Her Hero

by Aimée Thurlo

  It was then that Nydia realized the simple truth that had somehow eluded her. Being a singer was what enabled Joshua to love with such depth of feeling. She would never be a poor number two in his life, as she’d once thought. His focus and commitment to whatever he gave his heart to meant that she’d be at the center of everything he was, not simply the woman who stood beside him.

  That realization stunned her. The very thing she had thought would always keep them separated, his devotion to the knowledge of the old ways, was precisely what would bond them together.

  “You’re all right now.” Hearing a truck approach and the squeal of shifting gears, Joshua moved to the entrance and looked outside. “That’s Shadow’s truck, but stay here until I make sure he’s alone. There’s no sense in both of us exposing ourselves to danger. One alone has a better chance of not getting caught.”

  “All right,” she managed to say, still stunned by the magnitude of what she’d learned about him.

  As Joshua left, she stood near the blanket-covered entrance of the hogan. How many Navajo women had seen their warriors go off like this? Her connection to the past felt stronger now than it had ever been.

  A minute later, she saw Shadow and Joshua approach. As they spoke, she saw Joshua looking over at her frequently, as if assuring himself that she was all right.

  Shadow unlocked the door to the office as she walked out to join them. “Did something new happen?” she asked Joshua.

  “No, but for what it’s worth, I think we’re close to finding the answers that will free me to go with you to the reservation. Then you can complete what you set out to do when you came to Four Winds.”

  His words filled her with an aching loneliness. She was suddenly excruciatingly aware that Joshua had never expressed a desire for a lasting relationship with her. Perhaps he wasn’t ready to take that step. He was a hataalii, and as he’d told her many times, he needed harmony most of all in his life. Accepting an eleven-year-old boy and a modern woman in his life full-time was a lot to ask of him.

  She thought of John, and her heart ached to see him. “I need to call home,” she said as they entered the clinic. “May I use your phone?” she asked, looking at Lucas.

  He led her to his office and waved her inside. “Help yourself. I’ll see if I can find some food.”

  Eager to hear her son’s voice, she dialed quickly. To her delight, her son answered instead of her mother-in-law.

  “Mom, where are you?”

  “I’m still here in Four Winds. How’s your grandfather?”

  “The same. I’m really worried about him. When will you bring back the hataalii?”

  “It won’t be much longer. Tell your grandfather. Ask him to hold on.”

  “You’ve never given me your word and not kept it,” he said, as if reminding himself.

  Tears stung her eyes. To him, everything was either black or white. Yet her situation here had myriad shades of gray. “Hang on and believe that I’m doing my best.”

  “I do, Mom,” he said. “Make it happen, okay?”

  She heard the worry in his voice. That seed of doubt spiraled its way around her, making it difficult to even breathe. She said goodbye, feeling a great weight settling over her. At that very moment, nothing mattered to her quite as much as not letting her son down.

  She closed her eyes, tasting the possibility of defeat. What if her best efforts turned out to not be good enough? She brushed the thought aside. No, she wouldn’t fail. She wouldn’t even contemplate the possibility.

  There was a knock at the door, and a moment later, Joshua peered inside. “Is everything okay? You look as if you’ve lost a battle.”

  “Maybe I have,” she admitted. “My grandmother used to say that a Navajo never speaks for another Navajo. I wish I’d listened. In my overconfidence, I promised my family I’d bring you, but I had no right to make that vow.”

  “You shouldn’t have—that’s true,” he said. “But what’s done is done.”

  “John’s never asked me for much, so when he made this request, I was so glad to have him coming to me for help that I agreed to it immediately. It never occurred to me for one moment that I’d fail.”

  “If you do, I share in that failure,” he said wearily. “Your son is special, not only because you love him, but because he sees the value of our traditions. It’s on boys like him that the fate of our Way depends. If I fail him, I’ll injure the tribe. Believe me, I don’t take that lightly.”

  Lucas joined them and said, “I hate to interrupt, but would you mind if I took a look at that wound?”

