by Aimée
“You know Yellowhair, and have done extensive research on him, I’d be willing to bet. Tell me, who hates him enough to kidnap him?” Blalock asked.
“If, instead of that, you’d asked me who hated him enough to want him dead, I could have given you several names. But this is trickier. If you kidnap a guy like him, you tend to make him more sympathetic to people, not less.”
“Okay, so who would have wanted him dead?” Ella said.
“Avery Blueeyes for one.”
“Because he opposed the bills Yellowhair sponsors?” Blalock asked.
Branch gave them an incredulous look. “Oh, please!” He then glanced at Ella, and with a surprised look, added, “You two really don’t know, do you?”
Ella didn’t move. She hated this man’s superior attitude, and it was taking all her willpower not to reach out and wipe the smug look off his face. If only mild pistol-whipping were legal in New Mexico. “Enlighten us.”
“Avery owned hundreds of acres of land adjacent to the Rez outside Farmington. He spent close to a year trying to get one of the high-tech computer companies to set up shop there. He very nearly succeeded, too, but then Yellowhair sponsored a bill in the state legislature that offered tax breaks to Anglo companies on the Rez. When Avery opposed the bill, Yellowhair accused him of a conflict of interest and made him look really bad. In capsule form, Avery had to back off and let his deal fall through. He lost a bundle of money on that, too, but if he’d closed the deal, he would have lost the faith of those he worked with on the tribal council and, eventually, The People themselves. After that fiasco, Avery hated Yellowhair with a passion.”
“So, he’s the person you think is behind the kidnapping?” Ella asked.
“You’re putting words in my mouth, little lady.”
Ella gripped the sides of the chair so tight her knuckles turned pearly white, but she forced herself not to move.
“What I said is that Avery would have cheerfully killed him. But kidnapping? No. That just doesn’t sound like that old boy. He’d be more inclined to shoot Yellowhair in cold blood. Like me, he collects guns,” he said, a challenge in his voice. “But don’t get excited. We both have federal firearms permits and follow all the current regulations. We both believe in the right of every free man to own and bear weapons in defense of himself and his possessions.”
Blalock rolled his eyes. “Please. Let’s not get into the issue of gun control. We don’t have time for one of your rants.”
“Rant?” He shook his head. “It’s the truth. The feds are being controlled by the liberals who want to take guns away from our law-abiding citizens. The constitution has become a joke. It’s time to stand up for ourselves.”
“Let’s go,” Ella said, not even looking at Branch.
By the time they left the station a short time later, Ella had lapsed into a tense silence.
“Hey, Clah, chill out. He was just being annoying. It’s what he does best.”
“Yeah, I know,” she muttered. Ella took a deep breath, then let it out again. “We’re going to have to find out where Branch was at the time of the kidnapping.”
“I’ll handle that while you take on Avery Blueeyes. He’s on your turf, and from what I’ve heard, is a tough customer.”
Ella nodded. “He is, particularly to non-Indians. But I’ve got to tell you, I can’t see him in the role of a kidnapper.”
“How well do you know him?”
“His wife is a good friend of my mother’s and they used to come over a lot when I was still in high school. But that was years ago before he got elected to the tribal council.”
As they got underway in Blalock’s bureau sedan, Ella glanced back at the radio station. “Did you get the feeling that Branch was going to do his best to turn the kidnapping into another promotional opportunity for his radio show?”
“Oh, yeah. There’s no way he’s passing that one up. But who knows, if he stirs the water enough, something may come to the surface.”
Blalock drove Ella back to the station and dropped her off. As she walked toward the entrance, Justine came out of the station to meet her.
“I’ve gone over every inch of the van that ran you and Kevin off the road. As you know, most of the interior was sprayed with oil, so that made lifting prints almost impossible. But under the seats we found cola cans and snack food wrappers, along with a student notebook. We lifted a few prints, but none of them match those on file in our police databases.”
“Let me take a look at what you’ve got,” Ella said.
She followed Justine to the lab. The PD had expanded Justine’s facility by knocking out a wall and giving her more room for equipment, and responsibilities, as she’d proven herself. “You know, I remember when you first came to me,” Ella said. “Your credentials both as a cop and a fully qualified lab tech sounded impressive, but no one really knew how things would work out.” She waved her arm around the lab. “The fact that the tribe has expanded your facilities here really shows you how much you’re valued.”
“I keep working at it. You know how many times I’ve been back to Quantico to the FBI Academy for additional forensics courses. The lab work associated with police work keeps getting more complicated and technical, but also more accurate.”
Putting on latex gloves, and handing Ella a pair, Justine set out the various items she’d taken from the van.
Ella studied them, then focused on the doodling on the cover of the notebook. “There can’t be that many students interested in entering the Air Force Academy, and that’s where that logo’s from. See the labeled ribbon around the bottom of the shield, and the eagle on top? I remember it from high school when the science club took a trip there and to the zoo at Colorado Springs. Have you heard of any high school seniors trying to get into the academy?”
