Changing Woman (30 page)

“You’re tying my hands, Kevin.”

“Do your best. And just so you know, I don’t expect
you to give it priority. I’m aware that you’ve got problems of your own right now with that sniper out gunning for you. A fifty-calber bullet won’t just put you in the hospital.”

“I know. That’s why I’m wearing
special armor these days. Don’t worry. Harry is searching for Manyfarms and he’s a good man. I have no doubt he’ll get the job done.”

Kevin’s eyes narrowed when she mentioned Harry. “Will he be leaving after that?”

“Yes, probably, but I don’t really know what his plans are,” Ella said.

There was a flicker of relief in Kevin’s eyes. “Let me know if there’s anything I can do from my end of things
to help you. I’ll be there for you, Ella, if you need me.”

He sounded sincere, but Kevin had become the ultimate politician. Almost everything he said sounded heartfelt, whether it was or not.

Ella led him to the door. “I’m beat. Do you mind if we call it a night?”

“No problem.” Kevin stopped by the door and, for a moment, Ella thought he was thinking of kissing her.

She stepped back. “ ’Night.”

As he stepped off the porch Ella closed the door. Kevin never ceased to surprise her, but renewing their relationship was the furthest thing from her mind.

After locking the doors, Ella went to her room. Two was asleep in the hall and Rose was already in bed. The house was quiet and she was exhausted. Ella glanced at the computer. She just didn’t have the energy for it tonight. Crawling into
bed and snuggling deep under the covers, she fell asleep minutes after her head hit the pillow.

Ella woke up shortly after sunrise, rested, and ready to face the new day. The sun was creeping over the horizon and the faint early morning rays filtered through the curtains. After showering and dressing, she sat down in front of her computer, and switched it on. She hadn’t
heard from Coyote recently
and she was starting to worry about him.

Ella answered E-mail from friends out of state, then as she was about to log off, an instant message flashed onto the screen.

“I was hoping you’d be there early this morning. You didn’t log on last night,” Coyote wrote.

“Long day yesterday,” she typed back. “Do you have any news for me?”

“I’m close to identifying some of the Indian mafia who are working
from inside the Rez. Hope to have something for you soon.”

She answered quickly. “Some of our politicians are being strong-armed. Things are getting worse. Can you give me anything I can use now?”

There was a long pause before an answer flashed on the screen. “I have reason to believe that Manyfarms may have obtained the support of the Indian syndicate since you’re a threat to them as well as
him. But if Manyfarms fails, they will probably hire a second person to come after you.”

Ella felt a touch of fear creeping up her spine. Times were tough and it wouldn’t be hard to find someone willing to kill a cop if the payoff was big enough.

Suddenly Dawn rushed into the room, Rose right behind her. “She’s up early today and she wants to play with you.”

“Give me one more minute, okay,
short stuff?” she asked her daughter.

Dawn made a pouty face, and her lower lip shot out. That meant tears would begin to flow any second now and Ella recanted.

“Okay, little monster, sit on my lap then, but be very quiet until I finish my work. Agreed?”

Dawn nodded somberly and Ella knew she’d do her best, but asking a two-year-old to be still was asking for a miracle.

As Dawn settled on
her lap, and Ella took another
look at the last message Coyote had sent, she shuddered involuntarily.

Feeling it, Dawn looked up at her, concerned.

Ella smiled to reassure her that everything was okay, then shook her head. “Shhh.” Concentrating on the keyboard, she answered Coyote.

“Your warning is a wake-up call for me,” she typed. “I’ll be on the lookout.”

“One more thing. The murder of
the councilman’s girlfriend is their handiwork. I’m trying to get proof right now.”

Ella stared at the screen, holding her little girl against her with one hand and trying to type with the other.

“Get me what you can, and I’ll move on it.”

“Be careful,” Coyote wrote, signing off.

Ella toggled the print command, and then placed the sheet of paper that came from the printer into a folder. She’d
take it to Big Ed. Maybe together they could come up with a viable strategy. One thing was clear. She couldn’t take Dawn anywhere outside the house with her. It would only expose her child to the same danger she was facing.

Dawn, as if sensing something was wrong, shifted slightly and laid her head against her mother’s breast.
“Shimá
sad?”

