Family Ties

Chapter 7

We headed inside to wait for Jack. Pat had coffee going, and the three of us made small talk. Ranger told Pat that he had shared the story of how she'd 'stolen' Snake from him. She just smiled and said "I didn't steal him, honey. He gave himself eagerly." We were marking time.

Finally, Jack walked into the office, followed by a young man. This must be Sonny. Ranger glanced at them before indicating to Jack to follow him back out the door. I looked a question at Pat, and she shrugged.

Pat turned to Sonny. "Hey, long time no see. Coffee?"

He smiled as he answered. "Coffee would be great, thanks."

He turned to me, and held out his hand. "I'm Sonny, you must be Stephanie."

"Hi Sonny, nice to meet you. Thanks for helping us with this." He was really young. Late teens or early twenties, I was guessing.

He glanced toward the doorway that Jack and Ranger had left through. "Your friend Ranger doesn't seem to think it's a good idea."

I didn't know what to say, so I just shrugged.

Jack and Ranger came back in. Jack looked annoyed. Ranger was doing the blank face again, but I could sense his tension.

Sonny looked from one to the other, trying to suppress a smile. Finally he turned to Ranger. "If you're done complaining that I'm too young, we have work to do."

Ranger's tension eased just the smallest amount. He locked eyes with Sonny. "Is that what I was doing?"

I had to give the kid credit, he didn't back down. I've seen grown men cower under that stare. "Weren't you?" He took a deep breath. "Look, I want these people off our land. It's your job to remove them. All I have to do is introduce you and show you around a bit. I think I'm old enough to handle that. Just think of me as your own personal Indian guide."

Jack coughed to cover a laugh, and Pat was grinning.

Ranger had a small smile on his face, and leaned back, looking deceptively relaxed. "How old are you?"

Sonny grinned. "Twenty. So, are we doing this, or do you prefer to spin your wheels a while before you call me back?"

Ranger took a seat at the conference table, and motioned for Sonny to do the same. Jack and Pat sat down with us, Pat handing Sonny a cup of coffee. Ranger turned back to Sonny. "Any ideas on where to start?"

Sonny turned to Pat. "Who were they staying with here in town?"

Pat pulled a file toward her, "Kamia Tsosie."

"I guess we start there." Sonny raised an eyebrow as he looked at Ranger. I smothered a laugh, and wondered if Ranger had been like this when he was young.

Jack spoke up, "I've already talked to her. The only thing she told me was that Yazzie and Brennan spent one night there. She didn't know where they went after they left her place."

Sonny turned a small smile toward Jack. "No offense Snake, but she doesn't know you. She wouldn't have told you any more than she had to."

Ranger raised an eyebrow at that, asking "Think you can do better?" What was going on between these two?

Sonny's smile became a grin as he pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and dialed. The rest of us were quiet, listening.

"Hey Kam, it's Sonny. ... Yeah, yours too. ... Listen, I need your help with something. ... You gonna be home for a while? ... Great, see you in half an hour."

He looked back at Ranger as he answered the original question. "Let's go find out." He stood, waiting.

Ranger blew out a breath and stood as well, holding out a hand to me. I took it and stood, grabbing my bag with my other hand.

Pat looked at Sonny, amused. "I'm assuming you don't need an address?"

He shook his head, and headed out the door without another word.

I shrugged, waved to Pat and Jack, and followed, pulling Ranger with me. Just before we reached the door, I asked him, "What's up between you and Sonny?"

He gave me a small smile. "He reminds me of me at his age. It annoys the hell out of me."

I rolled my eyes as I went through the door.

We all piled in the SUV and drove off, Sonny giving Ranger directions.

As we drove, I asked Sonny how he knew Kamia.

He shrugged before turning to face me. "She grew up on the reservation too, and she's only a couple of years older than I am. She's my...second or third cousin, and she's engaged to one of my best friends. Kam's good people, she obviously didn't know Lydia was on the run or why, or she never would have helped her."

"What's she doing now?" I'm always curious, and it seemed like a good idea to have some idea of who the person was that we were going to meet.

