Dark Moon Crossing (36 page)

“What about the dad, was he up to his neck in this
scheme also?‌”

“No. That’s why Payton didn’t go to the extra expense
to bail him out too. But, he needed Jason on the job that night, along with
Cutter and the two other Sundog ranch hands, both of whom are members of the
Beaumont Ranch Patrol within that coalition.”

“So, Champ Beaumont is still in jail?‌”

“From what I heard earlier, he was finally released a
few hours ago, and Twyla’s brother, Dean, is on his way to get him now.”

“What an unbelievable mess,” Tugg muttered.

“No kidding.”

“I still don’t understand something,” he continued.
“Whose idea was it to lock you up in the Morita jail?‌ I’m assuming it was
their plan that you be there to witness their UFO…show, for lack of a better
term.”

“I still don’t have the full answer to that,” I
replied. “But, from what I’ve been able to piece together from the various
confessions, Jason was listening in on my phone call last Monday and he alerted
Payton, who already knew I was going there before we met for lunch. For
obvious reasons, they didn’t want me nosing around, so they arranged to set up
a UFO sighting, hoping it would either scare me off or discredit me.”

“So…you don’t think they planned to just let you die
there?‌”

“Jason claims they didn’t but I’ll probably never know
for sure because, thank goodness, Russell Greene found me.”

Tugg growled, “You are one lucky lady.”

“Don’t I know it,” I responded solemnly.

Walter interjected, “What was the point of stealing
your car?‌”

“So no one would know I was there, including Russell.
Jason claims some other group stripped the car after they ditched it near
Amado. The whole scenario was designed to get me the hell out of town and
believe me, if Tally hadn’t shown up, it would have worked.” I couldn’t help
remembering Payton’s benevolent offer to drive me to Tucson.

“But, you were leaving that afternoon anyway, why
bother to go to all that trouble?‌” Tugg mused.

“Because, during that same phone conversation with
Walter, I told him that I planned to return and continue the investigation
after my vacation. They sure didn’t want to risk that happening.”

“This is making me sick,” Walter complained. “Okay, I
have to know. Was Bob involved in this scheme?‌”

“Not directly, but apparently Hank Breslow was. He
offered Bob sizeable sums of cash to look the other way on his rounds near
Morita, but after finding the frightened migrant and hearing his UFO story, he
got suspicious and told Hank he wanted out of the deal. That’s when Hank
cooked up the idea to anonymously implicate Bob in a drug smuggling ring. He
figured that would be enough to discredit him and get him out of the picture,
but Payton was afraid he already knew too much. They lured him out to the
reservation that night on some phony pretense and apparently he was just
starting a letter of confession for Loydeen to read to their children, in case
anything happened to him, when they jumped him. Payton administered the
Tubocurarine, placed Bob’s own firearm in his hand and pulled the trigger.”

“Where’d he get all these drugs?‌”

“They don’t know for sure yet, but they suspect he
obtained them from one or more of his contacts at the hospitals in Mexico
City.”

“Wouldn’t they have found the drug in Bob’s system
during the autopsy?‌”

“According to what I learned from the medical
examiner, they screen for social or street drugs such as cocaine, marijuana,
ecstasy, barbiturates and so on, but they would not have been looking for this
particular drug because it’s not commonly used. I’m sure his body will be
exhumed for testing now.”

Walter said, “I’m surprised Loydeen didn’t press the
authorities on that point. She had to suspect he’d been murdered.”

“She did, but Cutter and Jason warned Loydeen to keep
her mouth shut and accept the verdict of suicide without question, or she and
her kids would be next. You remember that agent you mentioned a few days ago
that disappeared right after Bob’s funeral?‌”

“You mean Alberto Morales?‌”

“Right. The intelligence guys at the Border Patrol I
talked to this morning suspect he may well have been involved too, but decided
to cut and run before the same thing happened to him. Apparently, it’s a
pretty widespread problem.”

Walter blew out a surprised whistle. “Damn. Lavelle’s
gonna have a stroke when I tell her that he was mixed up in something this…this
awful.”

“That brings up another question,” Tugg interjected.
“What was the point of the UFO light show and prancing around in these space
getups scaring the shit out of these people?‌”

“So that if anyone escaped, like the first guy and
then Javier, no one would believe them. They had no qualms about killing off
the
coyotes
that brought the loads across either. I have to admit that
if I hadn’t already suspected what was going on, it might have fooled me. It
really was an ingenious enterprise.”

“How did they figure out this kid was at the mission
and that he knew anything?‌”

“Unfortunately, they actually traced it back to me.
Because of Froggy, Payton knew I’d been at the mission and he was aware of my
meeting with Mazzie La Casse from day one. Cutter saw me at the Shirley place,
and when Froggy told Payton about Javier’s nightmares, he finally put everything
together and the poor little tyke ended up back at Wolf’s Head, where the whole
thing started.”

