Tracking Bear

by Thurlo, David

  “But you would consider it, if the tribe addressed the safety issues?” Ella asked. Seeing her mom nod, she added, “That must be creating problems between you two.”

  Rose nodded. “He wants me to feel the same way he does, but I don’t. If I’m convinced that this new technology can be made safe, as they say, I won’t fight the power plant.”

  “What will it take to convince you?”

  “I want scientists who are not attached to this project to come and explain the things that might go wrong. I want to understand the dangers clearly, and how they are going to be prevented. More importantly, I want everyone in the tribe to understand all that, too, so no one goes into this blindly. The Gods warned us not to take certain rocks out of the earth or it would cause devastation. Before, we didn’t know they meant uranium, but we do now. We have to be extremely careful.”

  “If you feel the Gods are against it, why are you even considering a nuclear power plant?”

  “The Gods warned us of the dangers so we would be prepared. If the knowledge of the Anglo scientists can help us, and we could use uranium without harming ourselves, the Gods would know we’ve respected their warning and are being cautious. Then they’d work with the Dineh and make good things happen.”

  Ella nodded slowly. “I think you’ve got a good handle on this, Mom.” She glanced at her watch and stood up. “I’ll be listening to the early-morning segment of Branch’s radio program as I go into work,” Ella said.

  “So will I.”

  Ella went outside to say good-bye to Dawn, and found that the air was bitterly cold. Although Dawn seemed perfectly comfortable, Ella took her back into the house, tricycle in tow. After making her daughter promise not to ride in the house, Ella gave her a kiss, then headed back out to her unit.

  As she drove to work, Ella brought her thoughts back to the case. Today she’d concentrate on trying to learn more about Kee Franklin’s relationship with his son. With luck, she’d be able to turn up a lead that would help her solve the patrolman’s murder.

  Seven

  Ella had just sat down behind her desk when Justine came to the door. “Officer Franklin’s friend, Belinda Johns, is at the campus today teaching an early morning class. If we leave right now, we can catch her when the class lets out.”

  “Then let’s go.”

  With Justine driving, Ella allowed her thoughts to circle around the facts she knew. “I’m still trying to come up with a motive besides an interrupted burglary. When you spoke to other officers about Jason, did you pick up any indication at all that there was a problem between him and his father?”

  “No, but I did learn that his father wasn’t really a part of Jason’s life when he was young. His parents separated when he was ten years old, and Jason was raised from that point on by his mother.

  “That’s hardly unusual, particularly here on the Rez. Kids are the property of their mothers, at least from a cultural and traditional standpoint.”

  “Yeah, but there was more to it than that. Jason never went to visit his dad, even during summer break or holidays. From what I gathered, Jason grew up with the impression that his dad had abandoned him.”

  “Who gave you that information?”

  “I overheard Professor Franklin talking to a woman friend of his at the memorial service. He was saying that he regretted what he called ‘all those lost years.’”

  “Who was the woman? Did you recognize her?”

  “Sure. Officer Judy Musket.”

  Ella’s eyebrows rose. “Did you get the impression that they’re close?”

  Justine paused, then answered. “He was speaking very freely to her, and most men generally don’t do that with casual acquaintances. But there is a big age difference between the two of them. Judy is almost young enough to be his daughter.”

  “To some, that’s not an issue. We’ll have to make it a point to speak to her.”

  “Big Ed called the military again, trying to locate Officer Franklin’s mother, and learned that she and her Air Force husband are on vacation ‘somewhere’ in Germany, or perhaps France. He has thirty days’ leave, and they hadn’t given their travel plans to his superiors. The military is trying not to look bad, according to Big Ed, because not only did the mother miss her son’s funeral, but the military is embarrassed they can’t find their officer.” Justine shrugged.

  “Is there any hint that something happened to them?” Ella’s eyebrows furrowed.

  “If there had been, I think Big Ed would have passed that information on to us. He thinks that the couple are just avoiding the big cities where the military has been checking hotels and such,” Justine added. “The chief promised to keep pressuring the base commander until they find Jason’s mother.”

  They arrived on campus twenty minutes later. Ella and Justine walked to the science building, then headed to Professor Belinda Johns’s office. To their surprise, Kevin was there talking to the professor.

  As Ella knocked lightly on the open door, Kevin turned his head and, seeing her, smiled.

  Belinda invited them in with a casual wave of her hand.

  “I’m just finishing here, so don’t let me hold you up,” Kevin said, coming toward them.

  As Justine went past him into Belinda’s office, Ella excused herself for a moment and accompanied Kevin out into the hall. “What brings you here, Kevin?” She kept her voice low so no one in the office could hear.

  “I’m trying to get more information on NEED. Dr. Johns’s credentials are impressive. She attended an Ivy League college and graduated ‘cum laude.’ You should have heard her debating with Kee Franklin at the Chapter House meeting. Since they’re on opposite sides of the issue, I thought I’d speak to each separately.”

  “Did she help you decide where you stand?”

  “I haven’t made up my mind yet. But I have to tell you, Ella, if we decide as a people not to open a power plant or a mine, I hope that it’s a decision our people made based on something other than fear.”

