69

Sound traveled strangely in the desert, and so Canyon suggested that they continue the conversation at Toad’s home. Canyon wouldn’t have entertained the idea of leaving a hostage situation where the hostage was his own son under other circumstances, but considering that Toad’s house was parked less than twenty feet away, along the side of the road, he agreed to have a drink with his old friend in order to calm his nerves.

Now, sitting on the small couch inside Todd Todacheeney’s motorhome, John Canyon sipped his whiskey and laid out his story. Toad had come to work for him after Canyon had returned from the Persian Gulf, during the time when he organized the various gang factions in northern New Mexico into a cohesive unit under his control. But he had known Xavier Yazzie for much longer than that. And when he had come back and saw that a brutal display of strength would allow them to take power, he had called up the most brutal person he knew: Xavier Yazzie.

Not sure of where to begin, Canyon took a sip of the dark liquid and ran a hand over his now graying hair as he leaned back and said the first thing that came to mind. “Did I ever tell you how I met Reyna?”

Toad shook his head, leaning forward in his barcalounger and gripping his glass with both hands.

“Xavier was actually the one who introduced us. He caught me looking at her and made the comment that if I would like a date with her, he could arrange it. I told him that she could speak for herself and I could get my own dates. He shrugged it off, but I got to thinking about it later, and I guess my attraction to Reyna won out over my aversion to her brother. I had him set me up with her. A year later, we were married. I never really thought much about all that at the time, until I heard about the way they had grown up. Reyna didn’t talk about it much, but I’d heard it from others. Then I started to wonder, on that night when he offered to set me up with his sister, was he meaning that he could set me up on a date like a friend, or was he saying that he would give me a free night with her if I wanted?”

Toad didn’t comment. The thick man merely nodded and sipped from his glass.

Canyon continued, “After we were married, I always made sure that I had a place in my operation for my brother-in-law. And he was an expert at certain kinds of work. When I ordered Yazzie to eliminate out rival gang leaders, he would usually take them out into the desert to dispose of the bodies. I don’t know what he did to them out there, but what was left of them looked like they had been eaten by animals. The few that were discovered were found naked and staked to the ground with their limps splayed out in an X.”

At the description of the way the bodies were found, Toad’s brow furrowed, and he said, “That sounds just like something I saw on—”

“Right, all the belagana prostitutes who have been getting snatched and murdered around the border towns. The work of a serial killer who has been operating for years, killing in every major town from Cortez all the way down to Flagstaff. They’ve only recently starting connecting the cases with the use of some new database. ”

“And you think Yazzie is the one doing all that?”

“I don’t know what to think. Not completely. But a few months ago, I found that there was money missing at the casino from a lockbox that only a few people have access to. One of those people is my wife.”

“And Yazzie?” Toad asked.

“No, Reyna seemed to be the only real possibility. I confronted her about it. I thought she was using again. She swore to me that she wasn’t. And she got so angry at the accusation that she moved out of the ranch and has been staying in the penthouse ever since.”

“But you think that she stole the money?”

“I think that Yazzie made her steal it for some reason. I’ve suspected for a while that there’s been another man in her life, but every time that I think I’m going to catch her with a lover, she’s with her brother.”

Toad’s eyes went so wide now that they were almost comical, and although Todacheeney hadn’t earned his nickname because of his physical features, Canyon couldn’t help but think that he now had the look of an amphibian. Toad said, “You think that… Your wife, Reyna… And her brother, Xavier… Are what? Stirring the Kool-Aid, so to speak?”

“If I knew anything for sure, I’d have already done something about it Toad. I only have a lot of suspicions and questions. But I know that Yazzie is up to something, and I don’t trust him because I know what he is. He’s a monster. He has no loyalty because he has no love for anything but himself. He is an expert manipulator, and he always plays the long game. He’s a dangerous man, and I think I failed to notice just how dangerous until now.”

Toad leaned back in his chair and stared off into space. He said, “That’s unbelievable. I can’t imagine that Reyna would allow that to go on for all these years. She always seemed like such a strong woman.”

“You never know what kind of battles are being fought inside someone else’s head. This could’ve been something that’s happened since they were kids. I always got a weird vibe when they were together, like they were a little too close for brother and sister. But how do you tell your wife that she and her brother love each other too much?”

“Why are you telling me this now?” Toad asked.

Canyon answered the question with another. “Did you know that Yazzie is also the Director of Security at the casino?

Toad shook his head. “No, I thought that Begay girl was in charge.”

“Ramona Begay is the Chief Security Officer, but Yazzie made me put him as an executive director. He explained that it would help in the long run if any of our illegal dealings were uncovered, and would help in the short term for him to do his job as a cop. I didn’t think much about it at the time, but a man in his position could have been skimming a lot of money over the years, and he also would’ve had the access to have taken the missing agent right out of her room without anyone ever knowing.”

“But why would he want to kill an agent and bring the heat down on us?”

“I don’t know that either. I’ve known since we built the casino that he had some ulterior motive going. The south tower was constructed under his direct supervision, but he didn’t really care about any of the rest of the hotel or casino. I thought that perhaps he was going to try and start up a brothel out of there, like he did when we were kids. Then I thought maybe he was selling drugs.”

“So what was he doing?”

“I’m not sure.”

Toad took a deep breath and sighed. He said, “No offense, boss, but it doesn’t sound like you know a whole hell of a lot. If you would have come to me sooner, maybe I could have—”

“I’m telling you this, because I don’t want any more surprises from my manipulative psychopath of a brother-in-law. I want you to get back to the ranch and keep an eye on him. Stick to him like glue throughout the rest of this ordeal. That clear enough.”

Toad nodded as he dropped his empty glass onto a counter of the claustrophobic motorhome and shot to his feet. “You don’t have to worry about a thing, boss. I’m on it.”

Canyon smiled as he stood and headed for the door, but he wasn’t able to reach it before it flew open and Ramirez poked his head in to say, “Sir, you need to see this.”

As they headed outside, he expected some surprise coming from the trading post, but Ramirez gestured in the opposite direction where a single red streak divided the pre-dawn sky. A flare. A message of some sort, and it either had to be the boys from the cartel announcing their arrival, or it was Frank’s partner. Turning to Todacheeney, Canyon asked, “How long has it been since we’ve heard from Yazzie at the ranch?”

“Too long,” was Toad’s reply, “I’ll try to raise them.”

To Ramirez, Canyon said, “Radio our friends from south of the border. Find out if they sent up that flare. If not, have them go check it out on their way in.”

“How do I reach them?” Ramirez asked.

“Find Ahiga. He has the frequency.”

Before Ramirez could walk away, Canyon grabbed him by the shoulder and whispered, “I’m only asking you to do this because you were standing the closest. You fail me again, and no amount of glue and duct tape will be able to put you back together. Do you understand me, boy?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. Then make sure your bootstraps are tied up tight and let the rest of the boys know as well. War isn’t coming. It’s here.”