An intense atmosphere filled the room as all eyes moved to Melanie. She was suspected of being Elena’s killer once again. That time, there was significant evidence that labeled her as one. An incriminating photo that placed her at the scene of the crime before anyone else. A picture of her footprint.

The chances of her being the killer skyrocketed in the eyes of the other players judging from the suspicious glances they gave her. Naturally, Melanie didn’t seem fazed by the negative attention.

“You turned the tables on me, Cyclops. Well done. Well done.” Melanie sarcastically clapped her hands together.

“How come you’re taking this so well? You’re being suspected of murder!” Henrika pointed out.

“Yeah, yeah, I know.” She dismissed Henrika’s words as she shrugged her shoulders. “I’ll admit that I was there before everyone else.”

“So, you admit to having killed Elena!” Iris angrily declared. The venom in her voice made me shudder. I had never expected to hear such spite in her words.

“You either killed Elena, or you suddenly came across her after the murder took place. Judging from the footprint, you were pretty up close and personal.” Wyatt stated.

“Make it easier on yourself and confess to your crimes,” Nicholas demanded.

Impish chuckles had escaped from Melanie’s lips before she exploded into bursts of laughter. Everyone exchanged glances of confusion while the girl continued to laugh her problems away. The mindset of that girl was a complete mystery.

“Look at you all, jumping the gun because of a stupid footprint. Have you all forgotten that Funbags was attacked in her room first? Any of you think she would’ve let me in?”

The room fell silent as everyone processed her statement. The belief was that the attack started in Elena’s place. For that to have happened, Elena would’ve had to allow the killer into her room. It was no secret to anyone that Elena feared Melanie. She wouldn't have let the bitch into her room.

So, Melanie couldn’t have killed Elena.

“No. Elena wouldn’t have…” Iris reluctantly accepted the statement and returned to her seat. The defeated expression on her face afterward took its toll on me. I understood her pain—wanting to find the person responsible for the death of a loved one.

It was a dreadful feeling that ate away at one’s soul—their entire being. No matter what, death changed people. Never for the better.

“And besides, I’d never be stupid enough to attack someone in their room. The no physical violence rule is always in effect. I’d be dead the moment I hit her.” Melanie explained.

“However, that did not stop you from trying now did it?” Zoey continued to grill her for more information.

“What are you getting at?” Henrika asked.

“Come clean, Melanie. It cannot hurt to tell the truth.” Zoey and Melanie engaged in a brief stare down. The tension between the two of them was massive. However, Melanie eventually succumbed to the will of the detective.

“Fine, fine.” Melanie rested her cheek against the palm of her hand. “I didn’t kill Funbags. But, I did have the pleasure of stabbing those knives into her body.”

The world stood still at that moment. No one dared to move, to breathe. To had dropped that bombshell on us so nonchalantly—I didn’t know whether to be shocked or furious. Hell, I didn’t see why I couldn’t feel both. So, the reason we found those knives in Elena’s body wasn’t that of the killer. But, it was the doing of Melanie. So many questions raced through my mind.

“You! You’re the one that did that?! Why?! Why would you do that?!” Iris shouted at the top of her lungs. Her brows furrowed and many veins protruded on her forehead. She immediately lunged across the table and attempted to attack Melanie.

It took the combined efforts of Wyatt, Nicholas, and Darius to restrain her.

“I wanted to test something out. And it worked out quite nicely.” Melanie examined her fingernails with a bored expression while the others continued to restrain the wild Iris. “Turns out when a player dies, you can harm them all you want.”

“Of course, you can. When a player dies, they are no longer considered a player. So, physically harming a dead body is okay.” Caius gave Melanie a thumbs up.

Monsters. All of them. Not a single shred of humanity resided in those fucking husks as they mocked the corpse of Elena.

“The fact that you felt the need to test that out sickens me beyond belief.” Wyatt seethed. His face, along with Iris’, was red.

“You have no heart! No soul! You’re a god damn monster! You deserve to burn in the deepest pit of hell!” Iris shouted.

“The deepest pit of hell is actually cold. Or so the stories say.” Melanie nonchalantly informed, only further infuriating Iris.

