Changing Woman (42 page)

“I had a little trouble getting away,” the man whispered, then coughed, and more blood came spilling out of his mouth. “I blew my own cover.”

“Henry?” Her heart was beating overtime. She wasn’t sure how someone with all the apparent knife wounds he’d suffered could still be alive.
Had he been shot as well? “Don’t talk,” she said. “Help’s on the way.”

“Listen. Not much time. Tried to warn you. Cop on the take caught me trying... to get message to you.
Found out about him too late. He killed the councilman’s girlfriend, then the councilman. He told others to use your daughter to ensure Tolino’s vote.”

Hearing her child mentioned, Ella’s blood turned to ice. She swallowed,
forcing herself to concentrate. “Have they taken her?”

“Don’t know.”

“Who’s
going after my daughter? Tell me.” Ella pressed. If it was Manuelito, she’d kill him herself.

Henry’s eyes closed, and his body went limp, slumping sideways onto the seat. Fear clutched at her stomach and she reached for him, praying he wasn’t dead, but before she could check, someone pulled her back.

Instinctively,
she started to resist, but then saw it was the watch commander with a blanket and emergency stretcher. “Paramedics are on the way. Help me get him onto the ground. We need to stop that bleeding.”

Ella helped lift Henry Estrada out of the car and onto the stretcher. Covering him as much as possible with the blanket, Ella and the watch commander applied pressure to the worst of his wounds with
compresses from a firstaid kit. Every instinct she possessed screamed at her to run inside and call Kevin to warn him, but to leave, for even a second, might take away Estrada’s chance at life. Torn, she told the watch commander about Manuelito, warning him not to use the police radio to pass the warning to other Navajo officers.

As Ella applied pressure to the brachial artery in his upper arm,
stemming the flow of blood to a long cut in Henry’s forearm, she listened anxiously for the paramedics and an ambulance. Then one of the secretaries came outside with another blanket. Ella shifted her attention for a second. “Reach into my jacket, get my note-book, then go inside and call Kevin Tolino. His number is on the back inside cover. Warn him that our daughter’s a target. If you can’t get
him, call the Colorado State PD and send them to find him at the Pine Bluff Lodge.”

“We all have first-aid training. Let me handle this while you make the calls.” Shifting positions, she took over for Ella.

Ella stepped away and flipped open her cell phone, punching out the numbers as she hurried back to her unit. Kevin’s number rang and rang, but no one answered. Fear clutched at her heart.
Were they just asleep and couldn’t hear the phone, or had Dawn already been kidnapped? Next, she tried the lodge office, but all she got was an answering machine at this hour.

Ella started to shake, and knew it wasn’t from the cold. Her child was in danger. The knowledge tore at her, undermining her even as she tried to stay focused.

After learning via her cell phone that the scheduled flight
had taken off on time with all but one of the listed passengers—they wouldn’t confirm Kevin and Dawn’s presence unless she came to the counter and identified herself as a police officer—Ella knew she’d have to go to the airport, at least.

Ella climbed into her unit and switched on the ignition. She’d drive to Farmington to confirm that Dawn and Kevin were on the flight. If so, and she was still
unable to get Kevin on the phone, she’d take the next airplane that could get her close to the Colorado ski resort. The Pine Bluff Lodge was only a few miles from there. While en route to Farmington she’d notify Big Ed and alert the Colorado cops.

She was just pulling out of the parking lot when her cell phone rang. She opened it with one trembling hand, but it wasn’t Kevin, it was Big Ed.

“Have you sent out the warning?”

“The watch commander knows, but I... Something’s come up,” she said, filling him in, her voice shaky. “Don’t let Manuelito out of your sight,” she almost begged. “If they’ve gotten to her and Kevin, that man may be the only one who can tell us where my daughter is.”

“I’m placing him under arrest right now, as soon as we hang up.”

“Fine with me.” Her voice was
still weak and strained. “But there’s something I need to tell you. Dispatch called. They know we’re handling a crisis situation, so they didn’t call you directly, worried about your cell phone ringing at a bad time. Jennifer Clani tried to reach you earlier.”

“Did she leave a number?” Ella asked quickly, remembering she’d hadn’t taken her cell phone with her when infiltrating those holding the
power plant’s coal facility.

