Changing Woman (16 page)

Ella waited as Dispatch called on area experts. Finally, Big Ed came on the radio. “Shorty, my uncle Raymond lives in Crystal. He thinks he knows where you’re at, and is going to meet you.
Just stay with the road you’re on now, and keep heading south. He knows a shortcut to the highway.”

“Ten-four, Chief.”

A thick, heavy silence fell over them as they kept an eye out for Raymond Atcitty’s truck. Less than five minutes later, Justine spotted the gunmetal gray truck coming their direction. “Wherever that old truck can go, we can follow,” Justine said flatly.

Justine kept pace with
the chief’s uncle, following less than a hundred yards behind him. Raymond had found an old fire break, a clear-cut area between stands of trees, that wound downhill quickly.

Aware that they hadn’t heard a sound from John for at least five minutes, Justine turned her head for a quick look. The sight didn’t do much to calm her.

“Stay focused on your driving,” Ella ordered.

Justine nodded once,
but she looked physically ill.

Following Raymond’s lead, they managed to reach the paved road, Highway 134, in fifteen minutes. Five minutes later, heading east at a fast clip, they encountered
the helicopter coming west to meet them. John and Henry were airborne within two minutes, and quickly disappeared into the northern sky.

Forty minutes later Ella and Justine arrived at the hospital. By
then, every single muscle in Ella’s body was cramping with nervous tension, and Justine looked about to explode.

They found Henry, who was pacing in the ER lobby. Seeing them, he shrugged. “Still no news, but he was alive when we arrived.”

“We’ll catch whoever did this, Henry,” Justine said.

Henry nodded absently, but his gaze remained glued on the ER doors, and it was easy to see that his
thoughts were only on his father.

“We’ll check back later,” Ella said.

Justine followed Ella outside. “You realize that this is the coldest winter the Rez has had since we were kids. People need firewood more than ever. If there are other trees . . .”

“I know,” Ella answered. “Stop by the tribal newspaper offices. I want to talk to Jaime Beyale. She’ll help us spread the warning.”

“Leaking
the news might create more trouble. It’s going to shake people’s confidence in the authorities even more.”

“They’ve forced our hand, Justine. We don’t have a choice. We have to warn as many people as we can of the danger. Our first duty is to the tribe. If we fail at that, then we deserve all the barbs aimed our way.”

They arrived at the tribal newspaper’s offices in Window Rock about an hour and a half later. The threat of snow had ended as quickly as it had begun, and the rough, red sandstone mesas were bathed in late afternoon sunshine. Ella went into the newsroom while Justine stopped by the vending machines in the lobby for something to eat.

As Ella knocked on Jaime’s open office door, Jaime looked
up. She’d cut her hair short since Ella had last seen her, and wore thick reading glasses that made her look like an intellectual. Seeing it was Ella, she smiled. “Hey, Ella, come on in. What’s up?”

“I need your help. I’d like the paper to run a story warning the
Dineh
of a problem,” she said, then filled her in on the spiked trees and the accidents.

“We already heard about the two earlier instances
you mentioned, and we ran a short piece you probably missed,” Jaime said. “But I’ll tell you what. This time I’ll make sure it makes the front page. There’s supposed to be a big polar air mass dropping down from the north in few days, and I know people will be out there trying to top off their woodpiles. I hear that even the LP gas trucks are getting behind on their Rez deliveries.”

“Times are
tougher for the
Dineh
than they’ve ever been.”

“Yet at a time when money’s scarce, we have people driving around, wasting gas, and creating problems for the tribe. How do you account for all the vandalism that’s been going on, Jaime? Have you heard any rumors?”

Jaime took a deep breath. “I’m working on a story right now, Ella. You can read it in the next edition of the paper.”

“I’d rather not
be surprised,” Ella said seriously. “Would you cut me some slack this time and fill me in on your conclusions.”

Jaime met her gaze with a level one of her own. “I don’t
have
to do that, you know.”

“Yeah, but I’m still asking.”

“You’ll owe me, Ella. Understood?” Seeing Ella nod, she continued. “I have a source who claims that most of the incidents around the Shiprock area are directed toward
one goal. Someone hates Chief Ed Atcitty, and wants him replaced. They’re trying to make him look incompetent so enough pressure will be put on the council to have him fired as Shiprock police chief.”