“You can all vent your anger towards Melanie if you like,” interjected Nicholas, “however, it does not change the fact that we are back to square one. We are no closer to finding out the killer.”

“No, that is not entirely accurate.” Zoey countered. “There is one last piece of evidence that will point us in the direction of the killer’s identity.”

“What piece of evidence?” Salomon asked.

“Elena’s body,” She began, “all the nails on her hand were broken once we discovered her body.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Darius asked.

“I believe it ties in with the rule that Elena broke. We have frequently mentioned it in this debate.”

“The no physical violence rule, right?” I assumed.

If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

“Correct. I believe that when Elena got cornered in the restroom, her body immediately went into fight or flight mode. Her instincts took over, and she scratched her attacker.”

“Which in turn resulted in her death.” Henrika solemnly said.

“What I don’t understand is how come the killer wasn’t killed for breaking the rule as well. They were the ones that started the assault. Elena only defended herself.” Iris cried.

“That’s probably because the killer never actually landed a hit on Elena. Sure, they took several swings at her. But, their attacks never made contact.” Zoey presumed.

Having heard enough, Iris dropped down to her knees and uncontrollably wept. Her wails of sorrow resounded throughout the entire room. Wyatt and Darius moved to comfort her.

“I know you are upset. But, now is not the time for tears. We must put this game to a close.” Wyatt said.

“Zoey, you mentioned that Elena managed to wound her attacker with her nails, right? So, one of us must have scratches on our bodies.” Nicholas assumed.

“Oh, is this the part where we go around in a circle and remove all our clothes?” Melanie stood from her chair then placed her hands on her cheeks. She swayed her hips from side to side as she continued, “I wouldn’t mind putting on a show. However, it’s gonna cost you all.”

“Please spare us from the horror of having to see you naked.” Darius pleaded.

“There is no need to do something that drastic. No article of clothing will have to be removed.” Zoey stood up and walked over to Darius. “Darius, would you mind removing the bandage on your cheek?”

“Huh?!” The teenager exclaimed.

I nearly let out an undesirable sound as well. Her request was far too sudden and unexpected.

“Did you not hear me? Remove the bandage from your cheek.” The detective ordered.

The eyes of judgment rested on Darius—one of the least suspected players out of the group. Bullets of sweat poured down his pale face. None of his mannerisms helped the fact that he looked the most suspicious at that moment.

“L-Look, it’s not what you think! Honest! It’s just that…”

His mouth closed shut the moment a chair flew across the room, eventually colliding against the wall. The perpetrator was Iris.

“No excuses! Take off the fucking bandage!” She demanded.

With great reluctance and teary eyes, Darius lowered his head and removed the bandage. There lied scratch marks on his cheek. Certainly, they matched with Zoey's testimony.

“This must be some mistake. Darius would never…he could not have…” Wyatt found it difficult to make complete sentences.

“The evidence is quite compelling…” Nicholas brought his hand to his temple.

“Darius. Please tell us that you didn’t do this.” Henrika pleaded.

Just when Darius opened his mouth to protest, he was knocked to the ground after he received a punch from Iris. She immediately followed up with a few kicks to his abdomen. Wyatt came from around the table and restrained her.

“Murderer! You’re a god damn murderer! I’ll kill you! I’ll fucking kill you!” Iris kicked and screamed, thrashing about like a wild animal as Wyatt dragged her as far away from Darius as possible.

Darius violently coughed as he got back to his feet—albeit with difficulty. He clutched his ribs and looked at everyone with teary eyes of desperation.

“I…I swear…I had no idea that I really did it. I…I want to believe that I didn’t kill her…” Darius nearly choked on his words. Tears flowed from his eyes uncontrollably.

“You don’t want to believe that you didn’t kill her? What do you mean?” Salomon inquired.

“I…I don’t know what happened. It all slowly came back to me yesterday,” Darius began, “it came in flashes. Me, attacking Elena. She begged and screamed for me to stop. But, I didn’t listen…”

He slowly brought his trembling hand up to his face where the scratch resided. The moment he touched it, he flinched.

“Why?!” Henrika exclaimed.

