Red Mesa (46 page)

“Manyfarms!” she yelled, trying to deflect his attention away from Justine and Wilson. But it was too late. He fired quickly, then swung the rifle toward her, working
the lever to put a new shell into the chamber.

“Duck, Ella!” Blalock’s voice came from right behind her.

Suddenly Blalock collided with her from behind. She fell flat onto the ground, his heavy body bowling her over as if she’d been tackled.

Three or four shots went off at nearly the same instant, and Ella heard Blalock grunt sharply. “Damn!”

Rolling clear of Blalock, Ella scrambled to lift
her derringer toward Manyfarms, but by then Big Ed and Paycheck were standing over him. Despite Jeremiah’s curses and protests that he’d been shot, the Hopi FBI agent handcuffed the man after they discovered he was wearing a bullet-resistant vest.

Now on her knees, Ella turned her head and saw Blalock clutching his thigh and gritting his teeth. Blood oozed between his fingers, but when he saw
her looking, he tried to smile. “My turn, huh?”

Remembering the other shots, she frantically turned and looked toward where Justine and Wilson had fallen. Wilson was helping Justine to her feet again, his arm wrapped protectively around her. “We’re okay here,” Wilson said.

“Blalock needs an ambulance,” Ella shouted to Big Ed, then moved to help FB-Eyes.

“It’s already on the way,” Big Ed yelled
back, holding up his cell phone.

Ella crouched next to Blalock as Agent Payestewa brought more wound dressings from Manuelito’s first aid kit, then pressed them against the entrance and exit wounds on opposite sides of the FBI agent’s thigh. “It doesn’t look like you’re bleeding from an artery,” Payestewa reported. “But your slacks are a total loss,” he added solemnly.

“Gee, you think?” Blalock
muttered, fighting the pain.

It wasn’t long before Ella saw the paramedic unit pull up, along with an SUV she didn’t recognize. When Carolyn and Michael Lavery stepped out, Ella smiled. “I should have known you couldn’t stay away.”

“We’d stopped at Four Corners on the way back home when I heard on the police band what was going on. I came straight here.”

Lavery treated Jeremiah’s upper-arm
wound as Carolyn went to help Blalock.

“You’ll be all right,” Carolyn assured the agent. “The bullet passed completely through you without damaging bone or major vessels. You’ll be line-dancing in no time.”

“A lifelong dream of mine,” Blalock grumbled.

Happy to see Justine, Carolyn impulsively gave her a big hug, something that disturbed the other Navajo cops a lot more than it did Ella’s shaky
cousin. Carolyn studied the bandages on Justine’s hand, then checked her vitals. Assuring Justine she’d be okay, she ordered Wilson to take her to the hospital ER immediately. They quickly left.

Soon the paramedics had loaded up Blalock and the two wounded kidnappers. Payestewa rode in the ambulance to keep an eye on the prisoners while Big Ed followed in Blalock’s car as the injured were transported.

Ella retrieved her rifle, then stood with Carolyn and Michael Lavery as she finally cleared and unloaded her weapon.

“I know you two deserved your entire vacation, but I’m sure glad you got back when you did.” Ella smiled at the two doctors.

“It’s hard to enjoy a honeymoon when you’re worried sick about a friend,” Carolyn said with a shrug.

“What did you say?” Ella’s jaw fell.

“I was worried
about you,” Carolyn said. “Don’t look so shocked. We’re friends, after all.”

Ella saw the twinkle in Carolyn’s eyes, but she couldn’t tell how much of it was a joke. “The other part of what you said, Doctor.”

Carolyn smiled. “There are two Dr. Laverys now. Only one is now known as Roanhorse-Lavery.”

Ella hugged her friend. “I can’t believe you two got married without telling a soul.”

“Actually
it was very unplanned,” Michael joined in. “But some things are better that way. Right, dear?” He winked at Carolyn.

“Well, I want to hear every detail,” Ella said, walking back with them to their vehicle. She wasn’t officially a cop now, and the crime scene was someone else’s responsibility for the moment.

“Where’s your Jeep?” Carolyn said.

“I’ve got a borrowed pickup right now, and it’s a
couple of hundred yards back the way you came in. I’ll accept a ride,” she said, then settled in the backseat and listened to Carolyn chatter happily. Michael Lavery seemed content to nod and smile.

