Ch. 61 Is There A Problem Officer?

"Edward?" I croaked as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes. Edward was nowhere to be found. Where did he go? I pulled myself up to a sitting position.

My head was throbbing from lack of sleep from tossing and turning throughout the night. It was barely daylight out, and the fire was out which would explain why it was freezing cold. Edward wouldn't just leave me here. He had just hunted before the wedding in preparation of our...plans. Maybe he went to go find food? Yeah, I should clean up, so we could leave as soon as he returned...

I folded up the blankets and carried them to the closet at the end of the hall. It was still so strange seeing things so bare. The basic bones of the house were the same, but all the life and warmth I had grown to expect here was gone from it. It was kind of freaky without Edward here...like I was trapped in a horror movie. There were monsters here after all...I shivered at the thought. God, cut it out, Iris! Are you trying to freak yourself out?! Edward is coming back, and you'll be out of here soon enough.

There was a knock at the door. What the hell? Who knocks on the door of an abandoned property...? I wasn't about to answer that. I ducked behind the closet door. Ahhh...just like old times hiding in the closet...Fuck.

When I didn't immediately answer there was the sound of a fist pounding on the door, and then a male voice shouting, "Police! I know you're in there! Look, just come on out, whoever you are. I don't want any trouble, but you're not supposed to be here. It's private property."

It was Charlie's cop voice. Shit. Why was he here?! What should I do? Hide? What if he found me? Wouldn't it be worse if I were to be found hiding here than if I just came out now and told him the semi-truth that I was homeless and just needed somewhere to shield me from the elements? Yeah. It's Charlie. Of course he would understand. He was a dad. Surely he would see me, an apparent teenager, all disheveled and hungry without access to indoor plumbing and take pity on me...welp, here it goes...

I opened the closet door and crept down the hall. A loose floorboard creaked loudly, and I stopped.

"Who's there?!" I distinctly heard the cocking of a gun. Holy shit.

"Chief Swan...Please, I'm no threat. We—my husband and I—just needed somewhere to sleep last night when we got lost after dark. We found this old house...I'm waiting for my husband to come back, and then we're leaving. I coming down the hall. I have my hands up..." It's just Charlie, Iris. He's not going to shoot you. He's one of the good guys...I rounded the corner with my hands still up, and stopped immediately when confronted with the barrel of a gun.

"Do I know you?" Charlie squinted as if he were sizing me up.

"Umm...no, but I know your daughter, Bella..." At mention of the name, his face went white. What was that about? Where the hell was Edward?! He should be back by now. I was starting to get a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"Bella? How do you know Bella?" His voice was accusing me of something, but I didn't understand.

"We're friends...kind of..." ...As in not really at all, but I know about her from a book I read and then I hijacked her body in different version of this universe...yeah. Sure, we're friends...

He sighed, shook his head looking down at the ground as he placed his gun back in its holster. Thank God. "Did you two go to school together?" He was holding one hand over his face which garbled his voice a little when he spoke.

"Umm...yeah." No other explanation was coming to me. Why did he look so upset? Was Bella being a jerk to him again since I hadn't told her off in this reality?

He sighed loudly again, and looked up at me. His eyes were softer now. "What's your name?"

"Iris...Cullen." It was odd to say it out loud like that, and telling a cop is not how I imagined I would be introducing myself to someone with that name for the first time...

"I'm sorry, Iris, that I have to tell you this...but Bella...uhh..." He took a deep breath appearing to calm himself. There were tears in his eyes. No. Shit. No. Don't say it. "She's dead." Fuck. Shit! No! Why?

"What happened?" My voice broke into a sob. How had this happened? The vampires weren't even here. Why? I don't understand...

"It was a few years back...right after she graduated and left for school. She was going to be a book editor...she always loved reading. I don't know where she got it from. Her mother and I aren't exactly what you'd call bookworms...But uhh...anyway it was an accident. A drunk driver hit her on her way back to home one weekend. I'm sorry. I thought all of her close friends were informed."

