Ajie and I had removed the lone Concho from the display case at the resort and taken it home with us. Why? I felt that Chief Clah might come up with something on the unknown maker’s mark on the one choker. And, what did the lone Concho have to do with that? Maybe as a way to say thanks.

After I’d made several phone calls to Ohio about the Los Alamos National Laboratory doing a background check on me, I received a call from Amy. There was a girl that was injured in a horseback riding accident, and her parents wanted me to see her. Why me?

I did go over to the hospital, meet with the girl’s parents, and told them that I was not a healer. But, I agreed to see her. I ended up sitting with her for two hours, and the only thing that I can say is, she has a strong spirit and a strong will to live. Did I do her any good? I don’t know.

Was this girl why Naainish and I had also talked about helping people?

Later, at the apartment, I had received a phone call from Chief Clah. He wanted to meet tomorrow afternoon at Ahiga Biakeddy’s shop in Old Town. He had some information on the unknown maker’s mark. Hmm?

Monday started as it usually does with both of us teaching our classes. Then when I was back at the apartment, Amy was already there and had changed. Long skirt, fancy blouse, and wrap moccasins. She had put her hair into a single braid with an elegant braid holder at the top. The only jewelry that she was wearing, so far, was a pair of earrings made of beads.

As I walked in the door, I looked at Amy, who was now more Ajie, and said, “You look sharp.”

“Thanks.”, Ajie said. “Are we going to stop for lunch before we meet Chief Clah or eat here?”

“We can stop some place. Where would you like to go?”

“The drive in.”

“It’s cold.”

“Not with you there.”

I looked at her, smiled, and said, “Okay. I’ll go and change.”

I ran upstairs, and laying on the bed was what I figured that Ajie wanted me to wear. The long velvet skirt and a fancy blouse. Also, on the floor was a pair of wrap moccasins.

I stripped out of my teaching clothes, and put my hair into a single braid. And, like Ajie I added a fancy braid holder to the top, but then I added a decorative wrap to the end of the braid. For earrings I chose a pair of the silver feather earrings.

When I went downstairs, Ajie and I went to the small room. I opened the safe, and I took out the lone Concho that was still wrapped up and set it on top of the safe. Ajie said, “I think I’d like to wear the choker with the two maker’s marks, also pick me out a couple of rings and a bracelet.”

I took out what she asked for and handed it to her. Then I picked two rings and a bracelet for me. Also, for me, I picked one of the beaded chokers that Chief Todachine had given us when we became members of the Big Medicine People clan.

Ajie put on one of the braided leather headbands. And I chose the braided leather headband with the feathers that hang down. Ajie looked at me, and said, “A little formal isn’t it?”

“We are meeting a high ranking member of the Navajo Nation’s Administration.”, I replied. “Aren’t we?”

“I guess. Kind of fancy for the drive-in though.”

“No. We’re just stopping for a bite on our way to a meeting.”

“True.”

I put the lone Concho in my purse, we put on coats, and headed for the drive-in. At the drive-in, we had our usual cheeseburgers with pickles, fries, and ginger ale milkshakes. I know. I know. We’re boring, but we know what we like. Besides we don’t eat here that often.

After we’d finished eating, we drove over to Old Town. Parking was easy. There weren’t many if any, tourists around. We were able to park right in front of Cousin Ahiga’s shop. But, we were early. So, we window shopped for a little while.

Just before two, we walked into Cousin Ahiga’s shop. He was sitting at the workbench working on something, and his partner Yas Lapahie was sitting at the desk reading. They both looked at the door as the little bell above the door jingled.

I said, “Yá’át’ééh, Ahiga dóó Yas.” - (It is good, Ahiga and Yas.)

“Kai and Ajie!”, Cousin Ahiga said. “We haven’t seen you in a while.”

“I know.”

“What are you doing here?”

“We’re meeting someone.”

“Who?”

“You’ll see.”

“Being secretive?”, Yas said.

“Maybe a little.”, I replied.

Just then the little bell on the door rang again as the door opened, we all looked, and it was Chief Clah. I said, “Yá’át’ééh, Naat'áanii Clah.” - (It is good, Chief Clah.)

Chief Clah smiled and said, “Yá’át’ééh, Kai dóó Ajie.”

