Juliet looked absolutely delighted with herself as she explained. "Rodrigo could not have lured Earl to the spot on the roof where he blew up. Because Rodrigo was still trapped in the telescope dome."

Bepi glanced at me, then back at her. "Okay. And you know this because..."

"Because Earl is an influence that will stay with us for as long as we live," Juliet replied. "But... he stayed with our friend Rodrigo in a much more literal way, didn't he?" At our blank looks, she nodded her head down to the paper she'd earlier handed Rodrigo. "That's the remains of our departed leader, you cur. You just toss it away onto the floor?"

Katy jumped back, horrified. "That's... Earl goo?" She blinked. "Ugh, I can't believe I just said 'Earl goo.'"

"Maybe it's not," Bepi pointed out. "Yes, the explosion produced burnt, dark-colored material, but we don't know that's what Rodrigo had on him."

"That would be even worse for the theory," Juliet said. "Because there's no way he could lure Earl over there and not end up with any splatters on him."

"Wait no, that isn't true," I said.

FACT 13: HAZMAT SUIT AND MASK
In the science center stairwell, there was a hazmat suit and breathing mask, which together would cover someone's whole body. Both were slimy when we found them.

"He could've been wearing that suit in the stairway. That would keep him from getting messy from the explosion."

"Weak," Juliet snorted, rolling her eyes. "What Saya's trying to lead us all to is that the suit, which has to be connected to the case, wasn't used to protect Rodrigo from the explosion. Because it was slimy, not caked with meat-ash. And because if he was wearing it, how'd he get anything on his neck?" She smirked at him, then at me, then as Earl's blank spot for some reason. "No, he was exposed to the explosion."

"Uh, hold on," Rocky said, pinching the bridge of his nose in concentration. "Your big great evidence is that Roddy had explosion-goop on him, but... if he was out there on the roof without any protection, he'd be singed or something, right?"

"Nope. There was one place on the roof where he could have avoided that. Inside the telescope dome."

"Ugh, you keep contradicting yourself!" Jane grumbled. "If he was in the dome when Earl exploded, then he'd be protected from any splatter."

"Oh god stop saying 'splatter,'" Katy grumbled.

I nodded sharply, deciding it was time to step in. "That's mostly true, Jane, but not completely. It is possible to be in the dome and still get some debris on you. You just have to be in one particular spot."

With an admonishment from Lucina to be careful, I climbed up the ladder. When I reached the open shutter, I had an excellent vantage point of the spot where Earl had been killed. The shutter itself was pretty big; I could lean my whole torso out with plenty of room to spare, and I examined the side of the dome, trying to ignore that the stains there were the remains of a human being. On impulse, I also examined the top of the ladder, sticking up over the rim of the open shutter. It, too, had Earl spatters on it.

"The ladder was set up at the shutter when Earl exploded... we know that because it had debris on it." I nodded over to Rodrigo. "If he was standing at the top of the ladder when it happened, looking out the shutter..." I trailed off, then raised my eyebrow at him. "That's what Earl saw, isn't it? He saw Rodrigo standing there, watching him."

I looked up at the roof, where she had fallen from. There was a figure there, tall and stark and staring down at us. Earl Morale grasped the railing, his mouth hanging open.

Finally, he straightened. "Comrades!" he called, strongly and loudly enough to be heard even over the roar of the fire and the alarm. "You must not let your eyes deceive you! You must trust..." He suddenly turned, looking back behind him. He took a half-step back, as if fearful. "What..."

Nicole waved her hands in denial. "No no no," she scoffed. "This is ridiculous. You can tell a nice story about how this happened, but I don't buy it, not without proof. Where's the proof?"

"The proof's on his face," Juliet replied casually. "I notice where people are dirty and gross, but that means I also notice where they're not."

We walked up past him, and I tried to smile reassuringly as I passed. When I did, I took note of his neck: there was a stain there, a blotch of dark schmutz that stood out compared to the rest of his face and neck, which were generally kind of surprisingly clean for how sweaty he was.

Barrett threw his hands up in frustration. "Are you just saying random shit to bug us now? What does the rest of his face being clean have to do with anything?!"

"It means he cleaned it," Jane answered coolly. "If he was exposed to the splatter but was mostly clean, then he must have cleaned himself off. But he missed a spot."

