Enemy Way Read online

  “But I’m not guilty of anything!” She stood up abruptly. “You, of all people, should know I can be trusted.”

  “What I believe is beside the point. I’m keeping you on active duty as long as I can, but it means I’ll be coming up against pressure from Bekis’s friends in tribal government. We’re out on that limb together right now, Ella.

  “With your mother’s accident making the news, and the statements you made to the press, some people are going to find it easy to believe that you overreacted. Hell, lady, you had more action that day than a lot of cops see in their whole career.” Big Ed shook his head slowly.

  She felt an incredible coldness seep through her. It dulled her anger and heightened her logic. “These accusations are well thought out, and meant to manipulate the department. If we let Bekis off, I bet all the charges and the lawsuit will magically disappear. If Bekis goes down, he wants to take my career with him. Well, now they’ve taken their shot, and it’s my turn. I’m going to fight them every step of the way.”

  “Be careful. Everything you say, everything you do, will be watched carefully,” Big Ed said, standing. “You’ll be judged by the press and by the tribe long before this case goes to court. You might consider carrying a tape recorder in your pocket. A lot of cops do nowadays.”

  Ella watched Big Ed walk out of her office, her mind working overtime. She fought to consider the facts with cold rationality. If she couldn’t prove her innocence, innuendo would destroy her career as effectively as anything else.

  Picking up the phone, Ella called her mother’s room at the hospital. Maybe she could cheer Mom up a bit. If not, maybe Mom could cheer her up.

  * * *

  It was shortly after nine that night. After several hours of routine and boring patrolling of Lisa’s neighborhood, Ella was getting restless. They had hoped to locate Thomas Bileen, but neither she, Justine, or Sergeant Neskahi had even seen a kid outside their own front yards, much less a gang member.

  Obviously the gang members knew the cops were going to be watching their houses, and were staying away. Officers had stopped by the Bileen residence several times looking for Thomas, who had skipped school, but his mother didn’t know where he’d gone.

  “I have what appears to be a twenty-seven–seven in progress,” Justine said, calling in an auto theft. “I’m on the south side of the new Chapter House parking lot.”

  “That’s several blocks from here. How many perps?”

  “I see two kids and that’s it, but its dark here. I’m moving in.”

  “No. Hold position until I get there. Neskahi, what’s your twenty?”

  “I’m headed in your direction from the east end of Rio Puerco Street. I can be there in less than a minute.”

  “Ten-four. I’ll come in from the west end of Rio Puerco. There’s a wall on the north side of the parking area. It’s high enough that they won’t be able to scale it easily. We’ll move in from three sides and force them toward it.”

  “There’s a few cars parked outside the Chapter House, but no civilians are outside, just the two kids. Wait, make that three.” Justine called.

  “Four on that third kid. Sergeant, are you in position.”

  “Ten-four,” Neskahi replied.

  Ella aimed her spotlight, and immediately Justine and Neskahi did the same, trapping three kids wearing gang-style garb in the bright glow of the intersecting beams. One was carrying a car battery that still had part of the cables attached, and another teen was looking through the interior of a pickup with a broken side window. A third boy with a pair of bolt cutters was standing next to a new pickup that had its hood raised.

  “Police!” Ella announced through the external loudspeaker. “You are all under arrest. Stay where you are and keep your hands where we can see them.”

  The boy with the bolt cutters took off running immediately, but the other two froze like deer in headlights.

  “Grab him, Sergeant,” Ella yelled, noting that Neskahi was closest to the fleeing suspect. The boys with the battery looked around, thinking about escape, but by then Ella and Justine were jogging toward them. They were cut off now, and they knew it.

  “Don’t make this even worse,” Ella shouted. “Lay down on the ground with your hands behind your head.”

  The boys, seeing Ella and Justine both had their weapons in hand, yelled. “We’re not armed!” They put their hands high in the air.

  “Lay down on the pavement, and stay there,” Ella ordered, moving closer, but still alert for any other teens hiding nearby.

