Fundraiser Part 2

Esme's POV

9th May

"Carlisle, honey, we need to go."

"I know."

My handsome husband stepped out of the bathroom, looking dapper as always. I'd never really enjoyed these events. Neither did he, but we both liked dressing up, having a break from our family. But everything was different now. We didn't have a happy family to return to. We weren't complete without Bella. Edward had been heartbroken ever since she was taken. Alice was miserable, barely functioning through the day. Rose and Emmett tried to comfort them, but there was only so well they could distract them. And I could see them suffering themselves. The biggest surprise was Jasper. He'd joined our family last and had never been particularly close to Bella. But he had changed the most. I'd heard him up late at night, seen him in the living room typing away on his laptop. Whenever someone would enter the room, he would close it and walk out. Before, he would hardly need to use his phone to call people, but I'd heard him quietly whispering to someone a few different times. I was worried about him.

"Are you okay dear?"

"I'm fine."

"What's on your mind?"

"I'm just worried about the kids."

"I know. So am I. We'll be home soon enough."

"Why would anyone take Bella? Who could do that to such a sweet girl?"

"I don't know, dear. It's been seven months though. We have to assume she's not coming back. I want to hold onto hope, because that's all we have, but we have to start preparing Edward and Alice for the fact she may never come back."

"We'll talk to them both when we get home. As much as I hate it, you are right. We can have hope, but we can't be delusional. Last time it took ten years for Bella to return. She's not just going to turn up tomorrow."

Pecking my forehead, Carlisle held me for a minute. It was the embrace I needed to carry on with the evening.

Our Uber pulled up outside the hotel ten minutes late. We never liked being early. The later we were, the less mingling we would have to do. And neither of us were in the mood to put on a smile and fake happiness.

Carlisle held his arm out for me, and I slid my hand into the crook of his elbow. We followed the signs through the lobby, round to the ballroom. We gave our names and were waved into the doors. I took a deep breath as we stepped inside, the room filled with people. My husband wrapped his arm around my back, pulling me into his side. He knew I didn't want to be here. He'd said he'd go alone. But I knew he was struggling with Bella's disappearance just as much as I was. I always came with him when I wasn't needed at home. Mostly to keep him company.

We made our way around the edge of the room, speaking very briefly with some of Carlisle's previous colleagues and other doctors who had been intrigued with his work. I couldn't deny that my husband wasn't one of the best doctors out there. I knew he was. And that's why he had to show his face as these events. A few times we'd been busy when we'd received personal invites, and just sent a cheque to the foundation being raised for. Carlisle was so grateful though, for everything he had. Most assume he was handed what he has, but I know him. I know the man behind the doctorate. He'd worked for everything. He'd spent hours slaving away in the library during college. He'd have me cut up a chicken from the store just so he could practise stitching it back up. He'd volunteer for extra shifts at the hospital during his residency. Even when I was close to walking out, he didn't give up. What he can do… the gift he has, I can't stop him from using it. His ability to save lives has to be used. We struggled for a few years, little money to put food on the table, no money to pay the heating bills of our one bed apartment. But we had each other. And whilst I didn't see Carlisle all that much, he'd always find time to send me a text to let me know he was okay. Here we are now. Happily married for almost fifteen years. I don't regret a thing. He's the best thing to happen to my life. And now we get to share our love with five beautiful, healthy children, supporting them in ways neither of us were.

"Esme, dear, we can leave if you want. We don't need to stay. I've showed my face now. We can go."

"No. We'll give it another hour. Alfred hasn't even given his speech yet."

Glancing around the room, I spotted Alfred standing by the little stage, speaking with another guest.

"Why don't we hand him the cheque now? Then, once he's finished, we can slip out."

"Sounds like a plan. Come on. We can go have a quiet night back at the hotel."

Making our way to the front of the ballroom, Alfred smiled across to us. The man he was speaking to walked away as we neared.

"Carlisle, Esme, it's good to see you both again."

"You too, Alfred. How have you been doing?"

"Well."

"And Lyndsey?"

"She's doing well too. The grandkids are driving us both a little crazy though. But what about the two of you? Any news on Bella?"

Having been a mentor for Carlisle when he'd been in his residency in New York, Alfred was like a father figure to us both. We'd both reached out to him when Bella was taken, looking for advice and asking him to keep an ear out for any unidentified females admitted into hospitals. He has connections that Carlisle is still making. We had slight hope that Bella would escape and find her way to a hospital or police station.

"Nothing recently. The FBI are still in town though, still actively searching for anything that could help."

"She's in my families' prayers. And we have hope that she returns soon."

"So do we."

"Thank you, Alfred. The support you have given us is everything we needed in this."

