the front bumper. A minute later a tall Navajo man in dress slacks and a long-sleeved yellow shirt stepped out, holding a cell phone to his ear. Ella recognized Robert Buck immediately. As he continued speaking to the person on theother end, the tribe’s head attorney motioned for them to approach.
When they reached the concrete porch, he opened the frontdoor and silently invited them inside. Buck led them through an ordinary-looking living room, where a wall-mounted large-screen TV was tuned to a baseball game, then down a hall into his office. He waved them toward a small sofa and continued his conversation.
“The officers are here right now,” Robert Buck told the person on the other end. “I’ll let you know what progress has been made as soonas possible.” Buck closed up the phone and focused on them, standing with his hips pressed against the front of his desk.
“Special Investigator Clah, I’m glad to see you’re not seriously injured. And Special Agent Blalock, it’s good to see the Bureau’s going to work with us on this.” He reached out and shook Blalock’s hand, an Anglo political concession. Casual physical contact was somethingthat didn’t come naturally to the
Diné
.
Buck walked around to his desk chair, then sat. “Our tribal president is going to be watching this case very closely. A national hero and one of our tribe’s most respected attorneys have been attacked here on our land. A security lapse like that should have never been allowed to happen.”
Ella felt the implied criticism in his words and struggled for amoment to suppress her resentment.
“Have you uncovered a motive for the attack?” Buck asked.
“It’s too soon for that,” Ella said.
“Have you considered the possibility that you, Investigator Clah, were the real target?” Buck asked. “As a police officer, you make enemies with nearly every arrest.”
“We haven’t ruled anything out, but the events suggest that the two men wearing business suitswere the focus of the attack—not me. The gunmen opened fire on Kevin Tolinoand Adam Lonewolf first, though I was a closer target. Most of the shots were directed at them, too. The suspects didn’t shift their aim to me until I returned fire. They also withdrew even though I was obviously still alive.”
Buck nodded thoughtfully, but didn’t comment.
“That brings me to the reason I’m here,” Ellasaid. “I need to fill in some gaps.”
Ella told him about the cash they’d found—$75,000 according to Justine, who’d text-messaged her the amount during the long drive. “I’ll be speaking to Mr. Lonewolf’s family later, but at this point we have no idea why Adam was carrying so much money, where it came from, or why he chose to conceal it from airport security.”
Buck leaned back in his chair, stretchinghis long legs out before him. His angular features sharpened even more as he weighed what she’d told him. “That money didn’t come from our office. I can tell you that much for sure. I also can’t imagine that amount having come from any branch of tribal government. In a world of accountants and financial responsibility, all our tribal business transactions and payouts are conducted via moneytransfers or checks. Nobody in government uses that amount of cash.”
“Is it possible that Kevin negotiated some kind of settlement with casino management and that was some of the money being returned to the tribe?” Ella asked. “Something done in cash might help keep the paperwork low profile and save some embarrassing disclosures.”
“Just the opposite, I’d say, but either way that couldn’t havehappened without my knowledge.” Buck regarded her thoughtfully. “Kevin’s had a tough time making his case. Casino Enterprises covers their paper trail well, and they want certain things to stay hidden. I’ve heard rumblings about a move to get him fired, or demoted. They’re also willing to play as rough as it takes to divert from the real
When they reached the concrete porch, he opened the frontdoor and silently invited them inside. Buck led them through an ordinary-looking living room, where a wall-mounted large-screen TV was tuned to a baseball game, then down a hall into his office. He waved them toward a small sofa and continued his conversation.
“The officers are here right now,” Robert Buck told the person on the other end. “I’ll let you know what progress has been made as soonas possible.” Buck closed up the phone and focused on them, standing with his hips pressed against the front of his desk.
“Special Investigator Clah, I’m glad to see you’re not seriously injured. And Special Agent Blalock, it’s good to see the Bureau’s going to work with us on this.” He reached out and shook Blalock’s hand, an Anglo political concession. Casual physical contact was somethingthat didn’t come naturally to the
Diné
.
Buck walked around to his desk chair, then sat. “Our tribal president is going to be watching this case very closely. A national hero and one of our tribe’s most respected attorneys have been attacked here on our land. A security lapse like that should have never been allowed to happen.”
Ella felt the implied criticism in his words and struggled for amoment to suppress her resentment.
“Have you uncovered a motive for the attack?” Buck asked.
“It’s too soon for that,” Ella said.
“Have you considered the possibility that you, Investigator Clah, were the real target?” Buck asked. “As a police officer, you make enemies with nearly every arrest.”
“We haven’t ruled anything out, but the events suggest that the two men wearing business suitswere the focus of the attack—not me. The gunmen opened fire on Kevin Tolinoand Adam Lonewolf first, though I was a closer target. Most of the shots were directed at them, too. The suspects didn’t shift their aim to me until I returned fire. They also withdrew even though I was obviously still alive.”
Buck nodded thoughtfully, but didn’t comment.
“That brings me to the reason I’m here,” Ellasaid. “I need to fill in some gaps.”
Ella told him about the cash they’d found—$75,000 according to Justine, who’d text-messaged her the amount during the long drive. “I’ll be speaking to Mr. Lonewolf’s family later, but at this point we have no idea why Adam was carrying so much money, where it came from, or why he chose to conceal it from airport security.”
Buck leaned back in his chair, stretchinghis long legs out before him. His angular features sharpened even more as he weighed what she’d told him. “That money didn’t come from our office. I can tell you that much for sure. I also can’t imagine that amount having come from any branch of tribal government. In a world of accountants and financial responsibility, all our tribal business transactions and payouts are conducted via moneytransfers or checks. Nobody in government uses that amount of cash.”
“Is it possible that Kevin negotiated some kind of settlement with casino management and that was some of the money being returned to the tribe?” Ella asked. “Something done in cash might help keep the paperwork low profile and save some embarrassing disclosures.”
“Just the opposite, I’d say, but either way that couldn’t havehappened without my knowledge.” Buck regarded her thoughtfully. “Kevin’s had a tough time making his case. Casino Enterprises covers their paper trail well, and they want certain things to stay hidden. I’ve heard rumblings about a move to get him fired, or demoted. They’re also willing to play as rough as it takes to divert from the real
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