  Ella reached the perps first, checking the boys that were down for weapons. “I’ve got these jokers. Give me your cuffs and go help Neskahi.” Justine tossed her cuffs over to Ella, then jogged off in the direction the sergeant had taken.

  Ella cuffed both boy’s hands behind their back, and the only resistance they offered was in curses. After reading them their rights, she got tired quickly of their language. “Save your strength for jail, guys. If you don’t have a record, you’ve got one now.”

  As Ella led the boys to her waiting vehicle, she kept one eye out for her officers. By now, a few people were standing in the door of the Chapter House, watching from a safe distance. Finally she could see Neskahi and Justine walking toward her with the third kid in tow.

  “How many do we have here now?” Neskahi asked, breathing hard from the chase.

  “All three,” Ella said. “Any idea if they’re from the Many Devils?”

  “This one is. And if he wants to make up for the disgrace he’s brought on his clan, he’ll start cooperating a bit.” Justine grumbled. “Investigator Clah and Sergeant Neskahi, I want you to meet my in-a-hell-of-a-jam cousin, Thomas Bileen.”

  Ella looked at the skinny young teen in baggy black pants and a red plaid flannel shirt. He tried to look her in the eye, an act of defiance or lack of respect when directed from youth to adult among Navajos, but couldn’t maintain the gaze for long.

  Ella suspected Thomas Bileen wasn’t nearly as tough as he thought he was. Thomas was, however, in a world of trouble.

  “I’ll take him in, if you don’t mind.” Justine looked from Ella to Sergeant Neskahi, and both nodded. “Cuz has been given his Miranda, now it’s time for he and I to have a little conversation.”

  An hour later, Ella was working on her report, when Justine knocked on the open door.

  “Did any of the teens we rounded up tonight have burn marks on them?” Ella asked.

  “No.” Justine sounded relieved.

  “All right. Let me know if you and the sergeant can get anything more from them or their families,” Ella said, hoping to keep Justine focused.

  Justine’s eyes were moist, as if she’d been crying.

  “Are you okay?” Ella asked quickly.

  “Yeah,” she said, refusing to meet Ella’s gaze. “I just had a very hard time with my aunt Vera. She can’t believe what Thomas has been up to lately, and she wants to take her anger out on the department, especially me.”

  A large woman wearing traditional clothes burst through the doorway to Ella’s office. “This was your doing!”

  Ella stood up and identified herself, gently pushing Justine aside. “And you are?”

  “I’m Vera Bileen. One of the children you arrested is my son. He told me how he was in the parking lot talking with some friends when you put a spotlight on him. He ran away because he was afraid you’d shoot him. I know my son. He’s no criminal.” Tears rolled down her face, but her expression was one of rage, not grief.

  Ella tried to guide the woman to a chair, but she jerked free. “You keep away from me,” she repeated. “My son didn’t do anything to deserve this.”

  Ella wasn’t about to lose her temper, though in her experience nothing she could say would change the woman’s mind. It was all too common for a parent, especially a mother, to defend her child in situations like this. They would even go into complete denial when faced with the harsh reality of their son’s or daughter’s arrest. “We c
aught your son and two others breaking into vehicles outside the Chapter House. We identified ourselves as the police, and told them they were under arrest. Your son, who was holding bolt cutters just used to remove a car battery, ignored our legal order and ran away. He was pursued and apprehended.”

  “We recovered stolen merchandise from their possession, Aunt,” Justine added. “We even have their fingerprints on the items they’d taken from the cars, and the tools they were using.”

  “You’re lying; and you call yourself my niece? Is this what family means to you now that you’re a cop? My son, your cousin, wouldn’t do anything like that.”

  Big Ed came into the room, apparently aware of what was going on. He easily took up the entire doorway with his barrel chest. “Mrs. Bileen, we’re sorry about what happened to your son, but he brought it on himself. You know we were already looking for him for earlier offenses. Officers came by your home more than once with an arrest warrant this afternoon. He’s facing additional charges of a violent nature, including assault with a baseball bat against a young woman and a police officer. His fingerprints are on the bat, and both victims can identify him. You do know he’s in a dangerous youth gang, don’t you?”

