by Aimée Thurlo
“Did she think our order would be enough to exhaust their inventory and send them back on another smuggling run?”
Lee shrugged. “I really didn’t have time to ask her, but I’m hopeful. I told her we’re going to call that number every morning to make some small change in our order, and if they’re planning another run, she’s to let us know by commenting on the caller’s sexy voice.”
“Sounds like a tipoff signal a man would come up with,” Diane grumbled. “What if I’m the one making the call?”
“Hey, that’s between you and her,” Lee replied, then smiled. “You do have a sexy voice.”
“That’s one compliment that’s going to get you nowhere.”
“Tell me something I don’t know.”
“What if they take off for Mexico in the afternoon without letting Angela know ahead of time?” Diane changed the subject back to the situation at hand.
“They could do that very easily. That’s why we need to keep tabs on their movements. Angela said they don’t trust her yet.”
“It’s easy to see why. If they’d been part of Angela’s original pack, it would be different, though. Right?” she asked.
Lee nodded. “I’ve seen skinwalkers sacrifice themselves trying to protect each other. That blood bond is strong when pack members share a common ‘parent.’”
“You know, this could all be an act, hoping to get you somewhere alone where you’d be relatively vulnerable. If the whole pack came at you at once …”
“What other choice did we have once she showed up as part of the Silver Eagle crowd?”
“I know, I just don’t like it. If Angela thinks for even a moment that she can kill you, she will. Does she know you’re a vampire, and what a vampire can do?”
“I doubt it. She’s just acting on what her scent information tells her—that I’m strong and different. The odds of her having encountered a vampire before are pretty damn slim. Skinwalkers don’t live very long, maybe ten years tops near as I can figure. I guess it comes from the stress of changing body forms in such a short period of time. Much more demanding than just healing a wound. Their high mortality rate also comes from their violent natures. But, for all I know, my blood would do more harm than good to a skinwalker, or make no difference at all.”
“Let’s do our best to make sure we don’t find out. By the way, did Angela say where she lives, or where any of the others stay when away from their business?”
“That was my last question, but she was walking away at the time and just said ‘Next time.’ 1 I’ll follow either her or Marie when they finally leave. Chances are, they all sleep together.”
“Together-together or in the same house?” Diane asked.
“Not all in the same bed—probably in two adjoining rooms or one big room like with one of these newer homes where the builders combine living rooms, dining rooms, and kitchens. Skin walkers are den animals.”
“Do you think they’ll manage to ditch us on their way home? We can’t afford to follow too closely.”
Lee reached into his jacket pocket and brought out a small electronic device she recognized as a receiver for a global positioning device. “I put the sending unit of this underneath Marie’s car. We don’t have to follow them very close at all.”
“Ah, that was you, then, passing by in the alley? You worked fast, and with the vehicle in the way, I never got a good look at you. How do you know it’s Marie’s car?”
“Well, it’s the fanciest car, and I smelled her expensive perfume—the same scent she wore when we met her at Cabezon’s, Angela wouldn’t dare use the same perfume. Her car is probably the beat-up pickup, being the new skinwalker in the pack.”
“Glad you’re on my side.”
“Me too,” Lee mumbled, his mouth half full of roast beef and pickles.
“They’re coming out now,” Diane said, setting down her cup and picking up the night-vision scope she had brought with her. Lee kept chewing, but reached into his jacket pocket for his binoculars. He recognized the three delivery men, including Long-hair, who were already outside the front entrance to the garage. Angela followed, then Stump and Marie. Raymus came last, locked the door, and caught up with Marie. Stump opened the back door of the fancy car, and Marie got in, followed by Raymus. Angela got in the driver’s side and Stump took the front passenger seat.
Diane set her night scope and food aside and started the engine. One of the other vehicles, a fast-looking Mustang, pulled out onto Fourth Street with all three delivery men inside. The sedan driven by Angela followed.
