by Lukens, Mark
They walked towards each other, but neither of them smiled at the other, and neither one touched the other in greeting, not even a handshake. And neither one of them looked this way to their truck.
But they know we’re here, Cole thought.
Then the two of them entered the diner through a glass door.
Cole looked at Stella. He hoped that this friend of Stella’s was honest. And maybe she was; maybe she really wanted to help.
But Cole needed to stay ready and on edge; he hadn’t met too many people in his life who were honest and who kept their word.
“You got your gun in case anything goes sideways in there?” Cole asked Stella.
She nodded. “I don’t think anything’s going to go sideways.”
“Not just with them,” Cole reminded her. “If you see anyone else in there who … who doesn’t seem like themselves …”
“I know,” she said.
And he knew she did. The Ancient Enemy was close now—that little incident in the desert with the animals was proof of that.
“I don’t like leaving you alone out here,” she said.
“We don’t really have a choice. You need to get this information and I don’t think they’re going to be so willing to talk with me sitting there.”
Stella nodded.
“I’ll be okay,” Cole assured her. But he thought of others who had been alone and away from David’s presence—they had been taken by that thing. His brother Trevor had been taken by that thing right out of the bathroom window in the cabin.
Maybe David will still be close enough for some kind of protection, Cole thought. And he swore he could see the same thought in Stella’s eyes.
She looked at David. “You ready, kiddo?”
He gave her a small smile and nodded.
Stella got out of the truck and opened the back door for David. He slid out and stood beside her.
“Good luck,” Cole told her.
“Thanks,” she answered and smiled, and then they closed the doors and walked away.
Cole watched them walk towards the building as he pushed the button down to lock the doors.
David’s still close, he thought. Maybe that’s why the animals hadn’t attacked earlier, because David was still close. How close did David have to be to remain under the wing of his protection?
Cole had his nine millimeter tucked down underneath his leg, ready to draw it in a second if he needed to. He had filled up the gas tank an hour ago, when they’d first gotten here to the gas station. He kept the truck running with the windows rolled up and the doors locked.
He thought of the animals that had come out of the desert brush, the buzzards perched on the rocks. So many of them … all of them just watching. That thing was inside all of those animals at the same time.
How powerful was this thing? Did they even have any hope of fighting it? Could David ever be that strong, or was the Ancient Enemy just playing with them right now?
Was that thing all around them all the time? Constantly following them and watching them? Was this thing some kind of god?
Or maybe an alien, as Stella had suggested. That was an even scarier concept.
CHAPTER 46
Navajo Reservation—gas station
Stella walked across the parking lot to the door of the little diner that was attached to the sprawling building of the gas station store. The store had been packed with goods, because the next nearest store and gas station were forty miles away. That made this a busy little gas station. And that was good for her and David. Plenty of other people around.
And good for Alice, she thought.
Alice and the friend she’d brought with her waited at a corner table as far away from everyone else as they could get. Both of them already had bottles of drinks in front of them: a bottle of water for Alice and a can of soda for the Navajo man.
Stella held David’s hand as they walked towards the table.
Alice popped up from her seat and rushed over to hug Stella. Alice was a tall woman, nearly five foot eleven and even though she was stick-thin, she was a lot stronger and tougher than she looked. She was still a pretty woman, but she had aged prematurely from decades of hard work under a brutal sun. But her eyes were alive, like little glittering gems.
“Stella,” she said as she hugged her. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”
“Thank you for doing this, Alice,” Stella whispered back.
Alice let Stella go and smiled down at David. “And you must be David.”
David nodded, but he didn’t say anything to her, grabbing Stella’s hand again.
“Come on and sit down,” Alice told them. “Are you guys hungry? Thirsty?”
“No thanks,” Stella said. “We just ate a little while ago, and we have some drinks in our cooler in the truck.”
Alice glanced towards the windows like she could still see the truck … and Cole sitting inside of it.
“He’s helping us,” Stella explained.
Alice just nodded.
“It’s a long story,” she said.
“Yes … a story you promised to tell me about.”
Stella nodded, and she looked at the Navajo man who had remained very still and silent the whole time.
“I’m sorry,” Alice said. “This is Billy Nez.”
Billy offered a hand to Stella and she shook it.
“Ya-tah,” Billy said in greeting.
“Ya-tah-hey,” Stella answered back.
Billy had rough and strong hands, but he shook her hand with the gentlest of grips like he was trying not to hurt her. Then the man turned to David and gave him a smile and offered his hand to him.
David shook the man’s hand and Billy seemed to freeze for a moment, his dark eyes glazing over like he was in an instant trance. It only lasted for a second or two, and maybe Alice hadn’t even noticed, but Stella had. Billy looked the same way the old man in the gas station had looked when David had taken his hand.
He’s seen something, Stella thought. David just showed him something.
“So, it’s time to tell me everything,” Alice said, her focus right on Stella.
“I’m going to tell you,” Stella told Alice, and then she met Billy’s eyes. “But you’re not going to believe me.”
