Changing Woman

by Thurlo, David

  “I won’t stop doing what I see as my responsibility to our tribe just to avoid silly gossip. I wouldn’t expect that of you, daughter, so please don’t expect it from me.”

  “Just tell me what happened,” Ella said, mollified. Rose did, then ended by telling her about the ashes they’d found in Lena’s car.

  “That must have really surprised both of you,” Ella said.

  “It did, but it wasn’t a big deal, not like—” Rose looked away.

  Ella eyes narrowed. “Like what? Finish it, Mom.” Rose stared at an indeterminate spot across the room. “Never mind.”

  “No, Mom, I have to know.”

  Rose sighed, then told her about tribal councilman Ronald Etcitty’s visit. “It was unpleasant. He wanted to frighten me, but he wasn’t openly hostile or threatening. It was more like he was explaining the facts in the most negative way possible.”

  Ella battled the anger that threatened to erupt inside her. There was no way she’d allow anyone to come to her home and try to intimidate her family. Yet, she’d have to tread carefully. Everything he’d said was true—the only thing really open to question was his intent. “I’m going to pay that councilman a visit, Mom. I’ll handle this.”

  “Don’t you dare,” Rose said. “This is my fight, and I won’t have you interfering. He will not get what he wants, and that’s enough. Your job is to make sure his predictions don’t come true.”

  Ella stared at Rose in surprise. She couldn’t remember the last time her mother had raised her voice. “Mom, I can’t allow him to—”

  “You are not involved.” Rose paused and took a deep breath. “This politician told me the truth as he saw it. Granted, it was worded in a way intended to scare me, but he made no illegal threats. How I respond to him is up to me.”

  The phone rang and Ella started to reach for it, but Rose shook her head. “It’s for me.”

  Ella stared in amazement at her mother, then slowly smiled. Rose had come into her own, and no one was going to stand in her way, certainly not her own daughter.

  Proud of her mother, Ella closed the door, giving Rose her privacy. At work, Ella was a woman with a certain amount of authority, but at home she was just Rose’s daughter and Dawn’s mom. And for now, all she needed to think about was having breakfast with her daughter.

  Ella sat in Big Ed’s office as he read the printout of her exchange with Coyote earlier that morning. His concentration was evident in the fact that he wasn’t rocking back and forth in his chair.

  “You could come under fire without any warning, at any time, indoors and out. I don’t like this, Shorty.”

  “Cops are always targets, that’s nothing really new. And there’s nothing we can do about it except stay on our toes. But I’m going to warn Justine and the others and let them know what’s going on.”

  “Good idea. Your partner, in particular, needs to know. I know she’s been looking out for you, but this will put her on guard everywhere you go together. At least Blalock and the FBI finally came up with those special vests. Every member of the SI team will be picking one up when they report for duty today.” He paused. “On another matter, have you seen Farmington’s morning paper?”

  “No, not yet.” She braced herself, thinking he was probably referring to another article about her mother.

  “Andrew Talk resigned his Tribal Council position. He made a statement to the press explaining that he was being blackmailed to vote a particular way on the gaming issue, and he would not allow himself to be put in that situation. He assured the tribe that he’d never cast any previous votes while under coercion and would never do so. He also blamed the typist’s death on the blackmailer.”

  “Did he reveal why he was being blackmailed?” “He called it a ’momentary indiscretion’ and said that one mistake wouldn’t compel him to make an even greater one.” Big Ed paused. “He’ll probably come out of this okay politically, and maybe pick up a few supporters because of his honesty.”

  “I should go talk to him. If he resigned, maybe it was the blackmailer’s idea, not his. I’d like to know exactly why he did this now.”

  “He’s in Farmington at the moment. He called me this morning to say that he was afraid they’d go after his wife and daughters next, so he rented a condo for them in one of those gated communities. He’ll be there all day with his family, but he asked that you don’t divulge his family’s whereabouts and, if you have to speak with him, that you be careful no one follows you.” Big Ed slipped her a piece of paper with the address and telephone number.