Harry Ute came in just then. “The Air Force Academy? My nephew was talking about that place the other day. Ernest Ben’s boy, Charlie has applied. He needs a letter of recommendation from a congressman or U.S. senator, and Ernest and James Yellowhair had a huge disagreement over that. Yellowhair’s only a state senator, but he could have helped by using his political contacts to help Charlie. The problem was he refused to do it. Yellowhair told Ben that he didn’t appreciate his opposition to some of the land issues he’d brought up at the state level, and saw no reason to help Ben or his son now.”
“Yellowhair seems to be more popular every time we turn around, doesn’t he?” Ella mumbled.
“Don’t underestimate James Yellowhair,” Harry warned. “He has political enemies because he’s known for playing hardball. But he’s also very good at reaching out to the everyday voter. He presents himself as the underdog, and people come flocking to him.”
“Well, considering he barely made it in the last election, I wouldn’t say ‘flocking,’” Ella said.
“That was a close call but, as usual, he took his lumps and still managed to land on his feet. If he comes out of this kidnapping alive and healthy, he’s a shoo-in at the next election. You’ll see.”
She didn’t like the approval she heard in Harry’s voice, but decided to keep quiet about it. Ute’s politics were his own business. “We’ll need to talk to Charlie, and maybe his father, too, depending on what we get from the boy.”
“You’ll get less static from the kid,” Harry said. “Ernest is really protective of his son. Charlie’s a bit on the spoiled side, but he’s a good kid, and pretty smart.”
“Why don’t you come with me, Harry, and we’ll track him down?” Ella suggested.
“That’ll work. Charlie knows me, and won’t hold anything back.”
Ella placed the notebook back in the clear, tagged evidence pouch, then signed it out in her name. “I’ll take this with me, but I’ll keep it inside the pouch so it’s not compromised,” she told Justine. “In the meantime, see if you can track down and question Avery Blueeyes and Atsidi Benally for me. Then, I want you to concentrate on the clinic B and E. We need some definitive answers.”
“I’ve talked to just about everyone about that break-in, but I’m still batting zero.”
“Keep at it. We don’t have any other choice.”
Ella drove across Shiprock to the high school on the southwest side of town. The old high school, where Ella had graduated, was on the north side of the river. The new facility, built near the site of the old helium plant, was bigger and better, and maintained in tip-top condition, if Ella remembered from her last visit there when they’d had all the gang problems.
Harry was quiet, not even gazing out the windows as they crossed the river, but being glum was so much a part of his personality that it was something she expected.
He cleared his throat.
The unexpected sound coming from Harry startled her, and she flinched. “Something on your mind?”
He nodded. “I wanted you to be the first to know, Ella. I’m thinking of quitting the force.”
Ella stared at him for a second, then focused back on the road. Nothing could have surprised her more. Harry was almost an institution in the Navajo Tribal Police. His skill at collecting evidence was second to none, and badly needed.
“Why, Harry? This is as much a part of your life as it is mine.”
He said nothing for several long seconds, then when he spoke, his voice was even lower than usual. “It’s not an easy decision, because the Rez has been my home since I was a kid. Almost everyone I know lives here. But it’s time for me to leave. I’ve been offered a chance to join the U.S. Marshals service and that’s a job I think I’d really be good at. I’m a good tracker and I’m low profile. People don’t notice me in a crowded room, you know. I blend.”
“Congratulations, then. It’s an opportunity few officers ever receive. I think you’d be a great addition to their team, but you’re needed here, Harry. You’re the best at what you do. I wouldn’t know how to replace you.”
“If the department absolutely can’t replace me, I won’t leave, but I think they can. Someone else will come along. You’ll see. That’s the way things always are.”
“We’ll try, Harry. It’s just hard losing one of our best cops.”
Harry’s possible resignation had come as a shock to Ella. Sooner or later she’d planned on taking maternity leave, but if Harry was also gone and there was trouble … The department was shorthanded anyway when it came to good, experienced officers.
They drove into the asphalt parking lot on the north side of the high school campus a short time later. Ella noticed that the kids walking through the lot toward the athletic fields seemed totally relaxed. Laughter flowed easily from a group seated on the outside steps eating bags of chips and drinking sodas.
“They’re not immune to trouble. It touches them here, too,” Harry said, as if reading her mind, “but what kids have that the adults don’t, is a deep-seated conviction that nothing can really harm them.”
They entered the main lobby and walked down the hall toward the principal’s office. Moments later, they were ushered inside by one of the school secretaries. Ella introduced herself to the new principal, Wallace Curtis. The teacher turned school administrator was well respected in the community.
“What brings the police here?” he asked, his expression guarded. “Has something happened to one of our kids?”
“We just need to talk to Charlie Ben. Can you find him for us?”
He gave them a surprised look. “What could he have done? Charlie’s one of our top students. I have a problem thinking of him as involved in anything that concerns the police.”
“We just need to ask him a few questions,” Ella said.
“I’ll have to be present. He’s a minor, and as a representative of the school, I have to witness your interviews.”
“That’s not a problem,” Ella said and Harry nodded his assent.
Principal Curtis checked student schedules on his computer, then left. Ella walked to the window and stared outside at the mesa rising above the river valley to the north. “Why don’t you handle the questioning, Harry? Charlie may be more at ease if you do it, and we may get answers.”
