Plagued: a companion to Whodunnit

The Fifth Day

Vinyl peered out into the white through the fogged up windows. He lit a blunt a smoked some, hiding it when he heard the elevator.

"Son of a-" he stopped himself. Liena walked to him.

"You know we're all here scared we'll die and you're here, drugging yourself to death."

"Smoke a pipe, would you."

"Mary Jane's a murderess."

"Yeah, and the White Lady's a whore. So what. What's your story anyway? The Northeast is quite a ways away from Hollywood."

"Up yours! God, Ryan, you're such a-"

"What did you call me?"

Liena tried to lie her way around it but couldn't.

Vinyl gave her a deadly expression, "My name is Vinyl. I'm not Ryan anymore. How did you know that name anyway?"

She was silent.

He grabbed her, "Tell me!"

"What's going on?" Eleanor asked cautiously as she turned around the corner by where the elevators were.

"Nothing. Liena here was trying to steal my Mary Jane here."

She nodded.

"You have drugs? My parents practically swallowed Leaf whole. Do yourself a favor and get it out of here. I hate the smell."

She went to the kitchen and Vinyl let go of Liena's hands and whispered, "Ryan's dead."

Valerie grabbed the gun and aimed it in the mirror as the shower ran.

She had left it in her car. In 2006, her apparent was broken into and she was attacked. She never felt so weak and vulnerable. She only got away by stabbing him with a glass shard from the window he broke.

She bought a handgun the day she got out of the hospital. She took lessons at a local firing range, and became a good marksman.

Esther was playing solitaire and Liena came over. She took a sip of her tea and Esther motioned for her to sit.

"Peaceful game, isn't it?"

"Solitaire bores me. I'm more of the charades player."

"I forgot. The actress."

Liena looked at Esther. For a moment they trusted each other. But a memory of the previous nights shattered any trusts made.

Liena finally gave into her self-pitty. "I'm in a bloody mess."

"Bloody? Is that a UK colloquialism?"

"I took acting lessons in London. Met a director and shot my second movie, some lifetime thriller based on a massacre in Washington on an island."

"Massacre? Looks like you're living it."

"Yes, but why? Why were we-why was I-the lucky winners of the Murder Sweepstakes? Why me?"

"Revenge most definitely. But Revenge is child's play. And the killer should have dug up a grave for all of us, and a grave for themselves. Confucius said that. In so many words, of course, but along the lines."

"You think this is vengeance?" Liena inquired.

"Why else?"

Valerie called everyone to go to the ballroom.

"What's going on?"

They all walked to where Penny lay.

"I've figured a connection. Look at this."