Black Raven's Pride

Jake nodded. “Here in the mornings, there in the afternoons.” He paused. “Our list of guests that day is almost endless. Martin, of course, was here, and so was Mrs. Chino. Our family lawyer came, the Kormans, Samuel Runningwater, some of our best clients from Santa Fe, the Winter Chief and the Summer Chief. I really think that everyone from the pueblo or connected to it visited that day at one time or another.”

Nick weighed the information then, at last, spoke. “As far as I’m concerned, no matter how many came, our uncle should be at the top of our suspect list. Thomas admitted to us months ago that he’d been sneaking into the house for years when our father wasn’t around and searched every room, hoping to find that diary. He’d intended to use it to get leverage over people. In my opinion, it’s very possible he’s gone back to his old tricks.”

“Let’s go over there and pay him a visit. Knowing you’re a cop should rattle him, even if nothing else does,” Jake said.

“Slow down, Jake. We don’t want to go in there like gangbusters, tip our hand, and let him know the diary’s missing. Although we have to know if he’s got the diary, we also have to be careful not to give him any more information. If he discovers the diary’s gone, even if he didn’t take it, he could play on people’s fears who have secrets they want to keep hidden. Let’s think this through before we take any action.”

“We’ll think on the way,” Jake said, grabbing his keys from the desk. “You always move too slow, brother.” He gave Annie a quick kiss, and Noelle a tiny peck on her forehead.

“And you always rush out, leading with your chin. That’s why it ends up on the ground so often.” Nick glanced at Martin, who just shook his head, knowing that neither brother would win this perpetual competition.

They took Jake’s truck, Nick having decided to keep his presence as unofficial as possible, despite Jake’s protests.

As Jake drove past a familiar tree-lined path that led seemingly nowhere, Nick’s thoughts drifted to Eden. There was an old house down that lane that had been gutted by a fire decades ago. These days he saw it as nothing more than a burned-out shell, but back then, meeting with Eden there had made it seem like high adventure.

Relationships hadn’t seemed so complicated in those days and he’d moved faster then, too often tripping over his heart. But nothing had been more important to him than stealing time to be with his girl. It had been a time of discovery, a time of first love. But those days were gone.

“What’s got you so distracted?” Jake asked.

Nick shook his head. “The past haunts me,” he said cryptically, then continued. “But let’s stay on track here,” he added, suddenly all business. “Do you, by any chance, know if Thomas has a job these days? If he’s pressed for cash, then that would give him a motive for stealing the diary. He’s always seen it as an easy way to make money.”

“He’s always pressed for cash,” Jake answered. “What I’d like to do is search his house from top to bottom. If we do, I’d be willing to bet we’d find that diary.”

“Forget it, Jake. Legally we can’t do that. We have nothing to stand on since we have no actual evidence against him.”

“Sure we do,” Jake insisted. “His lousy track record counts for something. He admitted right in front of Captain Mora once that he’d broken into our home many times while our father was still alive. I should have pressed charges then, but I didn’t. His past tells us exactly what he’s capable of doing.”

“Logical, but not legal. We need facts, not a history lesson.”

“How about an unofficial search, then, like he did at our house? You keep him busy outside and I’ll go in and look around. Even if he catches us, he won’t do anything about it. He owes us and he knows it.”

“Think, Jake. Don’t tip your hand so easily. If we’re careful, we can find out if Thomas has been sneaking into the ranch house again without ever letting him know anything’s missing.”

“All right,” Jake said. “But I really like an in-your-face type of confrontation a lot better. It’s more satisfying.”

Nick grinned. Jake may have become a family man with responsibilities, but certain things never changed. Trying to divert some of Jake’s compressed energy, he brought up the subject of the letter Eden’s grandmother had written her.

“According to that, ‘Tall Shadow’ was connected to the crime which resulted in her parents’ death,” Nick said. “As you know, Tall Shadow was Dad’s nickname, and, if that’s true, our father ruined an entire family. Eden’s mom and dad are dead, but Eden is still paying for what happened, so our family could owe her big time.”

“If it’s true,” Jake repeated. “And I really doubt that. Our father was many things, but no way I’m going to believe he was party to the theft of sacred items or the framing of an innocent woman. That just wasn’t his style. He was like me, an in-your-face fighter.”

