by Aimée Thurlo
“I’ve never seen a hogan like this, made of poles tied together instead of logs.”
He ran his hand over the sturdy wooden posts. “This type of hogan is called the Forked Together House. It’s the result of lessons given to us by Talking God, the greatest of all Navajo gods.”
Dana looked around. The floor of the hogan had been dug out a foot or more, leaving a bench near the wall that could also serve for storage. Everything had a simple beauty that spoke of decades long past. The blankets on the ground were frayed, but she could see the grandeur they’d once held.
“You or your brother must come out here every once in a while to maintain the place. There are no weeds, leaves, or any sign of four-footed ‘visitors’.”
“We take turns. I checked the place out last month.”
He spread their blanket on the ground, lay down, then stretched out his arms to receive her. “You can rest against me. My shoulder will be your pillow.”
“There was a time when I couldn’t go to sleep unless I was safe at home,” she murmured, settling against him, then drifting off.
“You’ve found a new one, sawe,” he said, using the Navajo word for sweetheart, “in my arms.”
DANA SENSED Ranger’s absence even before she’d opened her eyes. Sunlight was filtering past the worn blanket that served as a door as she sat up. Realizing she was alone in the cold hogan, fear gripped her.
Then she heard Ranger’s rich baritone voice nearby, rising in a haunting chant that spoke of history and the wisdom of the ages. Moving quietly as to not disturb him, she went outside and saw him open his jish, take a pinch of pollen out, touch it to the tip of his tongue, then throw it upward toward the heavens.
Although she hadn’t made a sound, he’d sensed her presence. “Did I wake you?” he asked, turning to face her.
Only by not being there. But she kept that answer to herself. “That was a beautiful chant,” she said.
“It’s a Hozonji, a song of blessing,” he answered, then wanting her to understand him, added, “When you take care of what’s most important first, other things eventually fall into place.”
Dana nodded in silent agreement. Ranger’s strength came from more than his toned body, training and intelligence. His beliefs made him the man he was.
She followed him back inside the hogan and helped him gather their things. “Do you think your friend will get back to us today with the rest of the information we need?”
He nodded. “I’m almost certain of it.”
“We should try to eat along the way,” she said as they got underway, circling around toward the highway.
“There’ll be people selling naniscaada sandwiches, made with homemade tortillas or fry bread, out of the back of their trucks between here and Shiprock. That’s the best rez food there is.”
THEY’D JUST REACHED the highway when his cell phone rang. Glancing at the caller ID, he put the phone on speaker. “Good morning, Maria,” he said.
“I have the address. 222 Canyon Way in Bloomfield. When I accessed the address of the registered pet owner, the software also listed a complaint filed just yesterday. Two vicious dogs have allegedly been harassing children through the bars of the front gate. Animal control is scheduled to make a visit this afternoon to check it out.”
“That’s his main address,” Ranger said, surprised. “ Trujillo owns several properties and he’s been moving around. That’s why the FBI hasn’t been able to zero in on him. But it sure sounds like he’s back there now. Any chance of you asking animal control to hold off on their investigation until tomorrow?”
“Do I want to know why?”
“Not really.”
“No surprise. I’ll make the request, but no guarantees.”
“I understand. And, Maria, thanks again.”
“Remember, you owe me.”
“I will, and thanks,” he said, hanging up and looking over at Dana. “ Trujillo will undoubtedly move on after a visit from animal control, so we need to get over there as soon as possible and reconnoiter,” Ranger said. “Maybe we can find a way to put your plan in motion.”
“Food first,” Dana said as her stomach rumbled loudly.
He chuckled. “Good idea. Otherwise, your stomach will give us away for sure.”
RANGER LAY FLAT on his stomach, surveying the gated mansion from the adjacent hillside. Two Doberman pinschers had been given free run of the grounds, and they made frequent stops at the gate to sniff and posture. Ranger handed the binoculars to Dana so she could take a look, then called his brother.
Ranger gave Hunter a quick rundown. “I’m planning on taking a clandestine tour. Is there any intel we can get on the house, or maybe on Trujillo ’s habits? We’re looking for a stash of cash he’d keep nearby.”
“I can get you the plans to the house in a short time, but as far as his habits…that might take some time.”
“That could be a problem. Our man’s scheduled for a visit from animal control. Once they come by, he’ll probably pick up stakes and move on.”
“Hang tight. I’ll see what I can do,” Hunter answered.
They waited for over thirty minutes and Ranger used the time to maintain surveillance on Trujillo ’s estate. He needed to get a feel for the place and its rhythms.
When his phone rang, Ranger was ready.
“I’ve got some intel,” Hunter said. “About four months ago, Ignacio accused his housekeeper of stealing and fired her. But as it turns out, her cousin’s one of ours. According to what she told him, Ignacio has a safe in each of his homes, every one of them behind paintings above the bedroom dressers.”
“Got it. Thanks.”
“But she also said that every house is full of alarms.”
“I’ll be on the lookout.”
“We’ll set up a watch on the place. That way if he bolts we’ll still be right on his tail,” Hunter said.