Lee looked down at the global positioning receiver. A green light was blinking and he turned on a small LED display, which revealed a map image of the area. “Working as planned. Give them a full minute before we follow.”
“Right. You think they’re going home, or someplace else?”
“They didn’t stay long after the delivery guys returned, so maybe they’re planning a run to Mexico right now. We don’t know how they contact their suppliers at the other end, but I doubt they use a telephone. They may just show up,” Lee said.
“With luck, they’ll still have to go by home to get whatever gear they use when carrying the smuggled stones and silver.”
Lee nodded. “If they split up, we’re sticking with Marie’s car.”
The vehicles stopped in a wooded area of the bosque just south of Sandia Pueblo land, which began at the northern terminus of Fourth and Second streets. It looked like a dead end and was off their road map, so Lee and Diane decided to wait beside the highway farther south and see what happened next. Fifteen minutes later, both vehicles drove back south to the highway, then stopped at a gas station farther east on Tramway Road, halfway to 1-25.
“Guess we’re going on a trip or they would have gassed up on the way home instead. Shall we stop and gas up as well?” Diane looked down at the fuel gauge as they sat at the side of the road a half mile away.
“Might as well top it off. We’ll get better mileage than that luxury sedan but I’d still like a good margin of error. We can also stock up on snack food and water.”
“I’ll give them a five-minute head start,” she said, looking at her watch. “Let me know when they start moving again,” she asked Lee.
“They’re going now,” Lee said shortly.
“What if they switched who’s in which car at the station?” Diane asked.
“Why would they do that unless they knew they’re being followed? Once we get out on 1-25, and that looks like where they’re headed,” he said, looking at the small screen in his hand, “we can close up a bit and I’ll have a look with the binoculars to confirm everyone is still where they were.”
“I forgot they can’t hide from you in the dark.”
Within ten minutes, it was clear that the two groups of skinwalkers the pack comprised were driving south on the Interstate. If they were indeed going to Mexico, it would take over three hours just to reach the border, assuming they averaged over seventy miles an hour. Lee betted on four or more, having pretty much lived on New Mexico roads as a state patrolman.
During the trip south, Lee and Diane debated back and forth about tactics and strategy. If they were able to identify the Mexican suppliers and catch the members of the Silver Eagle in possession of smuggled goods, they could shut the business down. But unless they found forensic evidence—like the guns used to kill the police officers—they wouldn’t have enough to put the members of that group in jail for more than a few years.
Angela was a skinwalker and totally undependable. Her testimony wouldn’t mean much, either, since it was mostly hearsay. To put an end to the operation permanently, they had only one choice, and that was to manipulate events so that no one in the Silver Eagle group got out alive. They’d have to sacrifice their own integrity along with the lives of the creatures in the cars speeding toward Mexico.
CHAPTER 13
ours later, with Lee still behind the wheel, they continued to follow the two cars as they left 1-25 before
it became I-10 at the southeastern tip of Las Cruces. At this point they were only about thirty miles from the border with Mexico.
Past Cruces now and at a slower pace on two-lane highways and side roads, they proceeded through the tiny community of Vado, where they crossed over to the west side of the Rio Grande. Moving through a farming, ranching area dotted with fields, side roads, and an occasional stock tank along the former floodplain of the river, they approached the southernmost all-New Mexico community in the area, Santa Teresa. With traffic scarce in the area Lee was forced to remain farther back and they missed a few turns, having to backtrack twice rather than risk being spotted.
A few miles southeast from where they were now lay Texas and El Paso. South was the combination New Mexico-Texas community of Sunland Park, then the state of Chihuahua, Mexico. El Paso was the closest port of entry of any size, but Lee doubted Silver Eagle had anything legal in mind tonight.
