Cyril is dead, and I'm here crying. I shouldn't be crying, I didn't know him. Maybe it's just the nerves I've gathered up knowing someone would die, but it still saddens me to see someone I sort of worked with gone. But he is. Nathaniel give me a reassuring smile, but Marie is too focused on what happened. Three people are dead. Three. Not one, but three. It really goes to show that no one is safe, at all. Because at the massive amounts the killer is killing people, we could all die. The other guests, the ones I don't know are looking at eachother with scared looks. One of them is the killer, I know that much.

"Alright, so where are we going today?" Marie asks.

"I don't care." I shake my head, wiping away dried tears. "Just...we need to step up our game today. So another one of us doesn't die."

"We'll be fine Alice, there's no need to cry. He was just a stranger." Nathaniel shakes his head.

"I'm not used to death okay! I'm a gymnast, the worst I see is broken bones." I shout.

"I'll go to the crime scene today." Marie shrugs. "Figure there'll be some good stuff there, considering it's a three person murder."

"And I'll go the last known whereabouts of the three of them."

"Which leaves me with the morgue." I say, biting my lip as the maids and Giles comes in. "Alright, I'll see you guys in a few." Some of the others go with me. Most of them are just nameless faces, and I realize I've isolated myself. If Marie or Nathaniel dies tonight, my group will be left with only two places with info, and we'll be practically dead. I should make some friends, but instead I find myself looking over the bodies quietly, by my self as the others chat.

I look at Matt first, because the others have focused their attention on the other bodies. There's no tiny details I can see, nothing big. He's badly burned and bruised and bloodied but the only significant thing in his hand is a melted button, clicker thing. I'll definitely have to ask the others about it.

The next body, Layla, I believe her names was, is practically like Matt injury wise. She's burned and bruised, but rather than a clicker in her hand, is a loop of keys, what I'd assume to be car keys. And after that, the final body is Cyril's whose again is like the others, and though he doesn't hold anything in his hands, there are some cuts in his arms.

I have to turn the bodies over and look through them several times to make sure I've not missed anything, because there's hardly anything to begin with. I know I'll have to ask Marie and Nathaniel about what they got.

As soon as I meet up with them we journey to the patio and sit at a table near the pool. It's quite for a bit, as we pick at the food the manner set out.

"So..." I say breaking the silence. "What did you guys find?"

Marie speaks first, "The crime scene was...interesting..." She says. "There was debris everywhere, and most of it was from this blown up limo. It's like they all got in the limo and were shot up into the sky. It had to be the limo because there was a bomb underneath. And get this...this is the really weird part...I think someone was watching them die, because there was a video camera on a pole, and it wasn't pointed at the closed gate, I'll tell you that."

"That actually makes sense with what I found at the morgue." I say. "It wasn't much but it fits, they were all burned, but Matt had a clicker and Layla had car keys." I say, trying to remember what I saw. "So Layla was driving, and Cyril was just a passenger. But maybe Matt was trying to open the gate, you said it was closed after all."

"That fits. So now we just need to know why they were in the limo." Marie looks at Nathaniel, who has put his feet up on the table.

"Well they were in the music room." He says nonchalantly. "No clue why but they were, and the music sheet on the piano had a note." Nathaniel state. "It said 'Run, Hide, Go where ever you need but please take these car keys from me."

"So thats where the car keys were from, they were scared into leaving."

"Yeah, and there was an open window with footprints leading through the grass, so that's how they got to the limo."

"It fits together now." I smile. "They were in the music room, when they say the not which caused them to be scared, so they jumped out the window and ran through the grass to the limo. In the limo they drove to the gate which was closed, so Matt tried to open it but it didn't work, and while they were sitting ducks the killer blew them up with the bomb under the limo."

"Which they knew to do because they were watching on a security camera." Marie adds.

"And this all explains the burns, and blood and cuts they had when their bodies were in the tree." Nathaniel finishes.

"Awesome you guys!" I exclaim. "Now we know what we're going to say."

