by Aimée
Justine nodded. “The miners really resent our involvement in this case. It’s hard to get them to answer even the simplest of questions.”
They had just reached the road when a van coming slowly up the highway suddenly left its lane and veered toward them.
“Jump!” Ella yelled.
Justine hesitated at the edge of the incline. In a heartbeat, Ella knocked her assistant’s knees out from under her and shoved Justine over the edge of the steep hill. With one last glance at the oncoming vehicle, she slid down behind her.
EIGHT
Ella sat up slowly, rubbing her back. She felt as if every rock embedded in the sand and dirt of the incline had left a permanent imprint on her. “Cousin, are you okay?” she asked quickly, looking around for Justine.
Ella heard a yelp of pain and looked toward the sound. Justine had landed on a thicket of tumbleweeds. Ella winced, still remembering how her own skin had itched and swelled just the other day.
“I’m okay, but my ankle…” Justine crawled free of the thicket, pulling tumbleweed spikes from her hands. “I think I sprained it. But I shouldn’t complain. I could have been spread flatter than a tortilla on that highway.”
“I wish I’d managed to get a better look at the vehicle before I jumped clear.” Ella glanced at the incline they’d have to climb, then back at Justine. “You stay here. I’m going to call the paramedics.”
“Oh please, don’t. A sprained ankle sounds like the type of injury a wimpy heroine gets in a bad movie so the hero can bail her out. The guys at the station would never let me hear the end of it. Give me a break, okay?”
“You may already have one,” she said, glancing down at Justine’s ankle. Unfortunately, she also knew exactly how the guys in the department could be. Seeing the pleading look in Justine’s eyes, she relented. “Okay, come on. They’ll still know, you won’t be able to hide this, but at least you’ll be able to say you took care of it yourself.” Ella picked up a sturdy cottonwood branch and handed it to Justine to use as a cane.
Working together, they went up slowly, but finally made it to the top. As Ella guided Justine toward the Jeep she noticed a note tucked under the windshield wiper.
“Someone gave you a ticket?” Justine blurted.
“No, I don’t think that’s what it is. Hang on.” She helped Justine inside, then snatched the note.
An icy chill gripped Ella as she recognized the writing and read the message. “Reach into the glove compartment and hand me an evidence bag,” she told Justine.
“What is it?” Justine said, doing as Ella asked.
“The note reads, ‘Looking forward to seeing you again, daughter-in-law.’ It’s signed, ‘Randall.’” Ella suppressed the shudder that started at the base of her spine. It made no sense to let Justine see how much this unnerved her.
Justine’s eyebrows knitted together as she frowned. “Your father-in-law, our former, very crooked police chief, is dead. You know it’s a forgery.”
“I’d like you to check out the handwriting anyway when you can. It’ll let us know how skillful a forger the person who wrote this is.”
“You did kill him, right?”
“I led the assault against him and the other Navajo witches who killed my dad and kidnapped my brother’s wife. Several people witnessed his death.” She glanced at Justine and saw her face contort in pain as she tried to shift into a more comfortable position. “I’ll get you to the hospital right now. The note will wait.”
“No, we can’t go yet. We’ll lose whatever evidence is here.”
“Are you sure you can stand to wait a little bit?”
“Yes. Actually, my ankle is kinda numb right now.”
“I don’t know if that’s a good or bad sign,” Ella said.
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll hate myself if you don’t follow through on this because of me.”
Ella nodded, reaching behind her to the back seat. “I’ll only be a few moments.” Ella studied the ground. Beside her own boot prints and Justine’s, were two, light, featureless padlike marks, the type moccasins would leave behind. Near them, she found two small, circular marks about the size of a quarter, but she had no idea what could have made those. She then studied the road for tire marks, but there was nothing there to record.
As Ella glanced around the area her skin prickled. There was danger here. She could feel an imbalance, as if something had suddenly been added to the equation, but not in her favor.
