Sumith Prasad
The fourth episode of Apple TV+’s mystery series ‘Lady in the Lake’ ends with Reggie Robinson dumping the dead body of Cleo Johnson in a lake. Since a group of police officers chases Stephen Zawadzkie, an escaped prisoner, Shell Gordon’s right-hand man gets rushed and injures himself while disposing of the dead body. Reggie is asked to kill his colleague to ensure that the assassination attempt on Myrtle Summer cannot be traced back to the business tycoon. Even though the episode shows him awaiting his opportunity to kill Cleo, the murder itself does not happen on screen, which makes it all the more ambiguous! SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Obedient Reggie
The obvious explanation behind Cleo’s murder is that Reggie kills her to save himself from Shell Gordon. When the businessman realizes that Cleo can lead the cops to him in an attempted murder case that can destroy his life, enterprises, and reputation, he decides to kill her. Since Reggie caused the whole predicament, he asks his right-hand man to resolve the issue by murdering the latter’s colleague. Gordon also threatens Reggie by making it clear that if he cannot obey the former, his fate won’t be any different. Reggie understands that he has to kill Cleo if he needs to remain alive, which is a strong reason to commit murder, irrespective of his willingness to do such an act.
At the end of the day, Reggie is not a brutal murderer such as Gordon or a man like Duke. But when his life depends on him transforming into one, understandably, his impulse to protect himself may have surfaced and given him enough courage to kill Cleo. Since his master doesn’t know about the rigged bet, he has an opportunity to lay his hands on the bartender’s winnings as well. On a scale, Cleo’s life alone cannot outweigh Reggie and the money he can possess by killing her when he is holding the same. Thus, he most likely kills her to make his master’s life easier and save him from the latter.
Reggie: A Red Herring?
Having said that, it cannot be stated definitely that Reggie kills Cleo. The writers’ decision to conceive the murder off-screen hints at the possibility of another killer. Reggie can be merely cleaning up a different person’s murder by dumping Cleo’s body in the lake. Within this alternate possibility, Gordon may seem like the obvious killer. As someone who has known Reggie intimately for a considerable while, the businessman must have understood that the former doesn’t have the willpower to commit a murder. With time running out, he cannot let his right-hand man prolong what needs to be done as well.
Therefore, Gordon may have killed Cleo on his own rather than waiting for Reggie to come to terms with what’s necessary to keep the cops away. However, since the businessman is the one who orders the murder, the show doesn’t necessarily have to keep him in the dark if he is really the killer, which leads us to Dora Carter, Cleo’s best friend. There are only two people who can make Reggie clean up the crime scene and dispose of the body: Gordon and Dora, his love interest. If the killer is not Gordon or his right-hand man, the singer is the one who has enough reasons to kill Cleo.
Reggie becomes immensely unsettled while waiting for his chance to kill Cleo, as evidenced by his tears. After a point, he may have gone to Dora and revealed his predicament. Even though they are in a troubled relationship, Reggie doesn’t have anyone else to seek comfort from. After learning that her best friend is in possession of a huge sum, the singer’s ambitions may have gotten the better of her senses. She must have started dreaming of a life in Paris, which can materialize if the money ends up in her hands, even if it means killing her companion. Dora then possibly convinces Reggie that they can lead a better life elsewhere if they move forward with the murder.
If Dora is the killer, she may have understood that Gordon would ensure the murder wouldn’t attract the law to protect himself. Thus, she doesn’t have to worry about the authorities chasing her even if she commits the crime. And if she doesn’t want to live with Reggie, there’s always the option of disappearing with the money upon betraying him. As an accomplice in the crime, he cannot even report her to the police. Considering these possibilities, the singer is not entirely beyond suspicion.
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