I heard Ahiga say, “Chief Clah!”

“Uh huh.”, I said. “The War Chief of the Navajo Nation.”

“Oh. Ah. Wait. He and I talked last Saturday.”

“Yes, we did, Mr. Biakeddy.”, Chief Clah said. “And, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Yes, sir.”, Ahiga said. “It’s a pleasure to meet you too.”

“You have a very nice shop.”

“Thank you. This is my partner Yas Lapahie.”

Chief Clah and Yas exchanged greetings. Then Chief Clah said, “I hope that you don’t mind Mr. Biakeddy and Mr. Lapahie. But, I’ve asked Kai and Ajie to meet me here because what I have to tell them may be of interest to you also.”

“What’s that Chief?”, Cousin Ahiga asked.

“Have any of you heard of someone by the name of Tse Nez?”

“No, I haven’t.

“Me either.”, I said.

“Well.”, Chief Clah said. “After I’d talked with Kai on Saturday I did some digging and found some interesting things.”

The Chief set his briefcase on the counter and opened it. He then took a manila folder, opened it, and we saw a very old piece of paper. The first thing that I noticed was the maker’s mark. And, before I could say anything, Ajie said, “That’s the unknown maker’s mark on the choker!”

“Yes, it is Ajie.”, the Chief said. “Kai, read what’s on the paper.”

I didn’t touch the old paper but looked closely at it, the printed letterhead was faded, and you could only read part of it. ’Court of ___’, and under that was ’Territory of New Mex__’, there was also a handwritten date, and it was faded so that you could only read 'June 21, 18__’. And, there was some very nice handwriting that was readable, but just, and I read that out loud, "I certify that this mark is the maker’s mark belonging to Tse Nez.' And a Judge William McB_____ had signed it." You couldn’t make out the full signature.

I looked at the Chief, and asked, “Who is this Tse Nez?”

Chief Clah took another manila folder out of his briefcase, laid that on the counter, opened it, and said, “Now read this and see.”

I looked at the paper in the second folder, the letterhead was faded more than on the other paper, but the maker’s mark on it was very visible, and I said, “This is Grandpa Nez’s mark.”

Then I looked at the handwritten part, and like the other paper it was very nice handwriting but was just barely readable, and I also read this out loud, "I certify that this mark is the maker’s mark belonging to Kilchii Nez, son of Tse Nez. And, it signed by Judge William McBeal.”

Then Ajie almost screamed, “Tse Nez was Kilchii Nez’s father and teacher. Tse Nez is your third great grandfather, Kai.”

I just stood there and stared at the two pieces of paper. Then I looked at Chief Clah, and asked, “Chief, where did you find these?”

“I also collect the history of the old Arizona and New Mexico Territories.”, the Chief replied. “And I was at a meeting of collectors of old papers some time ago and found these two. I recognized the maker’s marks as those used by silversmiths, so I bought them.”

“Can I get copies of them?”

“No. It would cause the ink to fade more.”

I was crestfallen until the Chief added, “You can’t copy them, but you can have them. They’re yours.”

“What!”

“You heard me. They’re yours.”

“Can I pay you for them?”

“No, Kai. You need to have these. They’re your families history. Just keep them in a safe place.”

“I will. Chief Clah, I can’t thank you enough.”

Cousin Ahiga had been looking over my shoulder, and he said, “That is quite a find, Chief Clah. If you and Kai don’t mind, I’d like to write down what’s on those papers and publish it in one of the magazines?”

“I have no problem with that.”, Chief Clah said.

“I don’t either, Ahiga.”, I said.

“Now, Kai.”, Chief Clah said. “I have something else to show you.”

The Chief again opened his briefcase, removed something that was wrapped in a cloth, set it on the counter, and unwrapped it. It was a silver bracelet with inlaid turquoise.

“Chief Clah, I’m afraid to ask this.”, I said. “But is that a piece of Tse Nez’s work?”

“Yes, it is Kai.”, the Chief replied.

As I reached for it, I asked, “May I look at it?”

“Of course.”

I picked up the piece of silver and looked it over, and I saw Tse Nez’s maker’s mark. It had been hand engraved. So, this was an old piece. And, it was a gorgeous piece of work.