“No, sweetie, I’m just worried about work.” Jennifer
walked into the room after knocking on the open door. “Shall I take her now for breakfast?”

“Please,” Ella said, her mind still on Coyote’s warning.

Dawn slid down her legs and rushed to Jennifer. “Pick up!”

Jennifer laughed and scooped Dawn up in her arms. As they walked out of the room, Ella watched. Her daughter obviously enjoyed Jennifer’s company. She felt a twinge of jealousy, but before
she had the luxury to indulge the feeling, Rose came back in.

“Your daughter is getting too fond of my friend’s
granddaughter,” Rose complained. “Maybe you should say something. Your daughter shouldn’t be so quick to trust strangers.”

“Mom, she’s two years old. The entire world is her friend unless they do something to hurt her feelings.”

“I just don’t like this,” Rose said in a whisper. “A
week ago, I was the person she turned to when you weren’t home. Now it seems your daughter prefers that girl over both of us.”

“We need her here, Mom. We should be grateful we have her, and that my little pumpkin is happy.”

Rose nodded reluctantly and left her daughter’s room. Alone, Ella picked up the phone, checked her notebook for Jimmy Frank’s cell phone number, then dialed it. He answered
on the first ring.

“I don’t mean to rush things, but do you have anything on Blueeyes yet?”

“I’ve been with him from dawn till late night, but from what I’ve seen, this guy is a straight arrow. He arrives at work early and stays until late. So far, his meetings have been all business and Kevin’s usually along—well, except for last night. The subject spent a grand total of ten minutes in an East
Main bar in Farmington. I followed him in, he talked to a dark-haired woman long enough to have a half a beer, then he left and went home to his trailer house alone.”

“Any idea who the woman was?”

“No. I asked around as casually as I could, but I couldn’t find out anything, even from the waitress who’d served them. She looked Indian to me, but I’m certain she’s not Navajo.”

“Stay on the job
today and tomorrow and keep me posted,” Ella said, then hung up.

“Hurry, or you won’t have time for breakfast,” Rose said, returning to check on Ella.

“Mom, I need to talk to you alone for a second. Exactly what happened last night before I got home?”

“What do you mean?” Rose asked innocently.

“Mother, don’t’”
Ella said. “Why did you go to that meeting? You caused a lot of trouble. A patrolman
was called out because people got ugly after you left. People are now saying that you did some kind of magic to make them turn on one another. That type of talk is the last thing I need right now.”

“I won’t stop doing what I see as my responsibility to our tribe just to avoid silly gossip. I wouldn’t expect that of you, daughter, so please don’t expect it from me.”

“Just tell me what happened,”
Ella said, mollified. Rose did, then ended by telling her about the ashes they’d found in Lena’s car.

“That must have really surprised both of you,” Ella said.

“It did, but it wasn’t a big deal, not like—” Rose looked away.

Ella eyes narrowed. “Like what? Finish it, Mom.” Rose stared at an indeterminate spot across the room. “Never mind.”

“No, Mom, I have to know.”

Rose sighed, then told
her about tribal councilman Ronald Etcitty’s visit. “It was unpleasant. He wanted to frighten me, but he wasn’t openly hostile or threatening. It was more like he was explaining the facts in the most negative way possible.”

Ella battled the anger that threatened to erupt inside her. There was no way she’d allow anyone to come to her home and try to intimidate her family. Yet, she’d have to tread
carefully. Everything he’d said was true—the only thing really open to question was his intent. “I’m going to pay that councilman a visit, Mom. I’ll handle this.”

“Don’t you dare,”
Rose said. “This is
my
fight, and I won’t have you interfering. He will not get what he wants, and that’s enough. Your job is to make sure his predictions don’t come true.”

Ella stared at Rose in surprise. She couldn’t
remember
the last time her mother had raised her voice. “Mom, I can’t allow him to—”

“You
are not involved.” Rose paused and took a deep breath. “This politician told me the truth as he saw it. Granted, it was worded in a way intended to scare me, but he made no illegal threats. How I respond to him is up to me.”

The phone rang and Ella started to reach for it, but Rose shook her head. “It’s
for me.”