His headlights off now-the road was basically deserted this time of night—Lee spotted the brake lights on the vehicle ahead and slowed, using the engine and gears rather than his own brakes, not wanting to give the skinwalkers any indication they were being followed. The vehicles ahead were either slowing for an animal in the road or about to turn. He slowed further and watched as both vehicles, which had closed up the distance between them after passing through Cruces, turned down a narrow dirt road. An old adobe hacienda with a newly constructed detached garage was located near an arroyo that drained east toward the river.
“Is this their destination?” Diane asked, then yawned as she reached for her night scope.
Lee pulled over and let the car coast to a stop before turning off the engine. “Probably. We’re only five or six miles north of Mexico. There will be border-patrol vehicles roaming about, but there’s enough cover for a pack of wolves if they’re careful. There are a lot of stray dogs around border towns anyway, so the officers probably won’t give them a second look unless they spot the packs Angela said they carry.”
“I got a mailbox number on the last house, so if we have to call in backup they’ll at least have a clue where we are. But let’s stick to the plan we have for now.”
First they traded places. Diane rose up off the seat, and he slid across underneath her. It was like kids playing on the sofa. As they brushed each other closely Lee enjoyed the physical contact.
Once he was on the passenger side, Lee emptied his pockets of nonessentials like his wallet, then picked up four granola bars and a water bottle, placing them into his now empty pockets. With the tracking device safely attached to Marie’s car, they’d been able to stop for supplies a second time and catch up again later without losing them.
He also adjusted his tan baseball cap and his gloves, and once again checked to make sure he had plenty of sunblock. “I’m not going to use the Buckscent. If they manage to smell me or my trail, I’d rather them not connect the scent to my cover identity. That would blow the operation.”
“Angela would recognize your scent, though, and wouldn’t the rest of them be able to tell you’re a nightwalker—like she did?”
“Skinwalkers detect that my scent is different than other humans’, and are attracted by it, that’s true. Whether it would sidetrack their operation and cause them to come looking for me, that’s another matter. I just don’t know. Tsosie did follow me instead of delivering the supplies to his customer.”
“If they can’t control it…”
“I’ll have to take the risk. Using the Buckscent would guarantee they’d all know who was following them. Angela was able to restrain herself when she could smell the real me, and Marie seems even more in control. I think their alpha bitch will motivate them to finish the job, even if it means biting their butts to keep them in line. I’ll carry my cell phone, just in case I can link up with you and need some extra firepower, but I’ll keep it shut off to save battery power until it’s needed.”
“I’ll keep a sharp eye on things here in case someone stays behind. If not, I’ll take a look inside the house.”
Lee watched the house while munching on one of the extra granola bars. Marie’s car had been parked in the garage. The driver of the Mustang had parked next to the garage, being careful not to block it. Then he’d closed the garage door and gone into the house to join the others. No light had been on inside before, but one was on now, though he couldn’t see through the curtains.
“What if they wait until tomorrow night to cross the border?”
“Then we back off a bit more and wait. They didn’t come down here to bale alfalfa.”
A half hour passed, and then the light went out inside. “It’s one-thirty.” Diane yawned for the second time in five minutes. “They’ll still have four to five hours as wolves before daylight, right?”
“That’s plenty of time for them to make it into Mexico from here. Let’s just watch and wait.”
Less than five minutes later Marie opened the front door, looked around for about thirty seconds, then stepped out. She held the door open as five large wolves came out quickly, followed by a slower but even larger one. “That big male has got to be Stump,” Diane whispered, her eye glued to the single-lens night scope.
“They’re wearing some kind of fabric saddlebags. They look pretty well designed and won’t slow the animal down that much or inhibit movement. The smallest wolf must be Angela,” Lee added. Lee knew that Diane wouldn’t be at all surprised to see that Angela was a wolf instead of the cougar she’d been when they’d last met in battle. By now Diane knew only too well that skinwalkers could shift into a variety of animal forms.
He placed the binoculars into a jacket pocket, buttoned the flap, then checked his gear one more time. His sunglasses were inside his shirt pocket in a hard-sided case.
