want to fucking sit down. I want to know where Bella is," I roared. "I want you to find my fucking wife!"
Tanya turned so fast she must have given herself whiplash. "What?" she gaped. "Your wife? When. . . How. . . I would have known. You married her?"
Her voice was like nails on a chalkboard, I winced, but didn't respond to her. I didn't even look at her.
"Out!" Laurent ordered.
Tanya squirmed away from their grip, but she allowed herself to be taken away. To where, I didn't know.
I turned around and saw that Chief Swan was seated again with his hands over his face. It was then that I realized that I wasn't alone in this. Yes, she was the love of my life, but she was his only daughter. He had to be hurting just as much as I was.
"Fuck!" I groaned, collapsing back into the chair. "FUCK!" I gripped my hair and pulled as hard as I could.
"Edward?" My mother's voice called. I looked up and saw that she and Carlisle were standing at the entrance of the station, a cop holding them back and looking towards us. Detective Laurent nodded and the officer let them go.
"Oh, honey," she sobbed, wrapping her arms around me. "I'm so sorry. I was running errands and left my phone at home. Have they found them?"
I couldn't talk. I could feel myself about to lose it and that just couldn't happen. Not yet.
"Charlie's safe," Chief Swan said quietly.
I stood up.
Charlie. I needed to get to Charlie.
"And Bella?" Mom whispered.
I tilted my head to look at the chief. Our eyes met briefly before I closed them again and shook my head. "Not yet."
"Oh God," Mom choked.
The phone on Detective Laurent's desk rang and I jumped.
"Yeah. Okay. Great, I'll tell him. Thank you."
"What?" I asked anxiously.
"The therapist is on her way to talk to Charlie. We need to take him to the hospital."
"Hospital? Therapist?" Carlisle asked, anxiously. "Why? What happened to him?"
I squeezed my eyes together again and grit my teeth. I could feel the pressure building behind my eyeballs. The tears that streamed down my cheek couldn't be stopped.
"As far as we can tell, he's fine, physically. You're a doctor, Dr. Cullen, you know the drill," Laurent explained.
"Yes, I do, but right now . . . I'm a grandfather, nothing else."
"Where is he?" I asked.
"One of our officers took him next door. Ms. Denali wanted to speak to you and we thought it best that Charlie not be exposed to that. From the display the two of you just put on, I'm exceptionally happy that we took the precaution."
"Are you coming with us?" I asked, my voice almost unrecognizable with emotion.
Detective Laurent nodded. "Yes, I need to be there when the therapist talks to him."
"Do you want us to. . ." my mom's voice trailed off.
"Will you meet us at the hospital?"
She nodded and smiled sadly.
"Chief?"
He looked up, his eyes were red and bloodshot. He looked so much older.
"Uh, I'll drive myself. I want to be able to come back if. . ." he swallowed like he had something caught in his throat. "When they find Bella."
I followed Detective Laurent out into the hallway and towards the office next door.
"Don't ask him any questions about what happened, Edward. Let the therapist do that."
"Why? I need to know what she did to him; what she said."
"You will. Leslie Ripley is the child psychologist, let her find out without scaring him. And whatever you do, don't tell him his mother's missing."
I glared up at him. "I wouldn't do that, I'm not a fucking idiot."
He held up his hand in apology and then shoved open the door.
Charlie was sitting at a desk coloring with a female officer. His head popped up and he grinned.
"Daddy," he cried, running towards me. I picked him up and held him tightly, the tears starting to spill again.
He leaned back, putting both his tiny hands on my cheeks. "Wassa matter, Daddy?"
"I was just scared because you were missing, buddy. But we're gonna be okay. Everything's gonna be okay."
I wasn't sure if I was trying to convince him or myself.
"Where's Mommy?"
Shit, what do I tell him?
The female officer that had been looking after him must have read the panic on my face.
"Your mommy's not here right now, sweetheart. You're daddy's going to take you to the hospital to see a doctor now, okay?"
Charlie frowned. "Do I hafta get a shot?"
I chuckled a little. "No, buddy, no shots."
We walked out to the parking lot and passed Tanya's car. I wanted to take a fucking brick to the windshield, but I was already worried about being charged with assault for attacking her.
I halted abruptly. There were toys in the back seat.
