I am fortunate to have another day. Every day could be your last on a patrol. A warning our sheriff reminds us of at the top of every shift.

As the only female Taos Pueblo deputy tasked with our portion of the region, the warning to be vigilant rings in my ears as I fire up the engine of the powerful Ram 4×4 pickup and drive. And drive, and drive. Waiting, ready, on point.

Accustomed to working with non-Natives, I have become the link between my tribe and the outside world. The one officer appointed to be the intermediary when cultural clashes and racial tensions collide.

On this day, trouble is roiling—wild and unpredictable as the clouds that remind me of whipped cream shot from an aerosol can. The Northern New Mexico turquoise skies are turning black. A storm is coming—I feel it, sense it, smell it in the air. The reason I am always ready, on or off duty. Head on a swivel as I look for anomalies, ears pinging to conversations tinged with annoyance or hushed threats.

And then the call comes, as it always does, and I anticipate how to defuse the situation before I even arrive. Could be an assault, or a disagreement that has ramped up to out of control, hopefully not a domestic that always tends to go wrong when liquor is tossed in.

My work should never take me across the sovereign boundary, but it often does. Too often. When non-Native offenders race at breakneck speed to outrun city officials or my deputy colleagues, thinking the reservation is safe for them. Victims be damned. They can’t be arrested there. Such a big place, 110,000 acres to hide out on—no one will find them there.

Big mistake.

This is my land, my grandfather’s, and his grandfather’s, and as far back as anyone can remember. From childhood I played on the plaza between the two ancient adobe houses built over 1,000 years ago. Feasted and danced during celebrations and powwows at the village. Chased bison in their vast field, darting around profusions of bright yellow summer wildflowers. Learned to shoot in the mountains, fish in sacred Blue Lake, know every elder remaining to tell their stories to the youngsters.

The reservation is vast, but the population is scant and growing smaller as seasons pass and opportunities for work dries up. There are many concerns and my people aren’t shy to tell me about them. It is a gift to be trusted. A blessing. I am one of them. They are mine.

You will not cross over onto our land and attempt to make it your safe haven.

I will catch you.

Yes, a storm is coming.

The storm is me.

Redemption, An Eva “Lightning Dance” Duran Mystery Book #1
Genre: Police Procedural / Native American Literature
Release: September 2023
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Format: Print, Digital, Audio
Purchase Link

From award-winning author Deborah J Ledford comes a thrilling new series featuring a Native American sheriff’s deputy who risks it all to find a friend who’s gone missing.

After four women disappear from the Taos Pueblo reservation, Deputy Eva “Lightning Dance” Duran dives into the case. For her, it’s personal. Among the missing is her best friend, Paloma, a heroin addict who left behind an eighteen-year-old son.

Eva senses a lack of interest from the department as she embarks on the investigation. But their reluctance only fuels her fire. Eva teams up with tribal police officer and longtime friend Cruz “Wolf Song” Romero to tackle a mystery that could both ruin her reputation and threaten her standing in the tribe.

And when the missing women start turning up dead, Eva uncovers clues that take her deeper into the reservation’s protected secrets. As Eva races to find Paloma before it’s too late, she will face several tests of loyalty—to her friend, her culture, and her tribe. She’s the storm they never saw coming.

Meet the author
Deborah J Ledford is the award-winning author of the Native American Eva “Lightning Dance” Duran Series, and the Smoky Mountain Inquest Series. Redemption, published by Thomas & Mercer, was released September 1, 2023. Part Eastern Band Cherokee, she is an Agatha Award winner, The Hillerman Sky Award Finalist, and two-time Anthony Award Finalist for Best Audiobooks Crescendo and Causing Chaos. Deborah lives in Phoenix, Arizona with her husband and awesome Ausky. Find about more here at DeborahJLedford.com.

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