She hurried back to the Jeep and saw Justine’s face covered with perspiration. “You don’t look like someone whose injury is numb,” Ella said quickly.
“I lied. You don’t happen to have any aspirin, do you?”
Ella switched on the sirens and started the Jeep. “Hang on. We’ll be at the hospital soon.”
* * *
Ella dropped Justine off at the ER, then went downstairs to talk to Carolyn. The note preyed on her mind, leaving her feeling as if she were tottering at the edge of a cliff.
Carolyn was at her desk when Ella walked in, but as soon as she met Ella’s gaze she immediately came to put an arm around her shoulder, leading her to the back room. “You look like hell. What happened?”
Ella stared at the bookshelves and the cot Carolyn slept in more nights than she spent at home. “It’s been crazy,” Ella said, and filled her friend in on the note. “I know it’s a trick, but it threw me.”
“Not surprising. But when you calm down it’ll just make you spitting mad. I know you,” Carolyn chided gently.
Ella smiled. “You’re right. I don’t like having someone jerking my chain.”
Carolyn chuckled. “Nah, really? I figure—” She stopped as she heard a male voice boom out her first name. “What the—”
“Carolyn Roanhorse! I want to talk to you now!”
Carolyn smirked. “That almost sounds like a royal command, but I don’t remember the Rez as a monarchy, do you? Hang on. I’ll be right back.” She reached into the top drawer of her desk and placed what she retrieved in her pocket before she strode out.
Ella recognized Senator Yellowhair’s voice, saw the hard set on Carolyn’s face, and knew the politician was about to get an earful. If there was one thing she knew about her friend, it was that nobody pushed her around. A minute later she heard Carolyn’s voice.
“What do you think you’re doing bursting in here and bellowing for me like I’m either your watch dog, or horror of horrors, some moron who is stupid enough to vote for you.”
“You always had a mouth on you. Not that I mind, of course, the more enemies you make, the easier it will be to topple you.”
“You’re full of it,” Carolyn snapped. “Now tell me what you want. I don’t like the stench you bring into a room.”
“This from a woman who works with the dead.”
“A rotting corpse smells sweeter than a crooked politician.”
Ella leaned closer to the door. Her theory that there was a history between Carolyn and the senator had just been confirmed.
“You’re trying to ruin me with your phoney medical reports,” the senator said. “But this form of revenge is beneath even you. How can you turn the death of my beautiful little girl into a scandal? She had a car accident, that’s all there was to it and you know it. You’ve faked the tests and mutilated her body with your autopsy just so you can destroy me. It’s all because I publicly stated that I don’t believe our tribe should have an M.E. because of our beliefs.”
“Don’t flatter yourself. This has nothing to do with you or the irresponsible stand you took,” Carolyn said, her voice soft. “My job is too important to me to throw it away over the likes of you. I know your grief is genuine and I’m very sorry about your daughter’s death, but don’t let grief cloud your thinking completely. When your daughter was brought here, the autopsy was necessary because there was no clear cause of death and, legally, one has to be established. The officer at the scene saw your daughter’s car weaving all over the road, and she wasn’t the only
witness who can attest to that. The reason the police were called in at all was because someone else saw what your daughter was doing.”
“I heard all that already. I understand the legal need to establish a cause of death, but my daughter didn’t take peyote or any other drugs. And to claim that someone poisoned her is ridiculous. That was just your way of making sure my life went under scrutiny.”
“This isn’t about you or me. The tests were all properly conducted. The results are incontrovertible. Are you so worried about your reputation and political career that you’re willing to let the person responsible for your daughter’s death escape unpunished?”
“There was no killer, and there were no drugs,” he said flatly. “You fabricated that. You told me once that you’d find the time and place to exact your revenge. You warned me that you wouldn’t do it in anger, because you wouldn’t allow that to interfere with what would otherwise be a perfect plan.”