  “It’s scarcely a wound. It’s just a really deep scratch, and your brother has already taken care of it.”

  “If it’s deep, it wouldn’t hurt to take a few bandages along with you. And before I dispense any supplies, I’d like to see what we’re dealing with.”

  “All right.”

  Lucas undid the makeshift bandage that Joshua had placed over her wound. As he worked, he continued to talk, trying to keep her mind off any discomfort his touch might cause. “Have you two reached any decisions about where you’ll be staying now?”

  “Not yet,” Joshua answered.

  “Why don’t you stay here?”

  “This is the last place we want to endanger. Your clinic is needed,” Joshua said.

  “Exactly my point. If they attack here, they risk the only medical facility around for miles.”

  Joshua considered it. “I’m not so sure they’ll stop to think things out.”

  “They also know I’m armed,” Lucas said bluntly. “You wouldn’t be sitting ducks here, and you’d have an extra pair of eyes to keep watch at night. I’m certain Gabriel would approve, too.”

  “I vote against it,” Nydia said. “If they did attack here, many innocent people who depend on this clinic would suffer. I can’t condone that risk. This town depends on you.”

  “Yeah, but I depend on my brothers, and this town’s attacking one of them.”

  Joshua shook his head. “No, Shadow. I thank you for the thought and the offer, but it can’t be.”

  “So where will you go?”

  Joshua considered it. “The last place they expect us to go. We’ll hide in the woods near the cabin.”

  “The canyon?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, at least nobody can sneak up on you there, and you do know that area.”

  “Precisely.”

  Lucas finished bandaging Nydia’s shoulder. “You’ll be fine in a day or two, but take some extra bandages anyway. I’d also like you to take whatever supplies I have in the kitchen and some lightweight sleeping bags,” he said, reaching into the closet. “It will all come in handy.”

  Nydia and Joshua thanked him, packed up the truck and got under way. They were on the outskirts of town when Joshua spotted a slow-moving truck on the road ahead. The bed of the pickup was stacked high with everything from furniture to athletic equipment.

  “Looks like someone’s leaving town,” Nydia commented.

  Joshua pulled up in the next lane to pass, then recognized the driver. “It’s Father Rogan. His parish is in the next town, just over the mountains, but a lot of our people here in Four Winds attend his church.”

  “Joshua!” The man waved, then signaled for them to pull over up ahead.

  “You’re not stopping, are you?” Nydia asked, realizing Joshua was slowing down. “You can’t—”

  “He’s incapable of harming anyone. We’re in no danger from him.”

  The priest was already walking toward them as Joshua parked on the shoulder and got out.

  “I’ve been worried about you, son,” Father Rogan said.

  “Our church has provided a sanctuary for many over the years. If you have need of it, you’re welcome, though you’re not of our faith.”

  “I appreciate that, Father, but right now, I need to stay here and work to clear my name.”

  “Terrible, terrible business,” the priest said, shaking his head. “I know
you had nothing to do with any of it, and I can’t believe that there are people who believe otherwise.” He waved at the things stacked on the back of his truck. “But that’s the first step to healing the wounds left by the tragedy. Maybe by giving these away and letting the poor put them to good use, he will be granted some peace.”

  “Who, Father? To whom did those things belong?”

  “Ted Burns, the mayor’s deceased son. For the past few months, I’ve been counseling Bob Burns to let the past go, but he refused to accept what had happened. He kept that boy’s room as a shrine, as if Ted would be coming back through the door any second.”

  Joshua studied the possessions that had once belonged to Ted Burns. “What made the mayor let go of these things now? To him, these possessions represent memories and a last link to his son.”

  “It wasn’t easy on him, the poor man, but he finally began the mourning process about a month ago. He asked me back then to come and take whatever I wanted from Ted’s room, but when we started sorting through everything, it was just too much for him. He told me he’d take care of it himself and then call me. He finally did, as you can see from the back,” he said, waving to the bed of the truck.