“I don’t think he’ll have any to give us. He’s a straight shooter,” Harry said. “But I’ll do it. Let’s see what we get.”
Several minutes later Principal Curtis entered with a tall, broad-shouldered Navajo boy who moved like a bundle of compressed energy. His hair was combed but looked damp, as if he’d just stepped out of the shower.
Charlie sat down and regarded them nervously. “What’s going on? I haven’t done anything wrong,” he said before Harry could even say a word.
Harry smiled at him. “Nothing to worry about, Charlie. I’m Artie’s uncle. Remember me?”
“Yeah. But why are you here?”
“We found one of your spiral notebooks inside a van that was used to commit a crime,” Harry said. “What we want to know is how it got there.”
Ella placed it on the principal’s desk in front of Charlie and watched as surprise, then confusion crossed his features.
“Wait. How did you get that? I threw it away yesterday or the day before. That’s one of my old notebooks. Check it out if you don’t believe me,” he said, pulling a new looking spiral out of his book bag. “I use these to keep track of homework assignments and football schedules for teams in our district. Look through that one and you’ll see that all the pages are full.”
Ella sensed the kid was being completely honest with them. He could see his hopes of getting into the Air Force Academy going up in smoke if he got into any trouble, and having the cops looking into his life was scaring the blazes out of him.
“I cleaned out my locker after school and dumped the old stuff in the trash can outside by the gym. Someone must have picked it out of there.” He looked at it even closer. “That looks like nacho sauce or something on the cover. I keep my notebooks clean.” He pulled several different color notebooks out of his bag. “See?”
“His word is good enough for me, Investigator Clah,” Principal Curtis said. “I can’t say this about all of our kids, but you can believe whatever Charlie tells you.”
“Don’t worry, Charlie. We believe you,” Ella said. “You just confirmed what we already thought. Somebody put that in there to mislead us. Tell me, have you seen anyone, probably an adult who didn’t seem to belong here, hanging around the trash, or the school?”
He thought about it, then shook his head. “I’ll keep a lookout though, if you think that’ll help you guys.”
“It would.” Ella handed him her card. “Give me or Harry a call anytime if you think of something. And let your principal or teachers know if you see any strangers hanging around campus.”
As her cell phone rang, she stepped away to one corner of the room, leaving Harry to wrap things up with Charlie and the principal.
“Clah here,” she said, expecting the call to be from Sheriff Taylor. She suddenly remembered his earlier message to call him after noon.
It was Big Ed, however. “Shorty, we got a problem with the Fierce Ones. Now they’re picketing over at LabKote. The security guards have warned them and informed us that they have instructions to mace or shoot anyone who tries to enter illegally. Things could get ugly fast. You’re already in the area, so get over there with Harry. You’ll be in charge on the scene.”
“Chief, that’s really not—”
“You have your orders, Shorty. So far nothing but threats have been made, but the guards there seem mighty squirrelly, at least that’s what our dispatcher reported. I’ll send you backup, but the most I’ll be able to spare will be two patrol officers in addition to Justine, Harry, and you. Evaluate the situation when you get there, and if you think things could escalate, call me. I’ll call the county and Farmington PD if I have to. You copy?”
“I copy, Chief.”
“One more thing. I heard from an officer on the scene that Clifford is there, too.”
“He didn’t use a mask?”
“None of them have, and that’s why I don
’t think they mean to create a problem. It’s the guards who are making me tense.”
“Is there anything that identifies the protestors as members of the Fierce Ones, or could it be an independent action?”
“They have those black arm bands with the four sacred mountains in white, just like before.”
“I’m on my way,” she said, then gestured to Harry. Thanking the principal and Charlie Ben, she rushed back to the car with Harry.
“We’re needed over at LabKote. The Fierce Ones are protesting there. So far there has been no violence, just threats, but from the sounds of it, the situation’s like a powder keg—it won’t take much to make it blow.”
ELEVEN
Ella filled Harry in on what she knew as they sped south toward LabKote, sirens and lights on.
“I expect that they’ve zeroed in on that company now because they heard about the death of Kyle Hansen and want to make sure a Navajo takes over that position,” Harry said. “And that brings up another possibility we’re going to have to deal with. Sooner or later someone will accuse the Fierce Ones of having murdered Hansen so he could be replaced with a Navajo.”
“That’s not really the MO of the Fierce ones,” Ella said. “It’s more along the lines of what the Anglo Brotherhood might have done, except in reverse. That group would have been perfectly capable of killing a Navajo to insure an Anglo would get a particular job. They gave us some serious problems in the past, but they’ve all but disappeared. We don’t have anyone on the Rez now who would use those tactics.”
“Tactics are subject to change depending on the situation, particularly with an unpredictable group like the Fierce Ones,” Harry said.
By the time they reached LabKote, she’d used the radio network to brief the two patrolmen and Justine, who were already there, standing by.
As she got out of her Jeep, Ella spotted Clifford. Her brother gave her a nod, and continued walking in the picket line, which moved back and forth, blocking the gate. Everything seemed calm and orderly.