“She’s at home,” Big Ed answered, then gave her the number.

The news stunned her. Not even taking time to say good-bye, Ella disconnected the call, then dialed Jennifer’s home.

“I’ve been trying to contact you,” Jennifer sobbed. “I missed the flight with Dawn and Mr. Tolino because I found two flat tires on my car. I couldn’t get there in time. I called Mr. Tolino’s
cell phone number as soon as I could get to a phone, but I got a message that said it was out of service. I tried again later, but all it does is ring. No one answers.”

“I’ll keep trying, Jennifer. If you hear anything about where Kevin and Dawn might be, let me know immediately but don’t tell anyone else.” She gave Jennifer her cell number, then hung up and redialed Big Ed.

He was at the command
post, but sounded out of breath when he answered the call. “Chief, I need you to call the local sheriff and state police and see if they can go to the lodge now and check things out for me.”

“I’ve already done that,” Big Ed said. “Miss Clani gave me the number earlier. And I’ve got some news you need to hear, Ella. First, I want you to know the hoodlums calling themselves
Hasih
have struck a
deal with Payestewa. They’ll be setting down their weapons and coming out as soon as the tribal president arrives
and they can see the document calling for the council vote on Monday. They want the press here too to hear the announcement so that the tribal government will be under public pressure to keep their side of the bargain.”

“I’m glad that’s being settled,” she said, her thoughts miles
away.

“But there’s more, Ella. With the extra deputies arriving and relieving some of the cops who’d been on duty since the start of this, there was some confusion for a while. Taking advantage of the activity, Manuelito apparently slipped away on foot. His vehicle is still here.”

“If that man gets anywhere near my kid—”

“I don’t think you’ll have to worry about Dawn or Kevin. There are forty
council members who have expressed their intention to vote for gaming, and about that same number are expected to vote against. The rest are undecided. Both sides will need forty-five out of the eighty-eight for a majority, or maybe that will be forty-four out of eighty-seven now. Either way, they need Kevin to vote progaming, and they can’t afford to harm either of them if that’s going to happen.
My feeling is that they’ll keep Dawn as leverage and release Kevin.”

“That should invalidate the entire voting process on this,” Ella argued.

“Not unless solid, incontrovertible proof that our Tribal Council members have been coerced comes to the surface. As things stand now, the majority of the
Dineh
are demanding that the Tribal Council act. This is bigger than just pressure from the
Hasih.”

“Nobody takes my daughter away from her family, and she’s not going to become anybody’s political pawn. I’m going to find an airplane to take me to the Pine Bluff Lodge,” Ella said coldly. “I’m getting my daughter back.”

“That’s what I’m counting on. I’ll make sure Colorado officers are there to meet you when you arrive and back you up all the way.”

Ella reached the Farmington airport on the
west end
of the city ten minutes later. After briefly alarming air-port security when they saw Henry’s blood on her hands and clothes, she confirmed that Kevin and Dawn had departed as scheduled for Colorado. The same carrier offered a charter service that could take her to the airfield closest to the lodge on a smaller aircraft. It would be a bumpy, uncomfortable ride, but she’d be there less
than forty minutes after departure.

Black despair churned inside her, but she tried to focus on the task she had to perform rather than on her emotions. She had to stay in control of herself now. Nothing she’d ever done, nothing she’d ever do, would matter if when Dawn needed her most she wasn’t there for her. It seemed a bitter irony that after all her concern and care, it was Kevin and his
job, not hers, that was the reason for their daughter being in danger.

Forced to wait until the aircraft was ready, impatient for news, and unable to get a connection with her cell phone to Colorado, Ella used a pay telephone at the Farmington terminal to call the sheriff’s office in the Colorado county where the Pine Bluff Lodge was located. She had to wait less than thirty seconds before a
detective named Mike Brown was on the phone.

“I have some news on an incident that has a connection to Mr. Tolino, Investigator Clah,” he said, alert and all business despite the very early morning hour.

Detective Brown hadn’t said “bad” news, so she continued breathing.