In all the time she’d known Carolyn, Ella had never seen her friend look happier. Ella sat back and relaxed for the first time since her ordeal had started. Carolyn had found love and Justine was
alive and safe. Best of all, Ella knew she didn’t have to run and hide anymore, and could go home to her daughter again.

“Is it true that you were suspended?” Carolyn asked.

Ella nodded. “But I’ll be reinstated soon.”

“I hope you’ll allow all the ones who gave you a hard time to feel very guilty,” Carolyn said, her tone now serious. “And if they try to make amends, don’t be nice and try to
save them the trouble. Make them suffer and have to find ways to earn your trust again.”

Ella laughed. “I’ll keep your advice in mind.”

Ella showed them where she’d hidden the truck, and Michael stopped and parked. Once he got a clear look at Herman’s truck, he whistled.

“That’s a real muscle truck. Reminds me of an old El Camino I had.”

Carolyn smiled. “Okay, fess up. That’s not your mother’s.
Did you steal it?”

“Depends on who’s asking,” Ella answered, still protecting Herman Cloud. “I’ll tell you about it later, but right now I want to get to the hospital. I’m really worried about Justine.”

“Her hand’s a bloody mess and I expect she’s fighting an infection. Don’t expect a quick recovery. They chopped off the end of her finger at the first joint, and she’ll probably end up losing
it down to her knuckle, maybe more. They had all the finesse of an apprentice butcher boning a chicken.”

Ella slipped behind the wheel and started up the big engine. “I’m heading to the hospital. I’ll see you two there.”

*   *   *

Ella waited outside the Shiprock Hospital’s emergency room, working on her third cup of what the vending machine had optimistically labeled coffee, when Big Ed came
lumbering down the corridor with two pistols on his belt.

Anticipating his first question, she shook her head. “I still haven’t heard anything about Justine. Any news on Blalock’s condition? I know they took him on to the Farmington medical center.”

“I just got a call. FB-Eye’s going to be all right. The doctors say he should be able to regain full use of his leg after a period of recuperation.
Probably not even limp.”

“That’s really good to hear.” She was still trying to decide whether Dwayne had saved her from being shot by shielding her from the gunmen or knocked her down by accident. She was certain FB-Eyes would never admit to the truth either way.

Big Ed nodded. “While I’m here, there’s something I need to give you.”

The chief reached into his jacket pocket and handed Ella her
badge. He then unhooked the extra holster from the right side of his belt buckle and gave her back her service weapon. “Accept these along with a very large apology. I’ve already made a statement to the press, so the story of what you did is getting around. I also got a call from Mrs. Yellowhair. She wants to speak to you whenever you have a moment. Who knows? She may even talk you into running
for office.”

“Not during this lifetime. I’m a cop. That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

Seeing Dr. Rubens come out the emergency room doors, Ella held her breath.

He smiled, reassuring them instantly. “Officer Goodluck will need to rest and she’ll be on strong antibiotics for a while, but she’ll be fine. The drugs they’d been doping her up with are wearing off now, and should have no long-term effects.”

“How long will she have to stay in the hospital?” Ella asked.

“It’s too soon to tell. We need to see how she responds to the antibiotics.”

Hearing footsteps rushing toward them, Ella turned her head and saw her cousin Angela coming up the hall. Ruth and Jayne were right behind her.

“I’ll speak to them now,” Dr. Rubens said, “but in the meantime, why don’t you go in and see Justine? She asked
for you.”

Ella went inside and located the curtained area where her cousin was being treated. Justine lay in bed, her face pale and her arm linked to an IV.

“You’re a sight for sore eyes, cousin!” Ella gave her a warm smile.

“I’m glad you’re here, Ella. Wilson told me that you never gave up hope, although everyone else thought I was dead.”

“It’s long story, and a complicated one,” Ella said.
“I’ll tell you all about it later. But how did Natoni and Manyfarms pull off the kidnapping? I haven’t figured that one out yet.”

“I stopped to help what looked like an old woman with a flat tire. I didn’t even call it in, it looked so innocent. Somebody hiding in the dark apparently shot me in the leg with some kind of tranquilizer dart, because I went out like a light. When I woke up, I was
in a house or trailer, tied to the bed with duct tape. My hand hurt like hell, and I passed out again. They kept me drugged so much I was out of it most of the time, but once when they thought I was sleeping I heard one of them talking. At the time, I couldn’t figure out who it was, because he was in the next room. I know it wasn’t Paul, so it must have been Jeremiah. His plan was devastating.”

