Chapter 2
Once far enough from the house, she started processing what just happened. Eventually after getting herself somewhat together, Bella pulled out her IPhone, It was an older model but still did the trick. She called the number on the estate attorney's card.
"Doug Smith, estate attorney speaking." The somewhat familiar voice said.
"Hello Mr. Smith it's Bella Swan I was wondering if you were still willing to meet with me, I know it's dinner time, so if it's inconvenient for you I can wait." Bella said.
"No it's no problem I'm still in my office anyway. Have you eaten already, I was about to order some food, would you like some. And please call me Doug, I work for you after all." He replied.
"You don't have to bother Mr. Smith – sorry Doug, I don't want to take advantage." Bella said having doubts if she should have already called him.
"It's no problem, I'll order for two, I'm afraid going over everything will take a couple of hours anyway. I'll be waiting for you in the lobby." He replied.
"Ok I'll be there in twenty minutes at the most. See you then." Bella said.
"See you in twenty Miss Swan." He said before Bella disconnected the call.
Bella hailed a cab and gave the downtown address. She wondered what happened to Renee, never before had she seen her mother act like that. Bella knew the inheritance was a sensitive subject in her mother's side of the family but how much could it be, really. She contemplated calling Charlie during the cab ride but held off, she didn't want to disturb him right now and didn't know the extent of the trouble she was in. Fifteen minutes late the cab stopped outside one of the skyscrapers in downtown Phoenix and fortunately rush hour traffic had already been over. She paid the fare and got out of the cab, put her backpack on and picked up her duffel bag. She walked into the lobby to find Doug waiting for her as promised. He looked a little surprised seeing her luggage.
"Are you OK miss Swan?" he asked as he offered to take the duffel.
"Well I didn't tell you everything on the phone, I'm afraid my mother didn't react to well when I told her I'm getting the inheritance. I don't know why she reacted the way she did." Bella replied sadly as they walked towards the elevator.
"I believe you will understand soon. And I will help you figure all of this out. Don't worry it will be okay." Doug comforted the broken teenage girl as the elevator rode up to his office.
They soon got to the floor his office was on, it appeared he worked for a large firm. He led her to his office which was enormous, clearly he was one of the big shots around here. All of this for handling a small inheritance Bella wondered. He put Bella's duffel bag down on the side of a couch and indicated Bella should take a seat, he had already put out the food on the coffee table. He went to sit on the opposing couch.
"I hope you don't mind it being a burger and fries, the restaurant in the lobby makes burgers that are to die for and I like to indulge from time to time. If you want something else it's no problem at all." He said a little hesitantly at first.
"A burger is more than fine." Bella replied with a big smile as she sat down. Nearly drooling over the gourmet burger.
"So about your mother, could you explain what precisely happened?" he asked resulting in Bella's mood turning sad again..
Bella told everything that happened from the moment Renee got home, leaving out the details of her using her unique physiology and one of her gifts that she used, he then prodded more about her childhood, she explained how it had often been difficult, having to essentially handle many of the tasks that a parent normally would handle and the times she had been in juvenile psychiatric hospitals. It filled up most of the time they were having their dinner.
"Miss Swan I'm not gonna lie some of the paperwork requires your mother to sign off on since you're still a minor. The fact that she demands to have the inheritance presents another problem. Per how the estate was drafted at the time it's strictly prohibited for you to give it to those who preceded you in your bloodline. There is however a solution if you're willing, but first if you'll sign this piece of paper that you are allowed to sign. It's a form that gives me permission to show you the size of the inheritance." Doug said as he got up and moved to his desk with Bella following.
Bella looked over the form, something that pleased Doug before she initialed it and signed it. Doug proceeded to hand the most recent financial report of the estate.
"So in between the various investments and the liquid assets you stand to inherit over four billion dollars essentially, it will of course be yours to do with as you please with the exception of handing it over to your mother. At best you could support her if you choose so but at the current inflation rate it cannot exceed fifty thousand dollars per year." Doug said professionally.
"You told me there was a solution for me being unable to sign myself?" Bella inquired after letting it sink in somewhat that she was going to be a billionaire.
"Yes given your age, you can file for emancipation. Given what you told me today I believe the court will grant it quickly since you meet a number of important criteria. I'm good friends with a judge so I can file the motion tomorrow and you can make your case before the week is over. Is that something you're willing to go through?" Doug asked carefully.
"What choice do I have? Suffer through whatever she'll throw at me or that? Might as well get started on that paperwork." Bella sighed.
