Treasure of the Anasazi Read online

  “What do you mean ‘the spring’?” asked Sam.

  “Yeah, Jack, what spring?” asked Rudy.

  “I told you both about the Anasazi, right?”

  Both Sam and Rudy nodded.

  “Well, there is a special spring at the Anasazi village supposedly inside the communal kiva. I don’t know how these guys could know about it though.”

  “Why would they want to find this spring?” asked Sam. “What’s so special about it?”

  “You know how hard a time you had believing me about the Anasazi? Well, this part is just as hard to believe.”

  “You already told us about the lost tribe. Let’s hear it,” said Rudy.

  “The water from the spring is essential to the Anasazi. It has special properties. I’m told its water slows down the aging process. There are people in that community approaching two hundred years old and perhaps older.”

  “Oh, c’mon, Jack. That’s the craziest thing I’ve ever heard. At least you could have made it credible,” said Rudy, “but I’ll give you a ‘B’ for effort.”

  “I’m afraid I’ll have to go along with Rudy. That was pretty lame. Now, really, what do you know about this spring that would make these guys try so hard to find it.”

  “I’m dead serious. That’s the truth, but I don’t know how Smith and Jones could know about it.”

  “I think he’s serious,” said Rudy. “Just look at his face.”

  “You may be right,” said Sam. She looked intently at Jack. She didn’t see the face of a prankster.

  “Okay. Then that is the question of the day, isn’t it? Where would they find out about something like that?” asked Sam. “And why would they care?”

  “Why don’t we ask them?” said Rudy. “When they come back to the truck. All we have to do is sit here and wait for them.”

  “Do you suppose they know about the Anasazi too?” asked Sam.

  “I think at this point, if they know about the spring, we should consider the possibility that they know about them too,” I speculated.

  “I hope not. It would be a real shame for them to have survived all this time to be discovered by the likes of those two,” said Sam.

  “I was beginning to think this was a wild goose chase, but we actually did learn something, what they’re after,” I said.

  “And now we know something else. It appears they think that the spring is in the Restricted Area,” said Sam.

  “Rudy, when you were looking through the truck earlier, did you see anything in there that might help us?” I asked.

  “Just some maps. The same kind that are handed out at the office. Nothing special,” said Rudy.

  “Are you going to arrest them?” asked Rudy.

  “No. We can’t prove they’ve done any more than commit a couple of misdemeanors. I can write them a pretty substantial fine for trespassing onto park property after hours and entering the Restricted Area, but that’s all.”

  “Should we get Joe out here?” asked Rudy.

  “It wouldn’t matter,” I said. “What they’ve done so far still falls under the jurisdiction of the Mesa Verde Park, which makes it Sam’s responsibility. It would just be a waste of his time. If they do something more extreme, then we’ll give him a call.”

  “Okay,” said Sam, “get comfortable but stay alert. You can bet they’ll be back this way before daybreak to make a clean getaway.”

  Sam and I sat in the truck cab to wait. Rudy let down the tailgate and stretched out, his feet dangling over the edge. I got the silent treatment from Sam again. I looked over at her. She noticed and looked over at me. That was not a warm look. Actually it was totally expressionless. She returned her gaze to straight ahead, out the windshield. I decided not to push the issue. But I still couldn’t understand how someone could hold a grudge for so long. It had been six months since we had called it quits. There’s a saying that an elephant never forgets, but they have nothing on Sam.

  Perhaps half an hour later we heard screams and yelling in the distance followed immediately by several gunshots in succession. Sam and I perked up in the seat. Rudy came around, standing next to me. The sounds had been from the direction of Jones and Smith.

  “You suppose that was them?” asked Sam.

  “Had to be,” answered Rudy.

  All went quiet. We got out of the truck to hear better.

  “Rudy, you’d better get the rifle out,” I said. “Sam, you should be ready too.”

  Soon, we heard yelling again, getting louder and closer, and the sound of something running through the brush.