"Well, I can drink to that." Nathaniel laughs picking up his glass.

"Nathaniel you're under age!" Marie exclaims.

It's funny actually, I think I could enjoy it here with these people. Some relaxing and laughing, all good times. Except for the fact that we're dying. And that anyone could be the killer. And I may die next.

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You could say Marie was disappointed. But that would be a lie.

Behind her calm demeanor, Marie was hiding a smirk. Last night, Cyril was murdered along with two others. She didn't bother to give names. Although the man was her favorite between him, Alice, and Cyril's replacement, Nathaniel, she was glad he wasn't the killer. This meant out of the nine left, there was a thirty-three percent chance it was someone in her alliance - counting herself of course. This fact made Marie very nervous. For the first time in forever, she wasn't in control.

After a quick battle of vocals, she silenced Nathaniel and won herself a trip to the crime scene. That man kept proving himself a fool. What a shame, too. He seemed fairly intelligent, being an entrepreneur and all.

Oh well. In the end there will only be one person and the killer. That one person will be the sole survivor. And that person will be her. She's fairly certain about that.

As of now, Marie's heels were clacking down the stone staircase out in the back. Her eyes fixed on a gnarled oak tree growing steadily on the freshly mowed lawn. After making it down the steps, ankles screaming, she raced through the hedges. Whoever designed this place must've been an airhead if they envisioned this Italian-styled manor with a hedge maze. The horrid bushes only provided massive headaches and, in her case, sprained ankles.

Someone might think Marie foolish for wearing heels in the first place, but the pain was worth it. These babies gave her four more inches, which she desperately needed. She stopped growing when she was thirteen, a big blow to her dream of being a volleyball player. So instead, Marie pursued her interest in law. Sadly, height was also a must in that field - if you wanted to be intimidating, that is. So she went shopping one day and came home with bags full of heels.

This tree, however, didn't need heels. It towered above her and everything else on the property. Yellow police tape wrapped around it, snaking between branches like an ugly ribbon. How Giles got the tape is beyond her, but that's beside the point. Marie had a murder to solve.

She approached the tree cautiously, in case danger still lurked beneath the thick canopy of leaves. There was no one, though, besides three dead bodies. Matt Grey, Layla Simon, and Cyril Marinescu laid sprawled across one another like three bloody peas in a pod. Yes, bloody.

The three were a scene from a horror movie.

Matt took the worst of them, his body in two separate halves, separated at his torso. Marie avoided his face, scanning his body for anything out of the ordinary. It wasn't hard to find a clue.

A flashing remote was in his right hand, its red light pulsing like a heartbeat. Yet, it wasn't symbolizing Matt's. His heart stopped a long time ago. And it had something to do with this metal remote.

Next was Layla. She looked almost as bad as Matt, bruises and blood covering up her scrawny body. Marie only knew it was here by the patches of long hair left untouched by the accident.

Finally was Cyril. Marie couldn't contain her happiness any longer. A cruel smile formed where her thin lips had been, her dark eyes glittering with mischief and pride. Sadly, Cyril was the least ruined of them - though not by much - his shaggy hair covering up his forehead and eyes.

"Hey!"

Marie turned around to face an angry girl with auburn locks. It was easily to tell she was furious by her loud feet and arched eyebrows.

"You are supposed to be at the crime scene! Not here! Cheater!" she bit.

Marie faked innocence. Of course she knew what she was doing. Marie was no fool. Cheating? Maybe. After all, Marie would have to pull all the stops if she was to win. This was one of them.

"I'm so sorry," she cried. "I-I didn't know. Oh, I'm so clumsy!"

The girl's look was priceless. Obviously, she knew that Marie was much normally much sterner than this. And what she did made the girl very confused. It all worked perfectly in Marie's favor. She left the girl behind and went on to the crime scene.

Stupid girl. Everyone knows the only way to win is to cheat.