"She's going to school. Pre-med. Wants to be a pediatrician in the clinic when she's done."

This got Ranger's attention. "Think she'll follow through?"

Sonny smiled. "Definitely. She's smart, and driven. She's already signed a five year contract with IHS."

"IHS?" I asked.

"Sorry. Indian Health Services. They help with her tuition in return for her commitment to work for them for five years."

Sonny indicated the next turn, and we were in front of a large apartment complex. "Just pull into the lot."

We parked and followed Sonny through the complex. He finally headed up the stairs to the third floor with Ranger and me in his wake.

He knocked on the door, and a minute or so later it was opened by a tiny beauty. "Sonny! Good to see you!" She threw her arms around him, and he picked her up, laughing.

"Come in and introduce me to your friends."

She led us into a small but well-kept apartment. There were books and papers all over her coffee table. She attempted to straighten them out a little. "Sorry, I was studying."

"Hopefully we won't keep you long, Kam."

She looked up at Sonny, considering. "Okay. Have a seat, and tell me what the trouble is."

Sonny looked at her, amused. "What makes you think there's trouble?"

"Tarandero, please. At this hour you should be studying with your grandfather." She spun back to him. "Oh my God! He's alright, isn't he?"

"He's fine, Kam. Relax."

I could sense Ranger's impatience, and put a hand on his arm to restrain him. Kamia was more likely to talk to Sonny than to us.

Sonny must have sensed something as well, because he got right down to business. "Actually, we're looking for Lydia Yazzie."

Kamia shrugged. "She and her boyfriend stayed here about a week ago. I haven't seen them since. Why are you looking for her?"

Sonny met her eyes. "Her daughter is in the hospital. The boyfriend put her there."

She looked shocked. "And she's still with him?!"

I spoke up then. "It gets worse. She tried to cover up and clean up the evidence, then helped him get out of town before he was arrested."

She sank down onto her heels, then turned to Ranger. "And you are?"

Ranger's gaze was steady on hers. "The child's uncle."

She nodded, but was silent.

Sonny prompted her. "Kam? Can you help? How do you know her?"

"She used to be my babysitter." She shuddered. "Kendra Bainbridge is her best friend. I don't know if they would have been able to stay there, but I'm pretty sure she would have at least called her, maybe met with her."

"Why wouldn't she have stayed there?" Ranger asked.

Kamia smiled a little. "Kendra has a very small house and a very big family."

"Anything else?"

"Luz Cota. The three of them were inseparable when they were younger. I know she has a sister, but I think she left and headed East years ago. That's all I can think of."

"Thanks Kam. Call me if you think of anything else, okay?"

"I will." She turned to Ranger. "Your niece, is she going to be okay?"

"She's not completely out of the woods yet, but it looks like she'll recover. Thanks for asking." He smiled at her, and she looked dazed. I tried not to roll my eyes.

We said our goodbyes and went back to the SUV. None of us said anything until we were in the car and back on the road.

"Where to?" Ranger asked.

"Kendra works as a teacher's aide at an elementary school on the North side of town. She's not going to talk to us at work. Our best bet is to catch her at home after four o'clock."

"And Luz Cota?" I asked.

"She lives on the reservation. That's a three hour drive. I suggest you get some lunch and then pack up your things. Unless you want to waste half of every day commuting, you'll need to stay on the reservation. My sister and her family are out of town for the next ten days, you can stay there. If we haven't found them by then, you'll need to make other arrangements, but this will work for now."

Ranger nodded. "Thank you. Join us for lunch?"

Sonny shook his head. "If you could drop me off and Snake and Kap's office, I'd appreciate it. You can pick me up there any time after three-thirty or so."

We did so, filling Pat in on what we found out while Sonny charmed her out of her car keys. She promised to find out what she could on Cota and Bainbridge.

We got back in the SUV. "Lunch?" Asked Ranger.

"Sure." I answered.

"Any preferences?"

I just looked at him. He smiled. "Right. I know just the place. No tofu, I promise."