  * * *

  “Where is that truck? We should have seen it by now,” yelled Jones, obviously out of breath.

  “I told you, we shouldn’t have left the lights on. The lights drained the battery and now the battery is dead,” said Smith.

  “Keep going and don’t slow down,” said Jones. “It’s got to be just ahead.”

  “Are they still behind us?” blurted Smith, out of breath.

  “I’m not stopping to see.”

  “Look. There’s the truck,” said Smith. He could just make out the dark silhouette against the starlit horizon.

  As they approached, the truck headlights came on, shining directly on them both, blinding them momentarily. Startled, they froze in their tracks. A voice came from the truck.

  “Smith, Jones, this is Ranger Baker. Take hold of the barrel of those guns between your thumb and index finger and raise your hands over your head and approach the truck.”

  The two exchanged looks, deciding what they should do. They could make a break for it and probably be able to get away easily in the dark, but they were a long way from anywhere. Then there was the consideration of the danger in the dark that had chased them back to the truck. It appeared their options were limited.

  “I’m not going to repeat myself again. Raise your hands over your head. I’m not alone,” said Sam.

  “You’d better do what she says,” said Rudy. “I’ve got a rifle pointed at you right now.”

  Smith and Jones were still blinded by the headlights. They couldn’t see anyone, only hearing voices. Even though each had a revolver in his hand, they had no idea of where to shoot, except in the general direction of the headlights, which would probably end in disaster. Besides that, they’d be shooting at their own truck. Rudy decided a little persuasion was in order. He fired a shot into the ground between the two. Immediately their hands went up, guns showing.

  Caught off guard, I jumped, pretty sure that Sam did too.

  “Rudy, was that necessary?” asked Sam.

  “Evidently,” answered Rudy.

  “Now, slowly come over to the truck,” said Sam.

  “We’ve got to get out of here,” whispered Smith, glancing back over his shoulder.

  “Don’t do anything stupid,” said Jones.

  As Smith and Jones walked forward, they began to make out the silhouettes of three figures. When they came close to the truck, the headlights were no longer a problem, and they could see Jack, Sam and Rudy clearly. They recognized Jack and Rudy from their earlier encounters and a lady in a Ranger’s uniform. Rudy was still holding a rifle aimed in their direction.

  “What’s the problem, Ranger?” asked Jones. “We’re on public grounds.”

  “First things first. Jack, would you relieve these gentlemen of their weapons?” asked Sam. “You might go ahead and check them for IDs too.”

  I moved around to the back of the two and removed the guns from their hands and patted them down for other weapons.”

  “IDs, please,” I instructed. “Slowly.”

  Each pulled out a wallet and handed it over.

  “I have one .38 revolver and a Colt .45.” I held them up for Sam to see and brought her the wallets.

  “I suppose you boys have permits for those?” asked Sam.

  “Sure do,” replied Jones.

  “Move over to the truck, boys, palms on the fender,” said Sam. “Jack, check the truck registration. I
t should be in the glove box.”

  There was nothing in the glove box or over the visors.

  “Nothing here,” I said.

  Sam walked over in front of one of the headlights and opened the wallets.

  “You’re not going to believe this,” said Sam. “Their names really are Smith and Jones, Eddie Smith and Frank Jones.”

  “Not very original,” I remarked, “but those are the names they gave us earlier.”

  “That doesn’t mean those IDs are any good,” said Rudy sarcastically.

  “I had a feeling we were going to run into each other again, Smith directed at me. “You just seemed to be the meddling type. Just can’t keep your nose out of other people’s business, can you?”

  “What seems to be the problem?” asked Jones.

  “I’m sure you know the park is closed, and I’m sure you read the sign on the fence for the Restricted Area. There are fines for both. Why were you in there anyway?” asked Sam.

  “It was an accident,” said Smith. “We went for a hike and became disoriented. Then the sun went down. We just now found our way back to the pickup.”

  “And discharging your weapons? We heard the shots.”