"If there is anything more I can do, you only have to ask, Esme."

"You accepting this cheque would really help us right about now."

Carlisle lifted it out of his jacket pocket and handed it over to him. We both watched him reading the number scrawled out on it, his eyes widening before he shook our hands.

"It will be greatly appreciated. Thank you, Carlisle, Esme."

"Now that we have something to give back, we want to do what we can. Esme and I know what it's like to have nothing. The research this money will help fund will change peoples' lives for the better."

"Well, thank you. I will ensure not a dime is wasted."

The woman from the door approached us, apologising for interrupting. She pulled Alfred away, preparing him for his speech. Carlisle and I stepped aside, his arm around my back. As Alfred began to speak, I looked around the room. I wasn't looking for anything in particular, just looking. But my eyes fell on a beautiful blonde young woman. She was standing in the arms of a young man, her hand clutching a champagne glass. She was wearing a stunning, blood red dress. Her long blonde hair was perfectly straight around her slim face. A face that I recognised. A face that I have been thinking about for months.

My eyes stayed on her, analysing every inch of her body. And whilst she was so different, it was her. There was no doubt that it was. I squeezed Carlisle's hand, his head turning down to me.

"Bella's here."

He immediately became confused, glancing around the room, searching for her.

"Where?"

"The young blonde in the red dress. Near the middle of the room."

I watched as his eyes looked her up and down, his hope fading.

"That's not her, sweetheart. She does have some resemblance, so you're seeing what you want to see."

"Carlisle, trust me. It is her. I know Bella. She's here."

"It's not her. I wish it was, but that woman has blonde hair and grey eyes. It's not her, Esme."

I looked at her again and sighed. He was probably right. Why would Bella be here? There's no one holding the girl against her will. If it was her, she'd run. Wouldn't she?

For the next hour, we wandered around the room, speaking with other guests that held regard for Carlisle. My eye kept wandering, watching the young blonde. The more I watched her, the less she appeared like Bella. Her legs were long, thin and toned, her delicate feet strapped into high red stilettos. The red dress clung to her slim body, the neckline plunging between her breasts. Her arms were bare, a gold bangle on her right wrist, a ring on her right index finger and a silver diamond ring on her left ring finger. Her blonde hair was perfectly straight down her back and around her face. She had only a light amount of makeup on her face, accentuating her natural beauty. Her grey eyes popped, almost shining despite their dullness. This young woman was sheer perfection. She carried herself with a confidence Bella had never possessed. She was so sure of herself, so certain that she was the most beautiful person in the room. And I couldn't deny that. She was nothing like Bella. Yet a part of me was screaming that it was her.

There was a moment when she left the room. I attempted to follow, but Carlisle held my arm tightly. He knew I was distracted and now spiralling out of control. His hold calmed me down. My eye went to the door when she came back in though. She was angry and calmly frantic as she went straight to her man. She pulled him aside, whispering quietly between themselves.

"Carlisle, please, let us go and talk to her. I am certain it is Bella."

"Okay. We will speak to them briefly. But do not say anything suspicious."

As we started beelining for the couple, the woman noticed us and straightened up, trying drag him away.

"Dr Grey?"

Carlisle had asked of the couple earlier in the evening, no one was certain who they were, but suspected him to be Dr Daniel Grey.

"Yes. And you must be the famous Dr Cullen. I've read about your work in New York. Quite the forward thinker."

"Thank you. This is my wife, Esme."

So close to the woman now, I was staring into her grey eyes. My hope grew. There was a fire behind her eyes that I recognised in Bella's. Dr Grey held his hand out to us, and I diverted my eyes to his briefly. His handshake was tight, strong. I didn't recognise him at all. And yet this woman, who I was almost certain was Bella, felt comfortable with him.

"Hi, I'm Shelby."

"My fiancé."

"Congratulations."

"I've been waiting for this man to propose for years. All it took was a ring slipped into his jacket before he got the idea. Seriously, sometimes I don't know how men operate without us women."

Shelby's accent was strong. I couldn't tell where from, but she sounded nothing like Bella. My hope diminished instantly. She spoke with such love for Dr Grey when talking of their proposal.

"I wanted to ask you of your latest report on the human psyche. A fascinating read."

"Of course. It was a fun study into the workings of the brain. Watching the brain activity in children compared to adults whilst presented with the same hypothetical scenarios really gave a new insight into different ways of thinking. Did you have a specific question, Dr Cullen?"

"I was merely curious as to how you presented the scenarios to the children. I have previously attempted to work with children myself. Not my forte. And as much as I enjoy it, keeping them focused and understanding what it is I am saying is really rather difficult."

