“Is this the same killer she offered a million dollars for as a bounty?” he asked, arms crossed over his chest.
Ethan nodded.
“He’s dangerous, and we are trying our best to make sure no one gets hurt,” Callen stated. “You know our highest priority is to protect our people.”
Abe stared at him.
“And in the process, Lance was killed. If that is the way you protect, Callen, we’re not fond of it.”
Oh, well, they were all fighting for their lives, but he wasn’t going there. The worst thing they could do was let the council know that people died because of them.
“And neither are we.”
Thomas was to the point.
“We take great offense to our chief being killed. Have you told his daughter yet?”
Oh, Jesus.
They.
Didn’t.
Know.
Ethan took one for the team, not wanting Callen to take any of the heat in this. Yeah, he was liaison, but Ethan was Shaman. The line they walked was a precariously thin one.
“Rayna was also killed.”
That hung there.
In the silence of the moment, they could tell that Abe wasNOThappy.
“Are you telling me that both RunningWolf tribe members are dead?” he asked.
Well, it wasn’t like they could lie or bring either back. So, they had to be honest.
“Yes,” Ethan stated.
Thomas was curious.
“So, Rayna, who was entangled with one of your bodyguards, a white man, is dead, and so is her father? We wish to see them.”
Callen was direct.
“No, you really don’t want that. What was done to them is abhorrent, and disgusting. Trust me when I say once you see it, you will never unsee it.”
That seemed to deter them.
“Still, we want their bodies. As members of our tribe, it is our right to claim them. They were taken from the rez without our knowledge, and they will be returned to our land.”
Ethan tried to placate them.
“We want to pay for the burial.”
Abe wasn’t having it. In fact, his anger came through. With his finger, he pointed into Ethan’s chest and let him have it.
“Your guilt over this will not taint their burial. We are going to take care of our own,” Abe said. “As the new chief of the reservation, making us come to you tells us how you view us. We believed you were one of us, Ethan. You’re not.”