“They must have their clothes inside those backpacks. They’ll be changing back to human form and getting dressed before they meet their Mexican contacts. Dome light out?” Diane asked without taking her eyes off the animals clustered around Marie. The older woman was apparently giving her underlings last-minute instructions.
“Check”
Diane looked over at him. “Apparently Marie won’t be going. Want to change your mind about the Buckscent?”
“No. Remember, I’ll probably be gone at least a day if Angela’s info is accurate. I’ll check in with you once I reach their destination, and again when I start back. But the rest of the time I’ll have the phone off to save the batteries. Also, expect a call when I get back on this side of the border tomorrow evening, or the next night if there’s a problem with the suppliers,” Lee added, reaching for the door handle. “This run might take longer, since I think it’s off-schedule because of our big order.”
“Got the digital camera with the zoom lens?”
“Yes, Mother,” Lee whispered, patting his other shirt pocket, where the tiny camera was stowed. Diane had brought it along with her on stakeout and he’d be using it to photograph the Mexican suppliers, along with any other incriminating images he could collect.
“Be careful,” Lee said, then opened the door and slipped outside, using the vehicle for cover. There was a moderate breeze, coming from the southwest. He was safe for the moment from the skinwalkers’ strong olfactory senses.
Diane nodded. “You, too.”
He’d already planned his route and moved back toward the north where there was a low ridge, actually a high ditch bank, that ran east and west on the north side of the property. He could use that as cover, run swiftly to the east of the house, then enter the arroyo that the wolves would undoubtedly use to cover them as they ran south.
Lee knew how to move quietly, and with no visibility problems at all was able to get almost even with the house before the wolves trotted toward the arroyo. The animals moved quickly in single file, led by someone other than Stump or Angela. Lee figured it was one of the pack members that made the deliveries.
He stopped and watched them jump down into the arroyo. Moving rapidly now that he was screened
from Marie’s sight by the house, he proceeded to the arroyo and peered inside. The steep-sided water-carved ditch was around ten feet wide and half that deep, the bottom hard-packed sand. It was still a few months before the rainy season, such as it was, and travel would be easy.
Crouching down low, he walked quickly down the arroyo. Turning the corner of a narrow bend, he saw the disturbed ground where the heavy animals had leaped into the channel. The tracks led south, and when he got closer he could see by the distance between tracks that they’d picked up the pace. Knowing he’d have to run to keep up, Lee began a quick jog. He’d be depending on his night vision and excellent hearing to keep from coming upon the pack accidently. Lee knew he could run a marathon, if necessary. Focusing on his breathing, Lee continued south, keeping a sharp lookout for any sign that one of the animals had jumped out of the arroyo.
Once every fifteen minutes Lee would stop, listen, and examine the tracks to make sure the wolves were keeping their steady pace. There was one long, relatively straight stretch of arroyo where he nearly caught up to the pack. Ahead he saw the last animal in the pack, a male with its tail up high, trotting along as if it could run forever. Lee estimated they were moving at about five miles an hour. Lee slowed his pace.
Once Lee noticed a fence line ahead he stopped running and moved slowly. This was probably the border, and this close to communities he expected to encounter border guards in vehicles or on foot.
Crouched low, he saw headlights coming from east to west. Flattening, he hugged the ground just behind a gentle curve in the arroyo as a spotlight searched the ground in front of him. An SUV changed speeds and fishtailed slightly as it passed through the sandy bottom, then the vehicle, belonging to the U.S. Border Patrol, continued west along the dirt track that paralleled the fence.
Lee rose up enough to look out and spotted the wolves. Apparently they had been crouched down as well, hiding in a narrow tributary to the arroyo that branched off to the right. Farther down the arroyo, where it passed through the fence, were coils of barbed wire that reminded Lee of war movies he’d seen. Tumbleweeds and brush clogged the wire, making the barrier seem even more impenetrable.