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After the night of events I had gone back to my room and fallen asleep. I was having a dream- no, a nightmare of the killer, he was over my bed with the silhouette of a gleaming knife on the red patterned bead spread. I was jerked from it by a loud explosion heard outside my window. I sat upright in my bed and ran over to my window. There was a section of the front lawn ablaze with a car right in the middle of the fire. I rubbed my eyes to make sure I wasn't dreaming. I jogged downstairs not caring I was still in my pajamas. There were some other people in the parlor: confusion and fear gleaned in their eyes. My allies Lillian and Osias were standing by the front window staring out. They noticed me and motioned me towards them. "What was that?" Lillian questioned. "I have no idea." I responded. "But, with the reason we're here, probably another death." I looked around and did a head count. There were three people missing. Matt Gray: who I had talked to the night I arrived, Layla Simon, and Cyril Marinescu: who I had convicted of being the killer. Giles hurried in and said "there have been three more guests killed tonight. You will pick one place to examine like last time- the crime scene, morgue, or last known whereabouts. Everyone's confusion seemed to clear up, and they all appeared to realize who was killed. They somberly walked to their remaining alliances and decided on a battle plan. All three of us made our way to a few seats in the parlor to figure out what to do. "I'll go to the morgue." Lillian said right away. "Ok, I'll go to the crime scene." I said. "Then I'll go to last known whereabouts." Osias responded. "At dinner we can all share what we find and come up with a theory." I stated. We all got up and went our separate ways. Lillian to the cold dark morgue, me to the front lawn where the fire had now been put out, and Osias to Giles to find out where the victims last known whereabouts were. I walked amidst a small group of people in the front lawn towards the car. As I got closer I saw things in the large oak tree. Not just things, but body parts. I grimaced: luckily I hadn't eaten breakfast yet. Near the tree, there was a box of latex gloves, and magnifying glasses- how old fashioned. I grabbed a pair of gloves and a magnifying glass and went near the car. There was an awful smell of burning flesh that reached my nostrils. It might've been nice to have included some nose plugs while your at it. As I examined the car and the scene around it, a few men gathered the body parts in a bag which in guessing was headed to the morgue. The car was a limo, and when I went to the gate it was locked. I looked up and around and noticed a large pole in the far side of the crime scene. I squinted and saw a camera situated on the top of the pole, facing exactly at the gate and car. I ambled towards it. When I reached it I realized that there was no way I could climb all the way up to it. Damn it. I went inside feeling defeated. There wasn't much to go on. I was walking upstairs and noticed a string for a door in the ceiling. "An attic? Interesting." I mumbled to myself. I pulled the string firmly, and a flight of wood stairs unraveled from it. I cautiously climbed them and poked my head into the room. It was small, about the size of the cleaning closet in the manor. In the corner of the room there was a camera monitor. I climbed all the way in and breathed in a mouthful of dust. I coughed, although it was extremely dusty, it seemed like someone had been up here very recently. I walked to the small setup with a computer and the camera monitors and sat down in a plush leather chair. As I turned towards the monitor, there was a clip that seemed to be playing on repeat. The monitor showed footage of the victims driving away, Cyril presses a button and it turns on the security camera. Then Layla tries to unlock the car so they can get in and they finally did. then the last one- Matt, pushes the button and it explodes. Body parts flew everywhere. I was shocked. This was a very serious breakthrough. I needed to make sure that no one got a hold of this tape. I ejected it from the computer, and put it in my pocket. By then, it was getting late, and I expected it was about time to go to dinner, which meant time to share our theories. I opened the attic latch and scanned to see if anyone was around. I hurriedly scampered down the stairs, and walked to the parlor. I was one of the first guests, but luckily my allies were there in our designated meeting spot. I sat down with them and started telling them about my find. Their eyes widened in shock as I told them about the hidden monitor in the attic. When I was finished, they continued to share what they found. This case all seemed to be shaping up and coming together. Giles entered the room, and started calling the guests one by one to share their theories. When he said my name, I felt a knot in my stomach. I really hoped we were right. I filed into the room and took a spot in front of where Giles was seated. "My theory." I gulped. "My theory, is that in the morning, all three of the victims were eating in the music room when they found a note for them from the killer saying there was a special clue for them in a secret location. They snuck out early and went to the limo that awaited them in the driveway. Cyril presses the remote which turns on the security camera. Then Layla unlocks the car and they get in. Then finally Matt tried to open the gate, and the car blew up." I looked around finding the rest of my words. "And the person I think commited this awful crime is.... Alice Tridane." I said firmly. "Thank you." Giles said getting up. He walked me out the door and called on the next guest. I sauntered away feeling scared and hoping I wouldn't be next.

