Coyote's Wife (27 page)

“I’m Special Investigator Ella Clah of the Navajo Police Department. We didn’t come to make any arrests. Don’t make us change our minds. Lower your weapons,” she ordered.

A few seconds later Delbert John came out onto the porch of the house, standing in the porch light for only a moment before moving into the driveway. He whistled to his men, shook his
head, and the men with the rifles immediately lowered their weapons. The driver lowered his knife, too, and gave Ella a toothy, lopsided grin.

“We weren’t expecting anyone tonight,” Delbert said, coming up to Ella, “so we took defensive measures when we saw you approaching. I’ve received some death threats recently. As you’ve already seen, I’ve even switched houses.”

Ella reached down slowly
for her handheld radio, then called and cancelled the backup. “Who issued the death threat?” she asked him.

“At first, I thought Jimmy Levaldo was behind it. He doesn’t like anyone who disagrees with him, and he doesn’t realize that his tactics and methods are as out of date as he is. That’s why they don’t work. The future of the tribe is in
the hands of
our
generation—people like us who can
accept change and are willing to throw out ideas that don’t work.” He met her gaze and added, “In the old days we survived without police departments because our people respected balance and harmony and knew how to walk in beauty. We don’t need Anglo laws to tell us how to live.”

“We’ve heard the history lesson before, so why don’t you just skip ahead to this century, and get to the point, Delbert,”
Ella said. “Who’s behind the death threat?”

“I spoke to Jimmy and he said he had nothing to do with it. At first I didn’t believe him. Then I took a real close look at the facts. That’s when I realized we were
all
being used. Someone out there is letting us take the heat for what
they’re
doing.”

“Who?” Blalock prodded.

“I’m not sure yet, but here’s what I do know. Our people always clearly
announce that they’re part of the Fierce Ones. Or they leave a sign behind to remind those we’re warning that we’ll be watching them. Our symbol’s an eye—and it’s left someplace where it can’t be missed.”

Ella remembered having seen it at the Curtises’ home. “I know it.”

“Have you noticed that eye at any of the incidents that have recently been attributed to the Fierce Ones, like the shootings?”

She shook her head. “I assumed you’d stopped using it, or more to the point, that the newer members had,” Ella said.

“When the Fierce Ones leave a warning, we want things to be crystal clear. The Fierce Ones never hide from their own actions. You can’t walk in beauty that way.”

“Lots of odd things have been happening today,” Ella said, mentioning the calls to her S.I. people, and, finally, Ford’s
experience with his youth group.

“None of us—young or old—would use those tactics. There’s no lesson in them. And, for the record, we don’t mess
with religious leaders unless they start preaching
against
Navajo traditions. I know Reverend Tome. He’s an asset to the Navajo Nation. Sure, he’s a Christian, but he also honors our culture and history. The records he’s kept and his knowledge of Navajo
life are a valuable asset to our tribe.”

“Then who’s making all the trouble?” Ella asked.

“That’s the real question, isn’t it? Someone has tried to set the tribal police against the Fierce Ones—and the Fierce Ones against each other. That’s why we’re now using all our people to find out who’s responsible.”

“It would be a lot better if you’d let law enforcement professionals handle this,” Blalock
said.

Delbert shook his head. “We’ll get answers faster than you can, especially on our native land.”

“Terror and force will get you answers meant to appease, not necessarily the truth,” Ella said. “People under duress will say anything just to ease the pressure.”

Without giving him a chance to argue, Ella walked back to her unit, Blalock by her side. A few seconds later, they were on their
way out of the neighborhood, heading north toward the main highway.

“Were you wearing a wire?” Ella asked Blalock.

“Of course. Do you think I’d ever put myself in a situation like this without covering my butt? Everything that went down is now on the record.”

“Good. I just wish we’d come out of this with some names,” Ella said. “I have this feeling that all the things we’ve been experiencing
lately are connected. There’s a pattern here. If we could find it, we’d have our answers.”

They were on the way back to the convenience store where Blalock had left his vehicle when Big Ed contacted Ella directly on the cell phone. After getting permission, Ella placed her chief on the speaker so FB-Eyes could hear.

