The disappearance of a young girl leads to an unforgettable journey of faith, intuition, and a miraculous rescue. As Bella’s family grapples with fear and uncertainty, a seemingly ordinary woman named Lisa becomes their unexpected savior. Through detailed narration, this episode highlights the power of divine intervention, the importance of trusting your instincts, and the unbreakable bonds of family love and resilience. Don’t miss this inspiring story of hope and redemption.
My older sister woke up to get Bella ready for school and she wasn’t there.
SPEAKER 02 :
Tension began rising as Amanda couldn’t find a trace of her sister. Her dad stopped at the elementary school to say, hey, did Annabella get dropped off? But no one had seen Bella. Panic set in for Bella’s dad. It was as if she had vanished into thin air. This is The Miracle Files.
SPEAKER 01 :
I’m Emily Jones. And I’m Holly Worthington. We’re two sisters who love a captivating true story, but we’re also seeking more light in our lives.
SPEAKER 02 :
So we’re on a mission to find and share unforgettable, uplifting stories of God’s miracles. We hope you’ll join us on this journey.
SPEAKER 01 :
Welcome back to the Miracle Files. I don’t often use this word and I don’t use it lightly, but this episode is truly special.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, I love all of our episodes, but this is one that I guarantee is going to stick with you for a long time.
SPEAKER 01 :
It will. And please stay after because we have some really important things to share with you.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah. And before we get started, just a little parental heads up. This one does deal with some mature topics like abuse and crime, but I let my kids listen. It provided some really good teaching opportunities. So it’s up to you. Okay. Let’s get started. Let’s go. Our story starts in June of 2003. Five-year-old Bella lived between two homes because her parents were divorced. At her dad’s house, she lived with her older sister Amanda, who was 12. They also had another sister, Clara, who was nine, and lived with their mom. Though Clara didn’t have the same father, the three sisters shared a strong bond, and Bella loved it when Clara would visit her and Amanda at her dad’s house. Bella’s single father was doing his best to care for his two daughters, but was struggling to make ends meet. So when his bandmate, Bill Mix, offered to move in and help with the kids and household expenses, Bella’s father gratefully accepted. Soon, Bill began moving his stuff into the house, including bringing his pet parrot with him. Bill was soft-spoken and sweet with the kids, especially five-year-old Bella. In fact, he would often take Bella and her two sisters, Clara and Amanda, out to dinner and would buy them gifts, although he bought more gifts for Bella. When Clara visited her sisters, she began to notice a trend. Bill was doing more and more with five-year-old Bella, such as dropping her off at school in the mornings. And as time went on, it became clear to Clara that Bill was giving Bella significantly more attention than the other girls. Here’s Clara.
SPEAKER 03 :
And I was over there for Memorial Day, and we were out in the front yard playing in like a kiddie pool or something. And he called her inside, and I just, you know, kept playing. And she comes back out, but instead of coming out to the pool, she went and just sat on a chair on the porch. And I remember thinking it was weird. And I went and asked, hey, what did he say? And she went to go say something and said, oh, I forgot.
SPEAKER 02 :
Bella seemed a little off. But though the moment felt strange to Clara, she didn’t think too much of it. As most kids would do, she went back to playing in the pool. And then things took a darker turn.
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It was early June. My older sister woke up to get Bella ready for school and she wasn’t there. So she’s running all over the house looking for her.
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Tension began rising as Amanda couldn’t find a trace of her sister. She ran into her dad’s bedroom to see if Bella could be there.
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And, you know, she’s not here. Where is she? And they didn’t know. So her dad sent our older sister to school and he stopped at the elementary school. to say, hey, did Annabella get dropped off?
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But no one had seen Bella. It was as if she had vanished into thin air. Bella’s father ran back home. He searched the house again, this time checking Bill’s bedroom. What he found there made his heart race with fear. A letter sat on Bill’s bed that said that Bill had kidnapped Bella. Bill explained that he took Bella to give her a better life. Even more chilling, in the letter, Bill offered Bella’s father a disturbing exchange for Bella.
SPEAKER 03 :
And in return, her dad, my sister’s dad, could keep the parrot, Bill’s pet parrot. And he would understand if, you know, her dad strangled this parrot out of, you know, anger. But that was his to leave in return.