While I was looking at the silver piece, Chief Clah took something else out of his briefcase, set it on the counter, and unwrapped it. I glanced over, and it was an almost identical bracelet to the one I had in my hand. I looked at the Chief, and said, “Two almost identical pieces.”

“Yes. I’ve had these two pieces for a long time and never knew who the silversmith was until after you and I talked, then I remembered those papers in my collection, and compared them.

“The work is amazing. The one that you’re holding is older than this one, and the maker’s mark is hand engraved. The makers mark on this one was done with a tool.”

“Are these the only two pieces of Tse Nez’s work that you have?”

“Yes. I’ve never seen any others.”

Cousin Ahiga asked, “Chief, would you mind if I took some pictures of the pieces.”

“Not at all.”, the Chief Clah replied. “Go right ahead.”

Cousin Ahiga went into the back room and came out with a very nice camera, and proceeded to take some pictures.

As Cousin Ahiga took the pictures, Ajie said, “I wish I’d brought my camera.”

“Ajie.”, Chief Clah said. “Why don’t you just take one of them home with you?”

Ajie looked at the Chief, and said, “Huh?”

“I said, why don’t you just take one home with you.”

“We couldn’t.”

“Yes, you could. If you bought one of them from me.”

Ajie and I couldn’t say anything. We just looked at him.

I finally was able to say, “You … You … You mean that you’d sell one of them?”

“Yes.”, Chief Clah said. “To Ajie.”

“To me?”, Ajie said.

“Yes, Ajie. To you.”

“Which … Which one.”

“Which one would you like?”

Ajie looked at me, and I said, “It’s your call.”

“The one with the engraved maker’s mark.”, Ajie said.

“I thought that’s what you’d say.”, Chief Clah said. “You know the better piece for a collector.”

“What would you want for it.”

“Make me an offer.”

Ajie looked at me. I looked at her, and said, “That’s your call too.”

She looked at the chief, and said, “Seventy dollars.”

“That’s fair.”, the Chief said.

Then I heard Cousin Ahiga, say, “Seventy-five.”

I looked at him, frowned, and said, “Ahiga!”

“I can try can’t I?”

“No!”

I whispered to Ajie, “Offer him the Concho to sweeten the deal.”

“I’ll tell you what, Chief.”, Ajie said. “I’ll sweeten the deal.”

“You don’t have to, Ajie.”, the Chief replied. “The bracelet is yours.”

As Ajie held out her hand to me, she said, “Yes I do. Especially with those two papers with the maker’s marks that proved the link between Tse and Kilchii.”

I opened my purse, took out the Concho that was wrapped in cloth, and placed it in Ajie’s hand. Ajie unwrapped it, showed it to the Chief, and said, “Chief, we’ll add this to the deal.”

“That wouldn’t happen to be a piece of Kilchii Nez’s work. Would it?”

“Yes, it would. We know you don’t have any of his work, and thought you’d like this.”

“Yes, I really like it. Thank you!”

“Not fair.”, Cousin Ahiga said.

Ajie looked at Ahiga, grinned, and said, “Ahiga, all’s fair in love and trading silver.”

“You can keep the seventy dollars.”, the Chief said.

As I took the money out of my purse and handed it to Chief Clah, I said, “No. Tse’s bracelet is worth much more then the Concho is. Especially with the two papers.”

“I won’t argue. But, I would like to take you two out to dinner.”

“It’s a little too early.”

“We could meet somewhere later.”

“Any thoughts as to where?”

The Chief said, “We love the La Placita Dining Rooms in Old Town.”

“So do we.”, I replied.

“Shall we say six.”

“Six works.”

The Chief left before we did. And, as we were saying so long to Ahiga and Yas, Ahiga said, “Sorry about jumping the bid.”

“Don’t worry about it, Ahiga.”, I said. “We were going to give him that Concho to sweeten the deal for some of the things he’s done. Like finding Tse’s maker’s mark.”

“Okay. I didn’t want to hurt our friendship.”

“No worry. We’ll see you later.”

As we were getting into the car, Ajie said, “The nerve of Ahiga pulling that stunt.”

“Relax.”, I said. “The Chief said he’d only sell it to you.”

“I know. But, that just wasn’t right.”

“True.”

“He’s off our Christmas card list.”

“We have a Christmas card list?”

“No. But, he’s still off of it.”

