Hannigan looked long and hard at Cris, and then glanced at Beck. ‘There’s no way to know since the journals ended after he switched methods but maybe he read a book or looked it up online. It’s possible he learned how to do this one thing that he needed to carry out his mission. When a killer like Frank is motivated, they’ll go to any length to make sure they’re able to keep killing.’

Cris looked unconvinced but didn’t say anything. I didn’t know Frank to form an opinion on the matter but it seemed possible he had taught himself what to do. He was obviously intelligent if he’d gotten away with murdering women for over forty years.

‘What about the photo from the cabin? Do we know who that other young boy is then, since it isn’t Cris?’ I asked, looking at Hannigan. He pulled the photo out of the file that I had handed over at the scene and placed it on the table.

Cris picked up the photo and squinted at it. ‘That’s definitely Frank and our father, Rodrigo. Sorry, I don’t recognize this other boy. We’re talking what? Fifty some odd years ago?’ He shrugged. ‘My memory isn’t that great these days. Maybe one of his friends from the neighborhood. I have no idea.’ He looked at the photo again, pulling it closer to his face. ‘They’re a bit out of focus, and my eyesight isn’t too great either. I’m sorry, I really can’t make out the boy’s features,’ he said, before placing the photo back on the table.

Hannigan picked it up. ‘Since no one else is mentioned in Frank’s manifesto or represented in evidence at the cabin, we are confident that Frank acted alone. Other than the women, only Frank’s DNA was found at the scene and Addie and Zoey never saw anyone other than Frank until you rescued them. We’ll hold onto this photo in our file but we have no reason to believe the boy in this photo is relevant to the case.’

I nodded, a little bothered that I didn’t have the answer to the mysterious boy, even if he wasn’t relevant. It seemed I could never turn off my curious brain. Loose ends were my pet peeve.

‘Anyway, that’s about all we’ve got so far on his methods,’ Hannigan continued, placing the photo back into a folder. ‘It’s a bit more than what we are releasing to the press but we thought after everything you’ve both been through, you deserve the whole picture. And Liz, from the entire task force, we want to extend our gratitude for your help in this case. But please, if you ever find yourself in a similar situation again, call law enforcement instead of investigating yourself. Not only do crime scenes need to be preserved to be used in court but you must put your safety first. You were lucky the killer had passed away and you weren’t in danger at the cabin.’