As Carlisle spoke with Dr Grey, I stared at Shelby. She knew I was watching her, she'd caught my eyes, but quickly looked away.

"Yes, they do present a challenge don't they. I had a team of graphic designers create an animation to play out each scenario, with no inappropriate images, of course. They were played for both children and adults, and it was the adults that responded most physically to them."

"Curious isn't it…"

Their eyes turned to me.

"…The way a child's mind works. So understanding to the world around, yet oblivious at the same time. Do you have children?"

"Us? Oh, no. Most definitely not. We don't want children. Not for another few years at least. I am not ready to give up my life yet."

"You do not have to give up your life if you have a baby. Children give a new meaning to life."

"You have children?"

"Yes. We've five adopted. They're all teenagers now though. Nearly adults themselves."

"Such a responsibility. On top of a successful medical career too."

"I wouldn't be able to do it all if it wasn't for my wife. She is the glue to our family. Holds us all together."

I leaned up and pecked Carlisle's cheek. He really knew how to make me feel special.

"Someone once told me that the hardest, most under paid job in the world is the position of a Mother."

My heart skipped a beat as Shelby spoke calmly. I'd spoken those exact words to Bella once. It was Bella. She was standing here, right in front of us. But she couldn't tell us. Something was threatening her. And yet it wasn't Dr Grey; if this really was Dr Grey. She'd walked away from him just before, if she needed help, she would have spoken to anyone for help. I squeezed Carlisle's hand and he proceeded to pull me into his side, his arm sliding around my back.

"One day I hope to be a wonderful Mother, but I'm young, I have a great body, and I want to enjoy it. I mean, you only live one life. You have to enjoy every minute of it whilst you can. Soon enough we're going to be as old and useless as most of these men in the room."

A few tears watered in my eyes.

"Excuse me, I'm just going to use the ladies. I won't be long."

She walked away from us, flicking her hair over her shoulder.

"I'm sorry, I need to speak to Dr Jones before he leaves tonight. It was an honour to meet you Dr Cullen. I truly have admired your work. Enjoy the rest of your evening. Esme."

He glided across the room, engaging with another man. My focus had changed though.

"I'll be back in a moment."

Hurrying from the ballroom, I found the restrooms quickly. It was only Bella inside, applying more lipstick.

"Bella? Bella, please tell me it's you?"

"I'm sorry, Esme. My name is Shelby. I don't know any Bella."

"If that man is hurting you, forcing you to do anything, just give me a sign. I can help. You don't have to be scared anymore."

"I really am sorry. But I don't know what you're talking about. I love Danny. He would never do anything to hurt me."

She pushed past me, out of the bathroom. I stood there for a moment, a few tears trailing down my cheeks. I knew that was Bella. Everything in my being knew it was her. And yet she showed no recognition of it being her. Staring into nothingness, I could feel my heart shattering. Why didn't I do something more? Why didn't I beg her to come with me?

Taking a deep breath, I looked down to my bag, wanting to lift out a tissue. But it was open. I immediately panicked, thinking something had fallen out. Pulling the few contents out and onto the counter, I let out a breath. My phone, credit card, hotel key card and bundle of tissues were all still present. There was something else though. Tucked between my phone and the key card was a piece of paper, red lipstick scrawled across it. Opening it up, my breath got caught in my throat.

Leave and do not say a word to anyone.

Quickly hurrying back to the ballroom, my eyes searched for Bella, but she was gone, Dr Grey now missing too. Carlisle was immediately by my side, worried for my clearly terrified expression.

"It was Bella. I swear it was."

"Esme…"

"No. She gave me this note. Someone was listening to what she was saying so she couldn't say anything. But she slipped this in my handbag."

I handed him the small square of hotel paper. He read it over and instantly became nervous.

"We should leave. If it was Bella, she's obviously warning us of something that is going to happen. Us being here could be putting her in danger."

"We need to help her."

"Esme, dear. I know you want to help, but if we try to do something, we may be causing her more trouble. We don't even know where she is now. Dr Grey has already left. They probably won't be coming back. Let's go back to the hotel. Bella wouldn't tell us to leave unless she wanted us to. And if she needed help, she'd have written for you to call the 911."

He was right. There was something going on that we obviously didn't know about. Bella was in trouble, but she was clearly capable of handling it herself.

We said our goodbyes to Alfred, letting him know we were leaving. In the back of the cab, Carlisle held me close to him, my head on his shoulder. A part of me was guilty for leaving Bella behind. All I had to do was reach out and grab her to me. But I didn't. I knew it was her, despite everything telling me it wasn't, and I did nothing. That, I would have to live with for the rest of my life.