by Aimée
FOURTEEN
As the road stretched out before her, Ella planned her meeting with Neskahi carefully. The request she wanted to make was going to be tough on him, but she needed his cooperation. Her dealings with Naomi Zah would become easier if she could get Neskahi to do things her way. Yet this wasn’t something she could ever order him to do.
Ella went through the dispatcher and got a location on Officer Neskahi. After being patched through, she arranged to meet him back at the station.
Thirty minutes later, Ella was in her office, waiting. The areas the tribal cops patroled were vast, and backups were not always possible. She knew of the long hours and dangers the officers faced constantly, and wouldn’t have second-guessed any of them under normal circumstances. But she had no choice now.
Officer Joseph Neskahi came through her office door just as she closed the folder on the report he’d filed.
“You wanted to see me, Investigator Clah?”
Joseph Neskahi was a young but experienced officer with a lot of energy. He was built like a safe—square, hard, all planes and sharp angles. “Have a seat, Joseph,” Ella invited him.
He sat down stiffly and stared at her. “Is there a problem in my patrol area, or with one of my reports?” He glanced down at the folder on her desk.
“No, I just need some information from you. The matter came up as I was conducting our two homicide investigations. I’ve been tracking down every lead, though there are precious few of them.”
Neskahi nodded and seemed to relax a little. “I’ve heard about the killings. What has that to do with me?”
“You investigated the assault on Naomi Zah a few months ago. Tell me what you remember about it.”
He shook his head somberly. “I took Mrs. Zah’s statement, but there was no physical evidence except the bruises on her neck. By the time we were called in, there were no footprints or vehicle marks, nothing we could follow up on. The wind had covered everything by then. The only thing I had was her description of the suspect, and it was much too general. I was looking for a young Navajo with long hair and a scraggly beard who smelled funny. I checked with local mechanics and painters, even a guy who sprayed houses for bugs. I didn’t get anywhere. I went to see her after that. I told her that she hadn’t given me much to work with, and that there was nothing more I could do. She got angry, but I couldn’t change the facts.”
“Any gut feelings about it?”
“At the time, the only thing I could figure was that she was trying to find a way to get Raymond Zah to stay home. From what I’d heard, he had a habit of going off on his own for several days at a time, drinking. It was still winter, and I think she was worried about him. If you’ve been out to that hogan, you know it’s in the middle of nowhere. He’s the only company she has out there.”
“But now you’re not so sure?”
“We don’t have violent crimes out here very often. The murders put a new perspective on that case.”
“She had the impression that you thought she was lying.”
He shook his head. “No, I told her that she should have called us in sooner. Mrs. Zah didn’t report the crime until the next day, when she went to town. By that time, the trail was gone.”
“It would help me out a lot right now if you’d stop by there and talk to her. Can you do that?”
“Talk to her about what? I was right. There was no physical evidence.”
“Oh, I know you were right. But I need her to cooperate with me, and she’s not going to do that easily if she thinks we didn’t do all we could to protect her before. Maybe you can reassure her that you never doubted her word, that kind of thing.”
“I did increase my patrols in her area,” he said slowly. “Maybe it would help if I told her that.”
“Have you maintained those extra patrols?”
“No. I stopped a while back, when there was no other trouble.”
“Start again.”
“Do you think she’s a target of a killer? Do you think he’s the one who attacked her before?”
“I don’t know, and that’s precisely my point.”
“Okay. I’ll go talk to Mrs. Zah this afternoon. Maybe she’ll calm down a little when she hears I kept an eye on her before.”
“Point out that you’ll be around again,” Ella suggested, “so if anything happens she should call in immediately.”
“Problem is she has no phone out there. I don’t think she has the money for a two-way radio either.”
“We’ll provide her with a CB radio, then. Get the one the Hit-and-Run officer used on that truck driver case. Take it there and show her how to operate it.”
“On whose authority?” Neskahi asked, his eyes narrowing.
“Sign it out in my name. I can authorize this as part of our ongoing investigation. I’ll tell Big Ed just as soon as I see him, since he wants to be kept current.”
