Palm Harbor, Florida - Donna Scharrett knows the truth. But, it's not easy to accept.
She says she knows that her best friend, Kelly Rothwell, is dead, and it tears Donna up inside.
Sitting in her Palm Harbor apartment, Donna admitted, "I think Kelly Rothwell is gone. I think she's dead, and I think Dave Perry killed her."
The last few days of Kelly's life were spent with Donna as the two had a much-needed girl's weekend. They had known each other for four years, after meeting at the beach.
They talked about everything, including how Kelly was thinking about breaking up with her boyfriend, David Perry. She planned on doing it at their condo.
But Kelly knew it wouldn't be easy. Nothing with David ever was. Donna offered to help and go with Kelly for the much-dreaded break-up. Kelly said no.
It's the one thing that Donna thinks about each and every night before she goes to bed. She cries each night as tries to sleep.
"I pray that Kelly comes to me in my dreams and forgives me for not following her [that day]."
Donna says that David was so controlling with Kelly that he would often grab Kelly's arm tightly, scream at her, call her incessantly, follow her and even cry when she said wanted to go out with friends.
When Kelly entered the police academy, she finally got stronger, strong enough to leave David.
It would be the last thing she would ever do.
Donna told us, "She did say to me, she was watching a film in school and she had this awareness and said, 'Oh my God, that's me! I'm being abused. I'm a victim.'"
Sgt. Tom Nestor from the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office told 10 News, "You know, Kelly was at the phase, where she was seeing things in the academy where she was experiencing at home, so she decided to make that break."
Donna tells 10 News that the National group "Cue Center for Missing Persons" out of North Carolina is now finalizing paperwork with Kelly's family to bring search teams down to Florida to look for her.
The non-profit group is known for assisting families across the country in missing persons cases.
10 News has also learned that prison guards at a Correctional Center where David Perry used to work plan to protest at his home in Elmira, New York where he's laying low from detectives, refusing to talk about the case.
Perry has made one trip back to Florida to get some items out of a storage unit. Detectives will not say what those items are. He is said to be caught on surveillance with the items, but investigators will not release the video.
Kelly entered the police academy back in November 2010 and was supposed to graduate next week. Instead, her family will be flying down to Florida from Baltimore to attend the graduation without her. It is tearing them apart, knowing that as each day passes, she is still out there somewhere.
Donna is planning a candlelight vigil for Kelly and plans to spend time with Kelly's twin sisters.
Meanwhile, Kelly's mother told us, "This is hard. It is very emotional for us all, very difficult to deal with."