“Why’d Kleinwort choose that particular place?‌” Tugg
continued.

“He’d known about the hidden caves since childhood, so
when the Morita property became available, he purchased it through a phony
mining corporation he’d set up in Nevada. He posted no trespassing signs to
keep people away, but when the hiker Walter told me about earlier died after
falling into one of the old mine shafts, Payton couldn’t take a chance on more
people stumbling into his little den of horrors. He fenced the place and hired
Russell Greene to keep people away from the area. Poor Russell. Payton
convinced him that he and the others were conducting secret government CIA
experiments for testing new weapons or some such nonsense, and for whatever
reason he chose to believe it. Jason confirmed that he hadn’t known what was
going on inside the cave.”

Walter asked, “Where’d they get all the props and
costumes?‌”

“Ah, that’s an interesting twist. They were leftovers
from a science fiction film that had been shot on the Sundog several years
ago. That’s where they got that fake plastic boulder they used to hide the
mouth of the cave.” I told them I hadn’t found out yet exactly what kind of equipment
they’d used to simulate the UFO, but that the investigators had found a strobe
light that was powered by the same type of batteries they’d used to run the
generator.

Rascal came up beside my chair and nudged me with his
nose. As I petted his silky fur, it triggered the memory of the giant
dust-covered battery I’d seen underneath Jason’s bed the night I’d been in his
room. I added, “Payton got the idea for terrorizing the immigrants after Mazzie
La Casse questioned him about seeing strange lights on his nocturnal snake
hunts. He pumped her for information and then followed up by doing his own
research on the alien abduction phenomenon.”

“You mean he really was collecting snakes?‌” Tugg asked
with surprise.

“Oh yes. It was the perfect cover. He’d pretty much
thought of everything.”

Walter interjected, “What about this Hoggwhistle
woman?‌ How does she fit into the picture?‌”

“Initially, it looks as if she’ll be indicted on
smuggling charges along with the rest of them. But one of the sheriff’s
deputies I talked with this morning says he doubts they can make the charges
stick. She’s claiming that she never physically helped to bring the
undocumented migrants across nor did she receive any payment. She’s staying
with the same story that her sole purpose is to feed, clothe and provide
transportation for needy people. And she can always say she had no way of
knowing they were illegals.”

“So…do you think she was in cahoots with this
Kleinwort fellow?‌” Tugg asked, sounding confused.

“On the contrary. Not long after she’d renovated the
mission and opened her doors to immigrants, the Knights of Right decided to put
her out of business. First, Payton sent Hank and a couple of the other agents
to hassle her. When that didn’t work he dispatched Cutter and his goons to
burn the place down, but he changed his plans after running into Froggy one
night at the saloon. Froggy was tanked as usual and blabbed that he suspected
that she was working hand in hand with several
coyotes
smuggling
immigrants across the border. Apparently he thought she was extracting large
payments in exchange for helping the migrants.”

“And was she?‌”

“Who knows?‌ She continues to maintain that she’s
merely helping people in need, regardless of their legal status.”

“Humphhh!” Tugg snorted in my ear. “You know the old
saying, religion is the last refuge of a scoundrel.”

I laughed and went on. “Anyway, Payton decided it
would be easy pickings to simply siphon off some of the illegals from her
loads. Froggy got paid handsomely to let him or Jason know exactly when to
come pick them up, and of course, Hank Breslow made sure they got to their
final destination in Morita. Oh, and Froggy also got paid to ferry shipments of
weapons out to the cave inside his camper shell.”

“Pretty industrious fellow,” Walter commented dryly.
“He was making money all over the place. But how did he know about this
woman’s prison record?‌”

“He’s Johnny Ray Barker’s step-brother. He told the
deputies that Barker suspected she’d hidden the money someplace before her
arrest and planned to get it when she was released from prison. Froggy
followed her out here and threatened to divulge her new identity if she didn’t
pay up. When she wasn’t around he turned the place upside down hunting for the
money she’d supposedly skimmed from the nursing home scam.”

Walter cut in to say his wife was waiting to pick him
up, congratulated me on the story and thanked me for clearing Bob Shirley’s
name before hanging up. I wondered how much relief Lavelle would actually feel,
knowing that her cousin had been murdered instead of committing suicide.
Either way, it was a tragic ending and a lot of issues were left on the table,
unresolved. In fact, there’d been a lot of unhappy endings to this sordid
story and I wasn’t feeling too great about the results of my ability as a
reporter at that moment. When I voiced my thoughts to Tugg, he remarked, “Well,
I gotta say, that was one hell of a way to spend your vacation.”

