by Vella Munn
“Do you think you could make that happen?”
He glanced at Niko, who was wearing nothing but the towel she’d wrapped around herself after exiting the shower. She looked both angry and confused.
“I’m here,” she told Hank. “I have go to work at some point, but what if I follow Darick in this morning?”
“Oh. Then— Darick, where are you?”
“At her place.”
“Oh. Okay. None of my business.”
“Were you ready for that?” Darick asked after he’d ended the connection with Hank. “Maybe you don’t want anyone knowing what took place between us.”
Holding on to the towel with one hand, she ran her other hand through her wet hair. “I guess what is, is.”
Was that how she looked at their lovemaking, something that had taken place in the dark and thus was separate from reality?
“It might have been a crank call,” he said. “Some idiot thinking that trying to claim ownership of Hope and Mist might give her her fifteen minutes of fame. She might not show up.”
“What if she does?”
Because he’d figured he wouldn’t have time to go to his place before heading for his office, he’d thrown his clothes in the washing machine right after waking up. They’d just gone into the dryer. He was naked and a little self-conscious, while wishing there was time for more lovemaking.
“I can’t say how things are going to play out,” he said. “The important question is whether you believe you can control yourself if it turns out she starved Hope.”
Niko tossed her towel onto the bed and pulled a bra and panties out of a dresser drawer. “I don’t know.” She started to step into her panties.
“I’ll have to stop you if you go after her.”
She finished her task and faced him. Not many people could command attention with so little on. “Maybe I won’t do anything. Maybe I’ll leave it up to the grays.”
“Don’t even say that!” He grabbed her arms and pulled her so close her features blurred. “Damn it, don’t you dare do that!”
Her expression inscrutable, she returned his stare.
“Can you get through to them?”
She continued to stare.
“Damn it, Niko—”
“We need to get going.”
Chapter Thirteen
It was a good thing there wasn’t much traffic on the coastal highway, because Niko could barely concentrate on pacing her Jeep with Darick’s SUV ahead of her. In some respects, it felt as though she’d been waiting forever for what might soon take place. As she gripped the steering wheel, she contemplated the variety of ways the confrontation could play out. From the beginning, she’d thought the culprit would be a man, but the possibility of it being a woman didn’t make a difference. She ached to lock the guilty party in a small, dark room with only a sip of water and no food. Day after endless day, Hope’s torturer would experience what the mare had.
“Masauwu, do you know what’s happening?” she asked. “Have you been with me the whole time?”
The Hopi spirit didn’t respond.
“What about the grays? Where are they? They need to know what’s happening so they…”
Nothing.
The SUV’s taillights glowed, prompting her to touch her brakes. She didn’t know why Darick was slowing until she saw movement in the bushes that encroached on the fog line. The elk that lived on the southern Oregon coast were so comfortable around humans they occasionally ventured onto the road. A cow and her half-grown calf were just off the pavement. Fortunately, Darick had spotted them in time to avoid a collision.
She wished she was sitting next to him so they could share the experience. Talking about elk and other wild creatures would connect her with what she loved about this part of the country. Darick made his living assuming responsibility for wildlife. He could probably tell her things about them she didn’t know. Maybe the time would come when she’d get him and Grandpa together. They’d connect over a shared love of and respect for what deserved to be protected. There wouldn’t be a generation gap.
So much had happened in a few days, too much of it the stuff nightmares were made of. She needed to put those incidents into perspective and focus on how Darick made his living and what she enjoyed most about dealing with teenagers, not listen for Masauwu’s voice. When this was behind them, she and Darick might have the kind of conversations that would lead them to really knowing each other. He’d become more than the man she’d had sex with.
Sex? Temporary insanity.
As she rolled past the elk, she marveled at their size. From a distance, they were large but up close, they became massive. Maybe more to the point, they couldn’t care less about her.
Being put in her place allowed her to remind herself that the world didn’t revolve around her. She was only one player in a case of animal abuse involving a mare and her colt. She’d take her behavior cues from Hank, Doc Beck and Darick and remain civilized. They wouldn’t have to call the police because she’d beaten the crap out of some woman.
As for whether she’d again try to involve the grays—not going there today.
* * * *
The county animal control vehicle was already in the parking lot when she and Darick arrived. It wasn’t yet eight. Just the same, Niko was disappointed because theirs were the only vehicles. If the woman was so hell bent on reconnecting with her beloved horse, wouldn’t she be pounding on the door?
“Calm down,” she said aloud. “Sarcasm isn’t going to get you anywhere. Give the woman the benefit of the doubt.”
“Why should you?”
Shock tightened her hands around the steering wheel.
“Masauwu?” she managed.
“Also what the grays call the Force.”
“I understand. What do you want? How did you—?”
“You are our only way of learning who nearly killed the mare.”
This wasn’t happening, and yet it was. How naïve she’d been to try to convince herself that Masauwu hadn’t reached out to her earlier.
“I don’t need this. Please, haven’t I done enough?”
“No.”
When Darick exited his vehicle and started toward her, she hurried to open her door. Maybe the essence pressing against the sides of her head would leave her if she ignored it. And if Masauwu didn’t—
“Are you ready for this?” Darick asked.
