~~~~~~
When Paul and Harley were in their blankets the old man turned on his cot and asked in Navajo, “Do you remember that man, Edward Bitsinnii?”
Though nearly asleep, and somewhat startled, Harley answered without hesitation. “I remember him.” He would never forget the name, but couldn’t imagine why Paul would ask such a question now.
“What did you two have a falling out about… back then when you were working over in Ganado?”
Harley wondered where the old man might be going with all this. “Oh, I don’ know, I guess I’ve forgotten.”
“No you haven’t,” Paul insisted. “It was about Anita, wasn’t it?”
Harley raised his head from the rolled up jacket he used as a pillow, and then forgetting his manners demanded, “How do you know about that?”
The old man chuckled. “I know a lot about the Witch of Ganado. There’s no one left in this family that knows as much. He and I were related––not just by clan––by blood. My father had taken a second, younger wife… not uncommon in those days… that was just the way it was. That woman, though, was, as I’ve said, much younger than my father. She later bore him another son, but still she was considered my mother, too. Edward Bitsinnii was my half-brother from that other woman. But half-brother or full brother or clan brother, it is all the same to our people. We were brothers.” These were things the old man had not spoken of in many years and Harley could sense the emotion in his voice.
“Our uncle, Elmore Shining Horse,” Paul went on, “was the Hataalii that was teaching me to be a singer. He was well known in those parts back then, but not always for the right reasons. He made a lot of money and owned a lot of sheep and horses in those days and he didn’t really care how he came by them either. Oh, he knew the prayers and the songs, and how the sand painting should be done, but he was not a good man inside… in his heart… so later, when I began to see what he was really all about, I up and left him and didn’t continue my studies. I already knew nearly everything he had to teach me anyway. I have always had a good memory and even to this day there is very little I have forgotten about those times and what I learned.”
Harley listened and didn’t interrupt. He knew old people like Paul T’Sosi might take a long time getting around to the point of a conversation. They liked to drag things out… get all the good out of it one might say. When the old man stopped for a minute, Harley thought he might have fallen asleep and was about to do the same when he heard a rustle of blankets and Paul once more began to speak.
“Well, anyhow, after I left the service of my uncle, my brother decided he wanted to take my place and help with the ceremonies. Uncle admitted later that Edward had never been suited for that life. He was still just a boy really, much younger than me, and as you well know, Navajo boys are not usually taught much by their own fathers. It is more often an uncle that takes on that responsibility. We Diné are easy on our children. Fathers especially are thought to be too soft on their sons––often they can’t bring themselves to impose the sort of discipline it takes to learn what might be needed. That is the way it has always been for us Diné, and I know it to be true in other tribes as well. I guess it is just the way Indians are and how they had to be to survive in those times. In this case, however, it did not work out so well for Edward Bitsinnii. Gradually it was rumored that he was not becoming a healer at all but was using his knowledge to do evil and cause bad things to happen to people he didn’t like. I do not know this to be a fact, you understand, but that was what was talked around at the time.”
Harley could hear the old man shift position again and thought he could see him cover his nose with his blankets; they were cheap store blankets and really didn’t keep a body warm.
When Paul spoke again, his voice was somewhat muffled. “Edward Bitsinnii didn’t live in Ganado at that time. In those days our whole bunch lived over in this part of Dinéta. All Anita’s people lived over this way too––this was before you even knew Anita––you still lived up in Tsé Bii’ Ndzisgaii with your own people and hadn’t even met Anita.”
Harley perked up his ears but was fearful of where this talk might be taking them. He recalled very well how he and Edward Bitsinnii first met, working on a pipeline camp job. The older man was the boss of the ditch crew. The two of them one day got to talking about things, as working men sometimes will when taking a rest, just to make conversation. Harley mentioned he’d just married a Dibé Lizhini clan girl, the Black Sheep people. It was then Edward Bitsinnii gave him a strange look and asked him what the girl’s name was. When he heard it was Anita, he turned sour and only talked a little more before cutting the conversation short and going back to work.
The next morning Edward Bitsinnii, who was not only older but much bigger than Harley, came right up to him and, without saying a word, pushed Harley hard in the chest, causing him to fall across a shovel and nearly go headlong into the trench. No one expected what came next. Harley, while not so big, was lightning fast and a fierce fighter when the occasion called for it. He jumped up––grabbing the shovel as he came––and proceeded to beat the older man until fellow workers pulled him away and made him settle down. “You’re going to get us all fired,” they told him and were not easy with him as they said it.
When Edward Bitsinnii was finally able to pull himself to his feet, he bent over, worked his jaws, and spat out a tooth. Then he fixed Harley with a long and deadly stare. “Why’d you make that girl over there marry you for anyhow? She said she liked me, and that when I came back from this camp job, she was sure we would get married.”
Harley was so shocked at this he couldn’t reply; he couldn’t bring himself to believe that Anita would have anything to do with this rough-talking older man.
And that was when Edward Bitsinnii laid so powerful a curse on Harley Ponyboy that years later it still was affecting not only Harley’s life but those of his friends as well. Harley had quit that pipeline job the next day and took the bus back home to Anita. He never saw the Witch of Ganado again.
