Winter Hawk's Legend

by Aimée Thurlo

  Martin, who’d nodded to Daniel and Holly when they entered, came over, followed closely by one of the uniformed officers. Holly noticed right away that Martin hadn’t been cuffed.

  “Don’t look so concerned,” Martin told Holly. “This will blow over. They’ve got nothing except a lot of hot air.”

  “We need to speak with Mr. Roanhorse,” Daniel said, looking from Martin to the detective.

  “As long as I’m standing here,” the officer replied.

  Martin rolled his eyes, then touched Holly on the arm for a second. “I heard what happened to you up there on the mountain. Are you two okay?”

  “Yes, thank you for asking,” she said.

  “Here’s what I want to know,” Daniel said. “How could anyone hack into the tribal computer system, access your account, then download a specific file? We’ve got firewalls on the firewalls.”

  “After I spoke to your brother I decided to try and backtrack. Access logs show that my password was hacked, but the actual computer pathway used to download the file with your collection schedule belonged to my assistant. The problem is that I spoke to Joe, and at the time the file was accessed, he was greeting guests at a reception we had here for some government officials. I was there, as well, so we can back up each other’s alibi.”

  “So someone used Joe’s computer without his knowledge, or cloned his IP address and made it look that way,” Daniel said.

  “Yeah, but that’s not as hard as you might think. Joe’s old school. He hates computers, so he doesn’t generally bother with things like encryption. He also doesn’t have a BlackBerry or any way to access his account here, except via his laptop, which he leaves on most of the time, by the way.”

  “Which, of course, begs the question, was the laptop spoofed, accessed remotely or did someone get into his office?” Holly asked.

  “When we’re both gone, we lock the office,” Martin said. “Whoever did this hacked in from another location.”

  Holly glanced at the empty desk. “Where’s Joe now?”

  “The police wanted to search the place, so I told him he could take off for a while.”

  “Where is he likely to go?” Daniel asked.

  Martin shrugged. “I honestly don’t know, but he loves those glazed doughnuts at Tribal Perks. He’ll go through a half dozen whenever he’s on break.”

  “What’s his cell phone number?” Holly asked.

  Martin shook his head. “Won’t help. That’s it over there,” he said, pointing to the device functioning as a paperweight at the moment. “When he takes a break, he takes a break.”

  The tribal police detective cleared his throat. “Sorry. I have to interrupt you three right now.” He stepped up and cuffed Martin. “Mr. Roanhorse, you have the right to remain silent….”

  “Don’t worry,” Eltsosie said. “I’ll have you back out before dinner. They’ve got nothing on you.”

  Daniel and Holly left Martin’s office shortly thereafter. As soon as they were out of earshot, she spoke.

  “This may not have been Joe’s fault, or have anything to do with him,” Holly said as they walked back down the hall. “Johnny Wauneka is a more likely candidate. He has the skills to hack into almost anything. We need to find out if those two know each other, or have come into contact recently.”

  “You’re thinking that Yazzie might have been tricked into compromising the password?” Daniel asked.

  “Joe’s a good, hardworking man and loyal to the tribe,” she said. “Electronics just aren’t his thing. He has a hard time understanding software.”

  “The way this went down still points to him,” Daniel said. “Let’s see if we can figure out where he is.”

  Daniel checked with security and was able to verify that Joe had left the parking area heading south about twenty minutes earlier. After getting Joe’s home address, he glanced over at Holly. “His home’s north of here, and so’s Tribal Perks. Since he’s not going to either, and he left his cell phone behind, we have no way of contacting him now.”

  “Then we’ll talk to him when he comes back here. He will sooner or later. In the meantime, what do you say we go pay Johnny Wauneka a visit?”

  “Okay, that’s a good idea,” Daniel said after a beat. “You want to take lead with him?”

  “Yeah. Let me give it a try. Instead of coming on strong and accusing him of hacking and turning me into a target, I’m going to ask for his help. His reaction might tell us more than we’d get from a confrontation.”

