The Law and Dan Mesa (20 page)

The Rangers call Mesa’s friends, but no one has seen or heard from him. They call El Paso to Napal and Ophelia Cortez, Sonia’s parents.

“Mrs. Cortez, this is Captain Johnson of the Arizona rangers. Have you heard from Sergeant Mesa within the last thirty-six hours? He is missing, and no one seems to know what has happened to him.”

“No, Captain Johnson, we haven’t heard from him in over two weeks. Something must have happened to cause him to disappear without a trace. Can you tell me about it?”

“Mrs. Cortez, what I am about to tell you will sound unbelievable, but it is true,” Captain Johnson begins. He tells her of the entire story involving the lady on the plane down to the most recent incident. “Mrs. Cortez, I swear to you everything I have said is true, and there are people who can attest to the truth of it.”

“Captain Johnson, I don’t doubt anything that you’ve said, because we have had some similar things happen here at the ranch. I thought I was losing my mind. I can’t explain any of it. I understand why Daniel has reacted the way he has. I almost lost my mind when the apparition first appeared. It was as if she was still alive. A day or so later, when I was making breakfast, I turned around, and she was just standing there. She said, ‘Mom, don’t panic. I won’t hurt you. I am here for you, Dad, and Dan.’ She just smiled and disappeared. She has been back several times to talk to me. She says she has to protect Dan Mesa and make sure he doesn’t do something he will regret.”

“Mrs. Cortez, this whole situation is strange and different. It will be something to tell your children about. If Dan shows up there, please call me, and no one but me. He is my friend, and I am worried about him.”

As Captain Johnson puts down the phone, it rings again.

“Captain Johnson here,” he answers.

Captain Johnson, Lieutenant Osborne here on this end. Sir, have you heard from Sergeant Mesa in the past few days? The reason I’m asking is that I am worried about him. I got a letter from someone, and I don’t know who. It simply said, ‘Please watch over him for me, because I will be leaving in a few days, and I can’t say good-bye.’ There wasn’t a signature or address, and I don’t know where it came from. There was a fragrance present—something pleasant and different. Captain, you may think I am crazy, but I believe I saw the ghost of Sonia. I must be losing my mind.”

“Alana, you are not crazy. Quite a number of people have seen her lately. She has visited people all the way to San Antonio. Major Huerta of the Texas rangers saw her and talked with her, and so did several of the men who were there. I can’t explain it. Even her mother has seen her. It is apparent she is worried about Mesa and what he will do once he catches up with Carlos and his crowd. Lieutenant, I am worried about him too. We all are. I know him quite well, though, and he will call in eventually. This whole thing has been an ordeal for him. He had to hunt down his best friend and kill him and then his lady’s death . . . it is a lot for any person to take, even Dan Mesa. He is a hard man, or so you’d think. But I have a feeling there is a heart there somewhere. If I hear anything from him, I will call you. Take care.” He hangs the phone up.

Bonnie rushes into the captain’s office.

“Sir, Colonel Grant is on the line for you, and he wants to know how we are doing on the robbery case.”

“Okay, Bonnie, I will take it. The Major picks up the phone and says, “Hello Colonel, how are you?”

“Sam, where are you on that robbery case? Have we heard anything since their last robbery?”

“No, sir. No one has seen hide or hair of them. It is as if they just disappeared, but they haven’t. They will show up again. They are too sure of themselves. They will strike again, and then we will be on them. We’ve contacted all local police and the state police. The problem is that we don’t have a description of them. All we have is women dressed to look like Jane Mansfield, Marilyn Monroe, Sophia Lauren, and Susan Pleshette. How do we publicize that?”

“Yes, I know Sam. Does it ever end? It seems like every time we solve one problem another pops up. But if it weren’t for the bad guys, we wouldn’t have a job. But you know, I would give up my job if it would bring about peace. Keep me posted if anything changes,” he says. “Sam, I got your report on the Meana situation and this ghost lady. This is all we need—female bank robbers and a female ghost. Sam, has Sergeant Mesa checked in?”

“No, sir, he hasn’t, and I am worried about him. I’ve asked all the local police to be on the watch for him and let him know to check in. He is under a lot of strain, but sir, he is a ranger. He will bounce back. He is the last of that breed of men who made this country. I will call you as soon as we hear anything.”

