by Aimée Thurlo
“Where do you go, out of curiosity? There aren’t any restaurants here on the pueblo, just candy and soda machines.”
“Do you remember Miss Consuelo? She worked in the high school cafeteria for years.”
Her eyes widened. “My goodness! She’s got to be close to one hundred now!”
“She is, but she’s sharp as a tack. She cooks up the best enchiladas and burritos around and sells them to our department. It works well all around. She makes extra money, and even Captain Mora looks well fed these days, though he’s a bachelor like me.”
The smile he gave her was so utterly masculine it made her breath catch. She looked away, wondering if she’d ever have a moment’s peace again. Being around Nick was like standing in the middle of a storm. It challenged her, and tore at her, demanding a surrender she wasn’t capable of—not anymore.
Bobby and two other boys from Eden’s sixth grade class approached. “Yes, gentlemen?” Eden asked, looking at her watch and noting the school lunch period was nearly over. “Can I help you?”
“Actually, we were hoping that Deputy Black Raven could help us…”
There was uncertainty in the boys’ eyes—something she usually didn’t associate with Bobby or his two companions. She looked at them, intrigued.
“Okay. What can I do for you guys?” Nick asked.
“Well, we were wondering about something…” Bobby stared at the sandy ground. “Well, what I mean, is we were hoping that you could give us some pointers about the finishing rite? We’ll be going through that soon, you know.”
“Yes, I do,” Nick said, “but you guys know the rules. You’ll find out everything you need to know when the time comes, and not before.”
Eden watched the boys exchanging uneasy glances, once again feeling like an outsider. Out of deference to her mother’s wishes, she hadn’t gone through the finishing. She’d heard stories about it, of course, but she’d never actually experienced it. Of course, even if she’d gone through the rite, the boys’ portion of it was supposed to be vastly different from that of the girls.
“It’s something that you’ll never forget, boys,” Nick said with a knowing smile.
“But can’t you even give us a tiny hint?”
“Nope, and when you get asked that question many years from now, you’ll have to say the same thing.”
As they walked away, disappointed, Eden glanced at Nick. That continuity of blood and heritage was what she wanted to claim for her son. But unless she, as a half Tewa, could claim the right to live among the tribe, her son would never grow up knowing the richness of his father’s Tewa world. For her son’s sake, it was a fight she had to win.
THE DAY PASSED slowly. After finishing his patrol, Nick headed back to the Plaza. Captain Mora’s instructions had been clear. He was to find whoever was trying to run Eden off the pueblo, but nothing more. The note, written by Eden’s grandmother, was speculative at best.
Yet, the implication against Tall Shadow, his father, continued to bother him. He couldn’t just let it go. It was a matter of honor to him to clear his father’s name.
Of course it was also conceivable that he’d find damning evidence instead. He didn’t think that would happen, but there was a chance, and he had to face it squarely. If his father had had anything to do with the theft of the artifacts, if he’d somehow framed Isabel Maes, he’d clear Eden’s family—but he and Jake would pay dearly. They’d almost certainly lose Black Raven Ranch, their livelihoods and their right to remain on pueblo land.
Maybe he should have let the matter drop and not take the risk, but he wasn’t the kind of man to play it safe. His gut instinct told him that someone had deliberately used his father’s name to keep others in line, dishonoring all of them in the process. That was not something he could shrug off or ignore. Everything in him demanded he preserve his father’s good name.
Nick parked next to the Cultural Center, then went to the soda machine in the covered portal and bought himself a soda. Looking around casually, he saw Patrick Korman taking a break at one of the tables. Rita came out and joined him a moment later.
He sat down on a bench and listened in, but their conversation was too general to be of much use to him. As his gaze wandered over to the school yard, he saw two of the boys he’d met earlier throwing a football back and forth.
The finishing ceremony would be taking place soon. He hadn’t been told which day it would be, but he could sense it drawing close from the intensity of the preparations all over the pueblo. He watched the kids, wondering what it would have been like to have a son getting ready for the rituals. He envied the excitement within the pueblo families now, and the sense of tradition as they prepared for the rite of passage.
Taking the final swallow of his soda, he crushed the can with one hand and threw it into the trash. He wouldn’t drive himself crazy with thoughts like this, that maybe he was missing out on something by insisting on bachelorhood. The plain fact was that he wasn’t cut out for relationships. Life had proven that to him enough times.
As he drove past the Kiva, he saw Captain Mora standing by the door to the Sipofene, the antechamber used for the finishing ceremony. Juan Ortiz stood beside him. Ortiz was a Towa é, a War Captain, a title that these days only meant a guardian of the tribe.
Captain Mora waved and Nick slowed down, parked, and went to meet him.
“We have a problem,” Juan said. “As you know, we’re responsible for insuring the secrecy of the pueblo rites. It’s our duty, and one we do as well as we’re able, but this year we don’t have any young people to help us. Our youngest member is sixty-two and we can’t cover as much ground as quickly as we could in the past. We’re going to have to rely on our police department much more than we ever have.”
