Читать книгу The Warrior's Way - Jenna Kernan, Jenna Kernan - Страница 11

Chapter Three

“That’s crazy. I’m not blowing up anything. I’m here to advise you,” said Sophia. She was sweating now, but it was a cold sweat and her skin had gone to gooseflesh.

One thing she knew with certainty—there was no way in hell she was ever, under any circumstances, doing anything that could affect the outcome of her fatal force investigation. Destroying federal land in a massive unauthorized explosion qualified.

“No,” she said. “No way and hell no.”

Jack’s smile told her that this wasn’t over and she felt like kicking herself for opening her big mouth. What if they did something incredibly stupid, like tried to blow that opposite wall and then they told her supervisors that it was her suggestion?

“You can’t be seriously considering this.” She tried to make her voice reflect her incredulity, but instead there was a definite tremor.

“I’ll consider anything that keeps my people from drowning.”

“We’re protecting the dam system, Jack. You and your warrior society don’t have to do anything. This is federal land. All of it. It falls under federal jurisdiction.”

He pointed toward Piñon Forks. “That’s Apache land and we will protect it as we see fit.”

“I hope you like federal prisons, because that’s where you’re heading if you blow one single rock of this canyon. This is a wetland system. It’s crucial to the power grid and it’s beautiful.”

“You have a better idea?”

“That wasn’t an idea! It was a joke.”

“How would you set the blasts, in your joke?” he asked.

“You must think I’m crazy to answer a question like that. Besides you don’t have access to the kind of explosives you’d need.”

“We have mining explosives, det cord, blasting caps and rolls of shock tubing.”

He used the abbreviation for detonation cord, used to trigger explosions of the main charge and his knowledge caused her to lift her brows in surprise. “Turquoise mining,” he said, answering her unspoken question. “The community operation is mostly underground now, following the veins as they run deeper. Plus we have lots of smaller claims. My friend Dylan Tehauno has a really good one up there on Turquoise Ridge. Lots of blasting material here.”

“If you are considering this, I have to report you.”

He smiled as his eyes challenged her. “Just a joke. Like yours.” He glanced toward the west. The town below was already cast in shadows, but up here it blazed orange as the sun made its final descent.

He sat on the canyon rim and glanced up at her. “Want to watch the sunset?”

She sat beside him, close enough to feel the heat of his body but not quite touching him.

“Turns the river into a ribbon of gold.” He pointed to where the river flowed a deep orange color that changed by the minute.

“Jack, I’m in the middle of a fatal-force investigation. I cannot be involved in blowing anything up. This is a consult. Remember?”

“Back to the investigation again. Why are you so worried? Did you screw up?”

“No. I—well, I don’t think so. Maybe.”

“You can tell me, Sophia.”

She lowered her head, staring at nothing that he could see.

“I’m a former US Marine. I’ve shot people before.”

“That’s different.” She waved a dismissive hand. Then squared her shoulders and drew a breath. She was going to tell him and the realization filled her with both hope and terror.

“Do you know that there is not one person in my office that has even discharged their weapon, let alone been engaged in a significant-use-of-force incident? Well, Mel drew on a pit bull but he didn’t shoot because he got over a fence in time.”

“It happens to a lot of us,” he said again. “And if you can’t sleep or think or eat, that’s all just part of it. The crappy part, but it’s necessary. Eventually, you live with it. Mostly the memories stay down.”

He sat beside her overlooking the river as the clouds changed colors before her eyes. Clouds, she thought. That meant more rains would be coming.

“I shot a young Hispanic male,” she said.

He nodded. Saying nothing but somehow his silence encouraged her to continue.

“Here’s what happened. I’m going to say it fast so I don’t have to think about it all night.” She drew a breath as if preparing to submerge in deep water, then let it out. “Okay, I was off-duty and in my new car. I had just leased a BMW, black, Two Series. I mean I just left the dealership and I got bumped. I considered that it was a scam and so I had my weapon out when I left the vehicle. The male driver told me to step away from my BMW. Actually he said, ‘Give me the keys.’ And then he called me a...well, it doesn’t matter. He demanded the keys and reached for something in his coat. I saw the handgun before I fired. He died at the scene.”

Jack scratched his chin, feeling the stubble growing there. Seemed like a home run to him. She’d defended herself and from her version he saw no reason for her to worry.

“Seems justified.”

“But it wasn’t a handgun. It was a phone. He did have an unregistered handgun on his person. But that was not what he pointed at me. And he kept the phone pointed at me, even when he went to his knees.”

“You think he meant to photograph the damage?”

“I’ll never know.”

