Murder on Easter Island

by Gary Conrad

  “Yes.”

  “Well,” Mahina said, “the second board I would like to sell, and we can use the funds to finance it. What do you think?”

  Tiare cried even more and somehow managed, “That is a wonderful idea.”

  Daniel simply held Mahina tightly.

  He was speechless.

  Chapter 4

  April 5, 2015

  Aglorious Sunday afternoon greeted the large crowd that gathered around the Ahu Ature Huki, preparing for the wedding ceremony of Daniel and Mahina. Tiare had informed the happy couple that this would be the social event of the year, and a buzz of excitement filled the air.

  Daniel and Mahina both roamed the crowd, greeting the many who had gathered. As Daniel had predicted, every Rapanui on the island seemed to know of Mahina’s connection with the past and wanted to speak with her about it.

  It was an informal affair, and many in attendance either sat on the ground or in lawn chairs. A large buffet table stacked with home-cooked food, supplied by the Rapanui community, was set up near the beach.

  Mahina had chosen to wear a long, white, cotton dress, one sewn by a local seamstress. She had a red hibiscus flower in her hair, which Daniel had placed there, and a bright, multi-colored, floral lei adorned her neck. Daniel dressed simply and wore khaki slacks along with a long-sleeved, white shirt. He was barefoot, as was Mahina.

  Daniel stepped away from the growing crowd for a few moments and felt the leather bag hanging from his neck underneath his shirt. That morning he had placed precious objects in it.

  First he had put in the fishhook Pakia had gifted him. As he held it, he thought of Pakia and Uka, the couple who had shown him much love and kindness while he lived in the past. Daniel had yet to try it, now that he was back in the present, but he was certain it would have the same magic of catching fish as it previously had.

  The second item he placed was his grandpa’s green flint arrowhead, which Daniel had rescued from the grasp of evil. It brought up all sorts of memories of the times he had spent with him, tracking animals though the rolling Oklahoma hills.

  The last two objects in the bag were the caracara feathers left behind by his father and mother. Daniel was certain that, without their continued protection, he would not have lived to see this moment.

  After he returned to the crowd, a familiar voice called out to him, “Welcome home, Daniel.”

  He looked up to see Alame Koreta. “Alame, it’s good to see you.”

  “I wouldn’t have missed your wedding for anything in the world.”

  Daniel said, “I’ve been meaning to thank you and Jack for allowing us to stay at your hotel. We’ve finally located a rental home, so we shouldn’t have to inconvenience you much longer.”

  “The pleasure has been all ours. Getting to know Mahina has been a wonderful addition to my life.”

  Daniel smiled at her, saying, “And to mine!”

  Alame smiled back and asked, “Do you remember long ago when I advised you to sit before our moai and listen?”

  “I do remember, and yes, I did.”

  “What did it say?”

  “Let’s just say that the moai helped me to discover the wisdom I already had within me.”

  “My experience was very much like yours,” Alame replied. “ I am certain our best guides exist inside us, not outside.”

  “Absolutely,” Daniel agreed.

  At that moment a bare-chested older man with long, grey, disarrayed hair and a wild-eyed stare approached them. He looked like a Rapanui version of an aging Albert Einstein. He stared at Daniel and muttered under his breath, “You Daniel Fishinghawk?”

  “I am.”

  “Let me shake your hand. My name is Roberto Ika, and I’ve heard that because of you I’ve been let out of the crazy house in Santiago. Is that true?”

  “Well, yes, I suppose so.”

  Daniel glanced over at Alame, who had a grin on her face.

  Tears filled Roberto’s eyes. “I can’t tell you how grateful I am to be back. I may be crazy, but I’d rather be crazy here than anywhere else in the world. By the way, have you looked around at the crowd?”

  “I have.”

  “Well,” Roberto added, “Don’t know whether you’ve noticed or not, but I’m positive there are Russian — or is it Chinese? — agents mixed in that want to take me back to their homeland and torture me. I know a lot of secrets they’d love to have.”