Detective Laurent was behind me and nearly ran into me. "What's the matter?"
I pointed to the car.
"Yeah? So?"
"Tanya doesn't have any kids."
"Okay?" He was looking at me like I was wasting his time.
"Why does she have toys in her car?"
"Would she have bought them for him?"
I narrowed my eyes at him. Did Tanya really seem like the type that would buy a child toys?
He looked at me for a minute and then back to the car. He pulled out his cell phone.
"Yeah, it's Laurent. Call Judge Kaplan, get a search warrant for Tanya Denali's car, one for her home and her parent's home as well. No, don't. Hold onto her until I come back. I want to be the one who questions her. Okay, thanks."
We reached my car and I buckled Charlie into his seat. The same seat that had seemed so empty half an hour before. I yanked on the buckle to make sure it was secure and pressed my lips against his temple, letting them linger long enough to make him pull away and wrinkle his nose.
"Daaaady," he whined, wiping his head.
I smiled. "I love you, buddy, you know that?"
He grinned. "I love you too," he chirped.
I stood up and saw that Detective Laurent had been watching the interaction. "You ready to go?" he asked more softly than I had heard him speak before.
"No, but I don't have a choice, do I?"
We climbed in and drove silently towards the hospital.
My parents and Chief Swan were already in the waiting room when we got there. Alice and Jasper had joined them, but I couldn't stop to talk to them. I was pulled straight into the Emergency Department and into one of the examination rooms.
"Your father is requesting to come back, is that okay?" the nurse asked peeking her head into the room.
"Yes," I nodded.
A few minutes later Carlisle sat down next to me. Charlie was on my lap, looking around nervously. He was oddly quiet.
The nurse came in and explained to him what she was doing as she took his temperature. She also took his weight and height and handed him a tiny little hospital gown to put on.
"Doctor Fitzgerald will be here in just a few minutes," she smiled softly.
I changed him into the gown, looking over his body to make sure there weren't any obvious injuries. He had bruises on his knees and shins, and a scrap on his elbow, but nothing out of the ordinary.
If Tanya had laid one hand on my child there was no force on this planet that would hold me back from destroying her.
When the Doctor came in, he let Charlie stay in my lap while he examined him. Detective Laurent remained in the corner of the room silently.
He looked over his entire body and asked him to stand up. He removed his gown and I froze when he moved to look at his genitals.
I felt Carlisle's hand on my back. "It's standard, son," he whispered in my ear.
"I know that," I mumbled. "Doesn't make me feel any better."
"You know that no one's supposed to touch your private parts, right Charlie?" he asked. "Only a doctor when you're getting a check-up and mommy or daddy if there's something wrong or to help you clean yourself, right?"
Charlie nodded. I remembered Bella telling me that she had gone over private parts with him, but it still scared the shit out of me to think about it.
"Has anyone else ever touched your private parts?" Dr. Fitzgerald asked.
Charlie shook his head no and I let out a relieved breath. I'd kill any motherfucker who touched my son. Consequences be damned.
"We're all done, Charlie," Dr. Fitzgerald smiled. "When you're all dressed there's a treasure box at the nurses' station that you can pick from, okay?"
Charlie nodded enthusiastically.
"Mr. Cullen, Detective, will you come with me?"
I stood up and handed Charlie to Carlisle. "Can you get him dressed please, Dad?"
"Sure," he agreed, taking Charlie into his arms.
In the hallway, the doctor looked at me. "There doesn't appear to be any physical injury. The therapist will be able to talk to him a bit more about it and can assess if anything was said or done to him. How long was he gone for?"
"Just over two hours." I frowned.
"And his mother's still missing?"
I swallowed thickly. "Yes."
"But he doesn't know?"
I shook my head. "No."
"Okay, well, like I said, physically he's fine and there weren't any behavioral triggers that would make me think that he was assaulted."
This was bordering on too much. I sucked in air and clenched my fists.
Both men looked at me. I'm sure they were waiting for me to explode. It was going to happen; it was just a matter of time.
The door opened and Carlisle poked his head out. Dr. Fitzgerald nodded that it was okay and the door was opened wider as Charlie bounded out and towards the nurses' station.
I watched as all the women fawned over him and tried to help him pick out a toy.
"Edward," Detective Laurent said, drawing half of my attention away from Charlie. There was no way I was taking my eyes off of him.
