sporting weapons, really, but paramilitary favorites as well, all semi-automatic, of course. I’m interested in anything that can be sold abroad, Mister Price, and I’d like to acquaint you with my connections. I think I can provide some fine markets for you. Can we meet over coffee or lunch sometime and discuss it?”
Leon was nodding vigorously at him.
“Of course. Lunch would be best. How about the Coffee Pot?”
“This Wednesday—at noon?”
“Fine. I’ve put it down, Mister Coulter. See you then.”
They hung up. Leon smiled. “Nicely done, short and sweet. Now, when you meet, be a good listener and you’ll discover a new element in this mystery you’re here to solve. It seems our dear Colonel Davis also has friends in the commercial sector who are most anxious to get their hands on the new technology we’ve acquired. They’ve made him a lucrative offer, and Davis has offered me in turn a generous stipend to aid him in his quest for wealth. Can you imagine the audacity of the man in bribing a federal employee and patriotic citizen such as me? I have accepted his offer, of course. John Coulter will eventually present to you a similar offer, if you seem willing, and you will be willing. If John is liaison to the commercial interests involved with Davis, we might learn the identity of the people or companies involved and turn the information over to Gil for whatever action he wants to take. And from the look in your eyes right now you might even want that assignment. Death to those who commit treason, and all that.”
“Davis should have been turned in for court-martial as soon as you discovered this,” said Eric.
“Ah, but we need him, at least for the moment. First things first, Eric; first the saboteurs, then the technology, then those who’d like to steal it. Interesting, don’t you think? And you also get to go to nice parties and meet beautiful women.”
“Stop it, Leon. I don’t need the act.”
Leon laughed, turned back to his desk, and they worked the rest of the morning in silence. When Eric finished proofing his report for Davis it was nearly noon. Leon had brought a sack lunch, and was deeply engrossed in his work. Eric was hungry. “Think I’ll hit the deli at the grocery store,” he said, and Leon didn’t even look up.
Safeway was several blocks away, Nataly’s shop three blocks closer, and the impulse, when it came, was overwhelming. Eric didn’t fight it, pulled into the little parking lot in front of New Visions. A few cars were there, Arizona plates, Phoenix area. The front window display featured museum-quality crystal clusters, Tibetan singing bowls and dream catchers the size of dinner plates. When he opened the door a dozen exotic scents, sweet and musky, assailed him. A pretty, young girl in a sleeveless, silk blouse and peasant skirt smiled at him from behind the counter as she checked out another customer. Golden hoops dangled from her ears, stretching the lobes, and a small, white crystal glistened from the right side of her nose.
It seemed at first that Nataly wasn’t there, and Eric didn’t dare to ask for her. He wandered around the shop like any other customer. Glass shelves held little boxes with crystal and mineral specimens; he paused to examine several of them. Locked cabinets held larger, pricier pieces, many of them scepters of clear quartz and amethyst, and a red garnet the size of a baseball. Incense sticks hung in bags on a wall, near a display of burners, black sand, charcoal disks and little pouches filled with nuggets of frankincense, myrrh and Egyptian musk. Angelic choir music came softly from two speakers in the back corners of the shop where shelves were lined with books on alternative religions, mythology and UFOs. Several related to strange sightings in the Sedona area. Eric pulled one from the shelf and had begun leafing through it when a soft touch on his elbow made him jump.
Nataly was standing next to him, very close, looking up at him with fathomless eyes.
“That’s a very interesting book,” she said. “Bob Terrell has written a series of them. You might want to meet him sometime. He’s local.”
Eric pretended to study the book. “Oh, I don’t think so. I’ve never seen a UFO and, quite frankly, I don’t think they exist if we’re talking about little green men. People do see strange things, I admit, but I think they’re all natural phenomena if you take the time to figure them out.
“Ah, a skeptic,” said Nataly. “That’s good when you’re seeking the truth, but even scientists are trained to keep an open mind about the possibilities. Terrell’s like that; he reports what people have seen, and suggests possible explanations for each case. And it’s not just UFOs that he talks about.”
She reached across him and pulled another book from the shelf. “Here, this one is about the military base we think is still somewhere in the backcountry here. No little green men in this one.” Her eyes twinkled, her smile playful as she handed the book to him.
Eric felt a shock, and hoped it didn’t reach his eyes. He opened the book, leafed through it and saw no pictures.
“People have seen black Humvees, black helicopters that make no sound, even armed military people in the backcountry. Some of the encounters have been hostile, people turned back on hiking trails. Years ago there was a huge fire in the backcountry beyond Boynton Canyon. The Sedona fire department went out to fight it and were turned back by armed soldiers dressed in black, and the fire burned on for several days, maybe weeks.”
“I’m not aware of any restricted air space around here,” said Eric.
“It’s not necessary if the base is underground.”
Eric forced a chuckle. “I don’t think so. I’m sorry; it doesn’t make sense to me. A secret base so close to a major tourist center is even too stupid for the military.”
Her dark eyes moved slightly, as if scanning his face, then made solid eye contact and held him there. A slight pause, then, “You don’t really believe that, and you don’t think our firemen lied about what they saw.”
“No, they could have run into some right-wing paramilitary outfit playing commando in the desert, for all I know. It doesn’t have to be a government conspiracy; that’s all I’m trying to say.”
Nataly cocked her head to one side, considering what he’d said. The look on her face was both focused and ethereal. Eric swallowed slowly, but hard. “Look, I actually came here to see if you’d like to take a break for coffee or lunch.” He glanced at his watch. “I have to head back to the office in forty-five minutes.”
“Oh, I can’t leave the shop with Marie alone here,” she said quickly. Eric’s heart sank, and he looked away nervously.
“Why don’t we eat right here?” Nataly added. “I have bread, meat and cheese in the back, and there’s green tea.”
Now his heart jumped. “Well, I suppose—”
“Good. Marie, I’ll be in the back! Ring the bell if there are any problems.”
“Yes, ma’am,” said Marie.
Nataly pulled four paperback books off a shelf, and put them into his hands. “Consider this a loan, and promise me you’ll read them. A lot of people here believe what’s in those books, and you need to know what that is if you’re going to be a resident in Sedona.”
Her seriousness made him smile without conscious thought. “Okay, but I could be called back to Phoenix anytime.”
“They’ll just have to do without you,” she said, then put a hand on his arm and guided him to the back of the shop where a curtain of glass and bamboo cylinders covered an open doorway. In the back were boxes floor to ceiling against two walls, a table with two chairs, a refrigerator next to a sink and counter. “No atmosphere, but quiet,” said Nataly. She put a teapot on a hot plate, and made ham and cheese sandwiches while the water heated. They talked about little things: the traffic in town, the weather. For a moment Eric felt as if he’d drifted off for a while. He returned to consciousness and watched silently until she served him at the table.
“This is very nice of you,” he said.
“It’s