Chapter 4
Gifts Wrapped in Black
"You're blackmailing me!?" Xander yelled above the other five clamoring voices.
Mr. Kamui stood up calmly, and shushed the raised volume with a wave of his hands. "I can resolve all of this, if you'd all give me just a moment of your time."
The white-haired man stepped into the hallway; Jakob and the six guests followed him.
"See here," Mr. Kamui gestured to the doors. He gripped the knobs on both of the dual doors and twisted. Nothing. "We're locked in."
Jakob shifted uncomfortably as seven pairs of eyes turned to him, "All the doors are locked, and all the windows have bars," the butler admitted.
"You can't hold us prisoner!" Kaze protested, and was joined by the other guests.
"Open the door," commanded Mr. Kamui.
Jakob shook his head, "Over my dead body."
"Fine," the white-haired man said. "Why don't we all return to the study, and let me continue on with my piece." He picked up a crocodile skin briefcase from the side of the foyer.
Nervous, suspicious, and angry, the guests returned to the study and resumed their spots.
Mr. Kamui set his suitcase on the table and opened it. Inside, were six black boxes wrapped with purple ribbons. One by one, he passed a gift to each guest.
"Did you know you would be meeting us?" Niles asked as he accepted a box.
"Oh yes," Mr. Kamui smirked.
"But we didn't even know we'd be meeting you," Selena commented.
Mr. Kamui stepped back, but gave little other acknowledgement. "Open them," he said.
"Why not? I enjoy presents from strange men," Niles shrugged, and opened his gift. "A lead pipe. What's this for?"
His question went unanswered as Kagero opened up a rope. Next to her, Xander unpacked a knife.
Selena got a candlestick. Kaze removed a wrench that rattled in his hand.
Finally, Camilla removed a revolver from her box. Next to her, Jakob shied away.
"In each of your hands, you hold a lethal weapon," Mr. Kamui started. "Jakob, our butler, has the key to the front door in his pocket. A door that he has said will only be opened over his dead body," the white-haired man took a sip of the drink he'd poured while the guests had opened their gifts. "I suggest we take him up on that offer."
Mr. Kamui walked to the door near where he had been sitting. Next to him was a light switch; he rested a hand on it, and said, "Now."
The room went black. For a moment, nothing.
Then, a thud of someone hitting the floor.
A low voice began muttering to itself.
And finally, a gunshot resounded, followed by a scream that could only have come from Niles.
The lights came back on, and Mr. Kamui was on the floor, dead.
"Everyone step back!" yelled Niles as he rushed over to the body. He leaned in close to the white haired man to see if he was breathing, "He's dead!"
"How?" demanded Xander.
"There was a gunshot," Selena answered.
Six pairs of eyes turned on Camilla, who shook her head.
"Someone tried to grab the gun from me in the dark," the duchess said with ever an aura of calm. "It could have been any of you."
"She's right," Jakob sighed, "it could have been any of us, and we need to find out soon, because the police are going to be here in forty-five minutes!"
"What!" exclaimed the guests.
"I had Felicia call them before we went into the study," Jakob put his head into his hands as he leaned back on the desk. "This isn't what I intended at all."
"Not what you intended?" Selena raised a brow.
The butler raised his head and sighed, "I invited you all. All of us, victims of that man who lies dead before us."
"What's your story?" Kaze asked without a moment of hesitation.
"My wife…well, I'd rather not talk about it," Jakob avoided. "I was Mr. Kamui's butler, and that was how he found out about my wife's illicit activities. I thought if I could gather you all here, we could confront him, and end this blackmailing business once and for all."
"Looks like we did," Niles supplied sardonically.
Kagero picked up the man's fallen glass. "Maybe he was poisoned?" she mused. "There's no bullet wound on him."
"So it wasn't the revolver that did him in," Camilla said, making her point clear.
"We need to figure out what happened here, before the police arrive!" Kaze reiterated.
A scream cut them off.
"The library!" shouted Jakob.
The guests and butler all dashed off to the library.
Jakob swung open the doors, revealing Felicia alone in the room.
"What on earth were you screaming about?" Xander asked, stepping into the room.
"Mrs. Crimson said something about poison," whimpered Felicia, looking at the woman in question. "A-and I had a drink too!"
"Ah," Jakob said as the remaining five bodies filed into the room.
Niles removed a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to the maid.
"How did you know Mrs. Crimson said anything about poison?" Kaze asked, narrowing his eyes.
"I was listening," Felicia said, pointing toward the tape recorder in the center of the table.
"You recorded us?" Selena turned on the butler.
Jakob took a step back, "Only for evidence against Mr. Kamui, Ms. Silver. I had no intentions to use it for anything else."
Felicia calmed down, her sniffling subsiding. Jakob stopped the recording device, and removed the tape. The guests looked at the crystal pitcher of cognac, all wondering whether it was worth the risk to partake in some.
"I'm going to quickly go freshen up a bit," Selena said, pointing out the door. "Is there a ladies room near?"
"Turn left, then take the second left down the hall," Jakob directed. The red-haired woman nodded and departed.
Xander decided to indulge in the cognac and poured himself a glass, "I think there's a rather important question we ought to ask ourselves—" he was cut off by a familiar sound.
A scream.
The seven people dashed out of the library, and saw a horrific sight.
"Mr. Kamui is attacking her!" cried Camilla, pointing at the man who had his hands on Selena.
"Get off her!" shouted Kaze as he pulled the man back. Mr. Kamui fell back, limp in the Hoshidan's arms.
Selena turned on Niles with an angry look, "I thought you said he was dead!"
"Well, he's certainly dead now," Xander observed, waving a hand in front of Mr. Kamui's eyes.
"He already was!" protested Niles. "Or at least, I thought he was. What difference does it make now?"
"Probably a lot to him," Kagero replied, helping Jakob rest the man against the floor.
"Help me get him to the study. We'll keep his body in there for now," the butler decided. He and the six others carried Mr. Kamui's body back into the study. They left him on the couch, as if he were sleeping.
"The candlestick was in the bathroom, too," Selena said, still out of breath from the incident. "He must have been killed with that."
"He certainly had new injuries," Xander said. "Let's go and plan our next move in the library."
The guests, Felicia, and Jakob flocked into the library. At this point, every guest helped themselves to a glass of the cognac.
"As I was saying before that…confusion," Xander began, "we need to find out if there's anyone else in this house."
Jakob and Felicia turned to each other, "Only the cook."
They blinked.
"The cook!"