There was a woman standing next to him. She was short, brunette and probably late thirties.
"Edward, this is Leslie Ripley, the child therapist who is going to talk to Charlie."
"Hi," I said, reaching out for her hand.
"Daddy, wook what I got," Charlie shouted. He was holding up his hands and they both held items.
"What do you have?" I asked, bending down. "Issa tattoo, jus wike yours."
I laughed. "Just like mine?"
He nodded, eyes wide, smile in place. "Can you put it on me?"
I was going to answer, but the therapist, Leslie interrupted me.
"Hi, Charlie, my name's Leslie."
Charlie looked at me and I nodded encouragingly. "Hi," he said quietly.
"What else do you have?" she asked, pointing to his other hand.
"A dino. It says rawr!" he said, holding it up.
"Wow, that's so cool. Why don't we head over to this way and you can show me better."
She led us to one of the private family waiting rooms. It was small, but big enough for Detective Laurent and me to stand out of the way.
"Do you want to draw with me?" she asked as she sat down on one of the chairs.
Charlie bit his lip and nodded. Leslie handed him a piece of white paper and some crayons that had been on a bookshelf.
"I heard that you have had a very busy day," she said setting down some crayons. "Do you think you can draw a picture of your day?"
Again, Charlie nodded. He picked up a crayon and started drawing.
"Can you tell me about what you're drawing?"
"We wenta hear music," Charlie said, dragging his crayon over the paper.
"Oh yeah? And then what happened."
"I hadda go poop."
"Oh my goodness, did you guys get to the potty?"
He nodded. "Yeah, mommy made a big man mad."
I furrowed my brow. "What man?" I asked.
Leslie turned and shook her head at me.
"Sorry," I mouthed.
"How did she make the man mad?"
"He was in da potty and she knocked a wot."
"Oh, well, I bet you had to go real bad."
Charlie nodded.
"Where did you go after the potty?"
"Mommy wooked at a box."
"What kind of a box?"
Charlie shrugged.
"You didn't get to see it?"
"I got wost."
"Oh? How did you get lost?"
Charlie looked uncomfortable. I wanted to tell her to stop, but Laurent shook his head at me.
"I don't know."
"Did somebody pick you up?"
He nodded and then shook his head no again.
"Did somebody take you away from your mommy?"
"She said mommy got wost too."
"Who said, Charlie?"
"Daddy's friend."
"Oh?" I watched as Leslie picked up four crayons. Black, Brown, Red, and Yellow. "Can you tell me what color your daddy's friend's hair was?"
Charlie picked up the yellow crayon and handed it to her.
Tanya. It could only have been her.
I rubbed my eyes. The bitch had taken him right out from under Bella. She had to have been prepared; watching, waiting for her chance.
I glanced at Laurent. He was taking notes, his face stoic and unrevealing.
"Did she tell you what her name was?"
Charlie shook his head.
"Were you scared when you were lost?"
Charlie shook his head no again.
"You weren't? Not even a little bit?"
He shook his head again.
"Well, how come?"
"Daddy said he'd fine me," he shrugged.
"He'd find you?"
"He said dat if I got wost wike Nemo, he'd fine me."
I took in a shaky breath and felt my eyes start to water again. I had no idea he'd actually remember me saying that.
"Wow. You have an awesome daddy, don't you?"
Charlie nodded and looked up to grin at me. I wiped my eyes and smiled back.
"Did you meet anybody else when you were lost?"
Charlie shook his head. "No."
"What did you and Daddy's friend talk about?"
He shrugged again.
"Did you talk about Daddy?"
Charlie didn't answer.
"It's okay, Charlie. If you remember, will you tell me?"
"Uh huh," he said blankly.
"Where did you go with Daddy's friend?"
"To da car."
"To her car?"
"Uh huh."
"Did you drive somewhere?"
"I don't know."
Listening to the conversation was making me sick. He wasn't giving us anything.
"Charlie, did Daddy's friend touch you or hurt you?"
My ears perked up.
"No, she towd me she'd not hurt me. She towd me she loved me."
Leslie frowned and sat back.
"She told you that she loved you?"
"Yeah, um . . . cause I was pieces of Daddy and. . ." he bit his lip and narrowed his eyes. "and she would care bout me. I want Mommy," he suddenly cried, his mouth trembling and his eyes filling with tears.