SPEAKER 02 :
The letter gave an instant glimpse into the maniacal thinking that was taking place in Bill’s mind. Panic set in for Bella’s dad, and he hurried to call the police. When Bella’s mom got the news, she cried out in terror. She immediately dropped to her knees and began begging God to save her baby. The officer put in charge of the case sent out an Amber Alert for all of California and Nevada. With little Bella in his car, Bill drove north across the California border. He was already heading through Nevada and would soon be beyond the reach of the Amber Alert. Meanwhile, over 500 miles away from Riverside, in the small town of Richfield, Utah, Lisa Hilton was having a bad day. She had three young children and was supposed to be meeting up with her mom and two sisters to help her sister move at one. But everything seemed to be going wrong. Here’s Lisa.
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The babysitter backed out. And I’m like, oh, great. Now what am I going to do? I honestly thought I had another babysitter and she backed out on me like 20 minutes before I had to go. So I called a couple other people and nobody was able to help me. So I’m getting a little frustrated.
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Lisa finally called her sister-in-law and asked if she could help babysit. Her sister-in-law couldn’t do it right away, but said she would be available later after teaching piano lessons. That’s fine, Lisa thought. Nothing was going according to plan anyway. As Lisa scrambled to find a sitter, back in Riverside, California, Bella’s nine-year-old sister Clara was surprised when her grandparents picked her up early from school.
SPEAKER 03 :
My grandparents picked me up from school early. And I didn’t know why. And they just, we’re picking you up early. We’re going to go home to our house. We’re going to play. and i got there and i went into like a family room and they said you could watch tv but please don’t change the channel if you need to please come get us i thought there was some adult movie on i’m like okay but no it was an amber alert on the news bella’s parents didn’t want clara to know that her sister had been kidnapped but they were sick with worry themselves they hoped and prayed that someone would see their amber alert but so far nothing
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They knew the more time went by, the less likely they were to ever find their daughter. The worst part about it, there was absolutely nothing they could do. In Richfield, Utah, Lisa felt frazzled. Now three hours behind schedule, she was finally on her way. She drove across town and was nearing her sister-in-law’s house when something caught her eye. Just before turning into her sister-in-law’s cul-de-sac, she passed a church house. On the lawn of the church sat two individuals.
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And I’d make the turn to go into the cul-de-sac, and right off the bat, I noticed this little girl, and she’s eating what appears to be a little Happy Meal or something, and this older gentleman. And I thought, huh, he really doesn’t look like he should be a grandpa. I was kind of being judgmental. But it just, it kind of struck me like, what are you doing? Lisa kept driving. Like I said, I felt judgmental because he had long gray hair and kind of looked a little rough. And I thought, which I shouldn’t be that judgmental because I had an older brother that kind of looked the same way. Long hair and a little rough and the biggest teddy bear ever. And I honestly thought that, too. I thought, OK, you know, he kind of looks like your brother. So quit that.
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Lisa shrugged off any concerns. But then something unexpected happened.
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Very strongly, the spirit said, she does not belong with him. I thought, what? What do you mean? And I kind of looked back as I’m making the turn to go up her street. And it’s like, she does not belong with him. And as I’m driving the few couple of blocks up the street to get to my sister-in-law’s house, it became stronger and stronger. She does not belong with him.
SPEAKER 02 :
The voice in Lisa’s head, both quiet and powerful at the same time, made her heart pound. Still, Lisa doubted herself and tried to shake the feeling. When Lisa reached her sister-in-law’s house, she unfastened her son from the car seat. As her sister-in-law came out to meet Lisa, her sister-in-law could immediately tell that Lisa was shaken up.
SPEAKER 04 :
And she’s like, what’s going on? And I said, there’s this little girl in this guy down at the church. And I know she doesn’t belong with them. And she goes, how do you know that? And I said, I know that. I can feel the spirit whispering that. And I started shaking. And she’s like, what are you going to do? And I’m like, I need to do something.
SPEAKER 02 :
Lisa reached for the phone and began to dial 911. But then her fingers froze. What would she even say? That a man was having lunch with a child? It’s not like he was doing anything obviously wrong. Would they think she was overreacting? Crazy even? As uncertainty crept in, that same quiet but insistent voice rose within her again. She does not belong with him. Whether it sounded ridiculous or not, Lisa knew she couldn’t ignore it any longer. She settled on calling the non-emergency number for the Richfield City Police Department.