When Harley had told Paul all this he then admitted that was why Anita had left him... because of the curse. She was still a young woman, she told him, and was becoming desperate to have a child of her own. Now she felt that would never happen, at least not as long as she was with Harley and there was that evil magic hanging over his head. She had then gone so far as to say, “The reason Sue Yazzie almost lost her baby was the fault of you, Harley Ponyboy, being in her house that day when she went into labor.”
Paul grew increasingly angry as he listened to Harley tell about these things. He was certain now, brother or no brother, such an evil must be fixed no matter what the cost.
The old man’s mind wandered back to that day, several years before, when Sue Yazzie had come to him… worried about the curse.
“Shih-chai.” Sue had used the Diné word for “father” as a term of respect. “Do you know about Harley Ponyboy and the supposed ‘curse’ that is on him?” She had looked down at her belly, which seemed to increase in size hourly. “Charlie says it is silliness and to pay it no mind.”
Paul had nodded but did not look directly at her. “Yes, Charlie Yazzie was away at school more than most. He thinks he no longer believes in the old ways, but he may come to think differently in time.”
“But what about Anita losing those two babies?” Sue had asked.
Paul remembered exactly what he had told her back then. “Sometimes things just happen and no one knows why. Anita was always a sickly girl. Her own mother told her she should not try to have children. After she lost that first baby her clan paid for a healing ceremony… and those Bitter Water people are close with their money, too. The ceremony was handled by a very well known singer, and cost everyone a lot of money. It didn’t change anything. To me, that means it probably wasn’t magic that caused the problem to start with.”
After thinking about this, Sue admitted. “That is about what Charlie told me too.”
“I wouldn�
��t worry yourself about it, daughter.” The old man reached over and patted her hand. “That baby will come when he is ready, and he will be fine. You know, my uncle––whose name I will not mention as he is dead now––often said he could tell whether a baby would be a boy or girl by how low or high the woman carried it in her belly.” The old man showed just a hint of a smile. “My uncle was a famous singer in those days and made a good bit of money making such predictions.” Paul chuckled. “And he was usually right too––about fifty percent of the time!”
Sue had laughed along with him and breathed an audible sigh of relief. “This is a great weight off my shoulders,” she had said and Paul could see in her eyes it was so… and was glad he had not told her everything he knew about the Witch of Ganado.
Paul’s thoughts only returned to the summer hogan when Harley raised himself on one elbow and began asking more questions about Edward Bitsinnii and if there was nothing that could be done about the curse.
Harley Ponyboy and the old singer continued to talk long into the night, and in the morning the old man decided there were very few options; one of them was to kill the witch outright. In times past it was thought a witch deserved to be killed and many people still thought that was the best and only lasting solution.
The Plan
After Lucy Tallwoman left for the offices of Legal Services and her meeting with Charlie Yazzie, and after the children had left for school, the three men in the hogan seated themselves around the table for another round of morning coffee and to see what might be done about the Witch of Ganado. Harley told Thomas Begay of the talk he and Paul had the night before and how they thought the witch was ruining everyone’s lives.
Thomas thought Harley looked even worse than he had the day before. “No,” Harley said when asked, “I am feeling much better, almost like new.” But his hand shook when he took the cup Paul handed him, and his bloodshot eyes had to be closed to the morning sun as it peeked through the window.
When Thomas asked the old man what they intended to do about the curse, it took Paul a moment to decide how much to tell his son-in-law, or if he should say anything more at all. Finally, however, he raised his head and said. “Well, there are several ways we can go about it, but only one way that will work for sure.”
Thomas narrowed his eyes at his father-in-law. “You mean killing Edward Bitsinnii… right?” He had gathered from the conversation that the two were thinking like that, but he was having a hard time wrapping his mind around it.
“Not necessarily,” Paul said. “As a matter of fact a curse must be lifted by the witch himself. If not, the curse could go on forever, and there might never be no end to it. “No, there could be other things that might work.” The old man didn’t sound convinced of this though and didn’t say what those other things might be. He knew that even if Edward could be somehow persuaded to lift the curse, this wouldn’t prevent him laying another one later. He looked across at Harley for support.
Harley coughed, cleared his throat, and set his cup down on the oilcloth. “The thing is…” he said, “While this whole business is my fault, I guess, I personally don’ think we should kill him, unless there’s no other way. I know there’s a lot of people been hurt by this person, and I doubt we are the first ones to talk about killing him, but it still seems like there should be some other way to fight this thing.” He picked his cup back up and took a long swallow, looking sideways at Paul T’Sosi. The coffee was hotter than he thought causing him to spit it back into the cup and this interrupted his train of thought. “If it wasn’t for Charlie and Sue’s baby, I might just let it all go… me and Anita weren’t that happy these last few years anyways, and maybe her leaving was all for the best. But if Joseph Wiley is in danger, I may have ta rethink the whole thing.”
