Hauck Exman’s Disappearance

The Ax

Exman’s job insecurity, manipulation by Burke, and subsequent disappearance turn him into the first victim linked to a wider investigative pattern.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

A Senior Résumé A Senior Résumé from "The Ax". A Senior Résumé A Long Career Hauck Curtis Exman’s résumé describes decades at Oak Crest Paper Mills and experience that could make him a plausible candidate…

A Senior Résumé from "The Ax". A Senior Résumé A Long Career Hauck Curtis Exman’s résumé describes decades at Oak Crest Paper Mills and experience that could make him a plausible candidate…

A Senior Résumé A Long Career Hauck Curtis Exman’s résumé describes decades at Oak Crest Paper Mills and experience that could make him a plausible candidate for a senior paper position. Burke marks him as a serious competitor. A Person Reduced to Risk Burke reads Exman’s personal history judgmentally, treating his marriages and job loss as further evidence of character. In Burke’s private system, professional relevance outweighs the ordinary complexity of a person’s life.

The Vacant House The Vacant House from "The Ax". The Vacant House A Difficult Watch Burke visits Exman’s home in Sable Jetty and finds him absent, with no clear way to approach from the surrounding roads.

The Vacant House from "The Ax". The Vacant House A Difficult Watch Burke visits Exman’s home in Sable Jetty and finds him absent, with no clear way to approach from the surrounding roads.

The Vacant House A Difficult Watch Burke visits Exman’s home in Sable Jetty and finds him absent, with no clear way to approach from the surrounding roads. The setting frustrates Burke’s attempts to control the encounter. A New Strategy Needed Because the Luger now connects murders through ballistics, Burke cannot safely repeat the earlier method. Exman’s absence forces Burke to invent a lure instead of relying on direct surveillance.

The Interview Promise The Interview Promise from "The Ax". The Interview Promise A False Opening Burke’s fake company invites Exman to meet a fictional personnel director at the Coach House.

The Interview Promise from "The Ax". The Interview Promise A False Opening Burke’s fake company invites Exman to meet a fictional personnel director at the Coach House.

The Interview Promise A False Opening Burke’s fake company invites Exman to meet a fictional personnel director at the Coach House. The letter gives Exman the possibility of returning to a senior role after unemployment. Hope Overrides Caution Exman promptly accepts and returns the form. His eagerness makes the deception effective, showing how the same scarcity that drives Burke also makes other applicants vulnerable.

The Mall Encounter The Mall Encounter from "The Ax". The Mall Encounter Waiting in Public Exman waits at the restaurant for a meeting that never occurs, then goes to his job selling suits.

The Mall Encounter from "The Ax". The Mall Encounter Waiting in Public Exman waits at the restaurant for a meeting that never occurs, then goes to his job selling suits.

The Mall Encounter Waiting in Public Exman waits at the restaurant for a meeting that never occurs, then goes to his job selling suits. Burke follows him and presents himself as a prospective customer with car trouble. A Fatal Kindness Exman approaches the open hood to help Burke. Burke uses the moment to attack, turning Exman’s ordinary willingness to assist a stranger into the means of his death.

A Missing Salesman A Missing Salesman from "The Ax". A Missing Salesman Flight After Suspicion Detective Burton tells Burke that Exman disappeared after police questioned him.

A Missing Salesman from "The Ax". A Missing Salesman Flight After Suspicion Detective Burton tells Burke that Exman disappeared after police questioned him.

A Missing Salesman Flight After Suspicion Detective Burton tells Burke that Exman disappeared after police questioned him. He left his car at work and vanished without explaining his departure to colleagues. Suspicion Misassigned Burton considers Exman a prime suspect, unaware that Exman is dead and that Burke disposed of his body. The disappearance temporarily directs official attention away from the actual killer.

Spring 1997, after Burke’s false advertisement

Early June 1997

June 11, 1997

June 20, 1997

July 3, 1997