“It hardly classifies as one,” I groused, “and look at
the trail of debris left in my wake. Because of me, an innocent man died, I
was too late to help Lupe, Javier is now at a shelter in Nogales, Sonora, and
Sister Goldenrod hates my guts.” I lowered my voice, adding, “I’m sure not
winning any prizes for popularity with the Beaumonts for fingering Jason, I
lost my car and all my stuff…but I think what’s bothering me the most is that
on top of all that I put Tally’s life at risk pretty much for nothing. There’s
no real resolution to this border problem, so what did I really accomplish?‌
Yeah, it’s been great fun.”

“Hey, whoa, whoa, time out. You’re being way too hard
on yourself. Because of your efforts, you’ve saved those people’s lives, not
to mention all the future atrocities you’ve stopped by exposing this maniac.
Christ Almighty, I still can’t believe he was carving these people up while
they were still alive! Give yourself a pat on the back, kiddo. You deserve
some accolades for your effort.”

“Well, thanks.”

“Quit beating yourself up. You did your best. Granted
your tactics are a little dramatic,” he tacked on with a chuckle.

“You think so?‌”

Tugg’s hearty laugh echoed in my ear. “Here’s a
thought. Why don’t you try just
reporting
the next story for a change
instead of becoming part of it?‌”

“You sound just like Tally,” I answered wryly. “He
swears I’m an adrenaline junkie. Maybe I am.”

“Seriously, Kendall, you’re a damn fine journalist.
Most reporters work their entire careers and never come across anything even
close to what you’ve just uncovered, including yours truly. Hells bells,
inside of six months you’ve scooped three of the biggest, weirdest stories I’ve
ever heard of in my life. Now listen, I know how stubborn you are and you’re probably
not gonna want to hear this, but take a little advice from an old newshound and
slow down for awhile. Have a little fun, for chrissake, or you’re gonna end up
with a big fat ulcer like me.”

At that moment, the door behind me opened, and Tally
walked in looking wind-blown, sunburned and exhausted. I waved, smiled, and
said softly to Tugg, “You know something, this time I think I’ll take your
advice.”

It was late Saturday afternoon before Tally finished
loading all of his belongings into the pickup. While he stood on the porch
saying his final goodbyes to the Beaumonts, I sat in the cab of his truck
watching dark gray storm clouds gather over the crown of Baboquivari Peak,
thinking that nothing would ever be the same at the Sundog. I felt especially
sorry for Brett, who would one day understand the magnitude of what his father
had done.

It had been a difficult weekend with Champ coming
home, pale and sunken-cheeked, to find the ranch swarming with reporters,
sheriff’s detectives and federal agents. He’d been cordial to me, as was
Twyla, but it was hard to dismiss the fact that I’d been responsible for their
son’s arrest. And, it was obvious by the stricken look of realization on
Bethany’s face when she’d witnessed Tally and me coming down the stairs
together each morning arm in arm, that any further pursuit of him would be a
waste of time.

I think the only person sorry to see me leave
was Lin Su. I’d actually caught a glimpse of emotion in the
stoic little woman’s piercing black eyes after I’d given her a spontaneous hug
and expressed my gratitude for all she’d done for me. Afterwards, she’d bowed
her head and, in a halting voice, confirmed my suspicions that Bethany may have
slipped something into my tea the night Cecil had wound up in my bed. “I find
in her room,” she admitted, extending a handful of colorful pills. “Maybe Missy
Bethany give them by accident?‌” I’m sure she didn’t believe that any more than
I did, but I appreciated her sense of loyalty to the Beaumont family. I
thanked her again for her honesty before she quickly left the room. It
disturbed me greatly to know that Bethany had been willing to take such extreme
measures to insinuate herself into Tally’s life.

Earlier that day, Dean Pierce had arrived in his truck
with Marmalade. As I hugged the kitten close to me and thanked him for his
kindness, I couldn’t suppress the nagging guilt that I’d entertained for one
second the idea that this compassionate man could have played any role
whatsoever in Payton’s diabolical scheme. At my request, he’d been caring for
Attila until I could figure out how to honor Russell Greene’s last request. To
my great surprise, Tally had agreed to take him home to the Starfire.

As if he’d known I was thinking about him, the big
dog’s throaty bark alerted me to Tally’s approach. “Ready to go?‌” he asked,
climbing into the seat beside me.

I beamed him a relieved smile. “More than ready.”