Neither one of them said anything.
“Please don’t interrupt me until I’m finished,” Stella said. “I know all of this is going to seem … outlandish, but just let me get through all of it. Once I’m done, then you’ll know why I need Joe Blackhorn’s help so badly.”
“Fair enough,” Alice said, and she looked at Billy for his blessing.
Billy nodded solemnly.
Stella took a deep breath and began her story.
*
Forty minutes later Alice stared at Stella with a dumbfounded expression.
“And now we’re here,” Stella said, finishing her story. “And we need help. David needs help.”
“I … I don’t know what to say,” Alice said in a low, husky voice, and then she cleared her throat. “It all sounds …”
“I know you don’t believe me,” Stella said. “I understand that. I know you think I’m crazy. But if you could just help me find Joe Blackhorn, if I could just see him for a little while, then I’ll turn myself in and David can go back to his family. And the man we’re traveling with will turn himself in to the police, too.” Stella was telling a lie, but she wasn’t even sure if she was lying. She knew she couldn’t speak for Cole, but she wasn’t sure what she was going to do if she survived all of this. “The only thing I care about right now is getting help for David.”
Stella could feel tears of frustration threatening. She hated being in this position of begging for help.
David grabbed her hand on the table and held it.
Stella couldn’t help the tears now … she wiped away at them. “Sorry.”
Alice’s eyes were tearing up and she reached across the table and took Stella’s other hand and held it for a moment.
“I want to help you,” Alice said and she looked at Billy. The two of them stared at each other for a long moment, almost like they were reading each other’s mind, and then Billy nodded slightly.
“Okay,” Alice said. “We’ll help you. Billy knows how to find Joe Blackhorn, how to get in touch with him. He’ll let him know you’re coming to see him.”
Stella felt a rush of air escape her lungs, the tension draining out of her, and she cried some more. “Thank you, Alice.” She looked at Billy. “And thank you so much, Billy.”
Billy nodded again in response. He reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out a piece of paper folded up neatly. He slid the folded piece of paper across the table to her. “These are the directions to Joe Blackhorn’s property. He lives far away from here. The closest town would be Many Farms.”
Stella looked down at the folded up piece of paper that looked like it was copy paper for a printer. She glanced around at the others in the diner, but they were all in different areas of the dining area and involved in their own conversations. She reached into her coat pocket slowly, and she could sense the other two tensing slightly.
“Just the payment I promised,” Stella whispered, but she kept her movements slow. She grabbed the envelope of hundred dollar bills out of her coat and then slid the envelope across the table at Billy.
Billy took the envelope in a flash, like a snake reaching out for a mouse in a lightning-quick movement, and then the envelope was gone, tucked safely away inside of Billy’s jean jacket.
Stella looked at the folded paper on the table again and she snatched it up. She didn’t unfold the paper and look at it—that would be rude. She tucked the square of paper down into the pocket of her jeans. “Thank you so much,” she said to Billy.
“I will send someone to speak to Joe Blackhorn,” Billy said. “He will tell Joe Blackhorn that you will be there tonight.”
“Good,” Stella replied. The sooner the better.
“There’s no promise that Joe Blackhorn will help you,” Alice said and then she looked at Billy like she was making sure this was true.
Billy shrugged, but he kept his eyes on Stella. “I cannot speak for Joe Blackhorn. He is his own man. But if you tell him your story, maybe he will listen, and maybe he will help.”
“That’s all I’m asking for,” Stella told them. “Just a chance.”
“It is a long journey,” Billy said. “You will want to begin soon.”
“Yes,” Stella said, standing up.
Alice came around the table and gave Stella another hug, squeezing her hard for a few seconds.
“Thank you for doing this,” Stella whispered to Alice.
“Be careful,” she said and let Stella go. She looked down at David, who was standing up now.
Billy looked at David and nodded at him, but Billy didn’t shake his hand again.
Stella and David left the diner and hurried back out to the pickup truck where Cole was still waiting.
*
After Stella and David were gone, Alice grabbed her coat and looked at Billy. “Thank you for coming with me,” she said. “I know that kind of nonsense must’ve been hard for you to sit through.”
Billy didn’t say anything.
“I need to make that phone call now,” she told Billy as she made her way to the hallway that led to the restrooms.
Outside of the women’s bathroom, Alice got her cell phone out of her purse and dialed the number for the Tribal Police office. “Hello, can I speak to Captain Begay?” she said after a receptionist answered.
Alice waited a few minutes on the phone, and then she heard Captain Begay’s deep gruff voice: “Captain Begay speaking.”
“Hi, this is Alice Newcastle. I spoke to you a few hours ago.”
“Yes,” Begay perked up. He was silent, but she could practically feel the tension from him through the phone, the impatience … the hope.
“It’s done,” Alice said. She couldn’t help feeling bad. She felt like she was betraying a friend, but it was obvious now that Stella was mentally disturbed. She didn’t know which parts of Stella’s story were true, or if any of it was true, but she couldn’t let this continue. Stella needed help … and Stella was right about one thing … David needed help most of all.