SPEAKER 04 :
So I called that number and I said, hey, I just feel like somebody needs to check this out. And she goes, okay, we can, we called a welfare check. We can do that. Where are you at? And I told her the location. I said, it’s on the church house lawn at the end of fourth West. And it’s a little girl and a guy. And she goes, well, how old is the little girl? And I says, I don’t know, maybe four or five years old. She’s pretty little. And I said, but she just, I just don’t feel right about it. And she goes, well, is there a vehicle there? And I said, well, you know, I actually have to drive past there again to get out of this cul-de-sac. So I get back in my car and I’m talking to her as I’m driving.
SPEAKER 02 :
Nervously, Lisa neared the church house again. She wasn’t even sure if the older man and little girl would still be there, and she didn’t know what to do if they were. As she came around the corner, she instantly spotted them. She gripped her steering wheel with shaking hands. Lisa described what she saw to the dispatcher.
SPEAKER 04 :
And I told her, I said, okay, I’m coming up on it. They’re still there. And that feeling was still just so intense. I mean, I was just shaken and it really upset me. I told her it’s a gray and burgundy pickup truck with a camper shell. They’re from California. And she’s like, can you read me a license plate?
SPEAKER 02 :
Lisa gave the dispatcher the license plate number. In relief, Lisa watched as a police car approached the church. Whatever the situation was, it was now in the hands of the police. She drew in a deep breath, steadied herself, and continued the drive to her sister’s house.
SPEAKER 04 :
I get out of the car and I am still just shaking. And I walk in the door and my mom and one of my older sisters stand there and they’re like, what’s going on? And I said, there’s this little girl and this guy at the church house lawn. And I said, she doesn’t belong with them. And my sister kind of teased me. She goes, so did you call the cops? I said, yes, I did. She goes, it’s probably some grump and how mean of you just kind of being funny. And then she looked at me and she goes, no, I can tell now. She says, you’re right, something’s wrong. She says, just the way your appearance is, the way you’re acting. And I said, I know. I said, I’m just sick about it. Just then, Lisa received a call from an unknown number. And I picked it up and I answered it. And Officer Trent Lloyd was his name. He’s like, Lisa, how did you know? I said, what? I said, how did you know? Her name is Annabella and she is kidnapped out of Riverside, California this morning. There was an Amber Alert in California, Nevada, but there was not one in Utah. My mom and my sister came down in the hall and I was crying and they’re like, what’s the matter? She was kidnapped. This guy kidnapped her. My mom’s like, hey, just take a breath. And I couldn’t stop shaking. And my sister said, how did you know? And I said, again, the spirit was so strong. She does not belong with him.
SPEAKER 02 :
In Riverside, Bella’s and Clara’s family sat, anxiously waiting, praying, wondering if they would ever see their sweet Bella again. And then the phone rang. They couldn’t believe what the police told them. Bella had been found. Clara’s parents finally explained to her what had happened and that her sister, Bella, was now safe. Their tears and rejoicing were beyond anything Clara had seen before. The next day, back in Utah, Lisa received a call herself. On the other end was a calm but serious voice informing her that Bella had been placed in protective custody and that her mother was on the way to the police station and asking to meet the woman who had saved her child.
SPEAKER 04 :
It was such a tender thing because the officers were there. the lady that answered the phone while they’re just crying and I started crying and the mother walked in the room and she said, when I received the phone call that my daughter was taken, she says, I hit my knees and just pleaded with God to find an angel to find my baby. And she said, and you were that angel, you were that angel.
SPEAKER 02 :
Unfortunately, Bella had already gone through some trauma. But it’s absolutely chilling to think about what would have happened to her if she hadn’t been found when she was. Inside the camper that Bella had been kidnapped in, the police found photographs and evidence of the terror that poor Bella had had to endure.
SPEAKER 03 :
They also found love letters written to her, songs written that he wrote about her. I think he thought he was in a romantic relationship with a five-year-old. He was 48.