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Giles told us about the assignment. I chose the Crime Scene. I carefully walked in the office where I saw the broken ledge. The only person who was gone was... Giles. "But it can't be," I gasped, there was a creak "is anyone there?" "It's only me." Giles says. Oh good. "I was checking to see if you think you know what happened to this poor man." He gestures to the l. "Yeah I think so." I said. "Well?" "It was a killer and he or she is after us all." I began to tell him what I saw. "There was a gun and a silencer, keeping the gunshot quiet but, there was white foam. I'm thinking there might have been some type of poison to make white foam." I said slowly. I'm pretty sure I got it right and when I turned around to ask Giles. He was gone. "Oh well. He's asking someone else most likely." I say defeated. Someone else is going to die and soon. But the real question... Who is the killer? Is it Giles? If so why? There were so many questions and I was ready for answers.

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BOOM! I woke with a start, the loud sound rattling my eardrums and launching me out of bed to see what had happened. I ran out of my room and down the hall to my fellow competitors gathered on the landing, staring at a window.

I pushed my way towards the front where I saw what they were all staring at, mouth wide open. Matt Grey, Cyril Marinescu, and Layla Simon were up in a front tree, their dead limbs dangling from the branches. I could see that their skin was blackened and burnt, and their hair was singed and bloody.

'What on earth happened?' I wondered, horrified at the sight before me.

"Everyone, I'm afraid that there has been a murder. Matt Grey, Cyril Marinescu, and Layla Simon have been grotesquely killed." The group turned to see Giles standing before us, a solemn expression upon his face. "Now, I am going to ask you where you would like to go to investigate. You have three options, and choose wisely, because your knowledge and clues that you find are very important to your status in this game. Who is going to the morgue?"

My hand shot up; the damage done to their bodies could give me vital clues to how they were murdered.

"Alright, who would like to go to the crime scene?" Charlotte raised her hand high, notifying us all of her decision. "And lastly, who would like to investigate the last known whereabouts?" Osias was the last of our alliance to choose.

"Wonderful. Now, hurry along, you don't have much time."

We all left the hall, going our separate ways. I traveled along one hallway after the other, taking my time to think and get my head on straight before I saw their bodies again.

I entered the dark, dank morgue, the smell sterile and clean from countless cleanings after many people had been looked at.

As I approached the three bodies of Matt, Cyril, and Lyla, I saw just how bad their conditions were.

Matt's body was very badly bruised, his face and arms bloody. His feet and legs seemed to be darker and tougher, like the skin was burnt somehow. After looking around his feet and taking detailed notes on the condition of his legs and arms, I noticed something. In his left hand, and small remote was clutched in his stuff fingers. It looked somewhat like a garage door opener.

'Hm... Strange. The mansion doesn't have a garage that opens with these kinds of remotes. But, maybe it's to the front gate. But why would he be trying to open the gate and end up in that tree?' I pondered the clues and possibilities, then decided to move on.

Layla had the same bodily conditions as Matt did, her skin blackened, bruised, and bloody. There was something different about what she was holding though; in her right hand, there was a key. Just one key ring and one car key. 'Why would she have just one car key... And not any room keys?' I thought. It seemed very out of place, and pretty peculiar that they all ended up in that tree. Maybe Cyril's body could give me more information to go off of.

Cyril wasn't holding anything, his body in the same gruesome conditions as the rest of them, export he had some cuts on his inner arm.