“Oh, no. We own our share, individually and through the Council Enterprises. You can always tell if a building is Navaho-owned. Whether it is an apartment building, office complex, shopping tower or private home, the entrance will always face east.” He hesitated. “I am sorry. This is a lot for you to absorb all at once, and you just got off the plane.”
“No problem.”
‘‘Well, you won’t meet many Hopis, so don’t worry about that. They have their own commercial center over at Seba Delkai. The Zunis stick mostly to New Mexico. But if you have trouble with any Navaho, just smile and say ‘doo ahashyaa da.’”
“Do a hashee duh,” Moody essayed. Ooljee repeated the phrase slowly and carefully until he was sure Moody had it reasonably correct.
“What am I saying?” Moody asked him.
“It will tell people that you are a stranger here, not to be feared, and in need of assistance. I assure you they will be instantly sympathetic. Few Anglos make any attempt to learn Navaho. This will endear you to anyone you meet. It is a useful greeting phrase, though not readily translatable. Just like yatahey is Navaho for shalom.”
“Say what?”
“Never mind. Just stick with doo ahashyaa da and you will be okay no matter who you meet.”
“Except for the guy we’re after.”
“Yes. I do not think he will be instantly sympathetic to anyone. I would give a great deal to know if we are dealing with someone medically certifiable.”
“I doubt it. A nut wouldn’t be able to hide his tracks this well.”
“Not necessarily. A sane person is somewhat predictable. A crazy one is not. He could be more difficult to locate because of that.”
“Unless some other sandpainting collector gets himself blown away.” Moody nodded out the window. “I’ve seen some paintings in a few storefronts, haven’t I?”
Ooljee nodded. “Downtown is the center of the important tourist and shopping areas. It would be unusual if you had not seen any sandpaintings by now.”
“Nobody uses the patterns for anything else? Advertising, maybe?”
“Oh, no. That would be like making underwear out of the American flag. Eye-catching but unsettling. It is interesting that even those who insist they are completely modem and do not believe in the old ways would never do such a thing. It might make your business go bust or your building fall down. The one per cent uncertainty factor, remember? “Here is something else you might find of interest.” Ooljee switched off the laser pickup and resumed manual control of the truck, turning left and heading down an incline into a natural basin in the plateau. Ancient trees lined a stream through which water ran lazily. The land had been turned into a park, preserving the old trees and a cluster of aged buildings. Rocks had been sculpted into pleasing shapes or benches on which old people and young couples relaxed.
“This is what remains of old Ganado. This is what all this country used to look like. The only silicon and gallium arsenide at this spot is in the ground. Not that anybody uses that stuff much anymore anyway. The park idealizes things a little but I have seen old two-D pictures of the area. The simulation is accurate.” He pointed to his left, at a hill fringed with gleaming towers.
“They even saved the old Hubbell Trading Post. It occupies the lobby of the new one on Betatkin Boulevard.” He sat staring at the unhurried stream, the couples wandering along its modest banks. “Have you got a place to stay?” Moody shook his head. “My department told me to check in anywhere comfortable.”
“I see. Then you will of course stay with me.”
“Hey, no chance! First off you probably don’t have a bed that’ll fit me.”
‘‘I think we can manage something, if you don’t mind sleeping a little on the diagonal.”
“And second of all, there’s no way I’m gonna put you and your wife out on my behalf.”
“Are you a noisy person?”
“I’m not likely to play shuntbuzz all night, if that’s what you mean. But that’s not the point. The point is…”
“The point, my friend, is that it would be rude of you to refuse my hospitality. Perhaps I can convince you another way. How are you to pay for your accommodations here? Are you using a department card?”
“Card, but…”
“Restricted?”
“Of course.”
“Then you are functioning on a per diem designed to cover your daily expenses while you are working with us. A per diem you receive as a supplement to your salary regardless of how you spend it. If you choose to stay in an expensive place, you have to cover the difference out of your own pocket. But if you choose to live cheaply, you have a balance you can spend at your own discretion. That is how we operate here.”
“It’s the same in Tampa,” Moody admitted.
“Which means that if you stay with us, the money which would otherwise go toward your room and board will be
yours to pocket. Would that not help to compensate somewhat for being sent to a part of the country you dislike so intensely?”
“Hey, I never said I didn’t like it here. Hell, I just got here.”
“Your expression speaks eloquently even when your mouth is closed.”
“What’s that?” Moody was angry at having been so transparent. “An old Navaho saying?”
“No. Actually I got it from an Italian variety show that was on the RAI transponder last week. What do you say?” Moody didn’t want to start the week by insulting the guy he was going to be working with. By the same token, the thought of spending time in a cramped little apartment with kids underfoot—hadn’t Ooljee said something earlier about kids?—struck him as less than appealing. But he didn’t see how he could turn down the offer.
“I’ll give it a try,” he said reluctantly, “but none of this ‘board’ business. I’ll pay for my own food or you’ll be broke inside a week.”
“All right.” Ooljee grinned. “But I warn you. My wife loves to cook. She is an experimental gourmet and will be delighted to have a new vict—guest, to try out her latest recipes on. As to what you do with your money, that is up to you. The pleasures of full-time police work are few, and should be indulged in whenever possible.”
They enjoyed the park for a while longer. Then Ooljee rolled up the windows and reprogrammed the onboard. The engine revved softly as the laser pickup exchanged information with the nav strip embedded in the pavement of the parking lot. The truck backed, turned itself around, and departed.
Now that his plans were settled, Moody was able to devote his time to examining the exotica of urban Ganado. He was especially intrigued by the kids’ attire, an eclectic and inventive combination of all that Asia and America had to offer. It would have looked out of place back in Tampa. Here it all belonged.
He made Ooljee slow down so he could study an exceptionally attractive young woman. Her black hair was crested by a pair of dyed-blond aerodynamic curls that swept up, around, and out from the sides of her head. Silver wire shimmered among the obsidian strands. The rest of her outfit consisted of red leather jacket and skirt dripping with buttons and carved fetishes, bits and fragments of salvaged componentry, reflective plastic boots, and a false tail built up out of twisted silver.
Ooljee watched his colleague watching. “The hairdo is traditional Hopi. The decorations are not.”
“How do they keep it up like that?” Moody marveled at the gravity-defying array.
“It’s an old technique, though the girl is probably Navaho. There has been a lot of intermixing the last fifty years. Would have been more, but old enmities die hard.”
“You don’t have to tell me that. I’m from the South.” As they turned westward they left the city center with its glitz and flash behind, entering an area crowded with individual homes, apartment buildings, and service structures. Cedar and stunted pine grew densely on uncleared land.