Though the news had taken her by surprise, Ella tried not to let it show. “How good is your source?”

“Truthfully? I’m not sure. But I won’t run the story until I can confirm it with two independent
sources. Otherwise, it’ll seem as if I’m trying to make excuses for Big Ed and cover for his incompetence. But I have to tell you, from my initial research, I think this story’s on target. When Big Ed was appointed, he beat out another candidate for the job—Carl Benjamin, from the BIA. Remember him?”

“Sure, but he passed away from a heart attack last year, didn’t he?”

“True, but his brother,
Arthur, is lobbying for the job on the basis that he’s better qualified than Big Ed to handle the current crisis.”

“What are his credentials—besides ego?”

Jaime grinned. “He’s got a degree in criminology from the University of New Mexico and he worked for the state police for fifteen years. Ten of those, by the way, were at a desk job, with no great responsibility.”

“And someone claims Arthur
Benjamin is behind all this?”

“No, the talk is that someone is trying to make it easy for him by discrediting Big Ed.”

“Who?”

“Rumor is it’s some of the backroom boys from the progaming faction. Arthur is a strong advocate for gaming, unlike Big Ed.”

Ella nodded. “Politics and big money have always been friends. If you hear anything we can use, will you call me?”

“I’m a reporter, Ella. I
don’t work for the Tribal police.”

“If you have knowledge of a specific crime—”

Jaime held up her hand. “You know I don’t.” She paused. “But I will tell you this much. Even if someone
is
working actively to make Big Ed and the police look like fools, you have the power to stop it. Catch whoever’s behind the vandalism and now the problem with the trees, and Big Ed could be off the hook.”

“We
need a name. Who’s your source?”

“I can’t tell you that.”

“How do you know this isn’t just someone’s active imagination, or another troublemaker?”

“Instinct.”

Ella nodded. She couldn’t argue with that. Intuition and instinct had been her most faithful guides throughout her years in law enforcement. “Just remember, Jaime, if you pursue this story and it’s true, you’ll be challenging some dangerous
people when you go to press. You may even be risking your life.”

“I’ll be careful, and you do the same.”

“You can bank on it.”

As soon as they reached the station, Ella hurried to her office, shut the door, and called home. Jennifer answered immediately.

The first observation that hit her was that Jennifer actually sounded cheerful. Or maybe, by now, Jennifer was
delirious. “How are things
over there?” Ella asked her quickly.

“Fine. It has been quiet all day. Right now your daughter and your mother are in the living room playing see-and-say. I’ve been catching up on the laundry.”

Ella wanted to let out a cheer.

“Oh, your mother asked me to say hello to you. She knew it was you when the phone rang. She said that you have a tendency to worry too much.”

Ella almost choked. “Tell
Mom and my daughter I’ll be home as soon as I can.”

“Don’t worry if you’re a little late. I can stay as long as I’m needed.”

“You’re wonderful,” Ella told her, totally relieved.

Ella hung up and stretched out in her chair, relaxing for the first time in hours.

“Hey, boss,” Justine said, walking in. “I’ve got some good news.”

“What’s up?”

“John Yabeni’s going to be fine. He’ll have to stay
in the hospital for a few days while they watch him for signs of infection, but they think he should be able to recover completely.”

“That is great news.”

“I’d like your permission to personally follow up on this incident and see if the others who were victimized can give us any more information. Also, I’d like to talk to people who live in the Narbona Pass area and see if anyone knows anything.”

“Go for it. This is a deadly game, and it has to stop before somebody is killed or maimed.”

Ella glanced up as Big Ed walked into her office. “Chief, can I help you?”

“Shorty, you and I have to attend a Chapter House meeting tonight. I understand they’re discussing the police department’s failure to put a stop to the crime wave we’re experiencing. From now on, I want to make sure the PD is present
at any meetings where this is on the
agenda. I don’t want anyone to think we’re afraid to confront the issues head on.”

“I’ll be there,” Ella answered, “but I sure wish we had something concrete to share with those people tonight.”

“We can only tell them what we’ve tried—the extra patrols, the concentrated sweeps in targeted neighborhoods at night, and that we’re following leads now that may
point the way to whoever’s responsible,” Big Ed said. “But we’ll have to keep any specifics to ourselves. For all we know, the perps will be sitting in the front row taking notes.”