“I did say that,” Carolyn admitted slowly. “I meant it at the time, too, but that was many, many years ago. I won’t lie to you, James. You’re not my favorite person. As a matter of fact, I believe you’re crooked to the bone. But I wouldn’t use my position as M.E. to bring you down. You’ll hang yourself, probably with your own rope, too.”
“If you cost me the election I’ll find a way to bring you to your knees.”
“You’ll lose this election inch by inch all by yourself. It’ll happen each time you open that mouth of yours or pull some fool stunt. And, I must admit, you’re off to a great start with that tryst at the motel.”
“I can contain the damage that caused. But I won’t tolerate your games. I know you, Carolyn, and I know precisely how to destroy you.”
“This conversation is pointless. My findings are all documented and the tests were properly conducted. There’s nothing more for me to say.”
“Remember my warning. I’m a better hardball player than you’ll ever be.”
Ella heard the senator’s footsteps as he walked out. She waited, then stepped out of the back room. Carolyn was leaning against the wall, her face flushed.
“You okay?” Ella asked.
“Yeah.” Carolyn pulled the miniature tape recorder she used during autopsies from her lab coat, clicking off the record button. “Good thing I thought of getting this out. I have a feeling I may need a record of this conversation sometime.” She popped out the tape and handed it to Ella. “Hang on to it for me.”
“May I make a suggestion?” Ella saw Carolyn nod, and continued. “Detail all the test results on the police reports. Then lock up all the tissue samples taken from Angelina at the autopsy. Those should be protected in case the senator pressures you to confirm your findings or brings in an outside consultant.”
“Yes, you’re right. He’s out for my blood now.”
“Yes, but what started it all? You still haven’t told me.”
“That’s right. I haven’t.” Her voice was colder than Ella had ever heard it before. “It has nothing to do with Angelina’s death, and it’s strictly my business.”
Ella clamped her jaw. Carolyn was as stubborn as a mule sometimes. It would do no good to press her now. She’d talk when she was ready.
Ella glanced up at Howard Lee as he came in. “I’m sorry I’m late, Doctor, but I had duties upstairs. I was helping Dr. Martinez.”
“You’re assigned to me, and I expect you to be on time,” Carolyn snapped.
“Well, yes, I’m sorry, but—”
“Spare me the excuses. Now go get the tissue samples we froze from the Yellowhair autopsy.”
As Howard turned and went into the next room, Carolyn glanced at Ella. “This boy is laid-back about almost everything. It makes me crazy sometimes.”
Howard came into the room just as Carolyn finished, his face downcast. “Oh, Doctor, you’re not going to like this at all.”
“What’s wrong?” she asked quickly.
“I can’t find the tissue samples. They should have been in the freezer, but I don’t see them anywhere in there.”
“You did put them there after the autopsy, right?”
“Of course. They were on the top shelf, right-hand side, but they’re not there now.”
“Let me go take a look,” she said, glancing back at Ella. “I’ll be right back.”
Ella watched her friend go. She had a real bad feeling about this. When Carolyn returned her expression said it all.
“They’ve been mixed up with samples from other autopsies,” she said. “Some of the labels apparently came loose and were reattached, but very obviously to the wrong containers.”
“Who had access to those samples?”
“Howard, myself, and anyone else on the staff who might wander in during the day. Of course, anyone who knows the layout down here could have just as easily found them. It wouldn’t take a genius to know the samples have to be frozen, and there’s only one freezer unit down here.”
Ella gave Howard a long, speculative look, searching him for signs that he was responsible. He never blinked.
“I may not pay too much attention to time clocks,” Howard snapped at last, “but I’m not sloppy when it comes to my work.”
“Have you discussed this case with anyone?” Ella asked him, remembering having seen him with Nelson Yellowhair.
“Only Dr. Roanhorse. The type of work done in a morgue isn’t exactly a popular topic of conversation.”
She stared back at him for several more seconds, but he never flinched.
“Unlike you two, work isn’t my driving passion, but I’m not careless,” Lee added. “I hate to point out the obvious, but somebody has tampered with our samples.”
