The turnover time was fast, from recording to documentary took about two months. The tape itself was as corny and overproduced as you’d expect from a “true crime” show. Lots of panning and B-role of CCTV tapes.
Ted watched it alone. He wasn’t sure what he was about to see, he was just glad he made an effort to look impressive in his mugshot, almost a music video style mugshot. He’d taken to carrying a travel size pot of hair product in his pocket whenever he’d go out on a job. He almost let out a cheer in the empty house as the image flashed up on the screen.
Irene had ran away two months ago, and when her husband began to realize it was a bit more than a holiday, he’d left too. Something about Brazil Ted tried to remember, but most of this employers motives seemed to melt into a slurry of bravado and emotion. He didn’t give them much thought, they weren’t known for their subtlety, or rationality.
He continued to watch the documentary, watching interviews from afraid parents, and drug smugglers from jail. He even watched the bleeding heart interviews from the new York property developers, whose biggest concern was that it was an “absolute waste of mid century modern architecture.” He was particularly fascinated by the interviews from the bunker recordings, but it was the last interviewer that took him off guard.
***
An interview with Ms Lillian “Lily” Fisher
The interviewer sat her down in a plain room, warm colours of the background banners contrasting sharply with the woman in front of them.
“good to see you Lily” a voice from behind the camera introduced.
Lily smiled to the camera, chewing the scenery for all to see “Hi, thank you for taking the time to see me.”
The interviewer followed her script plainly “is it true that the fire of New York’s Fisher Gallery was due to the Klein crime family?”
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
Lily gulped, “yes, I would say that.”
“could you tell me what happened that night?”
Lily sobbed, the kind of Disney princess sob that was over-performed on the camera. She had short curly hair and a white blazer on as she talked performed, after all, this was her big return to civilization.
“All I remember is flames” the damsel sighed, pulling her coat closer to her neck for comfort, “The woman who started the fire, she was crazed. She was vicious, and that cruel choice of dress!”
An image of Irene in wedding dress torn asunder and singed, was placed on the screen, the one Lily had suggested.
“She knew I’d been struggling since the divorce, she picked that outfit to taunt me as she set the building aflame” the art mistress whispered, wiping a mascara tear for effect.
“I’ve had to go into hiding all these years later in Greece, but no more! I want to proudly step into the sunlight and say I AM NOT AFRAID” she told the camera, with a hand gesture and an increase in eye contact.
“We cannot let bullies win” she added, as the camera zoomed.
A voice over came on the speakers, explaining Lily’s relation to the Klein family.
An infamous art critic and controversial figure in the American nightlife scene, she was often considered a lost muse, thought of as a new competitor to the legacy of the likes of Warhol or Gerda Wegener. She specialized in character studies and portraits of young lovers across multiple mediums. The voice mused.
She was often sighted in the 1980s alongside the likes of Kennedy Klein and his beloved Fiance Irene Clark (Nee Klein). Rumors spiraled across the New York club scene, of a socialite painter from a rich family, and her connections to the transcontinental crime syndicate.
Irene was found in multiple portraits, as well as featuring in the background of many interior venue paintings, her cameos varying from intimate character studies set somewhere that matched the reports of Ms Fisher’s penthouse, to sweeping lifesize nudes that until recently, hung in an intimate Members Only venue by the New York riverside. It was considered to be a rumour until 2005, when early mobile phone photos of the painting were found circulating the internet.
Ted chuckled to himself watching the documentary, she’d be fuming. She’d be so insulted to know they thought of her as merely a wife, she’d be even more embarrassed to discover evidence of her misspent youth was going to be found on a public streaming platform. Ted almost looked forward to hearing her discuss it later, He’d go as far as to break his rule about probing questions,
... if they ever came back that was.