“And who exactly made him decide he had to take care of you? You are putting a burden on that boy, Robin,” Candace said.

Robin stared at her boots. “You’re right. You’re always right, Candy.”

“Don’t go all wimpy on me, girl. I’m just stating the truth, and you can take it. Invite us in so I can find out what happened to Harriett.” Candace glanced at me. “Harriett is the milk cow.”

“Ah,” I said, as if this explained everything.

Robin removed her Wellies and placed them beside the door. We followed her inside the house, with Robin making sure Lucy didn’t sneak in with us. We walked through her small and supremely tidy living room into a spotless kitchen. She offered us coffee, but I couldn’t have drunk another cup if someone had put a funnel in my mouth and poured. Candace must have felt the same way, because we both opted for water.

Robin made herself a cup of tea in the microwave, a ritual that would have taken me two minutes. But Robin, it was becoming apparent, had a little OCD problem. She took her time lining up the tea bags in their box, each one as close to the next as possible. Then she wiped down the microwave, even though all she’d done was boil water. After that, she measured out a quarter cup of milk and stirred it into her tea. I almost dozed off as she washed the spoon, dried it carefully and put in the dishwasher. Finally she joined us at the round kitchen table.

“There,” she said with a sad smile. “And now please help me find Harriett.”

“I’ll do what I can.” Candace took a small notebook from her back jeans pocket. “How far do you think a cow can wander overnight?”

“I don’t know,” Robin said, her voice rising. “She’s never run off before. She hardly comes out of the barn. And now Jack won’t have his raw milk before school, and-”

Candace placed a hand on Robin’s forearm to hopefully control this escalation of emotion. “I know that’s what’s troubling you. But one day without raw milk will be-”