"Everyone misses that one spot on their necks," Nicole mused.

"Quite," Jane said, failing to appear unannoyed about being interrupted. "But the question remains: How is this evidence he was inside the dome when Earl exploded?"

"Because we found what he used to clean himself off," I answered. "It was inside, next to the telescope."

FACT 20: BANDAGES
There were two wadded piles of bandages in the telescope dome. One looked to have been used on a wound and had circular stains of blood. The other was dirty, as if it had been used to wipe something off.

"So what?!" Barrett snapped. "So he was in the dome when he cleaned himself off... that doesn't mean he was in the dome when Earl exploded."

"Yeah, it does," Juliet replied. "Wanna take us through it, Chessmistress?"

I glared but complied. "The door was padlocked from the outside. Ashley's body held the key, and by the time Earl died, Ashley was on the ground. There was no way back in the dome once Rogrido left. So, if he was in the dome when he cleaned himself off, he had to be in the dome when Earl died. So there's no way he lured Earl to the spot where Spice was planted."

"Rodrigo?" Katy said suddenly. "I'm not a detective, like I said. But it would really help if you spoke up. I...uh. I really don't think he did it, okay?"

We all looked at her in surprise, but Rodrigo's staid expression softened very slightly. "I will say nothing," he emphasized.

"Yeah, but... I think I know why you're not talking," Katy said hesitantly. "And... I don't get it, but I see how it makes sense for you. But I honestly don't think he did it."

"The fuck are you talking about?" Barrett snorted. "Who's 'he?'"

"Because think about it," Katy implored, completely ignoring Barrett. "Earl's murder had to be planned, right? There were bomb chemicals planted everywhere. Jane said the chemicals were stolen at lunchtime! So he couldn't have gone and killed Earl. It'd have to be planned way before."

I suddenly realized what she was talking about, and I found myself impressed as much as I was surprised. I hadn't figured this part out, myself.

Rocky understood too, and he let out a squawk of protest. 'What the fuck, Roddy?!"

Rodrigo closed his eyes tightly and put his fingers on the side of his head as if he was in pain.

"I made a promise!" Rocky snapped. "I'm dumb, but I know what a promise is!"

"Oh, are you fucking kidding me?" Nicole spat. "They were staying quiet to protect each other... and didn't even know it?!" She threw her hands up in the air. "Of all the stupid..."

"It actually makes sense," I mused. "If Rodrigo saw someone try to commit murder, and then later that same night saw someone get murdered, of course he's going to think the same person is responsible."

Jane nodded. "And if speaking up gets Rocky killed..."

"That means he's broken his vow," Katy finished.

Rodrigo wasn't looking at anyone; he was just staring down at his open palm.

"I can't believe this," Rocky muttered. "It's just stupid! It's... goddamn it, don't do this shit for me. A vow isn't worth helping a murderer! How is that all ten commandments?!"

Rodrigo looked up at the ceiling and sighed. "There were only immoral options," he admitted. "Either choice was dishonorable. I simply had to choose, and stand firm in my choice."

"And your choice was to stay quiet and let us all die?" Barrett sneered. "You selfish motherfucker, feeling all good about your vow and not even caring what happens to..."

"No." Rodrigo looked up at him, a strange strength in his eyes. "I allowed Friend Earl to make the choice, and I still stand behind it, even if I have been exposed."

"Hold on," Katy said, "what do you mean you let Earl choose?"

"Tonight..." Rodrigo looked like he was roiling with either anger or disgust, and I couldn't tell which. "Tonight I witnessed something that should only exist in nightmares. I witnessed a man give in to his inner darkness, and then I saw him destroyed. As I..." he shuddered slightly, "...cleaned his residue off me, I prayed for guidance. I concluded that I must remember and honor the best of my friend, and trust for everything else to work out on its own. Friend Earl would aver that a man stays true to his vows, no matter what, so that is how I proceeded."

He took a deep breath. "I am doubly relieved. That Friend Katy has discovered the truth despite my reticence, and that Friend Rocky is unstained."

"You stupid asshole!" Rocky suddenly yelped. "This is not shit you should do for me! Now Juliet and I are still alive, and who the fuck knows what's going to happen!"