“I just got a call from Barbara Benally,” Big Ed said.
“Someone broke into Ervin’s
StarTalk office this evening after the office staff left for the day. The perp or perps set fire to his desk, computer, and chair. Your team is working the scene as we speak but, so far they’ve got nothing, except that the accelerant was lighter fluid.”

“I’ll head over there immediately,” Ella said.

“I’ll go with you,” Blalock said as soon as Ella’s conversation ended.

Ella glanced at him,
nodded, then focused on the road. “Our team’s working a series of crimes with one common denominator—the Benallys,” Ella said in a thoughtful voice. “George Charley’s death had a connection to Ervin via Ervin’s truck. The harassment my team and I have been subjected to could also track back to StarTalk’s problems and Ervin’s. Maybe his enemies have decided to come after us because we’re helping him,”
Ella said, then after a pause, added, “But that would also mean that Ervin’s enemies are well organized and have serious manpower to draw on.”

“A conspiracy theory? Where do we even begin looking?” Blalock asked.

“And that’s the real question, isn’t it?”

By the time they arrived at StarTalk, Barbara Benally was pacing outside the office building, waiting for them. It was nighttime but the exterior
lights were all on.

Barbara hurried over to meet them as soon as they’d parked. “We got off lucky,” she said. “The computer in Ervin’s office didn’t ignite, it melted. And though the top of his desk is charred, it didn’t go up in flames. We have a sprinkler system and it quickly extinguished everything.”

“Is Ervin here now?” Ella asked, thinking of questioning him first.

“No, he’s been at home
ever since the press conference incident,” Barbara said, lowing her voice to a whisper as they walked toward the entrance to the office building. “He
won’t leave the house. Ervin’s also lost a lot of weight and he hardly eats at all. I wanted him to go to the hospital, or at least get some kind of counseling, but he refuses. My mother suggested that maybe your brother could give him something
to help calm him down, but Ervin won’t hear of it. He says he’ll handle it his way.”

“Which is?” Ella asked.

“He’s armed all the time. He won’t come into a room if my mom or I are there. He even sleeps in his office at home. We conduct business either on the house intercom or by phone. He says that if they come after him, he’ll be able to handle things better if I’m not around. So he’s asked
me to keep my distance. He fired his bodyguard, complaining that the man made him look like a fool in public. I think he’s also concerned about having an armed man we don’t know roaming around the house day and night. However, he wants to hire a full-time bodyguard for me.” Barbara stopped right outside the door, which had been propped open.

“That sounds like an excellent idea,” Ella said slowly,
detecting an acrid burnt plastic smell coming from inside the building. “And not just for you, also for your mother.”

“Mom makes her own decisions, in case you haven’t noticed, and she already has an ex-police officer working for her part time. As for me, it’s just not necessary,” Barbara said, shrugging her shoulders. “Ervin’s arranged for security cameras to be installed here and at home.”

“That’s a step in the right direction. But if you change your mind, I can recommend an extremely capable bodyguard.” Ella knew that Teeny would be more than capable of doing the job.

“Are you sure you don’t have any idea who might be behind all that’s happened?” Ella continued. “We know more than one person is involved.”

“I can’t think of anyone who might go this far to strike
out at my husband,
but when Ervin was trying to get the permits and the backing we needed to get StarTalk off the ground, he stepped on some toes.”

“Like whose?” Blalock pressed. “Think hard.”

“I…” She shook her head. “You’ll have to talk to my husband.”

Ella noted her hesitation. “But you
do
suspect someone, don’t you? Ervin’s in danger, Barbara. If you want us to help you, you need to help us.”

“But I don’t
know anything for sure …,” she said slowly.

“We’ll look into it. Give us some names, and we’ll take it from there,” Ella said.

Barbara took a deep breath. “Louis Etcitty,” she said, at last. “My husband’s complained to me about him several times.”

The only Louis Etcitty she knew was a crystal gazer in his mid-sixties. She’d met him once at her brother’s place. Though there were several kinds
of crystal gazers, Louis was said to be able to look into a rock crystal and locate missing objects. Clifford believed in his abilities, and had once hired Louis to help him locate a jar of a very rare herb he’d needed for a Sing.

