“You’re referring to his attitude about women, correct?”
“Yes.” He heard the surprise in Chee’s voice. “I don’t know how to get him to change because he doesn’t see it as a problem.”
Leaphorn heard his cell phone chime with a text message and ignored it. “The new FBI special agent out there is a woman, right?”
“Yes, sir. Sage Johnson.”
“See if she has a minute to talk to you about this. She could have some insights into how to deal with a misogynist.”
“I’ll give it a shot. How’s your case coming, sir?”
“I got some good information today. It’s not there yet, but success is in the wind. And, Chee?”
“Yes, sir?”
“I came down too hard on you for that Green Yazzie situation. Thanks for telling me about the call.”
“Let me know if I can help you with anything else. Say hi to Louisa.”
After that, Leaphorn checked the text. It was from Councilor Walker. Like the woman herself, it got to the point.
Yr working w Pinto @ NN museum. Let’s talk. See you in a.m. at Nav. Inn?
Interesting, he thought. Walker kept her ear to the ground. He’d always admired her, especially when he and she were on the same side of an issue. He texted OK and a time. She sent back a thumbs-up.
Leaphorn read a bit in bed and then turned off the light and stared at the ceiling. The house seemed empty and too quiet without Louisa. He felt Giddi as she jumped onto his bed. Instead of curling up near his feet as she had last night, she snuggled against his hip. He appreciated her soft warmth, and she remained with him until he stirred with the morning light.
Before he left for breakfast, he sent Louisa an update on the case. He knew she’d be interested in the Rita Begaye development. Or at least he hoped she would be.
He thought about his meeting with Walker. He looked forward to learning what she had to say about Tiffany, Mrs. Pinto, and the situation at the museum.
He drove to the Navajo Inn early and ordered the morning special, a pork chop with toast, potatoes, and two eggs. He envisioned his housemate sitting across from him with her bowl of oatmeal. On second thought, he asked for just one egg.
He had enjoyed the egg, finished most of the pork chop, and was spreading grape jelly on his toast when Councilor Walker approached the table. She sat down before he could greet her.
“I know I’m late. Finish your breakfast while I check in at the office.” She said it as a statement, not a suggestion.
By the time the server came around with coffee, Walker had done what she needed to do electronically and Leaphorn had eaten two of the four toast triangles. The waitress filled the empty cup in front of Walker and topped off his.
“I’m glad you could meet me this morning.” Walker stirred sugar into her coffee. “You look good, Joe. Are you recovered from what happened?”
He knew she meant the brain injury. “Mostly. My biggest problem is remembering my English and getting the words out.”
“You’re lucky you had your Diné Bizaad to fall back on. How is your . . .” Her forehead wrinkled. “The lady who you live with.”
“She’s well. She’s in Flag doing something at the university. She enjoys the chance to reconnect with those friends and the academic life. They’ve asked her to teach in the fall.” He sipped his coffee. It was good, hot and just strong enough.
He had said enough about Louisa. “How are your children, Councilor?”
“Fine. Well, not exactly, but they’re OK. As well as can be expected.”
She straightened in her chair. “I understand the director at the museum hired you to do some work for her. Tell me about it. How’s that going?”
“If that were true, I couldn’t talk about it without her permission.”
To his surprise, Walker laughed. “I knew you would say that. I know it’s true. I’m glad she was smart enough to find you. Everyone in the building has been upset since the young woman who was her assistant died. I hope she has you checking into that. What caused her death?”
He sipped his coffee. “They say she was sick.”
“I’ve heard she was witched.” Walker let the words hang over the breakfast table for a moment. “But I don’t believe in that. Tiffany always treated me respectfully, answered my questions as best she could when I called about council business and her boss wasn’t handy. I liked her. But recently, I sensed that something bothered her, some weight on her shoulders. I asked her what was the matter, but she wouldn’t talk about it. Or couldn’t. Did she confide in you?”
He shook his head. “I never had the opportunity to know her. The only time I spent with her was in the parking lot after she collapsed and we called an ambulance.”
“When was that?”
“The afternoon before she died.”
Walker pressed her lips into a straight line for a moment. “Her father is taking her death very hard. He feels bad that she died alone.”
“I heard that her sister lived there at the time.” Leaphorn searched his memory. Collette. “And Mrs. Pinto was outside, watching for the ambulance.”
“Well, they say that Collette told her father she had gone out to get some groceries. She came back to find Mrs. Pinto there and Tiffany dead. I’ve been acquainted with their father for years. He thinks Mrs. Pinto caused his daughter’s death by, well . . . you know how some people think. Have you met him?”
“Yes.”
“And?”
“And what?”
When she smiled, the wrinkles around her eyes added texture to her face. “And, Joe Leaphorn, tell me why that young woman died and why the museum director hired you and what is going on over there that she wants to cover up. You make a difficult conversation even more difficult. And I am not even forcing you to speak English.”
He smiled back and lowered his voice. “I’ve heard the talk of witchcraft. Rumors like that have always bothered me, as they bother you. As I said earlier, I can’t talk about why my client hired me except that it concerns a gift to the museum. I would never involve myself with any kind of cover-up.”
“I didn’t mean to imply that. I admire your integrity, and that’s why I wanted to talk to you.” Walker spread her fingers on the table in front of her. “Tiffany wasn’t in the best of health, but she felt well enough to go to work the day she died. I don’t believe in witchcraft, but my intuition tells me something strange and bad happened to her, and it could be related to her job.”
“Do you have a plan?”
“I know some of Tiffany’s friends. I’ll see what I can learn about this—if she had any enemies, if she was doing anything dangerous, anything that would have hinted that someone wanted her dead.” She finished her coffee. “I’m due at a meeting. I’ll see you here Friday at nine. You’ll know more by then, and that gives me time to find out what I can.”
She started to lay some dollar bills on the table, but Leaphorn shook his head. “I’ll get this.”
“Next time, it’s on me.”
He nodded. “I know better than to argue with you.”
“When is your housemate coming back?”