Ella stared in amazement at her mother, then slowly smiled. Rose had come into her own, and no one was going to stand in her way, certainly not her own daughter.

Proud of her mother, Ella closed the door, giving Rose her privacy. At work, Ella was a woman with a certain amount of authority, but at home she was just Rose’s daughter and Dawn’s mom. And for now, all she needed to think
about was having breakfast with her daughter.

Ella sat in Big Ed’s office as he read the printout of her exchange with Coyote earlier that morning. His concentration was evident in the fact that he wasn’t rocking back and forth in his chair.

“You could come under fire without any warning, at any time, indoors and out. I don’t like this, Shorty.”

“Cops are always targets, that’s nothing really
new. And there’s nothing we can do about it except stay on our toes. But I’m going to warn Justine and the others and let them know what’s going on.”

“Good idea. Your partner, in particular, needs to know. I know she’s been looking out for you, but this will put her on guard everywhere you go together. At least Blalock and the FBI finally came up with those special vests. Every member of the
SI team will be picking one up when they report for duty today.” He paused. “On another matter, have you seen Farmington’s morning paper?”

“No, not yet.” She braced herself, thinking he was probably referring to another article about her mother.

“Andrew Talk resigned his Tribal Council position. He made a statement to the press explaining that he was being blackmailed to vote a particular way
on the gaming issue, and he would not allow himself to be put in that situation. He assured the tribe that he’d never cast any previous votes while under coercion and would never do so. He also blamed the typist’s death on the blackmailer.”

“Did he reveal why he was being blackmailed?” “He called it a ’momentary indiscretion’ and said that one mistake wouldn’t compel him to make an even greater
one.” Big Ed paused. “He’ll probably come out of this okay politically, and maybe pick up a few supporters because of his honesty.”

“I should go talk to him. If he resigned, maybe it was the blackmailer’s idea, not his. I’d like to know exactly why he did this now.”

“He’s in Farmington at the moment. He called me this morning to say that he was afraid they’d go after his wife and daughters next,
so he rented a condo for them in one of those gated communities. He’ll be there all day with his family, but he asked that you don’t divulge his family’s whereabouts and, if you have to speak with him, that you be careful no one follows you.” Big Ed slipped her a piece of paper with the address and telephone number.

“I wonder if he resigned because he wanted to put a different spin on things,
or because he was really afraid for his family?” Ella asked as an afterthought.

“Find out, Shorty. But now we have a new problem. The shady people trying to lean on our politicians have suddenly had a spotlight shined on them. They may retaliate in some way and we’ve got to be ready for that. The stakes just got higher.”

“I know. Those vests couldn’t have come at a better time.” Ella stood. “I’ll
get to Farmington and see if Talk has anything to tell me.”

“Keep me posted.”

Ella stopped by her office, and seconds after she sat down, Justine came in, displaying the special vest like a model on a fashion show runway. “Well, what do you think of the new winter look for plainclothes cops?” Justine teased.

“It’s so
you.”
Ella nodded enthusiastically. “Just don’t leave home without it. Do
you have anything new on Betty Nez’s murder yet?” Ella grew serious.

“No. The formal autopsy report hasn’t come in yet, and the only prints we found in her house were her own, her daughter’s, and Talk’g. The salt shaker we took from the table had been wiped clean.”

“Talk still has no alibi, so he remains a suspect. Did any of the neighbors report seeing anyone at the Nez house that morning?”

“No, and we’ve now had a chance to speak to everyone in that area. The problem is that most of them work and were gone. It was too early for someone coming home for lunch to see anything.”

“Perfect timing for our killer.”

Justine nodded. “Big Ed just buzzed and said you wanted to talk to me.”

Ella smiled. The chief knew how to motivate her without saying a word. “Yeah. We’ve got problems.” She
told Justine about the increased danger of attack.

“I’ll keep my eyes wide open, Ella, wherever we are. Just remember to keep wearing your own vest.”

The look that passed between them spoke volumes. They both knew that bulletproof vests . . . weren’t.

“Come on, I want to go talk to Lorraine and Andrew Talk again. I’ll fill you in on the way,” Ella said, grabbing her keys and tossing them to
Justine.