Wind Spirit [Ella Clah 10] (28 page)

“Now
you
sound like him,” she said sharply, then exhaled and forced a smile. “I suppose I could, but you and I both know that would leave the tribe in a lurch. Face it, I’m working a job no one else wants. The tribe has a hard enough time finding general practitioners as it is. Unless they’ve got a loan to pay off, most don’t want to work on the Rez.”

She understood Carolyn’s sense of duty because that was a trait they both shared. “If there’s anything I can do to make things easier for you, anything at all, just let me know.”

“Thanks. I may need someone to talk to . . .”

“I’m here now, and I’ll be here whenever you need me.”

Carolyn smiled and nodded. “You’re a good friend.”

“Does that mean I can have an extra slice of that torte to go?” Ella countered with a smile.

“You bet.” She cut another slice and placed it in a small plastic container. “Now let’s go get your wheels.”

“Which I hope will be attached to something more than a horse-drawn wagon. With our budget these days, one never knows.”

Carolyn dropped Ella off at the department’s garage twenty-five minutes later. As she strode into the cluttered office of the large metal building, Ella found no one about except an old mutt who lifted his head to look at her as she came in.

“Hi Rip. Don’t get up for me,” Ella said. Larry had named the dog Rip, after Rip Van Winkle, because all he ever seemed to do was sleep.

“Hello? Anyone here?” Ella called out, noticing that the dog had already closed his eyes again.

A moment later, Larry Jim, the department’s chief and currently only mechanic, came through the door leading in from one of the garage bays, wiping his hands on a rag. “Oh, it’s Evel Knievel Clah. Your unit is here, but replacing that windshield isn’t going to be easy. It’s not that the part is hard to get. The problem will be getting the funding. I’ve put in a requisition form, but it usually takes a month or more these days.”

“I’m still going to need another set of wheels right away. What have you got for me?”

“Not much.” Larry waved for her to follow and he led her around the building to a fenced-in compound.

When Ella got into the replacement SUV, she nearly
choked. Driving with the windows rolled down would be a must until she could locate some air freshener. The interior reeked of engine oil and another pungent odor she recognized a breath later. “Was this sprayed by a skunk?”

“Yeah, but it was weeks ago. We wiped it down with tomato juice or you wouldn’t be able to get within a mile of it. The problem is that these days tomato juice doesn’t have the acid kick that it used to.” He shrugged. “You’ll get used to it. And one more thing. The driver’s side door won’t lock. Don’t leave anything inside it at night.”

Ella’s first stop was at the closest convenience store, where she bought a can of odor killer along with one of those little pine tree–shaped air fresheners. After spraying down the interior, she hung the little air freshener from the rearview mirror. It helped some.

Ella went to the station after that and immediately headed to Justine’s lab. Her assistant was working hard. “Anything new?” Ella asked.

“The ground beef that was meant for your dog wasn’t poisoned, but it was loaded with crushed glass. As for the animal trap, it’s pretty old. Though it’s obvious someone sharpened the blades and made an effort to get it working, we have no way of tracing it. I haven’t been able to find anyone who still uses animal traps like these. Coyote traps, still in use in some places, are completely different than these oldies.”

“Okay. Thanks for letting me know.”

“Also, Neskahi is watching Hunt as we speak. He’s confident the councilman won’t spot him.”

“Anything from Tache?”

“Branch wasn’t around the property, so Ralph took a look around what was left of his house. All he found were a few owl feathers scattered near the back of the residence. It wasn’t noted in the police report, so either they missed them, didn’t write it down, or they simply weren’t there at the time. Owls
live in this area, so it may mean nothing, but since that bird is considered a harbinger of death, he wanted to pass it along.”

“That either points to someone who’s Navajo—or a cat who got lucky—but make sure Tache tells Sheriff Taylor. Anything else?” Ella asked.

“Just one more thing. A little while ago I heard a rumor that Branch’s show is being canceled or shelved, but I haven’t been able to confirm that yet.”

“If it’s true, try to find out why. You can report to me and the team tomorrow. First thing in the morning, we’ll need to meet in my office.”

It was shortly after nine
A.M
. the next day when Tache, Justine, and Ella gathered for a briefing session. Neskahi had worked all night and was off this morning.

Ella shared the information about Branch’s tracker and asked everyone to try to find out who he might have hired. Then she asked the others to report their progress.

“I’ve got nothing new to add, except a verification of what you already know,” Officer Tache said.

Ella looked at Justine. “Have you been able to confirm if George Branch’s program is being taken off the air?”

“Yeah. It seems that the show will stay on but without Branch. I spoke to the station manager this morning. Despite higher ratings, they’ve had a problem with several of their biggest sponsors. One, a car dealer, was worried about the ambiguity surrounding Branch’s role in the death of the councilman’s wife. He thought it might damage his company’s image if he continued to run radio spots in that time slot.

“Another of the more conservative companies who make up the bulk of his sponsorship also pulled out because of all the controversy. But when they threatened to stop advertising on that radio station completely, Branch was told to go on vacation until the smoke clears. One of Branch’s assistants is
taking over for now, a Navajo named Hoskie Ben. He’s been told not to discuss either Branch or the controversy on the air.”

Ella nodded. Hoskie was finally going to get his shot at afternoon drive time radio. It didn’t surprise her. She’d had a feeling all along that he’d succeed. “This will hopefully buy us some peace and quiet for a little while anyway.”