Thomas was taken aback by all this easy talk of killing, even though he knew it wasn’t the first time a witch had come to such an end. “Charlie Yazzie doesn’t think there is a curse,” he said, and frowned, “Oh, I know he doesn’t follow the old ways, but in this case there’s a chance he could be right.” Thomas looked from one to the other, “I’m not saying I go along with Charlie on everything. I just think we should be careful in this. To my way of thinking a lot of people could still get hurt.”
Paul looked disgusted. “I never said it was the only way.” He gave the other two a long steady gaze. “I’m ready to consider anything that will bring an end to all this. What is it going to take to remedy this situation once and for all? That is what I’m after.” Paul was aware that even today there were places on the reservation where death was considered the only cure for witches, and many a suspected one had disappeared into the vastness of Dinéta, never to be heard of again. In the end Paul believed there could be only one final and lasting solution.
~~~~~~
When Lucy arrived at Legal Services, the Mud Clan woman in charge of the reception desk looked her up and down, noting her traditional dress and hair done up in a bun. She put her nose in the air and asked if Lucy had an appointment to see Investigator Yazzie.
“Not really, but I’m a very good friend of his and think he will probably see me when he hears I’m pregnant.”
The woman’s eyes went round behind her thick glasses, and she spluttered under her breath as she turned toward Charlie Yazzie’s new office, the only one with a glass panel door. Pointing at the door, she said, “He has someone with him right now.” But her voice was now unsure when she said it.
Lucy thought the woman arrogant and refused to be cowed. She looked past her and laughed. “That’s only Professor Custer in there––he’s a good friend of mine too.” Lucy was known to put people like this Mud Clan woman in their place when she could. She was winging it now and didn’t intend to wait while Charlie and the professor chewed the fat for half the morning. She was on a mission and time mattered.
The Mud Clan woman glared at her but sniffed finally and pushed a button on the phone console, then turned away to talk in whispers to her boss.
It was no more than a moment before Charlie appeared in the doorway. Smiling, he motioned Lucy Tallwoman to come on back. He chuckled as he took her hand. “You know that woman will have that all over town by lunch. You are just the sort who has ruined her veracity hereabouts. No one believes a word she says anymore.”
George Custer had turned in his chair and recognized Lucy Tallwoman at once. He too was grinning and rose to shake her hand and ask after the family.
The woman at the desk stared daggers at them all––until Charlie indicated the coffee machine and raised three fingers. She scurried off to fix coffee and Lucy watched her through the window to make sure she didn’t do anything to hers.
When the three had settled themselves with their cups and the amenities had been passed around, Lucy told them Harley was out at her place. She didn’t mention his drinking in front of the professor. Charlie had already told George about Anita’s leaving his old friend, but he, too, had neglected the part about Harley’s drinking. The professor had shaken his head and said he hoped Harley wasn’t taking it too hard.
After a few moments of silence George could see Lucy’s errand was an important one and excused himself, saying to Charlie, “Well, so it’s lunch at the Diné Bikeyah?… eh?”
“Anything you say, professor. I should be finished up here by noon.”
The men shook hands and George Custer, ever the gentleman, smiled and saluted the receptionist on the way out.
“So Lucy, nothing wrong at home, I hope?” Charlie now suspected her visit might be more urgent than he had first imagined.
Navajo women, though tough and resilient, are not without tears should the moment overtake them, and Lucy’s eyes filled now and caused her to look away. It was a while before she could tell Charlie what was going on––that Alice was back, though no one knew where, and that her daughter’s life might depend on her being found as quickly as possible.
Charlie listened, asked a question from time to time, and passed her a
tissue from a desk drawer. When she had told all she knew, he stood, turned to the window beside his desk, and looked out across the road. The cottonwoods were beginning to splash a little yellow in patches––fall was on them at last. The trees were late to turn this year, and he wondered if it meant winter would come all at once when it came. That’s what winter sometimes did in that country.
When he turned back, Lucy had composed herself, but still looked down. “Is there anything at all you can do?”
Charlie nodded, “I’ll put some feelers out with tribal police. Billy Red Clay is our liaison officer over at tribal now. He and Thomas are clan. I’ll get in touch and we’ll see what he can turn up. I can’t really ask Billy to put out a ‘missing persons’ on her this soon, but he will do what he can. I’m certain of that. We have some good people right here at Legal Services too. They have a lot of contacts, and there’s a good chance we might turn something up right here. I’ll get back to you as quick as I know.”
Lucy raised her head and nodded, and was about to leave when Charlie thought to ask, “How’s Harley doing this morning? Do you think he’ll be fit to meet with Professor Custer later? George is definitely hiring people for his new company and says he would like to have both Harley and Thomas onboard. I didn’t mention anything about Harley’s recent little lapse, by the way.”
Lucy smiled despite herself. “Harley’s better. Thomas says he’ll have him straightened out in no time.” She paused then, as though there might be something else troubling her. “When I left this morning, it sounded like my father was talking about dealing with a witch. Harley says a witch is why Anita left him.” She again hesitated. “Did you know my father has been worried about your son? He thinks Joseph Wiley may be in danger too, and all because of that same witch.”
Magpie Speaks Page 5