“What did you hear?”

“He had this strategy to get you arrested for my murder. Then while you were in jail, he was going to arrange for you to see a photo of me holding the current day’s paper so you’d know I was really alive. After that, the photo would disappear and you’d never be able to prove a thing.”

“And once I went to prison?”

“They would have probably killed me and gotten rid of my
body. I’d already recognized Paul, and he knew it.”

“And Jeremiah never planned to tell me who he was?”

“He wanted you to get convicted according to the white man’s laws, and to know that you’d been set up. But he didn’t want you to find out who was responsible. He figured that failure would haunt you and he’d end up destroying you—inside and out.”

“I would have
never
given up trying to find
out who he was,” Ella said.

Tears suddenly filled Justine’s eyes. “My trigger finger is gone all the way to the knuckle now. They had to cut the infected part off to try and save the rest. My career…”

“You’ll just have to learn to shoot differently, that’s all. After you requalify, you can go back to your job.”

“Are you sure?”

Ella nodded. “You’ve already trained to shoot with your left hand
in case of an emergency. You’ll just have to get in some practice, and learn to use your right hand as it is. You’ll have some adjusting to do all around, but you can learn.”

Before Ella could say more, Justine’s family came in, and Ella stepped back. Angela held Justine, then kissed her forehead. “We thought we’d lost you,” she said, tears running down her face. “But you’re here now. I still
can’t believe it.”

Ella slipped out through the curtain, and was leaving the area quietly when Angela came out to find her. “Ella, it’s thanks to you that I have my daughter back. I won’t forget this.”

“She’s very brave, and the best cop I’ve ever worked with. You should be very proud of her.”

“I am. And thank you for saying that.”

As Angela returned to her daughter, Ella stepped out of the
emergency room into the waiting area. Carolyn and Big Ed came up, Agent Payestewa following right behind them.

“We’ve been giving some thought as to who the dead person was. Nobody’s reported any empty graves or stolen bodies,” Carolyn said. “Do you have any ideas?”

Ella nodded. “My guess is that it’s Justine’s real aunt Lena, and she just hasn’t been reported missing, living where she did.
But short of documenting Lena’s disappearance, I doubt we’ll be able to prove it conclusively. A positive ID won’t be possible, and Manyfarms isn’t about to confess. Right now I figure he’s probably working hard to come up with a way to avoid a first-degree murder rap, like Paul Natoni. But maybe the Manyfarms twins will plea-bargain and testify against them—if they can be located, that is.”

“We have the Bureau looking for them in all the western states, and a bulletin has been sent to every police agency, large and small. They’ll be picked up, especially if they stay together. Everyone remembers seeing twins,” Payestewa said, notebook in hand. “Was Officer Goodluck able to fill in some blanks for us, like when and how they took her?”

Ella recounted everything Justine had said, knowing
Paycheck would still have to interview her cousin later. “Jeremiah didn’t complete his plan, but he still got some measure of revenge for the death of his youngest son. He put us all through the worst time of our lives.”

“What do you say we go question him?” Big Ed asked. “With the vest he was wearing, he has only broken ribs and flesh wounds, so the doctors have already put him in a private
room. I’ve assigned two officers to watch him full-time.”

“He’s not going to talk,” Ella warned as they headed toward the floor where the prisoner was being held. “He’s too smart to further incriminate himself. There’s too much hatred in him, and he knows that in New Mexico he’ll probably be out of jail before he’s an old man.”

“We still have enough to send him away for quite a while. Let’s
remind him of that, and see what else we can get from him,” Big Ed said.

“I’d like to be in on the questioning, but first I have to call in some reports,” Agent Payestewa said, stopping at the elevator. “Can you give me a half hour or so before you see him?”

“Sure,” Big Ed said. “He’s not going anywhere.”

Ella told Big Ed about her encounters with Harry Ute and Begaye, the fugitive he’d been
after, then took the time to call her mother, even speaking to Dawn over the phone for a few moments. Rose promised to let Clifford know, as well.

An hour later, the three sat in the prisoner’s hospital room with the suspect.

Manyfarms was sitting up in bed, handcuffed to the rail. He regarded them with pure hatred in his eyes.