The Executioner

Fifty-Four

Hunter leaned forward and held Tania’s gaze for a short moment before tilting his head. ‘We can’t say for certain, but he’s a person of interest. What can you tell us about him?’

‘Not very much,’ Tania replied in a strangled voice.

‘Anything would help,’ Garcia insisted.

‘He booked the viewing over the phone. He said his name was Turner, Mr. Ryan Turner.’

Hunter wrote it down in his black notebook. ‘When was that? When did he call to book the viewing?’

‘On Friday.’

‘Who talked to him, you or Mandy?’

‘I did the first time.’

‘Was there a second?’ Hunter pressed.

‘Yes. He called on Saturday to say he’d be a little late.’

The cat appeared at the kitchen door again. This time it moved into the living room tentatively and laid down under the acrylic table.

‘Do you remember the conversation you had with him?’

She nodded. ‘It wasn’t a very long one, though.’

‘Do you remember his voice? Was there anything particular about it? An accent, for example?’

‘Yes,’ she said with a series of quick nods. ‘He definitely had a southern accent, like a hillbilly twang. Maybe Texas or Mississippi.’

‘Was his tone of voice aggressive… subtle? Was the voice high pitched… low?’

She shook her head. ‘Not aggressive at all. Very polite, actually. There wasn’t anything particular about his voice.’ She looked down at the floor. ‘I’m sorry.’

‘That’s OK, Tania,’ Hunter reassured her. ‘You’re doing great. Did it sound to you like he could be someone you and Mandy knew from before? A client… someone who visited the agency recently, maybe?’

A new pause. Tania stared at her unsteady hands for a moment before shaking her head. ‘I don’t think so. We haven’t had that many clients come in lately.’

‘Did he come to Reilly’s before going up to the house in Malibu or did Mandy meet him there?’ Garcia enquired.

Tania dabbed her eyes with the paper tissue again. ‘We have a policy of not giving out our property addresses to clients we’ve never met. He came to the agency.’

‘Did you meet him?’

‘No,’ Tania said in a deflated breath. ‘He’d booked the viewing for late afternoon, but called saying he was running an hour late. I asked Mandy if she wanted me to wait with her.’ A new wave of tears started rolling down Tania’s cheeks. ‘But she said that she’d be OK. She told me to come home as it was the weekend.’ She took a deep breath and her voice faltered. ‘I should’ve stayed with her.’

‘There’s nothing you could’ve done, Tania,’ Hunter said, comforting her.

‘Mandy was so petrified of fires,’ Tania said as she stared at the floor again.

Hunter and Garcia exchanged a quick look.

‘How’s that?’ Hunter asked.

Tania took her time. Her bottom lip quivered as she spoke. ‘When she was a young girl, she was badly burned.’

‘Do you know what happened?’

‘Not exactly. Mandy never really talked about it. She just told me that when she was young her dress caught fire. Since then, she developed a terrible phobia of fires. In her house, she doesn’t even have a gas stove or anything. It’s all electric. Even candles made her nervous.’ She paused for a deep breath and then started sobbing. ‘Why…? Why would anyone do something like that to Mandy or to any human being? I don’t understand. You’d have to be a monster to burn someone alive.’ Her breathing now came in short bursts. ‘She must’ve suffered so much.’ Tania broke into a high-pitched hysterical crying, burying her head in her hands.

Hunter moved off the sofa and knelt down in front of her. ‘We’re really sorry for your loss, Tania,’ he said, touching her shoulder. ‘I know how difficult a time this is and we’re very grateful to you for talking to us.’

The front door to the apartment opened and a man in his mid-forties in a decently fitting blue suit with a white shirt and a conservative tie stepped inside. He was Garcia’s height and in good physical shape. The man paused for a second as his eyes quickly took in the scene.

‘Tania, are you OK?’ he asked, dropping his leather briefcase and rushing to her side.

Tania lifted her head. Her eyes were swollen and red. ‘I’m alright, Doug.’

Hunter got to his feet, making way.

‘This is my husband,’ Tania said to Hunter and Garcia. She turned back to Doug. ‘These are detectives from Homicide,’ she explained.

Hunter and Garcia tried introducing themselves, but Doug wasn’t listening.

‘What the hell are you guys doing?’ he demanded. ‘Can’t you see what she’s going through?’

‘We’re very sorry, Mr. Riggs,’ Hunter said.

‘It’s OK, Doug,’ Tania intervened. ‘They’re simply doing their job and I wanna help if I can.’

‘But you don’t know anything. You said you never saw the man.’

‘Any kind of information is always helpful, Mr. Riggs,’ Hunter said, taking a step back. ‘Tania was able to give us some background on Amanda Reilly, and that’ll certainly help us with the investigation.’

Doug cradled Tania in his arms. ‘I should’ve stayed home with you today. You’re in no condition to be by yourself, and certainly in no condition to be interviewed by the police.’ He shot Hunter and Garcia a furious look.

‘I’m not handicapped, Doug. I’m just upset.’

‘You were very helpful, Tania,’ Hunter said before nodding at Garcia. ‘We have to be going anyway. Once again, we’re sorry for your loss, but if I could ask you just a couple more questions.’

Tania nodded, despite Doug’s irritation.

‘Mandy’s bag is still missing. We’d like to have a look in her house. Do you know if she kept a spare key in the office?’

Tania wiped her tears with the heels of her hands and looked at Doug for an instant. ‘Yes. In her bottom drawer. She was always locking herself outside her house, so she started keeping a key in the office, just in case.’

Hunter nodded. ‘We’ll check it. One last thing. Was Mandy Catholic?’

Tania shook her head nervously. ‘She wasn’t religious at all. I don’t think she even believed in God. Why?’

‘Just wondering.’ Hunter gave her a comforting smile and placed a card on the coffee table. ‘If you remember anything you think might be important, no matter how small, please give me a call at any time.’

Tania’s eyes rested on the card for several seconds. ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t be more helpful.’

Hunter and Garcia got off the sofa and walked towards the door.

‘Wait!’ Tania suddenly called. ‘He called her Mandy.’

‘What do you mean?’ Hunter asked.

‘On the phone, when he called to let us know he’d be late for his viewing, after he said hello to me, he said – can I speak to Mandy?’