  “All right. I’ll keep an eye on him while you handle things. Let’s see where this takes us.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  A long silence stretched out between them as Daniel settled behind the wheel and drove out of the gate, waving to the security guards.

  “Why isn’t anything about this mess simple? We should have more leads by now. We’ve had at least four separate run-ins with the guy after me,” she said as they headed for the main highway.

  “Conducting an investigation is like peeling an onion. There are many layers to get through.”

  “But does every layer have to reek?”

  “No, but all too often, it does,” he said, not taking his eyes off the road.

  They arrived at Johnny’s home sometime later. This time Daniel parked in front of the house itself rather than by the adjacent apartments. Today the place looked a little less like an abandoned home. That was mostly due to the tumbleweed snowman in the bare dirt front yard, and the simple pine wreath on the door.

  “Christmas… I used to love decorating everything in my home. Bright colors can make anything sparkle,” she said as they stepped up onto the concrete porch.

  “Including my place?” Johnny said, opening the door and greeting them.

  “Were you standing there, listening?” she asked, then saw him smile and shrug.

  “I was staring out the window and saw you pull up,” he answered. “So what brings you here?”

  “Respect for your skill with computers,” Holly said. “I’m hoping that you can help me with a problem.”

  “That depends. What do you need?”

  “Someone hacked into a tribal computer. I need to know how that was done, by whom, if you can trace it and anything else you can tell me.”

  “Why should I help you?”

  “I might be able to get you a job working with the tribe’s IT people, making sure this kind of thing doesn’t happen. You could come up with preventative measures, strategies, safeguards and firewalls. It’s what you do best—and you’d be helping the tribe.”

  “And the natural gas plant.”

  “Yes. Up to now, I’ve told you that the tribal industries have nothing to hide, but it’s clear to me you don’t really believe that. If you have legitimate access to what’s going on you could see that for yourself.”

  “Yes, but if I find that something important has been withheld from the people, my primary loyalty is to them.”

  “Fair enough—provided you don’t pass along proprietary technology or private personnel records,” Holly said.

  “I can live with that. So tell me more about what’s happened.”

  Holly gave him the short version of what she’d been going through, and how the hacker had tracked her.

  “And you came to me for help?” he said, narrowing his eyes. “What makes you so sure I’m not responsible?”

  “For one, you don’t physically fit the description of the man after me,” Holly said.

  “How do you know I don’t work for him?”

  “I trust my instincts,” she said quietly. “You work to protect, not to harm.”

  “Harming the few is sometimes necessary to protect the majority,” he argued, watching her intently.

  “You saved a rat, one of the least respected creatures, and you’ve spent all this time trying to convince me I shouldn’t trust you. The opposite would have been true if you’d been out to do me harm.”

  He nodded, then moved over and took a seat at h
is computer keyboard. “Okay, I’ll help you. Where would you like me to start? The facility’s administration network?”

  Holly nodded. “Someone hacked into a file that only two people have access to—Martin Roanhorse and his assistant, Joe Yazzie. We need to know who it was.”

  “All right. I’ll start with Martin and Joe, since that’s where the problem originates.”

  “Wait. Before you start, make sure you don’t try to access Roanhorse’s computer or files,” Daniel said. “The police have him in custody and all his records are under scrutiny.”

  Johnny suddenly spun his chair around. “The police are involved? Are you trying to set me up?”

  “If I were, I wouldn’t have told you,” Daniel said.

  “What we’d like you to do is focus on Joe Yazzie’s laptop computer and see if it was hacked,” Holly said. “Can you do that for us?”

  “Is there any chance the police will be monitoring him, as well?” Johnny asked.

  “It’s highly unlikely, at least not at first. Joe’s not the subject of the investigation,” Daniel said.

