Amy took the oversized laminated menu and stared at it. Louis watched her. He knew she could read, and there were plenty of pictures, but still she seemed upset.
“So,” Joe said, “you’re going to lie to Brandt and do an illegal search and hope his lawyer isn’t smart enough to figure it out six months down the road?”
“The place won’t even belong to him six months down the road,” Shockey said.
“Then why not wait until it goes up for auction and then ask the new owners for permission to search it?” Joe asked.
“And what if Brandt somehow pays the taxes?” Shockey asked. “And even if he doesn’t, what happens to Amy? If we don’t find something to put Brandt back in jail, he’ll get custody of her.”
“Miss Joe…” Amy said.
“No judge is going to give this girl back to an abusive ex-con who can’t even support her,” Joe said.
“Don’t be so sure,” Louis said.
“Miss Joe…” Amy said.
“Besides,” Joe said to Shockey, “what makes you think she’s even strong enough to take you back out there and show you where she thinks…” Joe glanced at Amy and lowered her voice. “Do you have any idea what that could do to her?”
“She doesn’t actually have to go with us,” Shockey said. “She can tell us where to look.”
“She’ll have to go through another session with Dr. Sher for that,” Joe said. “That’s not easy for her, and she might never remember any more than she already has. Then what are you going to do? Dig up the whole barn floor?”
“Yeah, maybe we will.”
“You’re forgetting one thing,” Joe said. “You and Judge Fells just appointed me Amy’s guardian for ten days. Whether she is allowed to undergo more hypnosis or visit that farm is totally up to me. And I won’t give my permission.”
Louis and Shockey stared at Joe.
“Miss Joe…”
Joe finally heard Amy and looked to her. “What is it, Amy?”
“I don’t see any of the things on my list on here,” she said.
“This is a new list,” she said. “The whole menu is a list. Okay?”
“Okay.”
Joe sat back and crossed her arms. She was staring at something across the street. Amy lowered her menu. The soft brown eyes moved from Joe to Louis to Shockey and back to Joe. Louis watched her. Like all kids, she didn’t need to understand the argument to feel the tension.
And he knew Joe was right. At this moment, Amy was a happy young girl, nothing like she had appeared in the cupboard at the farm. He couldn’t ask her to go back there, not in person and not in her dreams.
Amy caught his eye. “I know you’re fighting over my mother,” she said. “You think she’s dead, and you think that’s what my dream was about.”
“Amy, we’re sorry-” Joe started.
“Don’t be sorry,” Amy said. “I know in my heart my mother’s dead, or she would have come back for me. But I’m not afraid to go look for her.”
“Amy, remembering what happened could be very painful for you,” Joe said.
“But it’s more painful for her,” Amy said. “I think she’s been waiting a long time for me to come.”
Amy looked to Shockey. “And for you, too.”
Shockey blinked rapidly. His ruddy face had gone gray. He held Amy’s eyes for a moment longer, then rose quickly and disappeared into the restaurant.
Amy watched him, then looked down at her menu. “Tell him I’m sorry,” she said. “I do that sometimes.”
“Do what?” Joe asked.
“Get inside other people’s heads,” she said. “I shouldn’t do that. It’s not polite.”
Joe looked at Louis. He wasn’t sure what to say or if he even wanted to acknowledge what he knew Joe was thinking.
“So, if Dr. Sher says it’s okay,” Amy asked, “can we go back to the farm and see if I can remember more?”
Joe closed her eyes.
“I can do this, Miss Joe.”
Joe blew out a slow breath, opened her eyes, and gave Amy a nod. “I’ll ask Dr. Sher. If she says it’s okay, we’ll go back.”
Chapter Eighteen
The ride from Ann Arbor to the farm took place in near silence. Louis was driving, with Shockey in the passenger seat. Joe and Dr. Sher were sitting in the back with Amy between them. In deference to Amy, they had all agreed beforehand not to discuss the case.
Joe had been concerned about Amy ever since the day before in the cafe. Although Amy had insisted she wanted to go back to the farm, she had turned quiet afterward, her somber mood lasting well into the evening. Joe had sat at her bedside until two, waiting for the return of nightmares. But Amy had fallen into an immediate and deep sleep.
“I haven’t been out this way in years,” Dr. Sher said quietly. “I can’t get over how much things have changed.”
Joe glanced at the doctor, who was looking out over the empty fields.
“So many big trucks on this road now. And there used to be more farmhouses,” Dr. Sher said. “Where have they gone?”
“The farms have been bought out by corporations,” Joe said.
“How sad,” Dr. Sher whispered.
Neither Shockey nor Louis seemed to hear. They were both off in their own worlds. Joe knew Louis was thinking about Lily. But Shockey? He had left the cafe with the barest grunt of a goodbye and had been oddly withdrawn today.
Joe felt the press of Amy’s leg. “How are you doing?” Joe asked.
“I’m fine,” Amy said. She, like the doctor, had been watching the fields stream by.
“You know you don’t have to do this,” Joe said. She caught Louis looking at her in the rearview mirror.
“I know,” Amy said.
Amy took Joe’s hand and held it the rest of the way.
A hard rain during the night had left the gravel road leading up to the Brandt farm a rutted mess. The house itself looked even more forlorn than Joe remembered. She watched Amy carefully as they pulled up to the gate. Amy had scooted forward and was staring at the house through the windshield.
The slam of the Bronco’s doors as they got out split the quiet. Owen Brandt had left the gate unlocked. At least that made one part of this thing easy, Joe thought.
Dr. Sher was the last one to get out of the Bronco. “Oh, my,” she whispered as she got her first good look at the house. Her eyes went to Amy, who had moved ahead to stand next to Shockey at the gate. Amy turned to look back at Joe, as if asking what she should do.
Shockey took the lead. “Remember, this is technically not a search.”
Joe was tempted to ask him what the hell it was, then. But she kept her mouth shut. Now was not the time or place. At least there was no sign of Owen Brandt. The Gremlin wasn’t here, and it didn’t look as if he had been around. Except for one thing: the padlock was gone from the front door of the house. If they could get this over with and get out of here, maybe they could slide this whole thing by a judge — if they even found anything worth taking to court.
“Are we ready?” Shockey asked.
As if she knew she had to be the one to make this whole thing right, Amy stepped through the gate and
