Dog Gone Lies (Pacheco & Chino Mysteries Book 1) (28 page)

Sue said she was already hours late for work—it was a good thing she was going to quit before they fired her. She needed to go anyway, though, or the other girls wouldn’t be able to handle the rush. She gathered her stuff and gave Ray a kiss on her way out.

Ray went back into the cabin and called a couple of contractors he knew. He was looking for bids on the upgrades to the new office building. One said they could be there that afternoon, the other tomorrow morning. Ray also called the phone company and ordered two more lines to be run to the new office. He thought about pulling the cabin line out, but decided he would adjust.

With a little time on his hands, Ray decided to go check on how Big Jack was doing. Then he remembered that Tyee had the Jeep. At that moment, Tyee pulled into the yard.

“Thought you might need your wheels.”

“I was just thinking about heading down to see how you and Big Jack were doing—remembered you had the Jeep. How is he?”

“He took a tumble and it looks like he sprained his ankle. I took him to the clinic. They put a wrap on his ankle and said it would be sore for a few days. He’s on crutches, so not moving very fast. Other than that he seems to be in good spirits. While we were at the clinic, several people asked if he was going to run for Mayor. I think he’s thinking about it.”

“Sprained ankle. Will he be able to run the store?”

“I don’t think so. When I asked him about it, he said I should butt out. He just can’t move enough to deal with the dock customers. I called my cousin who lives up toward Ruidoso and asked if he needed a part-time job. He said he could use some money—common situation for both poor white people and poor Indians. I convinced Jack to hire him on a trial basis. I know we were talking about Sue doing that, but it might be best to see if this works out. My cousin, his name is Chester Chino—don’t even ask how he got the name Chester—knows a lot about fishing—equipment, baits, lures, plus he’s absolutely honest. I’m the black sheep of my family, Chester’s the saint. Anyway he’s supposed to be here this afternoon. I’m going back now to watch the store until Chester arrives.”

“I’ll go with you. Help me get Happy into the back of the Jeep and we’ll hang out at the store. I’d like to meet Chester.”

Ray lifted Happy into the back and let Tyee drive them to the store. Once he lowered Happy to the ground, the dog seemed fine to hop into the store. Ray let him in, and naturally he found a good warm spot to sleep. Big Jack was at the register, holding his crutches.

“Good Morning, Mr. Mayor.”

“First I save your damn life and now you’re trying to make mine miserable as payback—how does that make any sense?”

“You’re right, it doesn’t. Good Morning, Big Jack. Thank you for saving my life. How’s your ankle.”

“Hurts like shit. I’m just too fat. Can’t even see my feet when I walk. Stepped in a hole or something. Got me thinking about a diet. But then I got depressed so I decided to have a beer.” Big Jack held up his bottle to make the point.

“Hear you have some help coming.”

“Yeah. Tyee’s cousin Chester. What kind of fuckin’ Indian’s named Chester?”

Ray wasn’t real sure how to answer that, so he decided to take it as rhetorical. Tyee missed this exchange since he was on the dock helping a customer fuel his boat, and Ray decided to go out and see if he needed any assistance.

With Ray and Tyee taking care of the business, Big Jack decided to have another beer, and settled into his rocking chair on the dock.

“You know Ray, this sprained ankle thing might actually be okay.” Big Jack really should be mayor. He was perfectly happy sitting back and letting everyone else do the work, then taking credit for their efforts—the man was a born politician.

Later in the day, Chester showed up. He seemed like a very nice young man. Ray wasn’t quite sure he was really related to Tyee—he was too nice. He and Big Jack hit it off immediately. It was clear very quickly that Chester knew a lot about fishing in general and fishing equipment in particular. He looked like he’d worked there for months after only a few hours.

Ray left to meet the contractor and felt like everything was moving in the right direction. Over the course of a couple of days he got bids from several contractors and decided on the two he thought were the best. Once he had a chance to meet with Tyee and Big Jack to discuss the bids, he was ready to get started.

Wednesday

Ray took Happy to the vet Tuesday for his checkup and decided to board him that night. He needed to leave for Santa Fe very early on Wednesday so he could meet with the Attorney General. The vet said that Happy still had some swelling and it would be good to keep him off of the leg for a while. Ray knew the dog wouldn’t want to ride in the car for seven or more hours, so it made sense to let him stay at the vet’s for the night.

Early Wednesday morning Ray was on the road headed to Santa Fe. He liked Santa Fe, though he knew some people thought it was pretentious. Ray just thought it was very expensive. It was beyond anything Ray could imagine to spend a hundred dollars on dinner—without even much to drink. Ray liked food, but to dress it up in small servings with fussy presentation and then charge that kind of money made the whole experience feel like robbery. So Ray was never going to be a food critic—he could live with that.

Finding the downtown state offices for the Attorney General, Ray pulled into the parking garage. It was cool in Santa Fe. The elevation was much higher than T or C, but something most people didn’t know was that it was also much higher than Denver. This meant that most days started off very cool. Ray entered the building, found the office he needed, and took the elevator to the fifth floor. Unlike most government offices, this one had the feel of an upscale attorney’s office—probably meant that few citizens actually saw the AG personally. Ray gave his name to the receptionist and took a seat. Just a few minutes later Tony Garcia emerged.

“Ray, how was your drive?”

“Very good, Tony. Good to see you.”

“Yes. I was looking forward to our meeting today. Please come on back to my office.”

Ray wasn’t sure if Tony was looking forward to the meeting because he needed someone to yell at, or if that was just a general statement he made all the time. Ray smiled and followed Tony through the door and down the hall.

They entered Tony’s office. It was obviously a power office—must’ve been the size of a small house. There was a large desk along one wall and an impressive conference table in the opposite corner. All in all, it looked more like a CEO’s office than a public servant’s.