  Glancing over Kevin’s shoulder, Ella saw an athletic nonecked Navajo man in casual clothes standing beside the main entrance to the building. Where he was standing he could watch the halls and see anyone entering the building by simply turning his head. It was Ernest Ration, a young ex–Army Ranger she knew casually.

  Following her gaze, Kevin smiled. “Ernest is my bodyguard. He stays close while I take care of business during the day.”

  “And at night?”

  “A cousin of his who also served in the Rangers, Eugene Frazier, keeps an eye on me and the house till morning. Hopefully, this will discourage any other vandals.”

  “I don’t know Eugene, but I think Ernest may be a bad choice,” Ella said softly.

  “Why? He’s got excellent qualifications and special training.”

  “As a soldier, not a bodyguard. There’s a huge difference. A soldier, especially from a special unit like the Rangers, is highly trained in active aggression. His job is more to seek out the enemy and destroy him, not defend a potential target. A bodyguard should keep you away from danger, not seek it out. His instincts and training make him unsuitable for the job you want done.”

  She remembered when Ernest had worked at a convenience store on the Rez. He’d kept a carbine with him, just hoping someone would try and rob the place while he was on the job. Ernest obviously loved a fight, and that was precisely the one quality a bodyguard didn’t need.

  Ella watched him approach. “Is Ernest armed?”

  “Of course he is. The new state law allows anyone with training and a permit to carry a concealed weapon these days.”

  That was one of her least favorite laws. It was an invitation to disaster because it just begged for an armed confrontation among civilians.

  “I carry a firearm now, too,” Kevin said.

  She hated the thought, or more precisely, she hated the need for the father of her child to be armed. But there was nothing she could do about it, and she was still grateful that Kevin had wor
ked so hard to keep Dawn safe during the threats against her not too many months earlier. “I heard Sergeant Neskahi gave you some private instruction, and that’s good. Just remember to make sure of your target, Kevin, and don’t do anything that could injure innocent bystanders when a confrontation can be avoided.”

  “That was the topic of my first lesson. I’m always very careful.”

  As he strode off behind Ernest, who led the way outdoors, Justine called to her. Ella joined her inside Belinda’s office. “Sorry for the delay. I had a question for the council member.”

  “Would you tell her what you just told me?” Justine asked Belinda as Ella sat down.

  “Investigator Clah, I was just telling your partner that although Mr. Franklin and Jason were on the same side when it came to NEED, they really weren’t close as father and son. Jason never could lower his guard around his father. Jason had been hurt too much in the past, and there were still issues between them.”

  “Like what?” Ella asked.

  “Professor Franklin left Jason’s mom when Jason was ten. But he never asked for visiting rights, and he remained off the Rez for most of Jason’s life. Although he provided child support, Jason never heard from him. Jason knew his dad was an important physicist, so he spent his boyhood fantasizing about him. Then, shortly after he graduated from high school, Jason found out that his dad was teaching at a branch college in Los Alamos. He saved his money and took a bus over there. When he met with his dad, the professor refused to explain why he’d never kept in touch, and he never apologized either. He simply asked that Jason let the past rest.”

  “And did he?”

  Belinda shook her head. “Jason was very hurt. He wanted answers, but he couldn’t get them from his father, so he decided to bide his time. After Jason became a cop, and he had more resources available to him, he found out everything he could about his father’s life. But he never told me what he’d learned. My guess is that he was disappointed. He spent many years thinking his dad was some sort of Einstein, working on earth-shattering research. That had been his way of coping with a dad that never kept in touch. Then, when he learned the truth, he was forced to give up his idealized images. I think that probably broke his heart.”

  “If they weren’t close, why did the professor move back here?”

  She shrugged. “I’m not sure. Maybe Professor Franklin finally realized what he’d given up by forsaking his son. Or, more than likely, he heard about the NEED project and decided he should come back and speak his mind.”

  “So you think Dr. Franklin returned primarily to fight against NEED, and Jason was just a secondary interest?” Ella said.

  “Yes, but it’s all speculation on my part. Navajos are taught not to speak for others, so maybe I should just keep my mouth shut. It’s possible I’m being too hard on him.”

  “It seems to me that being on the same side of the NEED issue would have brought father and son closer together,” Justine said.

  “I think it did, to some degree. Opposing the development meant that they were of one mind. But in almost every other way, they were still miles apart. Look at it objectively. The professor is a gifted physicist whose field of preference is quantum mechanics. In that area, you deal with concepts and probabilities. It’s a field of science where nothing can be observed directly. By contrast, Jason’s mind-set, and his profession, is one where he acts based on what he can see and therefore prove. Their ways of thinking ran along two totally different wavelengths.”

  Ella nodded slowly. She could sympathize with that. She’d traveled that same path with Rose. The way Rose viewed life—her adherence to the Navajo Way—had put them on a collision course many times.

  Yet, despite the differences between Kee and Jason, Ella believed in the bond between father and son. Her own father and brother had held completely different religious beliefs, but Clifford had risked his own life to help find their father’s killer, and Ella knew they’d loved each other in spite of everything. The importance of family, of respect for the clan, was as much a part of most Navajos as was breathing.