When we were back at the apartment, the first phone call was to Aunt Ginny. When she answered, and after saying hello, I asked, “Aunt Ginny, when you were researching the Nez family, did you ever run across the name of Tse Nez?”

“I’d have to go back through my notes.”, Aunt Ginny said. “Why?”

“Start going through them. I have some paperwork that in my opinion proves that Tse Nez is Kilchii Nez’s father.”

“What do you have!?”

“Two very old letters from a judge more or less registering both the maker’s marks of Kinchii Nez and Tse Nez, and the one for Kilchii mentions that he’s the son of Tse Nez. Plus it also proves that that unknown maker’s mark on the choker belongs to Tse Nez. So, it appears that Tse was teaching his son Kilchii to be a silversmith.”

“That’s wonderful Kai!”

“I’ll be sure to bring the letters and the piece of Tse Nez’s work that we have with us the next time that we see you.”

“You have a piece of his work!?”

“Yes, Chief Clah gave us the two letters, and he had two pieces of Tse Nez’s work, and we traded that single Concho that Kilchii made, and a little cash, for one of the pieces of Tse’s work.”

“I’ve got to see that.”

“You will. Just let me know if you have anything more on Tse?”

“Oh, I will.”

My next call was to my Aunt Ruth, and it was almost like the call to Aunt Ginny. Then I called my parents, and we hadn’t talked to them on Sunday, so we filled them in on the happenings from the past week, then I filled them in on Tse Nez. My mom was excited. And we made the same call to Amy’s parents. As expected, the excitement about Tse Nez wasn’t as high with Amy’s parents as it was with mine.

Ajie and I changed our jewelry around a little bit before we left to meet Chief Clah and whoever he might bring. He never did say.

We walked into the La Placita Dining Rooms just before six and asked if the Clah party had arrived. They took us back to where the Chief was, and a woman was sitting with him. She also looked to be a native.

As we walked up, Chief Clah stood up, and said, “Good you made it.”

“Wouldn’t miss it.”, I said.

Then the Chief said, “Mai, this is Kai Nez and Ajie Nez. I've told you about them.

“Kai and Ajie this is my wife, Mai Clah.”

As we sat down, we exchanged greetings, and then our waitress asked if she could bring Ajie and me something to drink. I said, “We’d both like sangrias, but I’m driving.”

“Miss.”, the waitress said. “We do make a drink that tastes like sangria but without the alcohol.”

“That’s what I’m drinking, Kai.”, the Chief said.

“Good.”, I said. “She’ll have the sangria, and I'll have the non-alcohol sangria.”

“Very good, Miss.”

The four of us chatted while we looked at the menu and waited for our drinks. The drinks arrived, and we ordered. Then as we waited for our food, we chatted some more and sipped on our drinks. As we were talking, Mai said, “Kai, Atsa tells me that you are a Nádleeh – (two spirit person).”

“Yes.”, I replied. “Something that I knew very little about until we came out here a few years ago to visit my grandmother.”

“I’d like to talk with you about it sometime when you have time.”

“Can I ask why?”

“I’m writing a book on the history of the Navajo people, and your story might be interesting. I’ve already gotten some interesting things from a medicine man who is a Nádleeh.”

“Naainish Yazzie?”

“Yes. Do you know him?”

“Yes, very well. He’s taught me a lot about two spirit people.”

“Wait a minute. He told me about a boy who came out here from the east, and has accepted his Navajo heritage and is a Nádleeh with a strong feminine spirit. That wouldn’t be you. Would it?”

I just smiled.

“It is you. Isn’t it?”

“Yes.”, I replied. “Guilty as charged.”

“You’re too pretty to not be a real girl?

“Mai.”, Ajie said. “I always say, she has the body of a boy and the spirit of a girl.”

“Kai, now I really do have to sit down with you.”, Mai said.

“I’d be happy to.”, I replied. “We’ll have to work it in between me taking grad-level classes, teaching, and doing research.”

“I’m a patient person. Besides I’m an instructor in English at the university.”

“Well, I’m an instructor in the engineering college. So, that should make it a little easier for us to get together on campus.”

“The engineering college. A girl?”

“Why not?”

We’d had a nice dinner with Chief Clah and his wife, and when they brought the checks, I tried to grab ours, but the Chief grabbed both of them. Then I said, “Please let me at least get the tip.”

