Apache Tears
Ending the Drug War
by
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In the truck headlights, damn if Jake didn’t see a man. He stepped out from behind the trees and come into the road on Jake’s side of the truck. He was Hispanic, stocky and muscled. "Godalmighty," Jake said to Josie, "all we need is another wet." "They’re coming in swarms, Poppa. Bernie said the Douglas sector arrested thirty-three thousand of them last month alone. You can bet they know you as a soft touch." The feller was standing there grinning, waggling his thumb in the hitchhike sign. "Ritey, senor?" "Ritey donde?" "Con usted, senor." Wearily, Jake got out of the truck. "No ritey ni comida tambien. Soy occupado. Voy a mi casa. Andale, hombre." "But, sir, I speak English. Good worker for you. Got papers, passport. Show you." He reached for his hip pocket. "No work here," Jake started to say. Never finished. Out of the darkness a slash, his head exploding in pain. He couldn’t see, he was falling, groping, Josie tearing at him but the man ripped her away. Somebody laughing, "la rubia!" Josie screaming. In the roaring in Jake’s head, his last voice was a moan. "She ain’t the one, ain’t the one--!" His head was rolling in the hard dirt of the road. There was wind above him, an engine roaring, lifting. He was drifting deeper and deeper into the blackness, trying to fight his way back to life. When he finally could feel again, he was spitting dirt out of his mouth, gripping his head, squeezing at the pain. He staggered up, then fell back to his knees. All he could see was the emptiness of the stars and in them a dying whine, trailing far off to the south, taking his beloved girl away.
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About the Book
Jake Hardesty in an old breed Arizona rancher, still living in the same adobe where his grandfather fought Apaches. But there’s an international war now on the bloody U.S. Mexico border. Drugs, and all the violence connected with them. Jake’s fifty square mile ranch is such a dangerous no-man’s land that 800 federal agents are trying to protect an 82 mile stretch of border, and failing tragically in a no-win drug war. When a small plane loaded with cocaine crashes on his ranch, Jake becomes the target of ruthless men, and sees first-hand the corruption and violation of human rights that the drug war causes. He and his two daughters are swept into a life and death chase that ends in a drug cartel fortress in México. But out of the carnage, Jake and his girls realize that legalization is the only answer to the drug problem. They dedicate a portion of their ranch as an educational center for drug victims and for political action to change an unjust prohibition. Apache Tears, the healing stones of an old warrior people, now become the symbol of compassion and hope in ending the suffering of the drug war.
About the Author
Otis Carney is the author of sixteen books, including the best sellers When the Bough Breaks and New Lease on Life. In film and TV, he has created series and screenplays for major studios and networks, for such actors as Jack Webb of Dragnet, Marlon Brando and John Wayne. The winner of Freedom Foundation and Western Heritage awards, he does occasional journalism for national publications, and has written for presidential candidates. According to The New York Times, his landmark campaign film, Choice, was "unique -- a forerunner that enduringly altered political discourse" in the U.S. A graduate of Princeton and a Marine Corps captain, he flew in the Pacific for 22 months during World War II. Mr. Carney and Teddy, his wife of 53 years, have three sons, six grandchildren and in their spare time are cattle ranchers in Wyoming and Arizona.