  “We also know he isn’t the person we’re trying to find. Joe was greeting dignitaries at the time the file was accessed and downloaded, and the office was locked,” Holly said.

  “Then that means it was done remotely via the internet. So what you really need to know is where the hacker was at the time, how the file was downloaded and into which computer.”

  “Yeah, anything that will lead us to whomever stole that information,” Holly said, giving Wauneka the name of the file, the exact time it was accessed and the password used. “I’m not sure if this will matter to you, but the password has probably been changed by now. They’re supposed to do that weekly.”

  Johnny faced the computer, then glanced back at them. “That makes no difference to me. I’m not trying to read the file itself, I just need to access the computer user logs, which are in their local network mainframe. Could you move to the other side of the room please? You’re jamming my personal space.”

  Daniel looked at Holly, eyebrows raised, then shrugged and moved back. Holly did the same.

  After what seemed like a small eternity, Johnny glanced over his shoulder. “I’ve got something. The password you gave me was used to access and download the file you’re interested in via a commercial business Wi-Fi. Are you sure you don’t want a copy of the file?”

  “I already know what’s in there. I need to find the hacker,” Holly said. “You said they gained access to Joe’s computer via a commercial business Wi-Fi. Which one, and where?”

  “Give me a minute,” Johnny said. He typed several strokes, then changed screens a few times. “It looks like it happened at a coffee shop called the Tribal Perks.”

  Holly and Daniel exchanged glances.

  “I’m guessing that Roanhorse and Yazzie visit that place?” Not waiting for an answer, he continued, “The hacker probably latched onto the current password while one or the other was sipping coffee and using an unprotected laptop. Old-school hackers use a keyboard logger program which keeps a record of the laptop keystrokes, and those give them the new password every time it changes. He could have uploaded the logger onto Yazzie’s laptop if it wasn’t secure enough.”

  “Thanks,” Holly said. “I’ll talk to a friend of mine at the plant, Jane Begay, and recommend that she put you under contract. She’s always looking for good people.”

  “You could also consider coming to work for me,” Daniel said. “I can use someone with your skills.”

  “I’m listening,” he said.

  “Let me get this case squared away, then we’ll talk,” Daniel said.

  “I’ll wait to hear from you,” Johnny said, letting them out.

  As they left Johnny’s home, Holly glanced at Daniel. “We already know that Joe isn’t very knowledgeable about computers. He may not have any idea that he’s been hacked, or maybe he’s involved. Either way, I think we should focus on him. For starters, we need to know how often he goes to Tribal Perks. With his careless use of the Wi-Fi connection, that makes him constantly vulnerable to a hacker.”

  “We may be able to cut corners and save time by studying the coffee shop’s security video,” Daniel said.

  “I’ve been there on occasion, but I never realized they had security cameras there,” she said.

  “One of my brothers has just started his own business and talked them into updating their security after they got held up a month ago.”

  “So we’ll talk to your brother first. Where does he live?”

  He smiled. “Above the coffee shop. He’s a close friend of the owner.”

  THEY ARRIVED at Tribal Perks a short time later. Instead of going to the front of the coffee shop, Daniel parked in the back beside a delivery truck.

  “Should we call your brother and let him know that we’re here?” she asked him.

  “Paul already knows. That’s why I parked where I did. He has this entire area staked out, and he knows Gene’s pickup.”

  “Tell me more about Paul,” Holly said.

  “His full name is Paul Grayhorse, and up to a few months ago he was a U.S. Deputy Marshal. He’s as tough as they come, but he’s made some enemies while on the job. Paul’s last assignment was in Washington, D.C., guarding a federal judge facing death threats. Long story short, Paul got shot saving the judge’s life, so he took his disability and retired.”

  “Having an injury that ends your career is a lot for anyone to handle. How’s he taking it?”

  “It’s been tough. Paul wasn’t the only one wounded defending the judge. His partner was killed. Paul still blames himself for the other deputy’s death, I think, but it’s hard to say. None of my brothers are comfortable taking trips down memory lane.”