“We did some cross-checking on a call we received late last night. Our dispatcher received a report of shots fired and this
led officers to the Pine Bluff cabin Mr. Tolino had rented. Unfortunately, the place was deserted by the time the deputies arrived. There’s evidence that a short but intense firefight took place, and two vehicles left in a hurry after that. Windows had been shot out and some of the furniture looked as if it had been used to
block doors or to provide cover from gunfire.”

“What else?” she asked,
her voice unsteady.

“No blood, first of all. But we noticed what look like nine-millimeter rounds lodged in the solid door-frame. I think they may have come from Tolino’s gun. Your chief did some quick checking for us and we learned that Tolino owns a nine-millimeter Beretta and has a permit to carry that weapon. We found more nine-millimeter brass inside the cabin—a total of six cases, I think.”

The prickly sensation all over her body and the knot of ice in her stomach were all signs that she was close to losing control. Her mouth was completely dry and her tongue felt glued to the roof of her mouth. She wanted to say something, but she wasn’t sure her vocal cords would work right.

“You okay, Investigator Clah?”

“Yes,” she managed. “Has a crime-scene unit been to the cabin already?”
she asked, hating the way her voice had broken on the last syllable.

“They’re on the way. We’ve had some break-ins in the area recently, so they were out on another call. I just came from the cabin after a cursory look around and a few quick interviews with local citizens. I’ll be joining the team shortly. I was just on my way there again when your call came through.”

“Did anyone in the area
hear anything?”

Detective Brown paused a moment, then continued. “A guest at the nearest cabin, the same individual who reported the disturbance, heard eight or nine gunshots in a short period of time, maybe two minutes, then right after that, the sound of two vehicles racing down the road, one after the other. The cabin guest called the station from his cell phone. The cabins themselves apparently
don’t have telephone service.”

“I need that cabin and the surrounding scene gone over with a fine-tooth comb. We need to know exactly
what happened and where they might have gone if we’re going to find my daughter,” Ella asked.

“You can count on our crime-scene team. They’re experienced professionals and won’t let up until the work is done. Knowing that a fellow officer’s child is involved will
make us work just that much harder. Mr. Tolino and your daughter will be found, Investigator Clah, if they’re anywhere in the state of Colorado. You can take my word for it.”

“Thanks, Detective Brown. Please contact me immediately if you get any kind of lead. I’ll join you as soon as I can.” Ella hung up, her voice shaking again.

She focused on the rage that darkened her mind, allowing it to
flow through her, giving her strength. Someone had come after her daughter, endangering and terrorizing her. Ella nurtured her anger, knowing that, unlike fear, it didn’t stop her from thinking—it just added to her determination.

Ella was walking toward the small airplane parked on the concrete pad when her cell phone rang. It was Big Ed again.

“Don’t make that flight, Ella. I have some new information for you, and it’s good this time. I just got a call from Kevin Tolino. He has Dawn with him, and is taking a roundabout route to a hiding place where he’ll be safe. He said he can’t trust the police, so he’s
not saying where he’s going. Tolino heard his attackers mention Manuelito and feared that there might be other bad cops in the department. The lawyer’s keeping a cool head, but he’s scared. At least he thinks he’s lost them—for now,” Big Ed added. “And the last thing he said was to make sure you knew that Dawn is tired but unhurt.”

Ella couldn’t speak for a moment, her heart was beating so fast.
“That’s a relief. Did he say why he didn’t call me directly?”

“He said he tried, but couldn’t get a connection. It may have something to do with your location compared to mine. Either way, you can skip that trip to Colorado,” Big Ed replied. “I’ll call the sheriff’s office up near Pine Bluff and fill them in on Kevin and Dawn.”

“Thanks. Talk to Detective Brown, if you can. I have a feeling he
knows what he’s doing. Did Kevin say anything else, like what happened?”

“Before the cell phone he was using lost battery power, he was able to tell me a few details. Men had come up and tried to break into the cabin, calling by name for him to surrender. He had fired shots to pin them down long enough to drive away with Dawn. He’d
been forced to leave his cell phone behind and he couldn’t stop
long enough to use a pay phone because of the close pursuit. Later he’d eluded the men long enough to stop at a gas station, where he found another vehicle with the keys in the ignition, and changed transportation. After a while he discovered there was a cell phone in the console of the car he’d just stolen. That explains why there was a delay in getting word to us,” Big Ed said.