  “Thanks for the information and your kindness, Father,” Joshua said. “It was good to see you.”

  “You, too, son.” The priest extended his hand toward Nydia. “I’m told you are a modernist, and may not mind this Anglo custom.”

  Nydia shook his hand. “Not at all, Father.”

  “I’ll pray for both of you,” he said, getting back into his truck.

  Joshua’s gaze remained on the truck as it slowly started down the road again. “This news about the mayor raises some interesting questions. It’s possible that the mayor changed his mind about having the priest go through his son’s things because he found something illegal there.”

  “Or suspected he would,” she said. “One interesting note. Burns didn’t give all this boy’s possessions to the priest. The mayor was at the gas station when I first came into town. I remember him talking to the attendant wanting to sell a bicycle that had belonged to his son. There wasn’t one in the back of the priest’s truck.”

  Joshua looked at the fading sun. “This gets more interesting by the minute. Night will protect us if you’re willing to go back to Four Winds. I’d like to talk to Charley about Mayor Burns.”

  She exhaled softly. “That’s risky. The gas station is right on Main.” She knew that if she said no, he wouldn’t insist, not after what they’d already been through. But she’d accepted the responsibility and danger when she’d insisted on staying with him. “Oh, well. Everything’s risky at this point. Let’s go.”

  She felt the force of his gaze as it swept over her like a caress. Her body tingled with awareness.

  “You have more courage than is good for you,” Joshua said, “but I’m glad to have you by my side.”

  Nydia suppressed the shiver that ran up her spine, knowing the futility of indulging these longings. Wishing things were different would never change the way things were.

  When Joshua drove up to Charley’s garage, everything was quiet, as it always was after dark. In the darkness, they could see Charley’s garage light on, though the station was closed.

  “He works late into the night, tinkering with his old cars,” Joshua said. “It’s his one love. He’ll buy cars that barely run, then refurbish and sell them. I think that’s how he really makes most of his money.”

  As they approached, Joshua and Nydia kept a sharp eye out for a possible ambush. They’d almost reached the side door when they heard a rustling sound in the brush to their right. Without hesitation, Joshua pulled Nydia down, shielding her with his body.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Hearing the click of a revolver’s action being pulled back, Joshua spun in a crouch, simultaneously kicking out.

  “Whoa!” Gabriel jumped aside fast, evading the blow. “What the hell are you doing here, Tree? Don’t you ever listen to anyone? What’s it going to take to get through to you?”

  Nydia exhaled loudly and stood up. “Sheriff, you practically gave us both a heart attack.”

  “Good. Maybe you’ll finally realize that there’s mortal danger here for both of you.” He placed his service weapon back into its holster.

  “We came back because we needed to talk to Charley,” Joshua said. As he started to explain, the side door of the garage was thrown open.

  Charley stood there, shotgun in hand, glaring at them. “What in the name of heaven is going on here?” His shotgun, though not pointed at any one of them, wasn’t far from the ready position.

  “Sorry we startled you,” Joshua said. “It’s my fault. I came to ask you some questions.”

  Charley glared at him. “I do have business hours, you know.”

  “This couldn’t wait. My time’s running out. You’ve seen the mood of this town.”

  “I’ve got to say, I’m not sure people aren’t right about you,” he snapped, but then stood aside and gestured for them to enter. “Okay, so what’s so important it couldn’t wait?”

  Nydia took the lead. “When I first came into town, I stopped at your gas station to ask for directions. I remember Mayor Burns was there at the time asking if you were interested in buying some things that had belonged to his son.”

  “Yeah, so? His kid obviously had no use for them anymore.”

  “Can you tell us what items you bought from him?”

  “An ATV. I tuned it up and sold it a few days ago to Bobby Pierce, the social-studies teacher. There was also a mountain bicycle I kept for myself. That’s it. He had mentioned selling his son’s fancy air rifle, too, but I guess he changed his mind about that because he never came back with it.”

  Joshua shot Gabriel a look. Nydia didn’t miss it, and neither did Charley.

