The story begins with a flashback, where young Reyka (Gabrielle de Gama) is mesmerized by a necklace. Angus Speelman (Iain Glen) unlocks her door. On her way to the kitchen, she hears a news segment about a young girl who was abducted from a local café. Realizing the mistake, Speelman rushes over to turn it off. When she speaks of her mom, Speelman says your mom stopped looking for you. Portia (Nokuthula Ledwaba) reminds her that they are her family. When Reyka asks about a bowl of food, Portia tells her it is for Sipho, a plantation worker. She is washing dishes when she spots the empty bowl. She runs out of the home, toward a small house on the property. She demands to know if Speelman has another girl captive. He responds, “No my love, it’s just you, you’re my one and only.”

Reyka Gama Kim Engelbrecht) is being removed from an ambulance on a stretcher. She is suffering from severe smoke inhalation. Speelman receives a message in prison. Suresh Pillay (Vikash Mathura) is attacked as he opens his shop.

Reyka receives a visit her mother, Elsa (Anna-Mart van der Merwe), and her daughter, Thuli (Rashaan Stackling). She pulls away when Thuli tries to give her a hug. Elsa goes for coffee, leaving Reyka and Thuli to talk about why she is sad. She says you make me happy.

Police visit the Manhattan Hotel. A man alerts the others that the police are present. Samuel Zwane (Mavuso Simelane) tries to calm the men down as they yell “Macingwane, we are here for you.” DC Nandi Cele (Thando Thabethe) spots a man walking away from the scene. As she pursues the man on foot, he orders a group of men to “stop her.” The group trip her and she falls to the group. She pulls her handgun to get the men to back up. The pursuit continues into a restroom. She checks the stalls and nothing. The man is hidden behind a door, waiting on an opportunity to stab her with a knife. As the man turns around to see Hector (Hamilton Diamini) with a gun, Nandi knocks him out.

Reyka receives a visit from Speelman’s attorney, Mr. Bloom (David Butler). He stops her from calling the nurse’s station. He gives her an affidavit and a pot of flowers and says, “He hopes these are your favorite.”  She is disturbed by the flowers.

Nandi and Samuel visit Chief Msomi (Kenneth Nkosi). They alert him of the male suspect previously apprehended at the Manhattan Hotel. In a confession, the man admits to trying to kill Gogo Pampatha (Nandi Nyembe). Nandi says the man was commissioned by someone inside the chief’s royal court. Chief Msomi denies the allegations. He turns to his son, Fezile (Phumlani Mdlalose), and angrily tells him to “stand up.” He is ordered to go with the police.

Cathleen Tyrone (Fiona Ramsay) gives her housekeeper, Gogo Pampatha some clothes and offers to stay in their home until her house is rebuilt. Jessica Tyrone (Ruby Rose Butler) greets Pampatha when she comes to clean after breakfast. She refuses John Tyrone’s offer the take the day off. John Tyron (Ian Roberts) asks Beth Tyrone (Jessica Haines) if she heard a chopper last night. She says “no”. She says Cathleen must have been dreaming when she heard the chopper. He denies spraying at night.

Tanner (Gerald Steyn) provides Samuel with an overview of the sugarcane killer. He refers to the killer as a “leopard,” stocking its prey and attacking only when it gets close. He spots an image of the knot utilized by the killer to tie up the victims. He identifies it as a “fisherman’s knot.”

Reyka visits the sugarcane workers’ home. While inspecting a pair of boots with two different soles, a young girl pokes her head into the room. She is gone before Reyka can catch her.

Sewsunker (Leeanda Reddy) is searching on the Internet when she discovers an image of Pillay and Imam Kajee (Kaseran Pillay). When Reyka arrives at the police station, she is greeted by Tanner. Hector suggests she take a few days off. She refuses the offer. Sewsunker explains the knot utilized to tie up the victims. The fisherman’s knot, also called a “grapevine knot” was utilized by Indian fishermen. She traced it back to the Indian Naval Academy near Goa. Samuel suggests Pillay but is cut off by Tanner who says he is not a fisherman. Kajee founded and invested in Pillay’s shop in Sugarland. Samuel shows Reyka an image and says, “Pillay is a fisherman.” Hector orders Pillay’s inquiry to be reopened.

Reyka and Nandi visit Pillay at his home. He blames his blackeye on a car accident. They ask him about Kajee. Kajee invested in his shop and now, they are friends. They discuss the fisherman’s knot. Reyka studies his facial expressions and behavior throughout the interview.

At the morgue, the medical examiner tells Reyka and Nandi, the killer strangled his victims from the left side. One of the victims had a bus ticket in her pocket.

John inspects the chopper. The fuel tank reads “empty”. Cathleen asks if the chopper flew the night before. He does not give her a definitive answer.

