by KJ Dahlen
“Grandson, I am an old man and my life is coming to an end in any case. I have lived on this earth for ninety two years and I am tired. If you have found Kalinda Moon, you keep her safe and don’t you come back here. If you are here when Michael releases his hell, you will be caught up in the flames and this is one fight you cannot win. The Coyote will win this fight. I have seen in my mind’s eye what will happen. Michael and his sons have sold their souls to the Coyote for money and power and the Coyote always gives just enough to make them want more.... then he takes it all back, leaving those he tricks with nothing. That is what the Coyotes does and Michael Moon will find that out the hard way.” Micah Wolf told him. “My soul is clear and will welcome death. Your father and grandfather and my own beloved wife await my arrival and I will join them gladly. But you, you have to protect Kalinda and her children. True Apache blood runs in her veins and that of her son and daughters. You must teach them the old ways the same as I taught you. You must find the woman of your dream quest. She is your true mate. With her, your soul will be safe and you will know unlimited joy. She will give you three strong sons and one of your sons will be the next shaman of this tribe.” Micah paused and then said, “This will be our last conversation my grandson but all will be well. This ending was written a long time ago and things have to play out the way the dreams insist. Fate is a fickle bitch when she’s tested and while some of us will die, we will go to the ever after with our souls in tack. I can’t say the same for Michael and his four sons. They will burn in the afterlife for the remainder of forever. They will pay for their sins in the pits of hell. Which is what fate has in store for them.”
“I can’t let that happen. I’m coming home.” Renegade growled.
“I forbid it.” The old man stated firmly. “Your place is not here, your place is to protect Kalinda and her children. If you leave her alone, they will find her and take her to hell with them. She has to live, as do you. Fate has not yet decided your ending or hers but if you return, you will have no choice in the matter at all. Remember me with kindness and caring in your heart. I have taught you well of the old ways and what it means to be Apache. Use what I have taught you and pass those lessons on to your own children. We are a forgotten people now but our history tells us we were once a proud people. We need to bring that pride back to our people. To give our children and their children a pride in their history and culture. They call you Renegade for a reason and that reason is no one can put you in a box, no one can tame the spirit our ancestors put in your soul. That same spirit will live on long after I am gone. I have seen this in a vision quest.”
Renegade was all set to argue with the old man but suddenly the call was cut off. He tossed the cigarette butt to the ground and rubbed the hot ash out with his boots. He turned and found Creed and Cobra standing there. His scowl deepened as they stared at him. “What?”
“Who the fuck was that?” Cobra finally broke the tense silence.
“That was my great grandfather. I called him to find out what I could about Joshua Moon.”
“And what did he have to say?” Creed crossed his huge arms over his equally huge chest.
“He told me Joshua Moon has been granted parole. He’ll be out of prison within the month. That Michael has been waiting until his son gets out to bring hell down on the people. And if I found Kalinda, I was supposed to protect her. He told me to stay away from home. What is about to happen has to happen or fate will not be appeased.”
“What does he think will happen when Kalinda’s dad gets out of prison?” Cobra asked with no expression on his face.
“He said fate will play a role and Michael will bring death to his own people. My grandfather doesn’t expect to live through it and he thinks it’s the way it should be played out. I offered to bring Kalinda back home to testify against her father but he told me to stay away. He is ready for death but if I or Kalinda dies, then we will mess up the what fate has in store for the people.”
“And just how does your grandfather know all this?” Creed asked disbelieving him.
“My great grandfather is the Shaman of the tribe. He has visons but he never tells anyone what he dreams about. The fact that he told me is astonishing.”
“Do you think he could be telling the truth?” Cobra asked.
Renegade nodded.
“Is Kalinda is danger?” Creed stepped closer.
“Yes, she is and if her family finds her here, everyone around her will be in danger too. They can’t afford to let her live with what she knows. If her father or uncles can find her, they will try to kill her and anyone who stands between them and her.”
“But why?” Creed frowned. “She was only three when she disappeared. What could she know that she could tell anyone? She doesn’t even remember much about the night her family was killed.”
“She might know more about her father’s family than she realizes. They are hiding something if they built a wall between them and the rest of Alpine. What that secret is no one but them knows and she was once part of them.” Renegade reasoned.
“Well, fucking hell.” Creed swore.
“Indeed.” Renegade nodded.
Cobra looked over at Renegade and asked, “What are you going to tell her?”
“I have to tell her the things my grandfather told me,” he insisted. “She has the right to know everything. This involves her family too.”
“No it doesn’t,” Jack said from the doorway. “We are her family and have been for some time now. She’s my wife now and I don’t think she needs to know anything that might hurt her. I can and will protect her and our daughter from her father or her uncles, if it comes down to that.”
“Husband, you might be always my protector,” Kalinda’s voice came softly from behind him. “But this is something I must hear. This is a threat to not only me but our daughter as well.”
“This will threaten your daughters and your son,” Renegade told them all.
Jack narrowed his eyes at the other man. “We only have the one child.”
