Page 20 of Blood and Bone
“What is it?” Two Trees asked.
“They look very much in love, don’t they?” Ari asked.
Eoghan nodded as he handed the frame to the chief.
He looked it over, showing it to his deputy before handing it back.
Ari pointed to the hearts and the 925 mark. “It’s sterling silver. Some of these cost a pretty penny and it frames a picture of a loving family. Did you see the look in Vandross’ eyes when he was staring at his child?” He pointed to Jack’s face. “That’s a man who adores his family.” He tapped Riversong’s face. “And that’s a happy woman.”
The deputy shrugged but the expression on his face told Ari he wasn’t being dismissive of them and was curious to hear what he was going to say. “What about it? She was a happy woman. So what?”
“From what I read in Vandross’ file, he was convicted of a bunch of petty crimes, stupid stuff like shoplifting and the like, yes?”
“Right,” Two Trees said.
Ari nodded. “And suddenly this petty criminal decides to become a ‘master criminal’ breaking into a safe, stealingmoney and valuables, leaving behind fingerprints in a municipal building where he works, and matching fingerprints can easily be found. Then thismaster criminalgoes on the run with his girlfriend, a woman he clearly cherishes, and the children he adores, yes?”
“Yeah,” Two Trees said. “I…think I understand what you’re trying to say.” He glanced at his deputy before looking back at them. “You think he was set up to take a fall?”
“Well, the tribal council is the governing body, trying criminals here on the rez, right?” Eoghan asked.
“Yeah.”
“And her brother is on the tribal council?” Ari asked.
“Yeah, but what difference does that make? Are you telling me you think Riversong’s brother, Colt, set Vandross up to go to prison?” Two Trees asked.
“I don’t know yet,” Ari said, putting the frame back on the shelf. “I want to look around a bit longer.”
“Me too,” the chief said, seeming more than interested. He gave his deputy instructions for the kitchen as Ari and Eoghan headed for the hallway.
“Do you really think Colt Wilkins set Vandross up?” Eoghan asked as they walked into the first bedroom, clearly a room for a little girl. It was painted pale pink, contained a child’s bed, and had brightly colored pictures on the wall. Aside from the framed pictures of teddy bears, there were finger painted pictures. They all depicted a happy family of five. The little girl in each one was holding her daddy’s hand. The sun was shining. The primary colors done with tiny fingers, were bright.
“This is a happy little girl,” Ari said, looking at Eoghan, before pointing to the picture. “She loves her daddy.” He turned away when he heard a whistle making him spin back around. “What?”
Eoghan was grinning. “You’re a damned good detective, Marshal.”
“I don’t know about a detective, but I’ll let you call me a good tracker,” Ari said, unable to hide his smile. “I had a great training officer to teach me how to hunt human fugitives and I have a great training officer to teach me how to hunt everything else now. Whether hunting a human, shifter, or vampire…or I suspect even an alien, all you gotta do is look for clues. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve been in a house digging through a fugitive’s trash to figure out what makes them tick so I can hunt them down.”
“All right then, Dick Tracy, let’s figure out whether someone kidnapped Riversong and her kids or whether this loving mom ran away on her own,” Eoghan said.
Ari snorted and walked out of the room. They checked out another bedroom, finding nothing of note other than a second child’s bed and a toddler’s bed. This bedroom was painted blue. They checked out the small hallway bathroom before walking into the final bedroom at the end of the hallway. This one had clearly belonged to Riversong and her boyfriend when he lived there. The drawers and closet were filled with her clothing but of even more note, his as well. Ari pointed to his shirts on hangers and neatly folded in the drawers. “Look at that.”
“What?” Two Trees asked as he and Uwaite walked into the small bedroom.
“I don’t know,” Ari said. “But if I wasn’t holding out hope that my boyfriend was going to be released from prison before serving out his three-year sentence, why would I keep all his clothes? He’s been gone for more than two years.”
“Maybe she’s sentimental,” Uwaite said.
Eoghan rolled the closet doors until they could see how stuffed her side was. “Look at that. Her clothes are overflowingon this side.” He rolled them again, revealing his side. “There’s plenty of room for her clothes in here if she bagged all of his and gave them to Goodwill or the Salvation Army.” He pointed to the drawers which told a similar story. “The same with her dresser. Clearly, she’s hoping he’s coming home soon.”
“Why would she do that?” Two Trees asked.
“Here’s a hypothetical,” Ari said. “If I knew my boyfriend—the father of my children—was innocent and wrongly convicted by the tribal council, wouldn’t I try to run away and find someone to help prove it so I could get him released from prison?”
“Yeah, I see what you mean,” Two Trees said, exchanging a glance with Uwaite who nodded. He looked back at them. “That’s good work. What else do you see?”
Ari glanced around the room, searching the walls as Eoghan explained about the fingerpainted pictures in the daughter’s bedroom. Something occurred to Ari as he stared at a picture which hung over the bed’s headboard. He pointed at the sacred heart depicted in the painting. “Is she religious? Catholic?”