The Two HCEs

The Ax

The parallel surnames of Herbert Everly and Hauck Exman frame Burke’s campaign as a sequence that begins and ends with similarly abbreviated identities.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

The First HCE The First HCE from "The Ax". The First HCE A Résumé Becomes a Target Burke identifies Herbert Coleman Everly through the application he received and travels to Fall City.

The First HCE from "The Ax". The First HCE A Résumé Becomes a Target Burke identifies Herbert Coleman Everly through the application he received and travels to Fall City.

The First HCE A Résumé Becomes a Target Burke identifies Herbert Coleman Everly through the application he received and travels to Fall City. The résumé leads him from abstract comparison to a particular address and person. A Beginning Disguised as a Pattern Everly’s initials later acquire an unintended echo in Exman’s. At this first stage, however, Burke sees only one candidate whose removal might help his prospects.

A Name in the File A Name in the File from "The Ax". A Name in the File The Last Résumé Hauck Curtis Exman’s application stands among Burke’s remaining candidates.

A Name in the File from "The Ax". A Name in the File The Last Résumé Hauck Curtis Exman’s application stands among Burke’s remaining candidates.

A Name in the File The Last Résumé Hauck Curtis Exman’s application stands among Burke’s remaining candidates. His experience makes him a plausible rival, while his home and schedule are difficult for Burke to observe. A Coincidence Noticed Burke notices that Exman shares the initials HCE with Everly. He turns the coincidence into a private joke, a small sign of control amid a campaign becoming harder to manage.

The Last Candidate’s Delay The Last Candidate’s Delay from "The Ax". The Last Candidate’s Delay No Direct Opportunity Burke visits Exman’s home in Sable Jetty but cannot determine where he is or how to approach.

The Last Candidate’s Delay from "The Ax". The Last Candidate’s Delay No Direct Opportunity Burke visits Exman’s home in Sable Jetty but cannot determine where he is or how to approach.

The Last Candidate’s Delay No Direct Opportunity Burke visits Exman’s home in Sable Jetty but cannot determine where he is or how to approach. The physical difficulty delays a campaign Burke wants to finish quickly. A Change in Method Burke abandons direct observation and invents a job interview. The repeated initials conceal a major difference: this target requires a more elaborate deception than the first.

A Pattern Discovered A Pattern Discovered from "The Ax". A Pattern Discovered Burton Names the Link Burton tells Burke that Exman had met Everly and Asche at a government-paper contract gathering.

A Pattern Discovered from "The Ax". A Pattern Discovered Burton Names the Link Burton tells Burke that Exman had met Everly and Asche at a government-paper contract gathering.

A Pattern Discovered Burton Names the Link Burton tells Burke that Exman had met Everly and Asche at a government-paper contract gathering. The detective sees a possible connection among the victims. The Initials Change Meaning What Burke treated as a private coincidence becomes part of an official theory. The two HCEs now belong to a pattern that may reveal the very campaign Burke designed to hide.

The False Resolution The False Resolution from "The Ax". The False Resolution Exman as Suspect Burton believes Exman fled because his personal life was in turmoil and he might be responsible for the killings.

The False Resolution from "The Ax". The False Resolution Exman as Suspect Burton believes Exman fled because his personal life was in turmoil and he might be responsible for the killings.

The False Resolution Exman as Suspect Burton believes Exman fled because his personal life was in turmoil and he might be responsible for the killings. The detective’s theory casts the last HCE as both missing person and alleged murderer. Burke Remains Hidden Burke lets the mistaken interpretation stand. The double HCE motif closes not with justice, but with an investigator moving toward a conclusion that is still wrong.

May 8, 1997

Spring 1997, before the campaign’s final stage

Early June 1997

July 3, 1997

July 3, 1997, after Burton’s visit