Earthway

by Thurlo, Aimée

  “There’s a gas station right across from the college, so we can’t count on much more than ten-minutes leeway. Call me back the second she’s on the road.” Ella hung up and told Ford what she’d learned. “She may be here in a half hour, so we’ve got to find that second computer quickly.”

  “Any hunches?”

  Ella studied the room, searching for concealed hiding places. They’d checked all the usual spots, such as between the mattress and box spring, in drawers, and even under the bottom drawer. Seeing a large heating vent peering out at her from behind a trash can beneath the window, Ella went to take a closer look. “People don’t generally put stuff in front of heating or air vents, and this wall’s too thin to accommodate any ducting. Hand me your screwdriver,” she asked Ford.

  Taking the small battery-powered screwdriver they’d borrowed from Teeny, she attached a small Phillips head, then quickly removed the screen with two quick whirs of the machine. Inside, beneath a black cloth, was a small laptop. It appeared to be the same brand and model as the one Dr. Lee carried with her.

  “You practiced on this brand at Teeny’s, so it should be pretty straightforward,” Ella said, turning it over to him and checking her watch.

  Ford placed the computer on the desk, opened it, then turned it on. After it booted up, he brought out a high-capacity flash drive and quickly made a copy of everything on the hard drive. Once that was done, he shut down the computer, closed the top, and turned it upside down. In a minute, using the electric screwdriver, he got the back cover off and placed the monitoring device into it.

  “She might have a shadow drive on this computer, hidden within a third partition of the C drive,” he said. “Once we’re out of here I’ll back up her entire drive, then see what we’ve got. But if I’m right about her, access will require a password, and the data will be encrypted as well. Experience tells me this’ll take some serious time to decode, even using a password-cracking program.”

  After the false battery was in place, Ford reassembled the unit and powered it up again. Quickly, he examined her most recently accessed files, and found nothing obvious. Then he took a quick look at the directory where her temporary Internet files were located.

  “Here’s something. Jane repeated several ordinary words in the course of several paragraphs. That, in and of itself, doesn’t mean much. But it may eventually help me figure out the code.”

  “If it’s not just sloppy grammar, or a first draft,” Ella said, then felt her phone vibrating.

  She answered and heard Marianna on the other end. “The student wasn’t giving her a ride to the gas station as I initially thought,” Marianna said quickly. “They’re now going west on Highway 64—in your direction. That’s after going fifty miles per hour through town. I had to back off to avoid attracting her attention.”

  “That’ll put them here inside fifteen minutes or less,” Ella said.

  “I’ve already called in, hoping that there was a patrol officer in the area who could pull them over for speeding. Unfortunately, there’s no one except me, and if I stop them they’ll know something’s wrong. I’m only supposed to be one of her students,” Marianna said.

  “Okay. Break off and return to the station.” Hanging up, Ella looked at Ford and added, “We have to leave. Judging from Dr. Lee’s actions, she suspects we’re here. My guess is that phone call she got was from her neighbor.”

  “I’m done,” he said, handing her the closed laptop computer.

  Ella placed it in its hiding place, screwed the vent back on, then made sure the trash can was precisely where she’d found it.

  She and Ford were stepping out the back door when they heard the sound of a car pulling up the driveway. A heartbeat later a car door slammed. Ella looked for the geese, but fortunately they’d moved on, maybe around the side of the house.

  “Thanks for the ride,” they heard Dr. Lee said. “I’ve really got a crushing headache.”

  “Not a problem, Dr. Lee,” a young man’s voice answered. “I’ll get your tire aired up and put it back on for you.”

  The geese started honking, perhaps after seeing the stranger out front. “Thanks,” Dr. Lee answered, her voice barely discernible over the din.

  Seeing Ford frozen in place, his anxious gaze on the corner of the house, Ella gave him a hard push toward the orchard. Ten seconds later they were over the fence and among the trees.

  NINE

  After a quick run through the dry ditch and across the field, they reached Ella’s vehicle. “Of all the rotten luck,” Ford muttered as they climbed in.

  “The geese tipped her neighbor off that somebody was near the house. I should have taken a closer look at those birds before we approached,” Ella said, taking out her binoculars and looking back.

  “Guard geese?” he asked. “Out here? I know they use them on overseas military bases, but there were only, what, five of them?”

  “All it takes is one, and when they get upset, the honking is bound to get somebody’s attention. These are higher-end houses on the Rez so people probably keep an eye on each other’s places.”

  “We may not have had the opportunity to look around much, but at least we got away clean,” Ford said.

  “No, I wouldn’t quite call it a clean getaway. If I’m right and she was warned, you can bet she’ll double-check everything. Hopefully, she’ll assume no one got in,” Ella said.

  He shook his head. “I don’t think she’ll assume anything. Keep in mind that she didn’t call the police. She came herself. That tends to reinforce the fact that she’s got something to hide.”

  “I agree,” Ella said after a beat. “Let’s drive down to the river road, park among the trees there, and keep a watch on the house. I’m curious to see what she does next.”

