Daily Dose

Great News Town, a mystery/thriller about a fictional Illinois town that is terrorized by a serial killer, opens on June 26, 1984. So on June 26, 2012, a free, serialized version of the book was launched on this Web site. Weekly installments are posted on Thursdays. Check back often.

Chapter 102

Josie was on the way home from the Lake Michigan beach when she heard the radio announcer say something about “the Cornfield Killer.”  She didn’t catch it all, but it sounded like there had been another murder. Ignoring the sand in her hair and the sunburn on her nose, she stopped by the office as soon as she reached Jordan. Hoss was the only one there.
 “Yeah, there’s a story on the wire,” he said. Holding up his jeans with one hand, Hoss rose to the wall map and reached up to point to the location.
 “It’s really only about five miles from The Banks, but it’s over the border into Cook County. And it wasn’t in a cornfield. It was in one of those new apartment complexes that sort of abut the cornfield.  The AP story doesn’t say anything about a connection to the Cade County murders.”
 “Well, maybe, since it is so close,” Josie said, shaking her head. “A murderer doesn’t know when he’s crossing the county line. Did any of the reporters phone in? Who’s on call today?”
 “I called Nick, it’s his day,” Hoss responded. “We don’t usually cover Cook County, cases but I thought maybe on this one . . . .”
 “Hoss, you’re a  lifesaver."
 “And how’s this little Indian?” Hoss said, ruffling Kevin’s hair.
 “I’m not an Indian,” Kevin giggled.
 “Why, you’ve got red skin!” Hoss replied.

Nick’s story in Monday’s paper had all the basic details—a young married couple killed in their bed, he with one gunshot to the head, she shot several times. Though both were nude, Cook County police did not suspect a sex crime. It was a marital bed, after all. Nor did they see any link to the Cade County crimes. Cade County officials seemed to agree.
 “Of course we are working with Cook County,” Sheriff Coleman said in an official statement, “but there is no evidence at this time to link this murder to any of the recent, unsolved murders in Cade County.”
Off the record, Coleman complained to Nick that Cook County was uncooperative and unwilling to share any information about its
investigation. “The killer could have left a note confessing to the Cade County crimes and they wouldn’t tell us,” Coleman said with disgust.
But the media—especially the Chicago television stations—had no trouble linking the murders. “Cornfield Killer strikes again” was the top story on Monday’s five p.m. and ten p.m. newscasts on all three stations. Instead of using the reserved comments of the Cook County Sheriff’s department, they filled their screens with panicked neighbors and pseudo-experts like Angela Deline.
Media attention was focused on the latest victims, so the television vans were circling in the little suburb of Park Forest. Jordan was forgotten as yesterday’s news, which was fine with everyone living there. They liked their lives getting back to normal.