  Ella saw the look of pure hatred flash again in the woman’s eyes. “You’re all working together, but I won’t let you get away with this. Instead of helping our kids, your solution is to arrest them.” She met Ella’s gaze and held it. “But this is on your head, Ella Clah. You were the officer in charge, and it’s you I blame for what’s happened. Gladys Bekis is right about the power trip you’re on. Just because you’re a cop, you think you can get away with anything. Someone should take a baseball bat to you.”

  “Be careful of what you say.” Big Ed’s voice rumbled like thunder. “I know you’re upset, but I don’t take any threat against one of my officers lightly. The way you’re talking makes me think that the blame for what happened to your son belongs closer to home.”

  “My son is just a boy, now he’s in jail,” Mrs. Bileen whispered, then slipped past Big Ed and fled down the hall before they could see her tears.

  Justine drew in a shaky breath. “They were boys all right, but they knew what they were doing was wrong. The sad thing is, they didn’t seem to care. We’re the bad guys, because we stepped in to try and stop it. And what’s this about Gladys Bekis? The woman is trying to ruin Ella’s reputation because her brother is a drunk. My aunt should know what’s going on and not believe those lies.”

  “Gladys is digging her own grave on this, and we can’t shut her up legally. It was all come back on her later. But the bust on the Bileen boy was good, and we have enough evidence to make the charges stick,” Big Ed said, looking at Ella, then Justine. “But often a mother refuses to see the faults of her children. This is to be expected.” He moved to the doorway.

  Ella swallowed hard. “I’m used to being the center of controversy. But this is going to be tough on Justine and her family now.”

  Big Ed shrugged. “This is where we show what we’re made of.” He left the room.

  “I wish I’d have seen this coming with Thomas earlier,” Justine said. “As it is, I doubt my aunt will ever speak to me again.”

  “You’ll cope, it’s your aunt and Thomas that have the problem. Somewhere along the way, neither of them have learned to accept that he is responsible for his own behavior, and has to pay for the consequences of his mistakes,” Ella said. Experience had taught her many lessons, and that was one of them.

  * * *

  The next morning, while Neskahi continued to search for the remaining teen involved in the incident with Lillian Peshlakai and Justine processed the evidence, Ella spent some of her time writing down detailed notes of the encounter with the Bekis family at the hospital, including the names, words, and actions, as she could recall them, of everyone else present.

  Just then someone appeared at the door, looking hesitantly around like they weren’t sure they should be there. It was Lena Clani, the leader of the Plant Watchers, and one of her mother’s best friends. “Come on in, Aunt,” Ella urged, “and sit down a while. It’s good to see you again.” Mrs. Clani was a traditionalist, more so than Rose, and Ella knew she shouldn’t speak the woman’s name too often, and use up its power.

  The sixty-or-so-year-old woman was attired in typical reservation garb for those of her generation who would be out visiting a friend: a long cotton dress, sensible canvas shoes, and a scarf over her gray hair. She sat down carefully in Ella’s extra chair, trying not to let her curiosity about Ella’s office show, though her eyes wandered discreetly around the room.

  “Hello, Daughter,” Lena said. “I heard about your mother, and we’re all very concerned. I’ve made up some teas that I know she will like. I came by so you could take them to her.”

  Ella thought about Carolyn’s gift, the chocolates. It had been a good gift, a thoughtful one, but those wild herbs would please Rose more because they were a part of who and what she was.

  “The Plant People are the gift the Holy People give us,” Lena said. “Your brother, as a medicine man, knows about the Life Way medicines that make people well. We keep the knowledge of plants, too, and share what we know whenever we can.”

  “I really appreciate this. I’m worried about my mother.” Ella replied.

  “I knew you would be, that’s why I came here as soon as I could get to town.” Lena reached into her purse and brought out a plastic bag with the tea, and another container as well. “Tell her you got this from me,” she said, offering Ella the herbs. “This other bag has gray knotted medicine. When the plant is soaked in water, the liquid is a fine treatment for aches and pains. Tell her that you now know this thing.”