Carolyn gave Howard a hard look. “This has cost us crucial evidence. I don’t want any mention of what has happened to go outside this room. Is that clear?” Her gaze bored holes through him.
“Yes, Doctor, perfectly.”
“Good. Get to work, then. I need transcripts of all the autopsy tapes. They’re cutting back staff upstairs so we have to do it.” She glanced at Ella. “Senator Yellowhair has been pushing to cut back operations at this center for months now. He wants some of our personnel relocated to Window Rock, so he fights by not allocating us sufficient funds.”
“I hate to bring this up,” Ella said as Lee left the room, “but if the senator pushes on those findings, we’re going to be in major trouble. No physical evidence that has been compromised will hold up in court.”
“Don’t worry. We can weather this.” Carolyn took Ella into the autopsy suite and gave her a determined, half smile. “It’s all right,” she said, keeping her voice low. “I can’t say I expected this to happen, but I did feel I should cover myself at every turn. That’s why I have a backup set of tissue and fluid samples from Angelina’s autopsy labeled under a separate code number and stored in another lab.”
“Good going.” A heavy weight lifted off Ella’s chest. “Now nobody can question the autopsy report.”
“I generally take duplicate samples in case something goes wrong, but this time, I took the precaution of hiding my dupes. It was my intention all along to send them to an independent lab so my findings could be substantiated. When I learned the name of the deceased, I realized we couldn’t afford there being any question about the validity of my results.”
“Can I make a suggestion? Let me have Sergeant Neskahi hand deliver those samples to the lab we use in Santa Fe. I trust that man implicitly.”
“All right. I’ll sign them over to him. Make sure he comes after four in the afternoon though. I don’t think my med student needs to know about this.”
“You’ve got it. And keep an eye on that guy, will you? I found out he also works at the first-aid station at the coal mine. He could be involved in the trouble there.”
Carolyn laughed. “Him? Howard is only interested in Howard.”
“Just be careful, huh?” Ella walked to the door. “I better go check on Justine.”
Ella left the morgue feeling
more disturbed than when she’d arrived. She didn’t think Howard Lee had purposely done anything to those samples. It would have been too incriminating, and he appeared to be too smart for that. But someone was certainly trying to cause trouble for Carolyn.
Ella was almost at the elevator when she saw Nelson Yellowhair coming down the hall, rolling a supply cart before him. Ella turned away from the elevator and headed for the stairs, making a point of passing him in the hall.
“Hello,” she greeted. “You’re down here quite often, aren’t you.” He certainly had a motive and the opportunity to sabotage the autopsy samples.
“It’s my job. I bring supplies down. If you have any objections talk to my supervisor. I do as I’m told and collect my paycheck,” he snapped.
“You wouldn’t have a more personal agenda, would you?” Ella asked, hoping to goad the man into some unguarded admission.
“No, that’s more up your alley,” he said, then pushed the cart past her and continued down the hall.
Ella watched him for several more moments. Who better than the senator’s brother to sabotage Carolyn’s work or, at the very least, spy on her? Unfortunately, she had no proof of either.
Ella went upstairs, and as she reached the ER, saw Justine hobbling out of an examination room on crutches. Her foot was bandaged, but not in a cast.
“A sprain?”
Justine nodded. “It’s not bad. I can still work, though I’m supposed to be keeping my leg up as much as I can.”
“You could take some time off.”
She shook her head. “No way. I want to get started analyzing the writing on that note, and then check out the photos you took back at the site where I got injured.”
“It’s four o’clock now. Neither of us had any lunch, so you might as well go home, have an early dinner, and go to bed. You can start working on the note in the morning. I can drop you off.”
“I’m not tired, really. What I am is eager to find out who tried to turn us into roadkill. That just pisses me off.”
Ella laughed. “Okay, I’ll drop you off at the station. Have one of the patrols take you home when you’re ready to call it a day.”