Jacob's Ladder by Jackie Lynn Read Free Book Online Page B

geographically we aren’t too far from Poverty Point and the Hopewell societies.”
    Rose was puzzled.
    â€œYou never heard of Poverty Point?” he asked. Then he waved his hand in front of himself. “I forget that most folks don’t know the Indians’ story in this part of the country. It’s not usually discussed in the history books.”
    He sat forward in his chair. “I started reading about the cultures after I found an old fossil when I was hunting near Hot Springs. It turned out to be a carving, a shell gorget with a strange figure on it. I took it to the museum director at the state capital and he told me it was from around 1300, a ceremonial piece from the early tribes somewhere in the Southeast, maybe Mississippi. Anyway, it got me interested in that part of history. Turns out that the river used to be a big gathering spot for Indians all across the country.”
    He stopped and took a deep breath, realizing he was more than likely boring Rose. “It’s a hobby for me.”
    Rose thought about the bracelet, how Sheriff Montgomery could probably explain a lot about it, that it might even generate some warm feelings between them, but then she remembered that she had not told him about it when he asked her at the murder scene if she had any other information. She hadn’t included it in her statement. She decided not to say anything about it, since she worried that telling him now might ultimately make things worse.
    â€œYou suddenly interested in Indian history because of the dead man?” he asked, pulling Rose from her thoughts.
    â€œSure,” she said. “And then I just saw a guy at your front desk, not more than ten minutes ago. He was definitely Indian,” she said. “I just wondered where he might have been from, if he might have known the deceased.”
    Sheriff Montgomery turned to look at the front entry. He turned back to Rose. “Wouldn’t know,” he said. “I came in from the side, so I haven’t checked my messages.” He focused again on the uncompleted pages in front of Rose.
    â€œWell, finish this up and drop it on my desk on your way out,” he said as he stood up from his chair. “That will be all we need from you for now. I’ll be over at Shady Grove again tomorrow morning to check things out again.”
    He moved to the conference room door, then turned around. “You’re not going to involve yourself any further in this, are you?” he asked, giving her a suspicious look.
    â€œNot unless I uncover another medical emergency,” she replied. She waited a moment, then smiled innocently.
    The sheriff made a huffing noise and shook his head. “I’m asking you nicely, Rose. Stay out of my investigation.” Then he turned and walked out of the conference room.
    Rose watched him as he went to the front desk and spoke to the receptionist. He took a handful of notes, which Rose assumed were his messages, and then headed into his office. She took a drink of water and finished her report.

SEVEN
    Rose left the sheriff’s office and headed straight to the library. She planned to go to the history section to search for a book that could help her decipher the symbols on the dead man’s bracelet. She thought Ms. Lou Ellen had given her good advice about identifying them, but instead of drawing the symbols on a piece of paper and taking that to the library, she’d just decided to take the piece of jewelry along with her. She figured that she would be able to find a private place where no one would see her and where she could do the research without being discovered.
    Having visited the library a few times during her stay in West Memphis, she knew that on a Tuesday afternoon the place would be mostly unoccupied, and she was right. The library was empty of people except for an older woman who appeared to be studying recipes from magazines, two teenaged boys at the computers, a young