Renegade smiled. “I have a feeling you’ll have at least two more. Which means...” He turned to Kalinda. “So, you have to survive what’s coming. You must listen to me, if your father or uncles know you are still alive that puts you and your future family im danger, not to mention everyone else here.”
“What else did your grandfather say?” Kalinda asked.
“He said your father is getting out of prison and when he does, he and his father will rain hell down on the town. He said the Moon family lives behind a wall no one can see through and they have people coming and going all hours. He says they are hiding a secret and soon they won’t have to hide it anymore.”
Kalinda stumbled and would have fallen to her knees but Jack caught her up in his arms. Pain pounded through her head as more memories stormed into the front of her brain. Too many memories for her to handle as she screamed before passing out in Jack’s arms.
She missed everyone panicking when she fell into the abyss. Jack swore and gathered her into his arms, carrying her back inside the clubhouse.
Creed snapped his head around to glare at Renegade, who took a step back at the rage on the other man’s face.
“Hey man I didn’t do anything.” Renegade glared at him.
“He knows that,” Cobra assured him.
Creed ran his hands over his head. “Yeah man, I’m sorry. Jack was just telling us this morning Kalinda suffers from nightmares. She doesn’t remember anything before she went to the orphanage. All she does remember is yelling and screaming and people flooding into the room, then being taken away.”
Renegade shook his head. “She must be remembering some of the night her mom and sister died.”
“She was only three at the time,” Cobra grumbled. “How much does a three-year-old remember anyway?”
“That depends on how important it is to her,” Renegade told them. “I’m pretty sure that seeing her sister thrown across the room and her mother being beaten to death
by her father would count as traumatic enough to remember, even if it’s only in her nightmares.”
“Yeah, that might be hard to forget,” Cobra agreed with him.
“How long after that did she disappear?” Creed asked.
“That same night.” He nodded. “I know she went missing before the tribal police came to get Joshua. Only problem was nobody else was missing. Everyone who should have been there was present. The tribal police questioned everyone, well everyone but Kalinda. No one could find her.” He closed his eyes and ranted, “I only left her for a moment. Only dammed a moment to get her a glass of water to calm her.”
“What are you talking about?” Creed demanded.
“I was there that night. We were gathered for the passing of an Elder when the fight between Joshua and Lune broke out. We heard terrible screams and everyone rushed in to the house. We saw what Joshua had done to his family and I tried to find Kalinda. I found her hiding in a corner and I got her out of there. She didn’t need to see anymore. I took her to the kitchen and held her for a moment. She looked at me with dazed eyes and I asked her if she wanted some water or something. When she didn’t speak, I turned my back for a moment to get a glass but when I turned to face her again she was gone and the back door was open. I went outside to look for her but she was just gone. No one has seen her since. We never knew what happened to her.”
“Until now.” Cobra stared at him.
“Someone must have carried her away but we don’t know who or why.” Renegade sighed.
“Let’s go inside and see what’s going on with her.” Cobra nodded toward the front door.
All three went into the club and saw everyone was gathered around. Jack looked up as Creed, Cobra and Renegade joined them. He snarled at Renegade, “This is all your fault. You need to get the hell out of here. She doesn’t need to see your face again.”
Kalinda opened her eyes and shook her head. For a moment, she couldn’t speak and everyone watched as she struggled to come to terms with the memories assaulting her. Memories that laid in her subconscious for most of her life, were just now coming to her consciousness mind.
She slowly turned her head and observed Renegade. Reaching out her hand, she waited for him to come close to her. Searching every inch of his face she whispered, “John, I remember you now. I remember what happened that night. I remember everything.” She wet her lips. “I couldn’t face what happened as a child. I just didn’t understand it, not then but I think I understand it now. It’s been there in my mind this whole time but it was hidden in a place where the memories couldn’t hurt me. As I grew up, the nightmares got stronger, they were trying to break free but something wouldn’t let them come forward, not yet. Not until now.”
“Hush baby girl,” Renegade whispered, brushing her hair away from her face. He heard Jack growl low. “I know it hurts to remember and I know it isn’t a pleasant thing to think about but this is something you can’t hide any longer. You father needs to stand up and face what he did to you, your mother and your sister. Only the truth will set you free. It’s time to tell the whole story. You’ve lived with this fear for too long.” Renegade stepped back.
Jack took his place. He reached out and took her hand into his. Lifting her fingers to his mouth, he kissed them. “Baby, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. You can just let this go. You got me to protect you now, you don’t need to face anything.”
Kalinda looked at her man and her face crumbled. Tears ran down her cheeks and she began shaking her head. “Oh sweet man, I can’t do that to you or yours. Don’t you understand what is being said here? I do have to face this. If they even think I survived, they will hunt me down. I can’t put Rosa or your family in their sights. They don’t care about anyone but themselves. Don’t you see that? My mother, my baby sister and even me didn’t count then and I don’t count now.”
Jack brushed her hair out of her face. “You count to me. I love you wife.”
