The alarm shrilling insistently in the back of her mind was muted, but present. Because she knew then, with mingled certainty and sadness, that he was destined to leave a mark on her soul that time and distance would never completely erase.
Chapter 11
“Captain said he wanted to see you as soon as you get in.”
Vicki’s words greeted Joe and Arnie as they entered the Navajo Tribal Police headquarters the next afternoon. The two men looked at each other. “We just got here,” Arnie said.
“Then he wants to see you now.”
“I’ll be there in a minute,” Arnie said, glancing at the clock. “I promised to check in with Brenda. It’s the only way to keep her from coming down here and following me around to make sure I don’t overexert myself.”
“If she thinks there’s any danger of you overexerting yourself on the job, she should follow you around,” Joe suggested. “Be a real eye-opener.”
“Yeah, yeah.” The other man headed to his desk. “How about some respect for the fallen hero wounded in the line of duty?”
Joe rapped at the captain’s door and entered when commanded, closing it behind him on the rest of his partner’s good-natured complaints. “Arnie will be here in a minute.”
Tapahe gestured for him to sit. “What have you gotten today? Anything?”
The report was depressingly meager. “Nothing on Graywolf or the van belonging to that tread we found. And Lee hasn’t returned to his parents’ home. Arnie and I have been concentrating on abandoned mines, focusing on a seventy-mile radius, but so far nothing.” Time was running out, and this method of investigation was too slow and uncertain. They had approximately thirty hours until the next trip to the border. And he didn’t like their chances if they had to sit back and hope Border Patrol spotted the van along the nineteen-hundred-plus miles of border.
“I think we need to get Graywolf in here again.” Tapahe still hadn’t said anything. “Maybe use that connection to Quintero we established with the cell phone call log and throw in the rumors we’ve heard linking him to the deaths of those three local youths. He might slip and give us something we can use.”
“And maybe he’ll be tipped off and the whole operation gets postponed.”
Tapahe had a valid point, but the feeling that they were chasing their tails in the intervening hours was beginning to wear on Joe.
Arnie opened the door and joined them. The captain waited until he was seated before continuing. “I think you were right yesterday. We need to get a look at the Graywolf property to decide if we’re on the right track before this all goes down tomorrow night.”
Joe felt hope stirring. Leaning forward in his chair he asked, “You got us a warrant?”
“Do I look like a magician to you, Youngblood?” the captain said testily. “We’ve got nothing to take to a judge and you know it. But someone gave me an idea this morning that I think has merit.”
Trepidation replaced hope and Joe sat back. “And that someone was?”
“Delaney Carson.”
Stunned, he could only stare at his superior. Dimly he heard Arnie ask, “Carson?”
“Apparently some private property owners offered her free access to their land while she was working on the book.” He looked at Joe. “That’s what took her to the Nahkai property.”
He gave a jerky nod, afraid he knew exactly where this was headed. Hoped he was wrong.
“She suggested that maybe Graywolf senior would extend that same courtesy, which would allow her to take a look at that mine you two were interested in.”
“No.” Fear sliced through Joe with sharp jagged strokes. What if they were right about that mine site? Worse, what if that’s where Lee was hiding out? He’d fired at Delaney once and missed. He may not miss the next time.
“I was ready to dismiss the idea myself, but she’s a very persuasive lady. And it was a solution to our getting a look at the area.”
“That could tip off the kid. Brant.”
“I weighed that.” The captain eyed him steadily. “Also weighed it against the possibility the elder Graywolf was involved. But you didn’t think that was plausible and neither do I. I finally figured her plan might represent our best chance.”
“No!” Joe shot up from his chair and braced his hands on the captain’s desk. “You’re the one who wanted to keep President Taos happy. And now you’re thinking of sending her back into a possibly dangerous situation? What if he finds out about it?”
“Sit down, Joe.” Their gazes did battle until Joe finally backed away, his jaw tight. He didn’t sit. He couldn’t. He was too tightly wound for that.
“Carson suggested that she call Taos and ask him to contact Graywolf senior for permission. He got it, probably because Graywolf is hoping for a mention of his company in the book. Whatever the reason, we’ve got access to the site, and I think the danger to Carson is pretty minimal. Brant would have no reason to believe she planned to be on the Graywolf property today.”
“I can’t believe Taos would be okay with her walking into a possibly dangerous situation again,” Joe said, reining in temper and fear with effort.
Tapahe’s gaze shifted away. “I’m sure he wouldn’t be.”
Comprehension dawned. “You didn’t tell him about the investigation.”
“I didn’t talk to him,” the captain corrected. “Carson did. I talked to Agents Mitchell and Tarken, and we agreed that what we stood to gain outweighed the slight risk to a civilian.”
“Oh, the feds agreed.” Driven to pace, Joe strode across the office and back. “I’ll bet they did. They’ve come up with nothing on the homicides and they’re desperate for anything that might give them a few answers.” He shook his head, aware that Arnie was watching him shrewdly, not caring. “I still don’t like it.”
“You don’t have to like it. It’s done.” The words had Joe’s attention snapping to the captain. “Carson and her guide left a couple hours ago.”
“You aren’t lost again, are you?”
“We aren’t lost. We’re headed for that butte.”
Delaney brought the binoculars up to peer in the direction Eddie had indicated. Distance on the vast lands in the area were deceiving. “Isn’t this the direction I told you to go originally?”
“No one likes a know-it-all woman.”
She grinned at his disgruntled tone. “Or one that’s right. At least I got some great photos of the sheepherders and their flock.”
“Always glad to be of service.”
She laughed. Captain Tapahe had insisted she not come alone. But she had made sure Eddie was fully apprised of the possible danger. Her caution had been lost on him. He showed even more excitement about the slight risk than he did at the possibility of more billable hours. She hadn’t argued when he’d brought his rifle along. After being used for target practice, it didn’t hurt to be prepared.
It took a half hour to get close enough for a good view of the looming rocky hillside. They hadn’t passed anyone except the two men watching over the grazing flock of sheep. “Take a wide swing around it. Maybe the shaft opening is on the other side.”
Eddie obediently did as she asked, though it took another forty minutes to come around the land mass. Delaney brought the binoculars up again, scanning the rough-hewn striated sandstone for anything that resembled an opening. Smaller red rock formations made it impossible to get closer in the vehicle, and obstructed her view. “Slow down.” Eddie obediently slowed to a crawl. “I can’t really get a good…wait. What are those up ahead?”