Free The Bone Seeker by M. J. McGrath Page A

with what you were saying,
avasirngulik
.’
    Gutierrez gave Salliaq another of her little nods.
    â€˜No Inuk would ever leave a body in Lake Turngaluk. Not ever. That place is
tirigusukut.
’ So he
had
heard, Edie thought. It was impossible to keep anything under wraps for long. She felt for him. The terrible details could only have added to his pain.
    â€˜We were at summer camp,’ he went on. ‘We always move out of the settlement when the cotton grass starts blooming.’
    â€˜Three weeks, then,’ Edie said. He’d previously said a week or so. Most Inuit didn’t own a watch and didn’t compute clock time in their heads but rather sensed it from the position of the sun, from shadows and the condition of the ice. This only added to the complexity of the investigation.
    â€˜Martha stayed alone in the house during the week,’ Salliaq added, ignoring the correction.
    Next Alice spoke up. ‘We wanted her to move in with my brother but she said she preferred to have time on her own to study—’
    â€˜Look, I don’t understand why we’re wasting time talking,’ Charlie interrupted her. ‘Everyone knows Martha was killed by one of the
unataqti
from Camp Nanook.’ Directing himself at Derek, he added in an accusatory tone, ‘You were any good at your job, you’d be up there now.’
    The room fell silent. Edie looked over at Alice and saw alarm in her eyes. Was she afraid of her husband? Or only of his temper?
    Gutierrez cleared her throat. ‘My client is understandably upset. But the family are determined to cooperate with this investigation any way we can. Whether with you or with the military police at the camp.’
    Now it was Derek’s turn to prickle. That was the trouble with men, Edie thought. They were so territorial. He reminded the lawyer that Martha’s body was found on civilian land, within Ellesmere Island Police jurisdiction.
    â€˜I see,’ Gutierrez said, writing something in her notebook.
    The front door opened and Markoosie came in. Derek stood up and pulled over a chair. Markoosie nodded a greeting to each of the Salliaqs in turn then sat.
    â€˜Anyone call in?’ Edie said.
    He shook his head miserably. ‘Not with anything useful. You know how it is with us. We don’t like to stick our necks out when there are
qalunaat
involved.’
    Gutierrez blew air from her mouth in a gesture of impatience. Outsiders always wondered how it could be that people who thoughtnothing of scaling glaciers or hunting polar bears could become overwhelmed by feelings of
ilira
, awed fear, and
kappia
, a fear of unpredictable violence, in their interactions with southerners. Even outsiders as generally sympathetic as Gutierrez.
    â€˜Do you remember what time Martha came to your house on Saturday?’ Derek said.
    Markoosie looked pained. A thought crossed his face. He was about to speak, when his attention was drawn to the actions of his brother-in-law, who was wiping furiously at his nose, the back of his hand bloody. Gutierrez began to fluster in her bag for a handkerchief but the elder waved her away, saying he was OK, that it was just a nosebleed and that he was used to them. Still dabbing at his nose he stood up. He had no intention of staying and, in this state, there was no point in requiring it of him.
    They’d reached the door when Edie called Markoosie’s name. The man looked back.
    â€˜You were about to say something?’
    He closed his eyes. ‘Oh yeah. After she came round, Martha said she was going to the store.’
    â€˜Is that all? She say why?’
    Markoosie shook his head and turned away.
    â€¢Â Â Â â€¢Â Â Â â€¢
    Only Sonia stayed behind.
    â€˜I know this won’t be at the top of your mind right now,’ she said to Derek. ‘But I think it’s important that the decontamination work scheduled to start at Glacier Ridge this summer goes ahead.