Coyote Gorgeous (8 page)

"
For all I
know it could have been a man in a beast
outfit.
"
The thought chilled
Madison’s blood. Could she have shot someone in disguise? That
would be horrible.

Jake stared at her for a
second, the grin all but erased.
"
It’s not Halloween. People don’t walk the desert at night in
costumes.
"

"
I don’t know
what I saw, okay?
"
Even in
the best of moods, even when he wasn’t making a pass, Jake still
set her on edge. She found his proximity distracting.
When would her transfer go
through
?

Jake kept his gaze down as
he shuffled papers on his desk.
"
As far as I am concerned, this case is
closed.
"

"
Closed?
"
Although
relieved, Madison didn’t understand Jake’s new attitude. He was
usually so thorough.
"
What’s
the hurry to close the case? Is there something more
urgent?
"

He pushed an assignment
sheet in front of her.
"
I
want to make sure White Eagle doesn’t abuse his permit for fetching
golden eaglets. The permit allows him to take only
two.
"

"
I
see.
"
Madison scanned the
sheet. She’d have to be out of town for a few days. She hid her
disappointment. Somehow, she’d hoped to keep working close to
Kal.

"
The
sonsovbitches have driven golden eagles to extinction on Hopi land.
I want to make sure they don’t pillage government land
next.
"

"
To their
credit, the Hopi do help preserve the wilderness in many other
ways.
"
Why did she feel
obligated to defend such barbaric customs?

Jake glanced up, his
expression cold and detached.
"
You have a problem with the
assignment?
"

"
No, sir. Not
at all.
"
But how could she
redeem her professional image in the department by babysitting
White Eagle?
"
The Hopi chief
isn’t going to be happy about being
monitored.
"

"
He is not
supposed to suspect anything. You only watch from afar and report
any infraction. Under no circumstances should you interfere or even
let your presence be known to the tribe.
Understood?
"

"
I get
it.
"
Her smartass tone
escaped unbidden.

Jake raised a contemptuous
gaze.
"
Then leave. I have
work to do.
"

"
Yes,
sir.
"
The abrupt dismissal
surprised her. Jake usually tried to keep her around as long as he
could to harass her. Madison was glad to get up, grab her
assignment sheet, and scurry out of the office.

Walking down the hallway, she tried to
read the details of her orders, but the letters blurred. Images of
her evening with Kal danced in her head. Before she left on her new
mission, she’d pay him a visit. She at least wanted to thank him
for his hospitality. Besides, Jake might consider her former
assignment over, but Madison wanted to follow up on the tracks of
the animal she had shot.

*****

From the window of his
workshop, Kaletaka spotted Madison snooping around his backyard
again. Blood rushed to the lower core of his anatomy, and
apprehension sent needles along his spine.
Had she shot him last night? Was she coming to finish the
job?

No. She couldn’t possibly
want him dead. He threw last night’s bloody vest in the garbage
can, closed the lid and glanced around the shop. The concrete floor
showed only the black scars of burned metal. The tools on the bench
looked clean. No more blood. He could handle Madison. His wound
felt much better already, and with the kind of reflexes he’d
displayed lately, he could probably overcome her in a fight. The
thought of grappling with her slender body made him ache.
Great Coyote, help me cool my
lust
.

Felix’s head rubbed against his
leg.

Kaletaka scratched the
scruff of the cat’s neck.
"
What do you think little brother? Should we go say
hi?
"

The bobcat nudged him forward then
walked nonchalantly at his side, out through the open door into the
bright, mid-day sun. Kaletaka closed the upper buttons of his black
shirt, not that the white bandage was visible, but to make sure. He
hooked his left hand in his belt to immobilize the wounded arm as
he walked.

He had no problem smiling
at the sight of Madison’s slim but shapely body. She looked so
good, even from the back, as she shaded her eyes to gaze at the
neighboring ranch.
"
Hello,
again. How did your hunt go last night?
"

She spun around to face
him, eyes full of wonder and a smile that quickly vanished. She
glanced at Felix with obvious disapproval then shrugged.
"
I shot something, but it got
away.
"

The wound in Kaletaka’s
upper arm throbbed at the very mention of gunshot. A dark cloud
covered his mind like a lid.
Had Madison
caused his injury?
"
What did
you shoot?
"

"
It was dark.
I couldn’t see it whole. It was a large animal, though, with a head
like a coyote. And it ran on two hind legs, faster than a cheetah
on four.
"

Cold dread flowed in
Kaletaka’s veins at the confirmation of his deepest fear.
Could he really be a bloodthirsty
skinwalker?
Although the fantastic
explanation defied simple logic, it would explain his acute senses,
quick reflexes, and the gunshot wound, as well as his memory
lapses. Still
...
a
skinwalker
? What a repulsive
thought.

"
Did you find
any tracks?
"
He knew she
hadn’t, since he’d found them first and erased all traces,
including the bloody trail leading to the house.