  “Oh, I’m sure you do,” Daniel responded, trying to look serious.

  “And if I’m able to escape them, I want you to come to my home sometime so I can talk to you about the things I can see that others can’t.” He lunged at Daniel and gripped him in a bear hug, “I love you, man . . .”

  Daniel hugged him back. “I love you, too, Roberto.”

  Alame grabbed Roberto by the arm and pulled him away. “Roberto, come with me and we’ll check out the food, okay?” She looked over at Daniel and said, “Looking forward to the ceremony.”

  Daniel gave her a thumbs up.

  Mahina arrived at his side. “My love, it is time to begin.”

  Daniel kissed her. “I can’t wait.”

  Slowly they strolled hand in hand to the ahu on which stood the ancient moai. Tiare stood in front of it and beamed as she saw Daniel and Mahina walk up before her.

  Tiare held her hands up and the crowd gradually became silent. She boomed out in a most powerful voice, “My friends, today is a very special day, the marriage of Daniel and Mahina. All of you here know the love they share, not only for each other, but also for the island.”

  There was a bit of applause, and Tiare paused for a moment. “They have chosen to draw up their own vows, and they will repeat each sentence after me.” She looked lovingly at Daniel and Mahina and whispered, “Please turn and face each other. Are you ready?”

  Daniel and Mahina both nodded. They joined hands, faces glowing with anticipation.

  Tiare began:

  I promise to love you

  As long as my eyes see the sunshine

  My feet feel the earth

  And my hair is blown by the wind

  I promise to love you

  When you are healthy

  When you are ill

  And when you are less than perfect

  Through all the joys and sorrows of life

  I promise to raise our children

  With respect for your native traditions

  And for the Earth that nurtures us

  I promise to support your spiritual path

  Wherever it leads you

  However difficult it is

  And someday when death separates us

  I promise to hold a place for you in my heart

  Forever

  Tears were in Tiare’s eyes as she turned Daniel and Mahina to face the audience. “I would like to present to you, Daniel Fishinghawk, Jr., and Mahina Rapanui Fishinghawk, husband and wife.”

  With that, enthusiastic applause greeted them, with Roberto Ika leading the cheers from the front.

  Daniel and Mahina kissed to an even bigger roar.

  “Let’s greet our friends,” Daniel said.

  “Let’s,” Mahina replied

  They walked into the crowd and received lots of handshakes and many more hugs. At that point, in the traditional Rapanui way, a group of musicians began singing songs as they clapped rocks together in rhythm. As if on cue, a group of manutara birds circled overhead and screeched along with them.

  Very few days are perfect, Daniel thought.

  But this feels like one of them.

  Chapter 5

  May 7, 2015

  A little over a month had passed since Daniel and Mahina’s wedding, and Tiare smiled as she thought about it while she puttered around the house. She had spent most of the morning cleaning and wanted her home to be tidy before she left. She sat on her couch for a moment and thought . . . Yes, the time is now right.

  The floor had been swept; the refrigerator and the oven had been cleane
d. No, she couldn’t think of a thing left to do other than to write a note to Daniel and Mahina. Sometimes, she thought, it was best to express oneself in writing.

  She pulled a pad and pen off the shipping crate which doubled as a coffee table, contemplated for a moment, and began to write:

  Dearest Daniel and Mahina,

  Today I have an important shaman duty to perform at Puna Pau, but before I leave, I have some words to share with you.

  I am in a reflective mood, and as I look back on my life, I realize it has been as full as any ninety-four year old could hope for. I have the respect of my community, and I am proud of my children and the lives they have made for themselves.

  Yet — the icing on the cake of my life was helping Daniel solve the recent murders on our island. Never before have I experienced such exhilaration and excitement! You clearly did most of the legwork, but I feel I was a worthy sidekick — at least that’s what they call my role in the American westerns I have seen.