“Nice office.”

“Yeah. Actually it’s a little embarrassing. You know me, Ray—I’m a simple guy with pretty basic tastes. That wasn’t the case with my predecessor. He had a huge ego and not a lot of smarts. By all accounts he was a good politician, just not much of a worker bee. He held office for more than two years before he resigned to take a promotion to a federal position—and during that time he did almost nothing. But he sure liked nice things, and I’ve benefited from his excessive tastes. If I really wanted to make a statement, I’d sue him on behalf of the state for all of the money he wasted. But you have to pick your fights and he would be a tough one.”

“Well, maybe you could sublet?”

Tony laughed.

“I always loved your sense of humor, Ray. Now, tell me, why were you using my name as authority to arrest the local sheriff?”

“Just trying to help you out any way I can.”

This got some more chuckles, but the eyes didn’t seem to smile.

“You know that deal worked out and nobody is going to say anything, including me. On the other hand, if Martinez hadn’t been so obviously guilty, your actions could’ve put us in some hot water.”

“Look, Tony, I know I shouldn’t have handled it that way. I just had too many loose ends—I needed Martinez in jail so he didn’t kill me or anyone else. I knew I was taking a big risk because at that point I still didn’t have everything nailed down, but I also knew Martinez had to be part of what was happening. I know I’m no longer a sheriff and have no authority to act the way I did, but those were some pretty strange circumstances with the FBI being involved and a rogue FBI agent killing people and threatening to put me in jail. I did what I did because I thought it was the right thing—but it wasn’t the most appropriate, and there’s no question that I should have figured a better way of handling it rather than using your name.”

“Well damn, Ray, I thought it was brilliant. I’m just messin’ with you—it was brilliant. Who even knows what power or authority an AG has—nobody, that’s who. Most of the time I’m not sure what I can and can’t do. It was the perfect ploy. When I heard what you had said, I thought it was hysterical.”

“I’m glad you aren’t mad Tony. I wasn’t going to let any harm come to you. If it had gone bad—obviously it was just me bullshitting some folks.”

“And that’s why I asked you here today. I know you’ve started a private investigation business, and I know a little bit about your partners. But most importantly, I know you, Ray. You have that unique ability to do the right thing even when it’s not obvious what that is—and I also know you’re honest. That’s why I want to hire your firm as a contractor to help me and my office get better control over the county sheriffs. You’ve seen it yourself. We have some people who are just out of control. Last session the legislature changed some administrative duties, and now the AG’s office has a degree of authority over the county sheriffs. They’re elected officials, but they don’t and never have had carte blanche to do whatever in the hell they want—although some of them may think so. I don’t have the resources to look at all thirty-three counties in the state. I want to use you and your team to do a little spying and research to help me pinpoint where there’s good and where there’s bad. Do you think that’d be something you’d be interested in pursuing?”

“Absolutely, Tony. That would get us excited. From a personal point of view I can tell you that most, maybe seventy percent, of the sheriffs are hardworking, honest law enforcement professionals. Some are more lazy than others; some are smarter than others, but by far the majority are trying to do their best—and they’re the ones who will be the most pleased you’re doing something about the others. The bad ones are often very bad. They abuse everything. Sierra County isn’t a good example of much of anything when it comes to the sheriff’s department, with two of the sheriffs in jail. But let me tell you the next sheriff, a deputy named Clayton, is as good as they come. So right there, with all of the bad, was a guy ready to step up and make things better. I think that can be true in many of the troubled counties. I’d be very pleased to work with you on that, Tony.”

“That’s what I wanted to hear, Ray. We’ll set you up on a retainer and then put together a contract for professional services at an hourly rate plus expenses. I hope this works for both of us—I think we can do some good.”

They continued to discuss the details—but it was obvious both men were excited about the possibilities. Ray left and was headed back to T or C. He was so excited about the news, he stopped to call the office—and got the voice mail. He called the storeroom phone at Big Jack’s—and got the voice mail. They sure needed Sue to be part of this business—they needed to stay connected. He called Big Jack’s number—and got Chester. Chester wasn’t sure where everyone had gone. Ray thanked him and said just let them know he’d be back that evening. Ray got back in the Jeep and headed south.

It was early evening by the time Ray made it back to T or C. He went by the vet’s and found there was still someone in the office. They’d waited on Ray because they knew he was picking up Happy. Small towns could be a real pain in the rear, but they could also sure be friendly. Happy was very pleased to see him. Ray gave him a good rub and took him out to the Jeep. He seemed less limber than when he’d brought him in, but Ray figured that was right since he hadn’t gotten much exercise. They headed to the cabin. As Ray pulled in he was surprised to see Sue’s car and a truck he didn’t recognize. Ray parked and helped Happy get down. Happy then limped off toward his favorite spot in the yard. Sue came out onto the porch.

“Ray, it’s about time you got back. Why didn’t you call?”

Rather than trying to explain how irritating that question was, Ray just grinned.

“Didn’t stop except for gas. But here I am—whose truck?”

“It’s Tyee—he bought a truck. Come in, Big Jack is here too.”

Ray gave Sue a hug and went in. He greeted everyone—told Tyee he wanted to hear the truck story in just a minute. He got Happy food and water and settled him down in the center of the room—his favorite spot. Ray grabbed a beer and settled himself.

“Man, that’s a long drive in one day. Now, tell me the truck story.”

“Can’t bum rides forever off of White Man—Indian must be free to roam.”

The room gave Tyee some laughter.

Ray told them about his meeting with the AG. Everyone was very excited. Sue even squealed a little.

“This is a big deal guys. The combined fees from the AG and FBI makes us a very viable business and we haven’t even officially started. I think we’re having some good luck. A toast to Pacheco and Chino, PIs.”