Chapter Nineteen #4
“The same could be said of you, Callen. You were raised on our reservation. We expected you to respect that, and you both didn’t. We don’t understand how two of our people died, and you didn’t bring it to us.”
Ethan went there.
“Because it’s an active investigation, and we LITERALLY just found him an hour ago.
We just got Lance back here, and you called.
Did you want us to drive him to your house, Abe, and drop him on your doorstep?
Should we discuss how you have people spying on us every time we come and go on LAND THAT IS ALSO OURS? ”
The man bristled and said something to the other man in their Native tongue.
Both men caught it.
They are not of us. We have made deals with the devil.
Well, shit.
They really didn’t like them, now did they?
Before Callen could say anything, Abe went there.
“Tone matters,” he stated.
Ethan was just about at the ‘burn it to the ground’ point in this conversation, but he somehow managed not to make a comment about what they both overheard him say.
“Again, we would like their bodies,” Thomas said. “We hope that an autopsy was not done.”
Callen tried to calm the situation.
“None was done. They were both stitched back up, after what was done to them, so they could have some dignity in death. Neither would have wanted to be seen like they were.”
Abe nodded.
“Very well.”
Ethan tried.
“Abe,” he said, trying to stay calm. “We never wanted any of this to happen to a single person on the reservation. Surely, you don’t believe we condone this.”
The man sighed.
“Ethan, we don’t believe that you intended for anyone to be harmed. We know that, but you don’t seem to see that this will anger people. You’re the FBI. We are not. That history between the two is never fondly remembered. Now this is added to it. At what point do we protect ourselves?”
Well, that didn’t sound good.
“What are you saying?” Callen asked. “Because I recognize a big ‘fuck you’ when I hear it, and I’m hearing it.”
The two men stared at each other, and then, Thomas went there.
“We would like the Blackhawks to remove themselves from the reservation if they are not of our people. We need time to see if our relationship is worth it going forward. Everyone else must depart.”
What?
The?
Hell?
Worth it?
Callen was getting pissed.
“We’re feeding the people. We’re getting them medical care. If you remove us…,” he began, but was cut off.
Abe wasn’t having it.
“We have spoken. As council, and with taking over Lance’s duties as reservation chief, we made up our mind. The ties your family has to the oppressor, the FBI, is too much for us. We cut ties now. Your family can no longer roam freely on the reservation if they are not of the land. Period.”
Well, holy shit.
This was a kick in the balls.
Abe wasn’t done.
Clearly.
He delivered the final blow.
“Timothy would be disappointed in his grandsons. He would roll in his grave over this. You have brought blood to our grounds. If you are white, you are not permitted here.”
As he said it, he was staring at Ethan.
So, he went there.
“I’m half-Native. I’m ‘of the people’,” he stated.
He didn’t mince words, and instead, he said out loud what Ethan had carried his whole life.
“It’s not good enough, Ethan. You have to choose which world you stand in. Are you here for your people? Or are you here for our forever oppressors? The FBI has never been our friend. Lance and Tom said that from the beginning, and both of their lives were ended.”
Callen stopped that shit right there.
“Hold your horses, Chief,” he stated. “We didn’t kill them. Tom was a murderer. He was EATING our people.”
He waved his hand like that was nothing of importance. Oh, but Ethan being half-White was a sin?
What?
“He was one of us, and he was helping maintain balance. He is gone, and now, the Wendigo punishes us. We have lost our chief of police and our chief in a day.”
Holy fuck.
An imaginary punisher was welcome, but they weren’t?
Abe continued.
“We have spoken. You will be welcome to be Shaman as long as you revoke your ties to the oppressor, Ethan. Callen, you just know better. As one of us, you shouldn’t have a difficult decision to make. It is us, your roots, or it is your badge, the enemy.”
Uh, to choose between their heritage and their family was one hell of a difficult decision.
For fucking sure.
Thomas was to the point.
“Return their bodies to us and stay off of our land unless you are willing to leave the FBI, and don’t bother having Wyler speak to us on this topic. It’s finalized.”
With that, the two men turned, and headed out the front door of the FBI building.
“Well, that went about as well as I’d hoped,” Callen stated, sighing.
Ethan said nothing.
He knew that he now had to make a choice.
Was he the man he was now, or was he the man he’d fought all those years to be?
Either way, the Blackhawks were now without the Native community.
Yeah, Devon Slater fucked them real good.
* * * The Blackhawks * * *
Getting Lunch
Outside of Damascus
Holding Time
While The Hunters were getting something to eat, Elizabeth wasn’t in the mood. The last thing she wanted was to eat when the seconds were ticking by.
What she wanted was to find Devon, rip his eyes out, and laugh while doing it.
Only, she didn’t know where he was.
Deep down, she wasn’t sure if she’d ever find him.
Beside her, Gene was sending out messages to everyone, trying to figure out how they could get a bead on Devon.
Oh, and she appreciated him being her ride or die on this one. So, she told him how she felt.
“In case I forget to tell you, thank you,” she said.
He glanced over.
“For?”
She rested her head on his shoulder.
“For saddling up and heading into the cuckoo with me. Thank you for having my back.”
He kissed her on the top of the head.
“Why wouldn’t I want to jump into the crazy and wrangle the lunatics with you? This is the fun stuff,” he said, lying his ass off.
It was not fun.
Not.
At.
All.
Still, he was in a relationship with all of them, and that meant you got into the mess, and got dirty.
As a team.
“Anything?” she asked, knowing that was a pile of bullshittery if she ever heard it.
He shook his head.
“Nothing yet. He’s not come up from whatever hole he’s in, but he will. I just checked in with Callen and Ethan. They met with the new council, and it went about as well as you would imagine.”
Oh, well, no shock there.
Gene shared what he’d found out.
“They want us off the reservation,” he stated.
She laughed sardonically.
“Oh, no! Don’t kick me off of a reservation that has been testing my goddamn nerves the last three months,” she stated. “Whatever will I do?”
He snorted.
“I detect sarcasm.”
That made her laugh.
How could it not?
“How’d Ethan take that?”
Gene shrugged.
“I’m going to say not well. You know how that goes,” he stated.
Yeah, she did.
One of the things she and Gene both had in common was that they both loved Ethan Blackhawk, and that was not for the weak. That was for damn sure.
“What are we going to do?” Gene asked.
She shrugged.
“Honestly, that’s tomorrow Elizabeth’s problem. I have ninety-nine of them today, and all of them are Devon Slater, if you know what I mean.”
Oh, he knew.