  “I wonder if he resigned because he wanted to put a different spin on things, or because he was really afraid for his family?” Ella asked as an afterthought.

  “Find out, Shorty. But now we have a new problem. The shady people trying to lean on our politicians have suddenly had a spotlight shined on them. They may retaliate in some way and we’ve got to be ready for that. The stakes just got higher.”

  “I know. Those vests couldn’t have come at a better time.” Ella stood. “I’ll get to Farmington and see if Talk has anything to tell me.”

  “Keep me posted.”

  Ella stopped by her office, and seconds after she sat down, Justine came in, displaying the special vest like a model on a fashion show runway. “Well, what do you think of the new winter look for plainclothes cops?” Justine teased.

  “It’s so you.” Ella nodded enthusiastically. “Just don’t leave home without it. Do you have anything new on Betty Nez’s murder yet?” Ella grew serious.

  “No. The formal autopsy report hasn’t come in yet, and the only prints we found in her house were her own, her daughter’s, and Talk’g. The salt shaker we took from the table had been wiped clean.”

  “Talk still has no alibi, so he remains a suspect. Did any of the neighbors report seeing anyone at the Nez house that morning?”

  “No, and we’ve now had a chance to speak to everyone in that area. The problem is that most of them work and were gone. It was too early for someone coming home for lunch to see anything.”

  “Perfect timing for our killer.”

  Justine nodded. “Big Ed just buzzed and said you wanted to talk to me.”

  Ella smiled. The chief knew how to motivate her without saying a word. “Yeah. We’ve got problems.” She told Justine about the increased danger of attack.

  “I’ll keep my eyes wide open, Ella, wherever we are. Just remember to keep wearing your own vest.”

  The look that passed between them spoke volumes. They both knew that bulletproof vests . . . weren’t.

  “Come on, I want to go talk to Lorraine and Andrew Talk again. I’ll fill you in on the way,” Ella said, grabbing her keys and tossing them to Justine.

  As they drove to Farmington, Ella telephoned Andrew using the number the chief had given her. “We’re coming to speak with you again.”

  “Fine, but don’t come to the... here,” he said quickly. “This is my wife’s home now and I want it to be a safe place for her and the girls. If someone follows you...”

  “No one will.”

  “I can’t take that chance,” he said flatly. “I’ll meet you at the coffee shop in the mall on West Main.”

  “All right.”

  Ella passed the information on to Justine. “I want to find out why he gave that statement to the press. It was my impression he wasn’t going to resign unless he had no other alternative. If the blackmailer contacted him again we need to know.”

  “Do you think that’s what happened?”

  Ella shook her head. “I have a feeling he’s playing us—and the voters.”

  “What he pulled was pretty convenient for him,” Justine agreed. “Let’s see what he has to say about it.”

  By the time they arrived at the coffee shop, Andrew Talk was already there. He was wearing a baseball cap that shaded his face, and he’d traded his office clothes for a nylon ski jacket and jeans. He waved at them from a corner booth as they came in the front door.

  �
�I’m glad you picked a booth where we can have some privacy,” Ella said, sitting down and ordering some coffee from the waitress. “And I notice you’re dressing down.”

  “And you two must shop at the same store.” He noted their matching dark blue vests, which outwardly looked like casual winter garb.

  Talk waited until the waitress had refilled his cup and taken their order for coffee before he continued. “I figured you’d want to talk to me after you heard the news. That’s why I told Big Ed where I’d be.”

  “We appreciate that. Now tell me what happened. What prompted your sudden resignation?”

  Talk expelled his breath in a soft whoosh. “There was no new threat, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized I had to do something positive. My priority is the tribe, and I felt that the public needed to know the kinds of people involved in this divisive issue. If they tried to blackmail me, you can bet they’re doing the same thing to some of the others, too. The Dineh needed to know that. Maybe this will force the weasels who are trying these strong-arm tactics to back off. If it does, then it was worth the cost.”

