CH 35-She's Gone
EPOV
I was waiting for Bella by the door to out English class. Alice and Jasper were already seated at the table we shared together, and Mrs. P was at her desk. Usually Bella raced to class, claiming she missed me. I checked my watch, 2 minutes until the bell. Nothing to worry about I told myself. She's just running a bit late.
When the bell rang, signaling classes to start, Bella still wasn't there. I looked at my table to see a confused, and slightly panic-stricken Alice being comforted by Jasper. We all knew something was wrong if Bella wasn't here yet. No one texted us to say she had left early. I dashed to my seat and grabbed my bag, which held my car keys and cell phone and rushed out the door, ignoring the calls of the teacher. Alice can explain. I rushed down the hall towards the classroom Emmett and Rosalie were in. When I burst through the door, all eyes were on me.
"Emmett where is she?" panic leaked into my voice.
"She was meeting you in the parking lot. You sent her a text! She showed me!" He yelled as he jumped out of his seat, "You mean to tell me she's missing?"
"I never sent her a text message." I started digging through my bag, and wasn't able to find my phone. "I must've left my phone in the car." Emmett and Rose looked scared as it dawned on them, Phil must have gotten my phone to lure Bella out of class.
The three of us ran out of the building to the parking lot where we found my Volvo, with a window busted out. Emmett called Charlie and told us not to touch anything, and to wait where we were. All I wanted to do was get in my car and find her.
Bella....my Bella. She's missing....she could be hurt. I started pacing, trying to figure out how I could have prevented this....Meeting her by her last class and walking her to English would have surely kept her safe. We all thought she would be okay at school....I shouldn't have left the damn phone in the car!
Charlie and a deputy showed up to halt my thoughts. We told him out theory about the phone, and he called the FBI agent on the case, to see if he could trace it. I knew all about Bella's 'watch' and hoped she was able to turn on the tracker soon....or maybe she already had?
~*~
An hour later, and still no leads. Bella hadn't turned on the tracker in her watch, we all hoped and prayed it was because she was asleep....unconscious. Maybe he hasn't hurt her yet. She was playing into his delusions on the phone...maybe she'll keep lying to him, and that sick bastard won't hurt her....that's what I'm going to believe.
Charlie had men searching everywhere in Forks, an AMBER alert had been placed, and people were working in Port Angeles to find her too. I felt so useless. No one would let us do anything to help.
"Just go home, son. I'll call you when we find something." Charlie said to me. I had never seen this man cry before, and I felt that if I waited a little while longer, I would. He really did love his daughter, even though he'd only known her for a short time. We all felt that way about Bella. There was just something about her....
I refused to leave, insisting I could help somehow. I sifted through reports, and made coffee runs. Anything to help the cops work faster. Nearly 4 hours after she had gone missing, we caught a break.
Bella was alive...and she just pressed the button on her watch that would pinpoint her location.