But Rodrigo just shook his head. "Friend Rocky, you are the heart of our group, even if you don't know it yet. I do not know what will happen, but I have trust in your goodness."

I noticed but tried to ignore the sparkle in Katy's eyes or the contempt in Nicole's. "Uh. Okay. I think we all know there's no way Rocky could be guilty, right?"

Rodrigo nodded. "He wasn't present when Ashley died, and I am certain he stole no chemicals today. Very well, I will give my testimony."

"Fuckin' finally," Nicole muttered. She shook her head again in disgust. "If you're so loyal to someone after knowing them for two weeks, then you're not loyal to anyone. This is the problem with choirboys like you; it doesn't just matter if you do good, it matter who you do good to."

"I will be eager to discuss ethics with you once the trial is over, Friend Nicole," Rodrigo replied kindly. She just snorted dismissively.

"Tell us about Ashley's murder first," Bepi said. "Then we'll get to what you know about Earl."

Rodrigo nodded. He took a deep breath, which I noticed had a slight hitch in it; he was holding it together, but still a piece of him was broken. He began to speak:

The planning of the murder apparently began earlier this week. The culprit intended to drive his tank away tonight... though in retrospect that may have been a lie. He convinced Friend Ashley, with whom he had recently begun a physical relationship, that he needed to use fear to keep anyone from interfering in his plans.

This evening, unrelatedly, Friend Rocky went to the student stores and bought an icepick. I was concerned he intended to commit murder, and for multiple reasons, I was determined to stop him. I became certain of his intentions when he unlocked Foul Juliet's prison and hid himself, so I intervened in his attack, allowing Juliet to escape and receiving a wound on my left arm.

Once Friend Rocky calmed, I attempted to discuss his angry, tempestuous nature, but it is so alien to mine, I was unable to understand. However, he promised he would not attempt murder again, and I accepted his oath.

I was both injured and emotionally upset, so I retired to a location I found comforting to redress my wounds and to pray for guidance. I went to Friend Emily's telescope room... a place that, to me, symbolizes hope and possibility.

While I was there, Friend Ashley went to the armory in the ROTC and acquired an unloaded pistol, which she hoped would serve to discourage anyone from sabotaging the plot to start the tank. She and the culprit arrived at the roof at some point... I first knew of their presence when one or both of them chained the door to the dome. They also blocked the trapdoor with a large computer terminal.

I could not see what was happening outside, but I could hear. They spoke quietly about their plans for the night, then there was the rustling of clothes. Suddenly, I head a loud crack and Friend Ashley made a short wailing sound before going quiet. Soon afterwards, I heard a loud siren, which I later learned was from the burning ROTC building.

I had been hoping to remain unnoticed, but I knew I must act. I finished bandaging my wound and set up the ladder at the open shutter. When I climbed to the top, I saw the culprit carrying Friend Ashley's body to the edge of the roof and toss her off. He shouted something, then turned around and noticed me. He appeared horrified and guilty that I was there, but just for a moment before he... exploded.

The force of the explosion knocked me off the ladder; I fell and hurt my hip. I wiped the culprit's remains off my face, climbed back up the ladder, and escaped.

I had intended to stay quiet during the trial out of fear that Friend Rocky was the killer. I now believe he is innocent. Based on what I witnessed, the psychological insights of friend Katy, and the fact that the murder scene was barred from all others, the culprit in the death of Ashley Coelho is none other than her most trusted comrade: Earl Morale, the Ultimate Tank Commander!

Bepi took the story in slowly, then nodded. "I think we should vote on him now before we finish talking about Earl's murder," he said. "Anyone disagree?"

I examined everyone's faces carefully and didn't perceive much deception when they nodded or verbally assented. "Hey, bear!" Bepi yelled. "We're ready to vote on the first murder!"

Monokuma scratched his head. "First murder?"

"Yeah, Ashley's."

Monokuma stomped his foot and threw up his paws in exasperation. "Your stupid generation can't understand rules at all! There's no 'first murder' and 'second murder' in a class trial! You just vote once! And you vote about the victim, Earl Morale!"

Bepi appeared highly annoyed, but he only showed it with a glare. "You. Told us. Like an hour ago. We were voting. On both murders."

"In a truly moral society, masculinity and femininity must be in balance!" Monokuma snapped back. "When men are feminized, it leads to chaos and decay!"