“Sophia, he told you to give him your keys. There is only one reason to hit a new Beamer and then demand the keys. He was boosting your car.”

“Probably.”

Jack’s anger took him totally by surprise. He tried to understand why he was so furious at this unknown perp. And then it struck him. He’d be murderous with anyone who threatened her. How had she gotten under his skin so fast?

She could have died and he would never have had a chance to know her. He wanted that chance. Trouble was, she didn’t. She had made it very clear that she could not wait to be out of here and back on the job.

“Does he have a criminal record or history of stealing cars?”

“I don’t know. They won’t tell me anything, and I don’t have access to the system. I do know his name. Nothing else yet. I’ve made my formal statement. I met with the union rep and our attorney. They gave me the protocol.”

“Referral to mental-health professional?”

“Sure. And contact with an agent who also had a deadly force encounter in Phoenix. But he was on a raid of a grow house and everyone inside was dirty and heavily armed. Not the same.”

A grow house was a home, usually abandoned, taken over and converted to an indoor greenhouse to grow marijuana. The drug producers were often well armed and prepared to defend their crop.

He said nothing. No one’s life experiences were the same, but all could be used to help every person find their path.

The silence stretched as the first star, Venus, appeared in the western sky.

“They’ve been investigating since Sunday. SAC said he’d keep me updated. He really hasn’t.”

“SAC?”

“Special agent in charge. He’s my liaison to the thirteen-member SIRG. That’s ‘shooting incident review group.’”

“Really?” Thirteen seemed like overkill. But this was the FBI. He knew that their investigation would be exhaustive and in-house.

“I haven’t heard anything since Thursday, when he told me the autopsy had been completed and that I should get my personal weapon back next week.”

“Any results from the autopsy?”

“He’s still dead.”

Jack almost laughed, but reined it in. She looked so grim.

“So what’s next?”

“Interviews with the two witnesses. Photographs. Diagrams and the report by the administrative director of the office of inspections.”

“That’s a real thing?”

She cast him a scowl. “Of course. He’s chairman of SIRG.”

“Supervising the cast of thirteen.”

“Twelve, minus himself.”

“I can see why you’re nervous.”

“No. You can’t. Your shooter had fired at you. My shooter was pointing a camera. One of the witnesses also had a phone and may have taken a photograph or video.”

“More evidence.”

“Yes.”

“You feel you made a mistake?”

“No. But what matters is what SIRG thinks. If they rule my actions unjustified, I could lose my job. Everything.”

There was a definite note of panic in her voice.

“All the schooling, training, work...gone.” She snapped her fingers. “Like that. And I’m not going back...” Her words trailed off.

Back where? To her reservation? He cast her a questioning look, but Sophia had clamped her mouth shut and laced her fingers so tightly in her lap her fingernails were going blue.

Jack offered her the only thing he could think of. “You have his name. I can run him through our system.”

Her eyes shifted to him.

“You’d do that?”

Jack didn’t say so aloud, but he’d do a lot more than that for her because despite knowing that she could not wait to put him and his tribe in her rearview mirror, he was desperately attracted to her.

“I would.”

She wrapped her arms around her knees and rocked back and forth. He lay a hand on her shoulder and she stilled and glanced up at him.

“Thank you.” She placed a hand over his. It wasn’t until her hand slid away that he could breathe again.

“Yeah. Don’t mention it. Name?”

“Martin Nequam.”

Jack asked for the spelling and she provided it.

The light had changed again, casting the sky in bright fuchsia and red. He glanced away from her, taking in their surroundings.

“It gets pretty dark up here at night,” he said. “And the road can be tricky. We’d best head down. Get you settled. And I want to introduce you to the others.”

She followed him back to the SUV. “What others?”

“The men of Tribal Thunder, Dylan, Ray and my brother Kurt. Carter, when he gets home. And Ray’s wife, Morgan.”

“You’re not talking about the daughter of the man who murdered the Lilac gunman?”

“The very same. Also Dylan’s fiancé, Meadow Wrangler.”

“The Meadow Wrangler? As in, daughter of the murdered prime suspect and leader of BEAR.”

“It’s her mom. Even Meadow says so.”

“Interesting attack team. You have at least two members who might be working for BEAR.”

“They’re not.”

Sophia got back into his vehicle and clipped her seat belt, saying nothing to that. She would not be offering any more advice and she would sure as heck not be making any more jokes.

“You wanted to be sure we weren’t alone.”

“So instead we have a party.”

“Planning committee.”

“If you really feel threatened, then they should be planning an evacuation.”

They drove along the road that was more switchback than straightway. The angle of descent was jarring and Sophia had to hold on to the handgrip above her passenger window to keep from jostling into Jack Bear Den, whose wide body spilled across the center console and into her personal space.