“I hope,” she managed. “What about you?”
He frowned. “I’m not sure.”
His admission snagged her attention. The situation was emotionally laden for him as well. Masauwu’s agenda wasn’t hers. She had her own life to live and Darick to focus on. Hoping to make the Hopi spirit understand, she pressed the sides of her head.
“What is it?” Darick asked. “You have a headache?”
“Yes. It—it’ll go away.”
“If you can’t handle being here—”
“No! I need, I mean, I want to be part of this.”
“Listen. Learn. Share.”
“I’ve dealt with my share of poachers and others who don’t respect wildlife,” he said, “but Hank’s the expert when it comes to domestic animal abuse. I’m sure he intends to question the woman.”
Clenching her fingers and grinding her teeth, she focused on Darick. She would do this because she had no choice. “In other words, you’re telling me not to mess things up?”
“If that’s what you need to hear, yes.” He sighed. “The same holds true for me.”
He’d shaved using one of her razors and had nicked his jaw. It wasn’t bleeding, but the mark reminded her of waking up with him next to her. Had last night been insanity or would they want to make love again? Act like normal people?
Leaving the question to simmer in a corner of her mind, she started toward the front door. Was Masauwu stalking her? When she opened it, Hank stood near the receptionist’s desk. Doc Beck was on the other side. The two men acknowledged her and Darick.
“The woman told me she had
to get ready for work first,” the vet said.
At Darick’s question, Doc Beck admitted he hadn’t been able to judge the woman’s age. She hadn’t sounded elderly but neither did he think she was a teenager.
“She used ain’t a few times, and her dialogue wasn’t the most polished. She was nearly hysterical so she probably wasn’t thinking about making herself understood.”
“Hysterical?” Niko asked. “Do you think she was afraid she was in trouble?”
“That’s not the impression I got. She said she’s been looking for her horse for a long time.”
Niko hadn’t expected to hear that. She’d barely considered that Hope might have been wandering lost in the hills long enough to become emaciated. If that was true, she would let Masauwu and the grays know and they’d leave her alone.
Maybe.
The door opened and a middle-aged woman with short, graying hair stepped in. She was a little overweight and wore an oversized black sweater. Baggy green leggings and worn tennis shoes spoke of a woman who didn’t care about her appearance.
“What’s this?” she demanded. “Why is everyone staring at me?”
Hank introduced himself, not that he needed to since he was in uniform. Darick did the same, but the woman barely acknowledged him.
“I know you.” She pointed at Niko. “You were on TV. You have Angel.”
“Angel?” Niko asked.
“My baby.” The woman’s eyes teared. “Where is she? I have to see her.”
“We’ll get to that,” Hank said. “First, I’d like to know who you are.”
“Livia Ross. Now, where is she?”
“Not yet.” In contrast to Livia’s agitation, Hank was so calm it was chilling. He was investigating a case of animal neglect and so far, Livia was his only suspect.
“I didn’t let her get in that condition.” Livia directed her comment at Niko. “I’d never do anything—where did you find her? Like I told the vet, I’ve been looking for her for months.”
“Did you report a missing animal?” Darick asked.
“What? No. It wouldn’t do no good. Please, is she here?”
Doc Beck exchanged a look with Hank. When Hank nodded, the vet explained that the mare was in the barn that served as his large animal hospital. At the word hospital, Livia clasped her hands as if she was praying.
“Please let me see her,” she whispered.
Who are you? Niko silently asked. You aren’t what I expected.
Darick had dealt with his share of people who thought they could lie their way out of a situation, and the experience had made him cynical. He almost never took what someone told him at face value. Still, something about Livia rang true. He imagined her suffering through a sleepless night, throwing on some clothes and rushing here.
Judging by how she rocked as if her legs or hips were hurting her, Livia didn’t do much walking. No matter how she lived her life, she loved the horse she’d named Angel.
Because Doc Beck had an early morning surgery, he didn’t accompany the others to the barn. Hank led the way, with Livia lumbering after him. He and Niko followed close behind. Darick studied Niko but couldn’t tell what she was thinking. His mother had told him that women understood each other. They sometimes spoke a language men didn’t know existed. If that was true, did it mean Niko was getting more out of watching Livia than he was?
Hank pulled back the latch on the door to Hope’s stall and opened it. Her hands clasped to her heavy breasts, Livia stepped in. At first she didn’t react. Then she all but flew to Hope and wrapped her arms around the mare’s neck. She seemed unaware of the sling or Mist.
“My baby. My precious baby! I thought—oh god, I was so scared you were dead.”
Sensing Niko’s gaze, he looked her way. She nodded. Even in the dim lighting, he could tell her eyes were shining. As far as he could remember, this was the first time she’d shed tears in his presence. Even though he should be focusing on Livia, he longed to clasp Niko’s hand to let her know he understood why she felt as she did.
In between her sniffles, Livia peppered the others with questions about Hope’s condition. She continued to cradle the mare. Hope’s eyes slowly closed. Hank asked Livia to tell him everything she could about the last time she’d seen the mare.