"Oh for fuck's sake," Nicole muttered.

"You will vote once, and it's for the murderer of Earl Morale, and then I'll execute someone or many someones!" Monokuma said, emphasizing every word.

"So no justice for Ashley, then?" Bepi asked.

"Nope! You'll just have to keep on never knowing who really killed her!"

Bepi didn't say anything. I decided to step in before things got too complicated. "Okay. Okay then, let's just refocus. Okay?" I tried to smile at Bepi and he glared back. "For everyone's sake, let's just focus on what's important right now: Figuring out who killed Earl."

After a tense moment, he finally nodded. "Fine. Rodrigo, what happened after you got out of the telescope dome?"

Rodrigo faltered for a moment, then recentered. "Ah. I looked around to make sure no one was hiding anywhere. Then I moved the terminal and descended the ladder."

"And then you ran into us?" I asked.

"No. Something happened before that." He hung his head slightly. "I was... ashamed in myself for allowing more murders to occur, and I was beset with roiling emotions from all that had happened. I did not want to see anyone else. And as I wended through the top floor, I heard the door open. I quickly hid myself, waited for footsteps to walk past, and then I hied from the room as quietly as I could. Then, in the staircase, I met you, Friend Lucina, and Juliet."

I glanced over at Lucina and nodded back. That made sense.

FACT 16: SOUNDS IN STAIRWELL
Lucina says she heard a door open and close twice while we were in the stairwell.

"So while we were going upstairs, someone was at the top of the stairs and went into the fifth floor. Then, as we were approaching the top, Rodrigo left the fifth floor and came into the stairwell."

Juliet laughed brightly. "Oh, my goodness. And other than Rodrigo, we didn't encounter anyone else going down, did we? And since there's nowhere to hide but on the fifth floor..."

"Someone was in the room with us when we were investigating," I finished. "Rodrigo hid from someone among the computers, and then that person hid from us."

Lucina gripped her stomach anxiously and held up a message, Was it the killer?

"Whoever it is, they were doing something pretty skeezy," Rocky said.

"Trying to destroy evidence, of course," Juliet said. "But luckily, they didn't have time."

I raised an eyebrow. "What evidence would they want to clean up?"

Juliet laughed condescendingly. "Just the most important evidence we found!" she exclaimed.

FACT 14: PUDDLE AT THE LADDER
A clear puddle of liquid was at the base of the ladder leading up to the science center's roof. Shards of glass were scattered through the puddle. The liquid smelled like chocolate.

"If that puddle had been cleaned up, we wouldn't have known for sure that Barrett's three chemicals were involved," Juliet explained.

I frowned at that, but I wasn't sure where she was going with it. "We might have deduced that," I said.

"But we couldn't have connected the dots." She was smiling a devious smile, like a cobra or a panther. "And we wouldn't have seen the missing dot that leads us directly to the killer."

"You know who the killer is?!" Rocky yelped.

"Of course!" she trilled. "One chemical was painted onto the soles of Earl's shoes. The second chemical was at the base of the ladder... he had to step through it to reach the roof. But the third chemical remains a mystery. A mystery to all but the killer." She grinned over at her prey. "Isn't that right... Jane?"

There was a tense silence; Jane looked speechless. "I beg your pardon?!" she eventually sputtered.

"It's very simple," Juliet explained. "This entire mystery depends on the locations of the three chemicals. So I bet you would all be interested in the location of this third chemical, hm? Spice, I believe it was called."

FACT 24: BOTTLE IN JANE'S COAT
Jane's trench coat had a bottle of spicy-smelling liquid in the pocket.

"I absolutely never had that chemical!" Jane argued, red-faced with either indignation or anxiety.

"Oh, but you did," Juliet said. "And that's not the only chemical, either. A scientific mind would want to be careful, wouldn't she? She'd want to protect herself. And you were one of the few individuals in position to have worn another key piece of evidence."

FACT 13: HAZMAT SUIT AND MASK
In the science center stairwell, there was a hazmat suit and breathing mask, which together would cover someone's whole body. Both were slimy when we found them.

"She was in the east quad all day and had time to prepare the murder. She was on Earl's 'team' and so probably knew his plans. And she was working on a mysterious 'project' to alter her own body. No doubt something to help her get away with this murder."

