A/N: This is the second chapter of three. Enjoy!
I do not own Twilight, I just play with the characters.
CHARLIE
I don't know what made me do it, but I awoke a few hours before I usually get up. Since I was already up, I went to check on Bella. She was gone. Of course the first place I called was the station. Then I call the Cullen family. Edward might not have been my first choice for my daughter's boyfriend, but he is good to her and treats her right. Now I'm just waiting. It has only been a few minutes, but it feels like a lifetime has passed since I first saw that empty bed.
I go back to her room and look around. Everything is where it is supposed to be. Her computer is on her desk. Her alarm is still set. Every article of clothing that I have ever seen her wear is accounted for in her closet and dresser. There is one exception, the sweat pants and tank top she was wearing when she went to bed. Her window is open, hardly unusual. She loves to sleep with it open when the weather is nice. I move to the dresser where her toiletries bag is still in its place. All of her books are in order. The handful of CDs she keeps near the player are all accounted for. The policeman in me tells me that I won't find anything out of place. The father in me pushes me to keep searching.
Other officers start to arrive. They try to comfort me. I just feel like there is something that I could be doing. Apparently the report can't be filed for 24 hours. Even though Bella's red Chevy truck is still in its spot. I fill it out anyway. While I'm writing the search starts outside. Just as I finish the paperwork, a knock comes at the front door. I rush to answer it because it could be Bella, even though I know it is not. The entire Cullen family is on the other side of the door.
"We are here to help with the search," Esme announces. She sounds so optimistic, but I know the statistics.
"Great, great. Every person searching is a big help," I answer, trying to match her tone. I hand them all orange search vests to wear.
As soon as they don their vests, Alice and Jasper drag Edward off to look in one direction. Emmett and a less than thrilled looking Rosalie head off in another direction behind their mother. That leaves Carlisle and me to go off in our own direction.
Hours pass and the sun rises. We send the kids off to school amid much protesting. I head home to call Billy now that it is a decent hour. Maybe he knows where Jacob is and wherever that boy is, you can bet he is following Bella. Billy reports that Jacob never came home last night. The logical conclusion, based on Jacob's behavior, is that he took Bella somewhere. Billy asks me to come over.
I arrive at the Black residence to find my old friend waiting for me on the porch in his wheelchair. He looks as old as I feel. We don't even greet each other. Billy leads the way to Jacob's room. Unlike Bella's room, which is usually in pristine condition, Jacob's drawers are pulled out and his closet door is open. Clothing is strewn everywhere. It looks to me like Jacob packed in a hurry after Billy left for his poker night last night. Billy tries to keep a close watch on his son, especially since Jacob proved so insistent about his so-called love of my daughter. But everyone needs a break sometimes. I convinced Billy to join us for poker. That is the choice that we will both regret for the rest of our lives.
There are only a couple of pictures of Bella in Jacob's room. Billy and I have long suspected that Jacob has a shrine dedicated to her somewhere, we just don't know where. Billy looks like he feels awful. I feel awful too. Bella was my responsibility. I should have been more diligent. I should have bought one of those home security systems. I am her father. I should have been able to protect Bella. And now, who knows when, or if, I will ever see my daughter again.
Something catches my eye. Tucked under a picture frame is a note addressed to Billy. He opens it and I read over his shoulder.
Dad,
Bella and I are eloping. She shouldn't have to marry Edward. She loves me and I love her. We are star-crossed lovers, just like Romeo and Juliet. I love you dad and the next time you see Bella and me, we will be together for all time!
-Jake
Three weeks have passed since Bella vanished. The official search had to be called off about a week and a half ago. Of course when I am not working, I am scouring the woods. Today I am in a section that I have never been in before. I spot what looks like a small entrance to a cave and head towards it.
The opening is not as small as I first thought. Moss has created a makeshift curtain over part of it. Pulling the moss to the side, I step in. My flashlight bounds off the walls of the cave, giving the place an eerie and foreboding glow. I walk a little way before something catches the flashlight beam and reflects it back a bit. What I find when I go closer is unexpected and not a little disturbing.
The cave opens up into a small cavern. The walls of this cavern are covered with pictures. Most of the pictures are of Bella. Some have both Jake and Bella. A few have cut and paste Jake and Bella. If the boy had this cavern, no wonder Billy never knew about it. It is completely inaccessible for a wheelchair. Wallpaper could not have covered more of the rock walls. There are even a couple of life-sized cardboard cutouts of Bella. I think back to how often I have caught Jake hanging around and how often Edward had commented on seeing him. When did he have time to do all this?
A closer inspection of the pictures shows that in the bulk of the shots of just Bella were taken without her knowledge. From the looks of things, Jake has been following Bella around fairly faithfully for years. How could both Billy and I miss this? There are pieces of photos cut out. They must be from when Jake could not avoid getting Edward in the picture. He didn't want his 'competition' represented in his shrine to Bella. I wonder if Jake brought her here that night. Bella had always been unwilling to think anything bad about her best friend and had been adamant that he saw them as friends only. Edward have tried to talk to her about it. Both of Edward's siblings have tried to talk to her about it. The significant others of those siblings have tried to talk to her about it. Billy and I have both tried to talk to her about it on various occasions. Everyone could see that Jake was obsessed with Bella, except Bella. But not one of us ever thought that that he would go this far.
Six weeks have passed since that awful night that Bella was kidnapped by the person she considered her best friend. The only one who is still searching besides me is Edward. He's a good kid. When Bella is rescued I will cut them more slack. When she is rescued…others in Forks are starting to say 'if' she is rescued. They mean to say if she is alive when someone finds her. I've been in law enforcement a long time. I know the odds are that she will be dead when she is found. But as a father, I hope that she can still be rescued.
Sighing, I plop myself on a chair near Billy. Billy and I have been talking about moving. Bella won't want to be in the house she was abducted from. Billy will move to be closer to Jake when he is put in a mental care facility for his actions. It was touch and go there for a bit, in terms of Billy's and my friendship. I was angry with him for awhile, but I had to let it go before it destroyed me. He was both devastated and angry about his son's actions. He got past all of that, but he still blames himself for not seeing that the boy was dangerous. If I'm being honest with myself, I am still upset with myself for not seeing that either. My phone rings and I answer it.
"Charlie, this is Carlisle." A sinking feeling hits my stomach.
"What is it Carlisle?" I don't know if I want to hear the answer.
"A couple of campers found a cabin out in the middle of nowhere," he starts. My police instinct kicks in.
"Where?" I stand up to leave and Billy gives me an odd look.
"Charlie, that's not important. Jake and Bella are inside," Carlisle tries to keep me calm.
"I'm coming out. Why are you there?" That detail stops my heart.
"I was called out as the M.E. You see, they are both dead. I am so sorry Charlie…" Everything around me fades away.