"I'm not the most experienced attorney in that area of the law. But I have handled several emancipations due to the estate law part of my firm. So if you'd prefer a more experienced attorney in that area of the law, I'd gladly make a recommendation. Do you have a place to stay in the mean time?" Doug asked.
"Will I have to talk to the judge and will Renee be there? No I don't really have any other family or friends here."
"Yes you will be required to talk to the judge and your mother will be required to attend. I can book a hotel for you in the mean time." Doug offered.
"If I have to talk to the judge and Renee will be there than I don't need another attorney. Please you don't need to bother and I don't have that much money saved anyway." Bella replied
"Don't worry I can authorize payment from the estate to temporarily pay for housing for the beneficiary. So you don't need to worry about it, I'll book it in my name so that your mother won't find you till the court date." Doug said.
Bella and Doug filled in the paperwork and Doug arranged a hotel for Bella, where he dropped her off on his way home. It was a nice penthouse suite, uniquely suited for Bella to stretch her wings, something she desperately needed after the stressful day she just had, how her life had gotten turned upside down completely. She flew towards her house, landing far away and sneaking most of the way there. With her super hearing she could easily hear Renee ranting to Phil how she was the one entitled to the money, clearly Renee was aware of how much money it was. Bella would happily have shared it or even given the max that she was allowed to give every year, stretching it by providing a nice house and all that to Renee, but to hear her mother like that was breaking Bella's heart. She eventually left when she couldn't take it anymore. She wanted to curse the inheritance, but she could only see it as a way to get away from Renee and her craziness. After flying around for a few hours she landed back on the roof of her hotel and walked into the large penthouse. Taking a bath, something she could rarely do since Renee's house only had a shower. She started thinking about her future. She did end up getting five hours of sleep, she wanted the mental reset. In her sleep she dreamt again, well not really dreaming, more like usual a memory returning. She processed the memory when she woke up while she waited for her breakfast to be sent up.
After breakfast she got a call from Doug after nearly turning off her phone tired of the dozens of calls she had already gotten from Renee. The court had accepted the petition for emancipation and it had landed with a judge Doug was on good terms with who had set a court day for Thursday using some wiggling room on his calendar. She wandered through downtown the rest of the morning, buying a new pre paid sim card for her phone. Once back at the hotel she had wanted to have lunch in the hotel's restaurant but though it would be weird to eat alone in a restaurant, so she opted for having a salad sent up. After lunch she inserted her new sim card, contacted Doug to inform him of her new number and finally decided to call Charlie instead of further wallowing in her sadness.
"Hello Sheriff Swan speaking, how can I be of assistance?" Charlie answered.
"Ch- Dad it's me, I'm in a bit of a bind." Bella said remembering she's not supposed to call him Charlie before it was too late.
"Bells are you safe, are you alright? Your mother called with a interesting story." Charlie replied, his worry clear even over the phone.
"Dad I'm fine considering the circumstances and yes I'm safe, comfortable even. What did Renee tell you?" Bella asked curiously.
"Well bells I expect to hear your side of the story and you know I won't judge you until then. Your mother said that you stole her money and ran away." Charlie stated.
"That's not really what happened, so do you know that Renee comes from money but neither her mother nor she got the inheritance?"
"Yes it's a touchy subject with your mother."
"Well yesterday a estate attorney showed up at the house when Renee and Phil weren't home yet. I'm inheriting the money as the sole beneficiary. I wasn't expecting much, so I told it to Renee as soon as she got home, she turned into a completely different person and threatened me, called me an ungrateful bitch and was about to get physical when I fled the house. I didn't know what to do dad, so I ended up seeing that attorney at his office downtown. There was this weird clause in the inheritance requiring a certain amount of time to pass until it could be released and then it would completely go to the youngest descendant, which happens to be me. It's also not the amount of money I was expecting it to be, I thought it would be enough to maybe pay for a year of college at best. I didn't really know much about the family fortune. It's uh – well I'll be uhm. Oh how do you say this. Well, I'll be a billionaire with a B." Bella said getting increasingly uncomfortable as she kept talking.
Charlie let everything sink in before he replied just when Bella started to feel too uncomfortable, he started speaking again.
"I'll fly down to Phoenix tonight and file for custody tomorrow, I have no interest in your inheritance but it's past time for me to do right by you. I'm sorry Bells I should've gotten you out of there years ago, I always knew Renee was somewhat abusive but I never thought she'd use actual force on you." Charlie said.