  Ella thanked Lena, and the old woman stood.

  “Before I go, I have something for you, to satisfy the practical side of your nature, the one who wonders if you should really take time away from police work to listen to an old woman like me,” Lena said with a tiny smile.

  “We’re taught to be observant and patient,” Lena continued. “Because most of us tend to listen instead of speak, we often find out what nobody is supposed to know. I recently heard something that you may find interesting and useful. It seems that the Fierce Ones have visited some of the parents of the children you’ve been looking for, those in the gangs. They have been warned to control their young, or face the consequences.”

  Ella’s eyes widened. She knew the activists were upset about the gangs, but hadn’t heard anything about this. “Are you sure?”

  “Oh yes. Many of the tribe’s women are hurting inside, you know,” she pointed to her heart. “Children sustain us, but when they go wrong, it is the mothers who bleed the most.”

  With Lena’s words still ringing in her ears, Ella started the drive to the hospital. Mrs. Clani had declined a ride with Ella, electing to walk to another friend’s home nearby the police station.

  When Ella got to the hospital, her mother was asleep. Ella sat there for a while, not wanting to disturb her. After an hour, Ella left the herbs on the side table with a note, gave her mom a kiss on the cheek, then left for home.

  She needed time alone to think, and the hospital was certainly not the place to do that, not unless you were a patient.

  It was nearly sundown by the time Ella pulled up by her home and parked. After greeting Two by scratching him behind the ears and under the chin, she invited him inside. She walked to the kitchen to fix herself a snack and, scarcely paying attention, she split her tortilla and cheese sandwich with the dog.

  The sound of a vehicle pulling up outside brought her out of her musings. Ella unsnapped her holster and went to the window, looking out without exposing her silhouette. Even here, she couldn’t afford to let her guard down, now more than ever.

  Ella saw Kevin Tolino step out of his pickup and wait by the running board. The small traditional courtesy, though they were both progressives, mollified her bad mood somewhat. She went to the door, and waved for him to come in
side.

  “What brings you here, neighbor?” Ella asked.

  “Big Ed Atcitty called me,” Kevin said. “He wanted the best attorney in the tribe to represent you.”

  Ella fought a sinking feeling. She’d called him a cockroach not too long ago, and now she’d have to depend on this man to clear her good name. “I’m not sure if that’s such a great idea after the other night.”

  “I am the best attorney around,” he answered.

  There was no false bravado in his tone. To him, it was a statement of fact. Ella watched him for a moment. She really owed him an apology, and this was as good a time to offer one as any she could think of. “Look, I shouldn’t have said … Okay. What I really mean is that sometimes I talk too much and…” She shook her head, exasperated. “Aw, hell. I’m sorry I called you a cockroach.”

  Kevin smiled. “That was hard to say.”

  “Not as hard as admitting I was wrong.”

  “Apology accepted, if that’s what it was. But I wasn’t going to hold it against you. I know that you were hurting at the time, and you said what you did out of anger, not common sense. I detest the drunken-driver situation here on the Rez as much as you do. It’s a plague that’s spreading among The People, and nobody seems to be able to stop it. It’s going to destroy us as a people unless we find a way to bring it under control pretty soon.”

  She waved him to a chair, then filled a teakettle with cold water and put it on the burner. “I’ve been put in a position where I have to prove my innocence or I’m going to lose everything I’ve dedicated my life to. A criminal is innocent until proven guilty, but when it’s a cop who’s accused, it’s the other way around. Do you realize I could be placed on suspension at any time?”

  “Let’s take this one step at a time. First of all, take your time and tell me everything that happened after you got to the hospital that night.”

  “I’m used to giving testimony and writing reports, so I’ve already taken notes on everything I can recall.” Ella reached into her pocket and pulled out a small notebook. “The newspaper reporters who were there should help balance out the statements given by Bekis family members. They might have some photos you can use, too.”