In Lordsburg, New Mexico, at a small cantina, a small man sits eating a meal. He is dressed in Levis, a gray western shirt, brown boots, and a white Stetson. His face is drawn, and his eyes seem to burn through the soul. There is a star on his chest and a gun that seems to be as much a part of him as the hat. He has spoken only once, and that was to order a meal.

A waitress approaches the man, “Señor, would you like more iced tea or something stronger?”

“No, thank you. I will be moving on. It seems like you have some trouble brewing over there.”

“Señor, you are a ranger, and from your looks, I say you know how to handle yourself. Please stay a while until they leave. I have called the police, but they are slow getting here. They frighten me.”

“Ma’am, I will stay for a while. They won’t bother you.”

“Hey, lady, we want service too,” one of the men says. “Tell your little boyfriend to wait. Hey, I am talking to you.” The big man rises to his feet and makes a move toward the waitress.

Mesa takes a deep breath and stands up. He walks over to the table, and before anyone can move, he slaps the talker twice as fast as he can and steps back. The fire in his eyes is blazing out of control, and his small, wiry frame is poised.

He speaks in a deep, throaty voice, “You have exactly two minutes to apologize to her, and one minute has passed already.”

The three men rise.

The talker says, “Little man, I am going to tear you apart.”

He moves, and suddenly, there is blood on his face. His nose is broken, and two teeth are missing. No one saw what happened. Mesa walks over to the wall and takes down a piece of rope about ten feet long. He coils the rope, and in less than five minutes, he has laid open the faces of the other two men. He ties them up.

“The three of you need to find a new occupation,” he says. “You aren’t as tough as you think. Tell Carlos you weren’t tough enough. Also, tell him I am coming after him and I will kill him.”

With those words, he turns and walks away.

The police arrive to find three men tied up who have been severely beaten.

A policeman says, “Juanita, what happened here? We came as quickly as we could.”

“Jim, those guys were making trouble, and there was this other fellow in here. He sat over there eating, a small man who looked to be African American. When these guys started harassing me, I asked him to wait until you arrived, and he stayed. They started making nasty remarks to me, and this fellow told them to apologize and they refused. The next thing I saw was his hand move, and then there was blood all over the big fellow. He walked over to the wall and took down that coil of rope and went to work. He could easily have killed those guys, but he didn’t. He told them they weren’t tough enough to do the job and to tell Carlos he was coming after him. I believe he was a cop. He wore a star and was dressed in jeans, a western shirt, boots, and a white Stetson. I am sure he carried a gun, but I didn’t see it. He just said good-bye and left. He drove a Jeep Wrangler, and it was new. Jim, that fella is someone to be left alone. He is carrying around a lot of anger. It seemed as if he just didn’t give a damn about anything.”

“If he is who I think he is, he’s an Arizona ranger, and his people are looking for him. He is the one who was in the news a couple of months ago. He was involved in that shoot-out in Albuquerque. Recently, his girlfriend was kidnapped and murdered. He is looking for the men involved in it,” the policeman says.

The policeman turns toward the men saying; “Gentlemen, you are under arrest for disturbing the peace, harassment, and anything else I can think of. You are lucky to be alive. That fellow you pissed off could have killed you. That was Ranger Dan Mesa. I am advising you to leave this part of the country or your life won’t be worth a plugged nickel.”

In a motel room in Tucumcari, New Mexico, Carlos and Antonio are resting and wondering about their fate.

“Antonio, I never knew it would be like this. We have tried every way possible to kill him or just stop him, and nothing has worked. It is time for us to split up and go different ways. I am heading for the border, and you should go and visit your relatives on the reservation in Mesa, Arizona. He can’t touch you there.”

“Boss, I don’t think it is wise to split up. Together, we can watch each other’s backs. Two sets of eyes are better than one at all times.”

“Antonio, you may be right. I can’t think straight now. I need a drink, so let’s to go downstairs to the bar.”

In Yuma, Alana Osborne is off duty and is home with her mother.

“Mom, this whole thing has taken on the weirdest face. Now we are dealing with ghosts. I can’t make any sense of any of this. I am a trained investigator, and I feel like a little kid.”

“My darling daughter, this case is not about you, and you shouldn’t let it get to you. You have done a good job, and you have nothing to be ashamed of. The life of a ranger is a dangerous one, and things don’t always go as you plan. You know that. So, let it go, and let’s have dinner. Now tell me what the status of Daniel is. Have the two of you gotten any closer?”