"My project was..." but then Jane cut herself off and took a deep breath. "No. If you haven't noticed, you don't deserve to know. And I refuse to acknowledge this foolish notion with a response."

"You can't even defend yourself?" Juliet mused. "How interesting."

"We still haven't answered the question of how the killer lured Friend Earl to the place where he died," Rodrigo pointed out. "I still fail to understand how Friend Jane could do such a thing."

"She didn't have to," Juliet answered. "We've been misunderstanding this case from the beginning. The killer wasn't targeting Earl in particular. She simply left chemicals all around, waiting for someone to step in all three." She put her hand on her chest and gasped in mock horror. "Why, any of us could still be killed in the same way. The campus is still a literal minefield."

"Shit!" Nicole muttered. "Christ, I knew Jane was fucked up, but I didn't know she was so psycho she wouldn't even care who she killed."

"It could have been any of us?" Rocky asked anxiously.

"Wait," I said. "Juliet... you know as well as anyone that's not true. We have evidence the killer was specifically targeting Earl. His boots, right? The soles were coated."

"That does mean he was targeted alone. Jane could have put chemicals on lots of different items."

"But that's not all," I insisted. "There's more evidence that Earl was specifically targeted. You're the one who told me about it."

FACT 22: SMELL NEAR TANK
Juliet claims that she smelled chocolate near Earl's tank, just before the murders.

"The chemicals smelled really distinctive," I said. "We only found them planted in three places, and all three relate to Earl. Sugar was on the soles of his shoes, and Everything Nice was at the ladder to the roof where his meeting was and right next to his tank. We didn't smell it anywhere else."

"Hm," Barrett mused. "You didn't smell Spice anywhere? The only place you found it was in this bird's coat?"

I crossed my arms, frowning. "So either the killed got really lucky, or they did find some way to lure Earl over to the exact place they planted Spice. Those are the only two options."

Rodrigo held up a cautious finger. "Friend Saya... it... is not the only option."

"What do you mean?" Bepi asked.

"I have no idea how this could be," he answered hesitantly, "but... if it remains deeply implausible that Earl died by encountering the third chemical... perhaps the three chemicals were not what killed him."

"What?!" Barrett snapped. "That's a fucking insult!"

"But how?" Nicole asked.

"As I said, I know not," Rodrigo replied. "I simply intend for us to expand the range of possibilities about this case."

"If it wasn't the chemicals, then why did we find them all over the place?" Juliet asked.

Lucina held up a new message, To make us think it was the chemicals.

"Ahh," Jane said. "So that's why the bottle of Spice was in my coat. I feel a bit flattered that the killer thought of me when deciding who to frame."

"Do you see what she's doing?" Juliet said with alarm. "Trying to reconstruct the situation so she's not under suspicion! But no matter how Earl died, it still could have been Jane."

"Juliet." I couldn't hold it in anymore. "Stop."

She just looked blankly back at me.

"She doesn't even think Jane did it," I continued. "Jane couldn't have been the one who snuck up ahead of us to the fifth floor, because we left her in the lab!"

She turned away and began fiddling with some nearby equipment. I don't think she was actually doing anything, but it was clear she was disinviting us from any further conversation. Glancing at my compatriots, I led them away to the staircase.

Juliet shrugged. "That doesn't mean..."

"Juliet..." I sighed. "You're killing me."

She stared for a moment then laughed lightly. "Oh well. You can't blame me, can you? I told you, my heart sometimes leads me to sabotage, but I'll never do it well."

"Wait... you were trying to lead us to the wrong person to get everyone killed?!" Rocky exclaimed.

Juliet just shrugged. "What do you want? I'm evil."

"This whole thing is stupid!" Barrett suddenly barked. "There's no explosives anyone could use without my chemicals! I should know!"

"That's not true at all," Bepi said. "There were all sorts of explosives right nearby."

Bepi had led us to a room that was completely filled with weapons. Guns, grenades, flame throwers, rocket launchers... all lined up and ready for use.

And every one of these weapons had Monokuma's grinning face plastered on it.

"Oh, don't be stupid," Barrett sneered. "Those were off-limits."

"Monokuma told us only Ashley took a weapon out of the armory," I said.