“The only thing most people are interested in are results,” Ella warned quietly.

“I know, but we need to confront this issue or we’re going to lose even more credibility.” He paused, then continued after a moment.
“Also, I’m getting a lot of pressure from the Tribal Council to make sure this department remains high profile. They think that even if we don’t catch the criminals, we need to show people that we’re out doing something.”

“I’ll be there, Chief,” Ella said. Maybe she could prevail on Jennifer to stay a little longer tonight.

As Big Ed walked out, Justine’s gaze stayed on her. “If you need a babysitter,
Ella, I can take care of Dawn tonight.”

Ella smiled. “We really have become great partners if you can read my mind that easily.”

Justine laughed. “Oh, I’ve been doing that for a long time.”

“Cocky, aren’t you?” Ella teased as she placed several folders back into the file cabinet. “And thanks for your offer to baby-sit, but I think I’ve got Dawn covered tonight. I’m going to try and get Jennifer
to stay a while longer. But, if she can’t, I’m sure Mom can take care of her for a few hours.”

Hearing approaching footsteps, Ella looked past Justine’s shoulder and saw Harry. “Hey, how’s it going?”
she asked, wondering if her voice sounded just a little too eager.

Justine stood. “Well, I better get back to my office. I’ve got reports stacked miles high.”

Harry strode in and smiled at her.
He was dressed in dark blue slacks and a tan pullover sweater. It was a far cry from the man who used to live in blue jeans when he’d worked for her.

Ella watched him sit down in the chair Justine had vacated. “Bad news on the green van,” he said. “It was wiped clean. And the plate on the pickup used by the guy who made a delivery to the hogan turned out to be stolen.”

Ella looked down at the
report on her desk. It was Sam Pete’s paperwork on the explosion at the hogan. She remained quiet for a long moment, analyzing, probing, and weighing the information. “From what I see here, there’s nothing particularly noteworthy about what we recovered around the hogan. But Sam’s getting some tests run on the explosives residue.” She slid the report across the desk to him.

“I know you’re facing
multiple problems on the Rez now, Ella, and I heard you and Justine have already had a long, rough day. I sure wish I could lend you a hand,” he said while scanning the report.

“Catch Manyfarms and that’ll take one big load off my mind. I’d like to lose this thick FBI vest I’m supposed to wear all the time now.”

“I’ll catch him, Ella,” he said in a deep, sure voice. “You can count on that.”

Ella saw the gleam of determination in his eyes. “You’ve always been very good at your job, Harry. I could really use you back on the SI team, you know.”

He shook his head. “Being a U.S. marshal suits me. I have more responsibility, and I like the respect I get wherever I go.”

Ella remembered her days in the Bureau. She felt proud flashing her gold badge and seeing the awareness
in people’s eyes.
“Yes, I understand what you mean. But do you feel you’re part of a team? Among your own people that was never a question.”

He considered it for a long moment before replying. “I maintain a little distance from the others, but it’s something I’ve always done—here or in the Marshal’s Service.”

Ella nodded slowly, remembering how it had been when he’d worked with her. Harry had always been friendly
enough, but he kept to himself, and rarely socialized with other cops outside the job.

“In that one respect, we’re very different. I don’t like feeling separate from my team or being perceived as different, and that’s the way it was for me a lot of the time at the Bureau.”

“Your problem is that you analyze everything too much and you never give your instincts as a cop a rest,” he said with a
grin.

Ella laughed. “This from another cop? Get real. There’s no such thing as an eight-to-five cop. The job becomes part of who we are and we carry it with us even after we go home. Don’t tell me you’re not the same way.”

“I am,” he admitted. “But it gets to be a problem at times.”

“Yes, it does.”

“I’ve heard talk about the Chapter House meeting tonight. It could bring out a lot of bad feelings
toward the PD.”

“Big Ed and I will be there. Maybe that’ll help defuse the anger,” she said, not really believing it. Ella stood up and grabbed her keys. “I was going to invite you for dinner, but what I plan to do is pick up a pizza and take it home. Mom will have apoplexy, but Dawn loves pizza, and so do I.”