“So you think I should let this drop?” Nick asked.

“Yeah, for now. Let’s see how things develop. Unlike this matter of the diary, it doesn’t require immediate action.”

“Agreed.”

A short time later they pulled up in front of their uncle’s home. Thomas Ray had lived in the stucco and wood frame house for the past thirty years. There was a wire fence around the property and a sagging wooden gate that led to the backyard.

As the twin brothers stepped up onto the porch, a strong breeze blew the front door open a few inches. Nick stopped and glanced around, holding out his hand to signal Jake to remain still. “His truck’s not here, so why’s that door open? Our people generally don’t use locks, but they do close doors.” He peeked through the foot-wide opening into the house.

“Maybe he’s still around. The fact that his truck’s not here doesn’t mean anything. His pickup’s long past a stop at the junkyard. It could be over at Ralph’s gas station getting its engine rebuilt, or broken down between here and Santa Fe.”

“Point taken. Now hang back,” Nick said, pushing the door open completely. “If he’s around, and this door’s open, something’s wrong.”

Jake went inside first, despite Nick’s warning. Cursing, Nick rushed in after him, hoping his brother wasn’t about to confront a burglar.

“Jake, what the hell are you doing? You can’t burst inside someone’s home like this.”

“Chill out. It isn’t like we’re breaking and entering.” Jake bumped into a low table and a small clay pot fell to the floor, shattering into several pieces. “Well, okay, now it’s entering and breaking. But we’re here, so let’s look around.”

“This wouldn’t be a legal search,” Nick snapped. “It’s a waste of time.”

“Are you one hundred percent certain that our uncle isn’t in trouble? The door swinging wide open by itself is enough to indicate suspicious circumstances. We’re here, worried about a family member. You’re not on duty now, are you?”

“Who do you expect to sell that load of garbage to? Captain Mora wouldn’t swallow it.”

“Fine, but let’s look around anyway. We owe it to ourselves.”

“You don’t get it, do you? It’s illegal, and I’m a cop. I don’t want to arrest my own idiot brother.”

“I’ll tell you what. Go out back and see if our uncle is around the yard, maybe chopping wood or pulling weeds.”

Nick’s expression hardened. “I’m going to give you just the time it’ll take me to go through the house and make sure there’s no signs of trouble here,” he snapped. “Then we both leave.”

“That’s the spirit. I’ll work fast, and you work slowly. And if we happen to see the diary, we’ll take it back.”

“I didn’t hear that,” Nick said. Seeing the pot shards on the floor, he stopped and picked them up. “No sense in advertising the fact that we were here,” he said, then added, “At least this is something that was stolen from us originally. I remember seeing it at our house after Dad was killed, and I know neither of us gave it to Thomas.”

Jake was already in the single bedroom searching by the time Nick threw all the ceramic fragments into the trash.

Several minutes later, Jake met his brother by the door. “He’s only got a few pieces of furniture. I opened every drawer. The closets were full of clothes and cardboard boxes of stuff, but there was no diary. If it’s here, it’s too well hidden for us to find easily.”

Nick looked around with a scowl. “Come on. We’re wasting time.” He led the way back to the truck.

Hearing his cell phone ring, Nick grabbed it from his pocket and flipped it open. He listened, then answered. “I’m on my way.”

Nick glanced over at his brother. “There’s trouble at the school. The principal reported someone watching the kids from inside a hedge behind the basketball court. There’s a big cornfield just beyond the school grounds, so that’s probably how he got in close. No one else is available so I’m responding to the call. Give me a ride over there, will you?”

“Sure thing.” Jake pressed down on the accelerator. “Any ideas what that could be about?”

Nick nodded. “About two dozen pueblo kids will be initiated into the tribe soon. Anthropologists from area universities have been dying to find out what goes on during that ritual, so when they hear one’s about to take place, they start nosing around.”

Jake smiled. “Remember when it was our turn to be initiated? All the girls got off easy, but it was different for us.”

“My knees were shaking by the time they turned to us and asked us if we really wanted to be finished,” Nick answered.

“Then we had to promise never to reveal what went on because if all our ceremonies were made public, they’d lose their power, and our people wouldn’t have the protection of our gods,” Jake said.