Justine reached them a moment later. She went to Ella’s side, and helped her stand up. “Congratulations. The case has broken wide open. A warrant has been issued for Anderson’s arrest. Your canary has begun to sing.”
“Anderson won’t worm out of this one,” Ella said, walking back downhill toward the road with Justine and her brother.
As Justine took a statement from Clifford, Ella walked to the truck. When she reached the edge of the road, she saw Carolyn taking care of the wounded bus driver. “What on earth are you doing here?”
“I was at the station going over the independent lab’s report with Big Ed when your report came in, so I caught a ride with Justine and Hobson when they headed out here. They didn’t want to bring me, but I wouldn’t take no for an answer. As the M.E., I am part of the police department.”
“Have you been reinstated?”
“You bet. Tolino backed the hospital board to the wall and forced them to do what was right. Your hunch about him was right on target.”
Ella leaned against the truck wearily as Justine came up. “It’s all wrapped up now,” her assistant said. “This case is in the hands of the courts.”
“Not quite,” Ella said. “We know a few of The Brotherhood’s key players, but only time will tell if we’ve dealt that organization a death blow; and I’m afraid we haven’t heard the last of the Fierce Ones either.”
“Do cops ever win a complete victory?” Carolyn sighed.
Ella smiled at Clifford as he approached and joined them. “Evil always exists. It’s part of the balance, and only by accepting that, can we walk in beauty.”
Clifford smiled. “There’s hope for you yet.”
As a police van pulled up, Clifford and Carolyn, went to help Sergeant Hobson calm down the children.
Over the excited voices of the young, the distant howl of a coyote rose, making her flesh crawl. Ella’s hand closed over her badger fetish. The sun was sinking fast behind Beautiful Mountain. Ella looked around, studying the adjacent ridges. In the fading light, she thought she glimpsed an old woman with a cane on the opposite side of the canyon, making her way into the concealing shadows. But then she blinked, and the woman was gone, making her wonder if she’d really seen anyone there.
“The chief wants you back at the station,” Justine said, interrupting her thoughts.
“On my way.” Ella glanced around one last time, trying to push aside her uncertainties. It was time to let go, at least for now, and wait for fate to make its next move.
By Aimée & David Thurlo
ELLA CLAH NOVELS
Blackening Song
Death Walker
Bad Medicine
Enemy Way
Shooting Chant
Red Mesa
Changing Woman
Tracking Bear
LEE NEZ NOVELS
Second Sunrise
Blood Retribution
SISTER AGATHA NOVELS
Bad Faith
Thief in Retreat
Plant Them Deep
Praise for the Ella Clah novels
“The Thurlos hit all the right notes: they have an intriguing, growing character at the center of a series that combines fast-moving plots and a wealth of fascinating cultural information.”
—Booklist on Wind Spirit
“Combining American Indian lore and contemporary forensics and police techniques, the Thurlos have written yet another novel featuring the battle between traditionalist and modernist Navajos. The questions of how a tribe can survive in contemporary America without losing its integrity or identity are compelling.”
—The Dallas Morning News on Tracking Bear
“Cultural differences between the traditional and modern Navajo way of life show up in every description, from details of daily life to the science of forensics and uranium mining. Ella and her family serve as major examples of this cultural push and pull. A skillfully mixed and expertly designed story.”
—School Library Journal on Tracking Bear
—Romantic Times on Changing Woman
“The intelligent and sensitive Ella Clah makes a terrific guide into a complex world where nothing is quite what it seems. Red Mesa is an engrossing mystery as intricately woven as a fine Navajo rug. It kept me guessing to the end.”
—Margaret Coel, New York Times bestselling author
“If it’s just too long between Tony Hillerman novels, the mysteries of Aimée and David Thurlo will help you bridge the canyons. If you prefer your mysteries with a little green chile and New Mexico grit, you’ll want to add the Thurlos to your reading list.”
—Rocky Mountain News on Shooting Chant
MEET THE AUTHORS
Aimée and David Thurlo are the authors of two other Ella Clah novels, Blackening Song and Death Walker. Aimée is a native of Havana, Cuba. David grew up on the Navajo Reservation in Shiprock, New Mexico.
The Thurlos have been married for more than twenty years and have been writing together for nearly that long. To date, they have published thirty-seven novels. Some of their recent works are Cisco’s Woman, Fatal Charm, and Her Destiny, the first book in the Four Winds trilogy.
Aimée and David Thurlo live in Corrales, New Mexico, with a varied and ever-changing menagerie. They are a vital presence on the Internet, and can be contacted at their home page at http://www.comet.net/writersm/thurlo/home.htm. or via E-mail at 72640.2437@compuserve.com.
This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this novel are either fictitious or are used fictitiously.
BAD MEDICINE
Copyright © 1997 by Aimée and David Thurlo
All rights reserved.
A Forge Book
Published by Tom Doherty Associates, LLC
175 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10010
www.tor.com
Forge® is a registered trademark of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Thurlo, Aimée.
Bad medicine / Aimée and David Thurlo.
p. cm.
“A Tom Doherty Associates book.”
ISBN 0-765-31137-2
EAN 978-0765-31137-5
1. Navajo Indians—Fiction. I. Thurlo, David. II. Title.
PS3570.H82B34 1997
813'.54—dc21
97-23670
CIP
eISBN 9781466847903
First eBook edition: May 2013