The tattoo is a family thing, that’s the only reason Amey’s mother let her get it.
“The tattoo started with her father, because of all the medical things he’s dealt with. It says, ‘I am right here with you,’ to signify that no matter what, he’s here,” Dorrinda Barron, Amey’s mother, told Dateline. “Amey’s older sister got it last year and this year, she really wanted to get it for her 16th birthday. But hers has two fishhooks that formed a heart, since the two of them loved to fish together.”
But two days after Amey got the tattoo, the teen, who posted a touching message about her family alongside a photo of it on Facebook, vanished.
"Through thick and thin my family, especially my dad, I am right here with you," Amey had posted.
The last time anyone saw Amey, whose legal name is Amethyst, was the evening of February 8. Her mother told Dateline the teen was sitting on her bed that night surrounded by piles of books and papers, finishing some homework on her laptop. The following morning, Amey was gone, the screen was popped out of her open window.
It’s been an emotional two months for the family. Two days before Christmas, Amey’s father Chris suffered a stroke, rendering him physically disabled and unable to speak clearly. Amey, who played goalie for her high school’s soccer team, switched to taking virtual, online classes for the spring semester so she could be home to assist with her father’s care.
“The two of them are very close,” Dorrinda said. “It was her choice to do it, because she wanted to be there for him. We all are each other’s rocks through this.”
Amey’s cell phone is missing, but her other belongings, including her laptop and wallet, were left at home. There have reportedly been no calls, texts, or data usage on the phone since February 8, her mother said. “In my heart, I know she didn’t leave with the intention of never coming home,” Dorrinda told Dateline through tears. The thought that her daughter may have been pulled into the world of human trafficking is terrifying her.
Another circumstance troubling Dorrinda is what her daughter told a neighbor, with whom she had grown close, several weeks before she disappeared. Amey confided to the woman that she had been sexually assaulted by two older men who lived in their apartment complex. Amey told her mother a week or so before she disappeared, saying she did not want to report it to police as she thought too much time had passed.
“She was having a rough time of it, and she was worried about telling us because of everything else our family was going through. That’s just who she is, never wants to make it about herself when her family is having troubles,” said Dorrinda. “We had talked about taking her to counseling and she wanted to go.”
Because of the circumstances surrounding her disappearance, Amey has been classified as a runaway by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. No other information is available to be released, a spokesperson for the office told Dateline. Officials have not commented about the sexual assault allegations.
According to Dorrinda, authorities have done little to located Amey, even though she is under the age of 18. She told Dateline she’s concerned as police have not yet questioned the neighbor Amey opened up to about the alleged assault, nor, to her knowledge, have they interviewed anyone else living at their complex.
“I pray every day that she’s just a runaway,” Dorrinda said. “Maybe she did leave that night with plans to return before we noticed. She could be in danger right now and we need somebody to point us in the right direction. We really need help.”
Amey Lindsey is described as 5’6” tall, weighing 120 lbs. with red-brown hair and brown eyes. She has a tattoo on her right arm that reads, “I am right here with you.”
Anyone with information about her case is asked to call the Lee County Sheriff’s Office at (239) 477-1000.