“Mom, I am going to tell you about something that happened to me today. I received a letter from someone.” Alana goes on to tell her mom about the letter. “Now tell me what you think.”

‘Honey, there are so many things in this world that can’t be explained, and I can’t explain it either. You said others have seen her, including Dan, the major, and his boys from San Antonio. Based on those things, I can only conclude that all of you saw Sonia. For some reason, God has granted her this time to tie up loose ends. Do as she requested: look after him. He likes you a lot, and maybe he loves you, but you have to be patient with him. He has a lot of baggage that he carries around,” she says. “Where is he now?”

“That’s the problem. No one knows where he is. He is running around half-cocked and ready to destroy anyone who challenges him. There is a lot of anger and energy in that little body of his. If he ever gets over this, I believe he will make an excellent friend or, even better, a great lover.”

In Tucumcari, Carlos has had a few drinks too many and has to be carried to his room by Antonio.

When morning comes, they check out and start on the road to Albuquerque. As they are listening to the news, the local commentator says, “Now for the lighter side of the news. It seems that three tough guys were giving a waitress a hard time in Lordsburg, when this fellow who looked to be a ranger intervened and stopped them. He stopped them the hard way. He broke one’s nose, and when he finished with the other two, he tied them up with a rope and left them for the police. According to the waitress, the man never said anything, but that rope he beat them with spoke volumes. He was a small fellow about five feet five inches tall and not over one hundred fifty pounds. The waitress, whose name is Juanita, would like to say thanks to her knight in shining armor. So fella, if you are listening, Juanita sends you her thanks.”

Carlos turns to Antonio and says, “Doesn’t that sound like somebody we know? How did he find out we were going back to Arizona?”

“Boss, I doubt he knows we are heading back home. It is just coincidence. Mesa is the best, but even he isn’t that lucky. Thanksgiving is approaching, and we haven’t made any plans for it. I plan to go to the reservation and spend time with my father’s family. It has been some time since I saw them last. Dad is a great guy, although, I am not on his list of favorite people. But I am still welcome there.”

“Antonio, I guess I will visit this lady I know. She has been begging me to spend some time with her. I put it off for a while, but maybe it is time. I may not get a chance to see her again. I have a feeling Dan Mesa is going to be after us when this holiday is over. He will never give up until he catches us. Maybe, I should get in touch with Sandoval again and see if he can cancel Mr. Dan Mesa’s ticket.”

On I-10 heading west is a black Jeep Wrangler with the solemn figure of a man whose face seldom smiles. The radio is tuned to a country station playing a Patsy Cline song, “Crazy.” The man driving is concentrating on the road and on the situation he is facing. His minds wonders back over the last six months. In his mind’s eye, he sees Sonia for the first time. He remembers the night she handed him her phone number on a piece of crumbled up paper. He can still remember how she looked in a pair of jeans and how she danced with him and how her body felt when she pressed against him. Deep down in the recesses of his heart, the pain comes back, and tears begin to flow down his face.

The song ends, and a Bob Wills song begins to play. Daniel Mesa continues driving westward. A road sign says, “Welcome to Arizona.” He drives on. He sees a church and pulls off the road and into the churchyard. He is Methodist, but in his state of mind, any church will do. He walks in and sits in the front row with tears in his eyes. He prays.

“Lord, you and I talk often, as we have since I can remember. You know me better than anyone, and I thank you for all of your blessings and for saving me so many times from death. The job I do is a dangerous one, and I have had to kill other human beings to save either my life or someone else’s life. I know there is a commandment that says ‘Thou shall not kill,’ and I have tried not to take another’s life, but in war I had to kill, and as a ranger, I have had to kill. I ask your forgiveness for my sins. Father, Sonia was an innocent one, and I let her down. I did not protect her as I should have. I should have been there for her, and I wasn’t. It seems that I let Garnett and Devlin down as well. I should have made changes in my life for them, and I didn’t. I am so sorry for my failures. Lord, it is hard to let go of Sonia. I loved her so much, and now she is gone, and I have to find the men who are responsible for her death. I ask you not to let me kill these men, but let the court decide their fate. Help me to find a way to find peace and forgiveness for my sins. Lord, take care of her. She belongs to you now. Amen.”