  If I have any regret, though, it’s that the last twenty years of my life were spent without my husband Ernesto. I don’t talk a lot about him, but we were as close as any couple could be, and I missed having him by my side.

  Now the important part: As I’m sure both of you know, the older generation always has advice for the younger, and I am no different than most. If I would share any words of wisdom with you, it would be to make you aware that you are both bright flames who unselfishly share your light with the world. Together, without giving up your individuality, you can produce a radiance far more brilliant that either of you could have alone. Not only will this benefit others, it will also encourage your own personal growth.

  Seeing your love, I have a renewed hope for the Rapanui community. Together you will make a difference. I know — after all, I am a shaman.

  Much love,

  Tiare

  Tiare nodded with approval as she reread the letter. She folded it, stuffed it in an envelope, addressed it, and then walked out the front door to the post office. Once the letter was mailed, she headed toward Puna Pau.

  She carefully ascended the upward slope, and before long she was walking among the red scoria topknots. She saw the crater open before her and picked her way down the slope.

  Tiare sat on a boulder at the bottom and watched her breath move in and out. As she entered a deep state of relaxation, she became aware of a presence. When she opened her eyes, sitting on a boulder across from her was a grimacing skeletal man with a long, hooked nose, dark goatee and long earlobes.

  “Sister Tiare?” he said.

  “Hitirau?”

  “Yes.”

  “How did you know my name?” Tiare asked.

  “I know all the elders in the Rapanui family.” He grimaced even more. “I also know that you helped the outsider Dan-iel ruin my plans for our people to have their freedom.”

  “That is true,” Tiare replied. “But your schemes were evil and had to be stopped.”

  “But the deaths of the outsiders were necessary.”

  “I see you believe that. But there is another way, a peaceful way, where innocent people do not have to be killed.”

  Hitirau looked puzzled and scratched his chin. “Do you believe I am evil?”

  Tiare smiled at him. “No one is truly evil, but their actions might be. But I am here for another reason.”

  “And what is that?” Hitirau asked.

  “I have come to take you home. Are any of your fellow akuaku still here?”

  “No,” he answered, “they have all disappeared, one by one. I am the last.”

  “You see, they have already found their way.”

  “But I thought this was home.”

  “Oh, but it’s not,” Tiare said. “If you’d like, I can take you there.”

  “But I am comfortable here.”

  “I know you are, but your comfort is a trap. And you have been trapped for far too long.”

  “What about Paoa?” Hitirau asked.

  “All eventually make it back home — even Paoa. But he is not ready yet.”

  Hitirau sat for a long time on the boulder, and Tiare could tell he was thinking. Finally he whispered, “I am ready.”

  “Give me a moment,” Tiare requested. With that, she closed her eyes and took a few more deep breaths. A shimmering light being, which looked much like the Tiare that she was, arose from her body.

  Tiare looked down on her aged form, which now sat quietly in meditation. She smiled at Hitirau. “Take my hand.”

  Hitirau was shaking as he grasped it. “I’m scared,” he said.

  “I know you are. But I am about to take you to your true home, and once you are there, you will discover that it is far more familiar than our island ever could be.”

  Together they walked toward a luminous spirit that waited to greet them. Tiare placed Hitirau before it, squeezed his hand one last time and turned to head back. It was then she heard her name called.

  That voice . . . could it be?

  As she spun around, standing in front of her was a radiant presence, wearing the biggest smile she had ever seen.

  She gasped as he recognized him.

  “Ernesto,” she whispered.

  He took her hands in his and said, “My love, how wonderful to see you again. I wish we could spend some time together, but you must go now and return to your earthly existence. When your moment of transition comes, I’ll be waiting for you.”

  Tiare asked, “Darling, how long will that be?”

  He murmured softly, “When the time is right, not before, not after.”

  They slowly separated, and Tiare walked back to her sitting body, frequently glancing back at him.

  She closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them, she was once again sitting on a boulder at Puna Pau.

  Even though tears were flowing from her eyes, Tiare couldn’t stop smiling.