“Okay.”, the Chief replied. And, he showed me the two checks.

I tried to grab ours again, but he was too quick and pulled it away from me. Then the Chief told me what the total of the two checks was, and I left an appropriate tip.

As we walked out of the restaurant, Mai said, “It’s been fun meeting the two of you. And, Kai, I don’t know how a boy can look so pretty.”

I grinned as I said, “I have a strong feminine spirit that demands perfection.”

Mai just shook her head, and said, “I just can’t wait to sit down with you.”

When we were back home, and getting ready for bed, Amy asked, “Are you going to talk to Mai?”

“Sure.”, I said. “I feel good about both the Chief and Mai. And, as long as names aren’t used in the book, I’ll be happy.

“Oh. By the way, the sangria that you make is much better than the non-alcohol one that I had tonight.”

“Thank you.”, Amy said. “The one I had tonight wasn’t that good either. Maybe we’re spoiled by Aunt Ruth’s recipe.”

“So, that’s where you got the recipe. Why doesn’t she make them?”

“Your Uncle Paul has a problem.”

“Oh. An alcohol problem?”

“Yeah. Aunt Ruth told me, that he had a real problem when he came back from the war. He’s been dry for over fifteen years. So, to keep the temptation away, they don’t have any alcohol in the house.”

“Good idea.”

I had a delightful surprise tonight. Amy gave me a wonderful foot massage.

Tuesday at breakfast, I said to Amy, “You know when I talked to Aunt Ginny yesterday, she never said anything about Uncle Gaagii finding out anything about Peshlakai.”

“It’s only Tuesday. Be patient. Besides you finding Tse Nez was more important to her.”

“You’re right.”

As I was leaving for the university, I said, “I’ve been thinking.”

“That scares me.”, Amy replied.

“Oh, thanks!”

“So what are you thinking about?”

“We’ve talked about doing this, but have never done it. But, the letters should be in a safe place. I think it’s time we get a safe deposit box.

“True.”

“And, some of these silver pieces are worth a lot.”

“Also true.”, Amy said. “Don’t you trust the safe?”

“I do. But, those papers that Chief Clah gave us are very old and need to be protected better than we can do it here. Plus that silver piece of Tse's has to be rare. If this were our place, we’d have a better safe.”

“Shh.”, Amy said. “You’ll hurt its feelings.”

“Who’s feelings.”, I asked.

“The safes.”

“Stop being silly.”

“No. And, you'd better get going, or you're going to be late. I’ve got nothing to do today, so I may stop by the library and talk to the people in the special collections department and see how we can protect those papers.”

“Good thought.”

We kissed so long that I had to run to my first class, so I wasn't late.

I taught my morning classes, then went to Dr. Joe’s office, and he wasn’t there. I went to the college office and checked my mailbox, and nothing other than a nice, “Hello, Kai.”, from Sara. So, I walked to the apartment. When I got there, Amy was sitting on the couch reading. She looked up, and said, “Hi sweetheart.”

“Hi, love.”, I replied. “Do anything interesting this morning?”

“Yes. I did go and talk to someone in the special collections department of the library. And, I took the two papers with me.”

“What did they have to say?”

“They told me that what we were doing, keeping them in acid-free folders was good. And we shouldn’t touch them with our bare hands. Also, don’t expose them to Sunlight or other strong light. The next best thing would be to keep them in a place where the temperature and humidity are controlled.”

“So, Chief Clah was doing a good job taking care of them. Did you ask about a bank vault?”

“Yes. They said a bank vault is good, but not the best. But, it would be better than keeping them in our safe.”

“Sounds like a trip to the bank.”

“After lunch?”

“Sounds good. And maybe a walk along the river.”

As we ate lunch, Amy said, “While I was with the people at the library, we looked at Kilchii and Tse’s papers with a special light, and the ink is so badly faded that the light didn’t bring out anything else.”

“That’s a shame. It would have been nice to know the date and what court it was.”

“I know. They also said, that if they weren’t so badly faded that we could frame them and display them as long as they weren’t in a place of direct Sunlight or bright light. But, I think we need to keep them in a place that is safe. Like the bank”

After we ate, we changed into our hiking clothes. Then we gathered up the two folders with the papers on Tse Nez and Kilchii Nez, the piece of Tse Nez’s silver work, and Kilchii’s marking tool, and headed to our bank.