Leslie looked up at me, making eye contact. "I think we're done for now," she whispered.
I nodded and moved to pick Charlie up. He wrapped his arms around me and buried his face in my neck as he continued to sniffle.
"Can we take him home?" I asked, looking at Laurent as we walked towards the waiting room.
"Yes. I think that's a good idea. We'll let you know if we need anything further. Just keep an ear out."
"I'll tell my mom," I agreed.
"Edward?" he stopped me. "You need to go home with your son."
I turned my head as far away from Charlie as I could and leaned in to Laurent.
"If you think for one second that I'm going to go rest while some psychopath is doing God knows what to. . ." I wouldn't say her name. I was speaking in barely a whisper, but Charlie had sharp ears. ". . . to her; you are dead wrong."
"You need to be with your son," he said firmly. We started walking again and when we got into the waiting room, my family rushed us. I handed Charlie to my mother and turned to face Laurent.
"My son is safe; he's okay. His mother is not. If I can do anything for my child, it will be to bring his mommy home. So excuse me, but Fuck off!"
I turned to leave and realized that the entire waiting room was staring at me. Charlie's eyes were wide and for a moment I feared that he had heard what I had said. I hadn't realized that I had practically screamed the last couple of words.
I made eye contact with my mom, who shook her head minutely, telling me that she didn't think he had. I walked over to him and took him.
"I'm going to send you home with Gramma and Papa, okay?"
His face fell and my heart broke. "Is mommy at home?" he asked quietly.
"No, buddy," I rasped. "Mommy's not at home, not right now."
"Where is she?"
I felt another tear fall down my face and I wiped it away.
"Don't worry about it right now, okay? We'll be home soon, I promise."
I clenched my jaw to keep from sobbing as Carlisle took him from me again.
He patted me on the back.
"I need to give you the car seat," I mumbled.
We made our way out to the parking lot and I said goodbye to my family.
"Are you sure you don't want us to stay with you?" Alice asked.
"No." I shook my head. "There's not a whole lot to be done right now."
"We could play cards? Or . . . just hang," she suggested with a sad smile.
I kissed her cheek. "I'll be fine. I'll call you when I hear something."
"Okay." Alice hesitated.
"Sugar, there's nothing we can do from here," Jasper said into her hair.
"Can we drive around? Maybe look for her?"
"Sure, baby," he drawled. He tilted his head to me and I returned the gesture.
XXXXXXXXX
Time had never moved more slowly. It seemed like every time I looked up at the clock on the wall only a few seconds had past.
I could see the people around me trying to be sly about their glances. Whether they were worried or curious or annoyed at the fact that I was popping my knuckles or drumming my fingers, I don't know.
The sunlight began to fade, bathing the station in the haze of twilight before disappearing all together. I sat on a hard wooden chair with my feet propped out in front of me, my arms folded across my chest and closed my eyes. I was zoning in and out, attempting to push all of the horrifying thoughts about what was happening out of my head. I shifted position, sitting up and resting my elbows on my bouncing knees, my hands folded in front of my mouth.
The crackle of a nearby scanner made both Chief Swan and I look up.
"This is Officer Nicholas in pursuit of suspect vehicle heading East on the 101, two miles east of 7 Cedars Casino. Vehicle is a black 2001 Dodge Charger with Washington plates. Suspect is believed to be James Hunter, wanted in connection with the disappearance of Isabella Swan. All available officers please respond. Vehicle is approaching speeds of one hundred ten miles per hour. Suspect is considered armed and dangerous."
There was a flurry of activity as all the "available" officers grabbed their coats and guns and keys and flew out the door. I took my cue and did the same.
"Edward?" I heard Chief Swan call. He wasn't making a move to get up.
"I'll drive," I said without looking at him.
"Edward?"
I ignored him. I knew what he was going to say.
"Are you coming?" I asked, pausing. When he didn't answer me I started for the door.
"Edward, you can't go!" Chief Swan yelled.
"Like hell I can't," I snapped.
"Do you want to get her killed?" he asked, grabbing my arm. I hadn't even realized he was coming towards me. "Because that's exactly what could happen if you go out there. He wants you. He wants to hurt you for whatever reason and if you go out there, I have no doubt that he has the potential to take her out in front of you."