Kalinda smiled softly, “And I love you too, husband.” She reached out to touch his face. “But this is something I have to do. I can’t hide the truth any longer.” She turned to Renegade. “I know what the Moon family is hiding. I finally remembered what my parents were arguing about that night. Always before in my dreams, their words were mumbled, and I couldn’t understand what they were saying. Now the words aren’t mumbled anymore. My father wasn’t all that drunk when he lost his temper, in fact he hadn’t had anything to drink that night at all, I don’t think. He was just very pissed. You see my mother told him she was leaving him if he went through with something she didn’t believe in. His father, Joshua had found a gold mine? They wanted to keep it for themselves and not share with the tribe. I think that is what they were fighting about.”
Renegade nodded. “So that was it! He and his sons must have been working the mine just to see if it would yield anything, they could sell. If it did, he would then purchase the land but not say anything about the mine. They must have been working the mine for a while by then. Your mom would have wanted the whole tribe to benefit from the strike but Michael didn’t want anyone else but his family to get anything out of the mine. She must have intended to tell the Elders about the mine. Michael had probably bought the land at Tribal prices which was just about nothing and I imagine he’s been making a lot of money off the gold since them. They might own the land, but the tribe still owns the mineral rights. Anything found on tribal lands belongs to the whole tribe, not just one of them.” He looked around the room. “Most people know Texas for the oil underneath its soil. This gold mine would be a complete surprise to everyone. Plus, its on what the whole town considers tribal grounds, the whole tribe could have used the money but apparently, Michael wasn’t willing to share with the others. This would be a big enough secret he would kill to protect, depending of course on the yield of the mine.”
The Youngs all listened along with Cobra and Bear.
Creed looked troubled.
Silas shook his head in disgust.
Renegade looked at Silas and Tate again. “When I left the tribe a few months ago, there were rumors about the Moon family being involved in the drug trade. But they were only rumors, no one there seemed to know if they were true or not, but the speculation is that’s the reason the family seemed to have so much money lately. And that would certainly account for the people coming and going from their place at all hours of the day and night.”
“Did you think it was true?” Creed asked.
“Yeah, I still think it’s true. At least one or two of the Moon brothers is using drugs. Craig and James look as if they use what they sell.”
“What do you think Michael Moon is getting ready to do?” Tate asked.
“I think he’s liquidating his assets and as soon as Joshua gets out of prison, they will try to destroy the tribe, so no one askes too many questions. Then he and his boys will disappear and turn up somewhere else possibly sporting a new name with money to burn.” He looked around the room again, “But first, they have to locate Kalinda and take her out of the picture. I do know they have been looking for her since that night. They made such a production of the fact that she disappeared. Since then, they bring her up off and on over the years at tribal meetings and gatherings as if trying to find out if any of the people know about her. They haven’t been actually trying to find her, so maybe they found her at one point but then they lost her again. I do know my grandfather has mentioned her over the years. He’s been saying this whole time that she’s being hidden for a reason. Michael has heard the rumors over the years as well.”
“What rumors?” Creed asked.
“Like I said before, my grandfather is a Shaman of our tribe. He often has vision quests and what he sees, he knows is true. He has seen Kalinda over the years in various stages of her life but he doesn’t know or hasn’t told anyone where she is, only that she’s safe.”
“Why hasn’t Michael tried to find her before?” Harry asked.
“I think
he has,” Kalinda admitted.
“What do you mean?” Jack looked at her.
“A couple of times growing up, I felt there was someone watching me. I would try to find out but I could never find anyone hiding in the shadows. It was kind of creepy.” Then her eyes got huge and she turned to look at Jack. “Oh, my god, someone did find me about four years ago.”
“What happened?” Creed wanted to know.
“I thought it was an accident all this time. I thought all this time I was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time but the more I think about it now, the more I know in my heart it was so much more than that.” She was stunned by the realization someone had tried to kill her.
“Honey, what are you saying?” Jack asked.
“Four years ago I was mugged one night. I was walking home after work and I felt someone following me. I hurried to get off the streets but whoever was behind me caught up with me before I could get to safety. They beat the hell out of me and the last thing I remember was being kicked in the head. When I woke up, I was in the hospital and my purse was gone. The police told me I was mugged. As I couldn’t remember much else, I always thought I was simply mugged.” She shivered and added, “I thought I just had bad luck that year but now I’m not so sure. First the car accident then a few months later, I got mugged.” She looked over at Renegade. “I think maybe they were trying to kill me, weren’t they?”
Renegade shrugged then rolled his eyes. “It could have been a mugging but somehow I doubt it. Michael finally found you and he was making sure you were out of the picture. That way, there’s no one left alive to tell the law what really happened that night. They can’t run the risk she remembered what really happened. He couldn’t take the chance you might remember what your parents were fighting about, or even what the family had been doing for the months before Joshua lost it.”
Kalinda sat up and gazed steadily at her cousin. “I have to ask you something. It may seem an odd question but I need to know. Was there a man in the tribe that smelled like cloves? I remember waking up in the truck when he was driving. I was in the backseat and I could see his eyes in the mirror. They looked like eyes I thought I knew but in the dark I just couldn’t place them. The only thing I do remember was the strong scent of cloves.”