  After taking several pamphlets Belinda had offered them that explained and described the NEED project, Justine and Ella left. “What’s your take on Professor Johns?” Ella asked once they were outside the main building.

  “I think Belinda’s playing it straight, but I really wish I could get a better feel for Jason. I did speak to Mike Kodaseet last night, and he said that Jason had always searched for purpose in his life, but it wasn’t until he became a cop that he got himself together. I gathered from our brief conversation that Jason got himself into trouble frequently as a kid,” Justine said.

  “So maybe that was why he helped Albert Washburn.”

  “I also did a quick background check on Washburn. Albert’s on parole and doesn’t have a job. I spoke to his parole officer, and he said that Albert spends most of his day at home. He lives with his mom, who works as a hospice care nurse in Farmington.”

  “Do you have his address?”

  Justine read it off from the pad she kept in her jacket pocket, and they set out in that direction. A half hour later, they pulled up in front of Albert’s home. The area was along the river northeast of the bridges, and was occupied mostly with worn mobile homes. The lots were small, and some were fenced off with barriers ranging from railroad ties to chicken wire. Many poor people lived in Shiprock, and this was one of the poorest neighborhoods. Trash littered many of the yards, though a few were cleaned up and weedless.

  They stopped in front of one of the latter trailers. The clean white mailbox showcased the address, hand-painted in turquoise blue.

  As they parked in the graveled slot wide enough for one vehicle, a young man, around seventeen, wearing jeans and a thick pullover sweater, came out and stood on the small wooden porch. Something in his gaze told Ella that he already knew who they were. Of course, that wasn’t at all remarkable. Virtually every teenager in the community was aware that Investigator Ella had one of the few unmarked police units, and that it was a blue Jeep.

  Ella reached the porch a step ahead of Justine and pulled out her badge. “We need to ask you a few questions.”

  “I don’t know what more I can tell the police. I know you’re after Officer Franklin’s killer, and I’d sure like to help with that, but I have no idea who did it.”

  “Can we come inside?” Ella asked, uncomfortably aware of the brisk wind that had kicked up. Down here by the river it could really get cold. A flock of migrating ducks flew across the levee behind the trailer, and she wondered for the hundredth time how they could swim in that icy water so easily. Just the thought made her shiver.

  “Sure. Come inside where it’s warm.”

  Ella and Justine were both pleasantly surprised by how orderly and clean the interior of the mobile home was. The sofa was old and worn, but neatly arranged with two throw pillows. Facing the sofa were two folding chairs with torn cushions that had been repaired with matching vinyl tape. At the end of the living area were a simple wooden chair and an inexpensive particleboard computer desk that held a desktop computer and inkjet printer. Several open books were arranged around the keyboard.

  Following her line of vision, he added, “I’m doing some research for an assignment—a term paper. I’m trying to get my GED. Then, if I can manage it, I’m going to enroll in the local college.”

  “What kind of degree are you going after?”

  “I’m not sure yet. Business of some kind. Maybe an MBA eventually, if I can get a scholarship.” He gestured for them to take a seat on the sofa. “Now how can I help you?” Ella got right to it. “How long had you known Officer Franklin?”

  “We met two years ago last summer—July, I guess.”

  “How did you two meet?”

  “He was on patrol, busting kids who were setting off illegal fireworks, bottle rockets and stuff. It was during that long drought. I’d wandered onto the turf of a rival gang looking for a friend of mine, and nearly got killed w
hen they jumped me. Officer Franklin came flying out of his unit with nothing more than a nightstick and beat back about five guys. Then he loaded me up and took me to the hospital. I bled all over his car seat. If it hadn’t been for him, I probably wouldn’t be here today. I’ve got the scars to prove it.”

  “And you became friends after that?”

  “We weren’t friends, really. I just owed him big-time, so I tried to pay him back the only way I could.”

  “How’s that?”

  “If something was brewing around here, I’d let him know about it.”

  “Nothing more than that?”

  “Not lately. I’ve heard about a couple of cars being stolen recently, but I have no idea who’s behind that. The only thing I’m positive about is that it’s not gang-related. I would have known if any of the kids were involved.”

  “What gang are you in?”

  “The Many Devils, but I’m not active. If there was such a thing as quitting, I would have. As it is, I just see the guys every once in a while, but go my own way now.”

  “And they accept that?” Ella asked skeptically.

  “They don’t hassle me. Most of them are younger than me anyway, and I’m bigger than they are. I also know a lot people who owe me favors and would back me up.”

  Ella walked to an attractive watercolor painting of a stallion hung on the wall. It was done in a style especially popular in the sixties and seventies—a stylized design using bright blues and yellows and geometric shapes reminiscent of those found on Navajo rugs. “I tried doing something like this in high school, but just don’t have the talent. Are you an artist?”

  “No. That’s the only thing my old man left behind when he walked out. He took off when I was eight or nine, and I haven’t seen him since.”

  Ella nodded, suspecting now that one of the reasons Jason had befriended this boy was because he could easily identify with him. “Is there anything you can tell us about Officer Franklin that might help us find his killer?”