Black Raven's Pride

by Aimée Thurlo

  As usual, instead of answers, all she’d found were more questions. Placing the paper in her purse, she left the room and went outside to wait for Nick.

  Eden sat on a bench beside the southern entrance to the library. As the minutes ticked by, her thoughts wandered back to Annie and the secret they now shared. Eden reached into her wallet and flipped it open to the photo Annie had given her of Nick and Jake as babies. The similarity between father and son was remarkable. They had the same eyes and mouth and identical mischievous smiles.

  Hearing footsteps behind her, she turned her head quickly, nearly dropping her wallet.

  “Relax, it’s just me,” Nick said.

  “Did you find out anything interesting?”

  He shook his head. “No. I lost him out in the mall when some classes let out.” He glanced down at her wallet, but by then she was already putting it back in her purse. “What were you looking at so intently?”

  “Oh, just an old family photo. Should we head back now?” she said, quickly changing the subject.

  “Sure. By the way, did you ever figure out what Patrick Korman was researching?”

  She filled him in as they walked, showing him the paper from the notepad. “Unfortunately we don’t know why he did this—whether it was curiosity or something more.”

  “The theft is a sore spot with his stepmother, I know that,” Nick said thoughtfully.

  They were walking down the sidewalk toward the east end lot where Nick’s Jeep was parked, when she noticed that Nick was slowing down imperceptibly, and stopping at odd moments to look toward the tennis courts, or one of the dorms. She let it go at first, hoping he’d tell her what he was doing without being prompted, but finally her curiosity got the best of her. “Okay, you’re starting to make me nervous. What’s going on?”

  “Someone’s tailing us. I wasn’t sure at first, but I am now.”

  “Deputy Torres again?”

  “No, this is too sloppy. Torres would have been more careful.” Nick considered it for a moment. “Whoever’s back there is an amateur, and I’m sure he won’t make a move on us in a place this public. But I’d like to push it and find out who we’re dealing with. You game?”

  “You bet I am. If someone else wants to scare me away, then I want to know who I’m up against as soon as possible.”

  Eden knew they were in this together now, and her courage would have to match his own every step of the way. It was no longer a matter of Nick trying to protect her. From now on, they’d have to protect each other, or what they were facing could end up destroying everything and everyone they loved.

  Chapter Twelve

  They worked quickly, trying to turn the tables on their pursuer by reversing course and heading back west toward most of the lecture halls. But whoever was following them anticipated their moves.

  Nick muttered a curse. “This guy is crafty.” He looked around, trying to come up with another plan. “I wish I’d brought my handheld radio. I could have recruited a couple of campus cops and gotten to the bottom of this fast.”

  “You think it’s Patrick Korman?”

  “No. I only caught a glimpse of the person when he was turned away, but I think I know who it is.”

  She waited but when he didn’t volunteer any more information, she pressed him. “Do you plan to share this information with me, or do I have to drag it out of you?”

  Nick grinned. “I have to admit, it would be a lot of fun to have you try.” Seeing the flush of anger on her face, he laughed. “Ease up. I think it’s my uncle.”

  “Thomas? Why would he follow us?”

  Nick thought about it for a while, trying to reason it out. “I believe that Thomas is the one who stole my mother’s diary,” he said at last. “My guess is that Thomas took the diary hoping to find the stolen artifacts. As you know, he’s in a jam with some of the casinos and I think he needs a large sum to bail himself out—the kind of money the tribe’s always offered as a reward for the return of the stolen religious items.”

  “Do you think he’s hoping we’ll lead him to a clue he can put together with what’s in the diary? Depending on how much of an edge that gives him, it’s possible he could find the mask and the fetish long before we do. And if he does, are you sure he wouldn’t just sell them to the highest bidder?”

  “I think that what Thomas wants most right now is some peace in his life. Dealing with fences and trying to pass stolen merchandise would only bring more trouble down on him, and he knows that. He’s always been one to look for the easy way out and, in this case, that’s the tribe.”