She was not sure what to make of him. He was a detective, sworn to protect and serve. Did blowing the opposite ridge qualify? Only if he was right and the dam failed. But then there would be no time to set the charges. They would have to be placed early.

Why was he so darn big? She was attracted to big, muscular men. Jack unfortunately ticked all the right boxes except for one—he was trying to get her mixed up in a career-ender. She’d worked too long and hard to get off the Black Mountain rez to jeopardize that. Having a career gave her money, respect and purpose, and it kept her from having to ever rely on the system to protect her.

He held the wheel as he flexed his arm muscles and stretched, showing thick fingers nicked with white scars on the knuckles in the golden light of sundown. He had strong hands to match the rest of him.

Sophia liked men, but she didn’t depend on them. She glanced at Jack, his face now cast in shadows as they crossed below the line of sunlight. Sleeping with him would be dangerous, but perhaps the thrill would be worth the risk. As long as she remembered that after she toured the dam system, she was out of here and he was not coming along for the ride.

Jack angled his head and shoulders, making his joints give a popping sound, without ever releasing the steering wheel.

“We’ll be down soon.”

The road did finally level out to a rolling pasture. He flipped on his headlights. They continued through the town. She glanced at the tribal headquarters, which had lights illuminating the great seal of his people. It featured the river, of course, the cliffs and a single sacred eagle above them both.

They continued downriver as the sun set, and drove past the neat houses and fences that held the cattle. Cattle, ranching and rodeo were all a way of life for her people as well. Signs warned to watch for horses.

“You don’t pen the horses, either?” she asked.

“No. The river and canyon does that,” said Jack. “We’re just up here.” He slowed and turned onto a dirt road, lined with barbed wire on each side. She could see the cattle, dark shapes in the fields. The headlights made their eyes glow green as they passed.

She lifted her phone and called her cousin, checking in as he requested. But she didn’t tell him about the misunderstanding about her flippant suggestion which the detective seemed to be seriously considering.

Jack pulled off the main road and drove toward the river again.

“This is the place where our medicine society gathers. It has a large outdoor meeting space, sweat lodge and fire pit. But most importantly for you, the tribe uses it for ceremonies, so we have several cabins on site. You’ll have a one-bedroom with working bathroom. Hot and cold water, too. I’ll take the one beside yours. Ray Strong has the one on your opposite side and Dylan Tehauno the one after that. Ray’s wife, Morgan, and her girl will be here for dinner, then she’s got to get their daughter back home. Lisa is Ray’s stepdaughter, actually. But Meadow Wrangler will be spending the night. Couldn’t keep her away.”

“I see.”

She was about to say that it wasn’t necessary for the others to chaperone. But the way he looked at her gave her pause. He seemed hungry and that simple glance was all it took for her heart to pound and her stomach to twist. Oh, she wanted Jack Bear Den in all the ways a woman wanted a man. And since she could not leave, having chaperones might be a really wise idea. She needed to either stay away from Jack or get it over with. After all, he was just a man. Getting him out of her system might be the wisest course. There was no regulation against sleeping with him. He was not a colleague or a suspect. He was the friend of her cousin.

Fair game.

Sophia ignored the internal warning alarm sounding in her mind. She’d had short affairs before. They were the best kind, allowing her the excitement and physical contact of a man’s company without the entanglements. Leaving before they did was just self-preservation, because, sooner or later, they all left. But she’d never been this interested before. In fact, she had intentionally picked men she had minimal interest in. Made leaving easier.

“Sophia? Will that arrangement work for you?”

“Seems fine, but not Wrangler. She’s connected to an ongoing investigation. It would be best if I had no contact with her.”

“See, I’d think you’d want contact. Especially if you think she’s involved.”

“Not my investigation,” she said.

“We don’t think she’s involved.”

“Why is she still up here? I’d think a woman like her would be bored to death.”

“Well, if she leaves, the highway patrol or Flagstaff PD will arrest her as a person of interest in the Pine View fire.”

“Ah,” said Sophia.

“She didn’t do it. But you make up your own mind. If you don’t want her to stay, I can speak to Dylan. But it’s an insult and he’s my friend.”

“They’re a couple?”

“Yes, but they don’t live together.”

That surprised Sophia. From all accounts Meadow was a wild woman with numerous short, public affairs.

Sophia took the irresistible bait to meet the infamous heiress, Meadow Wrangler.

“She’s your guest,” said Sophia.

He gave a toot on his horn and hit the lights of the SUV. A moment later the headlights illuminated a large square structure, the lodge she supposed. Onto the porch spilled five men, two women and a child. She recognized only one—Wallace Tinnin.