“Louis Etcitty the crystal gazer?” Ella asked, verifying it.

Barbara nodded. “He and his nephew have been dead set against StarTalk from the very beginning,” Barbara
said. “They’ve told Ervin right to his face that they’re spray painting or tearing down as many posters of StarTalk as they can find. They also advise everyone they meet to oppose the project.”

“Why?” Ella asked, surprised. People like Louis and his nephew, who lived southeast of Shiprock, would have benefitted greatly from a phone system that worked.

“I’m not really sure what their reasoning
is on this. You’ll have to talk to my husband to get the rest of the story.”

As Barbara led them to Ervin’s office, Ella glanced at her. “What made you come back to the office tonight?”

“I’d forgotten to bring some papers Ervin needed, so I made a quick after-dinner run to the office. That’s when I found this mess.”

Barbara walked past an exhaust fan Ella noticed as belonging to the S.I. team.
The inside of the building was currently being illuminated by their generator-powered electric lanterns, probably because the circuits were out.

As Ella stepped through Ervin’s office door, which appeared to have been kicked in, she saw Justine and Tache working.

“How did the vandal gain access to the building? Any possibility it was an inside job?” Ella asked them.

“Not likely. They didn’t
use a key,” Justine answered. “The bathroom window was broken. But whoever slipped through wasn’t skinny enough to avoid getting cut on some of the glass remaining in the frame. There was enough blood to take a sample, but that’s all we’ve got so far. We dried out what we could around the desk and lifted prints. We’ll run those against all the employees. Mrs. Benally has already given us permission
to access the prints from the employee records.”

“Sorry about the lighting, Ella,” Tache said, looking up. “Some of the circuit breakers were tripped by the fire, and we didn’t want to risk another problem until an electrician checks out the wiring.”

Ella nodded, lost in thought. The scene struck her as off, somehow. While Blalock spoke to some of the warehousemen who’d been onsite, she helped
her team gather evidence.

“The fire didn’t spread because not enough accelerant was used,” Justine said. “I got this from the trash can,” she added holding up an almost full can of lighter fluid.

“The fire was also set right beneath a sprinkler, the
only one within twenty feet,” Ella observed. “Had the perps wanted an out-of-control fire, they would have chosen that table stacked high with documents
in the adjoining room.”

“It looks like another attempt to undermine Benally,” Justine answered.

“How did this get discovered?” Ella asked.

Tache turned to answer, but Barbara spoke first.

“By the time I drove up, the fire was already out, thanks to the warehouseman who heard the smoke alarm. He had a key for emergencies, and once he realized the fire was out, he went back out to turn off the
sprinkler system. When I came in, I discovered this,” Barbara said, waving her hand around the room.

Ella’s cell phone rang and she picked it up immediately. She didn’t recognize the slurred voice at the other end until Ervin Benally identified himself.

“How did you get my direct number?” Ella asked him.

“Later. Someone’s sneaking around outside my home. I saw him go into the shed and then
come back out. He also went into the garage. I’ve got a gun and if he takes one step inside this house I’m shooting him dead. You hear me?”

“Don’t put yourself in danger. Lock yourself inside one of the rooms and wait for us. We’re less than five minutes away. Other officers will be en route as well.”

“What’s going on?” Barbara asked.

“I’ll explain later,” Ella said.

Ella found Blalock and
filled him in quickly as they hurried down the hall. “We’ve got to roll.”

Barbara followed. “If that was Ervin who telephoned, be very careful,” she called out to Ella. “These days my husband isn’t thinking very clearly.”

“Because he’s been drinking too much? Is he having hallucinations or something like that?” Ella asked, stopping near the door.

“I think he may be, but I don’t think it’s just
the booze anymore. Every once in a while he’ll get all jumpy and tell me that he’s being watched. I’ve gone outside to look but no one is ever around.” Barbara paused, then shook her head. “But maybe I’m wrong about this. Things
are
happening. Look at his office. Go and make sure he’s okay, but remember he’s not himself these days.”

With a quick nod, Ella hurried into the cruiser and joined Blalock,
who was already inside, seat belt fastened. As she raced out of the parking lot, she called for backup, warning them to proceed with caution because the occupant may have been drinking.