“I don’t know! Something just came over me! I was just so angry! But, when she scratched me, I suddenly snapped out of it…” His gaze dropped to the floor as he brought his hands up to his head. They trembled tremendously as if they struggled to keep his head between his shoulders. “Next thing I knew, her bracelet activated and injected the poison into her bloodstream. She cried…begged for me to help her…But, I couldn’t do anything. There was so much blood. I panicked and ran away.”

I wanted to plug my ears and deafen myself to the story Darius told. Although his words sounded sincere and pure—his actions did not. He just suddenly lost it and attacked Elena? That excuse wouldn’t fly with anyone; especially not me.

“Darius…” Henrika softly called out to him.

“I’m sorry…I swear to god…I didn’t want to kill her…I’m sorry…” He dropped down to his knees and sobbed uncontrollably. Although a few players expressed sympathy, no one dared to approach him.

A long, drawn-out sigh of frustration had come from Melanie as she stood from her chair. “What’re you bitching about? What does it matter if you killed her? Killing isn’t a bad thing; especially not when playing a game where the players should be prepared to die. If not, what’s the point?”

“Shut your mouth!” Iris demanded. “This is a person we’re talking about! A human being! A life was taken because of that monster!”

“You call him a monster. But, all I see is a little bitch.” Melanie walked around the table then approached Darius. “Look at him. He killed Funbags and yet he isn’t enjoying the moment. Piece of shit. When you do something as thrilling as murder, you’d best enjoy it.” She knelt down and got in Darius’ face.

He shrieked in terror and backed away from her. Melanie stood and laughed hysterically. Everything was just a big game to her.

“I guess there is no point in this debate anymore.” Wyatt solemnly said.

“Is everyone ready to cast their votes?” Caius asked. “If so, then let us move to the voting room.”

No one offered any objections to Caius’ order. Everyone followed Caius to the voting room, where we proceeded to cast our votes of judgment. As I stood there, over the screen that listed the names of the remaining players, I mentally went through the debate again.

All the evidence provided, all the of testimonies given—I wanted to make sure that I didn’t have any regrets about my decision. A life was possibly on the line after all. Although, it probably didn’t matter when I considered that life took another.

He regretted it. That much was certain. However, it couldn’t be forgiven.

Elena was a sweet woman. She didn’t deserve what happened to her. She only defended herself in a dire situation, and that got her killed. Had Darius not attacked her; she’d be alive. I steeled myself then pressed the icon over Darius’ name. And like that, my vote had cast. When I stepped out from the booth, all the players had gathered around Caius.

The Game Moderator looked at his tablet with his signature grin. An electronic sound had come from the device and alerted him about the results.

“The results are in!” Caius announced. “Eight players have voted on Darius as the killer! Since they are correct, those players will be rewarded with two points! Of course, the points are being deducted from Darius!”

I looked over my shoulder and spotted Darius at the back of the room. He whimpered quietly and mumbled apologies to himself. Or perhaps, they were directed towards everyone, but no one bothered to pay attention.

“So, how are the rankings looking?” Melanie asked.

“Melanie is still in the lead, this time leading with thirty-seven points. Klara is in second place with twenty-two points. In third place is Ambrose with seventeen points. Salomon takes fourth place with fifteen points. Wyatt, Nicholas, Iris, are tied for fifth place with twelve points. Henrika has sixth place secured with nine points. Zoey has seventh place with eight points. And lastly, Darius is in eighth place with four points.” Caius revealed.

“Are these results supposed to make us happy?” Iris said. Her tone—dismal. All the energy that she had at the beginning of the games vanished. If not for the fact that she spoke at all, she could’ve been mistaken for an empty husk.

“Don’t know about any of you, but I’m happy! Sooner or later we’re gonna leave this joint, and I’m getting my one million dollars!” Melanie cheered.

“You are never going to change, are you?” Wyatt said sardonically.

“Have you not been fazed at all from the debate? Elena was murdered.” Henrika stated.

Melanie placed her hands on her waist then pushed her chest forward confidently. It seemed as if their complaints bounced off her body. No one else threw any comments her way. Everyone seemed far too exhausted. Not physically—but mentally. We suffered significant losses from Elena’s death.

There was no doubt that it changed us. Whether it was for better or worse had yet to be seen.