  “You speak of ’they.’ What makes you think that there are others involved in the blackmail, and not just one guy with a camera?” Ella asked.

  Talk hesitated. “I’m not at liberty to say.”

  “You’ve spoken to some of the other council members, haven’t you?” Ella’s gaze grew hard. “Don’t you dare pull this ’honor the good-ole-boy network’ bull. I’m investigating extortion, murder, and now political corruption. If you insist on playing games with me, you’re going to be slapped with obstruction of justice. Am I making myself very clear?”

  “Extremely,” Andrew said coldly. He paused, considering his words carefully. “I have reason to believe that there’s at least one more member of the council who’s being blackmailed. I don’t have any evidence to prove it, but I’ve heard a rumor that a pueblo woman has been passing the threats along to the councilman via meetings with his aide. These meetings are short and usually clandestine.”

  Ella knew Andrew was talking about Blueeyes and Kevin. Nevertheless, she went through the motions. “Who’s the councilman?”

  “The rumors haven’t been specific about that.” “Then tell me who you suspect. Is it someone local, or are we talking about a councilman from the Arizona side of the Rez?”

  He shook his head. “It’s your job to uncover what’s going on. I’ve helped you all I can.” Andrew stood up and tossed several bills on the table. “And from now on, stay away from my family.”

  “I may still have to talk to your wife.”

  “Then meet with her at our attorney’s office,” he said flatly, then looked through his wallet, picked out a business card, and threw it on the table. “She told me the kind of questions you asked her. I won’t have you talking to her again unless an attorney is present.”

  “Why are you so worried—if you have nothing to hide?”

  “I’m a politician. I’ve learned never to underestimate the danger someone bucking for promotion can pose and the depths to which they can sink.”

  Talk strode off before Ella could answer.

  Justine looked at Ella. “You really pissed him off.” “That I did.”

  “But you know what, boss? I don’t think he killed Betty Nez. On the other hand, it’s pretty obvious he’s playing games. His resignation seems to be more political maneuvering than anything else. He’s probably hoping that after all’s said and done, he’ll come out looking like the tribe’s savior, and his constituents will be begging for him to run for office.”

  Ella smiled. “What a cynic. I didn’t think you had it in you, cousin.”

  “One of the first things you learn as a cop is that if you assume the worst, you’ll probably be right.” Justine stopped and added, “Of course, you also learn other useful things, like placing a gun back in the holster with your finger on the trigger will cause you to walk with a limp.”

  Ella laughed and stood, ready to leave. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw three men entering the coffee shop. She smiled immediately, recognizing the man leading the way. It was her old boss from L.A., Special-Agent-in-Charge Henry Estrada. She stepped in his direction, then stopped and turned away as she realized that the two Indian men with him weren’t Navajos or people she recognized.

  “What’s up?” Justine asked softly.

  Ella shook her head and walked to the cash register, trying to come across as casual. Henry had avoided looking directly at her, yet he knew she was there. The answer to his strange behavior came to her suddenly, making her heart pound frantically and her palms break out in sweat. Henry Estrada was Coyote.

  As she stood at the cash register, Ella looked around the room indifferently, careful not to let her excitement show in any way. She wanted to identify the men with Henry, but one had his back to her and the other wore a cowboy hat that cast a shadow over his features. The only part of his face she could see clearly, his cheek, showed deep pockmarks. Henry was keeping watch while the other two men talked, behaving as if he were providing security.

  As soon as they stepped outside, Justine looked at Ella. “What’s up? Is there something I should know about the three who came in just as we were leaving the booth?”

  She didn’t want to tell Justine what she knew about Coyote yet, so she answered cautiously. “I couldn’t see them clearly, but I saw enough to know that the one wearing the jeans, a leather sport coat, and expensive cowboy hat had pockmarks on his face. All in all he fits the description of the man who hired the two Anglos we arrested. Remember my report?”

