Suicide

The Quarrel

LINLEY
I talked to Troy Gallen.

WOODS
Was he willing to talk to you?

LINLEY
He was. He found out that we were investigating Mary Ann's suicide.

WOODS
Patricia probably told him.

LINLEY
Maybe, but he was eager to help us with the investigation.

WOODS
Oh, okay. Did he notice any unusual behavior of Mary Ann before she took her life?

LINLEY
I asked Troy and he responded:
- I liked working with Mary Ann. She was a professional but enjoyed being an adult actress. She was easy to deal with.

WOODS
Did he mean that Mary Ann was complacent?

LINLEY
Troy knew Mary Ann early on when she started to make porn.
- Mary Ann was thrilled to be in the limelight. She didn't do it because she needed the money, she wanted to have fun. That was obvious.

WOODS
Does Troy Gallen think of himself as a pimp?

LINLEY
Troy felt very uncomfortable when I asked him that question:
- What do you mean? No, of course not,  I am not a pimp. We make movies. I don't take advantage of anybody. If one of my girls wanted to do something else, she can do so. Porn is different.

WOODS
Why does he think Mary Ann killed herself?

LINLEY
Troy had tears in his eyes when I mentioned Mary Ann's suicide.
- She was a good girl. Wherever she go, she would make people feel good about themselves. She didn't deserve such an end.

WOODS
Well, his tears don't help anyone after Mary Ann's suicide.

LINLEY
Troy told me that he cared for her:
- I wanted to have her close to me. This business can ruin someone. It is like showbiz, one has to be careful. I sold her the house of my parents.

WOODS
Why didn't he live in the house of his parents himself?

LINLEY
Troy remembered his parents bitterly.
- I grew up in a home without love. My parents were war generation. They had their fair share of tragedies. I understood that, but I don't know. After their death, I tried to live in that house but I couldn't bear the silence. I couldn't be there. Life was missing in it.
I wanted to destroy it, but I could never find the courage to do so. Somehow I thought that maybe I could find there something. I don't know what. Then Mary Ann's husband called. He was looking for a home. Mary Ann didn't tell me that she had a husband. I wanted to ask her out, but I don't know. David and Mary Ann looked happy together. One of us rarely finds luck. At least I thought so.
I thought of Mary Ann as a professional. I thought she was able to successfully separate between her private and porn life. But what do I know!

WOODS
What does Troy think, about why Mary Ann killed herself?

LINLEY
Troy took a deep breath when the cause for Mary Ann's suicide came up:
- A lot can happen. That's life. We don't know what is around the next corner. It is not easy for one of us to talk to someone. That's not how it works, because people assume that you are doing this for many reasons but not for fun.

WOODS
Joy? Well, I think rather that Mary Ann had mental issues. Her suicide proves it. If she enjoyed doing porn, why did she kill herself then? That's so bullshit! What's with the mysterious woman who appeared on set?

LINLEY
Troy told me that the mysterious woman's name is Grace. He has no surname.

WOODS
Why was she there?

LINLEY
Troy initially thought too that Grace was family or something and that Mary Ann's family had found out about her double life.
- Mary Ann didn't tell me that she was married. She didn't share much with me. I met this woman, Grace, was her name. I thought she wanted to be an adult actress, but I immediately saw that she is not the type.
She told me that she knows Mary Ann and that she wants to talk to her. I chided her. I don't like anyone barging into our set. That's why we keep our locations secret! But then I saw that she was troubled, close to tears. She was desperate to talk to Mary Ann. I couldn't deny her the request.
Mary Ann was preparing for the shot. She was excited and felt blissful but when I told her about the strange visitor, her composure changed. Her face seemed to have distorted in front of my eyes and she almost became unrecognizable.
She got up, her facial expression was troubled, she went to Grace and dragged her outside. I didn't know what it was about. This happens, especially when one lives a double life. I admit I felt some malicious joy because I thought this could be the end of her marriage. I liked her and had hopes.

WOODS
This man is just a scumbag, seriously!

LINLEY
Troy continued:
- After this mysterious woman was gone, Mary Ann was taken back. I remember on that day she wasn't much in the mood. Something was troubling her.
But I didn't think much of it, since the next week when we met again, everything seemed to be fine. I thought things had cleared up.

WOODS
And nothing besides that incident happened in all the time Troy and Mary Ann had known themselves?

LINLEY
Troy thought about it for a while and then responded:
- Mary Ann once quarreled with Karl one of the adult actors, but I don't know what it was all about!

WOOD
Karl?

LINLEY
Karl Bailey!

WOODS
Is he related to the cleaning woman in the junior high school?

LINLEY
For a fact, he is! Karl Bailey is the son of Mrs. Bailey!

WOODS
And an adult actor! And he quarreled with Mary Ann?

LINLEY
Yeah, Troy told me that they fought while preparing for a scene.
- In this business, it is all about physical performance. Men are more under pressure than women. We are dealing occasionally with actors who are struggling to get an erection. Every adult actor and adult actress has their rituals on how to get aroused. It's either what they watch or think about and imagine before a take. I don't interfere in that, but sometimes it does not work out and then everyone is vexed. We wanna wrap things up. And in one of these moments, Mary Ann and Karl quarreled audibly with each other. They hurled insults at each other. I've never seen Mary Ann so mad. She even threw things at Karl and at one time would have almost injured him, if I hadn't intervened.

WOODS
But he doesn't know why they fought with each other?

LINLEY
No! Troy remembered:
- I tried to assuage them. I talked to Mary Ann. I recognized she was shaking all over. I saw something crazy in her. She was furious and sad at the same time. I wanted her to talk to me, but she wouldn't open up! She didn't think she could trust me! I was deadbeat.
Mary Ann only told me that she never wants to shoot with Karl again. It was her facial expression, something, and I didn't object. The next thing I know is that she hanged herself. Mary Ann was a mystery to me.

WOODS
Mary Ann had a perfect composure and was seen as a professional. Something serious must have happened that infuriated her.

LINLEY
We'll have to talk to Karl Bailey!

WOODS
I'm on it!