"I can't just sit here and wait, Chief. I can't," I cried.
"You're going to have to. We both are. I want to be out there just as much as you do, but I want my daughter to come home safe even more, so sit your ass down and let them do their jobs."
I leaned backwards and collapsed against the wall, sinking down.
"What if he kills her?" I whimpered. "What if he's already killed her?"
"Just . . . just get up, son." He held out his hand and pulled my sad, exhausted, pathetic body from the ground. Before I had a chance to react he pulled me into a hug.
There were no words.
This man . . . this man who had spent years hating me for what I had done to his daughter; who had wanted to kill me not so long ago, was now comforting me as we waited to find out if she was alive or dead. After a couple of minutes, he let me go and wiped his face, before we went back to Chief Rick's desk and sat down.
I waited. We waited. The station around us was eerily quiet. There were only a few people milling around; the administration staff and file clerks. All of the officers on duty had been called out to the situation with James.
The scanner had been turned off, but I couldn't stand it anymore, I needed to at least hear something. I shouldn't have ever asked the clerk to turn it back on. What I heard made my blood run cold.
"Suspect is in custody. Dispatch we need a bus for twenty-three year old female victim."
"Motherfucker," I cried, grabbing my hair and pulling. My whole body was shaking. I wanted to throw the scanner across the room, but then I wouldn't know.
"ETA four minutes," the dispatcher announced. "What's her condition?"
"Unresponsive, but breathing. Breaths are shallow. Pulse rate is low. Working to free her now."
"Free her?" I asked. "What do they mean, free her?"
I turned to look at the chief, but he just shook his head, his jaw slack.
"I just removed her gag. There are injuries to the face."
"Arms are now free, looks as though she may have a dislocated shoulder. Bus just pulled up. We're good. ETA at OMC is twenty-five minutes. Detective Laurent has suspect and will be returning to PAPD after he's examined for injuries."
I felt a hand on my shoulder.
"Edward, son, let's go."
I nodded. I couldn't allow myself to feel relieved yet. I had no idea what he had done to her. Her father must have been on the same wavelength.
We drove back to Olympic Medical Center in silence. It only took us five minutes, which left us pacing outside of the ER doors. I heard the sirens long before I saw them.
Several doctors came out into the ambulance bay including Dr. Fitzgerald.
"This Charlie's mother?" he asked solemnly.
"Yes," I responded.
"Okay, I'm gonna need both of you to step back. You can follow us in, but stay out of the way. We need to assess her injuries before you can see her."
We both agreed, although I wondered if I'd actually be able to do it.
The sirens got louder and finally, the ambulance pulled up. Everyone rushed around as the doors opened.
"Isabella Swan, twenty-three years old. She's been unresponsive since we picked her up. Blood Pressure 80/50, heart rate 65. Pulse ox 85. Found bound and gagged, possible drug exposure."
I tried to see past them as they brought the gurney out of the ambulance.
"Laceration and bruises to the face, dislocated right shoulder."
Someone stepped away, I didn't know if it was an EMT, a nurse or a doctor, but whoever it was gave me a horrifying view. Bella's neck was in a brace, her head strapped to the gurney. Her eyes were closed and her face was speared with blood. Her shirt had been torn open and her right shoulder was purple and swollen.
She was so pale, almost blue. "Oh fuck!" I gasped, swallowing down the bile that had burned its way up my throat.
"Christ," I heard the chief breathe out.
The team of doctors rushed her inside. We followed silently. I didn't want to get kicked out and, to be honest, I was really too stunned to react. I watched numbly as they transferred her onto a bed and began to work on her.
They used scissors to slice through her jeans and shirt and removed them. Someone's fingers started prodding her ribs and abdomen. I could only assume they were checking for internal injuries. One of the doctors reset her shoulder with a pop and I winced. When they hooked up the monitors, loud beeps instantly filled the room. I listened to the sound carefully.
"Her heart rate's too low," I murmured.
"I know," Chief Swan answered.
I should have been paying attention to everything they were doing. I wanted to be a doctor for God's sake. I should have been, but I wasn't. I was focused on her chest; watching it rise and fall; listening to the heart rate monitor.
"She's stable," Dr. Fitzgerald said calmly, pulling off his gloves and tossing them into a waste bin.