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Bella had gone through a nightmare and would now need time and therapy to heal. But her family was so incredibly grateful to have their sweet little girl home again. And fortunately, Bill Mix would be going to prison where he could no longer hurt any child again.
SPEAKER 03 :
So it was taken to trial and he was sentenced to 350 something years, 47 felony counts. The judge that sentenced him, there is a quote essentially saying, He would do anything he could to virtually guarantee that Mix would never see the light of day outside of a prison for the rest of his life. And then he goes on to say if that were to happen, civilization as we know it would have ceased to exist.
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Bella’s family considers it a miracle that their daughter and sister was seen by Lisa on that fateful afternoon. Lisa was truly their angel.
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I don’t necessarily believe in God. I’m spiritual. I don’t want to say religious, but I don’t disbelieve. But if there was ever a time that I believed in an act of God, it was then. Something in the universe just said, this is not okay. We’re going to stop this now. And I just think it’s… It is, I think, an act of God. If I were to ever believe that that’s it, that’s what that is.
SPEAKER 02 :
Lisa credits the experience to God’s divine intervention. With the clarity of passing time, what Lisa thought was an inconvenient, frustrating morning became something entirely different.
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So I finally sat down and started writing it out. And I can tell you from the moment I got up that morning, Like I told you, my day was planned out. I had my day planned exactly how it was supposed to go. And there were so many things that got in my way, so many things that changed besides just the babysitter needing to run and help a neighbor with something, taking phone calls that I wasn’t planning on taking, you know, just all these things. I’m like, why is my day going this way? But as I sat down and wrote it out, I now saw that my Savior had placed me where I needed to be at that time. If I had been 10 minutes sooner, they wouldn’t have been there. Not yet. I think the officer said they had been there less than five minutes when I saw them to let her eat her little meal, and they said he probably would have just got back on the freeway.
SPEAKER 02 :
The timing of Lisa’s day had come down to a matter of critical minutes to put her in the right place at exactly the right time. Today Bella continues to work on healing from the wounds of her past. But through the grace of God and an earthly angel who originally thought she was just having a really bad day, Bella has grown strong and has a beautiful family of her own. Bella chooses to live her life in anonymity now, but Clara shared that today Bella is a devoted and loving mother with a vibrant imagination and a sharp sense of humor. And we want to add one more descriptor to Clara’s list about Bella. To us, Bella and the courageous life she’s chosen to live is a miracle. I have chills. I know. Isn’t that amazing that Lisa listened to that voice?
SPEAKER 01 :
Oh my gosh, I know. And before we get into that, we have some really, really crucial news to share with you all.
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Yeah, you are not going to believe this, but Bill Mix, who it turns out his full name is Charles William Mix… He actually was a multiple offender. He was sentenced to basically an eternity in prison. The crazy thing is there is still a possibility that he could get out of prison.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah, it’s unbelievable.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah. California passed an elderly parole law, which basically allows inmates to have an automatic parole hearing if they’re over a certain age. And there was just one day where Bella was having this weird kind of gut feeling. She checked the status of Bill’s incarceration and saw that Bill had a parole hearing set for September of 2024. And here’s what Clara had to say.
SPEAKER 03 :
And she called my mom and I in a panic. And that’s when I said, it’s okay. We’re going to figure this out. Let me make phone calls. You don’t worry about it. I’ve got it. I called CDCR, said, why is this happening? What’s going on? And they told me it was because of the elderly parole. An elderly parole law in California states that if an inmate is over the age of 50 and has served 20 or more years of their sentence, then they become eligible for a parole suitability hearing. Therefore, if they’re granted parole, then they get out. Now, 20 years out of 350 is not a lot. So that’s a big shock. This law has very little stipulations. If you murder a police officer, you don’t get elder and parole. Or if you are a three strike felon, then you don’t get parole. That’s about the extent of their stipulations. So we found this out about early spring 2024. And I spent the rest of spring, summer and fall contacting anybody I could, writing opposition letters, reaching out to other organizations, asking for help, asking people to send in letters of opposition to his parole.