With Marmalade curled warmly on my lap and Attila
inside a carrier in the bed of the truck, we rolled down the Sundog road. When
we reached the pavement and headed north, I took a last look back towards the
forbidding rock towers of Wolf’s Head, once again thanking my lucky stars that
we’d both come out of the ordeal in one piece. We rode in silence for a while
and I shot a glance at Tally’s profile. We’d been so busy during the past
three days and so dog-tired each night, there hadn’t yet been a good
opportunity to totally clear the air between us even though I thought I’d used
all the words in the English language to tell him how sorry I was for the way
things had turned out. He’d rejected my suggestion that we spend the remaining
days of our time off in California, deciding instead to head back to Castle
Valley. The knowledge that he’d never once mentioned the engagement ring
weighed heavily on my heart and left me feeling unsure about the future of our
relationship. Busily chewing gum, his eyes glued to the road ahead, he said
nothing as the miles whipped past. Unable to bear the silence any longer, I
burst out, “Okay, I’m ready. Let’s get the list of I told you so’s out of the
way. I’m ready to accept my punishment so we can enjoy the rest of the trip
home.”

Tally narrowed his eyes at me before tapping his
watch. “There isn’t enough time to accomplish that between here and Castle
Valley.” If I hadn’t been looking at him I would have missed the mischievous
twinkle in his eyes.

“Your point is well taken,” I answered humbly. “But,
in my defense, this whole thing started out as a simple missing persons
situation. How could I have known it would turn out like this?‌”

“You couldn’t, Kendall, and I know better than to
think you’re ever going to change your ways but….”

“Oh, but I am,” I interrupted. “Tugg’s already read
me the riot act, Ginger too for that matter, so, believe me, I’ve got the
message loud and clear. For the time being, I’ve decided to turn over these
types of assignments to Walter or Jim. You can chain me to the desk in the
office if that will help convince you.”

He arched a skeptical brow. “Really?‌”

“Really.”

He shook his head. “You’re misunderstanding me, as
usual. I’m not looking to have you alter your personality to please me.
Then…you wouldn’t be you. I mean…” he paused, apparently searching for the
right words before adding, “I love your passionate nature, your bulldog
determination to see things through, and I know your heart’s always in the
right place, but for Christ’s sake, couldn’t you maybe take just a little less
risk next time?‌ Call the sheriff
before
your life is on the line
instead of after the fact?‌ I don’t want to lose you, especially now that we
have a family.” He edged me that lopsided grin that always lightened my heart
and thumbed behind him to Attila, before reaching over to pet Marmalade.

I smiled back. “Cowboy, you’ve got a deal. And I
promise I’ll take that firearms safety course now.”

He flicked me a look of amusement. “After seeing the
results of the way you clobbered Payton with that piece of rebar, I’m not sure
you need it.”

We both laughed for the first time in days. I scooted
closer to him and leaned my head on his shoulder, enjoying the peaceful warmth
rushing through my veins, knowing in my heart that things were going to be all
right.

We were only about a half an hour from Castle Valley
and the sun had just ducked behind the bank of dark clouds when Tally suddenly
announced, “What do you say we pull over here and let Attila out for a few
minutes?‌”

“You don’t think he can wait?‌”

“Nope.”

“Okay, sure.”

He pulled the truck to the side of the road and while
he was attaching the dog’s leash, I laid Marmalade tenderly on the seat. When
she looked up at me with adoration beaming from her bright turquoise-green
eyes, I couldn’t help remembering Payton’s assertion that animals love
unconditionally. Maybe I could learn something from that.

After a short hike, we reached the top of a nearby
bluff and turned back to the western horizon. The splendor of the sun’s
brilliant scarlet rays shooting skyward from behind the mound of gold-rimmed
clouds took my breath away. It seemed like a good omen. “Wow,” I marveled,
“have you ever seen anything more beautiful in your whole life?‌”

He turned to me with the sunset’s bright light
reflecting in his solemn gaze. “Yep, I have, and by the way,” he said, tenderly
brushing a strand of hair from my face, “my ears work fine.”

“What do you mean?‌”

“I wasn’t completely out when you were talking to me
inside that cave. I heard every single word you said.” When his arms closed
around me, I melted into his embrace, returning his fervent kiss with one of my
own until I thought I’d burst with sheer joy.

When he gently disengaged his hold on me and reached
inside his coat pocket, my breath caught as he pulled out a small velvet box.
Electrified, I braced for his words, but all at once, he seemed ill at ease.
Clearing his throat, he shifted his stance uneasily. “Kendall, um…I think you
know how I feel, and I know we’ve still got a whole lot of things to work out
but…well, what I’m trying to say….”

I don’t know what came over me, but before I could
stop myself, the words poured from my heart. “Bradley James Talverson, will you
please marry me?‌”

After
his initial start of surprise, his eyes softened as he slipped the diamond on
my trembling finger. “Miss O’Dell, I thought you’d never ask.”