"It's true!" Monokuma confirmed. "I have suffered no damage, but even if I have, the security cameras are an entire other system! I can absolutely guarantee that only one weapon was taken from the armory, and I already handed over the video of it."

"Hey, everyone," I said. "I... am getting a feeling something really shady's up with this armory thing. Can we try to remember the exact wording of the rule?"

Bepi nodded. "It was displayed on the sign."

We turned to where he was looking; the inside of the door we'd come in through. In big, white letters, a sign there said, NOTICE: ANY VIDEO FOOTAGE OF STUDENTS REMOVING WEAPONS FROM THIS ROOM WILL BE AVAILABLE FROM UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATORS UPON REQUEST

"And remember what Monokuma said when we were asking him about it?"

"Wait," I said. "You give us all these weapons, but you'll expose anyone who uses them? What's the point?"

"College is about teaching critical thinking!"

Jane raised an eyebrow. "You believe there was a loophole in the rules?"

Bepi gripped his lectern as if keeping himself from falling over. "Shit. Yes. Yes, there was a loophole, right in front of us, and I didn't see it." He looked around to everyone, a grim frown across his face. "Because remember something else about the armory?"

At that moment, there was a muffled but still surprisingly loud whoop from outside the building. I went to a window; we were on the second floor, so I could see the quad spread out below me.

"It had a window overlooking the quad. So what if..."

"What if someone used a weapon... without taking it out of the room?" Nicole finished, looking gobsmacked. "What do you think... a rocket?"

Bepi laughed humorlessly. "It's poetic. Earl died by being shot with an anti-tank weapon."

I sighed at a Monokuma-faced rocket launcher, which had a Monokuma-faced rocket sticking out of it. "But rigid cataloging kind of takes the excitement out of everything, doesn't it?"

"Welcome to the army," Bepi replied. He looked over at the piece of equipment Ashley was indicating. "Wolfsbane howitzer A23."

"You're a couple of idiots," Ashley grunted as I searched through the stack of manuals. "This is exactly why you're at the mercy of the world, instead of the other way around. We're going from ignorance of everything in this room to complete, organized knowledge, all at our fingertips whenever we need it! You should find this energizing." She pointed at the rocket launcher I'd just been eyeing.

"E44 Defender," Bepi said. "It's an anti-tank weapon. Don't tell Earl."

"No!" Barrett argued. "That's impossible! We woulda seen the trail of smoke the rocket left behind!"

"We did," I pointed out. "We just misinterpreted it."

FACT 3: ROOFTOP EXPLOSION (revised)
According to Barrett, the explosion that killed Earl was destructive, but it didn't have a wide range. He says his explosives could create that kind of result. There was a big trail of smoke leading away from the explosion; Barrett says that might happen if Earl was carrying something solid with him, like a piece of metal.

"We thought that trail was blown out from the explosion. But what if it was going the other way?"

Rodrigo raised a finger in the air. "I'm afraid I'm lost with the discussion of technology," he said. "But the construction of plausible narratives of a murder must be supported with evidence. Is there anything indicating Earl might indeed have been shot with this weapon?"

"Yeah, there is," Bepi answered. "Some pretty good evidence, I think. We found the rocket."

FACT 24: PIECE OF METAL
There was a curved piece of metal in the east quad. It was damaged, but I could tell one side was painted white and black, and the other side was plain metal.

"White and black," Rodrigo mused. "Indeed, the implements of war were all decorated so."

"Oh, come on!" Barrett yelled. "Are you all stupid? No one could have shot Earl out the window, because remember what was going on? The building was on fucking fire! You'd get all burned up!"

"Oh, even I know this one!" Rocky said. "You came up with the way to fix that!"

Barrett dipped his right hand into the black liquid. Then, without another word, he thrust his hand directly into the flame.

I instantly wanted to grab his arm and pull it out of danger, but his smile didn't waver. "Lasts at least an hour, full heat protection, no side effects." He paused. "Well okay, it'll give you gangrene if you don't wash it off." He walked to a nearby sink and began rinsing his hand. "Fire and protection," he called over his shoulder. "Remember this shit, Saya, might save your fucking life."

"But we'd know if someone used that, right?" Nicole asked. "You'd have to put it all in your hair and everything."