“Bringing her that phone should certainly help me smooth her things over with her,” he conceded.
“Do me a favor, will you? Tell her that I’ll be by later to talk to her.”
“Sure thing.”
As Neskahi left her office, Ella stared at the sheet of paper before her. Today she had dropped a note by Big Ed’s office to fill him in on her plans. Now she had to update him on current and future action. She began listing her next moves when Justine came in.
“I managed to get hold of Victor, our artist. He wants to cooperate, but his truck won’t start.” Justine chuckled. “When you see his truck, you won’t be surprised.”
“So he wants us to pick him up and take him to Naomi’s?” Ella asked, and saw Justine nod. “That’s not a bad idea. I was going to suggest it anyway. I’d like to speak with him first to brief him on what we need to know.”
“Do you want me to take you both? My unit is a lot newer than that old interagency car you’ve been saddled with. Victor lives in an area that’s crisscrossed with sandy arroyos and big boulders. You never know what’s right underneath the surface. But I’ve been there before so I can pick my way through.”
“If anything else happens to whatever vehicle I’m in, yours or mine, Big Ed’s going to have my hide pinned to his wall. How confident are you we won’t get stuck or rip out an oil pan?”
Justine bit her bottom lip pensively. “The odds with me at the wheel are in our favor, but there are no guarantees. The reason Victor’s truck is a mess is because of where he lives.”
Ella sighed. “We’ll go at a snail’s pace then, and walk in part of the way if we have to. I don’t want to have to explain why our two-officer section has lost another vehicle.”
“Clear. I’ll drive very carefully.”
Ella took five minutes to finish updating her report for Big Ed and then dropped it off at his office. They were under way moments later. Justine made good speed on the highway, but twenty minutes later she turned off, heading down a dirt road that quickly became more like two wagon ruts. She downshifted, then inched along slowly.
“At least there’s no way we’re going to get stuck here. The ground is as hard as asphalt. Is this part of the old Santa Fe Trail?” Ella joked.
“The terrain will change soon. We still have to cross a big, dry arroyo.”
“This guy’s really young. Why the heck does he live out here so far from everything?”
“You’d have to know Victor to understand. He’s a bit on the eccentric side. He used to live in Shiprock, but people would drop by during the day. Since he works at home, the interruptions began to affect his concentration. He decided that the simplest answer was to move someplace where no one who wasn’t extremely motivated would want to drop by. One of his uncles gave him some sheep and helped him set up a prefab house out on a little mesa. He’s got a generator for electricity and he heats with LP gas. Almost no one visits so he’s totally happy out here.”
As they approached a wide, dry-looking wash, Ella loosened her seat belt and peered ahead. “No way. We’ll get stuck in that sand, and we�
�ll have to send for help. Can we walk from here?”
Justine pulled to a stop. “We could, but it’s about a mile of rough hiking.”
Ella considered the heat. It was nearly noon. “Have you driven across this before?”
“Yeah, sorta. I got over halfway before I sunk. I had to get Victor to tow me out. Today that wouldn’t be possible.”
Ella took a deep breath and muttered a curse. “We’ll walk.”
It took them thirty minutes of hiking, then a rugged uphill climb to finally get to the top of the mesa. Through weeds and brambles, Ella could see a small structure in a clearing below them. The house stood amidst sand and rocks, a solitary outpost against the beaten earth. A bit farther away, she could see an empty sheep pen. In a low spot of the mesa were about fifty sheep munching on the dry grasses and brush.
“At least it’s downhill from here,” Ella commented.
“You’ve seen his sheep. Did I tell you about Toad Dog?” Justine smiled.
“What is that? Some sort of fable?”
“No, it’s his dog. Toad Dog looks after the sheep, but that isn’t how he got his name. He likes to play with toads, but never kills them, though I’m sure some of them have died of fright. TD—that’s what he’s called for short—is about the size of a small pony, and all hair. He’s Victor’s buddy, so try not to say anything against him even if he drools on your pant leg. He’s been known to back people up against a tree if they misbehave.”