  “Why are you asking about this?”

  Gabriel shook his head. “I can’t tell you just yet, and please don’t discuss any of this with anyone.”

  Charley walked them to the door, muttering under his breath. “Don’t worry. The last thing I need is to tell anyone I was discussing the mayor with the town’s least popular citizens.”

  As Joshua and Nydia returned to Joshua’s truck, Gabriel stuck with them. “I have some interesting news,” Gabriel said. “I found the person who stole your hunting rifle, Tree, but he’s not our father’s killer.”

  Joshua stopped by the driver’s-side door and faced his brother. “Are you certain?”

  Gabriel nodded. “It was one of the high-school kids. He was told it was an initiation of some sort, a prank he was supposed to play if he wanted to join the Lettermen’s Club. He’s just a freshman, and he says he found a note in his locker telling him what to do. It was on a hall-pass form. The note told him where to leave the rifle. After he dropped it off, he went back to his locker and there was a school jacket there for him. The problem is he never figured out who was behind it, and he didn’t keep the note.”

  “Are you sure he’s telling the truth?” Joshua asked.

  “Oh, yeah. The kid was genuinely embarrassed as he told me the entire story. He found out he’d been had when he wore the jacket to school and learned he’s not supposed to wear a letterman’s jacket until after he letters in a sport.”

  “I also tracked the slug that grazed your shoulder,” Gabriel continued, looking at Nydia. “I recovered it from a tree by the curb. The bullet was misshapen, but I believe it came from a .44 caliber revolver that was missing from the antique shop. When we checked the inventory after the store became the town’s property, that weapon was never found.”

  “We have another speculation to share with you,” Joshua said, and told him about the blasting caps and the possible connection to Ted Burns.

  “Now, that’s real interesting, particularly because I’ve recently learned that Bob Burns reloads his own ammunition, and purchased a pound of gunpowder from a Santa Fe gun shop a week ago. That, and your lead to the blasting caps, gi
ves us a tie-in to the pipe bomb and the bone ammunition, which was probably fired from an air gun.”

  “So now what?” Nydia asked. “It’s all still circumstantial evidence, definitely no more solid than what the town is using to convict Tree. We can’t lower ourselves to that level.”

  “No, but we can continue to pursue this, and see where it leads. Or more to the point, I can,” Gabriel said. “I’m going to put a little heat on the mayor. I reached him on the cellular phone, but he’s fishing out at Deer Lake, and the connection was lousy. I want to go talk to him eye to eye. In the meantime, I have a favor to ask of you.”

  “Name it,” Joshua said without hesitation.

  “It’s dark now, and I’m worried about my wife. She hasn’t been feeling well. I don’t want her alone tonight. Will you go over there and stay with her until I get back?”

  “We may bring her more danger,” Nydia cautioned, avoiding the use of names as he’d done.

  “Not if you go there without attracting attention. My brother knows the long way.”

  “Why didn’t you tell us she’d been sick before? Is it serious?” Joshua asked.

  “No, I don’t think so. Fact is, she hasn’t said anything about it, but I noticed that she’s been sick to her stomach a lot in the morning. I think it’s just stress.”

  Joshua glanced at Nydia, suppressing a smile. His brother, despite his skill as an investigator, could sometimes be as thick as a brick when it came to the simple things in life. “We’ll stay with her.”

  “Tell her I’ll call her in a little bit, okay?”

  “No problem.”

  As they got under way, Joshua looked at Nydia. “I’d be willing to bet she’s pregnant, and waiting for the right time to tell my brother. I can’t wait to see his face when he finds out he’s going to be a daddy.”

  She laughed. “He doesn’t have a clue, does he?”

  “I don’t think it has occurred to him yet,” Joshua said, then grew somber. “But then again, his mind has been on other things.”

  When they arrived at Lanie’s, they saw her sitting outside in the porch swing. She stood up, concern clear on her features. “Is something wrong?” she asked quickly.