"Well I'm afraid it's a little too late for that dad, I – well the attorney filed some paperwork on my behalf this morning with a judge he's friends with. My case is coming up Thursday. It's so I'll be emancipated and can handle my own affairs legally. But uh – well I'd still like to finish high school and - uh well I've been thinking about this anyway since I knew Renee was always moaning about wanting to hit the road with Phil travelling for his away games. So I had been toying with the idea of moving in with you anyway, so – uhm. Yeah, if you don't mind I'd like to spend some time with you till I finished high school at least. It would just be as your legally adult daughter now instead of a minor." Bella mumbled over the phone.
"Bells you'll always be welcome here, you know that. I would love for you to come live down here with me for a while. Seems like you got things handled for now, is there anything I can do? Do you need me to come down there? Charlie said cheerfully once he heard his daughter wanted to come live with him.
"No need to come dad, I'm sure the good people of Clallam County need their Sheriff. Well there was something I was thinking about, how would you feel about a small remodel on your house, I'll pay for it of course and we'll have professionals do everything. Think of it as me wanting to be comfortable the next couple of years. I'd love for that small room to be added to my old room as a en suite bathroom and have a new kitchen installed, with some other minor things done here and there. Please, it would make me happy and it won't even make a scratch in the inheritance. Maybe you know of a good local architect.
"Bells you don't have to pay for it, I can figure out how to pay for it myself, I have some money saved."
"Not necessary dad, I'll gladly pay for it. Now do you know a good local architect." Bella said more insistently.
"Well there's Dr. Cullen's wife Esme, she's always working on houses as a architect, mostly outside of Forks, I'll give her a call."
"You should wait till I actually have the inheritance though."
"No need, Mrs Cullen never charges for a consultation and a initial plan."
They spent nearly an hour discussing everything from the inheritance, to the remodel on Charlies house, to the various ways he wanted to help her which she then turned down. It had been uplifting to talk to somebody and lose focus on the problems ahead of her a little. It was out of character for Charlie to talk that long, Renee's call must have had him rattled and worried. After assuring him once more that she was okay and safe they said goodbye and ended the call. Bella watched TV the rest of the day, having her dinner brought up feeling better after the almost uncharacteristically long talk with Charlie. When it had gotten dark outside her curiosity got the better of her and she took to the skies, appearing outside her mother's house shortly after.
Renee and Phil were having a major fight, Phil suffering above all. If Renee kept this up she'd have nobody left, Phil wouldn't endure this forever. Renee had clearly been informed about the court date for the emancipation and knew what it meant. She was contemplating hiring a assassin to kill Bella once she had the inheritance, something that was frightening Phil. After her heart was broken over and over again Bella walked away, wandering around for most of the evening before she flew back to her hotel suite. She collapsed on the bed in tears when it fully hit her how her mother turned out, she wanted to curse the inheritance but knew she needed it to get away from Renee. Of course Renee couldn't kill her, but she also could ill afford people finding out her secrets. She barely left the hotel afterwards, when she did it was to wander around downtown Phoenix, regardless she spent her time wallowing in sadness. By Wednesday evening Doug came by to inform her of how things would go in court, what she'd have to do and all that. He also insisted on coming to pick her up to take her to the courthouse Thursday morning.
Bella woke up at seven AM Thursday morning, she gave Charlie a call while having her breakfast, he wished her good luck and said he'd be there as soon as possible if the ruling was unfavorable. She took a shower afterwards and dressed in her most court appropriate clothes, wanting to make a good impression. She waited in the hotel's lobby for Doug to arrive, he arrived right on time and they quickly made their way to the courthouse which was nearby. Never having gotten into trouble before she had never seen a courthouse, she liked how the building looked and strangely felt somewhat at home. They made their way through the metal detectors with ease and headed to the right court room. Doug led her to the right table since their case was up first. Renee arrived shortly after looking furiously at Bella, Phil followed behind and looked terrified. Pretty soon the judge entered the courtroom prompting everybody to stand up until the judge gave permission to be seated. The clerk read out their case and that the honorable judge Horace McDaniel was preceding. After he went over several things with Doug, the judge motioned for Bella who had wanted to speak for herself to take the stand and she was quickly sworn in.
"Miss Swan, you wish to be emancipated, how do you plan to sustain yourself, there's no mention in the paperwork of you having a job." He said prompting Bella to stand up again immediately.