SPEAKER 02 :
Can you believe that? 20 years. That’s all he’s spent in 20 years of his sentence.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah. No, it’s truly shocking because this man horribly abused Bella. And in preparation for the parole hearing, Clara and Bella gathered a lot of support, including letters from Bill’s prison cellmate who said that Bill is still a dangerous man and should not get out. And Bill’s parole was denied, fortunately.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah, thank heavens. But Bella still had to go relive all of these horrible memories. It’s like she was victimized all over again because she had to have all these feelings brought back up. I mean, she’s still worried about her own safety if he gets out and the safety of others. It’s just very traumatic for her. Yeah.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah, and as the law stands right now, she will have to go through that again, potentially every five to seven years for the rest of Bill’s life.
SPEAKER 02 :
It’s terrible. But Clara is such a good sister, and she is doing everything in her power to make sure that doesn’t happen. She’s trying to pass a law in the state of California called the Mary Bella Law, named after Bella, her sister, and another young victim named Mary. And the purpose of this law is to actually keep violent sexual predators in prison. And they’re actually going to be presenting this law before the California State Senate in the next couple months.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yes. And Lisa has also gotten involved with this. They have a committee and they have weekly meetings to work on this.
SPEAKER 03 :
Every week that we do it, we start with like spotlighting somebody who we say use their voice. Because that’s the whole point of what we’re doing is using your voice, being a voice for the voiceless. Victims who are scared to fight, too tired to fight, didn’t make it to fight. And Lisa was one of our spotlights of a voice because she didn’t have to call, but she knew she had to.
SPEAKER 01 :
So we know that we have amazing listeners and we know that you’re sitting there like us saying, what can I do to help? So if you’re in California… call your elected officials immediately. If you’re not in California, you can still call the California senators and bug them and share this story everywhere you can. Post it on social media. Let people know what’s going on. This is such an important issue.
SPEAKER 02 :
Yeah. And we will be posting updates on our social media so that you can follow along with what happens. But really, if you feel compelled, please get involved.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yes. But before we go, I just have to say, isn’t the miracle in this story so powerful? I mean, how amazing is it that God was able to use this frazzled, busy mom in Richfield, Utah to save this sweet little girl? Yeah, Lisa is amazing.
SPEAKER 02 :
And we actually have a letter that Bella’s father, Chris Clark, wrote to Lisa. And just a heads up, in this letter, he calls Bella Anna because Bella’s full name is Annabella, but here’s what it has to say. Hello, my name is Chris Clark, Anna’s father. I would like to send a notice to everyone involved in the recovery of my daughter, especially Lisa Hilton. If I would have followed my deep gut instincts, this might not have happened. Mix has been a friend to me and my girls for two to three years. Everyone that knows us is shocked and in disbelief that he would do this. He is a sick man and nobody could see it, but I always had a feeling about his relationship with Anna, a gut feeling, but I didn’t accept it. He just seemed too good-hearted. That goes to show that we should all follow our gut feelings. Thank you with all my heart, Lisa. You saved my daughter and saved her family from what could have been much more grief. Thank you to the social worker, I don’t recall his name, and everyone else involved. Please print this in your paper. I am getting ready to see Anna right now. Thank you again, and God bless you. Chris Clark.
SPEAKER 01 :
Wow. It’s just… So interesting that this dad didn’t feel good about Bill the whole time. And he just didn’t trust his own feelings.
SPEAKER 02 :
He had that gut feeling.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah. How often does that happen?
SPEAKER 02 :
I know. All I can think is just, you got to listen to your gut. You got to trust those feelings.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah, the older I get, I think the easier it gets to trust those feelings. And I’ve kind of stopped asking myself if this is from God or not. Like if I feel something like that, I really try to pay attention. And clearly Lisa is like an amazing example of someone who listened to the still small voice. Right.
SPEAKER 02 :
Well, we want to thank Lisa, Bella, and Clara for sharing this experience with us. We promise we will do everything in our power to support your efforts in changing the law in California.
SPEAKER 01 :
And thank you so much for trusting us with your story. We really believe that God brought us together for a reason. Thank you for joining us. If you have a miracle to share, contact us at themiraclefiles.com or find us on Facebook.
SPEAKER 02 :
We’re now releasing multiple episodes each month. So subscribe on your favorite podcast platform and YouTube for amazing video content as well. Join us next time as we discover more of God’s miracles.
SPEAKER 01 :
And don’t forget to look for His light in your own lives.