After their meeting ended, Ella checked her phone messages. Clifford had called and so had her mother. Ella called Rose first, hoping that one of her friends had tracked down John Tso.

Her mother was waiting for her call and picked up the phone on the first ring. “I wanted to tell you that even though some of my friends have gone out to search for the Singer, no one’s had any luck yet. But don’t worry. Your brother and I will continue looking.”

Ella called Clifford next, wondering if that was why he’d called. Loretta answered the phone.

“Hey, I hear you’ve got a new job,” Ella said, keeping her voice casual.

Loretta didn’t say a word for several seconds, then finally answered. “Have you told anyone else about this?” she asked, biting off the words.

“No, why? Doesn’t my brother know?”

“It’s only been a few mornings so far and I haven’t had a chance to discuss it with him. He’s been very busy,” Loretta said in a tone totally devoid of emotion.

“It’s not really my business, but perhaps you should bring up the subject pretty soon,” Ella replied. “Someone’s bound to mention it, you know. The Rez isn’t a great place for secrets.”

“I’m aware of that. I intend to speak to him about it later today,” she answered coldly. “Shall I go get your brother for you? He’s in the medicine hogan right now, waiting for his next patient.”

“Yes, please.”

Ella heard Loretta walk away. A minute later she heard footsteps, then Clifford picked up the phone.

“I tried to get hold of you earlier, so I could warn you. You may find yourself encountering an additional problem when you deal with our traditionalists.”

“What now?”

He took a deep breath before answering and that alone told her that he loathed what he was about to tell her. “After you rescued my son, my wife began to get worried about his contact with you during and after the accident. She asked that I do a blessing prayer for him and I did. Your daughter and our mother were included in that. We were careful to keep it quiet and only told your baby-sitter’s family because we felt they’d need the reassurance before they’d allow Boots to come to work at the house. But we asked them not to discuss it with anyone else since we felt that it would only complicate things for you.”

“All that happened while I was still in the hospital, right? Why are you telling me now?”

“Late yesterday, one of my patients asked me why I’d protected my son with a blessing if I didn’t really believe that my sister was a danger to all around her.”

“How did he know you’d done the ritual?”

“It seems my wife didn’t realize that we needed to continue to keep things a secret for a while longer.”

“I’d like to speak to her.”

“Of course.”

Loretta got back on the phone. “I’m sorry. I really didn’t think I was supposed to keep it a secret forever.”

“Not forever, just until we could locate the proper Singer. You seem to be better at keeping your own secrets than mine or your husband’s.”

Ella could almost hear Loretta’s blood starting to boil.

Finally Loretta spoke, her voice low and cutting. “You
want a scapegoat, Sister-in-law, but I won’t be one for you. Many people consider you a danger, not just myself. You have to live with that fact, and fix it as soon as you can. If you think it’s just a few of the conservatives among us that are creating a problem for you, you’re wrong. Even some of the new traditionalists at the college have concerns about you now.”

“Who?” Ella knew already, but wanted to see how far it had traveled.

“Professor Garnenez and many of his students have been trying to find the Singer you need because they know that people around you these days tend to end up dead. Death doesn’t touch you, but it sure does seem to reach whoever you have a problem with.” Loretta paused to catch her breath. “And even if you discount all of that, you can’t dismiss what it’s costing all of us who are related to you. We’re paying a price too. You should talk to your mother and see what it’s costing her.”

“I’ll talk to my mother,” Ella said, pausing for effect, “and you can talk to your husband.” Then she slammed the phone down.

A heartbeat later Ella suddenly realized what her burst of anger had just cost her. By letting Loretta get to her, she’d lost the opportunity to ask her sister-in-law just how well she knew Professor Garnenez. Loretta might have been in a perfect position to help her. Although the man had an alibi, Ella still had the feeling that she should keep an eye on Garnenez. He had certainly been keeping an eye on her.

Remembering what Loretta had intimated about trouble at home, Ella started to call Rose but then decided against it. Clifford’s wife had a way of overstating matters so it was probably not a big deal. She’d talk to Rose later. No matter what her sister-in-law had said, Ella was convinced Rose could handle whatever was thrown at her.

Focusing on the present, Ella realized that now more than
ever it was imperative she find someone to watch her house at night. Leaving her office she walked down the hall and asked several officers she met around the station, but most of them were already pulling long shifts. The department was stretched to the limit. She did get a few names of retired officers, though according to Big Ed, none lived in the immediate area anymore.

Remembering Emily Marquez, Ella returned to her office, looked up her number, and called her next. Maybe she could suggest someone.

The sheriff’s department operator said Emily was off-duty, so Ella called her at home. Emily didn’t pick up right away, something that surprised Ella. Emily had struck her as a workaholic who lived with the cell phone within arm’s reach.

Emily greeted her warmly a minute later. “Sorry it took me so long to answer,” she said, as if reading Ella’s mind. “I was in the greenhouse with my hands full of moist potting soil. I’m off today. What’s up?”

“I wanted to ask you if you knew anyone who would be willing to moonlight, literally, for the next week. I need someone to watch my house at night,” she said, and explained.

“Hey, I’m working days and could use the extra money. I have a PI friend who can lend me his nightscope, and should be able to spot anyone who tries to set another of those traps. I’ll take from eight to midnight, and should be able to find another off-duty deputy to cover the midnight to dawn hours. When do you want us to start? Tonight?”