After Ranger hung up, Dana glanced over at him. “We’re going to need a really good plan to get into that house. I don’t want to be a hot lunch for those guard dogs.”
“Don’t worry about them. I’ve got that covered. My Shicheii taught me something that’ll take care of that problem without harming the animals.”
KNOWING THAT GETTING on Trujillo ’s property would be tricky, Dana had insisted on a diversion. Ranger had heard her out and agreed on her plan.
On schedule, Dana called Agent Harris and let him know where Trujillo was. Then, before he could inundate her with questions, she hung up.
“You were right. He already knew about this place,” she told Ranger. “He asked me how we’d found this address even before I’d finished giving it to him. But if Harris was waiting for Trujillo to make a move before closing in on him, we’ve now forced the agent’s hand.”
They didn’t have to wait long before Agent Harris and two county deputies came to pay Trujillo a visit.
“They’re all in the front room,” Ranger said, looking through the binoculars. “One of Trujillo ’s men is watching the front gate, but we can bypass him altogether if we climb the adobe wall out back.”
“And lower ourselves into the jaws of his killer dogs…”
“Don’t worry. I told you, I’ve got that covered. Just stay behind me,” he said.
“Count on it,” she answered with a hesitant smile.
“Our biggest problem once we’re inside will be bypassing the alarms. Whatever you do, don’t touch anything.”
“I’ve got a good eye for detail. If I spot anything, I’ll give you a heads-up. I just wish we weren’t doing this in broad daylight.”
“That’s going to work in our favor. No one will expect a break-in now, especially while the FBI and police are inside. And the fact that someone’s at home means the internal motion sensors will probably be turned off.”
They stopped by his truck and Ranger picked up a small backpack.
“What’s in there?” she asked.
“Everything I might need,” he said, slipping it over hi
s shoulder.
They walked down a side road, crossed the street, then stepped over to the six-foot-high adobe wall. Ranger went over first. “Come on,” he whispered a few seconds later.
She jumped up, scrambled to the top, then lowered herself quickly to the ground. “The dogs?”
“Don’t run, just walk-quickly-to the back of the house.”
Before she could take a step, the two guard dogs came running around the corner. Spotting intruders, their hackles rose, and they rushed at them, low to the ground, teeth bared, snarling.
Ranger stood in front of her, reached into his pocket and brought out a small reddish-brown spear point. Not looking at the dogs, he focused on the stone, whispering in Navajo.
Terrified, Dana closed her eyes and pressed her back to the wall. After only a few seconds, she couldn’t hear the dogs anymore. Opening one eye, she peered out. To her amazement, both dogs had stopped about four feet away and were now sitting, alert but calm.
Ranger then whispered something else, and both dogs lay down.
“It’s like they’ve been hypnotized. What’s in that stone?” she whispered to Ranger.
“It’s flint. The way light flashes off it represents lightning and predawn.” Without looking back at the dogs, they walked quickly around to the back of the large adobe home. “ Flint was created when the hides of the monsters that preyed on the earth disintegrated. It has power and can restore harmony.”
When they reached the corner, she glanced back, but the dogs still hadn’t moved.
Ranger walked over to the big wooden door, then pointed to a small sensor near the wrought-iron handle. “We’ve got to disable this before we open the door.”
He reached into his backpack, pulled out a slender piece of magnetized material, then stuck it to the sensor.
No alarms went off when they slipped inside. The house was old, with thick walls, but they could hear Agent Harris a few rooms away, hammering Trujillo with question after question. Trujillo didn’t seem overly disturbed, and spoke quietly in response.
Ranger gestured down the long hallway, and Dana followed, trying to move as silently as he did. They reached the master suite several seconds later. This room, with a brick floor, high-beamed ceiling and colorful area rugs, was as big as her entire house. The door was open, but Ranger closed it behind them, turning the small lever that locked it shut.
Ranger pointed to the painting over the dresser, then moved around in front of it, studying the setup. Again, using small magnets to trick the mechanisms into sending a closed circuit signal, he was able to pull back the hinged painting without triggering an alarm. Behind it was a small safe with a door the size of a piece of notebook paper and a dial that reminded Dana of a big combination lock.
Ranger reached down into his backpack again. She half expected him to pull out something high tech, like a laser blowtorch. When he brought out a stethoscope, she chuckled softly.
Seeing her expression, he whispered. “It’s a cheap, old design safe. I’ll be able to break into it fairly quickly. Go over to the door and listen for anyone coming down the hall.”
She stood by the door, listening, but all she could hear was Agent Harris’s voice. After a few minutes, she turned to see how Ranger was doing. The safe was already open, and he was setting bundles of cash on the bed. “We’re not going to steal it,” he whispered. “We’re only going to relocate the stuff. How about behind the cold air return vent?” He pointed to a grill just above the baseboard.
“I’ll unscrew it for you,” she said. “It sounds like Harris is still giving Trujillo some heat.”
He handed her a small mechanical screwdriver with several head choices, and while she transferred the money, he took a CD from the safe and put it inside a desk top computer across the room and made a copy. He repeated the process with two more disks, then placed the originals back in the safe and closed it up.
“Why didn’t you just take the originals?” she asked.