“That’s our tribal director in red. The rest are all members of Tribal Thunder.”

“The men, you mean.”

“No, all. Our warrior sect includes women. But not children. Lisa, the girl, is not yet a member. But if we are successful, she will live to join someday.”

The gravity of his words struck her. What for Sophia was a hypothetical problem to be considered and quickly set aside was for the Turquoise Canyon Tribe a matter of life and death.

Jack made introductions on the porch. Sophia shook every hand as if she was running for public office. She recognized Meadow Wrangler from her photo, but the blue hair was new. Sophia tried not to stare. When she met the executive council president, she both shook his hand and bowed her head in respect. She did the same when she met Kenshaw Little Falcon, their shaman and leader of their medicine society.

The formalities complete, Morgan Hooke offered to take Sophia to her cabin to freshen up.

“Where’s Agent Forrest?” asked Sophia.

Kenshaw Little Falcon took the question.

“He had to return to Phoenix. I drove him to the airport in Darabee. But he left the car for you.” He motioned toward the dark portion of the field, where she had seen the vehicles parked when they’d arrived.

Luke had abandoned her. Nasty trick, she thought. Sophia tugged at the hem of her blazer and forced a smile. She was now alone among strangers.

“I see.”

Morgan lifted a lantern from a nail and motioned Sophia down the steps.

Sophia knew of Morgan since her cousin had been lead on the FBI investigation into the shooting of the Lilac gunman. Morgan’s father had killed the shooter, a paid assassin, according to Luke. How had that affected this woman and her child?

“Let me show you to your cabin so you can freshen up before supper,” Morgan said again.

Under the bright starlight, they picked their way to the cabin. Morgan preceded her through the door and set her lantern on a small wooden table. Then she fished in her pocket for a book of matches, lifted a second lantern from a nail beside the cabin door and lighted the wick. The smell sent Sophia right back to the home of her childhood, making her stomach roil.

“Everything all right?” asked Morgan. “It’s not much, but Dylan cleaned it up and Meadow changed the bedding. It’s all new.”

Meadow changed the bedding? The woman she believed to be a spoiled little rich girl had made a bed? Sophia couldn’t believe it.

“Meadow?”

“Yeah. She’s not so bad.”

Oh, Sophia had to disagree. If she wasn’t bad, she lived in the same house with bad for most of her life.

“It’s lovely,” said Sophia.

And it was so much nicer than her childhood home on the Black Mountain rez had been.

“Well, you can’t beat the view of the river and the canyons across the way. You can’t see it now, but tomorrow, from the porch, it’s beautiful.”

The river again. It seemed to be taunting her now.

“Plumbing works. Hot water, too. Just no electric. You know how to light a kerosene lamp?”

Sophia was all too familiar with how to do so, but had hoped she would never have to use a lantern again.

She forced a smile. “Absolutely.”

“They brought your bag in. It’s by the bed.”

Sophia followed the direction Morgan indicated and found both her briefcase and the bag Luke suggested she pack “in case things run long.”

“Do you want me to wait for you and bring you back to the lodge?” asked Morgan.

“I can find my way.”

“Well, I’ll leave you to get settled.”

Sophia just wanted to slip into her yoga pants and a loose T-shirt and climb into bed. It had already been a long day.

“I’ll be over in a few minutes.”

“Bring a lamp,” said Morgan as she hesitated at the door. “We are so grateful to you for coming to help us. Luke told us all about you, and we are hopeful you can give us advice so we can protect ourselves. I don’t know if Jack told you but I lost my father to cancer. But before that I lost him to BEAR. It’s a dangerous group and none of us believe they are done. They still have the Lilac explosives. If this is their target, we are in terrible danger.”

Sophia did not have the first idea how to reply. Mostly she felt guilty for wanting nothing more than to get out of here. Being so close to the river now gave her the creeps. And she realized why. Because she believed her cousin and Morgan. BEAR was still out there. How would she feel if she could not pack up and leave in four days?

Had they planned all this, Luke and their shaman, Little Falcon? To show her the pastures that lined the river and the town and this gathering place, the very heart of the reservation, so she could see what would be lost? The problem that had been theoretical was now all too tangible.

Morgan hesitated, lingering. “I have a little girl. We live right in Piñon Forks. Her school is there, too.” Morgan’s hand went to her stomach and Sophia saw the definite bump she had not seen before. Morgan was expecting a child.

The two women stared across the silent cabin.

“I’ll do what I can,” said Sophia.

Morgan cast her a sad smile and left her with her troubled thoughts. For the first time in five days, the investigation was not the most important thing on Sophia’s mind.