  “How long do you want to stick around?”

  “Why? Are you in a rush?”

  He smiled. “No, I’m just eager to get started on the decryption. Would you mind if I turned on my computer and took a look at what I copied on the flash drive?”

  “No, go right ahead.”

  Ella parked east of the intersection where the lane joined the river road. If Dr. Lee drove in their direction, they’d still be able to keep their distance all the way back to the main highway. While Ford focused on his work, Ella kept her binoculars trained on the house they’d just left in such a hurry.

  For the next hour nothing happened, then Dr. Lee came out and got into the old truck they’d seen parked at the rear of the house.

  “She’s on the move,” Ella said, watching as Dr. Lee came down the lane in their general direction.

  Ella started the engine, knowing they’d have to move away if Dr. Lee turned east. “She’s going west, farther down the valley. We’re going to follow.”

  Ford didn’t react until she’d placed the SUV in gear. Feeling the rocking motion, he looked up at her with a trace of annoyance. “I thought we were going to be here for a while. What are you doing?”

  “Following Dr. Lee,” Ella said. “I told you.”

  “Sorry, guess my mind was elsewhere,” he said, shutting down his laptop. “Do you think she knows someone was in her house?”

  “If she suspects, it’s possible she’s on her way to report the news to a coconspirator,” Ella said, hoping that they’d get a break on the case. “She’s headed even farther away from town, so maybe they plan to meet in a remote location. Then again, she may only be going for a ride to clear her thoughts.”

  Ella kept her distance, moving slowly to avoid leaving a trail of dust as they proceeded along the old dirt road that ran above and sometimes along the margins of the bosque. The shade from tall cottonwoods helped hide their passage, but Ella was careful not to get into a location where the pickup could double back on them. After a while the road converged with the paved road they’d originally come in on, and Dr. Lee headed east back to the main highway, then toward Shiprock. Back in traffic, Ella was able to blend in more easily.

  “What was that
drive down the bosque all about? She didn’t meet anyone. Come to think of it, maybe the person didn’t show up,” Ford said.

  “I think she was going out of her way to make sure she wasn’t being followed,” Ella said slowly. “If she’s really on her way to meet someone, I’m guessing that’ll happen at the college, where we’ll never be sure if it’s one of her students or not. If I were her, that’s the strategy I’d take.”

  “Looks like you and she are well matched,” he said softly. “You’re able to put yourself in her shoes and think like she does. For example, it didn’t take you long to figure out where she’d hidden her computer.”

  “Pray the reverse isn’t also true,” she answered. Her focus remained on the old truck ahead of them, now turning north at the junction of Highway 64 and 491—the road formerly known as Highway 666.

  Ten minutes later Dr. Lee entered the college campus grounds. Yet instead of parking in her usual spot, she went behind the student union building and parked in a visitor’s parking slot.

  “That’s in case the person who disabled her car is still around,” Ella said, thinking out loud as she drove down another row in the lot to avoid being seen.

  Ella parked as soon as she could, then glanced at Ford. “Have you ever done any surveillance work?”

  “Electronic, yes, but out in the field, no.”

  “Stay in the car, but be ready to drive and meet me wherever I tell you. We’ll use cell phones to stay in touch. If anyone suspicious sees you and tries to approach, keep your distance, even if it means that you have to drive away. In a case like that, head straight for the police station.”

  “Got it.”

  Ella reached into the glove compartment and grabbed a small hand telescope the size and shape of a pen. Leaving Ford, Ella followed Dr. Lee on foot, using the presence of students to screen herself and making no attempt to narrow the gap between them. Before long, the professor was greeted by a small group of students. As she moved through the group, speaking first to one, then another, a man in a tan suede jacket and black cap appeared from around the building and bumped into her. He paused for a brief second, no longer than it might have taken to issue an apology, and then moved away quickly.

  Ella went on instinct. That was the contact. An exchange had been made. Shifting her target, she stayed on the man in the cap, trying to get a look at his face so she could ID him later.

  As he hurried to the north parking area, Ella pulled out her cell phone and contacted Ford, arranging for him to meet her near the bicycle rack in front of the science building. Using her simple telescope, she remained in the shadow of a Navajo willow and kept watch on the man. Almost as if he’d been warned by a sixth sense, he put on a pair of sunglasses.

  Ford pulled up a minute later and Ella climbed behind the wheel as he slid over. Her mark had jumped into a large black Ford pickup. The only distinctive thing about the older model vehicle was that the license plate was obscured, despite the relative absence of mud elsewhere on the vehicle. It was a cheap trick, but an effective one.

  The truck slowly approached one of the exits. The driver suddenly made a left turn onto the highway without signaling, raced down a block, then made a right onto the next side street. The road was virtually deserted, so had she followed him, they would have been spotted for sure.

  Her only advantage now was her knowledge of the area. Ella took a right at the highway, then cut left into a side street, knowing it paralleled the road the suspect had taken. Soon she saw the black truck passing through the intersection to her left.

