Wind Spirit [Ella Clah 10] (34 page)

A half hour that felt like an eternity later, she hung up, feeling sad but also relieved. They were still friends, and there was something to be said for that. The truth was that she’d miss what might have been more than what they’d actually shared.

Ella turned off the cell phone and plugged it back into the charger. Flopping back down onto the pillow, she kicked the covers off, then curled up into a ball and closed her eyes. The night squirrels were finally gone.

The following morning Ella and Justine set out to Professor Garnenez’s home right after seven.

“It’s going to be a long haul, Ella. He lives south of Bloomfield over by the Huerfano Chapter House. Why a college professor would live way out there is beyond me. He’s a new traditionalist and most of them prefer living closer to town where the houses have more amenities.”

“He could still have electricity and gas. A generator and propane would be all he needs.”

After driving east along the river valley through Farmington and the small community of Bloomfield, they headed south up and across a high, dry plateau. There were
many natural gas wells in the area, and to the west were large circular-sprinkler irrigated fields that were part of the Navajo Irrigation Project. Tall mesas mainly to the east dotted the landscape and relatively flat desert stretched out to the west.

Ella knew this part of the Rez like the palm of her hand. She’d come out here often as a kid. Her father had spent a good portion of his life trying to convert the
Dineh
to Christianity and he’d held many revival meetings south of Bloom-field. She still remembered those clearly. There’d always be plenty of fire and brimstone talk, as well as a free dinner—which was the only reason many attended.

“This section of the Rez would be an ideal place to raise kids,” Ella said thoughtfully. “They would have lots of room to play without ever worrying about street gangs or traffic.”

Justine glanced at Ella, then back at the road. “You’re really bugged about having to move away from your family, aren’t you?”

“You bet.”

“How’s Dawn handling it?”

“A hell of a lot better than I am.”

“Then let it go, partner.”

“Easier said than done.”

“If you don’t, Ella, it’s going to make you crazy and it still won’t change anything.”

“Speaking of change, I broke up with Harry last night.”

“I thought I heard your cell phone. Do you want to talk?”

“There’s not much else to say about it.”

Ella remained silent for the rest of the trip. At long last they arrived at a small stucco home nestled in the shadow of a solitary mesa near Huerfano. As Ella had predicted, there was a generator and a huge propane tank.

Ella glanced around. The professor didn’t have any livestock and there were no dogs visible. All she could see were five crows pecking at the ground where a garden had been
at one time, judging from the rows of dried-out plant stalks.

“Looks kind of dead around here, doesn’t it?” Justine commented.

Ella nodded. “Maybe ‘Garny’ has a black thumb.”

They’d just stepped out of the SUV when Professor Garnenez came out to meet them.

“Is there something I can help you with?” he asked coldly. The professor was dressed in jeans and a sweatshirt and looked as if he’d been up awhile.

“We came to ask you a few questions,” Ella replied, noticing he wasn’t wearing his medicine pouch. “Shall we go inside?”

“No, let’s not. I wouldn’t feel comfortable with you inside my home,” he said pointedly.

“I understand you’ve had quite a bit to say about me in your classes,” Ella prodded.

“What I’ve said there, I’ll gladly say to your face. Your blatant disregard for our beliefs is an affront to everyone on this reservation. And your willingness to risk the safety of children—even that of your own child—”

“You
don’t
want to bring my kid into this,” she warned.

“Easy, partner,” Justine said softly.

“As the sister of a
hataalii
you should show more caution, not to mention respect.”

“It’s strange that you should mention my brother. I understand that you don’t approve of him either,” Ella shot back.

“When he actually does his job, I hear he’s a skilled
hataalii
.”

“Meaning?”

“He should be spending more time looking for the Singer who’s needed for your ceremony. He knows the circumstances and the urgency involved. As a
hataalii
nothing should be taking precedence over that for him. But then again, he seems to have a problem with priorities.”

Ella took a step closer to him. “Listen, you little weasel, I know you’re trying to make a move on my brother’s wife. She may not realize what you’re up to, but I do. So watch your step.”

“Or what? You can’t touch me. I’ve broken no laws.”

“Your alibi for the time someone shot at me doesn’t hold water. You’ve also made it quite obvious that you consider me a threat, which explains why you’ve been stirring up trouble. The question that remains is whether you’re capable of attempted murder as well.”

He backed up a step. “You’ve lost your mind.”

“Who was the clerk at the Quick Stop when you were there on Tuesday?” Justine asked.

He gave her a bewildered look. “I have no idea. I think it was probably Clyde.”

“Wrong. He wasn’t there that night.” Ella held his gaze. “Someone’s been taking shots at me. And you have no alibi . . .”

“You think it was
me
?” His voice rose an octave and he looked at her in horror.

Ella weighed his reaction carefully. Garnenez was as much surprised by the news of the sniper as he was by the fact that he was a suspect. She had a strong feeling he was holding back on them.

Deciding on a tactic, Ella turned wordlessly and headed back to the vehicle with Justine. As soon as they were under way, Justine glanced over at Ella. “I don’t think he’s the sniper. I thought he was going to faint when you mentioned murder.”

“He may not be the sniper, but gut instinct tells me he knows something about the incidents. Let’s let him sweat for a while. Then we’ll try again. His own fears will work against him far more effectively than we could.”

