"Gatewood got the warrant approved?"
"He sure did. You're a fugitive."
"Don't tell Gatewood anything."
Jim Stiles gave Kerney a quizzical look.
"Why not?"
"What kind of hand are you playing?" Charlie demanded.
"Just a hunch."
"Have it your way," Charlie said.
Kerney sat down in the easy chair in Jim's living room wearing a pair of blue jeans that were a tad too tight around the waist and a blue cowboy shirt that fit him pretty well. He was just out of the shower and felt a hell of a lot better after a shave and a fresh change of clothes, supplied by his host.
Jim sprawled on the couch, sipped a beer, and waited for Kerney to settle himself.
"Why didn't you want Charlie to tell Gatewood to cancel the arrest warrant?" he asked.
"I don't trust Gatewood," Kerney answered.
"He's too eager to make me his prime suspect.
Besides, I need an edge."
Stiles rested his head on the arm of the couch.
"An edge against who?"
Kerney smiled.
"That's the question, isn't it? Tell me about the local militia."
"I don't know who runs it," Jim replied.
"They keep a pretty low profile. What I've heard is mostly rumors."
"Gatewood said he knew the leadership."
"Maybe he does."
"Is he connected with them in any way?"
"Hell, I don't know."
"Does the name Ulibarri mean anything to you?"
"Sure. Steve Lujan's sister, Ramona Ulibarri. She lives in Southern California with her husband."
"Any kids?"
"Two teenage boys, I think. Maybe a little younger.
They visit every summer."
"Do you know the kids' names?"
"No. But the husband's name is Ray. Why are you interested in them?"
"A BLM officer checked with Gatewood after he stopped a kid on an ATV outside of Deming. The kid said he was from Reserve and gave his name as Ulibarri. Gatewood told the officer he didn't know anybody in the county by that name."
"Gatewood knows the family," Jim said.
"They only moved to California a short while back."
"Was Gatewood informed of the mountain lion translocation?"
Stiles adjusted his position.
"I'm almost certain he was."
"How certain are you?"
"If he reads his mail, he had to know. Santa Fe sends out bulletins to all local law enforcement agencies on every translocation of a cat, with an advisory to inform us if the animal is found dead or killed."
"Then he knew."
"Most likely. Do you think Gatewood's dirty?"
"Gatewood's a politician. He could be anything."
Jim laughed.
"That's funny, but I don't think Omar Gatewood would shoot me."
"Maybe he didn't. Maybe he just helped get you shot."
"That's an interesting idea. How do we find out?"
"Amador Ortiz. His phone call sent you to Padilla Canyon. Maybe somebody encouraged him to make that call."
"Let's talk to him," Jim said as he got off the couch.
"I'll go with you."
Before Kerney could answer, the front door opened and Molly Hamilton flew into the room. She glanced at Kerney, sparks flashing in her eyes, and gave Jim a very nasty look.
"Goddamn you!"
"What?"
She walked to Stiles and poked her finger in his chest.
"You were supposed to call me, remember?"
"I'm sorry."
She poked him again.
"That's not good enough."
"I think I'll leave," Kerney said, unraveling himself from the chair.
"Stay put, Kerney. I'll get to you in a minute." She poked Jim again.
"I've been all over the damn place looking for you, wondering if you'd been shot again, or kidnapped, or something."
"We haven't been anywhere near a phone until just now," Jim explained.
"We just got back. We're fine. Stop worrying."
"Shit!" Molly punched Jim in the chest with her fist and dropped her head. When she raised it, the anger on her face had been replaced with tears.
"I wish it was that easy to do," she said.
Jim pulled her close in a one-arm hug. Molly didn't resist.
Kerney quietly slipped out of the room and went to the kitchen.
Molly sniffled and wiped her nose, still a little red from crying. She sat with Kerney and Jim at the kitchen table.
"Sorry I sounded so bitchy," Molly said.
"You have every reason to bitch," Kerney allowed.
"You're right. I do. I called Karen Cox this morning after I started worrying about Jim." She shot him a dirty look, and he flinched.
"She said Gate- wood went over her head to the DA in Socorro to get the warrant signed. She wants you to stay out of Catron County and turn yourself in to the police in Silver City."
"I have no intention of going to jail on a murder one charge," Kerney retorted.
"I'll bail you out," Jim countered.
"I may not be allowed to make bail," Kerney replied.
Molly wrinkled her nose.
"Fine. Jim can harbor you, and you can both be fugitives." She took a slip of paper from her purse and passed it to Stiles.
"A lady called for you. She got your message on her answering machine asking about Eugene Cox's wife."
Jim read the name and address.
"Emily Wheeler.
Pie Town. What did she say?"
"She wrote a book about the Great Depression and World War Two in Pie Town. It's a history other family and friends who homesteaded in the area. It sounds like she did a lot of research. Tracking down former residents, searching public records, interviewing folks, and corresponding with old-timers who had moved away. She published it herself and sent copies to all her friends and relatives."
"Did she say anything about Louise Cox?" Jim asked.
"She won't talk about Louise unless you can prove you're really a police officer. She was quite insistent about it."
Kerney raised an eyebrow.
"Go and see her," he said to Jim.
"Take Molly with you."
"Right now? It's too late."
"Get her out of bed if you have to."
"It can wait until morning," Stiles argued.
"I'm going with you."
"No, you're not. Take Molly and go to Pie Town."
Jim gave him a stormy look.
"I don't want you with me," Kerney added.
"I think we should do what the man asks," Molly said.
Jim's expression softened when he looked at Molly.
"Okay. Pie Town it is."
"Can I use your truck?" Kerney asked.
Jim tossed him the keys.
"Don't get busted, for chrissake. At least not until we get back."
"If I'm caught, I'll tell Gatewood I stole the truck," Kerney replied.
Amador's house was dark, but a quarter mile up the road the Lujan house was filled with people, and a large number of vehicles were parked in front of the chain-link fence. Kerney debated delaying a confrontation with Ortiz and decided to wait and see how long the gathering of mourners would last.
He parked Jim's truck out of sight, walked back to the road, and settled under a tree halfway between the two houses. With moonrise several hours away, the night was dark. Above him the Milky Way cut a swath across the sky and sprinkled out into a vast, random pattern.
He heard a car engine fire up, and soon it passed him, traveling to the blacktop highway and turning toward town. More cars began to leave, along with a few people on foot, walking down the dirt road to their houses. Finally all the cars were gone, except for the Lujans', but Amador had yet to appear. Half an hour later, Amador and his three children came out, walked slowly down the road, and veered up the path to their house.
Kerney waited, wondering if Amador's wife was staying with Yolanda. He tried to think of a way to separate Amador from the children without announcing his presence, but no ideas came, short of breaking in and yanking him out.