"No, I'm sorry! She was your only daughter. Are you alright?!" I was hysterical. I don't know where the sudden outburst came from, but I was so worried for the man who I once called my own father. I wanted to throw my arms around him and sob, but he didn't know me that way.

He looked at me strangely. "I make do." He looked away awkwardly, and then turned his head sharply back toward me like he just remembered something. "Did you say you got lost and you're waiting for your husband? Where is he?" Charlie was narrowing his eyes probably thinking poorly of any man who would leave his young wife alone in an abandoned house in the woods. Trust me, Charlie, I'm right there with you. But this wasn't like Edward. I was really worried now. Something must have happened...but what threat could there be against a vampire? They're nearly indestructible...well, except for—shit!

"Wolves!" Shittity shit shit the werewolves!

"Excuse me?"

"I mean...bears." Fucking werewolves. Shit! "Have there been any bear sightings around here lately? Big bears?" Please say no. Please say that there's no possibility that my vampire husband crossed a pack of young werewolves who weren't familiar with his family's vegetarian ways. Oh God.

"Actually, yeah. For the last two years, but we can't find them. What'd you know about them?" He sounded suspicious. Shit. Double fucking shit. Holy crap. What should I do...?

"Nothing. I know nothing about them." He didn't look like he believed me. Well, no shit, Iris. Probably because you're randomly asking about a very specific thing and now you're freaking the hell out. Of course he doesn't believe you. What am I going to do? My head was still pounding. "Chief Swan, could you take me to the reservation? There's a guy we know there. Sam Uley. My husband went to look for him, but he hasn't come back. I'm worried about him."

"Uley? I know him. He's a good kid. I can take you there, but maybe we should stop by the station first and put out an official missing persons report for your husband if it's been a while...what's he look li—"

"No!" I said too loudly, cutting him off, and then I immediately corrected my tone. "Ahem, I mean no...I'm sure he's just with Sam. Please, would you mind giving me a ride?"

"Well, alright. I'll wait by the door while you get your things."

"I don't have anything with me. We left it all when we got lost..." This was such a stupid lie.

Charlie looked down pointedly at my socked feet. "Where's your shoes?" He raised a brow at me. This was Detective Charles Swan at work. My lie was so fucking dumb.

"Umm...well. I know this sounds crazy, but they got wet when we crossed the river last night coming here. So I left them outside, but when I went to go look for them this morning before you came, they were gone...maybe an animal took them..?" I laughed nervously. What the hell was I even talking about? Edward, please be ok...If I could just find him, everything would work out.

Charlie narrowed his eyes again, and put his finger on his chin before saying. "I'm not sure that I believe you." Shit. "But you seem like a good girl, and if you're in trouble, I'm going to help you. I really wish that if my Bella were still here that someone would help her out. Let's go out to the reservation, and if Sam agrees to take you in, I'll leave you there. At least you'll have a place with food and heat."

"Emily's a great cook." I agreed, hoping that the more detail I gave about them, the more convincing my terrible lie would be. "Thank you, Chief."

"Call me Charlie."

"Thanks, Charlie." I repeated.

As I followed Charlie out to the car, I looked back at the house. What if I was doing the wrong thing by leaving? Where was Edward? Was he really with the wolves? Please...I don't know what to do...

"Do you have a pen and paper?" I asked as I climbed into the passenger side of the familiar cruiser.

"Yeah, here."

I quickly scribbled a note about what had happened and where I was just in case I was totally wrong about this. Something in my gut said I wasn't wrong though...

"That's smart of you." Charlie said approvingly.

"Yeah..." I left the note on the floor inside the doorway, so if he entered there, it would be the first thing he saw. "Ok, I'm ready..." I climbed back into the cruiser and clicked my seatbelt together. God, Edward, please be ok...

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