Lucina held up a note. I think we found the way it was used.

FACT 13: HAZMAT SUIT AND MASK
In the science center stairwell, there was a hazmat suit and breathing mask, which together would cover someone's whole body. Both were slimy when we found them.

"If you coat the whole thing in the anti-fire gel, you'd be totally protected, including from the smoke," I agreed.

"This does all tie together," Jane said. "We suspected the killer went upstairs before just before Saya and the others. They shot Earl, ran across the quad, and discarded their hazmat suit on the way up to the fifth floor. Then they hid in the computer room while the investigators proceeded to the roof."

"But why go upstairs?" Rocky asked. "That's dumb. Why kill someone and then run right over to where people are gonna be investigating?"

"And this doesn't solve the problem we had before," Nicole added. "The killer would have had a good shot on Earl standing on the edge of the roof. But how did they lure him there?"

I rubbed my chin in thought. "Everyone... let's think about the chemicals. Why plant the chemicals, if you're going to just shoot him with a rocket launcher?"

"Misdirection," Katy answered. "Make everyone think he died a different way."

"Not just that," Jane added. "But also to frame me. The third bottle was put in my coat. You'll forgive me if this particular aspect of the case looms large to me."

"Right," I said. "And to frame Jane, you need to make it appear that Earl picked up Sugar and Everything Nice at some point during the night. That way, Spice is the missing piece. But there's an element that's been bothering me: the fact that Everything Nice was found in two different places. Why put it by the tank AND by the ladder?"

"Maybe they planned to shoot him in the tank?" Bepi suggested. Then he paused. "It was a goddamn anti-tank weapon, of course they planned to shoot him in the tank."

Rocky frowned. "They're staked out in the armory, ready to shoot the rocket out the window. But then... there he is. Standing on the edge of the roof, right there, a sitting duck."

Katy squinted in thought. "They had this big plan... but just shot him on impulse before he went to the right spot?!"

"That would answer why they had to run over to the fifth floor of the science center," I replied. "They had to plant Everything Nice where Earl would have stepped, or their misdirection wouldn't work."

"Hold on," Nicole said. "How do you know that's what they did? They coulda planted that earlier."

"No," I said, "they couldn't have."

Unfortunately, we had to walk back through the puddle and broken glass to get away from the ladder: it was too far to jump clear.

FACT 26: RODRIGO'S FEET
Rodrigo's feet were dirty, but otherwise there was nothing unusual I could discern on them.

"Everything Nice had to be put around the ladder after Rodrigo left the roof. Otherwise, he would have walked through both the chemical and the broken glass."

"So," Jane said, "the killer threw the bottle of Everything Nice at the base of the ladder and then hid themselves on the fifth floor while Saya and the others investigated."

"Ugh!" Barrett shouted. "Who cares!? You're telling stories left and right, but this ain't helping! All that matters is who did it!" He kicked his lectern; there was a huge cracking sound and it bent. "Fuck this! Fuck all this!"

Rodrigo held a hand. "Friend Barrett..."

"No! This is all bullshit!" He pointed a finger at him, then at Juliet, then finally, with a frothing mouth, at me. "I know what's going on. This is all just to confuse everyone. You make up these crazy stories and go over the same useless evidence over and over and over. This is lawyers and cops and politicians, I seen it a million times. You're just setting up someone to get railroaded. Make sure no one knows what's going on"

I tried to speak up. "No, we..."

He punched his lectern and it broke off, clattering into the dingy hotel convention corner. "Shut up! Your fuckin' games, thinking you're smarter than everyone. I've burned up people like you. Thinking you're Miss Genius while everyone just waits to see you get fuckin' taken down. Either admit you don't know shit or tell us who did it, either way your goddamn games stop now."

I looked straight at him. He was huge and terrible, but he felt totally distant, like someone yelling at me behind plexiglass. "Fine. I'll get to the point: The killer is the one who wore the hazmat suit. That's all we needed."

Barrett hissed at me. "What the fuck are you even talking about?"

"The killer went to the science center," I explained. "And they wore the hazmat suit while they were doing it. That gives away their identity."

"How?!" he yelped.

"Because of the smoke." Now that I realized it, it was the most obvious thing in the world. "The smoke from your awesome fire, Barrett."