  Turning, she sped forward, made a left, then came up to the stop sign just as he passed through the intersection. Ella purposely allowed two other vehicles to pass, then turned and followed, staying well back.

  “He’s had some pursuit and evasion training,” she muttered, thinking out loud. “I’m going to need help. I’m getting Justine in on this.”

  When their mark headed north on the road leading out of Shiprock, Ella made arrangements for Justine to get ahead of him on the Cortez highway. They couldn’t pull the man over now without blowing their chances of identifying the others working with Dr. Lee. Yet they had to know who he was, or at least get a good look at him.

  “Set up a quick roadblock just past the last stoplight and start stopping cars for a driver’s license and registration check,” Ella said. “I’ll come up from behind in case he decides to veer off.”

  Ella continued following the truck up the hill onto the mesa, staying three cars behind. Eventually, their mark stopped at a light behind another car. Then, without any warning, he whipped around the car in front of him, and made a hard left, running the light and nearly getting struck by an oncoming car. Ella pulled out to follow, but had to slam on the brakes to avoid a car turning toward them from the right. They slid forward, barely avoiding clipping the sedan on the driver’s side. Another car behind that first one slammed on the brakes, nearly rear-ending the vehicle she’d almost hit broadside. Both drivers started honking their horns, and the one she’d almost hit flipped her off.

  Ella waved both cars on, then made the left turn and pulled over to the side of the road.

  “He made you. But how?” Ford said, running an unsteady hand through his hair.

  His voice was a pitch higher than normal, yet, considering that they’d barely avoided a major accident, he was handling things remarkably well.

  “I had a feeling I was dealing with a pro, but I never saw that move coming,” she answered. Ella turned back out into the street and entered a residential area that had once included a large boarding school and faculty housing. “Help me check the roads north and west for that truck. It couldn’t have gone far, and we can now bring the driver in for traffic violations without blowing everything.”

  Ella called in extra patrol units, and, dividing the area into sectors, mounted an intense search. Staying off the main highway, which was covered by other units, she headed along the north side of the river into a farming area less developed than the one where Dr. Lee lived.

  “Why did you choose this particular route?” Ford asked.

  “In his shoes, I would stay off the main roads, knowing most will be watched, and go someplace where I could find other transportation—something innocent looking.”

  After several minutes of searching, they found the man’s truck abandoned about a quarter mile from a farm building, hidden from view until they got up close. The driver had gone down into a dip in the road where the path crossed an arroyo. The door of the pickup was open, and the engine was still running. Ella called it in, then studied the tracks where the driver had exited the cab. Ford stood back, not wanting to erase any of the marks, and remained silent, allowing her to concentrate.

  “He’s about five foot eight or nine and wears a size ten shoe, but that doesn’t tell us much we didn’t know already.”

  “Maybe you’ll be able to lift some prints from the truck,” Ford answered.

  “Judging from the way he drives, he’s a professional, maybe at stealing cars. My guess is that this truck’s stolen, too, and the only prints we’ll find will belong to the owner and his or her family. But at least for now, our suspect’s on foot.” She walked a little farther past Ford, toward the road, then stopped and cursed.

  “What now?” Ford asked, not bothering to pass judgement on her language.

  “Someone picked him up. There was another vehicle here, and they took off cross-country to the highway.” She pointed toward the road in the distance, where they could make out several vehicles heading north and south.

  “What about a roadblock?” Ford asked.

  “The man’s probably ditched the cap and jacket, so we have no idea who to look for. All we could get is a long list of names, and there’s no sense tying up our officers like that.”

  Ella called Justine and updated her. “Process the truck, and then the tire imprints of the second vehicle. Then we’ll see what we’ve got.”

  Ford’s gaze remained on Ella.
“Don’t worry. There are other possibilities. I may have something for you once I go through the materials I downloaded.”

  She nodded, lost in thought. “I’ll drop you off at Teeny’s as soon as I finish here.”

  “While you’re working, I’ll power up my laptop,” he said.

  Justine arrived ten minutes later, and although they managed to find and lift several prints from the truck, Ella wasn’t optimistic.

  “Maybe we’ll get lucky, partner,” Justine said. “If not from the prints, the way the truck theft went down might give us a lead.”

  “I hope so.” Ella grabbed her cell phone, and ordered Marianna Talk, who’d returned to the station, back to the college so she could keep a discreet eye on Dr. Lee again.

  After plaster casts and photos were taken of the footprints and the second vehicle’s tire imprints, Ella glanced around and realized that Ford was not in her SUV. After a quick search, she found him sitting in the shade of the overhang from the arroyo, working on his laptop. The hard, angry look on his face surprised her. Those weren’t emotions she’d ever associated with Ford.

  “Ford?” she called out, but he didn’t respond. “Ford!”

  He looked up. “I’m sorry. Did you say something?”

  “What’s up?” she asked, crouching beside him.

  “When I tried to access one of these files, it erased itself. I have rescue software that can retrieve almost anything, but I haven’t been able to call it back.”

  “Maybe Teeny can help you with that.”