  Nick led her into a two-story lecture hall, down a long hallway, and then ducked into an empty classroom. Crossing the room, they went out the opposite hall in a new direction. By the time they were back on the street, there was no sign of their tail. “Okay, we’ve lost him,” he said, his expression veiled, his shoulders rigid. “At least for now.”

  “I thought you wanted to catch him.”

  “I do, and we will, but he anticipated me last time so I needed to come up with an alternate way of catching him. One thing’s for sure. My uncle didn’t walk from San Esteban or take a bus, and I know he doesn’t have a parking sticker. So we’re going to drive through the visitor parking areas until we spot his pickup. Then, we stake it out.”

  Within minutes they were in Nick’s Jeep, backing out of the slot, ready to search the campus parking lots. “I don’t believe this,” Nick said suddenly. “He parked in the same lot we did.”

  He gestured to his left. Thomas was climbing into a beat-up old pickup several cars down from them. “Hang on.”

  Nick drove quickly down the row, then pulled up and stopped inches behind his uncle’s truck, effectively pinning him in. The concrete barrier in front of his uncle’s truck prevented him from heading out the front, and vehicles were parked on both sides.

  “Stay here,” Nick growled, jumping out of the Jeep, then grabbing his uncle as Thomas climbed out of his own vehicle.

  Thomas laughed, though Nick was rough with him as he half dragged his uncle back to where Eden stood waiting.

  “I figured you two would turn the tables on me sooner or later,” Thomas said, winking at Eden. “But I had you there for a while.”

  “This isn’t a school yard game,” Nick said coldly.

  “Oh, sure it is. All of life is one cruel game, nephew, and you better get used to that.”

  “You just don’t know when to quit, do you? Tell me the truth for once. Why were you following us?” Nick demanded.

  “I think you’ve guessed already. But would you like me to make up a believable lie instead?” His smile suddenly faded as a late-model sedan stopped in the lot just a few spaces behind Nick’s truck. Two men were inside, staring in their direction.

  Nick automatically put himself between Eden and them. From their slicked-back haircuts, sunglasses, and their obvious interest in his uncle, he knew immediately who they were. “That’s casino muscle again, maybe the same guys that beat you up before. You want to tell me what’s going on now?” Guessing that his uncle was about to deny everything, he held up his hand. “Don’t waste my time with evasions.”

  Eden looked at Thomas. “You’re going to need help against those men, and we need your help. Work with us.”

  “I’m not going to keep Eden here for nothing,” Nick said. “Talk to me, or I’m taking off.”

  “You want information,” Thomas said thoughtfully. “Well, as it happens, I do have something to trade. You’re still going crazy trying to find that diary, aren’t you? Well, here’s a flash. It was like you and Jake thought. I took it—right off the shelf.”

  “My brother put a phoney book jacket over it. How did you know?”

  “I watched him carefully, biding my time. Binoculars are very handy. Every evening when he went to his study, the curtain was still open. It took me about ten days but eventually I found his hiding place. The day of Noelle’s naming ritual, I took the opportunity to make my move.”
<
br />   “So, if you have it, why are you following us now?”

  “Saya’s diary has many secrets, but it’s also very cryptic. My sister was a clever woman, and much better educated than I am. I really can’t make heads or tails out of what she wrote most of the time. But you seemed to be on the trail, even without the diary. So, I figured that you might find a lead that I could use. But I really didn’t expect you to be so alert when you’re off duty.”

  “I want that diary back,” Nick snapped.

  Thomas went back to his truck, reached under the seat and brought out a brown paper bag. “It’s in here.”

  Nick blinked, but otherwise tried to keep his expression neutral. Something was very wrong here. Why would his uncle be carrying the diary around, and why would he hand it over without hesitation?

