Blue Coyote Motel (31 page)

They spent most of the weekend in bed, hungrily exploring each other. Both were passionate, inventive lovers and Samantha's carefully constructed plans for the weekend never materialized. Aaron and Jill wanted nothing more than to be with each other. Sunday night came far too soon. Aaron took Jill by Samantha's home to pick up her suitcase on the way to the airport, kissing her passionately at the curb as they said good-bye to each other. Once again, Aaron made her promise that she would call him after she had seen her doctor.

Jill got on the plane and took a window seat. She loved to look at the ocean as the plane pulled away from San Francisco. She took the airline magazine out of the seatback in front of her and noticed that her hands were trembling.
I know I didn't have much sleep, but this is ridiculous
, she thought. She didn’t want her seatmate to notice the trembling and put her hands underneath the open magazine.
Where is this coming
from?
She wondered. She willed the trembling to stop. It didn't.

The next day, Jill dressed carefully for her doctor's appointment. It was always a challenge to figure out what type of clothing could be removed easily in the doctor's office without completely ruining hair and makeup when changing into the unflattering gown that was required. She settled on a simple beige skirt and matching silk blouse. They were clothes that were easy to get in and out of.

Dr. Mathis stepped into the exam room. "Jill, what brings you here? I haven't seen you in a long time, but that's good news in this business." He reminded Jill of Santa Claus with his white hair, ruddy face, round belly, and booming laugh. She adored him.

"Dr. M, I don't know what's wrong," Jill said. "I don't have any energy. My skin is really dry and has lost its elasticity. The roots of my hair are greying way too fast and I feel like I'm aging every time I look in the mirror. And my breasts have begun to sag. I know I came to you after Rick died because I was tired, but this is completely different. Plus, I have found a man I think I'm in love with, so if I could just get rid of these physical things, my life would be just about perfect."

"Hmm," Dr. Mathis said, "let's have a look." He gave her a thorough examination. "Jill, I don't find anything that causes me concern. I'm writing a prescription for a number of tests, which may tell us more. My nurse will call and make an appointment for you at the lab in the building next door as soon as I finish. I’ll have the lab expedite the results and I'll call you this afternoon."

"Thanks, Dr. M. I really appreciate it. I don't feel that anything is seriously wrong. I'm just off. I've felt really good these last few months. In fact, I started feeling good after a trip last summer. I pulled off the road and stayed at a little motel in the middle of nowhere. When I got up the next morning, I felt terrific. Maybe it was the desert air, although I have a place in La Quinta so you wouldn't think it would be all that different. Maybe I should go back there."

"Well, let's see what we're dealing with. I'll call you this afternoon. June, who works at the front desk, will have your lab prescription ready for you as soon as I type it into my computer. Don't worry. It's probably just a delayed reaction to all of the stress you've been under after Rick's death. Stress can do strange things to the body. It was really good seeing you and I'm happy that you have a new friend."

After Dr. Mathis left the exam room, Jill dressed quickly. She hadn't told Dr. M about her hands shaking. She had heard that people who were withdrawing from drugs had shaky hands. She loved a couple of glasses of wine, but she wasn't an alcoholic. Still, she thought that was something better kept to herself. Jill picked up her prescription and headed for the lab. After a series of tests, she went home and waited for the call from Dr. Mathis. She wondered if she should have told him how suicidal she had been before she stopped at that little desert motel, but once again, she was afraid he would insist that she see a psychiatrist. Jill filled the time with busy work while waiting for him to call. Plants needed watering, phone calls needed returning, and it was time to start making a list of possible donors for next year’s auction.

The phone rang late that afternoon. "Jill, it's Dr. Mathis. I have the results from the lab tests and I'm pleased to tell you that everything appears to be completely normal. Oh, your cholesterol is a bit high, but after spending a weekend in San Francisco, I'm not surprised. Maybe you should just go back to that desert motel. A little rest away from the hustle and bustle of your busy lifestyle might be good for you. Well, anyway, you're just fine now. If you notice anything else, call me, but I don't see anything that would be a cause for alarm. I'm giving you a clean bill of health and again, I'm really happy for you!"

Jill called Aaron and told him the good news. He was clearly relieved to hear the results of the exam and tests. "Jill, maybe you should go back to the motel in the desert you told me about. I'd be happy to go with you, but it would have to be at least a month from now. My scheduler books my appointments a month in advance."

One of the things Jill loved about Aaron was his lack of ego. He was one of the leading oncologists in the United States. People traveled from all over the world to see him and she knew that his schedule was probably booked a lot longer into the future than a month.

"Thanks, but I'm perfectly capable of driving there myself. Actually, I think I'll go over the Memorial Day weekend. I can drive down to my home in La Quinta. I haven't been there in a while and I should see if everything is okay. Don't worry, I'll be fine." They hung up after making plans for Aaron to fly to Orange County on the coming weekend. Jill would pick him up at John Wayne Airport. They decided not to tell his parents that he would be in town. They didn't want to share each other with anyone.

Jill spent the next few hours looking for the name of the motel. She couldn't find it anywhere. She tried both the Internet as well as telephone information, but since she didn't know the name of the closest town, if there even was one, both of those usually reliable sources of information were of absolutely no help to her. She had paid cash so there was no credit card receipt. She remembered it was something about a color and an animal.

She began to get panicky, hoping against hope that the thoughts of suicide wouldn't come up again. She started a list in her mind of all the things she had to live for. Aaron headed the list. And what was going on with this intermittent shaking of her hands? It had been happening on and off ever since her flight from San Francisco. That was really strange. Her hands seemed like they were developing a life of their own.