“I don’t want him to cover his tracks. I want him to think that one of his employees or goons was looking for a quick score and took his cash. I bet he’s got the combination hidden around here someplace anyway.”
As they slipped back out into the hallway, Dana could hear Agent Harris still grilling Trujillo. Judging from Trujillo ’s sarcastic responses, she was sure he believed he was untouchable. Maybe the loss of so much cash would get a reaction from the lowlife, and undercut his cocky arrogance. They needed to push him into making a mistake and exposing himself directly.
They stepped outside seconds later and to Dana’s surprise the two dogs were still lying down as if on “stay.” “Wow,” she whispered.
He held one finger over his mouth and hurried across the grounds toward the wall, his hand in hers.
Once they’d gone over the adobe wall, Ranger poked his head over and whistled. The Dobermans jumped up and ran over to the wall, barking furiously.
Dana said nothing until they were in Ranger’s truck almost a mile away. “That was really something back there…what you did with the dogs, I mean. You never cease to amaze me. Every time I think I know you, I discover something new.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
She smiled slowly and gave him an honest answer. “Not so far.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Ranger took her to the one place he’d never thought he’d take anyone outside the brotherhood-the old reconverted barn deep on the reservation where new warriors trained. But he’d known it would be empty inside now. The brotherhood was in a state of transition. No one would be initiated anytime soon.
“What is this place?” she asked at they arrived.
“Kind of a private gym…and, at the moment, our place of refuge,” he said. “I needed someplace where I could study these CDs in relative safety.” And safe they would be. He’d felt the presence of some of his brother warriors, watching, as they drove up. The fact that they hadn’t been intercepted meant that he’d been recognized by at least one pair of eyes.
He led her into a small, unoccupied office that bordered a large arena, and got down to work almost immediately. Dana didn’t interrupt him while he loaded the CDs into his laptop and studied what they contained.
“This one looks like an accounts payable ledger, but it doesn’t list the last names of the payees-the people he hired,” he said at last. “A few months ago he hired someone by the name of Del. No last name, but undoubtedly the dead man’s partner,” he said, avoiding mentioning Marc Finch by name.
“Scroll down more. There’s a lot of information there,” she said, standing behind him and studying the entries.
It took them almost twenty minutes, but they finally found a separate accounting base and another entry that dated back ten months. “There you go. Del Archuleta,” she read off. “He’s a P.I., according to that. Have you ever heard of him?”
“No, but I can have him checked out.” Ranger dialed his brother, then waited. “I need some intel,” he said, then proceeded to tell him what they’d learned.
Hunter’s response was immediate. “I’ll get back to you. And Wind…? You’ll have to explain your choice of sanctuary to the brotherhood when all this is over.”
“Understood,” Ranger said and hung up. He’d known he was violating security by coming here with Dana and that would make him subject to disciplinary measures later. But, as always, he’d done what was necessary. “Let’s see what else these other accounts have to tell us,” he said, focusing back on the screen.
Another half hour passed, but they found nothing else they could use. “At least we have Del ’s full name,” Dana said. “That’ll help us narrow the search. I think we’ve made some solid progress. Maybe I’ll be able to meet with Hastiin Dííl soon.”
Before he could answer, his cell phone rang. He flicked it open and answered.
“Del Archuleta, according to a uniformed agency source, is a scumbag,” Hunter said. “He had his P.I. ticket pulled last year for playing both sides of
the fence on a divorce case. I’ve got his last known address and two photos, and I’m uploading them now. Maybe the woman will recognize them.”
Ranger switched screens and picked up his e-mail. “Do either of these men look familiar to you?” he asked her.
As she leaned over him to take a closer look at the screen, he grew aware of every part of her. Though she’d given herself to him, it had been on her own terms. Her body had been his, but she’d held back a piece of her heart. That knowledge tugged hard at him. Next time, there would be no holding back, not by her, and not by him, either.
“The one on the left. He was one of the men who kidnapped us,” she said, interrupting his thoughts.
He had to struggle to refocus. “And the other one?”
“I haven’t seen him before.”
Reading his brother’s note, Ranger filled her in. “The one you recognized is Bruce-Del Archuleta’s brother. He used to work for the city of Farmington as an animal control officer.”
Ranger passed the news to Hunter, then hung up, avoiding what would have undoubtedly been his brother’s next question-what was next on their agenda.
“We need to find Bruce and Del, and we have Del ’s last known address. What do you say we go pay him a visit?” he said.
“I’m ready when you are,” she answered.
They drove to the address they had for Del and found he’d moved. The new tenant, a young, slim, college-aged woman, seemed to want Ranger to stick around, so she invited them in.
“I’ve forwarded a few pieces of mail to Del, and I’ve got his new address around here someplace,” she said, brushing back a strand of long, blond hair. “He lives with his creepy brother, Bruce.” She fished around a drawer for a few moments, then finally pulled out a small notepad. “Here it is,” she said, handing it to Ranger.
Dana tried not to feel ignored, but the woman hadn’t taken her eyes off Ranger since they’d come in.
Ranger gave the young woman one of his devastating smiles. “I appreciate your help.”
