A Joe Leaphorn/Jim Chee Mystery
Carl Mankin was hired to investigate the disappearance of massive amounts of fossil fuels from the San Juan Basin area of New Mexico, a rich natural gas production area, among other fossil fuels.
But as Mankin is just starting his investigation in New Mexico, he is mistaken for DEA, Drug Enforcement, and is shot dead. And when the FBI take over the investigation from the local police, they declare Mankin was accidentally shot by a careless hunter, case closed.
Meanwhile, the drug lords have figured out a way to get drugs out of Mexico and into the US by using old pipelines that crossed the border. Pipelines are periodically cleaned by a device called a pig which travels through the pipeline removing rust and buildup. So the smugglers are using the pipeline pigs to haul drugs through the pipeline from Mexico and into New Mexico.
Bernie Manuelito, who used to be an officer with the Navajo Police, is now working for Border Patrol, when she spots some unusual activity on a ranch near New Mexico's border. Unfortunately, her harmless nosing around gets her put on a hit list. And in the cross hairs of a Washington DC sociopath who has brought his high-powered rifle to New Mexico to take her out. What the DC insider doesn't know is that his number one guy isn't the loyal tool he believes him to be.
I found this mystery to be a bit disappointing. In that the first murder is never solved, other than the FBI coverup claiming it was an accidental shooting, nor is the mystery of the billions of dollars of missing funds. Yes, the bad guy DC insider is taken care of. But the take down of the corrupt Border Patrol agent is barely mentioned. Seems to me the story was mainly used to get Jim Chee and Bernie back together.
Here is a review by Kirkus Reviews.
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