Page 42 of Amnesty

“It must be her husband.” Amnesia noted.

“Yeah.” I agreed. I remembered hearing his name whispered through town.

“Look,” she said, reaching around, grabbing the front of my hoodie and pointing. “There’s another grave marker.”

There was. This one much sadder than the one above it.

Beloved Child

Amnesia covered her mouth with her hand. Her shoulders shook. “She lost her husband and her baby.”

“No wonder she’s insane,” I murmured. I actually felt sorry for the old bat.

“I can’t imagine losing my husband and my child.” Amnesia’s voice was overcome with emotion. Instantly, she turned and buried her face in my chest.

I held her close, rubbing my palm over her back as I stared down at the graves. It made sense why she never left this island. If her husband and child were buried here, if this was the place that held all the memories of the life she lived with them…

I wouldn’t have left either.

“It feels like an invasion to be here right now,” Amnesia confided, looking up at me with sorrowful eyes.

“Come on. Let’s go home.” I urged, tucking her beneath my arm and leading her away from the headstones.

“I was so sure we’d find him. Find something.”

“We still have the dental records.” I reminded her.

“I wanted more,” she whispered.

I knew she was let down, but I couldn’t help thinking maybe this was for the best.

Reaching the crude path, my feet turned toward the house and beyond it where the boat was docked. But Amnesia faltered, her steps hesitant.

“Am?” I asked, turning back.

The look on her face was faraway, haunted.

Stepping close, I hunched around her. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

She blinked, clarity coming into her eyes. “This way,” she said, tugging me in the opposite direction.

“I think we’ve seen enough,” I argued.

She let go of my hand and went anyway, as though she were spurred on by something only she could see. Nervous energy crackled along my nerve endings as I followed along.

She said nothing, and neither did I.

She walked for what felt like forever, winding around the edge of the island, where the land nearly dropped off into the lake.

The trees grew thicker, the sunlight dimmed by the cover overhead. I watched Am let the hoodie fall down over her hands, tucking her fingers in the fabric to shield them from the cold.

My eyes stayed peeled, my body on high alert. Everything inside me was coiled, anticipating something… I just didn’t know what.

“They searched the entire island?” she said suddenly, her voice quiet.

“Yes, they searched this place more than once. Nothing was ever found.”

A few steps later, she stopped abruptly, looking up. “There it is,” she told me, terrifyingly void of emotion.

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