“Wonderful,” Ella answered sarcastically. Is there anything else you might have neglected to tell me?”
Justine shook her head. “No, not that I can think of offhand.”
As they descended the hillside, Ella heard something rustling through the cluster of stunted junipers to her left. Expecting a sheep, she jumped when a huge black beast appeared. It looked like a bear, but they usually didn’t come down from the mountains during years when the forage was good.
Justine knelt down on the ground and reached out her arms. “Hiya TD, did you come to show us the way in?”
Ella blinked. Whatever it was, it looked much too big for a dog. This beast was huge, and its hair stood out like a cross between a porcupine and a chow. “What kind of dog is it supposed to be?”
“Nobody’s sure. Victor found him on the side of the road when he was a puppy. You could hold him in one hand, Victor says. Then he just grew and grew. And became this,” Justine said, standing up and giving the dusty animal one last pat on the head.
TD walked over to Ella, sniffed her knee, then jumped up on his hind legs and gave Ella a hearty lick on the face.
“Oh, gross!” Ella stepped back, wiping her face.
TD growled low, annoyed.
“TD gets upset when people aren’t friendly,” Justine warned. “If I were you, I’d get down to his level and pet him. Otherwise, TD will act funny around you, and Victor might decide there’s something about you that can’t be trusted.”
Ella crouched on the ground and petted the dog. The animal seemed instantly mollified, eager to accept her gesture of friendship with another hearty lick. “Okay, guy, I haven’t been kissed this enthusiastically in months. Give me a break, okay?”
Justine burst out laughing. “Come on, TD. Let’s go see Victor!”
As they started down the hill, Ella wiped her face. “It’s not just spit, it’s slimy. Good grief!”
“But he likes you, which means Victor will too. What’s a little slime in view of that?”
“Yeah, you say that because he didn’t get you in the face,” Ella grumbled.
Five minutes later, as they approached the house, Victor came outside and waved. “I sent TD to find you. I see he was successful! I was afraid that you’d get stuck in the arroyo. My uncle got trapped in there a few days ago and my dad had to come haul him out. I should have warned you before you set out.”
Ella breathed a sigh of relief, glad she’d insisted on walking. “We parked on the other side and walked.”
Victor nodded heartily. “Excellent idea.”
Ella studied their host. His hair was buzz-cut short, military style. There was no other military precision about his appearance, however. His T-shirt was threadbare, and the slogan that had once been on it was impossible to read. His jeans were frayed at the hems and a pocket was hanging half unsewn.
“Come in. If you walked here, you’re probably thirsty. I’ve got some cold soft drinks.”
“I’d like that,” Ella admitted, wiping the perspiration from her brow.
The low-roofed house was cool, shaded by four piñon trees that had grown to nearly twenty feet tall. The living room was decorated with realistic-looking caricatures of Navajo and Anglo politicians and cartoon strips. All were signed by Victor. His furniture consisted of an old stuffed sofa and three red beanbag chairs. A small TV sat in the corner on a homemade bookshelf. As they went into the kitchen, Ella saw a small stove, refrigerator, and single sink. The dinette set was a folding card table and four matching folding chairs. Victor invited them to sit down.
He went to a refrigerator, snatched the drinks quickly, and closed the fridge door. “I’ve got to get stuff in and out fast. I’m running low on the liquified petroleum gas that powers my fridge.”
He handed them each a cola, then sat across from them petting TD, who seemed to adore resting his head on Victor’s knee. “I understand you want me to play police artist,” he said.
“It’s no game. I need your help,” Ella admitted. “If you can help Naomi Zah by turning the description she gives you into a portrait, then maybe we’ll have an image of the suspect we need to search for.”
“You are aware that I specialize in cartoons and caricatures, right?”
Ella nodded. “Justine assured me you can handle this and now I see why. I took a look at some of your sketches as we came through the living room. I’ve seen most of those people, and what you do is very realistic.”