  “Strictly self-defense,” said Smith.

  “Self-defense from what?” I asked.

  They were hesitant to say.

  “You’re going to think we’re crazy,” said Jones.

  “No, go ahead. We already think you’re stupid,” said Rudy.

  Smith took offense and took a step toward Rudy. However, he stopped suddenly when Rudy raised the rifle, pointing it at his chest.

  “Rudy, stop it,” said Sam. Looking at Jones, “Tell us what you saw.”

  “We saw wolves,” said Jones, “the biggest I’ve ever seen. They came out of nowhere. Lots of them. Forming a line directly in front of us, growling and baring their teeth. They kept getting closer and closer. We opened fire and started running back to here. We were lucky to get away with our lives.”

  “You’re nuts. There aren’t any wolves around here. Probably just a few coyote out hunting,” said Rudy, moving close to them, smelling for a hint of alcohol.

  “We haven’t been drinking!” shouted Jones. “And they weren’t coyote. They came close enough we could see them very clearly. They were twice the size of a coyote. We know what we saw,” said Smith.

  “So, I guess you scared off whatever they were?” asked Rudy.

  “All I know is that after we fired into them and started running, we never saw them again,” said Jones. “I don’t think they came past the fence.”

  “Do you think you shot any of them?” I asked.

  “I don’t know. Probably not. We weren’t really taking aim. It’s hard to shoot behind you when you’re running,” said Smith.

  “If they did hit any,” Rudy said to Sam, “whatever they were, there should be a blood trail.”

  “I’ll come back out tomorrow and check for blood, tracks or perhaps even a carcass,” said Sam, “but for now, Rudy, why don’t you ride in back with these two and keep an eye on them. Jack, I’ll drop you off at my jeep, and you can follow us back to the office. Okay? Load up,” instructed Sam.

  We still hadn’t found a solid connection between Smith, Jones and Emitt’s shooting. We had a pretty good idea they were the culprits, but circumstantial evidence wasn’t going to cut it. And the eyewitness wasn’t exactly available to testify against them. When we arrived back at the office, Sam had Smith and Jones come inside. She went behind the counter and grabbed her ticket book. She tossed Smith the keys to his pickup.

  “I’m going to run the serial numbers on your guns, and we’ll find out whether or not they actually are registered and who to. If they are, we should be able to find out if those are your real names too.”

  “I’m really hurt you don’t believe us,” said Smith sarcastically.

  “What about our guns?” asked Jones.

  “If what you said checks out, you’ll get them back when you come in to pay your fines. Where are you staying?”

  “The Cozy Inn,” said Jones.

  “And your permanent address?”

  “The same. We like it here. We’re thinking about staying,” smirked Smith.

  “That’s okay, we’ll find out about your real address when we run the revolvers and your truck tag.”

  Smith and Jones exchanged quick glances.

  “These are for you,” said Sam, as she handed each their fine and wallet.

  Smith looked at his ticket. “Are you kidding?” He reached into his wallet.

  “The office is closed. Come back tomorrow and pay your fines,” said Sam.

  Jones grabbed Smith by the arm. “Forget it. Let’s go.”

  “We’ll see you later, Ranger,” said Smith. “And you,” pointing at Rudy and me, “I’m looking forward to seeing both of you again. Next time it’s going to end a little differently.”

  “Looking forward to it,” responded Rudy with a grin.

  “Oh, one more thing,” said Sam. “Don’t go anywhere. I’m going to be reporting this little incident tonight to the Durango Sheriff’s department. They may want to have a chat with you,” said Sam.

  “Is that it?” asked Jones.

  “Yeah, you can go,” said Sam. Smith slammed the door shut as they left. It was only a matter of seconds before we heard the pickup fire up and peel out, throwing gravel against the side of the office.

  It was still dark out, but it would be getting light soon.

  “Well, that was an interesting evening,” I said.

  “I’ve had better,” said Sam.