"Why's she bleeding?" I asked quietly.
"She's got a couple of lacerations. The blood on her face is from her nose and lip."
"When will she wake up?" I heard the chief ask.
"I don't know. We're going to run some tests. It doesn't appear that she sustained head trauma, but we're going to do a CT scan anyway. Better to be safe. Initial examination doesn't reveal any internal bleeding, but again, the CT scan can confirm that. We . . . we're also going to have to do a sexual assault exam," he added cautiously.
I snapped my head towards him. "Was she . . . ?"
"We don't know. That's what we're hoping to find out. We need to do the exam as soon as possible though."
I cleared my throat. The thought that Bella was. . . I couldn't. . . It wasn't something I could process.
"This needs to be done, Edward," the chief murmured. "The sooner, the better."
I shook my head. "I don't want her to be awake for it. Please don't let her be awake for it."
"I'm just waiting for my nurse to finish with her patient. When she's ready, we'll do the collection."
I started to feel sick again. "Just . . . get it over with."
He nodded. "I've got some forms you need to fill out."
I followed Dr. Fitzgerald to the admitting desk and sat down to fill out Bella's paper work.
I wasn't prepared for what I encountered when I got back up.
James Hunter.
James Hunter was sitting on a bed in one of the rooms with a doctor stitching up his head. I didn't even think as I strode into the room. Our eyes met and his widened for a moment. He pulled away from the doctor and flailed, knocking over a few trays and sending things flying. He was fast, but not fast enough. Well, that, and the fact that he was actually handcuffed to the bed. And the cops standing to the side obviously hadn't been expecting me either.
I flew at him and landed one very nice fantastic punch to his eye socket before I was pulled backwards.
"MOTHERFUCKER!" I roared, thrashing against the guys who were holding onto me.
James squinted in pain. There was blood pouring down the side of his face from where I had re-opened what the doctor had just tried to fix. He licked his lips. The doctor was pressed firmly against the wall, trying to stay out of the way.
"What the fuck did you do to her?"
James looked down and then back up at me, his face breaking out into a horrible smirk.
"Nothing she didn't want me to do, man," he chuckled. "Man, your girl is smokin'. Especially when she's mad."
I let out some sort of inhuman howl before finally being dragged from the room.
"You had better settle the fuck down," I heard my brother's voice loudly in my ear.
My brother?
"Emmett?"
"Yeah, bro. I'm not letting you go until you settle down, though."
I tried to get one more look at James, but they had closed up the room.
"I can't believe they let that asshole in the same building as Bella," I growled.
I took a few breaths and relaxed my body. I looked back towards the room.
"Don't," Emmett warned. "I don't want to have to lay you out in the middle of the ER."
"I'm not," I assured. "I'm just pissed."
"Yeah, you have every right to be, but now your ass may end up in jail right next to his for assault."
"He deserved it."
Emmett sighed and shook his head.
"What the hell are you doing here? I thought Rose was sick?" I didn't mean to sound ungrateful, I was just surprised.
"She was. She's asleep right now. Alice is with her. I stopped by the station and they said you were here with Bella. Why the hell didn't you tell us they found her?"
"Because all I was thinking about was getting to her and making sure she was okay," I snapped.
He raised his hands. "Relax, man. You look like shit. How is she?"
"Thanks a lot," I said sarcastically. "I feel like shit. She's fucked up. . . and unconscious. I have no idea."
I looked up as Chief Swan approached. "Emmett," he nodded.
"Chief."
"They, uh, they just finished the exam," he mumbled.
My heart started thumping.
"Was she. . ."
"No. She wasn't," he rushed out.
"Oh, thank God," I breathed.
"What?" Emmett asked, looking between us.
I ignored him. I didn't want to have to tell him that Bella had just had a rape kit done. Even if it was negative, that shit was personal.
"James Hunter is here."
"I know," the chief frowned. "Stay away from him, Edward. Don't get yourself into any trouble."
"Uh. . ."
He groaned and rubbed his eyes.
"Sorry." I felt like a child being scolded by my father, or a teacher, or. . . the chief of police.
"Are you really that much of an idiot?"
Emmett coughed and I glared at him.
"Yes," I admitted.
He took a deep breath through his nose and changed the subject.