"Your honor, my attorney can provide you with documentation that will prove I will be more than able to provide for myself, I stand to inherit a lot, it's a mere formality once I can legally sign to accept the inheritance." Bella answered while Doug handed paperwork to the clerk who promptly took it over to the judge.
The judge looked over the paperwork, a brief surprised look on his face when he saw the size of the inheritance.
"Miss Swan, if I grant you this emancipation what will your plans be for the future, what do you intend to do with your inheritance?" the judge asked.
"Your honor, my first and foremost intention is to finish high school, though to be honest I will not be doing that in Phoenix, I plan to move away for a fresh start. Once finished with high school I would like to go to college. As for the inheritance I believe that the people who have been handling it all these decades are still the best to handle it on a daily basis, with my oversight of course to make sure there is no funny business going on. I will spend some of it of course to provide a comfortable life for myself. I would have supported my mother but with how things turned out I no longer plan to do that. It saddens me that this inheritance has shown me a different side of my mother, I no longer feel safe with her." Bella responded.
"I've heard enough, you may return to your seat." The judge said gently. "I believe the mother Renee Dwyer has filed a protest against the emancipation, swear her in" The judge said to the clerk.
Renee promptly stood up and the clerk signaled a police officer to escort Renee to the stand and he swore her in.
"Mrs. Dwyer, could you explain why you believe your daughter shouldn't be emancipated and should remain in your care?" The judge asked somewhat disinterested, seemingly already having made up his mind.
"Judge, I have raised her so I know her well. Isabella is immature, she is unable to handle any money, as soon as I give her, her monthly allowance she spends it and then whines for the rest of the month that she doesn't have any money, I can't afford to give her more than one hundred fifty dollars every month with my salary. I've been encouraging her to get a after school job, to supplement her allowance but she's too lazy to work, even around the house she doesn't do anything. I don't even want to bring up her long history of mental health problems. –" Renee started saying, infuriating Bella more and more with every lie.
She had hoped it wouldn't have come to this, but Renee's blatant lies had infuriated Bella so much that she stood up and looked Renee directly in the eyes.
"Mother, why don't you tell us the truth, tell us how you truly feel about me." Bella said using the full power of her gift of getting people to speak the truth, before Doug could pull her down or the judge could chastise her for speaking out of turn.
She quickly sat down again, earning only a look from the judge and a quick chiding from Doug.
"I – I – Bella has always had to take care of herself, I only took her with me to punish my ex husband, I often left her alone, made her do all the chores around the house, she has to clean, do the cooking, pay the bills. I can't stand the ungrateful bitch, I don't care that I ruined her childhood, she doesn't deserve a happy childhood, she sure as hell doesn't deserve any friends. I can't stand the way people gravitate towards her, so I make sure she has little to no free time and make her change schools every year. She doesn't deserve the inheritance, it should be mine. I want her dead so that it comes to me, she's lucky she got away from me last time I would have beaten her to a pulp. I'm going to hire an assassin, that crazy little bitch won't enjoy her inheritance for very long." Renee blurted out to the shock of everybody except Bella.
"Officer, arrest Mrs. Dwyer." The judge said once he recovered from his own shock, to the police officer who promptly got out his cuffs and arrested Renee who was in shock of what she had just said to the judge. "Mrs. Dwyer, you're under arrest for contempt of court, lying is an offence as you were warned. I'm sure the district attorney will want to have a word with you about what you've told us all here too. Take her away." The Judge said once Renee had been cuffed and read her rights by the police officer.
"All rise." The clerk said after getting a signal from the judge once Renee had been removed. Bella promptly did as she was told. "I don't fully understand what just happened here, but under these conditions I cannot ignore that you clearly shouldn't be in the care of your mother. Your mental health has been stable for the past years, so this court won't hold that against you, I will grant the emancipation. Miss Swan, I hope you meant what you said and will use your inheritance wisely." The Judge ruled.
Bella thanked the Judge and followed Doug out. They went to the get her Certified paperwork that proved she was emancipated and took the short drive back to Doug's office to do the inheritance paperwork, the drive was in silence, it had been obvious Bella needed some time to process things..
"Well it went a little different than I imagined but the outcome was the same, I'm truly sorry about your mother Miss Swan. Are you going to be OK?" he said once they sat down in his office.
"Yes, I'm going to be moving to Forks, to live with my dad while I finish high school. I've already been in contact with him, he's not interested in the inheritance. To be honest I think Charlie is just happy that I'll be spending a couple of years with him and I had been thinking of moving in with him before you showed up anyway. But I'd like to do something nice for him anyway, fix up his house a little. Do you know of any good financial advisors in Seattle?" Bella asked after a while.