  He pulled the diary out from the bag, verifying it was the genuine article, then looked at his uncle, who was watching the goons circling the lot slowly. Suddenly he understood. Thomas had undoubtedly made at least one copy of it already. The original diary itself was of no interest to him—just the information it contained.

  Nick motioned with his head toward the casino’s muscle. Their vehicle was coming down their row again. “Is that the reason you had this with you? Were you planning to use it as leverage, pointing out its blackmail potential, if you had to buy your way out of another beating?”

  “Trading it wouldn’t have been my first option,” Thomas said, avoiding a direct answer.

  Nick went to where Eden stood, Thomas following. “Wait here,” Nick growled, handing the diary to Eden. Leaving her and his uncle standing by the truck, he strode over to where the sedan was positioned, one car length behind his Jeep.

  Even the thought of his mother’s diary in the hands of those men made him want to punch something—or someone.

  Nick stopped just out of arms reach from the driver’s window, his feet slightly apart, and his body braced for a fight, just in case it came to that. “Boys, I’m having a bad day, and I’m just not in a patient mood. Why don’t you let my uncle drive away this time?” Nick’s voice was calm, yet held a lethal edge.

  “You’re out of your jurisdiction, deputy,” the driver spat out.

  “True, but as I’m sure you’ve figured out, it wouldn’t take long for any cop to get back up here.” He waved a hand around, indicating a hundred or more students coming onto campus or just leaving classrooms. “Half of those kids seem to have cell phones. If you ignore that and try to lean on us, there’s going to be a lot of witnesses who can also get help in a hurry.”

  “You misjudge us. We’re not looking for trouble here,” the man said with a shrug. “We’re only here trolling for college girls.”

  “You’re harassing my uncle,” he said, dismissing their lie. “Do you really want me to start making out official reports? The regulatory commission doesn’t like strong-arm tactics, and the casinos hate it when they get bad press. Before you know it, you’d be dealing with the Feds.”

  The driver put the car in gear. “Relax. We’re going. But tell your uncle that this isn’t over.”

  “Really? Well here’s a bit of news for you. I catch you on the pueblo, harassing anyone at all, I’ll haul your sorry butts in. Count on it.”

  The other man laughed. “Thomas won’t press charges, and you know it. Don’t make meaningless threats. We’re not impressed.”

  Nick fought the urge to take a step forward and smash the man’s nose with a quick jab. “I may not be able to hold you overnight, but I can and will take you in. Just think of how your bosses would react to that news. Seems to me, they’d want to keep the type of activity you boys are engaged in very low profile.”

  Nick’s gaze locked with the driver’s and neither man backed down. After several tense moments, the passenger slipped a tape into the car’s stereo. “This is getting boring. Let’s go.”

  Nick remained where he was until they disappeared down Central Avenue. Those men were trouble that wouldn’t go away easily. Despite what he’d said, there really wasn’t much he could do about it, not if his uncle refused to press charges.

  He walked back to where Eden and Thomas stood beside his uncle’s pickup. This was the second time his uncle had put Eden in the middle of serious danger. As he looked at her now, he could see the shadow of fear in her eyes. Anger sliced through him.

  Nick gave Thomas a lethal glare. “They’re gone, but not for long. I want you to follow me back to the pueblo’s police station. We’ll talk there. You’ve been holding out on me for a very long time and that’s going to stop.”

  “I’ve told you everything—”

  Nick held up a hand. “Save it.” He gestured down the street. “Those guys are probably just circling the block. They’ll be back. Eden and I are leaving now, so I suggest you stick with us. Once we’re back at the station, we’ll discuss this further. If I don’t get the complete truth, and enough details so I can verify that you’re not playing games, I’m going to turn you over to Captain Mora for the next round of questions. Everyone knows how he feels about gamblers and keeping the pueblo safe. After a conversation with the tribal leaders, he may take you over to their casinos himself to face the music.”

  “No, wait. Those choices give me no choice.”