“It was a Monday morning. I knew that ‘cause I wasn’t happy about having to go to work. I’d have to look at a calendar, but I’m sure it was two weeks after my birthday. My old man had given in and taken me to the casino that weekend. He’d been on the road when my birthday came, not that he gave a damn.”
“Your husband, you mean? The two of you were having problems then?” Hank asked.
“When aren’t we? It’s always the same thing, money. Not having enough of it.”
If the lack of money was an issue, why had they gambled?
“So you’d gone to work. Was Hope missing when you got home?”
Livia nodded and sniffled. “When I’m going to be gone all day, I put her in this corral I built. It’s near some oaks so she has shade if it gets hot. I always fill the water trough and put in hay. I’d bought a new salt block so, when I got home, I parked next to the corral. Right away I noticed”—she shuddered—“that the gate was open. She wasn’t there.”
“Is there a chance you forgot to secure it?” Hank asked. “Has she ever opened it herself? Some horses figure out how to work latches.”
“I’d never not make sure it’s good and closed. Once, a couple of years ago, I messed up and off she went. Didn’t find her until the next morning. Scared the crap out of me.”
“Are you saying you believe someone deliberately opened the gate?”
“You’re damned right.” Livia planted a kiss on Hope’s forehead. “Hello, my lovely. I’m pretty sure who it is. I just couldn’t get him to own up to it.”
Niko’s body language already left no doubt that she was concentrating on what Livia was saying, but with that she became even more alert.
“Him?” Niko asked before Hank could speak. “Are you talking about your husband?”
“Maybe.”
“Maybe?” Niko echoed. “I don’t understand.”
“Let me finish, all right? You poor baby.” She again kissed the mare. “Nothing but skin and bones. How you’re still alive—my old man’s one suspect, but he ain’t the only one.”
When Niko rolled her eyes, Darick nodded to let her know he felt the same about Livia’s response.
“My feet are killing me.” Livia plodded to the stall’s wood fencing. She leaned against it. That was when she acknowledged the colt’s presence. Mist was stretched out on hay with his side rising and falling. “Look at that! My old man will shit a brick when he sees. He never knew I took Angel to the neighbor’s stallion when she was in heat. Hell, I probably wouldn’t have done it if Thomas had been home.”
“Thomas?” Hank asked.
“The damned neighbor south of our place. There’s nothing he likes about us. We feel the same about him, all except for his stallion. That’s one fine animal.”
“So things are tense between you and Thomas,” Hank said. “Do you think he might have taken—?”
“Hell yes! He hates Zed’s guts. The thing is, Thomas is older than dirt. He’d need help moving Angel somewhere.”
“Zed?” Niko asked. “Who is that?”
“My stepson. Now there’s a piece of work for you.”
“In what way?” Darick asked.
“Every way. I had trouble with him from the beginning. He was, what, about ten when I married his old man. Badmouthed me from the get go, wouldn’t obey my rules. This spring I’d had enough and kicked him out.”
In response to Niko’s questions, Livia filled in many but probably not all of the details. Zed was twenty and worked at the same lumber mill his father did. Livia wasn’t sure whether Zed worked full time and didn’t care. He paid rent on an RV in a trailer park not far from the mill. Livia was certain Zed still smoked weed, which was one of the reasons she�
�d thrown his clothes outside. Weed hadn’t been legal when Zed had started smoking it. He and his old man—Zachary—had gotten into a couple of fights when Zed had told his old man that someone who drank as much as Zachary did had no business telling anyone what he could or couldn’t do.
“Those two punch each other some,” Livia said, “but most of the time it don’t mean nothing. They always make up. Zed would still be eating our food and leaving his dirty clothes for me to wash if I hadn’t taken a stand.”
“How does Zed feel about Angel?” Niko asked.
Livia leaned against the fence. “I gotta go where I can sit down. Look at that foal. Can Angel throw them or what? He’s a beauty. Zed doesn’t have no never mind about Angel. When he was a kid, he hounded me about me letting him ride her, but that’s my horse. I set him straight about that.”
“Zed and you don’t get along,” Niko said. “Is it possible he’d do something to Angel to get back at you?”
Livia groaned and rubbed her hips. “I confronted him right after Angel went missing. He’s lied to me so many times I don’t believe anything he says, but I wanted to see how he’d react. He looked like I’d accused him of murdering the pope. What time is it?”
“Eight-thirty,” Darick said after glancing at his cell phone.
“Oh shit. I’m supposed to be at work. I can’t— When can I take Angel home?”
“She isn’t going anywhere until and unless she’s in a lot better shape than she is,” Hank said. “Also, I haven’t eliminated you as a suspect about her condition.”
Going by how quickly the color left Livia’s cheeks, Darick wouldn’t have been surprised if she’d fainted. Even if he could get to her in time, he wouldn’t risk his back trying to prevent her from falling.
“Not me,” she whimpered. “I’d never— Damn him. Double damn him.”
“Damn who?” Niko pressed.
“Whoever starved her.”
* * * *
“What happens now?” Niko asked when she, Hank, Darick and Doc Beck were in the vet’s small office. Even with this many people around, she half expected Masauwu to speak to her. Maybe he was here.