"Yes I can make you a list, it's wise that you'll continue having your assets be diverse and managed professionally. Money like this really shouldn't be sitting in a bank account, if the bank goes under you could lose it all." Doug said.
They spent the next hours doing most of the paperwork, around noon Doug insisted they'd go have lunch in the restaurant downstairs insisting they'd both need a break and Bella didn't mind since she had been craving some company while she had her meals. Bella had been meaning to order the cheapest item on the menu after seeing the prices but Doug wanted to order the 2 person steak and managed to convince her. They filled the time with some small talk while waiting for their food. Soon they were able to start eating, the steak was good, really good. Once finished Doug promptly paid his bill and cleared his tab. Once in the elevator he explained.
"I don't actually live in Phoenix, this is an office my firm has, my main office is in LA. I'll be flying back today after everything is handled. Of course if you need me you can always give me a call, though I hope you'll avoid needing the services of a attorney from now on." He explained having seen the look Bella gave when he had asked the waiter to also clear his tab.
"Hmmm LA, been a couple of years since I was there." Bella mused out loud.
"You can hitch a ride on my jet if you want?"
"No I wouldn't want to take advantage." Bella said shyly.
"Miss Swan, whether or not you come that jet is flying to LA regardless. I can recommend a couple of hotels for you, unless you changed your mind on Forks and would want something more permanent, then I can recommend several realtors." He said once sitting behind his desk again.
"I wouldn't mind a hotel recommendation, I still plan to go to Forks, but I think that i could use a small vacation, so if it truly won't be a hassle then I'll gladly take you up on your offer." Bella said gratefully.
They finished the paperwork taking up about an hours worth of time.
"As executor of the estate I have set up a few bank accounts in your name along with getting you a credit card and a debit card, I'm pleased to say you have been pre approved by American express for a centurion card." He said while holding out a black card with Bella's name on it. "This card has no limit and has to be accepted everywhere. If let's say you wish to buy a expensive house, this card can be used to pay for it immediately, but also for your daily spending. Just remember to clear your tab at the end of the month." He said as he handed everything over to Bella. "Congratulations on being the youngest billionaire in the country Miss Swan."
"Thank you, I hope I'll get used to it one day, it still hasn't really settled in to be honest. I didn't even know much about the inheritance to be honest." Bella replied shyly.
"It's a rather special inheritance, you couldn't have it set up like this anymore nowadays. But it was legal under the laws it was set up under by your great grandmother. Despite those laws being gone, the inheritance was grandfathered in and had to be treated under those laws and according to your great grandmothers wishes."
Bella gathered her paperwork and her cards, said goodbye to Doug and left his office after they made arrangements for her flying to LA and he handed her a list with hotel recommendations. After a short cab ride back to her hotel she informed the desk she'd be checking out later that day. She went to her suite, booked a suite in a LA Hotel and then called Charlie to inform him of the good news.
"Well dad, your daughter is officially an adult." Bella said as soon as Charlie picked up the phone.
"Good to hear it worked out Bells, I was worried sick all day. When will you be coming over?" Charlie asked.
"Well I'm flying to LA in a few hours, I need some time. Dad there's something you should know." Bella said.
"You know you can tell me anything Bells." Charlie said with a hint of sadness in his voice.
"It's not what you think dad, I'm still coming to Forks. The judge had Renee arrested when the truth came out, I guess she must have caved under the pressure in court and confessed a bunch of stuff. Including that she wanted me dead and would hire an assassin."
"Bells are you OK? Do you need me to come to LA, I can take some time off?"
"I'm fine dad or at least I will be, I just need some time, a vacation if you will." Bella said as she heard Charlies doorbell ring.
"Oh that must be Mrs. Cullen, she was going to come take a look at the house today."
"Put us on speaker will you?" Bella asked.
"Sure, but let me ask her if she's comfortable with it first."
Bella heard Charlie open the door and greet Mrs. Cullen. He explained he was on the phone with his daughter and that Bella wanted to be included in the talks about the remodel and asked if she was ok with Bella being on speakerphone. Mrs. Cullen quickly agreed to it. She had a warm sounding voice, even over the phone as they introduced each other.
"Thank you Mrs. Cullen that you could make yourself available on such short notice." Bella said.