He nodded. “I’m fast, too, and Naomi should feel comfortable with me. I’ve known her all my life.”
“That’s great. It’s a bonus I hadn’t even counted on,” Ella admitted.
“But I can only work from what she gives me. I can jog her memory by giving her several face shapes and that type of thing, but it’s going to be up to her and the accuracy of her memory in the long run.” He grabbed a backpack, stuck a handful of pencils and sketch pads inside, and slipped the bag over his shoulder.
Ella finished the last of her cola. “Thanks a million for the soft drink. I really needed it. It’s hot out there, as you’re about to find out.”
He nodded. “That’s okay. It’s a small price for living out here.” He turned toward the dog. “TD, watch the sheep!” Victor opened the back door, and the dog bounded out eagerly.
“You leave him here to watch the sheep?” Ella wondered aloud.
“Sure. He is very responsible. I’ve never even had a lamb hurt when it’s just been him here alone with them. He takes his work very seriously.”
Ella tried to keep her sigh of relief from becoming audible. TD would have been a pain on a car trip. With Justine driving, she knew the dog would have been all over her.
* * *
They were on their way twenty-five minutes later.
“TD seems to like you and Justine,” Victor said proudly. “He’s a wonderful judge of character, too, you know.”
“He’s a nice dog,” Ella said, grateful that there was only one of him to bathe her with a gooey tongue.
“Can I ask you why you just didn’t take mug shots over to Naomi?” Victor’s question interrupted Ella’s mental drift and brought her back to the business at hand. “Seems to me that would have been easier.”
“I do have a mug shot book with me, but before Naomi starts to look at hundreds of faces, I’d rather you worked with her. Then it’ll still be clear in her mind. Afterward we’ll see if we can match the person she saw to a known felon.”
Victor nodded. “I’ve got some ideas on how to jog her memory even m
ore. I’ll have her describe this guy by comparing him to people we both know.”
“Good idea.”
“I’ll be able to get a sketch that you can work from, if anyone can. We all want to catch this guy, particularly people like me who live in a secluded place.”
“Do you have a phone, or a radio?” Ella asked.
“I’ve got a CB radio setup, and I’ve also got a cellular. And I’ve got TD. If anything approaches, he lets me know in plenty of time.”
“He sleeps inside or out?”
“Outside, right on the porch, so he can watch the sheep and me.”
“Good. If you ever sense trouble, you give us a call immediately. We’ll handle it.”
“I think you mean what’s left of him after TD gets his teeth into him,” he chuckled. “He’s not nice to strangers who come up unannounced. And my shotgun is even more unfriendly.”
Ella felt that funny tightening in her stomach. “You know how to use it, and practice with it often?”
“I’ve been around rifles and shotguns since I was seven. I usually hit what I aim for, whether it’s a rabbit or wild turkey. If I couldn’t, I’d have grown awful tired of mutton stew by now.”
“Just be careful what you shoot, please?” Ella asked.
“I always am,” he answered, then lapsed into silence.
Ella wondered if she’d offended him, but the thought of people, ordinary citizens, so ready for an armed response made her jittery. Unfortunately, there was nothing she could do to stop them until the case was closed, and that might not be any time soon.
FIFTEEN
Ella sat near the door of the hogan, hoping a breeze would stir. The skies had turned into a maze of gray clouds that were ripped every few seconds by bright flashes of lightning. Thunder in the distance rumbled constantly, like distant artillery, and the increased humidity made the air feel sticky. Yet, despite all that, no rain appeared. Although the land was dry and rain was needed, Ella hoped it would hold off a while longer. If it didn’t, she had a feeling getting Victor back to his home today would be all but impossible.
Ella watched quietly as Victor prodded Naomi’s memory with all the finesse of the best police artists she’d worked with. He sketched with painstaking attention to detail, erasing and modifying any feature Naomi felt wasn’t quite right. Although Ella still hadn’t looked at their sketch for fear of interrupting Naomi’s train of thought, she could sense that a clear impression would be the result.