Free The Cruelest Cut by Rick Reed Page B

know the notes were definitely involved until I got this one.”
    She reached in her handbag, and brought out another plastic bag with a note inside. But before she would show it to the men she said, “When I got the third note, the one about the children, I started thinking these must be about the murders. So I confirmed with a source that you found notes at two of the three murder scenes.” She held up three fingers and counted off, “Dr. Lewis and her husband were murder number one. Timmy Ryan, murder number two. And last, the Lamar kids, where, as you can see, he clearly refers to Detective Murphy. But you didn’t get a note at that scene, Jack. The killer left another kind of message there, didn’t he?”
    Jack ignored her probing question and said, “Let’s see the new note.”
    Maddy tried to stare him down, but she could see he wasn’t going to answer her question before he saw the latest note. “I received this at the station about an hour ago.” She handed the bag to Jack, who glanced at it and handed it to the chief.
    As Chief Pope read it, his normally dark complexion turned to the waxy color of yellow coal. He handed the note to Franklin, who read it out loud:
    Â 
    Jack be nimble
    Jack be quick
    Jack jump over
the candlestick
    Â 
    Franklin traded a look with the chief, and then to Maddy he said, “Okay. Who’s your source?”
    â€œOh, no you don’t. You know I don’t have to name my sources,” she said smugly. “Let’s just say it’s a reliable source that’s close to the investigation.”
    Chief Pope looked around the room. He knew that none of the men in this room would ever talk to the news media about an active murder investigation. But he also knew that policemen loved to brag about their importance, so it could have been any one of the dozens of officers that were at any of the three crime scenes. Or a crime scene tech. Or another detective. Then he remembered that the investigation of the death of Dr. Lewis and her husband had been the responsibility of Deputy Chief Dick. Any investigation Dick was involved in was sure to spring leaks big enough to sink the Titanic .
    Jack, also, had an idea who had leaked to the news media, but it didn’t really matter, because from the look of resignation on the chief’s face, he was sure they had bigger problems.
    Pope stood up and said, “I think I should call the city attorney.”
    â€œWe’ll wait,” Maddy said, and Chief Pope left his own office to make the call in private.
    Maddy looked around the walls of the chief’s office. She noticed the diploma from the University of Louisville, awarded to Marlin L. Pope, master of science in criminology. In another frame next to it, was a master’s degree in business administration, an MBA, from Indiana State University.
    Liddell saw her checking out the diplomas and said, “He’s a smart man. We all respect him.”
    Maddy feigned a hurt look. “I respect him,” she said.
    â€œI’m just sayin’,” Liddell said in a cautioning tone. Wires looked as if he wanted to defend Maddy, but then, seeing the size of his opponent, he opted to keep quiet.
    Chief Pope came back in the office and sat behind his desk. “Okay, this is what we are willing to do,” he said.

C HAPTER T HIRTEEN
    The Indiana State Parole Office was in a yellow-brick building with a full glass front that had been built around 3000 BC , so it was pretty new as far as government buildings go. The heavy glass door in front sported the Great Seal of the State of Indiana, which looked like some guy with an axe chasing a buffalo through the woods. Jack had never seen a buffalo until he took a trip to Montana a couple of years ago, but in the great way-back there must have been buffalo in Indiana. Guys with axes probably chased them all out of the state.
    Jack entered and walked down a narrow hallway to