  “Just because you’re men, doesn’t mean you can’t talk about your feelings.”

  “Yes, it does.”

  She glared at him.

  “Just a heads-up before we go in. Paul doesn’t like questions.”

  “Take the lead, then,” she said. “I’ll stay quiet.”

  He stopped at the bottom step leading up to the apartment and gave her an incredulous look.

  “Okay, let’s just say I’ll be as quiet as I can.”

  Before they reached the top of the stairs a tall, broad shouldered Navajo man opened the door. He had penetrating black eyes that seemed to look right through her. Holly wasn’t sure if he was smiling or snarling.

  “Come in,” he said, then waved them inside.

  Holly studied him as she entered the room. Paul was wearing a gray wool round-necked sweater and a fetish hung from the leather cord around his neck. From what she could tell without getting a lot closer and being rude, Paul’s spiritual brother was some kind of cat, perhaps the lynx. She tried to remember more about it, but all she could recall was that the animal was associated with secrets.

  The two men bumped fists, then embraced briefly. “I’ve heard you’re in a world of trouble right now,” Paul said. “Is this the lady you’ve been keeping safe?”

  Holly watched him for a moment. Paul moved with confidence, though she could tell he was favoring his right shoulder. Noting that he hadn’t used a name, she smiled but didn’t introduce herself.

  Paul gazed at her for a moment longer, then gave her a nod. “It’s all right to use Anglo names here. I go by Paul.”

  “Holly,” she answered.

  “We need your help,” Daniel said, filling him in on the recent events that had led them there.

  “I’ll play back the feed on the café interior right now and see if we can zero in on your target.”

  “I appreciate this,” Holly said.

  “No problem. Daniel would do the same for me if I needed help. Otherwise, I’d have to pound his face into the dirt.”

  Daniel smiled. “You and what army?”

  Holly took the seat Paul offered her and waited.

  “I’m going back a month on this feed. I’ve already had the comput
er identify Joe’s tribal ID photo and start to look for a match using facial recognition software.”

  As they waited, Holly looked around. Paul’s tiny apartment was void of anything that might reveal something personal about him. Though she couldn’t tell for sure, she had a feeling that was no accident. Like it was at Daniel’s place, there was an absence of photos. She knew that some Traditionalists didn’t like their photos taken, so that explained why they had none of Hosteen Silver, yet these were Modernist Navajo men. She was surprised that neither Daniel nor Paul had any photos of their other brothers, particularly since they were all so close, judging from what she’d seen so far.

  Maybe, unlike her, they’d never felt the need for such mementos. She thought of the photos she’d lost in the fire. They’d held everything from pictures of the first table she’d set up to sell her rock creatures, to the last birthday she’d celebrated with her mom. She swallowed hard, knowing that there was no turning back the clock.

  “Are you okay?” Daniel said, coming over to where she was sitting and offering her some coffee.

  “I’m fine,” she replied automatically, taking the offered mug. “I was just thinking of the photos I lost in the fire. Once I can go back and search, maybe I’ll find some that are still salvageable.”

  “If you do, bring them to me,” Paul said. “I’ll do my best to restore them and upload the images into your computer so you can have instant access.”

  “I’d really appreciate it—that is, providing I find anything. Those photos meant a lot to me, so I’d be happy to pay for your work.”

  “Nah, I’d rather collect from my brother. He doesn’t realize it yet, but he’ll owe me big-time before we’re done here.”

  Daniel burst out laughing.

  Moments later, a tone sounded on the computer. Paul pointed to the split screen. “Here are the first six matches. From what I see here, Yazzie comes in at ten-thirty, then again at four—like clockwork. He sits in the booth by the south window each time—or the closest to it—has doughnuts, some coffee and works on that laptop. If he doesn’t keep the firewall updated, grabbing his password wouldn’t have been hard at all for an average hacker.”