The parents of the Alabama woman who vanished after she stopped to help a stranded toddler on a busy highway believed the 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 was being used as “bait” to lure their daughter out of her car — before she was mysteriously returned home alive.

Carlethia “Carlee” Nichole Russell, 25, went missing Thursday night when she pulled over to help a wandering toddler on I-459, the Hoover Police Department said.

The nursing student called 911 before dialing her sister-in-law.

“My daughter-in-law could hear her ask if the 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 was OK, and the 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 didn’t respond — at least she didn’t hear him or her respond,” her mother, Talitha Robinson-Russell, told WVTM-TV on Sunday.

“Then she heard our daughter scream.”

The parents believe the toddler Russell spotted on the side of the road may have been used as “bait” to lure her out of her car, they told the local outlet.

Russell was dropped off at her home in Hoover, Ala. two days later on Saturday and “appeared to be in shock,” according to police and local reports.

Carlethia “Carlee” Nichole Russell, 25, returned to her home on Saturday, two days after going missing.Hoover (AL) Police Department/FaceBook

Russell had gone missing after she pulled over to help a 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥 she saw on the side of the Interstate.WBRC Fox 6 News

Just before 11 p.m. Saturday, the Hoover 911 call center received word that Russell had returned home, police said.

She was transported to a local hospital for evaluation, according to police.

It’s unclear where Russell had been since Thursday.

A screenshot of the traffic camera footage from Interstate 459 at mile marker 11.7 is believed to show Russell’s car pulling over before she vanished.Youtube/WBRC Fox 6 News

When officers had arrived to the location off I-459 where Russell had reported the wandering toddler around 9:30 p.m. Thursday, they found her vehicle and some of her belongings, including her phone, but not her or the 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥, cops said.

Police said they were going to give her time to recover before interviewing her.

Soucre: nypost.com