  “Now you’re getting the picture. I’m tired of playing hide-and-seek with the truth. Come clean now and I’ll see what I can do for you. Otherwise you’re on your own.”

  Thomas expelled his breath in a rush. “Look, Nick, talking about the past isn’t as easy for me as you might think. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know, but let’s talk out here, in the open. Its more private than at the station.”

  “I’m listening.”

  “Your mother and I were never close,” he began. “She had her own way of doing things and I had mine. But when she got sick, things changed between us. Both of us knew that there wasn’t much time left and all the arguments we’d had just didn’t seem to amount to a hill of beans. Then, toward the end, she did what she’d never done in her life. She asked for my help. She told me that she’d kept a secret for her friend Isabel who had passed away two years before, and now she had to tell someone or the truth would die with her.”

  “I wondered if my mother had confided in her. I guess that answers it,” Eden said softly.

  Thomas nodded. “Saya told me that on the days following the theft, while Isabel had been on the run, she’d called a few times and even paid Saya one hurried visit. Though she’d been rushed and very cryptic, she’d told Saya where the artifacts were hidden. She’d wanted someone to know in case something happened to her. After Isabel’s death, Saya tried several times to find the artifacts. She’d wanted to retrieve them and turn them over to the head of their religious society. But she was never able to do that. Saya told me that she’d written down all the information she’d gotten from Isabel and she wanted to have that account in the hope that I would be able to succeed where she hadn’t. I promised I’d give it my best shot. Saya then told me to come back in a few days and she’d give me everything I’d need. But I was drinking a lot back in those days, and didn’t get back to her. A week later when I sobered up, I learned she’d died.”

  Thomas lapsed into a heavy silence, and, unable to look Nick in the face, continued. “It took me a long time to come to terms with her death. I knew that I’d let her down badly. Eventually, I put a few things together and figured out that Saya had been talking about giving me her diary, but when I failed to show up, she decided to have it burned. She knew the diary contained too many secrets and she was afraid it would be used to hurt her friends someday. Without family to turn to, she decided to trust an old friend. But he ended up betraying the Black Ravens.”

  “So twenty years after her death—that’s when you decided to make good on your promise to Mom?” Nick scoffed.

  “Time slipped by, nephew, but I always intended to do right by her.”

  “So your search for the diary started when?” Nick pressed.<
br />
  “Right before you and your brother got sent away to make it on your own,” he answered. “I’d seen you and Eden together by the old cottonwood about a mile from the river. You could have gotten yourselves in no end of trouble, but I saw how you held back and how gentle you were with her. I knew then that what you two had was real and that by not following up on my word, I’d not only let Saya down, but you and Eden as well. It’s one thing to let the past slide, but it’s another when you realize that the past has become part of the present.”

  “So you started breaking into the ranch right after my brother and I left home?” he asked.

  He nodded. “I was risking a lot, mind you. Paul would have pressed charges and had me thrown in jail had he caught me.”

  “But you never found it back then,” Nick said, verifying what he already knew.

  “True, but it wasn’t for lack of trying.”

  Nick saw the compassion in Eden’s eyes, and realized that she was buying his uncle’s story. Of course there was no denying that Thomas had certainly sounded convincing.

  Nick captured her gaze and shook his head slightly, giving her a silent warning to reserve judgment a little longer.

  “Then a few weeks ago, I overheard Eden at the pueblo questioning some of her mother’s former friends,” Thomas continued. “That’s when I realized she was fighting for her son, not just herself. A whole new generation was now being affected by what I’d failed to do for Saya.”

  Thomas took a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “I knew the time had come for me to act. I started spying on Jake until I found out what he’d done with the diary. But then, after I had it, I discovered that all the passages that pertained to Isabel were written down in double-talk, riddles and codes that would take forever to figure out.”

  “And you expect me to believe that stealing the diary had nothing to do with the fact that the casino’s muscle was leaning on you? It never even occurred to you that if you found the artifacts, the tribe would pay handsomely?”