"They're taking Bella for a CT and then she'll be taken to the ICU until she wakes up. It's eight o'clock. Why don't you go home."
"No!" I said flatly. "I need to know why he did this."
"You don't have to be here for that."
"I can't face Bella until I know exactly what I did to put her and Charlie in danger." I spoke slowly and clearly so that he knew that there was no way he was getting me to leave. "I want to be there when they question him."
He scratched his jaw and looked at the ceiling.
"That's not up to me."
"Then where's Laurent?"
He looked around. "I don't know."
"Bella's not going to wake up for a few hours?" I couldn't bear the thought of her waking up without me there.
"Probably not," he shrugged.
"I'm going to find him. Emmett, you wanna come?"
"Yeah, Ed, whatever you need," he said, patting me on the back.
"You'll call me if she starts to wake up?"
Chief Swan nodded. "Of course."
An hour later Emmett and I were back at the station trying to convince Detective Laurent to let us watch the interrogation.
"Fine," he finally agreed. "But you stay behind the glass and you keep your mouth shut or I will have you forcibly removed from this station. Do you understand?"
I nodded just once to show him that I understood.
He opened the door to the interrogation room and walked purposefully inside.
"Mr. Hunter."
James lifted his head and looked at Detective Laurent. He let out a sneering chuckle and rolled his eyes.
"You are in a lot of trouble."
"Yeah, tell me something I don't fucking know," he growled.
"Why don't you tell me something that I don't know instead."
"Like what? You guys always have the answers, right? That's why I'm here. What could I possibly have to tell you?"
"How bout why you abducted Isabella Swan?"
He shrugged and smiled. "You want me to give you my motive? Do you think I'm an idiot?"
"I think you got yourself into something you didn't anticipate."
"What-the-fuck-ever, dude. You don't know shit."
Detective Laurent sat down and slammed his hand flat against the table. James startled slightly, but didn't react otherwise.
"Let me tell you what I know. I know that you've been following Ms. Swan around for months. I know that you broke into her apartment, had sex with Camille Jenks in her and Mr. Cullen's bed and I know that you were found with her bound and gagged in your car."
I expected James' face to remain calm and cool. He knew what he was up against, but instead, his mask slipped.
"What?" he bellowed. "What the fuck are you talking about?"
"Which part, Mr. Hunter?"
"Who the fuck is Camille Jenks? I didn't fuck anybody in Cullen's bed."
"Oh no?"
"Fuck no," he shouted.
"But you admit to breaking into the apartment."
"I'm not admitting to any fucking thing."
"A condom with yours and Ms. Jenks' DNA was found in Ms. Swan and Mr. Cullen's bedroom. Would you care to explain how it got there if you didn't put it there?"
"First off . . .who the fuck is this girl I supposedly had sex with?"
I watched as Detective Laurent pulled a small photo of Cammy out of his folder and set it down in front of James.
"Ah, hell no. That's the bitch that died. She was sick. She drugged dudes with families."
"So how did a condom with your DNA and hers end up in the Swan/Cullen apartment?"
"I admit I fucked her, but it was at her place. I got the hell out of dodge and never saw her again. There's no way . . ." James' face shifted and he looked absolutely livid.
"That bitch!"
"What bitch?" Laurent asked.
"That motherfucking, two-faced lying bitch. I knew she had something else planned."
"Mr. Hunter?"
"Fuck no; she wants me to go down for it? I don't fucking think so." James stood up and started pacing.
"Mr. Hunter?"
"Tanya Denali. She planned the whole fucking thing."
"What thing?"
"She knew I wanted revenge on Cullen. She fucking knew I'd do anything to make him pay," he ranted angrily
"Pay? Pay for what, Mr. Hunter?"
James approached the glass that I was standing behind. It was like he was staring me directly in the eyes, but I knew that he couldn't see me.
His ice blue eyes were cold and calculating, but I wasn't prepared for the pain that seemed to be hidden within them. He closed his eyes and turned away again, sitting back down across from Laurent.
"Dude," Emmett murmured next to me.
"He stole my fucking life right out from underneath me."
"How exactly did he do that, Mr. Hunter?"
I watched him as he swallowed.
I scratched my jaw nervously, waiting for him to tell me what I had done. When he opened his mouth, I stopped breathing.
"He fucked my wife."