We were able to rent a safe deposit box that was big enough to hold the two folders and any of our silver that we’d want to put in it. We put the two folders, Kilchii’s marking tool and the bracelet that Tse made in the box. And, we talked about also putting the choker that has both their maker’s marks on it in the box.

The only problem with a safe deposit box was that you could only access it during bank hours. But I guess we can live with that.

Then we ran over to the drive-in for a milkshake. Yes, ginger ale milkshakes. As we sat there, we listened to the universities radio station. When we finished, we drove over to the parking area for the trail that runs along the river. We parked and started our walk along the river. This is nothing like hiking in the mountains, but at least we’re out communing with Mother Earth. And, we’ll see the Eagles.

We decided to hike to the bench at about the two-mile point on the trail, and sit and wait for the Eagles to show up. It took us a little over half an hour to reach the bench, we sat and waited for the Eagles.

And, we waited.

And, we waited.

Amy finally said, “I’m beginning to wonder where the Eagles are?”

“Me too.”, I said.

And, we waited some more. And, still no Eagles.

“I’m worried about them.”, I finally said. “This is the first time that they haven't shown up.”

“I know.”, Amy said. “I hope … ”

“Don’t say it.”

“I won’t.”

We sat there for over an hour waiting for the Eagles to show. But, they never did. Finally I said, “We’d better get going.”

“Your right.”, Amy said.

“And, now I’ll say it. I hope nothing has happened to them.”

“Me too.”

We walked in silence back to the car and drove back to the apartment. Charlie and Jackie saw us drive in, and walked over to the garage. When Jackie saw us, she said, “Why so sad?”

“We walked along the river this afternoon.”, Amy said. “And the Eagles never showed up.”

“Is that bad?”

“It’s never happened before. They’ve always shown up.”

“Oh. Not good.”

“We hope that nothing has happened to them.”

“Me too.”, Charlie said. “They’re cool.”

“Come on in.”, I said. “We have some things to tell you.”

“Sure.”

We walked into the kitchen, Amy fixed us something to drink, and we sat at the table. As she sat, Amy asked, “So, Kai what are we going to do about the Eagles?”

“I’m thinking of driving up to the reservoir tomorrow.”, I replied.

“It may be what we have to do.”

“I’d like to go with you.”, Charlie said. “But I’m working tomorrow afternoon.”

“That’s okay.”, I said. “I’d love for you to come along. And, I promise you that we’ll go up one weekend, and you can go along. But, we need to see if something happened to the Eagles. We’ll run up tomorrow after class.”

Then I looked at Charlie and Jackie, and said, “Well are you two ready to hear the tail of a spy called Kai Nez?”

“A spy?”, Charlie asked.

“Well, I was treated as one.”

“What now?”

I started telling Charlie and Jackie the story of what had gone on with Los Alamos. As I got close to the end and mentioned about not staying at the university, Jackie said, “You’re not leaving us, are you? Please say that you’re not.”

“Jackie.”, Amy said. “No. At least as far as we know, I think it depends on the people doing Kai’s background check.”

“Realize that they have really pushed me.”, I said. “ I was so mad that it took someone like Amy, with a level head, to make me see reason.”

“I would have just walked away from the whole mess.”, Charlie said.

“You don’t know how close I came to doing just that, Charlie. But, Amy made me see that I belong in a university environment. And, I need the research to keep my mind challenged. So, that’s why I agreed to allow them to do the background check. As long as everything is kept confidential.”

“Aren’t there other research projects other than what Los Alamos has?”

“Yes. But, I need the challenge. The first research project that I worked on for Los Alamos was a reasonably good challenge after we cleaned up the mess that the first researcher made of it. And, I have a feeling that the one that they are thinking of giving us next will be a real challenge.

“On top of that, I enjoy the teaching. Also, being here gives me a chance to help my people. Not to mention being with Amy.”

“Kai.”, Jackie said. “There’s no end to the trouble that you get into.”

“It does look that way.”, I replied. “It’s like it comes looking for me because I sure as hell aren’t looking for it.”

“Anyone for pizza?”, Amy asked.

“I could use some wine.”, I replied.