My front lawn became our centre of operations. It was the last place where I knew Bella had been, so it was where we would start from.
On the drive back home I called the station, letting the officers on duty know of the situation, and to send whoever they could to meet at my house. I also got them to run a scan for all nearby dispatches in the area to check if anything came up in the past few hours about the Cullens. It was unlikely that they'd run into any trouble with the law, but even a coincidental traffic stop could be enough to give me some idea of where they were. The station also pulled up all the cell numbers of the family, and all were evidently disconnected.
My obvious suspicions were on the Cullens, but the forest around Forks did also have a nasty habit of becoming a maze after dark – a deathtrap for the uninitiated. I'd shown Bells the forests around our house enough times as a kid, but I'd doubted that she'd stored much of those memories in the long-term.
Which is why, when I pulled up to that damn empty house, I was happy to see that Harry and Billy had already arrived. The Quileute knew the woods around this area better than anyone, and their tracking skills put my own to shame.
"We've got the boys out there looking, Charlie. We sent them in all directions from here, and they've got cellphones or walkies. We'll find her if she's there," Harry said, pulling me into an embrace that nearly crushed me in its sincerity.
Billy wheeled himself around, looking at me with eyes of sadness and a hint of anger. "You know, Charlie, if the Cullens really are gone..."
"I'm dealing with that side of things," I said, cutting him off. I knew the animosity between the Blacks and the Cullens was strong, and though all signs pointed to Bella having left with the family (or, less likely, a forced abduction), I had to hold onto the hope that Bella was still, somehow, in Forks.
That she wouldn't leave me again. That things had been going better, this time.
"Anything we can do to help, Charlie, just let us know," Billy said. Harry nodded in agreement. The two had been my best friends for as long as I could remember, and though I always felt like the odd man out – odd white man out, really – I understood that there were parts of being Indigenous that I could never fully grasp. I appreciated them all the more for it, really, that they'd share so much of what they were with me, anyway. And that they'd always be there for me when I really needed them.
"Well, I've got some officers going around town, asking business owners if they'd seen Bella or the Cullens at all," I explained. It was all standard protocol for a missing person. "And you've got the boys checking out the woods. We'll move north from here, once it's cleared, and keep working our way along the highway until we hit the Cullens' place. Then curl back around." I didn't want to think about what would happen at that point, and both of the men knew not to ask.
I needed to do something. Realistically, I needed to call Renee. But that could wait. It could wait until we had more info, until we knew she'd gone with the Cullens, or... well, or until we found her out in the woods, one way or another.
I went inside and up to Bella's room. I just wanted to take a moment to recover. I sat on her bed, and, looking over at her bedside table, spotted a note that I hadn't noticed when I'd gotten home all that time ago.
It read: Going for a walk with Edward, up the path. Back soon, B.
It didn't look like Bella's handwriting, but at least it was something. I ran down the stairs, eager to dive into the woods and start searching myself.
"Who do you have up the pa-" I was asking Billy, though my question was cut off by a booming shout coming from deep within the forest directly across from the house.
"I've got her!" The voice called, and I felt the blood rush from my overworked head directly into my overworked heart. I ran towards the voice, leaving my friends, my flashlight, and my empty house behind.
"Is she okay?" I shouted into the dark forest. The figure of a shirtless man appeared, holding what looked to be a limp body in his arms. Sam Uley. Bella.
"No, I don't think she's hurt," he said. Relief welled in me, though my concern still outweighed any curiosity I might have over Sam's shirtless state. "She just keeps saying 'He's gone.'" So she knew the Cullens had left, too.
"Bella, honey, are you alright?" I asked.
"Charlie?" she offered. I gently hefted her from Sam's arms, cradling her cold body against mine like she was a toddler all over again.
"I'm right here, baby." I'd always be right here.
"Maybe I should hold onto her?" Sam asked. I shook him off. She was my daughter. If there was anything in the world I was capable of carrying, it was her.
"We're almost home now, honey," I promised Bells, feeling her shiver as she curled against my chest. Taking one step at a time, I walked us out of the dark and cold woods and towards the house, the light, towards life, and friends, and our family home. As I walked I made a silent, serious promise to her; that I'd never, ever, lose her again.
The friends who had gathered together in my time of greatest need offered silent nods and sincere grins as I walked past them, up the steps of our porch, and back into mine and Bella's home. I placed her down gently on the couch.
"Dad, I'm all wet," she objected feebly.
"That doesn't matter," I said, but made sure to tell Sam where to find some blankets.
I motioned over old Dr. Gerandy, whom I'd picked up from the hospital on my way over from the Cullens just in case we'd found Bells injured. He'd been standing sheepishly off to one side.
He leaned over my daughter, and they exchanged some words. I felt a wave of exhaustion wash over me as the evening's worries, physical hardships, and anxieties all came crashing in. I'd kept them all at bay off of adrenaline alone, and now felt dizzy as I sunk into the couch.
"I got lost," I heard Bella say, and a sense of guilt washed in with the tide of exhaustion. If only I'd spent more time showing her the surrounding area. If only she'd grown up here. If only they hadn't had to leave. If only.
"I don't think there's anything wrong with her," the doctor said. "Just exhaustion. Let her sleep it off, and I'll come check on her tomorrow. Well, later today, actually."
I hadn't even realized that it was already past midnight. I'd been running around town, making calls, organizing searches, and checking in with stations across the Washington peninsula for hours.
"Is it true? Did they leave?" I finally asked the doctor, hoping for some sense of what might have happened to the Cullens.
"Dr. Cullen asked us not to say anything. The offer was very sudden; they had to choose immediately. Carlisle didn't want to make a big production out of leaving."
"A little warning might have been nice," I said through gritted teeth.
"Yes, well, in this situation, some warning might have been called for," Dr. Gerandy replied.
I was too exhausted to press the issue. The Cullens had left. Edward had, seemingly, broken things off with Bella as a result. Bella had wandered out into the woods, heartbroken, and lost her way. The Cullens leaving and Bella's disappearance were related, just not in the way I'd thought.
Bells looked asleep on the couch, bundled under a few thick layers of blankets. Her face was pale and pained, so I sat beside her and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"I'll always be here for you," I promised her again. "Always."
---
There's a new chapter lined up for every Friday at noon! Help support the man, the myth, the legend Charlie Swan by voting for all parts, sharing Midday Clouds with your friends, and tuning in for the latest chapters.