“I’ve assured them that we’re up to the challenge,” Mora said. “But since you’ll be out in the field more than I will, I wanted you to be aware of what’s going on.”
“We can handle it,” Nick nodded. “If the Towa é and the police work together, no one will slip past us. Outsiders really stick out around here.”
Juan relaxed visibly. “As Towa é, that’s what I was hoping to hear. We have the option of closing off the pueblo to outsiders, but the Summer Chief, who will be in charge until the Winter Chief takes over during the second half of the year, is very reluctant to do that. The harvest season is the best time for our craftsmen and farmers to sell their goods. No one likes to interfere with that. We all realize how much our people depend on tourist dollars to see them through the long months of winter.”
“May I make a recommendation, Captain?” Nick asked.
Mora nodded. “Speak freely.”
“I think the Summer Chief is right not to close off the pueblo. But we do need to take extra precautions. I recommend that we carefully scrutinize anyone in a vehicle with a university parking sticker. If they bring out a camera or if we suspect that they have recording devices, we’ll take them to the station. Then, they can either consent to a search, or be escorted off our land.”
“That’s going to create some hard feelings, particularly in those instances when we’re wrong and find nothing,” Mora warned.
“Yes, but what we’re trying to protect is worth that price,” Nick said flatly.
“I like the way you think, Black Raven,” Ortiz said with an approving look. “You’ve done your father proud.”
Nick had never gotten along with his father, but now the words meant the world to him. Wondering when he’d grown so soft, Nick walked back to his Jeep feeling like a stranger to himself.
THAT NIGHT, after putting Christopher to bed, Eden walked outside and sat down in the banco beneath the old cottonwood in her backyard. The stillness outside was so total that it soothed her jagged nerves.
She took several deep breaths, enjoying the evening. She’d missed this house, her childhood home, all these years away, but it wasn’t until that very moment that she realized how much.
The faint sounds of a car r
eached out to her through the silence. Walking to the back gate, she looked down the road. From where she stood, she could see a tribal police unit on its patrol. She was too far away to know if it was Nick, but an instinct she couldn’t define assured her he was keeping watch over her.
The magic between them was still alive and it was drawing them together no matter how hard they resisted. She and Nick had found something in each other’s arms that had touched their souls and changed them forever. On that fateful night so many months ago, she’d loved him as only a woman in love could love a man. But by giving him everything, she’d lost a piece of her heart forever.
Chapter Seven
As the day of the finishing rite drew closer, the mood around the pueblo shifted to a more serious note. The finishing rite was held before another ritual, the Coming of the Gods, which would also take place in the Kiva and was one of the most holy ceremonies conducted at the pueblo.
Although Eden knew Nick was putting in very long hours, she missed seeing him. And that was a very bad sign. His presence in her life had suddenly made her remember what is was like to feel vibrantly feminine and desired. Every time he was around, it was as if the air itself became supercharged with electricity. Colors were brighter and the sun was warmer.
She stopped those thoughts abruptly. She was sounding like a woman in love and that was just plain crazy. Promising herself not to give in to fantasies and stupid dreams, she sat down across from the Cultural Center, enjoying the coolness of the morning air.
The full-time teaching staff was in Santa Fe this morning for a workshop, and the students were off. All the sixth grade students, including her own, were supposed to be using the time to write an essay on the harvest season. Everyone was scheduled to return for afternoon classes in another forty minutes, but right now the school grounds were virtually empty.
Ineligible for the workshop as a part-time teacher, she’d stayed here, hoping to catch some activity at the Center, but everything seemed painfully routine today. Wayne and Rita had shared a snack, then he’d driven off and Rita had returned to her office. Eden could see her working just on the other side of the glass window.
“Good morning,” Deputy Torres greeted.
Eden jumped, then turned her head. She hadn’t heard him approaching.
“Did I startle you?”
“A bit,” she admitted. “My mind was a million miles away, I guess.”
Torres sat on the banco beside her. “You seem very interested in our Cultural Center.”
Although it had come out sounding like an offhand comment, there was an intensity in his eyes that told her it had been far from that. She forced herself not to react. “I’m still very curious about the place,” she admitted. “Most of the trouble that has plagued my family has its roots within those walls.”
“Do you ever wonder what happened to those artifacts your mother was accused of stealing?”
“I do,” she conceded. “I wish I could find them and clear up that part of the past at least, for my son’s sake.”
“Is that it? You want him to grow up and live here? Is his father Tewa?”
She stared at him coolly. “What his father is, or isn’t, makes no difference. I am part of the tribe, and so is he.”
“You’re half-Tewa,” he said. “And the hard fact is that as long as you live on our land, some people will try to make things unpleasant.”
“I have my rights. I was born in this village, and I belong here. This is my home and my son’s as well.”
“Your case would be stronger if your son’s father was a member of our tribe, but, although I could be mistaken, that isn’t the case. No one has claimed him—that I know of. Isn’t that true?”
“I claim him,” Eden said, unable to keep the anger from her voice. “That’s all he needs.”