Reyka tells Nandi, strangulation is intimate. She believes the killer gets off on strangling his victims. The killer attracts women, unlike Pillay who is awkward with women. The victim with the bus ticket traveled from Pongola to Durban Station about a month ago. To access Kwa-Zulu sugarcane fields from Durban Station, the victim had to travel by taxi. Tanner believes they can get footage of the taxis from the rank security cameras, which was utilized in an older case. Sewsunker disagrees because the Kwa-Zulu Taxi Association owns the security cameras. Tanner says he can get the footage from Abula Vilakazi (Kennedy Stab). He refuses backup and they head out to the taxi Durban stop.

Their police vehicle comes under attack by several locals. Tanner spots a man he knows. He leads Tanner and Samuel to Abula Vilakazi. Tanner threatens to impound Vilakazi taxies involved in 10 stolen minivans. Vilakazi laughs before becoming angry about Tanner’s accusations. He denies the security cameras are functioning. Samuel and Reyka become anxious when they see a lot of movement from the men. Tanner threatens him with arrest for stolen taxes. Men with guns surround the detectives. Reyka tells him to lower his weapon, he refuses.

Jessica discovers a woman’s body in the sugarcane field. She starts to run away and runs into Gogo Pampatha who takes her home.

The detectives arrive at the police station. Reyka demands to get out of the car, as Tanner explains sometimes it is necessary to “bust some balls.” She says they risked their lives. He says they risk their lives every time they go out there.

Alex Tyrone (Mark Elderkin) gives Beth a beverage. She tells him Cathleen thought she saw him in the chopper. He asks what she told Cathleen. She told her Alex was with her. Beth tells Jessica police will want to speak with her about the body in the sugarcane field. She sees the lipstick tube Jessica found in the sugarcane. Jessica tells her about an argument between a woman and man in the sugarcane a few days prior. Beth says it is probably nothing, people argue all the time.

Reyka and Nandi inspect the victim’s body. They return to the police department, where Reyka gives the detectives a rundown of the killer and her version of the investigation. She believes the killer gets off on strangling his victims. Hector orders the detectives to say nothing about the serial killer.

Alex speaks with the family about the land dispute. He says the country will end up like Zimbabwe in tatters and no capital. He tells John he is losing his edge. Beth gives the lipstick tube to Gogo Pampatha and orders she dispose of it. She wants the family to leave because they are in danger. She asks Alex where he was yesterday. He responds, “With you.” She smirks and says, “This is not our home anymore” before leaving the room.

The medical examiner confirms the plastic twine utilized to bind the victims. One of the victims was strangled from the right, unlike the other victims. She suggests the killer is ambidextrous or there are two killers.

John asks Alex if he took the chopper out yesterday. He admits to treating field 8A with toxins as a payback to the people. He questions Alex’s view of the situation. He cannot understand how Alex got like this. He asks, “Who are you.” He screams, “I am a Tyrone.”

Reyka drops Nandi off at the police station. They discuss older serial killer cases and Speelman. Reyka says he was not a serial killer. She admits to visiting Speelman sometimes. Nandi promises to not judge. She cries and says, “You could say he was my first love.” She asks Nandi to meet her in the sugarcane fields in the morning.

John tells Cathleen they need to find out if Alex poisoned 8A. He says they could lose everything if anyone finds out. Cathleen tells him to make sure no one finds out.

Jessica pulls a box out from under her bed. The box holds various trinkets – a pocket watch, necklace, smiley face, and toy animal.

Reyka pretends to attack Nandi as she enters the field. They act out the killer’s actions during the killings. They discover the suspect killed his victims from behind. Reyka says the killer is still active and watching them. She contacts the Coastal Sun to alert the sugarcane killer is a serial killer. While she is on the phone, Nandi discovers a beer bottle hidden in the sugarcane.

At home, Reyka tells Elsa about the sugarcane killer who returns to the crime scene to watch the detectives. She tells her about calling the editor at Coastal Sun. Elsa questions if Hector is okay with her calling the newspaper. She warns Reyka about releasing vital information to the public and the killer.

Reyka visits Speelman in prison. He tells her about a dream. She gives him the signed affidavit. He asks her about the flowers. She denies they were a family. Portia did not help her escape. He says they both loved her. He asks who bought your clothes, made your meals, and who made her brilliant. Portia is being held is witness protection. He wants to know her location. He offers to trade Portia’s location for a map that shows where Lucy’s body is buried. Speelman walks away as the show comes to an end.

Reyka Review

Not much has changed with the show, the lighting and camera work are dreadful. Is it poor editing or writing when Samuel from the main cast is wounded in the previous episode comes out unscathed? The show is truly uneventful, with a few, what appear to be irrelevant arrests. It is questionable if the show needs eight episodes to reveal the killer(s). Extra episodes generally result in a lot of filler content, which has proven to the be case here. The episode deserves a 6.

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