  Chapter 6

  October 9, 2015, Tahlequah, Oklahoma

  Daniel and Mahina walked hand in hand alongside the Illinois River just east of Tahlequah, Oklahoma. It was a lovely fall day; the sky was perfectly clear, and a light breeze cooled them.

  It came as no surprise to Daniel that Mahina looked just as beautiful in Oklahoma as she did in Rapa Nui. Daniel didn’t believe it was possible to love another person as much as he loved Mahina. The amazing thing was that he felt at least as much love from her.

  Daniel listened as the mockingbirds and scissor-tailed flycatchers made sure their songs were heard. Fall in Oklahoma was glorious, and Daniel was certain there was no better place in the world when autumn rolled around.

  As he heard the sound of the river flowing by, Daniel remembered the call from his old detective chief, Kip Kelly, when the story first broke about how he had solved the murders. Daniel recalled, word-for-word, how the conversation went:

  “Hawk, you ol’ son of a bitch,” Kip Kelly said. “It took longer than I expected for you to clean up that fucking mess down there. But you did — and now you’re a hero. Go figure!”

  “Chief, that was the hardest case I’ve ever investigated.”

  “I’ll show you hard. Come back to New York City and get back to investigating some genuine murders, not some crazy wacko Easter Island detective who’s gone off his rocker. I’ll get you some real cases to figure out. What’d you say?”

  “Chief, I don’t think so.”

  “Listen, Hawk, I’ve already talked to Commissioner Walsh, and he’s agreed to triple your salary if you’ll come back home. We need you, Hawk. No one ever will come close to figuring things out the way you did.”

  “Sorry, Chief, New York City is not home, and I’m not coming back.”

  “But Hawk —”

  “I’m sorry, sir.”

  Then Daniel listened and listened, until Kelly ran out of words. Finally, Kelly said, “Someday, Hawk, you and I will meet again. Meantime — I’ll miss you,” and the line went dead.

  From Daniel’s point of view, there was no reason to
listen further anyway. Daniel had already rented a small space in Hanga Roa for his own business. While they were on vacation in Oklahoma, one of the local woodcutters was preparing a sign for his office. It was to say:

  Daniel “Hawk” Fishinghawk, Jr.

  Private Investigator

  of the

  Strange and Mysterious

  Who could tell what kinds of unusual cases would present themselves? He smiled as he pictured the sign in his mind and seeing the “Jr.” — as Tiare had announced at their marriage — that was now part of his name. It felt healing to embrace his heritage, not push it away.

  As for the rongorongo boards, the one shaped like a turtle was joyfully accepted at the museum on Rapa Nui, while the second was sold through Sotheby’s in New York City. Because of its pristine condition, it was auctioned off for the unbelievable price of $20 million US to the Te Papa Tongarewa Museum in Wellington, New Zealand. After their vacation, plans were to be drawn up for the institute.

  With all that was happening on Rapa Nui, Daniel and Mahina made the joint decision to live on the island and raise a family there. Daniel reasoned it was only fair; she had given up everything to be with him — now it was his turn.

  His only request was that, at least once a year, they return to Oklahoma for a vacation. There was something about Oklahoma that grew on a person, and the thought of never returning home was just too much to bear. The best way to describe it was like a deep itch that had to be scratched every now and then. Besides, every so often Daniel needed to connect with his roots — and his roots were here.

  After an hour or so of walking, Daniel and Mahina finally reached their destination: a cottonwood tree that stood well over one hundred feet high, right next to the river. Its leaves had already changed from summer green to bright yellow.

  “Are you ready, my dear?” Daniel asked.

  “Dan-iel, you have told me of this place, and it is far more beautiful that I ever could have imagined. Yes, I’m ready.”

  With that they began to shimmy up the tree trunk, Daniel first, followed closely by Mahina. The higher they went, the more they were able to smell the fragrance of the wild honeysuckle bushes that grew along the river’s edge.