  Justine nodded. “Let me go back inside. I can get a closer look as I pretend to leave a better tip at our table.”

  Ella shook her head. She knew it would be too risky with Henry inside. “They may have seen our weapons and made us as cops. I’ve got a better plan. Let’s drive a little farther away, then stake out the shop. We’ll get their license plates as soon as they return to their vehicle or vehicles. Then we’ll follow the guy with the pockmarked face.”

  EIGHTEEN

  They waited for nearly an hour, but their patience finally paid off. Seeing all three men get into the same gray vehicle, Ella called in the license plate.

  “The vehicle belongs to Four Corners Rental,” Dispatch told her within two minutes.

  “Ten-four.” Ella glanced around the street, but there was very little traffic. “Follow them, Justine, but hang way back. There aren’t that many cars around to blend in with.”

  “If I stay back, we may lose them.”

  “We have to take the chance,” Ella advised. “We can’t risk getting any closer, not without having them make us. But it looks as though they’re heading for Shiprock, and there’s only one direct route. We may have gotten lucky.”

  They drove out from the edge of the city on the main highway, heading west toward the Rez. Justine hung back, and Ella kept her eyes glued on the sedan a half mile or more ahead, determined to get a lead without compromising Coyote.

  For the next ten minutes they kept at least one vehicle between them and the sedan, but then Justine had to hit the brakes and almost come to a stop to avoid a gasoline truck pulling out in front of them at Kirtland, a farming community east of Shiprock. As they waited for a chance to get around the slowly accelerating truck, with a plodding van in the passing lane, the sedan disappeared over the next hill.

  By the time Justine reached the crest of the hill, the sedan was gone. Realizing the vehicle must have turned off onto one of the side roads, they headed south and drove into a residential area along the old two-lane highway.

  “They couldn’t have made us,” Justine said, unable to spot the sedan anywhere. “We were too far behind.”

  “They may have suspected we were here,” Ella said, “or normally take circuitous routes and backtrack to throw off any potential tails. We underestimated them.” She wondered if Henry, worried that she’d compromise him, had tipped them off. He may have notic
ed the tribal unit behind them despite its being unmarked. He never missed much, as she recalled, and he was driving the other two.

  “Do you realize where we are?” Justine asked suddenly.

  Ella glanced around and smiled. “We’re near George Branch’s house. Now, this is an interesting turn of events. Let’s make a pass by his place.”

  “We’re still out of our jurisdiction,” Justine warned. “Do it anyway.”

  They passed by the small farmhouse just east of the reservation line a short time later, but although the flashy SUV the radio personality drove was there, the sedan they’d been following was nowhere in sight.

  “Drive back toward Kirtland on the old road along the river valley,” Ella said, frustrated. “Maybe we’ll get lucky.”

  Though they were thorough, the search proved futile, and by the time they were on their way back to the Rez both of them had lapsed into a heavy silence that continued until they arrived at the station.

  It was two o’clock in the afternoon, and having skipped lunch, Ella stopped by the machines in the lobby and got a prepackaged sandwich. Although they always tasted like the cellophane they came wrapped in, it was better than nothing.

  Back at her desk, Ella checked with the car rental company and learned that they didn’t own a gray sedan the make and model she described, only white ones. The rental sticker and the license plate turned out to have been stolen from one of their vehicles. The news didn’t surprise her. Somehow she’d expected them to throw her a curveball.

  Justine came in a moment later and Ella filled her in. “Figures,” Justine muttered. “Talk about a useless lead. Should we put out a bulletin on the car?”

  Ella shook her head. “Try it, but only by word of mouth, land line, or cell phone, even if it takes a while. They’ve probably already changed the tags again, or dumped the vehicle. And make sure our officers don’t move in if they do find these guys. We want more on them than auto theft.”