“They’re on their way to the destination?” Begay asked.
“Yes. We sent them to a friend’s property and told that friend not to be there. He’s going to leave a note on the door saying that he’ll be back in a few hours and sign it as Joe Blackhorn. Stella, David, and whoever she’s with will be there tonight, within a few hours. I’ll send you the address they’re going to. It’s near Many Farms.”
There were distant clattering noises on the phone; it sounded like Captain Begay was searching for a pen and paper. “Okay. Send the directions to the e-mail I gave you before.”
“Okay,” Alice said.
“Thank you, Alice,” Begay said after he was done. “I know this probably wasn’t easy for you.”
“Just go easy on her,” Alice said.
“Everything will be fine,” Begay told her and he hung up.
Alice pulled up the file on her phone that had the directions and a hand drawn map that Billy had made in it. She wrote out a quick e-mail and attached the file and then sent it to Captain Begay’s e-mail address.
CHAPTER 47
Navajo Reservation—Captain Begay’s office
Captain Begay hung up his phone and checked his e-mail.
The e-mail from Alice was there with an attachment. He read the e-mail, opened up the attachment and looked over the handwritten directions and roughly-drawn map. It was good enough, he supposed. He knew the area this was in. He printed out twenty copies of the map and the directions.
As the copy machine on the other side of the office spit out pages, Begay dialed his lieutenant who had a group of officers waiting on standby. “We’re good to go,” Begay said into the phone. “We’ll meet in half an hour and then head out there.”
Begay looked up at the large map of the Big Reservation on the wall beside him; he was already planning out the best route to this place that Stella thought was Joe Blackhorn’s property. Stella Weaver, David Bear, and whoever they were traveling with would be on their way to the destination now. They would get there and read the note. Hopefully they would wait. Begay and his men would have them boxed in by then.
Nobody was going to get hurt, Begay thought. That was the most important thing. This was going to go smoothly and nobody was going to get hurt. Begay and his men were going to show up in force, box them inside in the canyon, and then the man with them was going to surrender. And after that David would be back with his aunt … he would be back with his family again. It would take a long time for that boy to heal, Begay thought, but the process could at least begin.
Begay got his coat and put it on. He was about to head out to his car, but he hesitated for a moment. He reached into his wallet and took out a business card. He stared at the card for a long moment, not sure if he should do this at this time or not. He could put this off for a while; he could claim that he had gotten wrapped up in the pursuit of Stella and the others.
But he decided to make the call.
Begay picked up the black phone on his desk and dialed the number on the business card. The phone rang four times, then five. Begay was bracing himself for the call to go to voicemail, but then Palmer answered.
“Special Agent Palmer here.”
“It’s Captain Begay from the Navajo Tribal Police,” Begay said into the phone.
“Yes.”
“We’re going to be apprehending Stella Weaver and David Bear soon,” he said.
Silence for a moment.
“They are traveling to a man’s property. They believe it’s the property of a man people claim is a shaman … that’s sort of like a med
icine man.”
Palmer breathed out a huff of breath like he was annoyed. “I know what a shaman is. Are they traveling with someone else?” Palmer asked. “A man?”
“Yes,” Begay said. “How did you know?”
“There have been some … some developments up here. She was up here in Colorado at numerous crime scenes, and it seems like they might be traveling with a man who was involved with a bank robbery and several murders.”
“What kind of murders?” Begay asked. “Like the bodies we found here?”
Palmer hesitated on the phone. And it seemed to Begay like Palmer wasn’t sure how much he should tell some lowly Tribal Police officer. Then Palmer sighed and said: “Yeah. They’re a lot like the ones down there. Mutilations.”
“How many?” Begay asked. He was sure he was pushing his luck with Palmer. He wouldn’t normally pry like this, but he felt some kind of strange bond with this FBI agent that he couldn’t explain.
“A lot,” Palmer said. “Five in one location. Three in another. And three in one other place.”
Begay just sighed. “Thanks for the heads up about the man,” he said.
“No problem. I’m coming down there right now. I’m going to be flying in to Farmington as soon as possible.”
Begay nodded again; he already knew that was going to happen.
“Have you notified Agent Klein yet?” Palmer asked.
“Not yet. He’s going to be my next call.”
“Good. Just be careful, captain. This guy Stella and David are with, he’s a real piece of work judging from what I’ve seen so far up here.”
Begay sighed heavily into the phone again. “We’ll take all necessary precautions.”
Palmer hung up and Begay set the phone receiver back down into the cradle gently.
Eleven more bodies up in Colorado. All from one man? That didn’t make any more sense than what had happened down here. Begay thought about this woman and this boy traveling with a possible bank robbery and murder suspect. They had gone up to Colorado and now they had come back down here. Why? Just to go and see Joe Blackhorn? Everyone around here knew that Blackhorn was a shaman … a powerful one, the rumors said. Begay didn’t know the man—he had never met him—but he had heard the stories of the man’s colorful past.