Torres shrugged. “Tell me. Do you know if Paul Black Raven ever spoke out publicly against your family?”
She wasn’t sure where this was leading, but his questions were making her skin crawl. “It was no secret that he didn’t believe my father should have remained at the pueblo after he married my mother. Paul Black Raven, like many others, felt that no Anglo should live on this land that was paid for by Tewa blood.”
Torres nodded slowly. “The Spanish and the Anglos tried for hundreds of years to drive us off or destroy us. They embarked on a campaign meant to kill our spirit as well. As a half-white woman, you have the blood of those who wanted to obliterate our people flowing through your veins. Many say that your heart will always be torn in two and for that reason alone no one here should trust you.”
“I can’t change the way others see me. All I can do is follow what I know is right.”
“And that is?”
Hearing footsteps behind her, she turned, and saw Nick walking up.
“Eden’s doing what any other citizen should be doing,” Nick said, his tone harsh. “She’s standing her ground against people who are trying to force her into doing something she’s not willing to do.”
“Leave?” Torres said with a derisive grin.
“That, and other things,” Nick sat down. “The next patrol of the access roads is yours. I’m on break as of two minutes ago.”
Torres stood up. “Be very careful, Miss Maes. You have many enemies here, and the police can only do so much.”
Eden watched him walk away. “That sure sounded like a threat,” she whispered.
Nick shook his head. “It was an honest warning. It’s just the way he said it that makes it sound bad.” He glanced at her. “Did he rattle your nerves?”
“A bit. I don’t like his attitude, and I don’t understand what he’s really after.”
As she met Nick’s eyes and she saw the gentle concern mirrored there, her pulse automatically quickened. A powerful yearning for something she didn’t dare name wound through her, leaving her feeling empty inside. Frightened by that inexplicable sense of vulnerability, she forced herself to look away. “He’s not as intimidating as he is irritating.”
“Actually, he’s a lot more than irritating. If he gets on your nerves, let me know and I’ll handle it for you.” He paused for a long time. “So, have you missed me?”
Her breath caught in her throat, and her heartbeat thundered in her ears.
“I see that you have,” he murmured, his voice a husky whisper. “Good. I never thought I’d say this but…I’m getting used to having you around.”
Something twisted inside her. Even that small admission, in the face of what he saw as her betrayal, had cost him and, because of that, had touched her soul.
More than anything else in the world, she wanted to say something witty to lighten the mood, but the words were all lodged behind the lump at the back of her throat.
She stood up, trying to look completely in control, but her legs felt like wet noodles. “I have to get back to work.”
“But there’s no school.”
“Classes start again in a half hour.” She held her head high and walked away, but her hands were shaking. As she headed back to the school, she heard his throaty chuckle and felt her skin prickle. She had to stay away from Nick. No matter how hard she fought it, he made her want things she had no business even thinking about.
As she entered her classroom through the outside door, she finally relaxed. Here at last was a world she understood.
NICK DROVE AROUND the perimeter of pueblo land, alert for intruders hiding in less-populated spots. They were here. He couldn’t see them, but he could feel their presence. It was part of the instincts he’d developed as a cop.
He stayed sharp, knowing what he had to look for—tourists who appeared perfectly ordinary except for that certain look in their eyes. The intensity mirrored there always gave them away.
Occasionally, he saw practice ceremonies taking place in solitary desert canyons, but he continued driving, keeping his distance, not wanting to disturb them.
Then, getting a call to report to Mora’s office, he cut his patrol sh
ort and headed back.
Twenty minutes later, he sat in Mora’s office while Deputy Torres took over patrolling.
“I hear that there may be some tension between you and Torres. Is there any truth to that?” Mora asked.
“We’re not each other’s favorite people, but we’re professionals and we’ll back each other up without question.”
Captain Mora’s eyes narrowed. “Funny. He said pretty much the same thing.”
Nick looked up. So the captain was keeping a closer watch on them than he’d let on. He wondered how much of this had to do with Eden. “Anything else on your mind, Captain?”
“Yeah, as a matter of fact there is. I’ve overheard some of our people talking. The Maes woman is stirring up more gossip. Some have claimed that she’s trying to get an ‘in’ with our department.”
“I hadn’t heard that one yet,” Nick said without expression. He had little doubt about where this bit had come from. Torres had probably dropped it in the captain’s lap for effect. “Do you also think that’s what she’s doing?”
The captain leaned back in his chair. “Except for when she came to me with that letter, I’ve barely spoken to her. You’d have a better feel for this. What do you think?”
“Eden knows she’ll need support from the police because someone clearly wants her off our land. She also wants to know about her past and may need our cooperation there, too. But she’s made no secret about either.”
“Don’t let this case become any more personal than it already is.”
Nick nodded, wondering if Mora had found out who Tall Shadow was. “But it’s important that we uncover the truth.”
“To whom? You or Eden?” Mora held up his hand. “Don’t answer that. Just remember that you work for this department, not Eden Maes or yourself.”
“That was never in question,” Nick answered flatly, wondering how much gossip Torres had actually passed on.