"Please call me Esme and it wasn't a problem, I just got done renovating a similar house so my time freed up again."
"Oh that's right you bought that house a little further down the street. You must have had a lot of work with it." Charlie said.
"Totally worth it, it was begging to be saved, I'm going to meet with the realtor in a few hours to put It on the market, it's not large enough for my family of course." Esme said.
"Could you tell me a little more about the house and send me some pictures, Esme? My email address is "
"Sure, the house was originally built in nineteen twenty one, it's been completely stripped and renovated to modern standards, unfortunately during a previous remodel all that was original had already been removed, so it's all brand new elements inside, but with a hint towards the times it was originally built, as you can see in the pictures I just emailed you. There's three bedrooms, the master bedroom has a en suite bathroom. There's a separate bathroom for the other two bedrooms, one being larger than the other. The kitchen is fully equipped. And the -" Esme said before she got interrupted by Bella.
"Pardon me for interrupting you, how much are you going to ask for the house? I just looked at the pictures and I love your work."
"Well with all the work that was done I'm afraid it will be more expensive than most houses in the area. The asking price will be five hundred thousand dollars."
"Okay, I'll give you four hundred ninety grand for it if we can agree to it today, I'll wire the money to Charlie and you can have the paperwork done in his name."
"Bells you don't need to do that, I don't want any part of your inheritance and I already got a house." Charlie said probably red from embarrassment.
"It's no problem dad, I want you to have the house because you don't want anything and will never ask for anything. Speaking off, you can put your current house on the market dad. I insist, I'll pay for the house and you can invest in your retirement. Do we have an agreement Esme?" Bella asked after trying to put Charlie somewhat at ease.
"Are you sure you can afford it, it's a lot of money, your father said you were only sixteen?" Esme asked hesitantly, feeling a little awkward about the situation.
"I come from old money Esme, so I can easily afford it, I have sufficient liquid on hand. So do we have a deal? Don't worry about Charlie, he'll love it eventually." Bella said.
"Well it would be a quick and easy sale, but maybe you should think it over."
"No need Esme, you have to strike the iron while it's hot, Charlie's place needs to be remodeled and unbachelored anyway so buying the house you just finished kills two birds with one stone. This way the new house can be decorated without Charlie having to live in a construction zone, not that he'd be bothered mind you. But it's time my father took a little better care of himself, I want him to be around a while longer. If you'll send me your bank information, I'll have my bank wire you the funds as soon as you and Charlie have done the paperwork."
"Bells you really don't have to do this." Charlie mumbled over the phone, probably still red with embarrassment that his teenage daughter is buying him a house.
"Dad, I want to, please let me do something nice for you."
"Doing something nice is paying for dinner Bells." He mumbled.
"Dad, I want to live in that house while I'll be living in Forks and I want you to have it."
"Alright Bells, but whenever you ask I'll sign the house over to you, as far as I'm concerned you'll be the real owner."
"I'll never ask to get the house back dad, it's yours. I have to go talk to you soon. Let me know when the paperwork is finished. Esme could you refer us a good interior decorator?" Bella asked.
"Well I do interior decorating as well, but I don't want you to feel like you have to hire me, I could look up a few people when I get home."
"I would have no problem with it at all. You can make the bill in my name, I'll email you my wishes for my room. Unfortunately I have to get going now, don't forget to email me a copy of the paperwork so that I can have my banker transfer the money."
The three of them said their goodbyes, Charlie still somewhat uncomfortable that his daughter was buying him a house. Bella packed her duffel bag and went to check out, she returned home, figuring Renee would still be in custody. Once there Phil was present and apologetic about what had happened, he wished things could have gone differently, Bella comforted him making sure he was aware she had no bad feelings towards him. Once in her room she packed up a few more possessions she didn't want to leave behind, such as her laptop and a number of books she considered to be precious. She said goodbye to Phil, who was packing his own bags, intending to leave Renee and file for divorce. Bella tried to give him a couple of grand of her old savings that she always kept hidden from Renee to help him get on his feet, but Phil wouldn't have it, even after she insisted.
Eventually they said their final goodbye's and Bella left the house with her luggage to go wait for the cab she ordered, after five minutes her cab to the airport arrived. She had flown in a plane several times before, but flying privately was a new experience, let alone not having to bother with the usual getting through the airport and security routine, the cab dropped her off at the hangar instead where Doug was waiting by a small jet. He helped her with her luggage, and soon they were in the air.
A big thanks to my Beta for all the wonderful advice.