"
Nothing.
"
She shrugged
again in disappointment.
"
It’s as if it never happened. Even the blood and tracks I saw
last night have disappeared.
"

"
Maybe you
fell asleep and dreamed it?
"

"
No.
"
She shook her head
vehemently.
"
I fired that
rifle.
"

Kaletaka shuddered at the
thought.

"
My boss
closed the case. That beast is mortally wounded. The killings are
over.
"

"
Let’s hope
so.
"
If Kaletaka’s worst fear
proved true, the next full moon might bring the beast
back.

"
At least,
you are now cleared of any suspicion.
"
She smiled as if to soften the words.

"
You
suspected me?
"
An icy trickle
dripped down his spine.

"
I suspected
everyone. It’s my job.
"
She
looked down and shuffled one foot.
"
I’m leaving for a new assignment up
north.
"
She didn’t look happy
about it.
Would she miss him?

"
I guess I’ll
see you around.
"
Too late to
take back his words. Why did he say that? He was a killer, a
skinwalker. He should let her go. Her proximity would endanger her
life, and his. Yet Kaletaka needed to know they would meet again,
soon.

"
Let me know
if you see or hear anything strange.
"
She smiled, and he saw a spark in her eyes as she
handed him a card.
"
Feel free
to call me anytime.
"

Was that an invitation or
just a business deal?
Confused, torn
between the desire to see her again and the fear of hurting her,
Kaletaka only nodded as he took the card. He wanted to brush her
fingers but didn’t trust himself to stop there. It would take all
his willpower to stay away from Madison.

Her eyes gleamed as she
smiled.
"
I guess I’ll see you
when I come back, then.
"

By the Great Coyote, he
wanted to see her again, but for both their sakes, they shouldn’t
be together.
"
I may not be
here.
"

"
Oh. Well.
Thanks for all your help, then.
"
Her brave face did not cover her confusion. Or was it sadness
in her eyes?
"
Good-bye.
"

When she turned and walked away
slowly, he watched her go, feeling her pain, aching to call after
her. But he didn’t, and she didn’t look back. Was she hiding tears?
Why did he become a skinwalker now?

After the white pickup drove away,
Kaletaka sighed heavily. He needed some answers, and he knew only
one person who could help him find them, his father, White Eagle,
the chief of the Hopi Tribe.

*****

Through high-powered binoculars,
Madison surveyed the golden eagle’s nest across Dry Creek canyon,
high on the cliff of a small mesa. Her strategic position afforded
her an unobstructed view, and she was too far up for the tribesmen
to see her from the riverbed. According to the assignment sheet,
the race to capture the eaglets would take place here, this
morning.

It seemed the information had panned
out. A small crowd in vivid colors, some with feathered wings
attached to their arms, like eagles, gathered at the foot of the
cliff. Madison heard the drums and the chanting on the warm breeze,
then the costumed dancers spread their wings and stomped the ground
to the rhythm of the drums, moving counterclockwise in a
circle.

The dizzying height of the cliff would
scare the toughest climbers. Still, several young men, faces
streaked with red paint, wearing only a breechcloth and moccasins,
prepared to scale the wall.

With a length of rope hanging from
their waists, they started up the nearly vertical slope, hand over
hand, in a race to the top. Madison had to admire their courage.
She would never try the ascent without a harness, serious hardware,
and secure lifelines.

Climbing with great agility, the young
braves didn’t use their rope, as if saving it for a special
purpose. Madison adjusted her high-power lens and focused on their
slow ascent. But something pulled her attention down below. What
was it?

Among the watchers at the
bottom of the cliff, she identified Chief White Eagle, recognizable
in his full regalia and colorful headdress. Then her heart skipped
a beat. The tall man standing next to the chief looked
like
...

Kal? She’d recognize his stance and
muscular shoulders anywhere. She focused the lens on his face. It
was really him, wearing black leather, in deep conversation with
White Eagle. Madison felt suddenly light and bubbly inside, happy
to see his face. But what was Kal doing here?

Chapter Four

Moving his arm tentatively, Kaletaka
noticed with satisfaction that the pain had gone. He’d never had a
wound heal so fast. Standing apart with his father, White Eagle, he
gazed up the rock face at the climbers, already one third of the
way to the top. The drummers slowed the beat.

"
It seems
like yesterday when I raced up such a cliff to another eagle’s
nest.
"
The happy memory made
him smile inside. Times had changed.

White Eagle’s wise face
relaxed.
"
It feels good to
see you, son, as always. But I sense a serious purpose to your
visit.
"

Kaletaka cleared his
throat. What he had to ask didn’t make sense, yet White Eagle might
understand.
"
Something
strange is happening to me, Father. I feel
...
different lately.
"

"
Ah!
"
The older man
raised one eyebrow under the yellow and red feather headdress and
turned to Kaletaka with candid curiosity.
"
You felt it,
too?
"

"
Felt
what?
"
Knowing he wasn’t the
only one experiencing supernatural forces at work reassured him
somewhat.