That night she awoke suddenly at 3:00 a.m. The words "Blue Coyote" were running through her mind. She sat straight up in bed and thought to herself,
That's it. That's the name of the motel. I was right. It's a color and an animal. I'll call in the morning
. She wrote the name down so she wouldn't lose it like she often did with dreams that were so clear in the middle of the night, but slipped away like wispy clouds, disappearing in the morning.

"Hello, Blue Coyote Motel. May I help you?" Maria said into the phone.

"Yes. My name is Jill Loren," Jill said. "I stayed at the motel last September. I felt so good when I left, I decided I need to come back to rest and refresh myself. Would you have a room available over the Memorial Day weekend? I'd like to reserve a room for Friday and Saturday nights."

"Yes, I can accommodate you," Maria said. "I have you down and I'll look forward to seeing you a week from Friday. It should be beautiful that weekend. The desert days are quite warm, but the nights are magical." She vaguely remembered Jill as being a rather troubled woman and thought to herself that she probably needed a little Freedom "tune-up."

CHAPTER 31

When Sam was a young man witnessing the abuse of his mother at the hands of the man to whom she was married, living on the edge of poverty, watching his fellow tribe members struggle with addiction and social illnesses, he would have never been able to predict his present life.

After observing the poor choice his mother had made, he was taking his budding relationship with Phyllis Chee very slowly and carefully. They thoroughly enjoyed each other's company and looked forward to the time they spent together. Their burgeoning romance had not escaped the watchful eyes of the nattering old women of the tribe and a lot of idle gossip centered around the two of them and their future. For their part, they were happy to just let everything gradually unfold.

Sam knew he was making an important contribution to his tribe. The overall health of the tribal children was flourishing under his medical care and supervision. Likewise, the new school built on the reservation was a vast improvement for their educational opportunities. A committee had been set up for oversight of the school, a committee on which he willingly served. Although the tribe was a sovereign nation, the school fell under state mandates.

The committee had the option to standardize the teaching to the state requirements or opt to set higher standards for the students and their teachers. They chose the higher standards and the results proved that they had made the right decision. The children were testing far higher than their peers in other parts of the state. It had been a controversial, difficult choice, but it was paying off, not only for the respect the school was garnering throughout the state, but in the children's education. For the first time that Sam could ever remember, the children's eyes shined with hope for the future. Many of them spoke of getting college educations. Parents were attending back-to-school nights and meetings with the teachers. In the past, such meetings had been poorly attended, if at all.

The pediatric center was thriving too. The children's parents were becoming increasingly interested in a better lifestyle for themselves and their children. Sam added a dietician to the staff to educate them about the benefits of eating healthy and avoiding junk food. He made use of two nurse practitioners, a male and a female, who had returned to the reservation after their schooling was completed. They knew the tribal families and their needs, both modern and traditional. He found he had a little more free time for himself because of the nurse practitioners. On the weekends, they were the ones on call at the center. As nurse practitioners working under him, they could dispense medicine and make limited medical decisions. This extra time on the weekends allowed Sam to finally be able to spend some time on his other passion, horses.

Almost every family on the reservation had at least one horse. They were like pets and many a young man had proven his manhood by breaking a wild horse. Most of the tribal members knew about, but few spoke of Strong Medicine's gift of being able to sing to wild horses. Only a very few privileged people had accompanied him into the hills where he sang the ancient songs, calling the wild horses to him. Strong Medicine had more horses than anyone on the reservation.

Sam remembered one particular evening when he was in his early teens and Strong Medicine asked Sam to follow him into the hills. They waited until the stars filled the sky and somewhere around midnight, Strong Medicine began to chant in a singsong voice. Soon they could hear the horses coming out of the hills to join them where Sam and Strong Medicine were seated on the ground. Wild appaloosas and pintos, who moments before had been snorting or wildly pawing the ground, became calm and stood quietly in front of Strong Medicine.

He continued singing, deftly passing three noosed ropes to Sam, pointing to the three horses he wanted Sam to harness. Soon Strong Medicine stopped chanting, stood, and told Sam to lead one of the horses back to the reservation. He led the other two. Sam was amazed that the horses were quiet, calm, and gentle. They provided no resistance to the ropes looped around their graceful necks. Sam and Strong Medicine had never spoken of that night, but its memory had stayed with Sam over the years.

When Sam was in medical school, one of his fellow students asked if he wanted to join a few of them who were going to a nearby race track that afternoon. Tired of studying and having been brought up with horses, he eagerly accepted the invitation.

There had always been races on the reservation, but this was different. Sam went to the paddock area before the first race and carefully looked at each of the horses. He knew horses and he had a pretty good idea which ones were ready to run. He bet $2.00 to win on Gypsy Wind, a long shot. When the race was finished, Sam discovered he had won $122.00. Eight races later, his winnings totaled more than $800.00. It did not escape the notice of his friends. For the rest of his time in medical school, during his internship, as well as his residency, he spent time at the track whenever he could. Sam understood horses. It was almost as if the horses spoke to him and said, "Sam, bet on me. I'm going to win." Even though Susie was getting a monthly check from the casino earnings, he still gave her all of his winnings. He never asked what she did with the money he gave her. He didn't care.

Strong Medicine was a very wise tribal leader. After the citizens of California approved gambling on tribal lands, he kept in close contact with elders from the other tribes. He knew that his tribe must always be aware of what was going on in the world of gaming if the casino was to do well. He had been contacted by a non-profit organization called NCLGS, the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States, which presented seminars throughout the country on issues relating to the gaming industry. They were neither pro-gaming nor anti-gaming.

He felt it was important for the tribe to be represented at the meetings and it provided an opportunity to meet with legislators, not only from California, but from the other states as well. Some of the other tribal leaders had attended the conferences and felt they had benefited from the information shared on gaming issues. Strong Medicine decided to attend one of the conferences being held in the Florida Keys.