  “What would you say to grabbing a little breakfast?” I asked Sam. “The cafe should be opening up right about now.”

  “No, thanks, it’s been a long night, and I have just enough time to go home, clean up, change and get back here in time to open the gates and the office on time.”

  “Can’t someone else do that?” I asked.

  “It’s my job, Jack.”

  “You ought to try to catch forty winks.”

  “Don’t concern yourself. I’ll be fine,” she snapped. She hesitated and sighed. “Sorry, I’m just tired.”

  “No problem,” I replied. “Look at the bright side, Smith and Jones did show up as predicted and we caught them in the act of trespassing. We now know it was them that had been prowling around the park the night Emitt was shot.”

  “We still can’t prove whether Emitt’s shooting was an accident or not.”

  “True, but I have a feeling we will. Stay positive.”

  “You’re right. Right now I’m tired and just want to go home. I’ll see you later. Okay?”

  “Sure.”

  It had been a busy night, but I had a feeling it wasn’t the reason for her short temper. I was sure there was more to it than that. I knew she still held a grudge. It showed every time we were in the same room or the same vehicle or just in the same vicinity. I just hadn’t been ready to make a commitment. Now, six months later, I was a little older, lonely, had had time to think and the idea of settling down with Sam wasn’t the foreign idea that it once had been. It actually was an appealing idea that I had thought about frequently, especially in the last couple of months. Of course, now for it to happen she’d have to consider forgiving me and giving me another chance.

  “Hey, don’t forget about me. I’d like to go to breakfast,” said Rudy.

  “How could I forget about you, buddy?” I asked Rudy rhetorically.

  “Sam, do you want one of us to go back out there with you later today?” I asked.

  “No, I think I can handle it. Thanks anyway,” said Sam.

  “What was that? Did you say thanks?” I asked, smiling.

  Sam didn’t seem to find my attempt at lightening the moment amusing. She didn’t say anything, but I had seen a glimmer of an old familiar look in her eyes that was encouraging.

  “Okay. We’re going,” I announced. “If you change your mind about wanting a ride-along, just giv
e one of us a call. I’d hate for you to go out there all alone and something happen.”

  “Why don’t you guys take off?” asked Sam. I think I saw a hint of a smile. There was hope.

  Just as I was about to go out the door something occurred to me. I turned back to Sam.

  “Would you do me a favor?” I asked.

  “You’re pressing your luck,” she said.

  “No, really. Can you put off going back out there until we have a chance to check something out?”

  “And what do you need to check out?”

  “We saw those two talking with Benny Doyle in town a couple of days ago. Give us a chance to find Benny. Maybe he can shed some light on what those guys are up to. Okay?”

  “How much time do you need?”

  “I don’t know. Depends on how long it takes to find him,” I said.

  “I think I know where we can find him,” said Rudy.

  “Can you give us ‘til the end of the day tomorrow?” I asked.

  “I can do that. It’s probably going to be a wasted trip anyway. Let me know what you find out.”

  “Sure. You know, more than likely, there’s nothing out there for you to see anyway,” I said.

  “Wolves? That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard,” said Rudy with a smirk. “Coyote are more like it.”

  “I know, but if I’m going to do my job right, I have to check it out. No stone unturned so to speak, due diligence and all that.”

  “I understand. Well, we’re going to take off now, I’ll let you know what we find out.”

  Outside the office I asked Rudy, “So, where do we look first?”

  “Mel’s Tavern. I’m pretty sure Benny’s a regular.”

  I looked at my watch. “They won’t be opening up for a while. Hop in. Let’s go into Mancos and have breakfast first. You didn’t have something else planned for today did you?”

  “No. I’m all yours. This is the most excitement we’ve had around here for some time. I wouldn’t miss it.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  Thursday morning. We headed back toward Durango. As we drove past the Mancos Café, we spotted Smith and Jones’ pickup in the parking lot.

  “Well, lookey there. Someone else is having breakfast,” observed Rudy.