Orest Stelmach - The Boy Who Stole from the Dead

Her tour guide’s name was Karen Kuvalik. The trail of clues from Kotzebue had led Lauren to Karen and her husband, Sam. They knew Bobby Kungenook and his real story. Lauren was sure of it. Convincing them to part with the truth, however, was going to take some persuasion. Lauren was prepared to do whatever was necessary. If the locals were protecting Bobby Kungenook, the story had to be about more than hockey. It could be a simple matter of illegal immigration, but her gut told her otherwise. Cops didn’t point rifles at reporters’ heads to protect an illegal immigrant. Lauren suspected this was the type of story that created international headlines.

“So you know Ricky Wells?” Karen said. She spoke in a monotone.

“No. I don’t really know him. I’m producing a show on the Kobuk 440. And Ricky’s a top competitor. I know he comes out to Diomede once a year to hunt polar bears, and I thought that would be interesting to our viewers. I asked if he wanted to come out with me but he couldn’t take time off from work.” That was true, but the entire exercise was an excuse to meet with Karen and Sam.

“That’s too bad. I never met him. I’ve seen him from a distance but I never met him. He’s still single, isn’t he?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t ask. I thought you were married, Karen.”

“I am. But my sister isn’t.”

“Ah. I see. I imagine the pickings are slim on the island.”

Karen shot her a look. “What does that mean?”

“No, no,” Lauren said. “I didn’t mean it that way.”

“What did you mean?”

“Literally what I said. There are one hundred thirty-five people living on your island. How many age appropriate single men can there be?”

“It’s even worse than that.”

“It is?”

“Yeah. There’s basically four families in the village. Pretty much everyone’s related.”

“Yikes. That is a problem.”

“Yeah. I was lucky. I got my Sam when I was eighteen. No sense wasting time, you know? When you see something you want, you have to go get it.”

“Tell me about it. So if you want to get married and live on Diomede…”

“You have to go find a boyfriend on the mainland and bring him back. You have to go find a man who loves you so much he’s willing to live on Inalik.”

“Inalik?”

“Diomede Village is called Inalik. Diomede Island is called Ignaluk. A Danish navigator by the name of Vitus Bering found the island in 1728. It was the same day the Russian Orthodox Church was celebrating the day of their martyr, St. Diomede. That’s how the island got its Anglo name. He was beheaded.”

“Who was beheaded?”

“St. Diomede.”

Lauren remembered the Seelicks talking about beheadings in Kotzebue. An eerie sense of foreboding washed over her. “I heard something like that before. How did your mother find your father? Did he live in the village or did she have to go outside?”

“He lived in Wales. It’s the westernmost town on the mainland. She used to go to Wales with my grandmother to get supplies. For ivory carving. He was helping his father out in the store. He carried supplies to her taxi. One time, she slipped and fell on the ice, and he was there to help her up.”

“I bet she didn’t slip.”

“No. I don’t think so. How about your mother?”

“Excuse me?”

“How did your father meet your mother? Was she a reporter like you?”

“My mother?” Lauren stumbled on a protruding rock. “I haven’t seen my mother in a long time.”

“But how did your father meet your mother?”

“My mother was an actress. My father was her manager.” Until she stopped getting work, Lauren thought.

They arrived at the front door to a small wooden home tucked into the side of the cliff. The front of the house rested on stilts to remain level.

The inside was clean and simple. Lauren met Karen’s sister. She was watching over Karen’s two children, a boy and a girl. They played in the living room. Karen served coffee in the kitchen. A folding door provided privacy.

Lauren could sense she was on the verge of the biggest break of her career. She reminded herself to be patient, let the conversation come naturally.

“You owe me fifty dollars,” Karen said.

“I do?” Lauren said.

“Yeah. It’s the fee for entry into the native corporation. The village is incorporated and charges visitor fees to help pay for the basics. I should have collected it when I met you at the helicopter but I… I don’t know. It seemed a little rude, you know? Hi, how are you, give me some money.” She opened a folder and removed a pad full of official receipts. “Can you spell your name for me?”

Lauren spelled her name and paid the fee. She folded the receipt and put it in her bag.

“Is your husband here?” Lauren said. “I need to get back to New York as quickly as possible. I was hoping I could interview him right away.”

“Sam’s not home.”

“When do you expect him back?”

“Hard to say. He left on a hunt yesterday. Usually takes them five to ten days to find a bear.”

“But I was told he’d be available for an interview,” Lauren said. “He’s the master hunter. That’s why I came here.”

“Don’t worry. There’s another hunter who can talk to you. He couldn’t go out on account of a sprained ankle. I can call and get him over here now if you like.”

“No, don’t do that.” Lauren sighed. “You seem like a nice person, Karen. Your kids are beautiful. I would have rather had this conversation with your husband, but I’m afraid I have no choice.”

“What do you mean?”

“I didn’t come here to research polar bear hunts.”

“You didn’t?”

“No.”

“Then why did you come here?”

“Last April you and Sam hosted a young boy for three nights. Do you remember that boy?”

Karen’s expression tightened. “No.”

“The pilot who flew him out, Dan Garner? He told me he flew out a boy and a young woman to Nome last year. Said it was done on the QT. Said Sam snuck them onto the helicopter.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Lauren showed Karen a picture of Bobby. “This is the boy who stayed here with you. Probably sat in this very kitchen. He calls himself Bobby Kungenook but I’m guessing that’s not his real name.”

Karen glanced at the picture and turned her eyes away.

Lauren showed Karen a picture of Nadia. She’d taken it during one of Bobby’s hockey games. “This is the woman who was with him. Her name is Nadia Tesla.”

“Never met her. Never seen her. And she’s never been in my house, that’s for sure.”

“You didn’t even bother to look at the picture.”

“You should go now.”

“Okay, Karen. I can do that. I can leave right now. But I’d ask you to reconsider. I’d hate for this to get out and for you and Sam to be arrested.”

Shock registered on Karen’s face. “Arrested? For what?”

“Aiding and abetting illegal immigration. That’s a felony. And if the boy you helped is a felon himself for any reason, aiding and abetting a felon.”

“Why would you think the boy’s a felon? I mean, if there were a boy. Why would you think that?”

“I’m not saying he’s a felon. I’m suggesting that he could be one. After all, how much did you really know about him?”

A child’s laughter filtered in from the living room. Karen glanced at the door.

“Garner is in federal custody on bootlegging charges,” Lauren said. In fact, she’d let him go after he told her everything to stay true to her word. Apologized to the Feds and told them she was mistaken about the bootlegging. “Illegal distribution of alcohol in dry communities. The ATF agents haven’t asked him about Bobby yet. Why should they? They don’t know anything about them. But if they somehow found out he helped sneak a boy in from Russia or Ukraine… That is what happened, isn’t it?”