By midmorning a small crowd had gathered in the Ryan yard, the Spanish farmers around Hector Trujillo, the gringos beside Elaine.
“You remember the man living here? You probably saw him around?” Elaine tried not to sound judgmental.
“Kate Ryan’s boyfriend?” a woman asked.
“We saw him,” the mechanic said. “He fixes cars.”
“I thought he was a narc,” someone added.
“Kate knows how to pick them,” Elaine said. “He was shot last night.”
“Killed?”
“I heard it was Ruby who shot him.”
“Drug dealers shot him,” a teacher chimed in.
“Is he dead?”
“Not dead. He’s talking to police but Ruby is missing.”
August came up on the last word. He’d spent the night with a friend in Ojo Sarco and decided to stop at the Ryan place on his way home. He was shocked by the sight of police cars and an ambulance in the driveway. Nothing ever happened in Zamora.
“What the hell!” he exclaimed.
“Someone shot Kate Ryan’s boyfriend, Troy.”
“He’s not her boyfriend,” August said.
“Maybe not but he’s shot. Ruby’s gone.”
“Gone?”
“Kidnapped.”
“Not true!” August declared heatedly.
“Maybe true, maybe not,” someone offered sympathetically.
“Those kids grew up together,” the mechanic explained.
“Strangers came, shot the man, and took Ruby. That’s the unconfirmed story so far,” Elaine said.
“No way!”
“Ask Hector Trujillo. He was the first to get here.”
August walked unsteadily over to the village farmers. They stood, passing around cans of Bud tall boys. Behind them was a patch of fields. A cow had managed to escape through the fence and grazed by the road. Beyond the fields was the Trujillo compound and satellite dish. Among the men was Juan Pedro, who recently told Ruby she had nice tits and asked if he could smell her hair.
August walked directly up to Juan Pedro and punched him in the jaw.
“Hey!” Juan Pedro jumped on August and pounded his back. “Fucking dog mierda!”
Two others pulled the boys apart.
“Is it true Ruby’s gone?” August stammered.
“It is true,” Hector replied.
Tears clouded August’s eyes. Somehow this had to be partly his fault.
“He makes Ruby’s life miserable,” August accused Juan Pedro. “Every day he says ugly shit to her.”
“Hey, you!” an officer shouted across the yard.
“Who me?” Hector started to run.
“No, the kid.” The officer motioned for August to step forward.
“Hello, August,” David Tanner said.
“If I can assist,” the young man fumbled. “You know I’d do anything.”
The inspector pointed to Kate’s wicker armchair. “Tell us where you were last night.”
“Where?” August laughed nervously. “Asleep, I guess.”
“Coffee, August?” Kate asked.
“Last night?” the inspector repeated sternly. “Were you home?”
“I was at Wayne’s house in Ojo Sarco.”
“Did you see Ruby?”
“I wanted to,” he said.
The inspector rose. He towered over August. “Why didn’t you?”
“She doesn’t want to see me.” August kept his head down, his eyes on the floor.
“Did you two have a fight?”
“Ask if the Wayne dude has a blond ponytail?” Troy interrupted.
“Not a fight exactly. Sometimes, she’s moody. I can’t ever tell what’s going through her mind.”
“Do you know that man there?” The inspector pointed to Kate’s bed.
August’s eyebrows arched. “Sure I know him. I wish I didn’t.”
“Mr. Mason says two guys your age, your height, your hair color came by last night.”
August laughed too loudly. “He’s lying!”
“Better watch it, punk-ass hippie bastard liar!” Troy yelled.
“Why would you accuse Mr. Mason of lying?”
“He’s the liar!” Troy bellowed. “He and Ruby both, they’re dope fiends. Ask him. Stealing dope and lying about what they do, staying out all night, drinking, getting high, fucking and sleeping in a truck. Ask him!”
“Why would you say that about Mr. Mason?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know why I said it. I guess Ruby told me he’s a liar. Like pathological liar. Like somebody who makes up stories and lives in a fantasy world.”
“Why would Ruby say that about Mr. Mason?”
“Because he’s always banging on about his money and his cars and his yachts and his houses everywhere. He carries around photos of shit and says they belong to him. But it’s like he cut them out of Vanity Fair. He wants to impress everybody while he sponges off Kate. Ruby saw through him. I guess I did too.”
“Was it a lie?” Troy cried. “Didn’t I get my money and come up here to pay Kate back?”
Kate stood up. “Can you leave now and look for Ruby?”
“We’re looking,” the inspector said dryly. “We got lots of folks looking.”
His opinions had vacillated wildly since he arrived at the Ryan household.
“August, do you know where Ruby is now?” he asked.
“Of course not,” August said unconvincingly.
“If you know, August,” Kate sobbed. “I could die of worry right now.”
“I don’t know anything,” he said feebly.
“Put a mask on his face and tell me he doesn’t know anything,” Troy said.
“What does that mean?” August asked.
“Doc, my knee is killing me.” Troy tried to move his leg.
“The ambulance will run you down to the hospital in Santa Fe,” the inspector responded. “How does that sound?”
Troy closed his eyes to savor the question. It sounded like the Hand of the Lord had joined him in a master plan.