They stopped by the station next. As she entered her office Ella found Joseph Neskahi placing something on her desk. “Hey, Joe, what brings you here on a Sunday morning?”

“Since I was planning to come in today, Justine asked me to finish the background check you’d asked her to do on Raymus and Daniel Smart. I completed it just a few minutes ago and there’s nothing particularly significant about Raymus. He’s had a few DWI arrests, but that’s about it. Daniel’s another story. The guy’s been in trouble for years. He got a ‘less than honorable discharge.’ That’s not a ‘dishonorable discharge,’ but it’s the next step up.”

“I’m almost sure he’s the tracker Branch hired. But I’ve got to go talk to Branch and squeeze some information out of him,” Ella said.

“Branch is currently staying on the Rez at the Lazy Pony Inn,” Neskahi said.

“Thanks for the tip. I’ll go pay him a visit right now.”

Ella made sure Justine would be able to catch a ride with Neskahi, then left the station. It was nearly ten in the morning. The motel Branch had picked was an upscale one on the Rez that catered to tourists. What had surprised her most was that he’d chosen to come to the Rez—that this was where
he’d felt safest despite the political muscle of Councilman Lewis Hunt. The pull that the four sacred mountains had on those of her tribe, even those of mixed ancestry, was as real and tangible as the sand that covered the desert.

As Ella pulled into the motel’s parking lot, she searched for Branch’s luxury sedan and found it parked in front of a door at the end.

Leaving her SUV next to his Mercedes, she went to the motel-room door and knocked. Branch came to the door moments later and peered out. He was wearing a half-open, untucked shirt and slacks that, even with her limited perspective, looked as if he’d slept in them.

Branch’s reddened eyes were narrowed into slits. “What do you want, Clah?”

“I’d like to talk to you about Daniel Smart.”

Branch rubbed his eyes, then gave her a heavy-lidded look. “What’s he done?”

Ella took half a step back. His breath could have qualified as a biological weapon. “The real question is, what have
you
done?” Ella slipped past him and stepped inside his room. Stopping by the window, she opened the blinds.

He groaned and covered his eyes with one hand as light streamed in. “Are you here to torture me?”

Ella leaned against the wall and regarded him thoughtfully. “Why don’t you sit down and tell me what’s going on?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said, stepping around her to close the blinds.

“Did you hire Daniel Smart to go after Cardell Benally?”

He sat down on the bed, then poured himself some water from a pitcher on the nightstand. “You’re wasting my time, Clah, and even more tragically, you’ve interrupted my sleep. Go away.”

“You do understand the term ‘accessory to murder’?”

“Do you understand the term ‘harassment’?” he countered, now fully awake.

Ella remained quiet for a moment, trying to find yet another way to get through to him. Finally, she opted for the direct approach. “You hired someone to go after Cardell. We have a witness to that,” she said, though she knew that what she really had was a lot less substantial. “But Daniel’s not as reliable a partner as you might think. Do you know he was kicked out of the military because he was unstable?” she challenged, taking some liberties with the truth. “I wonder what charges he would have faced had he been a civilian?”

George Branch’s breathing became heavy and she could see the vein on his forehead pop out. “You checked him out with the military? No wait—more to the point—
why
did you take the time to check Daniel out?”

Despite his bravado, Ella saw the uncertainty in his eyes and knew that she now had his complete attention. “I know Cardell Benally scares you. You’re convinced he burned down your house with Hunt’s help, and now that Benally has dropped off the radar, you’re afraid he’s getting ready to make another move.”

“Of course I am. Hunt is throwing out that smoke screen of Navajo justice, trying to justify what Benally’s done in case Benally’s ever caught. He’s using Cardell to do what he’d like to do himself, but he’s smart too. He won’t let Cardell go down because there’s no telling what Cardell might say on his own. The crazy thing is that they both hold
me
responsible even though Smiley’s the one who burned down that house, not me.”

“We haven’t proven that Smiley was guilty of arson,” Ella pointed out.

“That’s only because he killed himself and blew up everything he owned in the process. But everyone still knows he’s the one who set fire to the Hunts’ home. Unfortunately for me, I’m the focus of Benally and Hunt’s revenge because I’m the only target left. They burned down my house, sure, but it won’t stop there. Hunt doesn’t have the stomach to try and
kill me himself—it’s not his style. But Benally would. Then, Hunt would produce a dozen people who can give his brother-in-law an alibi—people who swallowed that Navajo justice crap hook, line, and sinker.”

“So you hired Daniel Smart to kill Cardell before he could kill you?”

“Kill? I did no such thing,” he snapped. “I’m not a murderer, even by proxy.”

“Then why did you hire Smart?”

“I never said I did.” He held her gaze. “If anything, what I needed was a tracker—someone who could tell
you
where Benally is.”

Ella considered what he’d said. “If you hired a tracker and he ends up killing the target, you’ll have one hell of a time proving you’re
not
an accessory to murder, particularly if Smart turns on you. Remember, you’d be the best witness against him.”

“I get your message loud and clear, Clah. But we’re speculating here, that’s all. I haven’t done anything except sit in this motel room—just me and Jack.”

“Jack who?” she looked around.

He pointed to the bottle next to the TV set. “Jack Daniel’s.”

“Take some friendly advice. If you hired Smart, call him off. Chances are he’s more than you bargained for.” Ella stood up. “By the way, do you have any idea where I can find the guy?”